*minorities
Given that the political situation we're currently in is in good part thanks to poor education and reading comprehension, let's try to get literacy back on track.
Hashtag no nazis but grammar nazis
I run outdoors year-round in weather down to 20°F in a climate with high humidity. Above 40°F I wear old beat-up tshirts, a thick hoodie, and leggings-style running pants. Below 40°F I replace the T-shirt with an REI house-brand light- or mid-weight base layer, and I toss a pair of cotton exercise pants over the running pants (I bought those years ago for less than $15) and wear a cheap woven hat and my junkiest gloves. If it's raining I'll replace the heavy hoodie with a water-repellant windbreaker + light weight hoodie.
In other words my running wardrobe is comprised almost entirely of my oldest, most beat-up clothes, most of which were originally just cotton or other cheap non-technical materials purchased years ago at a fast-fashion store at the mall or used from a sporting goods store. I do invest in decent socks (I highly recommend darn tough for their durability), but unless you're braving truly cold temps, very long workouts, or cannot return indoors shortly after working out,* you really don't need anything fancy for year-round exercise. For what it's worth I'm also a woman and I get cold very easily.
*The main problem with cotton is that it will not keep you warm when wet, so if you like to take a long cool down walk or hang out on a park bench for thirty minutes post-workout you should go with wool or synthetic material so you don't freeze in your sweat-soaked clothes. But as long as you're returning to a warm indoor space before your exercise warmth dissipates, this shouldn't be an issue.
Obligatory: I am not a doctor, I don't know your life.
Jumping off the other comment suggesting a low-fodmap diet, do you have other health problems? What sounds like an extremely unbalanced diet (possibility in combination with a round of antibiotics or an episode of food poisoning) may have resulted in a condition called SIBO (small intestine bacterial overgrowth), specifically an overgrowth of methane-producing bacteria. I'd recommend getting tested.
Only certain vehicles, such as emergency vehicles, buses, taxis, and people with reduced mobility and motorists residing or working in the area, will be allowed to drive through the ZTL.
"Car-free zones" my ass. What a garbage clickbait title
Unfortunately Idaho has really incredible geology and ecology. The panhandle is nestled in a beautiful mountain range with lush pines and scenic towns like Wallace and Sandpoint. The southern regions have their gems too: Craters of the Moon for instance is one of the best western parks you've never heard of. Idaho is a gorgeous state, and it's a complete shame how insane "libertarian" politics have turned it into a horror show.
A conspiracy led by a selected few, freed from the hands of death after being infected by the vampire syndrome. After successfully establishing their world secretly, they became the most powerful entities by having control not only of the police but also of politics and the media. People who knew o...
Title: Vampire Syndrome
Type: Webcomic
Year: 2023-2024
Country: South Korea
Genre: Action/supernatural
Status: Completed
Platform: Webtoon (read here)
Appropriate for 30+?: Yes
My rating: 4/5 stars
(Rating scale: 5/5 = masterpiece, 4/5 = quite good, 3/5 = mostly good, 2/5 = bleh, 1/5 = I regret ever being exposed to this series, 0/5 = affront to humanity)
-----------------------
When it comes to webtoons, especially Korean ones, I often find myself making the same criticisms over and over: this is just a new twist on a tired concept, there's no novelty to the art style, the pacing is terrible (and drags on for way too many chapters), and the big one: this series is all plot and no substance (it has no thesis, nothing it "wants to say," it's only goal is to be entertaining).
