Aiko's Gazebo of Thoughts

Me: Randomly sign up to 100000 random websites/services to try them out
Also me: Too lazy to make a new account for #Bluesky, let alone use it
LMAO
To be fair I am past that "randomly sign up to random websites/services" phase now, but yeah 🫠

I'm also a nerd who had fallen in love with #Fediverse, as it eliminates the problem of "too many accounts", "tired of migrating", and "fear that it'll (the website/platform worsening and migration) keep happening like a cycle because companies suck" entirely (though with some caveats), so...

It's funny to hear people mention these problems and I'm just like...Fediverse exists!!! It's right there!! It solved all of these problems (kinda)!! (Slaps blackboard) Isn't that great?!

I wish more people would open their eyes to the beauty of Fediverse
But at the same time, I understand why Fediverse isn't mainstream, as it has its own problems. It has a steeper learning curve and requires more effort to get the content you want (following people, searching for tags - even then, it might not get everything)
Smaller user base is both a good and bad thing, too. People go wherever others go, so why bother going someplace without the people you know/want to follow?
I wish it can be for everyone, but right now, it is not

But for me, it's worth the effort and struggles 🥺

On Twitter: Maybe I should've tweeted this when there are more people around, but eh. If they're interested in Fediverse, they would've joined already imo
Or maybe my reach is small & I'm just shouting to the void
Fine by me. I'll keep spreading the gospel when I can, even to the void (though I admittedly get tired sometimes)

#Arknights Contingency Contract Battleplan # 2 Underdawn Roundup

So lazy...I don't have enough time and energy for this...
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(2024-09-28)
Map: Moonfall Alley

Thanks, Oyuki.

(2024-10-03)
Map: Dryreed Morass

As usual, I used Oyuki's strats. I followed a comment by changing Goldenglow to Ifrit because I don't have her module yet, just in case it matters. It ended up being the wrong choice because I got stuck in an endless loop of death and rebirth at 26/28 LMAO. 😂😭 I tried it twice, too. In the end, I used Goldenglow...but also added Ifrit just in case and the map was cleared smoothly. Yay.

(2024-10-05)
Map: Fortified Pass

Using Oyuki's strats as usual. My Horn is completely new (just bought her from shop) with no skill mastery, so I added Skalter to help her a bit. In the end, she died, though, and leaked 1 enemy. Whatever lol.

Permanent map: Immortal Hall

Searching for strats that fit my roster is pretty stressful. At first, I saw Blemichi's videos, but found nothing fitting for me, which is annoying. It's nice that a few operators have alternatives with the same role, but it's still a headache. I looked through the comments for Oyuki's video and found someone in the same boat as me, changing Typhon to Rosa S3. I tried it out, but my Rosa isn't S3M3 yet, and I couldn't quite get the timing right, so I gave up.

In the end, I used KyostinV's almost AFK strats. I changed Ceobe to Gnosis and Goldenglow (after some trials and errors using Suzuran). I have Ceobe but she's still E1 and I'm hesitant to raise her for some reason lol. This change made the timing a bit tight. I had to retry it a few times, especially with Virtuosa's RNG in the beginning. It made me sweaty, but finally, I did it!! \o/ Gnosis is awesome here, I saw him being used in a few other strats. Also, I have E1 Tsukinogi to reveal invisible enemies, but I wanted to use Totter. So I had to wait a bit for him to kill the invisible enemies. Probably should've brought Warfarin to buff him. 😂

I know males only is possible, but I don't really want to do it. I want something easier if possible and it was indeed possible without maleknights. In the end, AFKnights triumphs over maleknights LMAO. Sorry. Also, I haven't raised some necessary operators well enough for that (truly a fake maleknights player lmao). Namely, I haven't S1M3 Blitz and got his module yet, and he is the key in maleknights. Unlike other strats, there aren't a lot of options here. I also haven't mastered Wanqing yet, if it's necessary. I mastered Virtuosa S1 and Horn S1 instead LMAO. Look, I have pot 5 Virtuosa and I love her, so I might as well use her!! It's too late to try to master them for this CCB, so oh well. I'll raise them now for the future. 😫

(2024-10-07)
Map: Research Base Quarantine Zone

Why does this map still exist?? Using Oyuki's strats as usual. For some reason, my Goldenglow died, so I added in Bassline and it seemed to work.

