#write up

[kookoofufu]

I love Oda but man is INSANE for not making the timeskip more relevant to the straw hats outside of power ups

Brook: Literally a rockstar??? There should have been a running gag where people ask Brook for his autograph at every island they visit! It would be so funny if some villains were starstruck fans trying to keep it together during a fight!

Sanji: It would have been great if the newkama recipes came up more than once. There could have been a gag where Sanji stops in the middle of a battle to literally cook a power up for the crew. Imagine this man dicing onions in Onigashima, force-feeding Zoro a stew during his fight with King

Robin: She worked under Dragon for two years, met Sabo and Koala and maybe Ivankov, she probably knows the Army's entire plan to take down the gov and yet it never comes up! Does she know about Kuma? Nika? The five elders? Does she secretly communicate with the Rev Army????

Zoro: I love the idea of Perona teaching Zoro about fashion. It wouldn't have plot relevance but imagine him busting out some fashion tips out of nowhere every so often.

I'd love to hear more ideas, the missed opportunities here haunt me.

Edit: link to ongoing collection of headcanons since some people only see the first four ideas

[writers-potion]

Can you please share some words to use instead of "Look", I really struggle with that, it's always "She looked at him in shock" or "He looked at her with a smile". I know there's "Gazed" and "Glanced" but I wanted some advice to use "Look" less

Words To Use Instead of "Look"

Words Closest in Meaning (w diff connotations!):

stare

eye

study

behold

glimpse

peek

glance

notice

observe

inspect

regarding

view

review

look-see

get an eyeful

peer

give the eye

eyeball

size up

size up

check out

examine

contemplate

scan

recognize

sweep

once-over

judge

watch

glare

consider

spot

scrunitize

gaze

gander

ogle

yawp

Other (more fancy) words:

glimmer

sntach

zero in

take stock of

poke into

mope

glaze

grope

rummage

frisk

probe

rivet

distinguish

witness

explore

gloat

scowl

have a gander

comb

detect

surveillance

squint

keeping watch

rubberneck

pout

bore

slant

ignore

audit

pipe

search

note

speculation

simper

[beheworthy]

How Taika Waititi Ruined Thor

[This essay talks negatively about director Taika Waititi and his Thor films. Please don’t read if you happen to enjoy them.

Despite my best efforts, this post is 10,343 words long. Here is a table of contents for ease:

1. INTRODUCTION 2. CHARACTER – Personality – Funny nature – The way he talks – The way he operates – Power ups – Agency – Side note in ‘agency’: shirtless scenes 3. RELATIONSHIPS – His father – Odin – His love – Jane – Supporting characters – Weapons 4. HIS STORY – Character arc – His way forward – Torture p*rn 5. APPEARANCE – The ugly suit in Thor4 – Shabby AF casual clothes – Gouged out eye – Stripped fOr FuN 6. WEB OF LIES 7. CONCLUSION ]

Despite Thor: Ragnarok (2017) (Thor3) introducing a complete change of tone for the Thor franchise, the mainstream media has decided it was only ever received positively by 100% of the audience. Not a ‘divisive’ or even a ‘generally favored’, but a ‘unanimously loved’ tag was given to this movie and its director Taika Waititi for “saving Thor”.

You have to wonder who were those people who went to the theatres for the first two films if this film saved the franchise because they were both hits. But seeing as I’m the non-existent 0% of the population that doesn’t echo that sentiment of the media, I decided to shed light on how Taika Waititi didn’t save him, but actually ruined, destroyed, and annihilated Thor in every way possible.

CHARACTER

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: there is nothing wrong with Thor being funny, as long as it isn’t at the expense of his character. And now you know why I’m writing this thesis.

Keep reading

[tisthepamseason]

So - Taylor Swift & Florence Welch both have songs called Cassandra. Why is that significant?

✨First- Who is Cassandra, Anyway? EW.

