#((so im playing omega ruby again))

[kafus]

Hi! Im new to pokemon and you seem like the right person to ask, or can direct me to a better person to ask? I want to play every pokemon game but some are just the same game with small differences, right? Is there a list of which are the “ideal” games to play so I can experience it all correctly? I have been looking at the wiki pages but I dont know which pokemon are “better” so Im not sure which games to pick on my own! Thank you! :)

oh hey no problem!!

yeah so pokemon tends to release new games in sets of two, the two games are usually identical aside from certain pokemon that are exclusive to one version or the other, which encourages trading between players. for your purposes, if you're going to try and play every pokemon game, you don't need to play both X and Y for example, just one of the two. additionally sometimes pokemon releases a third version of... once again the same game, with perhaps a few story changes but mainly improvements to mechanics and bug fixes etc - this is more of a remnant of the older titles before DLC/patches were a thing and they don't do this much anymore but i digress. no pokemon between versions are "better", really just comes down to personal preference. most people pick by which box art pokemon they like better (like when diamond and pearl came out i picked diamond because i liked dialga more than palkia lol)

BASICALLY, tldr, if you want to play one of each pokemon game, you want to play the following... if i list two games, that means they don't have a superior third version, just pick the one with the pokemon you like more that's on the box art. i've also marked the games that are remakes in italics, so if you aren't counting remakes you can skip them (though i recommend them, they're usually good on their own merits and feel very different from the originals!)

gen 1: yellow (also has a virtual console release on 3DS)

gen 2: crystal (also has a virtual console release on 3DS)

gen 3: emerald + firered OR leafgreen

gen 4: platinum + heartgold OR soulsilver

gen 5: black OR white + black 2 OR white 2

gen 6: x OR y + omega ruby OR alpha sapphire

gen 7: ultra sun OR ultra moon + let's go pikachu OR let's go eevee

gen 8: sword OR shield + brilliant diamond OR shining pearl + legends arceus

gen 9: scarlet OR violet

the above list should take you through the key games of every generation without repeats. i hope this helps i'm flattered to be of service for this problem lol i hope you have fun!! if you're still confused or have more questions feel free to ask

#kiki was here #asks #anonymous

[riptidezzzz]

list of games i started that i NEED to finish……

POKEMON X I STARTED THIS LAST YEAR AND BECAUSE I DIDNT FINISH IT I BROKE MY YEARLY POKÉMON X REPLAY :( I WILL HAVE THIS FINISHED BY SUNDAY OR SO HALP ME GOD……

dragon age origins i had fun playing this but then i got back into sims 4 and haven’t touched it since lmfao. also everything after this isn’t in level of importance

far cry 6 i wanted to finish her but again i just gave up :/ maybe during summer

far cry primal i could’ve put this w 6 but unlike that game i’ve beaten this one like twice. also this game has problems with saves getting corrupted so kinda nervous to touch it tbh

fo4 YES AGAIN i’m going to do the institute ending but i got stuck on the endless minutemen quests and got burned tf out

pokemon omega ruby i started this like 2 ish years ago maybe and never finished it bc my team sucked so i want to start a new save on it

GTAV IM SOS SORRY GIRL

RDR2 AND RDR1 ALSO IM SO SORRY

miitopia but ryujinx is acting weird. don’t remember if i’ve beaten it on there anyways but i have beaten it on my switch so just the post game stuff ig

shadow of ronin i’m not really worried about this one it’s kind of a. maybe if i’m reallyyyyyyyyyyyy bored but might as well put it here

battle for bikini bottom i try ever now and then to play these and then i give up bc i have no idea what tf i’m supposed to do also i am struggling to think of games

poptropica i have about 10-15(i think that’s too many but whatever) islands left and i can beat about three in one sitting if im feeling it

toontown. u can’t really beat it but i want to get misako to 100 laff

LEGO DIMENSIONS….. I LOVE YOU FOREVER AND EVER AND EVER AND EVER i want to replay you and do the sonic pack but that would be agony…. love you

skyrim lmfao i never beat it on my computer i just messed around. might do the civil war this time

fallout new vegas i don’t even have this installed but i want to finish ti eventually

darksiders i gave up on u sorry. mighttttt pick it up again but i don’t feel like hooking up my xbox

there’s probably more but am too lazy to remember wish me luck👍🏾

#save

[browniefox]

speaking of asks and pokemon, im curious! what Pokémon games have you played, and which were your favorites? are there any starters that you particularly loved, or any characters?

Ah, yes, my pokemon journey, you could say. Come with me as I take a trip down memory road of every (or most) pokemon games I've played.

LeafGreen - while technically my brother let me poke around on his FireRed, LeafGreen was my own game! Incredible! I'm not sure how literate I was when I got this game. Probably not very lol. My starter was charmander - which started my 'fire starter' lifestyle - and I don't thikn I ever finished it? Eventually, after I got my next game, I gave LeafGreen to my sister, and so it's now hers.

Emerald - My favorite game, my beautiful fav, my home town, my besties live in this cartrige. I restarted the game a few times, but my final and current playthrough I have a team of Blaziken, Gardivoir, Mightyena, Castform, Peliper, and Absol. Yes, a very poorly rounded team. I could read by now but that doesn't mean I knew how to make a good team. Blaziken and Gardivoir carried. Steven was so cool, I wanted to write a fic about him. I don't think I ever finished the game until I was like 13 or something? Again, I wasn't very good lol, but I did enjoy it.

Diamond - My brother's game he let me play after he got Platinum. I think I got stuck at one point and never finished, but my starter then was Piplup. If I replayed it, my starter would be turtwig bc i now love torterra <3<3

Pokemon Dungeon: Explorers of Time - I can't say when I played this, but it was sometime before I was 13. I didn't finish it, but I did love it. I was a skitty and my partner was a chikorita, and it was us against the world!

Pokemon Rangers: Shadows of Almia - THIS WAS THE SHIT! I haven't played through this entire game in ages, and in general I dont' think I ever finished, but would play around on my brother's finished version? I think I got as far as the desert when i had it, and now it's my sister's, who just recently replayed it and finished it. The characters and writing are soooo much fun, highly recommend. I love different takes on the pokemon world.

HeartGold - was my brothers, he let me play after he got a new game. My starter was cyndiquil. I got to Whitney, struggled against her for ages, fucking finally beat her, and then my ds died and I hadn't saved and I never picked it back up. I think my brother has it now, that or it's lost lol

Pokemon Rangers: Guardian Signs - swapped Explorers of Time for this game with a kid I knew. I remember it being pretty fun! But it was a bummer that ukelele pichu is stuck as your partner and you can't swap him out for a different but cool partner pokemon. Other than that, can't remember much. I do know that my friend wanted to trade back, but he lost my game, but I gave it back anyway. I can't remember if he ever found my copy, but I defo haven't seen Explorers of Time in years.

White - Good game, great game. Again, I got to play this game after my brother got Black/White 2, and I remember enjoying it well enough. I just replayed it a couple weeks ago, though, and holy shit do I love this game. I love the characters, the themes, the usage of the gym leaders. I love N! SOOOOO MUCH!!! So much fun, 10/10 would recommend. Emerald is my favorite, but this is a close second.

Omega Ruby - my brother bought this for me for my birthday! I liked it well enough. I liked a lot of the redesigns, and it was a lot like Emerald, but I do think I liked Emerald a bit more. I think i was enough at this point to be aware of 'oh... maybe they could've put a bit more effort into this :/' I had a fun time playing it, but not as fun as Emerald (but I was young and exploring was so exciting) and they got rid of the battle frontier??? All in all, good game, but not my fav. Hm, maybe in a later date I'll make a tier list of these games or something.

Pokemon Picross - I told myself I wasn't going to go into all the apps, but just know I played a lot of this, even though I was very frustrated with how much microtransactions are expected of you. That goes for almost all pokemon game apps, tho.

Pokemon Go - also I played and still play a lot of pokemon go. I was so excited when I was announced! I didn't have a phone, so I convinced my mom to download it and I got to play it for like a day. Then I got a phone and I was a little disappointed. Now, it's a lot better than it used to be, but I still think it can still be better. Pokemon Go Summer was so great.

Moon - Again! My brother bought this one for me! I had a great time playing this game. I thought the storyline was really engaging, I loved my team sooo much, and the graphics weren't bad! Not that I say them too much - I played like 25% of this game on my 3ds with a broken screen that had a big black hole in the middle of the top screen. I really enjoyed the characters and their motivations and how terrible Lusamine was lol. Would recommend. My starter was litten bc I was like 'I always go with fire'. If I replayed it, though, I'd go with rowlet. When you pet incineroar, you, like, just rub his chest??? it's very weird.

Let's Go! Eevee! - I played this in the sense that I had a joycon in my hand and threw pokeballs while my sister played. It was just kind of an okay game, but being able to play it to any degree with my sister made it fun :)

Pokemon Dungeon: Explorers of Sky - I have explorers of sky! I bought it, desperate to play a pokemon dungeon game. I bought it off of, like, amazon or something, and damn this game made me cry. Definitely one of my favorites - if you can, play it! Play it and cry!

Pokemon Gold - my brother bought this for me, I haven't finished it. I really should pick it up again - I think I'm only like a gym or two in?

and that brings us up to present :) I like pokemon a lot! I can't wait to play more! I'd love to play b2/w2 someday in particular, I'd love to see my boy N again.

#browniefox speaks #ask #asks #anon #pokemon #pkmn #app game lightning roude #pokemon cafe - i wish there were more pokemon #pokemon masters - too many microtrans expectations #but i do love seeing the characters #pokemon shuffle - also played a lot of this #liked it well enough

[skyguy-snips]

Chapter 1: The Captain

Book 7: Battle Scars

Words: 1415

Masterlist | Taglist

Chapter 2

note: im very dfubk dnd its dsarurday night im so sorry pls enjoy chapter the new book!!!! ilysm. i'll edit/spellcheck inthe morning. srry lmao im genuinelu very drunk and my gf is trying so sober me up..... its barely working haha sorry anyways i hope you enjoy!! xoxo

note update: i am simply unwell this morning and it’s no ones fault but my own. send your thoughts and prayers lmao

Hurtling through space, Skylar let out a string of curses. She stumbled to the side, slamming into the wall as Tech took another harsh turn to avoid the shots coming from behind them. They had finally gotten that damn lizard thing, only for the previous owners to chase them from the surface.

Omega and Wrecker were in the main hold with the cargo, Echo and Tech in the cockpit and Hunter at the rear guns. Skylar stumbled again as a blast hit the ship, falling into the back of one of the cockpit chairs.

“How much longer until we’re in hyperspace, Tech?” Hunter shouted, firing the guns.

“That depends on when Echo plans on getting the drive back online,” Tech snarked, glancing at Echo.

“I’m working on it!” Echo yelled. Skylar just huffed, already done with their arguing. She watched them work for a few seconds before turning back to the main hold to check on Omega. She was unsteady as explosions rocked the ship, and she watched as Omega pulled the safety bar over her head and Wrecker tried to secure the creature next to her in its crate.

“I don’t think Ruby likes this very much,” Omega said. Skylar dropped into the seat across from her, a confused look on her face.

“You named that thing?” Skylar asked as Wrecker sat down in the seat next to her.

“What’s with these guys?” Wrecker shouted, his hands gripping the safety bar.

“Well we did steal from them,” Omega said. The lizard hissed from it’s cage, and Skylar flinched.

“Technically, the Rhokai stole the lizard first,” Tech called from the cockpit. Skylar shared a look with Wrecker, rolling her eyes. “We are merely intercepting it.”

“They don’t see it that way,” Hunter said, continuing to return fire. A rough blast rocked the ship, the lizard’s cage dropping to the floor and the door flying open. It immediately crawled towards Wrecker, who started yelling.

“It’s loose, it’s loose!”

The creature crawled up his leg, heading straight for his head as he jumped up from his seat.

“Get it off, get it off, get it off,” he shouted, running around in the small area. Omega and Skylar both jumped out of their seats, trying to calm him down.

“Stay calm. You’re scaring her,” Omega said, trying to grab the creature without being whacked by Wrecker’s flailing limbs. He ran clear to the cockpit, slamming into the back of one of the seats and falling backwards.

