I have lamented quite often about the use of cgi in anime particularly in mecha anime. Mostly because in my subjective opinion it looks like complete dogshit that gives my eyes tumours whenever I look at it for too long.
The defence rolled out is that while regrettable its cheaper than animating in 2d and the mecha genre is hardly at its peak in the current era.
My problem is that I have found no evidence of it being the case in regards to American animation the only benefit 3d animation has (at least according to what I've found out) is that its faster to produce in comparison to 2d animation.
For example The Lion King(45 million dollars) took 4 years to make but the Incredibles(92-145 million dollars) only took 1 year.
To give a somewhat modern example (2019 was five years ago after all) the netflix Christmas movie Klaus which was done entirely in toon boom cost 40 million dollars to make but into the spider verse cost 90 million and the first despicable me cost 69 million (nice).
The hiccup I'm having is thsy I can't find out how much it costs in Japan because for some reason anime films and TV shows are more than a bit cagey about their budgets so I'd like to know where the evidence is that 3d animation is cheaper than 2d for anime because I've been finding evidence of the opposite in regards to American animation.
Now to be fair the first toy story film cost only 35 million dollars to make but I consider that the exception rather than the standard as directly after that the budgets climbed higher and higher with A Bugs Life Pixars second film cost 40-120 million dollars to make.
If I am wrong then I am wrong please provide websites and articles that I can read for myself so that I can educate myself on this.

A homeless teenager reaches out to the Shil’vati on first day of the invasion of Earth.
Credit to: who has beta read just about every chapter, and the only reason it's readable half the time
u/bluefishcake for writing the original SSB story.
Pizzaulostin who has been beta reading since the beginning.
Credit to u/HollowShel for getting me started with this!
This story is based in the SSB universe.
Previous
First
Chapter 33:

Reqellia:

It was the darkest part of the night, and yet I could hear the energetic commotion of Ruhal blearily heating up food for a famished human along with the clinks of dishes and silverware.
“One more day.” I felt glued to the bench as I stared back into the silver mask I hadn’t worn for almost [twenty-five years] prior, and had hoped never to put on again. I cursed my old girlish wishes when I first joined up, wanting to be a war hero, and then a mother afterwards. To grow old and see my own child in uniform. I had even wanted a son since I was already demanding the impossible.
I never believed in the gods, but now I’m sure that I’ve tempted Niosa to grant my wishes, but only after I made my peace with them that they would never come true.
Klein bounced around the suite’s kitchen, eating enough for two Shil women and already wearing his armor’s underlayment. The chair creaked a bit as he sat, his own horror-show mask on the dining table next to him staring back at him unblinking.
And It was a horror show.
He’d wake up cheerful and happy, and I’d watch over the day as every bit of his energy was drained out of him. The daily exercise routine of a morning run and gym day in a month being performed in a few short hours. Every time Klein finished a trail faster, or performed a more grueling task, the trainers would make him do even more as his contract offers rose another level.
I didn’t blame the instructors, it was their job to challenge each applicant, but Klein blew through all their expectations, so they just kept piling more onto him. Many of those same instructors had asked me if they were pushing him too far, but all I could do was shrug. Even I didn't even know where his potential ended.
I blinked and looked up. He was in his full armor now, with only the mask off.
“Ready to go?”
I nodded and stood up, quickly heading over to Ruhal, who in turn looked at me with sleep deprived eyes. Worn out as I was, he was worse, playing subject matter expert on all things human around a bunch of high ranking officers desperate for information not tainted by censorship.
“Stay safe out there,” he politely ordered as he kissed me.
I kissed him back and held his hand. “You too.”
Sighing,I left to let him rest, popped my back, and donned my own mask.
As Klein paced the door, I begged for safety. “One more day, please let everything be okay after today.”
I shouldn’t have tempted Niosa again.

Itaro:

I quietly padded out of the children’s den to a chorus of snoring from my siblings. The well carpeted securely fastened to wooden floors muffled my footsteps. I opened the large storm shutters and then pulled open the sliding glass door to the patio. I couldn’t sleep anymore, excitedly bouncing from one foot to another.
Klein and Reqellia were coming home tonight! Reqellia had sent me her contract offers that came from a dozen different Imperial departments and bureaus. Dad already agreed years ago she could move in with us, a pack sister was always welcome. Now she wouldn’t feel like a burden if she had to.
And Klein… Well, I wouldn’t be bothered by a few love-marks.
“I see that smile. Excited?” I heard my father’s deep voice like distant thunder. I turned around to his massive form only a few steps away. We both had learned to walk silently when my siblings were just pups and the discovery that they were light sleepers had been made.
I felt my ears droop just a little to see his melancholic face. He had gone out of his way the last few weeks to spend more time with just me now that I had a pack of my own. There was always a soft smile on his face, but the way his tail hung low to the floor was a dead giveaway on his mood.
I tried to cheer him up. “I am. It’s been weeks since I got to speak to Au’tes, and Klein…” I trailed off, the insinuation clear. He smirked. He had met Klein in passing, but I wasn’t bringing him home yet. Hario on the other hand had made one or two bawdy jokes at the dinner table after a second glass of her favorite liquor.
First time Klein spends the night, you might want to check up on Itaro, make sure she didn’t keel over from exhaustion.
“At this rate I’m going to have to teach you sword fighting to beat back other male suitors from poaching you for their own packs!” My father joked. Stepping off the patio landing, he hit the ground noiselessly, bending his legs to absorb the shock.

After letting out a quiet grunt indicative of an age he tried to keep hidden, he turned around and looked back up at me. “Want to come with me for a walk?”
I jumped down and followed him into our little patch of forest my mother’s terraforming job paid for. The early morning was already warm without a cooling vest, but not intolerable. The chirping of birds and the soft whistle of wind tinged with just a hint of salt made everything feel fresh.
It was like when I came home from school and my father would stop construction for the day. We’d explore the forest, play on the beach, go into town for groceries.
Except now my father didn’t run and have me chase him. He carefully inspected the trees for pests, and our conversation was far more practical than whimsical. “Your mother’s coming home next month. Can you write her a message before she meets Klein, just so she has a better idea of your pack?”
I nodded. “Of course. How long is she going to be home this time?”.
Her terraforming jobs always lasted months, if not years. I never faulted her for the huntress life, but it made connecting with her difficult. She was more a guest of honor than a mother to the household, always bringing a fatted Sou’ta carcass home as a present, but rarely cleaned dishes, or the house.
Or really any chore…
He shrugged before crouching next to a felled tree, trimming away small branches for kindling with a tiny hatchet he hand pulled from his tool pouch. “Might be a good long while this time. The last message I got said her department only had small projects and a few hazard jobs on the periphery. Besides, we might need an extra set of hands more than the money now.”
I scoffed. “Her, a house mother!? No offense, but mom is a terrible cook, and a worse caretaker. Remember the time she nearly burned down our kitchen boiling water?”
He laughed with me as he pocketed the hatchet. Standing up with two sticks, and then threw me one. I caught it as he swung his own stick in my general area. “Defend yourself! I did say I needed to teach you sword fighting. How else are you going to fight off possessive men when they realize what a catch you are?”
He didn’t teach anything but how to rough house on a lazy Shel morning.
We played and swung the flimsy branches until I accidentally hit him square in the chest. The branch, already crumbly and dry, disintegrated on impact. It didn’t stop him from dramatically acting out a death scene. Falling to his knees in an overly theatrical fashion. “Oh, woe is me! Cut down by my own daughter in cold blood!”
I let him pretend to be on stage for a few moments longer before standing over him to offer a hand. He took it, and then yanked me down to the grassy patch, holding me for a long, quiet minute. “I’m going to miss you.”
For the first time I noticed the stray white hairs around his muzzle, I knew what he meant, but I tried to play it off. “I’m not going anywhere.”
He just held me for a silent heartbeat longer, then let go and stood up.
He proclaimed cheerfully to mask his wet eyes. “Now, let’s get you cleaned up. You can’t look like a pup out of a mud bath for your victorious pack! I even scheduled a visit at Tulo’s for a haircut. Ruhal’s treat.”
My mind played with potential futures as we headed home. Between the three of us, we could write our own life together. Maybe I could even stay close to home.
I looked up to the rising light.
“One more day!”