Cassandra is a figure in Greek mythology, blessed with the ability to see the future & cursed to never be believed. She sees the fall of Troy before it happens but can't do anything to stop it (there's a lotttt more Cassandra lore, keeping it basic here).

In the 1940s, a French philosopher dubbed "Cassandra complex" to encompass situations where someone reacts validly & with reason and raises the alarm but is not believed until it's too late.

✨Second- What is Taylor's interpretation of Cassandra?

Taylor's Cassandra remains faithful and places herself into the myth, issuing warnings about untrustworthy individuals that went ignored by her peers, the media, and the general public - invoking her Reputation era. ("You can mark my words that I said it first in a morning warning no one heard"). She's telling the story of her Reputation era through Cassandra, who was famously ignored after giving warnings about the fall of Troy.

She references snakes in her cell, a double meaning:🐍 on her actual cell phone (hehe) & a reference to the snakes mentioned in the myth of Cassandra, where snakes whispered the future to her. She goes on to say, "so they killed Cassandra first because she feared the worst and tried to tell the town"..."do you believe me now?" asking if, after the witch hunts & death of her reputation, we believe her now that the truth has actually come out. She makes a point to say, "when the truth comes out, it's quiet. it's so quiet."

A line that I personally feel is very important within Taylor's story is "they say 'what doesn't kill you makes you aware' - what happens if it becomes who you are?" Changing the famous "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" to "makes you aware" is a very important distinction for her to make. Ever since she was made aware of the shady characters that exist within her world, she has been vigilant in order to protect herself, her art, and her integrity. Next, she worries that the struggles she went through will define her in the same way that Cassandra's struggles continue to define her today, which we've seen carry over thematically in albums she's released since Reputation.

In her outro, she reiterates: "When the first stone's thrown, they're screaming. In the streets, there's a raging riot. When it's BURN THE BITCH, they're shrieking... when the truth comes out, it's quiet. It's so quiet." Taylor Swift has not forgotten the volume of the voices that condemned her, or their apparent silence (lack of apology?) in the aftermath.

✨Third- What is Florence's interpretation of Cassandra?

Florence's Cassandra is a told a bit more in abstract, and comes after Florence believed that the music she was writing, as well as her own personal wishes pre-pandemic, seemed to call upon her the isolation that came during the pandemic.

She starts with, "I used to see the future and now I see nothing"..."Crying like Cassandra, I used to tell the future but they cut out my tongue" and tells a story of a Cassandra who had the gift of foresight, was cursed, and then was ultimately stripped of it & left to cope in the aftermath. Combined with the uncertainty & loneliness felt during the early months of quarantine, Florence's Cassandra is blinded, condemned, and left to question how she fits into the world crumbling around her.

[maximumspider]

[World Heroes 2 Jet & The King of Fighters '97] : Zeus & Orochi Yashiro

Zeus' intro/taunt animation and Orochi Yashiro's standing animation look pretty similar and after making a few modification to them, they look even more alike.

For this comparison, I removed a few frames from Zeus's stance and reversed the animation on Orochi Yashiro's.

---

Sources:

The King of Fighters '97 (Neo Geo) Parched Earth stage uploaded by @the2dstagesfg (page: the2dstagesfg.tumblr.com)

Savage Reign (Neo Geo) Lava Pit stage uploaded by @the2dstagesfg (page: the2dstagefg.tumblr.com)

World Heroes Perfect (Neo Geo) Genesis stage uploaded by @the2dstagesfg (page: the2dstagesfg.tumblr.com)

[ishratmumtaz]

I wish I had someone who knew the real me. The raw version of me. Someone who could listen to me. Someone who would understand my heart and its problems from my perspective, not theirs. Someone who won’t judge me for who I am. Someone who won’t change me just so that I can fit in their world.

Sadly, this “someone” will probably never exist in my life.

