#those last two panels get me every time hahaha

[scarletspider2the2ndpower]

“Pillar of Fire,” Scarlet Spider (Vol. 2/2012), #5.

Writer: Christopher Yost; Penciler: Neil Edwards; Inker: Karl Kesel; Colorist: Edgar Delgado; Letterer: Joe Caramagna

[makeste]

literally just another giant post of Bakugou faces.

so I did this last year, but I only got up to chapter 120 before I ran out of steam. happily, though, this left me with an additional 190 chapters’ worth of glorious gremlin faces to choose from for this year’s edition! which I figure I had better do, before tumblr finally pulls the plug on my poor sweet image limit.

so without further ado, happy birthday to Kacchan, and happy birthday to Kacchan’s asymmetrical HAH face where his eyes do the thing like ( ◣益◢).

why I like it: so this is from Kirishima’s flashback in chapter 133, where Kirishima was getting all down on himself because his quirk Only Does One Thing, and Kacchan was all “nah bro don’t worry about it because your One Thing is totally fucking rad, and you’re strong enough to withstand anything.” so that of course was incredibly sweet, and one of the few times we’ve seen him give an actual heartfelt pep talk without so much as a single insult thrown into the mix. but what really puts this scene over the top for me is the fact that you can see the ever-so-subtle hints of guilt and regret when he talks about All Might and Kamino. for just a moment, he gets this distant look in his eyes, and his expression turns soft and contemplative. basically this is a rare collector’s edition Kacchan face you will not find in many other places.

why I like it: because this frankly needs to happen in every damn fight until this kid finally gets it through his thick skull to ditch the mask so we can see every fantastic facial expression in full 4k glory. work with me here please Kacchan.

why I like it: because character growth!! this was our first big moment of post-DvK2 Kacchan development, and the payoff was well worth the wait. it only took him 166 chapters to realize that it’s hard to grow as a person if you’re determined to be a humongous dick to every single person you meet!! lmao, but it’s progress though.

why I like it: these two panels are criminally underrated. the way his face transforms when Deku gets the answer wrong dlkjfldk. this is easily one of the funniest subtle gags in the entire series.

why I like it: “hey Bakugou do you want to play in our band?” “fuck you, no.” “pretty please.” “fine, but I refuse to call it a band.” “well then what do you want to call it -- ” “MURDER.”

why I like it: GONNA MURDER EVERYONE BY PLAYING THE DRUMS!!!! SOMEHOW WE’VE SUCCESSFULLY COMPARTMENTALIZED THIS SCHOOL-SANCTIONED DISPLAY OF PERFORMING ARTS AS A DEATH MATCH. OH TO UNDERSTAND THE INNER WORKINGS OF THIS YOUNG MAN’S MIND.

why I like it: hah?! I love how he has to tilt his neck all the way back every single time he does this. he’s so cute I love him so much.

why I like it: somewhere around this point in the manga Kacchan decided to do away with being handsome and decided to just be a full-time gremlin in every single panel. this persisted for the next 90 chapters or so and he was very dedicated. I’m pretty sure he was going for vulgar and intimidating, but unfortunately for him he’s too inherently adorable and so the end result is just endearing and almost charming in its own way.

why I like it: this was from chapter 194 when Aizawa was announcing that they’d have a special guest for the Joint Training arc, and so Kacchan was all “BOY OH BOY A NEW ASS TO KICK.”

why I like it: more character development! and just look at that confidence! he’s fully recovered from his low point after Kamino and the provisional exam. he knows what he’s about now, and he is THRIVING. and once again you can see how his conviction inspires the people around him and makes them more determined. just, he is going to be such a good number one hero you guys.

why I like it: it’s the three little “!!!” lines hovering in the corner next to his head for me. “oh my god it’s All Might, All Might saw me being cool and Saving To Win and stuff, what’s he gonna say what do I do omg quick act natural.”

why I like it: QUICK HIDE YOUR FEELINGS!! WE CAN’T LET THE NEIGHBORS KNOW WE CARE. fjkdlsjklk

why I like it: this is his expression when he first sees Deku activate Blackwhip for the first time. it’s one of the few unguarded expressions of complete surprise that we’ve gotten from him and I love it thank you.

why I like it: classic asymmetrical HAH face. he truly has perfected this look. look at him, casually clinging to a pole for no reason other than to look dynamic. this boy truly cannot sit or stand or walk or do anything normally. he spent three months working his ass off to catch up to Deku and the others, and now that he finally has he’s filled with so much pent-up energy that he simply cannot hold it back anymore and he’s gotta climb a pole. he’s just gotta.

why I like it: because he is so fucking good at saving people now you guys, he’s like a whole-ass professional and shit, and yet it hasn’t changed who he is one single iota. he will save your life and he will SCREAM AT YOU WHILE DOING IT and you’ll sit there and be grateful goddammit.

why I like it: o noo he was caught unawares. All Might was all “I’m gonna have a dad moment and nobody can stop me” and he walked right up to him and put his hand on his head because he’s All Might and so what is he even gonna do about it. nothing, that’s what. you got played, Kacchan. outmaneuvered and outfoxed. all he can do is stand there and make that grumpy face he makes when he’s receiving unwanted affection (҂⌣̀_⌣́).

why I like it: more unwanted affection. now they’re even feeding him ffs. how could he let this happen. mm chicken.

why I like it: GREATEST ASYMETRICAL HAH?! FACE OF ALL TIME. out of all the people to befriend him against his will, Todoroki is by far the most confusing to him and it’s just so great.

why I like it: this is when Hawks is staring at him in chapter 244 because he fake-killed his mentor and stuff and he feels sorta guilty about it. but meanwhile Kacchan just thinks he’s trying to start some shit, and so he’s all “I WAS FASTER THAN YOU BACK THERE YOU KNOW” and Hawks is all “hahaha okay little buddy you just keep telling yourself that”, because as previously discussed Kacchan is too adorable to ever be intimidating.

why I like it: this is from 246 when he’s in the middle of arguing with Burnin’ and all of a sudden Endeavor calls to him and he’s just like o shit what’d I do.

why I like it: because Endeavor’s mentoring them and shit and he’s just casually sitting there eating his lunch like yeah. with his lil hamster cheeks lulz.

why I like it: the look that instantly became iconic. this panel cured me of the misconception that Bakugou “goes to bed at 8:30pm” Katsuki was a morning person. the truth is he loathes all times of the day equally.

why I like it: this one is a team effort because Deku’s faces are equally as good. I’m genuinely shocked that this family dinner with the Todorokis didn’t prematurely unlock Danger Sense. you can tell that he and Deku have a silent agreement to call a temporary truce on their rivalry for as long as they sit at this table as outsiders in this strange land. this is by far the most hazardous meal Bakugou has ever experienced, and yet the mapo tofu is too good to go to waste, so he’s just shoveling it down his throat trying to finish as much as possible before shit inevitably hits the fan.

why I like it: Kacchan is New Here so he doesn’t yet realize that if the Todorokis are spilling family secrets, there is always inevitably going to be someone listening in the shadows just outside the door.

why I like it: the battle with Ending was probably peak gremlin!Kacchan. like, we’ve had gremlin before and afterwards, but never quite to this same degree. Horikoshi really decided to push the limits of contorting this child’s face in the strangest ways.

why I like it: peak. gremlin.

why I like it: nothing to see here, just Kacchan quietly realizing after 252 chapters that he MIGHT have been just a BIT of a cartoonishly villainous asshole to Deku back at the beginning there ha ha ha oh god oh fuck.

why I like it: because he found the answer to What It Is That He Lacks, and he’s all cool and calm and infuriatingly secretive about it. it’s such a sudden and stark contrast to the gremlin faces he was making only moments earlier, and it makes this moment hit home that much more.

why I like it: because this is him being friends with Deku!! like for real though!! because he’s fucking around and insulting him and making weird faces and stuff, but it’s because in his mind That’s What Friends Do. they clown on each other and help each other train and shit. half an hour after this they’ll go down to the training gym and play Catch-A-Kacchan, and then he’ll quietly confess to All Might that he wants to atone. he may be a gremlin, but he’s a gremlin with layers goddammit.

why I like it: because this is right after TomurAFO shows up out of nowhere and scares the shit out of him and Deku and makes them see a terrifying death vision and stuff, and you can see how shaken up he is by it. he definitely understands how close they came to dying just then and he’s sobered the fuck up. this is the moment when it really sinks in that shit has gotten real. eight minutes from now he’ll move without thinking and save Deku’s life.

why I like it: hydro homies. nothing restores those electrolytes like good old Raquaius Sports Drink.

why I like it: because this panel was when it started to become clear that the real reason he grabbed this sports drink was to pretend like he was busy so he could act like he wasn’t interested in Deku’s training because god forbid the neighbors know that he actually cares.

why I like it: because the sideways glance!! and the fact that he doesn’t deny it!! in fact he does the opposite of denying it, and he basically starts pouring his heart out about how goddamn worried he actually is. he’s guilty and anxious and restless and this entire conversation is amazing.

why I like it: he looks so goddamn young here. when he finally stops scrunching up his face and putting on his usual tough guy act and for once allows his actual emotions to show on his face instead, the result is so damn striking. for once we got an entire conversation with no gremlin faces, because Horikoshi had to drop them completely in order to show just how serious he is here. which was incredibly effective btw.

why I like it: because he’s basically just fidgeting with the bottle now to avoid making eye contact with All Might because he just revealed a deep dark secret to him and he’s precariously vulnerable right now. that’s the body language of a kid who knows how badly he fucked up, and just wants to hear from someone else if it’s going to be okay, if he can still make it okay. he looks so small here.

why I like it: the worry lines under his eyes. the look of uncertainty and wanting to believe that what All Might says is true (“you’ll get a chance to talk eventually”). the hesitance to turn back and look at him, and the way he doesn’t dare until he finally gets that small bit of reassurance. All Might isn’t judging him. All Might understands him and understands where he’s coming from, and he’s giving him his blessing. he’s giving him a thumbs up and reassuring him that he sees the change in him and sees that he’s sincerely trying, and basically saying that he has faith that he and Deku will be able to work it out. and you can see that it means a lot.

why I like it: because this kid spent his entire internship with Jeanist doing nothing but bitching nonstop, and then later on when Jeanist went missing he was all tight-lipped about it because once again NOBODY CAN KNOW THAT WE CARE GODDAMMIT, and it was all very Classic Bakugou. but then Jeanist finally shows up again at Jakku, and we get this little moment of happy, smirky FUCK YEAH, I KNEW YOU WEREN’T DEAD YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE, and it’s just the best.

why I like it: HE’S SO UNABASHEDLY PROUD GOD BLESS HIM.

why I like it: because he nearly died and then he woke up here in the hospital two days later not knowing where anybody else is or whether they’re even still alive, and this, my friends. this is finally the moment. the moment where he was all FUCK IT, MAYBE WE CAN LET THE NEIGHBORS KNOW WE CARE AFTER ALL. character fucking development. you love to see it.

BONUS:

WHAT HAVE I BECOME, MY SWEETEST FRIEND. EVERYONE I KNOW GOES AWAY IN THE END.

happy birthday Katsuki. feel better sweetie. HORIKOSHI YOU BETTER TREAT HIM RIGHT I AM COUNTING ON YOU.

[holykillercake]

Emergency Light

ᴋᴏʙʏ x ᴍᴀʀɪɴᴇ!ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ

word count: 2.6k

summary: 

Female reader developed a crush on Koby since he stood up against Akainu in Marineford. Someday at a party at the marine´s, you get drunk, too drunk. Koby takes you to your room before a disaster happens. You two get stuck in the elevator while everyone is busy partying.

highlight:  You wondered if they were training kamikaze marines now.

warning: 1. ¨Do not press random buttons.¨ - LAW, Trafalgar; 2. Trafalgar Law is not part of this story, but his wise words are worth of quotation. 

notes: *knock knock* Hi, guys! After a terrible writing block, I finally finished @pure-kirarin​´s lovely lovely request, which I used as summary since it was really good! I really hope you like it! <3 A little disclaimer! At some point, the ¨too drunk¨ part vanished from my brain, so our reader is just... drunk, hahaha. 

𝕃𝕖𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕤, 𝕙𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕥𝕤, 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖!

¨Y/N-san!¨ 

You were wiping a sweat drop from your forehead when the pink-haired boy appeared beside you, offering an isotonic drink and a warm smile. 

You did your best to hide the tiny heart attack you had.

¨Koby-san!¨ you shouted, smiling awkwardly. ¨Oh... is it for me?¨

¨Of course! You have been working really hard these days.¨

¨Thanks.¨ you took the drink from his hands. The heat and condensation caused a layer of cold sweat to wrap the bottle. ¨I just don´t know why they are making us help prepare this party. They have a team for this, Koby-san! Besides, we´re Captains now.¨ you pouted the last bit. 

¨Yeah...¨ he scratched the back of his neck. ¨well, at least we get to spend some time together!¨

¨I know, I just-¨ you stopped talking as his words processed in your brain. 

You felt your blood vessels dilating on your cheeks, leaving a hot sensation on your face. 

Perhaps he was just being polite, or maybe you were making a big deal out of this, but you couldn´t help. You have been fond of him for a while now, and you couldn't stop that involuntary reaction of your body when he said such lovely things. 

Koby realized the words that came out of his mouth, and the scene that followed made even your spirit giggle. His eyes opened wide, and you could almost feel his throat running dry with all his stuttering.

 If that was a blushing competition, you would be down to the second place. 

¨W-We´ve been on separate missions for ten months, right? I m-mean... and it´s not dangerous or anything, and-¨ 

¨Yeah, you´re right, Koby-san.¨ a smitten smile blossomed on your lips, and you tried to hide it by sipping the refreshing drink. 

As stated by the boy, you had spent almost a year in different locations of the Grand Line, leading missions of your own. That was the kind of thing you had to do as promoted Captains.

You had no idea where Koby ended up going. These subjects could not be discussed over snail transponders, just for precaution. In fact, you barely spoke to him during this time. There were only a few nights when you would exchange coded messages. 

Since you became Captains, your tasks have kept you apart for much longer than before. You couldn't help but miss him and wonder how he must be doing during those times. 

You have already met thousands of Marines. Some even stronger and more agile than him, but no one had his willpower. You would put your hands on the fire for that. 

Whenever you felt unmotivated or helpless, the memory of the boy standing up against Sakazuki, putting his life on the line to honor his fallen comrades made your blood burn hotter. 

He did what no one else had the guts to do. 

Too blinded by the bloodshed, in the end, the number of casualties made it clear that accomplishing the task was no reason to celebrate.

When the sole of your shoes stained with blood and the blade of your sword sliced through anyone who didn´t wear the justice symbol on their back, you questioned if the Marines had finally lost their purpose. 

You should be civilized and do justice, but not at the expense of soldiers who had families to return to. If the target had already been eliminated, why were you still fighting? 

A chill ran down your spine when, for the first time, you looked up and faced the massacre. It was as if before, you could look at everything and, at the same time, see nothing. 

If Koby hadn´t stood up at that moment, you wouldn´t be here today. Maybe for leaving, maybe for dying. But his act of braveness and courage returned a bit of your hope. 

You wanted to see how far he could go, and hopefully, you would be by his side. 

Before, you used to watch him, along with his colleague Helmeppo, getting beat up and beat up by Garp and always put himself back on his feet. 

You wondered if they were training kamikaze marines now. 

From your room, you had a perfect view of the training circuit, so you could see the cycle repeating itself over and over again. Boys, seduced by the idea of absolute justice, strength, and power to fight bad guys, came to Marineford willing to prove their worth. They would fall a few times before the sparkle in their eyes started to fade. 

Eventually, they would fade too. 

Those boys, however, fell and fell, being punched to a pulp, then patched back together only to suffer on Garp´s hands again. Watching them became your late-night entertainment, and seeing their improvements and growth turned out to warm your heart. 

At some point, you were assigned to be their opponent, and from that moment on, your days became brighter. They would share the craziest stories and tell the funniest jokes. Or not so much tell jokes. They were naturally clumsy and fun. 

Although, if you could choose, you would prefer to spend more time with Koby. Nothing against Helmeppo, he was just too much sometimes. But apparently, they came in a two-for-one pack. 

                                                             ***

It has been only a few hours since the party started and you reached the jackpot. You had taken all your frustrations on alcohol and rice cakes, and it showed. 

Every ten seconds, the memory of what you wanted to do disappeared, and that was somehow hilarious, making you explode in laughter and cause commotions. So for every ten seconds during the first hours, one of the last remaining sober in the enclosure had tiny cardiac arrests. 

Everyone was drunk enough to have a good time without causing any trouble. But the detail worth mentioning was that your party had started a little earlier, under the statement that you needed a little incentive to help you through the night. 

It meant that your energetically loud phase was close to reaching its end, giving place for your sleepy and distracted persona. Your eyes felt heavier by the second, light dizziness fogging your brain, but it felt relaxing. 

¨You know Koby is a type of meat?¨ you said, resting your chin on the table and giggling to yourself.

¨Y/N-san, I-I don´t think that´s the name of it.¨ his face turned red as he shifted on the cushion, adjusting his posture. 

¨Ugh, you´re so nervous Koby, you should relax.¨ you sang the last syllable. ¨Look at Meppo, he´s relaxing.¨

Your lips bent in a goofy smile as you watched your comrades building an okaki tower on Helmeppo´s head. The blonde had passed out on the table a few minutes earlier, too exhausted and drunk. He looked so peaceful in his sleep that a yawn escaped your mouth, catching Koby´s attention. 

¨Y/N-san, you should go to bed already. Y-You look tired.¨ his voice trembled when he took sight of your sparkling but sleepy eyes, rosy face, and messy hair. 

¨Hmm, no... I´m still good.¨

Another yawn. 

¨Come, I can walk you to your room before you relax like Helmeppo.¨ 

Your brain was working in slow motion, so by the time you thought of answering him, your grip was already tight in his. A little tighter than necessary, but you were afraid your wobbly legs would cease, and honestly, he didn't object at all.

The air outside the salon made your nostrils hurt within every breath, not because it was freezing cold but because the alcohol made your body run hotter than usual. Your ears felt like they were clogged, but that was merely the tingling silence on the empty hall. 

When he guided you inside of the elevator and pressed the corresponding button to your floor, your gasp, which echoed through the narrow walls, made Koby jump back, scanning for any sign of danger. 

¨Oh my God, look at this, Koby!¨ 

He watched you walk closer to the panel, completely mesmerized. ¨Uh... what, Y/N-san?¨ 

¨Wow! They never did this before!¨ you shouted, falling on your knees and leaning in like a child on an ice cream shop showcase. 

The boy kept staring at you, who pressed the buttons in a row with shimmering eyes. What was in that saké?

¨They never did...?¨

¨Look!¨ you clicked some more. ¨When I press the buttons... they light up!¨

A moment of silence fell upon the two of you, and although Koby always felt comfortable in your presence, he wasn´t sure what to do now.  

You, on the other hand, didn´t seem to mind, too focused on your groundbreaking discovery. 

¨Y/N-san, they have always...¨

¨This is so cool!¨

¨Y/N-san... I don´t think you should...¨

¨What does this one do-¨

A loud shriek escaped your mouth when the shaking of the elevator took you off balance, making your butt meet the floor in a thump. The lights flashed a few times before everything in your sight was pitch black. 

You heard Koby call your name, asking if you were hurt, but all you could do was hold still, fearing for your life. The alcohol made the bouncing feel like a devastating earthquake. 

¨Y/N-san!¨ you felt light pats on your shoes. ¨Are you ok? I can´t see anything!¨ 

Koby crawled on the floor, using your foot as a way to locate you. 

¨Koby, stop moving.¨ you whispered, but he seemed not to hear, lost in his rumbles. ¨Koby, stop moving!. We´re going to fall.¨

¨Wh-no! Y/N-san, are you hurt?¨

¨No, I don´t think so.¨ you answered, head swirling and heart racing in your chest. 

¨Y/N-san, did you press the emergency button?¨ 

¨No!¨ you stopped for a second, failing to hold your drunken giggles for yourself. ¨But that´d be a great idea right now. I think I remember where it is!¨ 

You twisted your body towards the panel, ignoring Koby´s attempts to stop you, and started to touch the many buttons, searching for the emergency one. 

Click. 

Click. 

Click, click, click. 

¨It´s not worki-¨ you squealed when the elevator struck again, piercing sound of creaking metal cooling every disc in your spine.

¨Y/N-san, please stop pressing the buttons!¨ Koby cried. 

The feeling was too strange. You felt everything rocking slightly, no light was coming in, and the adrenaline made it difficult for you to calm down and adapt to the darkness. 

Your breathing had already become irregular and heavier when the emergency light turned on. It was dim and greenish but better than nothing. 

¨Oh, no.¨ he said.

¨No, no. Don´t say oh, no.¨ You shook your head. 

¨Y/N-san, that´s the emergency light.¨

¨Yeah, so...?¨

¨So the elevators are not a priority now.¨

¨And that´s bad...?¨

¨Well, yes, because the energy is being used somewhere else.¨

You stared at him for a few seconds. All of his words made total sense, and in a normal situation, you would be able to handle it without further complications. 

¨Koby, I don´t know if you´re getting somewhere...¨

¨Y/N-san, there was probably a problem with the generators, and they had to redirect the energy consumption.¨ you nodded, starting to connect some dots in your head. ¨I think they are sending everything to the kitchen beca-¨

¨Wait.¨ you said with a terrified expression painted all over your face. ¨We´re stuck?¨

He saw the panic grow in your eyes. 

