#tbf I still haven't played her any of his music

[mitamicah]

So ... the cat's out of the bag and my mom now knows that I am obsessed with a green, finnish guy (since we talked on the phone yesterday about my trip to Sweden and Germany).

She didn't need more than 5 minutes to look through my bs when I said I might go to Finland next year - she basically just corrected IF to WHEN on the spot x'D

[cyaniiiide]

Pokemon Violet Thoughts

Pokemon Scarlet/Violet spoilers below!!

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I did not expect to like this game as much as I did omg. I saw a lot of criticism, and while valid, the game is still very very very fun. (Tbf it'd be pretty hard to mess up a Pokemon game though!!)

Honestly, this might be one of my favorite storylines out of any Pokemon game? I've played through most of the Pokemon games (except Coliseum, Snap, Legends Arceus) + only got through half of SwSh and SuMo, but I know what happens in the Gen 7 and 8 storylines. BW/BW2's storyline was more consistent in terms of quality (SV has higher highs and lower lows imo), and Pokemon Mystery Dungeon is amazing too, but it follows predictable patterns and its main strength lies in its characterization rather than its actual plot. I haven't played Legends Arceus yet so that's still up in the air (though I hear it's good!)

I really enjoyed the reveal that the Professor Turo we knew was actually an AI, and exploring the Great Crater with our friends from school was so endearing and fun. The Great Crater itself looked incredible -- the design and the music really contributed to its otherworldly ambiance. Even reading the Violet Book made me really excited -- but then again, I've always been a sucker for stories of adventure. I would kill to have a Made in Abyss style anime of Heath's expedition into the Crater...

The characters in this game feel really alive, too -- Pokemon games have definitely stepped up their game in that regard. I liked Nemona the most (and how self-aware, yet incorrigible she is lol), and most of the teachers. ❤️

Miriam is such a sweetheart, and Hassel's sobbing whenever he was proud of us was so cute haha. Salvatore didn't speak to me as much, but I enjoyed his mini-storyline of befriending a Pokemon that didn't really speak, and him being completely understanding (as a languages teacher) that sometimes you don't need to speak the same language, or even a language to communicate with others around you. His entire character is such a vibe, too?? He's so happy and upbeat, and his advice about trying to learn the languages of places you go to and complimenting other people (especially their culture, food, etc.) is so real. Miriam being motivated by our dedication in the Treasure Hunt to pursue her own certification was sweet, I've definitely felt that way before as well (being motivated by the efforts of others, that is. ;o;)

Raifort I didn't connect to as much, but I appreciate her zealousness towards history. Her overall personality was pretty fun. xD I really really did enjoy the story about the ruinous treasure Pokemon, though -- one of my favorite (if not favorite) legendary Pokemon stories now. I've always loved fairytale-esque stories, and the designs of these Pokemon (especially Chien Pao and Chi Yu) are amazing. Their battle music is one of the best things I've ever listened to, so there's that too. xD

NPC designs have also stepped up (Grusha and Rika are so hot LOL), but player customization has taken a step back which was very disappointing to find out. And much as I loved Pokemon ScarVio overall, I do understand where a lot of the grievances people had came from.

I don't consider myself a genwunner (far from it lol) but many of the new Pokemon designs just felt... lacking? Like beta designs. Flamigo, Tandemaus, Palafin, Pawmot. Some of these are probably just personal preference so I won't harp on this too much, but eh.

Arven's storyline also didn't speak to me as much but that also just kind comes down to personal preference.

Something I also didn't like as much was the Team Star storyline -- it felt kind of contrived, and like it was really trying to make us feel bad for the area leaders. I also didn't care for Penny that much, although her interactions in the Great Crater area made up for it.

I would've rather we had a proper villainous team this generation instead of getting Team Star, but I guess then it would've been weird if the school let us run around the country lol.

Because run around the country we did... from top to bottom, for those f**king ominous stakes. They couldn't have made them show up on the map either (unless there's a function I missed. Which if that is the case let me live in ignorance aaaaaaaah I'll legit start foaming at the mouth if it turns out I just needed to turn something on). The idea of the stakes sealing these ruinous Pokemon's powers is alright, it's just annoying to have to scramble down cliffs and valleys to find 32 of these things.

As much as I do like the Great Crater part of the storyline, I wish it was more ingrained with everything else. The gym challenges, Team Star, the herba mystica... I mean, it was technically ingrained in the sense that you need to help your rivals out with their issues so they can accompany you into the crater, but there should've been more story significance tying everything together.

