Canon Promo Post 2021

[modzilla]

Please use this post to promote the fandoms you're interested in requesting, or ask for recommendations of canons that suit you!

Promoting your canons

Comment here with information about the canons you are thinking of requesting, or otherwise want to get people into!


Information you might include

Title
Please put your fandom's title in the subject of your comment. This helps people find your promo again.

Media

Approx length

Where to find it (If giving links, please only link to legal sources. You may want to encourage people to contact you directly if they are having trouble finding a canon and you can give them tips)

What is it, in summary?

What do you love about it?

What sort of things are you likely to request for it?

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests?

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence) - this is at your discretion and is not expected to be comprehensive

Some examples: Yuletide, Fandom5k, last year's fffx post.


Please keep an eye on comments, as people may have follow-up questions about your canons.

Asking for recs

You're also welcome to leave comments (anon or not) asking people to rec you canons that they are likely to request.

For example: "Please tell me about canons for which you'd be excited to receive a Choose Your Own Adventure story."

Consider letting people know if you're interested in specific media only, or have other restrictions.

Comments

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

[lakeeffectgirl]

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (stylized in the on-screen titles as Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood)

Media: English-language movie, rated R.

Approximate length: A little over two and a half hours.

Where to find it: DVD & Blu-ray, Amazon streaming (at cost), and currently w/ a STARZ subscription.

What is it, in summary? It’s basically a fairytale (hence the OUaT) set in 1969, in which the Manson followers attack the house next door to the Polanskis instead. But before that happens (entirely in the third act): Leonardo DiCaprio plays a fading TV star who is struggling with his career options, and Brad Pitt plays his stuntman/driver/handyman/all-around guy. For two days, Rick and Cliff do their jobs and hang out, then Rick decides to take Al Pacino up on the offer he makes in the beginning and go to Italy to do spaghetti Westerns, where he marries a co-star (the Italy part occurs entirely in a bit narrated by Kurt Russell, who also has a small part in the flashback that includes Bruce Lee). The same night they return from overseas, the Manson followers break into Rick’s house, and Cliff and Rick defend the house/themselves/Francesca. (I have a longer summary here.)

What do you love about it? Clearly, Rick and Cliff should make out. But I also enjoy that there’s not much of a plot. There’s an entire scene where Brad Pitt makes Kraft mac’n’cheese (and poorly, I might add).

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? I enjoy Cliff/Rick of all sorts (and don’t mind the addition of Rick’s only-there-in-the-third-act Italian starlet wife).

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? Yes! You can watch the movie either up to or through the voice-over interlude where Rick and Cliff go to Italy, and stop there if you want to skip the violence noted below. (If you don’t want to miss the part where Leonardo DiCaprio is basically a Margarita Mom in a silk robe – it’s great!!, you can stop when the Hawke daughter from Stranger Things ditches the rest of the Manson group.)

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence): The third act is almost entirely heavy Tarantino-style violence, a large portion of it violence against women (two of the Manson girls).

Additional note: There is also a tie-in novel that came out a few weeks ago, written by Tarantino, which covers some of the movie but is structurally all over the place and includes long tangents about various movies/television shows. It does give more information about both Cliff and Rick, but depending on your feelings about violence, it may not be information a more casual fan/viewer wants to know. If you want to know the relevant spoilers, I have a tumblr post here.

Promo: Ristorante Paradiso (Manga)

[delphi]

Title: リスパラ | Ristorante Paradiso
Media: Manga
Approximate Length: Four volumes, light on text, all of which can be read in one sitting.

What It's About
Ristorante Paradiso by Natsume Ono and its sequel volumes, Gente: The People of Ristorante Paradiso, tell the story of a small restaurant in Rome whose hook is that all the waiters are dapper older men with glasses.

The series is predominantly made up of slice-of-life stories about the staff's romantic and familial relationships, with a backdrop of picturesque locations and a feast's worth of delicious Italian food. The first volume is primarily concerned with the arrival of a young woman named Nicoletta, who's come to Rome to confront her estranged mother. She gets a job at the restaurant, and as she meets the new people in her mother's life—including a shy older waiter that she becomes smitten with—the story expands to reveal more about the owners, chefs, servers, and customers of Casetta dell'Orso.

Where to Find It
English translations of the series are available through VIZ Media LLC digitally and in print wherever you buy or borrow manga, including Comixology, Google Play, and many library systems.

Ristorante Paradiso (Comixology | Google Play | WorldCat)
Gente: The People of Ristorante Paradiso vol. 1 (Comixology | Google Play | WorldCat)
Gente: The People of Ristorante Paradiso vol. 2 (Comixology | Google Play | WorldCat)
Gente: The People of Ristorante Paradiso vol. 3 (Comixology | Google Play | WorldCat)

What I Love About It
While Nicoletta's story was a good jumping off point, it's the older characters in the series I fell in love with. Among the nominated characters there's Lorenzo, the restaurant owner and gentle patriarch who takes care of the people around him and has a boundless tolerance for their eccentricities, and Olga, his wife with a complicated past. Gigi the silent, superstitious sommelier who entered Lorenzo's life under unusual circumstances and occupies a strange but dear part of it. Vanna, the brusque head chef who finds herself in a tense budding romance with Teo, the younger man she's mentoring. And Luciano, the grumpy widower still mourning his wife as he helps raise his young grandson.

These are quiet, often subtle little stories about love in its various forms and how good food and comfortable places can bring people together.

I've Requested
Fraternal incest, love after loss, and original admirers—all adding up to some romance for Gigi! (To be more specific, Gigi/Lorenzo, Gigi/Luciano, and Gigi/OMC.) Gigi is my favourite character, this delicate and doe-eyed older man who winds his way through the various stories like a stray cat who gets fed by half the neighbourhood, seeming to partially exist in his own world while keenly observing the people who matter to him. He's great, and I just want nice things for him.

Promo: Rod Allbright Alien Adventures - Bruce Coville

[delphi]

Title: Rod Allbright Alien Adventures - Bruce Coville
Media: Middle Grade Novels
Approximate Length: Four children's novels adding up to about 800 pages (large print)

What It's About
This series follows the adventures of Rod Allbright, a middle schooler living on a farm with his single mother and two younger siblings, whose life is irrevocably changed the day a spaceship crash-lands on the property.

