#too bad i can't find them all in hd

[swallowedabug]

MAYKO NGUYEN Working the Engels 1.09 (2014)

[shijiujun]

A Summary: The Spirealm | 致命游戏 (Kaleidoscope of Death 死亡万花筒 Live Action) & Why You Should (Eventually) Watch It

Talk about the most short-lived drama release ever, not even totalling two hours if I recall. Creating this summary as I've seen a handful of confused friends, so here it goes!

It's going to be a long review because I sped through all 78 episodes and only properly watched the first two doors, but I got you. You'll get both the brief book rundown and the drama parts!

If you just wanna see the bromance (LOVE) parts please skip to section 4!!!!

1. Overview

Title: The Spirealm (kinda awful I'm sorry it's a mouthful) or 致命游戏 which means fatal game

Adapted From: Danmei (BL) Kaleidoscope of Death by Xi Zixu

Novel Prints: There are GORGEOUS Thai, Vietnamese, Simplified and Traditional Chinese versions printed, AND Singapore publisher Rosmei has signed the license for the ENGLISH version, probably going on sale this year (preview is here). You can still access fan translations by Taida on I think wordpress and someone else on Tumblr sorry bad memory (they did half and half each) if you'd like to read it for context. It is one of my FAVE danmeis EVER and I am a die-hard OG book fan, check out my full danmei review here.

Total Episodes: 78 (20 minutes each with the exception of last episode which 10 minutes, with several BTS not that I think we will get to see all of them yet)

Where to Watch (LOL): Erm considering that iQIYI China AND International took the episodes down, there is no legal way to watch this, BUT thanks to some cnetz with super fast and great wifi, we managed to get ripped HD versions without subs. iQIYI is very hard on copyright though, they've taken down several subbed and unsubbed versions already on YouTube, but you should type the titles of show into Twitter and the top tags will tell you where to access the raws and very little subbed episodes, that may also be taken down at any point. I have the Chinese raws but as it's hosted on a cloud, I had to pay to access it.

Main Characters: Lin Qiushi & Ruan Nanzhu/Ruan Baijie (in the novel) and Ling Jiushi & Ruan Nanzhu/Ruan Baijie (in the drama)

Produced By: iQIYI so for SURE they won't film it fully BL even if the original is, but I've seen enough bromance cuts

Main Actors: Xia Zhiguang (Ruan Nanzhu/Ruan Baijie) + Huang Junjie (Ling Jiushi)

2. Summary

Book (drama follows closely if not removing the supernatural premises): Lin Qiushi, a designer, opens the door to his home one day from inside and sees 12 iron doors outside. Confused, he opens one of them and arrives at a snow covered village in the mid of winter, and meets Ruan Baijie, who's a pretty, unusually tall and whiny/timid woman. They realise that they're in a horrifying door game, and they'll have to find a door and a key to get out, while battling a long-haired, human-eating deity. They, along with a few others, have to survive day after day until they get out, and on the first night, two people have died in gory ways. Ruan Baijie and Lin Qiushi partner each other, and despite seemingly timid and crying all the time, she saves Lin Qiushi a few times mysteriously, and Lin Qiushi finds himself trusting in Ruan Baijie.

They get through the door together and when they leave successfully, Lin Qiushi realizes that the people who died in the door will die in real life by some freak accident too - car accidents, forced suicides, a robbery gone wrong, a lift trapped in the air and going ablaze, and more. That night, Lin Qiushi wakes up to see a super handsome and tall Ruan Nanzhu at his bedside and this man feels familiar to him, but he can't put a finger on it. All he can think of when Ruan Nanzhu says his name is Ruan Baijie (ahem he would later find out who it is of course). Ruan Nanzhu takes him to his mansion in the suburbs where he meets a group of other people just like them, who're forced to go through the doors for survival. Ruan Nanzhu then invites him to join Obsidian, his organization.

Through various doors, Lin Qiushi grows and supports a super intelligent and powerful Ruan Nanzhu, falls in love with him, gets through many many scary doors with him and some of their other team members, makes friends, loses them to the cruelty of the doors as they ponder over what the door means, and what being alive/dying means.

And at the end of it, at the end of of it all, when they're all good and living their life, Lin Qiushi also finds out what Ruan Nanzhu's secret is, and the lengths to which Ruan Nanzhu went to, just to be with him.

Drama: Ling Jiushi is a VR game designer who gets pulled into a game, and he meets Ruan Baijie (in his male form) right off the bat (SO NOT CROSSDRESSING I AM SAD). All the parts are actually the same as the novel, albeit with the game setting and Ling Jiushi and Ruan Nanzhu's identity adjustments to suit the game premise. Most of the other doors and their lines are the same, just that the ending is a bit more confusing than it could be. There's a big bad as well and they actually show the opposing organizations when in the novel, these other organizations aside from Obsidian didn't even actually have a face or goal to them.

3. Characters

^ Them in the book (based on manhua that never got to go live LOL) (RNZ/RBJ left, LQS right)

^ Them in the show (LJS left, RNZ right)

Ruan Nanzhu/Ruan Baijie: MY HANDSOME CROSSDRESSING INTELLIGENT ALOOF BUT WHINY (WHEN IT COMES TO LIN QIUSHI) SASSY BOSS!!!! He's super mysterious and super thick-skinned too, and all he wants is Lin Qiushi's attention the moment he meets him. He's intrigued by Lin Qiushi's calm and his brains and the way he handles things, and has a lot of trust for him right from the get-go. This is also shown in the drama itself. As the leader of Obsidian, he cares a lot for his team members and his friends even if he doesn't show it most of the time, and the last thing he wants to do is lose Lin Qiushi, and he would do ANYTHING for Lin Qiushi, ANYTHING!!! Just look at him whining:

Ling Jiushi (Lin Qiushi): In the novel he's super calm, has quite a lot of brains, a little bit of a blur in the beginning but he's super smart as well. Worries a lot for Ruan Nanzhu and is also a loyal friend to some of his only friends, and feels a lot when he loses them. Falls gradually in love with Ruan Nanzhu in the novel, like they just belong together. In this drama, Ling Jiushi holds that same trust for Ruan Nanzhu, but in demeanour he seems a bit more like a klutz and and not as cool as he was in the novel, but I guess it's acceptable. Literally like the only thing he loves more than RNZ (maybe) is his cat Chestnut LOL and RNZ is NOT really happy about that but Chestnut LOVES RNZ

Yixie and Qianli: CUTEST TWINS ;-; WHO TREAT RNZ and LQS as their big brothers LOOK AT THEM BOWING AND RNZ/LJS like parents LMAO

A handful of other characters who will keep turning up and get your hearts ;-;

4. ALL FAVE BROMANCE MOMENTS + TROPES

THEY TOUCH EACH OTHER A LOT LIKE HOLDING HANDS AND TOUCHING FACES, PIGGY BACKING?!?! DID I MENTION FACE TOUCHING

WHUMP WHUMP WHUMP WHUMP THEY HELP EACH OTHER WHEN HURT OR GET HURT FOR EACH OTHER

AND WHEN THEY WAKE UP IN BED THE OTHER IS AT THEIR BEDSIDE

AND DID I MENTION HE FEEDS HIM IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE

AND THAT THEY DATED UNDER THE FIREWORKS LIKE THE NOVEL DOES NOT EVEN HAVE THIS SHIT

AND THE KABEDONS

AND FINALLY RUAN NANZHU RIZZ OMG

5. Settings

They REALLY OUTDID THEMSELVES. THIS JUST FROM DOORS 1-6:

THEY LOOK EXACTLY LIKE THE NOVEL DESCRIBED!!!!

