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the-acid-pear · 3 years

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I just can't get enough it seems, time to start the next Baki the Grappler book!

It seems that this one will take on the saga i saw on the anime (at least by the end) so that's exciting

Chapter 1

First off quality is SHIT lmao

Yesss i remember this. I still think that shit about everyone trembling is a lil... Mmmm bullshit.

Baki be like <:] but in a smug way

Look at Tokugawa my man

OH RIGHT HE LEFT THE TOURNAMENT WITH A CAST

This feels so random

Oh right the synchronicity shit

Baki is so -_- in this manga

Look at the old timer go

YEAH FR TOKUGAWA JUST BROUGHT EXPLOSIVES TO A SCHOOL FULL OF CHILDREN TO MAKE A SHITTY ANALOGY SHSHWKWGGE FREAK OLD MAN

Chapter 2

Ahegao

Epic grandpa

HO NICE

Mf really swam thru the Pacific ocean

Chapter 3

Huh i thought he was Scottish

This random guy was pretty interesting looking, the one executing Doyle

Fucked up shit how they still do this stuff

King, i can somehow still remember his voice in particular fsr

Also since no one reads this i will say it: Doyle does NOT look white ahagdbafhsdbc

I like that he didn't bother killing the doctor

Is that Strydum? 🥺👉👈

Chapter 4

Shagddjd i was going to say that, this dude could have easily taken a different path from violence

GAARN? MY MAN? MY BELOVED GARLAND? IS HE ALIVE STILL?!

FFS NOT FOR LONG HHH LOOK HOW THEY MASSACRED MY BOY...

I mean it's fair, Sirkosky uses weapons, but man, Garland... :'/

This all hits so different once you know the characters :]]]

Chapter 5

That pic is still so brutal

What an absolute troll shsshwgxgd

Also fun fact when i watched the anime i didn't pay much attention at first so I assumed the Russian was Spec (i didn't even know Sirkosky's name)

I love how that was unnecessary shagdhsr

ADAGDFAGAFAD this guy was also great

Spec was fucking insane man aggsggahsfg

I love he's full of tattoos

The absolutely king

OH RIGHT Spec is sus *laugh track*

Chapter 6

Oh hell yeah, grandpa's ex

Baki tf you doing there in the cover you madlad

...bottom storage.

THEY ARE SO MEAN LEAVE HIS SHORT ASS ALONE SHSGJSGS

He's my size btw

Was there a motive for him to be naked or was he just a freak btw?

I love the shape of his eyes ngl

I love how scared the guards are while he just calmly rambles

I don't wanna call yanagi my grandpa because i think yanagi can get it and it would be like calling him daddy but the Gilf™ is Dorian man life is so hard when you are me

I love Yanagi's face lol he's handsome

Chapter 7

Poor Baki lmao he just got better from the maximum tournament and now this

Lmao Baki has a point

Unnecessary, Doyle

Chapter 8

I love how they were recruiting dangerous mfs to beat up this random guy bc his vibes are fucked up

This guy looked a lot like jack

You gotta be brave to shove a knife that sharp into your pants

I love how Baki literally did nothing to em

Baki's face just looks wrong this isn't my beloved child

Imagine you are about to fight this mf and he just shoves his hand inside his pants

Chapter 9

This dude really looks like, fully japanese jack hanma

JWGWKEGWKSGE I LOVE HIM

I love how Spec just showed up dressed up as a fucking monk or something

Chapter 10

You guys know, Dorian reminds me of my now dead great grandfather, with the moustache look even more.

Not impressed, 15 yo Hanayama did the same when throwing a tantrum

He's so insane i luv him

Okay but look at the cut of that outfit look at how well it hugs his chest and waist but flows bellow... Spec my dude you could have been a mad good model 😐 he's even giving me gender envy! 🥺

I love how Baki used both his hands for the handshake

Chapter 11

Ho, speak of the devil, i was just talking of this fucker with Blood

Mf got so old

I like how there was no motive for him to be naked he literally is just Like That

Also it's from here that he got that wasp waist lmao

Mf just flexing at this point lmao

GRANDPA!! <3

Yanagi got cake

That's so unnecessary rude, obsessed. Also, as if you weren't old Yanagi. I see why they broke up now ;/

Chapter 12

11 and 12 are the same fsr

Chapter 13

I honestly wonder where these prisoners got their clothes, like, aside from Doyle that one time everyone else is never shown shopping or even owning money

Also i love the fact that on a daily basis i dress the same as Spec, that definitely says something bout me jagsjsgwhwfwg 😭

To be honest, considering the size of Spec's body, they should definitely feed him more

He didn't wash his hands 😢

Dick and balls too strong ajgshsgsg

I love how fucking, polite he is.

Oh i see, i thought he might have stolen a wallet or something but nah

Btw i genuinely don't remember shit JAGSKSGWJGS even if it watched the anime i forgot most of this

Chapter 14

GOD the way the anime butchered Katsumi, he's so handsome in the manga in comparison 😐

Also i like how they aren't explaining this like, Katsumi was the one who lost, did he wait until Retsu was okay to fight again in HIS ("") dojo?!

RETSU STOP DOING THESE SORT OF TRICKS THAT'S PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE AJDGSJSG

HE'S JUST BUILT DIFFERENT

Okay he actually explained, oddly nice of Retsu to accept tho

Hoho this scene hits different now that i know and like Katsumi

Also I'm not even gonna question where Doppo is, dude is never just around skdgksgd

Chapter 15

I love this genre of cover

WHITE BOY SJDGSJGSHS-

I love that retsu is just watching, he's still an asshole QJGSJSGWH

If i didn't know Katsumi I would say he died

I did actually think he had died when watching the anime

Retsu still has his thicc ass i see

Chapter 16

See all this makes sense now that i know retsu and the shit he has seen and been thru!

Angry lad, lucky his hair didn't burn

I DIDNT EVEN REALIZE HE EXTINGUISHED THE FIRE WITH HIS SCREAM

Chapter 17

Ahegao in the cover

I'm looking at the pages and I'm obsessed with Doppo being described as a "bold, badass karate master", it's so accurate <3

Also Igari being called eccentric, and the mention he defeated Mount Toba!! <3

Baki is slowly looking more like Baki

"my mother is dying"

Tasks keep failing successfully

Chapter 18

mAh boy...

That happens and it's the worst

Musashi you good boy 🥺

Chapter 19

Igari <33

That's insane

Chapter 20

I love that Igari looks legitimately worried and sad, not sweating tho

I love how he didn't have any serious damage until the punches like, okay.

Poor Igari tho

DID HE CHEW EM OFF OR SOMETHING? SHSHWGEGCH

Was anybody going to tell me is Sikorsky and not Sirkosky?

Also i love how legitimately scared Tokugawa is, probably more than when Yujiro picked him up

Chapter 21

The heights are so off in this saga

Oh my fucking god i didn't know Spec was 221

Either heights are all over the place or Yanagi is not 160

Either way HOW CAN YOU BE THAT SMALL? 🤣

GAFSFWEAD Tokugawa like "i own this place 😐"

Doyle is still the most decent one of the bunch

URSURSUTSUSTSRU

LOOK AT YANAGI DORIAN AND SIKORSKY ALREADY GETTING THEIR HANDS READY SBDGSHW

I googled how big Andreas from the tournament was and like, 2.40 😦

LET'S GOOOOO EVEN WITH A BEARD OMFG 😳😳😳

I see Hanayama descended into alcoholism after losing in the tournament. Also tf is with that bag? Was he hiking or something?

Jsgsjsgd Shibukawa is so excited too

I think this is chronically the first time Doppo appears with fully casual clothes, usually he either was in a suit or in his karate uniform

I'm straight up simping to the public now sgsjsgwhw

Chapter 22

LOOK AT THESE DUDES..... 💞

FUCK I WAS GONNA SAY THERE WERE MORE BAD THAN GOOD GUYS THEN LOOKED DOWN AND REALIZED THAT NO, SHIBUKAWA WAS JUST NEARLY OUT OF FRAME 😭

They all look so upset about that information

SIKORSKY NAME GOT SPELLED AS SILCOSKI...

Looking at them drives me insane i developed such a bond with all these fighters

I haven't seen Doppo this excited since last time his wife showed up

BAKI SWEARING?! 😰

How did Tokugawa grab Baki's shoulder?

ALSO WHY TF IS BAKI SO SURPRISED AS IF HE DIDNT GO AROUND BEATING UP PEOPLE WHEN HE WAS 13...

Don't worry Baki y'all will, Tokyo is not that big it seems

Shibukawa swearing 😨

"Imagine being mid but and Spec pulls up on you" "imagine having sex and she takes the mask and it's fucking Spec"

To be fair i would fuck a 2.21 muscular lady without going "hmmm this doesn't seem like a good idea..." in any moment

Chapter 23

I love how Dorian is just looking up

ACTUALLY ALL THEIR STANCES, Yanagi making dead eye contact with Gouki, Sikorsky with a firm pose just as Hanayama, Doyle with hiss chest up but eyes down giving a sense of pride, and, well, then there's Spec being Spec.

I like seeing Sikorsky having fun

I love Spec he played so smart SGSGSGS

😳 love wins!

Oh i had already forgotten about the dojo

Old man Dorian just has that effect on people

Threesome i see /j

He really was just fucking hiking i would love if they ever explained that ough 🥺

Did his facial hair just disappear?? STSGSFSD

BWHEKEGWJG THEY REALLY JUST FORGOT TO ADD IT FOR ONE PANEL IM OBSESSED

Such a good kick tho

The relationship these men can have is so oddly nice like not Doppo and Retsu specifically but all of the fighters in general. Like many of them barely know each other, but they all know their fighting styles and respect each other, plus have no reason to be in bad terms with one another and specially not now that they are all fighting for the same cause. It's just so nice to see em idk JAGSHS

Hey Igari.

Chapter 24

Thank God Doppo went <3 again it had been so long

Babe are you okay? You hadn't put a lil heart in your speech bubble for a while...

King really punched the fire

I will chose to believe that's true bc it's impressive 😍

You know it's funny like, Katsumi is mad good but he doesn't has as much experience as his dad and that leaves him in disvantage

Hehe i remember that guy

The manga is so much better than the anime ffs

I love that he didn't even realize

Chapter 25

Manga i don't think that's science

Also Baki just chilling with some doves lmao

I'm looking thru old messages see how my og reaction to this was

Huh i found nothing, that's odd. Well my reaction would have probably been like NOOOOO anyway so, y'all can imagine it

You left my dilf handless you fucking asshole good thing he has a wife

Imagine this dude cuts your hand and then just flexes his knowledge about science or whatever

HSSGGSFS THEY FIXED THE NO BEARD ERROR

Illiterate king <3

A guy did this to me once btw!!! Obviously in way smaller scale but he just touched something and the bleeding soon stopped!!!!

Honestly that's the most huge dick energy thing Doppo has ever done

Pfff I'm starting to remember why i liked Doppo so much 🥴

Bitches confused over him running away, tf was he supposed to do? He played it smart since there are no rules

Though yeah an eye and NOW a hand, insane

Chapter 26

Sjshhdhsn tanuki?

Oh, fox, he was calling him slick

Manga is pretty faster than the anime

Chapter 27

Where's your honor, Igari...

He is right sadly enough 😔

Oh i keep forgetting Igari's nature, he was probably trying to pull his silly little tricks again

This is just brutal honestly

Hehe this time i didn't get scared ☺️

I like that at least I'm not the only one who needs their mind off the gutter

Chapter 28

Love seeing em datin <3

He's so aggressive accidentally i love these dorks sm 😍🥺💞

SPEC FFS SJGDHWGW

Chapter 29

SPEC FOR FUCKS SAKE SJSVSJWGSH

Hanayama is such a real bro man

I LOVE THAT HE WAS JUST STALKING BAKI TOO BTW SJDGJDGDHSBDGDGS

To think i will still love hanayama but for entirely different reasons 😌

Chapter 30

Kaoru looks different but idk how

What the fuck is Spec even saying?

The fact that that makes no sense, i still love it a lot tho.

ALSO I ADORE HOW QUIET HANAYAMA IS WHEN FIGHTING

Okay Spec really has a point it really is beautiful

GOD I'M STARTING TO UNDERSTAND THESE CHARACTERS TOO MUCH I NEED HELP AJDGSJSGSHS 😭

But it's beautiful in the sense like, look how built he is! Look at all those scars!!! It IS beautiful it's a masterpiece!!!!!!!

"i choose to believe this is how hanayama always undresses" KSHSKDGSJ THE AMOUNT OF SUITS THIS MAN DESTROYS.. OBSESSED

Though yeah Hanayama in general is also beautiful isn't he?

Chapter 31

I would sob man look at him. Look at Shiba.

NO ONE RISKS HIS LIFE MORE THAN SHIBA YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE I STILL HOLD A LOT OF RESPECT FOR HIM!

A BENCH...

I really don't get why he's letting himself get hit, is he just flexing?

I cannot way to see him do his Technique ™

Chapter 32

Manga is so much superior to the anime, like, i haven't complained about Spec even once bc he isn't annoying anyone, in the anime he was so infuriating!!

I love when they just steal their standing poses sjsgjssgsh

That distortion effect so good

Chapter 33

I still think it's weird they used humans and not machines, though it was effective

I love how Spec managed to punch that statue without calling the attention of much people that's impressive

And i love that he keeps saying man he sounds like me with bro

Hanayama my beloved

Chapter 34

Yeah I'm not reading all that 😐

Oh this explains the holes in his clothes

#luly talks #btg #having a shitton of fun #the anime is NOTHING compared to the manga #the only good thing about the anime is the voice acting which is just on point #but everything else SUCKS man #they made me hate my man Spec and now im seeing he wasnt as nearly as annoying as in the anime #AND THEY BUTCHERED SO MANY FACES... EVERYONE WAS SO FUCKING UGLY #HANAYAMA... KATSUMI... EVEN BAKI WAS MAD UGLY 😭😭#but everything is better now ☺️#also i hit the limit of letters again 🥴#baki liveblog

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howlingmoonrise · 3 years

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Thoughts on Petshop of Horrors: Wandering Ark volume 3

(crossposted from dreamwidth)

me realizing a whole-ass 25 pages of the last volume of the papa series are just sensei's travel logs:

what did i do to deserve this, honestly? sensei i love you and all but THERE WERE SO MANY OTHER THINGS TO COVER ABOUT PAPA. AND YOU DIDN'T TOUCH THEM. AT ALL.

To start with, there's only two actual chapters in the volume, keeping in line with the previous volumes. A whooping total of 103 pages out of a 128 page manga - except, a good portion of one of them is pretty much just rehashing the events of the last volume of the original manga, so it's not exactly like they're overflowing with juicy new content. Vesca and Victor fans will be pleased at a new glimpse of them both though, with emphasis on Vesca.

Oh, you wanted an explanation for the ark? For why Papa was going around supposedly through "space and time", with a reason other than "well, I wanted to draw stuff from other eras but I don't want to write a whole new manga with a D from back then"? There's none. N-O-N-E. Zilch. Zip. Nada. Niente. Nothing about his relationship with Sofu (though they do briefly meet on Victor's funeral - and wow, am I surprised Sofu deigned to show considering how much he loves humankind), nothing about D or Papa's relationship with him beyond an outsider's point of view on the events of the last manga, nothing about the D species in general or glimpses at previous Ds that were likely alive before our D came into being.

