#There's a striking difference in quality between the first anime concepts and the last ones which is... Depressing

[just-like-playing-tag]

A few days ago volume 20 came in the mail and it's everything I've been thinking ever since so take some edits of the anime designs adjusted to volume 20 colors

[nat-20s]

for @jonmartinweek day 8! (which I definitely realized was happening and for sure did not forget lmao). The prompt was free day/au, so I picked my own theme of “pets”. The last few fics have been pretty loaded, so please enjoy some pure post canon (literal and figurative) fluff

~*~

“I can’t believe I married a dog person.”

They weren’t even supposed to be in the shelter. They had made no plans to visit a shelter. However, as Jon has been learning over the course of the past couple years, a Martin not under duress and given free time outside will inevitably end up trying to befriend any living nonhuman creature in the immediate vicinity.

“I’m not a dog person.”

“The lapful of beagle puppy would indicate otherwise.”

“Just because I appreciate the company of a very good boy, yes you are, doesn’t mean I’m a dog person. Dog person implies I have a preference. I like cats equally as much as I like dogs. Unlike some of us, my heart is open to all manner of furry friends.”

“I don’t...hate dogs.”

“Uh-huh. Is that why you won’t pet Rufio here?”

“He’s nippy, I don’t trust him. And it’s just that dogs are A Lot. I find most of them a bit overwhelming. And needy.”

“Pff, that’s no excuse. You’ve been best friends with overwhelming, and you married needy.”

Martin lets out a distracted giggle as Rufio finally gets in a lick on his face. Okay, maybe it is a pretty adorable sight, but that’s hardly sufficient enough evidence to actually let such an energetic ball of fluff into their home. Still, it’s enough to convince Jon to sit down next to them, and give Rufio a very tentative scritch behind the ears. “I think we both qualify as the needy one in our relationship.”

“Pretty sure that’s called codependency. What would our therapist say?”

“She’d probably say that’s a bit harsh. And that we still need to work on our separation anxiety.”

“Hey, you know what helps with separation anxiety?”

“No.”

“A dog!”

“No!”

They get a dog. Their flat is decently sized and they both have steady incomes and enough free time between them to take proper care of her. They don’t get Rufio, but instead a 7 year old mutt named Daffodil who is, admittedly, the most gentle and sweet creature Jon’s ever met. They also get a cat, a rambunctious 2 year old tabby named Jack (“We can change the name.” “Jon! How dare you! Jack responds to his name, clearly he likes it!”) who had already decided Daffodil was his mom, and they couldn’t possibly bear not adopting them together.

~*~

“You know, we could get a tarantula.”

“Fuck off.”

“I’m serious! They’re not, like, evil in this universe, and some of them have cutest little pink toesie woesies.”

“You’re not serious, you’re being a bastard, and I hate you.”

Martin wraps his arms around Jon’s waist and presses a kiss to the side of his face, which Jon gives a half-hearted swat at, because, again, the man’s being a bastard. Stubbornly ignoring Jon’s pout, Martin presses his cheek to the top of Jon’s head, cheerfully replying, “I’m fine with that, as long as you promise to hate me for the rest of our lives.”

“Well, I certainly can’t make that promise. I won’t even hate you ten seconds from now. I suppose you’ll have to settle for love instead.”

“Hmm. Deal.”

“We’re still not getting a fucking tarantula.”

They do not get a tarantula. Their home remains admirably spider free.

~*~

Martin’s gasp is loud enough to echo, and Jon can feel him begin to vibrate next to him. The excitement is perplexing at first, they’ve been to this bookstore dozens of times, and it’s never elicited this sort of response. Then Jon looks over to the front counter, where a medium-sized cage and a “For adoption” sign have been put on display. With a wild, jubilant glee, Martin asks, “Sonja! Are those baby. Dumbo. Rats?!”

“Sure are! I’ve got a friend who’s a breeder, I take it you’re interested?”

“Yes, absolutely, 100%, we’re getting two immediately.”

“Well…”

Martin snaps his head over to look at Jon with a look of betrayal the likes of which Jon hasn’t seen since the panopticon. “Jonathan, no!”

“Um.”

“You can not tell me you you don’t like rats! Dumbo rats especially!”

“I…”

Ticking off on his fingers, Martin lists, “They’re adorable, they’re smart, they’re cleanly, they’re extremely empathetic, they’re tickilish, which is stupidly cute, they can be trained to use a litter box and do tricks, they’re snuggly and playful and perfect! They’re all the good parts of dogs combined with the best parts of cats in one tiny portable package! Look at their little ears, that are like that because of a slight difference in skull shape that has no negative health effects! Plus, we can set them up in the project room, since Captain Jack isn’t allowed in there anyway. How can you dislike rats?”

“I don’t know! They just sort of..freak me out. Or not all of them, just their feet. I don’t like their little man hands.”

Martin throws his arms in the air, proclaiming, “Their little man hands are one of their best qualities! Look, Jon, are you genuinely afraid of them, or just slightly discomfited?”

“I would say mediumly discomfited. This isn’t like spiders.”

“Cool. ‘Cause in that case, we’re getting the light tan one and the solid white one, their names shall be Peaches and Cream, and you will love them as much as you love our dog and cat children.”

“That’s a rather bold claim.”

“It’s an accurate one. You’ll see.”

Within a week, Jon is transporting Peaches ‘n’ Cream in the pocket of his hoodie, and he can feel Martin’s smug aura from two rooms away. Damn him.

~*~

“Did you know snakes don’t have an amygdala?”

“Okay? You didn’t have to bring me to a reptile store to tell me that.”

“I didn’t bring you to a reptile store to tell you that. I brought you to a reptile store because I want to hold a cornsnake.”

Jon rolls his eyes, but the fondness in his voice somewhat undercuts it. “Of course you do.”

Martin makes a scaly acquaintance in less than two minutes, and as the snake coils around his fingers, he continues, “Anyway, if they don’t have amygladas, do they feel fear in a way similar to us, or is it only a recognition of threats and instinctual response?”

“Martin, my love, I have no idea. Is this going somewhere? It’s fine if not, I’m just checking in.”

“Yes. Because if they don’t feel fear, I’m getting this snake and naming her Georgie.”

That makes Jon let out a sharp bark of laugh, and, for a moment, he’s able to reminisce without any pain. “You know, I think she’d actually love that? She also had a proclivity for all creatures great and small. And a terrible sense of humor.”

“Wow, you really have a type, huh. Also hey! My sense of humor is fantastic! It always makes my husband laugh, and he has very exacting standards.”

“Liar. Your husband finds joy with you at the slightest provocation, no good sense of humor needed.”

“Hmm. He is a bit of a softie, isn’t he? Which is why he’ll let me get this snake.”

“He most certainly will not.”

“But….look at her….”

“It’s not a matter of how cute she is, dear. It’s a matter of you made us get pet rats less than a month ago, there’s absolutely no way you’re going to be able to feed mice to a snake.”

Martin looks at the cornsnake, looks at Jon, looks back, and his shoulders slump. With a wince, he asks, “Maybe frozen mice won’t be too bad?”

“What if she’s picky?”

“...There are species of snake that only eat bugs.”

“Cornsnakes aren’t one of them.”

Waving over an assistant, Martin puts the cornsnake back with a defeated, “Fine. When you’re right, you’re right.”

Jon doesn’t particularly feel like he’s won an argument. In fact, he’s a bit disappointed himself, he always liked snakes. Big fan of reptiles in general, actually, which is probably what drives him to say, “Lizards don’t usually eat mice.”

That’s how they walk out of the store with three leopard geckos.

~*~

Jon’s helping Martin set up the gecko tank in what can now be affectionately called a zoo when all of the sudden it strikes him. Some of the animals in their home right now have life spans of 10-20 years, and never once had the necessary longevity of care come up as a reason to protest against them. Jon had felt so at ease with the concept of a future that he hadn’t even thought about it, hadn’t been steeling himself for the other shoe to drop. He’s stopped having bated breath every time something good happens, instead taking reassurance in a sense of permanence that he wasn’t sure he’d ever feel again. Martin must hear his breath hitch, because he immediately stops what he’s doing to take Jon’s hand into his own. “Something wrong, love?”

Jon shakes his head. “No, nothing. I suppose I’m realizing that we have time, don’t we?”

Martin must know exactly what he means, the weight behind the words, because he brings Jon’s hand to his lips and says, “Yes. Yes, we really, really do.”

[bakasaiga]

Kagome & Towa: Heroines of Complementary Feminism

Two Sides of the Same Coin

Read the full article here: “Kagome & Towa: Heroines of Complementary Feminism” by bakasaiga

Introduction: Character Design

Judging from each heroine's apparel alone, any spectator can tell that Towa's design can be largely inspired by the progressive themes of 2020. Compared to Kagome's iconic sailor uniform, short skirt, and luscious black hair, Towa sports a clean white boys' school uniform with fitting trousers, an assertive belt, and a thin red ribbon. Towa's pale short hair contrasts Kagome's dark locks. Their skin tones even differ as Kagome's emits a tanned warmth while Towa's elicits an iciness inherited from her father.

Though the two young women seemingly embody contradicting features, their attitudes, personalities, and incentives argue far from that. It's not as if Kagome has never worn pants, nor that Towa is allergic to skirts. Yashahime establishes that Towa primarily wears men's clothing because of its convenience in combat. Likewise, we've seen Towa in "girlier" attire before too.

Towa wears her hair short, insists on fashioning sleek trousers, and gets into fights, but this doesn't make her any less feminine than Kagome. Towa's warmth mirrors that of her mother, an inherently feminine trait. She wears her heart on her sleeves, similar to Kagome and Rin but in a slightly different way. Similarly, despite Kagome's delicate demeanour, she's far from fragile. In the first episode of the original InuYasha series, she's established to be quiet hot-headed, outspoken, and strong-minded — qualities that would seemingly contradict a dainty sailor uniformed gal.

The point here is that Towa's androgynous features don't automatically equate her to be butch, nor does Kagome's inherent docility translate to softness. The irony is that Towa is the one who's considered soft throughout the commentary of Moroha and Setsuna in Yashahime and Kagome is characterized as stubborn and commanding in InuYasha.

The reason why Towa's depiction of gender is so striking is because it's not particularly linear or black and white: it is truly all-encompassing, and to some degree, intersectional. She may appear to be a stereotypical "tomboy" (author's note: this term is outdated, but I'll use it to convey the sentiment for convenience sake), but her warm, idol-crazed, pink bracelet-wearing self can speak otherwise. Likewise, Kagome's countless fashionable short skirts, high ponytails, and praised femininity don't revoke her ability to assume dominance, dictate decision-making, or oppose those who get in her way. These Higurashi daughters challenge one-dimensional approaches to feminism and gender, while simultaneously strengthening their cause.

Unbridled Sexualization

When the audience is formally introduced to our 14-year old heroine in Yashahime episode 2, Sunrise isn't shy to uphold that same raw sexuality they did for Kagome, a 15-year old at the beginning of the original series. There are enough debates on the morals and ethics of fictional depictions when it comes to sexualizing teenage girls, but it's also important not to ignore this aspect of female adolescence. Of course, their bodies are developing (some, quicker than others) and Sunrise's choice to make their newest protagonist equally as sexually appealing as their last one remains a consistent expressive choice, upholding the author's intent and style.

Sure, on the surface, Towa's considered the classic "tomboy," but that doesn't disqualify her from developing cleavage or wearing a bra. Kagome's raw sexuality is consistently played up in the original series, with characters commenting on her short skirt, countless hot springs episodes, and form-fitting outfits to top it all off. The best part of this is that this doesn't devalue either of these female icons. Sexuality isn't unnatural and the "fanservice" depicted in these times of provocation are some of the most tasteful executions in shonen anime. They're not at inappropriate times and they are intricately woven into the plot.

Modesty empowers some, nudity empowers others.

There's no right or wrong in these approaches. What's most meaningful about this is that the author is also a woman who recognizes the sophistication between the lines of these portrayals. Rumiko Takahashi subversively bolsters this message that women don't need to be afraid or shameful of their bodies through the delivery of two very different, yet similar heroines. She brings to life a story for both boys and girls.

Modern & Forward-thinking

Released in 2020, Yashahime isn't shy to explicitly express its messaging behind gender and feminism. Towa consistently makes references to the norms of the modern era and observes how innately backwards they are. In episode 12, her passionate line, "No matter what era you live in, what girls feel will never change," indiscreetly stands out from the rest of the episode's narrative.

During the original series, the easter eggs of feminism weren't nearly as explicit, but they certainly painted and complemented core aspects of the story. The notion of Kagome's choice and agency throughout InuYasha is hinted at consistently. Kagome, a woman of the modern era, remarks on some temporal differences with feudal Japan. In episode 41, when Miroku is re-acquainted with Koharu, someone he had proposed to at a young age, Kagome monologues internally, "Girls of the feudal era are amazing," as their foreign relationship structure unfolds in front of her.

Though some may view Kagome's response to Koharu's "unhealthy" and "brainwashed" or "conditioned" love for Miroku as poor writing, or blame it on Kagome's adolescent ignorance, I find that hard to believe. The compelling aspects of Kagome's feminism aren't that she'd outright denounce the sexist mechanisms of the feudal era or explain to everyone why what Miroku did was wrong (applying a modern approach, though it's evident that the entire gang looked down on Miroku for his age-inappropriate lechery anyway). Kagome's feminist approach is her belief in the agency and free will of the woman, Koharu. She never berates Koharu for these feelings, belittles her wishful thinking, or tries to force some type of moral superiority over her. Kagome never invalidates Koharu. And this is the critical point of her complementary feminism to Towa. Towa verbalizes the feelings of girls never change regardless of the time period. When I heard this line, I painted an instant connection with an homage to the original series' depictions of a "first love" and the ongoing conflicting feelings of the women in the InuYasha franchise. The concept of a "first love" transcends through time and Kagome's validation for Koharu complements Towa's statement and vice versa. Kagome and Towa aren't the only ones who demonstrate conflicting internal feelings — Sango, Kikyo, Kagura, Rin, Kagome's mother... they all have their moments of internal conflict about their own life choices...

Read the full article here: “Kagome & Towa: Heroines of Complementary Feminism” by bakasaiga

Twitter @bakasaiga PIXIV @bakasaiga​ Vocal.Media @bakasaiga Instagram: @SesshomaRin

[softrobotcritics]

HG Wells soft Martian robots from “The War of the Worlds” (1897)

The cylinder was already opened in the centre of the pit, and on the

farther edge of the pit, amid the smashed and gravel-heaped shrubbery,

one of the great fighting-machines, deserted by its occupant, stood

stiff and tall against the evening sky. At first I scarcely noticed the

pit and the cylinder, although it has been convenient to describe them

first, on account of the extraordinary glittering mechanism I saw busy

in the excavation, and on account of the strange creatures that were

crawling slowly and painfully across the heaped mould near it.

The mechanism it certainly was that held my attention first. It was one

of those complicated fabrics that have since been called

handling-machines, and the study of which has already given such an

enormous impetus to terrestrial invention. As it dawned upon me first,

it presented a sort of metallic spider with five jointed, agile legs,

and with an extraordinary number of jointed levers, bars, and reaching

and clutching tentacles about its body. Most of its arms were

retracted, but with three long tentacles it was fishing out a number of

rods, plates, and bars which lined the covering and apparently

strengthened the walls of the cylinder. These, as it extracted them,

were lifted out and deposited upon a level surface of earth behind it.

Its motion was so swift, complex, and perfect that at first I did not

see it as a machine, in spite of its metallic glitter. The

fighting-machines were coordinated and animated to an extraordinary

pitch, but nothing to compare with this. 

People who have never seen

these structures, and have only the ill-imagined efforts of artists or

the imperfect descriptions of such eye-witnesses as myself to go upon,

scarcely realise that living quality.

At first, I say, the handling-machine did not impress me as a machine,

but as a crablike creature with a glittering integument, the

controlling Martian whose delicate tentacles actuated its movements

seeming to be simply the equivalent of the crab’s cerebral portion. But

then I perceived the resemblance of its grey-brown, shiny, leathery

integument to that of the other sprawling bodies beyond, and the true

nature of this dexterous workman dawned upon me. With that realisation

my interest shifted to those other creatures, the real Martians.

The Martians wore no clothing. Their conceptions of ornament and

decorum were necessarily different from ours; and not only were they

evidently much less sensible of changes of temperature than we are, but

changes of pressure do not seem to have affected their health at all

seriously. Yet though they wore no clothing, it was in the other

artificial additions to their bodily resources that their great

superiority over man lay.   (((The soft robots or “handling machines” are a kind of Martian powered exoskeleton, a plug-and-play suit for the Martians, who are mostly brains.)))

We men, with our bicycles and road-skates,

our Lilienthal soaring-machines, our guns and sticks and so forth, are

just in the beginning of the evolution that the Martians have worked

out. They have become practically mere brains, wearing different bodies

according to their needs just as men wear suits of clothes and take a

bicycle in a hurry or an umbrella in the wet. 

And of their appliances,

perhaps nothing is more wonderful to a man than the curious fact that

what is the dominant feature of almost all human devices in mechanism

is absent—the _wheel_ is absent; among all the things they brought to

earth there is no trace or suggestion of their use of wheels. One would

have at least expected it in locomotion. And in this connection it is

curious to remark that even on this earth Nature has never hit upon the

wheel, or has preferred other expedients to its development. And not

only did the Martians either not know of (which is incredible), or

abstain from, the wheel, but in their apparatus singularly little use

is made of the fixed pivot or relatively fixed pivot, with circular

motions thereabout confined to one plane. Almost all the joints of the

machinery present a complicated system of sliding parts moving over

small but beautifully curved friction bearings. And while upon this

matter of detail, it is remarkable that the long leverages of their

machines are in most cases actuated by a sort of sham musculature of

the disks in an elastic sheath; these disks become polarised and drawn

closely and powerfully together when traversed by a current of

electricity. In this way the curious parallelism to animal motions,

which was so striking and disturbing to the human beholder, was

attained. 