¨Y-Yes. B-But it should be back soon, don´t worry. Someone will come.¨ 

You remained in silence for the first hour, mainly because you kept falling asleep.

Little by little, the effects of the alcohol on your body began to cease and your temperature to cool down. Added to that, the darker the night fell, the chillier it got. So at some point, you couldn´t sleep anymore because your bones wouldn´t stop shivering. 

Koby handed you his coat as soon as he took notice of your discomfort. 

¨No, you don´t have to-¨

¨Y/N-san, you´ll end up getting sick.¨ he spoke, leaning a bit forward so you could take the piece of clothing. 

¨Thanks.¨

A huge smile rose on your lips when the coat fell on your shoulders. It was incredibly warm and had his soothing laundry fresh smell. 

Maybe with a hint of meat from the party. 

It served you like a cape, so you pulled the collars closer to your body and curled up to retain the warmth. If you closed your eyes, you could almost feel like it was him. 

That granted you another nap. 

Still, after about twenty minutes, something woke you up. This time it was a sneeze from Koby, who leaned against the wall, hugging his legs close to his body. 

Guilt hit you right in the guts. 

You crawled towards him, gently poking his leg. 

¨Koby-san...¨

He raised his head and mumbled something you didn't understand. Maybe he asked if you were ok. 

¨I... I´m still a little cold... c-can I sit by your side?¨

¨Uh? Yes, of course.¨ he shifted on the same spot, only to return to the previous position. 

His voice was a little nasal and rasped, probably from the cold. You hoped he wouldn´t get a sore throat. 

The coat became a blanket that you used to cover both of your legs, although he made sure you had gotten the bottom end since it had more fabric.

¨Are you feeling better, Y/N-san?¨

¨I am, thank you.¨ you whispered.

¨Y-You can lay on my shoulder... if you want.¨

You smiled and did as he suggested, curling up closer to him. It took you very little to fall asleep once you rested your head on his shoulder. His body began to feel warmer, and he even asked if you wanted to hook your arm with his to maintain warmth. 

Using the last bit of boldness provided by the saké, you reached for his hand. You had this sensation, deep down, that the feelings you carried for him were reciprocated. But you could deal with this some other time. For now, you focused on calming down the fireworks inside of your chest. 

[EXTRA SCENE]

A roaring noise followed by a ray of light fished you out of whatever dreams you were having. You pulled the blanket up to cover your eyes and snuggled deeper into the warm body in front of you.

Nothing crossed his mind at that moment. All you wanted to do was get rid of the light and have a few more hours to sleep. However, a sound like a throat clearing caught your attention.

You blinked a few times, images of last night taking form in your memory. The last thing you remembered before blacking out was you leaning against Koby.

I must have slipped to the floor at some point. 

Your hands were wrapped in a turquoise fabric, and it didn't take long for you to realize that the fabric was wrapped around someone.

Koby's scarf.

Koby!

You ended up lying in front of each other, sharing his uniform. Your face a few centimeters from his chest.

After yawning a couple of times, you opened a distance to look at him. 

His face was wrinkled, brows furrowed, and lips turned into a pout. The round glasses were no longer on his head, and the bandana, like his hair, was frowzy. 

So adorable.

A louder throat clearing made you turn your head. The groggy smile on your lips disappeared instantly with the image of the elevator repairer, Garp, and dozens of other marines staring at the two of you.

[foryoumyheroes]

I love the Otaku todoroki and Bakugou hc's! Maybe part 2 where they meet the characters voice actor and they look EXACTLY like the character and the bois are like 😳😳😳 HAVE I BEGGED GOD ENOUGH FOR HIM TO TURN MY ANIME CRUSH REAL and maybe the voice actor asks them out on a date sksksk— lol love your writing! (you don't have to do this btw, just a suggestion! 💕)

My first thought was the webtoon True Beauty 😳😳 I don't know if you guys know it, but it’s a great story (and free to read online!) and the author is kinda infamous for looking exactly like her MC!! Though Iida’s VA, Kaito Ishikawa, 👀 👀 looks exactly like his character IMO!! 

A/N:

The headcanons in question are here, and since the character is already referred to as [Name], I’ll be referring to the voice actor as [V/A] only, but it’s still the reader 😊😊.

“Shitty Half-and-half.” 

“Bakugou,” Todoroki replied, turning fully to face his former classmate. Several years had passed since they both confronted each other over Todoroki’s [Name] acrylic charm, and even now, both Pro-Heroes deep into their careers, their love for the anime character never waned. 

The series had finished up during their last year at U.A., leaving both boys a mess while Aizawa could only wish that he was able to nurse his headache with half a bottle of ibuprofen. Todoroki mourned the fact that they were able to defeat the last arc’s antagonist at the cost of [Name]’s powers leading to their ultimate retirement and Bakugou raged from the ambiguous epilogue where [Name] was seen laying their head on the protagonist’s shoulder while looking out into the sunset.  

“Don’t play dumb with me, you damned trust fund kid,” Bakugou spat, pushing himself off the spot where he leaned against the wall and striding over to the taller male. He had filled out in the past several years, nothing but toned biceps and broad shoulders. “You’re thinking exactly what I’m thinking.” 

“What?” Todoroki asked innocently. His time with Uraraka had paid off, but the cutesy look would only let him get so far. Bakugou was eye-to-eye with his “eternal” rival. Todoroki had only gotten taller recently. Still slender and toned, he was nearly his father’s height and had already surpassed Natsuo. 

“Might Con.” Bakugou really had grown from the way he didn’t rage from Todoroki’s feigned ignorance. “You’re going to be there aren’t you?” 

Todoroki froze. 

The blond smirked at his expression. “I know for a damned fact that your manager scheduled your panel at the exact same time my panel is held —” 

“We’re hosting the panel together with Midoriya, Bakugou —” Todoroki tried to say.   

“At the exact same time as [Name]’s fucking seiyuu’s autograph session, huh?” 

At Bakugou’s words, both boys were at a standstill. 

Due to the popularity of the anime, the voice actors were going to have their schedules jam-packed the entire con with panels, interviews, and meet-and-greets, but due to scheduling conflicts, every voice actor was allowed only one autograph session at a time. Bakugou didn’t care about any of those other shitty extras. He only wanted to meet [Name]’s seiyuu. 

The voice actor was infamous for hiding their face during the anime’s run, only doing radio shows or paper interviews. They cited that since they were still a minor by the time the anime came out, they wanted to preserve their privacy, but now that they were of age, they were going to reveal their face at the con for the first time. 

But they couldn’t make it. Their entire Pro-Hero career was stabbing itself in the back. 

He held a hand out. 

“If one of us can’t see [Name]’s voice actor the other can’t.”

It was otaku solidarity.  

After a pause Todoroki reached out and shook it once. “Fine.” The two boys dropped their hands as fast as it came. 

Yeah. 

Not. 

Todoroki Shoto: 

Tries to go incognito, but he sucks at it. 

He’s wearing shades indoors to hide his heterochromia and his scar, a bucket hat to hide his half-and-half hair, and he’s wearing regular, but not so inconspicuous clothes. 

Once he gets to the front of the line, he nearly drops his gigantic load of [Name] merch. If it weren’t for the fact that he’s a Pro, he would’ve needed a wagon to carry the entire thing. 

His face immediately flushes. 

You’re wearing glasses and a large sweater while smiling and waving happily at the last fan that walked away. His mind is seeing every equation. You look exactly like the High School spin-off your mangaka made after the protagonist wished that everyone was able to live normal lives.   

He stutters out, “C-Cosplay...?” softly the moment he gets to your table. 

This dude is blushing so hard his face is as red as his hair. 

Were you a secret love child, perhaps? 

You brighten up and laugh. “Oh, wow — you have a lot of merch,” you laugh and he nearly swoons. “And oh, no! I just look like this normally.” 

He mentally thanks his mom for giving birth to him. 

You compliment him on his casual Idol!Shoto cosplay and he’s so embarrassed that he nearly lets go of the left side of his Quirk. 

“Yeah! You make such a handsome Shoto!” You use your [Name] voice to say, “I love you, Shoto-kun!” and he nearly dies right there. 

He uncharacteristically even puts his face into his hands ;; and just screams internally. 

You hold up your pen and look at him with such wide eyes and ;;; YOU’RE SO FUCKING CUTE!! 

None of the fanfictions have ever prepared him for this. 

[“So who should I put these out to?” 

He inhales once and quickly goes, “Todoroki, please. Written with the character for ‘a roaring fire.’ I have admired [Name] since their character introduction arc and felt a bond from [Name]’s tragic history and my own. I hated my father for the longest time and wanted to forage my own path similar to [Name] and they gave me strength —”] 

You fight to keep the largest grin off your face, but then the door busts open and in walks Ground Zero. The security are all scrambling to stop him, but he barrels through them like dominoes. 

[”HALF-AND-HALF!!” 

“Oh, Bakugou —” 

“I FUCKING KNEW THAT YOU WOULD BE HERE WHEN YOU DIDN’T SHOW UP TO YOUR OWN DAMNED PANEL!!” 

Bakugou takes him by the collar and his shades and hat falls and everyone’s immediately fangirl shrieking as Bakugou forcefully drags him away. 

“Wait, Bakugou — ! My dakimakura — !“ 

“Fuck that!”] 

After his panel, he’s smugly going through all of the merch you were able to autograph with Bakugou sulking in the corner because he managed to go and Bakugou didn’t and he nearly drops his figurine when he realizes what you wrote in the corner of the box. 

“You seem pretty cute, handsome stranger! ;) XXX-XXXX-XXXX” 

He discharges his Quirk and Bakugou could be heard shouting, “WHAT THE HELL, HALF-AND-HALF!” in the background. 

Bakugou Katsuki: 

He doesn’t even bother hiding the fact that he’s there. Everyone’s so stunned by the fact that the Ground Zero is just storming through the autograph session that the autograph line splits like the Red Sea and he goes right up to you. 

When he sees your face he just stops in his place and he does the face above for like five whole seconds. 

Did he die and go to heaven? 

WAS THAT NOT T H E [SURNAME] [NAME] SITTING IN FRONT OF HIM???

AND YOU LOOK SO SOFT!! Who gave you the motherfucking right to look so cute??? You look exactly like the panel in volume twenty-one, page 105 where [Name] were first seen wearing glasses. (Yes, ofc he remembers the exact page and volume. What was he, a fake fan?)

He didn’t have a thing for megane 😳😳😳 until [Name].

[“You...You fucking look exactly like [Name],” he manages to stutter out. 

You blink out of your stupor at the Ground Zero at your autograph session because your manager just elbows you at your side and you nod quickly like an idiot. 

“Y-Yeah!” You laugh nervously. “Hahaha, I guess that’s why they chose me to be the voice actor, you know because the voice matches the face — or-or is it the face matches the voice??” The two of you have matching red faces. “I-I even have a Quirk like their’s!” You hold up your hand and activate your Quirk slightly and he goes still.] 

H-His wifu/husbando... in the flesh... 

All those years of reading metas and watching analysis videos and calculating the compatibility of your Quirks are coming into fuCKING FRUITION!! 

And he just grabs your hand out of nowhere, running on pure instinct, wrapping his hand around yours in a vice grip like a claw game and the both of you freeze. 

”S-So what would you like me to sign??” you say quickly because he’s holding up the line, but everyone else is watching his go down like a soap opera. 

He asks you to sign the manga. The first volume, the volume where you’re introduced, and the last volume. 

[“They fucking did [Name] dirty in the series finale,” he says while you sign the manga for him. “They don’t belong with the pissy protagonist.” 

“Yeah?” you ask, looking up at him. You gesture for him to lean closer and he does while you whisper in his ear. “Between you and me I don’t ship them either.” You lean back in your chair. “I don’t think the mangaka developed their relationship enough for me to root for them. Personally, I think that that they should just settle down with someone who’s going to make them happy and protect them — “ 

“I can do that.” 

“What,” you blurt out. 

“What,” he replies.] 

He’s in such a daze that when Deku and Shoto barge into the autograph signing and drag him away he doesn’t even fight back. 

HE WANTED SENPAI TO NOTICE HIM BUT NOT LIKE THIS!! 

Even through his panel that he nearly missed btw he’s so confused. Equations are spinning around his head. 

When he finally has free time and looks at the manga you signed, it read, “Ground Zero, you’re my favorite Hero! Glad you liked the anime! Wanna talk about it some more? XXX-XXXX-XXXX” 

[pinapultra]

Hi my first ask to you so let me just say take your time to do it and i hope you can answer(is an ask i sent to Nysh and he mention you were best for this particular character well the ask is the same in the link just what do you think)

(here’s the ask that @the-nysh answered)

heheh I think I'm the best here for this particular character, yeah

so! first off about his buffs in the manga vs. the webcomic:

going from 11 trillion to 54 trillion is hilarious. 11 trillion was already like an inconceivable number, 54 trillion is just. that's almost 7000 of him for every 1 person on earth. even without merging he's unkillable to like 98% of the cast with those numbers--they'd succumb to exhaustion long before finishing them all. I don't know why ONE decided to boost his numbers so much but I love it! more power for my horrendous little mans!!

and he certainly showed off that power--he did excellent in the manga! he may not have gotten any kills like Fuhrer Ugly, but he was an unending nightmare on the battlefield. it was a joy to watch him be such a colossal problem.

hehe

for Multi-Cell Sperm, changing him to Golden Sperm makes sense to me. when you really look at it, whenever BS bulks up it's visually pretty much what Multi-Cell was, except he had normal proportions & limbs. so he was kinda redundant. and same with the name--any BS that has more than 1 cell in him is multi-celled. so.

and I'm glad that the 1st merge had much more of a role in the manga instead of getting instantly punked. as funny & on-brand as that is for this series, it hurt my heart to see it happen, haha. plus having that not happen added to how hopeless the surface fight seems for the heroes--they got no breaks with the cadres at all. AND it really ramped up how much of a threat Platinum Sperm would be when Golden Sperm had already performed so well. my bro never even lost, and then there he is merging into an even more powerful form! can you imagine how the heroes felt?

I have to admit that I am kinda sad that GS isn't the "true form" anymore, though. I love PS too BUT GS...his design with the humongous muscles & tiny head has such a charm to it. he manages to look both hysterical & extremely cool at the same time. truly a perfect being.

I still lose my mind over how cool he looks in this panel!!

but as for Platinum Sperm! he performed better than webcomic GS did. GS honestly didn't do very much. his passing through moment was top tier, but Tatsumaki was still able to block it. and he resisted her trying to break his neck, but she was severely weakened so it's unfortunately hard to give him a lot of points for that one. he did give Garou a fight though! we uh, didn't get to see it, but Garou came out of it awakened, which means GS had to have had the upper hand at first. he doesn't evolve if he's already winning.

but otherwise all he did was stand there with the last 100 BS cells & be funny. his biggest feat in the end was winning our hearts & leaving such an impression despite accomplishing so little.

I wish this line could've made it in somehow, it absolutely kills me. it's just such an absurd thing to say, especially so calmly, hahaha

Platinum Sperm on the other hand instantly took out several heroes using only his antenna (with Zombieman getting demolished by it) and then another one by completely destroying Flashy Flash at his own game. and showed off a cool defensive move with a funny name

unfortunately he didn't end up being the one to awaken Garou, though. but it was still a very impressive showing as the two of them zipped around at a speed that I, someone who knows nothing about physics, can only describe as "very, very fast". and his death was better than webcomic GS's was. having his own move & line used on him was perfect.

I do feel that his impact was lessened a lot by Evil Ocean Water & Sage Centipede--he's no longer the "final boss" before Garou. so webcomic GS has that over him. but overall I think the 2nd merge definitely got a buff in the manga and I really enjoyed it.

as for the redraw of Atomic Samurai vs. Black Sperm: I loved it!! it improved it in every way, I think. at first I was bummed about Focused Atomic Slash getting ethered but in hindsight I understand why it was. it was too broken. it'd have made the surface fight too easy if AS could disintegrate groups of cells like that and whittle BS's numbers down so fast.

and man, I gotta talk about the art--it was tuned up so much! every panel that got changed made both AS & BS look cooler & more impressive, and more accurately showed just how many cells there were.

like look at how much more dynamic the 2nd one is! and the sheer number of the boys!

and the whole Atomic Slash sequence before they surround him is insane. I friggin' love this redraw. BS is definitely a beast! especially in this version where he stomps AS within an inch of his life with no real pushback, haha.

hopes & prayers that ONE hasn't decided to hurt me personally by having him not survive in the manga

[dreamersleeps]

Helloo! I really liked your last post on Endeavor being Ra and all of your posts about myths. It reminded me of something someone told me once. They said that myths are intriguing since they teach us lessons. The gods act no different than us. They make mistakes and these things are told through stories. One of the things they told me was how underworld myths usually mean to accept the past. Your post makes think that it represents Endeavor accepting the past and then being born again.

Hello hello, I am really happy to know that you really liked the Endeavor and Ra post, including my other ones! Thank you for sending in your comments, they’re very interesting. Before anything else, I’d like to apologize for responding so late. I took some extra time to think about how I wanted to reply to your comments. This post ended up becoming super long as well (mostly because of the images). 

As you state, I love reading through myths and stories because the majority of them contain lessons for us. You are right when you state that the gods act no different than us, and because of that they make mistakes. Although the numbers who worship and take part in some of these polytheistic religions have greatly diminished over the course of history, in the present time we like to explore these stories and continue to be influenced by them. It is because of their human mistakes that sometimes we even relate to these gods and goddesses. These stories capture our imagination and I’m sure plenty of us have once had daydreams of being a demigod or another mythical figure/creature. 

I do think that the High End vs Endeavor fight was a pivotal moment where Endeavor confronts himself, begins to face the past, and is thus “born again.” The depiction of Hawks and Endeavor’s quirks combined together, of flaming wings had a phoenix like imagery to it. 

Although Endeavor is “born again” it of course does not mean that he is free from all the horrible things he did to his family. It does not mean a new, fresh start. I think that him being “born again” here represents symbolically that he has made an internal change of mind, accepting a different perspective (although to what extent is up for debate). Phoenixes do not d/ie and resurrect once. Similar to how the sun rises and sets everyday, the phoenix lives a cyclical life of d/eath and rebirth. 

I did not know that underworld myths can be tied with accepting the past. If that is true than it definitely does relate back to some of the things I was talking about in my Ra post. So yes, the High End vs Endeavor fight was a very important moment for Endeavor. In a sense, he is “born again” but not with the fresh start it suggests. If he has begun to accept the past what does this mean and how might the next step look like? 

As readers, we all bring very different past experiences and beliefs to the table, and that’s the thing about life. We all think differently. The majority of people have valid reasons as to why they think they do, however I am very much against all the attacking, insulting and discourse that have emerged over Endeavor’s character. 

Personally, on the topic of redemption: I believe that Endeavor will most likely not be redeemed. This is something that he too also believes. However at the same time while we may have opinions, the question of redemption is not for us to really answer. We are mere observers. 

I’ve wanted to do a close read of a certain group of chapters during the Internship Arc for a while. Of course if you don’t agree with what I have to say here or are not interested, than that’s fine. This “analysis” is not written in defense of Endeavor but to take a closer look at how Horikoshi’s been developing and writing him. If anything, please take any excitement you may detect in my writing as my love for “analyzing” and sharing my thoughts.

Chapters 249 through 252 are important chapters after the High End vs Endeavor fight that delve further in to his thoughts and his family’s thoughts as well. You can do a close reading of many of the pages in these chapters but I will only focus on some of Endeavor’s own inner thoughts. 

Unfortunately, since I can not read the raw Japanese text, I’m building everything on top of the “official” English translations so please keep that in mind. If the nuances in the translations are off or lost in translation, then my interpretations may be “wrong.” (Btw, I’m only like 95% sure that the panels I’m using below are all from the official English translation). 

Let’s begin. The two panels below are from Chapter 249 titled “The Hellish Todoroki Family.”

“I’m trying to make amends... going forward.” The “going forward’ definitely suggests that there was some sort of turning point either during the High End fight or shortly after. The definition of amends in the dictionary is:

reparation for compensation for a loss, damage, or injury of any kind

“It might be too late... but I fall asleep every night thinking about... what I can do for my family.” Endeavor expresses that he falls asleep every night thinking about what he can do for his family. We can only take him for his word but keep in mind that these are his inner thoughts. He isn’t talking to anyone but to himself. I acknowledges that it may be too late for him to do anything, all the damage he’s caused. Despite realizing that there’s a good chance that there’s nothing he can do to amend anything, he still thinks about it.

“Lately, it’s been the same dream. The wife and kids, looking happy... at the dinner table. But I’m... never there with them.” Here he states that he’s been dreaming the same dream. This means that it’s been heavy on his mind. In his dream, his family is happy and he is not there with them. Perhaps he believes that their happiness can only become a reality if he is taken out of the picture. 

Now let’s jump to Chapter 252, titled “The Unforgiven.” These panels occur after Natsuo is kidnapped by Ending, and he is rescued by the teamwork of Bakugo, Midoriya and Shouto after Endeavor hesitates and fails to do so. 

Endeavor had his flames on while they’re after Ending but he gets rid of them right before or when he catches Natsuo and Bakugo. So Endeavor usually has his flames on and that’s how we saw him depicted until around the High End fight and onwards, where we see him more without his flames. 

