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muninnhuginn · 5 months

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here we go. please ignore the quality, but these are a few of the media I highly rate that I've sorted into groups based on shared qualities with other media. the idea is along the lines of "if you like this show because of y theme, then you may also like z show which shares said theme".

a few bonus recs that I couldn't fit on this list (because I either didn't want to give stuff away or because they fit into multiple different groups at once):

Link Click (donghua) (time travel, first season much more about individual stories, second season more plot-based. Two seasons out at present.)

Spy x Family (animanga) (yes, I know everyone knows about this one already, but it's one of those shows that strikes such a good balance between the humour and the drama. and the way that the manga arcs start to increasingly weave in social commentary is so well done. Ongoing series.)

Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju (animanga) (full disclosure, I haven't yet completed this hence not wanting to put it down yet, but so far it's really impressed me. It's a complete series.)

Full list of media (and some more tidbits) below the cut:

Serial Experiments Lain (anime)

Complete

Really fascinating dive into the Internet, identity, and conspiracy theories. Despite being released over two decades ago, it's somehow more relevant nowadays. That said, there is an underlying thread of tension and it's hard to piece together what's happening at times. Very surreal and heavy on the unreality. So, it's probably not for everyone (and it'll be fairly obvious early either way), but if that sounds like your jam, then go for it. (EDIT: Also, I just realised that I entirely forgot that this series also belongs in the ND-coded protag circle because Lain's whole deal has a lot of overlap with schizophrenia/psychosis in general.)

Jibaku Shonen Hanako-kun (animanga)

Ongoing

The anime is an incomplete adaptation for this (though it does have Ogata Megumi) and the manga goes much further. It's a monthly release and the art is gorgeous. It's centred around a school where urban legends come to life as the supernatural. I've seen some people say it's fairly light-hearted a series before, but I can't really say I agree, especially when it comes to the later chapters. It can play into particular anime tropes at times though.

Princess Tutu (anime)

Complete.

There is also a manga, but I've heard it's pretty different and I've not tried it so can't really comment. If you like ballet and European folktales then this is the show for you. It's... probably aimed at the lowest age range of all of my recs and it does show at times, but I'd point to it as an example of how just because a show is aimed at younger ages, that doesn't mean it has to look down on you. Anyway, it's neat seeing the protagonists interact with the concept of the story they themselves are a part of.

Revolutionary Girl Utena (anime)

Complete.

The manga for this is meant to be pretty different so keeping this rec to the anime. Obligatory "look up trigger warnings" if you think you may stumble into something you can't handle, because this show sure covers a lot of fairly dark topics. Still, it's pretty surreal and at times ridiculous so it's not all dark all the time. The premise is around a girl who wants to be a prince, who participates in duels for the hand of the 'rose bride'.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica (animanga)

Complete (og series)

The manga iirc is fairly similar, but the anime is really good in its presentation so would recommend anime over manga for sure. The soundtrack and the way it's directed both elevate the story massively. Anyway, twelve episode season, with a movie afterwards you can decide whether to proceed to or not. It's about what it takes to be a magical girl, and what is taken. I imagine most people nowadays know the big twists already but in case you don't, I'll just say that the foreshadowing in it is one of my favourite things. So much rewatch value.

The Locked Tomb (book series)

Ongoing. Three books out, with fourth expected to be final.

Speaking of foreshadowing, this series has so many levels of foreshadowing going on, I think it would take many rereads to catch it all. The first book in the series is a relatively standard murder mystery, but after that, the author immediately cashes in the good will earnt to become increasingly experimental. Each book therefore is pretty different genre-wise, despite being set in the same universe and progressing the same story. Anyway, I know this one isn't for everyone, but I'd say at the very least give Gideon a shot.

Orphan Black (Canadian drama)

Complete.

This is a co-production between a US and CA company but Wikipedia classes it as Canadian so okay let's do that. Okay. Orphan Black is about discovering you may be a scientific experiment and the questions inherent in that. In this case, it's about clones. The main actor has such range and she plays half the cast and somehow makes it work. I will say it takes her a couple of episodes sometimes to get the accents right (I took psychic damage occasionally), but once she's got it down she keeps it. This one is another genre blender, with different clones progressing different subplots. One of them off doing an investigation whilst another is trying desperately to live in a soap, etc.

Severance (US drama)

Season one complete, season two ambiguously in the works.

More science experimentation. This show is based on a premise wherein people can partition off parts of their brains so that their work selves are entirely independent of their non-work selves. The two selves have no shared memories, but they are in theory the same person. It brings up a lot of questions about nature vs nuture, along with commentary on religious cults and workplace rights.

Oddtaxi (anime)

Complete.

We follow a taxi driver through his daily life, picking up passengers, dropping them off, getting accidentally (or maybe--) involved with the local gang members. It's pretty chill, but as you go on you realise just how thoroughly everyone's lives are intertwined with each other. And there's a mystery or ten to be solved. If our driver guy can be bothered. This and Reset both fit into the incredibly small niche I like to call "character-based mystery show with social commentary set in a vehicle". Very catchy.

Reset (cdrama)

Completed

Time loop scenario where a pair of strangers are caught on a bus that keeps blowing up and have to try and figure out how to escape. I feel like the pace at which the audience figures out stuff is timed really well to whenabouts the characters figure out stuff, but there's a lot of foreshadowing I didn't realise until I rewatched a few episodes. Just, really solid mystery and character drama.

March comes in like a lion (animanga)

Ongoing (manga)

Full disclosure. I have only watched the anime of this and from some of what I've heard about the later parts of the manga it's likely to stay that way, but! The parts covered by the anime are something special. I grouped together this series with Skip and Loafer and Frieren because they're very... they're all about 'moving forwards, despite'. So, at the start of this series, the mc is pretty depressed, but as it goes on you get to see him slowly unfurl out of that. You get to see him make new connections, progress with shogi (aka, what the series is ostensibly about), and just generally let himself live again. It's a very wholesome anime without letting itself forget the darker aspects of life.

