#good vs bad character design

[turtleblogatlast]

I love Raph and haven’t said that enough so to be more specific I love that Raph is a soft boy who loves bear plushies, a gross boy who eats an assortment of things that are definitely better left alone, a smart boy who is more than capable of taking down villains through planning and fortitude alike, a strong boy who is dedicated to training his muscles and fighting prowess, a teenage boy who loves his brothers but is more than happy to tease and roughhouse with them, an angry boy who sometimes lets his anger take a hold of him to cover the fear, a gentle boy who is generous with hugs and affirmations to those he loves, a capable boy who takes on more than should ever be expected of a teenager, a good boy who just wants to be a hero and slowly comes to realize the cost of that duty, a good boy who has no reservations about putting himself in the way of harm coming to his family, a good boy who’s a great brother and son and person and deserves only the best the world has to offer.

[bleaksqueak]

Insomnia is letting up off and on, but I'm still super jelly brained from it case in point, I want to continue back with posting WIPs for the aired pages, but I can't remember what page I left off on now lmao (guess I'll have to dig through my blog to check... eesh. at least it's decently organized by tags?) Not a result of goo brain, really, but equally "AUGH" is that I let my screen protector go for too long without replacing it and now it's slick as snot and I don't have a replacement handy to put on it. This isn't a resulting consequence of goo brain but it does mean I'm going to be trying to draw without any traction while I'm already loopy. Good times ahead!

[jathun]

ngl I have such a love/hate relationship with the fate franchise

[quirkle2]

as a huge spyro year of the dragon fan i Hate the reignited trilogy they took all the charm and nostalgia out of it BUT ... spyro's walking/running animation ? they perfected that.

[maxic0verart]

Nuns x Vampires 1

[plantsandpies]

Today, with my non expert advice, I’m talking about characters!

So in my ship post I talk about how Uraraka and deku weren’t the top ship in mha because (not the only reason) she wasn’t a developed character. And there are a lot out there because characters aren’t considered first. The story is. This is fine, but it can make characters a little flat and more like puppets than dolls.

Now this is how I view things, and I’m not a published author except for one fic on Ao3. But I look at characters, plots, and a ton of author related stuff (their beliefs, writing style, etc.) a lot, so I create tools I use when I write. Puppets vs. dolls is one of those.

To me, a puppet is much more controlled. In a story, a puppet is a character used for plot. They’re like plot devices with a bit more spice. It’s a nice sock puppet, but it bends and can change form slightly.

Dolls are characters who are characters. A character obviously follows the plot, but a doll is an established character. It’s made of plastic and less likely to break or squish. It’s a solid character instead of the sock puppet, which can be molded to fit the situation. You can fold a sock, but not a doll.

In the case of Uraraka, despite the backstory she was given, she used to achieve plot a. The decisions she makes are ‘hers’ but they are hers because the plot says so. Not because the character says so. Her actions are molded to fit the plot. This is often hidden because of the personality she was given, which is sort of a helper type. But the way you can see the puppet hands is through the use of her backstory. Making money for her family is supposedly what drives her. But we don’t see that in most of any of her decisions. Even if you can’t show that in a fighting scene, you could have her in the background worrying about the money a ripped suit would cause or possibly thinking about building damages (and she would know this because her dad works in construction, which could have been an added element in fighting, as she could use building knowledge for strategies. Don’t tell me she wouldn’t know anything because she wanted to take over for her parents).

An example of a doll, is Marinette from lb. She’s established to be a character who cares about her friends and stands up for what she believes in. So, her lying for a situation that would make her friend feel better in the moment is a choice she makes because of her character. Her confronting someone for doing something wrong, like stealing, if she thinks they stole makes sense. Yes, it’s still for the plot, but she’s still who she is.

Now, this isn’t to say miraculous ladybug is better written than mha. But, they have solid characters to fall onto. Mha does too, you can figure out what Deku or Todoroki would do in a situation and you can see their backstory driving them. However, Uraraka wasn’t given that same treatment.

Personally, I think that miraculous has a few writing problems with where the story goes and dealing with the actual gravity of situations they put their characters in. But miraculous does have a nice doll character in almost every character they have. Some of those traits, I would change, but they aren’t puppets.

I will say though that bad writing can make a character, who, when looking at everything established should be a doll, into a puppet.

An unfortunate example is Mal from descendants. She has an interesting character and took action based on her beliefs. But then d3 happened. Lying to her friends could maybe be in character, but after d2, it seems like that is a trait of the past. Another thing is closing the barrier. That doesn’t align with mal’s character. Despite the “danger” from Hades, I don’t think Mal would be afraid of her father or of his abilities. She’s mad at him, yes, but she isn’t afraid of him. So closing the barrier because she believes he’s a threat wouldn’t make sense. Also, Mal wants the kids out. And as someone who loves their friends and wants them to be happy and as someone who experienced an isle childhood, with the change she’s gone through, she’d realize she’s doing more harm than good. That leaving those kids there is worse and her friends will be hurt on behalf of those kids and the life they’re leaving them in. Especially since hades isn’t a threat to mal, and she knows that. She dared to steal from her dad because she’s not afraid of him. Someone who was afraid, wouldn’t have tried that. So the isle lockdown decision didn’t track. I also think that d3 was a weaker movie than the other two. Even if the other characters were following their motives and characters, they didn’t seem to fit into the story well.