6. Overall Thoughts

PROS: This was NOT a cheap production, I'm telling you, they followed the cases very well and there're a lot of super recognisable lines, if not ALL of them, even if they changed the cases a little. I think they did it because in the novel originally, the author DOES leave a lot of details hanging like someone dies and you know he had a background and there are some shady things happening but the author NEVER actually goes into detail. So the drama did their best to cover these loopholes, even if it felt a little awkward at times. Money went into settings and attires and every damn thing, this looks EXPENSIVE. And if you've ever imagined each door and the bosses inside in your head, you might have felt chills go down your spine because damn did they really colour the book's settings for me (despite its differences). DID I MENTION that Xia Zhiguang really got the damn memo and he was a passable Ruan Nanzhu/Ruan Baijie who knew how to turn on his BL eyes. PLUS they really did some of the character deaths really well - they're technically some of the biggest parts of this story so ;-; (not two main of course)

CONS (maybe): They did away with the supernatural/horror premise and replaced it with a GAME premise, which means that there's a scientific element to it and the try to explain away stuff with the game, including the ending. I don't 100% get the ending, but the feel/vibe is about the same. Might not be for hardcore reader fans tho! They skipped out on a couple of doors, some of which were my faves, but it's fine, it's long enough LOL. They give away/explain some of the clues and surprises super early which means you don't get that added boom at the back as well. Despite that, I have to say they tried to round up the loopholes from the book as much as they could and give it an explanation while tying elements/conspiracies across doors (probably also to save cast fees LOL). And as always it's not a solid ending, it's an open confusing one, and even more confusing than the book itself because THERE IS NO CERTAIN HAPPILY EVER AFTER WITH HUBBY for it (there is in the book tho, they live together happily every after). Secondl,y, I'd say HJJ's acting is a bit stiff and OOC compared to the novel, but Xia Zhiguang really made up for it.

-------

HOPE THIS HELPS YOU GUYS!!! But I guess if you need subs it's going to be a long LONGGGG ride, considering that iQIYI doesn't seem to be going to be able to put it up anytime soon CRIES.

[isa-ghost]

I always want more q!phil headcanons, even if there are not asks about it

Oh fuck yeah man. Here's my previous sets if you haven't read them:

Set 1

Set 2

Set 3

And here's more:

He fucking HATES feeling on edge. He's extremely familiar with it, but that never dulls his hatred for the ick it gives him. That knot in his stomach, the flutter in his chest, the reeling in his mind, the fire in his nerves, the tremble in his limbs. That unshakeable feeling that no matter what or where he is, his back is vulnerable. This man wants to be Fight over Flight or Freeze EVERY time, so when he can't control the situation or can't anticipate what happens, he mcfreaks it. How can he prepare to survive when he doesn't know what to prep against? Or in the case of the Ender King business, how can he do anything to prepare against an all-powerful God?

He's struggling a bit with the whole Rose thing. Does he keep her a Death Family Secret? Does he extend her protection to his closest friends like Fit & Ramon? He'd like to give them the same extra layer of security he has from her, even if just to give Fit a little more peace of mind, but he respects Rose & values her & her aid deeply. He doesn't want to stretch her too thin, or worse, come off like he takes her love & protection for granted. It's the one case in which, while very tempting, he resists that urge to be overzealous. He's just torn because he doesn't want to see any of his friends hurt. So because of the way he is, he feels guilty that he has a secret extra oomph to how safe he & his kids are

Speaking of Rose, when there's no immediate crisis at hand, he loves to gush to her about life. He talks so highly of Missa & Fit & Etoiles. He asks her if she's seen the latest silly things Chayanne & Tallulah have done. He rants on and on about the Federation. Can you believe those guys Rose?

He tries and, like in all other situations, fails not to swear around/to Rose. She's a deity, a very.. not exactly formal, but Prestigious deity nonetheless. It's no place for swearing. But Phil is cursed with Autopilot Sailor Mouth so half the time he's dropping f bombs while heated or scared about something, he's not even registering what's coming out of his mouth. Besides, he's gotta focus his train of thought or else them 80 HDs he's got will derail it. Can't be focused on not saying the fuck word

Speaking of ADHD, much like his swearing, he sometimes doesn't register himself vocal stimming either. Boosh boosh boosh, he's tunnel-visioned on his task. The kids & polycule find it endearing to witness. Sometimes they get passed onto other islanders

He thinks Bagi is so fucking cool. Like yeah, it's cool his good friend Cellbit has a sister or whatever but that's not what makes her cool. She's fucking brilliant. She's headstrong, she knows what she wants & what she's looking for. She gets shit DONE. And god help whoever hinders her efforts. He's allergic to giving himself any credit whatsoever, so in his eyes she's a billion times cooler & smarter & more badass than he is, rather than like. A few thousand times cooler & smarter. But yeah, she's a superhero in his eyes

Tbh putting him with either of the Theory Twins is a sight to behold. Phil is a brilliant strategist & very resourceful. There's such strong, immaculate chemistry between this man who loves to think & is a natural at planning, and either of the twins who are good at making the puzzle pieces fit & seeking out nooks & crannies for more info. When put together they truly are a force to be reckoned with to the Federation

When left to his own devices & off-duty as dad + not needed by any of the islanders for something serious, he let's loose. No more wise bad bitch crow man who's palpably emotionally damaged yet won't admit it. He's off the shits. You've seen Eggza. That's him de-stressing by fully indulging his favorite things: preparing necessities for survival & being an absolute wildcard.

I can't tell if I like the idea he legitimately can't see glass bc crow hybrid or the idea that he fakes it to amuse the kids & his friends For The Bit better. Maybe he plays it off like a bit but he legit can't see it. Idk.

I said it in a rant about Phil's characterization and I'll say it again: this man doesn't fucking realize he's flawed. Like he thinks he is but not in the way he actually is. He doesn't recognize his actual flaws as flaws. Or doesn't realize they're flaws. Or maybe is ignoring that they're flaws because he uses them to cope or something. Either way. What this man THINKS are his flaws & his actual flaws are entirely different things. In his mind his actual flaws are something he thinks are normal bc he's just Been That Way for so long.

This one follows the assumption that hc!Phil & q!Phil are the same person but his memory is lost, BUT: while making multiple bases (Phil & Missa, The Nest, Uppies 2, etc) is a strategic move against threats, it's also perhaps... a subconscious thing on Phil's part. Discovering massive, beautiful places & adding his own touches to it to either restore or improve his finds... He can't quite place or even explain why he enjoys this.

He likes to collect things that make him think of his friends & the kids ("oh Tallulah will like this!" "Ooh, Fit said something about needing that!") but because he has that good ol ADHD memory, he'll store it in a backpack for later & then promptly forget about it or get distracted

God, he is so incredibly proud of Tallulah for liking to build pretty things like her farm or botanical garden. She really is su niña <3

[Wants to support Chayanne by being involved in his cooking hobby] [Observes Chayanne cooking] [Absorbs no knowledge whatsoever] :D

He hates the rain. Not only is it a Quesadilla Island Horrors omen, but it's also annoyingly wet & makes for even more dangerous mobs around. Also the bad weather makes his wing pain flare up

If only communicators (meta: in-game chat) allowed for sending pictures. At least then he could send Missa memes while they're apart 😭

Stay tuned, I have like 4 other sets coming because I got asks. :D

[kerubimcrepin]

Exploring dofus-le-film.com and talking about movie-related events. [PART 1]

This will not go into the goldmine that is the interview Tot and Xa give about Joris. This is just a little, self-indulgent post. I hope you will enjoy it nevertheless.

The first silly action I took was extracting the site's icon and enlarging it in Aseprite, so here's your daily dose of cute official Joris pixel art. Anyway.

I love how the movie blurb literally lies about Khan being Joris's life-long idol.

CHARACTER BIOS.

Most of them include the information we already know, so I will only be pointing out things I personally find interesting.

For example - this art here depicts Joris's bald head under the hood as very round. Very useful info for us joris enjoyers. Reblog to slap his bald head, like to slap his bald head.