The first book, Aliens Ate My Homework, introduces Rod to the crew of the Ferkel, a small unit of the Galactic Patrol who've come to Earth chasing a fugitive. In I Left My Sneakers in Dimension X, Rod is pulled into another mission, and the crew are shaken by the disappearance of one of their own. This is followed immediately by The Search for Snout, in which the crew search for their missing comrade and secrets are revealed about Rod's estranged father. Finally, in Aliens Stole My Body, Rod is put to the test to save his family and time itself.

Where to Find It
Originally published in the 1990s, paperback copies were last released as a box set in 2018 and are available through the publisher and other retailers. They're also available in ebook format through library providers like OverDrive and for sale for Kindle (1, 2, 3, 4) and Kobo (1, 2, 3, 4), as well as through Google Play (1, 2, 3, 4).

What I Love About It
If The Search for Snout sounded like a Star Trek reference, it was. And more than that, the characters of Captain Grakker and Mental Officer Snout aren't just loosely based on Kirk and Spock but specifically based on Kirk/Spock. The two share a private bedroom and are psychically bonded on top of being uniquely affectionate with each other, and their separation and reunion are a driving force for most of the series.

I appreciate series for the whimsical and diverse universe it presents that doesn't revolve around humans, its themes of the importance of kindness and conscience, and for Rod's good heart and understandable fears as he comes of age. But I won't lie, I re-read it with new delight for the xeno Kirk/Spock expies having a surprisingly mature background arc about the things we give up for love.

I've Requested
Grakker/Snout! Backstory, post-canon, 'pon farr' fic—anything that puts more of this hotheaded green gorilla and his beloved dry-witted lizard companion into the world.

Detective Grimoire & Tangle Tower

[lamiacalls]

Title: Detective Grimoire and the sequel, Tangle Tower

Media: Video games

Approx length: First game, 2.5 hours. Second game, 4 hours.

Where to find it: Detective Grimoire is on iOS, Android or Steam (for Windows or Mac). Tangle Tower is on Apple Arcade, Steam or Nintendo Switch.

What is it, in summary? The Detective Grimoire series covers two mysteries being solved by the eponymous Detective Grimoire. The first is the murder of the owner of a swamp attraction park that markets itself as the home to a swamp cryptid.

The second, and juiciest of the two, is set in Tangle Tower, where it seems that someone was murdered by a painting(!). One half of the tower is the home of the Pointer family, the other the Fellow, and the family have a complex relationship with each other.

In each, you interview the suspects, ask questions, piece together clues and solve small puzzles. They are very small, self-contained games. They both have fun with "impossible" murder concepts (the second in particular) and build the stories nicely.

What do you love about it? The second in particular has gorgeous art, fun characters and very dysfunctional families, as well as a villain who I adored. I played this one first, actually, so fell in love with Sally as the sidekick, as well as how much of the story we get to see develop through the conflicts between and within the families.

The first isn't quite as pretty or meaty, but I do like Gimoire's tenacity about solving the case, as well as a lot of the characters.

They're both small games that are well-written, really well voice-acted and genuinely fun mysteries. And they can be played on mobile!

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? I'm mainly requesting casefic for Detective Grimoire & Sally as a platonic pair, further expansions of the Tangle Tower story or crossovers with other canons I've requested or written before.

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? Tangle Tower is pretty self-contained (I played it first, not realising there was another game!) and is what cements he and Sally's dynamic, since Sally is v different in the first. It's also much, much more aesthetically appealing.

Content warnings: I can't think of anything except for the murders that take place before the beginning of the story.

Sherlock Holmes (US TV 1954)

[dreemyweird]

Title: Sherlock Holmes (US TV 1954)

Length - 39 half-hour episodes in total

Where to find it - it's in public domain and up on Youtube! Here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmHgXUJMN1TVtqyVXJ4D3ozPxgwpV-UpQ

Summary - it's a comedy canon (although with some considerable emotional depth in the best episodes, and occasionally quite unexpectedly dark) about a young, earnest, failboat-y version of Holmes. He can't play the violin! He can't fight! Watson has to teach him how to punch! He locks himself in a chest at one point! He's adorable. His Watson, played by H. Marion Crawford, is a smart temperamental BAMF. Their relationship is super domestic and they regularly save each other from danger. I love them unreservedly.

What I'm requesting - angsty, fluffy, intense, hurt-comfort-y friendship <3

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? - yes. Basically just watch The Night Train Riddle, The Christmas Pudding, The Baker Street Nursemaids, and The Pennsylvania Gun, and you'll have grasped the essence of the series :D I would also recommend The Lady Beryl and Harry Crocker just because they're great. I'm not requesting anything related to a specific episode, so you don't have to watch the entire series to write for me.

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence) - the series was co-produced by a woman and is fairly good about women's issues (for the most part - we don't talk about The Careless Sufragette), but other minorities are occasionally treated poorly. There are a number of fairly racist episodes, notably one featuring a Native American character and one featuring some Indian characters. They don't comprise the bulk of the series and not necessary to watch in order to fulfil my requests (I actually explicitly DNW references to them), but they're there.

Arthur Conan Doyle and Joseph Bell series - David Pirie

[dreemyweird]

Title - Arthur Conan Doyle and Joseph Bell series by David Pirie (the individual novels are called The Patient's Eyes, The Night Calls, and The Dark Water)

Media - books

Approx length - it's a novel trilogy, the novels are fairly standard length

Where to find it - available cheaply on Amazon and I expect in other online bookshops too

Summary - it's a mega Gothic Victorian pastiche about Joseph Bell, the historical prototype of Sherlock Holmes, and Arthur Conan Doyle. They're in a kind of Holmes and Watson relationship and solve crimes together (they're heavily fictionalized - they're really fictional characters rather than real people here). They're very angsty and their relationship is super intense and messed up. There's a Reichenbach and Doyle gets straight up suicidal over Bell's supposed death. I have been yelling about these books for years. Help

What I'm requesting - angsty intense hurt/comfort-y friendship, with various specific prompts!

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? - no, you kinda have to read the whole thing

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence) - uhhh let's see. References to CSA, references to rape, gore, violence, instutionalized sexism, suicide, war trauma. I think this is it?

