#these rankings are almost entirely arbitrary. i hope you enjoy.

[eurydicees]

oh my god ok not to be insane but based on that last ask i got, i now bring you:

haikyuu characters* rated on the likeliness that they watch the blue lock reality tv show (BLTV).

*there are so many characters in this story. i am including a random number of them.

KAGEYAMA. -5/10. definitely not going to watch. he does not care for reality tv and he does not care about soccer. a reporter once asks him for his thoughts on the blue lock project and he asks what soccer is.

ALL OF SEIJOH. 10/10. ranking them as one, i promise i'm going somewhere w this. iwaizumi doesn't really have an opinion on reality tv but he does like soccer, and oikawa has a guilty pleasure of reality tv but doesn't really have an opinion on soccer. they thus find common ground and watch blue lock together. oikawa gets into making the fantasy league. iwaizumi gets into tracking stats for each player. between the two of them, they win the fantasy blue lock league. they then also rope the rest of seijoh into BLTV and the team gets stupidly into it. they all have favorite players and make bets with each other on their favorite teams. kyoutani has a knack for guessing scorelines. watari loses nearly every bet. he owes hanamaki so much ramen.

SUNA. 15/10. yeah. he watches that shit. i just know this in my heart. that kid is terminally online and was convinced to watch it by a twitter mutual who knew he was into volleyball and "its basically the same thing right." it is not basically the same thing. it is not at all basically the same thing. he watches it anyways.

HINATA. 2/10. not going to watch, similar to kageyama. simply does not care about either reality tv or soccer. but unlike kageyama, he does know what other sports are. he just doesn't feel the need to watch random high schoolers play them while trapped in soccer prison.

ATSUMU. 9/10. he pretends he doesn't. but he thinks that it's an insane project and it's kinda funny. he watches highlights when they're on water breaks during practice. if asked, he is watching "real soccer" and "psschhtt ofc it's not that ridiculous tv show whaaat."

USHIJIMA. 4/10. goshiki is into it so he knows about it just based on goshiki talking about it in the shiratorizawa group chat. goshiki denies talking about it so much, but everyone in shiratorizawa is consistently kept updated when big things happen. so he watches by proxy.

KUROO. 11/10. he thinks this project is genius. he wonders if the JVA could set up something similar. he is insane.

[kae-karo]

May I request Kaeya “well this is a predicament”

this did not in any way go the direction i was expecting but i hope u enjoy it lmaoooooo tysm as always bb 💜🐙💜

[send me a dialogue prompt from this list and a genshin character!] 

tags: canon divergence, grompy diluc, a lil bit of zhongluc at the end there for funsies

----

“And I won’t do you the service of assuming you’re intelligent, so let me tell you about the lovely chains currently binding you!” 

Diluc huffs out a breath of irritation - really, they get it, Dottore’s a mad genius and has some incredible plan that likely involves his and Kaeya’s untimely and rather gruesome deaths, probably at the behest of some scientific research or other. 

“Oh, these? Do tell,” Kaeya prompts - an entirely unnecessary thing, but he seems to be having quite a lot of fun bantering with the doctor. Diluc squeezes his eyes shut for a moment, feels the full weight of the chains wrapped tight around his chest and waist, binding him back to back with Kaeya.

The chains wrap his wrists and ankles as well, and his hands are starting to ache from the angle and pressure.

“These incredible feats of engineering are infused with electro energy!” Dottore announces as though he expects a round of applause. Diluc turns to stare at him, impatient. “If either of you archons-blessed Vision-wielders happen to activate your wonderful powers, you’ll be-”

“Hit with the impacts of the elemental reaction, we understand,” Diluc deadpans, and the doctor’s wide grin falters for a moment. Drops into a dangerous sort of grimace that Diluc only quirks a brow at.

“Watch your tongue,” he hisses, “or I’ll cut it out myself.” 

“Quite an impressive threat, and a rather impressive invention as well,” Kaeya says with honey in his tone. Diluc should probably be grateful for the way Kaeya attempts to smooth things over, but he did not ask Kaeya to follow him here. Did not ask for his help, and wouldn’t need it. He’d probably be out of these chains and halfway home by now if Kaeya hadn’t spent the past ten minutes egging Dottore on, keeping him around and chattering on about his fabricated plans.

It’d be one thing if the man had said anything of value, but it has become painfully clear that he intends only to hold Kaeya and Diluc hostage, perhaps perform some arbitrary - if disturbing - experiments on them and their Visions. They will not die, at least not yet.

“Now, I simply must ask-” Kaeya starts again, and Diluc elbows him hard in the back of his ribs. To his credit, Kaeya only coughs out a heavy breath, then hums a sound like he’d simply paused to think. “I must ask what you intend to do once the Knights determine our whereabouts?” 

Diluc rolls his eyes - perfect, keep the man talking and continue to prolong their opportunity to escape. If they do, in fact, escape this, Diluc might very well take these chains with him. Perhaps that would prevent Kaeya from finding a way to interfere in every one of his intentionally clandestine activities.

His hands clench tight in fists, and he relishes the ache it brings to his wrists - at least he still has feeling there, though he can’t determine how much longer that will last.

“The Knights of Favonius?” Dottore laughs, a sharp sound. “Oh, I have no concerns. The Knights’ ineptitude is rather well known.”

“On that, we can agree,” Diluc grumbles under his breath, but the doctor seems still acutely focused on Kaeya.