Another bad point: what the hell was up with the cover art?

The top portion of it is fine, but why does the rest of it look like whoever painted it forgot how to shade things? Look at that belt. Look at those sleeves. That's all I have to say on this subject.

On to the chapters themselves!

First chapter:

Papa D helps with The Bachelor. No, really. It's literally a Bachelor-style show, recorded for TV, with one single man and twenty ladies competing to become his wife. Trigger warning for almost-rape in this chapter.

I'll be honest, I liked the main character for this chapter. She's a go-getter, and a survivalist, and prefers stuffing her face with food instead of flirting away the night. Honestly? Mood. I really liked the butler too. I was going on a "oh, is he going to be the actual love interest?" line of thought since he looked interesting, and then went "nah, they're not focusing on him at all beyond that one (1) scene where they were dancing, guess he's just a side character after all", only for him to actually turn out to be the final love interest. That was. Hm. To say that it was majorly underdeveloped is to put it lightly, but the "prince" wasn't great either. The attempted rape felt as if it was shoved in because they were running out of pages though, since the rest of what we saw from his personality seemed a lot mellower than that.

The ?prostitutes? were an unexpected bright spot, even though they only showed up for a couple of panels, but it was nice that they gave her food (however dismissively) and tried to get the other guy to leave her alone, and that they were simply described as "beautiful" instead of anything else.

OH BUT. Papa hitting the would-be rapist over the head with an oar was great, it actually gave a bit more dimension to him since the Ds are usually so unwilling to dirty their own hands when it comes to violent business: at most they would usually let their pets do the work for them.

Which actually brings me to another question.

I've already said before that Papa is at most a side character on his own series, and that he actually barely gets involved at all apart from a few nudges here and there - but it's kind of jarring that he almost never "sells" a pet in this series. On all volumes including this one, there are only two chapters where he gives away a pet that was already with him and that didn't initially belong to someone else that he was just returning: the dogs from the Austria chapter, and the bird from Empress one (who was actually said to be given by Sofu, but I'm calling bullshit since he had long hair and this is supposedly a time-travelling ark). It's definitely a weird choice for a manga whose title is, quite literally, "Petshop of Horrors".

Also, for a FLYING ark there sure seem to be a lot of water-related incidents.

Thoughts on the family thing down on the general thoughts section. Also, WHY IS IT AN OAR AGAIN? WHERE DID THE BUTLER FIND AN OAR, SINCE IT SEEMED LIKE IT WASN'T PAPA LENDING IT TO HIM? I can't say the penguin thing was a huge twist considering previous chapters, but it makes me wonder that so many of Papa's stories are directly about either humans or animals, but rarely the conjunction of both apart from brief exceptions.

Second chapter: Nice callback to the original PSoH on the first page: I'm extremely fond of that description of the Ds, and it's fitting for a final chapter of a PSoH series.

This chapter is a cameo for Victor (from the Sofu series which I haven't read yet but know some things about), and a full appearance for Vesca. Victor seems to have chosen the same path as Leon, though arguably he'd actually have the money for it since he's a baron. Travelling the world following rumours and sightings, in search of someone they considered to be dear to them? Sign all three of these blonds up, because it seems to be a tradition at this point. The Ds really have a type, huh? Truth be told, from what I heard of Victor I didn't think he'd be the adventure-seeking sort, so this was a bit of a surprise. He looks cute and happy piloting planes and running from rhinos so I guess that's all that matters though.

BUT WHY DID HE HAVE TO DIE POOR. He looks like a huge cinnamon roll so I feel super bad for him, I bet they all resented the money he spent trying to chase Sofu D across the globe once the Great Depression hit :/

And then, bam! Sofu cameo. This is the chapter where EVERYONE gets a cameo, copy-paste of the last chapter of OG PSoH or otherwise. He's cryptic as usual, and I REALLY didn't expect him to remember Victor's name, much less show up to his funeral. Not that he even looks like he's grieving; he pretty much only speaks of Hitler and Eva Braun's kirin, to Papa's seemingly frowning disapproval (I haven't complained about the round art style on this volume's commentary yet so consider this to be it: the only reason why Papa even looks put out is because he has a Very Clear Frowny Line, because otherwise he just looks normal... and round).

And then finally, some actual Papa content! Or, er, Vesca content. Both. Let's go with both. I don't want to make myself sad thinking about how little we saw of Papa on his own series. Here we see once again mentions of extinction and of resurrecting species, and finally a throwback to why the ark is an ark: "Noah's Ark". It took me RNS' translations of OG PSoH to understand the reference back on the original, because on Tokyopop's mangled translation the ark is merely a flying boat.

It's nice to see that Vesca has a strong sense of justice similar to my dear boy Leon Orcot, since it was a bit iffy on the original manga. He's righteous (and right!) about the other Professor using Papa's research, and how Papa should have the benefits of it for himself since he was the one doing the studies. Papa, however, cares little about money or glory: even now his focus is on recovering the blind bird species from their trip to Greece (see: Shin PSoH), and here we see once again his hopeful view that one day he may be able to help them see again. Parallel to his own family much? Honestly, I feel for him.

WHAT IS IT WITH PEOPLE SHOOTING PAPA? At this point he's trying to reach for Leon's record - and failing, because Leon gets shot and mauled a frankly unholy amount of times during the original PSoH, so no one else can ever really compare. What really breaks my heart here is that he actually asks why. Sofu and D would both have simply taken it for granted, but Papa (seemingly, up until this point) doesn't automatically assume the worst of every human being he comes across. That pained why kills me a little bit, here, and soon after he grows cold and allows the more murderous side of that contract to go loose.

That page with Vesca going into the FBI really throws me back to the panels on the original PSoH right before/right when Leon decides to chase after D. Part of the background is blank, the other part a faint image of the city and Chinatown, with a sense of detachment associated with them. I could probably take the time to place them side by side and compare fully, but uh. I may or may not be stretching my workday bedtime a little too much to finish writing this, oops.

Also, an echo to the original PSoH with Papa's death, called back with him nearly being shot in the middle of the forehead. The actual event is brought in shortly after Vesca gets to mind-rant about the Ds and his search for a few pages, and then flashback flashforward time! A whole six pages which are just portions of OG PSoH's last chapter redrawn from another angle. It's implied that Vesca was able to board the ark like Leon did due to a similar scene with lying in the clouds and sighting the ship amidst them, though whether he was able to stay or not is a whole new story. This is where the actual story ends.

Sensei's travel logs: I'm not going to bother going into these. It was nice to see some glimpses of my son (forever a Leon stan here!) and a cameo for Taizuu also showed up a little later on if you're one of the people who liked him (personally, I would trade Taizuu in for a cornchip and a ball of lint). I'm going to make the executive choice of pretending that the D/Leon bits are what's actually happening right now after Leon caught up to D. It's lovely to see them on vacations, and Leon has mellowed out a little bit while D seems extremely comfortable and content with his favourite ex-detective's presence =v=

General thoughts: All the series so far seem to have some sort of theme, which kind of ties into the main character of it and their own arc. The original PSoH, for one, was focused a lot on family and greed and love and desire: our D, similarly, had plenty of unresolved issues surrounding his bloodline and things that he wanted but that he couldn't/was not allowed to have because of that very blood.

You'll have to forgive me if my interpretation of Shin is spotty since I only read around half of it (online scans only went up to volume 6 or so, physical versions of the Tokyopop translations were discontinued, and ruthlessnightsscans started scanlating it after I’d already read the available chapters for Shin), but from what I remember of it it seemed to bring in softer, more loving and lighthearted stories, usually tied around romance and being kept apart from things they want/love. The two non-Leon chapters that immediately spring to mind are the Romeo and Juliet Mafia AU, and the one where the lady got pregnant from her dead husband and was able to live on due to that renewed hope. D himself seems to have turned a new page: he hangs around humans on his leisure time (bless those drag queens), takes a vested interest in happy endings for others even if not for himself, and seems overall less inclined towards gruesome murder.

(You'll have to forgive me, but I actually haven't read the Sofu series at all yet so I can't analyse that one. I wasn't even aware RNS had scanlated it until recently, but then again I hold a lot of rage against that slimy bastard (Sofu, not RNS, RNS are baby) and so I'm putting it off indefinitely. Oops?)

And then there's this one. It's probably no coincidence that so many of the stories are about reproduction and birth and continuing a dying species: this is something that chases Papa all the way from his college days not even considering his childhood, which we don't actually don't know about but can make an educated guess at down to his issues with his son and the faint madness of his last years. Even his death plays into this theme, with it ultimately working as an way to keep the D line alive. It makes me think that Papa being kept from his position as a main character in his own series might actually be somewhat purposeful, though the decaying quality of the latest PSoH mangas makes me think this is not the case. I'll have to read the Sofu series to make a better judgement on this, depending on whether or not Sofu is or is not treated similarly.

Another theme: being haunted by the dead. I think this is actually present on almost every chapter of the Wandering Ark series, though we may disagree on the levels on which it was shown and how easily it is or is not divorced by my previous point. A reader that reads this series on its own will likely find Papa a very bland character and will not grasp onto the nuances of these themes and how they are connected to him, IMO. These conclusions and these hypothesis are drawn by virtue of the first manga alone; it's because of it that we're aware of how Papa himself lives for the species who are long gone, his own kind included. Most of the characters on Wandering Ark push through the suffering and the sorrow of their dead to go beyond their limits and become greater and independent, which is another parallel to Papa since he's the only one of the Ds who has an objective beyond simple (and inefficient) vengeance.

Overall, there's little else I can say that I haven't said already, either here or on my previous post for the first two volumes of the Wandering Ark series. There's a real sense of isolation and detachment on Papa's side (though he seems more benevolent than the other two Ds were), but as I said I'm not sure if it's meant to be purposeful or not, though Sensei's choice to not give him an actual companion thorough his series is also telling. The pacing was also better than in the first chapters of this series, though there was that issue with the ending of the first chapter of this volume. I also still can't say this enough, but it's really strange that Papa is such a side character on his own series??

Final thoughts: we were robbed.

At least Sensei hinted that her journey with the Ds might not be over yet, though if we get another Sofu manga I can and I will riot.

#petshop of horrors #pet shop of horrors #papa d #wandering ark #drifting ark #hyouhaku no hakobune hen #petshop of horrors hyouhaku #psoh wandering ark #psoh #howl rambles a lot

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kenkamishiro · 5 years

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zakki:re translations Part 1 (pg. 10-29, Vol. 1-2 illustrations)

Hello and welcome to the zakki:re translations post! It took a bit of time to think about how I’d have to structure these translations, but I’ve figured it out for the most part.

What this series of posts will be is a text translation of Ishida’s comments accompanied by the art he’s referring to (the actual art itself that’s been available online, not a picture taken from zakki:re. It’ll make more sense once you start going through the post, I promise). It will also include some commentary from me for some additional context, which will be marked as “T/N” for “translator notes”.

What this will NOT include are photographs of the book. If I take pictures of the book, they will be contained in a different post since I don’t want the translations posts to be more cluttered than they already are. I also won’t include any illustrations that don’t have commentary attached to them unless they’re somehow relevant to it.

They will be posted every 1-2 days depending on my schedule, and have roughly 10 pieces of commentary each which I found was a good length.

And lastly, some terminology before I begin. TG = Tokyo Ghoul (overall, like the fandom tag), OG = the first Tokyo Ghoul series, :re = Tokyo Ghoul:re.

Anyhow, I hope you enjoy!

[T/N: This illustration was a magazine cover that included the blurb, "Justice has now been commenced." Presented this way since this is how it appears in zakki:re.]

zakki:re has now begun. Just like zakki, the comments on the paintings and such will be referred to as accordingly. I hope you enjoy.

This is the first cover on which :re began.

It gives off a certain vibe, hence the "Justice, commence!" blurb. At least that's probably what my editor thought.

I thought at the time that I was seriously going to fail to hand in my manuscript in time. It almost became, “Justice, commence (starting next week)!”

Weekly Young Jump 2014, Issue no. 46, Cover illustration

Volumes 1-4 of :re were prefaced with colour pages. Hinami was a member of Aogiri Tree, and Kanae was distressed over Tsukiyama.

Shirazu’s character looks kinda dangerous here for some reason, doesn’t he?

Weekly Young Jump 2014, Issue no. 46, Opening colour page

An image of a sky, as if it’s connected to the sky from the last chapter of OG. A certain three people from the final chapter are also standing here.

Weekly Young Jump 2014, Issue no. 46, Opening colour page

The cover illustration for volume 1 of :re. I used up all my energy drawing Haise. But he turned out quite well, don’t you think? He’s holding a Kitahara Hakushuu book in his hand.

I thought I should draw the story from the CCG perspective, so I introduced the character known as Sasaki Haise, an investigator who is a half-ghoul.

Before :re began I also created the Qs characters all at once for the shock factor. I took a break in between OG and :re, but it was only 3 weeks if I recall. I remember at the time I was working on the setting and drawing, so I ended up busier than usual during that writing period.

When OG ended, one of the staff asked, “Is it really over?” in confusion, and I answered, “Yeah, it’s really over.” It wasn’t really a lie since it was OG that had ended.

2014, Volume 1, Cover illustration

[T/N: The quality of this illustration isn’t good since I took it from the table of contents in Volume 1. But the neat thing is in zakki:re, the quality is so good that you can clearly read the words in the book that Haise is reading. Right now he’s reading Hakushuu’s poem “Blue Dragonfly.”]

Ui-kun has risen the ranks. Looks like he’s gone through a lot.

2014, Volume 1, Frontispiece

The exterior of the pinup, I think. From the series of mysterious outfits. Seems it’s based off a military uniform?

Weekly Young Jump 2015, Joint issue no. 6~7, Special long pinup

This is an illustration I drew using CLIP STUDIO. I’ve always used Sai for drawing, but when I was drawing the ending cards for the 2nd season of the OG anime (the ones that moved along with amazarashi’s “Seasons Die One After Another”), I decided to try drawing using CLIP STUDIO on a whim, and I kept using it for a while. Later I also drew the Trump card illustrations using CLIP STUDIO. I don’t use it anymore but looking back, the end product has a really distinct look to it, which makes me wonder if I should try using this program again...

Weekly Young Jump 2015, Issue no. 12, Cover illustration

[T/N: Couldn’t find the raw version of this illustration. This page was scanned by Imperial Scans (RIP).]

At the time it seems I pressed my editor, “What’s ‘On Christmas Eve the Qs bell is ringing’ supposed to mean?” for answers. But hey, doesn’t “Qs bell” sound kinda cool?

Weekly Young Jump 2015, Joint issue no. 4~5, Center colour illustration

[T/N: Not completely raw, but close enough. Scan for this illustration done by Twisted Hel Scans (also RIP).]

You’ve probably realized it by now, but the opening pages and the center colour illustrations from the YJ magazines were printed as they originally were back then.

