#the sincerest thanks to the creator of that video

[la-vie-est-pain]

cannot for the life of me find the post but kudos to the person who made that Drink With Me animatic. That hug was something I didn't know I needed.

[aconstantstateofbladerunner]

Fanfic Thieves on Youtube

A collection of youtube channels have been uploading preexisting fanfictions in videos with little to no credit to the original authors. These are not podfics, these channels copy-paste the fics into text-to-speech readers then upload the unaltered audio over static or unrelated backgrounds, either art that is also stolen or mobile game footage. In addition to not naming the authors, they alter the title to make it that much harder for readers to recognize or find the original uploads. Some go so far as to pretend they themselves are creating the fics in question. Many claim that their stealing actually helps give fics "exposure" despite the intentional steps they take to conceal the origins of the fics they profit off of. However, this practice has lead many authors to discontinue fics after the frustration of having their hard work stolen. Many of these channels claim they will remove videos upon request, but will either argue with the author in order to keep it up, or simply unlist the video for a time until they think the author isn't paying attention anymore. And their solution to receiving strikes against their channels in the past has been to further obfuscate the origins of their content instead of even considering asking first.

”I got caught stealing, so instead of not stealing anymore, I’m doubling down on stealing even more so it’s harder for people to find out and prove I’m stealing. Stealing doesn't count if the specific person I stole from didn't call me out. I am the real victim.”

That, plus the incessant tag scumming in all the videos (spamming unrelated tags in order to appear in more search results) proves to me that these are lazy attention seekers who don't want to put in creative effort when they could just leech off of the passion of others.

In order to report them, go to their channel's "About" page and click the flag icon. Said icon might be behind the three dots in the top bar on mobile. Go to "Report User" at the bottom and tick the "spam and scams" button. This will allow you to list multiple videos as offenders instead of reporting them individually. Youtube's policy states that video spam constitutes:

Massively uploading content that you scraped from other creators.

Auto-generated content that computers post without regard for quality or viewer experience.

If you recognize one of your fics among the stolen, say so in the additional comments box, and perhaps call out the channel directly in the video's comments. If you recognize someone else's fic, please let the original author know so they can report the channel as well. Many have been confronted for stealing previously and refuse to admit wrongdoing.

Most of what I've found has been My Hero Academia fics since that's my fandom and those are the ones I can recognize as stolen, but there are many other channels that steal from other fandoms, so I invite anyone and everyone to reblog this with their own findings.

The reality is that this extremely low-effort content and new youtube channels are both very easy to make, so most likely they'll start new channels once the ones on this list are run through. But hopefully, if we all work together and keep whacking these moles, perhaps we can instill that same defeatism they caused so many creators who didn't deserve it, and eventually they'll give up.

My sincerest thanks to everyone who helped bring additional channels to my attention. A special thanks to ao3 user InArduisFidelis who brought the initial attention to the issue, and @owlf45 whose work was stolen.

Links under the cut.

YurikoFanfics - Not only stole content, but acted in comments as though they were the one writing these stories.

https://href.li/?https://www.youtube.com/@YurikoFanfics

What-IF-Anime - Has the exact same "disclaimer" about not being the original author as the one above. Either they're the same person or the thieves are stealing from each other.

https://href.li/?https://www.youtube.com/@What-IF-Anime

quirkywhatif7 - Either an alt of the above, or all these people are talking to one another because this one made a community post identical to a comment the one above made in response to being called out (the above screenshots).

https://www.youtube.com/@quirkywhatif7/about

DekuFanfic - It's the same fucking guy again.

https://www.youtube.com/@DekuFanfic/about

InfiniteParadoxfanfics - Nothing notable, same deal as the others.

https://href.li/?https://www.youtube.com/@InfiniteParadoxfanfics/about

WhatIfAnimeChannel - Admits in their community posts that other people write the fics they post but still doesn't give credit. Migrated to a new channel after issues with youtube, likely being flagged previously.

https://href.li/?https://www.youtube.com/@WhatIfAnimeChannel/about

WhatIfAnimeAll - Alt of above.

https://href.li/?https://www.youtube.com/@WhatIfAnimeAll

FWNWorld - Makes sure to tell you that the videogame footage is theirs, but can't bother to credit anyone else.

https://href.li/?https://www.youtube.com/@FWNWorld/about

WTFW - Claims to have "[A] team of talented writers, voice actors, and artists work together to create immersive fan fiction stories that are sure to captivate your imagination." Just the same test-to-speech stolen content over videogames. So straight up lying claiming that everything is theirs (and that anything they make is quality).

https://href.li/?https://www.youtube.com/@WTFW

MHA2.0Fanfics - Lots of crossover theft.

https://www.youtube.com/@MHA2.0Fanfics/about

Collerwhatiif - Pretty sure this one is the same guy as the previous 2, also has one for another fandom.

https://www.youtube.com/@Collerwhatiif/about

https://www.youtube.com/@GoJoFanfiction/videos

ko_sensei - Another that claims to have a "team" that makes the stories they steal: " passionate about creating compelling and engaging fanfiction that explores the various "what ifs" in the anime universe."

https://www.youtube.com/@ko_sensei/about

FantasticWhatIf - Multifandom stealing, uses the exact same bs disclaimer as many others.

https://www.youtube.com/@FantasticWhatIf/about

LettuceHeadFanfics - No credit, no acknowledgement of anything. Next one is an alt.

https://www.youtube.com/@LettuceHeadFanfics/about

brocollifanfics - Alt of above, once again admits to stealing with a declaration of "☆If you want to takedown any videos. You can mail us or leave a comment below the video☆"

https://www.youtube.com/@brocollifanfics/about

whatifofficial786 - Focuses on MHA/Naruto crossovers. Identical format.

