#sure the series is evolving and maybe that's the direction it will take
Note
It's crazy how SoV preluded 3H by making one of the protags have a tremendously contradictory mindset of humanity being better off without gods, while also relying on those same gods to fulfill their goals, the hypocrisy of which goes completely unadressed throughout the game; truly masterful foreshadowing
Who directed FE15?
lol
I've recently tried to think about this "gods BaD" shift in more doylist terms - especially since I've finally played a Squenix game recently and...
FE13 was the FE series last ditch effort, it will either work or end up as the F-Zero series, FE13 worked and FE14 followed suit.
Lolcalisation aside, FE14 had a nice plot and I engaging characters - to some people but not me, different tastes and all - but FE14 and FE13 were still FE games, as in part of the old FE series, aka a niche series. Adding dating sim/interpersonal relationship through avatars might have helped a bit, and yet, imo, it was still the "niche" FE series.
Comes FE15 where we basically have a remake, and can't add the interpersonal thing because Alm isn't an avatar (even if the game spends a lot of time praising his oranges) - how to make the game work? Sure, some weirdo fans of the FE series will buy it, and it was never supposed to sell as much as FE13/14, but if it was a 1:1 remake or just with minor adjustments? It might bomb like the Archanea remakes, and good luck coming after that - will they need another "FE13" to reignite the sales or??
And here I thought about it : FE15 was retconned with the "GoDs BaD" spiel, to make this game more in-tune with what I'd call "traditional" JRPGs where the protagonists often defy a corrupt church and "divine" being.
("Traditional" imo being the Squenix way, because while I didn't play all entries of this series, the Tales series never striked me as being particularly as, uh, vindicative against organised religion, maybe save for Symphonia 1 - Abyss' Church really wishes to help the people even if it is corrupted from within by some dude who doesn't want to let the world die and played by the big bad, Xillia has no church, ditto for Zestiria and Phantasia had Mint and... that's it? - compare this to Squenix's Triangle Strategy and Hyzante being comically EvIl and without any redeeming traits/points when all of the other major parties of the conflict have "token good NPCs" as forced as they are in the game, to make it very clear that they might have done questionnable things like invading and slaughtering civilians from a foreign nation who welcomed them at their wedding, but at least they have "MoRaLs" unlike those bozos in their desert...)
And this "let's make FE mainstream by kicking gods" mentality completely runs at odds with the rest of the FE franchise, and while I know RD basically ends like this bcs "uwu Ike defeated a GoD with the help of another who used the lead of that game as a soul jar and granted him exclusive powers to put her sister to sleep" the morale of RD's story - as seen in the perfect ending but in Ike's speech to Yune itself - is that everyone can and should try to live together, asking Gods not the fuck out to let Humanity alone, but to believe in them just like humans believe in gods.
So FE15 ends as this big, uh, mismatched clash of narrative directions - being a remake it cannot stray too far from the source material and Archanea verse : Dragons and Humans can live together (even if it means dragons must sacrifice part of themselves to do so because fuck them I guess) and dragons can help humans just like humans can, uh, not be asses and not target them because their ears are pointy or when they are weakened...
And we had the new Squenix direction where GoDs BaD and HuMaNiTy fuck yeah, which leads to FE15's hypocrisy : please trust and rely on us Gods/dragons and kindly help us when we're in deep shit, and at the same time "HuMaNiTy FuCk YeAh".
Interestingly, the Squenix direction loses in the post game campaign (the one where we discover Thabes) but is reintroduced in the official (tm) timeline, depicting basically how BaD Duma is and how much of a chad Rudy was, before his very tragic (bring the onions!) death.
But yeah, I agree anon, FE15 was crazy foreshadowing and I guess is part of the reason why Tru Piss has this message "Humanity doesn't need Gods" targeted at... Rhea, aka a Nabatean (while Supreme Leader got there thanks to Sothis' powers!!) because the "Humanity Fuck Yeah" narrative is a staple of Squenix JRPGS, and if FE has to become mainstream, I guess to some devs, it has to copy what sells.
That would also explain why FE16 went so off the rails and forgot the tradition FE series message about coexistence, because what the fuck do you mean by "Humanity doesn't need Nabateans", after parroting for the entire game "Nabateans are to blame for the irrational world we live in" and blame "Nabatean blood" for everything wrong in Fodlan, without ever acknowledging the "evilness that lurks in the heart of men" (who aren't called Dimitri) ?
In a series that, albeit hazaphardly at times (FE8's manaketes feel forced in the lore! and the less is said about Nowi/Panne in FE13 the better we are), tried to push the "coexistence between all inhabitants of the land is the key to peace!" card - this Squenix direction feels all kind of wrong, especially when friendship with the divine beings (dragons) have been a staple of the franchise (Y!Tiki's number of alts, imo, is telling : for better or worse, Y!Tiki is, along with Marth, the figure of the franchise. She is a dragon, and she's a kid who wants to make friends. Sure it brings the loli crowd, but all those dragon children in the different games? They are a direct throwback to Y!Tiki!).
In a nutshell, I'd say the first crack was FE10's writing that made things seem like the Hero defeated a goddess and its subsequent wanking.
But I agree with you anon, FE15's change in direction and retcons were absolutely gunning for that Squenix "GoDs BaD" while keeping the "traditional" FE message which resulted in hypocrisy that showed in the writing but I guess no one really paid attention because FE15 has other issues too (I didn't before happening on FE16... even if I remember wondering why the fuck the game kept on hammering how BaD Duma was when we had people being asses right and left on their own).
FE Fodlan completely ignored the "we can coexist" message - save for subtext you can have where the optional lords who win the war and aren't Supreme Leader can have half/quarter-nabatean heirs through Flayn but her heritage is never ever mentionned in the ending cards - by completely shitting/ignoring the local dragons, they're blamed for everything wrong and don't get their voice to the chapter.
Masterful writing lol
I can't wait for the next game, let it be a remake (pls not Jugdral!!) or a new entry (Engage was developped alongside Fodlan, not after!) to see if IS will continue with the Squenix developments or return to their roots, even if they seem milquetoast, of "humans and lizards can hold hands".
---
NGL anon, during 2020/2021 and the daily "Supreme Leader was right though" threads in SF, I kind of realised that what I took for granted, aka "coexistence between humans and dragons!" being the message of FE in general, wasn't, even in what used to be the most serious board/thing.
FE as a series came to the West through FE7 where Dragons and Humans were at war, but ultimately the cast learns that dragons aren't evil incarnate and the best ending reveals that the big bad went mad because his dragon wife was killed and he tried to reunite with their dragon-human children he hid away for their safety.
So it was kind of surprising to see long-time, or at least not "Fodlan introduced" members of SF parroting the "well they can't live together" by buying the most ludicrous headcanon/fanon arguments you'd find in other series like "different lifespans" - this argument is pretty much non existent in the FE series, and I've never seen it opposed to Miccy's rule in Daien when, as a Heron Branded, she will outlive her citizens, or what, are we supposed to believe that Myrrh shouldn't interact with humans and remain in her forest because she will outlive humans, or is too "different" from them thus wouldn't have the same considerations?
FE13/14 brought the fandom wars of "new fans" vs "old fans", but FE Fodlan? Brought "casual JRPG gamer" vs "FE gamer" which usually boils down to "Supreme Leader fans" vs "everyone else".
Sure, we had the religion hate boner because the dragons in Fodlan verse made a "Church" with catholic imagery which is a deadly sin to some - but the "dragon blood is indeed the reason why everything sucks in the world" being parroted? "Dragons cannot have power over humans because of the sheer inbalance"? What, are you implying Nergal was forced by Aenir to mate with her twice or what? Ninian was oppressing Pherae in the endings where she marries Eliwood, and humans were finally liberated when she died?
Kana is, by nature, someone who will oppress humans because they're part dragon and their blood will bring strife to the world?
So unless IS doesn't fully commit to one narrative - because yes, for all of its flak, FE Fodlan still takes time, when it remembers, to portray Nabateans in a relative positive light when it comes to them as characters and in the general background, it's just that, they're never given a voice when it comes to discussing about the plot - we're bound to have this hypocrisy :
Dragons BaD bcs Humanity Fuck Yeah
and
Dragons and Humanity can coexist and make babies for scalies/monsterfuckers out there because acceptance/diversity is a way for peace.
#anon#replies#sorry i ranted#FE series#FE15 stuff#rant#watch as the whitewings never bring up Tiki the kid they met 3 years ago#when Alm goes humanity fuck yeah#when the devs could have pulled out something like Ike for Alm or rather return to their roots#they pulled this squenix shit#that imo doesn't have its place in the FE series#sure the series is evolving and maybe that's the direction it will take#if it really does I'll to reconsider my engagement with FE in general#and be stuck ranting about old games lol
26 notes
·
View notes
Text
Smitten: The First Date
It’s been way too long since I’ve updated this series and I have so many ideas for them coming up. Lmk if you wanna be added to the series taglist!
Notes: F!reader, first official date, anxiety and jitters, fluff. Just really fluffy.
“Satoru you’re already running late, I’ll be okay here.”
“The kids will understand. Do you want another blanket?” Gojo’s class started three minutes ago and he refused to leave his office until he was sure you were set.
You’d been taking up the couch in his office during the day for the last few weeks, it soothed some of Gojo’s anxiety about leaving you alone now that his energy was rubbing off on you.
You nodded your head and Gojo draped another throw over your body. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too much longer before your leg healed so you could freely walk; maybe then your boyfriend would relax. (Unlikely) “The kids rely on their teacher to be on time, but thank you. We should bring in a space heater tomorrow, how did you get by without having one in here so far?”
“You’re always cold, and it’s not that bad usually but I don’t spend much time in here; too lonely. You know I’m not far and text me if you need anything at all. I’ll see you for lunch?”
“Go be a teacher before Yaga decides to hire someone with better attendance please.”
“Kiss first!” He exclaimed and kissed your lips before pulling away with a ‘mwah!’ sound, leaving you laughing at his cartoonish display.
You just shook your head at him while reigning yourself in, “I’ll be here when you’re done.”
“Are you sure about this, Kugisake? It looks like a lot with the flowers on the table too.”
“Girls love surprises, Sensei. Last time Fushiguro poked his head in she was asleep, this is literally the perfect time.” Nobara was putting the finishing touches on the makeshift dining table, while Yuuji and Megumi plated the food- something they took surprisingly seriously. Really they just wanted to impress you. “You should go get her before the food gets cold.”
Gojo followed the directions given to him by the 15 year old girl and took the short trip down the hall.
You were still sound asleep, and he heavily debated on postponing but the kids were indiscreetly spying on him. He couldn’t back out on it.
“Hey, baby, it’s time for lunch.” He knelt down to your level and rubbed your shoulder until you stirred- he hated waking you up. He hated it a little less when you gave him your half asleep smile.
“Lunch?” The coffee table was empty, usually he brought lunch with him.