[ceramicteapot]

sometimes i lay down and the night sky seems to look down upon me. yes, it looks at me and not the other way around.

the stars feel like a million twinkling eyes but they’re kind. kinder than any human ones i’ve ever had the chance to look into. they stare but there’s gentleness in there, not the rabid desire to harm.

i’ll happily let the stars look for as long they want. i’ll look back at them and maybe in that joint moment of silence, we can acknowledge that we are both fucked. that they’re too far and i’m too little. too mortal.

so, we carry on with what we can. we meet each night and stare.

[cosmicstxrs]

Looking back a few years, I remember a friend of mine, she's long lost now, no contact, I don't know what she's upto, who she's with and what career she is chasing, but I do remember how she was just “not” my friend. While I was leaning my head ever so softly on her shoulder in a school trip via a bus, doing nothing else to disturb her, but within a minute, she moved. Not “moved” exactly, just purposely moved to break the silence and calm I felt in keeping my head on her side. Not that I blame her?

But just that, when it's the opposite, I go to the extent of sometimes not even breathing so that the other person doesn't wake up, I start noticing how I inhale, exhale and every minute movement I make meanwhile. There must have been reasons for her to not reciprocate the way I did everything for her. I never gave up on her, no matter what happened. But she did. Why? Cause she wanted to, no reasons, no closures. Just a quick self made decision for a thing that mattered to two.

But I don't blame her. Why?

Cause now I notice these small things. These pretty unnoticed tiny gestures people do for each other, or my friends do for me. I appreciate them a lot more than I would've if I didn't feel their significance. The friend I've now, lets me lean my head on his shoulder, he doesn't move an inch, he doesn't chatter much, he doesn't disturb. He just sits there still and fine. When I've had a constant fear of sleep due to the recurring episodes of nightmares, my friend doesn't go off sleeping herself. She calls me in her arms, pats me to sleep, gives me warm, consoling and “not-cringe-romantic” forehead kisses. She doesn't back off in defending me, neither in front of me nor behind my back.

Most important of all, they both don't take a decision single handedly in a matter that involves more than one. They are here to stay, and I hope they do.

In this competition with time, I hope they don't fly away. Cause, as far as I've seen, they both truly led me to the missing pieces of what I always searched for — little gestures of love and kindness, not romantic but instead platonic.

[capncococharms]

Games I Enjoyed in 2023

I did a big blog post last year where I listed all the games I enjoyed playing and gave my short thoughts about each of my experiences... and I'm doing it again!

Since 2018 I've kept a digital sticky note to keep track of all the games I've played AND finished throughout the year. For 2023 lots of folks claimed it was the "BEST" year for gaming and to some degree... I guess??? Depends on who you ask, but to me I only enjoyed like a handful of new releases and played a lot of older games (or remakes of older games). It was a year of reflecting back on what made me love video games more than looking forward to what's "new".

In 2023, I've finished 32 games. That's 10 more games than I finished from last year but out of all the games I played, here are the ones that stood out to me and left a pretty positive impression.

LIVE A LIVE

I never had a chance to play the SNES version, but I was very familiar with the game to some degree from the old days when I use to browse forum threads about RPGs I've never heard of. I knew I would get around to playing it one day and thankfully it got a remake on the Switch (and then it got a PC port later this year). I didn't get to properly play it last year, but after sitting down to play LIVE A LIVE... it's a game with a really powerful soundtrack, engaging characters, and a unique story that left me wanting more games like it.

I could type up many reasons why I like this game, but I feel it's something you have to experience more than anything. I don't want to spoil anything about this game. If you love Chrono Trigger then you will have a great time with LIVE A LIVE.

Final Fantasy VII- Crisis Core Reunion

I love FFVII and FFVII Remake. When they announced they were remaking Crisis Core I was excited to finally see what the deal was and by the end of this game... it left me a very broken man sobbing my eyes out. As a stand alone game it works very well even if you're not familiar with FFVII. It's a touching and contained story about a man striving to be a hero. Zack is a person I wish I could be in terms of confidence and wanting to do what's right. He's also a goof ball and I am very happy I got to know him more through Crisis Core. I don't want to say much about this game either, but PLEASE play it if you haven't! It made me finally understand why people love Zack so much.