Promo: New Warriors (Marvel) (specifically Speedball and Justice)

[snowshus]

Title: The New Warriors (Specifically the Characters of Justice and Speedball)

Media: Marvel Comics

Where to find it: Marvel Universe, Comixology, your local comic book store or ME! (shufics@gmail.com)

What is it, in summary?:

The New Warriors were a group of late teens who came together to become superheroes in the early 90s. They have since gone on to grow into young adults, most dying on the way. However, we will be focusing on the two who haven't died yet.

Vance Astrovik is a mutant telekinetic whose powers were triggered when his future self came back in time and accidentally altered reality. Hoping to become like his idol Captain America he became the superhero Marvel Boy (he later changed that to Justice - the name is more commonly known as). He was recruited to join the New Warriors, and while he has been an Avenger a few times in the past he always comes back to them.

Robbie Baldwin was a normal suburban kid doing an internship at a physics research lab. Noticing that the scientists cat had snuck into the lab, Robbie went in to retrieve it only for both himself and the cat to get blasted with experimental particles that turned him to the hero Speedball. As the sole survivor of the Stamford incident that started Civil War, Robbie was scapegoated by both the public and the hero community, leaving him under the control of Green Goblin, where he changed his name to Penance.

Following the downfall of Goblin’s Dark Avengers, Vance and Robbie are reunited and begin the journey to reclaim both the name Speedball and New Warriors.

What do you love about it?:

I really enjoy the early New Warriors work, but there was something about the later years that really spoke to me. This sense of us against the world, but more like only we can really understand what we’ve lost. The later series does a lot with ideas of reputation and redemption, walking the line between the levity of the first few years and the darkness of the Civil War era.


Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests?:

Well....sort of...but it's kind of complicated. The period I tend to request has the characters jumping around from book to book for a bit but you could probably get the general gist of them by reading Yost's run New Warriors vol. 5 (2014).

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence) - these two characters have storylines that involve child abuse and self-harm.

Reading list:-----Pre Civil War----

New Warriors Vol 1 (1990)

They are among the main characters of this book and a lot of character development happens here. However, I have not had a chance to go back through to pick out specifically important arcs yet.

New Warriors Vol 3 (2003)

I really enjoy this run, it’s short and the art is nice. It only has Robbie in it, but it sets up a really great contrast for what will come after Civil War, and I think having this run as background for him is helpful.

-----Civil War Era -----

Civil War Era mostly focuses on Robbie, Vance is around a bit in the background but Robbie is the one with the story arc here

Civil War #1

Civil War: Frontlines

-----Civil War Aftermath----

Robbie and Vance are mostly split up during this period, but about half way through they begin crossing paths again.

Avengers: The Initiative #1-12

These issues set up where Vance is in the aftermath of Civil War

Thunderbolts #110 - 126
Thunderbolts: Desperate Measures

Meanwhile this is what Robbie’s been up to

Avengers: The Initiative #21-35

And now everyone is in the same book, even if they don’t know it

------Current(ish)--------

Avengers Academy #1-20

And now that Vance has Robbie back he’s never letting him out of his sight again

Fear Itself: Homefront

Nova (2013) #7, 8, and 9

New Warriors Vol 5 (2014)

Mystery Science Theater 3000

[fleetsparrow]

*deep breath* OH BOY!

Title: Mystery Science Theater 3000, a.k.a. MST3K

Media: TV!

Approx length: 10 seasons (we don't talk about Jonah here). Mike's run (which is what I'm requesting) is about 5-1/2 seasons (literally, it's the second half of season 5 through the end of season 10). Each episode is 1-1/2 hours long.

Where to find it: One site to rule them all! http://www.club-mst3k.com/ They have almost all the episodes with multiple links (and if you can't find any particular one there, PM me and I'll hook you up).

What is it, in summary?: A man is sent up in/to a satellite in geosynchronous orbit around Earth/somewhere in Time and Space by a Mad Scientist and his partner/his mom/the mom and her minions, to watch bad movies with some robots. It sounds weird, but basically, a guy from Wisconsin/Minnesota in the 90s makes fun of old movies with puppets.

It's amazing.

What do you love about it?: I love the jokes, the references, the weirdness of it all, AND, mostly, the fact that while the villains are "villainous", they're so darn bad at being evil. But seriously, I listen to episodes to fall asleep. This is my comfort show.

What sort of things are you likely to request for it?: Interpersonal relationships for the characters. For the pairings, mostly platonic/romantic-without-sex ships. For the &'s, just general canon-typical fun.

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests?: Yes. While there is an overarching storyline (especially Season 8 and on), each episode can really be watched on its own with no prior knowledge. The theme song at the beginning of each episode tells the story of what's going on. The Club MST3K site recommends those with most laughs, but I'd like to give some personal recommendations (Note: these will all be Mike episodes since he's my fave host):

For Clayton Forrester/TV's Frank episodes:
The Brain That Wouldn't Die--Introduces Mike as host
Radar Secret Service--"Why don't they look?"
12 to the Moon--Just a solid episode
The Dead Talk Back--Solid season 6 episode
San Francisco International--Come for the 70s jokes
The Beast of Yucca Flats--"Flag on the moon. How did it get there?"

For Clayton and Pearl Forrester:
Night of the Blood Beast (Turkey Day or regular)--Note, this one has two sets of host segments, but the movie's jokes are the same
The Brute Man--Chicken of Tomorrow
Laserblas--Last episode of the Comedy Central run, before it moved to the Sci-Fi Channel (back when it wasn't "SyFy"). It's a good one to watch if you like 2001: A Space Odyssey jokes and want to see how the show first ended

For Pearl/Brain Guy/Bobo:
Revenge of the Creature--So you know how they came back from "the end"
The Deadly Mantis--Mike blows up his first planet
The She-Creature--Mike blows up his second planet
Riding With Death--More 70s jokes! And Tom's new ...trucker body... *shudders*
Prince of Space--Wormhole fun!
Werewolf--Or "warwilf" your choice
Actually, Season 9 is very good as a whole
Track of the Moon Beast--With corn, chicken, green peppers, chilis...*sigh*...onions
Hamlet--If you like Shakespeare, like I do
Diabolik--The very last* MST3K episode where everyone gets back down to Earth.

*I SAID WE DON'T TALK ABOUT JONAH HERE!

Content warnings: Some 90s-style misogyny and transphobia (hoo boy, the 90s were rough) especially in The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living And Became Mixed Up Zombies (it's a really bad movie, too, worse than some other fair, but WOW does it start out with hella transmisogyny). I'd say skip that one altogether. Oh, and some "men enjoy being raped" type jokes in The Violent Years (which is a real shame, because the host segments are so good). Note: Prince of Space definitely has some racist Asian jokes in there.

