rednovagalaxy

[rednovagalaxy]

Same.

October is ADHD awareness month! 🎉

The memory issues ADHD causes are some of the scarier and more frustrating parts of living with it - so here’s a set of reaction doodles that all my fellow ADHD peeps are welcome to use whenever anybody decides to comment on your forgetfulness ^ 

[rednovagalaxy]

This will never be not cute. 

[rednovagalaxy]

Part of the problem is that some creators actually do tell them that it’s because of Russia and China in particular as to why companies like Hasbro doesn’t do LGBTIA+ on their shows. The one that comes to mind the most is Alex Hirsch because he’s one of the few people that actually mentions and talks about why that’s a problem. He’s gone on record saying that the two cops from Gravity Falls were suppose to be a couple but it wasn’t allowed on Disney supposedly because of Russia and China. It could easily be explained that as a business, they don’t want to lose their biggest consumers (even though Russia is not one of the biggest consumers but I digress), or that most of the executives are straight old white men that just haven’t got into the current times. But here’s the kicker. It could be as well that Disney was lying to Hirsch about the reason why they don't want LGBTIA+ representation in their show. The fact that so many people bought into that myth hook, line, and sinker is the reason why people like this anon seems to believe that My Little Pony won’t have any LGBTIA+ representation. I’m not sure if this anon is telling the truth because if they can cite me an article that talks about this, then okay. But if you’re lying your fucking ass off, that myth is still dumb regardless. 

I'm kinda sad about the fact that there most likely won't be meaningful gay rep in MLP G5 because the show's available in Chin and Russia. What do you think is a good way to fix this, if you had the power? A lot of major/mainstream/popular IPs have essentially locked themselves out of having LGBT rep because of their international audience, and I have no idea what could be done about this.

What do you think is a good way to fix this, if you had the power?

Snap my fingers so that you no longer believe this convenient lie. Gay rep doesn't go anywhere in American cartoons because American audiences have a shitfit about them.

If a show gets banned in Russia, nobody cares. If it gets banned in China, the accountants get annoyed. If Americans start freaking out, companies start handwringing about their brand and their image.

The problem is at home. But it would be very convenient if people believed it wasn't.

[rednovagalaxy]

Lilith kind of bullied Eda during their fight, the size difference didn’t exactly make for a fair fight 0_0

[rednovagalaxy]

Friendly October reminder not to put Spock or other Jewish characters in costumes with horns

[rednovagalaxy]

I wasn’t originally going to respond about this because I’m not watching the show but I changed my mind and decided to address two things.

One was the misconception of how it got there. 

So what happened was that there was a meme going around on Twitter with two shows called Amphibia and The Ghost and Molly McGee because they were the two shows that are going to air in October (for the former it’s the season three premiere and for the latter it’s the series premiere). Amphibia was placed in the dark colored house mostly because well, watch the season two finale and you’ll get the context. With Ghost, it was placed in the colorful house because of the light-hearted comedy vibe that the show was advertised as. This wouldn’t be an issue normally but then two tweets changed course. One was from Disney TVA creative executive Doug Bensimon.

And the other one was from Darryl McGee’s VA Michaela Dietz.

When people saw them, they... misinterpreted the tweets as a sign that the show would go darker. Now based on what happened in Amphibia’s season 2 finale, I would understand why people are jumping to this conclusion, but considering that Bob Roth is shutting down any attempts to reinforce that the show is going to get darker, I think the reason why they laughed is exactly what I was thinking the whole time: they thought it was funny. Hell even Doug admits this.

I have no fucking idea if the reason that people mistook these tweets as a sign that it’s going to get darker is because of Amphibia, or if that people are so use to Cerebus Syndrome happening to Western shows in the last ten years that it is white noise to them. Either way, this was blown out of proportion and you guys need to chill the hell out. Speaking of dark... 

Two is what shows they consider to be “dark”.

In this Twitter thread, this user mentions that the shows he watches that have overarching arcs are dark or become dark over time like Amphibia, The Owl House, Gravity Falls, FatWS, Wandavision, and Loki. Outside of the fact that half of them are Marvel properties that are serialized to begin with, most of these shows are not dark the way this person thinks. The closest thing to a “dark” show they have is Amphibia (considering that a child is literally stabbed through a fire sword and caused controversy with the execs is saying something). Most people would point to The Owl House or Gravity Falls as the resident dark overarching shows and even if that’s the case, they’re both comedy shows as well. Without that aspect, those shows would be miserable samey gritty trash like other shows from the 2010s. Dark can be done well if it’s contrasted with comedic or light-hearted tones that dominate the show so that the dramatic moments can make the impact punch hard. I can guarantee that The Owl House and Gravity Falls would not be as popular nor as successful if they weren’t comedies on top of being horror shows at the same time. 

