A weekly status update from everyone’s favourite caffeinated weirdo.

Welcome back to Whatcha Up To! Coffee here, and here’s to the end of another week. It’s actually Monday when this will go up, so here’s to the end of the previous week!

Before we go further, I want to first mention the sad news of Akira Toriyama’s passing on March 1st, 2024. The news of his death was made public on March 7th, 2024. Toriyama-sensei’s work encompasses so much of my childhood and adolescent years. Obviously, his greatest contributions were Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z – two shows that ignited my love for anime at a young age. But it didn’t stop there. He had a hand in shaping the character and enemy designs in Dragon Quest (aka Dragon Warrior), the very first RPG I ever played. To this day, Dragon Quest VIII remains one of my favourite RPG’s, simply because of Toriyama’s character designs (and also the fantastic story). Moreover, he was one-third of the Dream Team responsible for creating Chrono Trigger, arguably the greatest RPG ever released.

Goku’s Super Saiyan transformation remains one of the most iconic moments in all of anime and would be replicated throughout popular media, including Sonic’s transformation into Super Sonic. Not only that, Toriyama-sensei’s combination of epic battle scenes and grandiose humor have influenced so much in pop culture, in sports and in media. You’ll hear about athletes citing Goku as their inspiration to keep going. You can see Toriyama-sensei’s influence in American comic books, from battles to poses and everything in between. You hear in songs about artists going Super Saiyan to overcome their challenges. In my case, I’m not training just because I want to be healthy – I train to become strong like my favourite DBZ character, Vegeta. Don’t get me wrong, I love Goku, but I resonate with and relate to Vegeta in many aspects.

In so many ways, a lot of the things in pop culture that we love – that I love – would not exist without Akira Toriyama and the naive Saiyan who just wanted to fight the strongest for no other reason because he enjoyed it. Toriyama-sensei, thank you for all that you’ve given us over the years. You will be sorely missed by all of us and you leave behind a large hole that will be impossible to fill. I’m sure that by now you’ve already completed the journey through Snake Way and have reached King Kai’s planet. Hopefully while avoiding Princess Snake on the way.

Until we meet again. Rest In Peace.

With all that said, let’s break down what happened last week:

Whatcha Playin’, Coffee?

I started and beat Forspoken.

Yep. The game that was so maligned and made fun of all last year because of the cringey dialouge, suboptimal graphics and the dead and empty open world. The game that caused Luminous Studios to be reabsorbed back into Square Enix. The game where everyone was convinced that it was god-awful despite never playing it.

Well, I played it. And honestly, it’s not that bad of a game. It’s actually pretty fun! A solid 7.5 out of 10.

The story could use a bit of work, but it was engaging and very endearing, all things considered. Frey is portrayed as a stereotypically self-absorbed twenty-something year old who was abandoned at birth. Underneath all of that, though, is a young woman who genuinely cares about others and goes out of her way to help, even if it’s to her detriment. Combat is also a lot of fun, with different colours of magic reflecting each of the four elements. What I find most fascinating is the lore behind Athia, the Break and the Tantas (sorceresses). It’s what’s held my interest in the game throughout. The story itself plays out like a YA Chosen One fantasy novel. Not that it’s a bad thing, mind you. My only major gripe is how much the game holds your hand. This will be a fun Backlog Busting post to dive into when I get around to it.

Besides Forspoken, I’m still playing through Final Fantasy Tactics. I also played a bit of Final Fantasy VII. However, in light of Toriyama-sensei’s passing, I decided to switch over to Chrono Trigger on my mini-emulator instead. I’ll also dust off Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot for my Switch as well. Playing those will be a fitting way to celebrate one of the greatest manga artists of all time.

Whatcha Writin’, Coffee?

I’ve been trying to get something substantial written, but it’s coming out in bits and snippets. A little Mobius VII here, a bit of Final Fantasy VII Remake critiquing there. I blame Forspoken for this, haha.

Speaking of Mobius VII, I had to rework the entirety of chapter 25. There was a large disconnect between my notes and what I was writing on paper. I spent the past week cleaning that up and re-outlining that chapter. I’m pretty pleased with the results, so the writing will continue this upcoming week. Work has also been getting in the way of things, and it leaves me little energy to put words to a page. I just have to muscle through it all.

Whatcha Readin’, Coffee?

I’ve started reading The Book of Swords, an anthology book in which swords and swordplay are the theme. There’s a veritable who’s-who of fantasy writers in this anthology, including George R. R. Martin, Garth Nix and Cecelia Holland, among others. The first story by K.J. Parker is one about a grouchy old blacksmith who forges an impeccable sword for a determined young man, only for that man to challenge him, as the smith killed his father in a war many years ago. Written in first person perspective, it’s a highly interesting tale that goes over the steps of forging a sword and then training in the art of swordplay.

How’s Trainin’, Coffee?

We’ve started working out as a family! Mrs. Coffee pitched the idea and I rolled with it as I wasn’t able to get in my usual workouts this past week. Gotta say, it’s been pretty fun with all four of us – myself, Mrs. Coffee, Kid Espresso and Little Mac – moving and training together. It works as a great supplement to my typical routines.

That’s it for this past week. Anything new on your end? Let me know below. Otherwise, I’ll talk to you at the end of this week!

~Coffee