Foyle's War

[fleetsparrow]

Title: Foyle's War -- Specifically the episode "Among the Few"

Media: TV!

Approx length: Several seasons? This specific episode, like 45 minutes? An hour, maybe?

Where to find it: Right now, only Acorn.tv (but let me know if you're interested; I can hook you up.

What is it, in summary? British WWII murder mystery show.

What do you love about it? It's a very cozy show for something that delves into wartime topics and such.

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? Happy endings for one specific character. OK, so, Rex is in LITERALLY ONE episode in which we learn three things: He's handsome, he's in love with lead-Foyle's son, and War Causes Loss.

That's basically the episode in a nutshell. His part is there for about 20-30 minutes tops in the whole episode (because there's lots of cutting to other threads going on at once). But maaaaaan, I just have a THING for sad queer boys and their longed-for best friends. I just want him to LIVE!

Are there sections of canon that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? Literally his only episode, "Among the Few".

Content warnings: "Period-typical" homophobia (thankfully not from our main character), internalized homophobia, uh, insulting the Irish??? (but really, who cares about that last one? /Irish), and major character death.

Moriarty (Sherlock Holmes series) Anthony Horowitz

[fleetsparrow]

Title Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz

Media Book!

Approx length: Uh... um... 320 pages! (thanks google!)

Where to find it: Anywhere books are sold! Seriously, it's everywhere. Check your local library or hit me up (I stg please just let me buy you a Kindle or Google Books copy or even a physical copy or SOMETHING, I NEED MORE PEOPLE IN THIS FANDOM)!

What is it, in summary? After Sherlock Holmes "dies" at *Insert name I'm too lazy to c/p here* Falls, and Moriarty with him, a Pinkerton agent named Frederick Chase arrives to see if the rumors are true and meets Scotland Yard Inspector Athelney Jones (who is from Holmes canon, in before anyone goes, "who???"; he's the one in The Sign of Four, believe it or not). They form a partnership to investigate a new American crime syndicate that's come to London and, well, shit goes south fast.

SPOILER ALERT!!!

Frederick Chase IS Moriarty (but you kinda figure that if you're like me, an idiot, who reads chapters out of order).

What do you love about it? There's so much tension between the two, like they become basically IMMEDIATE "friends" and stuff and Chase/M basically spends the entire book talking about how good a friend Athelney is and his ~eyes~ and his goodness, like damn boy, just kiss him 'stead of talking him to death!

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? Not necessarily happy endings, but, well...

OK, basically I'm OK with Moriarty making Athelney's life a living (if sexy) hell. Basically, I want him to live, but I'm OK with suffering.

Also, this book is prime for Identity Porn, so yesgood.

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? I mean, I think I've written an entire primer once of what I like, and I can always share notes, but it's only the one book and it's a little hard to take chapters out of context once it comes.

Content warnings: More brutal violence than typical Holmes' affairs, and Major Character Death (*sobs*).

Promo: The World of Black Hammer

[delphi]

Title: The World of Black Hammer
Media: A collection of comic book miniseries
Approximate Length: For the nominated characters and relationships, reading ranges from five issues to twenty-eight (broken down below)

What It's About
The World of Black Hammer is a line of comic book miniseries published by Dark Horse from 2016 to present. It imagines a world of superheroes that has existed since the Golden Age in a place called Spiral City, and skips the origin stories to jump straight into a very lived-in universe full of characters who are already grappling with the best and worst of the paths they've taken.

What happens when a shapeshifting Martian warrior takes a job as a police officer after arriving on Earth—only to realize through the lens of his queerness that the system he's upholding isn't the one he thought it was. Find out in Barbalien: Red Planet (5 issues) for the nominated relationship of Miguel Cruz/Mark Markz.

What about when an aging superheroine hangs up her cape and decides she wants to be with her former archenemy--only to find herself torn away from him and trapped in her old life? Black Hammer: Secret Origins (6 issues), Black Hammer: The Event (6 issues), and Black Hammer: Age of Doom (12 issues) have you covered for Golden Gail's side of the Sherlock Frankenstein/Golden Gail nomination, with a peek at Sherlock's point of view in Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil (4 issues).

What does intergenerational trauma look like played out between well-meaning vigilante heroes and their orphaned sidekicks, and how do you reckon with your worst instincts in a world where the evil inside you is demonstrably real and isn't going anywhere? Skulldigger/Original Male Character has been nominated for Skulldigger + Skeleton Boy (6 issues).

Where to Find It
The miniseries are available in print and digitally wherever comics are sold, as both individual issues and as collected trades. I've linked to the trades on Dark Horse Digital, listed below by the nominated relationships.
• Miguel Cruz/Mark Markz is a canon relationship featured in Barbalien: Red Planet
• Kev Kevz/Mark Markz appears late and only briefly in the sequence of Black Hammer: Secret Origins, Black Hammer: The Event, Black Hammer: Age of Doom, Part I and Black Hammer: Age of Doom, Part II, although Mark Markz features all throughout.
• Gail Gibbons/Sherlock Frankenstein is a canon relationship appearing in places throughout Black Hammer: Secret Origins, Black Hammer: The Event, Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil, Black Hammer: Age of Doom, Part I and Black Hammer: Age of Doom, Part II.
• Skulldigger/Original Male Character was nominated based on Skulldigger's story in Skulldigger + Skeleton Boy

What I Love About It
I love that the creators have launched a superhero universe where they can play with classic comic tropes in interesting and adult ways that don't ever diminish the tropes' source material. Despite many of the characters being clear expies for DC heroes, they are all fully formed in their own right and their adventures aren't satire, just Big Two type stories told with indie sensibilities and some loving homages. It all comes down to the characters, and these ones are well-drawn and human enough that it feels like you've known them forever, even when the universe is only a few years old.

I've Requested
Romantic relationships, backstory, what-ifs, and a chance for some kinder moments and softer landings for my favourite characters.

Content Warnings
Barbalien: Red Planet is set during the AIDS crisis and contains scenes of homophobia and police violence. Skulldigger + Skeleton Boy deals with trauma and child abuse, and contains scenes of violence between adults, including a short scene of torture.