(Hacks up blood) Deeply caring in nature... papa poule... It is the second time, when Kerubim is called that, in his character bios, and I would like you to remember are these different explanations of this word combo:

I'm insane. I love him a lot.

Bakara is a pleasure to have in class :)

Anyway, I love how non-specific and non-alarming these character bios are. We can't scare the hoes by saying that beneath her cool exterior she wants to kill people around her and also drink 20 gallons of vodka, so "shy and stuck up" it shall be.

Again, it's hilarious how non-threatening these character bios are, considering Lilotte's whole parent thing is basically: (substitute "women" with "kids with families")

Coloring pages + Crayon Contest

A part of me wanted to be "haha, I colored all these coloring pages, for the Full Understanding of The Experience of this movie."

Then I realized that, as a person who is making a Joris painted music video, and had drawn at least 1:07 minutes worth of artwork of him and some other characters of this movie, I would rather-- [remembers that suicide jokes are bad] take cactus for a wife, than draw him for this blog too. I'm sorry.

Not much to be said about the contest, though this is epic:

This little Joris can be found at the bottom of the "win some crayons" page. It's cute.

BLOGPOSTS

This image was drawn for MIFA.

I want to unpack what is occurring here:

Goultard is holding his dragon boyfriend rather gayly on the shoulder. Interesting.

One of the candles landed in Nox's face?

Atcham, Joris, and Lilotte were holding the cake together. Lilotte is sitting on Yugo's shoulder, while Joris is standing on Kerubim's arms. It is reasonable to assume that Yugo turned to the camera, which made Lilotte turn as well, which made Atcham fall, which made Kerubim step away, and the only people carrying the cake who are still even a bit happy are Joris and Yugo.

Adamai is getting ready to catch Joris when in like 5 seconds all of them are going to be tumblring down Atcham-style.

Incredible. But this illustration is not the only gem that Annecy has brought us!

It also brought us more of Atcham being cool and awesome.

I'm insane.

There's more rare art here: these t-shirts featuring designs from a fan contest.

They were made in limited numbers. I'm including them here because we don't exactly have copies of the artwork, and I am insane about preserving art. It might be somewhere — but that somewhere is probably 2016 french facebook, so as far as I'm concerned, trying to seek these out is a lost cause.

Exclusive Merch

There were playing cards, and I am happy to report we DO have artwork for them in HD:

And also, here's a slightly higher definition little game sprite esque Joris:

This is the future crepinjurgenites want.

Kerubim VS Atcham Rigged Pet Contest

I am sad to report that Atchamheads have lost again, in this rigged contest. Imagine asking:

Would you like a fluffy guy you have watched an entire series about, or this bald guy who appears twice in the franchise?

At the very least, this gives us a canonical kitten Atcham design.

(Also, both of them were added, jsyk... Still salty though.)

Maliki Art

Maliki is a webcomic not made by Ankama, but with a long relationship and connection to Ankama due to being published by them in the past.

It's cute, really.

[mx-misty-eyed]

OK CLANCY THEORIES THAT I CAN SHARE NOW THAT THE ALBUM IS OUT

(I'm kinda going crazy here and possibly reading into things too much so idk also these are just my opinions and I'd love to hear other interpretations)

Clancy is using psychokinesis possibly too much and is becoming corrupted, I think he's turning into a bishop and is gonna fall victim to the cycle the attempt to reclaim red and to reclaim the power to fight against them might turn into him giving in. Like firstly "I'm testing the limits of what a mind can do" in routines like, nobody should be using this power their minds weren't made for it.

Then Vignette "not sure when it started, peelin' from his bones" then "hope it held together long enough for he to pitch the greener grasses" CLANCY STARTING TO BE CORRUPTED BY THE POWER BUT NOT NOTICING AND JUST HOPING TO STAY TOGETHER TO FIX THINGS FOR EVERYONE, also just "clinging to promises fighting off the vignette tunnels cave visions fade swallowed by the vignette" perhaps fighting off the corruption??? (also "no its not me its for a friend" Clancy perhaps becoming a bit selfish with his goal to take down the bishops and trying to lie to himself and say he's doing it for others???)

WE ALL SAW NAVIGATING (JOSH ISNT REAL WHAT THE FUCK I KNEW MY BLOOD WAS INVOLVED IN THE LORE) Anyway I don't even know what to say about the video I didn't even really watch it I was nodding off (fully awake rn) but THE SONG??? Just like basic stuff "pardon my delay I'm navigating my head disassociate" very just like, him fighting with the power and corruption and trying to figure things out, still trying to fight back against dema still. "How things change so rapidly I find my self-esteem, then turn so cold" STILL THE CORRUPTION

SNAP FUCKING BACK. THIS ENTIRE SONG AUGH gotta break it down a lot more than the others "got a bad feeling that i'm about to break been a good streak but the pressure's overweight" and also "got a bad feeling I'm gonna lose the lead" FUCKING CORRUPTION THE POWER AND PRESSURE IS GETTING TO HIM HES ABOUT TO SNAP "if I'm gonna snap necks then I gotta snap back" HE HAS TO FIGHT IT OFF AND COME BACK TO HIMSELF TO FIGHT DEMA (also "running from a thing that I kicked in '17" BLURRY?? that was the last blurry year before trench)

"blacklisted from forgiveness" and later "I have seemed to run out of excuses of why I am this way" could be him acknowledging what's happening to him and just accepting that. "its a backslide I commandeered a hot ride drove it til the engine died all of that progress lost today" FIRST OF ALL BACKSLIDE REF, SECONDLY HE IS DESCRIBING HDS AND HIS ESCAPE AND HE IS SAYING HES LOSING THE PROGRESS CUZ HE MARCHING BACK INTO DEMA!!?! "I've been praying for my elasticity to return to the way that it was" maybe Clancy saying that he wants to recover from psychokinesis the way he used to but he's not anymore

"I don't want anymore know me or not see me at my lowest you don't have to drop" if you've read this far then I think (?) that's self explanatory. "don't know how I feel man bout you sleepin so close to a weapon you conceal man" may either be about Clancy sleeping near antlers/just being too comfortable with them, or Clancy being the weapon himself. now for fuckin

paladin strait

"standing on the shore staring down a hurtling storm makin' it's way toward me" staring down his final(?) face down with dema. "here's my chance, time to take it can't be sure that I'll make it even though I'm past the point of no return i'm all in, I'm surrounded put my money where my mouth is" past the point of no return in two ways, hes going to fight them and there's no turning back now, and he's been corrupted and he's aware of that and that there's no changing it now he's just gotta complete his final goal AND THEN

"On the ground are banditos fighting while I find Nico even though I'm past the point of no return climb the top of the tower "show yourself," I yell louder" saying while I fight Nico even though I'm past the point of no return, to me, implies that he's fighting him even though he's been corrupted and may possibly be turning over to his side AND THEN THE WAY NICO GREETS HIM AT THE END "hello Clancy" IT WAS FAR TOO NICE AND FAMILIAR FOR SOMEONE HE HATES AND WANTS TO FIGHT, I THINK CLANCY TRIED TO FIGHT AGAINST THE BISHOPS WITH THEIR OWN POWERS WEARING HIS OWN RED HOOD BUT THE COLOR AND THE POWER TOOK OVER HIM AND HE IS BECOMING ONE OF THEM

[bodydoublegame]

Sawyer and MC being customizable means I will enjoy imagining the way they become accustomed to different body and health shapes like for example:

- short MC hating the fact Sawyer is taller, which meand they have to lean down to talk to people, they keep bumping into stuff they didn't worry about before, their clothing sizes are annoying because if you find something at the correct height, it might be too wide and baggy

- MC has bad eyesight but Sawyer doesn't so they are amazed at seeing all in HD but they also keep trying to push up glasses they don't wear now

- MC suddenly dealing with Sawyer's agent-related injuries and aches. "HOW ARE YOU STILL ALIVE I AM HURTING ALL OVER" "That's why they give us the good stuff"

- This is cyberpunk so either of them might have different modifications and they have to adjust to their existence or absence

This is gonna be so fun, I can't wait. 🥰

Lololol the flavor text shenanigans will be very fun

keep imagining Sawyer being 4'11 and MC being like 6'5 and they keep ducking when they go through doorways out of habit when they don't have to so people are like ??? what r u doing and mc is like "oh..."

all of that sounds so funny and can't wait to see the different ways mc (and sawyer) will have to adjust ! even better because sawyer's comments mc can't turn off lolol

[drarryglobesficrecs]

Accident Bonding/Bonding - drarry fic recs

Lift Your Open Hand by firethesound(18k)

With Draco Malfoy as his assigned partner for the next six weeks of Auror training, Harry had been prepared for things to go poorly. But getting themselves accidentally bonded to each other in the first twenty minutes of their very first assignment seemed going above and beyond, even for them.