The creature went flying back into the hold, and Omega grabbed the crate from the floor. Skylar moved to block it’s possible escape route to the cockpit.

“Hyperdrive’s online!” Echo shouted, just as Omega dropped the crate over the creature, trapping it.

“Got it!” she shouted. Skylar grabbed onto her, knowing the jump to hyperspace would throw the small girl otherwise. Tech slammed the lever forward, and the stars blurred around them.

Skylar let out a sigh of relief, leaning down to help Omega close the crate and lock it properly. She made sure Omega was alright, and then she moved to help Wrecker off of the floor.

“You alright, big guy?” she asked, smirking at him. He rubbed his head, an embarrassed look on his face.

“Don’t be mean, Sky. That thing was attacking me!” he whined, pointing accusingly at the crate.

“Uh huh. Whatever you say,” she replied, patting his shoulder as she walked out of the cockpit. She passed Hunter, who nodded at her questioning look: He was alright.

She sat down next to Omega, smiling as she watched the girl peer into the crate to get a better look at the creature, ‘Ruby’.

----------

When they arrived at Cid’s, Echo placed the crate on the counter for Cid to look at.

“That’s one strange lookin’ lizard,” she mumbled, straightening back up to look at the group.

“What’s your client want it for?” Echo asked.

“Maybe it’s a pet. Maybe he wants to turn it into a stew. Don’t know, don’t care,” Cid replied. Omega’s face fell a bit at the idea of Ruby being turned into a stew.

“As long as you get paid,” Hunter finished as Cid turned to walk away.

“Now you’re catching on,” she replied, her back still facing them. “And guess what? That means you get paid too. Bring the lizard in the back.”

Skylar moved to stand by Hunter, nudging him with her shoulder. He glanced at her before turning his eyes to watch Echo and Tech head towards the office. They started following them, but Hunter paused, glancing at a few people along the far wall. She went to ask him what was wrong but they were interrupted.

“Hunter?” Omega called. They both turned around, finding Omega and Wrecker. The girl looked up at Wrecker, gesturing towards them with her thumb.

“What are you two up to?” Skylar asked, the hand not holding her helmet resting on her hip.

“The mission’s over. Can we go?” Wrecker asked, Omega giving them a blinding smile.

“Again?” Hunter sighed.

“It’s a tradition,” Wrecker said, Omega nodding along. These two were trouble, that Skylar was sure of. “It makes the kid happy.” Omega leveled Wrecker with a frown.

“Uh huh. The kid,” Hunter said. They just looked at him, sweet and manipulative smiles on their faces.

“Don’t take long,” Hunter sighed, turning to walk back to the office. Skylar couldn’t help but grin, knowing Hunter had the biggest soft spot for his brothers and Omega. The two cheered, jumping up and down before running from the bar. Skylar followed Hunter, glancing back toward the group of people along the far wall.

They entered the office, Cid tapping away on her datapad.

“All right, here’s your cut,” she said, handing Hunter a handful of credits.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. You said the job paid three times this,” Hunter argued.

“For me, not for you,” Cid said.

“And just how is this a mutually beneficial arrangement?” Echo asked, clearly frustrated.

“You’re breathin’, aren’t you?” was Cid’s reply, just angering them further. “Rather generous considering the debt you owe me.”

“What debt?” Skylar asked. Cid tossed the datapad onto the desk, and Skylar picked it up and scanned through the itemized list.

“Docking fees, port charges, gear, fuel, rations, and 20 cartons of Mantell Mix?” she read off. Cid didn’t reply, crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair. Tech took the datapad from her, reading it for himself while the other three glanced at each other.

“Now, I like you, but I’m not running a charity here. You need a big score for us to be square,” she said, pointing her staff at them.

“Like what?” Echo asked.

“Like retrieving that tactical droid, but you bungled that op,” she said, frowning. “I suggest you figure something out before you see my ugly side.”

“That’s not her ugly side?” Tech murmured, glancing at Skylar next to him. She elbowed his stomach where the armor didn’t cover, a small ‘oof’ leaving his mouth.

“What was that, goggles?” Cid asked, leaning closer to him. The argument was cut short, however, by the sound of blaster fire coming from the bar. They all turned on instinct, hands pulling out their blasters. They took off running, pausing in the doorway to the bar with their blasters aimed.

They saw two patrons go running for the exit, a cloaked figure standing by the far wall with a blaster in their hand. They sat the blaster on the edge of the table, their face obscured by their hood. However, a flash of blue and white caught Skylar’s eye, and her breath caught in her throat.

No. It couldn’t possibly be. It was just her mind playing tricks on her, there was no way this person was a trooper, let alone would she be lucky enough for them to be from the 501st. Not after what happened.

Cid shoved past them, angry for the disturbance.

“Hey, what’s going on in here?” she asked, nudging Hunter aside. “Who are you?”

She gestured towards the cloaked individual with her staff, their head turning to look at them. They stepped forward, and everyone’s hands warily held their blasters. The person reached up towards their hood, and all of the air left Skylar’s lungs.

Blue and white plastoid armor. She would recognize those tally marks anywhere.

He removed his hood, looking at them with an unreadable expression. Skylar felt Echo tense beside her, his arm lowering his blaster immediately.

“... Rex?”

-----------

Taglist (request to be added here)

@commxnderwolffe @graciaramirez @killtherandomness @nerjetiise @photowizard17 @selbyknox @unapprovedtrash @xsweetchanx @hannahbowker @lokigirlszendaya @quietly-scrolling-through @wondergal2001 @zombiedixon89 @hanns1d

#the bad batch x reader #bad batch x reader #bad batch x oc #the bad batch x oc #tbb x oc #clone force 99 #the bad batch #tbb #star wars oc #star wars #canon x oc #oc x canon #canon compliant #tech bad batch #tbb tech #tech #echo bad batch #tbb echo #echo #clone trooper echo #hunter bad batch #tbb hunter #wrecker bad batch #tbb wrecker #wrecker #crosshair bad batch #tbb crosshair #crosshair #omega bad batch #tbb omega

[roughentumble]

last night i decided i wanted to start a new oras save file, but for some reason my 3ds wouldnt read my omega ruby game card so i decided to restart the alpha sapphire game that my ex just. gave me(even though i was like "you really dont need to do that" but he insisted so whatever). the problem is it had a bunch of his natural-caught legendaries on it, including like entei, and also just his Core Team that he'd leveled up to like 90 and had nicknames. and i felt bad abt deleting them, so i wonder traded them all instead, so they'd still Exist instead of just vanishing during a reset. i felt bad but he literally gave me the game and like im never seeing him again and i dont wanna play on a save file w/ everything unlocked and fucking nicknamed "buttlet" for some unfathomable reason

anyway then immediately today i went out w/ my mom and as we were pulling out of the driveway i saw a guy from behind and was like "is that my fucking ex" and nearly had a heart attack.

#it was not but he did look shockingly similar to my ex

[hopipp]

the sinnoh games

hi its jules back at it again with opinions! its funny because i was JUST in a heated discussion abt nintendo and the pokemon company with my brother yesterday and then they went and dropped this bomb...

ive been playing pkmn since i came out the womb but gen 3/4 have always been closest to my heart. i think the original pixel graphics are so charming and colourful and i will never understand the choice to absolutely butcher the series with this awful, 3d chibi remake style. clearly people still like pixel games! look at the recent successes of undertale and omori. especially in the case of brilliant diamond and shining pearl-- they are direct remakes of the original. why not just enhance the 2007 style if you’re not going to add any gimmicks (though im glad they didnt) like in omega ruby/alpha saph? where is the creativity and innovation in these hollow remakes? y’all have the funds, the skills, the means. it just kind of boils my blood. no way am i spending 80 bucks on something that looks like THAT and isnt even a new game. I’d rather the original just be playable on the switch with some edits at half the price and im sure lots of folks would agree.

on a higher note, pokemon legends arceus is EXACTLY the direction i wished the pokecompany would have taken years ago! i love that its set in the past as pokemon games seem to always be very futuristic (but maybe thats my preference as a literal historian). the botw-style open world concept seems to be done better than their previous attempts like with pokemon snap and stuff. looks a lot cleaner, and the muted but more traditional character designs fit the world so well (lucas kinds of reminds me of sugimoto saichi from gk). i also noticed that gamefreak isnt working on it and maybe they’re a huge part of whats been holding the company back until now? anyways i am excited about an actual innovative, fresh take on a pokemon game thats finally worth the money.

#pkmn #feel free to disagree #i know a lot of folks were super excited abt a sinnoh remake but #is THIS what yall asked for lol #they should have just left it at arceus legends that would have been better imo

[darkelite020]

Bad Batch thoughts & predictions Ep 13

Continuing these written reactions/predictions somewhere cause itd be fun I think to see what actually ends up happening and remembering what I thought at the time so im dumping it here, youre welcome. (Feel free to discuss if you want) if you want to keep up with it im gonna be tagging these as #jay rambles about bb

- So before I even start the episode description is "To save a friend ..." and I'm here like 👀 -- its probably not crosshair but still! Excited and ready/ - oh so theyre saving Cid >>? - lol why did the two aliens who are always playing games have to come along? I get that they hung around that place when Cid was there but why did they get kicked out, and why couldn't they go somewhere else? Thats just kind of amusing to me. - Cid's called Tech "goggles" multiple times and like you can tell he's not thrilled about the name but he never fights her over it and that is also, pretty amusing. -- I forget but surely they told Cid their names, right? Or she's at least definitely heard them calling each other their names. - Echo is always the immediate voice of reason and I love that. - "It wont be a problem if everyone keeps their trap shut" andddd the odds of them being completely quiet is 0 whether via talking or accidental noise calling it now theyre gonna get in that fight 100%, if not now then on the way out when they get the spice. -- they got away with the noise but I still super doubt that theyre not gonna go without fighting the bugs or whatever they are. - ah ok, it makes more sense that those two aliens from earlier were actual friends to Cid (or paid) rather than just casuals. - the little pangolin pet animal thing is cute ;-; - Ruby!!! Shes precious. Love her. - I doubt they will but what are the odds of the bb getting caught with these drugs lol... thatd probably look pretty bad for them - Roland is the bad guy here and all but so far he doesnt really seem like genuinely evil or bad... more so like a nuisance kinda - yepppp these guards are gonna make noise I bet for the bugs to come out - thats totally not terrifying o-o - who cares if the bugs take the spice? The point was to take it away from Roland wasnt it? - isnt Roland literally trying to correct the mistake? - "The child stays here" and then the whole squad takes out their guns ;-; thats so cute oml im gonna die. The squad protecting their little sister gives me serotonin -- they all look pissed walking away but hunter and echos expressions really show it well and again it just shows their bond with omega and I love that. - lol poor wrecker and his fear of heights, I cant help but think of rex and maybe wrecker can start relating that yeah being thrown up high isnt fun - see this is what I mean! Roland seems... kind of sweet inside >> - welp techs plan is about to come in handy right about now - UH HELLO??? KIDS SHOW BY THE WAY?? Jesus. - I feel bad for Roland... -- Omega gets it 👏

#bad batch #bad batch episode 13 spoilers #star wars #the clone wars #tcw #jay rambles about bb #bad batch spoilers

[pk-platinum]

im always reading your tags sorry lol so your current obsession is pokemon? are you playing a game rn? if so which one? my younger brother and i are doing a joint playthrough of emerald rn (i get half the team, he gets the other) i got to pick the starter so i chose mudkip bc mudkip is the best and he was so adamant about having a torchic he cheated one in the game

No need to apologize! and yea it is! Ive been replaying most of the games over the last several months. last week I just beat omega ruby again and tbh I think ORAS were the best games in gen 6 lol.

That sounds fun oh boy...yknow i havent seen a lot of torchic fans?? I used torchic in my recent one and the game is the most hard with that starter. (I always pick treecko <3) mudkip is great like tbh all the hoenn starters are very good. I feel the same about johto & kantos starters. I hope your playthrough went well. emerald is hard af, played it when i was 13 and I got to the pokemon league but i couldnt beat it lmao

[huntsman-ash]

RWBY LiveThoughts: V8E7

Since I finally have time for it today, lets make sure Im all caught up for the hiatus. 

