#I don't remember if there was any inspiration for drawing her in a veil other than just - she pretty ♥ No thought just YIK 💖

[chireikiden]

Might be a pretty basic take by the standards of more seasoned yuri fans, but it's my perspective as someone who's mostly read yuri in a Touhou context (though a lot of it), and exclusively manga from the Japanese fans as opposed to i.e. written fics.

Touhou yuri (using it very broadly here to describe any kind of wlw shipping present) is, across the board, in a pool of fan literature going back twenty years, remarkably good at taking the lesbian part for granted. Not counting outright het content or works that simply don't bring it up, I have only very vague memories of a character's lesbian orientation being either denied or even brought to question (even in the cliche "But we're both girls!" manner, which even as a somewhat dead horse trope you might still expect to see, given plenty of doujin writing isn't exactly highbrow). You might be able to read "Does she like girls?" between the lines in the usual question of "Does she like me?" if you really want to, but the way it's still basically treated as default is fun to me. There's a reason Touhou basically has honorary yuri status on e.g. Dynasty Reader, even the stories with effectively zero shipping in them. You might not notice if you haven't browsed the site, but it's literally nothing but yuri + Touhou. We even got upload rights just so we could post more Touhou.

(Of course, Touhou being yuri city is part of the reason any hint of straight romance gets a really strong kneejerk reaction from people, including me. But that's also because the lack of usable male characters makes that shipping inherently hamfisted, up to and including literally making up cardboard villager OCs. Basically the only positive example I can remember off the top of my head is Hisona's An Old Poem for the Cuckoo Bird depicting Youki with a 1000-year-old mostly joking crush on Nue, which after some chin-scratching I decided I liked alright. And Hisona of course has plenty of yuri cred to cover for it.)

But although taken for granted, most Touhou yuri is one or more of: a.) On a "blushing maidens thinking about holding hands" level in its approach to romance, b.) Only depicting the starting moments of a relationship, at best - usually just pining, c.) Only off-handedly teasing, basically to acknowledge the ship is there, d.) Showing a very close and loving relationship but leaving the romance part subtextual, even if thinly veiled.

While those are all fine - some of my favorite artists like e.g. Ashiyama undeniably fall under d.) - it means that artists who depict more established couples, and couples that get depicted as more established, stand out. I love when a story is very blunt about two characters, whether the focus is actually on them or not, already being an item. Be it due to a difference in target demographic or what, many of these works seem to have a slight lean towards being more raunchy/horny even when not outright R-18, but I don't actually mind that too much when it does happen - as long as they're fun and raunchy, as opposed to only raunchy or, god forbid, unfun in raunchy ways.

I like how Moyazou depicts Mokou and Keine as basically-married. I like how Atoki depicts YuuParu or SakiYachi after drawing like twenty books of them (each). I like when Kawayabug depicts Tojiko as Miko's beleaguered wife. But the example of the day is obviously risui (of Ladies of Scarlet Devil Mansion), who you might have guessed inspired this ramble. Funnily enough, in LoSDM she seems to have walked back Meiling and Sakuya's relationship coincidentally at the same time she toned down the content to fit SCoOW's guidelines, compared to her usual works that have MeiSaku at a much more established and mutual stage.

But the point stands that it's really fun to see LoSDM almost rub it in your face from the very start - from Meiling's dream to every other conversation she has - that everyone in it is unapologetically and openly lesbian, assumes everyone else to be a lesbian, and doesn't hesitate to talk about it like a (romcom idiot) adult.

Also, risui draw lady very good

[keltoi-1]

Don't usually air my thoughts, but that last mission and cutscene was a ride and half and I'm still reeling from it. Beyond... you know, Red and that whole shebang, there's that whole matter of the Traveler moving. It rose into the upper atmosphere and now it's hanging there. Beautifully, like those older Destiny artworks - as well as when it emerged sideways like that Unveiling cover art. But the real rollercoaster is that it moved. The last time it did something it repaired itself. The time before that, it woke up and broke free of Ghaul's cage.

But this time it literally moved. It has left the Last Safe City of Earth and now it's in Earth's upper orbit. Which I didn't think it would do, because in the back of my head there was all this feeling of security seeded again and again by everything from Ikora's philosophies to other ramblings, like that paragraph about a wanderer who just gets tired of it, settles down, makes some demigod babies and hopes they choose to be good while ringing their safe place in pikes. The Constellations (A.K.A. the Speaker lorebook) really should have knocked that out of me, what with the whole "Traveler will leave us" and "I WANT TO LEAVE" parts, but I was confident it wouldn't. That it cared and that it was too exhausted to pick up the cycle all over again.

Except now it's moved. And there's so many things to consider about it.

The Traveler didn't care about the Warsats and was simply rising to meet the Black Fleet at last - that stereotypical point in every movie about heroism, someone older and braver stepping out in front of the crowd to paint themselves as the primary target. It's not only here to stay, it is making a stand alongside us. Likely.

