Hello Malleus Nation

Tony and his PPs (forgot to post this one too)

My thoughts on Starry Symphony -the midnight sun- Day 1

Day 1 Setlist

long post ahead!

Today, June 29th 2024, marked the start of Ensemble Stars' Starry Symphony -the midnight sun- concert. The first day of the concert kicked off with Eden's performance of Deep Eclipse, and each member was doning in dark glittering cloaks as they sing their hearts out the entirety of the first song. The last time Junichi Suwabe (Nagisa Ran), Natsuki Hanae (Hiyori Tomoe), Ryota Osaka (Ibara Saegusa), and Yuuma Uchida (Jun Sazanami) gathered all together as Eden for an Enstars event was way back in 2021 for the Starry Stage 4th concert. At that same concert, Junichi Suwabe had appeared wearing a wig of Nagisa Ran's white hair in a ponytail, which he also did for this year's concert.

The next song was Feathers of Ark performed by the voice actors of fine, consisting of Hikaru Midorikawa (Eichi Tenshouin), Takuya Eguchi (Wataru Hibiki), Ayumu Murase (Tori Himemiya), and Koutarou Hashimoto (Yuzuru Fushimi). The actors were dressed in white cloaks of fine quality, similar to the actual uniforms of the fine characters in-game. Like with Eden, it was also their first time in three years to perform together as fine for an Enstars event.

Immediately after, Kousuke Toriumi (Madara Mikejima) appeared to perform HELLO, NEW YEAR! while accompanied with dancers throughout the song. For Kousuke Toriumi, it was his first time to participate in an Enstars live concert since he voiced the role of Madara in 2017. The excited shouting after the end of Kousuke Toriumi's performance merely passed on to the next performers as soon as the first beat of the next song dropped. Knights' performance of Or The Beautiful Golden Drop shocked everyone in the audience and the viewers through the Stagecrowd livestream as Knights—in a cart—were descending from the ceiling. The voice actors of Knights are rather active in Enstars events: Reiou Tsuchida (Tsukasa Suou) often hosts Tsukisuta—the monthly Enstars livestream where they announce new information related to the series—while Ryo Kitamura (Arashi Narukami) also appears in the stage play adaptations of the series, as well as the new baking show called 'Sweets Room+5,' wherein Daiki Yamashita (Ritsu Sakuma) appeared as the first guest. However, as a group, it has also been three years since they last gathered together. I am certain it shocked the audience once they saw Ryo Kitamura's fully blonde hair, Reiou Tsuchida's reddish colored hair, Masami Ito's (Izumi Sena) platinum gray hair, and Shintaro Asanuma's (Leo Tsukinaga) orange highlights at the ends of his hair, which was tied in a ponytail. Only Daiki Yamashita retained his black hair, but he had styled his hair similar to Ritsu's, like what he always does during an Enstars concert; it just perfectly shows how much love the voice actors of Knights have for the characters they bring to life.

Unlike the previous units whose last Enstars live concert performance was back in 2021, Ra*bits appeared as performers again after their last appearance in Starry Symphony -the first light- on September 30, 2023 to October 1, 2023. Shunya Hiruma (Tomoya Mashiro), Yuki Yonai (Nazuna Nito), and Tomoya Kosaka (Hajime Shino) reappear again months after the October performance, however, Daiki Kobayashi (Mitsuru Tenma) appears for the first time ever at an Enstars live concert—or even at an Enstars event in general—as the new voice actor for Mitsuru. Ra*bits immediately spread warmth towards the audience as they sing and dance to Love it Love it, jumping up and down like rabbits while they perform.

Speaking as an Enstars fan since 2021 and as seiyuu fan since 2018, this entire live has been a magical rollercoaster ride of emotions for me. It has been a while since I saw voice actors like Takuya Eguchi (Wataru Hibiki) or Natsuki Hanae (Hiyori Tomoe) in an Enstars event, and it was also a delightful experience to see Daiki Kobayashi (Mitsuru Tenma) enter the picture; I've only ever knew him through that one YouTube clip of him singing Ojamajo Carnival months before it was decided that he will take on the role of Mitsuru, but ever since he started voicing him and now that I've watched him match Mitsuru's energy on stage, I feel glad knowing that he has become part of Ensemble Stars at present and hopefully in the future as well.