Skip and Loafer (animanga)

Ongoing (manga). Season one of anime complete.

This is a definite comfort show and has one of my favourite depictions of developing friendships (I want to say something here about the intersection of platonic and romantic but I'm not sure how to put it). This show/manga follows Mitsumi as she starts at a city school after growing up in a rural village. It has her meet new obstacles and new people and shows how they all influence each other. Overall, it's a fairly gentle story, but I think it pulls off heartwarming so well because it can also do heartwrenching.

Frieren (animanga)

Ongoing.

I may regret putting an ongoing anime here before it's even finished airing (staying anime-only for now personally). So far though, this is a show about grief, and living life beyond that. It's a show that could so easily be a tragedy but chooses to venture beyond instead. It follows Frieren (an elf with a long lifespan) as she realises that she hasn't really allowed herself to know people properly and decides to fix that. It's a fairly standard fantasy setting so it's hard to describe what's so appealing about it, but it's very intentional with its parallels, with putting the words of long dead characters in the mouths of those who never knew them. Very cyclical. The first four episodes released in one go, so if you're thinking of giving it a shot, I'd watch those four before deciding whether to drop.

Stranger (kdrama)

Two seasons out. Can be taken as complete at end of either season though still open for more.

So, it's a drama about prosecutors/corruption, a lot of the standard kdrama jazz. It has one of my favourite pairs of besties though and I love how many threads are woven through all levels. It's a show that's heavily plotty (the number of times you're forced to recalculate as you get more pieces is ridiculous but in a good way), but despite that, doesn't neglect the characters.

Mob Psycho 100 (animanga)

Completed.

An OP protagonist would rather focus on his non-psychic attributes. I tend to struggle with OP protagonists sometimes, but this show/manga deals with it well, because the point isn't actually *about* Mob's powers. It's more about how his powers are linked to his emotions. There are plenty of fights (and they're all incredibly well animated), but the tension isn't usually in "who will win", and I don't mean that in a bad way at all. Anyway, the show is for the most part a comedy (it does have some off-colour jokes at times unfortunately, though they're mostly relegated to specific episodes at least), but my favourite parts are always when you get to see the other side of things. This show also has Reigen, for whatever that's worth. (I hate the fact he's so well-written. Why couldn't he just be the meme and nothing else.)

Arcane (US animated)

Season one complete. Season two in the works.

You don't need League knowledge for this despite it being based off it. This (like a few of the others actually) is a three-act structure following Vi and Jinx as they grow up in the shadows of Piltover. Visually, it's a gorgeous series, and the mix of 3d and 2d works so well. Despite being only nine episodes long, it manages to fully develop scores of characters with their own interweaving subplots, all culminating with the finale. It's another one with social commentary, in this case, it's not particularly subtle, but it doesn't actually need to be. And it does the showing not just the telling so it works in tandem.

Blue Eye Samurai (US animated)

Season one complete.

And now we reach the revenge trio of shows. I will fully admit I started this series because I saw many a pretty gifset across my dash. And the aesthetics absolutely hold up. This is an Edo-era revenge quest by a samurai who has given up on happiness. It starts fairly tropey and by-the-book, but it pulls off the execution solidly and infuses a lot of symbolism into the main trio (especially Mizu, but Akemi gets plenty as Mizu's reflection). There is a decent amount of sex and graphic violence though and, given that the show deliberately conveys various characterisation points through them, they're not really skippable. Try not to wince at the pronunciation of Japanese words either. It's old-style English anime dub level a lot of the time when it comes to names/places, despite a lot of the setting itself being relatively well-researched from what I can tell. I guess it's just a disparity between the voice actors and the writers.

Nirvana in Fire (cdrama)

Complete. There is a season two but it's a next generation deal.

Terminally ill guy returns to the capital to get justice for a betrayal before his time is up. Despite how grim that sounds, the show itself has a much nicer balance between the light-hearted and the serious. It does chuck you right into the depths from the very start (I know a lot of people refer to charts for relationships for the first few episodes until they get the hang of it), but once you start to understand, you can really get the impact. How the previous generation has echoed onto the current generation. Also, the main character is Mei Changsu, one of my favourite schemers. He knows how to troll, even (or maybe especially?) as he's plotting someone's downfall.

The Glory (kdrama)

Complete.

The mc in this show (Moon Dong-eun) was bullied at highschool, to the extent she was suicidal. The show is about her revenge on the bullies, as she sets the pieces for their own flaws to fell them. I will say for this, that the first episode is imo the darkest in tone. The later episodes do still touch on darker topics (sexual assault, suicide again), but for the most part, the first episode is the darkest to help you understand why she's willing to go to the lengths she is. And yet, despite that, a line of hope runs through the show. There's a line early on about the solidarity between victims vs the solidarity between abusers and it's a real thesis statement for the whole show.

#not gonna chuck this in tags just because I don't want to spam them and with the number of series listed here it would definitely be spam #but feel free to reblog #also ha. I didn't even have many timeloops-related media this time.#me: ah yes I will add some little facts about some of the media.#also me: ....ah.#I feel like maybe I should've included trigun given the faith in humanity theme I accidentally stumbled into but I've still only seen 98 #so maybe later idk. if I put sel though I would probably rate trigun above it (tho trigun has more 90s shonen protag moments alas)

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os-eclipses-tamen-son-yuri · 2 months

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Being able to get your average cishet man TM who enjoys animanga into a shoujo/josei or a yuri series, hell, even into a series with a FM should be rewarded as the herculean feat that it is I swear.