Simoun (Anime)

[soryenn]

Title: Simoun

Media: anime/manga

Approx length: 26 episodes of ~20 min; there's also a single-volume manga that's an alternate take on the story (the anime is based off a PS2 game) and that also features an high-school AU chapter.

Where to find it: please contact me directly

What is it, in summary? A yuri sci-fi series. In a world where everyone is born female, young girls trained to be priestesses get thrown in a war as the flying engines they use to pray (the titular Simouns) are also powerful war machines.

What do you love about it? The themes of coming of age, faith in times of war, freedom vs. responsibility, gender and unconventional relationships. All of the cast and the way they all get to shine. The worldbuilding, even down to things like only using female voice actors. The many many ships. Anything about the Simoun themselves. The music!

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? Anything, tbh. The fandom has less than 30 works on Ao3, I'll take anything. But I'm specifically going to requests all the canon ships, a few non canon, and all the worldbuilding and character studies. See letter for more rambling.

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? The manga, especially if you're going the AU route. Otherwise the first 8 episodes give you a good idea of the main cast dynamics.

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence): there's incest between two sisters, there's dub-con (alluded to), and it's war, so expect violence and blood. Religious terrorism is featured. No gore.

Rick Brant Science Adventure Series

[snowshus]

Title Rick Brant Science Adventure Series

Media: Novels

Approx length: All together there are 24 books about 150ish pages, but you only need to read one.

Where to find it: Since it's out of print your best bet is probably through Kindle.

You can purchase The Rocket's Shadow (the first book in the series) for only 99 cents.

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Rick+Brant+kindle&i=stripbooks&ref=nb_sb_noss

What is it, in summary?

It’s an adventure series in the vein of Hardy Boys and Johnny Quest. Rick Brant is the adventure boy in question, who loves inventing sort of useless gizmos. But his intelligence and knack for mechanical engineering always end up saving the day at least once. In the first book The Rocket’s Shadow he is saved from some nameless villains looking to kidnap or kill him by Don Scott, Scotty, an ex-marine who lied about his age to serve. Finding out that Scotty doesn’t have any family left and nowhere to go Rick convinces his father to hire Scotty as security for their research lab, and Scotty quickly becomes like a second son to them.

What do you love about it?

It's a very fun, quick and easy read. Rick and Scotty are great characters who have delightful banter. The writer was himself a scientist and there is a great deal of love and attention paid to the plausibility of the science explored in the series. Plus the Scotty/Rick ship hits my psuedo-incest kink.

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests?

The first book is all that is necessary: The Rocket's Shadow

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence) - this is at your discretion and is not expected to be comprehensive: It's a book series written in the 50s there are period typical -isms imbedded in the writing at times.

Hikaru no Go (Live-Action) / Qihun

[reshiel]

Title: Hikaru no Go (Live-Action) / Qihun
Medium: TV (Webdrama)
Approx. length: 36 episodes x 50 min
Where to find it: The first 7 episodes are on YouTube for free; the rest are on iQiyi (requires a paid subscription) or message me

What is it, in summary?

Super short version: guy gets good at Go.

Slightly longer version: An adaptation of the anime/manga Hikaru no Go. A boy meets the spirit of an ancient Go player who teaches him to play; he grows to love the game, starts a school club, joins tournaments, and starts down the road to become a professional player. This is the story of that journey, the encounters he has, and the people he meets along the way. (A review said it's captivating despite having no action and no romance and, tbh, yes.)

(I know live-action adaptations of animanga don't have a great rep - as someone who loves Hikaru no Go, I adore Qihun, both as an adaptation and on its own. AvenueX says it's good!

The main characters:

Chu Ying (on the difference between "a life with Go" and "a life of Go"): "To tell you the truth, you don't have the makings of a great player. A great player should only have Go in his heart. He wouldn't be affected by his emotions."
Shi Guang: "Then his games must be so cold-hearted."

Shi Guang, the protagonist: While looking for treasure in his grandfather's attic, nine-year-old Shi Guang comes across an old Go board, and with it, the Go spirit Chu Ying. The spirit sticks to him and will not go away, so he reluctantly plays proxy Go for Chu Ying for some time before quitting. Six years later, in his last year of junior high, Shi Guang picks up the game again for the sake of a friend, and Chu Ying returns to him. This is where his journey begins.

"Child, if you can see the scars of my wound, please let me stay in the corner of your heart."

Chu Ying, the spirit in the game board and the titular "soul of chess". An utter Go-obsessed fanatic, the one who taught Shi Guang the game, and Shi Guang's mentor and friend. He was formerly the top Go player in Southern Liang, but suffered a court disgrace; returning as a spirit many centuries later, he continues to play Go and seek the Hand of God through Shi Guang. (He perfectly evinces both elegant period-typical gravitas, and the most adorable enthusiasm for Go and modern conveniences.)

"You've never played Go, so you have no idea how fascinating Go is. A brilliant move could put you over the moon, and a misstep could frustrate you to no end. The Go board contains endless possibilities. Before the game is over, you never know who will win. Though there are only black and white pieces, in the eyes of the player, the pieces are colourful."

Yu Liang, Go prodigy, son of grandmaster Yu Xiaoyang, and Shi Guang's rival and goal. He carries the halo and burden of his father's reputation, and has dedicated his life to Go since he learned to play. Six years ago, nine-year-old Shi Guang (playing on behalf of Chu Ying, who can't pick up the stones) defeated Yu Liang in in a game; stricken, Yu Liang traveled to Korea to study Go, and has been chasing Shi Guang ever since.

(All linked YouTube clips have English subs - turn on closed captions - but let me know if I missed any.)

What do you love about it?

GO

It is an incredibly warm, uplifting, and optimistic story. Here are a bunch of people who love a game, and strive every day to improve and be recognized for their skills; they learn from each other, support each other, weather setbacks, and move forward together.

It is funny. Qihun is also a teen drama and a comedy (in a low-key, slice of life way), which means lightheartedness and humor at every turn:

• young Shi Guang and Chu Ying look for a Go club, and find everything but
  
• "Shi Guang has moved to Africa"

That said, it also packs an emotional punch:

• Yu Liang describing what Go means to him
  
• Yu Liang confronting Shi Guang after the latter quits Go
  
• Chu Ying. (When/if you reach that point, you will get it😥)

Chu Ying and Shi Guang's mentor-protege relationship: Chu Ying was Shi Guang's teacher and friend, and kept him company every step of the way on the long journey to professional Go.

