Last for this batch, my Thoughts on Advent Calendar:

The main highlight of this one, for me, was how deliberately and methodically it progressed. Every day, every picture, we are presented with a little piece of programming. Sometimes it's subtle, and sometimes it's so obvious, even the protagonist figures it out. But each day is a discrete step on the inevitable road to the end. It was a pretty neat structure, and turned into a nice, enjoyable story.

Oh, also read Daughter, so I have a Thought about that.

Short and exceedingly concise. Tells you what it's all about pretty much right away, but still has a small surprise or two along the way. Squicky for some, I'm sure, but lively and fun to me.

The final Thoughts of yesterweek (plus a week before that), are for Organism-X.

I was originally going to skip it, because it was a long one, but I had finished the other ones I wanted to check out a little early. I saw a few 9000 word chapters, and thought "eh, it won't be so bad. I got to the last chapter, thinking I was almost done, and came upon the sudden realization that 3,485 and 34,485 are not the same number. So I will probably be finishing it at the end of the week, if I knock out everything else. I'll echo Potestas, saying that it could have been split up better, both from a chapter division standpoint, and also meted out over multiple weeks. You know, for those of us who like to sample a little bit of everything each update.

But, halfway (and 34,000 words) through, I would say it's a neat little parasite infestation piece, with some good horror vibes coming through. A lot of the female coed characters blur together, though, and I'm having some trouble telling who's actually important and who's just worm-fodder. The synopsis suggests that Haley, the psychic girl, should be the protagonist, but she gets little screen time and even less agency. Jessie actually seems to be doing far more protagonisty things throughout, and I feel myself rooting for her more than anyone.

Read Test Cases. Have a few Thoughts.

I feel like I've read a hundred stories about women staring at screens, getting horny and brainwashed. Never gets old. The antics of the two nerds in charge of the brainwashing made it stand out a little in a fun way.

It's often interesting to me to focus on the controllers, even while the story focuses on the affected. There are a few more Test Cases to come, at least until I feel I'm no longer saying more.

Read Test Cases. Have a few Thoughts.

I feel like I've read a hundred stories about women staring at screens, getting horny and brainwashed. Never gets old. The antics of the two nerds in charge of the brainwashing made it stand out a little in a fun way.