Ramblings and Musings of the Insane, Philosophical Ladybug

I have such weird dreams. Like today, I dreamed I found what was either a sequel or a TV series based on Oliver and Company. I popped it in and started watching it. At first it was a fairly normal adventure with the dogs and Oliver, and there was some friendship squee with Oliver and Dodger.

Then another of the episodes (ah, it must have been a television series) was about one of the characters (Rita, I think) having previously been a witness to something they were calling the CloudKicker Murder. I thought, Oh wow, Disney is crossing this over with TaleSpin? How does that work when they're different time periods?

But I went with it and watched. It was based on TaleSpin and Don Karnage (who was apparently the murderer) showed up to silence the witness(es).

That episode resulted in the characters first becoming anthro animals to better interact with Karnage and later, ending up human and being tortured. I remember one scene of one of them, with long kind of auburn hair, chained up. He kind of reminded me of Tiger's-Eye from Sailor Moon.

I don't recall how things got resolved, but Kit CloudKicker was apparently not dead and suddenly appeared to help out in the climax. The dogs exclaimed they were glad he wasn't dead and it ended with them back to being regular dogs, striking a pose with Kit.

Weird, weird stuff. I'm guessing my interest in the Amazon Trio from Sailor Moon helped inspire some of that, but I don't know where Oliver and Company came from. I mean, I love it, but I haven't thought about it in a while.

And speaking of Sailor Moon, I keep debating whether or not to buy the big Sailor Mercury doll. I have a set of the 6-inch ones that I treasure from Aubrie, but I still hope to get the big ones too, or at least Mercury if not any others. (I have civilian clothes Usagi, Sailor Pluto, Sailor Uranus, and two Chibi Moons.) I'm following two listings right now for MIB Mercurys. It's very difficult not to just snap one up. One of them ends in two hours.

The problem today is that I'm also waiting on the delivery of one or two gift cards from Amazon. I'm wondering just what I want to buy in this batch of Amazon stuff and how far over the gift cards' price it will take me. The prices keep fluctuating, so I can't just pick the stuff now and know what I want. If the prices go up again, I'll have to pick something different for now. I don't want to pay $31 for the Perry DVDs, for instance, when at their lowest price they can be $21. But no matter what I pick, it will probably go over the gift cards' price by at least a few dollars, so I like to have as much on hand as possible until I've decided and made the purchase.

So I'm up in the air wondering when the gift cards will come; one of them is overdue. And I don't know whether to buy the Mercury doll because of waiting on the gift cards and the Amazon purchase. And I don't have much time to decide, with one listing ending tonight and the other tomorrow. Bleh.

Had a dream involving Ginger and Lou today. It was a strange one, something about them on a boat and one of them scuba-diving to try to hide from someone after him (and maybe to look for something under the water). But I woke up wishing to role-play Ginger and Lou, like with someone else taking Lou so the characters could have more in-depth conversations. I play both of them wherever I've been using them in RPs, which works alright, but sometimes I'd like more than that.

And it's interesting how attitudes change. About five years ago, I felt that the Sailor Moon novel Diamonds Not Forever handled the Nephrite/Naru relationship better than the TV show. But I'd never actually watched the episodes and read the book in close proximity. A couple of weeks ago, I did just that, and came away feeling that the TV show did it better after all.

On the one hand, I don't like how in the TV show, Naru feels like she wants to stay with Nephrite even if he keeps lying to her. (I do like, however, how she's mature enough to realize that sometimes people lie for kind reasons and not just to be cruel.) In the novel, she isn't so dead-set on being in love with Nephrite and she feels that they're not right for each other. But rather than the lying being her main concern (even though it does come up), she seems to feel like the main problem is the age difference. That's such a contrast to her saying in the TV show that age doesn't matter if there's true love, and of course, I've become a huge supporter of May-December romance.

The novel also completely changes locations and eliminates some plot points. I don't like how it has Nephrite telling Naru that he wants to get to know her better even after she says they're not right for each other. He comes on rather creepy and disturbing. By contrast, his approach in the TV show at that point is to say that he doesn't want to put Naru in danger, so he's going to leave, but he needs the Silver Crystal. He thinks Naru knows where it is and can get it for him. He's manipulating her in both scenes, not having realized himself that he really is coming to care for her, but I definitely prefer his approach in the TV show. It's way less creepy. And I love that when he finds that the crystal Naru brings isn't the Silver Crystal, he makes sure to give it back to her after the fight with Zoisite's minion is over.

