Nerdology 101: Record of Ragnarok

***Light Spoiler Alert***

Hey, hey! Welcome back to Nerdology 101—the blog where we’re currently freakin TF out because it’s almost time for the new season of Record of Ragnarok! My name is Maria Levato and I’m your nerdy professor here to whip you into shape and keep you up-to-date on all the nerdy happenings. Now, be a good boy/girl, sit down, and enjoy the ride.

ROR quickly made my list of favs back in 2021 when it made it’s anime release (haven’t read the manga at all). Being outside of my normal tastes, I was hesitant to start it back then because I’m normally a romance lover, even other none romance anime that I watch usually feature some romantic elements. ROR, though, is quite different from that. It’s bloody and brutal to the core, but the characters are hot AF and I read dark romance anyway, so why not?

Now, in S3 we’re getting a bad ass line-up. In an article by Fandom Wire, it was revealed that we should expect to see Hades v. Qin Shi Huang, Beelzebub v. Nikola Tesla, and Apollo v. King Leonidas. Out of these, I’m personally looking forward to Hades the most (I’m team gods all the way). ROR has a way of making its most beautiful characters the most ruthless too and I think that means we’re in for a wild fight here. I mean, it’s Hades. It’d be hard to make his character anything less than the absolute wonder that he’s always been. I actually had to look up his opponent, though. I’m not well-versed in Chinese history, but he’s the first emperor of China and founded the Qin dynasty. He also coined the term Emperor in China. You can learn more about him here, if you’re interested, but he built the Great Wall and established the Terracotta Warriors—making him a substantial figure in Chinese history and a human figure who can actually match the legend that is Hades in terms of influence over the respective culture.

The other fights won’t be anything to sneeze at either, though. I think Beelzebub v. Nikola Tesla is an interesting match up. If it weren’t for my personal bias toward Hades, this would be the most interesting match up this season. I feel like this is the most unpredictable of the fights. I can’t even begin to imagine how it goes down. It’ll be great to see what direction they take it in.

As for the last match, Apollo is an interesting choice on the gods front. In Greek mythology, he has a ton of domains, though he’s best known for music and healing, but the one I think the creators might be thinking of is one that’s not so commonly discussed. Apollo is also a god of plagues and disease, as you can see here. I’m almost imagining him showing up in the arena looking all sweet and innocent then using some sort of dark plague magic. It'd be cool to see him depicted that way since other depictions of him usually don’t highlight that aspect of him. I hope they do this.

What are your thoughts and expectations for the season? Do you imagine Apollo’s fight the way I did? Is there one you’re most excited for? Let me know in the comments and I’ll see you back next Friday at 3PM ET for the next segment of Nerdology 101.

Nerdology 101: Fall of Freedom

Welcome back to Nerdology 101! I’m Maria, your fellow nerd, reporting from my desk as I cling desperately to my coffee (one of my cats is after it).

This week, I wanted to talk about the Fall of Freedom movement. If you don’t know what that is or why it matters, you’re in the right place.

The Issue:

Censorship is on the rise across America. According to the American Library Association (ALA), 2,452 different books were targeted for censorship in 2024. That’s a lot of books for a country that claims to free speech as one of its core values. These attacks will only increase as many continue pour fuel on the fire that leads to them. What’s so bad that they don’t want us to read it? Well, if the ALA’s 10 Most Challenged List is any indication, anything written about women’s issues, LGBTQIA+ issues, anti-authoritarism, or racial issues. As with anything, these challenges disproportionally target members of marginalized communities.

Beyond banned books, we’ve seen it in other aspects of life as well. Social media is another example. The censoring of certain language, particularly in a way that softens it (I.E. killed turned into unalived, rape turned into graped, pedophile turned into PDFile, protest turned into music festival.), has grown into a common phenomenon. There’s a danger in that. When we soften the language we’re using to describe such weighy subjects, we start participating in our own censorship and downplaying the seriousness of real issues.

Don’t think for a second this doesn’t apply to you too, anime and gaming lovers. Where do you suppose anime’s like One Piece, featuring powerful anti-government themes, are going to be accessible if speech in disagreement with authoritarian policies continues to be censored? Nerds are just as much a part of this as the rest of us. We’re a community that thrives on living outside of the normal social practices, oftentimes embrassing alternative lifestyles, hobbies, and interests. Censorship is a dangerous road and one that we’ve seen play out many times in media both media and history.

The Movement:

What Fall of Freedom is doing is putting out an urgent call to a community with a long history of getting louder when told to shut up. The artists, the writers, the creatives, and the nerds. They want the anime-loving painter making fan art and the aspiring writer who barely has a platform to speak out against this censorship alongside more prominent names. That’s what this movement is about. Together, we will use our voices through our chosen mediums to let those who target our passions know we will not be silenced.

What Can I do?

The answer to that lies in your creativity and knowledge. Authenticity is key in this movement because our point is that authentic, diverse, and yes—critical—voices matter. Whether you host a reading of a banned book, post on social media, paint or design an image of what censorship looks like—what erasure feels like—it matters. Express yourselves and be sure to put Fall of Freedom’s logo on it so everyone knows you stand with the other creatives who are expressing themselves. Your voice matters and I’m looking forward to watching as they sound off in solidarity with this movement.

Will that even work?

You may ask yourself why this plan would work? Because it always has. The Dark Ages didn’t end because the powers that be decided to stop censoring artists; The Dark Ages ended because artists decided not to comply. Anti-war art during the Vietnam War is another great example here. The unpopularity of that war wouldn’t have been nearly as widespread if not for journalists, artists, writers, and people who were willing to help the masses see and understand what the atrocities truly felt and looked like. Art has always been a match unhesitant to ignite change. That’s why all throughout history oppressive powers have sought to silence creatives. It’s the demonization of the Gaelic language and it’s literature. It’s the books the Nazi’s burned. It’s the information hidden in South Africa during Aparthied. It’s the Indigenous stories that were dragged from their ancestral homes and forced onto reservations with the people meant to tell them. Writers and artists of all kinds have always been able to create change. Those in power wouldn’t be attacking us if we weren’t a threat to their power.

We must once again take our stand against censorship with Fall of Freedom’s movement and beyond. Every voice matters and I encourage you to use yours. No effort is too small or too big. Share a post, make a post, write a poem or a blog, go to an event, host an event—it doesn’t matter what you do as long as you speak up. Fall of Freedom’s webite provides more information as well.

Don’t forget to comment and let me know how you decide to use your voice. I’ll see you back next Friday at 3PM ET for the next segment of Nerdology 101. Have a nerdy week!

The Authors Guild is supporting this movement. Visit their website for more information on how they are standing up against censorship.