(This has nothing to do with the analysis but this has to be one of my favorite interactions between Endeavor and Bakugo. He does not hesitate to make comments and remarks... hahaha, gets me every time.) 

“Natsuo. Believe it or not... I was never trying to neglect any of you.” Well first of all, Endeavor saying that he was never trying to neglect any of his children is a big slap in the face and to be honest I’m appalled that he states that. Ultimately, it may be absolutely one hundred percent true that he means what he states, however whatever his thoughts may have been, Endeavor neglected them. Period.

Let’s look at Endeavor’s body language. His eyes are cast towards the ground as he can not meet Natsuo’s eyes when he gives his “confession” and it looks like his upper body is bowing towards Natsuo. 

Just in general based on what I’ve read and from my own experiences, bowing is practiced for the purposes of respect, courtesy or apology. Typically it is the younger person who bows to the older person or someone from a “lower” position bowing to someone from a “higher” position. Part of Natsuo’s expression of surprise in the left most panel probably has to do with both the words that are coming out of his father’s mouth and the fact that Endeavor is bowing his head down towards him. 

“But... all I could do was blame others and dodge responsibility. WIth Toya too... I might as well have killed him myself!” Here he admits that for a while he’d place the blame on others and dodge responsibility, including with what happaned to Touya. He admits that he may as well have killed Touya himself. Personally when I first was reading this, it was actually very interesting to see Endeavor confess these things. Isn’t it kind of surprising to see that he’s admitting to all this instead of continuing to be a character who ignores and refuses to recognize faults and consequences of his actions? Or is it just me. 

Natsuo responds with “Didn’t neglect us...? So what...? Toya has always told me everything. It’ll be a cold day in hell... before I forgive you. Cuz I’m not as caring as Shouto.” Natsuo states that “it’ll be a cold day in hell” before he forgives Endeavor. A “cold day in hell” is an idiom meaning: the time of occurrence of an event that will never happen. It looks like he’s kind of smiling probably at how absurd his father’s confession sounds and his eyes are tearing up, a reaction to his sudden confession. He brings up Touya and the estranged state that their family had been living since for possibly as long as he could remember. 

“Even so... Even so... you keep showing up for Fuyumi right? And for your mom’s sake?” Here Endeavor’s addressing Natsuo’s statement claiming that he’s “not as caring as Shouto.” Forgiveness is one of those things we are told that we need to do at some point and if we don’t, that it says something about our character. The one who forgives is the one who has had wrong done to and it takes a lot for someone to give forgiveness after all that has been done. So here, Natsuo says that he can not forgive Endeavor because he is not as caring as Shouto but I feel like there’s also a part of Natsuo that feels like he could be a bad person if he can not forgive. 

Endeavor’s response is to tell him that despite what Natsuo thinks of himself, the fact that Natsuo continues to show up and try to do things that he doesn’t want to do because he cares about Fuyumi and his mother speaks otherwise. Notice the faded background in this panel as well. Btw, here we can see that Endeavor is indeed kneeling in front of Natsuo. They both are sitting on the ground, together, close to eye level but not quite. 

“Your sister loves the idea of being a big happy family... because... that’s exactly what I ruined. She wants that back... she’s so eager to fix everything. And that’s why YOU’RE trying at all. Because you care about how she feels right...?” Each of the Todorokis have different feelings and perspectives about Endeavor. For example, Fuyumi wants to be a “big happy family” which Endeavor acknowledges and claims responsibility for ruining. Even though Natsuo may not want what Fuyumi hopes for, he still comes to visit home despite if Endeavor is there because he cares about his sister. 

“Because you ARE caring. So...” Endeavor states that Natsuo is a caring person. He’s been watching what Natsuo will do for Fuyumi and his mother because of how much he cares about them. Another thing that stands out to me in the English translation is that Endeavor says, “Because you are caring” not just “You are caring.”

Shout out to the guy in the car (o_o)

“You’re getting yourself to be able to forgive him. Because you’re so caring.” In response to Endeavor’s counter that, no Natsuo IS caring, Natsuo responds to this by thinking back to Midoriya’s earlier conversation with Shouto when they were cleaning up the dishes after dinner. Midoriya is someone who does not know about the Todoroki family situation as much as we may but he knows Shouto: his classmate and friend. However, we see that Natsuo overheard those words and I think it made him feel like he wasn’t a good person because he feels like he does not want to or can forgive.

We get a closer angle and view of Natsuo and Endeavor sitting on the ground. Again, the fact that Endeavor is kneeling may be why the guy in the car has the expression they have. So I kind of went looking around to see what the way Endeavor is sitting is called and I think the closest would be the seiza pose. 

Seiza, is the formal way of sitting down based on ancient Japanese standards. In Japanese, Seiza is very aptly translates to “sitting with a correct posture.” In a historical context, the correct posture is defined to have neatly-folded legs and an erect spine. One’s feet must be neatly tucked in place, underneath the body. 

The Japanese consider Seiza with only the highest of regards, as it represents two important values in Japanese culture: courtesy and apology. They believe that Seiza is an essential tool to channel those specific values. 

Another important representation that Seiza upholds in Japanese culture is that it serves as a symbol of apology. Someone who wishes to ask for an apology may place his or her hands in front, with the head lowered down. This form of apology is referred to as “dogeza.” This serves as a position of submission, having one accept his or her mistakes (yabai). 

The picture below is depicting someone in the seiza pose, apologizing. 

This ties in to how Endeavor and the Todorokis live more “traditionally” compared to other characters. We’ve seen the traditional Todoroki house and Shouto’s dorm room at UA as well. Earlier, we saw Endeavor with his head bowed towards Natsuo and here he is no longer bowing but he is still in the seiza pose: a symbol of courtesy and apology. It’s a physical sign of sincerity and humility. 

This is how Endeavor is apologizing, even if it is not as direct as some of us would like it to be. And Endeavor tells Natsuo: 

“You don’t have to forgive me.” Endeavor tells Natsuo that he has no obligation to forgive him, even when he is his father. What a way to say it though. “Because you ARE caring. So, you don’t have to forgive me.” It was kind of confusing for me when I first read this chapter. Currently, the only way I can read this is that (1) Endeavor realizes to a certain extent of the hurt and pain that he caused his family and (2) it is because of what Natsuo experienced as a Todoroki and what happened to his brothers, sister and mother that he can not bring himself to forgive his father. He hurts for his family because he cares about them. “You don’t have to forgive me.” 

We get three panels with Shouto, Bakugo and Midoriya listening in on to this conversation. Notice the white, empty backgrounds in all four panels. Usually this is done to highlight a moment that has gravity and weight. This is them processing what has just been said. The bustling city highway and life fades away and we are left with this moment where time feels like its paused. 

Then Endeavor speaks again: “I’m not looking for forgiveness. Just atonement.” We see Endeavor’s left eye, the side of the face that has been scarred after the High End fight. His right eye, the part of his face that has remained unchanged is hidden behind the speech bubble with the words, “Just atonement.” 

Seeing as how Horikoshi likes to intentionally place speech bubbles to hint at something from time to time, I’m wondering what this particular placement might mean. I will touch on this later again, but Endeavor has a habit of hiding and standing off to the side when it comes to his family and past. Additionally, this is the first time we’re looking at Endeavor’s face from the front and not from the side during this conversation with Natsuo (excluding the panel from the first page from this chapter when he’s holding Natuso and Bakugo before the conversation begins). 

What is atonement? According to the first definition that comes up on Google: 

reparation for a wrong or injury

In general religious contexts, it is: 

reparation or expiation for sin 

In Christian theology, it is: 

the reconciliation of God and humankind through Jesus Christ

So in religious contexts: to receive forgiveness there must be a sacrifice which “atones” for the sin (tastethehoney).

Basically, what I’m trying to point out with the latter two definitions is that this word is often used in religious contexts. I’m assuming that Endeavor is the one referred to as the “The Unforgiven” in the title of this chapter and I think that it’s very interesting that Endeavor’s fire quirk is called “hellflame,” which I’m pretty sure that I can safely say is in reference to the Judeo-Christian/Western concept of hell. 

(Forgive my choice of using a simplified statement here but for the purposes of getting a point across...) They say that those who are not forgiven burn in hell.

“Wow. You got a real way with words... all of a sudden! I know how happy it makes sis, having us all together! But... when I see your face... Those memories come rushing back.” Natsuo’s reply comes from Endeavor’s sudden display of apologizing. And as Natsuo correctly points out, they’re still just words. Words do not mean anything unless actions come with them. He mentions how hard it is for him because the “memories come rushing back.” Even though the life they live now is different from the past, the past keeps coming back. 

“Why do I gotta be the one to come around? Atonement? How’re YOU gonna make that happen?” Again, when someone apologizes or is looking for forgiveness, the person who was wronged or hurt has to come to a certain place to forgive. As we’ve already established, Endeavor is not looking to be forgiven. So this could be Natsuo’s reply to Endeavor’s claims that he wants to change and be better, because it still kind of requires the other party to “come around” as well. Here Natsuo also asks about atonement. Endeavor can not turn back time and do things differently, what’s done has been done. So, how can Endeavor atone, and what will it look like? 

Let’s skip a couple pages to when Endeavor and Natsuo arrive home. 

“I’ve let you shoulder all of that. . . and I stood by while you worked hard. But it’s okay now.” This is referring to how Fuyumi has been planning on welcoming her mother back home. Endeavor states that he’s been standing off to the side, perhaps there is a note of apology as he talks about how Fuyumi’s been working hard by herself. Then he states, that “it’s all okay now.” 

“It’s always the same dream. My whole family’s there, but not me.” So, Endeavor’s thinking back to his dreams of his family’s happiness. He believes that they can only be happy if he’s not there. 

“Because I’m building a new house for you all. One that makes sense for your commutes. And one where you can give your mother a warm welcome back.” He states that he’s building them a new house. One where they can welcome their mother back. This is Endeavor’s idea of what “atonement” might begin to look like 

“If I really care how they feel...” He wants to respect their feelings, and not do something because HE wants to. 

“I’ll remain here.” It seems that Endeavor believes that one way he can “atone” for his family is to remove himself physically from their lives. 

Through this post, am I claiming that Endeavor will be redeemed? No. However, let’s look at what redemption means. According to the first two definitions that comes up on Google, it is: 

the action of saving or being saved from sin, error or evil

or

the action of regaining or gaining possession of something in exchange for payment or clearing a debt. 

There really is not a way Endeavor can “pay the debt” for all the hurt and pain he’s caused. 

So that was a lot but I’m going to point out some things here. Yes, Endeavor is in a position where he is acknowledging the past, and he seems to have begun taking more responsibility for it. He states that he is not looking for forgiveness and is only looking for atonement. However, similar to how he neglected his family because he was running away from the blame and did not want to accept the responsibility due to his actions, he is still in a way running away from it. His idea of “atoning” includes removing himself physically from his family’s lives, partially because he wants to be considerate of his family’s feelings and partially because he believes that they can only be happy if he’s not there. He could be right, but I disagree. 

As many others have stated before, it seems that part of the answer to atonement lies with Todoroki Touya. As I suggest in the Ra post, there were two outcomes of the High End vs Endeavor fight: 1) Endeavor, the public hero establishing himself as the Number One Hero and 2) Todoroki Enji as a father beginning to accept the past and its responsibilities (again, although to what extent is debatable). 

The fight concludes with Endeavor’s first official meeting with his son, Touya as Dabi. To accept and address the past and its responsibilities, Endeavor’s been taking a passive approach to “atone” partly because he’s kind of treating the past as only the past. 

In Chapter 290, titled “Dabi’s Dance,” where we get the Touya reveal, Dabi finally is able to call Endeavor out: "You were finally number one! It’s all you ever wanted! But it must’ve weighted on you, right?! Or was all the praise and admiration like chicken soup for your soul?! When at long last, you could stare your kids in the eye... didja finally start to feel the warm and fuzzy bonds of family?! You must’ve thought, ‘As long as I face the future, I can be better!’ I can tell you’re at a loss for words, so here’s the answer!” 

Being Touya, Dabi’s existence brings the past right back to the present. Endeavor can not keep responding in a passive way, dodging the past even if it weighs heavy on his mind and heart. 

I suppose this is where the real test of atonement begins. 

[meimi-haneoka]

About chapter 44 of Clear Card (the last one for a while)

Gif of the month:

After my post with the differences between the Japanese and English versions of Chapter 44, here I come with my usual commentary! Just sorry for the big delay...This one is gonna be the last one for a while, at least until beginning of August....wondering why? Because as I exposed in my previous post, my interpretation was confirmed: on the next issue of Nakayoshi they’re going to publish a short story (without a full chapter), and Chapter 45 will only be published in the September issue of Nakayoshi, out on beginning of August! So the digital release on the Clamp-fans website is set for August 1st.

I know. It’s gonna be a lot to wait out, after such a....peculiar chapter.

And under the cut I’ll tell you about it!

A shady Yukito

This is the first time ever that we see Yukito being this serious, this shady, this “opaque”. We’ve always seen him like a naive and happy-go-lucky character, but his personality had a slight development already in the Sakura Card Arc, with his realization of what he really is and what matters in his life right now.  Now we see him acting on those feelings, feelings that made him grow an increasing need to do something for the people he loves. We have seen him wondering what he COULD DO, concretely do to help those people....and now we know. Sakura noticed the very moment it happened: Yukito called forth a spell, which turned into night time a limited area around his neighbourhood. They’re all confused, Sakura of course, but Kero and Suppi most of all, so much that they immediately turn into their real forms and stand in a protective way in front of Sakura. I’d just like to pause for a moment in front of this scene, and take in the loyalty, devotion those two have for Sakura (and she isn’t even the master of one of them!). They knew there was something wrong with that moon in the sky, and they were ready to jump at Yukito’s throat if it turned out he was doing something malicious. Sakura is so important to them that they would probably trust no one when it comes to her safety. Back to the chapter, Yukito calmly says he’s available to explain everything to Sakura, and Nakuru helps them getting a little privacy, while explaining what’s going on to the two guardians, who have gone back to their plushie forms.

Yukito’s agency

And so (personally I was quite amazed by this) we find out that Yukito has been thinking about the possibility of doing something for the people he loves, the only people he has a strong connection to (since he’s got no parents as he’s not even a human being), ever since the end of Sakura Card Arc. He spoke to Kaho about the powers of the Tsukimine Shrine, and got info on how to obtain them. And all of this fits so naturally (because of course it makes sense that Yukito would go say goodbye to Eriol and Kaho on his own, why not, it’s totally plausible) into the old plot that I can’t help but silently clap my hands at CLAMP for including this in the creases of the old established canon without feeling like a stretch. As I said in my previous post, Kaho didn’t seem very keen on answering his question, but in the end she did. And now Yukito thought it was the right time to put to good use what he learned that day. When we saw him going to the Tsukimine Shrine with Nakuru some chapters ago, he went there to sign a contract with the Shrine itself. Now Yukito is invested with divine moon powers, straight from the divinity of the shrine, and he’ll be able to share the consciousness when he turns into Yue, as well as deciding when he’s turning into Yue.

Sakura’s face, throughout the story, seems to lose color. Yes, we can’t see her complexion, and yet the more Yukito tells, the more she grows worried. I’ll point it out now, but save for one small panel (and at a distance), Sakura won’t smile even once in this chapter. No, not even once. Even when, in theory, one would expect her to, because she gained a magical ally. And the reason is obvious: she’s not stupid. She knows, somehow, that when you make a contract, even of a magical nature, you’re going to give something in return. And this is exactly what makes her so unsettled. The fact that Yukito won’t say what he gave in return makes it all the worse. (Jfc I’m so, so worried about this). Another thing that I certainly have to talk about is the depiction of how close Sakura and Yukito are, in this chapter. There’s lots of physical contact, but not in a romantic way of course, there’s a lot of emotional tension going on, Sakura cares deeply for Yukito and Yukito’s behavior is halfway between a devoted brother and a knight who swore his life to protect the people he cares about. I have to be honest, the first 5 seconds of seeing them holding hands like that almost made me jealous, but then I understood why: the intensity of their relationship could almost be mistaken for something more, some kind of romantic vibe. But I realized immediately that nothing was out of place here, and CLAMP were able to portray their relationship in a very direct and convincing manner: they just love eachother like family so much. The “I’m gonna tell my brother” thing made me smile, while at the same time feeling Sakura’s frustration for not being able to “scold” Yukito like she wanted to (and like she did with Syaoran, but see, there lies the difference of the feelings for her: Sakura knows that her brother is the person who’s got the strongest bond to Yukito, and so she relays on Touya to knock some sense into him, while she is the one who gets more affected by Syaoran’s attempts to suicide to protect her, so she’s the one getting “angry” at him). The only thing that bothered me a little is that the “pinky promise” was kind of a SyaoSaku thing, since in the old manga/anime it was such a recurring sweet moment between those two. And nothing, there goes the “exclusivity” of the pinky promise for those two. XD At this point I expect something even more emotional for SyaoSaku, CLAMP!

A new Clear Card

The pinky promise triggers an unexpected event: the birth of a new Clear Card. It must mean that to Sakura, that promise meant so so much. In fact, she hopes that this new card will be able to help Yukito, somehow.

And punctual as always, Kaito detects what just happened. The card, and Yukito’s new powers too. He comments on Sakura having so many allies, while he’s all alone in his mission. Momo’s words, “Do you really think you’re all alone?”, express all the pain and sadness of the white book guardian for the current situation, a situation in which she would probably want to scream at him but she just can’t, and yet Kaito’s answer is like a knife in the flesh: “Always been and always will be”. And, as if on cue, Akiho appears right in that moment, wanting to help Kaito with the dinner. Once again, CLAMP skillfully try to tell us something without using direct words, but rather a “direction choice”: Kaito thinks he’s alone, but he doesn’t realize that not only Momo, but *especially* Akiho too is with him. There’s someone who constantly thinks about him, wants to do nice things for him, someone who’s got feelings for him.....and so we, as readers, can feel even more the absurdity of his blind statement “I’m alone”. The way the chapter ends, with Akiho stating (to be honest I am just a bit confused on how to interpret what she says, as I said in my last post) that she keeps seeing Alice in her dreams every night, and that she keeps getting new powers, with her wand and cards, is kinda reminding us that we’re getting nearer and nearer to the moment in which everything will be revealed, especially with that seconds hand on the watch starting to move again. So that’s it, for now! At the end of this month we’ll get a special short chapter, for which I’m not sure I’ll do the recap & comments post (depending on the relevance of the short story itself), and then we’ll get a break. It’s gonna be long, but eventually the story will be back! Let’s hope during these months there will be some nice announcement, hahaha (and not like the sudden drop of Happiness Memories, which will shut down on June 30th, have you heard???).

Waiting for your comments as usual, of course!

[thegreatescape]

SHARE THE LOVE CONVENTION

Here’s what happened at the Share The Love Con in Milan! :) [Sorry for my terrible English lol]

At the con I was in the front row with my friends. It was amazing but at the same time I felt a little bit observed lol Pietro was the first one who greeted me and then Nicholas recognized me ;; 

After the panel, my friend and I decided to take a picture with Federico because he was too beautiful with that blue sweater and when we went to take the picture he gave us a tight hug that I will remember forever. I don't know why but I was more nervous than the previous times... maybe because he was even more beautiful than usual lol 

Then we queued for the Fede + Rocco duo and I don’t know where I found the courage but I showed them a photo in which two people were kissing a girl on the cheek and this happened sdifhoisadpo 

Damn Fede has really soft lips, I cry just thinking about it. I left the room shaking like a leaf lol Then we went to the autographs of Nicholas, Greta and Beatrice. Greta and Bea were a wonderful surprise. They are both so kind and sweet. When Greta saw my drawing she gave me a hug and said ‘thank you’ a hundred of times. She was sooo cute! ;; 

Even Beatrice thanked me so much and complimented me and said “You drew me so hot!” And I was like "Well, you are" haha ​​

Then I went to Nicholas and this happened:

Nicholas: Hi! I'm a big fan of yours!

And I smiled at him sooo embarrassed.

Nicholas: I don't know how to thank you! I’m very tired after a drawing, you draw 10 drawings every day! You're very good.

Then Greta arrived at his table and said: Did you see my beautiful drawing with the pink background?

And he was like: Mine is gray! :(

Me: I made the backgrounds based on the shirt you had in the photos and you always have a black shirt.

Nicholas: I have to do a photoshoot then haha

Nicholas then asked me to show some of my drawings to Bea and when I showed her my Instagram profile she remembered those I had done for her and Greta added: Oh my God you made me the drawing of me and Nini kissing? It's beautiful! ; _;

This is Nicholas’ autograph. He drew me Luchino eating pizza’s crusts LOL

Then we went to the autographs of Pietro, Fede and Rocco and I have to say that this was one of the most beautiful moments of the Convention. When Pietro saw me he greeted me with an "Hello darling, how are you?" And before I answered he said: "Did you bring me something?" And when I gave him the drawing he said: “Oh my God, it's awesome! This is a new one!”

Me: “Well, yes, I couldn't post it before, it had to be a surprise!”

Pietro: “Can I keep it? ;)”

Me: “Sure it's for you! Also, sorry if I tag you on so many drawings.”

