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blackstarmylove · 11 months

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Teasing 2 (HC)

Fandom: Blackstar Theater Starless

Pairing: Sotetsu, Akira, Takami, Rico with fem!Reader

Warning: N.SFW

Requested by: Anon

Prompt: Hi! Can i request a nsfw hc where female s/o cockwarming Akira, Takami, Sotetsu, and Lico

Series: [Part 1]

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It was late, very late, and Sotetsu was supposed to close the store. All the doors were locked, but you and Sotetsu were in the rehearsal room with a chair facing the mirror wall.

Both of your clothes sat in a pile next to the chair. You were on his lap with your back to him, his strong arms tied around your waist, and his length hidden inside you.

"Why are you making that face? Wasn't this your idea? 'Sotetsu, let's play a little game. Just you and me.' Can't handle the heat?"

Seeing his smirk in the mirror you wanted to turn around and bite him, but even the slightest bit of movement would tip you over the edge. Why did he have to feel so good inside you?

"You look like you want to punch me," he laughed. "Do it. Who is stopping you?"

Your warning glare had no effect on him and only made him tease you more. "Sotetsu!"

"I wouldn't move if I were you. You are one step away from losing the game. Remember if you lose, I get to punish you, and my punishments will be brutal."

As you glared at Sotetsu's laughing reflection, you made a mental note to punch him tomorrow.

"Akira, what's taking you so long? I gotta go...lock up for me, will you?"

"Yeah, leave the key in my locker. Night, Taiga!"

His voice echoed through the shower room and sent a current through your body. Akira met your gaze and grinned, "Looks like it's just the two of us in Starless. We have all night to play your game."

The heat from the hot water, Akira's body, and his hard, buried length were getting to you. Why didn't you wait until you got home to play your game?

"What's wrong? Want me to move?"

"Akira, stop teasing...," you mumbled and pressed your back against the cool shower tiles.

"No," he laughed. "Hey, (y/n). If this game is torturing you, don't force yourself to go on...and if you want me to give up, I will. Then we can go home and spend the night there, ‘kay?."

"I didn't expect you to last this long," he breathed into your ear. "Are you certain you can keep this up?"

You were helping Takami calculate the business gains from the previous day, but there was only one chair in Unei's office. Luckily for you, the intern had to leave early.

Being a gentleman, Takami suggested you take the chair, but you had other plans. You sat him down on the chair, unzipped his pants, and freed his length. "I knew it. You are turned on."

"What exactly are you planning to do? This is a public area."

Without responding, you turned your back to him, lifted your dress, pushed aside your underwear, and slowly lowered yourself onto his manhood.

Takami suppressed a groan but was impressed by your willingness to do this in the middle of the day in the presence of the cast members. He was determined not to let you win, though.

Keeping your rules in mind, Takami snaked his hand under your dress and bra. "Your rules clearly stated no moving, thrusting, or grinding, but...you didn't say I can't touch you elsewhere. (Y/n), I will make you regret initiating this game with me in a public place."

You buried your face deeper in Rico's neck. He wanted to chuckle and tease you, but one word from him, and game over.

The two of you were on a shopping date, but when you went into the changing room, you messaged Rico asking if he wanted to play a game with you.

He managed to sneak into your changing room. In a few minutes, your legs were wrapped around Rico's hips, and your bare back pressed against the wall. His pants pooled around his hips, his hands grabbed your hips, and his manhood buried deep inside you.

Neither one of you made a sound. Not when you heard people entering the other changing room stalls, and definitely not when they commented about an unusual smell.

Rico was slowly losing his mind and wanted to thrust inside you - just one thrust, but game over would mean fulfilling your risque wish.

He wins, you spend the night with him, and he does as he pleases. You win, you get a threesome with him and a cast member of your choice. He was NOT going to lose - he had no plans of letting any of his coworkers see this beautiful side of you.

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➣ BlackStar Theater Starless Masterlists [1][2][3]

➣ Main Masterlist

➣ Buy me a Ko-fi? ➣ Commission: Open || Requests: Closed

#bsts #blackstar theater starless #bsts sotetsu #bsts akira #bsts takami #bsts rico

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shadowknight465 · 2 years

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Guess We're not so Different After All.

A DarkLico fanfic

TW: Child Abuse/Transphobia/Slurs/Stockholm Syndrome/Nightmares/Emotionally Abesent Dad/ Mentions of war and racism/Mentions Self harming and Suicide

(I was listening to a private playlist of mine)

"Licorice...Come forward. " Dark Enchantress said with a bitter tone in her voice. Licorice stiffen, but walks towards her. When they are a foot away from each other Dark Enchantress stood up. "You failed again." She said. Licorice bit his tongue.

There is no one to blame. He and GingerBrave's crew met by pure coincidence this time. And because of his past records, he won't blame them when they attack him..Even though he was just taking Poison Mushroom to school.

Dark Enchantress slapped him across the face. "USELESS! IF I HAD KNOWN THAT YOU WOULD BECOME LIKE THIS I WOULD NEVER HAVE TAKEN YOU!" She yelled.

Licorice rubs his cheek. Feeling the eyes of his adopted siblings staring at him empathetically. "They must be thinking about how pathetic you are." He thought. When in reality, they wanted to help him.

Dark Choco stiffen. It boils his blood seeing one of the only few decent people in this hellhole gets hurt for something they cannot control. He grits his teeth when Dark Enchantress knocked Licorice down with her staff, and starts beating him with it.

"Fight, Lico. Defend yourself." He thought to himself. Then Dark Enchantress turn Licorice over and starts stabbing him in the stomach with the pointed end. Though it was only 6 wounds, it felt like hellfire to Licorice. "You are lucky that I still want grandkids from you, heshe."

Dark Choco turn his eye to the others as they wonder where the sickly-sweet smell was coming from. "You can get up now, Licorice." Dark Enchantress said.

Licorice, while still clutching on to his stomach, obeyed like a cakehound. Dark Enchantress caressed his face. "I'm sorry, my child. It was my fault for putting such much responsibility on a purposeless thing like you. You forgive me, right? You know how much I love you, right?"

Licorice held his adopted mother's hand closer to his cheek. "I forgive you, Mom..and I love you too." He said. Dark Choco was on the verge of tears of anger, and sadness. "I need to go." He said as he walks away.

The moment he knows that nobody can see him. He ran to an area where he knows no one can hear him. He yells in fury, and was hitting the trees with his sword. He then, starts beating the ground. He felt hot tears streaming down his cheeks.

Why is he crying? Licorice should be the one doing that. He took some breaths. And wait for about two hours to fully calm down. It was the afternoon. He went back to go to his room, remembering the first time they meet.

