#summarized in a player commenting

[heybiji]

collection of assets I made for the dnd oneshot I ran (The Reaching Woods) to try out DMing for the first time

[cheapshrimpysheep]

Dating in a Dream - Azul Ashengrotto

SUMMARY: What would his dream be like, exactly the same as in the original story, but with the small detail that he is dreaming that you two are dating?

CHARACTERS: Azul Ashengrotto x Reader🐙🦐

TAGS: Fluff; a little angst; GN Reader; In a Relationship (kinda); Kiss; Flirting

WARNING: Spoilers from Book 7 and Azul’s dream (Eng Server)

WORD COUNT: 6.390 words

COMMENTS: This was written as a companion piece to the original dream story, so the parts that are the same as the game are just summarized.

I hope you enjoy🐙

Dating in a Dream: Idia / Epel / Rook / Vil / Kalim / Jamil / Floyd / Jade / (Azul) / ...

“Aether signal tracking successful.” Ortho announces. “We have arrived at the designated coordinates.”

Just like in Jade's dream, you, him, Floyd, Jamil, Ortho, Silver, Sebek, Grim and Idia's tablet appeared in the dream already underwater. You check to see if everyone is there and okay, but Jade wasn't feeling well and ended up vomiting. It seems that Jade has a propensity for the dream-crossing sickness. Meanwhile both Jade and Floyd have switched to their merforms.

“Still, I must admit some surprise.” Jade says. “I wasn't expecting Azul's dream to be set under the sea.”

“And it's our home, the Coral Sea, the least novel place possible.” Floyd adds.

“I was positive Azul's dream would be about him thriving doing business on land.”

The Leeches debate among themselves what this could mean and they think that, like them, Azul got bored on land and decided to expand the Mostro Lounge at the sea. When your group finally decides to go look for Azul, you hear cheering coming from past some rocks.

You go check and see two teams of mermen playing something that looks like spelldrive. Jade and Floyd explain that it is called coral rush, the most popular underwater sport. Jade says that judging by the faces of the players, that is a match between school teams. Apparently, between the Red Pincers and the Golden Tridents. From the description, Idia says that it is impossible for someone like Azul to be part of a team in a sport like that.

But then, the commentator describes someone from the Golden Tridents team stealing the ball from the Red Pincers team.

“Who was it that swiped the ball so fast we couldn't see it...?” You hear the commentator say through the speakers. “Ah, the Golden Tridents' guardian! AZUL ASHENGROTTO!”

You see Azul on the field towards the other goal and with the dreamer's silver bird around his head. Everyone is dumbfounded, including Jade and Floyd.

“Azul, Azul, he's our man! If he can't do it, no one can!” You hear the Merfolk Cheerleaders.

“Why are you looking at them like that, (Y/N)?" Ortho asks you. “You look repulsed.”

You change the subject by saying it was just something in the water.

You continue to watch the game, with Jade and Floyd laughing because not even they believe what they are seeing, and see Azul score the winning goal with spectacular style.

“Ah! They're going somewhere else now.” Sebek points out, after the end of the game.

“We can't afford to lose them. Let's follow!” Silver says.

But unfortunately, it's really difficult for you to move around underwater and the aerospheres are so big that you have to be careful not to collide with each other.

“Squeee! Wait up, Azul!” The Merfolk Cheerleaders swim in your direction. “Hey, out of the way, people! Those jellyfish membranes around you are blocking the way. Stop taking up so much space!” And one of them bumps into you.

“Excuse me!” Azul suddenly appears. “What a terrible way to treat spectators here to offer their support. I'm so sorry how people from my school treated- Ah! (Y/N)? Why are you... what happened to your tail?” Azul looked extremely worried. “And what is this membrane around you?!”

“My... my tail...? I...” Even if you wanted to come up with something to say, you still don't have enough information about what's going on to know what to made up.

Azul carefully places one of his tentacles around your aerosphere to try to pull you with him without bursting it.

“Um... just give us a moment.” Azul tells the others with a smile as he takes you with him behind a rock.

The others let him take you because it seemed like you might be able to get some information about that dream.

“What happened?!” He whispers to you, with a concern similar to someone having a plan go wrong. “Has the potion lost its effect? You took the last dose, didn't you?”

From what you were understanding, in Azul's dream you were a land-dweller who needed to take a potion to stay in your merform. So you decide to go with it.

“Huh... Yes! I, uh, was so excited to see you play that I might have forgotten to take the potion. And, uh... Those guys, they're the ones who gave me this, uh, bubble to breathe in.”

“For the Benevolent Sea Witch's Sake!” He keeps whispering, but almost in panic. “Those guys now know that you're a land-dweller?! Why were you so careless? Good thing I always carry a spare potion with me.” He has a brown bag around his waist from which he takes a light purple glass bottle. “Deep breath.”

You take a deep breath and he bursts your aerosphere. He uses his tentacles to take off one of your shoes and sock while complaining about why you land-dwellers wear so many layers of clothing and makes a drop of the potion touch your foot. Your legs start to glow, join together and become a shrimp tail. But the strangest thing is that you start breathing through gills in your ribs. Azul puts the bottle back in the bag, holds your hands with his and with one of his tentacles he holds your tail to give you support.

“It's okay, my dear.” Azul tells you reassuringly. “You'll get used to it again in no time. And I won't leave your side anymore. I promise.” He kisses your cheek. “You can take off your clothes now.” he suggests casually. “They will only get in the way of your swimming. And the other merfolks will find it extremely suspicious.”

If you have a female body, you will notice that the scales on your tail continue up your torso, covering your chest like a bathing suit and just like the Sea Witch. So, since there is no problem in taking off your shirt and you already feel the difficulty of moving with clothes underwater, you take off the rest of your clothes.

“You are so much more beautiful without those things covering you.” He smiles fondly at you and he holds you again. “Now... let's get back to our... visitors.” He says with a sly smile. “You can hold my arm until you feel comfortable swimming again.”

You do so and hold on to Azul's arm, which is stronger than you thought. You and Azul come out from behind the rock to approach the group again and it's no surprise that everyone looks at your new merform with immense astonishment.

“(Y/N) told me what happened.” Azul tells them. “Thank you so much for helping my partner in such a time of need.”

“Your PARTNER?!”

“Yes, I know. We are such a charming couple.” Azul confirms with a proud smile. “You must have traveled a long way to get here. Please, consider yourselves welcome. My name is Azul Ashengrotto. I'm the captain of the Golden Tridents, my school's coral rush team.”

“Mr. Ashengrotto, I was quite impressed with how you were playing back there.” Jade tells him enthusiastically, or rather, feigning enthusiasm. “Could I trouble you for an autograph?”

He makes Azul sign the back of Idia's tablet, against Idia’s will.

“By the way, do our faces ring any bells for you?” Jade asks after thanking him for the autograph.

“Your faces? Hmm... Ah! Are you the Leeches? From elementary school?”

“Yes! I'm honored you remember us.”

“Oh, the memories! We were in the same class back then, weren't we? It's been ages!” Azul looks at you. “Excuse me for a second, my dear.”

He gently makes you let go of his arm, but discreetly keeps a tentacle on your tail to support you, as he and Jade do one of those complicated secret handshakes. After that, Azul swims back a little so you can lean on his arm again.

They talk about how it's been a while since they last saw each other at graduation. The Leeches tell him that they are at Night Raven College and Azul is surprised, maybe even shocked, that they are attending a school on land.

“That's... amazing. You must be quite brave.” Azul tells them. “I could never go up on land, myself...”

“Hey, Azul!” A teammate of his calls. “Come on, Let's go! Party can't start without the star of the team!”

Azul has to say goodbye, but first he invites the group to go to his team's victory party that night, saying he would like to hear more about their life on land. The venue was La Grotta, his mother's restaurant. As soon as Azul mentions food, Grim almost jumps on him with excitement. But by the way he treats him, it seems that Azul doesn't recognize Grim, even though he knows you.

“We'll be waiting! Until then.” He finally says goodbye and takes you with him.

Seeing you leave without Azul, Grim prepares to protest but is stopped by Jamil who suggests that they let you go to get more inside information that could be useful to them.

“Ahh... Azul's got such a friendly, dreamy smile!” A Golden Tridents Fan says. “I think I'm in love. What I would give to be (Y/N). They are so lucky.”

As you swim past the fans of Azul’s team, or rather, Azul’s fans with him, you look sideways at some of these merfolks.

“What is it?” He asks you with a smug smile. “Don't tell me you're getting a little jealous of my... I mean, the Golden Tridents fans.”

You don't hide your slightly sullen lips, which makes him chuckle.

“Oh, my pearl, I thought you already knew that you don't need to worry. No one's voice will divert my gaze from you.” And what a loving gaze he was directing at you.

He took you straight to La Grotta, his mother's restaurant, and he left you in one of the VIP rooms while he went to talk to the staff and his teammates, which gave you time to think about what was going on and what you could do next.

So, to recap: he knows you, but he doesn't know Grim or Night Raven College. And Azul knows you're a land-dweller. But now the question is: How did you two meet if he's never been to Night Raven College? However, you couldn't just ask him. What excuse would you use to not remember your relationship? Amnesia? No, that wouldn't fly.

Luckily, Azul gave you one of those waist bags where you could put your cell phone and you were discussing ideas with the others via messages.

Thinking about the fact that Azul was part of the Board Game Club, just like Idia, he suggested one of those quiz games for couples. Idia could manipulate the questions if necessary, so that you would receive questions that you knew how to answer and Azul’s would be more specific to learn more about his dream. But maybe that wasn't necessary, because in a quick search Ortho discovered quizzes like “Who is the most...”, where the answers are just “Me”, “You” or “Both”. And there's no problem with the answers being different. In fact, it's even better if they're different because then you both would talk about it.

By messing with the dream code a little, Idia makes one of those teen magazines with silly quizzes appear next to you, where the quiz for you to use with Azul is.

When Azul comes back, he brings with him a bunch of your favorite dishes that can be prepared underwater, and places them on the table with a smile. It was an all-you-can-eat buffet just for the two of you, especially for you. You tell him that you found that magazine somewhere and that you would like to take a couples quiz it had. Azul chuckles and accepts for the fun.

“Who is most likely to go to land?” You read the first question, and you both agree that it would be you. Even though Azul commented that none of you would go.

“Who gives more gifts?”

You look at all those dishes that are your favorites and you agree with Azul himself that is him.

“Fine, fine, I admit it.” Azul sighs with a smile. “I may or may not spoil you a little too much.” You feel one of his tentacles caress your tail fins.

“Who is more jealous?” You continue with the questions.

“Hmm... I would say you.” Azul smirks.

“ME?!”

“Are you going to deny the way you were looking at those cheerleaders? Fu fu.”

Something tells you that in real life Azul would be at least a little jealous, but of course his dream wouldn't put him in a position to make him feel jealousy. So you end up agreeing.

“Who is most likely to forget how you met?”

“That would be you, for sure.” Azul says, with an amused smile.

“Why do you say that?”

“Well, technically you were unconscious when we actually met.”

“I was?!” You couldn't contain your surprise.

“Ha ha, I understand. It was a traumatic situation despite everything.” Azul explains. “I usually avoid going too far to the surface, but it was on a night of... um... I think they're called fireworks. The merfolks also enjoy their sight. But then a storm started to form and we went back underwater. I noticed a big... boat? Ship! A big ship struggling on the surface and that's when I saw something fall into the water. I wouldn't have turned back, but I realized it was the silhouette of a land-dweller. And I... I don't know why... Curiosity? I honestly don't know, but I came to your aid. When I caught you, you were already unconscious but still alive. The storm was too dangerous to carry you above the surface, so I used magic to create a bubble of air for you to breathe. When I arrived at the beach the sea was already calmer. Only then did you open your eyes. But I didn't stay with you for long because I heard a lot of people coming looking for you, so I went back to the sea. So technically, you would be the most likely to forget that day. If you remember anything at all.” He finishes with a reassuring smile.

“So, you saved me.”

“Well, yes. And that's why you kept going to the beach looking for me for days, wasn't it? You wanted to know who saved you.”

And how did you end up underwater with him? You look back at the questions and the next one changes without Azul noticing.

“Who is most likely to give up their world to live in their loved one's.” You read. “Well, clearly me too.” You smile at him.

“But of course. You yourself told me that you hated the land. You said you would do anything to be with me.” He smiles, more smugly than lovingly.

“And do you remember when we really met?” You ask. “You know, when I met you consciously?”

“Naturally. After all, you were after me. You even asked the naval authorities of Sunshine Lands for help. And of course this reached my dad since he is a lawyer. I would almost have felt like a wanted criminal if it weren't for the thanks for saving you. And so we arranged to meet on the beach the next night.”

You hear someone knocking at the door. Azul says they can come in and one of the staff members appears saying that the time for the victory party to start was approaching. Azul tells you it was a fun game to bring back good memories, you finish eating and get ready to go to the party and receive the guests.

“We have some... special guests today.” He comments with a smug smile that gives you a bad feeling.

“DJ, surely you can play something with more energy than this!” Azul says as the outgoing host of the party. “We can't exactly dance to outdated jazz.” The DJ does what he says. “Is everyone having fun?”

“Wooo! Yeeeah!” The party-goers enthusiastically confirm.

“Whoa, are those land-dwellers?” You hear one of the mermen say near the entrance. “What're they doing at our party?”

“Hm? ...Oh! Those are my guests.” Azul says approaching the group with you holding on to his arm. “I can't believe you actually came. You all must be quite brave.” He says with that weird smile. “Welcome to La Grotta. Oh, dear... I completely forgot to tell you - this party has a dress code for land-dwellers.”

“What? Why didn't you say so?” Sebek questions.

“Required attire for undersea parties is...” Azul continues. “This!” he makes those anemones you recognize appear on Sebek's head.

“Whoa! What is this?!”

“Under the sea, that's a hair accessory regarded as highly formal. Isn't it lovely the way it sways back and forth with the current?” Azul smiles charismatically. “Wearing these will elevate even the drabbest attire. You'll be the centerpieces of the party! Here's one for each of you!

He made those anemones appear on everyone's head, except Jade and Floyd's, with the excuse that they were for land-dweller and that merfolks didn't need them.

“Now come on in, everyone.” Azul invites them. “There's no sense blocking the doorway!”

The group enters and Azul lets them move a little away from you two.

“Azul.” You whisper to him. “That dress code...”

“Of course it's a lie.” He confesses to you with that mocking smile. “Let's have some fun with those... poor unfortunate souls, shall we, my dear?” He laughs and takes you with him back to the group.

“Hm? The merfolk all seem to be starting at us.” Silver notices. “Have we committed some faux pas?”

“Didn't I tell you that you'd be the centerpieces of the party with those accessories? Their gazes are all riveted to you because you cut such dashing figures.”

This convinces Grim, whose ego continues to be inflated by the other merfolks. And they convince him to go on stage and dance. Grim accepts, but drags Sebek and Ortho with him. You had a bad feeling as big as Idia, Jamil, Jade and Floyd. A hunch that turned out to be true when Grim, Ortho and Sebek fell off the stage and the three of them's aerospheres came together, making them look like idiots. All the merfolks started laughing, including Azul.

“What sad, pathetic creatures land-dwellers are.” Azul mocks. “It's hard to believe ANY merfolk would actually go up there. There's no place like under the sea!”

They admit that Azul only invited them to use them as entertainment and reveal that those anemones on their heads were just part of their humiliation.

“Azul, I can't believe you can lie with such a straight face." A merman says. "You're the man!”

“Ahahaha! Aren't they the perfect accessory for such silly-looking land-dwellers? Ahh, good times! What a delightful diversion this has been. But the rest of the party is for us merfolk. The goofy opening act can exit the stage now. Off you go! Goodbye!”

“WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!” You shout, abruptly letting go of Azul's arm. Everyone looks at you in shock, especially Azul. “You're not like this! Well, yes, you take advantage of other people's naivety, that's true, but not like this. And what's your problem with land-dwellers? You're dating me, aren't you? And I AM A LAND-DWELLER!”

The other merfolks are shocked, apparently this was a secret.

“What? Azul Ashengrotto dating a land-dweller?”

“Wha- NO! They...” Azul looks at the other merfolks. “They WERE land-dweller, but they hated it, they wanted to be merfolks and I granted them that wish.”

“What? I don't hate being a land-dweller!” You defend yourself. “Why are you being a bully? Why do you want to be like the people who made fun of you when you were little?!”

“What? What are you talking about? I never... Argh!” He has a vision of one of the times he was made fun of as a child. “What? No! This never happened!”

“I like you, Azul.” You confess. “But not you, the real Azul!”

“Yeah, this Azul is reeealy boooring” Floyd complains. “Hey, Koebi-chan~ , leave that guy and come back to us.”

“K-koebi-chan?” Azul looks at Floyd strangely.

You start swimming towards Floyd and the others, but that's when you feel something wrap around your tail, preventing you from keep swimming.

“NO! YOU WON'T LEAVE ME! YOU'RE MINE!” Azul pulls you back to him and holds your arms to your torso with two other tentacles around you.

Of course this makes the group attack Azul and whoever gets in the way to save you. Azul tries to swim away and let the mermen fight for him, but the Leeches stop him from escaping.

“Swimming away instead of fighting your own battles?” Jade says. “How pathetic.”

“Pathetic?! ...Hrk!” Azul has a vision of Jade and Floyd looking at him, disappointed, wearing their dorm uniforms.

“Yeah, you're so pitiful that to make Koebi-chan stay with you, you have to force them.” Floyd attacks him. “Let go of them!” He scratches Azul's tentacles making him release you, and Floyd pulls you to take you with him and Jade.

“Let's move on to the next dream, everyone.” Jade says.

This makes Azul have another memory: ‘Ooohhh, is that a fact? I'm just a silly little octo-twerp who can't do anything on his own.’

“Hrgh! What is this?!” Azul’s dream world begins to distort. “Is that... me, in clothes? What is this memory?! Urgh... Head... hurts...!”

