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angelofthepage · 9 months ago

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Thoughts on the "Updated" Bendy Employee Handbook

Before we go any further, let's make it very clear what kind of post this is: we're not here to hate on the book, and none of anything I'm about to say is said with ill intent. I am here for analysis, constructive criticism, and discussion. This post is a little more critical than what I would usually share, so viewer discretion is advised.

Today we're talking about the newly updated Bendy Employee Handbook, which just recently released as of this month at the time of this post. And I have a lot of questions about this entry, and really, game guides as a whole in our modern gaming world. This book appeared to advertise itself as a rerelease of the original handbook with additional content for Bendy and the Dark Revival, but upon comparing the two, I've noticed there's actually a number of changes they've made, some good, some bad, and some that I'm not sure what to make of. So come and join me under the cut, and if you have some thoughts of your own, feel free to comment or reblog and add to the discussion. Without further ado, here we go!

Part 1: The Baffling Amount of Cut Content

Our story begins where most stories do, the table of contents. So right off the bat, when comparing this book to the original, you'll notice something off.

No, your eyes do not deceive you, an entire section of the original book was cut, on top of making other sections shorter. And the weirdest part? Some of these things were exclusive to that original book, they didn't appear anywhere else in the Bendy franchise. So already we're off to a weird start. Some of these missing pages aren't so bad though. In some cases, they're just format changes to make the book flow a little better/take up less room. Sometimes they succeed in that, sometimes they end up feeling more cramped, it's pretty subjective whether or not this improved the book. But it certainly does cut down on pages. Case in point, the beginning of each chapter of BATIM.

Don't worry, Joey's letter hasn't been cut, but it has been moved to earlier in the book, so it's no longer in Chapter 1. This was a very odd change. Other things that are missing are character monologues, but it's inconsistent. Alice Angel's speech about the screaming well of voices and Joey's monologue right before the final boss were kept, but Sammy's "sheep sheep sheep" speech and Bertrum's audiolog right before his boss fight were inexplicably cut.

Here are a few cuts I found pretty significant.

These pages are all missing from the update. In the case of this newspaper article, what does that mean in regards to whether or not this is "canon" or "retconned"? Joey Drew, did you or did you not have plans to expand into a Bendy themed toothpaste? The people need to know! X''D But seriously, while some of this is inconsequential, some of it matters. The mascot costume in particular, that's the only sketch we get (that I'm assuming came from Bertrum or Joey regarding that part of the parks, no one is specifically credited for making it). It doesn't show up anywhere else in the series (to my knowledge). It's strange that it's just, gone now. The Bendyland spread is such an unfortunate loss, that's some of the closest we've ever gotten to seeing the map of the park. Yes you can see it in BATIM, but being able to get up close and personal with it without having to control Henry was really nice. It makes me wonder if they're trying to erase the past details so they can do more with Bendyland in the future, something that's different from the original vision. I don't think that's it, but it could be, though they'd also have to go back on The Illusion of Living too, given it’s discussed there with some really fun details.

Speaking of which, that's the weirdest piece of cut content: the missing section that ends the old book (that was reiterated in The Illusion of Living). It's Joey Drew's tips for making a cartoon. It's formatted differently and has no images in TIOL, but the basic information is still the same. What's not the same though, is the loss of the tutorial pages for drawing the toons. These are another thing that don’t show up anywhere else in the series, making them a much more permanent loss. And even though this section is cut, it’s still referenced on the back cover of the new book, which is a bit odd.

These were really cute and showed so much personality for not just the toons, but for Joey as he described them. Cutting this was genuinely disappointing for me. Same with the paperwork in Joey's apartment. Those were some of the highest quality images we had of what was on his desk and bulletin board, and I liked being able to see them clearer. The biggest loss of the cut content isn’t just the pages themselves, but the personality they gave to this book, and the Bendy world as a whole.

This was the very first Bendy book to be released, and therefore our first look into this world in this format. And while I don’t think it’s the greatest thing in the world in terms of being a game guide, I didn’t pick up the original for a game guide. I picked it up because I wanted to see if it provided more context for the world. And when it does that, it does a good job. The memos from characters we know, Joey’s financial records, the images from the desks of people like Joey and Bertrum, they give us insight into how things were going at the studio. Some of my favorite details from the original are Joey’s memo about how Susie was replaced by Allison, and the receipt for Joe’s Fine Dining. The fact that that memo was distributed to everyone but Susie enhanced what we already knew from BATIM, and it paints him as a much crueler character than we knew him to be. Not to mention the repeated use of “I have to say, I’m an instant fan”. Having Joey say those words makes the concept of him creating the cycle so much more interesting. Like did he script out every little action these characters take? Or is this something Susie picked up and recycled from him after potentially finding this memo in real life? Oh there are so many delicious possibilities. And the lunch date, oh my gosh. One, it started my quest to build the Joey Drew menu using all the things he eats in the books, because damn does he have good taste. And two, it was so cool to have a look into an interaction Susie told us about in that one tape. Like that was REALLY GOOD. Give me more like that! When you have other parts of the series back up things we’ve heard only one character say, it gives more credence to the idea that they actually happened that way, or gives us a clue that we need to check for character biases when they tell us their side of the story. And in a series where MOST characters are unreliable narrators, that is REALLY IMPORTANT for establishing timelines and figuring out what’s real versus what’s fabricated. That was my biggest hope for the update, for more flavortext and world building that expands on things we already know.

But um…the dark revival part of the book doesn’t do that.

Part 2: The Dark Revival’s Minimal Offerings

After an abrupt jump from Bendyland to BATDR, we get into the new stuff. The Bendy and the Dark Revival section of this book is alarmingly short and has very little substance. There is no new expansion of the worldbuilding or insight into these characters. I mean, the book describes Heidi as being a female lost one? So if you wanted a confirmation on her gender, there you go I guess? I guess that detail was never like, stated explicitly, but this is me stretching to find something new that it gives us. Actually, wait, it does give us one new thing, but I’m gonna be honest, it kind of rubbed me the wrong way.

The book refers to Allison having a “pet wolf” when we get her introduction in Chapter 1. It then later describes that Tom “likes being pet” when we get his introduction in Chapter 5. Which by the way, is the only image of Tom in this entire book, since his original render from the old version was cut. Now, I’ll be honest, I used to like that second detail, I thought it was cute that he doesn’t just tolerate Audrey, he actually LIKES being pet. Those are two different things, having some insights into Tom’s feelings and characterization would have been a breath of fresh air. But no, when I reread the book and saw that first detail, that made that really weird and uncomfortable actually. It would be one thing if in-universe, Tom called himself a pet, or Allison called him that with consent. Heck, if there was another character in-universe who wanted to purposely insult Allison and Tom by saying that, that would be fine too, then it’d be reiterating the narrative. But on its own? I take issue with taking Tom of all characters and calling him her pet. The Safehouse Boris never got treated that badly, hell, Buddy in the books never got dehumanized this badly when he became a Boris. But Tom, Tom gets to be the one that’s dehumanized? There is something that really rubs me the wrong way about that. Especially if he turns out to be Thomas Connor or has some connection to him. I can’t assume if he is or isn’t anymore given all the stuff BATDR pulled with Allison and Henry. But on the chance he IS Thomas Connor, do you have any idea how bad that looks, to have a character that, because of details written in Dreams Come to Life, many fans speculate to be a person of color, referring to him as Allison’s “pet”? And even if he ends up not being a person of color (I say as I groan about the inevitable discourse for the DCTL graphic novel that’s coming out), it’s still kind of awful to say that about anyone. Tom is a character that has repeatedly gotten the short end of the stick in this series. He’s relevant to BATDR for all of a couple of minutes, and he’s incredibly underutilized and lacking details or depth for most of the series. Thomas Connor, he gets a bit of depth as of The Lost Ones, that novel does great things for him. But Tom Wolf? Short end of the stick. And I’m sad to see that continue here.

