#Bigger on the inside

[spectral-phases]

Tim Drake as Rook (and Blackbird)

I've seen posts floating around trying to suggest new names and new costumes for him, and I've seen really great designs (u/Hunkerdown_son's Gray Ghost suit) that I like a lot more than what he's gotten. (Poor kid's gone back to Robin and was feuding with Damian about who's the better Robin? Like, boy, you could be in college, you are a whole-ass adult now, god damn, can the writers let you develop). There's Cardinal, Flamebird, Redbird, every red bird there is. And like, I get it, Red Robin was one of his more iconic runs (pre-Flashpoint), his OYL costume was primarily red, he was Red Robin wearing basically a Robin costume for a little while there too.

One of the name's I've seen is Rook. And that fascinates me. I actually had a hazy image of it pop into my mind, like a terrible "got any more pixels?" JPG picture of an artbook all zoomed-in and blown out one, of what that might look like.

(Artist's recreation of the above described image)

So I made it.

(Look, I know. I know. That is not how "Rook" would be stylized for the logo, but listen, listen. Cursive k basically has a mini-R in it and I was having fun with this. Okay? I don't draw much these days and I'm not a comic artist/graphic designer. I do math for a living.) (I spent very little time on the logo for Blackbird, but you get the idea. The "R" gets twisted nicely into a "B" for Blackbird, in my opinion.)

Design choices and everything below. Very stupidly long.

Rook first because I know the color is going to be a sell.

Rook is a bird in the corvid family, with crows, so they're exceptionally smart birds. Rooks are also the name for the chess piece that can perform the trickster maneuver called castling where they trade places with the king (It's not hard to do, necessarily, just like, a 4D move compared to the normal chess moves, and not something the average person knows about). Being that he's been relegated to the "boy genius" role and he is vicious and cunning with his mind more than almost anything else (See Robin #137's "Show your face here again and we'll frame you for the kind of crimes even other hardened kills don't condone or forgive" speech, him blowing up the LoA's computers in Red Robin #8 after somehow creating a program/virus on their systems while under constant supervision, or all of Red Robin's "The Hit List" arc). (I know he's not the only one who can do or has done, things like this, but he does it a lot, is my point).

Rooks, the birds, as a symbol of death are also fascinating to connect to Tim. He's never "died" like the other Robins have, but his mantra in his introduction is basically "Batman needs a Robin." Because Batman/Bruce has been traumatized by losing his son, Jason, and is spiraling, dialing up the violence towards criminals, dialing down his ability to care whether or not he survives, destroying his interpersonal relationships in the process. Death as a symbol can mean the literal figurative death, but it also can mean the end of a phase of life, of letting something go, and moving onto a new chapter.

And that's what Bruce needed to do. He, of course, would always miss Jason, but he needed to move past the pain, move past the agony, become what Batman was supposed to be again. Tim's the one who got him there. He's the one who convinced Bruce to open that new door. Tim's the one who put the "family" in Bat-Family because Bruce sure as shit was not going to do that. Here, this post explains that a bit more eloquently.

https://www.tumblr.com/thattimdrakeguy/190044791065/would-you-consider-tim-the-heart-of-the-batfamily

Rooks, the birds, are also blue/purple in color, which I think is great for Tim. I know, I know, everyone wants him with red. I get. I really, truly, get it. But let's just...take a step back and go outside of the box a little for his color. Now, I know, not everyone keeps the same color consistently (the number of times Nightwing has just bounced between Blue and Red, for example), but there is usually a "main" color strongly associated with each member of the Bat-Family.

Nightwing gets blue, duh (and also bluebird). Red Hood gets red (and also Nightwing when he's having a shit time and also Kate Kane's Batwoman and also Damian's Redwing). Damian's Robin often gets green (though I low-key associate green with Tim's Robin more than Damian's, Tim's no longer going to be Robin here, so Damian can have it). The Signal gets yellow (and so does Cass's Batgirl/Black Bat/Orphan). Stephanie as Spoiler/Batgirl has purple (and so does Huntress and Barbara's Batgirl). And Oracle gets lime green.

We don't need any more red symbols in the family. It's already out of hand without throwing Tim in there. And out of all the siblings, he's the only one without a distinct color.