In Evidence of Magical Theory by bixgirl1(43k)

When a hex meant for Draco accidentally catches Harry as well, they're forced to learn to understand each other in ways they previously might have thought impossible.

In which Harry and Draco can't fight, so they fall in love instead.

Beacon by Amelior8or, Andithiel, gameofdrarrymod, Kristinabird(7k)

Every year around Valentine's day Professor Potter is flooded with questions from love struck young girls about soulmates and soulmate bond lore, and every year, he gets through it as quickly as he can so he can return to his lessons. This year, however, his life is turned upside down when he encounters a mysterious object that lands him in St. Mungos, under the care of Draco Malfoy.

Celestial Bodies by shiftylinguini(20k)

“An astrological anomaly induced bond,” Harry repeats, deadpan, as the Head Healer of the Magical Malfunctions ward finishes announcing his prognosis.

“Space magic,” says Draco, tapping long fingers irritably against the arm of his chair. “You’re saying we’ve been zapped by space magic.”

The Healer huffs. “That’s rather simplifying things, gentlemen.”

If It Takes All Night by tackytiger(10k)

It's not the first time Harry's been the victim of a botched curse (that's one of the reasons he doesn't like crowds), but he feels bad that Malfoy had to get caught up in it too.

So they're bonded. That's ok, they just have to make sure to be touching at all time. No problem. Because Malfoy smells so nice, and has such lovely shiny hair, and his skin is so very warm.

But this isn't going to be a problem for their friendship at all.

Is it, Harry?

Drop Everything Now by parkkate(21k)

After accidentally bonding himself to Malfoy, Harry finds himself in an utterly precarious situation...

Chain Me Up or Set Me Free by alpha_exodus(12k)

This horrid bonding thing is all Potter’s fault, obviously. As for what comes after that? Draco’s not quite sure.

Harmonised Consciousness by Talizora(12k)

This time it's a spell gone wrong in Charms that will bring our two favourite boys together. Expect Mind-Magic Classic HD Clichés & Soul Mates

---

"Potter's spell is still active, but I can shield my thoughts from him. I've been stirring him up all afternoon! It's hysterical!"

Blaise gasped, "It's still active! But it's… Dinner time!"

"Yes, so?"

"S-so? That spell is supposed to cancel itself after an hour! It's been, almost four hours!"

Draco shrugged, "I'm not worried. It's probably due to Potters magic. I'm sure it'll time-out eventually."

Blaise frowned, "Draco I don't think this is a good idea. Maybe you should end the spell?"

"No way! Blaise! I can hear everything! Before, in Runes, Potter was ranting about how he wanted to kill Weasel and Trelawney! He's all over the place! I had no idea he had such homicidal tendencies!" Draco giggled.

One of Blaise's eyebrows rose, "…Draco? Did you just giggle?"

"No I didn't."

"Yes you did."

Twice as Much as an Earthquake by firethesound(12k)

Accidental bonding. Breaking and entering. Conspiring, however unwillingly, in the strange one-man war Malfoy's waging against detention. This isn't the normal school year Harry anticipated having, but at least it's not boring.

Tug-O-Want by dysonrules(16k)

Harry is back at Hogwarts minding his own business when he finds himself magically drawn to Draco Malfoy. Over and over again.

Hungry by birdsofshore(24k)

The first thing Harry knew about it was when he woke up lying on a bed in the hospital wing, with his arm firmly stuck to the scrawny, milk-white arm of Draco bloody Malfoy.

The Sleeping Beauty Curse by who_la_hoop(152k)

When Draco Malfoy falls into a cursed sleep and can only be woken – at least, according to the Daily Prophet, that impeccable source of truth – by ‘true love’s kiss’, Harry Potter knows there’s no way on earth he’s the answer to this particular riddle. Is he . . .?

Grounds for Divorce by Tepre(122k)

Malfoy finds a coin. Harry finds a letter.

A story about histories, a story about families. A story about a lemon tree somewhere in Upper Egypt.

The Destiny You Sold by tryslora(58k)

In which Draco knits, Harry makes wands, and things get very tangled up between them.

Mental by sara_holmes(186k)

Harry has had quite enough of sharing his mind with someone else, thankyouverymuch. A miscast Legilimecy spell says otherwise.

[hot-take-tournament]

HOT TAKE TOURNAMENT

VOCALOID RECOMMENDATIONS MASTER POST

I've been collecting all your vocaloid recommendations in one place, so everyone can take a listen!

And if like me you knew nothing about vocaloid before that nuclear discourse, maybe you'll find a hidden gem you wouldn't have found otherwise! <3

Submitted anonymously

Thought I'd add to the Vocaloid discourse by pointing out that several "irl" bands actually started out by using vocaloids. You can find a few who talk about it in the Hatsune Miku live concerts (super cool use of holo developed for those too!). That's really the crux of what sets vocaloid apart from much of the machine discourse; it's CREATED oppourtunities for small musicians instead of taking it away. Specifically by not just supplying a synthetic voice program to work with, but by tying a star identity to each voicebank that makes people more willing to explore obscure artist music. It also distincts the works made by the vb's from the artists who were paid to voice them, so you can't make them say things that sounds like you're putting bad takes in the original artist's mouth. Everyone knows and understands it's a fake version for the purpose of artistic creativity, not an attempt to steal the voice of the original singer.

Anyway since we're doing Vocaloid recommends now:

Giga - BRING IT ON (Inferiority superiority) ft. Kagamine Rin & Len

"Hop! Step! Instant Death! A Happiness Dance Death-Trap" and "The Path to Eternal Happiness...I Found It" both by Utata-P

Entomologists, Appetite of a people pleaser and Rotary Dial by GHOST

VIRAL ft. Meika Hime and Melancolia ft. GUMI by QueenPb

(note - Melancolia contains flashing images right from the start)

And last but not least, my personal Vocaloid feels song, TELL YOUR WORLD by kz, who sums up some of the beauty of the Vocaloid fandom pretty well

Submitted anonymously

Ok, I know the blog was kinda overflown of vocaloid discurse asks. So instead of discussing I brought RECOMMENDATIONS❗

Because, like, Defoko is pretty known in the Utau world, but she may be one of the worst examples of "human-like voice".

So to bring some counter examples of voicebanks that do not have much of a robotic vibe, I have here:

Some utuaus

【Namine Ritsu】-ERROR 2018ver.【UTAU Cover】

【Sukone Tei】Love Me, Love Me, Love Me (Music box ver.) 【UTAUカバー】

Some not so known vocaloids

[Aoki Lapis] Circus Monster [VOCALOID]

[Mayu] VOCALOID 3 ~Kodoku no Bannin~ Guard of Loneliness

【Galaco】 The Beast. 【Vocaloid3 Cover】

【MEIKA Mikoto】 Cantarella 【カバー】

And some slow songs, that require whisper-like tuning <3

【24 VOCALOIDS CHORUS】 Hirari, Hirari ひらり、ひらり 【HD】

Kamui Gakupo A Doll's Voice

Submitted by @indigo-flightly-falls

Oh!!!