Since the magazine design would be lost for those who didn’t buy the magazine back then, it would’ve been a shame since L.S.D. (the design company) worked extremely hard to make it look good. I also think the blurbs that my editor came up can be considered a work of their own (such as ‘Qs bell’).

Of course, I’m sure there are people who want to see the paintings in their original state. I felt the same way which was why I was conflicted about it, but I’ve accepted it in this form for this time.

The volume illustrations and the magazine illustrations have been arranged in chronological order as much as possible. I hope you can enjoy it together with the circumstances of my editor’s work.

If I ever get another opportunity, I’d like to have an art book with just illustrations only.

Weekly Young Jump 2015, Joint issue no. 6~7, Opening colour page

[T/N: The version of this illustration in zakki:re doesn’t include any text.]

Colour pinup from the appendix of YJ magazine. I added in Scarecrow who hadn’t appeared in the story yet (I didn’t know when I would add him in). I had fun drawing the 4 people above. I really like Nutcracker in particular.

Weekly Young Jump 2015, Joint issue no. 6~7, Special long pinup

The character popularity poll illustration contest (I think it was with Nico Nico Seiga). I drew some shikishi and gave them as gifts to those who submitted illustrations. This illustration itself feels nostalgic.

Weekly Young Jump 2015, Issue no. 12, Opening colour page

[T/N: Updated with HQ scans from TG_Hub. Thank you!]

The cover of :re volume 2 featuring Touka.

I chose something relaxing for the off-centre composition while still following the general flow of the OG volume, conveying that she has become more cunning. A reference to "zakki", so it'd be great if you could compare between the two.

Haise looks good in shades of brown.

This is the interior of the Chateau where the Qs resided, and it was designed by a good friend who I’ll call J-chan. A luxury home with the Qs’ bedrooms, common room, kitchen, Haise’s room, and the training room, fully furnished. I got the data from him so that I could preview it and look around in 3-D, so I included it in the instructions for drawing the backdrop as a reference. Thanks!

[T/N: If you want to see the comparison to OG zakki, click here. Also, the Qs chateau that Ishida’s friend designed...is ripped from The Sims 4. No, I’m not kidding.]

Weekly Young Jump 2015, Volume 2 cover

I took a bunch of my scribbles and reused them for the colour pages in the volume.

At the very beginning I drew Mucchan (Mutsuki Tooru), and moved on to other characters from there. As Saiko hadn't appeared in the story yet, her face isn't shown here. "Saiko absolutely won't show up for an entire volume," was my iron will.

2015, Volume 2, Frontispiece

#Tokyo Ghoul #zakki:re #Ishida Sui #Translations #my translations #zr translations #first part done!!#please be excited with me!!#also tfw the hardest part about making these posts is the formatting

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honey-harper-official · 5 years

Text

Meet Me in the Middle - Chapter 2

Chapter 3: https://honey-harper-official.tumblr.com/post/186595824736/meet-me-in-the-middle-chapter-3

Chapter 1: https://honey-harper-official.tumblr.com/post/186532747761/meet-me-in-the-middle-chapter-1

OG Post: https://honey-harper-official.tumblr.com/post/186575673766/honey-harper-official-honey-harper-official

Chapter 2 was deleted by accident so I’m reposting it.

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In the morning when Lacey got up, Nova and Adrian had already left for work. Valerie and Eva were eating hash browns and eggs that someone had made earlier. And of course, the coffee pot was empty. Lacey rinsed it out and left it to dry. She didn't need it. She never needed it. Lacey served herself hash browns but ignored the eggs. She hated the smell and taste but thankfully she was allergic to them. She could have them baked into things just not by themselves. It was something in her life that she didn't care to change. "No eggs?" Eva asked. "I'm going to let you think about it for a minute," Lacey said, taking a seat at the dinner table. "By the way Ellie's picking me up at noon so we can go to Meg's house." "You're always at Meg's house," Valerie said. "Yeah and?" "Why?" "Because I have friends and I like to spend time with them." Lacey started eating and made sure that they wouldn't ask her any more questions. Lacey had been with girls before. Ellie had as well but Ellie didn't want to be in the public eye. Lacey was an Everhart and an Artino it was hard not to attract the public eye especially with everything that had happened between both sides of her family. Of course the media would swarm the child of sworn enemies. But their relationship wouldn't be hard to picture. They had been attached at the hip for years and already shared clothes and pretty much everything. If one was missing then they were probably with the other that wasn't. Not to mention that for sleepovers they stopped pulling out an air mattress to share a bed instead and they were generally affectionate with each other. Lacey put her plate in the dishwasher before going to her room. She grabbed her phone and earbuds and went to her closet. In the back of her closet behind a bunch of jackets and stolen sweatshirts from Ellie, there was a built in. She pushed it back and walked through the opening. She shut the door behind her and then grabbed the role of tape that was sitting on a shelf in the reverse side of the built in. On the closet side, it was filled with books and clothes. On the other side it was lined with pictures and had the items needed for a movie night. That's what Lacey had been using the room for anyways. It was her own private theater. Lacey used her powers to manifest the pictures on her phone into physical ones. She began taping them in open spots of the built-in. She had only recently got into putting up pictures once she realized that no one was going to find them in the room. Her phone buzzed and she checked her messages. Meg: Come over faster. We're hanging up pride flags. Lacey: I'm booking it. See you soon. Lana: Also we got Arizona Tea and Takis. Ellie: The greatest thing known to mankind. Ellie: Or birds. Beck: And* birds. Nothing beats Takis and Arizona Tea. Lacey: Facts. Beck: Thank thank Lacey: Welcome welcome Meg: why do you two text like this? Lacey: God has cursed us. Next question. Lana: Just hurry up and get here before I take all of the food we got you. Lacey: Okay I'm coming. Rolling her eyes, Lacey turned off her phone and set it on her bed. She still hadn't gotten ready yet. She brushed her teeth and then her hair, pulling her long hair into a low pony, curls puffing out after the elastic. She quickly then put on makeup. She would admit, she definitely was liberal in her application of highlighter but Lacey was here for anything that was shiny. Lacey then went and put on fresh clothes. She definitely could be considered the emo child though she preferred the term "edgy" or "alternative". Her siblings wore color. Lacey wore mostly black and any dark color she could get her hands onto. Half of her closet was leather, everything from sneakers to shirts to bottoms to jackets she had it in leather. All of her jeans were ripped as well and she was known for usually wearing combat boots around the house. Lacey put on an old band t-shirt, fishnet stockings, a ripped mom jeans, her boots, and a holographic bomber jacket she had found. She grabbed her phone and shoved it in her jacket pocket before running out the door, skateboard in hand. "Going to Meg's! See you later!" She shut the door behind her and ran down the sidewalk, throwing her skateboard down and jumping on it before Valerie could call her back. It was a ten minute walk to Meg's but it took half the time to skateboard. Her house was in the same neighborhood as Lacey's, just on the outskirts of Gatlon. In fact all four of her friends lived in the same neighborhood as her. It was how she met them. She let herself in, knowing automatically that they were all in the living room together. Her friends were scattered around the room, all unboxing things. "Hey babe!" Ellie said cheerfully from the chair she was sitting in. Lacey grabbed her drink and leaned over and kissed Ellie. Ellie put her phone down and cupped Lacey's face, pulling Lacey into the chair happily. "Can you please get a room," Lana snorted, rolling her eyes. Lacey separated from Ellie and glared at Lana. "We have to deal with you and Meg all the time. No complaining," Lacey said. She went over to the empty spot on the couch and opened up one of the boxes. It was filled with rainbow flags. She set the thin Styrofoam packing sheet to the side and pulled out at least 20 flags. By the time they finished getting all the flags out and throwing out the boxes, there was a massive heap of flags in the center of the room. "I can't believe I got adopted by a pack of lesbians," Beck said. "It's a dream come true honestly." "You are the cishet white boy of the group. You are our son," Meg laughed, pinching his cheeks. "An honorary gay." "But honorary," Lana reinforced. "I know," Beck snorted, pushing Meg's hands away. "Now what do we do with these flags? Why did you get so many?" "I told you I need help putting up all my pride flags. I got a shit ton and plan on covering my walls and ceiling in them." "I forget that you're a baby gay sometimes," Lacey said. "Hey, let me enjoy my baby gay phase. Eventually I'm just going to give these flags to future baby gays and you guys can have some too," Meg said. "I think that when you're done with them you should just hide them around your house and wait for people to notice. Hide and seek but gay," Beck said. "For a straight person that was a very gay idea. Thank you for that iconic contribution," Meg said. They went to the top floor, flags spilling from their arms. They dropped them on the bed in Meg's room. Lacey rarely went up to Meg's room and the design had changed from what she remembered. The formerly blue walls were now white. In fact all the furniture was white but since Meg was about to put up 100 pride flags it was about to get way more colorful. There was also several roles of clear packing tape on the bed along with scissors. Lana cracked her knuckles. "Lets do this." The five of them each took a role. Beck cut tape, Ellie and Lana put them up, and Lacey and Meg boosted up their girlfriends so they could reach. Per Meg's request, they played her Gay Playlist which was made of songs by Queen, Hayley Kiyoko, P!ATD, Girl in Red, Janelle Monae, and many others. "Can we do this with Trans Pride Flags in my room?" Lana asked. "Hell fucking yeah we will babe," Meg said, helping Lana up so they could put up what seemed like the 1000th flag. They spent the rest of the day putting flags up. Lacey wasn't sure how Meg would be able to stand having the flags up. After awhile it hurt Lacey's eyes too look at so many. It was blinding have hundred of rainbows in your eyes, but Meg was Meg and was allowed to have her interests. As they were taping down the last of the flags, Lacey's phone buzzed. Someone had texted her. Lacey checked her phone, still balancing Ellie on her shoulders. Valerie: Mom and Dad want you to come home. Danna, Celeste, Ruby, and Oscar are over. Bring Ellie here too Lacey: Can we finish hanging up pride flags? Valerie: Sure???? How many are you hanging up? Lacey: We have five more to go. Meg's covering her entire room in flags. Valerie: Okay??? Lacey: Also I need the nail scissors later. Do you know where they are? Valerie: Downstairs bathroom. Why? Lacey: Long story. "Ellie when we're done we've got to go. Our parents want us at my place because Danna and Celeste are over. You're parents and siblings are at my house too." "So it would be prime time to go to my house and make out?" "Ellie we'd just end up spending too much time gone and freak people out. I love the enthusiasm but that's not the best of ideas." "Dammit," Ellie hissed. "Alright. Give me the final flag so we can get going." Lacey grabbed the last flag, the edges lined with tape. She handed it to Ellie, who stuck it on the final empty spot on the wall. Meg had gotten the exact amount of flags needed to cover her room. She most likely measured so she'd be spot on with her order. Lacey dropped Ellie on the bed and then helped her up. "See you guys later," they said as they left. Ellie hopped on her bike since that's what she had taken to get to Meg's. Lacey got on her skateboard and held onto the back of the bike seat so she could keep up. The sun was setting as they rode home and to Lacey, Ellie looked extra gorgeous in the current setting. Her long brown hair was flowing nicely behind her and the backdrop of the setting sun over the nearby pond made it even better. Lacey pulled out her phone and snapped a picture. "Sorry babe. No flash photography!" Ellie laughed, pushing the phone away before Lacey could take more pictures. "Well I already got the picture so maybe it's going to be my new background." "You're so cheesy," Ellie said as she came to a halt at the house. She then looked around, made sure no one was watching, and kissed Lacey quickly. "Now come on. Let's go pretend we're not dating."

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bakudekuficlibrary · 6 years

Text

BakuDeku: Villain AU Part I

6 Series. 38 Works.

Hey guys, our Villain AU rec list has been sorted/updated as of 9/7/21! This post (Part I) is full of all the library’s OG recs, and Part II will showcase the more recent villain fics.

Both lists are sorted into 3 sections: Villain Izuku, Villain Katsuki, and Both Villains. Enjoy!

Click here for Part II!

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Villain Izuku

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A Dangerous Game by tsukithewolf ( M | 472,968 | 122/122 )

When Midoriya Izuku is 13 years old, he is kidnapped on his way home from school by a villain.

One year later he is found and returned home with some scars, no memories of the events he went through, and a latent fire quirk.

Izuku has to live a double life if he and his loved ones are to survive, even if that means lying to everyone and committing deeds that he’s not sure the heroes would forgive him for. He just needs to come up with a plan to defeat one of the most powerful men in the world, maintain both of his covers in the presence of enemies and allies alike, and hopefully not forget the “real” him.

Bakugou Katsuki is certain that Izuku has been lying to everyone since the day he had been rescued. And he’s going to figure out his secret.

Series Part 1 of The Dangerous Game

[TVTropes Page]

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you’re too pretty. by Dechimo ( E | 28,644 | 5/5 )

Then he suddenly felt himself encased against the bar, strong arms on either side of him, he could see the tattoos and scars on both hands. A broad chest against his back and breath again his neck. What he hoped was a gun pressing against his back, when the man shifted and he felt the hardness of the weapon move, he let out a shaky breath. Never so happy to have a gun on him.

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[Series] Suffocation by DeadDoveExtraordinaire, Roadkilled ( M | 79,813 | 5 Works | Complete )

A year after Deku throws himself off a building to his death, Bakugou is taken hostage by a villain who bears a striking resemblance to his dead childhood friend. Probably because they're the same person.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

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Know the Difference by Evil Teddy Bear (TheDragonRider) ( T | 71,276+ | 20/26 )

Iron Will was an infamous villain, known by heroes to be as deadly and vicious as her husband, All for One. The underworld thrived when she was his right hand, despite the peace-ushering presence of All Might.

But then her son was born and she stepped down to become Hisashi Midoriya's loving wife, Inko Midoriya, giving the boy the home life she felt he needed.

Izuku Midoriya grew up truly loved by both of his parents, even though his father never gave him a quirk and he wasn't the heir to the Family Business. Desperate to prove his worth, he decided that he would convince his father to allow him to help in the family objective: to reveal the true colors of Hero Society to the world-- one way or another.

But then he meets All Might and his childhood reality starts to fall apart.

[Major Character Death | Graphic Depictions of Violence]

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Always You by KingHugin ( E | 165,948 | 30/30 )

Just another villain Deku AU no one asked for.

Katsuki had always been one of the best heroes of his time - or so he thought. That is until he runs into an old rival who he would rather kill then try to save, unfortunately it does not go the way Katsuki planned. Now trapped in enemy territory Katsuki must learn what it is to be a hero when all the odds are stacked against him.

Maybe he could even save someone along the way.

Series Part 1 of The Making’s Of A Hero

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

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love your enemies by dandelion_weed ( T | 3,165 | 1/1 )

“Todoroki, you’re a dick,” Kaminari has no sense of self-preservation, the idiot. Why is Eijirou only surrounded by assholes and morons these days? “Also, that guy just demolished about seventy percent of the street. Why aren’t you freezing him yet?”

The half-cold half-hot hero squints at the villain on top of a fallen building. “He’s just…standing there. Isn’t it against the hero policy to attack someone who is incapable of fighting back?”