“Do you expect your dear heroes to save you? I can assure you, they will not find head nor tail of either of you,” he says with what Diluc can only describe as immense pleasure at the prospect. His own jaw ticks with barely-bridled rage.

His attention sharpens at the sound of footsteps, and he turns as far as he can manage. But the newcomer must be directly behind him - and directly in Kaeya’s line of sight - because he can’t turn quite far enough to see.

“Il Dottore, sir.” A low tone, deferent, so likely some underling of the doctor’s. “It seems some of our other...guests require your...attention. It’s rather urgent,” they add, and Diluc watches Dottore for any sign of what they might be referring to.

A wicked grin curls his lips, though, as he watches this newcomer.

“Of course, of course.” His eyes flash when he turns back to Kaeya and Diluc. “And with that, my dear friends,” Diluc flinches at the word, “I must depart. Please, remain here,” he says with a manic sort of laugh, then rushes off beyond Diluc’s field of vision.

Diluc exhales slowly at the sound of a door closing, then squeezes his eyes shut. Considers their options.

“Well,” Kaeya starts, tone infuriatingly light. “This is a predicament.”

“Is it,” Diluc deadpans, glares at the wall across from him because he cannot turn to glare at Kaeya properly. “And do tell, what on Teyvat was the purpose in delaying Dottore like that?” His tone takes on an edge, both from his increasing discomfort and latent irritation at Kaeya’s unrequested company.

Unrequested interference.

“No reason really,” Kaeya says, and Diluc growls low in the back of his throat. “Oh, don’t get so worked up. I’m sure we’ll figure a way out before he returns.��� 

“I assume you expect me to figure a way out, is that it?” Gods, he can’t imagine how Kaeya’s kept any ranking with the Knights with this attitude. Once upon a time, he cared fiercely for ensuring his - and Diluc’s - success. Would do anything under the sun to make it happen, no matter the cost. And yet, he leans back into Diluc’s shoulders with a contented sort of sigh, like he’s relaxed on a beach somewhere.

Like he’s just waiting to be rescued instead of making an effort to rescue himself.

“When did you become so insufferable,” Diluc grits out, mostly to himself as he tests the strength and tightness of the chains around his ankles. They pull the second he shifts, and he can feel a prickle of something dancing through the metal. It seems Dottore was quite serious about the elemental infusion, then, and Diluc is not stupid enough to risk testing his fire against it.

“I’ve always been insufferable,” Kaeya says easily, clearly amused. “When did you stop putting up with it?” 

Diluc bites his tongue - they both know the answer to that. A heavy sort of silence falls around them, then, and Diluc shifts his focus pointedly to the chains binding his wrists.

“I do not intend to make you do all the work of finding a way out of this predicament,” Kaeya says, tone unexpectedly flat. Resigned, almost, and Diluc frowns down at the chains.

“Excellent. You have an idea?” Better not to get caught up in it, whatever Kaeya’s thinking. Planning, manipulating. Why else have that tone of voice?

“Don’t need one.”

Diluc blows out an exasperated breath. Why does he even bother? He should know better than to get his hopes up with Kaeya.

And yet, at every opportunity, he can feel that tiny spark - maybe this time will be different, maybe Kaeya will prove himself trustworthy, maybe he’ll return to acting like he used to, maybe-

Maybe Diluc is only deluding himself, but try as he might, he’s yet to quash that tiny spark, and disappointment awaits him every time. Disappointment in himself, too - it’s his own fault for expecting Kaeya to act differently. 

A hinge creaks, then, and Diluc straightens up, clears his head of pointless thoughts and focuses on what he’s able to learn from the sound of footsteps approaching. They’re quiet, not loud, and he suspects that it is not Dottore that visits them.

“Ah, right on schedule,” Kaeya says with a smirk that Diluc can hear even if he’s unable to see it. Unease twists through his stomach - an ally of Kaeya’s, perhaps? That’d explain his disinterest in trying to escape, though how he’d planned this, Diluc remains uncertain.

“Naturally. Ah, what an interesting invention.” Diluc doesn’t recognize the voice, and the person remains somewhere behind him and out of sight. Irritation flickers through his head - could Kaeya not have simply mentioned that he had someone coming to find them? That’d certainly have saved Diluc the irritation and concern, at least partly.

“You can take them with you, if you want,” Kaeya says disinterestedly. “Just neutralize the electro energy-” An abrupt snap, most certainly metallic in nature, and Kaeya hums an impressed sort of sound. “Or that.” 

As he speaks, the chains tying Diluc to Kaeya loosen and pool in his lap, and Diluc pulls away from Kaeya the moment he’s able. Kaeya falls back into him, but only for a moment before he rights himself, and Diluc extracts himself from the loose chains to find-

A very tall man staring down at him, and not at all bearing the appearance of one of Kaeya’s usual acquaintances. This man is refined and dignified, undoubtedly - nothing short of regal - and he extends a hand as though he means to help Diluc to his feet.

When Diluc reaches for it, though, the man instead grabs for the chain still binding Diluc’s wrists. It takes a very concerted effort to remain in control of his surprise when the man pulls at the chains, rips them apart like they’re little more than paper.

“Your legs?” 

Diluc’s lips part at the question, and he bites back a dumbfounded ‘what about my legs?’ Naturally, the man intends to remove the chains binding him there as well. He crouches down to Diluc’s level, though Diluc notes that he remains nearly a head taller, even like this.