#its so frustrating how they will watch any battle shonen thrown their way but the moment you recc to them something that has a minimun #amount of romance and even things without romance but that centre female characters they just refuse #its also frustrating to see how many girls have no problem relating to male characters but suddenly men have a hard time relating #female characters and their struggles and end up calling them boring or overly sentimental #how hard it is for a female protag to be “up to their standards” specially if its an action-oriented or thriller story #anime #manga #animanga

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heavenly-halcyon · 2 years

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Hey guys. Guys guys guys. Dead End: Paranormal Park guys.

Anyone wanna talk about possession, characters with blue hair and pronouns, spooky mansions, dogs who aren’t what they seem, characters falling off cliffs, green demons, and hot ghosts

#dead end paranormal park #dead end: paranormal park #mystery skulls animated #mystery skulls #yes this is also about mystery skulls LMAO #please I need someone who hyperfixates on DE:PP to have deep convos with #like ok ok. like I’m not hyperfixated on de:pp but I know I could think about wayyy more and I just. GRAG #electric tries to get more interested in something by relating it to his hyperfixation moment #I know the two aren’t even remotely similar but I have always wanted to give someone my interests #well I mean thematically ig #and in format too but #there are paranormal things #and I am not normal about one and the other has a trans protag and such good humor and NFJDHYGGRRGRGGG #I pspspsps the de:pp people

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wooahaes · 9 months

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god i rarely write chubby!reader fics because my fics by default dont include any (intentional) descriptors to paint reader as thin or fat or any race so that they're accessible for everyone. but i saw some absolutely rancid takes and i lowkey wanna write another multi-part chubby reader fic. i should finish some plans tbh

#wooahaes.txt #i dont know who needs to hear this but... the existence of chubby!reader fics does not take away from other body types representation #a lot of fics default to having a thin reader most likely because the author is writing from their own experience.#there's literally nothing wrong with that as long as the author puts a warning on the fic for specifying a body type #like imo you can really write anything you want as long as you put the proper warnings in place so that readers can pick and choose--#--what they want to read yknow? not everyones gonna relate to a fic and thats okay #its the same thing as reading published books with a protag who best resembles you #nothing wrong with looking for the rep! but its not like its taking away from 'other' ppls rep to have a plus size protag #and so forth! but genuinely like... a lot of reader fics default to having a thin reader #my works dont and i have mutuals who write in a similar manner (and i love them v much for it mwah mwah)#and they typically dont have any warning that reader is written to be thin. we just kinda have to see it for ourselves and usually click of #its why i try to be careful in tagging my works accordingly so people know what they're getting into #anyway thats enough rambling. i'll eventually come back around and write another chubby!fem!reader fic #i have a chris one ive been thinking about for a whiiiiile now and its got some very cute moments teehee #i'll try to have an alternate fic being uploaded around the same time too for ppl who arent interested in a chubby!reader fic tho! <3

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butcharyastark · 1 year

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ngl its very weird to me with the type of story that andor is telling to see ppl make the totally normal fandom memes abt objectively brutal arcs. like ppl joking abt cassians motivation in the narkina 5 eps being "i am going to cause problems on purpose" or smth. girl that was an arc about criminal profiling, labor exploitation, and physical/mental torture in the prison complex system under fascism, and the characters being traumatized by and defying those things. what is funny.

#esp weird when ppl make 'sad wet man' memes abt cassian in very fucked up scenarios like the first ep #like.... u think making voyueristic jokes abt a latino man being the subject of police brutality is a haha sad protag moment?#im p sure diego luna is white actually but i dont think most ppl in the fandom realize that so. and its still xenophobic anyway #and either way. still very very weird. ur talking abt extremely heavy and realistic depictions of fascism in media #im not talking abt things like Wandor Wednesday bc its funny and not related to the media themes itself #but why r ppl so comfortable memeing things they prolly shouldnt lol #my post #sw #andor #its like squid game again tbh

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perenlop · 1 year

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sorry ik i said i was done with my wc rambling but wtf happened to ivypool. both in the books and in the fandom. originally she was this cool ass double agent with a compelling character arc with both positive and negative development that felt cruel yet natural and we all cheered when she broke out of the abusive situation she was in. now people just go “aw shes the girlboss to her malewife cousin </3″ and thats all the fancontent of her amounts to anymore bc incest is ok if theres one vaguely feminist line, and in the books she’s literally just a complete bitch to dovewing for finding happiness after being used for so long, to the point where she’s apparently putting whats basically an orphaned teenager in distress to stick it to her sister. like what the fuck happened man i hate the erins so much

#remember when wc fans were like ''oh my god do not give her a mate itll literally ruin her character if u do to her what u did #to every other female protag that didnt die or suffer horribly''#andd were like ''hell yeah aroace ivy! lesbian ivy! we need one character that doesnt end up with a man PLEASE''#and now ppl will apparently get angry if u suggest either of those bc ''oh my god let us have the boring male wife UWU''#what annoys me abt that ship specifically is that they were acknowledged out loud tobe cousins #their direct relationship is called out multiple times before fern is born. its the entire point of omen of the stars #but uwu its ok if it fits my cookie cutter girl boss male wife ship dynamic i guess #granted there were some moments in oots where shes too harsh to dove and ppl held her as perfect when she wasnt #but i can forgive those moments bc shes a child being manipulated behind the scenes #in the new books its like. wtf is she even doing?#echoed voice #also not related to the post but still ivy related. most maps and songs associated with her are actually dove songs bye

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nazumichi · 2 years

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norma…..