Before we get fully started, an idea; Its not a war crime if they’re Grimm. Then its just self defense. So break out the napalm, the cluster bombs, the chemical weapons, the fun stuff. Make em regret it, yeah?

And we start off...on a farm. Looks like my moms old farm in South Dakota. Even on Remnant, hay is best used in bales.

Waiiiit. Thats the place the Whale set down isnt it. I see a Sayber running. Ah, and the Atlas military! Surely, the vanguard of a massive force to hold the line! Also Im glad to see a close up of the helmet for once, I want to make my own. Also, the gloves, and the rifle itself. Not sure why it doesnt have a stock, seems kind of silly...

And airships too, so they got some fire support...whats that wall behind them though?

Also it TOOK US 8 FUCKING SEASONS to get a close up of these FUCKING Weapons. 8. FUCKING. SEASONS. Okay maybe more like 5 cause they didnt first appear till 3 or so but come on. Im so picking this shit apart later. 

Pfft, bros got some nerves going on. Come on man, its just some Grimm, you’ll be FINE.

Atlas field harvesters resemble Halo’s JOTUN Farming equipment. As wel as our own. No surprise there.

Alright, bunch of Saybers, not seeing much of a threat here.

Hey, Paladins! Damn, they...look way different than I remember them to be. 

I wont lie, I dont like the Paladin design. Way to much visual noise, I cant tell where anything IS. 

Also that is the most 2D grass I have sever seen in my fucking life. What the hell are they growing here...

Huh, the whale has two sets of teeth. Wait, its just there? And its wpewing out Grimm. So...why isnt the air force firing on it? 

Yeah its not moving, its just raising its head and slamming down and vomiting out more Grimm. Im not sure what the issue is here, just...seal the mouth. 

Oh, huh. Apathys. Let me guess, RTs gonna try and tell us depression is going to kill most of Atlas. Oh for fuck sake. IM NOT IMPRESSED RT. IM REALLY NOT. IM MORE FUCKING ANNOYED THAN ANYTHING

Okay so...I see what this is. Its farm land outside of atlas proper and there’s an additional wall behind them, plus the power lines I guess? Seems like a viable place to make a stand. 

...thats it. Please tell me this is just a single detachment of the Atlas military because there is less firepower here than a NATIONAL GUARD UNIT ASSIGNED TO ONE CITY

Im fairly certain there are more people assigned to ONE UNIT attached to JBLM then I amm seeing here. 

Not to mention this is an OPEN FIELD the Grimm have to run through. This is a literall fucking TURKEY SHOOT. Running across an open field anywhere is a ticket to DYING.

Just ask the poor fucks on D-day.

Also uh...why is everyone in line formation? What is this, fuckin’ 18009s combat Napoleon style?

And did the distance suddenly change, I feel like the whale suddenly got a hell of a lot closer.

Just...I dont get this. This makes no sense. Did Ironwood learn how to deploy forces from a fairy tale book? This is legitimately some fuckin Lord of the Rings shit here.

RIP that one specific trooper hit by that Behemoth though. Dont worry friend, the thing walked next to a Paladin. Its getting its eye blasted out

And cut back to Ironwood. Doing...fuck if I know what.

Staring angrily it seems.

“Dammit, my tactical deployment by line formation and parade ground tactics isnt holding back the Grimm, curses!”

Well MAYBE IF YOUD THOUGHT TO INVEST IN SOME FUCKING AIR SUPPORT...Seriously.

I know people have told me why this is. I understand myself why this is. But it really just...does...not...jibe with me. At all. 

Okay so more details; first, apparently Atlas has a subway. Makes sense, its a big island. Inter-system transits probably a given. Second; Was that Mantis Squad Omega? Some kind of unit maybe...interesting.

 Also I love how this guy just questions Ironwood. Like, bro, if the General says do it, do it.

Hold the fuck up, why is everyone outside? It looks like fuckin’ Cali during our lockdowns...what ever happened to martial law huh?

Also “underground subway stations”. Yes, thats...kind of what a subway IS. I guess maybe they have overhead ones like New York does. Mass transit be weird like that.

I mean HELL the signs on it are almost identical to the ones in NYC too! Even with the colored circles and train cnumbers. 

According to the sign here they’re at Pickens Square Station. 

Oh boy. Ironwood just fed these poor bastards into a meat grinder. Anyone here ever played the Metro game series, or read the books?

Remember the Dark Ones? The Nosallias? Yeah. Tight corridors and monsters only work out well for angry vodka fueled Russians.

Didnt see it very well but I THINK those Mantas had some kind of wing gun. Either thats new, a separate armament setting, or RT forgot what ind of weapons they gave their ships AGAIN.

Cant get the shields back up, yeah, no shit, they DETACHED ONE OF THE FUCKING PILOTS YOU IDIOTS.

Also hah, they arrested Yang, Ren and Jaune. Not surprised.

Beta squads apperently been hitting the whale. ‘Bombs, missiles, we cant make a dent, sir.” ...while Im not surprised by this, I also hear shades of the opening of Halo 2s level Metropolis. “Where’s the rest of your platoon?” “Wasted, sarge. Blew right through us. Rockets, fifty cals, didnt do nothing.”

Honestly they could have SHOWED THAT too. Them just saying it feels like a cop out to me. Take that as you will. But if you want us to see the things hard to kill, show it. 

Not that I figure Atlas’s rockets are much more than Dust in a propellent tank. Not exactly a Hellfire or TOW.

Nice to see proper military talk for...a moment anyway.

Or what I figure RT figures is proper.

Oh so now the whales moving. Okay...huh.

Jaunes commentary is the same as mine. Though I guess the size seems to shift depending.

Ohhh. Its MANTA. As in the gunships. Alright, sure that works. And this guys making a good call. If you cant hit the big one go after the smaller. Of which there seems to be a HELL of a lot. Actually holy fuck that Grimm spew is across like...ahlf the fucking island right now. Time to fuckin torch and burn people.

Ahhhhhh and they get to the proper idea.  If you cant punch it from the outside, hit it from the inside.

I knew a crew...three madmen, names of Keegan, Lahni and Mac. The Hivebusters. Something tells me a Venom bomb would do the trick...if it can rip apart Swarm creatures as big as a Snatcher or a Swarmak and reduce them to green slime, I think it’ll work on Grimm. 

Something tells me RT isnt gonna give em a bomb though. Too obvious.

NEVER MIND. “Science team is putting together a bomb.”

Also I LOVE how Winter’s pupils expand and retract in fear as she realizes what Ironwoods asking her to do.

Awww now shes getting the shakes too.

Salem directing this shit like shes some kind of orchestra leader. I mean it FITS but...I dunno.

Ah so the command deck is directly behind the whale’s glowing nose. Basically inside where the spermacetiy organ would be in a real sperm whale.

What the fuck is Emerald doing there?

Sneaking I guess. Huh. Why’s she sneaking around the whale. Also, huh. guess seeers can get fooled by Emeralds semblance.  Is HE STILL BEATING UP ON OSCAR? Jeez dude. Take a breather.

Honestly if this was TRUE I would be okay with it. Replace the Huntsman with, I dont know, a massively overequipped military for each Kingdom, let them run rampant...stomp the Grimm out or push them back to nonexistence...everyone lives happily ever after

Lets be real here, the idea of the academies? Really really fucking dumb. Its cute. Fairy tale like.

But if theres one thing this show has taught me its that fairy tales SUCK. Reality...tends to be worse.

Ah theres one of those torture hooks they mentioned a few episodes back. Nice of the whale to have a specific interrigation room.

And at last we get some information on how Salem works. Alright so...what happens if you seperate the parts then? Sink one in the ocean, launch one into space.

Sounds like Oz/Oscars telling the fans what we’ve been saying forever, Companion Book be damned; Salem wants to die.

These mind games bore me. Its cute, but I dont like it cause I cant follow that shit. Give me a straight up fight any day, fuck this sublty backroom fuckery

No lies from them both here honestly.

Medical supplies in Atlas seem almost the same as here on earth interestngly. Also, soup. Or...coffee, tea?

Blake with the obvious here. But I mean thats not really saying much cause...well. Not hard to outfight the Atlas military it seems like.  (Long suffering sigh)

Im gonna make a seperate post about my frustrations with that and leave it there. But dont expect me to stop fully complaining about it because everyones gotta have something to bitch about with this show, and I’ll be DAMNED if I start joining the BB whiners.

Good question, Ruby. Might be that YOUR NOT LIVING IN A FAIRY TALE

I’d like to see these people dying in Mantle. I refuse to believe that there isnt SOMEONE in the nation that once brought Remnant to its heel that wont stand and fight. Unless Im wrong about that too...

May backstory? May backstory. Yeah.  Not amazingly complicated but it works. Cant tell if shes Henry though...or was. 

Dramatic lightning flash

Cute you think that Ruby. Theres sides. Always are.

Further proof honestly.

Hazels look of though is amusing. Cant tell if he doesnt believe Oscar, or if his tiny peabrain is runing full bore to think this through.

Coordination between farm boy and professor.

Oh. OHHHH. Plants the seed of doubt in Hazels tiny mind, he uses the last question for himself, sees the truth... Clever, Oscar. Clever.

Hazel peabrain go THUNK

Ah so Mercs going off to Vacuo. Guess that means everyone else is going there next too. Eat that, random Discord person, I called it.

Course, CFVYs there so...maybe we get to see Yats beat up on him.

Oh hi Tyrian. Do you just...randomly roam the halls of the whale waiting to DRAMATICALLY REVEAL YOURSELF and give violent expositon? Im very much okay with that.

Also I love how he just...accepts this. Totally fucking bonkers, totally down with it. 

Oh shit, Tyrian and Mercury going to Vacuo? Damn thats gonna be INTERESTING. I guess Tyrian’ll fit in well enough honestly.

Flying Beringal literally out of the roof. 

I remember back when this season first started and I said those weird bone platforms looked like VTOL launch bays. Guess what? They are.

Merc and Em emotion blah blah DONT CAAARRREEE

Jaune thinking tactically for ONCE IN HIS FUCKING LIFE. An I mean military tactical of course.

Also I like how the Aces say they dont let emotions cloud their shit WHEN THEYVE BEEN DOING THAT THE WHOLE FUCKING TIME.

This ENTIRE PLANET is emotionally run. Thats why the Grimm are such an issue! Makes small note to make Remnant Adeptus Mechanicus cult

Seriously though...

I wont lie though, Hare isnt wrong. Wonder what happened to that Tortuga guy. Tyrian, is my guess. Love how Ren interrupts the moment they almost mention Clovers name.

Expendable, yes. Replacable, no. You should have a talk with squadron leader Grey from Star Wars Squadrons Ren

ANNNNDDD SEMBLANCE EVOLUTION. Or the edibles just kicked in.

This is cool and all but its really fucking dumb and hamfisted. Explain all you want. Mention emotions all you want.

The Aces are fucking huntsmen. HUNTSMEN. FUCKING. SUCK. They always have. Its a dumb idea. Yes, lets stop the hordes of monsters invading this world BY SENDING IN SINGLE OPERATIVES WITH FUCKING MELEE WEAPONS

I’ll make this clear to you, Ren, right here and now. If you faced a REAL elites, you wouldnt have stood a chance. Nor would RWBY. Their bodies would have been three-shot from 20 meters out with a breach and clear and stacked against the wall like cords of wood, one final shot to the dome to make dead sure they were down. None of this stupid flipping and acrobatic crap, none of this clashing weapons and Dust and semblances...no. 

You’d be dead before you knew they were there and they would move on. You’d just be another body to the pile, one more faceless corpse to add to their kill count. A meatgrinder in human form. 

Professionals. Dont. Lose. AND THE ACES ARE NOT PROFESSIONALS!

Because thats not what RWBYs about, never has been.  And that is what annoys me slightly. That and the fact I cant distangle what I know of other universes and our own from RWBY’s. Its hard to hold a universe on its own when everything they make points towards it being like ours, but they change it when they see fit. 

I feel like thats bad writing.