The man tips his head, then, and Diluc rushes to swing his legs around. Again, the metallic snap, and the chains fall from his sore ankles. He rolls them experimentally, pleased to find them mostly unharmed, and the man straightens up. Behind him, Kaeya wanders the room, and Diluc might care a little about what he’s doing - or planning - except that this unknown man continues to stare down at him.

Extends a hand, and Diluc takes it this time. Why he’s surprised at the ease with which the man pulls him to his feet, he can’t quite say. Can’t say much at all, when he’s all but frozen chest-to-chest with the man, and Diluc tips his head back.

Gold eyes stare unabashedly into his, warm and bright, and Diluc stumbles a step back. Clears his throat.

“We’re leaving?” He doesn’t mean it as a question, but uncertainty slips into his tone. Neither Kaeya nor this...acquaintance? Friend? Whoever he is, though Diluc intends to do some research once they’ve returned to safety. In any event, neither of them seems in any particular rush, though Kaeya hums what might be an agreement at Diluc’s words.

“Oh, ah, by the way,” Kaeya adds as he returns to where Diluc and their mysterious rescuer stand in the center of the room. “Diluc, please meet my dear friend and ally, Zhongli. Zhongli, Diluc.”

“I’ve heard quite a lot about you, Diluc.” Oh. His voice is quite...smooth. Pleasing to listen to. Diluc blinks a few times, attempts to focus.

“I’ll admit, I’ve heard nothing at all about you.” This, for some unknown reason, makes Zhongli’s lip tick up at the corner - almost a smile, and Diluc finds himself unexpectedly warmed by it. 

“You can continue flirting another time, Zhongli. I believe we have places to be?” Kaeya’s tone drips with teasing, and Diluc swallows, feels heat flood his veins and rush to his cheeks. If Zhongli is bothered by this assertion, he does not give any indication. Gods, he doesn’t even deny it. 

Was he, then? Flirting? With Diluc?

“Namely, not here?”

Zhongli’s smile widens just a fraction at Kaeya’s words before he turns, and Diluc stares for a frankly inordinate amount of time before Zhongli’s - and Kaeya’s - disappearance through the door startles him forward.

Right, they need to worry about getting out of here first. Diluc can concern himself with Zhongli’s...maybe-flirting another time.

[burgerpocalypse]

Back 4 Blood Beta

It's not good. I don't recommend buying or playing this game. Avoid it. If you like it, you're actually wrong.

I'll be directly comparing Back 4 Blood to Left 4 Dead because it's the same development team (supposedly). I'm also in an especially unforgiving mood, so this will be an outwardly hostile discussion of this terrible product. If you think I'm just being overly negative and want the game to fail because I'm an asshole, well, yeah, I am, but this shoddy product deserves considerable ire and I won't be convinced otherwise.

Some publications and individuals are calling it good, a worthy successor to L4D. They're wrong. L4D was a charming, polished, streamlined game. B4B is passionless, janky, and complicated. It makes mistakes that L4D solved or cleverly avoided, and introduces critical issues that ruin the experience.

Game Feel

Shooting feels weak and unresponsive, slows your movement speed, and requires aim-down-sights to have any accuracy.

Basic movement is slow and plodding. Sprinting drains stamina almost instantly, and is barely faster

Melee attacks rapidly drains stamina and has dubious reach; shoving enemies provides almost no benefit unless you have a specific perk card.

Zombies (or Ridden, a terrible, thoughtless name for zombies) shumble at you like they're competing for the Jank Olympics. One zombie can drain your health bar in seconds through sheer jankitude.

Players will regularly be yeeted, and it will seem like you just experienced an unintended bug or glitch rather than a deliberate force.

You're constantly taking damage from random, unidentifiable sources.

In summary, the game feel of this particular game is woeful.

Characters and Monsters

I hate the player characters. Well, that's a lie. HG, the prepper guy, or whatever his name is, is the only one I don't hate. He doesn't say cringeworthy lines, and he has a definable personality beyond broad emotional traits or bog-standard tropes. Player animations are also jank

The Ridden, which I will reiterate are named terribly, are indistinguishable from each other, players, and the environment. The common zombies are of the same color and height as players, so you're gonna probably be shooting teammates a lot, especially when everyone's covered in blood effects. Special zombies are awfully designed, to the point that I have to complain about them for the rest of this section. They:

are unpredictable, in a bad way

have entirely too much health with easily missed weak points

do far too much damage from unreasonable distances

move faster than the player's default speed, and can charge for extended distances

often appear in multiples and crowd chokepoints

The Hocker operates like the Smoker from L4D, but can lock down multiple players at once, chunk your health from great distances, and repeatedly jump from vantage point to vantage point at random. Its name is also stupid.

The Snitcher calls more zombies if you shoot it, which isn't obvious at all until you end up shooting it and call more zombies. It's also a key mistake that the developers of L4D avoided through rigorous playtesting, which allowed them to see that a similarly designed enemy was completely unfair, resulting in it being cut from the final release. Its name is also stupid.

The big fat guy can douse you in health-draining bile from 50 meters away, is difficult to kill, and has a variant that charge you and explode. This like they took the Boomer and made it worse in uniquely awful ways, just to see if they could. I don't remember the name, but its probably stupid.

The big arm guy can thwack you for 50% of your health bar, pin you in place, is also difficult to kill, and has a variant that is even more difficult to kill. I don't remember his name either, bu its definitely stupid.

