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mybg3notebook · 3 years

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Does Gale love Mystra?

So far in EA, we have been shown that this is complicated to answer: human love is complex as well as the delirious lore of Forgotten Realms.

Disclaimer Game Version: All these analyses were written up to the game version v4.1.104.3536 (Early access). As long as new content is added, and as long as I have free time for that, I will try to keep updating this information. Written in June 2021.

The number between brackets [] represents the topic-block related to (this post), which gathers as much evidence as I could get.

The narrative is clear until the party scene which, as I stated many times across these posts, it's a scene that feels a bit inconsistent for me (reasonable since it's EA). But if we follow what the game explicitly shows us, we know that if we send Gale to sleep at the beginning of the Weave scene in which he is watching the incantation with the shape of Mystra, he will say:

Gale: Long days, yes. And long, lonesome nights.

If Tav knows that the incantation on his palm is Mystra, Gale will explain:

Tav: [insight] You don't have that look on your face when you're looking at “no one” / There's more to it than that. The figure I saw: she means something to you. Gale: [...] I can’t quite describe it, the need I sometimes feel to see her – to draw the filaments of fantasy into existence. [...]

Dev's notes: Passionate. [...] He was recalling Mystra as a lover, but doesn’t say that out loud. [...] Narrator: The Weave evaporates, and as it does so, you realise the night feels suddenly cold and lonesome.

This allows us to infer that, at this moment, Gale is feeling alone and probably very anxious with the oppressing feeling of the "orb" in his chest. The tadpole only increased the number of problems he has, so he resorts to seeing Mystra melancholically. We notice later in the Weave Scene that not having Mystra around increases this feeling of loneliness. The whole scene seems to give us the idea that he still loves her. There is yearning and loneliness in his current situation.

After a moment of passionate description of magic, Gale invites Tav to experience the Weave. The Weave has a particular effect on Gale: "The moment feels intimate. You realise the Weave is making you one." Considering how Gale was feeling while conjuring the incantation, this moment touched him deeply (the narrator implies that this feeling is mutual).

If Tav expresses their romantic interests, Gale will be surprised:

Gale: I.. I didn’t think.. Narrator: You perceive quick-fire gusts of embarrassment, trepidation, and finally.. elation Gale: Sorry, I wasn’t expecting… But it is a pleasant image to be sure! Most pleasant, in fact. Most welcome. Dev's notes: Warm, with real affection.

The narrator is giving us meta-knowledge, we can trust in what she says, and we can see that the situation was truly shocking for Gale. These emotional stages described here made me suspect that Gale is a character who has focused for too long on healing his condition, ignoring any chance for romance. His surprise here may confirm that, in my opinion. He feels embarrassment, a feeling that one can interpret as a sign of the surprise of being thrown into a situation he had not seen beforehand (the death protocol and Gale’s conversations show us that he is a character that thinks ahead). It follows trepidation: fear or anxiety about something that he is going to do or experience. Gale is scared of the possibility. Maybe because he is thinking in the danger he is, maybe because he was already burnt by Mystra's attention and having someone else's attention now makes him feel a bit anxious. And then, the final resolution of the process: elation, which is a feeling of great happiness and excitement about something that has happened. Gale is suddenly excited by the possibility. Something he will be thinking about, many times, for the rest of the EA.

Tav: So what did you think about what I pictured when we were connected by the Weave? Gale: Oh, I was surprised. But pleasantly so, just like I said. Amid the madness that has befallen us, it seems almost out of place to think of a kiss/ of a romantic walk. And yet... now more than ever, it's important to recall what makes us human. [if Tav is not human] Well- you know what I mean. A stolen glance- that sudden heartbeat... Sometimes the little things are worth more than kingdoms. They promise things to come.

So romance was not something he had even considered until the opportunity arose (this is why he won't pursue a Tav who didn't show romantic interest towards him). I think that, since he is a character always living on the edge of death, he will take this opportunity to feel “human again”: after all, he follows the concept of "living life to the fullest".

During the Loss (see the post of the "Loss Scene"), we know that losing Mystra was a big blow for him. He regrets his decisions of the past in this scene, and it reinforced the idea that he is the only one to blame for Mystra's loss. There is a yearning for the lost Chosen powers, but Gale's context in the majority of his scenes seem to reinforce the idea that he sought power not as a means, but as a goal itself to be closer to Mystra and Magic. Since we are talking about a wizard, his passion lies in magic itself, in being one with the Weave/Magic/Mystra. A Chosen of Mystra is so entangled with the Weave and magic that when they die, they are part of the Weave itself. This is the level of passion that Gale has for Magic, and since Magic can only be performed by most mortals via Weave, and the Weave is Mystra, the whole three concepts are, in fact, one; and it makes it very difficult from a lore point of view to separate them.

Tav: There's something I don't understand. If Mystra abandoned you, how can you still cast magic? Gale: The Weave is still here, all around us – inside of us too. As long as the goddess lives, magic is a tangible thing for those who know how to touch. I've studied magic for many years, and in as many ways I am still a more than capable wizard. It's just that I'm no longer able to perform those feats even arch wizards would marvel at. To have one hand on the pulse of divinity. You have to remember that the Weave is a living thing, both the embodiment and the extension of Mystra herself.She can give and she can take away. I'm afraid I'm still very much on her naughty list. Consider yourself lucky you're not.

I personally think Gale will never stop being devoted to Mystra (and won't stop loving her in many ways), because his passion for magic and knowledge is his own life, and Mystra IS those things. He loves magic for the sake of it. So losing this unique contact with magic itself that only Chosen of Mystra have was a terrible punishment for him. His abandonment issues are not just the result of a “guy being left by a girl”. They have an extra complexity because of the nature of Magic in this world and how its deity behaves with her chosen. Gale was not only abandoned by Mystra, but was also removed of a good amount of his capacity to perform magic. If magic “is his life”, the abandonment removed a part of his life away. I think some people miss this point, because, once more, it's related to Forgotten Realm lore and not Dragon Age. Many of these people keep constantly comparing this situation with Dragon Age, which has nothing to do with it. Dragon Age has no wizards, their relationship with Magic is natural, it’s sorcerer-like if we want to compare it, and the relationship with their deities (mostly absent, silent ones) are nothing alike the ones in Forgotten Realm. The context is key, as I repeated several times in these posts and in the one about "Context, persuasion, and manipulation".

Tav: I don't know what to make of what you've told me, but I sympathise. Gale: Thank you. [no romantic weave] I want you to know that you’re a good friend. [romantic weave] I often think of that moment we shared together – one under the Weave. I hope you think about it too. /I'm glad to know you think about it too.

Narrator: You sense a moment of unspoken affection. You want to know where it may lead. Gale: I consider myself very lucky to have found you Tav: I think perhaps we could be more than friends Gale: Perhaps.

Tav: You said you think about the moment we shared under the weave. Do you think about it often? Gale: Do you? 1-2-Tav: Yes / From time to time. Gale: So do I. 3- Tav: Not really. Gale: And yet you ask. I do, as a matter of fact.

Gale: You see. I'm not a big believer in fate, but I do believe in serendipity. Life is a tempest of events that sometimes we brace against and sometimes embrace. You're one such event that one day soon perhaps I'd like to embrace.

So after sharing this regret during the Loss scene, Gale will show affection if Tav remains friendly during the Weave (but Gale will never directly engage it, he is waiting for Tav to give the first step; understandable if we consider he also has a dangerous bomb in his chest, so he may be torn between wanting to, but knowing he should not to). If there is no interest in pursuing romance, he will show a gesture of gratitude for being a good friend during that night of regrets.

If pursuing the romance, we can interpret that Gale, at this point, even though he is still struggling with all the emotions that Mystra inspires, wants to experience something more “human”, a romance with a mortal. We know for sure that Gale is getting interested, slowly, while thinking about it, since in each of the following scenes he will ask (or Tav will ask) about that “moment in the Weave”. He has been thinking about it for many nights, and he is “embracing” the idea.

If Gale is treated with judgement (despite not knowing his whole story) or allowing him to keep the secret of what or who he lost, we will obtain lines likes:

Gale: Good. Goodnight. And thank you for your patient understanding. // And try not to think too poorly of me. A cat can look at a king. A wizard can look at a goddess.

Tav: Another fool pays for his arrogance. A tale as old as time. Gale: Arrogance? Ambition, rather. And ambition is a fine thing – until suddenly it no longer is. Then again, if that is how you judge me, there’s little I can do to change your mind. But know that I have this ambition still. First to save myself, and after that, the licence to dream. (Gale Disapproval)

We could interpret these lines as the only ones so far that may suggest that Gale is still wanting something from the goddess. We know due to the tadpole dreams that Gale’s desire is Mystra. On the comments of the second tadpole dream we know more details about his major desire: it is not just Mystra, but her forgiveness.

Tav: Gale, who is the apparition in your dreams? Gale: She's... It doesn't matter. I just know her to be unreal. Tav: What's impossible about what you're been shown? Gale: Forgiveness Tav: Gale, who is the apparition in your dreams? Gale: It's indeed Mystra I see. And yet it cannot be her. There was a time when I would have believed - but no longer. I told you that I lost her. Lost her favour and lost so many of the powers I took for granted. What magic I can still weave is met only with undercurrents of disappointing silence. Mystra has not changed her mind about me. That's how I know our dreams are delusions.

I think this scene shows the difference between a standard desire for power as a means, and power for the sake of power itself (since this power allows Gale to be one with the Weave). The scene is ambiguous enough to see it as Gale wanting to return to Mystra’s side as well as remaining as an ardent devotee of her (because she is magic herself). I keep repeating that these scenes show that Gale’s most important thing in his life is Magic, which is Mystra: the extension and the embodiment of magic. So his desire for her seems impossible to be extinguished completely. In previous scenes we saw that he certainly had thought through the idea of loving her more like a devotee than a lover, but certainly the weight of being his first love will remain, especially since she is deeply related to magic itself.

During the Party Scene we find some information about his feelings for Mystra.

I personally ponder the book of Amn’s description as very important because, from a narrative point of view, it's a lot of lines/content that, if they were not important, tend to be removed from the script. If they are there, they are meant to be interpreted. For this reason those lines mean to me that Gale has finally embraced the idea of having something important with a mortal. In my post of the "Party Scene" I go into details, but here I will stick to the interpretation related to Mystra: all what Gale numerates in that book are things that he could not access to with a Goddess. Curiously, part of those descriptions are things that make humans human, so I personally think it reinforces Gale's intention in heading into this romance with the eagerness of finding some shelter (never forget the “orb” has a constant oppressing effect in him, increasing his anxiety and fears) and to experience (maybe for the first time) the love of a mortal.

So, for some assumptions made in the post of the "Party Scene", we suspect that Gale needs to share a night to feel confident enough to speak the details of his “orb” condition. Since he wants this relationship to be strong (after all, he implied commitment during the description of the book) he speaks about the true origin of the “orb” immediately after that night, starting with Mystra (which is, after all, the true origin of his folly). Depending on the version that Tav picks, we have extra information provided by Gale about his emotions for the Goddess:

Tav: What did Mystra’s attention feel like? Gale: Love. Perhaps it was not quite love, but you see, the wizard was but a very young man. It was most certainly love to him. [...] One day all too soon, the whispers stopped. The goddess spurned the mortal. [...] and the wizard was left behind heartbroken. Tav: I hate to say it, but he really could have seen this coming Gale: He was blinded by love. Good stories are rife with lovers’ follies after all.

[Short Version] Gale: Before long Mystra tired of me. What was I after all but a mortal plaything in sacred hands? You have to realise I was heartbroken. I was a young man, she was my first love. I thought it would last forever. I vowed to win her back.

[after explaining the mistake of the “orb”] Gale: It is this folly that led Mystra to abandon me completely. I can only hope you won’t abandon me as well. After all we’ve been through.. After the night we spent together. Surely we can brave even this side by side

Gale is giving a very detailed context about his love for Mystra: she was his first love, and the first love tends to have a special weight in a person's life and their memories. That doesn't mean the person has become unable to build more relationships for the rest of their life. If we add the fact that he was very young when all this happened (more details in the Post "Gale Hypotheses- Part 1") we find him under two effects: the impression of the first love and the naivety of the youth. Both elements made him believe it was a love that was going to last forever. With a Goddess, no less.

Besides, Gale expresses this, highlighting his naivety and foolishness: he is aware of how silly he was back then, and how impossible it could be for a mortal to keep the love of a goddess. He is a pragmatic and realistic character, after all. He recognizes in the end that he was just a mortal plaything for her.

I think these pieces of information give us a very clear context of his emotional state: he is still nostalgic for Mystra because of all the reasons I enumerated above; she is also more than just a woman, she is Magic itself. But he is aware that those emotions were the consequence of a very naïve and young self that has awakened by the burden of his own mistakes. There is also a reinforcement of “forever”, which recalls the concept of commitment that Gale pursues so much in his romance: he is not there just for the sex “intimacy”, he is there for serious commitment, maybe because he doesn't want to experience another abandonment. After all, we are talking about a character with a profile that shows abandonment issues (see the post of "Gale Hypotheses- Part 1", section: "Abandonment Issues")

[If rejected] Tav: No. This is too large a betrayal. GALE: I see. I am sorry. I am sorry that it had to come to this. All that’s left to say is farewell. Dev’s notes: hurt but understanding Gale: Farewell. (Leaves) Dev’s notes: A slight hesitation, hurt but understanding. He makes a polite little bow, then we see him walk away.

[If accepted] Gale: I don’t know what I did to deserve the magic that you do.

Despite being terribly cheesy, this last line shows that Gale was more than convinced that Tav would abandon him because he doesn’t deserve Tav. This is why he doesn't put up much fight if Tav chooses to tell him to leave. He will try to make Tav listen to his story, and once it's done, the verdict will fall and he will accept it. He learnt his lesson with Mystra. This line also shows how everything important around Gale is or has to be worded with magic, even a silly metaphor like this is related with the word “magic”: Tav's acceptance is like magic. For him, as important and good as magic itself.

As if that were not enough, after the scene there is a comment in which Gale will reinforce his gratitude for Tav's acceptance:

Tav: If you ever feel the netherese magic overtaking you, what will you do? Gale: If it should ever come to that... if I ever know I am no longer able to stop it... I will do anything I can to ensure no one but me pays for my mistakes. I will find the remotest place on the surface of Faerûn, or perhaps far below in the depths of the Underdark. I will await that death alone. [*] I promise I will not betray your trust... You kept me by your side despite the menace that I am. If worst comes to worst, I will be gone long before the curtain falls. [*] If romanced, Gale will say here "I cherish you."

Which makes me suspect that Gale can disappear at any moment (in full game) if for some game mechanics we are unable to get magical artefacts but the deal with Raphael did not happen (if that’s even possible). But that's just me speculating. Nothing in EA seems to suggest this. What i's clear is that acceptance—that strong concept in the book he put so much emphasis on—is really important to him, so he shows gratitude for that: he promises to protect Tav (and many innocents) from his own mistake. He also says pretty soon an equivalent of “I love you”, in a more formal/meaningful way: “to cherish” is not just to love, but to care/protect as well.

Finally, in case someone lost those hints, or maybe as a consequence of this unpolished scene, we have a direct question with a direct answer:

Tav: Gale, are you still in love with Mystra? Gale: I’ll be honest with you; I don’t know. She is my muse still, the embodiment of magic, but the embodiment of love? Only if we ever meet again will I know

Gale simply says what we have been inferring so far with all the previous information: Gale reinforces the idea that he will remain as a strong, loving devotee of Mystra, because she is magic. I personally don't even consider it possible to remove that love from him. He may not be a cleric, but he loves his deity as one. But he also learnt his lesson that loving gods has its own dire consequences for mortals. He is very aware of it during the discussion about Karsus:

Tav: Nothing good ever comes from mortals wanting to be gods.

Gale: Loving them has its side effects as well. Now, so many centuries later, I tried to follow in the footsteps of Karsus, not to destroy Mystra, but to prove my love for her. It tried to control only a fraction of the magic that was unleashed that fateful day. I merely sought to return one tiny diamond to an imperfect crown. Gale's Folly one might call it. History. Repetition. It's the way things go.

Once more, there is no scene where Gale doesn't reinforce that what he did was a mistake, a foolish action, a Folly.

Finally, if talking about a previous lover immediately after awakening with a new one was of poor taste, Gale acknowledges this, giving an honest apology:

Gale: Before we go on though, do first let me apologise. To share such a night with you only to tell you of a previous lover the next morning... It wasn't the most gentleman-like behaviour. But I had to finally tell you. Silence would have been far worse behaviour still. Nevertheless, I am sorry.

He accepts any rude response or lash-out from Tav without approval penalties. This is an interesting meta-knowledge that speaks about owning up to his mistakes. Unlike the Loss scene, where rude responses made Gale disapprove because Tav was judging him without knowing the whole story [16], in this scene he doesn’t. Now Tav has the whole picture, and he accepts whatever reaction Tav shows. Of course he will approve a forgiving Tav, since Gale is a character very related to forgiveness [12, 12b].

Conclusion:

So, answering the question that gives title to this section: yes. In my opinion, Gale loves Mystra. But it’s not a white-and-black love; it has the complexity of human love mixed with this crazy lore of deities in Forgotten Realms. I believe Mystra will always be part of Gale's life, because the Weave and magic are his life, and she is both. He will always love her as a devotee, even though he now understands the mistakes of his young self and seems more aware of how naive he was when he was a “very young man”. The comments on the second tadpole dreams explicitly show that what Gale wants the most is Mystra’s forgiveness, but at the same time, he knows that he does not deserve it. And this raw realistic view of himself is what makes him understand that those dreams are illusions. During the party scene he is uncertain about his emotions, but still he emphasises that there is a big chance for him to not see Mystra as the embodiment of love any more but reinforces that she will always be the embodiment of magic to him (a very important concept in his character design).

Whether Gale is romanced or not, I don't see a difference in the information he shares on this matter in EA.

This post was written in June 2021. → For more Gale: Analysis Series Index

#bg3 meta #gale #gale of waterdeep #bg3 gale

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moonlightreal · 3 years

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Fate looks toward season 2

Where you reach the bad ending, where do you go from there?

In season 1 we got the bad ending. The school had been taken over by Rosalind, Queen Luna, and Andreas, who are all extremely sus people!

Queen Luna believes in being in control, and you only get control by having power. This is most obvious in the way she tries to crush her daughter’s spirit, thinking she can force Stella to be perfect. She’s also a believer in the Sith philosophy of using hate and anger to fuel magic. Oh, and she covered up what happened at Aster Dell, which is super sketch. We’re not totally sure what did happen, but if it was “heroes destroy town of blood witches and Burned ones!’ she probably wouldn’t have needed to cover it up.

Andreas is… he’s an odd one! Is anybody else getting crazy-eyes vibes from him? His eyes are not actually crazy but there’s somethin’ off about the dude. Badass Marco mentioned him as having “bloodlust” and said it was maybe good that Sky didn’t take after his dad. Andreas respects Rosalind to the point of drawing sword on his friend to follow Rosalind’s orders. We hear from Silva that Rosalind had given Andreas a sense of purpose and he felt indebted to her. For what, I wonder.

He also seems to have hidden out of the public view for sixteen years on Rosalind’s command! I wonder where he was hiding! Was it just him and Beatrix in a cottage somewhere? Also, why did Andreas neglect his son but agree to raise Beatrix? Maybe he thought she was the chosen one, that’d be a good enough reason but B honestly seems to care for her foster father.

Also, and this is something I don’t think the show meant to imply… sometimes kids who are abused grow up to be overly sexual, since they learn the wrong kind of love from adults when they’re young. That suggests a whole ‘nother level of grimdark and I do not think the writers meant to go there. I think they just went “raised by Andreas” and “evil = slutty stereotype” and never put the two thoughts together to see the icky implications. I sure as blazes hope not! There’s dark and then there’s just ew.

And then there’s Rosalind. What do we even know about her? She was headmistress before Dowling, and mentor-slash-commanding-officer to the adults. And she knows more about magic than the teachers at the school. A lot more. She knows about the nature of the Burned Ones and the Dragon Flame, and she taught Bloom how to transform in like an hour when no fairy has done that in ages! Maybe it’s easier for Bloom, but still, Rosalind has loads and loads of lost knowledge. Where did she learn all this?

At any rate Rosalind is responsible for nuking Aster Dell, though how and why that went down is unclear. She nuked a place. And she manipulated her friends into helping without giving them the full story either. They were so upset they locked her up in stasis for sixteen years until Bloom let her out. Dowling calls Rosalind a manipulator several times, and from what we see in the show that’s spot on.

Rosalind is also happy to murderize Dowling to take over the school so they can turn everyone to Sith philosophy.

With these three at the helm Alfea will become a scary place. The baddie adults will be teaching magic fueled by anger and hate. Also, we’ve just had the first fairy transformation in ages. Will the rest of the students be pressured to transform also?

I worry the most about Stella in this situation, her heart’s already fragile after being battered by her mother for years. Stella could just collapse, especially is her mom stays around at the school. Or she could go full Stockholm and embrace the Sith ways. After all, she just tried letting friendship in and THIS happened.

And I worry about Terra, the bravest of the girls and least likely to sit down and shut up for the sake of survival. How much trouble will she get into surrounded by adults acting in bad faith?

Bloom will be Rosalind’s special student, probably under her mentor’s eye the whole time. Wonder how long it’ll take Bloom to have the awful realization that Rosalind is not her friend.

And Musa and Aisha should get a chance to shine as spies. Musa by reading minds to tell which students have accepted the Sith teachings and which have not, and Aisha I hope at least kept the magic thingy that eavesdrops on Dowling’s office. Be nice if Aisha stayed the secretary, but I bet Rosalind puts Bloom in that place.