If we're doing vocaloid recs, I'm here to suggest A Crow's Trial!

Vane - A Crow's Trial (ft. Dex & Gumi Eng.)【Vocaloid Original】

it's one of my favorites and has some Vibes. It's a bit hard to understand the story but the last verse lives in my head rent free :D

Submitted anonymously

speaking about the vocaloid debate- they haven't submitted the playlist yet, but if they listened to English songs using Japanese/Chinese/other voicebanks then it'll inherently sound a little off. different languages and different voicebanks have different pronunciations needed for speech, and are thus recorded for the voicebank. use a Japanese voicebank for an English song and you won't get the right words pronounced right, or you'll get an accent, etc etc.

also some vocaloids only have one or two voicebanks and that's it. Big Al only has one (i might be wrong on that, but i know his is for V2 software), whereas Hatsune Miku has every single voicebank made over the years (V1-V5) and has versions made to sing in Japanese, Chinese, and English. she has so, so much more variety than other vocaloids and can be more fluent and clear compared to lesser known vocaloids.

and since we're sharing favorite vocaloid songs to convert the submitter, here's two of mine because i have too many favorites to share:

Carnivore - OrgansDotOrg

this one has Big Al as supporting vocals and it absolutely slaps, also OrgansDotOrg is my-all time favorite artist pleaseee go support them!!!

Seraphim on the Ring - Mitchie M

seriously, if you're looking for realistic vocaloid vocals then go listen to Mitchie-M!! Katio and Len just speaking in this one sound just like real people

Fools are attracted to anomaly - Utsu-P

vocaloid is not all pop and 'kawaii', vocaloid metal is some of my favorite to listen to

some other producers i also like:

tart

Ferry

Riproducer

PinocchioP

Kikuo

SweetSoSweet

KakyuuKei

KaitsukoP

Submitted by @ssilly--ssadass

utau is underrated. not a hot take just my segway into giving you utau covers [also covers cuz nobody gives anybody but teto good originals. pick up the slack people. also sidenote no teto. cuz i was priortizing other utaus only to realize i added too many songs and couldnt fit a teto one in. sorryn't]

Aishite (covered by Defoko)

GHOST RULE (covered by Defoko)

Bug (covered by Chanchopin V1 and Giga Lacan)

Darling (covered by I think Darling- I dont know this utau and am going off the description being like "lmao Darling utau covers Darling maretu heehoo")

Corpse Dance (covered by Defoko)

ECHO (covered by Defoko)

(note - ECHO contains flashing images)

Submitted anonymously

really funny hearing the take about how vocaloids/voice synths can't have singing styles when there's multiple voice synths explicitly modelled after particular styles. prima (opera), sachiko (enka), and maiko hakaine (screamo metal) are just the ones i can list off the top of my head. and even if a voice synth isn't modelled after a singing style, they can still be tuned that way!

anyway, for song recommendations! gothic and loneliness is breathtaking (it's also a nightmare in project diva lol)

Gothic and Loneliness [Kagamine Rin] - Narushima Takashi

Submitted anonymously

oh wait can we still send in vocaloid recommendations? if so…

• koisuru beam by kyaami/cillia : this song is so cute and rin’s tuning here is some of the best i’ve heard

•jitterbug by hachiya nanashi - goes hard as hell and i adore the mv the song has

•lost and found by sasakure.uk - i only recently heard of it (idk how i only just found it) and it’s mesmerising i love it

uhh i can’t think of anymore right now but uhh i hope that if u hear these u will like them

<3 <3 <3

[koschei-the-ginger]

Screw it, brief reviews of Jason Bateman's filmography pre-Arrested Development

(there are only 4 pics but the post is long)

1981 Little House on the prairie - He was there for 1 season and already became so popular they made the grand finale all about him being a proof that God exists lol

1983 Just a little more love - can't find this one

1982 Silver spoons - they had to fire him because the second he appeared on screen nobody gave a crap about the other kid, iconic, I've only had Derek Taylor for 21 episodes but if anything happened to him yk yk..

1984 Knight Rider - Derek Taylor steals a car

1985 Robert Kennedy and his Times - I'm sure he's in it somewhere but it's like SIX hours long and incredibly boring

1984 The Fantastic World of DC Cooper - Derek Taylor strikes again

1984 It's your Move - Arrested Development for 6th graders, this show is SO fucking funny the parents insisted on killing it together with his Derek-sona for good.

1985 Right to kill - blink and you'll miss him, this is his sister's movie

1986 Mr Belvedere - MILF CHASER

1986 Can you feel me dancing - a commissioned tv movie to show off Justine Bateman's range

1986 St Elsewhere - see, Dave Hogan can do drama too (no)

1986 Valerie/ The Hogan family - his most famous role pre-AD and I genuinely don't understand why, stale bread even for a family sitcom™. Cancelled for being the only show that was normal about aids thanks to Jason. They also dyed his hair to a different shade of auburn each season for some reason lol

1987 Bates Motel - this was supposed to be a sequel to Psycho 🤨

1987 Teen Wold too - words cannot describe how much I hate this movie and everything about it

1987 Matlock - he's playing "Jason Bateman, the star of Valerie" only 1 year after they fired Valerie from Valerie hmm...

1987 Moving target - this was fine

1988 Our House - if your kids think giving 10k to a teenager will get them a record label at 13 it's on them, he did nothing wrong

1988 Crossing the mob - you can watch this but god at what cost, it's so grainy you can barely see their faces (okay movie tho)

1989 Breaking the rules - commissioned to show that he can do some "serious" acting, a tragic mistake on everyone's part

1991 Necessary roughness - Scott Bakula simps, I understand, no I seriously get it

1992 A Taste for killing - for every good movie (prev) you get 2 bad ones

1994 Confessions: two faces of evil - COPAGANDA

1994 This can't be love - *looks up synonyms for CUTE*

1994 Black sheep - can't find this one either

1995 Hart to Hart - he was so annoying they made him believe he's related to Donald Trump I can't even rgsthsrth

1995 An affectionate look at fatherhood - can't find this one either²

1995 Burke's law - this show is so camp you need to WATCH THE DUEL

1995 Simon - the writing is atrocious, he's trying SO hard to make it work while Harland Williams recites every line as if he had just learnt to read. Tragically, a must watch, I wish it existed in HD

1996 Ned and Stacey - a sitcom star playing a sitcom star in a sitcom making fun of Friends, 10/10

1997 Chicago sons - 3 polish brothers live together, Jared Paladecki isn't in this eventhough there are at least 4 people that look like him

1998 George and Leo - if this came out today AO3 would be full of this elderly gay couple

1999 Love stinks - not mine but yk

2000 Rude awakening - the absence of a laugh track caught me off guard, he's doing his best Bud Bundy impression down to the tragic goatee

2001 Some of my best friends - after this many cancelled sitcoms you stop seeing AD as a show that's simply good but as a miracle

2002 The Jake effect - if Scrubs was about hs teachers

2002 The sweetest thing - nobody cares about the men this is the penis song movie

2002 No way out - this is like Cary Elwes-kind of bad

2003 Sol Goode - blink and you'll miss him (idk what's even happening)

2003 Twillight Zone -someone get him an Emmy for trying to bribe a ghost of a kid he unintentionally murdered

[shifuto]

(the dvd ending extra yay \o/)

some closing thoughts after this 2-months long adventure revisiting Yugioh 5D's..