https://www.youtube.com/@whatifofficial786/about

NotWhatIf - I've lost track of who's an alt of who but yet another identical format, descriptions, and bullshit claims of "enhancing the viewer experience" by putting a robot voice over bootleg fortnite footage.

https://www.youtube.com/@NotWhatIf/about

weebxds - Same again.

https://www.youtube.com/@weebxds/about

ItachiFanfics - Naruto channel, we can at least confirm that this one is run by a human given the rare different descriptions and a real voice at the beginning of videos before the robot comes back.

https://www.youtube.com/@ItachiFanfics/about

WhatIfDN - As if mockingly, a bunch of videos have a "credit" section in their descriptions that is of course blank.

https://www.youtube.com/@WhatIfDN/about

SpiceandBooks and spiceandfiction - Apparently Youtube itself has started picking up on the bullshit, because this multifandom channel is being dinged as ai spam so they started a new one.

https://www.youtube.com/@SpiceandBooks/about

https://www.youtube.com/@spiceandfiction/about

theoriginalastra - Doesn't even bother with disclaimers, the following are multiple alts/potential alts for different fandoms.

https://www.youtube.com/@theoriginalastra/about

SillySenpai12 - Highschool DXD alt.

https://www.youtube.com/@SillySenpai12/about

RosieRealms - Naruto alt.

https://www.youtube.com/@RosieRealms/about

DekuWhatIfs - Potentially another astra alt but not sure, doesn't matter because all these channels do the same thing anyway.

AnimeStark688 - No credits or disclaimers.

https://www.youtube.com/@AnimeStark688/about

Please take the time to report these channels, spread this post around, and reblog with any additional offending channels you find.

[7grandmel]

Todays rip: 17/11/2023

Beyond the Floating Isles

Season 4 Episode 2 Featured on: Summer​-​Colored Smiles ~ The SiIvaSummer All​-​Star Festival Collection

Ripped by redoxwarfare

Due to the absolute volume of rips per each album, a lot of my time listening to SiIvaGunner is done so rather passively. I'll chuckle with a joke I recognize, add tracks to "Banger" and "Vibes" playlists if I'm enjoying them, and continue with my day. Its only when I decide to just listen to those playlists in particular that my brain starts getting into gear again. Like...what *is* Beyond the Floating Isles even from? I knew it was an absolute vibe of a rip, yet knew nothing else about it. That was when my journey started - and my sudden, adoring infatuation with the band "Crying".

I only just recently turned 22 years old, and for a long part of that life, I didn't really...listen to music. I enjoyed looking up my favorite video game music, and Minecraft music videos were of course part of the collective childhood of my generation...yet the act of just listening to music for music's sake, the appeal of the creative medium, was somehow lost on me. There's likely something deep-rooted in my neurodivergent mind that explains this, but SiIvaGunner has as a result been a way for me to find bands and albums that I truly connect with - through the shared passion of video game music, I've been able to grow that emotional attachment to bands that I otherwise wholly felt like I lacked. The most prominent example of that is of course Maroon 5 thanks to channel creator Chaze the Chat's enduring passion for the band in the channel's first four Seasons: I've discussed in posts like Moves Like K.K. just how much that passion reflected back onto me, and its far from the only band I've gone through this with. It may sound silly to say, but these video game mashups and arrangements and meme edits have genuinely helped me grow attached to vocals and melodies and themes from the wider music industry that I never would've otherwise.

Which brings us to my most recent experience with this - Beyond the Floating Isles, and Patriot by Crying. After making more of an initiative for myself to listen to more non-VGM this year, and after having this rip sit in my playlists for years on end, I decided it was finally time to do my due digging. What I found was a band I'd never heard of before, with only one true album release, and a lack of any real activity over the last six years. Beyond the Fleeting Gales sits at just shy of 150 thousand views on YouTube - less than SEVERAL of the rips I've covered here on this blog, yet is one of my new all-time favorite albums yet released. Patriot may be the song covered in today's rip and the one I'm the most emotionally attached to, but the album in its entirety exudes a similar vibe that I'm absolutely enamored with - a vibe that redoxwarfare did an incredible job distilling into a rip. Float Islands was an excellent choice for a song to use for such an atmospheric, uplifting song as Patriot - the two themes have little in common in terms of joke-material, but its clear to me that Beyond the Floating Isles was not made with comedy as its main intent.

I have no connection to redoxwarfare - never spoken, not sure of which rips they've made prior, and no true image of their interests and goals as a ripper. Yet Beyond the Floating Isles speaks with so much intent and love - love for a band that feels destined to be forgotten, yet is adored by the few in the masses who have found them. And I extend my deepest, sincerest gratitude toward redoxwarfare for succesfully introducing me to Crying - even if its three years after the fact, I now finally see the Fleeting Gales, and beyond.

(no but seriously go listen to Crying i will break traditional post formatting just to give you easy access to it theyre SO GOOD)

[the-werewolf-prince]

The Werewolf Prince Page 78 (Ch 2 Pg 38)

My sincerest apologies it's so late. My drawing windows have significantly shrunk.

Fun Fact: Lenora and Stravos are the same age.

All new VIP tier patrons can receive a copy of TWP issue 1 (Autographed or unautographed) while supplies last!!! Receive other awesome rewards including Behind the Scenes, early access to merch, a production credit & exclusive art, starting at $1.00 a month! Thank you for reading & your support!

Or purchase a copy of the Werewolf Prince issue one on my etsy!

