#devon rambles

[ginshi-san]

The absolute chaos goblin that I am, I want Bill Clinton to call a press conference. He doesn't even need to say anything substantive about the Epstein files. It sure would trigger Trump to utterly meltdown though and that's what I want to witness.

It would be fucking wild though if that email turned out to be true.

[cliteris]

Me changing my URL 400 times: try finding me now old high school classmates

[ginshi-san]

On another Gintama note (because I was starting to write another whole post in the tags of the other one lmao), Sorachi-sensei writes fantastic characters. Gintoki is a war veteran and his trauma is never played for laughs. There's also isn't any weird prying into his past by other characters. Instead, bits of his past are only revealed usually when other characters are going through things that are similar in themes. It's a fantastic way to show his past, instead of having a lore dump. Because of that, he's older than most shonen heroes. He also doesn't really have any flashy special moves except for whenever he gets dangerous with an actual katana (with his usual wooden sword). There's no padding with training montages, instead you see his extensive battle experience on display when it's time for a boss fight.

Kagura is a rare female protagonist that gets an opportunity to just be a 14 year old girl. Who happens to be super strong and her fight scenes are choreographed very similar to the male characters. She definitely gets more vulgar as the series goes on, thanks to Gintoki's influence.

In fact, most of the female characters are treated like actual people and get plenty of opportunity to help kick ass. It also seems that Sorachi-sensei takes plenty of opportunity to take pot shots at who write female characters in sexist ways. The interesting thing is, he manages to do so without it coming across as preachy. It just fits the story. Though, there is one character that was probably written specifically to lambast lolicons and he rightfully suffers for it.

Like, I don't think this series would work nearly as well as it does if Sorachi-sensei didn't deeply understand shonen tropes and had such a fantastic understanding of his characters. His characters really are what makes everything work. He also seems to deeply understand trauma and how that usually translates into humor. It's a great coping mechanism and usually a go to in order to break tension.

Then there's the setting which is very science fiction but one that's deeply Japanese that's refreshing. Especially how space ships are not sleek and shiny like in western media. Instead, they look like river boats that have adapted for space travel.

To wrap this up, I love this series because I found it exactly when I needed it. I had just moved out of my mother's house and had managed to survive a childhood filled with abuse and neglect (I know I have CPTSD and PTSD (that came from the 8 months after graduating high school when I came the closest to fully giving up)). I needed a blueprint to find my way in the world, even if I didn't know how to. The whole "keep living with an unblemished soul, even if the rest of you gets tarnished" is what truly helped. To me, that means trying to live the best I can and authentically, even if I stumble sometimes.

[ginshi-san]

Chicken in Lemon-Dill Butter

@loislanespulitzerprize

1.25 lb butter

2 Tbsps lemon juice

1tsp salt

1 clove garlic, minced (add extra to taste)

dash of pepper

1/2 tsp paprika

1 Tbsp dillweed

1 (2.5 to 3 lb) frying chicken, cut into serving pieces [I sub in boneless chicken thighs cut into bite sized pieces]

Melt butter in large skillet. Add all ingredients (except chicken) in order give; bring to boil, but do not actually boil. Cover skillet; lower heat. Simmer 30 mins or until chicken is tender. Remove chicken to platter. Serve with noodles or rice, over which remaining liquid has been poured. Yield 4 to 6 servings.

I usually serve it with some sort of cooked dark greens on the side but that's because I'm from Texas lol. Would probably also pair well with a salad with a vinaigrette dressing to brighten and balance things out.

[ginshi-san]

michael tothechaos’s ace attorney buddy and TGAA friend here—before i speak, do you know anything about the plot lines of the second game in the duology? i also have an AA sideblog (turnaboutfairplay) that is unfortunately rife with untagged spoilers 😔✌️

Oh my god, thank you for the ask! Definitely going to follow you after this!

I was weak & spoiled myself for Kazuma's return lmao. I also know about Susato's case at the start of the second game. Beyond that though, I haven't really paid attention to the other plot lines. I have priorities apparently... lol. My thoughts will probably shift once I actually play through the rest for myself.

It's a strange experience to go through the stages of grief while playing a game because you're mourning a character you've only known for only the intro case. I felt like my motivation for playing the game sort of had the bottom drop out of it. I've never had such an emotional reaction to a game and Like, this was my intro to Ace Attorney & while I love the bold choice to kill off Kazuma, also fuck them for doing so lmao. Apparently I'm not the only one who had such a reaction to him & that lead them to rework some of the 2nd game plot.

Like, I think Kazuma/Ryuu might be the most blatantly gay the series has been. Even better, it's right there from the jump! Their relationship really is the core of the story. It honestly sold me on the whole series.

I really love the idea of Kazuma giving Ryuunosuke purpose or a sense of direction is life. Maybe Ryuu grew up relatively normally but is kind of just going through the motions. All while Kazuma is dealing with the all consuming mission that he's set himself to get revenge. His trauma & toxic beliefs he's raised himself with are festering inside himself. Until his path intersects with Ryuunosuke again. Then Ryuu gets to show off how much he's grown and it culminates in him being able to save Kazuma from stepping over that last line that would tarnish his soul. I do love the idea that they do the long distance thing for a while so that Kazuma can continue figuring out his stuff on his own. Ryuunosuke waits for a period of time before heading back to England & forcibly bringing him back to Japan.

Also, I think I love Kazuma so much because my favorite anime/manga is Gintama. That period of time in Japan was a time of huge change & upheaval. There was still old notions of bushido floating around and I think Kazuma as a young child would have latched onto a simplistic version of honor through revenge and as he got older, it got progressively warped until the case where we have to defend Van Zieks. Ryuunosuke pulled Kazuma back from tarnishing & chipping the sword in his soul though. The aftermath may be messy but that's life.

[ginshi-san]

I should be working on my original fiction but... I'm feeling compelled to quickly write something about trans!Carl dealing with his period and just go all in on the grossness.

I was going to say I have no idea why he became my fave to headcanon as transmasc but I do know. There's a lot of his character that resonates with me and he's also written in such a way to allow me to indulge in a power fantasy of sorts. I also just get so much goddamn joy from queering the narrative!

There's so much interesting stuff to examine/recontextualize when you're having to build your own sense of masculinity.

[ginshi-san]

[ginshi-san]

Probably time for me to start my first re-read of DCC. Initially, I plowed through all 7 books in a week on my kindle and definitely gave myself a bit of eyestrain lol.

I need to the vibes of an anarchist-revolutionary dude doing his best to hold onto his humanity in spite of what he has to go through and do. Your connections with others will be what saves you, no matter what you have to do or see. He's just Some Dude that is doing his best in extraordinary circumstances. That's some aspirational shit right now.