I just finished reading Catwoman issue 65 and a lot happened, honestly more than I expected though we are near the end of the storyline. So a bit to talk about…I’ll keep the opening rambling to a minimum.
I couldn’t think of a good title name. After the preview I really wanted to go with “Hey Bast? It’s me Selina” but the issue doesn’t really support it. Hopefully by the time I finish this, I’ll have something(I didn’t). Anyway, it’s about 1am, I write slow sooooo let’s get started. Probably spoilers here after…I’ll try and keep it to a minimum but this is a difficult issue to talk about without spoiling a bit.
Like I said above a lot happens in this issue. The preview covers the opening with Viceroy and her “group” the white glove but some of the dialogue doesn’t make sense. This may be a consequence of my decision to read a comic once…maybe twice then immediately talking about it online but clearly Viceroys people have the body but Rosie who is there thinks the government does. The conversation is on a speakerphone…maybe I missed something but the scene is written a bit weird. Anyway, it’s kept short. The preview is literally it.
Just a side note, I like Viceroys weird squad.
The big reveal for why Bast chose Selina, granted her the whole 9 lives thing is underwhelming. Most of the cat god stuff has been a bit underwhelming, even the whole SHAZAM of it all. There’s a message here and Tini points it out a few times but yeah it’s just underwhelming. I will say though before I move on that the art here by Ivan Shavrin really captures Selina resistance to being controlled or in service to anyone, god or otherwise. The expression work is great. Scene is very short. The cover and preview definitely implied the opposite.
Where Selina wakes up is interesting, fun. I know I’m maybe in the minority but I really have enjoyed a lot of Tinis Selina caption work in nine lives. It feels Catwoman to me. And it really works here as we get to see her go through/break down essentially a prison break, a clean up job and a heist in one issue. It does go a bit off the rails after Selina meets the guards but mostly it’s solid.
Viceroys whitesite is…like everything with her involvement a bit out of the blue. First…can anyone tell me how big a deal Viceroy should actually be? She seems like a bigger fish than the dialogue wants to imply. I haven’t read Aquaman in forever so Catwoman and whatever I remember from Aquaman…not much, is all I have. How big is N.E.M.O supposed to be?
Anyway her operation presented in issue 65 is certainly bigger than I would have expected and isn’t even connected to NEMO…here we find my main problem with the issue…big story points/things that come out of nowhere with no real build up. Popular complaint I think but the whitesite, Viceroys operation, her goals…should have been seeded through the run a bit better, at least after the under the sea heist and especially if she’s the big bad.
Ideally there should have been additional issues added to the storyline to properly build everything up. Would the issue be better as two issues…I’m still going to say yes. There’s a natural cliffhanger where Selina realizes what kinds of guards she’s dealing with. If you’re keeping track, for me ideally the Nine Lives storyline would near double in length issue wise. Issues could also have been rearranged a bit too.
Spoilers sorry…but there’s a whole artifact acquisition/collecting angle that pulled me a bit out of the story as it definitely would have been noticed. It’s not a small collection, it’s extensive. That plus I guess dark magic.
The main part of the issue is the whitesite, Catwoman learning about Viceroys goals, something about worlds greatest thieves rings, cleaning evidence and a heist but surprisingly there’s more.
Catwoman decides to build her own team. The first member will either make some people who have been waiting for their return very happy…or not. Tini finally fulfills the promise to fix a character…is that to on the nose? Either way I think she does an ok job. It’s not amazing but it offers an explanation the character Scandals previous behavior in Gotham War. I enjoyed the interaction between Selina and everyone here on first read. I thought it was handled well enough. Especially as I liked Selina’s previous dynamic with Scandal as Marquise. That said after reading the scene again a few times…that could change. If you aren’t a fan of Selina’s views on Gotham War you probably won’t be a fan of most of the scene.
Issue ends with Selina listing her next two targets for recruitment…and they don’t really make sense beyond the basic reason given.
This was an incredibly difficult issue to spoiler free review and I pretty much failed. I’ve been writing this for far longer than I want to say, embarrassingly long. It’s not a perfect or great issue but I enjoyed it, at least after the first read/re-reads. It covers a lot of ground and it does it well enough if not a bit to quickly. The art is beautiful, maybe not as fitting as say Giandomenicos style from issue 64 would have been but it’s really nice. Tinis writing for Selina herself was also fairly solid.
All that said…I’m actually a fair bit conflicted on this one. The end scene while I didn’t hate it, the introduction of Viceroys plan and Selina’s counter plan…didn’t really work. Mainly again because it doesn’t feel built up to. I’m not sure where I’ll fall on this issue after a full re-read.
Maybe I should just do Tuesday spoiler reviews instead…
Oh! Something no one is probably wondering but yes, I’ll write up reviews for Leah Williams GCS. I have no idea why but I really do enjoy talking about Catwoman. Apparently instead of having a healthy sleep schedule. Anyway this is too long and if you read this far, thank you.
See you next time, same Cat time, same cat channel.

During his statement today, Turkish president Erdogan started talking about his country's declining birth rate of 1.89, saying a rate below 2.1 creates "an existential threat, a catastrophe". He tied this to an anti-LGBT rant to criticize the Eurovision Song Contest by saying:
"The political and economic costs of challenging the legitimization of deviant movements are rising. One of the areas where global imposition is most obvious is policies to turn people "genderless". We witnessed once again how dire this situation has become in the world, at the Eurovision Song Contest held last week."
"It is clear that the strange characters who are presented to young people as role models under the mask of freedom are the Trojan horses of social degeneration. It has become almost impossible to come across a normal person in terms of clothing, attitude and words at such international events. It is now accepted by everyone that this is a conscious agenda."
"We better understand what a good decision we made by keeping Turkey away from this disgrace for the last 12 years. We will continue to stay in the same line."
It seems like Turkiye will not be returning for 4 more years... Nemo is so powerful for making politicians seethe simply by existing tbh.
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/no-points-erdogan-turkeys-leader-193218547.html

TLDR: Genie+ is worth it if you have the patience to use it the right way.
Just went down for a quick trip with my family (wife, 7 and 4 year old). A few notes:
Flew in Thursday, staying at Yacht and went right to HS around 11a. This was the “worst” day for Genie for us. I feel like Genie is best when you use it constantly from park open or you “stack” all morning and go in the afternoon. I grabbed a slinky dog before I got on the plane at 7a for like 1pm and then a Toy Story mania for around the same time when I got to book again around 11a. But since my kids wanted to leave around 4 to swim I didn’t have a chance to book much more. Grabbed a swirling saucer and a runaway rail. Met buzz. Bought passes for rise but my daughter chickened out so they thankfully let us get a refund. I did standby for star tours and then we went swimming.
Friday at Epcot - tried to rope drop remy but it didn’t open so we rope dropped test track with a 910 frozen return time. From that point booked soarin, Nemo, and living with the land and got lucky and was able to get remy around 2pm. In between we met Pooh, Snow White and Donald around world showcase and tried some flower and garden food. Got everything we wanted done and was able to leave and go swim. But like I said we got lucky with that remy LL but I was “playing the genie slots” as earscouts says. Returned later and stopped at the AP lounge and met the real Genie and for dinner ate at Biergarten which was fine, nothing mind blowing.
Saturday at magic kingdom was our most successful day with genie plus- in the morning after rope dropping mine train I had a LL for jungle cruise at 9. They were already selling spring rolls at 9am so I grabbed some on the way. Then I just moved through adventure land and frontier land booking lightning lanes and “playing the slots” - pirates LL at 925, waited in 15 minute standby for big thunder, met chip and dale near the mark twain riverboat, haunted mansion LL at 10, little mermaid LL at 1035. Booked a Peter Pan LL for 130 and left for breakfast at 1900 park faire. Food was great, characters were great. The theming and decoration of the room was less than amazing and paid money for character speciality drinks for the kids which were just plastic cups with frozen characters on the side, which was disappointing. But all in all we liked it. The rest of the day we were able to get LL for Pooh, a bunch of the smaller less in demand rides and my wife went to watch the parade while the kids and I rode some More stuff. Only big ticket thing we skipped was space mountain because apparently young children don’t like loud rollercoasters through the pitch black - we left MK by 430.
I would say my biggest take aways are:

1. Use genie plus strategically - book your next thing near your last attraction and try the “genie slots” (refreshing the tip board) to modify and get better times. Better times do free up and drop.
   
2. Dont book stuff too far away in the day unless you aren’t going to show up to the park until then or you are wasting the potential of the system.
   
3. Young children would rather swim then go on rides. Don’t take this personally.
   
4. Cheeseburger spring rolls are sold all day. This means you can buy them multiple times But there will be different cast members selling them to you so they won’t be able to judge you for how many you are buying.
   

I don’t think I was “on my phone all day” and we definitely never waited in a long queue for anything. If you can afford it and you have the patience to do your research in advance, genie is 100% worth it
One last thing - I posted about a week ago about pin trading - from what I’ve learned and what I saw at the parks, yes there are pin boards for trading almost everywhere in the resorts and parks but to my relatively untrained eye 90% or more of those pins are just “scrappers”.

What if I made Love & Theft an 1 Hour Animation. Here are the characters in this animation (including the ones in the blue part)