I think my favorite thing about the novel these days is when Nephrite mentions the bits of his past that he remembers in dreams. It was the author's attempt to show the manga backstory of the Shitennou being Mamoru's protectors in the past. Also, I like that Usagi is more mature in the novel. She handles talking to Naru about Nephrite much better than she did in the TV show. Their friendship is really sweet and cute and it's mentioned that they've known each other since kindergarten. Probably something of the author's own invention, but I'm all for it. I detest how Naru's screentime decreased exponentially after Sailor Moon R. She was Usagi's best friend before the Senshi came along and I don't like to think that they grew apart.

For my post-series stories, I have it that Naru realizes it would be preposterous to want to stay with Nephrite or anyone else if the lying continues. But as in the TV show, she has no problem with the age difference.

Looking forward to the new Sailor Moon Crystal episode this Saturday. Hopefully it will give me another little push and I'll get out another chapter for the fic. I do have the opening scene started and I know basically what the chapter will entail. I just need a good push, like a new Sailor Moon thing usually seems to give to me.

So as if I don't have enough on my mind with Chris characters real and imaginary (thanks, dream), and all the other people I post pictures of at Tumblr, now I'm being bombarded by that old crush on Kunzite. He was in the first episodes of Sailor Moon I chose to see many years ago and I was instantly intrigued by him. Then I also became intrigued by Nephrite when I saw his episodes, especially the ones with Naru. Jadeite and Zoisite were never favorites, although I wished someone would have got Jadeite out of the ice! That would have been interesting.

I wish I could find my document of the prologue and first two chapters of my Sailor Moon fic. I can't find where I put it and I had to just open a new document to write up that new chapter I posted this week. But I did re-read the other chapters online first, to make sure everything would flow. I need to find the other chapters, however, so I can make those adjustments I realized I needed to.

Also, Naru is awesome. I had so much fun writing for her in the chapter. So she's a magnet for supernatural beings. She can still be really epic when she's allowed the chance. She's spunky and won't just lay down and roll over when there's trouble, especially when we get to the episodes with Nephrite. I really want to bring out that spunkiness and determination in the fic and show how Naru can be awesome just being a regular girl without special senshi powers.

Then I feel guilty for wanting her with Nephrite because she and Umino are definitely cute, and Umino tries so hard. But I can't help it, I want her with Nephrite because they intrigued me so much and I loved how Naru's love was changing Nephrite for the better (and I have this insistence on wanting doomed romances to have a chance to succeed).

Also, I found that when I was writing the chapter, I kept picturing her talking in a Brooklyn accent. I use Japanese names in the fic, and in some cases I prefer them, but I guess Naru will always be Molly in my heart.

EDIT: Oh, I found the document, finally. I made the tweaks and now I should probably replace the chapter on FF.net.

I also decided, out of utter curiosity, to look at my original version of the fic, the one I took down six years ago when I decided it needed an overhaul and only a complete rewrite would do. I saved the original version, since it was so different.

And how. It was based on the dub version and was very ... dubby. And not as deep and insightful and knowledgeable of the characters. I can certainly tell how my writing style has improved, as well as my familiarity with the characters and my ability to get into their minds. I'd still like to be assured I'm doing alright with the characters in the current version, but I can definitely see a positive difference between the two versions. The current version feels a lot more like Japanese Sailor Moon and is darker and deeper.

I am somewhat amused by how Dr. Portman plays an even larger part in the first version. She keeps experimenting on Kunzite and has a tracking device implanted in him. Gah. It certainly feels like one of my fics, but it doesn't exactly feel like Sailor Moon. Portman will be important to the current version too, more than she is right now, I mean, but she hasn't been doing any experimenting with tracking devices and pain devices since Kunzite broke free. I'm not sure I'll even still go that route; Kunzite will have enough on his mind with getting back his memories of the Silver Millennium and with other things I have planned to go on.