The live then continued as follows: Blooming World by MaM, Joyful×Box* and Parallel Maze by Ra*bits, THE GENESIS and Absolute Perfection by Eden, then Voice of Sword and Luminous Crown by Knights.

(PSA: As a KnightsP, this is going to start to become heavily Knights-centric.)

If there was a performance that completely blew me away throughout this entire live, then it has GOT to be Knights' Luminous Crown performance. I already had a feeling in my gut that they would perform it right after Voice of Sword, but nothing could have ever prepared me for the performance by the end of the Luminous Crown's bridge. During the end of the bridge, a crown placed on a cushion descended from the ceiling. Shintaro Asanuma (Leo Tsukinaga) took the crown, then immediately, Reiou Tsuchida (Tsukasa Suou) knelt on one knee, head bowed down, as Asanuma placed the crown on top of Tsuchida's head—referencing the change of Knights' leader from Leo to Tsukasa in the Enstars lore. Now if this won't kill a KnightsP, then I don't know what else will.

After that rather heartwrenching performance, fine once again emerged from the backstage to perform a song medley of their own songs: Koi wa Primavera!, Tryst of Stars, Ghostic Treat House, and Holy Angel's Carol. I do not consider myself a fineP, but in my humble opinion, they do create one of the best songs in Enstars; or maybe it is because the genre of their songs are just my style, who knows. Their performance just struck a chord in me, especially with Tryst of Stars being one of my favorite fine songs.

After fine's song medley performance, all artists gathered on stage to perform LIMIT BREAK DREAMERS. Promptly after the performance came in the ment hosted by Reiou Tsuchida (Tsukasa Suou), where each member was given the opportunity to introduce themselves and their unit.

If you are new to Enstars or just to Enstars live concerts, a special guest or two will always appear at any Enstars live concert. For the first Starry Symphony concert, Kei Hosogai (Kaoru Hakaze) surprised the fans with his special appearance for a Date Plan A to Z performance while Tetsuya Kakihara (Subaru Akehoshi) and Showtaro Morikubo (Makoto Yuuki) genuinely bewildered literally everyone with their appearances during the second Starry Symphony concert as the two of them performed ONLY YOUR STARS!. However, for this Starry Symphony concert, Wataru Hatano (Adonis Otogari) appears through a video recording wearing Ensemble Training clothes, I am sure you can tell where this is heading. Wataru Hatano led the audience in an exercise/stretching routine while all the other voice actors just stared at the audience, who continued stretching.

After the abrupt stretching, the live continued on starting with Eden's EXCEED performance, followed by Melty Kitchen by Ra*bits (both of which I was unable to watch without interruptions because of third world country poor internet connection). Knights came out again to perform Coruscate Breeze, where they ended up throwing paper airplanes by the start of the final chorus, just like in the music video. Kousuke Toriumi (Madara Mikejima) goes around the stage, waving to everyone in the audience and to the dancers as he performs Yuukai Tsuukai, That's alright!. Afterwards, fine ends the last song lineup with a performance of Never-ending Stage!!!! (which is undoubtedly one of their best songs). Following this, all artists emerged again from behind the scenes to perform Surprising Thanks!!, which signaled the near-end of the concert's first day.

I watched the entire live concert through the Stagecrowd livestream, so immediately after the Surprising Thanks!! performance, everything went black—save for the colorful penlights from the audience. The audience chanted for an encore for at least five minutes, and then, here appears Shintaro Asanuma (Leo Tsukinaga), Masami Ito (Izumi Sena), Daiki Yamashita (Ritsu Sakuma), and Ryo Kitamura (Arashi Narukami)—who was wearing glasses—all doning in clothing similar to the outfits worn by War era Knights in the We'll be "Knights" music video. As mentioned, the four of them stood on stage to perform We'll be "Knights", even holding swords and swinging them around. What surprised me the most was when Reiou Tsuchida (Tsukasa Suou) came out from the center of the main stage then started walking towards the extended stage to join the rest of Knights; Tsuchida was also holding a sword and sang along with them for the final chorus. I think this was the final blow for all KnightsPs that were watching.