I feel like I finally could enjoy this show as it's supposed to be enjoyed and it probably has to do with the fact that I'm more mature now (also finally able to get the full hd experience 🤣) and there's a fun thing about having a dogshit working memory: to be able to experience this show almost as if it was the first time again 😊 I can't recall when was the last time I watched it but it was probably close to 8-10 years ago 🤣

some loathed characters became favorites - I was avoiding this show like the plague because Jack Atlas was just......... so bad for past me 🤣🤣🤣 - well it turns out his peacock personality and overpowering sex appeal worked on me 🙄 Thanks I hate it 🤣💜

some characters I paid no attention before became favorites, too: Rex Godwin have my whole heart and I am so sad he died.. man why do my favorites always die huh huh???? 😭 get me out of here with this shit......... also, Rua (Lua) is the sweetest little guy and I was so damn excited for him because he's just so goddamn cool?!??1 Wtf!! Also most the "villains" since I'm built different and villains are my weak spot 🤣

my favorites are still my favorites so it was a delight to go back to them and love them even more, and see them in a different way than before

and man....... the freaking shipping that was going on inside of my brain LMFAO AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

guess the most surprising thing though?

Bruno/Antinomy!

have to confess I did not remember him much so I kind of went on blind and, fuck me, he became one of my favs and do I even risk to say he IS my favorite character in this show?!!?? I could talk about this and about him for days but the long story short is that he checked all the boxes for me and pressed all the right buttons too and then he died too because of fucking course he died and I cried like fuck my life dude. That was so devastating... definitely want to give this show another go soon just so I can watch Bruno again. We have never had another character as cool and interesting as him in the franchise

as is tradition in YGOs, 5Ds started getting much better by the end, but it was very solid all over (except that arc full of fillers, it was annoying as hell because the episodes were not good), Crash Town was fun, and the last two arcs (WRGP and Ark Cradle) were very good

overall.. I think I'd bump 5Ds all the way up, becoming my second favorite YGO (guess it was in 4th place before?), because Zexal takes the podium FOR NOW, we'll see when I rewatch it and just how that will go XD

because we don't gatekeep on this house, you can find mkv+soft subs at nyaa dot si (best quality you'll get, but the files are fucking massive), and streaming at 123anime dot info (you can download there too, but it's mp4+hard subs). Both have all YGO series and a few other things too yay \o/

[waterfallofspace]

👉👈 Another… Hunting Dog… ask… 🍲,🎤 & ❄️?~

hehe~ as you wish! I've been having fun ^~^ ~From This Ask Game~ Under cut because I'm writing an essay-

~~ Key ~~ 🍲: What do they like to eat while they’re sick? Do they like soup, or would they prefer something that isn’t “sick person food”? Do they lose their appetite when they’re sick, or are they hungrier than usual? 🎤: How does their voice change when they’re sick or allergies are bugging them? Does their voice get lower? Scratchy? Raspy? Can you hear any congestion in their voice or do they hide it well? Do they avoid speaking too much because of a sore throat and coughing, or do they try to talk through those things? ❄️: Would it be more unusual to see this character sick during the winter or during the summer? Do they typically go down during cold and flu season, or do they usually get summer colds?

Fukuchi: 🍲 Basically whatever he eats when he's not sick. Not the type to eat differently, if anything he'd just skip meals if he's not hungry, but generally unless it's bad, it's not an issue. 🎤 If he knows it's noticeable, he'll avoid talking. Generally he gets a mild congested sound that he can't quite hide, and maybe a little scratch to his voice if it's a throat related illness. ❄️ During the summer. He doesn't get sick often, so when he does, it's usually when everyone else is coming down with things all around him, which happens more often in winter.

Tetchou: 🍲 Something ridiculous, I think. Like, he has specific meals that don't make any sense, and drive people (mostly Jouno) absolutely mad. Something like boiled eggs and noodles with some spicy sauce on them both. (to clear his sinuses <3) Appetite levels don't change, just cravings/comfort foods.

🎤 His voice gets deeper and raspier, he's at risk of losing it constantly if he overuses it, mixed with definite stuffiness that's audible in his words, but also in his breathing. Despite this, he doesn't actually talk less, even when he's coughing and in pain. Just powers through, and clears his throat a lot, which only makes it worse, poor thing~

❄️ Bit of a cheaty answer, but neither would be unusual. He gets sick pretty often, so him coming to work with a mild illness is nothing new. Though, it's more common to see him deeply ill in the summer, as he gets fevers from working too hard, and the heat messes him up.

Tachihara: 🍲 Most typical comfort/illness foods, soup, rice, noodles, etc. He's not super picky, and doesn't really care about making himself comfort foods, but he does aim for more simple meals when ill.

🎤 His voice gets lower, and you will know it. He loves talking when it's deeper because he likes the way it sounds, and he's pretty good at hiding his congestion and suppressing coughs, though the wince when he speaks is hard to ignore.

❄️ More unusual to see him sick in winter. Cold and flu season does put him on edge, and he's not immune to it's grasp, but he's usually more on alert, and keeps away from people when he can. However in summer, despite knowing he always gets ill, he lets his guard down. (Plus, the heat is not good for him, especially in his fluffy coat-)

Jouno: 🍲 The type to not eat, like at all. He'll drink tea, but generally his throat hurts too much to eat a lot, and he's just honestly so overwhelmed from being sick that eating feels like a chore. People (his fellow HDs) tend to notice, and try to find soft foods that aren't too flavourful to avoid overstimulating him.

🎤 Raspy, congested, he sounds awful. Though, that won't be what tips you off that he's sick. What will tip you off is that he's completely silent. Partially because of the pain, partially because his own voice starts to overwhelm him, but mostly because he sounds awful and knows it </3

❄️ Again with a slightly cheat answer, but neither is really unusual. He doesn't have a particular season he gets sick, he doesn't actually get sick all that often. At least, not to the degree where it's severely noticeable. However he does tend to pick up illnesses from others, so cold/flu season might be a bit rougher for him.

[beebascloset]

Rating Beats by Dre but only the red headphones

I've never owned Beats in my life but I would like to. I'm only rating these based on how they look, I don't really care about if they're wired or wireless, because I'm concerned about aesthetics when it comes to headphones, because Beats is one of the few companies who can make headphones look badass. And I'm rating the red ones only because I like red. And I won't be reviewing some if they look like another model (the Solo² and Solo² Wireless might as well be the same)

Beats Studio

6/10, I don't body shame, but I will body shame these headphones because they're bottom heavy. They're one of the first headphones by Beats launched in 2008 for people who made music, so this may have been the fashion. I really like the colors, but these are too big for me :(

Solo HD (Drenched)

9/10, really like the all around red color here. Though it's a bit basic, and looks flimsy, it's still cool and much lighter than the first Studio headphones.

Solo HD (Glossy)

3/10, these are ugly. The glossy part is fine, I like how the Beats logo looks on silver, but the gray? Absolutely ruins it. They did these glossy headphones bad.

Wireless

1/10, come on guys. Have you not learned? You made it worse by inflating the cups and—are those buttons on the outside? Not cool. I'm sure they work, but I don't even think the newer models do it like that.

Mixr

8/10, they're unique, I'll give them that. But why are the wires visible? What are those U-shaped things, and why do they have to connect to the band? Can't it just all be one thing? Regardless, I kinda like the colors on this.

Studio Wireless

5/10, they're mid. These are studio headphones, meaning they're not meant for casual consumers. It looks bulky and I don't like the gray. But it seems they've solved the button problem by making them look more discreet (on the bottom if you can't find them), if they are buttons.

Solo² Wireless

10/10, we're actually getting somewhere. I would actually buy these ones. These look more fashionable and professionally made because they gave these some dimension. The color choice here is excellent, and they're my favorite on the list.

Solo Pro

2/10, can you even call this red? I can barely even see the logo. These look off brand. What the hell even. Unreal.

Solo³ Wireless

4/10. I like this design better, but I'm still not liking the color. I'm not kidding, it's called "Citrus Red." That's like if you had a shade of green that looked kinda blue and called it "Navy Green." Not cool.

