#which i am going to design myself to my exact specifications

[gb-patch]

Hi! I saw your ask about skin tones and honestly, that is very much a barebones excuse to not include skintones in your game. You act as though adding skintones to a sprite would be a complete hand-drawn new asset when it would quite literally be filling in a pre drawn base for both Opal and the mc. Not only that but you potentially have thousands of mc outfits you promised for specific tier havers on the kickstarter. And then for 250,000 dollars, you're telling me we'll get more colors but not even 2 or 4 skintones when there are games with Less funding who have more skintones? Especially considering OL:B&A had the exact same amount of skintones and I could count all the afro centric hairstyles in that game on my two hands. I rather have more skintones than just pale, peach, olive, tan, brown and dark brown (most of which screams a 2000s foundation line of tones) than have more hair or clothing colors. I'm sorry, I love your games, I really do but that's an extremely lazy and abhorrent response from you and I am extremely disappointed.

"Hi. I just saw the post about you not adding in more skintones. I really hope this doesn't come across as rude or demanding but I find your reasoning for not being able to add them...lackluster at best. With all due respect, you set this goal for 250k, over three times the original goal you set for the kickstarter, the idea that somehow you can promise an additional set of darker colours for the clothes, accesories hair and eyes alongside the additional MC pieces people are going to request but not an additional skintone because of Opal seems a little ridiculous. I'm not an experienced artist but I do know how art files tend to work and I imagine adding additional colours to Opal's base design wouldn't be an extreme undertaking. In fact, by contrast, the work to add more colours to the clothes and hairs seems much more labourous considering the amount of them and the fact that some of the clothes have subcolours.

Again, I do hope I don't come accross as rude but I just feel like this announcement was highly dissapointing, especially considering the fact that the additional colours are currently the biggest goal for the kickstarter at the moment" There were two replies, so I put them together. I hope that's alright.

I understand. It would be bad and make no sense if that didn’t happen. I can say that this has nothing to do with funding. I'm not gonna attach more skin tones to a stretch goal, that’s not fair. It’ll be done whenever it can be regardless of what happens with the Kickstarter.

The other colors for hair and such is something I confirmed can be done by our programmer ahead of time using a color picker system in coding.

The situation as it stands today for Opal is that I personally don't have the skills to recolor her myself, the artist we have is in a situation where it would be unkind to increase how much work they have to do (it'd be easier if even less work could be on them), and while another artist could be hired- that hasn't happened at this point. So, saying it "could happen but maybe not" is cautious development process. It’s how it went with both the Cove Patreon Bonus Moments, where I pretended for months that it may or may not happen while working on it behind the scenes because I wasn’t sure how long I’d need to finish it and was worried it could be delayed for long stretches of time.

Being realistic, it is virtually a 100% certainly that before the game comes out, the skin tones will be expanded. There is no good reason why it wouldn’t. I was waiting until things got to a better point in production before coming out to officially say that it’s happening.

And I could’ve said it’s extremely likely but we’re not able to do it quite yet and avoided making anyone feel hurt. I wish my way of handling it hadn’t made the people who believed in our games sad. The reason why I didn’t is that I just can’t help but be averse to making promises I can’t do/the team can’t do and so have to rely on something else working out at some point in the future, even if it is entirely likely that it will.

That’s because I know that these things will make a lot of people happy. I want the excitement and any praise that might come to not happen until the goal has been achieved or is on the way to being achieved for sure. To a degree it’s helpful for players to have confidence in what the company is promoting, but it’s mainly to help with my own habit of catastrophizing. I tend to believe bad things could happen and I’ll let people down even when it’s so unlikely it’s not worth considering. I consider it anyway. And so, you get this kind of long-term hedging before the feature people hoped for suddenly appears. Even now my compulsion is to add a caveat that “there’s still a chance something (I don’t even know what) could happen and it won’t be added so don’t thank me yet” despite me already coming out with the truth that there’s every intention to have it added. I’m sorry to have disappointed you and made you feel disregarded by doing this. Hopefully when the skin options are expanded people will be able to enjoy the game a lot more than how it is with the current demo. And thanks for taking the time to let me know what you thought rather than giving up on the project entirely.

#our life #our life: now & forever #ask

[bowserwife]

The term "anti-depressant" is incredibly insidious to me.

It implies that depression is some solid, identifiable thing, a disease in the brain that can be specifically targeted and directly counteracted by the right formulation of medicine. That is not what anti-depressants do. Anti-depressants are a mind-altering drug that induce a certain mental state. Their status as medicine is one of social construction: they are not any more or less inherently medicinal than alcohol or LSD. And certain people have decided that this mental state is preferable to the symptoms of depression--or at least that it will make a depressed patient more able to "function in society" (i.e. go to work.)

"Depression", of course, does not refer to a specific condition: it is rather a term that groups together a nebulous set of symptoms, not the thing that causes those symptoms. This is true of most psychiatric designations. And though the serotonin and chemical-imbalance theories of depression have been largely discredited, the drugs developed on these theories (mainly SSRIs) are still prescribed en masse and are referred to as simply anti-depressants. One big problem with studying the efficacy of these drugs is that it must be done almost entirely through self-reporting; through asking patients if they believe the drugs they're taking are helping.

For my part, I was prescribed ADHD medication when I was 8 years old. When I was 14 I told my parents I was thinking about killing myself, and I was started on anti-depressants: for around the next decade I would cycle through several different SSRIs, other anti-depressants, mood stabilizers, and anti-psychotics. All of these made me feel terrible in different ways. After a suicide attempt at 23 landed me a stay in the psych ward, I threw all of my meds in the garbage at once and blocked my psychiatrist's number.

And thru all those years of taking the meds, every time, every single time they asked me, "Do you think the medication is helping?"...I would say yes!!! Even as I was getting worse! Even as I was at the absolute lowest point of my life, which I only just barely survived! And I said yes because I really, really wanted the medicaiton to work. Of course I did. I needed it to: I was dying. And I thought that some group of smart doctors had come up with this pill to counteract my exact condition, so I reasoned, "well, I feel different, so I guess that must be the medicine killing the depression."

Well, I was lied to. I fell for the propaganda machine designed by faceless pharmaceutical companies who would gladly see me dead if it meant they had profited off my prescription. If you are on any kind of mental health medication, and you feel it's helping, I am not telling you to stop. But I am asking you to ask yourself: do I actually like the way these things make me feel? If you do, then that's fine. I'm a big proponent of taking drugs that make you feel good. But remember that that is all they are. A drug that makes you feel a certain way. Not a cure.

I know making the choice to go unmedicated carries a massive social stigma: many times when I tried in the past I was shamed back into the drugs very quickly by doctors, family and friends alike. But I can tell you that I am 5 years clean of any and all psychiatric drugs and I have never felt happier or more in control of my mental health.

#long posts #suffer thoughts

[yamishika]

Is Erik South Asian / Indian coded?

This post isn’t going to be as extensive as my other FT posts, but I am going to put out thoughts of mine that have been playing in my head for some time now. Along with my observance of ‘Jellal wearing kohl’ and ‘Why aren’t the ladies of FT wearing panties anymore’ , I have another I want to put out today.

I think Erik (Cobra) of OS/CS is South Asian coded.

Specifically Indian.

I will list the evidence and explain my train of thought underneath.

Admittedly though , a lot of my reasons are for visual representations I have seen of him in both manga and official art, so I am not sure how solid my connections are for the HCs but I will say them either way.

Clothing pattern

Let’s start with the first reason why I believe Erik to be SA coded. 

This is an image of Erik/Cobra from the official manga during the Nirvana Arc

Sadly the intricate design of many characters' clothes are omitted/reduced when animating, Erik here being no exception. And though I understand why, it’s a shame as so many details get taken out which could help piece some more information on the characters which aren’t told upfront.

In the manga, Erik is introduced with a piece that includes a paisley design (the teardrop shaped pattern) on the inner parts and cuffs of his coat. Why this is important to note is because the paisley design is something that is known to be a widespread clothing print all across Asia, namely South Asia/South-west Asia!

This Kameez (South Asian tunic) of mine has the ‘paisley’ pattern which is on Erik’s coat 

Of course it is possible that the pattern on his inner coat/cuff could just be for the sake of fashion with no cultural significance, but taking in mind my next points I think it makes the argument of Erik being SA/Indian coded stronger.

Jewelry 

This may come off as a weaker point I admit, but Erik’s use of jewelry also reminds me of SA heritage. His rings and armlet (or what I learned is called an arm-ring).

This opinion is purely subjective. I can admit that, but me coming from SA heritage myself, his use of jewelry resonates with the way I've seen it being used in my own culture; such as the design , what patterns it is being paired with, the use of adornment. It really reminds me of SA fashion and tradition. 

But I want to be more objective in my reasoning so I looked up why his use of jewelry in the manga does resonate with SA heritage and found some things.

The armlet/arm-ring that Erik has on his coat in the manga is similar to that used in Indian heritage. 