He, Pomegranate, and Lobster were told that Dark Enchantress is bringing her children. Red Velvet from The Sweet Tower, Strawberry Crepe from The Castle in the Sky, and lastly Licorice from The Licorice Sea.

He chuckle about how Lobster was excited about Licorice might be another merfolk, this time from the forbidden sea. Pomegranate was excited that she won't be the only girl...in a way she isn't. While he? He thought his father must've left a child behind, or she found him before he did.

Nevertheless the moment they locked eyes with each other. He can tell that Licorice went through hell and back. While he saw envy and fear in Licorice's eyes. He was grateful that Lico is the second person who knows how to cook. Besides Dark Enchantress.

"What made him close to that witch?" He thought as he went back into the castle. He saw the younger ones at Licorice's door for different reasons.

Strawberry Crepe wanted to know if their big brother is okay, his little siblings Chess Choco wanted to play with him, and Poison Mushroom wanted to give their father-figure a hug.

Due to his unintentional ominous presence he managed to chase them all away even though he was going to open the door for them.

"Lico, you there?" He said as he knocked. "What do you want, Darko?" Licorice answered, but not opening the door. "May I come in?" He asked. "Just don't pity me." Licorice said. Dark Choco opened the door.

He saw Licorice crying softly. He stop complaining and making rants for weeks after he realized that it was pointless. "Lico.." He begins. "I told you not to pity me." Licorice said. Dark Choco stop. "I was about to say 'let me help your wounds'." He resumes.

Licorice pauses. "I already sewn them up." He said. "But have you clean them?" He asked. Licorice pauses again. "I'll get the rubbing alcohol." Licorice said. "And I'll get the bandages." Dark Choco said.

Dark Choco left the room and went to the medical room to grab a bandage tape. As he went back he was stop by Red Velvet. "What are you doing?" Red Velvet asked in a harsh tone. "Tending your little brother's wounds." He replied.

"Licorice doesn't need your help. It's the older brother's duty to help his younger siblings. " Red Velvet replied. "Then why you didn't do anything earlier when he needed you the most?" He asked in a harsh voice.

Red Velvet was too stunned to speak. "That's what I thought." He said as walks towards Licorice's room. Licorice was already washing his stab wounds with the rubbing alcohol when he went in.

Licorice jolted in surprise when he saw Dark Choco. "Do you want me to help you when you get done?" He asked. Licorice nodded. Dark Choco then noticed bruises under Licorice's binder. "I know I won't understand, but I do know that you might need that chest thing off."

Licorice sighed in defeat and nodded. He told Dark Choco when he puts his sport bras at while he was taking off his binder. Only to realize he was wearing a clip binder.

"Umm, Dark Choco?" Dark Choco turned around. "Yes?" Licorice blushed in embarrassment. "I might need help." Dark Choco went towards Licorice and proceeded to help take off the binder.

"You done this before?" Licorice asked. "Whenever one of my sisters needs help with her bathing suit." Dark Choco replied remembering his other younger siblings.

"Sounds like you are a great older brother." Licorice said. Dark Choco was about to give Licorice his sports bra when they heard.

"Licorice, Mom said dinner ready-" The two acquaintances and Red Velvet stared at each other. Red Velvet had a disgusted look on his face.

They watch as Red Velvet walks away. Licorice quickly puts on his sport bra and robe while Dark Choco covered his eye for a few seconds. Then he puts the bandages on Licorice before they could forget.

After Licorice was done they were about to stop Red Velvet when they heard Dark Enchantress yelled Licorice's name. Both frozed. Licorice took a deep breath and walks towards his step-mom. Dark Choco followed him the whole way.

When they are in front of her, she had the most disgusted expression. "Licorice, when I said. I still wanted grandchildren I didn't mean make some right now." She said.

Licorice felt a great fear. This is the worst day he ever had. "Mom, Dark Choco an-" He was cut off. "Don't bring Dark Choco into this, you whore." Dark Enchantress said.

Licorice went silent. "I can't do anything right. Can I?" He thought. "Dark Enchantress, Red Velvet, it's not what you two think-" Dark Choco tries to defend Licorice.

"Dark Choco, you can leave. I knew that this will happen. I'll punish her for such erotic behavior." She said. This time Dark Choco snap.

"I WAS TENDING HIS WOUNDS THAT YOU MADE! AND HE NEEDED SOME HELP! YOU ALL CLAIM TO BE HIS FAMILY, BUT ALL I SEE IS A BUNCH OF SELFISH PEOPLE WHO TOOK ADVANTAGE OF SOMEONE'S FRAGILE PSYCHE! ESPECIALLY YOU! YOU BITCH!"

Dark Enchantress's sons stood in pure shock. They never seen Dark Choco snapped or anyone standing up to their mom. Dark Enchantress grew a dark expression before saying. "Red Velvet, Licorice you two may leave."

The brothers didn't hesitate. Once they're gone, she use her magic to slam Dark Choco against the wall. "You really are your father's child." She said.

~~~~~

Red Velvet notice his usual chatty brother is giving him the silent treatment. "Li, I'm-" Licorice pull his hood over his face. "Just shut it." He cut him off. "I just thought- Dark Choco-" Red Velvet stuttered.

Licorice glared at Red Velvet. Red Velvet sigh in regret. "I thought that Dark Choco was taking advantage of you. I even told mom that, but she didn't listen." Licorice somewhat forgive Red Velvet, but he won't excuse his behavior.

Before Licorice said anything they heard Dark Choco's footsteps. He had a pin needle piercing his neck. Licorice grab Dark Choco hand and lead him to his room to get the needle out, and give him a bandage. No one said anything for the rest of the day.

~~~~~

Dark Choco was experiencing a nightmare. He was a small child again and saw his father's silhouette with his back turn. "Daddy?" He said. His father tensed before he walked away.

"Daddy, look." He cried out, but his father didn't turn. He cried out for his father as his felt himself growing older. He felt his past accomplishments that would make any father proud. But still Dark Cacao didn't stop. He would only look at his siblings. Even his father's friend, Hollyberry wanted to help him.

"DC. I know that he looks like your father more every year, but he is your child."