Knights returned backstage while the rest of the cast reappeared wearing white shirts and black pants for the final ment of the show. During this time, Ayumu Murase (Tori Himemiya) referenced his tweet posted earlier this morning that had a caption related to Pretty 5; he explicitly stated: "You thought you'd see Pretty 5? IT WAS ENSEMBLE TRAINING!" in reference to fans speculating that Pretty 5 would be the guest performers for today's concert. Knights came back again wearing the same outfits as everyone else, saying: "Sorry, we were swinging our swords around~ That was scary," as they stepped back on the stage. By the time it was Eden's turn to talk, Natsuki Hanae (Hiyori Tomoe) yelled his signature "II HIYORI!" and even did the echo by himself.

The second thing that could have never prepared me was when Hikaru Midorikawa (Eichi Tenshouin) started tearing up and crying during his turn to talk. Through his tears, he explained that he felt a lot of pressure as he was the oldest in the cast, and that he had also spent a lot of time working on Ensemble Stars, so he truly and genuinely did everything he can, which made him feel so satisfied. Throughout his talk, the rest of fine surrounded Hikaru Midorikawa and were patting his back in comfort and support. I felt just as emotional as Hikaru Midorikawa while he talked about the hard work he poured for Enstars, and it made me understand how much love he has for this franchise; he loves Enstars as much as we, fans, do, and it's such a heartwarming sight knowing that fact. Enstars has grown so much more than just a game to most fans, and especially towards the people involved in the making of the game; it has aged to become a story weaved by memories of the past, adventures of the present, and a catalog for the future.

With so many people loving this franchise internally and externally, I am sure that Enstars will still live for at least another five years. But for now, I think it would be nice to relish in the present Ensemble Stars as we await the future.

See you tomorrow for Day 2!

An Yu Shan’s bookstore

If you're seeing this, I demand you to go write at least 500 words on your current project.

Do it.

Do it.

Do it.

Analyzing the lullaby motif in book 7 (+translation of lyrics)

MAJOR SPOILERS for book 7 chapter 1-5

I hope everyone remembers the lullaby Malleus sang for everyone when he overblotted because that motif came back FOUR times in chapter 5 and I am going to analyze them all because they make me way too emotional 😭

Please feel free to find the lullaby motifs in this post and this post if necessary (although one of them is not included).

Translated lyrics of the lullaby:

A warm cradle

Starlight and joy

My eyes are watching over you still, let's be together

With no fear, even if we wake from this dream

Sleep, sleep, my beloved child

In dreams, I pray you would be guided to walk toward the light

(Analysis begins under the cut:)

The melody of the lullaby has been used 5 times at least in the story, they include:

When Malleus hummed it to everyone he put to sleep during his OB

When Meleanor sang it to Malleus

When Lilia sang it to Silver

When Malleus sang it to Silver

In the bgm when Sebek was helping come out of the darkness

The themes of this piece of music are love and farewell.

Motif use 2 is chronologically when the lullaby was first sung, it’s a song of love from a mother to her child when she knows they must part. I believe that when Meleanor sang this lullaby, she had already made up her mind to fight and let her guards escape with her child. She was taking the last moments she had with her child to name him "Malleus" and sing him this lullaby (7-75). Lyrics include sth like “I will be watching over you even if we wake up from this dream” and “may you be guided and walk towards the light”. But the beauty that comes with the theme of farewell is the theme of legacy. Because even though Meleanor is now gone, her song, and thus her love, never died.

Because Lilia remembers it. Motif 3 is Lilia singing it to Silver, and he’s also sung it to Malleus before. In a musical story, even if the characters lie or don’t have perfect information, the music never lies. Even if Lilia once doubted whether he could love Malleus and hatch him properly (7-77), and even if Lilia may still doubt whether he could love Silver, a human, properly (7-81), the motif symbolises love which tells us the truth — Lilia is capable of giving love. And the legacy is not just that Lilia passed the song to Malleus, it’s that Lilia internalized the song and sang it to his own son. He has seen what kind of mother Meleanor was, and he’s learnt from her kindness, her pride, her love and he has put that into how he raise his own child. Lilia has Meleanor’s legacy too.