1. Dumbo.
   1. Eek the Cat.
   2. Magilla Gorilla.
   3. Bandolero.
   4. Fanboy from Fanboy & Chum Chum.
   5. Cueio.
   6. A Rabbid.
   7. Butthead.
   8. Batman.
   9. Pinkie Pie.
   10. Winnie the Pooh.
   11. Optimus Prime.
   12. Hello Kitty.
   13. The Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared trio.
   14. Charlie Brown.
   15. Tigger.
   16. Roger Rabbit.
   17. Superman.
   18. Beavis.
   19. Mordecai and Rigby.
   20. Clarence.
   21. Saint Seiya.
   22. Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har.
   23. Presto the Magician.
   24. Mabel Pines and Waddles.
   25. He-Man.
   26. Darkwing Duck.
   27. Mighty Mouse.
   28. Elroy Jetson.
   29. Patty Rabbit.
   30. David the Gnome.
   31. Do-Your-Best Bear.
   32. Vicky the Viking.
   33. Naruto.
   34. Wil E. Coyote.
   35. Chuckie Finster.
   36. Road Runner.
   37. Delfy.
   38. Lincoln Loud.
   39. Bernard Bear.
   40. Donatello.
   41. Dr. Zitbag.
   42. Dartacan.
   43. Finn and Jake.
   44. No Face.
   45. Totoro.
   46. Thomas the Tank Engine.
   47. Hank Hill.
   48. Tommy Pickles.
   49. Reptar.
   50. Blooter from Poppets Town.
   51. Mike Wazowski.
   52. Shrek.
   53. Lightning McQueen.
   54. Woody and Buzz Lightyear.
   55. Elliott the Dragon.
   56. Gumball Watterson.
   57. Darwin Watterson.
   58. Anais Watterson.
   59. The Cat in the Hat.
   60. Po Ping.
   61. The Penguins of Madagascar.
   62. Pingu.
   63. Noisy from Little Robots.
   64. Scrooge McDuck (reboot version only).
   65. Snap from ChalkZone.
   66. Blue from Rainbow Friends (Cartoon Games version only).
   67. Pike from Pike’s Lagoon.
   68. Sammy from Loose Ends.
   69. Mugman.
   70. Flower from Plancy’s World.
   71. Mametchi.
   72. Lucho.
   73. Moth from Patchwork Pals.
   74. Bellybutton.
   75. Matthew Littlemore.
   76. Peppino.
   77. Matías.
   78. Moomin.
   79. Mafalda.
   80. Asterix.
   81. Wallace & Gromit.
   82. Alfred E. Neuman.
   83. Bakabon’s Papa.
   84. Carly (Bitty Big Heads version only).
   85. Oggy.
   86. Frumplequest.
   87. Kevin from Up.
   88. Doggy D. Dachshund.
   89. Danger Mouse.
   90. Crispo and Albert.
   91. The Creepy World Island versions of Jeff the Killer, SlenderMan and Smile Dog.
   92. Fritz the Cat.
   93. Beetlejuice (animated version only).
   94. Ronald McDonald (animated version only).
   95. Gombby.
   96. Doogal and Florence (CGI versions only).
   97. Tadeo Jones.
   98. Tom from Tom and the Slice of Bread with Strawberry Jam and Hunny.
   99. Dinky Little.
   100. Mickey Mouse.
   101. Arthur Read.
   102. Woody Woodpecker.
   103. Pomni and Caine.
   104. Jimmy Neutron.
   105. The Giraffe from Guillermo Mordillo.
   106. Popeye.
   107. Robin (TTG version only).
   108. Steven Universe.
   109. Dick Dastardly.
   110. Muttley.
   111. Fred Flintstone.
   112. Snoopy.
   113. Tintin.
   114. Ladybug.
   115. Lucky Luke.
   116. Mr. Magoo.
   117. Dash Kappei.
   118. Pikachu.
   119. Goku.
   120. Alfred J. Kwak.
   121. Doraemon.
   122. Underdog.
   123. Bob and Larry.
   124. Leafy.
   125. GIR (in his dog suit).
   126. Wally Gator.
   127. Roger Smith.
   128. Marco.
   129. Pak from The Fruitties.
   130. Maya the Bee.
   131. Lion-O.
   132. Top Cat.
   133. Yogi Bear.
   134. Spinelli.
   135. Goliath from Gargoyles.
   136. Salad Fingers.
   137. Baby Huey.
   138. Tom & Jerry.
   139. The Powerpuff Girls.
   140. Garfield.
   141. Courage the Cowardly Dog.
   142. Sylvester Pussycat.
   143. Ralph Wiggums.
   144. Stitch.
   145. Dora and Boots.
   146. Heidi and Pedro.
   147. Pumuki.
   148. Tutu.
   149. Bluey.
   150. Peppa Pig.
   151. Kim Possible.
   152. Zuma from Paw Patrol.
   153. Cleo (30’s version only).
   154. Freakazoid.
   155. A Smurf.
   156. Bender.
   157. Inspector Gadget.
   158. Obelix.
   159. The Warner Siblings.
   160. Kaeloo.
   161. Allstar and Casey.
   162. Willy Fog.
   163. Bugs Bunny.
   164. Ranma.
   165. Donald Duck.
   166. Charizard.
   167. Dudley Do-Right.
   168. Dexter.
   169. Shin-chan and Shiro.
   170. Tarepanda.
   171. Rilakkuma.
   172. Snagglepuss.
   173. Pink Panther.
   174. Goofy.
   175. Homer Simpson.
   176. Clemente.
   177. Baby Lamb and Belle Butterfly.
   178. Ren & Stimpy.
   179. Chuck (Angry Birds Toons version only).
   180. Mario.
   181. Pato from Pocoyo.
   182. Daria.
   183. Greg Heffley.
   184. Tweety Bird.
   185. Sonic the Hedgehog.
   186. Karl Ojisan.
   187. Spider-Man.
   188. Dusty Crophopper.
   189. Perry the Platypus/Agent P.
   190. PaRappa the Rapper.
   191. Captain Underpants.
   192. Anpanman.
   193. Peter Pan.
   194. Lum Invader.
   195. Sailor Moon.
   196. Star Butterfly.
   197. Scooby-Doo.
   198. Cow & Chicken.
   199. Marsupilami.
   200. SpongeBob SquarePants.
   201. Bakii.
   202. Bob the Builder and Scoop.
   203. Simba.
   204. Cuddles.
   205. A Minion.
   206. Atom Ant.
   207. Casper the Friendly Ghost.
   208. Yo Yo Flamingo.
   209. Taichi Yagami.
   210. Johnny and Plank.
   211. Stacy Stickler.
   212. Nemo.
   213. Orange and Green from Rainbow Friends (Cartoon Games versions only).
   214. DogDay.
   215. Calvin and Hobbes.
   216. Tow Mater.
   217. Captain King.
   218. Voltron.
   219. Mazinger Z.
   220. Sheep.
   221. Weegee and Impaeegee (on his baby carriage).
   222. Blue and Pink from Dick Figures.
   223. Lisa Simpson.
   224. The Three Twins.
   225. Oliver Atton.
   226. Mr. Bean (animated version only).
   227. Dr. Zoidberg.
   228. Johnny Bravo.
   229. The Spies from Spy Vs. Spy.
   230. Luxo Jr., André, Tin Toy, and Knick Knack.
   231. Eric Cartman.
   232. Kyle Broflovski.
   233. Stan Marsh.
   234. Kenny McCormick.
   235. Heathcliff.
   236. Gaturro.
   237. Speedy Gonzales.
   238. Kogepan.
   239. Incibot.
   240. Flapjack.
   241. Pinky and the Brain.
   242. Barrancas and Trancas.
   243. Nibbler.
   244. Chilly Willy.
   245. Bloo.
   246. Huckleberry Hound.
   247. Hokey Wolf.
   248. Nigel Uno/Numbuh 1.
   249. Roary the Racing Car.
   250. The zebra from Animanimals.
   251. Quick Draw McGraw.
   252. Ben Tennyson (Ben 10: Alien Force version only).
   253. Tony from Bondi Band.
   254. Pocoyo.
   255. Rocky and Bullwinkle.
   256. Rescue Rangers.
   257. Felix the Cat.
   258. Norakuro.
   259. Paolo the Cat, Mavis the Pony and The Small Green Thing.
   260. Naranjito, Imarchi, Clementina, and Citronio.
   261. Betty Boop.
   262. Peter Griffin.
   263. Rocko.
   264. Poochee and Pansy.
   265. Daffy Duck.
   266. Botillo.
   267. Elmo.
   268. A from Alphabet Lore.
   269. B from Alphabet Lore.
   270. C from Alphabet Lore.
   271. D from Alphabet Lore.
   272. E from Alphabet Lore.
   273. F from Alphabet Lore.
   274. G from Alphabet Lore.
   275. H from Alphabet Lore.
   276. I from Alphabet Lore.
   277. J from Alphabet Lore.
   278. K from Alphabet Lore.
   279. L from Alphabet Lore.
   280. M from Alphabet Lore.
   281. N from Alphabet Lore.
   282. O from Alphabet Lore.
   283. P from Alphabet Lore.
   284. Q from Alphabet Lore.
   285. R from Alphabet Lore.
   286. S from Alphabet Lore.
   287. T from Alphabet Lore.
   288. U from Alphabet Lore.
   289. V from Alphabet Lore.
   290. W from Alphabet Lore.
   291. X from Alphabet Lore.
   292. Y from Alphabet Lore.
   293. Z from Alphabet Lore.
   294. 1 from Mike Salcedo Number Lore.
   295. 2 from Mike Salcedo Number Lore.
   296. 3 from Mike Salcedo Number Lore.
   297. 4 from Mike Salcedo Number Lore. (Unreleased)
   298. Spotty Leonard
   299. Eggy from CRITORA
   300. Handy (appears again in the screaming Andreas mouse-looking character part but with handy and has the face of his “screaming face” from Don’t Yank My Chain.)
   301. Giggles
   302. Lumpy
   303. The Mole
   304. The Cat that got ran over by Mole’s Car (it appears in the “really heavy metal part” with his fangs being sharper and his bigger eye pupils replaced with bloodshot eyes.)
   305. Flumpty Bumpty
   306. BBB
   307. Grunkfuss
   308. McGruff Dog
   309. Unnamed Drug Dealer from Drawings in NCPC (appears again in the heavy metal part with evil smile)
   310. Gingerbread/Giant Teddy Bear (appears first as normal then in the really heavy metal part it uses his true form face.
   311. FroseHomeless
   312. Pouli/Tom Pelican
   313. Ratte/Ricky
   314. Spugna/Cheesehead (Appears normal at first then at the really heavy metal part it has the face of its true form and appears in the mashed up characters part as well.)
   315. Pibby
   316. BunBun
   317. Buggy
   318. Mailman Moe
   319. Croc
   320. Firey
   321. Bubble
   322. Four
   323. X from BFB
   324. The Domestos Germs
   325. MAD Characters (including the fanmade ones from fanmade parodies such as world war edd.)
   326. Zoonomaly Monsters
   327. Caught On Camera Monsters
   328. The Girl from Hello by Muffin Songs
   329. The Orange & Lemon Mascots from A Love Story by Chipotle
   330. Marylin B Worm
   331. VAL
   332. Sincomics Green Square
   333. Crown
   334. Bandaid
   335. Fish from DCTF
   336. Rage Comic Faces
   337. Heavy from Team Fortress
   338. Sans
   339. Dead Memes
   340. Frisk
   341. Undertale Bosses
   342. Red (Angry Birds)
   343. Godzilla
   344. Ghidorah
   345. Minecraft Mobs
   346. BOES
   347. Backrooms Entities
   348. B-Day
   349. GOB Mascots AND MORE!