Pietro: “It makes me so happy! You drew the futuristic black and white one, the one where I’m in Venice, the one with the flag you gave me last time and ... this, right? (he remembered all of them ; ___;) And then he added: “But you drew Federico more :( AHAHAH”

Then I went to Fede and he said: “I know that yesterday was your birthday so… HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” And he sent me a kiss. I died. Then I gave him the drawing and he thanked me and he looked at me with a pleased smile saying: “What can I write here ..?” And he wrote me this beautiful autograph that I’ve to frame. 

Then, without saying anything, he got up and hugged me and it was a beautiful moment because I didn't want to let him go. Maybe that was the best hug- not only because it lasted longer but because I could tell him how grateful I was for everything.

Then I went to Rocco and he greeted me with a big smile saying: “Hello Giulia, how are you ?!” And I was actually dying inside so I immediately gave him the drawing and he said something like: “Wtf is this a drawing? Oh my God it’s amazing thank you so much” and he showed it to Fede.

Then in the afternoon there were other panels but for those I will make a special mentions at the end of the post.

Then there was Fede and Rocco meet & greet. It was pretty weird because we were all so shy and we didn’t know what to say so they told us something that happened on set during Marti and Nico reunion on the terrace in 2x09.

Fede: “Ludovico told us ‘Kiss!', so we did it. It was so romantic, but when we stopped, I noticed that I had Rocco's snot on my cheek. So I said: WHAT THE FUCK IS IT? THIS IS DISGUSTING! and the atmosphere was ruined.

Rocco: “It's true HAHAHA”

Fede: “I had your snot on me all the time! You were always crying!

Rocco: "Yes, there was an important exchange of body fluids. AHHA”

Then we went to eat the pizza with the cast. The first one who sat at our table was Federico. I was the first one to get the pizza and he said: “Well you're the birthday girl that’s why they gave you the pizza first”. I just smiled like an idiot and he said: “Eat it or it gets cold!"

Me: "No, I'm waiting for you …"

He: “But if it gets cold, it sucks”. (it sucked anyway haha)

Then me and my friends started arguing with him bc Federico claimed that the pizza has to be cut in 8 pieces (and we were cutting it in 4). Thankfully Pietro arrived and supported us and told Fede: “Stop being so annoying” ahah.

After that, there was the most embarrassing interaction that I've ever had with him. We looked at each other and he smiled, so I smiled back but I was too nervous to say anything. Basically we kept smiling for like 15 seconds and it all ended with an embarrassing silence :))))

Then Rocco sat right next to me and he was so… excited? Haha

Rocco: “Did you eat today?”

Me: “No, we were anxious…”

Rocco: “Why? C’mon we know each other now! We’re friends!” (I almost cried, I swear).

Then I showed him a bracelet that my friends bought me for my bday (a heart with the word ‘Sbedemmic’ written on it) and he enlightened and said: “Nooo! Oh my god! Sbedemmic !? A-ma-zing!”

Then we asked him how to pronounce “Maxence” and Rocco called him at out table and Maxence rushed to us leaning towards us and we were blown away because he has really beautiful eyes and honestly I didn't even listen to what he said ahaha

Then Nicholas joined us and said  "I want to sit right next to Giulia” (I wanted to hug him ;u;) and we talked about drawings and it was wonderful. Then at a certain point I don't remember what he wanted to ask Bea and he started to call her addressing a girl at the table next to ours and only after a while we pointed out that Bea was sitting on the other side of the room and he was like: “Who was I calling? The girl doesn't even have hair like Bea!” HAHAH

Before he left we hugged each other tight and we  thanked each other for everything.

Maxence is literally an elf. He is nice, funny and he gave me a lot of positivity. We asked him to take a photo all together and he immediately put the glass of wine down because “If my mom sees the picture she gets angry” xD He said he never had the chance to interact so much with the fans at the events and that he thinks it’s amazing to create a bond with us.

Then I apologized bc I tag him on a lot of drawings and he asked me “Wait, what did you draw?”

Before I answered him he started to jump on the chair saying “The raccoon one!?”

Me: “Yes, even the-”

He: “The one with the shirt! Come on, let me see it!”

So I showed him the drawing and he exclaimed: “YEEEEES! THIS ONE! YEEEEES! THE SHIRT!!!”

He thanked me and I closed instagram, but I had forgotten to change my background and I had a photograph of me with Federico.

Maxence saw it and said: “Is that your boyfriend?"

And I said: “I WISH!”

I swear I didn't want to say it out loud, but it was spontaneous. He widened his eyes and literally burst into laughing while I turned RED. I apologized saying it wasn’t my intention to say it out loud but he said that he got that bc he read the panic in my eyes as soon as I realized it, but he appreciated my spontaneity and he said that it will be our little secret xD (then we talked outside and we took a couple of photos, he even chose the poses AHAHAH but then we got caught and the staff told him to go inside xD).

1 December

The second day in the morning we went to the autographs of Robin and Lukas and they both thanked me so much for the drawings (I will never forget their expressions ;;). 

After giving Lukas the drawing he stood up and hugged me tight and he was the sweetest, with his beautiful and kind smile :’)

Then I took a photo with Nicholas 

and a duo with Maxence and Rocco where I asked for a group hug and Maxence said: A POLIPATA ?! (an Italian word that idk how to translate. Obviously Rocco taught him that haha it’s like “hugging like an octopus” lol)

The last photos were those with Federico. When I showed him the photo I wanted to do he made an expression that I will never forget a mix between a smile and ;) and he said: “Uh, today we are in the mood for kisses”. And of course I turned BRIGHT RED :DDD

The last activity of the day was the autograph with Maxence. He thanked me for the drawing and said "You made me a beautiful drawing, so I will also make your own beautiful drawing" and he made a stylized character of me ahaha

At the cocktail party Maxence was the first one to sit with us! He didn’t know what to say so he asked us to do a toast and we all said in chorus 'cin-cin' and he said: "Do you know that ‘cin-cin’ means vagina in Chinese?” Ahah This was the highlight of our conversation.

Then Nicholas and Rocco came at our table and we talked all the time about medicines and reflux lmao We looked like the geriatric department bc they said that all the cocktails tasted like medicines lol 

Then Pietro and Fede arrived, both sooo tired, but Fede greeted us with "Hello rays of sunshine!" And we were literally dying . Pietro said he was worried about not being able to return home because he would have arrived after midnight and he didn't have the keys. "I can't call someone and say "Hi, I'm the guy who lives upstairs" ahaha

Then we talked to Lukas and Robin and they were so cute ;; Lukas is a very interesting person, he has a pure soul and it was a pleasure to know him ;; 

In the end, Bea and Greta arrived and we gossiped a lot, especially about boys haha

Best moments of PANELs:

-Nicholas said his favorite word is Australopithecus Robustus and Greta said "Fregno" (it’s a slang for ‘hot’) xD

-Fede said his Spirit animal is a Golden Retriever and that Martino’s is a fox

-Fede made fun of Rocco because he spoke with metaphors that didn’t make any sense so Fede was like: Enough Rocco, enough! Stop it! THAT'S ENOUGH!

-We made a video for Bea and everyone cried in the room

-THE KARAOKE

-Fede said that Rocco didn’t know how to ride a bicycle and they had to shoot that scene a lot of times

-Fede complimented Rocco and then he gave the microphone to him saying: “Come on, I’m waiting.” Because he wanted to get compliments too haha

-Rocco sat in the audience and asked Fede the story of Bambi and Fede called him “Er Lucertola (lizard)” in revenge and said that the name of Bambi was born because of a toxic (Rocco haha)

-Pietro who answered BOH to all the questions haha

-When a girl mentioned the 4th season (even if we couldn’t) and everyone said to keep hoping and thanked us for fighting so much during these months and then Rocco said: Yes, thank you very much for the support. Without you it wouldn't have been pos— Everyone: ROCCO !!!!! haha

-When another girl talked about Massimo Reale -Dr. Spera- (referring to the photos he posted from the 4th season’s set) and then Bea said: She just wanted to know the name of Dr. Spera and yes, it’s Massimo Reale xD

-Rocco screaming SBEDEM

Here’s some pics I took at the panels :) 

Everything was AWESOME! I miss them all so much ;;

Please if you want to use one of these pics tag my instagram account:  here

[squisherific]

Mai Nakahara at ACEN Recap

I’ve been wanting to make this post for a while, because my last post about Juvia’s Japanese voice actress Mai Nakahara got a good response (I’m happy to see more fans of hers!!). For those who don’t know, Mai attended the anime convention Acen this past May. 

A few kind fans on twitter documented some of her panels, and a couple of people interviewed her. Not to mention Mai herself talked about Acen on twitter. So, this post will compile all the info that I’ve found online (sadly I couldn’t go to Acen to see her myself ;_;). For the FT/Juvia fans, she talked about Juvia, too, and how she’s the character who sticks out to her the most of all the ones she’s done! ^-^ 

So please keep reading if you’re interested! ^^

First of all, Mai posted on twitter when she arrived in Chicago. Apparently she was impressed and excited by the apple pie welcome desserts and American chocolate lol (Mai loves sweets).

Mai was not attending the con alone. There were a couple of other junior (to her) voice actresses who were with her. But when it came time to participate in the opening ceremony, while her juniors were grouped together, she had to go on stage on her own, and she said it made her nervous lol.

During her time at Acen she participated in two panels, and had 3 signing events. On twitter, parts of her panels were documented by fans who had the chance to ask her questions.

Here are Stereometric’s tweets about one of Mai’s panels/Mai’s answers:

Inoue-san is the veteran voice actress who played Nagisa’s mom in Clannad. She and Mai are still super close friends even after all these years.

BTW, as to the “personal question” that someone asked her, despite the rules, it was “are you single?” ^^’ I imagine Mai was probably wondering what was asked, and I doubt if they even bothered to translate that for her lol.

Also, the person she asked for help about her audition for the role of Kashima in Nozaki-kun was Nakamura Yuuichi/Yuukyan who played Nozaki. ^-^ 

astrange_E tweets about one of her panels:

I think it’s really funny Mai is so concerned with people thinking she’s evil. FYI, she has a habit of being cast as yanderes, and recently, villains lol. 

LEGOFChannel tweets from Mai’s panels:

That’s about it from her panels.

There was a blogger that talked about their experience at Acen. I would link it, but tumblr mobile doesn’t like links. >_< Here’s what they had to say about Mai:

Of all the seiyuu at this con, Maisan stands head and shoulder in my opinion above all. She is definitely the most veteran but also literally the face of a voice acting school, plus being a definitive voice and actress for a few big time properties. You can see why I tried for her first.

It was kind of intimidating to go to her panel and stand like 3 feet away to ask her questions face to face LOL. I don’t know what to say other than she is every bit as advertised, in the best way. She also took a different approach to dealing with the challenge of “American Anime Con Panel” and it was a bit of a…not quite show-and-tell but also kind of a teacher-student dynamic. It was good contrast for Todakun’s panel in Canada the week after…

One of the joke we cracked while camping her autograph line was how everything she signed at the con was Mai-Hime, Clannad, or Higurashi. Somehow this is expected.

Ah well, I wish I could have gone to both of her panels. Nakahara Mai was the biggest seiyuu at the con for me....

_____________

Mai also did an interview with Anime Trending in which she mentions Juvia! I would link it, but again, tumblr mobile hates links, so here’s the interview:

Anime Trending: First off, thank you so much for coming out to Anime Central. It’s a real pleasure to have you here. I’d like to ask how your time in Chicago has been so far.

Mai Nakahara: I got to do some shopping yesterday, and it’s impressive how things are big here and so different from Japan, it’s been fun.

Excellent, glad to hear that. I’d like to start with the question about your time working as a voice actor. You’ve done many roles, you’ve spent a lot of time in the industry. I was wondering how things have changed since you first started as a voice actress.

Back when I started, it was a time when female idols were the center stage rage, but today it feels like males idols are the rage, so it feels like the gender roles have flipped.

I see. That’s quite a change that has been a little evident. So, I’d like to ask a question about your role in the puppet show, Thunderbolt Fantasy. When you found out it was a puppet show, what was your first reaction?

When we talk about puppet plays in Japan, what I grew up with was, and what we think of would be shows like Hyokkori Hyoutanjima — I don’t know if you would be familiar with it, but I was very much impressed when I went to the recording for Thunderbolt Fantasy because of the high-quality of the puppets and also there was so much high-tech involved, such as 3D that it was so different and very much impressive.

So on a similar vein, in the same show, puppets have so many restrictions on how they’re able to express themselves, only eyes and not movements and gestures. Did you need to adjust the way that you performed in order to make up for this lack of expression? 

Thunderbolt Fantasy is based on a Taiwanese classic, so it starts off with the timing Taiwanese narrator going as the soundtrack, and for our Japanese voices, our job was not to just come up with the original characters, but to really play along to the narrative.

Excellent. So to transition to another show, the role of Juvia from Fairy Tail. That is a very long-running show, and I’m wondering, as you’ve spent time working as the character, how your approach to playing the character has changed?

Juvia as a character originally starts off as an enemy and later joins on as a friend, so there was a complete change in the way I played her. And she starts off as a character who doesn’t know love, but by meeting someone named Gray, she gets to know love and so there’s a lot of feminine side of her that gets to be put in as the range of her character later on.

Excellent. So after so many roles, is there a particular character or role that sticks out as one that was particularly memorable or maybe a little bit harder to play than all the others?

I love all my characters, but Juvia from Fairy Tail and also, we didn’t talk about her, but Estella from Tales of Vesperia. These are characters that I’ve played for a long time, and I do get lots of fun from a character I get to play for a long time.

Excellent, glad to hear that. One last question, have you ever had the opportunity to listen to the dubs of shows you’ve worked on in other languages?

Not yet so far, and I would be very interested in watching them.

Well, thank you very much for your time.

Thank you! 

_____________

It made me really happy to see Juvia was one of the roles that stood out to Mai! When asked this kind of question in the past, it was Nagisa from Clannad that would be her answer, but I guess things changed. Hooray for Juvia! ^-^

There is also a video interview with Mai from Acen that you can watch here:

Mai also recounted her time at Acen via twitter. 

She posted a farewell tweet in English, thanks to her translator Sarah, who is pictured with her at Dylan’s Candy Bar during some sightseeing Mai did while in Chicago:

Mai met some She-Ra cosplayers while browsing the show floor at the con. For those who don’t know, Mai is She-Ra/Adora in the Japanese dub of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power on Netflix. According to both Mai, and the fans she met in cosplay, she was super excited to see them and asked for photos. She and her translated were apparently very sweet. ^-^

And finally, what did Mai bring back as a souvenir from her time in the US? The only thing she posted about was the fact that her protein bar supply that she bought while in Chicago was starting to run low a few weeks after her return hahaha:

That concludes the recap of Mai’s visit to Acen. I hope you guys enjoyed it, and I hope it gave you some more insight into Mai’s personality. ^__^ I wish I could have gone to the con, too. ;_; I hope she attends another con in the States again, soon. Her next con appearance is actually in China on December 22nd. Any Chinese fans of Mai’s?  ^^

[f4liveblogarchives]

Fantastic Four Vol 1 #218

Thu Sep 12 2019 [10:54 PM] Wack'd: So uh, this continues from Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man Vol 1 No 42 [10:55 PM] Bocaj: gonna pop over to it or just read a synopsis on marvel wiki? [10:55 PM] Wack'd: Marvel Wiki [10:55 PM] Bocaj: That’s the spirit [10:56 PM] Wack'd: From now on I'm gonna check there to see if the Four actually appear in the prior issue [10:56 PM] Wack'd: Thanks to the Nova debacle [10:57 PM] Wack'd: Basically all we need to know if that the Frightful Four--having slotted Electro in as their fourth--kidnapped Spider-Man and plot to use him to destroy the Four [10:58 PM] Wack'd: As we speak, Pete is wearing Peter's (oh, this won't get confusing) costume to scale the Baxter, hoping to trip an alarm [10:59 PM] Wack'd: While Wizard, Flint, and *googles* Max wait patiently in a nearby hovercraft with a tied-up Peter [10:59 PM] maxwellelvis: Just call him Trapster. [11:01 PM] Wack'd: It occurs to me that Pete's paste and Peter's webbing are basically the same thing, one is just less versatile than the other

[11:01 PM] Wack'd: It'd be funny if Pete was like "fire his webshooters!" and a massive stream of paste shot out of his wrist [11:02 PM] Bocaj: "AND DISRESPECT MY HERITAGE? I WILL ADDRESS HIM WITH THE NAME GIVEN TO HIM BY THE GLORIOUS LEE AND KIRBY! PASTE POT PETE PASTE POT PETE" [11:02 PM] Wack'd: Look if I'm gonna call the Four Reed, Sue, Johnny and Ben it feels weird not to extend that to every character [11:02 PM] Wack'd: Though it occurs Pete might not be his real name and I've thoroughly fudged this [11:03 PM] Bocaj: Peter Petruski [11:03 PM] Wack'd: Oh good [11:04 PM] Wack'd: So Johnny finally notices something's up, lets "Spider-Man" in. And then Pete beats Johnny over the head while he's getting into costume [11:05 PM] Wack'd: Then heads off to take care of the rest of the--hang on [11:06 PM] Wack'd: Is the plot of this issue that Pete single-handedly defeats the Fantastic Four? [11:06 PM] Wack'd: That's delightful [11:06 PM] Wack'd: Where's Paste-Pot Pete Beats Up the Marvel Universe, huh? I'd read the fuck out of that [11:06 PM] maxwellelvis: I hope he beats all of them by just sucker-punches, cheap shots, and lucky breaks [11:07 PM] maxwellelvis: It's the only way he should win. [11:07 PM] Wack'd:

[11:07 PM] Wack'd: Dude's apparently got some moves! [11:08 PM] Bocaj: Hey, glue is the most dangerous weapon. [11:08 PM] maxwellelvis: Finally, someone remembers the Spider-Signal! [11:08 PM] Bocaj: Baron Zemo used glue to beat the whole Avengers [11:08 PM] Bocaj: Until they used the magic of 'a solvent' [11:08 PM] maxwellelvis: Peter's utility belt is so rarely used [11:08 PM] Bocaj: Actually provided by Paste Pot Pete! [11:08 PM] maxwellelvis: A solvent that only Past-Pot Pete could have come up with [11:08 PM] Wack'd: Hahaha. Pete tricks Ben into punching a wall panel, which electrocutes him [11:08 PM] Bocaj: wow [11:08 PM] Wack'd: Two down! [11:09 PM] Wack'd: Not only that, but the circuit was the manual override for the building's security [11:09 PM] maxwellelvis: Yeah, but those two were the easy ones [11:09 PM] Wack'd: Were they?! [11:09 PM] maxwellelvis: Yeah [11:09 PM] maxwellelvis: They're much easier to provoke, Ben and Johnny [11:09 PM] Bocaj: how is reed not the easy one by default [11:10 PM] maxwellelvis: Reed's a lot more cool-headed unless his family is in immediate danger, and Sue has the greatest power of all: Common sense [11:10 PM] Wack'd: Easier to provoke but also traditionally the powerhouses of the Four. Let's not forget last time the Frightfuls showed up they basically wet themselves when they realized they'd only captured Reed and Sue [11:11 PM] Wack'd: Wizard: clearly the Reed of this bunch

[11:12 PM] Wack'd: Which makes Pete the Sue--constantly ordered around and underestimated [11:12 PM] Wack'd: Flint is Ben, obviously. A hothead who loves to fight [11:12 PM] maxwellelvis: So I take it Sandman's the one who roped Electro into this? [11:12 PM] Wack'd: And then a rotating fourth to parallel Johnny's capriciousness [11:13 PM] Wack'd: @maxwellelvis *shrug* [11:13 PM] maxwellelvis: Which is funny because up until now that's where the person who can match Ben tends to end up. [11:13 PM] Wack'd: True [11:14 PM] maxwellelvis: Medusa's hair renders his strength of no aid to him, and Thundra's a match for him physically. [11:15 PM] Wack'd: Sue: "I better go get my husband to fuck me. Also, I better go see why my kid brother is making moaning noises in the dead of night"

[11:16 PM] Bocaj: Thaaaaaats [11:16 PM] Bocaj: an unfortunate juxtaposition [11:16 PM] Bocaj: These two panels bad [11:16 PM] maxwellelvis: "*ReEeEeEd! I'm wearing the nightie with the unstable molecules!" [11:17 PM] Wack'd: "All of your nighties have unstable molecules, in case of--" "Reed shut up and get in here" [11:17 PM] maxwellelvis: Send those panels to Superdickery! To Superdickery's Tumblr page because I'm pretty sure the website is still a nesting ground for viruses [11:17 PM] Wack'd: Anyway Johnny is tied up in paste and the moment Sue realizes what’s happened Sandman grabs her [11:18 PM] Wack'd: Hey. Hey max

[11:18 PM] maxwellelvis: Womp womp womp [11:19 PM] maxwellelvis: "She took my squeezing arm!" [11:19 PM] Wack'd: ...can Max do that? I feel like Max can't do that

[11:20 PM] maxwellelvis: He can do whatever the plot says he can do. Electro is one of those villains whose powers should be way more broken than they usually are. [11:21 PM] maxwellelvis: Like that's not even the most broken thing I've seen him do. [11:21 PM] Bocaj: CARBONIZING THE AIR [11:21 PM] Wack'd: Like a tree do! [11:21 PM] maxwellelvis: Yeah, sure, Wizard. Your plan. [11:21 PM] Bocaj: even if that is a thing that made sense, the layer of carbonized air thats hard as a rock is thin as a sheet of paper [11:21 PM] Bocaj: You could lightly poke it and it'd break [11:22 PM] Wack'd: You know how trees turn people into living statues? Or, actually they oxidize the air, hang on [11:22 PM] Wack'd: Breathing. Max has described breathing. [11:22 PM] Bocaj: oh my god [11:22 PM] maxwellelvis: Please just call him Electro [11:22 PM] Wack'd: ...oh my god [11:23 PM] Wack'd: Alright, max, for you I'll make an exception [11:23 PM] maxwellelvis: Did you not realize that until just now? [11:23 PM] Wack'd: Nooooope [11:23 PM] maxwellelvis: Wow [11:23 PM] Wack'd: Spandex over utility belt over spandex. This has not been a fun night for Pete

[11:24 PM] Wack'd: Honestly really impressive that he was able to do all of those stunts dressed like that [11:25 PM] Wack'd: And now its all four against Reed [11:25 PM] Wack'd: They have him on the ropes when--

[11:26 PM] Wack'd: He hit him to get a thing off of his face! Like in a Looney Tune! I love it!

