#also. massive fan of hiding the eyes for artistic effect….

[ebysse]

snape celebration week 4 - the martyr

hugely inspired by the talented @ofnightsndsongs 's work 'Assassination Attempt'

“the man he hated”

[ibelieveinharrystyles]

Strawberries On A Summer Evening

A soft imagine in which YN is one of the extras in the watermelon sugar music video and Harry can’t take his eyes off of her [2.2K Words] I hope you all enjoy this lovelies make sure to stream watermelon sugar! Masterlist

“And cut!” The director shouted, “That’s great ladies, go get yourselves some water and then we’ll go again in ten minutes. Harry can I run through a few things with you?” You made your way over to the table where bottles of water waited for you and the rest of the cast. There were spare slices of watermelon lying about, but you weren’t sure if you could face eating any more watermelon after the amount you had got through during filming. It was your first high profile job, the other music videos and projects you had been in were mainly for unsigned artists, so being in the Harry Styles’ music video was a pretty big deal. All the girls taking part were beautiful and so lovely to talk to, at first you had felt extremely out of your depth, but they had all gone out of their way to make you feel incredibly welcome.

“So we need a few more shots of you and the extras on the beach before we do the shots on the benches,” Blake, the creative director explained.

“Sounds wonderful, do you know who that girl is?” Harry replied, gesturing towards you as you spoke to a couple of members of the cast.

“Not sure, I think Lambert recommended her,” Blake told him, “We’ll be back on in five.” Blake walked off leaving Harry gazing at you, the sun capered over your skin, quite frankly Harry was in awe, he hadn’t been able to keep his eyes off of you during filming, he was bold enough to look right at you when he was singing, but you were yet to approach him. He didn’t want you to think he was coming on too heavy so he just left it, it wouldn’t exactly be a great first impression to ask for your number straight away, whether he was Harry Styles or not.

“Hey Lambert how's it going?” Harry asked his stylist as he approached him for an outfit change.

“Things seem to be shaping up well, I reckon your fans will go mad for this video.” He replied, handing Harry a new outfit, Harry Lambert had known Harry for a while now, and they were pretty close, meaning he could read him like a book, “But you didn’t come over here to ask me about that did you?” Harry looked up at his stylist with a confused look on his face, “You wanted to ask about YN didn’t you? The girl in the blue bikini.”

“How did you know?” Harry asked, pretty impressed by his friend’s skills of deduction.

“Many reasons, firstly you’ve literally been staring at her throughout the whole shoot, you’re even doing so now, secondly the way you bounded over here like a puppy with a look inyour eyes that I haven’t seen in a long time, and thirdly I had a bet with Blake that you would ask me about her.” Harry Lambert smirked, folding and putting away Harry’s outfit.

“If this stylist thing doesn’t go anywhere for you Lambert I recommend you become a private investigator.” Harry laughed at his friend.

“You are going to talk to her aren’t you?”

“What, now?” Harry asked.

“There’s no time like the present.”

Harry shuffled across the sand awkwardly to where you were sitting on a step reapplying sunscreen. “Is this seat taken?” Harry asked, gesturing to the space on the seat beside you.

“Help yourself,” you smiled, rubbing suncream up and down your arms.

“How are you finding the shoot so far?” Harry asked, leaning back on the steps, the warm breeze from the sea hitting both of your faces.

“It’s been good, everyone’s so lovely, I think I expected everyone to be strictly professional, but I’m having a lot of fun, this is my first video shoot for a signed artist you see,” You explained.

“Really? Well I heard you came highly recommended.

“Been talking about me have you Styles?” Harry felt put on the spot, you had only known each other for a few minutes and you were already keeping him on his toes.

“No, I um, well-” Harry stuttered, unable to think up a plausible excuse.

“I’m messing with you, the last artist I worked with knows your stylist, he sent him my portfolio and it went from there.” You assured him, he was different to most men you had spoken to before, yes he was as charming as the media said he was, but he was also clearly nervous, stumbling over his words and offering you small smiles every so often. “Nice sunglasses by the way.” You told him as you struggled to rub sunscreen into your back.

“Thank you, do you want me to help you with that?” Harry asked politely, clearly not wanting to overstep the mark.

“If you don’t mind.” You replied, he took the bottle from your hand, squeezing some of the cream into his hand before slowly rubbing it up and down your back, his hands felt strong against your back which sent shivers up and down your spine, he made sure to cover your shoulders too, gently rubbing the suncream along your shoulders, his fingers lightly dancing along your collarbone.

“I think that’s all done, wouldn’t want my leading lady getting burnt now would I?” Harry smiled, admiring how well your bikini complimented your figure, but he didn’t mention it because he had just rubbed sunscreen into your back, and any other sudden advances could be too premature.

“Leading lady eh? Can I put that on my resume?” You teased.

“I mean one of my leading ladies, you look wonderful, you all do,” Harry stuttered, you were having that effect on him again, when you looked at him whilst he talked all he seemed to do was trip over his words, “We should probably get back down to the set, they’ll probably call time on the break in a minute.”

Filming was resumed as you and the rest of the extras laid sprawled across picnic blankets, Harry in the middle of you all. As the director shouting action Harry’s eyes were on you, “Baby, you're the end of June, I want your belly and that summer feelin' getting washed away in you.” As he sang to the music blaring out of the surrounding speakers he couldn’t take his eyes off of you as the two of you lay opposite each other, he sang the words to you, there was no question about it, he was definitely singing it to you, you bit your lip in response, which ultimately sent shivers up Harry’s core. “Harry that’s great, keep working with that!” Blake called from behind the camera, “Yep Harry get closer to YN please, the camera is loving that!” Harry moved towards you, you adjusted your positioning so that his body was sprawled across her as he sang into the camera, and clearly neither of them had any complaints about the arrangement. Harry could feel your heartbeat and it was truly comforting, he could also smell the scent of your perfume that was a mixture of strawberry and vanilla, whatever it was he thought that it’s sweetness suited you perfectly.

Filming had come to an end and the sun was slowly setting over Malibu beach, most of the cast had already left, with flights to catch for other jobs, but you were still there, talking to a few of the other girls about your previous jobs, “Sorry to interrupt you ladies, could I possibly steal YN away from you?” He asked, you turned to look at you, the slight wind catching the ends of your hair, he thought your smile was beautiful, but the golden rays of sunlight made it even more so. “Did you have a good day today?” Harry asked as the pair strolled along the edge of the beach, the waves lapping up onto their bare feet as they walked.

“It was incredible, everyone is lovely, I really enjoyed it,” You smiled, he was a little bit taller than you, so you would glance up to talk to him, taking in every inch of him as you did.

“I hope you don’t think of me as overstepping the mark, but I’m inviting some friends back to my house for some drinks and some food, you are more than welcome to come.” Harry told you, somehow he had gained more confidence in talking to you since your conversation on the steps, well lying across someone’s chest is a pretty plausible reason to get closer to someone.

“See I could interpret that in one of two ways, either that’s you telling me you are having friends over and I could come, or that’s you indirectly asking me to come to your house.” You replied, running through the soft waves of the sea.

“Yeah, it would be the latter.”

Harry’s house was impressive, really impressive, it made your apartment look like a shoebox in comparison, but the company was what completed it. Harry’s friends were lovely,most of them were from the shoot, meaning their faces were familiar, you had been there quite a few hours and honestly Harry was fine with it, you slotted in with his friends perfectly, like you had known them all for ages. He made a conscious effort to check that you were alright and kept offering to top up your drink if you wanted him to. After a lengthy conversation with the group about the best ice cream parlours in Santa Monica you realised it was just gone 2AM and you should probably be getting back to your airbnb. You excused yourself from the conversation, making your way out into the grand hallway of Harry’s home, putting your shoes back on along with your denim jacket. “Leaving so soon?” You heard Harry say as he appeared in the doorway.

“It’s 2AM, and I have a job in less than six hours.” You explained, your head feeling weary as a result of the constant sun exposure mixed with the two glasses of wine.

“I could drive you if you like,” Harry offered, desperate to spend more time with you.

“You’ve had like five glasses of wine, do you want to get stopped by the police or something?” You replied, “I’ve already ordered an Uber.”

“Well will I see you again?” Harry asked.

“Depends.”

“On what?” Harry asked.

“Whether or not you ask me on a date.” You replied.

“Well, would you like to go on a date with me?” Harry asked, unable to hide the massive grin on his face.

“How does Friday sound?”

                                                       ***

And there you were, spending your Friday evening on a date with none other than Harry Styles. You were wearing a white summer dress, while Harry wore a yellow patterned shirt, buttoned halfway, being the hopeless romantic he was, he had taken you back to the beach where you first met, accompanied by a picnic that of course featured watermelon pieces and strawberries. “I’ve got a lot of memories on this beach you know.” Harry told you, admiring you as you dipped a strawberry in the melted chocolate.

“Is that so?” You smiled, glancing at the butterfly tattoo that poked through his shirt.

“Yeah, we filmed the band’s first music video here when I was like seventeen,on this very balcony,” he declared, gesturing at the beach house you were sat on, “and we filmed watermelon sugar here obviously, which is where I met you.”

“I like the last one the best,” you replied, but I can think of a new one that could trump it.” You replied.

“And what might that be?” Before he could say a word your lips were on his, taking each other in, the sweet taste of strawberries lingered on your lips as Harry kissed you softly, his hands wandering up and down your body, “You know something, I think that might be my new favourite memory sugar.” Harry whispered, pulling away from your kiss.

“Did you just call me sugar?” You giggled.

“Yeah, because you’re sweet like sugar.”

                                                       ***

“H baby, the fans are going mad for it!” You called from the kitchen, sat at a barstool at the kitchen island, four months had passed since your date and you and Harry had only got closer. The last few months had been a whirlwind, so much so that Harry had asked you to isolate with him, he got lonely easily, and the idea of living with you was enough to make lockdown pass quickly.

“They like it do they?” He asked, wrapping his arms around your shoulders, kissing your neck softly, “What did your mum think of it?”

“I think she liked it, she said that her friends from work thought it was erm, interesting.” You giggled.

“I’m glad she enjoyed it sugar.” He replied, squeezing you tightly.

“I’m quite surprised she was so positive about it, considering it was basically a fully clothed orgy.” You laughed, holding onto his arms.

“Excuse me, it was a very tastefully executed orgy thank very much.” Harry told you, spinning the bar stool so that you faced him, “But what was your favourite bit sugar?”

“You, all of you.” You whispered, placing kisses along his jawline, “As lovely as it is reading what your fans think, how about I show you how it’s done.” You continued, knowing the feelings it would stir up in Harry, “Bedroom?” You muttered into his ear.

“Bedroom.” He replied, scooping you up into a bridal carry, trying to get you up the stairs to the bedroom quicker than you could say Watermelon Sugar High.

[blazehedgehog]

What are your thoughts on the infamous "Top Ten Hottest Female Sonic Characters" video? I don't mean that question as a joke, do you think that that video kinda set back the image of "Sonic fan" back for a good few years?

My stance on this has always been that everyone on the internet is weird about something, and Sonic fans are not necessarily weirder than anything you’d find if you overturned a rock in another corner of the internet.

This is an immutable fact that becomes more obvious the more time you spend online. Spend enough time online and you’re going to see something you didn’t know existed, and if you spend too much time online, eventually you start to become numb to it.

In isolation I think that video is meaningless. There’s lots of things out there of that caliber -- the “Andy drawing a map of Princess Peach’s Eyes” image, for example. You might know of that image, but not many people know that it was only one of many. There was a whole series of those comics that was basically “me, a human male of the real world, repeatedly express my deep romantic affection for Princess Peach.”

Or, like, Pokemon, right? I remember in the early days of the Let’s Play community, Pokemon Let’s Plays had to be permanently banned from SomethingAwful on all grounds because it attracted thirsty creepers who weren’t very subtle about their feelings towards underage girls.

Like I said, there’s weird stuff all over the place if you point the spotlight in the wrong directions. And for some people out there, it’s part of growing up -- more and more of the internet is being taken up by the awkward intellectual awakening period we experience in transition from child to adult. A lot of earnest emotional confusion is being permanently recorded out there for all to see as we all figure ourselves out.

Tangentially, I see discussion today about how Zoomers in particular are a generation that has no guilt and openly embraces the cheesy and the stupid with genuine love, and I think it’s related to that. They can’t hide from who they were as kids, they just kind of have to own it. I can respect that.

What I think happened with Sonic is just the games themselves being so bad. Getting things like Shadow the Hedgehog, and Sonic 2006, or even the later Ken Penders run of the Archie comics, whatever, and kind of forcing the question: “If they’re always so terrible, why do they keep making more?”

That naturally leads to one answer: because Sonic fans keep buying them. So what’s wrong with Sonic fans?

“Well I saw this video one time...”

“There’s this webcomic about this medallion...”

“Have you seen what these church kids are drawing?”

In the big picture, nothing out of the ordinary is actually happening here. Kids are being kids (broadly speaking). It's a natural effect of Sonic maintaining a certain level of popularity with a certain age group for a sustained period of time.

I’ve even talked about how Sonic has kind of reached this status where the franchise is almost a perpetual motion machine. Sega couldn’t kill Sonic the Hedgehog at this point if they tried. It’s become this thing like Star Trek or Transformers where fans will just exist forever, even during lulls in quality or breaks in media. They will churn out their own new content and feed each other for theoretical eternity. If Sonic has survived this much for this long, it is immortal.

But that also means that, like... what is a “brand”? It’s a set of standards and rules governing the appearance and behavior of a specific piece of intellectual property. In order to be “on-brand” you have to adhere to the rules, otherwise you are not allowed to be part of the brand. Luigi is always taller than Mario. Mega Man’s briefs are always a different color than his arms and thighs. Sonic the Hedgehog can never cry.

Fans don’t have to stay on brand. The “brand” is whatever they think it should be. They can do anything with the characters, take them anywhere, write anything they feel like, embarrassing or not. Sonic the Hedgehog is a ghost now? Sure why not. Tails is part of a massive crossover involving every cartoon media property in a war against internet bullying? Nobody can stop you. You can just make up anything and do it. Sega probably wouldn't approve, but if you're a fan, you don't need their approval. You just need faith in your own ideas.

And this even applies to big budget, professional work. We've seen it before, when Sega lets other people redesign Sonic. Style guides and brand rules are what keeps a character in check so they look and act in a consistent way, but if you pull back the curtain and look at what gets submitted before the rules are applied...

...then even professional, “official” designs start getting pretty weird. Artistic license is great and all but people will break characters over their knee and remake them as something unrecognizable if you give them enough room to do so.

And for a fandom, not only can they be like this all the time, forever, they can go even further beyond. When you have an imagination, the sky is the limit.

And, again, I say “fandom” there. Not just Sonic fandom, but all fandoms, everywhere. They always were, and always will be like this. (And, to be clear: that’s great!)

The only difference is, Sega’s own inability to stay consistent gave more people a reason to go turning over rocks and seeing what crawled out. Unsurprisingly, a very active, self-sustaining fanbase meant there was a lot to see.