Beatrix will be official queen bee with her two-dude harem of Riven and Dane. But the three of them could turn out to be a problem, because they’ve all had moments of not-evil. Riven is friends with Sky; what happens when the baddies threaten Sky? Or when Dane gets squeamish? Beatrix is a straight-up true believer in Rosalind and Andreas, but they’ve built that belief by making her desperate to find the truth. What happens when the truth doesn’t match what her idols tell her? Beatrix is everything she is, but she’s got a brain and there are moments when she seems to have a heart for her two fellas.

Our nice adults are in trouble. Ben Harvey is a good dude, but if he tries anything Rosalind can always threaten Sam and Terra, so he’s well and truly pinned.

Silva has been hauled off to a dungeon somewhere! I can guess that Sky and Bloom will launch a rescue mission as soon as Sky works out that his biological father is not a good dude and Silva really was on his side the whole time.

And poor Farah Dowling is dead and buried! Of course that doesn’t necessarily mean we won’t see her again. We don’t know the limits of Dowling’s powers, only that she is very badass indeed, so it seems totally possible that she could heal herself under the ground. Or she could still be alive now, having sent a magical decoy to talk to Rosalind. Dowling’s smart enough not to sit and chat with a magical baddie without taking precautions. But I think it’ll be a tree, just because Faragonda got turned into a tree once. A tree will grow on Dowling’s grave and she’ll step out of it alive.

Oh, and there are a “shit ton” more Burned Ones out there, and they’re ‘nothing compared to what’s coming”. According to Rosalind who knows a lot but lies a lot.

So our heros and heroines need to keep themselves from going to the dark side, protect Stella from her mum, rescue Silva, defeat the worse-than-Burned-Ones and rally their fellow students to kick the baddies out of their school! They have a lot on their plates!

And there will be new characters, at least one. There is no way that Netflix won’t bring a very latina Flora in after the backlash. But is there really a place for her in the story? Terra has a very different personality from Flora, so if they lean on Flora’s “gentle earth mother” side it could be ok. But really the cast doesn’t need another earth fairy. Or, might they kill off Terra? Have her die awesome protecting her father?

A black Tecna would be way more interesting, but I do not think that would appease the fandom since it’s such an obvious pander to the whitewashing accusations. Also, there’s not much emphasis on technology in Fate so there’s really not much place for her either.

I’d rather like to see Ricki come back. Stella’s bestie who Stel accidentally blinded. Is she still blind? Does she know it was an accident? Does she hate Stella now, or did her horrified family forbid her to stay in touch? Has Luna turned her against Stella, just in case the evil queen needs one more way to squeeze trauma-fueled magic out of her daughter? What’s it like being a blind fairy? We don’t know what element Ricki was, so maybe she could do the “see through the ground” thing like Toph, or as a mind fairy see through the eyes of the people around her. Ricki would be interesting! But I bet we never hear of her again.

Possibly I should write… no. Get thee behind me, plotbunnies!

But what do you think? What do you think the baddie adults will do to the school? How do you think the students will react? Do you think Dowling is alive? Who will Netflix add to the cast to try and calm the angry fandom, and who do you wish they would? Are you glad we’re getting a season 2 or would you rather just let this part of Winx Club’s history vanish in the rearview mirror?

#fate the winx saga

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anemeraldknight · 3 years

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About Duke Cadash, part 2

okay so I know that this is supposed to be like an ask thing from here! butI only have like 3 followers on here, I just finished my second playthrough of Inquisition and I really really wanna talk about my Inquisitor :’)) so we’re doing this

what is your inquisitor’s name & race? - Duke Cadash, surface dwarf

what is their sexual orientation? - bisexual <3

what do they look like? (add screenshots, drawings, descriptions!) - he's a freckly ginger and has bright blue eyes, a very well groomed beard (he at least tries to redo the braids every morning), undercut on on the left side of his head but otherwise longish hair, scarring underneath his right eye and between his brows; he's like muscular and thick at the same time, I don't know a good word for it? but yea :) he's prettyy

how did they feel about being called “the herald of andraste”? - he uses it to his advantage. he doesn't outright deny it to people he doesn't really trust, only those closest to him know his real stance on it. he just takes being called the Herald in stride, doesn't hate it but isn't the biggest fan either

what are their religious beliefs, if they have any? - believes in the Stone because his parents had been cast out from Orzammar and they passed on their beliefs to him as well. he's not super into it though, more like a casual believer.

what is their opinion on the mage/templar war? - supports the mages and even though he can get along with templars if necessary, he often calls them out for their prejudices and bullshit. he believes that the war was inevitable and kind of necessary as well because in his eyes big change usually comes by, sadly, using harsher tactics.

who is your inquisitor’s best friend? - he was suuper close with Blackwall in the beginning because their humor was pretty similar, he was one of the first people he recruited on his own, and they're both pretty close in terms of age as well. however, as Duke grew closer to Dorian, they became best friends instead (and then eventually lovers). I'd say his real best friend is either Cassandra or Solas? because even though he disagrees with both of them quite a lot, they still somehow manage to get on pretty well <33 and they both have been there from the very beginning of this entire journey!! so it makes sense :) also, Duke is suuuuuper loyal, so when he found out about Blackwall :)) he fucking flipped and completely shunned him and never again took him into his party.

who is their rival? - uhhh among the companions? I don't think he really has one...

who is their love interest, if they chose one? do you ship them with anyone else/non-romanceable options? - DORIAN!! <333

warrior, rogue, or mage? - rogue, archer

how do they feel about the dalish? - he feels for them and wants to support them and work together as much as possible. he can see that a lot of them seem arrogant and standoffish on the outside, but he gets why that is, so he just lets them be and tries to work with it.

how do they feel about the qun? - he does not like the qun, to him it seems like a cult. he can also see many similarities between it and the chantry so.

how do they feel about the chantry? - he doesn't like the chantry BUT he does not shun them out loud because he knows that having them support him makes him look good to those who believe in Andraste and such, but also he doesn't wanna take away hope from those who find it in him during such a difficult time (even though he doesn't believe he's chosen in any way)

which demon is most frightening to them? - definitely the nightmare. Duke doesn’t get rattled very easily but that whole thing managed to get underneath his skin. plus! he’s incredibly scared of spiders and the nightmare created to many of them to freak him out, so the entire fade thingy was very hard on my poor Master Cadash :((

did they choose the qun or the chargers in iron bull’s personal quest? why? - the chargers. he didn’t trust the whole thing from the beginning and basically went along with it because he wanted to support the Iron Bull and because he could feel that something fishy was going on. also, even before the whole thing Duke got along with Krem really well, because he has this habit of taking younger people under his wing (exhibit A: Cole) so that’s also what kinda happened with Krem. ALSO! another thing is that Duke id very much against sacrificing lives in order to get something, so even if he hadn’t cared about any of the chargers personally, it would’ve just went against everything he stood for.

when are they the happiest? - when he's exploring the wilderness with his party, probably picking elfroot or iron lol

how do they feel about the mark/the anchor? - it doesn’t really cause him very much pain so he sees it mostly as something that’s just there and helps him deal with this whole mess.

upon first meeting cole, were they afraid of him? - not really? he could tell that he was different but Thedas is full of so much surreal and nonsensical shit that this kid who acts a bit outside of the established rules of the society didn't really faze him. when he first met Cole during the attack on Haven, his first reaction was that “why is this young kid out here??? get him to safety!!!!” but yknow in a way where he could still see that Cole was perfectly capable of pulling his own weight, Duke just worries.

did they use the templars or the mages to close the breach? - mages

what was their court approval like at the winter palace? did they have any fun at all? - the only things that Duke liked during the whole charade was seeing Josephine and Leliana enjoying the whole thing AND getting to dance with Dorian. he got 100 court approval but he hated that everybody kept shitting on him for being a dwarf etc. also dealing with Gaspard, Celene, and Breala was frecking frustrating.

someone is encroaching on their love interest. how do they respond? - idk how to answer this. he knows that Dorian can handle himself but if the situation requires his help then he will get supper angry and protective

what is their favourite weapon? - Duke’s Bayard!! :D this really great bow that he got made

are there any creatures in the wild that they refuse to/are reluctant to kill? why? - nugs because to him they look like a rabbit and an old wrinkly man merged into one. so yea, no. he also doesn’t like killing dragons. the only proper dragon he and his party ever killed was the big one in the hinterlands but Duke didn't feel right about it afterwards so he never went after another again

what is their opinion on blood magic? would they ever use it, if given the chance? - to him blood magic is just a type of magic really but I don't think he'd use it if he were able to

what is their favourite place within playable regions? - interestingly, the hinterlands. it's because he grew up in fereldan is used to that kind of nature

did they feel suspicious of dorian upon first meeting him, because of his tevinter heritage? - a bit, yes, but it quickly faded

as a whole, how do they feel about tevinter + the imperium? - he hates the whole slavery business that they've got going on over there but Dorian manages to convince him that the imperium could be changed so he has hope for it. he doesn't blindly hate every vint he meets.

did they encourage cullen to continue taking lyrium, or to stop? for what reasons? - to stop because even though he’s not very close to Cullen and he has his issues with him, he didn't want him to be dependent of lyrium in order to work to the best of his abilities. because Cullen is in charge of such a huge part of the Inquisition, he needs him to be dependable

does it bother them to sleep in tents when on the road with the inquisition? - nope! Duke loves tracking and yknow finding and looking for stuff out in the wilds so he’s used to that sort of thing since he grew up in a naturey place. he had to spend a lot of nights in similar situations while he was part of the Carta too

are they an optimist, a pessimist, or neutral? - i guess something between an optimist and a neutral? I guess you could call him an optimistic realist. he rarely veers towards pessimism

if varric wrote a book about your inquisitor, how would they feel about that? - he would actively encourage it because it would be fucking hilarious to read

do they get along with vivienne? - nope, he doesn’t even recruit her.

are they afraid of anything specifically? - spiders

what was their reaction to the destruction of haven?

how do they feel about “the game”? - a bunch of nugcrap

are they especially protective of certain inquisition members, even those capable of defending themselves? - even though he knows that all three of them can take care of themselves and he trusts them to do so, he still worries about them the most. Cole, Krem , and scout Harding.

do they like their skyhold pajamas? - he hates the pajamas. but the outfits that he usually wears look superrr fly so he doesn’t mind those one bit

are there any insults they find to be especially offensive? (i.e. “knife ear”/”rabbit” for elves, “oxmen” for qunari, ect.) - I am not sure what insults a dwarf would get in terms of specific words. the fact that people keep making comments about the Inquisitor surprisingly being a dwarf does annoy him though

if varric gave them a nickname, what would it be? - either cherry because of his red hair OR the Archduke :P

do they enjoy being the inquisitor? - yes!! at the beginning, he's more wary of it, which of course makes sense, but even then he's just ready to take on the role of the leader because no one else will do it and he does have the mark so it makes sense for him to do it. as time moves on he grows to really like it! he makes a great leader and he knows it.

#duke cadash #inquisitor cadash #personal #dragon age

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amarabliss · 4 years

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Oaths and Hearts - 12 (Ignis Scientia/REader)

So this is a crossover between FFXV and Dragon Age Inquisition.

You fell through a rift into the fade fighting the demons you swore to protect your world from. When you popped out you were no longer in the lands of Ferelden instead trapped in Insomnia. The gracious king allowed you to say recognizing power when he saw it. One thing led to another and now you were part of the procession of the prince to his wedding years later. Before the final battle, after years of fighting, losses, and love…your friend…your king…Noctis has asked you to change it all…

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11

Gladio looked across the fire as his friend pushing his food around. Food that he made and was amazing despite being under so much pressure, “Iggy…”

“Yes?” He didn’t even look up at him.

“We’re gonna go home…” Gladio watched him look up finally, “and you’re going to marry that girl.”

Ignis swallowed looking at him for a long time, “I know that.”

“We’re so close, don’t worry.” Noct sat down next to him with his second helping, “Our plan is solid.”

Ignis looked back into the fire, “I know that too.”

“Then what is it?” Prompto spoke after a minute.

“I can’t help but feel that Y/N is distressed…” He told them as he looked back at the plate in his hands.

“So call her.” Gladio told him knowing exactly why he hadn’t yet, “One five-minute call will not hurt anyone…”

“I can’t risk it. We’ve worked too hard these past months to get everything for Noct. We’ve done so much to prepare…” Ignis sighed shaking his head, “We’re too close to finishing this. I trust her…she’ll be fine.”

Gladio stood up throwing his scraps into the fire, “Then we’ll just have hurry it up to get you and Noct home. You both can’t be leaving pretty women like that to fend for themselves.”

“Insomnia seems like a dream…” Noct said quietly before taking a bite.

“Yes it does…it’s good dream though.” Ignis looked at him with a smile, “One we’ll see again and rebuild.”

“Here, here.” Noct smiled at him clinking his cup against Ignis’.

Ignis gave Noct one final smile before pulling out his phone. He stared at the image of you and him that Prompto had kindly taken of the pair.

They had stopped in Lestallum for the first time. It was close to evening, so everyone had decided sleep was the best option. You wanted to see the view from their room, since yours faced the power plant.

The picture was intimate. Shoulder to shoulder with him, your profiled face was cast beautifully in the setting sun you smiled up at him as he stared down into your eyes. He couldn’t remember what you had said, but it had made him grin. He missed you…

He could only pray to the Six that you were being careful and taking care of yourself and his child. He let out another sigh as he put his phone away going back to his food. He didn’t want you to do everything alone…but what else was he supposed to do? He had a duty to Noct to retrieve the crystal and keep him safe.

But at what cost…

“This is it.” You stared at makeshift camp as Cor pointed to specific areas to be aware of, “It isn’t a whole lot, but it’s as close as we can get without drawing too much attention to ourselves.”

“I see Hunters…do they know what is about to happen?” You frowned hoping Cor hadn’t led anyone here under false pretenses.

“Yes, everyone here wants to see Noct back in Insomnia and on the throne.” Cor nodded helping you down the ramp, “We’ve got Glaives, Crownsguard, Hunters, and volunteers.”

“Volunteers? Really?” You took a deep breath as you felt a wave of kicking.

“People aren’t satisfied with Neif rulers.” Cor watched you carefully, “I would suggest talking to our camp’s doctor, he came from Altissia.”

“I intend to, first I’d like to see what our plan is.” You stepped with him entering the camp. Many people began to stare, something you had gotten use to when you became Inquisitor, but this was different, “I’m not as fragile as everyone thinks.”

“I didn’t say you were fragile, you are simply carrying a potential member of the royal family.” Cor turned to you when you stopped.

Your tone was hushed as you stepped up to him, “How many people know that here?”

“…No one…just me.” He took a step back under your intense gaze, “That may need to change, but it will only include those you consider trustworthy.”

“Fine…” You crossed your arms nodding for him to continue, “But we have to make one thing clear…no one needs to know ever…unless it’s completely necessary, and I mean completely necessary.”

“Understood.” Cor walked over to a tent holding open the flap for you. You stepped inside and had the strangest feeling of déjà vu. A group of individuals stood behind a table looking over a map, “These are our…generals…I suppose.”

They all looked up to you. You recognized the uniforms in front of you, a firm looking man stood as the Glaive, a young woman sported her City Guard symbol, and as always there was Dave representing the Hunters, “Pleasure to meet you all.”

“This is the one who thinks we can get past an entire legion of soldiers.” The man in the Glaive uniform crossed his arms staring you down.

“Mm…” You stepped forward looking at the map, “More like half a legion…I’m Y/N…you are?”

“Oooooo she’s got you pegged already, Tor…” The young woman smiled at him as he glared. She turned to you with bright eyes, “That’s Artorius, I’m Kori, and from how relaxed Dave here got when you walked in seems like you know him.”

You smiled at her a little, “Yeah I’ve ran a few different things for Dave. Good to see you.”

Dave smiled at you before stepping over giving you a big hug. You tensed a little, “You look beautiful.”

“Oh…uh…thank you.” You patted him on the back a little, “Uh…”

“Sorry…” He pulled away looking you up and down, “Last time I saw you, you were sportin’ hiking boots and a raincoat holding out a dog tag to me…You wear your new state well.”

You could feel yourself tearing up a little, so you quickly stepped to the map, “So what’s our first draft looking like?”

“Are you sure you-”

“Artorius, was it?” You interrupted him setting your jaw as he stood square across from you, “If you were going to say anything that has to do with my pregnancy, I advise you to reconsider…now I’m hoping what you were going ask ‘are you sure you’re qualified?’”

Kori snickered a little as Dave moved back next to her. Cor stepped next to you looking at the map, “Maybe you should tell us a little bit about your experience, I’m sure it would put everyone at ease. One thing is for sure, Tor…Nyx trusted her.”

You watched Tor’s face flicker with a pain you were familiar with. The pain you felt when you knew someone who was never coming back, “…you knew Nyx?”

“Yeah, he took care of me…he was like a brother.” You hand went over your stomach protectively, “He gave up a lot to protect Insomnia…none of this would matter without him.”

Tor looked away wiping a hand over his face before he leaned over the table staring at the map, “We can enter here…by boat…the problem is getting past patrols of Magitek units of all kinds. They will wipe the floor with us before we even get close to the citadel.”

“Well why not create a diversion on the bridge?” You pointed at two points on the map, “Then enter here and here, using smaller forces to hide better and pick off what we can.”

“Because it’s still suicide.” You looked at Cor who crossed his arms, “We have to move as a solid force. The Glaive don’t have their powers.”

“Too bad we can’t just phone the king and get a new contract.” Tor took in deep breath looking at Kori, “We have enough Glaive that we could stand a fighting chance if we had the juice.”

“Why are we here?” You leaned over to Nyx as you both stood in the balconies of the throne room. Most of the Glaive was present with their hoods up, “Not that it’s bad to see you all in your uniforms. You all look very serious.”

“Shh.” Nyx smiled a little getting you fall silent. Finally, he leaned over whispering, “We all bare witness to a new Glaive making his contract with the king.”

“Contract?” You looked at him, “You mean…swearing fealty?”

“No…well yes, but there’s more to it.” He watched three young Galahdians step into the throne room, “We have an arrangement with King Regis, rather the ruling Lucian. We swear to serve him and Insomnia, and in return our people get safe-haven and the powers we use to protect the citizens.”

You stared at him for a long time. Enough that it made him give you a strange look, “What?”

“That doesn’t seem like a fair arrangement. You all are the front line, right? And you’ve taken me to the refugee quarter…” You looked away as the Glaives kneeled in front of the king, “You claim to have so many advancements, but your people are crammed into a small barely habitable location.”

“I didn’t say it was fair.” You looked back to Nyx. His face was solemn as each Glaive pulled out their blade from their belts, “We did what was necessary to save our people. Galahd…wasn’t safe…for hearth and home.”

“Nyx…” You reached over to take his hand. He looked at you as your fingers laced with his. You both stared at one another as Regis read off what was required to accept the power he was bestowing.

Nyx looked away finally unable to keeping his emotions in check, “It…it’s not all that bad. I mean…Like you said…Look pretty hot in my uniform.”

“Oh, right…all looks no brains…” You smirked a little making you both start laughing getting a few glares from the rest of the assembly.

“Shh…we’re being serious.” Nyx whispered at you as he tried not laugh. He looked at you as you squeezed his hand again, “Thank you.”

“For what?” You watched as each Glaive stood up reciting an oath to the king, holding the dagger out in front of themselves.

“For recognizing that this all bullshit…but necessary.” You looked at him as he kept a smile but you could see how much he hated all this, “I mean there’s some killer perks, but…it’s demanded obedience, a leash…and we wear the collar proudly to make sure the rest of our people have a chance to one day go home.”

You stared at him as the next Glaive stepped forward to swear his oath, “We should ditch…”

“What?” He looked at you as you began looking around, “No…we can’t…”

“Blame me…” You smirked backing up slowly pulling him a long, “You have to protect me…and I’m fleeing the ceremony.”

He laughed a little following you out, “I thought I was a bad influence.”

“Everything looks good, this Wedge, has been taking care of you expertly.” You snapped out of it looking at the doctor as he put the ultrasound equipment way, “You have a healthy baby boy on the way.”

“Perfect.” You wiped off your belly before pulling down your shirt, “I’ll be back if I need anything…”

“Ah…wait.” He stood up looking at you with concern, “Just because you’re healthy doesn’t mean you’re not on restrictions.”

“Restrictions?” Your eyebrows raised slightly, “You do know we’re about to retake a city, Dr. Reed?”

“I am fully aware of the reasons we have all gathered here and I’m prepared to treat them when they need help.” He smiled at you as he adjusted his glasses, “But you’re a woman in a very special state that only you can experience. You have been in an extremely stressful situation the past few months and that isn’t helpful to you or your child.”

“My whole life has been frontlines…I’m not stressed. Not doing anything, that stresses me.” You stood up looking at him as you grabbed your jacket, “I know what I can handle…I won’t be marching into the line of fire, but I’m not going to stop helping.”

“I just want you to consider taking a step back.” He stood up tapping the medical chart against his hand, “I can’t make you do anything, but you should rest more then not, and drink plenty of fluids.”

“I’ll take your advisements to heart.” You told him as he walked you out of the one structure located in the center of camp, “I just want to reunite my family…and taking back the city will help with that.”

“I understand.” He nodded a little letting the door shut behind him, “Insomnia is not my home, but it was my mother’s. I have a small connection, but she always said Insomnia was a city of hope. Helping everyone here is my way of keeping her alive.”

You smiled at him as he begged you one more time to take care of yourself before letting you leave. Everyone was here for the same reason. Insomnia was their home, and it was a city of hope like he said. But it wasn’t the city, it was its people that made the hope real. You’d figured that out right away with the help of Ignis and Nyx.

They were the very definition of the people of Insomnia. A high born who was tactical and maneuvered the world of politics to try and assist everyone no matter of station. Then a refugee from another world who never wanted anything but to live out his life in peace, took the leashed power in order to never let someone lose what he lost under his watch.

“Whoa there…” You tensed up feeling someone catch you as you ran into them. You looked at them seeing Artorius giving you a small smile as the busy camp moved around you both, “You alright?”

“Yes…sorry…I was…somewhere else.” You swallowed as he let go and the sound of the chattering camp came back to volume.

“Not a problem. Just be careful walking around here. Not everyone is trained and there are a lot of pointy objects.” He smirked as you laughed a little, “I joke, but seriously…take care. If Nyx was your like your brother, he’d figure out how to come back and kick my ass.”

You watched him turn away from you as the question began bubbling up, “Artorius…”

“Tor…” He turned to you again, “Artorius is just too much…and don’t start on how there’s already a Cor…believe me been down that road too many times already.”

“Right…Um…” You stepped close to him glancing around a little, “How much do you know about Glaive contracts?”

His eyes narrowed on you, “Uh…a little…why?”

You cleared your throat as you crossed your arms over your chest, “I…have a theory…but I need to know what is required in order for the contract to work.”

He seemed hesitant, but finally looked around a little before holding up three fingers counting down, “Okay…three things…a person who can wield magic, be on Insomnia soil, and a member of the Lucian line to contract with.”

“Right…so any member could really lend their abilities, as long as the contract is worded correctly?” You glanced up at him, “Even a child?”

“I…suppose…as long as they have a direct tie to the crystal.” He looked at you concerned as he shifted on his feet, “What is this about?”

You looked around for a moment seeing too many people around, “Find Cor…meet me in my tent when you do.”

“Y/N…Y/N!” You didn’t look back as he called after you as you strode off. You had to take a few moments to really think about what you were about to suggest.

You paced back and forth when you reached your tent. Would it be possible? Would it be worth it? How could you present this without letting everyone know about Ignis’ lineage…Would it hurt your son?

What about Ignis?

“Y/N…” You turned looking at a worried Cor entering your tent. He looked you over from head to toe, “What’s wrong? Tor came to me…” “Nothing is wrong.” You shook your head raising your hands to try and calm him down, “I’m fine…everything is fine.”

Cor looked back to Tor, “Then what is going on?”

“Don’t look at me…she’s the one who told me to come get you.” Tor shook his head pointing at you.

They both looked at you expectantly. You took in a shuttered breath before you spoke, “I think…I think I know how to get the Glaive their powers.”

Tor stood up straight as Cor took a step close to you realizing what you were implying as he whispered, “…Y/N…you cross this line there is no going back…”

“That’s why he’s here.” You stared into his eyes for a moment, “We need them…it may be the only way to win…”

“What is going on?” Tor stared at you both as you stepped from behind Cor.

“I can’t tell you how it all works…truth is I hope it doesn’t work because it would be a lot more of burden if everything is true.” You stepped toward him putting a hand on your stomach when you felt a kick, “But my son has Lucian blood…”

Tor stared at you before looking down to your belly, “…that’s…if…who?”

“Wrong question…is it a chance?” You stood in front of him as his eyes met yours again as it all clicked into place what you were suggesting, “Do you think it’s possible that it could work?”

Tor stood there for a long heavy pause before taking a deep breath, “There’s only one way to find out.”

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catbowserauthor · 4 years

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Dragonball 30 Day Challenge: Day 21 Favorite Movie

So I actually really like most of these movies. I’ve never been bothered by the “it wouldn’t fit into canon” argument. I view them as fun AU adventures so I just judge them based on their individual traits. I won’t be including the specials in here as I think that’s a different topic.

So, let’s do a quick countdown to my favorite, from the worst to the best!

16: Resurrection F: Sorry, I have never been a huge fan of Freeza. He was fine as a villain in the Namek saga and his unexpected return until he was killed by Trunks was interesting. Beyond that, I don’t find him an engaging bad guy. He’s a Bond villain. He’s not fun for me to watch and him growing that much stronger in four months is stretching my sense of disbelief even for Dragonball. Vegeta getting robbed of that kill was crap and introducing Whis’ ability to rewind time killed any tension for future battles for me.

And I don’t wanna talk about what they did to Gohan.

15: Lord Slug: There’s nothing “wrong” per say with this movie but it’s just...well, it’s Piccolo Daimao all over again. So, it’s kind of boring. I do like seeing the colder climate as Toriyama didn’t draw that very often (claims he hates the cold so it’s usually summer or spring in his manga) so we didn’t get to see it as much. I also love the brief interaction Goku has with Gohan during the battle and Gohan and Icarus are way too adorable.

14: Bio Broly: Okay so I don’t hate this movie. It’s not good but I don’t think it’s utterly horrible like some people do. But the reasons I like it might be different than others. I like this one because you get to see Goten and Trunks’ friendship. You see them pal around, you see them argue but then when they’re close to getting killed you also see Trunks refuse to leave an unconscious Goten to die alone. I freaking LOVE that.

13: Return of Cooler: I think my issue with this movie is the same issue I have with Super in general. It’s focused on Goku and Vegeta almost the whole way through. We get small cuts to the others but otherwise it’s just them. I like both these characters but I like to see a mix of the cast so that’s why it falls lower.

12: Dragonball Super Broly: Okay so I really like the adaption of Dragonball Minus. It turned out way better than I hoped and the animation in this movie is absolutely amazing. I’d recommend it just based on that alone. I really enjoyed the new characters. But again, not a fan of Freeza and the fact it was really only Goku and Vegeta—again—really hurts it for me. Still a fun movie though.

11: Wrath of the Dragon: This one has a really fun plot and it’s neat to see Trunks really bonding with someone. I think the brief interactions at the BBQ are some of the best. The downtime in this movie has some of my favorite moments. The final battle is fun but I think it would have been better if someone other than Goku got the finishing blow.

10: Super Android 15: This one, again, I really love for the downtime! Seeing Goku’s family shopping, going out for lunch—I love that kind of stuff! The Androids themselves are interesting enough and while I know a lot of people don’t like it, I really like they gave 15 a redneck accent in the dub. Gave him some character. I also love Gohan and Krillin trying to help even though they are completely outmatched. Gohan throwing himself in front of a blast to protect his father who is creating a spirit bomb is one of my favorite small scenes.

9: Broly Second Coming: The interactions between Videl, Goten and Trunks are pure gold. I’d love to see them just...shooting the breeze with each other. The battle against Broly is fun but I love the ending where Goku pops in from the Other World (presumably) to lend his aid. That entire family Kamehameha is just brilliant.

8: Battle of Gods: So this is going to sound weird because Beerus and Whis are some of my favorites in DBS. I did not like them here. No idea why, just didn’t. The Super Saiyan God ritual is kinda weird but I love all the character interactions before this! This is what I really love about Dragonball, all these interesting personalities working off one another. I like how Goku and Beerus’ fight goes and the animation is really well done. Pretty solid. And Vegeta defending Bulma—awesome.

7: Bojack Unbound: This is how I pictured Gohan growing up into after Cell—still studies but plays outside and still trains and ChiChi being okay with it. This is the personality I love Gohan with—confident but not overly confident, shy but with pride in himself and a great blend of his human and Saiyan sides.

Freaking. Love. It.

The rest of the movie is meh. Save one element—Goku saying “screw it” to the rules and intervening to save his son

and Gohan utterly owning everyone with SSJ2.

But I have to rank it high with having my absolute favorite characterization of Gohan.

6: Broly the Legendary Super Saiyan: Yes, I’m ranking the old one higher than the new one. I don’t care. I watch this one more.

I like the aliens, I like all the other characters being involved. I love the fact that Gohan is a kid in this one. I love Vegeta’s being utterly and completely terrified. I love Piccolo coming in for the save, I love Goku forgetting about the battle and Broly and rushing to try and save his kid. And when Broly threatens his son...

“Kakarot, how much do you love your son?”

“Gohan, leave.”

“But Father—“

“NOW.”

I think having more characters and introducing peril to all of them makes it more engaging.

5: Dead Zone: Quick trivia fact, this is the movie that got me into Dragonball. I caught the end of it on Cartoon Network and was intrigued from them on. I really like that this has a younger Goku. Goku from the Saiyan Saga to the Android Saga is probably my favorite characterization of him. That really shows here. He doesn’t care what beef Kami and Garlic Junior have. He’s there for his kid. “Return my Gohan!” There’s so great choreography in this one too and more martial arts than just ki blasts which I always love seeing.

4: World’s Strongest: Little Gohan is fun. I love seeing him interact with Goku’s friends and an enemy that still thinks Roshi is the strongest makes for some great throwback scenes. I like seeing Goku’s friends get involved in the action. Goku intervening to protect his son against a brainwashed Piccolo and Gohan having to watch the two men he admires most in the world fight makes for great drama.

3: Fusion Reborn: This movie is just fun. It’s wacky, it’s crazy, the fights are insane, the dialogue is hilarious, it’s bright and colorful and Goku and Vegeta while being the main heroes don’t completely dictate the plot. There’s enough fun stuff going on with other characters that I can enjoy any aspect of this movie.

2: Tree of Might: The scents between Goku and Gohan are why I love this movie. Them playing in the tub, Goku letting him keep Icarus in a cave in the yard...the ENTIRE scene of Goku trying to break through to Gohan once he’s become a giant ape just breaks my heart. “Gohan! It’s Daddy!”

Then having time cut off his own son’s tail to save him and ooo, Goku’s “I’m so done” glare to Turles. I adore that when Goku is at his lowest, it’s his son’s voice that gets him to stand back up.

1: Cooler’s Revenge: I like these slice of life moments and this movie has lots of them. I love Goku and his friends and son just wanting to go on a camping trip. I love that Cooler comes not to avenge his brother but because Freeza being beaten by a Saiyan looks bad on their entire family. That is brilliant.

This scene:

Daddy Goku for the win here. I love how they show his relationship with Gohan in this movie. They’ve always been my favorites so I’m biased by nature. I love how the battle against Cooler goes. I love how they have to struggle not to use their ki when they’re tending to Goku. The characters and scenarios in this movie really make it for me.

One thing I noticed as I did this list is that most of my top movies have Gohan as a kid. I don’t think that’s random. I much prefer his characterization at that age and I like it when the others can still contribute to the plot. But as I said, except for my top most disliked one, I really like all of these in some manner. They’re always a fun time!

#dragonball 30 day challenge #day 21 #goku loves his son #favorite movie #daddy goku #gohan and goku #I love Kid Gohan #I like Old Broly better #I really hate Resurrection F #I don’t like Freeza #Give me mixed casts #not just Goku and Vegeta

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inkdrinkershadowsinger · 4 years

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Thoughts/ Background The Deathly Hallows Part Two

The introduction music is so haunting. The castle in all its glory is haunted by dementors and fog. Snape is solitary. Everything is singular and empty on the grounds. The only color we see at Hogwarts during this time is during the final battle when McGonagall pushes Harry out of the way, and we see that flash of fire from her wand. That’s when you know stuff is about to kick off.

Griphook sounds so lost as to why Harry would bury Dobby. The divide between creatures and wizards, between goblins and wizards has gotten so great that neither side even thinks to assume that the other possesses even the smallest hint of kindness or humility. This is a fic all in itself.

What are the goblins stake in the sword? What is with the mention of the tiara in the books? I feel like Rowling had more to say about this topic, but for some reason she didn’t.

I hate that Fleur seems to be so meek in this movie. I want her to be this badass fighter chick, the kind of person who the Goblet of Fire would chose once again to play one of the most challenging games ever, the kind of person who would leave her country and family for an amazing opportunity and adventure, but her character wasn’t given much time or space to be free to show itself in that manner.

Wandlore is super fascinating. Is there a book about wandlore? Like a companion book like Quidditch Through the Ages? I feel like there should be.

It looks like that is a quilt patch behind Harry’s head. It would have been a gift from Mrs. Weasley.

It always bothered me that Luna was just like, “Yeah, I’m going back to school.” They just locked her butt up in the dungeons, and then she decides to go back to a school where the people who locked her up are currently in power and could torture her for information about the whereabouts of Harry Potter, the person she literally just escaped with. I think, that’s why this scene was cut from the final cut of the basic DVD versions.

Ron is so quick here to be like, “They suspect us. They suspect us.” But the silence doesn’t go on for that long. It feels like someone with such an iron gut gets antsy really quickly, and not antsy like sweating a bit, but antsy like he’s about to start crying. It just seems weird. One of the basic security measures to the bank might be that they have like a gas that leaks through that makes people feel paranoid or something like that. You want to get 200 galleons out, but what happens if you get robbed on the way out the door? Better to only get 100, thus keeping money in the bank under the goblins eyes. It would help keep out thieves as well, petty and otherwise.

None of the other goblins think that something is off with the behavior of this one goblin who seems to be in a positon of authority?

Goblins are keyed into the various vaults? Which means that they could seal them at any time as well, right? Is this in the books?

Hermione, baby, your Gryffindor is showing, and it is SEXY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Lol

Those goblins are like, “Assume the fire breathing position.”

You can see how deep down they are. And I know this isn’t real, but to think that that dragon would have only had that small opening of real light shining down on it all that time is truly depressing.

Litearlly, they all deserve to bite it after what that dragon was put through.

“And he’s homicidal.”

“We plan, we get there, all hell breaks loose.” I feel that.

I always assumed that Voldemort when to Gringotts and killed the goblins. But no, he summoned them to Malfoy Manor, and then killed them. Why would he do it like that?

That mirror is rectangular, but I always envisioned the mirrors as being circular.

Why does Aberforth tell them that the Order is finished? He knows that it isn’t. This whole speech of his is very demoralizing. But Harry dgaf…..

This, “I trusted the man I knew” attitude is why Harry named one of his children Albus Severus.

Hermione is the one who asks questions of Aberforth, and yet, he directly responds to Harry. I always thought that was odd.

And Aberforth has been helping them the whole time? Then why the speech?

Neville badass Longbottom.

Another nod to the books.

I wanted some more information about what was going on in Hogwarts while Harry, Ron, and Hermione were on the run. I wanted to hear more about what Dumbledore’s Army were getting up to while the others were hunting horcruxes. There were tasters of it in the book, but I would have loved to have had more of it tbh.

Fact: Neville’s plant from five is the mascot for the Hogwart’s resistance.

“She gots lost of those, hasn’t she?” This line from Seamus at the very beginning of this movie just made it so perfect. This movie is a gosh dang masterpiece.

Snape had such a hard job. I mean, I know people hate on Snape, and I can understand their reasoning, but I have a soft spot for the man. Maybe I read too much fanfiction because fanfic!Snape and canon!Snape are two very different individuals.

Harry’s name among these students is the stuff of legend. The way they all look around and start talking carries that spark of hope that good rumors sometimes have.

Harry, “Perfect timing group.”

People back up when Harry faces Snape. People move the hell out of dodge when McGonagall draws her wand.

Snape takes out the two Carrows behind him before he apparates out of the school.

Padma gets zero dances at the Yule Ball, and then Voldemort invades her mind. Great.

Pansy, my darling, there is a time to speak and there is a time to stay silent. Read the room.

Filch, ditto.

Why do all of the magical, “evil” Slytherins allow Filch, a squib, to lock them up?

Even the portraits are getting out of there.

All the kids in the background are completely flummoxed.

“Boom!”

Say that five times fast. No, say it once without messing up and you get to be bff’s with Maggie Smith.

This spell is sick, this music is sick, McGonagall is a queen. When I saw this in theater, my skin got goose pimples. “Do your duty for our school!” It is just so amazing, and iconic. This whole scene makes me feel so empowered, and pumped like I’m about to head into battle, like I’m about to defend my home and my life.

My thoughts on the diadem and the other founders objects can be found in a post that I made. My thoughts are strong, and though they aren’t canon, they are still unspoken canon.

Voldemort is like, “I was about to monologue. Why you speaking to me?”

“You okay, Freddie?” Don’t come at me like that, writers.

We all died laughing in the theater when Ron said that. “Harry talks in his sleep.” Harry only speaking parseltongue when around snakes theory is still enforced when you think about the snake Pettigrew sneaking around the whole time.

Exactly why the fuck does Remus need Tonks more than her small child? I never understood this line, and I never liked them as a couple. Thought the book version was creepy, and the movie version unrealized.

Some movies really don’t need to be split into two for the ending *Divergent trilogy* but this one really benefitted from having two films. I wouldn’t want this huge battle scene and character plot and humor to be lost.

No one thinks to cast a spell to catch Neville??? This is like the first flying lesson all over again.

Go, Mr. Weasley, you are on fire.

Kingsley, whip their arses with that fancy shit. LET’S GO!!!!!!

Harry reached out to Ginny first. This movie is so lacking in any real chemistry between these two actors and characters that it is almost painful. This is one instance, that I never noticed before, that makes all of their other interactions less cringey to watch.

Neville almost died on that bridge. He might as well tell Luna how he feels. I love this and can fully ship canon book couples with canon movie couples at the same time. Thank you very much.

That kiss between them is so weird. I just can’t.

Hermione in this scene is proof that men rattle your brain with smooches. Lol

So, if you are using the room of requirement for something, and someone who already has been in that same room, and wants it for the same reason that you do, they can get in as well? But not if they want it for the same reason, which is why Umbridge couldn’t be get it in Order of the Phoenix.”

There are so many Easter eggs in this scene in the ROR. You can see a chess piece from 1, pixies from 2. It just enforces my headcanon that the house elves use the ROR as a sort of dumping ground for the random stuff that they find at the school.

Harry is so gosh dang blasé about seeing Draco again. He’s just like, “What’s up, dude?” He is not concerned in the slightest that he has three wands pointed at him right now. They are just causally chatting about whose wand each other has got.

The statue of the pig right behind Harry and Hermione. It would make sense Voldemort would try to totally remake Hogwarts, and I think that would go into removing those odd little things that make the castle a bit quirky. The castle looks bleak and unnaturally bland compared to the other movies. It would make sense that he would want statues of hogs also taken out.

You see the lanterns that Slughorn had at his Christmas party.

Why is the fire morphing into different animals? The phoenix attacks Draco, Blaise, and Goyle, the tiger chases Ron and Hermione, and then the snake goes after Harry. And then they all converge on the trio? Why make it animals? Is there any significance to this? I never noticed that they were actually animals before.

Finding the brooms perfect. Saving them perfect. Killing the horcrux then kicking it into the flames. Perfect.

The music while the trio are fighting to get to boat house is so haunting and lovely and it’s like it calls to every nostalgic atom in your body.

Really, death eater, you’ve got time to stop and cast the cruciatus on someone in the middle of this warzone?

I love that Hermione was the one to blast Fenrir away from Lavender. So touching.

Aberforth, Mr. IT IS ALL GOING TO END HORRIBLY WHY EVEN TRY, has enough hope and good memories to cast away that many dementors. Yeah, he’s fake.

Voldemort just doesn’t like that Snape is taller than him.

I just wanted a touch of the friendship that was expressed between Lily and Snape in the book. Harry understood it, and said it perfectly at the end of book seven. I wanted some of that to translate to screen. It wasn’t just because Snape had some weird crush on her it was because they were friends, best friends. Ron and Harry and Hermione friendship. The next time someone comes at me with that bull I’m just going to refer them back to the facts.

This is probably the first time that Snape had ever been allowed to really look at Harry as a person rather than someone who is supposed to hate him. It is the first time that he could be unguarded around him.

Snape hired more healers. Why else would they be there? He knew that with the group in charge that as in power, that they would be needed.

I can’t stand this barrage of lost souls. It is painful, and I get flashbacks from when I read the book for the first time, and the pages were covered in my tears.

It doesn’t look like Snape even has anything in this office. It looks barren. He knew he had no time to get comfortable in his position.

That tree is beautiful.

I love their friendship. I will always love their friendship.

Look at Snape and all those books. Lily and Snape, the studious, top of their year duo with the Marauders who eschew libraries but still manage to succeed. I don’t need to think hard to imagine the rivalry. In fact, I did imagine it, and wrote some down in the thing, message me if you would like part of the thing.

Hermione knew, or at least, strongly suspected that Harry was going to have to do what he sets off to accomplish, for sure.

I love that when Harry walked into the forest to face down death that he had these people, these guardians, these people who at one point or another swore to protect this boy with everything that they have get to be the ones that are with him at the end just like at the beginning. Things are different for them, and different from how they thought it would be when Harry was born into this world, but they still kept their promise.

“Does it hurt?” This is something that a child asks. We forget that Harry, here, is only supposed to be 17 years old, that’s a kid. Added to that, you have the very real

“We’re here, you see?” Perfect.

“Stay close to me?” “Always.”

My thoughts mean nothing in the perfection of this scene.

Hagrid is still looking out for Harry’s best interest. He is the only adult worth a flip in more than half of these films.

“The boy who lived come to die.”

I know Dumbledore is like, “The man” here, and the mentor or whatever, but I would have really have liked to have the person who met Harry at Kings Cross had been Snape especially after harry had just learned the truth. Way more dynamic.

Narcissa straight up lied to the most dangerous wizard ever. She deserved that pardon for her family. All she wanted was out, and to take care of her son, and I respect that. Don’t give a dang for the rest of the world when they would gladly let you burn. Take care of number one even when number one is a group instead of a single entity.

You hear that noise when Neville picks up the hat, and if you read the books, you know what he just found. He was out there preparing and scouting for another battle, and Hogwarts rewarded him.

