#my family is composed of main characters I'm telling you

[yumedoca]

Non-Urusei Yatsura fans, which of these IS NOT an actual character? (Answers)

The poll is over and thanks to all who voted since it's pretty fun to see how UY characters may seem from an outsider's POV! And since many were curious, here are the answers for the poll. The characters are listed in no particular order, except for the last who will be the fake one so if you just want the actual answer, just scroll down to the end; and since the poll was aimed at non-UY fans, I'll provide context for the real characters' descriptions so there will be character spoilers ahead!!

A cow monster, who is also the most handsome character in the series.

This is Rei, the female lead (Lum)'s ex-fiancee. The description I gave may sound kinda weird but it probably wouldn't sound as weird if I had stated that he has two forms: one being a mostly humanoid form and the other which is the cow monster one. He swaps between forms at random, mostly depending on his mood and comedic timing.

A princess who wants to lose her virginity.

This is Princess Kurama. She's the princess of the alien race, the Karasutengu (Crow Goblins). Since her royal line was fading away because there were no more humanoid men on her planet, Kurama decided to find a suitable man to mate with, but has no luck when it comes to that since her standards are way too high for the any of the males in the series.

A fire breathing bumblebee.

This is Ten. Like his cousin Lum, he is an oni alien and his abilities are to fly and breathe fire. Ten ended up getting a good number of votes in the poll and I'm guessing it's because people thought I meant a literal bumblebee. I gave that description to poke fun at his character design and I'm pretty sure most UY fans were able to recognize him from the description, and his resemblance to bees has been stated in canon too. But if you did vote Ten because you thought he was an actual bee, I am so sorry, please don't kill me, I should have added the word 'alien' or 'kid' to the description.

A school nurse who regularly beats up her male students.

This is Sakura. She is a shrine maiden and a school nurse at the main high school in the series. I don't think I need to give much of an explanation for her description; she's hot and all the male students are horny so it shouldn't be a surprise that she beats them all up.

A woman hater whose diet consists of baseballs.

This is Tobimaro Mizunokoji. He hates women, which is most likely a result of spending time with his rival's sister who treated him horribly when they were children (and she still does, by the way; we'll talk about her next). Oh, and as the description says, he can eats baseballs whole.. and is able to spit them out entirely too.

A teenage girl who kills boredom by plotting and attempting murder.

This is Ryoko Mendo. She is a rich, well mannered young lady and her favorite hobby is torturing her big brother and his rival (aka baseball boy from above) in many different ways for fun. I wanted to add a bit more to explain exactly how sadistic she is but the wiki does it better, so have that instead:

She will throw grenades and bombs at people while acting calm and composed, and yet will cry over them when they return to her charred to a crisp. She often acts in total secrecy without telling anyone of her plans, such as setting bombs in a giant Christmas Cake, turning a giant Christmas Tree into a firework, and retaliating to people by setting off bombs near them. She also shows an interest in black magic, having used hypnosis and voodoo dolls to torment her brother.

So yeah, she's fucking insane and I love her for it. Have my favorite Ryoko image ever as a bonus:

A sheltered girl who ends up falling in love with her brother.

This is Asuka Mizunokoji, younger sister of baseball boy from above. I feel like her she needs the most context since I think this might be the most questionable description of them all.

As per tradition, the women in the Mizunokoji family are not allowed to meet a single male until they are 15, this includes their father and brother; which is the case for Asuka. Because she has never seen a man, she doesn't know what they are (or anything that falls under 'men', like father, brother, etc.) and was raised in isolation by her mother and her family's all female guards. But her first, unfortunate encounter with a man, which happened before the arranged day ends up terrifying her and as a result, she gets a phobia of men, no matter who they are... unless they are a 'big brother'. You see, when her female guards' explained to her what men are, they unintentionally had them sound.. scary; but they also tell her about 'big brothers' (since she'll have to meet hers) who are a special type of man who look like her and are very nice. Eventually, she finally meets her big brother, Tobimaro (who didn't even know she existed till then by the way), but since the description on what a 'big brother' given to her was incredibly vague and because she has no knowledge of how siblings work, she ends up falling for him unaware of how big of a taboo it is. Naturally, it is a one-sided crush since Tobimaro knows better but that won't change the fact that it causes a lot of trouble for him.

Ok, I'll stop here because that took forever to write. Also, I took some help to write the above part from Asuka's page on furinkan.com, I needed a reference for the entire paragraph because Asuka and her shtick needs one hell of an explanation.

A TV addict with zero social skills.

This is Shingo. He is a boy who went missing during an experiment when he was small and because of that, he grew up by himself (asides from some animals) in a jungle. His only source of entertainment there was a TV, which only has historical dramas. As a result, he became very attached to TVs (he used to think the TV was his grandfather, and no I will not explain), even after he was found and brought back to society. He is also terrible at socializing since he grew up on Japanese historical dramas which are incredibly outdated. He is already weak when it comes to interacting with men, but he is the worst when it comes to interacting with woman since he has no respect towards them (again, because historical dramas). I find it funny he got a lot of votes and according to tags, it's because his description sounded more normal than the others, which makes it even funnier because he's like the only character who actually watches TV (asides from watching TV during lunchtime and stuff).

A cowardly kid who aims for a life of crime.

And here it is, the fake one! With how many characters there are, it was hard to come up with someone (for some reason, I can't be creative when I really want to be) but after I posted the poll I realized that there is a minor character who fits half of the description: He is a kid who aims for a life of crime, but he is pretty strong willed and isn't exactly what you would call cowardly or timid (His name is Kintaro, in case you are wondering- he is only in the manga and 80's adaptation).

And that is all! Thanks for joining me here and I hope you have a great day ahead!!

#again i am so sorry about the ten thing #urusei yatsura #うる星やつら #urusei yatsura 2022 #anime #manga #animanga #rei #kurama #sakura #ten #tobimaro mizunokoji #ryoko mendo #asuka mizunokoji #shingo #kintaro #god i love them sm #this was insanely hard to write i am not doing this again

[gardensofthemoon]

20 questions for fic writers

Tagged by the lovelies @ettelene and @tilion-writes, many thanks! Sorry for the late response, been busy with real life commitments.

1. How many works do you have on Ao3? 10

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count? 38,319 words

3. What fandoms do you write for? Currently, Silmarillion and MDZS/The Untamed, though I haven't posted anything yet for the latter.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

Fëanor posts on r/amitheasshole

Capodopera

Family Dinner

Immortal Longings

uprooting

5. Do you respond to comments? Yes, always! And I ramble a lot.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Hm. I write quite a bit of angst, and I can think of at least three fics of mine with sad endings, but I think Cardinal takes the cake. It's a bleak end, miserable, made even more so by the relative tenderness of the main story.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Probably Fëanor posts on r/amitheasshole, because it's crack. Nobody dies; is that the low bar for a happy ending in the silm fandom?

8. Do you get hate on fics? So far none, but I expect to get some in the future as I want to write about darker themes. And I'm mentally preparing for posting in a new fandom that's known for its toxicity.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? Yes, and I plan on writing more! I love shipfic, I love romance, this is the main genre I read in fanfic, so. If I had to classify my style of smut, I'd say it veers into porn with feelings territory. The main sentiment behind my writing, behind all my writing, smutty or not, is yearning. What intrigues me is what the characters are feeling, their thought process, building the tension and portraying their dynamic. I don't think I can write smut just for the sake of smut - and there are so many facets of the characters' personalities that can be explored through their kinks, their bedroom attitude, their emotions and insecurities. Also, I write slash, though I'd like to try my hand at femslash as well.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? No, but I've thought about it. The logistic aspect of it ruins the fun, unfortunately.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? No.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Not yet.