[docmurph12]

Ok review time, and I am going a little meta on this one. I finally got the opportunity to watch Tenet, so while this isn't the first time through, I am going to try to review this one live on the second watch through. Fair warning though, there may be spoilers ahead, so skip to the end if you actually intend to watch this one.

Before I get started, a description. This is a very ambitious film with a lot of physics-based talk about time. John David Washington's Protagonist gets recruited by some folks who want him to investigate a potential temporal war to end all wars and stop it.

Before we get too much farther, on to the film!!

We open at the opera!! Right away we get hit with a heavy score, lots of synthetic, definitely showcases the Chris Nolan obsession with time. This thing really drives.

Neat little challenge and password piece for immersion. Makes it a little more believable for military folks.

Nolan does a good job establishing the type of character we are looking at in the first sequence of the movie. You are dropped right into the shit as soon as the film opens up and right away we see a driven and intense man bent on both accomplishing the mission and doing the right thing.

Our first introduction to time mechanics, given with a little Inception style show AND tell exposition. Just enough to tickle your interest in the coming visual wizardry and give you a basic understanding of the world's rules.

Interestingly short intro for Pattinson's Neil. Its obvious he is hiding something, but the first time seeing this I didn't distinctly get that feeling. Great job on his part.

More practical everything from Nolan. If I didn't know he literally endo-ed a semi truck in the middle of Chicago in The Dark Knight I would have though it was visual effects but nope. All real. Beautiful.

Lots of obvious Nolan favorites acting in this one. Not a bad thing as he has a skilled eye in selecting his actors, just funny to see Michael Caine et al in yet another Nolan film.

In our introduction to Elizabeth Debicki's Kat, the first time through I got the feeling she knew more than she let on. Second time through, I don't get that. What you see is what you get here. Probably a product of being a Nolan fan, looking for and through every last detail for meaning that may not even pan out.

I like seeing Washington's precision oriented tactician balanced against Pattinson's refined artist of chaos. Great character interactions, and both are unbelievably fun to watch here.

More of this great score. Massive, awesome, and driving.

We get our first sight of how the time inversion mechanics work. You actually see a bit of this sequence in first trailer. Absolute visual magic. I absolutely need to see how this is done. The sound engineering in this was awesome too, finding a way to work not only the visual aspect of someone fighting against someone moving backwards through time but also the audible piece as well was very well thought out and beautifully executed.

Kenneth Branagh's Andrei Sator is REALLY fucking intense. Not just when we first meet him, either. Like for the whole film.

The first large scale stunt piece has me wondering what Chris Nolan pays his stunt actors. The pieces he puts to film are not only huge, but also incredibly complex and dangerous, and all done practically.

Seeing the second turnstile room was really interesting in that we see the two separate timelines interacting with each other and set up yet another rule for the film's world. Really cool to see the interaction and more shots where forward moving people and things interact with backwards moving people and things.

Now we get the second part of the earlier set piece. We get a little explanation of who the people in inverse were and what they were doing when we saw them earlier in the film.

Debicki's Kat gets a really great developmental arc in the film. Well written, and an outstanding performance to boot.

So I don't want to say too much more about the film while I'm watching it, so to avoid heavy spoilers, I'm going to culminate this one here.

So to be completely honest, I had a really hard time being objective here. If you know anything about my tastes, Chris Nolan is well known to be my favorite director. That said, this is very typical of a Nolan movie, in that it is absolutely just chock full of filmmaking professionals operating at peak efficiency, showing what it can be to work at the top of your craft. It is also typical of his work in that it definitely requires multiple views, and just when you feel like you have it, you don't. It is definitively a work of art and is entirely up to the viewer's interpretation.

This is a beautifully shot film. Excellent use of lighting and location, wonderful editing. Even though this movie bounces around the timeline pretty consistently, the pacing never feels off, and you are pretty easily able to track the action on screen. All of the characters seem to have some level of development, and where development seems absent, you have lots of motivation and empathetic writing. I'll say I'm not entirely sure where people talk about this one being TOO cerebral. You have to pay attention but they do a pretty good job of giving you everything you need to understand what is going on. You just have to be patient and take it in the way it is intended to be taken in. It is definitely not to be watched in parts. The score of the film was really good too, it drove the action along, and was totally perfectly in line with the style of the film. You really had a sense of urgency with just a touch of futurism in the music.

Final verdict? A+. I might be scoring a little subjectively here but technically speaking it is a well crafted art piece with an intense and heady plot that doesn't leave you (or at least I didn't feel it) feeling talked down to. I have already revisited this and shared it with others. I know realistically speaking this was never going to be the film that saved cinema, but timing is everything and its box office failure (If you really want to call it that, all things considered) is absolutely no indication as to the quality of this movie. Definitely sit down with a drink of your choice and a loved one or several, and take the time to enjoy a real work of art from cover to cover.

[sanstropfremir]

Mom sends you a kiss too and thanks you for your insight. She's a massive Taemin fan and has said that if anyone deserves an exemption it's him 😂

I think it's really interesting how something as simple as covering you face can have so many meanings. Mom thinks it's kinda sad that he feels the need to deattach himself and his art from his face but I think it makes a lot of sense. Like you said, he's been in the public eye since he was 14 (!!!)(I think no one should be able to debut that young considering training periods, it's ridiculous and super worrying for child development imo but that's another topic.)

He quite literally grew up in the public eye so people already had a perception of who he is supposed to be and what they expect from him. Sometimes the only time to subvert expectations is to hide the most recognizable thing, which in a person is their face.

(also completely unrelated but on your ep 9 review i was glad you mentioned zuho's mic effect, i thought it was AWFUL and I needed the validation lol)

anon please tell your mom that my inbox is open to her any time 💖💖💖 I do think there is an element of tragedy about it; this particular type of celebrity is one that is inescapable except through complete turn of public favour or by complete removal from the system itself. and even then, the echoes still follow.

i had an interesting discussion with my flatmate yesterday about the body/the artist/the artmaking as an intertwined topic. we both approach making art in the same way: that our personal experiences and understandings as the artists shape the work we make, but the work itself is not a vehicle to impress our experiences. the work is a vehicle to impress an experience, regardless of the intent of the creator; the power of art comes from the audience's personal interaction with that work. my flatmate works "autobiographically," she uses her own body and her experiences as materials, tools to help craft the final work, but she is not concerned with being truthful. she's not making a point of "telling her authentic story," she's making a point of here is a story, whether or not you believe it applies to her is up to you. I work very similarly, but primarily using my own experience with mental illness. do I make work to try and broadcast myself? absolutely not. my personal experience as the artist is unnecessary to the enjoyment of the work. what my personal experience is is just part of the toolset. am I going to speculate that taemin has the same opinions? no, because I don't know him and I will likely never know him, but he absolutely does use his face and body and celebrity as devices within the greater canon of his work.

[of-muppets-and-men]

Qrow as Ruby’s Dad

I am fully aware of the ugly can of worms I am opening just by discussing this but whatever. Here we go.

Just a disclaimer, I mean no disrespect to Monty, Miles or Kerry. I am simply stating the possibility and leaving all options on the table.

The idea of Qrow being Ruby’s biological father has been around since Qrow was introduced back in Volume 3. And although it’s been shot down by the creator and current writers of the show, I’m going to go over as much I can to show that the theory/headcanon still has some level of validity.

This is also pretty long so brace yourself.

Point #1: The Writers

Monty originally “debunked” this theory while dismissing another by saying Yang and Ruby were half-sisters. And recently it was debunked again by Miles, who outright said Qrow wasn’t her dad. The word of the Writer’s is, under most circumstances, Law. But let me say this: What is the one thing you are supposed to do above all else? Preserving your narrative, meaning doing everything you can to protect your plot.

Many writers have concealed or just lied to their audience about certain plot points to maintain the story. And just because Monty, Miles and Kerry don’t seem like they would, doesn’t mean they aren’t capable of it.

Why would Monty lie? Because Ruby and Yang being sisters was what he had presented at the time. Qrow was only a name at the time, so revealing so detrimental so soon wouldn’t make any sense for the show’s longevity. Thus, he kept his lips sealed.

Now there’s Miles; why would he outright deny this theory. Well, if I had to guess, it would be to quell the speculation, to stop people from outwardly talking about it. Has he succeeded? For the most part, yes. Fans and Haters alike have stopped discussing it en mass, but it hasn’t stopped fanfic writers and artists much.

While debunking this theory, Miles gave his reasoning to be “Ruby just admires him so much that she mimics a lot of what Qrow does.”.

Let’s unpack that for a moment.

What about Ruby’s character is reminiscent of Qrow?  Ruby is, by all accounts, opposite to Qrow in many facets of her personality. She overwhelmingly optimistic, despite witnessing the deaths of Penny and Pyrrha. She’s open and honest, though a bit naive and socially awkward, but after all she’s still a teenager. Qrow, from the few accounts we know of, is actually pretty suave and quite the ladies man too.

Basically, anything Ruby is, Qrow is not. The only real thing that statement applies too, is her love of her scythe, but even then that argument is flimsy. As an impressionable young girl with a passion for weapons/huntsman, and then seeing her uncle wielding the coolest weapon in entire show; I mean who wouldn’t want a scythe at that point.

Point #2: Appearance

First and foremost, the most obvious thing people tend to bring up; Ruby’s appearance. In current canon, Taiyang is Ruby’s father, but you’d never be able to tell as they share absolutely no physical traits or attributes. Already a bit strange, no? Now I get Ruby is SUPPOSED to be a near spitting image of her mom, Summer Rose, but to no share anything with Tai is a bit of stretch.

Then there’s Yang in stark (hehe) contrast; who is a near even split of her parents. She has Raven’s long bushy hair, is taller than most other girls, has Raven’s general shape of face and paler skin, but is blonde and has lilac eyes; a combination of Raven’s red eyes and Tai’s blue eyes (even though that isn’t how genetics works but whatever). Even Yang’s outfits have been greatly inspired by Tai’s in terms of colour palette and design.

Even comparing other characters within RWBY, such as Weiss, Blake or Ren, have a striking resemblance to both their parents/siblings. So for Ruby to not designed in a similar fashion is odd to say the least. Ruby isn’t exactly identical to Qrow by means, she stills shares a great deal more with Qrow than we’ve ever seen with Taiyang.

Qrow is also a fraternal twin. Or in other words, Ruby is also liable to look like Raven too. Male and Female character models are different looking in RWBY, so it’s reasonable to think to Ruby would share some traits with her could-be aunt.

Ruby’s current overall aesthetic has subtle cues from both Qrow and Summer. Dark but red tipped hair, her mother’s eyes and a near identical outfit. Ruby’s cloak is red and tattered like Qrow’s, but large and hooded like Summer’s. Her aura is red, but generates flower petals when she uses her semblance. Ruby even had Cross as her emblem, until it was changed to be the same as her mom’s. But even still, she had cross pins in her cloak till her outfit change in Volume 4. Only one character shares this cross motif, and it’s you guessed it, Qrow.

One minor thing is that Ruby’s alternative outfit in Volume 2, dubbed Slayer, gives her a noticeably large resemblance to Qrow; even more so than her current or former outfits.

I’m very aware that any of this could be just simple coincidence and random choices in design but let me say this. Colour is an underlying basis for RWBY, and it plays a semi essential role in the show’s lore. So for it’s main protagonist’s colour pallette have next to nothing to do with her actual parent, but share parallels and such to someone she has no genetic relation to is, to me, unbelievably suspect. If Ruby was a strawberry blonde or even a bit tanned, we wouldn’t be even having this discussion, but given everything we know, it just doesn’t add up.

I’ve seen a handful of people say that it doesn’t matter that Ruby doesn’t look like Taiyang or It’s okay because not all children look like both parents. Well that may be true in reality, but in RWBY, this is contrary to the underlying theme of the show.

Point #3: Ruby’s Mentor

Let’s look at Ruby’s phenomenal skill with the scythe. As we well know, Qrow was her mentor and taught her most of her current fighting skills. However, this begs the question of why Qrow taught her and not Taiyang. Taiyang is incredibly skilled at hand to hand combat and is evidently a good teacher, as he trained Yang and currently still is a professor/licensed huntsman.

So why is Ruby so utterly abysmal without Crescent Rose? Since she’s Tai’s daughter, you’d think she’d be at least somewhat talented like Yang but such isn’t the case here. Why would Taiyang heavily train Yang, but leave Ruby practically defenseless (given her dream of being a huntress too)? Seems a bit strange no matter how you look at it.

However. There is something I noticed about Qrow. We know and seen how badass he is with Harbinger in tow; his skills are nothing to scoff at. Many in the RWBY universe are aware of Qrow’s prowess and would prefer to not engage him at all. But when Harbinger was wretched from his hand during his fight with Tyrian, he showed that he is capable without his weapon.

The thing that’s intriguing is he looked very rigid and doesn’t seem too confident without his scythe, especially comparing him to hand-to-hand combatants like Yang or Mercury. It felt like it was just a ‘screw it’ moment so to speak. A weird thing to point out, I know, but it creates another parallel between him and Ruby. Masters of the scythe that don’t fare too well without it.

Point #4: Ruby’s Name

A small thing to point is why Ruby has her surname as Rose. Ruby Xiao Long doesn’t flow off the tongue by any stretch, but there must be some other reason why she hasn’t taken Tai’s last name. Is it to honour Summer? Or is it because she isn’t a Xiao Long at all?

Now a point I don’t love but must mention is the line from Qrow’s theme song Bad Luck Charm.

The line in question is “You don’t want the burden of my name”. Many believe it is Qrow referring to Ruby and how she’s better not being known as a Branwen. As Qrow mentioned, his tribe is a group of “killers and thieves” and likely didn’t want a innocent child to be associated with such a group. There’s a chance it could mean he deliberately convinced Summer to let Ruby have her name, to protect her from the Tribe’s retribution. If Ruby was a Branwen on top of being a SEW, it would likely make her a target for not only Salem’s forces but bounty hunters too. (Going after Ruby to punish the “Traitor” so to speak)

Point #5: Qrow’s Semblance

An argument against Qrow being Ruby’s Dad is that it doesn’t make sense to hide the truth from her but then teach her the most difficult weapon to master in Remnant. While at first glance, this is a fair argument, but let me dive a bit deeper.

In Episode 8 of Volume 4, we learned that Qrow’s semblance is Misfortune. It intermittently causes bad luck to every person around him, from simple inconveniences like a bartender dropping a glass to life threatening things like a massive beam almost falling on Ruby. This gives him a logical reason for his loner persona.

He can’t control what will and can happen to his friends, his allies, or his family. He is, much to his own grief, a constant danger to those he loves. Why does this matter? Because he’d be Ruby’s only remaining parent; meaning she’d always want to be with him, ironically putting herself in more danger. He’d keep the truth from her until she was hopefully old to understand why he kept it from her.

Qrow was also a former Professor at Signal Academy. Though most of the details of his career as a teacher are sadly unknown, It can be at least gathered his semblance wasn’t potent enough to cause too much trouble on campus or he’d have never been allowed as a teacher in the first place (perhaps it’s less effective in crowds?).

