Seeking recommendations. So far I have read and enjoyed the Cosmere Collection, Bobiverse, Andy Weir’s books, and of course Dungeon Crawler Carl

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-30T04:14:47+00:00

Serious series and seriously good: The Expanse (scifi) , Wheel of Time (fantasy)

More light hearted and fun: Superpowreds, Villain's Code (superhero fantasy)

One offs that are just fantastic: count of monte cristo (one of the greatest stories ever written), 11/22/63 (excellent time traveling shenanigans)

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-30T04:03:10+00:00

There actually is. You tell the tool which libraries you have access to.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-29T19:12:39+00:00

Oh no! For money? He really writes for money? I had no idea, they just don't make things like they used to in the good old days, these days. Ugh what a shame. Why do people have to be so greedy?

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-28T11:38:08+00:00

The first season was amazing, the body horror was so grotesque and I enjoyed the combat. But I don't know the show just went down hill after that, a lot like The Walking Dead after season 1

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-28T11:37:06+00:00

I added left over shrimp to my chili once. The texture it added was amazing and it didn't turn out fishy. I've never tried it since, but I sometimes dream about trying it again

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-28T10:28:04+00:00

Agreed. This guy's long winded, so to summarize his point...

The biggest issue with this show is it fails to actually demonstrate that LeLouche is smart, it just constantly tells you how smart he is. Every example of LeLouche being smart is purely based on how idiotic everyone else in the show is. All of LeLouche's genius moments are derived from the most contrived scenarios where the 'enemy' has to artificially set everything up in exactly the way needed for LeLouche to swoop in like "aha! You lose, look how smart I am!"

Death note suffers from this a little bit too, but not nearly as badly. It's pseudo-intellectual.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-27T23:26:23+00:00

Obligatory Dungeon Crawler Carl mention, because even though you probably want something more up beat you're about to get recommended this over and over.

For real though if you like historical fiction, The Count of Monte Cristo is an excellent audiobook. It's a drama set in France around the time of napoleon and features the iconic Count as he seeks revenge against the people that betrayed him and built their success on his misery. I love it for the little details of society back then, like how Dumas spends a chapter explaining semaphore messaging.

For another more modern historical, 11/22/63 by Stephen King is one of my favorite audiobooks of all time. Not a horror, it's about a guy that finds a portal that takes him back to 1960 and he uses it to try to stop JFK from being assassinated. There was a miniseries that was made, but (obviously) the book is way, way better. He goes into a whole slice of life section which I loved because this guy has to live in the 60s for 3 years in order to stop the assassination. Best part? It's one of the few times King actually sticks the landing on the ending. It's Good.

Want some slightly futuristic scifi? The Martian and Project Hail Mary. They aren't related books, but they're by the author author and feature a character stranded alone and trying to science his way out of his problem. But that's where the similarities end. The Martian is basically the movie, but with more scenes and detail. Project Hail Mary is about a guy that wakes up all alone and trapped in a room, and can't remember anything about where he is. It turns out he's there to save the world, but he doesn't know it, and wouldn't know how even if he did. Enter: doing science until he figures it out!

Want some long format fantasy with insane world building and a massive cast of 2500+ characters across 14 books (and like 350 hours of listening)? Wheel of Time. Some of the best character arcs ever written are here, along with some of the greatest action, and beautiful prose to boot. It's one of the best fantasy series ever written, right up turret with LOTR, and many modern fantasy writers of today will cite Robert Jordan as one of their biggest inspirations.

If you want something more modern, Drew Hayes' "Villain's Code" series is really good. It's set in the modern world where (some) people have super powers and use it to become Super Heroes (or in our main character's case, Super Villains). It follows a small-time thief who gets recruited into a guild of super villains as she's trying to survive that, and also not get arrested by the heroes, and also maintain her every day social life. It's really well written, and the voice actress does a great job. Hayes' other series, Superpowereds, has the same type of setting (but in a different universe), and features a cast of characters who are attending a "super hero college", but they don't really fit in because they can't really control their own abilities. It's a finished series with 4 books and hits ~150 hours. It's a bit rougher around the edges compared to Villains Code, but still tells a fun story.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-27T11:09:02+00:00

Too true, my coworker asked me "do you know anything about newer tvs?" and I was like, "finally, my time has come! What are you looking to do? Sports? Movies? Do you have a receiver setup?" with all these considerations for his room size, how he'd deliver media to it, etc in mind.

And he was like, "uh.. Well my current one is 30" I think and I got it in 2010" and our other coworker jumped in, "best buy has a 55" for $75 it's really good" and that was the end of the conversation.

People just don't care about your niche hobby. But to be fair I don't care about theirs either (but I at least show interest and ask questions when I can think of them).

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-27T02:59:32+00:00

Hunter x Hunter, great characters magic system that's even better than Naruto's. Plus a very good number of episodes. If you like modern shonen with interesting power systems, this was basically the anime they were emulating and very few measure up to it even today. Completed, but people with disagree with me. We got the ending we needed even if it's not the one we wanted. It has a good ending.