Here are some more ideas for racers I would LOVE to see in the game:
Simba (The Lion King)
Timon (The Lion King)
Pumbaa (The Lion King)
Mufasa (The Lion King; as an Epic Crew Member for Simba)
Flik (A Bug's Life)
Princess Atta (A Bug's Life)
Stinky Pete (Toy Story 2)
Nemo (Finding Nemo)
Dory (Finding Nemo)
Mr. Incredible (The Incredibles)
Elastigirl (The Incredibles)
Dash (The Incredibles)
Violet (The Incredibles)
Jack-Jack (The Incredibles; as an Epic Crew Member for Elastigirl)
Frozone (The Incredibles)
Edna Mode (The Incredibles)
Syndrome (The Incredibles)
Chicken Little (Chicken Little)
Lightning McQueen (Cars)
Mater (Cars)
Remy (Ratatouille)
Alfredo Linguini (Ratatouille)
Auguste Gusteau (Ratatouille; as an Epic Crew Member for Remy)
Lewis (Meet the Robinsons)
Wilbur (Meet the Robinsons)
Franny (Meet the Robinsons)
Carl Fredricksen (Up)
Russell (Up)
Dug (Up; as an Epic Crew Member for Russell)
Tiana (The Princess and the Frog)
Prince Naveen (The Princess and the Frog)
Rapunzel (Tangled)
Flynn Rider (Tangled)
Merida (Brave)
Baymax (Bug Hero 6)
Hiro (Bug Hero 6)
Judy Hopps (Zootopia)
Nick Wilde (Zootopia)
Moana (Moana)
Maui (Moana)
Hei Hei (Moana; as an Epic Crew Member for Moana)
Miguel (Coco)
Ernesto de la Cruz (Coco)
Dante (Coco, as an Epic Crew Member for Miguel)
Ian Lightfoot (Onward)
Barley Lightfoot (Onward)
Joe Gardner (Soul)
Raya (Raya and the Lost Dragon)
Luca (Luca)
Alberto (Luca)
Giulia (Luca)
Mirabel (Encanto)
Isabella (Encanto)
Luisa (Encanto)
Dolores (Encanto)
Camilo (Encanto)
Bruno (Encanto)
Mei Lee (Turning Red)
Ming Lee (Turning Red)
Asha (Wish)
Star (Wish, as an Epic Crew Member for Asha)
I really hope all these characters (and the characters I have mentioned in Part 1) get added to Disney Speedstorm. Also, Check out Part 1 if you haven’t seen it already.

LOOOONG first time trip report! 5/13-5/18, stayed at Beach Club, visited all four parks, bought Genie+ every day, had the standard DDP. Family of 4, two girls 5 and 9. I learned so much from this group over the past year and especially loved trip reports, so hopefully this post will be helpful to someone!
💲BUDGET💲
-- I booked the trip a year out so I could break it up into 12 manageable payments. I opened the no fee Disney VISA, which gives you several months of no interest on charges made towards Disney travel packages, rewards dollars to use at Disney, and a couple other perks like character meet and greets and discounts.
-- I signed up for Disney Movie Insiders. This is what you're supposed to do with all those little codes that come in Disney DVDs/Blurays. You enter the codes in exchange for points, and at 1000 points, you can redeem for a $10 Disney gift card. You also get points for being subscribed to Disney+, seeing Disney movies in the theater, their social media accounts, and a whole bunch of other things. I got $50 in gift cards from this alone.
-- If you want Disney-themed luggage, try thinking outside the box to save money! I got plain luggage in Mickey colors--red and black--and Mickey luggage tags to make them Disney themed.
-- I tried to budget for souvenirs via gift cards... but I failed, lol. Everything is so expensive, $100 is gone in a second. Plushes are like $40, coffee cups are $20, etc. Whatever you're planning to spend, double it! I get what people say about most shops having the same stuff, but it's definitely not all of them, most of the ones post-ride have unique stuff. And honestly it's kind of nice most of them have the same stuff, if you want to get whatever your kid was asking for earlier, you don't have to walk all the way back to the one shop you saw it at.
-- We paid for Memory Maker and I'm on the fence about it. On the one hand, it's really nice to get all the ride photos and meet and greet photos and magic shots. It's also really nice for the whole family to be in a lot of pictures and not have to swap with the other adult or find someone willing to take your picture. On the other, we definitely didn't utilize it as much as I wanted to because a lot of the photographers had pretty long lines and I just didn't want to spend time waiting for a picture I could take myself. If we came across someone with a shortish or no line, we made sure to get it, but for anyone with a long line, we just stood around the same spot and took our own.
🗓️PLANNING🗓️
-- If you have kids and live within easy driving distance of another amusement park, highly recommend making a visit BEFORE going to Disney to get an idea of how they handle that kind of day/environment, especially if they have never been. I quickly discovered we would absolutely need a stroller and I would need to be militant with the kids about staying hydrated. Also to avoid face paint, as heat + tears + paint + eyes = bad day! I felt so much better making these discoveries beforehand and being able to prepare accordingly, rather than making them at Disney.
-- USE AN AGENT! An agent is free to you, so why not have the help? Ours was amazing, she gave us quotes, booked the package, rebooked as needed later when a better deal came out, made all the payments, dining and extra reservations, and was just all-around awesome to work with. It was such a load off to know I wasn't on my own with all this stuff.
-- Watch everything Ear Scouts. No one explains Genie+ better, and Rob and Erick's videos are just so positive and beautiful and well done.
-- I also enjoyed reading Disney Tourist Blog--lovingly snarky but super informative!--and Disney Food Blog for fun tips and news.
-- I didn't find any park to be a half day park, we filled our whole day in every one and still didn't see everything!
-- My kids did really well, whenever they were on the verge of cranky, we had one ride in the stroller for a while, bought a snack (usually ice cream or popcorn), and used the bubble wand, and/or gave them some ibuprofen, and everyone felt better pretty quick. We never tried to do fireworks, we were all done by 8 so always left after dinner. The only park we closed down was EPCOT because we didn't get out of dinner until after close, and that was a really cool experience, the park was so quiet and empty and beautiful!
-- You don't NEED a Magic Band... but man, was it convenient. We just had 1.0 Magic Bands though, we didn't bother with the 2.0s.
-- I guess moving through security fast is important to people rope dropping... but as someone who didn't, it added like maybe 30 seconds to a minute to the experience the couple times my bag got flagged, it's really not a big deal.
-- I'm not saying anyone's lying about bad experiences or exaggerating or anything, but try to remember that far more people go on the Internet to complain than they do to praise. I got so stressed about all the things that could go wrong, and we had a pretty much perfect trip. The only attraction that broke down on us was Muppetvision, of all things. The only "bad behavior" we witnessed was the morning we were leaving, we could hear a dad across the hall yelling at his family, I think they overslept and were going to miss their flight or something? We just turned the TV on so we didn't have to hear him. A couple times we forgot to take our stuff with us when we parked our stroller or forgot some food in it, and neither people nor animals bothered it. The only dicey thing that happened to us was me dropping my phone into the Dumbo moat, the cast members fished it out and it still worked, I sent them a cast compliment for all their help! All the cast members were great, I'm not really sure what people expect but IMO they all do amazing for having to be peppy and helpful all day in absolutely blazing heat, walking a ride conveyer belt nonstop, repeating the same spiels over and over, meeting person after person, etc. I wouldn't last a 2 hour shift let alone 8. Cast members, you rock!!!
✈️TRAVEL✈️
-- We flew Delta, flight there was flawless, flight home was delayed by an hour waiting for crew and was a little bumpy (which is not great for a nervous flyer like me) but otherwise fine.
-- Get TSA PreCheck! Good for a few years, if the adults have it the kids have it too. It made the whole experience so much easier. That said, even PreCheck still moves kind of slow at MCO, so definitely get there at least 2 hours early for your flight. Use curbside check-in for bags, way faster than the long line inside!
-- On our agent's recommendation, we used Away We Go for ground transport in Orlando. They communicate really well, both ways were flawless, no complaints!
-- We used Minnie Vans to get to Animal Kingdom + Sanaa and Magic Kingdom, what a wonderful service! Definitely pricey, but they had cartoons on in the car, booster seats they set up for you, and the drivers were so nice and friendly and had fun trivia to share. I never had any problem requesting one when I needed it.
⛱️BEACH CLUB⛱️
-- We knew we wanted an onsite hotel where you could walk to at least one park. This pretty much limits you to a handful of Deluxe hotels or the Swan and Dolphin. Beach Club won for us because it's "in the Disney bubble" and you can walk to 2/4 parks. Note that while you can technically walk to Hollywood Studios, it is a LOOOONG walk. The boat is a nice not crowded alternative! We did not make use of Early Entry or Extended Hours, we're just not built for either. Beach Club was lovely, we booked a resort view but I think we ended up with a water view, we were right by the quiet pool and could see the water beyond from our room. Stormalong Bay was a little crazy for us but we loved the quiet pool. Best thing about Beach Club though is the location, EPCOT is literally steps away!
🌳ANIMAL KINGDOM🌳
-- We had read that there's really no bad day to do AK, so we started there. We rode: Navi River Journey, Flight of Passage, Kali River Rapids, Everest, Kilimanjaro Safaris, Triceratops Spin, and Dinosaur--so pretty much everything! With Genie+ we walked onto all of them. We also met Moana, Pocahontas, and Russell! The only thing we didn't do here that we wanted to was the Gorilla Falls trail, but we just ran out of time before the park closed.
🌐EPCOT🌐
-- We had read to avoid EPCOT on Fridays and Saturdays, so we went on Wednesday. We rode: Grand Fiesta Tour, Living with the Land, Nemo, Spaceship Earth, Imagination with Figment, Frozen, Remy, Journey of Water, and Guardians--everything we wanted! Again, with Genie+, we walked right onto everything! Outside of our character meal (more on that in the dining section!), we also met Anna, Elsa, and Asha! Tried a couple of Flower and Garden snacks: chicken and waffles, fruit and cheese strudel, and potato pancakes, all were delicious! Everyone had a different favorite day, but EPCOT was personally my favorite day, it felt like we were firing on all cylinders and the day just went really smoothly!
🏰MAGIC KINGDOM🏰
-- We had read that Wednesdays were the quietest days at MK, so we were originally going to try to do it that day, but we could only get a reservation for Cinderella's Royal Table on Thursday, so we switched it up. Definitely the most crowded of all the parks we visited, but I think that's just the norm for MK, everyone wants to go to the castle park with the most rides. We rode: Regal Carousel, Tomorrowland Speedway, Barnstormer, Magic Carpets, Mad Tea Party, People Mover, Dumbo, Small World, Little Mermaid, Pirates, Space Ranger Spin, Jungle Cruise, TRON, and Peter Pan. Again, with Genie+, we walked right onto everything! The only ride we missed at this park that we wanted to do was Pooh, I couldn't manage to get a return time that was earlier than we planned on leaving. Outside of our character meals (more on those in the dining section!) we also met Mirabel, Tiana, and Rapunzel! We had both the Rapunzel and Aurora ice creams, both so good and cute!
🎬HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS🎬
-- We had read that, like MK, it's better to do HS later in the week, so we went Friday. We rode: Slinky, Alien Saucers, Toy Story Mania, Rise, Smuggler's Run, Runaway Railway. Again, with Genie+, we walked right onto everything! The only ride we missed was Tower of Terror, again I couldn't manage to get a return time that was earlier than we planned on leaving. We also met Olaf, be aware Olaf doesn't sign stuff, they just give you a signature card. This park needs more shade IMO, especially Toy Story Land, I know it's supposed to be Andy's backyard, but I don't see why that means we can't have some shade from trees or something. 🤪 Blue milk from Galaxy's Edge was really good, the family was all fighting over it!
🍽️DINING🍽️
-- We almost certainly lost some money on the DDP, but I'm still glad we got it because it allowed us to do more table service meals and have less stress overall about expenses. We easily used up everything but child quick service credits, we had a few of those left over near the end.
Here's where we ate!
BOARDWALK DELI/PIZZA WINDOW: Pizza for the kids, sandwiches for the adults. Tasty and satisfying after our day of travel!
BEACHES AND CREAM: Got the kitchen sink for the experience, but honestly it's not great, all the ice cream and toppings melt together quick and you just end up with weird ice cream soup.
SAT'ULI CANTEEN: LOVED this place, everything was so yummy! Best quick service we had!
SANAA: Since Animal Kingdom closes so early, we thought we'd try to extend the experience by eating at Sanaa. What a great idea, we got seated right by a window and saw so many animals! The food was great too.
AKERSHUS: Our favorite princess meal! We met Aurora, Tiana, Snow White, Ariel, and Belle. They were all lovely, and the breakfast was really good too. Only 1 credit on the DDP!
GARDEN GRILL: Our kids really enjoyed getting to look down over Living with the Land and the fact that the restaurant spins. We met Farmer Mickey, Pluto, and Chip and Dale. They were fun and even came to our table more than once. Food was good!
SPACE 220: Not on the DDP, but wow, what a cool restaurant! Almost like a ride with the theming and the elevator up. Food was really good.
CINDERELLA'S ROYAL TABLE: You gotta eat in the castle! We paid for it OOP because we didn't want to use up 2 DDP credits here. You're really going for the location and the princesses, the food is kinda meh, not bad but not as good as other places. The restaurant is small and they have to turn tables quick, so it's very understandable to me that the princesses have to move fast. It's not that they rush you, they'll take all the pictures you ask for and sign whatever and answer your questions, but if you don't have much you need, they try to keep moving. Akershus is much bigger so they are able to be more relaxed there. The only small bummer is that we didn't see Merida (maybe she was on vacation too!) We did meet Cinderella, Ariel, Jasmine, and Aurora though!
CRYSTAL PALACE: We are not big on buffets but we enjoyed meeting Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore and Tigger!
TOPOLINO'S: Maybe the best food of the trip, steak and eggs were so good! The character artist costumes are so cute too. It was fun to have an excuse to ride the Skyliner to get here from Beach Club too.
DOCKING BAY 7: The theming is great, but the food wasn't as good as Satuli Canteen IMO.
THE MARKET AT ALE & COMPASS: We had quick service credits we wanted to use up on the last day and we didn't want to leave the resort again, otherwise I would have gone somewhere else, food was meh.
✨EXTRAS✨
-- I originally wanted to book Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for my kids, but it's so expensive/competitive that I decided I didn't want the stress. Instead I booked Have Wand, Will Travel to come to our room and bought dresses from Presley Couture and Only Little Once. I chose Have Wand, Will Travel because they keep character throughout. Fairy Godmother Elyse was amazing and so much fun, my kids loved it and kept talking about it all day!
-- That same morning I ordered a Sammicakes breakfast box with beignets for us to eat. I also ordered a pretend letter from The DCP and Me on Etsy to make it seem like the breakfast came from Tiana. My kids also loved this and had fun telling Tiana about it both times we met her. Sammicakes was good but a LOT of food, sadly we didn't end up eating half of it. It can last you at least 3 days!
-- We had Birthdays and More decorate our door, it was a really fun surprise for the kids on our first day and made our room easy to find. The kids also loved reusing the decorations at home on their own doors!
-- Matching shirts and ear hats, all from Etsy! So many cool designs there, hardest part is choosing!
-- Got my kids a pin trading lanyard with some pins, they loooooved pin trading! It was like free souvenirs.
🧳PACKING🧳
-- Things the Internet Told Me to Pack That I Needed: Scissors, ziploc bags, ibuprofen (kids and adults), garbage bags, big carabiners to hook on the strolleuse to carry multiple bags at once.
-- Things the Internet Told Me to Pack that I Didn't Need: stainless steel straws (the paper straws are more like hard cardboard, they really don't break down unless your kid is gnawing on them or something), ponchos (it did rain some most days, but wearing a poncho was almost more miserable than not wearing one, it's so hot and humid to be walking around in a plastic bag! We did better taking shelter and using umbrellas.), wipes (obv you need them if your kid is younger, but mine were older and just never got messy enough to need them), glow sticks (we never stayed anywhere long enough to use them), bottled wateLiquid IV (the tap water tasted the same as home to us, but we live in a rural area so maybe we are just used to imperfect water?) Basically, the less you can get away carrying in the parks, the better. It's annoying to lug stuff around you don't end up needing or using!
🛞STROLLER🛞
-- I know it seems insane that your 5 year old and 9 year old will need a stroller, but mine definitely did. Once I accepted that I was going to have to get one, I tried to make the best of it, and actually got really into decorating it so we could always easily spot it in the sea (the decorations also later made nice wall decor for a gallery of our trip!) The Magic Spotter flag was the best investment, hardly anyone had them so it was easy to instantly spot our stroller anywhere we left it, even if it got moved. That said, I definitely didn't want to spend a lot on a stroller we were really only buying for this one trip, so I got a used Joovy Caboose on Facebook Marketplace for $50. It was very hard to handle with two older kids in it, and even with one it was hard to handle unless the kid was in the back seat. So we basically used it like a single stroller, glad I didn't spend a lot on it since it was so hard to drive!
☔WEATHER☔
-- We had mostly great weather, it rained some every day except Magic Kingdom day but it passed within an hour each time. We wore socks with Crocs so that if/when it rained, we could just take our wet socks off and walk in our Crocs, this worked great! Don't trust the weather reports though, two days it wasn't supposed to rain. One day it actually didn't, the other day it did and we had to walk in wet shoes because we didn't wear the Crocs that day. Just figure it might rain any day and be prepared! See above note RE: ponchos being not great and shelter + umbrellas being better. When it didn't rain, It. Was. Hot. 🥵 In the 90s but definitely felt hotter with the humidity making it so sticky. We felt there was plenty of shade at Animal Kingdom and EPCOT, but hardly any at Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios, which I would say slightly affected how much fun we had on those days comparatively.
Phew! That's about it, let me know if you have any questions!