Then Dark Choco saw a demon that's look like him except for the beard and scars from many wars. The demons created a mirror to show that they are the same. Dark Choco knows that's it far from the truth but even that cannot break the reflection.

~~~~~

Dark Choco jolted up awake with cold sweat. He turned to Chess Choco who was peacefully asleep while hugging each other. He sigh in relief and tried to get back to sleep, but after a hour of lying in bed. He can't.

Because it was 5 AM he supposed he can make himself some coffee. He walk out of his room and went to the kitchen. Only to saw Licorice holding some coffee and writing his diary.

"Licorice, what are you doing up?" He asked. Licorice look up. "I could ask you the same thing." He reply. "Nightmare, you?" Dark Choco said. "Same." He answered. Dark Choco thought for a bit. Licorice was in a way, mysterious.

No one really knows his past. All they know is he was adopted by Dark Enchantress, from The Licorice Sea, and he turned to dark magic for recognition.

"Licorice, can I ask you something?" He asked while making coffee. "Ask away." Licorice said as he drink his coffee. "Why you turn to dark magic for recognition? Because last time I remember you are really shy."

It was true, whenever there no child to be partnered he was the next best option because he rarely talks, and shows at least a small amount of respect for the individual. Just becomes the annoying one whenever he gets defensive, or is reminding them of the mission.

Licorice tenses, but spoke. "Because I wanted prove my worth." Dark Choco got confused. "But, you are really powerful. Heck, if we met in some timeline where Dark Enchantress didn't exist I would ask my father to make you a royal mage." He said.

Licorice blushed at the compliment. "Thanks, but I meant that just because I'm from The Licorice Sea and born with dark magic inside my veins doesn't mean I'm a monster."

Dark Choco was more confused. "So you turned to dark magic to prove it's not evil as many claim?" Licorice nodded. "Why you think Bat-Cat is a skeleton? Or the fact I can see and talk to ghosts?" Dark Choco agreed.

Even in his kingdom the paranormal was saw as a bad thing, yet it was respected due to they believe both good and evil cannot work without the other.

"Ok, but why would anyone think you're evil because you're from The Licorice Sea?" He asked. Licorice sigh in annoyance. "Have you forgotten about The Licorice Invasion at the Milk Tribe?" He asked. Dark Choco gulped. Licorice put his hand over his head. "Also the fact I was somewhat part of it."

"You would've been 10 years old by then." He said. Licorice chuckle for a bit. "Your father never told you, didn't he?" "Tell me what?" Dark Choco replied. He was 14 when it happened. "That the monsters during the invasion are actually children."

Dark Choco heart shooked. "There's no way." He said. "I lived and saw it all." Licorice said as he drinks his coffee. Dark Choco knows he will have a mental breakdown due to him being a empath, but.

"Tell me the whole story, don't hold back." Licorice blinks, but told the story. About how the orphanage he grew up in was a lab to make the monsters. He was lucky that he was injected with a test virus.

He can't say the same for his first friend who was killed by Dark Cacao while the monster was actually trying to protect him. It was Dark Cacao who put him in another foster home. No one could've predicted that he would face bullying and racism.

Dark Choco was shunned by the story. He gulped, but he supposed he could tell Licorice the full story. "Ever wondered why I went after the sword?" He asked. "Because you wanted to help your father?" Licorice guessed.

"That, and I was tired of living in his shadow." He said. "What do you mean?" Licorice asked. Dark Choco sighed. "I was only called The Son of Dark Cacao, or Prince of Dark Cacao Kingdom growing up. The only people who called me by my name was my family."

Dark Choco stared at his coffee as he goes on. "My father doesn't beat me like his father, but he had hurt me in more ways than one." Licorice was confused but, didn't say anything.

"He never called me, or any my other siblings son or daughter. Just boy or girl." He slouch a bit. "And it doesn't help that fact that I look like my grandpa."

"So I went to the library, and discovered about that cursed blade because I thought saving the kingdom would show that I'm not just my father's child and I will show my father that I'm nothing like his father."

Licorice thought for a second. "What about your mom?" Dark Choco smiled a bit. "She was the best mom anyone could ever had. And she would've loved you."

"She must've trained you real good." Licorice said. Somehow Dark Choco can sense Licorice meant raised. He knew that he might ruined the moment, but he can't take it anymore.

"Licorice. Dark Enchantress is not your mom." He said. "Well she didn't birth me, but she did took me in-" Licorice was cut off. Dark Choco stood up and firmly grabbed Licorice by the shoulders, making him stand up and made his rant.

"Taking you in doesn't make her your mom. Even if she did birth you. She would never be your mom. A real mom wouldn't beat you. A real mom wouldn't threatened your life. A real mom wouldn't disrespect your boundaries. A real mom wouldn't make you question your sanity. Nothing that Dark Enchantress did makes her your mom"

Licorice frozed. Than looks down crying. "Than what is a-a real mom? What qualities a real m-mom?" Dark Choco doesn't know words to say. So he hugged Licorice tightly while quietly sobbing.

"Who would break such an innocent mind?" He thought. Licorice was confused. But he hugged back. He knows he might ruined this moment, but it finally time to let it out.

"Dark Choco, I need to tell you something. A secret." Dark Choco lets Licorice go. "What is it?" Licorice gulped. "Remember when Lobster found me under a lake, and I got a beaten?" He asked.

"As clear as daylight. Still thinking about beating the bastard when I find him." Licorice chuckled. "Well you found him." Dark Choco pauses than figured it out. "Don't tell me.."

"Yeah I did. I just couldn't handle it anymore." Licorice showed him his self harming scars. Dark Choco grabbed his arm gently. "Why?" He asked. "I was so weak. And I thought no one will miss me." He said.

"But you will be missed." Dark Choco said. He felt like a hypocrite. "But I can understand why." He revealed his arm. "I was thinking about suicide until Dark Enchantress revealed that she found my newest siblings."

Licorice laugh while crying. "Look at us. We're like the same person just in extremely different situations." Dark Choco couldn't agree more.

After Licorice calms down a bit. He said what sounded like a ray of hope. "I never asked anyone this since my first friend before, but would you like to be my friend?

Licorice raises his arm for a hand shake. Dark Choco smiled for what felt like in forever.

"Of course. "

#dark choco cookie #dark enchantress cookie #licorice cookie #darklico #dark choco x licorice #my writing #first cookie run fanfic #this is longer than i meant for it to be #slow burn romance #dark cacao cookie #this has most of my headcanons

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that-otome-potato · 2 years

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Happy Holidays, Lico!

Day 18 - One of our Fashionistas, Lico!

Lico x Platonic!MC

~*~

"Hey there, hot stuff. I hear you're giving out gifts to everyone. Of course, you have one for me. Let me just take it off of your hands for you."