Nephrite visits Naru in ghost form. I'm not sure what I was planning to do with him in the first version, although I must have been planning to eventually bring him back to life.

Kunzite releases Jadeite from the ice on purpose. And they get along a lot worse than in the current version.

Kunzite is more bitter in general. Perhaps that would actually be more accurate to write him that way, but since in the current version he's getting back bits and pieces of memories, I thought it would be more realistic to have him finally see that he was brainwashed and finally be outraged at Queen Beryl. His bitterness is currently being directed at her and he is extremely determined to find out about the lives he and the others led before she brainwashed them.

So during an incident when I tried downloading Safari as a back-up browser (and later getting rid of it because it took up too much memory), I decided to see if videos would play any better on Safari. That resulted in watching the two Sailor Moon Crystal episodes available at the time. I ended up pleased and excited, wrote an actual chapter for my Sailor Moon fic after SIX YEARS, and watched the third episode today.

I don't really like the way the eyes are drawn; they don't seem to have the same sparks of life that the original anime's eyes do. But so far, I think that is my one major complaint. I'm enjoying the retelling, the new character designs (especially Mercury's and Naru's and Nephrite's), and I'm anxious to see how this new version will differ from the manga. I was skeptical of it from the beginning, and even moreso when I heard it would try to follow the manga more closely. I prefer the anime version, so I wasn't sure what to think of a more manga-flavored anime this time around.

I'm happy that they didn't kill Jadeite in episode 3, which is where he died in the manga. (At least, I don't think he died; it looked like he teleported out.) I'm hoping that this new anime will have some fun development for the Shitennou, like the manga did not and like the live-action series, and to some extent the original anime, did. I hope it will have their backstories, but not that weird, weird thing of them being transformed into the minerals they were named after upon death.

And I can't help wishing that they would favor the original anime a little bit by having Nephrite/Naru happen to some extent. There have been some lovely winks at the original anime, including some portions of the transformation sequences, and I would just adore seeing how this anime would depict Nephrite/Naru. I suppose that's a fruitless hope, but since this series isn't quite like the manga, and there have been nods to the anime, perhaps it's at least slightly possible?

Found this on Tumblr. I like to answer all the questions at once like a Livejournal quiz.


1. My first anime: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters.
2. My favorite anime: The same.
3. The first anime character I was obsessed with: Yami Bakura and Ryou Bakura concurrently.
4. My anime OTP: Seto Kaiba/Tea Gardner.
5. An anime I can’t stand: Ultimate Muscle. Ugh, Mr. Cheeks.... I can hardly believe they got away with airing that on broadcast television, for kids.
6. An anime I want to watch: Can't think of one offhand.
7. An anime I never finished: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon (still need to see the latter half of SuperS and most of StarS).
8. The most recent anime I finished: Puella Magi Madoka Magica.
9. An anime I never thought of watching but fell in love with: If I never thought of watching it, how did I end up doing so?
10. My favorite genre of Anime: Don't think I have one. I watch stuff from many genres. I like magical girl shows a lot, though.
11. Shonen or Shojo: Depends on the anime.
12. My favorite anime character of all time: Just one?! ... Marik Ishtar, maybe. (YGO)
13. An anime that I introduced to a friend: Princess Tutu.
14. The anime that I am currently watching: None.
15. An anime that never gets old no matter how many times I watch it: Any anime I love.
16. If I own any anime merchandise: Yes! A whole lot, too much to possibly list, especially for YGO. Figures, shirts, DVDs, custom-made plushies.... Also some Sailor Moon dolls. And DVDs of other series I like.
17. Yaoi or Yuri: Neither.
18. If I’ve ever been to an anime convention: No.
19. Who is my favorite anime voice actor: George Newbern.
20. Sub or Dub? It depends on the anime, honestly. For YGO, I can never stop preferring the dub, despite how they removed scenes and changed up some of the dialogue. But for Sailor Moon, the dub makes me cringe and I must watch in Japanese.
21. If I could have any anime character’s hair style, who would it be: I don't know; I like my own hair.
22. Manga or Anime? Anime. Manga moves too fast and is often unnecessarily dark and grotesque and graphic.
25. If any of my friends or family watches anime: Lots of friends do. One of my sisters was trying Sailor Moon, but I don't know how that went. One of my brothers watches and likes YGO. Or he did, anyway. I don't know if he still watches reruns or went on to watch all the spin-offs.
26. If I listen to any anime music: I haven't for a while, but I love anime music.
27. If I’m following any ongoing anime series: I am not.
28. If I’ve ever been to an anime club: No.
29. If I’ve ever cried over an anime: Heck yes.
30. What my last anime wallpaper was: Probably one with the bikers from YGO. Or Siegfried von Schroider. It's been years since I've had an anime wallpaper.