[11:27 PM] Wack'd: (Also: "coulda had a V-8" existed in 1980! Huh!) [11:28 PM] Wack'd: "In fairness, you're not laughing right now." "At my own joke? Don't be gauche"

[11:29 PM] maxwellelvis: "No! Not the shop-vac! Not again!" [11:30 PM] Wack'd: Peter takes Electro out with a rubber hose [11:30 PM] Wack'd: And Pete?

[11:31 PM] maxwellelvis: They all sweated him to death. [11:33 PM] Wack'd: Should've worn multiple layers, Peter! Pete had the right idea!

[11:34 PM] maxwellelvis: Or transformation gizmo like Japanese Spider-Man

[hikalyra]

Thank you for this amazing series 🏐 !!

(Warning: for those who follow the anime only, this will contain a lot of spoilers!)

Ah, Haikyuu will end today. Last chapter will be uploaded tonight. The manga which I started to read in 2014. I remember that week was full of bliss, has just graduated from high school but uni hasn't started yet. It was in June if I'm not mistaken, an orientation week from uni (normal orientation week) which started from 8 AM to 3 PM, and after that I went back to my rental place and started marathoning haikyuu. It was so so much fun.

Every chapter gives you this powerful excitement feeling, that is what I felt when reading haikyuu. I feel in love with it.

Tho I did not remember all of it, some the amazing moments stayed with me for a long time. But surely, the happiness and excitement feeling lingers a lot till today, tho I can't exactly remember the chapters or the story.

There was a time when I did not read it diligently, also in 2019 I barely read it at all, I think I kinda forgot (?) because I was busy and all hahaha. Then in early 2020 I came back reading it and was shocked to see how far it has came 😂 also at how it is on it's final arc now :") and today the last chapter will be released.

After rereading it, the parts I'm missing, the parts I did not remember, also marathoning the anime while comparing the differences with the manga (Yes I am quite diligent on this lol 😂) It reminds me a lot of moments I have forgotten, also gives me a lot of jamais vu vibes haha.

And since I have grown older now, maybe now I am much more able to understand the character a lot. Back then I remember how I root Karasuno a lot, not wanting them to lose at all haha. Now, rereading it all, every character is interesting. Like I don't want all to lose, but there is only one winner in a match :")

And reading the last arc made me feel that this is indeed about volleyball, these people love for volleyball, and sensei's love for volleyball. It is also about our two main characters growth in volleyball, Hinata from his technical abilities, while Kageyama is more in his communication skills and teamplay growth. Also reading some of translations for interview with Team Japan Volleyball, it hits deep how realistic Haikyuu is. How pro players can relate to it, how some of the plays, the mentioned quotes apply to them in real life. They relate to it.

Haikyuu storyline is simple, yet deep. It shows a life full of passion in a bunch of youths, and how it affect them, how something so simple made them fell deep into this sport (like how Tsukishima get that moment after blocking Ushijima, and I personally feel that moment which made Hinata fell deeper into volleyball is in that Inarizaki match, where he managed to receive Aran's spike nicely).

And in between the storylines, sensei managed to explain the rules, tactics, strategies, what affect players in playing, how to be a team player (communication) and all, it is extremely realistic and we see the characters growth in it. I personally love the tactics explanations, also the part where Kageyama went back into the King of the Court after Youth training, after reading it multiple times (lol) the thing I can summarize from it is, you need communication, you need to compromise with each other, to awaken your team potential, to make your team become better or best. That is very realistic, saying you need to communicate. Also the part in Nationals, when they started playing in the stadium, it is so big people can lost their sense of space. That is very realistic too. Haikyuu, tho it is fiction and yes of course there must be parts that does feel or not seem to be realistic, is very realistic in a lof of aspects. It is not just a story telling you to level up, power up, the strongest is the winner. Yes, the stronger team wins, but a lot of things affect in one play.

The way Furudate sensei tells the story is amazing, and once again I will say, it felt so realistic. Also it is poetic. There are a lot of new scenes that parallel old panels. The wordings are poetic. The banners are poetic. How sensei choose the names. Everything is amazing.

And also, the art, the panels, the way sensei choose to draw, the way sensei choose to tell the story. Everything is wonderful.

I am glad to be able to stumble upon this amazing work, a masterpiece will I say, in my life. It brings me a lot of joy and excitement these past few years. Tho it can't be fully perfect in all, but this is near perfect to my standard. It is just so wonderful and my lack of vocabulary can't explain how I feel except from saying the same words over and over again lol 😂

And once more, to summarize,

The storyline, the characters, the way the stories is being told, the words choosen to tell, the art, the technical aspects, the excitement and passion felt from each of the chapters, the tension felt from the matches, the realistic parts, the volleyball itself, everything is so amazing and wonderful at the same time.

I think I read somewhere, sensei played as MB during school, and then decided to make volleyball manga, and sensei made it this far. Once in an interview sensei said that sensei hoped haikyuu to be a story which both people who play and do not play volleyball can enjoy. Also, in the very first volume, sensei said, "I hope to make this story full of fun and great characters you'll enjoy and who will make you want to say, "I want to root for these guys!""

Sensei, I think both are of them are already accomplised. I do not play volley but I have grown to love the game, although there are some rules I can't remember, but I forgot a lot too 😂. And I root for almost all the characters in Haikyuu a lot.

Thank you sensei for making me (and I believe it is not only me, but us) feel that volley is fun and cool!

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 294: A Half-Assed Escape

Previously on BnHA: Mirio was all “SURPRISE I’M BACK THANKS TO OUR RESIDENT SEVEN-YEAR-OLD WHO RECENTLY EARNED HER BACHELOR’S OF BEING A TOTAL BADASS.” Kacchan was all, “you know what, Dabi’s been trending long enough, time to remind the fandom what a real G looks like,” and he blasted his little bleeding body back into the fray and was all “FROM HERE ON OUT CALL ME DYNAMIGHT!!” Mirio was all, “AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA... oh, you’re serious,” and Kacchan was all “!!”, and so that’s the story of how my son got murdered twice in one day. Meanwhile in the Todoroki Drama Zone, Deku was all “STOP MURDERING MY FRIEND” and Dabi was all “THAT’S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS” and fandom had a whole big debate about Whether Or Not Dabi Trying To Murder Deku’s Friends And Mentors Is Any Of Deku’s Business, which went exactly how you think it went. Anyway, so then Deku yelled at Dabi, and Endeavor was all moved by his manly words and randomly went to go uppercut Machia in the chin. And, seeing as how the Momoserum finally chose that exact moment to kick in, Machia is now down for the count.

Today on BnHA: The Miriosquad handles the Nearly High End Noumus, freeing up Jeanist to jasphyxiate (okay that one doesn’t really work so well) the rest of the League. Compress is all “TIME FOR THIS MILD-MANNERED SIDE CHARACTER VILLAIN TO SHINE”, except that by “shine” what he actually means is “use his quirk to punch a literal hole right through his own ass to free himself.” The rest of the chapter is basically just a back and forth between him and Jeanist, with Jeanist trying to recapture him, and Compress repeatedly thwarting him by chopping more holes out of himself because HE’S FRESH OUT OF FUCKS, AND THE ONES AT THE STORE ARE ALL SOLD OUT, MOTHERFUCKERS. Anyway, so with Compress basically dying and all, Horikoshi is all “you know what that means”, and delivers a freshly-baked villain flashback revealing that Compress is a descendant of Harima Ouji, a.k.a. the Peerless Thief, a.k.a. some famous guy whom Gentle mentioned this one time for like two seconds back in the day. The chapter ends with Compress finally demasking himself and dumping Tomura back onto the ground, a.k.a. The Worst Possible Place For Tomura To Be. ( •﹏•)

WHY IS CRUST HERE YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD

-- OH WAIT, SHIT. OH

AIZAWAAAA you’re alive and receiving medical help thank GOD. HOW MANY EYES DO YOU HAVE. AND MIRKO!! HOW MANY LIMBS DO YOU HAVE, OMG

so is this Aizawa dreaming about Crust’s final moments, then?? jesus. with All Due Respect to Crust’s memory, does Aizawa not already have enough misplaced guilt on his conscience as it is?? “nope, we’re gonna keep piling it on. that’s all he is now. three limbs, an indeterminate number of eyes, sexy hair, and Guilt” well shit

motherfucker y’all really out here placing an oxygen mask on Gran Torino’s corpse. fucking shounen characters. each one comes with a lifetime warranty

DAMN YOU HORIKOSHI WHY DO YOU KEEP SHOWING THESE CLOSE-UPS OF HAWKS’S UNCONSCIOUS FACE ALL WHUMPED OUT AND EXHAUSTED. HOW MUCH MORE OF THIS ARE WE GOING TO GET. ARE YOU PLANNING ON KILLING ME WITH THE UPCOMING CONVALESCENCE ARC, BECAUSE IF SO, AT LEAST HAVE THE DECENCY TO TELL ME AHEAD OF TIME SO I CAN MAKE A WILL

for a moment I considered going back and checking my previous recaps to count how many times I’ve already made a joke about Dabi’s fire incinerating Hawks’s wings but not touching so much as a hair on his five o’clock shadow, so that I could calculate whether or not I could possibly get away with making that same joke one more time. but then I realized I could just do it in this kind of roundabout way I’m doing right now instead. so there you have it

FFFFFFFMT LADY AND MIDNIGHT NOOOOO

PLEASE BE ALIVE. PLEASE RESPECT THE SIGN ON THE FRONT OF THE BUILDING. THE ONE THAT SAYS “NO LADY CHARACTERS ALLOWED TO DIE”, WITH THE FINE PRINT AT THE BOTTOM “AT LEAST NOT UNTIL HORIKOSHI GIVES US LIKE TWENTY-SIX MORE OF THEM FIRST IF THAT’S THE WAY HE WANTS TO PLAY IT.” IT’S A GOOD SIGN, PLEASE RESPECT ITS WISHES!!

so anyway though, Jeanist is giving a speech about how god knows how many people all worked together to bring Machia down. and now RHA is getting in on those fabric puns too, I see. “A SINGLE STRAND MAY BE THIN BUT TOGETHER THEY FORM A STRONG ROPE” oh so you think you guys are funny eh? I’m a frayed knot

MEANWHILE EXCUSE ME BUT WHY ARE YOU FUCKING CRYING BLOOD, HOLY SHIT

fffffff. so much for him taking over as the Number One once all this is over. so let’s just recap real quick, because Horikoshi has long since made it clear that one of his plot goals for this arc is to wipe out every single member of the Billboard Top Ten. so how we doin?

Endeavor - was just figuratively eviscerated in front of the entire nation by his homicidal zombiepunk son. also burnt half to death and possibly down a lung. will almost certainly be forced to retire after this one way or the other

Hawks - lying prettily in a medical tent. wings status: gone. hair status: still perfect

Jeanist - WELL I THOUGHT HE WAS FINE BUT APPARENTLY HE’S OUT HERE DYING, JESUS CHRIST

Edgeshot - MIA, last seen fighting Re-Destro. I really want him to have kicked RD’s ass because fuck that guy, but realistically they probably fought to a draw at best

Mirko - alive but in critical condition and missing something like 1.5 limbs

Crust - dead, currently haunting Aizawa’s traumatized dreams. now he’s gonna be triggered the rest of his life by people giving him the thumbs up, THANKS A LOT

Kamui Woods - was set on fire which is His Weakness. thoughts and prayers

Wash - last seen floating hospital patients to safety as Tomura’s wave of decay descended towards him. probably dead ffff

Old Man Samurai - haven’t seen this fucker in a hot minute, who even knows where he’s wandered off to

Ryuukyuu - currently being treated for her wounds, looked pretty bad off. but it’s hard to tell how hurt she is since most of the injuries were acquired in her transformed state. SHE BETTER GET WELL SOON

anyways, so yeah. so much for the top ten. guess that’s another reason Horikoshi brought Mirio back now, huh

so there’s a big panel of everyone fighting the Noumu while Machia lies there all “blurgh.” good riddance my dude. it took like twenty chapters and a hundred people to stop this guy so I really fucking hope he stays down. you’ve had your fun

anyway so Jeanist is sending another steel thread towards Dabi! and he’s all “just a bit more!!” fklklj this is gonna go real well isn’t it

meanwhile Mirio’s fighting a Nearly High End with all of these weird rock formations jutting out of its skin. go on and kick his ass then, Mirio

“each of these guys is probably just as strong as the Noumu from Kyuushuu” hold on I thought Ujiko or Tomura or someone said that wasn’t the case? not that Mirio would know I suppose. anyways let’s just hope he’s wrong cuz if not these kids are probably screwed

kLSDKFHLSKHGLKLK OH MY GODDDD

IIDA FUCKING TENYA YOU’RE A PEACH. THINKS THE NAME IS OUTRAGEOUS, CHECK. USES IT ANYWAY, CHECK. “JUST BECAUSE I DON’T UNDERSTAND DOESN’T MEAN I CAN’T BE SUPPORTIVE.” WHAT A CLASS ACT

AND KACCHAN IS RESPONDING WITH AS MUCH DIGNITY AS HE CAN MUSTER

WOW, SON. IT’S ALMOST AS THOUGH YOU HAVE A HOLE IN YOUR TORSO, OR SOMETHING!! although listen up, real talk, the fact that Kacchan of all people can’t muster the energy to yell at someone questioning his ability to kick ass is HIGHKEY troubling and we may be in need of an intervention here soon :/

now Jeanist is finally turning his attention to the League! was... was it not already on the League. omg

ACTUAL SCREAMING AHHHHHH FUCK FUCKLK LK AHHLKHKFFFF

hey so um. what the actual fucked up hell. my soul left my body. imagine if you saw the reflection of this panel on your bedroom window. you would never sleep again

OKAY RHA TRANSLATORS ARE YOU HAVING YOURSELF A LAUGH AGAIN

THIS CANNOT BE WHAT HE’S ACTUALLY SAYING RIGHT. BUT IT’S RIGHT IN THAT UNCANNY VALLEY OF NOT BEING QUITE SURE, THOUGH... (　ﾟдﾟ)

(ETA: just a next-day clarification here, apparently my sleep-deprived ADHD word-skipping brain completely skipped right over the “a” in that last panel, so what I read was, “and Shigaraki’s limp noodle.” so yeah, the moral of this story is always read the speech bubble carefully before you start making running jokes throughout the rest of your post, folks.)

oh wow he’s really freaking out lmao

to be fair though, I’d argue that Dabi has gotten pre-tty close at this point :’) thrilled for him, really I am

but anyway, well then figure something out you big dramatic robot-armed fiend. didn’t you just say you could touch your own ass? can you not just Compress yourself to break free?? does it not work on you? or would you be stuck afterwards lol

(ETA: I was picturing him compressing his entire body at once, not just chunks of it. ghhhlkh.)

um

holy shit Jeanist. are you stupidly trying to cut off their air, or are you going for more of a sleeper hold (jleeper hold??) thing instead. the latter would be way smarter and faster and probably safer as well just saying

but unless Spinner is just being super dramatic, it sure looks like he’s fucking strangling them djslkjlk. this will certainly cement his popularity among the villain stans. good thing you’re not running for office any time soon bud

anyway so I have no idea what these guys are trying to do now. what is this

do you even have till the count of 5 at this rate. I mean

OH MY GOODNESS

HE’S REALLY FUCKING DOING IT!! HE’S COMPRESSING HIS BUTT!! OMFG. TOMURA HIDE YOUR NOODLE!!!

WHAT THE FUCK

DID YOU COMPRESS A PIECE OF YOUR OWN ASS. FUCKING WHAT. PUT THIS MAN’S PICTURE IN THE DICTIONARY NEXT TO THE WORD “LOYALTY”, HOLY CRAP

HOLY SHIT COMPRESS

“HOLY SHIT DID THAT GUY JUST PUNCH A HOLE THROUGH HIS OWN ASS IN ORDER TO SAVE HIS VILLAIN PALS. FUCK IT, HE DESERVES TO ESCAPE”

jeez, talk about... A HALF-ASSED ESCAPE ATTEMPT :D :D :D hahaha. but real talk though, Horikoshi has clearly never tried to leap twelve feet straight up in the air multiple times in succession with only half his glutes though. everyone, I regret to inform you that this panel right here on the left may be slightly unrealistic

also where the hell is he going to go?? did you pack a jetpack away in one of those little marbles sir. and what about Dabi?? and Skeptic too, I guess, but we don’t really care about Skeptic

(ETA: at this point I had to stop reading for about two hours because I had to go out and take care of something; that’s also why this is being posted later than usual lol. anyways so where were we.)

oh my lord

the existence of a translator’s note here implies that the earlier line about Compress being able to reach Tomura’s junk was not, in fact, ad-libbed. hmm. hmmmmmmmm

anyway so now he’s grabbing Compress again because OF COURSE HE IS, so now we’re right back to square one! except now Tomura and Spinner are secured inside of little marbles, and presumably Compress is the only one who can release them

oh nevermind he’s just maiming himself again instead, SHEESH

Skeptic a man is dying please have some goddamn respect

so, uh. is he gonna die, though??

I really can’t tell wtf is going on here, this is the most confusing the art has been in a while. Horikoshi put all of his spoons into that creepyass close-up panel earlier, that bastard

OMG WHAT ARE YOU SERIOUS

DON’T FUCKING TELL ME THE “COMPRESS IS RELATED TO THIS THIEF GUY FROM OLDEN TIMES” THEORY IS ACTUALLY TRUE WHAAAAAAT. OH SHIT

so apparently Harima was a Robin Hood type guy who stole from... heroes?? wtf. are heroes the 1% in this scenario. y’all didn’t have any Fortune 500 CEOs to steal from?

THAT’S THE BLOOD THAT FLOWS THROUGH YOU, OH SHIT. and in a related oh shit, the fact that we are getting a Compress flashback now of all times doesn’t bode super well for him. ffff

MEANWHILE THE TODOROKIS ARE STILL TODOROKI-ING

listen here boy if you touch one freaking hair on Shouto’s candy cane head I swear to god --

WHAT DID I FUCKING SAY!!!

SHOUTO NOOOOOO. WTF YOU’RE LITERALLY THE ONE GUY WHOSE WEAKNESS IS ABSOLUTELY NOT SUPPOSED TO BE FIRE. DABI YOU SHIT, YOU BETTER WATCH YOURSELF!! I’M PRINTING OUT A COPY OF THAT COMPRESS PANEL!!! KEEP AN EYE OUT ON THAT BEDROOM WINDOW YOU PUNK!!!

SO NOW POOR SHOUTO IS UNCONSCIOUS AND FALLING!! SOMEONE SAVE HIM!! WHO CATCHES THE CATCHER

COMPRESS LITERALLY HOW ARE YOU STILL ALIVE RIGHT NOW, WHAT IS HAPPENING

PLEASE DON’T CALL TOMURA LEADER OF THE “PLF” YOU KNOW I CAN’T TAKE IT SERIOUSLY WHEN YOU DO THAT. ARE YOU DYING. ARE YOU JUST A FUCKING HEAD NOW WTF

(ETA: “masks are removable, makeste” you know what it’s been a long day okay lmao. or I suppose Compress is really the one who is lmao.)

GASPPPPPP

okay. okay. looooool okay then

WHY WERE YOU COVERING THIS SEXY MOP OF HAIR UNDER THAT HOOD YOU TOOL. IT WOULD HAVE LOOKED SO GOOD WITH THE TOP HAT. I’M SO MAD AT YOU RIGHT NOW

as if it wasn’t enough for him to demask himself, he also had to get all shirtless and then do this weird attempt at a sexypose too huh

hard to say exactly how much of his torso is currently missing, but safe to say that’s proooooooobably not good. :///// fuck

on the other hand, Kacchan also has a torso hole and he’s still flying around like he just drank a dozen red bulls, so

this man lost his ass and he’s still out here monologuing like it’s the last two minutes of The Prestige. one might say he is monologuing his ass off

so he let Spinner and Tomura free, but is Dabi still trapped in his marble?? wasn’t he all on fire and stuff?? hopefully he can still turn off his quirk in there because if not that’s a pretty fucked up way to die. somewhere out there Snatch’s ghost is all “YEAH I’LL SAY.” oh how the turntables

last but not least, sooooooo. Tomura. back on the ground. that’s. um. ...shiiiiiiiit

[afanoftheglassscientists]

The Glass Scientists Sunday Predictions

Sadly, there’s not much to predict outside of what I spoke of last week, so I’m not gonna repeat what might be revealed tomorrow.  I can say one prediction - the reveal of the spirit (I’m dubbing it the Spirit of London at Night because that’s one of Hyde’s favorite phrases associated with him) is going to book-end the chapter.  