I could feel my cheeks tingling with heat at the nickname he preferred to call me by, rather than my name. Even though I turned away from him, I knew he saw my flush when his bright green eyes narrowed with his knowing grin.

"What makes you think you deserve a present, hmm?" I crossed my arms under my breasts and cocked my hip to one side, trying to channel his level of sass in order to combat his own.

"Because I'm your shopping buddy and you like me."

"I tolerate you."

"Yeah right! You're totally in love with me and you know it!"

I just shook my head and scoffed, which turned into a small smile. However, I quickly hid it so that I wouldn't give him any further ammunition to tease me with. "Ha! In your dreams -!"

I had to get back at him. So, since we were alone in the break area, I ended my sentence with his real name on a softly spoken tone. That got his attention and he pouted at me. He hated when I called him by his real name in any manner of public.

"You know I hate it when you call me by my name in public."

"Good thing I didn't say it out loud, huh?" I stuck my tongue out at him as I turned to the table near me.

"Yes, but it still won't keep me from calling you something that is wholly accurate."

My blush returned tenfold as my backpack made a loud thud on the table in the break room when I took it off and dropped it on the surface, knowing nothing within would break. I opened the bag and pulled his squishy, paper-wrapped, gift out of the bag all while periodically casting a dirty look his way. The pink-haired man just laughed as I thrust it in his direction with a pout.

Maintaining his well practiced smile, the ex-host opened the paper and pulled out the hand-knitted beanie and scarf.

"Did you make this?"

I nodded. "I was inspired by the new outfit you put together for Daken a while back. I hope you like it! Try them on!"

"I can't do that here."

"Why not?"

"Who knows who might come in."

I frowned at him. "What does it matter? You care more about your image than the feelings of a friend?"

Lico opened and closed his mouth a couple times before releasing a loud sigh. "Fine. It has been cold lately."

Black knit ears flopped forward when he put the beanie on his head and, with a flourish, Lico wrapped the scarf around his neck so both ends were at his front. "There. Better?"

"Did you know that your scarf has pockets?" A perfectly sculpted eyebrow raised at this.

"Where?" I pointed to the ends of his scarf and he pulled them up to look at them. He gave me a deadpan look. "Really?"

"Yup! Try it out, please?" Lico placed his hands in the hand-sized pockets, then posed for me. I lifted my own hands, fisted with knuckles towards Lico, and smiled. "Now do this!"

Lico rolled his eyes, but did it anyways. He let his fists bend at the wrist and looked at me expectantly. I'd made the scarf so that, when he did that, it would look like he had paws, just like he and Team B did when they performed Daken.

"Just how I imagined it!" I beamed at him, so happy that it looked good on him. He looked like he was about to protest, but when he saw my smile, he stopped.

Lico stood and a soft smile formed on his lips as he used one of his scarf-covered fists to bump the top of my head with his fist. "Thanks, __________."

#blst lico #bsts lico #blst fanfic #bsts fanfic #happy holidays #my work #my words

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colaloli · 3 years

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A Rare Sight

It's Lico/Kasumi but doesn't necessarily need to be a romantic ship... I wrote this drabble 3am and forgot about it (but might as well post it lol)

It's in Kasumi POV. (Warning: Dumb fluff... and Lico Language)

What a rare sight. He's here. I opened the door to the reha room and found that this person who always ditches his job is right here with me today. Team B's Lico. Well, how should I describe him… He's good to look at with that solemn face… until he opens his mouth. How he consistently spit garbage from those lips has been like a charm on its own. As detestable as it sounds, once you get used to it, it just becomes like a cute running gag.

Today, our job is to clean up. He has his bucket of soapy water and a mop, but aside from that, no cleaning has progressed. Lico is quite busy… on his phone.

“Ah~ Isn't this a miracle~” I said as I approached him. “Lico is actually here to do his job~”

“Uwaah— what the hell, Kasumi! Every. Single. Time. You do that, it starts to get annoying! Can't you do something about that thin presence of yours? Honestly, it's gross” he said back. What a pleasant greeting.

“Ahaha, sorry~ I can't help it since I'm a mob character~” I said as I unpacked some cleaning materials. “But really, why are you here?” I may have not meant to say that out loud, in that condescending kind of tone at that, but there goes those words flying out of my mouth.

“Hahh??!!” as expected, that ticked Lico off. His sharp shriek pierced through my eardrums.

“Ahaha~ I mean, usually you skip work on shifts when we are together so I can't help but be amused that you showed up today~” I said in a cooing manner to avoid making him more pissed.

“Tch— shut up”

“Not like there will be any difference if you're here or not~” I muttered, but since it's just the two of us in here in the reha room, my voice is still audible.

“What do you mean by that? Are you saying that I can't do my job properly? Give me that rug!” he grabbed the rag in my hand and started wiping the mirrors.

Pfft— what an easy person. His mouth may be trash, but he isn't that bad. Well… he's bad, but compared to some other people in this place, Lico is just normal. At least, in this restaurant, he's not in the category of “possibly killed someone already”.

If he'd be in an otome game trope he's that. A narcissist playboy with (surprise— not really) a sad backstory. Only... his redemption arc seems to be still very, very far away.

“You know what, this silence is unbearable. I'm gonna take a break” Lico mumbled, tossing the rag to the bucket. It literally hasn't been five minutes. He pulled a chair, sat down and proceeded to fiddle with his phone. “Hey” he said after a short while, my cleaning progress already at seventy percent.

“Hmm?” I said without turning around to him.

“I don't really care that much but it's so bothersome and creepy” he began. Tsundere translator app: I'm curious about it. “What's with the bangs?”

“Ehh… It's only natural for a mob character though~” I played it off with my typical response. “That’s so mean to call it bothersome and creepy~”

“That's why— what's with the ‘mob chara’ this and that? Seriously, this store is full of weirdos but those I can ignore, but that suspicious hair is just— tch” Tsun tsun translation: I'M VERY CURIOUS ABOUT IT.

“Well… That's personal info” I flatly responded.

“Hmph, so you're running away through that, huh?” he said in his usual haughty tone. “Ah, I know. You're probably veryyyyyy ugly. Sickening. Unbearably hideous”

“Wah— no, I'd say my face is normal. Bland. Just mob character material” it almost got to me. This guy… it’s a talent to have that shit of a mouth. I almost slipped out of character...

“Ehhh then why are you hiding it for?” he taunted.

“I'm… just a mob chara~” Uwahh, he’s really pushing. Isn’t it better when he ditches work? That is peaceful compared to this. One huge pile of trash less to clean up.

“Hehh, so? What is it? Ah, dark bags worse that Heath's? That's right, you work in the daytime, too, so you probably have those, huh???” He continued to be 'Lico'.

“N-No, it's not—”

“Ahh, wrinkles? Right, you're an old man after all. Was time mean to you???”

“I'm still in my thirties…” I said with a sigh. “It's really not that. I told you already that it's just normal. Now—”

