#yokai watch astra

[myloh]

Finally new Wish Forms !

When I was 13, I came up with a Yokai-Watch project.

It was called:

« Yokai Watch V »

It involves a new scenario, based on the three first games, with a bit of creative liberties. With a plot that I crafted during all these years, a new mechanic, and a very important character who’s highly involved into it.

In this version, you get to play as Nate, Hailey-Ann, and three other characters, who are close friends to Nate.

Of course, Jibanyan and Whisper are there during your adventures.

As for the new mechanic, meet:

The meteor medals

It’s pretty much a filter to add to a medal you already have to access to your yokai friend’s Wish Form

(Think Megas, but for Yokais)

The only Wish Form with which I came up so far is:

Wish Jibanyan

Now, he’s surrounded by nine spirits with which he can spam punches with different effects, and the fact that he has nine of them refers to the nine lives a cat has, and they’re all inspired by Jibanyan’s multiple forms.

Whisper is also there-

[atlantahammy]

More car text ramblings:

Astra and Donnie fall fast and hard to the point it's painful for the others to watch and within a week, they decided to try the dating thing, but go slow to get to know one another. Course they don't tell Donnie's siblings right away, save the poor guy the teasing and warnings they would issue about weird mages with the ability to see the future. xD

It's when Astra has a pretty nasty vision that sends her into a spiraling panic attack when they honestly start learning of the other, because: oooh God she's crying, how the fuck does he handle this?!

She ends up showing him what she saw because she can't put it into words, because of how hard her mind has shut down, and ends up experiencing a taste of the overwhelming dread and emotions she's experiencing.

It takes about 30 minutes, but they calm down and talk about it, and she explains her visions, her divination, and her magical properties as a dragon, cause she is still a mythical creature, even if a yokai, as her scales can be used for armor, blood, and bones in potions and enchanted items.. All rather morbid stuff.

Just... The moment of vulnerability and nether of them know how to deal, and its a nice bonding moment.

In the bad timeline, the two get married via a small holiday gathering in the bases larger hanger, dancing to folk music kereoky and Leo set them the hell up, lol shit, especially since he's the one that can marry them. It was silly, it was fun, they'd been together over 7 years, so fuck it why not.

Good timeline? Not sure, but Astra wants to make him some sort of special enchanted item. One thought was a gem made from her blood, to protect his ninpo against the krang, as its found, her blood is so magic charged, it acts as a sponge against it, that and other reasons.

[melonnmiru]

oc interactions lets GOOO

thank u thank u for letting me write interactions with your ocs, this was super fun to do!! :D

koi [ @niagaragrape ]

— ukiyo definitely sees koi as a younger sister, probably calls her 妹 every once in a while (妹 — younger sister)

— she's like the energetic older sister/cousin, hangs out with koi often and helps her out when she can

— ruffles koi's hair . like way too much

— kiyo hates doing paperwork but if koi ever suggests doing it for her, ukiyo is shaking her head no and insisting she can handle it and that koi should rest !!!

— koi is just so nice, ukiyo loves her sm and only wants the best for her! this does mean ukiyo buys her a bunch of stuff like sanrio keychains and sweets

— she can't draw but she'll ask koi all about graffiti and ask if she can draw one of her ghosts

— gave koi an omamori for pretty much everything, prosperity, safety, success, you name it

— she has trouble controlling her ghosts sometimes but she'll try her best to have them on their best behavior with koi as to not spook her! (well spook her too much at the very least) if they do end up scaring koi, ukiyo will be scolding them for the next hour or two

— also?? ukiyo and koi dressing up together!??! ukiyo may or may not buy a few dresses that fit koi's style and they run around in frilly little dresses together!!!

— if koi ever adds a few patches and pins to one of her dresses, she will absolutely CHERISH it forever

— " 妹! lookie, i got you a new kuromi patch! isn't it cute? it took me about.. 30 minutes to get..? ahhh, no worries! it was cute, i had to get it for you! "

— " oh, koi! tell me if you ever get a nightmare. i'll summon up a baku and it'll eat up any bad dreams you have! "

cub [ @fishincherrycola ]

— im sorry but ukiyo is probably a bit intimidated by her,, she holds a lot respect for her!! she's just a bit scary sometimes

— even though ukiyo is intimidated, she'll still try her best to talk to cub! even like really awkward small talk about the last mission

— if she somehow finds out cub is into astrology too, she'll definitely try talking with her about it!! uki's knowledge about astrology is pretty limited so she would ask a few questions about it too!!

— tried visiting cub's room and almost became a popsicle ,,

— speaking of becoming a popsicle! uki complains way too much about becoming one when they have missions in icebox and tries asking cub how she handles it (probably gets no response though..)

— honestly these 2 probably wouldn't have many interactions with cub being quite the introvert but uki will do her best to talk to her

— really likes when she can hear cub playing piano from her room, uki thinks she's super talented with it

— has seen how scary cub is with astra and made a little mental note to never get on her bad side 

— uki probably bought cub a little cinnamoroll keychain because it kinda reminded ukiyo of her and left it at the door to cub's room

— (in icebox) " ahh, its so cold here.. how are you not freezing right now cub? .. cub? "

— " hey, cub! did you get the keychain? i left it by your door. tell me if you want a different one! "

ulti [ @fishincherrycola ]

— UKIYO AND ULTI WOULD BE BFFS !!! uki really likes all ulti's dresses and buys him a few as well :D

— emoticon users 🤝

— if uki notices that ulti hasn't been out of his room in a while, she'll leave him some food that isn't instant noodles along with a little my melody plushie

— them just watching anime together!! uki definitely asks ulti for recommendations and they watch them together

— constantly reminding him to eat things other than instant noodles by buying him different food and making him tonkatsu!!

— if ulti understands japanese, they'll definitely talk in japanese a lot!! it makes uki happy that she can talk to someone else in her first language :D

— they have boba runs together i don't make the rules

— shows him her ghosts and talks about how she caught them

— points out any yokai in anime she has and summons them to show to ulti! this does mean she'll summon a more.. evil spirit than anticipated but dw she'll do her best to seal it back up so the two can continue watching anime

— " ulti, you've had like 15 cups of instant noodles today! why don't we buy some crepes or something? my treat! "

— " yo ulti! i found this new anime and, and! it's centered around yokai! can we go watch it? pleaseeee? "

zero [ @solitudexviii ]

— uki holds a lot of respect for miss zero!! her ambition is just so admirable

— she finds things like coding and literally anything that has to do with money and investment boring so she'll happily let zero handle all of that, maybe ask a few questions here and there about it

— uki is the type to respect interests and ask questions about it even if its not really her cup of tea! so she'll ask zero how things work and will happily listen to what she says!!