Hagrid carrying in Harry’s body was so painful to watch. Visually, there little death parade plus the music just puts you in this anxious state. Pinpricks.

The acting by Bonnie Wright here is superb. The lack of chemistry is not equally weighted on her shoulders.

Luna looks at Draco like she is sick. Then like she is sad. I hate it. She was wishing for something else there for sure.

The way Dean Thomas looks at Voldemort in this scene is the way that I feel about that weird af hug.

Voldemort has to restrain himself from killing Neville on the spot for interrupting him.

Neville has never in the course of these movies failed to speak when needed. He stood up to the trio in 1, and he spoke up against Seamus and nearly everyone else in the common room in Ootp. Neville stands up for what is right.

All of those death eaters are like, “Fuck! This boy came back to life again? What are the Dark Lord’s AK’s broken? Nevermind, fuck this shit, I’m out.”

That music when Neville regains consciousness. YES!

See, if Voldemort didn’t play with his food, he might have won.

NOT MY DAUGHTER YOU BITCH!!!! When I say people cheered and screamed in the theater when Molly said and did this epic shit I ain’t kidding. IT WAS AND STILL IS ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC HP QUOTES OF ALL TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ONE OF THE BEST, MOST EMPOWERING QUOTES!!!!!!! We all want Molly Weasley to have our backs like this.

The whole ending of this movie is LEGENDARY!!!! I went to the midnight showing for the release of this movie with a bunch of other diehards, and seeing Neville cut the head off of the snake, and watching Harry finally beat Voldemort with the elder wand. I mean, we were literally just in such a state of excitement and yes and hallelujah, it was insane.

Neville and Luna. I see y’all.

Percy is talking to Arthur, reconciling.

That guy behind Cho is definitely about to shoot his shot with someone.

Filch, bless his heart.

Ron and Hermione. Harry knows. Harry blesses this union. Harry has been the number one ship captain this whole time, and now he is rewarded.

I like that Harry snapped the wand in the movie. See, if book Harry had snapped the wand, the Cursed Child would have never graced our consciousness with its heteronormative agenda. Scorbus is life. Fight me.

This series has had such a serious impact on me. I love it. I spend hours upon hours inside of this universe every day as beloved fanfiction writers play inside of it’s territory. It made me a reader. It helped me when I wasn’t sure what was next for me in life. It gave me entertainment and enjoyment, and still does. I love it, and I hope that I always will. We cling to the thought of magic because we hope that it is really, we hope that like in this world where there is magic that cannot be easily be explained exists. We hope that in our world, too, there is that same kind of magic that can wrap itself around us.

I think that kind of magic is real. I just think that we have to look for it, remember it, talk about, cherish it, and spread it around for others who have forgotten to look for it themselves. And great literature, like this series, helps us to do that.

That is why it will be remembered for generations to come. At least, if I have anything to say about it.

#Harry Potter #Harry Potter and the deathly hallows part two #Harry Potter thoughts #Harry Potter anaysis #Harry Potter background #harry potter meta

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pigeontheoneandonly · 5 years

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The Phylactery

Part 2 of my Dragon Age / Mass Effect crossover. Part 1 here. (Part 3 here.)

Nathaly, Kaidan, and Garrus arrived in Crestwood only a half-day behind schedule. Kaidan barely slept those nights on the road, a death grip on the staff concealed beneath his cloak and convinced that the templars would arrive at any moment. Once they left the highway, that fear eased, if only slightly, replaced by howls in the night and the sparks of campfires in the wilds. The area surrounding Crestwood was formed of craggy hills, plenty of areas for bandits and worse to hide.

They gave them a wide berth where they could. Once, a group of four approached them, ill intentions obvious, but Nathaly put her hand to her sword and spoke quietly, words he couldn’t catch. They backed off. Then she took a step towards them, half-drawing her weapon, and they turned and ran. Garrus laughed and said something about her reputation preceding her. Kaidan didn’t know what to make of that, and wasn’t convinced he liked it.

Now he sat in the mouth of a cave, looking out over the stark and barren land as the sun fell below the mountains beyond. Drinking it up with his eyes and trying not to feel swallowed whole. For thirteen years, the curved walls of Kinloch Hold formed his horizon, close enough to touch, barring the occasional glance at the same tired views out the windows, or the even rarer trip beyond Lake Calenhad. The last of those more than three years ago, a trip to Highever to fix… something. Couldn’t remember what. Though far from the Circle’s favorite mage, his power and grasp of magic was undeniable, and they were happy to use him for heavy-lifting. It rankled, having his only utility in life dictated by the same people who took him from his family and his home.

But without them, he had no idea whatsoever of his purpose now. It wasn’t like he could use any of those skills anymore. Not without risking exposure. He worried, increasingly, about becoming a burden on the small group that now comprised his only friends.

Garrus had headed into town. Their other two friends, the ones supposed to retrieve his phylactery, were days late now, and he hoped to hear something. Maybe meet someone who’d seen them traveling. Kaidan wouldn’t know it, looking at Nathaly now, scrunched into a ball with her cloak as a pillow, fast asleep without a worry in the world. He tried to remember if she slept like that as a child. Their families were close; hers helped with the harvest at his parents’ orchard, his made themselves available for shearing season, and the kids got roped into customary tasks like watching the herds. They spent days and nights out in the meadows. She had a great big sheepdog she never liked much, but who loved Kaidan.

Even then, she never talked about growing up to be a shepherd. The oldest child of a not particularly large family, it was expected, but she wasn’t the type to care. She talked his ear off about all the places she wanted to visit, the life she wanted to lead, devouring every scrap of every story that ever crossed their tiny village square. And it seemed she found a way.

The sight of two figures picking their way up the hillside woke him from his musing. His heart clenched as he reached for a staff that wasn’t there, left deeper in the cave where it was less conspicuous. The smaller person walked shrouded head to toe in a cloak, but the other glinted with bright steel armor, a templar emblem proud upon the chest.

“Nathaly,” he hissed, afraid to raise his voice above a whisper. He scurried back into the cave and found his staff. Considered casting an illusion over the entrance, but decided it would draw too much attention, the sudden change in scenery. Instead, he shook her shoulder. “Wake up.”

She peered at him, groggy. “Whaisit.”

“There’s a templar. Coming up the hill.” Trying to project a calm he didn’t feel.

“Shit.” She found her longsword and stumbled towards daylight.

He came up behind her. She stood tall, shielding her eyes from the sun. Then she relaxed. “Hey!”

She waved. Kaidan’s stomach contracted in horror. He hauled at her arm. “What are you doing?”

“It’s ok. I know them.” Smiling even as she tried to reassure him.

“That’s a templar!”

“She’s not, actually. Well, not anymore. Long story.” Her smile widened. “If she likes you and you ask very nicely, she might even tell it.”

His trepidation didn’t ease as they approached the cave. Two women, the one under the cloak an elf. A Dalish elf, he noted with surprise, as she lowered her hood and revealed the tattoos tangling across her face, vivid on her dark skin. Her black hair was braided down her scalp in thick ridges, but her eyes were startling blue, wideset and huge in her face. She embraced Nathaly. “It’s good to see you. We were delayed at the tower.”

Nathaly drew back, all concern. “Delayed?”

“Don’t be so inscrutable, Liara,” said the ex-templar, who was already stripping off her armor, with just the barest trace of an Orlesian accent. “Ugh, I hate this stuff. Weighs a ton and bakes like an oven.”

Broad-shouldered and tan, she had long brown hair coiled in a knot, and brown eyes that sparkled with good humor despite her groaning. Nathaly gestured towards her. “Kaidan, this is Ash. Ash, Kaidan.”

She sized him up. “So this is him. He’s cuter than I imagined.”

Heat crept into his face. He glanced at Nathaly, who looked just as embarrassed. “Why do people keep talking like they know all about me?”

Ash burst out laughing. “Really? She never shuts her mouth about you. This mage kid from back home she swore on her grandmother’s grave to pry from the Chantry’s wicked grasp.”

His cheeks burned. Even Liara hid a chuckle. “I don’t know what to say.”

Ash folded her arms. “Thank you might be appropriate.”

He hadn’t processed enough of this to be grateful yet. Nathaly put a bite in her voice, tiring of the teasing. “Leave him alone. He’s had a rough week.”

Instead, he cleared his throat. “So, how did you…?”

“Oh, right.” Ash reached into a pouch and withdrew a small vial of magicked blood. His blood, to be precise. “You probably want this.”

He took it carefully. Not because he was afraid of dropping it— in fact, he intended to destroy it at the earliest opportunity— but because he couldn’t believe he was actually holding it in his hands. Liara read the shock on his face, and explained. “I began as an apprentice in the Circle at Dairsmuid. My clan’s Keeper died before she could pass on her knowledge, and the mages in Rivain have an excellent relationship with my people. For convenience, I split my education between my clan and the enchanters there.”

“Wait,” Kaidan said, completely lost. “They just… let you come and go as you pleased?”

She twisted her fingers together. “The Rivaini Circle appears unlike any other. I did not know this. Otherwise, things may have turned out differently.”

Ash took up the thread. “As a senior enchanter, the White Spire requested her consultation on a matter of magical theory. And she didn’t know enough to say no.”

“I immediately found myself in trouble, when I thought I might see the sites in Val Royeaux, and attempted to leave.” She shuddered. “The Templars seized me. Began to yell, and I barely spoke Orlesian then. I spent several days in the Spire dungeons. Then weeks, when I tried to sneak out a second time, to return home. Upon realizing my phylactery had been ‘lost’— we don’t use them in Rivain— they made another.”

Ash resumed loosening her templar armor. “Liara was forced to remain at the Spire for several years before she found an opportunity to escape.”

“I acted contrite. Obedient. Eventually, my earlier transgressions were forgotten, and I was given important responsibilities. Including access to the phylactery chamber.” And then she smiled, quietly, both self-satisfied and genuinely pleased. “Which is how I knew the procedures to liberate yours.”

Nathaly folded her arms. “They walked in and took it. Pretending to be a traveling templar and her mage charge, resting up a few days at Kinloch Hold. I take it that it seemed too suspicious to vanish after Kaidan and his phylactery walked out the door?”

“Exactly,” said Ash. “Instead, Liara helped them search the phylactery chamber, since she’s such an expert on them, and I sat in while the templars debated how to conduct a traditional search. I don’t think any of their strategies are likely to work. Then, after a suitable wait, regretfully we had to continue our journey. The phylactery was on my person the whole time.”

Kaidan wrapped his fist around the vial. Angry and thankful and sad, all at once. He could still feel the prick in the crook of his elbow, where they pierced his skin with a knife and trickled the blood into this glass tube, knew if looked he’d still see the small scar.

Liara touched his hand. Looked up at him, earnest. “I felt the same when I finally held mine, and the Spire had me far fewer years. Everything will be better now. You’ll see.”

Then she followed Ash back into the cave, in search of their provisions. He looked at Nathaly. “Why?”

She uncrossed her arms and shuffled away, busying herself with folding and retying her scarf, the long ends of it trailing down her back. Most of her hair had flown free as she slept. As far as he could tell, she mainly wore it to keep strands from falling in her eyes. “Why what?”

“Yes, you made a promise.” He bit his lip, turning the phylactery over in his palm. “We were just children.”

“I don’t see how that makes it any less important.”

“You risked yourself and your friends to free me.” He eyed her. “I am grateful. I think. But Nathaly, you gotta admit, that’s kind of a lot to put on somebody.”

She glanced away and let out a breath. Then looked back at him directly, backlit by the fading light. “You were my closest friend. I never met anyone in thirteen years I liked better. You meet someone like that, you hang on.”

He should set a boundary, after that sort of statement. Establish some kind of distance. Instead, he said, “I never forgot you, you know. I didn’t think you’d actually come. But it meant something that you wanted to.”

Her expression relaxed into relief. Not the emotion he expected to see— she’d been nervous about this reunion, too, and that hadn’t stopped her, either. She finished knotting the scarf. “I don’t have any expectations. You want to leave, I’ll take you anywhere you want to go and be on my way. I didn’t do this for me.” A brief pause. She licked her lips. “But… I am happy to see you. More than I can say.”

Early in his time at the Tower, he let himself daydream about what he’d do if he ever got out. Until it started to hurt too much. None of those fantasies involved hiding in a cave, but the last thing he wanted to do was leave. Having a true friend again felt… strange. But also good.

He hefted the phylactery, and raised his eyebrows. “I’m going to get rid of this. Want to watch?”

“Gladly.”

Kaidan grabbed his staff and headed out, into a small cove of pines standing tall near their makeshift quarters, nicely hidden from any watchful eyes. He set the phylactery on a small boulder. It rolled into a niche and settled, a glowing ruby in the last light of the sun. Brooding there.

He contemplated it for a long moment, this tiny object which had ruled his life since he was nine years old. Then without any preamble he raised his staff and crushed it with the end. Blood splashed over the rock, a morbid scarlet bloom running between the shards. Then he leveled the crystal at it, called out three words, and it erupted in white hot flames.

Nathaly watched in silence. When it lit up, she didn’t flinch, as he expected, but instead let out a small satisfied whoosh of breath. Like she, too, saw this as a great righting of the world.

They stood there side-by-side until the last of the fire faded, and all that was left of Kaidan’s leash was a scorch mark on stone. Even the glass had melted away. Then, deliberately, he turned his back on it. “Think your friends managed to put together some dinner?”

“Are all mages constantly thinking with their stomachs?” she asked, catching his change in tone.

“Maybe?” If nothing else, Kinloch Hold never lacked for food. For too many of his fellow apprentices, that was the first time in their lives they could expect three meals a day, as big a portion as they wanted.

“Well, it’s good we asked Garrus to lay in more supplies.” She jerked her head towards the cave. “Come on. Ash is a better cook than she’ll admit.”

#mass effect #dragon age #crossover #nathaly shepard #kaidan alenko #shenko #fanfiction #pigeon writes

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rollforsleepy · 5 years

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So I’ve been working on this for like three weeks! It’s been a tonne of fun but also a tonne of work. Coming up with five distinct subraces meant a lot of drawing! Oh boy! This started as a re write of the Dryad race because I didn’t think the Dryad race i found online was super playable, but it kinda gotta away from me a bit so I left dryads behind and these are fully homebrewed! The main carry overs from dryads are the +2 wisdom that they all get, and the no metal caveat in the weaponry proficiencies.

I spent some time researching different culture’s mythology on dryads and similar creatures. Wikipedia has a handy list of similar folklores at the end of the dryad entry (im not linking cos tumblr screws w posts w external links, but you can check it out yourself if youre curious). Basically I picked a few and wrote down some notes on each one so each subclass had a distinct feeling to it.

The Deep Forest subclass is based off hamadryads. Super long life, connected to a specific tree (i removed the life or death thing and just made it birthed by a tree, cos having a tree that if cut would killed you seemed unbalanced to me), that sorta thing. Cos they’re based on Oak trees, and Oaks are fairly hardy, I gave them some good survival type stuff. I didn’t want long, unfamiliar names so I changed it from Hamadryad to Deep Forest. Also I really didn’t want them to hark back to dryads and just Hamad had a weird ring to it to me

Gillie Du got to pretty much keep it’s name tho. Originally it’s Ghillie Dhu, and there was nothing wrong w that but i wanted things a bit simple in the name department. Ghillie Dhu is a Scottish fairy who (to drastically summarise him) lives in a marsh and plays tricks on people. As I said earlier, I wasn’t using these sources as gospel, just as flavour affects, so the Gillie Du subrace became a more water based thing with the breathing under water and swim speed.

Desert Walkers probably changed most from their original material. I started with the Salabhanjika, a sculpture found in india that’s always got a tree and a musical instrument in it. I wanted a bit of size range (i had to talk myself out of making one of them Large size cos it got too op, but I wanted to so bad) so they got the Small tag, then because India is a hot country and I already had a sub class more tightly woven in with fruit trees I made it more desert based, giving some good boosts to travelling related skills. I really love playing Small races and I wanna play as one of these now, it feels built for a ranger but I think it could make a kickass wizard tbh

The Maliade are based on the Epimelides, who were a kind of nymph associated with apple trees and sheep. I extended that association to fruit trees and all farm animals cos i didn’t want to cramp anyones roleplaying incase someone really wanted to be a Maliade who’s buddies with a bull and makes three magic dragon fruits every day. There’s no information beyond that on wikipeida, but I didn’t have any subrace who had a close relationship with people, so they got that. I like this one, I think the skills are pretty useful in a lot of small ways

And the Kodama! The Kodama are the only ones who actually got to keep their original name. Kodama are a Japanese spirit that inhabit trees. They can also be seen as Mountain Gods. So these guys got the mountain skills. Spider climb is a great skill, but when coupled with a slower speed I thought they cancel out pretty comfortably to make a balanced race. The Kodama has a brief description on wikipedia, but it’s terrifying, “small, white humanoids with large, rattling heads and mask-like features, with asymmetrical black dots for eyes and mouth, and move similar to bobbleheads.” I took the essence of this (pale skin, dark eyes) and dropped the rest. A lot of people (myself included) like their characters to be sexy, and that ain’t hot to me

Click through to read a transcript of the race if the font above is too small/blurry.

I’m gonna be making more of these and if there’s some interest I’ll start doing some stuff on Patreon, let me know if you thinks that’s something worthwhile. I’ve got a race in the works now that is like a living statue. Super slow but super durable. It’s a bit min/max but could be fun for some campaigns

Nature Spirits

Nature Spirits are a known phenomenon, a wandering essence of the land who appear commonly in the land. Some Nature Spirits are chosen and come into being through a birth touched by the land, some choose the path themselves and give their souls over to the land, some are simply brought into being by the powers of the land. It is a difficult life as a Nature Spirit, your priority is not yourself rather the protection and love of your home land. You have features and traits specific to the type of land you hail from.

Varied Childhoods

Each Nature Spirit is different, some wander far from their home, travelling and researching the world at large to better safeguard the continued life of their land. Others never leave and are rarely if ever seen by a civilised person. Some live in harmony with the people of their land, others seek to drive out humanoid peoples. You path in life is up to you, but the land you are from is your home and your priority.

Nature Spirit Traits

Ability Score Increase: Your Wisdom score increases by two.

Languages: You speak Common and Sylvan

Weapon Proficiency: You are proficient with the quaterstaff, club, greatclub, and slings. You cannot use this proficiency to use metal weapons and must use naturally found projectiles (such as wood, stone, nuts) for your sling. If your Class gives you proficiency in any of these weapons the metal caveat no longer applies

Alignment: Nature Spirits can have any alignment, but their loyalty lies with the land that powers them

Choose one from the following Racial Variants

Deep Forest

These spirits emerge from an ancient tree once in the trees lifetime, sometimes living incorporeally their whole lives, other times taking humanoid form to explore their forest in that way. They are ancient, tough, and fast, living the longest of any of their brethren Nature Spirits. Their hair forms as moss does atop their head. They are the least likely to leave their home unless they must.

Age: You age slowly, up to about 1000 years, and you age in time as a human would, at 80 years old you appear 8, at 900 years old you appear as a 90 year old human

Size: Medium

Speed: Your speed is 35ft

Ability Score Increase: Your Strength score increases by one.

The Hard Trek: Rough and difficult terrain does not affect you

Vision: You have Darkvision to a distance of 60ft

Survivalist: You are proficient in the Survival skill

Gillie Du

The Gillie Du find home wherever land meets water, be it ocean, river bank, or a swampy marsh. They are generally cheerful and occasionally make themselves known as a trickster to strangers in their land. Their skin is a dusky green tone but otherwise they appear somewhat elven. They can be born of humanoids, but more often are formed over some time in their land, and very occasionally a humanoid will show such a loyalty to the land that they turn into a Gillie Du. They are comfortable in both water and on land, but prefer land.

Age: You are fully grown at about 40 years old and do not age until your death at about 700 years of age.

Size: Medium

Speed: Your speed is 30ft, and your swim speed is 30ft

Ability Score Increase: Your Dexterity score increases by one.

Powerful Lungs: You can hold your breath for fifteen minutes plus a number of minutes equal to your Constitution modifier (minimum of zero)

Vision: You have Darkvision to a distance of 60ft

Sleep with Ease: You can cast the Alarm spell once a day without components

Desert Walker

Desert Walkers are born in deserts and find themselves comfortable in a hot climates. They are the most inhuman in appearance, still humanoid but with grey black skin, ears that connect behind their heads, and everlastingly young. Their age, of course, is not reflected in their appearance and they often speak with an experience that startles people. They are soft spoken and have learned from the many cultures they have encountered in their time.

Age: You live up to roughly 200 years, always appearing someone younger than an adult

Size: Small

Speed: You move quickly despite your size. Your speed is 30

Ability Score Increase: Your nomadic lifestyle has caused you to meet with the odd civilisation and learn from many varied cultures. Your Intelligence score increases by one

Inexhaustable: You have advantage against effects that will cause Exhaustion

Fire: You can cast the Cantrip Produce Flame

Musically Gifted: You have proficiency in one musical instrument of your choice

Keep an Eye Out: You have Expertise in the Perception skill

Endurance: You do not need to eat

Maliade

The Maliade Spirits are the most civilised, often the child of a townsperson who is touched by the powers of nature. They grow up with a community of humanoids in a small town hidden in the forest, or a larger city connected to an expanse of untouched flora. They are Medium size even if their birth parents are Small or Large, their size is determined by their Nature Spirit soul. They are friendly with animals and people alike, used to the constraints of town life as well as the freedom beyond. They are the most normal in appearance, the least likely of their kin to turn heads

Age: You age at the same rate as the average human, and die at roughly 100 years of age

Size: Medium

Speed: Your speed is 30ft

Ability Score Increase: Your Charisma score increases by one.

Language: You can speak to all farm animals

A Good Fruit: Everyday you can create four fruits of your choice, each feeds the average person for a day and restores 2 Hit Points. You cannot use this abiliy again until your next long rest

Find a Ride: At 3rd level you can cast Find Steed once a day, you are restricted to animals that would be normally found in a farm such as a horse, sheep, or cow.

Cook: You are proficient in Cooks Tools

Kodama

The Kodama are usually the result of a lost traveller or explorer who commits their life to protecting the land they’ve found and accepts the physical changes that entails. They are drawn to the roads and paths through their mountain range, watching and learning the different plants, animals, and humanoids that grow and pass through. They are pale skinned with dark irises and are generally more lean than strong.

Age: You live up to 400 years, aging to appear as a human would in their 60s

Size: Medium

Speed: You’re used to moving carefully across treacherous mounains, as such your speed is 25ft

Ability Score Increase: The mountains are a hard life. Your Constitution score increases by one

Natural Defence: You are more likely to defend yourself than attacked, as such once a day you can cast Barkskin

A Life of Climbing: You are forced to carefully climb your way throug life, leaving you with an ability most professional climbers would marvel at. You can Spiderclimb, climbing across walls and roofs live gravity doesn’t affect you

Sight: You have 30ft of Darkvision

#dnd #dnd 5e #dungeons and dragons #dnd homebrew #dryad #homebrew race #shannon rose

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eggoreviews · 5 years

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E3 2019 Nintendo Direct - BREAKDOWN

Oh wow. That big ol direct sure was something. So now I’m here to break down everything that happened in unnecessary fashion and give my personal reaction to everything that happened with my tried and true Excitement Rater. Want to see my heavily scientific and not at all arbitrary process? Then click down to see the deets.

Before we kick off my (very very scientific) breakdown of this year’s packed direct, I thought I’d briefly go over how I rate things:

A random string of letters/numbers = Immeasurable excitement

YEEHAW BABEY = Big excitement

Heck Yeck = Vague excitement

Yeah! = Not really excited, but still could be good

Sure, why not? = I’m more confused than excited but sure

Oh = The excitement isn’t there

Oh no = Used on the rare occasion I really don’t like what I’ve seen

The Hero from the Dragon Quest series in Smash!

After a brief montage of some games that already came out I guess, the direct jumps straight into an ominous shot of World of Light baddie Dharkon, followed by a seemingly hopeless fight between Link and one very possessed Marth. Then the Luminary turns up gloriously on his horse. With all the leaks that had been flying around for so long, I think pretty much everyone had accepted the presence of Dragon Quest at this point and I was totally stoked when this happened! I love Dragon Quest! And my boi from 11 is here, along with a few other DQ veterans as alt swaps and a pretty awesome looking stage overlooking what seems to be the land of Erdrea and the World Tree. Now to wait until summer and hope the Smash team have some sick ass remixes for us when the time comes!

Excitement Rating: YEEHAW BABEY

Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Definitive Edition

In a move that makes it a lil obvious that DQ’s Smash addition was more than a little commercially minded (not that I really care I’m still big hyped), a trailer for the expanded edition of the series’ latest installment follows. Seeming as I’ve already played this, I doubt I’ll be picking it up again but I still heartily recommend the game to any JRPG fan. Admittedly, the fact you apparently get to explore worlds from past games is pretty exciting.

ER: Heck Yeck

Luigi’s Mansion 3

In a way I thought was surprising, Nintendo’s first proper focus of Luigi’s Mansion 3 actually took up more time than Animal Crossing, but I guess that’s because it’s further along in development. We now know that the game is set within a haunted hotel and had some new gameplay features shown off, including the various ways Luigi can succ a ghost. Most exciting I think for me was the various multiplayer aspects, such as the local co-op option to play as Gooigi and the seemingly challenge and minigame-based ‘Scarescraper’ which I think incorporates online co-op too. Overall, this is looking to be a creative and well thought out entry in the series and I’m here for it.

ER: Heck Yeck

The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance - Tactics

A licensed tie-in game for a thirty year old film feels a little odd, but I suppose stranger things have happened. This looks to be a sort of top-down tactical thingy involving the various characters from The Dark Crystal and for some reason Netflix is involved, I don’t know, but I guess it could be interesting.

ER: Sure, why not?

The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening

The adorable remake of this classic Game Boy title seems to be coming along great and this direct’s extended trailer gave us a good look at what we’ll be exploring come September 20th. The overhaul Koholint Island has had is phenomenal, giving us designs for Link and various other characters that we’ve never seen before and that makes this remake look especially unique. Another very exciting aspect for me was the dungeon builder that looks like great fun! You collect different dungeon parts as you go and then you can build and explore your own! Am I a goblin child or does that sound like the best thing ever?

ER: YEEHAW BABEY!!

Trials of Mana / Collection of Mana

I’ll admit I’m not really familiar with the Mana series, but from what I was shown in this direct, it looks to be a fairly standard JRPG. That’s definitely not a bad thing, as most JRPGs are amazing, but nothing in this trailer really stood out and came into its own. That being said, the gameplay and graphics look pretty solid and I’m sure the Mana fans have been fairly starved for content for a while so that’s something to look forward to. On top of this remake/new game with the same title as an older game (I really don’t know), the Collection of Mana containing the series’ first three games is being released real soon on the eShop.

ER: Yeah!

The Witcher III: Wild Hunt - Complete Edition

Following a few scattered rumours, we finally have confirmation that a Witcher 3 port is in fact in the works, coming packed with all the game’s DLC. This basically legendary RPG is not one I personally had a great experience with, but I’m sure a lot of people are gonna be happy to play this in handheld. I’d keep expectations tempered however, with the likes of Assassin’s Creed 3 and Saints Row the Third proving that these ports don’t always function brilliantly on this platform.

ER: Yeah!

Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Yet another and probably our last Fire Emblem trailer was shown in this direct, giving us a better look at how the story might play out and what our villains are going to be. With most of the gameplay features explored in the previous February direct, it’s good to have a slightly better idea as to what’s actually going on in terms of story and, to me, the results seem pretty damn good. Definitely one to keep an eye on!

ER: Heck Yeck

Resident Evil

In a slightly unnecessarily convoluted advert, we were given a two minute reel of two teenagers playing the original RE in tabletop mode in an abandoned house (??), along with the kind of less than exciting announcement that we’re getting the two weakest entries in the series for Switch, RE 5 and 6. I probably wasn’t the only one who felt a little passive about this whole thing. That being said, definitely not complaining about 1 & 4 being ported over.

ER: Oh

No More Heroes III

After the very slightly disappointing Travis Strikes Again, I really wasn’t expecting them to drop a trailer for the series’ third mainline installment so soon after. What we’ve seen looks pretty much like classic Travis, with a smidge of gameplay seen that looks just a bit more like what we’re used to. Of course, with this being the first reveal, there’s still a lot to find out but this looks very promising.

ER: Heck Yeck

Contra: Rogue Corps / Contra: Anniversary Collection

I’m not gonna pretend to be familiar with the Contra series, but this doesn’t at all look like what I’ve seen in the past. Honestly, this seemingly tactical shooter didn’t elicit much excitement from me and neither did its rushed character drops or its oddly rough textures. I’m unsure of actual fan reactions to this, but in my mind this one kind of sits in the ‘guess this exists’ category. As well as this, we got a shadowdrop for the Contra Anniversary Collection, whereas Rogue Corps comes on September 24th.

ER: Oh

Daemon X Machina

In what seems to be almost a mainstay in Nintendo directs, we’ve got another vague trailer for this mech shooter that finally has a confirmed release date of September 13th. The gameplay looks harmless enough, with the mechs seeming to be a blast to pilot, but beyond that, I can’t really see a lot of substance that would draw me in beyond the cool robots. I’m sure it could be good, but not really one for me.

ER: Yeah!

Panzer Dragoon

I was completely unsure of what this one was, but it looks a bit like a cross between The Last Guardian and those bullet hell sections from Kingdom Hearts 2. They’ve certainly nailed the smooth graphics and the cool looking creatures, but this one is mostly a case of needing to know more.

ER: Yeah!

Pokemon Sword & Shield

This one’s obviously a title so monumental that it consistently needs its own directs, but there wasn’t any *real* news about it in this direct. We were given a brief explanation as to how the Pokeball Plus works in conjunction with the games (something to do with taking your Pokemon for a walk) and the fact that we’ll see more gameplay during Nintendo’s Treehouse streams. Still, excitement remains pretty high for these titles.

ER: Heck Yeck!

Astral Chain

This game, to put it bluntly, looks awesome. The newest Platinum Games IP seems to be set in Blade Runneresque futuristic city with an alien threat and some cool ass looking fighting police people. Our second proper look at this game has cleared up a few murky doubts as to what exactly is supposed to be happening, so now we’ve got a much better idea of what this game is going to be. The story seems pretty full and polished, the gameplay looks like brilliant fun and I’m definitely not mad at the cool monster designs. This is one I’m definitely watching.

ER: Heck Yeck!!!

Empire of Sin

I know very little about what this game is supposed to be, but it looks to be a 40s gangster XCOM, substituting alien fighting marines with gun toting mafia dudes. The trailer went for style over substance, giving us an edgy visual thing of some burning playing cards and broken bottles, but the little gameplay we saw looked decent enough and may just end up injecting more variety into this genre.

ER: Yeah!

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order

An obvious pick for any Marvel fan, this hack-and-slash is jam packed with various heroes and villains from the comic series’ rich history. Ghost Rider and Elektra were among those revealed to be playable, while the likes of Mysterio, Hela, the Destroyer, Doctor Octopus, Surtur and MODOK are seemingly part of growing cast of villains. Looks like a good bit of fun if nothing else, though the immediate presence of a season pass is a tiny red flag.

ER: Yeah!

Cadence of Hyrule

In an unexpected but greatly welcomed crossover between Nintendo’s RPG titan Zelda series and the indie developed Crypt of the Necrodancer, a new rhythm based dungeon crawler with some brand new Zelda remixes and the presence of Link and Zelda as playable characters. This game’s retro graphics look totally adorable and the addition of the Gohmaracas were a definite highlight.

ER: Heck Yeck!!!!!

Mario & Sonic at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

Tell you what, this definitely looks like a Mario and Sonic Olympic Games game. There looks to be a decent amount of variety in terms of what sports are involved and with its online multiplayer, there’s no shortage of vaguely cartoon sportyness to be had with friends both real and virtual. I’d be lying if I said I was totally disinterested because it does look a bit fun, but we all know it won’t be anything groundbreaking.

ER: Yeah!

Animal Crossing: New Horizons

In a fairly drastic formula change, Nintendo have decided to strand us on a desert island rather than move us innocently to another village, but Tom Nook is still here and oh yes he’s coming to collect his bells. From this surprisingly brief trailer, most of Animal Crossing’s core gameplay seems to be intact, with the return of craftable items from Pocket Camp, and the sudden bombshell that the game has been pushed back to March next year. Never going to be a bad thing if the finished product is all the better for it, but I guess that just means more info is to come!

ER: Heck Yeck

Highlight Reel

In what looks like a list of honourable mentions, Nintendo gave us a laundry list of other titles coming to the system:

Spyro Reignited Trilogy is joining Crash on the Switch with his acclaimed remaster trilogy.

Hollow Knight: Silksong, the prequel to the original game, looks just as charmingly dark as its predecessor.

Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is showing up I guess, but I’ll come out and say I know nothing about it except that it looks cute.

Minecraft Dungeons looks better than it has any right to be and looks a bit like blocky Diablo I guess

The Elder Scrolls: Blades sure exists and I’m unsure of what it’s trying to be, but whatever quells off the need for Elder Scrolls 6 I guess.

My Friend Pedro, another strangely unique title from Devolver Digital, looks like it somehow incorporates banana peels into its combat system.

Doom Eternal looks like Doom always does, but a distinct lack of gameplay may put its dual release with the other consoles into question.

The Sinking City with its Lovecraftian inspiration looks totally brilliant and looks to be a unique experience for sure, so eyes firmly open for this one

Wolfenstein Youngblood definitely looks all Wolfenstein-y, but rumours of Dishonored-like sandbox levels has definitely piqued my interest.

Dead by Daylight still looks unfortunately a bit eh, with its slightly not great graphical quality from what we’ve seen in the trailers.

Alien Isolation was an extremely odd one, but I’m not gonna say no to more good horror content on the console.

Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles seems to be continually delayed, but they’ll probably get round to it eventually.

Dragon Quest Builders 2 looks adorable and I’m very into the idea of Dragon Quest Minecraft, so sign me up.

Stranger Things 3: The Game looks a little more SNES-like in terms of graphics than its 8 Bit mobile predecessor, which is definitely a decent step. An obvious pick for fellow fans of the show.

Just Dance 2020 is definitely a Just Dance game. Yep, sure is. I even checked. And it is.

Catan is a tabletop game of sorts, but I really couldn’t figure out what kind from that few seconds of vague footage.

New Super Lucky’s Tale looks like Bubsy, but actually good and worth real money

Dauntless looks like a bit of a Monster Hunter clone, but you know, doesn’t look terrible.

And lastly, Super Mario Maker 2 was tacked on the end there to remind us all that Nintendo is taking our money in 2 weeks.

Banjo-Kazooie become Smash Ultimate’s 3rd DLC Fighter

Just when we all petering out a little and the hype seemed all but dormant, they go and drop this on us out of nowhere. While I personally don’t have an attachment to the bear and bird, I’m fully aware of their significance and how much they mean to a lot of people out there. And that excitement ended up being contagious, so this fact coupled with a pitch perfect reveal trailer has got me hugely hyped to see these guys join the fight come autumn.

ER: YEEHAW BABEY

Sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

And now, dear reader, for the reveal that removed my scalp and cut out my eyeballs. At first, I was totally confused as to what this could be. And then I recognised the symbols, and then my perfect lil Hyrule eggs come on the screen and it’s all spooky and there’s dead Ganondorf and I don’t clock the fact that I’ve just screamed out loud. A direct sequel to my absolute favourite game of all time is happening and it’s real and I get to live another adventure in the best game world ever crafted all over again. I think it’s safe to say I have transcended the definition of hype when it comes to this one.

ER: AAA!!! AA!!! GFFGF!!! THIS!!! ZELDA!!!! HGGGG!!!!

So there’s my probably a little stupid breakdown of everything Nintendo bestowed upon us this E3. Guess I’ll jump in after the next direct to give you yet another heavily scientific analysis of its events. Or I’ll babble at you until I start punching the keyboard. Either way, happy trails my dudes. Don’t let the hype bugs bite.

#e3 #e3 2019 #zelda #loz #the legend of zelda #mario #smash #super smash bros #super smash ultimate #astral chain #fire emblem #animal crossing #pokemon #Luigi's Mansion #dragon quest #final fantasy #nintendo #marvel #resident evil

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carlottastudios · 5 years

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Do you guys remember a long long long ass time ago when I made posts about an original series idea of mine called Dawnlyte? Well, Dawnlyte is not the only original series I'm planning. This one, oh boy, this one is one I'm been INTENSELY planning and putting thought and work into for the past few months. Like Dawnlyte, this is an idea that's been in my mind for years now (not as many as Dawnlyte, but still quite a few), and now I finally feel ready to post something about it. Peoples, I present you my first ever post about Fabler! Unlike Dawnlyte, which is high fantasy like Lord of the Rings or The Dragon Prince, Fabler is an urban fantasy series like Harry Potter, Dresden Files and Spiderwick Chronicles. This series in particular is very much inspired by Harry Potter, but with way less of a focus on school and way more focus on how fun magic can be. Also, whereas Harry Potter has plenty of witches and wizards, Fabler follows a logic much more akin to The Wizard of Oz, because there are plenty of witches and, so far, only 1 wizard. Also, there's quite a bit of mythology showing up in Fabler as well, particularly a certain character whom I've been wanting to write in a sympathetic light for ages now and now I finally can! That's all I'll say for now here, but if you guys have any and all questions about the series, feel free to ask them and I'll try to answer without giving away too many spoilers. Also, I'll try to post more Fabler content in the future that can answer some of those questions (or create more questions). But now getting to these particular posts. Very recently, I've finally been able to establish the very basic plot for the main story of Fabler and, thus, I was able to determine all of the characters who'll come into play. At least, all of the characters who have enough of a role to merit a name. And when I finally got my list of named characters, I decided to do something Ive been longing to do since I discovered @thenamelessdoll's crossover To Belong series: make my own Non/Disney Crossover cast for my own story. And so that's what I did here! I got my whole list of named Fabler characters and, after much searching and deliberating, decided on which 2D animated Disney or very-similar-to-Disney character would "play" as them if I were ever to make a Non/Disney Crossover series of videos for Fabler (which I will tell you now I will probably never do as I don't have the right programs for making Non/Disney Crossover edits, not to mention my talents lie more in writing and drawing, not video editing). And now, I think I might as well explain some of the reasons for my casting choices! Why? Because I can and because I am SOOO excited to finally be talking about Fabler!