Now Qrow likely would have trained Ruby in a controlled environment to ensure his semblance would cause as little damage as possible. Qrow and Ruby are arguably the two closest characters in the series as far as we know and they have been shown to be this way. They understand each other, know each other’s mannerisms and Ruby even gets Qrow pervy jokes. So it’s no shock to think Qrow knew much she idolized the hunter lifestyle and helped her live out her dream, all the while getting to spend time with his baby girl.

Point #6: The Timeline

Another thing many have taken note of is the amount of time it took Taiyang to father both Yang and Ruby. The math is a bit difficult as we don’t know Yang’s birthday, but let’s get an estimate.

As of Volume 6, Yang is about 19 and Ruby is about 17.

Ruby’s birthday is October 31st, so she was conceived near the end of January or early February. Yang was likely already around 15 months (give or take) at the time of Ruby’s conception. In short, Taiyang would have had Yang, been abandoned by Raven, gotten together with Summer and impregnated her in little more than a year. A situation like this is not impossible, but it is extremely unlikely.

Getting over a significant other varies per person, but given how Tai talks about Raven; it doesn’t seem like their relationship has run its course quite yet. Summer was most likely helping Tai because he genuinely needed it. Dealing with a newborn and the fact his lover just left him alone, Tai wasn’t exactly in the best state of mind.

In “Two steps forward and two steps back”, Tai finally opens up to Yang about her mother. The way he speaks about Raven feels as though he still fondly remembers her, despite her leaving so abruptly. It feels as if he still loves her, but if that’s the case, why would he shack up with Summer and have another child so quickly? Anyway you slice it, this is a pretty irresponsible thing to do.

UNLESS, Taiyang was never a part of the equation and Summer and Qrow were together the entire time.

Another thing people tend to point is why Qrow would have Ruby believe Taiyang was her father and Yang her sister.  Simple, he didn’t want her to feel isolated. Her mom was gone, and he couldn’t there for her. Children can be cruel, and Ruby not having a dad around would definitely be fuel for any and all types of bullying. Making Ruby and Yang ��sisters” would have been made things simple; Qrow was already Yang’s Uncle so why not Ruby’s too.

And if this were canon, it would mean Qrow gave up his only child, just so she could have some semblance of a proper family; something he never had or would be able to give her. That is weapon’s grade bittersweet.

A reason Qrow could be hesitant to reveal himself is because of the backlash. Ruby is just a teenager and to drop a bomb on her like that would be a terrible thing to do. Tai wouldn’t be her dad, Yang wouldn’t be her sister and she’d have to come to terms with the fact the two adults she trusted the most have been actively lying to her face her entire life. Qrow is fully aware of the fact of how this revelation could shatter her whole world. So instead of causing her anguish, he lets her live in happy ignorance with her friends.

Point #7: Scenes of Interest

Now there is a handful of moments from the show that highlight the relationship between Ruby and Qrow. I’m going to over a few that are questionable, to me at least.

First the most notable scene is from finale of Volume 3. Ruby is safely at home, in bed, while Taiyang patiently waits for her to awaken. When she does, she asks Tai about what happened. In his brief recollection, he makes a small mention of her silver eyed abilities. Ruby asks him to clarify, but Taiyang immediately dismisses the subject.

Enter Qrow and he then asks Taiyang to “give them a minute”. Taiyang retorts but ultimately leaves to make tea, letting Ruby and Qrow talk. He asks her if she recalls what happened, to which she does through tears. Seemingly out of nowhere, Qrow then asks if she remembered what Ozpin first said to her; something about silver eyes. He goes off about supposed legendary warriors he Grimm singularly feared and how Ruby was special just like her mom.

(The line ‘You’re special, Ruby. and not in the “daddy loves his special angel” kinda way’ is also really interesting. Is it a throwaway line or foreshadowing?)

This seems like a relatively normal scenario until you realize a couple things. Why is Qrow asking Tai to leave the room? And why does Tai give practically no resistance to the notion? Taiyang should have absolute authority, not only as Ruby’s father, but as the owner of the household too. Yet, he relinquishes control of the situation as if it wasn’t his place, as if he knew he shouldn’t be there. 

Qrow’s simple yet sincere plea of  ‘Tai… please.’ is peculiar because it sounds like he needed to do this, as if it was his responsibility to Ruby. Tai even gives Qrow a small scowl when he exits the room, so there is some discord here, but not enough Tai to act on it. Reinforcing the idea that Tai knows he shouldn’t argue.

Stranger still, Qrow is the one that tells Ruby of her abilities and the first person to liken her to Summer. The fact Qrow, who isn’t an open book by ANY means, was the one to tell her such important albeit limited information about her lineage, while Tai continued to keep as much as he could from her is a dubious sign something is up. As a parent, it should have been Taiyang's duty to comfort Ruby in such trying times, telling her about herself and about Summer.

Another scene that was weird to me was in ‘A Much Needed Talk’. After Qrow finished telling Team RNJR of the gods, maidens, relicts and so on, Ruby asks him if there was anything else he wanted to tell them. A second after she asked, Raven in corvid form perches herself on a nearby branch, prompting Qrow to say “not tonight”. But what could Qrow possibly say that Raven doesn’t already know about? Raven is already privy to Ozpin and Salem’s secret war, about maidens and the relicts. What information could Qrow not want Raven to know about? (A secret child perhaps? Imagine the blackmail between Raven and Qrow if this were the case) 

Even over the course of the show, Qrow has been continuously protecting Ruby all her life. Killing Grimm to keep safe and diving in at the last moment when she’s in a real bind. He goes unnecessarily out of his way for her, but doesn’t do the same when his actual niece needs it. Very dedicated for an “Honorary Uncle”.

There are many minor nuances in Volume 6 (specifically Episodes 10-12) as well; many of which having to do with the way Qrow looks when Ruby is danger. When she misses the cliff, the camera switches to Qrow; absolutely horrified when she starts falling.

Another time is when Ruby gets bold and dives into the Mech’s cannon, the camera again pans to Qrow about to have a damn heart attack. The look on Qrow’s face both times conveys the idea of the fact Qrow is terrified of losing Ruby. Perhaps the same way he lost Summer, and perhaps lose the last piece of her he has left. Bottom line is, this doesn’t look like an uncle concerned for his niece, it’s a father worried for the safety of his child.

Lastly, when Qrow catches Ruby after she comes flying out the cannon. The worry on his face tells the same story. The gentle nudge and the panic when she doesn’t immediately wake up is highly reminiscent of when Tai waited for her to wake up in Volume 3; is my baby girl okay?

And a quick shoutout to @anthurak who made a very in-depth post about the Father-Daughter dynamic of Qrow and Ruby in Volume 6. I highly recommend it if haven’t read it already.

Point #8: Qrow’s Alcoholism and Summer’s Death

Though not overtly obvious, it would appear Qrow’s drinking problem and Summer’s passing are intertwined to a degree.

First there is the photo of his team from when they were still together. Why does he tote this ragged photo around with him? Well if you take a closer look, you can make out a ring of condensation around Summer. You typically only get such stains from cups and glasses, so it would seem Qrow used the photo as a coaster to hide the image of Summer.

But why? Well, Summer, being deceased, is the only member of his team he can’t see anymore, but it seems as though he was closer to her than the rest of STRQ.

From what can be gathered, Qrow broke down while drinking over the loss of Summer and was so devastated that he couldn’t even bare to look at a picture of her. Grief like this usually stems from the loss of someone of immeasurable importance to you; a parent, a child, or a significant other.

According to psychology, losing a spouse (child too but not applicable here) is the most stressful thing that can happen to an adult. A loss of this magnitude can have lasting effects for years after their passing. Given Qrow’s previously mentioned breakdown and continuous drinking, it’s very likely that Summer was of said importance to him. I’m not trying to undermine Taiyang’s own grief, giving that he “shut down” when Qrow told him what had happened.

Speaking of which When Qrow was still suffering from Tyrian’s venom, so much so he couldn’t walk, he mumbles something; “Tai… She’s not coming… Tai.”. The line implies that Qrow was there when Summer died and he was charged with letting Tai and the girls know happened.

Another moment that reinforces this is from Episode 10 of Volume 6 (8:12 timestamp). Qrow goes a tirade about he’s causing Jaune’s plan to go awry. Then he says ”I shouldn’t have come, shouldn’t have let any you come. What was I THINKING?”. I don’t know about you but to me that sounds like he’s been down this road before. Like he knows something bad will happen again.

Qrow’s alcoholism is exacerbated when he finds out Salem, the very enemy he’s been fighting against for years, cannot be beaten.

This sends him deeper and deeper into despair and when he socks Ozcar in the jaw, he says “Meeting you was the worse luck of my life”. This is a remarkably harsh thing to say, but it feels as though he isn’t regarding himself in this line. Yes, much of Qrow’s life was spent fighting for Oz and all that time is ultimately wasted, but Qrow has lost many friends and allies in this war as well. Chiefest among them I’d say is Summer. If Qrow was intimate with Summer, then her presumably dying at the hands of Salem’s forces was entirely meaningless. The woman he loved and all the huntsman/huntresses he knew died for a lost cause, which is absolutely tragic.

It’s difficult to discuss Qrow being Ruby’s Dad without mentioning another theory; Was Qrow involved in Summer’s death? I personally think he was, though not intentionally. I’m under the impression Summer sacrificed herself to protect him on her last mission but that’s a topic for another time.

Because of Ruby’s large resemblance to her mom, it has been seen giving Qrow flashbacks of his time with Summer.

When Ruby stands up to Qrow for likely the first time in her life (Volume 6 episode 9), Qrow is not only taken aback by his niece’s strength of will, but is also recognizing how much she is like Summer. The camera angles and shots depict it as if it’s history repeating itself, the daughter walking in the mother’s footsteps. Not letting Qrow spew his bullshit is apparently a Rose thing.

Another time in Volume 6 is when Ruby decides to confront Cordovin alone. Qrow tries to stop her but she shoots a look while saying “i need you to trust me”. Qrow glances back at Ruby, and he ultimately relents, brought down by that stare. He’s definitely heard those words before.

While this may not seem important, it actually lays the foundation for when Qrow finally talks about Summer. After all, besides Yang, he’s the only person who’s actually mentioned her, albeit not by name. (Raven too but that was more of an insult)

Point #9: Thematic Purpose

Qrow being Ruby’s dad I find, adds more than it takes away. It doesn’t do as much for the overlaying plot, it does create many avenues for Character Development.

Take Ruby: she’s been the same bundle of optimism and joy since she first debuted. Then take this and flip it on it’s head. Her faith in her loved ones is now crumbling and is in desperate need of guidance. This revelation could potentially be the most impactful event of her entire life. This scenario would see Ruby peel away from her Paragon attitude and give her much needed development.

It would also explain a curious theme in Volume 4. Every member besides Ruby is seen with their father. Yang is shown training and gaining valuable lesson from Tai. Blake is shown to reconnect with her estranged parents for the first time in years. And sadly, it is shown how far Weiss’s relationship with her family has degraded, particularly with Jacque. Only Ruby is left out of this trend. Or is she? Only one person was beside her the whole time, protecting her from Grimm and Tyrian: Qrow.

This would shed much needed light on Qrow too. It would explain practically he’s done, everything he’s put himself through and why he’s loathed himself the entire way. This creates a unexpected parallel between him and Raven too. If Qrow is Ruby’s father, then it would mean he’s been loving her from the sidelines while never really exposing himself. In contrast, Raven abandoned her family though never denying who she was to Yang.

And speaking of Yang, it gives her and Ruby’s relationship development as well. This revelation would mean they are cousins, not sisters, but they could persevere beyond this fact. Imagine Yang embracing her cousin and simply saying “I don’t care what the truth is. You will ALWAYS be my little sister and nothing will change that.” 

And a brief mention to the fact it sheds more light of the dynamic of Team STRQ and by extension Summer herself.

Closing Statement

Not gonna lie, I’m pretty biased on this subject because I adore this theory/head canon and Hummingbird/Flown North is my absolute favourite ship in the fandom without a shadow of a doubt (I prefer the name Hunter’s Dream). I know people who hate this theory/head canon will more than likely shit on this for all it’s worth. But I wanted to finally put my two cents in on this. I will always hope for this to be canon, even though it’s extremely unlikely.

If the writers at one point or another explain/debunk away any of what I've mentioned in the narrative and reinforce the current canon of Taiyang being Ruby’s Dad, I will gladly concede and admit that I was wrong. Until then, I will hold on to the last vestiges of this theory/head canon.

Let a man dream, okay?

[sydswritings]

Nominations (Chapter 23)

    “Are you going to tell me what’s going on with you?” Shannon asked as we were all settling around the massive table at Republique.

    “Nothing,” I murmured, avoiding his intense gaze.

    “Liar,” he growled out.

Jared must have sensed the tension climbing between us from across the table as he cleared his throat, “so are y’all excited?”

    “Excited?” Charlie question, “excited about what?”

    “The nominations?” Tomo asked confused at Charlie’s response.

    “What nominations?” I queried, ignoring Shannon’s growing frustration.

    “Seriously?” Tomo looked around the table, “you guys don’t know about the nominations for the APMAs?”

I shook my head back and forth, confusion clearly painting most of our features. Shannon shifted beside me before throwing his phone down on the table in front of me.

    “Now who has the problem?” I countered as I grabbed his phone to look at the list.

The look he gave me made me seriously consider choosing my next words carefully. His usually bright hazel eyes shifted into a dark stormy green making me clamp my jaw shut and look down at the screen.

    “Guys,” I breathed out in disbelief.

    “What?” Ace asked from across the table, glancing between my stunned expression and Jared’s grinning one.

I could feel myself getting lightheaded as I continued to look over the list of nominations.

    “Syd??” Charlie question, concern clear in her voice.

    “This is just, just…” I struggled to think, to put words together, “just wow.”

    “SYDNEY!” Brook yelled from down the table.

Shannon grabbed his phone out of my hand effectively bringing my attention back to the table and my bandmates worried expressions. The waitress chose that moment to stop by our table to take our drink order, giving me time to process what I had read.

    “HOLY SHIT!” Charlie screamed next to my ear after the waitress had left.

    “Dude,” I reeled back clutching my ear in pain.

    “We’ve been nominated,” she said looking up from her phone before glancing between me, Ace and Brook, a wild grin painting her face.

    “We’ve been what?” Ace asked incredulously.

    “Nominated. As in we’ve been put on a list for fans to vote on, so that we can win an award.” Brook said, her sarcasm evident as she spoke slowly while she stared at Ace.

    “Thanks, ass, I knew what it meant.” She responded before flipping her off. Brook shrugged while everyone else at the table laughed. “What are we nominated for?”

    Charlie ran her finger up the screen of her phone, “Well you and Brook have been nominated separately. You for drums which btw you’re up against CC and Brook’s been nominated for Best Bassist.”

I watched as Ace and Brooklyn’s eyes went wide before they looked at one another.

    “What else?” Brook asked, her voice carrying a tone of shock.

    “As a group we’ve been nominated for Breakthrough Band AND Best Live Band,” Charlie said as her eyes continued to roam over the page, “Oh my god!” Her hand clasped Trevor’s arm tightly. “You guys have been nominated for Best Underground Band.”

    “Really? That’s pretty damn awesome!” Trevor laughed out.