The Werewolf Prince is a passion project 10 years in the making. It is a silly, derivative, and sincere story born from my love of monster of the week TV shows, survival horror video games, gothic literature, campy films, seinen manga, 90's animation, shonen anime, and homoerotic art throughout history. I truly hope you enjoy it. And please, let me know your opinions in the comments. Stay Classy

Art, Characters & Story © Sorbet Mystery

Read the comic! A free way to support the comic is to enjoy it and subscribe! leave a comment, share with someone you enjoy reading comics with!

Webtoon: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/the-werewolf-prince/list?title_no=393305

Tapas: https://tapas.io/series/The-Werewolf-Prince

The Duck: https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/The_Werewolf_Prince/

[gemwire]

Disco Elysium 2 Gets A Worrying Update

  Game development teams seem to be haemorrhaging staff members right now. 343 Industries looks like it’s leading the charge on this trend, with core team members from the Halo games, including the company’s CEO and founder choosing to duck out.

Sadly, indie game developers aren’t faring much better than their AAA counterparts. One cult favourite game’s team has just taken a massive hit, and with it, there are fears that our hopes of Disco Elysium 2 are going the same way.

What’s Going On With Disco Elysium 2?

We confirm that we are no longer at the studio.

— Aleksander Rostov, Robert Kurvitz, Helen Hindpere

— Aleksander Rostov (@artofrostov) October 2, 2022

A new confirmation from Disco Elysium Art Director Aleksander Rostov tells fans that the ZA/UM studio no longer houses its creators, and that it has now been dissolved. The cultural association-cum-company has been host to the fan-favourite series since it arrived in 2019, but it’s no more according to a new post on Medium.

“The reason for dissolving the cultural organization is that it no longer represents the ethos it was founded on,” reads the post. “People and ideas are meant to be eternal; organizations may well be temporary. I find that the organization was successful overall and most of the mistakes that were made were contingent, determined by the sociocultural conditions we were thrown into.” The post is signed off with love from Martin Luiga – “For a while, it was beautiful. My sincerest thanks to all that have rooted for us.”

In July, ZA/UM made a mention of the next project needing someone with “a love of sci-fi and space,” which got tongues wagging about Disco Elysium 2. With an update from ZA/UM (via PC Gamer), the company responded: “Like any video game, the development of Disco Elysium was and still is a collective effort, with every team member’s contribution essential and valued as part of a greater whole. At this time, we have no further comment to make other than the ZA/UM creative team’s focus remains on the development of our next project, and we are excited to share more news on this with you all soon.”

Fans React To Disco Elysium’s Company Collapsing

Please, if our fan support and publicity can help in any way.Financially or legally.We don’t want to stand by and watch capitalism screw things up again It’s heartbreaking.This world and characters do not belong to them, we do not want them to be desecrated for the sake of profit

— KeiKate🤍💙🤍 (@KeiKate_Phazmi) October 2, 2022

Fans truly have no idea what this means for the future of Disco Elysium 2, but it’s clear the fallout of ZA/UM has been a long and arduous process. All fans know is that this isn’t good news – and they’re mourning the potential collapse of the series. Responding to Rostov, one fan wrote, “It’s heartbreaking. Wherever you are and whatever you do, please stay creative and healthy. If there’s anything we can do just let us know. Elysium is YOUR Elysium forever. We love you.”

Another said, “I hope the three of you continue making games, but whatever you want to do, I wish you the best of luck.” Luiga says that he thinks things with the sequel are “actually sweet enough,” adding “You might even get it the way it was meant, it might take a sh*t ton of time but RPG fans are sorta accustomed to waiting, ain’t they.” The future of Disco Elysium is unknown, and fans are rightly devastated. Who knows what’s next for the team – but we’ve got our fingers crossed that they won’t leave their creative medium behind.

The post Disco Elysium 2 Gets A Worrying Update appeared first on Gemwire. source https://gemwire.gg/en/disco-elysium-2-gets-a-worrying-update/

[froax]

I never post on here and wanted to give it a try! this is going to be such a long intro. please bear with me! it’s very nice to meet you, whether you’re a content creator like me or just someone who plays video games for fun. I’m froax, an american based content creator in my 20s. it’s froax, not frogs, I pronounce it like fr-oh-cks I’m originally from a small town in new hampshire but made a bold move and rebuilt my life by moving to long island. I don’t have biology family members out here, and shortly after I moved here, covid had started so I never had the chance to go out and explore my area. I turned to streaming as my way of staying social. I started out on a platform called twitch, but switched to a platform called trovo in hopes of promoting equal and fair opportunities amongst all content creators. when I say equal and fair opportunities, I mean unlike twitch, you can boost the streamer to the front page on trovo for free! you can give elixir and mana spells. think of elixir as bits and mana as channel points, only mana is free but when given to the streamer, it gets turned into gems, too! the streamer makes money off of your free support. this allows creators to make more money, receive higher discoverability, and allows underprivileged viewers to support the streamer too! but let’s steer away from money because that should never be anyone’s main focus when it comes to content creation. I love playing horror, open world survival, RPG’s, sandbox based, and occasional fps based games every monday, wednesday, and friday. last august I got my very first gaming pc. two years ago, I got a laptop for the first time, and before that, I was playing single player based video games on consoles without any wifi. (I totally live under a rock!) I prefer playing pc games, but I also have an xbox one, PS4, and nintendo switch. it’s a new year, so I’m trying out tons of new things! I love hosting virtual giveaways, occasional raffles, and will be going back to hosting charity streams again! I’m super nerdy, and love collecting crystals, minerals, gaming guidebooks, which are totally obsolete since the internet is a thing. I very rarely eat during live broadcasts but when I do, it’d most likely be some type of pizza. if I’m not eating, my puppy usually accompanies me on stream. she looks like a real life teddy bear! I provide english content, but I’m german, french, dutch, spanish, and italian. if you’d like to give my channel a follow, I’m froax on trovo but you can find all of my social links on my website. following, interacting by chatting or lurking is FREE and supports the creator tremendously! I have some real life friends in here, and when I was actively on twitch, some of you have donated, subscribed, and purchased some merchandise, so my sincerest thank you!! 10% of everything I make from content creation goes towards buying animal food for my local monthly animal based food drive that gets sent to my closest local shelter here in long island. so thank you for allowing me the opportunity to give back! I hope you have a goose day!! https://www.froax.com