— she really likes zero's piercings! uki's piercings are all on her ears but she does want a few new ones like zero's :0

— do sanrio plushies fit zero's style? not really. is that stopping uki from buying her a chococat plushie? not at all,, like even if zero and her aren't all that close, if uki finds something that reminds her of a certain agent, she's buying it and giving it to them

— ukiyo can get really teasing sometimes but she's a bit too scared to say anything about zero,,,

—  genuinely admires zero and will get really hyped if zero wants to teach her something !!!

— " whatcha doing zero? coding? oh cool! what does.. all of that mean? "

— " oh, zero! i made some yuzukosho and i was wondering if you wanted some! you just mix it with soy sauce and you can eat it with meat and stuff. "

chameleon [ @lianecamoufle ]

— they would have kind of a sister relationship!

— i think that even though they would be pretty close, uki would find her abilities just a bit unnerving. she tries to just play it off as light teasing but the idea of being able to transform into other people is kinda scary

— chameleon's kindness probably helps in making uki more trusting of her but she still keeps her guard up

— she probably bought chameleon a keroppi plushie because it was the closest to a chameleon :D

— she also may spook chameleon with her ghosts every once in a while for funsies,,

— " do you have long or short hair today, chameleon? oh, why don't you try doing something like mine! "

askal [ @thecreativewolf ]

— UKI AND ASKAL WOULD BE REALLY GOOD FRIENDS !! she really likes dogs so despite bantay being a robot, she'll try to pet it and stuff

— uki 100% buys askal pochacco keychains and plushies

— she doesn't have the nicest voice but she'll definitely sing karaoke with askal!! they might get a noise complaint or two though

— these two playing with dogs! super true 😒

— uki has probably seen askal go feral and is a bit too scared to touch his gadgets, doesn't mean her ghosts won't knock a few things off though,,

— she's not that into gadgets and such but she'll definitely ask about what he's working on and things like that!

— i think they would both feed strays they find :0

— also? askal has stickers?!? uki is begging for a few of them so she can decorate her room

— uki isn't all to familiar with filipino food but if askal has a recipe for sinigang, she won't mind cooking some! :D

— " heeey askal.. sorry about my ghosts, y'know, knocking over your stu— wait why do you have a wrench..? WAIT NO WE CAN TALK THIS OVER— "

— " i got you another plushie, askal! hehe it's cute right? if you squint, it looks like bantay! ..no? "

[zerochanges]

2019 Year End Review - Anime Side

This is the second half of my Favorites list for 2019. If you wanna see my video game picks then refer to the prior blog entry. 

This year had tons of wonderful and great animes, and really reminded me again why I love the medium so much. While my game play time did suffer quite a bit this year I was mostly able to keep up with every anime season of 2019 and really soak up as many shows as I could. There aren't really any major rules to my list other than avoiding long-running anime a la Black Clover or Pokémon and the like. The only reason for this is so I can focus on the seasonal shows that may get swept away with the passage of time. If I included all the never ending shonen animes I love this freaking list would be crowded to the brim with it after all.

So without further ado, let’s check out some great anime. 

Ahiru no Sora 

The main character Sora Kurumatani is an incredibly short high school freshmen with dreams of joining his school’s basketball team. Unfortunately the school’s basketball club is comprised entirely of dangerous delinquents who have all taken over the club and use it as their hang-out because of the school’s policy that every student has to join a club. Undeterred Sora tries his best to get into the club and stand up against the delinquents who run it, and maybe just hopefully help them turn over a new leaf and become actual basketball players in the process. 

This has been a pretty fun sports anime, that also veers somewhat into the “yanki” genre of manga and anime too with tons of fist fights, blood, and beat-downs in-between the times the characters do play b-ball. The series really gives off a lot of 90’s anime vibes despite its more modern aesthetic (a great opening theme from the Pillows certainly helps in that regard too) and I’ve been having tons of fun with this one each week. It is scheduled to run for a total of 4 cours so it’s taking its time and really establishing the entire cast so well. And watching Sentai’s dubcast of the anime has been delightful too, I love they really ran with the delinquent characters and aren’t afraid to swear up a storm and drop F-bombs regularly, it’s just tons of fun to listen to.

Astra Lost in Space 

The newest series from Shonen Jump alum Kenta Shinohara, Astra Lost in Space is just what you would expect from the creator of SKET Dance: a hilarious romp through space with a great group of characters that all carry heavy emotional baggage. The series really does remind me tons of SKET Dance, except set in outer space instead of high school, and I am all for it. I laughed, I cried, and I racked my brain behind the main mystery of the series. Just who stranded these kids in space, and why did they want them dead? 

The mystery element is perhaps the most unique twist on Astra that sets it apart from most of Shinohara’s earlier works in Jump, and while no Sherlock Holmes or anything, it is still fairly a fun component of the series that pushes the adventures of the young crew of the Astra beyond just being episodic romps. Definitely recommended for anyone who enjoys comedy and space travel stories.

BEM

The newest entry in the long running Humanoid Monster Bem (Yokai Ningen Bem) franchise that started life in 1968 during the yokai boom largely created by GeGeGe no Kitaro’s huge success. The series has definitely played second fiddle to its clear influence Kitaro, but is a fairly beloved franchise that has still gotten multiple iterations of its own. 

What largely separates Bem from Kitaro is its more science fiction based monsters over the old fashion folklore creepies from Kitaro, and the three protagonists of the series: Bem, Belo, and Bela. These three “humanoid monsters” appear almost human enough but are still freaks in a conventional sense and do not fit into society. Despite being shunned by humans they still choose to protect humanity from other monster attacks in hopes that one day if they do enough good deeds they can be reborn as human too and finally fit in. 

This newest series places a lot of narrative focus on the titular Bem, the leader of the group, who honestly was never all that fleshed out in part iterations and sometimes even played second fiddle to the younger member of the trio Belo who probably connected to the younger audience more. This really separates Bem from pasts series as it’s a lot darker and more mature. I would really love to analyze all the animes at some point in the future.

Boogiepop and Others 

The previous Boogiepop anime series from over 20 years ago now, Boogiepop Phantom, is one of the all time great A E S T H E T I C animes, with absolutely chilling horror, downright mystifying and confusing plots, and a heep ton of gore. It’s one of my favorites and it’s also entirely non-canon to the original light novels and is instead a stand alone original anime series. So how does the actual adaptation of the Boogiepop books far then? They’re all right. 

Boogiepop and Others lacks much of the aesthetic nature of the original Phantom series, and keeps a tone that is more consistent to its source material. It’s a series that starts a lot slower and is much more down-to-earth in the beginning before revealing all its pieces and getting into the supernatural aspects. Once it gets going however I found I really enjoyed this more accurate Boogiepop adaptation. Shingo Natsume is a fantastic director and the anime is incredibly gorgeous with his adept work on the series, and the general atmosphere is strange and creepy, and fairy creative without ever going full on horror anime.