Then in strides an underrated action/supernatural series, catching me completely by surprise because it's about one of the most tired concepts of the 21st century, vampires, and yet feels like one of the freshest new entries to the webtoon scene in years. The art is super unique, stylish, and flashy (and for once does not completely clash with the 3D-generated backgrounds), the characters are all distinctive and interesting (and relevant through the whole series, no "introduce, use, and dump" here!), the series wrapped up comfortably in an engaging 80 chapters, and the entire premise is an analogy for social issues facing 21st century South Korea (and most of the first world):
spoiler
The villains are vampires, specifically the vampires at the top of the food chain who are mostly wealthy old men who became vampires seeking immortality by consuming people younger and less privileged than themselves. Most of the protagonists are in their 20s or 30s, although there is a spread from teens to 60s, and there's a very strong "the older generations should sacrifice themselves to ensure the success of the younger generations, not the other way around" theme throughout. Like any good social analogy there's debate over preserving the status quo vs inciting a chaotic revolution, and what "revolution" would even look like. While the themes are presented from a South Korean perspective, I think most everyone will resonate with the "pass the fucking torch already, Boomer" messaging.
The dialogue can be a bit clunky at times, although it's hard to say whether that's a result of a poor translation. The series engages in a lot of time jumps, and although I think they're handled well some people may find them confusing. The series has the emotional subtlety of a teenager's poetry diary and the social analogy thesis is pretty superficial, but it carries a sincerity that, combined with the art style, makes it all just work. The surreal rubber-people art, character-driven plot, and stylized body horror all remind me a bit of the Land of the Lustrous manga.
If you can stomach some (highly stylized fantasy) violence and noir-level brooding, Vampire Syndrome is a series I'd recommend to anyone looking for something different, or at least less superficial, in the action genre.
-------------------
As with all my reviews, the above is nothing more than my personal opinion. Have you read this series? What did you think? Post in the comments!
I would add to this that covid did cause a major resurgence in a different flavor of prepper: "back to the earth" people who strive to, among other things, produce more of their own food (be it growing produce, raising livestock, or even doing more cooking and baking using raw ingredients rather than relying on premade food). Interest in gardening, homesteading, baking, and learning to live off the land skyrocketed during peak covid. Sure a lot of that interest has subsided, but much like how the great depression permanently changed the attitudes of people who lived through it in regards to reusing things instead of tossing and replacing, the experience of scarcity and uncertainty regarding basic goods (for most first-world folks, for the first time in their lives) made a permanent mark on at least some of the population. And this is a much more practical type of prepping, because instead of coming from a fantasy of what disaster might befall the world, it was a direct response to a disaster that actually happened.
Crazy thought, but what if it differed by industry? Something like blue collar jobs get Monday off, white collar gets Friday off. That way office workers can for example more easily stay home to get their cable serviced and plumbers can more easily meet with a mortgage agent. Obviously because of overlap it's not perfect (office workers can't meet with mortgage agent, plumbers can't get their cable serviced), but there's a huge issue currently with people working 9-5 M-F being unable to access services that are also only available 9-5 M-F, so this would at least distribute things a little more. (This kind of thing already exists for some industries like restaurants, where W-Su workweeks are common)
Ah yes, New Hampshire: the South of the North
Hence why the members of c/fuckcars are so intense (I include myself in this).
The only practical way to avoid exposure to society's car dominance in your everyday life is to live far from society... Which ironically forces you to own a car and drive to get literally anywhere.
Sorry I edited my comment to be clearer. But you're not wrong that most famous fictional owls are male.
If children's animation has taught me anything, it's that this owl is clearly female
(Edit for clarity)
Actually non-denominational churches come in two sizes: mega and strip mall
And this is in 2015, after we'd recovered from the great recession but before the housing/rental market forced a lot of families back into multi-generational housing situations.
This may have something to do with which states do all-mail voting:
Eight states—California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Vermont and Washington and the District of Columbia—allow all elections to be conducted entirely by mail.
Utah is deep red, but the others are quite blue. Especially with California in there, that's a pretty good chunk of the US that votes early by default (there are same-day options in these states, but I suspect that option is often utilized due to procrastination rather than intentionally waiting until election day to vote).
