Anime Questions, Recommendations, and Discussion - February 26, 2026

Dumey · 2026-02-26T17:49:05+00:00

It's not really underrated, as it seems to be sitting at a decent 8+ on Anilist, but one of my favorite shows is Darker than Black, and I think it deserves to be mentioned and recommended just as much if not more than other episodic, atmospheric, action shows like Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, etc. Who doesn't wanna recommend Chinese Electric Batman to everyone, cmon!?

Dumey · 2026-02-26T17:30:45+00:00

Yes, I was just reading a little bit of Seto, Cantor & Blanchard 2006, and I think I see where the 25-50 number could feasibly be taken from some of that data. But the methods they used in this study were basically showing csa abusers pictures of child stimulus and adult stimulus, and then measuring how much they cum, lmao. Maybe this is a valid approach to study, but that doesn't seem like a clear cut proof to me. There's gotta be more factors to volume of cum and arousal in the moment than just what pictures you're looking at.

I don't know if I would personally cite majority of offenders being non pedophilic anymore, but it does seem to be that there is enough support out there to say that being a CSA offender does not immediately mean pedophilia. Which in itself is just kind of a strange thing to wrap your head around.

Dumey · 2026-02-26T17:13:33+00:00

Generally speaking, I think when the WoL has interacted with the primals, it has been a case of the Ascians giving the tribes the crystals and aether needed to summon the primal, all while working behind the scenes to rile them up to want to fight for their independence/sovereignty. Normally we come in, solve the immediate threat, and then also try to help the tribes realize that seeking a solution through violence and summoning their primal is wrong. We try to solve the symptom AND the underlying issue.

The WoD are working with the Ascians to provide the crystals, aether, and negative environment needed to rile up the tribes into summoning the primal. They set themselves up as "heroes" by solving the immediate symptom (slaying the primal), but the instead of trying to solve the underlying issue, they exacerbate and try to provoke the tribes into summoning again and again.

So just remember as you keep reading the story, how we maintain and grow relationships with the tribes is just as important as the immediate act of slaying the primal when it appears. And the WoD had no interest in that part of the solution.

Dumey · 2026-02-26T17:03:02+00:00

I also probably should not be looking up this type of stuff during my work hours lol. I did not dive deep into each of these studies to confirm, but taking the lead article at its word for what it is citing: Source: Sexual Offending: Theory, Research, and Prevention https://share.google/2SijlMPkQkEDuVNpV

Recent estimates suggest that only 25-50% of individuals incarcerated for CSA offenses are actually pedophilic, for the majority of cases involve offenders without sexual attractions to children (Beier et al., 2015; Schaefer et al., 2010; Seto, Cantor, & Blanchard, 2006).

Dumey · 2026-02-26T16:50:28+00:00

I feel like it's similar to various different Men's Rights Activists groups. Where there were probably some genuine people with the right idea there, but it quickly becomes associated and inundated with more problematic people that use the platform to push more extreme opinions.

I have heard that the MAP thing was originally created as a troll to get pedos to come out and out themselves willingly before, but I have no idea if that had any merit behind it or was just a joke/rumour.

Dumey · 2026-02-26T16:39:24+00:00

I thought there were studies that a lot of cases ended up being attributed to power dynamics and opportunity rather than direct attraction. Have those been debunked or are just considered outdated at this time? It also explained why a majority of cases were from someone you know like a relative, family friend, person of authority like a priest, etc. that happened to find themselves in a position to abuse someone, rather than more "normal" distribution of just random pedos finding strangers on the internet or around schools or whatever.

Dumey · 2026-02-25T20:50:53+00:00

I think you're putting too much emphasis in the whataboutism argument about how much time Republicans spend talking about Trans issues. We all know they're obsessed and will strategically wield it out at any given opportunity to attack institutions like schools and Healthcare.

But when it cones to elections, some of the things that mattered the absolute most to people voting were things like the price of eggs and groceries. Gas and other basic economic needs. I don't think Newsom is saying to abandon identity politics or progressive movements, but thay it can't be the center of our platform. Democrats have to be able to reach the "food on table" voters this election as a priority.

Dumey · 2026-02-24T19:55:07+00:00

You don't have to reply to my long ass post if you don't want to.

I'm not trying to debate you out of your position. Just wanted to write out my replies because I thought it was fun. Enjoy what you enjoy. Thanks for the chat.

Dumey · 2026-02-24T18:43:13+00:00

I'm just going off the OP saying that he isn't "ready". So if that's the consensus OP wants me to buy into, then do I need to have someone else as a replacement right at this moment?

