#hieronymous bosch mention

[pissfartboy]

Ist es over für mich?

[robborne]

once again shoutout to italian painters for being horny on main and painting so many boobies (and amazing, anatomically correct hands as well)

[sepublic]

TOH Gallery Nucleus Info!

            All right! The Gallery Nucleus livestream just ended, so here’s some info and trivia I found relevant!

         When asked what they would’ve liked to see in S3 that they couldn’t fit in, JBO said “more dates”, while Cissy replied merely “Detention”. Sarah wanted to see the kids go to school, and Shawn Responts suggested one of the demon kids visisting the doctor, and us learning about demon physiology that way.

         JBO continued his answer, saying he’d like to see the kids explore more via a road trip, with so many options; Maybe Maine where they’d be trapped in a lighthouse, or a haunted, mossy Charleston. The group joked about Hunter driving, or Vee disguised as an adult.

         Sam Bosma would’ve liked to see them visit a comic con and see some Cosmic Frontier stuff, especially for Camila!

         Cat Harman Mitchell suggested a grocery store; In exploring concepts for the Thanks to Them end credit illustrations, one idea was thrown out of Amity and Hunter looking suspiciously at a banana; Which, I guess that means the Demon Realm having bananas was retconned, Amity is also really sheltered, and/or Demon Bananas are much deadlier than human ones, hence Amity’s distrust. Gus and Willow would’ve been stoked by a bottle of mustard, which I find connects nicely to Gus’ ‘mustard ravioli’ recipe that he thought Camila loved!

         Eden Riegel said she’d like to see King visit the human world and become a youtuber!

         Amity’s witch outfit from the S3 montage was designed after Vivian from Paper Mario… Vivian is a trans girl, could this mean…?

         The Duolingo homage initially looked too much like Garfield, so they had to change it.

         In designing the Boiling Isles, they looked to Flemish and Dutch architecture, avoiding Gothic because it was too obvious and also complicated; Hieronymous Bosch paintings served as inspiration. The one thing that was too gross even for Dana was Latissa, AKA the Titan’s armpit, which initially had a lot more hair follicles.

         It was confirmed that in designing the Boiling Isles, they had this idea of the Titan trying to regenerate, hence all of the fleshy masses, body parts, too many bones, etc.! Which can I say, as someone who guessed and analyzed all the way back in Season 1A… I CALLED IT!!!

         JBO also mentioned that in early drafts, the show’s sixth episode (of S1) would’ve had Camila in the Demon Realm!

         Likewise, he revealed that Belos wasn’t always Emperor; Originally, there was going to be an insect ruling family, with the current ruler being Emperor Pupa. However, they were stuck in their cocoon and had yet to emerge because of Belos, who claimed to be the only one who understood why the cocoon screamed; They changed the idea as it was too complicated and weird. VERY reminiscent of the Titan’s will, the implication he’s still alive and trying to regenerate, showing glyphs, not to mention the giant heart in the throne room…

         Vee is around Luz’s age, at about 15-ish! All the kids would be entering Sophomore year, while Hunter is a Junior!

         According to Rebecca, Dana said the timeskip was a few months, and the exact number didn’t matter, because in the end the characters would still act the same. Tbh, I respect that; Writing the main story and keeping in mind what matters, really does take precedence over the little details in the back imo.

         Luz’s palisman egg is in her fanny pack!!! She took it with her into the Demon Realm!

         In regards to the QnA, the first question asked that for writing a show like TOH, where everything comes full-circle, what was solidified?

         JBO said that the main and only thing (and this can change!) is knowing exactly who the characters are. One of Dana’s great strengths is the cast, and having believable characters that you could know what they’d do in a situation. One thing that’s hard about TOH but helps make it what it is, is that the writers had to throw out a lot of stuff to get to what they felt was real and right. You go in with characters and think you know what they want and need, but that can change; It’s really about knowing what feels real. JBO also said that Dana had certain visuals/images she wanted for the ending of the show from the start!

         When asked what surprised them for making it in, even if it was too gross; Andy Garner-Flexner brought up the magic shop the kids visited and all of the references, like the Ness shirt. They also put some Pokemon Team Aqua and Magma costumes in some boxes too! Fun fact, Andy’s husband asked him to hide a bunny for him in the background of S2 near the ending.

         Surprisingly, some stuff would be gross or messed-up, and they’d make it even worse, only for the execs to love it; Like Flapjack’s death scene! Oof…

         The crew had to avoid religious connotations for background books, so a D&D manual called “Advanced Sinning” was cut. Showing guts was fine, but no Donald Duck; Shawn wanted to put in a Donald Duck easter egg, for the implication he visited the Demon Realm or was even from it. Copyright was the hardest thing to get past execs in general… They tried to get Disney’s version of Hades on Luz’s wallpaper, but had to settle for the videogame instead. Cat can’t believe they got away with Hollow Mind and Lilith’s ice cream scene.

         In regards to favorite fan theory? Sarah Nicole-Robles explained she didn’t know the plot in advance, so when she got the scripts for S2, she wondered if Hunter would be a homewrecker for Lumity, but was relieved and confirmed that no, he’s a SIBLING. Rebecca loved the Collector Luz theory, and JBO joked about the “Lego Eda” theory being right, their plans for a spin-off of her… Not to take it too seriously but this does remind me of my theory about the Collector turning everyone into toys…

         In regards to a premise for a TOH spinoff, Sarah said she’d love an MTV cribs one-off of the Owl House, a tour of the rooms. Cat wanted a Lilith show about her historian adventures; Maybe a How I met your Mother style flashback show for the adults as teens, and how they got to the point they are now.

         Andy wanted a Raeda prequel; JBO wanted to explore the deep past of the Demon Realm and the world beyond the isles. The characters would be unconnected to TOH’s on the surface; Different characters in a different part of the world. Rebecca joked about a Hooty spin-off.

         In regards to the hardest character to work on; For JBO it was Belos… He was hard to write because he’s from so many different places and lived lots of lives in the Demon Realm, they had to ask does he have a set slang, a way he talks? Does he talk like a colonist? Likewise, Belos’ plans and motives are a secret for a good portion of the show, so it was tricky figuring out how much to reveal and when throughout the show.

         Andy said that because he asked Dana, they changed the way they did glasses in side-profiles! This change can also be seen in Them’s the Breaks, Kid; Was he responsible for that too?

         For Cat, one challenge was how short King was; They had to go for the shortcut of him riding on shoulders. This is because they’d want to do shots of characters, but not show their feet, but King was so short he’d be cut-off; So they went for the “Pikachu solution” to keep him in-frame.

         When asked what their palismen would be, Sam Bosma said a penguin; Rebecca wanted a deer/elk, anything with antlers to stab with and use as a melee weapon in conjunction with magic. Andy went for a mole (which is also his fursona), JBO asked if anyone had a moth palisman? Shawn said he’d be a giant ground sloth, about the size of the Bat Queen, that he’d have to drag around.

         Cissy went for a honey badger, since it could get stuff done; Be mean for her when she’s too nice. Sarah brought up a puppy, dragon, octopus (this last one reminds me of Thanks to Them!), Cat would be a puffball cat; The opposite of Ghost’s sleekness, just fuzz and eyes.

         When asked what Hunter’s first day at Hexside would be like, JBO said that he’d simply “turf out”. Rebecca said he’d get eaten by a locker, as did Sarah; Rebecca explained Hunter would make the mistake of putting food into his locker, so the next time he opened it…

         Cissy of course said detention. Cat said Hunter would get lost; Rebecca said Flapjack would have to help, and everyone cringed because y’know, JBO said that was too soon.

         Someone asked how they approached fleshing out Camila through a dream sequence? JBO explained that from the start, they KNEW she was a good mom and wanted what was best for Luz, and not in a super wrong-headed way either. But at the start of the show, all we had was that she sent Luz to camp, so it was hard to reconcile this take with that action. It took a lot of thought, how did this happen? Everyone had their own experiences with their moms worked in.

         In the end, the writers realized they’re all at that part of life where you realize your parent is their own person and doesn’t feel any older than anyone else. So when they looked at Camila as her own person and not just Luz’s mom, that helped them make their breakthrough on her character.

         Andy brought up as another bit of Camila characterization was the background, and all of the queer community books she was reading; Not only does she support in one way, but she’s learning. And in regards to what Camila went through after Manny passed…

         In the background, you can see signs of things being unfinished in the house; A lot of things incomplete, boxes not yet unpacked. It’s like a stand-still in time; Camila couldn’t keep going with some of these things. There were still boxes at the end of the hall with the family photos, it was half-painted. Given the short runtime, they really used the background and environmental storytelling to flesh out Camila this way.

         When asked what coven they would be, Andy mentioned he thought of this answer in anticipation of that type of question, on his way to the event. He considered Oracle or Construction but decided on being a wild witch. Rebecca went for Abominations or Beastkeeping; JBO also wanted Abominations, so he could get to the bottom of what this thing is that he’s making, and talk to it; Is it bad to have it blown up every other second? Someone jokingly suggested what if Abominations were just Titan boogers.

         Cat chose Illusions, Shawn opted for Potions and Oracle. Sam Bosma went for a smaller coven from Covention, like the Tiny Cat Coven. Sarah decided Bad Girl Coven was a cop-out answer, so considered Plant or Beastkeeping, ended up really feeling the former today. Lilith would be Emperor’s Coven; Just kidding, it’d be beast-keeping to keep all eight-legged friends far away. Eden chose Bard Coven.

