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crescencestudio · 1 year

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Devlog #30 | 04.27.23

Hi everyone!

We are back with a monthly update! If you all remember, last month I was feeling a bit burnt out, and I'm super happy to say I'm feeling a lot more like myself this month <3 Thank you to everyone who sent me a lil message/comment, I always appreciate them sm. I won't bore you with my gushing, but I am forever grateful for you all! With that, I'll get into the updates ^^

But first, it was someone's birthday this month! happy bday, hoe.

Writing

I have some exciting news! Kayn's route has officially entered the line editing phase, which is the FINAL stage of editing \o/ This will be the first route completed for Alaris, wow!!! Fenir's route is still going through developmental editing, but the changes are already super cute and he is giving ultimate grumpy baby energy, which we love to see.

I'm still chipping away at Druk's route. Honestly, I'm Very Sad I haven't made as much progress with him as I would've liked, but a lot of my time was dedicated to the enhanced demo this month, and between revamping the demo script, coding, voice acting, and edits for Kayn/Fenir's full routes, I just didn't have the time. I'm hoping this month, I'll finally Actually be able to get his first draft done <3

Art

We officially finished all Demo Backgrounds this month (wow!!). Having started revamping the demo BGs all the way back in, like, November, it's crazy that this first milestone has been reached! Now, it's only full game BGs left. I received the new Dusk Court BG recently, and she's stunning, so I'm excited for the more "core plot" BGs to start coming out :')

In honor of the enhanced demo coming out, I updated the sprite art for the LIs! I'll be getting to the side characters this next month, but I'm really happy with the new art. The differences maybe kinda small for some of them, but I think they look a lot cleaner, and I think the auras especially are pretty <;3 we also whoreified kuna'a

updated sprite preview for kayn, aisa, kuna'a, and etza

The full GUI was also finished this month. I just have to code them in, but it looks SO delicate and pretty and sharp. I'm so thankful to Alice for doing the most outstanding job with them---she is so talented!!

Sneaky peek of screens uwu

Additional Notes

I complained about it 29348 times, but I Finished the Voice Acting Coding this month uwu. That is probably the biggest accomplishment considering how much work it was reviewing all the lines, cutting them, and coding them into the game. I'm terrified for the full routes.

I selected the playtesters for the game so far. Thank you to everyone who applied! I wasn't able to reach out to everyone who applied, and I didn't want to have so so many playtesters, since filtering through everyone's feedback would be overwhelming. But there may come a time when I need more playtesters in the future, so please feel free to keep my little game in mind <3

It's been a bit since I mentioned my Patreon, mostly because I feel bad asking people for money and promoting a platform where people have to pay for content LOL. But it is there, and I do post to it! The reason I bring it up in this devlog is because the highest tier ($10) gets access to playtesting and the second tier ($5) gets early access to finished builds. With the enhanced demo slowly getting finished, I will be doing playtesting for the new beta build this upcoming month in May. SO if you want playtesting/early access to the enhanced demo, please feel free to check out my Patreon* ^^

*Note: If you’re interested in becoming a patron for the early testing/ playtesting, don't become a patron until May starts otherwise you will get charged for both this month and May ((unless you want to give me money for both months in which case u have my eternal love uwu))

Market Research

Lastly, I did a tiny bit of market research this month! I played Bustafellows after my dear friend Seyl (check out her and her team's game Lost in Limbo!!) recommended it to me.

Shu: why is his glove so slutty

And of course the game everyone has been talking about, I played the demo for Touchstarved.

Ais: my favorite, and it's not even close

Looking at these two, and I think I have a thing for smokers lmao. Anyways, I think that's enough from me, so that is all for this month's update! Stay safe, and see you all next month <3

#alaris #devlog #if u saw me post this 3 mins ago ur wrong #the way i posted it without a title or anything omg i'm a mess

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picnokinesis · 5 months

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hello!! :D I asked for a spoilerless preview of 13s seasons a while back on anon, and your answer really got me excited to finish my rewatch!! took me a while because uni doesn't allow for binging the way high school used to, but I just finished season 12 the other day! I've enjoyed chibnall's era more and more the further I got (season 11 still definitely isn't anywhere near my favorite, but liked it a LOT more than I did on my first watch, knowing the foundations it was laying), and I LOVED the first episode of season 13! SO much! I haven't gotten further but I really wanted you to know haha, it's fun, it's exciting, it's got awesome new characters -- I so wish chibnall had gotten into the groove a little sooner, because this is exactly what I hoped his era to be! imagine if we could have gotten 3 full seasons on the same level... ahhhh I'm super excited to watch the rest! especially since several of the episodes you mentioned were your favorites are from season 13 -- and the first episode isn't even one of them!

Ahhhh oh my days hi hi hi!! I am SO so happy that you've enjoyed s12 so much! I think s12 honestly might be one of my favourite seasons of doctor who (although there are a lot of excellent contenders), simply because it just inspired me so much. There's so much to dig into. And yesss I think s11 works a lot better in context of the rest of it, which is super interesting. Actually, honestly, it all works SO nicely as a whole unit, which is super satisfying - to me, at least - but I suppose that hampered it when everything first aired, because we didn't have the whole picture (but also, that is how tv works sometimes ksksk - there were and are a LOT of bad faith viewings of this era, and it makes me so sad because I know that the moment you dig into it you start to realise just how rich this era has been). But yknow, what you say about s11 is interesting, because I do know a lot of people who really love it exactly as it is and always have - there are quite a number of people who got into Doctor Who because of s11, so I think, whilst there are things I don't like about it, I reckon Chibnall did approach it in a particular way with a particular intent - and it worked for some people, but less for others. And like, in a similar vein, I've actually found myself defending Moffatt of all people lately, despite the fact that I really don't enjoy like, two of his seasons, as well as a lot of things that he tends to do. But it's because I think like....hm, I guess I've lately found it really helpful to remember that all the writers are just humans who are putting stories and art out into the world that they want to create, and are sharing it with us - it's never going to be perfect, despite how much we want it to be. And there's always something of value in each era, right? Each of the main showrunners we've had since 2005 have had strengths and weaknesses, and there's something about each era that I absolutely adore. That said, there's definitely value in expecting better in certain degrees - but then you get people making hour long videos about how the show sucks now and I get so tired skskks

BUT YEAH sorry for rambling, your ask just got me thinking thoughts - much more importantly, you've got THE REST OF FLUX TO WATCH ahhhHHH have FUN!! War of the Sontarans is next and oh my daaaaays i love that episode SO much (I literally said as much earlier today and my coworker was like 'yes taka i know you love that episode' SKKSKSKSKSK SO. YKNOW) but honestly I just adore Flux. It's got such classic who vibes - I've started watching some classic lately and it's so funny seeing what inspired a lot of the structure/style of Flux (like the STUPID CLIFFHANGERS oh my days we need MORE of those). So I really hope you enjoy the rest - and the specials too!! Eve of the Daleks and The Power of the Doctor are soooooo much fun :D Please feel free to let me know what you think when you've watched it all, if you'd like to! I'd love to hear your thoughts/what your favourite episodes of thirteen's era as a whole have been! <3

#taka replies #xxgwenstacyxx #AHHH DUDE <3 #THANK YOU FOR MESSAGING AGAIN!!

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in-arlathan · 1 year

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Get To Know Me

Who dis? It's me! Been a hot minute, hasn't it? This year has been a pile of dung up until now, if I'm being completely honest, hence my absence from Tumblr and most social media. I had an accident in December and have been feeling like dirt ever since. But: I'm back now! Mostly thanks to my beloved @johaerys-writes and the amazing @mogwaei who tagged me for this game. Thanks to you two! ❤ It's been a please reading your posts.

And now: Let's dive in!

Share your wallpaper: I'm a very boring person who has her own artwork as a wallpaper on her phone (talking about this study I did last year). XD It reminds me that (every once in a while) I do create something that I actually enjoy without any self-doubt or regret, and I like that.

Last song you listened to: "Eyes Closed" by Ed Sheeran. I'm a very basic person, lol.