Hehehe. Winter touched Elms boob.

Glad to know that Winters got her priorities right. Course, that bomb probably aint gonna do shit cause its Dust based.

...again, hoping its a chemical weapon...

Wait, the Atlas forces from earlier are STILL FIGHTING? Damn, these Grimm must suck if they couldnt wipe them out in that little time...

Also I cant tell if its getting dark cause of the storm or if its the dawn of the next day.  Or did...they shift time around? I lost track. I SWORE the sun was setting the last time we saw everything.

Also return of the shitty 3D grass...

Marrows gonna defect.

Awww poor Winters got emotions. HEY MAYBE DONT SEND A MENSTRATING WOMAN OUT ON A FIELD OP, ATLAS!

So according to May there’s still front lines. Cool. 

AYYY ITS KLIEN! HES BACK

Oh, I guess hes a doctor too. Oh he MAD.

Ayyy Whitleys being USEFUL for fucking once in his shitty life.

Shes gonna hug him isnt she.

CALLED IT. For fuck sake...whatever. Cute. But whatever.

Oh annnnddd now Grimmquake?

No. It stopped...Bolide?

No. PENNY.

Annnnddd shes leaking coolant. And sparking. And dead.

RIP Penny.

The concept art of the beached whale looks so fucking silly. Seriously, just...detach the whole section there. Drop the fucking thing. 

Oh well.

And thats it for almost two months! Be prepared for me to BULLSHIT MY WAY THROUGH ALL OF IT and continue on with my military fanwank because THATS HOW IM SURVIVING 2020!

#rwby #rwby spoilers #rwby v8 #spoilers

[zaptap]

my favorite games of each of the past 10 years

2010: pokemon black/white

2011: the legend of zelda: skyward sword

2012: pokemon black 2/white 2

2013: pokemon x/y

2014: pokemon omega ruby/alpha sapphire

2015: splatoon

2016: idk so im just gonna put splatoon again since thats all i played anyway

2017: splatoon 2

2018: splatoon 2: octo expansion

2019: i havent played/finished a lot of the games from this year ive been wanting to play so uhhhhhhhhhhhhh splatoon 2 again

[vega-archives]

The Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl situation.

*Op-Ed*

The Hype

Pokemon fans tend to be among some of the most abused fan bases when it comes to classic franchises. Some would say things started going south with the release of Sun and Moon, some would say X and Y, and then, of course, there is the "Gen Wunners," as they're usually called, who tend to believe strictly in gen 1 and 2 superiority. One common thread in all Pokémon discourse is that no Pokémon fan can agree with another what constitutes a "good" Pokémon game looks like.

I was born in 1992, making me the perfect candidate to be a "Gen Wunner," and I technically wear it, while I do resent the title. that is only to preface that when Diamond and Pearl was released, I was in 9th grade and found most of the Sinnoh Pokemon to be overly designed and ugly. But to the generation of Pokemon fans younger than me, Diamond and Pearl is to them what Red and Blue is to me, meaning there are thousands of people in their early 20′s who believe this to be one of the if not the best Pokemon entry and will defend this game at all cost.

So it's 2001, and the Game Boy Advanced just launched, a console incapable of trading with the previous Game Boy. This presented a problem for Gamefreak, with older Pokemon being harder to find in Generation 3′s Ruby and Sapphire, so they made remakes of the first generation of Pokemon games as Fire Red and Leaf Green. This started a trend of remakes, the latest 2014s Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire (or technically Lets GO Eevee and Pikachu). This created quite the expectation for several growing early 20 somethings. “Where is my Diamond and Pearl remake?” they collectively asked. 

The Announcement

Despite the cynical takes I’ve seen on the Pokemon 25th anniversary "Pokemon Presents," I didn't think it was nearly as bad as they claim it to be. For example, I thought the intro movie was an entertaining and nostalgic look back at almost every Pokemon game in the last 25 years. The attention to detail with the titles they chose to highlight was impressive and almost like a sign that they remember when the series was overall of higher quality. While I am a bit skeptical, another highlight for me was Pokemon Legends Arceus announcement. The idea of an open-world Pokemon Game set in a past version of Sinnoh sounds intriguing, I saw how Gamefreak handled open-world areas in Pokemon Sword and Shield and you can color me unimpressed and apprehensive.

Then they show the highly anticipated and expected, Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. The trailer starts off pretty strong, with a montage of memorable scenes from the original DS game, which in hindsight only made the reveal of the games visuals all the more devastating.

Cut to a shot of the character Dawn in her starting home but wait, what's wrong with Dawn? she is now horribly disfigured. Im usually a fan of “chibi” aesthetics but this one felt immediately lifeless. The character has been foreshortened with the grace of someone using hacksaw for the first time. It seems as if no artistic consideration was put into how these characters would look in this new style. This feeling only grows as you continue to watch the trailer and see how the "chibi" style fared with all of the non-player characters, which, in my opinion, is far worse. It seems as if they were more concerned with making 3D models that matched the origional games sprites that they didnt stop to consider how these models appeared. 

Then comes the larger models used in battle, what some people claim to be the remakes saving grace (visually speaking at least). It’s understandable why people claim those models look better than the overworld models, but the improvement is minimal, to say the least. These battle models are larger and more detailed but just as stiff, lifeless and flat as the overworld models. Not to mention the Pokemon are using the same tired models they've been recycling since generation 6 and continue to battle in spaces that remind me of what a low budget high school play looks like.

Besides goofy and awkward walking animation, the trailer doesn't really have much else to say past this point. It really does feel like ILCA said, "you like Diamond and Pearl? here it is again, but we made it ugly".

The Fallout

This is when the situation begins to unfold in different pockets of social media, I primarily experienced it on Twitter. While it did seem like most Pokemon fans were rightfully disappointed in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearls appearance, both in terms of technical graphics and art style, it seemed like another group of fans seemed vehemently opposed to any and all criticism of the trailer claiming "we finally got what we wanted"

While it merely comes down to a matter of artistic preference, I don't think it's unreasonable to hold one of the highest-grossing franchises in the world to higher standards. Additionally, this is only one in a long series of disappointment from Pokemon titles, and I liked Pokemon Let's go. Die-hard fans who have been with the franchise from the beginning are scared that they'll never see what they consider to be a high-quality Pokemon game ever again.

Hope?

There might be light at the end of the tunnel after all. Like I previously stated, Pokemon Legends Arceus seems like an intriguing enough concept, although I do remain skeptical. Also, Pokemon Diamond and Pearl were good Pokemon games, so while the art style might look silly and animate stiffly, the general game should be fun.

After all, I am looking forward to playing this game and will more than likely buy it at full price.

[expelleomousbitch]

ffs i just spent 3 hours catching 89 pokemon on my pokemon moon file so i could transfer all my legendary/mythical pokemon from omega ruby to it only to find out as im ready to trade that i needed pokemon bank to transfer between 6th and 7th gen (((: i forgot and now i gotta play through X from the beginning and catch 89 pokemon. All. Over. Again.

#this is why u double check ur knowledge online kiddos #rant #i feel stupid #fucking hell man #this is gonna take 6 hours minimum #FUUUUCCCKKK #i just wanted to shiny hunt mudkip #pls i want that pink axolotl #mudkip pls

[crybabey]

im playing omega ruby again from the beginning even though i didnt finish it the first time but for the first time im using torchic because i love torchic but like I Hate Blaziken so i think i’m stopping at Combusken

#is that their names idek ? #i just hate blaziken so much

[goodnightwatch]

AN (IM)PERFECT COLLECTION

An Horological Psychologist’s Magnum Opus, or How a Lowly Graduate Student Amassed a World-Class Collection of Fine Timepieces.

By: Andrew Lawrence Smith

Part 1

You might think it’s easy to collect watches, but I’ll have you know that even if you’re the richest person in the world, you simply cannot know what to buy and when and where and why to buy it until you have put in an insane amount of work. In some ways it really evens the playing field between the rich and the working class because it’s not about money, it’s about achieving a holistic collection that balances and harmonizes everything from wrist-time to occasion. Collecting is as much of an art as the watches themselves. Some people get lucky, sure, but then again some people win the lottery and if you’re reading this, that is not going to happen to you, probably ;).

Hi there. My name is Andrew and I am a 37 year old PhD student and Jungian Depth Psychology Consultant finishing a dissertation in Jungian & Archetypal Studies and Horology at Pacifica Graduate Institute. Do they offer the horology part? No. I created that after being unable to separate my depth psychological research from wristwatches. This is what we deem a vocational call. When you spend hours observing the least and the greatest of watches under magnification to understand what “fine” means and when you press each watch against your ear to hear every tick and tone made by the watch, you’re just barely beginning to be on the path. My research discusses how timepieces, the wristwatch in particular, might function as a modern mandala, having a real connection to the unconscious archetypal Self, but that goes way beyond the scope of this essay. To understand some of the terms I use, you might need to dip into Jungian depth psychology, and for the most important definitions, they can be found here: http://www.psychceu.com/jung/sharplexicon.html

Many arrive at a collection that fits them by procuring countless timepieces and then throwing them back into the abyss in order to please their peers (fashion watches and status pieces) and have the experience that refines one’s taste, some of which I’ve done, but the serious collector will lie in wait like a dragon observing from atop a mountain of gold; the gold being serious knowledge, in the vein of attempting to acquire an horological and psychological philosophers’ stone. When all variables align—after months and years of reading and discussing and visiting boutiques and second-hand shops either brick-and-mortar or online—only then will one receive the full satisfaction of the perfect watch for them, the perfect complete set, and the perfect price to once again return to one’s perch fully satisfied with the catch/game of a lifetime. Needless to say I will not be discussing the auction world at all. Auctions are for rich people. Although the rich or super-rich should go through the process that I have gone through, they really don’t have to. Their loss. Then again, they hire guys like me to pick out their watches! This is a story for the ultra-conservative (no politics implied) watch collector. The metaphor of the miserly, yet punctilious dragon, represents the foundation of the composition of an horological psychologist. Horology is cool, psychology is cool, but I contend that it is only when the whole process of being an horologist is twinned with the knowledge and experience of depth psychology that one can truly enter into this deeper world of alchemical achievement, understanding, and appreciation.

Put another way, what I have found from studying wristwatches—as they relate to universal mandala symbols—is that the image of the timepiece, especially the wristwatch (in my own psyche) replaces every single religious symbol with a unified and integral symbol of the height of human consciousness and beyond. I’m more than just your average atheist, I am an horological psychologist who has integrated world mythologies into a knowledge and gnosis of being that connects the alchemically perfect timepiece and the supreme meaning of the individual and collective psyche; Jung’s notion of the archetype of the Self, the whole being of the individual. For more on that, you can hold out for my completed dissertation, and in the meantime read C.G. Jung’s “Memories Dreams Reflections.”

The image above was taken by me and is from C.G. Jung’s “The Red Book: Liber Novus.” It is one of many mandala images that Jung created to symbolize the whole Self archetype. A perfect watch on the wrist does not fall short of the feelings evoked through this depiction of presentiating origin: becoming fully integrated into the purest harmony of consciousness.

Part 2

It was by accident, or rather synchronicity, that on the 28th of June, 2012 I found myself attracted to a cheap, skeletonized mechanical wristwatch that was glaringly out of place amid items I was perusing to fill a few needs for my San Francisco apartment. I had been studying Nikola Tesla in depth and was possessed by the genius of his inventions and notions of free electricity. I thought that using/wearing a watch, which would need no battery replacement, was/is an ecologically responsible and very cool thing to do. At $120, it seemed expensive, but I was overcome by a strange feeling of passion and curiosity in the name of the great Tesla (best human who ever lived) and so I ordered it. Full disclosure, I sweat bullets on the MUNI back then thinking someone would mug me for that watch. Now I ride the bus with a Rolex hanging out like IDGAF x). But I digress.

Upon removing the watch from its box for the first time after it arrived at my door, little did I know that I would from that day forward never go another day without enjoying a mechanical watch on my wrist. Case and point, at this very moment I am wearing my Breguet 5327. Thus commenced hours upon days of winding, listening, and viewing the watch under magnification so that I could figure out how everything worked. It might’ve been a poor excuse for a watch, but I could not stop staring at all of the moving parts, which had me mesmerized as if I was flying through the clockwork at the train station in the film Hugo.