“If it isn't that—” suddenly, he strikes my bangs away from my eyes. Ah… I got careless. How did I let my guard down? This person’s obnoxiously terrible mouth actually got to me so bad that I let him have the opportunity to slap my mob character hairstyle away. “Hahh!” he yelled as if he's so victorious. He had that very pleased smirk as he looked at my exposed face. His expression slowly warps into a frustrated frown. I looked at him, waiting for what else can come out of that potty mouth, but Lico completely became quiet.

“... So?” I said after a while of awkward silence. “I told you, there's nothing special about it”

“....... WHAT THE FUCK” he finally spoke up. Really, this person’s mouth...

“Hey, if you have a problem with my face, I'll quickly cover it back right now. Sorry—”

“It's beautiful. So fucking beautiful, are you kidding me?! ‘Normal’ my ass!” Lico exclaimed.

“Ah… but it's just… normal” I said with a blank stare of awe. He is still being the Lico he is but he’s actually… complimenting me.

“Tch, you are so used to your pretty little face that it's normal, huh? Wow, this just makes it ten times more annoying. What a waste, hiding that with that dirty looking mop”

“Hey…” to be saying nice comments and being annoying at the same time is a talent in itself...

“I’ve always thought that it doesn't suit you to be in a team of beauties but it turns out you fit in just fine, huh”

“... Well thank you, I guess. That's a compliment, right? Am I right?”

“Of course it is! And it's from me! My judgement for appearances is superb. You should be reallyyyy thankful” he said proudly.

“Uwah, thanks” I said in a monotone. This person is really unbelievable… “Beautiful, huh… the truth is, I don't find my face unpleasant but to be called beautiful… M-Multiple times in a row at that. Now that it sank into my brain, that's really… embarrassing” my face began growing red and hot.

“Hahh?! Don't make it sound weird! How gross! You're making it seem like I'm interested in you or something!” Lico said back, his bright blush competing with mine.

“Well maybe you are? You were so curious on how I look like~” finally, I can fire comebacks at him.

“Eww, shut up! Give me that rag so we can finish this and I can leave!!”

“Ehh… fufu, you can just leave anytime you want though. For someone often ditching work, what's stopping you~?”

“Stop making me look like an evil person or like I'm staying here for you. Stupid! So annoying! Gross! I really hate you!”

“Ahaha~ Really, your mouth ruins it...”

“Hahh???!!!”

“...... Your beautiful face~”

#yea i write dumb things sometimes lol #there would be more licosumi interaction if lico didn't skip work #blackstar theater starless #bsts #blst #bsts lico #bsts kasumi #cola writes sometimes

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edogawatranslations · 5 years

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Danganronpa Kirigiri (3) - Chapter 2, Part 3

Table of Contents | Previous: Chapter 2, Part 2

As we walked, Lico once again brought up a serious topic out of nowhere.

“The two organizations pursuing Rei Mikagami today are a Chinese intelligence agency and a scientific investigative unit of the Russian army.”

These absurd statements no longer caught me off guard; I had fully accepted that the abnormal had become our new normal.

“You’re awfully informed about all this,” I commented.

“It’s my duty to relay you detailed information.” Lico turned around and flashed an innocent smile. “Both organizations have dispatched two unarmed individuals to Japan. Neither group is much of a threat, since they don’t use weapons when active outside of their home countries. The Russians especially; they belong to a team developing supersoldiers, which means they’re more so occult researchers than fighters.”

I quickly scanned the area. From what I could tell, there wasn’t a Russian in sight. The only people around were cheerful women roaming the mall with multiple shopping bags dangling from their arms.

“The three assassins pose the bigger problem,” Lico continued. Despite the grim topic, his expression didn’t change one bit.

Assassins...

We were intruding on their work. To reach Rei Mikagami, we couldn’t simply ignore them and walk on by.

“The first assassin is a woman of unknown nationality who goes by the name of ‘Copycat.’ As you may guess, she specializes in copycat crimes. She disposes of her targets by mimicking the M.O. of a serial killer active in the corresponding country or state, allowing her and her clients to fully escape suspicion, since the victim ends up tossed into the unrelated string of cases. Because of this, her work has mostly been attributed to other killers. Fortunately, this method prevents her from haphazardly killing someone. She acts deliberately and typically refrains from taking offensive measures.”

With the steady stream of information flowing from his mouth, Lico was giving Google a run for its money. His appearance already seemed rather other-worldly, but his information processing capabilities were all the more superhuman.

We rode the escalator one floor up to another women’s clothing department.

The ludicrous conversation continued in the perfectly average location.

“The second assassin is known as ‘Night Flyer.’ He’s rumored to be a Romanian of small build, but nobody has confirmed his identity. His killing style of choice is fairly standard: he approaches and shoots his target with a pistol equipped with a silencer. He’s inclined to be hot-headed, so consider him fairly hostile. Multiple people have witnessed him in the past heading to the nearest airport after completing a hit and flying off in a private jet, hence his nickname.”

“Is he friends with the first assassin you mentioned?”

“No, all of these assassins work alone. They see each other as rivals chasing the same target, so it would be fortunate for us if they took each other out.”

“What do you know about the third?”

“He’s Japanese. He doesn’t go by a particular nickname, but he’s an alumnus of Hope’s Peak Academy: the former Ultimate Rock Climber, Tsurugi Hitomoshi. After graduating, he spent some time abroad and made a name for himself conquering treacherous cliffs. At some point, he turned his climbing into a performance art, scaling historical monuments and buildings such as the Eiffel Tower and Angkor Wat, which caused backlash and eventually led to him being exiled from the climbing community. Only the criminal underworld is aware of his current activities as an assassin; he’s known as someone who can appear anywhere and eliminate anyone with one finger. He can easily bend the barrel of a rifle with one hand. I’ve also heard that he once crushed the heart of a police officer through a bulletproof vest with his bare hands.”

An assassin trained at an elite school. This was one gathering I didn’t want to have any involvement in.

I pitied Rei Mikagami, who had to deal with all these killers chasing after him. I guess prominent detectives were always roped into political schemes or conflicts, almost like how scientists around the world were killed or abducted during World War II for their work on weapons programs.

Someday, even Kyoko might be forced to serve someone for their personal gain. Or perhaps, she already has been...

While walking down the halls, Lico continued the conversation as if casually chatting about the weather.

“By the way, before the two of you arrived, I spotted a woman who fit the description of Copycat entering this department store.”

“Wh-What?” Suddenly sensing bloodlust in the air, I braced myself for action.

Nobody around looked particularly suspicious. Ladies clad in clothes from nearby stores were bustling about, as usual.