The Demon Girl Next Door (Machikado Mazoku)

When I read the initial synopsis for this anime; “a young girl wakes up to discover she inherited demon powers and must now fight against magical girls in order for her clan to be lifted from its curse” I almost downright dismissed it and passed on it because I thought it was being played straight. However I gave the first episode a shot out of curiosity and quickly discovered it was actually a comedy series. A huge spoof on the Magical Girl genre if you will. And a damn good one.

What really separates Machikado Mazoku from the rest of the millions of Magical Girl comedies is how sincere its protagonist is and how low stakes the relative series turns out. Yuko, or Shadow Priestess Yuko, or Shamiko for short (a nickname she despises) is such an airhead and klutz. She can’t accomplish anything and instead of fighting magical girls she ends up befriending the only two she meets. This is such a relaxing and fun series and most people probably missed it because of the Hidive exclusive streaming rights.

Dr. Stone 

Dr. Stone was always one of the newer Shonen Jump hits I was curious about but never got around to reading--largely thanks to my rule to not touch anything in Jump until I am certain it won’t be axed. So many bad memories. So many manga I loved dying. Ah-hum, excuse me then. Anyways I heard incredible things about the series, especially from one friend in particular and once it got an anime announcement I was so excited. TMS did a fantastic job adapting everything as far as I can tell too, and the anime has been wonderful. 

Perhaps the most impressive thing to me about the series so far is how it isn’t reliant on battles or typical power scaling escalations like a lot of Jump titles are known for. Instead this is a fun adventure series, that largely focuses on science and the power of friendship and I can really get behind that.

Fire Force (En'en no Shouboutai)

Fire Force came on the scene and dazzled everybody early on in its run with amazing production values and insane fight choreography and animation but as the series went on it got a sort of reputation for being fairly bland and not nearly as gorgeous as when it started. And I kind of hate that. I actually thought the series has looked great throughout its entire run--sure maybe some episodes aren’t action packed exploding set pieces, but the general direction and story-boarding in the show is always beautiful and great looking. There’s an expert eye on the lighting, and each scene flows into each other wonderfully. I also greatly respect and love the slower and more somber pace of the episodes--it really lets all the drama soak in, and you get a feeling that this world the characters live in is not great; it’s fairly suffocating actually, even without all the fires. 

As far as the plot goes, well I suppose that is more subjective; I certainly cannot argue that it is a wholly original story with groundbreaking characters, but I will argue that for what it is it works well and is enjoyable. The cast is fun and interesting, and all have great chemistry with each other, especially Shinra and Arthur who easily carry a lot of the show with their constant bickering despite being allies. I am really happy to see it getting a second season next year.

Fruits Basket (2019)

This is the second adaptation of the popular shoujo manga and a very accurate one at that. Pretty much any fan of the series will easily tell you how the original 2001 anime infamously upset the creator so much because of the changes it made from its source material (both big and small) that she denied any attempts at a sequel. It is definitely no surprise that this anime plays its cards incredibly loyal to its source material and it works great because of it since the source material is so good too.

Watching Fruits Basket again was like talking to an old long lost friend. It was such an enjoyable series to have back in my life and hearing Funimation’s almost entire original cast reprise their roles, even Laura Bailey as the protagonist Tohru, was just magical. This is very much a healing series and every episode felt like a weight was being lifted from my soul. I can’t wait for the future seasons, and I love they are going to adapt the entire manga this time!

Gundam Build Divers Re:rise

Another new year, another new Gundam Build series. These entries have really started to become a regular part of Bandai’s release schedule and I am not complaining. Re:rise is a semi sequel of sorts to last year’s Build Divers, a show I put on my favorites list a year ago too. Despite this you thankfully do not need to watch the previous show to fully understand Re:rise, as it is largely just set in the same world and instead has its own original characters and disconnected plot. 

And what a plot it is! Re:rise’s plot is fantastic, and its characters are so much fun with great chemistry. Re:rise’s cast is the oldest group of protagonists we’ve really seen in a Build series which gives it a much more mature tone than all the previous entries, with higher stakes that mean more than they ever have in a Build series. This show honestly on par with the main Gundam series at times and it drew me in so much. I loved every episode and want more, and hate that it ended up being split cour and we have to wait! The last two episodes of Re:rise particularly are huge gut punches that push the show beyond all expectations and really stick with you. This might just be my love for Gundam but this was easily one of the best animes I watched all year.

Gundam The Origin: Advent of the Red Comet 

So is this cheating? Technically speaking Advent of the Red Comet is just the original Gundam The Origin OVA series (2015-2018) sliced into a 13 episode TV show format. And I watched most of the OVA back when it was released already too (I still needed to catch the two Loum Arc episodes before this came out though). But goddamn, rewatching all of Origin again in TV show format was so excellent. So I don’t care! This was one of my favorite shows to catch each week, and don’t at me. YAS’ contributions on the Gundam universe simply cannot be overstated, and his work with Origin was so excellent and talented that it gives the entire series a feeling of true cinematic sophistication--something the original cast and crew all desperately wanted when they first created Gundam! 

Also, it gave us the greatest Opening theme of the year and honored the 40th year anniversary of the legendary franchise while doing so. You can’t beat that.

Kemono Michi - Rise Up 

In this isekai parody series the protagonist Genzo is a pro wrestler and animal lover aficionado summoned to another world to save it from the Demon King. When told that in order to do so he would have to slaughter countless magical beast he refuses and german suplexes the very princess who summoned him! There’s no way Genzo will ever harm any animal, they are far too precious. Trapped in a fantasy world Genzo makes the best of it by capturing and training all the magical beast and opening up a pet shop so they can find their forever homes. Even more hijinx ensure. 

Kemono Michi is notable for being a new series by the creator of the beloved Konosuba, and it both shows and doesn’t show. Kemono Michi is another isekai parody series but it’s largely its own thing and a lot of humor is pretty different from what you would expect from Konosuba. People coming into the show looking for more Konosuba will probably be disappointed but for anyone just looking for a good laugh and don’t mind how different it really is they will have tons of fun. Genzo and crew are hilarious and the series’ genuine disinterest in the classic save the fantasy world plot is really refreshing. Sure the Demon King is out there slaughtering millions, but that’s not Genzo’s problem, somebody else can get on it, he’s busy trying to run a pet shop of his dreams. 

Unfortunately said pet shop only sells the typical JRPG monsters you encounter and not real animals …

Miss Caretaker of Sunohara-sou

So this might be another cheat as Sunohara-sou did indeed originally air in 2018 however it was locked up in streaming prison and nobody could legally watch it until this year thanks to Funimation’s newest deal with Bibibili. I ended up really enjoying it this year and watched every episode back-to-back with Fruits Basket. As I mentioned earlier Fruits Basket is a healing kind of show and I felt the same for Sunohara-sou. It was a really relaxing and cute show that made me super comfortable and chilled out before I had to go in to work for my worst shift of the week. .