The final one I can remember is the one that sits in a flesh pod and ambushes a player that gets too close, pinning them exactly like the Hunter would. The flesh pod blends into the environment in an especially egregious way, and the enemy itself looks stupid. Its names is also probably stupid.

Difficulty

I've cut my teeth on L4D and other coop shooters. I've beaten all the official campaigns on Expert. This game is stupid hard and unforgiving to such a degree that I fully believe that the developers do not understand at all what made L4D fun.

As players lose health, they also accrue trauma, which reduces maximum HP, potentially down to 40 HP. This cannot be recovered, even after respawning at a safe room or midround, unless you find a special medicine locker, which costs copper to use.

Levels are far too long, and there is never, ever any room to breathe. Players are constantly assaulted by zombies from all angles with no sense of rhythm or dramatic tension.

Levels also have no flow. Players will feel as though they are randomly wandering with no sense that they are being led in a particular direction. In L4D, the player characters would constantly be making observations about the environment (i.e. "Up that ladder!" or "We can use X to get across"). While L4D used tooltips to point out important objects, B4B relies entirely upon them.

Players have an elaborate inventory and currency system that is confusing and unreliable. Instead of providing healing and ammo at the start of each level, players have to buy it with copper. Like, literal in-game microtransactions. Each player has a unique wallet, though any copper picked up is given to all players equally. The copper system is an unnecessary addition that serves to slow down the start of a round.

Players can hold one offensive, healing, and support item. Medkits are not given a specific item slot, but instead compete with bandages and pills for inventory space. Guns and melee weapons also have tiers and ranks that are ill-defined. I have an extensive list of gripes I could go on about with this system, but I'll list some key issues:

There are too many items of each type, and they are too plentiful in the environment to be worth spending copper on

Ammo is broken into 4 types, which can leave you with lots of ammo for a weapon type you aren't using and no ammo for the gun you're actually using

Weapon attachments and ammo upgrades do nothing but provide confusion and force you to stop and stare at a stat screen to understand what it is you're adding to your gun. You also can't transfer them between guns, so you'll eventually have to swap a lower-tier gun with great attachments for a higher-tier gun with no attachments

Some offensive items do not behave in the way you expect them to, or provide so little value that they aren't worth using

Bandages and medkits operate identically, offering no interesting decision-making opportunities

The efficacy of healing items in general is needlessly reduced by players being able to heal by killing enemies, as well as trauma reducing max HP to the point that they don't provide any value

The Legacy of Left 4 Dead

Left 4 Dead provided a tightly packaged experience that nearly anyone could pick up on, and has a satisfying core loop that kept me coming back for years in spite of its many obvious glaring flaws. It was not bogged down by unnecessary progression systems or overly complex mechanics.

Since Valve allowed the series to shrivel and die, there has been no refinement of the mechanics that give L4D its magic, only inferior imitations that do not understand why things were they way they were.

Warhammer: Vermintide fails by being too complex, with vast differences between player characters, and an awful gear system that locks players out of higher difficulties with an arbitrary power system and random lootboxes

PAYDAY has zero polish, an unfathomably dull progression system, uninspired characters, awful artificial difficulty, and generally wastes the player's time with crushing amounts of busy work and waiting around

Back 4 Blood could have been great, but it completely misses the point. I'm going to try and play more of it while the beta is open, since I'm a miserable masochist, but also because some small part of me still wants to like it.

I'm sorry that this was so long and uncoordinated. I also apologize if you do enjoy the game. I just hope that I was able to provide a unique perspective of some small value to someone.

Thanks for reading. Sorry there's no interesting art to look at. I only put that comically small cover image there because it made me feel slightly better.

[a-mellowtea]

Sarah’s Soundtrack Corner | RWBY Volume 8

Today: Episode 1 // Divide 22/11/2020: Episode 2 // Refuge

Hello everyone!

This year, I’ve decided to do something new. Rather than waiting for the Volume to end or the soundtrack to drop to talk about RWBY’s music, I’m starting this little side project: cataloguing and somewhat analyzing the show’s score and songs as they’re released.

This is also a way for me to keep myself engaged in something other than academics (’cause quarantine be gettin’ to me), as well as pointing out some details folks might overlook: there’s always a lot to talk about with the music, and it plays a pivotal role in the series.

A mini-disclaimer beforehand: I am in no way well-versed in music theory. I can’t really tell you how things are composed so much as how they more generally sound, and what the intentions behind certain choices might have been.

So, without further ado, let’s begin!

The first cue of the Volume, coming in gently against the slow fade-in from black of a young Cinder scrubbing the floor, is on piano and sparse strings. I’m hesitant to label this as anything in particular with any degree of confidence, but the progression of notes makes me believe it could be an abstract variation on Cinder’s core “theme” - specifically, the haunting choir we tend to hear around her. It would make sense: bridging the visuals with something just familiar enough to catch the ear, but also distinct.

There’s a brief pause as Cinder and Neo approach the storm, with only a small bit of ambient, tense strings; then it’s into a development of the new melody we got accompanying Salem’s arrival in Volume 7 under the usual first-episode credits. This section has a wonderful female choral element added: I’m actually half-convinced that it’s a specific “theme” for Monstra (the whale Grimm; apparently that’s her official name), rather than Salem herself. The bass percussion makes the cue feel almost literally alive, giving it a slow, steady heartbeat.

The piece crescendos as Neo catches sight of Salem, then fades away into more tense strings when Cinder kneels. A small quote of what I believe is “One Thing” kicks in when Cinder takes Neo’s credit for stealing the Relic of Knowledge.