Such quasi-muscles abounded in the crablike handling-machine

which, on my first peeping out of the slit, I watched unpacking the

cylinder. It seemed infinitely more alive than the actual Martians

lying beyond it in the sunset light, panting, stirring ineffectual

tentacles, and moving feebly after their vast journey across space.

After a long time I ventured back to the

peephole, to find that the new-comers had been reinforced by the

occupants of no fewer than three of the fighting-machines. These last

had brought with them certain fresh appliances that stood in an orderly

manner about the cylinder. The second handling-machine was now

completed, and was busied in serving one of the novel contrivances the

big machine had brought. This was a body resembling a milk can in its

general form, above which oscillated a pear-shaped receptacle, and from

which a stream of white powder flowed into a circular basin below.

The oscillatory motion was imparted to this by one tentacle of the

handling-machine. With two spatulate hands the handling-machine was

digging out and flinging masses of clay into the pear-shaped receptacle

above, while with another arm it periodically opened a door and removed

rusty and blackened clinkers from the middle part of the machine.

Another steely tentacle directed the powder from the basin along a

ribbed channel towards some receiver that was hidden from me by the

mound of bluish dust. From this unseen receiver a little thread of

green smoke rose vertically into the quiet air. As I looked, the

handling-machine, with a faint and musical clinking, extended,

telescopic fashion, a tentacle that had been a moment before a mere

blunt projection, until its end was hidden behind the mound of clay. In

another second it had lifted a bar of white aluminium into sight,

untarnished as yet, and shining dazzlingly, and deposited it in a

growing stack of bars that stood at the side of the pit. Between sunset

and starlight this dexterous machine must have made more than a hundred

such bars out of the crude clay, and the mound of bluish dust rose

steadily until it topped the side of the pit.

The contrast between the swift and complex movements of these

contrivances and the inert panting clumsiness of their masters was

acute, and for days I had to tell myself repeatedly that these latter

were indeed the living of the two things.

Suddenly I heard a noise without, the run and smash of slipping

plaster, and the triangular aperture in the wall was darkened. I looked

up and saw the lower surface of a handling-machine coming slowly across

the hole. One of its gripping limbs curled amid the debris; another

limb appeared, feeling its way over the fallen beams. I stood

petrified, staring. Then I saw through a sort of glass plate near the

edge of the body the face, as we may call it, and the large dark eyes

of a Martian, peering, and then a long metallic snake of tentacle came

feeling slowly through the hole.

I turned by an effort, stumbled over the curate, and stopped at the

scullery door. The tentacle was now some way, two yards or more, in the

room, and twisting and turning, with queer sudden movements, this way

and that. For a while I stood fascinated by that slow, fitful advance.

Then, with a faint, hoarse cry, I forced myself across the scullery. I

trembled violently; I could scarcely stand upright. I opened the door

of the coal cellar, and stood there in the darkness staring at the

faintly lit doorway into the kitchen, and listening. Had the Martian

seen me? What was it doing now?

Something was moving to and fro there, very quietly; every now and then

it tapped against the wall, or started on its movements with a faint

metallic ringing, like the movements of keys on a split-ring. Then a

heavy body—I knew too well what—was dragged across the floor of the

kitchen towards the opening. Irresistibly attracted, I crept to the

door and peeped into the kitchen. In the triangle of bright outer

sunlight I saw the Martian, in its Briareus of a handling-machine,

scrutinizing the curate’s head. I thought at once that it would infer

my presence from the mark of the blow I had given him.

I crept back to the coal cellar, shut the door, and began to cover

myself up as much as I could, and as noiselessly as possible in the

darkness, among the firewood and coal therein. Every now and then I

paused, rigid, to hear if the Martian had thrust its tentacles through

the opening again.

Then the faint metallic jingle returned. I traced it slowly feeling

over the kitchen. Presently I heard it nearer—in the scullery, as I

judged. I thought that its length might be insufficient to reach me. I

prayed copiously. It passed, scraping faintly across the cellar door.

An age of almost intolerable suspense intervened; then I heard it

fumbling at the latch! It had found the door! The Martians understood

doors!

It worried at the catch for a minute, perhaps, and then the door

opened.

In the darkness I could just see the thing—like an elephant’s trunk

more than anything else—waving towards me and touching and examining

the wall, coals, wood and ceiling. It was like a black worm swaying its

blind head to and fro.

Once, even, it touched the heel of my boot. I was on the verge of

screaming; I bit my hand. For a time the tentacle was silent. I could

have fancied it had been withdrawn. Presently, with an abrupt click, it

gripped something—I thought it had me!—and seemed to go out of the

cellar again. For a minute I was not sure. Apparently it had taken a

lump of coal to examine.

I seized the opportunity of slightly shifting my position, which had

become cramped, and then listened. I whispered passionate prayers for

safety.

Then I heard the slow, deliberate sound creeping towards me again.

Slowly, slowly it drew near, scratching against the walls and tapping

the furniture.

While I was still doubtful, it rapped smartly against the cellar door

and closed it. I heard it go into the pantry, and the biscuit-tins

rattled and a bottle smashed, and then came a heavy bump against the

cellar door. Then silence that passed into an infinity of suspense.

Had it gone?

At last I decided that it had.

(...)

I came upon the wrecked handling-machine halfway to St. John’s Wood

station. At first I thought a house had fallen across the road. It was

only as I clambered among the ruins that I saw, with a start, this

mechanical Samson lying, with its tentacles bent and smashed and

twisted, among the ruins it had made. The forepart was shattered. It

seemed as if it had driven blindly straight at the house, and had been

overwhelmed in its overthrow. It seemed to me then that this might have

happened by a handling-machine escaping from the guidance of its

Martian. I could not clamber among the ruins to see it, and the

twilight was now so far advanced that the blood with which its seat was

smeared, and the gnawed gristle of the Martian that the dogs had left,

were invisible to me.

I stood staring into the pit, and my heart lightened gloriously, even

as the rising sun struck the world to fire about me with his rays. The

pit was still in darkness; the mighty engines, so great and wonderful

in their power and complexity, so unearthly in their tortuous forms,

rose weird and vague and strange out of the shadows towards the light.

A multitude of dogs, I could hear, fought over the bodies that lay

darkly in the depth of the pit, far below me. 

Across the pit on its

farther lip, flat and vast and strange, lay the great flying-machine

with which they had been experimenting upon our denser atmosphere when

decay and death arrested them. Death had come not a day too soon. At

the sound of a cawing overhead I looked up at the huge fighting-machine

that would fight no more for ever, at the tattered red shreds of flesh

that dripped down upon the overturned seats on the summit of Primrose

Hill....

[ahiddenpath]

Combating Writing Paralysis with Successive Drafts

Hey all!  It’s been a long time since I’ve written about writing, but a switch flipped in my brain while I was drafting this morning.  Suddenly, I had to share my thoughts on utilizing successive drafts to split the copious concepts writers juggle into manageable loads.  

This is a long, but practical post.  I hope you’ll read on below the cut!

It’s common for writers to feel overwhelmed, and no wonder.  There are so many narrative elements to consider, and there’s usually far more content to write before you have a complete work of fiction.

My advice is to never attempt to nail every aspect of your story in the first draft.  Instead, try approaching each draft with specific goals, lightening your expectations and mental load for each iteration.  The idea is to make writing less intimidating, and to polish every element by giving each one individual attention.

I’m not a professional writer, so I can only tell you how I approach the drafting process.  I encourage you to experiment with these ideas and find what works best for you; there’s no need to limit yourself to my template.

Annnnd here we go!

Draft 1:  Plot and Movement

The purpose of my first draft is to simply move the characters through the plot points/action of the chapter or scene.  

I’m not suggesting that you exclude dialogue and characterization, or that you write a plot outline.  Simply write a rough draft in its entirety, but don’t worry about the quality.  Your goal here is to iron out what happens.

Draft 2:  Herding the Plot Bunnies, Staging

In this draft, I focus on:

-Refining the plot:  At this stage, I consider concerns such as: do the plot points obey the work’s internal logic?  How does this scene contribute to the overall plot?  How does it lead to the next scene?  Am I properly setting up/providing info for future scenes?  

-Tracking plot details:  If timeline/dates/the current time are important to your story, double check them.  Make sure no important objects materialized from the ether.  Confirm that no plot points were dropped or forgotten; if a character lost her shoe last scene, then it should still be gone.

-Scene staging:  Did a character appear in the scene without explanation (ie, where did he come from)?  Where is everyone standing?  Where are any important objects?  If there’s an animal in the scene, where is it (it’s so easy to forget to mention a pet, who should be included in scenes set in the character’s living area)?  Are there important environmental features?

Draft 3:  Setting/Description, Characterization, and Pacing

Now that the basic details are handled, it’s time to dig deeper!  In this iteration, I focus on:

-Adding information about the setting.  In the previous drafts, you established where the characters are (for example, at a library).  Now, you can focus on the details and engage the senses.  What does the library look like?  Are patrons being quiet, or is someone obnoxiously talking?  Does it smell like old books?  Is the protagonist handling a mass produced book with thin pages that stain fingers with printing ink, or a hefty tome meant to last for generations?

-Enhancing dialogue and characterization and marrying them to the plot.  For example, in the library, perhaps the most bookish or research-oriented character should lead the scene.  Alternatively, maybe a less scholastic character is out of their element, and needs help or feels uncomfortable.  Choose the character best suited to move the plot along and generate the mood you desire.  

Ideally, you want the characters to lead the plot (ie, have agency), instead of the plot seizing the characters (ie, the characters have no choice but to flounder along with what is happening).  Plot-driven stories are absolutely a thing, so if that’s what you’re writing, then go for it.  Generally, though, audiences respond best to characters making their own decisions.

This is the perfect time to examine your previous drafts and play around with the characters, shuffling them among scenes or reassigning lines of dialogue as needed.  Which character has the skills or personality to handle this challenge?  Which character needs to be here to learn a pivotal piece of information, or to witness the scene and be changed by it?

-After you address the above points, take time to consider the chapter’s pacing.  Does anything feel bogged down and repetitive?  Rushed or unclear?

Draft 4:  Character Growth, Theme and Mood

Ah, now we’re getting to the juicy bits!  

You might have noticed that these drafts focus on increasingly difficult concepts.  Now, we’re striking at the heart of narratives: what the story aims to say, and how it aims to make readers feel.

Here’s what I consider at this stage:

-Character growth.  What did Character learn from this?  What new idea is churning in her head?  What pressures are building that might explode later?  How did I show Character displaying her growth or regression?

-How did I reinforce the thematic goals I have for this scene, and for the entire piece?  

It’s pivotal to identify your themes before you begin work on a story.  At this stage, I briefly identify how the chapter or scene supports the work’s themes.

Everyone has specific themes that matter to them.  I tend to write about: dealing with trauma, surviving and healing from abuse, the importance of seeking and giving support, found families, self-actualization, setting up and balancing your life according to your specific needs, feminist issues, establishing boundaries, acceptance, and independence vs dependence.  Even my works with lots of shenanigans and comedy, like Four Years, circle around these ideas.

I also “level” my themes in this draft.  I want to avoid being too heavy-handed or too oblique.  People tend to go too hard, rather than too soft, so I usually dial back.  You want to guide your reader to your point, not write it on your knuckles and deck them. 

-How does this scene make me feel?  

Influencing the emotions of your readers is... possibly a writer’s loftiest goal?  If readers experience an emotion as a result of your writing, then they’re invested, they’re absorbing it.  And, to some degree, they’re resonating with your words and message- and with you.

Consider what mood best suits your intentions, and play close attention to your execution.

Editing and Proofreading

I edit and proofread during every draft stage, except for draft 1 (here’s a resource on the difference between the two, if you’re interested).  

Stephen King’s On Writing is a must for folks who want to learn more about editing.  I’ve read many writing books, but his taught me to edit with a single sample, so it’s the one I recommend.  Basically, you must learn to excise words that aren’t adding anything (adverbs are frequent offenders), replace words with more direct/relevant/evocative ones, and replace hefty phrases with shorter ones.  Here’s a sample of that last concept from my Seeking Resonance draft:

“Koushiro moved out of the doorway” became “Koushiro moved aside.”  In the prose, I already established that Koushiro was in the doorway.  There was no need to specify where he was both coming and going, so I was able to express the idea with three words instead of six and avoid repeating the word “doorway/door.”

Once you see this logic in action, everything will click.  Give On Writing a read!  I guarantee that your library has copies, probably physical and digital.

Whew, I am out of steam, so I’ll wrap this up!  Remember, trying to hold the many aspects of narratives in your hands and carry them simultaneously is an enormous mental load.  It’s so much to carry that you might walk away instead of writing.  I hope this encourages you to pick up a few pieces at a time, in whatever order and combination makes sense to you.  

Additional Writing Posts

-Dishing with an artist

-Tips for Fanfic Authors

-More Tips for Fanfic Authors

-Tips for Winning Nanowrimo

-Resources/Advice for Digimon Adventure Fanfic Writers

[upontheshelfreviews]

Whenever I discuss Sleeping Beauty with someone who doesn’t share my enthusiasm for Disney, they have an irksome tendency to get it muddled with Snow White; their excuse being “it has the same plot”. I’ll admit, there are some surface similarities that even the most casual viewer can pick up on: a fairytale where a princess is forced into unconsciousness and wakes up with some necking, the comic relief and villain being the most beloved characters, a little frolic in the forest with animals, the antagonist plunging off a cliff, you get the idea. In fact, Sleeping Beauty even reuses some discarded story beats from Snow White, mainly our couple dancing on a cloud and the villain capturing the prince to prevent him from waking his princess. Yet despite that, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty are two wholly different movies shaped by the era and talents of the time.

I’ve discussed how Walt Disney was never one to stick to a repeated formula, no matter how successful it was. He must have noticed the parallels between his first movie and this one, but decided to make one crucial change for Sleeping Beauty that would forever differentiate the two: the look. We all know the traditional Disney house style: round, soft shapes, big eyes; charming as it was and still is, Walt was sick of it after several decades. Meanwhile, artists like Mary Blair and Eyvind Earle were producing gorgeous concept art that rarely made a perfect translation into the Disney house style.

Walt wanted to make a feature that took the pop artistry of their designs and made the animation work for it instead of the other way around – which brings us to another animation studio that was doing well at the time, United Pictures Animation, or UPA.

UPA didn’t have the kind of budget Disney normally had for their animated projects, but what they lacked in fluidity they made up for in style. Watch The Tell-Tale Heart, Gerald McBoing-Boing and Rooty-Toot-Toot to see what I mean. UPA were pioneers of limited animation, taking their scant resources and creating some striking visuals with bold geometric designs. Through this, they defined the look of 50’s animation. Though perhaps unintentional, Sleeping Beauty comes across as Disney’s response to UPA, or what would happen if UPA had the funds they deserved. The characters’ contours are angular but effortlessly graceful, defining their inherent dignity and royalty. And the colors, ohhh the colors…

Because of the immense amount of work required to animate in this difficult new style (and in the Cinemascope ratio, no less) as well as story troubles and Walt barely supervising the animation studio now that he had his hands full with live-action films, television, and a theme park, Sleeping Beauty had a turbulent production that lasted the entirety of the 1950s. For a time, Chuck Jones of Looney Tunes fame was set to direct. Director Wilfred Jackson suffered a heart attack partway through production and Eric Larson, one of the Nine Old Men, took the mantle from there before Walt Disney replaced him Clyde Geronimi. And even after that, Wolfgang Reitherman teamed up with Geronimi as co-director to get the film finished after no less than three delays. Also, Don Bluth got his foot in the door as an assistant animator for this feature, beginning his short-lived but impactful tenure at Disney. Did all this hamper the movie, or did they succeed in what they set out to accomplish?

Well, one of the reasons why this review took so long was because I had a hard time not repeating “MOVIE PRETTY” and “MALEFICENT AWESOME” over and over. Make what you will of that.

The story begins as most fairy tales do with your typical king, Stefan, and his queen suddenly blessed with a baby girl after years of wishing for a child. They christen their daughter Aurora (middle name Borealis, localized entirely within their castle) and throw a huge celebration in her honor. People come from all over the kingdom to pay homage to the princess and OSMKFKSBFHFGILWBHBFC…

Movie pretty…

Movie pretty…

MOVIE PRETTIEEEEEE…

John Hench, Academy Award-winning special effects man and art director, turned Walt on to the idea of basing the look of Sleeping Beauty on classic medieval artwork. Thanks to him and Eyvind Earle’s insanely detailed designs and backgrounds, this is one of Disney’s most visually distinct and beautiful films. A single still from this feature wouldn’t feel out of place up in The Cloisters.

Among the party guests is King Stefan’s old friend King Hubert (Bill Thompson) bringing his young son Prince Philip. Stefan and Hubert wish to unite their two kingdoms and formally announce Philip’s betrothal to the infant Aurora.

“We were going to do it during the second trimester, but we decided to wait until she was more mature.”

By the way, your eyes are not deceiving you. That is Aurora’s mother, Queen Leah, alive and well and named. And frabjous day calloo callay, she even gets some lines! The most common joke about Disney princesses is that they don’t have moms (even Ralph Breaks The Internet went out of its way to highlight that), so as a hardcore Disney fan who often has to put up with this generalization, Leah’s existence leaves me feeling vindicated.

Once that happy revelation is out of the way, we’re introduced to our main protagonists.

Oh, you thought I was referring to Philip and Aurora? Nonononono, my friends. THESE are the true heroes of Sleeping Beauty, the Three Good Fairies.

The fairies started off as one-note side characters sharing the same personality. Think pre-Ducktales-reboot Huey, Dewey, and Louie in dresses. But the studio had a difficult time giving Aurora more depth and was having a lot more fun developing the fairies. Naturally, they became so fascinating and appealing that more screentime was given over to them. Now the story’s carried by three wonderfully fleshed out ladies who are distinct in both looks and personality: Flora’s the pragmatic tradition-adhering leader, Fauna’s the sweet scatterbrain who mediates, and Merryweather’s the feisty young upstart.