7/10, I like the color and design, but they're too big. I know they're studio headphones, but that's not the point. I don't know what the point is but it doesn't matter because it's my opinion and I get to choose what to say.

[the-firebird69]

Starcraft 2 Heart of The Swarm Ending | Final Scene Sarah Kerrigan【HD】

Our son and daughter say there's a fight here over control and they want to control our son and they are riding people and they want to be the ones who own the apartment and things like that and next look like Max yeah and in large part that's who it is riding people to get here to take over their jobs and Stan's job is a prime job it's primo they say and they compete with each other over not extremely hard but they're wrecking people who are here in those positions it's a very keen observation and it's very true stann is in way over his head just like our son says. Entire empire is breathing down his neck there's nothing he can do about it. And they also say it's another washout can't handle the empire stuff and their clams couldn't and they turned evil. Is Mom can't help it anymore and the creature is out of control in the beginning and it's just a ridiculous way of doing business and they're not going to go anywhere and they haven't learned anything and they're not controlling any monsters for real mac daddy is correct and that ultimately failures and have been for quite a while and their motif and modus is illegal cuts max out based on race and other things that are not appropriate and it's actually true you don't cut the smart people out of the max they say hey is a big mistake so this is going to occur and it's weird and strange Sherry is trying to save her to look like Lily for some reason and we don't want that crap these people are weaklings and that guy is a girl that fights Lily and Lillian defeats her and that's the scene to watch she looks like she's going to live through it though. She does get killed in a couple movies one of them is very badly and that's in the huntsman but her head is intact but she needs a body and uses a clone and it is from herself and it's not the greatest so she's trying to find the parents of Queen Elizabeth the second she can't seem to do it so she needs the Queen's body if you ever think of that one Mac and Mac is disgusted and says no and that's gross too and all of you are gross this is you really should I thought about all this cuz I told you that we do anything for our people and these Max are out of control and I guess you couldn't stop them but these idiots don't need to be here and it doesn't do you any good and it is gross isn't it I mean xenomore would be great dinner company for just about any Satanist so he says that's disgusting but I do see what you're saying I'm sitting here asking for more and more and it's already here tearing us a new one it's not fair that I probably is we don't like it but these people need out I understand you know it's them and you're trying to get them out and once again that got slowed down and things get really weird. And is going on and on things go back to normal sort of a little bit and people are huge assholes and then not and it's gross but really close on to fight Sherry in other movies and kicks her ass a whole bunch of times what movie is she killed her so bad the people are saying just give it up Sherry cuz it was gross and she survived that there's a whole bunch of movies that happened after the ever of all mankind parishes so this has deciding with Stan saga withstand and people think it's after Trump passes and probably is and he wants to move in the apartment and people are fighting him on it makes it easier here with Trump out

Thor Freya it does seem that way the Trump would be out before Stan but they're fighting up north and Warhammer and is beginning and Warcraft will start and starcraft and Pennsylvania is where they're fighting and he parishes and it is because of what he's doing here and he's a loser and keeps being huge a huge a****** and we think it happens faster than people think he has a bunker in Pennsylvania he's got several in the northern country one in New Hampshire one in Maine wanted Vermont and he's spying on his own broke just like he wanted to and it's because he his kids look like Max in nut cases. To make a long story short they know about it and they hate him they're trying to push him out and take the stuff and he comes creeping back in so trying to get him away from the apartment business and he doesn't own the apartments anymore the most part he doesn't have control and share and that's how the roof got done and they want him out for being someone in the way he said you're not on our side you're in our way so they're going to push him out of the business completely we feel and they'll fire him as a management company and Stan is going to say it. So our son says to Nancy kerrigan or Sarah kerrigan because Stan says we made you into a monster and he says this kind of adults or what so she ignores him and says he made us all monsters and it's an adult thing to say and it was Hera but Lily feels that way too and she said this guy is not even human it's not true it's just a stop screwing around with it thank God this is what is going what f****** prick my whole life I'm living like a popper from hand to mouth cuz of this stupid idiot and she said it laughing and said we were too that was great I didn't put them in power and it's sitting there sucking wind and saying stuff as you're lucky to be indoors I said at this rate with what you guys are doing and she says yeah probably but at least you took the clones on you know. And yeah they keeping poor and they're ridiculous losers and they're not helping themselves they ruined everything and they're just young and not very bright but this this ends it right here they strive to fight Jason's people because of the ACT and then find out Sherry was involved and they're fighting the woman and they all die

Thor Freya

Olympus

Zues Hera

[byteliker]

shantae thoughts 3

Half-Genie Hero this game marks the series' leap to HD graphics! i like them. while they'll never go back to the Classic artstyle i really like this is a very nice artstyle. this one was funded via kickstarter but that really has no bearing on any of my thoughts as i have no idea how stretch goals affected the end product. as for the game itself, it's very interesting. every shantae game has very distinct gameplay with design throughlines, such as metroidvania-type upgrades and 2d platforming. this game is much more of a platformer than the others. while PC kinda felt "level-ish" with the areas not being interconnected and the 3 sequences that are basically levels, HGH is very distinctly a platformer. every level has distinct regions and you can't go back unless you start another run of the level. the music has again changed, of course, with a very distinct style. the most obvious thing would be the much more prominent use of synths and other electronic instruments in the level music. things like character themes and other "flavor music" still uses traditional instruments (not actual real instruments you know what i mean). overall i like it, it's cool and interesting, again working to make this entry stand out. as for the levels themselves, they're also good and interesting. HGH marks the return of transformation dances, with way more than RR (8 normal transformations compared to RR's 3). this brings me to my first complaint. there's too many. ok well maybe not too many but they are not all utilized as much as they could have been. there's crab transformation, which is used in a few specific instances but stops being used once you get mermaid (and mermaid bubble). similarly, mouse is used to do some exploring in the 2nd level once you get it, but only gets used like, twice outside of that. spider is the same. you get it and can explore more of 1 level and you use it in a handful of other instances. thankfully transformations are incredibly quick so despite the fact that there's so many and you have to hotswap fairly often it's not bad. like PC, there's food items, but spells have returned instead of being consumables. bubble also got turned into a proper spell. as for upgrading them, it's just money this time, no magic jam to trade for. this is honestly pretty good since money is also nowhere near as hard to get as it was in PC. upgrades in general don't have much to be said about them. TRANSFORMATION UPGRADES HOWEVER... most of them are progression locked, obviously. there's a handful that are optional, and these are the ones i hate. they're fuckin useless. they add basic attacks to their transformation. except you're never gonna be in a situation these will be helpful. on the topic of dances (again)... there's a vendor found in 2 levels who sells some special dances. the big thing is that most of them are basically spells. they cost magic and cause unique things. i barely ever used them except for the warp dance which is really useful when replaying levels. i bring them up as they feel like precursors to the dances in seven sirens (TO BE DISCUSSED LATER). oh yeah i have something to complain about. i hate cape crustacean. the first 2 sections of the level are too simple and it's really brought down by the fact that the same song plays through all 3 parts of the level. the other levels are either a) only 2 parts with the same song or b) have unique tracks for different parts. it feels like missed potential to not give the ammo baron's ship a unique theme. oh yeah there's bosses to talk about. TBH i forgot about them not because they're bad or anything but it just escaped my mind. it's a shame you can't refight them bc they all feel pretty unique and interesting. i think ammo baron's the best boss fight in the game. i would talk about the final boss here but i still have to talk about the final level. so when you unlock the final level you get the option to get 4 clues by exploring levels and finding collectables which you then give to the respective baron. SPLIT DUE TO BEING TOO LONG

[ultimablades]

Okay, finally going to jot down my FFXVI thoughts, things I liked and things I wish had been different. No story spoilers so this is more about gameplay/game design choices, but I'm going to put under a readmore to be safe.