#raii talks a lot #relating to characters is soooo funnay (pained)#both protags are literally me losing it….#autism…. epic autism and sensory overload moment. the outbursts and avoiding eyeand physical contact and missing social cues #ough…. literally #that harmony guy is so neurotypical I’m losing my mind like literally I’ve never wantedto break a characters arm more

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diniidjarin · 2 years

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not to get recovering game studies major on main but. once again. i am thinking about the ludonarrative dissonance of playing a biotic shepard/ryder. SO many setbacks could be avoided with a last-minute barrier but i guess they teach that one in NPC classes only! The camera shifts and suddenly every ability except Gun goes out the window. Even the most competent fucker in a galaxy inevitably loses braincells when put in a situation eh

#mass effect #beloved trainwreck game.#peak fucking moment was chasing the cerberus bot on mars in me3. bitch had plot armor immune to everything from overload to charge #but went down to a qte headshot. aight.#ok she did crawl out of a shuttle crash for that one but still. indulge my need for a laugh.#somewhat related: miranda ''biotics can tear a mech apart'' lawson going down three seconds into first encounter w/ one on freedoms progress #what i wouldnt give to see cutscenes tailored to player class in this series. granted it'd likely warrant far greater diversity in #level progression if not the plot itself but on god is it wild to watch my telekinetic human missile be nerfed to fuck once per mission!#gonna start writing fix-its but solely for the moments my idiot protag had to be standardized for cutscene budget hshshs #goblin noises.

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iamthescalesofjustice · 2 years

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fairly recently i encountered some fnv content again and had a sudden jarring re-realization that fallout new vegas is an actual video game, which has been experienced by other people, and has an associated accompanying fandom, rather than, as i had subconsciously come to classify it, a peculiar sort of psychosis i experienced during the period between by father getting a stage 4 cancer diagnosis and the months after he died.

#cancer mention cw #genuinely i almost completely lost two years of memory surrounding these events #and the role that fmv played in my life during that time was. probably better described in terms of #horrifying yet transcendent psychological alchemy than anything else #it was not A Game I Got Into so much as a base ingredient and lens and catalyst for some eldritch emotional processes i was experiencing #the use of the word psychosis up there is flippant but not wrong. i do have a history of it and i was very much experiencing psychosis then #fnv wasnt The psychosis but it was a major factor in it at the time #iirc i think i avoided involving myself in the fandom bc both it and i were undergoing severe volatility #i barely had the resources to get a handle on my own problems let alone internet peoples problems #anyway several months after he passed i abruptly shut down all fnv related mental processes i could and then #well okay i did still lose the next several months after that as well barring a few scattered memories but i know i had like completely #forgotten it existed at all outside brief moments that were quickly lost #i guess its been enough time that the radiation levels attached to all that have gone enough to think about any of it again?#anyway i know everyone has a secret better version of it in their head But Also i did achieve the 49th level of awareness tho #my secret better version of fnv that lives in my head is so much better than the secretbetter versions of fnv that live in yalls heads etc #joking but very much it was a thing where others were honing their understanding and art by following known paths and clashing blades with #each other while i was in a pocket dimension of accelerated time with my arms cut off having to survive against beasts and shit #developing powers the old masters didnt think were possible like a shounen protag and all that lmao #anyway thats why ive only ever posted about like. pared down versions of 1.5% of whats ever gone through my head about fnv #i didnt want the radioactivity out there or for people who dont have the context to try interacting with me about it

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sketchedspiders · 1 month

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Cotag actually breaks my fucking heart knowing the reality of their relationship and the fact that they could never be able to truly love each other.

1. Their workplace literally steals their mind, body, and soul so they can just become machines that don’t think of or take interest in anything else.

2. It’s the 1970s and they’re both guys; being gay wasn’t allowed anywhere back then.

[Full analysis under the cut + Spoilers]

[Keep in mind some of this is my own interpretations, but it still goes off canon)

Normal Guy literally tells Protag this when he tells him that Coworker was a great help and they got along well.

He gets frustrated by this fact and worries that Coworker is a distraction for Protag. He doesn’t want them to form a relationship of any kind because it would distract them from their work. Immediately after Normal Guy tells him that, he goes on to ask this:

Maybe I’m reaching right now because this question comes up no matter what, but for this it’s important. There’s multiple reasons and aspects as to why he asked this question, but one of them could be the fact that if Protag did feel anything around Coworker, then Normal Guy would know. It’s hard to explain, but think about a racing heart for example. People’s heart rate increases when they’ve infatuated by somebody, and when they see that person do even the tiniest things it makes them flustered. If they become nervous around that person, their breathing may become weird; which is why it brings us to this question. If Normal Guy finds an abnormality in Protag’s body that would prevent him from working, he would wanna know the reason, and if that reason is Coworker, then it pushes him to think their relationship is even more of a distraction to the both of them.

Normal Guy wants all his employees to dedicate their entire lives to the company. He doesn’t want them forming any sort of relationship that’s not entirely business related. If Protag’s heart is in something else, then that would create a multitude of problems. Not even his organs belong to him anymore, so neither of them even get the option to be together fully.

I think it’s also important to note that if you do choose the option to tell Normal Guy that Protag and Coworker did get along, this can lead you to get the bad ending where he literally erases Protag’s entire identity and makes him a different person. It’s wrong for them to be together no matter the circumstance, and their entire lives would be erased, along with their original relationship.

However, if the company did allow them to have a full on relationship, it wouldn’t have worked anyways. They’d be a gay couple in the 1970s, and homophobia was not only rampant back then but it was illegal. People would get arrested, sent to conversion therapy, or even lobotomized for being homosexual.

I’ve been wanting to talk about this for a LONG time, and this is also what pushed me to write “I wish you were born a girl” (yes hi I’m destroymeiloveyou on ao3 I’m exposing my identity for a moment here and if you don’t know wtf I’m talking about then ignore this).