“You gotta tell us these things sooner! What did she look like?”

“She had on a coat with a red hood, kind of like Little Red Riding Hood. Blonde hair. She was rolling a small travel suitcase behind her.”

“Sounds like an easy to spot get-up, even from a distance. If we see her, let’s stay on our guard and avoid getting too close.”

“Avoiding her won’t get us any closer to Rei Mikagami,” Kyoko said. “We should follow her. We won’t make any headway without taking risks, right?”

“Yeah, but...”

Forget the possibility that we might have to fly into the face of danger—was this risk worth taking in the first place? We weren’t even sure Rei Mikagami was waiting at the end of this rainbow. None of this was rooted in certainty; it was almost like we were actually making plans to catch a ghost in a mirror.

“Yui,” Lico said, stopping in his tracks.

“Wh-What is it? Do you see one of the assassins?”

Lico pointed at a store in front of us. “There are swimsuits for sale up ahead.”

“Way to go, kid!”

I rushed forward, dragging Kyoko behind me. But my legs suddenly froze up.

Right as I was about to enter the shop, a red hood crossed the path in front of me.

I shot a glance back at Lico to confirm. He responded with a quick nod.

There was no mistaking it; that was Copycat.

We casually started tailing her. Thankfully, we were able to do so discreetly by blending in with the flocks of customers roaming the floor.

The red-hooded figure didn’t seem to have noticed us. Her left hand, which was noticeably white, was dragging a small bag. She wasn’t particularly tall, and her body was fairly slender. Her coat resembled a poncho. Two cat ear-like protrusions stuck out of her hood. Although the hood covered her head, I could see her blonde hair swaying to and fro as she walked.

“For an assassin, she sure sticks out like a sore thumb,” I whispered to Lico. “I didn’t think she’d look so frail and slender.”

“You don’t need strength to kill someone,” Lico replied with an angelic expression on his face.

After we followed after her for a while, she turned into a narrow passageway and went through a door labeled “Employees Only.”

The three of us huddled together beside the door.

“A staircase for employees... Where is she going?” I placed one hand on the door.

“Don’t,” Kyoko said, grabbing my arm. “I have a bad feeling about this.”

“Do you hear the grim reaper’s footsteps again? Don’t worry, I’m not gonna chase her too far. I wanna at least figure out if she went up or down.”

I slowly pushed the door open.

All of a sudden, a slender arm shot through the doorway and grabbed onto my wrist.

“Eek!”

The arm pulled me through to the dim stair landing on the other side. Standing adjacent to the door was Copycat, who was restraining me from behind. From far beyond the door, I could hear the cold, lifeless muffle of a storewide announcement playing over the PA system.

Why didn’t I listen to Kyoko?

I felt a sharp object pressed against my throat.

While slowly raising both my hands to signal my surrender, I snuck a glance at Copycat. Her face was white, reminiscent of a stunning European lady, and she had on a pair of thick high-index prescription glasses. A thin layer of makeup covered her face, enough to possibly be covering up any freckles. Her furrowed eyebrows and troubled expression seemed to suggest that she was more of the shy, introverted type. Did she have on cat ears because of her nickname, Copycat? Or was it because she was a fan of cosplay?

She started uttering some words in a foreign language and loosened her grip on me.

It was then that Lico burst through the door.

“Yui, are you alright?”

“N-Never better...” I stammered out, giving my best effort to sound composed even as I could no longer freely move my body. “Do you have any idea what she’s saying?”

“She’s asking, ‘Who are you?’”

Lico began conversing with Copycat. I had no clue what language they were speaking, but Copycat’s voice gradually grew calmer. Lico’s disarming smile was super effective.

It was then that I noticed—Kyoko wasn’t here.

“Hey, where’s Kyoko?” I asked, trying to interrupt Lico and Copycat’s chat. However, neither of them paid my words any mind. They were engrossed in their conversation.

Even though I was the hostage here, I felt like chopped liver.

“What are you two even talking about?” I asked.

“She’s asking who my favorite manga artist is,” Lico replied. “Let’s see, I would have to say—”

“You’re really having a friendly chat at a time like this?”

Was Lico successfully persuading her to lower her guard?

No... She was an assassin. And the way things were, she could easily kill me at any moment if she desired. I’d had a run of bad luck recently, but this was my first time being taken hostage by an assassin.

What should I do?

I had no knowledge of self-defense and no weapon by my side.

I thought about praying to God, but at the last second, I changed my mind and decided to pray to Kyoko instead.

Kyoko, please save me!

—Click.

A metallic clinking sound echoed out, causing Lico and the assassin to cut short their discussion. Noticing an abnormality, Copycat turned around, but by then, it was already too late.

Clamped around Copycat’s hand—the free wrist she hadn’t used to restrain me—was one end of a pair of handcuffs. The other end was secured to the handle of her bag.

As if having appeared out of nowhere, standing one step below the landing we were on was Kyoko. She was focused intently on pulling the bag down the stairs.

Copycat let out a yelp and rushed forward in an attempt to grab her bag, and as she reached out towards it, she released her grip on me.

The next moment, the bag began tumbling down the stairs. Copycat, linked to it by the handcuffs, plunged down along with it. The bag must’ve been much heavier than it looked, as the slender and light Little Red Riding Hood with cat ears was swiftly pulled down to the lower landing.

Piercing shrieks filled the air as she fell, but before long, her body slammed against the wall of the landing one floor down. She squirmed on the ground and feebly groaned.

“Yui, are you okay?” Kyoko ran up to where I was standing.

“Y-Yeah, I think so. How did you get over there?”

“I took a different staircase down and made my way up from below.” Kyoko puffed out her chest and placed her hands on her hips to make a sort of superhero pose.

Her quick thinking saved me again. Without her by my side, I would’ve met my demise many times over.

A fountain pen rolled up to my feet. That must’ve been the object Copycat held against my throat.

The three of us regrouped, made our way down the flight of stairs, and surrounded Copycat. She hadn’t lost consciousness, but since her whole body took a beating, she was lying down, unable to move.

I unzipped her bag. Inside were a scrapbook of newspaper clippings about serial killers, a few publications detailing cold cases, and a mountain of Japanese manga and doujinshi. No wonder her bag was so heavy. There were also a couple of passports stuffed inside. I couldn’t tell which one was real, but then again, all of them may have been forged.

There was nothing that resembled a weapon among her possessions. The fountain pen was probably the most dangerous item she had with her.

“She’s the kind of assassin to kill her target only after having conceived of a detailed plan,” Lico explained. “Her goal today was likely only to scout out her mark, so she wasn’t at the final phase of carrying out the hit yet.”

“Thank god she’s type A,” I sighed in relief.

“Would you like me to finish her off?”

“N-No, that’s okay.” I laughed nervously. “You don’t have to do that.”