I also would've appreciated some sidequests in the Pokemon world. Coming from Genshin, I'm kind of spoiled in that regard (the world is soooo chock-full of events and quests and areas to explore). While Paldea doesn't really need that many quests and hidden areas (it's gotten to the point where exploration is kind of exhausting in Genshin lol), more would've been nice.

Environmental storytelling almost always hits, and it could've been a nice way to talk about the issues invasive species pose (basically our reason for shutting down the time machine) and in turn, connect things to the main storyline as well. For example, Barraskewda's Violet Pokedex entry mentions that it completes with Palafin for food -- what if Barraskewda wasn't native to Paldea, and just hitched a ride from Galar? We could have had a sidequest to curb the Barraskewda population to help the native Palafin population recover. That's just one example, too. What about the giant Iron Treads in the desert, or the rolling boulders dropped by Bombirdier? That things had to have caused some collateral damage, and it would have been cool to get quests to help the Pokemon or people in the area recover.

Paldea's open world was very beautiful and fun to explore, but it was also really... empty. I hope that in a future iteration of games, these kinds of sidequests can be added. The addition of them would really help make the world feel more alive.

And while I do really like ScarVio's story, its execution could have been a lot better than it was. But despite all the game's flaws, it was still incredibly fun ,and surprisingly touching. :') I am very extremely excited for the eventual DLC that will hopefully give us a glimpse of that hexagonal Pokemon, and more story content of the main four. 🥺🥺🥺

[astrxealis]

APOLLO!!! OMG HI HAVEN'T TALKED TO U FOR LIKE A HOT MIN 🙁!!! and omg how r u?? how's life lately<33?? also saw ur recent post abt music and stuff!!! as someone who also tried to learn playing the guitar i only know like 3 chords and that's it HELP i basically gave up because it got to the point my hand would hurt after practice 😭

i have to say tho being scared of like starting an instrument because its intimidating is normal!! when i started learning the violin i was definitely scared bcs most of the people i wld be with for class was like playing for almost 9 years 😭??? and i was afraid i wldnt be able to catch up, even my mom expressed her concerns abt it 🥹 but looking at where i started and where i am now!! im proud to say my improvement is there even though its not as big or impressive but its noticeable!!!

i hope ur fears wont stop u from learning, i'd say that learning music is amazing and a precious time and if u or lune need any help im here :)!!!

TAKE CARE AND GOODLUCK ON UR JOURNEY!!!

AN HI LOVEY !!! it really has been a while AAA I NEVER REPLIED TO MY LAST ASK TO YOU BUT i will rn rq as well uhm.

i totally get taking a break i kinda did that as well, and yes that's absolutely amazing, rlly shld put yourself first with those kinda stuff <3 hehe + I HOPE YOU'VE BEEN ENJOYING FR ... balancing everything is difficult fr but you got this (so do i hehe we got this fr) ^__^ AND TY BUBS AND @noxtivagus SAYS TY AS WELL I'M SURE <33 i have not seen the show yet ngl SOBS i never played the og myself but only watched my dad play ... hashtag Coward but shh T__T tbf we don't have a means to play it anymore bcs our ps3 broke and we only had a ps3 copy eee and likely won't get for 4/5 anytime soon ... but i think we cld watch the show sometime soon anyway so. WILL SEE. it seems so good so far tho from what i've seen and REAL the actors are >>>

anyway sorry this is so long i still tend to ramble... </3 but i am WELL <3 just. busy and stressed lots ngl :") and okay i took a while to reply to this but i kept telling lune abt this teehee AAA TYSM FR ... yeah, i'll keep that all in mind thank you lots T__T i'm rlly gna try to set aside time to learn/relearn instruments? and then uh. w consistency. yeah! improvement (however small) !! <3 hehe also proud of u btw AND ONCE AGAIN thank you mwa still amazing lil sibling fr even if we don't talk as much anymore HAVE A GOOD WEEK ALRIGHT !!!

[danwhobrowses]

20 AEW Dark and Elevation Regulars that AEW should sign

Now I know, AEW has a very stacked roster, in fact I've considered writing an essay on the risk of AEW's growing roster being top-heavy

I mean we've barely scraped the potential of Brian Cage, Scorpio Sky, Wardlow, Sammy Guevara, TH2, Sonny Kiss, Matt Sydal, Proud and Powerful, Nick Comoroto, Will Hobbs, Serena Deeb (who I know is injured atm), and many more. But with Rampage oncoming maybe there is room for them.