Even in this bottom-of-the-barrel movement that had been manufactured in a place with vastly lower standards than Switzerland, I could see motion and beauty that had/has me transfixed on a level that was/is far greater than any basic aesthetic, technical, or functional appeal. I purchased a few loupes—5x, 10x, and 30x—to get a closer look. Since I still have this watch, I do not have to imagine what it feels like to dive into the minute details of every stationary and moving part. I can gaze upon, and through, the synthetic rubies right now and see a universe of possibility in an instrument that is only meant to tell us where the sun in the sky might be at any given moment so that we will know when to perform certain socially agreed upon human rituals. That said, with each of my watches I often engage in Active Imagination (a Jungian method by which one re-members or discovers knowledge sourced from the collective unconscious) and the imaginal entities that animate in my own mind, inspired by the wristwatch, tell endless, fascinating stories.

Two years after encountering that initiatory watch, owning cheap mechanical watches of various designs and complications (my experience of horology exposure 101), I finally took the plunge and bought my first fine timepiece. Now to be fair, I must mention that I spent a lot of time during those years defending my cheap watches as if owning something that costs more than a few hundred dollars US would never be necessary, like some poor souls still do, but eventually I grew up and made the sacrifices necessary to possess something serious. You need a thick skin in the watch world in order to interface with other Modern Day Watch Enthusiasts who are worth talking to. Surviving your own ignorance to become horologically knowledgeable is a noble and brutal journey through the underworld. And as Jung would have it, emerging from this underworld is simply another stage of individuation; an expansion of consciousness improving the abilities and life of the individual.

My first fine watch was the Omega Speedmaster Professional ref. 3577.50 “from the Moon to Mars” purchased on the 2nd of January in 2014. Obsessed with Elon Musk’s dream to travel to and terraform Mars, as a byproduct of being equally obsessed with Nikola Tesla, this was a watch that not only met all of my horological desires but also instantly possessed a multiverse of meaning for me. I imagined that one day I would take this watch with me on a public transport to the Red Planet. Elon wants to die on Mars, and quite frankly, so do I. To me this watch was so expensive (for me at the time) and so perfect that there would never be a reason to own anything else. Again, little did I know that I would be very wrong about that. Enter the “Coke.”

The Rolex GMT-Master II 16710 Coke began to burrow into my mind as I continued to scour the internet for the best deals on fine watches of all kinds. Every single day I was on eBay, Chrono24, watchestobuy, watchuwant, Crown & Caliber, Jomashop, The RealReal… You name it, if the site was selling fine watches, I was keeping tabs. Apologies to anyone I missed. By this time I was reading magazines, blogs, and watching all sorts of videos that were giving me a fairly exhaustive exposure to what was out there and who was buying/selling certain kinds of timepieces in certain categorical brackets. My aim was/is to understand watches on a deep psychological level as they affect the experiences of others and of course my own Self. Not just to be a numbers guy who can flash the timepiecs but say almost nothing meaningful about them. I must confess that it is important to know that, in regards to my personality type (INFP), I operate heavily by listening to my own intuition, and I could not shake this watch; just as I could not shake the Mars. There was more than just the analysis and process of elimination, it was something like a powerfully religious magnetism. The Coke was coming to me in my dreams. I have the dream journal to prove it! However, that’s in my dissertation. On a number of occasions I placed offers on a Coke, but came up with nothing because either a) the seller was shady, or b) I just couldn’t get the price or set where I wanted it. Dealing with watch sellers can be tricky, unlike being face to face with your local AD, so it’s important to be patient and cautious; to not be so excited about that exact watch you’re hunting that you get taken for a ride.

Then finally the day came when I saw a great deal for a clearly authentic Coke (gotta have that paperwork) in amazing condition and I made an offer that stuck. Again, I thought I was going to be done forever. That this was the collection of a lifetime. I had unique Speedmaster that almost no one else had and I had a Coke, which is a highly respected and desired timepiece across the globe. I chose the GMT because I could use it to track 3 time zones more efficiently than on any other timepiece, including world timers, and this came in very handy with all of the traveling and international communicating that I do. Not to mention, the whole design of the watch and color scheme is unusually attractive and versatile (still my favorite Rolex, aside from material objections), but I had not ever seen one in the metal. On a flight home from Cyprus I ran into a guy who was wearing one. I asked him if I could see it and of course he obliged. I have pictures to prove it (see below). I was wearing my Moon to Mars and just knew that the Coke would complete the circle for me. The one thing that I did not really take into account until my own Coke arrived was the size, which didn't register on that agonizing flight back to the US from Cyprus, where I had attended an amazing conference on Time and the Psyche. The conference was a magical experience, but I do not recommend that anyone fly a cumulative 44 hours just to have 5 days on the ground, no matter where you are going.

I ordered my 16710 from 1989 at a great price in pristine condition with papers and when it came, I was bewildered. It seemed so small! Was it actually fake? Did I get bamboozled? Impossible. All of this time I had been looking at huge blown up pictures of the watch and assumed it had the same presence as a Submariner, but there it was, 100% authentic and smaller than I expected. I wanted that Submariner-style crown, big and chunky, but after a while the size of the 16710 crown began to make sense and the tasteful nature of this specific piece became clearer from one day to the next.

I spent so much time examining this Coke, to make sure that it I hadn’t made a mistake, that synchronistically every aspect of its charm became powerfully apparent and intoxicating beyond belief. I had been wearing obnoxiously large watches with Chinese tourbillons that dwarfed even my Speedmaster and now finally the curse was lifting. I saw the light. Praise the gods! Certain watches worked for certain wrist sizes and certain moments in life. Wearing a watch that is too big for you is simply childish and lacking in discipline and taste, just like believing that there is a god that is literally real. This Rolex functioned as training wheels for wearing watches that actually fit properly and looked correct for my physical build and personality type. I remember thinking that the bracelet was too narrow and that the case of the watch only covered the surface area of my wrist, which made it feel like there wasn’t enough watch there, but in reality it was a match made in mythological, alchemical heaven. To this day I still think that the textural design and character of that vintage Oyster bracelet is better than the new 904L iteration and that the 116710 is right on the line of just barely being not too big. Unless you’re deliberately trying to be a clown, a dinner plate on the wrist is no bueno.

In all of my idealism, I thought that the Coke and the Mars were going to be my life companions, but alas we never really do finish growing and developing. Especially when we finally meet that special someone! Enter the Kwan.

Part 3

It was my great fortune to synchronistically meet (a story for another time), date, and ultimately marry my wife, the magnificent Jane Kwan, who for better or for worse has supported me through this transformational journey that is watch collecting. She was kind enough to be fascinated at first, and is now at least tolerant, but when I began to show her how you could actually store value or even potentially make a little money with the acquisition and sale of certain timepieces, she started to pay attention. Chinese people, like those of my Jewish heritage, love a reliable investment opportunity. I made it my goal to abandon hunting “good deals” on a wide range of watches and began hunting the exact watches that I would personally want to own and wear (not just stick in a vault), but only if the price was extraordinary or unusually fair. The Internet has made this relatively easy, if you’re willing to put in the time, and so I scoured the entire visible market for what I felt would be the perfect watch. Long story short, I discovered and then began to obsess over and follow/hunt the Patek Philippe Calatrava 5153G-001. Believe me when I tell you that I have written many pages about why this watch is, to me, the perfect dress watch, if not the perfect watch all around, aside from not being as durable as a Rolex, but again I digress. To be honest, this watch was my holy grail (a subject that I have expounded upon in other places as possibly the single most abused horology term aside from “in-house”) and I thought that I would never get to see it in my lifetime.

One day I found the Calatrava for sale online at a price that was unbelievable. My wife is almost painfully patient, and so we watched the piece sit on the website for nearly a month, while I nearly fell apart with anxiety waiting for her to make a choice. In the end, her instincts were right because the price continued to go down. But I really could not comprehend why no one was buying it. When we made the phone call to see about a best offer, we were able to take the price down even lower and so acquired the watch well below value thanks to my wife’s belief and investment in me, your humble watch hunter. Blasting into the side of this mountain precipitated a landslide to follow.

Not long after that my wife wanted something that she could wear every day. I had been hunting the Rolex Datejust 116234 with black dial, because it is my favorite iteration of the DJ and was able to find that watch well below value also. I thought it might be a bit large for her, but when it arrived it was a perfect fit at 36mm. While the watch is very cool, and occasionally I’ll sneak it away from her to wear it for a little while, it doesn’t make the cut for a perfect collection for me. I needed my watch collection to devour the catalogue of essential horological functions and representations.

However, I was jealous of the almost white-gold looking oyster bracelet and thus I faced a dilemma. The call to adventure was back! I realized that I could own both my Mars and Coke or I could sell them and own the singular Rolex GMT-Master II 116710 BLNR as basically an even trade (at the time), a watch that I still think is slightly less appealing aesthetically than the Coke as it at that time pertained to my personality, but possesses the ultimate in materials ever released from Rolex. I needed some time to think about this. Rolex’s alchemy game had become massively stronger than where it was in 1989. A few weeks later, in Honolulu, I was flipping through one of the tour books and when I turned it over to look at the back, there it was: the BLNR. Synchronicity, as usual, was determined to prevail. Now, I know that this watch is heavily advertised, possibly more than Tag or Hublot if that’s possible, but at that moment I felt like I was looking at a picture of a long-lost friend. The time had come to pull the trigger. I had spent several lovely days swimming in the ocean with my Coke, and now it was time to let it go.

The beach I frequented during my stay in Honolulu. Anyone who has been there knows where it is ;).

A shot of my Coke in Honolulu on the way to get some Spam Musubi!

The rosary bracelt pictured here was acquired in Cyprus, gifted to me by the great Angeliki Yiassemides (author of “Time & Timelessness”), not long before I managed to acquire my Coke. The meaning is strong in this image…

The book in the hotel room demanding that I trade up.

Horology boutiques... Always calling me…

Impossible to find one with black dial in a boutique, I spent some time admiring this beauty in white before that time came when my wife made a dream become reality.

With a heavy heart, I managed to part with my first fine watch and my first Rolex, selling them for fair market prices. Finding the BLNR for a steal is basically impossible, especially if you’re looking to buy within a relatively tight timeframe (aiming to acquire the watch mere months before moving to Copenhagen), so I found the best deal I could with a complete set and as planned basically traded about the same amount of money for those two watches to buy the one BLNR. This was good enough for me and my wife because it is still holding around the same value I invested and I basically had the experience of buying a brand new Rolex with a complete set minus stepping foot inside of an Authorized Dealer, an experience that is not at all important to a watch hunter like me; at least not at this time of life, but maybe later when I have established myself and I can afford that level of treat.

I honestly thought that I wouldn’t be as happy with the BLNR, as with the Coke, because black and red is so much more “me” along with other reasons and qualities (yadda yadda yadda, as Jane is fond of saying), but when it came I was filled with excitement. I opened the box and there it was: my long-lost friend whom I had been missing for the gods know how long. Most call it the Batman, I knew immediately that this was to be my R2D2. It doesn't matter that so many others own it or that the adverts were drilling into my brain. Consolidating to this watch was possibly the best horological decision I’ve ever made because although there was still a lingering color objection, I suddenly had a monstrously better watch to wear every day that met every single other checkpoint I felt one could demand from a daily-wear: 1. 904L steel, which really does feel like wearing white gold, but not quite as heavy a. Something that can take the hits and scratches and will withstand polishing dramatically better 2. White gold hands and indices, which contrast perfectly against the black dial 3. Blindingly bright blue lume, which my wife prefers to her green lume and makes it easy to tell the time under any circumstances aside from maybe actual blindness 4. The blued Breguet overcoil hairspring in the tried and true 3186 movement, something I don't even need to see to appreciate 5. The 5mm comfort link, which is a huge design leap forward compared to the oversized and floppy comfort extension on the original Oyster bracelet 6. GMT aligned clicks, which didn’t really ever seem to line up perfectly with the 16710 7. And most important of all, the very first two-color Cerachrom bezel, completing, to me, the most wearable, useful, and legible timepiece ever made 8. When you consider that this watch not only embodies everything you’d want and nothing you don’t, it’s easy to excuse the blue and simply hope for the red to come through someday 9. Finally, in review, this watch contains the best of every Rolex white metal: 904L steel, white gold, and platinum. As such, it is an alchemical masterpiece; and it has that chunky Submariner-style Triplock crown! Now I like both crowns for different reasons.

