Musical Ramblings #5

I thought I'd skip ahead and work on Episode 2 for a bit (specifically Jail Break), but I've got a question for you, readers.

Is there an official name for the prison at Cotton Mouth Bluff? The one where Tennessee (and later, the boys) gets locked up in? If not, I'd love to hear name suggestions.

If you must know, the mission Jail Break contains a bit of a deviation from canon (aside from Penelope now being on the rescue team). The boys are being held in jail separately. Our three heroes (Penelope, Tennessee, and Carmelita) are going to split up to save them. Penelope's going to free Bentley, Carmelita's going after Sly, and Tennessee's stuck with Murray.

I'm thinking about how they're all going to pull this off, starting with Penelope freeing Bentley. The only catch with Penelope's part is I don't want her just using RC vehicles. She's going to actually fight guards. She'll start by picking a guard's pocket to get the key to Bentley's cell, then... she'll clean house.

Why is she doing it this way? She's trying to show Bentley she's not a helpless damsel. Spoiler alert: It works.

Sly Cooper: Thieves In Time Redux by nikkikins

What a storytelling trainwreck Thieves In Time was... Here. I fixed it for ya. This a Thieves In Time rewrite.

Let’s keep the “Penelope betrays the gang” angle, but rope her into the adventure and have her learn a lesson or two about friendship. She’ll start off wanting no part of the journey, then grow to like Sly, Bentley, and Murray all over again, eventually seeing the error of her ways.

And also have her narrate. Yes, I know that’s a bold move, but ask yourself this. Would this story work if Sly narrated? Didn’t think so. 

Now, this story doesn’t include her motive. Nor any dialogue. That part is left up to the reader.

Penelope will spend most of this story keeping quiet about her treachery, only for everything to be revealed at the end of Episode 5. By then, she will have returned to being on the right side for real. 

She only gets as far as designing the blimp in this story.

One last thing... Toad Town from Paper Mario: The Origami King not only slaps, but its musical progression works perfectly with this story. Start with Musée Champignon, then Toad Town Ghost Town, and work your way up to Toad Town’s final form. 

Spoiler alert: As the music progresses to its final form, Penelope will become more heroic.

Here’s your order: 

Musée Champignon (Prologue & Paris Tutorial)

Toad Town Ghost Town (Turning Japanese) 

Toad Town Red Streamer Removal (Go West, Young Raccoon)

Toad Town Blue Streamer Removal (Clan Of The Cave Raccoon)

Toad Town Yellow Streamer Removal (Of Frogs And Mechs)

Toad Town Purple Streamer Removal (40 Thieves)

Toad Town Green Streamer Removal (Paris Epilogue)

Yes, you read that correctly. Episode 4 has a new villain. I’ll give you one good guess who they might be.

why is this the hottest thing i've ever seen

Something I've been thinking about lately is the shame around writing slowly, and how prevalent it is for people to be upset about not being able to write a lot really quickly. About how so much of writing advice is "how to write more faster," and how many people seeking advice are asking how to write a thousand words a day, and how big of an annual thing NaNoWriMo is because it's difficult but there's this general vibe of condescension for those who don't participate or who don't "win."

And I used to feel ashamed too. I'd get frustrated by my apparent inability to write more than a few hundred words in a sitting on a good day. I'd beat myself up for only managing my bare minimum of fifty words, I'd try again and again at NaNoWriMo and hate myself for not being able to do it.

But I've realized that if I didn't write slowly, my stories wouldn't be what they are. I wouldn't love them so much, because they wouldn't have become what they did - because they had time to bloom.

And I've also realized that while I have had moments in time where I wrote like that - multiple thousands of words a day for days or weeks on end - that's... not something I aspire to.

I write slow! That's okay!

I'm proud of writing slow. I'm proud of having gotten to the point where I put myself and my process before what others expect of me.

You don't need to be fast. You don't need to be ashamed.

And you don't need to want to be fast, either.

I certainly don't.

Happy New Years

Congrats

You guys convinced me, Penelope is a good character.

attempting to copy sly cooper's art style lmao

Bentley and Penelope’s kids

I thought it would be fun to try designing what Bentley and Penelope’s kids might look like (and just ignore the fact that it’s a biological impossibility for turtles and mice to make babies together LOL)

DK House Donkey Kong 64 Rare / Nintendo Nintendo 64 1999

I’d like them to be friends

Just another scene that I believe took place behind the scenes during the China level of Sly 3. Yep. These two are still my BFF-OTP