And then to address the two Malleus motifs. First of all Malleus never sings it with lyrics, which would imply Malleus himself doesn’t fully know the true meaning of the song. However, he knows that he’s felt happiness and protection from hearing this song, so he sings it to Silver when Lilia asks him to as motif 4 (7-81). When he sang it to Silver he sounded confused, it must’ve been a long time since he’s heard the song. But he still remembers it, which means Meleanor’s love never died because Malleus remembers it all the same. It’s still in Malleus. It’s still there.

But when Malleus overblots, the song gets twisted a little bit (motif 1). However, in Malleus’s mind, it’s still a song of happiness and protection, because he overblotted trying to protect everyone’s happiness forever. But the music sounds creepy to show you the true nature of the song is not like this. The nature of the song is that "even though I cannot be with you always, I will still love you and wish for your happiness". This is the part that Malleus did not understand and did not cope with. It’s also interesting to note that Malleus sang motif 1 with a smile and no hesitation, he was completely confident and sure in what he was doing. Meanwhile, in all other three sung versions, each singer had their own different emotions in their singing, and those emotions were a lot softer, a lot less certain.

And the fifth and final use of the motif is used in the bgm when Sebek yells at Silver for him to get a grip (7-86). The song is arranged into a victorious piece with certainty and assurance. The use of the motif reminds us of the themes: love and legacy. It calls attention to these themes and entrenchs the truth that Silver IS Lilia’s legacy, and that’s only possible because of the love that Lilia has given him. The exact part where the bgm starts playing was when Silver said "Even in the darkness, I could always hear it. 'Stand up' 'Don't give in' 'Live'... it's father's voice. [...] All that he taught me, that's the proof that he had loved me. It's not a dream and not an illusion... it's true love." (I'm serious he really said "true love" for real this IS a translation T^T). When Silver saw Lilia's memories of the song, he denied the love, he said he should not deserve it. The motif had to come back because this is the moment when Silver can finally realize “Ah. This song is full of love and father sang it for me.” The motif HAD to come back because Silver has to come to accept it.

But the bgm arrangement is also made for Sebek. The bgm is full of certainty because Sebek has no doubts in what he’s telling Silver. Sebek, who has grown up alongside Silver, has witness all the love between Lilia and Silver. He KNOWS Lilia’s love is true and he’s conveying that to Silver with certainty. This bgm summarises what Sebek was doing so well, Sebek sees the love Lilia has for Silver and was literally blasting it in Silver’s ears.

As Disney's Sleeping Beauty (1959) puts it, "true love conquers all". And we've been shown that there's love in every direction among our Diasomnia found family. Let's hope that, soon enough, Silver and Sebek would wake Lilia up, and they can finally show Malleus the true meaning of his mother's lullaby and the wish she entrusted to it — that he would walk towards the light, even if she cannot be the one guiding him...

What Are Archetypes And How To Use Them!

Character archetypes are one of the many tools in a writer's arsenal to write believable and universally relatable characters which transcend geography, time, and culture!

Throughout this post, I will be discussing what archetypes are, how to use them, and how to subvert them.

What Are Character Archetypes?

What are character archetypes? Archetypes are kinda like templates that are grouped into categories depending on their traits, experiences, and actions.

When thinking about "archetypes", your mind may jump to the archetypes in the major Arcana which represent different aspects of life! Like character archetypes, the archetypes represented in the Arcana encompass a multitude of various traits, experiences, and meanings depending on the reader of the tarot or, with character archetypes), interpretations by the author!

Archetypes are meant to transcend time, geography, location, and the differences between other individuals to communicate universal truths about humanity.

But it's important to use archetypes correctly! All characters require character development and if you don't use character development or there isn't enough character then the characters are going to be flat, boring, and unoriginal.

The difference between "stock characters" and "archetypes" is the fact that stock characters aren't meant to be main characters. Stock characters are the strict librarian that tells the lovers to be quiet, the mean bully that gets humiliated, or the MC's lovingly dead mom.