Fair in Indian tradition it’s used as a bridal jewelry (Vanki) for the women, but it was the closest I could find that was similar to what he had for my argument. It might be a reach though and I can accept that.

Now I will go onto my other point as to why I believe Erik is SA/Indian coded.

Salwar in game card 

Another clothing observation, but his trouser reminds me of a salwar with a slit at the bottom. The slit is a bit higher than what I am accustomed to but I have seen clothing like this in SA heritage.

It’s not overly common but you can see where the influence comes from-

But let me go onto the main reason I have always thought Erik to have some ties to SA (but specifically India).

Cobra 

As everyone knows his name when introduced is Cobra, however what this name also holds significance with, is the fact that India’s national reptile is actually the Cobra too!

King Cobra to be exact!

And on top of that in Hindu mythology, the cobra is a greatly respected and revered figure, literally seen as a deity and I believe that ties in well with Erik’s connection with snakes/cobra.

Erik 

And the last point I want to make is that even his name can be found in South Asia too , just in case people want to counter the argument that the HC is improbable due to him having a European name. 

As it can be seen the name Erik can be found near everywhere in the world, predominantly in places with European connections but also in Asia too.

And since I am arguing Erik being possibly Indian coded, I will show the statistics for his name there.

1,386 incidents of the name in the country! That is not a small number even if minute compared to the density of the population.

Map of India with distribution of the name Erik. (the darker red parts show a larger population of Eriks)

It’s very possible though Erik’s name could be from another SA country too. Or maybe he’s a case of being biracial with both SA heritage and something else. 

But I could see him being fully SA too since despite the Christian / European origin of the name, there’s a lot of POC who give names like that possibly due to following Christianity or just out of preference! (and personally I know this is a trend in South Asian communities)

But I guess we will never know unless Mashima sheds some light on Erik’s background. ^^'

Now with all this evidence presented, you can judge for yourselves if Erik’s design/clothing and connection to cobras is merely a coincidence and i’m reaching or is he possibly a SA/Indian coded character?

Thank you all for taking the time to read this <3 Also big thanks to @jerzaworms for helping me find some of the evidence to help supplement this post and strengthen the argument of this hc!

#hc #yamishika's hcs #erik fairy tail #fairy tail headcanons #fairy tail #fairy tail HCs #erik ft #fairy tail ethnicity hc #ethnicity hc #oracion seis #oracion seis erik #crime sorciere #crime sorciere erik #indian erik? #south asian erik? #desi erik? #poc erik #indian erik to vibe with my part indian jellal hc #These are all the evidences I could find now #If I find anymore I will add them to the post #But yeah #i lied it ended up extensive and idk how #it wasn’t meant to be this long I swear #Thank you for reading another one of my essays

[palfriendpatine66]

Thoughts on Fan Convention Culture

(And maybe a call to action)

I would like to share with all y’all a letter I am sending to the organizers of the fan convention I personally attended with some of my thoughts and suggestions.

Agree? Want to do something? Contact the organizers of the convention nearest you send this exact letter: feel free to use this exact letter or use it as a jumping off point for your own.

——

Dear [fan convention organizer]

I’m reaching out as a concerned fan about an important issue surrounding fan conventions and expos that needs to be addressed.

Many fans such as myself feel that the hosts of these events need to be doing more to make them a safe experience for everyone involved. We love our celebrities and creators and want the opportunity to meet them at these events, but it is more important to us that they are treated with respect. Their attendance, much like the continued patronage of fans at conventions and expos, is a privilege: not a right. If there is a continued culture around conventions of treating the talent as a commodity to be consumed, all parties will inevitably stop participating in these events which have been an important part of fandom community for so long.

How does your organization plan to address increasing instances of inappropriate interactions during photo ops and meet and greets? Lax enforcement around this has lead to an unsafe atmosphere for all those involved from event staff to celebrity guests to the fans attending.

Here are some suggestions of actions that event hosts can take to be a leader among others in the industry to in creating a more respectful and enjoyable atmosphere for all:

- Signage around photo and autograph areas, similar to what is currently being used at some events regarding obtaining consent before photographing cosplayers, reminding attendees that nonconsensual touching is not permitted and that agreeing to a photo is not consent to touch

- Social media postings and event newsletters prior to events containing “fandom etiquette” such as:

Respecting the personal space of others

Obtaining consent before photographs

Obtaining specific consent before any touching while posing for photos

Respect language during interactions

Waiting in lines without losing your minds

How to efficiently move through entry and security

Have clearly marked lines and waiting spaces for panels and events, adequately staffed, to prevent crowd surging and competition to access event space. Turn attendees away from lining up before a designated time prior to events.

- A pop up notification of “dos and don’ts” or “know before you go” with basic expectations listed that fans must agree to before purchasing event tickets such as photo ops, autographs, or panels. As well as:

- A reminder included in all event announcement/update/reminder emails stating “with your purchase you have agreed to the following”

These expectations might include reminders of appropriate behavior during interactions and meet and greets, what is or is not allowed to be brought into the space, what is and is not allowed to be photographed or recorded, or other venue specific information.

Taking these actions and ensuring they consistently implemented will increase participants’ satisfaction with their experience and ensure continued attendance at fandom events. My hope is that fandom events like the ones you are partnered with can become a more positive space and continue thrive as an important part of fandom experience and community.

Sincerely ,

A concerned fan

——

Contact Info:

- Indiana Comic Con

- Many fandom conventions across the US are run by FanExpo: their general contact email is: [email protected]

Each city’s expo has their own customer service contact information for their event - consider reaching out to them directly (ex Philadelphia FanExpo and Boston FanExpo are coming up soon)

In addition: fan photos are typically run by a separate organization. It’s really important to express these sentiments to these companies as well; it’s their staff in charge of the photo ops and present for the photos.

Indiana Comic Con was paired with Celeb Photo Ops contact them here

FanExpo is typically paired with Epic Photo Ops, their general contact email is [email protected]

#fandom #fandom thoughts #fan convention #comic con #fan culture #celebrity culture #convention culture #fan expo #feel free to share #star wars fandom #star wars

[eukarisparadise]

A theory about Sideswipe's personality (WFC/RiD2015)

Honestly, I understand the fandom's skepticism about RiD2015 (even though I don't share it at all lmao), but I still find it interesting to think about the Aligned Universe as something unified, even if Hasbro made a lot of plot and lore holes. For example, Sideswipe was originally supposed to be another character named Fastlane, but he was given the name Sideswipe for marketing purpose. Does this mean it's the same Sideswipe that was in WFC and the novels? People are quick to say no, but realistically there could be a ton of reasons why they are so different from each other. After all, it wasn't canonically debunked like with Grimlock, who isn't the same Grimlock from WFC and has a real name Steelwall.

I personally like to think that it's the same Sideswipe just because it could make him cooler haha

As for the reasons: my personal headcanon is that Sideswipe may have been one of the many Autobots who used mnemosurgery after the war. Removing traumatic memories must've been in demand on Cybertron both during and after the war (in the IDW universe it was also practiced before the war). Maybe the procedure just didn't go well and he «regressed» in a way, but I prefer to think that this was Sideswipe's original personality before the war, that he was like that until it changed him.

I don't think that referring to Sideswipe as a «teenager» or «kid» necessarily hints at his exact age – I mean, Bumblebee was called and treated like that himself 5 years ago in TFP. Maybe he just found someone to take it out on, haha (granted, it's Strongarm who could be an actual teenager, since we don't know anything about her past, she's a new character).

Most bots, from elders like Ratchet, or young ones like Bumblebee, chose to keep their memories to themselves, but Sideswipe may have had his own reasons for deciding to forget about it, and I probably even know which one.

At the end of season 3, Autobots loyal to Optimus appeared on the Council's blacklist and were declared outlaws, but among them was the already dead Tailgate.

Perhaps the compilers of the list simply didn't know about it and included him by mistake. Sideswipe's brother, Sunstreaker, also appeared among them, and... who said he 100% survived the war? I mean, maybe he did, but also – maybe his death was the reason Sideswipe couldn't bear the memories about it and everything related to it.

It's not even necessary that Sideswipe went through the war completely: we don't know where he was between RoTDS and the events of Prime. He could effectively be anywhere: on the other side of the galaxy or lying in stasis on a desolate Cybertron. But when Cybertron was restored and the Autobots returned to a peaceful life, maybe then he realized that he couldn't live like this and used mnemosurgery. That's why he never mentioned Sunny.

Now, I said that the operation might not have been entirely successful (this is a very difficult technique both for the patient and for the mnemosurgeon himself, after all) and instead of completely removing the memories, they could simply be suppressed. That's why he still exhibits the abandonment issues throughout the series and gets clingy after couple of traumatic events in episode 62 – something that could trigger the memories from Sunny's death.

But this also plays out on the other side: when he met Jazz, he began to fanboy over him not only because he was looking for his approval and role model and a crush, but also because it could be «Wow! Wait a minute, I recognize him!🤩», since it's the same guy with whom he beheaded Bruticus Maximus and brought the Autobots their first victory in the war.