The Traveler did care about the Warsats and was sacrificing itself. If the Warsats fired and annihilated it, then maybe the City would survive - so long as there wasn't any significant debris left over to cause an extinction-level event. Which doesn't seem likely to me because that would draw Xivu Arath and her Horde through a portal anyways. Torobatl 2 electric boogaloo. Unlikely. (We already know the Traveler cares. It's not evil.)

Not one I really believe, but possible enemy movements have disturbed this "Veil" artifact and it could be answering a call for help, only to stall as it realizes all eyes are on it.

The Traveler gave into fear. Eramis was maybe right, maybe wrong, probably half-right. The Traveler as we know it is a sentient being. It has hopes and dreams and wants and desires. It has fears and ambitions. And the Black Fleet aiming so many weapons at it, stalking so close? Anyone would be afraid. And thus we arrive at the opposite case of Point 1: the Traveler was not stepping forward to make a stand with its resolve strengthened, but rather its nerve broke. It's tired and it's desperate but it's also alive and afraid and it might've just made a knee-jerk reaction. It's our icon, it's our standard, and right in front of everyone it lost its control at the last second and made to run - only to remember it can't, it shouldn't, maybe it doesn't need to. Too bad, the harm's already done; we saw it make to escape and even if it's still here, we saw its fear. We saw it give into despair. The Witness said it has nowhere left to run. The Witness has said that only in our last moments, devoid of hope, are we truly ourselves. We've seen the Traveler at that stage. Another likely option and nowhere near as inspiring as the first.

[micoanimation]

The Adventures Of Prince Achmed (1926)

My favorite animated film from 1920s

The Adventures of Prince Achmed was created with Lotte Reiniger's original multiplane camera technique and paper cutouts. She first draws the sets and characters, cuts out the limbs separately to tie together with wire frame string. She gently hammers the silhouette to flatten the image then the characters are ready to move! The backgrounds are constructed by several layers cut from sheets of paper or colored film for tinted backgrounds. Pinned over by a blank sheet and a plate of glass, a foreground cutout is then placed on top. There is a ruler built into her set up that measures the length of the background to accurately match the camera panning to follow the characters as they move across the scene.

The story of Prince Achmed starts with introducing their characters. The ugly sorcerer with his sharp face and silhouette. He moves in an uncanny fashion. Smooth flowing motions to sharp rigid actions, he then creates a pose forming a triangle shape at the end of his intro. This intro is my favorite part of the show because it theatrically illustrates the sorcerer is a dangerous individual to be wary of. Dinarsade is introduced next. She is a princess. Her silhouette is beautiful with many pretty designs like her star patterned veil, the ornamental acessories, fancy shoes and neat dress. Achmed the Prince and borther of Dinarsade is shown next gallantly riding a horse.

The film starts with the sorcerrer creating a flying wooden horse trap. He wants to use it to kidnap princess Dinarsade during the royal parade. However when he presents the horse, Dinarsade's brother Achmed is suspicious so he test drives the wooden horse. The wooden horse sends him flying to a house in the magical land of "Wak Wak" filled with women that generously offer fruits and throw themselves at Achmed (they ended up fighting over him and he left the house). Achmed wanders round Wak Wak's forest and sees a group of flying ladies who use phoenix like cloaks to soar the skies. The phoenix ladies take a rest at the lake where Achmed is standing. Out of the ladies, there is Parry Bennu who he falls in love with at first sight. Achmed chases after her as she runs away but he manages to gain her trust and they fall in love with each other. The scene shift over to the sorcerer! He has been monitoring Achmed this whole time using his magic and sees an opportunity to kidnap Achmed's lover! The sorcerer flys over and steals Parry Bennus flying device and uses the wooden horse to fly her away to China. The sorcerer sells Bennu to a big rich looking guy who lives in a Chinese style mansion. The rest of the story is action packed filled with Achmed attempting to rescue Bennu along with friends he made along the way like Aladdin the powerful lamp user and the green nemesis (I made up the name green nemesis because I don't remember his actual name). Together they rescue the princess, slay demons and they live happily as Achmed rejoins with family and introduces Bennus as his lover.

I could not find any information about the reception or it's initial response in 1926. However it's influence can be seen in other films such as Aladdin where the first suitor for Princess Jasmine is named Prince Achmed. Other films include: The Sword in the Stone, The Dancing Silhouettes, A Series of Unfortunate Events, Animation Lookback. Clips of Achmeds adventure can be found in films like "Bewegte Bilder", "The Dancing Silhouettes". The adventures of Achmed use of intricate silhouette cutouts inspired many other scenes found in animations like Disney films, Bram Stoker's Dracula, South Park and Steven Universe. It could be argued that Lotte's idea of the multiplane camera inspired Walt Disney's camera setup. Although they were both creating their own unique devices at around the same time Lotte completed hers first. There was a reissue of The Adventures of Prince Achmed in 2007 that made $100,156 with a 100% rating on rotten tomatoe's 21 reviews.

Reference links and photos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXQPZqOqe58&ab_channel=lachambreverte (1970 documentary of lotte's technique)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LXeq4IhVnM&ab_channel=YouHaveBeenWatchingFilms (representation summary)

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1053321-adventures_of_prince_achmed

https://darvideo.tv/blog/lotte-reiniger-animation-genius-and-why-walt-disney-was-only-her follower/#:~:text=There%20are%20hundreds%20of%20animators,classic%20ones%20and%20rather%20modern.