Klein :

The mountains of gear and equipment around us were illuminated by harsh flood lights. We stood in formation with each person, regardless of species, showing physical signs of exhaustion. Drooping shoulders and bent knees, unfocused and slow eye movement.
Instructor Li’kele was wearing full battle rattle today, complete with a compact lasrifle holstered to her leg.
“Good morning applicants! It’s the last day of selection! Your assignment will be to support your sisters in the combat section in the wargames! You see all this critical equipment? Our first assignment will be to load all of it on auto-turoxes and hover-wagons. Unfortunately we don’t have enough capacity , some of you will need to carry gear on your person as we make the [ten mile] trek into the forest. Applicants 849, 734, 236 and 953 step up after we finish loading! You are our extra carriers.”
I knew I was going to be picked. It was easy to not let it bother me though. Reqellia had explained that the instructors were just trying to push us to our limits, and every extra duty and handicap meant a better contract with a brighter future.
Still, after hefting thousands of [pounds/kilos] of stuff onto the squat legged drone’s cargo cages and the little platforms that would float once powered, dread formed in the pit of my stomach as an entire counter-battery system was cinched onto my person. I trudged as we formed up for our road march.
The combat selection team rolled in as we took positions, already covered in mud from what I could guess was their own morning fun, their las-rifles at the low ready. Their own instructor, a severe looking Hyena-like Kortika woman with fur that trimmed short and smooth. She yelled out orders to the gaggle of applicants under her command. “Form on either side of the supply train and defend them at all costs! If they get shot because you weren’t doing your job, then it’s your ass that will be carrying the extra gear!”
We marched out of the base, clinking and clunking as we traveled uphill. The weight wasn’t too bad now that it was evenly distributed on my body, but it would be hell taking it off and putting it back on anytime we stopped.
“Isn’t that the new shock trooper ? What’s he doing with the non-combat selection?” I heard one of the combat applicants say idly. It was easy to pick up conversation in the nearly silent dawn as we marched on a dirt path extending across an expanse of grassland in the reddening sky. It was really pretty, watching the light play on the green forested hills in the distance.
Their Instructor sidled up to the commenting girl silently, ears swiveled back in anger. She grabbed her shoulder, growling low. “Cut the chatter, girl. ”
Silence followed for the next hour in the pre-dawn light.
We got the first taste of the wargames when red beams bolted over our heads and dropped one of our auto-turoxes. “Everyone get down!” yelled one of our instructors, and I threw myself on the path.
With all the weight on me, the impact on the ground hurt . I looked up and saw red beams blink in and out over me. Their flashes brought back memories.
The red glow through convenience store windows . An alien invasion.
I blinked furiously and turned my head to see what was going on with the combat teams on the sides of the road. They had already taken out two of the ‘raiders’ who stood up, hands in the air as they walked away. Another minute clicked by before a squad decided to double check the tall grass and found a third raider hiding. All had the insignia of the instruction cadre commandos.
“Everyone, up !” Instructor Lik’ele belted out in a two-word shout, and I had to push up off the ground, creaking under the weight. My arms burned as I got to my knees, then raised a hand and called out, “assistance!” One of the unnumbered girls gave me a hand to steady myself, and I rocked a bit trying to stand.
“Thank you,” I said, but between the voice distorter and my mask, the girl backed away as soon as I was up, fear registered in her eyes.
[At the bus stop, a classmate backed away from me. scared of me for some reason mumbling ‘you're bleeding’. Warmth on my upper lip, a coppery taste.]

I shook my head, trying to banish the weird memory surfacing, I hadn’t had a nosebleed since I left Earth. I looked back up, but the girl had already gotten back in formation and we started moving again.
It wasn’t quite noon when we stopped for lunch. I got help removing my kit, and stretched to work out the kinks. Reqellia stood next to me as I sat down on the hard packed surface. I took off my gloves, and jammed them under my chest holster.
I was technically ‘armed’ right now. We had gotten the thirty-minute las-pistol training yesterday on how to safely handle them, and then ran through a quick range. They were nothing more than glorified laser pointers though. They could lock up a suit set to respond to the laser signal, but they wouldn’t so much as redden skin otherwise.
Reqellia had let me in on their real purpose, to see if we could be trusted with a dangerous object and not play with it.
Eating was a pain, I had to lift my mask halfway up and eat blind. The meal pack was cold, but eh, it was food. Goddess, I was hungry.
“How are you holding up?” Reqellia asked, the silver mask obscuring any expression, and the voice distorter deadening any intonation, but by the angle of the head tilt, I could guess the question was more concern than curiosity.
“It’s not too heavy, but it’s awkward trying to move around,” I admitted as I put my mask back in place and pulled out my omni-pad. I tried not to boggle at the contract offers I was getting. It was a straight up bidding war, including furnished houses, years of leave after an initial stint, even minor titles.
Ruhal had helped me, even filled out the forms himself with less than a day for submission. He had also messaged me about the fine print of many of these absurd offers. The watch word was ‘Relocation’.
“They will send you back to Earth. Right now, you are the only human any department can recruit who might know an obscure piece of human signage or culture that got skipped during their culture crash courses, has the physical ability to keep up during an operation, and they can implicitly trust it is loyal to the Imperium.”
I scrolled past the too-good-to-be true proposals and to the ones without relocation, not ridiculously overpaying, but still plenty. Maybe I would follow Ka’tel into ICAD, or…
“We need to get moving!” Li’kele barked and I signaled for help again. This time Au’tes was ordered to help me with my gear. Now seeing her up close, she was definitely worse for wear. She smiled, but it was the kind of tired smile that had almost no energy in it. Her usual well controlled movements were slurred by exhaustion, and she leaned on me after buckling the packs on my shoulders, her own extra gear was a large backpack of energy cells.
“Damn, girl runs away in fear from combat selection after spending years in the militia and now plays valet. Bet whatever is underneath that suit is more would eat her alive if unmuzzled,” I overheard one of the combat applicants snicker. Au’tes winced, just a bit, at the barb from her former youth militia group.
“Lift your visor.” I said. It was dumb, it was really dumb, but I wanted to give her at least a reminder of what she had that they didn’t. Au’tes had a flicker of confusion, but flipped up the visor on her suit’s helmet.
I lifted my mask just enough to kiss her. It was honestly a gross kiss and wished I could have brushed my teeth beforehand. But when I dropped my mask down there was the manic Au’tes again, full of energy and gusto. I looked past her to the shocked combat applicants. I put my finger to roughly where my mouth was and whispered in my distorted voice, “No one will believe you.”
Au’tes brought her visor down and squeezed my hand for a second longer before leaning in close “Thank you for letting me know you still exist under there.