To your "edit" point: Don't take a handful of downvotes personally; it's pretty easy to do accidentally on mobile so they may have been unintentional
Outer Wilds
Reviews of the game are fantastic ("this is the best game I've ever played" - everybody) but trying to fly that damn spaceship is so hard. I also heard there's tricky platforming later on, and if you mess up you gotta start waaaay back. I did not grow up with video games so I'm terrible at that kind of thing. I should just give up and watch a playthrough but apparently that defeats the whole point of the "incredible" story, which is the only thing I'm here for in the first place.
I guess I'm just holding out for someone to release an assist mode or something.
A reason that everyone should get behind:
AI = increased carbon emissions for a product that won't even be useful because AI is really unreliable.
I love seeing random instances of vaporwave influence. I stumbled across this example in the sci-fi/fantasy webcomic series Ava's Demon. It's only for two panels and has nothing to do with the plot at all, but I thought it was a neat cameo.
I want to try something different to encourage more engagement on this community.
Let's share what we're reading and watching this month! Whether you're one or one hundred chapters/episodes deep, whether you love it or hate it, whether it's a new series or an old favorite, this is the place to share what comics and/or animation you've been consuming lately.
Friendly reminder that this community is specifically for folks 30-years-old and up; you can still participate in this discussion if you're younger than that, but please mark your comments with "under 30." Thanks!
Second panel of the original comic (posted here) amended to track better in 2024 based on the first panel's dialogue
After being let go from her last publisher, an unpopular webcomic author is desperate to make it big in the industry. By chance, she makes a deal with a devil, only to discover that this devil can’t make her wish come true. Unable to take back her deal, she must take advantage of the devil in any wa...
Title: Hell of a Romance (Original: 불지옥 로맨스, 불地獄)
Type: Webcomic
Year: 2023-2024
Country: South Korea
Genre: Slice of Life/Romance/Fantasy
Status: Completed
Platform: Webtoon (read here)
Appropriate for 30+?: Yes
My rating: 3/5 stars
(Rating scale: 5/5 = masterpiece, 4/5 = quite good, 3/5 = mostly good, 2/5 = bleh, 1/5 = I regret ever being exposed to this series, 0/5 = affront to humanity)
-----------------------------------------------
Contrary to what its title suggests, Hell of a Romance is a cute, wholesome slice of life series. Yes there is a romance story in there, but it takes a back seat for 90% of the series to the slice of life elements: at its core this is a story about two failures teaming up in an attempt to create a hit webcomic.
While nothing about this series stood out to me as a must-read, it's a great choice for when you're in need of a lighthearted pick-me-up or a low-stakes read before bed. The art is basic but distinctive, the pacing is decent (I hated the frequent use of cliffhangers, which made no sense given the general lack of action, but I thought overall pacing was fine and the series length was appropriate), the characters are charming enough, and there's just enough plot to keep the series interesting (although maybe not bingeable). I really liked the portrayal of hell, and while a bit of a cliche, I found the use of the angelic demon and demonic angel trope a good fit for the premise. There aren't quite enough jokes to call the series a comedy, but there are a decent number of amusing moments sprinkled in. All the characters appear and act like adults in their 20s-30s, and there's nothing I noted that would be a particular turn-off to older readers.
A relatively short series, Hell of a Romance is a great pick for when you want an easy, comforting read that's a bit more engaging than your standard slice of life, thanks to the supernatural premise.
---------------------------------------------
As with all my reviews, the above is nothing more than my personal opinion. Have you read this series? What did you think? Post in the comments!
Witness what the gods do…after dark. The friendships and the lies, the gossip and the wild parties, and of course, forbidden love. Because it turns out, the gods aren’t so different from us after all, especially when it comes to their problems. Stylish and immersive, this is one of mythology’s great...