But, we'll stick a pin in that for now, because tonight is AEW's 100th Episode of Dark. A big deal still considering it's one of AEW's 2 weekly youtube wrestling shows, and one of AEW's many Youtube weekly shows if you include vlogs such as BTE, SammysVlogs, Ethan Page's vlog and the AEW-promotional Countdown to and Outside the Ring with Lexy Nair segments and the Unrestricted Podcast. In the pandemic era, Dark became a home to several indie talents in need for work, some got signed but not all, so I'm gonna list 10 men's and 10 women's wrestlers who were regulars on Dark and Elevation who AEW can and should still sign

Note: I will not be including wrestlers who look set for regularity, so Wheeler Yuta, Jora Johl, Fuego and the Wingmen won't be on the list, as will any AEW Women's tournament entrants (Maki Itoh, Madi Wrenkowski, Nicole Savoy etc.). Danny Limelight and Konosuke Takeshita are also signed to MLW and DDT Pro just fyi

10 Men AEW should sign

The men's division is already stacked, and it has a lot of up and comers too, but there are still a few areas where AEW's Dark stalwarts have proven they can fill a void for.

Honorable mentions for: JDX, El Australiano, M'Badu, Jake St. Patrick, Brick Aldridge, Megabyte Ronnie, Suge 'Pineapple Pete' D and Vary Morales. Also Kidd Bandit, but he hasn't wrestled on Dark or Elevation so I couldn't add him in.

10. Marty Casaus Better known as Marty 'the Moth' Martinez from Lucha Underground, Marty trained with AEW after some time out with injury and made some appearances on Dark. As the Moth, Marty demonstrated his character work as a gross heel, but his size was also an asset to his disturbed and near-psychotic persona.

9. Dean Alexander An alumnus of the Nightmare Factory, Alexander has frequented on Dark and Elevation usually in tag action where he hasn't been able to get his dickhead persona across. He is your traditional cocky heel which in the Nightmare Factory showcases has led to his hilarious downfalls, even losing to Negative One in his multiple failures to win in the Main Event of these showcases. Frankly, this is what Baron Corbin should be like if you're gonna mock him, he's also very impressive in the ring.

8. Dillon McQueen Another Nightmare Factory alum, Dillon McQueen has also only been used for jobbing, but his character is actually great. The King of Queens, Dillon brims charisma that would be a winner for crowds, but he has a babyface fire to him as well, easily could be a rising talent with the right training.

7. Dan Barry To be honest, I like his Hawaiian Shirts. He has a lot of experience in the indies and can work in a similar way Colt Cabana works balancing serious and comedy wrestling, would just be pretty cool to see him more.

6. & 5. TNT (Terrence and Terrell Hughes) Sons of D-Von Dudley, TNT have had less appearances on AEW as of recent, which is a shame, because they can definitely be developed as some of the next gen tag teams the Acclaimed and Blonds have been. AEW haven't shied from legacy wrestlers in the past, and the duo definitely have potential.

4. Chandler Hopkins Chandler Hopkins has shown up to be squashed by the big men a lot, but somehow he also manages to eke out some strong entertainment and fluid wrestling in it. His match against Brian Cage is an effective example of this. Like Fuego, Chandler is definitely someone you can use on the undercard for some enhancement, maybe even push up once more character comes across.

3. Ryzin Ryzin has stuck with AEW for quite a while now, even having skits on BTE. The Unholy Father however never got a W on AEW, which is a shame because he has character and promo skills in hand. He could easily be a fit for Chaos Project as well or teamed with Abandon in a James Mitchell kinda role.

2. Carlie Bravo One of the first class alums of the Nightmare Factory, Carlie Bravo remains charismatic and athletic in his showings, he even had a great little pairing with Shawn Dean until Dean's signing, I'd love to see them bring that back - two Navy veterans tearing up the tag scene would be pretty awesome.

1. Baron Black Few have stayed the course during the pandemic era like Baron Black. Debuting in April and still yet to get his first win, he was one of the three touted stars by Cody on Sammy's vlog who he encouraged to be booked around the world because of his workrate and skill. If anyone has earned it that isn't named Fuego del Sol (or that other name Cody mentioned), it's Baron Black.

