#Printed Collar - Comic Book

[lightbrightpaws]

How to Choose the Right Rechargeable Light-Up Dog Collar for Your Pet’s Needs?

[imamotherfuckingstar-lord]

imagine making law blush

The captain stared down at the small gift on his bed; newspaper wrapping with a single red string tied around it. He glared down at the present, unsure what to do or who it was from but he did know why it was there. It was his birthday and the crew had thrown him a party; it was embarrassing and that's why he had escaped the festivities for some silence in his room.

Law finally moved to the bed and picked up the gift, unraveling the string, then pulling at the corners were it was tapped. His fingers worked gently and he took his time, until all that was left was a comic book in his hands.

Not just any comic, no.

It was Sora, Warrior of the Sea.

He couldn't believe his eyes and when a knock came from his closed door, he called to who ever it was to come in. Unable to take his eyes off the gift, he barely registered that it was you at his door. You smiled at the comic book in his hand and mentioned that a publisher had released the entirety of the run of the story in it's own book - since it only had been available in strips printed in World Economic Journal.

"I came across it in a book store on our last supply run. I've been saving it for months for your birthday. Do you like it?"

Law's cheeks went red and he dipped his chin into the collar of his jacket to hide the smile on his face. You laughed and moved to him, reaching up to pat him on the head.

"Happy birthday, Law."

"Thank you," he whispered, finally looking to you. He held the comic down at his side and nervously reached for your hand. "I really appreciate it."

Giving his hand a squeeze, you noted that wasn't his only present. "...but that comes much later, when the rest of the crew is asleep. Will it be my room tonight or yours, dear captain?"

Again blushed freckled Law's face but he held his head up and smirked. "Your bed is more comfortable."

Agreeing, you asked if he was going to rejoin the party and he glanced down at the comic, a fleeting rush of memories danced in his mind but tonight, there was more to be made. He placed the comic book on his bed and went to you - grabbing your hand in his.

"I can use a drink or two."

Grinning up at the man you loved, you could only smile. "Lead the way, birthday boy."

[nionom-art]

EXECUTIONS OF THE GUILTY

(Miraculous Danganronpa Au)

CURTAIN CALL (ZOE EXECUTION)

Zoe is dropped onto a stage and the curtain closes on her. Her clothes change into an Alice in Wonderland Scene where she is forced to down boiling hot tea. The scene changes again, with her in a Cinderella costume and on a flight on stairs. The bell chimes so loud she loses balance and tumbles down her leg. The scene changes a final time as she is dressed as a cockroach and a giant Chloe raises her foot and she tries to run. She is stepped on and roses are thrown onto the now bloody stage. The screen zooms into the crowd with the students looking on in horror.

CHRONICLES OF SUPERKUMA (NATHANIEL’S EXECUTION)

A comic book manuscript opens up revealing a drawing of Nathaniel tied on top of a building. The screen zooms out to reveal the real Nathaniel on top of a building. An artist Monokuma begins to draw the scene adding heavy rain, where it is revealed that the pole he is tied on is a lightning rod which attracts a lighting bolt which electrocutes Nathaniel. He is dizzy and the binds burn off and he falls off, plummeting to the ground. He is saved by a Monokuma in a superhero suit and they see a hospital nearby. The artist Monokuma then draws another lighting bolt which shocks the Superhero Monokuma and he drops Nathaniel onto a railway where a train is approaching. With nowhere to go, Nathaniel is ran over by the train and the Artist Monokuma throws the manuscript into the garbage.

CLEARANCE SALE (SABRINA’S EXECUTION)

Sabrina is dropped in what looks like a giant mall. In front of her a Chloe Monokuma shoves a collar on her neck and gives her a list of things to buy. The collar is making suspicious beeping noises and a countdown begins. Sabrina rushes from store to store grabbing the things she needs, which are covered in spikes or poison, causing her hands to bleed and swell. As she reaches the end of her list the last thing she needs; a pair of shoes are at the top of a mountain of clothing and shoes. She begins to climb, with her hands leaving behind bloody handprints and just before she can reach the shoes, the clothes beneath her collapse and she falls. The countdown ends and to her surprise, it doesn’t explode. Instead she is revealed to be on a massive incinerator and the conveyer belt begins to move. She tries to run, but the clothes that dropped with her block her path and she is fed to the incinerator. On the other side pops a pair of bloody stilettos with pictures of a screaming Sabrina printed on the side. It is displayed in the mall for someone to buy.

THE PUPPET WARRIOR (KAGAMI EXECUTION)

Kagami’s dead body is strung up like a puppet with her sword sewn to her hands. A massive robot dressed like her mother holds the strings. She is in a large dojo and is faced off with harmless creatures and people from rabbits, cats, and even replicas of Marinette and Adrien. Her corpse swings back and forth easily slicing her opponents. But during a fight with an innocent person, the robot makes a mistake and Kagami’s corpse misses the opponent and they escape. Blaming this on Kagami, she puppets her body to a bagger and forces Kagami’s body to commit Seppuku. She lets go of the strings and Kagami’s dead body flops lifelessly on the ground.

DRESS UP! FINAL FASHION SHOW! (MARINETTE FAILED EXECUTION)

Marinette is in a dark room that lights up revealing a large runway. As she looks around, mannequins wearing her classmate’s clothes surround her. Suddenly a giant golden stiletto slams down near her, onto the Zoe mannequin barely missing her. The mannequins are subjected to similar fates as her classmates such as the Nathaniel mannequin getting hit by a train or a Sabrina mannequin getting set on fire, only leaving her feet. Finally, as she was battered by the weapons that were used on the mannequins, a Lila mannequin is raises up from the floor with a knife in it’s clutch. It raises it to stab her….. and then the lights go out and it stops. Marinette inches away from the mannequin and off the runway floor as she runs out of the venue.

Wow! I love these (especially Marinette’s- it reminds me of Makoto’s dream sequence in the anime).

[jellysaidshit]

Our story. Headcanons.

Taglist: @badaseyebags @missminho

Well since I'm not posting a chapter this week yall are getting headcanons (which technically become canon if it's me writing them)

Ashie is ambidextrous, right hand dominant, Nyx is left-handed

Beau has a cat back at her parents' house, it's a black cat her and Ash picked up from the street

River never braids her hair. She always has it down or in a low ponytail

Nyx has about 15 collars for Winston, but they're all in black with only small details that are different (like a tiny print or a color of threads)

Ash has vitiligo; their biggest bright spot is on the left side of their jaw, they also have a big spot on their elbow

River hates to admit that she listens to arctic monkeys, but she's a huge fan of them and has been for a while

Beau has a big collection of ribbons, she uses them as belts, chockers, hair ties, accessories and even ties them on her pens

Ash is a bookworm, they have books everywhere in their room: on the shelves, next to their bed, on the windowsill, on the floor

Remember Bun and Nova from chapter 3? Ash and Beau used to live with them in a tiny dorm room

Nyx reads a lot of manga and comics, she's also tech-savvy (iykyk)

Ash and River both smoke Marlboro

[fallloverfic]

Censorship of panels in the Chinese print release of 再见, 我的国王/See You My King by Wen Yuan

This has probably been brought up before somewhere because it's been out for a while, particularly in China, but the Chinese physical release of Volume 2 of 再见, 我的国王/See You My King/The King and Me/Til We Meet Again, My King by Wen Yuan showed up at last for me (there's no English physical release currently, though there is a Spanish release of volume 1) and it is a very pretty volume, it's high quality, the art is lovely, the included extras are pretty, but wow... I thought the censoring of the digital version was bad, but the physical version removes the Veelaveesa/Evetiti kiss and part of their cuddling in their bedroom, and that's not even the tip of the iceberg for how egregious the censoring is.

This isn't my first danmei rodeo, I know Chinese censorship of m/m is bad and worse than even I know, and getting worse, and I know that some cropping/removals happen even without that targeted censorship because of transferring comics made to be viewed on a phone to a book. But I didn't know that even the digital version that was allowed through would be censored for printing (I've seen the Chinese raws), and what's been removed is still really bad for such a relatively chaste comic. Just going through it on my own has been depressing. It's also weird in the sense that some of the official merch has stuff that's censored in the books on it (e.g., I've got cards from two different card sets with a cropped panel uncropped on it, and a shikishi of a panel that's been cropped).

Please support the digital release on Tappytoon and/or Tapas, and the Kuaikan app if you can manage it. I hope an English publisher gets it for physical release and restores the removed and cropped panels, because this is just sad. (I mean I already wanted a better English release cause the translation Kuaikan sends Tappytoon and Tapas is terrible, but this is worse than bad translation). And I guess support the official merch when you can cause at least in China that's the only way these are ever getting printed. My hope is that if they're willing to send the uncensored pages to be translated for reading presumably outside of China (both Tappy and Tapas are Korean companies), maybe a non-Chinese publisher would publish the uncensored release? The preview of the Spanish volume 1 includes a lot of the panels removed for the Chinese volume 1.

I went through and compared the Tappytoon to physical Chinese releases, because it's not just the stuff you'd expect, given this series is pretty light, in order to avoid, I imagine, further censorship online. Most of what's been removed is when the leads hold hands or hug/otherwise very chastely embrace. I don't include every instance of cropping because that would be way more. But most of what I found is beneath the read more:

S01E02 vs Volume 1, p.40-1: The physical release removed a panel of Zhang Li holding Rocky's hand (panel below)

S01E02 vs Volume 1, p.42-3: The physical release removed two panels of Zhang Li touching Rocky's face and Rocky smiling (panels below)

S01E03 vs Volume 1, p.45+: The physical release cropped one panel in half to largely hide the fact Rocky is sitting next to Zhang Li, and entirely removed 10 other panels, featuring Rocky and Zhang Li kind of cuddling and Zhang Li in bed with Rocky close to him (uncropped panel below)

S01E03 vs Volume 1, p.63-64: The physical release removed two panels, including one where Zhang Li is holding Rocky and another about their hands breaking free of each other, covered over part of a third to, I imagine, hide the fact they're holding hands (panels in full below)

S01E03 vs Volume 1, p.67: The physical release covered up a flashback panel of a scene that was somehow left in from earlier, to probably hide the kiss part (uncovered panel below)

S01E04 vs Volume 1, p.74-75: The physical release removed a panel of Zhang Li smiling as he pulls his shirt collar open and tells Rocky to bite him

S01E04 vs Volume 1, p.78: The physical release cropped the panel where Rocky puts the earring on Zhang Li so you can't see Zhang Li's expression

S01E04 vs Volume 1, p.86-87: The physical release removed seven panels of Zhang Li reaching out to catch a collapsing Rocky and then holding him, and later Rocky holding Zhang Li's neck tenderly and also putting the necklace on him

S01E04 vs Volume 1, p.88-89: The physical release removed eight panels of a slow and implied but not shown kiss between Zhang Li and Rocky, as well as Rocky holding Zhang Li's face (a nearly-identical panel where Rocky is gone is left in)

S01E05 vs Volume 1, p.106-107: The physical release removed a flashback panel of part of S01E04 that was also removed in the physical release

S01E05 vs Volume 1, p.108-109: The physical release removed two flashback panels of Rocky bringing Zhang Li water and a panel of Zhang Li smiling as he reaches for Mohemisi's hand

S01E06 vs Volume 1, p.12: The physical release cropped a panel where Evetiti grabs Zhang Li to hide the more intimate-looking nature of the embrace, particularly that Evetiti is holding Zhang Li's arm

S01E06 vs Volume 1, p.128: The physical release removed two flashback panels of previous scenes, one of which was a part of S01E04 that was also removed in the physical release

S01E08 vs Volume 1, p.154: The physical release removed a panel of Evetiti holding out his hand to Zhang Li (weirdly doesn't remove them holding hands given the propensity for this release to remove any men holding hands, including Evetiti holding Zhang Li's hand in S01E06)

S01E11 vs Volume 2, p.14: The physical release cropped most of the upset falcon out of the panel

S01E11 vs Volume 2, p.15: The physical release cropped out the borb entirely. This isn't exactly a censoring issue, it's just sad. (uncropped section below)

S01E11 vs Volume 2, p.18: The physical release heavily cropped a panel of Mohemisi facing Zhang Li

S01E12 vs Volume 2, p.20: The physical release cropped out a flashback panel of Mohemisi and Zhang Li standing together

S01E12 vs Volume 2, p.23: The physical release cropped a panel of Mohemisi having his face close to Zhang Li's so only Zhang Li's nose is visible

S01E12 vs Volume 2, p.24: The physical release partially covered a panel of Mohemisi holding Zhang Li's hand on the wall so you can't see him holding Zhang Li's hand

S01E12 vs Volume 2, p.28: The physical release cropped a panel to almost entirely remove Evetiti and Mohemisi, though you can still see the top of Evetiti's hair and Mohemisi's Anubis ears

S01E12 vs Volume 2, p.30: The physical release cropped a panel of a guard pushing Zhang Li forward so you can't see the guard

S01E12 vs Volume 2, p.31: The physical release removed a panel of Zhang Li facing the audience

S01E13 vs Volume 2, p.40: The physical release cropped a panel of Mohemisi holding Zhang Li so that Zhang Li + Mohemisi holding him is not at all visible

This iconic panel? Remember this? Butchered. And it's weird because it's been printed in full before on at least two official merch releases. They also cropped a close-up shot so you can't see Mohemisi's fingers on Zhang Li's face.

S01E13 vs Volume 2, p.41: The physical release cropped a panel of Mohemisi pushing Zhang Li away (I imagine because Zhang Li is sitting between Mohemisi's legs)

S01E13 vs Volume 2, p.44: The physical release removed four panels of Zhang Li trembling as he picks up the dead priest and Mohemisi observing

S01E13 vs Volume 2, p.47: The physical release removed the close-up panel of other guards carrying out the corpse (this might be because China has certain rules about showing corpses, but it's my understanding this only has to do with depicting zombies, not dead people generally; there's still another panel where they're carrying the body out and Zhang Li/Mohemisi aren't doing anything else in the removed panel other than standing near each other)

S01E13 vs Volume 2, p.48: The physical release cropped out most of Zhang Li's body

S01E13 vs Volume 2, p.49: The physical release removed a panel of Mohemisi's face (this might be to remove a sort of repeat panel)

S01E14 vs Volume 2, p.60: The physical release cropped a panel to remove the lower bodies of Zhang Li and Evetiti

S01E14.5 vs Volume 2, p.74: The physical release removed 14.5 entirely: this is the flashback where a guy and a woman try to seduce Zhang Li in the rain, and Rocky arrives to bring him an umbrella, and they go home, with a flash forward to Zhang Li in the water with the red crystal (that's 36 panels)

S01E15 vs Volume 2, p.75: The physical release cropped part of the panel to show Zhang Li is staring at the crystal, which the intruder tried to take (a lot of changes remove what you're meant to be focusing on in panels)

S01E15 vs Volume 2, p.88: The physical release cropped a panel to again remove Zhang Li in entirety (he gets cut out a lot when he's not doing anything?)

S01E16 vs Volume 2, p.93: The physical release cropped a panel where Zhang Li is holding the jealous guard so you can't see what Zhang Li is doing; also cut a close-up panel into pieces so you can't really tell they're connected and removes the closeness of them together, and removed a panel of Zhang Li touching the guy's throat

S01E16 vs Volume 2, p.94-6: The physical release removed another panel of Zhang Li holding the jealous guard, and cropped two panels so you can't really tell that Mohemisi and Zhang Li are together (Mohemisi is almost entirely cropped out of these panels), and removed four other panels, including two of the leads together (with Zhang Li pushing between Mohemisi's legs), and another of the guard seeing them together

S01E16 vs Volume 2, p.97: The physical release did a lot of cropping here

S01E17 vs Volume 2, p.121: The physical release cropped a panel to remove a good chunk of Evetiti's body

S01E18 vs Volume 2, p.134: The physical release cropped a panel so you can't see Zhang Li holding Mohemisi's ankle (you could on the previous page, though, and you can still see Zhang Li holding Mohemisi's foot with his left hand; there's been a lot of cropping in previous pages, cutting whole people out, this just might be more targeted)

S01E18 vs Volume 2, p.136: The physical release cropped the panel of Mohemisi lounging sexily in the bath >:( (this might just be an accidental victim of the medium change; there are other shots later of Mohemisi's chest + legs)

S01E19 vs Volume 2, p.145: The physical release cropped the panel of Veelaveesa kissing Evetiti but for Zhang Li's head; also entirely removed Evetiti (being kiss-dazed) from the panel where Veelaveesa is glaring at Zhang Li

S01E19 vs Volume 2, p.146: The physical release removed a panel where Evetiti is talking to Veelaveesa about the hypothetical scenario of Evetiti topping Zhang Li (nothing really happens in the panel, it's just chibi Evetiti holding Zhang Li while they're standing)

S01E19 vs Volume 2, p.148: The physical release removed the panel where Veelaveesa is holding Evetiti and warning him about being wary, and cropped Evetiti out of a panel with Veelaveesa

S01E19 vs Volume 2, p.156: The physical release removed the panel where Veelaveesa is cupping Evetiti's head while Evetiti hugs Veelaveesa

S01E21 vs Volume 2, p.191: The physical release removed the panel that shows Zhang Li is kissing Mohemisi's palm

There's a lot of other cropping I don't mention because this was not something I expected to spend today doing, but this gets the most egregious stuff. A ton of stuff is removed/covered... It's just sad. And for the record, while it still has a couple spots of censoring physical injury, there's still a decent amount of blood and violence left uncensored. They're mainly targeting any instances of m/m stuff.

[djbunnie]

DamiRae Monster High AU

Heads up! sorry it's a huge mess of ideas just...speed run this prompt😅

so … I'm bored! What if Damian and Raven were in the Monster High AU. I have some ideas! but I can't decide😵.Since Monster High is a Modern/ Fantasy gerner. I thought it would be fun to explore some options.

Unfortunately, I did some research on Islamic monsters and folklore…and I'm sorry to say it, but none of them fit Damian…. at least to me. It really sucks because I really want Damian as an Islamic mythical creature. But if you agree or disagree, explain why or why not? I would love to read and share your comments.

So here is my DamiRae Monster High AU portfolio. (Also outfit, accessories, and etc).

Raven R. Constantine: adopted child of Sorcerer Supreme John Constantine.

Race: Demon

Appearance/Killer Style: She is tall, has a crimson skin tone, 4 yellow eyes, white hair (high messy bun with full bangs) and black stiletto nails. Victorian/Lolita, with a bit of Western 1950 vintage aesthetic. "I can't go anywhere without my book earrings with matching necklace!" (something like this)

Freaky flaw: impulsive shopper, likes to spend all her money on books, comics, and other book-related gimmicks. I hate not having money for lunch just because I spent it on a book embosser because Tiktok told me to.

Favorite color: pink!

Favorite food: DESSERT!

Biggest pet peeve: Yuck, where do I even begin…. Books in series are a different size, movie poster covers, book covers are shorter than the pages, stickers printed on the cover, broken spines, books with a sticker on the cover that you can peel off but it leaves the stickiest residue known to mankind for all eternity! And so much more!

Favorite activity: Reading, collecting rare books (including other books and comics), writing stories (both as a writer and a comic artist), social media (Raven is a Booktuber).

Pet: Edgar Nevermore, is a raven with scarlet 4 eyes. He is quite the chatterbox.

Favorite subject at school: Monster History

Least favorite subject: Sports

Friends: Damian, Conner, Donna, Garfield, Jamie.

______________________________________________________________

Damian Al Ghul: He is a mummy and a member of the very prestigious Al Ghul family.

Killer Style: (I couldn't decide) he wears a dark (green, black and gold) suit with a black bow tie and a large Egyptian gold mask covering his face. Or he wears a black t-shirt, green cargo pants and an Egyptian style collar over his bandages. (Just imagine the pharaoh from the Boo York movie, but with Damian).

Freaky flaw: According to my classmates, I'm "overly competitive." Apparently, wanting to be the best is a bad thing…. On the other hand, the thumb war against Conner got out of hand last week just because we couldn't decide where to go for summer vacation….

Favorite color: Green (because of the money).

Favorite food: Pumpkin curry with rice

Biggest pet peeve: losing, I will win and destroy all my competitors!

Favorite activity: playing with his pets

Pet: Titus (mummy dog or jackal) he is perfect.

Favorite school subject: Art

Least favorite school subject: n/a. (he values education)

Friends: Raven, Conner, Donna, Garfield, Jamie.

______________________________________________________________

Okay, the reason I chose Damian to become a mummy is 1: because in the Monster High universe, mummies = wealth. Also, in the Boo York movie, there is a character named Pharaoh whose family is very rich, and I thought Damian would be the opposite of him (personality wise). Damian is going to be an entrepreneurial, business-oriented character. And since it's a modern Au, I thought it would be great if Raven was a YouTuber in this universe.

Do you guys agree or disagree with that. I would love to discuss this further with you guys, it could be anything, her monster race, personality, origin and so on!!!!

[prepare4trouble]

Lost Boys fanfic - Branding

Fandom: Lost Boys (Frogfic) Characters: Edgar Frog, Alan Frog, Sam Emerson Word Count: 2263

Synopsis: Sam has ideas to help the Frogs advertize their vampire hunting business. Edgar and Alan are less than convinced…

The initial idea for this fic came from a post by @starthelostboys who theorized that Sam would design logos and adds for the Frogs. It was such a perfect idea that how could I not write it?

————————————————

“You’re quiet. No opinions on our organizational system this afternoon?”

Sam continued to sketch, his pencil making scraping sounds on the page of the narrow-ruled notebook until it dawned on him that Edgar’s question had been aimed at him. He lowered the pencil and glanced up briefly, registering suspicion on his friend’s face. Not that there was anything unusual about that. Suspicion was Edgar’s default expression. Sam rolled his eyes, smiled at him, then turned his attention back to the project at hand.

It had been a slow afternoon in the comic store, and Sam had quickly grown bored of watching his friends undo all the hard work he had put in the day before, when he had rearranged the back issues for them into a far more logical order. As he had sat watching, flicking through the latest Batman, he had been struck with a burst of creativity, fished the school notebook from his book bag, and flicked to the easy to remove middle pages

“What are you doing over there anyway?” Edgar asked him. “Homework?”

Out of the corner of his eye, Sam noticed Alan edge a little closer to him. He moved as though he was planning to take something from the shelf above Sam’s head. Sam, not fooled, lifted the notepad protectively, and pressed the page against his chest. “Relax, you haven’t forgotten about any homework assignments,” he assured them. “And it’s not done yet, so quit trying to peek. I’ll show you guys when I’m finished.”

“Finished with what? Alan asked.

Suddenly, all attention was on him. As Alan backed off a little, Sam lowered the notepad and looked at the designs on the page. He thought they were good, but they needed more work. Two pairs of dark eyes stared at him expectantly, and Sam got the distinct impression that they weren’t going to back off until he at least gave them something. “Fine,” he said. “It was supposed to be a surprise, but you’ve gone and ruined it. I was thinking, if you guys really want to get into the vampire slaying business in a serious way, you’re going to need a logo. So I’m designing you one.”

Edgar and Alan shared a glance, then at exactly the same moment, turned their gazes on Sam.

Alan spoke first. “What for?”

“What do you mean ‘what for?” Sam frowned at his friends. They looked at him with almost identical expressions of utter bafflement. “What do you think it’s for? To go on your advertising. And your uniforms, of course.”

Another shared glance, this one went on for a little longer than the last, and ended with a quiet grunt of agreement and a nod from Edgar. Apparently his friends had been talking to each other in that silent, almost telepathic way that they had.

“Uniforms?” Edgar raised an eyebrow underneath the ever-present red bandana tied around his head. “I don’t think so.”

“Well you should think so,” Sam told him. “I”m not talking anything fancy, you just need something distinctive enough that people know who you are.”

Edgar looked down at his clothing. He was wearing a faded camo-print t-shirt, coming apart slightly at the collar and with a few holes near the bottom where it had worn so thin it had begun to disappear, and green cargo pants that looked as though they were at least a size too big, held up by a belt. “What’s wrong with what we’re wearing?” he asked. “It was good enough when we got rid of your vampire problem.”

“Nothing’s wrong with it,” Sam assured him quickly. That wasn’t entirely true, and he certainly wouldn’t wear it if he had any choice in the matter, but it was a style all their own, and Sam loved it for that. Plus, as vampire slaying attire, it was fine; great, even. “But maybe you could just add a patch with your logo on, it only has to be small, but it would make you more recognisable.”

“Can the logo have wooden stakes on it?” Alan asked. “Maybe put two together in the shape of a cross?”

Sam grinned and put pencil to paper again. “Oh, that’s good,” he said. “Any other requests?”

Edgar scowled at his brother and elbowed him quickly in the arm. “Quit encouraging him,” he said.

“You’re going to love it, Edgar,” Sam insisted, adding a few drops of blood to one of the stakes. “It can go on all your advertisements. You know, fliers, posters, that kind of thing.”

Edgar shook his head. “You can’t be serious. Sam. You can’t advertise this kind of thing. People will think we’re crazy.”

“As opposed to now, when they think you’re both just overflowing with sanity?”

Two kids wandered in from the boardwalk outside. They paused to look around the place, then made a bee-line to the new issues and began picking them up and thumbing through the pages. Both Frogs turned to look at them. Edgar nodded at Alan, who broke away from the group and moved closer to the kids to watch them, ever alert for thieves.

“I’m completely serious,” Sam assured him. “If you want to run a successful vampire hunting business, you need to brand it properly.”

“And you know this how, exactly?” Edgar asked him. “From the successful vampire hunting business you used to run in Phoenix?”

Sam chuckled and shook his head before he turned his attention back to the page for a moment. “I know it because it’s common sense,” he said. “Think about it. You’re never going to drum up enough business by handing out free horror comics to random people in the store. I mean, if you think about it, that’s actually the opposite of good business sense, because you’re losing money on the comics you deface with your phone number and give away.”

The two kids left the store empty handed. Alan returned to join them again in the corner of the room.

Edgar folded his arms and glared defensively at Sam. “The comic with our number worked on you,” he reminded him.

“True,” Sam agreed. But the Frogs couldn’t realistically have known that Sam was about to have a vampire problem to deal with. “But you got lucky.”

“So did you,” Edgar told him.

Alan nodded. “Yeah. If we hadn’t drawn your attention to the vampires, you’d probably be one of them right now.”

Sam frowned. That was debatable, but on reflection it was probably true. If not for Edgar and Alan, the idea of vampires probably wouldn’t have even been on his radar until it was far too late. Even if he had worked it out on his own, he had no idea how things might have gone down. There was a good chance that he would have been slipped a sip of blood just like Michael had, and before he even realized it, he would have been one of them too.

He felt a chill at that thought. “Fair point,” he conceded. “But don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying what you do would never work. It just wouldn’t hurt to advertise a bit better, that’s all. I mean, look at all those people out there.” He waved a hand in the direction of the open front of the store.

The boardwalk, in stark contrast to the inside of the store, teemed with life. Families strolled past, parents hand in hand with kids holding ice cream cones that dripped down their hands and onto their clothes; teens sauntered by in pairs and in groups, each looking as though they were trying to outdo the others for most extreme hairstyle; surfers carried their boards down the the beach ready to ride the waves.

“What about them?” Edgar asked. 

“I’m just saying that some people who need help might not be into comic books, so they won’t come in here, you’ll never warn them about the vampires, and they’ll never find out about your side hustle. Even if they did come in, you might not talk to them about the vampires; you don’t with everyone.”

“It’s not a side hustle,” Alan informed him.

Sam nodded. “I know it isn’t, because if it was, you’d be making some money from it. For all you guys know, half the people out there are wishing they knew a good undead exterminator they could call, but because they’re not interested in buying the latest Superman issues, they don’t know there’s someone who can help.

The brothers shared another glance, and Edgar folded his arms and raised an eyebrow. “Undead exterminator?”

“It’s just a term I’ve been playing around with. I think it sums up what you do pretty well. What do you guys think?”

Edgar shook his head. “I think it sounds like we’re a couple of zombies who come round to your house armed with rat poison and bug bombs.”

Right. He hadn’t thought of it that way. Sam grinned at the image and shook his head, then crossed out a few examples of the phrase that he had incorporated into his logo ideas. “Yeah, you’re right,” he agreed. “But you have to admit the imagery would stick in people’s minds. Okay, how do you feel about ‘Monsterbusters’?

“Like Dan Ackroyd’s going to come after us with a lawsuit,” Alan said. “What’s wrong with ‘vampire hunters’, anyway?”

“Nothing exactly,” Sam admitted. “It’s just, you don’t only do vampires, do you.”

Alan folded his arms. “So far, yes.”

“Okay, but what I mean is, you don’t want to pigeonhole yourselves. If someone has a werewolf problem, do you really want them to skip over your ad in the yellow pages because they think you only do vampires?”

Another shared glance. “I guess not,” Edgar replied. “What ad in the yellow pages?”

“The one you’re going to place,” Sam told him. “It’ll have the same design as the other advertising. I’m thinking we can put up posters around town, and instead of defacing the comics, you could just put a flier in the bag every time you make a sale. You’ll want business cards too, there’s just something classier about business cards. And of course there’s the uniform patches for your work gear.”

“This all sounds expensive,” Edgar said, sounding dubious. “You do realize that most months in the off season when the tourists are gone, we barely make enough money from the store to pay the rent, don’t you?”

He hadn’t realized that, actually, but now that he did, it made a lot of sense. He shrugged. “We don’t have to do it all at once,” he said. “We’ll build up to it; start small. Maybe a couple of posters or something. And do you know what else I’m thinking eventually? Merchandise.”

“What are you talking about?” Edgar asked

Sam grinned. “I’m talking about t-shirts,” he said. “Iron-on patches, pin badges, that kind of thing. You could sell it in the store.” He put down the notepad face down on a nearby display cabinet, held his hands to his chest, pencil still clutched in the right, and moved his fingers in a shallow arc as though indicating the placement of the text. “‘Frog Brothers’… or would it be better to write it as ‘bros’? It would be shorter; easier to fit on the smaller merch.”

The brothers shared another glance. “You think people would want to go around wearing t-shirts with our name on?” Edgar asked.

“Yeah, Sam,” Alan agreed. “We’re not exactly the most popular kids around school, if you haven’t noticed.”

Sam shrugged. He had noticed, and he didn’t care. He picked up his notepad again and added a few finishing touches to one of the designs. “Maybe not yet, he said. “But wait until you save a few more people, become local heroes, all that. People will be lining up around the block to buy this stuff. Trust me.”

A scowl shadowed Edgar’s expression for a moment. “We should already be local heroes,” he said. “After all the work we do to keep this town safe, not to mention what we did for your family.”

Sam nodded. They would get no argument from him, the brothers had saved them, after all. Of course, they had also landed his mom and grandpa with a mountain of debt from the repairs to the house, because apparently the insurance didn’t cover vampire attacks, and Sam was reasonably sure that the Frog’s hadn’t actually killed any of the vampires that had attacked the house. The one that they had killed, at the old hotel, had actually been the reason the others had attacked that night, too…

None of that mattered. If not for the Frogs, one way or another Sam’s life in Santa Carla would have looked very different, and he didn’t even want to think about that.

Still clutching the par and the pencil one in each hand, he extended both arms to drape them around the shoulders of his two best friends, then pulled them in for a group hug. Alan resisted for a little longer than Edgar, before they both gave in to the inevitable

“You guys are my heroes, if that makes any difference,” he told them.

Predictably enough, neither brother answered, but Sam didn’t miss the quickly suppressed smile on Edgar’s lips before he wriggled free of the embrace and held out a hand, palm up, waiting. “Okay Emerson,” he said. “You win. Maybe we do need to advertise better. Now, let me look at those designs.”

Sam grinned as he reached for the notepad and turned it over.

[tickldpnk8]

Season of Mists Reread Ch. 5

World building! world building! world building! This is my favorite issue in all of Sandman! There is so much going on and so much to dissect. Plus, some political maneuvering! So let’s dig in.

So why is Season of Mists my favorite? All of the mythology/pantheon tie-ins. We see so much world-building even just with Chapter 3. We see glimpses of Norse mythology, DC’s Order and Chaos, Japanese mythology, and Egyptian mythology. Plus, the hierarchy of angels but through DC’s Silver City with distinct Judeo-Christian undertones. Oh, and fairies! I’m here for all of it! But since my reread is specifically focused on Dream’s nature and clues about the ending of Sandman I didn’t see coming, I won’t focus on each of these characters. Instead, I’ll focus on how each interacts with Dream and how that affects their surroundings.

The room where it happens

Late at night, each delegation meets with Dream in the throne room (his chambers?) and each time it does, we see slight shifts in how the room is arranged and how Morpheus appears.

Going in order, we first see Odin from Norse myth:

Morpheus’ throne is what appears to be a short stool or stump on top of a tall boulder. Drapes are in the background and his throne sits on the floor surrounded by candles. Morpheus himself wears what appears to be a dark tshirt, black jeans or pants and likely boots.

Next to visit is Princess Jemmy, and the panels for her visit are very sparse. This could be a design decision considering how the action is on the page, but I wonder if Chaos brings a void to whatever space they are in. Morpheus has the same outfit as before with Odin.

After Chaos, comes Order (fitting?).

We don’t see his throne at all, but the candles are now elevated on sconces. The drapes remain in the background. Morpheus has donned his long collared coat/robe…presumably over his tshirt/jeans combo.

And then this is where things get really interesting, because the above could all be considered Western mythologies of a sort. We next have Susano-O-No-Mikoto:

Not only does the throne room change, but so does the art style: Similar to what we saw in Chapter 3 when introducing Order and Chaos. Everything flattens out into a comic book style of a woodcut print. The green curtains are now the foliage of a tree and Morpheu’s throne is almost a suggestion of a tatami mat on a raised platform. His coat/cloak are now traditional Japanese dress and his bedhead hair even seems to be tied up in a traditional hair do. Or at least it’s drawn differently. And in a close-up shot, we see that Morpheus’ facial features are now different too:

After him, we see Bast from the Egyptian pantheon and this one gets interesting:

Dream’s throne room again transforms into what can only be vaguely described as Egyptian as we see snippets of the yellow sandstone walls and this stone seat that seems to have suggestions of hieroglyphic panels or at least a sunburst. Morpheus is back in this all encompassing robe and in other panels we see his western-looking face.

But this panel caught my eye where Bast says that she prefers Dream in cat form because she can read his thoughts better than when he “wears a human head.”

Bast, of course, has a feline head on a human body. So I got the sense that she has the option of seeing either Dream’s feline aspect or his human one. It’s never explained if this is because she’s seeing him surrounded by other humanoid deities, because Dream can control which aspect she can see, or if it’s because she is leaning into her own humanoid aspect and not her cat one. It doesn’t seem to imply that Dream can shapeshift, but it doesn’t rule it out either.

And then we have Azazel: the majority of this conversation seems to take place in a hallway:

Which appeared to be next to the same staircase Odin took up to the throne room. I’m not sure what it says about their relationship or how demons view Dream, but by the time the conversation is at its end, they are back in the Egyptian view of the room:

As for Dream’s outfit, it appears to be the same peplum cloak he wore to hell, which might be the same cloak he was in for a while now.

A last note on all of these: notice how Morpheus subtly (or not so subtly) exudes power in each of these audiences. For the most part, he's above each supplicant and looking down on them. Or he exudes it in other ways (nothing says power like a series of peplums flapping in the breeze you conjured).

Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown

I was also struck by this scene:

Depending on your interpretation, he could either be dropping or throwing the Key to Hell down the stairs to his throne. I'm inclined to think he dropped it. It really reminded me of some of the scenes in the Lord of the Rings movies with the ring: there's a real weight to this key that makes it just plonk on the floor. This really helped to set the mood of how much the ring key is weighing on his mind at the end of all of these audiences.

[doctorstrangereview]

Strange Tales #114

Cover Date: November 1963 On-Sale Date: August 8, 1963

The good Doctor took a break for two months and the Human Torch returned to sharing the book with a pair of sci-fi/horror stories. It appears that the results of the Doctor Strange experiment were encouraging. He returns with the addition of a glorious blue cloak with a great big collar. The height of the collar will grow and shrink until it gets replaced in about a year by his more famous red Cloak of Levitation with the giant horned collar and gold filigree edging. It's never entirely clear if this cloak is merely decorative or has powers of its own. Hi arch-foe Mordo is now seemingly omnipotent and we are introduced to .

Our story begins with Doc receiving a desperate phone call from an old friend pleading for his help. Doctor Strange agrees to come and assist, of course. It is then revealed that Doc's old friend, Clive Bentley, is really Mordo in disguise. Mordo was so thorough that he transformed his likeness into Clive even though this was just a phone call.

Doctor Strange arrives in London and we immediately see that he's back to being his curt and arrogant self. He dismisses the poor cab driver who took him to the castle and offers to wait. "No! Leave me! All I needed were your directions to Sir Bentley's castle!" What an asshole!

Entering the castle and looking around he finds it deserted. He looks more like Vincent Price in these panels then ever before or after. Sadly, Ditko has reduced his formerly lovely amulet to a series of concentric circles. On the plus side, his eyes actually look like their open. Something not seen in the previous two stories. These eyes see suspicious vapor emitting from a big, suspicious candle. Uh Oh! Doc is paralyzed and who enters next? Yup. Baron Mordo, still wearing an atrocious outfit, but now in his signature green. He spouts a classic example of Lee's overly formal and stilted dialogue. "You are right Dr. Strange. It is I, Baron Mordo! I have made you my prisoner!" If you're like and wonder why comic book dialogue of this era had so many exclamation points wonder no more! From what I understand single periods tended to break off the printing plates and tended not to make it to the page. This doesn't seem to be a problem for ellipses. There are a lot of them on this page.

While Mordo drones on about the not yet overused plot device of when the candle dies so do you and the old duffer who taught us all we know is old and will soon die leaving me as the most powerful sorcerer, the old duffer contacts Doctor Strange telepathically offering his help. Finally called The Ancient One, we see he is wearing a lovely light blue and orange gown with a very fetching crown. How does he know to contact Doc at this moment? Does The Ancient One have mystical listening devices secreted on his students' persons? Doc politely declines the offer explaining he must do this on his own using the Baron's own weapon: sorcery. He is much nicer to The Ancient One than he was to the cabbie.

Doc uses his get out of jail free tool, aka his amulet, to broadcast his thoughts which are picked up by a nearby young woman who responds, comes to the castle and extinguishes the smelly, scary candle. Doctor Strange attempts to get her to leave but she tells him she feels their fates are intertwined. Doc realizes she has a talent for sorcery but believes it would be a bad idea if she knew it. The young woman then reveals that she is Clive Bentley's daughter, Victoria and her daddy snuffed it a decade ago. Doc is shocked never having realized he was talking to an imposter. At this moment, the Baron returns.

The Baron attempts to take control of Doctor Strange and have him kill Victoria. He also spills the beans about her mystic potential. But then it's Doctor Strange who has the clever twist. It wasn't really him the Baron was dealing with, but a mental projection. The real Doctor was still flying over on jet plane and had just arrived. This, of course, opens a whole host of questions. If he was just a mental projection, why did he need to take a taxi to the castle? Did he just need to be a jerk to someone? How did the candle entrap a mental projection? Why did it need to be rescued? How did the Baron sap the will of a mental projection? How separate are the mental faculties of the real Doc and his projection?

The Doctor doesn't try to ponder these. Instead, he and Mordo jump into another bout of ghost fisticuffs. This time the battle is enhanced by being surrounded with lightning bolts! Mordo appears to lose and vanishes in a puff of smoke. After explaining to Victoria that Mordo isn't dead, just lying in wait to try again, she asks to be Doc's disciple. He refuses, telling her she must wait until the Baron can menace them no more. It's not a promise he keeps.

Doc and The Ancient One have their battle post-mortem. We're not sure if he's there physically or a mental projection as he's in color. The Ancient states that Mordo is still stronger and what will he do when he doesn't have the element of surprise. Wait and see, my friend. Wait and see.

Despite some inconsistencies and plot holes, I quite enjoyed this one. Mordo does come across as a genuine, if long winded, threat. Magical confrontations are getting more magical, slowly evolving from astral fist fights. Victoria Bentley isn't just a one off plot device. She will return, but not under the current creative team. There is a nice build up occurring here.

I first read these stories as a pre-teen and my young mind assigned everyone American accents. I realize now Mordo probably sounds like Goldfinger. I like to think Victoria sounds like Jennifer Saunders and The Ancient One sounds like Mako. I'm good with Benedict Cumberbatch as Doc.

[batgirlgeek]

Funko Pop Collection

So I got this ask a while back from a mutual (aka @blackcat2907) and I mentioned in the tags that I could show off my funko pops so here I am! I started collecting them in middle school. They’re probably a money waster and will most likely be thrown away by future descendants but I like them🥰

I tried to get them all pictured together since they’re all scattered about my room but that didn’t happen bc I either misplaced some or they weren’t standing right (bc as we all know, Funkos can be finicky with if they want to stand properly on a given day).

My Harlequin Batman/Alfred Hitchcock/Darla/Lock/Mr. Rogers are usually on a shelf together since I don’t know where to put them and I’m not sure where most of them came from. I imagine Lock was purchased around the time when I was making my descendants fics (one of them featured Lock, Shock and Barrel’s Children) but idk for sure😅

From back -> front/left -> right we have:

Carmen Sandiego (she was my first)

Drowned Batman/-11 Batman (I haven’t actually read Death Metal but I really like the aesthetic of that AU Batman😅)

Regular Batman

Harlequin Batman

Darla from Shazam (I really liked the first live action—and the second—and I thought Darla was sweet❣️)

Alfred Hitchcock

Lock (nightmare before Christmas)

Mr. Rogers (I think I bought this when I saw the Tom Hanks’ biopic)

Eric + Ariel (I keep them with my fairytale retellings. I’m hoping to get a Cinderella figure at some point since

Batgirl

Pride month Robin (I usually buy my Funkos from retailers or Amazon but this one I got from funko’s official store since it came out during June last year shortly after Tim came out)

A bonus Dorian from D&D: Honor Among Thieves:

I enjoyed that movie a lot and I have a soft spot for tieflings so when I saw Hot Topic had the movie Funkos, I snagged her. I nearly forgot to include her since she’s usually sitting on a corner bookshelf behind my chair/desk. Since D&D is a roleplaying game, I’ve kept her with my game disks/switch & DS cartridges

The bombshells collection:

Left -> right:

Hawk girl

Supergirl

Batwoman

Poison Ivy

Catwoman

I’ve been trying to collect DC’s Bombshells line because I just love their 40s aesthetic a lot—I’d like to get the comic series also but I’m currently on a book buying ban to curb my physical TBR (there’s 58 books left if my Storygraph’s count is right).

And finally, my minis:

My mom got me this DC funko advent calendar for Christmas last year and it was very fun opening them all up since it gave me something to look forward to every day. Unfortunately, a lot of them were duds as there were so many duplicates (I suspect the company just retooled actual Funkos and didn’t bother to make new ones lol). Also the flash ones don’t stand unless they’re leaning against another mini. But I still think they’re cute so they’re displayed on their own shelf :)

I’ve never officially counted all my Funkos before but in total (excluding my advent calendar minis) we have 18. There’s a lot more I’d love to buy (including a Huntress funko) but at the moment all I can do is stare wistfully at an Amazon wishlist and I’m okay with that for now😅

(I’m sorry this took awhile BTW. I could lie and say I was busy but I really got sucked into the tv series White Collar of all things. It’s good, I’m on s4 <3)

By the way,, before you leave: if anybody is reading this and is collecting the deluxe editions of these dragon age books or knows where I can get copies for a reasonable price, I would appreciate it. They are very hard to find now since they’re technically out of print I think. I’m missing The Calling, The Stolen Throne and Last Flight. Might have to cave and buy them in their original editions which would be a shame bc I think these copies are gorgeous and have incredible art😅

[eddystshirts]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: 90s Vintage Batman Shirt Sleeveless Black Tank Top Superhero Comic Book.

[ohcanadashop]

7 Famous Canadian Kid's T-Shirts of All Time || OhCanadaShop

OhCanadaShop is well known for its love of personalized t-shirts. The most iconic, the best, or the most well-known t-shirts of all time have always been topics of casual conversation, but in honor of the t-seventh shirt's birthday, we decided to put our words into action by putting the question to a corporate vote. As a result, readers are taken on a fantastical journey down memory lane through classic films, rock 'n' roll, TV shows, comic books, college sports, cultural movements, political pronouncements, quirky fads, and much more.

Enjoy and spread the word to your friends, we hope. To understand the tales behind the Top 5, watch the TopLists video or go through all 7 below. Also, we hope that you'll be motivated to create a custom t-shirt design for your team. See the 2023 collection of Canadian Kids T-shirts For Sale made by talented designers at ohcanadashop.com. many sizes, hues, and shapes Get Canada design you want right immediately! The apparel on the following list is all readily available for purchase at retail locations across the country. Moreover, these items can be purchased online or used at neighborhood thrift stores.

1. Kids - Just a kid from Canada

The kid's heavy cotton tee is perfect for everyday use. The fabric is 100% cotton for solid colors. Polyester is included for heather-color variants. These fabrics are prime materials for printing. The shoulders have twill tape for improved durability. The collar is curl resistant due to ribbed knitting. There are no seams along the sides.

100% cotton (fiber content may vary for different colors), Light fabric (5.3 oz/yd² (180 g/m²)), Classic fit, Tear-away label, Runs true to size

Size- XS, S, M, L, XL

Color- Dark Heather, Red, Light Blue, Maroon, Navy, Orange, Royal, Sport Grey,

2. Kids - Canadian Things Map

The kid's heavy cotton tee is perfect for everyday use. The fabric is 100% cotton for solid colors. Polyester is included for heather-color variants. These fabrics are prime materials for printing. The shoulders have twill tape for improved durability. The collar is curl resistant due to ribbed knitting. There are no seams along the sides.

100% cotton (fiber content may vary for different colors), Light fabric (5.3 oz/yd² (180 g/m²)), Classic fit, Tear-away label, Runs true to size

Size- XS, S, M, L, XL

Color- Black, Light Pink, Navy, White, Sport Grey

3. Kids - Painted Flag

The kids heavy cotton tee is perfect for everyday use. The fabric is 100% cotton for solid colors. Polyester is included for heather-color variants. These fabrics are prime materials for printing. The shoulders have twill tape for improved durability. The collar is curl resistant due to ribbed knitting. There are no seams along the sides.

Material: 100% cotton (fiber content may vary for different colors), Light fabric (5.3 oz/yd² (180 g/m²)), Classic fit, Tear-away label, Runs true to size

Size- XS, S, M, L, XL

Color- White, Light Pink, Daisy, Maroon, Royal, Sport Grey

4. Kids - Great Lakes

The kid's heavy cotton tee is perfect for everyday use. The fabric is 100% cotton for solid colors. Polyester is included for heather-color variants. These fabrics are prime materials for printing. The shoulders have twill tape for improved durability. The collar is curl resistant due to ribbed knitting. There are no seams along the sides.

Material: 100% cotton (fiber content may vary for different colors), Light fabric (5.3 oz/yd² (180 g/m²)), Classic fit, Tear-away label, Runs true to size

Size- XS, S, M, L, XL

Color- White, Light Pink, Daisy, Maroon, Royal, Sports Grey

5. Kids - True North Strong & Free

As Canadian, these are the words we are raised on.

100% Soft cotton (fiber content may vary for different colors) , Light fabric, Classic fit, Runs true to size.

Size- XS, S, M, L, XL

Color- Red, Daisy, Irish Green, Navy, Royal, Sport Grey

6. Lil BAHD Baby Bodysuit

Pretty cute eh!?  This soft baby bodysuit is perfect for an infant's sensitive, smooth skin. Durable print will survive the very first adventures of the little explorer.

100% Cotton (fiber content may vary for different colors), Light Fabric , Tear away label

Size- NB (0-3M), 6M, 12M, 18M,24M

Color- Pink, Black, Heather, Light Blue, Navy, Royal, White

7. Cute Eh Baby Bodysuit

Pretty cute eh!?  This soft baby bodysuit is perfect for an infant's sensitive, smooth skin. Durable print will survive the very first adventures of the little explorer.

100% Cotton (fiber content may vary for different colors), Light Fabric , Tear away label

Size- NB (0-3M), 6M, 12M, 18M, 24M

Color- Pink, Black, Heather, Light Blue, Navy, Royal, White

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Oh Canada Shop

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Postal Code: L3X1X4

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[5mind]

cometcalloway​:

Comet gets to his feet quickly, and he’s surprised and dismayed to see how much he’s shaking.

“You really… you really came for me, huh?” he says, taking the red unit’s hand and coming to stand awkwardly close to them. Part of him is deeply resisting the idea of making a run for it through the unknowns of a villain lair that still seems very much occupied by villains.

“That was a… a nice pose you did there,” Comet says automatically, looking all around for signs of enemies. Firing off compliments to people is a high-reward, low-risk kind of activity, and it’s completely free. You never know whose good side you’ll want to be on. Actually, he wants to be on 5′s good side very much right now. 

“Hey, do you know if these guys, um, these villain types, if they’re doing like this big elaborate game, or if like, they’d actually.” He swallows. “If they’re harmlessly recreating a comic book scenario for fun or nostalgia’s sake, is what I’m wondering, or whether they’d actually. Well, harm or hurt anybody? Do you know?“

Maybe this isn’t a good idea. Maybe he should bolt for the ‘safety’ of his makeshift cell and wait for a ransom. He’d survive a ransom, right?

___

In another part of the lab, a short man beckons over a taller one. The one who’s beckoning is wearing a sweater vest over a collared shirt (it has a floral print), with slacks. The leader is wearing an imposing supervillain costume.

“Look at that,” Piter complains, pointing to the screen by smacking it angrily with a fingernail. “The superhero robots are wiping the floor with our hired muscle. I daresay I could manage a few stitches, but we just don’t have a proper hospital. Of course they’ll need to go back to Mars Town for treatment, where they’ll be identified, and arrested, and questioned… assuming those noble technicolor tin-men are too heroic to kill them… I suppose I can’t kill them, eh?”

He looks up at his boss, doe-eyed and pouting and tensing for murder.

“I never even had time to make a costume,” he complains, without giving his boss much of a chance to speak. “I can’t let anyone recognize me if they come up here! But, oh, you know me… I just didn’t gravitate towards that flashy superhero stuff when I was a kid. It was more Star Wars and Sherlock Holmes for me. …Pony Pals? Don’t judge the Pony Pals until you’ve actually read part of the series, I don’t want to hear it. But what ever should I do… I suppose I could hide under this…gross… tarp… over here? Can I kill the Mayor if he sees me?”

And now he’s wandering over to another part of the control room to investigate the tarp. He doesn’t have any particular powers, but it is a little remarkable how long he can carry on a conversation with just one person talking (himself).

“Of course..?” Fivemind wasn’t entirely sure why the mayor would question this. It was only natural for a superhero to come running when there is a hostage. 

The compliment was met with a simple “thank you”. The machine did appreciate it but right now it’s priorities lay in making sure they were getting out of this in one piece. Or at least the mayor does. According to their databanks, and also past experience, humans were generally much harder to fix when broken.

“One of the other rangers is ahead of us.” Turning the corner, they would find the pink unit haphazardly shoving something (or someone) into a broom closet. There was blood on her sharp tipped hands. “Coast is clear for now.” 

“I am afraid we do not know much of what we up against...we were hoping you might know.” Through the units the AI had heard little odds and ends from the guards and hired thugs here - something about a boss. Quite possibly there was a lab around here? Or was this the lab? 

“I do not think it is simply a reenactment though. Considering that the footsoldiers - for lack of a better term- are actually armed.”

---

Red Cage got up from his creaky little office chair as Piter directed his attention to what was happening out there in the hallways. The supervillain , although at this point he supposed it was a bit early to call himself that, couldn’t say he was surprised. But he wasn’t really expecting them to go through their base this fast. 

He was only really half listening to other man talk about -wait since when did this conversation become about tv shows and books? He didn't even get a word in. He was just going to have to get used to this until he finds a better option, wasn’t he? 

“Oh, and Piter?” What was it the other requested? Killing the rest of the staff? “Do keep in mind we are working with a limited number of hands and an even more limited hiring pool. Kill if they are beyond saving but... I would prefer at least some of us come out of this still ..functional.” 

“That includes you.” He pulled out a ziplock bag containing a N95 respirator and a pair of safety goggles from a drawer. Standard laboratory PPE. He went over to the other man and tossed the bag into his hands. “Here. In case you need to detonate the spore bombs in close range. Or we cross paths in action. We can talk about an actual costume later.”

While the strain of mold they would be using was cultivated to thrive in machines and electronics, probably better not inhale any of that. Cage hadn’t really gotten around to testing it on humans anyways. He was lowkey hoping he could use the mayor for that once all this was done with. 

“And I'd rather we get rid of the robots before the mayor.” 

[wroteclassicaly]

May I Taste Your Sin

(Michael Langdon x Female Reader)

Pairings : Michael Langdon x Female Reader

Warnings : Language, smut, blood, vaginal sex, vaginal fingering, oral sex, blood play, & period sex.

A/N : This fic has been a loooong time coming! I’m sorry it’s taken me this long, but now that I have inspo I wanted get this out for y’all! The warnings are obviously self-explanatory, so skip this if you don’t like the contents it’s gonna contain! Michael Langdon eats human hearts, and he’s a demon, before anyone starts to fuss over this, lol. I’m sure menstrual cycles with his partner would be a dessert to him!

Enjoy! This one is pretty intense, so I’m nervous about it! I also have more installments with different characters coming in the next few days! :)

Check out where I first posted the teaser for this fic, and check out these period sex headcanons I wrote for Michael!

~*~

He keeps staring at you. You try to move about, do your tasks, even attempt conversation with people you’d tried so hard to avoid these past several years. Your abilities to function like the human being that you are, seemingly vanish whenever the tall honey blond is within your exhausted proximities. You aren’t sure if you’d like to let out the loudest echoing scream and see where it ends up in this place, or let your wildest carnal urges guide your hormones into a literal sticky situation. Or, at the very least, let yourself fantasize about seducing him in your own self-created version of reality.

You’ll have to settle on the latter, unfortunately. Pocketing the cream colored dish rag, you place the last row of finely printed novels on the book shelve. Your fingertips linger, attempting to find a portal through their leather cover tops. Your tongue slicks your parched lips, neck stretching to crack out the tension. You aren’t trying to do anything but stealing some relaxation, when a largely hot hand is pressing a knot-out in a knead on your shoulder - clasping, settling a risky purchase.

You don’t have to make an educated guess to know whose hand that belongs to. He practically spews out his control and ownership of this place every chance that he gets. Biting down a venomous sigh, you coerce yourself into a turn around - gathering an eyeful of Langdon’s fancy black vest. That’s not good enough for the King, apparently, as he fits his pointer finger underneath your chin in a tuck, thumb pressing against your jaw to tilt your gaze to his own.

“Did you forget your manners, Miss Y/L/N?”

The way his shining eyes are sizing your attention, captivating your unwillingness to comply to how Langdon makes you feel - it can’t be humanly possible, can it? There’s that possessive ache that begs you to launch ownership over him and his entire body. Why is everything so widely dramatic whenever he’s around? Is he just full of himself or is it something way more than you’re aware? A crackling parch winds its pathway around your throat, sealing your breath in.

Nothing comes from between your lips. You’re frozen solid, legs a weightless press. Each touch this... man brings upon your body is like a bass thump - pumping you towards his secretive rhythm. All you can do is sway with the beat. Langdon smirks coyly, his other hand resting behind his back in an idle grace.

Neither of you dare utter a word. However, Langdon is seemingly content in making you squirm and you try to focus on everything but his perfectly crafted jawline, and how eagerly you’d suck on it if asked. You swear you can hear your heartbeat galloping off, so strong that it can tear your heart right out of your chest along with it. His colorful eyes glance over you in a brief stamping sweep, lingering at your sore breasts and your waistline.

What is he even doing...?

“Excuse me, but Ms. Venable did not authorize any private conferences with the help.” A cold and steel - grasped voice chills your bones down, dusting your cheeks with a reddening humiliation.

You haven’t even so much as spoken to Langdon, yet it feels like you two have been clawing and scratching at each other all over this fucking outpost, riding one another until you can’t fathom walking upright. You still can’t speak, but Langdon takes care of that for you.

“Interesting, and did Ms. Venable give you permission to waltz in here when you weren’t requested or required, just to give a meaningless order?” Langdon is mildly amused in his question, his hand still paused on your chin, thumb now swiping in a tickling drop with his fingertip - along your jaw.

Ms. Mead looks comical in her brief attempt at forming a snappy comeback, only to go silent in defeat. You take this tension as your escape line - quickly edging from the sacred confines Langdon has built for you two, and you all but run out the door. You’re clutching your shirt collar, punching a two pounce path up the staircase and to the help’s quarters.

Chores now, panic later.

~*~

Five minutes. Five fucking minutes in this place that you’ve served without question, complaint, for nearly two years - is all you want. But as the heavy handed rasps of Mead’s knuckle bones beat on your bathroom door, you know that is a simple pipe dream. Her low voice is harsh with you, making your headache unfold into a full blown migraine. You shift uncomfortably, knees knocking together, thighs sore against the cool porcelain seat below you.

Langdon must’ve massively pissed her off... Good.

Your palms collect purchase to your cradle your face, your eyes glistening with tears, throat burning with frustration. It hurts too much to stand upright this time. Normally women would lose this in stressful situations. Add the apocalypse and barely eating, you’d peg it normal to receive nothing. However, your predicament is much worse, fucking you over once more.

Your body welcomes Mother Nature each month. Unpredictable, yet there. Heavy, excruciating. You could list on and on reasons that don’t amount to much. You’re stuck with a part of you that won’t ever come to fruition.

Not in your former life, especially not in this one. Another reminder that carries an award winning irony. Sighing, you peer down at the red dish rag you were given. Literally on the rag, what a joyous harmony. The elites of course, are given the tampons and pads.

You have to use scraps of fabric you’re forced to wash in the bathtub if you move too fast or sneeze. And on your heavy days when you haven’t the time to stop your duties to wash and air out the towels, things are much harder. At least before the apocalypse you had chocolate, feminine products, a warm shower to take your time in, movies to curl up with, and a place of your own to cry where no one could hear you. You sniffle, hormones locking down your heart.

Most recently the outpost had welcomed the cooperative leader Langdon. He had interviewed everyone but you, uninterested, only flustering you a few times. Him being here just makes your period a more unwelcome storm. This morning as you were passing him on the landing of the staircase, delivering the bath towels to elite rooms, he stared at you. Right into you, nostrils flaring, tongue rolling out to slick his plump lips, blue eyes darkening.

Then there was this afternoon. How could I forget...?

The encounters were over quicker than they took place. Still, his acknowledgment of you didn’t bring your interview, nor did it promise your application for the sanctuary he preaches about. Forcing your tears to bank, you stand with your dress skirt and apron held up, staring at the stained rag in your panties. You turn and flush the toilet, eating back around to the shock of your fucking life. There, just feet in the from the doorway, is Langdon in all his glory.

It makes you swallow harshly, stomach drawing off the butterflies that have grown claws. You feel winded. His ring covered fingers bring an object to your sights. A thinly wrapped stick. You don’t answer, you don’t move, you don’t protest him approaching until he’s directly in front of you.

“What do you think you’re doing?” You try, a mere whisper betraying your bravery.

“Helping you,” He answers simply, a heated slide crossing his mouth. You can practically taste him, damn near swaying forward.

You start to snap back into your senses, ready to cover your remembered modesty back up. He grasps your wrist, a hungry look soft in his features. “Will you let me?”

You’re shaking, body on fire at him touching you, you try to keep your legs from clenching, that want. You know what will occur if you let yourself. He is gentle with you, admiration clear. Why? You don’t understand this.

“You’re bleeding, I know.”

Jaw unhinged, you stand upright, his fingers still ghosting your skin. An unlucky movement on your part, the warmth spills from you and you look down between your thighs in horror at the red lines running down your legs, pattering against the floor. Langdon is breathing heavily, practically panting, stunning you once more. His other hand grips your cheek, thumb swiping your lip, eyes not breaking contact from yours.

“Do you know how good your cunt smells? Every pathetic person in this outpost is starving and you have the best meal between your fucking legs.”

When your silence stretches on, Michael nudges forward, careful with you. “May I feast?”

It’s all too much to handle. Having him talk to you, you speaking to him. And now this? How? You begin to grow dizzy, hands trembling as you try to pull your clothing back up. Langdon’s hands grip your wrists.

“Please don’t do that.”

You want to stun him incredulously, backhand him. None of that is happening, not even the urge. Instead, your want for him is magnifying beyond any feigned ignorance. Your tongue slides out across your lips, teeth biting down on your bottom lip in a brisk chew. Langdon hooks his middle finger between your teeth, releasing your lip and combing the blood across in a coppery gloss.

Your chest is startled, rising and falling in quivering quakes, ears hearing a static rush. Everything inside of you is alive and crying out in need to be sated. Langdon grips you around the waist, lowering his forehead to rest atop your own, his middle finger - still doused in your blood - slithers past his own lips, which close in a sticky suckle. A vibrating moan pummels his throat, causing a constricting swallow that showcases his Adam’s apple.

If I could only just lick that...

Langdon is sly and devilishly cunning to a fault - fast in his next movements. He presses a designer boot down over your skirts, successfully preventing them from being made up. “Leave them here for someone else.”

“I... I can’t. This is too much, Langdon —“ He chuckles at the formality.

“Since I can see your womanhood running from between your legs, I suppose it’s only fair that we skip some formalities, don’t you agree, Y/N?” Your eyes are probably wider than necessary - a cartoon like sight. He’s used your full name in an authoritative command, leaving no room for question. “And you may call me Michael.”

It’s all a little more frantic from this point. He gives the slightest of information, and you see your skirts and panties gliding across the floor in a winded push. Michael brings that wrapped item back into your eye-line. “We won’t be needing this for a while.”

“I didn’t say yes.” You try, swallowing a weak, whimpering stifle.

“But you didn’t say no, did you?” That shit eating grin. He has you and he is all too aware - elated to the brimming brimstone of hellfire you’re about to bestow upon yourself.

Your insides melt into the trenches of red hot, raw ravishment. Michael drops his left arm down, hand palming his hardening cock through black slacks, eyes encouraging you in a chained bind. “Let’s go and make a mess in my room.”

Now or never. No more of this, back to reality, maybe some place better. You’re spinning in a foiling encasement, precipice wide and open - hungry to pull you under. And you dive in, you let it all go. Michael looks satisfied, sharing something with himself that you don’t know... yet.

Taking Michael Langdon’s hand, you’re led into the unknown.

~*~

Langdon leads you down his own separate corridor, your free hand scolded for trying to hold yourself over your uniform.

“I want you to make a mess.” Michael says.

You hope that you’re not the one who will be paying the cost for your own said mess, or cleaning it up. If it’s up to Venable - you’ll be licking it, all the way to her high heeled boots.

Once inside the confines of Michael Langdon’s bedroom, you take the time to look around, enjoying the perks this situation is bringing. The room isn’t any different than what the purple elites get here, it is bordering on a more... lived in feel, which is ironic when you consider that Langdon hasn’t been here like everyone else has for the past three years.

Guess he’s just more comfortable? He does look like an English vampire half the time..

On that note, a particularly harsh cramp antagonizes your uterus, causing you to clench your abdomen, choking out a acidic slice. “Fucking demonic cramps.”

Michael - now clad in his all black ensemble, minus the overcoat - chortles, knotting his fingers together behind his back and strolls forward, wetting his lips as the firelight crackles a sparking soundtrack. “It’s ironic how you refer to it as “demonic”, when Satan really has nothing to do with this. I mean, it’s not on him that humanity failed their pitiful guidelines for sobering temptation. Wasn’t it your lord and savior that bestowed this curse upon you?” He finishes, giving a head tilt to your unhinged stun.

“Are you religious?” Is all you can come up with.

Michael sneers, looking slightly offended. It fades seconds later. “Depends on your definition of religious, and then there is what one believes in. But I guess you can say that I’m devoted to... a certain cause.”

“Were you this mysterious before the apocalypse, or is that why the cooperative gave you the job?” You try, a discomfort crackling at your inner thighs.

They’re probably smeared... And not just with blood.

“I bet you’re uncomfortable.” Michael teases, snapping his fingers at the fireplace. Did your eyes betray you, or did the flames flicker?

You want to give a snappy comeback, but it feels unwise. You nod like the sap that you are, nails biting your palms. Your heartbeat has begun to accelerate, a visible sight beneath your apron. Langdon guides himself to step in front of you, leather shoes drumming across the floor beneath. Every sound in this forsaken room is flowing through your eardrums - Michael’s scent on the tip of your tongue.

You need him. More than your body has to have the air that filters underneath this mausoleum. You’re so unsteady, eyes brimming with the smoking arousal, blocking common sense. Michael catches you as you collide with his chest, wrapping your fists into his vest. His blue irises are disappearing to a canyon of night sky - lavish black so sinful that it steals the breath from your lungs.

Drizzling off your tongue is a hesitation. “Won’t we get into trouble...? Venable -“ Those rough fingertips hold a softness that hushes your lips, denting.

“Can watch me with my face buried into your cunt. The humiliation will arouse her.” Michael answers in his own finish.

You aren’t sure why, but that grates your mouth into a sneaky grin, shared with Michael’s, sensing that slapping throb at his phrases. He pinches your chin, nuzzling your head to the side, his lips sloping a map across your neck. His towering physique backs you by knocking his knees into your thighs, delivering you to the edge of his bed. You drop like wild weights, looking towards the ceiling, trying to take a deep inhalation. Langdon crouches, pants rustling as they tighten around his temptingly thick thighs.

He tuts in a scold, chiding you furthermore. “You will watch what I’m getting ready to do to you! Is that clear, Y/N?”

You don’t answer fast enough, Michael’s hand wrapping around your throat, eyes burning hellfire through you - dusting your bones to ash. Your throat is wet with the clingy, unshed tears. Fuck, you have to be filled up until you’re hollowed out. Michael is languid in grace, hand toppling into your lap, joining his other.

“Take down your hair, Y/N.”

Like a puppet, you obey your new owner. Unwrapping the pointed bun, you shake your locks free, sighing in an eased tickle.

“What a good and obedient girl that you are. Those who obey, shall reap the riches.”

“Why are you doing this?” An ignorant question on your part.

“Because,” As if it’s the most simple answer in this broken world, Michael let’s his hands start to unbutton his vest, carelessly sending it, his attention not wavering off you in the slightest. “I’m hungry.”

A literal moan comes from you, making Langdon hiss through his through his milky white teeth. He resumes his former position, hovering.

“Spread.” Michael says, a quaint wonder adorning him, his palms sliding up and down your legs to feel you part them. The blood is mixing some fucked out potion with your creamy arousal for him, and he knows it, has it right into your tremble from the exposure.

Your skin is steaming in scrapes, responding so vulgarly to Michael, that he is hooking his wrists under your knees, bouncing the flesh into his awaiting hands, and claiming. He hoists your legs over his shoulders to arch you to his idea of perfection. You should be protesting, in a shambled shyness. That is gone, no place here. Michael let’s his nose rest in the crease of your thigh, crudely sniffing like some beast.

His sopping tongue finds a striking stroke along your ruby red, damp thigh.

Closer... He’s getting closer...

When you can’t feel that warm and snide air he possesses, you lock to load a question. Michael is shedding himself of his remaining clothing in a cocky crawl. His hair curtains his face as he sees you seek out his cock - thick and heavy, weighted and wet with pre-cum.

“Finish taking off your clothing.” You’ve never done something so fast in your years alive.

You have to admit, being so vulnerable like this - naked and bleeding, it has you buzzing.

Michael outstretches a veined forearm, the back of his rings swirling in desiring dances across your breasts. “Do these hurt?”

Your lashes are slicked in perspiring tears, the tired soreness harassing your chest. He has his truth. His trim form bows to you once more, placing your legs back where they belong. He knuckles a pressing push into your abdomen. “Bear down.”

It isn’t an accident this time, it’s not a discreet secrecy. Michael wants you this way. All of you. Finding a confidence, you give yourself a high and sink your fingers into his hair, toes tickling his shoulder blades in a forwarding nudge, doubling down on your muscles. That warmth spills out of you and Langdon takes you, tongue parting your swollen folds. He regulates his tongue in wet paints, licking and sucking everything you give him.

“Please—“ You’re already begging. It’s so fucking intense and intimate that you can’t formulate your own damned name.

“Are you really going to ask, or would you just like to feel good?” Michael vibrates, his mouth visible and shining crimson as he seeks you out between your slippery thighs.

It’s outright feral. His irises are coal black, blue lost in some combing canyon that’s crumbled around sin. His digits prod at your sensitive opening, being accepted moments later. His lips close over your clit, tongue slithering back and forth to assist his beckoning fingers. He gathers more from you - his purpose.

That quenched fold starts to seize you early on, your pattering breaths signaling the orgasm that is about to tear the screams from your fucking diaphragm. Michael’s hand smacks and rolls your swollen breast - permission granted. That’s all it takes and you’re falling back onto the mattress, back arching in a lined drag, pussy flattening against his mouth. He jerks you impossibly closer, your vision whiting out into dark spots. You tangle your fingers further into his luscious strands, holding, pulling.

In the midst of close recovery, Michael is plowing you with a short lived let down, his mouth leaving your pussy. You can’t complain, no time available, as his hips slot in a frazzled fit between your legs. His pelvis is tense, sheathed in sweat. His chest smashes your breasts, his hand reaching down to guide his cock inside you. You can’t speak, but cling tightly to his back. He growls a sound that you’ll never forget, the fire bursting behind him, flames licking the rocked cove that houses them.

His mouth is covered in your essence, your cunt bathing his dick with each violent thrust. It’s pouring in drenches, salty perspiration, pooling blood - both of you losing yourselves in the mess. Michael props himself up, digging into a dipping slam, meeting your mouth in an ending kiss. His hair tickles your shoulders, nose nudges your now blood caked mouth, and he gives the warning.

“Spill your fucking curse all over me!” And you come undone, glued to him in puzzled entrapment.

Your thighs are wrecked, his bedsheets useless, and then there’s Michael, who forces you to look at him and really see him. There’s only black in his eyes. You sputter a disbelief, bracing. His mouth parts, tongue flicks across to gather more, leveling off into his jagged movements. He swells inside your cunt, dousing your walls in his warm cum.

He doesn’t leave you, not even when it’s over. He simply takes you with him. You aren’t sure where you get the courage to speak - body shaking and shivering.

“What... Michael, who are you?”

He cups a hand over your cunt, rolling onto his side, keeping you held to him. He lightly blows away a pesky lock of your hair, then maneuvers another behind your ear.

“I’m the man who’s going to save your wretched existence.”

Tag list : @littledemondani @dark-mei-rose @fckinsupreme @angelicmichael @icylangdon @ritualmichael @sojournmichael @celestialrequiem @instinctsxbaby @infernwetrust @ferndolan @9layerdevilfoodcake @bloodcoatedeclipse @wormycircumstance @antichristsxbox @xavierplympton @xavierplymptons @ramona-thorns @lovelylangdonx @langdxn @codyarchives @dailylangdon @codyfernuk @langdonsjoyy @7-wonders @blakescoven @holylangdon @bitchchatter @suspiriva @taskmastter @kitty4860 @ladynuwanda @langdonsexual @sammythankyou

[calling4glaives]

Nyx's Cork Board, pt II

Moving on to the left side of the board!

Here's the link to part I, if you missed it.

Nyx has several interesting pictures. The first is a family portrait with Nyx’s mother and presumably father (based on the rather extreme resemblance to Nyx), the kids, and an older man. Who is the older man? An uncle? A grandfather? Another father?

Young Nyx apparently has already found his signature hairstyle, with his sides shaved. Based on their relative sizes and face shapes, I’d guess Nyx is around nine to eleven here, and Selena around seven, but it’s hard to tell at this age and level of details. Your thoughts?

It’s so nice to actually see not only these important ladies, but some examples of female Galahdan fashion. Both have long hair, though Mama for sure has hers pulled up, and both are wearing these chain-like hairpieces. Many cultures have unbound hair as a sign of an unmarried or younger woman, perhaps that’s the case here. Selena’s jewelry goes over her hair, and Mama’s under, which could be another indicator of maturity. Selena has two braids visible, one under each ear, though the details of them are not very clear between the damage and the darkness of the picture.

Neither woman has visible tattoos in this shot, though that doesn’t mean they don’t have them. Both appear to be slightly made up, with Mama wearing foundation and possibly lipstick and both women with eyeshadow or liner. Though that could just be the Standard Female Eyeliner that is just how movies imagine all women look constantly.

Mama is wearing black with a high collar and long, fitted sleeves – fashion choice, women’s wear or widow’s wear? Selena has a lighter, looser shirt with a pattern on it, with a v neck that might possibly imply overlapping panels like a kimono and a polka-dotted scarf tied around her neck. 

The heavy candlestick or lamp in the back of this photo (seen more easily in zoomed-out pictures) and the tiles on the wall (or square, glazed windows?) next to a possible incense burner, vase, or statue, might indicate this is at home, or perhaps a shrine? Either way, the photo, despite being crisp, is badly damaged and hard to make out.

Map of Galahd

Star Junco has convincingly argued that this is a map of Galahd underneath all the other items here. In addition to her excellent map analysis, I want to talk about the “x” on one of the islands. Nyx’s hometown, perhaps? Or one of his parents’? Or something else?

In the cluster of artwork at the bottom, two of the pictures appear to be less formal, shall we say. The lower watercolor-like shows two black-haired figures with wide open mouths – one with a ponytail and pink patterned dress, one with shorter hair in a blue shirt with a red cape – either swimming or flying on a blue background above green plants. I think this was definitely done by a kid – one of Axis or Pelna’s theorized kids, maybe? Or someone Nyx helped? Or perhaps, judging by the bangs and relative size of the images, a drawing of Selena and Nyx by a young Selena? It looks rather like Superman, which makes us wonder about Lucis’s comic book scene.

The next image is a painting of a malboro holding an orange sphere and is labeled Nyx very neatly. While this could be another kid drawing, I’m inclined to say this was painted by a glaive or adult – it’s not super stylized, and while not sophisticated, seems to have a fair amount of control. Perhaps someone mad at Nyx for stealing their orange? Whatever it shows, there’s definitely a story here.

Under the more home-made art, there appears to be a woodblock-style print or perhaps detailed drawing of an almost meso-american type figure surrounded by a border of possibly hearts. It might possibly represent Quetzalcoatl based on some of what it is holding – a snake and a scepter or weapon – as well as the spines and feathers on the back and the spirals on its chest and ear like a shell or comma. See:

(images courtesy of the wikipedia article on Quetzalcoatl)

The other item the drawing holds could be the fire serpent of Huitzilopochtli, a deity associated with war and the sun, and the weapon itself has interesting lightning/war associations. Is this a Galahdan depiction of Ramuh? Bahamut? Someone else? Or perhaps a dawn/sun mythos, as Quetzalcoatl is associated with the formation of the fifth sun? Some more mythology and archaeology information on some of the symbols and Quetzalcoatl can be found here and here.

As best I can decipher, the certificate says “Nyx Ulric: XXXXX to the XXX XXX lands beyond the wall. ??? V 744” and is signed Regis Lucis Caelum in cursive, the only instance of cursive in the series I know of. Interestingly, it doesn’t have any titles for Regis, nor any ornaments on the paper itself, which is very crisp still. It looks almost like Nyx printed this off himself, as a matter of fact, and Regis’ signature is so regular it’s either a stamp or a font. Hmmm…

Selena’s letter is also so crisp it looks like a photocopy. The limits of CGI, probably. It’s much more legible: “Dear Nyx, Happy 20th Birthday! It’s weird to write a letter when we live in the same house, but you’ve been working (I think?) so late that we never get to talk, so you’ll just have to read this in my voice. I made you a good luck charm to commemorate the occasion, pretty sweet, right? I put my … it, so hold onto it, will ya?”

T_T What is the good-luck charm? It could be the Lil Malbuddy charm, but that looks too manufactured. Part of his uniform, maybe? The Malboro!Nyx drawing?

The “(I think)?” is often construed to mean Nyx is doing resistance work, but as discussed above that’s slightly confusing timeline-wise. One of Nyx’s bios says he is a "Native son of Galahd who fought alongside the local Resistance before arriving in Insomnia to serve Regis in the Kingsglaive." Does that suggest Niflheim was there before the attack, or that he participated in it for a very short time between the attack and going to Insomnia? Maybe Selena died in a later raid? Perhaps when they say 'resistance' they really mean something more like 'militia' and they were going outside of Galahd to help. Or perhaps it was just laziness and the rule of making it relate to the protagonist as much as possible >.>

Finally, let’s look at the board as a whole, all these memories topped by a cluster of plants and stiff ribbons of red, green, white, and yellow. The bouquet appears to mainly be green leaves, perhaps with some flowers hanging down. If these are artificial, could this be Selena’s charm? It doesn’t quite look like either sasaki or shikimi, the two plants most associated with Japanese shrines from my quick research. I wonder what they are?

Propped up like this with the incense burner and candle, plus the bouquet at the top, it definitely seems to have spiritual significance. A memorial seems the most common guess, but there are definitely living people on it as well – the picture of young Nyx and Libertus in uniform plus the letter from Regis seem to apply to more than just the dead or lost. And the haphazard organization – overlapping images, unused pins at the top – seems to imply something more casual. What are your thoughts?

Thanks again for sticking with us through this whole thing! Again, if you haven't yet done so, please fill out our survey for our next event!

[dswcp]

I love this unused storyboard from The Phantom Menace, so I painted it! I was excited to paint the looming, skull-like Maul with a dainty brush and the sand clouds with a palette knife. I tried to balance Iain McCaig’s creepy composition with the sunny color palette of the movie. He looks a bit like he’s emerging from an explosion of perfectly toasted marshmallows.

In the storyboard, McCaig sketched Maul in his original design -- a spiked collar and no horns (he actually had feathers on his head!). I decided to keep the original costume but alter the face to look more like his final design.

Media: Blick Canvas Pad, Golden Fiber Paste, acrylic paints, painter’s tape

Storyboard drawn by Iain McCaig during the 90s as preproduction for The Phantom Menace. From “Storyboards: The Prequel Trilogy,” edited by J. W. Rinzler and published in 2013.

🎨🎁DSWCP ART TRADE!🎁🎨

This is an open invitation to all other Star Wars fans and artists! If you redraw any Star Wars comic panel or official art (browse DSWCP’s archive here for a ton of options) and submit it or tag me, then I will share your art here. In return, I’ll draw any Star Wars character you request!

You can also feel free to make fanart based on a panel/official art, or change it around in a creative way (costume swap, different dialogue, coloring it in, etc.). All skill levels and media are welcome.

If anyone actually does this, I’ll be over the freaking moon and probably print your art out and tape it to my fridge. Go ahead, make my day!

There is actually an old action figure which combined Maul’s original and final designs long before I did. I bought mine at WonderCon a few years ago:

This 2001 action figure is called “Darth Maul: Sith Apprentice” and it’s from the “Power of the Jedi” line. It comes with a little book which gives a narrative explanation for the costume change:

“Early in Darth Maul's training as a Sith, he wears special padding as he learns the rigors of hand-to-hand combat and furthers his mastery of the dark side of the Force.”

I think the mustard yellow is very fetching on him.