Why he specifically disliked Optimus - I don’t know, but since I myself am not a fan of TFP Optimus, I don’t need a reason at all :D

His body design differs significantly from the design in the games (unlike the design of other characters, whose differences are purely stylistic): he, like Starscream, could buy himself a new body in order to «move» into it with a «cleared» mind. Well, we see how did that work out for him.

...that, or he's really just a new character with the same name. But, eh, we already have Grimlock in this team with the «really popular name among dinobots», I honestly find this explanation really boring, as well as the impersonation take. But that's just me, I dunno 🤷🏼‍♀️

#transformers #transformers prime #transformers rid2015 #rid 2015 #sideswipe #war for cybertron #optimus prime #theory

[christine-ye]

Normally I don't share a lot of serious posts for characters I love (they're funny shitposts most of the time) but because the 2024 PreCure Twitter Hall of Fame started running yesterday (go vote here if you haven't), I have already campaigned myself for the title of #1 Cure Melody fan, which I already won during the first Hall of Fame back in October 2023 (and also campaigned for). And I have the certificate below to prove it lol

As part of my mini-campaign for the current Hall of Fame (which is just for fun and not an actual competition btw), I decided to write an essay about how much Cure Melody meant to me and wanted to share it here (copied and pasted straight from the Notes app on my phone). If you get the chance to read it (under the cut), I would really appreciate it. 💗

Why you should vote me for #1 Cure Melody fan, an essay (sorta)

During the summer of 2020, I started getting into PreCure when Healin' Good returned from its hiatus and was added to Crunchyroll. After watching a few more of their available seasons like Futari wa and Kira Kira, I decided to branch out and try out other (unfortunately not legally available yet) PreCure seasons, and I started both Star Twinkle and Suite on September 1, 2020. You might be wondering, "why mention an exact date for Suite specifically?" And boy, do I have a lot to tell you.

Suite was one of the seasons that caught my eye at that time, and Hibiki Hojo, otherwise known as Cure Melody, caught my attention for plenty of reasons. One of which being me previously knowing her VA, Ami Koshimizu, for voicing Sailor Jupiter (my favorite Inner Senshi) in Sailor Moon Crystal, given that I was (and still am) a huge Sailor Moon fan. Another reason was also me branching out to other magical girl media during the pandemic. I was already familiar with shows like Powerpuff Girls Z (my first magical girl show) and Madoka Magica up until 2020, and decided to try out PreCure for a bit despite my initial skepticism and refusal to try anything new.

On September 1, 2020, around the same time I was starting my last year of high school, I finally started watching Suite and while I knew Hibiki was going to be my favorite in the show I didn't expect myself to love her way more than I thought I would, not even knowing she would actually become one of my favorite characters of all time. She's a lot of fun every time she appears onscreen, her design rocks, and also did connect with me a lot on a personal level. As someone who has experienced separation anxiety as a kid (and still sometimes do now), I related with Hibiki's loneliness from when her mom was often busy on tour, much like how my parents would sometimes spend a lot of time away from home for work, from weeks to even months. To add to that, I even felt burdened by others' expectations of how and what I did as I got older, similar to how Hibiki felt pressured when she had to perform at the piano recital only to end up feeling hurt by her dad's words to the point where she (temporarily) gave up her passion for music. Through her character growth, I remembered two important things: people who love and support you will always be there for you no matter what and never give up on what you want to pursue despite the hurdles you encounter in life that try to put you down or even turn you against your passions.

I literally almost teared a bit having to write all this and if you made it to the end, thank you for reading :') And of course, vote me for #1 Cure Melody fan since she has meant a lot to me for almost 4 years now 💗

#christine's ramblings of the day #precure #pretty cure #suite precure #suite pretty cure #hibiki hojo #hojo hibiki #cure melody

[red-dyed-sarumane]

what are some cool games u have played? dont matter if u mentioned before. tell me again tell me again :D

uhh hmm.

well okami is my all time favorite the art & the music & the message/story are all just incredible theres not a single time ive finished it i havent cried. i absolutely adore ryoshima coast ive spent so many hours just running around there to listen to music. which fun fact for u i only know about this game bc in about 6th grade i picked up okamiden bc i thought the little doggy was cute & was like fine i'll play as this boy if i get a cool dog and u cannot imagine how excited i was to find out u DID play as the little dog. i was SOOOOO obsessed literally my exact thoughts were 'if issun is ammy's celestial envoy then i am going to be chibis' i have a metric fuck ton of fan art i did at the time bc i thought it was quote "the epic-est game for ds ever" also cried every time i finished it. i was 13 so i didnt know what "being down bad" was but do know i was as obsessed with kurow as i was with d-ne later and now tenshi not a single irl friend was unaware i was in love with him. also fun fact for u bc at the same time i was also getting super into vocaloid i was so convinced my vocap name would end up as chibiP to the point i named myself that in pkmn x chibiP after chibiterasu of course. please enjoy my banger old art which is not even a fraction of my output

yume nikki is my next favorite game specifically the og that changed my brain chemistry as a kid. i adore that game so much its hard to put it into words. its just so unlike anything else. there is absolutely nothing in the game that can directly harm u theres no real health meter theres no way to die during the main play the absolute worst that will ever happen is u get stuck or woken up. in a horror game. which is already just amazing. and the whole horror aspect just plays on something i dont think is often done as well in many other things. ur alone. u wander and wander thru worlds that loop and connect and seemingly have nothing to do with each other. theres no dialogue; talking to npcs just gets u a noise or animation at best. ur entirely alone with just urself. its all dreams so u know everything is of madotsuki's own creation, another layer to the all u have is urself feeling. the art is just unusual i cant even say any of it on its own is in anyway scary. the whole thing shouldnt be scary and yet every time i start wandering in a world i cant help but feel unease. amazing 10/10 no other game will ever have what this gave me.

everyone knows i play pkmn the best is still pmd sky that also rewired my brain i still cant play it without crying.

its been a long time since i was really just playing it as the chapters released & got translated but 1bitheart is so so so important to me too. i dont kin for multiple reasons but if i did nanashi would be my first choice. like- without saying that to her i got my one irl friend to play once & when she saw how nanashi was she turned to me and went "this is just you" hes very important to me even now. absolutely loved the whole friendship sim & the story & its twists & the endings & their implications left me in shambles at 1 am on a school night. my fave charas are nanashi enri & saaya btw. i should replay this.

i also love the etrian odyssey series i love the character portraits (esp with the more recent games' color customization) i LOVE the dungeon art & i think all the monster designs are so cool. adore the whole make ur own map aspect keeps me so entertained to take a step & look around & chart all the walls & path ways. unfortunately i fucking suck at every single one i am not very good at strategy games so i end up stuck at or before the 3rd stratum. but thats okay its still fun to me.

the other one i'll talk about at length is spirit of the north another game i loved the art of. u play as a fox & get a partner spirit fox & i just love it SOOOO much. its also a game with 0 dialogue but theres A Lot going on it if u care to follow along & explore & dig into details & the game play is also pretty fun to me. this is the one game i started learning the speedrun btw thats also a very fun way to play it but ABSOLUTELY play it as intended first it has so much to offer

aaaand special mentions to omori, oneshot, witch's house, mermaid swamp, corpse party, & limbus company

#asks #kuki #idk if id say omori was good storywise but it WAS fun & i loved the portrayal of escapism #i love the ethical dilemma of oneshot #everyone loves witchs house. tragic story. #there was something in particular about mermaid swamp that made it memorable but i have to play it again its been years #corpse party also hits on something in the 'ur alone and trapped' feeling that i really like. cant say its actually good tho #& limbus is so fucking hard FUCK the spicebush fight PLEASE just let me overlevel w corp ryoshu so she can sweep & i can progress- #ah but the story is equal levels fucked up & horrifying and also the funniest thing i have ever read in my life. emotional whiplash. love i #i also played the mogeko games in high school those were something. i really liked memoca from wadanohara & moge-ko from mogeko castle #im not actually a gamer sorry i dont play much. i mostly just play pkmn #and proseka. but i dont care about anyone but 25ji & i cant read their stories bc they trigger me so i just tappy tap to songs #this reminds me i still have to catch up on hte maigoen game. wasnt doing well when it released but i might be able to handle that now #the. kanata chapter i think it is. i played the others. bgm is always so good thank u nilfruits im pretty sure thats who does it #and of course as soon as kamitsubaki city ensemble releases i will be playing that. & u will be hearing about it #bc ill get mad they make rime & friends cry #thisbis so long sorry

[sandradoodles]

So since you asked for asks, thought I'd throw one out there. What do you think Adrien's personal style might be if he didn't have to wear his dad's designs or dress to his approval? Do you think dating or being closer to Marinette might influence his personal style?

Oooooh good question. I am not super knowledgeable about clothing and style but I will answer to the best of my ability!

To the surprise of no one, this is long and full of rambling.