The next quote is equally small, coming and going in the span of about 5 seconds between the 03:25 and 03:30 timestamps, and references the strings from “Party Crashers”/the Volume 7 Mantle massacre. 

I can’t quite peg the following string melody - under Cinder’s declaration that she’ll return to Atlas and take the Maiden’s power from Penny - as anything specific, though it sounds similar to the opening piano.

What I’ll tentatively label as Monstra’s “theme” takes over again as Salem communicates with her, and the cue ends on a tense crescendo along with the scene.

On our heroes’ end, this is quite the episode for abstract little melodies, because I can’t seem to nail down what plays under Oscar’s respite in the slums either. What I do recognize, however, is a small section of Mantle’s melody at around 05:42, continuing until 05:52 where it’s briefly interrupted by a vague handful of notes from the Grimm “theme”.

Everything in Mantle is quite bleak, including the instrumentation: it’s soft and somber, even the gentler moments. Oscar’s melody kicks in at 07:06 on slow strings after Weiss asks how he ended up in the crater, which transitions into a despairing little quote of Penny’s established “theme” from Volume 7. This “theme” is of particular note this time around - Alex Abraham (composer) switched up the sound of her melody to a more subdued, lost quality, and it’s quite something whenever it pops up.

“Bad Luck Charm” makes a brief appearance at 07:30, and it’s interesting to me just how darkly the quote drifts off - the final note sounds almost distorted, lending it not only an air of uncertainty, but also danger (totally not hinting at things to come - no way).

Mantle’s theme makes a reappearance at 09:03, following a lead-in on strings as Yang argues that they need to help the people. The “theme” for Amity follows at 9:18 when Pietro begins talking about the titular colisseum, then drifts into Ironwood’s once he’s brought up, and then into one of the “Atlas tension” motifs from Volume 7. The orchestration of this entire section is notably quiet; almost not there, and all with a sense of unease. As the idea for the plan begins to come together, the Atlas Military “theme” (introduced at the end of Volume 6) plays, but fades out largely unresolved with Pietro’s uncertainty about it.

Once the small argument begins in earnest and the group divides, what sounds like a gentle quote of the as-yet untitled opening plays, easing into simple strings once Jaune interjects.

A sneeze-and-you’ll-miss-it soft interruption of Penny’s melody plays again, almost lost in the strings, then a third time when she volunteers to go with Ruby’s group.

And now for the fun part.

I’m not horrendously biased, I swear.

The tense silence of this scene once Penny’s Scroll begins to ring is perfect; as are the dark, sparse, ambient strings and the fourth instance of Penny’s “theme” - played on piano, with an almost music-box-like quality. The juxtaposition is horribly fitting for the moment - James is playing on Penny’s role as a guardian, her desire to protect people, her uncertainty about a situation in which she has had very little control, and that’s all beautifully reinforced in the music.

Speaking of juxtaposition.

Upstairs, we get a gorgeous rendition of “Hero” on brass; played slow, full and in earnest, with a small bit of Winter’s melody thrown in the middle once the camera briefly shifts focus to her. The way this section is orchestrated piques my interest as well - it’s not dark, it’s not particularly somber. It’s gentle. It still has that, for lack of a better term, heroic quality to it.

And that becomes such a twisted thing by the end of the scene.

Before that, however, there’s an instance of the Grimm “theme” clearly at 14:56, and it continues to be a personal favorite. 

Another intriguing little reference hits at about 15:12, when the Council members show up - if you have an ear for it, you might pick up on it as coming from the scene in the office from Volume 7 Chapter 11 “Gravity”, complete with Ironwood’s “theme” at 15:33 (this cue might actually be directly taken from “Are You With Me?”) and to say it’s appropriate for a moment where James slips even further would be putting it mildly.

Closing out the episode proper is a freaky new melody for the Grimm hound that I can honestly say I cannot wait to hear more of.

Overall, the score for the premiere isn’t quite as bombastic as the last two years, but that’s fitting - it’s largely understated, with lots of tension and somber takes on the leitmotifs that crop up. This is actually one of the things about the episode that left me feeling like it was more of a firm and simple continuation from last year than the start of a brand new chapter, and that’s certainly not bad.

And now you stand alone, opening!

I don’t think it needs saying that every RWBY OP will split the fandom to some degree, and this one has a very different style. It doesn’t have a name yet - I personally labelled it as “The End” on YouTube, unfortunately confusing a few people - which is odd, but Jeff professed that he just couldn’t settle on one yet.

The standard guitar and heavy percussion are present, kicking off in the usual instrument-focused intro, and are mixed with layers of different instruments, synth and backing vocals throughout the song once Casey’s vocals start. Speaking of, our leading lady delivers with her usual grace, and her matured voice lends a lot to the tone of the song (the growl on “Some roses will never bloom” is amazing). Almost every line on the verse and pre-chorus has an echo behind it - either as an effect or as part of the backing - giving it a forlorn yet powerful quality.

In the lyrics department, it reminds me quite a bit of the second opening - “Time To Say Goodbye” - save with a darker undertone. I’d be hardpressed to believe that the line “We said goodbye / To all the things we loved” isn’t, in fact, a direct reference to “Now it’s time to say goodbye / To the things we loved and the innocence of youth”. In a Volume where a lot of people were clamboring for a “When It Falls 2.0″ - yours truly included - this was a surprise, but a welcome one.

Second opening is the best opening. That is a hill I will die on.

Come to think of it, this might become a trend. If I remember correctly, several lyrics in “Trust Love” harkened back to “This Will Be The Day”; what springs to mind immediately is the contrast of “When the day you waited for won’t come” with “This will be the day we waited for”, and “Always hoping that a lightning bolt / Is going to save you from this gravity” with “We are lightning / Straying from the thunder”.

If this is the case and Volume 8 goes as I believe it will - setting up for another Volume in Atlas where the huge fight happens as everyone struggles to hold the line until help arrives - then we could be due for some “When It Falls” references then.

I’ve heard some say that this opening sounds a little too crowded, that it doesn’t hit quite as hard as they expected/compared to “When It Falls”, that the darker tone relies on the lyrics rather than anything in the instrumentation, and those are valid critiques. Personally, this one’s an ear-worm - I love the sound of it; Jeff made a lot of interesting choices - but the melody itself isn’t as discernable as previous years and is going to take a while to grow on me.

I’m not going to rank these or anything because that feels a little arbitrary, but I really enjoyed what we got this first Chapter. Knowing the team, they find ways to step it up every year, so I’m seriously looking forward to what’s in store.

Until next week!

[tigerroseblue]

Seven Deadly Sins Oneshot: Kings

Based on what Meliodas said to King when they first met: "...I thought kings were a bunch of scum that just do whatever the hell they want and kill anyone they don't like." So, obviously Mel's probably served a crap ton of kings during his 3000+ years and has probably met some truly horrible ones. (Pretty sure he's also talking about the Demon King there.) Here's my idea on Meliodas's thoughts about kings. So...is this a character study?

Meliodas had never put much stock in kings or any kind of rulers for that matter. His father (loath as he was to call him that), the Demon King, was well known for acting on a whim. His temper was well known as well and every Demon knew to tread lightly, because if you angered him, he wouldn't just kill you. He'd make you wish you'd never been born first.

As his son, Meliodas wasn't immune to his cruelty. Even when he'd been a part of the Demon Clan and the Next in Line for the Throne, he'd had a bad habit of being a bit rebellious. He'd obey every command the King gave him, but every word he spoke to him was laced with bitting sarcasm and insolence. Good for him, the King found it amusing for the most part. But still, there were points...

One particularly memorable moment was after a failed raid on a Giant village. Meliodas had the choice of easily slaughtering all of the Giants and killing all his subordinates in the process, or retreating to fight another day. He took what he knew was the smarter route. Not because he cared for his subordinates, but because he knew the value of keeping weaker, yet more experienced fighters rather than replacing them with even weaker, less experienced idiots.

Upon returning, he ordered them all to have their injuries looked after. After that, he went back to report to the King. Needless to say, he was less than pleased with Meliodas's perceived act of "mercy" that caused him to fail in his mission. And, because he couldn't ever seem to stop himself from doing so, Meliodas argued with him, saying that sacrificing such valuable pawns for such a small reward was foolish.

The King didn't appreciate being called foolish. After being flung out of the throne room so hard, he swore he felt several of his ribs break, Meliodas braced himself for farther punishment. But none came. He was confused, until it finally occurred to him. He rushed to the foot soldiers' infirmary, to find all of the Demons he had commanded dead, slaughtered in various, horrifying ways.

The Demon King taught him that rulers had no qualms with killing loyal soldiers, just to spite others.

__________________________________________________

Then there was the Supreme Deity. Going into it, he forced himself to be open to following her, because it was what Elizabeth wanted. He didn't want to disappoint her. Meliodas had only faced the Supreme Deity twice, both with Elizabeth by his side, both leaving with less than stellar views of her.

The first was when he first left the Demon Clan to help Elizabeth end the war. When she brought him to the Goddess Realm to meet her mother, he was instantly filled with trepidation over the meeting. Not because he was in love with her daughter and heir, but because he knew how he'd be received. Elizabeth, with her blessed, beautiful faith in everyone, didn't realize that bringing in the son and heir of her mother's worst enemy, saying that they were in love and he would help them find a peaceful way to end the war...wouldn't exactly end well.

For a while, Elizabeth stood with them, filling in the tense atmosphere with explanations and hope. Then, one of the Archangels, Sariel the Tornado, came to retrieve Elizabeth, saying they needed to speak with her. She excused herself and left. The first thing out of the Supreme Deity's mouth after that was "Do you honestly expect me to believe that you, the Prince of the Demons, will help us defeat your own Clan? What is your plan, tricking my daughter into loving such a vile creature as yourself?"

Wanting to honor Elizabeth's wishes, he was honest with her. He told her he had no ulterior motive, that he was honestly in love with Elizabeth. Then, because he had developed a healthy habit of saying the wrong thing in front of powerful royalty, he told her he had no intention of helping her defeat his Clan. That he wanted to create peace between the two Clans, to stop the useless bloodshed with no more hatred between their constantly fighting Clans.

It was well known the war between the Demons and Goddesses had led to heavy casualties on both sides. The population of both Clans were so low and so few children were being born, if they didn't do something, they'd all die out. Everyone knew that, especially the rulers of the respective Clans.

After he'd finished his explanation, he waited for the Supreme Deity's response. It was exactly what he expected. She laughed, saying the if a few of her Clan had to die in order to bring down the Demons, so be it. In fact, they should be greatful to have the choice of sacrificing themselves for their Queen.

The Supreme Deity taught him that rulers didn't care what happened to their people, as long as their own personal goals were fulfilled.

__________________________________________________

At first, he'd thought Gloxinia and Dolor would be different. They actually seemed to care about their people, regardless of rank or power level. They didn't sacrifice them for meaningless victories or punish them for arbitrary offenses. He thought they were actually good rulers.

Then the attack on Stigma happened. Dolor abandoned his people for nothing more than hurt pride and Gloxinia left his kingdom in a vengeful fit of grief. They left their people with a tremendous drop in their population, floundering without guidance in a tremulous time of war. They left them at the mercy of the Goddesses and the Demons.

The Goddesses didn't care about anyone but themselves. They'd let either Clan fall into extinction if it suited their purposes. And the Demon weren't very merciful either.

Gloxinia and Dolor taught him to not trust first appearances in a ruler.

__________________________________________________

After the war, as he wandered around Britannia, the kingdoms that had been torn apart by the fighting slowly began to come back together. As they did, Meliodas found himself serving multiple kings and queens in between finding Elizabeth. A few weren't so bad. Other's got the horrible honor of being worse than his father and the Supreme Deity.

One king, the second he had served, had ordered him to attack a village of another kingdom to start a war. He wanted no survivors-men, women, or children. Meliodas refused. He'd had enough of bloodshed. He left that kingdom. It was gone now, its foolish, selfish king leading it into a war it couldn't win.

A queen was so bloated with her own wealth and power, she required all the kingdom's wealth for herself–while her people starved. Meliodas did the best he could, but it wasn't enough. Eventually, there was a violent revolution in that kingdom. The people killed or exiled every single person that worked for the royal family. Meliodas left willingly.

Yet another ruler believed that his power came from God and, as such, he should not be questioned and certainly never disobeyed. As previously established, Meliodas had issues with obeying rulers. That particular time as a Holy Knight hadn't ended well. When a group of knights refused to follow orders that were utterly ridiculous in the first place, the king tried to have them executed. Meliodas refused to let that happen and was exiled for it.

There were those that didn't cause direct harm to their citizens, that basically allowed the leader of their military (Holy Knights and otherwise) to led the country and just sit back and enjoy a life of luxury. Meliodas detested their laziness, but at least the people weren't suffering.

Human rulers didn't help his image of rulers in general in the slightest. They only cemented in his loathing.

__________________________________________________

Then came King. Or Harlequin, as was his true name. When Meliodas heard of the third Fairy King, that supposedly ignored the actions of his own, leading to a 500-year killing spree...he wasn't surprised. It seemed to fit in with every other king he'd run across. Tyrannical, murderous, vain, lazy...these were the traits he associated with royalty.

But then, the Fairy King shed tears for his people. He blamed himself for the wayward fairy's actions and said he was a horrible king. From Meliodas's experience, no ruler, no matter how terrible, would've admitted that. Respect for the Fairy King–respect he once had for Gloxinia before he betrayed everyone–began to grow.

When he called him a splendid king, he meant it.

__________________________________________________

After the destruction of Danafor (the king there ordered the Holy Knights to protect him instead of the people), he met Baltra. When he discovered the king of Liones wanted to adopted Elizabeth, his first thought was "Oh, hell no". But he knew he couldn't raise Elizabeth himself and risk the curse triggering that much faster. So, he agreed, but insisted on being her personal knight. He didn't trust Baltra at all.

When Zaratras introduced him to the king for a second time, Meliodas did what he had developed a habit of doing whenever he was about to serve a new king or queen. After all the times they'd attempted to make him do things that he didn't want to do, it was kind of like a warning, that he wouldn't fold to demands as easily as other knights would.

Standing in front of Baltra's throne, looking him directly in the eyes, he gave him the same warning he'd given almost 12 times by then: "I am not a child," he started steely. "Not only am I older than I look, but I am also much stronger. If I wanted to, I could level your entire army in less than 5 minutes. Do not underestimate me. Try and force me to do something that I don't want to or give an order that is detrimental to this kingdom's people, and I will leave. You won't be able to stop me. And I'll take Elizabeth with me."

He expected anger, he expected outrage. What he got was calm eyes staring right back at his. "You've had a bad time with royalty in the past, haven't you?" Meliodas felt taken aback by the human's insight. Is this part of his power? He asked himself, remembering what Zaratras had said about the king's power, Vision. No, it can't be. Zaratras said he could only see the future, not the past, so how...?

Baltra leaned forward in his throne. "I can see it in your eyes. You are much older than you seem and, as such, you've seen things you can't unsee. I understand that, at least to an extent. My power, Vision, has given me...visions of things, terrible things I wish I'd never seen. And some, I did not have the power to stop. Some were impossible to stop." His eyes, grey steel, flashed for a moment. "I feel like you will be a great and valuable asset to my knights. Perhaps, I can prove to you that not all kings are monsters?"

Meliodas looked at him, surprised for the first time in a while. A complicated expression came upon his face. A strange mixture of skepticism, hope, and challenge. "Perhaps. I guess I'll just have to see."

Out of all the rulers he has served or known, Baltra would come to be the one who taught Meliodas what being a king truly meant.

[deadybones]

I'm slightly belated but if you're answering for the meme questz, how about silent films, Muppets, or/and Osomatsu.