“We’re actually going on a little mission, you and I. So up you go!”
“‘Toru! Crutches!” He had you in his arms and out of the room before you could even reach for them.
“Nope!” What did he mean no? How long was he going to carry you?
“Ta-da!” Apparently not long. Your boyfriend sat you in a chair and did jazz hands at the display in front of you- you put together then that it was a date. Your first date.
It was all arranged carefully and the food made your stomach grumble. “‘Toru this is wonderful! You didn’t have to do all this!”
“The kids helped, they’d kill me if I didn’t give partial credit.”
“I kinda figured since there’s three mysteriously floating heads spying on us in the doorway behind you.”
Gojo turned around, shooed them away with only some complaints, before closing the door and returned to your lunch date. “I know our relationship hasn’t evolved in the most traditional ways but I still wanted you to know that I care about the normal stuff too. A lot has been going on but I hadn’t even taken you out yet.”
“I wasn’t expecting anything-”
“I know,” Gojo sighed. “But I pulled you into a world you never knew existed and now you’re stuck with my baggage too. I think you’re doing great by the way, you haven’t even tried escaping.”
“Tried escaping- you’re ridiculous sometimes Satoru. Your world isn’t baggage, I know it can be cruel at times but it’s not all bad. It’s just a different experience, but I feel like I found my place with you all; I’ve never had that before…”
“You always have a place where I am, always.” His tone was serious enough to make your heart feel warm. Sometimes Gojo catches you off guard with how much he cares. His silliness is only one piece of the puzzle that is your boyfriend.
“Well I guess it’s good that I wanna be where you are, always.”
You both smiled at each other, and if you chose to ignore the sets of peeping eyes through the classroom window; then that was between you and the first years.
Prev <- Index -> Next
Thinking about making a request? Check my bio and see if they’re open!
#smitten gojo#jjk x reader#reader insert#no use of y/n#jujustsu kaisen x reader#gojo fluff#gojo series#jujutsu kaisen#soulmates#soul bonds#jjk fluff#jjk fic#fluff#lots of fluff#gojo x you#gojo satoru
106 notes
·
View notes
Note
Routine and Not yet for Hideout or Fools Rush In Steve :)
Love this mini series/ask thing you got going on. I ADORE the way you write Steve.
Oh. OH.
THIS might break me. Oh daaaammmmnnn.
But...but...AT WHAT POINT IN TIME ARE WE TALKING ABOUT???
*crisis*
[Younglings, you poor things, I promise to write something for you soon, but this too is MINORS DNI. The prompt is from this dirty ask game.]
Ya know, I think the two Steebs actually have a lot in common (although Fools is way in the future after his Nomad era) when it comes to being deprived of time with his partner--Nomad because he's still a fugitive, and Sketch after he was 'dead' and gone for three months--so maybe they develop similarly? Fools Rush In Steve, however, has been with Keeps for years by then, while Hideout Steve has barely begun to really get to know Tops.
R - Routine
No matter how I think about it, Hideout Steve can't really have a routine. He just has to make due with the random times he's around with reader at the motel. He can't really plan that, and it becomes more dangerous the more he tries to plan because it's somewhere where someone else (people looking for him) would know he'd be. He can't make promises. I think it eats him up inside, but he can't.
Now! Also no matter how I think it through, Sketch would likely only schedule sex to either avoid or take advantage of your cycle. Like if you're trying for kids, then yeah, he'll use all the basal temperature and ovulation monitoring apps in the fucking world. You can wear the stupid watch thing and just point at him when it's time or something. For sure. He can work like that. When duty calls, right?
Not on birth control for a while but not looking to get pregnant? Yeah, he can wait. F.R.I. Steve has just unbelievable control in that department, aided in no small part by immense guilt for how long it took him to come out of his shell and be physically open with you.
He has his spontaneous moments--more and more the longer you two are together,--but he still gets stuck in his head a lot.
N - Not Yet
I don't see Steve Rogers from any universe ever telling his partner not to touch themselves for a certain amount of time or under any circumstance. That just seems cruel, and he wouldn't do it. At very least, it would be for no longer than the time it takes him to set something up, like lighting candles or drawing a bath or setting up a sex swing, idk, just not long.
Steve's the type of man who would tell you to let him know every time you want to touch yourself or do touch yourself. That is...really great for him. He would also turn beet red at how frequently you let him know that, but he ain't gonna stop ya.
Hideout Steve--it's no secret--he needs to work on his own orgasm control. He's really overwhelmed very quickly, and the battle is sorta half-come-as-much-as-possible until his tolerance for stimulation tapers off and half-train-him/himself-by-edging.
All I know is a frustrated Steeb is a sexy Steeb, people.
If you don't believe me, welp, too fucking bad, I'm the writer. 😏
FRI Steve would need a lot of direction in terms of what the point of orgasm delay or orgasm denial is. In his mind...just why?? It's not as if it doesn't take a decent amount of time to get you both to your ends? It's not like he skips over foreplay? Why then would you be a jerk about or prolong a perfectly good love-making? (If you don't know this, Sketch is still very limited in his dirty vocabulary. His actions have evolved exponentially, but under zero circumstances--not even torture--will that man ever refer to your, or anyone else's, genitalia as a 'pussy.' I have pitched a tent near a stream on that hill; I am not leaving unless in a coffin.)
We have established, I believe, in both universes, that Steve Rogers enjoys begging in the bedroom. Very much. He doesn't overdue it. He's not mean about getting it from you. He just doesn't mind begging for himself and certainly doesn't mind hearing you beg.
The end. No delays lol.
Thank you for asking!
[Main Masterlist; Ko-Fi]
A/N: Okay, good news: I didn't die inside as much as I thought I would. Hope you still like it though!
#ro answers#dirty asks#ask game#fools rush in series#hideout series#steve rogers fanfiction#steve rogers x reader#steve rogers fic#steve rogers imagine#steve rogers fanfic#steve rogers fluff#steve rogers smut#steve rogers x reader smut#nomad steve#captain america fanfiction#captain america x reader#captain america imagine#steve rogers x you
25 notes
·
View notes
Note
Sentret line review
Sentret's one of those Pokemon that isn't talked about all that much, but is pretty cute. It's a completely abstract animal, kind of like a meerkat crossed with a flying squirrel/tanuki, with a series of rings being its primary visual focus.
Visually, I like how the central ring is paler, which helps it to stand out against the darker browns of the body. The little ^ mouth is pretty cute, and the tail helps get the idea of it being on watch across. Adorable!
Sentret's biggest issue is really just that it's not that memorable—the brown color looks nice but doesn't stand out that much, and the surveillance idea is fun but not really built upon. If it had a different evo that really doubled down on that theme, I think it might've stood out more in the long run.
Speaking of evos, I misremembered this line as Furret evolving into Sentret rather than the other way around, which goes to show you how much of a sense of progression is here (that being none). There are visual elements between the two—the stripes, the nose-less face, the colors—but they ultimately feel like two unrelated 'mons slapped together in the early beta. Alternatively, I could see them being a split evo to a single pre-evo of some kind.
But as a regular evo? Furret doesn't really build on any of Sentret's themes, so you just end up with a pretty mundane 'mon—especially as it's not even a fantasy animal anymore but very clearly a ferret.
Now don't get me wrong, I do still like Furret for one reason: it's heckin' cute. I do like the patterning of the stripes a lot, its little face and whisker-like markings are perfect, and it just looks very cuddly. I don't think the tips of the ears quite fit with everything else, but aside from that, there's nothing wrong with it visually aside from just being fairly plain and forgettable.
My suggested fix would probably be to do a regional form for these guys. The Zigagoon line (i.e., the other racoon-turned-elongated-creature-line-with-distinct-patterns line) did this with fantastic success, and I think it could work well here to spice things up.
I'm not entirely sure what you could do with these guys, but the rings almost remind me of a target, and Furret's shiny is this lovely pinkish-red that really pops nicely. Maybe a regional could be a poison-type that entices other Pokemon to hit them, poisoning their predators when they come into contact with them? Idk, just spitballing, but the point is these guys could use something. An evo's not out of the question either, though these two are already so disconnected that it's hard to figure out what direction you'd take another stage.
Anyway, overall: I love how cute these two are, and Sentret's a fun little mystery animal, but the two stages don't feel connected and they don't manage to stick out much. Here's hoping they get something in the future.
52 notes
·
View notes
Note
Random interesting concept?
What if the Sheikah had been on Ganondorf's side initially, and that's why he's featured so heavily with Eastern weaponry and style of clothes. Bonus: What if it lowkey between the lines implies Ganondorf's paternal line being of Sheikah descent?
Could also explain why the Sheikah weren't featured in the past, nor even mentioned.
Bonus: If the Zonai were to have been slowly evolved into Sheikah, it could also have been an interesting view of the passage of time, and maybe the Sheikah rebelling against their ancestors and the dying race of the Zonai, by standing against Rauru.
Maybe show the Sheikah as being against a ruling class, rather preferring to be free. Them viewing Ganondorf as the person to give them their freedom, no matter how bloody it might end up being, because they'd rather die than to submit to a King and Queen, no matter how #benevolent.
Extra bonus: Would have been interesting to then show the Yiga as not being Sheikah who forsook Hylia, the Hylians and their royal family, but to actually returning to their roots as being against the oppressive force of a Kingdom.
Ohhhh that's a super interesting theory. Ganondorf being half-sheikah is such a juicy idea, all of these asks coming in with banging HCs about Ganondorf's origins!!!! I feel very blessed.
Yeah, you're right that it is pretty strange sheikahs are completely absent from the past. I did attribute this to the chronic thing of TotK taking sheikah space and feeding it back to zonai influence and kind of didn't even consider this is indeed strange in-universe since Sheikahs are still technically a thing (though removing the Goddesses and their divine role as servants of the Royal Family does make them much more regular guys than before, so, I think the game was okay to erase their importance and the role they usually play in the series, in spite of Purah coordinating everything).
It would be a very interesting twist for sure! In general, I really wish they had done more with the sheikahs and Fake Zelda in particular. Like having Fake Zelda slowly but surely hush them in the direction of becoming another branch of the Yiga as they increasingly question the validity of her orders while not actually daring to oppose the princess' commands. Would have been pretty interesting and tense, and I think keeping them only as archeologists whose discoveries never make them question anything is a little bland and even a little sad in my opinion.
#asks#totk#totk spoilers#totk critical#when will my brain return from the imprisoning war...#ganondorf#sheikah#yiga#hylia#thanks for the ask!#it's a great idea!
33 notes
·
View notes
Text
Avatar: The Last Airbender star sets record straight after fury from fans over ‘sexism’ row
One of the stars of Avatar: The Last Airbender has cleared up speculation about his character following fury from fans over the apparent removal of ‘sexism’ from his storyline.
Almost 20 years ago, an animated series about an individual with the power to harness the four elements was released, introducing the world to the titular character Aang, as well as fan-favourites including Katara, Sokka and Zuko.