If it does end the chapter that means there’s going to be a chapter cover the week after.  If that happens next Sunday I’m going to do a Chapter Review instead of a Sunday Prediction, starting with the first chapter.  I say “review” but I don’t mean a “this SUCKS here’s TEN reasons why” kind of review.  I mean more of a “hmm I see so in THIS panel oh this is interesting hmm” kind of review.  So any time there’s a chapter cover or a break I’ll do one of these reviews until I’m caught up.  They are gonna be really long and rambly and filled with side-tangents, so I’m saving these for only when there’s a break.  I do other stuff too, you know.  Like work.  And reading for a book club.  And playing Rune Factory 4 for six hours on my day off not realizing my legs are slowly morphing into jelly.

Now I don’t want to leave this week’s prediction with a “We’re Closed!” sign on the front, so let’s play around with a question that’s relevant in every Jekyll and Hyde story:

Who’s Going to Find Out Jekyll’s Secret First?

Let’s do this character by character.

Lanyon

Lanyon feels like the most obvious candidate to find out first since that’s how it went in the original story, but the way he finds out and how he reacts might be different.

Ways to Find Out

Hyde reveals himself to Lanyon because he’s very cross about not being able to go to the mall and he knows Lanyon finding out will hurt Jekyll the most.

Hyde/Jekyll accidentally reveals their secret while Lanyon’s snooping, since he has snooped before and may snoop again.

Jekyll reveals himself because he finds out Lanyon is snooping and feels he needs to explain to Lanyon what’s going on BEFORE Lanyon’s hair turns white and he dies.  Admittedly this one’s unlikely because Jekyll absolutely doesn’t want Lanyon of all people to find out first and I seriously doubt he’d take the initiative.

Ways to React

Lanyon is incredulous at the thought.  “Hahaha.  Good joke.  Funny.  Funny joke.  No I don’t believe you.  Hahaha.  Laugh with me please.”

Lanyon is upset because he feels like he, Jekyll’s best friend and confidante, should have known Jekyll would something as ludicrous and dangerous as splitting his mind first!  He could have covered for him!  Jekyll didn’t trust Lanyon to keep a secret!  Unbelievable!

Lanyon is upset and guilty because he realizes he might have been the cause for Jekyll to do this.  That doesn’t feel great.  He doesn’t feel great about this.  He feels terrible.  Half of Jekyll hates him.  Oh dear.

Nope Nope Nope Nope NOPE!  Taking a long walk that’ll last a whole chapter cannot compute GOODBYE!

Ways for Jekyll to React

Doomed

Rachel

Rachel has been friends with Jekyll for a long time, and she’s cared for Hyde since they met.  So finding out that two of your best buds is actually just one bud that split their “evil” and “good” halves is going to be...interesting.

Ways to Find Out

Hyde tattletales on Jekyll tells Rachel upfront in order to make her an accomplice and bring her further on the Team Hyde side of the field.

Rachel finds out through seeing the transformation firsthand.  

Jekyll entrusts Rachel with the secret in order to stop her from cooperating with Lanyon and having Lanyon find out his secret.  Rachel’s not a good person to find out, but Lanyon is a waaaaay worse person to find out. 

Ways to React

Confused and Concerned are the top two emotions

Angry at the fact that Jekyll could have just told her what was going on so she didn’t have to worry about her sweet cinnamon scone getting hurt.

Wait does that make Jekyll her sweet cinnamon scone too?  She’s going to have to rearrange her relationship table.

Digs her heels in further and demands Jekyll lets Hyde free.  LET.  HIM.  OUT!  *starts banging pans together*

Does her best to keep their secret, but that doesn’t mean she fully accepts what Jekyll did.  Finding out who Hyde really is will really mess with her vision of him being a baby chick going through a phase.

Ways for Jekyll to React

Gets down on his knees and begs Rachel to keep his secret.  They’ve been friends for years.  This hasn’t changed that right?  Rachel likes Hyde, so maybe she’d be a bit more accepting of him than Lanyon would.  Yeah.  He can work with this.

He’s doomed.

Frankenstein (and Creature)

Frankenstein finding out Jekyll’s secret can’t possibly make Frankenstein’s view of Jekyll any worse, right?  It can only go up from here right?  RIGHT!?

Ways to Find Out

Jekyll finally snaps and shows Frankenstein his transformation after Frankenstein kept trash-talking him.  

Hyde reveals the secret to gain cool points with her.

Frankenstein gets bored, escapes and finds the potion, his notes on the transformation or Jekyll in the midst of transforming.

Ways to React

Cool.  Jekyll’s still a coward because he doesn’t share any of his findings that are actually interesting.

Frankenstein is impressed but still sticks with her view that you can’t split your “evil” and “good” side.  Jekyll just split everything interesting about him into another version of himself, leaving himself to be a boring husk of a man. (while you hear her trash-talk Jekyll further you can hear Hyde blowing an air-horn in the background)

Frankenstein might think Jekyll could actually be a mad scientist instead of an impostor pretend scientist.  He still shouldn’t bother with the exhibition, but there’s still a chance for him to follow Frankenstein’s way.

Creature does not care.

Ways for Jekyll to React

Almost satisfied that Frankenstein saw his work and reacted to it, except now he has to be extra careful to get Frankenstein to NOT spill the beans.

Dear lord what has he done!?  Quick lock her up so she doesn’t say anything!

Jasper

In my mind Jasper would be most likely to discover Jekyll’s secret before the final stretch of the story, with Frankenstein on the rear.  Lanyon and Rachel have very strong feelings on both Jekyll and Hyde, so finding out that the two are technically the same person is going to irrevocably change their opinions of both halves.  Jasper on the other hand still has yet to meet with Hyde directly, so he doesn’t have any strong opinions on him.  That doesn’t mean Jasper going to be like, “oh cool,” and be done with it though.

Ways to Find Out

So far Jasper is a person that Jekyll can just be relaxed around.  He’s not stressed about Jasper like he is with Frankenstein and the other Lodgers who are currently on Team Frankenstein at the moment.  So even while he lets slip his philosophy and how he really thinks to Jasper, he isn’t concerned about Jasper finding out because he doesn’t even think Jasper is on the list of people to worry about finding out.  So there might be a chance that Jekyll reveals one too many clues and Jasper pieces it together.

Jasper’s magical creatures clue him in.  I don’t know about you but my pets can recognize who feeds them.  Jekyll helped to feed them once, so if Hyde comes around and they react to Hyde the same way they did to Jekyll that might give Jasper some clues.  Bonus if some of the creatures can communicate with Jasper going, “hey there’s something weird out that Jekyll fellow maybe you outta snoop around k thanks”

Hyde reveals it to Jasper to mess with Jekyll, casting doubt on Jekyll’s good intentions.

Jasper goes into Jekyll’s office to ask him a question and he finds out what Jekyll has behind all those glass cabinets.

Jekyll entrusts Jasper with things that could lead to Jasper discovering his secret, because honestly Jekyll is stretched to find people who are firmly on Team Jekyll at the moment.

Ways to React

So Jekyll is a mad scientist!  Cool.  And he can transform in a way similar to Jasper’s transformation.  Cool!  He has, like, a looot of questions to ask.  But he might be too shy to ask them.

Its a toss-up on whether he’d think of Hyde as a completely separate entity or as a part of Jekyll that just has a different appearance.  Werewolf Jasper and Jasper Jasper look different, but they’re one and the same, so isn’t it that way for Jekyll?  Again, lots of questions.

He decided to trust Jekyll, and discovering this secret may cast doubt on that decision.  It depends on how’d Hyde react around Jasper.  My guess is “not good.”

Ways for Jekyll to React

Jekyll tries to force the genie back into the bottle and convince Jasper that what he saw or heard wasn’t reaaaally of any import.  Jasper has other concerns.  He doesn’t need to worry about this little secret Jekyll has.  

The “How to be a Gentlemen” lessons shift to “How to Keep a Secret” lessons.  Even if Jasper goes, “oh its fine i’ll keep it a secret promise,” Jasper can’t keep secrets or at least act like he’s not keeping secrets I’m betting an extra five dollars on that.

Jekyll gives up on putting the genie back in the bottle and continues pushing Jasper to follow his philosophy and understand his reasoning for doing what he did.  If he was a mustached villain this is where he’d monologue his nefarious plot.

Others

Sergeant Brokenshire - If he found out he’d die.  Full stop.  He finds out he’ll reveal it to the other policemen and will try arresting him.  Unless its at the very end and everyone else finds out he’s absolutely going to be killed by Hyde.

Virginia Ito - They’re the assistant neoalchemist under Jekyll.  So it might be interesting for Ito to discover what ingredients Jekyll’s been using and going “hmmmmmm?”  If they find this to be a bit too sketchy they might warn Jasper along with the other Lodgers.

Phew.  That took longer than I thought it would.  I mean, of course it would take longer than I thought it would.  It always does.  Anyway, til next week!  Maybe.

[bigskydreaming]

gingerjab replied to your post “ANYWAY. The petition/prayer circle for Michael Trevino to be cast as...”

I’m forever an asshole obsessed with fire/ice ships so Thunderbird or Sunfire, fuck the inhumans one off and St. John. Also, Rahul Kohli as Neal Shaara/Thunderbird/Agni. Also I’m sposed to be asleep so ignore if this is a shit idea.

For the record, I actually kinda like the Inhuman guy, cuz I mean, its not his fault he’s part of a trash franchise. I think it probably helps that I’ve only ever read one issue with him, so as to render it absolutely impossible for his writing to piss me off. I like to just close my eyes and pretend he’s a mutant. Y’know. Like I do with Kamala!

Who is obviously a mutant.

(And like.....let’s be real. The dude is a pyrokinetic with a demon form, the codename INFERNO, and his REAL name is DANTE Pertuz. DANTE. INFERNO. Like, that’s the on-the-nose-fuck-your-subtlety-we-came-here-to-be-pretentious-as-fuck-with-our-literary-references-look-how-dignified-it-makes-our-character balls to the wall character concept I am HERE for. I’m like OH HAI I SEE WHAT U DID THAR. And they’re like “oh yeah? You got it? Hahaha, we were worried nobody would, phew, good job tho. Totally adds to the character right? Pretty clever of us.” And then I’d be like Hahahaha no, not even a little bit, but ‘scool, I like him anyway cuz I’m easy like that. I put out for puns.” And then they’d be like awwwww, dammit, we worked so hard on that. And I’d be like....well, that doesn’t speak highly of your abilities, I mean it was a super obvious joke. And then I stopped making up conversations with hypothetical people in my head.)

Also, in defense of comic book St. John Allerdyce and absolutely NO OTHER VERSIONS EVER because agreed, they all suck....

Comic book St. John is a snarky Australian asshole who in between acts of mutant mass destruction, has a side career as a successful romance novelist under a pen name.

(I’m not even joking. Comic book St. John, in canon, writes romance novels in his spare time as a hobby. LOLOLOL c’mon, how is that not a great character beat for a supervillain slash occasional kinda-if-you-squint-superhero).

Anyway.

I too am also trash for fire/ice ships because SCREW SUBTLETY, WE SHIP THEMATICALLY. But like, its gotta be the RIGHT fire/ice ship. I weirdly have standards with my fire/ice ships? Probably just because I’m obsessed with Bobby Drake but whatever, who cares, how is that relevant.

I mean, OBVIOUSLY, you have your proto-fire/ice ship, the one, the original, the Word I came out of the womb prepared to preach and ship and like, spread to the masses....Bobby Drake/Johnny Storm. Because like. They are elemental dorks whose competitiveness is only matched by their dumbness, how can you not love them, I DEFY YOU TO SAY.

I’m kinda meh on Iceman/Pyro, because like, original comic book Pyro and Bobby never even interacted I think? And in cartoons they’re always totally different generations/age groups, and in the movies they’re like....boring and stale and not even all that attractive and also did I mention boring, omg no offense to whomever wrote them, but I tried reading Bobby/Pyro movie fanfic years ago because like, that’s the only movie Bobby fic there is, unless you want to read about him being an asshole to Rogue and/or cheating with Kitty and just generally driving Rogue into the arms of the much (much much much much, like ewww) older Logan or Gambit. Because srsly, so appealing. So obviously, I caved and tried reading Bobby/Pyro fics because like, they had the word ‘Bobby’ in them, and the bar is too low in my X-Men fic reading habits. And omg I fell asleep. I just. It was all just the standard m/m cookie cutter generic ‘good boy plus bad boy uwu yaoi-zowey’ bleh starring two not at all deeply written or well-acted meh-looking white dudes, and just. Why.

But that’s what I mean when I say I’m wary of fire/ice ships, because sometimes with powered characters like, authors think oh hey, LOOK ONE IS FIRE AND ONE IS ICE, THIS TOTALLY COUNTS AS THEM HAVING OPPOSITES ATTRACT PERSONALITIES AND THUS I DONT NEED TO GIVE THEM A PERSONALITY, RIGHT? Like. They’re just very boring and unimaginative in execution, just because they expect the basic premise of fire and ice/’obvious opposites attract, obviously’ to do all the work for them.

(Katey if you’re reading this I’m super for sure not talking about YOUR superpowered romances, because you are wonderful and GOOD at writing and imaginative, and thus none of this applies to you. Requisite disclaimer.)

So, when they did this random Bobby/’New Pyro Dude like where did he even come from I still dont know’ hook-up, I was prepared to like, yawn endlessly, because I figured it would be more boring imaginationless ‘ooh look what an obvious pair they are and yet still praise me for how clever I am for pairing them’ crap. 

And I was absolutely right!

(But I mean, it was written by Marc Guggenheim, the odds of it sucking were totally in my favor. Betting against them being well-written under his pen might feasibly be construed as cheating. Whatever).

And also, the art did them ZERO favors, like I know they’re both generic blond dudes in their twenties, but I LITERALLY COULD NOT TELL WHICH WAS SUPPOSED TO BE WHICH in any of the panels that they were like, in bed together or dressing or talking or literally anything until they started using their powers to fight bad guys. It was soooooooo bad. Like the art just manifested every ‘look at the white gay date his mirror reflection lol what is variety even’ cliche and beat you over the head with it.

(Also Bobby is supposed to have brown hair, which at least would’ve helped a LITTLE bit. Meh. Still was gonna suck because like, nobody had any intention of WRITING them together, like, developing their characters and laying the groundwork for a possible relationship. It was just ‘oh look, the fire and ice dude got drunk at a wedding and hooked up, cool deal, now on with the story.’)

Anyway, the ONLY redeeming potential for a Bobby/Simon relationship in my opinion is ENTIRELY due to a fic I read with them. Its probably the only fic written about Simon ever, lmfao, so its not like the writer’s characterization of him has any competition among either canon or other fans’ renditions of him. But it was pretty well written, I actually liked their portrayal of Bobby, which I’m SUPER picky about in fanfics, and they actually invested time in developing Simon and his POV and giving him an actual personality and shit, that wasn’t half bad. So if Simon was written like that in the comics and their relationship progressed in similar ways, I could feasibly be on board with them.

But it won’t, so I’m not. Meh. Anyway.

I actually really REALLY like both Shiro AND Neal, with the caveat that I hate Neal’s stupid offensive-ass codename, I know Claremont only named him Thunderbird because he introduced him in an anniversary issue that was supposed to be a call-back to the original Giant Size lineup, and he needed a stand-in for John Proudstar, but like....wtf Claremont, just use your brain and save Neal to introduce a whole issue later and stick Jamie in John’s place the way everyone else does. He literally went by Thunderbird in the comics already in his Hellion days, which YOU wrote, so why the fuck did you feel the need to be stupidly offensive and act like Native American people and traditions are interchangeable with those of a guy from India? Ugh he’s so....gah.

Anyway. So I actually like both Shiro and Neal, though pretty much only when people other than Claremont are writing them, lololol. Which is admittedly...rare. Because of all his pet characters, they’re both at the top of the list of ones nobody else has any interest in touching. Bizarrely, my favorite run involving Shiro was when he was randomly shoe-horned into that Alpha Flight relaunch in the late 90s, that only lasted a couple years? Dunno if you know what I’m talking about, the team with Radius, Flex, Murmur, Heather as Vindicator and Mac was a robot or some weird shit.

I have no real thoughts on either of them with Bobby though, for a fire and ice pairing. Tbh I can’t really see Bobby/Shiro like, at ALL lmfao. For one, Shiro’s always felt written as though he’s a good ten years older than Bobby at least. Like they’re not really compatible dialogue-wise lol. And he’s pretty much never had any patience for Bobby in the comics, which has a lot to do with most of their interactions being written by Claremont himself, and Claremont infamously haaaaaaates Bobby’s character and trashes him any chance he gets, aka the few times editorial makes him actually use Bobby in a script. But I also think even under other writers, like....Shiro honestly is not the type to have any patience for Bobby’s antics or brand of humor, like.....he’s like JP but without the superficial crush JP used in canon to view Bobby’s idiosyncrasies as endearing instead of migraine inducing. I don’t think any readers would buy someone of JP or Shiro’s personality-type crushing on Bobby twice, lololol.

I DO however kinda like the idea of Neal/Bobby? If someone ever actually brought Neal back and gave him a new codename and stuck him on a team with Bobby? They’ve also barely interacted in canon, and the only time I can think of, Neal was super rude and dismissive of Bobby, because like, Claremont was writing it of course, so it made total sense for him to have the dude who’s literally been an X-Man for two issues talk down to the X-Man of several decades like the latter had no clue what he was doing, lol. Oops, still slightly salty there. 

But honestly, I doubt anyone who didn’t have hyperfixation fueled grudges on a fictional fave’s behalf would ever even remember that one canon interaction, and tbh Neal’s pretty much a blank slate character wise. His only defining traits from what little he’s been used are that he���s fairly young, in his early to mid-twenties, from a wealthy family, a little full of himself but in a ‘really wants to impress people and prove himself’ kinda way instead of an overly entitled ‘i genuinely believe I am superior to all you buffoons’ kinda way. And he was always endearingly enthusiastic and eager about new stuff he encountered from being with the X-Men.

(He was also randomly obsessed with Psylocke, but I truly think Claremont was like, well I’m just gonna write him like I would Warren Worthington because why not. So yeah, obvsly he’s super obsessed with Betsy. Duh.)

Anyway - I would like someone to do something interesting with Neal, and I think his and Bobby’s chemistry has a lot of potential and they could bounce off each other well. 

Also, I like Rahul, but I was randomly fancasting some of the more obscure X-Men awhile back for Reasons (I forget what they were tbh, but I’m sure I had them. I usually do). I came across this Indian actor named Karan Tacker and was like ohhhhhhh he totally looks like he could be Neal Shaara.

I mean, I’ve literally never seen him act, so who knows what his acting is like, but since we’ve established Neal’s character is essentially whatever the person to actually use him next wants it to be, I don’t think that’s a big deal lol.

So this is totally superficially based casting, like I think this guy looks and ‘feels’ the way Neal’s typically been drawn and the kinda vibe he gives off.

Also, incidentally, having absolutely nothing to do with anything, let alone my selection process, by pure coincidence the dude just so happens to have abs for daaaaaaays.

But I mean. Like I said, that is neither here nor there. Obviously.

Of no relevance whatsoever. I didn’t even notice, tbh. Don’t even know who hijacked my body and ghost wrote these last few sentences, quick, call an exorcist.

....oh noes, is this one of the consequences of being an ‘anti’? IS THIS MY COMEUPPANCE? *flees*

[poisonappletales]

Hello, may I ask for a reaction or something similar that will turn into a discussion between the male cast (King B, Unknown, Arsenik’s dear lil’ nephew) on feisty females (fem!reader)? Do they prefer them, do they mind them etc etc? Thank you btw for answering my last reaction ask, love your work, the new WEBTOON chapter was fire btw ❤️❤️

Rating: 14+ for sensual themes and men talking like men.

“Well, all right. A discussion among us men.” [He gestures to a table laden with food and drink.] “I’ve brought refreshments. Today, we won’t just be answering this ask but several others.”

“Let’s start off with our first question - what do we think about feisty females?”

“Aren’t those three other asks for Unknown? I’m not sure why we’re required to answer those as well…?”

“Since we’re here, I don’t see why not. Besides, Unknown receives a lot of asks, so we might as well spice up his answer and add our input.”

“Oh? My answers are plenty spicy on their own, but I do not mind. As for what I think? Feisty females are sexy, of course!”

“Ohh, yes. It’s nice to have a wildcat in bed from time to time.”

“But do you prefer them? I believe that’s one of the things Anonymous wanted to know.”

“Well, what about you? You didn’t even answer the question yourself.” [He chuckles.]

“I don’t like them. They’re belligerent and hostile and oftentimes plain rude. I just want us to have a civil conversation, where we’re being honest and respectful. Is that really so much to ask for?”

“Mm…is that what you think of when you imagine a feisty cat? Someone who will insult you and attack you and berate?”

“Of course. That’s the definition of feistiness, isn’t it? It’s when someone is quick to take offense, and they’re typically sharp-tongued. Not my idea of a good courtship.”