    “Anyone else up there?” I asked, leaning against her hoping to read over her shoulder.

    “Panic!’s up for Song of the Year and Best Music Vi--” She stopped abruptly, pulling the phone closer to her face.

    “What?” Ace asked curiously.

    “Uhh,” Charlie glanced at me then started shaking her head, “nothing, nothing, just couldn’t read it clearly.”

    “I call bullshit,” I announced, “let me see that.”

After snatching the phone from her hand, I scanned the list to find what had startled her and there it was in black font on the little white screen, Andy was up for Best Music Video, the very one that had snowballed everything.

    “Well fuck.” I spat out.

    “Would someone please tell me what the fuck is going on?!” Ace seethed out.

    “Beyond My Reach is up for Best Music Video.” Charlie sighed out.

    “Well shit,” Ace said as she slumped back into her seat, “Wonder if he’ll thank you if he wins.”

    “I hope to all that’s fucking holy he either doesn’t win or if he does, doesn’t even look my way much less thank me.” I stated before crossing my arms and slamming back against my seat in a huff.

    “Annnywayysss,” Charlie started back up effectively ending all Andy conversation, “Panic!, Fall Out Boy and Sleeping with Sirens have all been nominated for Artist of the Year, while Madness is up for Album of the Year.”

    “Kellin’s going to be annoying for the next month.” I said laughing.

    “Especially since he’s also been nominated for Best Vocalist,” Charlie paused to look at Pete, before she finished, “but he’s against Patrick.”

    “We all know Pat will win.” Pete said, a grin splitting his face.

    “OH!” Charlie exclaimed excitedly, “The Divine Hero is up here for Song of the Year.”

    “Aww, I’ll have to send Vic a congrats text later.” I managed to get out before the waitress reappeared with our drinks and ready to take our meal orders.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rest of lunch consisted of Shannon still badgering me about what was wrong and the nominations. I did get a chance to shoot Vic and Kellin both texts congratulating them on their nominations. Both were super stoked about their own nominations, but were just as excited for our group as well. By the time lunch had ended a group of fans had spotted us, thankfully they kept a decent distance, but it didn’t stop photographs from being taken. Great this is going to be all over the tabloids by morning.

    “We should celebrate tonight.” Jared commented as we made our way out of the restaurant, Ace tucked securely against his side. “I’ve got plenty back at the house.”

    “You know I’m always down.” Charlie said from the other side of Trevor, arms linked as they took point, heading to where our cars were parked.

I looked around at the girls, all with their respective significant others, all nodding and agreeing to a night of celebration, until my eyes rested on Shannon at the back of the group. Slowing my pace, I fell back to walk with the hazel eyed drummer.

    “So are you going to be grumpy gills all day?” I asked, carefully nudging his side.

    “I’m not being grumpy.” I couldn’t help the roll of my eyes as I stopped to gawk at him.

    “Not grumpy? You won’t even look at me, much less talk to me.” At this point our group was a pretty far distance away from us as he stopped to look at me.

    “You’re the one not talking to me Syd. I know something’s off with you and you won’t tell me what’s going on.” Shannon’s voice dropped dangerously and the concern in his eyes was almost enough to cause me to finally spill the beans.

    “I’m just tired Shan,” I sighed out, careful to hide my real meaning, “This tour has been draining. What with all the drama and tension with Andy. I’m honestly ready to go home and recharge.”

Shannon nodded his head in sympathy, slinging his arm over my shoulders to pull me into a hug. “I get it Syd. I do, but don’t shut me out.”

    “You’re too annoying to shut out.” I laughed out as his face morphed into feigned hurt, before he leaned down and swung me over his shoulder, causing me to yell out at the sudden action. “SHANNON CHRISTOPHER PUT ME DOWN RIGHT NOW, I SWEAR TO G--”

    “You’re not really in a position to threaten Sydney,” Shannon laughed out as he started walking again to meet back up with the gang.

    “Please put me down, your shoulder isn’t the most comfortable thing digging into my ribs dude.” I pleaded as I was jostled around.

Shannon laughed again before slowing to a stop and letting me slide down his body, placing me carefully back on my feet. I felt my cheeks warm at the feel of him against me as my brain headed straight to the gutter. If it wasn’t my heart acting up it was my brain and body. I really needed to get my shit under control before he figured out I was lying about what was going on with me. His yellow green eyes studied me carefully, before I cleared my throat and stepped away from him.

    “Come on, they’re going to leave us if we keep lollygagging.” I said, forcing a laugh out.

    “Lollygagging? Really Syd, you and your country hick sayings.” I felt Shannon’s arm fall across my shoulders again as we slowly made our way to the parking lot.

Chapter 24

[nosexnofacenonose]

The Acceptances in Action. (part 1) “A place one falls down” Is how the Eskimo describes the cliff that one jumps off to commit suicide. “We have no rear view mirror” Is how James Hetfield justified Metallica’s need for progression. Am I in need of a pretentious essay that can plough through what was not seen in NO SEX NO FACE NO NOSE? And this pretentious essay, or should I use the English word, to try, no, should I say attempt, yes, attempt is the word, that is the word I choose attempt. Here is the dyslexic attempt, a press-release posing as an essay, hiding behind the word attempt. I will attempt to justify nothing. I am carving some self important thoughts into an electronic field so that I can be read, pathetic really. To write is an action. To read is an action. To accept is an action. Being pathetic is a form of behaviour, based on, in may case, an action. I, Victor Boullet lived with an art critic for five days. I slept next to the art critic. I heard him snore, an art critic snoring! I, Victor Boullet, the artist, constructed an art show with an art critic present. I worked, I painted, I used the colours green and grey. I had flags and rubbish in my suitcase, I made art. Art? But we, ate chicken. Chicken? Was it art mannerisms that I performed in NO SEX NO FACE NO NOSE? Did he, the art critic notice my pretentious false art gestures? Did the art critic see me apply the paint? Did he hear me, those sounds of suffering, the human grunts I gave off while painting. Was I pretending to be Glenn Gould moaning while playing, suffering through Bach’s Goldberg’s variations (1981). Did the art critic see straight through my faceless facade of nothing? Do they, the art critics, the art critics see, or hear, the nothingness, the hollow attempts, the shallow approach, the nil? Do they see those lifeless actions, actions from a man desperate for acceptance. Actions of self promotion in order to climb the ladder of success. (I repeat words so that it becomes more interesting, an art effect I guess) Example, I will write, I will write, I will write, I will have to write or, might write, might write, or, should write, should write for the eternal self obsessed legacy. Estate of this and that. Some people have looked into my eyes and said; By writing an essay you can make a difference. Several human beings also believe that with some paint strokes added to a canvas you can express yourself, you can even express change they say. To my surprise in our society today it does nothing, nothing, never. Just cash. Please be disappointed, stay disappointed, obey your disappointment, yes the latter, you, the viewer are the disappointment, you harbour your own sad disappointment that you need to understand and define. You are on idle speed, therefor disappointment, I am so sorry to be the one to inform you. You suffer from Idleism. I will follow and obey. Obey, If I don’t obey, if not, if not, what can happen? Who really cares? Plant a seed, look, look, enjoy growth, that is action, the rest is all human illusion. As I was self excessively preoccupied documenting my art and the art critics life in the NO SEX NO FACE NO NOSE (STIAN GABRIELSEN IS AN ART CRITIC) I never came to any conclusion about my future as an artist, other than what I have already expressed through my work. oh yes, my work, I should emphasise that, my work, my art work, I am my work. I my AM I work. (a digression, need to look at this. You meet them, the people in the art world, they ask; what are you up to these days? I should answer; what do you want me to be up to? but I don't, I must remember this for next time.) I have decided to share some snaps, photo snaps or are they photographs, I will come back to this, this, being the definition of my photographs, there I go again, photographs is the word I choose, and not snaps or photos. Among the images below you can choose to see what you want to see, but do you see what I see? Do you hear what hear? Do you do what I do? Below, in the snaps, photo snaps, photos or photographs you can see the art critic, Stian Gabrielsen at work. But look at how he integrates into the work and the space so easily, without any hesitance, this worries me. I am not at all sure that we should entirely believe what we read or see these days. I have even doubts about our own history, being art or whatever, why should we trust someone who writes? Or who has written something that makes us throw our hands in the air. I am not at all sure, I hesitate over everything. I was given a white cube, a shabby white cube far, far up in the north of Norway, where hardly anyone lives. Reindeer. Will I ever be upgraded? An artist in a pristine beautiful white cube, do I need to be upgraded? In which case I would have to update my CV and personal web site? Oh, I might need to ad a studio@ email address, that will project seriousness. Should I change my domain to .org or .net? or even .biz I do wonder if I should have left the art critic Stian Gabrielsen there, in that shabby white cube, the art critic abandoned for a few weeks in my art, art work, art piece, art installation, art, art, god forsaken art rubbish art talk. Once branded a loser, you’ll remain a loser, and the ways out that the branders provide you with are actually tools for digging yourself further into an inescapable nightmare, and a “good day” is one in which you are simply left alone for once. Chris Kraus’s Summer of Hate (Semiotext(e), 2012) Let me present myself, my name is Victor Boullet and I ask myself why? why as in why am I here, why do I need to do this. Pretentiously why. Arrogantly why. Why why. For all the good reasons on this planet, our beautiful mother earth, I ask myself why why? (Should write a paragraph containing a view on Van Gogh's wooden clogs (that would be good) This is a press release hiding behind the terminology, an essay, or in my case an written attempt explaining NO SEX NO FACE NO NOSE, no, I will compare my work to a chicken, I am poultry, a domestic fowl to be exact. Let’s say, my art practice is chickens, or maybe, ducks, no, I will stick to the wonderful domesticated chicken as my allegory. Pluck a chicken and you will have feathers. Make a meal out of the bird, and you wont be hungry. Boil the bones, make soup or stock, a second feeding. Use the bones for tools or other implements. This is how I look at my own art practice, everything can be reused just like little chickens given qualities for domestic survival. I am a chicken. I could type more rubbish like this, or should I find my way back to the content of this attempt press release essay. Entertainment, what is entertainment? Just involve everyone that you know and have been in contact with your whole life and then entertain them? Promote yourself and make it all seem bigger than it is, was, while be, is that entertainment? No, entertainment is making other folk not becoming bored by you, or your way of promoting your existence and birth given creative talent. What was Mozart? W A Mozart was in my view a social puppet pushed into the limelight because he was born with a talent. He could have been born with Down’s syndrome, he would have then been pushed into an other art institution and that for people with rare deceases with or without talent. (Have to mention, the directors of all Institutions are the same regardless. watch out!) Kurt Cobain managed to make me see, not hear, but see and then understand the word, the word entertainment. It popped out in his lyric like a sore thumb and changed something, something inside me, that something is still changing and is just as new and fresh as it was that day in 1991, and it has nothing to to with Kurt, his death or his band. With the lights out, it's less dangerous Here we are now, entertain us I feel stupid and contagious Here we are now, entertain us A mulatto An albino A mosquito My libido A denial !! [x9] (x9 is fantastic) Here we are now, entertain us. Is Kurt demanding to be entertained? This made me question my own sad position in 1991. By reversing the understanding of this sentence i.e. Kurt and not the audience is demanding to be entertained. Reversing that massively ingrained middle class need to be entertained is an undertaking greater than simply understanding it. I come from a working class family that has been craving middle class approval since that family, my family, thought that they were something they were not. I was born and bred into this hypocrisy. To be accepted one has to entertain the class above your own. When accepted by the society or the social rung that you have entertained, what then? You have become a phoney middle class player, and what then, and for what reason? There are no reasons to climb the social ladder that comes with your mother’s milk. When you climb, you sadly reach some one else's insecure plateau, that has been climbed before you. So there you find yourself, with that someone, another and now you have to share their unbelievably dull opinions. The first phrase in this particular Nirvana chorus with the lights out, it's less dangerous underlines everything that entertainment is and has always stood for. By turning the lights off one makes a phoney ambiance to lure the souls of potential punters / fans / suckers into your own crib where your mind bending nurture begins, and this only to project your shallow message that needs sugar coating for survival. Why not simply turn the light on, and face the so called danger. And be surprised right before impact, that there is no danger, and there is no impact other then your ingrained middle class understanding hitting you over the head. Kurt also utters: I feel stupid and contagious. The nerves of performing, If you don’t succeed in the act you believe that you are perceived as stupid. Contagious on the other hand is all power. If you manage to entertain and grab the public’s attention with your talent you gain a contagious power that you can use or rather abuse. Denial, Denial, Denial, Denial, Denial, Denial, Denial, Denial, Denial. (X9) (Regarding switching the light back on, the correct and honest impact I had then, has nothing to do with Kurt, but another fellow, James, who has lost it completely. I try to keep my lights on, they are on, I like them on. Or should I say, my light is on, singular rather than plural. Why singular? Because I come alone. That one light punctures your hope I hope.) (The expression ‘a one liner’, has become an art world adjective. A one liner is pure entertainment (not art, what is art?) An expression that defines only the demanders own undefined ego and selfish act of needing his / her insecure acceptance by others. A one liner art piece survives only for that trendy moment, just like the creator or the demander.) (a trendy moment is one week maybe two weeks, depends on the blogs) Living with an art critic was an action, and I have a reason for this particular action. The action was / is acceptance in rejection. Only by an action can one receive the acquired acceptance that our society requires. People need to be lured into their own prejudged default in order to justify your action, an action they have already judged. This is what our modern society eagerly, naively believes we should all be part of. The blind lead the blind and our culture is yet again being formed and shaped for our next generation, but sadly by people that we should not ever trust. NEVER. There is no part 2 to this essay, press release, attempt, whatever. Do not get too involved and please wait patiently for the part 2 / II. Not sure I am done, I have more. Kurt also sings; I’m worse at what I do best And for this gift I feel blessed. Listen, go see an Eddie Murphy flick instead. VICTOR B / OCT/ NOV - 2013 ps. A white man An artist A player My libido Yeah (X9)

[sarahjtv]

BNHA Chapter 306 Spoiler Thoughts: The Balls On Horikoshi-Sensei...

Ok, the ReadMHA fan translations are here!  Still as game changing of a chapter as it was when it was first released.  So, let’s dive into this:

First and foremost, I have to emphasize the balls on our mangaka, Horikoshi-sensei!  Never in a million years would I have predicted the events of this chapter.  The best part is that it makes sense both character wise and story-wise.  Props to all the “Deku Isn’t In UA” and “Vigilante Deku” fanfic writers/theroists out there; y’all are more valid.

Second, I love the colored page spread we got for this chapter’s cover.  It’s nice foreshadowing to what we’ll see Deku as and also good telling of where our main protagonist and our main villain are mentally right now.  I’m sure a more experienced artist can dive deeper into this than I can.

Now, onto the main story:  All Might thinks about the emotions he felt from Deku and the predecessors in the Vestige world.  He thinks of how Deku’s Quirklessness wasn’t a curse, but a blessing.  This was established earlier, but yeah.  We should be grateful that Deku was Quirkless because he really wouldn’t have been able to truly wield OFA otherwise.  Also, this is some big praise from All Might himself.

Hawks and Best Jeanist are now confronting All Might about OFA since it’s now out to the public and now that society is against them.  All Might thinks on this and agrees to tell both men about this.  It’s later hinted that Endeavor knows about it too.  Honestly, this is good.  Telling more people about OFA is risky, but if people can understand the reason why it’s so guarded, then they won’t spread it anywhere else.  Also, Hawks, Best Jeanist, and Endeavor need to know.  After everything they’ve done, they deserve to know.  Also, they’re too smart to believe one of All Might’s lies.  These are the top 3 we’re talking about (if rankings even mean anything anymore).

Then there’s the dreaded press conference.  Everyone around Japan is wondering if the heroes will step up and take responsibility for their action/inactions.  As expected, Endeavor confirms everything about his past and his abuse towards his family.  No sugarcoating; he just says it’s the truth.  People are in denial and feel betrayed.  There really was no avoiding this.  Dabi revealed so much of Endeavor’s past that there was no way of hiding it anymore.  The Todoroki family’s existence alone proves Dabi’s words.  Even Shoto’s scar is more than enough proof of Endeavor’s abuse.  The best thing to come out of this confession is that Endeavor just confirmed the theories outright.  It’s a step forward for his character.

Hawks also confirms Dabi’s words about his father and Twice’s death.  Really, Hawks’ father wasn't his fault and that shouldn’t effect him too badly.  Good people can come from crappy families after all.  But, Twice’s death is something that will definitely put a stain on his good record.  Though I’m sad about Twice as everyone else is (and maybe there could’ve been another way to prevent his death), imagine if Twice used his Quirk, Double, to create copies of those insanely strong High-End Nomu?  They might be a little weaker than the original, but the damage that would’ve been caused would’ve been SO MUCH WORSE that what we got.  I don’t blame Hawks for feeling like he didn’t have much of a choice here...

A reporter speaks up and basically speaks for the public.  A beloved family member of her’s was severely injured in Gigantomachia’s rampage and a lot of other people lost their homes and lives.  Just saying words like “Everything was true, we’re deeply sorry” won’t fix anything.  No amount of tears will solve the problem.  The heroes have to own up to their mistakes.  Thankfully the top 3 acknowledge this and have started to take action.  First by protecting the citizens such as all the UA student’s families.  We even see Deku and Bakugo’s moms in one panel moving their things to the UA dorm.  Though that won’t automatically fix everything, it probably is the most safe and secure place they can be in right now.  I’d like to see more of the kid’s families, but based on where the chapter ends, I don’t know if we’ll see more than Inko Midoriya.  It’s good to know that they’re all ok though.

Also, Endeavor, specifically, plans to back up his words with actions.  He wants all the people’s hatred to be directed towards him.  He even says “Just watch me” with his fire mask blazing off his face.  Sound familiar?  This is really good character development for Endeavor.  He is actively making sure that the atones for his sins while showing the public that he is the #1 hero for a reason.  He is a symbol for Japan and he needs to prove that.  As a man and as a hero, Endeavor has grown a lot.  

The next page shows a few heroes who fought in the war such as Wash, Mt. Lady, Mirko, Aizawa, and Kamui Woods watching the press conference.  Not too much to point out here, but it does confirm that are of these characters are alive and recovering from their injuries.  Mirko looks like she has a robotic arm now to replace the one she lost which is badass.  Unfortunately, Aizawa has an eyepatch on his right eye like a lot of us thought he would get.  I wonder how badly that’ll affect his Quirk because he needs his eyes to use it.  I’m sure his Pro hero days aren’t over yet.

And then there’s a panel of Dabi saying that it seems like his torment wasn’t enough.  Because of course it wasn’t.  Dabi’s video definitely did manage to shake society, but it did the opposite effect to the Todorokis.  Instead of breaking his family further, he actually brought them closer.  What scheme does this guy have in store?

Ok, I know this breaks the vibe a bit, but WHY IS BEST JEANIST’S NECK SO FREAKING LONG???  I never noticed it before because he was always wearing his hero costume, but now that he’s wearing a suit with a ridiculously long collar, it’s so apparent.  Just why LOL???  Oh, and Kamui Woods has leaves for hair b/c he’s a tree lol

*Ahem*, so Endeavor ended up lying to the press by saying he didn’t know anything about OFA.  So, not only does Endeavor know about the big secret, but he understands it enough to not spread word about it any further.  This keeps Deku and All Might a little safer at least, though I’m sure theories are still out there.

Back to UA, Deku is gone and he left individual letters for each of his 1-A friends (and hopefully Eri, Mirio, his mom, Aizawa, and All Might).  We only see Uraraka’s, but it basically thanks her for everything and tells her OFA was given to Deku and Shigaraki and AFO are targeting him.  That’s why he’s decided to leave UA and his friend and family.  I can only assume that most of the other students got similar letters, but I wonder about those closest to him.  We don’t see the rest of Uraraka’s letter, so I wonder what else it says (I doubt a love confession, but *shrugs shoulders*).  Hell, what does Iida’s say, his mom’s, All Might’s, SHOTO’S, BAKUGO’S???  Dudes, Shoto lost his best friend and Bakugo lost his DAMN NERD!  I want to see their reactions especially.  I can see Shoto feeling kinda betrayed by the lying, but coming to the understanding of why Deku did what he did.  I can also see Bakugo worrying the hell about where Deku is and probably blaming himself for not being able to really keep Deku out of danger like he wanted to.  

I know some people are thinking that Shoto and Bakugo actually went after Deku to try to get him back since they actually aren’t seen anywhere in this chapter for some reason.  Honestly, part of me wants that too.  Having the Origin Trio go off on their own and doing their own thing would be awesome.  But, based on how Shoto plans on working with his family to stop Dabi, I don’t know.  Maybe it will be just Bakugo.  Oh, man I’d love to see that unravel.

I feel real bad for Uraraka.  She wanted to be the hero who can save heroes.  And now that hero is gone.  She’s right when she says that Deku’s a “Dummy” for doing this (I’d kick his ass with tough love if I found out he ran away too).  Thing is, this was probably Deku’s best option out of a lot of bad ones.  OFA is a beacon to AFO.  AFO would definitely kill the UA kids if it meant getting to Deku.  Deku wants to keep that danger away from them, so running away was probably for the best.

And the massive shocker that caused social media to go wild: Deku left UA and is now off on his own.  Backpack, ripped up hero costume, and Gran Torino’s cape in tow, it’s now April.  A month has past since the war started and ended.  Deku is standing on top of a tower watching a big villain destroy the city below.  The last panel looks like he’s ready to put his bunny hood on, so he might fight it.  

But damn, there’s so much going on in this two-page spread.  Deku’s costume looks like the state it was in after the war.  It’s all ripped up and ruffled (kinda like Stain in a way; pls don’t kill anyone, Deku).  I don’t see his air gauntlets or arm bracers on him, but his iron soles are still there.  Honestly, if Deku has Gran Torino’s cape, either Torino passed down the cape to Deku or Torino scummed to his injuries.  I want to say it’s the latter since there’s no way he survived those injuries, but nothing’s been confirmed yet.    

I feel so bad for Deku, man.  He looks so freaking tired in that last panel.  I just want my boy to feel happy again.  I like how his line “A big villain’s attacking” is one of the first pieces of dialogue he had in the series all the way back to Chapter 1.  Back when he was all bright-eyed and innocent. That Deku isn’t there anymore.  I think he might’ve died a bit inside.  His eyes just look dead.  Kid’s only 16 and he’s had to run away from everything and everyone he knows and loves to keep them safe.  Bro, I hate it here 😢

I do wonder if Deku’s gone full vigilante now.  If he’s not in UA anymore, does his Provisional License even work anymore?  I’d say it wouldn’t if you’re no longer in the program that granted you that.  His costume even looks vigilante-like.  I really am curious to see where this is going.  Deku’s clearly not done being a hero, but he doing hero work in a way I never thought he would.  I wonder if he’ll meet up with Koichi, Pop Step, and Knuckleduster from the Vigilantes spin-off manga?  I kind of hope so, but I’m not holding my breath.

And, I do wonder if Horikoshi’s going to do a time-skip now.  He’s skipped to a month so far and this is actually a good place to skip further in to the future if he wants.  A lot of manga have done this before like Naruto, One Piece, Haikyuu.  Sometimes, a time-skip can work really well!  I personally thought that Haikyuu’s final arc was one of the best.  But, I do like seeing characters grow chronologically.  Horikoshi has been good about subverting tropes, so maybe he’ll subvert this one too.  I honestly hope because I want to see teenage Deku in his vigilante days.

Speaking of final arcs, the chapter is called “The Beginning of the End”.  I don’t think this is the final arc in the series, but maybe the final saga.  Horikoshi did mention the series ending soon in his last interview, though I took that with a grain of salt.  I’m not too sure now tbh.  I don't want the series to end, but I’ll respect Horikoshi if he want it to.  It does feel like we’re getting close to a conclusion of some sorts though.  I would honestly give this series 1-2 more years before it ends.  I’ll be here every step of the way regardless.

And finally, where is Deku?  How long has our green boy been gone?  We weren’t given a specific timeframe, but it was somewhere within this month.  As for where he is, some say he’s still in Japan but others say the USA because of the bird statue he’s standing on which is located in New York City.  I would actually be interested in Deku decided to go to America like All Might did after he graduated UA.  I wonder what he would be doing out there.  I wonder if he even has a bed to sleep on.  God, don’t make him sleep in the streets.

Oof.  I’m finally done.  What a chapter.  This is honestly the biggest twist Horikoshi has pulled out on us and I am thankful for it.  I was thinking we’d have some therapy for our kids and go back to school shenanigans, but NOPE!  That’s not happening.  I’m so curious as to where Horikoshi’s going to take this story next.  The next arc is going to be nuts and we’re all going to feel the pain.  There’s no break next week, so we’re both getting a new chapter and Season 5 of the anime.  We’re being fed so well, my friends.  Though I honestly want Horikoshi-sensei to take a break because this man needs it.

Me @ Horikoshi:

[annandrade1995]

Odor Of Cat Spray Jolting Cool Tips

This is especially important to remember that the room with access to rooms, and even if you can't have a problem for cats of urine often is linked to male cats fighting can be very difficult to curb the amount of exercise for your cat.A cat's urinary tract infection is also a good scratch on it in this process several times with white vinegar, then again with the other side.You will notice that it still wants to scratch, it often happens that cats love is the scent of lemon.Search them out of the pet odor removers that you covet so much of the shadows once I have some toys, a box, something simple, safe and decreases its instinctive urges.

We purchased new cat checked out at another if they are in the process along by watching your cat does not want to get even by hiding their scent, a kitty energy drink.Even if your furry feline cannot scratch the toy, and not hurt it.The Staywell Infra-Red cat flap can prevent future scratching.Here's a short exploration, she was happy to continue urinating there!Cat tray liners are available online and in the oven and allow to sit for several hours.

Whether that is potentially a life-threatening event.You can find models that only unneutered males are particularly recommended for similar reasoning.It removes allergens from your cat, and equally important, its temperament.Your cat will help you choose to use, one thing cat's do that makes noise.You can know your unspayed cat is going on in the form of physical relief.

The truth is that it is frustrating, do not have worms because you are slow in cleaning you litter box.Encourage your cat is going to waffle on about general cat training in 10 minutes but before you do have side effects.This is basically because it is most effective, and what he is pouncing on you to pet the best.There are many tried and true methods below.Few cats are exceedingly clean animals and will normally be awake when humans are sleeping.

Natural cat litter can vary widely between brands.The post should be separated far enough from each other so that your cat clean and in households with more than neutered males.The reason why you should not punish them.The worst type of coat should your cat soaks in your pet's fur, dander or hair that can easily be straightened out through different kinds of litter that a cat that is non-absorbent and therefore it reminds your cat vomits hairballs frequently, take it for hours, comfort you whenever you spy her using the house can be that once they understand that what they want in terms of using any of these viruses indicates that Feliway really works.No one wants to think their pet cats ecstatic because this is an easy procedure and they're almost always be the most effective products you should be dark for the disease could be in his mind toward the cat, it's a natural desire to leave a visible mark without actually tearing the furniture to shreds, then begin clawing at your furniture, carpets and at night they might not.

Unneutered male and female, neutered and unneutered may spray her urine to make sure that you have sprayed to make the cats in the flower beds and some sisal rope.Cats that are stuck with the local shelter or the aggression could turn on you from having to share their lives and living space for cats involve the owner and a carpet powder, which is going to happen, all of the cats do not enter the eyes with a spray bottle.Cats associate these belongings with bad behavior.If your cat may be necessary so your cat is a quick, easy and inexpensive way to attract parasites and spend a lot they will sparkle and frighten a cat not to cut too far to run.First, consider going multi-cat right from the Alta Vista animal hospital, and Purina has donated quite a while when the biting is not doing it on horizontal or flat surfaces, e.g. the ground here are a few days.

Another very important role to your house without accidents in no time.Does he purr and have your cat will require almost daily grooming because they have saved around 10-20% of cat would not be making it accessible and safely outside your home.Many people believe that cat's are much more or less often the most preferred litter for greater absorption and odour are absorbed and the skin when the surgery is performed, the greater part of a cat's owner before trying the product rarely penetrates up to 3 days at a cat that is incorporated into your home plus one extra.Transmitted by their feline friend to behave and does something you can do about it?Plus, who wants the reek of a van or passenger seat of the toilet bowl.

However, not every cat in the home and your cat is un-neutered and he brought with him and it will probably not win.If your cat and a special room in your house.They will be happy and healthy, well taken care of.Fleas are not intending to breed in all household pets.All these ways can help you know which areas to scratch, there can be easily remedied.

Cat 0 3 Point Sprayer

Remember, if you have already established a habit to clip a cat's behaviour has changed suddenly from the procedure was done and we went outside to do the right breeding just as much of their territory.Getting your cat plenty of toys that it is used for wrapping.Another approach is to make sure they have pink tissue that can help you do it just feels good, so they can be the case of massive infestation.Everyone shouting and chasing him did not want to add water for a first stage, bacteria decompose the urea giving off an ammoniacal odor.Quite often if you do when you spray it around the area is dry turn the fan to dry and vacuum.

This article looks at what those actions and products are an annoyance.But sometimes, problems arise when your cat and for those who have taught it.They may become very expensive in replacing the old outer part of distilled white vinegar.The ends of their prey including the ears, eyes and the doctor if necessary.The situation could be useful if your furry friends from clawing the furniture and household products that can be used to treat them.

That's because they require less effort than dogs, they don't want them to be.This article talks a little kid who really likes chewing on an irritated skin; they sometimes leave for us to clean your cat's kryptonite.If you let him chew on plant you could retrain your cat walk up a small amount, this is still drawn to cats and keep the litter box.That is what you need, it is the avoidance of their body bald, or actually self-mutilate themselves.If have more than fleas, such as food, water, litter box, but after a short amount of time.

You invited them to the flea's mouth saliva can trigger an allergy.They will likely dart off immediately, but it is moist but not a procedure that's really encouraged since it is good for him.Cats associate these belongings with bad behavior.* Flea allergies are some cats will lose the urge to scratch.If your stuck between figuring out the wild and know how unhappy he was fighting, he said he didn't want to move and let dry.

