oh boy, it has been a while! I didn't mean to fall off the face of the earth for six months, but uh. getting REALLY into deltarune, on top of personal stuff going on in my own life, has kinda been kicking my ass in the whole Doing Things department.

I still want to do a little something before 2025 is over though! it's not much, but I think it'd be fun to go through a few things I checked out but didn't end up getting their own entry.

satoshi kon's filmography

this includes perfect blue, millennium actress, tokyo godfathers, and paprika! haven't gotten around to watching paranoia agent yet, but I'd definitely like to in 2026.

I don't actually watch a lot of movies, but I ended up checking out perfect blue on a whim while sick many months back, and I am SO glad I did. this collection ended up becoming some of my absolute favorites! even though they're all very different films, they all feel connected in how they mix a surreal and creative art direction with such grounded characters. they're really one of a kind, and it's fascinating to see how all these ideas iterate on each other throughout each film!

if I had to rank them... it's difficult. like I said, they're all very different! personally, I think perfect blue and paprika have stuck with me the most - the former for how visceral its horror is and the latter for its stunning art direction. (seriously, if you take ANYTHING from this, go watch the opening of paprika!) I remember tokyo godfathers having my favorite cast, and probably being the most well-rounded... and while I'd say millennium actress is at the bottom of the list, it's got some genuinely breathtaking moments of its own, and it's super interesting how its themes feel "in conversation" with its predecessor.

angel's egg

I'd heard this name floating around recommendation lists, but seeing its art direction compared to the beautiful music video for "the greatest living show" by toby fox and itoki hana was what pushed me to finally watch it!

this is... perhaps one of the strangest movies I've ever seen, but not at all in a bad way! there's very little dialogue as our two leads travel through this eerie, ruined world, which makes for an incredibly atmospheric watch where every exchange feels all the more impactful. like I alluded to, this movie's visuals are a huge standout and singlehandedly sell the tone its story is going for. I don't imagine this film is everyone's cup of tea - it's quiet and slow-paced and a lot is left ambiguous - but at the very least I recommend checking out some of its art!

hatena satena

complete tonal whiplash, but hey! cute little puzzle game for the gba!

this is basically if picross and minesweeper had a baby. it takes a bit to get the hang of, but it's a lot of fun once you know what you're doing! the art style is also ADORABLE, which is a nice bonus. :)

hatena satena is a japan exclusive, but it's a puzzle game, so you really don't need to know the language. as long as you know how picross and minesweeper work, you should pick up how this game works without much trouble. (here's an english guide to navigating the menus!)

the rehearsal (season 2)

they made a second season and I didn't hear about it until months later! what the hell!

if I get too into this one I'll be here all day, because this show gives me very particular brainworms, so I will simply say: yeah this one Hits as an autistic person. it's definitely better than the first season.

(incidentally, I ended up rewatching nathan for you, which I haven't seen in probably over a decade... it's interesting, because you definitely see the seeds of the rehearsal in this show's final episode! I think most of it holds up aside from a few bits that didn't age well. though, with its heavier focus on comedy than storytelling, it doesn't quite stick with me the way the rehearsal does.)

pluribus

look. you don't need me to tell you pluribus is incredible. if you've seen breaking bad or better call saul, you know exactly the kind of great writing you're in for. a perfect blend of humor and slow-burn, gut-wrenching character study that rewards you for paying attention to the little things. the only unfortunate bit is that it'll probably be a couple years until another season comes out... suddenly thankful I hopped on better call saul while its final season was airing! but of course, it's always worth the wait. :P

and that's everything I wanted to go through! there's other stuff I've played or watched this year, but it either didn't feel worth mentioning or is currently in the "I still need to finish it" pile. (I haven't played a lot of grandia yet but it's made a great first impression! it's scratching the skies of arcadia "feel-good rpg" itch a bit.)

here's to 2026! with new tomodachi life and rhythm heaven games on the horizon, plus another deltarune chapter, I hope I'll have a lot to talk about. :)

HOLY SHIT

yeah, this isn't exactly a "short review for people who haven't heard of it" - more just me gushing about a game that continues to blow my expectations out of the water. meant to post this much earlier, but I was too busy thinking about deltarune to, uh... post about deltarune. the hyperfixation is going strong folks.

if you were in the deltarune fandom at all before these chapters, you'll know just how strongly I mean that. even with just two chapters to go off of, people were dead set on all these patterns and theories that could map out the rest of the game. oh, the first two bosses are a king and queen working with the knight? all the bosses must be chess themed! oh, the first two secret bosses were abandoned darkners driven mad by forbidden knowledge? all of them must be like that! ...stuff like that. it honestly feels a little ridiculous just how small we were thinking - like deltarune was a math problem instead of a story. but hey, that's what four years of waiting does to a community, I guess. shattering everyone's theories was a shock to the system at first, but god does it make me stoked for what's coming next!