The other mermen approached him to make sure he was okay and to do their job of convincing him to stay in that dream, telling him not to believe in land-dweller, that nothing good can come from associating with them. All merfolk transform into that goopy darkness around Azul and you all, but a new figure forms in the midst of the darkness, and when this figure reveals itself, it is a copy of you in your merform.

“Don't let them fool you Azul.” Your copy tells him. “You saved me from that messed up place. And I fell in love with you so much that I would give anything to be part of your world. This wonderful world. Under the sea. With you. Loving you just the way you are.”

“Yes... Nothing beats life... under the sea...”

“Right. Even if you went onto land, you'd be working nonstop from sun-up to sundown.” A merman says.

“Stay here, and you can spend your days dancing and singing!” Another merman corroborates. “Every day's a blast!”

“Life under the sea is as good as it gets... Isn't that right, Azul?”

“Yes... I would never... go onto land...” Azul lets himself be swallowed by darkness.

“Jade, Floyd, let's follow him!” Ortho says.

But... they explain that personal responsibility is the rule in Octavinelle. Immersing himself in pleasant dreams was Azul’s decision. If someone doesn't want step up, leave them, That's their rule.

“You two are going to jump on that thing with us and help save Azul or I'll put you back to sleep myself!” You threaten them, a more emotional than logical reaction derived from your feelings for Azul.

Everyone looks at you in surprise that you even have the courage to threaten those two. But Jade and Floyd smile at you with amusement. They find your reaction interesting and that's why they thought it would be fun to help you while you had such strong motivation.

You appear in Octavinelle's hallway You, Jade and Floyd change your human forms again and you all peek through the door into the interior of Mostro Lounge to see Azul and the Jade and Floyd NPCs talking. You see Azul burning that school photo he wanted you to steal from the Atlantica Memorial Museum.

“Now my wretched past is all squared away.” You hear Azul saying. “And I get Ramshackle dorm from that sucker (Y/N) in the bargain.”

It seems that, from all indications, he was no longer dreaming that he was dating you. You find out he was dreaming of a scenario where Leona didn't turn all of his contracts to sand. This dream likely takes place shortly after midterms. The real-world Azul lost most of the powers he'd taken from others after those midterms, but in this dream, he never lost his contracts, and he's even managed to acquire the powers of multiple housewardens. Just from what you overheard, he's taken the signature spells of Riddle and Leona, at least.

You conclude that you need to find the contracts and destroy them yourselves. You go to the VIP Room but when you open the safe, it's empty. It was most likely that Azul had hidden the contracts somewhere else. But the only people, besides Azul, who could know where the safe was were Jade and Floyd, or rather, their NPCs. The plan now was to draw Jade and Floyd's NPCs away from Azul, distract or even destroy Floyd's NPC and use Jade's signature spell on his own NPC to tell him where the safe was.

While Floyd, Jamil and Ortho took care of Floyd's NPC, you and the rest took care of Jade's NPC. After you go to the Alchemy Workshop, have Idia unlock the door to the storage room, and Jade breaking practically every glass case in sight to take a few super rare magic mushrooms, he puts all the mushrooms in a large container and tells you and Grim to go to Mostro Lounge and make an offer for them. The others don't believe that Azul will fall for that, but the plan is not for Azul, but for Jade’s NPC. Before you go, Jade makes anemones appear on your head and Grim's so that Azul doesn't get suspicious since, according to the logic of the dream, you both should be under his control at that moment.

As Jade predicted, Azul had no interest in the mushrooms, but Jade's NPC had every interest. Jade’s NPC asks Azul to go with you to investigate the place where you and Grim allegedly found the mushrooms and he lets him go, but before Jade's NPC leaves with you and Grim:

“(Y/N).” Azul calls you. “Could you stay and let Grim show Jade the way? There are some matters I would like to discuss with you.”

You decide to accept, because being close to Azul can help with the mission. He asks you to go with him to the VIP Room and tells you to sit on one of the sofas and make yourself comfortable. You do so and he sits next to you instead of sitting in his armchair behind the desk.

“I'm so sorry you lost your dorm.” He says with false pity. “But a deal is a deal.” He crosses one leg. “I heard you moved to Savanaclaw. Is it true?” You confirm. “I'm surprised that the students in that dorm would be so... agreeable as to find you a room. What is it like? I hope it's not too uncomfortable.”

You tell him that you are staying in the Houseworden room with Leona, and this makes Azul's expression change. Maybe as you already expected it to happen knowing now that he probably has a crush on you.

“You are sharing a room with Leona?!” He says in a slightly squeaky voice before clearing his throat and regaining his posture. “But the housewardens' rooms are solo rooms. Let me guess, he's making you sleep on the floor?”

In reality, that's more or less what happened. But... what if... you changed the story a little and saw what happened? You tell Azul that at first, yes, you slept on the floor, but that over time you got closer to Leona and one night, seeing that you had started to suffer from back pain, he started to let you sleep with him in his huge bed. Azul's face doesn't change much, but if you pay attention to his hands they were starting to form fists.

“Well, that's good. But... It must be hard to live in that dorm. After all, you're living in the most... wild dorm in Night Raven College. If you could be transferred to another dorm, is there one you would like to move to?

You know the answer he wants to hear, but you say another dorm on purpose to mess with him. You respond with Heartslabyul, because your closest friends, Ace and Deuce are there. And you also know Riddle, Trey and Cater well.

“It makes sense.” Azul admits a little displeased. “But unfortunately, I heard that they have no free rooms, not even free beds.”

“Well, that's what they told me too.” You tell him. “Ace and Deuce said that both they and Riddle would be happy to take me in, but there was that problem. Ace even suggested that I share a bed with him or Deuce.”

“Really?” Azul whispers to himself, with that look of someone who wants to have a little chat with him later.

“That's why I ended up going to Savanaclaw. I wasn't... I'm not close to anyone from other dorms.”

“And what would you say if you could stay in Octavinelle?”

You didn't know if it was the mood of the room, the decor, the soft jazz in the background, but something was making you want to mess with him through those deals of his.

“And why would that be a better deal than staying with Leona? Since I'm now even sleeping in a Houseworden's bed.”

“Is that what you want?” He says seductively and getting a little closer to you. “To sleep in the Housewarden's bed? What if I told you that I would allow you to do the same here?” He smiles with satisfaction when he sees you looking a little flustered.

“Besides that...” He straightens up on the couch. “I can only imagine how much you suffer from those brutes whose strength is valued more than intellect. Here, you would be treated with much more respect, for sure. Especially...” With his index finger on your chin he makes you look at him. “If you were the Housewarden’s partner. That connection alone would give you all the respect in the school. And who knows...” He reaches out his arm to poke the anemone on your head. “Maybe I'll free you from this.” His hand returns to your face, this time grabbing you by the cheeks. “It really doesn't look good on such a pretty face.”

“What if I don't accept the deal?” You ask, taking your face out of his hand.

Azul's smile faded slightly, clearly dissatisfied.

“In that case... I will have to force you to leave Savanaclaw.” He grabs the anemone on your head and pulls it, bringing your face closer to his. “And bring you here myself.” He whispers. “Willingly or not... you are already mine.”

Someone knocks on the door before you can say anything else. Azul lets go of your anemone, asks you to excuse him, gets up and goes to open the door to find an Octavinelle student asking him to go with him because something came up that needed his evaluation.

“I'll be right there, give me just a second.” Azul closes the door and walks towards you again. “I'll leave you to ponder.” He tells you with his charismatic smile. “You can join Octavinelle of your own free will. Or you can continue to be one of my... forced collaborators. Either way...” He tilts your head with his fingers on your chin. “I'll get what I want..." He leans in to bring his face closer to yours. "And and I want you.” He straightens up, lets go of your chin and turns to leave the room.

You stayed in the VIP Room and shortly after you heard Jade and Floyd arrive at Mostro Lounge and start talking with Azul.

“Jade, that large attaché case you're carrying...” You hear Azul say worriedly. “Is that the one with my contracts?”

They talk about some miscreant wanting to steal Azul's contracts and that's why they went to get the case from under his bed.

“Anyway, hand over the case.” Azul tells them. “I need to hide it elsewhere for now.”

You take the opportunity to discreetly open the VIP Room door and take a peek at what was going on.

“Didn't you hear me? Hand it over, quickly.”

“Azul. Have you truly forgotten?” Jade asks. “In reality, you lost those contracts months ago.”

“In... reality? I lost them? What are you saying? I haven't lost anything. I've gained everything! You've seen it for yourselves, haven't you?”

Jade and Floyd remain silent.

“What's with those looks? You know there's no one left at school who opposes me. Even the headmage does as I say! They all bow before me! And you know what happens to any who dare go against my will.”

“Oh, Azul... You really must stop disappointing us like this.”

“Disappointing you? If anyone here is disappointed, it's me!”

Things escalate and Azul attacks the twins for their insubordination, but Floyd uses his signature spell to bounce Azul's attack. Azul calls all students with anemones in their heads that he controls to fight them. They surround Jade and Floyd. Among them you see Ace, Deuce, Riddle, Leona, Kalim and even Idia. It is at this time that Silver, Sebek, Jamil, Ortho and Grim enter to fight alongside the twins. And you also join them.

“Here, Koebi-chan. You hold the case.” Floyd throws you the attaché case with the contracts.

They fight until the right opportunity arises, which is when Azul uses Leona's signature spell, Kings Roar, to attack Floyd. He uses his signature spell to bounce the attack towards you. You quickly position the attaché case and the attack hits it, destroying it and all the contracts inside.

“No, no, no! My poor little contracts... With my own spell...! They're all... sand... HRK!” The world begins to distort as Azul remembers. “What's happening?! My head feels... like it's about to split open... Urgh! That's right... Back on that day, I... Ah... Aaah... AAAAAAGH!”

Azul remembers and the dream breaks.

“How could I have forgotten something so vital?” He laughs. “I swore I'd never commit a blunder that bad again, and yet... Here I am, reliving the experience of losing all my contracts. What a nightmare!”

Azul, Jade and Floyd don't get to exchange many words before the dream world starts shaking like an earthquake because, now that the contracts have been destroyed, that dream can no longer reach a happy ending. While everyone tried to escape, the darkness caught Azul by the leg. Jade and Floyd held him and tried to stop him from sinking back into the darkness, but the others explained that everyone needed to get out of there quickly and that Azul, as was his dream, could still save himself. The twins let go of him, with Azul's own consent and agreement, and you all left that dream while Azul was taken away by the darkness.

When you were able to return to the dream, you found Azul in his human form and wearing his Octavinelle Housewarden uniform, despite being in his mother's restaurant under the sea.

After the explanations and Ortho showing Azul the explanatory video of what was happening, Azul immediately worries about Mostro Lounge, the possibly spoiled food, and the public's image of seeing them close without warning. But after that, there was another concern.

“Wait. From what I understand, you arrived during the Coral rush game. Which means...” Azul looks at you, but then immediately looks away, embarrassed and blushing.

Jade and Floyd laugh, but Jade still asks if you two wouldn't like to have a private conversation. You accept, even to Azul’s surprise, who ends up accepting after you. Jade and Floyd take charge of taking everyone away from you, probably as a way for you and Azul to later be indebted to them. But since you're at Azul's mother's restaurant, he knows where the VIP rooms are, and he takes you there.

“I...” He was so embarrassed that it seemed like he wanted to hide in a hole. “I-I-I I am SO sorry!” He can't even look you in the eyes. “I swear I would never do that to you! I don't know why I... I didn't know what I was doing. I-”

You get closer to him to calm him down and tell him that you understand. You have seen many other dreams and have noticed that what happens does not always correspond to what the dreamer would do in reality.

 “What can I do to make you forgive me? And forget what happened?” He asks you, struggling to look at your face.

“So it's true that you like me?” You ask back.

“Wha- hm... I thought it would be obvious by now.” He sighs. “I... think so.” He looks away, unable to develop a better response than that.

When you admit that you like him too, he looks at you dumbfounded. The more you tell him about how much and why you like him, the more his eyes will shine. If you tell him that, from a different perspective, you even enjoyed the way he liked having you ‘all to himself’, he will blush even more.

After internalizing everything you've told him, he needs a moment to compose himself. But once he does, he looks at you with a smile and perhaps a little too much confidence.

“So... will you forgive me for my lack of manners towards you?”

You say yes, because you know he wasn't like that anymore.

“I'm glad to have your forgiveness and understanding. But...” He gets closer to you, slowly. “I'm still in debt to you. I treated you like you were my possession and that is simply unacceptable. So, tell me...” He caresses your cheek, brings his face close to yours and whispers to you. “What can I do to pay off my debt?”

“Despite everything...” You look at his lips. “You never kissed me.”

“Should we start there, then?”

You start by kissing slowly. You feel his hands sliding to your back and waist and pulling you closer to him. Gradually the kiss become more needy, and you can feel his tendency to be a little possessive. But this time, with your consent.

If you would like to read more from me, you can find it in my pinned post: INDEX

[asaka-lucy-hl]

【Last Defense Academy School Council】Online Student Council Meeting #5 Transcript

This article summarizes the discussion held during the fifth and final online student council meeting, conducted on May 27, 2025. The following speakers participated, and this record was compiled with the help of volunteers. ------------------------------------------------

Participants:

From Famitsu: Sekai Sandai Miyokawa Sanba Matsuwaki (voice only due to participant limit)

From Too Kyo Games: Kazutaka Kodaka Kotaro Uchikoshi

From ANIPLEX: Producer Shuntaro Inou

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

Q. What is the Last Defense Academy School Council? A. It is a group formed as part of the ambassador program for The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, consisting of members chosen to help spread information about the title. The online student council meetings were one of the perks of participation. These were livestreamed via Discord and only viewable by council members.

⚠️Important Notes:

This article contains spoilers. It is recommended that you read it only after completing at least the first 100 days of the game.

Much of the transcription relies on volunteer notes and memory, so phrasing and order may not be exact. Some parts are heavily summarized. Please understand this as a general outline of the topics covered.

If you’re okay with that, please proceed below! ↓

The final online School Council session was held as a “graduation ceremony” for the members. While there are some spoilers in this content, there was a clear notice at the beginning that direct spoilers about the ending would be avoided.

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

On how they felt after the game’s release

Miyokawa: How has the response been since The Hundred Line launched?

Kodaka: I’ve been constantly checking reactions on social media—so much so that I feel kind of burnt out from SNS. I’m active not just on X but also on Weibo for our Chinese audience.

Uchikoshi: Thanks to the School Council members, it feels like a big commercial success. I’m really grateful to everyone who supported us.

Kodaka: The Hundred Line is like a child we’ve brought into the world. Since it’s our own original IP, I’d really like to continue raising it and developing it further as a game. It’s something I want to cherish.

Inou: We plan to keep updating the game and also expand on merchandise. Right now, I’m promoting it internally, starting with colleagues in other departments. Sales have been so good that we’ve had some items go out of stock. I was just talking to the merch person today, and they said ‘Aotsuki and Omokage are really trending.’ For some reason, those two are especially popular.

(When this comment about Aotsuki and Omokage’s merch being popular came up, the council members playfully joked in the chat: I wonder why~~)

---

Miyokawa: We collected advance survey responses from the student council for today, and the feedback we received was… very passionate and long! (laughs)

We also received many questions, so we’d like to go through them as we talk.

On why the first 100 days were made linear

Miyokawa: The fact that the first 100 days were entirely linear and only branched afterward was kept a secret until release. Even the switch to the title The Hundred Line 2 was a complete surprise.

Kodaka: I wanted players to form a deep emotional connection with the characters before the branching began. I wanted players to make decisions together with Takumi after forming that attachment. That’s why it was necessary to go through the same part at least twice. After that, it splits into completely different parallel worlds—like Spider-Verse.

I deliberately made it unclear where the branching occurs, to give the impression that there may be branching that is not based on choices. For example, you might wonder, "Does it branch depending on the commander execution events?"

This was a special surprise reserved for players who started playing right after the game was released.

Uchikoshi: Actually, there was a plan to sell them separately as 1 and 2. We also considered a style like Marvel's The Avengers, where sequels are released one after another. But Kodaka opposed that, and we released them together. He said, ‘It’s crazier to bundle Part 1 and 2 from the start.’

Miyokawa: Wow, so The Hundred Line was actually a bundled 1–2 pack!

Survey results on the first ending players reached

Miyokawa: We conducted a survey asking which ending people reached first. Let’s take a look at the results.

L*** D****** A****** 2** Scenario: 001 (1 person)

E** Route: 007 (1 person)

C***** Route: 023 (1 person)

C*** o* T***** Route: 041 (3 people)

V******** Route: 043 (1 person)

C*****-o*-A** Route: 045 (2 people) / 047 (1 person)

R****** Route: 062 (1 person) / 065 (1 person)

S****** Route: 072 (2 people) / 074 (1 person)

Kodaka: Truth Uncovered Route is… oh, I said it. Well, we already mentioned beforehand that the Truth Uncovered Route exists, so it’s fine. Anyway, those who are familiar with branching in games like this may have been able to reach the end.

(Regarding the fact that many people went to the C*** o* T***** Route first) Well, when choosing among three options, it seems that quite a few people thought it would be cruel to choose the remaining two. As the writer, I tried to give hints that “this is the route to uncovering the truth,” though.

On the game’s volume

Miyokawa: We received a comment saying, ‘My entire Golden Week disappeared because of this game.’ (Golden Week is a series of holidays in Japan from late April to early May.)

Kodaka: ...Yeah, no way it could be finished during Golden Week. We never designed it to be that short. I made it with the idea that players would spend half a year playing it.

On branching paths

Kodaka: Speaking of branching... the Comedy Route—oh, I said it again. Anyway, I think that particular branch should have been a bit easier to understand.

Uchikoshi: I wish you had told me that earlier...

Kodaka: Um, what was it, like a high kick or a low kick... and one of them leads to a pretty serious route. I think we should’ve made the options leading to the Comedy Route more over-the-top and silly.