The one positive thing I have to say about this section is that it’s really nice to have so many of the audiolog character transcripts here. Most of the notes and logs from BATDR are here with all their words typed out. The ones that in-game had a chiller styled font are transcribed a bit strangely, as now they’re written like the messages written on the walls in-game. But it’s not the worst. If anything, all of this gives me a great resource as a theorist. Having a record of all of these and what chapters they appear in makes my goal of constructing a timeline and cross checking information much easier.

Though from a graphic design standpoint, these pages frustrate me a little bit. They’re so cramped, and there’s several spots where the text isn’t centered properly within its text block. I get the sense on some parts, it’s because it’s placed so close to the spine of the book, so they don’t want any information getting cut off, but it still looks funky. And there are several spots where that explanation doesn’t really apply. There’s also some weird placement of fun facts. While I love that this book lets us in on some secrets, they’re not always placed in an area that makes sense? Like, there’s a note about how to get the Inkjets Concert, but the steps for how to get it are placed way after a point in the narrative where you’d be able to get it, and I’m kind of scratching my head as to why it was done that way. Is it to encourage a second playthrough? Or is it to not spoil the story? Why not split the information up? Or have a dedicated secrets page like they do with the achievements and theMeatly’s cutouts?

Though speaking of not spoiling things, this book is really odd about what it chooses to focus on. So, Henry’s model is in this book, right next to a passage about a “mysterious man” you can meet in the Cyclebreakers area. They showed his model but didn’t name him as Henry? I don’t quite get that choice. Also, despite the cyclebreakers being very important to this story, they aren’t really mentioned before this very brief section. However, Porter? The character shown for all of a few seconds? He’s got at least three images throughout this book. The balance feels off with what this book chooses to put emphasis on.

Also, this one really annoyed me: Allison. So for everyone who’s actually played BATIM, you would know that Allison Angel is never referred to as Allison within BATIM. We only know she’s called that because people dove into the game’s files and revealed her and Tom’s names upon the release of Chapter 4. And the book follows suit with this, it does not call her Allison in the original handbook whatsoever. HOWEVER, the BATDR section messes this up. When it introduces her, even though in-game she introduces herself as Alice, the book introduces her as Allison. But when we get to Chapter 5, the part where she’s actually named Allison by Audrey, it suddenly switches to calling her Nice Alice? It’s a weird choice and I don’t understand why this happened.

It leaves me wondering just how much the new author of this section and their editors know about the Bendy series before going into this project. What context were they given to write this thing? It makes the book feel unpolished to have so many mistakes in its formatting and information. I don’t know what the quality control team for this release looked like, but a part of me wonders how many editors this went through before making it to the final release. I don’t work in publishing to know what that looks like, but I’d genuinely love to learn more on this subject, it’s fascinating.

There’s also a very strong dissonance in the imagery. While I’m glad to see the renders from BATDR’s advertising so clearly and up close, the difference in their coloring looks strange when put next to the rest of Bendy’s usual color palette. It leaves me wondering what assets the book team was given for use in this release. There’s a lot I could say here about the importance of press kits and brand guidelines, especially in this day and age when so many fans are making just as high quality of content as the official releases of media. And that leads me to the most disappointing part of this book.

Part 3: Stolen Content

If you’re active in the Bendy fandom and know its many creative members, then you may already know what I’m about to dive into. MLSpence3D is an artist that enjoys 3D modeling, rigging, animating, and rendering. He can often be found engaging in all sorts of corners in the indie mascot horror community, such as playing a notable role in the production of SuperHorrorBro’s upcoming title, Glitched Out, as well as providing the renders used on the Bendy Wiki of the in-game characters. Spence has had his work mistaken for official renders before, and unfortunately, it’s not just fans making that mistake. The render of the Piper used in the BATIM portion of the original handbook is Spence’s, and it unfortunately hasn’t been removed in this update, nor has he been credited or asked for permission to have it used here. I’ll admit, his stuff looks so official that I’ve mistaken it as such too, and it speaks to a much needed conversation on assets, metadata, and protection for artists of all mediums.

Our fandom is not the only place where this happens. Back when FNAF: Help Wanted was in production, the cover art mistakenly used fan renders as a part of its photomanipulation. Developer Scott Cawthon was quick to apologize and make things right, removing the renders and replacing them with officially made FNAF models. Heck, we had something similar happen right here with Bendy back when the voice cast of BATDR started working with Streamily. The initial post that advertised their Streamily debut used renders from Spence and a few other artists that had to be tracked down, and they didn’t have the rights to use them, nor were they credited. It makes a lot of sense that this happens, when you don’t have sufficient resources and aren’t an active member of the fandom, if you’re a graphic designer trying to make a piece to advertise something, you’re going to need assets to make that. And if you’re not given sufficient assets by the people you’re designing for, you turn to other sources to get the job done. They may not know what on Google is official vs fan content. The fans are so skilled and passionate about what they do, and with the number of series that have fans steadily joining the official teams, it’s incredible what can result from being passionate. But it also makes for a much needed reminder to add metadata to your files so that they can be traced back as belonging to you. Watermark your stuff, clearly mark your work as fan content in the tags, captions, and descriptions, in an effort to protect yourself. Don’t use images you find online unless you have a very clear idea of where they came from, so you can direct people back to the source when they ask about it (or better yet, link the source in your description from the start). Give people another reason to pause and double check their work in the chain of command (they should be pausing to double check anyway, but let's be real, we don't live in a perfect world). In a world where credit and sources are more important than ever, remembering to give credit where it’s due from the start will save you all kinds of headaches in the future. Video game developers, especially those of you in the indie scene: please develop press kits to give to people your teams collaborate with. By giving them assets they can reliably use to advertise for you, you will save everyone a lot of hassle in the long run. And if this is still happening even with a press kit, it merits having some conversations to evaluate why and solve the problem. If there is no other takeaway anyone gets from this post, this is the big one I want to see some positive change on in the future.

Part 4: The Functionality as a Game Guide

This book works for your first time through BATDR, but not for any kind of sequential playthroughs. The way it directs you through the game uses the audiologs and notes as waypoints. Once you pick them up, they are removed from the environment, and so if you’re picking up the game after a long time away from it, you’re not gonna remember where those were, so it’s likely not going to be useful for navigating. It reminds me a lot of the way my parents talked about one of our old hometowns. We lived in Vermont for a little while, and there were two things about our area that we laughed about. One, never leave your car unlocked unless you want it filled with zucchini. Two, if you ask for directions, you’re not gonna have a clue unless you’re a local, because they word everything in a similar fashion to “you’re gonna drive past where the old barn used to be”. At least give me a landmark that still exists, or a map! The BATIM chapters aren’t much better, they sort of give you a layout map, but it’s not helpful. Especially in Chapter 3, the place where you arguably need a map the most, there is no kind of instruction for how to get through Alice’s fetch quests if you get lost.

In my mind, a game guide is something you turn to when you need help getting through a game. Now, mind you, I am not the target audience for a game guide. I don’t own game guides. There are a few in my household that my siblings own, for stuff like Super Mario Sunshine, and I guess technically my Pokedex for Pokemon Black and White 2 DOES double as a game guide. But like, we now live in the age of the internet. If you want to know how to get through something, there are a million articles and Let’s Plays that detail how to complete the base story, find secrets, and even suggest strategies for tackling difficult challenges. Some of these are designed to be informative, and some are more reactionary and built for entertainment, there’s lots of flavors to choose from!