Reqellia:

The dirt trail up the hill was easy enough for my legs. I stayed in the same general area as Klein, but with my augments I already had his pinpoint location and medical data, I could even access his helmet camera. I didn’t want to get in his way while the instructors gave him snap secondary tasks to complete on our journey up to the outpost location.
I kept myself entertained by listening in on the comms chatter that I could pick up on the wargames going on about us at large. I had enjoyed playing the no-holds-barred opposing force when I was a commando on rotation here.
Right now there was a particularly fun little drama going on up north of our location. A mechanized assault unit tasked with taking out an anti-orbital battery got one of their exos stuck in mud because of a poor assessment of the ground composition. The armored crane they had first ordered to pull it out was now also stuck.
The Lieutenant was trying to get an exception to the wargame rules to bring a drop ship in to pull them both out, but the higher-ups told her to figure it out. The whole point of these wargames was to discover how things could go wrong. The Lieutenant tried to pull title to overrule them, only to get a nasty conversation from her commander.
A small beep from my monitoring systems told me Klein’s heart rate had slowed and I looked up to see the front of the supply train had been ordered to halt. Up ahead was the “fort,” a clearing on top of the hill with nothing but some half buried holes.
The Kortika woman got to the front of the formation and gave her orders. “Listen up! Combat selection is going to set up a perimeter while the Auxiliary builds us a structure safe enough to hold during an assault. All weapons are going ‘live’, but for those in the non-combat teams I will again warn you to only use them in self-defense. If you wanted to shoot people for a living you should have signed up for it.”
I tried not to flinch as I watched Klein and his compatriots start to offload all the gear they had packed this morning and attempt their best effort at setting it up with basic instructions from Li’kele and the manuals that came with the equipment. Just another test to see how the applicants would handle the technical situation.
At this point they were at their limit, physically and mentally exhausted as they tried to bolt frames together, wrestle antennas, install expandable barriers, and put together the foundations of a forward operating base.
Klein had all but given up on the counter battery system he schlepped here and handed that responsibility off to a Senthe Boy while speaking a rough northern dialect of Satenthia. The boy was more than happy to talk to someone who knew even a few words of his native tongue.
I opened a small window on my HUD and watched with amusement as the early contract offers rose and fell. Klein’s offer from naval engineering, already paltry compared to other, more suitable jobs, dropped to barely above standard. Intelligence and Law branches, however, rocketed upwards again.
I could almost hear the recruiter’s comments as the numbers and terms changed. Does not have familiarity with Shil military equipment. Comfortable with speaking multiple languages. Works well with multiple species.
I watched them work. Klein, in usual Klein fashion, pushed himself. After getting the counter battery laser hooked up, he volunteered for other physically demanding tasks. Pile driving in the foundations that hold the columns of the structure. The rhythmic thump gave me ghost aches when I had done the same thing out in the periphery while getting pot shotted by roaches.
I shook my head. It was going to be another rough night for him by the way he was bunching up his shoulders as he braced the handheld pile driver. Thankfully, tomorrow he’d be home and with an appointment with Cee who might force him on bed rest for the next month.
I started to chuckle at the thought of how protective Itaro was going to get after taking one look at Klein. I came back from deployment once missing three fingers from a plasma grenade and Bahtet waited on me and foot, wouldn’t so much as let me handle a kitchen knife until they were replaced later that month.
A few stray red beams were thrown our way, even a flash bang or two from the commandos tasked with harassing us came and went. As the ramparts of the temporary base were finished, I took up station on the second level to oversee the whole complex. Klien was working with a combat team, helping them put a second defense line in. They had driven stakes into the ground to support parallel knee-high thermocast plates with an arms-length gap between them, which Klein was filling in with dirt to act as a wall and platform for the heavy, crew served lasgun.
I was thankful there would be a shuttle to pick us up soon. I played the opposing force for Selection a few times, and I still remembered the script. Right now we were in a lull that would last until dusk, then at least three full commando teams would assault the base. The battle would be made as realistic and demanding as possible with creeping dark to add to the complexity.
The Selection team would always be wiped out, but it was how they performed against overwhelming odds that would shift the contract offers that last bit before everything was locked in place.
I heard the whirr of a counter battery system swiveling around, and then the crackle of it firing. I turned to see what it was aiming for but all I saw was a cloud of smoke . Then a fast moving object came through the cloud before I heard the crackle again and another exploded .
Blanketing everything in a tar-black fog .
My stomach dropped. This wasn’t the cadre commando team, and they were attacking too soon. I got on the comms with Li’kele “HALT, HALT, HALT! We need to stop the exercise!”
I got a crackle on the comms. Then Li’kele’s voice came in that terrifyingly calm voice used to keep control of a combat operation. “I can’t get a signal out, I need a report on the situation.”
Instead of trying to explain I sent her my video feed as I jumped down from the ramparts and started to sprint for Klein. I needed to get him out of here , but I hadn’t had time to prime my augments. I started the cold power cycle as I cursed myself for letting my guard down.
I was already too late . I watched as our own counter-battery laser weapons were used against us, acting as the triggers for each smoke grenade engulfing Klein’s team right in front of me, their signal dropping right out. I got a response from Li’kele that alleviated at least some of my terror. “Dammit! It’s the 171 st Raiders from the wargames, they mus-”
And then I was enveloped in darkness and static. The smoke was so thick I could only see a few paces away in all spectrums. I tried my internal radio and….
Nothing. I was alone and with nothing to guide me, and then I saw to the right of me a few weak beams of red, and then a ball of light of a simulated explosion. I let my gnawing panic subside and walked their way with a observers flag in my hand. I was practically on top of them before I saw the combat selection team that had been ‘killed’, their frowning faces and hands up as they sat there grumbling.
The Raiders appeared soon after. A four woman squad. Two Helkam, a Rakiri, and a Shil’vati hefting a large antiquated grenade launcher. I called out “Do you have a way to call a emergency stop to the battle?”
The squad leader responded. “Did someone get seriously injured? I can fire off a flare and our medic teams will be here to extract them.”
“No! This is Selection, we aren’t supposed to be part of the Wargames.” I argued, but she waved me off.
“We got orders to assault the base up here. Trust me, our commander is mighty pissed at getting tasked with a frontal assault on the youngest and toughest the Imperium has to offer, with adding insult to injury if we lose to kids. That’s why we broke out the smoke screen.”
“One of the Selection members is the first of their species. Higher ups want them monitored at all times,” I partly lied.
The gears whirred and the team lead brought her weapon up again, eyes a little wider. “ Blue Eyes is here? Shit, girls ready up and head on a swivel!”
The team reformed in a circle facing outwards, a tactic specifically meant for ambushes and roach suicide drones. I stood there, confused. “Blue eyes?”
The team lead started to move into the smoke again, but explained, her eyes darting around. “Yeah, the freaky creature in the mask, toyed with an unmanned Exo before annihilating it with a shipcutter! A close quarters combat specialist with heavy armor and a real mean streak . You’re telling me they’re loose in a forest with enough concealment to sneak up on us and tear us to shreds? Ma’am the only ones in immediate danger are us. ”