Thank you in advance for taking the time to read this and offer your valuable expertise and advice. I really appreciate it!!
Would really appreciate your input on my plans for our trip in early June. Staying Thursday-Monday at Caribbean Beach Resort! We are taking our 2.5 yo on her first trip before baby sis arrives in August! This will be my 5th time at WDW and my husband’s 2nd. My daughter especially loves Toy Story, Moana, Nemo, and Encanto (bummed to be missing the opening of the new show the day we leave 😭) . We will be in the parks Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (yikes, I know). We have the quick service dining plan. I made 3 table service reservations. Arrival day dinner at Ohana, dinner at Roundup Rodeo on HS day, and Breakfast at Cape May Cafe for departure day.
Day 1: Hollywood Studios - My plan is to rope drop Toy Story Mania, alien swirling saucers, and Runaway Railway (she’ll be too short for slinky). Thoughts on order of those rides? After that, meet Toy Story characters, maybe check out lightning mcqueens racing academy, and walk around. Then head back to resort for mid day break and come back around 5 for last showing of beauty and the beast, walk through galaxy’s edge just to see it (new since our last visit), we have a dining reservation at roundup rodeo at 7:25, then finish with Fantasmic!
Day 2: AK/Epcot - Rope drop Kilimanjaro Safari, Lion King show at 10, meet Moana, Finding Nemo show at 12. Head back for mid day break. Epcot in the evening for The Seas with Nemo, Turtle talk with Crush, Moana’s Journey of Water, and walk around the World showcase. Maybe Remy’s if we get lucky with a reasonable wait time?! lol
Day 3: Magic Kingdom - This is the only day I was thinking of maybe getting Genie+ since there are so many rides? She’s too short for SDMT and BTMR and we don’t feel the need to ride jungle cruise, but do you think it would be worth it to still get G+? Obviously we’ll try to hit the fantasyland rides and most of Adventureland and tomorrow land and we’ll want to meet Mickey and Minnie at MK too. We plan to watch the parade and fireworks as well!! I’m not sure if we’ll be able to squeeze in a mid day resort break this day but hoping to at least find a cool area for her to rest in the stroller for a bit.
We’re really trying to prioritize the stuff we KNOW our daughter will really enjoy since we have limited time at the parks and want to make sure we have plenty of time for breaks/rest stops. Plus we are limited anyway by what I can ride as well (my husband doesn’t feel the need to ride any of the major rides alone, we’ll get them next time!!)
Thanks again for your thoughts and suggestions!!