Uchikoshi: I wish I’d heard that sooner... It would’ve been easy to tweak. I made that scene a major turning point because I wanted it to be memorable. That's why I split the route there into two completely different ones.

Sanba: We received a question from the student council: ‘Did anything stand out or surprise you while observing user reactions on social media or Let’s Plays?’

Kodaka: What surprised me was how few people backed out midway. I watched all 100 endings myself, but when I got to the kiss-or-not choice with Shizuhara, I immediately turned back. I thought, ‘Yeah, I’m not really in the mood for this right now.’

Inou: I hear that once you turn back once, you lose the resistance to turn back.

Kodaka: The branching scenario was originally given to Uchikoshi and the team to write, based on the scenario for the truth-unraveling arc. The “truth-uncovering” part is the core scenario, if you think of it as a continuation of the first 100 days. I try not to mention this too much, but there are actually quite a few self-parody elements. I also included homages to past works. For example, the way it starts is similar to Danganronpa, but there are also parts that are quoted from Akudama Drive. I thought that structuring it like a “compilation” of my own works would allow me to fully realize the scenario. In that sense, it's a “culmination” of my work. As for when to play this route, I recommend clearing it during the first half of the game and then exploring other routes from there.

Uchikoshi: I read the Truth Uncovered route first, and I found the plot interesting from the start. It's a little different from the product version, isn't it? Actually, during development, there was a discussion about making it easier to find the Truth Uncovered route, but Kodaka's intention was “no, that's not it.” He said that all endings should be treated equally, and that's how it ended up.

Kodaka: In any case, I hope people enjoy the labyrinthine scenario.

Development Struggles

Sanba: We’ve received a question: ‘The development period for this game seems to have been quite long—how did you manage to stay motivated?’

Uchikoshi: Honestly, it wasn’t even about motivation anymore! I was just thinking things like, ‘I wish aliens will invade in the middle of the night and put an end to all this.’

Kodaka: Or like, ‘Just let the world end already!’ (laughs)

Uchikoshi: If I had to say something, it was more like... I didn’t want people to get mad at me. I didn’t want to put out something half-baked and get scolded for it.

Inou: It was really driven by fear. Normally, when you’re running out of time, you cut corners somewhere. But with this game, there was nothing we could cut. (And also, given the title,) we couldn’t reduce it to fewer than 100 routes. From ANIPLEX’s side, we were constantly trying to figure out how we could help them realize everything they wanted to do. But budget and scheduling constraints... that part was always a struggle.

Inou (continued): Actually, there was a period when we weren’t getting anything from Kodaka-san or Uchikoshi-san, so I thought, ‘Maybe we just need to make a hard decision,’ and we went ahead and locked in the voice recording schedule first. Like, ‘If you don’t make it by this date, we won’t be able to record.’ And then, from the end of the year into the new year, Uchikoshi-san came down with tendonitis. (laughs) Which I only found out about afterward.

Uchikoshi: We had already decided on a 100-day story. There are some parts where we skip a few days in some routes, but that was really a last-ditch effort. If we did that without giving a reason, Kodaka would get angry! He said we had to give a reason even if we were skipping days. I think we struggled quite a bit with the idea that we couldn't make things just because of development constraints.

Kodaka: If we made it, like, 50 days, it would feel surprisingly short. It’d be like, ‘Oh, that’s it?’ 80 days feels okay, but... yeah.

On the Challenge of "Madness"

Kodaka: Since this was a brand-new IP, I felt we had to create something completely one-of-a-kind. That’s why I chose to go with this massive volume of content—I knew there was no turning back after that.

Uchikoshi: Well, I mean, this guy (Kodaka) was born mad to begin with. But that’s actually what drew me to him. I decided I wanted to start a company with him after we were talking at an izakaya and the stuff he was saying was just completely insane. He was going on about unethical things and stuff. I was like, ‘This guy is basically Junko Enoshima in real life.’ I think the core that holds Tookyo Games together is that sense of madness. It’s something we all have, in a way.

Kodaka: That said, after making a game this crazy, I’m kind of feeling like I want to release something more normal. Like, suddenly just drop a traditional table mahjong game or something.

Questions From the developers to the Student Council

Miyokawa: Since we have this opportunity, do any of the developers have questions for the student council?

Uchikoshi: How many people here have actually seen all 100 endings?

Kodaka: Didn’t someone say earlier that it was like three people?

(Someone from the student council adds that it’s probably four.)

Uchikoshi: I wonder how long it took those people... Oh, 210 hours?

Inou: That’s about how long it takes to earn a fairly tough professional certification! (laughs)

Kodaka: I wonder whether most people here chose Hundred Line Mode or Safety Mode? I’ve seen Safety Mode come up occasionally in playthroughs… Ah, seems like most people went with Hundred Line Mode. I wonder if there are people who actually want an even harder mode?

(Multiple comments appear saying things like I wish it were even harder.)

Kodaka: Ah, adding something like that to the VR Machine sounds doable.

Miyokawa: Like a shogi puzzle mode?

Inou: Might be fun to release an impossible-difficulty challenge as DLC or something.

On the topic of DLCs

Miyokawa: We’re getting comments like ‘Please release DLCs! I’m willing to pay for it!’

Kodaka: DLCs... How much are you willing to pay?

Maybe we should just treat it like an auction and let people name their price. Like a DLC limited to five people. (laughs)

Since the worldbuilding is all over the place and it’s not like Detroit: Become Human, I think it’d actually be pretty easy to add a completely different storyline.

With a DLC, we could even turn it into a full-on death game, like Danganronpa, where people start dying one by one—it’s totally doable.

Or, for example, we could flash back to peaceful days in the Tokyo Residential Complex depending on which route you take. There’s really no limit. That’s one of the features of this game.

It’s like an illegal building that just keeps getting additions built onto it—I kind of like the idea of just endlessly piling stuff on.

It’s like cramming in a bunch of elements and raising your own kid. (laughs)

In response to a comment: “Is it true there will be a prequel for every character?”

Kodaka: We’ve started writing the prequels, but... the preparation is... (tough).

Questions from the Student Council members to the developers

Miyokawa: Do the Student Council members have any questions?

Kodaka: A question that’s getting a lot of responses is ‘Which character do the cast members like best?’ Hmm... Uchikoshi-san, what about you?

Uchikoshi: Hmm... I like them all to be honest, but since I got more attached to the parts I wrote myself, I’d have to say Shizuhara. She’s the one I spent the most time with.

Kodaka: What about you all out there? Who’s your favorite character?

(Various comments roll in)

Inou: Doesn’t seem like there are many people who like Ginzaki.

(Comments saying I like Ginzaki! appear)

Inou: Maybe not many fans of Yakushizhi either?

(Some comments like “I love all of them appear)

Kodaka: Well, honestly, it makes us happiest when people say they love all the characters. It's nice to have everyone together. Rather than just one person.

On whether there are plans for a Switch 2 edition

Kodaka: Hmm... (wry smile). It’s more like, ‘The act of making it is the point.’ (There were no further details on this.)

In addition, there was a response that the request to add a feature to hide the UI to make event CG easier to view is currently under consideration.

Kodaka: Collaboration cafés are getting a lot of buzz, too.

Inou: Oh yeah, collaboration cafés are a great idea. Like a 100-day-long collab café or something. (laughs)

Kodaka: It seems like a lot of people want to eat the Tsukumo twins' dishes.

Uchikoshi: Might actually taste surprisingly good?

Kodaka: Nah... I think it’d be straight-up bad.

Final messages

Miyokawa: If you have any final messages for the Student Council members, please share them.

Uchikoshi: Before the game was released, when nobody really knew whether it would be any good, you all chose to believe in us and support us. I’m incredibly grateful for that.

Earlier, someone commented that they were proud to be part of the Student Council. That’s something I take pride in, too.

Inou: From our perspective, you Student Council members had such high energy and enthusiasm that we genuinely viewed your opinions as ‘reliable.’

Honestly, I think your overall... let’s say netiquette... was way better than expected. (laughs)

Your spoiler precautions were amazing. Even after the demo dropped, everyone was really considerate. And the analysis—some of you really went deep! (laughs)

It was such a relaxed, warm community the whole time. I’m really glad there wasn’t anyone we had to boot out.

Kodaka: Well, I suppose this marks your graduation for now, but I think you’ve learned how to blend in with others.

So from here on, I want you all to go out into the world as terrorists—sneak into communities, and secretly promote The Hundred Line (*gestures as if handing something out).

Miyokawa: Terrorists? (laughs) Should we come up with a password or something?

Kodaka: Hmm... How about the remnants... you know, the remnants of Handora?

I want you to go out into the world as the remnants of Handora. And then, if you bump into someone somewhere and go, ‘Huh!? You too!?’—

At the next autograph session or whatever, if you come up to me and say, ‘I’m one of the Handora remnants,’ I’ll give you something extra. (laughs)

Like, I’ll slip you a thousand yen or something. (makes sneaky hand gesture)

---

End of the transcript! Special thanks to the following Student Council members for their help in creating this article:

ちゃちゃ_イルさん

YellowTu_lipさん

ヨレさん

Thank you so much for your support!

[frostbytemyrik]

Danny Phantom Required* Watching

*It isn't actually required. I know there are a ton of phans who have never even seen a single episode of the show, but it's a fun watch and I would recommend at least catching some.

Sorting the episodes into colors (with the first letter in parenthesis by the title for those who might be too colorblind to tell). Note that this is all just my objective opinion, and everyone is free to leave their own thoughts on this!

Green (G) - Introduction of an important character or major plot development, such as a new power for Danny or another major shift in the status quo. If you can only watch a few of the episodes, watch these.

Pink (P) - Introduction of a side character or minor plot development.

Red (R) - Introduction of a new character worth mentioning or other general status quo change, but the episode is generally considered to be...not great by most people. (But hey, nothing wrong with liking these episodes!) They'll be summarized at the bottom of each episode description for those who can't be bothered to watch them.

Blue (B) - Nothing important happens to the overall plot, but it's a fun episode that fleshes out the characters.

Season 1

Episode 1: Mystery Meat (R) - Establishes the show and its main characters: Danny, Sam, and Tucker, as well as a lot of other important characters such as the Fenton parents and Jazz, and minor recurring characters like Dash and the Lunch Lady. The writers are still getting their footing so the main trio is unfortunately among the flattest they get here.

Episode 2: Parental Bonding (P) - Introduction of Paulina and Dora, first look at Valerie, and most importantly, Danny's power to overshadow people. Fun episode in general, Tucker makes a weird comment at the start but this is one of Sam's absolute best episodes as a character. (Tucker and Sam actually getting to be fun characters instead of just "butt-monkey comic relief" and "selfish asshole" is rarer than I'd like, so I always like pointing out the episodes where they get some love.)

Episode 3: One of a Kind (G) - Introduction of Skulker, a recurring major antagonist, and his motivations.

Episode 4: Attack of the Killer Garage Sale (P) - Introduction of Technus, Ghost Master of Technology and Destroyer of Worlds, Manipulator of Machines, Lord of all Gadgetry, Wizard of Integrated Circuitry, Master of All Things Electronic and Beeping.

Episode 6: What You Want (P) - First appearance of Danny's Ghost Ray and introduction to Desiree and the Ghost Catcher (a Fenton device with an unfortunately rather...culturally insensitive name and design), explores Tucker and his relationship to Danny. I went back and forth between making this green and pink because I'm biased in my love for this episode, but it isn't necessary to comprehend later episodes. (If you can watch it, though, it's a lot of fun as we get to see how close Danny and Tucker are and how Tucker feels about Danny's powers.)

Episode 7: Bitter Reunions (G) - Formal introduction to main series antagonist, Vlad Masters, and his relationship with the Fentons and the ghosts of the Ghost Zone. (Antisemitism tw: Vlad has hired ghost hitmen that are vultures with Yiddish accents, hooked beaks, and fezzes. They thankfully don't show up anywhere else, as far as I can remember.)

Episode 8: Prisoners of Love (P) - Introduction to the Ghost Zone itself and Walker, a side antagonist. Shows Alicia, Danny and Jazz's maternal aunt who never appears again after this episode.

Episode 9: My Brother's Keeper (G) - Gives Jazz a focus and formally makes her a major player in the plot through a certain discovery she makes. Also introduces side antagonist Dr. Penelope Spectra.

Episode 10: Shades of Gray (G) - Valerie Gray, a background character from Episode 2, gets new motivations and becomes an important part of the series going forward.

Episode 11: Fanning the Flames (P) - Ember is introduced, and she hypnotizes the entire town to fall for her with her music. To keep Danny out of her hair, she makes him fall for Sam. Whether this episode is a Pink or a Red depends on whether or not that bothers you. (Racism tw: there's a sequence towards the end of the episode that shows people around the world watching Ember, and they're all very stereotyped appearances of Japanese, Eastern European, Arabian, and Indigenous Australian people. Thanks, Hartman.)

Episode 12: Teacher of the Year (B) - A fun episode with Technus. It does have some of that early 2000s "don't underestimate me because I'm a girl" stuff, but it's still a good episode with a lot of heart.

Episode 13: Fright Night (P) - Introduces Fright Knight. A Halloween special that has its ups and downs (eating underwear?) It's just really funny that an actual ghost, who has been to the maddeningly twisted and alien world of the afterlife, still can't scare anyone to save his life.

Episode 14: 13 (P) - It's a shame this isn't actually the 13th episode. Anyway, it introduces Johnny 13 and Kitty, while Tucker and Sam get to hang out without Danny while trying to solve Tucker's new run of bad luck and the fallout for his reputation.

Episode 15: Public Enemies (G) - Walker's back and he's making a major shift in the status quo: ghosts are confirmed to exist as he stages a major invasion of the town. Things don't go well for Danny, and the repercussions will be felt for well into the series. Also introduces Wulf, a ghost who looks like a werewolf, exclusively speaks Esperanto, and has the ability to tear the fabric of reality to create portals between Earth and the Ghost Zone. He's putting this power to use for Walker, but it's clearly not by choice...

Episode 17: Maternal Instinct (B) - Maddie notices her son is growing distant from her and tries to take him to a science symposium to bond with him, but disaster strikes and leaves them in the woods, with the only shelter available being...a cabin owned and occupied by none other than Vlad. Meanwhile, Jack tries to understand Jazz, who doesn't seem to want anything to do with him or ghost hunting. Lots of great character moments for the Fentons.

Episode 18: Life Lessons (B) - Danny and Valerie, arriving late to class because they both were out ghost hunting, get paired up in home economics class to raise a flour sack baby together. We get more insight into what Valerie's life is like after Shades of Gray, and she learns to get along with both Fenton and, temporarily, Phantom, after an excursion through Skulker's part of the Ghost Zone. As a B-plot, Tucker makes money babysitting other students' flour sacks while ignoring the one he has with Sam, and Sam tries not to get attached to the sack. It's not important to the plot AT ALL but I'd put this as a must-watch if I could. Alas, I made the rules and must follow them.

Episode 19: The Million Dollar Ghost (B) - A million dollars is placed on the head of the ghost boy, Public Ghost Enemy #1: Inviso-Bill, known to us in the audience as Danny Phantom.

Episode 20: Control Freaks (G) - The circus is in town! New villain Freakshow gets introduced, and he becomes important later. Kinda. Depending on how much you like a certain blue episode that comes on down the line. The trio go to this cool new goth circus, but there's a string of ghostly robberies in town and Danny has been acting strangely lately...

Season 2

Episode 1/21: Memory Blank (R) - Danny and Sam have a fight, Sam wishes she'd never met him, Desiree makes the wish come true and now Danny has no powers and neither he nor Tucker remember her at all. Sam gets him fried by the portal again to get his powers back, but this time with a new logo she designed slapped onto his chest. Really all that happens is Danny gets his logo. This can be skipped...if you wish. ;)

Episode 2/22: Doctor's Disorders (B) - There's a bug going around - literally - getting the kids at Casper High sick. Symptoms include sneezing, chills, coughing, congestion, and various ghost powers depending on the student. The only ones immune seem to be Danny (thanks to his ghost powers) and Tucker (wearing his new homemade cologne that smells awful in a different way to everyone). A new hospital opens up to treat them, but something fishy is definitely going on. ...But Tucker is afraid of hospitals. Great Tucker episode.

Episode 3/23: Pirate Radio (P) - Introduction to Youngblood, an occasional antagonist. A new radio program pops up, and every adult in town (and Jazz, who's 16 but sees herself as an adult) is enraptured by it and the one song that it plays on loop. Then one day, every single adult in town leaves behind a note that they're going on a cruise, and it's up to Danny to rally the teens of Amity Park to discover what's so fishy about the cruise and get their parents back.

Episode 4/24-5/25: Reign Storm (G) - The creepy castle in the Ghost Zone Danny accidentally freed Fright Knight from in Fright Night holds yet another secret: the coffin of the Ghost King, known as Pariah Dark, whose goal is to rule over the Ghost Zone and the human world with an iron fist. Vlad frees him hoping to snatch the powerful artifacts on him, but it backfires and now the King is free and follows the fleeing ghosts to Amity Park, which he promptly invades. Danny, Valerie, and various enemies including Vlad need to team up to seal King Pariah back within his sarcophagus and save both Amity Park and the Ghost Zone as a whole. Major status quo shifts happen here.

Episode 6/26: Identity Crisis (B) - Not my favorite episode, but I'm including it here because it was popular with the Phandom a decade ago. Danny gets tired of trying to balance his human and ghost lives, so splits himself in two using the Ghost Catcher that was introduced in Season 1 episode 6: What You Want. That also, unfortunately, divides his personality to two extremes; the human half ("Fun Danny") is lazy while the ghost half ("Super Danny") is an absolute ham of a superhero stereotype, and Tucker and Sam struggle to put their friend back together so he can stop Technus in a way only he can (and also because both halves are honestly really annoying them).

