#but its genuinely for artistic reference purpose

[mackeralsauce]

a very long dive into cuttletavio feat. my personal opinions and viewpoints as someone with an insane fixation on the ship.

hello fellow cuttletavio freaks... since the fandoms been propping up more lately i kind of want to talk about my views on the ship and share them, but the problem is, i'm kind of scared to?

it's not necessarily that i want to be unfriendly/antisocial, but moreso this particular ship has a certain *history* to it (which i won't go into) and so making friends in the community seems scary!

this is going to be a long, long discussion/ramble on my views of the ship (their dynamics, etc.) which i don't really think will be read much but that's okay! i just wanted to put my thoughts out there and see how it goes. the full ramble is under the cut.

I've made a post before on the whole 'compare and contrast' aspect of the characters of Craig Cuttlefish and Octavio Takowasa, and that still applies to my views of them. I think the aspect of coming together despite their differences is important to the core of the ship. It is also important to the themes of Splatoon.

Splatoon- as a series- has a running theme of humanity, its mistakes, and its nature. The inkfish of the series, for all intents and purposes, have inherited the good and bad of humanity. This allows for a very complex view of the characters, especially in focus to the past. However, from what I've seen, it appears a lot of people tend to have a very narrow view of Craig and Octavio. They tend to split them into one of two camps:

Total Good, or Total Evil.

This narrow black-and-white view of the characters ends up bleeding into the ship usually. I tend to see people in the groupings of 'fluffy, wholesome ship' and 'toxic, abusive old man yaoi'. Both of these are somewhat disappointing (though the latter upsets me most, we'll get into why later) and dilute it to such a flat view. I know this is to be expected, since that's how fictional works are oft taken, but it does bother me since I care so deeply about the topic.

I'd say the 'toxic yaoi' view is the worse of the two. Am I saying the characters should always be happy, without angst? Absolutely not! It's perfectly normal for couples to argue and have spats. What I refer to is when the ship is distilled into these mere tropes (often associated with BL writing and such), where they're genuinely abusive, where the 'toxicity' is the main aspect of it. I can't stop anyone from having that perspective on the characters, but it really doesn't befit either of them in the slightest.

In my personal opinion- formed from character analysis and lore research-, they would be a healthy but complex relationship. As people, they are neither good nor bad. They want to be good people, they try, but they make mistakes along the way. These mistakes vary based on their own personal vices and virtues. We'll start with a discussion of that, their ideologies.

Craig Cuttlefish- keeping in mind that the NOA localization sucks balls- is a hopeful man that pursues an ideal of good. He's shown in-canon to care for his family, to be of artistic talent, and to pursue order. Through interviews, he's revealed to have always wished for peace. Based on these, I'd say he's somewhat of a hopeless romantic, with a strong attachment to his moral compass. I'd go as far to associate him with anti-war political beliefs and a certain 70s hippie charm to him.

Octavio Takowasa, on the other hand, is shown to be of a rebellious nature. Boisterous, loud, proud. He's shown in-canon to care for the greater good of his people, and that his allegiance is with chaos. His character tends to be misinterpreted less (from what I've seen), but many still tend to fall for the basic pitfalls of mischaracterization with him. As his kabuto symbolizes he likely leads a Shogunate-type society, we can infer he's of a strong, built mannerism, and likely was born into that militaristic structure. Despite this, I think he pursued peace in spite of his predecessors' rule.

Why does this 'order v. chaos' theme matter? It's because it can reveal their strengths and short-fallings. Craig is bound to his sense of justice, but it can be to a fault. Organized, operational, but would falter if his plans were broken. Octavio is able to go with the flow, ever-changing. He's a beacon of progress yet this also serves to his recklessness. Craig helps to ground Octavio, whilst Octavio helps to lift Craig up. They are, in essence, inseparable.

This DOES lead to arguments and falling-outs, but I do NOT think it would've escalated to that of 'toxicity'. They are mature adults. I don't think what happened at the Siege of Arowana was intentional, nor do I think they had it in them to hurt each other. I don't think they grew 'bitter' towards each other. Any hateful feelings were likely towards the leader of Inkadia's military or nation, towards the ones moving the pawns. It's unlikely Octavio started the war; not without being provoked. With Craig's behaviors, in-canon, I find it unlikely to be his fault.

If I were to go deeper-in with my personal theories, I'd liken that Inkadia as a nation is closest to Western Ideologies (which, does track, the whole haikara vs bankara thing). This is hinted at by mentions of inkling hedonism in pre-war times, which proves still present in the consumerist tendencies of modern Inkopolis. This doesn't mean that *everything* from western nations like the United States translates historically to Inkadia, but we can infer how this influence relates to the war and geopolitical tensions of the pre-war period.

It's already pretty obvious that the Sunken Scrolls are propaganda. From both sides, to be exact. The Octarian propaganda is obvious to us, the player, because we play as inklings in Splatoon 1. However, many people seem to not use the same thinking for the inkling historical sources in the scrolls. Those are likely influenced by propaganda too. This brings me to a topic I like to emphasize quite often (including in my fic... hi Ruse Theory fans!!): history is written by the winners of war.

The sunken scrolls state things like the war was started by rising tides, and that the inklings won due to 'superior number of limbs'. While I think the tides were *partially* true because of the Splatlandian scrolls mentioning a great flood, I don't think thats the whole story. We know the Zapfish are valuable to Inkadia. We also know that Bluefin Depot is a coal mine, Craig did something in Bluefin Depot during the war, and coal is a pollutive source of energy. Zapfish- so far- seem to be more of an efficient source.

Where am I going with this? The war had most likely been a power/resources battle, with the floods a further excuse for suddenness of attacking a previously-allied nation.

This ties into the ship because it clarifies the reasons for the war, and how much control they had in the manner. As far as we know, Craig's lowest rank in the early times of the war was that of Second Lieutenant. He wouldn't have been even close to calling those shots. As for Octavio, the waters are a bit muddied.

Shogunate Governments typically rule temporarily during wartime, but we also never hear of any other form of Octarian rulership. This can be excused with the fact that Splatoon's inkfish don't directly copy human culture. It's likely that the Octarians could have discovered remnants of human culture in the bunkers (pre-war, whilst exploring the continent), and simply emulated some of the elements discovered. In this case, the Octarians would have a Shogun who also serves the role of 'Emperor' as well.

Keeping this in mind, while Octavio serves over a military-type government, I don't think he started the war. Since Octarian tech RELIES on Zapfish, I believe they had claim over most of the Zapfish habitats in Inkadia's landmass. Therefore, we can sort of tie together how things escalate from there.

I think that even during the war, Craig and Octavio were in love. I don't think they ever broke up, neither, since Craig likely assumed the Octarians would take a quick victory. You could also infer some espionage-related activities but that bleeds more into the theoretical so I won't go into that. If there were some kind of separation, Octavio would have declared it out of worry more than distaste.

Keeping this in mind, I really think Craig and Octavio had a genuine love that bared no intention of hurting the other. If Octavio wanted Craig dead, he'd of taken care of that by now, even as old men. He's still very-much capable. Craig could have likely done the same, too, as he's shown to be resilient even in old age. There is a tragicness to the circumstances of their environment but they love all the same through it all.

What does this all mean? Craig and Octavio had a beautiful, brilliant love, stifled due to a war declared out of their hands. They loved so truly and openly, and planned on things to go smooth after a quick win. Unfortunately, the tables turned, and they got the wrong end of the stick. A life imagined of beautiful intimacy together, only for reality to crash in with that of isolation eating away at their hearts.

Going into personal theories some more, I don't think Craig stopped fighting for Octavio. He's left in such a poor state in Splatoon 1 for that of a 'recognized hero' in war. It could be an element of veteran mistreatment, and it could also be that he tried to speak up post-war of the unrighteous terms it'd been started upon. It could be he'd been stripped of any benefit due to his political views. I think Octavio resorted to stealing the Zapfish because he knew Craig's attempts would never bring about change, and that he'd been punished for trying. Craig wanted to stop him from stealing the Zapfish because he feared repercussions for his lover. I'm rambling on and its getting all sappy and I may cry now--

uhhh all this to say, cuttletavio more deep than basic tropes of 'toxic yaoi' etc etc. thank u for coming to my ted talk.... feel free to contribute to the convo in the reblogs or comments....