Knowing that the only time we see him for sure wearing something he actually wants to wear is when he's transformed into Chat Noir is either highly informative or not informative at all lol. Personally I believe parts of his daily outfit are actually representative of him (the stripes on his shirt, both because they are used in his "Adrien vision" in Oblivio and because Marinette sews them onto That Hat in Chat Blanc; and also his orange sneakers because I want to believe he thinks they are very cool.) The crispy white overshirt is all Gabe though. He dresses Adrien in white too much and the vibe is icky. "Look at my flawless son, a perfect blank slate for me to design myself." Do not want.

Dating Marinette would be great for Adrien in all ways, including developing personal style because she could encourage him to try new things and she's the person he's most comfortable around, so he can be honest with her about what he likes. He would be SUPER into wearing anything she gifted him as often as possible (and being borderline obnoxious about it like "MY GIRLFRIEND MADE THIS WITH HER OWN HANDS".) I can also imagine them having cheesy private fashion show dates where he models her other designs, poses over dramatically on purpose, and makes repeated ~catwalk~ jokes, but that's just for the two of them. Professional modeling is pointless, but supporting your girlfriend and treasuring her talent is anything but!

As for exactly where I think he'd land in terms of personal style... This is all gonna veer wildly into my own aesthetic and what I want to draw him wearing BUT ANYWAY I think a wider range of color and relaxed fit are the main things, which I realize is the exact opposite of Chat Noir but listen. His clothing should provide maximum comfort and freedom. Nothing that has to be starched, ironed, or fully tailored unless he has no other choice. (Obviously he's going to wear a very nice suit to Alya's and Nino's future wedding.)

For color schemes I'm again leaning hard into my own aesthetic but I think he'd be comfortable in the colorful neutrals: olive green, burnt orange, navy blue, etc. They're fun but not so loud that he's the first person you'd pick out of a crowd, which he deserves after being in an unwanted spotlight for so long. (More hats for the same reason, esp slouchy beanies that Marinette knits for him.) He punches up the color and accessorizes more when he's going to be hanging out with friends.

Extremely specific thing that I want him to wear: satin bomber jackets with striped cuffs. Some floral accents because he asked Marinette to add her own touch. Like:

I accept constructive criticism but this really does feel right to me.

#miraculous ladybug #adrien agreste #sandra talks #ask #scarlet-curls #also future adrien definitely has pierced ears #both for personal expression and in case there's an emergency and the world needs mister bug #you guys really came through with the asks ilu #I got a lot and I will be answering them over the next few days!!

[edith-is-a-cat]

07: What did you last eat?

08: Played any sports?

09: Do you bite your nails?

12: Have you ever stayed up 48 hours?

16: How exactly are you feeling at the moment?

18: Are you scared of spiders?

19: Would you go back in time if you were given the chance?

24: What is/are/were your best subject(s)?

26: What are you craving right now?

30: What’s irritating you right now?

32: What is your favourite color?

34: Who/what was your last dream about?

51: Favourite food?

53: What is the last thing you did before you went to bed last night?

58: Favourite weather?

59: Do you like the snow?

62: What makes you happy?

69: Do you believe in soulmates? (/p and/or /r)

70: Is there anyone you would die for?

I enjoy answering questions online and not irl im so peculiar,,, but omg yipe

07: What did you last eat?

Juicy Peach Alani

08: Played any sports?

I did volleyball, track, and cheer... I like the community of sport but its not really for me

besides track absolutely love running and would liek to get better at it!!

09: Do you bite your nails?

When they break I will bite it off and chew it a bit to even it out,, I probably would bea nail biter if I didn't hate the feeling of chewed on nails (I literally have to file them with what ever I can when one breaks)

12: Have you ever stayed up 48 hours?

I believe 1-2 times, usually for things im super excited for (I remember being up at 3 am already ready for a school event.. sadly i don't remember for what) I don't see myself doing that these days (okay I may do that for the Glass Animals concert coming up,,,)

16: How exactly are you feeling at the moment?

Iike a gross teenager

maybe a little hungry

my leg is hurting again BLEH STOP HURTING BODY

18: Are you scared of spiders?

Nope! but my sister was! I was sent in to deal with bugs in our bathroom

19: Would you go back in time if you were given the chance?

Yes, not to change anything unless I know the exact outcome of everything that i changed, but i would love to visit some things

24: What is/are/were your best subjects)?

Math was... im making 76,,,,

BUTTTT

Everything else is an A excpet for web design its boring we aren't even being taught anything I DIDN'T EVEN WANT THAT CLASS >:T

Chemistry is currently my favorite class ever along with the tried and true art

26: What are you craving right now?

Pumpkin pie and chipolte

30: What's irritating you right now?

How noisy it is rn and that im hungry

32: What is your favourite color?

Pink, sage green, lavender, gold, and idia's hair

34: Who/what was your last dream about?

I never really remember my dreams, i never really get people in my dreams either,,

I remember Ms. Auburn being in my dream, she was my teacher an i had to get papers copied for them!

51: Favourite food?

I've never really had a favorite food which sucks

53: What is the last thing you did before you went to bed last night?

sent xen this

58: Favourite weather?

Foggy/cloudy/dim/not sunny

i like being able to open my eye fully and comfortably

59: Do you like the snow?

YES SO MUCH I LOVE WHEN WE HAVE IT SINCE US SOUTH N STUFF

62: What makes you happy?

okay time to be really specific:

2012 internet

this GTLive video, i watched it durning school and it was so nice i was trying not to giggle (I was freaking out about my math teacher sending me to his room during study hall aka the only time i see my irl during school + he told me jack shit about it so woooo go distractions)

My favorites on tiktok they are usually funny vids to cheer me up

mutuals + my irl (HI SAM)

My old as teddy bear (ITS AS OLD AS ME)

sweet things :333333

69: Do you believe in soulmates? (/p and/or /r)

Yes and multiple humans are social creatures one is not enough

70: Is there anyone you would die for?

so many,, so mannyyyyyy, including you

WOW OAKY THAT WAS FUN AND A LOT!!! TYSM

#silly little bear answers :] #mr. devil!! 🪻

[haldenlith]

Some people are probably tired of me shouting into the void about this, but my mind is buzzing angrily about it.

Quick context: I am going back to school, so I can have a nice shiny piece of paper that says I'm a "Super Legit Know What I'm Talking About, I Paid Thousands For This Stupid Piece of Paper" Graphic Designer. (To be fair I've actually learned a lot so far.)

I'm in this one "distance learning" (ie online) class, "Typography II". We were given a big project that was very obviously our Final at the beginning of the year, in January. It was to write/research and design an entire book, 40-page minimum (including covers and table of contents). It came due last week. (I was very much done and submitted before then, because I was very In The Zone with this project. Unsure about sharing it here because it has my name on it, but I might share the link in a DM if you ask. I think I wrote a pretty compelling typography book.)

We're then assigned people to do critiques on (to ensure everyone gets critiqued by two people). I check so that I can do my critiques.

Let me tell you what. I just about hit the ceiling. Five-ish people, including myself, turned the assignment in. (Or at least turned it in on time.) Hell, of what was turned in, I think, aside from myself, only two other people put any amount of research into their book topic (WHICH WE CHOSE, they weren't even assigned! We got to pick whatever we wanted as long as we could relate it to typography!). And honestly, only one other student, from reading their book, felt like they put any actual effort into it at all. (Her book was simple, but very nice.) The other... read like he got bored half-way through his own research, because he had like a handful of sources and a whole bunch of paragraphs that were just him repeating himself, just paraphrased, in a very obvious "I need to hit the 40-page minimum" attempt.

Another person had a nice looking book, but it was filled with Lorem Ipsum filler text. Another was maybe two pages of research, and then the entire rest of the book was just a picture book.

I just... what.

We had three months -- THREE MONTHS -- to do this. Three. Tres. Ninety whole ass days. We had FOUR check-ins during the course of those three months, to show our progress and how we're doing, and a FIFTH optional check-in that wasn't graded. It was there so that we could ask for help if we needed it. The professor even asked the class if the due dates were too tight (we also had other exercises and projects to do in the meantime while we did this in the background), if the class was going too fast, and they needed more time... Short of doing it in interpretive dance in front of a neon flashing sign, I don't know how more obviously she could've asked, "Hey, this is your sign to speak up if you're having issues."

This is technically an upper level course. This is also a class you can't take without taking Typography I, which was set up THE EXACT SAME WAY. This is also an elective class specifically for Graphic Design Degrees at my uni. You're not here unless you intend to be a designer.

It's just insulting to see, en masse, everyone just go "nah". They're wasting my time because I have to struggle to critique whatever is going on with those that DID submit. They're wasting the professor's time by sitting in her class and not doing the work. They're wasting another student's time by taking up a seat that could've been filled by someone else. They're wasting their own time being there and going through the motions (some of them had some really interesting progress shots to show of their book during the check-ins), but not following through.

They're also wasting money, because the class is like... $400-ish, so, you know.

It's also insulting considering the sheer amount of work I put into my own submission. It feels like researching and making a gourmet three-course meal to the best of my ability to impress a cooking show judge with, but then looking over and seeing half the competition hasn't even bothered to make anything, and the other half has a stale, cold burger off the McDonald's dollar menu.