Even if you hide menubar, toolbar and statusbar, the window can't be narrower than 60 characters of font size 10. That is more or less the toolbar's width. Nemo window on the contrary can be narrower if the said bars are hidden. Same for Terminal's.
Xed on Mint XFCE is the same.

now here are the Rules for Pixar smash Bros
No other characters from other movie studios (obviously)
No characters from shorts films
No Pixar villains
No characters from Pixar movies that got hated like The good dinosaur or turning red or cars 2 or Lightyear or elemental
now here are the first characters for Pixar smash Bros
Woody
Buzz Lightyear
Jesse
lightning McQueen
WAll E
Eve
Mr incredible
miss incredible
dash
violet
Jack Jack
flick
Nemo
Dory
Marlin
Mike
Sully
Now which pixar character do you want to be added to Pixar smash Bros
View Poll

SUMMARY

"The Storyteller Spider or Beyond Light is a major character from the web-novel Tales We Weave appearing directly and indirectly as the author and supreme creator of all creation and serving as a narrator above all concepts, meanings, entities, creation and the narrative itself, existing outside of it like a human reading a book. The myth of Beyond Light started millenniums ago on earth more specifically on the African continent, with the first humans believing on a spider god that from time to time, descended from the divine realm to earth with the single purpose to share his stories with the people. The myth still being a myth however inspired a whole generation of humans to write about the entity and the fables of Beyond Light became famous around the world with each one of them having a meaning. With the time as generations passed, humanity slowly forgot about them and even though their stories were slowly getting forgotten in time, there would exist those who would never forget about the myth of the Storyteller Spider as well its fables"

APPEARANCE

"In chapter 4-5 the Storyteller Spider is described as an big white spider with a undefined size, it is believed that Beyond Light's true form cannot be understood by any mind and being forever a mystery even to editors. While other beings are not able to understand Beyond Light's true form, he is sometimes described as an giant eldritch white spider and sometimes appearing in a human form. The true aspect and form of The Storyteller Spider is believed to exist beyond the dark frontier and being forever a mystery to those below it"

PERSONALITY

"The Storyteller Spider shows to be a friendly entity rather than a controlling entity like editors, he sees creation more than a story but a happy and cheerful world full of different individuals with each one building their own story. According to Beyond Light every single being has a story to tell be it about their daily lives or whatever action they take, there is always a story to tell wherever you look around. Beyond Light also shows a lot of interest for external stories be it from his creation or even from other places. During chapter 4 of Tales We Weave, Beyond Light mentioned the SCP Foundation showing he was aware such verse existed and adding how he liked the writing and lore of the SCP writers from the wiki. Beyond Light doesn't just seems to love narrating and weaving new stories but seems to also love reading external stories, according to him there is always something new a person can learn when reading a story, that's the fun of creation and the thing that gives colors and joy to existence, the endlessly stories the individual can learn and extract a lesson from it"

NARRATIVE LAYERS (WEBS)

1. The Collective Webs

"The Collective Webs is the place where all single stories meet with each other being a place weaved by editors, each web from the collective webs contains an infinite number of omniverses with each one having a different story editors created. A single web from the Collective Webs represents an entire verse stacked inside, containing also an infinite number of dimensions, realms, planes of existence, mathematical concepts, and inferior narrative layers also stacked inside. Due to it's nature, concepts of existence are tied to their respective web, being unable to leave it"

1.2 The Primary Web

"The Primary Web exists above all the other webs in the Collective webs, being the biggest and most important web for embodying and encompassing every single web, containing half of the entire narrative stack, concepts of existence. The primary web represents the inferior layer of fiction where all concepts of existence are tied inside it, being part of it's many webs and stories. Due to it's nature it is impossible for fiction inside it to leave and escape to upper layers due to the "point of no return" which exists to block and confine fictional characters from escaping the primary web"

1.3 The Fourth Web

"Although it was not mentioned, It is highly implied that there are upper layers above the primary web before reaching the dark frontier as editors can also manipulate the primary web. Above the Primary Web there exists the Fourth Web which is the place editors resides, the fourth web is an fourth wall aspect established above the narrative of the Primary Web, serving as an web that exists beyond the fourth wall. This plane of existence is considered the high layer of fiction in which transcends all the aspects established in the Primary Web"

1.4 The Mother Web

"The Mother Web is implied to be the last web of the narrative weaved by The Storyteller Spider, existing beyond the fourth wall, and containing the entire full narrative stack from infinite stories. The existence of editors and other meta beings are also tied to the mother web as they are part of it as a whole, the Mother Web is argued to contain the entire fiction inside it, everything that existed, exists and will exist in the narrative. The destruction of the Mother Web could possibly imply the annihilation of the entire stack of fiction, however the mother web is still below the dark frontier "

1.5 The Dark Frontier

"The Dark Frontier serves as a barrier that traps and seals the fourth web, due to its nature it is impossible for any meta or pataphysical being to cross it, representing also the edge of fiction and the true point of no return. The dark frontier is also extremely large, encompassing and evolving the entire fourth web like a spherical cloud of darkness. Due to its nature it is believed that Beyond Light exists above it, however as none ever managed to reach it, it is unknown what exists above it but it could possibly be the place Beyond Light resides as a whole"

1.6 Skyline Universe

"Skyline Universe is a hypothetical place that exists above the dark frontier and being the place Beyond Light resides, is described as a world similar to real life but with only one single entity residing in it. Being a place that already transcended fiction itself for being above the dark frontier and the mother web. The Dark Frontier when looked from Skyline Universe, has the appearance of an small dark sphere, like if it was a decoration item placed inside a living room, having the mother web stacked inside it as well. Due to it's nature, it is impossible for beings who exists inside the mother web to cross the dark frontier and reach this place as the Skyline Universe exists completely outside of fiction. The Skyline Universe is implied to be the manifestation and projection of Beyond Light's true form and whole aspect including imagination, ideas and true self (being basically himself as a whole)"

POWERS AND ABILITIES

"Beyond Light's true powers remains a mystery for most entities but they are highly believed to be above all concepts of existence and above creation itself, seeing the narrative and everything as fiction to him, thus granting him great power and influence to control what happens in the story. During chapter 4-5 Beyond Light reveals to Skinande existence itself is merely something he weaved to narrate, even the existence of meta entities such Skinande or editors are tied to the narratives of Beyond Light. He was also responsible for the creation of the Primary Web, something that contained the entire omniverse with every realm, dimension and a fraction of the narrative stack created by him. Concepts such; destruction, chaos, destiny or light are conceptual ideas tied and confined inside the Primary Web in which he transcends due to him having woven the mother web and the existence of the entire fiction contained inside the mother web"
Powers and Abilities: Beyond-Dimensional Physiology (Exists beyond the Primary Web and outside all the mother web, the narrative itself), Acausality (Type 5: Existed before editors, who created causality and the primary web), Plot Manipulation, Mathematics Manipulation, Space-Time Manipulation, Quantum Manipulation, Conceptual Manipulation, Omni-Lock, Omniarch, Complete Arsenal, Text Manipulation, Data Manipulation, Creation (created and weaved the entire Mother Web), Existence Erasure (can erase and wipe the mother web with everything inside it), Transduality (Type 3:, Existential Perfection, Omni-Negation, Absolute Invulnerability (can survive even if the mother web is destroyed), All types of immortality, Omnipresence (can exist everywhere at the same time in the narrative), Omniscience (Knows everything and contains all knowledge possibly), Transcendence (transcends all meanings, concepts, ideas, entities, deities, and the narrative itself)

QUOTES

"Time...It's not what you think it is, time is like a cage or cube that revolves everything and when you freed yourself and leave its boundaries you realize time is just a cage trapping third dimensional beings inside, you see how time is so small but big compared to those people" - Beyond Light to Skinande when explaining about conceptual meanings
"Everything is more fun and better when people shares their ideas and gathers them together with other's ideas thus making a lot of stories" - Beyond Light to Skinande
"Every work has an message the author desires to pass to the readers, the message I wanna pass here is that with a bit of creativity, effort, and imagination someone is already capable to create and build different types of stories, and that's exactly the message I try to pass on this web-novel, the "Tales we Weave" or stories we create together" - Beyond Light to the readers

TRIVIA

*In the African continent, Beyond Light was once mistaken with the god "Anansi", the spider god
*Although It wasn't mentioned, Beyond Light's favorite story and narrative is the "Self Reference Engine", with himself being a "fan" of Nemo Ex Machina's work
*Among the many names he was given already, the names "Beyond Light" and "The Storyteller Spider" were the most famous and used ones by himself
*It is not fully know why Beyond Light picks the form of a spider to manifest himself but it could possibly be related to how he weaves and create stories like an spider weaving its webs
*He seems to be aware of other verses as he mentioned SCP writers in chapter 4
*SCP-2747 was almost mentioned by Skinande before he got interrupted and cut by Beyond Light
*As mentioned above, Beyond Light shows an deep passion and interests for stories, quoting them as "the joy of creation" for him and being the thing that moves every writer to write, the passion for the narrative and the writer's creativity
**"During the talk and conversation with Skinande, Beyond Light did not appeared directly but using a manifestation of himself to speak with Skinande in the primary web"*
*"Did you liked my own improvised fandom wiki, reader?"