14. What’s your all time favorite ship? Not sure if they can be considered "all-time" favourites since I got into fandom less than a year ago, but the ships I'm completely obsessed with are Curufin/Finrod for the silm fandom and Jiang Cheng/Wei Wuxian for mdzs/cql.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? My Curufinrod in Valinor fic that I talked about on here. It's a long project and I'm used to writing one-shots, so I keep telling myself I'd work on it and post it once it's finished. Not sure when or if that will happen.

16. What are your writing strengths? Story concepts, comedic timing, eliciting emotions. Prose if I'm feeling confident.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I am always obsessing over sentence structure, conveying tone, and word choice. English not being my native language doesn't help either. Technicalities aside, probably dialogue and longer story arcs.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? Ambivalent.

19. First fandom you wrote for? The Silmarillion! Best fandom.

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? The second chapter of Capodopera (which is composed of two mirroring one-shots). I think I managed to write precisely the story that I set out to; I'm pleased with everything about it, from the prose to the characterisation, to the escalation and the power shift, to the smut scene. And it doesn't hurt that it's the most self-indulgent thing I've written for my silm otp.

I'd like to tag two of my favourite writers @crackinthecup and @tobermoriansass, I'd be super curious to read your answers!

#tumblr games #fanfic #elio writes

[salmonthaart]

hihi uhhm. sorry if this comes off as creepy but i scoured both your blogs for info on pop and lock but unless i suck at looking for stuff i didtnt find much. you should totes tell me more about them

that's not creepy at all don't worry!!! i've never really posted any oc lore publicly because i'm not sure if people care, and boy do i apologize you having to look through my sideblog because Wow Is There Nothing Important On It, but i'm BEYOND elated to answer any questions about them!!! literally thank you so much for asking, you made my day 😭

i have a looooot of stuff about them written down on places like google docs, a discord server i infodump in, and also In My Head so there's a HUGE amount of previously untapped info about them just around, but i'll stick to their main things for now :)

(i also have a toyhouse, but i never finished setting it up, so i'll also probably post more oc stuff on that when it's done)

pINK Lemonade Official Lore Post™ under the cut!

_________________________________________________________

POP:

Pop is an Octoling based on the Flapjack octopus. They are genderfluid, and thanks to the benefits of the cephalopod form, change their physical appearance regularly just for the hell of it. They vary between masc-leaning and femme-leaning, but usually look some flavor of GNC. (Their physical build remains the same, think of it like how the player characters in Splatoon change their gender and hairstyle. Pop just does that whenever they feel like it.)

They are fruitily charming, outgoing, unserious to a fault, and smug. Pop is a lot more sociable than Lock, often chatting people up or making friends at unexpected times. They are well aware of their charm, but make an effort to be the more likable of the two. They like to introduce themselves first, leading to many close relationships with a lot of people that otherwise would never have talked to them. However, when they dislike someone, they make it VERY known. They are unable to hide their distaste towards anyone they regard as too annoying. They can get aloof at times, but are generally a very peppy and easy-going person.

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LOCK:

Lock is an Inkling based on the Whiplash squid. He is the composer and instrumentalist of the duo, and is very talented on the keyboard.

He likes to put on an off-puttingly brooding, "cool guy" persona, but when you get to know him, it becomes clear he is often neurotic and overly sensitive. He can be very visibly depressed, though he tries to play off his inability to take care of himself as part of his uncaring attitude. He pushes people away instinctively, but gets very attached to the people who love him despite this. Unfortunately, he doesn't know how to healthily express his emotions and can get rather sulky and mean, leading his closest personal relationships to be... rather strained at times.

He also has a toxic and ultimately doomed relationship with Tide of Suit-Nami that both Shlubby and I have agreed is very fun to watch as it slowly burns. Sorry Lock, you're fated to lose the best boyfriend you'll ever have :')

_________________________________________________________

There's a lot more to both of their backstories, but for the sake of keeping things simple, here's a condensed version.

Lock was a trust fund baby pushed into idol culture that got shunted off to boarding school once he was deemed more trouble than he was worth by his parents. In a petulant attempt to be acknowledged by them, he regularly commits petty crimes and acts of vandalism, but is bailed out from afar every time to avoid his family name getting bad press. It's a real sore spot for him.

Pop had loving parents who encouraged them to explore their love for music, but after they got older and started posting their music to HueTube, they got relentlessly mocked for being cringe and were devastated. They went to boarding school in an attempt to escape their reputation and worked past their trauma by pouring it into their work and reclaiming their identity.

Pop and Lock were placed together as part of an idol internship program during their last year of school. Pop felt bad for Lock, and specifically requested him as means of lending a hand. Lock had previously avoided them for quite some time, but once they were forced to pair up he realized he had found his first genuine friend.

_________________________________________________________

and, special one-time deal, two extra characters! i literally have never posted (or. ahem. finished) any art of these two, but they fill out the gang behind the scenes and they occupy my brainspace just as much as pop and lock do :)

_________________________________________________________

MONA:

Mona is a halfmoon betta fish and handler-turned-posse-member of the group. She's an underpaid and overworked employee of the idol agency Pop and Lock are employed at, and was assigned to pINK Lemonade to keep them in check after they were involved in one too many incidents (read: PR nightmares)

She has a bit of a temper, as most bettas do, but over time has formed a real relationship with Pop and Lock and does not blow up at them as much as she does others. Their friendship has also helped her loosen up and not let her job consume her soul.

_________________________________________________________

CILAN:

Cilan is a calm, easygoing, tall inkling and the oldest of the four. He has long purple hair and seemingly permanently closed eyes. He's the group's resident eye-candy and secretary/flunky. There isn't a whole lot to his personality that I can say right now. He's just hot... sue me...

_________________________________________________________

Thank you so much for asking about my ocs!!

#ocs #splatoon ocs #oc lore #pop #lock #pink lemonade #tide #crash #splatoon #mona #cilan

[pharaohbean]

Hey, saw your Prsk Unit Shuffle AU and am very interested in seeing more.

In particular, I'm interested in hearing more about how the groups formed. It's always neat to see how these characters first meet and interact under different circumstances. And, as a little bonus, maybe what their "Untitled"/theme song is, because I feel like that's a very key part of a unit's identity that tends to be overlooked.

(Not sure if you're still interested in asks about this AU. If not, sorry for bugging you about it)

GASP HELLO I LOVE TALKING ABOUT MY UNIT SHUFFLE AU im so sorry this too forever to get u back on!! schoolwork is a pain and then i went SHOPPING (which takes forever :sob:)

okok so i haven't really thought about all the details of how they get together? so bear with me this is a rough draft lol

SSS: the idea at the core of this group is that its a family with different strengths coming together to make music. so tsukasa is the scriptwriter, saki is the lyricist, toya is the choreographer, and kanade is the composer! the group is headed by tsukasa, who's actually been putting on these shows for all of them since he was a kid. as he got older, he started taking stardom more seriously (leading into canon), but an incident in middle school ended up with the tenmas legally adopting toya, so that definitely shook things up for tsukasa (in a good way!). so i think that (+ l/n not reforming, which does happen in the SSS main story) allowed tsukasa and saki to consider banding their strengths together, since tsukasa loved putting on shows and saki loved seeing them, but she would also help put them on for toya (and later kanade, when she joins them not long after toya does). the two of them very quickly realize that they need more hands, and although recruiting kanade as composer is easy (bc 25ji never forms- dont ask why im still figuring that out lol) toya is a lot harder bc he's still active under BAD DOGS with akito. however, with akito picking up AWR around the same time (+ hatsune freaking miku appearing to toya), toya does join under their choreographer as for their untitled, their song is Wonderland and the Sheep's Song by Hachi, but I worked out their line distributions to this lovely KYO cover! you can see my color-coded lyrics for them here if you're interested :)