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

I've put off this game for way too long. I had the chance to get into it when this game came out on 3DS, but I was too busy in college then. I ended up playing the PS3 version of the game (this was before the MGS Master Collection came out to every platform). At first... I wasn't a fan of this game. I struggled to play this game and felt like an idiot when it came to sneaking. I got stuck at the Volgin fight and out of spite, I started over on "Very Easy" to better equip myself. After working my way back to Volgin, I enjoyed my experience more and was engaged with what was happening around me. Once the game was finished, I was tearing up and couldn't help but think about how often true heroes are forgotten and how history is retold.

Thank you for the heartrending experience, Hideo Kojima.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

I had a weird experience with Zelda games this year. Tears of the Kingdom released and I went in hoping it would be a great follow-up to Breath of the Wild. I wasn't the BIGGEST fan of BotW. I had some faith going in that TotK would be a better experience. Unfortunately, after making it back to Hyrule my fears sort of came true. It felt like the same game I played almost 7 years ago except you can use bubble gum to craft and make things which is... fine I guess.

I kept pushing on hoping the story was going to set up something great and for a while, it did! The BIG twist was interesting, but once I got to the final scene I wanted to chuck this game out the window. The newer Zelda games just weren't doing it for me anymore so I decided to replay some older Zelda games (Wind Waker HD and Twilight Princess HD which was a TON of fun to replay) and decided it was time for me to give Majora's Mask another chance.

I ended up playing this on NSO and after a month or so, I 100%'d the game and greatly appreciated what this game had to offer in terms of setting, story, soundtrack, and characters. The setting is dark and terrifying yet it still keeps a goofy demeanor. I just fell in love with exploring and seeing how human this game can be (especially the finale). This is what I want to see with future Zelda games. I miss having ACTUAL dungeons and linearity, but we won't get that again. I hope that there will be another 2D Zelda game or Nintendo goes back to its roots with 3D Zelda games, but here's to all the indie devs out there trying to recreate that GOOD Zelda magic.

The Great Ace Attorney (Adventures)

I love this series but fell off during the 3DS era with AA6 (I still need to play that...). Since this game is more of its own thing I thought I would give it a shot and MAN! This game took the AA formula and dialed it up to 1000. In Ace Attorney fashion I love the characters, I love the puzzle-solving, and the mystery aspect where everything is tied together (especially that finale omg). My only irk is that the cases tend to go on a bit too long compared to AA 1-4, but I can let that slide because I was streaming this game, and having to voice and read EVERY bit of dialogue was exhausting (I plan to play Resolve on my own time next year so I can get through it much quicker). Ace Attorney still rocks and I hope to catch up and play more in 2024 (looking at you Apollo Justice "Trilogy").

Ranko Tsukigume's Longest Day

One of the shortest games I played this year. I love SUDA 51's work and wanted to give this a shot and it sure was an experience, to say the least. The gameplay is simple and difficult at weird times, but the one thing that sticks out to me about this game, in particular, is the absurdity and goofy humor (which is... basically expected with a SUDA 51 experience) with its visuals and jumping to different art styles and animation. Something about this small game makes me want to start working on my own projects more than anything. You can tell this was made with a creative team and the devs from Tokyo Jungle worked on it to so maybe that's another game I should look into as well... Overall, this was like a fun snack to chew away at left me with my heads in the clouds.

Pizza Tower

I don't need to say much about Pizza Tower. If you've played it, then you get it. Go play Pizza Tower! The OST and crude cartoon art style is what gives this game... uh as the kids call it... "soul". It's the Wario Land game that Nintendo will never make. It's 25% off on Steam! GO PLAY PIZZA TOWER!

Hypnospace Outlaw

Had a rough time playing through this game at first because it would crash pretty often. Turns out the game would connect to the wrong graphics card so after I got that sorted out, I finally got to play this game in peace, and... man... there's nothing else like this game in terms of telling a story/ narrative through faux web browsing. It's a game that perfectly emulates the experience of the late 90's internet browsing. There's a particular joy in exploring page after page to learn about all these characters and their hobbies. Letting the player take a small peek into their lives is a treat. As you get deeper into the game, you start learning about some of these people and who they are underneath their online persona. Without going into spoilers, the game went in a direction I didn't expect with its tone. The final arc of this game left me with some tears and a HUGE respect for what once was before what our current internet has become...

Hypnospace is really really cool.

Undertale Yellow (Pacifist Route)

Kinda unexpected that a fan game would end up on my list, but I'll make the exception. From what I've read, Undertale Yellow was in development for 7 years and that dedication and work shows in terms of presentation, story, and new characters. For a fan game, it doesn't heavily depend on needing the cast of characters from the base game of Undertale to tell its OWN story. Like Undertale, you fall in love with these new casts of characters and go through many vignettes in each part of the Underground where you get to learn about how these monsters live, and just like Undertale you'll laugh, you'll cry, and wish that the journey would never end. Once again I don't want to spoil anything, but for a prequel to Undertale's story... it's surprisingly more powerful than I thought it was going to be. Congrats to the entire Undertale Yellow team who worked on this. It was a pleasant December surprise that made me want to work harder on my passion projects.

I feel to some degree, I love this game probably a little more than Undertale itself...

Probably...

One thing for sure is that this game is helping me tide over until the new chapters of Deltarune come out.

2023 was a great time to play my backlog and give games another chance. Also trying out new stuff in the process despite my current feelings on the gaming industry at the moment...

I hope in 2024, I can continue to dedicate my time to slowly chip away at my backlog and try out new games (or older games I missed out on). Video games inspire what I want to do creatively and I love seeing what people can create and put out there.

[chaosteddybear]

Dag

Information gathered and finalized

Playlist

Age: 30

Height: 4'11"

Pronouns: he

Sexuality: pan

Relationship style: solo poly

Species: half elf

(picrew)

Relationships

BG3: Halsin

Star signs: pisces sun, virgo moon, taurus rising

Alignment: lawful neutral

Soul Coin: green with little line brown trails around it, swirling and striping it. Fuzzy and soft to the touch, a bit cool like the ground after a rain.

Backstory:

Dag is a bit feral. Somewhere between the dirt guy from Atlantis and Radagast from LOTR, but in a petite femme body. He's not bothering with coming off as being useful to others, so most people don't give him the time of day.

Dag was raised by a loner monk, being the intermediary between the old man and the rest of society. He learned how people, in general, work from this perspective. He also learned a lot about the forest, how to survive in it and how to help it thrive. The monk who raised him was very stern, boring, and goal oriented. He taught Dag about values and morales, many of which Dag still holds as taught. The monk has since moved away in his final years to die among his family, and left Dag his home and property.

He's very passionate about nature, seeing it as his friend and also his means of survival. He's not a druid or a monk himself though..... He's a warlock because of course he is.

Dag understands plants and mushrooms, so he's really good at foraging.

He has mushrooms tattooed up his inner thighs 🥺

He's friends with the crew and sometimes ventures out of the forest with them, but he cowers behind Turgi or Mix the whole time, or holds Sasli's hand and follows her.

Fear: Mostly he's just afraid of being alone. He feels weak and wants to be taken care of. Mix and Turgi help him feel secure and happy so he's nice and content with them.

Food: Dag is all about texture - he likes thick but soft things.....like mushrooms.

Misc Q&A answers, collected

-Dag smells like wet dirt probably

- He would probably think his biggest weakness is not being spiritual enough, as he was raised by a monk but is completely unfit for monkhood 😂 He is plenty spiritual in a natural way, but not via intellectual thought or anything.