Episode 8/28-9/29: The Ultimate Enemy (G) - This is THE episode of all time. Maybe not the best episode, but it's great in its own right and, more importantly for this list, introduces another major status quo shift. It's also basically required viewing for the comic that came out last year (at time of writing), as that comic is a direct follow-up to this episode. Clockwork, a ghost that is essentially a deity of time, has a mission to eliminate the greatest threat to Earth and the Ghost Zone that has ever been before he comes into that role: a ghost named Danny Phantom. Danny comes face-to-face with a version of himself that caused a doomed future, and needs to fight to ensure that future never comes to pass.

Episode 10/30: The Fright Before Christmas (B) - The boy Danny Fenton, a Grinch to his core, finds the holiday season to be quite a chore. Into the Ghost Zone to blow off some steam, he accidentally causes a scene: the Ghost Writer's finished manuscript in ashes, and with Danny's indifference he clashes. He traps him in a book that warps space and time, and forces all events in his life to rhyme. You're in for a treat if you like all these rhymes, but if they annoy you, then don't waste your time. (This factoid may not matter to you, but this is where we learn of the Christmas Truce!)

Episode 11/31: Secret Weapons (R) - Jazz is overbearing, Danny doesn't like it, so Jazz decides to go to Vlad. The episode's latter half isn't bad, but it's R because Jazz's constant invasions of Danny's privacy and the repetitive thermos jokes grate on me. If you plan to skip, the thing that makes it a red episode is this: Vlad learns that Jazz is in-the-know.

Episode 12/32: Flirting With Disaster (G) - A lot of the more plot-relevant episodes in season 2 (and one in season 1) have been building romantic tension between Danny and Valerie, and here's where it comes to a head: they actually start dating! However, after some jealous stalking thorough investigating, Sam finds that there's someone pulling the strings, and manipulating their real feelings for each other to pull them together and get them out of the way... Valerie especially undergoes a lot of major character moments, and we learn a lot more about her as a person. One of my personal favorite episodes (and I don't just say that because I'm a Danny/Valerie truther) (the "engraved" ring and Sam being a stalker about it aren't great, but honestly I just try to ignore those parts. Yes, I know I'm biased).

Episode 17/37: Kindred Spirits (G) - While Danny's busy being an asshole to his friends leaving Sam and Tucker to take the blame for property damages during his fights, he finds a strange girl named Danielle (or "Dani") who claims to be his cousin and shares an eerie resemblance with him. The similarities go more than skin deep, as she quickly reveals that she's ALSO half ghost. Tucker and Sam warn Danny that there's something suspicious about the whole ordeal (in between being left behind to be blamed for collateral damage more times than I'm bothered to count right now), but when Danny winds up in trouble anyway, they still skip detention (that he got them in) to save him before it's too late. Danny's a dick, but despite that, it's still a good episode and we get introduced to Dani before her next appearance.

Episode 19/39-20/40: Reality Trip (B) - Freakshow gets the Reality Gauntlet: an off-brand Infinity Gauntlet that can warp reality to anything he desires. He gets Danny's secret revealed to the world, causing the government agency the Guys In White (from Million Dollar Ghost in season 1) to relentlessly pursue him. Luckily, thanks to knowledge Sam gained from a book on the gauntlet, the main trio manages to warp the gems to different parts of the United States, severely limiting Freakshow's power. Unluckily, Freakshow retaliates by kidnapping their parents and Jazz, forcing the three to go on a cross-country road trip to get the gems back to Freakshow and save their families while evading the law. No permanent shifts of the status quo, but one of my personal favorite episodes. It's a fun ride!

Season 3

Episode 1/41: Eye for an Eye (R) - A prank war between Danny and Vlad ends in Vlad becoming mayor and passing a lot of horrible laws specifically to spite Danny. The laws are undone by the end of the episode, but Vlad stays mayor.

Episode 2/42: Infinite Realms (R) - In trying to map out the Ghost Zone, the main trio end up meeting Frostbite: leader of a realm in the Zone known as the Far Frozen, filled with spirits that take the form of peaceful, yeti-like monster folk who revere Danny as the chosen one who defeated Pariah Dark. Frostbite is also keeper of the Infi-Map: a map that can take the user anywhere in the Ghost Zone. Now for the bad news: Vlad is here, he wants world domination now for some reason, and he wants the map to help him do it. Vlad steals the map, the trio needs to get it back. It's not the worst episode, but Vlad's villain decay is...tragic. Tl;dr: Frostbite is the leader of a tribe of friendly yeti spirits and keeps the Infi-Map, which can take the user to any point in the ghost zone.

Episode 5/45: Forever Phantom (B) - One of the only actually fun filler episodes in season 3. Introduces us to Amorpho: a ghost with the power to shapeshift into anything and anyone, who uses their power to cause mayhem for attention. They bite off more than they can chew when they impersonate Danny Phantom, however, and a Fenton device gone awry locks both Amorpho and Danny into the form of Danny Phantom. Wacky hijinks abound.

Episode 6/46: Urban Jungle (G) - Haha green. Like plants. Anyway, Danny has been cold lately. No matter what he does or where he is, he's consistently freezing. It gets worse: while Danny's in this weakened state, a giant plant ghost named Undergrowth takes over Amity Park and possesses Sam. Unable to fight the constantly-regenerating Undergrowth or to keep himself from freezing, he flees into the Ghost Zone to seek Frostbite's aid.

Episode 9/49: Frightmare (B) - Danny wakes up one night to learn, to his horror, that Nocturne, the ghost of dreams, has put all of Amity Park into a deep sleep to feed on their energy. He enters the dreams of his friends to wake them and get their help taking Nocturne down. A good episode for people who ship Danny/Sam, and a GREAT episode for people like me who like to pretend that all the episodes I left off the season 3 list were just bad dreams.

Episode 10/50: Claw of the Wild (B) - The students of Casper High are ending summer with a camping trip in a foggy forest. All seems normal until, one by one, campers go missing. Danny, Tucker, and Sam go investigating and find their ally Wulf, who seems to know something about the disappearances...

Episode 11/51: D-Stabilized (G) - Regarded by most as the final good episode of Danny Phantom. Dani had been on her own in the world since we last left her, but over time, her form has been getting unstable, causing her to be slowly melting into a puddle of ectoplasm. She tries returning to Amity Park to get help, but is now being hunted down by Valerie, who Vlad commissioned so he could melt Dani down and study her remains to make a superior clone. (Valerie thinks he's just going to keep her contained for the safety of Amity Park; she isn't informed of the cloning.) Valerie turns Dani in to Vlad, but Danny manages to form a shaky alliance with Valerie to get Dani back, since Valerie knows that Dani is half human.

Episode 12/52-13:53: Phantom Planet (R) - The only reason this is here is because the comic continues from where this episode left off. If it didn't, I'd suggest ignoring it entirely. Rapid-fire summary: an asteroid is about to hit Earth, Vlad reveals himself to the world and demands unquestioning rule over Earth (and one trillion dollars or something) in exchange for turning the asteroid intangible. Vlad can't turn it intangible since it's made of Ectoranium, an anti-ghost substance we never hear of until now. Jack leaves Vlad in outer space. Danny gets every ghost he knows to help him turn Earth intangible, it works somehow, and Danny reveals his secret identity to the world. Statues of Danny are built all over the world, Sam and Danny start dating, and Tucker becomes mayor of Amity Park. A bunch of other stuff happens too but it's all stupid. Valerie gets thrown into a dumpster on live TV and that's her only appearance besides clapping for Danny at the end. I'm still mad. Don't watch Phantom Planet.

The Comics

Book 1: A Glitch in Time (G) - Danny's life is perfect: his secret identity is out, and the world accepts him not just as a part of it, but as its savior. His parents and former bullies fight on his side now, he's in a committed relationship with Sam, and Amity Park seems to be at peace. There's just one problem: his powers are getting weaker by the day. Unbeknownst to him, there's another problem in progress: Dan Phantom, the evil future Danny from The Ultimate Enemy, is released and fuses with Clockwork, causing present Danny and those near him to experience unstable glitches in time. Vlad returns to warn Danny of the threat of Dan, and they all team up to venture into the depths of the Ghost Zone to find a way to stop Dan and get Danny back to full strength. Meanwhile, Jazz and Valerie hold down the fort at Amity Park, holding Dan off for as long as they can while the trio and Vlad search for answers.

Book 2: To be continued in 2025!

Danny Phantom can be watched on Paramount Plus, but if you don't have a subscription, there may be DVDs at your local library! Other people may also have resources on how to watch the show, so feel free to ask around!

Danny Phantom: A Glitch in Time can be found anywhere books are sold! Abrams Books Amazon Barnes and Noble Google Play Waterstones

[destiny-smasher]

What do you like about Nemona

Gahhh, fuck me, that's a bit hard to summarize.

But I have been meaning to do a write up to explain it to people in my personal life. Maybe this is a good excuse to get around to doing so. I'll try to cover the important stuff while not getting as deep into specifics as I honestly could. It'll still be an informal short essay, though, lol

In Pokemon SV, the player enrolls in a fancy Academy on a remote island nation of sorts (inspired by Spain). They meet Nemona after choosing their starter Pokemon, and Nemona offers to the school's director to adopt a starter herself to 'coach/mentor' the player character. You see, unlike any other 'rival trainer' before her, Nemona is already a Champion. Before your character sets foot in the Paldea region, Nemona has already gone through the entire song and dance of Gym Battles and all that, and attained the highest rank a trainer can in the region. She's completely obsessed with Pokemon battling and has become bored of being 'the best' because no one wants to battle her, for various reasons. So she views you, a newcomer, as an opportunity to test herself as a 'mentor/senpai/big sis' figure as well as essentially 'New Game+-ing' herself for sheer love of the game that is Pokemon battling.

People consistently call her 'the girl Goku', but I ain't seen Dragonball Z, so I can't comment on that much. But she is a very enthusiastic, cheerful, determined, battle hungry person who is very into self-growth and self-improvement. At the end of the day, she wants a true rival, someone she doesn't need to hold back with, and who she can look to as a consistent figure in her life. She is very eager and hyperactive about connecting with people through battling.

A lot of people who play the game get offput by her, and she gets branded as a 'yandere' archetype (ie obsessed with the player character to a horror-inducing degree). She gets meme'd as being 'creepy' and 'obsessed' and all that, depicting her eagerness as mental illness and a bad thing.

(gif from a fan animation)

When her behavior stems from positive emotions and a desire for mutual growth and connection, not specifically ownership or possession -- to Nemona, a person who just obeyed whatever she would want of them would defeat the point. That's not what a rival does -- they push back, after all. Within the context of the SV plotline, she is bored of being Champion all by herself, and wants to train someone else to reach her same level, which is why she is so invested in you, the player character, following you around everywhere and being that 'big sis' archetype. There's some selfishness in there, for sure -- she wants a proper rival for herself, someone she never has to hold back with -- but given her social obligations and reputation within the Academy/region, she also I think wants to prove she is capable of handling herself as a mentor figure, prove to herself that she didn't become a Champion by luck or accident (if she can help someone else do what she did, then it wasn't just a fluke, she really does know what she's doing, etc.), and also help prove to her fellow students that she's really not as intimidating as they think she is.

And yet, people both in AND out of the game are quick to write this intense, protective behavior off as 'insane' and 'creepy' -- and as someone who very regularly got called a 'creep' through to the end of college for literally just trying to make friends,' I almost take it personally when I see people label Nemona as a 'yandere' type. It has its comical use and all but I still find it kind of hurtful in a way.

(Art by MagDraws)

Because that's the thing -- if you pay attention to what little story there is in SV (it's not exactly a complex narrative), Nemona's character is essentially a metaphor for neurodivergent/queer people who have hearts bursting with affection and passion for their hobbies yet who struggle with loneliness and isolation as they put off most people from keeping them around.

But at the end of the day, Nemona is just neurodivergent, her special interest is Pokemon battling, and she is simply desperate for human connection -- and battles are just the way she feels most comfortable doing that.

And the world would be a better place if people like me or Nemona were able to become self aware at a young enough age to start managing our behavior, (which she is shown to be learning to do!) while ALSO having a general population that is more open-minded and understanding to the idea that 'oh huh that person's brain is electrically overcharged and they love people and hobbies maybe way way more than I do but that's FINE as long as they're not hurting anyone'

As a youth, I just... kinda got great grades, made honor roll, etc. And it felt like I wasn't really trying? So adults around me thought I was 'gifted', or 'naturally talented'. But in reality, I think I was just neurodivergent, and since I struggled to make friends, and physically wasn't able to see them outside of school due to various factors, I just... ended up focusing on my schoolwork instead. So that's one way I relate with her retroactively -- she is a model student, yet ironically has a bad reputation amongst many.

(HOWEVER, Nemona comes from a RICH family and I came from a poor one, there was some big racial tension dynamics at play in my early gradeschool years, familial breakup shit, soooo there's some very different dynamics at play there)

Another thing I adore about her and connect with in a way no one else in my life does -- she loves one-on-one competitions with others through battles. I don't love physically fighting people, I'm a super non-violent person in reality. But I love fighting games, it's my favorite genre. And there's specific philosophical elements to enjoying fighting games that I think most people don't click with that she and I do.

She is here to GROW, to learn, to improve, to have fun regardless of winning or losing, because the act of spending time engaged with another person, figuring each other out, testing yourselves mutually, is enjoyable and edifying regardless.

That 'warrior's path' of self improvement and enjoyment and growth regardless of the outcome of battle is something I very much connect with and it's great to see a character who feels likewise while also having elements of interpersonal struggles in spite of or even because of the way she functions differently than other people. Again, I don't know much about Goku, but I get the impression he is good at making and keeping friends, while Nemona is bad at it.

On top of this, Nemona has extra wrinkles to her character -- she's physically disabled. The game is vague about it, as Pokemon always is. But she wears an arm brace because she throws a LOT of pokeballs with all the battling she does, and she seems to have some kind of issue there, physically. Also, despite how GOOD she is at battling, she is terrible at catching Pokemon, and seemingly at doing the exploration aspects of being a trainer. She canonically has poor stamina and wears herself out easily -- which, given how high-energy she is as a person, probably happens constantly. So it's also strongly suggested that she spends time not just training all of her Pokemon (she juggles multiple teams, yet another fighting-game esque thing I relate with, as I tend to juggle many characters and not stick to a single main or team), but she also trains herself, physically, to try and keep up with her 'mons, but also as a means of self-growth/improvement in general.

I won't post the examples but trust me, there are many subtle but intentional nods alluding to her being physically disabled, and being BAD at core elements of what we expect a Pokemon trainer to be -- exploring the wilderness, catching Pokemon, etc. But she's so passionate about it, she doesn't let her limitations stop her,

So it creates an interesting internal tension imo because she is not only very queer coded, very neurodiverse coded, but ALSO disabled coded. But she hides her internal struggles by essentially avoiding having to confront them, generally speaking (which itself is ripe for narrative development). Sadly, the game never brings this to a head in way (it's Pokemon, so of course it doesn't). But the ingredients are all there, especially when you add characters like Penny, Arven, and Scarlet into account -- as well as implied expectations from her rich family, or from the leader of Paldea, Geeta, who implies she wants Nemona to be her protege. And I haven't even mentioned that Nemona is Class President, meaning she's actively taking on social responsibility for her peers even though she gets shit talked behind her back for being so obsessed with battling and getting in people's faces with her over-eager desire to bond with/battle them.

This right here -- this is the specific core element of her character I personally connect with that, somehow, no fictional character I've met so far has put into the exact right words with enough context for me to believe them.

From my youth to even now as a full grown adult, I have experienced this feeling my entire life, whether with family, at school, at the workplace, even in most online spaces -- an 'invisible wall' between me and everyone else, and for a VERY LONG TIME I had convinced myself it was because something about me was 'broken' and 'not right'. But now, in part thanks to characters like Nemona, and the discussions around/about said characters, I can see that my brain just functions differently from other people, and a I grow and self-teach myself how to manage my own behaviors/expectations, I can better appreciate all kinds of relationships in life without needing to let go of or sacrifice that internal flame that used to threaten to consume most people I cared about -- that fear of being 'too much' or 'too intense' in my own ways (ways better expressed through text interaction than in person, to be fair, but again, MOST of my social life has been online my entire life, so yeah).

Like Nemona, I found people in my life who accept me for who I am, and blablabla all that cliche shit. But in Nemona, as I do with a rare few other characters in media (Vi from Arcane, Luz from The Owl House), I see a specific element of myself I don't elsewhere, and sadly did not see often growing up. A balance between ferocity and determination paired with unending affection and love. A desire to never give up on people, no matter what, and to be open to change both internal and in others. In Nemona's case, specifically, that element of neurodiverse passion matched with sheer loneliness -- that 'invisible wall'.

No matter what, she never gives up, in battles or socially.

I could go on into specific examples but I've said enough here to get the ideas across, I'm sure.

Oh, and as a sidenote, I think she has a great character design -- it's SIMPLE but recognizeable. The combo of color-coded gear (red/white/black, my favorite outfit color scheme), a arm brace, and accented hair. Her design feels like a plausible human being, but with a bit of 'anime bangs' syndrome.

I should probably mention -- I don't like Pokemon SV as a video game! I am like 160k words of fanfiction into telling a Pokemon story and I think the game itself is stinky garbage barely holding itself together with duct tape and a corporate prayer.

But unlike any other generation of the franchise, Pokemon SV presents a cast of characters with defined personality strengths, weaknesses, and varied backstories, who start the game as strangers, and by the end begin to dip their toes into 'found family' territory. For the first time in the entire franchise, I actually give a shit about the characters, about seeing them grow and connect with each other, because the overarching theme of SV's story, what little it has, is about isolation, outcasts, loneliness, and how found families form.

And Nemona's kind of the heart of all of that, the endlessly hopeful, energetic, eager one that will never give up on you, that irrationally throws affection at you, seemingly for no 'good reason' -- because just being a person who tolerates her and her 'too much'-ness is itself reason to be grateful for your presence in a world where she feels isolated from most everyone else simply by being herself.