Currently reading: Let me check Goodreads real quick... Yeah, I'm reading far too many books at the same time again. So here's the top 3 of books I'm reading and enjoying the most atm:

The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman

Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

There's also a bunch of fanfic I need to catch up on but my mind has been all over the place.

Last move: "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves". My P&P podcast party had been invited to a preview 2 weeks ago and we had a fun time watching that movie.

Craving: Time off. I've been working non-stop for the past 8 months or so (with Christmas being the only exception) and I'm feeling super drained right now. Luckily, there are a few short trips coming up in April and July, so there is that!

What are you wearing right now: Basic black jeans and a white knitted sweater. It's spring but it's still flipping cold in my apartment. Ooph!

How tall are you: 168 cm or 5'5 feet (I guess?)

Piercings: Just the two for my earrings. As I said, I'm *very* basic. :')

Tattoos: Currently I got two but I plan on getting more later this year. Gotta save up some money first.

Glasses? Contacts? I got 3 different glasses (transparent, gold and brown frames) and contacts because I like to switch things up.

Last drink: I'm currently having some coffee with oat milk aka The breakfast of Champions. Or so I keep telling myself XD

Last thing you ate: Chicken wrap with lots of cheese. It was amazing.

Favorite color: My taste in color(s) shifts constantly but I'm currently obsessed with green in various tones. I keep getting back to like a warmer green because it makes me feel very cozy. But I also adore a good color combo of orange and violet/lilac or yellow and dark blue. It depends on my mood.

Current obsession: Truth be told, because of the current state of my mental health, I have a hard time being obsessed about anything. It's not like I can't enjoy things (I know that that feels like and I don't want to get back to *those days*) but there's not hyperfixation that lives rent-free in my head. And you know what? It feels terrible! I miss the feeling of being utterly obsessed about something. I crave that level of excitement, honestly!

Unrelated Obsession: Okay, I guess this means non-fandom obsessions. I do have one of those! A short while back, I read a book by the title "Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World" which was fascinating. I loved that it was not Euro-centric and instead focussed on the achievements of Genghis and his successors. I've been gobbling media with the same or similiar topics – including finally playing "Ghost of Tsushima" which send me reading up on the Mongol invasion of Japan. It's been an intriguing ride!

Any pets: I'm too allergic to have cats, dogs, and other animals and I hate it. I want a little doggo so badly... 💔

Do you have a crush on anyone: IRL? Not anymore. I used to have a crush for most of last year but since he started ghosting me a few months back, I decided to focus my attention elsewhere. I'm *done* with dating and have been for the past couple of years. As for fictional characters... I have to go with Solas, although (as I mentioned) my excitement has died down somewhat. I still love that boy to death but I'm not as obsessed as I used to be.

Favorite fictional character: How dare you make me chose one?! I have a trillion fave characters and they're all precious to me ;_; No, I will not pick one because I truly can't!

The last place you traveled: I went to Cologne, my hometown, three weeks ago, but I assume that doesn't count as traveling. I think my last real vacation was in 2019 when I travelled to the Leipzig Book Fair. Oh my... 😅 (And I was wondering why I felt so drained all the time, lol. Dang... what a reality check. This hurts!).

That's it! Hope you enjoyed the read :3

Time to forward some tags. As always, please feel free to join in or ignore the tag: @serial-chillr @faerieavalon @thebookworm0001 @ohmypawsandwhiskers @pikapeppa @oxygenforthewicked @fiadhaisteach @noire-pandora @ellie-effie. Sending all of you lots of love. I hope you're doing great!

Until next time, lovelies! <3

#personal #tag game #get to know me

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diana-fortyseven · 1 year

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HITMAN - May Patch Preview

Known internally as Patch 3.1.5.0, this update will bring more than 80 bug fixes, tweaks and improvements – with a focus on addressing many points of fan frustration for our new rogue-like mode Freelancer. We’ve also implemented a new location for Contracts Mode, with the ICA Facility’s Freeform Training mission now supported for the first time, giving players more options to be creative. Before we release the full patch notes next week, we want to give you a look ahead at what’s coming up, including a new Prestige feature for Freelancer. Let’s start with that.

Link to the full blog post here, but let's have a closer look at it and discuss everything after the cut! 😀

FREELANCER PRESTIGE

We’re adding a new ‘Prestige’ feature to Freelancer that will give you more reasons to play and earn elusive Safehouse trophies for your collection. The ‘Prestige Laptop’ will be added to the Safehouse and will allow you to increase through five Prestige Levels. You can advance your Prestige Level after you’ve collected all the weapons that can be stored in the Safehouse. At that point, three things will happen:

The base Merces payout and XP gain for completing missions will increase

Adds a Prestige trophy to your Safehouse for each Prestige Level (5 in total)

All items in your inventory, all Freelancer gear, all weapons on the weapon walls and all Merces will be reset to 0, as if you were starting fresh. Your safehouse customisations will not be affected.

Prestige in Freelancer is all about risk/reward. Once you’ve unlocked everything, you can start fresh with a higher base payout and XP bonus, earn the trophies for your Safehouse and show off your Prestige Level.

Okay, this sounds great! It'll be a bit painful to lose all weapons at once, but the XP bonus is very much needed once you reach 90.

And Prestige trophies? What a cute idea. Now I imagine Diana giving them to 47 when she's exceptionally proud of him.

ICA FACILITY CONTRACTS MODE

On May 11th, we’re expanding Contracts Mode to now include the ICA Facility location. More specifically it’s the Freeform Training mission that takes place on the yacht. Many of you will have spent hours and hours here in the HITMAN 1 beta back in 2016 and we’re excited to see what contracts you create here. Look out for some of them in the Featured Contracts section soon!

Still kinda happy about it. It's a fun training mission, and it always felt weird to have Contracts Mode for the final test, but not for the yacht!

I'm not too much into Contracts Mode in general though, so not sure how much I personally get out of it (apart from playing the featured contracts that will come).

NEW UNLOCKS

The Black Bruiser Suit The "HITMAN" Challenge tasks you with completing any Freelancer campaign on Hardcore Mode. We think you’ll agree it’ll be worth it. Plus, if you’ve already managed to do that, the suit will be yours instantly when you launch the game after the patch. Get started now and claim it on May 11.

Finally a reason to play Hardcore Mode.

Exploding Pen As the old phrase goes: ‘explosions speak louder than words’. That’s never been more true with the Exploding Pen you can unlock by heading back into the Patient Zero campaign and eliminating Craig Black under some specific and fitting circumstances. This item was previously an Elusive Target exclusive unlock in HITMAN 2, but we’re making it available to all World of Assassination players through this new challenge.

Still super excited about this! I love not only that they're making the original exploding pen available for everyone, but also even more the challenge they picked for unlocking it!

(Also, can Patient Zero please get more love?)

PATCH NOTE HIGHLIGHTS

At the time of writing, there are 87 individual fixes, tweaks and improvements ready to roll out in this patch. A lot of focus has been on player frustration around the Freelancer mode since launch, but there are also some more general fixes for the game in general that will keep things tight, but also have an impact on Freelancer indirectly.

Oh boy oh boy, let's hope the things that annoy me will get patched!

Only sharing the ones I care about here, read the full list of highlights on IOI's blog!

Spycam Toggle (Freelancer) We’ve added an option to “Hide UI” when using the Spycam. This was in response to player feedback that the UI elements can make it difficult to identify the finer details of a character with the elements permanently visible. For example, seeing whether a suspect was wearing earrings.

YES! That's great, not only because the UI made it impossible to see details at times, but also because it made taking nice photos in Showdowns impossible.

Perfect Shooter Tweak (Freelancer) We’ve made a change to the ‘Perfect Shooter’ objective (Do not miss a shot, you will fail if any shot misses a person), that will make an exception for security cameras or recorders. The objective text has also been updated. In short, you can now shoot security cameras and recorders and still earn the Perfect Shooter objective.

Really? I wouldn't have expected them to listen to those who complained. Not mad about it, because I like to shoot cameras, but how can you think it's unfair that shooting a camera fails an objective that tells you you'll fail it when you fire a shot that misses a person?