This seems like the logical place to share my concerns. Please let me know if this should be on a different reddit.
Last night I was playing around on Suno, an AI music making website, and I came across a strange song. It was simply titled "The short song". The music was Alternative genre making the disturbing lyrics seem interesting. The narrator of the song gets arrested after an apparent gunshot opens the song. I continue exploring this genre when I come across more disturbing songs and I realize they are from the same user. I then go to their page, and this is where it gets dark.
I quickly realized that the lyrics were more like someone's open diary and the music was a distraction. I turned off the sound and started reading through their words. I will share some of the lyrics here. The song titles I will give for reference, but you will see some of the themes are duplicated in several songs.
"That Ugly Toy"
What’s that toy? Did my mom put it in her mouth? It looks like (I gasped) Why is that pink? And it stinks
It is so disgusting So annoying And it’s not a ring It’s clearly a [doorbell noise] Yeah yeah imma open the door It’s a package from "hardcore" What the hell is that?
I opened the package it was (oh nah) Another (Another) Toy (boy) (Ew what is that?) This one is blue with a bit of white on top (pop popopopop)
What an ugly toy That’s ugly Super duper ugly Ugly ugly ugly (I think I know what it is)
I got one for my birthday Im 9 years old (hey hey) What an ugly birthday
"Is the Neighbor Better Than My Dad?"
After the story of the toy My mom did something else yeah boy She went to the neighbor’s place every day I heard something like oh wee continue like that baby and some groans
My mom is a super late one too hot (first letters) She slept with the neighbor Should I say it to my dad (bor bro bro)
[slap sounds]
My dad found the toys He also find my neighbor in her bed (Bed beg bet)
Is my neighbor better than my dad? Is he better when he licks her meow? My dad (I hope) he’s not that bad And I heard some pow (gunshots)
Oh my god I pray the pope My dad shows me his gun He shot my neighbor And he putted my mama in the oven (as my neighbor)
Was my neighbor better than my dad? Was he better to lick the meow? I hope my dad wasn’t so bad Because it’s my turn to get lick
"Everything I touch isn't good..."
Everything … Everything I touch (touch) Is contaminate so much Everyone I punch DIES
When When I touch someone (someone) Or something (something) Its not a good thing (Thing) … When I touched my teacher’s boob, The teacher got mad and she slapped me Then I smashed her head against computer that is laggy Like my PHONE
"I touched my teacher so she isn't good anymore (first part was Everthing I...)"
After that, she was in a pool of blood I pray god I just nod I’m scared is this my end? I think the officer will nod … So I get rid rid rid of the body I know it’s a bad idea but it was the only I take a shovel and start to bury her (weeee) … It was a bad idea (bad idea) But it’s wasn’t a choice (not a choice) Her name was emilia I can still hear her voice (her fat voice) I’m so pathetic Like tic tac tic tac tic It’s so annoying I can’t even say something without crying I TOUCHED MY TEACHER SO SHE ISN’T GOOD ANYMORE (Not anymore) (Oh yes not anymore) … After I did that, I got my car And I did go far (Far away) I can’t live with that anymore I don’t want more I can it just forget I hope I’ll get Better on day And I will say It was just a nightmare (just a nightmare) … It was a bad idea (bad idea) But it wasn’t a choice (wasn’t a choice) Her name was Emilia And I can still hear her voice (her voice) (Tic tac tic taxi) … I got an accident My leg my leg is broken And I’ll learn yes (oh yes) one day I’ll learn … It wasn’t that a bad choice (wasn’t that) It was clearly a choice (a choice) Her name was Emilia And I can finally stop hearing her voice (that voice) Not crazy anymore
"The thing I've done"
Hey I did something bad hey hey hey It was in may I’m scared to say Don’t wanna pay I wanna stay … I did some bad things, but none as crazy as this Im going to miss You when I’ll be in jail I wanna kiss My boyfriend one more time before I hiss Don’t want to pay I want to stay Don’t want to pay I just want to say I love you all day Why did I do this why did they Made me do that? … I did something (really bad) Don’t wanna pay For what I say Or what I did that day (Why did I do that) … Who will save me? I need to be Free (free) I’m gonna pray Should I say It to the guards? (Guards guards) … I did something (really bad) Don’t wanna pay for what I say (say) Or what I did that day (day) (I don’t have any chances) … The thing I did Was a car crash (ash) Imagine Blah-blah-blah-blah-blah-bla la la la Im going to stay Il here since four years hey I pay There is nothing you can say (hey hey hey) … I did something (really bad) Bad bad bad bad bad bad bad (extremely bad)
"The cliff"
There’s the most useless thing in my city A road with at the end a cliff for me, I think it makes some weird ideas coming back (dirty minds but not only) Why is the road so dirty?
I just wanna go on that cliiiiiifff (iiiiiiiiifffffff) I wanna try the death jump (that’s nice that) If You’re not ok with that just put me in jail but I don’t care I will still do it and I don’t mind if I don’t have some mails The cliff is so tempting Just want an ending To that story that I was reading And the text I’m writing I’m clearly so close to go but the problem is that there are so much policemen Oh god I’m going to make a car crash That cliff is so tempting It’s so tempting It’s overwhelming I’m jumping With my car
I crashed my car into the police officers It’s finish for me so end me is a good solution I woke up in the morning Thinking And I finally find something
That cliff is so tempting (If I could do that I promise I would)
I have a curse It is: everything I touch isn’t good anymore (of course)
In my next song you’ll finally know all the story Of my patheti… C life (You finally know oh oh oh) Gonna be the last
"Beginning to End"
Wan a know all the story? I don’t fucking care I’ll sing it
I was already broke But I decided to play monopoly I didn’t have any money To pay the new iPhone I only had a fucking dirty Samsung I played monopoly monopoly in real life I started to pay some people for no reasons My mom and my dad wanted to see me dead and I wanted that too I took so much pills but I woke up in the mornin’ I had some dirty minds and I wasn’t happy in my life I wanted to end me to do the dead jump with my car There were some policemen who were blocking that cliff but I just make a car crash on them
Mhhhh I went to my house and I heard some screams and groans My mom Was playing with a dildo and sleeping with my neighbor My dad saw that and then kill her I saw my dad going in his car and I putted a bomb in there He exploded in his car I putted bombs in bar They all explode My cat died I was at school and I decided to touch my teacher’s boob She slapped me and then I smashed her head against the computer that is laggy
I burried her I made a car accident I know I’ll go in jail I’m going to end me in jail
Four years later I pay in jail
OK BACK TO THE POST:
There are a few more songs but you can see these must be from an individual who is in need of some help. As I mentioned earlier this is on Suno, which is free, so I encourage others here to check out this user "MonumentalPrelude524" on that site and see if you agree that this could be a red flag and there should be some intervention.
A few things I focus on from this user:
They may be a child in an abusive home where the mother is promiscuous and sleeping with the neighbor.
The father is at least an abuser and at most a murderer.
There was an accident and explosion?
This person mentions several times that they had a cat that recently died.
The incident with the teacher may have been their "maths" teacher, as another song is about that. ("maths" says European and not American)
Not sure the age as one song mentions being 9 years old and others mention driving. Although, it wouldn't be the first time a 9 yr old went for a joy ride.
I am posting this in the hopes that someone may recognize the details here or at least point me in the right direction as how to help someone who is clearly putting their pain out there for someone to find. Please help draw attention to this.
Thank you for your time.

What if in Toy Story 5 Woody meets the original Woody doll from the show shown in Toy Story 2 (The one from the show is a ventriloquist doll and he isnt)

What if in Toy Story 5 Woody meets the original Woody doll from the show shown in Toy Story 2 (The one from the show is a ventriloquist doll and he isnt)

Hi, this is our background story: My Shiba Inu is 4 years old, male, and neutered. I finished puppy school with him (almost 6 months, obedience, and socialization), and took him to enclosed dog parks to meet other dogs, and we have gone hiking almost every week. Now I can see that there were signs of this behavior, but I never thought he would become aggressive because he was the "nicest Shiba people ever met." The only thing we realized was that he was always protective/possessive towards other dogs (toys, balls, and his owners), so we avoided those situations. But he liked playing with other dogs and was extremely curious. Sometimes there were dogs he did not like (e.g., dogs who barked at him) or he tried to dominate the huge furry ones.
I have no idea what happened. He just became more and more unfriendly towards dogs. We could not walk with others or play with them, and now he starts fighting with other dogs. It does not matter if he is on a leash or not, where we are, who was there first, or if the dog is bigger or smaller. Nothing. But otherwise, there is no behavior change. He is quite obedient and nice with people.
Could you please suggest something? What should we do? I am so desperate and worried that if we stop meeting with other dogs, his behavior will become worse.