Title: Lore Olympus
Type: Webcomic
Year: 2018-2024
Country: New Zealand
Genre: Drama/romance/fantasy
Status: Completed
Platform: Webtoon (read here)
Appropriate for 30+?: Yes
My rating: 4.5/5 stars
(Rating scale: 5/5 = masterpiece, 4/5 = quite good, 3/5 = mostly good, 2/5 = bleh, 1/5 = I regret ever being exposed to this series, 0/5 = affront to humanity)
-------------------------------------------------------
Lore Olympus is one of the best-known and popular Webtoons, and it 100% deserves that distinction. There's so much that's fresh and unique about the series while also having a lot of classic elements. For the uninitiated, Lore Olympus is a retelling of ancient Greek myths in a hybrid 21st century/ancient Greek setting. Webtoons bills it as a romance, however I call it a drama because there is so much going on beyond the romance plot: action, political scheming, revenge, trauma recovery, familial relationships, independence and interdependence...
The art style is bold, stylish, unique, and very aesthetically pleasing. The characters are fresh and interesting, drawing heavily from ancient myth mixed with more contemporary traits and personalities. The overall fusion of ancient and contemporary is fantastic; the entire series is full of little details pulled from old myths, right up to the end. The plot is engaging, and the pacing is mostly consistent. The main cast is huge, the supporting cast even bigger, and they all get fleshed-out personalities and storylines, and most undergo significant character development. Even though much of what happens in Lore Olympus was composed thousands of years ago, I didn't feel like the plot directed the characters, rather the characters drive the plot. For how much happens in this series, it's all surprisingly well organized and balanced. Yet a surreal, dreamy tone persists through the series, beautifully complementing the serious plot elements. This webcomic really utilizes its medium well.
I think Lore Olympus gathered some hate during its third season that I completely chalk up to the weekly release format. Readers complained that the plot wasn't moving as quickly as they wanted, which I attribute to readers' expecting the exciting pace from the previous arc's climax to continue (which would be bad storytelling) as well as frustration from fast-pass readers that they weren't "getting our money's worth" out of each chapter. I binged the series instead of reading it weekly, and thought the pacing perhaps got a tad slower than it should have during season three, but the story was clearly progressing and at a fairly consistent pace and wrapped up well. There are plenty of Webtoons where the story pace grinds to a halt or starts flailing as the author runs out of ideas while their editors push them to artificially extend their golden goose, but Lore Olympus isn't one of them.
I've also seen some hate around how some of the characters and/or relationships are handled, which I think a full read of the series combined with researching the original myths would generally dispel. In my opinion, Lore Olympus does a fantastic job maneuvering around the elements of Greek mythology we'd consider especially tasteless today (such as the incest), and given that the original myth is literally called "the rape of Persephone," I think the author's renditions of myth to better appeal to 21st century tastes is brilliant (from non-consensual encounters to giant age gaps). Mild spoiler:
spoiler
Persephone herself grows tremendously as a character, from an example of the immature, "born sexy yesterday" trope to an empowered woman. Her early-season naivete is fully explained by her upbringing and relationship with her mother, who herself has reasonable if somewhat misguided reasons for her parenting style. Season 3 is all about girl power, and I really enjoyed the subversion of typically male-centric mythology.
The characters span a wide range of ages, but generally look and act like young adults and middle-aged adults. The characters express both maturity and immaturity, and overall I think this is a series that older readers will greatly enjoy, especially as the older characters are introduced and take more prominence in the plot.
Lore Olympus is a truly unique and well-made series that I would unreservedly recommend any fan of comics at least give a try.
-----------------------------------
As with all my reviews, the above is nothing more than my personal opinion. Have you read this series? What did you think? Post in the comments!
I was listening to the radio the other day and did an audio double-take as I could swear I heard vaporwave coming from my speakers. Turns out it was the intro to Espresso by Sabrina Carpenter, one of the hottest songs of the summer. Another popular song that seems like it might have some subtle vaporwave influences is Saturn by SZA.
What do you think, is this just a coincidence or has the niche phenomenon of vaporwave influenced pop music? What mainstream songs give you synthwave/vaporwave vibes?
There was a conversation about lupine seed collection in the comment section of a post a little while back, and now that my lupine is going to seed I thought I'd follow up on what that looks like.