“Are you sure? As long as she lives, innocent people will continue to die. Don’t forget, she’s an assassin.”

“That has nothing to do with why we came here today. We’re here to track down Rei Mikagami, and nothing more.”

Lico stared at me for a few seconds, but didn’t press the issue any further.

“I can’t find anything about Rei Mikagami in her things,” Kyoko reported, standing next to Copycat’s bag.

“Lico, did you get any information out of her?” I asked.

“She apparently doesn’t know anything about Rei Mikagami’s identity. The reason she came here was because she was informed her mark would appear on the rooftop plaza of this department store at four in the afternoon.”

“Why didn’t you say that sooner?! That’s exactly what we needed to know!”

Rei Mikagami will appear at four!

I checked the clock on my phone.

3:55 PM.

“Shoot, it’s almost time.”

“Shall we head up?” Lico suggested, still magically calm.

The rooftop plaza was located above the ninth floor. I imagined the struggle running up all those stairs, but we’d arrive with time to spare.

“Yeah, let’s go,” I replied. “Kyoko, come on.”

“Give me one second.”

Kyoko crouched down next to Copycat’s body and unfastened the handcuffs.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Retrieving these handcuffs. They’re kind of a memento.”

“Oh, from back then...”

Kyoko stuffed the handcuffs into the pocket of her uniform. So that was where she’d been hiding them all this time.

We abandoned Copycat on the landing and started rushing up the stairs.

Next: Chapter 2, Part 4

#dr kirigiri #danganronpa #kirigiri #danganronpa kirigiri #light novel #novel #translation

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recentanimenews · 3 years

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Reincarnated As the Last of My Kind, Vol. 2

By Kiri Komori and Yamigo. Released in Japan as “Tensei Shitara Zetsumetsu Sunzen no Kishou Shuzokudeshita” on the Shōsetsuka ni Narō website. Released in North America by Cross Infinite World. Translated by Roman Lempert.

It’s always fun to see a cute, slow life sort of tale fight against its own narrative, which is trying to make sure that the slow life speeds up in a hurry. This second volume sees Tina and her family continuing to try to make improvements to the inn, better food, and better quality potions over the course of about four years. Indeed, when the call comes to invite her to a school where she can learn to be a better alchemist… she declines, as she’d rather stay where she is right now. Unfortunately, these are Troubled Times, and it’s going to be very hard to escape the pull of the incoming war, especially when you’re a prodigy with mad skills that no one has ever seen in their life. And as if that weren’t enough, there’s also a combination religious/ecological crisis going on, which could mean the literal end of the world unless it finds a savior. Two guesses who that’s supposed to be.

The first chapter in this book is unique to the book, i.e. was not pat of the webnovel, as Tina and her family play host to a scholar with a preference for very hot food, which involves making udon. After this we get two larger chapters, featuring Tina at age 10 and 12 respectively. In the first, Lico and the other knights arrive at the inn searching for a group of demihumans that got lost in the forest. This is a fantasy series, so naturally you get one elf, one dwarf, and one kobold, though the angel is a surprise, to both Tina and the reader. They have to fight off a nasty monster attack that almost kills off Lico – again. The second story sees Tina and her family head into the big city to attend the funeral of Marcus’ former commanding officer. Unfortunately, on their way back they meet some twins under attack by a very nasty zombie. In fact… there have been a LOT more monsters and zombies lately…

A lot of this is very fun. I liked Shida, the elf, who is an arrogant SOB in the elf tradition but also strangely likeable, and I appreciated that he and Tina did not remotely hit it off. Marcus’ pathetic attempts at romance, combined with his daughter Nakona’s sheer obliviousness to the many men in love with her is amusing, and we, as read3ers, empathize with Tina’s frustration, especially when Marcus and Lico are trying to out-selfless each other. (Lico wins, by virtue of being near death.) That said, a lot of this book is pretty ominous and scary. Both the text description and the illustration of the zombie attacking Tina and company is harrowing, and you start to wonder if this really will be the sort of series to kill off its regulars. Then there’s the subplot regarding human religion and prayer literally killing the world, which might upset some readers, but is pretty well done in universe.

So the question at the end of this 2nd volume is, will the 3rd book involve Tina heading off to save the world, or will Tina try to save the world while still doing things like making honey and trying to create supreme potions? Regardless, if you enjoyed the first book in the series (and are perhaps not evangelical Christian), this one is definitely worth your time.

By: Sean Gaffney

#Anime #News #Manga Bookshelf

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mst3kproject · 6 years

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Venus meets the Son of Hercules

The Hercules movies were always among my favourite episodes of MST3K, so I'm definitely gonna review more of them as Episodes that Never Were. This one features Massimo Serato from The Loves of Hercules and a lot of people who spent the entire sixties being in one sword-and-sandal movie after another. The music is by Gino Marinuzzi Jr, who also did the score for Hercules and the Captive Women. And the title is almost a complete lie – there's no son of Hercules in this movie, or even Hercules himself. I bet that would have confused the hell out of Joel and the bots.

Some vaguely Minoan city is being attacked by a hybrid of racist stereotypes and losing badly, when suddenly a mysterious warrior in an extremely impractical helmet descends from the heavens to save the day! He single-handedly turns the tide of battle, and then stops to save the life of a pretty girl named Daphne before vanishing into the sunset. This warrior, however, is none other than Mars, the God of War, who returns to the city as a mortal man because he has fallen in love with Daphne. He arrives to learn that she has been sent to be a sacred virgin in the temple of Venus, as thanks to the gods for his help – whoops!

Mars never was a very reasonable guy, so he decides he's just gonna have to storm the temple and get her back. This ought to be easy for somebody whose powers include invisibility and godlike strength, but Venus is a little pissed about the theft of one of her virgins, and wants Mars for herself. Meanwhile, there's a palace conspiracy going on back in the city, too. Remember Licos from The Loves of Hercules? I guess after faking his own death in Ecalia he changed his name to Antarus and went to find some other royal family to marry into. He wants to have his cake and eat it too, marrying Princess Hecuba but also banging Daphne on the side. Hecuba wants to be rid of Daphne forever so she'll have no competition for Antarus' affections. The whole thing's a poorly-researched ancient soap opera!