My friend’s husband and my husband are brothers. We were friends before that, but have really bonded and grown closer over these last 6 years as a result of our ability to empathize with each other’s marital struggles when they arise. She’s such an amazing figure in my life! I want to send her a song that reflects what a wonderful friend and support she has been to me! She loves nirvana Radiohead and also a huge appalachia bluegrass fan (yen and Yang, right?
Can ya help me Reddit?
I’ve looked at: my friend by Haley Williams & You’ve got a friend in me (yes, from Toy Story)

After reading a random furry story online I’ve developed a warm spot for stories where one of the characters is an anthropomorphic big cat e.g. lion, leopard, jaguar, tiger, cheetah, cougar. I just got done reading I Was An Alien Cat Toy by Ann Somerville (man x panther man) and man am I sad. Despite making me sad, the book was just what I was looking for and really left me wanting more. I’ve already decided that I’m going to read Transmission Lost by stefan mazzara (man x tiger lady) and I’ve already read a bit of Aware by Selina Singer (lady turned into leopard), but I want to know what else is out there. It doesn’t need to be human x big cat, there just has to be a big cat character that is a prominent main character or central focus. I personally am looking for books where the big cat character is anthropomorphic or at the very least intelligent. However, I’m not really into shifter stories as, in my opinion, you can never go wrong with just a werewolf. Thank you.

Hi friends, I'm looking for the best/nicest/coolest children's libraries in the metro area. Willing to consider up to an hour and a half outside the metro area as well. For an example of what I'm looking for, my local library's children's library is a big spacious room where they host story times, there is a toy area for the kids to play, and all the children's book stacks. There's some seating but all benches, none of it's comfy. The next nearest library has children's programming and toddler puzzles but it's cramped so it doesn't "feel" as good. Anyway, let me know what you know!

I don't know what more to say than the title already says. This started about 3 months ago. I work with this guy and I started to catch feelings out of nowhere, he looks a lot younger, maybe 20-23. I spoke to him to find out more about him, and found out that he's 27. I feel terrible about my feelings for him now and want to beat myself up for even thinking about talking to him.
I spoke to my best friend about this and asked them if I should continue to talk to this guy, and he said that in some circumstances, age doesn't really matter that much and that I should go for it.
I spoke to my parents about it as well and that said not to go into a relationship with him.
I feel extremely guilty that I even have feelings for this person, as from what I know, he's just a smart, kind, socially awkward and mature individual and would most likely want nothing to do with a 17 year old.
If you want to know more toy can ask in the comments, there is more to the story but I'm writing this on two hours of sleep and a nine hour shift on my belt.

LESSON 153. In my defenselessness my safety lies.
You who feel threatened by this changing world, its twists of fortune and its bitter jests, its brief relationships and all the “gifts” it merely lends to take away again; attend this lesson well. The world provides no safety. It is rooted in attack, and all its “gifts” of seeming safety are illusory deceptions. It attacks, and then attacks again. No peace of mind is possible where danger threatens thus. The world gives rise but to defensiveness. For threat brings anger, anger makes attack seem reasonable, honestly provoked, and righteous in the name of self-defense. Yet is defensiveness a double threat. For it attests to weakness, and sets up a system of defense that cannot work. Now are the weak still further undermined, for there is treachery without and still a greater treachery within. The mind is now confused, and knows not where to turn to find escape from its imaginings.
It is as if a circle held it fast, wherein another circle bound it and another one in that, until escape no longer can be hoped for nor obtained. Attack, defense; defense, attack, become the circles of the hours and the days that bind the mind in heavy bands of steel with iron overlaid, returning but to start again. There seems to be no break nor ending in the ever-tightening grip of the imprisonment upon the mind.
Defenses are the costliest of all the prices which the ego would exact. In them lies madness in a form so grim that hope of sanity seems but to be an idle dream, beyond the possible. The sense of threat the world encourages is so much deeper, and so far beyond the frenzy and intensity of which you can conceive, that you have no idea of all the devastation it has wrought.
You are its slave. You know not what you do, in fear of it. You do not understand how much you have been made to sacrifice, who feel its iron grip upon your heart. You do not realize what you have done to sabotage the holy peace of God by your defensiveness. For you behold the Son of God as but a victim to attack by fantasies, by dreams, and by illusions he has made; yet helpless in their presence, needful only of defense by still more fantasies, and dreams by which illusions of his safety comfort him.
Defenselessness is strength. It testifies to recognition of the Christ in you. Perhaps you will recall the text maintains that choice is always made between Christ’s strength and your own weakness, seen apart from Him. Defenselessness can never be attacked, because it recognizes strength so great attack is folly, or a silly game a tired child might play, when he becomes too sleepy to remember what he wants.
Defensiveness is weakness. It proclaims you have denied the Christ and come to fear His Father’s anger. What can save you now from your delusion of an angry god, whose fearful image you believe you see at work in all the evils of the world? What but illusions could defend you now, when it is but illusions that you fight?
We will not play such childish games today. For our true purpose is to save the world, and we would not exchange for foolishness the endless joy our function offers us. We would not let our happiness slip by because a fragment of a senseless dream happened to cross our minds, and we mistook the figures in it for the Son of God; its tiny instant for eternity.
We look past dreams today, and recognize that we need no defense because we are created unassailable, without all thought or wish or dream in which attack has any meaning. Now we cannot fear, for we have left all fearful thoughts behind. And in defenselessness we stand secure, serenely certain of our safety now, sure of salvation; sure we will fulfill our chosen purpose, as our ministry extends its holy blessing through the world.
Be still a moment, and in silence think how holy is your purpose, how secure you rest, untouchable within its light. God’s ministers have chosen that the truth be with them. Who is holier than they? Who could be surer that his happiness is fully guaranteed? And who could be more mightily protected? What defense could possibly be needed by the ones who are among the chosen ones of God, by His election and their own as well?
It is the function of God’s ministers to help their brothers choose as they have done. God has elected all, but few have come to realize His Will is but their own. And while you fail to teach what you have learned, salvation waits and darkness holds the world in grim imprisonment. Nor will you learn that light has come to you, and your escape has been accomplished. For you will not see the light, until you offer it to all your brothers. As they take it from your hands, so will you recognize it as your own.
Salvation can be thought of as a game that happy children play. It was designed by One Who loves His children, and Who would replace their fearful toys with joyous games, which teach them that the game of fear is gone. His game instructs in happiness because there is no loser. Everyone who plays must win, and in his winning is the gain to everyone ensured. The game of fear is gladly laid aside, when children come to see the benefits salvation brings.
You who have played that you are lost to hope, abandoned by your Father, left alone in terror in a fearful world made mad by sin and guilt; be happy now. That game is over. Now a quiet time has come, in which we put away the toys of guilt, and lock our quaint and childish thoughts of sin forever from the pure and holy minds of Heaven’s children and the Son of God.
We pause but for a moment more, to play our final, happy game upon this earth. And then we go to take our rightful place where truth abides and games are meaningless. So is the story ended. Let this day bring the last chapter closer to the world, that everyone may learn the tale he reads of terrifying destiny, defeat of all his hopes, his pitiful defense against a vengeance he can not escape, is but his own deluded fantasy. God’s ministers have come to waken him from the dark dreams this story has evoked in his confused, bewildered memory of this distorted tale. God’s Son can smile at last, on learning that it is not true.
Today we practice in a form we will maintain for quite a while. We will begin each day by giving our attention to the daily thought as long as possible. Five minutes now becomes the least we give to preparation for a day in which salvation is the only goal we have. Ten would be better; fifteen better still. And as distraction ceases to arise to turn us from our purpose, we will find that half an hour is too short a time to spend with God. Nor will we willingly give less at night, in gratitude and joy.
Each hour adds to our increasing peace, as we remember to be faithful to the Will we share with God. At times, perhaps, a minute, even less, will be the most that we can offer as the hour strikes. Sometimes we will forget. At other times the business of the world will close on us, and we will be unable to withdraw a little while, and turn our thoughts to God.
Yet when we can, we will observe our trust as ministers of God, in hourly remembrance of our mission and His Love. And we will quietly sit by and wait on Him and listen to His Voice, and learn what He would have us do the hour that is yet to come; while thanking Him for all the gifts He gave us in the one gone by.
In time, with practice, you will never cease to think of Him, and hear His loving Voice guiding your footsteps into quiet ways, where you will walk in true defenselessness. For you will know that Heaven goes with you. Nor would you keep your mind away from Him a moment, even though your time is spent in offering salvation to the world. Think you He will not make this possible, for you who chose to carry out His plan for the salvation of the world and yours?
Today our theme is our defenselessness. We clothe ourselves in it, as we prepare to meet the day. We rise up strong in Christ, and let our weakness disappear, as we remember that His strength abides in us. We will remind ourselves that He remains beside us through the day, and never leaves our weakness unsupported by His strength. We call upon His strength each time we feel the threat of our defenses undermine our certainty of purpose. We will pause a moment, as He tells us, “I am here.”
Your practicing will now begin to take the earnestness of love, to help you keep your mind from wandering from its intent. Be not afraid nor timid. There can be no doubt that you will reach your final goal. The ministers of God can never fail, because the love and strength and peace that shine from them to all their brothers come from Him. These are His gifts to you. Defenselessness is all you need to give Him in return. You lay aside but what was never real, to look on Christ and see His sinlessness.