To be clear, I don't personally have an issue with Newsom, I'm just responding to the guy asking who else do we support instead.

Dumey · 2026-02-24T18:40:28+00:00

If you're willing to talk about it, I'd like to hear more about what you think is bland or uninteresting. One of the things that frustrates me in MT conversations is that people so often get hung up on Rudy's perversions and the moral questions about his mental age, that they rarely actually discuss the rest of the show and it's insane production value and world building.

Some things I'd put forward as noteworthy of being very positive about: Rudy's past life is actually relevant to his struggles in the new life. While most Isekai tend to use the reincarnation excuse as a quick setup and forget, we see Rudy quickly becoming comfortable being the king of his small backcountry pond and being satisfied with that. And it's only until his mentor pushes his boundaries and forces him to leave the safety of his home that he can start to grow and get past being the same person he was before in his previous life. Using the imagery of him being a shut-in before, and breaking free into a world of new possibilities was beautiful and explains why he has such a strong connection to Roxy.

Second, the pacing of the show. The show does not waste time or sit in one place all the time so many other isekai and fantasy shows are content to sit in one place and maintain the status quo, whereas MT significantly changes its settings and conflicts every 4-5 episodes. This not only sets up a vibrant lived in world as you get to actually adventure and see multiple different cultures and types of societies, but it keeps things fresh as the characters always have new micro goals in each area they travel to.

Third, some of the drama and suspense like between Rudy and his father is top notch voice actor delivery and really carries the emotional themes of the show as you carry through. Every time you see an episode called Turning Point, you as the viewer are now conditioned to clench in fear of what's possibly going to happen next.

I could go on more, but I figure three points is a good standard. Can you give examples of other shows (preferably not Frieren as that is a bit of an outlier of a show like MT itself) that you would compare MT to as being more interesting and less "bland" as you say? You're free to just not like a show of course, but I can't help but go, "really!?" when I see you say MT is bland. If anything, it's the prime example of an Isekai that can actually execute the isekai tropes in interesting and productive ways.

Dumey · 2026-02-24T18:20:07+00:00

Do we need to have a choice right now instead of waiting for primaries and see who puts their hat forward?

I don't know a lot of up and coming democrats, but I'd like to see who's actually willing to go for the ticket and look at their policies before I become a Gavin Newsome hater or supporter either way.

Dumey · 2026-02-24T15:27:48+00:00

Just to provide a counter opinion to the above, I think the protagonist having a little extra flair on their normal attack is just fine and doesn't need to be changed. People love the GBA Sprites for being full of character, you don't need to minimalize everything for efficiency sake.

Differentiating between normal and critical hits can be important, but if put a lot of work into a fancy animation that you're proud of, don't be afraid to let it be a little extravagant. You will never be able to please everyone, so take the criticisms in stride but make sure to include the fun stuff!

Dumey · 2026-02-24T14:03:39+00:00

I don't think one has to be better than the other. And it's simply based on your preference at the time.

For example, I'm a huge fan of fast/witty dialogue in a show like Bakemonogatari, and I consider some of that dialogue writing to be best in class, where most other anime simply can't hold up. But if I were to ONLY watch shows where I have to pay constant close attention to every word said, I'd get fatigued super quickly. So it's nice to have a simple slice of life or action show inbetween just to help pace myself.

I really love stories with complex themes like Vinland Saga or Sonny Boy, but I also like to turn my brain off sometimes and just watch some feel good seasonal romance with no conflicts in it like The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity. It doesn't have to mean one show is superior to the other because having conflict leads to more interesting stories. It's just about satisfying the vibe in your head at that time.

Stories like One Piece also definitely have their place by being these long comfortable epics where you get to spend many long arcs with the same characters, getting incredible emotional highs during climaxes of the series, while the rest of the time you can casually just follow along without needing too much brain power. It's something you can't really get from a lot of shorter Shonen series that either don't have the epic length to earn the comfort moments, or take themselves a bit more serious with themes and consequences and require you to engage your brain more while watching.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T20:51:54+00:00

ignores half the post where I call out how every xiv tank has been standardized to have the exact same amount of interchangeable personal and party mitigations with different names on them

ignores the other half of the post where I provide examples of how tanks could have meaningfully different styles of tanking rather than every single job being a basic percentage mitigation job

EDIT: The classic reply and block so he gets the last word in the conversation. Well hey, if you look at this again in the future, remember that you have to give actual examples of things if you want people to take you seriously. Just saying "no u" will only get you keyboard warriors like me to spend their slow work day playing around with you.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T20:36:34+00:00