R/l: im gonna be 100% honest with you SSS and AWR are the only ones with any semblance of a plot rn LOL but here's the base idea around R/l: mizuki and rui both congregate on the kami school rooftop bc, yknow, loners (mizuki is never reached out to by kanamafu, so not 25ji on their part. tsukasa doesnt end up applying for phoenix so wxs doesn't have a chance of forming). at some point, i imagine they got talking about music, but never did anything concrete. but not long into the main story (probably the very start) an also joins them, her dream of surpassing rad weekend getting weaker as she struggles to find a partner (koha will be explained later) so she goes to hang with her friend on the rooftop. at some point, mizu and an both accidentally enter sekai, where they meet miku and len. those two tell them that there's still two others they need to find because they also made the sekai. mizu and an get.... maybe a little too excited over this. an takes this chance to invite her friend haruka over to kami (so she transfers) and join the group, but in their search for their fourth member they end up accidentally alienating rui (ironic). they fix that tho-- although HOW i dont know lol their untitled was one i went back and forth on (tbh only SSS and AWR i didnt lol), but i eventually decided on Untitled Hymn by shaito! their color-coded lyrics are here (i just realized you can barely tell where an is in lines but ehhh)

ATD: okay so. ATD is the group thats given the most gosh-darn trouble. ive revised their cast motivations like, TWICE now. but basically it goes like this: shizuku and mafuyu are both members of the archery club, with mafuyu trusting shizuku so much that her public mask slips a couple of times (against her will). shizuku's not dumb, but she doesn't say anything bc i think she understands that mafu has her secrets. after shizuku quits being an idol (on more of her own terms), she still wants to find a way to share the light she had before that seemed to reach mafu a few times. enter: accidental sekai trip! this trip both gives shizu the idea for an online group (which could sorta count as MMJ but i think the big distinction is they do more streamer/vtuber stuff and less purely idol stuff?? im still working on that) and lets her see mafu with her mask fully off. eventually, shizu drags nene into the business (nene never attends kami here, workin on that) bc shizu and mafu have no idea how streaming works and nene does, but nene likes hiding behind the camera but is still a part of the group bc who can say no to shizu? and hona joins at shizu's request bc they're both beautification members (and apparently hona+mafu are both honors students so i wonder if they have some overlap?? can you tell ive never attended public school lol) their untitled gave me SO MUCH TROUBLE. because ATD is supposed to be a weird mix of 25ji and mmj? but all of their songs get swiped by either R/l, AWR, or even SSS, so it was hard to find something that i thought could be specifically them. eventually, i finally decided on Common World Domination by PinocchioP! Their color-coded lyrics can be found here :)

MxC: oh boy this one's a doozy. so the idea here is like... there are underground music rings? which sounds wild but like if music is vaguely the lifeblood of this world i DONT CARE it can happen! i don't wanna make it life-threatening tho so its more like... you get blacklisted from everything. which for shiho--who got sucked into this world in an attempt to find bandmates--is VERY BAD. but shiho's given a little bit to find a band before their first performance, but with l/n definitely gone their separate ways (and she never wanted to involve them in the first place) she's kinda stuck. enter: airi and ena! both of them had been watching the music battles, unsatisfied with their current lives (airi having just quit idol/tv work, ena just frustrated over her art), but airi knows shiho thru miya, and when she heard about shiho's impending doom, she resolved herself to very quickly learn guitar and join her group, roping ena (who has a little bit of drum experience from akito and mom) into it as well. meanwhile, while all of this is going on, kohane (being the sweet soul she is) has been trailing shiho out of concern, but then is entirely horrified at the underground battles bc shes still pre-canon meek. but she really wants to help shiho, so she agrees to try and learn keyboard. after clearing the first battle, shiho and her group are safe--for now. they'll have to clear a lot more battles if they want to escape the underground their untitled is Hello Builder by UtsuP since i wanted them to have harsher rock songs than l/n (bordering on metal-ish)! color-coded lyrics here :)

AWR: funny story--all of the above units were made in the order listed! so i got to AWR and... i have ichika, minori, emu, and akito. and im like "NONE OF THESE PEOPLE HAVE ANYTHING IN COMMON". and then i went. "WAIT. THATS IT!" so here's how AWR goes: ichika still tries to reform l/n, but fails; minori is still trying to become an idol; and emu is still trying to revive the wonder stage. all three of them, all attending miya ofc, end up bonding over this and they start thinking. is there a way to satisfy all three of their dreams (band, idol, and show) at once? and at FIRST the answer is "no lol" so they go exploring. and somehow someway (workin on that) word finds out about this and some guy on vivid street dares akito to try and fix em into shape in a week. akito--being akito--accepts quite hotheadedly, then quickly realizes that maybe this wasnt a good idea?? because EVERYONE has a different music taste and its almost impossible to keep up with them all!!! but eventually they do figure it all out, and by the end none of them wanted to split apart or anything. AWR is i think the group that has the least amount of direction which might be on purpose. i think (again im rambling rn so) part of their story is figuring out what their direction is going to be! their untitled is Lip Sync by DECO*27, written as a part of holo*27 (hi no im not rlly into vtubers i just like their music) but i count it bc its written by a voca producer and this would not be the first time a non-vocaloid sung a unit song (cough cough mafumafu and tuyu). you CAN find my color-coded lyrics here.... but i did the translations. which means they're pretty much 98% google translated then bonked around to make sense. i dont know japanese please dont sue me

i hope you enjoy my indepth explanation!!! im always happy to talk about these guys :D

#zero thoughts #unit shuffle au #zero shuffle sss #zero shuffle r/l #zero shuffle atd #zero shuffle mxc #zero shuffle awr #project sekai #proseka #pjsk #prsk

[lloydfrontera]

This ending is so comically nonsensical that it made me feel okay with it. I'm the kind of person who can literally drop reading a story when there's a badly written romance, and when people were telling me that Lloyd ends up with Alicia and they have a daughter, I was very much fighting for my life to even start the novel. Because to be honest there's no way these kinds of stories have a very good romance plot. I'm sorry it's just that most of the time everything feels cheap and I keep on wishing the authors gave up on even adding it. But this? My God. It is so last minute, so out of the blue, that I can choose to ignore it and don't lose anything in the process. I can't even treat it seriously. Because if bk_moon wanted me to treat it as anything but a last "...actually!" then he should've made it matter. And it doesn't. And it's sad, I'm sad that they went that route, sad for Alicia and the time-old treatment she gets as a woman to get married off to the main guy when neither of their character arcs revolved around it. Now I understand your previous asks where you were talking about changing the marriage from Alicia to Javier and it making more sense story-wise and oh how clearly I see this now. But, still, somehow such a stupidly thought-through ending liberates, in a way, as I said, like it is true, undoubtedly, but it also too stupid for me to buy it :)

i know exactly what you mean actually akjshdkaasd

the ending comes so out of left field that it makes it,,, stick less in a way. it feels so disconnected that i can just. pretend it didn't happen ajskdhka

you can literally get to 401 and the not read anything else and you're good. that's a great point to leave it on. an open yet hopeful ending. no last minute romances, no important conversations being had off screen, no confusing implications being thrown at you last second. i am fully convinced 401 is the best way to end the novel lol