I know I shouldn't care, because it doesn't entirely affect me at the end of the day (though I do have to suffer through trying to critique it or get marked off). But still, it's just... mind blowing to me.

#haldie vents #I'd get it if this were a first year class #but it's not

[kimikiui]

Why You Should Vote for Hakupo

Hello. Good evening, morning, afternoon, brunch, sleepytime whatever time it is for you right now. I am here to sell my little autism creature to you. This is going to be a fairly long post so, just sit tight.

The second round of polls will not be out for a couple of hours. I wanted to reblog the post with this, BUT- I have class at 3 when the polls are released. Plus, gotta get those non Hakupo believers before they vote for anyone else, amirite?

Also the stickers used between catagories are the official line stickers by Pikomaru ➜ https://store.line.me/stickershop/product/3951590/en

Reminder; It's only Shinji sweep until its Hakupo sweep.

No, I'm not putting a section breaker because even if you don't read it, I want you to see the sheer size of this... It's an essay at this point. Let's get started shall we?

What is a Hakupo?

Hakupo Tsukishiro is a energetic and powerful masculine voicebank for Utau (and amadeusy but we dont talk abt brunnnoooo). He was released all the way back in 2010 and has had many important milestones in his 13 years of distribution. Four compilation albums, 7 voicebanks, 2,500+ fanarts (that i all have), and uses by really awesome people *points to the crowd*. That's all of you guys out there. <3

Hakupo as a character is inspired by moe, thanks Clarice. Like most moe characters, he's a bit air headed and happy go lucky person. His positive attitude is sometimes brought into original songs he's featured in, which just makes me smile- girlbosses love a good pick me up song.

Also he has a stupid little coat and pants. This is all you need to know to vote for Hakupo, but I will continue forward incase you are still on the fence.

Cool Hakupo Facts

He almost has the same exact suggested range as Miku (C3 to E5)... His is actually larger... he goes higher (C3 to G5).

The "Do Re Mi FâåÁaæ↓" incident of Christmas 2020, contact me I will elaborate further.

There is a little bit of an evil twin thing going on. Yeah. This is a win.

His genderbend design Kohaku is revealed when you turn down the brightness of his official reference sheet (he pulled a scott cawthon guys).

He hates to be called cute and have his head patted... which is cute.

Despite looks- His description says he has curly hair come on guys- LITTLE FLUFF.

By looking at his official Twitter bot, there's a few extra things we can learn about him. He is very stupid, very impatient, has a horrible sleep schedule, bad at multitasking, and can't stand still (I can elaborate more on these if asked).

I wrote a 43 page Utau cartoon pilot script with Hakupo as the main character. Shameless plug.

I also wrote my college admissions essay about Hakupo. Thanks for getting me into college Bobo!

Sick Bobo Uses

Get boboed.

What does Bobo mean to me?

I found Hakupo 7 years ago now, sitting in the middle of an Utau melody. I told myself I would just turn off my tablet and listen to the music. Yeah that worked- guess who was next after the screen turned off. BOBO! I needed to see the little creature creating this melody. I turned on the screen, and was not disappointed. Fancy twink in a oversized tailcoat with weird pants. I remember rambling to my mom later about how cool he was, why he was so unique, and why this one specifically caught my attention.

He's been my special interest since then, everyone around me knows Hakupo wheather they like it or not. He's about 80% of everything I draw, 50% of what I talk about, and 100% of my little creature I snuggle up with every night.

Literally.

I have a Hakupo bodypillow. Can't sleep without him.

Anyways, he's helped me find a lot of my best friends *coughcoughmeatcoughrevcough*, never fails to make me happy, and helped everyone around me realize I'm extremely autistic. The least I can do is write an ungodly long propaganda post while drinking my coffee at 9 am.

Stan Bobo Oobieero.

Hakupo Memes for Propaganda

GO VOTE FOR HAKUPO ON @utaupoll AT 3 PM EST

Thanks, have a nice day.

#kiui speaks #i am so pissed that im gonna b in math #why is 30% of my grade attendance #utau poll #utau #hakupo tsukishiro #propaganda #hakupo sweep #i spent 3 hours writing this

[wispythreads]

O'Rin of the Water was the final push this game made for me where they made it obvious that "No, you need to parry," so I needed to switch from my broken controller back to keyboard and mouse.

Doing that did make the fight more of "oh okay I am learning" and less of "why do I keep throwing myself at this I keep dying at the same exact point" so that was nice but still. Jeez her fight felt weird considering how I'd been approaching these encounters with the parry mechanic tied behind my back.

Now I've been kinda just. Banging my head against the wall trying to figure out how I'm supposed to be tactfully approaching the Corrupted Monk?

I tried my original approach on controller first (i.e. dodge out of the way of their strikes then go after the actual health during a window of opportunity), but she swaps out which specific swinging motion she's going to hit me with so often that it feels like it's specifically designed against how I've been memorizing attack patterns and then exploiting weak points up until this point. I try to dodge in a way that worked before with a previous series of motions, and she does every motion the same except for the very last one, taking a huge chunk of my health out and staggering Wolf, which can then end up lining me right up for getting hit with yet another change to her motion if she decides to be cruel and go for that as well.

So I thought, okay, maybe it's like O'Rin of the Water again and I really do have to just use the parry mechanic to get past this miniboss.

But then I try that and yeah I'm parrying okay, but her posture replenishes so much faster than Wolf's, so when I need to take a step back to let him cool down and/or replenish health she's almost instantly back to where she started. Sometimes I don't even need to take a step back, it's just in the small space of time between me parrying her last attack or the last time I managed to get a hit in on her that it's completely restored. It honestly feels like it's meant to be the opposite of O'Rin's fight, where trying to take her down through the posture route is impossible and you have to whittle her health down instead.

I tried looking online for a way to beat her but the tactic I found was a way to cheese her fight? Summing it up, whittle her health down a little bit by getting the free hits in at the start, run around the arena until she starts to leap at you, run towards her to avoid getting hit by the leap and be in position to get two strikes in before running around the arena, repeat, now instead of running around the arena use fireworks to stun her and then two strikes, repeat till dead.

Which also just. Doesn't work. Because I'll try to run at her when she leaps like the guy says but somehow I end up getting caught in her range, even though I'm moving exactly the way he does. I try to get the two hits in on her health but the second one is always hitting against her posture instead. And it just seems really wasteful to keep trying to use the fireworks even though they work because those are consumable resources that I used to have a lot of, before I tried to cheese O'Rin of the Water on remote with multiple Sabimaru strikes, and I can't get the other two parts of the plan to reliably work.

I don't know, I'm guessing the answer is going to just amount to the usual "Get Good" of these Dark Soul type games, I'm just trying to figure out what the angle of "Get Good" I'm supposed to be practicing for is.

#sekiro: shadows die twice #sekiro #corrupted monk #破戒僧 #bit of play experience #like her ai tactics are probably the coolest so far from the perspective I haven't been able to crack it? #even Genichiro as much as fighting him instilled a weird rage I've never really felt while fighting a boss before #was still someone I could clearly see what movement he was about to do and plan accordingly #but it is getting really frustrating now and yet I don't want to move on until I beat her so blegh #at this point I don't WANT to cheese her I want to know how to fight her PROPERLY #yes I hear the divine confetti is good to use against spirit type enemies and does a whole heckofalotof damage #but that doesn't help if I can't reliably get hits on her health instead of smacking her posture!

[amphiptere-art]

All right. The general consensus behind this post, Is that I really should give my sona a name. Which yes. They currently do not have a name. This is mostly because I had no idea what I would name them as. I still really don't.

Cheedon is a mixture of the two parts of that character. A cheetah and a smilodon. Dragon horse is a similar situation. A combining of two names. My dragon sona does not mix with this naming strategy. It is singularly a dragon. Particularly an amphiptere. Which is my favorite dragon type. It is not two animals.

Neither am I going to name this Sona The writer, The dreamer, or The creator. Those titles are God like only, and my other sonas also go by them.

So perhaps you can help me come up with some ideas?

Looking back... Well the creation of a new Sona was needed for the shift to going digital and because I haven't used Cheedon in ages. Cheedon has become a symbol of my youth. The days at school and the general fun and freedom at that age. I have in recent years given them the title of the god of paper. As they are legitimately supposed to be a representation of every work I have done in physical notebooks.

Where are the design came from? Well it's a funny story. I have something I call recurring drawings. Reoccurring drawings is usually a design that I have drawn million times over. Usually just under a different story or perhaps a practice in a pose or skeletal structure that I remember doing but just don't want to dig for the old notebook. These are also usually things I draw during an art block or when I'm bored.

My dragon sona is based entirely off of these reoccurring drawings and the thousands of dragons faces I draw when bored. If I really wanted to I could go through a notebook and I could probably point out at least one illustration that had at least one trait that is on my dragon sona now.

The fangs are taking directly from a reoccurring drawing where I draw them in that exact fashion. Amphitheres are of course my favorite dragon. They're legitimately everywhere. The fin crest I have drawn many times on many different creatures, not just dragons.

I basically just boiled these favorite design choices I always have into a character. Creating my dragon soda as we see it.

Now of course they have other powers. Other than of course being an avatar for the writer like God placement. They also have the specific choice to change their size. This is actually stolen from another one of my characters. Clockwork once known as tick tock. Is another shape-shifting amphithere. Although they specifically shift into weapons. The last thing they can do is light themselves on fire. Usually though I refine this to the fins on the tail and wings.

So now you have a bit of traits and a little bit of history. Hopefully that gives you guys a chance to maybe think of names?

I of course tried the brainstorm myself. Most of the ideas for names are usually creativity or art-based. Pencil, creativity, art, margins, artistic, memory, future, etc. these are all random and based more so on why they were made. I'm not really sure which one of these names is good. Neither do I know the naming convention is smart. I don't want to necessarily name them Amphiptere Art. Mostly because calling them what they are feels weird.

#please help me name them #cuz I don't have any good ideas. #dragon Sona #dragon squeaks #little dragon #dragons #dragon #fantasy art #artists on tumblr #artist of tumblr #artists of tumblr #character art #art #sams #tsams #tsams au #sams au

[random-cryptid]

ok so, i made a lil dolly of ms frizzle and now all i can think about is making lil dollies of winnie, mary, and sarah and i am going nuts over it

i think the three of them would love the fact that i wanna make lil dolls of them, especially winnie. like, theyve never had anyone do that to them, so the thought of me trying out something ive never done before just so i can always have them with me would make all three of them melt faster than honey in hot tea

i'd have to ask mary and winnie how the fuck they do their hair like that cuz idk how to draw it, let alone recreate it with yarn shhdhdj. oh! and i'd have to ask sarah if she has any tips for making the clothes cuz i dont really know how to make clothes in general, let alone doll clothes

ik the dolls are gonna look really skrunkly and messy, but i think they'd be super proud of me for trying something new, and over the moon that i chose the three of them to be my muses for it.

YEAH I SAW YOUR LIL MS FRIZZLE DOLL SHE'S SO CUTE 😭😭😭 ALSO PLEASE DO!!!

I think Mary would be climbing walls (metaphorically) too ngl. I believe she's an arts and crafts girly (not as much as Sarah though but definitely does some clothes and such too!) so she would find it especially cute.

I believe I can help with the hair and clothes!!!

Winifred's hair is pretty much the same as Queen Elizabeth I, and this tutorial is pretty easy to follow! Definitely not historically accurate in the techniques but it's the same shape lol. Basically her hair is just two big buns!

Mary's hair however... I can't by the life of myself figure out how her hair works (my hypothesis is that her hair is twisted into shape... Kind of.) apart from her having one tiny braid going along the whole hat shape of her hair.

All the tutorials I've seen for her hair have in common using wires and some sort of cilinder to shape her hair tho!!! This is one of the easiest ones I've seen. (Btw it's crazy to me how this lady has her exact vibe)

Now for the clothes you can check Salvador Perez's Instagram account! (He's the costume designer from the second movie) But if you don't want to scroll too much it's okay I gotcha! Here you have:

• Sarah's sleeves (they're sewn in on the corset!)

• Sarah's corset (you don't have to embroider anything, I think it's better if you use markers instead)

• Winnie's top gown + accessories (basically her full gown is two pieces: the top one, which is the deeper green one, and the under one, which is the one with purple and a lighter green)

• Mary's full outfit + details (this one's just a general idea)

• Mary's corset + sparkles (once again, more of a general idea)

• The Sister's shoes + thighs + undergarments (looove love Winnie's boots ngl)

Making sewing patterns is basically like making puzzle pieces and putting them together, so getting the shapes shouldn't be too complicated! In any case, if you need help with that I can help you out! (Unfortunately I'm no taylor but I'll do my best). You can also look up tutorials for specific things like skirts! (They're actually one of the easiest things to make!)

#Yes I've been saving this references since the movie came out #both bc costume design is one of my special interests AND because I too want to make the sisters as dolls #although in my case more like bjd. and my designs of the sisters #I hope this is of any help to you #hocus pocus #hocus pocus 2 #asking the ghost #obviously you don't have to make them as detailed as this unless you wanna #I'm just a reference hoarder

[todayisafridaynight]

Firstly, thanks so much for your patience with my ramblings haha, it's always an absolute pleasure to read your responses even if I get more unhinged with each one of mine! Of course, I'll continue to do my best with the wiki! (Actually, I think it's because of you that I noticed Daigo's age(s) were a year off haha, so thank you for that as well.)

I think you hit the nail on the head, and I adore how his relationships were executed in Y7 as well! I was initially a little bit apprehensive when trailers for 7 were coming out since RGGJo (and Mine, of course) were my favorite antagonists, and Jo is by far the character who's changed the most between games, but I can safely say both… Joes… are right up there for me.

I think a strong early subversion/conversion/something is that RGGJo really does just go and shoot up a rival office for attacking Arakawa (even though Arakawa was fine?). With Y7Jo, even though he's covering for Masato, the fact that's still the story Ichi gets told and he doesn't question it sort of speaks to Y7Jo having a similarly "protective" streak even if it's not actually what happened in that instance. That's also demonstrated in The Eye Scene as you mention later.

Like, I think that story is fairly clearly something he and Arakawa discussed. Masato got in contact with Jo first, and the mess Ichi tries to clear up when he comes in the morning after is indicative of a very long, stressful conversation between two people. Given Masato absolutely should not be smoking, process of elimination would suggest it's Jo. And it's a story they would've aimed to make as believable as possible, so the fact it is believable (Ichi being a bit gullible notwithstanding) says something to me.

For two characters who hardly even speak to each other onscreen (criminal btw), there's a lot to dig into when it comes to Arakawa and Sawashiro's relationship. That aside, I'm super excited to see you analyse Jo's psyche, and I can't wait to read it! I've been reading Japanese psychology texts myself and noticing a number of concepts that apply to Mine, but may apply to the Arakawas as well. There's a great deal I want to share once I get my thoughts in order.

I totally agree Mine's influence on RGGJo was the strongest of the three! I mean, y'know, that's why I acquired brainworms for RGGJo/Mine specifically. (Still 1000% going to commission you by the way when I've got my refs together + am not in danger of being unable to afford Gaiden and 8 lol). Sort of like with Masato and Daigo, I think characters who are clearly based on each other work quite well together even if it's seen as crack. You can come up with pretty compelling ideas trying to rationalize those similarities from a Watsonian perspective.

The devotion is absolutely the strongest point (having the exact same relationship tag for Arakawa and Daigo respectively + similar wording for it in the 15th anniversary book is a nice touch), but for me it's also what's done with it in terms of presentation. For both Mine and RGGJo you're supposed to believe they're actively working against Daigo and Arakawa's interests for most of the story.

And they probably kind of are, but they're convinced the pros outweigh the cons (as with the resort gambit, which you're remembering correctly!) Though it may not have the same effect nowadays for various reasons (spoilers, plot points becoming predictable on account of other games, etc), the devotion was originally supposed to be a twist.

There are other things, of course; they're both the "treasurers" of their respective organizations, they're both third-in-command of the Tojo and Omi, they're both talented people who possess overwhelming strength and influence and are regarded as geniuses (despite scenes to the contrary). If I wanted to reach design-wise, they've got mirrored ahoges, and Mine's "Legend" costume is probably based on characters like RGGJo and Nishiki. Their first cards were even officially stated to have synergy on account of their very similar skillset.

You end up noticing a lot of things like that if you're clinically insane like I am, but the one thing that's really stuck with me is that the render used for RGGJo's office is specifically a new render the Hakuho Clan office. It's missing the stuff that's supposed to be missing, the stuff Kanda broke, but only that. Mine's art collection, which is very personal to him as is also revealed in RGGO, is preserved in full.

There are a number of newly-rendered locations in RGGO and they could've just done that, or they could've picked any location that's not (imo) one of the most iconic, but I don't know why they didn't. And I don't know whether it was just convenience, whether it's simply meant to be reflective of them having similar tastes without being the same office, or whether it's just honest to God the same office. I mean, it's not like there's any reason to acknowledge it in-game.

But I think, in a weird way, that this is one of the things that carried over to Y7Jo alongside the devotion and The Eye Scene. A lot of people don't notice because there's so much going on in Y7's finale, but the Arakawa Family office the finale takes place in is specifically Y7Jo's office. And if you examine the Hakuho Clan office and the Arakawa Family office as spaces Mine and Y7Jo have created for themselves, there are very few aesthetic similarities other than being pretty tasteful two-storey offices, but both are, in their own ways, designed for companionship.

There is the obvious fully-stocked bar and main seating area in both, but that's sort of whatever, that's entertainment and hospitality. What really catches my eye, at least on the first floor, is that every piece of gym equipment in Mine's office comes in pairs; similarly, there's the pair of armchairs that are just by themselves behind Y7Jo's desk.