[vgprintads]

‘miniLAW: Ministry of Law’

[PC] [WEB] [VIDEO, TRAILER] [2019]

Greetings players,

After spending nearly 4 years in Early Access here on Steam and 5 years since development began, we at Lasso Games are happy to announce that miniLAW: Ministry of Law is officially released for Windows/PC here on Steam. It has been a very long road full of obstacles. There have been many ups and downs throughout the development of this title. In 2017, we took the project from the United States to Finland for the Game Development World Championship, where we were a 3rd place finalist in the commercial category. Later, we were featured in Kotaku by collaborator Leo Wichtowski in really neat feature. Developers and team members have come and gone over this period, but the core of the work has been completed by a dedicated team who refused to see the project go unfinished. As Lasso Games flagship title, as well as its first fully released game, we look forward to seeing the community expand and are ready to take on the responsibility that it entails.

I would like to take this time to extend one last call to action to our dedicated fans and followers. Please spread the word of this game release and help get it into the hands of players, content creators, journalists, and other media outlets. The future of our studio depends largely on the success of this title, and I know it is capable of reaching some amazing heights with your help. The best way to do this would be to follow us on social media platforms such as twitter (@lasso_games, @lassominilaw) and Facebook, and simply help circulate our content with shares, retweets, etc.

Finally, I would like to extend our warmest thanks to our fans and players who have stuck with us this whole time. Our gratitude cannot be put into words and your dedication to this project along with your continued interest in it have kept our team motivated and eager to finish it out strong.

Our sincerest regards, and

THANK YOU FOR PLAYING!! ~@lassogames, “v1.0.0 - Full Release Announcement!”

Source: YouTube, Lasso Games

[quinncidentallytoo]

MATCH 😉😉 QUINN&RACHEL

WHEN: Day 91

WHO: Quinn & Rachel

WHAT: Quinn and Rachel are matched and they discuss family, vegetarianism, and Q’s youtube channel. 

Rachel

Day 91 - Still searching, still wishing swipe left was an option on this app. Though if swiping right was an option, I’d certainly be doing that right now. You’re beautiful.

Quinn

Please. There are a lot of beautiful women on this app. I think it takes more than a pretty face to keep you interested.

Rachel

Which is why I’m still around after all these weeks. Hi, Quinn. I’m Rachel.

Quinn

That makes two of us. So tell me, Rachel, what keeps you busy when you’re not thinking of ways to improve the app?

Rachel

Hmm, well that depends on which Rachel you’re looking to get to know. Professional Rachel, or all work and no play makes Rachel a dull girl…

Quinn

Why don’t you give me a quick breakdown of both so I can make a more informed decision.

Rachel

I’m a business owner and then I’m a boarder. Which would you like to know more about?

Quinn

I don’t know. Are the two related?

Rachel

No, I do not own a skate or surf shop.

Quinn

Well now I’m intrigued, what kind of shop do you own?

Rachel

It’s a little of this and a little of that – our products are always changing and rotating – but always a celebration of the Bay Area. Have you ever heard of ApotheBerry?

Quinn

It sounds vaguely familiar.Is that you?

Rachel

Mhmm. We’re over on Haight. And vaguely familiar isn’t what I like to hear at all. We like to be known and remembered.

Quinn

Well, maybe I’ll have to come check you out sometime. Make it stick.

Rachel

But what about you? Tit for tat, Quinn.

Quinn

I am a content creator. Which is my attempt at making youtuber sound impressive. Did it work?

Rachel

I suppose so in the sense that I had no idea what a content creator was, but it did sound powerful. What type of Youtuber are you? I don’t really watch unless I’m catching up on some clip from a talk show that is apparently a MUST SEE. Which really for me just means Carpool Karaoke. But there’s a number of my staff that watch and follow bloggers that do makeup tutorials and…is called unboxing? I think that’s correct. I had actually matched with another user that did those sort of videos and…I think it’s called hauls? Either way, she recorded in the shop.

Quinn

Hauls are great publicity. Well, I mean, assuming she’s got a high follower base in SanFran. Still, kind of cool. My stuff’s more comedy/lifestyle stuff. I do a lot of Q&A’s, talk about LGBTQ+ issues…It’s whatever I’m inspired to do and the fans are asking for.

Rachel

Do you have a high follower base in SanFran? And what’s your url thingy?

Quinn

My url thingy? Quinncidentally.

Rachel

Thank you.If I stop responding it’s because I find your on air persona either a) irritating, b) fake, c) off-putting, or d) all of the above.

Quinn

But no pressure, right? Suddenly questioning every video I’ve ever uploaded onto my channel. [ after a few hours.] So….That bad, huh?I knew I should have erased that rap video from the internet.

Rachel

What? [ a pause ] Oh. No. My sincerest apologies. I’ve perhaps just slowly been perusing my way through your videography.

Quinn

Oh. It’s just after your warning I thought…Did my SanFran fan base just grow?

Rachel

Again, I apologize, though I’ll admit I’m quite amused that you apparently hold the opinion of a relative stranger in such high regard. And perhaps.