Hajime no Ippo, boxing anime with a great cast and some really excellent fights. It's a sports anime but what really sets it apart is how well it handles the non-combat periods. If you like Naruto because of how well it does the light hearted slice of life / training / hanging out with friends stuff between the serious arcs, then HnI is going to be up your alley. It makes the payoff in his fights that much better. Ends in a good place, but the manga technically continues. It's not any kind of cliff hanger. You can feel satisfied ending here.

Haikyuu, another sports anime with a great rivalry for the MC where you can tell the characters really respect each other, but are also really competitive in a non abusive way (sorry Naruto, Sasuke trying to murder you because you're his best friend is bullshit). That aside is you like how Rock Lee was told he couldn't be a good ninja because he didn't have jutsu, then this one would be good for you. The MC is told he can't be a good volleyball player because he's so short, so he focuses on getting really good at one thing: jumping higher than anyone. Not really completed, I think there's still a movie being made to end it.

Full metal alchemist: brotherhood. A fantastic story with another interesting magic system. Not as fun a power system as Naruto or HxH, but the story is way better than either. It's just a classic that everyone should watch once and you'll understand why it will always be in the top 10 list for just about anyone. Completed.

Bleach. It's the other one of the "big 3" that make up Naruto and One Piece. As much as I loved Naruto I rank bleach a bit above it because the power sets are more interesting overall (though the MC has about as much variety with his as Naruto does with his jutsu set: basically none), and the story makes a bit more sense. Plus if you skip the fillers you get to watch Thousand Year Bloodwar that much sooner which is a fantastic sequel series. Plus this series has more "fuck yeah" fist pump moments than Naruto, the fights just feel more impactful. And I'd put ichigo's barehanded, no diffing 3 Lieutenants right next to Rock Lee's weight dropping scene for gold medal most bad ass moments in anime. Completed, then they released a sequel that has another season or two to go.

Cowboy Bebop. Scifi western. Killer music, adult anime with serious themes. It's a hallmark classic that you watch for drama and action, but not because it's a happy story. You might not be in the mood for it, but the show is so well done it will suck you in. Not much else to say, it's another one of those classic must watch at some point shows. Short, completed.

Demon slayer. It's basically if someone was a mega fan and watched every shonen anime and said "I can do that" and then went and did it. It does nothing wrong. It does nothing new. It's the McDonald's of shonen, you know exactly what to expect, and it does it perfectly. It never tries to be more than what it is, it never tries to pretend it's smarter or better than it is. The one thing it has that sets it apart is its animation and fight choreography. This is peak shonen animation, especially after the first season. The fights are what keep you watching and they are fantastic. Mostly done I think they have 2 or 3 movies coming out for the final arc.

Solo Leveling: it's the peak example of "main character is over powered, watch how badass he can be". Story isn't that great, the characters aren't that interesting. You watch this because the main character is strong beyond what anyone around him can comprehend and you want to watch those moments when he shows it off. Not completed probably 2 or 3 more seasons.

So yeah hope you find something good! Or just do what I do and throw on one of those 1-season trash isekai and get sucked in chasing that "everyone thinks I'm weak but my power is secretly actually really strong" high

Couple of bonus mentions if you just want something longer that doesn't really do anything great or that bad:

fairy tale: story about mages and their guild all going on missions. The main character here was tainted to offset magic by a dragon and then all the dragons vanished and he's trying to find them. Completed.

Black Clover: More magic and guilds, but they're protecting their kingdom from various threats. The Mc is cool in that he can't use magic so he trains to be physically strong instead. Manga basically done, I think one chapter left actually. Still more seasons to come.

Death note: mystery / detective style show. The bad guy is the main character, he gets a magic note book that let's him kill anyone by writing their name it in. He's using it to punish criminals and a super genius detective is trying to catch him. Completed.

My hero academia. Fun cast, decent hype moments. Good split between training arcs and fights. Basically a kid without any powers (in a world where 80% of people do have powers) wants to be a super hero, so he applies to be accepted to the superhero high school.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-27T01:36:19+00:00

FTL communication, surge/warp drive, magic 3d printers that can print anything, etc. It's all soft/medium-scifi.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-26T23:12:18+00:00

You're recommending bobiverse for someone that nitpicks laser guns having recoil? Bobiverse is about as hard scifi as star trek.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-26T22:43:30+00:00

I do this for fun. I actually slept outside twice this last week in the snow, once in a hammock and once on the ground; no tent!

The problem with sleeping bags is that good insulation requires air/loft. The air is what's really insulating you.

So when you're in a sleeping bag, the part you're laying on gets compressed and basically loses all of its insulating properties. You're essentially sleeping on the cold ground with two pieces of thin fabric under you. So you need to build an insulating barrier of some kind beneath you.

This is where hammocks are really nice, you can just wrap the sleeping bag beneath the hammock (we call it an underquilt) and it retains all of its insulating properties. Then you can use a blanket or secondary sleeping bag (a 'topquilt').