Now I understand your previous asks where you were talking about changing the marriage from Alicia to Javier and it making more sense story-wise and oh how clearly I see this now.

the only way i am semi-okay with a last minute wedding is if it involved alicia marrying both lloyd and javier. like. it makes sense. most of her thoughts right up until like,,, the last fifth of the novel are about how risky it is to the royal family for lloyd to exist without having a more tangible tie to it. but the same can be said for javier! the fact alicia never really worries about javier causing havoc in the kingdom despite him literally the most powerful person in the world is mostly because she sees him as,,, an add-on to lloyd. like yeah, javier won't be a problem as long as lloyd is not a problem. they're a 2 for 1 kinda deal to her. as long as she can keep peace with lloyd, she can keep peace with javier.

that's the thing about lloyd and javier. they are so deeply enmeshed into each other that even if you don't think they're in love, they are still tied to each other the way no other characters in the story are. they're are set do not separate them.

so. in a perfect world alicia decides to get rid of those pesky risks to her sovereignty and irreversibly ties them both to the crown, with the added benefit of getting some cute (and talented) af babies out of both of them. imagine a royal family composed of a ruthless queen, the greatest engineer in the world, the only grandmaster in existence and the children they would have. they would've been fucking unstoppable.

i am now mourning this version of canon. dang it.

somehow such a stupidly thought-through ending liberates, in a way, as I said, like it is true, undoubtedly, but it also too stupid for me to buy it :)

that is. exactly how i feel sometimes too. like yeah it may be canon. but it's a stupid canon. and so i don't have to listen to it asjhdka

you put it into words perfectly nonnie thank you for sending me this ask!!

#hey i got an ask #Anonymous #tged #the greatest estate developer #tged spoilers #lloyd frontera #alicia magentano #javier asrahan #allojavi

[pickypickypeak]

thoughts on wish. (spoilers below)

just a nice, harmless, old-fashioned disney movie. not disney's best by far, but far far FAR from bad

animation was good. full stop

the soundtrack. julia michaels is an amazing songwriter and I feel like her style gives this movie soundtrack a very unique vibe among disney classics. maybe she went just a little too pop-ish in some parts that required more broadway styled tunes and lyrics

loved the introduction with the classic disney book

some critic said the disney easter eggs and references were distracting or like,, they were trying to cover up a bad plot with easter eggs for fanservice. well not true lol. I don’t consider bambi’s mom blink and miss cameo as fanservice I consider it childhood trauma coming back. where’s the fanservice in it

people from all over the world coming to rosas. liked that

“welcome to rosas” was okay I just wonder if she does this for any person coming to rosas. like. like it’s a job? she’s getting paid?

asha is a nice character, despite falling a bit under the "adorkable" main girl stereotype. I still feel like she's well characterized, she is stubborn, selfless and will do anything for her family. stan

valentino's not annoying as you'd think

asha's friends are so cool please I love them all so much HOWEVER some of their lines felt a little flat?? they could have been WAY more fun easily I just wish they had more screen time

gabo is wasted potential you can't tell me otherwise

dahlia was literally nerfed you know that

I love that they picked simon to be the depressed one (he’s meant to represent sleepy from seven dwarfs)

bazeema randomly disappearing because she's an introvert she's so right we do that sometimes

I've seen people complaining about disney being politically correct (as always...) for finally making a movie with a classic villain and then making him redeemable, well he's not?? movie ends up bad for him just like with old villains?? this is literally what we’ve been asking for, a villain who is just a villain. king magnifico has motivations of course but still does bad things and gets punishment for that. classic old school disney villain. don’t know what you want

queen amaya, my love whom I owe my life, marry me

“at all costs” listen. this felt a little out of place. that’s because they apparently changed the context to the song. it was supposed to be a love duet between asha and a scrapped human version of star who was like. a jack frost-y character who fell in love with asha. in the final movie, asha and magnifico are singing to the wishes. it still kinda works, but I really wish we got to see the other way round. looks like they really didn’t want to go full classic love story route, but it’s a shame. I’m sure that would have been beautiful and very very disney. the demo version sung by julia michaels and benjamin rice gives you a glimpse of what might have been and it’s just so good, you should really listen to it

actually listen to all the song demos

that one lady screaming in the crowd I forgot her name but shout out to her

asha's family was there

her grandfather turning 100 just like disney and wishing to inspire people and then composing when you wish upon a star after the credits?? so what??? this man is disney???? wtf????? crying

“this wish” bop. next

star’s not annoying as you’d think

the animals were cute john the bear my beloved also the mushrooms please

“I’m a star” actually empowered me okay!!! you know what that squirrel is fucking right we are fucking stars!!!!

“thank you for not eating me john” “you’re welcome bambi” that was wild

breakdancing chickens and it didn’t feel cringe. a miracle perhaps

asha’s friends are so normal about star

simon being sad about making star sad… certified good guy

did I mention I wish we got more of asha’s friends

anyway why does star only grant the animals’ wishes. why do all animals just wish they can talk human

I'm thinking screaming lady's name was sania maybe??

“this is the thanks I get?!” is the perfect song for magnifico. way more in character than “at all costs”

magnifico coming to asha’s house was scary

asha really can swim is she also moana or smth

simon betraying her broke me. never trusting a himbo again

“knowing what I know now” instant bop. please all of them singing together about magnifico being a bastard? queen amaya suddenly entering the room and the music stops and they all just stand there like oh man we fucked up? and then the queen just slams the door and bursts into singing about her husband being a bastard too?? that gave me major chills like yeah girl leave him take me instead

asha and wands: a love story

the bunnies please

“this wish (reprise)” they really defeated the villain with the power of friendship AND by singing this is the most disney movie to ever disney

queen amaya becoming the single queen she deserves to be you go girl (but I'll still have her if she wants me)

simon my man we forgive you you were depressed. it’s not your fault

asha becoming a fairy godmother is actually kind of cool

"oh so you wanna fly? nice. meet peter pan" honey you say it so casually

A BIT SALTY ABOUT THE ENDING. it's not bad but that would have been WAY more emotional if they let us see asha say goodbye to star. especially because they say it's gonna happen soon, so what's the point in not showing us?? asha and star hugging and crying and then star flying up to the sky. asha looking up at the stars, smiling with tears in her eyes and then the camera moves up to the sky and star has become THE star like the one in pinocchio and princess and the frog. all of this with the "this wish" instrumental. that was a perfect way to wrap it!! also oh my gosh imagine asha saying goodbye to star boy!!! ç_ç

the credits with various characters were a nice touch but why on sweet planet earth did they put yokai as a representative of big hero 6

the credits song, "a wish worth making" just... exists. the lyrics though. they hit hard

I really stayed until the end of the credits just to watch 3 seconds of sabino playing music

final verdict: was ALL the hate for this movie deserved? hell no maybe you should just remember you’re a star and relax

#disney #disney wish #wish #wish 2023 #asha

[catslilypad]

Lots of new followers!!

HUGEST WELCOME and thank you for following here here! We've only recently started using Tumblr again ourselves.

I made a post about the more unknown side of my studio the other day for my PNGtuber CocoLouCovers (I might make a separate Tumblr for that soon, so i can share WIP covers and Lets Plays)

But thats not what this post is about!

This post I wanted to introduce the games I'm making to you! My name is C.L and I am a programmer, audio editor, writer, studio owner, marketer, social media, vocalist, project manager, casting director (the list goes on) I have worked on over 19 games as a freelancer and I have 3 of my own games in production.

The Inn Between

Character Art: XianJin Backgrounds: Vui Huynh

A modern fantasy BL visual novel following Myka Riley, a young barista with a mystery on his hands.

He has no memory of his past, a sketch book full of creatures only he can see and a nightmare he can't shake.

A phone call from a stranger changes the course of his life as he's directed to a mystical inn on the outskirts of town.

Features: Fully voiced free demo 3 Love Interests Original Soundtrack 30+ Backgrounds NSFW

This game is our "flagship" game and was funded in November 2021 on Kickstarter! We're hoping to have it released by the end on 2023.

Available to Wishlist on Steam.

Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1776200/The_Inn_Between

Itch: https://cats-on-a-lilypad-studios.itch.io/the-inn-between

Heart Agency

Character Art: 6nii9 Backgrounds: Anybangchu

A modern day BL visual novel about a composer from a famous family who isn't so keen on fame himself.

Not only are his parents world renown performers, they also own their own talent agency, which Adrian Heart is now compelled to work at.

Becoming the PA to one of three elite talents Adrian has his work cut out for him. All while maintaining his anonymity.

Features: Gorgeous art 15k word demo Heart Agency was made in a 2 months (programmed in less that a week) for Yaoi Jam 2021. Over on our Patreon we're planning an update to the demo with a revised script, additional CGs, sprites and new music!

Itch: https://cats-on-a-lilypad-studios.itch.io/heart-agency

Moonflower

Character Art: Tomomochi Backgrounds: Saed

A fantasy bl visual novel with slight steampunk aesthetics.

Our brand new game!

Moonflower tells a story about legend, about love and about betrayal.

When a once a century festival is attacked, High Alchemist Nika Skylar is forced to take matters into his own hands. Accompanied by a mysterious stranger he has one night to save not only the kingdom but the rarest and most powerful entity in the world.

The fabled Moonflower.

Features: 30k(+?) words 5 Backgrounds 4 Illustrations Minigame? All Ages

With The Inn Between not releasing until late 2023 and Heart Agency not planned to continue past the demo (just yet) we wanted to release something smaller that would be quicker and cheaper to make to give everyone something to play from us while they wait for our main game!

Moonflower is available for wishlist on steam

Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2145530/Moonflower/

Itch: https://cats-on-a-lilypad-studios.itch.io/moonflower

With three games in production our patreon is a fantastic place to follow us!

Monthly illustrations by poll, sketches, completed illustrations and assets as they're created, playable beta, merch discounts.

The more support we get there the more we can do and the faster we can get our games our because I think dont have to take so much freelance work which keeps me away from my own projects.

Heart Agency and Moonflower both have planned beta releasing exclusively to the patreon!

Our tiers range from $3 to $35

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/CatsonaLilypadStudios

Psst, we also have a discord! ^

#visual novel #heart agency #the inn between #moonflower #patreon #please play my games #this post was very long send help

[whumpbby]

I'm kinda new to DC universe, so forgive me if my question sounds stupid, but... why the hell are they so fixated on the Batcat pairing and their never-ending-hookups-and-breakups? rather than focus on Bruce and his relationship with, like, 50 of his kids?? And don't get me started on all these "Bruce is sad and lonely without Selina :(" wtf?? the only relationships that matter are romantic ones? What about Alfred, Dick, Damian, Tim and the rest?

Well, it's a bit of a wider issue. Because when you have only so much plot available to stretch into 60 years you start to repeat yourself.

Like, this is not that the writers are uncreative or some such (as much as we like to rant about it) it's the downright ridiculous conditions they have around their writing that kill creativity dead.

Mainstream comic books with popular characters are my idea of Hell - the characters have to stay the same no matter what! Their relationships cannot progress beyond a handful of strictly dictated ways. The plots cannot be too "heavy" for the "typical fan" (white, straight, male, early twenties) to enjoy. By design - it HAS TO BE a literary equivalent of baby food to keep selling well.

A constant high-stake drama that in the long run means very little is a requirement. Constant. This means relationships.

The relationships that are easy to break up and restart at will - that means romantic. Familial relationships are too fiddly - you risk pissing off some fans, you have to solve shit, write around, gasp, relationships can change!!! - not so with romances. Romance is safe - for whatever reason they just can't be together🤷 I guess. Cool. Happens all the time. Women/men can be exchanged for a new model if no one stays together. Big returns are always a hit. Allo people are geared towards romantic relationships (intended audience above) aren't they?

Also, good old wish fulfillment - again, intended audience of white male straight 20yos (that is the only audience exacutives seriously consider) have to be reassured that the hero they identify with can easily pull a beautiful woman even if they're on opposite sides of the law. But they don't have to be tied down, you know, because relationships are boring once established - that's work, and that's not exciting.

Writing about a man dealing with fatherhood is not exciting. Not in the good way - way intended for our imaginary audience - not easily solved and not satisfying. Even worse, it carries a risk of showing the hero in a bad light from time to time, risk of the hero having to accept their faults and work on them and chamge! Can't have that! Change is bad! A 20yo intended audience doesn't care about parenting, do they? They care about getting the hottest girlfriend. Again. And again. And again. She doesn't want to stay, but she can't stop returning.

Also, the moment Batman readily agrees with a woman he doesn't control is the moment an army of incells raises to yell "wokeness got into my batman!!!😡"

None of these characters are allowed to mentally mature above their intended Target Audience composed of 20yos. That's why Damian acts like a little adult and Bruce like a mental patient - they have to edge the same line.

Notice that objectively best stories of the last few decades were written as side-projects and separate "verses" that don't really fit within the main ones. A guest writer of high caliber is hired for a book that sells on their name, and so they can tell a self-contained story about anything they want.

The family will never be the focus of Batman in the mainstream, because what imaginary always-horny right-leaning 20yo cares about family?

#These imaginary 20yos are as real as Disney channel's kid protagonists #If they cannot get this audience organically they will create it #Straight white youg men are just as varied as any other person #But not in the eyes of the people supposedly catering to them

[tremendouskoalachild]

list of everything i didn't like about avatar: the way of water

(sorry avatar head mutuals, love you guys but i have very little positive to say about it)

(this is just me venting because i have Thoughts in my head and nobody i know irl has seen it. i wanna enter the new year with a cleansed mind i guess)

(for context i saw it because i had an opportunity to see it for free and went, fuck it. i am not a fan of the first film and haven't seen it since 2010. i also do not vibe with james cameron movies in general)

ruins the any day now meme by actually coming out :(

is an hour longer than it needs to be and two hours longer than it should be. i get that it's about the experience and all but pretty blue people admiring majestic creatures does, in fact, get old eventually

james cameron can't help himself i guess. the amount of underwater exploration scenes is borderline masturbatory, not to mention the whole finale taking place on a sinking ship

please tell me they didn't use the actual papyrus font for the subtitles. idk how noticeable it is in the original but watching the film subtitled is painful until you get desensitized to it

colonialism is apparently not enough to make us root against the humans. no we gotta show them gleefully murder a space whale momma (who composes music 🥺🥺) and her baby

the fact that the destruction of nature is treated as more heinous than the attempted genocide of the na'vi (who are pretty transparently stand ins for native americans) is to be expected from the franchise... i still hate it though.

bad guy lady disappears like midway through. and i had such high hopes for her after she was shown using her mech suit arm to drink coffee. slay queen

for such a ruthless piece of shit (affectionate) the main bad guy doesn't know what to do with a hostage. buddy you could have ended the fight like four separate times. you even had redundancy because they always manage to capture several kids at once 😭

the character accused by every video essayist alive of being a white savior wears dreadlocks now. idk kinda tone deaf if you ask me

the decision to just have the Na'vi speak english is cowardly as fuck. didn't you guys make a fully functional conlang for the first movie??