10 Women AEW should sign In contrast to the men's division, AEW's women's roster does look like it could use some buffing, for midcard and even building more stars.

Honorable mentions are plenty in this one, so just missing out are the following: Ashley D'Amboise, Leila Grey, Renee Michelle, Jazmin Allure, Savannah Evans, Willow Nightingale, the Renegade Twins, Holidead, Kenzie Paige, Jennacide and Brooke Havok (who I would guess will be signed once her leg recovers).

10. Ashley Vox With or without her Sea Stars tag partner, Delmi Exo, Ashley Vox has proven herself a frequent flier for AEW. Talented in singles and tag competition. She also has a strong rapport with many of AEW's current roster.

9. Alex Gracia The Pink Dream has been on ROH as of recent but remains a freelancer, her last appearance being a squash from Dr. Britt Baker DMD. AEW must've been high on Gracia at one point because they gave her a title shot on Dynamite. With experience in Shimmer and Stardom, Gracia would definitely be a worthy addition.

8. Tesha Price Another woman who AEW put on Dynamite rare times, Tesha proved herself to play face and heel during her time on Dark and Elevation. As a heel she showed a lot of fire especially against KiLynn King and Ryo Mizunami, the Psycho Sweetheart definitely has something she can give to the division - who are tbf lacking in heels right now.

7. Vertvixen I am not sure what it is about Vertvixen specifically, but whenever I see her I think she has the look, not to mention the athleticism to boot. Her triple threat on MPW against Jennacide and Jazmin Allure was a definite highlight as of recent.

6. Miranda Alize A former Mae Young Classic competitor, like Jennacide and Gracia she's recently been used by ROH, but she is definitely a confident wrestler and does not shy from the intergender matches either, having fought Laredo Kid and Danny Limelight. She's worked with many impressive wrestlers too, including an Impact Knockouts Title match against Jordynne Grace and matches against Deonna, Taya and Tessa.

5. Reka Tehaka The Samoan Savage may've debuted on AEW's first ever house show, but regular Dark and Elevation appearances have been met with positive reactions. Being partly trained by the Nightmare Factory, Tehaka has done well to establish herself despite only wrestling for a year and a half, she could definitely be a prospect.

4. Veda Scott Okay, so I cheated a little by saying no competitors, but I could not leave out Veda on this list. She has in-ring talent and intergender experience - tagging with her Speedball husband - but on AEW Dark and the Deadly Draw she proved herself excellent on commentary. A female voice in the booth even for just the women's matches would go a long way for the division and Veda's the perfect voice for it.

3. Dani Jordyn The Mean Girl is definitely someone you can call a regular on Dark and Elevation. She works hard and works with a lot of main roster talent, and I don't think I've seen her put on a bad match. So it would be nice to reward her with a contract.

2. Diamante It still baffles me actually that Diamante has yet to become All Elite. Deadly Draw winner and involved in a lot of the Elevation/Dark women's feuds, Diamante has a wealth of knowledge and experience under her belt. She's still popular with fans and can easily step back into her LAX days by pairing with the Inner Circle. Few unsigned talent have won as much as her too, I would say it's when rather than if, but when is taking a long ass time.

1. KiLynn King The three names Cody praised highly were Fuego, Baron Black and KiLynn King, so I think above all else they should be given contracts. In fact, I was surprised King wasn't on the Dark 100 card, by virtue that although King has shown up on Dynamite a few times, she has been on Dark and Elevation 41 times since debuting in May 2020, it was a shock that someone so regular wasn't on the card. King showed she could work as the bully heel but also as a charismatic babyface, even having a little faction brewing with Swole and Red Velvet as RSK, but when crowds came back we seemed to drop the potential of AEW's first all-women faction. King is over with fans...so long as you don't put her against someone as over as Thunder Rosa, and she has put on some lowkey bangers during her time on AEW, especially the one against Riho. Tall and powerful, but fun in the ring and outside the ring with clips of her in the crowd chanting and even vibing to Angelico's music. King would definitely be on the top of my list of AEW Dark regulars that deserve a contract.

I'm sure I might've missed some and opinions may differ, but I think these lot would definitely be able to fit into AEW effortlessly thanks to their time on Dark and Elevation. Many of whom could be used to build or become future champions themselves, and I hope still to see more of them beyond Dark 100.