Lastly, I want to address a bug bear within cartoon fandoms that they assume the show that starts off as light-hearted will turn dark and angsty by the end of the series. I actually remember that SaberSpark made a meme about shows that start off as light-hearted turning dark by the end of the season as a trend for Western shows for the last decade using the Wizard of Oz as a template. It’s actually depressing to see it on social media explicitly because it proves one thing.

Lily was right about all of this.

She’s been vocally about the state of animation for the last decade for it’s repetitive and bad tropes like redemption arcs, Cerebus syndrome, enemies to lovers (Foe Yay), worldbuilding, and everything in between that has seep through every single mainstream show that I can name (I mainly blame Anime for all of that, this includes the gross shit that the employees of the animation industry pulled) because creators nowadays are interested in high stakes and nothing else. Even when a creator is trying to make a episodic fun show for a change, fans will try to twist it to be a dull, edgy, and fanfic-y show that they want. You can bitch about her all you want, but that doesn’t change the fact that the trend is so persistent that you create a fucking meme which actively reinforces her point is a problem. And yet people still had the fucking gall to try to make The Ghost and Molly McGee, a show about an optimistic girl and a grumpy ghost, into a edgy show that the cartoon community would like. If the creator has to tell you that not every overarching show has to be dark or that you hate fun to the point of demonizing other shows like TTG for being funny stupid shows, you need to go fucking outside and grow up. Honestly I have to give props to Bob Moth for not having anyone’s shit about the possibility of going dark and having a moral standard when it comes to kid shows (considering that he did LEGO Star Wars: The Freeman Adventures, this isn’t surprising).  

I want to conclude that The Ghost and Molly McGee does have a story arc, and from what I remember a year ago it was the complication of the duo’s relationships from their respective realms. This sort of idea is low stakes enough where the show doesn’t have to turn into shit when it gets there. 

(For context, Bob Roth is one of the co-creators of the show)

I think people need to come to terms with the fact that The Ghost and Molly McGee is going to be pretty light and not go places that Amphibia and The Owl House are.

AND THAT IS FINE. Not every show has to be like them.

[rednovagalaxy]

For Catra’s case, Stevenson has gone on record saying that they chose to have a haircut on Catra was because she looked cute in it. And I felt like it was unnecessary even at a story standpoint?? 

It seems to me that all of the issues with the Important Haircut/ Expository Hairstyle Change trope listed here is that the creators are (unintentionally) picking this trope for their gay characters because they think it looks cool, rather than a tool for character development. And that right there explains the discrepancy between Catra’s haircut choice compared to other characters like Zuko’s and as of recently Amity’s haircuts. With Zuko, his multiple hairstyle changes represent his complex journey of exiled prince to redeemed Fire Lord in the series. For Amity’s case, her green hair was representing the conformality of the Blight family at the behest of her mother. In fact, Dana has admitted in a Reddit AMA that Amity dying her hair green was forced by her mother because she wanted her children to be “color-coordinated”. So when Amity decides to dye her hair lilac instead of green, it’s the subtle equivalent of “Fuck you mom, I’m not conforming to your rules”. I won’t get into Ezra’s case because the reason why it doesn’t work is a different beast in of itself. 

The fact that the decision to cut Catra’s hair was not based on storytelling or creative reasons but because it looks cool is the problem. And considering it’s happening to other sapphic women as well is worrying. I can guarantee that if Stevenson thought about why Catra needed a pixie cut, she would have quickly realized about how pointless it really is. This whole “cutting your hair very short to defy gender norms” is literally the gay stereotype but coated in different paint.

And honestly all this talk about hair as character development and using TtLGR as an example of how to do it right makes me appreciate the episode a lot more than I already do. 

You ever notice that gay or bi women in cartoons always get their hair cut in some way after a while?

Yes and it's a stupid trope and I despise it.

[rednovagalaxy]

I discovered something useful today, taking breaks or exercising never helps me but THIS does, sharing to save a life

[rednovagalaxy]

I wouldn’t be surprised if the phrase “so bad it’s good” was created because of cringe culture. I would also put “guilty pleasures” in that trash as well. 

The way that one person was capitalising every other word in their "I'm not insecure about liking bad funny movies, stop laughing" ask makes me think that every so often when they get excited about something they'll just randomly scream a word

Yeah, that's what I'm trying to decipher. At no point in that post did I ever say that it was bad to like something in spite of its flaws, and it would be pretty hypocritical of me to claim such a thing with the deluge of Total Dama posts I've been making where I criticize the show's major flaws but still enjoy it overall.

But that person sure seemed convinced otherwise.

Hell, I even got an anon telling me that I was backpedaling. Like, go off I guess.

[rednovagalaxy]

Help! I have been trying really hard to improve my drawing skills, practicing almost everyday. I have been watching tutorials and studying anatomy but I can't get my characters to look natural.. They look extremely stiff and blocky... Any advice?? Oh! I almost forgot, I LOVE YOUR ART SO MUCH!!!