• "My name is Shi Guang. I'm 18 years old. There's nothing special about me, but I have an extraordinary friend..."
  
• Bantering after Chu Ying returns

Yu Liang's rivalry and conflict with Shi Guang: they motivate each other, chase each other, want the other to acknowledge them as a worthy opponent, and take all of that Deeply Personally.

• their first game as children at the Go club
  
• Shi Guang gets lost up a mountain, Yu Liang has to rescue him
  
• motivation
  
• the rest in a googledoc because this got long (contains spoilers)

The incredible ensemble supporting cast, each with their own stories and struggles that bring the Go world to life.

Community and companionship. Go is a two-player game, and the Hand of God can only be found with the right opponent; nobody could have gotten where they are without a team to belong to, the teachers and peers they learned from, or a league to play in. [hover for spoilers]

Content notes:

Major character permanent departure and associated grief

If you're familiar with the anime/manga, AvenueX talks about some of the adaptation choices

The English subs use the Japanese Go terms.

Sarazanmai

[shamebucket]

(This is mostly copied from last year's promo post with some minor alterations.)

Title: Sarazanmai

Media: I personally believe that the best experience is multi-media, but only the anime is required both to enjoy the experience and to fulfill my requests! (Recommended order for my requests: spin-off manga -> Twitter -> first volume of the LN -> anime -> both volumes of the LN. Most to least important for my requests: anime >>> Twitter > manga >>> LN, unless you'd rather use the LN as your primary source material source if you can't do anime, which is a valid choice, in which case you can swap them in terms of priority.) If you're watching the anime, make sure to not skip the post credits scenes, since instead of a preview for the next episode, they almost always include an extra scene that is plot important!

Approx length: the anime is 11 episodes, so less than 5 hours. The spin-off manga, Sarazanmai: Reo and Mabu is a single volume that you can read in an hour or less. The ReoMabu Twitter @/keeponly1luv takes maybe an hour to read through if you're looking through very closely (it's around six months of daily tweets, with pictures). Both light novels combined are around 80k total.

Where to find it: The anime is licensed by Crunchyroll and Funimation, and is available for streaming or physical purchase on both of those websites. The manga and light novels are both licensed by Seven Seas, and are available in both hard copy and digital formats (Google Play, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon are all accessible vendors that I know of off the top of my head), or you might find it at your local library. You can find an archive and fan translation of the now-deleted Twitter account here.

What is it, in summary? From Ikuhara Kunihito (of Utena fame), this anime is about connections, love, desire, and (mis)communication. It follows three teenage boys who break open a statue and release the mysterious Keppi, who claims to be the Prince of the Kappa Kingdom, and turns them into kappas to fight against the Otters, whose mission is destroy every connection on earth. Kazuki, Enta, and Tooi all need to learn to connect with each other and the people that they love to be able to defeat humans-turned-monsters (kappa zombies) and put the world back into balance. On the sidelines, mysterious Reo and Mabu are working for the Otters, and something seems to be... off about their relationship. They dance so close to one another, so why do they look so sad?

The manga and Twitter take place before the anime, and are a lot of ReoMabu's backstory that make their moments in the anime even more poignant. The LN has some exclusive backstory for ReoMabu as well, and some cut scenes and alternate perspectives that don't make it into the anime. Otherwise, the LN has the same plot as the anime and doesn't cover a lot of new material.

What do you love about it? In terms of themes: a lot of people think that this anime is confusing to follow and a bit absurd (the extended shirikodama extraction scene in the first episode is, uh... probably a deal-breaker for a lot of people, lol), and they might be right, but I think that it's most fun to just sit back and enjoy it! Sarazanmai is incredibly earnest, and it has a really wholesome message at the end that made me cry. It's often as funny as it is heartbreaking! I loved the symbolism in the show, especially the water and circle imagery.

In terms of characters: Okay, I won't lie: I love everybody in this show dearly and would be happy to see them as background characters in any fic or comic you might think of writing for me, but Tragic Cop Dads have stolen my heart and have free real estate in my brain at all times. Their entire arc feels like it was written just for me. Every part of it is special, and putting it all together creates a tapestry of tropes that I love (childhood friends! miscommunication! dads!!! angst with consent issues!!!!), and the ending of their story I found incredibly moving (and the openness that lies afterwards)! Not only do I find their literal storyline appealing, but I love the meta elements too. Like, the way that both the audience's and Reo's opinions of Mabu's feelings towards him changed as more information slowly came out. It was really fascinating watching people say "haha ReoMabu isn't like canon canon even though they're baiting it really hard" at around episode 7 and then episode 10 happened and blew everything wide open! (Although a lot of us already considered it explicitly canon by episode 9 for... many reasons.) I'm not sure how well this will translate to people getting into the series later, but one of the things that I found really cool about Sarazanmai was how the staff constantly played with expectations by teasing us both within the show and on social media. I would love to see that in fic and comics, too!

I also absolutely adore the world that Sarazanmai is set in, with Asakusa having a real sense of place that ties in to the mythology present in the show.

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? I'm still coming up with prompts as of the time I'm writing this promo post, but I'm likely to request a wide variety of scenarios for Reo/Mabu(/Otter), from pre-canon to post-canon, canon compliant to AU, fluffy to angsty, gen to smutty (I have a wide variety of kinks that I'm into, and I love vanilla as well). I love it all, and I'll try to give you some different options to work with! I'm also going to request worldbuilding, especially in regards to the Kappa Kingdom (which we do not see much of in canon, but I'm really curious about the politics there and what daily life is like in the kingdom).

I love IF and would be thrilled to receive IF if you're inspired to write it.

I'm likely to request this fandom for Heart Attack.

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? Sure! While I think that you gain a little more perspective on ReoMabu by consuming all media types, it's by no means necessary, and it's especially not necessary if you want to write me worldbuilding. You can definitely write me a fic or a comic based on just the anime or just the light novels alone.

Content warnings: character death (both temporary and permanent), fade to black noncon, BDSM and other fetishes shown on-screen, children in peril, a waterboarding scene, drugs, gun violence, yakuza/gang violence, police brutality/vigilante justice (it's more symbolic than literal, but still probably warrants a warning)

Death end re;Quest

[batman]

Title: Death end re;Quest

Media: Video game(s)

Approx length: 20-25 hours for each game.