Anyway. If we dip into tertiary colors, we can fix all of that. I made a mock-up of what I mean drawing the symbols mostly by memory in a few minutes. For Huntress/Helena Bertinelli, I just used her mask.

See how Tim as Rook gets to be wedged in between Nightwing's blue and Stephanie's purple with Violet? Tim Drake is a Dick Grayson fan first, Nightwing fan second, and person a distant third, so going more blue with his scheme is a much better fit. You could come up with a name for him to be teal, but violet is better for Rook, and like he's also close to Stephanie's Spoiler/Batgirl colors and say what you will of his relationship with her, she is important to his character as friend/girlfriend/friendly-ex. And Dick went from "Red/green/yellow" to "Blue/black" so Tim can go from "Red/green/yellow/black" to "violet/black."

Oh, and it lets him get his "R" back. The one from the 90's that's just so iconic that he was literally introduced with as Robin. If we can have a million different bat symbols then we can have two different R's floating around and no one will be confused.

And anyway, with all of that in mind, and that terrible image haunting me, I decided to draw a quick reference sheet for what Rook might look like. I think I spent like 2 hours on the final version, with an hour and a half on sketches I hated/deleted. Anyway.

I had a nice dark green in here instead of sky blue and a dark purple instead of dark blue, but then I was looking at the purple/green combo and "I'm in dangered" my way out of the Joker color-combo.

Instead I decided, since he's a young person and the violet I chose was sort of blacklight-esque, then why not make him look like some kinda blacklight glowing guy. The youth these days still love that kinda stuff, right? And it ties into the themes of being a light in the dark and crime-scene stuff and all that. The colors came from how lead glass reacts under black light, and while I imagine the violet parts do show up in black light, it's the light blue parts that actually glow in blacklight.

If you want to draw this design or make up your own Rook design or tweak this design go ahead, like, for example if you wanted him to have the sharp pointy cuffs that I couldn't get to look good at all (but please tag me if you do, I wanna see it, unless you're shit-talking me. Then don't tag me.)(Shit talking means "my god, this asshole who cannot draw at all" and not "It was okay, but I thought it might be better like this/with some tweaks/more coherent colors" one I can take and the former will make me cry).

(If the notes are hard to read, they will be in text at the very bottom)

Obviously, I got a little too obsessed with the mask for my own good. I didn't want him to just have a domino mask, I liked the protectiveness of his Red Robin cowl (if not the look), and I wanted more coverage while also having his hair out because he has really good hair. So it goes around the back of his head in a band, protecting his temples and the back of his head, but nothing else for his hair to show. It is supposed to blend with his hair so we get the illusion of the cowl, but drawn by someone better/more time/shading it'd be fairly obvious up front where his hair and mask are, but less so from the back. And Tim has done the mask under a mask gag before and a self-destructing mask, so I feel like him having approximately 30-billion fail-safes to prevent it from just being pulled off of him is in-character.

And then I decided, that since Tim is Nightwing fan second, he can have a red version of the outfit named "Blackbird" for when he's feeling a little moody or feisty the same as Nightwing has the red Nightwing suit for...reasons ("We wear red in new continuities" or whatever. Why have one outfit when you can have several?). This time the colors were inspired by red cadmium glass under blacklight and the red winged blackbird.

Red Winged Blackbird's symbolically are "a sign of change and transformation. They represent the power of love and compassion, as well as the need to take action in order to make positive changes in your life. The red winged blackbird is a symbol for spiritual growth, inner strength, courage, determination and self-awareness." Which. You know. Fits Tim. And there's red. So. I feel like that's an easy sell. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I wanted to reference his OYL, Post-Crisis Red Robin (regular and data alter), and Robin (Post-Crisis/Rebirth) outfits for the design. I didn't care for much of his post-Flashpoint Red Robin outifts, adding Nomura/Kingdom Hearts zippers levels of belts to him or just being Robin with two "R"s for a symbol and bad hair. You can see the OYL in the edges of the cape and the interior of the mask. Robin, Rebirth in particular, with his elbow pads and knee pads, shoulder armor and the shape of his boots. Red Robin in the bandolier harness/belt thing he's got, but every thing on it is one of those hammer space utility belt pouches the Bats are so well known for, so he can have a bajillion of them as the "tool using" Robin. The "V" center and arm-stripe/finger-stripe combo is, obviously, reminiscent of Nightwing, and his Red Robin data alter, which is also reflected in the larger mask (though the nose is not as beak-like).