From left to right, we have immature seed pods (still green, still developing), maturing seed pods (brown, with black seeds inside), pods just about to pop (you can see them starting to split open with the round black seeds poking through), old pods most of which have popped open and dispelled their seeds, and finally a branch with all four stages present (generally seed pods develop from the bottom up, however this can be affected by variables like sun exposure).
The seed pods are apparently heat-activated; we've been getting a major heat wave here in the Pacific Northwest and the pods have been exploding open like crazy during midday when the sun hits them and the ambient temperature is at its peak. The seeds are propelled out when the pods burst open, and I've witnessed them fly well over ten feet.
If you want to harvest lupine seeds, the key is to grab them when they're mature but not yet expelled; you can do this by harvesting the pods by hand as they mature, but usually I prune the branches off the lupine once the pods on the branch start opening and put the entire branch in a bucket to break open at their leisure. While this pruning is generally unnecessary if you're not interested in seed saving, it does prevent thousands of volunteer lupine from popping up all over the garden (it's nearly impossible to keep all the seeds from spreading so I usually get a few dozen every fall and spring, but it's super easy to remove any that aren't wanted). One year I pruned the spent flowers before seeds could develop, and while that did produce a small second round of blooming I think it overly stressed the plant. Many lupine species are fairly short-lived perennials (with a few annuals sprinkled in), so it may be worth stressing them for more blooms if it's likely to die soon after anyway.
Some general disclaimers about lupine: due to their prolific seed generation and speedy life cycles, lupine are highly invasive outside their native range. There are also many species of lupine out there, so before planting make sure to source species from your area! There are some more "domesticated" ornamental species out there, but I'd really recommend sourcing a native variety if you can. They are really wonderful plants that require little care once established, have unique and showy foliage, and native bumblebees absolutely adore their gorgeous flowers.
I hope this was informative!
Cross-posted from: !animationafter30@lemmy.world
Original post: https://lemmy.world/post/17367342
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Title: Train to the End of the World (English); 終末トレインどこへいく？(Japanese)
Type: Anime
Year: 2024
Country: Japan
Genre: Surreal
Status: Completed
Platform: Crunchyroll (watch here)
Appropriate for 30+?: No, but I (mostly) enjoyed it anyway
My rating: 3.5/5 stars
(Rating scale: 5/5 = masterpiece, 4/5 = quite good, 3/5 = mostly good, 2/5 = bleh, 1/5 = I regret ever being exposed to this series, 0/5 = affront to humanity)
-------------------------------------------------------
Train to the End of the World (TEW) is perhaps one of the worst "cute girls doing cute things" series I've ever watched, and yet it's probably the series I've enjoyed the most this year so far.
Much like Girls' Last Tour, this is an entry into the "cute girls doing cute things, but in a dystopian setting" sub-sub genre that in theory hinges upon the bizarre juxtaposition of two seemingly incongruent elements. However unlike Girls' Last Tour, (or the currently-airing Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction), TEW probably would have benefited greatly from having literally any other cast of main characters. I thought the girls were really cliche, annoying, and forgettable, with painfully uninspired dialogue, and were regrettably-yet-unsurprisingly subject to a level of sexualization that would probably make most older audiences uncomfortable (nothing extraordinary, just the anime standard treatment of high school girls). Honestly I zoned out during most of the scenes involving the girls chatting amongst themselves, and I doubt I missed much plot at a result.
Despite all this, the premise/setting/world building of TEW makes up for its flaws. Once the girls STFU, the show gets to show off its weird, fun, creepy side. This is a series that makes you go ah, this is what the animated medium is for: surreal nonsense that would require a buttload of fake-ass CGI to even attempt to portray in live action. I really like the tone of the series, which is generally upbeat but with an uneasy aftertaste that puts you on edge while never actually venturing into tragedy (as can happen with surreal/dystopian series, looking at you Kaiba). There's a good balance of exploration and action, with some decent comedy tossed in on occasion.
