#anyway. ENJOY NEW INTERPRETATIONS OF CHARACTERS YOU HAVEN'T THOUGHT OF OR DIE

[zluckychap]

"dunk tank" behind the scenes

part 2: the writing & art

can't start drawing the comic without thumbnails!

anyway

i started writing this thing in february at the same time as For Science Part 2. this comic was originally going to be called For Science Part 3, since it has the same 4th-wall-breaking elements as that series. but navi’s not in it, and it’s not really a continuation of 1 and 2, so i wanted to think of something else (cont)

i was gonna call it “the big update” or something based on whatever the update name turned out to be (at the time i didn’t know it was called “worth the wait”) but both of those still seemed too on-the-nose.

but then, the thoughts of the fandom being so entertained by painter’s demise got me envisioning the poor guy stuck in a carnival dunk tank, forever suffering by our hands in our unending quest for video game completion. how morbid is that

the way we so casually talk about his upcoming demise is in a way that would freak anyone out if it was about THEIR death. we talk about it so innocently and it's arguably creepier than going “MUAHAHA!! HE’S GONNA DIE SOON!!”

it's interesting that until now, painter had protection. not in the form of a sealed safe room, or any kind of shields whatsoever, but rather the mere fact that killing him wasn’t yet an option for us. now that protection’s disappearing and there’s nothing he can do about it

when the first draft of the script was done, i realized that if sebastian knew about painter’s fate, and if he truly cared, he might let painter chill in a safe room and protect him there. they’d lose the turrets and whatnot but painter would be fine

so i decided that in the story, there’s something keeping painter in place. an anti-tampering system of sorts built just for him, that either kills him, the tamperer, or both, serving as another obstacle for sebastian to figure out if he really wants to save his buddy

it makes sense in-universe for this to exist too, since there were urbanshade employees psycho enough to track down and kill a guy in cold blood just to get their hands on painter. urbanshade likely wouldn’t want a repeat of that with any other employees

as many of you figured out, YES the colors have meaning!

i didn’t used to like writing, i’ve always largely been a math person. before i really learned to enjoy it, i used to think that details like these in stories were unnecessary, and i’d make fun of them. what a chump i was

colors can have multiple meanings depending on the context. the way they are framed in the “colors” series is definitely not the only way they can be interpreted. i’ll let people draw their own conclusions about it :)

my google doc's script format isn't very formal at all. when i outline a scene i basically put just enough information in for myself to understand what the scene will look like, even if i haven't figured out what the dialogue will be yet

whenever i can’t make up my mind on how a character says something, i write down all the possibilities i come up with and then pick one later. some of the most simple lines go through so many iterations before i find something i’m happy with

before i knew that they were confirmed to have a brotherly relationship, in march i wrote an analysis on sebastian and painter’s roles in the story. i was then informed on tumblr that they see canonically each other as brothers

i later posted on twitter about it, because i could not find where zeal had confirmed this anywhere. so of course Wil randomly pops out of the bushes at that moment to confirm it themselves. thanks wil

these scenes were originally going to play out the exact same way, except they’d take place in the present with seb & painter. after learning this new information about their relationship, i decided to turn them into flashbacks. a decision that paid off IMMENSELY

i always figured sebastian had some amount of fourth-wall awareness as an explanation to how he knows about our multiple runs, can be in several places at once, and is even aware of when we go back into the blacksite after having won the game entirely.

i still have no damn clue what role mr lopee will have in the canon story, but i headcanon that he has something to do with sebastian’s omniscience.

i deliberately kept the update day in the comic ambiguous since we didn’t know when it would be, and still don’t. it’s definitely for the best that it comes out later, we gotta give the devs time to cook but also time to rest.

i changed the script of this page at the last second. i thought it would be interesting to have NSIF praise sebastian for being a good friend, which would have him feeling more guilty. but seb was already showered with praise from painter on the last page, so i switched it up.

then there’s the player’s face on page 12. they were originally going to look very eager to destroy painter. i figured that wouldn’t really work for someone who technically… doesn’t want to be doing what they’re doing. (also congrats to those who noticed which jumpsuit that is)

the future for sebastian and painter’s roles in the story is very uncertain. there are things that are set in stone, and other things that we’re not yet spoiled on, and all of us pretty much have more questions than answers

and even if the plot of this comic didn’t really GO anywhere, that’s okay. sometimes what the characters need is a quiet, calm moment to be in each other’s company… before the storm starts. well, have fun getting the badges, everyone! :P

thanks for following this story for the past month and a half! it's been a journey. it'll probably be a while before the next big story since i have irl stuff to attend to, but i have 5 more stories in the works and i'm excited to show more of what i have planned eventually!

OK THANKS FOR READING BYE

[callmegwynbleidd]

So, I thought I'd do something I haven't really seen on tumblr and that's provide a spoiler free review for those who are still on the fence about watching Netflix's The Witcher!

I've got several friends who didn't go near the series because of certain casting choices, adaptation choices and more. So, I hope that some of you enjoy my personal little review of The Witcher.

SPOILER FREE.

Before we begin, I just want to say that I'm a film nerd and would love to direct someday. So, I go deep into these things. Also believe it or not as a major fan of the games I went into the series with gritted teeth and I was actually expecting to HATE it. Yet, here I am with a Witcher themed blog. Says a lot doesn't it?

First up, basics.

Effects. They were pretty good! The CGI was decent and the set design, costume design, and the makeup looked epic. They captured the medieval tone nicely and the world they presented felt just like the games in my opinion. Geralt also looked WAY better then that first wig test. A visual highlight was definitely the blend of practical effects and CGI on the Striga. That creature was all sorts of hellish and it was amazing.

Writing: Very smooth, very timely. I enjoyed it. The humor was good and  Even the weaker plot points were never a complete bore.

Casting: Here's where things get tricky. At first I thought Henry Cavill was a bad choice. (UNBELIEVABLE I know) but I have grown to adore him as Geralt. Henry loves the character, and all aspects of the source material and you can totally tell that by the way he plays Geralt. He's taken elements from the Geralt we know in the games, and the books, and added his own interpretation into the character. I really like this version of the famous White Wolf because he feels familiar, yet new at the same time and doesn't disrespect his source material.

The same has been done with Yennefer, and Ciri. And it's been done very well. Then of course there's Jaskier, to put it simply he was a hoot and an absolute highlight.

Let's address Triss for a second... Personally, I would've preferred her to look like her in game counterpart. I mean if they can give Henry Cavil A WHITE WIG AND YELLOW CONTACTS they can give Anna Shaffer striking red hair. Just saying.

Do it for the gamers.

Now, let's address the pointless hate on black washing. This criticism is typical and rather annoying. Yes, The Witcher is set in a vaguely European land in a medieval Era. And yes, there are infact Canon lands in The Witcher that are home to people of a darker skin color. But with all that aside, I've had so many people complain about the timing of the African American cast, and personally I see no issue with the decision. People need to understand that either the casting crew either get the love of the die hard fans by keeping the cast historically accurate. Or they get globally panned and labeled racists just because of the all white cast. Unfortunately, these days forced diversity is a bullet most casting crews, writers, and directors have to take. It's simply to please the masses, and in my opinion, it takes nothing away from the series or the characters that they gave a darker skin tone to.

Sound track: Brilliant. Both the songs performed by Jaskier, and the instrumentals set amazing tone in every scene.

Characters: well played, well delivered. I have no issues with anyone's performance apart from the bad commander dude in episode three. His delivery was a tad amateur in places, but never poor.

Adaptation thoughts: Personally, I see the games and the books as separate entities. After all, the games are more of a spin off of the books than an adaptation. However, the series is an adaptation of the books with some elements of the game tossed in. All in all, they're different mediums, different versions, and different perspectives. I don't compare the Geralt from the games to the Geralt in the series. Same with the books. They're all unique versions of the same character and the same stories, and they're all epic in their own right.

There you have it! I hope this review encourages those of you who are on the fence about the series to give it a shot, and I hope those of you who have seen it enjoyed my little run down of the series.💜

Please remember this is my personal thoughts on the series without getting into the nitty gritty technical stuff like the cinematography and fight choreography. (Which I also loved btw. It was very well shot and structured, and the ambiance was lovely) and EVERYONE is entitled to their own thoughts and opinions!

Anyway, I really hope you enjoyed this post. If you like this sort of thing, please let me know!💜