- To drink, he likes dry hard ciders, especially if brewed with wild berries or something unique to the pub he's at. He also loves like all kinds of green tea, he makes his own matcha from scratch (he's a mossy boy).

- Could care less about physical touch, but if it's affectionate, he will melt.

- Love Language: Deep pressure. Dag will try and fail to crush you (bc he smol).

- If he raided be closet, Dag would would wear my patchwork stuff. Flowy skirts, cargo pants, bellbottoms. Clogs. Oversized sweatshirts. He'd also get dibs on all my overalls and coveralls, and everything knitted or crocheted.

[submissivefeminist]

spiral (2/14/23)

My Handler and I rely on Google a lot to solve disagreements on factual data and today we were smoking in the car and he went to confirm something I said.

“Hey check this out,” He says and I look over to his phone, fully expecting to be disproved.

I let out a tiny uncontrollable whimper as my eyes fluttered. Instead of falling down into trance immediately, I stared. The muscles in my jaw relaxed as I looked on. He encouraged me to let it take me down so I did simply that and slowly closed my eyes.

The parking lot around us disappeared as I went down, drowning out all background noise so the only thing I heard was Him. He let me float, as we often do. I enjoy the time spent swimming in space. Listening to His voice. Visualizing His words. Letting them take me deeper down to the cold darkness below.

And before I know it, I rise to His wakener. Surprised to find the parking still existing around me. Slightly embarrassed but undeniably excited to know how easily He can rip me away from the world around me and--even if for one short moment--give me peace of mind.

[kookoofufu]

Obsessed with how buggy kept his apprenticeship with Roger a secret. You'd think a guy who calls himself flashy would be as vocal as possible about his captain, the adventures they had, his connection to an emperor. But no, he never talked about it, and it's not just because he's a coward.

Buggy stayed in the same sea where his captain was killed for over a decade, the weakest sea in the world. He sought a lesser treasure no one cared about, terrorized small towns that couldn't fight back, didn't stay in contact with his former crew. These aren't the actions of a man seeking fame and fortune. If anything, he was actively sweeping himself under the rug of history.

Buggy wasn't biding his time in east blue, he was hiding. And now we know he was hiding because he didn't believe he deserved to chase his real dreams when Shanks existed, who had so much potential. So he stayed stagnant and comfortable in his little corner of the world, pretending he was satisfied, until a rubber boy jolted him out of his complacency, wearing a familiar straw hat...

[writers-potion]

I’ve seen your kiss scene and fight scene vocab posts and was wondering if you could do one about some things characters may do when they are nervous, or there is awkward tension — not necessarily romantic but just awkward.

Nervous Tension Vocab

Physical Reactions

have sweat beading/breaking out on one's forehead

have one's heart in one's mouth (or throat)

have one's heart pounding (or pulse racing)

butterflies in one's stomach

hand feeling clammy

knees bouncing

pacing back and forth

tearing up due to embarassment (wanting to cry)

Shift their weight from one foot to the other

Sway slightly where they are standing

Fidget with their hair, clothes, nails, or something they’re holding

Glance around the room or refuse to make eye contact with someone

Chew on their lips or nails

Hum quietly to themself

Tap their fingers on their arm, the wall, or a table

Wrap their arms around themself

Cross their arms or legs while seated

Pick at their lips or cover their mouth

Rub their own neck or shoulder

Sigh often

Sit with their knees up near their chest, or lay in the fetal position

Look stiff and uncomfortable

Check over their shoulder often, or glance around the room

Cough or clear their throat often

A pounding heartbeat, or the feeling that their heartbeat is in their head

Accelerated or heavy breathing

A tingling sensation in their fingers, hands, or legs

A rush of energy (which would suddenly leave them afterward, making them even more tired than usual)