And it makes me wonder, what does that mean for the medium of game guides as a whole? I think they still have their place. For one thing, different people benefit from different learning styles. Being able to read a guide may work better for someone than a video depending on their brain wiring. And for people who don’t have reliable or frankly any internet, or rely on a library for that, it’s nice to have a book so that you don’t have to wait to keep playing. I’ve never seen anyone get a game guide from a library, but I absolutely think it’s something a library could have. It’s also just really convenient to have all of that information available in one book, as opposed to having to search through multiple forums and sources and risk getting spoiled. And when they’re done well, sometimes they can have secrets not even the existing player base knew. Like I knew that there was this secret about a ghost train that appears if you set your system’s clock to 4:14, but I didn’t know if AM or PM mattered. Thanks to this book, now I know that it doesn’t matter, both work, which is really handy to know! But uh…most of the secrets that were revealed in this book were things I knew within the first month that BATDR came out. None of them were new to me as someone who’s plugged into the world of Bendy. There have been multiple videos detailing how to get these secrets, and how to play this game, by many different indie horror enthusiasts. It almost makes it feel like this book came out a bit too late, and it’s only released about a year or so after this game came out.

Which really begs the question, who was the target audience for this book? Was it for new fans who were struggling with these games? Was it for longtime fans who wanted a memento of the occasion and a record of all the stuff in these games? Was it for lore hunters hungry for new secrets and world building? Having read both versions of the employee handbook, I still can’t definitively say who the target audience is. That kind of frustrates me, that’s the first thing they taught us about back when I went to school for graphic design. It’s important to keep your audience in mind when designing something, that way it caters to their needs, appeals to them, and gets your message across effectively.

Part 5: Final Thoughts

I still can’t say for sure what I was supposed to get out of this.The parts of it that I found charming and appealing were not continued or built upon in this update. There is no new world building or lore. It doesn’t do an effective job as a game guide given its reliance on non-permanent elements of gameplay. It doesn’t give us tools to cross reference what we know from previous entries, nor does it expand upon details that lacked clarity within BATDR or BATIM. It removed some of its more charming content, and it still has stolen artwork from its previous iteration. By the time I got done reading this book, I was left feeling disappointed and kind of exhausted. No joke, I grabbed a friend, and we went through it all to compare it page by page to see what changed. It was something you could make a drinking game out of, not that I would recommend that.

I would struggle to recommend this book to any Bendy fan, unless you’re a completionist like me who wants to own every book as a physical copy. The original employee handbook was a far better read, and if you can find a copy secondhand or at your local library, you’re in for a small but tasty treat (quite literally if you decide to make the bacon soup recipe, which fun fact, originated in this book and was developed by the wife of Bookpast, one of the writers on this series!). The Dark Revival section feels tacked on and not as well thought out as the original book was. There is a very odd disconnect between the two. I’m genuinely confused as to why it was put in a rerelease of this book rather than making an entirely new book for Dark Revival. Dark Revival is a much longer and detailed game than Bendy and the Ink Machine. I would expect a book that describes how to play it and its world building to take up a lot more pages and go in depth on different details than this one did. So why was it done this way? Does this have to do with some sort of contract with Scholastic that we don’t know about? Was there a time constraint, or a page count that had to be met that they couldn’t meet with just BATDR? Did the people working on Bendy have too much on their plates to dedicate the time to a new book? What happened here? I wasn’t expecting to leave this book with more questions than answers, but here we are.

Overall, I don’t think it was worth what I paid for it, but it’s going to live on my shelf with the rest of my books. This will be handy for when I need to reference the audiologs and don’t want to look up a YouTube video to remember what was said. It’ll also be nice if I’m traveling. See, whenever I visit my grandparents, their wifi is pretty limited, so if I want to draw anything while I’m up there, I have to print out references or download images on my phone before I go so I can do that. Having some of the new renders in this book will be useful if I decide I want to draw Bendy stuff or theorize while on the road.

Now it's your turn. Tell me your thoughts on the Updated Edition of the Bendy Employee Handbook! Is this something you want to read? If you have read it, did you enjoy it? Were you left wanting more? If we ever get another book like this, what sort of things would you like to see? Let's talk about it. And remember, if you did enjoy it, that's not a bad thing, absolutely no judgement there. Just because it wasn't for me doesn't mean it's not going to be enjoyable for someone else. Every work of fiction has its audience. <3 Here's wishing you a wonderful rest of the day, and happy reading!

#bendy employee handbook spoilers #bendy employee handbook #bendy spoilers #batdr #bendy and the dark revival #batim #bendy and the ink machine #bendy books #bendy book spoilers

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the-solar-system52 · 11 months ago

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INK DEMON AND BENDY THEORY

So Bendy's official Instagram account just posted something very interesting, and I want to theorise about it!

For awhile the social media account for Bendy have been doing these posts where Bendy takes a photo of a location from BATDR and steals an item from that location, and people have to guess what he took. I thought it was just an unimportant game to give the social media managers something to do, like Steelwool's 'Guess The Sketch', but now it's actually important.

The picture shows that Bendy built all his stolen items in the shape of his Ink Demon form, with an interesting caption. Some fans have took this post to mean that Ink Demon ordered small Bendy to make a statue of him, but I don't think that's true.

I'm a big fan of the "Bendy is the Ink Demon with the mind of a child, and they are NOT seperate people" theory, and I don't think this post disproves that.

So if you know my past TPOH and FNAF theories, then you know its time for another round of:

SOLAR NEEDLESSLY OVERANALYZING THE GRAMATICAL STRUCTURE OF SENTENCES TO MAKE A THEORY EVEN THOUGH MOST PEOPLE DON'T PAY THAT MUCH ATTENTION TO HOW THEY PHRASE THINGS

Lets dissect this single sentence like a frog!!

"His inner Ink Demon is always on his mind-"

If Joey Drew Studios had phrased this as "IN his mind", then I see how this would be more literal. Meaning that the Ink Demon is a separate entity to Bendy and is literally living IN his mind.

But they didn't, they said "ON his mind". This phrase is usually used more metaphorically. If I'm hungry, I can say that dinner is 'on my mind', but that doesn't mean my dinner is actuallly INSIDE my brain. All this means is that Bendy has been thinking about his memories of his Ink Demon form, and therefore made a statue of him when he looked like that. Possibly to try and communicate his complicated feelings through art, or maybe he collected those specific items almost subconsciously.

Second of all, if the Ink Demon really was ordering Bendy around from inside his mind to make that statue for him, then I don't think it looks right. In BATIM, there are multiple shrines made by followers of the Ink Demon like Sammy, that look more demonic. As you can see, Bendy's statue doesn't look anything like that. Not a candle or pentagram in site! I feel like if this was made by the request of the Ink Demon, it would look way more like the ones from BATIM. But it doesn't! Instead, I think it looks more like it was made by Bendy on his own accord, like a children's drawing.

"His inner Ink Demon-"

Again, Joey Drew Studios decided to take the less-literal more-metaphorical route of this phrasing. If they just said "THE ink demon" then it would imply the Ink Demon as his own separate entity. But saying "inner" when referring to a buried memory of someone's past is not uncommon to do for regular use as well. For example, if I draw cats a certain way then I can say it's my "inner warrior cats fan" coming out. That doesn't mean there's actually a warrior cats fan inside my brain ordering me around, it's symbolic.

"on his mind, searching for an exit."

This also doesn't disprove my theory. The Keepers technology is preventing him from turning into his Ink Demom form. This means he can't use his powers and is weaker and smaller. It's clear he at least vaguely remembers what the Keepers did to him because of how scared he is of the GENT building.

Since he is in an incredibly hostile environment, it's no surprise he'd be thinking of a time where he wasn't as vulnerable. And he would also be trying to find a way to be strong again, in his own child-like way. Which explains the statue.

Personally, I find this all way more interesting then "rrr ink demon scary rrr", but to each their own.

I have more evidence for my "Bendy is the Ink Demon with the mind of a child, and they are NOT seperate people" theory outside of this instagram description, but I've already written enough for this post. I may make another post about it but we'll see. Please comment if you have anything else to add ^^

#I really need to get a hobby #I just wrote an entire tumblr post analysing ONE SENTENCE about my hyperfixation #batim #batim bendy #bendy #bendy and the dark revival #bendy and the ink machine #batdr #batdr bendy #the ink demon #batim theory #batdr theory #batdr the ink demon

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nno-user · 2 years ago

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- AU where Henry's face is just a nametag. That's it. There's no lore..I just.. didn't want to draw his face.