“What if it isn’t taken to that extreme level? A woman with fire. Sassy and strong but not necessarily hostile.”

“It just isn’t my type. I’m not fond of the sort of rapid-fire banter where we exchange sarcastic quips and the like for ‘fun.’ It’s nothing short of rude, in my opinion.”

“That’s perfectly all right. We each have our own personal taste…” [He glances at Unknown.] “I think.”

“What’s that look for?”

“Do you have any preferences at all when it comes to women?”

“What about you, kingy?”

“Haha, touché …every women is indeed beautiful in their own way. Except, I’m not interested in under-aged girls. Or those who look over a certain age. I don’t have a grandmother issue.

Someone who’s too catty isn’t exactly a turn-on either. To other people, I mean.”

“You have a bigger checklist than I pegged you for.”

“I do care about what goes on inside a woman’s heart too, you know. If she treats other people poorly, I’m not really going to like her.

Oh, and I’m not into the…receiving pain kind of thing.”

“Or giving it? Kehehe…!”

“Hmm…I don’t mind engaging in a little bit of spanking but nothing too crazy. I don’t want to bruise her pretty skin or anything.”

“I definitely wouldn’t want to receive pain either. Giving pain - I suppose that’s fine. I can’t say I really find it to be a pleasure, but if it makes her happy, I can certainly oblige her.”

“You wouldn’t consider it even a little bit of a turn-on to smack a pretty lady’s ripe apple bottom?”

“Uh -”

“Imagine her moaning every time you smack that -”

[chuckling] “Did I start this subject by mentioning that earlier?” [He moves to take a sip of wine.]

“Hehe, it’s more like, I don’t think Viktor was being honest with himself. Spanking is the least of the S&M scene. I feel he would enjoy that at least.”

“You know, I never said I wouldn’t like spanking -”

“Ahaha! You admitted it!”

[with a raised voice] “I’m just saying - that…I’m not into punching her or slapping her or giving pain in general!”

“Is that what you think S&M is about? Punching and slapping?”

“THAT’S NOT WHAT I MEAN. SPANKING IS DIFFERENT WHEN IT’S LIKE THAT.”

[As Unknown devolves into another bout of laughter, amusement twinkles in King Barium’s emerald eyes.] “We’re just teasing, Viktor. For the most part, anyway. How about we move onto the next ask?”

“Oh, this one’s for me.”

“But since we’re having a discussion panel, we might as well talk about what we think too, Viktor.”

[a bit flatly] “Right.”

“Hahaha! Look at him! He’s still all embarrassed after screaming about spanking and all!”

“You two were talking about that as well!”

“So, my Halloween was…nonexistent. Virgo Island doesn’t have that kind of holiday. On that day, I was probably doing what I usually do - being a king.

Taking care of business and then spending a night with one of my mistresses - Bo-Peep.”

“I played trick-or-treat with my kitten, of course.”

“Which one?”

“Brown eyes are gorgeous.”

[nodding] “They are.”

“I think they’re pretty, too. I’m not all too selective about eye color, really. Well, something like red can be a little alarming. It makes me think of rage and fury - neither of them good associations. I suppose yellow can also remind one of something nauseating, like vomit or bumblebees.”

“Bumblebees! What do you have against bumblebees?”

“Have you ever been stung by one before? Vicious little things! I don’t have any fond memories of them.”

“You know, your hair is yellow.”

“Bzz.”

“It’s different when it’s in your eyes!”

“Sure. Also, is vomit necessarily yellow?”

“Depends on what you ate - or drank. I guess Viktor has experience with yellow bumblebee vomit!”

“What’s the next question?”

“Age regression? Mm…if that’s what you want, then come to Big Daddy!”

“Well, sure? What exactly is it all about?”

“Oh, I don’t really know.”

“You liar. Look at the smirk on your face. You know what it’s about, don’t you?”

“Age regression…it sounds like it has something to do with going back in age? So, becoming a child or something like that?”

“It can also be a fetish.”

“If that’s the case, I can deal with it. Up to a certain point. I don’t want any diapers bring brought out. Pigtails can look sexy if it’s done right, but I mean, I’m still not into prepubescent girls…”

“Uh…what are with these subjects?”

“What was wrong with the other subjects? You’re the one who brought up spanking, you know. We were just talking about feisty females!”

“The king brought that up first!

Anyway, it’s weird but if that’s what she wants? I don’t know! I don’t really know how this works, but I would prefer if the woman I’m with doesn’t become a baby!”

“Do you mean that literally?”

“Okay! Last one for today.”

“Unknown, this came from you.”

“And? You know I like both. ♥”

“Both have their own appeal…but if I had to pick one, it’d be the ‘apple bottom.’”

“Ooh, so you like taking a pretty lady from behind? Like -”

“Do you just whip that picture out every chance you get?”

“Hmm? What do you mean? This is the first time I’ve done it - well, outside my class…kihihi!”

[Viktor’s eyes bulge as his cheeks flare with color.]“I-It’s Miss Ambrosia…!”

“Yes, it is. Do you like the idea of having her from behind, too?”

“W-Wait, you’re doing her in this picture?!”

“No, I think he’s just looming over her…creeping her out, if her expression’s any indication.”

“No, her expression’s saying: ‘Take me hard!’ Gyahaha!”

“I don’t think that’s how excitement looks. This is the face of a woman walking through the woods at night.”

“Is this better?”

“Did this really happen?!”

“It’s labeled as an ‘imaginary sequence’ at the top, Viktor .

You just look really creepy now, Unknown. And she still looks troubled.”

“Hot and bothered, you mean?”

“Viktor, can you answer the question so we can move on?”

“We have another question? I thought this was the last!”

“This came from you. We’re supposed to be answering questions - not asking them. Besides, I don’t really want to end it on this note.”

“Uh…uh…I don’t know…melons?”

“And you know we’re talking about body parts, right? Not actual fruits?”

“I know that! Do you think I’m an idiot or something?”

“Oh, it sounds like this Anonymous is definitely a female.”

“Hi, kitten. ♥”

“The better question is, why does a pretty woman like you seem interested in a man like Unknown?”

“Why wouldn’t she? Oh, and to answer her question on why I love ‘women so much’…well, I am a man. Does that not make sense? Kihihi!”

“Well, if you were to ask me…heh, your answer is pretty good, Unknown.”

“Why, thank you.”

“Women are beautiful.”

“That’s right.”

“Just to keep things moving, how about you list different types of personalities - perhaps, specific attributes or qualities about a woman - and what you like about them? Viktor and I will follow suit.”

“Ooh, I get to be in charge of the ‘list’? All right. Let’s see…”

Intelligent Women

Unknown: They’re a gourmet delicacy. ♥King Barium: I can respect intelligence. If she knows something I don’t, that’s certainly sexy. I wonder just what sort of moves she can teach in the bedroom…Viktor: Uh…truth be told, I’m not overly fond of them. That is, I imagine they like a lot of intelligent discussions and possibly debates, neither of which I care to engage in. I find those to be more tedious than anything. And if you can’t match their wits, I can see them being condescending as well.

The Valley Girl (the stereotype of a materialistic ditz)

Unknown: They’d be delicious to taste.King Barium: They’re cute and fun to be around. I have to admit - one of my favorite mistresses is like this, so I’m not judging. On the plus side, they’re usually talented in dressing up fine and making themselves look good.Viktor: I think it’s fine - just as long as she doesn’t have a temper! If she doesn’t get her way or if she can’t acquire a particular good, I really hope she doesn’t lash out at me. Otherwise, I see nothing wrong with this. She sounds like someone who would be great at livening things up! Right?

Hot-Tempered Women

Unknown: Let’s pour some barbecue sauce on this piping hot chili pepper! Gyahaha!King Barium: Hmm…this is a little similar to the “feisty” woman we discussed earlier, but it depends. It can make for…interesting bedroom shenanigans. But if she starts turning violent, that’s a hard “no.”Viktor: Absolutely not! If I have to worry about stepping on her toe every other word, that’s a hassle. Just seeing her would be a headache. I’d like my day to remain free of angry people, if at all possible - especially if I’m having a bad one. Having a partner like this would not be helpful.

Sweethearts

Unknown: They’re so sweet. Don’t you just want to lick them up?King Barium: I like them. They’re the kind who would make you a meal or surprise you with something thoughtful. It makes you want to spoil them twice as much.Viktor: Oh! Now, I like a sweetheart far more than the feisty kind. What’s not to love about them? I imagine someone deserving of this description to be kind, gentle and loving. Nobody argumentative or belligerent, certainly!

The Dominatrix

Unknown: Let’s take turns dominating. How would you like to be served? ♥ King Barium: Hoo boy…it can be sexy. I don’t mind a woman being on top. Let’s just take it easy when it comes to the whipping.Viktor: NO. Do not step on me. I don’t want to be controlled or bossed around either!

The Submissive

Unknown: Just lie there and let me eat you up…kihihi! King Barium: This list is definitely Unknown’s style. Anyway, I don’t mind. It’s cute and, I’ll admit, empowering if she actually does whatever I command. But I’m a king, so I’m kind of used to being in a position of power. Still, having that much authority in the bedroom…fun. I would just really prefer not to treat her too roughly.Viktor: I don’t see anything wrong with it. Yes, I certainly wouldn’t mind it. I’ll admit, it does sound like it could be sexy…I mean, I’m hoping she’s not too masochistic?

The Obsessive Stalker

Unknown: If you’ve been stalking me, you must know my tastes. ♥King Barium: What is this? This list started out so normally, too. I knew I couldn’t push my luck. Anyway…uh…I prefer not to be stalked. Or obsessed over to the point of said stalking. A little creepy.Viktor: Uh…I don’t think so. Aren’t stalkers the kind of people who typically hurt or kill you if you don’t reciprocate their affections? I rather not die any time soon, so I don’t want to be matched with an obsessive stalker!

Shy Shrinking Violets

Unknown: I’ll make my shy violet pudding jiggle. King Barium: Okay, this sounds more normal. Shy girls are cute - and they usually have more thoughts than they’re letting on. I’ll certainly be gentle with one. The process of having her warm up to me will be fun and rewarding, too.Viktor: I see nothing wrong with this. Just as long as these “shy shrinking violets” aren’t harboring any malicious thoughts or stalker-like intentions. Otherwise, I’ll gladly take the reins of the conversation. I love meeting new people, so I’ll be happy to walk up to her and start chatting!

The Chatterbox

Unknown: Let me taste those lips of yours, darling…King Barium: Hmm…I’ll be honest. If she’s going on for too long, it’s hard not to zone out. But if she’s just talkative and there’s meaning to what she’s saying? I don’t mind. I like getting to know what’s on her mind.Viktor: I don’t really like it, if only because I probably wouldn’t get a word in edgewise. I have a lot to say and I don’t want to overlap her, so it’s preferable if she doesn’t dominate the conversation. However, it isn’t the worst trait to have, compared to other things like the obsessive stalker or the sassy, hot-tempered one!

The Anti-social NERDY NERD NERD

Unknown: Let me nerd out over your sweet flavor…hahaha!King Barium: …Why is Unknown repeating the word like that - “Nerdy Nerd Nerd”? Anyway, it’s fine. I guess this is kind of like a cross between the “Shy Shrinking Violets” and the “Intelligent Women.” Actually, being anti-social doesn’t necessarily mean you have to be shy, right? Either way, quirks can be charming. I’m sure I’ll find her endearing.Viktor: I guess it’s fine? I’m just worried about how she’ll act during social events like feasts and gatherings. Will she cause trouble? I mean, one-on-one, I’m sure it’s all right. That is, assuming that “anti-social” doesn’t mean she’s combative or something of that nature. However, I don’t want her hassling other people or doing something to draw the wrong attention…

The Mean Girl

Unknown: I bet you’d pair well with a mean slice of cake. You know what I mean, honeypie?King Barium: No. I can deal with a lot of things - up to a certain point - but I want a woman who’s beautiful, inside and out.Viktor: Isn’t this similar to the feisty or hot-tempered one? I don’t want someone putting me down, causing trouble or being argumentative!

“Wow, Unknown…are you treating this as if it were a menu?”

“When you enter your harem, is it not a buffet of choices for you, kingy?”

“It’s just the way you phrase things…

Also, Viktor, you sure are choosy.”

“What are you talking about? Perhaps, it’s because you have a broad preference for a great deal of women, but I know what I want.”

“Are you sure? You had a few ‘I guess’s or ‘I think’s like you weren’t 100% convinced.”

“All right, fine. I mean to say that I know what I don’t want!”

“Are you sure? Kyahaha!”

“Anyway, that’s a wrap. 

I hope our answers satisfied you all, Anonymous. I know some of you just wanted to hear Unknown’s answer, but hopefully, Viktor and I didn’t bore you too much!

If there’s anything else you want to ask us or someone else, feel free to let us know. Have a Happy New Year.”

“Je t'aime, je t'aime, my kittens!”

“Wait, is this thing being made public?”

“Really, Unknown, really? I even told you I didn’t want to end things on this sort of note. Oh, I see you grinning, you dog.”

[chancellormatt]

Voltron Rewrite Episode One - The Dark Paladins

NOTE: The following takes place shortly after the events of Voltron Season 6. While it is meant to replace the final season of the show, neither Seasons 7 or 8 are considered part of this canon. Enjoy.

Out in the deep stretches of space, in the infinite hollow blackness, a light begins to shine. It is not a soft, pleasant light, but an aggressive violet one, that would hurt the eyes if looked upon too long. The light spreads out, and forms into a glyph shape. The glyph grows further, all the while the original core light burns brightly in the center.  The glyph’s size finally reaches its apex and the light blazes its very brightest.

Then, in an instant, the light and the glyph vanishes. In its place is the robotic form of voltron. But this is not the voltron we know. This voltron is dark in color, with purple lines of light tracing up and down its body and limbs.

    Inside the cockpit of the Black Lion, Emperor Zarkon sits, at the controls.

    “All Paladins check in. ” He says in his throaty, menacing voice.

    “Honerva checking in.” The Empress reports uneasily from the Green Lion.

    “Lotor...checking in.” The Prince pants out from the Red Lion. He is covered in sweat and looks the worse for wear.

    “S-Sendak checking in.” The Commander stutters from the Yellow Lion.

    “...Raimon checking in.” The maroon armored paladin of the Blue Lion replies stoically.

    Zarkon gives a slight nod at the complete check in. “Honerva, report.”

    “The jump between dimensions was successful.” Honerva replies. “...barely.” She adds the last, with a wince.

    “The fleet?” Zarkon asks.

    “The rift is closed. They’ll be dead in moments, if they aren’t already.”

    “Hm.” Zarkon takes his hands off the controls to interlace his fingers.

“So we are in a new reality with no army, no information, and no resources.” Prince Lotor sums up, looking none the too pleased with the situation.   

“We have Voltron.” Zarkon says harshly. “That is enough. It is always enough boy.”

“...yes my lord.” Lotor says after a moment, gripping his controls tightly.

“Sendak, get me communications.”

“I begun scanning the moment we exited the portal, my lord. It seems that the Galra Empire, in some form exists in this reality. The codes are different, but those are our signals. I’ll have them cracked in under a varga.”

    “See that you do commander. We have a brand new universe to conquer. We’ll start by taking over whatever flawed version of the Empire this reality holds. I am going to split up the lions for now. Lotor, Raimon, I want the two of you to search nearby planets. Find us a suitable place to rest for the time being. After that...we shall find out if this universe also holds its own Voltron. ”

***

        Voltron blasts onto the scene of a battle between Galra forces and the Voltron Coalition. The Galra outnumber the Coalition greatly. Voltron moves in between the two, activating shield and blocking the Galra line of fire.

    “Attention Galra forces! This is Keith of the paladins of Voltron. Lay down your weapons and surrender, or we will use force.”

    There is a brief lull in the firing, but almost as suddenly the firing kicks back up and redoubles, only now focused solely at Voltron.

    “I’m gonna go ahead and guess that’s a no.” Lance jokes.    

Keith only sighs.

“Just our luck getting caught up in a battle on our way back to earth.” Hunk says.

    “You’d figure eventually they’d give up soon as we arrive.” Pidge says.

    “The Galra are nothing if not stubborn.” Allura puts in.

    “Then we better show them we mean business. Form sword!” Keith orders.

    Voltron tears out the sword. The Paladins slam their throttles forward, and Voltron rockets towards the nearest Galra cruiser. With a flash of light the cruiser splits in two, then explodes. Voltron races towards the next cruiser.

        Inside the command ship of the Galra, alarms chime all over the bridge. Commander Skreil, a short, stocky Galra watches with displeasure as Voltron tears through another cruiser.

    “Commander we’ve lost another ship!” An officer calls out.

    “That’s one more commander!”

    “Curse you Voltron…” Skreil grumbles.

    “There is a way to stop it.” A voice says.

    Commander Skriel turns as a Druid walks out from the shadows.

    “The Crusher. It could defeat them.”

    Skriel scratches his chin thoughtfully. “And you’re sure it’ll work?”

    “Of course…” The Druid replies.

    “Very well,” Skriel nods. “Two can play at this game! Lieutenant! Tell our two sister ships to get into formation, and have the rest cover us.”

    “Done commander!”

    “Excellent! Now engage!”

    Outside, the Paladins watch as three of the Galra ships move close together, and panels on the sides begin to light up.

    “What are they up to now!?” Lance exclaimes.

    “Guys! I’m detecting some strong quintessence readings coming from those three ships!” Pidge reports

    Suddenly the three ships link together, and begin to transform. The bodies of the ships break into smaller pieces and begin to reconfigures. It forms into a massive, vaguely-humanoid robotic being. Then it reaches to its back and pulls out a long purple-energy bladed axe.

    “Hey combining a bunch of ships into a robot is our thing!” Lance says, sounding offended.

    “How do you like my PALADIN CRUSHER, Voltron!? Hahaha!” Skriel cackles over the communicator.

    “He seems pleasant.” Pidge says sarcastically.

“Uh...guy that thing’s pretty big.” Hunk points out.

    It is indeed, over twice as large as voltron.

    “It may be big but we’ve fought worse guys than this!” says Keith. “Let’s keep him on the defensive guys!”

    “Right!” The other Paladins chime in unison.

    Voltron blasts towards the Paladin Crusher, sword outstretched in front.

    “Ohoho! Attacking already!? How do you like...this!?” Skriel shouts out as the Crusher swings its massive axe. As it does, a blade of energy shoots out in an expanding arc towards Voltron.

    “Thrusters!” Keither orders, and Voltron boosts to the side, just barely missing the energy blade.

    “Oh no! It missed!” Skriel shouts as Voltron closes in, sword bared. “Just kidding!”   

    A pair of energy beams fire out from the Paladin Crusher’s eyes, and collide with Voltron’s chest.

    The Paladins all cry out in alarm as Voltron is blasted back. The Crusher pulls back for another swung of its axe.

    “Shield!” Keith shouts.

The wings slam together into shield form a moment before the energy blade hits. Voltron is shoved backwards by the blow, but otherwise unharmed.

“HAHAHA! You thought we only had one trick up our sleeves! This robot is the weapon that will finally destroy you, Paladins of Voltron! And more importantly, make me the new Emperor of the Galra! It's laughable that-”

    “Quick, while he's still monologuing! Pidge, you get an analysis on that things fighting patterns?” Keith cuts in.

    “Algorithms still gathering data, but so far it seems to want to keep us at a distance. As much quintessence as that thing has, it can’t have a limitless supply so it's gotta make cuts somewhere. My guess is it doesn’t have much in the ways of shields or armor.”

    “Keep us moving then, legs. Hunk? Give us the shoulder cannon.”

    “You got it Keith!” Hunk slams his bayard into his lion’s port.

    The cannon appears on Voltron’s shoulder, while at the same moment, its boosters erupt. Voltron zips around in a complex pattern, while at the same time it blasts its shoulder cannon directly at the Crusher.

    The Paladin Crusher swings its axe and fires eyebeams, multiple times, but none of the energy attacks come even close to hitting. As soon as Voltron’s cannon fires, it boosts out of the way before it can be hit.

    Inside the Crusher, the interior is shuddering with each blast of Voltron’s cannon.

    “Ah! Why isn’t this working!?”

    “The armor on this machine is...less than ideal.” The Druid admits.   

    “What!? What do you mean!?”

    “If they keep this up, they’ll whittle us down bit by bit.”

    “Quiznack! Well forget that, let’s bring the fight to them. After that Voltron!”

    The Paladin crusher boosts forward, chasing after Voltron. The Crusher starts to gain on Voltron, and swings its axe, in a bullrush to try and cleave the other robot in half.   

    “Pidge! Arm Cannon!”

    She slams her bayard in and the cannon appears on Voltron’s arm. One blast behind it’s back, and the Crusher is shoved backwards. Voltron takes the moment to whirl back around, and swung the sword at the Crusher’s body. The Crusher blocks the blow along the haft of its axe. The two struggle there for a moment, neither giving an inch.   

    “More power to thrusters!” Skriel orders.

    “But sir we only have so much quint-”

    “MORE POWER!!!” Skriel bellows.

    The officer throws a lever, and outside, the Paladin Crusher glows brightly with quintessence. Voltron begins to be shoved backwards, and the axe crackles closer to the head.

    “No…You...” Keith says straining. “...Don’t!”

    Keith rams his Bayard into the port on his lion. The wing boosters appear on Voltron’s back, and erupt into a flash of light. The Paladin Crusher is thrown backwards under the force, and smashes into a Galra cruiser behind it, which explodes.