They could be together in private theoretically, but with them being gay and also working at a company that doesn’t even want their employees to have a life outside of work, it’d be near impossible. Both of them would be at a constant risk of losing everything. Although, they already have given up so much for their work, would it even be worth it?

Coworker is already a closeted person with his feelings and such. He puts up a narcissistic front because of how insecure he is. His title means everything to him because he doesn’t have much else. It gives him a sense of security, and he wants somebody else to recognize that because he wants to feel loved. That’s a whole other analysis for later, but taking this into account with everything else, would he be willing to give up the little that he has to give him security for a relationship that was doomed from the beginning?

With how desperate he tries to impress others (especially Protag), and how attached he is to his title as well as his nepotism, his life being turned upside down just like that would be a nightmare. Everybody would turn against him, and no longer would he be the star employee at the company. In reality, he would be just as in denial about his feelings as Protag would be.

Also. ALSO!!! Speaking of Protag, it is heavily implied and agreed upon that Protag has religious trauma because of floor 4. If he did grow up in a strict, christian household, he would definitely have internalized homophobia.

The sight of a cross makes him nervous, meaning he’s probably no longer christian, but it has left a longterm effect on him.

This means that despite how he left his christian past behind, the things he was taught as a kid has never left him.

If his parents wanted him to be a “good kid” and follow God, I think they would’ve taught him that homosexuality is a sin. That’s one of the lessons that have also never left him, and he still stands by it even if hiding his identity makes him miserable.

Although, no matter how hard he tries, it’ll be obvious his heart will never be in the company or christian values. He’s gonna end up hurt and hurting whether he hides his feelings or not, which is just as tragic. He’d feel terrible once he recognizes how he feels about Coworker and I don’t think he’d ever confess. Protag would just suppress his feelings and they would both suffer silently.

If either of them did end up confessing, they still wouldn’t ever be able to truly get together anyways.

So, cotag could be in love, but they would never actually be able to be romantically together or express their feelings at all. They can do the littlest acts, like spending time with each other on breaks, but it’ll never be enough.

It’s not even right person, wrong time; it’s wrong person, wrong time.

I would write WAY more and I’ll probably yap about this later too because I’ve been keeping this to myself for so long, but I have to cut this short for now.

I probably sound like matpat right now with how im reaching with some of this stuff but I don’t care I need everybody to suffer along with me LMFAOO

I hope you enjoyed this and expect way more soon once I have the time because I also wanna write a notag analysis (although it will be just as tragic) and also write analyses on the songs in my cotag playlist

I would add a funny image here but I’ve reached the limit. Anyways if you have any questions PLEASE let me know I love yapping about my cotag interpretations and theories

#cotag #coworker elevator hitch #protag elevator hitch #elevator hitch #neptune yaps #people reading this being like did we play the same hour long game where two dudes are trapped in an elevator #yes. i’m just insane #i love tragic doomed elevator yaoi

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majokothesmol · 3 months

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I'm going to preface this idea with a content warning for body horror, (or at least reference to body dysmorphia,) because it's meant to be... Horror.

Cool? Cool.

So I've been seeing some stuff about how people draw Kieran. Sometimes he's a twig, sometimes he's got dark skin, sometimes he's chubby, sometimes he's trans, sometimes he has very round eyes, sometimes he's a phantump, sometimes he's an edgelord, sometimes he's got scars, sometimes he's Ogrepon, and sometimes he's got acne. I love all iterations and interpretations of him, especially how different each one of them looks.

Most art has cute lil brother Kieran. But it's also pretty common to see Kieran portrayed as muscular. Like, he's got abs and lean muscle. My gut reaction was "This kid's 15 at the oldest. Suuuure." But then it became such an interesting idea to me. Like yes. Kieran wishes he was this buff. Maybe this is his immature power fantasy where's he's big and strong and cool because he's 15. Or even better, this is how the Protag sees him. (Assuming they like Kieran in that way.) Of course he's gotta be a little handsome in their eyes.

I can't begin to explain how much joy and endearment I find in those ideas.

Then I started really thinking about it. (This is where things are going to get body-horror related.) Realistically, (and cannon to the game) Kieran has not been taking care of himself. He hasn't been eating right, or sleeping, and his dorm is a mess. Keep that in mind, especially the part about not eating well. Okay? Okay.

Now imagine this: You're seeing Kieran again for the first time in at least a month. At the very least, you're expecting sad little Kiki; sullen, jealous, maybe possessed, and burnt out. But when you finally get a good look at him again... His eyes have dark circles from not sleeping, he's a lot more snappy, and his jacket is falling off his shoulders. In fact, all his clothes look a little baggy. Now imagine he takes off the jacket. He seems muscular, yes. But it's just like how he seems stronger. Once you get a good look at him, it's not that he gained muscle. It's just that he lost that much fat. He's muscle, skin, and bone.

Do you see the vision I'm having?? The dawning moment of realization, the horror of seeing just how many things he cut out of his life to get stronger? The angst potential?? The character development. The hurt/comfort that is in this concept?? Do you also see the absolute comedy of a Buff Kieran being daydreamed about by Protag? The potential of wholesome workout buddies?

#kieran pokemon #pokemon kieran #pokemon spoilers #kieran #pokemon indigo disk #rival kieran #sorry kieran #excuse my brainrot and overanalysis #I find all aspects of a character at least a little intriguing #can you tell I love a good “duality of man” type of thing

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bluebunnyears-08 · 1 year

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Why Nine is The Secondary Protagonist in Sonic Prime

I recently made an appreciation post about this edgy little fella, however, when I rewatch the show (yes I rewatch it several times daily, so what?) I feel the cogs in my brain turn and create several theories. Looking back at Nine, I realized he will be one of the BIG characters, not the big (relevant to the plot and development), but the BIG (really fucking important).