Netflix is now launching a brand new live-action version of the action-packed tale, with Ian Ousley joining the cast as Sokka, the leader of a water tribe who joins Aang on his mission to try and end a war that’s been raging for 100 years.
Metro.co.uk recently had the chance to speak to the members of the cast, and asked Ian about the debate that’s recently been sparked about Sokka, after it was claimed that ‘the element of how ‘sexist’ his character was in the tale had been taken out.
Many fans were angry about this claim, as they argued that Sokka’s sexism is a key aspect of his character development, as he eventually ‘learns how stupid his sexist views were’.
When asked about this topic of conversation among fans, Ian stressed that fans who fear any drastic changes should not be ‘worried’.
‘I think that the essence of the character that Sokka is, is 100% the character that is portrayed in the live-action version of the show,’ he said.
‘I think the fans are a little worried that there’s going to be changes in who Sokka is, and I don’t really think that’s been the case at all in our show.
‘Obviously it’s different from an animated show to a live-action in those ways, but the heart and soul of the animation show is the breath that we’re all playing into.’
The 21-year-old continued, outlining how Sokka’s attitudes do evolve as time goes on.
‘I think that we’ve turned those in different directions in the way that… we can’t fit every single arc of every single thing from the animated show. But the essence of him is still there,’ he stated, as his fellow cast members Gordon Cormier, Kiawentiio and Dallas Liu nodded in agreement.
‘He’s an overprotective older brother, and that’s kind of shown in the way that he doesn’t really trust Katara maybe at the beginning, feeling like he’s the in-charge guy of Southern Water Tribe.
‘[He] definitely still gets humbled in ways and learns that women can be powerful. I’m just excited for people to watch it and get their own take on that particular thing that I know that people are worried about.’
During a recent interview, Kiawentiio, 17 – who plays waterbender Katara, the sister of Sokka – said: ‘I feel like we also took out the element of how sexist [Sokka] was. I feel like there were a lot of moments in the original show that were iffy.’
Ian had also told Entertainment Weekly that he wanted to make sure that Sokka came across as ‘funny’, adding: ‘There’s more weight with realism in every way.’
In response to the remarks about Sokka’s demonstrations of sexism and how that might have changed for the live-action series, an X user called @WellHiddenKai stressed that Sokka’s sexism is an ‘intentional character flaw that the show acknowledges’.
Another fan going by the handle @TheViewFromMyR1 added: ‘Sokka’s misogyny early on not only led to extraordinary character growth, but also made every subsequent female fighter seem even more impressive by contending in a world where sexism is so prevalent.’
Avatar: The Last Airbender is due to premiere on Thursday February 22 on Netflix.
#natla#atla#netflix#netflix avatar#avatar the last airbender#netflix atla#dallas liu#ian ousley#kiawentiio#gordon cormier#interview#article#metro
13 notes
·
View notes
Text
Ultra's Ramblings- Pokemon Legends: Necrozma
As of me writing this, we’re only one week away from the recently-announced Pokemon Presents presentation, along with the Nintendo DIrect Partner Showcase airing tomorrow. Given how the Switch is basically nearing the end of its lifespan, part of me has a sneaky suspicion that the next console could be revealed at this Partner Showcase. The reason why any of this has anything to do with Pokemon is because after the way Scarlet and Violet ended with its last wave of DLC, there might be anymore big main series games planned for the Switch… or any major 1st party titles at this point. After 7 years of chugging along, it kinda feels like the Switch’s run is almost over.
Now that we’re possibly seeing the end of the Switch, it might be possible that the next Pokemon game being cooked up by Gamefreak could be the first one for whatever this new console could be. Now, it should be absolutely stated that I feel like TPC and Gamefreak should really slow down on their development. People have already been through this. This is the largest media franchise in the world that we’re talking about, they’re already making loads of money, and they really shouldn’t rush these damn things out without taking some more time in the oven.
If there’s only one (and I do mean one) idea that, despite how both parties have been guilty of rushing the Pokemon games out, I want the Pokemon Company and Gamefreak to make and give more time towards… it’s this
Given how Pokemon Legends: Arceus was one of the more beloved titles in the franchise’s recent memory, it’d make sense for fans to ask for another game like it to evolve on the concepts presented in Hisui. Plus, we haven’t seen either the Ultra Beasts or Ultra Space in a while, so it’d be a great way to bring those two aspects of the greater Pokemon multiverse back.
Now, a Legends game set within Ultra Space isn’t the most common idea for a sequel game, since people have also asked for games set within ancient Johto or Unova, along with how a setting this futuristic and alien wouldn’t fit with the whole gimmick of the last game (I.E. going back into the ancient past to a time where people aren;t used to catching and being around Pokemon). However, using the Ultra games from Gen 7 allows some insight that could help as a work around.
The various dimensions of the Ultra Beasts seen so far are hostile, untamed, and largely unexplored beyond the areas that the player can go in USUM. That sounds just like how the different areas of Hisui were in Arceus
The Ultra Recon Squad have stated that the idea of using Pokeballs is new to them, similar to how the people of Hisui were only starting out with them as well.
With all of that said, I’ve been thinking of ideas and mechanics that this game could not only take from Arceus, but also some improvements from it as well. I’m not sure if a future Legends game could do some of the new ideas presented here (Hell, that extends to future mainline Pokemon games in general), but the thought is nice.
Parts of the Ultra Recon Squad being split into two separate teams (Similar to the Diamond and Pearl Clans from Arceus)
Have the player be an actual character with a story arc and a personality, instead of being a blank slate (Maybe someone like Lillie or some sort of descendent of hers joining the Ultra Recon Squad?). And that could be extended to the story being written better and more involved
Give quite a few UBs their own Ultra Burst forms, just like with Ultra Necrozma. Alongside that, have them be boss battles in the same manner as the Nobles from Arceus, along with the Totem Pokemon from Sun and Moon (And those were already ‘Mons filled with energy from the Ultra Wormholes, so why not?)
Either have the starters be Ultra Variants of already-existing Pokemon, or have them be Poipole and Naganedel (along with two new starter lines to round out the trio)
Have the Pokedex be a mix of Ultra Beasts (The 11 that we already know, alongside a whole bunch of new ones), Ultra Variants of existing Pokemon (Probably “UVs”?), and some regular Pokemon that could be found within the Ultra Wormholes (USUM already made that canon. And maybe a good chunk of returning Pokemon could be Ultra Variants)
Have a level-scaling system present. Any of the area could adjust to the level of a player’s team, from literally just getting their starter, all the way to having a late-game team of fully-evolved ‘Mons
Bring back abilities, along with expanding on them for the Ultra Beasts so they don’t just have Beast Boost as their only ability
Probably make the Z-Crystals like the Plates from Arceus, not only having them play out their original purpose of letting the player do Z-Moves, but also play a much more important role, gameplay-wise. Also have the Z-Moves act faster and more like the Agile and Strong Style moves from Arceus
Have Ultra Wormholes act in the same way as the Time-Space Distortions from Arceus, bringing in Pokemon from other parts of the game that aren’t normally found in the area that the wormhole popped up in
Bring in the Pokemon Storage System from SwSh and SV, mainly to avoid the grind of going to the Pasture from Arceus multiple times
The player is allowed to do anything in any order. Again, level-scaling is a huge element of that
Voice acting… maybe? Seriously, how has that not been added at this point?
Will any of this ever happen? Probably not, but it feels nice to explain my thoughts on the matter. As much as I wish Gamefreak allowed more development time on game-making, I’ve always had a soft spot for Gen 7, especially with the concept of the Ultra Beasts. As unlikely as this entire idea is, it’s the one idea for a Pokemon game that I wish will happen someday. Maybe we’ll see it be announced next week? Until then, I guess.
6 notes
·
View notes
Text
Would you become a random pokemon in the mystery dungeon setting, if given the opportunity? Like the player characters in the series?
Because yeah, being turned into a pokemon sounds pretty fun, and NO ONE is having an objectively bad time in the setting, but when you are saying "yes, obviously!" You are thinking of being a lucario, or a grovyle or something, but that's not gonna be the case, most likely.
I get it, you can do pokemon moves, you can have a life of exploration and adventure, you can make new and interesting friends, you can live in a world that has none of the flaws of our own, where everyone (for the most part) is kindhearted and happy! But there is one VERY important thing you're forgetting: not all pokemon have opposable thumbs. In fact, most don't.
Not just thumbs, too! Quite a few don't have arms, or legs, or other objectively useful body parts! Sure, some of us would be lucky enough to have telekinetic abilities, or some kind of dextrous extremity with which to manipulate the world around us, but how are you meant to tie a knot, or write a letter when you roll pineco?
What I'm saying is, for every one of us who lucks out and gets a blaziken, there's got to be another poor soul who has to get used to navigating life as a wailord.
And even if you DO luck out and get a species with hands, feet, and the like, you think you're gonna be able to adjust to hariyama's built-in oven mitts? Or gallade's blade arms? Or excadrill's drill claws? You're gonna take out somebody's eye with those things!
And that's before you even get into the poor metapods. Because that's right! A small chunk of us are going to get stuck with a shape that doesn't actually have built-in locomotion options!
Then you have pokemon that come pre-built with awful ailments. Psyduck has chronic migraines, komala is in a permanent coma, I'm pretty sure the galar fossils are biologically incapable of surviving, and are closer to sins against nature than actual pokemon. I'm pretty sure a couple can't see, which is definitely less than ideal for exploring a new world.
And your move pools! Imagine being a beldum and thinking "ok, if I manage to get to metagross, I'm looking at psychic powers and pseudo legend statlines- but wait! Good bloody luck getting to level 45 when your level up move pool consists exclusively of ramming your face into the target. Every hit you land, 50% of that damage is coming right back to you. Then you have folks who roll pyukumuku, with zero direct damage options, or wobbuffet, which I'm pretty sure is biologically closer to a punching bag than a living creature.
And that's assuming evolving is even an OPTION! Mystery dungeon has a bad habit of not allowing you to change to a less scuffed form until you've beaten at LEAST three demigods in a fistfight, and I doubt the poor sod who is stuck in the body of a severely concussed beldum is up for the task.
This is all to say, if I woke up one day and found I'd traded my human body for a mildly weaponized pancake like stunfisk, arceus better find SOMEONE to pray to because, as soon as I figure out how to flop my way over there, he's gonna have to meet me outside for a few minutes. Come to think of it, is that why stunfisk learns revenge by level up? Probably.
Don't get me wrong, I'm still taking the deal, but I'm gonna be making it my life's mission to make it arceus' problem if he has the audacity to make me a nosepass or something.
On a side note: what happens if you become a falinks, or a maushold or something? Do you just become one, and have to find your own squad? Or do you get cloned? Maybe a hivemind situation? And what of multi headed ones like doduo? Imagine if you and your second head don't get along!