They are static, flat characters who are meant to serve as filler. Archetypes are the foundation to create complex, changing characters!

Mixing Character Archetypes

Most characters fall into multiple character archetypes depending on the perspective that you are looking at. Mixing character archetypes allows your characters to be familiar but not cliche!

Character Archetypes (And How To Subvert Them)

There are way too many archetypes so I'm just going to give a quick run-by!

The Caregiver

The caregiver is a character who selflessly and whole-heartedly supports their loved ones. They often tend to fall into the Mentor role, the Best Friend role, or something else. It's common to see the Caregiver as an accompanying character to the Hero.

Traits: Selfless, Kind, Compassionate, Honorable, Loving

Pitfalls: Too selfless, tends to lack growth or goals, a bit too dedicated to assholes

Subvert: Caregiver can serve as an enabling force who encourages the Hero or the Villain to follow all of their desires and will force their loved one to deny any healthy accountability for their bad behavior. The Caregiver can be a shallow individual who has a tendency of nearly abandoning the group when things seem hopeless. The Caregiver can show some selfishness

Everyman

The Everyman is your regular Joe-Shmoe who isn't smart enough to be a Mad Scientist but not dumb enough to be the resident Idiot. They aren't particular ugly nor particularly attractive (but they tend to get the love interest anyway). They are kinda average in most respects.

The Everyman is humble and cooperative but not stand out.

Traits: Humble, Hard-working, Grounded, Relatable, Cooperative

Pitfalls: This is the protagonist for 95% of stories. Tends to flail around so much that the audience wonders why they are even needed.

Subvert: The Everyman tends to fall into the Innocent type. Basically, oblivious as all heck and a bystander. The Everyman could be a secret mastermind behind the whole operation and more aware than anyone suspects.

The Creator

Constantly creative and constantly making something. Their creation can be physical (inventor) or in the divine sense. To the Creator, there is nothing that is more important than what they are trying to make, and they are willing to sacrifice themselves and others to reach their goal.

Traits: Obsession, imaginative, strong-willed, egotistical

Pitfalls: The Creator tends to be unsympathetic and not that obviously relatable to the non-creative types.

Subvert: Actually try and make this Mad Scientist or God relatable. Many people have that one thing that they would sacrifice their time and life for whether that be their job, their family, their identity, or their creative pursuits. Connecting that creation to these universal truths will turn your one-dimensional character into a tragedy or masterpiece.

The Explorer

They want to break boundaries, take risks, and travel the world for something new. They yearn for something more than a normal life. They want to find their purpose and they don't believe their purpose lies in the mundane life everyone wants them to live.

Traits: Courageous, independent, nonconforming, driven, curious

Pitfalls: Explorer types tend to be the garden-variety " I want to explore this place". Highly common protagonists.

Subvert: Have the Explorer be a little bit lost in the world. They aren't courageous about their desires and they don't even really know what they want. They just know they don't want to spend the rest of their life here. They are afraid of stagnation. They are afraid of looking back on their life and only being able to feel regret. Make it spiritual. Make it about fear.

The Hero

The Hero rises to the challenge. They can't or refuse to stand by any longer to the injustice surrounding them. They fight the villains.

Traits: Honorable, Justice-Orientated, Strong

Pitfalls: One-Dimensional. "really? another story about Superman going rogue and killing people because angst?"

Subvert: At this point, having a character who is genuinely a good person who wants to try and be a good person is a subversion. Seriously, if you can only write an interesting character when they are evil or "morally complicated", they you are putting yourself in a box. They aren't perfect but they try. That's the thesis statement for heroes.

The Innocent

The Innocent is defined by their unending optimism and naivety with a child-life attitude (if they aren't an actual child). The Innocent tends to be the starting place for a character who will eventually have their comfortable life radically shifted by worldly events until their ignorance is swept away from them.

Traits: Trusting, Loving, Sincere, Open, Powerless, Oblivious

Pitfalls: So innocent to the point where they are obnoxious and not relatable to anyone above the age of 7. "Why is a man who has the ignorance of a child the Chosen One?"

