NativeJovian
@nativejovian.bsky.social
Traveling IT guy. Would play too many video games, but doesn't have the time. they/them. Agender, asexual, aromantic.
I think the Lalah episode is where the last of my hope that Gqux would anything interesting died.
It plays up the worst aspects of her backstory, while simultaneously robbing her of any agency. She just pines beautifully for Char because that's what Lalah is for, according to Gqux.
It's gross.
It plays up the worst aspects of her backstory, while simultaneously robbing her of any agency. She just pines beautifully for Char because that's what Lalah is for, according to Gqux.
It's gross.
December 22, 2025 at 11:34 PM
I think the Lalah episode is where the last of my hope that Gqux would anything interesting died.
It plays up the worst aspects of her backstory, while simultaneously robbing her of any agency. She just pines beautifully for Char because that's what Lalah is for, according to Gqux.
It's gross.
It plays up the worst aspects of her backstory, while simultaneously robbing her of any agency. She just pines beautifully for Char because that's what Lalah is for, according to Gqux.
It's gross.
It works! Don't have time to really get started on the game but I did want to test it, at least.
December 22, 2025 at 10:18 PM
It works! Don't have time to really get started on the game but I did want to test it, at least.
This arrived and the result was better than I could have possibly hoped. It did not come with the original packaging.
It came with the packaging from Hollywood Video circa 2003.
It came with the packaging from Hollywood Video circa 2003.
December 19, 2025 at 11:02 PM
This arrived and the result was better than I could have possibly hoped. It did not come with the original packaging.
It came with the packaging from Hollywood Video circa 2003.
It came with the packaging from Hollywood Video circa 2003.
I remember seeing fanart of that and it was rad as hell, I didn't realize it came from the mangaka!
December 19, 2025 at 5:47 AM
I remember seeing fanart of that and it was rad as hell, I didn't realize it came from the mangaka!
welp part of the reason I actually bought from Gamestop is that it let me checkout directly through Paypal and not have to make a Gamestop account.
I still got a marketing email from Gamestop WITHIN AN HOUR of placing the order.
I still got a marketing email from Gamestop WITHIN AN HOUR of placing the order.
December 13, 2025 at 9:34 PM
welp part of the reason I actually bought from Gamestop is that it let me checkout directly through Paypal and not have to make a Gamestop account.
I still got a marketing email from Gamestop WITHIN AN HOUR of placing the order.
I still got a marketing email from Gamestop WITHIN AN HOUR of placing the order.
So I end up thinking to myself "well, I have a working PS2..." and tldr I just bought a PS2 game from Gamestop dot com in the year of our lord 2025. It was $6.99 + $6.99 s/h. There are cheaper listings on ebay but they're disc only, so we're rolling the dice to see if it includes case and/or manual.
December 13, 2025 at 8:43 PM
So I end up thinking to myself "well, I have a working PS2..." and tldr I just bought a PS2 game from Gamestop dot com in the year of our lord 2025. It was $6.99 + $6.99 s/h. There are cheaper listings on ebay but they're disc only, so we're rolling the dice to see if it includes case and/or manual.
I love how clear the thought process is here. 1) I need to kill this guy. 2) but I'm holding a chair. 3) eh, good enough. 4) [kills guy with chair]
December 11, 2025 at 7:09 PM
I love how clear the thought process is here. 1) I need to kill this guy. 2) but I'm holding a chair. 3) eh, good enough. 4) [kills guy with chair]
Fetishy maid stuff does make me kinda uncomfortable for this exact reason, but I feel like at this point it's diverged so far from its origins that most people genuinely have not considered that angle and I don't want to be the one to ruin their fun by pointing it out.
December 3, 2025 at 8:19 PM
Fetishy maid stuff does make me kinda uncomfortable for this exact reason, but I feel like at this point it's diverged so far from its origins that most people genuinely have not considered that angle and I don't want to be the one to ruin their fun by pointing it out.
I was going absolutely feral while IBO was airing and everyone was loudly anticipating McGillis's "inevitable" betrayal and I'm like... Guys, just because he backstabbed his friends for a cause doesn't mean he's Treachery Guy who will always betray everyone who trusts him. That's not how that works!
November 20, 2025 at 2:08 AM
I was going absolutely feral while IBO was airing and everyone was loudly anticipating McGillis's "inevitable" betrayal and I'm like... Guys, just because he backstabbed his friends for a cause doesn't mean he's Treachery Guy who will always betray everyone who trusts him. That's not how that works!
I can't make any sense of this from Rustal as a character, so I'm forced to assume that the show's staff wanted a bittersweet ending where Tekkadan loses but some of the reforms they wanted happen anyway, so they just kludged it in there as best they could, previous characterization be damned.
November 20, 2025 at 1:56 AM
I can't make any sense of this from Rustal as a character, so I'm forced to assume that the show's staff wanted a bittersweet ending where Tekkadan loses but some of the reforms they wanted happen anyway, so they just kludged it in there as best they could, previous characterization be damned.
imo this doesn't mesh with his earlier characterization, where he's ruthless and single-minded in pursuit of power for its own sake. That's his main counterpoint to Tekkadan and McGillis -- they want power to accomplish a goal, but for Rustal power IS the goal. So why give any of it up?