“Incapable of fighting back. Incapable of fighting back. Not a villain who has his guard down!” Why is he explaining this to the best guy of their year? Today was supposed to be an off day for all of them. Why is Eijirou the only one suffering? Also, where the fuck is Bakugou?

(The one where Izuku skipped UA and went to infiltrate the villain alliance instead, got All for One, and destroyed it three days before Katsuki's nineteenth birthday. All within plan. Except, Kacchan ruined that when he showed up with his friends right after Izuku dealt the last blow.)

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Marital Arrangements by smol_bird ( G | 2,928 | 1/1 )

She realizes too late that when she grabs Deku she actually manages to latch onto the metallic band over his face. And that the band is attached to the hood. And that, as his body slams into concrete, the hood tears away with a sound which is, in the grand scheme of things, almost inaudible, and stays in Ochako’s hands.

(In which Bakugou Katsuki’s husband is a villain, and Uraraka is the only one who is surprised by it.)

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Burnout by YaoiHands69 ( E | 3,366 | 1/1 )

Ground Zero blows up a case of highly experimental drugs and Deku is left with two options: have sex with his high school fixation or risk death. The decision should be simple.

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On the Clock by battle_goats ( M | 1,068 | 1/1 )

His clothing was so nondescript, anyone who didn't know better would assume the young man was a civilian. But no, he was a villain. Katsuki's villain. The one he'd created, however unintentional. His Deku.

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[Series] My Husband Is a Villain and That’s Okay by pt_tucker ( T | 3,408+ | 2 Works | WIP )

"Hi Kacchan, how was your day at work?"

“YOU FUCKING PUNCHED ME THROUGH A BUILDING! THAT WAS MY DAY AT WORK!”

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[Series] The Wolf by BrightEyesEren ( E | 15,549 | 4 Works | Complete )

The development of Villain Izuku Midoriya and how Katsuki Bakugou learns to adjust to the change.

Mr. Fear: the dramatic beginning and some unsafe porn. Kiss The Devil: the backstory and some safe porn. Habits Of My Heart: shit escalates. shit goes down. porn is kinky but safe. Wiped Out!: an alternate ending. no porn.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence | Major Character Death]

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[Series] Villain!Deku AU by ichikonohakko ( G&M | 31,638+ | 13 BKDK Works | WIP )

Deku is dead. Midoriya Izuku is very much alive and is very much a villain.

Author’s Note: I love torturing these children. I am sorry and ashamed of myself.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

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[Series] I Saw You in My Dream by lavendermidnight ( G | 4,732 | 2 Works | Complete )

Bakugou Katsuki doesn’t dwell on the past, the things he's done before.

But when he comes face to face with someone so familiar, yet so unrecognizable, the decision to relive all their terrible history is out of his hands.

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Return the Favor by HummusKing ( T | 43,889 | 10/10 )

Instead of Katsuki Bakugou getting kidnapped, Izuku Midoriya risks his life and ends up being taken by the League of Villains. A rescue is ensured, but instead they come face to face with Deku next to All for One, calling him "Sensei". They discover that Deku's memories had been altered from the point when Bakugou tells him that if he wants a quirk, he can jump off the school roof and be reborn with one. He believes he did just that, and was reborn with a powerful quirk that rivals Bakugou.

He'd never admit it, but Bakugou had been saved by Deku in more ways than one, so now can he return the favor?

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

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Criminal by xnemone ( M | 22,139 | 20/20 )

Izuku gave up on becoming a hero in middle school. It was after his mom died from an expensive but curable disease that he came to the realization that those who are strong enough to play by the rules are the only ones who can. The rest have to break them just to survive, and quirkless Izuku definitely doesn’t fit into the first category.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence | Suicide Attempt ]

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[Series] You can turn back time but you can’t forget the things you’ve lost along the way by xnemone ( T | 26,343 | 2 Works | Complete )

Growing up, they make you think every person you fall in love with is going to feel the same, but that’s almost never the case. In fact, if someone you care about reciprocates your feelings, you’re awfully lucky. Most of us are stuck with lust, or we fall in love with the wrong people. Maybe we do this to ourselves, maybe it's inevitable. I guess it all depends.

Katsuki "Ground Zero" Bakugou learns this truth thanks to the loss of someone he didn't know he held dear and a few thoughtful late nights.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence | Major Character Death]

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Sleeping With Ghosts by lalazee ( M | 1,003 | 1/1 )

“I guess even heroes have to do their grocery shopping.” “Villains, too,” Katsuki said tightly. “Villains?” Deku blinked, gasping softly as he went to his tip toes and looked over the aisle divider. “Where? Shit, Kacchan, you’d better get on that!”

Written for KatsuDeku Week 2017, Day 2: Heroes/Villains.

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oh, the skies (tumbling from your eyes) by saekimchi ( E | 6,425 | 1/1 )

Everything is a whirl of sensation and conflicting emotions and words that make both no sense and too much all at once, but despite the overload there is one undeniable truth that sticks, that tastes like bile in the back of his throat and fills his lungs like water until he thinks he’ll never again know what it is to breathe, and it is this: Midoriya Izuku loves him, and this is the result.

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Addiction by kacchansass ( E | 2,255 | 1/1 )

Bakugou and Deku made a pact very early on that Bakugou would be the Number One Hero, and Deku would do everything in his power to ensure that the spot was his. They would reshape the world together into a new generation of heroes. Of course, over the years their relationship grew and changed and found a new depth.

Deku decides to pull a few (a bunch) of strings in order to get some quality alone time with his love while Bakugou's class gets attacked at the USJ.

[Underage]

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The Villain in Your Dreams by gatesofeori ( E | 2,548 | 1/1 )

Bakugou wanted to end him right then and there but even he wasn’t as stupid as that. It would get him nowhere but he didn’t want to give in to someone like him. He refused to give in but it was hard when Midoriya had his hand down his pants.

[Underage]

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beginning at the end by GottaBe21Rabbits ( G | 402 | 1/1 )

Kirishima doesn't get what's happening.

Bakugou had frozen up, still as a statue once a green-haired dude, that looks more like a hostage than a Villain had appeared, smiling wickedly and leaning on the Shigaraki guy.

Shigaraki introduces him as March Hare and suddenly Kirishima gets it.

Because eventhough Bakugou didn't seem like the guy to get scared of anyone---as proven by how he pummeled those Villains---March Hare had been making a name for himself. Murderer. Killer. Vicious. Manipulator.

Anyone would be scared despite the kid being a little boy, smiling with all the sharp teeth and glittering malice in the world.

"You could save them Kacchan, you just gotta choose, are you going to kiss me? Or kill me?"

[Underage]

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Day 6: Rain/Stargazing - Dance With the Devil by a_genderfluid_otter ( G | 3,114 | 1/1 )

Midoriya Izuku vanished off of the face of the earth five years prior, but suddenly Katsuki is seeing ghosts in the most unlikely of places.

---

At a certain point, Katsuki couldn’t be hallucinating anymore, could he? It was more than just the snippets of dark green hair in a crowd, of fair skin, of catching his laughter in the air and it’d been that way for weeks now--Katsuki looked up to see green eyes beneath an otherwise plain black masquerade mask meeting his, lips splayed into a gentle, kind smile. To see it five years ago would have been ordinary--to see it now was the dead walking again.

Series Part 6 of KatsuDekuWeek 2017

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Shattered Minds and Lost Chances ( M | 3,070 | 1/1 )

He leaned close to Katsuki’s face, once again only inches away. This close, Katsuki could see the despair in Izuku’s crazed eyes. “Or maybe, I just don’t want you to live in a world where you can become this, like me.”

(Izuku Midoriya disappeared the day of the UA exam, and many months later, after being kidnapped by the Villains' Alliance, Katsuki Bakugou figures out what happened.)

[Major Character Death]

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Izuku and the Warp Gate by GreyLiliy ( T | 31,424+ | 13/? )

A homemade rip between the universes trades one Izuku for another, leaving both of them in unfamiliar territory. The Hero must find a way back to where he belongs before the Villain makes himself too much at home. Along the way, Izuku finds himself dealing with warped versions of the people that he loves—Including Kacchan.

Series Part 6 of Villain Izuku Midoriya

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You Can’t Predict What You Don’t Know by CrimsonRoseBlooms ( T | 31,820 | 15/15 )

In a message to the past, Bakugou finds out that Midoriya will become a villain in the future and destroy all the pro-heroes using All Might's power. To prevent this, apparently all he has to do is avoid Midoriya and not let him know about the alternate future. But Bakugou has never been one to be told what to do or how to feel. How will our heroes deal with this tension? (And obviously how will a relationship fit into all of this? Tune in to find out!)

[Major Character Death]

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i will never not think about you by nicolet ( E | 2,558 | 1/1 )

When I kiss you, flowers fall from my lips, and they're suffocating me. I know you don't love me, and yet with every breath that I take, I am still drawn to you. I cannot help myself, even as blood drips down my chin, I need you. I love you.

Won't you love me back?

(Bakugou Katsuki suffers from Hanahaki Disease, and he knows who it is that he loves. Deku, his childhood friend who has become a villain. He's a hero, he's always victorious. Yet this is a fight he cannot win.)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

'Til Death Do Us Part by reijeux ( T | 2,448 | 1/1 )

Izuku is the world’s greatest hero. It doesn’t take long before Katsuki notices he’s changing; it doesn’t take long for Izuku to realize what’s happening to himself, either.

[Major Character Death]

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

HESITATE by mareek ( M | 2,710 | 1/1 )

“You realize that you lose either way, right? Either you let me live, and I take your quirk away, or you kill me and lose your license. Both outcomes are the same: you can’t be a hero... And I win.”

[Major Character Death]

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

[Discontinued] Tied Up With Strings by Penkindisbestspecibus ( M | 22,838+ | 5/? )

The legend of the 'Red String of Fate' is such that lovers who are destined to be together are bound by a single red string, and this string will inexorably draw them closer together until they fall in love. A romantic, wishful sort of myth.

Bakugou Katsuki has no idea what it is that seems to bind him to Midoriya Izuku, but if he had to put a name on it, he'd probably call it the 'Black String of Hate'.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

[Discontinued] The Past is Long Past Dead by Unoutan ( M | 5,736+ | 1/? )

Bakugou Katsuki hasn’t seen Midoriya Izuku since they were thirteen. Midoriya has been classified as missing ever since, All Might’s public admittance of failure before retiring his cloak to Togata Mirio. Thirteen years later, Pro-Hero Bakugou stumbles upon a familiar face in the Red Light District of Tokyo Nightlight during his patrols…

“D…Deku?”

“Eh? K-Kacch-” Slapping both hands over his mouth, Midoriya Izuku, with the same stupid wide green eyes looked at him.

Series Part 2 of the Katsudeku Week 2017

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

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[Discontinued] Walking the Line by StormyChaos, TheatricalPlacenta ( M | 24,024+ | 3/? )

Izuku had been changing, though as it would seem, Katsuki was the only one to notice. It might have had something to do with the fact Izuku never acted differently around anyone but Katsuki, but this year... their senior year, it only seemed to get worse.

Like every mask, when worn constantly, it begins to erode... worn and torn, cracking under the pressure...

Izuku never thought he'd slip, but there he was, his heart walking the fine line between justice and villainy, unsure of just who he was... or what he'd become.

No matter what, one thing was for sure; Katsuki burned deep inside his core.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

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[Discontinued] A Poor Alignment Chart by mabbofu ( T | 4,611+ | 3/? )

Before he was a villain, Midoriya was a babysitter.

Series Part 1 of tired i guess

[Underage | Age Gap]

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[Discontinued] we'll cross that bridge again, and again, and again by neesaan ( E | 3,002+ | 1/? )

A dead hero, a missing hero, and a hero who never thought he'd have to be this fucking heroic.

If Bakugou Katsuki had known how much damn pain that fucking Deku was going to put him through, he'd have pummeled the shit out of him harder when they were kids.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence | Major Character Death ]

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[Discontinued] Nothing's gonna hurt you baby by Sandry ( E | 15,548+ | 4/? )

Bakugou didn't expect to meet a certain someone at a rundown bar he enters for the first time

Series Part 2 of DekuBaku

[Graphic Depictions of Violence | Dubcon]

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[Discontinued] Back to Reality by menengaur ( M | 46,975+ | 10/? )

Katsuki's childhood friend disappeared when they were both seven. While everyone else gave hope, Katsuki made a promise to become the No.1 hero. If he couldn't find Izuku, then he would at least destroy those who took him.

How will he react when Izuku returns with powers beyond what should be possible.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Villain Katsuki

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Tears Under the Moonless Sky by Not_Another_Writer ( M | 2,639 | 1/1 )

"Don't come, Deku."

Those words haunt Izuku for years. He...remembers how his hand, when stretched out to the blonde...couldn't reach. And because of him, because of his inadequacy, Kacchan was gone. Declared dead after he was kidnapped by the League of Villains.

Now, years later, when Izuku is on patrol, the smell of ash and gasoline flood the air. A tall, mysterious blonde staring at him from the distance. Familiar deep, blood-colored eyes pierce through him. A crooked smirk, etched into his face like a razor.

"...Kacchan?"

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

don’t come around no more by lordyuuri ( T | 413 | 1/1 )

Though I know you won't listen.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Roads Between by Logsnake ( M | 71,258 | 14/14 )

Izuku Midoriya never asked for this. All he wanted to do was get up, grab his coffee, go to work, and watch Netflix. Well, maybe not the work part, but everything else was cool. Sadly, the universe had different plans for him, which included an explosive blonde, a lot of driving, and a need to save the world. Now Izuku didn’t exactly read the fine print of his contract when he was hired by the Center for Quirk Control, but he was pretty sure that being a hero was not in his job description.

Go beyond? Yeah, if only he knew how.

(Or: In a world with disappearing quirks, Izuku, a government employee, and the recently captured Lord Explosion Murder are forced to team up in order to stop a coup of Japan by the League of Villains. More than just their lives are on the line and teamwork is the name of the game, but how can two people so seemingly different from each other ever hope to accomplish such a task?)

[Major Character Death]

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Heaven on the Hands of the Villain by Purplemerald ( Not Rated | 6,488 | 1/1 )

Izuku manages to save Katsuki three years after being kidnapped by the League of Villains. Katsuki is not the same man anymore. He refused to believe that but news after news about the destructive new villain Bakugou Katsuki, Izuku's faith is breaking. He remembers a promise between each other.

Aizawa sees a secret between Bakugou and Midoriya who are supposedly been apart for years. What secret do they have as a villain and a hero?

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

[Discontinued] In Too Deep by TheHellAccount ( E | 10,841+ | 4/? )

When notorious villain Lord Explosion Murder offers the police department a truce to take down the League of Villains together, quirkless detective Izuku Midoriya isn't surprised that he's the one taken hostage as collateral. He is, however, surprised by how incredibly, painfully gay he is for the villain holding him captive.