Where to find it: You can buy it on Steam, PS4, and Switch (well, the second game comes out in 2022 on Switch), with physical copies available in the bargain bin of the gaming store of your choice. Here's a LP for Death end re;Quest, Death end re;Quest 1.5 and Death end re;Quest 2 It is strongly recommended to read Death end re;Quest 1.5 after Death end re;Quest 2, as it spoils one of the great mysteries of the game.

What is it, in summary? Shina is not having a good day: she's trapped inside a virtual reality game she was the director for with no memory of how she came to be there, and the game is so buggy that she is very likely to die before managing to escape. Fortunately for her the lead programmer, Arata, is more than willing to throw himself into saving her. Shina will finish the main quest and thus trigger the ending sequence for the game (so she can leave) while Arata will debug the game on the fly so that she can progress. Whatever could go wrong?

Shina's storyline is a more standard JRPG setup - she and a group of suspiciously sophisticated AI characters go on a quest to find a mythical land, which coincidentally is the trigger to finish the main quest of the game. The characters are all infected with Buggies which are clearly having some effect on the characters (though what is a big spoiler) but who are also weirdly adorable as well as the source of their powers. Arata's storyline is a thriller VN, focusing on the mystery about why Shina is in the game as Arata stumbles into a worldwide conspiracy. Also a lot of death. A lot of death. The first death is the most gruesome; the rest are nowhere near as detailed in their descriptions.

The interquel should really be read after Death end re;Quest 2 to explain what Arata was doing through the game.

Death end re;Quest 2 takes place in a small European town where our orphaned teenage lead essentially learns that this quiet little town is really a hotbed of paranormal activity and a ton of death. Like, a lot of death. This one doesn't focus on the "rewriting reality" side as the first game did (until you get to the NG+ scenes) but instead the weird paranormal stuff that was happening in Sagami City while the Enimga cast were trying to rescue Shina.

What do you love about it? I am a sucker for flawed heroes that are just not equipped for what they must do, and the cast delivers this in spades. Arata is able to travel back in time but a) is the only one who remembers what has happened; b) has to die a lot to get an ending where everyone lives; and c) every time he rewinds time reality changes. It is at times genuinely funny and also genuinely disturbing.

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? Something set in the 65,000 timeloops that we don't see!

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? Not really!

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence) There are numerous bad ends which end badly for the cast described in varying levels of detail, two genocides of fantasy species take place inside the game that Shina is playing, and special attacks involve the cast being half-naked while slaughtering everything in their path in a fit of fury.

The second game contains explicit reference to child abuse, strongly implied sexual abuse, a ton of murder, and a fair amount of described gore that is not shown on screen.

Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World

[batman]

Title: Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World

Media: Video Game

Approx length: About 35 hours to play.

Where to find it: Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World is available on Wii and PS3. Here's a compilation of all the cutscenes, and here's a compilation of the skits.

What is it, in summary? Two years after Lloyd and co saved the world in Tales of Symphonia, the world is not doing so great because apparently smashing two worlds together and forcing them to co-exist does not undo thousands of years of exploitation on both sides. Our protagonists are a cowed and abused kid with a worryingly violent alter ego, a girl out to stop the organisation she co-founded while also determined to find her true love along the way, and a sarcastic being who knows everything but doesn't say anything because a) he's also trying to save the world and b) it's funnier this way. (Jury's out as to which factor is more important).

There's three plots going on: Marta's quest to collect all the Centurion Cores before the organisation she defected from does, a tall and brooding half-elf who seems to know Emil very well while doing what he think is necessary for his own goals, and "What The Hell Is Going On With Emil", which is ultimately my favourite part. Emil doesn't remember anything about Tales of Symphonia, so the game will tell you everything that Emil needs to know.

What do you love about it? As far as successsors to Tales of Symphonia goes, Dawn of the New World is ... not a good one, as it undoes the main thesis of that game that no-one should be sacrificed to save the world. As a standalone game, however, Dawn of the New World has a lot of really neat things going for it. It's one of the few games that goes "yeah, the deus ex machina didn't actually fix things", and that while you may have had to do bad things to win overall the people who were killed because of said bad things are not going to be okay with it.

But a big part of why I love Dawn of the New World is Emil himself. He's explicitly an abuse survivor who is obviously very traumatised by his past (both his own and his alter ego's). He dumps everything that he finds too difficult onto his alter-ego, while his alter-ego becomes increasingly unpredictable as he regains his memory. As the game progresses, his entire existence becomes a living nightmare as his powers go haywire, it becomes more apparent that people are keeping secrets from him, the sexy brooding half-elf seems to insist that Emil has to be killed but is super reluctant to do it, and he has flashbacks to his own death.

He's a surprisingly complicated character for a Tales escort game, is what I'm saying.

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? In the middle of the game, Emil starts going through some pretty weird things - he keeps waking up in strange places, manifests powers outside what a human can do, and forgets what his alter-ego does in his place. The game did not spend enough time on this, or what the consequences could have been had things played out a little differently. This should be fixed!

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? You don't need to play Tales of Symphonia, but you do need to watch the scenes for Dawn of the New World.

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence) Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World contains child abuse, fantasy racism on various axes, references to genocide, an abusive relationship between two people, and amnesia if that's not your thing.

Also, I promise Emil stops thinking "Courage is the magic that turns dreams into reality" all the time.

Steins;Gate

[batman]

Title: Steins;Gate

Media: Video Game or Anime (and other stuff but you don't need that)

Approx length: It's about 70 hours to play the visual novel version of Steins;Gate and Steins;Gate 0. The anime of both games is about 18 hours and is very, very good. In fact, the English localisation is one of the best I've seen.

Where to find it: The games can be purchased on your gaming platform of choice, and the Steins;Gate anime can be streamed (or acquired) at various locations.

What is it, in summary? Over their summer vacation, a bunch of nerdy Japanese college students create a time machine that first allows them to send a message back to the past and later, memories back. The first third of Steins;Gate is the cast creating their invention, testing its limits, and generally demonstrating that they are profoundly not prepared for what is to come. The true story kicks off a third of the way through, and Okabe Rintarou now has to undo the creation of the time machine with the aid of a time traveler from the future, his time machine, breaking the hearts of his loved ones, and a lot of death.

Steins;Gate 0 takes place in one of the other timelines, filling in a gap between the last two jumps back in time that Okabe does. In this timeline, Okabe fails in his self-appointed mission, and it is all about him dealing with his PTSD and finding the courage to try one more time to fix the timeline to find a future where no one dies.