    “Status report!” Skriel demands.

“We’ve taken damage!” One officer reports. “Outer armor layers are cracked!”

“Quintessence supply low!” Another shouts.

Skriel scans the display. “Where’s Voltron?”   

    He is met with only the ambiance of battle.

    “Get me a visual on Voltron!”··µ·

    “Wait...I’m getting a reading on our port s-”

    Suddenly, a blur moves past the Crusher, and it’s side is sliced by something, shaking the interior. The blur moves back around and slices the Crusher again on it's other side.

    “Critical damage sir!” An officer yells.

    “What on Diabazal is happening!?” Skriel shouts.

    The monitors finally adjust to the speed of the blur. It is revealed to be Voltron, moving blindingly fast via is boosted wings.

    “Oh...quiznack.”

    Voltron, moving almost too fast to be seen, zips back and forth, slicing open the Paladin Crusher’s armor with every pass.

    Skriel spins around to shout at the Druid. “I thought you said this thing could beat Voltron!”

    “Uh…” The Druid vanishes in a cloud of energy.

    Commander Skriel stares for several moments. Then he starts running. “To the escape pods!” He cries.

        Outside Voltron swings the sword one final time, and the Paladin Crush splits in two. Then Explodes. Purple energy lights up the battlefield, and all is still for a moment.

    “I’m getting an emergency signal!” Pidge reports, then blinks in surprise. “They’re...surrendering.”

    “Alright!” Lance exclaimes. “Another win for team Voltron!”

    Keith nods slowly. “Good job team. Let’s regroup with the Coalition. After that…”

    “Home.” Hunk says with reverence.

    The rest of the paladins silently agreed.

***

    Shiro waits in the hangar bay, alongside Matt Holt.

    “Finally going back to earth…” Matt says, as if not really believing it.

    “It’s been a while hasn’t it?” Shiro replies.

    “Hey you got back there a year or so ago didn’t you?”

    “Only for a bit.” Shiro shrugs.“Didn’t really get a chance to stick around or say hi to old friends.”

    “Well hey, there should be plenty of time for that soon.”

    “With our luck? We’ll be neck deep in Galra before the day is out.”

    Both laugh at that. They watch as the five Lions of Voltron fly inside the hangar, and set down a dozen feet or so away. The Lions begin to open up, one by one, and the Paladins walk out. They are met by cheers from other members of the coalition in the hangar, and are quickly mobbed. After slipping through through the crowds, they finally make their way to Shiro and Matt.   

    “That was some good work out there.” Shiro commended.

    “We did as well as-” Keith starts to say.

    “Heck yeah we did!” Lance declares. “Can’t stop the Voltron! I say Vol you say:” He points at the crowd behind them.   

    A cacophony of “TRON!” erupts in the hangar.

    “Vol-”

    “-TRON!”

    Lance smiles self-satisfiedly as the cheer continues without his prompt. Pidge rolls her eyes, but the others only chuckle. Even Keith smirks slightly.

    “Really, I am proud of you all.” Shiro continues. “You’ve earned this trip back to Earth.”

    There is a series of uncertain smiles.

    “Wonder what everyone’s been up to while we’re gone.” Lance ponders.

    “Hope they haven’t worried too much…” Hunk says wistfully.

    “I bet...Mom’s missed us.” Pidge says after a moment. She and Matt both look distant for a moment.   

    “Man...she’s probably gonna ground you for the rest of your life.” Matt finally says.

    Pidge laughs for a moment, then frowns. “You don’t...you don’t think she’d actually…”

    “Oh yeah I do.” Matt said nodding emphatically.

    “Uh oh…” She suddenly looks worried.   

    “Ah Pidge, come on, it's not like she can actually ground a Paladin of Voltron.” Lance says.

    Matt and Pidge both stare at him.

    “You haven’t met mom.” They say in unison.

    “But remember guys, this isn’t just a family visit.” Keith says. “We’re also going to convince the Galaxy Garrison to join the cause against the Galra, and help us rebuild the Castle of Lions.”

    Lance sighs. “Typical Keith, bringing us all down.”

    “I wasn’t…I’m not...ugh. Just...try to remember that we have more than one priority when we get there.”

    “We get it Keith. Loud and clear.” Hunk says. “I just hope they got food there. I dunno about you guys, but after all this traveling and fighting, I’ve worked up quite an appetite.”

    “I’m sure they’ll have food Hunk.” Shiro says with a smirk. “But Keith is right. After everyone’s done greeting, we are going to have to meet with the Garrison brass. For now, why don’t you all go relax. We’ll be making our approach in another couple hours.”

    There is a clamor of agreement, and Lance, Hunk, Pidge and Matt all head off. Shiro, Keith and Allura are left in awkward silence.

    “Well I should go...see how Coran and Romelle are doing.” Allura says. “He’s been working with her to try and figure out how best to approach the Altean colony once we are able to travel there. I’ll...see you when we land.”

    Then she leaves as well. Keith watchs her go, and stares off into space after she is out of sight.

    “You doing alright?”

    “Fine.” He says a little too quickly.

    Shiro raises and eyebrow. Keith sighs.

    “Well...I’m leader of Voltron...again.”

    “And?”   

    “And if you remember, it didn’t turn out so well last time.”

    “Things are different now.”

    “Are they? I only took the position to stop you when you were being mind controlled. I’m still not a hundred percent sure I’ve got what it takes to lead them.”

    “Well,” Shiro shrugs. “ At the end of the day that's up to you. You get out of the team what you put in. Do your best to lead them, be there for them when they need you, and you’ll succeed.”

    “I’ll...try. Thanks Shiro.” Keith nods appreciatively.

    “Anytime.”

    “Really though, I should be the one asking you how you’re doing. Having your soul torn out and put into a clone body must be...weird.”   

    “It's...something I’m getting used to.” Shiro admitted. “I do miss the robot arm.”

    “Maybe Sam can make you a new one.”

    “Maybe. For now, you should just worry about getting some rest. Something tells me we’re in for a long reception once we land.”

***

    The five Lions of Voltron fly alongside the Coalition group of ships, racing towards a nearby star system. As they fly faster, planets become visible. They draw closer to the third one from the sun.

    “Heads up, we got ships approaching.” Pidge says.

    Sure enough, a handful of space fighters fly out towards the group.

    “This is Keith of the Paladins of Voltron.” Keith said over his communicator. “Along with a company of Coalition of Voltron ships. Requesting Galaxy Garrison permission to land on earth.”

    “-Did you say Voltron?” A voice crackles over the communicator.

    “That’s right.” Keith confirms.

“Ah hell, I gotta call this in.” The line is silence for several long moments. “...alright. The...Lions, and one small ship are cleared for landing. The rest of you are gonna have to wait out here, well away from Earth for now. We’ll escort you in.”

“Understood.” Keith switches the line. “Shiro? Get you Matt, and whoever else wants to land in a transport. We’re going in.”

    The  Lions fly in, along with the transport ship, flanked on all sides by fighters. The lions and ships descend towards a massive Garrison base landing pad. There is a small crowd of Garrison personnel in uniforms along with civilians in normal clothes. The lions and ships land, and a moment later, all exit.

    The Paladins, with Shiro, and a small group from the Coalition approach the crowd.

“Mom!” Pidge breaks from the group, to sprint towards the woman standing next to her father. Matt is running at her heels.

“Katie! Matt! Oh thank God!” her mother cried out.

Pidge practically tackles the woman, and Matt isn’t much more graceful. The three of them grip each other in a death-grip of an embrace.

“Uncle Lance!” A pair of kids cry as the break from the crowd. Lance’s eyes water as he dashes to embrace them, he is soon enveloped in other relatives.

Hunk walks over to hug his hims family, a tad more reserved than the others, by no less heartwarming. Commander Iverson, along with a group of Garrison personnel walks over to meet the remainders.

“Lieutenant Shirogane. It's been a while.” The man extends his hand to Shiro.

“Too long, Commander Iverson.” Shiro replies, shaking the man’s hand.

“Gotta say, never thought you’d come back to earth with five...uh...space lions. I hear they turn into a giant robot?”

“I see Sam’s informed you all. And yes, they do turn into a robot.”

“Sounds...exciting. We’ll have to debrief you all of course.”

“I can help you with that as much as i can for now. As for the rest of the team, I think they need some time.”

“Understandable. Your team can take all the time they need.”

“Thanks. Oh and they’re not technically ‘my team’ anymore. Keith here is the leader of Voltron now.”

“Commander.” Keith nods.

    Iverson looks at Keith as if seeing him for the first time. “Well I’ll be. Sam said you were on the team but...well I guess I was wrong about you cadet.”

    Keith shakes his head. “I wasn’t...the best cadet either. It's water under the bridge.” He offers a hand that Iverson shakes.

    “I’ll be seeing you all shortly.” with that Iverson and Shiro head inside the base. Keith is left alone, with the exception of Cosmo. He scratched the dog’s ear thoughtfully. Coran and the Coalition forces are off to the side conversing with some of the garrison personnel. After scanning the area, Keith notices another lone person. Allura, hanging back by her lion, not really looking at anyone.

    Keith hesitates a moment,. “Be there for your team.” He says to himself, while scratching Cosmo. “Stay.” He says, then starts to walk over. Allura looks up as he approaches and smiles.

    “Don’t you have family to be celebrating with?” She says.

    “Not really. Krolia...my mom, is with the blades right now. There...isn’t really anyone back here for me to see.”

    “I understand.” Allura looks down.

    The conversation falls dead. Keith scratches the back of his neck uncomfortably. “Allura?”

    “Yes?” she looks up.

    “Are you uh...are you doing alright?”

    “I’m...fine.” She says carefully.

    “Okay. You just...well never mind. As your leader...you can talk to me. If you need to or whatever.”

    “Thank you Keith. I’ll keep that in mind.”

    After another few moments of silence, he walks back to where Cosmo still sits.

    “Man, I suck at this.” he sighs.

    The cosmic wolf barks, as if in agreement.

***

    “Can we get this over with, so we can go back to being with our families?” Pidge complains. All of the Paladins and Coalition leaders are seated in a boardroom opposite a panel of Garrison high command. There is one empty seat on the Garrison side.

    “Pidge.” Keith says warningly.

    “I’m with her.” Lance pips in. “I don’t see why we gotta wait for this ‘Admiral’ person.”

    “The delay was...unexpected. As was your sudden appearance.” An aged Commander named Sablan explained.

    “Didn’t Mr. Holt get you ready for us? Dunno just seems like something you had plenty of time for.” Hunk points out.

    “I tried to get them prepared.” Sam Holt says from the Garrison side of the table. “But telling people five robotic lions with a coalition of aliens are coming to visit is one thing, having them actually show up is another.”

    Suddenly, the door to the room slides open. A stern-looking older woman steps in.

    “Admiral Sanda.” Iverson says, standing up to salute the woman. The rest of the Garrison commanders do the same.

    “At ease.” She says, talking over to take a seat herself. “Apologies for the delay. The leaders of the world had much to say regarding how to treat this meeting with ‘The Voltron Coalition.’” She scanned the people seated opposite her. “Who can I consider the leader here?”

    All eyes turn to Shiro. He in turn, looks to Keith.

    “You better take this one, leader of Voltron aside, I dunno if you wanna trust me talking to these guys.” Keith whispers to him.

    Shiro nods understandingly.

    “Lieutenant Takashi Shirogane, reporting for duty, ma’am. I’ll be speaking for this group for the time being.”

    “Understood Lieutenant.” Sanda says. “Now, would you care to explain what this is all about? I’ve heard the story from Commander Holt a number of times, but I’d like to hear things from your perspective.”

    “Very well.” Shiro nods. “Last year myself along with Keith, Lance, Pidge and Hunk recovered five robotic lions, which when bonded together become the powerful robot known as Voltron. Together we fought against The Emperor Zarkon who had at the time, taken over much of the know universe. After many hard-fought battles we defeated him, but in doing so, left a power vacuum in the Galra Empire. To combat the fracturing Galra Empire we helped form the Coalition you see before you. We were one-time allies with Zarkon’s son Prince Lotor, who tried to fill that vacuum, but when he proved himself an enemy, Voltron was forced to defeat him as well. I should note that I am no longer officially a part of Voltron. My position was taken over by Keith here.”

Sanda eyes Keith briefly, before turning her gaze back to Shiro. “Very well, I think I understand the situation. Now I have a question for you Lieutenant Shirogane: What do you want from us?”

“Ideally? Unrestricted support to the Voltron Coalition. That means Earth forces fighting alongside the Coalition to finally put down the Galra Empire before it has a chance to get back on its feet.”

Sanda nodded as if understanding. “Absolutely not.”

“What!?” is the collective reaction from most of the seats on the Coalition side of the table. Shiro, however, does not look surprised.

“The people of Earth simply cannot justify getting caught in an interstellar war, that we so far, have been able to avoid getting involved in.”

    “With respect Admiral,” Shiro says, “it's only a matter of time before one of the Galra warlords finds Earth and decides it might make a nice mining colony.”

    “And should such a thing occur, we will respond accordingly.”

    “Why am I not surprised?” Matt says, putting his feet up on the table.

    “Officer Matthew Holt.” Sanda says. “No longer MIA I see. If I’m not mistake you are still technically a member of the Galaxy Garrison.”

    “Consider me retired. I’m full time Coalition now. And you guys should be too.”

    “We are not going to prematurely involve ourselves in a senseless conflict.” Sanda says firmly.

    “Senseless!?” Keith says, speaking aloud for the first time. “There are millions of planets out there that need our help! Every one of them that joins the Coalition makes us that much stronger to be able to push back the Galra warlords. Are you really just going to sit there and ignore all those people because you’re scared of fighting!?”

    Sanda narrows her eyes at Keith.

    “I think,” Shiro cuts in,“what Keith is trying to say, is that this relationship would be mutually beneficial.”

    “Indeed.” Ryner says. “We offer not just military assistance, but technology as well. Technology that has innumerable uses, not the least of which is for defence against the Galra.”

    “Yes we’ve seen some of this ‘alien’ technology.” Sanda says turning to Sam Holt.

    “We’ve used everything I learned out in space, along with with what we could reproduce from my ship to further enhance the Garrison’s technology. We’ve even begun work on a prototype mech know at the Atlas-”

    “None of which are to be used in this conflict with the Galra Empire.” Sanda interrupts. “As enticing as more of that tech is, it has been decided by men far above my own head, that the risks do not outweigh the reward.”

    “Then what are we even doing here?” Lance asks.

    All eyes turn to him.

    “What? We were all thinking it…”

    “The Castle of Lions.” Allura suggests.

    “Right.” Shiro nods. “If you will not provide military assistance, that is understood. But we left Sam Holt with plans for a ship known as the Castle of Lions. We’d like the use of Garrison resources to rebuilt it, in exchange for the earlier mentioned technology.”

    “You want us to help rebuild your...ship?”

    “The Castle of Lions is a lot more than just a ship!” Coran pipes up. “It functions as the space faring home of the Lions of Voltron, and gives them support in battle.”

    “It's essentially a mobile HQ for Voltron and the Coalition. It has innumerable uses. Unfortunately it was recently destroyed, but hopefully, making use of it's plans and the best of all our tech, we can make a new one just as good.”

    “You’d be hard pressed to do that.” Coran says. “My grandfather really knew what he was doing when he built the thing. That being said, under my careful guidance, it may be possible.” he says, twisting his mustache thoughtfully.

    “That may be within our limits. So long as it is not tied back to Earth. But we’ll need a bit more than simple tech upgrades. We need a...Sam, what did you call it?”

    “A balmeran Crystal.” Sam says. “The Atlas wont work without one.”

    “We’ll need to get one to rebuild the Castle anyway.” Hunk points out.

    “Those terms seem fair enough.”

    “Very well then. The Galaxy Garrison will assist in the construction of this ‘Castle of Lions’ in exchange for the crystal. But no direct military involvement is to be supplied in any capacity. Understood?”

    There is a chorus of underwhelmed “understood.”

“Good. Meeting adjourned.”

***

    “I can’t believe they could be so heartless.” Keith hisses. They all are walking back outside the Garrison base, where their lions sit.

    “Buncha jerks.” Lance agrees.

    “They’re only trying to protect themselves.” Shiro says. “It's understandable considering the circumstances.”

    “How about the circumstances of all the planets still under Galra rule?” Keith shoots back.

    “I’m not disagreeing with you Keith, just saying that it may take time to get them to come around.”   

    “Well they can take all the time they want.” Hunk says. “I don’t know about you guys, but my family told me they were gonna cook a big old feast to celebrate me coming home.”   

    “We should probably get going too.” Pidge says.

    “Yeah, I was totally right. Mom grounded Katie ‘until further notice.’” Matt says with a smirk.

    “Don’t remind me...” Pidge says adjusting her glasses uncomfortably.

    “I’m taking off too.” Lance says. “I’ve got a lot of catching up to do with everyone.”

    The three walk off, to greet their respective families.

    “Coran and I also have duties.” Allura says, nodding to Shiro, then Keith. She and Coran make their exit as well.

    “I’m going to talk with the other coalition leaders to see if we can figure out what to do next. You going to want to be there?” Shiro asks Keith.

    “No thanks. Think I want to be alone for a bit.”   

    Shiro nods and the other coalition leaders return to the ship. Keith walks over to the black lion, and finds Acxa standing next to it, petting Cosmo.

    “Didn’t realise you came here too.” Keith says.

    “Thought I’d tag along, see how it all went.” She replies. “Judging from your expression it didn’t go well.”

    “Not exactly.” Keith says gruffly. “They won’t offer any military support.”

    “Pointless.” Acxa shrugs.

    “What do you mean?”

    “I mean this whole Voltron Coalition, recruiting planets for the cause, it's a waste of time. That isn’t how you’ll stop the Galra Empire.”

    “We’re making progress.” Keith says.

    “Some.” She admits. “And maybe, if everything keeps going well, you’ll eventually be able hunt down and stop every one of the dozens of Galra warlords scattered across the universe. But it’ll take decades. Maybe even lifetimes. All the while innocent worlds will continue to suffer.”

    “You got a better idea?”   

    She nods“The Galra understand one thing: strength. You want to stop them? Give them a strong leader. A new Emperor to stop the infighting, and reclaim the Empire”

    Keith scoffs. “We tried that with Lotor. Didn’t go so well.”

    “Lotor was too ambitious for his own good. I’m talking about someone that would have all your best interests at heart.”

    “Is this the part where you say it should be you?” He says, skeptically.

    “Hardly. I’m talking about you.”

    Keith looks shocked.

    “...me? The Galra Emperor? That’s a pretty lousy joke…”

    “It's not a joke Keith. You’re strong willed, and a good fighter. Even more importantly, you command Voltron. You have power. The Galra will respect that, if you push for the throne.”

    “I’m not going to become the Galra Emperor.” Keith says firmly. “I don’t know the first thing about politics.”   

    “Galra politics are simple. The guy that hits the hardest is in charge.”

    Still Keith shakes his head. “It's not going to happen.”

    “Suit yourself.” She shrugs. “But there is a power vacuum in the Empire right now. If you don’t fill it, someone else will.”

    With that, Acxa gives Cosmo one final scratch then walks back towards the ship. Keith is left staring at the ground. He looks up at the Black Lion.

    “Emperor of the Galra.” he shakes his head. “Yeah right.”

***

    Emperor Zarkon sits in the Black Lion, eyes closed.

    “Father? We have a report” Lotor says over the communicator.

    Zarkon opens his glowing eyes. “Go on.”

    “No luck with the surrounding planets. All are completely desolate. However, we may have found something better.”

    “Explain.”   

    “Sendak and I have been going over the Galra communications since he cracked them. We have a lot of information here but a few key pieces seem especially important.”

    “I’m listening.”

    “First of all it seems this reality’s versions of both you and I are...well dead.”

    Zarkon’s eyes narrow. “...how?”

    “Unclear. Lot of conflicting information, you understand. It seems however, that your alter was defeated some time ago by Voltron. My alter fell to the same fate just recently.”

    “I was not in control of Voltron?”

    “It appears not. A few beings from some far off primitive planet, are piloting the Lions now.”

    “So the version of myself here was so weak we could not reclaim the lions all those years ago? Pitiful. I hope you have better news than that.”

“I do. Our deaths left a power struggle that the Galra haven’t recovered from yet. It seems the Empire is ripe for the taking.”

“Good. At least the Paladins of Voltron here are too incompetent to take it for themselves.”

“There is...one other thing. While Sendak was going over the different signals, he noticed on that was hidden behind the others. A subtramission. He couldn’t crack it, but as soon as he showed it to me I recognized the pattern. It was almost identical to a transmission protocol I used for my agents back...in the old reality.”

Zarkon’s eyes narrow again. “I’m going to ignore for a moment that you had a transmission network I wasn’t aware of. Whatever you found had better outweigh that misstep.”

“I think it does. The network is a series of communications between what I must assume was myself and someplace within this reality’s Quantum Abyss. After a little digging, I found a digital pathway, that should take us safely through to whatever is inside.”

“What are you expecting to find?”

“Most likely? Resources. A hidden base, perhaps. Maybe even something more valuable. Either way, seems like the ideal location for a new HQ.”

“Very well. We shall travel to this place and set up base. Once completed, we take back the Empire.”

“Vrepit Sa.” Lotor says.

“Vrepit Sa.” Zarkon replies, closing his eyes again.