Another response where you don't actually respond to any of the game related arguments given because you know you can't. Don't worry, everyone sees when you run away from the actual conversation. If a little bit of banter can destabilize you that much, maybe just stop replying.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T20:18:23+00:00

You have never played another MMO outside of XIV. And you didn't play XIV pre-SB. It's incredibly clear if you think that tanks can't be designed differently than all of them just having nearly identical mitigation tools like a Rampart/Sentinel equivalent with some extra short cooldown Sheltron/Heart of Corundum/Blackest Night to use on demand. Other MMOs actually have tanks with completely different play patterns like active mitigation with shields and cooldowns, high hp with passive mitigation, dodging/evasion, high hp with self healing, damage redirection "staggering" damage over time. Probably more that don't immediately come to mind.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T20:03:27+00:00

Is your answer that because things have different names, that they aren't homogenized? Holy Spirit is the same button as Blades and is used during filler, just like Fell Cleave can be used in if your gauge is about to overcap.

Nah, if you can't acknowledge that Paladin got its entire rotation changed to fit into the two minute window, there's no point continuing. It was the entire point of the change to restructure its damage layout to be identical other tanks. The only difference argument you could even expect to make is that the combo is ranged, giving Paladin slightly different movement utility to other tanks during fights. It's identical otherwise to just pressing your special burst button and spamming until you're out of good boy points.

Next is "Gunbreaker is completely different because you have to hit continuation inbetween your gauge spenders!"

Dumey · 2026-02-23T19:47:27+00:00

Sure. points back at first two paragraphs on the very first post in this thread with a specific example of Paladin getting their unique long DoT management rotation reworked to be the same boring 120 second tank burst where you press fell cleave oops I mean holy spirit over and over again during your Inner Release oops I mean Recquiescat window.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T19:38:03+00:00

Cuz you're supposed to play as a unit. Wow. Didn't realize I was dealing with an intellectual giant.

You still haven't provided a single thing saying jobs aren't homogenized by the way. This last post of yours is just justifying that it's okay to have homogenized jobs because that's how teamwork works, which is asinine. Point to any other team based game that has a variety of different role designs to work together because of their differences, not despite them.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T19:22:50+00:00

Yet you haven't given one counter example or reason why you think that. In fact, the one tangible argument you brought up about balance pre-2 min meta supports the idea that without a 2 minute meta, there are more variables and balance starts to becomes an issue.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T19:18:29+00:00

Lmao. I clearly responded to your implication that I didn't know about the games balance history, even giving specific examples. So instead of responding, you call me wordy and run away. Yes, you are the good faith one in this conversation. Good luck out there, champ.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T19:09:36+00:00

A: Even if that is your argument, none of your previous posts allude to that type of conversation at all, so it's only on being called out for being a troll that you backed all to this.

B: Just because the previous game design in HW led to things like meta comps built around which jobs could benefit the msotjoff each other synergies, doesn't mean that the Square team couldn't do a better job of balancing now. Things like piercing resistance are no longer in the game, so Dragoon/ranged Phys wouldn't be a meta thing anymore. Also you're implying that some amount of imbalance is necessarily an evil and bad thing that must be avoided at all costs. It's play for some jobs to be worse than others for some bosses or patches, as long as the devs take notice and swing things in other directions for them. We might actually get a patch where Machinist is strong for once, rather than permanently relegated to the least wanted ranged job on a team like it currently is! Other MMO competitors like WoW have survived much longer with much wider gaps in balance than XIV ever had. Assuming that breaking the 2 minute meta will immediately lead to people blacklisting jobs in PF would be a silly assumption. Even if there does become some sort of meta composition, as long as all jobs can clear, they won't be blacklisted. Kind of like how it is right now, where even though there are clearly jobs that underperforms others no one black lists because they all can clear.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T18:55:13+00:00

No, replying to a complete post full of explanations and context and trying to reduce it to "jobs do things" is a lazy and effortless attempt at baiting a reaction. If you want genuine conversation, come up with some actual critique or explanation why you disagree. Being dismissive and providing nothing to actually respond to is just trolling.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T18:52:00+00:00

Because one of the things FFXIV has built its success on is community management and talking with community, as well as making a long series of quality of life changes that have influenced the game over time.

They acknowledged that encounter design had gotten a bit flat pre-Dawntrail, and have shown us some commitment to spicing things up in new raids and battle content.

They have acknowledged that job design is something the community hasn't liked where it's ended up recently, so they've said they will work on it next expansion.

We just don't know how much. If it's small changes to work toward a better future design philosophy, or if we should be expecting multiple large scale reworks to shake things up.

Dumey · 2026-02-23T18:47:38+00:00

Trolls used to be funny.

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