#full speed

Oh my god where do I even begin

I love so so so much about this game... All of it, really xD

Okay, let me start with this: one of my absolute favourite things about Ōkami is the artstyle that makes everything look like it was painted by an actual paintbrush, it's so lovely! The game itself also starts with a scroll being opened, revealing the legend of Shiranui and Kamiki Village

I also just LOVE that the implication is that an older version of Issun is narrating the entire story through paintings on a scroll! It really makes you feel like you're in a legend, not just witnessing it, but being an important part of it - taking on the role of none other than Amaterasu, the sun god

Fun fact, the game's title Ōkami is like a wordplay. Ōkami can mean both wolf and great/big god and Amaterasu is both! Kid me went insane that I didn't just get to play a wolf BUT the wolf was also a god. I don't think you can find many games like that? O.o

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Another favourite thing is the soundtrack.(Sun) god strike me down the music in this game is insanely good AYUUUGGGHGHHGHHGHH I CAN'T TELL YOU HOW MUCH I LOVE IT!!! In fact after posting this I'm going to listen to the soundtrack immediately HAHAHAHAHA

However, one thing I thought was incredibly disappointing is that at the end of the game the credits song was removed on newer platforms :( I played the game for the first time on my old dusty Wii and the credits song was there! It made the ending MUCH better in my humble opinion. I don't know why it was removed, possibly due to copyright reasons? It's called "Reset" by Hirahara Ayaka

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Favourite thing number three: the other celestial brush gods and the paintings of enemies/bosses when they're introduced. That's definitely something I absolutely thought was cool! I remember trying to recreate some of the paintings, Lord Ninetails being my most favourite target alongside the twin demon owls...

And aside from Ammy, I quite enjoyed sketching Yomigami, the first celestial brush god you meet. I just love dragons lol

I EVEN STIL L HAVE ONE OF MY OLD YOMIGAMI SKETCHES!!!

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Favourite thing number four: Waka. I love Waka I love that man he is so funny to me. I can't lie, I still have a crush on this guy after longer than a decade 💔 each time he appeared on the screen I lost my mind and if I played now I would lose my mind once more

Issun having insane beef with Waka was my comedy. My first playthroughs were in german and some of the lines in german were HILARIOUS. "MACHS WIE DER WIND UND VERPFEIFF DICH!" - Issun to Waka (this is basically like saying get lost but funnier) I forgot what the english line was here 🧐 huh, looks like I reaaaaaallly need to play again 🧐🧐🧐🧐

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Bonus, my favourite boss fight: Lechku and Nechku! A lot of people say it's their favourite and I can't blame them. I'm one of many

Lord have mercy there is so much I could keep going? Miyeyu what have you done to me XD I can't contain all of this I need to YAP. You activated something in me because I haven't talked about (or with anyone) Ōkami in a hot minute

Deep breaths I can do this.... There is always time for another post someday where I can yap more...

I've got to write down other stuff I greatly enjoyed about Ōkami when I can. Because trust me what I've written here isn't nearly everything, if I had said "everything is my favourite" I could've left it at that and called it a day (THO I NEED TO YAP! I need excuses to YAP!)

And before I end this post, an old drawing I did depicting Wolf Link and Ammy that I made in Pokémon Art Academy in 2017

“You are driving through an intersection with a green signal. A pedestrian starts to cross your path. What should you do first?”

Lately, I’ve been thinking about the wave of Netflix-style docuseries sweeping through every major sport—Drive to Survive (F1), Break Point (Tennis), Full Swing (Golf), Full Speed (NASCAR), and so on. And honestly? I think they’re starting to ruin what makes sport… sport.

To be fair, these series have done a lot of good. They’ve expanded audiences, made niche sports more accessible, and offered fans a new, behind-the-scenes perspective. The editing is slick, the storytelling is compelling, and there’s undeniable entertainment value. But there's a side of this trend that no one seems to be talking about.

These docuseries are turning sports into reality TV.

Athletes—real people doing high-stakes, physically and mentally demanding jobs—are being reduced to characters. Their struggles and setbacks are edited into “redemption arcs.” A single glance between competitors becomes a manufactured rivalry. Before you know it, you’re no longer watching a sport—you’re watching a scripted narrative, complete with dramatic voiceovers and swelling music.

Even worse, many of these shows are starting to feel indistinguishable. Golf, Formula 1, tennis, NASCAR—they’re all edited with the same tone, structure, and pacing. They don’t reflect the unique rhythm or identity of the sports themselves. Instead, they feel like part of a sports-themed cinematic universe: Hot Guys With Commitment Issues But In Different Uniforms: Season 4.

Now, I want to be super clear: I have nothing against the fans who come into a sport through these series. That’s actually one of the best parts of them—getting more people to care, to pay attention, to fall in love with something they might never have discovered otherwise. Everyone starts somewhere, and new fans are a good thing.

The problem isn’t the fans. It’s the framing.

These series flatten nuance into narrative. They turn competitions into episodes and reduce complex performances into moments designed to go viral. And once you start seeing the sport through that lens, it becomes really easy to forget that these are real people. Athletes start getting treated like fictional characters. Fans speculate about their personal lives, assign them “roles,” take edited drama as truth, and start online wars over things that were literally just good editing.

As well as this, some athletes genuinely dislike being filmed for these shows. They’re not trying to be marketable or camera-ready every second—they’re trying to win. And the constant presence of film crews can mess with their prep, their focus, and their mental health. It’s invasive. It’s distracting. And sometimes, it actively hurts their performance.

It’s also created a weird kind of culture clash:

Longtime fans who care about the stats, the strategy, the ugly wins and quiet losses.

Newer fans who are sometimes more interested in storylines, aesthetics, and vibes.

And look, I get it. Storylines are fun. Vibes are fun. Watching with emotional investment is part of being a fan. But when athletes are only celebrated when they fit a narrative—or worse, villainized when they don’t—it stops being about the sport and starts becoming something a little… toxic.

Sports are already full of drama, heartbreak, triumph, and tension. That’s the beauty of them. They don’t need to be edited into TV shows—they are the story. Just let the athletes compete. Let the sport speak for itself. And let the people on the field, track, or court be human, not content.

The Boys are Back in Town!

The Big Brother Ponies of Gen 1 are so funny to me. Shame they only showed up one episode! In honor of them, I have given them all little overhauls for my G1 Reimagining :3 Fun fact: Bill is named after the oldest functional locomotive, Puffin' Billy!

Slugger = Strike Out aka Striker

Tex = Westward

Salty = Salt Breeze

Steamer = Puffin' Bill aka Big Smoke, Big Bill

Quarterback = Gridiron

I was convinced that after you make your way through the train in the final level, there would be some sort of final confrontation you had to fight. 'I never throw away anything useful' so I thought we were going to face an amnesiac/brainwashed Subject 6 - tackling both Lucas' worst fear, worst trauma (being a mindless plaything at the mercy of decision makers, fighting 47) and 47 being forced to fight both Subject 6 and in a way himself, his mirror image. Also the gutpunch that 47's sacrifice was ultimately futile since 6 was recaptured and reconditioned anyway

To be honest, I thought so too! Or that Diana had something to do with it after all - something.

Because that way they only imitated Blood Money and Lucas ended up with the most senseless death ever.