3 notes
·
View notes
Text
Got to sit down and rewatch the new BaPC eps while more awake last night. Still haven't watched the rest of it in order yet - the order of the leaked eps was apparently wrong so I want to see how it flows on Netflix. I figured I might as well jot down my thoughts while they're fresh, though. As expected, this will be full of spoilers!
This isn't going to be an overwhelmingly negative series of thoughts because I just don't have it in me. I understand why a lot of people feel the way they do, but like I've stated before, I understand Netflix is garbage and even worse to animation, so there's a lot of things (like episode limit, season limits) that I think are beyond the team. I don't see a point in wonder why they couldn't just upload the first season as well - which I'll get into - when I know Netflix is stingy on seasons and episode counts (I believe it's after season 3 that Netflix has to increase pay for originals and I imagine there's a similar concept for shows they host).
Ultimately, though, I think a big thing is that somewhere along the lines, either the story Natasha set out to tell changed, or maybe it just grew; or maybe in the process of telling the story, there were elements she wanted to alter, in order to better tell it. Mote foreshadowing, more lore, a different tone. The OG BaPC works excellently as a standalone series, and if Netflix had ordered TWO seasons instead of one with 3 extra eps to condense the first season + pilot, I'm sure we could have retained a lot of things fans loved - but Netflix didn't.
I'm ALWAYS going to love the OG series - the tone is different, the story is clearly different from what it's evolved into, it FEELS different. That stride of Bee's birthday and the jellyfish story and everything from Deckard taking Bee to show her his plants and ending up on Donut Planet just GETS to me emotionally and it's so beautifully done, and maybe had Netflix ordered it as a separate season we might have been able to retain a lot of that heart and soul. But also...
Something I noticed about the new episodes, and illuminated it in the Lazy in Space eps, is that they really have played into how Bee feels and expresses emotions. Deckard asking if Bee will miss him if he leaves the island is a direct parallel to the flashback of Crispin moving out of Bee's place, asking if she's even sad. In response to Deckard, Bee sounds almost insincere, like she's laughing at a joke, and to Crispin she reveals her little Bee guts in conflict.
Even though they knew in OG BaPC that she was a robot, I think by the time they were working on Lazy in Space they changed their mind on how Bee operates. Her issue with water and the ocean vs the straight up avoidance of water altogether. The way she expresses emotions and her tones. The sentimental expression of emotional conflict as she found herself enjoying her birthday for once is completely removed. I think if this was still an integral aspect of Bee, they would have found a way to maintain it in the new episodes, because ultimately what DOES remain is all stuff pertinent to various characters - a whole flashback of Cas and Toast's history, how Cardamon found Sticky, getting more insight in Deckard and Cas's relationship. I assume by removing things like Bee's conflicted emotions, we are leaning more into Bee as a robot who doesn't react exactly as a human.
That said, there's obviously a lot about Bee that IS very human - whether it's how she was made or what she picked up from being around others. A change I like a lot is how Bee encouraged Deckard to go to culinary school - how Cas didn't fill out the acceptance for him, it was his choice that he tried to back out of, and that Donut Planet and Bee ultimately encouraged him. We get to see a little more of his internal conflict, in how he WANTS to go but he's scared of leaving and scared of tackling something he's no good at. I think that's a big reason that he does better on Donut Planet than at culinary school: even though he chose to go, there's still a lot of reluctance (and depression) and maybe something to do with a lack of encouragement? At any rate, I love Deckard having the agency of choice, but I also REALLY love Bee encouraging him, because she knows he's scared and selling himself short. It's such a tender, human experience, to encourage those you care about, to do your part to make it easier for them (offering to look after his family for her).
Basically, I look at OG BaPC and the new eps + Lazy in Space as two different entities, because it's clear to me the story being told was changed at some point (Bee and Deckard's entire romance being completely erased, a lot of sentimentality downplayed, Bee's age HEAVILY played into, a link between Bee and Cardamon more heavily teased). I'd love to hear a BTS from Natasha about how they rewrote the story - things that were removed due to time, things that were changed because the story changed, how the story may have evolved over the last ten years - because it would be so fascinating to see how the story has grown. In terms of story, though, Lazy in Space was a departure from OG BaPC, so even if uploading the first season had ever been an option, I get why they didn't go that route. Artstyle aside, casual watchers would probably find that disconnect jarring - the sudden changes in things like Bee's line delivery, the whole lol erased romance plot, all of the fascinating lore the new episodes introduce that better link to Lazy in Space were not present.
There are some details I think were probably always present: I bet Bee's dad was always intended to be affiliated with Puppycat and Violet (it's no coincidence that Bee and Violet live in the same complex, on an island that is a spaceship); Bee was probably always meant to be pretty old; the island was always a spaceship.
Anyway like I said, I understand why there are people upset about the departure from OG BaPC. I think Lazy in Space made a lot of that change, too, so the story had to adjust to those changes, and the slice of life on the surface genre that many had come to love no longer suited the story being told. So to me, they are two different stories with the Netflix version being the one they chose to pursue. Rather than tell people to watch the OG series on YouTube and start from ep 4 on Netflix, though, I think it would be better if people just watched the OG after they complete the Netflix version. OG BaPC sets a whole different tone and doesn't have a lot of the lore that the new episodes offer. OG BaPC as a treat is probably the better way to go about it.
Ultimately, I love them both! I love Bee and I love getting new lore to mull over, new pieces to the puzzle. Bee's dad -- IN the Dad box?! The Dad Box a portal to him..?! -- threw me for LOOP! Acknowledging the candy Bee eats is the same that Puppycat and Violet used to collect? She and Cardamon used to share it?! (Oh my GOD Cardamon doesn't eat does he?! He buys all that junk food FOR VIOLET "It's not for me" because he doesn't NEED to eat?!) There's just so MUCH good, new stuff to think on and I'd hate to throw that all out the window, yknow?
#Bee and Puppycat#Lazy in Space#BaPC#Bee and Puppycat Spoilers#Lazy in Space Spoilers#BaPC Spoilers#BaPC Brainrot#this probably isn't as comprehensive as I'd like to be but oh well
45 notes
·
View notes
Text
Worship The Flame - Ch 1 - Welcoming Party
Pairing | Billy Hargrove x El Hopper
Series summary | It's May 1989. After three years in California, Billy returns to Hawkins for Max's high school graduation. He thinks he'll find everything—and everyone—as he left them. Turns out time has moved on in Hawkins, too, and a certain "little girl" isn't so little anymore. Now that he's back, she's desperate to prove it to him.
Too bad he swore he'll never fall for her. And if he does, there's no way her police chief father won't find out.
What to expect | angst, fluff, smut, romance, supernatural sci-fi weirdness, bouncing between past and present storylines, Mike/El vs Billy/El love triangle, El and Max friendship, Max playing matchmaker, El finally finding her own voice, Billy and Max covering the entire gamut of sibling interactions, Billy flipping between being soft and being an asshole as he tries to keep his shit together, Hopper playing the role of “father with shotgun,” Hopper-Byers and Hargrove-Mayfield family drama (but without Neil! yay!), the sensation of watching a car wreck in slow motion
Series warnings | angry fathers, explicit content (18+)
Chapter word count | 5k
Chapter summary | In May 1989, Billy shows up in Hawkins to find two special girls waiting for him.
Chapter warnings | none
Author’s notes | Intended as a sequel to my old draft of "Lost Boy."
When I had the idea for this fic in February 2020, I dropped EVERYTHING to write it. Couldn't help myself. Now the idea has grown into a full-fledged trilogy starting with "Lost Boy," and I'm rewriting the whole thing from scratch to reflect that.
It'll take years to finish. I'm treating the trilogy as a continuation of the show, with just one tweak: Billy survives Starcourt. Canon storylines continue around him; relationships grow, change, and break up; the Upside Down evolves, the Mind Flayer keeps trying to take over the world... It's a lot.
In the meantime, I thought I'd post my old draft of what is now the third story. I wrote it before I decided to bring in the Upside Down, etc., so it's basically a romance with a supernatural bent. Future drafts will be dramatically different.
Hope you enjoy!
P.S., if you're here to tell me what a “problematic ship” this is... don't :) El is eighteen, and to quote Max, "She doesn't need your protection."
Comments and reblogs are welcomed with open arms!
Tuesday, May 23, 1989
He thought he'd feel something more when he returned to Hawkins. A whole lot of anger, maybe. Hell, even tears. Stuff happened here that made him cry for the first time in eight years. If he was ever gonna cry again, this would be the place to do it.
Instead, he feels a whole lot of nothing. He cruises past the old turnoff to the high school without blinking. He doesn't even flinch at the sight of the road he used to take to get to Hopper's cabin. He just… doesn't feel anything. He's not sure if he should be proud, relieved, or concerned.
Blowing smoke out the window, Billy hooks his hand over the wheel. The sweet strains of Skid Row pour out of his stereo, streaming out the window along with the smoke. When he slams on the brakes for a left turn, the tires of the Camaro screech. Trees careen past him, and he can just imagine their mouths falling open as they murmur to each other.
That boy again? I thought we'd seen the last of him! Look at him still driving like a maniac.
Yep, he thinks, chewing on his cigarette. Billy Hargrove never changes.
Thankfully, Max is damn good at giving directions. Though she and Susan have lived in this house for three years now, he's only seen the place once, and that was at night. It's broad daylight now, golden and May-bright, and nothing looks the same.
When he makes the last left turn, pulling onto a sleepy neighborhood street, he slows down till the engine of the Camaro drops to a purr. Suddenly his stereo’s unbearably loud. He turns it down, scanning the cul-de-sac ahead.
Goddamn, he hates cul-de-sacs. Who the fuck ever thought they were a good idea.
He catches sight of their house on the right. It’s a modest affair, single-story, with an equally modest front lawn. He remembers the countless times he pulled up to the house here in Hawkins, the place where that man lived. Biting down hard on his cigarette, he grips the wheel.
No, he’s not gonna think about that now. Neil Hargrove is gone. Fucking gone.
As he drives up to the house, he sees Max sitting comfortably on the front lawn, leaning back on her hands. Her hair is down, glinting copper in the May sun, and she’s wearing jeans and a bright yellow shirt. Next to her, looking far less comfortable, is another girl with long brown hair.
Billy scowls. The fuck is that? Did Max really bring a stranger to meet him on his first day in Hawkins?
He pulls up to the curb and stops. Max gets up from the lawn, grinning. The other girl gets up too, and as she stands to her full height, hair tumbling past her shoulders, Billy’s heart hits his ribcage with a thud. He plucks his cigarette out of his mouth.
Holy fuck. No way. No fuckin’ way.
He stares for a second before he realizes he’s staring. Tearing his eyes away, he throws the car in park and switches off the engine. Its rumble disappears along with his music, leaving him in silence. He takes a deep breath.
It’s fine, he tells himself. It’s fine.
He unbuckles his seat belt and steps out of the car. Slamming the door behind him, he flicks his cigarette onto the pavement. With another breath—more shaky this time—he turns to meet the girls.