Obviously each character was written by a different person who was fueled by different motives. Uraraka was probably not designed to be a doll character like bakugo or dabi. She was probably designed as a love interest (which is a different problem in character development and design). Marinette and the rest of the lb cast are part of a kids show, so they need a personality that they can stick to and that’s obviously them so as not confuse kids and to hit every kid’s relatability box. Mal was written by Disney and d3 was probably a heavily producer influenced movie where money was more important.

These characters were written differently and that influenced how strong they stood. Miraculous doesn’t do well with any of Adrian’s trauma or Marinette’s obsessive behaviors (in Mari’s case, getting rid of it because it was weird and as a growth thing, though I don’t believe she ever really saw her actions as wrong and just grew out of that phase). But they created strong characters that you can easily write, because you know their character and the decisions they will make. Uraraka could make any kind-hearted decision and it’d be in character because she doesn’t really have one. She’s used for the plot and to hit the right buttons for the plot to go down.

Are there any good puppets?

The problem with that question is puppets aren’t established characters. They don’t really stand on their own and often times the fandom will make them into dolls. I don’t read Uraraka centered posts or fics, but someone who loves that character, can make her into a doll. If you look at what they did to the deku squad, they made them more chaotic and they gave Uraraka a (admittedly less generous character she was supposed to be (which isn’t a problem because it makes her more interesting)) character obsessed with any kind of money, taking endeavor’s credit card from todoroki because money. Even this simple change makes her more interesting.

I think a puppet filled show could be boring but, they could also be puppets to just be entertaining in an episodic format. Which is what most shows in an episodic format are, but it’s more entertaining to have dolls in a story because you can watch them make the harder decisions and grow. A person never changing is boring and not really fun to watch. But a doll is changing. They are evolving and becoming a different person (good or bad). A story with dolls is more fun to watch because they don’t bend to the plot. The plot, in a way, bends to the character.

However, I think learning cartoons or shows are allowed to have puppets. Think blue’s clues or magic school bus. The focus is episodic, but it’s not about the characters at all, really. It’s about the content it’s teaching. It’s a learning show so they don’t need the characters to change. Dora doesn’t change because she’s a puppet. And in a show like Dora the explorer, you don’t need a doll, because the focus isn’t the character or the plot, but the lesson they are trying to teach.

I do think an example of a fake puppet though, is Aoi from tbhk. Originally, she is the instigator. She’s a plot device used to get nene, the main character, onto the plot. But later it’s revealed she’s a puppet on purpose. She hides who she truly is from everyone, not allowing anyone (besides nene and Akane (who I think only know her favorite animal)) to actually know anything about her. She becomes a character when it’s revealed that she is working with six and that she reacts harshly to perceived acts of betrayal. She was acting as a puppet, but was really a doll.

But, I’m not a professional writer. I’m just someone who watches way too many shows and likes to analyze them and write.

[wolfertinger666]

"don't do this character design" "GOOD VS BAD CHARACTER DESIGN" "do this character design right"

FUCK ALL THAT SHIT!!!! IF YOU WANNA MAKE AN OC BASED OFF YOUR AUTISTIC FIXATION THEN BY ALL MEANS GO FOR IT DO WHATEVER YOU WANT FOREVER!!!!! YREA

[tesslinua]

Helm Region Quarterfinal - Kendal VS Pryder

Propaganda

Kendal: he could be ina loreal commercial. i want to braid his hair so bad. and his eyes are so goddamn blue and i LOVE a good neon blue. also muscles. i was not into buff people until i saw kendal. i want to grip his bicep. id ask him to arm wrestle knowing full well id lose and injure myself in the process just so i can hold his hand and see his muscles at work. and then when i get hurt hed look at me like a sad puppy and id swoon and die

Pryder: oh my god whre do i even begin. FIRST OFF star freckles. that is peak character design right there. indigo is also objectively the best color so indigo skin makes him perfect. his hair is so soft i bet AND HIS EYEs are so pretty cyan is also the best color and his robes and his necklac.e and. aueoahea. zuurith does NOT deserve him i could treat him so much better. pryder one chance please. babygirl come wih me i could give you a great time. also he's such a wet cat like we've barely seen him but he RADIATeS pathetic which just adds to it. imo

[david-talks-sw]

I'd say where the dissonance really starts, when it comes to the portrayal of the Jedi in more recent Star Wars stories, is the perception of what the Prequels are about.

They're not about the Jedi.

George Lucas said over and over that they're about:

How a democracy turns into a dictatorship, we see this in the background of the films, as the Republic descends into becoming the Empire.

That first theme is then paralleled with a second theme: how a good kid becomes a bad man. We see this in the more character-driven and personal exploration of Anakin’s fall to the Dark Side.

The Prequels’ focus is on Anakin and the Republic, these films are not primarily about the fall of the Jedi. In fact, I’d argue they aren’t about the Jedi at all!

And when you look at the original backstory, you’ll notice that it also primarily focuses on:

The political subplot of the Republic’s downfall and Palpatine becoming the Emperor.

Anakin’s turn and his betrayal of the Jedi. 

So, there too… the Jedi themselves aren’t really that big a part of the Prequels’ original idea. They aren't mentioned much, beyond their trying to save the Senate and getting wiped out.