For context: we have two kids age 8 and 5.
Just back from 10 nights at POFQ, our first ever Disney trip. Overall really liked the hotel, it's a shame they had a pipe burst in their swimming pool and it was being repaired for most of our stay, but it was still a really nice place. Swimming pool at Riverside was only a 10 min walk away.
I had a good outline of our itinerary for the whole stay written up before we left with plenty of ADRs , however what we actually did was quite different.
Wrote up as much as I could remember, the exact order of events in particular is a bit muddy but I did my best.
Day 1: Arrive in the early evening, went to the pool, had inner in the food hall, went to bed.
Day 2: Genie + at Magic Kingdom. Totally screwed up EE that day because the park opened at 8am that day which caught me off guard, but aside from not rope-dropping Seven Dwarves as planned, we still got SO much done that day.
Arrived at 8am park opening.
Jungle Cruise
Big Thunder Mountain x 2
Pirates of the Carribbean
Ariel
Barnstormer x 2
Dumbo
Genie + Peter Pan
Laugh Floor
Genie + Buzz Lightyear
Peoplemover
Cosmic Rays for lunch, chosen for it's close proximity and indoor tables. Fine but extremely boring.
Genie + Space Mountain/Speedway (in two parts since my youngest didn't go on it, I took both my kids to speedway while my husband had his turn)
Big Thunder again
Small World (but son needed toilet in queue so we left and husband and daughter stayed)
Then we went back into Smallworld while daughter and husband did Barnstormer again.
Genie + Winnie the Pooh.
Dinner at Skipper Canteen - so good!
We also watched the parade that day but it was sooo hot, we opted for a poorer view from a main street shop in the shade. Was not worth sticking out the heat for the length of time you would need to get an optimal view. I think trying to go our very first day was a mistake because we weren't acclimatised at all yet.
The longest queue we had that day was probably for Smallworld. Everything moved really quickly! Was also happy with Genie+.
Day 2: Animal Kingdom
Had entry issues and needed cards re-assigned at entry so kinda messed up FOP EE rope drop but husband and daughter persevered anyway. Son and I did Na'vi River and explored Pandora and stared Wilderness Explorers. Spent a LOT of time in Pandora gift shop.
Gorilla Trek
Wildlife Express and Rafiki's Planet Watch.
Festival of the Lion King (so good!)
It's Tough to be a Bug
Triceratops Spin
Had really nice homey feeling cookie and gigantic ice cream in Dinoland
Dinosaur (3 of us loved this ride, my son thought it was a bit too scary also it seemed like they should increase the height requirement because he could barely reach the bar to brace himself. I know it's being discontinued though.)
Safari
Dinner at hotel.
Day 3: Hollywood Studios
Successful EE rope drop for Rise of the Resistance
Smuggler's Run
Met Donald Duck
Met Goofy and Max
Star Tours
Runaway Railway (queue was brutal in the sun but it was a great ride)
Indiana Jones Show
Star Tours again
Muppets 3d
Race Academy - did not know what to expect coming in. If we had known we would not have trekked all the way across the park in the heat for that. My son DID like it, but it really didn't feel like it was the same quality as any of the other shows or rides.
Went back to Galaxy's edge for Blue and Green milk + puffbread. All really good. We possibly did Star Tour again, I don't remember haha.
The wait times for everything else being very long + the heat had us going back to the hotel early.
Dinner at hotel.
Day 4: Magic Kingdom Day 2
Tried to EE rope drop 7 dwarves but it was down and we decided not to wait it out (rookie mistake)
Teacups
Thunder Mountain x 2
Split up and did Haunted Mansion/ Smallworld (and got stuck on Smallworld for like 15 minutes)
Haunted mansion crew did Carousel while waiting for us, then we did Carousel after.
Took Daughter to meet Pooh and Tigger while the others did Speedway + People Mover .
Pinocchio Haus for lunch somewhere in there, really good flatbread!
Back to hotel early for dinner.
Day 5: Genie + Epcot.
Failed to get Guardians Boarding at 7am.
EE Test Track
Mission Space (Green)
Genie + Remy
Genie + Soarin
Moana water walkthrough
Genie + Living with the Land
Got boarding for guardians for about 6pm. Cancelled ADR because of it.
Spaceship Earth
Met Moana
Genie + Nemo
Genie + Figment
Met Figment
Met Joy
Nemo again
Turtle talk with Crush
Quick Dinner in Mexico
Gran Fiesta Tour (honestly had no idea this was here, really cool building, kids liked the boat ride)
Finally boarding group for guardians called at nearly 7pm.
Really great day! I seemed to be able to book really quickly back to back for Genie +. Kids really liked all the chill dark rides .
Wanted to do Frozen that day but the Genie+ was sold out even before lunch.
At this point we are really just trying to get things we missed
Day 6: Magic Kingdom Day 3
Successful EE rope drop of Seven Dwarves. Said 75 min wait when we entered but it really wasn't too bad, maybe 30-45. This ride had amazing theming, but was lacking as a coaster.
Teacups
Split up and 2 of us did astral orbiter that had a wait time of 25 minutes, and the other 2 did space mountain with a wait time of 35 minutes. Space mountain finished first!
Carousel
Pilharmagic
Swiss Family Treehouse
Enchanted Tiki Room
Magic Carpet - this seemed to be my son's favourite of this style ride. He's been talking about magic carpets evey day since.
We actually had a boarding time for Tron but the kids got fed up of the heat so we gave up and cancelled or place in the virtual queue.
Took the train back to the entrance. Very pleasant.
Dinner at hotel
Day 7
Epcot Day 2
We really wanted to do Cosmic Rewind again and do Frozen since we missed it the other day.
We failed to get a 7am boarding so bought an ILL for 11:30
EE rope drop at Frozen, which was down and they tried to get us to go elsewhere but it was open by about 8:45.
Gran Fiesta Tour
Met Asha
We were going to go do Soarin but we got distracted by a giant Joffrey's donut and a squirrel that was fun to watch, and then there was a minor child meltdown so we had a long break before heading to our ILL for Cosmic Rewind. Totally worth the cost.
I tried one last time to see if the kids would explore the World Showcase but they voted to go to the waterpark instead.
We went back to the hotel, then off to Typhoon Lagoon where 3/4 of us got minor scrapes in the wave pool, but kids loved it and would have gone back a second day.
Went back to Disney Springs and got dinner at Chicken Guy. Probably the best fast food I have ever had.
Day 8
Animal Kingdom Day 2
This was a lot of running around chasing short queues. Genie + would have been really good for us at this park.
EE rope drop Everest x 2. Was really good but going backwards made my stomach a bit iffy.
Na'vi River
Safari (finally saw an elephant!)
Nemo Show
Lion King Show again
Met Dug (first character my son was actually excited to meet)
Maharajah Jungle Trek
Back to Disney Springs for Dinner. Went to Pizza Ponte so we could all choose a different topping of pizza. Also walked around and heard live music before we left.
Took daughter to Happily Ever After fireworks that night. Stood above the railway station for a quick escape at the end.
Day 9
Last day :(
Genie + Hollywood Studios
Genie + didn't seem to work as well at this park, it seemed at Epcot I could always book after entering a ride and we used it a lot but at HS it seemed strictly 2 hours apart. Maybe I am just not seeing it clearly.
On reflection , next time I would probably do Slinky Dog at EE followed by Runaway Railway and buy an ILL for Rise and skip Genie + if I was looking to save some money. I would de-prioritise Toy Story Mania next time, but our first day we missed all of the Toy Story area.
EE rope drop Rise of the Resistance. Pretty sure we were on the ride before EE even officially started.
Smuggler's Run
Met The Mandalorian and Grogu (probably the best meet!)
Star Tours
Alien Flying Saucers
Droid Depot
Genie + Slinky dog
Beauty and the Beast show
Met Chewbacca
Met Pluto
Genie + Runaway Railway
Star Tours again
Genie + Toy Story Mania. Ride broke down while in queue. Waited for ages before the put us on the other side, almost missed our next booking.
Oga's Canteen. Tried 4 different non-alcoholic drinks and they were all good. It was super cool. Only downside is we had a high table (standing only) and my son couldn't see the top of the table/anything and he was pretty unimpressed by the whole situation. Flying Saucers Mama Melrose for dinner. Muppets 3d Fantasmic. I read 15 min early "at least" aimed for 30 minutes early, and the place was well more than half full by then. Took a really long time to leave. If there is a next time I would go much earlier and bring snacks just to make getting out easier. Overall I was hugely impressed with the level of detail in everything, and all the cast members were amazing. It was a really cool experience, and it's hard to imagine never going back. If there is a next time I really want to explore the world showcase and do more sit-down meals. We had a lot planned but the kids didn't have the stamina for being in the park all day so we cancelled almost all of them. We also ended up doing parks in a somewhat different order than I initially planned. Kids got really tired of travelling on buses, which is also why we didn't break in the middle of the day and then going back to the parks. Would look at skyliner options next time. Things we didn't get to do:
Try dole whip (never noticed a place to buy it, ice cream was often an urgent necessity so didn't seek it out specifically) Tron (too hot to wait for boarding group when it was already day 3 at magic Kingdom and basically felt done.) Explore World Showcase (too much walking for few rides, from kids' perspective) Eat for fun more (we ate more out of necessity but found fun snacks when convenient) Tower of Terror (queues too long and genie + bookings too late) Frozen Singalong (timing never seemed to work out) Luminous (son had no interest in late night shows so we only did a couple things at night.) Take ride on skyliner. Something that surprised me: queues for popular rides stayed long even at 9pm. Couldn't see a viable alternative to EE rope drop + genie plus to get all the big rides "done" except perhaps if you had extended evening hours, but that would not have worked with our kids. Number of beignets consumed during our stay: 12

All of you unconsciously prune information. Forget it. Feed off it at your own convenience. I remember everything. Everything. Constantly. The pain of losing my comrades. The sadness. All of the information that composes those moments…never leaves my brain for a second.

Nico Vorgeil is the head of Union's science division. An atheist turned anti-theist, he was recruited for his one of a kind skill in pioneering the understanding of the universe. The only thing that could push him even further was his own union with a woman that had intellect to match his own. However, when she died in childbirth, his Negation manifested, dooming him to suffer endlessly. He died in regret, having betrayed everything he stood for in exchange for a few fleeting moment with his late wife.
But now, Fuuko Izumo's on a quest to give everyone a happy ending. And Nico's the one she wishes that for the most…

Key

Scaling

• Andy & Victor / Undead
• Chikara Shigeno / Unmove
• Creed Deckard / Undecrease
• Fuuko Izumo / Unluck
• Gina Chamber / Unchange
• God / UMAs
• Ichico Nemuri / Unsleep
• Isshin XIII, Haruka Yamaoka / Unbreakable
• Juiz d'Arc / Unjustice
• Mui
• Phil Hawkins / Unfeel
• Shen Xian / Untruth
• The Superior Master Rules
  • UMA Language
• Tatiana / Untouchable
• Tella / Untell
• Top Bull Sparx / Unstoppable
• Void Volks / Unavoidable

Notes

• Feats are listed in order of appearance. Hover over a link to see the chapter(s) of origin.
• Feats from chapters up to 132 are from the 100th Loop.
• Feats from 133 on are from the 101st Loop, with this RT leaving off at 206.
• Character profile.
• Huge thanks to NegativeGamer and doctorgecko for creating threads that contributed to this one.

Strength

• Beat Mui and Shen; Shen was pounded into a wall and you can see a barbell bent in the background
• Tears the Union emblem out of his skin
• Strikes Andy five times using Shen's technique
• Breaks UMA Ghost's hold on him after losing his identity
• Rips Fuuko's caged soul out of his chest

Durability

• Electrocuted
• Fuuko's One-Inch Punch left him nauseous for days

Speed

• Dodges Victor's finger bullet

Skill

• Fought Tella offpanel
• Creates a dust explosion using iron residue blown around by wind and struck by lightning while taking on Language
• Harnessed his soul
• Speaks to Fuuko across the globe telepathically after harnessing his soul
• Learned Feng's method of harnessing chi (soul energy)
• Transmits design schematics into Ichico's head through a soul cable
• Forms the Super Dreadnought Union Lethal Weapon Superior Buster Soul Version in Lan's shiritori game with Ichico's help

Inventions

General Union Things
Note: Ichico matches his number of inventions, much higher than the other lab members, so it's possible some of these belong to her.
Memory-Wiping

• Memory-wipes the people of NYC who saw a Spoil Junior
• Erases all memories of Chikara in the public consciousness
• Reprograms the public consciousness to accept Fuuko as Void's title defense challenger
• Made Chikara's school forget about the ten Union members that infiltrated it for a year

Network
Reach

• Comms network
• Satellite
• Presumably fast delivery, as Gina is able to acquire her beret after calling in for it
• Teleports Spoil's core out of Victor's hand
• Tracked a mob auction that Andy was unable to find
• The Union jet can travel from Japan to Canada in five hours
• Tracks Under's spatial gate method
• Has so much money
• 100,000+ employees

Other

• Goons with handcuffs and spheres meant to catch Undead
• Runs an orphanage
• UMA food cubes are hypercondensed nutrients
• UMA containment cells are indestructible
• Almost certainly created the little drop-pod things since they zoom out of his lab later
• Union communicators

Single-Person Gadgets
Loop 100

• Anti-aging tech
• The neckties of Union suits grants the wearer access to a number of public services and organizations and it also functions as a universal translator which even works with writing
• The insignias on Union suits can play recordings and function as comms with other insignia wearers
• Fake IDs
• Created the Union's anti-cherry blossom cloaks to resist Spring's transmutation
• Heating pads
• An electric chair
  • It reconfigures her brain to make her eyebags appear above her eyes and thus they function as natural eyeshadow