[real-fanta-sea]

I was tagged by @definegodliness to answer the following 16 questions - thank you for tagging me! 😊💙 Now let's get down to smashing that keyboard *cracks knuckles*

Hi Mutuals! It’s random question day. Please answer honestly & tag 5+ friends. Have fun!

1. Which celeb would you want as your other BFF and why?

Wow, this one is tough - starting with a sucker punch, are we? Truth to be told I have no idea who's famous these days and who's not (and yes I like the rock I live under very much, thanks for asking), so let's say I'd like to befriend Edna Mode, Shrek, Rob Zombie, Elton John or Dolly Parton - they seem like decent people and only two of them are fictional, which is nice

2. What’s the last lie you told?? 

I told a student I don't mind calling her an hour later - I prefer to get lessons done as soon as possible and as scheduled, but it turned out to be a great chat in the end so no harm was done

3. When’s the last time you felt inspired to create something?

Today, between 16:25 and 19:37 to be precise - and despite myself, I channeled this surge of energy not into writing or drawing, but into my german homework (props to my teacher who knows I give writing exercises my best - I was ecstatic when she told me to first list as many words as I can remember that contain german personal pronouns AND to write a story as long as possible where I must use alliteration only - now I'm ravenous for new vocabulary... smart move, Pavla)

4. What’s your all-time favorite dessert

Pistachio ice cream (preferably accompanied by a scoop of strawberry one)

5. If you were an animal, what would you be?

Probably something small - a bee, or a coral reef fish, if I had a choice. But if I just randomly reincarnated, I bet I would be one of those funky elephants who can paint

6. Have you ever used a dating app?

Nope

7. What’s your No.1 karaoke song?

Since I've never been to a Karaoke, I'll list the one I can sing from the top of my head at any time - Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen (basically anything by Queen, My Chemical Romance or Lucie really - and songs from Shrek, Durch den Monsun by Tokio Hotel and Take me to church by Horzier)

8. Have you ever been on a blind date?

Does a date on which I didn't wear my glasses count?

9. If a song played every time you entered a room, what would it be?

Oh no, there are so many options - I was tempted to choose 'the Gladiator march' by Julius Fučík, or the Overture of 'La Gazza Ladra' by Rossini, but I'm gonna go with "Sonne" by Rammstein because it holds so many good highschool memories and we sang the chorus line ('hier kommt die Sonne' - here comes the sun) with my best friend when either of us entered our room to wind each other up.

10. When’s the last time you got to really experience nature?

On Monday - I went on a long walk with my dog along the river bank. The path there is thin and almost always void of people, so I can unleash her (she is desperate to sniff everything in her vicinity and I can only take so much of having my wrist jerked around by her), and enjoy the stroll through the bright sea of buttercups and sprouting leaves. At the very end of the walk we stopped in an abandoned orchard where plum trees returned to their feral beauty and just basked in the sun and enchanting sweet scent of those thinly veiled beauties.

Since it's spring, I get to experience a lot of nature in the garden as well, but it's tame and cultured compared to the wilderness.

11. What’s an unexpected movie that makes you cry?

It's from an Italian collection of short film stories called 'Viva Italia!'. There's a story about an old lady who has a nice day out with her adult son. They go for a walk together, eat ice cream, and have a nice chat. But, when it's time to go home, he takes her to a nursing home instead where she clearly doesn't want to stay - he tells her his wife wants her house and that it is the best for all involved if she stays and doesn't come back. She begs him to take her home, but he doesn't listen. When he's leaving, he shouts after the nurses "Treat her as if she was a queen!" and she stays there, behind bars on the window, watching him drive away.

I also cry whenever I watch the documentary series called 'old people's home for 4 years old' - it's on YouTube if you feel like shedding a couple of tears

12. Do you consider yourself religious or spiritual?

Spiritual.

13. If you could only listen to one singer or band for the rest of your life, who would you choose?

That would be the death of me probably, so it doesn't matter who I choose as the end would come quick and be merciless.

Seriously though, I would probably choose Ben Lukas Boysen or I Want Poetry - they are fairly active and there is always something new to listen to.

14. What was the last movie you watched in a theater?

Infinity War and Endgame marathon - my sister didn't want to go alone. It was like watching a perfectly engineered modern epic made to please as many as possible: pompous, filled with action and glorification of heroes but void of anything I would give a second thought after leaving the theatre. I don't know, I guess I like my epic movie protagonists short and their feet hairy.

15. Who is your hero?

'He's a Juke box heroo - got staars in his eyeees'🎶🎶

16. What is your favorite animated film?

Mary and Max (followed closely by The Triplets of Belleville)

I tag @samphiresea @becuzmdsaidineededpersonality @aintgonnaleaveyoumikey @grafedelweiss @h-weber-exe and @northofsomewhere

And anyone who feels like participating 😊 have fun, sweeties!