GESTURES. GESTURES. GESTURES!

Studying anatomy is fantastic. Whatever you do, don’t stop! I’m going to suggest gestures but that is by no means a suggestion to swap. Just start implementing gestures as well. 

Okay. So. Look at this.

This is a still from Glean Keane animating Tarzan - and it exactly nails what a gesture is. Just a few simple lines that are full of movement and you can tell exactly what the heck is going on. All with a few simple lines. 

Learning anatomy is great - but learning how to implement it is another thing. If I focus too much on nailing anatomy - the drawing starts to feel stiff, exactly as you’ve stated. 

Gestures are all about forgetting what you think you know about muscles and structure and instead drawing what movement in a body FEELS like. That might sound cooky but that’s kind of how I approach it in my head. It’s all about those lines of movement and contrast and CURVES. 

I think loosening up and forgetting about how technically correct a drawing is and instead embracing something rough and full of movement, and looking at how the lines in the human body contrast themselves will do you wonders. Keep learning anatomy, but look at how we move and look the weird shapes we can make with our bodies. Look at the way we slouch and stand tall. The way we dance, the way we run. Sit in a coffee shop and try to draw the heart of someone’s pose in like 30 seconds. 

Observe MOVEMENT AND RHYTHM AND MY GOD THE HUMAN BODY IS POETRY *GESTICULATES WILDLY*

Even just grabbing a photograph from the net and looking at it objectively - how would this pose break down into a few simple lines? It’s so damn simple to look at something this way. You can endlessly improve your knowledge of anatomy and your technical abilities - but I think so many of us (myself included) stumble at the simplest foundations. 

My last suggestion is a wonderful book (videos are floating around on youtube as well) from Mike Mattesi in which he talks about Force. It’s fascinating stuff! I love this example of a simple gesture being built up on. 

I hope at least some of that was useful! Just start small okay. Think about learning the chords before you try and master Stairway to Heaven. 

[rednovagalaxy]

This is why I’m somewhat skeptical of placing all known disorders as “neurodivergence”. The reason autism and ADHD are the first disorders to be mentioned when it comes to the neurodivergent community is because they rewire the brain starting from birth until death which is unique among other disorders. This isn’t like with depression where we have anti-depressants as a cure for that kind of stuff. Or anxiety medication. Or the countless mood, psychotic, and trauma disorders. With autism though, the only thing we have for treatment is behavior intervention and many therapy types, but even then, this isn’t going to cure that person of anything. You just... exist. It feels conditional because you can’t know what a neurotypical person feels, thinks, or functions. I don’t normally talk about philosophical things on disabilities mostly because I’ve accepted who I am and I don’t care about justifying my existence. 

I know most of this thread was on X-Men and its representation on oppressed minorities but my point was that placing all disorders as neurodivergence is equally as dumb as placing all disabilities in one category of disorders. 

[rednovagalaxy]

I can’t tell if people are losing their minds either because of the blatant celebrity voice cast or that Chris Pratt is in it (I understand what people give him shit for). 

Am I having a stroke

[rednovagalaxy]

This post always comes back to me years later when I think about Willow crushing a watermelon with her thighs and everyone in the room would all be horrible gay disasters.

[rednovagalaxy]

I just saw the dude behind innuendo studios on twitter say "The purpose of both good spelling and cinematic style is to better communicate something, and so quality must be judged by the thing communicated as much if not more than the means of communication." And I think I finally get what you've been saying for years about the quality of writing in a series. It's... Yah Excellent, Lilly. Thank you.

[rednovagalaxy]

Good writing is not a matter of picking right or wrong tropes/settings but rather understanding how the inclusion or exclusion of the many elements will affect your story and deciding on how to optimize what central mood or theme you want to convey. Is fantasy a good idea? Depends on how you execute the idea. You first have to understand how different writing devices and elements affect your story rather than trying to find loopholes around generally good guidelines that exist for a reason.

[rednovagalaxy]

The fact that Gothel’s anti-Semitic design in the movie is a tamer version of this makes me feel so much better.

I mean it’s not much better but still.  

I recently got the art book for Tangled and man, if you think the Gothel we ended up with is anti-Semitic, some of her early stage concept art is practically straight out of a propaganda poster meeting.

So I went to google out of morbid curiousity and...

That one on the left is the pose. That's literally the fucking propaganda pose.

Disney WTF?!

[rednovagalaxy]

The first half of this video reminds me of this video that Red did on her Trope Talk series on Anti-heroes on the basis that... they aren’t really a thing. She did a poll on Twitter with well known superheroes and gave them options as to whether they’re an anti-hero or not. Like it’s so fluid and subjective to the point where there is no true definition of what a anti-hero is (this also applies to anti-villains as well). 

The only thing I have to say for the second half is that I will forever blame Star Wars and Steven Universe for warping heroic morality and make the trolley problem even worse than it already is. 

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