SA Recorder (Freelancer) We’ve updated the Prestige Objective description for SA/NF and SA/SO to mention “Destroy Surveillance Recorder” if the player gets recorded. Previously, this wasn’t mentioned and the objectives would be failed on mission completion if the player was recorded but didn’t destroy the recorder.

Happy about it. I usually don't forget, because I always erase the footage before I leave a mission, but so many people failed Hardcore because they didn't know it wouldn't tell them.

SA Reward (Freelancer) We’ve adjusted the Payout objectives and Prestige objectives to make Silent Assassin / SA Suit Only (SASO) and Silent Assasin / No Firearms (SANF) objectives more rewarding.

Fair. I usually pick Silent Assassin objectives, so I'm pleased.

Patient Fox We’ve also removed the forced disguise restriction on the Club Entrance Starting location in Berlin for the main campaign. Same goes for the default starting location of the Patient Zero mission in Hokkaido.

Oh! Oh that's nice! Really happy about it!

Looking forward to May 11th! 😀

#Hitman #Hitman Fandom #Hitman Patch Notes #Hitman Freelancer #Hitman WoA #Hitman World of Assassination #Hitman 3

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femmefatalevibe · 1 year

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Can you give us more details about freelance writing and your personal experience?

Hi love! Yes, gladly.

So, I started out writing for my college's fashion publication and Collegefashionista right before my freshmen year of college (unpaid, of course). After a few PR and editorial internships through my late high school/early college years, I finally heard back from a major outlet that they were seeking freelance fashion writers. I was super excited because of the big name and audience.

I started writing for this publication and got a lot of views on my articles, so I got a lot of emails from publicists/brands and found my way into the world of press previews (seeing new collections a season ahead), meeting with designers/brand VPs, and attending events like Fashion Week. Writing for this outlet gave me the confidence to start pitching stories to several other outlets over the rest of my college career. Some worked out favorably, some didn't, but it's been a very rewarding and great learning experience.

Around my last year of college, I started to also dabble in the blog/copywriting space (where most of my work is now) and found the pace/general lifestyle of this line of work to me more appealing than freelance journalism as my main hustle (I still love doing some work in this field on the side, though!).

Fast forward to post-grad, I started working on a bunch of different types of projects – from editorial assignments and journalism day shifts to copywriting, content writing, content strategy, and fashion styling & creative direction.

Over the past year or so, I've found ways to streamline my freelance writing business by understanding that, at the end of the day, it's a business and it's MY business. Aka my business, my rules (within reason of course – every contract & terms of a project should be mutually beneficial). So, now, I mainly work with different brands & entrepreneurs in the fashion & beauty space to work on all different types of editorial and content/marketing strategy, copywriting and editing, creative direction, consulting, styling, etc. Essentially, I'm a 360-copy and content strategy agency of one. Understanding that I'm a business, not an employee, and have work that demonstrates to other business owners that I'm an expert in my field has been the biggest game-changer for me.

If you have any specific questions on pitching/how to get your foot in the door, please feel free to schedule a time to chat! I know freelance writing is a tough industry to break into and sustain, so I'm glad to offer any advice that I can. Link to my calendar is here: https://calendly.com/femmefatalevibe/30min?back=1&month=2022-11.

Hope this helps xx

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selfproclaimedunicorn · 10 months

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Chapter seven was so cool, I think I’ve said this before on AO3 but the amount of detail you put into this story is unreal. (I mean, I don’t even have the patience to explain the rules of the simplest games like UNO and here you are inventing super detailed games and characters for the kids in your fic to play with. It’s so atmospheric and engaging I just wanna get under a warm blanket with some hot chocolate and read it slowly while it’s raining.

This chapter in particular was so warming because we follow Rhaella’s hopes of her family finally being reunited for good and despite knowing how selfish Daemon is and the improbability of that happening I still felt so heartbroken with her at the end of the chapter where she realized that’s not going to happen.

Reading this fic I always want Ella to see her father for who he truly is and at the same time I don’t want her to find out the truth. Poor girl.

Baby Aemon is so sweet (despite the circumstances under which he was conceived making me see red) and now the thing about the three heads of the dragon coming to bite Daemon in the ass makes a lot more sense. Can’t wait for that to happen.

Every time Daemon hints at the twins marrying each other I want to pull out his hair. Also I noticed him bringing up the fact that he now has two sons to Viserys multiple times so I wonder what he’s trying to achieve with that. I think Viserys is going to suggest Rhaenyra marrying Yorick…

I’m generally soooo excited to see what will happen when the fic reaches the time of episode 1. but also want the twins to stay children for a little while longer because you write kids really well.

You are picking up so much of what I'm putting down & also so nice omg???? Legitimately giggling like a loon reading this, my cat looked so concerned at the outburst.

And yeah, honestly those are my feelings on Ella too. I am foaming at the mouth for when she realizes her dad sucks, but also it's gonna be so sad & I know it will break my poor daughter's heart. The pitfalls of trying to brute force your way into being a daddy's girl when your dad is a died in the wool misogynist.

There's only one more chapter before we get to the events of season one (small preview of the final Event before the show: Borros is getting married). I'm both looking forward to this and dreading this, because it'll be cool but also it will hurt.

BTW, feel free to join me in bonking Daemon each time he's an incest freak about his two oldest kids

#asks #fic: sins of the father #also i cant wait for when we get to Aemon being a little older #my gigantic goth king 💕

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powerup-the-revolution · 1 year

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raw unbridled thoughts because I just saw the KNY movie and I am!!! full of emotions!!!

spoilers galore though so read at your own risk, i know it's not released in US theaters yet but in case you want a "little" preview, here it is !!

MAN!!!!!! i would have paid 12 euros just to see a remake of the last two entertainement district episodes in 4k, but man did I get my money's worth :')

it all started with a quick recap of the first seasons, with Gurenge and Homura as BGM, so the hype was already off the charts. I didn't dare sing along but I mouthed the lyrics and man was it good to hear it all with the images on the big screen ;w;

speaking of sound design though, my cinema's speakers weren't optimal, it felt like the music was coming only from the front and some of the noises were horribly loud. Remember when Gyutaro breaks Tanjiro's fingers? MAN. Overall, the musical experience was wayyyy better at home with headphones, but at least the visuals more than made up for it.

I won't go too much into detail over episodes 10/11, because the screening was pretty much identical to the regular episodes. The end of episode 10 still hits super hard, the sudden quietness and the billowing smoke... simply mindblowing on a large screen. We even had opening and ending credits, which made this very different from the Mugen Train experience, but the audience needed time to breathe haha

Uzui's battle against Gyutaro was really made to be viewed like this. You have a much better sense of all the details ufotable put into the whole thing when you're watching on such a large screen.

alright alright i gotta move on to the most exciting part. The actual opening of S3 played at the very end, so the transition towards the next arc was opened by none other than Gotou, finding the squad all passed out in the rubble. Man do I love this guy, he really feels like the "normal dude that the 20-something audience will root for" trope.

The upper moon meeting was... both mindblowing and somewhat overwhelming. There were lots of flashing effects and very insistent transitions, with (in my opinion) too many visual effects that bloated the scenes without really adding too much to them. I now that ufotable is probably just flexing their skills because this was MADE for cinemas, but still, it felt a little 'too much' to my taste. But then I'm easily overwhelmed by flashing things, so that's surely just a matter of personal preference.

The insistent transitions aside, that scene was just amazing. The inifity castle is an amazing place that reminded me a LOT of that scene towards the end of Interstellar. Muzan's science equipment looked very REAL, I bet that ufotable has been using real life footage to put it together.

And now... I can't really avoid talking about him, can I? Douma. I despise this character with everything I have and I even more despise the way the fandom treats him... and man I'm in for a ride. Curse you Miyano Mamoru. How DARE you be so GOOD at your job??? He's really THE most outstanding cast in the whole series in my humble opinion. I was already in love with the VA for his previous roles (Dazai from BSD!! Rintarou from Steins;Gate!!) and he's bringing the perfect vibe to Douma, I can already feel the fandom misinterpreting him more :') I absolutely cannot wait for his performance in the Infinity Castle. It'll be amazing.