So the new glitter-free Princess Luna figure is out. She's gorgeous! I almost bought her on Wednesday. I've been anxious for her to come out, as I don't like glitter. It looks pretty, but when it's loose it goes everywhere. And it's so hard to remove all of it.

But I didn't get her, for several reasons (mainly that this is a big, more expensive figure, I was trying to be practical, and the CD I bought seemed a much more logical, useful choice). But practicality doesn't always work with me, especially when it comes to Ponies, which I'm just so happy to be able to collect again. It drove me nuts the rest of the time I was awake. I wanted both things equally, I thought; what I wanted most was to have them both, but I couldn't right then. I since calmed down and pondered, and now I'm wondering if I really do want the glitter-free version.

While's she gorgeous, her hair is darker than ever. It already wasn't so show-accurate to begin with. But I started thinking the glitter version not only has lighter, more canon-appropriate hair, but that glitter and tinsel would look amazing on Luna because of her nighttime element and association with the moon. And I've heard that the glitter on her is attached well and doesn't come off.

So ... now I'm thinking I really want glitter Luna. Target is clearancing their Canterlot Pony line to make way for the new, and I could get both her and Celestia in a set for 30% off. I don't like that Celestia is pinkish in the older versions, nor do I think she looks good in Fashion Style mode, but it would probably be more expensive to buy Luna by herself online and pay S&H costs. I'd rather glitter Luna came by herself in stores to begin with, but I don't think she ever did.

(And if I reallly didn't want pink Fashion Style Celestia, I suppose I could try selling her. Although I doubt I'd do that. I get very attached to figures once I have them. I even ended up with two Chibiusas, and though I'd intended to sell the second one, now I don't think I could bear to part with her. Not unless I ran into someone who really, really wanted one and I knew she'd be taken good care of, anyway.)

Then there's the small size Luna with molded-hair Celestia. I might get that, only I think Luna really looks better in Fashion Style.

I have some thoughts on the recent My Little Pony series, but I'll post that later. Today it's this.

First off! What is your pen name?
Lucky_Ladybug

Any previous pen names?
I don't think a pen name should be changed. Once it/you are established, you're known by that. Why change it and suddenly make it hard for people to find you/know it's you?

Of course, when it comes to various social networks and the like, I sometimes will use various names. But to post stories, I always prefer Lucky_Ladybug. And I include that as my LJ name too, so that people will hopefully know the insane one is me.

And what does your pen name mean?
It's the name of an old and silly but cute song covered by many people, but specifically Frankie Valli and the 4 Seasons. It's pretty straightforward, isn't it? It's a ladybug who is lucky.

Any alternate nicknames or pen names?
insaneladybug, of course. Usually used on journals. And always with the "Lucky_Ladybug" attached where it gives the name of the poster.

What fandom(s) do you write for currently?
Perry Mason, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, The Monkees, West Side Story.

And what pairings do you write for it?
None, unless they're canon, such as Tony/Maria for West Side Story.

Why?
Why not? Not everything has to be about romance, after all. Try branching out more. Platonic/gen stuff is great, too. And there's a serious lack of it in many fandoms.

What are some current projects of yours?
The Case of the Spectral Stalker, my current Perry Mason mystery. (The one I'm still quibbling about. Now I'm concerned I may lose some of my audience if I do the happier, albeit crazier, ending. And yes, I know the author should be happy first and foremost, but I won't be happy if I lose my audience, either.)

Lullaby of Silence, my three-way crossover with Perry, The Monkees, and Kolchak.

And a Kolchak oneshot concerning a mysterious, healing cloth.

EDIT: And of course, To Blossom As the Rose, the FF7 crossover with the two Westerns. I haven't forgotten about it. I know what should happen next chapter; the problem is fitting it in amid all my other projects.