With the plot now focused on characters who held a traditionally minor role, it’s easy to read this as a perspective-flipped version of the fairytale, but there’s more to it than that. Remember in my Clash of the Titans review how I mentioned the gods literally play chess using the heroes as pieces? I tend to view the main conflict of Sleeping Beauty in the same way. The Three Fairies and Maleficent are in a constant game of good vs. evil, moving Aurora, Philip, and the rest of the royals as pawns in their plans. There’s plenty of plotting and intrigue, with both sides constantly guessing and second-guessing the other’s next maneuver, and even if you’re already familiar with the story’s trajectory you’re still left on the edge of your seat as it inches towards the fiery climax.

And dare I say it but…the fairies and their power dynamic make this Disney’s most feminist film. Yes, really. You could argue that some of the other animated movies from the Renaissance and Revival period have more notable, stronger female protagonists, and many of the live-action remakes try to be woke without really grasping the concept, but consider this: The cast of Sleeping Beauty is mostly female, the leads aren’t objectified in any manner (that is if you count Aurora as a supporting character), nor does their gender factor into their competency, each one differs in age and body type, and most of them are working together towards a common goal as opposed to against each other. Name a movie in the past decade that does the same and still manages to be entertaining (no, really, I’d love to see it). There’s even one scene that unintentionally provides great commentary on the divides in the feminist movement, but more on that later.

Flora and Fauna bless the baby with beauty and song respectively which are accompanied by a short chorus and some sumptuous graphics. I don’t think I need to reiterate that when this movie goes extra with the visuals, it GOES EXTRA with the visuals. Next comes Merryweather with her gift. To this day, no one knows what Merryweather intended to give Aurora. Flora’s the most traditionally feminine of the three so her giving Aurora beauty comes as no surprise. By comparison, Merryweather is the most forward (or unconventional, depending on your point of view). I wouldn’t put it past her to favor Aurora with intelligence, or humor, or passion, or creativity or humility or confidence or decisiveness or physical fitness or great swordsmanship or telekinesis or ice powers or one million YouTube subscribers or comfort in her female sexuality.

Me personally, I think I’ve got the best gift of all:

“O Princess, my gift shall be…getting all reviews posted on time for once!”

Alas, before Merryweather can bestow such a wondrous quality upon the child, she’s interrupted by a horny party crasher.

Maleficent. The Mistress of All Evil. Chernabog’s right-hand witch. The Disney villain all Disney villains strive to be. She has it all – the looks, the poise, the power, the laugh, the cunning, the ruthlessness! She doesn’t even need to sing a song because she’s already awesome enough without one. Marc Davis’ gothic design cuts a fine figure and Eleanor Audley’s subtle icy voicework is trés magnifique. As much as I enjoy Audley as Cinderella’s evil stepmother, Lady Tremaine was but an appetizer in comparison to the four-course banquet of pure villainy that is Maleficent.

This leads to a small point of contention some viewers have with Maleficent in spite of hitting top marks elsewhere: her motivation. Putting a hit out on a child for not getting invited to a measly party? Not exactly compelling, is it? And yes, it isn’t a deep motive…is what I would say if I wasn’t well-versed in folkloric tradition. In the original fairy tale and the movie (though it isn’t outright stated in the latter), the party for Aurora isn’t just your average royal kegger, it’s a christening. Back in ye olden days, christenings were very big deals. To not receive an invitation to one was a grave insult, so not extending an invite to your semi-omnipotent magical neighbor is just asking for trouble. In the fairy tale’s defense, no one had seen the evil fairy for years and assumed she was dead, though I can’t imagine how nobody thought Maleficent wouldn’t find about it eventually.

“You dare to deny me, foolish mortals? Very well, then! I shall have my own christening! With blackjack! And strumpets!”

Maleficent is proof that sometimes you don’t have to have an elaborate backstory, a god complex, a tragic past or the unfortunate luck to be on the wrong side of a conflict. Sometimes all you need is some magic, brains, class, and a whole lot of flair to be a perfect, intimidating, and unquestionably iconic villain.

Basically what I’m saying is these movies never happened. Got it?

Maleficent is disarmingly polite over being snubbed, even after Merryweather bluntly tells her nobody wanted her to come. She even brought her own gift for the baby – sixteen years of life cut short by the prick of a spinning wheel spindle, because why change into a dragon and destroy everyone all at once when you can draw the torture out over an agonizingly long time and deliver the coup de grace in the prime of a young woman’s life? That’s how Maleficent rolls, baby. She could dole out capital punishment when she has to without batting an eyelid, but causing human suffering is her bread and butter.

Stefan begs the fairies to undo Maleficent’s curse, but it’s too strong for them. Flora and Fauna insist, however, that Merryweather can use her gift to lessen the spell’s potency. Now instead of dying from that fatal prick, Aurora will sleep until she receives True Love’s Kiss™. Stefan’s not one to throw caution to the wind though, so he orders all of the kingdom’s spinning wheels to be burned in the meantime.

I just pray his kingdom’s economy wasn’t based on textiles otherwise they’re screwed.

As the peasantry celebrates Guy Fawkes Day several centuries early, the fairies ponder their next move. They’ve been around long enough to know that removing spinning wheels from the equation won’t put a damper on Maleficent’s scheme. This scene is incredibly effective in establishing two things:

Maleficent’s near-omniscient presence in the film

How well the fairies’ differing  personalities play off each other

Maleficent rarely miscalculates her opponents, and that guile puts her one step ahead of the heroes, making her one of the few Disney villains to nearly reach their goal. The only mistake she makes in the entire movie is trusting her henchmen to do their jobs when she isn’t directly supervising them, though that’s more on them than her. The different methods the fairies propose to deal with Maleficent fantastically illustrate what kind of people they are. Fauna believes she’s just a miserable soul who could be reasoned with if they talk things over. Merryweather would rather take the fight to Maleficent and turn her into a toad. Flora, however, is wise enough to know Maleficent’s too wicked to plead to, too clever to bargain with and too strong to face head-on, so their best course of action is to focus on protecting Aurora through any means necessary. Her initial idea is to enchant the princess into a flower (her namesake is her specialty, after all), but Merryweather reminds her that Maleficent enjoys creating bitter frosts just to kill her flowers.

“Well we could try that but stick her in a castle with a beast for a while…nah, that’ll never work.”

Yet never one to give up, Flora alters the plan so they’ll raise Aurora as a peasant girl out in the woods. This means disguising themselves as humans and giving up magic for sixteen years so as to not attract Maleficent, but that amount of time is like twenty minutes to the fair folk. Stefan and Leah reluctantly agree to the plan, and the fairies spirit little Aurora away from the castle that very night.

Sixteen years later, Maleficent is infuriated that her minions have failed to locate Aurora, even more so when one reveals that they’ve spent the whole time looking for a baby instead of a maturing woman. In an interview with the Rotoscopers podcast, Don Bluth called Maleficent a very flat antagonist because she surrounds lackeys dumber than her so she could be the smart one among them and, again, her supposed lack of motivation. But come on, let’s not entirely condemn the bad guys for having too much faith in their underlings. It’s difficult to find minions smart enough to carry out orders but dumb enough to stay unquestioningly loyal. Usually you have to register as Republican in order to get some.

Maleficent gets her anger out in the most therapeutic way – throwing lightning bolts at her orcs, awesome – then leaves the job of finding Aurora up to her trusty raven Diablo. We then finally see the grown-up Aurora herself, whom the fairies renamed Briar Rose as a nod to the Brothers Grimm version of this tale.

I know I’ve made the occasional case for the princesses from Walt’s era compared to the present day, and yet I have a hard time defending how…I don’t want to say bland. Bland would mean there’s nothing interesting about Aurora, and that’s a lie. She’s gorgeously designed and drawn, and even in her peasant dress she has an air of elegance and sophistication. She carries herself like a queen; her innate royalty reveals itself in her graceful movements. Mary Costa also gifts her with an excellent set of pipes. Hearing her song echoing through the forest is nothing short of magical. She’s a flower child who can talk to animals. She has dreams of escaping her adopted aunts’ loving but stifling care and being allowed to grow up, see the world, actually talk to people, and even find a life partner. She has some strong potential. It’s not that Aurora’s boring, she’s just not quite as developed as we’ve come to expect our animated female protagonists to be. I’m grateful for what we’ve got, but I only wish we could have more. What was her childhood like? How did she learn to communicate with animals? When did the fairies trust her enough to let her spend time out on her own? Did the fairies ever subtly teach her lessons in royalty through lessons and games? Heck, nobody bothers to keep her informed about Maleficent or her curse, and they act surprised when she’s shocked to learn she was a princess the whole time. I want to see what Aurora could have been like if she had known the truth already and what kind of steps she would take to defend herself. Blame the source material for this; it’s difficult to write a compelling main character when she’s supposed to sleep through most of her story.

The fairies send Aurora on a fetch quest so they can plan a surprise birthday party for her. Merryweather wants to bring their magic wands back out for the job, but Flora insists on taking no chances now that they’re in the home stretch. Fauna gets to live her dream of baking an elaborate cake (it’s thanks to her referring to a teaspoon as a “tsp” that I do it too), and Flora insists on making Aurora a gown fit for a princess using Merryweather as a dummy. And we also get one of the best burns in the Disney canon:

Merryweather: It looks awful! Flora: That’s because it’s on you, dear.

The fairies fall into reminiscing over raising Aurora and get teary over having to let her go soon. I see where they’re coming from, they’re the ones who raised her for sixteen years. They must have so many fond memories, not to mention they put all that work into learning to properly raise a child let alone live like normal human beings seeing how two of them still can’t sew or cook without magic. I wonder what that was like –

No, NO, you CGI abominations DO NOT exist! Go back to the fires from whence you came!!

“Ugh, I’m gonna need something strong to expunge that from my eyes.”

There we go.

Aurora wanders through the forest, drawing out the usual bevy of cute woodland critters with her singing. She also catches the attention of a grown-up Prince Philip (Billy Shirley) who’s more dashing and considerably less blonde than he was sixteen years ago.

By this point, the Disney animators were far more confident in their ability to draw realistic but expressive leading men, hence Philip’s expanded role from the story. He’s also the first Disney prince to have a personality; not a terribly deep or defined one, but it’s a step up from his nameless plot-device predecessors. There are some signs of him being a hopeless romantic, he gets a few funny lines here and there, has a sturdy friendship with his horse Samson, and is fiercely determined when it’s time to kick some ass. He does have the same problem as Aurora in he randomly decides to stop talking for the rest of the movie once he reaches the midway mark (at least Aurora has the excuse that she’s sleeping for that remainder), but I suppose you could chalk this up as to him wanting to spite Maleficent with his silence.

The animals steal some of Philip’s clothes so they can pretend to be Aurora’s dream prince. Aurora plays along as she sings the movie’s standout song, “Once Upon a Dream”. Philip and Samson watch until he smooths his way into the dance. Once Aurora discovers the switch, Philip gets a little too up in her personal space for my liking, constantly grabbing her hand so she doesn’t run off and pulling her closer to him. Not as horrible as what the prince does to the sleeping princess in the original story (a questionably consensual kiss is a trifle compared to how the scumbag of a prince treats her there), but still a bit iffy.

“It’s a good thing my aunts taught me to never go anywhere without a loaded pistol taped to my back.”

But once Philip backs off a little and joins in her song, they both dance together and OEHSGBJSGBLL…

I think I’m going to need surgery to get my jaw off the floor back into its proper place thanks to this movie.

As per Disney tradition, Aurora and Philip’s waltz means the two are head over heels in love with each other. But when it comes time to finally exchange names, Aurora panics and runs away, though she sticks around long enough to tell Philip to meet her family at the cottage that evening.

Back at home, the party preparations aren’t proceeding as planned. Flora’s dress looks as good as my attempts at dressmaking, and Fauna’s dessert wouldn’t feel out of place on Cake Wrecks.

A fed-up Merryweather reads Flora and Fauna the riot act and convinces them to finally take up their wands again. This produces more desirable results, though Merryweather still gets stuck with cleanup duty.

Enchanting a broom to come to life and do your dirty work? I don’t see this going wrong in any possible way.

Things start to go south when Flora and Merryweather argue over the dress color and it escalates into a full-blown wizard’s duel. This gag was supposedly based on the animators’ arguments over what was Aurora’s proper dress color. I think they should have compromised and combined both colors to make purple, which would go lovely with Aurora’s violet eyes, but what do I know. I’m just the illustration major writing a blog. Unfortunately, while the fairies remembered to cover every door, window, and crack that could expose their magic, they overlooked the fireplace. The sparkly residue of Flora and Merryweather’s fight fly up the chimney, alerting Diablo to their hideaway.

Going back to what I said earlier about this movie providing some commentary on feminism, consider this: Flora is obsessed with pink, a traditionally female color, and she gives Aurora an attribute that is oft preferred in a woman but not the most important quality, beauty. Merryweather, on the other hand, is all about blue, a color usually geared towards boys, and she has much more common sense and practicality about her. Though Merryweather and Flora are able to put aside their differences in personalities and approaches for a common goal, it’s when they refuse to compromise and begin prioritizing which color – ie. which ideology and extension of themselves – that they want Aurora to step into that they lose sight of what’s important, and allow everything they worked for to collapse on itself. It’s played for laughs very well, sure, but if not’s symbolic of the dichotomy between traditional femininity and modern sensibility that tears apart the feminist movement then I don’t know what is.

The fairies manage to fix their messes in time for Aurora’s return. She’s thrilled with their gifts but shocks them all when she announces her new boyfriend is coming over for dinner. They come clean about her heritage and betrothal to Prince Philip, and Aurora runs up to her room in tears over the fact that she’ll never see her one true love again. That and her entire life has been a lie and she’s being carted off to meet parents she knows nothing about to marry a man she’s never met and rule an entire kingdom with no prior experience or knowledge. But mostly the true love thing.

Meanwhile, Stefan and Hubert are making wedding plans over wine with “Skumps”, the preferred toast between me and my friends. Also adding to the humor is a minstrel who keeps stealing sips until he literally drinks himself under the table.

This was also his way of getting through the Black Plague, co-opted by the rest of the world six hundred years later.

Philip returns and Hubert goes to greet him. He thinks his son is thrilled at the prospect of marrying Aurora but is disappointed to learn that he’s fallen for an anonymous peasant.

“At least tell me if she’s royalty in disguise so you don’t elope to Sicily!”

Philip rides back into the woods for his big date, leaving Hubert with the unenviable task of breaking the bad news to Stefan. As for Aurora, the fairies smuggle her into the castle and prep her for her homecoming. She’s still blue over having to ghost her forest hubby though, so the fairies give her some time to herself.

Biiiiiiiiig mistake.

So imagine you’re me, growing up watching this movie on tape on a television set with a very standard but not spectacular sound system. Then years later you download the remastered soundtrack and give it a listen while you’re falling asleep. You’ve got the whole score memorized, the volume is nice and low, it’s all good.

And then, just as you’re drifting off, you hear a ghostly voice singing in your ear “Auroraaa…Auroraaaaa…”

That reminds me, I haven’t had a chance to talk about the music yet, haven’t I? Forgive me for waiting so long to do so but my reaction to it is equivalent to the visuals. The score is taken straight from the Sleeping Beauty ballet by Tchaikovsky, the same composer as The Nutcracker, and it is lush, sweeping, sumptuous, just…

While George Bruns was mostly faithful with how the score was represented within the context of the ballet, at certain points he took the same approach as The Nutcracker Prince and rearranged the music order to underscore totally different scenes to staggering effect. The beautifully ominous music where Maleficent appears as a ball of green flame and leads the hypnotized Aurora to her doom? It’s from one of the ballet’s divertissements where Puss in Boots dances with his girlfriend. But tell me which is more fitting for a musical composition such as this – two cats pirouetting around each other in a crowded ballroom, or eerie pitch-black spiral staircases illuminated by green fire as a cursed princess inches closer to her dark destiny against her will?

The fairies realize their error and frantically search the maze of secret passages for Aurora. Though the princess resists Maleficent’s commands for only a moment, they are still too late to save her from fulfilling the curse. Maleficent gloats and leaves the fairies to wallow in their failure. It’s made even worse as the merrymaking from the oblivious revelers below ring out while they put Aurora to bed in a tower and mourn over her. It’s heartbreaking: they raised and loved her as if she were their own daughter, and they still couldn’t protect her. Everyone talks about “Baby Mine” and Bambi’s mom as huge tearjerkers, but why is this scene constantly forgotten?

Stupid onions, stupid stupid onions…

Fauna and Merryweather can’t even begin to imagine how heartbroken Stefan and Leah will be, but Flora has a solution: put the kingdom to sleep along with Aurora until she is woken up. I understand her wanting to spare Aurora’s family some pain, but conking out an entire principality for god knows how long to cover up their failure? AND at a time when Europe was all about invading and conquering itself? Are we sure this isn’t just part of Maleficent’s overarching plan for revenge? This sounds more like something she would come up with instead of the leader of the good guys.

“So what happens if one of the neighboring kingdoms decides to attack while everyone’s sleeping?”

“Then we’ll put them and their armies to sleep, too.”

“And once Aurora is saved, both kingdoms will immediately wake up to find themselves thrust into a war they’re barely prepared for, is that correct?”

“Oh, you’re right, that’s a terrible idea.”

“Finally, thank you.”

“I’ll just turn them all into flowers.”

“THAT’S NOT AN OPTION!!!”

The fairies flitter about the castle grounds spreading their spell over the unwitting royal court, even putting the candles and sconces out. We have another reprise of the “Gifts of Beauty and Song” chorus now altered to sound like a lullaby, providing an interesting bit of symmetry between it and its earlier use in the film. Whereas it first underscored their blessings upon Aurora, now it plays as the fairies are giving the “gift” of sleep to the entire castle.

While Flora knocks out the throne room, she overhears Hubert muttering about Philip eloping with a peasant girl and she makes the connection. The fairies speed to the cottage just as Philip arrives there. But once again Maleficent beats them to the punch. Her goons ambush Philip and she watches them wrestle and bond him with fiendish glee.

You magnificent, kinky bitch.

Maleficent was only out to capture the one man who could break Aurora’s curse; the fact that he’s really the son of her nemesis’ allies is just icing on the cake. Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather resolve to rescue him from Maleficent’s fortress in the Forbidden Mountain.

Some movies reach the brink of greatness only to falter when it comes to the final act. Sleeping Beauty is not one of them. Everything that happens from the moment we slowly zoom in through the purple mist on to the Forbidden Mountain itself up until the storybook closes is perfection. The perfectly paced action, the animation, the music, Maleficent’s hideaway in all its decaying glory (I swear it’s like Jean Cocteau meets Frank Frazetta meets Giotto) all make for the climax of climaxes.

The fairies shrink to insect size and silently sneak through Maleficent’s creepy domain, narrowly running into guards and gargoyles at every turn. They traverse the stronghold until they find her overseeing a hellish bacchanalia in honor of her supposed victory.

“My old gaffer would have a thing or two to say if he could see us now.”

Soon Maleficent gets bored and goes to “cheer up” her captive. Then we have it: The Moment.

I’ve talked about this before, that one small, devious step further the villain takes to make themselves more heinous in our eyes. It’s the Wicked Witch taunting Dorothy with visions of Aunt Em. It’s the Beldam hanging Other Wybie’s remains. It’s virtually everything Heath Ledger’s Joker does. And it is this simple scene where Maleficent details what she plans to do with Philip. She spins “a charming fairy tale come true” of Aurora sleeping without aging, waiting for her prince to come to wake her. And Philip will escape the dungeon, ride to her rescue and prove true love conquers all – in one hundred years, when he’s a broken old husk of a man on the brink of death. DAMN. If you want to know why Maleficent is considered the best of all the Disney villains, it’s not just all her previously praised qualities, it’s her sheer sadism and the pleasure she takes in it.

The fairies enter and free Philip once Maleficent departs. The course of true love never runs smoothly though, so they arm him with the Shield of Virtue (licensed by Carefree Maxi-Pads), and the Sword of Truth to aid in his escape.

“So, why’s it called the Sword of Truth?”

“Anyone who’s subjected to it speaks only the truth…as they bleed out and die, of course.”

“Cool, cool. On an unrelated note, I think I’m gonna go to DC for my honeymoon.”

Diablo sounds the alarm and the Battle With the Forces of Evil kicks off with Philip slashing his Sword of Truth through Maleficent’s goons.

“I steal lunches from the break room fridge!” “I broke wind last Tuesday and blamed it on the dog!” “I cried like a little girl during The Good Place finale!” “I only wash my hands for NINETEEN seconds at a time!”

Philip makes his getaway on Samson and the music reaches truly operatic levels as Maleficent does everything in her power to end him. Yet Philip soldiers through it like a boss. Crumbling mountainsides, Maleficent hurling lightning from the sky and summoning a forest of thorns to block the way? Fuck that shit, he’s gotta go save his girl.

Then, as Philip cuts his way through the briars, Maleficent looks at her watch, realizes it’s No More Fucking Around O’Clock, zooms over to the castle, throws down the most intimidating challenge ever  –

“Now you shall deal with me, O Prince, and all the powers of HELL!!”

– and with that, she takes her final form: a massive fire-breathing dragon.

Every Disney villain who’s gone kaiju in the final act owes everything to this gorgeous terrifying beast. The dragon is an awe-inspiring unholy fusion of style, power and darkness. There’s a reason why she’s the final boss in Fantasmic; the chance to watch a live dragon battle is too cool to pass up.

Speaking of battles, Maleficent’s dragon form was animated by Woolie Reitherman, who previously brought us such gargantuan monster clashes as the T-rex brawl in Fantasia and the escape from Monstro The Whale in Pinocchio. And when you have a dragon confronting a fairytale prince, well, you know what’s coming.

Maleficent backs Philip on to a cliff surrounded by flames, leaving him only one desperate shot. With a little extra magic from the fairies, he throws his Sword of Truth at Maleficent and it plunges right into her heart.

“I liked…Frozen 2…more than the first one…”

Maleficent’s spells die with her, clearing the way for Philip. He gives Aurora that wake-up smooch and everyone in the castle slowly rouses, owing their inexplicable simultaneous twenty-minute blackout to the unusually strong wine.

He can attest to that fact.

The royal families are happily reunited, and the film ends on Flora and Merryweather fighting over Aurora’s dress color yet again as she and Philip waltz together on the clouds using animation Beauty and the Beast would borrow thirty-two years later.

Sleeping Beauty is a movie I can never have on in the background because the moment I look up from my work I am spellbound by it. Do I need to elaborate on how this is one of the most beautiful looking and sounding movies Disney’s ever produced? Sleeping Beauty is the swan song of Disney’s first golden age of animation. For better or for worse, their animation process would switch to the rough, cost-cutting Xerox process starting with their next feature, 101 Dalmatians, and few films would reach Sleeping Beauty’s level of gorgeousness ever since.

Though a massive financial and critical hit on release, it wasn’t enough to make up for the monstrous production costs, not unlike Fantasia. Thankfully, home video sales revived interest and made it Sleeping Beauty of the top-selling VHS tapes of the decade, cementing it as a bonafide classic. It’s one of my favorites from Disney for its stunning visuals, gorgeous music, phenomenal villain and overlooked but great cast characters. Revisit it if you haven’t already.

Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this review, please consider supporting this misfit on Patreon. Patreon supporters receive great perks such as extra votes for movie reviews, movie requests, early sneak-peeks and more! Special thanks to Amelia Jones, Gordhan Rajani and Sam Minden for their contributions!

Artwork by Charles Moss.

Screencaps from animationscreencaps.com

March Review: Sleeping Beauty (1959) Whenever I discuss Sleeping Beauty with someone who doesn't share my enthusiasm for Disney, they have an irksome tendency to get it muddled with Snow White; their excuse being "it has the same plot".

[butterfly-winx]

Andros

- Most people only know Andros as ‘that prison planet with the island full of dudes, right?’ This misconception stems from several factors.

- When outsiders first came and visited Andros, what they found was indeed wast oceans and a handful of dry land inhabited by people who to the rest of the magical world looked like men. (Hence the inaccurate descriptor of “andro", as in male)

- Though Andros had it’s own diverse gender culture, it was not very dimorphic to be obvious to onlookers. Through cultural osmosis and their trade with other folk, they adopted many binary gender descriptors and physical attributes that they started to copy, mainly to fit in. A leader became a King, femme and masc presenting people began to predominantly date each other. Many scholars consider this to be the Big Cultural Dilation of Andros and wish to turn back to pre-contact days to restore their innate gender variety.

- But still off-worlders wonder, how is it possible for Androsians to reproduce when we thought all of them were cis dudes and half of them still live underwater? Well Androsian people are the only ones in the entire universe to be born completely magically.

- Androsian babies are born of a mound of birth-soil that is constructed by the couple wishing for a child and prayed to for four to eight weeks, imbued with genuine wishes, hopes, and proof of effort that the family is willing to put into raising the child. The last part is usually demonstrated by little hand-carved gifts from the extended family as well. Then finally, lightning will strike the mound gifting the child its first heartbeat and the couple will be able to dig their baby out of the mud.

- Birth-soil can’t be used twice, but in some families it is tradition to mingle a tiny bit of other beloved family member’s soil in there to strengthen their connection to the child and to honour their ancestors by letting their legacy continue in new life.

- In modern society, children are born with a placeholder name. Most common are Chiddi and Chita - Layla knew six whole Chiddis in her primary school. Them when the child is ready and feels like expressing a binary gender, they chose a name for themselves which the family validates with a small celebration. Layla was torn between ‘Layla’ and ‘Aisha’ for such a long time, that there are still parts of her family who call her Aisha to show support for her almost name, making her feel like she didn’t lose out too much by putting Layla down on paper officially.

- People who chose to be female can medically or magically transition. Equally, if someone changes their mind about their gender after their initial Choice, they can do the same without a hitch. Andros has the highest amount of trans people of all the magical dimension, closely followed by Zenith.

- Because people are born from mud, the concept of intermarrying does not exist on Andros. Powerful families generally preselect spouses for their children at a young age and such couples usually go through a quiet and amicable union as they lack the traumatic aspect that folk with other reproductive habits have. The primary goal of the couple is simply to find a working angle in their relationship so that when the time comes, their wishes and prayers for a child of their own can be genuine. The couple is not cut off from their respective families or social life even when there is a status imbalance between the two parties (in a situation that would be considered “marrying into a powerful family” on other planets). 

 - At the end of a person’s life Androsian funeral practices honour the circle of their existence by returning the body to soil. The process is akin embalming, in which the body gets covered in clay, microorganism rich starters, and seeds. The clay cocoon is then laid to rest in a designated cemetery area. Some people, predominately sorcerers however prefer a water burial, for they believe there will be a need for the physical strength of their body in the afterlife when they pay their magical toll, so slow decomposition is not their favoured way to go. A water funeral is technically a pire funeral, only here powers of the ocean are summoned to instantly degrade the body into fine dust that is then spread by the family in the ocean or another previously designated place that was important to the deceased. Following a burial there is always a celebration of life. Family and friends reminisce about the good times they had with the deceased and engage in festivities that are considered to be the largest exhibition of hedonism in the entire magical dimension. 

 - It is well known that most of the population are merpeople, but it is lesser known that for a long while they were the only humanoid life on the planet.

- Land dwelling life is not native to Andros. Merpeople had always been fascinated by the few islands worth of landmass that was like a forbidden Eden to them. Few had ever set eyes on it as only a handful of merpeople knew how to fly using their lungwings (the protrusion on their back meant for underwater breathing) and even they trained for the task their whole lives. So people turned to a different alternative and used their unique way of procreation to bridge the gap. The first couples built their birth mounds on land and prayed that their offspring may be able to walk on land. Wishes granted it took several generations to make the land habitable, but land-dwellers are prospering since and have now completely split from merfolk, politically and culturally - so much that off-planet people consider landfolk “people” and merfolk the “magical creatures”.

- Land-dwellers struggle with their geographic limitations a lot. They build their cities up to he very edge of tide-swept ocean, utilising the space they have to the last patch for agriculture. Wading through knee deep floods is a small price to pay for food on the table every season. Sometimes they fill the land between islands where the distance is narrow enough, or try to build bridges. However the most reliable form of transport is still by boat, be it transport of products, produce animals or even general public transport. Visiting Andros is not for the easily sea-sick! Seafaring is the lifeblood of Androsian people, it is the heartbeat that keeps industry and social interactions going.

- After establishing contact, Andros had really been only used as a prison planet. When fly-bys over the Omega dimension became too dangerous and too long a mission just to drop off criminals, people looked for a different solution. Just letting them fall from outer space in their capsules wasn’t working either as many shattered upon impact, freezing during the drop rather than combusting, and that challenged a lot of right debates, equating the procedure to ‘an execution by probability’ - not like freezing them in ice was technically a lot different from killing them.

- But Andros had a unique feature, which was the central ocean gate hub. As opposed to the ocean gates of other planets that lead only from the planet into the infinite ocean, Andros’ gate could be used to pass another gate at the same time. Technically this portal could have lead anywhere - and Valtor was using this feature gratuitously- but it was set up by Androsian sorcerers to selectively lead to the Omega dimension in a one way system.

- Other than the sometimes very, sometimes not so much lucrative prison system, Andros supports itself on its maritime based industry. They have several shipyards that design and test sea vessels for customers all over the dimension. Local fish and other seafood is also coveted, as well as sea based minerals such as pearls and high quality fine quartz sand that is commonly used in modern fibreoptics.

- Andros has only grown beyond its main function for the magical dimension recently and has a difficult time shaking its stereotype. It is a newly rising middle class kingdom, it doesn’t command an army of mentionable size and is not part of the Company of Light as of yet.

[fashiontrendyclub]

Nine change makers in the Netherlands making fashion more sustainable

The fashion industry is the second biggest polluter on the planet, responsible for around 10% of all global carbon emissions and tarnished by a reputation for sweatshops – but it doesn’t have to be this way. DutchNews.nl shines a light on nine innovators in the Netherlands helping to make the sector more sustainable. Consumers in the Netherlands discard about 210 tons of unwanted clothing and textiles each year, two-thirds of which is incinerated; while the Dutch fashion industry has an annual surplus of around 21.5 million items of unsold clothing, often produced by poorly treated workers and not built to last. Each garment produced has an average carbon footprint of 20kg. Changing practices in the clothing industry is crucial to meeting the country’s emission targets and improving the industry’s human rights record. Here are nine change makers in the Netherlands leading the way. Loop.a life Knitwear brand Loop.a life has abandoned the wasteful model of regularly changing, seasonal collections and focuses instead on creating long-lasting essentials for men and women. The cotton and wool garments are created from recycled knitwear and denim using an entirely circular, closed-loop process. Removing the need to cultivate the raw materials saves around 500 litres of water per sweater for wool and between 5000 and 15,000 litres for cotton. Founded in 2016 by Ellen Mensink, Loop.a life were the first Dutch company to use 100% recycled yarn, most of it sourced in the Netherlands. Similar colours are carefully selected and combined with industrial waste and Eucalyptus wood fibres, which means no dye is needed. Arch & Hook It’s not just textiles that the fashion industry wastes. When garments are transported from factories to stores and hung on branded hangers, the plastic placeholders are discarded, condemning an estimated 85 billion single-use hangers to landfill each year. Since 2015, Amsterdam-based Arch & Hook has sought to change this by producing high-quality hangers made from sustainable materials. Previous collections have included bespoke hangers for clients such as Karen Millen and Harrods made out of FSC® certified wood, and last year, supported by Roland Mouret and the British Fashion Council, the company launched BLUE®, the first ever hanger made of upcycled ocean bound thermoplastic. ‘​At Arch & Hook, we strongly believe that we are in the early stages of a new industrial revolution,’ says CEO and founder Sjoerd Fauser. ‘Cleaning up what humanity has caused is crucial before eliminating plastics entirely.’ Amsterdam-based &Wider Examining the whole chain of production is crucial to making fashion more ethical. Amsterdam-based &Wider has been helping businesses bridge the data gap on working conditions in the clothing industry since 2014 by providing actionable results to drive material improvements in workers’ lives and in the businesses that employ them. Through their online platform, buyers and employers can gather anonymous data direct from workers, and use this information to implement changes in labour practices along the supply chain. ‘The fashion industry cannot work ethically without hearing from workers themselves,’ spokesperson Sesihle Manzini told DutchNews.nl. ‘The design of our system allows us to hear from vulnerable workers: those who we often hear about, but rarely hear from.’ MUD jeans Mud, a natural, endlessly recycled material, inspired the name behind this sustainable jeans company headquartered in Laren. Founded in 2013 by industry-insider Bert van Son, who had seen first-hand the unethical practices in the sector, MUD has taken a different tack by producing garments made from up to 40% recycled materials and coloured with Cradle2Cradle dyes. 95% of the water used is recycled through reverse osmosis, reducing water use to about one third of the industry standard. Clients can rent or buy jeans, repairs are free, and they can get reductions on loans or purchases by cashing in any brand of old jeans with at least 96% cotton content. The Fabricant Thanks to Amsterdam-based digital fashion house The Fabricant, the digital dress is now a fact – and sold last year for $9500. The assertion that the clothes with the least environmental impact are those which do not exist is hard to argue with – even if it requires a total rethinking of how we promote fashion. The Fabricant specialises in 3D fashion design and animation, offering an alternative to physical concepts such as runway shows, sample sizes and photo shoots. The potential to try clothes on our digital selves, or create a digital advertising campaign can only cut carbon costs. United Wardrobe Founded in 2014 by three students from Wageningen with a mission to make second-hand clothing the buyer’s default, this online marketplace has over 4 million subscribers. From its headquarters in Utrecht, United Wardrobe has now opened its doors to France, Germany and Belgium, allowing users to buy and sell everything from designer shoes to onesies for newborns. ‘People are way more conscious than six years ago,’ co-founder Thijs Verheul told DutchNews.nl. ‘We have already people of age 12 selling and buying secondhand clothes, not because it is cheap for them, but really because they love the sustainable factor.’ Renoon ‘I was so fed up with opening dozens of windows in my browser to find sustainable alternatives that matched my style,’ says Iris Skrami, who co-founded Renoon to fill a gap in the market for a curated one-stop online shop for eco-minded style seekers. The app and website, which launched in 2019, feature new and pre-owned items with emerging brands such as Fisch and PANGAIA listed alongside established designers such as Stella McCartney and Filippa K. ‘There are so many brands and products already in the market that we should have easier access to,’ says Skrami. Fast Feet Grinded Fast Feet Grinded are urban miners, seeking out wasted resources that gain new value when repurposed. In this case it’s our discarded trainers. Globally, an estimated 12 billion pairs of trainers are produced each year, of which at least 90% will end up in landfill. The Limburg-based company employs workers with a distance from the labour market to upcycle rubber, foam and fibre from unwanted trainers to make spongy surfaces for playgrounds, athletics tracks and sports fields – or materials for new trainers. This contribution to a more circular economy in sportswear has attracted partnerships with brands such as Decathlon, ASICS and Intersport. RE LOVE FASHION by RE LOVE Foundation Three-year-old creative agency RE LOVE FASHION is an anomaly in the sector: its mission is to reduce consumption. Fronted by the striking blue-haired Antoinette van den Berg, a trend-forecaster and stylist known in fashion circles as the Lady in Blu, the Amsterdam agency is forging a new path in a polluting industry by promoting what she describes as ‘joyful alternatives to enjoy fashion: reuse, retouch, restyle, repair and repeat’. ‘If we really want to reduce the pollution of the fashion industry, the most effective solution is to consume fewer new clothes,’ she told DutchNews.nl. ‘How nice is it to wear something that you know didn’t pollute?’ Source Read the full article

[shenlongshao]

GG 2020 Thoughts: Part 2

The ANIMATION

It's so amazing how much the fluidity of the animation has expanded from before! In the previous game, the animation was generally good like from an actual anime show, despite some minor parts of slowness in Story Mode. In GG 2020, the direction is definitely cinematic like a mid to late 1990s anime movie. This time, it's no longer limited to cutscenes. The first noticeable part is the battle intro in this video below(lasts for 20 seconds before the fighting starts).

https://i.imgur.com/Yuz87d7.gif

I like the concept of this since it reminds me of Soul Calibur. The perspective first displays the stage then changes to the two characters. The announcer gives a brief monologue about the game's lore before saying the usual line for the fight. The camera also changes to an interesting angle of the characters approaching each other. Depending on whether someone player 1 or 2, the perspective is also different. For example, player 1 who is May will view whoever is player 2 during the battle intro from May's viewpoint. There's the standard character facial angle during the intro dialogue before the fight.

My criticisms are there's no pre-versus screen of the 2 characters. Instead, it's within the battle intro like you see with Sol vs Ky. It could be just for this demo, but I would like a dynamic pre-versus screen where the 2 characters chosen are announced. If this is the new direction, the order of what the announcer says should be changed after the monologue. Instead of...

"Heaven or Hell...Sol vs Ky...Duel 1....Let's Rock!"

It should be...

"Sol..." *camera focuses on Sol*

"Ky..." *Camera changes focus on Ky*

"Heaven or...HELL! Duel 1...Let's ROCK!"

The announcer's tone should be energetic since in the current build he sounds too calm.

I strongly believe this is the perfect opportunity to bring back special character intros. Having special intros and not just dialogue changes will enhance the presentation of the game and make it fun to watch. It'll keep the battle intros from becoming too repetitive. The expressions of the characters needs to match with what they're saying too because sometimes it was very off in Revelator. For example, some characters have animosity towards each other, yet their expressions are kept happy, LOL.

The second part is of course the winning animation for the characters. Ever since the graphical upgrade starting in Xrd SIGN, the extra attention to winning animations have always been fixed to a certain one for each other after 2 rounds. The character never does their alternate winning animation beyond the 1st round. I think it's time for it to change, especially with the cinematic direction they seem to be going for. I think having it for 2 animations would be fine. For example, Sol's 1st winning animation after 2 rounds is him turning away before turning over his shoulder saying "Stop wasting my time." Sol's 2nd winning animation after 2 rounds would be him slamming his weapon on the ground, looking away giving him "Hmph" look. It would be random of which one is shown in the cinematic style.

I’ll only focus on Ky from this point to prevent using 50,000 videos and gifs for each character, XD. Ky’s new Ride the Lightning can be seen beginning at 49:50 of the video below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGvQD8Taygw

The actual execution of the start-up animation needs to be flashier. For example, having dynamic camera angles that emphasize on Ky approaching with lightning. When his additional strike at the end connects, a loud thunder sound occurs. Other than this, I really like how they did Ky's Ride the Lightning in GG 2020. There's noticeable differences too between this one and in the previous game other than the additional lightning strike at the end. First is Ky's Ride the Lightning in Revelator then showing his latest version.

Ride the Lightning in Revelator:

https://i.imgur.com/F2zG0dY.png

Ride the Lightning in GG 2020:

https://i.imgur.com/YAvXxd3.png

If you pause at 49:53 of the video, you'll see there's the word "Hope" in of Ride the Lightning, which wasn't present in the previous version. Another part is Ky's stance during his approach. In previous games, he always had the same charging position, but in the 2nd picture, it's different. The way Ky is in the 2nd picture shows he's adding greater force and momentum to his Overdrive, showing the increase of his skill and technique.

The last biggest change with animations is how the characters move. It really shows how much Daisuke wants GG 2020 to be a new experience for everyone. I think it's great and makes me curious of everyone else's motions will be when they're revealed. Let’s look at some of Ky’s animations.

Ky's Fighting Stance:

https://66.media.tumblr.com/26b45ff085c44bff6b90d4d340ee27f2/tumblr_p0f5ajqtL21wwtndoo2_1280.gif

Ky's fighting stance has mostly stayed the same throughout the series until GG 2020.

Ky's Fighting Stance in GG 2020:

https://66.media.tumblr.com/4943201c69d1cef895013ce95547b53c/eeb1084e625afbf4-24/s640x960/9334f69e9eac8f6e19ac69c1f2e407161066d4e1.gif

This stance is very composed and controlled compared to his previous one, but could still tell he's ready by how his right hand firmly holds his sword. His free hand has the elegant pose Ky is known for and maintains his serious expression. Part of me makes me think it's a stance you would see in a RPG rather than a fighting game, but it isn't a bad thing. I really like it!^_^ Another big animation change is the way he walks. First is his original walk that can be seen after he shoots out the projectile in the gif below.

https://i.imgur.com/t2pzmD4.gif

Ky and other(not all) characters always had what I call "fighter walk". This means while they're moving forward, they maintain aspects of their fighting pose. It doesn't look very natural, but it was never an issue because it's a fighting game. Let's look at Ky's walking animation in GG 2020. I'm sorry about the quality not being the best, I couldn't find an HD version.

https://i.imgur.com/dnk15fs.gif

Oh my goodness, such a HUGE difference! He has a distinctive and confident walk; there's even a hint of sensuality to it. I strongly believe this is the general direction, for characters to have distinctive, natural walks. I love his walking animation. His running animation has been kept the same, which I notice matches his new fighting stance better than his old one.

I'm super excited to see how the cutscenes will look in the game's Story Mode if it looks this great already in gameplay. Next time will be the final part to my GG 2020 thoughts!

[curestardust]

if you want: parallel universes! / kind of magical girls but not really? / all female cast / bit convoluted but interesting set-up

"The Girl in the Twilight” is an anime with a very nice concept but pretty low production value that makes it a bit hard to watch which is SUCH a shame! Even though I could go on and on about problems with Akanesasu I...loved it? 

Ok, well, maybe love is a strong word but I did quite like it overall. Disclaimer: it’s impossible to talk about this anime without spoiling some of it so this review will contain spoilers up til episode 3.

So, we start out with our main gang, the “Radio Repair Club”, who don’t actually repair any radios in the duration of the show (scammed!). Instead they go to a sacred tree at 4:44 every day, roll some dices, then using an old casette tape/radio they set the frequency they’ve gotten, chant some random words and press the button. They believe that this ritual is supposed to take them to an alternative universe or a different world. *THIS is how much I can talk about this without giving spoilers so skip to the paragraph with the * if you don’t want to know anything else.

Obviously, the next time they try the ritual it actually works! They’re taken to a blinding gold world with a lot of small fluffy round rabbit looking animals. The fun only lasts about 2 minutes however, as they get attacked, then saved by a girl who transformed into a some sort of mecha outfit. This girl strikes an uncanny resemlence to our main girl, Asuka.

In the following episodes we find out the basics of the world. There are basically infinite parallel worlds called “Fragments”. The Asuka clone is actually Asuka from a different Fragment and is an Equalizer. They are basically the hardcore versions of magical girls and they fight the “Twilight”. The Twilight is an unknown force that engulfs Fragments and wipes them out completely. The first signs of the Twilight possibly attacking a Fragment are the “Clusters” who are disguised as human beings and their goal is to stir chaos in their respective Fragments. Our main characters start travelling to Fragments using frequencies they get under “mysterious circumstances” and thus fall in the middle of this mess.

*So. Yeah, it’s a bit wild. But I really liked the set-up for a completely egoistic reason; it feels like something I’d make. And depending on what your experience was/will be with AS that might be a good or a bad thing. 

As I said in the beginning, the low production value really hinders AS. The characters often look quite uncanny and wonky and Nana’s hair is basically its own entity. If you’re really judgemental of animation and art quality you can skip this outright. Now, it’s not unwatchable but it’s definitely average or even a bit worse. The fight scenes are CGI, which actually worked, although they were a bit chaotic and hard to follow. The transformed designs were MY KIND of weird af, except for one of them...that was too much even for me. 

The whole time I was thinking that this anime would work well with a style similiar to the Monogatari series and the very last episode actually goes complete wham on animation styles and I really liked it! I wish they used some of that throughout the whole thing.

The cast is nice. Everyone gets some backstory and they’re actually interesting and somewhat unique but the focus on their individual charms gave us less time to explore the chemistry between them, which is where the anime actually shined. 

Lastly, the music is really fucking good, please listen to the opening.

In the end, I can’t confidently recommend this cause it’s really something you’d only enjoy if you find the setting intriguing in the first place. I feel sad about all its shortcomings cause I’d have wanted to give a higher score (even though 7 for this is already considered ridiculous by some). The show actually tackles some really deep issues like self-discovery, self-acceptance and grief but they kinda get lost in the...everything else. [7/10] (x)

Recommend: HELL Yeah! | Yes | Eh??? | Nope | This anime killed my parents

[thisisnothingthisisone-blog]

rurouni kenshin ova: trust & betrayal (tsuiokuhen)

spoilers!! major spoilers!! if u watch it before u read this it’ll probably be better. but it’s up to u.

i first watched this series of four half-hour OVAs about 3 weeks ago, and i’m really still heartbroken. i’ve watched it another 2 times since, alone, in the dark, with good audio setups to honor its quality, and it’s lost none of its grace, beauty, or emotional impact. it’s easily one of my favorite anime works ever at this point, and i can confidently say that i think pretty much everything about it is perfect.

first, a short evaluation of the artistic quality of the piece. it’s phenomenal, imo. the visuals and animation are beautiful, lush, with a high degree of hand drawn craftsmanship. colors are used symbolically and strikingly, and the visual metaphors are rich- even techniques common to film, like expressing high emotion through scenes in nature, are used effectively and elegantly. the music is absolutely gorgeous, grand, majestic, orchestral; but so incredibly tender and sorrowful as well. it’s reminiscent of illustrative impressionist composers, ravel, debussy, and has the intensity of romantic ones, rachmaninov; or at least, those are the composers i found myself listening to as offshoots of the OST. i’m no expert on narrative techniques, but i found the pacing, characterization and development, everything about the storytelling to be fitting, effective, and impactful. the mood and tone are somber, but not necessarily bitter; it is dark, and depicts the brutal truth of war, killing, murder, death, and justice; but so, too, does it depict the humility with which ordinary people live their lives despite the suffering abundant in their world. it’s even structured a little similarly to a symphony, i think; the first movement is striking, and sets the tone for what is to come; the second movement extrapolates what is set in the first, and introduces tension, and promise; the third movement is romantic, and moving, the heart of the whole thing; and the fourth, the climax and the ensuing aftermath, the penance. i would definitely recommend this movie based on overall quality alone.

that said, several things in particular pique my interest in this film and the ways that they relate to patterns in my life: the concept of the supremely idealistic hero, who believes in justice but who is utterly gentle and naive; the similarities to the story of inuyasha and kikyo; and the intense appeal of romantic tragedy for me (and, maybe, you).

the idealistic hero. there’s a line in the film where kenshin’s mentor is thinking to himself about kenshin’s potential, and he thinks, (not verbatim, just what i remember) “he is pure. and because he is pure, he will continue to improve, as he is driven by the desire to become strong, to the point where i would consider him a simpleton.” and later, kenshin quarrels with his master about the morality of ignoring conflict and the suffering of the masses, when the principles that come with his strength dictate the a responsibility to protect the weak. i often find myself identifying with characters like this — characters who are idealistic and naive, who desperately believe in abstract justice, without any knowledge of the many gray areas in human morality and behavior, who ultimately wish to use their strength for the benefit of the anonymous “people.” i mean, pragmatically, it’s a ridiculous notion. how can one person decide what justice is for those he has the power to kill? who is he really protecting by doing so? and tomoe does a good job of pointing out the hypocrisy in his actions.

a bit on tomoe — she is a really interesting character to me. i’ve always had a fascination with the “tragic cold beauty” type that develops a warmer side to her, but for whom this warmer side is the cause of her tragedy. there are some quiet, subtle scenes where she looks at reflections of herself, which belie the undertow of her being at war with herself in those moments, where her intentions and desires are confused. she’s a powerful character, her power stemming from her contradiction. their relationship is built up over spare, poetic moments that belie a subtle, but intertwining chemistry, that is delicate and poignant as it is framed by the political instability and widespread turmoil of the times. she recognizes kenshin to be a child in his naivety regarding his ideals. her sorrow over the crops that die in the rain is just as palpable as kenshin’s despair over the antithetical nature of his killing. though her taking on the role of being a “sheathe” for the “brandished sword” of kenshin’s rage and anguish is founded on sexist expectations (that are still common today), she is not depicted as a weaker character by any means. different, and subordinate; but just as necessary, valuable and significant as kenshin, though ultimately she dies as a lesson to him- she serves her purpose beautifully, and then is burned away. they are brought together by death and lost love, and as the iris flower dies without the rain, and only her memory is left after the fighting dies down. she is a character trope that isn’t meant to live, as things that are too beautiful always wither away; she is meant to remain a memory, a reminder, a metaphorical and literal scar.

back to the idealistic hero. i think what attracts me so much to kenshin’s character in particular is the same as what makes tomoe fall in love with him: the so, so incredibly gentle nature of his spirit lying beneath his intense desire to do good in the world. a scene where kenshin and tomoe are together in the house they’ve escaped to, eating the vegetables they planted and harvested together, and tomoe mentions that kenshin’s everday could have been like this, if different things had happened in his life. the contrast between the peaceful life full of small happinesses that he could have had, and the brutal, violent, soul-crushing life he leads then — and the yearning i feel for the life he didn’t have, was very real. his “justice that seems like insanity” is haunting and beautiful, but i also want him to be happy. but his “justice” is detrimental to the gentle, kind person he truly is and wants to be. the idealistic hero can’t exist in the real world the way he thought he could; his shedding of naivety and realization than his only real strength is in protecting the people he cares about is sobering. ideals are abstract, but we live in a constantly shifting, unpredictable world that constantly changes like rippling water, and if we wish to live any semblance of a fulfilling life, we have to learn to not be a stone, which is eroded; but to flow along, carving out a space for ourselves within the tide.

these ideas are explored similarly in the manga series “Azumi,” wherein ax extremely strong, quick, genius assassin is a cheerful and loving girl at heart, who forms quick connections with people and only wants to be kind and have true friends. in this manga there is a theme of comparing her to a bodhisattva — a theme that i think is implied in the rurouni kenshin OVA as well. a bodhisattva is a figure from mahayana buddhism, a religion popular in east asia for a period of time (sorry i haven’t taken art history in a while!!), that has reached enlightenment but delays transcendence out of compassion to save other suffering beings. azumi and kenshin share the characteristic of being extremely powerful assassins, to the point of being like gods of war, or gods of death, who, because they are enlightened in their arts of fighting, cannot be allowed to form lasting connections with people they care about. anything they do form a connection with is killed and taken away from them, keeping them on the path of deified violence that they don’t really want (until, for kenshin at least, the war dies down and he swears to never kill again. i haven’t finished azumi so i don’t know what happens). (if any of this inaccurate please lmk, i’m not that knowledgeable about buddhism;;;)

inuyasha and kikyo. inuyasha was a big part of my adolescence, and i think one of the series that really got me into anime in the first place. it’s not a great series honestly, in terms of artistic merit, but it’s plenty fun and full of surprises despite all its shortcomings. but i remember really liking the story of inuyasha and kikyo, and i see kenshin and tomoe’s story being compared to this in other places on the internet as well. the similarities are certainly there — the cold, long black haired conventional beauty meets violent demon, together they learn to be human and to love, which ultimately causes their downfall and the false betrayal and tragedy of the love that never was, which makes it all the more romantic.

the intense appeal of romantic tragedy — i want so desperately for them to be able to continue their lives happily together, yet at the same time i know that that would make for a bland ending (or maybe not. but,). the moment that breaks me isn’t the climactic moment of tomoe’s death, but the way that her spirit still comforts kenshin as he finishes the job started during the war, and carries his will to never kill again once it is over. the tragedy is what makes the love story so good; it wouldn’t be half as appealing without it, but it’s also what makes it painful. pain and sweetness, together, suffering and love, to feel pain is to feel love and that’s how you know, this is a theme in my life too though in different ways. maybe i just savor the feeling of being heartbroken, but not for myself. i want to feel tragic. i want to be saved. no one can save me in real life, but at least i can dream, project onto this immaculate story. there’s something really feminine about tragedy, for me. (i don’t consider myself a femme, necessarily, but if i had to choose i would lean femme, i think femininity of any kind is a thing to be treasured.) it’s something i felt when i was in the throes of identifying with mitski — she’s such a tragic character, branded in such earnest, genuine sadness and controlled despair. to hold the sorrow without the visceral pain, and peek into a feeling that’s meant to be desired. do i wax poetic? i can’t help it. i’m a romantic, through and through.

also, just another thing. i think another thing that makes the whole deal extra sweet for me is the effeminate appearance and nature of kenshin, haha. it’s certainly not trying to be ~queer~ or anything but it’s one of those things that, i feel like, resonate somewhere innately for those of us who seek out representations of people outside the cis/het norm. i’ve heard that fans of yuri tend to enjoy this series lol.

i honestly can’t think of anything this OVA could have done better. i think there might have been something but i can’t remember it anymore. if you have any thoughts, feel free to reach out~

[designlabpune]

10 UX Design Trends for 2022 that Make Digital Products Stand Out

User experience design is the process of developing (digital or physical) items that are useful, easy to use, and fun to interact with. It all comes down to increasing people's interactions with your product and ensuring that they find value in what you're delivering.

The User Experience A design process is a design approach that takes into account all aspects of a product or service from the user's point of view. This includes not just the usefulness and accessibility of a product or movement, but also components like joy and emotion, which are more difficult to build and generate.

The consequence of content, research, design, and strategy, user experience design influences how a digital product or service is offered, sold, and utilized. In many circumstances, a user experience is the result of an inadvertent collision between code and preconceived notions about humans.

These days, design influences 94 percent of first impressions. Even the most beneficial website or product is made ineffective if it is included inside a bad or outdated design. That is why we must regularly monitor UX design trends and apply them to our websites/apps. This allows us to provide the best experience possible and turn first-time visitors into regular customers. Here are the newest UX design ideas for 2022 to make your design appear appealing, modern, and clean.

Top User Experience Design Trends

1) Anthropomorphic Animations - Animations are not a new concept in UX design. But, owing to several intriguing tendencies, they are becoming more organic, fluid, and striking. Anthropomorphism is one such trend, and it is expected to be one of the top UX design trends in 2022. Anthropomorphism is the practice of imbuing non-human things with human emotions, qualities, and intentions. This trait may be incorporated into animations by UX Designers to transform abstract forms into pleasant animated characters that replicate human-like situations.

Humans are naturally drawn to items that resemble them aesthetically and behaviorally. As a result, they relate better to anthropomorphic cartoons. It increases engagement and creates a more immersive user experience.

2) Password-Less Login - Passwords can sometimes leave you feeling more confused than secure. According to a poll of 2005 Americans commissioned by LastPass last year, this appears to be the case for many people. According to the poll, 57% of respondents forget their passwords right after they are changed. 65 percent feel the need to write down their password so they don't forget it the following time. As a result, we can state that forgetting a password is a client pain point that must be addressed. The true issue is with password-setting procedures that need special characters, digits, or upper- and lower-case letters. Though required for security reasons, these rules just add to the complexity and force users to reset their passwords on a regular basis. Transitioning to "passwordless" logins, such as Google, social network accounts, fingerprints, iris scans, or phone unlock patterns, is a straightforward option.

It is one of the rising UX Design Trends that many major firms have already begun to use. Although it was not as popular as other login forms prior to 2016, this notion is increasingly gaining traction. It is expected to replace passwords as the primary method of login within the next six years.

3) Individual Education - The internet era has been a boon to those who enjoy learning. It has ensured that learning is not limited to classrooms. Instead, it is freely accessible to anybody who wants to advance their education or seek a different job path. As a result, online learning has grown popular.  One disadvantage of online learning is that it is totally dependent on the learners. Finally, they must motivate themselves and complete the modules on time.

However, UX is altering the situation. Remote feedback, psychological assessments, matching technologies, and scheduling tools keep students interested for a long time. They may now track their progress, establish objectives, and learn from their errors. In 2022, we will see an increase in the popularity of individual learning. It will help to close more gaps and replace packed lectures with a 360-degree, immersive learning experience.

4) UX Writing - Creative and purposefully adorned words no longer function since they merely add fluff. People want to hear concise information that will provide them with value, which will lead to increased customer engagement and conversions.

The goal of UX writing, often known as "Microcopy," is to utilize brief words to assist consumers to comprehend where they are, what they need to accomplish, the brand story, and how the brand can help. It is about talking less while hoping to have a greater effect.

Here are some pointers to help you make your microcopy stand out.

• Stick to the point and avoid equivocation.

• Provide the user with a goal before they continue to investigate.

• By not generalising, try to address the user directly.

• Add "present tense + active voice" to your microcopy.

• Using numbers when necessary is unquestionably a smart habit.

5) Air Gesture - Motion control is a new mobile design trend that encourages the use of body movements to complete an activity, such as a user displaying a palm gesture in front of the camera to take a selfie.

A lot has changed with the introduction of touch displays, as seen by the growing touch screen aspect ratios in mobile interfaces. Increased aspect ratios result in fewer bezels on the front, which results in a more natural gesture experience.

Despite the fact that Apple first introduced gesture control technology in iOS, the current UX trend (air gesture) takes this technology to the next level. You can make things happen on your phone without using a touchscreen by waving your hand or pinching your fingers in the air.

We can confidently declare that the gesture possibilities depicted in Fifteen Million Merits—one of the most popular episodes of the Black Mirror series—will soon become a reality. The most important benefit of employing gestures is their intuitiveness and sensitivity to touch. Thus, no matter how far the 'Gesture Trend' progresses, touch gestures will always play a role.

6) Augmented and Virtual reality - Virtual Reality (VR) refers to a completely immersive experience that separates the user from the outside world. Using VR headsets like the HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, or Google Cardboard. Users can be transported into a wide range of real-world and fictitious circumstances.

Augmented reality (AR) uses a smartphone's camera to overlay digital components on top of a live scene. Non-command user interfaces, such as augmented-reality interfaces, are ones in which actions are carried out using contextual information acquired by the computer system rather than explicit instructions offered by the user.

As new technologies capitalise on this expanding trend, the definition of technology will surely broaden to encompass much more than it does now, but the key to establishing a successful and effective augmented reality is understanding the users' goals and surroundings.

7) Biometric Authentication for a Secure User Experience - Biometric authentication is coming to keep devices safe and will be a major UI and UX trend in 2021 and beyond.

It is one solution that can take a security-first strategy for both organizations and end-users, significantly boosting User Experience. The prospective biometric authentication market is a revolutionary technology that has provided individuals with identities without the fear of being impersonated.

Iris scans, facial recognition, voice recognition, and even vein pattern identification are among the revolutionary biometric technologies that are exploding in the market. If your company requires a password for authentication, iris scans are the next step. If you already have an iris scan authentication system in place, go to facial recognition. The goal is to never cease progressing and inventing.

Google has been a forerunner in this field. Some of their web services now support biometric sign-in. It means that users may now sign in with their fingerprints, PINs, or even traditional unlock patterns.

8) Glass Morphism - While Neumorphism is popular, another UX trend is gaining traction. It's known as glass morphism. Glass Morphism is a design style that highlights light or dark items on bright backgrounds. Glassmorphic designs are easily identified by their semi-transparent backdrop with magnificent shadows and borders.

Here are a few more important aspects of glass morphism:

• Background blur creates a frosted glass look.

• Multi-layered approach with floating things in space 

• Vivid colours that emphasise the blurred transparency

• Translucent objects with a slight light border

Glass Morphism style is inspired by Apple's design principles announced with iOS 7 in 2013. Apple revived the pattern in 2020 with the Mac OS Big Sur upgrade. This approach is popular because it allows designers to add depth to their designs while also establishing a clear visual hierarchy.

• To get the most out of the Glass Morphism UX trend, bear the following in mind:

• On light and colourful backgrounds, use it. They look great in the design.

• Use glass morphism sparingly. The style works best when only one or two pieces are used.

• Give your design components suitable size and boundaries to create the appearance of floating glass.

• Utilize glass morphism while keeping website accessibility in mind. Icons created in this manner are already divisive. Using this trend incorrectly might do more harm than benefit.

9) SVGs, Illustrations, and Abstract Geometry - While 3D animations are expected to be the star of 2022, another UX design trend is gradually gaining traction. Abstract graphics, ludicrous dimensions, SVGs, strange angles, and vivid colors are being used by an increasing number of UX designers.

The key aim of employing these graphics is to make a website/app stand out from the crowd. Furthermore, they create a welcoming environment that attracts visitors' attention and offers the greatest possible user experience.

Combine abstract graphics and SVGs with motion design to get the most out of them. It will bring your website/apps to life, giving them personality and ensuring that consumers remember them for a long time. Also, make certain that you try these examples with the ultimate aim in mind. They are useless if they do not address the problem and cause unneeded complications.

10) Motion Design - A well-designed motion effect may communicate a brand's message more effectively than a static image or simple text. People enjoy animations because they may bring a fun aspect to otherwise dull website designs.

Businesses have responded by combining a basic design with engaging and striking animations to create immersive design experiences. As a result, a new design trend known as motion design has evolved. Such designs keep consumers interested and relieve anxiety, preparing them to digest vast amounts of professional knowledge.

While scroll animations may be a lovely addition to any UX design, marketers should avoid using them only for decoration. Instead, they should address an issue by explaining it, simplifying it, or hastening the iteration process.

Motion-based design elements include transitions, animations, and even moving textures that approximate 3D depth. Motion defines navigation and provides dimension to interface design, resulting in a more natural experience.

Bottom Line

UI/UX design trends in 2021 will continue to focus on making the user experience less difficult, more diversified, engaging, and satisfying. So, while hiring a UI developer for your project, keep these newest trends in mind.

There is no need to blend all trends; simply using some of them can improve the appearance and feel of your website. As previously said, minimalism is one of the key trends for 2021, therefore let us adopt it while employing various design styles. If you are unsure about which trends are best for your company, you can always seek advice. DesignLab can happily assist you with improving your website or app design or creating a completely new vision for your business. Please contact or leave a message so that we can discuss the design details!

[faisalkhanlove]

What is Motion Graphics? For Beginner’s Guide

According to Cisco, 82% of internet traffic will come from video by 2022. Many of these videos will be content marketing videos. They are designed to engage audiences and inspire them to take action, buy, or view a new concept. Many of these videos will also be motion graphics videos.

Why are "motion graphics" and "video" sometimes used interchangeably? How can you decide which type of video or motion graphic is best for you? How can you make one that engages your audience and helps you achieve your goals? We understand that you have many questions. Let's get to the point. This guide will help you understand and learn motion graphics and video, whether you are a marketer or a C-suite executive, or a brand manager.

Here are the topics we will cover:

1. What is motion graphics?

2. What's the difference between animation, motion graphics and animation?

3. What is the right time for a brand to use motion graphic videos?

1. What is motion graphics?

Motion graphics are animated graphic design. These are digital footage or animations that create the illusion of motion. They are often combined with audio to create multimedia projects. Take a look at this motion graphics video that features the title sequence from Big Fish.

You want to animated characters so that a fairy tale for children can come to life like Disney. This is not motion graphics. It is a totally different kind of animation.

Motion graphic videos can be used to engage people in many content types, but they are best suited for helping brands tell their stories. These are some of the qualities that make motion graphics videos great for brand building and storytelling.

A. Motion graphic videos are used to establish a point and drive action.

Motion graphics videos typically have animated text. You can add voice overs and mood-setting music to your video. These videos appeal to our emotions and need, which allows them to effectively emphasize a point or drive an action. This motion graphic video from The School of Life is a great example of the human need to connect.

B. Motion graphics make it easier for content to be understood:

Motion graphic videos allow us to easily understand any situation, whether it is through graphs, bar charts, timelines or abstract, intangible concepts. Many explainer videos end-up being motion graphics software videos. This video explains the process of making the COVID-19 vaccine. It was made by Vox.

C. Motion graphics videos are very easy to view.

Many motion graphics videos are very short. To help viewers understand or learn quickly, they can simply relax and watch animated videos or motion graphics. Check out this short explanation video about Bitcoin.

D. Motion graphics videos are simple to repurpose

A motion graphics video can also be broken down into smaller segments, just like any other video. A single video can be used to make promotional cuts for Facebook and Instagram. The School of Life has again shared a short highlight of their documentary "How To Find Fulfilling Employment?" as an IGTV Video. The entire motion graphic video can be viewed on YouTube.

How does motion graphics differ from animations? Let's now understand what motion graphics are.

2. What's the difference between animation & motion graphics?

As explained previously, motion graphics can be used to create a graph, infographic or web design. This GIF shows motion graphic elements that represent London. Motion graphics can be used to set text and abstract objects into motion.

GIF featuring motion graphics elements that denote London city

Animation, as an art form, focuses on cinematic effects and storytelling techniques to create a story. This video is about Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa. This animated video does not contain motion graphics.

If your video uses motion graphics in order to convey a point, then it is motion graphics animation. Animation is more appropriate if your video looks more like a Pixar movie, with the character going on an emotional journey.

3. What is the right time for a brand to use motion graphic videos?

Let's find out where your brand can go using a motion graphics video.

Motion graphics are great for highlighting or emphasizing facts, and illustrating a point.

Motion graphics can be used when there is no need to tell a story or have complex storytelling.

Motion graphics videos can help you break down products or services and make them more memorable.

Motion graphics are visual aids at their core, so they excel in teaching difficult-to-understand concepts through visuals.

Other types of animation are best if you are looking to emphasize the emotional elements of a story or provide complex narrations. While motion graphics elements can still be used, you can also use other animation effects in these cases.

This animated animation of Carl Sagan's famous address from space after returning to Earth, The Pale Blue Dot, is an example of a powerful video in motion graphics.

It's obvious that they used motion graphics and Carl Sagan's voiceover as illustrations. The background music adds depth. The video lacks any other type animation.

Our world is full of movement. Even in still moments, leaves can tremble and expand their lungs. Digital product design seems to assume that motion is second nature. It's an extension of everyday, which can be easily leveraged with minimal effort. It would be wonderful if that was true.

Ask anyone who has animated UI elements for their first time. Amateur results can be achieved with hours of effort. It's not difficult to see a simple card sliding onto the screen. What is the problem?

It is possible to make UI elements move in theory. Software will tween the gaps between points by defining them along a predetermined path. It doesn't work this way in reality. While tools and techniques are important, they can only be as effective as the principles that underpin them. It is essential that the motion to improve the usability and usability of digital products be based on solid rules of behavior that can be applied to infinite use cases.

Motion Design: The Origins

Although the marriage of UX and motion design is relatively new, its roots lie in Disney. Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston were two of Walt Disney's most respected animators. They also contributed to iconic films like Pinnochio and Bambi. The 12 Basic Principles of Animation are still influential in motion graphics for film, television and digital content.

For the sake of animation storytelling, the Disney principles are a distillation of the fundamental laws of motion. While they enable drawn characters to move and express emotions, they are not able to address the interactive motion requirements of modern user interfaces.

Modern designers have tried to bridge this gap. The 10 Principles of Motion Design is a Disney adaptation of animation expert Jorge R. Canedo Estrada. It is one of the most striking examples. The takeaways need to be translated if they are to apply holistically to digital product development.

Motion graphics principles

Issara Willenskomer’s UX in Motion Manifesto is the most ambitious attempt to reorient movement principles around interactive UI elements and their UX significance. Although it is impressive in its depth, it's not easy to read.

Willenskomer was instrumental in the establishment of the 12 Principles of UX In Motion.

Differentiates UI animation from motion design

Describe how motion helps usability

Discover the inner workings behind core motion behaviors

VMG Studios is a video production studio and creative marketing agency. One of our specialties is animation and motion graphics. You'll be able to tell if you've worked with us, or if you've read our articles, that we're big fans of animation.

Animation is visually appealing and can be easily updated. It's also easy to use, so it's a great solution for clients looking for videos that will last.

This was also the most popular type of content produced during the COVID-19 epidemic, when live-action photography wasn't an option. We are always open to new ways to tell stories and provide support for our clients with creative content that engages and reaches their target audience, despite the fact that animation is becoming more popular.

Original content by this URL https://medium.com/@essencestudios2d/what-exactly-is-motion-graphics-for-beginners-guide-635196ccf094

[archer3-13]

Gundam Seed Destiny Watch Notes

episode 1

- strong opening sequence both in terms of tension and emotional weight. it works because it pulls the audience away from the rather nonsensical and incoherent battle of orb into shinns immediate perspective.

- to sort of summarize its emotional impact, i feel more for shinn in that 3.5 minutes then i ever felt for kira or athrun as characters during all of seed.

- that’s hyperbole, but to get more specific consider how each character is introduced to us the audience [in the original broadcasts]:

-in gundam seed destiny, were thrust into the chaos and confusion of a battle. For those familiar with seed they’ll recognize this as the battle for orb, for those not however it’s a good immersion tool to connect us with the emotions of our focus character for the flashback shinn. Things are confusing, panicked, theres an attempt at evacuation but its clearly last minute and disorganized, battles raging and orbs on the backfoot. Shinn and his family are evacuating, civilian cloths, and well shinns the most obviously important one by value of his face hes dressed in mundane enough clothing to blend in with the earflap beanie being ridiculous enough to make him look more mundane [in my opinion]. His sister loses her retro cutting edge flip phone, and childishly refuses to go forward without it. Shes scared, shes young, everyone’s scared, and shinn in the heat of the moment runs to get it. And by shear coincidence and chance, that gets him out of the blast zone, the camera cuts leaving it ambiguous as to who fired the killing shot. It's impact is clear though, shinns beanie is thrown off his head as he struggles both in physical and emotional pain to take in the sight of his dead family and its not a pretty sight lingering long enough to atleast convey the sense of the images burning themselves in shinns head and definitely long enough to leave people uncomfortable. Shinns dad is crushed by a tree, his moms been seemingly torn apart likely by debris, shinns sister likewise has been shredded, her cut off hand having lured shinn to the gruesome sight to begin with. The battling mobile suits catch his attention, sorrow turns to rage and is swallowed by grief, and shinn torn between despair and newfound hatred simply gives up and wails in agony.

- in gundam seed we are introduced to athrun and kira through the opening theme animation in a still shot. The next time we see them in that animation athruns posing in a military powerpoint following his squad, and kiras cosmic naked with lacus on some ethereal plain. Ahtrun follows up with a confrontational still with cagalli backed by fire. Kira gets a group shot at the front of the archangel crew. Kira later still gets some random ass slightly sexual shot of a mobile suit exploding with a naked holographic lacus convulsing like shes having an orgasm as he looks on stoically, and later finally ends with a shot of kira looking up stoically as the strike goes through its launch animation.

- now, I suppose the immediate counter argument to that would be “hey, asshole, isn’t comparing an anime opening animation to a full on flashback sequence an unfair comparison? We all know anime ops are notoriously style over substance”. and my own answer to that would be “no, its not an unfair comparison because ops still tell us things through visual communication and most other anime these days and shows in general [of any quality anyways] are smart enough to lay down character groundwork before smash cutting to the theme song”.

- to go for a more grounded comparison that illustrates what I mean, lets go back to the original gundam in 79. The original gundam opened right out the gate with the theme song and op animation, no canned narration no nothing just bam, title song. Gundam seed opens with an admittedly effective shot of ginns descending down to earth as the zaft pilots steel themselves for war against the earth, which smoothly transitions into seeds canned narration about the war and how its supposedly speedy conclusion has been dragged out for 11 months. Then seed hits us with the op animation. And yet I would argue 79 has the more effective first foot by smashing immediately to the opening. Why?