Subvert: What if the Innocent isn't this childish person but actually acts serious? A story could have a character going on this journey to become the Innocent in an effort to get rid of their memories of the horrors of life that they have deemed unbearable. And they succeed. The Innocent could be someone whose naivety about the world often has them acting in cruel and insensitive ways.

The Lover

Ranging from the hedonistic players to the dreamy romantics, Lovers are guided by their heart. Like Creators, they also have an all-consuming obsession and dedication, although, in this case, the object of their obsession is the receiver of their love whether that be a person or an object.

They often overlap with the Caregiver.

‍Traits: Devoted, compassionate, caring, protective

Pitfalls: They often tend to be one-dimensional and horribly problematic.

Subvert: The recipient of their love could be an object, a friend, or a family member. Their love could also be demonstrated as purposefully toxic as their codepedent traits have the potential to intersect with Superior Complexes, Inferiority Complexes, and/or Savior Complexes.

The Rags-To-Riches Orphan

While not always a literal orphan, the Orphan starts in a state of poverty and unimportance who transitions into a life of opulence and excitement.

Beyond that, Orphans tend to fall into Found Families, as a desire for belonging often reunites them with either social outcasts or the Riches group.

‍Traits: Survivalists, empathetic, determined, driven

‍Pitfalls:  Another orphan? Really? Wow, you got picked up off the street and became unbelievablely rich? How relatable.

Subvert: The Orphan uses their skills and resources from their time in poverty to secure power, influence, and popularity from the masses as their relatable upbringing, connects to the underground market, and survivalist mentality leads them to be even more cunning and manipulative than the natural-born. The Orphan isn't as innocent and ignorant as everyone seems to think they're. The Orphan falls from their rich status. The Orphan hates their found family and relishes in the opportunity to leave them.

The Rebel

The Rebel leads the charge against flawed leaders and power structures when the balance of society is threatened. They might be the public head of a rebellion, a charismatic outsider, someone who works in the shadows, or just someone whose another James Dean- knock-off.

‍Traits: Natural leaders, courageous, inspiring, strong, charismatic

Pitfalls: Romancization of rebel groups and abusive behaviors as , more often than not, rebel groups establish a new order that is the same or even worse than the previous group.

Subvert: What if we didn't contribute to the massive romantization of rebel authority and instead investigated how extremists groups can manipulate desperate citizens into horrible governments. Because Hitler was a rebel who instigated a national rebellion. What if we explored the topic of co-option as previous signs of rebelliousness and civil rights are being commercialized for right-wing non-pocs and "rebellious" teens?

The Mentor

The Mentor is the character who is typically off in the corner, training the protagonist with life advice such as "life happens man" and "if you klll a killer, that's somehow worse than being that killer".

Because writers don't know how to write actual wisdom so they copy facebook quotes and look up a thesarus for some "fancy" words

‍Traits: "Wise", caring, patient, insightful, rational

Pitfalls: "Author! Arthor! This a serious topic with a huge diversity of variables and an imperfect solution as humans are inherently imperfect! This advice seems really oversimplified and kinda biased!

Subvert: What if the mentor's teachings are revealed to be heavily biased and based on misinformation which is reflective of the mentor's upbringing? What if the mentor is secretly working with the antagonist to feed the fledgling Hero with false beliefs? What if the mentor genuinely hates the Hero but is still on Team Good Guys?

Sir Knight… that's not...

re: mainsto 2 ch 16.7

not to trauma dump but i'd definitely choose to be an older sister again even if it means re-living all the shit that happened in the past .... i feel like those older siblings in anime who make it look dramatic when they dote on their younger siblings but it's exactly how i feel (shoutout amagi rinne?) ... i think there's also this Uniqueness with being an older sister in a religious asian household. you definitely have a defined role in the family; you're expected to do so much of this and that responsibilities while looking after your younger siblings.. of course this isn't meant to undermine whatever responsibilities younger siblings have, each of us have our own thing; i'm just personally talking about my experience as an active older sister to my sibling and how it affected my life (negatively & positively), as well as how i became a pillar in my younger sibling's life T_T

i should draw kaoru more