Do you ever think your OTP will reach a happy ending?
My current OTP ... Rumpelstiltskin/Mr. Gold and Belle from Once Upon a Time ... yes, I certainly hope they will. The whole point is to bring back the happy endings, and they deserve one, too.

If you ever had to kill one of them off, who would you choose and why?
Why would I want to do that? Gah, they've been going through enough already.

... Although, I can't deny that I really hope that in the climax, Mr. Gold will be seriously injured stopping Regina/saving Belle, and then Belle will have to make like her animated counterpart and save his life with her true love.

Will your OTP ever have kids?
... That would be interesting, wouldn't it.

What do you see them doing post-canon?
I want them to stay in Storybrooke, as I've seen some post-canon stories portray. I think they have a better chance for happiness there than in fairytale land. Actually, it seems like that's the case for quite a few characters.

(Plus, I really really love Mr. Gold's character design and personality.)

If a character has multiple 'appearances', which one(s) do you use in fic?
The one I like best, baby. The question should really be, what if I like elements of multiple versions?

For Perry, I will always write about the classic TV series. No ifs, ands, or buts. The characterization is incredible and develops in ways it never did in other versions.

Sailor Moon is what I have a problem with. I think the good guys are better in the manga and the bad guys are better in the anime. The girls spend way too much time cooing over guys in the anime. And Rei is so mean, oh gosh. I've really come to love Sailor Jupiter and appreciate her awesomeness, but it's so annoying when she suddenly goes squeeing after yet another guy who reminds her of her old flame.

I just don't think I can bring my conflicting feelings on the different versions of Sailor Moon together, since it requires either abandoning one element or the other, or else smooshing everything together. I do the latter for YGO, but it's different since I really only like a couple of things better in the manga and can easily insert them into anime canon. For Sailor Moon, the problem is much broader and I just don't know how to deal with it. I don't think I will ever really be able to write for Sailor Moon because of it. I just can't decide how to unite what I like about the different verses. And since the fanfic category is pretty much dead anyway, I'd rather concentrate on current projects.

How do characters sound in your head?
Like they should. Perry is Raymond Burr's voice, Hamilton is William Talman's, etc. etc. (Unless I've been watching too much of something else and when I try to concentrate, someone else's voice is in my head, i.e., hearing Robert Carlyle's voice for Hamilton when I'm trying to channel William. Gah.)

Have you ever written/wanted to write crack fic (e.g. singing in a karaoke bar) for your fandoms?
No. Not unless everyone is in character. What's funny about it if it could be absolutely anyone? It's only funny if you can recognize the voices and personalities of the characters and you're watching them react to silly situations.

I seem to have been wrong about Sephiroth/Aerith as a popular fanon pairing. At any rate, I'm certainly not having much luck with getting reviews on the chapter I finished and put up. I'm actually not sure if I'll get them together romantically in this fic, or at all. I want to build things up a long way, and I may end up deciding platonic would be more squeeful. But I think I did a good job with the chapter and that I still have it in me to write them IC, which thrills me.

I have an idea for the next Perry mystery. I think it will be the Halloween-ish idea with the fake psychic, but I'm going to stir the pot a bit. I want Mr. Burger's friend Mignon Germaine to be in it, and I want her to have a friend whose child disappears. Mignon appeals to Hamilton for help.

Also, I've been giving this matter a good deal of thought, and I think it's very unlikely that I will write that Captain Caldwell restoration fic I was musing on a while back. But I have a good reason for it: if I write that, I probably won't ever finish that Monk fic with Kevin. The premises are so similar, I can't see myself wanting to write them both. I've restored Caldwell in an RP version, so that satisfied me a good deal. Of course, who knows, if the plunnie gets insistent I'll be writing it after all.

On the Monk fic, I honestly don't know what to do with it. The reason being, I've discovered that Monk, like Sailor Moon, is very difficult for me to write. There are things in both shows that I just want to throw out and not include as canon. But I just ... can't bring myself to do it. So I'm not sure when to set the Monk fic. I want Sharona to be moving back, but I don't want her in with Randy. That pairing was so cheaply contrived. I don't like how elements of the series finale were handled, so I'd rather it hadn't happened. And to do the fic at all, Dr. Kroger has to be dead, because Kevin wasn't killed until after Dr. Kroger died. I really love Dr. Bell; he was awesome from his very first scene, when he shook Monk's hand and then gave him a wipe, but I'd feel so sad writing the fic with Dr. Kroger gone.

