index what the tags mean and how they apply to the story
Okay, for the introduction, this is basically the pitch for the story.
and what the tags mean in the context of the story.
also a heads up this story has alot of pictures, hand drawn.
It isn't truly a crossover. more like an au. getting aspects, or rather vibes. and feel of shows and games I've watched. but only getting certain aspects and recontextualizing them. So its more of a remix than a crossover.
There is a TLDR at the end for anyone who doesn't care to read. or you can just skip this chapter for the first one if you want to come in blind.
Warning: spoilers for the story. It may be better to read it if you want the best experience.
First off, let's get the obvious ones out of the way.
Zootopia and beastars. and the Zootopia deleted version. I really enjoyed the movie, the show, and the manga. And while I already had this idea in my head for a long while, watching these shows made me feel the need to get this story out there. As you can tell, it widely focuses on social dynamics and social commentary. but uses animals to represent them. But Beastars takes a more literal approach in the world of animals. rather than just substituting animals for people. But zootopia world design accommodates animal body types of varying sizes and morphologies and ecological requirements. But in zootopias, animals are mostly past their animal instincts, while beastars aren't. So the world design will be similar to Zootopia. but the animals will be more similar to beastars. while beastars and zootopia focus on predator vs. prey dynamics of eating or not being eaten. This story will focus more on herd dynamics. within a species. closely related species. and against other species, with the focus being on how nasty herbivores can be. since media often represents carnivores as the only dangerous ones. when herbivores are just as violent, if not more violent. Also, a nitpick I saw both shows viewers make is how domestic animals exist in a world without humans. This story is going to tackle that question as well as the question of how a multispecies society functions and how different animals produce different cultures and personalities that mirror or contradict their animal nature.
Next up we have the rockstar stuff and how it has influenced the themes. mainly combat and atmosphere.
Manhunt 1 and 2—this is a great game both of them, and their violent down-to-earth fighting and semi-horror themes of lurking in the shadows and facing society's demons will show up later in the story. Aldo, this takes inspiration from Manhunt 1 with stuff that will show later in the story, such as filming an animal documentary from the killers perspective in the form of a snuff documentary. It actually takes a lot of inspiration to hunt for 2 shadow self ideas. of having a dark side that you talk to and commits horrible acts of animalistic violence. but also the themes of sneaking around in the dark and shadows. and the violent finishing moves—the unsympathetic, non-glamorized form of slow, brutal, violent takedowns—will be a part later in the story.
the warriors—themes of gang culture in the decay of society, specifically the game. It had a great combat system. especially in group fights. This will take place later in the story, but the various animal girl leaders will no longer duel each other 1 on 1 as much but face each other in mob riot-type battles with 100s of others of their own kind backing them in massive brawls. in brutal fist-to-horn combat. Boppers, the warriors use of fighting culture and street hooligan aesthetics plays a bigger part in the story later. with each gang having their own aesthetic and identity. but also later in the game with the riots and fighting other gangs in the chaos plays a part in the story. with other gangs hunting you and battling each other.
and finally.
Bully—this one probably has the most influence on the story. a misfit thrown into an asylum full of psychos and maniacs. fighting cliques in school. But except in this story, what's more? dark academia and Victorian. The school is for the rich and elite. It's more expensive and prestigious, and the bullies and hooligans are Victorian schoolgirls ready to beat the shit out of you and each other. so it has more of a catfight type feel to it. But bullying influences this mostly in side activities of having to do stuff around town and class to improve your chances of survival. This being a boarding school is another common theme. Another theme is how the school was divided into cliques, but here it's also divided into species families. one for the sheep, goats, cows, antelope, pigs, and other hoofed animals. with various subgroups within those.
Okay now for the anime.
Persona: I played a lot of the persona games, and my favorite thing about them were the after-school activities and side quests. your interactions with the various side characters. and more importantly, the style and aesthetic of persona 5. The story will have multiple love interests from various backgrounds and cultures. in and around town. The persona and mask themes also play a part in this story, with the main character wearing a mask and behaving like someone else but having a persona that mirrors the inner self. The story dynamic of a wolf in sheep's clothing plays heavily into this. But that's all I can say without spoiling too much.
Utena—I've always loved the style of this. its artsy narrative and presentation, how it used metaphors for everything. and also most importantly, the duels. and their significance, how they were not just some fight between 2 characters, but a clash of ideas, and in a unique way. a battle for love. with the story mostly being female characters fighting in a mostly girls school for the affection of the few boys. or for their own affection they share for each other wrapped up and disguised as hatred. real or not so real. There is passion when they fight. The duels are mostly between leaders of the various species. taking place at first informally. or in official duels in the school tournament. or after huge gang fights or riots as a final boss for a battle.
Danganronpa—this is a little bit trickier to get exactly how this effects the story. but most of it comes from how the characters lie and argue. how they manipulate information, create alliances, and are always fighting each other for survival. Here, however, they do it for social survival, prestige, and influence over the herd. as they battle each other and rally the mob to their side. Another thing is the vast amount of interesting characters this series had. and how having a dynamic cast of memorable, distinct characters really lends itself to a battle of words. In this story focused on combat and fighting, I thought it was a good idea to give it the backbone of verbal arguments and disputes that weren't half assed and had as much weight as physical altercations, if not more so.
and finally
We have a fire emblem. specifically the fire emblem of the three houses, but also a little of the three hopes.
It takes place in a Victorian Gothic school, very similar to that, with various different enemy factions all studying together under one roof. Here in the story, it materializes itself in the different species of sheep, goats, cows, and other hoofed animals that represent different families, but unlike the Fire Emblem, they aren't all just commanders or military families; they are mostly business owners. So their families are all mostly economic, and there is no real major war; rather, there is huge societal upheaval in the social order of a multispecies society, and most of the tactics and combat are on a low-level mob or riot. with most of the knights and army battles happening in flashbacks from the past as the characters brag and boast of their ancestors achievements, so consider this some form of modern spinoff of three houses with the modern descendants of all the nobility now fiddling with each other on social media and in the petty lunchroom squables. One of the main influences of the three houses was the character interactions and multiple varied love interests with different backgrounds and backstories. but also how all of them looked and acted distinct while remaining in their factions. But this story will have more of faction switching allegiances and creation of different alliances and enemies. So no one here has any fixed loyalties or creed.