Quinn

I’m an internet personality, Rachel. My livelihood depends on strangers with an internet connection. So what do you think?

Rachel

I enjoyed your candidness during your Q&A videos. You didn’t translate as fake one bit.

Quinn

You strike me as the sort who isn’t easily impressed, so I’ll take that as a compliment. Way better content than haul girl, right? It’s okay, you can say it. It’ll be our secret.

Rachel

That’s some excellent gut instinct, Quinn. And different content, so it would be like apples and oranges. And she did record a video in my shop and it’s a glowing review, so that content? Not sure you can top that quite yet.

Quinn

I guess I’ll just have to up my game. You said you board, right? Maybe you could teach me?The internet loves to watch me fall on my ass.

Rachel

I do. Surf, skate, and every now and then I’ll trek out to the mountains and decide to test my balance and core strength in the snow. And do they? Did I just happen to miss that particular selection of videos?

Quinn

I’m just assuming.Then again, maybe it would be the instructor that catches their attention.

Rachel

Oh? Have I caught your attention, Quinn?

Quinn

Maybe. I’m definitely interested to know more

Rachel

I’m an only child, an early riser, and a vegetarian. 70% of the time I’d rather spend a night in than going out, or if I do go out, I’d prefer to spend my time in an intimate setting with a small group of friends. I love watermelon, take my coffee black, practice yoga, and please disregard that I buried the lead, but as Mary Poppins would say, I’m practically perfect in every way.

Quinn

You’re a vegetarian?

Rachel

That’s literally the only tidbit in which you’re going to comment? [ a beat ] Yes, I’m a veggie.

Quinn

I’m from the south. Even after all these years in SanFran it still takes me by surprise. I’m a homebody myself so I can appreciate your desire to stay in. Most of my outings are work-related or with my dog.

Rachel

What does that mean? The South? And you’re dog is quite handsome.Truly the real star of your show.

Quinn

It means I’m from South Carolina. Not that my parents are cousins. And he is, I know.What can I say? Gil really knows where his light is.

Rachel-

So you’re not just from the South, but also the East Coast. What brought you to the city?

Quinn

Is that like two strikes in your book? Honestly? I came for school but the being on the opposite coast of my parents was also a huge motivator.

Rachel

You don’t get along with your family?

Quinn

I like my sister? My parents are pretty conservative. It is what it is.

Rachel

Is that a question or a statement? So how do they feel about your chosen profession? And the topics you cover?

Quinn

A statement. She’s good people. Oh man. That’s a loaded question. We don’t really talk about it, but it’s that sort of silence that speaks louder than words ever could. But the first ever video I made and posted to the internet was me coming out to my parents. So I guess in a way I owe my career to them. Which they would hate, so it’s sort of strangely satisfying.

Rachel

Just one sibling then? Older? Younger? I don’t think I watched that one since I was going in reverse chronological order, but I suppose it’s a ‘must see.’ [ a long beat ] My mom’s one of my best friends.

Quinn

Just the one, yeah. Older. Nah, you can skip it. At this point, it’s kind of embarrassing. My content quality has seriously improved over the years.That’s kind of awesome, Rachel. You’re lucky.What’s she like?

Rachel

You telling me I should skip only makes me believe I really should check it out, if not just to witness whatever confidence you possessed to come out in that fashion. And I think so, yes. She’s beautiful and talented. If I hadn’t come into her life I think she’d be a star. Instead she trains them now.

Quinn

I wouldn’t say confidence so much as stupidity? I kind of e-mailed them the link and then turned off my phone for a couple of days. When I turned it back on… I realized it wasn’t just my parents who were responding to the video. I think she probably got the better end of that deal. And I think if she’s as cool as you make her sound, she’d probably agree with me on that.

Rachel

Definitely need to watch this video. And are you sure you have me that pegged after just a brief conversation?

Quinn

If you do stop responding after that, I’ll understand. My only defense is that I was young. And I don’t know.Call me cautiously optimistic.

[tiptoe39]

Did you get the shutting up tm thing from Soproxi? Bc you literally did the same thing as she did, but she did it first....you should probably credit her. You took the whole format and everything, not cool.

Yikes! No, I had no idea there was another post like this out there. I definitely don’t want to steal thunder from another person who had the same idea! Could you point me toward this work so I can reblog it and give it its due? A search for @soproxi doesn’t give me any posts to that effect.

I assure you it’s entirely coincidental. The format is that of the ubiquitous direct advertising for pharmaceuticals on U.S. TV, which is pretty easy to ape, so I don’t doubt that my post would look similar to another aping the same format. But I promise you, I had no intention of stomping another creator’s work and offer my sincerest apologies if I did so unintentionally!

Unfortunately, my post has sort of taken on a life of its own at this point, and there’s not much I can do to keep it from continuing to circulate. But I am MORE THAN HAPPY to link to, reblog, and otherwise promote a similar idea that came up prior to mine. Let me know how I can reasonably make amends and I’ll be more than happy to do so.

ETA: The poster of the video got in touch, and we're all cool ❤️❤️❤️ Thanks!!!

[tokupedia]

Kamen Rider 45th Anniversary File:Drive

2014-2015:

Godzilla returns for his 60th birthday to theaters in an American film adaptation reboot simply titled Godzilla. Unlike last time America did this stunt, the film was well done and was a success.

Fans celebrate and sing with Moon Pride with Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal, a modern reboot that fully adapts the original manga for the franchise’s 20th anniversary.

Ultraman Ginga got a sequel season on TV, Ultraman Ginga S. Ultraman X would come the following year and Tsuburaya would sign an exclusive streaming and simulcast deal with the California-based internet streaming company Crunchyroll to broadcast entries of the Ultra Series legally on the web. (despite Chaiyo being jerks and trying to stop the deal with the fake “We own Ultraman” thing again)

Zing Zing, AMAZING! As long as there is love in the world, Cure Lovely is invincible! Pretty Cure celebrates its 10th Anniversary with HappinessCharge Precure, which introduces the concept of non-super mode form changing to the shoujo series thanks to Kamen Rider writers on the staff.

The Super Sentai Series hits a rough patch with ratings and toy sales as ToQger and Ninninger come and go. Super Sentai celebrates its 40th year of existence on April 5, 2015 and for the first time ever, a Power Rangers actor cameos in a Sentai!

Japan finishes switching to full digital HD TV broadcasting. Now we can see all the pretty lasers, sparks and explosions in glorious high definition!

Shout! Factory shocked Ranger Nation with a bombshell, Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger was coming to DVD in the United States! Due to positive reception by fans and sales, the company would become the official distributor of Super Sentai DVDs in America!

Power Rangers celebrated 20 years of the franchise. The Mighty Morphin’ Red Ranger gets a spot in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade as a balloon!

Power Rangers Super Megaforce frustrates longtime fans of the series, with reviews ranging from “meh, it’s okay” to fan rage of the highest caliber for the mishandling of such a special occasion as the 20th anniversary. It really is a divisive season.

Kikaider Reboot attempts to relaunch Kikaider for its 40th anniversary, but later Shotaro’s son and president of Ishimori Pro Akira Onodera would put the Kikiader’s licensing to Japanese filmmakers under indefinite lockdown as he was unhappy with the direction the film took.

Cyborg 009 comes to America again with a graphic novel adaptation in 2013, intended to be the first of a series of graphic novels featuring Shotaro Ishinomori’s super heroes (”The Ishinomori Universe Books” as they were to be called). After a year of waiting for the next one, fans are disappointed to hear from F.J. DeSanto that the next set of books were put on hold and then cancelled indefinitely due to Ishimori Pro’s “cultural issues” with the project. Thus, the planned Skull Man and Kikaider novels are cancelled during their early draft phase. 

The Garo Series turns 10 years old and a vast array of projects are announced and debut on TV, video and in theaters, increasing the franchise’s media output to levels never seen before.

The Patlabor franchise gets a series of live action films with Erina Mano (Kamen Rider Nadeshiko) as one of its stars.

When Drive was being planned; the producers had an idea of utilizing aspects of another cult favorite “Rider” show: Glen A. Larson’s cult 1980s TV show Knight Rider. In an interview, producer Takahito Omori even outright stated that Drive would be “Kamen Rider meets Knight Rider”.

Now imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but you need to be subdued to avoid lawsuits when you are dealing with TV. (Especially with tyrannical copyright strikedowners and suers like NBC Universal if you are simply doing a tribute). But the overall feeling is there in some regard: Rinna is Bonnie, we have a KARR expy on two accounts and a sentient A.I. in a car that accompanied a law enforcer. But that is where the some of the Knight similarities end as Drive tries to be its own thing, a quirky, sometimes goofy, sometimes serious show with sentient Hot Wheels cars, special tires that give the heroes super powers and a talking belt.

The planning involved Riku Sanjo, who fans remember from the beloved Kamen Rider W. He wanted a police procedural drama integrated into the action. Oddly enough, the original concept was to make the hero a former criminal and then revised into a crook turned cop!  This idea was bounced around before the TV Asahi network executives got into a hissy fit about an anti-hero as a lead and said/demanded that the hero should be “pure”. So they decided to just make the show about cops with the main hero being an officer of the leu. (as Peter Sellers used to say).

A second concept idea was the use of games but the staff thought the age demographic they were aiming for was “too young for that”. This will still come... eventually in another Rider show years later.

Another aspect that chose the direction of the show was a more somber one, the choice of a car as the main Rider Machine. Ishinomori famously claimed in an SIC story that “cars didn’t work” for Kamen Rider the last time they tried it. But according to the Asahi Shimbun in 2014, with the dwindling population and low birth rate of Japan, motorcycles are becoming less and less common in number on Japan’s roads. No extra babies being born means less future rebellious youngsters and some of those who have bikes registered are getting older and greyer. 

So the staff chose a car as 1: Cars are steadily beginning to rise in number on Japan’s roads and 2: small car toys like Hot Wheels are and always will be popular with the young male demographic. Plus the staff thought it would be “innovative” as unlike with Black RX, the car would be the main hero’s sole vehicle. Also helping the car motif was Carranger director Ryuta Tasaki being on the show as a consultant and episode director, who wanted to “break a few conceptions about Heisei Kamen Rider”. 

So after the decision, the production crew took a used 1992 Honda NSX, got some custom seating, racing style safety belts and trim from TS Tech, took her to a body shop and went to work. Several months of hard labor and custom parts made in-house and spare/modified parts donated from Honda later.....

We got a souped-up custom super machine! Sure, Tridoron doesn’t have a style that is to everbody’s taste, but in the show it can fly like a certain Delorean, turbo boost, shoot lasers and can go a little over 340MPH and drive itself!

The cars and speed didn’t stop with the main hero, as we got a TRON-lined high tech Mercedes-Benz AMG GT (the first non-Japanese manufactured car in the Kamen Rider series) and a modified Mazda Miata with machine guns as villain cars for the movies. 

Another cool aspect of Drive is the indirect Marvel connection, the main lead actor Ryoma Takeuchi is a fan of Marvel Comics. This shows as his portrayal as Drive is a sometimes Spider-Man-esque snarky superhero. But Ryoma also studied hard to learn English really for one purpose: To meet Stan Lee and tell him how much he loved Marvel. A year after his show ended, he did! 