The Star Wars movies aren't about the Jedi, they're about Anakin and Luke, they're about Obi-Wan and Padmé and Han and Leia, the Rebellion vs the Empire, the fall of the Republic.

They're not about Ben and Yoda and Mace and Ki-Adi and Plo Koon and Shaak Ti and Luminara.

Just like Harry Potter isn't about Dumbledore and McGonagall. Just like the Lord of the Rings isn't about Gandalf.

On a functional level, the Jedi are:

POV characters who witness the events unfold with their hands tied, they're our anchors, whose eyes we see through to see democracy crumble into dictatorship.

Embodiments/vectors of the message George Lucas wanted to get across through these movies, which is the conflict between selfishness & selflessness, greed & compassion (Sith & Jedi).

But that's about it.

However, if you ask today’s fans and Star Wars creatives, most will say the Prequels are about the fall of the Jedi Order.

This is a take shared by a big chunk of the fandom, including various filmmakers, authors, and executives involved with Star Wars, so much so that the time period the Prequel films cover has now been redubbed by Lucasfilm as the “Fall of the Jedi era”.

Which leaves us with a question... why? Why the dissonance?

My guess? It's because the Jedi are cool. They're awesome.

And deep down, they wanted the Prequels to be about the Jedi. About the Jedi Knights at their height, errant warriors like the Knights of the Round Table.

And they didn't get that. They got a bunch of diplomats serving a political institution. And that didn't make sense, right? That's not what they expected so it's bad. And it's Star Wars. It's Lucas. It can't be bad, right? So like... what were they missing?

Oh... wait... what if... that's the point? That the Jedi were supposed to be Knight Errants and being guided by the Force instead of like - ew - space ambassadors for the Republic. Yeah now it all makes sense.

The Jedi in the Prequels aren't what we wanted them to be and that's their failure! Like, it's not just that I didn't like them because they weren't likeable to me, it's that I'm not supposed to like them because the narrative totally says so--

-- it doesn't.

The Jedi preach and practice the same Buddhist values as George Lucas, mirroring what he says in interviews almost verbatim.

The relationship between Obi-Wan and Anakin/Qui-Gon mirrors the dynamic between Lucas and Coppola.

The designs of the Jedi and their temple had to be toned down because they looked too bureaucratic and systemic.

This is Lucas we're talking about. "On the nose" is his middle name. He named the drug-peddling sleazebag "Elan Sleazebaggano." He ditched an elaborate introduction of General Grievous in exchange for just "the doors slide open, in walks Grievous and he's ugly."

If he had really been hell bent on framing the Jedi as elitist squares who lost their way and were mired in bureaucracy, he would've made them and the Jedi Temple look like the authorities in THX-1138.

They weren't likeable to some fans because, well, they weren't developed or shown as much as someone like Anakin. Because it's not about them. It's not their story. It's Anakin's. It's Luke's. It's their respective friends'. Or maybe it's an adversity to "perfect goody two-shoes" characters (which the Jedi are not). But hey, it's a movie for kids. Some 2-dimensionality is forgivable.

Bottom line, had more time been spent on the Jedi, had Lucas made the Prequels into a limited show and give them a whole subplot, had he decided to do away with the 30s serial dialog and let someone else write the dialog, maybe the reception might've been different.

But that's what we got. And guess what it's fine.

It's more than fine, it's fucking awesome.

I proudly and confidently say that I love the Prequels, with and without The Clone Wars.

I love my space monks, I love that they're diplomat wizards, I love that there's such a variety of them, I love that Mace is a no-bullshit guy who genuinely cares about his fellow Jedi and how screwed the Republic is, and Yoda is wise and kind but also a gremlin weirdo who'll embarass you in front of a classroom full of kids, and Ki-Adi has a penis for a head, is constantly calm and yet goes down like a champ even though they take him by surprise. I love that Shaak Ti can kung fu an army full of Magna Guards and still have the energy to charge at Grievous. I love that Obi-Wan is a sass machine who is also hilariously oblivious to the fact that he's just as terrible as Anakin.

They're awesome even if they're not perfect. They're awesome because they're not perfect.

But the movies are not really their story.

They're Anakin's. They're Luke's. They're the Republic's and the Rebellion's. And the fight against a space Nazi emperor/empire.

[thydungeongal]

The reason I think we need to get rid of the "roleplaying vs rollplaying" dichotomy is not just because it's a stupid meme borne out of badly articulated and unexamined elitism but also because it ends up placing one part of roleplaying (improvisational portrayal of a fictional character) over other parts of the act of play (rules-mediated play, player expression through system mastery) that are at least as important.

Like, get this, there's literally nothing wrong with putting on a silly goblin voice for your goblin NPC named Goblin Steve who likes to say "Check it out guys, I'm Goblin Steve," but placing that above developing system mastery and knowing how the rules have a voice in the creation of a collaborative narrative actually undermines people's willingness to learn the rules and that's literally a bad dynamic because game design is real and rules are good (unless the rules are bad in which case I recommend changing to a better ruleset).

[bixels]

I think 90% of my gripes with how modern anime looks comes down to flat color design/palettes.

Non-cohesive, washed-out color palettes can destroy lineart quality. I see this all the time when comparing an anime's lineart/layout to its colored/post-processed final product and it's heartbreaking. Compare this pre-color vs. final frame from Dungeon Meshi's OP.