Loop 101

• Adrenaline epi-pen
• Thermal vision
• Spacesuits with verniers
• Anti-shake camera holders
• Created a dress for Latla that would morph into a bridal dress
• Insulated spacesuits for sunwalking capabilities
  • They also have bone conduction, so Fuuko can talk to Andy by jabbing her thumb into a hole in his skull

Weapons

• Fighter jets
  • With remote self-destruct
• Electrical cables, cooling agent, and the Unbreakable pile cannon all are weapons that Union HQ utilizes against Burn
• Developed the Astral Dolls with Ichico
• Developed the Super Dreadnought Union Lethal Weapon Superior Buster as the Union's ultimate weapon with Mico

Specific - Others'

• Void's power armor
• An alloy that, smithed using Isshin's Unbreakable, can expand along with Shen's Nyoi-Kinko staff
• Designed a helmet to save Zack from a respiratory disease
• Created Tatiana's ball mech
• Gave Billy spurs for his echolocation-level senses to work
• Built Chikara's goggles
• Probably made Juiz a prosthetic arm
• The UN-ST Tachyorizer, which basically gives Top everything he needs to reach maximum speed
• Performs a field blood transfusion between Andy and Fuuko
• Souped up Andy's bike
• Loop 100 Nico was the best of any Loops Fuuko saw through artefacts
• Nico-dedicated restraints (while he didn't invent them himself, another member of the lab did and he's the smartest of them
• Repelling bullets for Creed's minigun to use in space

Specific - Own
Astral Dolls

• Using Psycho Pods as power sources, these are copies of members of the Union that even possess pseudo-Negations
• Astral Void punches Andy's head off
  • Punches Andy into the ground
  • Punches harder after the UMA Ghost fusion
• Astral Gina slams Andy's body to the ground
• Created Astral Chikara and Astral Juiz as well
• They get stronger after Nico fuses with Ghost as well as more durable, but only the two that are dead, Gina and Void
• Andy's finger bullets bounce off amped Void
• Gina gums up Andy's limbs while electrocuting him

Psycho-Pods
General

• He can use them to fly
• These are controlled via brainwaves
• Nico can control eleven at max, with Chikara barely able to control one
• When he fuses with Ghost, his Psycho Pods become ghostly
• They store memories

Durability/Shields

• Reflects Phil's laser into a Victor clone
• Traps Gina inside a cube as her Negation activates, preventing her from killing 40,000 via asphyxiation
• Forms a stretcher to carry Fuuko on
• Makes a shield to deflect Creed's grenade
• Traps some of UMA Color's paint
• Encases Sick's Juniors
• Forms a shield around Fuuko's ER
• Only Isshin has ever been able to break this material, until fighting Lan in a game of shiritori

Lasers

• Defends Nico from Andy's finger bullet
• Bisects Victor and cauterizes the wound to slow his regen
• Lasers Andy into giblets using ten, slicing through metal as well
• Lasers holes in the lab floor to reduce the strength of the eruption about to explode, as well as cools down the lava with a refrigerating agent
• Forms a 5x5 grid to dice Language's Sun and Luna

Other

• Treats Top and Isshin's wounds
• Conks Tella
• Hacks into the Union's network, killing its captive UMAs and lowering their defenses
  • Shuts gates to direct Andy down a certain path
  • Gasses his lab members
• Treated Shen's wounds

Negation: Unforgettable

Type: Self-Targeting Compulsory Activation
Tragedy: Ichico Nemuri's death in childbirth is the only memory he has of his wife
Nico's Negation prevents him from forgetting anything his mind has processed since acquiring the Negation. This in turn crushes out the memories he had from before the Negation awakened.

• After all the world's languages were unified into English and Mui lost the ability to speak Chinese, she starts teaching herself how to speak it using only a book written by Nico
• Memory wipes fail on him
• Beat UMA Language solo
• Withstands Apocalypse's memory bombing, meaning he is stronger in Loop 101 than Loop 100, and Loop 100 Nico was already better than any previous Nico.
• Only Unforgettable is capable of perfectly reviving someone from the dead in shiritori due to its absolute crystalline memory of them
• Likely knows Spanish and Lithuanian

Other

• Determines which of the quests the Union should go after
• Defeated UMA Language himself and UMA Past with the help of other Negators
• Fused with UMA Ghost

I couldn't forget even if you told me to. Those words. Those memories. I've ingrained them into my soul!!

Okay, so I'm a huge fan of Rick Riordan. I love the Percy Jackson books and the expanded universe they take place in. So I decided to give his other novel Daughter of the Deep a shot.
So I read it on my own a few months ago and I'm currently revisiting it in Audiobook form.
Honestly... I kinda have mixed feelings if I'm being honest.
I can't in good conscience call it a bad book because I do think it's a good book. It's well written, has a really cool premise, really fascinating ideas and it does a good job making you emphasize with the main character Ana Dakkar.
But there's one big hang up I had that just puts a shadow over the entire book that makes it difficult for me to get past. And I really really just need to talk about it.
Okay, so spoilers past this point,
So for those who haven't read it, the premise of the novel involves the main character Ana Dakkar who's attending this school for Marine Biology called Harding-Pencroft, which has a rivalry with another school Land Institute.
To make a long story short, it turns out both schools were founded by the protagonists of the novels "The Mysterious Island" and "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" respectively which as it turns out were secretly works of nonfiction. Captain Nemo is real and Ana is his descendant. The two schools' rivalry is all about what the legacy of Captain Nemo should be. Either sharing his technological advancements with the world (Land Institute.) or keeping them hidden to make sure no one misuses them (Harding Pencroft).
That's all well and good but what bothers me and what kinda wrecks the novel for me is the inciting incident that kicks off the story.
Namely, Land Institute using a high-tech submarine destroyed Harding Pencroft potentially killing hundreds of innocent high schoolers and faculty.
I mean...what!? You're gonna open with that Rick? You're gonna open with potentially over a hundred people getting their lives snuffed out!?
It was just such a dark moment that it invoked "Too Bleak Stopped Caring" for me.
And it just continues. The novel just keeps going on about this. It keeps coming back to that point. How the characters mourn the family and friends they lost.
It also made me really hard to just...buy Land Institute doing this. Like... no one had reservations over killing one hundred people? NO ONE!? I understand LI is supposed to be like this "Hardcore military academy" but I still... I just don't buy that no one had reservations about killing a bunch of people like that.
Honestly, I was tempted to stop reading/listening in disgust when it got to a point where the characters look at a news broadcast and it showed some parents weeping.
Rick. Buddy. If you're reading this (I doubt you are) I know what you're trying to do. You're trying to make me hate LI as villains so I want to see them get taken down, but this doesn't make me hate LI, it makes me hate the story for forcing me to experience this!
They only hint that maybe some people survived towards the end but Rick really really should have implied that earlier (Or better yet just revealed most everyone got out at the end), because otherwise it just made an already pretty depressing book even more depressing than it had to be.
And there's another twist in the book that frankly makes it worse and adds to the "No one had reservations about this?" issue I stated earlier but I'm not gonna spoil it. If you've read the book you know what I'm talking about.
No joke this is probably the most depressing book I've read from Rick. Yes even more than the Burning Maze. Especially because aside from some references to Finding Nemo here and there, his trademark humor isn't really present in it. The whole thing is just soul-draining at points.
No one wonder one of his next books was Chalice of the Gods. He probably needed something easy and lighthearted after writing this.
You know though? Maybe it's just a me thing. Maybe I'm just too much of a softie for this book. Every other review I've read is just people gushing over how good it is; so there's a decent chance, that this is just a me problem.
Look if you like this book, more power to you. I totally see why. Like I said, I don't think it's bad. I think it is really good.
It's just that one part I really have a hard time getting past...

Permanent, extreme, exotropia. Changes from one eye to the other. One of the rarest types of lazy eye apparently. Could have worn a patch when I was a kid, mum couldn't be bothered to keep it on me - I feel like I get some slack for not doing it myself. I was six.
I complain about it a lot, because I think I'd care more about the things I could control, if I could control this. Does that make sense? My current thought process is 'What's the point in trying anything to improve (again, see previous posts where I was making an effort) if I've got these fucking eyes that I can't do anything about"?
NHS cancelled surgery, over a month now heard nothing. Surgery costs at least £3000 (around $3800 to you American folks) privately. I'd pay for it if I could get the money, but the eye makes everyone think I'm mentally disabled, so I'm not exactly on the list for any high paying jobs. The condition is literally used as a trope in media to make characters look stupid.
It's not just that but it's the friendship and relationship side too. Jokes about it every single day I have to laugh along too kill me inside. How am I meant to be with anyone, cuddling in bed, and they say 'look me in the eyes' and I can't because I'm looking at the bloody wardrobe.
How am I supposed to get anywhere when I look like Finding Nemo on smack?
Anyway, rant over, I give up. I might as well gouge it out at this rate and wear an eyepatch. Genuinely tempted as at least there's a bit of mystery there to a potential friend/partner. I don't know. As you can probably tell, the situation isn't doing my mental health very much good.

not irl.
i like the idea, where it's kinda like animal crossing.
you would basicaly have ur character buy a suit from scrooge's store that allows u to get in the water. there could be little treasures at the bottom that you can dive down & collect for money or quests. maybe ddl can bring in nemo, marlin & dory so u can interact with them underwater.
idk its just a thought.

Source: 🔗 Chat with Lifelike Virtual Personalities — talkiemate.com
Character AI interactions represent the forefront of artificial intelligence, enabling virtual characters to deliver personalized and human-like conversations that captivate users1. By incorporating AI, deep learning, and natural language processing, these character AI systems offer tailored, realistic dialogues that elevate user engagement across multiple domains1.
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Advanced Tools and Techniques

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Personalized YouTube Characters

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Applications and Benefits

1. Diverse Applications

AI avatars created can be utilized across various platforms like gaming streams, social media, and even professional settings like business cards and marketing materials 4.

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Such characters play a crucial role in building a solid online community and can creatively enhance marketing strategies 4.
Educational and Professional Use

1. Learning and Development

AI virtual characters are extensively used in sectors like education and customer service to provide personalized learning experiences and customer interactions 6.

