Shaymin Gratitude

@SPArcheon I would prefer not to have my words misinterpreted. What I thought was that you would prefer an answer written along the lines that the other user said. And that user seemed perfectly capable of writing it. Said user instead took it as me trying to bend their arm to write it and snapped at me. I have not now or ever thought that you were an idiot. I apologize if I said something that indicated that.

There's no need to worry about me. I can use most of the stuff I wrote to edit my answer at a later date. And the effort I put into trying to help you understand my points was no problem, so don't worry about it.

animefeminist.com/…

@JoeW I think that we both understand each other and that we simply disagree. Your efforts would probably be better spent writing your own answer. SPArcheon would probably be pleased if you did.

@JoeW I think the demon child in the flashback shows what you're trying to say. She doesn't understand the words that she's using, and her manipulation attempt is clumsy as a result. I don't see this clumsiness in the adult demons.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manipulation_(psychology) "Manipulative tendencies may derive from cluster B personality disorders such as narcissistic, antisocial personality disorder, and borderline personality disorder (usually by feigning distress or using flattery, gaslighting,[6] emotional blackmail or love-bombing or seduction[6] to obtain affection or to avoid abandonment).[7] Manipulation is also correlated with higher levels of dark empathy,[8] emotional intelligence,[9][7] and is a chief component of the personality construct dubbed Machiavellianism."

@JoeW Successfully manipulating someone requires a high degree of understanding of another person. Demons do not feel all the same emotions that humans do (they lack empathy, for instance). It does not mean they have no means of understanding those emotions. And they do need to learn them, because you can't manipulate someone's emotions with no understanding of those emotions. The proof of their understanding is in how skilled and successful they are at manipulation. But while the story shows this, it also tells us that they don't understand. This is why I said there is a contradiction.

It's similar to how in Welcome to Demon School, Iruma-kun the demons don't understand the concept of "friendship". Iruma introduces the word and concept to his two friends, and they're mystified until he explains it. But this whole situation was untenable for the story. In fact, the chapter in which it appeared had already created a contradiction, because Iruma's grandfather uses the term "friend" at the beginning. And later in the series, one of Iruma's classmate's goals is to make a bunch of friends.

Also as I said previously, Lugner connects the idea of a father to the idea of a son. This would imply he has a good understanding of how these two ideas connect, and the relationship and symmetry between them. And yet, the story still tries to insist that he has no clue what a father is. This is a contradictory mess.

As I stated: Realistically, not understanding the terms that you're using will eventually lead to saying something strange. This does not happen. This mindset is also counterproductive to manipulating a target. Yet, the demons are highly effective.

@JoeW The story purports that the demons are highly intelligent and also master manipulators. There's no reason they wouldn't simply learn what the terms mean.

Kehehe.

I'm quite familiar with the fawn and freeze responses. They're the banes of my life.

Hmm... I'll have to think that over.

I finished a playthrough of Omori. This game has lots of great themes related to mental health. One aspect that may be noticed early on is how each of the main characters has a different response to trauma, and how this leads to a lack of understanding and empathy between them. Omori is dissociative and withdrawn, Aubrey is angry and lashing out, Basil has a high amount of anxiety, Hero is depressed and withdrawn, and Kel is... moving on with his life, I guess.

May is mental health awareness month. "Stigma, the negative judgment of people due to certain traits, frequently prevents people from seeking mental health support. It creates a barrier to reaching out for help or sharing their challenges. To demolish this barrier, mental health should be talked about as openly and unashamedly as are physical ailments like a broken arm. We must understand that mental health issues aren't a choice, a failure, or a weakness." -Neurodivergence for Dummies

What is it?

No.

@SPArcheon Yes. I read that after you recommended it to me. Though somewhat distinct in tone, it's content is similar to other works like Somali and the Forest Spirit and The Ancient Magus' Bride. The story is good up to a point, but I felt as though the twist was not properly set up or justified and thus I was not particularly pleased with the ending. On the other hand, that analogy of pouring water between containers and losing some each time was poignant.

@SPArcheon The most powerful creature of them all, surely.

Shy is really good. It rebukes the stigmatization of mental health and mental illnesses, and has strong themes of empathy. Mainly, that Teru is the only hero who can properly empathize with the darkness in people's hearts because of her experiences with social anxiety.

: twitter.com/katuwo___

Speaking of SM, October was Selective Mutism Awareness Month.

Am not well-versed in trans issues. However, while researching, I did find some stuff saying that those in the trans community experience social anxiety (and other mental health issues) at higher rates than the general population, and that gender-affirming care helps to alleviate this.

In which case, turning Mahiro younger could actually be helpful. Though it's obviously a fantasy wish-fulfillment situation.

I watched Onimai to examine it's depictions of social anxiety, and I actually thought it was good in that regards. My experience and knowledge is obviously geared more towards selective mutism, but with that regards, I do know that it's better to treat it earlier.

Comments are confusing. I've marked the sibling pairs. The blue-haired girl does not appear in the anime.

Is "dreams, effort, and hope" the corresponding theme of Shojo manga?

"Nothing—not love, dreams, hope, effort, friendship, or victory—could save me. I was in real trouble." --Satou, Welcome to the NHK.

Odd.

"Hunter x Hunter is a shounen manga by Yoshihiro Togashi about Gon, a hunter, which is a privileged person."

anime.stackexchange.com/edit-tag-wiki/103

Personally, I kinda hate the whole "be careful what you wish for" as a moral for a story. But I feel this is more of a "The unexamined life isn't worth living" thing.

And on that note: I would not want a child around who can read minds. How terrifying.

@Memor-X Ah, you're right. What an articulation error. It's always such a struggle to properly convey what one is thinking. "Seriously" probably would have been a better adverb choice than "actually". To be more clear, I should have written it like this: "Doesn't seem like people were answering this question seriously, nor indulging in critical thinking towards what their choice would entail, so I'm going to do that for them because I love overanalyzing things."

Replace Kai immediately.

3. Kicking and flailing their legs really hard while teaching Nako to swim.

2. Bringing school swimsuit to the pool (though she couldn't have done this on purpose)

1. Stretching before reciting a haiku

This quote from Watamote: "Maybe if we both do something together, the embarrassment gets split in half?" proves Sotoka Rakita is the best character in Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu. I thought as much, but since I didn't trust my memory, on my third rewatch I've been watching for times she's immediately joined in when Bocchi does something stupid.

From those results, it doesn't seem like most people were actually answering the question. Like the Game Master in Yu Yu Hakusho, with three out of the six on that poll you'd be taking the role of someone scripted to die. Also, Nezuko might eat you. If it's before the demon attack at the beginning of the series, Tanjiro and Nezuko would be good children to have though, so I guess there's a case there. Ed is a brat throughout the whole series though.

It's all pretty cringeworthy, but I think for me the top spot has to go to when Velma is contemplating letting Scooby die.

@SPArcheon I've been watching that a bit, and I've found all of the romantic subplot to be completely unbearable. All the more so when it just won't die even after the break-ups. Please tell me they're all platonic friends in season 2...

There's nothing odd about someone with social anxiety trying to find comradery with introverts. So, yeah, I'm going to have to strongly disagree with what Silverman said.

"The internet is filled with socially anxious introverts just like me!"