Then again, he's always had a taste for danger.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

[Discontinued] the sky like a bruise by calcidekudine (calciseptine) ( E | 3,486+ | 2/? )

Izuku is an analyst at a third party company that reviews the activity and incidents of villains and vigilantes. It pays well, but it is not the kind of thing Izuku thought he would do as a child. He thought he would be a pro-hero—but his quirk is weak and he never passed the entrance exam to UA. Instead, he attended a regular high school, went to a regular university, and got a regular job. Now he sits at a desk and watches video after video, reads account after account, and dreams of adventure and excitement.

This is, of course, when Izuku’s childhood friend, Bakugou Katsuki, re-enters his life as the infamous and rising villain, King Explodo-Kill.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

[Deleted] whatever you’ve done, just bury it by ikvros ( E | 18,593 | 3/3 )

He knows how Katsuki thinks, talks, and fights. He knows how he sleeps, how he eats, how he loves, and how he leaves. And he knows what knows what it means for Katsuki to come back; has washed the evidence from the sheets countless times, scrubbed the scent of him off his skin in the morning until it’s as red and raw as his heart.

Katsuki shoves his hands into the pockets of his joggers and tilts his chin up, eyes narrowed like he’s looking for a fight. “I’m here to share some important villain intel with the number one hero. So, invite me to stay for dinner.”

A fic where neither Katsuki nor Izuku know how to let go, so they just keep holding on.

[Fic Playlist]

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Both Villains

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no hell had ever burned so sweet by 3rdgymbros ( E | 1,913 | 1/1 )

“But Kacchan, saving people is what heroes do. And I’m not a hero. Neither are you. We abandoned that title a long time ago, remember?”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

brutality runs in our blood by 3rdgymbros ( T | 1,527 | 1/1 )

“New kids to babysit.” Izuku drawls out lazily, dropping a quick kiss onto Bakugou’s mouth. “Play nice with them, won’t you, Kacchan?”

#BakuDeku #KatsuDeku #BNHA #Masterlist #bkdkfl masterlist #au:villain #w:violence #w:mcd #w:underage #t:s #t:sh #t:panic #t:dubcon #long post

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wanna-one-imagine · 7 years

Text

Wanna-One Kang Daniel Prince!AU (Part 1)

For anon; I don’t really know much about royalty things so bear with me lmao. You can find part 2 here and part 3 here. Enjoy! (You + Kang Daniel)

A/N: Edit above is not mine, all credit to the fan who survived long enough to finish making this! (sorry I don’t know who made it, if anyone does let me know and I’ll give credit)

Okay so let’s make up a fictional country

And in this fictional country, there is a royalty system; and the prince is guess who Kang Daniel

Doesn’t have many actual responsibilities as of now because mostly the King and his assistants take care of everything

Daniel’s job is basically to not fuck up in public and to uMMM u know carry on the dynasty 👀

He’s still in college but doesn’t really talk to anyone other than his close friends that he’s known since middle school

(like a F4 thing from Boys Over Flowers LOL)

His parents (the King and Queen in case that wasn’t clear rip) actually told him to not really talk to other people because they were afraid Daniel would be taken advantage of

But never fear Daniel has his good ol comrades: Ong and Jaehwan

Those two also had some kind of connections to people in positions of high power, whether that be through business, music, etc.

Despite how powerful they are, they surprisingly aren’t all that bad of people; all of them are pretty nice even if they slack off sometimes on their schoolwork lol

But people generally think of them as unapproachable (which they kind of are, because they’ve known each other since forever and trust one another wholeheartedly)

Anyway Daniel bodyguards and people who escort him to school, but that got awkward so he insisted on being by himself at least while on the school campus

Girls (and guys) flocked around them

How convenient, a bunch of handsome people all hanging out together. Makes for some good pictures

You kind of... distantly knew Daniel, but obviously not well

One of Daniel’s older friends who wasn’t in college, Jisung, was your cousin

Daniel and Jisung’s parents were friends, but the two connected very well lol

Jisung and Daniel were practically like family despite their age difference, so you used to hang out with Jisung at the Kang’s palace when you were young b/c Jisung was in charge of babysitting you a lot lol

You three would do Cute Things™️ like play board games and play tag and draw pictures and giggle

The King and Queen always liked treating you all to foods and buying you games; they even installed a swimming pool in the palace so that you three could learn to swim together there

But ever since Jisung started going to middle school, the time was greatly reduced for the three of you to hang out

(I’m thinking ages around... Jisung being 12, Daniel 6, you 5 or something. up to you lmao it doesnt matter)

So you pretty much had no contact with Daniel for many years

But now, you were both in the same school

Of course this probably wouldn’t change much because obviously you hadn’t known or talked to him for many years

You were shocked at how... well he grew up

He was really tall now, and really handsome,,, and also really off limits lol

You saw him again for the first time in your math class, you were a couple classes ahead so the both of you were in the same class even though you were younger

You had seen him on tv and in photoshoots but you had no idea how much better he looked in real life, which was really something considering he looked perfect in pictures as well

He didn’t seem to recognize you though, which made perfect sense since you guys hadn’t met in years

Maybe he’d remember my name?

But when the teacher called for attendance in the math class that day, Daniel showed no reaction when you got called

You had to admit you were disappointed, but it wasn’t a big deal

You thought you wouldn’t be like all the other girls, fawning over Daniel, because you knew what a n00b he used to be, but here you getting all embarrassed over how attractive he was lol

For the rest of the semester, you just kinda stared at Daniel from afar, never approaching him or giving him gifts or anything because you thought it would be weird for you to do that

He was always just giggling and fooling around in class

He was one of those students who wasn’t that amazing at school but was charming and happy, making the teachers and other students love them anyway

Would always participate in class with wrong answers, and bicker with the teacher jokingly

Only a certain type of person could do that LOL and it wasn’t just because he was the Prince, he was genuinely a fun guy

When the winter holidays rolled around, though, things changed

You read on the news that the palace was looking for a potential spouse for Daniel, so they could ensure the continuation of their dynasty

And just a day later, you got a call from Jisung, asking if you could come over to his place

He told you that the royal family was having a New Year’s ball, and asked if you wanted to go instead of him because he already had plans

You had nothing better to do, so you said it was fine lets not kid yourself you wanted to see someone

Jisung, being the lovely cousin he was, had already ordered a dress for you :’)))

Jisung the OG Fairy Godmother

For the next couple of days, you were just a ball of nerves; you had never been to one of these parties before

Jisung went every year, but you never went because typically people under 13 couldn’t go (unless you were royalty)

You pretty much hid in bed and googled how to act at parties until December 31st rolled around

You did your own makeup and hair, which was... difficult but you ended up satisfied

You didn’t look extravagant, but you were pretty

You arrived at the palace, and pretty much just stood there awkwardly because you had no friends and no escort at the party

But food is always a reliable friend so you headed over to that area

And you found... a whole tray of different kinds of cheese. You instinctively squealed at all the cute little cubes

You stacked up enough food to fill you with happiness and sat at a table by yourself, in the corner, slightly in a blind spot from the rest of the party

A perfect hiding spot !

As you looked around, you started feeling kinda weird

Everyone at the party was so FANXY (dean if ur reading this i love u)

You were also wearing a quite expensive dress but everyone there oozed this aura of class and sophistication

ANd here you were building a jenga tower out of carrot sticks

Oh well. You didn’t know what you had to gain out of being at the party; you came out of curiosity to see the palace again and Daniel, but you hadn’t even seen the latter yet

All that happened so far was the pain of your feet in the high heels you were wearing

You leaned down in your chair, taking your heels off and massaging your feet, the tablecloth sort of covering your head

You were just rubbing away the pain when you heard two familiar voices

“All of the women here are just... not what I was hoping for,” a woman said

“Yes, it would be nice if we got to see if they were actually good people instead of just them trying to say what will impress us,” a man replied

“Daniel doesn’t deserve someone who just wants to take advantage of the throne. The princess should be someone with a good heart, not someone with good makeup artists”

Without thinking, you exclaimed “Oh yeah, that’s such a good perspective, I totally agree with that,” head still under the table

You heard gasps behind you, the people were shocked

Hmm, maybe I can talk to these people so I won’t be alone anymore

You tried to get up, banging your head in the process, and said “Oh, I’m sorry about that, nice to meet you, I’m (Y/N)”

And thEN you looked up... to find staring at you the King and Queen

sdklfjksldjfKLJSDKEILFDKSJKlsd WTF NO

“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry for interrupting you, uhhh thank you for serving us so well hah” you mumbled out, starting to run away

And then you realized you hadn’t put your shoes on yet, stopping in your place

The King and Queen were still standing there, staring at you

You walked back to your shoes, and started to put them on

“Leaving my shoes behind? I guess I think I’m like Cinderella or something”, you tried to joke, making an awkward smile

You started to cringe, about to run again, but then you heard laughs

The King and Queen were totally cracking the fuck up at your bad joke

Was it really that funny? uh okay i guess whatever works???

“What’s your name again?” the Queen asked through her laughter

“Uh it’s (Y/N), are you guys hiring for a royal jester position or something”

They started their laughing fit all over again, before the King suddenly stopped

“(Y/N)? Isn’t that the name of the little girl who always used to come over and play with Jisung?”

“Uh yep that’s me all right, Jisung gave me his invitation this year to come on behalf of him, he was busy”

The King and Queen gasped and then both hugged you, just like they had in old times

“You have grown up so well! Do you still enjoy cheese? I remember the chefs always had to restock every time you and Jisung came over,” the Queen said

“Uh. Yeah I still like cheese I guess, haha..”

“Oh my goodness! Have you met Daniel yet? I’m sure he’d be so excited to see his old childhood friend! Let’s go meet him now, (Y/N)”

oh god no nog no no nson on o no no no . n on no awkward nono no no

“Oh gosh no that is totally all right I’m doing just fi–”

“What do you mean, you’re sitting by yourself like a loser, you probably know nobody here” the king laughed out

... bruh

The royal parents escorted you to see Daniel, earning looks from the rest of the people at the party, as you internally freaked the fuck out

oh my gosh he has been in my math class the entire year he would think it is so weird that i’m approaching him now oh god and his parents are here too they’re making such a big deal about this–

“Okay (Y/N) just wait here, we’ll find Dan and bring him in, just wait”, the Queen said, plopping you down on a fancy couch in one of the other rooms of the palace

The Queen and King walked out, giggling to themselves as they searched for Daniel

“I think she’d be a really good choice for Daniel, she was such a fresh breath of air!”

“Yes, and they’re both friends! How adorable,”

Time passed by in slow motion as you sat in the room by yourself

You got up and started pacing around to attempt to calm your nerves

You hadn’t even seen Daniel the whole time you were here, and now you were going to be alone together? He would find out that you were in his math class the whole time and then that would be super weird

You picked up random objects in the room and looked at them, as the butterflies in your stomach stirred up some tsunamis

You were in the middle of looking at all the books on the shelf, when you heard footsteps walk into the room

You whirled around, and found yourself making direct eye contact with Daniel, in a black and white checked suit (the same one as in the picture hehe)

“Uh, hello?” Daniel’s deep voice called out to you

“...Hi,” you meekly responded, tucking some hair behind your ear

Jeez (Y/N) why are you so nervous...

“Do you want to sit?” Daniel motioned to the couch, walking over to it himself

This was the most serious you have ever seen him, and you were shocked by it

“Uh yeah, so I guess your parents told you but apparently we used to be childhood friends, I’m (Y/N), Jisung’s little cousin, we used to play togeth–” you started to explain, before Daniel interrupted you

“I know who you are.”

You finally met his eyes, taken aback by his strong gaze

Is he mad? Wha–

“Why didn’t you say hello earlier? In math class?” he continued

Well this managed to turn more awkward.

“Oh...” you started, fiddling your fingers, “I thought you didn’t remember me, so I thought it’d be weird to talk to you again,”

You glanced up at him, only to find his eyes curved into cute little crescents, his deep laugh finally escaping his mouth

“Jesus, I can’t believe we both thought the same thing. I thought you didn’t remember me. I was hurt, (Y/N)!” He exclaimed, playfully shoving you

You sat there in shock, as Daniel started rattling off stories of what you two used to do, ruffling your hair (messing up your hard work, although he barely noticed that)

“You remember me?” You quietly asked, letting your thoughts loose

“(Y/N), Jisung talks about you all the time, even if I wanted to forget I wouldn’t be able to, you crazy cat”

You looked up at him and couldn’t help but blush

He was so pure and happy, and it made you feel wonderful

The two of you just sat there in the room for another 30 minutes, chatting about old times and how you’d been for the past... many years

You hadn’t talked in years, but for some reason the both of you just connected well, genuinely interested in what the other had been up to

Too soon, it was time for Daniel to go back to the party and do some wishes for the New Year

“I’m so glad we met again, I was honestly so lonely at the party because I don’t know anyone, even your dad called me a loser”

“I’m actually pretty lonely at these parties too; Seongwoo and Jaehwan usually have their own commitments to be at today, I’m glad you’re here, (Y/N)”

You smiled at him, the both of you kind of inching towards another for a maybe hug, but you guys just did some awkward movements and ended up in a weird handshake

Daniel scratched his face, embarrassed, and said he would see you later, running off back to the party

You sat back on the couch, laying down sprawled everywhere, letting what had happened in the past couple of hours sink in

Did that really just happen?

You excitedly thought of all the things the both of you had to talk about, feeling fulfilled that the mystery between you two had been sorted out

You were so happy that your childhood friend that you cherished so much was not lost forever!

If you didn’t have a crush on Daniel before, you definitely did now.

Part 2, Part 3

A/N: So I was planning for this to be done in one shot, but it turned out more intense than I had anticipated LOL

Hopefully this will be wrapped up in the next part; I really enjoyed this concept!

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crystalnet · 6 years

Photo

Sonic Forces is Good

Sonic doesn't really slot into any of the semi-nebulous interests that this blog has previously covered but I just had to make an exception because I have thoughts on the blue blur's new game, especially in light of everyone going crazy for Mario Odyssey and the fact almost all professional reviewers as well as various critics on youtube have been basically taking a wrecking-ball to this game. Sonic fans themselves are left mostly enjoying the game (if the subreddit is any indication) and kind of sheepishly acknowledging the pretty low metacritic scores with a bit of a shrug--a pose any true Sonic fan has gotten used to taking in the past decade. I want to talk just very briefly about the problem with Sonic in 2017 and anytime past the year 1998 really and why perception of his non-side-scrolling games seem critically flawed and misguided...

First of all, 3D Sonic has basically always been a mess. Now I should mention before getting deep into this, Forces is my first Sonic game since Sonic Heroes and Sonic Advance 2, the former of which wasn't even as fun as the flawed SA2 and the latter of which should be considered Sonic 5 (or 6 if you count Sonic CD) for all I care, in that it is an excellent expansion of OG Sonic style (shit like grinding on rails, updated Sprites and even Amy as a playable character were great additions). Those two games though are indicative of the whole series: the 3D ones are always problematic while the 2D ones don't seem particularly hard to make well.

I think there is a big range of how fans and critics view the series, but it seems as if the 3D games are either held to the standard of Adventure 1 and 2, which were always pretty flawed games, or else held to some non-existent and unattainable standard. But we should be clear: Sonic never had his Super Mario 64. Adventure 1 comes close, and that game does a lot very well, but it introduces a lot of things which would plague the 3D games forever. I'm mostly talking about the fact A1 and A2 are want to have all these additional playable characters besides Sonic and yet, Sonic (or Shadow) levels are always clearly where the best level design and most fun is to be had.