The second floor of Mine's office basically consists of only a TV, a table, and a set of couches, but I think the second floor of of 7Jo's is the more telling of the two. You walk upstairs from this very snazzy, richly decorated first floor (btw, like Mine's gym equipment and art, I would like to think the fact it's decked from top to bottom with books isn't just for show) to a second floor that consists of… absolutely nothing.

Nothing except another pair of armchairs, echoing those on the first floor, facing out into this gorgeous (RGGJou would--and has--said "romantic") view of Kamurocho. Maybe it's just to have this dramatic, spacious arena for the very last fight, but I just think that visual is potentially such a strong bit of storytelling via set dressing.

I also think with RGGJo being split into Y7Jo and Masato, some of the Mine influence kind of ended up with Masato too, specifically as Aoki. At least insofar as all the catastrophizing about not truly being cared-for despite evidence to the contrary, and I kind of felt like the moment where he shoots at and narrowly misses Ichi's head, then throws his gun away for a good ol' fistfight was Something.

Completely agree on your assessment of the link to Nishiki as well! There's the surface level design similarities with young RGGJo back when he had long hair and accessorized less, but yeah, no notes. I definitely think Y7Arakawa's line applies perfectly to the dynamic they were going for, too.

I thought the implication was that Masato wouldn't have survived at all in RGGO on account of Arakawa being unable to open the locker, but it's super interesting to think about how things might've turned out otherwise! A Masato who's Just A Guy and treated sort of like RGGO Mitsu's offscreen wife and kid is such a concept.

I really do hope there's a continuation to the story; as it stands, it literally ends with Jo in a coma lol. But I'm grateful RGGO is still accessible and actively updated, in comparison to the previous mobile titles, which also had original stories that are all gone now.

Jo was actually in a very recent event, even. The event spent its whole runtime talking about how cats are sensitive to smell, and evidently, according to the ending, Jo is incredibly sensitive to smell himself. I'm not sure which Jo it was even supposed to be since he was offscreen, but uh, catboy confirmed? Nyawashiro…? It's fun trivia.

Mentioning Arakawa's "sons" line in such close proximity to talking about Tsutsumi reminds me! There was this Y7 interview with all three actors (that has since been privated and that I kick myself every day for archiving) where Nakai and Tsutsumi were talking about how they usually play father and son.

So there's this very, very long history of them co-starring (as I'm sure you're aware lol), like from way back when Tsutsumi's voice was actually higher. And I think the casting choices absolutely are informed by the history and context there, both as individuals and as co-stars, both in terms of filmography as you say and not.

One particular anecdote that just Gets Me is that this was Tsutsumi's first time voice-acting, and he honestly wasn't even sure he'd take the role, but he accepted once he heard Nakai was on board. And he went on to actually enjoy it so much he read the rest of the (gargantuan) script, far beyond his own dialogue, and ended up forgetting the lines to the play he was doing at the time.

He also went on to voice-act a second time in The Deer King, where he plays… another iintimidating man with a violent reputation and a "soft"/deeper side (who is of course a reluctant father), actually. I actually have seen most of his other roles, and Jo really is almost one-of-a-kind. Though it's hard to find any one character he's "like," I can absolutely see what you mean with regard to Oda Nobunaga and Kanda.

I think that actually really works with regard to audiences having an idea of what to expect from his character and to an extent from Y7 if you look Jo as more of a culmination of Tsutsumi's career up to that point. In addition to what you've mentioned already, I also detect a lot of Koda (Good Luck!!) and Ogata (SP)'s themes with regret and making amends and vengeance in particular.

There's a little bit of Appare (Kagerou Touge) and Shibata (Keiho) too, I think, in terms of presenting yourself as worse than you actually are. And I think Tsutsumi's own struggles with mental health lend a lot of gravitas to characters like Ishigami (Suspect X) and Jo, who you can't really argue Isn't Depressed, especially at present.

And of course, y'know, he's played yakuza (to great effect), he's played dads (to great effect; btw, I would say the worst fathers/father figures he's played are probably in Fable II and My Blood & Bones in a Flowing Galaxy, Jo somehow doesn't even compare lol). Also, pretty much every Tsutsumi character either ends up dead or in jail, being a villain in an RGG game notwithstanding. There are often very strong critiques of police and politics present in his work as well, Y7 being no exception.

It's similar with Nakai, maybe to an even greater extent than with Tsutsumi, since Y7 borrows more heavily from his works and his personal life aligns surprisingly well with Arakawa's. They're both actors who are sons of actors, lost their fathers at a young age, were raised by abusive mothers, and ended up with a sort of unlikely father figure in adulthood. So I think it's sweet that Nakai ended up enjoying Arakawa as much as Tsutsumi did Jo. It's kind of funny being more or less typecast as a dad without actually having any children (unlike Tsutsumi), though.

I touched on it a tiny bit before but that's a really insightful take on RGGJo's splintering, as well! And you're most welcome. I've always found it fascinating just how closely their backgrounds tie in to who they end up being. I completely agree having his dad around did a lot for Arakawa in terms of having the confidence to stick to his guns.

But yeah, you know, it's just tragic. I think it's also one of the less talked-about ways abuse can perpetuate itself. Because Jo treating Ichi the way his father may have treated him is sort of the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the topic, but Jo's learned avoidance also goes on to make Arakawa a scapegoat for Aoki's abuse.

I'm always a fan of your takes and insights, so I don't mind the wait: thank you so much for writing as much as you have, it's really wonderful being able to discuss Jo and RGGO v. Y7 as a whole! (I have to be embarrassed about the Daigo's-Age bit though: I'm glad I was able to help point it out, but I remember being so sassy and rude in the post where I mentioned it 😭)

It's great that despite their differences, both Jo's are still incredibly enjoyable; the roles each Jo fulfills, although different, are still executed in ways that keep the character in a close beat with each other, but of course effectively fill out their new purposes in new interesting ways!

As a bit of an aside, I've always been curious and nosy about the full details about New Years Day, 2001 and what happened after that. Anything I can say about the night tiptoes more into theory territory than anything solid, but if we're to go off the notion Masato really did head straight home afterwards, then it is fair to assume Jo had to have met with Arakawa that same night not long after the call in order for Arakawa to be ready to talk to Ichi the same morning (it must have been the biggest shock afterwards for Masato to hear he's gotta run to America if the three of them didn't talk about it together- which I'm assuming is what happened since, as you said, Masato shouldn't be anywhere near cigarettes, and the ash tray is definitely indicative of a stressful discussion). BUT Jo's preexisting devotion to Arakawa (plus the nod to/rework of RGGJo actually attacking a rival gang) nonetheless definitely helped in making their story digestible to the people they had to tell.

The fact Jo and Arakawa interact so little on screen really is unfortunate, even if it's understandable as to why. At the very least, I'm grateful there's so many bits of context clues through the game/s that can at least offer a peak into their dynamic! Segwaying away from that though, I can't lie I was already thinking of some bullet points regarding Jo's brain as I was falling asleep, so it's definitely something I want to put to paper when I get to: I'm glad to hear I have your interest on it when I write it! In that same vein, I'd be more than happy as well to hear about these notes you've seen that can apply not only to Mine, but to the Arakawa family. As you note later on, Mine and Aoki share similar philosophies, so I'd love to see your full take on that if you get to it!

About Mine though, it was really hard for me not to joke about the two being similar whenever the chance arose: I mean, two men who lose their fathers (admittedly, Jo chose to leave his dad but Dad Lost is still a bullet point on the venn diagram... that now I actually feel like taking the time to make later...) turn out to become their respective clan's most trusted asset (and handler of assets) who are volatile when it comes to the ones they care about (I don't have to clarify Mine, but as for Jo, aside from The Eye Scene and even the book wording, he definitely overreacts to Ichi having Masato's money. Of course, part of his anger could be due to his belief in the honor of being a yakuza, but I wouldn't say it's a reach to also assume that the idea of Ichi pestering Masato- if not assuming the worst for whatever reason from Ichiban of all people- might have irked him) and ironically act out in ways that would go against what the ones they care about want (more so strictly about RGGJo, of course)- it's hard not to see the notes borrowed from Mine to make Jo. In that, I do really enjoy their devotions being twists; even if that twist might not work nowadays as efficiently, I'll still enjoy it for what it's able to provide and how it can deepen a character.

To continue on to visual similarities, I actually did notice RGGJo's office being the same as Mine's (I stopped reading for a bit just to make a mini thread about it on my private Twitter)! Whether it was intentional or a simple reuse of assets, it's a great nod to Mine's influence on his character.

As for Y7Jo's office in comparison to Mine's- if I may accidentally go on a bit of an analytical rant- it's a little funny how different they are despite being tangential in wanting a space for companionship (like you mentioned for Jo's case, it might have been for dramatic purposes, but it wouldn't hurt to try and examine the room at face value for a second).