With that, CCB#2 is over!! I completed the medal set, too!! Yay!!
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Re:Zero #anime season 3 episode 2
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- We finally got to see the opening and ending (later)!! It's so cool!!



- Subaru's 2nd death was absolutely BRUTAL, holy shit. The comeback of gut-churning gore!!

- In the next loop, Reinhard the hero came to the rescue!! Or not...because he unintentionally slaughtered the whole crowd that were watching too. OOF. His expression when the horrifying realization dawned on him...😭😭😭💔

Not only did he kill innocent people, he also killed his friend...this shot of dead Subaru is like taken from his point of view, right after turning back. It's haunting.

Someone on Twitter said Reinhard needs therapy now and they want to see the aftermath. That's cruel! Now I want to see it too. 👀 Fanwork material!

- In the next loop, Subaru, out of ideas, decided to ask Beako for help. It's nice to see how much Beako trusts him, she doesn't need to know why or how Subaru knew the information - she knows it's true. 🥺💕
And so is Emilia! She followed them anyway (due to Priscilla's words - she really is sharp) and showed her character development from arc 4/season 2. As she said, just like how Subaru wants to protect her, Emilia wants to protect him, too. And now, she has the powers to do it. 🥺 This is something Subaru has to learn as well - to not be way too overprotective of her (though yeah, it's Witch Cult, so his worry is valid).


- The way Emilia fights is so cool!! She shapes ice into various weapons and wield them well. It's amazing how well she can stand her ground! Also, the fight choreography and animation is so good, I want to cry.


- It was so foul of Sirius to take a girl hostage so Emilia would stop lol. In the end, she lost...and another Archbishop, Regulus, made his grand entrance!! Emilia is his WHAT NUMBER WIFE NOW??? What a cliffhanger!! Emilia really jinxed them by saying, "Well if anything happens I'm sure you'll save me," lmao. That is true, but please...

- Regulus' voice is so nice and it seems familiar...I wonder who it is...(checks AniList) OH, AKIRA ISHIDA!! OF COURSE. NO WONDER. IT'S PERFECT. Sorry, he sounds so iconic but I'm so bad at remembering voices and names, especially VAs lol.

- The ending is no less cool, too!!

Reinhard looks so good in this shot, omg. I saw a man so beautiful I started crying...😭😭😭


THE WAY EVERYONE'S TRANSPARENT HANDS PUSH SUBARU'S BACK??? REINHARD LIFTING HIM UP LIKE A CAT??? OH MY GOD THAT'S SO CUTE ASGHDFHJFK 🥹🥹🥹😭😭😭



Subaru isn't alone...he has everyone!! 🥹🥹🥹 God, I love them so much. 😭😭😭


#ReZero_Starting_Life_In_A...Fold

Re: a Japanese infographic about the average age and gender ratio of people who likes (oshikatsu) various popular franchises (and other brands) (Edit 2024-10-23: the tweet has been deleted but thankfully my friend saved the image here)
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Some interesting bits for me (just number is age, some are my estimation, ~ = around, sorry if I make a mistake):
Touken Ranbu (extreme end 100% girls, ~37)
Enstars (~98% girls, ~28)
Twisted Wonderland (~98% girls, ~25)
Cinnamoroll (~97% girls, ~32+)
Haikyuu!! (~83% girls, ~32)
Nijisanji (80% girls, ~25)
aespa (~70%, ~27+) (my sister is one lmao)
Identity V (~60%+ girls, 20)
Project Sekai (60% girls, ~21+)
World Trigger (~55% girls, ~32)
Idolmaster (50% girls, 30)
Vocaloid (~51% boys, 20)
Oshi no Ko (~55% boys, ~35)
Spy x Family (~60%+ boys, ~44)
Fate (~60%+ boys, 34)
VSPO! (~65% boys, ~25)
Hatsune Miku (~70% boys, ~32)
Uma Musume (~80% boys, ~37)
VTuber (~85% boys, 30)
Blue Archive (~85% boys, 20)
Re:Zero (~85% boys, 30)
Touhou Project (90% boys, ~25+)
Street Fighter (90% boys, ~47)
Hololive (90% boys, 30)
Lycoris Recoil (extreme end 100% boys, ~35)