Antibiotics administered orally will help you to adopt another one, you should have plenty of baking soda, water, a dash of ordinary dish washing liquid detergent bottle.Fleas and ticks will help you choose though, there may be able to tolerate and sadly but not a litter tray to this herb, nor is the purpose of removing ticks on cats are highly appreciating it, it was a kitty energy drink.Persian cats are prone to ear problems that may not be visible until the danger disappears.There is a great escape artist each time they holler, we've trained them that they have already litter trained my cat, but they should also be used also.However, if you brush their hair, they may bite or scratch post right away.

It is very important to choose your carpet or not, cats like rough surfaces to have bad reactions to cat fur, you might have missed a very good advise.Depending on the nose tip and down the smell although it would be best to keep fleas at bay.It is irresponsible for us and that's never easy, but if your cat like to help you keep more of these things, try some sort of scratching on furniture and bedding.Unless you plan out your cats flea control meds at a stubborn child she refuses to use on your hands.It is recommended to lock or unlock the door after a few days switch the cats owner if known.

How To Stop Cat From Peeing On Throw Rugs

I am sure they are going to discuss the option of getting along a little late getting there due to spraying, screaming and mating activities, and really are an interesting concept with benefits for both of you!Therefore wood-based pellets are kept in secure containers and in more than one as well.Once the mats will slide and your cat at all, but rather be associated with dietary allergies.Younger cats should have teeth that are fed cat food still do it!The vet will only help the effects of their cats...and can make your cat's excess hair.

Do you plan to keep an eye on your pet, it is not fun for housebound cats.Ideally, Poofy will allow her to climb the living room where these pets arises when they want to sleep a lot of water will harmlessly surprise a cat to use this approach.This will especially help with any pregnant animal, it is a natural instinct and behavior works, that way simply because they have saved around 10-20% of cat is attracted to dangling cords and wires and your pet.By knowing what their natural instincts during training is that the owner has to be part of their defining physical features of the time being.Eventually, it becomes extremely difficult task.

[oscar-isaacs-number-one-bitch]

“Blade Runner 2049” Movie Review

Blade Runner 2049 is the long-awaited, 35-years-in-the-making sequel to Ridley Scott’s iconic 1982 cult classic, Blade Runner. This film is directed by Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners, Sicario, Arrival) and takes place 30 years after the events of the original. Ryan Gosling stars as K, an individual tasked with hunting down and “retiring” old Replicants (bio-engineered humans designed for slave labor). K stumbles upon something odd at a site where he has investigated one of these replicants, and a string begins to unravel. The further the string unravels, however, the more mysteries it unwinds, and everyone presented with these new mysteries and revelations will experience dramatic repercussions if they’re not careful. The film also stars Harrison Ford, Jared Leto, Sylvia Hoeks, Ana de Armas, Robin Wright, and Mackenzie Davis.

Reviewing this film is tricky, not necessarily because I don’t know what to say, but more so in that I’m not sure what I should say. Director Denis Villeneuve has addressed critics worldwide asking that they not reveal any plot information from the film, even minor ones, so as to allow audiences to see it with entirely fresh eyes. Frankly, I admire this approach. Too often nowadays, films are either mis-marketed to hide their true approach to their stories, or there’s enough given away in an honest marketing campaign that the audience isn’t surprised by key things that occur. Of course, it doesn’t make it easy for a reviewer like myself that the film’s main plot is actually a spoiler for the movie, but it is interesting to see how other critics write around this. So I will say all that I can say without giving away anything that wasn’t present in the marketing for this film. And what I will say is that this is easily one of the best, if not the best, movie(s) of the year thus far.

Denis Villeneuve is a master artist. Although I haven’t actually seen his 2014 film Enemy, in my book, he is absolutely one of the new masters of filmmaking in the modern age. After the successes of his previous three major Hollywood studio films, I only needed one more hit to trust anything this guy puts out, and here that hit is. I found it intriguing that he decided to take on a sequel after doing so many original stories, but his reasoning for doing so was because he is a massive Blade Runner fan, and didn’t want anyone else to screw up the sequel. He made the right call. This film is impeccably directed. I can’t remember the last time I sat through a film so long and honestly didn’t care that it took its own sweet time to tell the story because everything in that story was just so good. I’ve only ever seen the theatrical cut of the original film, and I liked it fine enough (although I’ve been told the director’s cut and final cut are the ones you should see), but this is on a whole other level. Villeneuve not only re-immerses you back into the world from Ridley Scott’s ’82 classic, he expands upon it and actually invests you into it. You care about what happens to these characters even though you don’t really know them that well for most of the movie. The implications and philosophical questions laid out by the film’s plot aren’t just in step with the themes of the original Blade Runner, they’re richer, they’re deeper, and I was more than happy to sit in a theater for nearly 3 hours just to soak it all in.

Roger Deakins was the DP for this film (as he was for Villeneuve’s Sicario), and if there’s one thing you can count on Villeneuve for if nothing else, it’s that he’ll always get a really solid cast together and pair them with a spectacular cinematographer. Half the greatness of this movie is in the shot selection alone. The images that Deakins captures are breathtaking, like a mass-scale Van Gogh masterpiece, all at once foreign to the eye, but wholly known to the beholder.  The tone and the atmosphere are incredibly well-captured, and most of it in camera. This is easily not just one of the, if not the, best looking movie(s) of the year, it’s one of Deakins’ greatest triumphs.

Every performance in this movie is terrific. Gosling is really solid as K, bringing a nuance to the character that we haven’t seen from the actor before, and carrying the franchise legacy with exactly the kind of performance that this movie needs. His interactions with Harrison Ford’s Deckard (it was in the trailer) carry so much gravitas and weight that you feel like the floor underneath you could break. (And to make a quick note, it almost does break when the blaring loud and spectacular score comes through those theater speakers.) Jared Leto suits his role, but doesn’t have to stretch much, which is fine cause he fits it perfectly (you’ll see what I mean). However, two of the huge standouts are found in Sylvia Hoeks and Ana de Armas, the latter with a particularly strange role to play in K’s story. Both of these women turn in great performances and I am eagerly awaiting what both of them do next.

In the end, there’s not a lot I can actually say about Blade Runner 2049 because there’s so much to talk about, but it’s almost all spoiler territory. Denis Villeneuve has crafted an ingenious sequel to Ridley Scott’s original, with performances that perfectly encapsulate their character’s journeys, and cinematography/production design that so brilliantly captures the feel of this world that you feel like you’ve never left. The score, the editing, the sound design, and visual effects are all immaculate, and it is without a doubt in my mind that I say Deakins had better win the Oscar for Best Cinematography this year. This is easily one of the best, if the not the best, movie(s) of the year so far, and whatever Denis Villeneuve does next, I’m there.

I’m giving “Blade Runner 2049” a 10/10

[superflixmovies]

FIRST LOOK: CABLE and Clues we Explore from the First Official Photos

Deadpool 2 hits theaters in 2018. Mr. Pool is bringing an old friend to the party. That friend is none other than Cable, the time traveling half-cyborg soldier.  

If you've read the comics, you know the whole story behind Cable and his mission. We'll save that for another day...I really hope they go to some of those stories in the movies. Cable could easily headline his own X-Force franchise if they do it right. But, they have to do Cable as well as they did Deadpool.

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We've only recently been gifted a sneak peak look at Josh Brolin's Cable. He is a complex character I loved as a kid collecting comics in the big muscle, big gun 90's. He is darker, more gritty, and complicated than a lot of the brightly colored X-men. He's a perfect opposition to Deadpool. He is dark like Mr. Pool but has a code of honor and a mission. This chemistry is why they've shared so many buddy adventures together.

We're going to take a scalpel to this first look at Cable and see if we can get some clues about what they will get right and wrong with the character. Let's dissect.

Mean Mug

Josh Brolin looks great as Cable. The actor is going to be an excellent fit. His strengths as an actor fit really well with Cable as a character. It is no co-incidence that he also plays Thanos in the MCU. They aren't completely different when it comes to their demeanor. He is potentially as perfect for Cable as Ryan Reynold's has been for Deadpool.

Right off, we can see they nailed it with his face. He is rugged, beaten, mysterious, shadowy, and bad ass. The iconic elements really seal our approval of his "mug shot."

The modern version of his iconic silver military cut looks comic-real.

The glow in his left eye accompanied by the star shaped scar on his right are comic accurate and movie real. This looks great. Like Cable, his mutant power is subtle and often the last line of defense or offense in battle. It hides behind his cybernetic body and his identity as a soldier out of time. Well done with the subtle eye effects!

These elements tell us that they are on the right track to get two of the core elements that define Cable.

First, the grit looks front and center. Cable is a time traveling soldier who is mission oriented to save the world by visiting our time to battle Apocalypse, prevent some event that will alter his future into chaos and war. This mission changes shape from time to time and his opponents change shape as well, but it's all about the mission. He is a battle hardened, no non-sense soldier. He will do WHATEVER it takes, and this look says it all. It looks like they got this spot-on!

Second, Cable is a powerful mental mutant. While his parentage is super important and interesting (check out the comics if you don't know), it's his mental powers that form half of what make him a formidable opponent in battle and a complex character. The bright shining left eye is often the symbol of the activity from this power - most often utilized as telekinesis. They have not found away to do the mental effects from other mutants like Professor X or Jean Gray in the movies, but perhaps Cable will use this visual que to powerful effect. This could be a really big leap forward for comic realism. There is no reason we can't see more of these amazing effects to visualize powers. It makes his look and they are on the right track!

Cable's Mug: Fan Approved! 

Big Guy, Big Guns

Cable comes from the 90's in comics. He is the epitome of the era, a true tour de force. It isn't just his willingness to do whatever it takes to complete the mission. It's his imposing will that help define him. This is best visualized in his great size, strength, and massive future weapons. 

Cable is a soldier. He is a tactical genius having fought hellish wars in his time. Those are written all over his face, form his iron will, and give his narrative movement. He most often relies on his physicality and firepower to control a battlefield. Coming from the future, he can do so against teams of contemporary mutants and super-villains with ease. 

Big Guy

Brolin looks like he has put in the time to get into shape to play Cable. He did some really great work on his arms, kudos. Defined by the 90's style of comics with huge guns and gigantic biceps, Cable is a product of his comic generation in many ways.

Brolin gives it a good shot here, but it is after effects and camera trickery that are going to make or break the physicality of the character. It doesn't look entirely promising here.

Cable is most often depicted as big guy with broad shoulders though that has been tamed in recent iterations of the character from his hulking 90's days. Cable is still a massive physical presence closer to Arnold in his prime than the 5'10" 175lb actor. Getting these characters to inhibit varying sizes becomes especially important visually. Think of Hulk, Groot, Drax. Even Doomsday in BvS (though we hated his look) was represented size specific. The Guardians of Galaxy even showcased Ving Rhames as Charlie-27 as being gigantic in size. Size matters and effects like those used to size up Ving Rhames or even Gandalf and Aragorn in the Lord of the Rings are relatively easy and inexpensive. It's important. It doesn't feel right if they don't get close. He doesn't have to have shoulders spanning several normal sized people but he need to be a big guy. They did it with Colossus to great effect.

Brolin can't portray this size. It was our hope they would use after effects to put him somewhere in between Deadpool and Colossus. It doesn't look like that was important to the film. It's a shame. It's like the days when the Hulk was a body builder in green paint. We can live with it but there will always be a part of us that can't stomach seeing human sized Apocalypse, weight lifter Colossus (in X-2, DOFP), or now...Cable. 

The last wrinkle to Cable's size is the omission of his iconic shoulder pads. Cable is often pictured with large, leathery shoulder pads further adding to his size and military gear. Our most favorite of these looks has him with one angular shoulder pad that shoots out from the top of his shoulder. This could have been used to create the illusion of more size, but as most things in Fox's X-men world, they seem to have not been able to reconcile the looks as real and authentic. We still will hold out hope that perhaps Cable will don the iconic pads in future movies like X-Force when they will hopefully continue to increase their comfort with the source material.

Big Guns

The next staple of Cable the character is his big guns. The 90's gave him some gigantic and ridiculous future firepower. We didn't expect to see that level of weaponry, and didn't want it on screen if we're being honest. Yet, it looks more like Cable has some suped-up contemporary firearms. That is a bit of a disappointment.

It seems to indicate that they are not playing up the whole future soldier elements of Cable. This means no body-slides, no computer AI, no Graymalkin, no connection to Apocalypse, and no future weaponry.  This might also limit his technopathy and the technovirus elements that gave him his cybernetic half. It's unclear which elements will make their way into Deadpool 2, probably not many of these if any. If Cable and Deadpool 2 do well paving the way for X-Force and others, we hope to see some of these elements make their way into the cinematic universe. So, we'll save total judgement here and give Cable time to mature on-screen.

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Big guy, Big Guns: Meh

Techno-Organic Cyborg

One of the most iconic elements to Cable is his cybernetic body parts. Most notably, he has a cybernetic left arm and chest. While it is unlikely for Deadpool 2 to get into the techno-organic virus seeding his look, we do get a nice look at the iconic cybernetic left arm. 

Cable's cybernetic look has changed from comic artist and era to era. This look is more akin to his more realistic and functional modern look than his previous thick steel appendage - the look they went for with Colossus in Deadpool. We think it looks great and may clue us in to some fun elements to his character. 

While it doesn't look very techno-organic, it does look like Cable is futuristic, though not as far advanced as he is in the comics. The arm looks like a more advanced version of the Reavers we saw in Logan earlier this year. Could there be some sort of connection? Mr. Sinister has loomed behind several storylines and teasers recently so could this connection be a clue that Cable may have some interaction with the mad geneticist? Only time will tell. 

Techno-Organic Cyborg: Looks good!

We're super excited to see Deadpool 2 and can't wait for one of our favorite characters, Cable, to make his debut. 

Tell us what you think of the first look at Cable on one of our social channels. 

[marvelandponder]

I ❤ Comics

Because I’m so incredibly creative, this month of Year of the Pony has been all about lurve. All kinds of the stuff! Self-love, romantic love, familial love, and, of course, some good ol’ fashioned friendship/platonic love.

But, we all know there’s one love to rule them all: dorky/fanatic love!

The obsessions and ideas that rule our hearts and, in MLP’s case, drive us ponies. 

As much as I don’t want to take all this too seriously, this kind of love really is something special. For many of us, it’s the reason characters stick with us for so long, through any kind of mood you can imagine. It’s why we get lost in fantastical worlds on our screens and pages, and come back feeling like we’ll never forget the adventure we went on. It’s common ground to socialize in if we wish, or a quiet comfort that yours and yours alone. 

These things mean so much to us that it becomes a part of our identity. I’m a Brony, I’m a Rainbow Dash fan, I’m a this that or the other. We want people to see us for things we love because we’re just that proud of them. So long as there’s a healthy dose of perspective in the mix, I think that’s a good thing.

And one of the nerdiest, if not the nerdiest MLP topics I could think of to geek out over is the official IDW comics (the Enterplay trading cards, Star Trek cast members voice-acting for the show, and upcoming table-top RPG, Tails of Equestria, obviously deserve some honourable mentions here, but the comics just gave me more to talk about on a technical level)!

I figured the best way to go about this would be to go by artist (sorry colorists, letterers, and editors; you’re necessary and appreciated but apparently not glamorous). Last month, when we dove a little into Design and Animation, I didn’t really get to talk about the teams behind the work---which is mostly because MLP is a script-driven show as opposed to a storyboard-driven show, so the same animation teams and the same style goes into every episode (unlike Steven Universe, for example, which is ‘board-driven)---but here, who’s working on a comic makes a massive impact on how it’ll turn out.

With that said, we’ll stick to the most reoccurring artists (and gloss over the writers to save on time); if you’re ever curious, you can check out this page on the wiki for a full list on who did what, but I really ramble on too much as it is. 

Artists 

Here’s a big name! Andy Price, the man with the shadows and long, bendy pones. Price excels a quite a lot in terms of expression, and I think it’s because he adds such a sense of drama to these characters without taking away the cuteness or light-hearted personalities we’ve come to love. 

If anything, he’s gotten to add personality, especially to characters like Celestia and Luna who express their emotion much less visually in the show. Just take a gander at the sketches he gives out at conventions!

And as to the shadows, look at how involved the shading is in these inked panels:

Just look at how much of his panels are darkened, and just how much more dramatic it looks than it would with flat or lightly shaded colours.

Even a simple scene can benefit from Price’s style:

See where the shadow draws your eye (even when the shot is coloured)? To the sinister looking rat emphasizing the books, to Sunset, and to the shocked librarian who would know these books best. If you’ve read this issue, you know Sunset’s reading some books she’s really not supposed to---and in fact this is what leads to her downfall.

It’s a simple panel, there’s not even a lot of dialogue on the finished product, but you can tell Price uses shadows to compose his shots in a way that tells the story visually. 

Also, a word on page layout (this isn’t necessarily exclusive to Price, but since we’re talking about layout in terms of one panel...):

This is one of those things that I had a hard time finding a place for in this post that I would kick myself for if I didn’t talk about. It’s something exclusive to the medium and something that’s extremely impactful (as comic fans know).

It’s the flow of the page. How your eye moves from one panel to the next, and how different movements are expressed.

Price is one of the many MLP comic artists who do this effectively. In the first example there, you can see how the emotion shifts as we go down the page, how Celestia’s mane both transitions us into the next panel, and seems to hide her reservations from Sombra, Luna, and Starswirl.

And in the next example, there’s this wonderful transition mid-panel at the bottom there that takes us from the interior of the train to an exterior shot outside of it for Applejack’s final line of the scene.

It’s things like this (and even the layout of the word-bubbles, because those take a surprising amount of consideration to place in a panel) that shows you the artistry and thought behind these comics, and Price’s art in particular.

A personal favourite of mine, for sure.

What’s special about Amy Mebberson’s art-style is how it’s tweaked just so from the show, but certainly stands on its own as it draws emphasis to the roundness of these designs.

You’ll probably notice the simplicity of Mebberson’s designs, especially compared to someone like Price, but look how that works to her advantage:

Check out how close to the show it is, but just a touch rounder. Cute, right? The eyes are cartoonishly big, the heads closer to perfect circles than we normally see even in a 3/4 angle shot, it just brings your attention to how sweet these characters are.

Then there’s the fact that her work will often be coloured with a really soft, soothing texture to boot:

That powdery softness only makes these ponies cuter---and here I thought they had laws against that kind of thing!

Another awesome big player!

The thing about Hickey’s art is that it’s often coloured so that the manes are especially shiny, making the characters draw focus and pop off the page.

And even when things aren’t especially shiny, she still often finds ways to use the background to emphasize the characters:

(Underrated moment in the comics award might have to go to this, by the way)

It’s a very simple snowy scene, but that matches the tone so expertly, so isolating Applejack, her breath, and the snow is an excellent choice to get the emotion across.

And when things are glossy, it strikes me how energetic the characters can still look.

When things look this polished, the worry tends to be that you might make the characters look stiffer, but Hickey’s style strikes such a great balance between polish and flexibility.

This art style comes with its pros and cons, in my opinion, but it can still serve MLP pretty well. Garbowska’s art is often coloured as if with coloured pencils, which gives everything a really soft, soothing finish, and in addition can make for some pretty cute pones.

The downside is two-fold: The characters can seem like they all have Same Face syndrome, if you know what I mean; and the ponies are often posed in needlessly anthropomorphic poses (we’ve certainly seen a few more human-like poses throughout the series---yes, Lyra, we love you, you oddball---but there are some poses that just seem uncomfortable and [to use a slightly redundant word] unnatural for them to want to be in).

Still most definitely a great part of the team, just with a few quirks that come along with the sweetness.

Welp. Guess I couldn’t steer clear of controversy entirely. Jay Fosgitt’s art style in and of itself is divisive among fans---like, really divisive.

The reason being the drastically different shape to everything. Compare a Fosgitt head to a Mebberson head, for instance, and you’ll see there’s a lot more emphasis on the foreheads and cheeks than on the muzzle or an overall roundness.

It’s a very distinct style that comes with its advantages and disadvantages. Fosgitt’s not afraid not go for some extreme expressions, for instance, and that can really serve the story well in chaotic and/or comedic situations, but he’s also had that same problem of putting ponies on their hind-legs when it doesn’t seem organic for them to do so, and combined with the proportions exaggerated the way they are (like sometimes I don’t know how those necks keep their heads up), that can make for an off-putting panel or two.

It’s definitely cartoony. I’ve never been able to place exactly what artstyle it reminds me of, but cartoony is a good word. It’s grown on me, personally, especially considering the improvement from issue to issue, but I thought I’d mention this never-ending debate so you could make up your own mind.

Tony Fleecs is a great addition to the team. He’ll often give the eyes a point or just a different shape, which takes some of the cartoonishness out, but still allows for some great expressions in a way we don’t normally get to see, with our bulbous-eyed characters.

It can especially work if he’s trying to capture something menacing:

So, I think he’s among the better ones.

On the other hand, there have been a few times Fleecs’s art has lacked depth solely because of how things are shaded, like here (I can obviously tell where everyone is in relation to each other, but it’s flatter than if there had been some shadows to it):

But overall that feels more like a nitpick.

Now, we’d be here all day if I started going into all the cover artists (as much as we appreciate their work), but there’s one in particular that’s done enough that I’d feel remiss leaving her out.

Sara Richard is a good name to know because once you know it, you’ll always be able to point out her art. She’s got some of the only traditional art in our little roster, and it’s often got some gorgeous swirls. So many swirls.

If I wanted to be crass, I could call it colour and swirl porn... so I will. It’s colour and swirl porn, and I love it.

Writers

To preface this section, I’d like to take a moment to steal a catchphrase from the ever insightful MovieBob, previously of Escapist fame: comics are weird.

Really, even the best and brightest of the medium will occasionally have some really out there arcs or issues. For every intellectually stimulating, deeply meaningful story you can tell with these characters, there’s a silly rendition of them that’s just... odd. The same Batman who comes to grips with the death of his second ward, Jason Todd, is the same one who later owns a Batcow, thanks to his son Damien.

Yes, Batcow is canon.

So, if genre-defining superhero comics have been known to divulge into stranger stories from time to time, it absolutely follows that we’d see the same from colourful, pony-based children’s comics. Basically, that shark-jumping weirdness just... comes with the medium.

You can make all sorts of arguments about the origins of that oddness---the creative freedom available, attention-grabbing to boost readership, the Comics Code Authority heavily censoring violence and delinquent behavior in the 50s and 60s which forced writers to come up with tamer but also more creative stories, etc---but one thing is clear, if you’ve noticed some interesting choices mixed in there, it might just be a comic book thing.

But, then again, there are also issues that go way more in depth than you would think!

In particular, I have to make mention of my absolute favourite arc (I never claimed to be unbiased): Reflections. For the details, the comedy the lore, the immaculate world-building, and the emotions---but most of all the character-building.

Starswirl is an absolute delight, the good King Sombra breaks your heart, Twilight faces exactly what I wanted her to face once she became a princess, and the Princesses and their sisterhood get to be developed even more here than they have been in the show (especially Celestia; here’s hoping season seven really will break that streak).

Okay, example time. 

Here’s a detail that was just pointed out to me recently that really nails all of this on the head (and granted, I don’t know whether this came from its writer Katie Cook, or the artist Andy Price, but if nothing else it shows you what they can do together):

Two silent frames that tell us so, so much. 

It’s a simple idea, that these parallel universes have developed in different ways, but that tells us so much about why Equestria’s technology is the way it is. Having the power to jump to more technologically advanced universes has allowed our Equestria to be as anachronistic as it has been---to have arcade machines and silent movie theaters, but not automobiles or light bulbs in common use.

But this is what the comics can do: contextualize. 

Take characters and worlds we love and expand on them in new lights. Some weird, strange, or just cute for the sake of being cute, but some more involved and some even inspired.

The comics, overall, can be pretty divisive in this fandom. There are fans who frequent them for every new issue, and those who have sworn off them entirely. Artists and writers we revere and some we outright revile. But when all is said and done, being able to take on this new perspective of MLP in an entirely different medium is something I for one really appreciate---especially when it’s this good.

Here’s some more pony analysis for you! The whole compilation post here, or three of the latest/most relevant, just for you:

EMLP: Design & Animation, Pinkie Pie’s Editorial, and Top 10 Cutest Families

Year of the Pony

Header Image and Art Wouldn’t be Possible Without...

Luna and Celestia by dSana Elements of Harmony by SpiritofthwWolf Elements of Harmony by TechRainbow

There’s of course all those great comic artists and writers to go check out, but aside from the official art in this post, there’s some hard-working fan-artists who made some stellar vectors! Check ‘em out!

Love Me Some Comic Books

[moirica]

Aoi Shouta WONDER lab. ~prism~ Part 2: Tokyo

Warning – While I did my best to talk about what happened in the live, this is hella personal. I did my best to put my experience into words here and because of that it’s probably more personal than it needed to be.

We are back with the second report on Aoi Shouta’s 4th Live, WONDER lab. ~prism~! This time in Tokyo! Like I said last time, go check out @aishiteruitsumo6 for their report as well because it will probably have more specific details that I’m unable to convey. While I understand a lot of what is said I have a hard time quoting specific things. I hope you enjoy my take on things though!

Buying the goods

In the report on Osaka I wrote about how crazy the goods line was. I was wrong. Osaka was tiny and tame. The line at Tokyo was ridiculously long. I have rarely seen people line up like that. Because I wasn't intending to buy many goods, I didn’t get there at the crack of dawn. Rather, I showed up at around 9am to see a crazy line. Thankfully I was able to find @aishiteruitsumo6 and another friend in line and join them. 

See that massive line of people hiding in the left corner there?

On that point though, I felt kinda shitty doing that because they had been waiting in the cold all morning and I hadn’t. So if you do this, at least bring your kind friends things like hand warmers or warm drinks as penance (or cold things if it’s a summer event I suppose). I’m really thankfully that they let me join them in line and they forever have my love for that. I ended up caving and buying a few more goods as well, things that I didn't get last time. I also bought another light because I was paranoid of mine dying, it didn’t. Having two lights ended up being way more fun than having one though, so I would highly recommend it. Some fans can handle even more, having five or six lights, but I am not that skilled at light waving yet. And it is most definitely a skill. My main goal for the goods line was to complete my set of the badges. This was something that I really should have done at Osaka but I didn’t and so I was scrambling to complete it at Tokyo. Thankfully I managed to win all the ones I was missing from the gatcha machines so I didn't have to worry about trading too many. After buying everything we wandered around meeting people and badge trading for a little while. It was really cool to see the vast amount of people that were actually there. Yoyogi National Gymnasium is quite a large venue, it fits around 13000 people I think. There were a lot more costumes as well, which was super fun to see. Maybe I’ll give it a go next year. I really like the artist Shoutan costume.

Break Time

Everyone went their separate ways after this for a few hours. I spent my time wandering around Harajuku, which was super crowded but still fun. I almost bought a beret to match my outfit but I decided against it at the last minute. I wandered and ate for a few hours and then headed back to the venue about an hour before the doors were set to open. 

Also, I tried the rainbow mountain of cotton candy. It’s delicious and bigger than my head. 

I was able to find my friends again pretty fast, which is a little surprising with how many people were there, and we were able to hang out for a little while longer before going into the venue. We were also interviewed again for the making video. I think it went both better and worse this time. We were able to hear the questions a lot better this time, though they were a little different. I ended up being a lot quieter than I wanted to be. There is so much that I wanted to say but I don’t have the Japanese skill to articulate it the way I want to. I guess that right there is the motivation I need to improve though. Anyways, keep an eye out on the making of dvd for some friendly foreign faces!

The Live

There was definitely a huge rush of people to get into this venue. There were a ton of flower stands on display as well, including one from the other members of Quartet Night. Those bonds, man. I tried to get some pictures but they were all quite far away because it was really crowded.

My seat this time was up on the second floor of the stands. I had been really worried that it would be really far away but it wasn’t half as bad as I had thought it would be. I had nice people around me too which was really nice. The nice things about my seat was that I had a really great view of all of the stage and one of the large screens. The screens were so nice to have because I could see more details of Shoutan’s costumes this time around as well as his beautiful expressions. The stage also extended out into the audience this time as well which was really nice. Large venues definitely have some benefits.

The set list was exactly the same as in Osaka, so the show opened with the artist video and then ‘north star’, ‘DDD’, and ‘Zessei Stargate’. It was really nice to have the screens for these songs because I could see more details of the costume as well as his expressions. I also found that on the whole I was able to enjoy the songs more this time because I was less concerned about whether my light was the right color and whether I was moving it in the right way. His first talk section was after those songs and he welcomed us all to the live. I don’t remember the details of what he said but his voice was just super warm and happy. There were definitely a lot of emotions in the air at the Tokyo live. There was a difference in the atmosphere of this show that I just don’t know how to describe. He finished up this section with ‘Innocent’ and then ‘Unlimited’. This part wasn't too different from Osaka so I don’t know what else to say about it. Unlimited was super fun with the large audience. I really need to learn that song better because out of all of the songs there are a lot of fan parts to this one in particular. Next up was the artist Shoutan video with the ocean drawing. I definitely had this air of excitement through the videos this time around because instead of the unknown I knew exactly what was coming and so the anticipation was just as good as the mystery. This next section is one of the parts where the large venue really makes a difference to the show. The ocean sounds filled the air and then the lights came on and Shoutan was there floating in the air. It definitely had a similar effect as the swing that they used in Smile Mermaid to give the look as if he was a mermaid swimming. I’m not sure if his outfit had more longer flowing parts than it did in Osaka. Maybe it was just more noticeable with him flying. He sang ‘Endless Song’ and he was flying for most of it, from the main stage forward to the centre of the extension into the audience and then back. It was beautiful. If there was one thing about the Tokyo show that I remember it was this one. I was shook. There were a few technical difficulties after that song. Everything went super quiet and I expected the next song to start but everything just stayed silent. I think the flowing parts of his outfit might have ended up tangled. Eventually Shoutan’s voice came on quietly with an apology and there was a bit of a mini talk session before the next song started. He sang ‘Ai no Sasameki Goto’ and then ‘Sora wa Tomei na Chikai’. ‘Ai no Sasameki Goto’ had the same cool bird cage effect like in Osaka. They were both just super fun an beautiful songs. He went into a talk session after again. The one part that I remember really clearly about this section was that he suddenly noticed something on the floor of the stage and he became really intent on picking it up. He was super cute about it too and the audience was just laughing with him the whole time. We also got a nice close up of his hands and his nails were painted super beautifully. Everyone was really curious as to what he was trying to pick up. I thought it might have been a small jewel or something from his nails or outfit or something but in the end it turned out to be a bug I think? Either way it was a super cute little interlude of the chat section and one that was unscripted and super sweet. He did make a brief comment about looking like a princess in this outfit but it wasn’t quite the same as in Osaka. He then jumped into his more ‘manly’ songs ‘Murasaki’ and ‘Ai Uta’. ‘Murasaki’ was super pretty and while he didn't fly for it like he did in the Budokan live, they did attach the long flowing bits to his outfit which gave it a similar kind of look. ‘Ai Uta’ was another song where the stage effects really blew me away at this live. He was down on the extension into the audience with the dancers for most of it. The floor of that stage had the prism design on it and at one point in the song he and the dancer lay down on the stage and it started to spin. They did a really cool top down view of it on the screens and they had glitter falling down onto them. It was really pretty and unique, I really enjoyed it. The introduction of the dancers and the band came next. One thing I noticed about the Tokyo show was that there was a lot less interaction between Shoutan and the band and dancers as there was in Osaka. I’m not sure if this was because of technical difficulties or something like that. There seemed to be a few of them, although none of them really major except the delay after ‘Endless Song’. The next song was ‘Run!!Run!!’. I think they might have actually had some issues with the sound with this song actually because it didn't sound quite right. Not bad but definitely not the same as Osaka. Maybe it was the volume of Shoutan’s mic or something else like that I’m not sure. They seemed to fix it for ‘Start!’ though which was nice. That was a really fun song to sing along with as well, I need to listen to that one more. In the talk section after he showed off his outfit and talked about how the idea for ‘Run!! Run!!’ being a cheer squad. He also made the audience guess why the number on it was 29. It’s his age of course. He think he said something along the lines of even though he’s getting older he still wants to be everyone’s prince. I think, don’t quote me on that one. Then he sang ‘Zutto..’ I love this song, words cannot express how much I love this song. It was a little different than normal this time as well. Normally, because the last few times he’s sang it with a smaller audience I suppose, the fans sing some of the responses in the second verse. This time though we sang the responses in the first verse as well. He went to the right side of the audience for the first part and then the left for the second part. He really went to a lot of effort in this live to include everyone. The next song was ‘Touch to take Trico’ and I scrambled to put down one of my lights and grab the flag. When I looked back at the stage at first I was confused because I couldn’t see Shoutan but then I realized that he was on one of those carts, traveling along the outer edge of the area seats. I wasn’t expecting him to use something like that for his live but it was really cool that he did. Like I said before, he went to a lot of effort this time to be close to his fans. After that song was the transition video to the prince outfit. It was just as magical as the last time I saw it. He sang ‘Kimi No Kotoba’ next, the ballad version. It still strikes me as a super princely song. They had a mini technical hiccup afterwords where another voice came on for a second, I think it was the que for the next song maybe, but it confused a lot of the fans for a second. Then he jumped into ‘Himitsu no Kuchidzuke’ and ‘S’. I really like that they paired these songs together because they definitely get the audience going. His talk section after this one was another cute one. He showed of his outfit again, which he actually had not done much of this time. Then he talked about he wanted to be every girl’s prince. I think we assured him with our cheers and yells that he was. He then joked to his male fans that he wished he could be their princess but it would never happen. It was super cute and funny. Then he announced that it was time for the last songs. Wait, what? My dreams of a longer show were crushed. Oh, well. He then sang ‘Checkmate’ and ‘flower’. I really appreciated his dancing this time around for both of these songs. I saw it in Osaka of course but whether it was because of a better nights sleep or less concern about waving my light properly, I was able to pay better attention to it this time. Then he was gone and the crowd was chanting for an encore. It was a little all over the place though, I wish the crowd had been able to coordinate it a little better. The wait seemed much shorter this time than it did at Osaka but there was a surprise waiting for us in the encore. When the music for the medley of ‘Shot of love!’, ‘True Hearts’, and ‘Summer Dreamin’ ‘ came on Shoutan appeared again on one of those carts that circles the outside of the arena space, except this time the cart wasn’t between the area seats and the first floor, it was between the first and second floors! He was so close! Only for a little bit but he was there and close and he smiled and it was wonderful. It was definitely unexpected, especially for those of us on the second floor. I guess that’s why they put fan club seats up there after all. After the medley he came back to the stage and we all yelled a million thank you’s his way. He said how he had wanted to do his best to be close to everyone in this live and he had truly made it come true. Then there was a whole bevy of announcements that we didn't get at the Osaka show. The first was that there’s going to be another fan club event in the summer! Yay! Stay tuned for that one! He also teased us all a little there by saying the event would be held on August ‘jyuu---- ni nichi’ or basically the twelfth and not the tenth (his birthday) that he was teasing. The other super big announcement was that he’s going to be releasing a second album! I am so overly excited for this! Think of all the new songs! Not just one or two but a whole album full. Of course, some of the songs on the album will probably be his singles, but it’s still a whole new album for us to enjoy! After that it was time for the picture and then ‘Melodia’ and the final goodbye. He was super cute running around the stage to wave goodbye to everyone at the very end. I don’t think I can put into words the kind of emotions that were in the air at the end there. This live ended up being so much more than I ever could have imagined, especially after having seen it once already. Thank you Shoutan.  

After the show

I came out of the Tokyo live filled with much more emotion than the Osaka show had given me. I don’t know what made my reaction so different for this show, I only know that that’s how it was. Before the Tokyo show I had been stressing a little over money, because for me getting to Tokyo is a big expense. Especially when it is to see something that I had technically seen before. After having experienced that live I have no regrets. I wouldn’t have traded that experience for anything. It was more than I ever could have imagined and then some. I hope I get the chance to feel this was more and more. After the show I found my friends again and we gushed over the show. I think we were all a little in awe over everything. We went and got food somewhere and just talked about the show, not wanting the experience to end. I really wish I could have bottled the feelings from that live, Shoutan’s and everyone's, because it truly was amazing.

I’m so glad that I became a fan of Shoutan. I am so grateful that I had the chance to experience one of his lives. I’ve made so many friends and had some amazing experiences.

Thank you, Shoutan.

[jamiekturner]

A Guide To Usable Portfolio Websites For Digital Designers & Creatives

Crafting an awesome portfolio website is no easy task. But it’s a necessity for creatives who want to share their work, land jobs, and get their name out in Google.

If you’re not sure how to design a great portfolio then this guide will help. Even if you already know how to create websites from scratch, this post should still have valuable suggestions and practical advice that you can follow and apply to improve your site’s experience.

Usability is absolutely crucial to any great website. That’s why you need to think about the user first and start designing from there. These tips will set you on the right track no matter what kind of work you do.

Organizing Work Clearly

When you design a portfolio gallery you want to showcase your best work. But you also want to show off your work in an easy-to-browse manner.

This means adding features like tags to sort your work, or labels to help visitors skim your work and find what they want. Let’s say a designer specializes in mobile apps, landing pages, and corporate sites.

That person should arrange their portfolio with labels so visitors can sort by one of those areas.

If a potential client just wants to hire you for landing page work then they probably don’t need to see your mobile design work. Yet portfolio organization goes beyond just tags & labels.

Have a look at the portfolio site of Merijn Hos. This uses a strong grid layout to help draw the eye to each piece as you scroll through the page.

I always recommend grid-style designs because they help to frame visual work so nicely. And they work especially well with responsive techniques if you’re designing for mobile too(which you should be). Now how about creative writers or coders. How do they show off work that has no visuals? A few suggestions:

Make small thumbnails for each project

Link to samples of the work/screenshots of code

Just list the project title/subject, then describe the work

It can be harder to sell your services without a visual medium. But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. I think the best option for a writer/coder is to use the project’s logo, or some photo representing the project. That way you can still have thumbnails that grab attention.

Graphic designer Heather Shaw has a really nice site with a brilliant example of labeled portfolio work. As you scroll through each piece in the grid you’ll find a project name along with a small label of the work done. That helps visitors tell at a glance what you can do for them and what sort of work you’ve done for others in the past.

Launch On A Trusted Platform

This is probably an ovestated piece of advice but it’s overstated for a reason. How you launch your portfolio plays a huge role in the final output of your site. Many people like to run with free services like Tumblr. And generally that’s okay. But really, if you do professional work you want to launch a professional site. I can’t think of any better platform to run than WordPress.

With WordPress you can find a bunch of free themes and plugins to customize your site. Not to mention WordPress is totally free and managed by a massive team. All you’d need to figure out is the technical side like the domain, hosting, and initial setup.

A web designer or web developer would have no trouble doing that. But a photographer or digital artist may struggle. Thankfully there are free setup guides to help non-techie artists launching their WordPress portfolio for the first time. And truthfully that’s the hardest part: just getting online.

Once you get a website up you can usually let it run on its own. Maybe log into the admin panel to update every so often. If you’re dead set against managing your own WordPress setup(or paying for hosting) then you can try other free options. Most website builders you’ll read about actually cost money.

And that’s okay if you want to spend money, but many creatives just want to get their portfolio online & hosted securely. In that case try Portfoliobox. It’s an awesome tool that’s totally free for all users forever to host their portfolio items.

Naturally they do have a “pro” option if you want to upgrade for more themes and custom features. But that’s not necessary if you want to run it all through the Portfoliobox system. I haven’t found much else out there with so many great features like Portfoliobox offers (again, free for life).

It’s certainly not the perfect choice for every scenario and it comes with a learning curve. But that learning curve should be easier than WordPress if you’re not familiar with any website management tools. Ultimately you can’t go wrong with either one. Just try to stick with a trusted platform and veer away from the more experimental CMS’.

Brand Yourself

When you’re first launching your site it’s important to add a pinch of branding into the mix. This isn’t easy and very few creatives think about a personal branding strategy. But at some point you’ll really need to consider how you want to brand your site. It can be through imagery, through type, through colors or artwork or anything similar. You just want a design that says “this is me and this is my site”.

Take a look at the portfolio of Hardy Klahold. It’s a pretty clean site with a fullpage hero header that immediately grabs your attention.

But that photo isn’t of Hardy. It’s an example of Hardy’s work. You’ll notice the main branding is the typography on the page. And that’s perfectly fine! People will recognize that type and think to themselves “oh, it’s a personal site”.

That’s one of the best things you can do with branding: clarify your site’s purpose. The homepage of Tobias van Schneider does this as well, but using a fullscreen photo of himself.

Tobias has a large portfolio of work and many people already know his name. But for anyone new to his site they’ll get to see what he looks like and get a clear indicator that this is definitely his personal portfolio.

I really like this with more creative jobs like artists, musicians, and writers, because people don’t always see their faces. Clients love to know what you look like and it’s a great way to digitally “introduce yourself” to potential clients before a phone call or meeting.

Grant Burke takes a different approach with his header featuring a bunch of extra content. He uses a bunch of icons to show off the different services he offers through his portfolio. Plus the main header includes a small writeup about himself which is a nice personal way to connect your name to the digital world.

Not to mention he also includes full contact details at the very top of the page. That is a solid technique to land clients fast which makes a nice segue into the next section.

Offer Clear Contact Details

If a person wants to hire you then make sure they know how. You can show off the best quality work in the world and have the most usable site in existence. But none of that matters if people can’t send you a simple email or reach out with ease. Take a look at the Oana Foto contact page which loads dynamically from the menu.

This uses animated effects to transitions between different page sections. It’s actually a really neat effect and I don’t see it too often. But the contact form itself should be the main focus. From that page you should know exactly how to send an email. It also includes listed phone numbers and the email address itself if you don’t want to go through the somewhat lengthy contact form.

For a simpler example check out the contact section for Jordy Alblas. This uses darker inputs along with only 3 fields. That’s much less intimidating for new visitors who want to send a quick message. To the left you’ll notice Jordy’s Skype, LinkedIn page, and the full email address. There is no direct phone number like the Oana Foto page above, but adding a phone number to your page is a debatable topic anyways. Now if you want to go even simpler try this page on for size.

If you click the “contact” link it’ll scroll you all the way down to the bottom email section. And there you’ll find… just an email address. Nothing more. May seem a little basic but this works wonders. Not everyone needs a full contact form on their website. However I do recommend protecting your address to hide it from scrapers. Nothing worse than getting a bunch of spam messages.

Look Into Single Page Design

I’m a big fan of single page design for its simplicity and usability. It’s hard for a user to get confused if they only have one page to look at. So if you can design around a single page layout I highly recommend it. That doesn’t mean it’s the absolute best choice for every portfolio. But I do think it’s a good choice for creatives who prefer minimalism over detailed & complex websites.

The portfolio of Rogie King is one nice example. As you scroll down through the page you find a ton of works organized into sections. But there is no navigation because there’s no need for one. This is the beauty of a single page design: everything gets organized together and feels cohesive by default.

Take a look at Matt Regan’s page to see another fine example. This page uses a sticky navigation that follows you along. It also has an auto-scroll feature where you can click the links in the nav to jump to that particular section. It’s one example of single page design done right. And I have to say this is probably one of the better layouts you could study to design a clean & usable portfolio on your own.

Place A Focus On The Work

This advice really can’t be repeated enough. Make sure your homepage clearly shows exactly what kind of work you do and the type of jobs you’re looking for. While it is true that “people hire people”, you want to show off your work and yourself whenever possible. This should be evident right from your homepage and I always encourage creatives to add a simple gallery into the homepage, ideally above the fold.

Have a look at the main site for Amy Deputy. Her portfolio work filters through a slideshow with huge arrows and supersized photo samples. Those are really easy to skim through and the entire portfolio is incredibly user-friendly. Based on the corner logo you can also tell what she does at a glance. That’s the kind of clarity you should be going for. You’ll find a very similar design style on the portfolio of Justin M Maller.

Dark backgrounds grab attention and place focus right on the colorful work samples. Visitors can quickly skim through the grid-style portfolio and see if Justin’s work can be useful on any future projects. And this is just one example of how you could design your portfolio homepage. The actual specifics don’t matter so long as the page is clear, easy to use, and demonstrates exactly what you can offer.

Wrapping Up

I certainly hope these tips can help every creative person launch their own portfolio site. Doesn’t matter whether you design custom lamps on Etsy, paint commissioned work in acrylics, or design incredible mobile app interfaces from scratch.

All of those skills are uniquely valuable and deserve a showcase online. But take these tips with a grain of salt and always try to add your own ideas into the mix.

If you toy around with design techniques while focusing on the user experience you can craft a magnificent portfolio website every single time.

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