They’re already bounding toward him. Well, Max is. She’s approaching too, but more calmly, almost shyly.
Max squeals, flinging her arms open. “Billy!”
He forces a smile. “Hey!”
She throws her arms around him. Shutting his eyes, he wraps her in a hug and makes himself forget the other girl. This moment belongs to Max. She fought so hard to get him to come back, and he’s not gonna let anyone ruin that. Not even her.
Max squeezes him tightly. Soon she pulls away and swipes at a tear in her eye.
“It’s so good to see you, Billy. So good.”
Before he can respond, the other girl walks up. She’s smiling with soft red lips and looking at him with brown doe eyes. Her hands are clasped in front of her, tugging at the material of her light pink sweater, which exposes her right shoulder. As he notes the way her collarbone curves flirtatiously out of sight, Billy cringes.
Ah, fuck. Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.
“El,” he huffs, hoping he doesn’t sound as choked as he feels. “Jesus. I almost didn’t recognize you.”
And for good reason. With each passing second, he sees something else that’s changed about her. The long hair, with the top half pulled back, was just the most obvious thing. Aside from that, she’s gotten taller; her figure has filled out in a way that tugs at his gaze; large hoop earrings are dangling from her earlobes, and she’s wearing makeup. Makeup. Sure, it’s subtle, doing little more than highlighting her dark eyes. But boy, does it fucking highlight them. Her eyelashes are thick and black, and he could swear she’s wearing eyeliner.
She smiles shyly, but it doesn’t suggest fear. It seems more knowing, more deliberate, like she’s holding something back.
“Hi, Billy,” she says. Fuck, even her voice is different. Deeper.
His mouth goes bone dry. Her eyes are smoldering, and for the first time he notices they’re not plain brown. They’re golden too, catching and refracting the sunlight.
All at once, he realizes why she’s here. In the old days, he would’ve suspected a more fun motive like oh yay, Billy's coming to town, I want to see him. But with the way she’s looking at him—the way she said his name—he knows she’s here for another reason entirely.
She didn’t just want to see him. She wanted him to see her.
A jolt shoots through him, waking up his skin, making it tingle. He swallows, blinking rapidly.
Move the fuck on, Hargrove.
Flashing her a hesitant smile, he turns to Max, the nearest person who can get him out of this mess.
Because this is definitely a mess. He can feel it already. Two trains are speeding toward each other on the tracks, and he’s standing right in the fucking middle.
--
Seeing him get out of his Camaro was like witnessing the return of a young god. If El hadn't been sitting in the grass already, she would've fallen on her knees. He was just so golden, exactly the way she remembered him. And when he looked at her, it felt like a lightning bolt falling from the sky.
Now she’s standing in front of him, and she can scarcely breathe. How do you breathe in the presence of a god when his very energy sucks you in and crushes you into dust? You don’t. You just claw at your throat and beg for mercy with your eyes.
Upon closer look, she sees his appearance has changed in some ways. His scruff is darker. His hair falls a little differently, and something in his face seems harder, sadder. But other than that, he looks just the same. He’s wearing jeans and a grey tank top, the same kind of thing he wore three years ago. His hair is still long and curly. He’s still wearing an earring and his Virgin Mary necklace, and he still has those black brows and lashes she came to love.
The earring draws her attention the most. It’s a small hoop, the same one he wore in ‘85-86—or, at least, it’s similar enough that it might as well be.
Suddenly she’s fifteen years old again, and red hot terror streaks through her body. Her hand aches to grab Max’s and squeeze as hard as she can.
Please tell me I didn’t make a mistake coming here!
She can’t say that, obviously. But Max seems to hear her anyway. She glances between them, then turns to Billy and smiles brilliantly.
“Hey. How about we go inside? Mom wants to see you too.”
“She’s here?” Billy frowns. “Doesn’t she work till five or something?”
“Yeah, but she got off early today.”
“Huh.”
Watching Billy’s face, El holds back a frown of her own. Is it really so surprising that people want to see him? It shouldn’t be.
He notices. He glances at her, blue eyes bright under black eyelashes, and it’s too much. Breath hitching, she looks away, then trails behind Max and Billy as they go up the sidewalk to the house. She tries to keep her gaze down, tries not to watch the swell of his shoulders under his grey tank top. But she watches anyway, tensing like she’s about to be struck down.
I shouldn’t be here. The thought echoes with every step.
--
He can feel her behind him as they walk into the house. She radiates energy like a heat lamp in an Indiana winter, and it drives him to distraction, keeps his eyes unfocused. He bites down hard on the inside of his cheek, hoping the pain will shock him to attention, but it doesn’t help. Nothing helps until he steps through the door.
The front door opens into a central living area with the kitchen on their left. In the kitchen, Susan’s pulling a covered platter out of the fridge. She looks up as they walk in.
“Billy, hi,” she says, smiling.
It throws him for a second. Her smile doesn’t seem too forced. Hell, if he didn’t know any better, he’d actually think she’s happy to see him.
“Hey, Susan,” he answers, strolling forward slowly.
This is always the worst part: figuring out if the person you’re greeting is a hugger. He and Susan never hugged in the old days. Not that she wasn’t interested in physical affection. She probably would’ve hugged him a lot if their relationship had been different. If he hadn’t been so fucking, murderously angry with her.
Now? He has no idea what to expect. Yeah, their relationship is at a high point, but given where they started, that’s not saying much. And yeah, he’s been gone three years, but they rarely spoke in those three years. The longest conversation they ever had was, “Hey, is Max home?” “I don’t know, let me check. No, she must be at Lucas’s.” “Okay, I’ll call back later.”
So do you hug this person? Billy can’t say. And for a moment, it looks like she can’t either. She just stands there, platter in hand, staring at him with wide eyes.
Then her posture relaxes. Setting the platter on the counter, she steps forward with an embarrassed smile, opening her arms.
Something growls inside Billy, the last remnant of the teenager who hated her guts. He shoves it down and steps forward to meet her. When she wraps her arms around him—gingerly, like she’d break him if she wasn’t careful—he makes himself wrap his arms around her too.
The hug lasts for two seconds at most. As soon as it’s over, she goes back to the platter, grabbing it like a shield, while he steps away toward Max.
Of course, his eyes have to land on the girl with long brown hair. And just like that, he remembers his problems extend far beyond Susan.
“How was the drive over?” Susan asks, tugging the plastic wrap off the platter.
“Oh, you know… boring,” Billy says. He moseys around the kitchen counter toward the dining table, away from Susan. Away from her.
“Well, that’s good. You never want a road trip to be too exciting.”
Aw, cute. Susan made a joke. Max and El laugh politely. Billy doesn’t.
“Um…” Susan slides the platter toward him. “I know you must be hungry, so help yourself. Just don’t eat too much, we’re having chicken for dinner.”
Billy checks the platter, which turns out to be a spread of meat and cheese. It looks damn good actually, but he’s not in the mood to eat. He can’t imagine trying to chew with a mouth this dry.
When he doesn’t say anything, Max jumps in. “How about I show you where you’re sleeping? And we can help you bring in your stuff?”
He wants to scowl at her. How much stuff do you think I brought? But he literally just got here, and he shouldn’t kick off his visit by antagonizing his sister.
“Sure.”
She turns to lead the way. As Billy follows, he crosses paths with El. They pull up short, and for the space of a single heartbeat he registers the pinkness of her cheeks, the way she gazes at him from under those thick eyelashes.
Then he steals a breath and strides forward, catching up to Max. His chest hammers like he barely avoided a head-on collision.
Max leads them to a door at the end of the hall. With a flourish, she pushes it open to reveal her room, much more decorated than it was the last time Billy saw it.
“You’re sleeping here,” she says, smirking. “Which means I get to sleep with Mom all week. So you better be thankful, dickweed.”
He walks in, not so much to see the space as to get away from the heat lamp at his back. As he looks around, he has to admit it’s a nice room—for a girl, anyway. The walls are yellow, of course, and decked out with posters. Her queen-sized bed is centered on the wall ahead of him, its headboard a stylish white wicker. To its left is a nightstand, and to its right is her dresser from the old house. On the wall to his left, he sees her old bookshelf with all her books and paraphernalia. In the center of that wall, white lace curtains waft in a breeze from the only window.
Not bad, he thinks. He’ll be comfortable here. The room even lifts his mood a little—until he remembers who else is with him. A thought stabs through his brain.
She'll know where I’m sleeping.
His gut twists in a mighty knot, sending a pulse of heat down his limbs. He sucks his teeth and keeps his back to the door, all too aware of the tension creeping into his shoulders. Can they see the muscles tightening as clearly as he feels it? God, he hopes not.
He turns to face them. Max has stepped into the room behind him. She hasn’t. She’s standing in the doorway, hand resting on the frame, and she’s watching him with the most scrumptious look in her brown doe eyes. Another pulse of heat swirls down his limbs, and his tongue darts out to wet his lips.
Fuck, she’s gorgeous. He can’t help but think it. El’s gotten fucking gorgeous over the past three years. He doesn’t know how, he doesn’t know why, but it happened, and now he has to deal with the consequences.
“Is something wrong, Billy?”
He blinks and looks at Max. She’s staring at him with a frown and very, very perceptive eyes.
“Ah… no,” he says. “It’s fine. It’s a… it’s a good room.”
She raises her eyebrows, alerting him to just how dumb he sounded.
Shit. He has to pull himself together right fucking now. He takes a breath, glancing around the room one more time.
“I’ll, uh, get my stuff. It’s just a suitcase, so… don’t bother helping.”
With that dumbass announcement, he heads for the door. He expects El to scurry out of the way; that’s what people usually do when Billy Hargrove is barreling toward them. But she doesn’t. She just puts her back to the doorframe, angling her body enough to let him through, but no more than that.
He sees instantly that he’ll have to slide right past her. It almost makes him stop in his tracks. But Billy Hargrove doesn’t stop for anyone, and that means there’s only one option.
Angling his body to mirror hers, he braces for impact.
--
After her panic on the front lawn, El spent the next couple minutes mentally checked out. She barely even heard the things Billy and Mrs. Mayfield said to each other. She was too busy talking herself down, rehearsing all of the lessons she’d learned over the past year.
I belong here. I deserve this. I can have what I want.
To her surprise, it worked. When she and Billy nearly collided at the counter, she had the strength to look him right in the eye. Amazingly, he was the one to buckle. Visibly catching his breath, he rushed forward before she could even blink.
She warmed with pride. That’s right, he should be the one to run. She belongs here in Hawkins, meaning he’s the one entering her territory.
As he wandered into Max’s room, followed closely by Max herself, El stepped forward to the doorway, resting her hand on the frame. The wood seemed to pulsate under her touch, pushing its life and strength into her. She drew it in gladly, taking a slow, deep breath, as if inhaling the scent of a flower.
I deserve this.
Eventually, Billy said something about getting his stuff and started for the door. Years ago, she would’ve fallen back into the hallway.