As in MIGHT BE THE DEUTERAGONIST type of BIG.

Sonic is the protagonist, as he usually is in his games, however, Nine is another huge character who is not only crucial to the plot but might also twist the plot as well.

A deuteragonist is an essential secondary character in a narrative, second only to the protagonist, and may act like a constant companion or someone who aids the protagonist. However, the deuteragonist can change from helping the protag to actively opposing them, depending on their own conflict or plot.

Nine already proves to be a huge character in Sonic Prime, however, in the first batch of episodes, Shadow does somewhat take up some of this role. However, he might change to become a tritagonist in future episodes. Someone who helps the protagonist, is the third most important character, and often the third member of the group.

So Nine might be the TRUE deuteragonist and I DO have a list of reasons why I think so.

So, with that said, let's begin.

1. He is already established to be an important character

From the first moment we meet him, we already know he's going to be a very important character in the plot. He fixes up Sonic's shoes and gloves figures out how to use a shard to open a portal, and is a very formidable ally. He is an important character to keep the plot going and to help explain the plot. However, it's not like those Sonic games, where he's just there to explain the plot. He HAS a character and personality, he's not just a cardboard cutout.

He HAS depth and complexity to him. Something I can appreciate considering the past media of any version of Tails the past years (not including Frontiers, that game was amazing). He's also obviously going to continue to be an important character in season two as well.

2. He's a very engaging character

Let's all admit it: Nine is the most interesting character in Sonic Prime. Not just because of his mindset of "get this however you can no matter what" and "do whatever it takes and needs to survive". Not just that but his snarky and cold personality combined with his nine-tailed badassery just makes him an engaging and enjoyable character.

The things he does can leave people scrambling for answers. Why exactly did he change his mind about helping the rebels? What is he planning? What is going on in that fluffy head of his?

So many questions that leave us waiting with anticipation for the next batch of episodes for answers.

3. People can relate to his trauma

Nine's backstory is what we expected, but that doesn't mean it holds back punches. Without Sonic to defend him from bullies, without Sonic to care for him and take him in, he learned to trust and look out only for himself. It's a sad backstory and it explains why he's so guarded and aloof all the time.

I've read posts that state they relate deeply to Nine and can immerse themselves in his character with empathy. I can confirm as being a victim of abuse. He's aggressive and snarky because he has walls, walls that he put up to never get hurt again. He doesn't try to justify himself in his backstory, stating he "wasn't minding his surroundings" instead of "I didn't know" or "it wasn't my fault" he shows signs of a sort of self-resentment. Again, I can relate SO MUCH to, thinking that I could've prevented it and holding myself responsible for not doing anything, that I could've stopped it from happening.

Those who suffer or have suffered can see themselves in Nine, and as a result, the sorrow we feel for him can hit harder if we know what it was like.

4. We don't know where his character is going to end up

Another bunch of posts I've seen about Nine is that we legitimately don't know where his character is going to end up. He's muddled deep in his mystery and inner turmoil that we can't see the deep end of what he's going to be. A hero? A villain? An Anti-hero?

Just what's going to happen to him?!

He has a plan but what is it?

5. He's the most controversial character

Nine's intentions and character have been put in many perspectives on what people think he's planning, what he's going to be, why he does certain things, whether he cares for Sonic or not, whether he trusts Sonic or not, and MORE.

He's been theorized and twisted into what people think about him and what he's going to do. In my opinion, if a character does this to a community, you KNOW you're doing something right. Controversial characters are very mysterious and morally ambiguous, you don't truly know why they do the things they do or what they plan, but you have your own ideas on what might happen and other people do too, despite them possibly being different from yours.

Controversy (WHEN NOT LEADING TO VIOLENCE AND DEATH THREATS) is very fun and interesting. Reading people's thoughts even if they differ from your own, with the possibility that they might change your own theories is a very enlightening and interesting thing!

6. He has a completely opposite goal to Sonic

It's very clear that Sonic and Nine have different goals that clash with each other. Sonic, being the all-loving hero he is, wants to return home and see his true friends again, not to mention help and protect the other shatter spaces. Nine on the other hand wants to make a new home, a world with just him and Sonic and nobody else, not caring for the other shatter spaces or anybody else.

Their goals clash with each other and can't be fulfilled at the same time. Nine's goal includes only him and Sonic and no one else. Sonic's goal includes others, not to mention these two are from two completely different universes.

It's clear these two, no matter how close they are, won't give up their goal for the other, so unless their willing to compromise, it might lead to something bigger.

7. His goal separates him from other variations of himself and others

While he is just another variation of one of the main characters, his goal of achieving something beyond his own universe along with keeping Sonic differentiated from the other main variations who want something within their own shatter space. Thorn wanted to keep the jungle from being destroyed, and Dread wanted the shard out of greed, the rebels want to put the council out of power and take back their land, the jungle variants wanted to eat and live among the jungle again, and the pirates are just typical pirates.

Unlike the others, whose goals can be achieved in their universes, Nine wants nothing to do with his own. Like Sonic, Nine's goal is related to the shatter space.

8. Nine truly has no one EXCEPT Sonic

Another thing to differentiate him from the other versions of himself and the main cast is how Nine has nothing to lose. Other versions of him have a group of the main cast, hell even Rusty Rose finds herself valued (not sentimentally but still) and useful to the council. Nine, however, has nobody until this bright blue hedgehog told him about a life he could've had, a life Sonic gave to his other self.