Maybe this answers your question!

[furinana]

The undertones behind Walter and Jonathan's relationship that you might not know about

I'll be calling attention to traits present in their dynamic that are unknown to most players in the West due to incomplete localization.

Now... where do we begin? Oh, right. In the part after you're done with Naraku and get to spend the holiday with the other two.

This scene is presented in almost the same way in both languages but Jonathan's reaction seems emphasized on a specific word in the Japanese script.

"T...t-t... that's crude, Walter. I would never... such a thing like that to women..."

In either case, if this ended at Jonathan's response, it would be mostly nothing worth commenting on. Jonathan is the Law representative raised by a family that worked in the Monastery so naturally he's gonna behave in a more chaste way, correct?

But then you have Walter's posture becoming uncomfortable followed by immediately changing subjects as if he's already in the know of what Jonathan was anxious about compared to the player (thus Flynn) being rather out of loop about what was going on.

The thing is... the meaning was actually already available for the players, even prior to SMTIV's release! That is, if you accessed the official website and clicked on the interviews with the Japanese voice actors (which included in-character voice clips). All of the translations presented in this post were done by takujilvr

"I'll only tell you this because it's you, all right? Only because it's you! I'm afraid I can't bring myself to like women very much. Being raised in a household with two elder sisters and one younger made me lose any illusions about them I might've had. You're a man, so I feel much more at ease with you."

Certainly, he doesn't seem to specifically refer to anyone in this clip. It could be Flynn or probably anyone else as long as they're a male.

But there are other voice clips aside this one that point towards a more definitive interpretation.

"Enough of that "Ooh, you'll catch cold!" drivel, Jonathan, you sound like a naggy old wife. I can't abide being constricted, this chest must stay bared!"

"S-Stop pulling my hair, Walter! It won't straighten out, I got it from my mother!"

They don't have voice clips directly acknowledging anyone else, leading to the impression that Walter and Jonathan were being more marketed as a duo over their dynamic with the main character.

But the shocking reveal comes with this one:

"I'll only say this if you promise not to tell anyone! Cats, I just love 'em. When I see one outside, I can't help but crouch down and give it some pets! Wait, no. I mean, listen, I can't stand fish. And they can take it off my hands, can't they? That's why I love cats. Right."

A player that reached the part where the party gets hit by Yaso Magatsuhi's scent in Roppongi will thus connect the dots:

How one interprets the twist of this scene might change entirely with the voice clip in mind. It opens the possibility that, differently from many players' assumptions, Jonathan was acting like a feline not because he's secretly a cat lover. But, most likely, due to WALTER liking them. And he would have no way of knowing that unless Walter told him off-screen.

To summarize...

Jonathan is unable to feel attraction for girls and feels more comfortable with guys which would be inevitably an obstacle for his future considering his conservative background

Walter has phobia of fish despite what his family does for trade and has a soft spot for cats specifically because they eat them for him which would be defined as a 'weakness' to his self-reliant image

1 and 2 are each most's intimate secret and they revealed them for each other

"But how much does this add to the main plot?" Even when pushing aside subtleties from this extra material, attentive Megaten veterans would notice that the Law & Chaos representatives from SMTIV have an explicitly close bond compared to most characters of opposing sides in other titles of the mainline series.

[Jonathan was the most visibly affected by their breakup]

This extra material essentially adds more to the range of interpretation regarding their intimacy while also making them more relatable beyond their surface of Law & Chaos pieces.

On this note, moments where they "crack" their own alignments also happen briefly in-game.

They were two boys of the same age that became instant close friends however became unable to conciliate the differences emphasized by their caste system and reach the understanding of what would be the best for everyone.

All of this leads to the player's realization that Jonathan and Walter ultimately didn't perfectly antagonize each other as humans but were "pushed" towards their extreme roles by ulterior forces that would subsequently be further exposed in the sequel.

[weepingalaxy]

i would like to hear your mossman essay... always looking to appreciate more women (especially the half life women. god bless alyx but i think she's the only one not relegated to an expansion or trapped by Misogynistic Writing)

TAKES A DEEP BREATH. anon youve opened the flood gates with this one i have so so so many thoughts about her. these may not make sense because english is my second language and i have probably some form of dyslexia But. i hope. itll make enough sense to offer something interesting to the table

so. judith mossman. aka the perfect example of learned helplessness and how it makes you look to the past

..i have no idea how to start this in a way that isnt kinda forced so youll have to bare with me okay.

i think the core of judith as a character can be summarized by those guys who look at something in history and say "if i was there i wouldn't have done that, rip to you but im different". there's been a misunderstanding about judith in that she "glorifies" the black mesa incident, when thats never what she does or what i understood alyx's comment about her as? see, judith doesn't say it to gordon in person, only talking about the science of teleportation with him (which i'll get into), it's alyx saying how judith has gone on and on about how it should've been her in the chamber that day.

that's not a "i wish i couldve been the one to cause the incident" or glorifying what the incident did or anything, that's a "if i was there it wouldn't have happened" as frivilous and ridiculous that is to imagine for us, the players, as people who saw what happened. but she didn't see it, all she knows is something happened in the test she applied for, and gordon's at the center of it

i believe judith resents gordon. not only because he took the position she wanted/applied to, but because she blames him for the incident happening in the first place. why else would she believe things would've been different if she was there? the way she talks to him is with this surprise and focus on what eli is going to feel about gordon's arrival, then talking about her own knowledge on the teleportation technology, it feels almost like... what would i call it. showing off? but not by saying "i" or "me", but by saying we. yes it's kleiner's technology, but imagine what they'd do if they knew what we've been doing with entanglement. she's the only one who talks to him about the technology like that, and it's like she's trying to prove she's as capable as him? i guess? especially when she still props up gordon's intelligence and says she's happy they get to work together. she wants to prove even more she could've been the one at the chamber but never saying it outright to his face.

and of course, this resentment is why it's easier for her to work with wallace breen to bring gordon to him. if you had a way to ensure the safety of the people you care about, and it'd require the capture of a man you believe was the catalyst for the end of the world, wouldn't you at least like... consider it?? not to mention the way she acts with breen is very... submissive, like maybe she's been with the combine for a specific reason that he can dangle over her head that makes her unable to go against him. the safety of eli, a way to live somewhat comfortably if her wearing a pristine off-white turtleneck is anything to go by, god knows what else.

augh. sorry my brain's losing steam but like. i need to at least mention: her going after the borealis after she breaks free from combine (and, most of all, breen) control is something i took as not just her trying to find something useful for the resistance, but also like... a way to apologize/make up for what she did? but without asking for forgiveness? she went to the fucking arctic to find one of the most valuable pieces of... tech? ... most valuable artifact? Important Ship, specifically so she can fix everything. and how will it fix things?

the borealis has weird temporal elements that lets you go back in time.

of course the woman who's focused so much on the past and the "what-if"s would go looking for something that would let her fix things in the past

[the-muppet-joker-archive]

Current players in the Muppetverse

Please be aware this list is only of the players that I know of! If I missed any, or if you want your @ removed, please let me know either via comments or DM!

While this blog is inactive, I may update this list from time-to-time to make sure it's up-to-date.

For other index posts (from me), check: #index Full list under the Keep Reading.

Archivists/Curators (in alphabetical order):

u/Alternative_Studio20 on Reddit (@the-muppet-joker's neighbor, Robbie)

@amuppetreference

@croakercurator

@croakerobserver

Delta: @muppetverse-debate

@jokermitfied

Jon: @themuppetarchives / @fearandfelt (both are run by the same account)

Kanaya: @muppet-meddler

Martin: @muppet-blackwood

MJ Archivist: @the-muppet-joker-archive (<- That's me!) (blog is inactive)

Steve: @croaker-conspiracies

Strange Æons: @strange-aeons (Specifically this video which summarizes a fair bit of the beginning storyline)

@themuppetpoker

@the-muppet-watch

u/ThrowawayWeirdNephew on Reddit (@the-muppet-joker's Uncle Steven)

Virgil: @croaker-explained

The Man Himself:

@the-muppet-joker

@the-muppet-joker's Current Kins (that we're aware of) (in order of appearance):

Kermit the Frog (The Muppets)

The Joker (DC Comics)

Bro Strider (Homestuck)

Adam (The Bible)

Vriska Serket (Homestuck)

Dark Eve (The Bible)

@the-muppet-joker's Old Roommates (in alphabetical order):

Athena: @mydarlingathena

Milton: @lifedoesntdiscriminate

Sage: @minuseyes

@the-muppet-joker's Old Neighbours (in alphabetical order):

This is from when @the-muppet-joker was living with Athena, Milton, and Sage.

Robbie: (u/Alternative_Studio20 on Reddit) (no tumblr account that we know of)

Robbie's GF (no name provided) (no tumblr/reddit account that we know of)

@the-muppet-joker's Family (that we're aware of) (in order of appearance):

Aunt Kimberly (no tumblr account that we know of)

Father (no tumblr account that we know of)

Mother (no tumblr account that we know of)

Uncle Steven (u/ThrowawayWeirdNephew on Reddit) (no tumblr account that we know of)

Fans (Numbered) (in numerical order):

1/One: @muppetjokernumberonefan

2/Two: @muppetjokernumbertwofan

3/Three: @muppetjokernumberthreefan

5/Five (a): @muppetjokerfannumberfive (blog is inactive)

5/Five (b): @muppetjokernumberfivefan

7/Seven: @muppetjokernumber7fan

8/Eight: @muppetjokernum8ereightfan

11/Eleven: @muppetjokerfannumbereleven

12/Twelve: @12thmuppetjokerfan

16/Sixteen: @themuppetjokernumber16fan

57/Fifty-Seven: @muppetjokernumberfiftysevenfan

69/Sixty-Nine (a): @muppetjokerfan69

69/Sixty-Nine (b): @muppetjokernumbersixtyninefan

69/Sixty-Nine (c): @the-muppet-joker-fan-69

114/One-Hundred-Fourteen: @muppetjokerfan114

272/Two-Hundred-Seventy-Two: @the-muppet-joker-fan-272

420/Four-Hundred-Twenty: @themuppetjokernumber420fan

3,000/Three-Thousand: @muppetjoker3000fan

Idk: @muppetjokerfannumberidk

Next: @nextnumbermuppetjokerfan

Fans (Non-Numbered) (in alphabetical order):

@clumpyrover123

@donkeynumber52

@fraggled-nightwing (blog has been deleted)

@iluvthecroaker

@iluvthemuppetjoker (blog has been deleted)

@itzamefreddeefatzune

Janice: @daisybabyjanice

@kermitjokerfanatic (blog has been deleted)

@kremitdeforg

@muppeterfan

@muppetjokercrushing

@muppetjokerfandashie

@muppetjokerfanofextinction

@muppetjokernonbinaryfan

@muppetjokersbiggestfan

@muppetjoker-art

@muppetjoker-foidfan

@muppetstrider

@pest-control-central

@r0l0way

@thecroakersisterhood

@themuppetjokerepicfan

@the-muppet-jokers-largest-fan (Unable to tag, link to blog)

@the-muppet-jokers-waifu

@thenewscenemomuppetjokerfan

@topmuppetjokerfan

@muppetstrider

@youngfortunato

Exes (in order of appearance):

Miss Piggy (The Muppets - from kin memories)

Harley Quinn (DC Comics - from kin memories)

Error: @errrrorsans404

Ash (no tumblr account that we know of)

Raven (no tumblr account that we know of)

4/Four: @muppetjokerfannumberfour

Ethan (while not technically an ex, I don't know what other category to place him in) (no tumblr account that we know of)

Rivals (in alphabetical/numerical order):

@cabbagex4 (Denny's parking lot fight)

Equius: @equiusagainsttheworld (blog has been deleted)

Denise: @descimatedcroakernightmares

Gonzo Batman: @gonzobatman1 (FKA: @/the-real-croaker)

Gunch: @gunchhorseman

Lee: @bruciemilf (The rivalry was in ~March of 2024, before major traction came to @the-muppet-joker's page)

Mis: @descimatedpiggydreams

@peachyfuck18

Statler: @statleragainstposers

Strange Æons: @strange-aeons

The Pope / God / Catholic Church / Protestants

@jimmythebastards-blog (Used to be therealmuppetjoker)

@unmask-strange-aeons

111/One-Hundred-Eleven: @thestrangemuppetjokerfan111

"Fuck Around & And Find Out" (title may change later) (in alphabetical order):

This/These account(s) stated that they are neither fans or rivals, but purely exist for the purpose of having "rude" accounts "fuck around and find out".

@trash-panda-anon

Smuppet ARGs (based on Homestuck) (in alphabetical order):

@burstingatseams

@feltcaverns

@f1uff3rnutt3r

@limplegsakimbo

@softass

@twitchingproboscis

Cypher ARGs (in numerical/alphabetical order):

@143157162162165160164145144

@32972420249658955152

@ew91a25vd21l

@dispatch-base-91 (blog has been deleted)

@dispatcher192-c

Company ARGs (in alphabetical order):

@olipopsoda

@reallacroix

Fear ARGs (in alphabetical order):

@ceaseless-muppet-watcher (Fear of being watched)

@olipopsoda (Fear of hunger)

Unclassified (more information needed) (in alphabetical order):

If you have more information on what category this/these accounts(s) should be in, please let me know either via comments or DM!

[none right now]

Last Edited: August 10, 2024 — 5:03pm /17:03 (Pacific Time — US & Canada) Reason: Added Dark Eve to the Current Kins list

[strawberryblue-blog]

neighbors in trouble —Pablo Gavi.

summary: Being Pablo Gavi's neighbor had never been so difficult.

warning: YES. +18. smut.

word count: +2.5k.

The papers lay on the desk in your room as you tried to summarize the contents on them. Your mind was very distracted and you were beginning to feel very uncomfortable. It had been at least two hours since your neighbor had decided to play the music too loud while having a party next door and while you understood that it was his right, you were starting to get annoyed at how much it was bothering you.

You snorted as you stretched your body in the chair, stirring as you threw everything near you. It wasn't fair, the music was too loud and it seemed like he had no intention of turning it off every time you felt squeals and people talking on the other side.

Who knew having a celebrity as a neighbor would be so hard like that? You'd be lying if you didn't say you weren't attracted to your neighbor at all. He was fucking hot. But he's also an asshole.

Your neighbor, Pablo, came to your building at the end of the previous year and since then, you had been getting along from bad to worse. You tried to ignore the fact that he was a star, one of the most important players in Spain and that everyone was dying for him. But living next to him was hell. He had parties every weekend, invited his friends until late at night and too many girls that you ended up running into them the next morning. You had to admit that he was good looking and you were attracted to him but Gavi was a jerk. Although you didn't have a constant relationship with him, in fact, you saw him very little due to your studies and his work. The occasional word in the mornings or at night but you never let him get close. It wasn't like anything important, he was just your neighbor. Just like any other.

You always had to lock yourself in your room to be able to study, which was difficult to do when your neighbor put all the obstacles in your way. You were putting up with it and telling yourself that one day it would all end, but you were fed up with his immature person.

So you decided to do something or you would kill him if he didn't stop.

You knocked on the door of his apartment and hugged the hoodie that covered your body, it was the first time you came to face him and you were nervous but even more you were upset. You knocked again when nobody answered, it was clear that they didn't listen, so you made sure they could hear you. After a while, the landlord opened the door, smiling amused when he saw you.

"Hi babe" he said flirtatiously and your urge to punch him in the face was immense.

You ignored the fact that he called you that. He always did it when he saw you in the elevator or in the lobby and you began to doubt whether he did it out of politeness (since you weren't sure if he knew your name) or to play with you. But neither one mattered much to you.

"Could you turn down the music? I'm trying to study and I can't do that if you have a party next to my room" you said without even saying hello. You were someone of manners and even if you would have greeted him before speaking, you preferred not to give him the right.

He tilts his head with a smile.

"Maybe you should join in and study later" he commented raising an eyebrow and licking his lip. You clenched your fists trying to hide your desire to hit him.

"I don't want to join, i have to study and it's two o'clock in the morning" you replied seriously. "Some people need silence" you spat.

"There are people who need a party too" he scoffed crossing his hands at the door. You shook in disbelief. Your body trembled as he took a step forward but you didn't move.

"Just turn the music down, please, Pablo" you asked tiredly. He smiled when he heard you. Especially since your body betrayed you and you gasped his name, even you yourself were surprised.

"It's my house, it's my right" he argued as you turned around. Oh no, he wasn't going to talk about right with you.

"Your right ends when you exceed it and surpass mine" you spat straight ahead.

You didn't mince words, much less when you studied law and knew perfectly well a person's rights. You also knew perfectly well that you could call the police and make them turn down the music for that measure of force but you weren't looking for trouble, just to be heard and respected.

"Maybe you want me to overstep your rights" he takes another step and stands in front of you.

Gavi smiled wryly again. He was playing with you. Damn him. Fuck him. You snorted tired of the situation.

You sighed and turned to walk out of his door. You were angry and if you were still there you might commit a crime. You feel a hand on yours and when you pull away, he stops you. You turn your face and see him close to you, too close. But you don't let him intimidate you.

"I think you're a little stressed" he whispers leaning in, reaching your ear and a shiver runs down your back. "I could help you destress, babe" he says again so close to your skin that your hairs stand on end.

Your palms sweat from nerves and your thoughts scatter when his hand runs dangerously down your arm, caressing your skin with his warm fingers.

You want to push him away and punch him in the face but you are frozen, you can only see his dark eyes mocking you, how his proud smile widens when he notices the effect his actions had on you. He walks away and enters his apartment again and you stand frozen in the hallway for a few moments. As you walk back home, you hear the music come to a screeching halt and the shrieking stops completely. Before you close the door of your house, you smile. You don't know if you're smiling because he just turned the music down or because of his proposal.

Had Gavi invited you to...? No. It was not possible.

You bite your lip when you think of his closeness again. You lean against the door of your house when you close it, his thick voice repeats in your ear and his touch still burns your body. Damn it. You just got turned on by your idiot neighbor.

How dare he! You weren't stressed, you were tired. You just wanted silence and to be able to pass your subjects but he was just an idiot.

He was trying to have sex with you? Idiot! How could he suggest that to you? You didn't know him at all, you didn't even know if you could trust him.

You listened as the murmurs died down completely and the elevator announced that he was on the floor. His friends had left? You peeked through the peephole as you watched them get on the elevator and closed your eyes. You were mad. Why would you want to see if their friends had left? You had to go back to stusy right now.

You were mad at Gavi. But he was turning you on.

The few hours of sleep were making you feel things you shouldn't feel. You felt tired, your eyes were burning and your head was in denial. And you didn't want to admit it but if you were stressed, how could you not be stressed with someone like him? You couldn't think straight. Not when you had just felt Pablo Gavi so close to you suggesting you have sex with him. Not when you were needy and hadn't fucked in months because of college.

Damn it. You gasped opening your door, in long strides you walked to her door and knocked on it. Your body was buzzing and you were anxious. You didn't know this part of you or at least you had never accepted it before.

The door opened so quickly you wondered if he was waiting for you. The typical smile appeared on his lips and you wanted to kiss him so badly you didn't let him say a word. You threw yourself at him without waiting, catching his lips in a fleeting and wild kiss. Gavi lifted your hips making you entwine your legs to his body so he could enter with you and close the door. He slammed you against the door and you gasped as you felt his tongue in your mouth, your fingers played with the growth of his hair and you let yourself go in the feeling of pleasure.

It wasn't the first time you had slept with a stranger but it was the first time you had dared this, come to a footballer's house and let him touch you. You were really driving yourself crazy.

He lowered you back to the floor and helped you out of the hoodie you were wearing, leaving you in just your pajamas. He looked at you with a smile when he saw the teddy pajamas and you rolled your eyes. His hand slipped into your shorts and you swallowed a moan when he reached your mons pubis.

"Shhh" he said bringing his lips close to yours. "I have a neighbor who hates loud noises" he teased and you gasped when his fingers found your wetness. "If she hears you scream she'll come begging for quiet in her sexy teddy bear pajamas and ruin all the fun."

You wanted to complain but his fingers penetrated you and you screamed as you felt them inside you. Gavi kissed you and you released yourself to him. You let the moment flow as you moaned and came on his fingers, enjoying the pleasure of orgasm. You definitely needed this and you hated that it was Gavi who made you feel this way.

His eyes watched you peak and when you stilled your gasps, you again claimed his lips. You needed him, he was so sweet and addictive, you were begging for his lips again. Pablo would reach in and grab your clothed breasts as your hands shot to his pants to unbutton them. You wanted to feel him, you needed his cock and he knew it. He lifted you off the floor again, entangling you in his body to drag you into the bedroom as you kissed and panted in rhythm. You were thankful that there were only two apartments on the floor because I was sure that with how thin the walls were, anyone could have heard your moans and Gavi's grunts.

When you reached the bedroom, he threw you on the bed and began to undress watching as you yourself also removed your clothes biting your lip at the sight of his abdomen. Fuck. Your cheeks were red, red from temptation and a little from embarrassment. You felt a little shy but you thought it was the right thing to come. He had invited you himself. And you were enjoying it. You were really stressed because this level of craziness was not explainable.

His lips kissed your chest, playing with the bottom of your bra listening to your needy moans. His hands caressed your sensitive belly from the previous orgasm and just with his touch you could feel the heat between your legs. You were submissive to him and you could just see him there on top of you, kissing your body with his smile, he was hating you so much now.

"Do you really want this, baby?" he asked as his fingers slipped into your panties. He was going to pull them off and when he did, there was no turning back.

"Yes," you whispered. Gavi licked your lower belly, you swallowed a scream.

"What did you say?" he said again with some pride and his hands went around the fabric of your panties.

"Yes, damn it, do it" you pleaded before his eyes and he did it. He slid the garment down your legs gently and when you were exposed to him you bit your lip nervously.

"You are beautiful" he whispered coming back to your face. You smiled denying.

"You're not into that" you joked. "Better not say anything."

Pablo rolled his eyes. He wasn't into that character. It was clear this was sex and you wanted to keep it there. Just you enjoying yourselves.

You gripped his shoulders tightly and helped yourself enough to get around him and turned him until you had him against the mattress. His complicit gaze greeted you and with a smile your hands pulled down his last article of clothing. He was completely naked and you swallowed saliva as you felt the cravings sting. You wanted to feel it and you wanted to be in control, he'd had it so far and it was your turn.

"No fair" he said as your center pressed against his belly. He was referring to your bra and when his fingers tugged at the straps, you ran them, you were going to remove it yourself. And so you did, detaching it and lifting it up to show him what was right.

You and him, Pablo Gavi. Naked. Excited. Hot. Ready for this.

"Condom" you mentioned and he nodded, reaching into the drawer of his medicine cabinet. He pulled one out and opened it, putting it on when you gave him room to do so. You were nervous, anxious, needy and embarrassed. How the fuck had you ended up in this situation? Damn it, all because of your intervention.

"Ready, baby?" he asked as he helped you back on top of him, you were surprised he let you take control but you liked it.

Slowly you took his cock until you brought it to your wetness, you played a little with his wet tip and when you couldn't take any more, you sank down on it. Oh my god. A gasp escaped your lips as you felt his cock inside you, you felt so full all of a sudden that you couldn't hide a sob. Maybe right now you didn't want him to see you like this but it had been at least three or four months since you had fucked and it had had an effect on you.

"You're too tight" he groaned as you got up to sit on him again, trying to get used to your size.

"I'm sorry" you said not too sure. "I've spent a while without..."

"It's okay, you don't have to explain" he shushed you sitting up to help you move. The movement made you both gasp with pleasure, now your face was very close to yours and the temptation to kiss him didn't keep you waiting.

You hated that he made you feel this way, you hated that Gavi was right. You were stressed and in need of cock. His cock. Maybe this was the reason for everything and the loud music was just an excuse to watch him.

"Are you okay?" he insisted as his fingers caressed your ass, you nodded ready. You sighed deeply before you began to move on top of him, moving up and down on his cock as moans and gasps filled you.

"Shit" you squealed jumping on top of Gavi. He held your lower back helping you ride him as his lips kissed your breasts, collarbones and neck. Pleasure was seeping out of every pore of your bodies, they are plunged between you, you felt it so deep inside you that just thinking about it made you more aroused.

Your worries were gone for a second. There were no notes, exams or classes to think about. You were just here. Riding his cock like a crazy madwoman while he screamed your name and you heard your name between grunts. You couldn't take it anymore, you were in ecstasy.

"Do you want to come, baby?" he asked when your eyes found yours.

You weren't one for many words in sex. Gavi had noticed but he needed to hear you, he needed to see you gooey with it, he needed to hear your voice begging.

"Yes, Pablo" you asked. His name came out exactly the same as you had called him a few hours ago when you came earlier. "Damn it, yes please" you begged as the pressure in your belly increased.

"Good girl" he murmured with a smile, directing his lips to your nipple and bit it so hard you cried out in pleasure as you felt your orgasm hit you.

It felt like a pleasurable and magical release. The way your body arched against his and your feet anchored to his hips. The shriek was so loud you knew more than one person had heard you. Gavi gasped holding you up to help him and despite feeling your body numb and sensitive, you continued to fuck him. Your fingers caressed his face, groping the wet locks on his forehead and you kissed him as his roars began to sound louder.

"Shit, Y/n" he gasped and his fingers pressed your waist so hard you'd have marks for sure tomorrow.

"You drive me crazy" he said one last time before moaning as he reached his orgasm.

[under-snail]

y'all i think i cracked deltarune

sort of. this theory is really long but broken into parts to make it easier to read.

I. Sans originates from Deltarune

so, it's pretty much confirmed that pre-Undertale Sans came from somewhere else, right? some place that he misses, but can't go back to.

so where did he come from?

I think, the world of deltarune. I have enough evidence that I'm pretty sure that at the least this part of the theory is correct. there are lost of hints, but overall:

there's one major difference between monsters in undertale and monsters in deltarune.

monsters in undertale don't bleed. they dissolve into dust the moment of their death. this makes for a unique type of funeral.

now, let's compare this to deltarune:

even though we don't see any monsters die (yet) in deltarune, in chapter 1 Susie makes a very interesting comment.

well actually, susie, everyone does NOT bleed, right?

the only dead monster we see in the light world is Berdly after killing him in the dark world. he is, presumably, dead, but he hasn't turned to dust. he's just...sitting there.

not to mention, IF monsters turned to dust in deltarune, there would be no reason for there to be a cemetary in the town, right? because there would be nothing to really bury.

So we've established that monsters in undertale turn into dust, while monsters in deltarune bleed and die similarly to humans.

there are no monsters in undertale that bleed or leave behind a body after being killed.

except for one.

now, we don't see sans leave behind a body. but, he moves just out of our line of sight just before dying. most likely he teleported elsewhere just before he died.

so, now that we've established sans originating from deltarune, let's move onto the next part of the theory

II. Deltarune is a sequel to undertale genocide.

(this part of the theory has been positied before, but I don't know where it originated. i first heard it from a deltarune playthrough by BornLosersGaming)

so, let's start with a seemingly innocuous fact.

this is taken from the official deltarune website.

now, this could mean nothing. but I find toby's word choice of 'completed' to be very interesting.

not for people who have played undertale, or even who have finished undertale. it's for people who completed undertale. the word completed is generally intended to mean having done everything possible. ex. the completionist instinct. completionists being those who have completed genocide.

let's look at chara's words after we complete the genocide run:

could the 'next' world mean deltarune?

that would indicate that the red soul possessing kris could be chara, moved on from erasing undertale and intending to do the same here.

let's remind ourselves that chara is US. we give them our own name at the start of undertale. they are meant to be a stand in for the player.

but how can chara make a reappearance, since they don't exist in deltarune. they don't even have a name. except, they do.

i think this was a very clever trick on toby's part to ensure the player enters their own name.

so to summarize: chara/frisk(frisks role will be discussed)'s soul has erased the undertale timeline, and have 'moved on to the next' possessing Kris and planning to erase the world of deltarune as well.

III. Chara represents the completionist instinct

so, this might be a little more of a meta take than a theory, but I think it ties in.

so, I don't think chara is a 1:1 representation of the player. chara doesn't appear in every playthrough of undertale. their presence only becomes known when we make illogical decisions.

when we play the pacifist run, we play in the role of frisk. almost nobody commits genocide in their first playthrough of undertale: it's our urge to complete, to know everything, that pushes us, the player, to light.

frisk is the character. chara is the controller. when frisk's actions reach the point of nonsensical, it doesn't make sense for frisk. we are no longer playing within the role of the character. we are playing solely to fulfill the desires of the completionist instinct. this instinct is said the best through the words of flowey. the only other being, aside from chara, not to have a soul. (as chara's soul was 'stolen' from frisk)

i think this could be a sort of commentary from toby, about how completionism takes away from the 'soul' of a game. as when you're acting in its favor, you are no longer playing the role you've been given.

as the completionist instinct takes over, the lines blur between frisk and chara. chara gains more and more control until they have complete control over frisk. we have taken control of the narrative in a way it was never meant to go.

we are no longer frisk. we are only ourselves.

IV. Sans is the sole survivor of deltarune

I think that by the end of deltarune (at least the snowgrave route, but possibly all routes) we will erase the deltarune timeline in the same way that we erased undertale's.

sans will be the sole survivor of this 'genocide' prompting him to escape to the universe of undertale and try to stop the 'anomaly' before it begins erasing timelines.

in undertale, sans acts like he knows what's coming next. what the anomaly (us) is capable of. and he spends the game trying to prevent us being taken over by chara, by befriending frisk so they don't feel the need to give in to chara or, as a last resort, fighting us himself.

while sans doesn't have complete omnisciense over the resets, he definitely has more of a sense of when the timeline is being messed with than other characters. because he's experienced is the most of anyone.

a lot of his fight dialogue gives us the feeling that he's seen this play out before.

this was the tip off, when he first sees chara jumping from timeline to timeline, jumbling them, throwing them off course, and eventually erasing them entirely.

sans knows where this is all going. that chara's victory won't just mean a reset, but the complete erasure of the timeline.

contrary to popular belief, i don't think the resets are what sans is primarily upset about. otherwise he'd fight us in other routes. no, he onlu fights us in the complete genocide run, when he sees chara fighting to take full control, because he knows what that means.

deltarune is our future, but it's sans' past. i think this is true because the sans we meet in deltarune is a sharp contrast to the one we all know. he doesn't appear suspicious of kris or on-edge. because unlike undertale's sans, he doesn't know the stakes of what's going on.

i think chara's past and intentions may also play a role in why kris is so distressed by the soul's presence. don't get me wrong, it would be distressing to be controlled by another being regardless of what that being is doing. but i think it might go deeper than that.

kris is desperate to get rid of the soul even in the case of a complete pacifist. even if all we're doing is sniffing flowers and making friends. maybe kris knows what we're capable of, maybe even what we've done in the past. we played innocently in the role of frisk for a while, too. but eventually our completionist urges-Chara-took over. Kris knows that the same thing will happen in their timeline, and they're trying to prevent it.

tldr: sans originates from the deltarune universe. deltarune takes place post-undertale genocide but in sans' past. chara represents the completionist instinct of players and the cruelty we're willing to commit to 'complete' the game. the soul is chara and is controlling kris with the end goal of erasing the deltarune timeline.

bonus: who the hell is ralsei?

i don't actually think that ralsei is secretly evil. i think they're more aware than most characters of the soul and its intentions. they plot with kris behind our back and tries to shepherd us into a pacifist path, perhaps to delay our intentions of erasing the timeline.

[riddles-n-games]

TGG Cards Theory

Warning: Spoliers

Now that the book is out, I think it's so much clearer, at least in some cases what the specifics of each character card (number and symbol) signifies:

Grayson, 8 of hearts: 8th player that was a last minute addition to the Grandest Game and part of the Hearts team.

Knox, 9 of clubs: He was nine when he met Brady and defended him from a bully and on the Clubs team.

Brady, 6 of clubs: He was six when he met Knox and was also on Clubs. In tandem with Knox's number, their cards likely have to do with the flashback when they first met.

Odette, 3 of hearts: Although I could say it means she's the third member of the Hearts team, it's probably about her three truths from the scene where she opens up to Gray and Lyra about her dying. (Also, what are the odds that she just so happens to be our third elderly character that's dying? Sure Tobias was dead by the time we're introduced to the Hawthornes but he was dying and his family didn't know about it.)

Savannah, queen of diamonds: Obviously, she was one of the two members of the Diamonds team and also, impertinently labeled the queen that Rohan was going to use as a chip on his board. I also think it just generally meant her personality that he was describing in that way.

Lyra, queen of hearts: A member of the Hearts team and I think her being a queen in this case has a lot to do with her involvement in the Game and on her team. Like, her back story, her ambitions, her wants, her characteristics of a leader, and maybe even that future romantic entanglement with Grayson as queen of his heart. After all, as Nash said, "Our games have heart."

Rohan, ace of diamonds: Other half of the Diamonds team and I think the ace just refers to him putting himself as number one because of his ambitions while of course believing himself to be the rightful winner. He also is an ace of many talents.

Gigi, queen of clubs: Third member of the Clubs team and I think her role can be similarly summarized like Lyra's but different in the sense that she was very much holding down the fort with Knox and Brady's shenanigans, leading them in an unexpected way, stuff like that. And she was also fiercely determined to prove herself that she deserved a place in the Game and accepted defeat gracefully at the end of the book.

But that's just my theory. Tell me yours in the comments or reblogs.

[gossipteasworld]

”Lewis is an aquarius and they are not notoriously affectionate people.”

anon, i know we're all speculating about these celebrities’ lives since it's all made public but let's not resort to pseudoscience i beg... (⁠T⁠T⁠) zodiacs should be a fun thing that people can look at anytime, not something that determines your personality traits, you know? it's a slippery slope to fall on!

on the other hand, i totally agree with you about how people are more comfortable showing their love in different ways! what we've said in the earlier ask is not indicative of there being a right way to love or anything, it was just an interesting thing to point out.

the thing about the jump from kaia and lewis's past relationships with their previous partners to theirs in the present is that the contrast is SO LOUD!! like austin and rainey are two personalities that are so unabashedly themselves that it's easy to focus your attention on them instead of their partner.

so get my train of thought: when we take kaia, whose persona -- this introspective bookworm, sensitive, intellectual, cool girl, etcetera. yk, like y/n from fics lmao -- was already curated and fabricated into something she's clearly not (not to mention her known bad reputation) along with her personality being drier than the sahara desert cuz she doesn't know what the fuck she wants for herself — and put her alongside someone like lewis, who, despite player tendencies, has his image defined as this lowkey “shy” guy who is a private person (which actually helps him hide his true facets but that's a can of worms to open another time lmao) with a placid and mild personality with not much essence PLUS very divergent interests to her — it results into the most boring and ??? couple you've ever seen 😭

that's why it's tedious. why people compare their relationship to their past ones: it's a dull and uninteresting couple, and every DM gossip about them seem very meticulously fabricated and stupid. cuz what is there to comment about their 5 month relationship?? 😭

anyways, love ur blog!!

I agree that zodiacs do not summarize your personality (I'm Sagittarius for example and I think I have nothing to do with these signs lmao) but at the same time signs are very accurate with some people's personalities (I think Austin is totally a Leo lol) but that are some signs like aquarius or Kaia's sign Virgin that I don't know that much so I go...are all Virgins like her? 😭

"Austin and Rainey are two personalities that are so unabashedly themselves" I think I couldn't agree more with this phase

That's so true, I think Kaia persona is fabricated, much this because of her looks too, I think just because she likes books they fabricated her as this intellectual smart girl and sensitive but I never saw Kaia being vulnerable, even her books conversations are scripted. Along with her personality being drier than the sahara desert (lmao) -yeah

I think both him and Kaia use the image they have to hide their true faces, him as the shy guy and she as the book girl but yeah putting these both side by side we get the most boring couple out there

Kaia and Lewis are the type of couple that doesn't even deserve an article about a night make out, because this is not what every couple does? so that's why it's fabricated, do we need to know from Just Jared, People, Page Six that a couple that are together for 5 months are kissing in the lips? no.

