Virtual Hugs Round 18!

There is some good news that I would like to report to you guys. Unfortunately, this good news keeps getting pushed back and pushed back and pushed back. So much so, that it's been frustrating me. And, because there's still a good chance of this good news not coming to pass, I don't want to tell you what it is, just to then turn around and go "actually, it didn't happen".

But I haven't been writing any more entries to the Virtual Hug collection because I've been wanting to report on said good news so it'd be a good story to tell you guys. Hence my procrastination.

SO.

Since I don't have the good news that I was hoping to report to you guys, why don't you leave some good things that have happened to you recently? It doesn't have to be much--you can tell a story of how you got a tasty steak or found a cool penny on the ground. Just something kinda cool that's happened to you that you feel like sharing.

And if you don't have anything to report, then that's okay. You deserve a virtual hug anyway. :) I'm sure you've done your best this last while, so you deserve a pat on the back simply for that.

Oh, and I made a couple more AI Fashion Pieces. But that's not really newsworthy. XP

Teh Youtube Links

Because a virtual hug post wouldn't be the same without Youtube shenanigans. ːsteamsunnyː

So this channel has been kind of fun. They have a whole bunch of videogame remixes in various styles. Whether it's Mario in Italian Summer Pop style, Pokemon in Mariachi style, or Luigi's Mansion in Detective Noir style, they've got you covered. The downside for some of you is that I'm not sure how much of it is A.I. and how much isn't, but I personally enjoy it all enough that I don't really care. Check them out if you're interested! ːsteamdanceː

View store page Here is just a fun classic. ːsteamsunnyː (And Steam continues to hate Youtube Shorts.)

So, slight confession to make: I have been watching Vertical movies and Episode stories, recently. More specifically, watching Youtubers react to them so I don't have to give these companies a cent of my money. ːsteamsunnyː They are...hilariously addicting in all the wrong ways, and as someone who has a soft spot for bad fanfiction, this feels somewhat nostalgic to me. XD (Don't worry, I'm not giving up on Asian Dramas just yet, but this is a quick alternative.)

I've found a number of Youtubers who are pretty hilarious, but if I listed them all here, this post would be mountains of videos long. Ain't nobody but me got time for that! So I recommend Little Miss Ashlyn for some good times.

As for Episode, if you are interested in Game Design like I am, it's pretty fascinating to watch this gal's playthrough of "Don't Hate the Player", and then watching these two dudes play the exact same game with the complete opposite playstyle. Shows how limited the gameplay really is and it's also really funny to watch two absolute dude-bros get super invested in this hyper girly game. XD Don't waste your money, kids! View store page This girl I've stumbled across because of her Episode videos. She's pretty fun. XD (Don't worry. It's parody, I promise.)

AND SPEAKING OF BAD FANFICTION...! :O (He's also been checking out some other terrible stuff, and recently got to playing Tomodachi Life with his cursed Anime Vtuber. XD)

Now for some good fiction! XD So this channel has a whole bunch of Shorts that I've been enjoying, but because Steam hates Youtube Shorts, here's one of her "full length videos". XD This channel has a whole bunch of high quality, well animated, (NO A.I.,) and funny shorts in regards to her book Gold and Gossamer. Now, I hate reading (I realize the irony), but I'm not going to lie...the character dynamics expressed in these animations make me kind of curious, at least, and I would not be a good Youtube Sharer if I didn't at least share them with you guys. ːsteamdanceː

Also, the main characters are black and it literally doesn't matter. I wouldn't bring it up except that it's a perfect example of how not to be stupid and annoying over stuff like that, so TAKE NOTES, HOLLYWOOD!!

Here's some more gold from Refashioned Hippie. This time, she talks about a part of fashion history which has personally annoyed me as soon as I found out about it. View store page

Asian Drama Watch

You guys thought because I recommended a whole bunch of vertical movies and Episode videos, that I'd skip out on this? :P Nope! Here we go!

This one is one I've actually been wanting to recommend for a while, but not for the reasons you might think. Yes, it's well written, but it was actually an animated show like No Doubt in Us. (I honestly suspect the same company or the same animation engine, but I don't know enough Chinese to prove it.) As someone who watched the animated show before the live action series, my heart still lies with the animated series (obviously). Unfortunately, the distribution company at some point realized that the animated show had a better script than most of their live actions shows, so the company cancelled the second season of the animated show and made it into a live action show instead. ːsteamsadː Us original fans are quite salty about that. ːsteamsaltyː

However, despite my saltiness, I will say that, from what I've watched so far, the live action show is still pretty good. The episodes expanded from being 20 minutes long to being 40 minutes long. As a result, there is some padding. However, the padding isn't actually bad padding. Having seen both versions, I can tell where the padding is, however, it's not padding that feels like it's wasting your time. It's padding that expands some details that were initially skipped over. Also, the live action version has quite a few little animated segments, which feels like an homage to the animated show, so it helps us animated viewers feel more at home in this version. :)

Ahh, but I just realized I haven't gone into the plot yet. So, this is another "girl gets sucked into another world" stories, or rather another "girl gets sucked into book" stories. The main character gets sucked into a book she was reading on the subway. (The live action version fleshes out why she was reading it in the first place, whereas the animated show just has a short intro before getting right into it.) She becomes the villianess of the novel, who suffers a terrible fate. The twist? She's not the only one. She quickly finds out that the Mad Emperor has actually been in the world longer than her, with possibly more characters coming from the real world as well.

I know the whole "I'm the Villainess" storyline has been so overdone in recent years, but this is actually one of the best ones I've come across. By having more than one character come from the real world, it's so fun to watch the characters plot and scheme how to get the best result in their terrible situation. It's a battle against bad odds, and a game of strategy. So, if you aren't too burned out on the genre, then I recommend you give this a try. :)

..................However, the Live Action Intro will never hold a candle to the Animated Intro Sequence. ːsteamsadː IT'S STILL GOOD, BUT IT'S JUST NOT THE SAME! ;_;

-

Well, I hope that's enough to report to you guys, without having much to report. Hope to report to you guys soon, as well as read whatever good stories you have in the comments. ːsteamhappyː See ya!