That Time I Became A Dictator Of A Small Asian Communist Nation

koushikb8768 · Monday at 2:04 PM

Whumbly said:
A mech made from communist parts tried to assassinate the entire British government and legislative, it's a high tech piece of equipment that's only been around for less than decade. Thus this has to have been a plot orchestrated by the the dirty communists, because nobody rational just hands that technology to a terrorist group.

They do have a point.

blankmask · Monday at 2:05 PM

Whumbly said:
Rule 1 of any fiction involving Tanya, never underestimate the power of misunderstanding and cognitive bias. A mech made from communist parts tried to assassinate the entire British government and legislative, it's a high tech piece of equipment that's only been around for less than decade. Thus this has to have been a plot orchestrated by the the dirty communists, because nobody rational just hands that technology to a terrorist group.

She keeps assuming that other people are going to be rational and intelligent.

First rule: never ascribe to malice what can instead be ascribed to stupidity, laziness, and incompetence.

Derkan · Monday at 2:09 PM

considering the fact that this timeline has mechs and super soldiers project, I wonder how this will change the metal gear video game series if it exists in this timeline…

I am sure there will be at least one more boss:
the chemical warfare monk… it feels weird enough for metal gear.

Carcer · Monday at 4:54 PM

Internal Minutes of the Lupi Media & Narrative Integration Planning Committee

Date: Friday, November 15th, 1985
Location: Regional Ministry of Economic Development – Building C, Meeting Room 6
Time: 16:00 – 19:41
Moderator: Herr Klaus Riedel (MoED Liaison, Cultural Media Partnerships)

Attendees:

Tanya — Official Lupi Representative, Integration Council
Ilse Förster — Independent Children's Media Licensing Agent
Greta Bauer — Deputy Advisor, Federal Office for Cultural Inclusion
Dr. Otto Bachmann — Executive Consultant, Playline AG
Rudolf "Rudi" Meißner — Freelance Toy Concept Designer
Anke Thalheim — Senior Producer, Nordlicht Animation Studios
Karl-Jürgen Reinhardt — Film Development Executive, EuropaCinema
Elena Vogt — Script Consultant, Federal Narrative Ethics Panel
Moderator Riedel

15:57 — Tanya Arrives

As expected, Representative Tanya arrived three minutes early. Dressed in a steel-blue blazer with black lining, she brought only her briefcase and a slim thermos.

She placed her briefcase on the table, opened it, and produced a single black notebook and a slim steel pen. She offered no greeting but did nod at Anke Thalheim, new to the table, with what could be generously called a "welcome glare."

Unofficial Note: Rudi was visibly drinking chamomile tea from a thermos labeled Don't Speak Unless Called On.

16:00 — Meeting Called to Order

Moderator Riedel: "This session will finalize core development elements for the Lupi animated series, working title now confirmed as Leo & the Crossing Path, and review the proposed film project, now titled Dawn Under Ashwood, including the outline for a narrative arc spanning three sequels contingent on audience and market reception."

Tanya: "Very well. Let us begin the noble task of figuring out which of you will propose turning a laboratory refugee child into a kung fu-powered magical friendship mascot this time ."

(Rudi looked away.)

16:06 — Animated Series: Leo & the Crossing Path

Ilse Förster and Anke Thalheim presented the finalized title, character lineup, and planned 12-episode structure for Season 1.

Core Characters:

Leo (Lupus): Curious, impulsive, constantly building things out of recycled junk.
Frank (Human): New to the area. Quiet, observant, slow to warm but fiercely loyal.
Sana (Lupus): Serious, poetic, prone to overthinking.
Emil (Lupus): Athletic, not very verbal. Communicates with gestures and sarcasm.
Rika (Human): Boisterous, tactless, good-hearted, always halfway into some scheme.
Arel (Lupus adult): Guardian of Leo and Sana. Appears tired. Always. Never not tired.

Episode Summaries (Selected)

Episode 01 – "The Jam Jar Situation"

Leo glues his art to the floor. Vinegar and teamwork follow.

Episode 02 – "Sana's Quiet Fort"

Sana builds a hideaway in a restricted rewilding zone. They must dismantle it, and learn about environmental boundaries.

Episode 03 – "Shoes That Squeaked Too Loud"

Frank's new school shoes make awful noises. Leo tries to "fix" them. Chaos ensues.

Episode 04 – "The Borrow Box Disaster"

Rika checks out too many books and drops them into the duck pond by accident. The group holds an emergency "library rescue."

Episode 05 – "Leo's Very Legal Bridge"

Leo builds a bridge between two balconies using leftover fence posts. Arel finds out. The bridge is technically safe. The ethics… less so.

Episode 06 – "Picture Day Panic"

Emil refuses to smile for the school photo. Rika starts a mission to make him laugh. It ends with glitter and a vacuum cleaner malfunction.

Episode 07 – "Storm Rules"

During a thunderstorm lockdown, the group must stay inside and navigate boredom, frayed nerves, and one suspiciously moldy board game.

Episode 08 – "Toothpaste Diplomacy"

Leo and Frank have a passive-aggressive battle over shared sink space. Arel finally snaps and enforces "bathroom neutrality" via tape lines.

Episode 09 – "The Lost Lunch Incident"

Someone steals Arel's lunch. Everyone suspects everyone else. It turns out Emil traded it to a cat for "emotional closure."

Episode 10 – "A Reluctant Group Hug"

Sana loses her poetry notebook. The group organizes a settlement-wide hunt. They almost hug at the end. But not quite.

Episode 11 – "The School Play Scandal"

Leo is cast as a rock. He demands a rewrite. Rika rewrites the whole play into a historical drama. Arel is called in for damage control.

Episode 12 – "First Snow, First Fight"

During a snowstorm, old arguments come back. The group must learn how to apologize. Ends with the quiet construction of a "peace igloo."

16:48 — Tanya's Review

Tanya:

"Naming is consistent. Characters have distinct drives. Acceptable. Episode 05's bridge is based on reality, though Leo's real version was much less safe. He used two curtain rods and optimism."
"No ancestral dreams, no glowing fur, no ancient prophecy. Good."
"Please ensure no future episodes include the words 'howl,' 'pack,' or 'clan' unless directly referring to a biology textbook."
"Arel's depiction is refreshingly accurate. If anything, tone down his competence. He is good but not that good, especialy after missing sleeps for three days."

Ilse: "Should we make him drink more coffee?"

Tanya: "More cups. Less effectiveness."

Elena Vogt: "We've flagged language in the script where Frank says, 'You Lupi must all be born artists.' We suggest replacing it with something more grounded."

Tanya: "Good. Otherwise, it implies artistic output is genetic. We already had to debunk the 'Lupi are born with an instinct for flute-playing' article last week."

17:12 — Musical Tone and Cultural Elements

Dr. Bachmann: "Should the show include original songs?"

Tanya: "Yes, if they are diegetic. If the characters sing to themselves while doing chores, that's authentic. If the group breaks into harmony while hugging under the moon, I'll veto the season."

Ilse: "No musical numbers. Just scattered humming."

17:30 — Full-Length Animated Film: Dawn Under Ashwood

Presented by: Karl-Jürgen Reinhardt (EuropaCinema)
Format: 90 minutes, animated, theatrical release planned Spring 1987.
Target: families and children fro 6 to 14 years old.
Main Character: Kael, a Lupi child relocated to a small town where his presence stirs curiosity and hesitation alike.

Core Plot Summary:

Kael begins attending a new school. While navigating clumsy curiosity, latent prejudice, and bureaucratic absurdities, he befriends a local girl, Elsa, whose grandfather is the groundskeeper of the old Ashwood Grove. The town has built myths around the grove, Kael investigates, hoping to uncover a medieval treasure with some magical items.

He doesn't. There is none. The grove simply holds community memories and shared stories.

Instead of magic, Kael finds history. Instead of prophecy, he finds empathy.

He delivers a quiet but firm message to the public: not all things hidden are secret. Some are just waiting to be noticed.

Themes:

Moving beyond spectacle into substance
Belonging without having to perform
Misinterpretation of the "other"
Rebuilding from truth, not myth

Tanya:

"Tone is excellent. Kael does not speak in prophetic riddles. That is a win."
"No hallucinations, no animal spirit mentors. If someone carves a face in a tree, let it be graffiti."

Elena: "We would like Tanya's direct feedback on Kael's arc. He starts with a sharp mistrust of humans, then grows to accept their differences."

Tanya: "Accepting difference is fine. But if he gives a speech about how being hurt is worth it because love heals all, I will repurpose that reel for use in psychological warfare."

Reinhardt: "Noted."

17:55 — Sequel Framework

Proposed Trilogy:

Sequel 1: Ashwood Rising

Theme: Adapting to broader society.
Setting: A summer educational exchange program between Lupi and human students in another district.
Conflict: Kael must work with peers in an unfamiliar environment. He discovers that even well-meaning people can do harm without realizing it.

Focuses on miscommunication, subtle bias, and cultural fatigue.
Features bureaucratic hurdles, team-building exercises, and a canoe incident.
Resolution comes through boundary-setting and empathy, not reconciliation for its own sake.

Tanya: "Excellent. Show the effort of tolerance, not the glamour."

Sequel 2: The Ashwood Accord

Theme: Representation and misrepresentation.
Plot: A children's book inspired by Kael is gaining popularity. It depicts Lupi in glowing, exaggerated terms. Kael is invited to speak at a media panel and must decide whether to engage with the narrative or publicly refute it.

Deals with the ethics of storytelling.
Parallel subplot of Leo (now a teen) building something that accidentally causes a blackout.
Concludes with Kael helping write an honest account, co-authored with Elsa.

Tanya: "If the fake book includes the phrase 'moonlit loyalty,' I'll demand a scene where Kael throws it into a lake."

Sequel 3: Ashwood: One Autumn Left

Theme: Memory and legacy.
Plot: Years later, Kael returns to Ashwood. The grove is being demolished for a shopping center. He meets a group of children, Lupi and human—playing there one last time. He helps them document it and create a miniature "living archive."

Quiet, slow-paced, contemplative.
Ends with Kael planting a tree, not as a symbol, but because someone should.
Elsa now teaches history. Leo runs a repair shop. Arel finally takes a vacation.

Tanya: "The name sound like a cold war memoir. Consider revising."

18:33 — Merchandise Implications (Brief)

Franz (memo): Tentative plans for non-character-specific plushes based on scenery and objects from the films, e.g., Kael's favorite satchel, miniature Ashwood tree plush.

Tanya: "Acceptable. No talking trees. No singing benches. And if you sell the satchel, include a warning: contents not enchanted."

19:00 — Closing Remarks

Moderator Riedel: "This has been a comprehensive and productive session. Final script elements for both Leo & the Crossing Path and Dawn Under Ashwood will be submitted by November 22 for final approvals. Sequels are conditional on reception, pending Tanya's continued participation."

Tanya: "Very weel, i'l wait for the arrival of the scripts."

19:41 — Meeting Adjourned

Tanya stood, collected her thermos, and muttered, audibly enough for the recorder to catch:

"Twelve episodes, one film, three sequels. No howling. No dreams. No destiny. I may yet win this war with narrative convenience."

She exited the room with the composure of someone who had just survived a cultural minefield using only a clipboard leaving behind a room of relieved creatives and one scribbled sticky note that read:

Re-title Ashwood III: Maybe "Ashwood: The Long Weekend"?

Post-Meeting Action Items:

Ilse & Anke: Submit revised scripts, storyboards, and character sheets.
Reinhardt & Elena: Complete detailed sequel treatments by Dec 1.
Dr. Bachmann: Coordinate background musical samples for approval.
Rudi: Restricted to environment-based concept design only. No plushes.
All teams: Submit final outlines for Tanya's review by Nov 22.

End of Minutes
Filed by: Elsa Vogel, Administrative Assistant
Stamped & Archived: Ministry of Economic Development, 1985/11/15

I would be happy to hear any constructive critisism or modification suggestion if i missed something or got it wrong.
Hope you like it.

Any thoughts ?

I credit Herocooky for the base idea.
Voilaa a movie adaptation, three sequels, and an animated show
once again i never watched/read youjo senki, only some fanfic, so for tanya personality i made guesses

blub01 · Monday at 5:54 PM

jonasquinn said:
I'm not sure if the pronouns going back and forth here is intentional.

I'm still not sure how I feel about this. The fact that something so massive and seemingly objectively bad for us happened as the result of a single omake just doesn't sit right with me at all.

We'll assuming that this was actually the IRA they've just destroyed any popular support they may have had and guaranteed that the UK will crack down in them even further.

Ehh maybe I'm being unreasonably and hypocritically sensitive because I am British but I don't think supporting the IRA right after they've just committed the worst terrorist act in British history is a good idea, especially when some people already suspect us being involved.

I'd prefer to focus on the Philippines to get another friendly neighbour, South Africa to destabilise that area a bit or Mexico or Panama to put the fear of god into the US.

I'm not sure if killing a few hundred people is the largest terrorist act in british history, but it definitely isn't the largest act of mass slaughter by orders of magnitute (see: the irish potato famine (very topical, the irish growing potatoes is a direct result of british landowners pushing them onto marginal soil where potatoes grow better than grain, and british actions during the famine made it, at times deliberately, worse), the cash-crop focused policies of the BIEC whose planners fully knew about the semi-regular famines this would cause, probably a bunch of lethal police brutality in the colonies but I don't have a specific example for that), so I think you are being a bit sensitive. but also the liberal powers will go absolutely apeshit about this because god forbid politicians suffer the consequences of their actions, so you also have a point

blankmask · Monday at 6:09 PM

Carcer said:
Naming is consistent. Characters have distinct drives. Acceptable. Episode 05's bridge is based on reality, though Leo's real version was much less safe. He used two curtain rods and optimism."

Yep. This actually happened and was an interesting day.

Carcer said:
Episode 11 – "The School Play Scandal"

Leo is cast as a rock. He demands a rewrite. Rika rewrites the whole play into a historical drama. Arel is called in for damage control.

I wish that happened at my school.

Carcer said:
Tanya: "Accepting difference is fine. But if he gives a speech about how being hurt is worth it because love heals all, I will repurpose that reel for use in psychological warfare."

She always had very specific threats doesn't she.

Carcer said:
Tanya: "The name sound like a cold war memoir. Consider revising."

I really disagree. It feels melancholy, as it ought to.

I still love seeing Tanya approach cultural meetings like she's planning a military offensive and proceeding to terrify the creative directors into submission.

Whumbly · Monday at 7:06 PM

koushikb8768 said:
They do have a point.

blankmask said:
She keeps assuming that other people are going to be rational and intelligent.

First rule: never ascribe to malice what can instead be ascribed to stupidity, laziness, and incompetence.

Yeah, but Tanya's the type who believes her enemies are planning something and that the world is out to get her. Which be fair that paranoia is earned, but her unwavering belief that communism is simultaneously both a malevolent threat against freedom and ultimately doomed in the long term colours her views to which what happened in London is part of a wider conspiracy rather than the IRA (or parts of it) getting extremely lucky that there was an opportune target for a tactic that hadn't been tried before.

Though personally I think this whole thing screams Gaddafi. He supplies parts of the IRA with weapons, he has the connections with both the Soviets and the Cybernetic Pact to get mech parts and he's the type of person who would absolutely think that killing a foreign government is a brilliant idea.

KhazintheDark · Monday at 9:04 PM

HeroCooky said:
The IRA

Which one is this now? There's at least three I can remember off the top of my head. (IRA, Real IRA & Provisional IRA.)

HeroCooky said:
The IRA, meanwhile, has released two contradictory statements, one proposing that this was merely the first act in revenge for the imposed shackles and bleeding of the Irish People in recent years and the other denouncing the attack as being done by a splinter group.

Ah, okay. So this might be the first split? Or the second… (there was IIRC a splinter that stopped their part in the insurgency because they feared that the push for independence would become a push to kill Protestants, which it kind of did in the end for some).

weeblypanda said:
I think supporting the IRA as a anti-colonial action would be worth it, considering how much it fucks with NHTO's Euro command's military balance sheet. It's like Cuba but for the EU.

However much support CyPac can give them isn't enough to stop them from their drug trafficking operations to raise more funds. The IRA are going to be internationally toxic if Guang wants any form of diplomatic relations with the UK and to a lesser extent the commonwealth or Europe. (Because if you're wasting resources on an area as geopolitically locked down as Ireland you will absolutely be willing to throw shit at, say Italy or Spain.)

SirKaid · Monday at 9:04 PM

I'm not sure what specific approach we should take, but we absolutely need to be clear that we didn't authorize this. Attempting to decapitate a government - not just individual assassinations, but the whole damn thing at once - is an act of war.

Let's maybe avoid starting WWIII, hey? At least not on accident.

jonasquinn · Monday at 9:39 PM

blub01 said:
I'm not sure if killing a few hundred people is the largest terrorist act in british history, but it definitely isn't the largest act of mass slaughter by orders of magnitute (see: the irish potato famine (very topical, the irish growing potatoes is a direct result of british landowners pushing them onto marginal soil where potatoes grow better than grain, and british actions during the famine made it, at times deliberately, worse), the cash-crop focused policies of the BIEC whose planners fully knew about the semi-regular famines this would cause, probably a bunch of lethal police brutality in the colonies but I don't have a specific example for that), so I think you are being a bit sensitive. but also the liberal powers will go absolutely apeshit about this because god forbid politicians suffer the consequences of their actions, so you also have a point

Don't get me wrong while there is no shortage of atrocities committed by the British I don't think there are many that can rival the death toll and significance of this one in a single incident (I'm not really counting stuff like the potato famine because that was a period of history rather than a one and done event). In real life the worst terrorist incident in British history is probably Lockerbie which has a death toll of 270 which A) Hasn't happened here and B) I can easily see this rivalling.

But yeah it is possible that I'm being a wee bit sensitive here.

KhazintheDark said:
However much support CyPac can give them isn't enough to stop them from their drug trafficking operations to raise more funds. The IRA are going to be internationally toxic if Guang wants any form of diplomatic relations with the UK and to a lesser extent the commonwealth or Europe. (Because if you're wasting resources on an area as geopolitically locked down as Ireland you will absolutely be willing to throw shit at, say Italy or Spain.)

Yeah after this I don't even see Ireland being willing to support the IRA.

HeroCooky · Monday at 11:24 PM

Carcer said:
Internal Minutes of the Lupi Media & Narrative Integration Planning Committee

[] +2 to One Social Action
[] +4 to One GISS Action

God, the Furries are going to be feasting in this universe.

blankmask said:
I still love seeing Tanya approach cultural meetings like she's planning a military offensive and proceeding to terrify the creative directors into submission.

Psychologists are going to love fistfighting each other over their interpretations of her psychological profile.

KhazintheDark said:
Which one is this now?

This Quests IRA.

SegaCD · 2025-05-20T01:01:28-0400

HeroCooky said:
This Quests IRA.

The True IRA

Carcer · 2025-05-20T07:15:09-0400

HeroCooky said:
God, the Furries are going to be feasting in this universe.

... IDEA !
Well it seem that you'l get your 2021 hit revival

Leo & the Crossing Path: The Show That Quietly Shaped a Generation
SUBTITLE:
From Cold War integration project to a foundational piece of furry identity.

CHANNEL:
Backbench Pop Culture

PRESENTER:
Kai "K.B." Brenner

[OPENING - 0:00–1:12]

Hello everyone, and welcome back to Backbench Pop Culture, the channel where we unpack the cultural dustbins of history and see what falls out. Today, we're digging into something a little unexpected. A little quiet. And surprisingly influential.

In 1982, the world had just been introduced to the Lupi, an engineered species, biologically human-adjacent, covered in fur, all emerging into public knowledge after decades of secret experimentation. It was a bombshell, sure. But what came a few years later was quieter and strange.

That fall, an animated children's series aired in West Germany. It was called Leo & the Crossing Path, and it was unlike anything else on television. Especially in the 1980s, a decade of bright colors, loud gags, and high-concept fantasy.

This show had none of that. It had long pauses. Polite conversation. Occasional philosophical arguments over sandwich placement. And for a certain segment of the audience, young viewers who didn't quite see themselves in the media around them, it was revolutionary.

Let's talk about Leo & the Crossing Path, the show that accidentally, maybe even unintentionally, helped shape an entire identity movement, and how its legacy still echoes today.

[SECTION 1 — WHAT WAS THE SHOW? – 1:13–4:52]

Leo & the Crossing Path was produced by Nordlicht Studios with quiet backing from the Federal Office for Cultural Inclusion. In simple terms, it was part of an experimental state media project designed to normalize the presence of the Lupi among human children.

But here's the thing: it didn't feel like propaganda.

Instead of making the Lupi magical or mysterious or tragic, it made them… awkward. Curious. Sometimes annoying. Very, very real.

The show followed a small group of kids, three Lupi and two humans, navigating everyday life in a mixed school classroom. And I do mean everyday. Episodes focused on things like:

Figuring out how to organize the shared sink space in their apartment
The ethics of building a balcony bridge with leftover fence parts
Arguing over who gets the one working flashlight during a storm lockdown
Accidentally dropping a library book into a duck pond and launching a rescue mission

There were no villains. No fantasy arcs. No grand schemes. Just children, trying to live together.

The animation was modest. The color palette soft. The dialogue was paced more like a stage play than a Saturday morning cartoon. But the performances were naturalistic, and the writing had this dry, self-aware humor that still holds up.

The show ran for twelve episodes and one New Year's special. That's it. One season. No major merchandise, no aggressive branding, no theme parks.

But for some of us, it was the first piece of media that told us: different didn't have to mean dangerous. Or exotic. Or mystical. Different could just mean... learning to use the same toothpaste as someone else.

[SECTION 2 — THE LUPI AND THE QUIET REVOLUTION – 4:53–8:35]

To understand Leo & the Crossing Path's legacy, you need to understand its context.

The Lupi weren't aliens. They weren't born in the wilderness. They were created, painfully, unnaturally, by a twisted scientific legacy rooted in 20th-century ideologies. Their public emergence in the 1980s wasn't a victory lap. It was a national reckoning.

So how do you explain that to children?

The creators of Leo chose the most subversive, disarming answer possible: you don't. You let kids see for themselves.

You let a ten-year-old Lupi named Leo bicker with his human friend Frank about pencil length. You let them build a fort together. You let them argue. Fail. Apologize. And try again.

It's not hard to see why that resonated. Especially for young viewers who already felt like outsiders. Kids who didn't feel quite human, or didn't want to be. Kids who were discovering, often in secret, that their identities didn't line up neatly with what the world expected from them.

This wasn't a show about the furry community. But it spoke directly to it. And in the years that followed, as early internet forums, mailing lists, and con zines began to form around animal-human hybrid characters and identities, Leo came up again and again.

For many early European furries, particularly those growing up queer, trans, neurodivergent, or all of the above, Leo was the first character they saw who looked like them. Not physically, maybe, but emotionally. Spiritually. Leo was weird. Kind. Nervous. Hopeful. And he was never asked to justify his existence.

He just... lived.

[SECTION 3 — THE FAN IMPACT – 8:36–11:14]

Fast forward to the 1990s. VHS tapes of Leo were being passed around at furry meetups in Amsterdam, Berlin, Paris. People were trading translated transcripts of their favorite episodes, writing fanfiction, drawing their own Lupi characters.

In 1996, a small zine from Hamburg, Crossing Lines, ran a feature titled "Why Leo Was the First Time I Saw Me." It exploded in popularity. People wrote in from all over Europe. One person said they'd felt "less like a mistake and more like someone waiting for their own apartment-sharing arc." Another wrote, "It wasn't that Leo was furry. It was that Leo wasn't ashamed."

And yes, it was adorable. The fanart? Sincerely emotional. The cosplay? Uncanny. The handmade plushes? Slightly cursed, but clearly made with love.

More importantly, Leo became a template for something beyond identity. He was a model for how to belong without changing who you are. The furry community, still in its adolescence at the time, took that to heart.

For those of us who felt too furry for the real world, but too real for cartoons, Leo stood in the middle. His crossing path was ours too.

[SECTION 4 — THE REVIVAL AND ITS REVERBERATIONS – 11:15–14:30]

Now, in 2021, the show is back.

Leo & the Crossing Path: New Steps is a continuation, not a reboot. It keeps the same quiet tone, the same pacing, the same character-driven storytelling, but with older versions of our original cast.

Leo is now seventeen, helping out at a hardware store and guiding new kids through their first integration experiences. Sana runs a book exchange. Milo teaches bike safety. Arel looks less exhausted and is now responsible for four more Lupi kids and a ferret.

The new series doesn't overplay nostalgia. It lets the characters grow. Make mistakes. Change. But not too much.

And of course, the fandom came roaring back. #LeoChangedMe trended on Furtter for three days straight. Artists flooded social media with new interpretations. Old fans posted side-by-side comparisons of their childhood drawings of Leo with the new animation models.

One well-known artist—Cal Rivera, who now works in character design, posted, "Leo's posture still says 'I'm trying my best, please be patient.' And honestly? That's the energy I needed in 2021."

[SECTION 5 — WHY IT MATTERS – 14:31–17:58]

Leo & the Crossing Path wasn't a furry show, per se. But it became a foundational one.

Not because it showed furries as strong, or powerful, or magical, but because it showed them as tired. Uncertain. Trying their best. And worthy of compassion even when they failed.

It offered a vision of coexistence without assimilation. Of community without romanticization. And for many, that was the first time any piece of media had done that.

When people talk about representation, it's easy to think in big terms, race, gender, culture. But for the furry community, representation is often about space. About permission. About being allowed to exist in full view, without being treated as a punchline or a parable.

Leo gave us that. Quietly. Persistently. Unapologetically.

And that's why, even now, people are still drawing him. Still writing about him. Still naming their fursonas after him.

Because in a world that often demands loud performances of difference, Leo whispered something else:

You can just be.

[OUTRO – 17:59–18:30]

Thanks for watching. If you enjoyed this retrospective, consider subscribing. Next week we'll be looking at the unexpected fandom around The Cooking Monks of Yamada, and why steam-powered rice woks may have shaped a generation of mechanical engineers.

Until then, keep your paws steady, your tea warm, and your bridges—metaphorical or not—safely constructed.

This is K.B., signing off.

I would be happy to hear any constructive critisism or modification suggestion if i missed something or got it wrong.
Hope you like it.

Any thoughts ?

I credit Herocooky for the base idea
I realy tought i wouldn't do the 2021 hit-revival since i had no idea how to do it in a way that seemed any fun to write or make an interesting result, and then inspiration hit

ReluctntCrusader · 2025-05-20T07:50:22-0400

Carcer said:
Any thoughts ?

It's a nice omake. I like the idea of the impact of Tanya's push for "demysticalization" of Lupi and how it impacted people that are somewhat different in other ways. I'm also guessing that this may provide some influence in the western conception of a slice-of-life genre, especially in children's media.

HeroCooky · 2025-05-20T09:54:51-0400

Carcer said:
Leo & the Crossing Path: The Show That Quietly Shaped a Generation

[] +1 Action of Carcer's Choice This Turn
[] +1d12 to One Action of Carcer's Choice
[] 2x 1d6 to One Action of Carcer's Choice

Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to stop. You are making me - the divine creator of all things written - look bad. We can't have that, now can we?

Carcer · 2025-05-20T10:23:15-0400

HeroCooky said:
[] +2 to One Social Action
[] +4 to One GISS Action

[X] +4 to One GISS Action

HeroCooky said:
[] +1 Action of Carcer's Choice This Turn
[] +1d12 to One Action of Carcer's Choice
[] 2x 1d6 to One Action of Carcer's Choice

[X] +1 Action of Carcer's Choice This Turn

So herocooky, i'm making a plan and i would apreciate clarification about a few action if it's ok:
1) Expand Your Train Network (Helpful): what's the differnce between this and the dragon den project ?
2) Improve Medical Infrastructure (Helpful) (-3 Reputation): how bad good is said infrastructur now the health reform is finished ?
3) Build New Police Stations (Helpful): will this solve the whole "we need more resource" from the police or is it a first step ?
4) Develop a Tourism Sector: do we have tourists curently ?
5) Develop Lights-Out Manufacturing (+2 Reputation): if i understand right this would automatize further our factories ?, is it different than cyberdize ?
6) Build Structural Insulated Panel Factory Complex (-10 Reputation): what will be the actual effect of this and why is it so reputation expensive ?
7) Construct Merchant Marine Vessels: how is our current good transport cappacity and how much do we do trade and do we have the capacity to engage in more, also what effect would it have ?
8) Improve the Statistics Bureau (Focus) (-3 Reputation) (Political Consequences For Their Findings): will their finding be made public or something ?
9)Create A Permanent Cryptography Research Working Group (+5 Reputation): havn't we already done that ?

Also is there other mechanics like the "Develop Native Supercomputer" in the first turn of a 5yp give you +1 actinon" thing ?

HeroCooky said:
Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to stop. You are making me - the divine creator of all things written - look bad. We can't have that, now can we?

is it a joke or do you want me to stop for a while ?

HeroCooky · 2025-05-20T10:43:54-0400

Carcer said:
So herocooky, i'm making a plan and i would apreciate clarification about a few action if it's ok:
1) Expand Your Train Network (Helpful): what's the differnce between this and the dragon den project ?
2) Improve Medical Infrastructure (Helpful) (-3 Reputation): how bad good is said infrastructur now the health reform is finished ?
3) Build New Police Stations (Helpful): will this solve the whole "we need more resource" from the police or is it a first step ?
4) Develop a Tourism Sector: do we have tourists curently ?
5) Develop Lights-Out Manufacturing (+2 Reputation): if i understand right this would automatize further our factories ?, is it different than cyberdize ?
6) Build Structural Insulated Panel Factory Complex (-10 Reputation): what will be the actual effect of this and why is it so reputation expensive ?
7) Construct Merchant Marine Vessels: how is our current good transport cappacity and how much do we do trade and do we have the capacity to engage in more, also what effect would it have ?
8) Improve the Statistics Bureau (Focus) (-3 Reputation) (Political Consequences For Their Findings): will their finding be made public or something ?
9)Create A Permanent Cryptography Research Working Group (+5 Reputation): havn't we already done that ?

Also is there other mechanics like the "Develop Native Supercomputer" in the first turn of a 5yp give you +1 actinon" thing ?
is it a joke or do you want me to stop for a while ?

Clarifiying questions are always okay.

1. The Dragon Den is the whole shebang for the entire rest of the nation, Expand is for adding the fiddly bits for the overlooked/understaffed portions.
2. You will likely begin tying for 5th place within a few short years without any further effort.
3. A first step. They still need to train new people, and that takes two years for simple patrol, five for detectives. (Omake Idea: Guang Detective solving a murder. Wink-wink-nudge-nudge.)
4. Mostly internal tourism, academics visiting (I am grabbing the english students on a field trip you offered with both hands in the next Turn Update, btw), but not much else.
5. Yeah. The difference is that Lights-Out focuses on removing the human element, Cyberdization focuses on enhancing the human element. So a line worker gets re-allocated to another factory in the first, and goes on to oversee an entire line by themselves in the latter.
6. Make housing far cheaper and quicker to construct. The cost is because you are basically overturning an entire industrial sector to work with new materials.
7. Bad. A decent amount, most of your exports are raw materials and electronics, most of your imports are fuels, machines, components, and food.
8. More that you now have to deal with revealed information by way of Jungmin being Vindictive and very much not liking stuff being hidden from him if it is bad. Or by way of him being Idealistic and now being mentally forced to correct whatever is currently going wrong.
9. Yes. Fixed.

And don't you dare stop putting out bangers like the Lupi series! They are extremely good, and I was making a joke because you are likely responsible for 50% of the word-count for the sidestories.

KleverKil'Vanya · 2025-05-20T10:57:04-0400

Oh hey Hero can you toss me the rough details on our newest naval ship? Picked up Naval Art on sale and wanna make something in it!

HeroCooky · 2025-05-20T11:13:37-0400

KleverKil'Vanya said:
Oh hey Hero can you toss me the rough details on our newest naval ship? Picked up Naval Art on sale and wanna make something in it!

Uuuuhhhh, pick one from here? Bote.

Carcer · 2025-05-20T11:15:35-0400

So here is a first draft of my plan, what do you people think ?

[] [PLAN] DOing some of our promisses.

[] Military
-[] Create A Dedicated Coast Guard

That is something any nation with coast should have and we are about to significatively tense our relation with japan, also finnaly using those coast patrol boat cyberfemme designed

-[] Design A Native Tank Stable (Triggers Sub-Vote) (+6 Reputation) (+2 People's Opinion)
-[] Design New Native Infantry Firearms (Triggers Sub-Vote) (+1 Reputation)
-[] Design New Native Infantry Equipment (Triggers Sub-Vote) (+1 Reputation)
-[] Navy Modernization (+2 Reputation)

Doing the army modernization as prommised

-[] Space Exploration And Industry
--[] First Orbit (+8 Reputation) (+8 People's Opinion)

Space and easy rep (god that thing low fasr and ther's so litle way to raise it).

-[] Political
--[] Leader Pushed Developments
---[] Standardize Censorship (Helpful) (+6 Reputation) (+6 People's Opinion)

We prommised it and it's easy rep.

--[] Militarists
---[] Create A Permanent Working Group To Probe Our Encryption And Cybersecurity For Weaknesses (+3 Reputation)

More security for our tech and projects.

-[] Secret Projects
--[] Mingxiang CyberSyn System 1.1.0 (Mega-Project - 2/6 Actions) (-6 Reputation) X4

Might as well finish it

-[] Nuclear Reactor Factory (Mega-Project - 0/4 Actions) (???) X4

Taking adventage of the nuclear bonus while it's there.

-[X] CyPac
--[X] Propose a Pact-made Anti-Human Trafficking Organization (-4 Reputation)
Slavery is a heinous thing

HeroCooky · 2025-05-20T11:55:12-0400

Carcer said:
So here is a first draft of my plan, what do you people think ?

@CyberFemme is going to have words about the lack of 2 Super Computers.

Carcer · 2025-05-20T12:02:22-0400

HeroCooky said:
@CyberFemme is going to have words about the lack of 2 Super Computers.

I tought it was only if done the first turn that they gave us the +2 action bonus ?

UrbanAvena · 2025-05-20T12:07:52-0400

Carcer said:
I tought it was only if done the first turn that they gave us the +2 action bonus ?

There is still +1 professional +1 nuclear and electronic focus +2 electronic from ambition with total of +4

blankmask · 2025-05-20T12:35:51-0400

HeroCooky said:
8. More that you now have to deal with revealed information by way of Jungmin being Vindictive and very much not liking stuff being hidden from him if it is bad. Or by way of him being Idealistic and now being mentally forced to correct whatever is currently going wrong.

In all fairness he doesn't actually mind getting bad news so long as there is a reason. He's unlikely to shoot the messenger

HeroCooky · 2025-05-20T13:32:57-0400

Carcer said:
I tought it was only if done the first turn that they gave us the +2 action bonus ?

No. The way you gain more "Safe" Actions (as you can, effectively, take as many Actions as you desire, but will incurr penalties after a point) is by either greatly improving your economy or building Super Computers. You should have built 2 last Turn to get 2 more "Safe" Actions this Turn, which CyberFemme pointed out.

Because you can build a maximum of 2 Super Computers again.

So you, effectively, lost 2 Actions this Turn.

Edit: I've just realized that you put in 17 Actions, 3 over your 14 Safe Actions. @Carcer, do you want to cover the 3 Actions with yours? Because Otherwise every Action now gets hit with a -2 Malus.

blankmask said:
In all fairness he doesn't actually mind getting bad news so long as there is a reason. He's unlikely to shoot the messenger

It is the hidden part that makes things go serious. Bad news he can do with, it's his entire job to turn bad things into good ones. But people hiding shit he needs to know as the leader of a nation? Very. Bad. Move.

That Time I Became A Dictator Of A Small Asian Communist Nation

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