it also makes it more difficlut to tell what language is being spoken in various scenes. literally what is going on and who understands whom

neytiri was done dirty. barely present most of the film and underdeveloped.

even though the original movie apparently fucked over the hired composers i can't deny that its music fucked. can't remember a single melody from the sequel though

main villain being able to commune with nature without any self-reflection sucks ass. you could say he just subdued the flying thing through it comes back later and is apparently loyal so what was that

the spider situation is really weird. his adopted family don't really seem to care about his abduction much (was jake sully being more literal than i realized when he called spider basically the family's stray cat?? idk neytiri sure doesn't seem to give a fuck about him). the weirder thing though is how he is not restrained or even really supervised while captured despite being open about his loyalties

not to out myself as a space racist but i couldn't tell the two brothers apart until like halfway through at which point one got a lot more spotlight and it became clear the other was done for. rip son number 2 i literally don't remember your name

does this decanonize the avatar theme park 🥺 (this is a joke. all i know about the park is from that one jenny nicholson video and the lore does not seem all that good)

the love interest girl's character is said like once or twice in the whole movie. i was listening for it since i was crushing on her (because neytiri is barely in the movie)

there are multiple instances of a boat being thrown into the air and none of them look real

i swear they say "four fingers" when they mean five at some point. yeah i'm reaching here

the plot is paper thin and so many of the situations are incredibly basic

#there may be other things #but i'm done

[ijusthavesomanyblorbos]

Tell us the SG LL ideas

OKAY! SO!

Shattered Glass Lost Light. Here's what I'm thinking.

First of all, it's Megatron's ship. After the war, he'd want to leave Cybertron (just like Optimus did in canon.) Cybertron is already divided enough without the faction leaders around polarizing people, and he figures staying would only make it harder for the Autobots to assimilate into society. (Mentioned here)

But he loves his people, and he's not about to give up on them because the war is over. So! He starts a postwar unity initiative in the form of.... bababanah!!! The Lost Light!

Their official mission is to find and contact all the colony worlds of civilians sent away at the beginning of the war. (Mentioned here) Their unofficial mission is to serve as an example of (ex) Decepticons and (ex) Autobots working together. A beacon of hope for a new age!

(And also, if they just so happen to find the Knights of Cybertron, gosh, that would sure be a great way to try all those war criminals they have!)

(Megatron keeps that in mind)

It... only kind of works out.

See, the current leader of Cybertron just so happens to be our main man Prowl. (Mentioned here). And he most definitely is not excited about this. For one thing, a divided populous is an easily controlled populous. Paranoia is power. And while he does want what's good for Cybertron, he's not about to make things harder for himself. So he'll be having no symbols of unity or peace, thank you very much.

And for another, he doesn't want anything to happen that's going to paint Megatron in a favorable light. Megatron, who is currently the biggest challenger to his right to rule. (A right in which Megatron has no interest in- but better safe than sorry.)

On the other hand, of course, sending Megatron out into the dark reaches of space for years on end is certainly an appealing idea.

With this in mind, Prowl does three things.

The first being to compose a crew list filled with the biggest failures, write offs, crazies, criminals and crackpots in Autobot history. Megatron is a great leader but... well, a Commander is only as strong as his weakest subordinate.

The second being to attach a certain infamous Decepticon to the bottom. One that is holding a rather violent grudge towards Megatron. One that's supposed to be in prison. One that is one of the strongest megalomaniacs in the decepticon repertoire, who will definitely be causing some problems later.

And the third, to demand an Autobot addition to the command of the ship.

Rodimus Prime, who is under strict instructions to make the mission as big of a failure as physically possible.

(The fact that Rodimus is heir to the Primacy, and therefore the heir to Optimus is not a small part of his decision. The more threats to his crown off Cybtertron, the better. Or as the humans would put it, two birds with one stone.)

At launch, the ship's command looks like this:

Megatron, Captain.

Rodimus, Second in Command (Contested Co-Captain)

Drift, Third in Command (Previously Deadlock, an Autobot combatant. Now, loyal to Megatron)

And Ultra Magnus, (who has no idea what Prowl is planning. He just needs a job now that the war is over.) Ship Enforcer.

Prowl sends the ship off with a smile and a wave- He's confident in Rodimus, and if all else fails, Overlord should work as a fine backup.

My thought process writing this was definitely inspired by the Scavengers- because what I really love about the Lost Light is the found family aspect, and you kind of can't enjoy that as much if everyone is just an asshole (more so than already). So, I just wanted to take everyone's character, and shift it slightly to the left, and then change the outside circumstances and then BINGO! You've got a shattered glass.

The main point here is not to be an evil LL. The Lost Light goes through most of the same major story beats, and the end point is the same. But by taking the negative character traits of the Autobots, and turning them up to 100%, we make that same end so much more impactful. (For example, Rodimus's screw ups being just as bad, but purposeful! Spicy.) Less evil, more.... angsty.

(I think that's just my tagline for SG! at this point.)

Anyways! So that's that. I might expand upon some individual character's changes later on. But for now, the rest is up to your imagination :)

#guys #i am so sorry #i know its been like a month #i got writers block HARD #if u have an ask sitting in my bow rn #i promise i havent forgotten about u!!! #i am working slowly but surely to get these out #anyways hopefully?? ill be able to crank out a couple more in the next few days??? #thank u everyone who has been waiting patiently #on another note #i think i might make a masterlist for this au #i kept tagging posts cause i thought people would appreciate the context #dear god there is so much context now #my google doc with all of this complied is like 20 pages long #anyways #hbrambles #hbdrabbles #hbanswers #transformers #maccadams #shattered glass #tf shattered glass #lost light #sg!prowl #sg! rodimus #sg! megatron #sg! lost light #idw transformers #maccadam #mtmte

[evita-shelby]

Grace was underwelming in the show , she did terrible things to tommy and his family and her so called " redemption " didnt sit right with me , i saw her death from a mile away in the show amd didnt feel bad , dont understand really how people are die hard fans of her and tommy together the obly difference between him and his whores was that he was in love .

Yes, Grace felt superfluous to the plot because there was no development after seaon 1 where she was literally just pretending to be someone else, so we only get hints of who she truly was.

I'm gonna say it here and now that my dislike for Grace's character is not about the extramarital sex or anything like that.

In fact the biggest contribution to my dislike of her character comes from how she is written and acted out. (The other part is that her loudest fans here are super into hating Lizzie because she was a sex worker as they perceive sex work as a flaw and something that somehow makes her inferior to Grace)

Moving on, Grace’s character has no real depth like the other women in the main cast.

She suffers no real consequences for her actions in season 1, there is no build up to a relationship with Tommy between season 2 and 3(in fact they act like they are still strangers and not like people who've been together for almsot 3 years) and her character becomes a sexy lamp who's only job was to have a baby and die(very Jane Seymour, which was actually her previous role) because she literally has no other purpose in the story.

We don't see any build up except that she wasn't lying about being pregnant or that her family is composed of right wing assholes who commit war crimes and turn up their nose at new money gangsters and even at Grace for going against society with her life choices.

But it wasn’t supposed to last, in fact a big part of teh story according to Steven Knight is that Tommy isn't supposed to be happy, that the story is Tommy enduring hell. He finds peace at the end, and even then its subjective.

she was just there to provide a kid and make Tommy happy before SK cranked up the angst to 50, Grace’s purpose was to cause Tommy pain. Whether because her presence and ideals clashes with his life outside of her, or because his family rightfully hate her and he himself doesn't trust after 2 years or because she is a manifestation of his guilt that he holds on to at the cost of his sanity and happiness.

Unfortunately, no one told SK you need a lot more development to make it hurt or that you need more than just a handful of scenes to show how somthing without telling.

Like kudos to Grace stans for connecting so much with such a 2d character, i personally need to see more than just a toddler and a marriage to connect and that's probably because the writing wasn't there and Annabelle Wallis is notorious for her lukewarm acting.

#meta

[rskhan-writes]

Writeblr Introduction

Welcome! Peace be with & upon you.

About the author:

I am a twenty-something muslimah who never manages to write as often as I tell myself I will. Prone to attributing my lack of writing to "extensive research." Both my faith and academic background in social science influence my writing, and I have a predilection for including creature creations in my stories.

Most of my creative endeavors fall within the realm of epic fantasy. The world building is often influenced by Middle Eastern and South Asian societies, with the occasional exception. Think 'The Sands of Arawiya' meets the 'Kingkiller Chronicle' and that's my niche.

I dabble in horror featuring themes + motifs of the gothic & thrilling variety.

I love literature, but don't have plans to write within the genre, outside one deeply personal coming of age novel.

More about some of my projects can be found below, in order of priority/progress.

Novel length WIPs:

Epic fantasy with the highest word count to date: Do you like political scheming, sophisticated magic systems, found family, far-spanning adventure in a captivating world, and a female protagonist dead set on retribution even if it means burning the world alive? I am not usually a romantic, but this story takes an enemies to lovers turn I wasn't planning in a very Pride and Prejudice-esque manner.

Academic fantasy with minor steam punk elements. It's like if Rage Against the Machine existed in an authoritarian state and challenged colonialism with secret libraries, secret societies, and forbidden knowledge. Imagine if the bastard lovechild of His Dark Materials and V for Vendetta went through an epic fantasy phase... sort of.

The aforementioned literary coming of age novel: YA lit coming of age story revolving around the identity struggles of a teenage girl who finds, in true coming-of-age-trope fashion, she fits "neither here nor there." Themes of generational trauma and culture vs. religion, explorations of deviance, gender, conformity, redemption, and how [various types of] privilege inform our interactions with the world around us compose the underpinnings of this novel. This is my WIP that is so heavy I'm almost afraid to touch it for fear it will shatter if I drop it.

Novella and short story WIPs:

Do you like unreliable narrators, spine-tingling, eye-watering terror, psychological suspense, and hauntings all wrapped up into a period piece package? This story may be for you!

Do you like dark fantasy twists on classic mythology? How about character driven narratives featuring explorations fate vs. free will within the context of generational trauma? The tenebrous mood of this project is what really makes it. Oh, and the dragon.

This one is for those of us who enjoy a good slow decline into madness.

Timeless bonds and plot twists, anyone!?

Middle grade fiction WIP:

The Creature Chronicles. Need I say more? Well, if you insist... In a magical and geographically diverse realm of stratified land masses, an overwhelming variety of fauna and flora make their homes on, in, and above their world. Our main character is an adventurous scholar who has set out with their currently-blank field guide to document all the life they encounter. True to form, every adventure must be full of danger, excitement, wonder, and the friends we make along the way, and this little project ticks allllll the boxes, buddy.

[rancid-jester]

Arden is starting to become my favorite character in this novel I'm writing so lemme tell yall about why they are the superior main character. (also i ended up talking about All the characters in the novel so theres a read more haha sorry)

Arden (They/them)

They are nonbinary

They are fat

Everyone agrees that they are sexy despite nobody really knowing what they look like (the only thing I'm adamant about is that they are canonically fat and have natural Himnoan coloring, but if you wanna imagine them with dyed hair that WOULD fit them)

They listen to hyperpop

They are the worst mage ever

They are a scam artist

Their best friends are all brilliant magic users

They are poor

They drive awfully but the MC cant tell cuz he's never been in a car before

If they meditate they can suck people's consciousness into their mind

Since I'm in a good mood I'll also tell you some things about Ravana, my non-PoV character

Ravana (he/it)

he's a demon

he was a mage before dying but doesn't remember much of it.

it can't do human magic because his mind is too chaotic

Possibly because he has a natural ability to read minds.

Part incubus and part horned demon

His horns are intricately designed and he likes to decorate them with shimmery powder he makes himself. it also makes it's own talon strengthening and shining serum. Also carefully braids his long hair everyday. beauty guru vibes.

He seems intimidating at first but once you get to know him you can't believe anyone could be scared of him

He was a deal broker in hell and still instinctually tries to trap people in deals despite now being a house-demon.

It really likes animals and has a cat. wants to get two chickens.

His first language is English but it also speaks several demonic dialects. It's english sounds gutteral with the inflections of demonic but his demonic sounds soft like a human's

Surprisingly a very nurturing person, very good at teaching (most people he interacts with end up becoming its pupils after a while.)

Knows about other dimensions (and actually lived in one more like ours for his human life) but just doesn't bother to tell anyone about them

He has sensory issues and undiagnosed autism ::)

Okay I'm enjoying this too much lemme tell you about the rest while I'm here!

Lief (he/him)

The MAIN main character

became a mage at the ripe old age of 14 (Earlier than most people in his colony even start apprenticeships!!) (17 at the start of the story, currently 18)

He learned the majority of his magic on his own (also summoned a demon (Ravana) mostly via intuition)

he's demiromantic pansexual! also he's very sex-positive

grew up in the Himnoan Colony on Rubia and is one of two people on the Himnoan continent with the weird accent of Himnoan Rubian

Insane climbing ability

doesn't like looking vulnerable, and is very good at hiding feelings. One second he'll be crying and the next he's totally composed

awful little man--he teases people he cares about and threatens anyone who bothers him.

wants to commit murders

Considered becoming a fascist dictator but Ravana wouldn't let him (he probably could've)

Got offered a job that would give him power over an entire continent but he was too busy plotting to kill his only biological family member still alive

Would canonically be a ruthless tyrant if he didn't have Ravana and Arden

NOW FOR AZARIUS! (I havent written him in a long while so excuse me if it's less than the others.

Azarius (he/him)

Grew up on Rubia

Very quiet, as most Rubians are.

Can't sign like other Rubians because his hands aren't very coordinated (he has poor circulation and a tremor)

The only survivor of a town massacre

Current mage of Rubia

Formerly Lief's apprentice, now Ravana's pupil

Falls in love way too easily

Will sacrifice anything and anyone for his survival

His thirst for knowledge is one of the only things he cares about

Little guy so full of trauma literally so messed up poor guyyyyy

Has only been loud once; to yell at Lief

Extremely socially aware, if he has one conversation with someone he can tell you all about their social dynamic and how theyre usually treated.

Hyper-vigilant--which makes it hard for him to do human magic (as it requires more intention than the demon magic Ravana is teaching him)

You can read more about them here:

(No Arden yet in the published part but you'll meet them when I put up part two!)

#jr rambles #my writing #gay fiction #wattpad link #original story #original characters #ocs #my ocs #fantasy #lgbtq fantasy #lgbtq representation #lgbtq writers

[apparentlyaswarmofbees]

Everybody in my family gansta until the man of the house (my mom) finds an insect

I have just spent half an hour outside in the garden searching for a grasshopper that never appeared

at least I got my share of sunlight for the week-

#my mom's plants are so pretty #there are roses and orchids #there is a cajamanga and a blackberry bush #there is even a sweet potato growing in there #a huje plant with bare branches with flowers and leaves only on the end of it #it's my mom's favorite and she fucking stole a piece of it to plant in her garden from the plants in the street #there's also a big bush with shining purple leaves on top with tiny white flowers in the middle #the birds love making nests there #there is one in there right now #there's also a mini pine tree #the pines in our house decoration for christmas are homemade heyoo #the cactuses and suculents are in the back garden #it's so funny my mom can run 50km and lift my 100+ kg dad #but tell her there's an insect in close proximity and she will scatter #and possibly come back with a weapon (a broom in some cases) #the only reason she doesn't kill insects now is because of me #sorry ma- #oh and she also grew up in a farm slicing off chicken heads #my family is composed of main characters I'm telling you #delete later?

[gaming]

Indie Game Spotlight: Stratospiel

We're exploring the colorful and mysterious world of Stratospiel in this week's Indie Game Spotlight! Stratospiel is an upcoming turn-based RPG that follows the journey of a child who awakens on a strange planet with no memories and is faced with a vast array of enemies and the choice to either destroy or befriend them. The choices you make will impact the tone and outcome of this story. We caught up with Stratospiel's designer, writer, programmer, and composer, Vaughn Haynes, to learn more.

Stratospiel is reminiscent of other turn-based RPGs like Earthbound and Undertale—was Stratospiel inspired by either? Were there any other games that inspired you during the development process?

It's funny—I've been told by my friends that the game has a lot of Earthbound vibes, but I've never actually played any of the Mother games. I'll definitely have to as soon as I'm finished making this game :) I can say with confidence that this was very much inspired by Undertale, though. I played that for the first time on my Switch back in February 2020 and was absolutely blown away. I've wanted to make a video game forever but always backed down when I saw how much of an undertaking it is. Once I found out that Undertale was primarily made by one guy, I was like, "yeah, I can do this," and finally got to work learning how to code and all that fun stuff. Undertale has a huge influence on Stratospiel, with its defining mechanic—acting/sparing the monsters—being implemented here. In a broader sense, though, I'd say the Mario & Luigi RPG series has had the biggest influence. I played Bowser's Inside Story as a kid, and I loved how fast-paced the battles were without losing that feeling of RPG strategy. I also liked how the items you used in battle were also used to manipulate the overworld. Stratospiel's battle system is a happy marriage between those two games' battle systems. Other games that influenced Stratospiel are the WarioWare and Ace Attorney games—absurd humor is my favorite, and that has definitely worked its way into Stratospiel.

What made you choose pixel art as the art style for Stratospiel?

Because it's the cheapest! Also, because it complements the tone of the game as well. A lot of the humor in Stratospiel is derived from fun visual gags. The further away you are from the uncanny valley, the less likely it is that your brain will get weirded out and go, "Hey, this isn't real!" and will be more accepting of the silly things happening onscreen and hopefully laugh along with the game. The same goes for the more serious moments, too. By having a simple art style, you're forced to make each character as distinct as possible, which helps people form closer bonds with them, which is great for eliciting a powerful emotional response.

What types of enemies can we expect to see in the game? Can you tell us a little about the main antagonist and how they fit into the game’s narrative?

I’m really happy with the enemies. I think, aside from composing the music, designing the enemies has been my favorite part of making the game. The enemies you fight can range from cute, to silly, to fearsome. They’re all unique, with their own wants, needs, goals, likes, dislikes, etc. You’ll meet a cast of fun characters along the way who accompany you on your adventure, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. As for the main antagonist? You’ll have to solve the mystery to find out who that is :)

In what way will players’ choices impact the story of Stratospiel? Will the game have multiple endings?

Your choices impact two big things in the game: the plot and the tone. In terms of plot, I can’t really say too much because of spoilers, but the basic idea is that if you defeat someone in battle, then they’re dead. They’re out of the picture forever now. Their friends' and family’s lives have been forever changed. But if you befriend them, then they’ll contribute their skills and resources, and that just may take you to different places. The same goes for tone—killing people is pretty dark, I would say. And of COURSE, the game will have multiple endings!!! I love it when games do that, so you bet I’ll implement that here :) You can see a little bit of that in the demo right now.

What do you hope players will take away from Stratospiel?

I hope players take away an appreciation for the themes that are in there. Each character and area has a central idea baked into them, and how you as a player interact with them determines their direction and arc. Like I said earlier, the game is very personal to me and is sort of like my own “shout into the void.” With everything going on in the world today, it can be hard to feel heard, getting drowned out in all the terrible things happening. Everyone has something to say, and this is my way of doing so. Choices in video games are nothing new, but having players think about the consequences of choices is something that I think games really excel at, and Stratospiel is no different. I can guarantee that fans familiar with the genre will be surprised with how things turn out!

Stratospiel will be available on Steam for Mac and Windows in Fall 2023. Follow @stratospiel for updates and other announcements, and check out the Kickstarter here!

This interview has been edited for clarity.

#indie game spotlight #stratospiel

[themountainsays]

What book is Encanto based off of??

I'm not sure "based off" is the most accurate term - it's clearly inspired by A Hundred Years Of Solitude (Cien Años de Soledad) by Gabriel García Márquez, a tremendously important latin american (colombian!!) author.

I haven't finished reading the book yet, and there are certain things people mention (like the yellow butterflies) that I can't say anything about, but from the start of the movie the influences are clear. Just like Alma and her husband lead their people across the jungle to escape violence and found a new village to live in, Úrsula and José Arcadio Buendía lead their people through the jungle to found Macondo. When José Arcadio falls into insanity, Úrsula takes her rightful place as the matriarch of her family, which is composed of multiple children and grandchildren. Both stories tell the tale of a family through the generations and both are examples of magical realism, a literary genre native to Latin América (of course, Encanto is a disneyfied version while Cien Años is the literal parent text of the genre, so as much as I love Encanto they don't really compare).

Now, there are clear parallels and more similarities than I just mentioned but fundamentally they are very different stories. Encanto is very character-driven while Cien Años is much more political and poetic. Cien Años also reads like a fever dream you had while high on wisdom tooth meds. It has everything: child abuse? Got it. Incest? Got it. Sexual slavery? Got it. Pedophilia? Got it. The closest thing we have to a "main character" married a 9 years old, got her pregnant and killed her, and then went all to have 17 more children during his revolutionary adventures leading the guerrilla in the jungle (all of them named after him). Two of his siblings are fucking. I think his brother tried to kill him? It all blends together into an amorphous mess of insanity and mindless abstraction. One scene two characters are enemies and the next they are childhood friends. Úrsula kept her husband tied to a tree for several decades i think. José Arcadio (the first)'s best friend came back from the dead with magical dentures. I think?? I don't know! I don't know what the fuck this book is about but i'm loving it, it's weird and fucked up and maybe I just need to be more Intellectual to understand the symbolism. It IS romantic and poetic, i just wish i knew what the fuck is going on. After a while you give up on understanding and go along with the ride. I appreciate the anti-imperialist message. Granted i haven't read it in a while so i probably need to refreshen my memory.

It's a HUGE latin american classic, a must-read according to my family, everyone loves it for some fucking reason.

Btw here's the Buendía family tree. The book follows the story of all of them until (spoilers) the baby gets eaten by ants.

#encanto spoilers #cien años de soledad #a hundred years of solitude #ppl who read more/remember more of the book pls correct my mistakes #i'm just so confused 😭