May I also say : thank you Akaza. He had me cheering out loud in my seat when he chopped half of Douma's face off (and immediately got scolded for it like a naughty boy by Dad Kokushibo lmao). Thank you, Akaza. I'd almost forgive you for making Rengoku donuts ;(

I don't have much more to say about the rest of the Upper Moons because they hardly left a impression on me when I read the manga. Their voices are a pretty good fit, and I don't doubt that ufotable will make them shine.

The dream sequence was short but very well done. Alas I must shorten my speech too because I'm so excited to get to the next part.

Cue Gotou walking around with a very tasty looking Castella. Thanks ufotable now I wish I'd bought popcorn. He's funny as always, the way he gets mad at Kanao for not telling anything is even funnier animated, and the apparition of ghost Aoi just the same

And now... ladies and gentlemen and nonbinary folks... it's time... for HIM....

THE CEILING BOAR.....

He definitely got the loudest laugh from the audience out of the whole movie. I feel so proud :') The way he's clinging to the ceiling is just too hilarious, with Tanjirou's like "so Inosuke on the ceiling..." coming before we actually see him, which had the laughter really explode. The comedic timing is absolutely perfect. I cannot wait to make 414630316 giftsets from this scene when the season is released.

Matsuoka really nailed the "SO YOU NOTICED ME, TANPACHIROU!!!" I'd been picturing it in my head for so long and it was exactly as I thought it'd sound like. The book about the honey badger was actually in english, I can't wait to see what else it says when we get a longer look. Inosuke looked like he had no idea what was going on, and Aoi telling him to get off the bed was just perfect. The way she clung to him when Kanao spoke up... *chef's kiss*.

I cannot wait to make a transparent edit of the ceiling boar so it can become my icon on every website forever haha

I have to be honest and say I paid a little less attention afterwards :') i was on a little cloud thanks to the ceiling boar. Though we got to meet some adorable kakushi, the scene of them dancing amongst the crows was really neat. Big up to the Kakushi for all their hard work!

Our good bois go off to work (and Zenitsu destroys the fourth wall by fawning over... Aoi, who yells at him through the shreds of the fourth wall haha), and that's it, that's all we're gonna see of Inosuke and Zenitsu this season ::')))))) hahahaha..... i am not upset at all.....

And then... well, there's some fanservice (and I'm not even talking about the bath scene). An unusual amount of it for KNY. A very very BLERGH from me. Even the audience seemed a little unconfortable. It's nothing harmful, it's just a little dumb and out of place.

The swordsmith village feels a little underwhelming in terms of design and general aesthetic, but it's no wonder when it's coming after the mesmerizing entertainment district. I'm definitely gonna miss the ambience of it all, though ufotable will probably impress me anyways.

Genya's here and he's pissed as always. I cannot unhear the Bakugo in him. Put your teeth back where they belong, boy.

Mitsuri is very wholesome though!!! I'm trying my hardest to cling to her as my favorite character this season (with lil' Kotetsu!! a baby!!). Ufotable, you better treat her well. I am BEGGING you.

aaand I think that's it from me. The hype did not disappoint. As a big fan of Inosuke and Zenitsu, I'm going into this arc without much to expect, as it's by far my least favorite in the series anyway. Still, Ufotable is going to do an awesome job, the characters might grow on me, the voice actors will be mindblowing, the music will be amazing, and well... I cannot wait for what will come next :3c

#kny spoilers #kimetsu no yaiba #demon slayer #kny #long story short: thank you for the good food ufotable #if i didn't have to get up at 6am for work i would have immediately gone back to see it again

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sugoi-and-spice · 2 years

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I noticed you have an overhaul multi chapter fic on your wip list, and in kinda curious to see what it’s about 👀

I do!! It is tentatively titled "Placebo".

The basic plot is Quirkless Reader/OC is sold to the Shie Hassaikai by her Dad to pay off a debt and Chisaki realizes that he can use her as sort of a genetic map to finish the quirk-erasing bullets. She ends up idolizing him as a savior and he decides to use that to his advantage. (Gah, I suck at loglines TT_TT)

Chisaki is a really interesting character to me. And I've noticed a lot of fics with him tend to focus on an obsessed yandere/kidnapper & explicit Non-Con angle - which I don't think is necessarily an incorrect read - but personally, I think one of the reasons he's so powerful in the series is because of what a master manipulator he is even without violence. Most of the Eight Bullets follow Chisaki because of their legitimate devotion to him. The guy has a fucking way with people, particularly with exploiting victims. He doesn't use physical violence against Eri to keep her in line - he uses mental manipulation.

"Someone else is about to die because of you! Is that really what you want, Eri?!"

"How many times do I have to tell you? It's your fault. You break people."

"I always have to get my hands dirty because of your selfishness".

So I'm more interested in exploring that angle through the story of a mutually unhealthy relationship in a long-fic, rather than a straight up violent kidnapper/kidnappee scenario.

I also think the idea of a redemption arc for Chisaki following the loss of his arms is a really interesting challenge too. I started the fic *looks at doc date* WOW, in February 2021 lol. So before the Tartarus Escapees Arc. I was super excited to see what Horikoshi would do with his character when he was out and...

...meh?

From a bigger picture perspective, Chisaki definitely served his purpose. The story needs to go a long way to justify why Deku will save Shigaraki (especially in these recent chapters, holy shit lol), and having him save Chisaki - probably the most heinous villain aside from AFO that he's come across - from the hostage situation with Lady Nagant goes a long way to make that happen. It shows that when Deku says he wants to save everyone - he freaking means EVERYONE.

...buuuuut the villain-stan in me still wishes that the mental state of Chisaki and the making amends with Eri aspect could've been explored more. So I'd like to do that lol. My long-fics tend to be character studies at their core, lol. (One-shots tend to be a little more indulgent xD)

Also ugh Kellen Goff and Kenjiro Tsuda -- Chisaki, has the sexiest fucking voice in both Japanese and English, whaddup - don't @ me lol.

Haha, not me making a whole Overhaul meta from a quick question about a WIP. 😅 I just have a lot of thoughts lmao.

I might post a preview here if people are interested, but the actual fic itself probably won't be out for a while. I would like to finish Time to Pretend first, and the outline and chapters I have written for this project need some serious revisions. The Protag is also a named OC originally, but I've actually been pretty happy with this experiment I tried out with using a 3rd Person Reader/Nameless OC for "Play Nice", so I'm kind of mulling over if I want to give this fic the same treatment.

#kai chisaki #chisaki kai #overhaul #kai chisaki x reader #chisaki x reader #overhaul x reader #mha x reader #kai chisaki x y/n #chisaki x y/n #chisaki overhaul #bnha chisaki #overhaul x oc #overhaul mha #mha #bnha meta #mha meta #spice answers

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dk-wren · 10 months

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Rogers: The Musical First Impressions

Just finished watching a recording of Rogers: The Musical, which I am so happy to finally say, is currently running at the Hyperion Theatre inside Disney's California Adventure theme park on select days through Aug. 31st!

While subject to change, Rogers: The Musical will typically run from Tuesday to Saturday, with performances at 12:30, 2:00, 4:00, and 5:30

Here is a link to the recording I watched, but there are already plenty of videos of the whole show to choose from. Just thought I'd include it since my thoughts may be specific to what I saw in this video.

Summary of Final thoughts: I was very excited about this musical actually becoming a real thing and being developed more. Additionally, I was super interested to see if Disney tried to develop it as a serious musical or leaned more into the satire and comedy of "Save the City." Bottom line, I had so much fun watching it and thoroughly enjoyed it. I am a huge theatre fan, so definitely have a few critiques, but given its constraints, for a first production, really great.

And now, if you are interested, here is my long list of more in depth first impressions/thoughts:

Even based solely on what's been adapted in the MCU, there's still a lot of history that could be covered in a musical about Steve Rogers, which this musical does attempt to cover. So, the pacing is pretty quick.