(Yes, even in other superhero fandoms, Stan ”The Man” Lee will make that cameo! 94 and still awesome and kicking, God bless him!)

Word is Ryoma’s now trying to get into Hollywood to be a Marvel superhero on the American big screen or TV. If that doesn’t prove Ryoma is One of Us, what will?  (Good luck Ryoma! We’ll be cheering for you and we hope your dream comes true!)

Chris Peppler, a Japanese-American radio DJ was chosen to be the other half of Kamen Rider Drive: the KITT-esqe Mr. Belt. Since he was fluent in both Japanese and English, it gave him room to play around as an actor and his performance even spawned a Rider meme or two.

But now, let’s START OUR ENGINES! Cuz’ ALL WE NEED IS DRIVE!

DRIVE! TYPE: 45 File! 

The First Kamen Rider (Proto) Drive

Real Name: Roidmude Proto-Zero

“Those who are about to die do not need to know my name”

A scientist named Dr. Krim Steinbelt was working on a device called Core Driviars which he hoped could be used to benefit mankind.

His colleague Dr. Banno had borrowed his invention when his own research on advanced A.I. androids called Roidmudes hit a dead end. Krim wanted to help his friend and aided in the development of Banno’s research. But then Banno had other ideas and used the androids human mimicry ability to enact his revenge fantasies of destroying those who mocked or didn’t support his research without Krim’s knowledge. But Krim found out about Banno’s petty and sadistic behavior and ended their partnership.

Banno then intended to implant the negative emotions of humans into his creations so they would understand the concept of hate and violence and be used as his military force to conquer the world. 

However, Banno’s plan seemingly went awry as the 108 Roidmudes he built gained sentience and rebelled against their cruel creator and like so many films and TV about AI, they decide we fleshy meatbags are not worth protecting or keeping around.

However, Krim had a contingency plan if Banno’s evil work bore fruit. After his home was attacked and he was killed by a Roidmude, a protocol was activated to download his consciousness into a belt-like device and he reactivated an early Roidmude that didn’t have Banno’s programming installed into him. The evil Roidmudes initiated a disaster later referred to as the Global Freeze, where a large quarter of the Earth was slowed down by the Heavy Acceleration phenomenon the Drivairs in the Roidmudes created. Many people were hurt or died and thousands of buildings were destroyed, but then a savior came in the form of a black Kamen Rider. The Rider drove away the evil forces but could not destroy the Cores that keep them alive. The Rider eventually fell in battle when one of the stronger Roidmudes defeated him and discarded a helpless Krim aside. Some say he is dead....but is he really?

The second and current Kamen Rider Drive (Officer Tomari circa 2015)

Real Name: Shinnosuke Tomari

When all the Global Freeze ruckus was about to go on, two police officers were in pursuit of a suspect of the terrorist cell Neo-Shade. When one of the suspects tried to ambush Officer Tomari’s partner Hayase by cornering him, Tomari panicked and pulled out his gun intending to disable the crook. But then the Global Freeze wave hit and slowed Officer Tomari down, causing his bullet to miss and hit a flammable generator near Hayase. The generator exploded and Hayase fell with steel pipes threatening to crush him after he fell. Tomari tried to save his partner but was slowed down again unable to reach him. Thankfully, due to the slowdown, Hayase was still alive after the pipes fell but was badly hurt. But being the cause of his best friend’s injuries haunted Officer Tomari and he became a broken man, unable to focus on work and losing all motivation. 

He was transferred to a special investigations unit as Krim had a friend in the Police force who could pull the strings to find a candidate worthy of being the next Kamen Rider and formed the unit. Half a year later, Shinnosuke is still in that department but has a lax motivation to do anything at first, constantly being scolded for his slacking by his co-worker Kiriko. Upon hearing there may be a Heavy Acceleration case, he gets interested at first but is easily discouraged by his low self esteem. He keeps hearing a voice coming for the red car he drives telling him to not give up and offers him a chance to be a “warrior”. Shinnosuke is a bit weirded out by this but tells the voice he still refuses as he is a has-been. But the voice tells him he knows he has greater potential and then when Shinnouske finds where the voice is coming from, Krim attaches himself to Shinnouske which freaks him out. After investigating another attempted murder with Heavy Acceleration in the area, they find the suspect: Roidmude #029. Unable to save a bystander as even with the Shift Cars help, he cannot do much as he is ambushed by more Roidmudes.

Kiriko tells him he must use Krim and transform and the Shift Cars give him a brace and a red car to go with the belt. He uses it to become Kamen Rider Drive Type Speed.  After a bit of a learning curve, Drive makes quick work of the Roidmudes using his new powers. (though at least one survived the attack via his Core escaping to antagonize the hero next episode)

When the day is saved, Kiriko shows him their base of operations under the Kuruma Driver's License Center: the Drive Pit. She tells Shinnosuke they must keep the base a secret from the Special Investigation Unit and the Tokyo Metropolitan Police. So Shinnosuke must investigate the cases of the Roidmudes to stop and eliminate them as the secret Kamen Rider of law enforcement and supported by his allies in the Special Investigations Unit.  Many twists and tuns happen along the way, with new allies, new powers and new dangers and mysteries around every corner!

Gear:

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Core_Driviars

The Drive Driver aka “Mr. Belt” - Krim’s current form and Shinnosuke’s partner. Unlike KITT from Knight Rider whom partially inspired his character, Krim can leave the car and be mobile to help his partner whenever and wherever he is needed and is a vital part of the Drive System’s functions.