- Sketch I drew because I wanted to put his audio log name as the face.

- Comic 1

- Comic 2

- Henry and Bendy

- Henry talking to himself (He's just silly like that)

- This AU was simply because I didn't want to draw his face. Stupid? Yes. Cool design? Probably. I thought so.

- I KNOW I DREW IT BUT HENRY GOING CHOO CHOO FOR BENDY BECAUSE BENDY CAN'T MAKE SOUND IS AAAAA💥💥

- Henry can still see, smell, and talk. I'm not sure how he eats but from his conversation with Audrey he seems perfectly fine not eating.

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pipesflowforeverandever · 1 month ago

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Sometimes I like to look back on all my old sketches and remember how happy Gingie used to make me.

I’m just dropping by to thank you for contributing so much to the BATIM chapter of my life, and let you know I still very much treasure that time and all the wonderful, silly little characters involved. I think I genuinely drew Gingie more than I drew Bendy himself lol 💙🌙

Hope you have a lovely day

And thank you for being in that chapter of mine!!! It always made me so happy to see your art, i hope you know. <3

#tak talks #tak's ask box #moonshadow0

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thatonecrookedsmile · 7 months ago

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You know, one thing I don't like when I digitally color sketches is that the colors end up looking a little desaturated because of the paper. It doesn't look bad, I guess, but I have to eventually find a way to "fix" it eventually.

Anyway, today marks 6 years since BATIM Chapter 4 was released. Damn. I know I say something similar every time I recognize the passage of time, but it's hard to believe that it's been more than half a decade since this chapter came out. Time passes, I get older, it's crazy! And I wanted to do something to celebrate. I've never been able to do anything to celebrate this chapter's anniversary since 2019. Which is a shame because "Colossal Wonders" is my favorite chapter in BATIM. Some of my favorite moments from this game are in this chapter.

And every year I try to do something to celebrate the anniversary, but I never manage to do it and it sucks! And as usual, what I really wanted to do this year didn't end up happening. I'll probably do it at some point later, but there was no way I could execute the idea I had in mind in such a short amount of time. But I still wanted to post something today, so something small will have to do.

In this case, oh hey! It's Bertie and Lacie! In recent times I've been going back to old designs of mine of the human cast of the Bendy universe, and since CH4's anniversary was coming up, I thought it would be good to update my designs for both Bertrum and Lacie. It's been so long since I last drew them, so it's about time. I liked the general idea of the last versions of them that I did in the past, so I tried to keep those ideas still, in a way, but at the same time giving them new life. Lacie falls more in this case, tbh. Bert still maintains some of the previous idea, but I had to change a few details. He still looks good, tho.

I originally wanted to put Jack Fain here too, because,by all accounts, Jack Fain only came into existence with the release of CH4 and the remasters of the other chapters. As much as you can put him on CH2's anniversary,he, at the end of the day, was only introduced on April 30, 2018. Problem is, I didn't like the drawing I made of him. I don't know, it wasn't that good in my opinion. And I didn't want to redo the drawing again (this would be my third attempt) and I wouldn't have enough time to redo his part. So today we'll just have Bernie and Lacie. Sorry Jack. Maybe next time, when I show my CH2 cast designs in one place.

Once again, happy anniversary to Chapter 4! This is my favorite chapter of the game to date. It includes some of my favorites from the story, it has several surprises that caught me the first time I saw the chapter, it brought new updates to previous chapters that added things that I still like to this day (and this goes especially for CH2) And overall, it's a pretty cool chapter me thinks. 👍

That one day we can hear more from Bertrum and Lacie again.🙏 (Especially Lacie. Seriously, don't you guys think it's wild that Lacie is the only one of the human cast of BATIM who hasn't appeared in practically anything since the first game. Like, yeah, she's mentioned in the Handbook, but other than that, she's not mentioned in nothing else after, whether in games or books. I think about this from time to time. Truly one of the Bendy characters of all time)

#bendy and the ink machine #batim #bertrum piedmont #lacie benton #batdr #bendy and the dark revival #crookedsmileart #if you want a fun fact: The first design I made of Bertrum; which was in 2019 in I believe;#I wanted him to be similar to his model that we saw in the game;#at the same time taking a little inspiration from his VA;Joe J. Thomas #I think the design actually worked? but I wasn't happy for a while #so I ended up redesigning him; moving away from the canon accuracy a little; and doing my own thing #and this ended up continuing with subsequent updates #I think this current design is a bit of both ideas; details based on how we saw him in the game; and my own details #and yeah;the monocle has been around since the first design #and yes; the bow tie is kinda weird with that shape #but I think the great Bertrum Piedmont is allowed to wear ties of any type of shape; even they are a bit strange #Lacie's design hasn't changed much in recent years; the main idea has remained the same #The most changes she went through were changes in the color palette #the one I ended up using in the end is what we see above #I think it's what suits her the most (at least; it suits my design of her)

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inkunodesupoddo · 7 months ago

Text

Hello, I've been gone for a long time, yes. All because my laptop broke down, our router no longer worked, and because of this I could not access many instant messengers, and the Internet in general except for telegram. One day, I experienced side effects due to a temporary withdrawal from the medications that I was forced to take (I’m not doing well mentally). My excitability was quite strong, because of this I came out of my art block, adapting to drawing on my phone. After a couple of times when I drew Noise (I just adore him, he’s so crazy, I adore characters like him), I was struck by the idea of crossing my beloved Bendy and the Pizza Tower in an AU crossover. I know it sounds crazy.

For now, I can only show sketches of designs, and a couple of plans: I plan to take for this AU characters from Bendy comics, and the original lore, for the most part these will be familiar cartoons, but there will also be people. Here I can definitely say that the universe itself will be completely cartoonish, with a bit of absurd humor, ideas (I’ll try not to diverge too much), perhaps I’ll add a little horror, just like LGBT people (I will be killed for this, shot, and buried alive. Especially for my pairings). Most of the characters here are over 18 years old. Boris and Daniel Levesque are friends, Boris has nyctophobia and is hetero. Leveque is Bendy's love interest. I thought about taking Shipahoy for the role of Bendy's rival.

There was also an option with Alice, which would replace Noiseta, and Shipakhoy most likely in this case would be the local Noise, only without excessive madness. Probably Buddy and Boris would have been in the future instead of Brick and Gustavo. Instead of Mr. Stick, I would like to insert someone close to him. Instead of Pizza Head there would be Bosswell Lotebucks, except perhaps with a more vile character. Brutus would replace the Pepperman, the Butcher Gang would replace the Vigilante, Miss Twisted would be in the role of the False Peppino (not literally). That's all for now =)

#Bendy AU #Pizza tower AU #Bendy #Boris #baddie levek #Ink demon

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sammy-i-dont-want-to-be-here · 8 months ago

Note

Bendy are you a little devil thing

Who was brought to life on the silver screen

Used to make em chuckle now he makes em scream

It's Bendy in the Devil's Swing

Flash back to the place that made the cartoons sing

Where the cobwebs grow and the floorboards creak

And it's all connected to an evil scheme

It's Bendy and the Ink Machine

Dreams do come true

I was deceived by Joey Drew, and now I'm coming after you

Who's laughing now?

You thought that you could cut me out

But now the ink is pouring down

Bendy was created out of ink

Then molded into a 3D beast

You can hear him coming by his tapping feet

It's Bendy in the Devil's Swing

Snap back to the era when the swing was king

But the workshops fading and behind the scenes

There's a deep dark secret hidden underneath

It's Bendy and the Ink Machine

Hey Joey, I got your message

There's still a sketch on my old work desk

It might have a been a bit overzealous

To collect all six of those office relics

I haven't seen my peers

In over thirty years

But there's no one here

Except grinding gears

And my rising fears

The illusion of living

Was only the beginning

Ink incarnate that's sinning

Presented in Sillyvision

The illusion of living

Was only the beginning

Ink incarnate that's sinning

Presented in Sillyvision

Bendy was a villain out of sync

Now he's off the page and he's on the brink

And his old pal Boris might have lost his spleen

It's Bendy in the Devil's Swing

A cartoon cutout that'll make you shriek

Yeah your heart starts racing when you hear that beat

The creator's brain might have sprung a leak

It's Bendy and the Ink Machine

One, two, three

To 3D

You and me

Ink machine

Flashing screens

Dancing fiend

Bendy sings

Devil's Swing

Dreams do come true

I was deceived by Joey Drew, and now I'm coming after you

Who's laughing now?