Kayley as Tarina: This was the first ever casting choice and it was one I've had right from the beginning, pretty much since I came up with Tarina. Tarina is the main character and I kinda based her on Kayley in a few ways. And not just her appearance, I swear. Because yes, Tarina is supposed to look like Kayley in terms of character design. Also, Kayley was one of my favourite characters ever growing up and I believe she deserves more attention. So I'm putting her in the spotlight here by having her play the role of my main girl Tarina! Kida as Kat: Kat was more challenging to cast. I was thinking of having her played by Audrey, since both are pretty tough girls. But Kat's not super rough the way Audrey comes off as being. So I wanted someone a bit more gentle and easily approachable. Oddly, the badass warrior princess who can wield spears and knives kinda fits that more. Also, Kat isn't actually a total tomboy and I felt casting Audrey as her would give off that impression. Also, both Kida and Kat have names that start with K and both of them are lovely ladies with long white hair. So that lines up! Belle as Celeste: Celeste is kind of the opposite of Kat in that you might think at first that she's a total girly girl, but she's not, and the wrong cast choice would've given off that impression. Yes, Celeste is very feminine and beautiful and refined and classy, like Belle. She's also very mature like Belle. Also, she tends to be one of the more responsible people in a group of friends, similar to Hermoine (whose actress also played as Belle in the Live Action Disney version there's another connection). Basically, Belle was my dream choice as the casting choice for Celeste! Mulan as Neva: Mulan was actually my very first choice for Neva, because their stories are actually really similar. Unlike the three previous girls, Neva is not a witch, so when she arrives into the story, she's a complete noob and she's going to need some help before she becomes a badass. Mulan's been there and done that! Also, I just love Mulan as a character and really wanted to include her in my lineup. She also resembles Neva in part because Neva is one of the few girls to have sleek short hair. Also, Mulan's fun personality matches well with my happy darling Neva. Eilonwy as Peah: Peah is one of the younger characters in the story, just as Eilonwy is one of the younger female Disney heroes. Aside from that, both of them have this sort of determined and kind of commanding air to them that only brave little girls can exhibit in their particular style. Both are young, but they're not to be messed with. Also, they're both not really the sort to stand aside while the action is going on. Peah is young, yes, but she's more capable than others expect, and I feel that Eilonwy has the right vibe for that. Jasmine as Ashley: Now this is the tomboy of the group! And I'm having Jasmine play as her instead of someone like Audrey. Why? Well, Jasmine's just way more fiery in my eyes. And "fiery" is what Ashley is. In more ways than one. Also, Jasmine used to be my favourite Disney princess and I still really love her, so I wanted to give her a nice role in my cast. Strangely though, Jasmine and Ashley have very different backstories. Jasmine is a princess while as Ashley is one of the furthest people from princess status as you can get. It's ironic, but oddly, I find it weirdly works. Crysta as Thistlemoth: Now, I haven't actually seen the movie where Crysta is from, but I've seen her in Non/Disney Crossover videos quite a few times. And her design of being a fairy or pixie or whatever is so perfectly similar to Thistlemoth (who is indeed a pixie) that denying this casting choice would've been sheer madness. Of course, by that logic, I probably could've gone with Tinkerbell too, but Tinkerbell's personality is VERY different from sweet, crazy Thistlemoth. Plus, Crysta's more "wild" looks are more in line with what Thistlemoth looks like. Sarah as Bianca: Like with Crysta as Thistlemoth, I haven't seen the movie where Sarah is from. I've only seen Sarah in Non/Disney Crossover videos. In all honesty, I don't have super-good reason for this choice of casting aside from looks. Sarah does look similar to what I want Bianca to look like. Only with a snake tail instead of legs. Yup. That's right. Bianca is a naga. I have nagas in my story. Also, another reason I admit I chose Sarah is because, from the Non/Disney videos I've seen her in, some of her mannerisms are kind of in line with Bianca too. Meg as Lilith: Yes, you read that name right. I have Lilith, the actual first woman and Adam's first wife, in my story. No, she is not the character I've been wanting to write for ages. Anyway, about the casting, Meg's mannerisms and personality are really in line with my version of Lilith. Lilith even has a pretty sad backstory that's sort of similar to Meg's. I won't explain it here because that is spoiler territory. Their looks are rather different though. Lilith's more similar to Jasmine, who was actually cast as Lilith before I realized Meg was a much better fit. Cinderella as Ericaine: You've probably noticed that this is a bit of a last-minute change. At first, Ariel was in the role of Ericaine, much to my reluctance. But, honestly, her personality and looks and mannerisms are really different from Ericaine. So why had I initially considered her? Because I had previously cast Cinderella as someone else. But now, I'm using Cinderella because her looks match up very well with Ericaine, as do her actions, and I like putting her in the spotlight more than Ariel! Ericaine isn't nearly as sweet as Cindy, though. She's more...temperamental. Ariel as Eir: You've probably guessed that I'm not the biggest Ariel fan. I'm not. And I confess I fought tooth and nail to not have to include her in my cast. But, in the end, ya gotta do what you gotta do. At least now, as Eir, she's in a much more suitable role. Eir is funloving and adventurous, much like Ariel, so that lines up great for me to use Ariel as her. There's also a bit of a connection when it comes to a male character that I might explain later, or maybe not. Feel free to ask me about it though. Melody as Raven: I was originally going to have Shanti as Raven, but, seriously, Melody and her story and personality just line up SO MUCH BETTER! If I explain it here, it's going to be spoilers-a-plenty, but I'll just say that when you think about it, it's seriously perfect. Raven is different looks-wise (I'm actually thinking that she's blond instead of...well, raven-haired), but Melody's just got the right attitude and actions for her. As you might've guessed, Raven is another pretty young character. I think she's actually even younger than Peah, but I'll have to check my notes again. Jim as Lucifer: YES! This is the character I've been wanting to write for so long!!! Because the devil has been treated as little more than a scapegoat for millennia and I want to write a story where he's actually a nice, sympathetic guy. Yes, I know the show Lucifer is already doing that, but I want to do it my own way. And Jim was always my first casting choice. Because 1) I'm a huge JimxKayley shipper, 2) Jim was one of my heroes growing up, and 3) the angst-ball teenager who grows into a capable young man is exactly what I need for my version of the devil! Aladdin as Rory: This was one of the easiest cast choices ever. Not because Rory is a street urchin who ends up finding a genie, but because Rory is a sweet fluffy supposed-orphan boy who is a beam of sunshine, yet still has his serious and deep sides. Fits with Aladdin's emotional state in his movies, don't you think? Also, Aladdin looks similar to how I envision Rory. He's admittedly older than what Rory's supposed to be (Rory's supposed to be slightly younger than Tarina), but aside from that, it's a pretty great match! Like I said, Aladdin was my first choice. Milo as Chayce: Chayce is sooooo much grumpier and sassier than Milo, but he is just as awkward and smart. Yes, he's the nerd of the group and I adore him. I mean, I love all my characters, including my grumpy white-lion boy. Yes, I said white lion boy. Chayce is a sphinx, which is a species I'm particularly proud of. As a result, he is way way fluffier than Milo, physically. Milo's way fluffier personality-wise. Milo is the adorkable kind of nerd, while as Chayce is the more smartass kind of nerd. But it's still the best fit I could find for my cast. Taran as Andrew: I feel that Taran doesn't get enough attention, so I'm going to give it to him! Andrew is a character who keeps popping up in Fabler and the more he does, the more I've grown to love him. He actually used to be quite different than what he is now, and I honestly have no clue who I would've used as his non/Disney counterpart had I not changed his character. Now though, Taran's a surprisingly nice fit for my misguided baby Andrew. They both desperately want renown and both suffer from their efforts. Also, they're both young lads with floofy hair! Shang as Mato: Nothing I say will convince you that Shang playing Mato who (spoiler alert) will get with Neva who is being played by Mulan was a happy accident, will it? Because I swear it was! Shang just fits Mato's role nicely! Granted, Mato is not a captain of his group, but he is an experienced member of a fighting organization in Fabler, the warlocks if you must know (feel free to ask me about them), and he does help train Neva as well as protect people like the witches and especially Apus (woops, another spoiler). As for looks...um...I'll have to get back to you on that. Garrett as Liam: This was a surprisingly tough cast choice to make. Despite the number of "prince charming" figures in Disney to choose from, none of them are actually fitting in my opinion for the "prince charming" like character. Because Liam IS based on prince charming! From Cinderella specifically! And yet Cindy's prince Charming was NOT A GOOD FIT! It makes me laugh, it hurts so much! So, why did I go for Garrett? 1) he and his movie don't get enough attention, 2) his looks are a decent fit and 3) his serious nature and the fact that he's a legit warrior fits Liam well. Miguel as Edmund: This was another super-easy cast choice to make. Miguel's features loosely match some of Edmund's, particularly the blond hair. However, it's mostly Miguel's demeanor and mannerisms and energy that fit Edmund to a T. Edmund is just so playful and flamboyant and also a little goofy. All of which describe Miguel, I find. Miguel is also pretty flirty at times throughout his movie. So he's actually more restrained than Edmund, whom I affectionately call the slut or the thot of my cast. Because he totally is! And I love him for it! Prince Phillip as Darius Ray: I did NOT want to cast one of my favourite ever princes as this asshole. Because make no mistake, Darius Ray is an asshole, one who borders on sociopathy. Pretty much the opposite of Phillip, who is a genuinely awesome guy! So why did I make this cast choice?! Well, it was better than the first one I did, as you! Darius used to be played by Peter Pan, but I just COULD NOT follow through with that! Peter is just so precious and he's way too young to play Darius. Phillip has the age going for him, plus some of Phillip's playfulness and body type. Kenai as Apus: This is another looks-based casting choice. I haven't seen Brother Bear in a really long time, but I remember that Kenai's more rash personality is way different than calm and gentle Apus. But Kenai is a very fluffy-looking boy (and I'm not just talking about when he's a bear) and that fluffy is one of Apus's main physical traits. Fitting, since Apus is a yeti. Yes, yetis are a sentient species and they are more humanoid-looking than how they're traditionally depicted. Also, Kenai is mostly not human in his movie, which fits because Apus is a more minor character. Tulio as Mephistopheles: These two have looks that differ quite a bit, but I still wanted Tulio, from the get-go, to be Mephistopheles' Non/Disney counterpart. Because I've seen Tulio depicted as a villain in a few Non/Disney projects at this point and I want to counter that. Because I love Tulio! He's so funny! And Mephistopheles is a funny guy. Admittedly, he's still more cool-headed than Tulio, but he's a huge dork and I love him. Also, a few of Tulio's incredibly funny mannerisms fit well with Meph, particular in his interactions with Lucifer, who is, of course, his boss. Cale as Gabriel: Now isn't this an ironic choice? Cale is a cynical and rebellious character while as the angel Gabriel, in my story, is a stickler to the rules. But he is very jaded when it comes to his "little brother" Lucifer. And Cale, to me, kinda looks like he could be Jim's older brother with whom he doesn't get along. Kinda. But also, Cale has had moments in his movie where he's being more agressive and angry, and that certainly fits how Gabriel acts around Lucifer for most of the story. Also I just like Titan AE, okay? Hercules as Conor: Is it ironic that I'm having Hercules play a character who is a centaur? Because Conor is a centaur and Hercules fought a centaur in his movie? No? Not ironic? Okay. Still, I just thought it was interesting to point out. Another thing to point out is that Hercules has the perfect jock vibe to fit with Conor, who is such a golden boy it's impossible not to roll your eyes at him at least once. But he's not all ego. Conor's actually a nice guy and a good friend, much like how Hercules is a very good boy. Helga as Thelen: Have you ever been in a situation where the perfect cast choice just gift-wraps itself for you? Because that was the case with this choice! I'm just surprised that I didn't think of Helga immediately when I came up with Thelen's character! Their looks match up very well. The only remarkable difference is that Thelen is younger than Helga, or at least she seems younger. But aside from that, their features match great, their intimidating and domineering personalities are a great fit and especially the fact that both are very competent fighters! Odette as Diantha: Odette was my first cast choice for Diantha, but I almost didn't go with her for fear that I might need to use Odette for another role. But luckily, I didn't have to compromise that perfect cast choice! Okay, granted, there's still some differences between these two ladies. Odette, in her movie, has some moments where she's angry, but Diantha is much more so. She's rather strict in a motherly way, but she's also very regal and queen-like, at least it's how I always imagine her. And Odette often has that kind of regal dignity, I find. Sarah as Hiverein: This was honestly a casting choice I hadn't expected to make. Hiverein, in terms of looks, is rather different from Sarah Hawkins. While as Sarah is a normal human woman and looks it, Hiverein is the queen of the fairies, and in looks, she lives up to that. But there is nonetheless a connection in their characters. Both of these ladies are loving mothers, Sarah to Jim and Hiverein to her son Royse. Hiverein is also a queen who isn't afraid to be hands-on when it comes to taking care of her people, which reminds me of Sarah running her inn. Tiana as Greylyn: Personality-wise, Greylyn and Tiana have similarities. Both are extremely hard-working and dedicated to their goals, though these goals are very different. Tiana has personal ambitions of wanting a restaurant while as Greylyn is trying to lead and nurture her coven as well as she possibly can. Yet both women are good at putting a smile on their faces for the people watching them work. They also both deal in food a lot. Their looks are fairly similar as well, though how similar, I'm not sure yet, because I haven't finalized Greylyn's design yet. Asenath as Lillah: Even though she doesn't play a huge role in her movie, Asenath was actually one of my favourite characters as a child, so I was eager to find a place for her in my cast. And I think Lillah is a great fit. Lillah is a very calm character who tends to have a soothing presence whenever she arrives in a scene (kind of funny, given she's a ghost). Asenath, to me, was always very calming, which is partly why I liked her as a kid. Asenath was also a voice of reason in her movie and Lillah definitely acts as that in Fabler. Empress Marie as Norn: Goodness gracious has Norn's cast choice changed! I used to have her played by Tzipporah, but that would be pretty innacurate because of Norn's age. Norn is in her early 60s during the story of Fabler, while as Tzipporah is way younger, despite the fact that she looks similar to Norn. I went with empress Marie instead in hopes of that she would reflect the age a bit better, although I think Marie is older than early 60s. But there are some things Marie has going for her that still liken her to Norn: her grandmotherly kindness and regal presence. Madame Adelaide as Leira: Very similarly to Norn, Leira is in her late 50s-early 60s during Fabler, but my first cast choice for her really didn't reflect that. Her original cast choice was Cinderella, which is why it took me a while to finally cast Cinderella as Ericaine. But now I think that madame Adelaide is a better fit. Not just because of her age though. Madame is extremely caring and doting towards her cats, and Leira is similar towards another character in Fabler. Also, madame is very wealthy and Leira kind of has an equivalent to that in that she's very magically gifted. Esmeralda as Arwa: Esmeralda was my first choice for Arwa, much like Odette was for Diantha and Aladdin was for Rory. Arwa is supposed to look similar to Esmeralda, especially with her brightly-coloured eyes (though Arwa's are yellow instead of green, but you gotta admit that Esmeralda's eyes are a strikingly bright green). Arwa is also incredibly fierce like Esmeralda, and just like Esmeralda seems to be a kind of leader of the gypsies, Arwa is a leader of her pack of werewolves. Both are defiant and utterly badass ladies and, in short, this was a perfect cast match. Anya as the Fabler: Oh goodie, goodie, goodie, the titular fabler cometh at last! But I'm not going to tell you a lot about her! She's an incredibly mysterious and unknown character, which is strangely fitting because Anya's movie is inspired by the mystery of the princess Anastasia. But even putting that aside, Anya is a great cast choice for the Fabler. Their looks line up very well (if not their outfits), their mannerisms and expressions too, and the way the Fabler presents herself to the characters is very fun and sparky in a way very similar to Anya. Juliana as Hera: I know you're thinking. You're thinking "ANOTHER Quest for Camelot character, Carlotta, really?!" YES! Really! I love this movie, okay?! And Juliana does fit reasonably well with how I'm interpreting Hera in Fabler. Juliana is the wife of a knight, and so she seems like a bit of a noblewoman and she carries herself well in that regard. Heck, this woman showed no fear from the movie's villain, Rubert, until he started threatening her daughter. Hera is similar in that she is a total boss! But she's not as helpful to the protagonists as Juliana was in her story. Marina as Jeyne: You wanna know something really ironic? Even though I am including Kayley's canonical mom in the cast, Marina is the one playing Tarina's character's mother. Yes, Jeyne is Tarina's mom and I have Marina in her role. I don't have much reason for this casting choice, except that it's one I've had pretty much from the start of the making of this cast. Also, the fact I'm using such an awesome character as Marina makes me sad that Jeyne doesn't have a bigger role in the main story of Fabler. Because while, yes, she does appear, she doesn't do a whole lot. Eris as Merlina: Eris is not going to be happy that I'm using her, a goddess, to play the role of a mere ghost, isn't she? Too bad! There was no way I wasn't going to include Eris, since she's one of my favourite parts of the movie she's from. She does have quite a few differences from Merlina though. Merlina was once human and her story is way more tragic than Eris's. She is a villain, but she's one of those villains who thinks she's in the right. Not the same as Eris, who knows she's evil and has fun with it. But both ladies are also very manipulative and destructive. John Smith as Royse: I love my character Royse but he was SO DANG DIFFICULT TO CAST! And even now, believe me, it's not a perfect fit. For the longest time, I thought that his Non/Disney counterpart would be Garrett, because of his long hair, serious nature, connection to nature, combative skills and the fact he has a staff for a weapon. Buuuutttt that'd be awkward for me, since Garrett is Kayley's canon love interest, he'd be playing as her father figure. So I went with John Smith because he seems older than Garrett. Even though his personality is very different. John Rolfe as Gawyn: Unlike Royse, Gawyn's cast choice was pretty easy peasy. John Rolfe has some of the looks I'm going for with it comes to Gawyn (even though Gawyn's hair is way curlier) and the same air of dignity. But Gawyn is much more...shall we say, quirky than Gawyn. And he's unashamed of it. So I guess you can say that there's still dignity in that and I agree. But yeah, John Rolfe is more serious than Gawyn and his looks aren't nearly as fantastical. But he was nonetheless the first to come to mind as a Non/Disney counterpart when I came up with Gawyn. Eric as Favian: Like Royse, Favian's cast choice has frequently changed. Partly because every time I changed Royse's cast choice, I wanted his hubby to have a cast choice that I could pair him up with. But now I'm happy I stuck with Eric. Personality, he's rather light-hearted, which is fitting with Favian's demeanor. There's still several changes, of course, like with his looks. Now, I haven't fully decided on Favian's look, but I know that while his dark hair matches Eric, he's certainly not as light-complected as the prince. Kale as Valerik: Derek was at first the one I was going to choose for Valerik. But then I remember Kale and I was like "Carlotta, you crazy! Kale is a WAY better fit!" First, there's looks. Like many of my characters (for now), I don't have a full design for Valerik yet, but it ressembles Kale's the more and more I think about it. Second, Kale seems like a good, calm leader, which Valerik is. Third, Kale seems like he'd be great with kids, and Valerik is a proud papa of a bunch of wee nippers. Not to say Derek doesn't have some of these qualities, but Kale just has more. Dimitri as Robin: Once again, a cast member that I was surprised I didn't think of sooner. I mean, Robin is something of a con man, but has some depths to him that take a while for the other characters to unlock. That's Dimitri in a nutshell, right?! Plus, Dimitri's often whacky expressions or mannerisms suit Robin well. As does Dimitri's slight tendency to be the glutton for punishment in the movie he's from. Moses as Tyrone: Tyrone doesn't look entirely like Moses, but I nonetheless feel that they have a few similarities in appearance. Tyrone is at least a bit paler, being a vampire (one of the few good ones in the Fabler universe, which is why I'm okay having a sweetheart like Moses play him), and the outfit will very much different, of course, but still, the looks are a good base for what I'm hoping for him to look like. Temperament-wise, though, I'll admit Moses isn't my best choice, as Tyrone isn't exactly all that sane when we first meet him in the story. He gets better though. Phoebus as Odin: I'll admit it. Phoebus is quite a bit younger than how Odin is supposed to be portrayed. But, in my defense, Odin is also an immortal god with divine power, so it's not out of the question that he could look rather good for his age. But also, both males are, of course, warriors. Yes, Odin may be more of a trickster and wiseman god, but he's not shy from a fight either. In Fabler, in fact, he does quite a bit of it. Also, Phoebus is capable of being serious, but also really friendly and joking, which is so perfect for how I want my boy Odin! Proteus as Hades: Yes, yes, yes, I know. I know that Disney already gave us Hades. And I do love Disney's Hades. However, I love more-early-source-accurate, good-boy, very-much-not-a-villain-you-fools Hades even more! So, why'd I choose Proteus for this version of Hades? His looks aren't tooooo far from the mark (certainly the long lovely ponytail isn't far), he's got a very good personality to go at least somewhat with Hades and many of his mannerisms fit well. All in all, 10/10 choice for me. Arthur as Baldur: LAST TIME I SWEAR! This is the last time I'm using a Quest for Camelot character, I promise! But yeah, here's the thing: I have NEVER! Not once! Ever seen Arthur used in a Non/Disney project! He wasn't used ONCE, to my knowledge! And, I mean, I can understand why. He really doesn't appear much in the movie. BUT! I'm not letting that stop me here! Arthur here actually does really fit with how I'm interpreting Baldur, AKA God (yes, as in Lucifer's dad), not just in looks, but in mannerisms as well. I'm happy I'm using this underused character! Sinbad as Syrus: You know something kind of ironic? Sinbad is normally portrayed, in Non/Disney, as Jim's father, or sometimes older brother (lookin at you TB). But I have seen him used as Kayley's father too and, honestly, I really like that as well. He's got the looks for it and the adventurous spirit. Which brings me to Syrus. His hair colour is admittedly a bit redder than Sinbad's (gotta explain where Tarina got her red hair from) and his eyes are different, but the rest fits neatly into how I envision Tarina's father. And again, I'm now sad he doesn't do more in the story. Dymus as Nightinion: Nightinion, much like Syrus, is another father who's one of the less important named characters. Specifically, he is Ericaine's father. But, nonetheless, I felt he was important enough to include in my cast. And why did I go with Dymas? Well, first off, he's a king. But there are, admittedly, quite a few Non/Disney kings. So why Dymas in particular? Well, something about him makes me feel like he has more strength and command than most Non/Disney kings, yet is still diplomatic and courteous. All of which are what I see in Nightinion. Dean as Natsbane: I love Dean. Really, I do. So I'm really sad for putting him in the role of this jerk. Because, while Natsbane isn't totally evil, he is not a nice guy. But something about Dean's general grumpy and unfriendly exterior and his love of his artwork remind me quite a bit of Natsbane. Though, if a full Non/Disney version of Fabler were to be made, Natsbane wouldn't be quite as...kinda-mad-scientist-wacko that he is in my envisioning. Then again, perhaps that's a good thing. It'd be interesting to see a mad scientist who's not mad as in insane, but mad as in angry. DISCLAIMERS: Fabler (c) me I OWN NONE OF THE SCREENSHOTS I USED TO MAKE THIS POST

#Behold My Beautiful Little Brain Child (my original post)#Fabler

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grimastiddies · 5 years

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Questions and form made by @goddess-of-war-nyka

1. Introduce your summoner. –

Name: Caitlin Age: 25 Height: 5′5″ Weight: 160lbs Sexuality: Bisexual Eye Color: Dark brown, nearly black Hair Color: Red Nationality: American Hobbies: Singing, drawing, playing guitar

Caitlin is from the Midwest, in the Chicago area. She lives in an apartment nearby her family, which consists of her mom, dad, her older sister, younger sister, and her younger brother. She has a shiba inu named Chiyo! Her family is extremely important to her, they’re all really tight. While in Askr, she misses them terribly.

Her life is good, but…ultimately, boring. She went to college and graduated, but hasn’t done anything with her degree. Her day job is boring and unfulfilling, and generally she feels like she’s stuck in a rut where she just sort of…exists. She suffers from anxiety and depression, and that’s greatly affecting her motivation. If it weren’t for her side job, she’d probably be really depressed. In her downtime, she performs as a Disney Princess for birthday parties! The characters she plays includes Rapunzel, Elsa, Anna, and Aurora. She takes this job very seriously, and it actually is a primary source of income for her. She gets hired a lot, but it’s still not quite what she wants to be doing with her life. Sometimes she’ll fill in as a guitarist in her friend’s band when they need the help.

2. How did they come to Askr?

She was heading to a show when she was summoned to Askr. She was in her car schlepping a lot of their equipment and all of it ended up in Askr with her, along with her car, her laptop, phone, some spare clothes, makeup, and all of her costumes. She has a fair amount of things from her world on hand, which Heroes like to play with… her car especially. Unfortunately it broke on the way over, so it would have to be fixed if anyone wanted to actually drive it.

3. What are their favourite hobbies? –

She enjoys playing music! She’s a talented guitar player and can play a fair few instruments at a basic level. Probably took some piano lessons at school or something. She sings too, but it far to shy to sing for the heroes so that’s more of a secret talent unless you’re a peeping tom and spy on her in the baths.

Drawing is a hobby, she enjoys doodling to relieve stress. Drawing practice always took a back seat to music, though, so she’s not like... super good at it, but it’s something she enjoys. She probably has a notebook she carries around that she doodles in. The Morgans are convinced it’s full of strategy secrets and try to steal it, but in reality it’s like... silly pictures of cats in socks.

4. Does your summoner have any bad habits that the heroes try to help them through? –

Confidence issues for sure. This seems to be a common theme among Summoners, and she’s really no different. She thinks the heroes are all amazing, wonderful people and that she simply pales in comparison. Her powers are a blessing from the Breidablik, so the praise she gets as the Summoner makes her feel like a liar. They’re praising Kiran, not her, she feels.

She really beats herself up inside when a plan fails.

Also frets over whether or not heroes actually like her, or if they’re just influenced by their contract.

Low key feels ugly in comparison to the other women, keeps that to herself though.

5. How close is your summoner to their heroes? –

Very close I’d say. As much as she worries, she takes her job as the Summoner seriously and does her best to take care of everyone. Besides, most of the heroes are such likable people it would be hard not to make friends!! She loves everyone dearly.