Not today. Today she stayed in the doorway, staring right at him. He hesitated for an instant, but then he kept coming, turning his body to squeeze past her.
Now they’re so close they’re practically touching, and she holds still, letting it happen. He radiates body heat and the smell of cigarette smoke. His elbow brushes her sweater, and she thinks she sees him glance at her bare shoulder.
It makes her stomach flip. As he escapes through the doorway, retreating down the hall, she nearly grins.
He saw her. He actually saw her.
When she turns toward the bedroom, Max is smiling wickedly. Walking forward, Max winds an arm through hers.
“What did I tell you?” she whispers.
El can’t hold back her grin anymore. Face heating, she ducks her head.
Max giggles and jostles her playfully. Her delight is contagious, and El finds herself giggling too. After years of crying, it feels really good.
“Just keep doing what you’re doing,” Max continues. “Don’t change a thing. I swear to God, I have never seen him stutter like that.”
--
Fuck, it was the best. It was the worst. She was so close he could feel her actual body heat. He caught a whiff of a scent too—something floral. As he slid past, his elbow brushed the soft material of her sweater above her belly. His gaze skimmed the flesh between her bare shoulder and her neck, and he imagined swooping in and nipping it with his teeth, just to hear what sound she’d make.
He didn't look straight at her, though. Hell no. That would've been fucking dangerous, like lightning striking dry grass.
By the time he stumbles out the door, his mind is reeling like it got sucker punched. The shock throbs through his body as he cuts across the lawn, stirring up old memories.
When he gets to the trunk of his car, he unlatches it and flings it up. He reaches in, grabs the handle of his suitcase, and stops. Head drooping, he shuts his eyes. Panic bubbles up inside, and with it, a hot wellspring of shame.
Fuck. He brings up a hand to cover his face. Fuck.
This is El. El. Four years ago, whenever she smiled, her canines poked out the way they do when the adult teeth have just grown in.
He takes a moment to breathe. Gradually, a cold resolve fills him, turning his body to stone. Opening his eyes, he yanks out his suitcase, then slams the trunk shut with a clang.
--
Three and a Half Years Ago
November 1985
“No, El. No. The word ‘uneasy’ describes ‘dreams.’ You follow me? So it branches off of ‘dreams,’ like this.”
Snatching the pencil from her hand, Billy draws a slash under the line saying dreams, then scribbles the word uneasy. He looks up, gesturing at the page, only to see El staring down at it helplessly. Leaning back in her chair, she covers her face with both hands.
A knot of frustration twists in his gut. Gritting his teeth, he leans back too, propping his wrists on his head.
He glances out the kitchen window of the cabin. Hopper’s out there somewhere, busying himself with yardwork that doesn’t need to be done. Billy rolls his eyes.
Dammit, Hop. Has it really been that long since you diagrammed sentences?
They sit at the table in silence. El’s close to tears, he can tell. And he doesn’t blame her. Teachers always said he could ace this shit if he tried. But it’s still dumb and complicated. And this poor kid went years without real schooling.
He looks at her. She still has her face in her hands, and she’s breathing slowly as she fights for control. Taking his wrists off his head, he leans forward.
“Hey. Let’s take a break or something. Go get a drink of water. I’ll go out for a smoke. Just…”
He sighs. He drops his voice to a softer tone.
“Just don’t let it get to you so much, okay? It’s just homework. Screw it.”
“You don’t understand,” she mumbles through her hands.
“What?”
“I said you don’t understand,” she says, flinging her hands down. He sees she’s been crying. Her eyes are red, and her cheeks shine with tears.
“I’ll never get it,” she cries. “I’m too behind, Billy. I always will be.”
Aw, shit, El. Apparently they’re gonna have a heart to heart over the kitchen table.
He raises his eyebrows, studying her with a look he hopes is compassionate but firm. “That’s not true.”
She meets his gaze, sniffling, then looks down at the table. He folds his arms and sits back, rolling his tongue in his mouth.
He’s about to deliver some brutal honesty. Well... brutal for him.
“El. You’re a smart kid. Wicked smart. And the fact that you’ve gotten so far so fast… it’s amazing. I mean, look at this. You’re diagramming a sentence from–”
Wait, who is this guy? He checks the page.
“–f-from fuckin’ Kafka,” he stutters. “Do you have any idea what that means?”
“No,” she murmurs.
“It means you’re in the big leagues. Alright? This isn’t you swinging at a tee ball. You’re in a real game, and you’re fuckin’ playing. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
She frowns. “What’s a tee ball?”
Christ. He keeps forgetting she doesn’t know things. He sighs and shifts in his chair.
“Look. All I’m saying is you should stop being so hard on yourself. Alright? You’re doing good work. Someday—someday, El—you’re going to catch up. And when you do, you’re gonna be brilliant. You hear me?”
She seems skeptical at first. She stares at him with a flat expression, her hands lifeless in her lap. But as they keep staring at each other, her expression melts until she's smiling. He smiles back, a weird warmth spreading through his chest.
"Okay." Clearing his throat, he stands up. "Um… get some water. I'll be back in a minute."
He passes her before she can get out of her seat. Pushing through the front door, he strides out onto the porch, where he lights a cigarette and glances around the yard. When he sees no sign of Hopper, a thought occurs to him, and he looks at the driveway.
Hopper's truck is gone too. Smirking, Billy shakes his head.
Idiot. He'll barrel straight into the mouth of hell for his daughter, but he won't stick around for English homework.
--
Present Day
Billy tucks into the meat and cheese platter after that. And even though he stuffs his face, blatantly disregarding Susan’s warning, he’s still starving once dinner comes around. As he sits down at the table next to Max—across from her—his mouth is watering like he never ate at all.
Dinner is roast chicken with sides of seasoned veggies. It’s a damn good spread, the kind he never gets around to making at home. He tackles it with so much gusto he barely talks. To his right, Susan looks at him as she eats, her face glowing.
Yeah, okay. You’re a good cook. Don’t let it go to your head.
Susan and Max carry on a conversation around him. El interjects every once in a while, but for the most part she doesn’t talk either. She just picks at her food and watches him eat.
He tries to ignore her. He looks at his plate, at Max, at Susan. Never at her. His efforts accomplish fuck-all. She won’t stop watching him with those brown doe eyes, and her bare shoulder—the one he imagined nipping with his teeth—seems to stare at him in accusation.
His body grows more and more tense. Finally he looks up, eyes hard, and meets her gaze. He takes a vicious bite of his drumstick, glaring at her as he chews.
Her eyes widen. Looking down at her plate, she stabs a string bean with her fork. He glares at her a beat longer before turning back to his food.
That’s right. Message fucking received.
Things get better immediately. She quits watching him so much, and when he finishes eating he’s able to start laughing and talking. It feels like a monkey fell off his shoulders and scampered away, and it’s a relief. A goddamn relief.
After dinner, they move to the living room for dessert and coffee, and they talk more. It’s actually kind of fun. He would never have expected that, not with Susan around. But… well. Absence makes the heart grow fonder. Before long, he’s totally relaxed on the couch, legs spread open, wrists propped on his head.
El barely speaks. She’s sitting in the chair across from him, the physical outlier of the group. She’s resting her cheek on her hand, and she’s always chewing her lip, looking hazily at the floor. Occasionally she glances up at him, and their eyes meet. He gives her a cool stare each time.
Move the fuck on, Eleven Hopper. Do you hear me?
She seems to, as clearly as if he’d screamed it. As the evening passes, she wilts like a flower. Part of him writhes in discomfort over it, but it’s a small part. The rest of him stares at her as coolly as ever.
This is necessary. It’s for her own good.
Not long after sunset, Susan drifts out of the room. Her exit seems to stir El from her dark thoughts. She takes her head off her hand and rises slowly from her chair.
“I need to go home.”
“Aw.” Max stands up, going to El for a hug. “You sure?”
“Yes. I’m tired.”
“Okay. You want me to drive you?”
“No, it’s fine.”
Feeling a prick of concern, Billy frowns. “You’re walking home in the dark?”
El pulls out of Max’s hug, giving him a surprised look. I always do, it says. Max turns to him with a far more impatient one.
“Uh, yeah. El has superpowers, remember?”
Oh, right. Good point. Still, as he shifts his gaze back to El—or rather, the dark-haired beauty that’s taken her place—an offer takes shape on his tongue. Let me drive you. It just feels like a good idea. After all, why tempt fate?
Then his breath catches, and he bites the words back. Jesus. In what reality would that be a good idea?
She’ll be fine. Like Max said: superpowers.
“Come on,” Max says. “I’ll walk you out.”
As they leave the living room, El glances back. “Bye, Billy,” she rasps.
“Bye,” he answers. Saying it feels wrong, and he has to swallow a knot in his throat.
They slip out the door. Exhaling heavily, Billy slumps into the couch, then digs in his pocket for his cigarettes.
Susan never liked it when he smoked indoors. Well, he didn’t give a fuck then, and he sure doesn’t give a fuck now.
--
Between El and Max, El’s the first one to walk out on the porch. Her eyes are stinging, her nostrils burning. When she hears the door close behind them, she turns, letting the porch light show her face.
Max takes one look and sighs.
“Oh, El.” She steps forward, drawing El into a hug. “It’s going to be okay. It’s just the first night. And we knew this wasn’t going to be easy.”
“I know.”
El pulls back. Her first instinct is to wipe her eyes. She’s surprised to find her lashes are dry, and her cheeks too.
Max rests a hand on El’s arm. “Here’s what you’re going to do, okay? You’re going to go home. You’re going to get some sleep tonight. Then you’re gonna get up tomorrow morning and try again. No matter what, you keep. Trying. Understand?”
El nods. Max squeezes her arm, then puts her hands on her hips.
“In the meantime, I–” she waggles her eyebrows “–will work on him. I’m telling you, there’s something here, El. He just needs a little help. And I am such a helpful sister.”
Like before, her mood is contagious. El smiles, matching the impish glint in Max’s eyes with one of her own. She has to admit, scheming with Max is a lot of fun. It always has been.
“Now, you head home,” Max says. “And we’ll talk tomorrow. Okay?”
“Okay.”
They hug again. This time it’s warm and lingering, and it gives El the strength she needs to back away from the porch.
“Bye,” she murmurs. Turning toward the darkness, she heads for the line of distant trees.
–
A/N | It only gets worse from here.
Please let me know you enjoyed this by commenting or reblogging!