I’ve been an ex Muslim for 10+ years now, I’m very lucky because I denounced Islam when I was super young so I didn’t suffer too much. My family isn’t religious and my mom and sister also left Islam, so I totally wanna acknowledge the privilege I have, sometimes I read some of Yalls story and my heart breaks. However, I am living in the Islamic republic of Iran and it’s disgusting. I find 0 appeal in this religion because everything about it is so disgusting, I can find the appeal in Buddhism, Sikhism, Judaism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, etc (I know some anti theists will come in and say “UhhhMM aLl rEliGioNs sUcK!” , literally don’t care it’s actually quite disgusting how you guys think any religion can come as close to Islam, even Mormonism is basically a Lowkey Islam but still not to islams level) Iranian women are suffering every single day with the stupid ass laws, we can’t live normal, everything is blocked. Etc. this religion wants to get rid of anything that brings you joy or a sense of humanity/ connection. There’s no music there’s no music ,no toys ,no laughter, no dancing, no singing, no love , no art, no games , no drawing, NO LIVING yet pedophilia, rape, murder and war are complete A- okay. I don’t understand the girls in the west who convert to Islam, do you not hear the cries and screams of girls in the Middle East? It’s not a “racist stereotype” , in Islam god really does hate women, Mohammad himself said women have half the intelligence and deen of men. I always believe that heaven will just be somewhere where it’s just complete peace, but Islam shows heaven as this whorehouse, how do you as a women read that passage in the Quran and think “wow I love that that’s so beautiful!” ??? Have yall hit your head somewhere? A Religion that promotes killing of non-Muslims does it never hit you that that’s very fucking weird that no other religion calls for that? Isn’t it weird how in most religions the biggest sin is to commit murder but in islam it’s “shirk” which literally means to just imitate another religion. for example you could be forgiven for waging war against non Muslims, rape , murder, take their kids and wives as slaves (quite frankly you’re following the religion) but if you’re a Muslim and have a Christmas tree oooff how dare you. I wish for the people who are living in the west could see this and understand this when this religion becomes a majority and takes over everyone is fucked. We’re also miserable. Don’t listen to the stupid ass victim card playing Muslims in the West, who talk about being oppressed, they are NOT oppressed in the Middle East. “I’m sad bc in my religion I’m allowed to beat my woman but it’s illegal here, this is discrimination 🥺” “ I can’t openly say I wanna kill gay people but my dean Islam is beautiful and peaceful” I see non-Muslim westerners, even now repeat the things Muslim say “ Islam is perfect. Muslims are not.” Bitch lmao WHAT? Just a bunch of useful idiots. So many women Conver to Islam it actually scares me. Do you guys hate yourselves that much? And I love how all the people were always advocating about the beauty and freedom that Islam give are all in the… west. For those of you that are in the west and saying “ oh Islam is not that bad it’s just racism” guess what! I look very much look Middle easterner, but still I get treated like shit as well in foreign countries because it’s a racism thing not a religion thing. No one hates you because you’re Muslim. They hate you because of the country that you came from and your country has committed atrocities. There’s no such thing as “Islamophobia” , the suffix “phobia” means irrational fear, fearing this religion is just human instinct. It’s not irrational. Sometimes on my for you page on Instagram or TikTok I’ll see these random white ladies open a page from the Quran and start sobbing talking about how beautiful it is. I’ve read the whole entire Quran front and back and to be honest it’s a mid book. I’ve read poetry books (like hafez) a billion times more beautiful than this bs book. How do you read this book that says the most basic philosophical things and then the next sentence is “ and you must kill all non-believers” and you’re like “wow omg 🥹” . So basically my rent is I don’t understand why people convert to this religion. I’m convinced that they’re all lied to. T I’m convinced that they’re all lied to or They’re sick in the head. I need someone to explain to me what is so beautiful about this religion?

I was pulling freight when the daily "Hotwheels pervert" arrived. This customer has a hard-on for Hotwheels and will do anything to get them. The dude will stalk us when hauling freight until we pull out the toy pallet. Then proceeds to dig through the pallet to get "his" wonderful Hotwheels. Today just like any other the man lumbers into the toy aisle and was about to ask me when the toy pallet would be pulled out. Just seeing him makes me feel uncomfortable. When I get put into awkward situations I smirk uncontrollably without hesitation. The Hotwheels man took that the wrong way and started to threaten me with legal action how I was making fun of him and how management was telling stories about him. I just started shaking my head no and saying "That was not true sir, and that wouldn't be necessary". Soon the man got close to my face like he was going to snap then said "I will get management and fire you". All I did was speed walk away from him feeling threatened. I almost finished my task of hauling freight when I noticed the man was watching me and the freight again I was so scared I tried telling my coworkers. None of them believed that the man was outside the warehouse doors watching us. The worst part about it was the man heard me telling my coworkers about how creepy he was and his hard-on for Hotwheels. The last confrontation with him before I clocked off. I was hauling this huge ass pallet of fans and shit when the man looked directly into my eyes and started walking towards me and saying there's that piece of shit, I just ran like a pussy back into the warehouse and hide at the employee support room. I have another shift coming up and I'm afraid this asshole will try and do something. I don't want to tell management about this because I feel like I provoked too much what should I do?

