#and then the idea for the painting comes
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Will Byers Analysis - Between S3 & 4
Something I always think about, is how Will probably didn't even know Mike and El were back together at the end of season 3.
When they had last spoke, part of Will probably thought Mike was talking about something else, which is understandable bc both him and Mike were speaking in code, whether they realized it or not (I didn’t say it/You didn’t have to).
At the very least, Will thought things could go back to how they used to between them; friends (best friends).
When the Byers arrived to Cali, I imagine within the first day, or within the first few days after they settled, it was most likely Jonathan who made the move to phone the Wheelers to talk to Nancy.
Then maybe Will decided he would call Mike once the phone was free or even asked Jonathan to have Nancy just hand the phone to Mike so they could catch up too.
But once Mike got on the phone, something was off. He sounded kind of distant and awkward and it left Will feeling confused.
Maybe Will tried to chock it up as them just needing to get used to living far away from each other, since this distance thing was indeed new for them. They'd been friends for the last decade and hadn't experienced being apart for longer than a week (the week of his disappearance). So, it was bound to be a little weird, for a little while. Right?
But honestly, just thinking about their fight in s3 and the events leading up to it, I wouldn't blame Will for being slightly worried.
Before the rain fight, Will was putting almost all of the time and effort into their relationship. He was fighting for it and Mike was leaving him behind. And that really hurt Will.
And that's what's honestly so incredible about Will's arc in s4, because he's not putting himself through that again.
Yes, he's growing up and he's matured, but he's also come to accept that, based on Mike's actions as of recent (despite what he might have sensed from Mike over the years), those romantic feelings he has for him will NEVER be reciprocated. If he's lucky, Mike will still want to be his friend, and he would be relieved to stay in his life in that way if it's something Mike still wants.
(Which also makes the GA's argument about how they think Will's arc in s5 is going to be about him accepting that Mike will never love him back, fall flat??? Because, Will's already realized that, sis. S4 ending the way it did was in part to make as clear as possible to Will (the unreliable narrator) that Mike cannot love him that way... And so why the hell would s5 confirm that for a second (3) time now? Where is the shock? Where is the value? What is satisfying about that? And why do that, while also holding off on Mike finding out about Will's feelings until the very end? Like... just let that simmer for a second and think about what that actually means in terms of the story going in a satisfying direction that also manages to surprise you... there is literally nothing satisfying about proving Will 'I'm not gonna fall in love' Byers, right...)
So, after about a week since they last spoke on the phone since arriving, a bunch of letters come in the mail: one for Jonathan, four for El, and three for Will (you can probably guess who from the party didn't send a letter to Will...).
And it's as if Will's worst fears are being (re)realized.
In his casual letter exchanges between the party, he talks about DnD and a new art class he's taking with Dustin, joining the basketball team with Lucas and how everything she'd told him about California was right with Max. Super casual catching up with some of his best friends. And yet still, nothing from Mike, arguably his best friend.
And so Will is understandably devastated.
He doesn't understand. Or maybe he does, he just didn't want to believe it.
And so, how Will chose to go about his contact with Mike over the next 'year' makes sense to me (and I support him fully tbh).
I think Will's arc in s4 is beautiful because he has some of the best development of anyone on the entire show. He's not the gay kid being used as a plot device for a heterosexual couple (stay tuned for s5). If anything, we're seeing this character who tried his best to mend his friendship with his best friend (also secret first love) after Mike presumably rejected him (ITS NOT MY FAULT YOU DON'T LIKE GIRLS!), and so, Will is not going to put himself through that again.
He's not going to let himself have hope that there could ever be something more between them, even if he thought so many times before there were moments or signs that Mike could feel the same (BC MIKE DID!!). He has already accepted it's not possible.
He's not going to 'stand in the way' anymore. If Mike wants to be with El, he's going to support them, even if it hurts him and his own feelings.
It's tragic, but it feels so in character for Will and his qualities as a person.
I know a lot of bylers argue that both Mike and Will were in the wrong when it came to them both not staying in touch, and I do agree, completely actually. Especially knowing Mike tried to call Will. HE TRIED. So it's not like he didn't. The miscommunication trope is doing it's magic. We just have to accept that.
And so, fittingly, when confronted, Mike doesn't tell Will he called (a lot). He lets Will think that he barely called and deflects and pushes it back on Will. But then almost instantly, he regrets it. Because it's in this moment he's only now realizing that Will did want to talk and missed him and is quite literally confused why they're not best friends any more. And suddenly it's all clicking. He knows deep down Will has every reason to be insecure, to not reach out to Mike after what happened last summer. It's just that he also thought Will had every right to move on because why wouldn't he, what's so great about Mike? Will could have anyone? Mike was so distracted by his own insecurities that Will had inevitably moved on, while also trying to hide his feelings, that he didn't realize Will actually did miss him. They've both got it all wrong.
As of now, we don’t know for sure if Will called at all, and so me assuming he called first, is just that, an assumption. But I’m giving Will the benefit of the doubt here. (It's also likely the Byers would have called the Wheeler's first because they know their number by heart most likely, while the Wheelers would've had to wait to get their new number).
Based on the story presented though (Will's unreliable narrator POV), he had a lot more reason to doubt Mike wanted anything to do with him. Will literally spent all of s3 fighting for their friendship, even if it meant coming off as slightly clingy and annoying and ‘childish’. And look how that turned out?
What else was Will to do in this situation? Just repeat all of his behavior in s4?
Was he just supposed to call Mike first, write him letters first, even though Mike was showing repeat signs of wanting to distance himself from him again?
And so, Will waits. He waits for Mike to make the next move, just in case his insecurities are right and that Mike doesn't want them to be best friends like they used to be.
One evening, about a month since the move, the phone rings and Will answers it. It's Mike.
Will is obviously surprised and thrilled. They talk for a bit, and yeah it's awkward. But still, it gives Will hope.
Now, it's still not enough to give Will the confidence to reach out first, fearing he'll come off too strong and scare Mike away again, and so he continues to give Mike space. But that doesn't stop this gesture from giving Will the inspiration to try one more thing, one last ditch effort to save their friendship; he's going to make Mike a painting.
So, all while watching El receive a new letter in the mail every few weeks or so, with him and Mike talking once (or if he's lucky maybe twice) a month over the phone, Will spends his time working on the painting, knowing that Mike used to appreciate his drawings when their friendship was at its strongest. And so, maybe this will be the thing that finally fixes things for them once and for all?
All too soon, it's Spring break and they're at the airport waiting for Mike to land.
In the months leading up to their reunion, Will made sure no one saw the painting he was working on, least of all El. Not even because he was scared she might figure out his feelings, but because he wanted it to be a surprise. We also know Will presumably had no problem with the others seeing the painting eventually because he literally brought it to the airport for Mike to open in front of all of them? And so... to him this was clearly an attempt at platonic reconciliation, even despite Will having romantic feelings for Mike. What he wanted was their friendship back.
But suddenly, Mike is standing before him and Will is so excited he can't hold back anymore. I mean, he's been holding back for MONTHS and he just wants to hug his best friend.
But then Mike is being awkward again, almost like he doesn't want to even touch Will at all, contrasting greatly from the last time they hugged during their goodbye only just a year ago (6 months they're so dramatic, i swear).
All this does is prove to Will that, despite them apparently ending on good terms, it seems Mike is just repeating last summer all over again.
Understandably, Will jumps to this conclusion fairly quickly, as his insecurities are being proven right in real time. Mike doesn't want the friendship they used to have. He doesn't want to hug, doesn't want to write to him, barely even called despite writing El a book worth of letters. He wants to talk to and focus on his girlfriend and Will is just an afterthought now.
There's no way he's gonna want this? A painting? Not a chance in hell.
So when Mike points to it and asks him about it nervously, Will panics and brushes it off.
How could he be so naive. Mike is making it SUPER clear he doesn't care about him, not like he used to. And still he's holding onto some misguided hope that maybe there's still a chance for them to be best friends.
How could he be so stupid.
#stranger things#byler#will byers#mike wheeler#byler theory#byler analysis#i want to cry#will byers deserves happiness#he really developed so much since s3#and it's not even that he's matured#even though he has#it's more so he's accepted what he believes to be reality#and its that mike could never love him back#but he just doesn't get why him and mike can't be friends at all#when the last time they talked mike seemed like he was scared of losing him#is it something he did?#how can he fix it?#and then the idea for the painting comes#and he spends so much time on it#and he waits it out#but then it all comes crashing down#will: stupid.!! so stupid!!#I WANNA DIE
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My pretty ghost princess💕
#one piece#perona#ghost princess perona#one piece fanart#one piece art#one piece perona#fanart#art#artist#clip studio paint#fan art#artist of tumblr#character art#digital art#lawv no#this idea comes from Mihawk not having normal beds in the castle#it made me giggle#and I love perona so much- my mutuals know this
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gem's angler fish? pretty cool.
#my art#geminitay fanart#geminitay#gemini tay#hermitcraft gem#hermitcraft#hermitcraft fanart#hermitblr#artists on tumblr#art#digital art#illustration#artist#artistsontumblr#fanart#i hate autodesk sketchbook#tearing things with my teeth#ive never been able to get colours to look the way i want them to the same way i could do with photoshp#deepest sigh subscription programs my beloathed#no idea how to paint but consider this an idea to come back to later and Fix TM#ughghghghghgh#still#i think the vibes of the atmosphere i was going for are kind of there#having a real big hand/skill not matching my eye art moment#but im telling myself 100 bad pots to make one good pot 100 bad pots to make one good pot-#art improvement when#(learn how to paint and get a better program)#(soon)#(Soon.)
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Mand'alor and Fett
also a plain color and lineart version
(seriously every generation with a named Fett features at least one of them being the Mand'alor's best friend or family)
#star wars#mandalorians#the mandalorian#kotor#old republic#mandalore#mandalore the ultimate#cassus fett#shae vizla#mandalore the avenger#khomo fett#jaster mereel#jango fett#din djarin#boba fett#what should dins epithet be#hmm...#mandalore the reluctant#lol#behold the product of trying out a sort-of-painting style#i really like how boba turned out#and also ultimates mask#wow bobas armor is almsot identical to jangos green one#i think vorten is the only named fett who doesnt come with a mandalore and thats only bc theres two named ones in that generation#you can really see the evolution of helmet styles#mask -> neocrusader -> Chunky -> beginnings of stylization -> wide -> classic -> narrow#the visors get narrower every generation huh#also shae had a very good idea with that gorget. too bad jango didnt have one#oh well at least boba has his giant scarf
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She's so calm and polite
#kimetsu no yaiba#kny#demon slayer#digital art#ibis paint x#tanjiro kamado#genya shinazugawa#tanjirou kamado#tanjiro#tanjiro kny#shinobu kocho#shinobu kny#genya#genya kny#sanemi#sanemi shinazugawa#sanemi kny#i told you i was cookin some dumb stuff#i like the idea that all the big bro in kny want to rip sanemi apart (lovingly) whenever it comes to genya#protect the cannibalism 6 feet baby at all costs
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Almost
#zutara#atla#zuko#avatar the last airbender#katara#zutara fanart#Wip#First page of three is done!!!#Won't be sharing until I have the whole thing but I'm. So. Close!!!!!!!#It's been ages since I started this project omg#But it's worth it#Hopefully I'll get the chance to finish it tomorrow... Won't be making any promises tho#I've missed you guys and I can't wait to share this with you#Anyways I know it's ZK month (and all the content has been WONDERFUL so far) but I won't be participating. Sorry about that.#Working with prompts is such an amazing creative exercise but I know myself good enough to be certain that I'll never get past the first...#... prompt without coming up with seven different AUs and I can't deal with more of those right now lol#Like I've got this Blue Spirit! Katara and Painted Lady! Zuko AU on the works since last week or so. And more lore for the og BS/PL spirits#And also this S3 canon divergence AU... And another one... And another one...#And I need to work on them at my own rhythm otherwise I'll go nuts#So uh#Yeah#Love u all and I hope I'll get to share this one soon (if only to start on yet another comic. I've got ideas for two of them. Yay)#Dema out#(Sorry for the rambling I'm just anxious)#(Don't know why but I stopped caring a long time ago)
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has it always been so bright
reference (and background)
#for context i referenced and painted it separately then put the og pic behind it#dsmp#things i make#dsmp tommy#ctommy fanart#i guess this is exile but the original concept i wanted was post revival so maybe ill come back to the idea#also just wanted to do more portrait stuff idk#and also i miss him soooo
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Oh, help me God, this hellboy got me coming back for more
reblogs super appreciated !!! close-ups under the cut !
#south park#south park fanart#stan marsh#shroomer's art !#shroomer's archives: south park#artists on tumblr#my ramblings + thought process starts here (warning. its a lot) vvvvvvvvvvvvvv#"heyyyyy shadowww. its mee. da devil.#the amount of eyestrain i went through while rendering this#gradient maps!!! are so fun!!! (they are not i hate them so much)#lots to improve on still. but that's for next time!#the process of making this was so arduous.... but i learned a lot i feel#(and also if i had spent any more time working on this i would have actually lost it)#BUT YIPPEEEEE HAPPY BIRTHDAY STAN MARSH THE LOSER BOY I CANT BELIEVE I FINISHED THIS ON TIME#2 days in advance too by the time the queue uploads it#anyways.... stupid loser boy stan marsh..... i found out his birthday was coming up soon#and i had this idea sitting in my head for like.... 2 weeks i think#popped up when i was listening to lexie liu's album the happy star and the song diablo came up#and i thought wait.... doesnt stan get possessed by satan at some point#and so here we are!!#I ACTUALLY RECENTLY WATCHED THE EPISODE TOO AND THE THEME OF THE SONG FIT THE THEME OF THE EPISODE CRAZY WELL AS WELL#sometimes my genius is almost frightening#anyways this emotionally sensitive animal lover boy has really grown on me over the course of the series <3#i still havent.... finished cartman's sheet.....#the self designated deadline i gave myself of 2 weeks is coming up soon and erm. guh.#dies#this took so much effort and brainpower that needed to be allocated to my assignments.......#but its ok!!! im gonna sell this as a print!!! so its kind of!! productive!!#guh i hope this one performs well sob theres this nagging feeling i have that its not gonna do well at all#try painting some funky lighting + greyscale painting she said. it'll be fun she said.
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Kingdom Hearts - Halloween Town
#kingdom hearts#kh1#halloween town#scenery#my gif#not sure if i ever really registered that the sky is red when you're in the town#as well as all of the background noises that constantly play. from snarling dogs to weird scurrying and strange laughter#i had to talk myself out of the idea of doing a quick replay of this game so that i could include oogie boogie's manor#because it's such an intricately designed location. they really went all out on it but it disappears after you defeat him#i felt so unsatisfied leaving it out of this set#so i elected to just use shots from some cutscenes and painted out any characters in the way#saved me so much time and it worked out quite well#i have a couple of other gifs from this world that i'll save for halloween since that's coming up next month :]
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okay ❤️ yay ❤️
#sorry 4 no vanilla milkshake in a while you can only come up with so many drawing ideas.......#ive been practicing drawing humans again so theres that#anyway take this crappy doodle#cookie run#cookie run kingdom#crk#pure vanilla cookie#shadow milk cookie#shadowvanilla#vanilla milkshake#my art#shitpost#clip studio paint#2024
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Do you think there’s beauty in anger as well? Do you think kipperlilly saw something beautiful in the face of love’s rage?
#I thought the idea of kipperlilly genuinely loving ankarna even while being manipulated interesting#when a beautiful woman cradles you and tells you your biggest insecurity and flaw is a strength??#seeing something beautiful come from rage for the first time?#horrid. her potential was wasted#I call this piece#i redownloaded procreate because I was sick of using ibis paint and forgot I already bought it three years ago so I could just download it#wanted to flex some shading/coloring muscles I haven’t used in a while.#kind of a workout this one was!! a program I hadn’t used in a while and a style I hadn’t used in a while#I actually really like this tho#four draws tag#fantasy high#fantasy high dimension 20#d20 fantasy high#kipperlilly copperkettle#klck#fantasy high fanart
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17th century gloves are. very good.
#17th century#gloves#I'm trying to get work done on other stuff right now but I CANNOT stop thinking about fancy gloves#I. want. to. sew. fancy. gloves.#and I have so so many different ideas for cuff decorations#I should be sleeping but I'm looking at 17th century gloves on pinterest and hhnnnghhhhhhhhhhhhhh#the ones I'm sewing are more 18th century but I am taking creative liberties with some pairs because I can sew whatever I want#and I'm going to be good and finish the waistcoat I'm working on before cutting out another pair of gloves#so as to not increase my unfinished project number#but I will be constantly thinking about fancy gloves as I work on that waistcoat#I have more lambskins and leather paint coming in the mail
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ghost and soap, the meeting on the turret stairs
#redraw of the classic painting meeting on the turret stairs :)#i had this idea last night just before i fell asleep lmfao then had uni today so had to withstand the humiliation of#drawing cod guys in class....#its ok its a bachelor of animation everyone has their own weird ass blorbos#including the tutor who talks about the phantom for 3 hours and then dunks on stan lee for the rest of the class#ghostsoap soapghost#soapghost#ghostsoap#john soap mactavish#simon ghost riley#mw2#ghost x soap#soap x ghost#come on man why are there so many tags#LOOK AT MY ART PLEASE PLEASE#redhhound art#gay people#THE ORIGINAL OF THIS PAINTING IS WATERCOLOUR??? OH IM GONNA OFF MYSELF#if this gets reposted on tiktok im gonna kill a 14 year old
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☆´。*゚+✧new chances☆´。*゚+✧
[ko-fi] [prints&stickers] [redbubble]
#happy new year#digital art#artists on tumblr#2024#happy 2024#aesthetic art#my art#original art#last drawing of 2023 and first drawing of 2024 hehe here's to an abundance of creativity yet to come!!!#to new chances and new ideas and new doors to open!!!! new friends and new love!!!!#news year resolution: draw!!!! and paint!!!! and create!!!!#i want to publish at least 2 fics as well and get started on the comic that's rotating in my head#and maybe outline the children's book im thinking about#but there's 364 days for that <3#viks art
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A mini kylix. I thought it could make an opulent cat bowl, but I think its owner is going to keep it safe on a shelf.
#ceramics#pottery#stoneware#greek pottery#underglaze#underglaze painting#wheel thrown pottery#handbuilt pottery#artists on tumblr#kylix#pet bowl#not for sale#I’m super normal about that spot I forgot to fill in in the tondo#superrrr normal#anyways the bowl part of this is hand build with a hump mold that I use for my cats’ bowls so that’s why my mind was there#the foot was thrown so that’s where that tag comes from#the pet bowl idea is also why the foot/stem is so thick; didn’t want it to tip over too easily
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Kyoshi Warrior Zuko hugging Painted Lady Katara from the back and kissing her on the head.
Zuko kissing Katara hands in your halfblood au because you said Kanna taught Katara to hide her bending so Zuko is saying embrace who you are.
Keep the AU kisses coming!
#dema answers#zutara#atla#zuko#avatar the last airbender#katara#kyoshi warrior ursa au#kyoshi warriors au#halfblood au#atla art#atla fanart#zuko fanart#prince zuko#zuko art#kyoshi warrior zuko#katara of the southern water tribe#katara art#katara fanart#zuko x katara#katara x zuko#zutara fanart#zutara au#zutara art#Keep the AU kisses coming!!!! I love your ideas for them. It doesn't matter if I need to draw the same AU twice :)#the painted lady#Halfblood Katara#Halfblood (but not really) Zuko#Today is National Dema AU Kisses Day. Pass it on#National Dema AU Kisses#Yes I made it a tag. Sue me
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