Kaia go after the it boys but she's so boring that she's not able to make them a it couple

Thank you! 🤍 and I loved your message, very well detailed and observer

[the-gayest-show]

Operation Birthday Takeover Review/Analysis

I wanted to include this in the review bomb but decided against it because the episode would take too much yap compared to the others to summarize properly, let's go!

(sorry if these screenshots have the player on them I couldn't find a better way bare with me this is better than the easier route i'd have taken)

HAHAHAHAHAHA SO MUCH TO TALK ABOUT HERE!

First of all, PERI! YOU'RE BACK BABY HBUIEBRBFEIBFWiuB

Second of all and most important, this was a MAJOR Dev episode. Well, obviously, since it's his birthday, but we got to see more of him being nice while it lasted anyways, and we also got to see more of Dale's neglect and it's affects on Dev.

You can see he's clearly disappointed about his dad paying no attention to Dev at all, preferring to work on "Project H" instead of his own son. Will throw hands on this man fr.

Throughout the episode we see more hints of this disappointment, like when Vicky gets invited to the party (Dev doesn't even like princesses! DUDE!)

Now that I'm really rewatching as I go, Hazel seems to be very aware of it and very empathetic towards Dev, I like that about her. She's looking out for her friend! Good on her!

On the other hand (to move the plot forward and thus this review), I love seeing the fairy family back in action again!

I love their dynamic even more! Also I swear to God half of the iconic lines come from these interactions I swear to God.

"Time to see what's so secret about this room!....... On second thought never mind" SOBBING LAUGHING

Having the three of them slowly find out that project H is actually Project Hazel is so wild. THEY LITERALLY WROTE DOWN IMPORTANT INFO ON THE BOARD LIKE THE FAIRIES THING. COSMO! WANDA! WHYYYYYYYYY

The sad part of the matter is, Dale was fixated on Dev's friend of all people simply because she was... content? With fairy godparents? It's so sad actually for Dev... he REALLY needs someone to care about him

I wanna get into Vicky though now, and the surprising amounts of references to the OG series that were made in less than 2 minutes apart from each other? Crazy!

First of all, she's back! An interesting character to return for sure, considering she mostly acted as Timmy's babysitter in the OG series, but the continuity of this show never ceases to surprise me!

She's somehow similar looking? Like, correct me if I'm wrong but shouldn't she be older now? Significant enough to be changed visually for sure. AJ was 10 in the original series and now he's like 30 something. By that logic shouldn't Vicky be closer to her 40s? Does that age a person significantly from 16? That's what I thought anyways... She's still into the "conning little children for money" thing. She's literally 30+ at least, did she not try to up her game somehow? IMHO she totally could have extreme power like that over adults if she got gullible enough ones, could've been worse, but I guess people of Vicky's personality don't truly change unless there's a major life breakthrough that happens. You know what they say about peaking in high school...

Icky Vicky the song (and thus the episode it was in) is canon to the FOP A New Wish universe. I could swear the song sounded slightly different than it did when it was sung in this episode, but I'll blame that on the song coming out 10+ years ago and voice actors being too specific to nail down (I think the guy from one direction played the Icky Vicky singer? No wonder they couldn't invite him back). The song being referred to as "old" got me cringing a bit. I didn't grow up with the show but I get the feeling people who did felt themselves aging in real time with Jasmine's comment...

TIMMY MENTION! TIMMY HAS BEEN MENTIONED BY NAME IN THE A NEW WISH UNIVERSE AGAIN!

Poor fairy trio though, they're all traumatized by Vicky, even Peri (who thought she was some weird ass dream, dawg I wish 😭) and immediately they're cowering with fear at the sound of her name. They got PTSD or something from all those years in original FOP...

What's funnier is them being able to stand up to Vicky by just. transforming into humans, which works bc that's always worked in FOP canon (when parental figures showed up in the OG), but somehow Wanda and Cosmo didn't fucking know that? Truly, Wanda, it would've been nice for y'all to know that some decades ago.

"That's Vicky for ya! Making Kids Miserable Since 2001!"

Actually it would be 1998 if we count the Oh Yeah Cartoon Pilot and subsequent episodes, but I guess we're only counting actual FOP as canon 😔

-

I wanna really talk about the last scene though, where Dev finds out that Project H was Project Hazel. It REALLY tears him up inside to see just HOW bad his father doesn't give a shit about him.

LOOK. LOOK AT THAT FACE AND TELL ME THAT ISN'T DEVASTATION! Even as he's recounting all the times that his father talked about Project H

The emotional neglect really runs deep with this one.

He lashes out at both Peri and Hazel (her especially since he's under the impression that she faked being his friend or something) and even wishes for Peri to leave him alone. So basically he's closing himself off from the 2 people who cared about him the most, likely as an emotional response. And then he goes and crosses off everything on the board in anger and leaves.

I've noticed Peri's behaviour towards Dev has changed a bit again since the Dimmsonian episode. I think in that episode initially he seemed more tired, and he's probably still tired, but if he is, it's not shown as much here. I think personally Peri seeing more of Dev's life might've changed his attitude towards the child, but he still remains semi optimistic. He cares about this kid. It's shown even in just those few seconds of hesitation before he leaves that Peri was kind of heartbroken/sad at the request to leave Dev's side, but was willing to do so since he asked/wished. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I really do enjoy their dynamic and really wish to see more of it, especially after this.

This is all 100% driven from his dad's actions affecting his emotional state, and I think this is actually a perfect setup for the episode where Dev and Irep take over Fairy World. Especially if Irep finds Dev like not even seconds after this scene, he's more vulnerable now than he's been throughout the whole series thus far, so a manipulator like Irep (if he is a good one, but heck even if he was dogshit at it) could defo make him change his thoughts on things.

Overall this episode was great and there's lots to love about it!

[elffees]

Frontiers of Pandora made me realize how much I hate Jake S*lly

So I watched a No-Commentary lets play of Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora and have a lot of thoughts.

Disclaimer #1: I am a WOC, but I am not indigenous. I absolutely encourage indigenous peoples to add onto this post and share their thoughts.

Disclaimer #2: There is going to be an abundance of Jake S*lly hate in this post. I just ask that if you are a fan of Jake, and still choose to read my post, that you do so in good faith and out of genuine curiosity. Please don't read my post with the sole intent to shoot it down.

Overarching Problems with the Avatar Franchise

Okay so, time to actually get into the post.

To start off, the entire Avatar franchise has problems. Regardless if it's the video games, comics, movies, or what have you. Ableist tropes, racist tropes, misogynistic tropes, my god there are a bunch. These problems with the franchise have been talked about for literal decades now though, so I'll link a few of their pieces here.

Native Media Theory's critique video

"Avatar: The Way of Water" and the Question of Indigenous Representation

Native News Online's article about JaCam's horribly ignorant comment and ATWOW

Avatar: The Way of Water or How NOT to Make Indigenous Futurism Movies

Old, New, Borrowed and Blue: Compulsory Able-bodiedness and Whiteness in Avatar

Avatar's Approach to Ableism Misses the Mark

There are hundreds of other sources from all areas of the internet. It would be impossible for me to list them all. Fortunately, they're very easy to find if you want to know more.

What I want to talk about is the game Frontiers of Pandora that just released in December 2023, and how it changed my perspective on the movies, at least the first movie since I have yet to watch the second.

Frontiers of Pandora

(I will try my best to be as spoiler-free as possible, but there will be segments where I'll dive into them. I will put a warning ahead of time.)

Just so we're all on the same page, I'll briefly summarize FOP's premise.

Spoiler-Free Summary

As an infant, the playable character, an unnamed Na'vi, was taken by a project group of the RDA known as "TAP", The Ambassador Program. You are not alone, a significant number of Na'vi children, all from the newly introduced Sarentu Clan, were taken as well. It's made clear in the opening that TAP's initial goal was to raise Na'vi children and teach them human culture to "bridge the gap" between their two peoples. And then once ready, they would be sent back out into Pandora to serve as "ambassadors" for Na'vi-Human relations. You were to be mainly taught by Alma Cortez, TAP's Co-founder and a skilled xenobiologist, who notably spends more time in her Avatar body than in her original one.

As time passed and relations between the Na'vi and the RDA became more hostile, the taken Sarentu children were taught to use human weapons. Heavily implied to be trained to fight against other Na'vi to defend RDA resources, instead of the original intention to serve as "peaceful ambassadors".

The player's journey starts when the character is a teenager, around 16 to 18 years old. The final battle in the first movie causes a massive uproar to all RDA facilities, including TAP's. The administrator and founder, John Mercer, ordered the entire program and building to be abandoned. Part of that abandonment is ordering the execution of the playable character and all of the other Sarentu children.

Your character, and some of the others, are saved by Alma, who killed the soldiers that were assigned to kill you. Then, seemingly acting on impulse with no solid plans for your survival, put you and the others into a cryo-induced coma. With the plan that you would all be woken up when it was safe.

There is a misunderstanding and long story short, the Sarentu children do not get woken up until 16 years later. Your revival is when the game is officially put into the player's hands.

Just from the premise, it's clear the plot is based off the real life horror of Native American Boarding Schools. (I'm really curious how Indigenous viewers feel about this portrayal. I've tried to look up perspectives, but have had difficulty finding any. Probably because the game is so new.)

The Sarentu were taken as children, physically and psychologically abused whenever they interacted with Na'vi culture in any way, were told daily that the program was "for their own good", and were generally viewed as "property" owned by TAP and John Mercer.

We learn later in the game that in the early days of the program, the children suffered conditions so grotesque that the oldest of them admit to repressing the full events of what happened to stay sane. What we were already told about their upbringing is repulsive to hear, so to find out that there was more that was so traumatic and horrible, the characters can't even bring themselves to remember it let alone talk about it...

Basically, your character's backstory is fucked up. Very much so.

After experiencing all that, once your character wakes up from cryo sleep and rushes to the outdoors for the first time in approximately 32+ years, you get to the heart of the story.

Frontiers of Pandora is about the playable character reclaiming and rediscovering a culture that's been stripped from them. The character has the help of a predominantly human resistance group (known creatively as "The Resistance"), but the majority of the game is the character meeting and getting to know various Na'vi clans. From the Aranahe in Kinglor Forest, to the Zeswa in the Upper Plains, to the Kame'tire in the Clouded Forest.

And throughout the world, there are remnants of your character's lost people. There are Sarentu artifacts scattered all over the map where the character can regain lost knowledge from their Clan's way of life.

Fortunately, there are still Na'vi from the other three clans that have personally met the Sarentu before you. And they are EXTREMELY eager to tell you of their experiences with your people and how they used to interact with each other. There's even a character who is heavily implied to have known the playable character's mother, a fact we only learn after he playfully requests we gather ingredients and make a unique dish, not knowing until after we've tried it, that we were just taught how to make a meal our mother used to. A quest you don't expect to evoke tears until you're already crying.

You have the ability to use human weapons and wear human clothing if you wish, but that is optional. You can, and many players have, opt for a "full Na'vi playthrough" where you only use Na'vi weapons and dress in Na'vi attire (You can even dress in Sarentu-specific attire for full immersion!) There are no choices, so you can't choose to not interact with the Resistance, but you can spend as little time as possible with other humans, only needing to return for quick updates before going back out into Pandora with other Na'vi.

I say all this to say, the game is heavily about the Na'vi and reclaiming one's culture after it's been attempted to be destroyed. Watching this journey play out made me realize the potential Avatar has, and helped me better understand my biggest gripe with the movies. It's Jake Sully.

The Whitest Savior to Ever Whitely Save

After finishing the FOP playthrough, I decided to rewatch the first movie to see if I'd feel differently about it. And boy did I!

I could talk all day about how the tiniest similarities got to me. I laughed watching the ferocious pack of viperwolves, after seeing players frantically try to outrun them in Kinglor Forest. The harrowing climb up the ikran rookery, and thinking about the Sarentu's own sinking self esteem as they struggle to prove themselves to their eventual bonded. Even the floating mountains as the characters in the movie weave through them and Trudy uses them for cover, connecting it to all the times I've seen FOP players and ikrans rest on them or gather resources from their peaks.

The comparisons are endless.

But the biggest contrast and glaring stain is Jake's entire character.

Like Jake, the Sarentu (the playable character) has to learn how to maneuver a world they are not used to. Unlike Jake, it's clear the protagonist actually develops an appreciation and love for the world around them.

RELATIONSHIPS TO OTHER NA'VI

Even overlooking the WS trope for a minute (which we will touch on!), it comes across as though Jake only begins to side with the Omatikaya after enjoying the adrenaline rush of their way of life, and falling in love with Neytiri. But we never see Jake actually bonding with any other Na'vi besides her in the first movie.

He grows into calling them "brother" and "sister", and has a few throwaway lines of knowing of other Na'vi, but we don't actually see him develop any positive relationships with anyone other than Neytiri (who is very much given the Love Interest Angle where majority of her scenes are about Jake or have Jake in them. Even during her father's death scene, Jake made an appearance!!! Go away for a millisecond I am begging!) Even his supposed arc with Tsu'tey is rushed as all hell, and only happens because Jake ~miraculously~ becomes Toruk Makto. A feat that makes the Omatikaya gain respect for him en masse, despite them just calling for his death after learning he played a major role in the destruction of their Hometree.

In comparison, the Sarentu not only gets to know the culture, customs, and day-to-day lives of the Na'vi they meet, they also get to befriend them.

Now since I've watched a let's play, I haven't seen all that the game offers. But I have seen a lot of side activities in the Kinglor Forest.

Your character bonds with the other Sarentu children and with members of other massacred clans. They also create relationships with members of large clans: from as monumental of events as helping expose a corrupt olo'eyktan and bringing a shamed tsahik back to power, to as intimate as attending as funeral / "letting go" ceremony for a deceased ikran, to as simple as helping restore a weaver's low self esteem. Your character not only helps stop the RDA, but they also truly develop connections with other Na'vi. More than one!

Obviously, there can't be a full exploration of Jake simply making friends in a film because there just isn't enough time. But we could've seen him bonding with at least a few other Na'vi besides his love interest. For the franchise and sequel to be so Na'vi-focused, it wouldn't have hurt the first movie to detract some screentime from RDA characters, and give it to more Na'vi who we could've continued on with.

RELATIONSHIP TO THE WORLD AND TO EYWA

Another gripe I have with Jake's character is that he seems to hardly appreciate Pandora's wildlife or the Na'vi's connection to Eywa.

During Iknimaya, once he creates the bond, he refers to the ikran as "mine", despite the numerous times Neytiri has said no creature on Pandora can "belong" to anyone. It is a mutual bond based on respect, not taming a pet. Despite this lesson, Jake clearly still viewed it as such. We're not even told if the ikran Jake bonded with has a name, not in the film anyway. I had to find out through google that he named it, simply, "Bob".

And in the finale when connecting to Eywa, Jake asks for her help in the final battle. But while doing so, he's still uncertain if she's even "real" or "actually listening". Even now, he continues to doubt Na'vi beliefs (despite it literally being Grace's dying words!!)

In comparison, the Sarentu's journey up the ikran rookery to form a bond... it's emotional to say the least.

There is a desperation in your character's voice. Not of impatience, but of declining self esteem. A worry that you won't be chosen because you will not be deemed worthy. Because you are not Na'vi enough due to your upbringing. As you go up, an Aranahe character that guides you, Eetu, tells you of his experience and how calming it was. And that makes the character more nervous because of how stressful it's been for them so far.

But then you finally get close enough to approach. The ikran finally allows you to, and you meet eyes and...

I do not know how they managed to capture care and affection so perfectly but they did. The journey up the rookery is intense and nerve wracking. But once you get chosen, you the player IMMEDIATELY knows (just like Eetu said) because the ikran looks at you as though she's already prepared to give her life for yours. Many players have expressed that this segment legitimately made them cry because of how palpable the bond is.

And then Eetu says that she has placed full trust in you. And you know he's right because you can feel it. You can see it. But then he says now it's time for you to place full trust in her, and he "helps" you accomplish this by pushing you off the cliff!!!!! And it's scary! And terrifying! And you call out for her to help and you're still falling!! But then she catches you, and the next thing you know you're experiencing probably one of the most heartwarming scenes of the entire game.

The Sarentu is not yelling commands such as "shut up and fly straight". It is truly a psychological bond. You are not an owner and she is not a vehicle. You are not a tamer and she is not a mindless beast. You fly together as one. You are one.

Connecting to Eywa is also an emotional experience. Whenever the Sarentu connects to the Tarsyu (their clan's method), they're able to communicate with their ancestors, specifically the founder of the Sarentu, Entu. Sometimes in depth and sometimes only vaguely. But whenever a connection is made, the Sarentu walks away with something gained.

In comparison, it's debatable if Jake experiences anything at all when he connects to the Omatikaya's Tree of Souls. I suppose this can be left up to lore though. Maybe he just doesn't feel anything because he doesn't have Na'vi ancestors? Maybe it's because his kuru is artificially made and not naturally born? I don't know! The possibilities of why are endless, and probably answered somewhere in bonus Avatar content.

What my issue is, is that Jake doesn't seem to care whether he has a connection to Eywa or not, despite Eywa being a pretty significant part of Na'vi culture overall. If he's able to feel something when connecting to her, he has no reaction. And if he isn't able to feel anything, he still has no reaction over missing out on something significant to their way of life.

When the Sarentu children connect to Eywa for the VERY first time in 32 years, there is an air of both anxiety and excitement. One of them even voices that they're worried Eywa and their ancestors won't accept them for not being raised like "true Na'vi" (as you can see, this is a reoccuring theme in the game. Who can be referred to as "true Na'vi"). After the connection is made, there are mixed reactions. But at least there are reactions. Jake has none.