What do you love about it? First up, Steins;Gate is a clever time travel story, that digs right into the horror of travelling through time. Okabe cannot describe what he has done, not because he can't speak of it, but because no one could understand it. It's clever with its paradoxes, and it never forgets that each time Okabe undoes an event that someone really wanted to occur (thus changing the timeline) people are genuinely hurt. It's also about someone who is ill-equipped to save the world, but has to try because there is no one else, and his motivations for doing so are not the grand gestures of "saving humanity" but instead "saving one person". Also it's genuinely funny at times - the English translation is, as I've said, fantastic.

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? Post-canon fic, especially exploring how we got there, and how Okabe adjusted to a timeline that is like his own.

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? Not really, though you can skip the spin off games and manga.

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence) Steins;Gate contains depictions of PTSD and depression, a whole lot of death, body horror, violence, a bit of transphobia towards Luka, and transforming bananas into jello.

Ar nosurge: Ode to an Unborn Star

[batman]

Title: Ar nosurge: Ode to a Unborn Star

Media: Video Game

Approx length: About 50 hours to play.

Where to find it: You should be able to get it on PS3, or the better version on Vita. Here's a text-based let's play!. Just ... ignore the commentary in italics by Feinne - it's a kind of fanfiction where a character from AT2 tells bedtime stories to their children, and is not at all part of the story.

What is it, in summary? Welcome to the Soleil, a colony ship where humanity has lived for 5,000 years trying to find a new place to live after destroying their last planet. Unfortunately, humanity is currently under attack by the Sharl, who kidnap humans and take them away to Do Terrible Things to Them. You are humanity's last hope. Can you guide Delta, Casty, Ionasal and their friends towards an outcome where humanity survives?

Ar nosurge is a story about communication and how things are usually better when you use your words to communicate rather than fester in silence. This is included in every aspect: magical attacks are based in people sorting issues out rather than ignoring them, the main character arcs are about getting things out in the open and discussing them, and the main resolution of the game is about seven people joining hands and singing a song to create a new world.

But don't let that fool you, because it is also a game where people can do terrible things because they think they are in the right, or that they've deserved it. It takes a long time and some very unexpected help to win that happy ending.

What do you love about it? So while I do not love the miscommunication trope, I do love the trope where feelings are converted into music, and Ar nosurge explicitly has that as a game mechanic. Everyone is genuinely trying to do the right thing from their perspective, and they actually have reasons for why they are not communicating with the other side that make senes with who they are. The characters are also very flawed and human, and the down-time segments are entertaining (if somewhat fanservice-y). The first hour or two is dire, but once the game hits its straps it's a fun romp.

I also love it because of the potential for horror. The player is a tangible force in this game. You literally control two characters, and while one is not sentient one very much is and is increasingly perturbed as things go on. I also laughed at the digs Gust make at parts of their own fanbase, because if you have ever seen some of the more redditbro JRPG fans, you know exactly what I mean here.

Also, everyone agrees that the music is top-notch. Even if you hate the fanservice (totally valid), the miscommunication trope (me too) or lesbian femdom, you'll find the music is an aural treat.

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? I want all the fic about how the player exerts influence on the sentient character and how it horrifies them but also they need the power to keep going.

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? Ar nosurge is the section of canon! The whole universe is the EXA_PICO universe, which includes Ciel nosurge and the Ar tonelico series, but the characters I requested are not going to be familiar with any of that. (Well, Casty would for Ciel, but it was a long time ago for her.)

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence) Ar nosurge contains fanservice at the beginning (you're going to see some boobs and asscracks, is what I'm saying), psychological horror, amnesia, body control, memory manipulation and control, genocide, suicidal tendencies, breaking of the fourth wall, references to suicide, and people dissolving into fuel.

Tales of the Abyss

[batman]

Title: Tales of the Abyss

Media: Video Game

Approx length: About 50 hours to play.

Where to find it: Tales of the Abyss is available on PS2 (and emulators of PS2s) and 3DS. This looks to be a compilation of all cutscenes.

What is it, in summary? In Auldrant everyone knows that if you follow the Score (a planet wide prophecy), prosperity is guaranteed. Luke fon Fabre has been prophesised in the Score, and after he was kidnapped as a child his home of Kimlasca-Lanvaldear keeps him locked up in luxurious confinement. Luke's stifling life quickly comes to an end when a girl invades his house to kill his master, only for things to go terribly wrong and they are both teleported halfway across the world. Luke just wants to go home, but fate has big things in store for him, and he absolutely, 100% is not going to like it. Nor is anyone around him.

Tales of the Abyss is about finding meaning to your own existence without someone giving you a purpose, self-determination versus predestination, a ton of fantasy politics where people are for the most part doing what they think is the right thing with what they know, and probably the best villain in the Tales of series who has completely rational and sympathetic reasons for what he is about to do.

What do you love about it? Tales games tend to skewer the whole "Chosen One" thing, and Luke is no exception. As a consequence of his upbringing, Luke is immature, self-absorbed, and constantly shaken by the thought of taking a human life. He's not a genuinely awful person, but he has been indulged and cosseted so much that his good traits are crushed under his bad ones. He's shocked out of this by trusting someone he really shouldn't, and then has to learn to take responsibility for his own actions and to make amends, and his character arc goes up and down. He's also one of the characters who actually has a pretty reasonable reaction to killing the big bad: he's depressed afterward because it didn't fix any of his problems. I just really love Luke a lot.

I also really love the messy politics going on, and how that informs what everyone is doing. There's a lot of foreshadowing about Guy, for example, that doesn't mean much until a replay. This is one of the few games where characters not telling people what they know makes complete and utter sense. The party aren't friends first, but allies who become friends over time, and so there are tensions between the fragile alliance and their other allegiances.

What sort of things are you likely to request for it? Luke's guilt complex which cannot be eased, but which drives him to be more reckless! Luke having to live with the actions of Asch post-game, as well as everything he's had to do! Just Luke, grappling with his life now.

Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests? No, Tales of the Abyss is a standalone game.

Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence) Tales of the Abyss contains genocide, on-screen child death, human experimentation, off-hand mentions of unsavoury acts to vulnerable people, body horror, and mind control. It also contains Luke being a jerk to Mieu, an annoying fluffy creature, though this does die down over time.