It's kinda like a slideshow where you see the snapshots, but not the details. The only times it felt like I had a break to just sit and be in the moment was during the songs/musical numbers. Now, I don't think I can necessarily say this is a negative since it is only a 35 minute musical. I just had to sorta shift my expectations.

Building off of that, for a 35 minute, theme park musical, I'd say it's pretty darn good. It had less base material compared to Aladdin or Frozen (the previous two musicals staged in the Hyperion Theatre) that could easily translate to the stage, which allowed this creative team to have a lot of freedom in how to adapt this story for the stage. And, honestly, I really enjoyed their choices.

It's Disney and it's their theme parks. Avengers Campus is literally steps away from this theatre, so they absolutely could have gone all in in designing beautifully elaborate costumes, specifically the super hero suites. But they didn't, and I kinda liked it. Part of the decision for the actors' costumes to look more like everyday clothing likely comes from the design choices made for "Save the City" when it appeared in Hawkeye, but also, if the Captain America walk-around costume was to be the one used in this musical, I feel it would actually look a little out of place. I enjoyed how the costumes weren't one-to-one reproductions, but rather representations of each character and their signature look. You can still clearly tell who is who, but it matches the more minimalist style of the stage design too.

Loved The Starkettes! In terms of costuming, loved how their looks changed between the 40s/USO look and the modern day/business look to reflect the setting. I'm debating if I want to refer to them as the narrators or the chorus, but either way, loved their interactions with the Marvel characters and responses to certain lines in the show.

At least from this video, the projections and digital backdrops looked well done. Loved how there was not an emphasis on making like Times Square look hyper-realistic.

I don't think I'd say the digital backgrounds looked cartoonish, especially in a bad way, but there definitely is an aspect to them that's meant to be stylized. Again, this then compliments the design choices of like 3 comic book covers and that whole sequence about Steve fighting in WWII.

I could be wrong, but Rogers seems to have a smaller cast than Aladdin or Frozen. Absolutely loved their performances, but sometimes it felt like the stage was a little too big or too bare for the size of the ensemble/cast (could also be due to having minimal set pieces). - This is meant as an observation not as a critique

During the scene in which Steve and Peggy are chatting about going dancing before he crashes the plane into the ice, that conversation was translated into a song. And in my head, I was like YES!!! That's how you do a musical adaptation. You take those iconic and emotionally charged lines and put them to music.

Like I said at the very beginning, there's a lot that could be covered in a musical about Steve Rogers, so I kinda appreciated how there was like a mini reprise or continuation of "Save the City" as announcements came about attacks in different locations, which corresponds to all or most of the movies Captain America has been in. It reminded me of "Drive" from The Lightning Thief of quickly condensing a bunch of events/locations into the span of a few minutes, something the musical needed given its runtime.

This way, it acknowledges those events rather than completely ignoring them, but doesn't spend a whole lot of time with each one. The way I interpreted it too, when Cap sings the very last "I can do this all day," it then feels kinda somber in that he is reflecting on having to continuously fight in all these battles, with the expectation of always "saving the city." Plus, I thought it was a great transition to the next song, which in all honesty, I could not tell from the video if it was meant to be pre-serum or old Steve.

Loved how everyone came back out in the end for the finale (it's like memory lane)

Hoping to see it in person. This recording just confirmed to me that I am going to have a good time. Literally, big smile on my face, quietly cheering and whooping throughout the show, I'm just so excited to (hopefully) go to the theatre for a purely fun/good time.

#rogers: the musical #hyperion theatre #california adventure #musicals #musical theatre

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wrestlingisfake · 11 months

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Dominion preview

SANADA vs. Yota Tsuji - Sanada is making his second defence of the IWGP world title. This is Tsuji's first match in Japan since August 2021, when he graduated the NJPW dojo and went on excursion in the UK and Mexico. He returned last month to attack Sanada, putting himself in line for this title match.

To me the draw for this match is how unusual it is. Dominion is New Japan's #2 show of the year, so you'd expect two big names to headline. It's not unheard of for a returning young boy to challenge for a title in his first match back. But a match like that would generally only headline a lesser show, unless the defending champion has the clout to carry the show all on his own. Sanada, however, is still trying to establish his title run isn't a fluke, and that he actually belongs among New Japan's tippy-toppy guys. So this is quite an experiment they've got here.

I still don't have a good sense of Tsuji's post-excursion gimmick or personality, so it's hard to know what to expect. (For comparison, watching Tomoyuki Oka as a Young Lion could not possibly prepare you for his whole deal as Great-O-Khan.) I liked the vibe in his hype videos, about some kind of wolf kaiju arriving in Japan from space, and his outfit makes him look like a dinosaur man, which is cool. Hopefully he gets to showcase a lot of new shit to get us excited for what's next. But Tsuji is not Kazuchika Okada in 2012, and I don't think he's going to win the big one on his first try. Sanada has to retain the title.

Hiromu Takahashi vs. Master Wato - Just days ago Wato won the Best of the Super Jr. tournament to earn a shot at Hiromu's IWGP junior heavyweight title. Notably, Wato completed his victory by beating two guys--Mike Bailey and Titan--who bested Hiromu during the tournament. Oh and this show is in Wato's hometown.

So it seems like Wato is a shoo-in, until you factor in that it's Wato. He returned from excursion in 2020 with an inscrutable grandmaster gimmick and immediately struggled against low-ranking juniors like DOUKI and Yoshinobu Kanemaru. For three years he's been presented like a misfire who's squandering his potential. Even his junior tag title reign felt like Ryusuke Taguchi was doing charity work for him. In singles matches Wato is 0-2 against Hiromu; in fact, Hiromu is junior champion now because he pinned Wato in a four-way to capture the belt from Taiji Ishimori. During BOSJ this year English commentary buried him throughout the tournament.

In short, they've done a masterful job making it feel like Wato can't win the big one, even when the booking suggests that he has to. If he loses here, I don't think there's any coming back from that--he'll be the YOSHI-HASHI of the junior division, jobbing in tag matches for the next decade with a confused look on his face. If he wins, it'll be huge for him...but much like Sanada finally beating Okada, I'll keep wondering if they're really serious about not cutting him off at the knees again.

I'm in the tank for Hiromu, but under the circumstances I'd much rather see New Japan make a new junior star than leave everything as-is. The junior division was feeling pretty stagnant before BOSJ, and having some of the newer faces chasing Wato on top would be just what the doctor ordered. I gotta root for a title change.

Kazuchika Okada & Hiroshi Tanahashi & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Jon Moxley & Shota Uminio & Claudio Castagnoli - Okada's team captured the NEVER trios title on May 3, and Umino quickly challenged them on behalf of Moxley. The third challenger, Castagnoli, is Moxley's teammate from the Blackpool Combat Club in AEW. The BCC is fresh off a major victory in an eight-man brawl against the Elite on May 28, and I guess they're still out for blood. Kenny Omega has been teasing getting help against the BCC from a friend in Japan; this match could give Okada a reason to be that friend.

Newcomers might be confused that Shota is buddies with the BCC. Basically in 2019 Moxley beat the breaks off of him and then "adopted" him as his personal young boy. I assumed the Shooter would come out of excursion with a Mox-inspired mean guy gimmick, but instead Shota returned to New Japan in 2022 wearing white, with happy uplifting music, and handing toys out to children. But he and Mox are still tight and they like to beat ass together, so it's all good. I'm not sure if Umino is officially a member of the BCC but he might as well be.

I can't clearly see where any of these guys go after this match, whether the champs retain or not. The only direction that even sort of makes sense is: Mox's team wins, beats down Okada, Omega runs in to make the save, so at Forbidden Door it's Okada & The Elite vs. BCC & Umino in a ten-man tag. So I guess that's my prediction, let's see if it happens.

David Finlay vs. El Phantasmo - This is for Finlay's NEVER championship. Finlay took over Bullet Club a few months ago and ELP was never happy with it, so Finlay finally turfed him out of the group back in April. Phantasmo returned for revenge last month, moments after Finlay won the NEVER belt. I've never seen ELP perform except as a douchebag heel covered in Bullet Club gear, so his reinvention as an anti-Bullet Club babyface should be something to see. But yeah, Finlay is going to murder this poor man.

Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI vs. EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi vs. Great-O-Khan and Aaron Henare - This is a three-way match for two vacant titles, the IWGP heavyweight tag team championship and the STRONG tag team championship. Aussie Open--Mark Davis and Kyle Fletcher--had held both titles until Davis was injured. Originally this match was Davis-Fletcher vs. Goto-Yoshi vs. Evil-Yuj, for only the IWGP title. Then it became two-on-two for both sets of belts. Then Khan and Henare demanded to represent the United Empire in place of Davis and Fletcher.

I hate to say it but it feels like the strongest move right now is to put the belts on Evil and Yujiro. Then you get 3-6 months of babyface teams trying to overcome House of Torture shenanigans, which is a quick fix for losing whatever story they had in mind for Aussie Open. Hell, maybe they can book Evil and Yujiro vs. Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal at Forbidden Door. Man, I'm just full of terrible ideas in this paragraph.

Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Jeff Cobb - This is a rematch from May 3, when Cobb challenged for the NJPW World television title but the match went to a 15-minute time limit draw. Neither man was happy with that outcome and immediately agreed to run it back. The first match was great, but the pitch here is "what if we did that great match again but shorter?" Yeah, I'm not a fan of the 15-minute time limit stuff. Sabre should retain.

KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight vs. TJP & Francesco Akira - The Intergalactic Jet Setters (Kushida and Knight) won the IWGP junior tag team title from Catch 2/2 back in April, and this is the rematch. A month ago I thought Catch 2/2 would fall out of contention, but during BOSJ, TJP beat Kushida and Akira beat Knight, which made this match inevitable. Kushida finished BOSJ with a miserable 2-7 record, so unless they're really breaking this guy down for a storyline his team desperately needs a win. I think they'll get it.

Tetsuya Naito & Shingo Takagi & Titan & BUSHI vs. Taichi & TAKA Michinoku & DOUKI & Yoshinobu Kanemaru - Taichi's team are four of the guys in Just 5 Guys; the fifth guy, world champion Sanada, used to be in Naito's Los Ingobernables de Japon stable. The two groups have been fighting ever since. It's starting to seem like this will keep going until Naito challenges Sanada at the Tokyo Dome in January. For now, though, I don't expect anything important to come out of this match, so it probably doesn't matter who wins.

Will Ospreay vs. Lance Archer - This the final match in a four-man tournament to decide the next challenger for the IWGP United States title. Kenny Omega won that title from Ospreay back in January. I was at the last Ospreay-Archer match back in 2019, and it was an unexpected treat, so I'm looking forward to seeing them square off again. Personally I'd be cool with Archer winning and going on to face Omega, so either outcome here is fine with me. But it's pretty clear the plan is to book Omega-Ospreay II, probably at Forbidden Door.

#njpw #dominion #sanada #yota tsuji

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emmym1 · 3 months

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My thoughts on... Avengers Arena 2012 (#1-6) "Kill Or Die"

So after reading through Avengers Academy and the X-23 comics I was very excited to start this series! It's really nice to catch up again with the cast of Avengers Academy as they're a really fun group. Although the fun didn't last long as they were put in a killing game! When I first learned about this series I was very surprised about Marvel doing a Hunger Games-style comic with a bunch of their young heroes, but I was also very intrigued. And so far it hasn't dissapointed! The first issue alone had me shook when they killed off Mettle. A really sad moment honestly, everytime Mettle and Hazmat find some sense of peace and happiness with each other it gets ripped away from them. It was really gutwrenching to watch how Mettle exploded in mere seconds. Red Raven was also a character that didn't survive the first issue. I really wish she would've because her design is really cool! It was also very interesting to meet other unfamiliar characters, such as the Braddock Academy. I really love how at first they kind of seem to mirror the Avengers Academy. But then as you get to know them it turns out they're all horrible people who hate each others guts. Kid Briton especially. When you first meet him, you think he's this likeable guy but then as the story progresses you really come to learn how messed up, terrible and self centered he is in all the worst way. Although in the end he didn't survive the first 6 issues as well. But I really loved how they set up the Braddock Academy and subverted expectations with it. Another really cool thing about this series is how besides all the craziness of a killing game, they still make time to explore some of the characters on a more personal level. Rebecca Ryker and Chase Stein especially stood out. They both had some very interesting exploration in this. With Rebecca you have this seemingly innocent girl who went through a lot and really is in over her head in this killing game while seemingly having a secret darker side. I'm really intrigued as to where that storyline will go. And with Chase you have someone who's more affraid of winning that dying, which I found to be a really interesting mindset. And they explored it super well! It was really nice to see the Avengers Academy group up and take care for each other even though Hazmat is very on edge due to what happened to Mettle. I didn't like how they acted towards the Runaway members in the game though. They've been through some stuff together and litterally have stood in each others shoes, yet the Avengers Academy members really don't treat them in the right way and trust them a lot less than they should've. It was kind of sad to see the Runaways get chased away like that by them. I'm also very worried for Laura Kinney as she's been exposed to a seemingly new version of the trigger scent, so I wonder what's going to end up happening to her. The preview of day 29 in the first issue doesn't seem to indicate she will be affected by the trigger scent for a long time! These first 6 issues were a strong start for this series. Each issue left me wanting to read more immediatly and it hooks you so well into the story. They balance all the different groups really well while still making them to explore characters on a personal level. It's going to be interesting to see how things will evolve from here on out. Especially with the Braddock Academy being at each others throats and a trigger scent exposed Laura running loose.

#avengers academy #avengers arena #laura kinney #x 23 #comics #marvel #earth 616 #marvel comics

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cyarsk52-20 · 9 months

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The Very Dramatic Final Episode Of "Vanderpump Rules" Aired Last Night, And It's All I Want To Discuss

I'm still thinking about the "big reveal" in the final few minutes, TBH. Also, Tom Sandoval's comment about Ariana Madix wearing a T-shirt during sex is going to have me upset until at least 2055.

Posted 6 hours ago

Well, we made it. It's finally here: the last part of the reunion for Vanderpump Rules Season 10. This week, we finally get to see Raquel Leviss face the music — or just her other castmates — and the last five minutes promise to knock our socks off.

So I have my Peacock account logged in, my heart is beating fast, and my fingers are ready to type every single thought I have about this moment in cultural history so we can experience this together. All of that to say, the third and final reunion episode of Vanderpump Rules Season 10 aired last night, and it's time to GET INTO IT.

OK, I am immediately starting the episode — and I'm going with the uncensored version again, for obvious reasons. This is something I have only dreamed of being able to do since I began watching this show in 2013, and I am so excited to have this option now.

And for anyone who needs a quick refresher on what has already transpired, check out last week's recap here.

The episode kicks off — and we immediately get into a small recap from last week and a small preview for this episode. We see Ariana Madix crying and saying, "I can't think of two worse people, I can't," and then a tease of the big reveal of Raquel "telling the truth" at the end. And now it's finally time for Raquel to get on this stage and film with the rest of the cast. I am waiting with bated breath, quite frankly. She enters as Scheana Shay has to leave to go to a trailer 100 yards away because of the restraining order Raquel filed. SO dramatic, LMAO. But the shots of Scheana in said trailer? Already iconic. Here she is clutching a White Claw hard seltzer.

Raquel says she is "super embarrassed" and "not proud" of herself. She also acknowledges that she owes a lot of people apologies. Right away, we get into the girls trip and how the ladies treated her. I truly would not have been on Lala Kent's or Katie Maloney's side on this trip a mere three months ago. Raquel was doing extremely questionable things we now know, yes, but bringing galaxy lights to a hotel room was not one of them. Who cares!

I could've sworn the channel accidentally changed to a commercial for Lisa Vanderpump's Las Vegas restaurant, but no, it's still the reunion, and Lisa is selling it well. We learn that the reunion lights are modeled after LVP's restaurant. Listen, I could have done without this ad, but I will still visit next time I am in Vegas.

We then get a flashback to Raquel's panic attack in the car on the way to the girls trip in Lake Havasu, and I think we can all agree that this outburst makes so much more sense now. It was nice for the women to show up for Raquel in that moment.