Why force characters like Big the Cat or E-102 Gamma down our throat, when almost all the Sonic levels are amazing compared to levels where you shoot at things or hunt for emeralds. Like extra characters are kind of intrinsically fun when your a kid, but it always felt a bit like padding to me to play the Tails/Eggman and Knuckles/Rogue levels in SA2. So the gold standard for the 3D games becomes about 1/3rd of the content in the first two games?

What I'm trying to say is that Sonic Team never knew exactly what they were trying to achieve with these games it seems. It's like they continued the tradition of Sonic 2 and 3 with Tails and then Knuckles being added by eventually just adding a shit ton of characters to every game, effectively diluting the experience. I'm not even a big fan of Mario 64, but clearly that game is critically lauded, whereas the Blue Blur just couldn't seem to make that same transition. Heroes is literally all about adding characters, along with bright, colorful presentation which barely masked the weakened level-design. Then beyond the critical face-plant that is Sonic ‘06, Sonic Team's goals with these games seem even more unclear than ever and the warm embrace of 90s Sonic seems further away then ever before during the past decade or so.

You have a couple of weird "story book"-style spin offs on the Wii like the Black Knight and Secret Rings which really push the boundaries of what a Sonic game can be (seemingly to mostly bad reviews), Sonic Unleashed, which is literally split between somewhat traditional 3D gameplay and the kind of totally different style of gameplay a la non-Sonic levels in the Adventure titles (werehog Sonic...) and then a few games that seem to be headed in a more stable direction: Sonic, Sonic Colors, Sonic Generations and to a slightly lesser degree, Sonic Lost World .

Like I said, I haven't played any of these since Heroes, but I've been reading up and looking at all of Somecallmejohnny's videos on youtube to get a sense of how people feel about these, and these last 3 seem to be on the up-and-up in terms of critical reaction from both critics and fans. But Generations was in 2011 and since then it's been mostly an onslaught of Sonic Boom games and I'll do us all a favor and gloss over those completely. While Lost World tweaks things a bit with a run-button, Colors and Generations built on the more traditional half of Unleashed and heavily featured the boost mechanic which lends itself to a new kind of level design which is considerably different than that of Adventure 1 and 2.

I guess the long-winded point that I'm trying to make is that Sonic Team has basically been having an identity crisis since 1998. Not a single one of these stands as a true precedent for the series in that the best of their lot--Generations-- is still one of those meta, self-aware entries since it combines modern and classic sonic, quite literally. I do really wanna play those last 3 I mentioned because they seem like they are on the right path, but I'm sure for every fan, there is still a disappointed nay-sayer.

This leads me to my final point though, and that is that Forces, for me personally, is a pretty damn good idea of what 3D Sonic is. I think people were putting a lot of pressure on it since it's been a while since a true 3D entry that wasn't a Boom spin-off, but also because of Manias success. Mania from earlier this year was really great, but it's great in a mostly regressive way. Yes, the four new levels are fantastic and Christian Whitehead did a awesome job of capturing the "magic" of the first 3 games while refining things like the controls and amount of sprite-frames and adding some cool extras as well as those dope Chaos emerald bonus zones, but the success it had is based off of design-principles from nearly 25 years ago.

I can't complain at all, because it's a really fun game and a great way to revisit classic vibes and levels, but I hope it's the beginning of a sea-change for Sonic Team's approach and not just a blip. Mania 2 for instance could revisit/remix the underrated Advance trilogy, or Sega could grow some balls and let Whitehead and other fan-developers like him step up to the plate and either design a full fresh side-scrolling entry OR something like oh I don't know Sonic Adventure 3?

Either way, the game generated a lot of hype which Sega capitalized on by dropping Forces a few months later. And me and like half of hard-core fans are pretty happy with the game and that's about it. Same old story since SA2: new 3D game comes out, gets mediocre reviews, half the fans are on-board while the other seem even more disappointed than professional critics. Everyone seems to have a clear idea of what Sega should be doing with their 3D games, but no one can really agree.

Well I for one think Forces is on the right track. It's not perfect, but it's not really trying to be the next big game (they make that clear every single time they release a 3D title that isn't SA3). It's only 40 USD which I think denotes that it's to played in-tandem with Mania, so you got your classic Sonic on one hand, and your new-fangled and always-problematic-to-somebody 3D Sonic on the other. Also it's worth noting that I play this on the Switch. I think the Switch magically makes any game better for being played on it, and yeah I can't really imagine playing this on PS4. The option of portability makes any game better IMO, and Switch just adds this x-factor to any game right now, I can't totally explain it (will write another post all about it).

The game hold ups though, and beyond the novel trifling that is the character-designer/OC, the level-design is better in my opinion than most are letting on. I'm not sure yet if anything comes close to my personal gold-standard for 3D Sonic levels (Radical Highway and City Escape) but the sense of speed is often phenomenal, but I don't think there is any more of those moments where you are forfeiting control than there has always been since even the Genesis games, which is something I've seen some critics complain about. I admit I was slightly taken back by the locked camera, and often-times narrow corridor-esque levels, but once I got the hang of it, I realized that this is a more faithful translation of classic Sonic into 3D than the more free-roaming styled levels of Adventure games.

People seem to get mad when there's too much precise platforming in Sonic (Marble Ruins..) just as some assail it for feeling like an auto-scroller at other times. It's like fans approach the series with the same confused priorities that Sonic Team themselves have sometimes displayed. I like the generally arcade-y feel of the levels though and re-visiting them for the purposes of refining my runs/time is enticing in the way it was back in the Sonic/Shadow levels in SA2.

Sonic is a weird, platypus of a genre unto himself: Neither pure platforming, racing or trick-based sports game a la Tony Hawk/SSX, he is all of these things and none of them at the same time. And I think these levels capture that excellently. What he isn't are slow and awkward Emerald-hunting levels or shoot-em-ups, but Sonic Teams seems to always shoot for more diversity in game-play than just Sonic levels would allow for, and that's where the Avatar levels come in, retaining the style and speed of the Sonic levels, while also expanding it slightly with Ratchet and Clank-style gun-play that seems to stand-in for awkward shit like the Eggman/Tails levels in SA2. And yeah this does mix it up nicely.

Something else I've been seeing is that it's too easy and the levels are too short, and I just hope people are playing this on Hard mode (the requisite for hard mode is simply if you have played Sonic before according to the game itself). Other criticisms I've seen simply don't resonate, like people complaining about the controls of the Sonic levels, which just did not stand-out to me as being something I noticed. I like the variety of 2D and 3D, and think it strikes a good balance.

So yeah, I basically just wanted to write this big ass post to explain why I think it's good and why other people should STFU, basically. Sonic isn't Mario, and never had been. His games are not explicitly all-ages, timeless crowd-pleasers. His games have always been faux-edgy, psuedo-platforming/racing hybrids that click hard with some and leave others cold. They are also explicitly for kids in a way that Mario games aren't, and it's a kind of complicated point but I think professional critics should take into account this shit was never designed for a 30 year-old to enjoy. That's literally why Mania exists. A 10 year old now-a-days might enjoy Mania, but a lot of that game nearly amounts to being a joke that someone born after 1999 couldn't really get.

So, basically I'm all for trying new things, perfecting a formula that never quite existed and honing in on the good parts of some of the first Sonic games, and I think that's what Forces does. Also the story is sick. Some Sonic fans actually get caught up on the story which is insane to me because its like following the plot of a Tom and Jerry cartoon, but this shit hit some fan-service high-points for me (great cast of characters that mostly glazes newer shit and honors OG Adventure 1 and 2 shit, a slightly "darker" tone, Classic Sonic seeming chill af compared to real Sonic, and cameos from old-school bad guys, for instance). So that shouldn't be a factor in your review if your over the age of 9, is what I'm saying, but I actually dig it despite that.

Yes, it could be improved upon, but I think it’s an excellent starting point for the developers to build on, so hey why not add Whitehead to this team, as well as few of the level-designers from the other Boost games (Colors, Generations, Lost World), refine the controls and level design a bit and BAM, you got yourself a worthy candidate for the true, long-awaited Sonic Adventure 3 that all true fans have been waiting for forever (even though the Adventure games weren't perfect to begin with so this is a wish that contradicts my other points but still). What I think I'm saying, is if this is what they can do in a $40 title with a relatively small dev-team from what I've read, then what can they do when they go all in? Or are they too scared? Well these reviews might scare them off from even trying again and that's what I'm worried about, but Sega needs to grow some balls, and go all-in for the next release and lay-off the Pachinko-onslaught, or at least funnel some of that Pachinko-gold into developing the next game. Like I said, Sonic isn't Mario, and he doesn't need to be, or need to have games like the big cross-generational 3D Mario games that come out every 5-8 years or so. But you know he could if he wanted to, and I think Forces shows a pretty good way forward. Until then, try opening your heart to the Blue Blur if it's been a while-- who knows, you might just be surprised. Smell ya later, dreamerz~

#sonic #sonic forces #forces #sonic mania #mania #sonic the hedgehog #haters #critics #legacy #games #sonic adventure 3 #sonic adventure #adventure

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redantsunderneath · 7 years

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An explanation of the end of Twin Peaks that provides closure

Short version, unpacked below: The story in the World of Twin Peaks has its end mid part 17 when the lights go out in the sheriff's station (with a farewell coda at the boiler room door). Coop’s face superimposed on the screen indicates a dissociative episode, one foot on the denouement of the TP story and one in the temptation of solving the only unresolved issue: Laura. The remainder of the show is a “last temptation of Cooper” fantasy/nightmare where the lesson metaphorically learned through his 25 years in the lodge is played out in the real world and demonstrates the horrific consequences of wasting your life in an obsession with solving other’s problems without facing your own. After Coop’s nightmare climax winks out, leaving us in the real world as pre-season Coop returns to the lodge. As farewell, we get the lingering lesson of the whisper, “you can never save me,” which brings us around to the fact that this has been learned before Coop leaves the Lodge – we end at the beginning, and this 1.5 episodes really belong before the first (holla, Infinite Jest fans) and is placed here as a remembered lesson, a real world version of 25 years in the lodge.

So, biases on the table – I needed an explanation that accomplished 3 things:

1. Provides closure – it has to work as a series finale without all the “there has to be a fourth season now”

2. Allows for Coop to not have to have, after the last 25 years, not learned his lesson – no cycle of “never learn” purgatory allowed

3. Saving Laura is bad because it robs her of agency and redemption and Coop’s desire to do it is damaging and reflects his deepest flaw

I bring a couple of preconceptions to the table that are, for certain, not universal.

1 Coop lost his confrontation with his shadow self (s2e22) because of his tainted savior complex. This is due to the nature of white knight-ism itself (reducing women to grail objects), his repeating pattern of his relationships being structured this way (he tried to break this pattern with Annie, but Windom Earle placed her back in this context, setting him up for a fall), and a general fascination with the dark/morbid aspects of humanity/sexuality (grinning inappropriately at Fleshworld, desiring to see dead bodies at a young age, job enabled obsession with victims of sexual violence after it is too late). But also, the problem to be solved is that of a system that he has internalized, a kind of “bad” pattern of the way males and females relate, and he has not really taken a look at himself (or the FBI for that matter). Going back to save Laura is the direct but wrong way to deal with his deepest desires and the problem with the world and not only would rob her of her own salvation but has the same cosmic wrongness that is demonstrated by the zombie Kahl Drogo sequence in GoT (has anyone compared that yet?). This is bad Coop – ends justify the means, playing with dark forces, trucking in life and death. Mr C, another words.

2 In the World of Twin Peaks, things work like TV (the OS like nighttime soaps the Return like prestige drama) but with the symbolic aspects manifested as a psychological space of archetypes spilling in to the ground reality. Thus, conflicts are played out metaphorically, but one can imagine the real world analogue to any of these. Coop’s confrontation in the (s2 last episode) Lodge becomes him losing himself to his darker impulses given the situation (Annie possibly being killed like Caroline), killing Earle in rage, and this changing him, his demons taking over. The current season does a lot to define the TP world against our world, both in implicating a dreamer (not just Lynch and Frost, but the audience which includes “real world” Coop/Richard, see below), placing Audrey/Sherlyn Fenn there (this only makes sense but is too much to broach here), including a real world city limits sign to contrast with the TP sign, and casting the owner of the house as the owner of the house.

3 The ring represents responsibility for your actions. Choosing to put the ring on is an act of radical self-determination, taking responsibility who you are and what you have done, enabling a choice whether to succumb to your demons, and dangerously stepping into the unknown world where the will meets the real (as opposed to the self-imagined or the civilized-symbolic). Having the ring put on you is forcing responsibility and exposing someone to judgement. I’d love to see a Green Lantern that took this view of the “ring of will,” the unworthy burning themselves out. Cooper telling Laura “don’t take the ring” is a mistake of someone who has yet to learn the lesson (see savior complex above). She and maybe some element of the world is saved by her sacrifice which is enacted by owning her actions.

4 I haven’t seen mentioned that, with everybody noting the Wizard of Oz nature of the “last scene in the world of TP,” the superimposed face is an element of going from Kansas to Oz. Dorothy’s face doubles and the double hangs superimposed over the cyclone. This is that in reverse, going from the “dream” to the real world.

5 Remember when Laura not only screamed at Cooper in FWWM (in black and white, Oz dudes) but then every line she says after that works as if addressed to him? “Your Laura is gone, there’s only me now” “you want to take me home now.” That was awesome

6 Naido is only revealed to be Diane in the dissociative space while Coop’s real analogue views the dream, starting (seeing Naido is the first “split off” moment). Until then she is the injured, unaware, incoherent feminine who makes monkey noises, firmly in the symbolic space, rescue bait for old Cooper, the agency-less victim. Coop maps her to Diane but also to the red room (face, Diane’s nail and hair choices). The red room is a feminine space – vaginal red curtains, Venuses (note the replacement of the Venus DeMilo with no arms with the Venus of Arles with the arms ripped off, a change of nature, Naido to Judy), and the fact that the trial of the masculine entails facing the feminine. Naido is a figment of the male imagination and being turned into the 3d Diane is the moment Coop shows he has learned.

7 Judy is tough to talk about, but we are gonna. The FBI men have clearly been on a search for something wrong with women (OK, the feminine) they can fix. Being less charitable, the function of the FBI in Twin Peaks the Return is to investigate what went wrong with women since WWII… what with the acting like men, gaining subjectivity, being less nurturing, and all. Charitably, something is wrong in every generation with the masculine and the feminine and the wish to try to find a solution. Judy as the goddess of negative feminine energy makes sense, but Coop seems to be looking for something more like “the daughter” (Naido identifies Judy as mother just as Sarah is Laura’s mother), the woman in trouble to be saved from her Judy-bred impulses. This is kind of hard to articulate but this goes to my “TP is about Boomers” theory where there is a post war problem with the feminine associated with inattentiveness (Judy and Naido have no eyes), a replacement of the maternal succor with aggression, and a putting a part of its nature asleep. Naido is the vulnerable, underdeveloped, defanged product of this.

8 Coop’s 25 year period is a metaphor for the problems of America but, more importantly, is a metaphorical story of a man at war with himself. Cooper’s fireman nature (strong, silent, problem solving, scrupulous, doing what needs to be done, productive of joy – in the lodge) has been suppressed in favor of his Bob nature (a taker, end justifies the means, all goal - doing what he wants, leaving destruction – Mr C) but it is Dougie (the original) that is the “real” Cooper in that this is the identity that has been manufactured to cover the deeper faces, the one he shows the world. When the “mid-life crisis” hits, the good starts to reassert, there is a fight, the return of the good fixed the world, and the identity is recreated as a better person. Note this is the metaphor I’m not claiming this is what “actually happened,” whatever the hell that means.

9 I think Mr C was on a mission to do what the Blue Rose task force set out to do - find Judy – he just didn’t care who died in the process and was an adversary of anything that would get in the way. He had the same goal as OG Coop did. He needed the coordinates because he wanted Naido who, as above, is a sort of contrapositive of Judy. The giant flips between the location of the TP embodiment of Judy (Sarah) and that of Naido. The white lodge was another trap.

10 Diane has, this season, lined up to represent the relationship Coop really needs. He realizes Mr C has raped her, and the seeing her in Naido is a demonstration in mastery, by making her her in his mind, not a victim. All the stuff at the end is the failure of this mastery previously in the lodge which maybe “flits through" Coop's mind while the face is up (though the face disappears during the true healing/win moment of the kiss, real recognition, and affirmation of memory).

So away we go. It works like this: In the “world of TP” Coop has gotten right with his identity (Mr C and Bob gone) and relation to the world (Dougie) has been restored. Mr C has been brought down by an avatar of weaponized innocence (Lucy) and Coop has faced Bob who has been brought down by an avatar of, well, gumption (determination, enthusiasm, taking a leap of faith). Then he sees Naido, an avatar of the helpless traumatized woman, the thing his trial is based on.

This brings about the superimposed face – this is a diffracted reality: “Coop” as a real world manifestation as part of the audience (see below) witnessing the end of the show he and all of us are dreaming. From a TP plot perspective, they have rescued Diane from Mr C’s victimization (rape) and contact with the good Coop brings her back to herself. He demonstrates that he has learned his lesson by making her a human in his mind. He sees in her the red room - in Naido/Diane is the nature of his trial, the ugly thing in the room that has a distorted, covered Diane and Judy as part of it emblematic of the taint he has to banish. He has triumphed, they are both whole.

The dreamer turns away just long enough to miss the real reconciliation and affirmation that they remember what happened. Everyting is finalized, everyone has arrived, Coop says hope to see you again, and the lights of the world of the show go out – the end.

Lynch and his two lead actors of his career go to the Great Northern boiler room door, Kyle says he must go alone, and goes through. This is Lynch, finished with his film career, saying goodbye as Lynch’s representative in the world of the show must go it alone. The face is gone, the dream is over, see you at the curtain call. One could stop here as the show world is over. Note that the idea of going to get Laura or going to get Judy has never even been broached (it seems like it, but it hasn’t - there is no indication that that's why he is going through the door).

We go back to the past (and I mean Dale in the lodge past), to the fantasy that will haunt everything retroactively. Dale is allowed to experience his rescue Laura but loses her to the ratcheting sound of the compulsive attempt (the B&W slipping into color, the white lodge being lost). He should not be doing this and he needs to become the guy who doesn’t. This is happening again and again while Dale is in the lodge – he is tested, and fails. This failure causes the loss of Laura (to a similar “woosh”) in the red room. Dale has to ignore Leland (the clear eyed one that killed his daughter, not the dopple white eyed one that never killed anybody) and leave Laura’s redemptive act intact. We witness one such failure in the fantasy space followed by the same in the room itself (shown extended in episode 1, again Dark Tower and IJ). But there is a version we haven’t seen, the “real world” one that the others have been analogies of.

OK, we’ve reached a part that has multiple layers going on at once. The rest of the episode shows a “real” version of Coop living the fact that he will never be the savior, a demonstration of how his obsession drove away the real love of his life, a representation of the time in the lodge as really just 25 years wasted on a tainted dream, a presentation of what the complete un-metaphorically split Coop would have been like those 25 years, and a symbolic depiction of (and middle finger to) fandom. You could read it as a coda which goes back to dramatize the lodge or a moment of Cooper in Twin Peaks (when the face is up) having the “lesson” flashed through his mind.

It begins. After a third repeat of the red room stuff with Leland, etc., the room appears to let him out into the world, our world. He gets to live the life he would have lived, beginning with a symbolic marriage to Diane - they say are you sure you want to do this, kiss, and cross the threshold, risk be damned. The “honeymoon” sex really represents their entire marriage/relationship… he commands, she obeys, their closeness slips into alienation, she loses who he is, as the Mr C part of him is dominant. There is no rape per se, he violates her spirit. There is no tulpa, just a person she becomes as a result of the general trauma of being with him. This is what being married to old Dougie was like for Diane’s “sister,” except she was the fantasy version that could tough it out with resilience, spunk, and good spirit. After 25 years, she leaves (the hotel is the same one 25 years later, but that’s just shorthand for he’s stuck, never "home" the whole time). They are literally different people, now.

Coop is going to finish this. He shows off how he’s Coop, Mr C, and Dougie at once in the Judy’s diner scene. Finding Laura is the one thing that gives his life meaning (fandom alert). He finds her, still trapped in the life/cycle her resolve and death freed her from, takes her “home” where the RR is closed (or is it the real diner -Norma's place never closes) and the Laura’s house is owned by the real house owner. He lets out a wail of wasted time “what year is it?” as she suddenly wakes up to the vast degree of her (and everyone like her)’s pain. He has done nothing but create more suffering. The lights go out, simulation over, and he returns to the red room.

The cycle starts again. Laura whispers “Jackass, you cannot save me/women in trouble because the problem is in you” and he makes the face of horrifying recognition. Start the season over, this is just the setup.

Hope this helps.

#twin peaks #david lynch #lynch #mark frost

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morganbelarus · 5 years

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5 Things Men Need To Stop Doing In Bed Betches

Ever since I was old enough to subscribe to women’s magazines, I have had mixed feelings about them. While I am a believer in self-improvement, the barrage of articles telling me I should change or improve some aspect of myself made me feel inadequate. Never was this feeling more acute than after reading the sex tips offered by these magazines. I thought I was doing just fine in this area and had never received a bad review, but if these magazines were to be believed, I would need to stand on my head and breathe through my nose while blindfolded in order to really impress in the bedroom. I’m all for keeping things exciting, especially in the context of a long-term relationship, but I just don’t see the same dogged dedication to pleasing your partner covered in men’s magazines. So I have taken it upon myself to do the lord’s work and outline some things that men need to stop doing in bed. Feel free to share with the f*ckboy loving partner in your life.

1. Foregoing Foreplay

According to sex expert and OG betch Dr. Ruth, “It’s particularly important for women to have successful foreplay because it takes a woman a longer time [than a man] to get up to the level of arousal needed to orgasm.” While this shouldn’t be news to anyone in 2019, my past experiences and those of my friends sadly prove otherwise. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention a specific subcategory of offenders here: men who refuse to go down on women. These creatures need to be canceled immediately, no questions asked. Be sure to throw the whole man away if he tries to make you feel like there is something wrong with your vagina. Assuming you’re showering regularly and not suffering from an infection in that area, the problem is him and not you. Any loser that tells you differently needs to be deleted from your phone. If you are one of the unicorn women who don’t need foreplay, that’s awesome (and who are you?), but like dessert at a restaurant, it should always be offered.

2. Mimicking Porn

Now that porn is more accessible than ever before, it has served as the basis for the sexual education of most men of our generation. While porn can be fun and useful when you need some new ideas, the depiction of the sex itself is rarely realistic. As we established in item 1, the vast majority of women don’t just come the second a man sticks his unlubed dick inside. And they definitely will not get off if their partner proceeds to pound away at them like a deranged chef making his finest chicken paillard. It’s difficult enough to have an orgasm in missionary; it’s downright impossible when the person on top of you is attempting to set some kind of record for most thrusts in a minute. Under no circumstances is the jack rabbit acceptable. Just. No.

3. Naming The Vagina

I’m not talking about words like “pussy” that, however you personally feel about them, have become part of the lexicon and would be unsurprising to hear in bed. I am referring to words that are a bit more out of the box (pun totally intended). To provide an example, I once had a guy ask me mid-hookup about my “na na.” After quickly remembering that I don’t call my grandma by that name, nor had this man ever met her, I realized, to my abject horror, that he was talking about my vagina. It was at that point that I went home and proceeded to never text him again. Not only was this extremely creepy, he completely ruined Trey Songz’s “Na Na” for me eternally, which is just unforgivable. When it comes to naming the nether regions, the motto is simple: when in doubt, don’t try it out. Dirty talk is great, but keep the nicknames to yourself.

4. Using A Cliche Sex Playlist

Personally, having sex to music isn’t my jam (though bad puns most certainly are). This might be the case because every guy I dated who was into doing this was a complete and utter tool, but I digress. I think incorporating music can be a fun way to shake things up, but if both people aren’t into it, it’s a recipe for awkwardness, especially if said playlist is a bit too on the nose. You already know what you’re doing, you don’t need the music to narrate the moment like some washed-up DJ trying to pump up the crowd at a third-rate bar mitzvah. Ginuwine’s “Pony” and Boyz II Men’s “I’ll Make Love to You” have no business on a sex playlist, and any guy that thinks otherwise is probably a virgin, or should be.

5. Entering The Backdoor Without Permission

Engaging in anal sex or any other activity involving the butt is a polarizing topic. There are some who love this kind of action, and others who want nothing to do with it. Regardless of where you fall on the spectrum, I think we can all agree that no great love story ever began with a sneak attack on an unsuspecting butthole. At best, you are in for some major discomfort, and, at worst, a literal sh*tshow. I recently heard a story about a girl who ended up with an actual hemorrhoid because some douchelord thought it was okay to bite her ass without so much as a warning. I wonder how adventurous he’d be feeling if he were on the receiving end of such a love bite.

I could go one for hours about obnoxious things guys do in the bedroom, but these five are definitely some of the most common and egregious. Any sexual relationship is always better if you can be open and honest about what you want, so if a dude’s definition of foreplay isn’t cutting it for you, demand better or ditch his ass. What are your biggest sexual pet peeves that I didn’t mention?

Images: Shutterstock; Giphy (5)

Original Article : HERE ; This post was curated & posted using : RealSpecific

5 Things Men Need To Stop Doing In Bed Betches was originally posted by MetNews

#MetNews

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butyoutellmeeverytime · 7 years

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An Update

I’m mostly posting this because I’m bored AF at work and I know no one will read this but I’m mostly just recording it for myself OKAY here we go:

Since September, when I started my job from hell, I’ve been planning a solo trip to Paris. I’d already been thinking about going ever since I knew I’d be taking a gap year, but once I had started my job and knew how much money I was going to make, I decided I was going to make it happen, because I know I will never have an opportunity like this again.

The first thing I did was decide when to go and book an Airbnb. I knew I wanted to do Airbnb because 1) no way am I paying for a hotel in Paris and 2) I was hesitant to do a hostel if I was traveling alone. I know hostels are actually safer than they sound, but I just wanted peace of mind and to know that both I and my stuff were 100% safe. Plus, a single room in an Airbnb really isn’t bad. I decided I would travel in the summer, mostly because there’s no way I’d get enough vacation time to go while I was still in this job, so I would have to go after I quit. Since summer is the busiest tourist time, I wanted to get a good Airbnb booked before the good ones were gone or the prices had gone up. So, as soon as I got my first paycheck, I booked my room in an apartment in the famous Montmartre neighborhood. Nothing quite like seeing a “Congratulations, you’re going to Paris!” message on your screen.

Since then, I’ve been slowly planning out what I’d like to do while I’m there. The OG goal was to see as much art as possible, and in particular, see as much Gothic architecture as possible. The whole point of me going (aside from just having a fab time) was to physically expose myself to the art I wanted to study in graduate school. This meant having to narrow down how many day trips I was willing to take and pay for, as well as how much time in actual Paris I was willing to sacrifice. I will be in France for two weeks, and I finally landed on going to five towns outside of Paris that have Gothic cathedrals: Chartres (which I wrote a research paper on and is my #1 cathedral destination), Reims, Beauvais, Amiens, and Rouen. I will also of course be visiting the Gothic architecture in and around Paris, with Notre Dame, Saint-Denis (the OG Gothic cathedral), and the Sainte-Chapelle.

With the Gothic art covered, I made a list of all the things in Paris itself I want to do/see. I won’t list everything I’m planning on, but the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, the Louvre (I’m giving myself 3 days here, because duh), the Musée d’Orsay, Versailles, the Sacre Couer, the Palais Garnier, and the Paris Catacombs give you a general idea. I’ll also be visiting several bookshops, because obviously.

I’ve done a ton of research on the best way to pay for everything. I’ll be getting a Paris Museum Pass, which gets you into all the museums and several of the monuments (plus you get to bypass the lines, which is a huge plus in the summer). I’ll also get a metro pass, because it also covers some of the trains I’ll be taking (to/from the airport, Versailles, etc.) along with the metro itself.

It turns out planning a big trip like this is p complicated. Initially I just made a huge jumbo list of everything I wanted to do. It took a long time for me to actually decide when I would do everything. I haven’t mapped out every hour of every day, because 1) that’s no fun and 2) I need to allow myself wiggle room. I’m trying very, very had not to pack too much in. I know I’m going to feel the need to see as many things as I possibly can, but that makes for a very hurried, stressful, and exhausting trip, and that just isn’t what I want this to be. I do want to make the most of my time there, but I also want to enjoy it and not be on the verge of falling asleep/collapsing the whole time. As a result I’ve intentionally scheduled downtime, time to just “explore”, because one of the big charms of Paris is how much there is to discover. It’s a gorgeous city, and I want time to just look around and go into the little shops, rather than having to rush through everything and skip those little things. I want time to sit in a park with a baguette and read a book and people watch for a few hours, you know?

Another thing I thought about early on was plane tickets. At first, I wanted to book my flights asap, assuming that the sooner I bought them the cheaper they’d be. But apparently, international flights are the cheapest about 50 days before the flight. So, as anxious as it’s making me to still not have my flights booked, I’m waiting until April to buy my tickets. I’m also signed up for cheap flight alerts, and the prices haven’t gone up from September to now, which is a good sign. The only worry now is that I won’t get a good seat, but I suppose we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.

I also, rather annoyingly, need to get a new passport. I got one when I was in high school because I was going to the Dominican Republic for a mission trip (lol tbt to my jesus days), but since I was under 16 it didn’t last the full 10 years. I’ve been waiting to get a new one because in November and December I was spending a lot of money on Anniversary/Christmas presents, along with all those goddamn grad school application fees. But, I filled out a new passport application this morning and will call tomorrow to schedule an in-person appointment (which I can do during my lunch break, hoorah).