So much sharpness and detail and weight gets washed out and flattened by 'meh' color design. I LOVE the flow and thickness and shadows in the fabrics on the left. The white against pastel really brings it out. Check out all the detail in their hair, the highlights in Rin's, the different hues to denote hair color, the blue tint in the clothes' shadows, and how all of that just gets... lost. It works, but it's not particularly good and does a disservice to the line-artist.

I'm using Dungeon Meshi as an example not because it's bad, I'm just especially disappointed because this is Studio Trigger we're talking about. The character animation is fantastic, but the color design is usually much more exciting. We're not seeing Trigger at their full potential, so I'm focusing on them.

Here's a very quick and messy color correct. Not meant to be taken seriously, just to provide comparison to see why colors can feel "washed out." Top is edit, bottom is original.

You can really see how desaturated and "white fluorescent lighting" the original color palettes are.

[Remember: the easiest way to make your colors more lively is to choose a warm or cool tint. From there, you can play around with bringing out complementary colors for a cohesive palette (I warmed Marcille's skintone and hair but made sure to bring out her deep blue clothes). Avoid using too many blend mode layers; hand-picking colors will really help you build your innate color sense and find a color style. Try using saturated colors in unexpected places! If you're coloring a night scene, try using deep blues or greens or magentas. You see these deep colors used all the time in older anime because they couldn't rely on a lightness scale to make colors darker, they had to use darker paints with specific hues. Don't overthink it, simpler is better!]

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Anti-Villain

An anti-villain - (unlike their evil counterparts) are not complete monsters.

This makes them particularly hard to hate, despite all their terrible deeds.

In the character’s minds, they have justifiable, noble goals—how they go about achieving those goals is what eventually becomes a problem for the hero.

Their means don’t justify their desired ends.

Every villain has their own morality.

A key principle to remember is that making a decision between good and evil is never really a choice: All humans will choose good as they see it.

Your villain chooses their own good, which to readers, and the hero, appears evil in opposition.

This creates a moral dilemma at the heart of the novel’s conflict.

Types of Anti-Villains

Villainy comes in shades of gray.

One that starts out good. This anti-villain is a good person who has been pushed to the brink of their personal limits.

The one you feel for. A sympathetic anti-villain may do bad things, but they are ultimately a product of their circumstances or environment. They may have had a terrible upbringing, where people acted evil towards them as children making them evil as adults. They deserve to seek different circumstances, and were their means not so terrible, you might root for them.

The one who means well. When good intentions go crooked, and heroic qualities like tenacity and cleverness are aimed at the wrong target, you get your “well-meaning” anti-villain, who often takes things a step too far in pursuit of a noble goal. These anti-villains typically have a plan to save the world, with many, many casualties along the way in the name of the “greater good.” Think of Marvel’s “Mad Titan” Thanos and his plan to clear half the universe in order for the remaining half to thrive.

The one in the wrong place at the wrong time. This designated “villain” in name only typically falls into this category as a result of the existence of the hero. Their acts might be totally justified—vengeance for a loved one, or carrying out the corruption required of them by their job—but the protagonist doesn’t give them a free pass.

Examples of Anti-Villains

Sometimes, the only difference between the “bad guys” and the “good guys” is a point of view.

Carrie from Stephen King’s book Carrie is a sympathetic anti-villain. As a teenager in a small town, she is an outcast because of her beliefs and the way she dresses. Bullies at school make fun of her incessantly, building to the point where she turns her rage into telekinesis (mind power) to kill everyone in her school, then goes on a killing rampage through the town.

While The Joker in Batman is fairly straightforward in his villainy, it’s his tragic backstories—at different points, either driven insane by grief after the death of his wife, or disfigured after a fall into a vat of poisonous chemicals—that makes him compelling to watch. The audience suspects that if they were pushed to the edge of their sanity, they might act in the same way—and that’s all it takes to create an anti-villain worth of the caped crusader.

Anti-Villain vs. Anti-Hero

While an anti-villain might be a villain with some redeeming features, an anti-hero is a heroic character without the conventional charms.

They might do the right thing, but mostly out of self-interest.

They are often portrayed as a principled, but somewhat isolated figure, and their heroism is usually a product of their surroundings and circumstances.

In some narratives, the anti-hero may be subject to a shift of perspective—like the twist in Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl that reveals the truth about Amy Dunne’s actions—that paints them as an antagonist.

Other examples of an anti-hero include:

Tom Ripley of The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955) by Patricia Highsmith

Huckleberry Finn in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885) by Mark Twain

Tony Soprano of The Sopranos (1999)

Walter White of Breaking Bad (2008)

Lisbeth Salander in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2008) by Stieg Larsson

Source ⚜ More: References ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

[lubrumalis]

ghost character analysis

tw: spoilers from ghost mw2 comics, nsfw, dead dove do not eat, mature content.

this is pretty much a part 2 to ghost headcanons except with more lore and analysis (im still not sure if reboot ghost has the same backstory as the og ghost).

ghost is not a cold, calculated, ruthless man. maybe in a separate au or something, but theres a huge difference between ghost and simon riley. in fact, we need to understand that the reason he even chose ghost as a new name for himself is because of all that's happened to him. his family got killed, he got tortured by roba, and had to eliminate many men on his own. before that he was simon, not ghost. in the comic he literally calls the child hostages he was saving ‘sweetheart’ and ‘love’. hes not that mean and cold yall

we know that PTSD does shit to it's victims, ghost lost his entire family and had no one. think of it as a coping mechanism to have a new name to be known as.