Some thoughts:
- Not surprised about Touken Ranbu, Nijisanji, and World Trigger being dominated by girls
- Vocaloid age range is surprisingly (?) so young??
- Damn Lycoris Recoil...I'm a girl!! Include me in that!! 😂Fold

#Neural_Cloud x "Steins;Gate" collab


3 months late (because I wrote it, then forgot about it until today - I could've posted it as is, but I wanted to expand it and I did), but!! Better late than never!! I knew people said it's amazing, but I sure didn't expect how epic it actually was. How long was it with and without combat?? It was pretty long. I haven't read/played "Steins;Gate" myself (will do so someday), but from the bits and pieces I know, isn't this story pretty close to the essence of the original game/story?? Anyway, here's my full late review (?):
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First of all, the UI is pretty nice, the style was changed to fit "Steins;Gate" aesthetics. Even the text box changed when it's from Okabe's point of view. I especially love how the missions look and how the rewards look like a vending machine. Also, the flip phone (taken from the visual novel) is so cool!




As for the story...as a fan of the genre and tropes, having consumed plenty of similar time travel stories, the story is nothing groundbreaking. One can even see what's coming at times (honestly, what else do you expect from a time travel story? Or did I know a bit too much about "Steins;Gate"??), but still, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The familiar genre and tropes were executed well with a relatively good pace and fun writing that flows smoothly. It's pretty long, too, much to my surprise. What do you mean this is a collab event in a gacha game?? It can stand as its own story.

It's so well-done, you don't have to be familiar with "Steins;Gate" to enjoy it (though of course, if you're familiar, you'll get more enjoyment). Perhaps "Steins;Gate" fans can even enjoy it without knowing "Neural Cloud". It took its time to introduce the setting and characters, the good dose of comedy never making it boring. The fun banters between characters give insight into their relationships and personalities, making you care for them even a bit. That makes the sudden mood shift all the more painful, punching you in the guts, even though I expected and even hoped for it.

The mood whiplash - from a merry cafe to Oasis in ruins due to Entropy attack and Kurisu's subsequent death - is indeed sudden. One blink and suddenly, the entire world changed. But then, as though we're detectives, we (along with the characters) got to retrace the steps and found out what happened. It was brewing behind the scenes without us knowing all this time - a disaster waiting to happen, and happen it did.



That's when the time travel kicks in - to fix what went wrong: the Entropy's attack on Oasis and Kurisu's death. This being "Steins;Gate", the time travel has its own set of rules and restrictions, which is very interesting. That means one has to be smart to go about it. In time travel stories, there's usually something unavoidable in all/most timelines, and that is explained here. Everything about the time travel feels scientific-ish, which is only natural as it is part of "Science Adventure" series. Thankfully, they aren't hard to understand here. The rules and limitations also presented more problems the characters have to tackle. The stakes are high and the problems only keep piling up - they got a lot of work to do.

As if all the futile attempts and loops - seeing Kurisu dying from increasingly ridiculous reasons, as though the world wants her dead no matter what - weren't enough, Okabe soon found a horrifying discovery: in a timeline where Mayuri wasn't around, Kurisu was fine. One of them had to die for the other one to stay alive. What a cruel fate and choice to make.

Mayuri sacrificed herself, but of course, that is not the end. Far from it, the story began anew here. An arguably even worse future came: Mayuri leading the Entropy attack as opposed to Riko (Riko being Entropized was a nice surprise, by the way). Not only did they have to kill her now, Okabe had to see his childhood friend suffer unimaginable pain and lose herself. Whatever he chose, his friends will suffer. There is no right answer.


Of course, A "fix it" time travel story isn't complete without a healthy dose of suffering and descent into madness from all the futile attempts and loops. As a lover of such things, I am pleased by how the story presented them, especially the madness.