some part of me wants to outline all my praises for the chapters, but I'm just left going "okay, what are the best parts? I don't know, all of it?" the humor hits as always, the character writing is better than ever, there's a perfect combination of answering big questions while opening so many new ones... the wait for 2026 doesn't feel too bad when there's so much to chew on in the meantime!

obviously I love the new additions in tenna and gerson, and carol makes a fascinating introduction - that all goes without saying. I think more than anything, though, these chapters have really made me appreciate ralsei more. I'm not usually a fan of "timid and innocent" sort of characters, but his struggles with self-worth and building his own identity really struck a chord with me. you deserve the world little man!!! I'm sorry the internet thought you were secretly evil!!!

it's weird though. I was totally expecting tenna to be the character I get brainworms over, since I absolutely did with spamton back in chapter 2. but no, deltarune gave us a bunch of new gaster dialogue, and god do I need to study him like a bug (affectionate). the way his cold, concise language belies his earnest curiosity and devotion just genuinely fascinates me! like, you cannot be saying shit like "our beautiful connection, how lucky we are to need each other in this way" and expect me to be normal about it. what the hell.

(if you're interested, I have a few theories and fics of mine catalogued on this site!)

survivor might seem like a contrast to the rest of this site's material, but I've grown to like the show a lot! it's not as far of a stretch as you'd think, either - I love object shows like battle for dream island, and that genre takes some inspiration from survivor. it's become something my mom and I can watch together while I'm still at home for the time being. :)

anyway, season 48! we had the rare honor of watching the finale live, since we were staying at a hotel with cable when it aired. after the great gameplay in season 47, I had high hopes for this season. unfortunately, while it had some good moments, I can't say I was too impressed. it might be better on a binge watch, but following week-to-week during the post-merge was a frustrating experience. it felt like everyone kept spinning their wheels, gearing up to make a move yet somehow failing every time! I'm happy we got the winner we did instead of the one everyone expected, but I wish they could've gotten more focus. as it stands, it felt like the story of this season was building towards one person, only to pivot last minute. it's a little underwhelming, y'know?

still, I wouldn't call this season bad. at worst, I'd say the gameplay was just kinda dull. beyond that, there were some definite bright spots! the cast featured a lot of funny and charming people (star was hilarious), and I think the greater emphasis on personal bonds this season gave it some unique flavor. also, I really enjoyed watching the winner's alliance at work - they made for an incredible strategic duo in a season otherwise lacking in the gameplay department.

also, little side note: this season featured eva as survivor's first openly autistic contestant! as a fellow autistic person, I was super happy to see this, and I'm glad her triumphs and struggles were both represented honestly on the show. the moments where her frustration overwhelmed her were something I could definitely connect with. there is some small part of me that worries about her struggles being used to uplift how good of a guy joe is, but honestly? those bonds were an important part of her game, and in our current climate, I'd rather appreciate a narrative that empowers autistic people as lovable and capable as they are than tear it down because of a few nitpicks.

overall, this season ranks on the lower end for me, but I'm still pretty new to the series and have mostly watched the best-regarded seasons. so like, of course a lukewarm season isn't going to measure up well to those? still, there was plenty to enjoy here! I think we'll be checking out australian survivor next - been hearing some good things about survivor's less-discussed sister show. :D

my relationship with this game is... weird. it's got the closest I have to nostalgia for the sonic series, since I watched someone else play it growing up. it's got the closest thing to sa2's ranking system, and A-ranking sa2 is what turned that game from "just okay" to one of my favorites. and yet? in my first impressions of sonic heroes, I hated it.

anyone who's played this game will tell you it's janky as hell, and that really soured my first impression of it. it didn't help that some of these stages can be 10 minutes long and half of them are set over a bottomless pit

but somewhere in my two-year-long process of picking the game up, chipping away at it, and putting it down again, I somehow started to adapt to the jank? and eventually, the game turned from incredibly frustrating to... actually a great successor to sa2! it's still got its flaws, don't get me wrong - anything related to combat is a complete drag. but I'm so happy to have finally come around on this game :)

sonic games that rank based on score instead of clear time are hard to find, which sucks, because where I find the most fun in these games. and since boost gameplay seems like it's here to stay, I don't see that changing anytime soon. still, it gives me all the more reason to appreciate something like sonic heroes. and so, the hunt for a-ranks begins again!