ghost is a ruthless killer. simon is just some guy.

ghost sets himself to an incredibly high standard of discipline. i think it's intuitive that military boys will need to be punctual and organized to some degree, but ghost takes this to a whole other level. considering his father's abusive behavior (explained by his disturbing statements said to simon, is a drug addict, and beats simons mom) his home life was likely chaotic as a child.

in the mw2: ghost comic (issue #3) it specifically stated the following: "discipline, precision, control. these are what riley built his whole life on. break those down and the dark stuff begins to ooze out..." again, this is probably a form of trauma response to his childhood.

so what does this lead to? well firstly, this probably means his room is incredibly tidy and organized (monotone design i know :,c).

would never in his life touch drugs. this is a promise he made to himself.

also kinda proves that ghost aint a reckless guy. he thinks things through before doing it.

ghost isn’t that hypersexual. theres no way of knowing his history with women, but i like to think ghost is not that horny 24/7 and needs a fuckbuddy. in the mw2 comic, he was on a mission and was in an area full of prostitutes (wasn’t actively on duty, but on his way) when they tried to hit on him he politely rejects one of them, and later tells them to fuck off😀 so yea contrary to popular belief i dont think he really enjoys one night stands or the idea of being entertained by random women. in fact, i hc he might actually be a virgin or just have a really low body count.

ghost is a feminist!😁 (misandrist too). ok let me reword that, ghost doesnt like men and respects women. one of the reasons why he doesn’t want to be around prostitutes and do one night stands (his father killed a hooker in front of him, very traumatic) is because he thinks the concept of quick, casual sex is not good for society and dilutes the value of meaningful relationships. but also, remember the discipline, precision, control thing? its apart of his principle. but also, in the comic, sparks (soldier he worked with) knocked out and attempted to rape a woman, ghosts literally looked disgusted and called the police (also why he’d never do that himself, i dont get the hcs that say he does). ghosts seen how his dad treated his mom and absolutely hates abusers. anyways onto misandry—i think ghost internally thinks men are violent and disgusting (ghosts would choose the bear over the man, even though hes a man) mainly because throughout his military career majority of the bad stuff hes seen was done by men, so hes much more relaxed in a room of women vs man. ghost thinks his dad is the epitome of pure evil (canon! he said this to his therapist). this doesn’t mean hes scared or hates all men tho!

ghost isn’t close with tf141… including soap. now before you attack me let me explain. sure, he trusts them to some degree, but i dont think they naturally just hangout when they’re not deployed. in the end we need to understand they are SAS soldiers, they are working a real job that mainly consists of them shooting and dismantling others. considering ghosts betrayal in the past (in the comic, a few soldiers ghost previously worked with killed his entire family 😢) he isn’t gonna just trust his teammates because theyre his teammates. im also pretty sure they all live in different cities while not deployed. tf141 probably all want to separate their job from their personal lives, which includes each other. but onto soap, i dont think him and ghost have a deep brotherly relationship. but i think they care about each other, but exchanging some dad jokes and bantering doesn’t mean they’re suddenly soulmates or brothers. think about it… you and you’re co worker joke around sometimes, never hangout outside of work, and now people are shipping you and calling the two of you besties. makes no sense.

ghost is extremely patriotic. in the comic (i reference this way too much but theres SOOO MUCH LORE i recommend reading it) ghost tells his teammates the reason for joining the military: queen and country, right after 9/11. he also said “the world has changed”. interestingly enough army enlistment did actually skyrocketed after 9/11 attacks, ghost was among them. he probably thought ww3 was about to happen, or that ‘theres no more peace’ or whatever. i hc being obsessed with soccer too lmao and getting mad if english teams dont win. also his playful banter with johnny “get us a tea?”. probably very proud of his british heritage.

ghost doesn’t have much friends. hes a really, reallyyyyy lonely guy. i hc him as an introvert in the first place, but trust issues make this worse. in the comic, he was literally in the newspaper for killing his family and then killing himself (he didnt, he was framed that way tho) so its likely most of his formers friends probably think hes dead. ghost likely got some sort of amnesty or exemption from the military after knowing he didn’t actually kill his family, but whats in the news stays true to the public. even if he does have friends he probably doesn’t share feelings with them or form a long term bond.

ghost is extremely cynical. this is obvious tbh, but i think ghost believes hes going to die in the middle of a battlefield, shot or stabbed, a painful death, body left to rot for weeks, and no one to remember him. just like that. and he accepts that fact too.

ghost isn’t a picky eater. growing up in an abusive household where his parents couldn’t hold a stable job, he had to eat what there was. some days he settles for cheap beans and toast and when people call him out for it, he tells em to fuck off😀

ghost is emotionally fucked up, probably kind of depressed. i mean this guys been through hell: got sa’d, buried alive, had to dig through underground dirt and worms with a jawbone, tortured in horrible ways, had his entire family killed, abusive dad, and the weight of his grey morales because he killed lots of people as a soldier. wow! would you look at that list, itd be more strange if he wasn’t emotionally fucked up after was has happened😅. even when tortured, seeing his family dead, ghost was never shown to have cried in the comic. i hc hes emotionally numb. however, i do think hes emotionally MATURE and able to communicate his emotions, but hes still emotionally fucked. for example a scene where he was talking about his experience with roba (guy who tortured ghost) and ghosts father to a therapist. i think ghosts may be traumatized, but this doesn’t stop him from attempting to get help and communicating how he feels and thinks about this world.

ghost wears a mask... not because hes insecure and traumatized it's to separate ghost from simon riley. first of all he learned the consequences of revealing your identity during deployment, in the comic, he reveals his face in missions before his family got killed. i think he wears a mask because 1) its practical, no one knows who he is, 2) an analogy for himself to remind him simon riley, his original identity, was dead the moment his family was murdered, this SAS soldier with a skull mask is GHOST (yes this is canon, ghost references in the comic!).

in issue #1 while some kids were being held hostage, he starts telling his life story to them to calm them down/distract them from the bad situation. this is his explanation to why he wears a skull mask, word by word: "I bet you're wondering why I wear these bones on my face. It's a tribute to an old friend of mine. He's dead now, but man if he wasn't the baddest motherfucker on the planet."

in issue #6, when ghost was trekking through a jungle in the middle of nowhere attempting to kill roba (a drug lord that started this all, brainwashed soldiers to kill ghosts family), he was never caught. ghost himself, the narrator, says that "even for a single man to get through the jungle, the patrols, the wall, the security... well that man would have to be a ghost."

however, im still a little confused whether or not reboot ghost and 2009 have the same backstories. reboot ghosts mask is more realistic and his look is much more intimidating, his reason for wearing that kind of mask is probably psychological warfare (getting milena the financier to speak up about makarov). i think 2009 ghosts reason to wearing a mask is more personal compared to reboot.

BUT WHAT ABOUT AN S/O???

i think ghost is the guy to not have one in the first place. obviously. but i lowkey think if he had one and really liked them, he would commit. in fact i find it hard to imagine hes a player or isn’t serious about relationships. when his brother tommy got addicted to drugs and fucked up his life, simon quit the military until tommy got 100% better and married. yup. he stayed to help him recover, for years. thats how loving and committed this man is🥹🥹.

ghost would not cheat on his s/o. i can't stress how important this hc is, because it's so out of character for him to do so. sure, guys in the military statistically have higher divorce rates, incidences of infidelity, and much more red flag stuff, but knowing what happened to him, he would never do that. doesn't matter how stressed, lonely, sexually frustrated this man is; he would not cheat on his partner. this guy has been through far more stressful situations and got through it, you think hes gonna cheat because hes stressed because of work?

its not sunshine and rainbows or absolute toxicity being with him. it's not really a mix of both either. ghost isn't that princess treatment, super squishy and cuddly, sweet guy who likes fluffy stuff. he definitely isn't the toxic guy who leaves you with mixed signals either.

hes quite the gentleman when it comes to approaching relationships, hes seen how his dad treated his mom, and ghost wants to do the exact opposite. i believe ghost likes to use the traditional courting methods when dating someone: gifting flowers, paying for dates, holding the door open (ladies first typa guy!!), the old fashioned stuff. idk if i should point it out again but this guy DOES NOT FW modern dating practices, he wouldn't download dating apps, or start 'talking stages'. i dont think he would write love letters just because hes not very good at writing poetry or expressing his feelings in the first place.

theres still downsides to being with him. the long distance, the time being apart (months and months). but i dont think he'd go as far as being emotionally avoidant.

also something really random ive noticed is that 2009 and reboot ghost are very different, personality wise. i like to think that 2009 ghost represents simon riley much better, but the reboot ghost actually gives the essence and character of what a 'ghost' in the military is.

more random headcanons:

simon prefers dogs over cats because dogs are loyal and stay with you until the end (stereotypically)

hates snakes and spiders

probably wouldn’t do 50/50 on dates, he pays!

avoids saying manchester slang when deployed

drinks and smokes. not always. he’s disciplined but he still does that stuff.. hes a british guy in his 30s whos kinda depressed, grew up with adults around him smoking 24/7, whatd you think😀😀 (its canon that most of tf141 smoke anyway)

listens to 80’s rock music. its canon that his mom enjoys the band siouxsie and the banshees :)), he probs does too

shaves his beard

is actually confident hes not bad looking. dude, hes 6’2, in shape with a jawline🙄

i don't enjoy hcs of ghost being the scariest out of tf141 (appearance wise yes). but soap seems much more scary imo, he was the youngest guy to pass SAS selections in the history of the UK military, and was nicknamed soap because of fast and good he is at cleaning up 'messes' (basically killing people).

id arguably say ghost is the most compassionate out of 141, if we're talking about the OG 2009 one.

[cheerleaderman]

It’s spirit week at Night Raven College and most of our students aren’t really feeling the spirit. So our headmage came up with the perfect idea to solve this problem.

What better way to lift up people spirits than CHEERLEADERS!

….Absolutely not

Well that’s too bad! as the headmage made it a requirement for the event. Even the staff have to do it so get on your cheer wear and cheer on your school mates as they face many challenges.

All classes of students respected year for example 1-A vs 1-B, will be going against each other throughout the week to earn points for your class. The winning classes with the most points will get a class trophy and party. A good party Crowley promises isn’t he so kind?