People have been calling it the Batman, and I get that. I’m a huge Batman fan and wouldn’t try to change the moniker even if I could, but for me it is the R2D2 riding along with me as I pilot this time machine we call a human body. My consciousness is the Luke inside of this Incom T-65 X-wing Starfighter and my 116710 R2D2 is the choice navigator, always down to take a beating for the rebellion ;).

So now I had a BLNR and a Calatrava shared with my wife (plus her 116234 to enjoy when she isn’t wearing it), completing two out of four watches of a complete set that I call “a holy quaternity.” What more could a man ever hope for? Would I really ever need to break a sweat over more than these two watches to complete the ultimate collection? I even had access to my favorite Datejust when my wife wasn’t wearing it, even though it does not fit the bill for my personal living symbol of wholeness of Self. My little wrist R2D2 and our white gold Darth Vader seemed like a complete set all by themselves. And yet, there was more to come, and rightly so!

My wife and I moved to Copenhagen so that she could attend DTU to earn her MA in Architecture. Being the unreasonably lucky guy that I am, I got to tag along and spend my days exploring one of the coolest (and happiest) cities in the world whilst writing my dissertation on psychology and horology. Several months in, after spending day after day chatting with awesome folks on MDWE, a gentleman put a Speedmaster “Legendary Moon Watch” ref. 311.30.42.30.01.005 complete set in basically new condition up for sale. A discussion about how this boilerplate design was so perfect it’s boring was going around and so at first I wasn’t too keen on the watch. I remembered my Mars and thought that the original Moon Watch was too plain and too common. However, the more I looked at it the more I realized what it had to offer. So many guys were/are going in for that vintage chronograph with the running seconds and 30 minute register without the hour register, which is a great and classic and traditional watch concept/discipline, but I need the hours! Even if it challenges aesthetics and purity. Honestly, purity has never really been my thing ;). Authenticity is a whole other kettle of fish! So then what I realized was, this was not going to be a watch that I spent time looking at during the day. This was a Good Night Watch that needed/needs to be useful in the dark. What better watch for darkness and time writing/recording/chrono-scoping than a boilerplate Speedmaster?!

The price was fair and I could certainly get most if not all of my money back if I needed to sell it, so I figured, why not experience the moon watch as a complete package in all of its boring glory. Sure, it’s no Moon to Mars and the literature won’t come in Japanese with a dedication to one of the world’s greatest artists, Leiji Matsumoto, but it would still be qualified by NASA for space missions and there were lots of other very cool accessories that would be fun to explore. Not to mention the history, which I must say ought to be valued well above just one spectacular artist. I pulled the trigger and the watch and its enormous packaging were at my Danish door within a few days. Upon opening the display box, a feeling came over me that I did not expect. The watch was/is so much nicer than the Moon to Mars, so much more sober and less cartoonish (not really an insult, actually accurate), and it instantly felt like it belonged on my wrist and that it would blend in like some kind of chameleon-like symbiotic creature. Almost instantly I finally knew what this watch was for.

While the Speedmaster had been and is still being used for outer space missions, I would be and am using this watch for INNER space missions. I sized the bracelet, which was a joy because it came/comes with screw end-caps rather than the basic link pins, placed the watch on my wrist and then started the chronograph right before going to sleep. When I woke up in the middle of the night to journal my dreams, I knew almost exactly how long I had been asleep, which really helped me to prioritize my time so that I wouldn’t wake up so much that I wouldn’t be able to return to slumberland. After finishing my journaling, I started the chronograph again, went back to sleep, and when I woke up I could see that I had gotten the eight-ish hours I needed to be rested enough for the day. I’m sure some of you go through the process of sleeping for eight hours without even thinking about it, but my dream life is so active that it is easy for me to lose track of how long I’ve been asleep, so this watch became an instantly useful tool that I can’t live without, just like the BLNR. And because it’s manually wound, I don’t have to stress out the winding train of an automatic chronograph; plus I have the pleasure of winding a watch every morning as the third thing I do after photographing the dial and resetting the chronograph. What a sweet ritual for a watch enthusiast!

My collection was complete. Right? I had my R2D2, which would go with me everywhere during the day, and I had my Good NIght Watch, which would track my sleep intervals and follow me into my dreams. And when it came time to celebrate something special, the Darth Vader (Calatrava) would take its place on my wrist under a cuff. Who could ask for anything more? There was only one slight problem. A large part of my journey after receiving that first mechanical wristwatch was exploring RGM in depth, which led me to Breguet. While I wasn’t sold on the idea of spending big money for a tourbillon since the science shows that it essentially has no real effect on accuracy, there was an element to watchmaking that I had fallen in love with before I even considered owning a fine watch of my own: guilloché.

RGM makes a killer tourbillon (reminiscent of a Speake Marin/Hamilton hybrid), let’s not mince words, only paralleled by the likes of Breguet, Patek Philippe, and Greubel Forsey (honorable mentions, Louis Moinet and Jaeger-LeCoultre - that one’s for Tim Mosso), and does some outstanding guilloché work with their own rose machine/lathe in Lancaster, PA. However, if you’re going to really tighten the restraints on a collection that is meant to be perfect (a true holy quaternity), there’s really no other choice than to go with the godfather of the practice: Breguet; arguably the most important historical figure/alchemist in watchmaking, and the inventor of many components that even the so-called “holy trinity” (lame designation, because Christianity is for people who don’t want to read more books—funny/not funny) still benefit from today. Hence I controversially argue that Breguet completes the holy quaternity and in many ways is still on top of PP, VC, and AP as the senex manufacturer (Harlan MDWE, bless his heart, will of course agree–love you, mean it). By this time I had visited so many boutiques, Tourbillon SF being one of my favorites, that I was saturated with the knowledge of what Breguet and other top-end (not just high-end) watch companies had to offer. Out from behind the stormy clouds of tourbillons and Jacquet Droz and Blancpain and A. Lange & Sohne and De Bethune and Ulysse Nardin came a piece that on any other day I would’ve ignored.

The Calatrava that was/is already in our possession does in fact have a guilloché black sunburst dial, but I wanted something that had/has/emanates the vibrant, timeless energy of 18th century watchmaking tradition, radiating from its finely crafted alchemical masterpiece of a dial and case. I had the opportunity to experience the skeletonized Breguet perpetual calendar tourbillon, but there was something missing even with that watch. Again, size and money are meaningless and relative. It was when I finally had a chance to take a close look at the 5327 that I saw that in any class for any money, this watch had/has it all. It has one of the most extraordinary complications ever invented, the perpetual calendar. It has moon phase, which is hugely important in psychology as a principle of divine consciousness. It has power reserve, which is arguably unnecessary on an automatic watch, but with the layout of the power reserve, moon phase, and date register at six o’clock, the 5327 pays perfect homage to the notorious automatic (perpétuelle) quarter-repeating watch with dumb (à toc) repeater from the late 18th century. This was/is the Breguet to own! Sitting in an office piled with books, including volumes about Breguet and the lovely publication that was created for The Legion of Honor in San Francisco, when they had their Breguet exhibition and lectures, I found myself having a full experience of awakening to the truth of yet another wristwatch. Except this time it was THE ONE. The only... This time, without a doubt, it was THE watch to end all watches, for me. I had done the work. I had read the books, scoured the Internet, been to the boutiques, met or at least studied the people, and in the end the Breguet Perpetual Calendar Classique 5327 presented itself as the answer I was looking for from both the multiverses of horology and psychology: all of the craftsmanship, all of the technology, all of the meaning, and all of the enjoyment from wearing one could ever ask for. Period, paragraph, life mission accomplished. Except, I didn't have the money x). That solution, which came later, was the real blessing.

Before I get into that, on a more somber note, I would like to mention that compared to Breguet’s latest QP, the ref. 5447, Breguet made an unfortunate design decision that is not in keeping with the more traditional layout. Maybe it’s great for marketing, but it does two things: departs from the classique tradition in a way that is unbearably modern, and treads dangerously toward cheapening the name of A.L. Breguet. Swapping power reserve for retrograde month was a particularly unfortunate decision, almost as undesirable as the choice to switch the angle of the moon phase to a less interesting and, I would contend, invasive vertical position. While that dial might be slightly more efficient in terms of the flow of reference and legibility, it is far from an upgrade and has lost that original 18th century charm. I’d wager that Breguet himself might agree. As such, this specific reference, the 5327, continues to wear the crown (pun intended) as what I feel is the greatest Breguet QP wristwatch ever made. That being said, I have dubbed the watch my Holy Grail, together with the Speedmaster, the GMT, and the Calatrava, this completes my personal Holy Quaternity. However, there is always a “fifth element,” intentionally playing on a reference to the film of the same name from 1997. That fifth element (the eternal energy of love and passion) to me is the transcendent holy grail, which is a watch that is so extraordinary and so perfect for the individual that it doesn’t even exist yet. The super rich uber-collectors will know what I’m talking about: a subscription piece that perhaps one’s preferred watchmaker doesn’t even know how to make. For me, in all seriousness, this would be the currently imaginary and absurd Greubel Forsey Quantième Perpétuel Chronograph Grande Sonnerie in a 41mm platinum case. Although, I’d take a GF chronograph, as long as it’s hand-wound. Could it ever possibly get any better than that? I seriously doubt it. At least for an individual like myself.

And so recently I found this perfect Breguet at a ridiculously low price. I mean a price that normally only dealers get from other dealers. This watch needed to be procured. My wife was not about to invest another substantial sum into a wristwatch since she felt that she had already diversified in that direction far enough with the Patek. And so she suggested that I ask my father if he would be interested in making the investment. After lengthy explanations over email and handling some obvious objections that a non-horology scholar might have, he generously agreed to help me make the investment to both aid in my research and hold value that only presents itself once in a lifetime. Due to this generosity and collective cooperation, it is my privilege and responsibility to care for this Breguet as the final piece to my horological individuation puzzle. The mandalas to complete the supreme mandala of the current manifestation of my own archetypal Self have been assembled like Voltron. And now that the collection is complete, my mission is to take exhaustive photographs, engage in active imagination (alchemical hermeneutics) with each piece and the whole collection for my research, and to cook it all down in the vas alembic of consciousness to create my very own horological opus.

Here’s an example of what enters my imagination when I engage in reverie (Active Imagination or Alchemical Hermeneutics) around one of the watches (often including its literature), offering a lingering (reverie) around or daydreaming into the Breguet dial: The guilloché pattern for the power reserve looks like the waves of the sea or the ocean. I am reminded of the image of the solar barge in Liber Novus p. 55. Aptly placed, it is above the other complications, next to the moon phase, which is obscured by a hand carved cloud pattern: the essence of the imagination. So the heavens and the waters, forged in fire and carved into earth or metal. The pattern in the date register is that of a waterfall or descending cliffs, reaching down into the underworld. All of these being supported by the primary dial hand carved rose lathe or rose machined pyramids (clou de paris). The pyramids or sacred geometry of transcendent consciousness. Within the big mandala that is the watch dial are 5 smaller mandalas: the moon phase, which embodies our human-centric lunar story and mythology; the leap year, which makes it possible for me to see the accurate date for the rest of my life without adjusting the timepiece; the month, a centered indicator of the positions of the gods; the day, a de-centered indicator of the positions of other gods; and finally, the date, a concept invented by people who want to control time and other people, to no avail one hopes. Might be best to simply let go of that craving for control, let people be peaceful unto themselves and allow time to flow with the Force of Nature. A dream within a dream... The watch does have Breguet’s signature coin edge or fluted sides, so the watch is to be treated as a sort of super sacred coin. This coinage or coin edge appears to be symbolic of the archetypal pillar: the pillars that held Samson, the pillars of Rome, and the pillars of current modern civilization. However, even after this current human experiment is dust and rubble, the pillars of time will stand as strong as they always have and it will never have mattered that humans were a part of it. A testament from the Antikythera mechanism.

It is possible that I may actually have to sell the Breguet after I am finished with my research sometime next year, unless by some miracle I make enough money to completely own the whole thing by myself, but that is not important because all that matters is that for a time in my life I had, in my possession, a perfect collection. The Holy Quaternity! “For a few minutes, they were mine. That is enough.” https://youtu.be/c9O1VVeMzhc Charade (8/10) Movie CLIP - The Most Valuable Stamp (1963) HD.

It doesn’t matter how it got there and it doesn’t matter if I don’t get to keep it. What matters is that, since we can’t take any of this with us to the grave anyway, I have the priceless gift of the experience. This was a group effort. My sacrifices and investment were/are largely those of time, obsessive research, and unearthing opportunities, which in reality is just as valuable as the money others allowed me to use to assemble this project. From the depths of passion, love, and family, I have been made individuated and whole, for now. Through psychology and horology I have healed myself in ways most people cannot imagine and have had the great fortune to inspire others. Countering the cruel trick of the perpetual calendar complication (never being able to live long enough to see it need an adjustment), I am filled with gratitude for what I have had the privilege to do with the time I have been given. Through bringing all of these elements together, I have found true happiness and may for a time be with this imperfect, perfect collection to remind myself of the cost involved in striving to create something truly special: a genuine opus, if not magnum opus. No one can do it alone. We require relationships to individuate, as Jung said, and at the ripe age of 37, I know that my watch collection and my Self are at last in harmony.

Conclusion

Watch collecting is not just some silly thing men do with their extra money, nor is it about amassing a monstrous volume of different examples for the sake of becoming your own museum. Watch collecting is as much an art as is watchmaking itself or the creation of any sculpture or painting. It requires focus, dedication, precision of craft, and most of all it requires a determination to produce the best possible result from the knowledge that has been gained and the resources—people or otherwise—that have been procured.

I am continuing to work on my dissertation on psychology and horology while figuring out where I want to focus my career from here on out. It seems like Tesla, Inc. is the most logical choice, so we’ll see if they or a watch boutique will have me. As far as this collection goes, what I know is that I will always have my R2D2 because it is the one watch that I can’t live without that can go anywhere: land, sea, air, and space. Depending on what the future holds for me career-wise, I might have to live without the Speedmaster and just use a beater chrono until I rebuild my value strength, since it takes quite a bit more to hold a collection like this all on one’s own. The Calatrava will be here because it is my wife’s investment and my privilege to enjoy as part of our partnership. However, it is worth bearing in mind that none of these things are permanent and that any amount of time being in ownership of the completed holy quaternity set is ultimately more than enough of an accomplishment no matter how long you keep it together. It takes a lot of work to learn about all of these manufacturers and iterations and value propositions. It’s even harder to get clear which ones matter to you on a profound level to the point that you would choose four and exclude all others; especially when considering that owning these watches is a choice that was made at the exclusion of any other products, such as cars, houses, hoarding currency, and any other type of man-made creation. And then to have them all just sort of casually ticking away on your desk is a luxury that very few people will ever know/experience. For that I cannot thank the people who believed/believe in me enough. I am lucky, I am grateful, I have my wife and family to thank for everything, in addition to other friends and enthusiasts who were willing to engage my passion, and I hope that what I have learned and my story will be something that is paying my fortune forward: giving back to the collective community of folks who simply wish to be their best selves; to be good citizens, as Plato might’ve imagined it.

In review and in final conclusion, this is an imperfect watch collection that to me is perfect, in my estimation from the research I’ve done and the experiences that I have had:

It is my personal gnosis, based on my research in depth psychology and horology, that there are two kinds of quaternities (not trinities, because a trinity is really just an incomplete system, lacking the feminine principle, among other things) in the horological universe: 1. The top four watchmakers in the Swiss watchmaking industry a. Breguet b. Patek Philippe c. Vacheron Constantin d. Audemars Piguet 2. The top four timepieces in an individual collection a. The Good Night Watch i. A chronograph worn to bed to time sleep intervals ii. An instrument that centers one’s being between sleeping and waking b. The R2D2 i. The most essential and sturdy of all of the timepieces ii. A trusty companion for all of life’s terrains c. The Darth Vader i. The finest example of elegant simplicity with a touch of violence ii. A watch that possesses a seemingly invisible and powerful Force d. The Holy Grail i. The watch you will wear on your deathbed that will outlast you ii. The QP is a cruel trick because it offers a feature that you will never live to enjoy: not having to adjust the watch for over 150 years. iii. A watch that satisfies one from ever wanting to buy anything better, for now ;).

Quick note: I’ve mythologized part of this collection with Star Wars metaphors because that is the best story I grew up with: the futuristic mythological vision of Joseph Campbell only barely understood by George Lucas (as is evident in his prequel trilogy), based on his seminal “The Hero with a Thousand Faces.” One could easily substitute other similar archetypes for the designations that I have commandeered. Whatever gets you there. It’s all imaginal, but inarguably objective in terms of the archetypes.

As for the selected manufacturers, my opinion here is highly controversial. Breguet should be at the top, Swatch or no Swatch, because Breguet is the Grandfather of all of these other innovators. A Breguet watch lacks nothing in quality and discovery that these other companies are engaged in and in fact, in addition to the legacy/pedigree/history of invention, Breguet is still making timepieces that exceed the expectations of any connoisseur. Every little detail is given the utmost care and contemplation. This does not, of course, take into account watchmaking in other regions. Germany, A. Lange & Sohne in particular, is making watches that appear to be exceeding even the Swiss standards of excellence. This also does not take into account even conceivably more exciting independent watchmakers and inventors like Greubel Forsey, Roger W. Smith, nor even the late George Daniels.

Final thoughts, for now:

There’s a point at which, once you’ve hunted your favorite watch for it’s best price, you stop thinking about what the watch is worth and you begin to think more in terms of what the watch is. For example, I could stand outside in shorts and a t-shirt sipping a beer while admiring a watch that retailed once for $65-70k, but what I’m really thinking about is, 1. how does it fit my wrist? 2. how long will it last? 3. when will it need service? 4. how legible is this dial really? 5. do I like the weight and the fit of the band (strap or bracelet)? 6. could this have been designed better in terms of how it handles a diverse set of lighting situations? 7. was this really the right choice for the lug length? Cheers, Marc Goldberg ;). 8. could the moon phase have been tooled to be more accurate. 9. why isn’t the power reserve exact? 10. Are there any flaws in the guilloché? I’m looking at you, FPJ! 11. Why did they design the clasp like this as opposed to the Patek clasp method? 12. And sure, this dial is amazing with all of the guilloche patterns, but I can’t really see them without magnification because a) I’m getting old and my eyesight isn’t what it used to be and b) the beauty and contrast is only apparent under certain lighting, which makes the dial look washed out at all other times; not nearly as aesthetically pleasing as the Patek, which always looks good even when its sunburst guilloché pattern disappears into the black. 13. However, the most important question of all is four-fold: a. what did/does this watch and the work mean to the watchmaker? b. what did/does this watch mean to the manufacturer? c. what did/does this watch mean to the boutique collective? d. and what does this watch mean to the consumer in every sense: aesthetically, spiritually, historically, and depth psychologically?  

What’s next?

There are many watches that I still find attractive and many watches to come from the various great houses that might cause me to fall in love with one watch more than another, but to be honest I seriously doubt it. I mean, the only watch I want more than my BLNR in its category is a Coke version. The only watch I want more than my Speedmaster in its category is another Speedmaster of far rarer origin and pedigree, a vintage example maybe or who knows. As far as the Patek and Breguet are concerned, there are no better iterations of those watches and there never will be. Finally, for the ultimate grail watch, I believe that it has to be something so amazing that it doesn’t even exist yet. It has to be a dream or a fantasy that one chases and pines over until one’s heart is so broken that one cannot even leave the house without wishing it was either already on the wrist or to finally acquire the watch. As mentioned before, for me, that would be a Greubel Forsey QP chrono with moon phase and grand sonnerie; or yeah, I’ll simply take a GF chronograph, because that is what would replace the super boring yet perfect Speedmaster. Yes, the only thing that will replace the Speedmaster for me is the currently non-existent, fantasy hand-wound Greubel Forsey Chronograph. Sadly, as far as I know, it’s just not going to happen and that hurts me deeply. I want, after I’ve amassed an impossible amount of wealth near the end of my life, well beyond having had the opportunity to help others, to fund what I believe to be the greatest wristwatch ever made and while I may not be the man to do it, it is the fact that I want this for the whole of humanity and my Self that I put this energy out into the world and wish it will happen to someone someday. What you buy is a vote. When you make a purchase, it casts a ballot. I vote for fine horology all day every day. Everything else is an accessory to horology and life, even psychology and fancy electric cars, in spite of my obsession with Tesla’s inventions and values.

The argument could be made that this is not a perfect watch collection because not all complications are represented. For example, I do not have a minute repeater, much less a grande sonnerie. To that I say, I’m not dead yet. At this time of life I can still see (you know, literally, with my physical eyes) and there is this amazing thing, lume, you’ve heard of it, that makes it possible for me to tell the time in the blackest of darkness, so sure, I would love to own a chiming watch, but they’re not only way out of reach, but I don’t have any real use for them in the same way that there is value and use for the watches that I have selected (see what is of value and of use in Liber Novus). Will I ever own a QP chrono minute repeater grande sonnerie, with all of the bells and whistles like power reserve, moon phase, and sunrise sunset and equation of time someday? I certainly hope so!

P.S. Synchronistically, after finishing this essay, I went downstairs and found this puzzle to solve for my horological and mildly intellectual enjoyment :).

Okay, I swear this is it:

Some might ask, “so then what are your values, exactly, spending all of that time, and yours and other people's’ money, on wristwatches?” Don’t you have a job, a house, kids, a car, money, etc.? The answer is this: 1. I’m courting the job that I want to do until my heart stops: Tesla, a watch boutique, or something like that. 2. Having a house is not important to me, but maybe someday we’ll have one. Until then, my time and value will always be dedicated to horology in some way/shape/form. 3. Kids are just more people. People die. Watches are forever. 4. Cars are for suckers, unless you own a Tesla or a really sweet mechanical car, as is essentially the same case with watches. I ride a bike, and not a nice one, a cheap one, because I’d rather spend the money on timepieces.   5. I’d rather have the watch of my dreams than any amount of money. Money is just an imaginary number. The right watch is an instant and immortal best friend. a. To further make this case, look at the gentlemen at auction who are spending more more money with reckless abandon to own the perfect watch for them. Money is essentially meaningless outside of holding value to acquire goods and services. A watch is a deeply psychological and spiritual enterprise for those who really get it, and so it makes sense that one would spend it all to acquire the ultimate alchemical composition that bridges one’s “I” with the Self archetype—via an horological mandala—through the chain of watchmaker, to manufacturer, to dealer, to owner; or as Patek Philippe would have it, caretaker.

Thank you for reading.

The super sacred Holy Quaternity in all of its gorgeous horolgical glory!

[shiningspinda]

Updated Games List

This I’m doing more or less for myself, because I: - Want to keep track of my game library - Want to keep track of which games I’ve yet to finish - Want to keep tabs on my collection. If you’re interested, you can look through this list by reading beyond the cut, and yell at me to finish your favorite game if I have it and I haven’t finished it yet! Just go right into my IM box and be like “Eli, finish those game!!” Also feel free to recommend games to me if you see I don’t own it. I will warn you, I don’t really have anything other than Nintendo consoles and PC at the moment, so I won’t be able to play games that aren’t for those. Anyway, here we go. Oh boy.