Man that was pretty disappointing :(
I really wanted to love this movie and went into it with a couple expectations. I’m still a newer horror fan that hasn’t seen many of the classics yet. With that being said I don’t know if this concept has already been done before or not, but it sounded interesting. I went in expecting some nasty kills, a decent plot, and an intriguing slasher.
Kills:
Blondie had it the worst I mean her death was BRUTAL man. The very first guy to be killed had a nasty death as well. The rest though were okay and the one in the shed was very anticlimactic. I would’ve enjoyed to hear screaming or something to fill up that empty space in that scene. Ultimately, it ended up being kind of boring and lingered for too long. Which is really what ruins a lot of things in this movie for me.
Plot:
I think the plot was simple and I’m glad because it didn’t need to be complex. With how basic it was though I do wonder if maybe this film would’ve benefited more from being a short film. Especially since there’s so much time spent showing this man walking around. The overhead shot of him stalking his prey was very refreshing though since seeing only his back gets old pretty fast.
Our slasher (Johnny):
He was cool honestly I love the design for his face, his frame is convincing, and not having him speak was smart. The scene where he plays with the toy car was interesting and made you realize that he’s really just a big violent kid. He even had an unintentionally funny moment where he throws a body at some glass to retrieve his mask and an axe.
Ending
I really disliked it and actually said “that’s it?” once it cut to the credits. Lots of us in the theater groaned and had the same reaction. They drag out the last 10-15 mins A LOT and just for it all to lead to nothing that would progress the story. There was just a lot of empty space in these scenes and it ruined the whole thing for me. Towards the end I found myself reaching for the fast forward button but it wasn’t there. The final girl was in shock which I understand but man did we really have to let the scene drag out THAT much? I don’t know how you could’ve ended this film but that was pretty disappointing.
Conclusion
I think you might be better off looking up the kills since they were pretty good but overall this movie’s slow pacing and scenes with empty space ruins it for me.
Edit: I do think for slasher fans this movie is worth the watch on an afternoon showing or when you’re energized. Unless you already know to expect a slower pace. The sounds were great, editing could’ve helped the slower pace, camera work was solid for what they wanted to accomplish, and the kills were nasty. I’m sure more people will be inspired by this and we’ll see more films like this. To Chris Nash though I have to say thank you for being bold enough to put this movie out there knowing it’ll split the audience a bit. It’s refreshing to see a new slasher that they could expand on if they wanted to later on.

After rewatching the 3 seasons of the anime a few times and absolutely loving it, I've made the decision to read the source material starting with the very first chapter. I have just finished the challenger finale with Taichi losing to Arata in the goofiest way possible and would now like to voice some complaints about the post-season 3 era of the story. If it's okay with you of course.
I have read some discussions and will attempt not to be repetitive with my points.

1. The first years. With Taichi going on what is stylized to be his villain arc and Chihaya going on a study spree to cope with her feelings, the new first years are given a challenge to become memorable and exciting while all that other incredible and exciting stuff is already going on around them. And boy did they not deliver. There are 4 new characters but for the purposes of the narrative they act like 2 characters: Tamaru and generic first-years (GFY). Sure they all have quirks to be distinguishable but not one of them has a compelling journey or a goal.

The first conflict that GFY face is not vibing with the karuta club and it is solved with the seniors just talking to them, there are no interesting one-on-one interactions here like there were with the construction of the OG club (Chihaya learning to see poems as colourful from Kana for example), it is delivered as a series of short comedic sketches. And that's because they are not individual characters, they are a representation of a group.
And Tamaru's arc was about not requiring the praise of others I think?
To see this point clearly, compare how Tsukuba and best girl Sumire were introduced to how the GFY are. There is an obvious discrepancy in depth.

1. Karuta matches.

Now, this is something that was a problem with the manga from the beginning. Here is how a match between character A and character B would go: Character A takes a card; the spectators: "OMG A IS GOING TO WIN"; B has a revelation in their inner monologue and take a card; the spectators: "OMG SINCE WHEN IS B SO STRONG MAYBE THEY WILL WIN"; A has a different revelation and take a card; repeat; Now, of course there are matches where the tactics are very interesting (Harada vs Suou), where every take is an emotional rollercoaster (Taichi vs Chihaya) or where the whole thing is just poetic to the bone (Harada vs Arata), but that is not the case with filler tournament matches. They are a massive yawn. I cannot be expected to be excited over a bunch of chapters about the new hokou team most of which I don't care about, the new fujisaki team most of which I don't care about and Arata's team which consists of people I could not care less about.
It's just a bunch of characters I don't know competing in generic matches (though there were some funny moments). And worst of all, I have no investment in who wins. In second year it was Mizusawa's dream to be the strongest in japan, a dream they worked through blood sweat and tears to achieve, so of course I was invested.
Here I was just waiting for more Taichi and Suou content.

1. Suou and Shinobu

Oh, this one isn't a complaint. The author ansolutely killed it with these two, absolute perfection.

1. Dirty tricks

This is a segway to the Taichi vs Arata match.
So, Taichi learns from Suou a lot of things: incredible perception, feints, detachment, fun. These are his weapons with which he manages to breeze through the challenger qualifier matches. But in his match against Arata he considers them off limits. Nishida even says something to the effect of "we want Arata to see us, real us, no dirty tricks or anything". Taichi doesn't use feints, doesn't try to mess with Arata starting with the second match and is not detached. Like bro.
Harada has bad hearing and uses different techniques to compensate for it, those are not considered dirty tricks. Arata doesn't have extraordinary hearing and so uses cross sweeps, those are not considered dirty tricks. So why does Mashima feel the need to abandon all of his weapons to play "true" karuta? Makes me mad.

1. The incredibly goofy Taichi loss.

What I find hillarious about his loss is that during the second game he decides that "winning cannot not matter" and that he will play Harada's karuta. In any other circumstance, heck, in any shounen manga this would be the moment where he strengthens his resolve and gains an unforseen power boost. But instead he just starts panicking and sweating and stuttering and losing by 18 cards. Goofiest stuff I've read in a while.
But on a more serious note, Taichi 100% should have a skill on par with Arata. He was able to completely toy with Sudou, controlling the game completely. He had very close two matches with Arata. I find it rediculously contrived that he just decides to not use his strongest weapons and play bad. That's literally what happens, he decides to play bad and loses. From a narrative standpoint it would also be more interesting if Taichi won, at the very least because he is a much more interesting character and because Arata could use a massive setback like that for character development (which is nonexistant as it stands now).

1. Nothing exciting happens

Harada's path to challenging Suou is one of my favourite arcs in fiction. Nothing that grandiouse happens after Taichi's confession.
On a more personal note, I am greatly saddened that best girl Sumire doesn't have much to do. She is still only enamoured by Mashima (as we can see from her talk with Mamashima). Like, girl, find a new target or become a rock star or date Nishida idk. Do something. Oh, and Kana's dream of becoming a reader has evaporated too it seems.
--‐------------- Sorry for the long post, it seems I got really frustrated and disappointed.
TL;DR

1. The new characters are a yawn, have no journey and are not built up like previous first years were.
2. The national tournament is overshadowed by Taichi's arc and there is no good reason to care about its outcome. The matches are repetitive and formulaic, the characters uninteresting.
3. Shinobu and Suou's arcs are perfection.
4. Taichi learns a lot of techniques but dismisses them as dirty tricjs for no apparent reason. Btw, shouldn't feints be considered even harder that normal karuta if anything?
5. Mashima gets a stereotypical shounen boost (for no good reason btw) just to revert to a blabbering baby in the third match.
6. Nothing grand happens. OG characters are left behind. Like, imagine Chitose learning karuta and becoming queen before Chihaya (joking).