Rules:

Keep it PG , no Pro-ship etc

No AI

Anyone can participate! Cards, Ocs , Canon Characters, draws , fics , etc!

There is no deadline

Be sure to Tag me and use #CheerforNRC

any questions let me know

Outfits:

Of course everyone is required to put on their Cheer wear but there are also mascot for each dorm and the school.

Must use these colors the Colors Purple, Yellow, black and white

uniform can be changed around of course here are some examples.( others are allowed to use my designs for the characters here with credit)

All Canon Characters designs here ( you are allowed to make your own designs too!)

You can make up your own logo!

MASCOTS:

[ you guys have mainly creative freedom just making sure to include the requirements some have ]

Night Raven College- Night the Raven. | Heartslabyul - Rosie , a heart with a crown and rose |

Savannaclaw- King the lion, has a scar on their left eye | Octavinelle- Ms, Witch, an octopus with a shell necklace |

Scarabia- Jas the Snake | Pomefiore- Queen Apple, a beautiful apple with a crown

Ignihyde- Spottie the three headed dog | Diasomnia- malevolent the dragon

Ramshackle- Rammy the ghost, has a top hat with a bow like Grim’s

Card background:

Divider

Cheerleading team: Roster

I hit the max limit for tags so they will be under the roster links

AJ and Asher - @karamatsuboy-aj

Yuuna - @satoukki

Willow | groovy - @prefectrose

Yurena Yurena’s card - @ranas-twisted-wonderland

Shuu - @oya-oya-okay

Saiyuu - @quzen

Yumi Groovy | Marina | Dione - @marinahavik

El (Yuuel ) - @stxrgazingattheclouds

Kyra - @angelwishess

Yuusha - @crystallizsch

Rose - @blood-red-hummingbee

Yuura - @azriel-sama

Kupid - @sheep-gone-wild

Shoyo - @shyx-prince

Hopper - @amatsuchan-eiliniel

Józefina - @offorestsongs

Beau- @hypn0sssss

Brannan - @bunniehunn

Yuhua - @distant-velleity

Paloma and Hydris - @mhedusard

Soul - @twistedplayer16

Isabella - @skibidibabygirl

Caspian | Yuuto - @twsted-void

Victoria - @saddixie

Peony - @sabrina4400

Jovelina ( Jovie) - @jovieinramshackle

Ink - @shinysparklesapphires

Emery - @andminnequin

Eirwen - @day-dr3aming

Yuyume and Yuuko - @anonymousplant

Yuubeni | Yuubeni’s Card - @bunniehunn

Daisy - @midnightmah07

Yulia - @chillygourami

Kanae - @beneathsakurashade

Joseph - @readsrandomstuff67

Constance - @theolivetree123

April - @applecherrytea

Elio | Groovy - @sunnysidesevenup

Mina - @twtysevapr

Vil and Eislyn - @4necdote

Yuknan - @babyghoul138

Artemisia - @moonyasnow

Eira - @kwaiipootatooo

Hagi - @clovenoko

Jewel - @jewelulu

Miyuu - @gingacat

Taru - @taruruchi

Alan - @alan-without-the-an

Deliah - @slumberingrose-fandom

Fanart:

Jamil putting his hair in a high ponytail | Event drawings - @/crystallizsch

LET’S GO 2-C! | Lucky Star Death Grip - Me(cheerleaderman)

Azul drawings | Event Drawings - @/oya-oya-okay

AJ’s failed flip - @/karamatsuboy-aj

Cool girls table - @/stxrgazingattheclouds

Azul has 2 hands - @/jovieinramshackle

Floyra matching - @/angelwishess

Kyra and Ace - @/lumdays

Jackrose | cool kids table - @/blood-red-hummingbee

2-A doodles- @/anonymousplant

Hagi doing her best - @/clovenoko

Yunde - @lumdays

[notebooks-and-laptops]

Just realised the reason I'm not getting that cool Bellara outfit with the tiara is because i won't encourage her to destroy the archive. Which is really annoying, because I think destroying the archive is a decision neither she or Rook should be making and really puts the nail in the coffin for me on this game just not caring at all about the elves and especially the dalish at all. Like. Bellara could GIVE IT AWAY but to destroy it is to take history and knowledge away from so many people who are desperate for such knowledge. The game basically only brings up the dalish if they're victims of the gods they worshipped in this game (or worse, when the writing tries to force white guilt onto a group of people it makes no sense to have white guilt). And then to just decide suddenly that all these clans who have worked so hard to try and restore some history, the VEILJUMPERS themselves...just. don't get a say in this?

Like. Think of Merrill. Merrill would LOVE to get her hands on that archive. And yes Merrill can destroy the mirror at the end of her questline but if she DOES it's a huge emotional beat in which she believes that she thinks she was wrong and it got her keeper/clan killed. It's really done more out of anger and pain than anything else (the bit where it shatters chills me to my core every time). It's during the rivalry path and it's like, she believes she is so so so alone at that point and that the mirror took it all away. It's a really good character beat and I think maybeeeee they were trying to replicate it here? Because Bellara is also grieving and her brother was taken from her.

But it just doesn't work because it ends up as rooks decision and it ends up being like a methodically thought out one where we're just taking history away from all the dalish clans that they may want or find useful? And it also feels less done out of grief and more a reference to the previous white guilt convo that Bellara has about the Gods and it's like????? It makes me feel so icky to have to make that decision. It's NOT OURS TO MAKE. I just. Bellaras final beats they had so many options it could have been like; her becoming a spirit again or not, her following Anaris or not, her saving her brother or not. If they really really wanted to make it about like elves past Vs their future (false dichotomy but go off I guess) they could have had her find a way to remove her Valislin and whether or not she takes it (also I love the design but give her one we recognise and maybe make it one of the gods we are fighting to give it extra oomf?? I mean I like the idea of different clans having different designs but this kinda falls flat when she and Cirian are the only ones who have different designs?) because at least that decision would only affect HER and not you know. All the clans that constantly have their history erased and desperately want to hold onto it????

Anyway. I don't want to destroy the archive.

But I want the tiara. I want it so bad.

[polonium-snap]

Fic rec for your bkdkbk post-canon woes

Now that MHA is over I've been satisfying my bkdkbk needs with fics like one does, so I made this fic rec of the best fanfics I've read over the past few months. Unintentionally most of them are rated E, idk why, if you want more fics, feel free to check my ao3 bookmarks, I have over 1000 bkdk fics bookmarked

DISCLAIMER: Please check the tags and warnings thoroughly before reading any of the fics here

Multichapter:

You Gave Me Purpose, Kacchan by wowschreave | Rated T | Post-canon

The first in what I call the "Post-canon holy trinity" I've already talked about this one so much but I'll do it again because this is THE post-canon fic, plus it has amazing, beautiful, wonder-who-made-this-masterpiece ART lol

promises kept by gabstar | Rated E | Post-canon | BKDK

The second instalment of the Post-canon trinity, starring co-depended BKDK which is one of my favorite flavors

Count to Infinity by socksasgloves | Rated T | Post-canon | BKDK

The completion of the holy trinity with more Post-canon goodness because it's what I crave on a cold night

The night we decided to be brave by Albipepo | Rated E | BKDKBK | Accidental parents

I love this one so much, I hated both of them for being stupid half of the time but it's so so worth it

i'm not myself when i'm without you by YunaTuna | Rated M (but I would rate it E) | Possesive BKDK

This one is so interesting and dark, I'm obsessed with possessive Deku and this hits all the right marks and more

And the world went still by Saiyasha | Rated E | BKDK | (temporary) Mayor Character Death | Established relationship

GUT-WRENCHING, this one hits so hard, I nearly died, but it thankfully has a happy ending

Kacchan vs the Internet by palavering | Rated T | Soc Med

This one is not complete but read it read it please it's so good, and the social media aspect is so peak, like I can rave for hours on how well the author uses CSS

Baby Bottles and Blushing Faces by derDschungelderRosen | Rated T

Baby Project is a classic but I adore this take on the idea so much, plus it's hilarious

keep the rain by gheemin | Rated T | Post-canon

I adore how introspective this one is, it also overwhelmed me with feels

Fake it, 'till you make it. by Princess_ofPizza | Rated M| Charades

Drinking games are always bad ideas, unless you're bkdk in which case carry on

Inhibitionless by Sonday | Rated E | Quirk shenanigans

Horny quirks are the best

You Had Me From the Start by bellbloom | Rated E| BKDK| Artist x Bartender AU

As an artist myself Artist!Izuku scratches an itch I didn't know I had

A Starving Artist's Success by StevieBanks | Rated M | BKDK | Artist x Fashion designer AU

Which is why I have two fics with artist Deku, also kind of a meet-cute

Unraveled by omicroncet | Rated M | BKDK |

Three words; sleep deprived Izuku

One-shots:

love in the making by Kacchdeku | Rated G | Post-Canon | BKDK

Third-wheel Kota is the best

Sturdy Heart by lurethegalaxy | Rated T | Post-canon| Established Relationship

Angsty but so so so good

pacemaker by passengerside | Rated T | Post-war | Canon-compliant

The pacemaker scene has me dead, ascending, AND there's art?!!

The Eight Years Between by Loriqod | Rated T | Post-canon | Established relationship

I love when fics fill in the gaps of the canon content

Embers by UglyGreenJacket | Rated T | Post-canon | angst with a happy ending | Established relationship

My poor baby Izuku needs a hug, thankfully Katsuki is there to give it to him

king of hearts by nikkiRA | Rated E | Quirk shenanigans

This quirk is so creative and cute and I love that it also includes their other classmates reactions

crepe date by isidium | Rated T | Fluff

'Cause we all think about that one crepe comment Izuku made one (1) time and so does Katsuki

chasing the rabbit by mimiwrites | Rated T | Amnesia

Even more Quirk shenanigans because those are always so fun

love is a labour (i'll slave til the end) by nikkiRA| Rated E| Omegaverse| DKBK

I love LOVE Omega! Katsuki and you can take him from my cold dead hands

Talk After Talk by beanbeanrose | Rated T | Post-war

This is just them talking but i love it so much

GG by MajestyTime | Rated T | Crack treated seriously

This one is all over the place but in a good way, it played off as a laugh but it has a very interesting what-if scenario

If I'm Being Honest by Queen_of_the_Otakus | Rated M | Truth serum (kinda)

Forced truth situations are so funny because it's never that deep but everyone still freaks out

Thanks for reading!!! Hope you guys like the fics I chose