Maybe I'm biased because my first trip to Japan, I spent a few weeks living at a guest house in Oizumi-Gakuen along the Seibu-Ikebukuro Line featured in this anime, and I'm a complete sucker for series that utilize real places (and TEW has a whole train line of them). Regardless I absolutely loved the premise of riding a train through a vast, unknown land of magic and horror, stopping at each station to learn what became of various previously-sleepy commuter towns in bizarro-Tokyo, intensity growing the closer you get to the city-within-a-city of Ikebukuro. TEW is a bit like Kino's Journey, but with socio-political commentary replaced with the train scene in Spirited Away albeit with more menacing vibes.
In summary, TEW is weird and atmospheric and I am here for it, despite the obnoxious (and occasionally uncomfortably-portrayed) main cast of cliche anime high school girls. Perhaps the creators didn't quite nail what they set out to do, but I couldn't help but really appreciate the attempt.
-----------------------------------
As with all my reviews, the above is nothing more than my personal opinion. Have you read this series? What did you think? Post in the comments!
Title: Train to the End of the World (English); 終末トレインどこへいく？(Japanese)
Type: Anime
Year: 2024
Country: Japan
Genre: Surreal
Status: Completed
Platform: Crunchyroll (watch here)
Appropriate for 30+?: No, but I (mostly) enjoyed it anyway
My rating: 3.5/5 stars
(Rating scale: 5/5 = masterpiece, 4/5 = quite good, 3/5 = mostly good, 2/5 = bleh, 1/5 = I regret ever being exposed to this series, 0/5 = affront to humanity)
-------------------------------------------------------
Train to the End of the World (TEW) is perhaps one of the worst "cute girls doing cute things" series I've ever watched, and yet it's probably the series I've enjoyed the most this year so far.
Much like Girls' Last Tour, this is an entry into the "cute girls doing cute things, but in a dystopian setting" sub-sub genre that in theory hinges upon the bizarre juxtaposition of two seemingly incongruent elements. However unlike Girls' Last Tour, (or the currently-airing Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction), TEW probably would have benefited greatly from having literally any other cast of main characters. I thought the girls were really cliche, annoying, and forgettable, with painfully uninspired dialogue, and were regrettably-yet-unsurprisingly subject to a level of sexualization that would probably make most older audiences uncomfortable (nothing extraordinary, just the anime standard treatment of high school girls). Honestly I zoned out during most of the scenes involving the girls chatting amongst themselves, and I doubt I missed much plot at a result.
Despite all this, the premise/setting/world building of TEW makes up for its flaws. Once the girls STFU, the show gets to show off its weird, fun, creepy side. This is a series that makes you go ah, this is what the animated medium is for: surreal nonsense that would require a buttload of fake-ass CGI to even attempt to portray in live action. I really like the tone of the series, which is generally upbeat but with an uneasy aftertaste that puts you on edge while never actually venturing into tragedy (as can happen with surreal/dystopian series, looking at you Kaiba). There's a good balance of exploration and action, with some decent comedy tossed in on occasion.
Maybe I'm biased because my first trip to Japan, I spent a few weeks living at a guest house in Oizumi-Gakuen along the Seibu-Ikebukuro Line featured in this anime, and I'm a complete sucker for series that utilize real places (and TEW has a whole train line of them). Regardless I absolutely loved the premise of riding a train through a vast, unknown land of magic and horror, stopping at each station to learn what became of various previously-sleepy commuter towns in bizarro-Tokyo, intensity growing the closer you get to the city-within-a-city of Ikebukuro. TEW is a bit like Kino's Journey, but with socio-political commentary replaced with the train scene in Spirited Away albeit with more menacing vibes.
In summary, TEW is weird and atmospheric and I am here for it, despite the obnoxious (and occasionally uncomfortably-portrayed) main cast of cliche anime high school girls. Perhaps the creators didn't quite nail what they set out to do, but I couldn't help but really appreciate the attempt.
-----------------------------------
As with all my reviews, the above is nothing more than my personal opinion. Have you read this series? What did you think? Post in the comments!