–
Index
Chapter 2 >
#bileven#billy x el#billy x eleven#bileven fic#stranger things fic#stranger things au#stranger things fanfic#billy hargrove#el hopper#jim hopper#max mayfield#mike wheeler#assortedfruitsnacks212
20 notes
·
View notes
Text
Strange New Worlds Spoilers
So how far in the future were the Romulans from in this episode? Is it from Picard era? Is this another Romulan time travel thing blaming Starfleet for the Supernova like what created the Kelvin Timeline? (Nero specifically blamed Spock though)
Are they from the Temporal Cold Wars explored in Enterprise? Which was definitely farther in the future than Picard but not as far as Disco S3+. The thing she used to kill herself reminded me of the thing the Tal Shiar/Zhat Vash officers did in S1 of Picard except not quite so weapon-y. I know this isn't Zhat Vash I'm just saying it reminds me of Romulan tech from around the supernova and beyond that period of time which could lead back to Nero and the supernova (plus I mean they covered Khan in the Kelvin timeline although clearly differently than they do in this episode).
They mentioned Temporal Investigations which we know existed by DS9 era, although I got the impression they were much less getting-involved-y. Less "protect the timeline by actively preventing changes" and more "investigate time travel incidents of Starfleet officers to make sure they upheld the Temporal Prime Directive to the best of their ability" at least from how they were in Trials and Tribble-ations. Much less Crewman Daniels Time Agent-y where he goes around trying to preserve one specific timeline. Which means the Department of Temporal Investigations could later shift into the people fighting the Temporal Cold War stuff seen in Enterprise and this is an in-between state kind of?
Are the Romulans who the Future!Federation (what the Federation evolves into at least) at Daniels' time the main or one of the main enemies to Daniels' people during the Temporal Cold War? Does it have any connection to the Romulan drama going on in Picard era? We know from Disco that the Romulans and Vulcans reunify in the future after the Temporal Cold War(s). It seemed implausible that they were the main antagonists during that war to me. And the fact that Kirk was born in space like Kelvin!Kirk (but obviously not the same as AOS) and the Romulan thing kind of points to another Nero-like thing? Maybe?
How does this connect with like, Tallinn's people from Picard S2 that is implied to be the same time travel people as Gary Seven from TOS? Also I know Prodigy is canceled and probably won't have anything to do with this but I wouldn't mind seeing the Prodigy time travel mystery tie into this
Also, when did this take place in the past? Obviously early 21st century but like did they ever say a year?
Wasn't there an episode of TNG I think where there was some kind of time travel organization but it turned out the guy they encountered was lying about being a part of it and he stole the equipment from someone from the future but he was from the past? I don't remember that episode clearly enough to remember if the people he got it from could have been tied into this thing or not. I am way too tired to remember so many details about Star Trek's time travel stuff across all series.
#I am tired and if none of this may make any sense but I would love some input about how these things may connect#star trek spoilers#strange new worlds spoilers#snw#star trek: strange new worlds#strange new worlds#I loved this episode#star trek time travel#piecing the pieces together is fun but I'm wondering how much of these things connect and which are unconnected time travel mysteries#there are plenty of other time travel mysteries not involved in this
2 notes
·
View notes
Text
December 7th, 2021 2:09am
While I was writing Further Risks and Complications, I was going to add a collection of snippets of life in the Lin Kuei, in hopes of maybe catching some fluffy moments between the boys as they supported each other from adolescence into adulthood. But it quickly turned into Bi-Han slowly losing his sanity and humanity, and I had enough sad emoji faces in this series. And when I write Omega Kuai Liang too much, he ends up soft and OOC.
This one I may come back to someday - it was part of an idea that was going to evolve into something longer than I had time for. Once again, just a first draft that never got finished.
Lunchtime!
“Sub-Zero is bringing Tundra with him,” Cyrax announced.
Smoke raised an eyebrow, but Sektor didn’t look up from his food.
“You mean… here? Out in the open? With other people around?” Smoke asked.
“Yup.”
“Did he forget what a disaster it was last time he tried this? I don’t think I can take another meal restriction punishment,” Smoke complained.
“He’s not doing it because he wants to. Tundra is fifteen. He’s going out on his first solo soon, and the elders want to be sure that he can handle himself around other people,” Sektor explained.
“Well, here comes our favorite ray of sunshine and his little cloud now,” Cyrax said with a sigh. He couldn’t see this going well, but even Sub-Zero couldn’t ignore direct orders from the elders.
Bi-Han approached with Tundra behind him. He glared down at Sektor and demanded, “Move.”
Sektor rolled his eyes but got up and sat next to Cyrax so the cryomancers could sit together.
“Sit. Now.” That order was directed to his brother, who obeyed and kept his head low as he rubbed his eyebrows.
The pheromones they were both releasing were stressful. The angrier Bi-Han grew, the more fearful Tundra felt. Smoke could see that his right eye was bruised, and there was a swelling cut on his cheek. His hands stumbled as he peeled his orange, and he dropped it. His brother almost crushed it when he retrieved it and slammed it back on the tray.
Cyrax didn’t know what Tundra had done to piss Sub-Zero off, but he couldn’t help but feel sorry for the kid. It didn’t take much to get Bi-Han annoyed or angry, and Kuai Liang took it personally every time he was subjected to it. Cyrax’s attempts to bring this up had been… less than successful.
“Did Sub-Zero do that to you?” Smoke asked, touching his cheek. He had reached out before he even thought about it, and it got him a disapproving look from Cyrax.
Tundra jerked his head away at the contact and immediately turned to Bi-Han. “Could I return to our room?”
“You can’t fall apart every time an Alpha touches you,” Bi-Han snapped. “Answer his question.”
Tundra looked down at his food. “Yes.”
“Yes, what?”
“Yes, Bi-Han-”
“Sub-Zero.”
“Yes, Sub-Zero hit me.”
“And why did I hit you?”
“Because… because I didn’t respect your time,” he mumbled, rubbing his eyebrow harder.
“He’s your brother. Did you really have to hit him, Bi-Han?” Smoke asked.
Cyrax sighed, and Sektor just shook his head. Another round of Sub-Zero and Smoke arguing over Tundra. This was exactly what led to them all being put on meal restriction punishment the last time Sub-Zero had tried bringing his brother with him.
“Kiss my ass, Smoke. I know what works and what doesn’t with him.”
“Well, fuck you, Sub-Zero. All you know is locking him up and punishing him.”
#mortal kombat#MK omegaverse#sub zero#bi han#kuai liang#mk smoke#mk cyrax#sektor#Lin kuei shenanigans
6 notes
·
View notes
Text
Well, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet have been out for over a week now, so you know that means? New Poke Waifu season is in its full effect now! While you are all fantasising about Professor Sada (who I sadly will never see in my game because I picked Violet version) and instantly putting yourself on an FBI watch list with Iono, just by looking at this pic I had XJKenny draw for me you can already guess who my Gen 9 gal is. The head of the Paldean Pokemon League and now host to everyone’s favourite Marvel Symbiote Venom, Geeta. You know where I’m going with this! The moment I saw Geeta for the first time I instantly feel in love with her design. There’s just something about her design with the black outfit and blue gloves paired with her long black hair with blue and gold highlights and those gorgeous blue eyes and yellow… iris is it? I could be wrong about what that is since I know about anatomy about as well as Imortan Joe in Mad Max Furry Road is at knowing anything about Norse Mythology. Regardless of whatever they are Geeta is a beauty and I love her. Let’s be real, most of us knew she was going to be the champion before Scarlet and Violet even came out. You don’t have a super pretty girl like her in your game without her being the Champion thanks to previous examples like Cynthia and Diantha. Or even being a villain like Lusamine.
And now she has the Venom Symbiote! Not only giving her Venom’s powers of web swinging, super strength, and shapeshifting into different clothing (seriously, how many of you forget the symbiote can do that?) but she looks just as appealing as she does in her normal outfit. And can even be Paldea’s new vigilante super heroine if she wants. Considering half the crap that happens in this series from manipulative criminal’s guilt tripping everyone to release there Pokemon, narcissistic terrorists trying to restart the universe, two groups of eco terrorists almost screwing up the eco system fighting each other and a group that genuinely wants to commit mass genocide the Pokemon world sure as hell could use some superheroes! Paldea’s already got one with Symbiote Geeta! Or just lounge around in it looking sexy! Personally, I’d take advantage of the powers it would give me and go web swinging!
Artist is XJKenny. Since I’ve gotten a commission of a character from it and have been playing it since launch last week and I am known for being a Pokemon enjoyer, I guess I could give my brief thoughts on Scarlet and Violet. Not a full review but maybe like a minute or two of my thoughts. *Deep breath. *
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Let’s just get this out of the way right now. This game is broken! Like, really broken. Granted, some of the really awful bugs people have reported I’ve been lucky not to get but I’ve still seen Pokemon spawn in trees, gotten stuck on geometry while riding Miraidon, had the game ask me if I wanted to respawn even though I’ve only walked down a small flight of stairs, NPC’s walk though my Pokemon in one story vital battle I can’t talk about because spoilers and even had my game crash after a gym battle! Granted it was a Gym battle I sweeped pretty easily with my fully evolved grass starter but still. I haven’t played this game in co-op yet but apparently the bugs are worse there! I get why this game is as broken as it is. Gamefreak were essentially trying to make a game three times as big as Sword and Shield and Legends Arceus but either didn’t have enough time to iron out some of these issues or it was just two ambitious for the team who might not of worked on a game this big before. Personally, I feel like they should have just taken the L and delayed the game by a few months to iron out the bugs so that it could be as polished as it can.
Okay, putting the glitches aside do I think Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are good Pokemon games? Yes, I do! I love the direction they decided to take with the game this time opening up the game world to explore fully after getting though the tutorial area. It’s actually a lot like Zelda Breath of the Wild in a way. You can’t go straight to the final battle from the start like you can in Breath of the Wild but your free to explore the Paldea region. The trainers do have set levels though so you can’t just go to say, Eri who’s the strongest of the Team Star Bosses, and expect it to be easy. I do kinda wish the trainers would adjust to your level to really make it feel like the game is giving you more freedom but with how I played I did most of the stuff in the lower area of the map first and working my way up. That’s another thing, there are three separate paths you can take as well. Victory Road which is the classic Pokemon experience of fighting 8 gym leaders to take on the league, Starfall Street where you fight to take down the five bosses of Team Star and my favourite The Path of Legends not just because of the story around it but also because it’s about fighting Titan Pokemon which are stronger and bigger versions of normal Pokemon a lot like the Trials in Sun and Moon and as some you all might know already, Sun and Moon are my favourite mainline Pokemon games. Actually, I liked Starfall Streets story as well but it’s a reason I can’t talk about without spoiling why. Victory Road is fine, and the Gym leaders are great two but, and this is no doubt going to piss off a lot of people, but I actually think Sword and Shield had the best gyms in it because of how they were like this massive sport that the Galar region was super into and how the Gym Leader fights had crowds of spectators.