6. Does your summoner struggle with being a tactician? –

Nah, the Breidablik grants her powers that make her a great tactician.

The Breidablik houses the spirit of a Valkyrie, a legendary entity who chooses who lives and who dies on the battlefield. This spirit, known as Kiran, was a divine blessing bestowed upon Askr long ago by the Gods to protect the kingdom. The Breidablik itself was given to a legendary hero, the only person who can wield it. Kiran resides within the Breidablik and gives it and the Hero their powers. Caitlin is a reincarnation of this hero who was summoned to Askr in its time of need. The Breidablik’s powers include:

Summoning Heroes.

Sight - the ability to see the battlefield and form strategy.

Command - the ability to bend Heroes to their will.

Valkyrie Drive - Caitlin gets possessed by the Valkyrie spirit, and is given a short burst of incredible strength and magic. However, the Summoner needs to recover for a while afterwards.

Still working on the fine details with this so yeah lmao--

7. How did your summoner react during their first time summoning? –

“WHAT THE FU-”

Panic for sure.

What the fuck is happening? Where am I? You want me to do what now? What? WHAT???? She calms down eventually, but being plucked from your world and then being told to do stuff and then FIGHT is scary as fuck imo and she’s absolutely overwhelmed for a bit.

8. How does your summoner react to summoning now? –

“Man, I have to summon now... ugh, it makes me so tired, do I have to...??”

9. How well do they adjust to life in Askr? –

Pretty well, the Order is helpful and eager to make her feel welcome and comfortable.

10. How long have they been a summoner? –

Since the beginning of the game...? LMAO- Uhh, idk she’s summoned when Anna summons in game, so she’s not brought in at any special time.

11. Who’s your summoner’s main team? –

Grima, Robin, Alfonse, Veronica.

12. Who’s your summoner’s S support? –

Alfonse hehe...

13. How was your Summoner and ally support building to S support?–

HONESTLY she doesn’t get with Alfonse so it must just be like.... a strong... bond of friendship....??? I have given this 0 thought lmao sorry--

14. How many allies have s support with your summoner? –

Grima obviously heheheheheeh-- that’s like the “canon” pair, but there’s also potential for Alfonse and Bruno... probably as a poly because Bruno and Alfonse are cute as FUCK together djskldjals

But then again I have Grima supported with Alfonse so Cait/Grima/Alfonse COULD be a thing......... god dude idk I’m just thirsty af yall know me.

15. What are your top 4 ally x ally supports? –

16. What does your summoner miss from home? – THE INTERNET would make it SO MUCH EASIER to look up all of the heroes’ backstories and searching for Askran/Nordic mythology homygod.

17. If they could bring one thing from home with them what would it be? – T h e I n t e r n e t.

18. Is your summoner’s robe unique? –

19. Who are your fellow summoner friends? –

@terra-haven‘s Sapphire, @vince-prime‘s Kuma, @lunalove25‘s Luna, among others hehe

20. What does your summoner wear if during their down time? –

UHHHH comfy stuff. Probably walks around in minimal clothing LMAO-- Long shirts/sweaters, after a while she’s forced to wear leggings underneath. She has a more high matenance wardrobe back home, but in Askr comfort is king.

21. How do they handle merging heroes or sending them home? –

Idk, in Cait’s storyverse I don’t think merging and sending people home would really be a thing...? Not sure how I wanna go about handling this tbh??? I think if she were to get dupes, it would just end up being a failed summon or something. Or maybe it would manifest as a item that powers up certain heroes. I think she could send heroes home but.... idk, the hero would have to consent.

22. What abilities/weapons do they have? –

When in Valkyrie mode the Breidablik turns into a lance, but otherwise nothing out of the ordinary for a Summoner.

23. Would your summoner like to know magic? –

Summoning is totally a type of magic, so I think that Summoners in general have an innate talent for magic and can learn it. Caitlin would totally be interested, magic is dope as fuuuuuck.

24. Are they able to hold their own in a fight? –

LMAO nah, not really. She tries and gets lucky, but that luck comes from summoner valkyrie powers lmao-

25. How many heroes have you acquired? I’m too lazy to open the app and check lmao sorryyy

26. What book has been the hardest? Emotional or battle-wise. –

Book 3 has me fucking shook fam.

27. If your summoner went into battle what would be there class? –

Singer for sure.

28. Are there any heroes they clash with? –

Honestly??? Nah, she’s not super interested in actively fighting with anyone I don’t think.I mean I think there’s the obvious heroes no one really LOVES but I think Cait is the type to find them all amusing in their own way. Looooves to mess with Narcian. Valter’s just creepy but in almost a sort of entertaining way, especially since she’s in charge and he can’t actually do anything to her.

I love Berkut but I can see Cait being very eager to put him in his place.

29. Which hero have you pumped more into? –

Grima, Alfonse.

30. Which hero do you get a lot of while summoning? –

Not sure, don’t really pay that much attention.

31. Which heroes have they adopted? –

ALL OF THE KIDS. Who let these children fight? NO WAR FOR KIDDIES NO NO NO-- Loves dragons best hehe

32. Do they participate in voting gauntlets? –

Keeps tabs on them, doesn’t really care that much.

33. How do they handle their orbs? –

“TIME TO YOLO SUMMON BABY”

34. What hero do you wanna see in Fire Emblem Heroes? –

The whole cast of Awakening blz-

35. Will your summoner stay in Askr? Nifl? Muspell? Hel? Embla? –

HM. A good question lmaooooo

grima/cait is my self indulgent end game so uh not sure uhhhhhh

I think she’d convince him to come back home with her tbh. she wouldn’t want to stay in Zenith forever. Loves her family too much to just stay forever.

36. What is your Summoner life like years later if they stayed? Askr. Nifl. Muspell. Hel. Embla. –

She wouldn’t stay, she’d go home for sure.

37. Summoner’s family reacting to your summoner’s significant other?–

UHHHH fuck dude I have no fucking clue LMAO-- this thing is full of shit i never considered???

They’d probably be justifiably worried--

38. In a twist of fate, if your summoner could change one thing what would it be? –

Probably making Bruno join the order or something, she’s salty he leaves.

#ask game #caitlin

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steve0discusses · 5 years

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Yugioh S2 Ep 28: Marik Ishtar Canonically Only Weighs 121 lbs

Yo, I got hella sick this week and slept for what felt like 3 straight days, so because I’m still not fully functional (like I just found french fries in my front pocket of my sweatshirt and I have no idea when over the past three days I put that in there), in celebration of finally being awake, lets watch a lucid dream put to the screen, that’s right, it’s time for Yugioh.

Last we left off, Yugi has decided to throw this heavy chain and anchor over Joey’s neck--referring of course to the golden cursed necklace and not the actual chain and anchor that is hanging above them and about to kill them (but probably weighs the same but we’ll get to that realization later). I was really hoping that we’d get to see Pharaoh pull up in the corner like a little shoulder angel and just start shouting at Joey, but apparently you can’t catch the Pharaoh Dad curse that easily.

So apparently I missed THIS the last two episodes--but there’s a huge ass Death Clock above the anchor? Seriously, there’s been a time limit this whole time!?

I would be jumping into the ocean the moment I saw this clock, I just cannot even fathom the thought of playing a 20 minute card game. Like once my older brother--a different bro than my younger bro who edits this blog, this is my Chaotic Neutral bro--decided to shove 5 different Uno decks together to create an ultimate deck that was almost entirely wilds and draw 4′s and it was such an excruciating experience, that my Mother secretly threw the game away. Forever scarred.

Anyway, now that he’s strapped with Pharaoh in a Box, finally things got weird enough that Joey snapped out of it. First time he snapped out of it was because of a dragon...second time was the puzzle...he has yet to even kind of recognize Tea strapped in a bondage chair with a giant storage unit threatening to crush her--that one doesn’t seem to bother him.

Joey has a very selective memory, but he only seems to come to for about 10 seconds at a time and mostly just sweats a lot whenever he does.

(read more under the cut)

And as Joey pulls out the same piece he once threw out a school window and into a really fancy fountain, he has a very quick flashback to Season One. Or Season Zero, depending on which version you like better. (What school has a fountain, PS? Was that a quick donation from the Kaibas so the principal could shrug off some demerits?)

And so Joey puts the puzzle back together and back over his neck.

It’s fine. Go back to throwing fireballs at your best friend, but if you litter, then that’s just way too far. I mean the show has to stretch this out four episodes anyway, so despite their endless friendship love--Joey is still possessed and we have nothing left to give him unless Yugi just starts unloading belts.

Really confused at how this magic even works or operates when the puzzle is so far away from Yugi, but maybe Pharaoh has a battery life like a wacom tablet.

Man, so there really is no way to have any privacy when that guy’s in your head huh? Like can’t even hang up the puzzle when you’re on the toilet--no--he’s just...always around. This is the worst curse.

Back on the boat, the story boarding team realized that Marik is an underage teenager and cannot drink alcohol on TV.

I mean he didn’t even have a bottle of whatever he’d drink to fill that glass (milk, I’m assuming. Marik seems like the type of person that’d put ice in his milk.) But all that was drawn next to him was just one bucket of ice. Marik’s just back here stress chewing ice like a pregnant woman.

PS I just looked up Marik’s age with a quick Google Search and can we talk about something real fast--just real fast--JK I’m gonna talk about it a lot.

+++++RATHER LONG WIKIA WORMHOLE WEIGHT DISCUSSION FEEL FREE TO SKIP++++++++++

Age‎: ‎16 <---which seems a little young, but OK, it’s an anime

Weight‎: ‎121.254 lb <------- EXCUSE ME, WIKIA!?

Height‎: ‎1.8 m ; 5.906 ft

He is nearly 6 ft feet tall and 120 lbs!?

Y’all.

Marik HAS NO BONES.

As a reviewer, it’s not my job to go around saying if drawing Marik way too skinny for a normal human being is right or wrong, because that’s a discussion that you can find plenty of info on. I’m pretty sure the people who made this show never expected when they first drew Yugi’s crazy eyes and horrible hair that we’d have a generation that would point to it and say “that’s hot”

And I’m not saying any of these characters have eating problems either, because we’ve seen all of them eat healthy meals. The shocking thing is that they gave these fake characters--remember these aren’t real people, they are cartoons--a specific numeric weight.

Blood type I expect, other random anime tidbits I expect--but weight seems super duper random and so awkward. Like, why do we have this information? Was it on a card or something? Like did the intern who came up with this weight number even research like...how much a normal human weighs??? Did they pull this number out of their ass???? None of these numbers make any sense, and they have these for apparently every single person who has appeared on the show. It’s incredible.

Man, Marik’s still wearing Baby Gap over there. Which...that explains the very small hoodie.

...one sec, let me look at the stats on Yugi.

Weight‎: ‎92.594 lb Height‎: ‎1.53 m ; 5.02 ft

OH NO. Who did this!?

He can’t even ride a roller coaster yet! Well, that explains a lot of the need for so many belts on this show. Yugi hasn’t hit the big triple digits yet.

Oh, Yugi.

And since we’re talking about numbers, lets talk about that puzzle now that we’ve talked about Yugi’s body weight. And like, lets be real--this is a cartoon and so of course it weighs magically nothing in the physics of the show...but lets just see, using math, how much this is if a 7 inch isosceles pyramid were made of solid gold (assuming that there is no gap in the middle, because that’s the way I’ve personally interpreted it.)

Now I’m gonna throw out a number and if you disagree, that’s cool beans and I don’t care, I was an art major, leave your math in the comments. But my math: It’s roughly 60 lbs. Some people online say it would only be 2 kilo’s but I don’t know what planet they’re from. Gold is .7 lbs a volumetric inch

Of course this weight also depends on how heavy the chain is, but I mean...the chain is stronger than Joey Wheeler and Tristan combined hitting it repeatedly with a pipe. It’s gotta be a car-towing/superlock chain.

a 20 inch heavy duty tow/lock chain is like 15 lbs, from what I see on Ebay.

So that pyramid necklace, indeed, is 75 lbs--4/5 of Yugi’s weight.

Now lets say you think there’s a gap in the middle and each piece has about a half-inch thickness, we’ll subtract about 43 lbs.

That’s still a 32 lb necklace guys, it’s about a third his weight!

Now lets say this was gold plated--first off, it’s not. But, lets say it’s entirely copper AND it’s hollow. That necklace is still 7 lbs with a 15 lb chain which is 23 lbs.

So, in all, Yugi actually weighs more than most people on this show--but it’s only because of the necklace, meaning the strongest thing in Yugioh, other than the endearing power of friendship between Joey and Yugi, is Yugi’s neck.

I also looked up Seto Kaiba and it didn’t say his weight right away but it did say this

Favorite Food‎: ‎Filet Mignon with Foie Gras Sauce

Damn.

Why does Seto Kaiba crave freakin ducks? Someone please give this poor child some candy. Give the whole cast candy.

+++++++END RANT OF EVERYONE’S WEIGHT ACCORDING TO WIKIA. I’M NOT EVEN SURE WHY WE KNOW THIS?+++++++

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, the boys are still babysitting Serenity, who has the pure muscle mass of 108 lbs, which is nearly 20 lbs more than Yugi Muto and only about 10 lbs less than Marik Ishtar.

She could probably lift Marik Ishtar. TBH with OP buff Wheeler stats like that, Serenity could probably punch out half the cast and does not need babysitting.

Duke Devlin is still following them around. I don’t really know why. No thugs are after Duke. Duke can just leave whenever he wants to, but he’s either so fascinated by Tristan’s predicament, or so enamored by Serenity’s soft hair and beautiful bandages, that he’s decided to follow along like Bakura in Season 1.

Except Bakura in Season 1 followed along because he wanted to screw them all, I’m pretty sure Duke won’t be doing that because I’m fairly positive that dice earring he got off of Etsy isn’t a millennium earring. I’m fairly positive he isn’t going to randomly kill everybody. I don’t know if this show could handle yet another villain dead set on destroying the world.

This love triangle between Tristan, and a girl who I didn’t think was real in S1, and Duke Devlin, the guy who was in a one-off at the end of S1 when the season should have already ended. So this is happening now. Interesting choice, show.

Serenity is like 12, right? Like her brother’s 14-16 and she’s like 11-13?

This show has a cast mostly full of people who are all the same age yet they keep shipping the few people that are either too young or waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too old. (except for Yugi and Joey, of course, who are the same age)

Duke Devlin, with this newly found responsibility, immediately walks a blind person into the street.

Anyways, speaking of ships that are way too old for this show, look who’s here and driving the dumbest convertible I’ve ever seen drawn.

And on the other side of town, the show edited out most of this violent nonsense for me.

Mai’s car, straight from fisher-price. I can’t stop looking at it.

So um...in the time it took to get Tristan, pick him up, turn around, and then drive here it was like...a 2 minute drive?

But, youknow, consider the Kaiba’s perspective. You’re watching this effed up duel straight from the bowels of Satan, and you hear a car pull up, and you’re like “oh finally, someone’s come to help us” and you turn around, and it’s a blue clown car full of Mai Valentine, Tristan, that random horny kid from the class across the hall, and some blind woman?

So Mokuba, who weighs less than one millennium puzzle at 61 lbs, actually makes an attempt to explain everything as quickly as possible and this is like the fourth time this kid has had to explain to someone else what the hell is going on.

Ah, and now everyone’s a bystander.

Almost the entire cast is here now, right? At least Yugi will die with an audience.

Bandit Keith weighs 187 lbs, PS. He is, so far, the only character I’ve checked who weighs more than Yugi with the necklace on.

Anyway, their weights are all awkwardly available online and I’ll probably go back to forgetting that this random info exists (much like I consistently forget that Seto is only 6′1″ although he’s drawn like he’s 8 ft tall)

Next week on Yugioh:

So how much does Yugi’s hair weigh when all that product is on there? Does Seto ever eat that Filet Mignon he craves so bad? Is Mai in fact renting that car and does it get busted here in the Abandoned Warehouse neighborhood?

#Yugioh #yugioh recap #photo recap #S2 Ep 28 #Yugi muto #Joey Wheeler #Marik Ishtar #Serenity Wheeler #Mai Valentine #Duke Devlin #Tristan Taylor #doom clock #Seto Kaiba #Mokuba Kaiba #tw weight

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d-dumais-blog · 7 years

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Keijo!!!!!!!! Review: I Like Big Butts & I Can Not Lie

Keijo is awesome! It’s insanely stupid and yet, somehow it succeeds at nearly everything it attempts. Keijo’s success is quite honestly an anomaly. A quick glance at premise, studio, and staff would suggest this show should have been forgotten before it even finished airing, and yet somehow it stuck around and resonated with fans, particularly in the West, in a way that no one involved saw coming. Its success in the West isn’t only a surprise to me, it appears to be a surprise to license holder Funimation that currently has NO merchandise available for purchase. No posters, no key chains, no announced bluray release. So let’s talk about why it works and why I love it so damn much.

Let’s start with the basics; this show is not for everyone. Keijo is a show about girls fighting each other in bathing suits using only their boobs and butts atop a variety of floats in an Olympic sized pool. Yes it is as dumb as it sounds. Yes there is an obscene amount of fan service focusing primarily on the girls’ butts. I completely understand why some people might be turned off by its objectification of the women portrayed. You might consider the show sexist, and you might consider me sexist for my enjoyment. A quick note on that, I’m a fan of all fan service both male and female. I’m a straight male with a particular affinity for the female rear end, check the title of this review, but you bet I appreciate some well drawn men in various states of undress. Anime has the opportunity to unrealistically portray human sexuality and I think artists are free to draw all manner of people however they’d like. I hope this helps you to understand why I won’t be talking about the sexism debate that surrounded this show.

Keijo’s fan service is excellent, and a show so focused on fan service would never succeed unless it was good, really good. The show focuses on a few girls, but has a great ensemble cast full of all sorts of girls of varying shapes, sizes, age, and color. Two points of clarification, there are very few different colored women, none of which are black, and that’s a bummer, and two while they vary in age all girls in the series are over eighteen years of age which we’ll discuss further down this post. Back to the subject at hand, how to properly handle “tasteless fan service.” Keijo’s fan service is omnipresent, leaking into every scene. This means it’s not a major shock when a butt fully envelopes the screen, it’s expected and not even that distracting. This differs from a majority of shows that feel the need to randomly insert their characters in compromising positions so that the viewer gets a better look at their body. It’s low hanging fruit but let’s compare this to Sword Art Online, it makes an easy comparison because pretty much everyone has seen it and most know its flaws. SAO II episode one while introducing new female protagonist Xion pans up her body while she lays down in a sniper position. The camera literally stops and does a quick zoom on her ass before finishing the shot. It’s disgusting, it’s distracting, and it feels completely out of place in a show that intends to be about technology and coping with grief.

The other most important thing about the fan service, aside from the age, is the fact that all of the girls are complicit in the fan service. They might be shy, and a bit embarrassed, but they are never forced into a compromising situation against their will. There seems to be this prevailing idea in anime that anime characters are cuter if they are pure, but we also need to see them without clothes on because of course we do. This results in a number of horrible tropes that need to stop, the most prevalent, light novel guy walks in on light novel girl changing. It’s almost always the establishing shot for their relationship over the series and I just hate it. The other trope is somehow even worse, girls in fan service shows need to stop being raped! People generally consider Asuna’s rape scene in the second arc of Sword Art to be the beginning of the decline which is absurd considering Silica was sexually assaulted by a plant in the first twelve episodes and no one seemed to care. It’s so gross and so often over looked. There’s nothing wrong with a girl being okay showing her body, and if an anime character is going to be undressed, I hope that character is willfully undressed. This goes a long way to help make your characters actual characters and not simply objects. I think the girls are surely still being objectified, but there’s a difference between looking at a Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition and looking at leaked celebrity nude photos. The context matters and Keijo gets the context right. Our secondary protagonist Miyata even admits that she started Keijo because she wanted a cute swimsuit made custom for her and I think that’s something all of the viewers would also like!

This show did far better in the west than in Japan, and that’s largely thanks to the way it was adapted. Xebec isn’t exactly known for its great adaptations; in fact I’d argue they generally suck. Their best known for To Love Ru and Shaman King; two shows that don’t do a lot to improve upon their source material. Most recently they were responsible for the horribly bad Clockwork Planet. Apparently that’s actually a pretty good light novel, which should be no surprise considering it’s written by Kamiya Yuu, the celebrated author of No Game No Life. I can’t speak to the actual quality of the Clockwork Planet books because the first episode of the show turned me off of anything that has to do with it. Point being adaptation is not a strength of Xebec, hell Xebec doesn’t honestly have a ton of strengths aside from their willingness to get smuttier than other studios if that’s your thing.

This is entirely different in Keijo, the adaptation is immaculate, and makes it far more appealing to a western audience. For starters, the anime skips the entire first arc where our two female leads are still in high school and under the age of 18. The girls first appear in their bathing suits in the anime after entering the Keijo training school. In the manga there are multiple battles that take place before this while the girls are learning Keijo for the first time at the stadium event shown at the start of the first episode. This arc is also gross for western fans for a number of reasons on top of age. For some reason at this point in the manga guys are allowed to compete in these non official Keijo matches. Guys of course only compete for the opportunity to rub up against girls in swimwear. Girls who, I’ll reiterate again because it’s important, at this point are underage. There’s also a ton of guys in this manga, which is weird considering there’s really only one in the anime and he’s less of a creep more of a sports fan. The men in the Keijo manga come to watch and gamble on Keijo and are depicted as perverse onlookers. Nozomi’s teacher is one such male who has a gambling addiction and comments on his underage student’s physique more than once. The anime made the right decision removing him from the series. This first arc also has an extremely uncomfortable and short lived love interest in the form of Nozomi’s brother. They might actually be cousins, the translation I read wasn’t exactly clear on that, but still something western audiences always frown upon. His feelings are never reciprocated by our star Nozomi, but the whole situation is uncomfortable, especially since he’s eager to jump in and battle her in her first mock Keijo match. There’s also more preliminary try outs the anime totally skips and that’s to the show’s benefit because again the girls are underage, and it cuts out a plethora of characters that don’t matter at all. The adaptation also does a great job with its references, choosing series that are particularly popular in western fandom. Attack on Titan and Fate/Stay Night are popular around the world, but really struck a chord in the states and Keijo very obviously references these shows multiple times to great effect. Other references to Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, One Piece, and Dragon Ball are all also greatly appreciated and largely absent from the manga.