Welcome to the town of Nonesuch. The rules are simple: You can not escape unless you leave with the person you came in with, but as Connor and Bridget discover, finding your partner is not so easy when there are dozens of copies of them wandering the old western grounds of Nonesuch… Itching to becom...
Title: Nonesuch
Type: Webcomic
Year: 2022-2024
Country: United States (?)
Genre: Thriller
Status: Completed
Platform: Webtoon (read here)
Appropriate for 30+?: Yes
My rating: 3.5/5 stars
(Rating scale: 5/5 = masterpiece, 4/5 = quite good, 3/5 = mostly good, 2/5 = bleh, 1/5 = I regret ever being exposed to this series, 0/5 = affront to humanity)
-------------------------------------------------------
If you're like me with decades of comic reading under your belt, you're likely on the hunt for series that have something a little different to offer, and Nonesuch delivers. While a bit rough in spots, Nonesuch is a solid series, with good pacing, an engaging plot, and quite a bit of novelty, plus it's short enough that you could complete it in one or two sittings.
First, the novelty: this series is set in rural Appalachia and that''s not just an aesthetic; the characters are gun-toting, Christ-loving, red-blooded Americans. To each point: I know jack-all about guns, however my impression is that the series portrays them accurately. In the creator notes at the end, the author mentions that her intent was to create a "Christian" series, which I think is quite interesting given that I spent most of the series wondering if the Christian elements were supposed to be dismissive of the religion or not (in other words there's nothing preachy about Nonesuch, and the inclusion of Christianity definitely adds quite a bit of realism to a series set in the Bible Belt). Overall I really felt the setting in this series, which is a huge breath of fresh air not only in the world of comics, but American media overall (which are very California/NYC-centric).
Further bits of novelty: the art style, while not my favorite, is bold and distinctive. The plot/premise share vibes with various horror/thriller/mystery series (strong zombie and X-Files notes), but regarding the specifics I can't think of any examples that are similar. Probably my favorite aspect of the series is that one of the main characters not only has a disability, but it's a rare (yet real) condition that most readers probably haven't heard of, and it's an invisible disability, and it's integral to both the plot and character development. I'm assuming the author has personal experience with the condition, because it's handled with significantly more understanding and gravitas than nearly all depictions of disability/non-lethal health conditions in media.
The rough edges: while distinctive, the art style feels a bit clunky at times, with occasional bad anatomy and a limited range of facial expressions (I get that none of the characters are having a good time, but does "grimace" have to be everyone's default expression?). The series also does the thing where the characters often make reckless decisions that, while perhaps justified by the situation they are in, are nonetheless frustrating for the audience to witness (and indeed, often lead to completely preventable bad things happening). I think one other misstep happens when the characters discover what's causing the supernatural situation they're in (minor spoiler):
spoiler
I found the explanation given for the clones, the mint, and the trapped space unconvincing and unsatisfying. It's a really hard line to walk in series like this, between explaining the supernatural happenings and leaving some things dangling. There's a bit of a midi-chlorian phenomenon going on, where knowing exactly how the magic works kills the suspension of disbelief, especially when you try to use hard science to explain something blatantly supernatural. In the case of Nonesuch, the explanation tried to be highly scientific, but came off as total bullshit (at least to me and my personal level of scientific understanding; maybe a subject matter expert would differ).
Of the three main characters, two are in their mid-twenties and the third is middle-aged. Everyone acts their ages, for better or worse (the younger two can be a little grating with their inexperience/immaturity in various things, including their relationship with each other). Other than this, there's nothing in the series that would turn off an older reader.
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As with all my reviews, the above is nothing more than my personal opinion. Have you read this series? What did you think? Post in the comments!
One of my favorite aspects of "wave music" is that it's spun off so many various sub-genres and niche aesthetics. We've got:
Synthwave, Chillwave, Vaporwave, Retrowave, Darkwave
as some of the main players, but what else is out there? What other "waves" have you come across?