MIX Meisei Story

Mix is the newest anime adaptation from the legendary manga-ka Mitsuru Adachi and also a sort of sequel to his seminal work Touch (1981-1986). Set thirty years after Touch and with a largely different cast of characters but still in the same town that Touch took place in, this series is fairly easy for anyone to get into but also extra rewarding for long time fans who will pick up on more smaller things that while not important are there in the background. 

The brotherly relationship between Touma and Souma is what drives the core of the series and much like the twin protagonists of Touch Tatsuya and Kazuya their ambitions to make it to Koushien and play in the Nationals and love for baseball is unmatched. Touma and Souma aren’t just rehashes of the original two protagonists and by in large this has to do with Mix not incorporating a certain major plot twist Touch is famous for but I will refrain from talking about. With all that said you get a lot more interaction with these brothers than the original series and it is simply delightful. 

Mix brings in the classic great character writing, and sense of youth that Adachi is always known for, and he is a true master at writing high school romance and sports manga by this point. It’s been an actual decade since his last anime Cross Game and the wait was worth it. Man, now I just need a Season 2!

Mob Psycho 100 II 

MOB IS BACK!!! Need I really say more? The entire staff that worked on Mob is phenomenal, and really Bones is showing the best of the industry with both seasons of this series. But what lies at the core of Mob even more so than the amazing and unique art style and fluid animation is the wonderful character driven writing of indie writer ONE who started his career online and not with a major publisher. ONE is a master at not just comedy but characters. Watching all our best boys grow and learn in Mob has caused me to literally cry. Just the first episode of this season has shown how much Mob has grown as a person and how he is maturing. Mob you’re becoming cooler and cooler every episode, you little adorable awkward dork. 

One Punch-Man Season 2 

Man, OPM2 was thoroughly destroyed when it came out earlier this year. I largely definitely understood why though as the production of this season is such a major downgrade in every regard to the amazing work the crew did on the first season and it seems shifting from Madhouse to JC Staff really did harm the series in the long run. I didn’t even bother when it aired in Japanese because of that and have only just recently started to watch it after it got dubbed and put on Toonami. And I have to say … it really isn’t that bad. 

Maybe the dub version is using the more finished home video release footage over the original TV airing but I don’t think it’s really at a level of horror story (if anything look at Arifureta from this year too). Is it worse than Season One? Yup. Does that fact suck? Oh yeah. But the same heart is present from the original series in this season. I am surprised how badly it went because I am really loving this. ONE is such a talented writer and seeing his work animated never disappoints, I guess.

Outburst Dreamer Boys (Chuubyou Gekihatsu Boy)

This is another fairly funny series that seemed to fly under everyone’s radar and I assume that yet again the main culprit for this is because of the Hidive exclusive streaming. It’s a shame the platform is easily missed by so many considering its plethora of great content and tons of exclusives it’s been snagging up lately. *ah-hum* I promised I was not paid for that shill just now, sorry. 

Anyways, this is a comedy about a young girl Mizuki Hijiri who just transferred into a new school. All she wants is a normal high school experience but she is unfortunately adopted by the local Hero Club at the school more or less. Now the Hero Club is nothing more than a bunch of chunni boys going around doing all sorts of crazy and hilarious things and hijinks ensue. This is a fairly straight forward premise but largely carried by just how funny the characters are. It’s nice simple laughs that lead to feel good conclusions at the end of almost every episode.

The Promised Neverland 

Everything I said about Dr. Stone I can pretty much repeat about Neverland as well. I was so impressed with this series although it started off fairly simple it really grew into something far more sinister and ambitious. The ending of the season I did not see coming, and the creative team behind the manga’s bravery to move past the status quo instead of just milking it for all it is worth is applause worthy. Really looking forward to the next season. Speaking of--if you don’t mind the tangent--this must just be the year of Shonen Jump or something, though, am I right? Dr. Stone, Neverland, Astra, wow Shueisha really is killing it this year.

The Quintessential Quintuplets (Go-Toubun no Hanayome)

On the surface the Quints (as fans call it) is nothing more than a basic cut and dry harem set up where one guy has to tutor five beautiful girls who all just happened to be sisters. Like damn I think I might have played this game in high school and it was naughty! But Quints is surprisingly deep and a lot more than just that. It’s by no means a masterpiece in anime romance story telling but I was thoroughly blown away by how restrained it really was and how well written each of the heroines are. This is a really cute series that’s just easy to watch and appreciate it for its simplistic but well crafted story.

Radiant (Season 2) 

Radiant is back and is having a much better start than the first season ever did a year prior. This current season has had significantly less filler and is much closer to the manga in its story which makes for an improved viewing experience and is noticeably a lot more mature now. The original season of Radiant struggled with how much filler and changes to the plot and characters it piled on in its early run. That really made the series seem more cliche and simple than it really is and because of that it had a lot of difficulty in finding an audience early on who may have (rightfully so) dismissed it based on those early fumbles. Early Radiant anime somewhat reminds me of the start of the Black Clover anime in this regard, actually. 

It wasn’t until the first season moved on to one of the earlier big picture story arcs in Rumbletown that it really started to come together and let the source material shine through. Seeing season 2 maintain this relatively same quality since its very first episode is promising. The character interaction is much improved, and Seth’s journey only gets more complicated from this point on in the story as he learns more about nemeses, magic, and his own past. It’s a great battle manga finally given some real justice with its anime and I really have been digging season 2.

RobiHachi

RobiHachi is Diet Space Dandy and in a world where Space Dandy is only 26 episodes and that’s it, that’s a good thing! We need more Space Dandy!!!

While not even close to the animation powerhouse of Dandy, or the experimental nature of how it changed directors constantly, RobiHachi is very close in the same sort of style and humor of Dandy. It’s essentially a buddy series where two men Robby and Hatchi end up on a voyage through space together and get into all kinds of crazy adventures along the way. It’s a nice little series that helps fill in the void that Space Dandy left after it ended in 2014.

Run with the Wind (Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru) 

Run with the Wind, based off a novel of the same name is a series about a disheveled track and field team trying to run the Hakone Ekiden, a world famous (or infamous) race that is extremely grueling and has destroyed many young athlete and potential Olympic runners sports careers in the past. Despite all this team leader Haiji pursues his dream of racing down this grueling track and will stop at nothing to run it, even if he has to make an Olympic quality team out of rejects and losers. He often butts heads with protagonist Kakeru who views the world very differently from Haiji and thinks he needs to accept reality already and give up this pipe-dream. 

Run with the Wind is utterly fantastic, and a show so many people slept on. I honestly don’t even know why! Because it’s about running, I guess? Really, there is no excuse! What are all of you guys doing missing this show?! What separates it from a ton of the other sports anime peers is a few things, on the surface level there is the University setting and older cast. All the characters are young adults, and plenty of them are 20-somethings at the phase of their lives where they need to find their first real career and figure out how to live. But at the heat of Run with the Wind is a far more serious dialogue about being an adult and facing reality vs pursuing your dreams and what the limit of hard work should mean. This is far more than just a series about running. It’s about the weight of the dreams we all carry with us and the weight of the friendship and bounds we all form. And what weight we should carry and what we should let go. 

