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Language:
English
Series:
Part 1 of They're Anime Now
Collections:
Clever Crossovers & Fantastic Fusions
Stats:
Published:
2022-02-07
Completed:
2022-04-17
Words:
3,183
Chapters:
8/8
Comments:
68
Kudos:
322
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71
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2,726

Somewhere Else (They're Anime Now)

Summary:

Jon and Martin end up somewhere else and are forcibly adopted by Reigen.

Or: Sometimes you come up with a meaningful justification for a crossover. Other times you just smash them together because it's funny and interesting. This is the latter.

Notes:

I don't have a good explanation for myself other than I Do What I Want.

That said, I think it's important to understand that I abide by the theory of Jonah Magnus was Fucking Wrong, which is basically the idea that a 200-year-old wealthy white man arbitrarily appropriating mythologies from around the world into one divine truth could not possibly be correct. Instead, I propose that his ideology simply became influential enough to significantly affect patterns of belief, which in turn warped the entities to better match the ones Magnus envisioned.

aka the mp100 framework/philosophies work really well with tma's narrative and also I Do What I Want.

Chapter 1

Chapter Text

[Image ID:

A 3-panel comic done in reddish-grays.

Panel 1: Reigen Arataka, a man in a business suit, flaps his left hand about while his right rests on his hip. Speech bubbles surround him, implying that he’s talking about something, but that something is not specified to the audience.

Panel 2: With an SFX “Pop!” Jonathan Sims and Martin Blackwood appear in the air above Reigen. Jon is a skinny dark-skinned man with long hair streaked with gray. A small crown of stylized eyes float overhead. Martin is a heavy, pale man with freckles. They both look confused to have appeared mid-air, with Martin wrapped protectively around Jon.

Panel 3: Jon and Martin are both sat on the ground, with Jon nearly sitting on Martin’s lap. Both of them look preplexed as they survey their surroundings. Reigen lies on the ground behind them, knocked over from their abrupt appearance.

Jon: Well. This is…not what I anticipated.

Martin: Holy shit. Is this Japan? Jon, are we anime now?

Reigen: ???]

Chapter 2

Summary:

Reigen assumes that these obvious espers can see Dimple. They cannot.

Martin is willing to deal with a man talking to himself in exchange for good tea that isn’t made by or of spiders, for once.

Chapter Text

ID: A multi-panel comic done up in monochrome grays with a reddish undertone.

Panel 1: An outside shot featuring a sign advertising Spirits & Such Consultation Office, written in a mix of Kanji and Hiragana. A cityscape can be seen in the background, including several taller buildings.

Reigen (offscreen): Anyways… have a seat, I’ll make some tea.

Panel 2: Reigen, a man with fair skin wearing a business suit and a light-colored tie, stands in the foreground on the left side of the panel. The top of his face can’t be seen, and one of his hands is raised as though gesturing. Behind him, Martin Blackwood, a heavy, fair-skinned young man with freckles and a low, short ponytail, wraps his arms protectively around Jonathan Sims, a shorter man with dark skin and longer curly, black hair streaked with gray. Both are still dressed for the apocalypse, and they look around the room in curiosity.

Reigen: Oi, Dimple! We got a bit of a situation here!

Panel 3: Dimple, a wispy spirit with distinct red cheeks, drifts onto the panel. He’s crossing his tiny spirit arms, and wears a look of annoyance.

Dimple: Yeah, yeah. Stop yelling, sheesh. You’ve only been gone 45 minutes, how the hell did you manage to–

Panel 4: Reigen and Dimple stand to the left side of the panel, and Jon and Martin on the right. Reigen is pointing vaguely at the two visitors that Dimple is now surveying. Jon and Martin say nothing, although Martin still has one hand on Jon’s shoulder, protectively. There’s a general sense of tension between the two parties, as they stand in silence.

Panel 5: 

Dimple and Reigen stand further from the camera, closer to Reigen’s desk. Dimple’s face remains stoic as he glances at Reigen to his side. Reigen looks visibly disturbed, with clear tension in his stance and a grimace on his face.

Jon and Reigen stand closer to the camera on the right side of the frame. We only see them from behind, but we can tell that Martin’s face is turned towards Jon.

Dimple: Hey Reigen?

Reigen: Yeah?

Dimple: I’m going to need you to step away from these DEEPLY cursed humans… and wait until Serizawa comes in to help.

Reigen: ….

Jon (whispers): Maybe we should go…

Martin (whispers): But Jon, the tea!

Chapter 3

Summary:

Jon and Martin are very confused why they are now being threatened by an umbrella. Reigen and Dimple are a bit concerned because the umbrella means business.

Also, after the apocalypse, I too would cry over a cup of tea that doesn’t turn into spiders.

Chapter Text

 

Image ID: A multi-panel comic featuring Reigen Arataka, Dimple, Serizawa Katsuya, Jonathan Sims, and Martin Blackwood. The background is mostly in grayscale, while the characters include hints of red tones.

Reigen is a pale man with lighter hair wearing a gray business suit. Dimple is a wisp of a spirit, vaguely flame-shaped with eyes, eyebrows, nose, and mouth. Serizawa is a tan man with dark hair and a dark colored suit, wearing a backpack. Martin is a large, heavy man with freckles and light colored hair in a ponytail, wearing a pair of large, square-ish glasses, sweater/jumper, and a pair of jeans. Jon is a small man with dark skin with circular scars, long curly dark hair streaked with gray, a beard, and wearing dark jeans with ragged knees, a large dark jacket unzipped to reveal a turtleneck below.

 

Panel 1: Reigen and Dimple stand, conversing. Reigen, standing on the left side of the panel, is holding a cup of tea in his right hand, while swatting irritably at dimple with his left. He wears an annoyed expression, and his eyes are focused on something out of the audience’s line of sight. Dimple hovers over Reigen’s left shoulder, a look of annoyance on his face.

Dimple: Look, Reigen. I know you make a mean cup of tea. But I know…it’s not good enough to make a grown man cry.

Reigen: Shut up.

Dimple: You fished it out of the discount bin for god’s sakes.

 

Panel 2: Serizawa enters the shot, seen from the chest up, looking a bit harried.

Serizawa: Apologies Reigen-san. Study group ran long…and then the trains… What’s the emergency?

 

Panel 3: The scene pulls out to reveal a wide shot of the office. Serizawa, in the foreground, assesses the scene in front of him with a relatively neutral look. Reigen and Dimple remain side-by-side, now pointing towards Jon and Martin, who occupy the rightmost position in the panel. Jon and Martin are seated in a low chair, with Jon in Martin’s lap, both drinking tea. A pair of arrows point to each of them, implying that they are the source of the emergency.

Serizawa: ….

 

Panel 4: The camera turns again to Serizawa, who is now in a defensive stance, holding his cell phone in his right hand and his umbrella in his left. Serizawa is speaking into his phone with a look of mild aggression and/or anxiety. In the foreground on the left side of the panel, we see Jon and Martin from behind, both apparently perplexed. Martin continues to wrap one arm around Jon. In the foreground on the right side, we see Dimple and Reigen, watching Serizawa with alarm.

Serizawa, into the cell phone: Hello? Kageyama-senpai? I’m sorry to call you like this. Yeah. We have a complicated situation on our hands. Again.

Chapter 4

Summary:

Here comes the boooy ~

What do your esper eyes see, Mobbu?

(The unholy amalgamation of trauma that has been haunting Jonathan Sims since he was eight)

Chapter Text

 

Image ID:

Two comic pages done in grayscale and a monochrome off-red.

Page 1

The three panels in the upper left corner sit stacked on top of each other. Each one displays a bust shot of Jonathan Sims, a dark-skinned man with pockmark scars and shoulder-length dark hair with gray streaks, expressing various shades of exasperation and frustration while addressing somebody off-screen.

Panel 1

Jon presses his steepled fingers against his mouth, as though he’s inhaling sharply through his nose. The burn scars on his right hand are visible in the motion.

Jon: ....

Panel 2

Jon places his right hand over his face, eyes closed, as though staving off an oncoming headache, while his left hand is left to gesture inarticulately.

Jon: Look....

Panel 3

Jon returns to looking off-screen, bringing his hands now in front of him, palms up, as though expecting to be handed an explanation.

Jon: We really appreciate your...hospitality. Given our rather unconventional circumstances.

Panel 4

The shot changes to reveal Serizawa, Reigen, and Dimple. Serizawa is a tall, broad man with dark, short hair, wearing a dark suit. Reigen is a smaller, slighter man with lighter hair and a light suit. Dimple is a nebulous gas-shaped spirit with dark red circles on his cheeks and notable nose and lips. Serizawa is holding a transparent umbrella open, defensively as though a shield, with a look of vague aggression on his face. Reigen stands behind him, one hand on Serizawa’s arm as though to calm him, but with a neutral expression. Dimple also hides behind the protective umbrella, two ghostly arms clinging to the edge of the plastic surface.

To one side, the word “hospitality” is written out, with a small arrow pointing to the display of aggression.

Jon: However...I’m afraid I must draw a hard line...

Panel 5

Jon is shown standing closer to the camera on the left side of the panel. He’s gesturing expressively with his left hand to Mob, who stands on the right side of the frame, further from the camera. Mob wears his usual neutral expression, apparently unbothered by the mood of the room.

Jon: At involving literal children!

Panel 6

A close-up of Mob’s face, ensconced in shadow. The framing is ominous as he takes in the situation.

Mob:

...

Page 2

Mob’s point of view as Jon continues to rant and gesture. A large, horrific spirit is revealed to be hovering around Jon. It is a mixture of a spider and centipede, with eight appendages to each side and a long tail that spirals behind. The spider’s face has both mandibles and a skull-like jaw with crooked, jagged teeth. Eight eyes peer from its face malevolently. The first pair of appendages are meaty, chunky arms that reach down towards Jon from above. The second pair of appendages begin like a tarantula’s legs, but end in a pair of long, thin hands that cover Jon’s eyes and mouth partially. The other two sets of appendages are typical tarantula legs, positioned as though propping up the monstrosity on its own bulk. Behind the spider’s main “face” sits a hump where the skin has apparently torn away to reveal a second face with dark, empty eyes and a perpetual smile. Dotted across the creature’s carapace are eyes, looking in different directions, or alternatively empty holes through which the occassional worm can be seen.The remaining segments of the monster are held together with a porous flesh, which can be seen in gaps and where the shell has cracked and fallen away. The dark interior of the creature’s spiraling body contains a spider’s web, with its rays leading back to Jon’s head. Surrounding Jon is an array of teeth, seeming to dig into him from behind. Atop his head, though, sits the watcher’s crown, each of its prominent prongs shaped like a curled, upside-down spider’s leg, with the three central “jewels” appearing as eyes. A halo of eyes frames him from behind, seemingly caught in the web.

Chapter 5

Summary:

Can you imagine how it feels, to suddenly have at least the metaphysical weight of all that trauma lifted from your shoulders?

(I got second hand catharsis from drawing that thing exploding… Jon still needs therapy of course, but this takes care of the supernatural trauma manifestation)

Chapter Text

Image ID:

A single page comic done in grayscale with a vaguely red undertone. This page features two characters: Kageyama “Mob” Shigeo and Jonathan Sims.

Mob is a teenager with a round, pale face, dark eyes, and dark hair in a bowl cut. He wears a perpetually neutral expression to go with his standard black Japanese middle school uniform.

By contrast, Jon is a short man with dark skin with pock marks on his visible skin. He has dark, curly, shoulder-length hair streaked with gray, and beard. He wears his “apocalypse” clothing, which features a large, oversized dark coat, a lighter turtleneck beneath, and a pair of raggedy dark jeans held up with a belt. the palm of his right hand bears visible discoloration from an old burn scar. His eyes are dark, but are drawn to have white pupils, as though light is reflecting from behind their lenses.

Panel 1:

A single shot of Mob, with his foreshortened hand raised towards the camera, presumably towards Jon. His hair stands on end, and background effects seem to imply the use of psychic power.

Panel 2:

The spider monster revealed on the previous page seems to violently implode, due to Mob’s power. The creature’s many limbs appear to be warping and melting away. The various “eyes” of the beholding fly away from their fixed places, not unlike a button popping loose from a shirt. Jon feels something happening, but doesn’t seem to know what it is, staring with wide, shocked eyes.

Jon: ….

Panel 3:

The monster continues to dissolve, bits of its spiritual flesh attempting to cling on but ultimately melting away. Jon’s reaction has been delayed, but now tears are in the corners of his eyes, surprise morphing into something almost pained.

Jon: Ah!

Chapter 6

Summary:

In today’s update, Martin Blackwood threatens to throw hands with a teenager for making his boyfriend cry.

Chapter Text

Image ID:

A single page comic featuring five panels, drawn in a monochrome, desaturated off-red. These pages feature Jonathan Sims, Martin Blackwood, and Shigeo Kageyama.

Jonathan Sims is a short, slim, dark-skinned man with shoulder-length curly dark hair streaked with gray, and a beard. A number of circular scars dot his face, while the remains of a burn can be seen on his right hand. His eyes are drawn with white, reflective pupils, and he wears a heavy, oversized jacket, turtleneck, and dark trousers gone raggedy at the knees.

Martin Blackwood is a tall, heavy fair-skinned man with lighter hair (implied to be slightly ginger). He wears a sweater and pants,and has light colored eyes framed by a pair of square glasses with thick dark frames.

Shigeo Kageyama is a short Japanese teenager with a bowl cut, and wearing a black middle school uniform.

Panel 1

Jon, with his eyes wide, staring at nothing, falls to his knees like a puppet whose strings have been cut. His hair almost seems to float around him. The remains of the curse and the psychic power that removed it finish dissipating.

FX: SLUMP

Martin: JON!!!

Panel 2

Martin, now on his knees besides Jon, catches him from falling further and wrapping his arms protectively around him. Jon leans his head on Martin for support, face obscured by unruly curls.

Martin frantically looks Jon over, then over at Mob, emotion shifting to anger. Mob can be seen on the right side of the panel in the foreground, watching the proceedings with his back faced to the camera.

Martin: What happened? Where are you hurt? What did they do--

Jon: Martin!

Panel 3

A closer shot of Jon and Martin. Jon is sitting up now, teary eyes staring vaguely downward without focusing on anything. His hair is still a mess, falling partially over his face, but he’s clearly lucid. He seems mid-gesture, hands towards his face, palms upraised, as though uncertain what to do with them.

Martin is partially obscured by Jon’s hair, but is still obviously worried about Jon. He keeps Jon pulled into a sort-of embrace, safe in his arms. His right hand on Jon’s arm, and the left is also caught mid-gesture, as uncertain in his motions as Jon, afraid to hurt him further.

Jon: It’s okay, Martin. It’s...it’s like a weight’s been lifted. Like I can finally breathe...

Martin: Jon...

Jon: It...it doesn’t hurt... at all.

Panel 4

A close-up shot of Jon’s face, focusing on his eyes. The pupils remain the odd, reflective white, still a bit unfocused. Obvious tears are forming, beginning to drip down Jon’s scarred face.

Jon: I can’t remember the last time it didn’t hurt.

Panel 5

A slight zoom out to Martin and Jon locked in a fierce embrace. Martin’s hand is buried in Jon’s hair, while he hooks his chin over his head. jon seems to be burrowing as close and tight to martin has he can, arms wrapped around behind in a desperate, clinging hug. Both men cry, trying to make sense of what just happened.

Jon: (sniff)... I don’t know what to do with this... I don’t know how not to hurt. (sob)

Jon: I don’t... (sob)

Martin: Shh...it’s okay Jon...

Jon: (sniffle)... I don’t know

Chapter 7

Summary:

The End...?

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Image ID:

A single page comic featuring five panels, drawn in a monochrome, desaturated off-red. This page features Jonathan Sims, Martin Blackwood, Shigeo “Mob” Kageyama, Arataka Reigen, Katsuya Serizawa, and Dimple.

Jon is a small man with dark skin covered with circular scars. His hair is curly, dark, and streaked with gray, worn loose and coming to about his shoulders. He wears his “apocalypse” attire, with dark pants with shredded knees, a light colored turtleneck beneath a dark jacket that is several sizes too large. Martin by contrast is a large fair man with freckles, glasses, and light colored hair pulled back into a ponytail.He wears a simple jumper and denims combo.

Shigeo is a middle school student who has not yet hit his growth spurt. He wears a traditional Japanese middle school uniform, and is fair with dark hair cut into a plain bowl cut. Serizawa is a tall Japanese man with lightly tan skin and short, black hair, and wears a dark suit. Reigen is a shorter man than Serizawa, wearing a light gray suit. He has fair skin and short hair indicated to be light brown. Dimple is a spirit, mostly a wispy flame shape, sometimes manifesting a pair of humanoid arms. He has a prominent nose and lips, as well as two bright red circular cheeks.

Panel 1

Serizawa, Reigen, Dimple, and Mob stand around where Martin and Jon sit on the floor. Serizawa is offering Martin fresh tea, with an apologetic smile. Reigen meanwhile is speaking at everybody, gesturing to a box of tissues he holds aloft in his left hand. Martin holds Jon close, resting his right hand on Jon’s back while wrapping his left arm around his waist. Although his eyes are closed, his face is angled towards Serizawa, and he wears a surprisingly gentle, warm smile. Meanwhile, Jon buries his face in Martin’s shoulder, back is to the camera, looking surprisingly small. His posture can be interpreted as exhaustion or embarrassment.

Dimple hovers behind Jon and Martin, unseen by both. The spirit is systematically shredding and devouring the remains of the Lonely that cling to Martin. Although Martin is unaware of this, he is already feeling a weight being lifted from his shoulders. Mob meanwhile wears a neutral expression, his job done, and he has taken out his phone to answer a message.

Jon (Narration): Supplemental: I shouldn’t trust this. It can’t possibly be this easy. But I saw Martin smiling, just like he used to Before.

Panel 2

The small panel is mostly void, except the flowery speech bubble and accompanying test in the dead center.

Jon (Narration): I thought I had forgotten how to feel hope.

Panel 3

The small panel is mostly void, except for the text placed dead center.

Jon (Narration): ...

Panel 4

Martin is helping Jon to his feet, with Jon bracing himself with his left hand on Martin’s shoulder and right hand held in Martin’s left. Martin looks slightly concerned, while Jon’s looks more annoyed than anything. The background seems to indicate that Jon is drawing on his powers, although it isn’t indicated what he is currently trying to Know.

Jon: Hang on.

Jon: How come I can still Know things?

Panel 5

The camera has pulled back a little. Mob now stands in the foreground, turned away from Jon and Martin as he focuses on the phone in his hands. Jon and Martin are fully in frame, and can be seen standing side-by-side, hands intertwined. They both wear shocked expressions.

Mob: Oh... that’s probably just your normal psychic abilities.

Jon: Excuse me, my WHAT!?

Notes:

Thank you for following me on this little comic journey! I have read and enjoyed all of your thoughts and comments, as they have encouraged me to see the project through to the end.

This is the end to the comic, and not necessarily my end to the crossover though. By all means drop in your questions, and maybe I'll answer a few with a doodle.

Chapter 8: Announcement

Summary:

But Wait There's More?

Chapter Text

As a bit of a bonus treat, I've been taking questions concerning this comic/AU over on my tumblr. The answers can be seen in Part Two over this series, which should now be linked in the work's description.

Thank you everybody who subscribed! Your encouragements kept me going!

Series this work belongs to: