#Jimsa

[daryun]

Volume 14 sketches

The Heroic Legend of Arslan - Hiromu Arakawa extra art

"aaah it's a demon!"

[innerchorus]

Arslan Senki Chapter 121

I was going to say that in that first panel, it looks like Jimsa selected a horse similar to the Turanian 'type' but actually I think his mount just looks small next to Shabrang! (I actually went back to look at Jimsa's horse in earlier chapters and in doing so I caught a minor mistake in Chapter 117, where his horse's mane is erroneously colored black in one panel)

Good horse content this chapter, anyway: I like that it's Jimsa (a Turanian, whose lifeblood is their horses even more so than Parsians) who rides in shouting for water for his horse. And how quick the men are to care for the horses that have been ridden so hard. (Seeing them pour water on Shabrang's legs instantly made me think of how racehorses are cooled down; it's worth remembering that this battle is taking place in sweltering heat and those horses have been worked extremely hard to the point that it's a valid concern to think that they might collapse from overheating. The way Jimsa's horse is breathing is definitely worrying. (If you're interested, there's an article here about preventing post-race collapse in racehorses that goes into more detail and sheds some light on precisely why they're right to be so concerned.)

The dialogue that accompanied wet Daryun is 👌 (when he says "To the ends of the earth, if that be your order" because doesn't that one line just embody Daryun's feelings?)

And GIEVE, holy shit. I admit I have never been his biggest fan, but his involvement in the defeat and death of Bodin hit the right spot.

"Even now, you squirm unknowingly on the palm of my hand like the mediocrity you are!" is going down as one of my favourite lines in the whole series, seriously.

Right on both counts. Also, lol at the face of the soldier in the middle who looks far more worried by Bodin's pursuit than Narsus or Gieve

Something I really liked with how this all turned out is that Arakawa didn't just add Bodin into the mix because it was a convenient place to kill him off, she also integrated his presence on the battlefield and the tactics used to deal with him into what happens to Guiscard.

(I've already shared my thoughts on Guiscard's survival prospects via reblog here, so consider those bullet points a lit candle for his prayer circle! The one counterpoint to the argument that he will survive is the fact that a key reason for allowing him to live is now no longer necessary; Bodin is gone so there's no need to try and pit them against each other.)

It's mentioned quite a few times in the novels that an enemy who has a good grasp of tactics etc is easier to predict that someone who is more of a wildcard. Narsus knows enough of Guiscard to feel confident in what his move will be here, despite never having met him!

On that note, I really cannot wait for Guiscard and Arslan to come face to face.

(Just thinking back to how stressed the Parsian soldiers look when Bodin is on their heels and you know, it makes a lot of sense. Though they know it's part of a plan, they're still relying on the actions of an external force in order to pull it off. Not everyone has Narsus's understanding of strategy, so perhaps they're concerned that Guiscard won't do as expected and instead Bodin's forces will catch them. Plus, although Narsus had time for a quick tactical talk, the situation was still quite fraught and needed a fast response so I doubt there was much time to go into great detail and reassure everyone.)

The moment I realised what was going to happen to Bodin and his army will stick with me for a long time. I knew I would enjoy seeing him meet his end, but I didn't expect the moment to feel so impactful. (That panel where he first looks at the rotting remains of the Parsian cavalry in the pit just keeps coming into my mind, even days after first reading this chapter.)

So thinking ahead to what we might see next chapter... obviously a resolution to whatever's going to happen with Guiscard. I can't see that being the entirety of the chapter, though, so what else might we see? I wonder whether we'll get a panel or two of a Team Zahhak reaction or some sort of... 'status update' I guess (this chapter did have that 'man who hears the voice of god' line to remind us of Team Zahhak's involvement with Bodin). Otherwise, I would dearly love to get a glimpse of what's going on in Ecbatana, where Team Hilmes are beginning to feel the pressure. Yes, it has 100% been too long since I have last seen Zandeh.

[daryun]

(chapter 117)

being knightcore doesn't mean you have to be pro-monarchy. you can just swear your undying fealty to your best friend or your crush or something

[thatskynews]

Music has always been a big part of Sky - half the experience even. 🎶 Learn how music inspired the development of Season of Duets in this Developer Chat with our senior technical game designer, Julian Jimsa, and composer, Adam Gubman.

[inthebamboogrove]

This should have been the character Arslan Senki. He is canon and is not Jimsa who gave himself a ponytail. I actually need to work on his appearance.

[manifiestotamaulipas]

Encabezan corte del listón inaugural de la Sucursal de Pinturas Berel

Encabezan corte del listón inaugural de la Sucursal de Pinturas Berel

Noé Gea Medina. Miguel Alemán, Tamaulipas.-“Lo que ha caracterízado siempre a Miguel Alemán son las oportunidades, sobre todo cuando hablamos de inversión y de empleo”, dijo este lunes el Biol. Ramiro Cortez Barrera al encabezar el corte del listón inaugural de la Sucursal de Pinturas Berel, del Grupo JIMSA propiedad del Ing. Mario Jiménez. Acompañado de la directora de Enlace Empresarial y…

[ryukoishida]

ok first of all Isfan’s little fang~

also more Jimsa and Zaravant bromance please and thank

[daryun]

Volume 12 sketches

The Heroic Legend of Arslan - Hiromu Arakawa extra art

[innerchorus]

Arslan Senki Chapter 115

Posting based on the raw again, as I’m not sure how long it’ll be before this chapter is scanlated. (Not going to try to summarise the action this time; there are Japanese spoilers that I linked before or you can match up most of the scenes with the novel for further context. I hope to share some more detailed thoughts once a translated version is available.)

The Master both gives me the creeps and makes me deeply angry. I still hope Arakawa gives us a good look at his face before the end though, so we can have that ‘oh no, he’s hot’ moment.

 Hilmes, just because you had the world’s worst nap on the throne doesn’t mean you should start distrusting your loyal subordinate and insisting on hearing what the shady sorceror has to say? I hate this, it’s no surprise that Hilmes can’t let it go when he thinks he’s going to learn the truth of what happened to his father, but to see him start doubting Sam’s loyalty because of the words of a Team Zahhak mage, when we know that Sam would stay loyal to him to the death... The novel suggests that part of why he is so susceptible to Ghundi’s words is because of the strength of his desire to know more about what happened between his father and Andragoras, and that because he’s so fixated on his past and the wrongs that were done to him, he doesn’t give consideration to Sam’s feelings.

Anyway, moment of appreciation for Sam’s skill level; he presses Ghundi so hard that the mage wouldn’t even have been able to evade Sam’s strike with his magic, only Sam stops at the last moment when Hilmes shouts for him to do so, BECAUSE HE’S LOYAL.

I was really hoping that Arakawa would decide to eliminate Ghundi here and have Sam actually kill him, but maybe Hilmes wouldn’t have forgiven him for that...

(Hilmes must see that Sam has been conflicted about serving him from the start; he’s perceptive enough to know that. But I also hoped that he would feel certain that Sam would give his all to serving him after making his decision, and he really did believe that until this moment... Sam has done nothing wrong and I need Hilmes to understand and appreciate that 😭😭😭)

 Team Zahhak mages always seem to be barefoot, don’t they? I wonder if they need that contact with the ground for some of their magic?

WHERE IS ZANDEH. a whole chapter without him 😞 

The saddest image of Chapter 115.

Actually, Sam seems far more dejected here than he did in the novel scene (which states that as he walks away he doesn’t look discouraged and nor does he sigh, because he’s not the type to shrink in the face of adversity or misfortune). But here he just looks pretty down, and alone.

Come on Zandeh, where are you? He’s supposed to show up around now and I wanted to see him.

Jimsa and Zaravant stealth mode lightening the mood towards the end of the chapter! I still love Zaravant’s horse.

[daryun]

I like how the obvious choice is this is Azrael on Arslan's crest, but it also looks like freedom to me.

In chapter 105 Jimsa looks out of the prison window and there's a little bird tweeting there. I like to think that the little bird is what reminded Jimsa of Arslan and so Jimsa decides to not give up and live.

I know I'm just probably late to realizing this but it's been rotating in my head for a while that the center of Arslan's crest looks like a bird!

(which made me think about what his crest would be in Wolfpack but no no no nope not I can't design things like crests and I don't wanna try rn bc I rushed into immediately working on Gieve's sheet and now I have Mad Burnout™)

[pastellig]

Do you think Arakawa will include Jaswants encounter in the brothel and Jimsas escape from Peshawar?

General novel spoilers for you folks! If you’re unsure what anon is asking about, you can read a summary of A Frenzy of Dust here.

I feel confident that Arakawa will show Jimsa’s escape from Peshawar! It’s the kind of scene she seems to enjoy, and she’s already planted the seed: in Chapter 90, we see Jimsa sawing through the bars of his cell (and run back to bed to pretend he’s not quite so healed up when he hears the commotion of Andragoras’s return!).

I’m not as sure about Jaswant’s encounter in the brothel, but I lean toward yes. It’s interesting you asked about it, because I have been wondering how she will handle this for today’s audience since a couple chapters ago. (In other words, buckle up for a long post!)

A few things make me think she will feature this scene:

1. It was featured in the shojo manga by Chisato Nakamura. Her manga ran from from ‘91-‘96, which is a few waves of feminism ago. That being said, it wasn’t enthusiastically distributed to a Western audience, which can be more conservative.

2. Arakawa’s been pretty open about sexual behavior in Pars. Two points of evidence:

Narsus is casual about Shaghad’s multiple mistresses. While he also says Shaghad lives a life of debauchery, Narsus himself is the product of his father, Lord Teos, and one of Teos’ twenty to thirty mistresses — and he still gets to be an heir and earn a position at court. I don't think it was included in the manga so explicitly, but it is implied (when Alfarid first learns he is indeed “Lord Narsus,” Narsus quickly tells Alfarid his mother was but a free woman like herself). He doesn’t seem stigmatized for this situation at all, implying it’s common enough — lots of people hate Narsus, so I’m sure they’d mention it!

Hilmes and another Parsian (I think Garshasph?) note with displeasure that the Lusitanians are executing prostitutes and mustarid in Chapter 33. Though this word actually means “homosexual man,” the official translation indicated they are male prostitutes. The man who I think is Garshasph even says, “Do Lusitanians know nothing of life’s pleasures?”

3. Arakawa’s Daryun didn’t think of Shinryan/Shin-Liang by the light of Peshawar’s silvery moon. I’ll explain:

Readers might not understand why a man with a distant ~one true love~ would have sex with someone else, especially someone as notably loyal as Daryun. Since Arakawa didn’t feature him thinking of her, he’s “free” to get down with the lovely professionals of Gilan.

4. Most importantly: She’s stuck to Tanaka’s storyline pretty closely thus far, and Tanaka’s storyline includes visits to the brothels of Gilan.

I see only one hurdle: people have Mixed Feelings© about sex workers and those who utilize their services — feelings that wouldn’t apply to the same sexual situations sans financial transaction. While Arakawa isn't making a family-friendly manga, this could still pose problems.

Jaswant isn’t the only man who visits a brothel in Gilan: Gieve, Narsus, and Daryun do as well. Daryun, Narsus, and Jaswant are among the most noble-hearted, principled, honorable men in Pars — and those characteristics are key to this story. If I were an artist or a publisher, I might worry that a modern audience with modern scruples may think less of them for being “men with men’s needs,” which is essentially how it is presented in A Frenzy of Dust. (Seeing as Gieve has pretty clearly always been a man with a man’s need, this doesn’t quite apply to his character, but more on that in a bit.)

Respectable men may seek out sex workers as a matter of course in ancient Pars, but today’s readers won’t have the same perceptions of sex workers and their clients. Even ostensibly “sex positive” people often draw a line at prostitution, and others view paying for sex as evidence that you aren't desirable.

Modern readers don’t expect adult men to remain abstinent, but we do romanticize characters we like. Depending on our own perspective and the character, we see them as the sort of fellows who’d engage in some sort of exclusive relationship (Jaswant, Daryun), have such a focus on the mission that they become impervious to the call of Ye Olde WAP (Narsus, Daryun), or be a Lothario who doesn’t need to buy sex because he can charm women the old fashioned way (Gieve). In short, even pretty liberal people often prefer their fictional heroes be "above" going to a brothel.

Personally, I hope the publisher and Arakawa will trust readers to understand the context of the setting. It's a fun scene, it illustrates that Pars’s sexual habits are just another thing about their society at odds with the invading Lusitanians, and it adds dimension to characters who are otherwise rigidly focused on their goal of crowning Shah Arslan.

Other bits from my brain:

How will Arakawa’s Alfarid react to Narsus going to a brothel — or Arakawa’s Farangis, for that matter, considering she’s been a strong advocate for Narsus taking Alfarid’s feelings seriously? Especially since Arakawa seems to be building toward the canonical relationship between Narsus and Alfarid.

Now that I think about it, Shinryan’s/Shin-Liang’s absence may give Arakawa an opportunity to have Daryun decline to join the gang on a visit to the brothel. Then he can moodily think about Shinryan/Shin-Liang by the light of Gilan’s moon, which is presumably still silvery. For fuck’s sake, just show us the badass princess.

She could also modify it — visiting a brothel is pretty within Gieve’s personality for even a modern audience, and could always be played for laughs, so maybe he drags an innocent Jaswant along. Alternatively, the gang could meet some pretty ladies in a tavern.

[evergardenwall]

him 😳💖

[tired-reader-writer]

Arslan Senki Chapter 133 Live-reaction

Right off the bat we're shown that those clouds are more than normal. Creepy as fuck.

Ohhh that's creepy—

OHHHHH THAT'S FUCKING CREEPY AND I DON'T LIKE IT ONE BIT

Okay not to get fixated on weird details but why does it feel like Shapur's braids are longer here than they ever have been before. Enigma hair 😭

Arslan is not okay. The grief is so palpable here (and Narsus looks like a parent here for some reason)

And it's no wonder Arslan recognized Vahriz's swordsmanship. After all—

Chapter 1.

Chapter 133.

You see it too, right?

OMINOUS AF. Also at least Vahriz is telling them outright that this has to do with Team Zahhak, I'm not sure the other parties are getting the same courtesy. If they'd said it there'd be far less confusion (rn all the soldiers are confused to hell and back and don't know what to do) so I guess the rest of the undead warriors didn't bother saying anything.

It's unsettling to see such a serious face on Gieve. Shit's going down. The blade was so close to Kishward's head! It's a good thing Gieve stepped in. And Manuchurh's words. OOF.

He's going back to Arslan's side. Will he run into Shapur and Isfan and Kubard on the way?

Aw, the interaction is cute!

Very very 👀 that Jimsa comments on how the air doesn't smell like rain despite the clouds. Veeery interesting.

ANYWAYS THE FUCKING APES AAAAAAAAA 😭😭😭😭

[colleyuriko]

ATROPANTENE STRIKES AGAIN

Daryun fulfilling the wet man quota this chapter 👌

I am eating my phone the website won't show me the images as if it knows my eyes won't be able to handle it.

(I'm currently sewing on a project, so I'm not on my laptop much hfhjdjdjdjd)

[thatskynews]

We've come to the end of Season of Remembrance 😌 Julian Jimsa, the lead designer for the season, would like to show his appreciation to all the Sky children who helped the Spirits find solace and hope 🙏

[sailorshadzter]

JIMSA

all of the “jim frost” posts have been making me laugh so i decided to write about it. 

post season 8 with tyrion still as hand to bran because he’s the best one to troll with this kind of shit lmao. i also love imagining him going back to king’s landing to bran like “umm  jim frost?” & bran being like “yeah man totally, jim frost. what a good guy.” 

anyways, enjoy!

When the queen stepped into her court with a swelling belly on display, her people could do little but cheer for her good health and the future of their kingdom. After all the North had been through, their young unmarried queen having a baby out of wedlock was the least of their worries. In truth, they were overjoyed that their beloved queen was finally happy. Besides, it was well known who the father would be, though the queen would often remark her child was sired by the wolves, and none could be displeased with her choice.

She settled upon her throne and held her head high as the double doors opened, revealing her latest visitor. Tyrion Lannister had written some time ago to tell her he wished to make a goodwill visit to the North on behalf of her brother, King Bran, who sat upon the throne in Westeros. As Tyrion approached, he too noticed the swell of the queen’s belly beneath her dark green gown. “Your grace,” he bowed low before her throne, raising himself only when she spoke a greeting. “You look… Well.” He said, trying to choose his words as carefully as possible, recalling the young queen’s quick wit and temperament. He would regret dearly upsetting such a woman, especially in her condition.

Sansa can’t help but to laugh, her smile easy going as she leaned forward on her throne. "Thank you, my lord. I welcome you to Winterfell." She is as he remembered- charming, beautiful, her mid stage of pregnancy offering her a radiant glow Tyrion had never before seen in a woman. It gave her an ethereal look, in truth. "I hope your journey was not difficult, now that spring has come, I imagine the roads must be easy to pass." Spring had shown its face some months ago, the very same day she had first woke to the morning sickness of the same child she carried.

"Indeed, your grace, my journey was quite enjoyable." Tyrion responded, already enjoying this queen, finding her far more agreeable than the last he served. Though he was Hand to her brother, Tyrion found himself loyal to House Stark overall, and so he would serve this young woman as much as he served her brother. There was much to discuss with her and her lords, but he found he was much more curious about her growing belly than state politics. Though here in her court was the last place to speak so freely.

"I have had chambers prepared for you," Sansa says, her voice bringing him back from his own mind. "I'm sure you want to rest. I will have food sent to your rooms. Tomorrow, we can meet again, there is much to discuss between us." Her words are final and her smile dismissive, though her sapphire eyes are gleaming as she looked down upon him.

"Thank you, your grace," he replied before rising back to his full height and with a wave of her hand, he turned to walk back towards the doors he'd come in through. He paused for only a moment to glance back, surprised to see that Sansa had already risen from her throne, ducking out of the great hall on the arm of a dark haired man. A very familiar dark haired man, at that. Impossible, Tyrion thought before he pushed out the doors, though he was smirking as he shook his head. Though, perhaps not impossible at all.

[ x x x ]

"Might I ask a question?"

Lord Royce paused in his exit from his chambers, turning back to face the Lannister man with a nod. "Your queen... She is with child, but she's unmarried." Lord Royce does not respond but his expression is rather stony, which Tyrion at once can tell his directed at him and not the fact the queen is carrying a bastard. "And I have this strange notion that I saw Jon Snow leaving with her just moments ago, though he is banished to Castle Black."

"Jon Snow? Here, at Winterfell? Preposterous." Lord Royce says, shaking his head. "You must mean Jim Frost."

Tyrion doesn't know if he's being made fun of, but from the look on the Lord's face, he is quite serious. "Jim... Frost?" Really?

"Yes, he is the emissary for the Night's Watch, you see." Tyrion could swear the lord's lip twitched with a smile. "Jim has sworn fealty to our queen and he remains here at Winterfell, though he makes a monthly trip back to Castle Black."

Though he wanted to ask more, Lord Royce bids him a good night and now all Tyrion can do is ask the woman herself.

[ x x x ]

It took only a few short hours for the two of them to come to terms on a few things- namely trade between their two kingdoms. Securing peace between nations had been the utmost importance since Bran took the throne of the remaining six kingdoms and it had begun by the oldest practice in the book: weddings. Sansa had already agreed to wed Alys Karstark to one of Bran's own lord's oldest sons, the union already agreed on by the pair themselves. There had been talk of Sansa marrying the young Prince of Dorne, though such a thing was certainly out of the question now, though peace would not suffer for it. The Prince of Dorne would have a bride and someday, perhaps he would have a son or daughter to wed Sansa's own, should the gods wish it so.

"You know..." Tyrion's voice brings her from her own thoughts and she looked up at him, sitting across from her with a goblet of wine in hand. "I've been wanting to ask you..." Sansa chuckled at his expense, noting his uncomfortable expression. "About the... Father of your child."

Ah, she thought with a smile, leaning back to press a hand against the curve of her belly. "It is a child of the wolves," she spoke cryptically, reminding him of the king he'd left behind in King's Landing. "A new young, white wolf to someday rule the North when I am gone." She could already feel in her bones that this child would be a boy, a son with the Stark look, a son she would name Robb after the brother she had lost.

Tyrion took a long sip from his goblet before speaking on. "Yes, well... I have seen a familiar face among your court." Sansa arched a brow at his statement, but her rosy lips are still yet curved into a smile as she looked back at him, nodding for him to go on. "I am quite certain I saw Jon Snow on your arm just yesterday."

Sansa supposed she should have known he would find them out at once- this was Tyrion Lannister after all. And well, she and Jon had not been hiding so well now that her pregnancy was too far advanced to hide from the public. Her lords had long suspected her relationship with Jon since the first day he had returned to Winterfell, some six months after his banishment to Castle Black. "Jon Snow is at Castle Black." She spoke with that same smile, tilting her head, red hair cascading over her shoulder. "You must mean Jim."

"Jim Frost? Lord Royce mentioned him."

When the young woman laughed, Tyrion knew he was being fooled. "Indeed, Jim Frost." Her blue eyes gleamed as she settled back against her chair, hands pressed against the curve of her belly. "I don't blame you for mistaking him for Jon- he is as dark haired as any Stark, but I assure you he isn't Jon." When her gaze settled upon him, Tyrion knew the conversation was over.

And he also knew one other thing... Jon Snow was certainly the father of the queen's baby.

[ x x x ]

It was as he climbed into the carriage to leave, having said his goodbyes to the queen and her court, that Tyrion turned and saw them. Sansa was leaning on his arm, her red head tipped against his, laughing at something he was saying. As if feeling his gaze upon them, both she and the man turned for one last look, and that was when Tyrion caught sight of the man's face. Jon Snow raised his hand in a wave and Sansa smiled at him from where she stood, but then they both turned back and went on their way, leaving Tyrion to climb inside with a smirk on his face.  Jim Frost, indeed.

When he arrived back to King's Landing and reported back to Bran, the first thing the king asked was about his sister. "She is pregnant, is she not?" Bran asked as Tyrion poured himself a goblet of wine, his tone implying he already knew the answer to his own question.

"She is." Tyrion replied as he settled into his usual chair at the table.

"And it is Jon's?"

Tyrion can't help but to laugh. "She says the child was sired by wolves, though she hangs upon the arm of a man that looks remarkably like Jon Snow." Bran blinked and shook his head, the look upon his face that of amusement. "They call him Jim Frost as if no one knows." It is Bran who laughed then, a sound unfamiliar to Tyrion- the usually stoic king rarely even smiled, let alone laughed. "They care so much for your sister that I think they would call him a horse if she asked."

"It would seem a pardon for Jon Snow is in order."  Bran gestured for a piece of parchment, which Tyrion slid to him but a moment later. "I think he has been punished long enough, don't you?" Tyrion gave a single nod and watched as Bran leaned over the parchment, his handwriting scrawling across several lines before he looked up again. "See to a wedding gift." Is all he says before sliding the now folded and sealed parchment back to Tyrion, who gives another nod. He got up and crossed the room, to the window where a single raven sat waiting and he tied the scroll to its leg, watching as it soared out into the blue sky.

[ x x x ]

No one was surprised when just a month later, a raven arrived announcing the marriage between the Queen in the North and Jon Snow, now Jon Stark, the new King in the North. Even less surprising was when two months into their marriage another raven arrived to announce the birth of the North's crown prince, already called the Young White Wolf by his people. It was rumored for all of his life that the prince had been born of the wolves, just as his mother had always said, though others would gossip about a supposed wildling lover the queen had before marrying her king. A wildling named Jim Frost.