Keijo performed very well in weekly viewership numbers, both legally and illegally, but was quickly written off by most. Everyone who watched it seemed to enjoy it, but wrote it off as “just another fan service show” and that’s unfair. It stands out among its peers, and should be celebrated as such. It was ranked the fifth most popular show according to Myanimelist, beating out shows with more popular appeal in pedigree like Occultic;Nine, Izetta the Last Witch, and season 2 of Ajin. It also beat out several truly spectacular shows in Sound Euphonium season 2, Flip Flappers, and the fifth season of Natsume’s Book of Friends. This wouldn’t have happened if it was “just another fan service show.” If you’re still in need of proof that season had just another an service show, it was Brave Witches, a fairly tasteless follow up to a reasonably successful show about young flying military girls who don’t wear pants for some unknown reason. People talk about Keijo as if it’s like Brave Witches, and no one talks about Brave Witches because no one cares. It might be easy to right it off if you don’t watch a lot of fan service shows, but let me tell you Keijo is special. I’ve lived in Trash Mountain for some time and am an expert in awful anime fan service, please don’t compare Keijo to that garbage; it’s far too good for that. Keijo is excellent! End of statement, no caveats no excuses, it’s really great. The show is easily the best thing director Takahashi Hideya has ever helmed. It’s arguably the best series Xebec has ever produced solo, inarguably the best this decade. I love Keijo, and I hope someday fans look back on it with the respect it earned.

8.5/10

#keijo #keijo!!!!!!!!#anime #fan service

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theperfectladiesman · 7 years

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Saiyuki meme part 2

34) What character do you think is least like yourself?

~Probably Ukoku. I’m not a psychopath or sociopath looking to snuff out life and light. And he’s super cunning and manipulative.

35) What is a shipping you’re not on board with? (Be respectful!)

~I pretty much ship nearly everything under the sun for the most part. Or can at least understand or respect a ship. I ship I wouldn’t really be on board with though would be Li Touten x Nataku. Or Dokugakuji’s mom x Doku/Gojyo. Just not my thing.

36 ) Which Saiyuki character do you think could easily adjust to modern times?

~I’d say nearly all the main cast. I think they’ve all been through so much & they’ve learned to get really good with adapting and rolling with the punches. But if I had to narrow it down, perhaps Goku. Followed closely by Gojyo. They seem the most easy going & quickly accepting & adaptable. Likewise, I think Kougaiji would be one of the ones who would struggle the most perhaps.

37) What is your favorite quote?

~There’s A LOT of good ones. Seeing as I have the opposite of a photographic memory... I can’t remember what my fav would be. A really good, memorable one though is where Kou overcame Ukoku’s mind control & gave him the whole speech where he wont be controlled again & his friends helped him to the light. Idk, something to that effect. Maybe I’ll come back to this question later after I find the exact lines.

38) Do you binge read the entire series or read selected chapters?

~Usually when I binge read or binge watch, it’s from start to finish on the entire series. If I just want to research something or remember a specific thing, it’s selected chapters.

39) Are you more a fan of Gensomaden Saiyuki or Saiyuki Reload/Gunlock?

~With the anime, Gensomaden. With the manga, its definitely Reload.

40) Your favorite character became a mythical beast. What would they be?

~This.... is a tough one. If I wanted to take the easy option, I’d say it would be Kougaiji and he’d totally be a dragon. Or if I wanted to be funny, saying Gojyo being a kappa. I could see Hakkai being the male form of a Dryad. But I think my favorite is Sanzo... and the only thing I can think of to liken him to is the Phoenix. Sanzo’s “like the sun” and Phoenix is a sun bird. Phoenix’s rise from the ashes and Sanzo got burned by Kou’s fire and still rose to his feet.

41) If you HAD to choose a character to die, who would it be?

~Well, this doesn’t say -MAIN- character. I wish I could say Ukoku... that would spare everyone so much misery... but I like the psycho bastard. So...Gyokumen Koushu. Then maybe Kou would get his mom back & he could team up with Sanzo!

42) Would you rather: Have all characters die or Have only one survive

~The question is.... would it be like Goku? Have them forget & then be reunited with the reincarnations? On one hand, it would be nice to have one survive to carry on the memory of everyone who died. But....I feel like there’s something incredibly unfair & cruel about having only one survive... so I guess I’d rather them all die.

43) If [character] got into a fight with [character] who would win?

~Lol its hard to do these ones when I’m just answering them myself.

44) What does Gojyo’s marking look like to you?

~I answered this one already, basically, a tribal flame

45) If Sanzo became a demon, what kind of marking do you think he’d have?

~I kinda wanna say something like the youkai Suika. Something small & round on his forehead in place of the chakra. Or it would probably be somewhere more discrete like his back or upper arm, a red color instead of black...idk the shape/design.

46) If [character] died, what do you think they’d be reborn as?

~I think Zakuro would love to be reborn in the golden age (Elizabethanera) cuz that’s when theatre, music, poetry & literature flourished. Perhaps Kougaiji/Hazel in the Victorian age and Ukoku in the Edwardian era... I know that’s not what the questions asking, but it is interesting to think diff era’s you’d put them in.

47) After the journey, what do you think [character] will be doing?

~Hmm... I’ll just stick with Gojyo for this one. Assuming he’s still alive after the journey. I think he’d stick with Hakkai. (grudingly)Helping out around the shop if Hakkai worked/owned a shop. I could see Gojyo maybe being a bar tender or an escort/host... or whatever those equivalents are in the Saiyuki era, or just keeps raking in money with his gambling while being domestic with Hakkai.

48) If [character] had a tumblr, what would they reblog?

~This one’s a fun question. I think if Gojyo had a tumblr, the majority would reflect the 3 things he likes most- women, booze, and smokes. Probably sprinkle in some selfies of himself being all sexy, cheesy pick up lines and puns, maybe some crude jokes, more scantily clad women, and gambling tips. Then there’s probably some stuff he’d reblog for the sake of Sanzo,Hakkai, and Goku if they had tumblr as well. Monkey posts to tease Goku, life hacks for Hakkai, & random stuff that would piss off Sanzo. Probably jokes about cranky old men or something.

49) What is your favorite animated scene?

~umm.... idk... all of Gaiden?

50) [Character]; Boxers, briefs, or commando?

~I feel like Gojyo would have an occasion for all three. Briefs when he’s planning to get with a lady or impress. Boxers when he’s lounging with the boys. And sometimes commando, mainly when sleeping if he has his own room.

51) What 3 or more tropes fits your favorite character?

~ummm.... running gag, ship tease, and funny moments. (gojyo)

52) What are 3 tropes that describe [character]?

~fiery redhead, the alcoholic, and jerk with a heart of gold (gojyo)

53) If Saiyuki got a 4th series, what would it be called?

~Well now that there is a 4th season coming out... Saiyuki Reload Blast XD (now we just need an Ibun OVA!!!)

54) If your favorite character could control an element, what would it be?

~Fav charater’s always been between Sanzo and Kougaiji... though recently I often wonder if it’s not Hazel now. I think Lightning suits Sanzo. Fire for Kou. And Ice for Hazel. Earth for Goku & Hakkai. Wind for Yaone.

55) Was there a character you used to love but no longer do?

~I dont think so actually. I think everyone I love I still do and everyone I hate I still do.

56) What has been the saddest moment for you in the series?

~Yakumo’s death. Yakumo’s whole chapter arc. And the end of Gaiden.

57) What is your favorite anime/manga genre?

~Psychological thriller/horror (but I also like romance & action & drama)

58) Name 5 other characters you like along with your fav Saiyuki character.

~Spike Spiegel, Axel, Seto Kaiba, Zelos Wilder, Alvin Svent, and Snow Villiers

59) Do you prefer subbed or dubbed anime?

~Dubbed. But most of the time subbed is 100 x’s better... obviously.

60) Did you watch the anime first or read the manga?

~Gensomaden anime came first.

61) Do you seek out spoilers or avoid at all cost?

~I avoid them at all cost, most of the time. Unless it’s something I’m not planning to watch or read.

62) Do you write fan fics or draw fan art? If so, link!

~I do, on both accounts. I don’t have any Saiyuki fanfics though. If anyone really want links, I’ll send them privately in IM’s. My Saiyuki fanart can all be found on my blog. Other fan art of diff fandoms is on DA. I only have a couple of completed fanfics on fanfiction.net... most of my work isn’t finished so that’s not really worth linking, I wouldn’t think.

63) What was the most pointless filler in the anime?

~I can’t really think of anything... maybe the sauna one where Goku thinks Sanzo turns into a demon. Or the kitty one. Don’t get me wrong, I loved both those episodes... but in regards to the plot, they don’t contribute a thing.

64) How do you describe Saiyuki to a friend who has never heard of it?

~Four guys travel west to stop the resurrection of a demon lord. Um... there’s lots of humor and action. It’s amazing. It’s.... kinda gay without actually being gay.

65) If you RP what is your favorite thing to Roleplay?

~answered this one~

66) What is your favorite Saiyuki Opening or Ending for the animes?

~The opening for Gaiden is very gorgeous, perhaps that one <3

67) What’s something you think would improve the series?

~HAVING MORE MANGA TRANSLATED AND PUBLISHED HERE IN AMERICA! And bring back some minor characters, that’d be cool to see.

68) Who, in your opinion, has the most tragic backstory?

~Geez... that’s like comparing a life time of stomach issues to someone who has a life time of mental illness... both are equally tragic. If I HAD to pick.... Yakumo.... I’m just gonna go with Yakumo. Technically, it’s not really a backstory but what’s he was presently doing. Having such a kind, soft heart... wanting nothing more but to save, shelter, and raise youkai kids... and choosing to kill them when they go berserk, perhaps with the whole mentality of ‘kill a few to save the whole’. It’s so tragic. Other than that, I can’t choose 1 over the other for tragic back stories cuz everyone has it equally bad in some way.

I guess I can say the tie would be between Gojyo, Sanzo, Hakkai, Goku, Dokugakuji, Hazel, and Nataku.

69) Who would be best at pleasing their lover?

~It kinda depends on what said lover wants most our of their partner and if it’s true love or a fling. If they both knew what they were doing, Goku & Kou would be very thorough, patient, and thoughtful lovers. Gojyo would be best at bringing the skill/pleasure in a pure sexual aspect. Hakkai’s difficult to pin down. He’d be gentle with the same qualities I listed for Gok/Kou.... but he’d have this wall up at the same time. Sanzo... just probably wouldn’t be the best, if he got intimate at all to begin with. Hazel’s so... antagonistic. I’ll just go with Gojyo or Dokugakuji.

70) What do you think Saiyuki would be like if Kougaiji and co were the main protagonists? Do you think you’d still enjoy it?

~A lot less humor and more dark because it would be more from the “villains” POV. Kou’s kinda angsty. I don’t think Saiyuki would be as well recieved and loved from Kougaiji’s & co’s pov... and there’s several characters we might have missed out on.... but I think it’s something I would still really enjoy. If its written by Kazuya Minekura, she’d make it amazing regardless.

71) What minor character had a significant impact on the plot?

~I think that would have to be Hazel Grouse.

72) On a scale from 1 - 10, 1 being not much and 10 being too much, how much does Saiyuki Gaiden hurt you?

~TEN

73) What character is still a mystery to you?

~Perhaps Koumyou or Ukoku (maybe even Yaone in the sense that we kinda know next to nothing about her... that I can recall). But with Koumyou especially, both of them are just so complex & different than I am that they’re difficult for me to understand.

74) What is the funniest moment in the series?

~It really says something about how much a perv I really am if the very first scene that pops into my mind after thinking about what my fav moment could be is.... Gojyo & Goku wrestling & arguing on the bed and that lady walks in & thinks they’re doing, or about to do, something naughty. Oddly, I Really like the scene where Gojyo mimics Sanzo too.

75) Who is your favorite minor character?

~Hazel or Banri or Zenon ...... Yakumo & Zakuro are p great too

76) Which character has had the most growth?

~I think that would have to be Goku

77) Which character needs more development?

~hmmmm........Lirin maybe?

#Saiyuki meme #part 2 #good lord this was long & took forever #but I wanted to do it for myself just for the hell of it & it was fun #when Im up all night with stomach issues & too tired to do anything else this was kinda a blessing

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tyrantisterror · 7 years

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The ATOM Create A Kaiju Contest

All fifty ATOM Kaiju files are now up on Horror Flora for the world to see. You can now look at the designs, stats, and brief bios of the fifty-some kaiju that will appear in my novel-in-progress, The Atomic Time of Monsters. But the event that gives the novel its name – the titular atomic time period – has far, far more than that. In fact, while only fifty or so monsters appear in the novel itself, at least six times that number will be running around just outside the pages – the unseen kaiju of ATOM. But I’ll level with you – I can draw kaiju for days, and have literally done so since about mid-December 2016, but I’ll never be able to draw up 300+ solid kaiju concepts. I mean, ok, maybe if I keep at it till I die, but I have a lot of other stuff I want/need to do. So that’s where this contest comes in.

Like some of the best fiction, I’ve left a tantalizing gap in my story for other writers to fill in. Like a narcissist, I’m hoping people would want to fill in their gap. There are literally dozens if not hundreds of monsters left unseen – how would you like to give them a face?

THE RULES:

1. You may create and submit up to FIVE different kaiju for the contest. They must be your own creations – no plagiarism will be tolerated. You can cheekily reference pre-existing monsters though – we all know the 50+ canonical monsters in ATOM do.

2. The kaiju you create must specifically be created for this contest - no repurposing characters you made for other, wildly different stories. It’s more gratifying to my ego of a fun thought experiment that way.

3. The kaiju must fit the design aesthetics, story themes, and overall tone of ATOM's kaiju. They should feel like B movie monsters from 1950's/60's pop culture. The better they match this aesthetic, more likely you will win the contest.

4. The kaiju must also fit the setting ATOM. Remember that “kaiju” has a story specific definition beyond being just a big animal, that most dinosaurs didn’t exist in ATOM’s world (i.e. no feathery t.rexes), and that the alien fauna of Mars, Venus, and the various made up planets follow very specific body plans. The Atomic Time of Monsters starts in 1954 and ends in 1968 – your entry has to take place in that rough time frame. I plan on posting some ATOM Bonus Files between now and the deadline that explain aspects of the setting in more detail.

5. The kaiju should add something meaningful to the world of ATOM. What would be the point of having another fire-breathing t.rex monster? The more unique and interesting your kaiju is, the more likely you will win the contest.

6. The kaiju must be independent of the main plot of ATOM - not "Tyrantis's long lost evil brother who's the strongest kaiju in the world". These should be to Tyrantis's story what War of the Gargantuas is to Godzilla's movies – heroes (well, monsters) of another story in the same world.

7. Your kaiju must have some sort of description of its physical appearance and its personality - you can submit a drawing or a written description (or both!) for the physical appearance depending on what you’re most comfortable with.

The Deadline for this contest is MARCH 16, 2017. You have roughly two months to work on your submission(s). To enter you just have to make me aware of your submission - tag me in a tumblr post, send me a message, etc. It can be on tumblr or on another website - so long as it exists and I can access it, it works. It

But what about the prizes, you ask? Well, I’ll put that information (along with some other rambling suggestions and tips) after the cut, but the biggest prize will be making a whole shitload of weird retro kaiju.

Ok, so: PRIZES, PRIZES, PRI-ZIZZES!

RUNNER UP PRIZES: I will sketch every kaiju entered in the contest, and compile them all in a great big post with a few sentences of commentary on each one. Every person who enters the contest gets this prize.

THE TOP 5 WINNERS: I will fully illustrate my top 5* favorite kaiju entries and publish them – WITH CREDIT – on HorrorFlora.com as ATOM Bonus Files. This means they will be considered SEMI-CANONICAL in ATOM’s lore – you will retain rights over your creation, of course, but they’ll also be considered part of the ATOM expanded universe. *Note: I may increase or decrease this number depending on how many entries the contest gets, or if I just love a crap load more monster than just 5.

THE GOLD MEDAL WINNER: The creator of the winning entry will not only get the prizes from the previous tiers, but will also get to choose one movie for me to liveblog. It can be any movie – good or bad – so long as 1. I can legally view it in the United States and 2. I don’t have to go into a porno shop to legally view it (thank glarnbodin for bringing up this possibility when I was brainstorming prizes).

TIPS

I’ve got a few tips, but one is so important it needs to be more than a bullet point. The most important tip for this contest is as follows: I’m looking for Beeruses, not Brolys.

What do I mean by that? Well, firstly, you need to watch Dragon Ball Z. Secondly, the hit anime Dragon Ball Z had several non-canonical movies made by people who weren’t the main creator/writer of the manga the anime was based off of. These movies had to fit in the gaps of the original story, and theoretically hoped to add something new and worthwhile to the story. Most of them did not succeed.

Broly is the main villain of three of these movies, and basically was defined purely in relation to the main characters: he was like the hero, Goku, except bigger, more powerful than anyone else, and evil. He didn’t really have a strong motivation, or any personality at all beyond “hates everything and loves destroying stuff”. He was only defined by his ridiculously immense strength and how violent he was. Overall, he contributed very little, didn’t fit the tone of the larger story, and yet was deeply connected too/defined by the main plot – the opposite of what my contest rules ask for.

By contrast, Lord Beerus, a villain introduced in a later movie, brought a lot more to the table. He fit well within the canonical world of the story, both in design and his over the top yet complex personality (unlike Broly, Beerus has many solid motivations and a many dimensions to his character). While he was somewhat connected to the plot of the overall story, he was also fairly distant – he had never met the main character before, and neither one of them knew much about the other. The story of their conflict was similar to previous stories in Dragon Ball Z, and yet had several twists that made it feel utterly unique. Beerus contributed a lot to the world and cast dynamics of the story, fit in with its tone, and was disconnected enough to what came before to feel like he was adding something new. The only reason he’s not a shining example of what I’m going for (well, other than him not being a kaiju) is that he was made up by the original creator of Dragon Ball Z.

But still, the point stands: I’m looking for Beeruses, not Brolys.

In fact, I had to change my original pitch for this contest because of this rule. Originally I thought of this as the “Lost Projects of ATOM” – making the ATOM equivalents of weird, cut kaiju from the Godzilla series. But while I was thinking of oddities like Mogu and Majin Tuol, I realized most people would think of characters like Bagan – the Brolys of the Godzilla world. This is why one of the rules of the contest is that the kaiju have to be separated from Tyrantis’s story in ATOM – if your monster isn’t a foe of Tyrantis, there’s less of a risk of them taking things to Broly style “I made a monster that’s bigger and meaner version of your monster” antics.

So one final time: Beeruses, not Brolys.

Now, the other tips:

• ATOM’s aesthetics are mainly drawn from pop culture of the 1950’s and 60’s. The obvious main inspiration would be the giant monster movies of that time period – the Showa Godzilla movies, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, Them!, The Deadly Mantis, etc. – but other sci-fi and horror stories of that time period apply as well. This includes movies that were rereleased in this decade – King Kong was made in the 30’s, but was rereleased in theaters in the 50’s to great success – as well as other forms of media published at the time, like comic books, novels, and even some songs. Silver Age monster comics from Marvel, like Tales to Astonish and other great titles by Jack Kirby, are just as entwined in ATOM’s DNA as Godzilla. • You can also work some modern design sensibilities here and there. Tyrantis’s overbite is far more common in dinosaur art from the 70’s and 80’s, while creatures like Pathogen and the Writhing Flesh owe a lot to body horror movies of the 80’s and video games like Resident Evil. These elements shouldn’t be the PRIMARY aesthetic, however – the 50’s/60’s vibe is still more important to capture. • ATOM works on Hollywood Science and, even more than that, child logic. Scientific accuracy is far from a priority – science is something ATOM uses occasionally for flavor, rather than an essential ingredient. Feel free to get weird, silly, and stupid to an extent . • Kaiju in ATOM are always characters and need to be expressive in some way. That’s important to the story’s theme – even the most wicked monsters in the story (with one possible exception) have a sympathetic side to them, and they need to be able to show it. • If you looked closely at the rules, you’ll notice an inherent contradiction: entries will be judged both in how they fit the story, and paradoxically in how they add something new to it. This might feel like a bit of give and take – a retrosaur would definitely fit, but might feel redundant, while, say, a giant lion might add something new but feel out of place. Don’t be scared to embrace one of the two at the expense of the other: you can make up to five entries to hedge your bets, and you might actually do a lot better focusing on some of the required elements anyway.

You can also feel free to adapt some monster concepts I failed to make work, including (but not limited to - check my old DA gallery or my thirty day kaiju challenges on my art tumblr for more):

Giant grasshoppers

Giant rabbits

A Sabre Tooth Tiger Monster

Basically any amphibians

Basically any birds

A giant gila monster

Giant shrews

Most mammals really

Finally, here are some links to things that helped inspire ATOM’s aesthetic, so they may inspire you in turn: