#for a little bit i was actually considering drawing the entire thing on paper with pen

[heuheu-art]

In September 2022, I started writing a new comic about Dundee. I ended up producing an entire script and the majority of thumbnails for a 200 page comic. Unfortunately, I'll probably never make it. 200 pages is a lot; I have a job and other projects I'm working on. I made a fair amount of concept art for it though, so I thought I might share some of it.

The story takes place when Irwin was young, shortly before Darren walked out of his life. It is both a prequel and sequel to Jackaroo Dundee and was going to be called Paper House. I'm going to leave the rest of the story a mystery in the hopes that I'll eventually do something with this script.

^This is Darren! Everything was written and drawn before we knew what Darren looked like, and I'd always imagined Irwin was the spitting image of his dad. It was thematically important to the story for them to look alike, so I'd planned to keep it like this even after we met Darren.

The dialogue is blurred in the first two panels because Irwin is deaf in his left ear and couldn't hear Darren until he was behind him. At the start of the story, Irwin uses a hearing aid, but it's later broken.

Windows and door frames are significant! There's nothing behind them. Ever.

I designed an outfit for each character for every scene they were in, paying close attention to fashion trends of the era and items of clothing that they might wear frequently with different outfits.

Sheila's clothes in particular were fun to design. She starts getting more adventurous with her style after Darren walks out.

I realised very quickly that the tone of the story demanded a more realistic style, so it was fun to adapt my pre-existing design for Irwin to this.

The core idea behind Paper House was a young Irwin who hates his dad, but feels powerless to stop himself from becoming just like him. I put a lot of work into this comic and would love for it to see the light of day at some point, even if it ends up in a different form.

[heeseungiez]

love letter | hyung line (0)

— a teaser

your whole life, you’ve only known one thing: relaying love letters. but what happens when one of those letters is addressed to you?

— pairings! heeseung x reader; jay x reader; jake x reader; sunghoon x reader

— featuring! enhypen members, haewon from nmixx, yuna from itzy and possibly other idols

— genre! romcom, high school au, found family, fluff with a tiny bit of angst (?)

— author’s note! i’ve really been loving family by choice so far and the whole love letters plot inspired this fic, sooo 🤭

— tags! open

check out my masterlist !!

“Here,” says a girl you recognise from your year. Jang Wonyoung holds up a carefully wrapped letter with cute drawings on the outside. It also smells very sweet and fruity, like lemon and peaches.

“To whom?” you ask automatically, grabbing the letter without studying it further. To you, it’s just another one on top of many, many more. 

“Park Sunghoon,” she replies, a giggle leaving her lips at the mere mention of the boy. You fight the urge to roll your eyes. It’s not that you don’t understand— okay, you don’t understand, actually. Sunghoon never shows any interest in any girls whatsoever, and yet they keep trying to approach him or give him love letters through you, and honestly, you’re tired.

“Fine. But I can’t guarantee he will read it nor respond to it nor that he won’t simply throw it away,” you say in a monotone because it’s an automatic response that leaves your lips every time you receive a letter. You might as well be considered a customer service worker — an office worker, really — with the way you deal with them. 

“I know. But thanks anyway.” Wonyoung smiles at you because realistically, she’s nice. From what you’ve heard about her, she’s great. So you’re a bit put off by the fact she’d show any interest in Park Sunghoon, of all people.

Sighing, you put the letter in a paper bag that has a sticker of a penguin on skates on it and Park Sunghoon’s name written right underneath. The bag has been with you for years by now. You made it back in fourth grade, probably, so it’s a miracle it still holds on. Especially because it’s already overflowing with letters from this morning.

Next to it, you glance at the other three bags. One with a sticker of a golden retriever and Sim Jaeyun in glittery letters, one with a black cat holding a knife and Park Jongseong written in cursive on it, and the last being a basketball sticker with the name LEE HEESEUNG in capital letters. 

This is what you get for befriending your neighbours, you guess. But seven-year-old you wanted to have older brothers, and seven-year-old you did not know that once you grow up, something like love and crushes would exist in your world. Until you did grow up, and you learned the hard way what it meant to be the so-called little sister of four decently looking boys. 

None of which have ever shown interest in anyone, ever, as far as you can tell. Or they simply haven’t told you anything about their love lives which, honestly, you prefer. It’s enough that you have to relay love letters to them, having to hear about them actually dating someone would be far worse. But somehow you doubt they’ve dated anyone — unless they’re much better at keeping secrets than you thought. Because the whole school would be taken by storm had anyone found out. Even if it was just the old janitor who found either one of them hiding in the broom closet with a girl, the whole school would know by the next day if not within the next hour. 

To put it simply, they’re popular.

Park Sunghoon, the figure skater whose entire life has been spent mainly on ice. People at school call him the ice prince for the obvious reasons, and the less obvious ones, where he just regards everyone as if they’re beneath him unless they’re his friends or, well… you.

Sim Jaeyun or Jake, the football prodigy and team captain who moved here from Australia and therefore has an Australian accent and is bilingual which, for some reason, girls love. He’s also the nicest person anyone could ever meet, so that might also be a factor. A golden retriever in human form, people say. The only reason you like him is because he’s been bribing you with snacks since middle school, though (said jokingly… maybe). 

Park Jongseong or Jay who, on the other hand, moved here from the United States and is known for his love of music and bands and guitars and the fact he can play the instrument. He’s in a band with some other guys from school, but you’re not all that familiar with them since Jay mostly keeps them away from you, for whatever stupid reason he’s made up about protecting you and whatnot.

And lastly, the oldest of the four, Lee Heeseung who is the basketball team captain and a huge nerd which girls also love? You’re half-convinced that if he were partially blind and had to wear glasses, the whole school would fall apart with the amount of people trying to catch a single glance of him. (Yes, he wears fake glasses sometimes, so maybe you’re speaking from experience.) He’s the guy you’d go to if you need help with school but he literally does not have any time in between his so-called game time, which is punished by death if interrupted, studying, and basketball practice. The only way to receive help with studying from Lee Heeseung is to either (1) study exactly what he is studying or (2) be you. 

Someone shoves another letter right in front of your face.

“Who?” you ask without looking up. But the letter is waved in front of your face with such violence that you roll your eyes, sigh, and look up. You’re met with the sight of one of your best friends, Kim Sunoo, whose cheeks must be hurting from how big his grin is.

“It’s not for them,” he says giddily, dropping the letter on your desk.

You study it for a second, noticing one glaringly obvious thing.

To: Y/N.

It’s addressed to you.

“Who gave this to you?” Your eyes widen as you turn to Sunoo with question marks in your eyes. But the boy shrugs, clueless.

“I have no idea. It wasn’t exactly given to me, you know. There was someone who just bumped into me without saying sorry or turning around, and they dropped this. So, obviously, I had to check what they dropped and well… it turned out to be a letter addressed to you,” Sunoo recalls the story, dramatically motioning with his hands to emphasise the whole scene.

You grin, staring at the letter.

“For me?” you ask yourself, your eyes fixated on the name written in neat handwriting.

“Open it,” Sunoo encourages you.

“Open what?” A new voice joins the conversation, and your smile grows even brighter at the sight of Yang Jungwon, your other friend, and class president.

“Look!” you say, grabbing the letter to wave it in front of his face. “I got a letter. Can you believe it? Me. Not the guys, but me.”

“Are you sure it’s real?” Jungwon asks sceptically, his eyes narrowed. “What if someone’s making fun of you?”

“Why are you so pessimistic?” Sunoo frowns, looking at Jungwon. “I think someone likes Y/N. It was about time, too. Her life needs to stop revolving about those four.” It’s not that Sunoo has anything against Heeseung, Jay, Jake or Sunghoon personally, but he’s not fond of how much time you spend doing things that are seemingly just for them. Like constantly dealing with their love letters. It seems that your entire existence at school is as the girl that talks to them.

“I’m not disagreeing, but still. It’s a bit weird that the letter came out of nowhere.” Jungwon shrugs, ending his point there. He connects his lips together in a thin line, and you know that he won’t argue any further.

“Should we maybe open it with Yuna and Haewon, too?” you ask, your eyes never leaving the letter. “We need more opinions.”

“At lunch?”

“At lunch.”

“Fine. But I’d still be careful.” Jungwon sighs, shaking his head. “If the person can’t give the letter directly to you, they’re not really worth it.” It’s funny how Jungwon just managed to indirectly attack every single girl that has ever made you relay a love letter without thinking much about it.

“You sound like Jay,” you point out anyway, making a face. Sunoo hums in agreement. 

“That’s not a bad thing.” Jungwon nudges your shoulder with a soft laugh.

[wolfsong-the-bloody-beast]

I'm kind of obsessed with Blackwall's idealized ideas about the Wardens. He was once picked up by a Warden and lulled by the promise of atoning for his crimes and turning his life around, only for that opportunity to slip away when the Warden not only saved him, but sacrificed his own life to do it. This whole experience makes our Blackwall become a Warden in heart, if not in blood, but with his own ideas of what a Grey Warden should be - noble, brave, inspiring, heroic, self-sacrificial. Everything he now wants to embody. He knows well that he's not there, but he wants nothing more than to start from scratch and be that.

In his beliefs, he reminds me a bit of Wynne in Origins who tells the Warden at some point that the Grey Wardens are supposed to be more than killing machines and weapons against the blight.

“There’s more to being a Grey Warden than killing darkspawn and saving the world from the Blight. Ultimately, being a Grey Warden is about serving others, about serving all people, whether elves or dwarves or men. As a Grey Warden, you are a guardian of men. And you guard them because their continued existence is more important than you are.”

However, we know that's not exactly how it works. That's what they want the Wardens to be. The light against darkness. The shield against monsters.

Although it's not entirely wrong, either, I suppose, all things considered. The more darkspawn they obliterate and push back, the more people are protected from them. Of course, sacrificing their lives to fight literal monsters, which means those same monsters don't eat everybody's kids, ultimately is heroic, and it's something that must have been born out of the need to protect the world and its inhabitants (from the Blight). But to have idealized opinions of the Wardens to this degree, you have to ignore all the other shady stuff and the mentality we, as players, also know the Wardens for. The fact that the Wardens are primarily weapons to slay darkspawn, prevent and end Blights, by any means necessary. The last part is important. After all, they are the Grey Wardens, not the White Wardens. They recruit from all walks of life and are famous for taking in criminals. Not to redeem themselves and get a second chance at life, but because they usually have nowhere to go and nothing left to lose. It's not a coincidence that each of the Origins gets chosen by Duncan, not only because he sees them as capable, but also because they are in a situation they can't escape from. Either they join the Wardens, or they're done for.

We know the Wardens from a few games now, but does the public in the setting even know? Does the average person have any idea how far the Wardens are willing to go? Besides grand stories of slaying monsters in the dark and preventing the end of the world? Probably not. The order is very secretive. And it explains a lot. The Wardens end up sounding almost romantic, when being a Warden is anything but. Is it ignorance talking out of these characters? Perhaps.

It once again shows us this aspect of Dragon Age where you can't take everything a character says as a fact, because the setting is full of people who have no idea what they're talking about, but who are absolutely convinced that they do.

And yet, I can't help but also like Wynne's and Blackwall's romantic ideas about what the Wardens are or should be, almost knights in shining armour and all that. They're fairy tales, but they're beautiful fairy tales. And I can't fault the characters for wanting to believe it or even live it. Especially in case of Blackwall, who sees it as a way to make up for the crimes he committed, somewhat. In the end, this might actually be a bigger draw to join the Wardens than, "Got nowhere to go? Come suffer horribly and probably die gruesomely with us!" It all sounds great on paper, though. I can't fault Davrin for trying to find purpose in life by becoming a monster hunter, either.

And maybe a little bit of idealism doesn't hurt. Not only it's good motivation, but in the end, doing things by "any means necessary" doesn't always pay off, either. It led the Wardens into all kinds of trouble, like getting tricked into employing dangerous forms of blood magic and demon summoning, basically into doing their enemy's work for them. In their determination to win at any cost, they helped trigger a cataclysmic event. Maybe having some principles isn't so bad after all.

In the end, I can appreciate that we get to see the clash of the old and new blood in Veilguard, where there's hope for the order to transform into an organization that's less secretive, less exclusive, and hopefully less prone to letting corruption spread through its ranks and make other devastating mistakes. Duncan once said that letting people join the Wardens isn't an "act of charity", and I like how Evka and Antoine go, "Yeah, you know what? Fuck that." And that likely inspires more loyalty. I imagine Blackwall would like that.

[resident-gay-bitch]

🦇 Stranger Saturdays 🦇

Will x Mike (Byler) cute getting together (3k words)

“Hey, what are you drawing?” Mike asked, almost falling out of the chair he was swinging on to get a good look at the page Will was entirely focused on. 

“None of your business, nosey.” Will scoffed, turning his page even further from Mike's view. But he glanced up, rolling his eyes and shaking his head with a soft look on his face, considering Mike for just a moment before turning back to his drawing. 

Mike felt himself blush at the fleeting attention. Mike always feels a little flustered with Will's attention, and it was only recently that he became aware as to why. 

It took El dumping him, which was not the best feeling. Getting dumped, whether one actually has feelings for their girlfriend or not, will always be a punch to the gut… and the ego. 

It was when Mike was complaining to Lucas about it later that things started clicking into place. 

You don’t love me, She said, You spend more time looking at your best friend than you do at me. 

Why don’t you call me as much as you call Will? 

When we were both hurt, you went to Will first! 

It took Lucas actually slapping him around the head to get it. To get why. 

And it’s infuriating; knowing that you’re in love with your best friend, that is. Mike was very happy being completely ignorant to the fact, thank you very much. At least then he could be a little bit soppy without feeling like he’s gonna be crowned town pariah. 

Besides, it’s agonising, wondering if his feelings could possibly be reciprocated. But he doubts the fact. The chances of Will being queer in this small town too are already slim, and the chance of him loving Mike, out of everyone else? Well, that's even slimmer. 

Lucas is a far better option. 

Hell, even Dustin! 

Even Steve, and that’s really saying something, because Steve is annoying as all hell and a total loser. 

But sometimes… sometimes it feels like… Sometimes Mike gets his hopes up, and it’s like a little spark in his chest that's fighting to not blow out. He never wants that spark to die. 

He blows a raspberry at Will and brings his chair back down to four feet, playing off his stumble very cool-ly so the teacher doesn’t take his chair away from him again. He gets told about some made up kid that swung on his chair, cracked his head open and died, at least once a week these days. 

“You don’t have to see everything I draw.” Will comments after a while, sensing Mike's blatant disappointment with the fact. 

He loves how easily Will can read him. 

Though, he’s sure his dramatic sighs and groans are obvious enough for anyone to read at this current moment. But in a more general sense, even when Mike is adamant on keeping his emotions on lock. Wills just… he’s got this way about him; an internal compass that points directly at Mike's moody feelings and gives him step by step instructions on how to cheer him up. 

“But I like everything you draw.” Mike sighs, leans a hand on his chin as he melts onto the desk, neglecting his work completely. 

“Well, you can like everything else. This is just for me.” Will says, attention completely on the page again and Mike has never been jealous of paper, but suddenly, he is. 

“I can never see it?” Mike pouts, “Not even when it’s done?”

“Nope.” Will shakes his head, keeps sketching. 

“Why not?” Mike asks, nosey, nosey, always nosey when it comes to Will Byers. 

“Because…” Will sighs, stops for a moment to glance up at Mike before his attention is gone again, “It’s embarrassing. It’s… it’s stupid, okay, it’s just for my own practice and enjoyment. It’s not even good.” 

“I’m sure it’s great–”

“Whatever.” Will rolls his eyes and smiles, “I’m too embarrassed to show you, so leave it alone. Maybe when were thirty.”

“You better keep it ‘till we’re thirty then.” Mike huffed, laying his upper body flat on the desk now in a dramatic display of boredom, “Can’t believe you won’t show me. I thought we were best friends, I saw your butt once, nothings embarrassing–”

“You didn’t mean to see my butt!” Will laughed, “Stop using that as an argument for everything.” 

“Sorry.” Mike groaned, poking his tongue out, “I just want to see your art.”

“I’ll draw something else to show you later.” 

Mike blew another raspberry, and Will completely ignored him. This feels similar to torture, for Mike. He’s not sure what to do with himself, when Will ignores him. No matter how many fart noises he makes, how many bad jokes he cracks, no matter how much he wails and wiggles around, Will just ignores him. Barely even laughs!

And Mike feels utterly betrayed by this, and maybe a little heartbroken. He lives for Will's attention, and more importantly his happiness, and most importantly his affection. And in this current moment, Will is refusing Mike all of those pleasures. 

And he’s too embarrassed to show Mike his drawing. Which is insane, because it’s probably something cool like a freaky weird dragon, or The Party going to battle or something. 

Or maybe it’s something creepy and haunted. Will does that sometimes, draws his nightmares, the pictures getting more and more graphic as he ages. And he tends to not show Mike those, so Mike doesn’t have to worry about them. But Mike always finds out, and he worries anyway, because he just wants the best for Will. Wants to make everything better, or as good as he can. 

He only hopes to bring Will half as much comfort as Will brings him. 

“William.” The teacher calls, peering down her glasses and waving him over with a finger, “I have a question about your essay.”

Will glances over at Mike and pulls a sour face before hopping up. Mike gives him a sympathetic smile, hopes Will doesn’t get detention or anything. Though, it would be funny since he’s the only one out of the Party who hasn’t gotten a detention yet. Somehow. 

Mike watches them, as Will pulls up a chair with a little annoyance. And Mike feels that annoyance even more, because that means Will is going to be up there, and away from Mike for a while. And Mike already misses him. 

Boredom gets even worse, and Mikes got this bad feeling stirring in his gut. He’s desperate to know what Will's drawing. What he’s so embarrassed about. And he knows it’s bad, knows it’s a boundary to peek, but Will has never kept a drawing from Mike before. Not really. 

Sure he’s chosen not to show things to Mike, but if asked, he’ll share. He’s never denied Mike the ability to awe over his best friend's work. 

So, when he’s not looking, Mike leans over in his chair until there's only one leg of it on the ground. 

He’s wobbling, one hand on the corner of Wills desk to attempt to help support him, his tongue strategically poked out of his mouth, and he’s glancing over at them every couple of seconds to make sure he’s not going to get caught. 

And with his middle finger, he’s able to carefully lift the corner of the closed page to catch a tiny peak. 

But he can’t quite make it out, so he dares a glance to the front, and lifts the closed page higher. 

He furrows his brow, because he’s sure he’s seeing things– Or, he’s not quite sure what he’s seeing at all. 

He stretches his arm as far as he can to open the page almost ninety-degrees, and staring up at him, coloured fully in vibrant pencil, is a portrait. 

A portrait of Mike. 

And it’s… wow, it’s amazing. 

Mike has never thought he was all that good looking, but this drawing really does him a good justice. And his hair looks fucking great. 

The portraits got every one of his freckles, his dimples, the smiling wrinkles of his eyes. Behind him is golden and warm, cast in beams of light that set him centre stage, making him look almost godly. Makes it seem like he’s actually something worth looking at. 

And when his eyes fix on the little hearts floating around his head, and the scribble of “Mr. Will Wheeler” down the bottom, Mike falls out of his chair. 

He splats down on the ground with a clatter, his chair somehow bouncing off the ground and landing on his back, ow. 

“Mike Wheeler! How many times have I told you not to swing in your chair?” The teacher bellows for probably the millionth time. 

Mike just groans in response, this is humiliating. He’s never fallen out of his chair before. And to do so in front of his whole class? Humiliating. 

He can hear Max somewhere in the classroom laughing her ass off. Total trator. 

“Detention. Now!” 

Mike rolled his eyes and got himself to his feet, collected his things and headed towards the front of the class. Not without a sparse glance at the sketchbook again, now closed, thankfully. But Mike knows what’s nestled within. 

As he walks to the teacher, to collect his detention slip, Will shakes his head laughing. He seems relaxed, which means he didn’t see Mike peaking, which is good for now, since they can’t talk about it. 

Shit. 

They have to talk about it. 

In haste, Mike collects his detention slip and races out of the room. He obviously doesn’t go to detention, instead he ditches school and skates around town because he’s freaking out and this is the only way he can think to pass the time and calm down. His moms probably gonna kill him, but whatever.  

Mr. Will Wheeler. 

Mike's heart is in his throat and his hands are trembling and he’s sweating and riddled with nerves. He doesn’t quite know what to do with himself. 

Mr. Will Wheeler. 

This is… everything. 

He’s spent so long skating around and rambling in his own head about what to do, he didn’t realise school had gotten out. He only realised when the sun began to tint the sky orange and warm, casting Hawkins in a golden glow that made something once drabby into something worth looking at, just for a moment. And Mike thinks about the portrait. 

And he thinks about it. 

And he thinks about it. All the way to the Byers house. All the way to Will's bedroom window, which he climbs through without knocking. 

“What are you doing?” Will asks, a hand to his chest from the spook Mike caused. He almost dropped his cup of soda, sitting it down on his desk, flicking his sketchbook closed before Mike's eyes could pry, he thinks, “Where'd you go after English? Are you okay, you seem off?” 

Mike shook his head, sets his skateboard down under the window, drops his backpack, “I saw your drawing.”

Will's face turned ghostly white, “What?” 

“I looked.” Mike said plainly, almost lost of breath completely. Who knew talking to the guy he loved, knowing he felt somewhat the same, would be so breathtaking, “I’m sorry, but I looked. I saw what you drew… what you wrote.” 

“Fuck– Mike, I’m– I–” Will began to stutter, slowly trying to back away before he collided hip to his desk, “I’m so sorry, please don’t–”

“I’m gonna kiss you.” Mike said, very still in place, “That okay?”

“That– What?” Will asked, cherry red now, clearly as terrified as Mike was. 

“I’m gonna kiss you.” Mike said again, nodding to help convince himself to actually do it. To kiss him. To kiss Will. 

“You’re…”

Mike nodded one more time before charging forward, grabbing Will by the face, and kissing him. 

Will definitely didn’t pull away. 

In fact, he grabbed Mike back, pulling him closer and closer. And this… this is that fairytale shit in all of Holly's story books. This has got to be true love, or something. 

It’s gotta be. 

“Honey, I’ve got– Oh!” 

The both of them split apart all too fast as the door swung wide open, Joyce standing in it, staring at them both. Mike is about to freak out. 

“I’ve been waiting for this to happen– keep the door open, please. Are you staying for dinner, honey? We're having meatloaf.” 

Neither of the boys answered for a long while. Clearly just as confused as the other. It took Joyce shaking her head at them, confused, to jolt Mike into action. 

“What?” He asked, stuttering it out. 

“Are you staying for dinner?” 

“Uh… S-sure.” Mike said, because he’s not very good at saying no to Joyce these days. 

“Okay, can you two set the table for me then?” 

Mike and Will were still stuck standing in place, each a little worried to move. Mikes a little worried that the moment he does move, Will will take all of that back. 

“Hello?” Joyce said, now standing with her hands on her hips, “What is with you two today– is it because I walked in on you kissing, because I’ve seen worse, you don’t wanna know the things I’ve walked in on Jon doing–”

“Ew, mom.” Will scoffed. 

Joyce laughed, walking over into the room to tidy up Will's bed, “Don’t worry about me. Anyway, dinner will be ready in ten, so come out quickly.” 

“Okay, mom, can you please…”

“You’re okay with it?” Mike asked, terribly pale in the face. 

Joyce froze, turning her head to look at him for a moment, considering the pair. With a sigh she wandered over, her soft hand on his cheek, and she has to look up at him now– at both of them. She keeps going on about how they have to stop growing so fast. 

“Honey, all I want for my boys is happiness.” She smiled, leant up to press a little kiss to his cheek, “I’ve known about this for a long time, longer than you, I’m guessing. I’m surprised Will didn’t tell you that we’re okay with this around here. And don’t worry, I won’t tell your mom anything you don’t want me to.” She said with a wink, turning and leaving the room. 

“Ten minutes.” She called, as if she hadn’t just said the most meaningful thing she’s ever said to Mike, “Jon, El! Dinner’s almost ready, come help your brother and his boyfriend set the table.” 

Mikes heart is in his throat. 

“Boyfriend?” Came three consecutive shouts throughout the house. 

Beside him, Will groaned, shuffled over to his bed where he flopped down face first into it, “This is mortifying.” 

“Mortifying?” Mike scoffed, “Your mom just told your whole family we were in a relationship before we even agreed on a relationship!”

Will turned his head, peaking one eye up at Mike, “But… we’re… we’re in a relationship?”

Mike could feel his cheeks burning up, and he’s sure he looks stupid, blushing this much. But it can’t really be helped after kissing the boy he loves, and with the prospect of more. 

Mike nodded his head, and Will turned back into his bedsheets. The two of them stayed like that for a moment, equally as nervous, equally as awkward. They were only torn out of the best new seconds of the rest of Mike's life when they heard Hopper shout out from the kitchen. 

“Not Mike again!”

On the bed, Will broke out in hysterics. 

“He hates me.” Mike muttered. 

Rolling onto his back, Will smiled, reaching a hand out for Mike. And when he took it, his hand felt like it was burning, sparks flying everywhere. Will's hand is so soft and warm, and Mike doesn’t want to ever let go. He lets himself be dragged over towards the bed. 

“Yes, he does.” Will says through laughter, “But he's just gonna have to put up with that.” 

Before Mike could get another word in, Will yanked him down onto the bed, Mike toppling over on top of him. And they were kissing again. 

And Mike never wants to leave this moment. He’s sure this is the best thing he’s ever done, other than asking Will to be his friend that day on the swing sets. 

He can’t wait for the rest of their lives. 

ive never written byler before so this was fun yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyy i think they're so sweet and i cant wait for them to become cannon in season 5 :)

ive been rooting for them sincei was 14 and watching season 1 when it first came out and thinking oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck they remind me of myself and my best friend oh fuck does this make me gay too?

[its-dean]

Interstella: How am I supposed to feel?

Just this past week, there was a special one-day screening in theaters of a "remastered" version of Leiji Matsumoto's Interstella 5555. On paper this is a really exciting thing to have happen, especially for me. This is one of my favorite films/anime/albums of all time, and I could honestly gush about it for as long as it would take for you to watch the whole thing start to finish :,)

But there's something more to all of this that makes the whole situation feel a bit complicated in my eyes. To summarize: this re-release, rather than being a remaster by traditional means, is one that's forced forward by the power of generative AI (you can notice it especially on Stella in the screenshot above). Just from watching the trailer on Daft Punk's Youtube Channel, things felt unnaturally crisp and, in a way, kind of "alien" to the original version I was so used to. I know that's a pretty personal takeaway for me to present you with, but it did alarm me with just how many keyframes I saw that looked very "unnaturally altered." Don't get me wrong, the picture quality is better than I've ever seen, a real shock to the system, but knowing the history behind this film and its production so well I just can't help but think about how this level of quality was something I was literally never meant to see.

This post is gonna be very different from what I usually like to share online, but since the announcement was made and the actual event has since happened, the thoughts have just been stirring in my mind nonstop. I wanted to put my thoughts out there for once, mostly because of how much this film inspires me.

The film itself is a visual masterpiece that I can't recommend enough. Headed by Leiji Matsumoto, an absolute visionary in the world of classic anime and one of my favorite artists in terms of his pure drawing style. I love a lot of his work, even as far back as Captain Harlock and the original Battleship Yamato, both from the '70s (though I'll always say that Interstella is my favorite project he was ever attached to). Considering he just passed away a little over a year ago, I'm a bit torn up over whether or not this AI driven re-release was really the best way to honor all of his hard work...

And then, if we're gonna talk about what you'll be listening to, you've got Daft Punk with Discovery, which is literally my favorite LP of all time(though I'd say in large part it's thanks to this film). I'll be honest, this post is about the visual film rather than the music, so I'm not going to be talking so much about them here. All of their songs are still there and in perfect condition, and considering these two broke up over 3 years ago I think it's an overall amazing feeling to see their music still being promoted like this (especially when it's Discovery).

It's really exciting for me to see Interstella getting a visual "update" such as this. The entire film is crafted to be a very "flow-based" experience unlike what you'd see in traditional anime/cinema. There's not a single word of spoken dialogue, and things are kept at a very brisk pace with high frame rates and detailed compositions. Not to mention the fact that the entire film is a well thought-out commentary on the music industry's hidden faults: exploitation of talent and destruction of creativity. It's a message that's unfortunately proved itself to be a timeless one, something I think we all need to refresh ourselves on from time to time. Reasons like these are why I'm really glad that this re-release even happened at all, because I think it's a wonderful thing to celebrate this type of creative and visual storytelling.

The debate I've been having with myself, though, comes from what I had mentioned before: generative AI. If you know the full story, they it might make more sense why the people who restored this thing chose to do it this way (well, besides the obvious $$$). Film restoration is a long and laborious process, but it becomes impossible to undertake unless you have the actual original film reel to work with. Toei Animation, the studio who produced the film, had scrapped the old master for the project, so there was literally no physical strip to be cleaned and re-scanned for this modern re-release. The best these new producers could do was to find a recording of the film, use it themselves, and pump that through an generative AI program. This type of approach doesn't make me feel like it was something they wanted to do, but rather saw this new technology as a means to bring easy profits, definitely a very artificial and soulless approach to promote and sell something that honestly didn't need to be remastered in the first place, but I'll talk about that later.

I should make it clear after saying all that, my opinions are very much rooted in all of these statements I'm making. I think it would be unfair for me to claim that I know all the sides of this story, but there are just those one or two key decisions made here that makes it hard for me to keep quiet. Daft Punk doesn't deserve any slack for doing something like this, they've been broken up for years and have already won me over time and time again through their music. And again, I think it's a wonderful revelation to be able to see this film shine again in theaters (even if it was only for one day). If any of you have pieces to this puzzle that might contribute to this rhetoric I'm winding here, definitely let me know by leaving a comment or messaging me. I'd love to learn more!

Because I wanna stay focused on the film itself, I'd actually like to transition to some of the more positive things I took away from all of this. I'll start with this: one thing I'm VERY glad to have noticed is that the remaster doesn't seem to be using AI to "insert frames." A common thing to see with a lot of these generative projects is a desire to have everything running at an unnatural 60 frames per second. The problem with this is that it forces these AI programs to try and fill in the blanks on their own, producing frames that were never actually made in the original animation sequence. This always end up resulting in movement that I think feels far too fluid to be compelling.

Unlike a lot of anime, and animation in general, Interstella already has quite a surprising amount of motion. I think it was likely done to try and tell as much story as possible, but there are so many sequences where I'm left surprised at just how many frames are packed into a single second of animation, lots of really quick camera panning too (High Life is a great example of this imo).

I think this whole idea of inserting frames to make things run at 60 fps is a very naive outlook on what animation is meant to offer. Letting your mind fill in the blanks is what animation is all about, and that's why elements such as breaking movement into ones and twos are some of the most powerful tools in an animator's arsenal. (This is a personal opinion I'd like to tack on, but I also think that seeing the "grainy-ness" which comes with older productions like this can make for a much more whimsical experience. It adds this dreamy, ethereal personality to certain key moments that's difficult to put into words, and it makes the overall watching experience feel much more memorable if you ask me). It makes me very happy to see that restraint from whatever team was in charge of putting this together, because Interstella is still a masterpiece in animation, even over 20 years later.

I really want to recommend that you watch this thing for yourself if you get the chance. Just get cozy, grab a good pair of headphones, turn the lights off, and take the time to appreciate this art in it's original form. The entire film is on Youtube and can be found very easily under a number of playlists, mainly because each single in Daft Punk's Discovery corresponds to a different part of the film. It still feels wild that there was this much I wanted to say about an event that's already come and gone, but I think I decided to take this leap to put some important food for thought out there, as well as to help you learn a little bit about myself. Animation has always called to me, and I've never found myself drawn to these modern-day trends that try to focus on building new spectacle from old works. Part of the fun with animation in watching it is thinking about the artists behind the screen, thinking about everything they were able to paint and produce using all of their effort. Whether it be art in a visual sense or art as presented through Daft Punk's unique music, I hope you might be willing to give this film a watch if you haven't already. (And if you have, then why not go for another ride!)

(When I rewatched this part I could only think that when Daft Punk made a cameo their reactions are really just a self-fulfilling prophecy rip)

[monoceros-vulpes]

Reunion.

☆ ... 1.1k

☆ ... Tartaglia, Gin

☆ ... No warnings apply.

☆ ... this is actually pt.3 of their lore 🧍‍♂️ i'll link them chronologically

Tartaglia frowned, rereading the documents he'd been given for what felt like the millionth time. He was dispatched in Fontaine to settle a trade dispute between a local organisation and the Fatui— a minor deal to increase the reputation of the organisation with the nation. Unfortunately, he hit a snag. Several of the documents his subordinate had given him had pages missing, leaving the information hardly coherent.

He sighed, frustrated with the entire ordeal. After the last diplomatic situation in Sumeru, he'd rather set his bow aflame and follow a nomadic life out in the mountains of Snezhnaya.

Where would he even start with this? Considering where the documents were found, maybe another look in the area surrounding would give him a lead.

Just then, a rustling sound from above caught his attention. A panel in the ceiling was open across the room, revealing the darkness of the attic.

The chair crashed to the floor as he stood, prepared to draw a weapon.

"You got a thing for watching people from the shadows, hm?" He spoke, narrowing his eyes.

His candle wasn't nearly bright enough to illuminate the space above his ceiling. It was, however, bright enough to reveal two glowing eyes peeking over the frame of the ceiling. The small creature crept closer to the edge, revealing the red fur on its snout in the dim light. The fox hopped down, landing quietly on the floor.

He frowned at the familiar figure.

"I thought I was the one chasing you, not the other way around."

The fox shook its body free of dust. Tartaglia held back a grimace as he watched the fox's sinew tear and bones reform— a sound he doubt he'd ever get used to— leaving the boy standing in front of him.

"It's been so long since you've seen me, I thought you've given up. Besides, it seems like you've been having a little trouble," he smiled, watching him with mischievous amusement spread across his face. A look that Tartaglia didn't exactly trust.

"That's a way to put it," Tartaglia retorted, arms crossing over his chest. "You must enjoy watching me struggle, hm?"

"Perhaps, a bit." The boy ran his fingers through his hair coyly, looking around the room. "But it would be no fun at all if you got stuck, no? Maybe… a little help would get you going again."

Tartaglia laughed coldly at how casually the kitsune spoke, watching him as he sat on the end of his bed. For a moment, he considered his options. He was wary of the help, especially from someone who always seemed to be a step ahead of him. But, he was desperate, and he really didn't have much time.

"And if I say yes to this 'help'? What's the price I'm expected to pay for it?"

Gin sprawled out across the bed. He kept his eyes on the other man as he wrinkled the sheets. "It's been an awful long time since we've shared a meal, hm? You used to be so sweet to me…"

Tartaglia scoffed, stepping over to the bed.

"I wouldn't call it sweet." He hadn't forgotten their last… interaction. How could he? The memories weren't very pleasant with the way the fox used him— although he wasn't exactly a saint himself. The last thing he expected was for the kitsune to come straight to him again though.

"You grow colder by the day," Gin sighed, closing his eyes as he rolled onto his back. He pulled a few sheets of paper from beneath his clothes and offered them to Tartaglia.

He was wary taking them, unfolding them and skimming over the pages, recognising the seal that stamped them. Of course, the documents he'd been looking for.

"You had these all along?" He asked, looking up at the kitsune, finding him getting comfortable on the bed.

"You make me sound so selfish, Tartaglia."

"Aren't you?" He retorted, narrowing his eyes. The way he sprawled across his bed, it would've been an invitation in any other situation.

"I found them. I didn't know you'd be coming all the way to Fontaine to see me." He rolled over, this time bringing the blanket with him, wrapping himself in the fabric. "I would've thought you'd be more accommodating for me, though. Your room is so cold…"

"Accommodating?" He frowned, almost in disbelief. "Did you forget who we are to each other?" He tossed the half-folded papers onto the desk to deal with later. "You don't get to act like a housewarming guest after what you pulled."

"We made such a good team together."

"That's debatable." Tartaglia found it incredibly infuriating how the fox was acting like they were something more. The way he just laid down on his bed, as if it was his usual routine. "You're here because you want something, aren't you."

"I told you," he replied, his golden eyes meeting Tartaglia's. "I want you."

The confidence in his voice only made Tartaglia's irritation worsen.

"You just come into my room, act as though you own the place, then expect me to do whatever you want as long as you give me a few papers in return?"

The boy sat up, drawing his knees to his chest.

"Are those not the documents you were missing?"

"That's not the issue." Tartaglia wasn't expecting to be dealing with a troublesome fox that night. Although in hindsight, it was his fault for not expecting it. Where Tartaglia went, trouble followed. The kitsune couldn't help but be drawn to it. "Get out of my room."

He watched as the kitsune begrudgingly shifted back, the springs squeaking as weight was eased from them.

"I offer you assistance in your time of need and I get turned away so coldly…" His tails flick to wrap around his body, his back to the harbinger. "Humans these days are so inhospitable."

With a leap, he had disappeared back into the ceiling, the tile closing after him.

Tartaglia couldn't help but sigh as the kitsune disappeared from his sight. There was a mixture of emotions stirring within him, frustration at his presence and the fact he just left with no problem after their discussion.

He would be lying if he said he didn't miss the familiar face a little bit, just as he knew the fox probably missed him too. But the last thing he wanted was to get involved in another one of his games.

He ran a hand through his hair, looking back to the rumpled sheets on his bed. The fox had caused so much trouble, and he still had the nerve to turn up like he belonged in the room. But, the way he looked so comfortably in his bed…

That night, Tartaglia struggled to sleep.

[psalacanthea]

WiP Wednesday

Since Durge and Gortash won the Friday poll, I'll pull something out of the other BG3 fic for WiP day. My pace with the new chapter is a little slow, between taking a week off and now dealing with Pain, but hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to focus enough to make some real progress.

From the Astarion x Tav longfic, a little bit of WiP for your amusement. (if you would like to be tagged to do your own in the future, pls let me know)

...

“Well, if you used that sensible mind you keep claiming to have, you’d know that obviously I’m her patron,” Astarion sneered at Shadowheart.  His voice relaxed, going lazy and dismissive once more.  “And muse, naturally.”

Zyn considered drawing a gigantic curly moustache on her sketch of him.  It was rude to interrupt.  “My peerage or lack thereof has not yet been shared– please avoid making assumptions about me.”  No, this wasn’t right.  He looked too…neat and tidy.  She grimaced at her sketch, and then glanced back up at her subject.  “Could I see a little more collarbone on the left side?”

“I’m not giving it away,” Astarion scoffed.

“Darling it’s for aesthetics, not expression of base lechery,” she begged.  “Your neckline is too symmetrical, it doesn’t give me ‘careless dandy’.”

Astarion scowled at her, lifting her stolen goblet as he demanded, “regal!  Make me look regal!”

How dare he not trust her artistic acumen.

“Even if your life depended on you appearing ‘regal’, I doubt I could oblige,” she snapped. "You egregious twink."

Shadowheart laughed faintly.

Astarion gasped, lifting a hand to his chest. His not nearly bared-enough chest.  “How dare you!  I am your patron! I could have you thrown out on the street!”

“Oh please, if there’s one thing upstart would-be nobles need, it’s portrait painters.  There’ll be another dozen of you by teatime.  You can dictate when you pay me, you contrary piss-puddle”  Zyn added shading to his neck, pausing as she glanced up to find his eyes on her.  He didn’t look angry, despite the insult.  He was smiling.  Ugh, that was the wrong expression entirely!  “Tilt your chin to the side!  Again. I told you to stop moving.”

Astarion sighed in annoyance and rolled his head to the left, hair swaying.

“I have no idea what’s going on, and yet I can’t look away,” Shadowheart said.

She settled down abruptly, pausing with one hand on the ground to snag one of Astarion’s pillows.  He made an irritated noise, but didn’t bother retaliating.  Zyn’s briefly riled mood flared up again.  Why could she have a pillow, but Zyn hadn’t been allowed one?

Traitor!

Zyn glared at Astarion until he glanced away from the goblet of wine he was staring into contemplatively. Her nose wrinkled as their eyes met. The pasty reprobate sighed heavily, eyes rolling skyward.

"What now?"

“You’ll not be welcome in my bed any longer if I catch you giving someone preferential treatment over me,” she threatened him.

“You–"  Astarion stared at her in shock, and then laughed, lifting a hand to his mouth. "Aha. Ha!" He dissolved into laughter as he sprawled back onto his pillows, ignoring her scowl.

Zyn slapped her stub of twine-wrapped pencil down on the paper, leaving a crumbled line as the tip snapped. "Stop it."

“Hah! I can’t believe you actually thought that would work!”

“I mean it, this is serious!” she whined as he started laughing over her again, throwing his head back. “You blaggard! That's it. It's moustache time.”

[logicpng]

Artist ask game!!:3

6 7 8 11 13 and 14 Hope these aren't too many!! (Cuz I am holding back from asking even more-)

11 and 13 already answers but i can tackle the rest :3

6. Favorite and least favorite angles/perspectives to draw?

yknow top/bottom angles are extremely difficult but they're SO satisfying when you can get them right. with a decent reference and enough practice you really can just tackle anything! i don't really have a Least favorite angle, but facing front are the most annoying ones to get right. symmetry my beloathed

7. Who are some artists that have inspired you?

ohhh there's a lot. i think ggdg comes up first because their colors in Cucumber Quest and other works are Delicious. evan dahm's comics have been inspired me to try comics, i love Rice Boy to bits, Order of Tales and Vattu are are also fantastic. i love the surrealism in Hylics, Mason Lindorth is an amazing artist, Joel G's ENA is an incredible series that has been an inspiration to me.

i think special mention goes to Partycoffin's Welcome Home for inspiring me to convert CaelOS from an AU to a personal project that has now grown much larger than its AU iteration has. However. the fame that Welcome Home has gained no joke Horrifies me and i hope CaelOS never explodes like that.

and Dev Palmer's re:curse. idk man playing through it and listening to the music makes me believe i can make a little game about CaelOS one day too. though there's a funny thing...

the whole caroline house folder thing (if you know you know! play the dang game!!!) completely by accident ended up pushing me to make Aster Assistant Software. all because i really thought "caroline house" was going to be an ukagaka for a second!!!!

but yeah there's a lot.

14. Do you prefer to make fan content or original content?

see that's an extremely tricky question to answer because my entire gallery has been driven by whatever i was hyperfixated on at one point or another. before april i'd easily tell you fan content was preferable

but now i feel a lot more fulfilled putting out these projects and chunks of story i want to create bit by bit. in part the fact that this is my original work that i have to actually Make drives me because it doesn't depend on outside opinion. i also have some events in mind already, how the main story starts and ends.

Project ASTER is more of a prelude to the whole thing, an exercise btw. it doesn't take part in the main story, but it helps a lot for me to put down Aster's backstory on paper

problem is though is i have no idea for how long this will last. i think the fact that there's several mediums being worked into it helps me keep interest. drawing, writing, programming, 3d modeling, and i'm strongly considering music as well. we'll have to see

[haeroniel-doliet]

Bonus content: heres the super speed summary of how I struggled through the dinluke big bang piece I started over 80 days ago! More thoughts and details on my process below to cut

- Overall wanna post this with all the flaws galore for my future self, not at all because I've just left the record function on, forgot about it and now I have this!

- Good reminder that the worst thing is blank paper and just getting something down okay, rough simple lines convey ideas its all good!

- Drawing on an airplane produces questionable results (the first more refined lines, not NEARLY enough references in use)

- Speaking of, never regretted following a reference over trying to improvise. I feel like it always looks better (that smoke is one good example!)

- Redrawing and redrawing sometimes is so worth it, other times you should just let it be and move on (those first trees before the yellow dotting were kinda okay honestly!)

- Less all sorts of different brushes is better, for consistency :')

- Theres many parts I'd forgotten that in hindsight maybe look better than the end result (like overall composition being bigger and with better feeling of space) but choices were made and I gotta choose to be happy with and proud of the completed piece, afterall its better than all the dusty never finished wips.

- Definitely didn't quite follow the big bang deadlines, I'm sorry :') in general I'd consider that greyscale to be 20% sure (proof of idea and a layout figured out!) But hilariously after what I posted for even 80% I went and redid all that work. (Maybe its not actually totally redoing if you're making the same just improved! All the ground work took its own time and I wasn't starting from scratch at all.)

- At the very end it gets abruptly cut off, despite asking the program to leave on the last frame for a bit... Then I remembered the panic I had just yesterday, because the file for these screenshots took up too much disk space and caused Krita to crash, losing all the progress of like good bit of little adjustments and corrections. I guess I never turned the recording back on, so the very final few hours are missing, but thats okay! This is not professional! (Spot the absolutely tiny differences with the final image posted :p)

-Also realizing after many a rewatch, there's been some glitch with it not recording me recolouring the characters entirely!! How sad, but you can see the difference from when they pop up around the time I'm redoing the trees and at 02.53 and when they return all redone at 03.07

- Theres a lot I don't love, theres a lot that could be better if done differently, but I really have to start being okay with being done rather than perfect!

- Really proud of myself for dedicating to doing a more involved and detailed background/scene than i've ever done before digitally. I've pushed beyond my comfort zone of just characters with a hint of a background, it will get better from here!

- Did I need to post this with all sorts of bits missing? No, definitely not, but hopefully someone will find this interesting, and my future self feels that this was helpful!

[nexusofdomains]

I kind of feel bad for sassing my art teacher back in middle school. I think I was mostly in the wrong. But I was a kid in the throes of adolescence. My day hadn't been going the best up to that point. My art class was one of the last periods of the day. Mrs. Smith was a good teacher. I learned a lot from her class (though I retained practically none of it), kind, and most importantly, respected by students at the school.

It was nearing the end of class one autumn afternoon and we had a bit of time to kill. The kid who sat next to me was this guy, Winston, who I considered a friend at the time. Winston and I were chatting, doodling, and generally avoiding getting bored. Somehow, the topic of guns got brought up (Ain't that much of a surprise considering that we're in the US Southwest [Though kind of surprising, given the fact that we were in school, for obvious reasons]), and I shrugged it off, making a few comments. Firearms have been a special interest for me for almost as long as I can remember.

One thing led to another and Winston dared/goaded me into drawing a gun. He actually double-dog dared me. Not joking for dramatic effect here. I drew a pistol. It took me like 10 minutes. It was passable at best.

When Mrs. Smith nicely asked me to throw the drawing away, I sarcastically told her that I would "love to throw away something I'd worked on." (Like I said, it was passible at best and took like 10 minutes to make.)

Mrs. Smith, who was clearly not used to being disrespected in that way, was all like, "Thank you Lucius! I love your good attitude!"

Completely oblivious of the fact that I was being a sarcastic little shit.

Class ended for the day shortly afterward. I kinda just... crumpled the paper with the pistol drawing up and put it in my pocket. Allegedly, other students were more apt to disrespect Mrs. Smith after this dumb incident.

What gets me (and makes me feel even more embarrassed and ashamed) is that this whole fiasco was entirely pointless. It's not like I have that sketch. It isn't laying about in some folder or box. It's gone. In the end, that sketch probably did end up in the trash.

[dgcatanisiri]

Considering my earlier thoughts at the end of my first run of Veilguard, where I said, in effect, so much as I care, Dorian is a casualty of the attack on Minrathous, in large part BECAUSE as presented, he is once again HANDED every success, all the way to the point of becoming Archon, the head of the damn nation, rather than being shown doing the actual work of setting about improving and being better...

Honestly, I'm gonna go a step further and ignore him being in this game entirely.

Oh, sure, the game tries to make him a mandatory figure and all, what with him showing up to bail out Rook from the First Warden, but... I mean, the way I play Inquisition, he doesn't even get to Skyhold, let alone Adamant. And in all seriousness, there is no reason I should believe that, as a result of that, a "Tevinter ambassador" would be allowed anywhere near the Exalted Council, considering how Ferelden, the obvious driving force of the Council, was invaded by what amounted to a Tevinter army during the Breach crisis - without having been actively involved in the Inquisition's activities, he's got a best case scenario of getting laughed in the face at the border. So as far as I play Inquisition, this character doesn't matter, and in the world of Thedas as I play it, that's going to be the case.

No, instead, it's Harding who brings up Adamant, and frankly, I think it's a detriment to her to not have her do this anyway, since it wouldn't just be adding a bit of flavor to events in that quest that wasn't there to begin with, what with the First Warden not being mentioned at all at that point in Inquisition. It would be displaying her abilities as a scout and how well she does her job, that she found this information. It's just as much of an ass pull as Dorian doing the same, sure, but it gives the companion character that little more to do and drawing on her involvement, rather than giving this to a character who actually CAN be left out of the event being referenced for the sake of a cameo.

*sigh* Look, on paper, I have respect for Dorian - first gay companion character, you can't get around his being gay and all, but... In practice, he's a waste of things, because literally, all he exists for is to tell a story that was old more than a decade before he was even written, try and frame the oldest story in the queer book as something new and exciting, when all it really had going for it was a hastily-slapped on Dragon Age decal. This, at the same time that you had a show like How To Get Away With Murder, which premiered the same year Inquisition dropped, took an old and tired queer storyline and flipped it, tried to take that to a new perspective, where an HIV diagnosis wasn't the end but the START of the character's life. Meanwhile, you had Dorian doing a literal beat-for-beat play of a 90s after school special, one that honestly WAS reducing him to a prop for the development of the side character of his father - the point there was "does Dorian's father deserve forgiveness?" and NOTHING to do with Dorian's own development.

And meanwhile, the character as presented was DEEPLY flawed, in ways that SHOULD have taken precedence in his storyline - WHY should we support him in "redeeming" Tevinter, when we are set against both Tevinter's past AND present in the course of Inquisition? What hope would that offer for Tevinter's future? All Dorian offers is "Tevinter cares," a statement that leads me to say "oh, you're serious? Let me laugh even harder!" because even his own STORY puts the lie to that. Or we could discuss his opinions of slavery, opinions that go only so far as "well, you have poverty in the south, so that's basically the same thing!" Opinions that subsequent portrayals of Dorian have ACTIVELY been written to acknowledge, because BioWare realized that it was kind of a problem to NOT actually do anything about this AFTER Inquisition released.

In theory, Dorian could have been great. In practice, he is an empty and hollow waste of potential, because he brings nothing to the table. For those out there who did get something out of his story, I am glad for you, but there are a number of sources out there that have done everything that Dorian did in Inquisition - and have done them BETTER - that I legitimately HATE this character and his portrayal because it is just such a waste of the chance he was for BioWare, and frustrated so much at how he's given such a pass BECAUSE of the novelty.

[sayakxmi]

[Magi rewatch] Episode 6: Warrior Tribe Fanalis [Part 1]

I feel like part of the reason I'm just UGH about having to do this, besides the obvious stuff I've mentioned 300x times, is the fact that I really want to get to the later arcs, which includes the upcoming Balbadd Arc. So I'm just sitting here. Impatiently. Bc I want to be there already, y'know? Oh well.

Also, I'm considering something a little different, partially bc reading the entire arc, and then watching the entire arc is kind of... Hmmm. It is a bit tedious, I won't lie. Plus it feels kinda weird to just do it twice one after another. The idea is, then, to so it more or less at the same time: x number of chapters, then the episode that covers them. It's both because I think it'd be a better experience for me, AND because the upcoming arcs can get pretty long. Like, we're talking 45 chapters/11 episodes for the Balbadd Arc, it just makes sense not to go through it twice. No matter how much I like these arcs, it's just too fucking long to do it that way.

Anyway, PSA over, time for the actual episode.

Hello there, character who's never appeared in this anime.

I usually don't comment on this stuff, but damn, I wish more characters were allowed to have dark skin in this series. Like, it'd make more sense, like, for geography-biology reasons. But lemme tell you, Ohtaka and geography... Let's just say it's not her strong suit. Have you ever seen how she draws the world maps and the Dark Continent specifically? It makes no fucking sense. The best explanation I can provide is that it's just people imagining how the DC looks, since no one was there, as in, beyond the Rift. They're just guessing.

Anyway. Geography rant over.

In the manga their clothes look more SIndria-like bc of the lack of colors, but here you're kinda wondering. But still, my money's on Sindria bc they specifically mention that their country has no slaves, and the two notable no-slavery countries are Balbadd and Sindria. And their clothes don't look very Balbadd. Seriously, sans the colors, it looks very Sindria, actually. Then again, do all Sindria people have to wear white? So it still makes sense, I guess.

Also, seeing Leila again makes me miss Thousand Miles a bit. But that story frustrated me too much at some point. Mostly bc I've lost motivation for it, but, like, aggressively, and just kept on getting notifications for it, even though I've had some stories I was actually proud of, but nope, only that one got the attention. It became annoying over time & I ended up deleting the story completely. In case somebody recalls that story & always wondered wtf happened to it.

Mor.

Also, really, Mor, bc when Aladdin says it, it's Moru-san, but if you go with Morg it's some sort of Morugi-san. Pretty different.

Also, man, Leila's voice just dosen't fit her in my head.

Walkin.

Now I kinda realize that Alibaba's probably the only one who never met these two. Gdi, he seriously always misses out on everything.

Honestly, I really love the lightning in this anime. They make choices I disapprove of, and the animation can get damn sloppy (and art, too), but the colors are always awesome.

Also, wonder how things would've gone if Morgiana stayed with these two.

"I have to come back to my homeland. I promised that to my benefactor." NOW, MY DREAMS ARE WITHIN MY REACH-

Good moment to put the op with these words.

Honestly, I like the scenery in the anime, too.

Gdi, I seriously miss Leila. Also, in the anime she is the one to bump into Fatima.

Lonely.

Tbh, it does look pretty.

Any time Jamil appears I'm thinking abt Ohtaka writing in these extra papers stuff like "I should've talked with Master more" or that she should've tried to talk with him in general, like, god fucking dammit Ohtaka and her dumb Forgive Everything agenda.

No Goltas? -throws down the phone-

Ok, but we have Leila looking out for her, that's actually sweet.

She's offering her some herbs for nightmares, and even calls her a friend. Gdi.

Like, I get that they're probably making up for the characterization they don't have in the anime, but I'm sending it percisely bc she talks about being saved by Sahsa and a mysterious boy. Which never happened in the anime, lmao.

Still, overall, it was a very sweet moment.

MOON

But also. What is wrong with you, why are you (always) blue.

Also, cool music.

I swear, whenever I see a male character with painted lips, who happens to be a despicable person (I'd have two nickles- finish the line), I'm just like... is it lowkey transphobic or am I overthinking it... But also, I wouldn't put it past Ohtaka. I mean, with the joke about the best courtesans looking so manly etc.

Hello.

He's about to be surprised.

And he was.

Mob vs one Fanalis is a very unfair fight. They're about to be murdered.

Whoosh.

Also, I'm starting to think that maybe Ohtaka just really likes the moon aesthetic.

Listen, it's pretty damn close to the manga, I have nothing new to say, so I'm offering you some low quality Morgiana.

Ohtaka let Morgiana wreck shit she loves it 2k23. Nearly 2k24, Jesus.

Understandable reaction.

Evil birb.

He. He has the high ground.

RIP

WASTED

[luciawang408]

Reflection Blog For Week 2a

Butterflies are one of my favorite intentions, and many of my creations use butterflies, so I almost immediately chose butterflies as the object I wanted to express.

I would like to document how I created 50 shades project. I chose to use different items or different software to display the butterflies （first 15）

1.With Music. (kind of sound art)

So I started thinking about how I would represent my butterflies. I saw the tools I had at hand. the FL studio.

I suddenly pondered what would happen if I drew a butterfly using music software alone without considering the composition of the song. So I chose the drums and composed the butterfly with drum beats.

I'm very happy with the results. When I tried to play it, the drums were surprisingly good, an effect I seriously couldn't get before considering the composition!

So I chose different drums and painted the butterflies in different ways, and chose different instruments to randomly paint different butterflies, I didn't think about what the music sounded like before painting, it was completely random. I was really pleasantly surprised by the results when they came out.

Even when I chose the simplest piano rendition, I thought the piano came out like a butterfly fluttering up and down

（Video of the music)

2.With left hand painting

Actually the first thing that comes to mind is painting. But with normal drawing I thought the presentation would be boring, so I thought what if I drew with my left hand (my non-dominant hand). So I gave it a try.

(Pink: left hand ; Green: right hand)

While it may be hard to see the difference when looking at it this way, I use a lot of effort to control my left hand. After switching back to my right hand again I felt more relaxed than ever. My lines were also easier to control and I was able to draw more details. It was a very interesting experience for me.

3.Nomad modeling

I love making things with nomad, so I tried to make a butterfly with nomad. I didn't use any REFERENCES of butterflies, I made a butterfly entirely from my impressions and found a background I had made in PS before, imported it and made only special materials for the butterfly.

4.AI drawing

AI is a hot topic right now, so I decided to use some random language that came to me suddenly to get AI to generate scenes that would take me some time to build.

Descriptions: a half skeleton glittering Butterly, in a foggy city that looks unreal, houses on fire, flowers but dried, end of the war

(BY OPEN.AI)

5.With my dried flowers

I found the dried flowers I had made earlier, so I tore them apart and arranged them in the shape of a butterfly

6.Using a tissue

It occurred to me while I was working with tissue that tissue is very moldable and maybe I could use that to make a quick butterfly. With my impressions of butterflies, I finished this little butterfly (or bow?) with it.

7.Water damage

I thought of it when I was spraying perfume, what would happen if I let the perfume spray onto the paper and let it turn into a watery stain that stayed down the paper and turned into a butterfly pattern, so I tried it out because it was just too hard to control, and I tried my best to make it form a butterfly.

8.Hairband

I found my hairband and I realized that he would look a lot like a butterfly so I twisted it a little bit and it really did look like two wings of a butterfly.

9.A simple bow

In Chinese, bow translates to: a knotted butterfly, so it's perfect to use bow to show a butterfly.

10. Random tissue but..

This is a really funny coincidence, when I was cleaning up the kitchen, I was surprised to find my TISSUE accidentally pinched and shaped like a butterfly, so I took a picture of it! It looks nothing like the butterflies I made specifically for my 6.

11. Random rhinestone stickers

I used my little stickers for decorating to put up a cute butterfly.

12. With foam

I was recently receiving a delivery and saw the foam that was delivered and it looked like a butterfly in the center, so I made some changes to make it look more like a butterfly!

13. Cardboard

This is what I did together on with the foam, taking the cardboard from the delivery paper box. I cut out random pieces and then randomly used them to put together a butterfly

14. Red ink paste used for seal

I own a stamp with my name engraved on it (bottom right), and when I was about to use it my hand accidentally rubbed against the red stamping clay, so I suddenly thought what if I dipped my finger in the clay and drew a butterfly. So I tried it that way.

15. My charging cable

My charger is an everyday necessity and I was charging it when I suddenly thought what if I turned it into a butterfly, so after trying a few I got this.

After the last 35 designs I'm going to focus on butterflies and do some sketch about using butterflies to express some of our daily life designs or , abstract sense about how people feel about butterflies(I'm going to put the next 25 designs into Process Blog-2b because of image insertion restrictions.）

16. Butterfly Jewelry

Because I love butterflies so much, I've been thinking about making some jewelry, so I came up with Butterfly Ornaments. One of the things I really liked was the earrings, so I made the design. And tried to make one with nomad.

17. Tattoo

I wanted the butterflies to become tattoos flying up around my neck, and I designed the butterfly earrings with that in mind, although I think the butterfly tattoos should have been designed that way by someone. But I also thought it would be very pretty

18. Bag

I wanted to carry a butterfly on my back, so I thought of the bag. But not a shoulder bag that looks like I have butterfly wings on the front, but a crossbody bag and the side of a butterfly, like it's standing on my back!

19. Bowl

This bowl is like a butterfly holding a bowl, the bowl is removable

20. Pillow

I really like this pillow, it feels so cute and comfortable. The butterfly's tentacles can actually be turned into earplugs to use for sleeping

21. Spoon

Same design as my butterfly bowls that can be used as a pair. The thought process is the same

22. Scissors

These scissors look exactly like a butterfly and can be used as children's scissors since it is cute.

23. Diffuser

I recently discovered this item where the aroma spreads after pouring a perfume or something like that to a place. So I thought of butterflies and flowers and channeled the perfume into a small bowl of flowers. The scent will spread.

24. earphone

Also as a cute decoration to put butterflies in your ears.

25. butterfly jelly

There are different colored butterflies as different flavors and the sugar in the middle has jam inside it

[ygg-yiggles]

Old Art: Inktober 2022, part 1

I have participated in Inktober since 2019, on Twitter up until now. To breathe some life into my blog here, I'll post my work from past years over the next few days, along with my thoughts and explanations where relevant, using the more long-form format of tumblr to its advantage. Please mind this small content warning before you continue reading: Some of what I drew for this quite odd and creepy, and in at least one case (day 14), arguably gory. Keep this in mind as you read and view the art.

Day 1: Gargoyle This one was fun. I did a poor job of making it actually look like it was perched on the wall and the wall itself was a pain, ultimately resulting in something kind of halfassed and iffy looking, but still, I had fun with it, and I think the gaping red maw looks pretty decent, all things considered. I used a grey ink--if I recall, it was Noodler's Lexington Gray--for this one, though only sparingly.

Day 2: Scurry Some of the anatomy is screwy here, in particular the catgirl's hands are all kinds of gnarly in ways I didn't intend. Ink is unforgiving. These aren't really meant to be any characters in particular, but I was probably influenced a little by Nazrin from Touhou Project and undeniably heavily inspired by Maekawa Miku from The Idolm@ster Cinderella Girls. You might immediately notice two things about this image: firstly that it is clearly more true to the color of the paper and secondly that the left edge curves away, gets blurry, and has a bit of a shadow. Day 1's drawing was simply captured by my phone camera, but I used my scanner for this one. That took time to set up (I have a bad habit of putting things on top of the machine and I have to reposition the whole thing because the USB-B cable I have is too short), so I didn't always use it. There's another scanner now, though, which I can use much more easily.

Day 3: Bat GAHHH why did I go right back to the phone camera? Oh well. The anatomy here is really poor especially around the legs, but I tried to be a little more dynamic with the pose than I usually would be. Evidently, I didn't properly plan this from the beginning, since the torso is on a somewhat different perspective plane than it should be. Oh well, not everything works out as you'd want it.

Day 4: Scallop I love drawing spooky little creatures. Here, we see a sea scallop, but with spindly arms and legs. This is only slightly more monstrous than what live sea scallops actually look like. Did you know they have like 200 eyes, all lined up in a row along the edge of the "mouth"? Crazy. There's also a moray eel in entirely imaginary colors here. It seems about as freaked out by the scallop creature as is appropriate.

Day 5: Flame Dragon girl! I should really put this under the scanner someday. Overall I mostly like how this turned out, though I clearly had no clue what to do with the breasts. Probably should have grabbed some references.

Day 6: Bouquet This time, the gnarly fingers were absolutely intentional. Here we see an elder vampire or something, perhaps some other kind of aged fantasy man, enjoying several flowers. I think they were based upon a couple specific real flowers, but I can't quite recall exactly what they were.

Day 7: Trip This is one I'm really glad I went through the trouble to use the scanner for. There are certainly things that could have been improved, but overall, I'm still quite proud of this one. Two girls on a road trip in an Autobianchi Bianchina, stopped on the side of the road for... I dunno, looking at the scenery, I guess. I don't know if that car was ever sold in this color, but it's what color I'd want one in.

Day 8: Match Matching outfit elves. The anatomy and basic geometry of this one was completely unsalvageable by the time I realized what was going on. Alas, at least it was properly scanned.

Day 9: Nest Sometimes you go into a drawing with an image in your head that's too complex to hold for long and when you zoom in in your mind to look at the details, you lose it. Ultimately, though, when I look at it now, that worked out better than if I had faithfully rendered every piece of trash in the garbage heap that this giant, mechanical bird-thing has built. Seriously, this looks way better than I remember it looking. I also used the grey ink here again, I think to much better effect than with the gargoyle.

Day 10: Crabby Crabby child, crab hat, "Feelin' Crabulous!" shirts. Not much more to say other than wow that mom character looks weird. I think I did a pretty decent job of depicting a child in the middle of a tantrum over god-knows-what here.

Day 11: Eagle A man and his concerningly large eagle. If I recall, this was meant to depict a Haast's eagle, an extinct species from what is now New Zealand. Or at the very least it was mostly inspired by that. In other words, it's completely nonsensical for a man in a heavy coat, fur hat, and snow goggles to have one as his companion, but somehow it just felt right. I used a bunch of different colors of brown micron and even fountain pen ink for this, and I think the effect turned out well.

Day 12: Forget Creepy creatures what take your brain out and make you forget things. The head being comically outsized compared to the rest of the body was actually intentional here--I felt the strange proportions would further bring focus to the point of the action and also just make the whole scene feel even weirder.

Day 13: Kind More weirdo creatures. I thought it'd be fun to depict kindness between alien things rather than more easily relatable humans or animals. This color palette also happens to be enjoyable to me. This is another one featuring some fountain pen inks, but I can't recall what they were.

Day 14: Empty Yeah, this one is pretty gross and freaky. Sorry about that. But hey, that was the idea. Mission accomplished, right? If I remember correctly, this one included Diamine Oxblood ink, to get that fleshy cavern look.

Day 15: Armadillo Yep, it's Tarkus. As in, the album by Emerson, Lake & Palmer. I guess you could consider this a gijinka? The nameplate thing bearing the day number and prompt is based on the colors of the ground in the album art.

..And that's it for now. I'll do days 16-31 tomorrow or the next day, depending on how much I can think of to write about those. If you made it this far, thanks for reading and for looking at my art.

[battythoughts]

Lost and Searching

I have come to the devastating realization that a huge part of who I thought I was, might have just been a coping mechanism to escape my psychotic life as I was growing up.

I have always considered myself an artist. As far back as I can remember there has always been a pencil in my hand and a piece of paper in front of my face. I took 8 different art classes in high school and even went to a prestigious art school for a bit of time for collage. Ultimately, I dropped out of that school and got a bachelors in psychology instead. However, I always thought that art was something I genuinely enjoyed as a hobby.

I cut my family out of my life at 18 and that was the second best decision I ever made in my life. (The first slot is actually a tie with meeting my husband and wife.) However, while my partners have done nothing but support me and buy me what ever supplies my little heart desires, they just sit in the corner, unused and going to waste. Sure I could blame it on my ADHD and how quickly I gain and loose interest in things, but this goes so much deeper than that. I dedicated such a large part of my adolescence to art that it became my identity, and now that I am finally in a happy and safe environment where I'm not scared, or hungry, or cold, or lonely, I have lost my muse. It's like my art was only able to survive for as long as it did because it was feeding off of all the negativity in my life and now that there isn't any, it's just starved to death. I can't draw anymore. Anytime I get the desire to draw I just sit with my sketchbook and pencil in front of me and stare at the blank page waiting for the ideas to come, but they never do.

It's a really hard thing to process honestly. If I'm not an artist I don't really know what I am. I don't have any other hobbies. I feel like I've lost my entire identity and I don't know how to find it again. It's for the best overall. I know it just means that I'm growing as a person and I'm finally allowing myself to move past all of the negativity that is my childhood. However, it's a rather bittersweet feeling. What do I do now? How will I express myself if I'm overwhelmed or sad? Granted, sadness isn't really something I feel anymore, but I think you understand the point I'm getting at. I just. I don't know where to go from here.

Sincerely,

Batty

[mindymortondev]

Character Design and Friction

Originally written on January 15, 2023.

It’s the weekend and I’m just kind of messing around.  I wanted to polish Mindy’s design before I started drawing the beginnings of her animated sprite, so I started putting together this reference development sheet.

At the time of writing this, her anterior view is actually already finished but I don’t have it saved on my computer.  I decided to change her original design (see top left corner) to include arms only because I think it will look clearer when animated and her hands won’t get lost in the details.  I’ve also work-shopped her silhouette and hood a bit.  Now the hood is a bit more similar to the finished illustration of her I did for class (the one with the colorful bugs in the corner) but also, with input from an instructor, made her cape/cloak thing a little more complementary to her silhouette then it was before, and I’m very happy with how she looks right now.  Very Paper Mario-esc.

In the meantime, while I work on the character sheet, I felt like coding some more stuff and all I really got finished was friction.  Essentially this is when the character moves for a little bit of time after you let go of the directional button—Inertia.  I followed this old video by DragoniteSpam which uses a WAY outdated version of Game Maker Studio, but I was able to adapt his concepts and even refine them, I think(?).

The original code used 3 whole IF statements which is a lot for basic movement.  There’s a lot of caution around how man IF statements you put into your code because of the horror stories of Yandere Dev (creator of Yandere Simulator.  Look it up, *shudder*).  Essentially the computer has to check these IF conditions every time it runs them, so I was actually able to cut it from 3 to 1, which I’m proud of.  However, I’m not entirely sure if using a “repeat” function would be considered good practice or not but nobody online seems to inherently swear them off?  I think you just have to be cautious to not create an infinite loop, which I don’t think I’m in trouble of in this specific situation.  I might even be able to totally get rid of it.  It’s worth experimenting with!

Anyways that’s it for tonight.  I hope to finish the character sheet and start animating on Tuesday.  Maybe I’ll code some more by then?