At this, Ariana interjects to say that the word "selfish" does not cover a description of Raquel and that she's "subhuman," among other things. Raquel responds that she thinks her actions "are human." Tom Sandoval then attempts to interject to...defend Raquel? Argue with Lala because he hates her? Yell at a woman because he enjoys that? It's honestly unclear, and even though I side-eye every single thing this man has to say, I would still like to hear it, and Lala and James Kennedy seem incapable of allowing this to happen. They tell him to shut up every time he opens his mouth, which, while it's a MOOD, also makes for an odd reunion viewing experience.

Andy Cohen brings up the fact that Raquel brought up Ariana and Sandoval's relationship on camera to Ariana — even discussing their sex life — and called it "diabolical." Raquel says that it was "so hard for [her] to watch" and that they had only slept together once at this point, and she had been encouraging Sandoval to "reflect and see if he was really happy" and figure out what he really wanted.

From there, things escalate quickly. As Raquel is describing how she "just wanted Tom to be happy, blah-blah-blah," Ariana chimes in and tells Raquel to "fuck [herself] with a fucking cheese grater" and says she "wishes nothing but the worst things that could ever happen to a person on you." I feel so conflicted in this moment. It's beyond obvious why Ariana is upset — more than upset, really — and I would feel the exactsame way. But telling Raquel to fuck herself with a cheese grater is something I personally could have lived without hearing my entire life!!!!

After this, Tom Sandoval thinks it's an amazing idea to chime in and let everyone know, "The thing is, we don't live our lives by logic," and everyone starts laughing, including me, because what the fuck are you even talking about, Tom?? And also, more importantly, we know????

Also, it's important to note that we occasionally get shots of Scheana eating what appears to be Sun Chips in her trailer 100 yards away, and I would like someone to please frame these and send them to me and I will put them in a living room, thank you so much.

Raquel then interjects to say that Lala and James can't talk because they hooked up while she and James were together and "kept it a secret." Let's get this out of the way now: I completely agree that James and Lala should self-reflect about their actions a little bit more, but it is also most definitely not the same situation, and it's OK to acknowledge this, too. Which Lala does with several uses of the word "bitch" and even at one point the term "ho." Also, Tom Sandoval tries to do a James Kennedy British accent impression, and even though I HATEEEEE to admit this, he was not terrible. SUE ME!!!!

Lala's past is then brought up — Raquel says she was Randall Emmett's mistress — and Lala says she is not a mistress and she is "so fucking done with this mistress comment" because she "is not one." Which is interesting, because it feels like any time this is brought up, she absolutely loses it and refuses to actually discuss the fact that she was very much with a married man at the beginning of their relationship. She says that she was lied to for a very long time, he gave her a ring, and she believed he had been separated. And I believe that is true. But it doesn't negate the fact that he was married. It is OK to say, "Hey, I didn't know, but I know now, and I wish that things had been different." Instead, we get Lala yelling about how she is not going to tolerate this and it's like, if you are going to call out cheating, you have to expect this on some level.

Anyway, Sandoval keeps yelling at Lala, and then Lala says, "He hates me because I see him for who he is," and I agree with this. I also think Sandoval hates a woman who shares her opinions and dares to go against him in any way. See: Ariana, Lala, Katie, Stassi Schroeder, Kristen Doute, etc.

BTW, we also have to deal with LVP defending Garcelle Beauvais's son, Oliver (who was married when he made out with Raquel, according to his then-wife), and saying he's innocent or whatever. We absolutely did not need more of LVP defending questionable men, so I am moving on!

Annnnd now we're on to Tom Schwartz and Raquel, who claim they "always had real chemistry," which is so funny because I want to know when Schwartz felt the real chemistry and if it was when Raquel was clearly having a long-term affair with his bestie Tom Sandoval. Raquel is also asked about Katie's mom Teri's reaction to Raquel pursuing Schwartz and whether it impacted her. She says yes, but everyone laughs because, how did it impact you, girlie? You still made out with Schwartz in Mexico!?!??!

We have moved on, which is a relief because I honestly could barely keep up with who was saying what, and it's now time to discuss Tom Schwartz and Raquel making out. I have said it once and I will say it again: I am Team Katie on this one. You can disagree and be wrong, and that's your right. But it seems pretty clear that Katie asked Schwartz not to make out with a cast member in their group, and he blatantly disrespected this, and they both laughed in her face about it. And while I do see Schwartz's argument on some level, I think his past behavior as One of the Worst Husbands Ever negates anything he has to say on the topic.

Now we shift back to discussing James and Lala hooking up when he was with Raquel: I do wish both James and Lala would straight-up say that what they did while he was dating Raquel was wrong. It was wrong!!!!! Point blank, period. Raquel having an affair with Sandoval a couple of years later does not negate this at all. Raquel even says, "It seemed like she had no respect for me," and Lala says, "I still don't." Listen, Lala, this is my issue with you. You can resent her now because you have a reason to, but please stop pretending that you "knew all along." You may have disliked her, you may have questioned her character, but neither of these things makes sleeping with her boyfriend when you knew they were in a relationship together OK.

Raquel then starts trying to share that she believes Lala was resentful that she was getting attention from James when they started dating that took some attention away from Lala — and Lala calls Raquel "my love" before asking her to get "mentally evaluated." It's a moment that is probably meant to sound like an amazing read, but mostly it just makes me sad. I don't condone anything that Raquel has done, but I also can't help believing that she probably is really struggling right now. Someone who does this is struggling on some level. And when Raquel responds that she is being mentally evaluated, to a chorus of "thank god"...it's, in one word, dark.

Andy then asks Lala about why Raquel making out with Schwartz was "unforgivable" to her but no one really seemed to care when it came out that James and Lala slept together — and James says they should stop bringing up stuff from five seasons ago because they have so much to talk about now. AKA: I don't want to talk about the things I've done because we now have someone in the cast who has done worse and I want to focus in on that. And, like, I GET IT. But again, WHAT YOU DID WAS WRONG, AND IT'S OK TO SAY THAT. IF YOU DID, IN FACT, SAY THAT, WE COULD ALL MOVE ON. :)

James is then asked about throwing a drink in Schwartz's face, and he says that he did it because making fun of his DJ career is unforgivable, which is not meant to be funny but is actually very fucking funny. He then insists that Schwartz should apologize before being reminded that he has, in fact, apologized a lot and James has yet to apologize for throwing the drink, and James then delivers what I guess could be considered an apology.

We head into a break before seeing LVP tell James, kindly, to STFU so that they can get through the segments, and I am fully with LVP on this one. A James interjection every now and then is funny, but it's becoming incessant, and I WANT TO HEAR WHAT THESE RATS HAVE TO SAY.

We are back from the break. Tom Sandoval and Raquel being seen together at the Abbey is brought up. According to Ally, it was 1 a.m. and they were alone. The "Tom and Ariana being in an open relationship" rumor is then brought up, and the question is posed whether or not Sandoval started this rumor on his own. Ariana says that yes, she thinks so. Raquel also apparently told someone after Coachella in 2022 that Sandoval told her that he and Ariana were open, and Raquel's response was, "I would rather hook up with Ariana than him." I gasped, but you can't hear it.

Raquel is asked where she has been staying since this all broke, and she says she stayed with her sister before driving out to Tucson, Arizona, to be with her family. Sandoval says, "Yeah, we've hung out" when asked if he had seen Raquel since this all broke. Raquel reveals that she thought about skipping the reunion because she is so "ashamed and embarrassed," and that she is "so sorry to Ariana for betraying her." I mean, remorse is nice, to see. It's.......something......

Ariana then says, "My dog had just died, I cried in your fucking arms, and you thought, I should go fuck her boyfriend." Raquel does not argue with Ariana when she tells Raquel that she's "lower than the fucking lowest of low people." She also calls her a "psychopath" and a "dementor" because "I know you like Harry Potter..." LMAO, not a dementor! OK, that was funny.