(OYL References, the dialogue in the second to last panel of the first reference is misattributed, in case you were confused as to why Tim is dissing his outfit and Dick is talking like Tim)

(Red Robin References)

(Robin References)

And obviously, I just put his "R" symbol on a circle and called it a day. Although I was clearly going off of memory instead of a direct reference, but whatever. Whatever. It fits better in a circle the way I did it. And a circle is a better buckle/clip than the oval, which was a deliberate choice. So. Anyway.

Notes (from top left to bottom right, grouped by what they're describing):

Shoulder Shot: "We're brining back his iconic 'R' from the 90's for 'Rook. (pointing to the R symbol)." "The cape can be rolled back to reveal some light shoulder armor that doesn't change his silhouette when the cape is down (pointing to his shoulder armor and the rolled back cape that is reminiscent of his over the shoulder "black with yellow" capes)." "Feather pattern that emulates Nightwing's arm/fingerstripes (pointing to the side of his arm)." "His elbow pads have the same shape as his kneepads for the skaterboy vibe. (pointing to the pads over his arms and knees)."

Sketch of harness: "Bandolier harness hides under the cape that clips into his insignia (pointing to the symbol in the center)." "Each space is a pouch (pointing to every area between the pointed ridges (which are hollow tubes with screw caps that can also hold things for maximum hammerspace))."

The detailed shot of the mask: "The face mask is partial emotive with white lenses that have thermal and night-vision (next to the white eyes)." "The foil layer of the mask can peel off unless actively held when the mask is lifted, and cling to his skin with a static charge that makes it almost impossible to peel from his skin (pointing to the teal circuit bit that is lifted from the pointy bit of the mask (the circuits are water/sweat proof, don't worry))." "There are dozens of magnetic locks that have to hit in the right on/off pattern to life all layers of the mask. Each finger in his gloves can have an active magnetic charge, so there are over a thousand combinations (pointing to the foil layer and the inside of the mask)."

The sketches of the mask lowered and raised: "The back of the mask is made of interlocking combs that seal together with metal locks to avoid it coming off unintended (pointing to the back of the raised mask)." "Durable, flexible rubber-like material (pointing to the sides of the mask, back, and the expanding fan like section that allows it to raise while still being one-piece and the top of the mask that would roll against his forehead)." "The mask can be lifted up when the locks are undone (pointing to the raised and lowered mask and the expanding accordion like structure)."

The sketch of a side profile of his head with his bangs and face half there: "Where does the mask end and his hair begin? Like Kujo Jotaro's cap, the world may never know (pointing to the back of his head where the black mask and black hair would blend together)." "The back of the mask combs through his hair and the top layers of his hair cover it (providing an actual answer)." "The nose of the mask has padding that protects his nose from breaks and conceals the shape of his nose and cheeks (next to his nose, which is half covered by the mask)."

[fuckyeahgoodomens]

[weirdly-specific-but-ok]

pt III doctor who but I've still never watched it

Hello yes Good Omens mascot here, I am making a DW summary because I'm trying unsuccessfully to distract myself from doubling over in pain after the Good Omens season 2 ending. Here you go:

First off, let me just say a very hearty thank you to the entire DW fandom for educating me during part I and part II as well as my Pinterest research. You have successfully managed to teach me nothing about Doctor Who, but every single last detail of David Tennant's life and family. Please seek help.

Timey wimey.

*checks notes* So David Tennant wrote fanfiction of DW in school and got into trouble, and he married the daughter of a previous Doctor from the classic DW whom he met on set, and he saw an episode of DW as a three year old and it inspired him to become a doctor. There's a joke that David didn't want to return as the 14th doctor but did it just to avoid Michael Sheen getting the role because as we all know the BBC has 12 actors and half are David and Michael who are incidentally glued together. David Tennant adopted his wife's kid and so now they have a total of five kids together. This morning for breakfast David ate a sandwich with one less slice of cheese which is a clue for GO season 3-

The police are rhinos, kind of like Zootopia. They kill people.

The TARDIS is the Doctor's best friend. She came up with a name and didn't tell the Doctor. So they call her Sexy.

Timey wimey.

Michael Sheen is a sentient planet.