So I find myself at a complete loss.

Kim had an excellent idea of taking a 30-Day fandom meme, splitting it in half, and doing a bunch of the questions all at once. I was particularly interested in this meme, so I've taken the first half of it. I'll probably take the second half when she posts it.


01 – Your favorite all-time fandom(s)

Gosh, I’m not sure. I met a lot of my dear friends through my YGO writing, but I try to stay away from the fandom in general. There’s a lot of awesome people, yet there’s also a lot of scary, immature people, and sometimes they’re more prominent.

Princess Tutu has a really good fandom. The fans are mature, agree to disagree, and engage in deep and fun discussions.

When it comes to specific shows, Tutu and YGO both top the list. And I love classic TV shows, but it isn’t always easy to find good fanbases for them. The Perry Mason fanbase is very active, however, which I’m thrilled about.

02 – Your current fandom

Perry Mason. The characters are old friends to me, after spending more than a decade observing their adventures, and I finally realized how fiercely loyal I am to them.

03 – First fandom, the one that made you the fangirl you are today

Gosh, I don’t know. I’ve always been incredibly loyal to shows and characters I love. I suppose my first fandom was probably Fox’s Peter Pan and the Pirates, when I was four. (And it seriously hurts that most people don’t even know what I’m talking about and are only familiar with the Disney version! Fox’s characters were so much better and more three-dimensional.)

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? would probably fall under that first fandom category too. I’ve been feeling a bit nostalgic for it again lately, probably because we’re nearing the 20-year anniversary of its debut. (Gosh, I feel old.) Detective shows rule. It was the detective element that made me determined to see the show when it first came out. I thrilled at the picture of the cool guys in fedoras in the TV Guide.

04 –First, current, or favorite fandom crush

First would be … oh, Heavens, I don’t know. It depends on which show came first. But my early crushes were Mr. Rogers (there we go with that older men thing), Chuck, Captain Hook (from the Fox version), and Sean Altman.

Current would be Simon Oakland and William Talman. My favorite of Simon’s characters is presently the controversial Lieutenant Schrank. For William, it’s always been Hamilton Burger.

Overall favorite…. I can’t be expected to pick just one.

05 – Your fandom secret

I … don’t think I have one that I haven’t already revealed.

06 –Favorite song that brings fangirl tears to your eyes

I can’t think of one, honestly. I have lots of favorite songs, and sometimes I do cry over some, but I don’t think I’ve fangirled said songs or their artists. Oh, except maybe some of the Full Moon wo Sagashite songs. They are absolutely phenomenal. And when I remember key scenes in the anime when they were played, I do sometimes tear up.

07 – Your OTP(s)

As most people know, I am not a romantic kind of person. Give me a good friendship any day and that’s what I’ll squee over.

Nevertheless, romantically I do love Seto/Téa (from YGO) and Fakir/Ahiru (from Princess Tutu). Their interactions are highly intriguing. I just wish there had been more canonical interaction for Seto and Téa.

08 – A fandom that you thought you wouldn’t get sucked into, but ended up getting sucked into anyway

Probably Perry Mason. I did my homework when it was on back in the day. But secretly, instead of reading, I was watching it more and more as I became deeply interested in the characters. I looked forward each night to pretending to read while watching it instead. (I was very prideful and unwilling to admit I was nuts over a show my parents were watching. It’s only been the last few weeks that I’ve wound down and let my interest really show.)

09 – One of your favorite characters

It seems it should be someone I haven’t talked about much before. I get tired of rehashing and I’m sure people get tired of reading me rehashing.

So let’s see … let’s go for someone completely unexpected. Knuckles, from Sonic the Hedgehog! Sonic was my first favorite until Knuckles came along. I was there right from the beginning, with the introduction of Sonic 3. I didn’t get to play the game unless I was at Toys R Us or a friend’s house, but I loved it and the character all the same. I had the Archie comic where Knuckles made his debut and was thrilled. To this day it’s sometimes hard to imagine Knuckles having a different speech pattern than he had in that comic (which was that of a streetwise tough guy), although I love Dan Green’s interpretation for Sonic X and some of the games.