Raquel admits that she is still in love with Sandoval — OMFG — and then Andy asks him if he feels the same, and he takes a massive pause before saying, "I'm sorry...yes."

Lala tells a visibly upset Ariana that "they both did this for you" and that Ariana will one day be grateful that they revealed who they are. Ariana then looks Raquel straight in the eyes and tells her, "You are nothing. Let that sink in. I know it's not hard for you to let other people's thoughts go in your brain because you never have a fucking original thought of your own; you are nothing." With this, Raquel walks off the stage in need of "a water." I'm sorry — maybe an unpopular opinion? — but this is not as fun for me to watch as I expected. It is very bleak! I know many of you may not agree, but watching a silent Raquel sit there as people tell her she's nothing is not nearly as satisfying as I would have once believed it would be. It's just...sad.

Andy asks about the support Ariana received, and Sandoval reveals that he was hurt by the fact that "people who were just as close to both of [them]" took to the internet to create funny memes instead of reaching out via text. I am screaming. This is such classic Sandoval: "Nobody texted ME to check in on ME after I cheated on and publicly humiliated my long-term girlfriend in a horrific way." I mean, my GOD, Tom.

Sandoval is asked about dressing up as Raquel for Halloween — Ariana helped him plan his outfit— and they all ask how the fuck he was able to do this because it is undeniably FUCKING WEIRD. He has no explanation, but his only explanation would be, "I am a disgusting man who definitely got off on this secret affair."

Ariana is then asked about her egg freezing — and she says the eggs are "just frozen" and not fertilized with Tom's sperm, and "thank god," because she "doesn't want that DNA mixed with [hers]." Andy asks Sandoval if Raquel is the only woman he's slept with, and he says yes, but Ariana and others interject to mention a woman in Chicago.

Oh my god. I just had to pause the episode and rewind to make sure I heard correctly. I AM ABOUT TO THROW HANDS, AND I DO NOT EVEN CONDONE VIOLENCE. I am shaking! OMG, this man is disgusting. Ariana says that Sandoval had actually slept with her while he was with Raquel, to which Sandoval interjects with, "Yeah, she kept her T-shirt on, it was really hot." YOU MOTHERFUCKER. YOU ARE LUCKY SHE EVEN SPOKE TO YOU. I am not going to dignify this disgusting comment with any more attention. Fuck that.

This was also my face watching this man open his goddamn mouth.

I am still shaking. Fucking Tom Sandoval. The audacity. Just the lowest of LOW. But now Andy is asking Raquel about the fact that people are calling her Rachel, and she reveals that her friends refer to her as Raquel and her family refers to her as Rachel. She says, "Anytime someone says your name out of the preferred name that you want, it's disrespectful, and Lala would know." Lala then calls her a "moron," which is not hitting the same way from someone whose real name is Lauren!

Sandoval admits that Raquel has met his family, but maintains that it was at the opening of (the wildly underwhelming) Schwartz and Sandy's. When asked when their relationship went from a "one-night stand" to a full relationship, Sandoval says that it became a relationship in "January" and that he told Schwartz he was in love during that month. When asked where they would be a year from now, Raquel says she doesn't know, and when Sandoval is asked, he can't answer because James is shouting about how they are both going to live "in a fucking house made of dog shit" or in a "poo-poo house" because they are both "poo-poo heads." I need James to eat a lollipop and take a time-out.

Schwartz then says that he told Sandoval he needed to tell Ariana so that it didn't come out. If Schwartz did say this, Sandoval clearly didn't listen. And with that, it is somehow already time for Raquel to leave the stage so that Scheana can come back and hopefully perform "Good as Gold." Just kidding, but I do wish. It's a bop.

Lala interjects to say that she's thrilled Ariana is away from Sandoval because he's toxic — and Raquel agrees, which is wild...girl, run, save yourself, etc.??? — before Sandoval interjects to say that "Lala doesn't love Ariana dearly," to which Lala responds, "I do love Ariana dearly, enough that I ate her cookie in the back of your car, and I'd do it again." LMAOOOO, LALA!! OK, 10 points for Lala. She won in this moment. I barely even heard anything after this because I was laughing. Sorry to whatever Raquel said.

We're getting close to the end here, and still no massive revelation. We saw ALL KINDS OF RUMORS, from Raquel allegedly being pregnant to there being alleged threesomes, to James and Raquel breaking up because of Sandoval, and more. While I have no idea what it is, I hope I am not disappointed. It's time for final thoughts from the group, which means we are GETTING CLOSE.

I am so excited for the reveal that I can almost barely clock anything else that is happening. Scheana says she doesn't want another child anytime soon, and Katie wants to avoid another marriage and perhaps wants to be a cool aunt. Normally I would probably care about all of this, but right now I NEED THE REVEAL!!! OK, BTW, now Sandoval is crying and saying that he is a human who made a terrible mistake and that he will always love Ariana and "cheer her on from afar." I genuinely wish I believed him. I will say this: I hope he works on himself. But considering that like a week ago, he was going off on Instagram stories on a female journalist over nail polish, my hopes aren't high!

Ariana's final thoughts are that she is grateful for everyone — except Sandoval and Raquel — for being there for him and that she "will not forgive him and will not be cheering him on from afar." Chills. Poetry. Etc. I am glad she gets the final word here. She deserves it and more.

Oh my god, OK, everyone, get in your position, the episode is ending. There are approximately five minutes left. IT'S ALL HAPPENING.

We see everyone walk off. Ariana leaves in a car. Things seem normal. And then we get WHITE TEXT ON A BLACK SCREEN. IT'S HAPPENING. It says, "Six days later, Raquel sat down for her final interview of the season." OH MY GOD, IS SHE GOING TO TURN ON TOM SANDOVAL??? A SOLO INTERVIEW?? NO COACHING??

OK, it's Raquel, and it's a talking head interview. She says that it's important for her to tell the truth and she "doesn't want to lie anymore." She says it's not worth trying to keep up any lies — including timelines — because it's already all out there and she essentially has to face the music. She admits that she maintained some untruths, or lies, at the reunion. When asked why she did this, she says she felt that it would be less hurtful to say that it wasn't an ongoing affair but, rather, isolated incidents.

When asked when the affair became a regular thing, she admits it was ongoing during filming and that the second time they hooked up, they were IN MEXICO FOR SCHEANA'S WEDDING. Which is why you definitely cannot convince me the Schwartz thing wasn't a cover. But moving on. The producer then asks if they had sex "multiple times" while in Mexico for Scheana's wedding, and Raquel says yes.

She says that she "doesn't remember how often it would happen" but it was a regular thing that picked up speed after they wrapped filming.

She also says that she did meet Sandoval's mom in Los Angeles and his mother was aware of the situation, although Raquel denies that she went to St. Louis with Sandoval (despite the fact that production has a picture of Raquel and Sandoval in St. Louis — amazing editing). The producer tells Raquel that he can read her face, to which she responds, "I know, I don't have a good poker face," and the producer encourages her to just admit it, which is when Raquel finally admits that yes, she did go to St. Louis and she "definitely felt really guilty."

When asked about the Jacuzzi night — the infamous Ken Todd reveal — Raquel says that they did not hook up that night, but then says that he asked her to say that and he is the only person she has right now, so she doesn't feel that she can betray him, because then she would "really have nobody." It's so obvious this man manipulated her. It's sick.

With this, she starts crying and says that this is the one story that she and Sandoval agreed they would get straight, and that Sandoval wanted to lie about it because it was "a really bad look" to hook up with someone's boyfriend when they went out of town for a funeral. She says all this through tears, and it's both satisfying and horrifying for her to finally admit this.

Wow. I did not expect to see a one-on-one unplanned interview with Raquel, and while it was not the reveal I had built up in my head, it was a satisfying ending to an incredible season of television for me. I am sorry that so many people had to get hurt for this television show to happen, but my god, it was fascinating to watch.

And say what you want about Raquel, but I think she is possibly finally understanding the full scale of what happened and is feeling the consequences of her actions. I truly hope she can grow from this and find the confidence to realize that Tom Sandoval is not the answer, and that real change and growth are possible.

Sent from my iPhone

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