I’m a little mixed on the new Pokemon they introduced. On one hand I love the starter Pokemon and their evolutions, hell one of my favourites this gen is Sprigatio’s final evolution Meowscarada, the Legendries and some of the Paldein forms. On the other hand, there’s also ones like an actual tumbleweed and literally a car made of rocks and the incredibly phallic Paldein Dugtrio. Not to mention the new art style for in game. Not the official artwork for the game itself, that looks fine, I mean the models in game of the human characters. Sometimes they look fine to me other times they look off to me and I’m not sure if that’s a common thing to think but it’s how I feel. Again, gonna trigger people saying this but I think Sword and Shield has way better character models. Although, performance issues aside Paldeia looks quite lovely. I wouldn’t say this is the best-looking region nor my favourite but it looks good enough that I can’t help but say “Yeah, I’d take a vacation here.”
So anyway, that’s just my brief thoughts on Scarlet and Violet. It’s a great game with great ideas that really just needed a bit more time to be polished but hopefully as I’m writing this, they are working on patching this game. And hopefully it doesn’t take them a whole year or two to patch it and fix it! I’m looking at you Rockstar Games and the GTA Trillogy!
4 notes
·
View notes
Text
Movie Review | Wolfen (Wadleigh, 1981)
Albert Finney in this movie gives off the aura of a walking hangover. Surly, frown-faced, grizzled, the kind of person who might as well be using stale booze as cologne. And there’s a reason for that. Because he’s a not quite recovered alcoholic cop who’s returned to the force after personal troubles. I think one could step back from this character and see their background as a shortcut to giving the movie gravity, but there’s an undeniable lived in quality to his performance. Anytime he takes a sip as the case gets stranger, it carries a certain weight. (Apparently Dustin Hoffman lobbied for the role, but I think Finney was exactly the right choice.) And I think that’s pretty essential to the power of the movie, where we see a murder case take turns that begin to challenge his preconceived notions, and shake him to the core. The movie devotes an unusual amount of attention to the subject of Native American politics and identity, and in part this is the story of Finney’s character evolving how he engages with these, from a studious law enforcement perspective (he rattles off bullet points about the American Indian Movement) to coming to terms with a belief system that upends his own. I admit I’m not the most knowledgeable around this subject, but I was compelled by the movie’s curiousity about this subject.
And while this would likely be a good movie were it just the Albert Finney show, I think there are a number of very good supporting performances. The best is Gregory Hines as an animated coroner, who may seem like he’s having too much fun with this case, but makes a nice lively counterpoint to the more sullen Finney, and if you squint, you can see that he’s using humour to cope with what’s otherwise a pretty grim job. This is a movie with a very heavy atmosphere, but seeing these two work together is a lot of fun. Also, he shows off his karate moves, which pushes this into automatic good movie territory even if we put aside all the movie’s other virtues. There’s also Tom Noonan as an eccentric zoologist whose expertise is key to cracking the case, but whose curiosity maybe gets the better of him. I also perked up when I saw James Tolkan, who has a more jovial demeanour than usual but otherwise is his expectedly flinty self. There’s also Edward James Olmos as a Native American ex-con, who challenges Finney with his resolve. This is not a werewolf movie, but Olmos briefly pushes the movie in that direction, going beast mode as he runs around buck naked and flailing in the middle of the night. If anything, Diane Venora as Finney’s partner is saddled with the most thankless role, as she’s a bit of a sounding board for Finney, but I still found her performance pretty engaging.
This is directed by Michael Wadleigh, best known for another hairy classic, Woodstock. One might be tempted to draw his sympathetic hippie portraits in the earlier movie with the offbeat character detail and sense of cultural flux, but what’s really surprising about this movie is how surely he takes to the horror genre. Much of the movie is set in ruined sections of New York intended to be cleared for new development, and the sense of decay creates a certain graveyard atmosphere, where death hangs over the proceedings. It’s interesting to see pre-cleanup New York provide a very different sense of atmosphere than the crime-infested sleaze movies often mine it for. But this also feels in sync with the rhythms of the city, where one wonders how much stranger these events are than what usually goes down here. (It feels similar to Q: The Winged Serpent, another recent viewing of mine thanks to the Criterion Channel’s ‘80s Horror series.) But lest we think this is just slow and brooding, this is also coloured with a pleasing sense of forward momentum, punctuated by roving tracking shots with a thermographic effect that anticipates the Predator movies (this is basically a less racist Predator 2), a pleasing amount of gore, and a climax with maulings, severed body parts and a very satisfying explosion.
2 notes
·
View notes
Text
Alright everyone I'm back and continuing my Strange Variant series! Today we're doing Defender Strange's team, or as I like to call them, Team Defender. As a quick side note I've pretty much decided that all Strange variants have at least one sort of "cute" Pokémon who serves more like a pet or mascot than a fighter. Yeah I have no excuse except I wanna see Benedict Cumberbatch with cute Pokémon.
Don't judge me.
That all being said, let's take a look at:
Team Defender!
1. Talonflame
I'm pretty sure you can guess why I put talonflame on the team. It's the bird motif man, and it's strong here. Talonflame is Defender's lead Pokémon, and his fastest. However its not his strongest. This bird is brash, bold, and unafraid to put any Pokémon or supernatural entity in their place.
2. Haxorus
Hax is the only surviving member of Team Defender, sadly. I love the idea of Defender Strange with a dragon, but I wanted him to have one that wasn't necessarily goofy looking or over the top. Hax is imposing but has a surprisingly gentle nature despite his appearance and ferocity in battle. He becomes something of a Guardian to America Chavez, integrating into her team of mostly fighters and fairies. Hax sticks out like a sore thumb and he's okay with that.
3. Delphox
Okay maybe there's a little bit of a fire motif with this team too, because this one was a toss up between Delphox and ninetales. Delphox won because she's part psychic as well, and I like the idea of Stephen having a psychic type in every universe. It may also come as no surprise that Delphox is also the most magically gifted of Team Defender.
4. Mightyena
Every team has a dark side and mightyena is kinda the representation of Defender's inner darkness, perhaps even a foreshadowing of what he becomes later in Multiverse of Madness. Mightyena is brave, loyal to the core, and evolved surprisingly quickly. He's usually there to help the team get out of serious trouble, seeing his comrades as his family/pack.
5. Lucario
We all know Stephen's all about the auras, and what better Pokémon to pick up on those than Lucario? He's a direct rival of the Delphox, believing more in physical might than magic. I believe this was his second pokemon, potentially hatched from an egg, so Defender feels a very close kinship to his Lucario, and the feeling is very much mutual.
6. Zigzagoon
Like wooloo I have no excuse. I love this Pokémon, and for some reason I feel he just vibes with defender Strange. Seen oftentimes riding around on his shoulder or on mightyena's back, zigzagoon is a little adventurer. He loves to travel and do things with his friends. He's not very strong but he's the sort of heart of Team Defender.
And that concludes Team Defender! I'll be doing Supreme Strange (838 Strange) next time! Thanks for reading and don't forget to stay awesome!
#pokemon#marvel#crossover#pokemon crossover#pokemon teams#pokemon team#dr. strange#defender strange#zigzagoon#lucario#delphox#mightyena#haxorus#talonflame
3 notes
·
View notes
Text
Blue Birthday - Overall Review
It did take me a long time to complete this drama, as I didn’t have much time for watching and reviewing anything when I started working again. So I feel my overall review might be incomplete, but I still wanted to make a post on my impressions for whoever is unsure about wether to watch or not. I will try to be as objective as I can, even though my memory might be a little failing.
Plot
The story revolves around a woman named Oh Harin who went through the traumatic event of losing her best friend and crush Ji Seojun during high school. Someday, ten years later his passing, she receives his old camera and a film of pictures he took. Or maybe did she get both the pictures and the camera? I’m not sure about the details anymore, but it isn’t really relevant at this point. Anyways, she ends up discovering that by burning the pictures, she can travel back in time. Even though years have passed by, she still hasn’t had closure with Seojun’s death. She can’t believe it was suicide, so while in the past, she decides to investigate to save her friend whom she missed all those years. So the whole series revolves about time travelling through the pictures and figuring a way for Seojun to live, while finding out the reasons of his death.
For me, the plot was solid until we hit the middle of the series and then it kind of went astray. It was pretty consistant before that and while not being super innovative, it was still a little different than what I have seen in the past. Unfortunately, I would say the direction they took for the last eight episodes ran in circles far too long. There weren’t so much explanation where it was needed and to me that was a very poor choice because there was a lot of material to be exploited there. There were too many clichés for me. If only for the first half, this drama would have got a pretty good score plot wise, but I can’t give it more than a 6/10 with the way it turned out.
Acting
Since I watched most episodes with long periods between them, this will be based only on the last six episodes or so, I really can’t remember the acting from the beginning. Without being extraordinary, it was very decent. The characters were annoying when they had to, cute at the right moment. Big shout out to Kim Yiseo as Ji Hyemin, she really made me invested in her character even though the script wasn’t doing justice to her. I have been disappointed by this character, but really not because of the acting, because she was fantastic from the beginning to the end, even though when it made no more sense. As for Yeri and Yang Hongseok, they both did a pretty good job, they got me emotional at some points in the story thanks to their skill and I appreciate that. I give it a 7/10.
Other
I won’t be commenting on the soundtrack and the visuals of the drama, as I don’t have an overall view of it since it took so long and it would be unfair not to judge it on the entirety of the series. However, I would like to mention that I really liked the short format of the episodes, the story had a lot of rythm thanks to that and there were no moment that was slow paced.
Do I recommend or not?
I can’t really make my mind on that topic. I really liked the beginning of the drama, I was super invested in the story, the plot was enticing and it was overall quite interesting. However, it went downhill when we reached half of the series and it felt more of an obligation to watch than something I really wanted to. Maybe that’s one of the reasons watching dramas weren’t a priority even though so many came out and I was interested into seeing. There are a lots of good points to this drama, but a even amount of failures too. Since it’s short episodes too, there isn’t much time for character growth. They do evolve, but they are pretty much the same from the top to the end.
I would say I would recommend it if you are looking for something to entertain yourself and that goes by quickly. Each episodes are only 20 minutes or so, so it’s really easy to watch it in a one sit if you don’t write reviews as I do or to start before going to work. You don’t need to be too concentrated to watch, because even though the subject is a little dark, the storyline isn’t too complicated. So it’s a good story to have your brain half relaxing, half active in my opinion.
However, this wouldn’t make to my absolutely must watch list. Had I known how the story would unravel, I probably wouldn’t have spent the time on it. It isn’t that it’s poorly written, it’s just that I was really disappointed with how much potential it had to be great and how much they took the safe path instead of exploiting everything great about it.
Overall, it’s a 6/10 for me on this series. I hope this review helped you see clearer about it and let me know your thoughts if you ever watch it or if you felt the same way if you already did!
List of full recaps
1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / Special
#blue birthday#yeri#yang hongseok#lee sangjun#park joohyun#kim yiseo#kim gyeolyu#kdrama#k-drama#korean drama#drama review
1 note
·
View note
Last Seen Blogs
uchihasasukes
ninja aesthetic
doverpublications-blog
Dover's Cabinet of Curiosities
astrob-oy
pictures
uchihasasukes
ninja aesthetic
haydenlongfirstperson
First Person Game