(Please note again: I am only referring to the 2009 movie in this post because that was everyone's first intro into Avatar. I am not referring to any comics or books or etc. that may dive deeper into these topics. If they do, great! That doesn't negate how lackluster the movie is. As the original source material, it should be able to stand on its own, and it clearly can't.)

"The Savior The Na'vi Needed" I Guess

I've already linked articles above about how inappropriate it is that a white actor + character "is the only one" that can help these "poor, defenseless, and naive" Indigenous / coded characters of color "defeat" colonization. Many many many people have have touched on this problematic storyline. It's very disturbing.

So speaking not from a Doylist perspective, but from a Watsonian one, Human Marine Jake is still an immensely odd choice to be Eywa's + the Omatikaya's Chosen One.

It's implied Eywa "chose" Jake because he'd be able to save Pandora. But the Omatikaya were literally going to DIE had Eywa not called on all of the animals to come to their aid. They would've lost following Jake.

The only thing he managed to do that was unique was unite the clans. Which he only accomplishes due to the lazy writing of becoming Toruk Makto. The implication that no Na'vi in generations EVER considered just jumping on Toruk's back. Or if there were other Na'vi that tried it, that none of them ever succeeded, but Jake, who is still new to the world and animals of Pandora, would know how to expertly bond with a creature as ferocious as that, better than every other Na'vi since Neytiri's grandfather.

Not to mention the absolute amnesia everyone gets once he does. His former betrayal is completely forgotten about, never to be mentioned again.

Neytiri no longer cares that Jake massively lied and used her, because he's Toruk Makto.

Tsu'tey no longer cares that Jake knowingly mated with his betrothed and spied on their people's way of life, because Jake's Toruk Makto.

None of the other Omatikaya (who are terrifyingly written without any individuality whatsoever) care their Hometree was just destroyed and their Olo'eyktan killed due to Jake's betrayal, because he's Toruk Makto.

It all just gets washed down the drain, like the sheer chaos Jake's actions caused no longer matter. Because he's Toruk Makto, the Chosen One. No further action required. No heartfelt apologies, no intimate discussions, no anything.

Jake jumps on Toruk, and that's that.

So not only were they actively losing following behind Jake's leadership, but he was only able to rally the clans due to shoddy writing choices. So WHY did Eywa choose this specific man, who was just actively working against her, to be the one the Na'vi are supposed to follow??

On top of all that, the implication of the Omatikaya needing Jake to survive is... dubious to say the least. It is not only literally racist, but also incredibly infantilizing to the Na'vi. The implication that they couldn't have come up with effective strategies without being ordered around by a person who's initial goal was to help destroy them.

"In siding with the ‘natives’, Jake and Grace play a central role in what can essentially be deemed as a form of anti-colonial resistance. What is crucial in this telling for the fight for Na’vi tribal and ecological survival is the ways in which anti-colonial resistance becomes legitimized through the ‘other’ becoming human." [...] "The Na’vi, like other colonized peoples, are denied of their own agency, and resistance only becomes valid and possible within a colonial paradigm of acceptability. As a result the Na’vi become dependent on Jake, the white, male, human, ethnographic anthropologist as saviour, leading them to a freedom in which he had helped threaten in the first place. [...] The Na’vi come to exist suspended by space, time and tradition and the role of Jake and Grace as anthropologists too occupy a place in colonial history that play into both liberal and much more conservative agendas." (Why Avatar is a Truly Dangerous Film)

Neytiri Should've Been the True Lead

Rewatching the first movie after Frontiers of Pandora, I not only had a much greater appreciation for Pandora, but much more distaste for Jake as the leading character.

While watching, I found myself thinking at SEVERAL points, "This would've been so good if Neytiri had been the focal protagonist." And the longer the film went on, the more the feeling settled in.

As the daughter of the Olo'eyktan and Tsahik, who better to lead her people to victory after her father's death? (You could argue Tsu'tey since he was supposed to be Eytukan's successor anyway. Either are valid options!) Neytiri's great grandfather was the last Toruk Makto, who better to become TM of their generation than one of his direct descendants? Neytiri holds great respect for Eywa and was destined to be the next Tsahik after Mo'at, so why couldn't she be the one who Eywa guides all of Pandoran wildlife to follow behind?

Just why oh why do all of these important roles in the narrative have to belong to Jake?????? Why couldn't they belong to a Na'vi character themselves?

This is not to say Jake should've been completely erased from the story. I do think him having some relevance still would've been fine, especially given he's a disabled man. I just wish his role had been that of an ally, a side character, or at most a deuteragonist second to Neytiri. Because there is weight in gaining insider information from a privileged ally.

I just wish that Jake hadn't been the lead character who's POV we follow. I wish it had been from the perspective of one of the actual Na'vi characters that were being oppressed.

BONUS: FOP Just Solves A Lot of the Issues I Had with Avatar

White / Human Saviour

Explained above.

Random Chosen One

The Sarentu playable character helps out, and is invited to help, not because they were spiritually chosen by "a deity they don't even believe in" unlike Jake. The Sarentu helps simply because they want to. Full stop. They see the injustices the RDA is enacting against Pandora, and simply choose to help put a stop to them. Because it is wrong.

That's it.

It's 1000x more admirable in my opinion. To choose to help rather than being a Chosen One destined to do so.

You can argue that since Jake seems to not even believe in Eywa, that he does help based on choice alone. But like I covered earlier, he only does so after he's deemed the Na'vi (or more specifically Neytiri) worthy of being saved. Not because they have the inherent right to live as they wish. No, he didn't consider them worthy of helping until after he decided they were.

The Conflicting Ethics Behind 'Avatars'

I don't know much about all of the side quests in the game so if there are any other avatars, then I don't know about them. But based on what I've seen of the main storyline, FOP handles the dubious topic of 'avatars' much better than the movie does. Because personally, I've always found the concept disturbing.

"At least in other white savior movies, they don’t sugarcoat the whiteness nor did they reward the whiteness with the ultimate prize." [...] "Apparently as a reward for being such a good white savior (that was originally a double agent for Colonel Scarface to get operational intel on them so the army could blow their magic god tree to Hell), Jake gets permanently transformed into one of the Na’vi via his Avatar." "Just imagine '8 Mile' if Eminem beat Sam Wilson and the rest of the Free World at the Shelter so badly, Future [...] took out his fairy godbrother wand and turned Rabbit into a brother. That’s the kool-aid that James Cameron is essentially selling." (Battle to the Bottom: The Blue-faced White Savior ‘Avatar’ Is Even Worse Than ‘After Earth’)

The concept of 'avatars' (in the way Avatar writes them) has always freaked me the hell out. Especially when Jake begins referring to humans as "the Sky People" as though he wasn't one of them just the day before.

FOP handles this subject much better in my opinion because the character of Alma, who is the Sarentu's former teacher at TAP and who is the current leader of the Western Resistance, has great attachment to her avatar body. To the point where many Resistance members have never seen her in her original body.

Later in the story when things begin looking up for the Na'vi and for the Sarentu children, Alma starts using phrases such as "our resistance" and referring to lost Sarentu artifacts that have been reclaimed as coming "back to us", and other like-minded words. And when she does this, she is IMMEDIATELY called out on it.

Alma is not Sarentu nor is she Na'vi, and although she plants her consciousness into the body of a lookalike, she is still, first and foremost, a human. And no matter how much she may try to forget that, how much she may wish to distance herself from the crimes of her people, the characters do not hold her hand and allow her to do so. The game makes it known that while she is doing the right thing now, she has no right to cram herself into a culture and people by jumping into their skin and playing pretend.

[ SPOILER WARNING ]

And the way this arc is resolved? By Alma losing her avatar form and being forced to confront the truth of who she is, a human that was complicit in the oppression of the Na'vi, most specifically the Sarentu.

The Sarentu do not get on their hands and knees and kiss Alma's feet for the ways she's helped them (now). No, SOME of them let her know they appreciate the good she's done, but that ultimately, there needs to be distance. That they are still their own people and need to rebuild without her interference. This clearly hurts Alma, but like an actually good ally, she respects the boundaries made and eventually backs off. The separation is a peaceful one.

[ SPOILER END ]

Alma does not become their Chosen Hero after she defects from the RDA. She is not given a standing ovation. And she is not even given a "thanks" from all of the Sarentu, some of them proceed to hate her guts. The reactions towards Alma, a former RDA member who defected to aid the Na'vi's survival, are wonderfully and realistically mixed.

Because, like the character So'lek says at the beginning of the game, the Na'vi are not a monolith. They are not all the same, nor will they all have the same views.

Various Na'vi characters in FOP have diverging opinions on the Human Resistance group. Some support them, some don't want to come within 10 feet of them. And both POVs are framed as valid by the narrative.

On the other hand in the 2009 movie, any Na'vi character that didn't immediately grow into liking Jake was ultimately punished by the writing.

Neytiri disliked Jake in the beginning of the movie, but as soon as Mo'at names her his teacher, a switch flips and all animosity is gone. She is still tough on him, that's just who she is, but it's clear any true ire is immediately washed away once she is given the role of 'teacher'. In comparison, Tsu'tey spends half the film irritated and distrustful of Jake. (And rightly so given that Jake is literally an RDA plant!!)

Like I've already said, Tsu'tey undergoes a blink-and-you'll-miss-it "arc" where once Jake becomes Toruk Makto, all negativity anyone held vanishes. Except Tsu'tey's timing is clearly too late, because the writing punishes his earlier animosity by killing him off in the final battle.

The same can be said for Eytukan, who was the one to suggest tying the avatars up after Jake reveals his initial goal. Eytukan's animosity is also punished with death, with him dying during the destruction of Hometree.

(It can also be said that these characters died both to punish them for their inability to "appreciate" Jake at a quicker pace, and to simply get them out of the way so Jake could become Olo'eyktan of the Omatikaya. Because how else could the White Human Savior become the leader of the people, if the leaders that were already there didn't "get out of the way" to make room?)

Conclusion

If you couldn't tell, I wasn't Avatar (2009)'s biggest fan my first time watching. For numerous reasons.

It wasn't until watching a playthrough of Frontiers of Pandora, that I realized a lot of my ire was towards Jake specifically (although there are many problems with the franchise as a whole), and if the story had just not been told from Jake's POV, and had been told from the POV of one of the Na'vi fighting for their home (Neytiri would be my first choice, Tsu'tey second), then I think I would've at least been able to enjoy it. It's hard for me to even watch Avatar (2009) because of how rampant the issues are in that movie. Or I suppose because of how central Jake is.

I wrote all this just to air out my thoughts. But if you're similar to me and felt like Avatar (2009) was "off", then I do suggest you take a look at Frontiers of Pandora and still see if you feel the same.

All this isn't to say FOP is the perfect game, mind you. It absolutely has flaws, ones that others have touched on and that I've noticed myself. But even with it's flaws, I'd take it's misgivings over Avatar (2009)'s atrocious ones any day.

[otterfool]

Since this blog basically became a smosh blog, let's talk about the latest smosh games video

I wanna preface this by sayin that I enjoyed this video and I'm looking forward for the series. Using Jenga as a tool to decide the various actions a character can take, is very cool and also very intuitive, I imagine, for those that don't know much about DnD (as a dnd player myself many times I was puzzled during sword af on why a 14 caused such an outcome instead of another). It also matches the vibe of the series since it's a post-apocaliptic scenario where every step you take can be the last one

I saw already some people saying "wait...why is this getting the video format but not SwordAF?" and I totally agree with that. I whole heartedly believe that SwordAF was done a disservice by being relegated by just audio especially because everyone (maybe except shayne) use a lot of body language to express what their characters feel/do/want etc...I mean, Koda literally slices people by dancing so

This is gonna be the unpopular opinion corner (I think). Let's preface by sayin that I'm not a Damien girlie (boyo in my case?) so I don't have that bias that probably some people have here on Tumblr. Also, I don't hate him either so there's that too

With that out of the way, i feel that having another DM other than Damien for this series is a good thing. What I noticed listening to SwordAF is that Damien as a DM tends to jump into the situation while its happening so to make a joke or to make laugh his co workers. This makes sense, he's playing with his buddies so it's understandable that he wants to jump in and riff with them, but, in my opinion, that steals some magic away from the characters and from the narrative wich is something that, in the new series, would be a downside since most of it is based on suspense (and we're also seeing new characters for the first time so leaving them be freely flashes them out better)

Also, let's not speculate much on the behind the scenes. It seems weird and we don't have the full picture. I'm sayin this cause I saw comments like that can be summarized with "why is Spencer here but not Damien" implying there is an animosity between the 2

Being a DM is hard, so I wouldn't be surprised if Damien just straight up refused the gig

That's all I gotta say. Reminder that this is the opinion of a guy. Stay hydrated and chill

P.s. this all blog started as a place where I can share my Beatles hot takes, how did it become a smosh blog?

[allthecastlesonclouds]

tell me about drawtectives. what is this little show.

oooooh my god oh my god. they are my guys. so.

drawtectives itself is a youtube series created by julia lepetit on Drawfee. it's an rpg mystery show– s1 is a murder mystery, s2 is just a mystery– that doubles as an art challenges show. she draws all of the backgrounds and npcs and most of the assets (the 'cutscenes', you could call them) and then the team gets together, knowing absolutely nothing besides what julia's asked them to prepare, and does some funky improv to create a very funky storyline.

there are 3 players and one dm; the pcs are rosé, york, and grendan/grenda/grandma/gma, and the Big NPCs are Jancy True (s1/s2) and Eugene Finch (s2) and they're, in their own words, a found family, so. beloved. their backup plan if all their jobs fail is to move out east and open a bookstore. jancy and eugene have fully accepted their titles as mom/ancestral ghost and son despite meeting each other likely once before the drawtectives dragged them together. overall though if i had to summarize, it's a bunch of friends getting together, making a bunch of puns, appreciating julia's art, and laughing together. the vibes are 10/10 so loving. in writing the transcripts i've written (Karina laughs) (Nathan laughs) (All laugh) So Many Times it's just fun.

so there's three pcs. first one we meet is gyorik 'york' rogdul, who's a half-orc come to the city to learn about his mother's culture. he is the character we have by far the most lore for– if I compiled all the lore I had about the Northern Tribes and Wild Trains, I think the document would be multiple pages. he's also illiterate, which was an interesting decision for the english major of the group to make (in other words, York Will Not Be Illiterate For Season Three bc Y'all Cannot Read) and morally gray if you think about it too hard (he killed his own brother) but yknow he's hot so it's okay. they're all hot any crimes committed are okay. he's also aroace (confirmed by the player, which is!! vibes!! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TELLING ME @axolotllee!)

rosé is the Human Rogue and the youngest of the party; her main trait in s1 was Millennial and she Dealt with that. she, in contrast with York, has so little lore we are scraping the barrel. she was a thief, then left everything about that life behind and changed her name to rosé when she went to work for jancy. she lied on her resumé. she knows how to sew; she's sewn Pockets of Holding on most of her clothing. she bonded with a stray cat that lived outside her last apartment. she's three credits short of graduating college. she's, in addition to being a drawtective, jancy's intern, and cried when jancy got her a cupcake. she won't tell her best friends when her birthday is or where she goes to school or what her last name is. that's all we know about her and i love her and she could probably kill someone as she has multiple knives on her person and does not use them. she's bright and funny and can be pretty dark but really does find the humor in it which is. wonderful.

so grendan highforge starts out as The Snobby Rich Boy which. already love the trope something Always Happens To Them if they're a pc. then through s1 they make an offhand comment about a character (faucon, whose name is pronounced 'falco') and how if her name was pronounced that way it'd be grenda. faucon asks how they feel about it. they are caught very off-guard by that and then ask to be called it for the next hour or so. then the next witness calls him gma, and then grandma, and then. yeah she realizes she's genderfluid. and he uses any pronouns and has a full beard and also wears a romper and loves dogs and the player is the Most Experienced TTRPG-er so through maybe using resources a bittt grandma is the most observant character of all of them. he's also a dog walker and a lightweight and does canonically have druidic magic though that was Not Touched On Much and showed up to their first day on the job slightly stoned (they did stop doing that though.) she carries around a box to make the height difference (york is 7'. grendan is 4'. rosé is 6'. you can see the formatting issue) slightly less difficult. she doesn't know how rhinos reproduce but has had a fascination with them since a police chief said one might've committed a crime. i think they could kill someone by talking too much but they don't actually have the strength or dex to do Jack Shit.

and jancy true is the head pi (a great many of the characters are puns and i love it so much) and is there to make sure things get done and clues don't get missed. she has a cochlear implant and uses a cane and solved s1 just by Reading The Paper and hearsay. she solved about half of s2 before Someone Stopped Her. she says hello children to the drawtectives and it is such a fond thing. eugene is. a guy who i love. julia started the show thinking he would be some mysterious character to join them and then made the wonderful improv decision– avoiding having to do npc-npc conversation– of saying 'yeah eugene is spinning a camera on its stand' and rosé just says so gleefully. 'guys. i think he's stupid.' and he became their son. his character is a lot of The Plot of s2 so i don't want to get into it too much but. jancy and eugene my beloved.

they're just. such a family. to quote nathan (grenda's Player) from the s2 talkback: "That's one of my favorite things about this show, is we came in with these vague ideas for characters, and just playing them with each other, they became friends and became better people as a result of knowing each other and solving mysteries. ... Like, we all kind of independently made our characters people that either were distant from their families or, you know, just had tenuous connections to other stuff, and so these are, like, the realest connections they have in their lives."

and then karina (rosé) about 10 seconds later: "Yeah, we love a found family where they bond over just being the worst."

god. them. they're chaotic and loud and feel very real to me. they have excitement and are pretty bad at social cues but they love each other and want to die together because they would hate too much to be separated. i could articulate this better but it's one in the morning and they mean a great deal to me.