Thank you so much for asking me! I was tossing up which of these three suggestions to go with, and I drafted up one for each of them… But since this is the one with the fewest “N/A” answers, let’s go with the ‘Matsus. I hope you don’t mind me mixing -Kun and -San.

the character i least understand

Dekapan.

Even in the fluid characterization of -Kun, he’s always been an odd duck. To the point I think he might have some kind of early-onset Alzheimers. Also more recently I’ve been re-watching the Japanese dub of The Simpsons, and now I just can’t stop imagining him as Homer and vice versa because they shared a voice actor.

interactions i enjoyed the most

- Suujimatsu! Ichimatsu and Jyushimatsu are both weird in such a complementary (if not straight-up codependent) way, it’s no wonder they’re so close. The skits that showcase the ways each others’ minds work are so sweet.

- Zaimokumatsu! Todomatsu and Karamatsu both have a preoccupation with being “cool,” but they have such different ideas of what “cool” looks like that they’re never going to see eye-to-eye. As someone who’s invested entirely too much energy into trying to be being cool and likeable, I appreciate the absurdity of it all. Plus Irino Miyu always knocks it out of the park in these skits, too.  

- Mom and Dad! …er, -matsu! Particularly in the 1980s series. Matsuyo and Matsuzo work so hard to support their awful children that you can’t help but feel for them. I like how you sometimes you get glimpses of the people they were before they fell into the roles as “housewife” and “salaryman,” like Matsuyo being a former ballet dancer and Matsuzo’s penchant for the nightlife. Despite all their foibles and differences, they’re perfect for each other. Oso-kun’s always had a big following among adults, and I feel like these two were probably a big part of that appeal.

the character who scares me the most

Hatab — err, I mean, “Mr. Flag.”

He used to be so sweet… What on Earth happened to that kid? Why isn’t he hanging out with Chibita any more? What happened to his cousin Jajako? How did he acquire a multimillion dollar consulting business? There’s got to be a story there and that’s the show I want to watch.

To be honest, I also can’t help but wonder if his sinister streak was the -San staff throwing in a bit of social commentary on Japan’s conservative national establishment. I mean, here’s this kid who looks cute and non-threatening enough to get away with anything, but treats his workers abysmally and is enmeshed in a number of criminal enterprises … and he’s literally got the national flag sticking out of his head all the while. Hmmm.

the character who is mostly like me

Choromatsu in -San, because he’s always talking about things and then not actually doing the things. Matsuzo’s good-natured ineffectuality also rings true with me.

hottest looks character

Iyami, no contest. What, ya thought I was joking with those “sleazy ex-husband” tags? C’mon! He’s got a car, keeps a trim figure with all that running from the cops, knows all the best soup kitchens in town… You could do worse, right?

one thing i dislike about my fave character

Sometimes I think I think a lot more about Chibita than the writers for -San did. :,) He’s a very well-developed little guy in the originals and I want justice for my boy in Season II.

one thing i like about my hated character

I don’t hate anyone, but even at the bottom of my brothers-ranking, Choromatsu still makes a great straight man. His fits and starts towards becoming a productive member of society gave me a lot to enjoy during the second cour.

a quote or scene that haunts me

Bit of a deep cut, but there’s a manga story from around the 3rd run (I think?) of -Kun that ends on a bizarrely poignant note. The scenario starts with Iyami as an obnoxious loudmouth barfly, but then a beautiful woman falls for him. So he starts getting his life together, they move in together, and they’re having a grand old time. It’s such a wonderful little sequence because it’s almost like showing that no matter how much of a weirdo you might be, there’s gotta be someone out there for you, strange as you might be. 

It’s all very silly and cute, but theeeen the twist comes at the end: she’s been married the whole time and ultimately decides to go back to her family. The last panel is just Iyami sitting there in the dark in his house with the eggs he bought to make breakfast. It’s one of the best moments of mood whiplash I’ve seen in this vintage of manga, because everything you know about these characters and their world is priming you for a punchline that doesn’t come.

a death that left me indifferent

Chibita’s manic pixie dream girl in -San. She’s adorable! And really I love her design! But the episode got a little bogged down with all the silliness with Karamatsu. In the end, we didn’t get to know her as much as we might have, and she didn’t really help Chibita learn anything in the long-term, which made the end a little unsatisfying. This is one story where the originals landed a much stronger impact. That one really twisted the knife by having Chibita inadvertently be the one that causes the flower-girl’s death. Oof.

a character i wish died but didn’t

Nobody stays dead in the Akatsukaverse, so it’s sort of a moot point.

my ship that never sailed

Maybe it’s not so much a ship in the conventional sense so much as “I just really want these characters to interact,” but Osomatsu and Chibita! I can pinpoint the exact second I started to like this series, and that’s in Episode 2 with Chibita was offering up well-meaning but useless life advice. You think it’s building up to some sweet little self-realization for Osomatsu, but he’s got the the chutzpah to chew out an orphan for not understanding family dynamics. And the best part is neither of them are even really wrong! I like that, and I wish we saw more of it. 

A lot of the humour in -San comes from poking fun at arbitrary hierarchies, whether it’s the birth-order thing with the brothers, or the fact that none of the adults in the Akatsuka-verse have done anything to deserve being in positions of power. But because these two have absolutely no respect for each other, and Chibita in particular doesn’t have any attachment to the family relationships by which Osomatsu defines himself, there’s a level playing field where they’re call each other out on some uncomfortable truths. And damn, if they both don’t need to hear some uncomfortable truths.

Again, thank you for inviting me to share my thoughts! :D