Hi! So! I've been kind of absent lately. In the time I've been away, I have adopted not 1, but 2 fandoms!!!

Spoilers for the entirety of Infinity Train and the first chapter of Your Turn to Die ahead. Be careful if you're interested in trying either of these out. I HIGHLY recommend both of them. I'll let you know when I'm about to spoil things.

Infinity Train

Hoo boy! I don't know why I was so hesitant to give this one a go on my own, but my friend Otter Pop recommended that we try it out together. I've gotten him invested in quite a few shows (Dr. Stone, Demon Slayer, Kaguya-Sama, Hunter X Hunter, Steven Universe), so we're kind of TV buddies at this point. Here's what I can say that isn't spoilery:

The setting is freaking fantastic and incredibly imaginative. Each train car is unique, and some of them are beyond what I could think of. For example, one train car is just a giant environment made of map. And with each piece of the smaller map you collect, the more land you can access. One of them is full of living origami swans, and one of them is entirely made up of crystals. Gosh, I love it.

The music is excellent. Unfortunately, only the first book has its soundtrack readily available, but some of the most important moments in all three books are enhanced SO much by the score. Mwah.

The Voice Acting is ridiculously good. You really feel it when any of the characters are in pain, and even some of the goofier one-off characters have voices that suit them perfectly.

The core themes of the show, as well as its characters, are amazing and compelling. But I won't say anything about them in this segment.

Now we're getting into spoiler territory. Read at your own risk.

The concept of a train meant to help you develop as a person and overcome your problems is literally my DREAM SHOW. I love character-centered stories, and this show fucking delivers. Tulip is our first main character, and I think she was without a doubt the best place to start. Her analytical attitude and sass make her extremely entertaining, and the way she's so guarded at the beginning makes her mysterious enough to hook you into the show, but they really make you connect with her over time. In Book 2, we have MT/Lake and Jesse, and I adore both. Jesse is a total sunshine boy, but his problems were severe enough that I genuinely wanted to watch him overcome. And Lake! Holy crap. They're scrappy, powerful, but almost a little selfish, but their pursuit of safety and personhood is incredibly raw. I love watching it. As for Grace and Simon in Book 3... Oh, Grace and Simon... they make for a compelling dichotomy and the character studies that can be done for them is just so exciting to me.

Speaking of, this show gets way darker than you'd expect, and I give it so much props for having the guts to not pull any punches. Each Book seems to get even heavier, and I'm really looking forward to Book 4.

Spoilers over.

Your Turn to Die

This one I picked up partially because of how popular it is among the DR fandom, and partially due to the urging of RavenFire2023

I believe there are five chapters? I'm only in the first half of the second one, but it's already absolutely blown me away. The only problem is that I'm terrible at actual gameplay. I love video games so much, but I'm really bad at them, which tends to be why I favor visual novels. So I'm mildly stuck. But once I get over my crippling anxiety, the world will BOW before me! Mwahahaha!!!

Here's what I can say that's not spoilery:

The music is top-tier, as I've come to expect from my fandoms. They set up the horror and mysterious elements very well, and I often find my anxiety levels pleasantly risen (if one can be pleasantly anxious) when the music tenses up.

Speaking of the fear elements... excellent. There is always danger in this game, and it makes you very aware of that. The stakes are always high, and occasionally they'll throw time limits at you to keep you on your toes as you solve puzzles. There are quite a few unique game-overs, and they're once again pleasantly freaky. Even if you avoid the game-overs, the game in and of itself can get SCARY. And I LOVE it.

The character designs are really nice, and I really like what they do with expectations. Some characters act exactly as you would expect them to based on their appearances. Some of them do NOT. And the game does not shy away from pointing it out if you make a faulty assumption.

I won't say why in this section, but I will say that this game has already succeeded in getting me extremely emotional. I love it already.

We're now getting into spoiler territory. Read at your own risk.

Danganronpa was already an emotional game that got me heavily involved in its characters. But Your Turn to Die?

You heard how I'm only on the second chapter, right?

I've legit sobbed twice (and one of them would've been three times if the two causal events had happened a few minutes further apart). I think that's about the amount of times I cried in the entire DR SERIES. I'm SO looking forward to the emotional packs and punches that I know are still waiting for me.

I was unfortunate enough that my three favorite characters all died within the first chapter. Joe, Kai, and Mishima all meant a lot to me even though we barely got a chance to interact with them. They try to play it off like Kai is suspicious and weird, but I liked him from the start and was not at all surprised with his final sentiments. I liked Joe from the start as well, because he's very charming and playful, and it was DEVASTATING having to hear Sara's train of thought as this all played out.

Mishima totally took me by surprise. I started to think I'd really enjoy him when he tried to take care of Kanna, even if I would've told her the truth. So I was really upset that he died. But then they freaking SUCKER-PUNCH me with that flashback scene with Nao! When he said, "There's nothing to fear in failure. A person's life does not end there," I basically had a cathartic breakdown in my bedroom. Screw you for killing them all so quickly, game. You'd better not hurt Gin next, but I feel like you will.

I was not surprised by Sou. He gave me Nagito vibes immediately. But what I was surprised about was Alice... and the fact that he apparently KILLED a guy named Sou Hiyori. I really like the mysteries presented in this game, and I heavily look forward to seeing what comes next. It seems like there are so many unrelated questions that will eventually all come together. What's up with the dolls, and are they REALLY dolls? Who is Sou Hiyori, and how does he tie into this? What were Kai's goals? I'm totally drawn in.

Spoilers over.

Okay, thanks for listening to me ramble about the things I discovered this week. Take some spoiler-free art of some of the YTTD boys.