November 20, 2025 at 1:56 AM
imo this doesn't mesh with his earlier characterization, where he's ruthless and single-minded in pursuit of power for its own sake. That's his main counterpoint to Tekkadan and McGillis -- they want power to accomplish a goal, but for Rustal power IS the goal. So why give any of it up?
In the epilogue, Rustal has gained an unprecedented level of personal power, by dissolving the Seven Stars and becoming sole, individual ruler of Gjallarhorn. He then uses that power to grant Mars independence and push through democratic reforms of Gjallarhorn, things which reduce his own authority.
November 20, 2025 at 1:56 AM
In the epilogue, Rustal has gained an unprecedented level of personal power, by dissolving the Seven Stars and becoming sole, individual ruler of Gjallarhorn. He then uses that power to grant Mars independence and push through democratic reforms of Gjallarhorn, things which reduce his own authority.
Yeah, the compromise I mean isn't his handling of Tekkadan -- he destroys them and crushes McGillis's rebellion just like he said he would. But afterwards, with Gjallarhorn's authority repaired and its power unquestioned, he... does a bunch of the stuff Tekkadan and McGillis wanted to do anyway.
November 20, 2025 at 1:55 AM
Yeah, the compromise I mean isn't his handling of Tekkadan -- he destroys them and crushes McGillis's rebellion just like he said he would. But afterwards, with Gjallarhorn's authority repaired and its power unquestioned, he... does a bunch of the stuff Tekkadan and McGillis wanted to do anyway.
They don't want to rule Mars out of a misguided lust for power. Orga is almost pathologically devoted to Mika, and Mika just wants to stop fighting and be a farmer. But Gjallarhorn keeps trying to kill them, and nothing less than the full power of a unified Mars is enough to make them stop.
November 19, 2025 at 4:22 PM
They don't want to rule Mars out of a misguided lust for power. Orga is almost pathologically devoted to Mika, and Mika just wants to stop fighting and be a farmer. But Gjallarhorn keeps trying to kill them, and nothing less than the full power of a unified Mars is enough to make them stop.
Similarly, the Kings of Mars stuff doesn't become a goal until Tekkadan's Earth Branch is virtually wiped out by back-alley maneuvering from Gjallarhorn. Gjallarhorn will continue attacking them until they're destroyed, UNLESS they amass enough power to FORCE Gjallarhorn to leave them alone.
November 19, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Similarly, the Kings of Mars stuff doesn't become a goal until Tekkadan's Earth Branch is virtually wiped out by back-alley maneuvering from Gjallarhorn. Gjallarhorn will continue attacking them until they're destroyed, UNLESS they amass enough power to FORCE Gjallarhorn to leave them alone.
Kudelia and McGillis are strategic partnerships that they need to survive. Kudelia performs a political role that they need to settle any kind of peace with Gjallarhorn, which they are completely unequipped to handle themselves. McGillis gets them material support they desperately need.
November 19, 2025 at 4:20 PM
Kudelia and McGillis are strategic partnerships that they need to survive. Kudelia performs a political role that they need to settle any kind of peace with Gjallarhorn, which they are completely unequipped to handle themselves. McGillis gets them material support they desperately need.
Of course this clashes with the epilogue, where after claiming that he must take an uncompromising hard-line stance and wipe out Tekkadan, Rustal immediately softens his stance and compromises after becoming leader of Gjallarhorn. But imo that's the ending being out of step with the rest of the show
November 19, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Of course this clashes with the epilogue, where after claiming that he must take an uncompromising hard-line stance and wipe out Tekkadan, Rustal immediately softens his stance and compromises after becoming leader of Gjallarhorn. But imo that's the ending being out of step with the rest of the show
Similarly, the end of S2 has Orga offering himself as a sacrifice to save the rest of Tekkadan, but Rustal refuses. Rustal directly says that Tekkadan must be annihilated as punishment for its defiance (ie, surviving when Gjallarhorn decided to kill them) and nothing they can do will change that.
November 19, 2025 at 3:54 PM
Similarly, the end of S2 has Orga offering himself as a sacrifice to save the rest of Tekkadan, but Rustal refuses. Rustal directly says that Tekkadan must be annihilated as punishment for its defiance (ie, surviving when Gjallarhorn decided to kill them) and nothing they can do will change that.
The end of S1 makes this explicit by raising concerns that Orga is wasting Tekkadan's lives on revenge, but the INSTANT they achieve their strategic goals (ie securing a longer-term safety than just "not actively fighting right now"), he calls off the attack and tells everyone to just stay alive.
November 19, 2025 at 3:51 PM
The end of S1 makes this explicit by raising concerns that Orga is wasting Tekkadan's lives on revenge, but the INSTANT they achieve their strategic goals (ie securing a longer-term safety than just "not actively fighting right now"), he calls off the attack and tells everyone to just stay alive.
I see this idea a lot, but imo it's pretty clear in the text that Tekkadan is fighting for nothing more and nothing less than survival -- it's Gjallarhorn that pushes them to amass more and more power by relentlessly trying to destroy them.
November 19, 2025 at 3:45 PM
I see this idea a lot, but imo it's pretty clear in the text that Tekkadan is fighting for nothing more and nothing less than survival -- it's Gjallarhorn that pushes them to amass more and more power by relentlessly trying to destroy them.
Bonus: ceci n'est pas une door
November 13, 2025 at 7:31 PM
Bonus: ceci n'est pas une door