And exactly why was it that Knuckles appealed to me over Sonic? I’m not fully sure, but I think his mysteriousness had a lot to do with it. And I was intrigued by his and Sonic’s interaction. And I loved that he was an antagonist who turned to Sonic’s side when he realized he had been tricked. Knuckles is also more serious than the happy-go-lucky Sonic, and of course, everyone knows how much I love serious characters.

Also, let's say Hamilton Burger. I've talked a lot about why I love him at the Perry blog, so I don't want to rehash too much here. But I really admire him for his strong sense of justice, as previously mentioned here. He and Perry may sometimes have different ideas on how to achieve justice, but in the end, since they both want the same thing, they cooperate. Plus, I love his hilarious expressions and comments. And the way his character clearly develops through the seasons, starting with being closer to the frustrated antagonist of the books and expanding right away to be so much more than that. Even when he and Perry clash in season 1, it's obvious from a lot of episodes that they are growing close. And it becomes more that way season by season.

10 – Your favorite scene or moment from one of your favorite fandoms

Gosh, just one scene or moment?

Well, I discovered a new favorite Perry Mason scene last night. I was watching The Golden Oranges and Perry is trying to prove that a dog didn’t bite someone. Mr. Burger overhears the court case and comes in to see what’s going on. His expressions are priceless. At the end he goes over to Perry and asks, “Is business really that bad?” LOL. And I have determined that season 6 just may be my favorite season. Mr. Burger is so different from season 1, so relaxed and openly friendly with Perry in, it seems, most of the episodes.

11 – The fan art, fan fiction, cover song, cosplay, etc. that you’ve made that you’re most proud of

I still say Lead Me Through the Fire is some of my best work, and certainly my favorite long fic.

I am also really proud of all of my non-fiction work lately. I co-run the Simon tribute blog and I have my own Perry blog, and I try to make each post on both very mature and intelligent and professional (while still keeping a casual air at times). And I know this doesn't belong on this meme, but I love the articles I’ve been writing for money (which I don’t have the option to share, as I’m ghostwriting for the time being). I was given the highest rating possible for an amateur writer when I submitted my writing sample to the site.

12 – Your favorite fanartist or fanfiction writer

I don’t have one. All of my friends, let’s say.

13 – The best cosplayers of your fandom that you’ve seen; the ones you consider to be real-life versions of your favorite characters, OTP, etc.

There are cosplayers I can think of who are favorites, but I don’t have their links (and usually not their names) handy. I love Puchiko’s Autor, pictured on Cosplaylab.com. And there are some incredible Sailor Moon cosplayers out there.

14 – A group of characters from one of your fandoms you’d love to hang out with for a day

The Sailor Senshi, on a day when they’d just be hanging out at the mall and not fighting demons.

15 –Your favorite collectible/merchandise from your fandom that you most cherish, or one that you wished you owned

Just one favorite piece of merchandise? I can’t quite think of one piece I cherish above all else; my favorite material object isn’t from a fandom at all. (Well, I guess technically it could be; it’s a Holly Hawk Hobby quilt. Yeah, when I was little I couldn't say Hobby and Hawk stuck instead.)

... My header is gone again. Where does it go when that happens? Is it bandwidth overload or something?

I randomly decided to take this quiz. I got who I wanted, so I'm pleased.


What Death Note Character Are You?
Hosted By theOtaku.com: Anime

I know he gets accused a lot of being an L rip-off, or people just dislike him because he isn't L, or people don't like some of the decisions he makes, but I always have liked him. Maybe I wouldn't if I read Death Note again, I don't know. But to my way of thinking, that series is pretty much filled with characters who have many flaws. And Near's apparently didn't rub me the wrong way and I like him in spite of them.

EDIT: I tried the Sailor Senshi quiz that mythc_writer took and got this:


Which Sailor Scout Are You?
Hosted By theOtaku.com: Anime

I often do get Mercury on these. Once I got Saturn. I'm pleased.