Pros:

Loved the main cast of characters. For me, the characters are the most important part of a Final Fantasy game, if i don't like the main party I'm going to have a hard time staying interested in the story. I ended up loving Clive so much more than I was expecting and he's quickly become one of my favorite FF protagonists. He is full of love and his journey was important to me!! Outside of Clive, I fell in love with a lot of the other characters. The Dominants were all so different and had their own unique stories and it was fun getting to learn all about each one of them. And there were so many secondary characters I grew fond of, I was excited to see them again. Also, last note, the main villain design was good. That's all i'm going to say about that.

Along with the characters, I thought the main story was really good. I don't want to say too much about it because I don't want to talk about story spoilers in this post but there were so many epic highs that had me going "Now this is a final fantasy game," nothing hits quiet like SE money does when it comes to jaw-dropping story moments and cutscenes.

I liked the side quests, yes most of them were fetch quests/go kill this monster quest, but that's just how side quests in most games are tbqh. They gave really good lore about both the characters and the lore so I didn't mind doing them. Some of them i think should've been part of msq.

I enjoyed the gameplay, Eikonic abilities are so varied and different, it's fun to mix and match and play around with them. The stagger bar was a good edition, I know FFXIII had something similiar but this reminded me of FFXIV's burst windows in a way, cause I found myself holding my LB4's and eikonic abilites for when I knew a stagger was about to happen. Dodging and parrying were fun once I got the timing for them figured out. I also like that you can't just eat potions and face tank your way through fights.

In that same vein, I liked the look of our ascension grid. Like, just aesthetically, I enjoy the design of it.

The size of the zones was really good I thought. This was another thing that reminded me a lot of FF14, but you basically have a set number of zones that are more "open world," that you can run around in, do side quests, find hunts, kill mobs, etc. None of those zones were too big or too small and I think they struck a good balance between FFXV's massive overworld that could take a long time to traverse and the more linear, straight hallways of previous FF games. Between your chocobo and the obelisks (which are just FF14 aetherytes lol), it doesn't take long to get where you need to go.

Boss design in general was really good. It's hard not to keep making comparisons between FF14 because some bosses literally look like HD versions of their FF14 counterpart and do the same attacks, I'm not mad about it but as an FF14 player I kept going "Hey it's blah blah blah." But boss fights were fun! Especially some of the endgame ones really made me think about my eikon setup and what abilities I needed to use.

Eikonic battles in general I think were a lot of fun and the biggest spectacles in the game. They don't happen frequently enough that I got tired of it, the controls for the eikon are simplified so I think it would have been annoying to do them too much. But they always happened at a story high point, so you're like "OOOOHHHHHHH" when you're doing them. The high point of the game for me was an eikon battle.

Active Time Lore in general. I love it. I'm kissing it. I want it in every game moving forward.

I didn't personally use these but I love the accessibility features they added that do things like making dodging easier, auto-linking your combos together, etc etc. More accessibility features is never a bad thing! This story is good and I want everyone who wants to experience it be able to. And now they've made it so you can turn off the motion blur, which didn't bother me but I know it bothers a lot of people, so I'm glad they included it. Should've been there on launch but hey, better late than never.

Cons:

The pacing in this game can be.....rough at times, in a way that is very FF14. The highs of this game are soooooo high, they are so good, but then the lows are like trying to walk through mud. You will do the coolest boss fight of all time and then the next quest will be "go do this boring task." I don't mind downtime in a story – it's good to have an ebb and flow, you need the slower bits to enhance the epic moments. I just wish they had used their downtime better. Again, it feels very FF14 msq in that regard, if you have played FF14 than you will know what I mean. I mentioned liking the side quests and I wish they would've used some of that downtime to integrate those stories into the main one instead of having them be optional. There is some good bits about our main cast members that you can miss if you don't do the side quests, and I think that could've improved the pacing a bit – slows things down without making it feel slow cause we're still learning about our party members.

The crafting system in this game is a joke. It doesn't matter, it feels like a tacked on afterthought. You don't have to think about it at all. You will never want for crafting material and sometimes you will upgrade your gear only for a stronger item to become available at the shop after the next cutscene.

RPG elements in this game in general are pretty weak. There are no elemental weaknesses or anything of that nature, there aren't a lot of stats, so you don't really ever focus on that, you're just going to use whatever gear is strongest. The ascension tree for your eikonic abilities is cool but beyond that, you don't really have much control over Clive's numbers, you feel me.

In that same RPG element vein, you have no control over your party member's gears or stats as well. This makes sense because who is in your party changes depending on where you're at in the story. I wish I would've had more input in my party's actions though, outside of Torgal who is very easy to forget about, you can't give commands or plan attacks or anything like that. The party is just always AI controlled and will go off and do their own thing. Mainly, I wish there had been more party synergy. This is something that FFXV does incredibly well, and since I just replayed that game before this one, I think it makes it even more stark to me. in FFXV, you can issue commands to your party members called "techniques" and you can do thinks like link strikes that are unique to each party member that really makes it feel like you're fighting together as a team, even if the other characters are AI controlled. I would've loved something like that in this game, party members doing specific team attack when they're near Clive or piggy backing off specific eikon abilities as his. It's very easy to forget they're even there sometimes. I literally just realized as I was typing this, you party members don't even have their own health bars!!! They literally can't die!!! I also wish there was more banter between party members, though that may just be a personal want, cause I loved that in FFXV. Idk I love a good party dynamic in an RPG and there just. Isn't one at all in this game really lol.

This story is really dark at times and I wish there had been more moments of levity and lightheartedness to balance it out. Maybe they just felt like it wouldn't fit tonally but I find having those lighter bits in a dark story can make us care about our characters even more! The story isn't all doom and gloom but there are no classic FF moments of silliness, you know.

Purely a personal gripe – there is no fishing mini game, gotta ding it for that.

Overall though, the game is legit like an 8.5/10 for me personally, I love it. I had a good time playing it. I'm still playing it when I'm not raiding. I'm going to beat it on Final Fantasy mode. I recommend it to anyone who loves Final Fantasy because this is without a doubt a final fantasy story.

I think the things that I listed as cons will be forgotten by most people in six months to a year and what will stick with people is the spectacle that was the boss fights and a story about the deep bonds of love that make us who we are.

TLDR: Game good

[theluxuriansecret]

Dear Diary 05072023

1123 pm

I'm sad. I have been feeling all these things different things lately and I've been trying to let things rock and just move along with them as I go. I don't when I need to let things rock or when to take control. You can't have control of things all the time, and you can't predict the outcome of things, unless you take control and ruin and or sabotage them, but does it have to be sabotage or can I not comprehend it in a way where the rejection is helpful?

Anyway. I have been incredibly stressed. I have these summer classes coming up that are incredibly expensive. I need to find a new dentist and cancel my wisdom tooth removal because I want a second opinion. I need to find this perfume my mother wants for mothers day and actually plan her mother's day. Mother's days is always so incredibly stressful to me. I have an exam tomorrow and it will literally make or break my grade. As of right now, I'm jobless and I've applied to soooo many jobs and internships and haven't head anything back, which is incredibly frustrating. And lastly, the guy I've been dating was really weird today, and I really don't like that.

I've been dating this guy for only two months, but it has felt like fucking forever. I honestly know that I don't like him as much as I initially did after he hd sex with me on his phone and wouldn't tell me what it is. I feel like ever since then I have tried to reinstate these feelings, but it is absolutley not happening, which is why I asked early when is it "letting things rock" and when is it "i'm being controlling". I think at this point he is definitely guiding the relationship. I don't assert myself because I feel like I'm too clingy but then I feel like it makes it seem like I don't care and I don't put in real effort. I think these are all things that should be discussed but I guess in writing this the real answer is I'm letting it rock because I don't know what I want. I don't know if I'm ready to commit. Even though I basically am not seeing (/dating/talking to /having sex with) anyone else. And although thought entertaining this relationship would benefit me and keep me from making bad decisions all it's done was make me question myself, in good ways though!