The movie is full of riff opportunities. The high priest's costume looks like he's wearing droopy bunny ears. I bet Joel and the Bots would have loved that. I hereby dub him Father Harvey. There's a pyre scene that would no doubt have prompted jokes about marshmallows and hot dogs. Hecuba looks like Minoan Angelica Houston. A bit where the priestesses perform a weird dance with big pieces of coloured fabric would have been fodder for comments about skittles and possibly Disney's Fantasia. The women wear spirals on their boobs. The monster they sacrifice young virgins to looks like a cross between a sundew and a sarlaac. The Brains would have had a ball with this one, and I hope they still might.

As a movie, though, it's one of those films in which we really have no reason to root for the love story between Mars and Daphne, because they literally do not know each other. They said a couple of sentences each when he rescued her from the barbarians, and then he had to go back to Olympus – the next time they meet he's trying to kidnap her from the temple, and they're making declarations of love. Hercules knew Deianira better than that! The film seems to know this is dumb, too, because it tries to get us to ship Marphne by presenting all alternative relationships as dysfunctional.

Venus is manipulative and uses trickery to get Mars into bed with her. Antarus is not only engaged to somebody else, but he's old enough to be Daphne's father (come to think of it, Mars, as a god, is probably hundreds or thousands of years old, but let's not go there. The Greek myths give the gods an average mental age of about fifteen anyway). Antarus and Hecuba are much more interested in using each other than kissing each other. The only healthy relationship Daphne is seen to have with a man is with Frixos the Armorer, who serves as her Sassy Gay Friend so the movie won't have to risk passing the Bechdel test. At the end he's paired up with a girl to reassure the audience that despite being respectful and supportive of his female best friend, a coward in battle, and interested in what people are wearing, he's totally heterosexual.

Except for pure and virginal Daphne, the women with speaking roles in this movie are jealous and scheming. Hecuba wants Daphne put in a convent or fed to a monster, so that she'll have Antarus all to herself, and she misuses her political authority in order to accomplish this. Venus tricks Mars out of his first attempt to rescue Daphne, then takes on the girl's face to seduce him – and he demonstrates that he's no smarter than Micky Hargitay's Hercules by going for it! Even Daphne herself has her jealous moment, when she looks into the Sybil's pool and sees Mars and Venus in bed together (this is the most mythologically-accurate moment in the movie, by the way. Greek oracles loved to give truthful but misleading answers. Daphne sees the couple in bed, but not that the woman is wearing her face).

The men in the movie, meanwhile, all deserve a couple of good smacks for thinking with their dicks. Mars gives up his immortality in order to bone a girl he only just met, then sleeps with her doppelgänger. Antarus finds his pending marriage to Hecuba threatened by his desire to sleep with Daphne, but continues trying to sleep with her anyway, and actually murders his fiancee, ruining his own plans to enter the royal succession, rather than just accept that he can't always have what he wants! A guard continually catcalls the deaf-mute Maya despite his colleague pointing out, again and again, that she can't hear him. The only man who comes across as having a brain in his head instead of his penis is Frixos, who suspects a trick and refuses when he thinks Maya is trying to get him in bed.

Later in the movie, Frixos claims to have fallen in love with Maya, and when Mars asks him what makes her different from other women, Frixos explains about her being unable to hear or speak. Both of them then laugh! I think this is a joke about women talking too much, but given how Frixos comes across, I found myself theorizing that he hoped to reduce gossip by having a woman living with him – one who can't go around telling people he doesn't sleep with her.

So much for gender and sexuality. Let's talk about race in this movie. The most notable actor of colour is John Kitzmiller, playing the barbarian king who attacks the city at the beginning. This character is literally named Afros and is portrayed as having complete contempt for the lives, laws, and sacred spaces of the locals. This is not explored thoroughly enough to be an intentional reversal, so it stands as a snortworthy nugget of irony. Then there's Maya, who is vaguely non-white as well as being a disabled female slave. She makes friends with Daphne and while she turns out to be quite intelligent and competent, her role in the story is limited to doing a service for her white friend at considerable risk to herself. For the most part she is a helpless victim, blamed for a crime she did not commit and tortured into admitting to it.

Finally there's the movie's entirely unexplained ending. Now, I made fun of the monster earlier, but I have to give them full points for originality. Throughout the movie they talk about this beast, but never describe it. I was expecting some sort of traditional reptilian creature, so the maiden-devouring plant was actually a nice surprise. It's not a bad design, either, although it could have used some colour. There's something appealingly caterpillar-ish about the way the big, spiky petals unfurl. A priest refers to the thing as sacred to Proserpine, who was a goddess of plant life married to Pluto, god of death, so it's also thematically appropriate! The rubber model doesn't look very good in full light, but a-plus concept.

Getting back to the ending, though. Earlier in the story the Sybil told Daphne that Mars was not destined to live a mortal life, and the only way to resolve the situation was for Daphne to die. In the final battle, sure enough, she takes the arrow Antarus meant for Mars – Mars pushes Antarus into the sarlaac pit, but Daphne dies in his arms. Mars then declares that he will commit suicide, since if he and Daphne could not share life he wants them to share death. This seems like it will be the fulfillment of the Sybil's prophecy. Then, however, Daphne's body disappears and she materializes, alive, in a chariot drawn by four white horses! Mars climbs in, and they fly off into the night or something.

Mars calls out a thanks to his father Jupiter for this favour, so I guess he made Daphne immortal or something? This is not unprecedented in mythology: the same boon was granted to Psyche so she could marry Cupid. In the tale of Cupid and Psyche, however, the gods are active throughout, and the concept of ambrosia, a potion that confers immortality, is already introduced. In Venus meets the Son of Hercules this comes out of nowhere, to give a happy ending to a story we've already been told cannot have one!

If I were in charge of remaking this movie, the first thing I would do is have Mars stick around a while, perhaps as the city gives a feast in his honour or something, and actually talk to Daphne before deciding he loves her. Then I would foreshadow the idea that Daphne can earn immortality through an act of selflessness – the Temple of Venus could be presented as a possible avenue to this, giving an extra reason why Mars should not be allowed to take her away. It's not like they wouldn't have had time for such things. The movie has a number of over-long sequences, like the opening battle and the dance of the vestals, that could easily have been cut to make room for actual plot and character development.

Venus meets the Son of Hercules is kind of okay as a peplum romance, but it's depressing how easy it would have been to improve on it.

#mst3k #reviews #episodes that never were #venus meets the son of hercules #my cheese steak #humanitarian vegetables #60s

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