All things “wave” music: synthwave chillwave vaporwave retrowave cyberwave darkwave dreamwave…
Hello fellow synthwave fans! I created a new community for all the "wave" genres: synth, vapor, chill, retro, dark, cyber, etc. Please come check it out!
!wavemusic@lemmy.world
For fans of '80s-inspired contemporary beats. Share artists, albums, compilations, -wave channels, and vibe art.
!wavemusic@lemmy.world
Droid Bishop (real name: James Bowen) is a one-man synthwave artist who's put out multiple banger albums over the last decade-ish. Each album feels like the soundtrack to an introspective 80s drama/action film. Beyond the Blue is probably my favorite road-trip album of all time; it makes driving through the empty expanses of I-80 through Wyoming feel like a grand, meaningful adventure.
As far as I can tell he doesn't have an official YouTube presence, but this channel seems to have all his works: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYb8MJseDAimJBFCJQ8Hfvg
INEXED is one of my favorite channels for background music. If I wanted to introduce someone to synthwave, this might be where I direct them.
Videos are consistently high-quality, and the compilations are long (1hr to 2hr+) without repetition. There's perhaps not a lot of variety in vibe: some videos label themselves and vaporwave, chillwave, retrowave, etc, but I'd consider those to be more the flavor of synthwave being featured than actual examples of those genres. Most compilations are calming but energetic, with a bit of a surreal touch.
It's frustrating that INEXED only has about 37k subscribers when the quality is so much better than a lot of other synthwave/chillwave channels out there. Please check them out!
https://www.youtube.com/@INEXED
NewRetroWave is the GOAT.
They've posted over 3000 retrowave and synthwave songs and albums since 2011, and more keep coming. With over a million subscribers, they're one of the biggest players in the YouTube synthwave scene, and for good reason: in an era of low-effort compilations repeating the same tired tracks over and over, NewRetroWave somehow keeps finding quality fresh material for us listeners. Most of their posts are single songs (3-6 minutes), but there's a few longer (hour-ish) compilations mixed in.
This feels less like a YouTube channel and more like a library. Definitely check it out!
https://www.youtube.com/@NewRetroWave
Dreamingr0b0ts is a fantastic house/trance YouTube channel with a mere 123 subscribers. (It may not technically be synthwave, but it's synthwave-adjacent)
Some of the very oldest videos are a bit rough around the edges, but they quickly improve in quality. I like this channel because it has more of an old-school vibe than most synthwave; it reminds me a lot of early-2000s electronica, back in the days of Armin van Buuren. Vocals are present more often than not, and the vibe is more "dance" than "chillax." Great music to stay awake during a long road trip, or to stay motivated during a big house clean-up. A lot of synthwave videos rehash the same songs over and over, but as far as I can tell these are quite fresh.
Check out their "The Daily Dose" series, each of which are albums of about 20 minutes each.
https://www.youtube.com/@dreamingr0b0ts
Inspired by a comment reply I made in another thread, I thought it would be fun to share what plants native to your region you've had easy success with growing from seed, either in pots or direct-sowing. Please mention your country/region when commenting!
Cross-posted from !nativeplantgardening@mander.xyz original post: https://lemmy.world/post/16458535
The Xerces Society is an insect conservation nonprofit organization based in Portland, Oregon. They engage in a variety of work to protect native insects, including publishing resources for the general public.
One such resource are their Native Plants for Pollinators and Beneficial Insects guides, which are curated illustrated lists of plants broken down by geographic region. The lists include basic growing conditions info for each species, as well as some info on how the plants benefit insects. They even have separate lists specifically for supporting the endangered monarch butterfly.
If you're a native plant fanatic like me you can cross-reference their lists with the USDA Plants Database (I wrote about that other great resource in this post here) to verify if the Xerces-recommended plants are native to your county, however the Xerces lists are broken up into relatively small regions so you're unlikely to cause damage or introduce problematic species even if it's not technically native to your specific county.
I hope y'all find these lists as useful/inspiring as I have!