Hi! So, first of all, I'm from Italy, so sorry in advance for my bad english. And secondly, sorry for the reaaaally long post.
Anyway, I've finally found the courage to try to approach game developing, something I've been wanting to do for years. It will be in my spare time since I've gotta work, but hey I gotta try it now before it's too late for my small brain to learn something new. I don't have the money or time to enter a school, so I'll try to learn as much as possible on my own, following online courses ecc. For the kind of game I have in mind I think I'll go with game maker. I used rpg maker and other "light" softwares many many years ago, completely forgot how to use them, but they wouldn't be flexible enough for my project anyway. So, as far as the game developing software goes, either I learn how to use it or I don't and the project dies right at the start. Fortunately, the gameplay ideas ar not too complicated to realize, but the real obstacle on my path, about which I'm asking for help in this post, is the creation of assets. I'm learning to draw (actually re-learning, I could produce something not too horryfing to look at when I was much younger, then I stopped drawing and now I've got to start over) so that I can create my own assets, since everything will be in 2d and in a kind of hand-drawn style. But still, I'll be real, I know for a fact that I won't be able to make great art, it would be a miracle to make something passable. That's why I'm researching some tools to help me achieve a better look for my future assets and to compensate my lack of skill (and yes, patience too). I know you can buy pre-made assets, but I want to at least try to make my own if I can. We're living in a time where each day there's a massive technological leap that makes a lot easier to achieve things that once were extremely difficult to do, especially with AIs. I studied cinema, so I know some softwares in the video editing field, but I know very little in the game development one, so I'd like to know which softwares could help me in this task. Example: I need to draw the face of a character to show during a dialogue. Even if stylized, I have (and fear I'll always have) difficulties drawing a face from scratch, like actually imagining it in my head. With ai tools I can generate some faces based on facial features and decorations given by me in the prompt, pick some pieces here and there from different results, toy with them in photoshop (I'm pretty skilled with ph) and drawing over the final result, adding my own ideas to it. It would also be useful to find a software that, starting from a "plain" expression makes other expressions (you can somewhat do that in photoshop too). Obviously I'd redraw every change, but it would be a starting point. Other example: I found this software that offers a massive help in creating a sprite sheet starting from a single drawing. Yes, you still have do make some corrections, that I can do, while animating it from scratch it's a different story https://www.youtube.com/shorts/iUks4wuYkUU
I've been ranting for too much, let's wrap this up by describing briefly what kind of game I'm designing, so that you know what kind of tools could be useful. But generally speaking I'm open to any tool that you might find useful, you never know what I could need for future projects. Anyway, the best way to put it would be an extremely story-driven game like To the moon (with a hand-drawn style, not in pixel art), but with a lot of dialogue options and some "actual" (not in an offensive way, I love Too the moon lol) gameplay, not only puzzles. It would be visualized from a semi top-down view, so I'll need to think about everything from that perspective, other than cut-scenes and dialogues. As for the cut-scenes I think I'll just have to draw the single moments and cross-fade them; as for the dialogues there will always be a small portrait of the face of the character who's speaking.
I hope it's clear what I'm looking for. Aaaaand now let's see what you come up with :)
P.S. I know that AIs are a sticky subject and I couldn't summarize in this post what I think of them. Let's just say that I think that for a small, self-published project their use is justified as long as the raw asset produced by them is reworked so much by the artist to the point that he/she made it their own. Artists have always used collages and references to help create original artwork, so I see them as a starting point, especially for unskilled individuals like me, not as a final product, at least if you're profiting out of your project. If your project is completely free, eh, you could get a pass depending on the circumstances. If you're a big company and you're using AIs to avoid paying an actual artist, well you can go f yourself :) But this is not the point of my post

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/veteran-retailer-joe-mimran-among-group-buying-mastermind-toys-1.2007003
Of course Jillian wants to support the big box boss Joe in his new endeavour. Heavily hinted in one of her stories last week, that Mastermind Toys should be located in major Canadian airports.
Cause the big supporter of all things small, Canadian owned businesses, is too busy on her work trips to shop for toys at the Mom and Pop shops. She wants to support big box Joe Trash-bat outta hell, she might even have time to collab with Joe Trash and MM Toys!

I had a lot of difficulty speaking growing up, I have ADHD (diagnosed with ADD at the time, I think at age 8). From what I've heard, my speech was described as slow and very hard to listen too, I was often too quiet as well, had a hard time getting words out, and specifically hard a super hard time with constructing sentences, I could think just fine, my thoughts were fast and vivid, but translating that into speech was hard for me, and it was one of the reasons I started having evaluations done on me.
a list of things I would do:

• Stop several times during a sentence to think about what to say and then try to reiterate it
  
• Mentally auto completing a sentence that wasn't actually coherent with what I was trying to say, it was just easier to say in the moment
  
• Usually very slow at speaking, like I'm saying just one word at a time, but can suddenly speak much faster when I say a common phrase or a short sentence
  
• Repeating the sentence I want to say over and over in my head before saying it, and still botching it
  
• Needing to warm up my speaking for a while before I'm able to talk mostly without issue, can often take up to an hour of practicing speaking out loud
  
• Need to concentrate intensely in order to say every word at the same pace without pausing to think again
  
• Giving up on speaking mid sentence and pivoting to a slightly different part of the story I'm trying to tell, or give up talking all together
  
• Very slow at reading as a kid, extremely slow at writing if I could write at all
  
• Trying to cover up sudden stops in my speech with "um, uuuh" a lot, or using a lot of filler words like "like, kinda, well, but yeah", or long words to fill out the sentence with as I'm articulating it in real time. I'd swear a lot too as filler words
  
• Covering up by pretending to be distracted, tired, or forgetting what I was going to say even though I still vaguely know what I want to say, I just can't articulate it
  
• Covering up by pretending I was joking, as a kid, while playing with toys with my friends, I would pretend to be the stupid character when my brain was glitching, sometimes I'd roleplay as the dog or just start making noises and yelling incoherently so I didn't have to actually say anything
  
• Symptoms seem to get better when I'm with people I really gel with, almost to the point of normalcy (I think), but often I can only talk about things I really enjoy/know a lot about, simple small talk, or short quips/jokes, or repeat variations of "yeah, uh huh, cool"
  
• Having something to say that's difficult to explain, so I distort the facts into something that gets across the same point but is quicker and easier to say, I did this despite the fact that I hated lying as a kid cause it made me feel weird
  
• Avoiding speaking all together
  
• Can't argue because I'm afraid I'll stutter or trip over my words, making me feel stupid and discredit me in the argument, like an irl typo
  
• Extreme lack of confidence with talking
  
• Was interrupted and ignored by everyone as a kid, my speech was painful to listen to
  
• In early childhood, I interrupted people constantly cause if I didn't, I'd forget what I was going to say
  
• Sometimes I purely speak nonsense, like the mental auto complete thing but for a full sentence, it's like Chat GPT in the sense that the sentence is linguistically coherent, but had nothing to do with what I was thinking about, there's no personal meaning behind it, my brain just generated it on while on autopilot based on what the most common thing people usually respond with. It's really rare, but it happens, and it's wild that that happens
  

I made a lot of videos as a kid on YouTube, my biggest problem was talking in front of a camera, which as a kid didn't bother me, but I quickly stopped making videos once they just got too hard for me and my standards for video quality got higher.
Looking back at my old videos with my friends, I was utterly baffled by how hard it was for me to get basic points across, this video specifically is something else, I had to explain to my friends the point I was trying to make in the video, and it's a point I could've gotten across in one paragraph, and this video had more than one take too, I practiced speaking before recording, most of my other videos aren't this bad, but I think that's mostly cause they're edited, but this one's a pure, unfiltered look, into the way I used to speak.
https://youtu.be/Y1hEfEpmIeA?si=VR8xvn3N4oKGYJSG