Someone named Harry is present in the classic DW. At one point someone else says 'something something Harry' idk and Harry says 'Me?' and the other says 'there's only two of us here and your name is Harry'.

There is a slutty head and it was supposed to be dead but it procrastinated that to see David Tennant.

Timey wimey.

There is a sonic screwdriver, and it is used for very many things, but for a good ten minutes trying to research it I thought it was Sonic the Hedgehog merch. Incidentally, I don't know what that is, either.

The slutty head is pregnant a lot. It sits in a jar.

There is a minefield and then someone is standing on a landmine instead of following the other person. One of them is the Doctor.

The TARDIS expands because it is tired of holding its tummy in.

It's bigger on the inside.

Timey wimey.

The Doctor periodically kidnaps people to accompany them.

Everything is queer.

Timey wimey.

Time Lords are a thing. I don't know if the Doctor is a Time Lord.

Wilf meets a David Doctor and everyone cries.

There are Baby Yoda goblins and an alien named Meep and actually a lot of aliens are there.

There is a literal arsehole with the ability of speech.

Timey wimey.

[silveragelovechild]

In the original pilot for “Lost in Space” (entitled No Place to Hide) the Robinson’s ship was named Gemini 12. Only the upper level of the ship was shown on screen and the model used for exteriors did not account for a lower level.

The second pilot added Dr. Smith, the Robit, and a lower level consisting of the crew’s living quarters. Here the ship was rechristened the Jupiter 2.

In the third season (episode 10 “Space Creature) another level identified as the ship’s Power Core was reveal beneath the living quarters. So like the TARDIS, the Jupiter 2 is bigger on the inside.

[abrahamstalker]

More Banban redesigns.

I'm working on Flynn, don't know who to so after that.

[scifrey]

Why do I love DOCTOR WHO?

Because it makes you want to be bigger on the inside.

[dougielombax]

An apartment complex is simple to most people, sure.

But what if it’s a 13-dimensional non-Euclidean apartment complex with dimensionally transcendental properties?!

What then?

Not so simple now. Is it?

Though thats very unlikely to happen.

But still.

Kid Named Apartment Complex:

*UNGODLY, INHUMANE BELLOWING NOISES!!!!!!!!!!*

[siriuslydandy]

Definitely a madman with a box 🌌💙

[maddyjones2]

It's Bluey ...

and it's Doctor Who

[clairedelune-13]

I think the most underrated “bigger on the inside” joke is when Rigsy remarks on it and the Doctor goes “That statement has never been truer.” 😂😂😂

[dandelionjack]

they’re really running out of new ways to say it

[sparklepirate]

*kicks down the door*

GUYS WHAT IF ANGELA'S TARDIS IS HER HERB SHOP?

[paulfc]

What you got in the case?

One of the TV stations has been showing the Harry Potter movies over the last few weeks and also the Newt Scamander ones which I quite like.

A few days ago I was looking in a charity shop near me and saw that they had Newt's case for sale for a fiver and I couldn't resist. It has cleaned up quite nicely, the slide spring on one of the catches doesn't work but still locks, generally looks the part.

Strictly this is a 1950's or 60's fibre board suitcase and the 1920's Newt Scamander one was probably leather, but it will do to make a piece out of.

The trope of objects that are bigger on the inside is in common use from science fiction, Dr Who for example, to Mary Poppins' Gladstone bag in children's stories, and JK Rowling in fantasy; she makes various uses of it, handbags, tents, and Newt's case.

I have decided to try to make a dragon that I will fly out and then back into the case as a sort of performance piece. If I were to make a static sculpture I would, as is my wont, make the dragon from paper but to get it to collapse into the case I am thinking about using fabric for much of the body with a sculpted head, see the test, papier mache over cardboard, above. Needs to be painted, time to get the airbrush out.

[flightofthefaeriedragon]

Love Keyleth suggesting that Orym is a TARDIS. 😄

[whatinmindelena-blog]

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[cubicsun]

Tim: "Ok what the fuck is happening?"

Steve: "oh good ole dumb tim, since summer has just begun, we are building a cabin for everyone! but we are making it bigger on the inside"

Marky: "That's right!! With ACME's Fourth Dimensional Galvanized Square Steel, we can build into 4D space and make stuff bigger on the inside!!! It also comes with eco-friendly wood veneer!"