So it's no wonder he took the very person who can give him the same life to a new shatter space. He wants that desperately. It's no wonder he doesn't show an interest in getting Sonic home anymore, if he does that, the chance of having the life he always wanted, that hope, would be gone forever. I don't think Nine's going to let that happen easily.

9. Everyone roots for him and wants him to be happy

There are zero people that don't want him to achieve his goal of love and happiness. Not just for the fact that he's a version of a character we're already emotionally invested in, but also because Nine is his own person. He's still a person who was horribly abused to the point of being jaded and cold.

Seeing him smile or show comfort really melts my heart cause this kid deserves SO MUCH! I know you all agree. But it is depressing to remember that Sonic NEEDS to go back and restore his world, he'll have to leave Nine behind. I don't think they're going to go with Sonic taking Nine with him because of what might happen with the whole "they can't see each other" stuff.

And with how stubborn and desperate Nine is...

I'm curious about how they figure this out and resolve this.

10. He might affect the plot

A protagonist is not just the lead character who pushes the plot along, they also affect and can possibly change the plot as well. Sonic already kicked off the plot, it's possible for Nine to affect it in a BIG way. This can lead to a LOT of possibilities when you consider that. We KNOW he has a plan and it has something to do with the Chaos Council capturing him. This fact can lead to a LOT of interpretations.

Well, that was my list of how Nine might be the deuteragonist of Sonic Prime in the future. Thanks for reading and I hope you have a lovely day <3

#sonic prime #more sonic prime!#sonic prime spoilers #nine needs a hug #tails nine #miles nine prower #nine sonic prime #sonic prime nine #nine deserves to win #i love him so much #i need the second batch now #my little guy #baby boi #he has trauma #haha anyways #thank you for coming to my TED talk #sonic fandom #i want to hug him

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raven-at-the-writing-desk · 5 months

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Hey Raven, are you going to watch the upcoming new Disney movie "Wish"?

I've seen mixed reviews, but i'm lowkey excited since we get to see a new Disney villain, especially since Disney got really lame villains after all the old classic movies!

Have you seen the trailer for the movie? What are your thoughts so far?

I saw Wish with a friend recently! I'll give my thoughts on the trailers here (in case you don't want spoilers for the film itself) and put my full thoughts beneath the cut (if you're okay with spoilers).

Looks-wise, I think Disney was definitely trying to go for something more stylistic and painting-esque for this?? And while I commend the effort, it definitely doesn't look as interesting as Puss in Boots 2: The Last Wish. The humor also definitely isn't for me, it feels very "quirky" and "so relatable" (Asha reminds me of Mirabel in that sense), and other times too juvenile (like the goat butt joke). I do like the idea of the villain passing as a good guy in-universe and actually being vain and selfish, especially since the marketing is making it clear who the bad guy is rather than making it a "twist" villain scenario. Not sure if I like Magnifico himself though??? All the ads with him in it feel like Disney is trying too hard to make people thirst for him. From just the trailers, Magnifico does seem interesting and like more of a return to the traditional "villain" rather than the protagonist having to deal with an existential dread or concept.

***Spoilers for Wish beneath the cut!***

Right off the bat, my first impression is the narrative is SO ham-fisted. Within the first 5 minutes alone we're establishing so much information and in such a clunky, unnatural way. Like... Asha says hi to her friends but then they robotically have a dialogue where they overtly call each other "friends" just so it's clear to the audience (when in reality no one talks like that). It's telling instead of showing, and this happens sooo many times early in the film.

Could not for the life of me remember the friends or their names. There were just too many of them when 1 or 2 would have been just fine to move the plot along and to help Asha. (Yes, I know they're a reference to the 7 Dwarves but it's STILL not necessary to have so many just for a reference.)

Bruh, the makeup in this movie is on point. Every time there was a close up of a character, I was staring at their eye makeup (especially Asha and the queen's).

Asha as a protagonist was... fine? She feels very close to Mirabel and at times Rapunzel in her character. I didn't dislike her by any means, but she didn't reinvent what it means to be a Disney protag. Her motivations also come off as… really “out of nowhere”. We’re told she “cares too much”, but she initially only wants to save the wishes of her mom and grandpa; she randomly decides she has to free ALL wishes midmovie and that was jarring. There could have been a smoother transition. Instead, it was abrupt and Asha didn’t change in any meaningful way. Even her “I want” song was vague (what exactly is “to have something more for us than this”?) and didn’t connect well with her character.

I do really like her design though! Her freckles, earrings, and how her hair moves are my favorite details.

Valentino was not as annoying as I thought he would be. Still didn't care for his sass and brand of humor, but at least he helped out a few times.

I called it, the film is trying so hard to make Magnifico "hot" 🤡 I don't get it but okay, Mouse. I see your effort.

Loved his fit!! Very cool cloak and diamond/star motifs everywhere! His lab and study was also fun to look at.

I quite liked the moments when the queen talked to her husband and tried to smooth things over with him. “I can fix him energy”— Their relationship seemed very genuine at the start of the movie.

NOT THE WISH NEPOTISM...

If they were going for “sympathetic” with Magnifico, it didn’t work. He gave this backstory about how he was traumatized before + left as the only survivor of a great tragedy and so now he wants to use his magic to prevent that from happening to anyone else. Thing is, we only ever know about this via his word and staring at a half-burnt tapestry. We never see the event on screen, nor what was left of the tapestry. I was expecting a twist where it’s revealed that he lied all this time about his backstory and rewrote history so he could more easily manipulate the people of the kingdom he founded and live out the fantasy of being worshipped as a “good guy”. That was such a missed opportunity!!

Something else I was thinking of (this was during “This is the Thanks I get” was??? Maybe Magnifico started off genuinely good but became worn down over time as people’s wishes grew more selfish and they became ungrateful for what they had?? Then he could have become bitter and disillusioned by the behavior of his people.