Dizziness

Tightened muscles

Descriptors

fumbled

blushed

winced

fidgeted

cringed

stuttered

giggled

afluttered

agitated

robotic

hesitant

bothered

distracted

edgy

clumsily

awkwardly

distractedly

flustered

frantically

frayed

hypertense

nervy

jittery

jumpy

intimidated

paranoid

perturbed

rattled

queasiness

restive

restless

skittery

shudder

skittish

strung up

tenterhooks

tight

stressy

uneasy

unquiet

twitchy

unsettled

uptight

unrelaxed

Idioms

be at your wit's ends

be bricking it

be ill at ease

be on pins and needles

be under the gun

get in a sweat

have all the cares of the world on your shoulders

have kittens

like a cat on a hot tin roof

sweat bullets

If you like my blog, buy me a coffee☕ and find me on instagram! 📸

[beheworthy]

Jane, listen to me. You must not give up. You must finish what you've started. Why? Because you're right.

Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman's chemistry in Thor4 is unanimously hailed as the best thing about the film. While I absolutely agree with the consensus, for me, it started here with this scene 11 years ago.

This is the big romantic scene where the couple falls in love as they connect with each other. For example, Tony and Pep's dance in IronMan1: Pep is in a backless gown which she makes a point to mention and they almost kiss. Diana and Steve dance in the snow in Wonder Woman: they are also dancing close to each other, she even says so and it directly leads to them sleeping together. Arthur and Mera roam about in Italy in Aquaman: he catches her fall and they almost kiss as well.

These are all scenes I love from movies I love. I'm just using them as a reference to point out what director Kenneth Branagh does differently here. This scene is where his brilliance shines. He gives us romance without anything sexual or even sensual. It's just heartfelt sincere emotion between the two characters that elevates it to something more than just attraction.

It begins with Jane talking about the significance of the place she's brought Thor to, Thor thanking her for helping him, and her making a joke about hitting him twice in their aggressive meet cute, which he so graciously takes (post-Ragnarok Thor would never). He then gives her her notebook so she can continue her research. It's a humbling moment for the cocky Crown Prince as he'd so casually promised to bring everything back but all he could really bring was a notebook.

This is more than anyone has done for her because no one even believes in her research, let alone help her continue it. She understandably gets upset about having to start over with no support + with a hostile organization on her back now. And then comes the most important bit, he encourages her to keep going BECAUSE she is right. Not a cheesy 'I believe in you' or a fake deep 'believe in yourself' or even a superficial 'don't give up'. But keep going because you are right. Plain and simple. It gets through to her because it's straightforward and honest.

He then elaborates on it by explaining to her about the cosmos which directly furthers her research. He actively helps her research and supports her in the true sense, something she really needed and rarely got. And that becomes the foundation of their connection. The lighting is perfect, the ambiance is perfect. The actors do an admirable job. They don't touch at all, mind you. They're sitting with some distance between them. They don't even look into each other's eyes. Nothing romantic is said or done here. Yet, it’s romantic.

This scene is quite literally the reward of Thor’s hero’s journey: her. He learns kindness, sincerity, and humility from her and tries to emulate it going forward. She is his reward.

We get the emotional scene later when he dies for this town of 30 people. We get the big damn kiss. He literally gets her her research back. We get everything. Later. This scene was solely about the connection that sets the base for their relationship. It's the why of their love story. Both Thor and Jane are instrumental in each other's growth and make each other better people. She made him worthy and he made her believe in herself. I love the idea that love should be something that empowers and inspires you.