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Shift_Brace

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Shift_Cars

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Shift_Car_Holder

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Tridoron Its full “Format Number” is the Tridoron-3000. 

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Tire_Specific_Items

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Handle-Ken

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Door-Ju

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Trailer-Hou

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Ride_Booster_Set - Go karts which combine with the Tridoron to change into hover conversion tech! Best of all, they were a free gift from Rinna, no $39,999.95 worth of body work needed!

Powers: 

Super Speed, enhanced strength and reflexes, weapons proficiency, Immunity to singularity events such as Heavy Acceleration if Shift Cars are on his person or his Core Driviar in his Rider Suit is active. 

The Shift Cars give a wide variety of powers:

Flame Generation and projectiles

Ninja based-powers such as cloning jitsu and throwing shuriken construct projectiles  

Spike projectile shooting

Entrapment of an enemy via a cage.

Twin Shields, Playing card projectiles and smokescreen/Coin projectiles, the coin ones depend on Drive’s luck though.

Teleports a fraction of Drive’s Body to another area or creates portals.

Enhanced power and defense

Gives Drive analytical power, enhanced reflexes and the ability to multitask and detect enemies from behind him. 

Enhanced Super Speed with rocket boosters and more power. Able to resist Super Heavy Acceleration.

Healing Factor, albeit a very painful one.

Self-repair to Drive’s armor

Nitro power boost to enhance speed

Hologram projections

A Drill that can pierce the Roidmudes!

Light projection to blind enemies

Grappling hook!

Spanner fist

chomping claws and elastic “tongue” on the claws.

freezing blast ability

Cement gun

Fire extinguisher and extendable robotic arm

Acme 10 ton weight and gravity distortions

lifting jack

Able to fuse the power of 3 Shift cars into one super ability or all of them. Able to resist all forms of Heavy Acceleration. Energy Shield

Also, like Fourze, Wizard and Deacde, Drive’s powers are compatible with Super Sentai powers as he can use a Ninninger Nin Shuriken to turn Tridoron into a Zord. Though that was just a one-off thing.

Signature Finishers:

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Full_Throttle_(finisher)

Weaknesses:

A big one is Shinnosuke needs Mr. Belt to transform and given that he is an A.I., that means he is vulnerable to hacking or tampering to make the once friendly scientist into a violent killing machine via evil programming and use Drive’s body in Type Tridoron to hurt others. 

The Shift Cars can be captured, immobilized or damaged. In some cases, the villains could even control them and use them against Drive.

Shinnosuke can be killed, even when in Rider form as the battle with Freeze seemingly showed. Meaning a more powerful opponent with devastating firepower can kill Drive if enough effort is put in or he somehow has no access to his defensive abilities. Despite being protected from singularities, he is not entirely immune to distortions in time and can be affected by them. (Though this was a bit inconsistent as he somehow remembered being a hero later when this happened.)

Stronger Heavy Acceleration waves can severely damage Drive or slow him down. But modifications and successions to his base Core Driviar system thanks to Dr. Hendrickson and Rinna in newer forms slowly negates this weakness to the point it is not an issue as he can maintain his movement. 

Enemies:

Roidmudes:

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Category%3ARoidmudes

Androids created by Tenjiro Banno and Krim Steinbelt who possess sapient, advanced level intelligence, human mimicry abilities and a wide variety of powers as well as the ability to generate Heavy Acceleration. 

In a nice nod to the original Kamen Rider, the low level types of Roidmudes are divided into three of the classic Rider mythology monsters: Bat Type, Spider Type and Cobra Type.

Roidmudes are capable of evolving to even stronger forms: Advanced, Giant, and the rare Super Evolved State, which grant Roidmudes new abilities and greater power and stronger Heavy Acceleration effects. Their goal is to create a utopia for their race by attaining The Promised Number of evolution.

Among the Advanced Roidmudes are several generals/leaders:

Heart 

Brain

Medic

Freeze

And their enforcer/reaper: the mysterious Mashin Chaser.

And secretly pulling the strings of these events from the shadows is.....

Tenjuro Banno/Gold Drive:

(The KARR to Krim’s KITT)

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Tenjuro_Banno

Tenjuro Banno was a horrible and insane human being and even worse as an A.I.. An abusive, petty, cold, manipulative, ego-driven, sadistic and narcissistic black soul who believed the world owed him tribute to his “genius”. Seeing those that help him as nothing but pawns, even his own family as his two kids need a therapist after all the stuff he pulled. He is the cause of the first Global Freeze as a “ test experiment” and planned everything, as the rebellion of the Roidmudes was no accident but planned by him. 

Like Krim, he uploaded his consciousness into an A.I. after being killed and slowly let his schemes come to fruition, even faking helping and reforming when reunited with his son and Krim to steal more tech Team Drive used and render it useless against him. He even managed to kill a Kamen Rider fans came to like over the course of the series. (I won’t say who though.)

He truly was a villain fans loved to hate for how dirty he played and demented he was, helped by the fact he was played by voice actor Masakazu Morita whom anime fans know can play crazy in a way that gives you shivers. He also was formidable as an evil Kamen Rider as he could pull off a wide array of powers, including swiping the weapons of the heroes away from them via teleport!

Neo-Shade: 

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Neo-Shade

A Terrorist group that Shinnouske was trying to track down before the series, they resurfaced in the final episode and were dissolved as their leader was captured. No seeming relation to the real Shade from Kamen Rider G other than its name.

Remember, the world has a drive that goes faster than ever, but as long as you yourself have a drive in life, you can be in Top Gear and go along for the Ride! 

Shinnosuke Tomari: A Kamen Rider’s flight into a dangerous world ...the world.... of the Drive Rider. *1980s synth music*