- Aside from the 79 theme song itself being [arguably] superior to seeds first op song in every conceivable way, id say its communication. 79’s op is uncomplicated, simple and direct. Whats the gimmick? Giant robots, whos the hero guy? This kid whos shooting a gun and giving a thumbs up in the aircraft thing man he looks brave, supporting cast we should know? These idiots and some other robots look at em go, whats the conflict? These green guys with a prominent lead red guy they look mean, whats the heroes relation to his supporting cast? The supporting light and center of things good to know, heres a closing shot of the gundam look at it go, I hope that you got that its name is gundam. Its arguably deceptively optimistic for the shows actual content, but it works in forming an immediate emotional connection to amuro as the guy were suppose to root for which is good considering how he is in early episodes [an understandably frustrated teen, but hes very intentionally written to be aggravating at times so that immediate positive connection is good at keeping the audience grounded with him]. Its only then when we have our connection to the protagonist that we move into the brief canned narration. And certainly its not essential to introduce your protagonist first, star wars a new hope gets away with introducing luke like ten minutes into the thing. But it helps that lukes suppose to be something of a dark horse, the unexpected wrench from humble origins in the empires plan.

- by comparison we open seed with narration that takes twice as long to convey the same amount of information 0079 gets out in under a minute, and the opening itself is a lot more scattered and nonsensical, trying to convey a lot more then 0079s own opening. Whats the concept? Giant robots cool, whos the main character? Maybe these two guys, one of thems closer to the front then the other so I guess him, but also these people are probably important too? Whos are supporting cast then, this gaggle of clowns I guess but aside from the jerseys who tf knows what their relation is to maybe protagonist man? Whos the enemy? The guys in the different coloured jerseys presumably, they keep trying to blow up main protagonist man atleast so probably them? Whats the protagonists relation to the supporting cast? No fucking idea outside of being the main one of them, but hey atleast we know pink haired lady and main guy are going to probably fuck. That’s not to say no information is conveyed, athrun and kira are successfully established as a pair that parallel each other, muru and raru [the antagonist of seed] are established in a similar manner or atleast connected, as are natarale and that lady who commands the archangel ship whos name I never remember. We know who correlates with which gundam of athruns crew as they pose for mens magazine, and who pilots what in general. We know flay’s sad. But again, the problem is that its seeds first foot forward and for the most part it’s a confusing if flashy mess with only some vague generalities on the setting being conveyed through canned narration and the most important info from the opening seemingly being that kira and lacus are gonna fuck considering how much time they spend hovering around it. And even that turns out to not be the case.

- which brings me back to seed destiny and why it did the overall better job with its first foot. It brings us into shinns character first and foremost and it establishes both a lot of directions shinn could go as a character well introducing us to him at a very vulnerable moment emotionally. At the very least it conveys to us that survivors guilt and anger are going to be two big things shinn grapples with as a character, all well using pretty much only visual cues, sound cues, and minimal dialogue which better sells the intimacy of the vulnerability.

- but, I might still hear you say, its not a fair comparison anyways because your comparing apples to oranges, ops to private moments of grief. And no I say, im still being fair considering kiras ‘proper’ introduction as it were is only just… okay. We get the info that hes a computer wiz of some sorts considering the speed hes typing, its reinforced through casual mention in dialogue, we get the impression that hes worried about the war in some manner, a flashback to athrun and his friendship as kids reinforcing their status as a narrative pair, and then some suggestion of being a bit socially awkward and scatterbrained as hes pulled out of the flashback by a friend. In total all we really learn is his primary skillset as it were, a connection between the war and his friendship with athrun which is suggested by his concerns over it and the previously established narrative paring of the two, and that hes easily distracted. Its not nothing, but its certainly less narrative meat and potential then what were given with shinn if nothing else, and again its not the actual first impression we get of kira. The op is even if only sublimely.

- anyways, this was suppose to be about seed destiny. Seeds first op is alright, I privately refer to it as ‘seeds first op but better’ which it basically his. Similar pacing, similar visuals, but just cut together a bit better with a better song overlaying it [if your into that kinda rock anyways]. We get pilots and their associated machines, we get connections drawn often between trios this time such as masked man number 2, the blond guy on the Minerva and durendel. What I do rather like is that instead of just giving us a still shot however they kinda approach establishing the pilot trio of the Minerva a little more gracefully by having them in essence wave/salute in succession as they launch. More importantly for my money though is the tidbits related to shinn they throw in, shinn being pushed into the background of a similar shot from seeds op starring athrun and kira looking on the two with anger/resentment. Shinn also gets his own naked spirit scene with a girl, a blond one this time whos name I also forget but it also feels more like hes trying to comfort her instead of kiras similar scene from seeds op so I like it a little bit more then the more sexualized one kira got. Kira and shinn are also firmly set up to fight at some point with a brief clash in the op so some more interesting narrative meat especially since it hovers long enough to drive that point home then seeds more frantic cuts. Some teasing of kira and lacus, some parallel shots starring athrun, cagalli, luna and more, lacus and another more provocatively dressed lacus acting in opposite to each other… all around definitely not revolutionary but serviceable and better then seeds 1stop atleast.

- this does bring up the concern however of destiny relying on seed imagery which sets a bad precedence but I feel theres at least enough intentional subversion to serve as the narrative parallel as it were. Whether to destiny’s benefit or not is a different matter.

- canned narration time! Mercifully short thankfully and voiced by the lady who commanded the archangel I think. Uneasy peace has been established and we further tease that kira will have a role in this story somehow with him and lacus ambiguously walking on a beach under a sort of duskish sunset palette, well kira continues to look like a wet cloth and lacus continues to smile kinda creepily. Through no fault of the animators im sure.

- title and episode one is called “angry eyes”. Hopefully that will be appropriate wink wing. I never got why the plants look the way they do on a related not, like surely that’s more of a waste of space then it is economical. Its unique ill give em that much. Also cagallis here and what looks to be a passenger class jumbo space jet. Riding economy class from the looks of it for some reason.

- seriously, why doesn’t she have a private craft? Peace time and orb pacifism and all that sure, but shes an important dignitary and head of government, surely something with speed if nothing else would be better to use for political expediency? Or atleast somewhere timmy wont overhear your political planning.

- cutting to a military base destiny manages to show off both some pretty decent writing and seeds continuing problems. Visually its conveyed that the military base is in a bit of disarray as people rush to organize things and messes pop up as they clean up to look presentable for whatever ceremonies scheduled to happen. Luna and her driver get some casual back and forth that establishes their friendship, the drivers a reckless ass in his driving and luna well exasperated by it doesn’t comment suggesting familiarity with his behaviour and at least tacit acceptance of risk and danger [being more so annoyed with everyone’s panicked straightening up even]. Destiny then goes out of its way to have the driver clarify through dialogue that everyone’s cleaning up for an important visit and establish through dialogue that most of everyone is green behind the ears. Something that we already know visually for the most part and something we could have established visually as well respectively. Its not the dealbreaker by a country mile, just disappointing is all and indicative of seeds tell don’t show problem. Despite its visual language often being its best part when they actually put in the effort and have the budget for it.

- space helicopter! And the visual language continues to show its strength by having… rey [that’s his name right] not outright state his relation to durendel, but imply it visually. Rey notices the space helicopter [why do they have that in the plants?] smiles very happily, rushes over to where its landing and stands at attention in the back but in a place durandel can clearly see him. Durandel pauses in his talking about state matters to offer rey a similarly warm and affectionate smile in return. Its speaks volumes of their relation without having to say anything, and its even helped by the dialogue around it being about other things.

- speaking of, the dialogue in this instance also highlights the problem of the previous car scene a bit better. This feels more naturalistic despite essentially being exposition of a similar nature. It reminds us of blue cosmos existence, that their poking their head around and causing trouble, and in a context that makes sense and flows more naturally because its durandel talking matters of state with an advisor.

- incidentally, to kinda track durandel as a means of highlighting his ‘sudden heel turn’ into an inexplicable villain at seeds end and why it makes no sense and doesn’t gell with whats previously been established [or not if im wrong], im going to be noting durandel in particular. And in this particular instance he notes blue cosmos as ‘more of an idea then a true organization’ asking for clarification on the matter from a subordinate, well noting that well they can work on stricter enforcement of ‘the treaty’ it wont ‘eliminate terrorists’ presumably like the other party making a request of him to enforce the treaty more strictly hopes. Largely this snippet of discussion seems to be in reference to an as of yet heard request from another party incidentally, but considering cagallis presence in the jumbo jet… its almost definitely her. Putting that aside, durandels words and reactions in these few snippits so far paint the picture of a ‘pleasant sceptic’. Hes willing to try the other way but he clearly holds doubts about its success in essence.

- first shot of cagalli with background athrun! She looks sad and or constipated [hopefully that wont be a trend]. Meanwhile athruns rocking quattro four vaginas sunglasses but in a dark red.

- durandels advisor notes her as ‘orb hime’ or orbs princess as its translated in the subs. Durandels response is a brief narrowing of eyes, followed by a smile and a remark about her being an ‘awfully busy person’. Its not the most flattering opinion to hold about her obviously since the remark seems to be mostly made in jest, but its ambiguous in that moment as to why he feels irritation towards her even if its just in the ‘what a hassal/shes childish’ kind of manner the tone, remark and smile would imply. Said tone, remark and smile I would also like to note do come across as somewhat fond as well though, so its arguably not ‘I dislike you because you’re a child’ irritation but more so ‘im being patient because you’re a child’ kind of irritation.

- cagalli and athrun. Athrun makes things weird remarking about cagalli needing a dress, but he does follow it up with some decent advice about ‘not being what you aren’t’ but also how its important ‘to be take seriously’ in matters which cagalli presumably is trying to attend to. Cagalli is reluctant/begrudging about it, kinda leaning into durandels earlier implication about her being childish. Like its weird to bring up and make it about a dress but its not a bad point in general really. Also its an unofficial visit, hence the passenger ship.

- careless remarks about ‘those damn naturals’, but its used to drum up how everyones still very uneasy about the political situation and tease the Minerva. Also, random hot topic crew that athrun notes with athrun specifically noting the blond girl of the bunch.

- apparently the Minerva is going to be ‘the first warship’ to launch since the peace treaty. Cagalli notes it with some obvious frustration as well as frustrated hesitation as to why durandels proposing the meeting here. Athrun points out that cagalli was the one who wanted a low profile continuing the be the more insightful of the two.

- beauty shot and the plants colonies are way bigger then I always think they are. Which just infuriates me more because that is in essence double the profile for at best the same amount of space as a regular gundam colony.

- cagalli and durandel greet. Not much to note about the dialogue itself as its pretty box standard but durandel notably sounds more flowery and enthusiastic about it then cagalli. Also some guy in a suit is with cagalli, whos he I wonder? Durandel makes note of athrun and clearly sees right through the clark kent guise but doesn’t comment yet.

- hot topic trio strut and a shadowed shinn in an alleyway tease us as cagalli and durandel begin talking. Durandel congratulates her on her success noting his ‘envy’ of her rapid success though clearly in a facetious manner. Its not mocking, just clearly said because hes expected to be polite. Also third guy in suit, who are these people? Outside of extras destined to die and clearly identical twins. Also cagalli plays down her accomplishments as needing more to be done and durandel jumps on that to question her motives for the meeting. Noting it as a complicated issue she apparently wanted to discuss.

- cagalli doesn’t think its complicated, notes that durandels been unresponsive and vague on his end, and directly insists that durandel and zaft, and im quoting here, “stop putting to military use the technology and human resources that have come your way since the war with orb.” Athrun puts on his shocked face and durandel just smiles in response clearly being ready for this.

- now, im going for a direct quote there because I wanna put a pin on this because its so… weird in the context of cagalli herself. Narratively this is obviously suppose to sound ominous on our end, and not to mention this is very obviously suppose to be an easy statement for durandel to shoot down. But when ya get down to it, what the fuck does cagalli think shes asking here? What thought process and series of events led her to ask this question, because as shes wording it the overall implication its providing is ‘I believe your holding orb citizens hostage and forcing them to build weapons with stolen orb technology’. Cause like, if that’s what she believes and is trying to get across that’s an insane accusation to just throw out there in a private under the radar meeting like this. But if its not and shes just poorly wording her apprehensions from seed about orb building weapons then it’s a weird way to word that apprehension, and it’s a weird implication to hold that orb citizens are always under orbs jurisdiction regardless of if they decide to become citizens of another nation or not which implies they’re orbs property in a way. Is it a combination of the two, and shes worried orb citizens are building weapons based on stolen orb secrets? Whatever the case, its an odd look for her, and doesn’t help with the impression of naivety on her end.

- hot topic gang, girl [stellar that’s her name right?] admires herself in the mirror and blue hair boy asks wtf shes doing to green haired leader. Leader boy responds ‘being a happy fool’ and suggests blue boy try being a fool sometimes. It’s a quick scene but good at establishing a dynamic for the group, the pecking order as it were, and some camaraderie banter between them. Quick cut to cagalli demanding an answer, and cut back to stellar twirling and giggling like a school child lost in her own world. Cue accidental bump into shinn and accidental boob grab.

- stellar storms off upset and in a hurry, and shinns black tagalong yolant comments on shinn ‘groping her’ much to shinns flustered embarrassment. Apparently they’ve been out shopping for whatever reason. Not the best scene to ‘reintroduce’ shinn on what with the groping, but I appreciate that we get to see him in a more casual setting and cloths first. Fashion choices remain as weird as ever in ce, but again I appreciate that we see shinn acting flustered and his rapport with yolant whos more cool and casual, teasing shinn because he knows shinns gonna be flustered and uptight about it. Also shinns established to still be carrying his sisters phone alluding to ‘lingering hang ups’ to say the least.

- commercial break animation cut. These are always kinda fun in shows, but honestly im more weirded out then anything. Why is lacus in a weird translucent sexy ballgown getup all in one colour? Why a haro orchestra? Why have the commercial cut be kira and lacus when they aren’t even around for the first 8 episodes? It feels desperate to reassure the audience that kira and lacus will be returning is all.

- durandel time! Nothing too specific stands out, he praises cagallis bravery and participation in battle, praises cagallis fathers refusal to buckle under pressure, and uses that as weight for his rhetorical question about how the political situation of the world is. Actual admiration? I feel so. Athrun gets to have the shocked face upon seeing zafts newest frontline suit, the zaku warrior. On the zaku warrior note, I don’t actually hate the design itself but it does kinda feel desperate on the showrunners part to copy paste with minor alterations the zakus design for their own show. It atleast was redesigned to look like an advancement on the ginn.

- more durandel talk time intercut with hot topic infiltration time. The hot topic gangs infiltration stuff is pretty standard faire as we see they both have men on the inside already, and advance combat skills to take on armed zaft personal with just the three of them and the one other guy who kind of disappears after this. More importantly durandel and cagalli talk, or more so durandel talks at cagalli. In essence well he displays sympathy towards cagallis give peace a chance stance he correctly identifies the essential problem that such a stance of not picking fights or allowing others to pick on you requires strong force of arms or some force of political power to back up otherwise you’re a sitting duck with no bite to your bark. You know the same problem/question gundam wing obsessed over and then cleverly side stepped by having relena become queen of the earth and abolish all weapons forever. Other things to note, durandel specifically uses hime when in essence talking down to cagalli after she expresses discomfort with the title. durandel also identifies that cagalli might in truth be more so worried that the north Atlantic federation is going to use zafts use of orb personnel as excuse to call foul on the peace treaty, which he then turns around as justification for why zaft needs to build and maintain military power [also, he notes that hes not forcing orb refugees to build this stuff, their simply using their own skills to make a living for themselves]. In essence durandels position is that zaft needs to maintain military power so that they aren’t caught off guard and on the backfoot by the Atlantic federation if things do go south. A bit warhawkish of a position, but honestly a fairly reasonable one considering the north Atlantic federation has consistently expressed a desire to genocide the fuck out of the coordinators/zaft in the past. Also, cagallis only response during this is “to much power will lead to more conflict”, which is a ‘pretty sentiment’ as it were but also doesn’t entirely make sense. In the sense of, the greater military build up there is the more that conflict will arise, its an understandable sentiment but also not one that entirely plays out in reality. Durandels response is ‘there will always be conflict hence why power is necessary’ fits with the sort of sceptical side hes been highlighted as having but isn’t even the only answer you can give in that situation. Like, if you look at our modern world you could arguably say that the build up of military power to the levels its currently at has actually decreased the amount of conflict around overall, atleast in regards to war [because as war becomes more and more expensive to wage the less willing people actually are to pull that trigger and commit, the same principle behind mutually assured destruction in a way]. Or hell, WWI was horrific because of the advancement and buildup of technology sure, but its causes were more so rooted in ultranationalism and imperial gamesmanship coming to a head and causing a political breakdown of alliances and deals. Point being, cagalli has a pretty sentiment, but it doesn’t necessarily hold up to reality as it were.

- anyways, gundam jacking time by hot topic crew. We get names as well, sting for green hair, auel for blue hair, they jack the gundams [love the theme here by the way, its really good faux orchestrate violin kinda stuff with well integrated techno elements] technobabble, stellar displays kira levels of computer typing so I guess shes a computer genius now as well or maybe they all are? Whatever the case, hot topics epic gundam jack is altered by the usual dying guard pushes big red alarm button routine.

- confusion, panic, athrun jumps ontop of cagalli throwing her to the ground in a matter meant to protect her but just leaves me thinking that probably hurt, well durandels guards take the opposite approach and don’t exactly grope him but it looks a little silly how their best method to protect him in that moment is a group hug? Anyways, jacked gundams step out, we get names though no specific attachments just some guy saying “chaos, abyss, gaia?” and sting formulates the combat strategy in an effective manner directing the team to target the as yet launched suits first. Also blond girl is given a name and its stella, as auel mentions it dividing up the workload between him and her, and they proceed to star blowing shit up.

- durandel! His shocked face is weirdly adorable as he reacts in fearful surprise to information that the gundams from ‘hanger six’ have been stolen. Cagalli and athrun meanwhile look on in slack jawed shock at seeing more gundams. Speaking off, during the destruction we see some gundam gimmicks in action to wet the appetite with stellas [gaia I think] transforming into a doggo which is a ma form I love and wish we saw more often in gundam as a whole, auels [abyss I think] gundam shows off some weird wing cannon things and a fuck of chest laser, and stings [chaos I think] boring and shoots a gun but also shows off some missile compartments in his own wing things.

- luna, though I don’t think weve actually gotten her name yet, and rey though I know we haven’t gotten his name yet, make a break for some uniquely coloured zaku warriors probably intent on helping but get knocked down by the force of a blast which also impedes the zaku warriors by covering them in debris. Which shocks the both of them and clearly irritates rey.

- durandel wastes no time in taking charge the situation, calling in for backup from the Minerva and getting cagalli to be escorted to a safehouse. What is weird however is that when cagalli athrun and their escort take a wrong turn and get caught up near some of the fighting athrun pulls cagalli one way well letting the poor schmuk guard wander slowly off the other way to get caught in a blast. Only to have them take another wrong turn and have to duck and cover again. Its tense sure but a bit repetitive.

- cagalli wallows about the situation, athrun reassures her in a surprisingly tender couple of seconds, and a dinn gets cut in half and coincidentally explodes… ontop of a zaku warrior in such a way that it falls down perfectly intact in front of cagalli and athrun? Whatever the case, the invisible hand of the author practically screams at them to get in the fucking robot already through this act and its legit comical in a way. Whatever the case the two take in the destruction raging about, and athrun makes the command decision to drag cagalli off presumably to the zaku warrior.

- but before that, long launch sequence of the ‘impulse’ gundam with its yet revealed pilot. Its actually a kinda fun sequence both in animation and music, and its good for highlighting the gimmick of the impulse. Which is ripping off the victory gundams gimmick of being multiple parts that can operate independently but combine into one suit. A very toylike gimmick used by a tomino who did not give a shit, but its what were stuck with I suppose.

- cagalli continues to be three steps behind everyone as shes surprised when athrun tells her to get into the zaku warrior but im willing to cut her some slack for now and given the situation. It is annoying to have athruns impulses consistently being action, ‘I cant let you die like this’ and all that, well cagallis is frequently inaction though. What is odd is how however is how the zaku warrior opens and closes here, the hatch is clearly on the abdomen area but a protrusion on the suits chest extends out for some reason and then the protrusion retracts first before the suits hatch actually closes. It doesn’t make much sense.

- the zaku warriors up and running and stella alludes to the pilot being more so the danger then the suit itself. Regardless with the zaku warrior athruns able to put up a decent struggle, apparently the shield beam resistant, but sting interferes to very briefly put pressure on athrun before shinn interferes. That’s right, shinns very obviously the impulse pilot and we get a needlessly long assembly sequence to some cheesy heroic music as everyone watches in surprise. The suit assembles and the end credits song begins playing in the background as shinn, presumably privately, questions what the hottopic trio are doing and if they ‘want another war!’ before rushing to engage them with the ‘sword impulse’ a nice red variation of the suit with a huge double bladed sword with small beam edge in the usual seed style. Seriously it looks like the sword strikers sword doubled and were scotch tapped together its kinda funny looking. Anyways durandel gets a shot of looking on pleased at the impulses presence from a command center, as his earlier words about conflict being inevitable echo again and athrun and cagalli look on in shock. Smash to credits.

- nothing to really note about the credits, it’s a long extended shot of destroyed equipment as everyone poses dramatically. Of special note though is that it transitions from night to sunrise, with kira and lacus being the last characters in the shot looking like a married couple gazing distractedly towards the sunrise. ‘oh Charles is it not beautiful? Why yes it is emily’ they seem to say as everyone else is miserable around them. Truly the worst honeymooners, but its… definitely biased as it were thematically speaking. Also destroyed freedom gundam is I think technically the last actual thing seen in the credits.

- preview, and its some random gibberish trying to sound poetic that basically boils down to ‘we did have peace but was it only temporary because of human nature?’. Title for the next episode is ‘those who call for war’ and things end with an image of a blue impulse and the words “from the new path before you, fly, impulse!”.

[aion-rsa]

Mortal Kombat and Bloodsport: The Strange Connection That Changed Gaming

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As we eagerly anticipate the release of the latest Mortal Kombat movie, many find themselves looking back on Mortal Kombat’s 1995 big-screen debut. While that film has its charms and its fans (myself included), the movie has rightfully been criticized over the years for lacking many of the best qualities of the game as well as many of the best elements of the martial arts movies that clearly inspired it.

Of course, the relationship between Mortal Kombat and martial arts films has always been close. Not only did the game utilize a then-revolutionary form of motion capturing that gave it a standout cinematic look, but many aspects of the title were practically taken directly from some of the best and biggest martial arts movies of that era.

As the years go on, though, it becomes more and more clear that no martial arts movie impacted the development of Mortal Kombat more than Bloodsport. Maybe you’ve heard that MK was inspired by that beloved movie, but a deeper look at the relationship between Bloodsport and Mortal Kombat reveals the many ways both big and small that the two would go on to change gaming forever.

Bloodsport: The Crown Jewel of Absurd ‘80s Martial Arts Movies

While the 1970s is rightfully remembered as the decade when America became obsessed with martial arts (due in no small part to the influence of Bruce Lee’s legendary films), it really wasn’t until the 1980s that you saw major and minor studios compete to see who could produce the biggest martial arts blockbuster.

Of course, many of the martial arts movies of that decade were different from what came before. They had bigger budgets, were usually more violent, and, maybe most importantly, they generally catered more to Western audiences. Yes, the ‘80s is the decade that Jackie Chan and other Asian martial artists did some of their best work, but as more and more Western studios got in on the action, we saw the rise of a new kind of martial arts movie that more closely resembled the over-the-top violent action films popularized by Arnold Schwarzenegger.

That also meant the rise of a new kind of martial arts star who was typically either from America or played American characters in what we can now see was an effort to capitalize on the idea of American exceptionalism that was especially popular during the Reagan era. If you’re looking for some notable examples of that trend, I’d suggest checking out Best of the Best, Above the Law, and, naturally, American Ninja.

In many ways, though, 1988’s Bloodsport is the pinnacle of that time in martial arts movies.

Bloodsport co-writer Sheldon Lettich says he came up with the idea for the film while talking to a martial artist named Frank Dux. Among other things, Dux claimed to be a former undercover CIA operative who once participated in an underground martial arts tournament known as “Kumite” in order to take down the criminal organization that ran it. Dux also claimed he was the first American to ever win the tournament.

To be frank, Dux was full of shit and, despite the fact that Bloodsport bills itself as a story inspired by true events, Lettich knew it. Still, the idea of an American martial artist winning a global underground tournament featuring the world’s greatest fighters was too good to pass up.

Indeed, the absurdity of that premise is a big part of what makes the whole thing work. While Dux’s story was almost certainly “inspired” by the plot of Enter the Dragon, Bloodsport wisely veers away from that classic in ways that take advantage of the best (or at least most loveable) elements of that era.

The smoke-filled back room that hosts many of Bloodsport‘s key fights is far removed from the tropical paradise of Enter the Dragon, but it captures that vibe of an ‘80s pro wrestling arena where the stale air is punctured by the screams of a bloodthirsty crowd. Whereas many early martial arts movies were designed to showcase the speed of their leads, the deliberate, slower strikes in Bloodsport perfectly compliment the absurd sound effects they resulted in which suggested that every punch was breaking bones. It’s a ridiculous idea tempered by a surprising amount of raw violence. In a nutshell, it’s a snapshot of what made so many great ‘80s action movies work.

What really made Bloodsport special, though, was the work of Jean-Claude Van Damme. It’s hard to call the young Van Damme’s performance “good” in any traditional sense of the word, but considering that he was cast in the role to be a good looking young martial artist with charisma to burn, it’s also hard to say he didn’t do exactly what he was asked to and then some.

More important than JCVD’s movie-star looks were his martial arts abilities. I don’t know how Van Damme’s real-life martial arts experience stacked up against the best competitors of that era, but what I can tell you is that Van Damme came across as the real deal at a time when many studios were still casting the biggest bodies and teaching them to be action stars later. By comparison, Van Damme was lean, flexible, and not only capable of selling us on the idea that he could kick ass but genuinely also capable of kicking many asses.

Bloodsport was a box office success that would certainly go on to become a genre cult classic, but its most lasting impact has to be the way it introduced so many of us to Jean-Claude Van Damme. Indeed, the attention the movie brought to Van Damme was about to also make waves in the video game industry.

Midway to Hollywood: “Bring Me Jean-Claude Van Damme!”

Much like the tales of Frank Dux, the stories of the early days of Mortal Kombat’s development are sometimes twisted by legend. However, nearly all versions of the story come back to Jean-Claude Van Damme in one way or another.

Mortal Kombat‘s origins can be traced back to co-creators John Tobias and Ed Boon’s desire to make a fighting game featuring ninjas that would also allow them to utilize the kind of large character designs they emphasized in previous works.

Unfortunately, the initial pitch for that project was rejected by Midway for the simple reason that there seemed to be some doubt regarding the commercial viability of an arcade fighting game. Remember that this was all done before Street Fighter 2 really took over arcades, cemented itself as a game-changer, and inspired studios everywhere to start go all-in on the genre.

Instead, Midway decided to pursue an action game starring Jean-Claude Van Damme. The details of this part of the story sometimes get fuzzy, but it seems they specifically hoped to develop a game based on Van Damme’s Universal Soldier film. At the very least, the idea of adapting the mega star’s latest movie into a game must have seemed like a much more surefire hit than an unlicensed fighting title.

Recognizing an opportunity, Tobias and the rest of the four-person team that would go on to make Mortal Kombat decided to see if they could get Van Damme interested in the idea of starring in their martial arts game. Boon recalls that they even went so far as to send Van Damme a concept demo for that project by capturing a still of the actor from Bloodsport, cropping out the background, and replacing it with their own assets. There have even been reports that they were prepared to name their game Van Damme as the ultimate showcase of the star.

The idea fell through, and there seem to be some contradictory reports regarding exactly what happened. Boon once said that he’d heard Van Damme already had a deal in place with Sega that would conflict with their offer, but, as Boon notes, Sega clearly never released that game. If such a deal ever was in place, it seems nothing ever came from it. It’s also been said that Van Damme was too busy to model for the game’s digitized animations or was otherwise simply uninterested.

The entire Van Damme/Midway deal ending up falling apart, but there was a silver lining. Now given the time to properly recognize that the fighting genre was blowing up in arcades, Midway told Tobias, Boon, and the rest of the team to go ahead and work on their martial arts game, Van Damme be damned.

While Van Damme was technically out of the picture, the team at Midway were hardly ready to give up entirely on their idea of a fighting game inspired by Bloodsport

Read more

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Mortal Kombat: A Bloodsport by Any Other Name

Mortal Kombat went by a lot of names in its earliest days (the most popular candidate in the early days was reportedly “Kumite“), but one thing that remained the same throughout much of the project’s development was the commitment to making it the anti-Street Fighter. Or, as Ed Boon once put it, to make it the “MTV version of Street Fighter.”

The logic was hard to argue against. If Street Fighter 2 was the best at what it did, then this game should be the exact opposite of it in every single way possible

What’s impressive are the ways the small MK team distinguished their project. They used digitized captures of actors, which is particularly impressive when you consider that they weren’t even working with green screens. They just filmed some actors (mostly people they knew with martial arts experience) performing moves against a concrete wall and then manually removed the real-life backgrounds. It wasn’t too far removed from the techniques they used to construct a demo of their idea for Jean-Claude Van Damme

Of course, you can’t talk about MK without eventually talking about the blood. The game’s use of gore was certainly intended to catch people’s attention, which it absolutely did. While the MK team didn’t quite anticipate how the combination of digitized actors and extreme gore would put MK at the center of an emerging debate about video game violence, they rightfully predicted that the game’s violence was one of those things that people would force people to stop and look when they walked by and saw the game in action.

What’s really funny, though, is how those two qualities helped MK capture the feel of Bloodsport in ways that seemed both intentional and perhaps happily accidental. Yes, MK’s origins prove that it was clearly inspired by Bloodsport, but the ways in which MK most meaningfully mimics Bloodsport often aren’t talked about enough.

In Bloodsport and MK, you have this martial arts adventure that feels both wonderfully dingy and strangely fantastical. Just as Bloodsport told the unbelievable story of a global tournament featuring larger than life participants but tempered it with visceral combat the likes of which no human could survive, MK combined sorcery and mythological creatures with decapitations and punishing uppercuts in a way that shouldn’t have worked but proved to be too enjoyable to at least not be fascinated with.

Even the “awkward” animations you sometimes have to suffer through as a result of MK‘s motion capture process captured the spirit of Bloodsport and the ways that it replaced the smooth moves of someone like Bruce Lee with a more impactful MMA-esque style complimented by moments of absurd athleticism. It’s almost certainly also no coincidence that the average MK combatant’s most athletic move was a sweep kick. After all, a famous Hollywood legend says JCVD was offered the Bloodsport role after showing off his kicks to a producer.

Of course, when it comes to any discussion about MK and Bloodsport’s relationship, we certainly don’t have to rely on possible coincidences and speculation. Not only was an early version of MK literally ripped from Bloodsport, but as it turns out, JCVD did end up appearing in the game…

Johnny Cage: Jean-Claude Van Darn

If you step back and look at it, Mortal Kombat is basically the Super Smash Bros. for action stars of the ‘70s and ‘80s. Kano was a callback to The Terminator, Sonya Blade was seemingly based on the eternally underrated Cynthia Rothrock, Raiden was clearly inspired by Big Trouble in Little China (as was Shang Tsung), and Liu Kang was almost certainly a Bruce Lee substitute.

Then you have Johnny Cage. As a cocky movie star whose martial arts skills are largely based on his flexibility, it’s always been easy enough to suggest that Johnny Cage is a non-licensed nod to Jean-Claude Van Damme. Actually, many think that Johnny Cage is a bit of a mean-spirited parody of JCVD meant to mock him for turning the game down.

The truth is a little more complicated than that. Johnny Cage actually started as a character named Michael Grimm who was described as the “current box office champion and star of such movies as Dragon’s Fist, Dragon’s Fist II, and the award-winning Sudden Violence.” While his character model was reportedly also influenced by Iron Fist’s Daniel Rand, it seems that he was initially meant as a kind of broad substitute for the Western martial arts stars that took over the scene in the 1980s.

But yes, Johnny Cage is absolutely meant to be a parody of JCVD. I suppose where people lose the thread a bit is in the insinuation that he’s a jab at the star rather than an homage. While MK’s developers have said that Johnny Cage’s iconic “splits into a low blow” was absolutely a way to poke fun at JCVD and a scene from Bloodsport, it feels a little disingenuous to suggest the team was feeling bitter about not being able to put JCVD in their game and wanted to suggest that he was this star that was somehow too good for them.

What’s kind of funny, though, is that the rise, fall, and rise of Johnny Cage isn’t too dissimilar from what happened to JCVD. Van Damme was riding high in the early ‘90s on the back of films like Bloodsport, but a series of flops and some personal problems put his career in jeopardy later on. Similarly, Johnny Cage debuted as the prototypical Hollywood star but would fall from grace in the years that followed. He wasn’t even featured in Mortal Kombat 3 for the simple reason that he was the least selected character in MK 2.

Yet, over time, many people came to appreciate characters like Johnny Cage and actors like JCVD largely because they represented this golden age of absurd martial arts movies that weren’t always great (and were certainly usually a little problematic) but were ridiculous in a way that became much easier to love when weighed against increasingly self-serious genre works.

In his own way, Johnny Cage not only represents JCVD but the magic of a movie like Bloodsport and how such a silly little film could change everything because of (and not in spite of) its ridiculousness.

There’s another world in which JCVD became the digitized star of what would become Mortal Kombat, but due to a series of incredible circumstances, we don’t just need to project that reality on Johnny Cage to envision what that game might have looked like.

Bloodsport: The First Great Video Game Movie?

While it’s certainly funny enough that Jean-Claude Van Damme would go on to star in the Street Fighter movie after turning down what would become the first Mortal Kombat game, the cherry on the top of that story has to be the release of 1995’s Street Fighter: The Movie (the game).

That adaptation of the Street Fighter film bizarrely abandoned the design style of the Street Fighter games the movie was based on and was instead modeled after Mortal Kombat in an attempt to give Capcom a fighting game that could more directly compete with Midway’s runaway hit series. It failed spectacularly, but it did feature a digitized version of Guile as portrayed by JCVD in the Street Fighter movie. Van Damme even lent his moves for the game’s motion capture process.

Roughly four years after passing up the opportunity to star in Mortal Kombat (or Van Damme, as it would have likely been known), Van Damme ends up starring in a Mortal Kombat rip-off carrying the Street Fighter name. Call it a missed opportunity if you want, but to me, the bigger takeaway is that Van Damme may have missed the chance to recognize that he, Bloodsport, and Mortal Kombat were destined to be together long before the development of MK ever started.

See, there’s a scene in Bloodsport where Frank Dux and his new friend Ray play the 1984 arcade game Karate Champ. As one of the first successful arcade fighting games featuring multiplayer, Karate Champ would later be recognized as one of the fundamental pieces of the genre. John Tobias even said that Karate Champ was more of an influence on Mortal Kombat than Street Fighter was.

What gets me most about that scene, though, is the trash talk. Ray asks Frank “Aren’t you a little young for full contact?” Frank counters by asking, “Aren’t you a little old for video games?” They settle by playing another round.

It’s a simple sequence that’s hard not to look back on as an early indication that the popularity of films like Bloodsport would directly influence of new era of fighting games defined by competitiveness, arcade trash talk, and advancing technology that would inspire fans and developers to replicate the feel of being at the Kumite or, in our world, in a movie like Bloodsport.

In the same way that Mortal Kombat is basically an unofficial Bloodsport game, maybe it’s time to look back at Bloodsport as a kind of unofficial video game movie. After all, it may have debuted at the end of a strange kind of golden era for Hollywood martial arts films, but it was just the beginning of the golden age of fighting games.

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