Another idea is maybe Magnifico was “villainous” only in Asha’s eyes, since they don’t agree on how to best handle granting wishes. This would be more of a clash of ideologies rather than the traditional Obvious Evil vs Obvious Good that Disney is so known for, but hey, it could be a neat evolution of their storytelling from classic fairy tale roots.

This is to say that there were so many more interesting directions they could have gone with Magnifico’s motives, character, and portrayal 😭 but the second half of the movie never commits to any of these, they just blame his complete insanity and turn to the dark side on Forbidden Magic which is such a cop-out.

The trailers gave away the twist that Magnifico was the villain. It wasn’t revealed until like the second song into the movie. Would’ve worked better as an on-the-spot reveal rather than part of the marketing, in my opinion.

When they showed the wishes, the TWST fan in my was shouting, "OMG IT'S WISH UPON A STAR, THE LIMITED TIME STORY EVENT FROM THE HIT DISNEY MOBILE GACHA GAME TWISTED WONDERLAND!!!"

As Wish is Disney's anniversary film for 100 years, there were tooons of easter eggs scattered throughout. (I had fun looking for them!) Some were visual (I saw Aurora's dress, Snow White’s well, Peter's Pan's costume, Ursula's green smokey hands, Asha's robes resembling those of the Fairy Godmother, etc.) or extended imagery/scenes (Asha recreates Mulan's dinner and “Reflection" scenes), others were more overt lines of dialogue (Magnifico says the "Mirror, Mirror" lines along with others, a deer named “Bambi”, Valentino mentions an animal metropolis in reference to Zootopia, etc.).

In theory, the wish magic sounds cool but has so much that isn't explained??? And yeah, it's magic so it technically doesn't have to be. However, there are things not explained even when it is important to the plot. For example, Magnifico crushes some wishes and seems to absorb their power for himself (including the wish of Asha's MOM, so you'd think this would be important)? The consequence of this is that the wish's owners... become sad??? Okay, what are the long-term effects??? Why isn’t this fully explored?? But then later in the film we see the same people whose wishes were crushed... regenerate their wish??? So what, he has to keep reaping them??? And why are the wishes only taken at 18 years old? What if a wish changes? Ironically, the townspeople of Rosas have a scene where they question the technicalities of this wish magic. Magnifico essentially tells them to shut up, and it kinda felt like Disney was telling us to not question their lore www

It was weird that they never fully explored the ramifications of going without your wish. You’d think they’d show us people without ambition or hope (which would incentivize Asha to return their wishes), but everyone seems blissfully happy without their wishes?? The only exception is Asha’s friend that betrays her (cannot for the life of me remember his name), and that’s namely because his asshole friends keep ragging on him for it.

I thought the movie was going to go in a “you can make your own wish come true!!” direction but NOPE, turns out it’s just magic. Felt like Disney unintentionally wrote a whole movie about "wishes not coming true unless some big powerful entity allows it to come true” (Asha literally becomes the fairy godmother of Rosas at the end, making her ultimately no different than Magnifico)… ie a metaphor for how Disney owns so many properties it practically owns our childhoods www

"The power of friendship saves the day" ending 🤣 It was very Paper Mario ending-esque...

A song saving the day though?? It’s giving the Illumination Lorax film…

I was right about the humor. Too "quirky" and/or juvenile for me.

Animation was alright? Nothing awful about it, it just didn't feel as detailed or as experimental as other films with a similar style.

Songs were mid, which checks out with the recent Disney music excluding We Don't Talk About Bruno--

Some of the lyrics however were awful. “I let you live here for free and I don’t even charge you rent” is redundant. “So I throw caution to every warning sign” means you’ll show more caution than usual, not that you’ll forego caution. The correct expression is “throw caution to the wind”. Etc, etc, etc.

There was a cute after credits scene where they reveal that Asha's 100 year old grandpa (same age as Disney omg) wrote the "When You Wish Upon a Star" theme, which was sweet since his wish was "wanting to make a mark".

THE BEST PART OF THE MOVIE WAS STAR!! It was very cute (partly because it couldn't talk and just jingled and giggled, I was dreading another annoying mascot animal voice) and reminds me of my own pet… The way Star infused everything with glitter and formed unique shapes with the red twine was so fun 😭 I'M A STAR STAN, IT WAS ADORABLE AND KINDA BRATTY AND I'M LIVING FOR IT

Decent ideas, "meh" execution. Enchanted and Shrek did it better in terms of self-aware, fairy tale defying stories. It felt as though the movie was trying to deliver a profound message but got lost in the sauce of making as making Disney references possible and didn't fully commit to actually saying something meaningful. As a result, the film feels somewhat… hollow.

That one friend betraying Asha was the biggest surprise in the film but I still saw it coming 😂 I do get where he’s coming from though (being worried that his wish won’t ever come true) but it also felt like his conflict wasn’t resolved??? It might have gone better if the movie actually fully tried to push the “you can make your own wish come true” message (to reinvigorate the traitor to make his dreams a reality on his own) but they don’t 💦

Wish didn’t end up being “the wishing star’s origin story” because not once did anyone question where Star came from or why it was different from other stars (or what the significance of Magnifico blotting out the other stars was).

I think the people that would enjoy this movie are the people that are already highly invested in Disney and the nostalgia of it.

... Anyway, stan Star 🤩 (and the talking mushrooms 🍄)

#wish #disney wish #spoilers #question #notes from the writing raven #puss in boots 2 #the last wish #puss in boots 2: the last wish #Mirabel Madrigal #Encanto #Asha #twst #twst wonderland #disney twisted wonderland #Rapunzel #Enchanted #Shrek #Queen Amaya #King Magnifico

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