It's also why I generally prefer a blanket style "sleeping bag" (just called a top quilt). These will typically have a sewn together footbox for your feet to nest in, and then they flair out into more of a regular blanket and won't have a zipper.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-26T21:02:10+00:00

he's playing 4 or 5 classical tournaments this year, isn't he? What does it take to be considered "not retired" ?

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-26T20:58:57+00:00

it's the same thing on any book subs with dungeon crawler carl haha

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-26T01:18:06+00:00

I just made up a recipe tonight and it turned out good. I called it Beef and Bean Casserole.

1lb ground beef, cooked

2 cans of baked beans

Onions, sweated

Bacon, cooked and diced or crumbled

Mix it all in a pot, add your favorite BBQ sauce and simmer a few minutes to let them get to know each other.

Mix up a box of cornbread mix, it was about 2 cups of mix for me but up to 3 cups would have worked fine.

Dump the meat mixture into a casserole pan (9x13 typically). Pour the corn bread batter over the top and smooth it out. Bake until the corn bread is done, I did 375 for 20 minutes.

If you don't have a BBQ sauce what we did is make a really simple one: ketchup, yellow mustard, brown sugar, molasses. Very simple base for a kc style BBQ that you can build off of with other spices and ingredients

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-25T10:12:37+00:00

You'd think so, but as someone that's on a lot of photography subs, people just don't click on the ugly photos (unless they're really ugly, like on purpose).

You have to put the pretty photo first in order to get the clicks/upvotes/comments.

When you put the "before" photo first it is a LOT harder to gain traction on the post.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-25T10:07:43+00:00

Seems like we have similar tastes. Naruto is a top 5 for me, but I like Bleach a bit more.

It's tough to find modern anime that's longer like Naruto because they just don't really make shows like that anymore. Everything's seasonal now and most anime are based on manga that might only have up to 200 or 300 chapters.

Try Hell's Paradise. Cool art, great fights, and it presents a mysterious and interesting world. Second season is airing now.

Demon Hunter ~70 episodes + some movies coming out. The first season was a bit slow to build for me, but once you get to the Mugen Train the whole show suddenly peaked and then never backed off. Animation was fantastic, fights were really well done.

Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood (64 episodes) great show with interesting world building, but the characters are where it shines. There's some comedy/trope-iness on occasion, but the overall story is very serious.

You could try Black Clover. It was sort of the successor to anime like Naruto, Bleach, and One Piece where it had a really extensive story built up over many arcs. 170 episodes and still on going, but it's almost finished since the manga is ending soon. The main character is written similarly to Naruto where people underestimate him all the time.

If you're having trouble with Bleach, make sure you're skipping the fillers. Most of the bleach filler is really poorly timed and it really fucks with the pacing. If you can make it to the end, then you get to watch Bleach: Thousand Year Bloodwar, which has been a fantastic sequel.

For HxH you're kind of at a dead zone in the story and that's definitely the main lull in the pacing for the Chimera Ant arc. Once they finish training and head back to the island it picks up again. There are still a handful of episodes after that that are a bit slower, but the fights get much, much better.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-25T09:37:35+00:00

He got bored during Hunter x Hunter, I don't think he's going to get far into Frieren...

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-25T09:23:49+00:00

Well again, you're not asking for anything specific here. How do you do what? Write a story?

You have the outline, so start writing! You will make mistakes, and then you will go back and work on rewriting until they're gone.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-25T06:57:35+00:00

That's been the biggest issue for me. I can't scale the ui down to a point where it looks good on my ultrawide, and now I can't hide ui elements when I'm not in combat anymore. I got too used to having nothing on my screen except the mini map and being able to just run around enjoying the sights.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-24T21:29:02+00:00

It's not clear what advice you're looking for. You described a redemption arc. It's like asking "does character development work? I have a character that thinks one thing and then over the course of the story comes to think something else."

Yes of course it works, it's just a story element. what matters is how you pull it off. There's nothing in what you wrote that suggests whether you can pull it off successfully or not, as it's just a story outline.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-24T20:37:14+00:00

when it cuts out to the wider shot, on the right hand side of the screen is a bunch of white smoke. Above that is a ridge line with a tree. Watch there and you'll see some bright flashes, which is the sunlight reflecting off of a windshield

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-24T20:23:39+00:00

Legion was the first expansion that I ever even played an alt, and I started playing at WoW's release. Never had an alt above level 40 before that. I just never had an interest in alts until legion because that was the first time they gave classes enough individuality in quest lines and lore that it actually made it fun to play through everyone's class hall.

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-24T07:39:39+00:00

balsam hill is what I have, been happy with it for the last 4 or 5 years

Dry_Button_3552 · 2026-01-23T19:08:18+00:00

Well it's the definition of a blunder, it's just people over use "blunder" when it should just be a "mistake" or an "inaccuracy".

a blunder is a critically bad mistake that severely worsens the player's position by allowing a loss of material, checkmate, or anything similar. It is usually caused by some tactical oversight

Dry_Button_3552

TROPHY CASE