+

[tetdumps]

LMAOOO this episode (ep3) is just too funny HELP. there was so much chaos going on, but i'll just mention the ones i laughed hard at

the fact that Ex called her excited face as "Dumb Face-o-Meter" cracked me tf up

then it gradually goes up which makes it more funny but i really like the transitioning of her facial expressions, it's just TOO good

and finally her final "Dumb Face-o-Meter" when she finally confesses is my favorite expression this whole season. this show is really making my whole week, strengthening my reason why Comedy is my top favourite genre lool

and here goes our Demon Lord who's done nothing but be RELATABLE and making everything an excuse to not raid the humans despite all the useful information he's got. i love it.

same, sir, same.

pls this was too funny. this ep started with him literally chanting and if i count it right, this mf been chanting for 3-4 days just for the effect to last no longer than a minute LMAO i cannot

and finally... LMAOO reality definitely can be quite something huh (jk he seems sweet) but yeah, girls (like me) who love shoujo manga have definitely gone through the harsh reality of life—okay i'm kidding but the shoujo girls get it. yes, yes.

anyways, i really enjoyed this episode, if i was to rate it, i'd definitely give it a personal score of 5★ for entertaining me till the end.

P.S. love the new introduction of character here. we ALL must protect Mao-Mao!

[maximumspider]

[Super Mario World] : Luigi

Super Mario World: Super Mario Bros. 4 (SNES, 1990)

While Luigi is playable in the original version of Super Mario World, he’s essentially a recolor of Mario.

Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World (SNES, 1994)

In Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World, many of Luigi's sprites are redesigned to highlight his physical differences from his older brother.

The quirkiest difference in this revised set of sprites has Luigi now spitting fireballs when empowered by the Fire Flower. I don’t believe Luigi or any other character has used the Fire Flower like this since.

Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2 (GBA, 2001)

In the Gameboy Advance remake/reissue of Mario World, Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2 (who named these games?!) Luigi’s set of sprites is modified once again.

Luigi’s look in this game is like a fusion of his appearance in the original version of Mario World and its revision for the All-Stars collection. Most notably, Luigi no longer spits fire and now flutters his legs when jumping.

The latter attribute originated with Super Mario Bros. 2 and has become a staple of Luigi's repertoire ever since. And just like in SMB2, Luigi is playable in single player without any hassle.

As with many GBA games from this era, the colors look washed out. As a result, this version of SMW is much less vibrant and crisp looking.

Super Mario Maker 2 (NS, 2019)

After I finished my first version of this essay, I stumbled upon some Super Mario Maker 2 sprites and realized that Luigi's SMW sprite was updated once again.

I can't currently rip sprites and record lossless footage of Nintendo Switch games, so I'll just be posting a comparisons between all of Luigi's SMW sprites.

@DaNintendoDude on Twitter created this graphic explaining the potential process that might've been used to create Luigi's sprite for Mario Maker 2.

The Nintendo "Gigaleak" (2018)

A few years ago, there was a massive leak from Nintendo's internal servers, where among many things, prototype graphics from Super Mario World were discovered:

Interestingly enough, It appears that Nintendo may have originally intended for Luigi to get his own unique sprites in the original release of Mario World, but was then scrapped in favor of a simple palette swap of Mario.

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[All sprites and animations were ripped, captured, edit and/or arranged by me unless otherwise noted below. Feel free to use, no credit needed!]

Media Sources: 

Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES) Luigi jumping animation (website: Thrilling Tales of Old Video Games) (Article: The Legacy of Super Mario Bros. 2 by Drew Mackie)

Super Mario Maker 2 (NS) Title screen (YouTube Channel: PressStartOnce) (Video: Super Mario Maker 2 Title Screen [Switch])

Super Mario Maker 2 (NS) Luigi sprites (Website: The Spriters Resource) (Section: Mario, Luigi, Toad, Toadette and Items [SMW] uploaded by Random Talking Bush)

Super Mario World (SNES) Beta sprites (Website: The Cutting Room Floor) (Section: Development, Super Mario World [SNES]/Sprites)

Super Mario Bros.: Trapped in the Perilous Pit by Jack C. Harris, Art Ellis & Kim Ellis (1989) Luigi and Mario illustration (Scanned and Tweeted by @YourDailyMario)