I’ve also just been doing a shit-ton of Pinterest research about traveling - traveling abroad, traveling alone, traveling alone as a woman, and traveling to Paris/France. Y’all, Pinterest is a little ridiculous, but it’s also informative AF depending on what you’re looking for. Bless all you 20-something female bloggers.

One of the best things I discovered from said bloggers was the MyMaps feature from Google Maps. A major problem I was having was visualizing all the things I want to do, particularly in regards to location. I had tried a few times to print out a map of Paris and mark all the places, but there are simply too many things I want to do for them to all fit, unless I print out a giant map (if I include all the restaurants and shops I’m interested in). MyMaps allows you to create your own map, where you can mark all of your places on one map with a little marker, and when you click on it a description pops up. You can add pictures to the description, and I also added hours of operation, ticket/pricing info, and any other relevant tips I’ve found. For the outside-Paris locations, I also wrote down train directions. Plus, you can change the icon and color of each location, which makes it easy for me to quickly identify restaurants, bakeries, cafes, shops, monuments, etc. This will make it really easy for me to look at my map each night and think about where I want to eat/what shops I want to visit the next day. I was so happy when I discovered this, and I literally spent hours putting it together.

Even if I don’t end up going to every single place I’ve mapped out, it will be helpful to have an organized list of options to choose from.

I also decided to make a spreadsheet of all my expenses for the trip, since I’m literally paying for everything myself (hooray adulting). I originally had an estimate of about how much everything would cost, but after specifically noting all of it I have a much closer guess. I still can’t be 100% accurate - I still haven’t bought my plane tickets, and food/souvenirs will be different every day - but I’m much closer to an accurate guess. I’m also indicating whether or not each expense has been paid for or not. I am definitely saving money by using the museum pass and the metro pass, so go me.

Finally, because I truly am an organization freak, I made a list of every single thing I’ll need to do before going - from big things like “book flights” to small things like “buy a power adaptor”. I realized there are a lot of things I’ll have to do that I can’t/shouldn’t do quite yet, so I just want to make sure I know exactly what needs to be done. I don’t want to be on the plane and realize I didn’t do something important. I’m also just really fucking excited about this trip, and I making lists and organizing everything having to do with it makes me happy. It’s taken all my willpower not to start making a packing list - chill dude, your trip is still 4 months away.

As I do more organizing/planning I may post about it here; mostly for myself - both to keep busy at work and to just record this process for myself. But if any of my like 3 followers finds this interesting then woohoo, two birds one stone.

Anyway, bless anyone who was interested enough to read this, kudos for you. I’m going in 118 days and I’m so bloody pumped.

#paris #personal #where have you been #uhh france??

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skincare-us-blog · 6 years

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The Tom Ford Cleanse

New Post has been published on http://skincareee.com/the-tom-ford-cleanse/

The Tom Ford Cleanse

A variety of things come to mind when I think of Tom Ford. A heady over pour of virility. A languid transatlantic (???) drawl. An almost lifelike brow. And that’s just appearance. By now, his dogmatic convictions are almost as sentient as he is. He’s condemned everything from wearing shorts in the city, and his son’s “tacky” dinosaur shoes, to chewing gum in public. He is as deft as he is fastidious, and it seems every photo I see of him has him sprawled out, spread eagle, and on a chaise lounge.

I’ve always found this network of information compelling because, typically, unrelatability has a direct correlation with appeal. It’s universal. This curiosity is the basis of why Shark Week, serial killers, and the concept of childbirth are all enthralling while Ryan Reynolds, pants with an elastic waistband, and marketing emails that address me by my first name bore me to death. This intense curiosity drove me to gain insight into his lifestyle, because who wouldn’t want to live like Mr. Ford?

I started with the most accessible window to his soul: his diet and daily regimens. For structure, I looked to another ITG cleanse centered around folding a successful person’s habits into yours—The Oprah Cleanse. After reading every interview with him the internet had to offer, I ended up with a week-long crash course. I present to you the Tom Ford cleanse.

The general parameters:

–Punctuate a very healthy diet with junk “I try to stick to a diet of fish and vegetables, but my one remaining vice is cheap candy and baked goods… Hostess Donettes are my weakness.”

–Cold beverages only “I don’t like warm drinks of any kind.”

–Only consume scentless foods “I don’t eat onions or garlic. Ever. Fresh breath is important.”

–Take baths instead of showers “Yes, I still take my baths all day long. They’re meditative.”

–Only use Tom Ford Beauty products “Naturally, I use my own beauty products.”

–Look your best in order to be your best “Put on the best version of yourself when you go out in the world because that is a show of respect to the other people around you.”

DAY ONE The folklore surrounding Tom Ford purportedly taking five baths a day has been around since, well, Tom Ford. While the exact number of baths he currently takes is unknown, I make it my goal to take at least two baths a day (but bonus points for more!).

6:30 AM Tom Ford said in Harper’s Bazaar that his day starts at 4:30 a.m. I set my alarm for this time and, after snoozing my alarm for two hours, give up on waking up that early for the remainder of the week. I begin drawing my first bath.

I make a giant iced coffee and lower myself into the water where I sit in cannonball position until the water reaches my chest. The feeling is as unfamiliar as it is initially unpleasant. I briefly wonder if I will get heatstroke.

8:00 AM I drain the tub, brush my teeth, shave, and draw my second bath. This time with soap. I am running late for work because I have taken more baths this morning than I have in the past decade. I bolt to work.

9:20 AM For breakfast, I have a scoop of bran cereal, half a banana, and several slices of pineapple. An archetypally Tom Ford breakfast. I almost never eat breakfast because I am always nauseous for the first several hours after waking, but I enjoy taking the time to collate the ingredients into a bowl and pick at it while I begin work.

9:45 AM Second breakfast: two Hostess Donettes. In case you haven’t had one of these recently because you don’t grocery shop at gas stations—they are soft, delicious, and taste nothing like doughnuts. Here, the word “donettes” is used to indicate that they are not real doughnuts in that way that the words “cheez,” “froot,” and “Cap’n” are used to distinguish between real cheese, fruits, and Captains.

I get powdered sugar all over my slacks.

12:00 PM Lunch is catered at my office today, so I stand in the lunch line and sniff each platter looking for entrees that don’t have onions or garlic. I end up with a scoop of dilly orzo, potato nubs, three balls of mozzarella, and several florets of raw broccoli.

6:50 PM I prepare for a bath the second I get home. This time, I shower beforehand. Cheating, I know, but I am unable to mentally surmount the idea of atmospheric grime seasoning tonight’s bath.

9 PM I drink a banana, peanut butter, and almond milk smoothie with a bendy straw for dinner.

Total bath count: 3

DAY TWO

9:15 AM Breakfast: a half-banana smile with two Donette eyes. I fashion a nose out of a pineapple chunk.

12:20 AM I order an expensive vegetarian burger for lunch. I throw out the onions and eat in complete silence at my desk. I chase it with a shard of dark chocolate.

6:30 PM Tom Ford’s sixth grooming commandment, according to GQ, is “get a pedicure.” I’ve put this off for years as I am a germophobe, and am truly terrified by the idea of fungal infections. A friend recommends the ITG-approved JinSoon Natural Hand & Foot Spa’s Tribeca outpost, so I heed his advice and go after work. After checking in with the receptionist, I am offered a glass of prosecco, which I politely decline. (Tom Ford told Esquire that “becoming teetotal completely altered [his] life.”) I might as well give it a shot this week.

The experience is blissful start to finish. It involves me alternating my hobbit legs in and out of warm water dyed blue, droppers filled with fragrant tinctures, delicate trimming, and fervent sanding. I’ve been missing out! At some point, I have an out of body experience. I see myself, posturing like Jonathan Rhys Meyers as King Henry VIII in Showtime’s Golden Globes-nominated drama, The Tudors—shirt unbuttoned to my navel—without even a hint of irony! I lean into this tableau, and when the technician offers me my choice of essential oils, I pick lavender.

9:15 PM For dinner, I eat poached arctic char with peppers, plums, and eggplant.

11:00 PM I graze my feet against each other until I drift off into a full night of uninterrupted sleep.

Total bath count: 5

DAY THREE

8:30 AM On my way to work, I exchange several messages with Emily Ferber, and we talk shop about Tom Ford Beauty.

An excerpt: Emily Ferber: I have a skin illuminator that I don’t use but can’t get rid of The dry body oil— I use it in my hair. Or Gotham: Is there an actual difference between the body oil and the dry oil? EF: The dry oil is a spray. OG: Oh, like Pam!!! EF: Lol like Pam. I hope I get a cameo in your piece. OG: I’ve already taken several screenshots.

10:00 AM I pull my bare feet out of my loafers and interrupt my coworkers’ productivity to show them how pristine my feet are. They all coo at my wiggling toes as I do slow motion fan kicks in my desk chair.

12:30 PM I plate several pieces of salmon sushi and get up to take a lap around the office. My coworkers question this behavior.

“For lunch, Tom Ford sometimes wanders around his office eating salmon sashimi off of a plate,” I explain to them, slinking off into the office’s atrium.

I don’t catch their reactions, but I assume they react to this statement with unbridled understanding and acceptance.

7:00 PM I decide to try out Tom Ford’s Intensive Purifying Mud Mask. I wash my face with the Purifying Facial Cleanser which leaves my face feeling very clean. I then spackle on a thick layer of the mud. Its light citrus scent is pleasant. I smile, like the Babadook, at the mirror and sink into the tub. It is now Friday night, so for the first time this week I enjoy my bath with all the urgency of a glacier. I play Abel Korzeniowski’s score for A Single Man. A lit candle sits irresponsibly on the edge of the tub, filling the room with Neroli Portofino. I feel dour and cinematic in my nakedness—quintessentially Tom Ford. I soak long enough to let the water get cold and wash the mask off.

Spoiler alert: my skin looks very clear the next morning.

Total bath count: 7

DAY FOUR

10 AM I sleep in because it’s Saturday. For breakfast, I have a sugared doughnut and two iced coffees. I spend thirty minutes doing calisthenics half-heartedly, start the crossword, and take a three-hour nap.

1:30 PM I eat four pineapple spears and get indigestion.

6:00 PM I begin preening before a friend’s birthday party in the East Village. Tom Ford directs us to use “cold packets” to get rid of eye puffiness. I have no idea what a cold packet is, so I rub two ice cubes around my eyes instead. I brush my eyebrows with Tom Ford for Men Gelcomb. Using a magnifying mirror and Tom Ford for Men Concealer in Medium, I begin covering my imperfections. I swipe it over my dark undereye circles, a broken capillary I obtained by abusing Bioré strips last winter, my eyelids, and the sizable area of pores flanking my nose. Checking my work in my bathroom’s catastrophically unflattering light, I realize I have screwed the pooch. The color is entirely too pale and very full coverage. I look casket-ready. I, however, was supposed to be there an hour ago, so I spray Neroli Portofino “everywhere” (Ford’s mandate!) and leave the house as is.

On the subway, I pray that people assume I am a RealDoll, rather than a highly-perfumed corpse.

7:30 PM Luckily, the bar is dark, so no one comments on my appearance.

Total bath count: 10

DAY FIVE

11 AM The sheer number of baths I’ve taken this week has dried my skin out considerably, so I counteract this by squirting several streams of Neroli Portofino Body Oil directly into my bath water. I immerse myself into the very expensive scented water and try out every repose depicted in The Land of Cockaigne by Bruegel. Immediately, I feel like a 1990s mogul.

Scented baths are one of the several commodities (along with limousines, the sweater department at Barney’s, two-day shipping, and mint Milanos) that were once regarded as luxuries and have lost their clout over time. In the December 2008 issue of Details magazine, Tom Ford says “time and silence are the most luxurious things today.” His statement holds up. It becomes clear that the multi-bath ritual was never about compulsive cleansing but rather about the accommodation of those two indulgences.

My bathtub remains dangerously slippery for the next day and a half.

1 PM For lunch, I eat two poached eggs over a frisée salad in the West Village. The waiter comments on my fragrance neutrally, which I attribute directly to the fact that I am wearing too much.

“Tom Ford?” he not so much asks as broadcasts, sniffing the ether above me.

I nod uselessly and vacate the premises.

10 PM I forget to eat dinner entirely and put on Nocturnal Animals before bed.

Total bath count: 12

DAY SIX

8 AM I skip breakfast and get an iced coffee on the way to work.

6 PM I get an email that the Fruit of the Loom undershirt I had tailored to make my arms look more attractive is ready for pick up. The sleeves were hemmed just above my triceps to mirror Tom Ford’s “off-duty” uniform.

There is a strong correlation between successful people and people who get their clothes custom-fit. It’s the kind of permanent adjustment that balks in the face of 30-day return policies. One of the reasons successful people look, well, successful is that their clothes fit them exactly. There’s no cuffing, or bunching, or billowing. Simply going to a tailor is a status symbol within itself because it says “I can spend $20 getting this $3.58 undershirt professionally altered.”

7 PM I change into it the second I get home and study myself in a full-length mirror. Any improvements to my appearance are imperceptibly mild. (My arms, however, are unremarkable to begin with so I write it off as user error.)

7:15 PM I keep my bespoke Fruit of the Loom shirt on and plaster the mud mask on my face.

8 PM Dinner is grilled branzino with radish and parsley.

Total bath count: 15

DAY SEVEN

9:10 AM I arrive at the office, sweating profusely because I am wearing a turtleneck. I head to the restroom and give myself another spray of cologne in case I smell like a damp ox.

11 AM For lunch, I eat sushi. I’m exhausted by the amount of fish I’ve consumed in the last week. I’m sure Tom Ford doesn’t face this problem (because he doesn’t get sushi from the cafeteria-style “premium” lunch hubs that pop up around New York City like gophers) but I’ve had a low-grade stomachache all week.

7 PM When asked about his last meal, Tom Ford said it would be salmon with “Hostess Donettes around the outside of the plate.” (It is in this same interview that he says Hostess sends him a box of their confections every time he mentions them to the press, his eyes gleaming behind his Snuffaluffagus lashes.) I decide to have this as my last meal of my cleanse. Rather than cook the salmon myself, I order it on GrubHub. It arrives an hour later. I plate it and encircle it with Donettes before squeezing lemon onto the ingot of salmon. Its appearance is grandiose and frightening like a TOILETPAPER magazine spread. I eat all of the salmon and six of the doughnuts.

10:30 PM I take my last bath and my stomach is lurching.

Total bath count: 16

11 PM I have an early meeting tomorrow morning, so, I end my week like Ford (who relies “completely…on sleeping pills and tranquilizers”) and pop two OTC non-habit-forming sleeping aids.

In an interview with CNBC, he’s described himself and, through transitive property, the Tom Ford Man as international, multilingual, well traveled, and possessing disposable income. This week, I didn’t even remotely get closer to obtaining any of those traits. I did, however, gain a deep sense of respect for his obsessive level of discipline, even without wearing his trademark suit. But, the way I see it, if I’m not a Tom Ford Man now, I was never one to begin with—or at least that’s the story I’m sticking to.

—Or Gotham

Photographed by the author.

Ready or not, here are 30 Tom Ford fragrance reviews.

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