Game Boy (7)

- Pokemon Red (Completed) - Pokemon Blue (Completed) - Pokemon Yellow (Completed) - Pokemon Gold (Incomplete) - Pokemon Silver (Incomplete) - Pokemon Crystal (Incomplete) - Quest RPG: Brian’s Journey (Incomplete)

Game Boy Advance (17)

- Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past/Four Swords (Incomplete) - Yu-Yu-Hakusho: Spirit Detective (Incomplete) - Namco Museum (You can’t “complete” Namco Museum) - Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team (Completed) - Kirby and the Amazing Mirror (Incomplete) - Pokemon Ruby (Incomplete) - Pokemon Sapphire (Completed) - Pokemon Emerald (Completed) - Pokemon Fire Red (Completed) - Pokemon Leaf Green (Incomplete) - Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga (Incomplete, though I’ve tried many times) - Golden Sun (Incomplete) - Golden Sun: The Lost Age (Incomplete) - Mother 1 (Incomplete) - Earthbound (Incomplete) - Mother 3 (Incomplete) - Drill Dozer (Incomplete)

Nintendo DS (43)

- Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (Incomplete) - Dogz (You can’t really complete Dogz.) - American Girl: Kit Mystery Challenge (Completed) - Drawn to Life (Completed) - Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter (Completed) - Lock’s Quest (Incomplete and dislike) - Nintendogs: Dachshund and Friends (It’s Nintendogs.) - Nintendogs: Dalmatian and Friends (Again, it’s Nintendogs.) - MySims Kingdom (Incomplete, I guess) - Diddy Kong Racing (Completed) - Hamsters 2 (You can’t complete Hamsters.) - Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team (Completed) - Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time (Completed) - Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness (Completed) - Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky (Completed) - Pokemon Pearl (Completed) - Pokemon Platinum (Completed) - Pokemon Heart Gold (Completed) - Pokemon Soul Silver (Incomplete) - Pokemon Black (Completed) - Pokemon White (Incomplete) - Pokemon Black 2 (Incomplete) - Pokemon White 2 (Incomplete) - Pokemon Ranger (Completed) - Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia (Completed) - Pokemon Ranger: Guardian Signs (Completed) - Pokemon Conquest (Incomplete) - Golden Sun: Dark Dawn (Incomplete) - Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes (Incomplete) - Magician’s Quest: Mysterious Times (You can’t complete this game.) - Magical Starsign (Incomplete) - The World Ends With You (Incomplete) - Kirby: Canvas Curse (Incomplete) - Kirby: Superstar Ultra (Completed) - The Legendary Starfy (Completed) - Professor Layton and the Curious Village (Incomplete) - Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box (Incomplete) - Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies (Incomplete OTL) - Mario and Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story (Complete) - Rhythm Heaven (Incomplete) - Ghost Trick (Incomplete) - Final Fantasy III (Incomplete) - Kirby: Squeak Squad (Complete)

Nintendo DSi (1)

- Foto Showdown (Incomplete and makes me angry)

Nintendo 3DS (49)

-Tales of the Abyss (Incomplete) - Fire Emblem: Awakening (Incomplete) - Fantasy Life (Completed) - Return to Popolocrois (Completed) - Super Smash Bros 4 (SMASH) - Harvest Moon: A New Beginning (You can’t really complete this.) - Hyrule Warriors: Legends (Incomplete) - Project Mirai DX (Can you complete this? I GUESS,) - Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer x2 (You can’t complete this.) - Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. (Incomplete) - Harvest Moon: Story of Seasons (You can’t complete this) - Tomodachi Life (You can’t complete this) - Yo-Kai Watch (Incomplete, dislike it) - Monster Hunter Generations (You can’t complete this.) - Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate (You can’t complete this.) - Final Fantasy Explorers (Incomplete) - Kid Icarus: Uprising x2 (Incomplete, tell me how I got 2 of these.) - Animal Crossing: New Leaf x2 (You can’t complete these really) - Kirby: Triple Deluxe (Incomplete) - Bravely Default (Incomplete) - Bravely Second (Incomplete) - Chrono Trigger (Incomplete) - Pokemon X (Complete) - Pokemon Y (Complete) - Pokemon Omega Ruby (Complete) - Pokemon Alpha Sapphire (Incomplete) - Pokemon Sun x2 (Complete, Incomplete) - Pokemon Moon (Incomplete) - Pokemon Ultra Sun (Complete) - Pokemon Ultra Moon (Incomplete) - Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity (Completed) - Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon (Incomplete) - Legend of Zelda: Four Swords, Anniversary Edition (Completed) - Weapon Shop de Omasse (Complete) - Cave Story (Incomplete, I’M TRYING) - VVVVVV (Complete) - Shovel Knight (Incomplete, AGAIN I’M TRYING) - Pokemon Yellow Virtual Console (Incomplete) - Pokemon Gold Virtual Console (Incomplete) - Pokemon Silver Virtual Console (Incomplete) - Rhythm Heaven Megamix (Incomplete) - Swapdoodle (You can’t complete this.) - Gunman Clive (Incomplete) - Gunman Clive 2 (Incomplete) - Kirby Planet Robobot (Incomplete) - Miitopia (Completed)

Nintendo Wii (13)

- MySims Agents (Completed) - MySims (Almost Completed, 5 stars is hard) - MySims Kingdom (Incomplete) - MySims Racing (Incomplete, I guess?) - Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Incomplete) - Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Incomplete) - Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter Wii (Incomplete, this game is BAD) - Pokepark Wii: Pikachu’s Adventure (Completed) - Pokepark 2: Wonders Beyond (Incomplete) - Pokemon Battle Revolution (You can’t complete this ripoff of Stadium) - Super Smash Brothers Brawl (SMASH) - Animal Crossing: City Folk (You can’t complete this) - Mario Kart Wii (Completed)

Nintendo WiiU (13)

-  Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival (It’s just Marioparty) - Pokken Tournament (Incomplete) - Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap Virtual Console (Incomplete) - Earthbound Beginnings/Mother 1 Virtual Console (Incomplete) - Earthbound Virtual Console (Incomplete) - Animal Crossing: Wild World Virtual Console (You can’t complete this) - Harvest Moon: More Friends of Mineral Town VC (Can’t complete this) - Kirby: Nightmare in Dreamland Virtual Console (Incomplete) - Ohayou! Beginner’s Japanese (it’s literally a learning dictionary) - Lost Reavers (It’s an MMO and sucks imo) - Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker (Incomplete) - Splatoon (Completed) - Shantae: 1/2 Genie Hero (Incomplete)

Nintendo Switch (9)

- Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Completed) - Super Bomberman R (Incomplete, I dislike it) - Stardew Valley (You can’t complete this silly) - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Completed, now I just mess around) - Deemo (Incomplete) - Splatoon 2 (Incomplete) - Touhou Kobuto Burst Battle (Incomplete, I dislike it) - Elnea Kingdom (You can’t complete this silly) - Super Mario Odyssey (Incomplete)

Steam (92)

- 1bitHeart (Incomplete) - Alicemare (Completed) - Angels of Death (Completed) - Artifact Adventure (Incomplete) - Audiosurf (You can’t complete this) - Audiosurf 2 (You can’t complete this) - Awareness Rooms (Completed) - Bastion (Incomplete) - Battle Fantasia -Revised Edition- (Incomplete) - Battleblock Theater (Incomplete) - BIT.TRIP BEAT (Incomplete) - BIT.TRIP CORE (Incomplete) - BIT.TRIP FATE (Incomplete) - BIT.TRIP FLUX (Incomplete) - BIT.TRIP Presents... Runner2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien (Incomplete) - BIT.TRIP RUNNER (Incomplete) - BIT.TRIP VOID (Incomplete) - Cave Story+ (Incomplete) - Celestian Tales: Old North (Incomplete) - Crypt of the NecroDancer (Incomplete) - Cursed Sight (Incomplete) - Destiny Warriors (Incomplete) - Disgaea PC (Incomplete) - Don’t Starve (Incomplete) - Don’t Starve Together (This is co-op) - Downwell (Incomplete) - Dragon Age: Origins - Ultimate Edition (I haven’t touched this tbh) - The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (Incomplete) - The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Incomplete) - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Complete, this is my raise hell copy) - The Enchanted Cave 2 (Incomplete but I’m obsessed) - Evil Hazard (Incomplete) - Eternal Senia (Completed) - Freedom Planet (Incomplete) - Girlfriend Rescue (Incomplete) - Gurumin: A Monstrous Adventure (Incomplete) - Hatoful Boyfriend: Collector’s Edition (Incomplete) - Helen’s Mysterious Castle (Incomplete) - Kero Blaster (Incomplete) - King of Dragon Pass (Incomplete) - Knock-knock (Incomplete) - Labyronia RPG (Incomplete) - Labyronia RPG 2 (Incomplete) - Legend of Mysteria (Incomplete) - LiEat Trilogy (Completed) - LIMBO (Incomplete) - Long Live The Queen (Almost certain you need to sell your soul to complete this game.) - Mega Man Legacy Collection (Incomplete) - Melody’s Escape (You can’t complete this.) - Millennium: A New Hope (Incomplete) - Millennium 2: Take me Higher (Incomplete) - Millennium 3: Cry Wolf (Incomplete) - Millennium 4: Beyond Sunset (Incomplete) - Millennium 5: The Battle of the Millennium (Incomplete) - Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight (Incomplete) - Monaco (Incomplete) - Neverwinter (It’s a DND MMO, so ???) - Night in the Woods (Incomplete) - One Way Heroics (Incomplete) - OneShot (Incomplete) - Ori and the Blind Forest (Incomplete) - Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition (I don’t know the difference.) - Out There Somwhere (Incomplete) - Owlboy (Incomplete) - Portal (Incomplete) - Portal 2 (Incomplete) - QuestEvent (Completed as much as I can) - Recettear: An Item Shop’s Tale (Incomplete) - Secret of Magia (Incomplete) - Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove (Incomplete, sigh) - Silence (Incomplete) - Sins of the Demon RPG (Incomplete) - Skullgirls (It’s a fighting game) - Skullgirls: Endless Beta (???) - Slime Rancher (Incomplete?) - Soundodger+ (I don’t think you can complete this) - Starbound (Haven’t touched it yet) - Starbound - Unstable (Sounds scary.) - Stardew Valley (You can’t complete this) - Storm of Spears (Incomplete) - Super Meat Boy (Incomplete) - Tales of Zestiria (Incomplete) - Terraria (Incomplete) - They Bleed Pixels (Incomplete) - To the Moon (Completed) - Transistor (Incomplete) - Trick & Treat (Completed) - Undefeated (Incomplete) - Undertale (Completed) - VVVVVV (Completed) - We Know the Devil (Steam Version is broke. I completed it on the website) - World’s Dawn (Haven’t touched it yet.)

On PC Alone (WIP)

- Ib (Completed) - Witch’s House (Completed)

#text #my list #video games

[skittymon]

I’m so mad. Like my brother-in-law spoils our niece, so this morning when I was locked in my room with dogs and told not to come out (which apparently I could have an hour earlier but he just shouted, and he’s not loud, from downstairs with my door closed and the dogs whining thinking magically I would hear him).

So while that was happening my niece grabbed my case of 3ds games and emptied it out, and he didn’t stop her. So now I’m missing my copy of Omega Ruby (I don’t really care for the team in that game ngl but my mega diance is in there), and I left my copy of Devil Survivor:Overclocked out yesterday and it somehow got moved where he and my niece usual sit and he doesn’t care???

Like that room where she emptied my 3ds case is TRASHED. The computer is flipped over, the keyboard is on the other side of the room, my ps3 is on the floor, my figurines which add up to over 150 dollars are scattered cause they let her play with them and leave them on the ground.

You can stop her????? And tell her no???? My stuff regardless of what it is or how lame it looks has value????? And shouldn’t be a play thing for a 18 month old or at least be treated with care.

So unless I magically find my copy of Omega Ruby I might have to get a new one (maybe not tho cause I didn’t really care for that game or the team I used, but I love Hoenn IM JUST REALLY MAD ABOUT MY DIANCE), and get Devil Survivor again.

I just.... Why would you allow your daughter to tear through your family’s stuff like it doesn’t matter? Those things cost a good amount of money and I’M the one who’ll have to replace them if they disappear. 

WAIT I JUST REMEMBER MY 20TH ANNIVERSARY ARCEUS AND MEW ARE IN THE GAME, I S2G I BETTER BE ABLE TO FIND IT.

#ignore this please #just me being mad at a relative #and worrying about money