Naturally, despite sinking into despair, Okabe managed to stand back up and refused to give in to fate. He and Professor racked their brains to concoct a plan, a way to save both Oasis and the 2 girls, to reach a world line where nobody had to die. Keeping the visual novel nature of "Steins;Gate", there are 2 endings here. This can be easily done thanks to the roguelike mechanics of the game, and I really love that. If you somehow got the bad ending the first and second time, you get to experience a bit of Okabe's despair and madness. Very fun!


Ultimately, the way to achieve their desired world line and outcome is to trick the world. It's wild, yet it makes sense. It's smart and very exciting. Professor got a chance to take the spotlight in the action for once, showing off the result of Python's training to be able to survive Faith's attacks, though not without close calls and injuries. I'm glad Professor could shine too in the end. Very badass!

When their plan succeeded and they finally reached their desired world line, it's hard to not smile. At long last, everyone is alive and happy. It's a cathartic end to such a long and harsh journey. They earned their happy ending. What an epic story.


And thus, we loop back to the beginning of my review: isn't this story pretty close to the essence of the visual novel's story?? Of course, many things changed, such as the setting, and it might as well be shortened/condensed, but certain key events, plot and emotional beats remain the same (if you know, you know). One might think that's lazy, but I think it's an amazing feat. It also proves how good and effective the concept and emotional beats of "Steins;Gate" are, to remain gut-punching even in another setting entirely.

The story focused on Kurisu at first before moving on to Mayuri. I'm sure the game wanted to try to balance the 2 girls, and I think it did a pretty good job on that front, but...aren't there too many CGs of Mayuri?? She has 3 - as the final boss, dying as the final boss, and lying in a crate in the end of the true/golden ending. There's also a CG of when she's young, which I assume was taken from the original visual novel. In comparison, Kurisu only has 1, namely her death scene. Or did I miss something??

Still, my point stands: this is one hell of an epic collab event story.

EXTRA

Entropized Riko is cool:



Other CGs:



I love me some 4th wall breaks (there are a lot of good lines here, I had to refrain from screenshotting them all):


I didn't know Kamie is a fellow fujoshi comrade...I'm sorry!! I was not familiar with your game. If I had known, I'd have rolled you! Well, I should due to Dupin anyway, but I was worried about my savings back then. I'll try to get you later!!
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Re:Zero #anime season 3 episode 1
It's been such a long wait, but the day is finally here!! I'm so excited and happy to see arc 5 animated, and most of all, to see the candidates and their followers gathering once again. I miss them so much. Especially Beako, Julius, and Reinhard (the last 2 didn't appear in arc 4/season 2, so it's been even longer). 🥺🥺🥺


Here's some of my (disjointed) thoughts.
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- Beako and Subaru's relationship continues to be a delight. They're so cute!! 🥰💕


- Other than Beako-Subaru, this 1 hour episode has a lot of what I consider one of the series' strengths: character interactions and relationships. It's been so long since we last saw a lot of these characters, so it even feels nostalgic, and may serve as a way to refresh watchers' memories. Their interactions bring a smile to my face.

- Honestly, I feel Subaru in being seasick lol.

- Everyone in yukata, god bless. 🙏


- This season started off by setting up the location and plot while juggling different character subplots, mostly Garfiel and the Astrea family. Interestingly, both are related to families. Was that really Garfiel's mother?? God, that must be awkward.

- I'm biased, but the Astrea family drama is easily one of the most intriguing for me. Here, we finally found out what's the deal with Reinhard and Wilhelm. Despite being family, they backed different candidates and didn't mention each other before...because their relationship is VERY strained, to put it lightly. My god, both of them need a good old hug and perhaps family therapy.

After talking with Subaru, Wilhelm FINALLY took the first step to reconcile in an endearingly awkward way. Reinhard was surprised but he welcomed it - after all, he also wanted to reconcile with his grandfather. They were so close to make up even if a little, but alas, Heinkel had to appear and destroy it all. It's interesting how the weak and pathetic Heinkel could silence the strong Sword Saint and Sword Devil. This also further humanizes Reinhard, who seemed like the picture perfect hero (though this was hinted before already).


- Shipping aside, I LOVE Subaru and Julius' relationship so much. They're so different, almost the exact opposite even, but they can learn some things from each other and I think that's beautiful. Subaru can learn some tact and chivalry, while Julius can learn to be more free beyond his duties as a knight. Subaru is still a big tsundere and that probably won't change, but Julius is more open in accepting their weird friendship. It's also nice to see them worry over their mutual friend, Reinhard. God, I love this trio very much.


- The one who brought Heinkel? Priscilla, who wasn't even invited. It's such a peak drama moment. I can't help but hate her at that moment, but soon after, we see more to her. She might think the whole world is hers and likes to do things out of her own amusement, but it's not like she is all-controlling. "After all, the whole world is her garden, so it matters not where a bird sings." It's such a warped way of thinking, yet it makes sense, and it suits her perfectly.

- Of course, there's a reason why this episode is 1 hour long. Beyond the quite long setup with nice character moments, it also enables the episode to get the conflict in the finale (that is undoubtedly intriguing for watchers): Witch Cult and Subaru's subsequent death. I knew what would happen, but my god, that part is so uncanny and terrifying, I can't even begin to describe it. This is going to be a good ride.


(Note: I only read the beginning of arc 5 in the web novel, and although I've read the summary, it's been so long, so my knowledge is limited.)

#ReZero_Starting_Life_In_A...Fold

IN 70 ROLLS, WELCOME HOME, PENUMBRA!!!!! 😭😭😭🙏🙏🙏
HE IS SOOO MY TYPE HIS VERY EXISTENCE IS AN ATTACK ON ME AGSDGFGHFJL I LOVE HIM SO MUCH 😭💕
Also got Nanaka (dupe) in the very first 10 rolls lmao. Aki (dupe) probably followed her 😂

#Neural_Cloud

IN 60 ROLLS, I GOT EVERYONE TWICE OMG!!!! WELCOME HOME!!! 😭😭😭🙏🙏🙏
Doc and Iana came in the free 10 rolls too, god bless
E2 for Doc and Ela, done!!


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Rolls breakdown:
10 (free) - Doc, Iana
20 - Corroserum, Almond
40 - Elysium, Iana, Vendela
60 - Ela (2x), Doc

Results:
🆕 Ela, Doc, Iana pot 2
🆕 Almond
Corroserum pot 3
Vendela pot 2
Humus pot 5

#ArknightsFold

Today is the day of "Katashiro Reflect" (tweet) ad-lib 3D play featuring Naruse Naru, Sukoya Kana (as doctor), and Suo Sango (as Ayumu). It's based on the TTRPG scenario "Katashiro". I watched it a few hours after the stream ended.
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I know Sukoya did "Katashiro Reflect" 3D project and I was interested in it, but this is my first time actually watching it. I think doing TTRPG in 3D is a genius idea, but it's understandably hard to do. I applaud Sukoya for this project. "Katashiro" is a good scenario for 3D as it only involves 3 people and has a small setting/location. It's also pretty short.

It was simple, short, and bittersweet. Sango's acting especially blew me away and Naruse followed her energy well, while also acting great himself (that, I have no doubt, since I heard him voice act before). Depending on how you look at it, it can also be pretty meta, which is fascinating (I only realized this after reading a fan's reaction).

 It's a nice send-off for Naruse (and his fans) before he graduates in a few days.

Side note: I'm pleasantly surprised how much I understand this stream and I'm thankful for that. YouTube's auto-translate subtitles helped a bit, too.

Maybe I should watch other "Katashiro Reflect" now, I'm curious to see how others did it.

#Virtual_YouTubersFold

Watched the long-awaited Detective Conan: The Million-dollar Pentagram #anime #movie today!!
No free A2 poster this time (just for fan screening I think, which I unfortunately couldn't join 😢) but the photo area is cool, there are more standees inside too

I'm severely lacking sleep and kinda feel sick rn so I can't say much about the movie yet (maybe later) other than...I enjoyed it
The sword fights are stellar!! Along with Hijikata, I can see why saniwa will love this lol
P.S. I love Hijiri, I wish he isn't a one-off character 😢

#Detective_Conan