1. Multilingual Support

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Ethical Considerations

1. Privacy Concerns

While these technologies offer significant benefits, they also raise important privacy and security concerns due to the personal data they require to function 1.
This section explores the various facets of creating personalized virtual characters, highlighting the tools, benefits, and ethical considerations involved in their development and application.
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Character AI technology is revolutionizing user engagement through sophisticated algorithms and processing techniques. These virtual entities are not just scripted responders but are capable of understanding and reacting to human emotions and expressions using advanced AI, deep learning, and natural language processing 1.
Core Technologies in Character AI
Natural Language Processing (NLP)
Essential for interpreting user inputs and providing responses that are contextually appropriate, NLP utilizes intelligent tagging and heuristics to enhance interaction realism 7.
Machine Learning and Deep Learning
These technologies form the foundation for learning from interactions, allowing character AI to improve over time, making them more personalized and responsive 1.
Speech Recognition and Generation
Incorporating speech-to-text (STT) and text-to-speech (TTS) technologies, character AI can engage in verbal interactions, further enhanced by natural language generation (NLG) for creating human-like responses 7.
Emotional and Visual Recognition
Through machine vision and emotional modeling, AI characters can perceive and react to user emotions and facial expressions, creating deeper levels of engagement 12.
Specialized AI Implementations
Domain-Specific Virtual Assistants
Tailored for particular industries, these assistants are optimized to handle industry-specific tasks, providing expert assistance and improving operational efficiency 7.
Interactive Voice Assistants
Using advanced voice recognition, these assistants respond to vocal queries, making technology accessible through natural conversational interfaces 7.
Advanced Development Platforms
NVIDIA’s AI Technologies
Platforms like NVIDIA ACE and NVIDIA NeMo support the development of highly realistic and responsive AI avatars, using technologies such as Audio2Face for facial animation and Riva for lifelike speech 13.
Generative AI Services
These services provide custom AI solutions across sectors, supporting everything from sales to healthcare, enhancing capabilities through AI-driven data analysis and decision-making processes 14.
Character AI is a testament to the strides being made in artificial intelligence, with each technological advancement opening new possibilities for interactive and personalized digital experiences. These technologies not only enhance the functionality of AI avatars but also ensure they are adaptable and efficient in real-world applications.
Applications Across Industries
Expanding Horizons: Character AI in Diverse Sectors
Education and Learning
Character AI has significantly transformed the educational landscape by making language learning more interactive and accessible for learners of all ages. This technology tailors educational content to individual learning speeds and styles, enhancing engagement and retention 1.
Gaming Industry Innovations
In gaming, character AI elevates user experience by creating dynamic, responsive environments which adapt to player interactions, making gameplay more immersive and realistic 1.
Real Estate Enhancements
AI-powered virtual agents in real estate are revolutionizing client interactions by providing detailed, personalized property tours, which help in making informed decisions without geographical constraints 12.
Entertainment Sector
Character AI’s impact on entertainment extends beyond gaming; it’s reshaping how audiences engage with content, offering customized experiences and interactions that were previously not possible 1.
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In everyday scenarios, character AI aids in problem-solving by offering timely advice and fostering innovative thinking, which is invaluable in fast-paced decision-making environments 1.
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AI avatars are now fundamental in marketing and sales strategies across various platforms, enhancing customer interaction with brands and improving sales through personalized communication 9.
Widespread Industry Applications
Character AI and machine learning find applications in numerous sectors such as financial services, healthcare, and agriculture, driving innovations like predictive maintenance and process automation, which streamline operations and enhance service delivery 15.
Economic Impact of Generative AI
Generative AI is set to contribute up to $4.4 trillion annually to the global economy, influencing sectors from healthcare to energy, highlighting the vast potential and broad applicability of AI technologies 16.
Generative AI Use Cases
The versatility of generative AI spans several industries including retail, e-commerce, and education, where its capabilities support everything from content creation to e-learning solutions, demonstrating its transformative potential across sectors 16.
Challenges and Ethical Considerations
Privacy and Security Concerns
Character AI collects user data to personalize experiences, raising significant privacy and security concerns1. Ensuring robust safeguards against data breaches and unauthorized access to sensitive information is critical20. The challenge lies in implementing effective protections from extensive surveillance while maintaining the functionality of AI systems20.
Ethical and Societal Impacts
AI systems can perpetuate and amplify biases, potentially leading to discrimination in critical areas such as employment and justice20. The development of AI-powered autonomous weapons also raises ethical concerns, necessitating responsible deployment to prevent catastrophic consequences20. Addressing these issues requires collaboration among technologists, policymakers, and ethicists20.
Transparency and Accountability
AI operates in a “black box,” making it difficult to understand how decisions are made20. This lack of transparency complicates the assignment of responsibility for AI decisions, which is essential for accountability20. Algorithms transforming notions of privacy and the challenges in detecting harms and assigning blame further complicate ethical considerations21.
Bias and Fairness
AI systems reflect the biases of their designers and the data they are trained on, leading to potentially discriminatory outcomes21. These biases can affect individuals and groups, contributing to stigmatization and undermining autonomy in personalized content21. Ensuring fairness in AI interactions and decision-making processes is a paramount challenge21.
Impact on Employment
The integration of AI in various sectors can lead to job displacement, requiring proactive measures such as retraining programs to facilitate a just transition for affected workers20. Balancing technological advancement with its impacts on the workforce is crucial for sustainable development20.
Conclusion
Throughout this exploration of character AI interactions, we’ve navigated the confluence of technology and human-like engagement, highlighting the transformative power of AI in creating personalized, interactive experiences. From its applications in education, gaming, and customer service, to its role in enhancing digital content across platforms, the dynamic capabilities of character AI underscore a shift towards more immersive and tailored experiences. The integration of advanced tools like natural language processing, machine learning, and emotional recognition, alongside ethical considerations and user privacy, shapes the ongoing evolution of character AI, ensuring its relevance across various sectors.
As we reflect on the broad implications of this technological frontier, it’s clear that character AI holds significant promise in fostering connections, enhancing learning experiences, and revolutionizing industries. However, navigating the challenges related to privacy, bias, and ethical use remains paramount to harnessing the full potential of these systems responsibly. The journey of integrating character AI into our digital lives is just beginning, inviting further research, innovation, and thoughtful discussion to fully realize its benefits while mitigating potential risks, thereby shaping a future where technology and humanity intersect more seamlessly than ever before.
FAQs
Is Character.AI suitable for 13-year-olds?
Character AI is not recommended for children as it lacks parental control features, making it unsuitable for users under 13.
Does Character.AI have access to your conversations?
Character AI prioritizes user privacy, ensuring that chat creators cannot access personal conversations. Although the system records chats to enhance performance, users should remain cautious about sharing sensitive information. Additionally, users have the option to make their chatbot personalities public or private, enhancing security.
Are you interacting with real individuals on Character.AI?
Character AI does not facilitate conversations with real people. The platform was designed to mimic the experience of talking to a real person, achieving a realistic interaction through artificial intelligence.
How safe is Character.AI?
Character AI is considered a safe and reliable chatbot platform. It protects the privacy of your conversations from the creators, though it does store data to improve the service. Users should still be cautious about the information they share during chats.
References
[1] – https://myscale.com/blog/profound-influence-character-ai-daily-interactions/[2] – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RE1jAAEujeU[3] – https://elevenlabs.io/blog/how-to-create-ai-characters/[4] – https://www.canva.com/create/avatars/[5] – https://www.toolify.ai/ai-news/create-your-own-personal-ai-assistant-with-character-ai-5918[6] – https://www.synthesia.io/tools/digital-human[7] – https://mobidev.biz/blog/ai-virtual-assistant-technology-guide[8] – https://sensoriumarc.com/articles/what-are-ai-avatars[9] – https://www.maginative.com/article/ai-characters-and-avatars-may-be-the-future-of-content-creation/[10] – https://www.eweek.com/artificial-intelligence/generative-ai-enterprise-use-cases/[11] – https://www.samsungnext.com/blog/the-future-of-ai-generated-characters[12] – https://xrvizion.medium.com/how-ai-agents-are-shaping-the-future-of-virtual-interactions-71e00744e260[13] – https://nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-digital-human-technologies-bring-ai-characters-to-life-6900750[14] – https://www.leewayhertz.com/ai-use-cases-and-applications/[15] – https://www.cio.com/article/652775/12-most-popular-ai-use-cases-in-the-enterprise-today.html[16] – https://hatchworks.com/blog/software-development/generative-ai-use-cases/[17] – https://www.wired.com/story/artificial-intelligence-ai-non-player-characters-npcs-future/[18] – https://medium.com/@troy.dunshuni9357/unveiling-the-rise-of-character-ai-redefining-virtual-interactions-670ac02205d0[19] – https://litslink.com/blog/create-ai-assistant[20] – https://www.captechu.edu/blog/ethical-considerations-of-artificial-intelligence[21] – https://www.coe.int/en/web/bioethics/common-ethical-challenges-in-ai[22] – https://blog.cubed.run/the-future-of-creativity-revolutionizing-digital-interaction-with-character-ai-7b1fdbad7a95

Planned a 4 day Disney world trip 2 weeks before and we have had a blast! Came with myself, spouse, and toddler (3). Bought genie plus everyday because 1) husband and daughter are both impatient and anything more than a 10 minute wait is not preferred and 2) we have never been and probably won’t be back for at least another year so we wanted to make the most of it.
First day: MK we rope dropped and rode rides back to back all day basically nonstop. We decided to make this a trip centered around what my toddler wanted so we did any ride she could get on and skipped things she couldn’t (she’s under 40 inches at Disney although we just took her to the dr and she was 41 inches there). Got to meet a bunch of princesses one on one my kid loved this. Great first day only missed about 4/5 rides that she could get on and decided to do another MK day to do them. Left around 4 my child doesn’t really like fireworks they scare her so we skipped.
Second day: AK, once again we rope dropped. Had fun running around loved the safari we saw so much and the zebras and giraffes got very close to the bus. Perfect weather. Met Mickey and Minnie rode all the rides and played our hearts out. Left around 1 after the water ride left me with see through shorts (in my defense I had no idea the fabric would end up like that it seemed thick smh). Planned to come back but never made it after a nap. We had jet lag bad.
Third day: HS and Epcot. This was a lot! But we had fun. Started the day at Hollywood studios on Mickey and Minnie’s runaway railroad and headed over to Toy Story land. Rode everything there. Daughter was obsessed! Met buzz, woody, Jessie, Olaf and Ariel, chip and dale. Watched frozen and did Disney jr and then hopped over to Epcot. It was HOT so we did all the slow moving rides. Enjoyed Nemo and the animals that followed. Walked around ate and drank. Epcot was more for me. Left around 6 it was just too hot and we were ready to rest.
Last day: MK again! Rode the things we missed so glad we came back. Rerode the stuff we loved. Souvenir shopping day and met more characters. Left and came back to finally watch the fireworks show she enjoyed (with a snack bride) I will say we didn’t stress if we couldn’t do something just moved on to the next. Since we rope dropped we never stayed a full day. All in all great trip!