You thought that you could cut me out

But now the ink is pouring down

Bendy was a lil' devil thing

Who was brought to life on the silver screen

Used to make em chuckle now he makes em scream

It's Bendy in the Devil's Swing

Flash back to the place that made the cartoons sing

Where the cobwebs grow and the floorboards creak

And it's all connected to an evil scheme

It's Bendy and the Ink Machine

((did you just wrote a friking full song in here- I don't even know how to respond to that))

#bendy #batim #batdr #bendy and the dark revival #bendy and the ink machine #ask

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wirm-boy · 1 year ago

Text

Just finished Bendy Fade to Black and I Need to ramble

This might be a bit disjointed but whatever! Forgive me, and correct me if I mess some things up

I really enjoyed Rose actually! I thought she was a little annoying at the start, like Evan actually, but as more of her past got revealed I really started to feel for her! I think she was really well done as a character whose unrelenting optimism was a mask that she keeps up to cope with her dysfunctional little family. I liked her a lot

I also REALLY liked the side characters! I thought Archie was delightful and endearing, and Evan was really compelling! Ollie was my favourite character in the book by far and making such a small child be the main target of Joey’s assholery, and him being semi-aware of it, made it feel all the more evil. I was yelling at Rose for not realising that he was hallucinating like her for like half the book though.

Of course the Bendy novel staples were delightful to see! Joey was fantastic in this book, and I loved the blurring between his perception of reality and the sketch. I think maybe he tried out the glasses a little too much. I was hoping Rose would meet Henry but I understand that wasn’t in the cycle yet. The Allison cameo was wonderful, if a little short. I was pretty disappointed in the absence of Tom though.

Deserving of her own paragraph, I think Dot was a delight to bring back. I really liked her breakdown about Buddy, and it’s really got me thinking about the reactions of the people around other dead Bendy characters! I think it would’ve been really great if Rose had met Buddy in the sketch. I was kind of expecting her to and it was pretty upsetting that she didn’t. I might have to draw something about that.

I was expecting some tropes from other novels to pop up, but it isn’t a bad thing that they didn’t! I was just ready and expecting the classic “Bendy Protagonist Graphically Describes Their Own Death” section, and “One Year Older And More Jaded Companion”, but I guess Rose is unique. Good for her!

I was also expecting more Joey Drew journal passages but maybe the audiobook just cut them out? Someone let me know <3 The first one just felt like set up for a reoccurring section of the book which didn’t happen and I was pretty disappointed.

Overall I had a really fun time with the book, I just think it could’ve been improved. This isn’t all my thoughts obviously but it’s all the ones that’ve spilled forth right now. Maybe I’ll make more posts in future.

#bendy and the ink machine #bendy fade to black #bendy fade to black spoilers #rose sorenson #archie carter #joey drew #ollie sorenson #dot batim

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dot-cant-write · 2 years ago

Text

A Different Chord - Sammy Lawrence x Reader (Part 7)

It’s not a very good day at work, for you or for Sammy Lawrence.

————————————————————————

It had been two weeks since the strange incident with Sammy Lawrence. You’d honestly begun to walk on eggshells around him- what if he snapped or something? You hated to imagine it, but given his breakdown when you and Wally goofed off… Yeah, you really didn’t want to see that side of him again.

You tried to shake it off best you could, though. You had Wally to talk to anyway, and though he had some crazy theories about the music director, he was still your best friend. At least he could make you laugh in these weird times at Joey Drew Studios.

————————————————————————

Today was an even worse day at work than the day Sammy lost it.

Henry was leaving. Henry, your favorite person in the art department, was leaving. You begged to know why. Hunched over his desk, packing his remaining few things away, he replied “I just don’t think I’m needed anymore. And the studio is becoming something else. I don’t want to be a part of Joey’s… projects.”

Henry shook his head sadly. He had left a sketch on his desk- his first sketch of Bendy the Dancing Demon. He hefted up his box of art supplies and looked at the desk once more. Smiling sadly, he said “Goodbye, old friend.” Then, he turned to you. “Good luck out there, kiddo. And be careful. If things get weird… You might want to consider leaving too.” He placed a hand on your shoulder, his box of belongings in the other, and smiled again before turning and heading for the exit without another word.

————————————————————————

“I just can’t believe he’s gone,” you lamented to Wally on your way to the music department.

“Who’s gone?” Sammy Lawrence appeared around the corner, carrying sheet music.

“Henry. He left the studio this morning,” Wally answered.

“Damn. It’s a shame. He and Joey founded this place,” The music director said.

You shook your head sadly. Sammy frowned.

“C’mon, (Y/N). Follow me.” Sammy led you further down the hall, and Wally waved to you as you followed the music director hesitantly.

Sammy led you to his office. He closed the door behind you. “You okay?” He asked.

He actually seemed.. Concerned. It was like he’d forgotten all about you and Wally getting into trouble.

“I’ll be fine. I’m just really going to miss him. He was a big part of the art department. It won’t be the same without him.”

Sammy thought for a moment. “I wonder why he left. Joey and Henry started this together, like I said. It’s weird he’d just give up on it.”

You hesitated. “He said he didn’t want to be a part of Joey’s projects. I don’t even know what projects he’s talking about.”

You explained what Henry had told you, about getting out of the studio if things got strange.

Sammy’s expression shifted just slightly for a moment. Then he returned to his usual stoic self.

“Projects, huh? Interesting. I agree with Henry, though. Get the hell out of here if things go awry. It might not be so safe anymore.” He turned away and started shuffling through sheet music.

“Sammy, why would I feel unsafe here? Joey’s just a bit overzealous, that’s all. Right?”

Sammy didn’t respond immediately. “It’s.. Complicated. Joey has a lot of big ideas in his mind, I’m sure. Just be careful with him. He’s not trustworthy. He’ll take advantage of you.”

“Okay, fine. I’ll be careful, but I still don’t get what I should be worried about.”

Sammy took your hands. “Good. Just be careful, that’s all I ask. Don’t be like some of us.”

You barely heard him- you were too focused on the fact that he was holding your hands?? The composer almost never sounded kind, and actual physical affection was way out of left field for him. Not to mention his hands were ice cold. And a little shaky. Ink stained his fingertips.

“Uh-huh… Um… Sammy?” You glanced down at your hands in his. Sammy immediately let go and backed away.

“Sorry. Um. That’s all. Sorry about Henry. Anyways. I have songs to write.”

And at that, he rushed you out of his office. What the heck was that all about? you wondered.

Wally was right. Sammy Lawrence was acting stranger and stranger. And you wanted to find out why.

———————————————————————

Sammy’s POV:

Sammy Lawrence pushed you out of his office, and as soon as you were out of sight, he put his face in his hands.

“What the hell is wrong with me…” he mumbled.

The truth was, Sammy knew exactly what was wrong. Somehow, some way, he swallowed ink. Could’ve been the burst pipes. Could’ve been the way he nervously bit the tip of his pen when he didn’t know what to write. All that mattered was that he swallowed ink.

And now he couldn’t control himself. He was more manic. He wasn’t thinking before he acted anymore. He wasn’t himself.

Shakily, Sammy reached into his desk drawer, pulling out a well of ink.

“Don’t be like some of us…” he repeated to himself.

Sammy lifted the inkwell to his lips.

#sammy lawrence x reader #batim #bendy and the ink machine #sammy lawrence #batdr #bendy and the dark revival

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inkabelledesigns · 2 years ago

Photo

February 4th of 2023 marks the thirteen year anniversary of when I started my first sketchbook. So to celebrate, I decided to redraw the first OC that ever went in that original book: Hearts. I’m about to get really sappy under the cut.

I’m really bad at remembering dates, but this one sticks out in my mind. I remember being on my bed doodling this out, excited to finally throw something down on the page. At the time, one of my best friends had drawn Hearts out, but it wasn’t quite as I had envisioned her. I had been frustrated that I couldn’t articulate my vision, so naturally, stubborn 13 year old me decided the only way to get there was to learn to draw for myself. I uh, didn’t quite hit the mark for a long time, but this first sketch was important. Little did I know it was gonna take me on a journey that would last for so long (and is still ongoing)!

Hearts was a Sonic fan character originally. A baby blue hedgehog with pyrokinesis, defender of a world known as Planet Paradise and the leader of a resistance against a tyrannical king. She never met up with Sonic, they didn’t really exist in the same world, the visual style was just the same in my mind, and the stories were reminiscent of things I liked in the Sonic stories. The secret royalty backstory from Sonic Underground, the Werehog phase of Sonic Unleashed, the interstellar wonders of Sonic Colors (whose soundtrack I listened to all throughout drawing this tonight), it was all there. She was my whole world as a middle schooler.

Nowadays, I’ve re-imagined her to fit in what became of my other former Sonic project, Tales of Sunburst City, a world full of elemental heroes rising up against Tumult, leader of the Anti-Sync, to protect their home and the elements of nature. I think Hearts would work well as a fire elemental with hedgehog attributes. She’s sassy, she’s punk, but she’s always there to lend a hand. I can see her getting along with main protagonist Vibrance Echo very well.

I haven’t worked on her story in years. I had someone in middle school who kept stealing my book and inserting their stuff into mine without consent to make their characters the heroes of my stories, and another person who would also steal it and graffiti all over my art. It made me feel the need to keep it under wraps for a long time. I took forever to open up about my stories, and to improve as an artist. I got bullied within my fandom for not being very good at my craft (especially when I asked for help, I was laughed at), and because as someone who was pretty obviously bad at reading social situations/on spectrum, I was an easy target. That would go on from middle school all the way to college online. But I was determined through it all to become the best artist I could be and love my work. I had dreams of working on something for SEGA someday.

Look at where I am now. I’m standing here after 13 years, and finally, I’ve gotten somewhere. For one thing, I finally drew her hair the way I wanted it! X’‘‘D It took forever to figure out, but we did it, I’m so proud of that! But for another, look at where I’ve ended up as a person. I finally feel comfortable sharing my stories with my friends, and not only do they listen, but they’re interested in what I have to say. They encourage me to keep going. They’re there to help me when I get stuck, and I’ve learned so much from them that’s improved my art and writing game, especially in this last year. From nutcrackers to Bendy, I have a place where I’m happy and fulfilled. Thank you to my friends, you light up my life in so many ways, words can’t do it justice. <3 And it doesn’t matter if a hundred people or just a few see my stuff, I’m learning to love it and make it just for me. I’m closer now to creating the things I want than I ever have been before, overcoming the fear to just be myself. I have hope that maybe I can in fact write my books and tell my stories.

And it’s not just one art form where my skills have improved. It’s been noticeable across all my mediums. I have a bunch of new horizons that are being explored. I’ve gotten some cool voice roles that I never would’ve fathomed years ago. I tried cosplaying for the first time (in private, not ready to be public with that). I have improved on my dolls so much. And my digital illustration has been so much better! I’m getting better at using references, and my lip and nose game? Top notch! I even got to use some of my graphic design and illustration skills to help with the very first Bendy Fambassadors project! That still feels like a dream, the fact that I got to work with the voice actors for one of my favorite game series is AMAZING, and the fact that I can call some of them my friends and say I’m getting to know them as people? That’s the coolest thing ever! I’m so much more confident than I used to be, I finally proved to myself that I could do it. I am an artist, I belong here amongst the people whose work I look up to. I am amazing, I am beautiful, I am kind, I am compelling, I am FREE!

To all the artists out there that are insecure and finding their way, I can say with full confidence, it DOES get better. Yeah, I still have days where I crumble and fall apart, where nothing looks right and I’m in agony over my creations. But they aren’t the same as they used to be. You are the master of your own ship. Chart your course and weather the storm, take that high seas adventure! Find yourself somewhere along the way. There is so much treasure waiting for you, and you will find it. I’m a first believer that anyone can be artist. We can be so much more. Don’t be afraid to go out there and reach for the stars. You’ve got this!

#my art #oc art #sonic oc #hearts #some damn good art #art anniversary #illustration #oc #sketchbook #anniversary

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justwilfee · 2 years ago

Text

Answer to all this? ":D Well, okay, I'm an artist (A bit a writer, but… Not much)

Oh… Those were the distant times, when there was probably no 1.8.1 version of Minecraft yet. I just found the skin of some fire-water girl and it was my OC called "Ognennaya Nyasha(rus)" (Eng. Fiery Cutie). I had it until the moment when I found creepypasta and "Nata the killer" appeared, who is now better known as Natalie Wilfred. And she changed maaaany times, her design was more unstable than my mood. She had the same name all the time, but the surnames changed with each new fandom.

Newest OC… So, he seems to exist, but the concept? The base is there, but the character himself is not there yet. There is no name, no exact appearance. I liked my angelic cat, which I drew out of boredom, I want to keep him, but maybe change him a little.

Eh… IDK, what does that mean? :"D

Natalie loves different music, she is a music lover. Of course she won't listen to EVERY song, just what she likes. Hmm… Barney likes something calm, not too rushed music. The exception is if he is at some events and holidays(It doesn't matter what genre, although one of his favorite genres is jazz)

Natalie is a total fear, she is afraid of a lot of things. She is afraid not to be afraid and get into trouble(XD) But one of her big fears is spiders… Barney is afraid that something will happen to his friends and loved ones and he will not be able to help them.

Probably not. Except for the cat, who doesn't exist yet, haha. I usually try to create stories for the characters, no matter how cringe they are.

Oh, Barney and Natalie have a warm relationship despite their different personalities. But I can’t even call them a couple, because they aren't. They are very close partners and both have reasons not to be lovers, and yet they are nice to each other.

I didn't think about it. Unnamed parents haha xD

I can't pick one! I love Natalie and Barney. There are only two of them, of those hundreds of abandoned characters that I created before, they are the only ones that I have for so long ;-;

So far, this is Natalie, because it took several years before she had an eternal surname and appearance.

Purple star, it's probably about stories. I will say that both stories and art I have a lot of unfinished works and they will not be finished XD

Eh… I don’t know, I had the story of my BatIM au in my head, but at one moment I realized that I was too lazy to do something about it XD

Eeeh, next question

... Can I kept silent?(If I understand the question correctly. I have several word files. And almost all of them aren't finished… I will only talk about one… 39242... Yeaaah, I got really carried away writing fanfic… Cringe fic…)

Yes, all. I doubt I'll finish anything. Because it's just for fun, most likely I'll delete them sometime

I have so many fanfictions behind me, haha, I don't know

There will definitely be some kind of demon and some kind of mental trauma for the characters

Huh? ":D

Games, movies, other stories and cartoons. (One of the stories I really have is not related to Bendy or anything else, rather inspired by one film, but it was not taken as a basis)

None XD

A long time ago, I loved to draw in kindergarten and always wanted to become an artist

Mostly digital, just sketches on paper, I rarely draw with paints. And I also didn’t have to draw works in some style (Cubism, impressionism, etc.)

Eh, no.

Yesyesyesyesyes. It would be nice. And I actually want to be a graphic designer

IDK ":D

I don't read much, BatIM books are the only ones I've read (Although I still can't read "The Lost Ones", I'm constantly busy)

Don't know. I rarely watch movies. I watch TV shows and if it's a detective, then I'll probably watch it.

A lot of. Actually I'm listening to Electro Swing right now, IDK why. My musical taste is strange, the first song in the playlist is "Fur Elise", and the second is in the genre of Hardstyle or DeathStep.

I don’t know… Although… It was either Creepypasta or Minecraft (Who knows or remembers Minecraft myths? Herobrine for example, haha) and yes, I was already drawing then. I wrote stories and drew art.

Hehe, I'm fine, thank you.

I didn't answer some questions… Because I didn't understand them XD Well, who also wants to answer?

Writer (& Artist) Ask Game

Reblog this and let your pals ask about your OCs, stories, or about you! Remember to check your inbox, and feel free to tag someone you want to see play :)

* Who was your first ever OC? Do you still “use” them? How have they evolved over time?

Who is your newest OC? Why did you make them?

Biggest self-insert OC?

What kind of music do your OCs listen to?

What are some of your OCs biggest fears?

Do you have any OCs without stories? Will you ever create one for them?

What are your favourite relationships between your OCs? (romantic or platonic!)

Do you have any OC family trees?

Favourite OC?

OC you most struggled to make?

* Sum up one or more of your wips!

Which story took the most research?

Which story has the most lore?

Current word count of all your main wips?

How many projects do you have going on right now? Are there any that you doubt you’ll ever finish?

What was you first major project? How far along is it?

What are some tropes and character dynamics found in your wips?

Describe the setting of one or more of your wips

What are some things that inspired your stories? Real events? Maybe a dream?

What story are you the proudest of? Why?

* When did you start considering yourself a writer/artist?

What are all the “kinds” of writing/art you do? (short stories, poetry, screenplays, digital, painting, clay, etc.)

Are you in any writer/artist groups? (Ex: discord server!)

Do you have/want a career in your medium? If not, what do you do/want to do instead?

What’s your favourite genre to write? Is it also your favourite genre to read?

What are your favourite books?

What are your favourite movies?

Favourite songs at the moment?

What was your first fandom you were in? Did you make any art/fanfic for it?

How are you doing? <3

Ask away!

#wilfee reblog

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spookyuu · 2 years ago

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Appreciation Post!!

I've seriously been wanting to make a big post appreciating some of the dca content creators that I love (especially after getting to know some of them better) so here's a bunch of compliments and thoughts on them! (Also this is in no order, ily all very much ❤)

@madame-mongoose: Monnster!!! Oh, I love Monnie. Very bullyable (this is a pro). Always so funny and making me laugh. When Monnie comes online, I know there's gonna be some fun times to be had. Easy to talk to and my clone apparently. I wouldn't have made all these new friends if it weren't for Monnie and Sy, so I'm very appreciative of her uwu. Art is very shapely, bendy, very cartoonish in a pleasing way. And very unique to Monnie! I don't think I've seen anyone else with an artstyle like Monnie's. Characters are juicy, very well thought out and full of pain. Your mom.

@suokumi: You came crashing in one day and life has never been the same. Suo is full of love and passion and awful terrible disgusting sleeping habits. But they make up for it by telling everyone else to take care of themselves because they love you sososo much. Really talented, but don't tell them that or else they'll die. Anyway yeah, Suo Art my beloved and also Suo my beloved because we're married. Can bust out 50+ sketches in an hour and is like "dont look" even though I'm frothing at the mouth and shaking them. I love you Suo mwah ❤️

@opudontdonut: La Creatura!!! Bites everyone like watermelon. very fun, very gremlin. Pops in every now and again and throws everyone into a frenzy. A biting frenzy. Good Gaslighter. Take that as you may. Draws chibis really unique in a way I cannot replicate but is so so so so cute. Art is very distinct too!!! The line work especially is very noticable? Thick black lines. Draws the boys v skrunkly too. Nightmare and therapy au my beloveds.

@ariisonfire: TALENTED!!! Very, very talented. Animates, codes, arts, does just about everything and is good at it. Very funny doodles, very dorky. I love Ari!!! Very cute (cutest giggles this side of uh. Idk just really cute giggles) and provides me with Vector content. My spouse, no matter what Lily says.

@skittlewaffle: LOVE the way Kay draws the boys. Her art in general is so sharp and intentional. Precise. Very cartoony as well, good for animation me thinks. Has good AU ideas and brainstorms really well. Literally. The fucking paragraphs kay busts out that obliterate my mind. Also very fun person to hang out with, very silly.

@pillowspace: Beautiful, wonderful person. Somehow manages to draw on her 3ds??? Like a god?? Loves rotini (eat something else I'm begging you) KEEPS FUCKING REBLOGGING MY WATERFALLS PIECE Also has similar brain thoughts as me (ooie to Angel Tango jumpscare) Has a beautiful voice, fr. Sang a song for me which melted my little heart. Makes gut-bustingly funny gifs at the speed of light. Also says??? Things that make no sense but are very funny.

@vilz: Oof, what's not good to say about Val? You know that meme that's like "You're the funniest mother fucker on this webbed site" that's Val. Val's the funniest. Their comics always make me bark laugh like an idiot. Writes very poetically, reading their stuff is like. Like being punched but with a soft caress. Val art is good for the soul, me thinks. Even their doodles on receipt paper give me all the chemicals. Hanging out with Val leaves me smiling for the rest of the day, very fun company.

@cloudyvoid: SUPER talented. Can you believe they drew and rigged their own Vtuber model? I know, impressive right? Draws the DCA skrunkly and lanky just how I like 'em. BRAINS SO HARD WITH ME ABOUT DROWSIE AND GAIA!!? Very nice wonderful person as well, fun company. And ooughhh I just love the oc brainrot with her. Could do it all day, love you mwah.

@crazedauthor: Knows all the fanfics. Well maybe not all, but knows the ones I happen to be thinking about. Pops in mid brainstorm to add something juicy that adds fuel to the fire. Human gasoline. Got obliterated by 1 (one) chip. o7

@daunsun: Another sketch machine. Gives me Eclipse content. FIABC liker, which automatically elevates her status. Tries to shoot people who make fanart, but she deserves it so idk what to tell you. And then turns around and makes fanart for other ppl. smh double standards. Love the way she draws humans. And the boys, but that goes without saying. Honestly the way daun draws the boys is sooo good it's like. I can't even describe. It's like cupcake. Long cupcake.

@cakesfunhouse: Hi __ I'm Cole looking ass. Shoots me dead with fluffy ramblings all the fucking time. Brainstorms really well, dropping good ideas like they had them shoved in their pockets ready to throw. Actually really sweet and fun to talk to. Gremlin, though so beware, they bite. Draws biblically accurate dca fluff, so what's not to love. Will pop in randomly while you're talking to someone else to add something that kills me dead. Like wheezing laughter.

@nmfergus: Nikki my beloved 💜 such a sweetheart, loves to see people happy and excited, always asking questions and seeing how everyone is doing. CHICKENS!!! Farmville. Also Corndrop. Ask Nikki about corndrop. Can you guess what he sells? It's corn. The answer is corn.

@paper-lilypie: LILY!!! omg Lily real. Art is all soft lines and easy to read expressions and kisses and snuggles and basically when I see lily art it's like drinking a cup of hot cocoa. Also the way Lily draws hands? God, what a legend. Give me your hands. Little hater. And enabler. But she's my little hater/enabler so it's okay ❤️ love me a good Lily spotting. Has good au ideas too.

@sycopomp: SYBORG!!! I wouldn't be making this post if it weren't for them and Monnster. Sy writing makes brain go brrrr. Has this way of setting stuff up that pays off later? Like little hints into things that are really fun to pick apart/notice on your own. I can always picture what's happening in Sy writing really well which sucks for me personally when they write ouchie owies. But I love them for it mwah ❤️

@sinnabee: AH Sinna!!! Magician Au makes my brain neurons activate so hard. Very sweet as well, love doing magmas with her. Also funny and caring. Don't get to hang out with much because if timezones but I am always very happy when I do get to vibe with a Sinna. Has wonderful beautiful line work and cool ocs I want to know more about.

@spaciebabie: Chaos. (I'm tempted to have that be the only thing I put here) Also makes me laugh!! drops in and says some shit that has me giggling sillystupid. Art is bubbly. Round. Rotund. Want to get to know better!!! Pizza.

Special Mentions/People I want to get to know better:

@oobbbear: Bearz. Bearz my beloved. Your art makes my heart explode. And you're so funny even without knowing you well. 👁👁 The way you draw so chibi and yet so detailed? Like the way you draw hands? Impeccable. Also H mouth. H mouth so cute. I honestly don't think I would have gotten into drawing Sun and Moon fanart if it wasn't for Bearz' aus infecting me like a disease. So everyone say thank you to Bearz for roping me into this!

@hexheathen: MY NUMBER ONE FAN ❤ My bestie who doesn't know the jesties. I love you with all my heart, and I love spending time with you and the rest of our pals. This is my appreciation post and I say you get appreciated.

@bones-of-a-rabbit: SHY BEAN. Drops some cute ass shit and skitters away. Wish I could know better! They have a lot of good ideas and honestly I see them as one of the best fluff writers for DCA content. It was in Reality Not Fine my beloved. I've said it once and I'll say it again: They really capture the word "Lovestruck" with their expressions. When people say, "They looked at them like they hung the moon and the stars," I imagine the way Rabbit draws sun and moon looking at y/n. It's honestly such a talent.

#spooky speaks #appreciation post #idk what to tag this as #idk I just really love all my friends I guess #theres more to say about everyone but this is so long already 😭#sorry not sorry I love freely and a lot

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angelofthepage · 2 years ago

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BATDR Speculation: Who is Bendy?

So the internet is currently freaking out over little Baby Benders (rightfully so, he’s ADORABLE), and we all have a lot of questions about him. Is he as cute and innocent as he seems? Is he going to betray us? Is he the lighter half of an ink demon split into pieces? Does he have a soul? If so, is it someone we know? I have a lot of thoughts on this, and none of them are concrete, but today I want to talk about one of my favorite musings so far: How Joey and Henry might be involved in this. I wanna talk about The Illusion of Living.

https://twitter.com/LaurenSynger/status/1587778374038069249?s=20&t=b-DLbISPVNI584xRm5ALAg

Warning: if you haven’t read the Illusion of Living by Adrienne Kress, HIGHLY recommend it, as there are spoilers ahead. This book is delightful, and it’s not what I expected. When I picked it up, I thought we were getting a narrative about Joey’s life, and we did to an extent. But the real treasure of this book is that it’s a character study of Joey Drew. It gives us so much to think about in terms of who he is as a person. Because he’s Joey, you’d expect him to bend the truth (pun absolutely intended), and there are moments where it feels like some details aren’t entirely true. But there are some scenes that are written in such a way that feel all too earnest, and one of them is the scene in Joey’s apartment: the birth of Bendy.

The way Joey tells it, he’s the one who had the concept for Bendy, then his friend Abby Lambert attempted to draw it, but nothing was looking right. Abby brought Henry on board to help without consulting Joey first. Then they all sat on the floor of Joey’s apartment while Henry sketched out what would become the signature Bendy design (with critiques from Joey along the way). It’s made out to be this magical moment, and it’s believable. What reason would Joey have to lie about this? He may have a lot of feelings about Henry, mostly negative from what we’ve seen in DCTL, but he gave Henry credit here. He didn’t downplay Henry’s importance in all of this, which surprised me, and I like that a lot.

Joey comes off as being so deeply in love with his creation that it doesn’t matter who did what, the fact remains that Bendy is still his in the ways that count the most. He was made with love, dreams, and wonder at his core, Joey’s ideas and writing, Henry’s artistic execution. He belongs to both of them. I get the sense that a lot of people are going to jump into debating whether this little Bendy is somehow made using Henry’s soul or Joey’s. But I’d like to propose this: what if he’s made with both? His creation isn’t credited to a single person, but two, and who better to give Bendy a soul than both of his creators, two halves of a whole?

It gives another layer to why Joey would send Henry into the studio in the first place. Like why Henry? Henry’s just a guy who supposedly worked with Joey as an animator and business partner for one year before vanishing forever, why send him in? Is he a last resort where others failed (maybe Tom was sent in first and couldn’t fix things), or is it because he’s so integral to Bendy’s creation? Surely he has something grand to offer in that regard, by Joey’s logic. Send Henry in, sure, if anyone can stop this twisted version of Bendy, it’s his creator, right? No, this story isn’t one that you can solve by making Henry the protagonist, it’s one that needs both of them. It’s a story that needs Joey to acknowledge a lot of things in order for it to change. That could be why it’s a loop, the story can’t end without Joey playing his part, but he’s too busy blaming everyone else for the trouble he’s caused, not taking responsibility for his actions.

One of the theories I’ve seen that I really love from the first game came from @dreamfisher-nux which I’ll link here: https://www.tumblr.com/dreamfisher-nux/184575733862/that-child-at-the-end-might-not-have-been-human?source=share The idea that the child we hear say “tell me another one Uncle Joey” might not be human based on the milk carton texture’s inky handprints gives me a lot to think on. I have to wonder if that child might have been his last attempt to make Bendy. Yes, I know, five fingers is too many, but that’s exactly why I say “attempt,” not success. I mean he has the studio full of his previous employees, souls he’s claimed he owns, and now Henry is in there too. Is it possible this was all a plan to get Henry’s soul to make into his creation? I’ll admit, while I was around for the emergence of the “Henry is a perfect Bendy” theory, I’m not 100% sold on it for canon (though I do love it in fandom works), but an imperfect Bendy, or something close to Allison or Twisted Alice in nature? That I would buy. Henry alone may not be enough to give Joey what he wants. So what if, before the end of his lifetime, Joey gave himself up? Bendy is in part his creation, a part of him, just as Alice is a part of Susie, there is something they give to that character that no one else has. And much like Susie, Joey would do anything for the character he loves. He went to great lengths to try and see it through, sacrificed so much (much of which was never his to sacrifice).

When I first heard Joey’s tape about cheating death itself, I assumed his goal was immortality for the longest time. But TIOL has me thinking that that’s only half the story. You’re never dead if your legacy is still alive, and Bendy is Joey’s legacy. Making Bendy real and innovating beyond what any artist or engineer has done before is at the core of what he wants, to make dreams into reality. And if he’s gone, but Bendy is here and real and perfect? I think, that’s a sacrifice Joey would be willing to make, his dream would be achieved and that’s what matters. Throw on the machine machine one more time, take the child, his child, that was so close and take one more chance, add his piece to the puzzle, his soul to the mix. Become part of your creation. It’s an act of love, “but love requires sacrifice.”

Joey is believed to be dead in 1972, and this is where Arch Gate comes in. They have control of the Bendy brand, they own the rights and assets to it. Nathan was someone that was believed to be Joey’s friend, even though he’s done things a friend wouldn’t do. What does Nathan Arch know of Joey’s marvelous machine, of his dreams? While I don’t know if I buy Nathan as a benevolent character given what he’s said in the books, I do believe he would carry out some of Joey’s final wishes, though maybe not exactly the way Joey would want him to. And handing Bendy over to him, his most precious creation, to be taken care of? Well, that would be an interesting thing, wouldn’t it? You don’t leave your child in the hands of just anyone. It’s as Tom says in TLO, you don’t give up on a miracle.

Or course, take this all with a grain of salt. I think this would be an intriguing story to follow, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I expect it to be canon. Canon or not though, it’s an interesting thought, isn’t it?

#Bendy and the dark revival #batdr #batdr trailer #batdr trailer spoilers #bendy #batim #bendy and the ink machine #bendy theory #joey drew #henry stein #baby benders #tiol #the illustion of living

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