This was an incredibly emotional and impactful anime series and I am super happy to see it receiving an upcoming dub next year from Sentai, it deserves it!

Senryu Girl 

This series of short 12-minute episodes was one of the most adorable series in 2019 and always managed to make me smile. Senryu Girl stars Nanako, a girl who because of her incredible shy and introverted nature never speaks and only communicates through senryu poetry she writes. Nanaka hangs out with Eiji, a local delinquent that most of the school fears but is in fact a huge softie and a major fan of poetry--he even belongs to the same poetry club as Nanaka. Together the two write poetry with each other, go on dates, and get into all sorts of adorable situations.

True Cooking Master Boy (Shin Chuka Ichiban!) 

In this semi-remake, semi-continuation of the classic 1997 Cooking Master Boy anime we follow the youngest super chef in all of China Liu Mao Xing, as he takes on the dark Underground Cooking Society who seek to control the entire world through their cooking and beat them at their own game.

I think this series is best described as Food Wars!/Shokugeki no Soma but instead of being incredibly horny it’s a martial arts film. I didn’t really follow the original anime series but definitely plan to get around to finding it after watching this newest series. I really enjoyed all the cooking battles that have been shown and the characters are all excellent.

Vinland Saga

Vinland Saga is an artistic marvel and this anime adaptation fully lives up to its legendary manga’s reputation. 

Every episode of Vinlad was so damn compelling, and this feels like what the previous Berserk series should have always been like instead of the infamously janky CGI animation and knife to the page cutting scripts it got. Vinland is such an emotionally powerful series that can be carried by its own characters alone even during long stretches of episodes that lack the adrenaline fueled action fests for the eyes that it has. Honestly the less said about Vinalnd the better, as it’s an experience you should go into fresh without knowing too much about it. But oh boy, I am still reeling for that finale, it was downright terrifying and therapeutic. 

This is easily a major highlight of the anime industry in 2019.

Wasteful Days of High School Girls (Joshi Kousei no Mudazukai)

I’m starting to notice a pattern where I talk about comedies a lot, but I guess that just is my taste in entertainment, huh? This series is also another pattern too, the Hidive exclusive nobody watched. I know, I know, let’s just get on with a few words about the show. 

Wasteful Days is  downright the most hilarious anime of 2019. I guess I ended up saving the best for last, as every episode would have tears rolling down my eyes from laughing too hard. The basic premise of a classroom full of a bunch of weirdos is super uninteresting, and on the surface if you read the description it doesn’t sound like anything special but don’t be fooled. The whole damn series is constantly hilarious and ludicrous. There isn’t a single minute of screen time where you aren’t falling over and laughing at the stuff happening on the screen.

Welcome to Demon School Iruma-kun!

While not as funny as Wasteful Days, Iruma-kun is also another great comedy of the year, and I would be remiss not to mention. The series has a more fantastical element what with it being a demon school in the Netherworld, and poor Iruma, the only human boy in the school is trying his hardest to not stand out and get eaten by all the demons but he just can’t stop being incredible at everything in the demon curriculum somehow. This is a great little funny series, and the dub made by Curnchyroll is equally hilarious. I really recommend it especially for anyone who is a fan of Disgaea.

[myloh]

Ok so so far, the wish forms available in act 1 (or season 1) of YWV are :

-Jibanyan

-Komane

-Appak

-Cadable

-Bloominoko

-Blizzaria

-Venoct

-Kyubi

-Dragon Lord

-Badude

-Multimutt

-Hungogre

-Beelzebold

-Abodabat

-Reversa

-Insomni

-Impass

-Rattelle

-Tattlecast

-Reuknight

-Sheen

(Next step is coming up with designs for some of them-)

The wish forms are accessible to all yokais, but only a handful of them are capable of having a brand new form.

Normally, the Yokai is surrounded by a green aura, and for some, they have alternative forms, as a way to show the person they wish to become.

Think Dynamax/Gigantamax but without the height expansion and green instead of pink

A drawing to explain this phenomenon

Speaking about YW AU’s, I also made my own story when I was 13-14 years old (so like 4-5 years ago) and its name is « Yo-Kai Watch V ».

It takes place 5 years after the main story’s events. We follow Keita, Inaho (keep in mind that they are 15-16 years old in it) and their friends in their supernatural shenanigans and with their agency. Other watchers will join their adventures, such as Hibiki Ryusei, a girl who owns a « Astra Model » Yo-Kai Watch, and our protagonists will also their own.

There is also a new mechanic I thought of, and it was the « Wish Forms », which needs a « Meteor Medal » to be added on certain Yo-Kais to ascend to this mode.

The story is structured into a prologue (which happens 2 years before YWV and counts as a YW music note rewrite), and epilogue and four main arcs between them.

YWV first arc : As the shooting stars falls

YWV first main arc : Dedtime Arc

YWV second main arc : Ghoulfather Arc

YWV final main arc : Kraken Arc

I just thought that it would be nice to see YW leaning into the Shonen-like genre and a hint of emotions within it, when Nate was still the protagonist.

And if you’re wandering, YWV isn’t a bridge to Shadowside, more like it’s own thing, filled with my self-indulgences.

This is extremely interesting to read ! This AU seems to be very thorough and complete.

I really like the fact that you aged up Keita and Inaho, it will lead to more mature themes and morals, like what it means to grow up, the new perspectives maturity can bring to their role of Watcher, and the view and opinion they have on the different antagonists they will encounter could change, as they start to better understand them.

This new character, Hibiki Ryusei, could bring a lot to the table too. Her Yokai Watch is intriguing as well, how did she obtain it ? Did Steve Jaws release this new model in continuity to the Model U ? Or maybe she inherited it from a family member or a yokai ?

How are the "Wish forms" and "Meteor Medals" working, exactly ? The concept of "Wish form" reminds me a lot of the Dream Link of Nate's Yokai Watch U and the "Dream Link" introduced in the third movie, could it be centered around the same mechanic ? "Meteor medals" are very interesting too, meteors can be associated with a lot of things in the Yokai Watch universe. One of them being the meteors falling during Enma's summoning, could there be a link between these two ? The Meteor medals could be powered by the energy of Enma, allowing yokai to transform ?

I can just imagine a gorgeous summoning and transformation similar to the Godsides in Forever Friends, but maybe I am looking too far- '^^

I also love to see every antagonists of the three games have their own arc. I am very curious about their placement in the story and how you are going to portray each of them. I am sure it is extremely well done, they have a lot of potential and all get a chance to shine !

Perhaps each antagonist will reveal a usefull lore element that will all connect at the end for the final battle, and reveal a plot-twist ? Could The Ghoulfather, McKracken and Dedtime all be working together to dominate the human world ?

I agree that a more Shonen-oriented Yokai Watch series could be very refreshing, with a more mature Nate, a new Watcher to bring some new content, and Inaho as the funny sidekick to balance the whole show. There could be a lot more variety of themes discussed in it, as well as more risks to be taken in terms of content.

But anyway, I can't say it enough, this AU is amazing ! Honestly if is was to become official, I would definitely watch it on TV everyday ! XD I just hope this long post with dozens of questions didn't annoy you too much, I apologize in advance '^^

Thank you very much for sending me this beautiful AU !

[newtypezaku]

P-P-P-Power Rankings!!

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba (Last: 3): After healing, the squad was dispatched to a mountain full of spiders where other demon slayers were being controlled by threads.

Fire Force (Last: 4): Shinra's academy rival Arthur showed up, and after getting stomped by Maki in training, they learned a very important lesson about their duty to civilians.

Vinland Saga (Last: NR): Dunno why they dropped the first three and immediately went on an extended break, but we've already got a plot to kill the MC's dad for loving his kids more than war.

Ace of Diamond (Last: 5): Furuya's struggles led to a five-run inning, and even Ochiai suggested yanking him. Eijun got out of a jam, bases loaded with one out, with two massive strikeouts.

Mix: Meisei Story (Last: 7): Tou's homer gave Meisei the lead but earned him a beanball. Akai's two-run shot made it 2-1 and Tou's indignation fueled a strikeout streak, but time's running out.

Lord El-Melloi II's Case Files (Last: NR): El-Melloi is summoned to the home of a former student to investigate the murder and dismemberment of her father. The culprit? Her father.

Astra: Lost in Space (Last: NR): "Your high school trip is being left on a planet for five days with no adult supervision, what could go wrong?" Accidental spontaneous wormholes, for starters.

GeGeGe no Kitaro (Last: NR): What happens when an entire town treats a distraught wife and mother like garbage when she's unsealed a yokai capable of fatally dehydrating her tormentors?

Aiming for eight each week cuz eighters gonna eight. Full watch lists: [Animu][Dramu]

[recentanimenews]

Astra Lost in Space, Vol. 1

While the US manga market has plenty to offer young and teen readers, there’s a dearth of titles for kids who have aged out of Yokai Watch but aren’t quite ready for Bleach or Soul Eater. Astra Lost in Space is a perfect transitional title for ten, eleven, and twelve-year-olds who want to read “real” manga: its slick illustrations and adventure-driven plot feel just adult enough for this group, while the potentially objectionable material is kept to a minimum. Better still, tweens of varying interests and maturity levels will find at least one cast member with whom they can identify — a crucial hook for reluctant readers.

The plot of Astra Lost in Space may remind older fans of Moto Hagio’s sci-fi classic “They Were Eleven”: nine high school students find themselves stranded aboard a spaceship whose communication system has been disabled. With only a few days’ supply of water and food to sustain them, the group is forced to work as a team to develop a plan for getting home. Their route takes them to a series of planets — let’s call them “Class M” for the sake of convenience — where an abundant supply of water, plants, and animals offer the opportunity to stock up on the provisions they need for the five-month journey.

As you might guess, the planet-of-the-week formula provides artist Kenta Shinohara (Sket Dance) ample opportunity to draw nifty beasts and menacing flora, and stage imaginative action sequences. In the volume’s best scene, for example, team captain Kanata Hoshijima leap-frogs across a field of sky-high lily pads to rescue the group’s youngest member from a “turgon.” (For the uninitiated, a turgon is a flying, six-legged monster.) Shinohara captures both Kanata’s determination and physical exertion as he launches his body into space; you can almost hear Kanata gasping for breath as he readies himself for each jump. Shinohara brings the scene to a satisfying close by borrowing a page from the Mary Poppins playbook, finding a natural substitute for the British nanny’s signature umbrella.

For seasoned readers, this sequence also reveals the degree to which Astra Lost in Space leans a little too heavily on predictable beats and characters to satisfy the fourteen-and-up crowd. Kanata, in particular, is an amalgamation of common Shonen Jump tropes: he’s strong, friendly, over-confident, and burdened with a tragic backstory that gives him the will to persevere in any situation, no matter how dire. Other characters slot into familiar roles as well: there’s Quittierre, a pretty rich girl whose tantrums conceal a good heart; Aries, a cute spaz who makes Edith Bunker look like a genius; Zack, a calm, smart boy who speaks in complete paragraphs; Charce, a boy so handsome he sparkles; and a handful of less-defined characters who — according to the Third Law of Manga Plot Dynamics — will either be monster fodder or directly responsible for their classmates’ terrible predicament.

Per the First Law of Manga Plot Dynamics, the characters manifest useful talents whenever the story demands them. Kanata, for example, turns out to be a regular Dan O’Brien, capable of long-jumping and javelin-throwing — two skills that prove handy when rescuing Funicia from the turgon’s grip. “Wait… now I remember!” Zack exclaims as Kanata makes his first leap. “Kanata is a decathlete. He earned a bronze medal in the decathlon event of the under-20 World Championships even though he’s still just a high schooler.” Good thing he reads the school newspaper…

Manga novitiates, however, will be less troubled by these nods to convention, thanks to the story’s crisp pacing, smart-looking character designs and settings, and moments of levity. There’s a mild bit of fanservice but no skin, no sex, and no bloodletting to speak of; parents of most tweens should feel comfortable allowing their kids to read Astra.

A word to parents, teachers, and librarians: VIZ’s rating seems a little conservative to me; VIZ has labeled this a “teen” title for “mild language and fantasy violence.” Based on what I’ve seen in volume one, Astra Lost in Space seems appropriate for middle-school readers. Note that volume one is currently available in digital format; a print edition will be released on December 5th.

ASTRA LOST IN SPACE, VOL. 1 • STORY AND ART BY KENTO SHINOHARA • TRANSLATED BY ADRIENNE BECK • VIZ • 204 pp. • RATED T for TEEN

By: Katherine Dacey

[myloh]

Something something battle mechanic

[myloh]

Character sheet :

Victoria Shimmergaze (流星響 "Ryūsei Hibiki")

"A young girl who joined the InaUsa Detective Agency. She has a knack for theater and she has some great knowledge about yokais and yo-ki. She also presented the Astra watches to the watchers and promised Komane to help find his brother."

[myloh]

I’m planning on redesigning the Astra Yokai Watch 🤔

[myloh]

a more detailed sheet about the yokai watch astra

Speaking about YW AU’s, I also made my own story when I was 13-14 years old (so like 4-5 years ago) and its name is « Yo-Kai Watch V ».

It takes place 5 years after the main story’s events. We follow Keita, Inaho (keep in mind that they are 15-16 years old in it) and their friends in their supernatural shenanigans and with their agency. Other watchers will join their adventures, such as Hibiki Ryusei, a girl who owns a « Astra Model » Yo-Kai Watch, and our protagonists will also their own.

There is also a new mechanic I thought of, and it was the « Wish Forms », which needs a « Meteor Medal » to be added on certain Yo-Kais to ascend to this mode.

The story is structured into a prologue (which happens 2 years before YWV and counts as a YW music note rewrite), and epilogue and four main arcs between them.

YWV first arc : As the shooting stars falls

YWV first main arc : Dedtime Arc

YWV second main arc : Ghoulfather Arc

YWV final main arc : Kraken Arc

I just thought that it would be nice to see YW leaning into the Shonen-like genre and a hint of emotions within it, when Nate was still the protagonist.

And if you’re wandering, YWV isn’t a bridge to Shadowside, more like it’s own thing, filled with my self-indulgences.

This is extremely interesting to read ! This AU seems to be very thorough and complete.

I really like the fact that you aged up Keita and Inaho, it will lead to more mature themes and morals, like what it means to grow up, the new perspectives maturity can bring to their role of Watcher, and the view and opinion they have on the different antagonists they will encounter could change, as they start to better understand them.

This new character, Hibiki Ryusei, could bring a lot to the table too. Her Yokai Watch is intriguing as well, how did she obtain it ? Did Steve Jaws release this new model in continuity to the Model U ? Or maybe she inherited it from a family member or a yokai ?

How are the "Wish forms" and "Meteor Medals" working, exactly ? The concept of "Wish form" reminds me a lot of the Dream Link of Nate's Yokai Watch U and the "Dream Link" introduced in the third movie, could it be centered around the same mechanic ? "Meteor medals" are very interesting too, meteors can be associated with a lot of things in the Yokai Watch universe. One of them being the meteors falling during Enma's summoning, could there be a link between these two ? The Meteor medals could be powered by the energy of Enma, allowing yokai to transform ?

I can just imagine a gorgeous summoning and transformation similar to the Godsides in Forever Friends, but maybe I am looking too far- '^^

I also love to see every antagonists of the three games have their own arc. I am very curious about their placement in the story and how you are going to portray each of them. I am sure it is extremely well done, they have a lot of potential and all get a chance to shine !

Perhaps each antagonist will reveal a usefull lore element that will all connect at the end for the final battle, and reveal a plot-twist ? Could The Ghoulfather, McKracken and Dedtime all be working together to dominate the human world ?

I agree that a more Shonen-oriented Yokai Watch series could be very refreshing, with a more mature Nate, a new Watcher to bring some new content, and Inaho as the funny sidekick to balance the whole show. There could be a lot more variety of themes discussed in it, as well as more risks to be taken in terms of content.

But anyway, I can't say it enough, this AU is amazing ! Honestly if is was to become official, I would definitely watch it on TV everyday ! XD I just hope this long post with dozens of questions didn't annoy you too much, I apologize in advance '^^

Thank you very much for sending me this beautiful AU !

[mr-buisson-bosquet]

Speaking about YW AU’s, I also made my own story when I was 13-14 years old (so like 4-5 years ago) and its name is « Yo-Kai Watch V ».

It takes place 5 years after the main story’s events. We follow Keita, Inaho (keep in mind that they are 15-16 years old in it) and their friends in their supernatural shenanigans and with their agency. Other watchers will join their adventures, such as Hibiki Ryusei, a girl who owns a « Astra Model » Yo-Kai Watch, and our protagonists will also their own.

There is also a new mechanic I thought of, and it was the « Wish Forms », which needs a « Meteor Medal » to be added on certain Yo-Kais to ascend to this mode.

The story is structured into a prologue (which happens 2 years before YWV and counts as a YW music note rewrite), and epilogue and four main arcs between them.

YWV first arc : As the shooting stars falls

YWV first main arc : Dedtime Arc

YWV second main arc : Ghoulfather Arc

YWV final main arc : Kraken Arc

I just thought that it would be nice to see YW leaning into the Shonen-like genre and a hint of emotions within it, when Nate was still the protagonist.

And if you’re wandering, YWV isn’t a bridge to Shadowside, more like it’s own thing, filled with my self-indulgences.

This is extremely interesting to read ! This AU seems to be very thorough and complete.

I really like the fact that you aged up Keita and Inaho, it will lead to more mature themes and morals, like what it means to grow up, the new perspectives maturity can bring to their role of Watcher, and the view and opinion they have on the different antagonists they will encounter could change, as they start to better understand them.

This new character, Hibiki Ryusei, could bring a lot to the table too. Her Yokai Watch is intriguing as well, how did she obtain it ? Did Steve Jaws release this new model in continuity to the Model U ? Or maybe she inherited it from a family member or a yokai ?

How are the "Wish forms" and "Meteor Medals" working, exactly ? The concept of "Wish form" reminds me a lot of the Dream Link of Nate's Yokai Watch U and the "Dream Link" introduced in the third movie, could it be centered around the same mechanic ? "Meteor medals" are very interesting too, meteors can be associated with a lot of things in the Yokai Watch universe. One of them being the meteors falling during Enma's summoning, could there be a link between these two ? The Meteor medals could be powered by the energy of Enma, allowing yokai to transform ?

I can just imagine a gorgeous summoning and transformation similar to the Godsides in Forever Friends, but maybe I am looking too far- '^^

I also love to see every antagonists of the three games have their own arc. I am very curious about their placement in the story and how you are going to portray each of them. I am sure it is extremely well done, they have a lot of potential and all get a chance to shine !

Perhaps each antagonist will reveal a usefull lore element that will all connect at the end for the final battle, and reveal a plot-twist ? Could The Ghoulfather, McKracken and Dedtime all be working together to dominate the human world ?

I agree that a more Shonen-oriented Yokai Watch series could be very refreshing, with a more mature Nate, a new Watcher to bring some new content, and Inaho as the funny sidekick to balance the whole show. There could be a lot more variety of themes discussed in it, as well as more risks to be taken in terms of content.

But anyway, I can't say it enough, this AU is amazing ! Honestly if is was to become official, I would definitely watch it on TV everyday ! XD I just hope this long post with dozens of questions didn't annoy you too much, I apologize in advance '^^

Thank you very much for sending me this beautiful AU !

[myloh]

Victoria Shimmergaze (流星響 "Ryūsei Hibiki")

"A young girl who joined the InaUsa Detective Agency. She has a knack for theater and she has some great knowledge about yokais and yo-ki. She also presented the Astra watches to the watchers and promised Komane to help find his brother."

Speaking about YW AU’s, I also made my own story when I was 13-14 years old (so like 4-5 years ago) and its name is « Yo-Kai Watch V ».

It takes place 5 years after the main story’s events. We follow Keita, Inaho (keep in mind that they are 15-16 years old in it) and their friends in their supernatural shenanigans and with their agency. Other watchers will join their adventures, such as Hibiki Ryusei, a girl who owns a « Astra Model » Yo-Kai Watch, and our protagonists will also their own.

There is also a new mechanic I thought of, and it was the « Wish Forms », which needs a « Meteor Medal » to be added on certain Yo-Kais to ascend to this mode.

The story is structured into a prologue (which happens 2 years before YWV and counts as a YW music note rewrite), and epilogue and four main arcs between them.

YWV first arc : As the shooting stars falls

YWV first main arc : Dedtime Arc

YWV second main arc : Ghoulfather Arc

YWV final main arc : Kraken Arc

I just thought that it would be nice to see YW leaning into the Shonen-like genre and a hint of emotions within it, when Nate was still the protagonist.

And if you’re wandering, YWV isn’t a bridge to Shadowside, more like it’s own thing, filled with my self-indulgences.

This is extremely interesting to read ! This AU seems to be very thorough and complete.

I really like the fact that you aged up Keita and Inaho, it will lead to more mature themes and morals, like what it means to grow up, the new perspectives maturity can bring to their role of Watcher, and the view and opinion they have on the different antagonists they will encounter could change, as they start to better understand them.

This new character, Hibiki Ryusei, could bring a lot to the table too. Her Yokai Watch is intriguing as well, how did she obtain it ? Did Steve Jaws release this new model in continuity to the Model U ? Or maybe she inherited it from a family member or a yokai ?

How are the "Wish forms" and "Meteor Medals" working, exactly ? The concept of "Wish form" reminds me a lot of the Dream Link of Nate's Yokai Watch U and the "Dream Link" introduced in the third movie, could it be centered around the same mechanic ? "Meteor medals" are very interesting too, meteors can be associated with a lot of things in the Yokai Watch universe. One of them being the meteors falling during Enma's summoning, could there be a link between these two ? The Meteor medals could be powered by the energy of Enma, allowing yokai to transform ?

I can just imagine a gorgeous summoning and transformation similar to the Godsides in Forever Friends, but maybe I am looking too far- '^^

I also love to see every antagonists of the three games have their own arc. I am very curious about their placement in the story and how you are going to portray each of them. I am sure it is extremely well done, they have a lot of potential and all get a chance to shine !

Perhaps each antagonist will reveal a usefull lore element that will all connect at the end for the final battle, and reveal a plot-twist ? Could The Ghoulfather, McKracken and Dedtime all be working together to dominate the human world ?

I agree that a more Shonen-oriented Yokai Watch series could be very refreshing, with a more mature Nate, a new Watcher to bring some new content, and Inaho as the funny sidekick to balance the whole show. There could be a lot more variety of themes discussed in it, as well as more risks to be taken in terms of content.

But anyway, I can't say it enough, this AU is amazing ! Honestly if is was to become official, I would definitely watch it on TV everyday ! XD I just hope this long post with dozens of questions didn't annoy you too much, I apologize in advance '^^

Thank you very much for sending me this beautiful AU !

[myloh]

Thank you for your interest in my AU ^^

And as for the answers to your questions :

-The Astra Model Watch’s origin are unknown to this moment, and Hibiki was the first person to own one.

-I’ve made a concept post on tumblr, but the Wish Forms aren’t powered by the Enma energy but by the wish of said yo-kai using a meteor medal. Since shooting stars are also called meteor showers, and that when you wish upon a star, your wish has a chance to be real.

And instead of a normal light to see Yokais, the Astra model creates a zone in which you can see all yo-kais around you.

Oh and btw here is my girl ^^

Speaking about YW AU’s, I also made my own story when I was 13-14 years old (so like 4-5 years ago) and its name is « Yo-Kai Watch V ».

It takes place 5 years after the main story’s events. We follow Keita, Inaho (keep in mind that they are 15-16 years old in it) and their friends in their supernatural shenanigans and with their agency. Other watchers will join their adventures, such as Hibiki Ryusei, a girl who owns a « Astra Model » Yo-Kai Watch, and our protagonists will also their own.

There is also a new mechanic I thought of, and it was the « Wish Forms », which needs a « Meteor Medal » to be added on certain Yo-Kais to ascend to this mode.

The story is structured into a prologue (which happens 2 years before YWV and counts as a YW music note rewrite), and epilogue and four main arcs between them.

YWV first arc : As the shooting stars falls

YWV first main arc : Dedtime Arc

YWV second main arc : Ghoulfather Arc

YWV final main arc : Kraken Arc

I just thought that it would be nice to see YW leaning into the Shonen-like genre and a hint of emotions within it, when Nate was still the protagonist.

And if you’re wandering, YWV isn’t a bridge to Shadowside, more like it’s own thing, filled with my self-indulgences.

This is extremely interesting to read ! This AU seems to be very thorough and complete.

I really like the fact that you aged up Keita and Inaho, it will lead to more mature themes and morals, like what it means to grow up, the new perspectives maturity can bring to their role of Watcher, and the view and opinion they have on the different antagonists they will encounter could change, as they start to better understand them.

This new character, Hibiki Ryusei, could bring a lot to the table too. Her Yokai Watch is intriguing as well, how did she obtain it ? Did Steve Jaws release this new model in continuity to the Model U ? Or maybe she inherited it from a family member or a yokai ?

How are the "Wish forms" and "Meteor Medals" working, exactly ? The concept of "Wish form" reminds me a lot of the Dream Link of Nate's Yokai Watch U and the "Dream Link" introduced in the third movie, could it be centered around the same mechanic ? "Meteor medals" are very interesting too, meteors can be associated with a lot of things in the Yokai Watch universe. One of them being the meteors falling during Enma's summoning, could there be a link between these two ? The Meteor medals could be powered by the energy of Enma, allowing yokai to transform ?

I can just imagine a gorgeous summoning and transformation similar to the Godsides in Forever Friends, but maybe I am looking too far- '^^

I also love to see every antagonists of the three games have their own arc. I am very curious about their placement in the story and how you are going to portray each of them. I am sure it is extremely well done, they have a lot of potential and all get a chance to shine !

Perhaps each antagonist will reveal a usefull lore element that will all connect at the end for the final battle, and reveal a plot-twist ? Could The Ghoulfather, McKracken and Dedtime all be working together to dominate the human world ?

I agree that a more Shonen-oriented Yokai Watch series could be very refreshing, with a more mature Nate, a new Watcher to bring some new content, and Inaho as the funny sidekick to balance the whole show. There could be a lot more variety of themes discussed in it, as well as more risks to be taken in terms of content.

But anyway, I can't say it enough, this AU is amazing ! Honestly if is was to become official, I would definitely watch it on TV everyday ! XD I just hope this long post with dozens of questions didn't annoy you too much, I apologize in advance '^^

Thank you very much for sending me this beautiful AU !