[xamaxenta]

I absolutely despise taking screencaps of thirstbait on IG but alas. Its good reference

[asmogorna]

Okay so there’s this ww artist on ig called like tooth lilys or something and he’s always causing drama in the ww fandom and he mouthed off about your art and now heaps of insta ww fans are like talking about you :| free publicity?

ahhhh so thats whats happening .. lmao thats crazy

i checked out their story, and i sure doooo love how they leave some things out when talking about both situations that they mentioned to make me look worse ..

ok so

warning, yap session incoming

the "will wood in a (miku) binder" thing happened back in fall 2023 when i was still semi new to the fandom and didnt know a lot of things. so tho i to this day i dont think it was that big of a deal, i wouldnt do it today

it was an artwork made for shits and giggles, the context of which i have explained here before. i never meant to imply that will wood is trans and i certainly dont "headcanon" him as that. my curse is that even when joking around i tend to try and make my art look good, so i get why people thought it was unironic. and i know that it sounds like a lame ass excuse, but it legit didnt cross my mind that people would think i drew will wood as a trans guy or smth. legit my only thought process was "funny haha internet thing" + "my favorite thing" = "good idea"

now the usage of his real name is something i am genuinely sorry for, but it was an accident and a genuine mistake on my part. i remember seeing someone mention it casually in some comment section, and assuming that it was ok, since i didnt know he was in any way against it. (i also thought that it was the same name that he used in "the real will wood" in that one section cus it sounded a bit similar).

when i was informed about the fact that he doesnt want it spread around i deleted the post right away and apologized, so bringing it up like something i did on purpose and out of malicious intent is a tad bit .. misfitting, if you can use that word

now the hot topic of the day: my waywood art

i have said this before and i will say this again, how i feel about rpf is solely based off how the people involved feel about it

to clarify: i never drew anything inappropriate or even suggestive with them, the "worst" thing is 2 simple sketches of them smoochin. or. this.

idk if this is what they were referring to when talking about me drawing will wood and gerard way "making out" (specifically. because i think "making out" implies to be more sexual stuff than small kisses). and if so, then it once again feels like blowing things out of proportion

and now the point i want you to get: will wood wouldnt give a flying fuck

like i said earlier, i never drew anything inappropriate, because that would actually cross will's existent and real boundaries. you know, the ones that he stated

im not making some conspiracy theories about him being gay, like some people seem to imply in their inbox messages to me

im not sending a whole ass smut fanfiction to litwtc gmail or something, i dont bother him in instagram dms asking if he wants to fuck gerard way, im not shipping him with people who he actually knows personally and has to look in the eyes of from time to time

im not doing anything that he would actually care about

him and chris have joked about him being attracted to gerard before, and though im not saying that you can joke about everything theyve ever joked about, i feel like in our case its clear that will clearly doesnt care about the implications ? (i generally believe that ww fans would get their panties twisted about less things if more of them listened to what these 2 talk about so calmly on litwtc but i digress)

if he saw that some random teenager on tumblr is drawing him and gerard way (gasp of horror) holding hands, he'd laugh at it max and then move on with his day

people are treating the whole situation like i posted pictures of him from when he was a kid or leaked patreon content or drew him fully naked or anything else that, you know, would actually affect him in one way or another

what im doing is innocent fun which isnt even likely to reach either of them. will wood very rarely checks tumblr and, once again, i genuinely dont believe he would care. and gerard way aint got no internet + he doesnt care x 2

it is weird but rn this is what brings me the most joy, even if its silly to say. both will wood and gerard way mean a lot to me and putting them in situations together makes me happy. i am but a child full of fun whimsy

i wont be posting any more explicitly romantic art to avoid more drama, and i also wont be responding to all the anon messages i received because there are like .. too many of them. an overwhelming amount i'd say. sorry about that

i really didnt mean to cause such a fuss, and i understand why some people might be uncomfortable with what i do

i fully understand why you would dislike my waywood hyperfixation shenanigans, and i dont have a problem w you over that, but treating me like pure evil because of a thing so insignificant is just.. overdoing it

once again, i will be toning it down, but it really isnt the end of the world if i dare to draw will wood and gerard way being a tad bit gay (which is, i apparently need to mention, not me actually saying that will wood the alternative musician is a homosexual gay who is in a genuine for real actual real gay homosexual relationship with gerard fucking way the lead singer of my chemical romance. i think speculating on other people's sexuality and gender identity is boooo tomato tomato tomato)

sorry for the rant and sorry to all who were disappointed by my lack of remorse. come back in a couple years when i turn 18 and stop having fun and artistic freedom

thank you for your attention and i hope i at least cleared some things up to those who werent w me throughout every event where i get involved in fandom drama

bye bye

[rip-headphones-users]

Lampert Headcannons I Have

: )))))) i liek thinkung ab out himme : )))))))

(Long post sorry)

Lampert is Swedish-American (due to type of tail plug + the lamp itself being Swiss in design)

He speaks in a fairly flat toned voice, in a Boston (Massachusetts/New England) accent

This is for the fact that I believe he could pull off a killer Scout TF2 impression, and it would be really funny.

He wont do it in front of anyone though, he’s too shy.

(Alternatively, I will accept a Southern US accent.)

Lampert loves to give compliments to people, but he is too judgy/critical to find anything worth complimenting, and by the time he does its usually at an awkward point where it would be weird to compliment them.

Lampert prefers residing in lamps because he’s scared of the dark, as well as utility.

Lampert will typically sleep standing up underneath a plastic furniture protector

If invited to a group sleepover, lampert will either transform into/shift his consciousness into a nightlight in order to light the room the others are sleeping in

He doesn’t play videogames often, but he prefers playing single player rpgs, his favorite games are OneShot, ChibiRobo, as well as the Mother series and anything from the Sonic franchise.

He once agreed to a days long infinite rokea-wide game of prop hunt with paintball guns and several friends where he was the “prop”. It’s probably his favorite memory but he has sworn off ever doing it again due to the mess it caused. (He has agreed to smaller games though)

Lampert genuinely enjoys cleaning things whenever it’s unrelated to himself/rokea, and will stop on random floors of the regretevator to clean them when he is in a bad mood in order to calm himself.

His goal one day is to become an interior designer, and he is currently studying to become one.

His tail behaves more like a cat’s rather than a dog’s, but will still occasionally wag when he’s happy.

Cannot get sick, but the concept of something being able to get sick is so mortifying to him that he is a germaphobe anyway

He can, however, catch a computer virus. He is not nearly as scared of this cause he knows how it works (like a regular virus)

Lampert “touches” things by sensing the vibration of them when he makes contact. He cannot feel texture, but will immediately be able to tell you the temperature of an object in Celsius, Kelvin, and Fahrenheit.

He makes a faint purring noise because his “heart” is a motor.

His favorite artists/bands are Mitski, Autoheart, and Roar.

Prefers dressing in nice clothes, but usually just wears sweatpants and sweaters/t-shirts for convenience (doesn’t want to get the nice clothes dirty)

Will never admit it, but he gets very happy when people say he looks good/cute/pretty/handsome because it means to him that he picked a good lamp to reside in. Lamp gender euphoria.

Has a glowing rubber duck water toy that he resides in whenever there is a situation where he needs to be in water. It is abstract enough for him to not know what it is/that its a bird

He would lose in a 1 v 1 with an ostrich.

Has a modified windex bottle in his fort that he smokes out of like a bong.

NThe other robots take his almost compulsive need to use cleaning chemicals hand sanitizer as lampert being a stoner, when he actually is just that worried about germs. (No wonder hes friends with that infected guy)

While he doesn’t try to be overtly mean, lampert finds himself accidentally insulting people he doesn’t like. He will insult his friends on purpose though.

Likes pulling spur of the moment pranks on friends

Found an insect crawling around inside of his body cavity while doing maintenance on himself. He still has not recovered mentally.

Creation/physical properties:

Lampert is sorta like a sapient star, just less “powerful”. Technically though he’d be a solar flare, (this is a slightly niche reference but sorta like how the solar bodies in Dogsbody by Diana Jones are sapient/anthropomorphic)

Actually I think you should just read the first chapter of dogsbody so you kinda get what i mean here. You wont understand whats going on at first but that’s ok you aren’t supposed to.

Outside of his body, he is an abstract glowing form of pure light. He is perfectly see through, and the only indication of his presence is the light cast on the world around him.

When viewed through an infrared camera, he is vaguely shaped like a humanoid entity standing at roughly 6 feet tall (at current day), but is incredibly blurry. No further details can be made out.

Images and live footage of Lampert in his “purest form” are known to cause mild nausea, as he is not meant to be viewed this way.

Passing through Lampert will warm the object slightly. Objects do not overheat, but passing through him is known to give a warm, comforting feeling, much like laying in a sunbeam.

Lampert’s possession of objects will slowly alter the shape and size over time to slowly become more humanoid. The time it takes from an objects initial possession to become full anthro is between six months to two years.

Because lampert has to “grow” into himself, He has had several models of lamp that he has possessed over the course of his lifetime. He just finds that he tends to keep going back to lamps (beyond his fear of the dark) his first forms are more childlike to reflect his age. One he looks back on fondly has a fish pattern on the lampshade.

Lampert cannot possess what is already “possessed” (aka: living.)

Lampert doesn’t technically have biological parents. Technically the “parent” he has is whatever star shot the flare his consciousness was spawned into. He doesn’t remember this event, just the fact that it happened (do you remember YOUR birth??? I hope not.)

He was found and adopted by Mannequin Mark (Pops) and Wallter (Dad).

[gorbo-longstocking]

*Cutely throws them to you* :33

ANYWAYS, can't stop thinking about Ch5 Cara and Ch6 Alga when they were both in the 'same' ass situation (ngl they both are freaky af), so I had to draw them 😇😈

(I just love how they both had their own ways of calming eachother down ❤️)

HOLY FUCKING SHIT. CARACALLA LOOKS SO GOOD IN YOUR STYLE AND ALGAAAAA MY MISERABLE LITTLE BIMBINI. i adore the way you draw hair dude, it looks so voluminous and fluffy… carrotcalla get over here so i can run my fingers through your hair xoxo. still in awe youre drawing stuff from my fic, that something i cooked inspired you to cook as well. not to be all serious for a sec, but that is genuinely the greatest thing any artist can do for another dude. im so happy we get to be in yhis ouroboros of sharing 🥹🥹

also im gonna take this as an opportunity to ramble about their breakdowns and how they’re connected, along with how both of their personalities are suited to calming the other down. because its almost 12 am and im insane >:] buuuuuut

both caracalla’s breakdown and alga’s breakdown were always going to happen one after the other. i did a lot of thinking while planning this fic out, mostly about the scene surrounding caracalla’s flashback and also how alga figures out their situation isn’t a dream. originally, caracalla’s flashback was meant to happen later, and have a bit more of geta and caracalla being haters in the beginning of the fic (which, evidently, wouldn’t have happened anyway because caracalla had a gay little crush before his breakdown, a la needle scene, which actually wasn’t planned) however, i did sort of figure out that caracalla was going to wind up accidentally hurting alga during his hashtag episode. and that pain was going to directly lead to alga realizing hes not dreaming. going along with that, putting myself in alga’s shoes, if i found out i time traveled with no hope of return my crash out would make headlines.

anyway, the connection was always going to be there. caracalla has a flashback -> caracalla hurts alga -> alga realizes theyre not dreaming -> breakdown. in my original planning, caracalla was supposed to mimic a lot of what alga did for him during his breakdown for them because he has absolutely zero frame of reference on how to snap someone out of that mental state aside from what (two, alga and geta) people do for him. but that didn’t happen because physical comfort felt too out of character for caracalla. so roughly pawing at their face and rudely talking sense into them was what happened

idk if anyone noticed, but caracalla was 100% trying to do the 5 things you see, 4 things you hear, etc grounding technique with alga earlier in the chapter!

(“Look around the room and tell me what you see!” He snapped and clapped his hands twice to signal it was your turn.

All you managed was to utter another ungraceful, “Huh?”

Caracalla huffed and clenched his fists at his sides. “You’re impossible! How did you do this? Smell me, medicus!”)

i pray someone caught that because i thought it was really funny. ANYWAY.

caracalla is calmed by physical touch and reminders of comfort. when hes having a flashback, he lashes out, he enters fight mode rather than flight, and then after it all, goes to freeze. treating him like something to be afraid of makes it worse, so alga’s natural empathy and lowkey disregard for their own safety for the sake of others (their complexes are fascinating) along with how they naturally comfort makes them a good person to help caracalla. whereas caracalla is blunt and self centered, using his own logic to talk sense into alga. who, most of the time, tends to be very logic based, especially when it comes to their own emotions. ultimately, if they think about it, and he is thinking hard about it, he did gain at least a little bit of something in the past. he has friends, he has a purpose, he’s having fun. for once in his life, hes having fun. theyre still very much in A Situation, but they feel more alive than ever. plus after the events of five and six, alga is deeply endeared to caracalla, which we might hear some of in chapter seven. i need to focus on geta some, i must not let my caracalla bias win

dude idk if that made any sense but theres a fun little behind the scenes look into my twisted mind

[doomspiral]

I usually agree with most of ur posts but how r u gonna scrutinise som1 for red shoelaces in art but then hc Tolys as a soldier who FOUGHT FOR SLAVERY????

I scrutinize the use of dogwhistles and references that are done while claiming they don't know or that they dont really mean such and such. Genuinely my biggest beef with the shoelaces was that the artist was also pretending they didnt know when 1) i know people who have pointed it out to them and 2) they used that time to start saying they shouldnt have to care about victims of fascism because of what continent they live on. I regret to say i was vagueposting.

I do also literally make the german bros nazis during ww2 because they were. Regardless of their feelings about it they were in the military at that time. When i made my posts about how gil shouldnt be drawn in ss uniform because its not canon, a couple mutuals found the exact uniforms and reference images for me and i made a post roughly to the effect of "yknow, point. I dont wanna tho".

The last part of this is to point out that to write a western au, the civil war would inform it (to me) unless you purposefully ignore it. I want to make him southern, therefore i had to consider what that would mean. To write early america alfred you would have to admit there was colonial violence involved as well. My interest is in presenting all the reading ive done through a non-academic lense. I can reassure you that tolys is not a slaveowner or a purposeful racist, but half the point is that hes running from being complicit anyway.

You dont have to read it if the very idea is upsetting to you. But i do plan to handle it carefully without being dishonest. If that interests you then youre welcome to review it critically, in my dms or something if you dont wanna add to the comment count.

[pinchinschlimbah]

On "Coming Out" and Noel Fielding

I mentioned forever ago that I had this post in mind and then never got around to it, but now with the new interview quote I was yelling about recently it feels like a particularly good time to get it out of my brain and onto the page! tl;dr: musings on the concept of "coming out" as it has evolved over time, whether it's something that should continue to be necessary or expected of queer people, and why Noel is particularly inspirational to me in that regard since this is, after all, my brainrot blog. This may be extremely long and a bit disjointed but I hope some of y'all will enjoy it!

So a while ago myself and several friends were discussing the concept of coming out. All of us are some flavor of queer both in gender and orientation, but each is in a different place along their self discovery and identity journey, with some being long since out and proud, and others just starting to dip their toes into exploration past the expected cishet.

This discussion actually was prompted by a different discussion about Noel, spurred by comments we'd come across slamming him as being homophobic/transphobic on Bakeoff for making comments suggesting he has romantic or sexual attraction towards Paul, referring to himself with female-centric terms, playing female characters in the skits, and a particular moment where he brings up Old Gregg while talking to KimJoy and says "he was a sea transsexual....quite a demanding role for me" while laughing to indicate that that last part was said in jest. Hey fellas, is it homophobic/transphobic to be a little bit gay and trans? This got us talking about how the current culture of queer identity has evolved to the point where "coming out" feels more like something the public feels they're owed in order for them to view one's expression as valid, rather than its original purpose as something one does for themself in order to live most authentically. I don't think I need to go into detail about how many artists have been harassed by their "fans" into coming out before they were ready because people wouldn't accept the validity of that person's work without knowing exactly how that person identified, there've been plenty of articles and video essays and better written tumblr posts about that, but it's definitely a concerning trend. It can be particularly dangerous when it comes to people who aren't feeling confident or safe enough to come out, who end up being criticized and shunned by the queer community as being somehow problematic for not being able to fully articulate to a group of strangers the ways in which they're experiencing their identity. In this situation, the people who are struggling the most end up with the least support. Forcing people to either declare an identity or get out just leads to more people staying closeted out of fear of doing it "wrong" and never getting the chance to explore the most authentic and joyful versions of themselves, or even worse, feeling the need to out themselves before they're in a safe place to do so and suffering the resulting consequences. Questioning or cautious people deserve space in the community to experiment even if they haven't yet or maybe never will come out! My high school's Gay Straight Alliance was comprised entirely of "straight allies" when I was there. There was not a single "out" person in the school at the time. Nearly all of us in the GSA ended up being some flavor of queer or trans years later after graduation. But whether it was intentional closeting or just feeling an innate affinity towards something we couldn't quite pinpoint at the time, we all knew we belonged there and made that space for ourselves and others like us. Back when "coming out" first became a concept in the public consciousness, it was during a time where cishet identity was not just considered the default, but the only option. By coming out, queer people were giving genuinely revolutionary representation for themselves and others like them by telling the world that, as the old saying goes, we're here, we're queer, get used to it! Nowadays, we're lucky to live in a culture that is much more cognizant of queer identities being a thing, so in many cases coming out has become less about having to explain to those around you the basic concept of queerness existing, and moreso about which specific identity you fall under, and that's where things get messy.

My friends and I shared our own thoughts and experiences. One is currently identifying as "unlabeled" because they haven't found a term that feels correct yet, and therefore hasn't come out because they wouldn't know what to say. One spoke about how when they first came out they were much more insistent on what terms or pronouns people used for them but as time has gone on they've grown to find joy in being inscrutable and letting others wonder what they're perceiving. One expressed that given the state of the world they've been retreating somewhat back into the closet for safety reasons rather than being super outward with their queerness like they used to and is working on learning to embrace those parts of themself again. One said they felt like they'd already been existing as queer and expressing that queerness "before I even had the terms to come out to myself" and is now working on catching up on the conscious end of figuring out what's what. I myself never really had an official "coming out", I just became increasingly visually/socially/vocally queer as I became more and more confident in who I was and what I wanted to be and who I had on some level always been, and decided if people didn't get the hint that's their own problem. I came into consciousness of my queerness during the early 2010s original tumblr MOGAI microlabel boom, where there was a ton of focus on figuring out the hyper specific identity labels that exactly described what you were experiencing. I did a lot of digging and soul searching and experienced a lot of unnecessary stress trying and failing to find my perfect labels and landed on clumsy terms like "full time drag queen" because it was the closest I could get to what I was feeling about my gender, only to be told it was problematic for me to call myself that as an AFAB person because drag "belongs to cis gay men" (don't get me started on that statement, that's a whole other essay lol) It was a real wake up call once I distanced from these aggressively labeled and segmented online spaces and made my way into real world queer communities where I was relieved to find that in fact no one there asks to check your membership card before letting you in, if you feel like you belong there you're welcome no questions asked.

I had other people in these communities referring to me as "queer" and "fag" and "gay" and "queen" before I felt comfortable doing so myself based on online Discourse I'd experienced over who is Allowed to use certain terms, and having these community leaders I respected recognizing those things in me and welcoming me in like that gave me the confidence to really find my own footing in ways that attempting to find my exact correct identity label so that I could officially proclaim it never did. Once I could answer the question of what I was with a shrug and "queer I guess!" things became so much easier. Microlabels can be incredibly helpful and liberating for some, don't get me wrong if it works for you that's great, but let's not pretend that everyone is going to have the same experiences.

So anyway, back to Noel. Noel has never, to my knowledge, ever had any sort of official “coming out” or explicitly referred to himself as queer. So I know there are people out there who will disagree with me considering him to be queer. But so much of what he’s said and done throughout his several decades long career has indicated to me that this is clearly someone of queer experience navigating the world as such, and just as the queers in my local community welcomed me as one of them before I knew to do it myself, I extend that welcome forward. 

Let’s take a look at some of the facts. In the public span of his career, Noel has.....(in no particular order, also if anyone wants to add additional instances of note in the reblogs or comments please feel free, this is by no means a fully comprehensive list) -repeatedly called himself "the woman of the Boosh" or Julian's/Howard's "wife" in ways that suggest that's how he actually felt about it rather than it just being a punchline that he was mistaken for female in the show [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] -referred to himself at the GQ "Man of the Year" awards as "never been a man" and "a sort of girl, he/she" -been referred to by Sandi Toksvig as being "on the cusp" in regards to gender, to which he reacts with amusement and acceptance -consistently expressed excitement and appreciation when others refer to him with feminine terms or say he looks like a girl [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] -said "I love being a man-woman, it's much more interesting than being one or the other" and expressed that the loved shooting the Boosh Electro episode for this reason -referred to Vince Noir (a character who he's been pretty open about being based on himself) as "wasn't seemingly one gender or the other" -expressed that he felt most free and happy when presenting femininely [2] -had Julian, one of the people closest to him, express that Noel and Sandi (an out lesbian) may have "real sexual chemistry" because Noel is "all over the shop, he's a different sex" -used the "Confuser" line of "Is it a boy? Is it a girl? I'm not sure I mind" to refer to himself rather than Vince, and express that he's had to work to find new ways to feel as androgynous as he'd like now that he's older -referred to himself as a lesbian [2] -said that he "sometimes looks in the mirror and sees a woman", in the same interview that Julian implies that Noel is in fact a girl -referred to himself as a "girl/boy" -consistently referred to himself with feminine terms on panel shows and bakeoff -made a joke on bakeoff about not being a testosterone-based person -responded positively when asked about the ways Boosh had influenced queer and nonbinary youth -has said he's "quite obsessed with the man/woman mixup thing" -has said if he was an animal he'd want to be a seahorse because the males get pregnant -Had Lee Mack, who Noel used to live with, refer to him as "the little transsexual one, yeah I think she's fantastic" in a Boosh documentary and "a young lady who came out here happy to be herself" in response to Noel's Wuthering Heights drag performance -had his own mother refer to him as "the daughter I always wanted" -described his own appearance as that of a "transsexual witch" and when an interviewer attempted to make fun of him for calling himself "a transgender witch" by showing Noel a drawing the interviewer clearly found repulsive, Noel responded that the interviewer was "holding up a mirror" and called the image his passport photo

And I'm not even going to bother citing sources on the countless times he's made comments suggesting romantic or sexual attraction towards men. Literally just watch any non-character appearance he's ever done, it's kind of his whole thing??? Not to mention his penchant for picking up explicitly queer and gnc character roles, and also just [gestures vaguely to everything Noel and Julian have said about each other suggesting romantic and sexual tension between them and how they used their characters as an excuse to explore those feelings in a less scary way, again that could be a whole other essay on its own but ooh boy] I also think there's something interesting to explore in the idea of Noel repeatedly referring to his appearance as transgender or transsexual rather than identifying himself as such- at what point does the appearance of something become reality?

It all begs the question- is it even a joke anymore if it's that consistent? Either it's not a joke and it's an authentic expression of his real feelings and experiences, or he for some reason really really wants everyone to believe that he's queer when he's not, with this behavior spanning back to a time before the concept of queerbaiting was on anyone's minds and when being publicly queer could mean the end of your career. Which scenario do you think is more likely? And, does someone who’s been conducting themself like this for their entire career really NEED to come out? Honestly, I find this level of simultaneous authenticity and inscrutability aspirational.

In this Velvet Onion interview from 2012, Noel compares his penchant for dresses to both Grayson Perry and Eddie Izzard. This is interesting because those two people represent pretty opposite intentions behind their presentation- Grayson identifies solidly as cis male, and for him the shock value of crossdressing is the point, saying “I signed up for a gender and I want them to be very clearly delineated so I know I’m dressing up in the wrong clothes.” This doesn't seem particularly in line with where Noel is coming from given him famously referring to himself as "the Confuser" and stating in that same Velvet Onion interview that he "never even bothered giving it a label, I never went oh I'm a transvestite, I just went yeah if I fancy wearing a dress I do, never really thought about it really" Eddie on the other hand has famously said "They're not women's clothes. They're my clothes, I bought them." indicating that they were a genuine part of her authentic expression rather than a crossdressing costume, and has subsequently over the years identified more and more solidly as transfemme. I find Eddie's trajectory particularly fascinating because it's been so non-linear. In the 90s when the language for transness was much less public knowledge, she referred to herself consistently as a transvestite- a cishet man who enjoyed dressing as a woman, as well as using terms like "male tomboy" and "male lesbian" and "a full boy plus extra girl". Despite doing most of her standup shows in femme looks, most of her acting jobs were male-presenting, and there was a period of time in the 2010s where she dropped the femme presentation entirely in an attempt to be taken more seriously as the "crossdressing" was seen by many as a gimmick. Swinging back around more recently, Eddie has been explicitly identifying as genderfluid and transfemme, and in recent years has made the decision to "be based in girl mode from now on", and use primarily she/her pronouns. Since this announcement, in her trans advocacy work Eddie has described herself as being "out" as trans since the 1980s despite all of the above. She always knew who she was, it's just she's gotten access to more accurate terms over time to describe what she was experiencing, as well as feeling more safe to do so the more that transness became a known and accepted concept in the public eye.

The interview I mentioned at the very start of this post isn't really a coming out from Noel. And I don't think we'll ever really get one from him. In my opinion Noel has spent the past several decades conducting himself as someone who is in fact already out- it’s pretty clear Noel knows and is proud of who he is regardless of how he chooses to describe that identity. At this point, making some sort of official statement would just be for the benefit of others looking for clarification on their own perception of him and people who want to be able to put him in one box or another, and that’s not what coming out should be. The statement in the new interview is not "I am genderfluid", its "I've always been genderfluid", simply putting an accurate name to what's always been publicly visibly true now that he's got the terms to do so.

[genericpuff]

Im trying to write a Hymn of Demeter based story element in a story with many characters, but want to avoid possibly being offensive to Greek mythology. I know many comics bend the rules a bit and take inspiration instead of full on adapting the mythos. Any advice on good comics that meet in the middle with this, or ways to avoid this so I don't end up accidentally having similar problems to stories like Lore Olympic. (For reference I have read Plunderland and Theo mania, just if you have any tips I'd greatly appreciate them!

My presphone is already on the more serious dark humor side get shit done side so it's definitely not 100% accurate to the hymn

You'd be better off asking someone who's actually Greek when it comes to cultural respect, that said, Lore Olympus disrespecting Greek myth doesn't really have to do with it being a modern interpretation or taking creative liberties with the original story and its characters, it has more to do with how much it's morphed public opinion and knowledge of the myth both through how it doesn't regularly remind readers that it's fanfiction and its creator who claims to be "better read" on Greek myth on other people (which she very clearly isn't). Even Hercules is frankly more respectful towards its source material than LO in spite of all its inaccuracies (Hercules' name, Hades trying to overthrow the Underworld, Zeus being a loyal husband, etc. lol) because Disney makes it clear it's meant to be purely for entertainment purposes for general audiences (kids and parents!), and you can tell the animators and artists put a lot of work into stylizing a film that was uniquely Greek. Plus the writing and characterizations are genuinely well done, it doesn't feel like it's spitting in the face of Greek myth like LO does lmao Supergiant's Hades and Hadestown also attempt to tell either retold or completely new stories through the lens of Greek myth characters and settings. Even works that aren't retellings like Final Fantasy XIV manage to include Greek myth references and parallels without being disrespectful to Greek culture or myth as a whole.

The real beauty of Greek myth is that it's something that's been retold and re-interpreted into all kinds of works - the stories and its characters are timeless and can be adapted into just about anything! There's always more room for fun and unique Greek myth interpretations, retellings, fanfiction, etc. just be on top of your research and be clear in your goals and intentions with your audience (whether you're trying to do a serious and accurate retelling vs. using Greek myth as simply points of reference vs. writing cozy fanfic of Greek myth material etc.) !!!

So unless you go around calling yourself a "folklorist" or allowing whatever readers you gain to run around calling your work fact, you're likely not gonna cause the same kind or amount of damage to the Greek myth community and its stories that LO has (￣ω￣;)

[maniculum]

Bestiaryposting Results: Haesorog

Welcome to this week's bestiaryposting results! This is an unusual one in that the entry is short, but we have plenty of physical details. We're also following up two obvious ones with a description I genuinely think nobody can identify unless they're familiar with the bestiary tradition itself, or the sources thereof.

If any of that was confusing to you, please consult past posts on this matter at https://maniculum.tumblr.com/bestiaryposting. You can also keep up with the current beast of the week -- and participate -- by checking out the tag "maniculum bestiaryposting". The entry that our artists are working from this week can be found here:

Anyway, art below the cut in roughly chronological order:

@silverhart-makes-art (link to post here) took this in a rhinoceros kind of direction, drawing something that reminds me of paleoart depicting prehistoric rhino relatives that I have seen & enjoyed. I was going to say something like "I'm not sure if that was the vibe they were going for", but the linked post cites Brontotherium as an inspiration for the horn, so that's probably what I'm picking up on. The depiction of it defending its young makes this a really interesting image, I think; I like it a lot. Also, the design decisions explained in the linked post are genuinely pretty interesting, so I encourage you to check that out.

@moonygryffin (link to post here) ran with the "ibis feet, deer head" thing to produce something kind of like a flightless peryton, which I think is pretty cool. What's really clever here, I think, is how the body effectively blends elements of both animals so that it looks like a natural transition between the two. It's kind of bird-shaped, but you can see some deer-shaped elements at the top, and it's got this furry kiwi kind of vibe that's plausibly both "deer" and "bird".

Moonygryffin also suggests that the thing with the feet is the result of our favorite game, Manuscript Telephone, and it was originally the footprint of an ibex, which I think is probably correct. From some quick searching, it looks like Pliny just described this beast as having "cloven hooves". I think it's plausible that a later author changed it for purposes of parallelism -- "size of an ox, fur of a bear, head of a deer, feet of an ibex" -- and then someone else misread it and gave it bird feet. (Do ibexes/ibices* have cloven hooves? I'm going to assume they do, they're goats, right?)

*I checked the OED; both plural forms are attested, though the first is the more common. Which is probably why Tumblr is giving the second one the red underline.

@cheapsweets (link to post here) went for a similar concept as the above, but in a different medium and interpretation. Genuinely impressed by the realistic detail on the legs and head here -- CheapSweets has mentioned seeking out some reference material and art books recently, so I'm inclined to assume those are really paying off. Look at that thing. There's a lot of interesting material in the linked post, speaking to influences, research, and design decisions, which I think is definitely worth checking out. One thing I want to point out specifically because I missed it the first time I saw this drawing: take a look at the people & dog in the background at the top left. Now look at the trees next to them. One of them is a Haesorog cleverly disguising itself. Excellent.

(Also thank you for providing alt text.)

@pomrania (link to post here) has collaborated with @theforceisstronginthegirl on this one, which is a delight! Pleased to see you back, Theforceisstronginthegirl. Anyway, they've also clocked the error with the ibis thing: while they don't suggest it's an error for ibex, they do suggest that it refers to cloven hooves, which as previously mentioned is indeed what Pliny says about it. And then they also decided to give it bird feet anyway because that's more fun, which is very much in the spirit of the thing, excellent call. Anyway, the focus of this design is on the camouflage aspect. They've interpreted it as simply having stellar natural camouflage, which is why it's shown next to a tree here -- we can see that the pattern of its fur lets it blend in with the coloration of the trees around it, and that leaves tangled in its antlers along with its ability to stand on two legs enhances the effect.

@sweetlyfez (link to post here) went with a similar quadrupedal design, shaggy deer-like thing with bird legs, but went the opposite direction with the camouflage. Her post indicates it's shown here "shedding some leaves from the last time it turned into a bush," which means this version of the Haesorog is suggested to have actively supernatural camouflage that allows it to shapeshift. (Which is definitely suggested by the text.) There's something very evocative about the eyes here, which I like. (Also, thank you for including alt text.)

@coolest-capybara (link to post here) continues to deliver beautifully stylized art. I'm really delighted by the the pose the second Haesorog is taking in order to blend in with the very pretty Stylized Plants around it -- I think this is maybe not the environment where color-shifting is hugely useful, as I have no doubt the first Haesorog is fully aware of its presence. Something that makes this particular design interesting is that between the default coloration displayed on the left and the shape of the feet, you get a kind of "this thing is a step too human for a quadruped" feeling that makes it a little more unique-looking than it might be otherwise. (Also, thanks for including alt text.)

Over all of these entries, I'm noting that one effect of the clear physical description is that it does provide a more restricted space in which artists can play -- it's much more obvious than in other weeks that all of these are the same animal. Whether that's an upside or a downside is, I think, wholly subjective. Now let's look at the Aberdeen Bestiary.

...

Okay, we can't do that actually. The page with the illustration is missing from the Aberdeen Bestiary. So we're looking over to its sister manuscript, the Bodley Bestiary. (MS. Bodl. 764, also digitized online.)

So this beast is of course the Parander.

Yep, bet everyone feels foolish for not recognizing such a common and well-known animal as the parander.

Also, of course, known as the Tarand or Tarander, of course. Or parandrus / tarandrus in Latin.

Right, so the reason that I was so confident nobody without a thorough background in the bestiary tradition (or Pliny the Elder) would recognize this one is because it's not a real animal. And it's not even one of the mythical ones that managed to get a foothold in the modern consciousness.

I might be overstating the "not a real animal" line, actually; odds are good it's based on one. Let's talk about that.

There have been some guesses as to the parander's identity in scholarship. The Bostock translation of Pliny has a footnote that cites two competing theories: "reindeer" and "elk [aka 'moose']". The reindeer one gets an explanation -- differently-colored summer and winter coats -- but the elk one is just kind of tossed out there as a proposed alternative. My guess (based on it already being past 10:30pm here and not wanting to put in the time to track down a source that's cited only by a last name with no other identifying information) is that that one's about the parander's size being emphasized.

You may say, "excuse me Maniculum, neither of those animals lives anywhere near Ethiopia. What are you playing at? Are you going to try and convince me that the pre-modern definition of 'Ethiopia' was so broad it encompassed the Arctic Circle?" The solution is that the parander wasn't originally described as being from Ethiopia -- Pliny says it's from Scythia. Which... also seems a bit too far south. But it's entirely reasonable that the Scythians were reporting on something seen on a trip north or something they heard about from northern neighbors, which would put "reindeer" and "elk/moose" both back in as options. Scythia is close enough to the range of both of those animals that it's plausible they would be familiar with them.

Someone you may have heard of took a stance on this issue, interestingly. An 18th-century biologist named...

... Linnaeus. Yep, it's codified right into the scientific name for "reindeer" now, and has been for as long as binomial nomenclature has been a thing. Anyone who wants to make the "elk/moose" argument is going to have a bit of an uphill battle.

All that out of the way, now take a moment and scroll back up to that medieval illustration. Mentally compare it to the description and the art shared in this post. There's something different, right?

You may notice that the artist has given it cloven hooves rather than bird's feet, having not been confused at all by the "footprints of an ibis" thing. Now, often this is the result of the art not actually being directly based on the text, but copied from art in a previous manuscript, so a scribe can write down the wrong word and it won't affect the art at all because the artist may or may not even be reading the text as they work.

Often, but not always. In this case, I would like to float an alternate explanation.

On the left is the translation of the Bodley Bestiary I have on my shelf, to which I referred when filling in material from missing pages in the Aberdeen Bestiary. On the right is the Bodley Bestiary digitized manuscript.

Now. I am not trained in Latin paleography, so it's possible that I'm misinterpreting an abbreviation. But that word on the right... the penultimate letter certainly looks like a C, doesn't it? Not, e.g., an S? (It would be a long s here, but that doesn't actually help.)

Which means that the manuscript says ibex. The ibex -> ibis confusion is a case of Manuscript Telephone, but it was telephoned in the 1990s.

Again, like I said, I'm not an expert. I've never translated a single page of a Latin manuscript, much less had a book-length translation published in a handsome slipcover edition. So it's very possible I'm missing something. But right now I'm pretty sure that everyone's been drawing bird feet not because of an error made by a medieval scribe, but by the modern translator.

Anyway, that was exciting, right? I hope that makes up for me posting this a few hours later than usual.

[jasper-pagan-witch]

Do you have a favorite and least favorite deck that you own? Or multiple in each category. Or any decks you disliked enough you regifted them?

Ohhh boy, do I ever. Firstly, I would like it to be known that I do, in fact, have spreadsheets for this. I have so many spreadsheets overall tbh. Therefore, I have spreadsheets for this! Regifted decks do not count towards my total of 60 decks, but the shame corner decks do.

Regifted Decks

Cosmic Tarot - I didn't really vibe with it, so I gave it to my mother.

Crystals: The Stones Deck - Not actually a tarot or oracle deck, but I gave it to my grandmother.

Dark Goddess Oracle Cards - There was just. So much wrong with the "lore" in this deck. The artwork also reminded me of those low-quality game ads you get on...adult content sites. I gave this one to my mother too.

Disney Villains Tarot Deck - I just didn't vibe with it, despite the pretty artwork. It really felt like they just made it a tarot deck because tarot decks are more popular than oracle decks. I gave it to a friend.

Kawaii Tarot - It was simple and clean...and I genuinely couldn't fucking read the deck. I gave this one to my mother as well.

Tarot of Sexual Magic - Most of this deck was cishet white folks and the only black man who appeared was about to get murdered on the Tower card because he was sleeping with a white woman and her boyfriend was swinging an axe to stop it. Did not enjoy. My mother actually took this one as well.

Shame Corner

Aleister Crowley's Thoth Tarot - I got this one on purpose and I think I gave it anxiety. I actually used its cards for bookmarks for a while but almost lost a good half of the deck.

Gems Oracles Cards - I knew that there was appropriation in this deck because I actually bought it off of a friend who was complaining about it, but it's part of something akin to a personal art project.

Decks I Actually Like - Tarot

The Antique Anatomy Tarot (Claire Goodchild) - This has the same overall vibe as those old-timey doctor's illustrations and it makes me feral in a good way. I want to eat this deck.

The Crow Tarot (MJ Cullinane) and the Guardian of the Night Tarot (MJ Cullinane) - Beautiful photoshopped collage-style decks. I even named my Crow Tarot "Uldren" (shoutout to the Destiny players and lore nerds who catch that reference).

The Dragon Tarot (Nigel Suckling, Roger Garland, Linda Garland) - My first ever tarot deck, lovingly named Abbot. This deck taught me a lot of hard lessons real quick about divination. Could use more dragons, but I love it. I've used it so much that it's falling apart.

Gay Tarot (Lee Bursten, Antonella Platano) - One of the first queer decks I bought, and it makes me happy because I'm masc-leaning when I must present as a gender.

In-Between Tarot (Janine Worthington, Franco Rivolli) - A really cool deck that explores the spaces between the cards rather than focusing solely on their classic depictions and interpretations. Cernunnos called dibs on this one.

Manga Tarot (Riccardo Minetti, Anna Dorzhieva) - A very fun little deck that genderbent every card and focuses on overall color to help carry the meanings. It is not, as far as I can tell, based on any particular existing manga.

Star Spinner Tarot (Trungles/Trung Le Nguyen) - This deck comes with four different Lovers cards, so I just keep them all in the deck. The author apparently has a graphic novel called The Magic Fish that I intend to read one of these days. I actually came across the novel through a YouTube video and didn't catch the author/artist's name at first, but I saw the artwork and immediately clocked it as Trungles.

Tarot of the Divine (Yoshi Yoshitani) - Alongside its companion book Beneath the Moon, this is an adorable little tarot deck whose art style makes me squee.

Tiny Universal Waite Tarot aka Tiny Tarot (no listed artist/author) - This is not a deck I use for divination, it's just so smol and cute that I wanted it.

Decks I Actually Like - Oracle

The Arcana of Astrology (Claire Goodchild) - Another Claire Goodchild deck, and I want to eat this one too. This deck doesn't just stop at zodiac signs and planets, there are also cards for the houses and the "comets", too.

The Seed & Sickle Oracle Deck (Fez Inkwright) - THIS DECK'S CARDS MAKE A GRADIENT. This is one of the most beautifully illustrated decks that I have ever seen in my life. It comes with two guidebooks - one for internal meanings, one for external meanings.

Spirit Allies (Jill Pyle, Cidney Bachert, Jay Kay) - I don't care much for the "goddess" portion of this deck, but Cannabis is a card in here and that made me cackle. Worth an honorary mention.

Woodland Wardens (Jessica Roux) - Another beautiful deck, this one features animals paired with plants. The composition of these are absolutely top-tier and I love them very much.

Thanks for sending this ask! I love to talk about decks I own and ramble about them and brag about my spreadsheets!

~Jasper

[bitchliteraria1906]

Very random headcanons for the dokis living together (take this as poly dokis or friendship, idc)

Tw for small references to depression, disordered eating, self harm and implied abuse.

•They have a chore board to keep track of everything and remember who's doing what. It was Monika's idea and it works pretty well.

•One of the things they learn to memorize rather quickly is each other's eating habits. Sayori comfort eats, Natsuki often stops eating when stressed due to old habits from when she still lived with her dad, Yuri is picky due to sensory issues with texture (autistic Yuri!) and Monika literally forgets to eat if she's working too hard on something. They have each other's needs memorized, keep each other's preferences in mind when buying snacks and coax each other into better habits.

•Speaking of food, Natsuki is the chef, Monika is the second best cook and Sayori and Yuri are... not good. They're trying to learn though!

•There's a significant amount of pride merch around the house.

•Each of them has their own room!

•Sayori's walls are pastel blue and she painted little clouds on it. She also has plushies pretty much everywhere, and tries to sleep with all of them in the bed. Her bedside table is full of origami, always has some water so that she doesn't need to get up if she gets thirsty at night (she has spilled said water on her origami creations and ruined them more than once) and there's 3 drawers for different purposes: the "Fun drawer" has things she needs for her hobbies and little trinkets, the "Emergency drawer" has bandages and painkillers (since she hurts herself all the time by being clumsy) and the "Feelings drawer" has poems, notes with silly jokes or positive affirmations and pretty much anything that could either lift her spirits or help her feel enough to cry and let things out.

•Natsuki's walls are pastel pink and filled with posters of characters and artists she likes. She has a lot of fandom merch, as well as a full gaming pc set up (yes, even cat ears headphones). She also owns a heart shaped mirror, a hello kitty night light and her door has these "Don't disturb", "My room, my rules" signs but with more agressive wording and in pastel colors because she thinks mixing agressiveness with a softer look is funny.

•Yuri probably has the most "atmospheric" room by far. I'm talking scented candles, poterry decorations and such. Her walls are black, which makes her the only one who didn't go with her favorite color (her favorite is purple). Her reasoning is that it makes her feel grounded and sleep better. She has transparent boxes for her knive collection, an altar with crystals and one of her walls is full of polaroids, including photos of the club as well as photos of nature, architeture she found pretty and much more (pushing the "Yuri is into photography" agenda). And of course, books everywhere.

•Monika had the most trouble with her room because she never had the time to think much of it? Like, she had an idea of how she would organize it but decoration was tricky. After a while, she decided to paint the walls an earthy shade of green and get a bed curtain. She also has plants (plant mom Monika, anyone?), her piano and a record player. The only thing on her walls for a while were post its with little reminders, but then she managed to get her hands in some cool images and paintings. Her desk has a mug full of different pens and she has a mat that is white and fluffy.

•Don't be fooled, having cool rooms doesn't stop them from falling asleep in each other's rooms or together in the couch pretty often.

•They have movie nights weekly and take turns picking movies.

•Yuri genuinely tries to stop self harming, and the others help endlessly. There's a silent rule of not leaving Yuri alone for too long in days when she seems too tense, and instead offer to take her to a calming walk or anything else that might help her gather her thoughts.

•In fact, there's a lot of unspoken rules in the house.

•Another big one is not letting Monika overwork, and reminding her to take breaks when she's studying or preparing projects for the club.

•There's also "Don't question Sayori's sudden mood swings or innability to get out of bed, just help". They often bring her water and snacks on bed and remind her that they're there if she needs to vent. She rarely ever does that, but it's still nice to see how much they care.

•And of course, "Don't mention Natsuki's dad and what she went through with him unless it's 100% necessary or she brings it up herself". Of course all of them notice how Natsuki often flinches at loud voices, or how she still feels the need to hide her manga collection and other stuff sometimes, but they don't point it out. Instead, they just silently remind her that she's safe by lowering their voices when they startle her, giving her space when she wants, not going through her stuff, etc.

•They often find themselves copying each other or getting into each other's interests. Some months of living together and suddenly Monika is watching kids cartoons because of Sayori, Natsuki is getting into horror, Sayori sometimes finds herself copying Yuri's stims (she feels super bad because she doesn't want Yuri to think she's mocking her but Yuri actually finds it kind of endearing).

•Sharing clothes. Natsuki specifically is a certified clothes thief.

•Holidays are always cool, especially christmas and halloween. Decorations, fitting music, food and movies, all that stuff.

•Halloween specifically was a bit difficult the first time around because Yuri and Monika wanted to stay home and watch horror movies while Sayori and Natsuki wanted to trick or treat (Sayori because fun and candy and Natsuki because she worked hard on the costume). Yuri was anxious about talking to random people and Monika was tempted but thought they were too old for trick or treating, but they do end up going and having a lot of fun (the four of them still watched the horror movies when they got home though).

•They're all planning on starting therapy.

•"How do they get their money?" What are you, a cop?/j. I don’t know either, I need to think of job headcanons or something.

[spearxwind]

Since you're on the topic I have genuine question about AI art designs from a non-artist.

In your opinion would using an AI tool to generate a reference for a commission (whether it be for character design or pose) be an appropriate use of said tools?

I thought about this as well and I gotta say, personally I don't think so.

Barring for the purpose of this ask the whole "AI art is stolen art" thing (which I stand by fiercely), AI generated images are really janky, especially reference sheets. There are details everywhere that make no fucking sense, anatomy is deformed, they have a lot of nonsensical parts to them so its just one big jumble of nothing.

And, it's pulling from designs created by existing artists and warping them to fit your prompt. It's work that another artist already made, used by an AI that's trained on a specific dataset. It also pulls from popular things that people enjoy: tried and true color combos, the most popular shapes that big artists use, theres a LOT of waifus, and a lot of the art genuinely comes in the same painterly style that's really hard to color pick from. some even come with color swatches that don't match the colors on the reference

In short, it's just a machine generating something that looks neat at first glance, and then is actual hot garbage when you just... look at it closely. Not to mention that an AI prompt can be iterated, and the AI pulls from everything it has, for every prompt, so what you end up getting is completely samey designs with small changes. Good for concept art assistance, but not if you want to create a Legit Character. The AI will give you something that it has already spit out a thousand times over and then some, with no regards to composition, design technique, color theory, because all it knows is what it has been fed and what the artists its ripping off of know (meaning if they have mistakes, the AI will as well. But in a far less human way)

Meanwhile, when you commission someone you are likely to go for someone whos art style will actually fit what you want to get, or someone whos art style you enjoy. Usually these artists will be people you've followed for a while and you at least know them enough to know what they can do. And they are also reactive, you can tell them to actually change and tweak details of what they're making for you. And not taking into account the bad actors out there (as there are always bad actors in every discipline) you will have something that has been made specifically FOR you, not just what a machine thinks you would perceive as eye candy.

As for poses... just draw it badly in ms paint. The AI will not give you the pose you want for the aforementioned reason: broken anatomy (and also because it will pull from its dataset of poses it can warp features onto. It's a lot more limited than you think.) If you want a pose prompt for a commission just draw it really badly in ms paint or on a napkin and write annotations for the artist (arm goes here, this guy is grabbing this thing, etc etc) Most of us if not all of us will GLADLY interpret your pose for you and draw whatever you want us to.

And like. Literally if you're going to get commissions anyway, why not commission a design first thing of all?? Or buy an adoptable from people who already make them by hand? It will genuinely be so much better than just hoping a machine does all the work for you. Please support artists

[johnniesmoke]

Buy the Whole Town

"Buy the Whole Town" is a bold declaration of ambition and individuality. From the very first line, "I toast me some dro," the song captures a sense of confidence and celebration. The artist portrays a vivid journey through ambition, freedom, and resilience, blending moments of indulgence with the struggle to build a life of purpose. The title itself, "Buy the Whole Town," is a powerful metaphor for taking charge, not just in the material sense but also in the drive to leave a lasting impact on the world.

The song’s narrative unfolds with the idea of being "the one that they know," striving for recognition while being unapologetically oneself. There’s an emphasis on authenticity, with lines like "I be who I be and from a brother to a brother," highlighting the importance of staying true to one's identity, whether in times of joy or challenge. The artist weaves between carefree indulgence and the weight of aspirations, evoking a sense of freedom as they let the night take them, while recognizing that "there's only one life for yours truly, and it's meant to be."

Throughout the track, there’s a balance between the pleasures of life and the hustle required to sustain them. References to iconic experiences like "strip clubs, casinos, the seven wonders of the world, and the Great Wall of China" conjure images of exploration and opulence. These experiences reflect a desire to enjoy life to the fullest, embracing both the highs and lows that come with it. The artist, however, doesn’t shy away from acknowledging the work needed to achieve such experiences. Lines like "Hey, I've been working to get mine" and "Living on my last dollar" ground the song, portraying the grind behind the scenes, making the moments of triumph all the more meaningful.

The recurring line, "The sky could fall down, but the vision I've seen gives me all the hope that a kid could ever need," is an anthem of perseverance. It serves as a reminder of why the artist continues to strive despite the obstacles. This hopeful vision is central to the song, emphasizing the power of dreams to uplift and push through hardships. The artist embraces the uncertainty of life, suggesting that even if everything were to fall apart, the hope embedded in their vision remains unbroken.

Another key element of "Buy the Whole Town" is its intimate portrayal of simple pleasures, like cruising to the beach at 5 AM and feeling the cold sand underfoot as the sun rises. These serene moments contrast with the otherwise bustling imagery of ambition and nightlife. They bring a sense of grounding to the song, showcasing that beyond the desire for success and recognition, there is a need for peace and connection with nature and friends. The artist describes being "with my peeps in this life," emphasizing that, at the end of the day, these genuine connections are what make the journey worthwhile.

The song closes with a statement of independence and resilience, "I'm balling out not bothering anybody. They've got nothing." It underscores the theme of staying true to oneself and finding fulfillment in one's journey without needing validation from others. The artist moves through the ups and downs, remaining unbothered by detractors, and focusing on their vision and purpose.

"Buy the Whole Town" is a celebration of ambition, freedom, and authenticity. It captures the struggle, the grind, the fun, and the beauty of living a life that’s true to one’s vision, no matter what others may think. It’s about embracing both the hustle and the indulgence, enjoying every moment, and holding onto hope through it all. Buy the whole town: lyrics:

I toast me some dro/

I'm gonna buy the whole town be the one that they know/

The sky could fall down/

But the vision I've seen gives me all the hope that a kid could ever need/

I've got to be lit

I've gotta be waved/

Hey call uncle Smoke/ I be who I be and from a brother to a brother/

From a beau to all the honeys/ All the sights have gotta' be seen/

Strip club casinos the seven wonders of the world/

The great wall of china and I've got nowhere to be so I let the night take me/ There's only one life for yours truly and it's meant to be yeah yeah yeah/

Let's go baby let's go/

There is only one life for yours truly and it's meant to be/

I toast me some dro [trouble] I'm going to by the whole town/

Be the one that they know/ The sky could fall down/ But the vision I've seen gives me all the hope that a kid could ever need/

Put me on plane take me away/ Let me say hello to the good-ol-days'/

Hey I've been working to get mine/

Said you take me on ride while I've been waiting my whole damn life/

Living on my last dollar/ I'm living my life/ I don't want to live a lie/ Im going to go get mine because that's all mine/ all mine

I hope you don't mind/

I toast me some dro/ I'm going to buy the whole town/

Be the one that they know the sky could fall down/

But the vision I've seen gives me all the hope that a kid could ever need/

Clock just struck 5am and I Ain't' been to sleep/

I'ma' cruise to the beach/ When the sun comes up the sands going to be cold on my feet/

I'm gonna' stay all day/

I'm with my peeps' in this life this is all I need/

All I need all I need/

Biggie Smalls: You hang on thats police I'm balling out not bothering anybody/ They've got nothing me/ They've got nothing

[archie-sunshine]

Genuine question for you, Archie, are you self-taught when it comes to art or did you go to school/take classes for it? I also really love your art style, could you share how you developed it? (if it's not too much to ask for that is)

Hi Raz!

Yeah, its a bit of both!! I was always into drawing as a kid, though it sort of ebbed and flowed a bit, until I was about 11 years old. It was tradition to spend a week during the summer in the city with my cousin, and during that time we did a week long comic arts workshop with a professional comicbook illustrator (whos name currently escapes me). I was hooked after that. we went to another workshop the next year, and then after that I'm pretty much entirely self taught aside from highschool arts class.

As for my art style, I pinged around through really liking anime, to really liking comic books, to really really liking fanart and artists i found on tumblr and instagram when i was young. I don't know if i would say i started doing art for the purpose of developing my style, I just drew what felt right. I would fill entire sketchbooks during my school days, drawing at every spare moment I could. drawing the same ocs and characters over and over. I have so many sketchbooks i honestly don't know what to do with them.

I think the most tangible thing i did to improve my artstyle and develop it further was drawing from references. I'd take time out of my day, usually during lectures, that i'd look stuff up on pinterest and draw it. and not just stuff i liked drawing either, I'd try to draw from a variety of things, bugs, animals, houses, plants, people. I'd do an exercise, one i highly recommend to people looking to make their lines more confident, where i'd only draw in highlighter and ink pen. the highlighter was to get the silhouette of the shape, the pen was to define the shapes. No erasing, no going back. Plant your fucking feet as it were. it helped me establish my current style of drawing a lot.

thanks for asking!

[edge-oftheworld]

okay, it is time we talk about atl

putting this video up here bc i love how she compiled things with a focus on what we know to be true, not just simply anonymous claims. because the 2000s and early 2010s were a really wild time and i hope that we all share in wanting to make the music industry better than it has been. because doing that requires thinking about how we talk and how we call people to account, in a targeted purposeful way that also affirms, where reasonable, their ability to do better and to choose it themselves as well. i hope you manage to watch it through and think about her criticisms of especially their statement at the end, and ponder the question of, how, realistically, would we call them to do better? (also, abigail??? what are you doing here?)

and also, because from there leads us to the question: do we think it's right to ask ashton to boycott their songs, and if so how hard is it appropriate to push him towards that--or are we channeling our energy in the wrong place, perhaps even causing harm, or 'punishing what we want to see'? because unlike some of their idols, 5sos do have a track record of being respectful to fans, and, if we want to make the music industry better, don't we want to see more of that? i draw some parallels and come up with some ideas under the cut.

I'll admit I don't know a heap about all time low; i enjoy some of their songs, appreciate a (maybe a little cringey) reference to microplastics and I know 5sos looked up to them a lot when they were younger and alex gaskarth helped write some songs off sgfg and showed up in the how did we end up here documentary. I've never been to one of their shows, had no idea about the bras, or that they formed in high school just like 5sos, with a lineup that parallels the instrumental roles of 5sos. in some ways it's like they're an american 5sos eight years ahead in their careers and about that much older than them too. rose to fame alongside bands like panic! at the disco, and like p!atd, made their shows run with energy of sexual liberation that meant saying some careless things, doing some morally ambiguous things that are highly problematic when taken out of context or thought hard about with a critical lens of how some sexual liberation when it has power attached to it, infringes on the rights of those with less power in the name of rebellion, and can even uphold abuse. so, problematic.

does this mean any of them are rapists? not necessarily. but have they taken less accountability than brendon urie? arguably.

and so clearly, the parallels with 5sos stopped a while ago. i've said it before but one thing i do notice about all the music 5 seconds of summer have put out, is that in an industry where it's normal to objectify women/sexual partners in general, in genres that often have a little of that sprinkled through songs i'll sometime overlook or sit through for the sake of the song as a whole--they don't have a trace of that. or if they do, it's playful, humble, not forceful by any stretch, and an invitation to a collaborative kind of sexuality (greenlight), a celebration of an existing relationship with its shared wants (slsp, valentine) or a kind of reflection on experience that went some kind of way (ela, talk fast, iwct, wayf, teeth, a lot of their discography). it's also all really genuine, it feels really safe to listen to--and that's unfortunately a really rare thing that they have.

so, in the event atl are actually looking to do better, not simply reactively to enraged fans and the general public (because for a lot of fans, the morally grey stuff is normalised. and people are loyal) there's a lot of artists they could learn from, where it could feel like a really authentic and autonomous learning process. and who are they likely to listen to?? maybe some guys who have looked up to them for decades, gone along a similar path, reached a similar level of fame, and kept this aura of respectfulness about them while also being cool people who aren't moral purists. 5sos have no obligation to do that, and maybe ashton simply didn't think before playing their song--but think about it. if we want to make any industry better, as much as supporting those who are doing it right (and imo this does include not forcing them into an inhuman standard of perfection) it includes facilitating accountable pathways for people who have done things badly to do better.

that doesn't change the fact that what is alleged is horrible. that as much as there isn't any proof of it, there's no proof it isn't true--how much more of a case they'd have if jack's partners from that time came forward and said they were with him at the time and there was no evidence of there being anyone else. if he came out and said that he's got some standard of how he treats underage fans (even if it is looser than we may like) and after whatever happened with abigail which was 10 years ago when he was still a young adult, he's learning more about who it's appropriate to date. and in the case if the allegations are false, if he's got nothing to be afraid of and they don't need to try strongarm it with the support of the law to make it go away, we actually do have another example (if very much unintentional) of how to transparently respond to false allegations sharing what you know and what you would and wouldn't do from our very own 5sos. (which again, parallels. sometimes reality offers the best irony).

because if it's not true and that can be shown in a transparent and respectful way, they have nothing to worry about. they can take this as a warning to think about their behaviour; we can hear the stories behind the allegations made, all can be put to rest. I hope the lawsuit uncovers the truth; I'm not too confident it will but the truth does have a way of coming out eventually. and the victims of the allegations deserve to have their voices heard, deserve to be respected and validated, even if we can't for the moment say for sure it was one way or another. we have to keep crying out for the truth to be found. for some of us it may mean stopping supporting them until we can do so ethically, but for some of us it may mean keeping them relevant, not stopping talking until we know the truth. some of us may decide this isn't the focus of our activism.

but is it up to us to decide that ashton specifically must choose the method of boycotting them? it's not up to me to decide that for you. but please at least think. is this the best use of my activism energy or is it better directed somewhere else--somewhere that might actually bring some sort of resolution to this?

[perse-is-rarwin]

you know what time it is!!!! our fan(art) favorite girl is here!!

MIO FARROW!!!

elaborations and cool new stuff under the cut!!

OH MY GOSH SHE WAS SO FUN TO DRAW I'M SUCH A NERD FOR HER‼️‼️‼️

i very sparingly used my refrence pose this time ( 💪 ) and i changed up the angle of her head, her legs, body shape, and hands! we're getting better every day folks

the collage was so fun for her too, bc she had two doppelgängers, the best outfits, and is super easy to find blinkies/stamps/graphics for.

her shirt is a Mario odyssey reference, her hair clips are a Nintendo switch refrence, she's holding a 3DS, she has pikachu shorts AND a pokéball tattoo, her necklace is the triforce, and the big chunky bracelet is a color reference to Myro!

speaking of Myro, Mio has a lot of cool dynamics with the other girls! She was the gay awakening to Renée and more notably Karyn (I'm building a universe mwehhehe), and she used to be in a relationship with Kira

Mio's gay awakening was when she was a teenager and accidentally summoned Desdemona. She took one look at her and said 'yeah, women are very hot too'

i have more headcannons for Mio, but i can post abt them later, more importantly, there's a new mini section to this post!

inspirations! Mio has a LOT of good fanart, so i wanted to shout out and tag the artists and link the fanarts that i took into consideration with making my interpretation of Mio

@ricobutaddn 's art of mio as an adorable cat maid! absolutely adorable and an amazing art style! i took the color palette into consideration when coloring my version, b/c it's soooo dreamy

@catmannotcatboy 's art of mio and iro! the clothes looked so good and i genuinely considered doing a full body drawing so i could draw her with legwarmers too! plus, transwoman mio has my HEARTTTTT

@marniemallow 's art of mio and nova! gosh where to begin?!! the pose, the expression, the color palette (can you guys tell i like color yet?), all immaculate! like genuinely the art shows so much character and helped me develop some personal head cannons about her!

@squashbananak 's art of mio and peanut! once again, the style and character you gave her is AMAZING genuinely!!!! i cannot express how i feel about her i'm just clawing the screen...

and ofc, the ever-iconic art of mio done by @silliesunnie ! one of the first fanarts i saw of a crush crush character, and it made me wanna draw them so bad!! your mio is so iconic and i love the scene aspects sm!! (i just realized your mio also has a triforce necklace lmao i did NOT do that on purpose)

i hope it's cool that i tagged yall, and if its not, banish me forever i get it

but i'm gonna stop yapping now and get back to work