Mine's office is comparatively brighter and more apparently inviting, and it's not just due to the nighttime setting of Jo's office as his office's walls are painted black- but at the same time, the contrast almost feels intentional. Mine's apartment, even if spacious, has the social pieces close to each other, especially in relation to his personal desk. On the flip side, Jo's desk is considerably isolated away from the grand table in the side of the room. In these differences, I think it does lead to a great representation of their relationships with people and what they wanted out of life: with Mine, despite wanting people to be close to him and in his proximity, he's ultimately alone and by himself. On the contrary, Jo appears satisfied with- at least- only having Masato in his life, the second chair undoubtedly being honorary to Arakawa in a similar vein. He isn't too concerned with getting close to anyone else, thus no need for his table set to be so nearby. I could just be talking about nothing though- yet I think these differences is a great way to show how despite inspiration from Mine, they divide off into different characters still (honestly I might steal from this ask and make a separate post about this because now I've gotten myself invested in set design- it can go in the same post as my venn diagram I guess lmao).

Nevertheless, RGGJo and Mine borrowing from each other design wise is also another fun bit- it's as if Yokoyama's grabbing people by the shoulders and practically begging us to realize Jo's influenced by him (don't worry Mr. Yokoyama, I see you). Ergo, Y7Jo and Masato being split from RGGJo is such an interesting take of the two characters: it not only helps highlight Jo's traits it really also heightens Mine's extended influence on Masato (their inability to shoot people standing still is probably going to be a new favorite comparison I hadn't noticed before LMAO).

Moving on though, that lost interview with Nakai and Tsutsumi's going to haunt me now: I'd love to be able to see it, I love actor interviews, especially when the actors featured are already so familiar with each other! It's so sweet how connected the two are- it's what makes it a little more unfortunate that we didn't get to see Jo and Arakawa on screen together more. On that note though, I actually had a similar conclusion that Jo was a solid representation of Tsutsumi's career thus far: his ability to play deep and sentimental characters that have a rough exterior while also possessing some action to the role that he initially sought after in his career really encapsulates his ability as an actor! All in all, I'm glad that Nakai and Tsutsumi were able to have strong connections to their characters in Y7- and I can't really argue against Nakai's dad-typecast: there's just something about him that screams 'father' to me even if, ironically as you said, he isn't a father to any kids.

#long post #fave #snap chats #i have more notes down here hi LMAO #honestly i do wonder what Just A Guy masato wouldve been like.. tho tbf before The Murder masato /was/ kind of Just A Guy #an insecure guy with issues sure but i doubt he wouldve gone on to do anything criminal/abhorrent had it not been for That Night #ah but speaking of That Night and arakawa and jo having to talk about it if always wanted to go into that on my own time #i guess more appropriately put it as portray how i imagine that scene went down but thats somethin i can think of another time #and that reminds me ! absolutely no pressure about the commission btw take all the time you need ! #im excited to get to it when you are ready though i wont lie but again it's no pressure! im not going anywhere :) #honestly ill be real somehow with all of the films and movies ive seen i didnt get to catch nakai and tsutsumi together on other projects #i know they starred in Musashi together but i didnt realize their co-starship went deeper! #trying to watch japanese medias so hard sometimes because while most of it i can find easy #trying to find movies like 47 Ronin in Debt was arduous and others like Fly Daddy Fly are just impossible 😷 #oh well- that just means i have to be extra grateful for the films i have access to #speaking of tsutsumi's characters' mortalities tho ngl one of my favorite roles he plays is toru from Pure (1996) #and him Spoilers dying via metal pipes still guts me it makes me laugh more than it should ☠️☠️ #then there's the 'fakeout' deaths from Meishi Game and Why Don't You Play In Hell #or. at least i /think/ the latter was a fake out.... im p sure hirata's just so delusional he's imagining everyones alive #unimportant tho Again im just prattling down here LMAO #one more thing i wanna ramble on is about how jo and arakawa handle aoki's abuse- and its going back into personal anecdotes oopsie #more specifically on how arakawa becomes the main subject of aoki's anger because jo is considerably more docile #at the very least it reminds me of whenever one of my sisters would be in trouble so they'd dodge home leaving my to get yelled at LMAO #rip RGGJo hes stuck in a coma PLEAAASE truly in nature with a tsutsumi character to just. Die ☠️ #and lest i neglect catboy canon sawashiro please im howling. that just reminds me of the post bout the sad and old catboy #do i sound insane i think it was the one where theyre sitting at a bar and after drinking they just knock their glass off the table #anyway poor sensitive nose jo cant take him anywhere- allergies are probably going to act up or something lmao #but im running out of tags at this point. thank you for allowing me to talk so long- and im always happy to hear from you !

[goosecorp]

My Pokémon SwSh game is bugged.

I am a big fan of the Pokémon series, and pretty much been here for awhile, however, despite that, my first Pokémon game that I ever got to play was Pokémon Sword & Shield, and even then, that was on my friend’s switch at school, so when I finally got my own switch with my own copy of Pokémon Shield, I was hyped. Unlike with the save on my friend’s switch, I took my time lovingly crafting all of my Pokémon team, and including my favorites such as Yamask, Slowpoke, and the most recent ones at the time such as the Galarian Zigzagoon evolution line and the Grookey evolution line, however the Pokémon of interest in this story is this Low Key Toxtricity named “TOXIC MIST!!”

Yeah, yeah, spooky Pokémon in the game next thing I’m gonna tell ya is Missingno. appeared and deleted my save, but no, up at this point the game played as normal, beating the gyms, beating other trainers, and then going camping, I favored the Toxtricity the most during camping, I really liked it’s design, despite how simple it was in actuality, it definitely climbed the ranks of my favorites fast, and it was definitely my most used pokemon, or at least second most used, first place went to my Rillaboom, since he was a Grade-A tank.

But I beat the game, facing minor bumps (Rose literally sucks, screw steel-types forever), and I decided as celebration for my pretty clean playthrough of the game, I spin a wheel and release a random Pokémon on my main team, y’know, give them freedom away from my character (silly I know, let me be happy ok), I put every-Pokémon on my team on an online wheel website, and spun it, it ended up landing on Toxic Mist, of course her being one of my favorites I re-spun, again, and again, and again, but every time it landed right back on Toxic Mist, I felt awful letting go of one of my favorites but I just soothed myself imagining that Toxic Mist would run off into it’s own habitat and be happy, maybe even visit my trainer character sometimes, I remember this bit clearly since I drew doodles of this scenario later.

I released Toxic Mist and then moved on, I think ended up getting bored after I finished the story-mode and moved onto other things since I didn’t have the DLC, I ended up resetting my save to redo the story mode a couple months later with a different batch of Pokémon.

This is where the game started acting up, and things felt…weird, I felt like I was being watched, I even ending up taping my curtains to block any gaps, but that feeling never left, in-fact, it got worse by the time I found myself at the Giant’s Mirror part of the Northern Wild Area, thats when I found a Low Key Toxtricity, but something about it was off to me, something about it paired with the fact I felt watched made me deeply afraid of this specific Toxtricity, I approached it anyway, because it’s just a Pokémon character, nothing it could do could effect me in real life, plus it was just standing there doing nothing even after I got close enough to the point it should of reacted so I assume it was a bugged Pokémon.

I was proven wrong as soon as I engaged battle with it, for some reason the encounter played as if I was battling a trainer, it also let out this ear-piercing ringing sound, it was so loud I turned my switch’s volume down to mute, before I continued I looked at the Pokémon but couldn’t see anything but it’s back due to the camera angle, but thats when I noticed the name “TOXIC MIST!!” spelt the exact same way I named my own Toxicity from my previous save, I thought it definitely had to be some bug at managed to save bits of my previous data to the game and loaded it where it didn’t belong, which was strange since I didn’t encounter any other bugs before this point.

Bug or not, I was immediately proven wrong when I proceeded and it finally showed it’s face, but the way it did it was it curled backwards like that one clip from The Exorcist, and when I saw it’s front I was immediately stunned by a mixture of shock and fear, mainly shock, It’s front was a messed up slurry of textures that I’ve never seen the game, but the part I focused on the most was it’s neck, for some reason it’s neck had been entirely split open like someone slit it, instead of blood like you would expect it was just foamy, I didn’t know how to respond to this, so I tried attacking it, after my turn was done I felt my switch start to heat up quickly, I immediately turned off my switch and the heat died down almost immediately.

After a couple tests my switch turned out to be fine and so was the data of the other games on it, but just to be safe I’ve deleted Pokémon Shield off of my switch, that moment still stresses me out whenever I try to figure out what happened to my game during that moment, but the only thing I do know is that I’m not risking my hands nor my switch to test something that only effects one game that was on it.

Authors note time!

I realized I never posted this so I decided to post it for the spooky season! This is based off a TikTok clip of a glitchy Toxtricity.

This was my first attempt at a Pokepasta and I pulled a lot of specific info from my own experience with Sword and Shield, real fun to do to be honest!

I got nothing else to say so uh…thanks for reading!!

#[handcrafted works of art] #pokemon #pokemon creepypasta #pokepasta #toxtricity #creepypasta