         When asked about the human outfits they liked, Bosma mentioned he loved the Cosmic Frontier ones; They always had the red and yellow in mind as a DS9 reference, but he still experimented with other colors.

         At one point, Dana couldn’t decide between two Gus shirts; So she flipped a USB drive instead of a coin, and with that opted for his Dinosaur shirt! Cat said Hunter’s wolf shirt was a vibe; Andy mentioned they ‘tortured’ Matthieu Cousin by asking for more and more costume variations, until he said he needed a break for his wrist. Andy said Amity’s fits were good, Sarah concurred that Amity looked so hot and was killing it.

         When asked if Flapjack ever tried flapjacks, Sarah said objectively yes. Rebecca figured he probably did; Andy suggested it was because of Camila, and Flapjack was told he was eating flapjacks too, but didn’t know if they were good.

         (This led to a question among the group of whether palismen had taste buds, which they figured only Dana could answer. We know palismen hate the taste of goreberries, so the answer is yes!)

         When asked what the characters’ zodiac signs would be… Dana prepped Rebecca with an answer ahead of time for this; She told Rebecca to tell them that Earth’s astrological calendar didn’t exist in the Demon Realm, they didn’t even have the same number of months. It’s a much more confusing system and they can’t answer that question; There’s thirteen months and 666 days, and the animals associated with each month are worms or other tube-shaped creatures.

         (Andy did say he HC’ed Willow as a Virgo since he was one too and related to her. This isn’t canon however.)

         When asked what anime the kids would like, Andy brought up My Hero Academia, Naruto, Yuyu Hakusho (which inspired his fashion choices). JBO said Gus would really get into a show about some dude addicted to gambling but also GREAT at it, always finding a way to pull it off; Like a mahjong anime.

         In regards to their favorite creature/demon, it was the skin-eating fairy from the first episode for Cissy, whom Eden voiced! Cat said Hooty was a disgusting work, Rebecca liked the little version of the Owl Beast and had a plush on hand of it! For Andy, it was Titans. Bosma liked the detention guards, and…

         Shawn said he liked the Bat Queen; And in their discussion, JBO revealed she wasn’t the Titan’s palisman (pointing out he was too big for her), she just belonged to a giant who lost her. Shawn liked her story of becoming a ruler after that incident.

        And that’s it! Very illuminating stuff about production. Very sad to hear the Bat Queen’s backstory here, since it likely means we won’t have it addressed in S3, nor will the writers retcon her as the Titan’s to fit it into the remaining storyline. Thrilled about what we heard of the Titan’s regeneration and Belos’ original story concepts, especially since I WAS correct in likening him to a beetle in Season 1B, after all! Between this and Titan King, my earliest S1 theories have been getting vindicated, babey!

[reginaldqueribundus]

this ask has been sitting in my inbox for 2 years now and I will never delete it. anon cancelling me for "making jokes about water and star wars robots" instead of calling out some tumblr blog I've never heard of. inventing a whole new word ("dendrophobic") which as far as I can tell supposed to mean "hostile towards trees". mentioning in the same breath as this person being a bigot. it's like I don't even care how many geese get decapitated!!! every time I read it I notice something new. it's like a Hieronymous Bosch painting.

[niconebula]

Mythology and History of the Collector

Part III of a series on why I think the Collector is an Angel from the third dimension of the TOH universe (mostly proven by the time of this installment) + theorization on the mythology and where the show is going for the little guy himself.

A - Existence of the Third Stars Dimension -> 2A - Why it is Heaven-like and the Collector an Angel B - History of the Demon Realm & Greek Mythology C - Who is the Collector (as a Character)?

A: Existence of 'The Stars' Dimension

When I began writing this post we didn't even have a concrete name for this and I referred to it as The Celestials. King's Tide briefly referenced the Collector being "a Child of The Stars", but until Thanks To Them it was uncertain if this was a place name or descriptor. I don't need to do much work to prove the existence of The Stars much more, but here's another reference of it in the show:

Plus an exshaustive amount of visual references to it mentioned in a similar post by Sabertoothwalrus. Very good reading on that post that accompanies this one well so do check it out.

Then we have my favourite analysis method of "find the sources of inspiration for the show and pull from there" which was the original basis of this theory. John Bailey Owens (the head writer) for the show posted this image on Twitter for promotion of King's Tide:

There is an easter-egg at the bottom of it which shows this painting in particular from Hieronymous Bosch - "The Garden of Earthy Delights". Eden, Earth, and Hell are depicted here - Hell especially beign cited as inspiration for the Demon Realm by Dana. It's no stretch to say that out of the two dimensions we currently know of, the Human World clearly resembles Earth and the Demon Realm is Hell. The original pitch for the show was a human girl (Luz) getting trapped inside of literal Hell. With the amount of religious influence in the show and the pre-existing dimensions, it makes sense logically and artistically for The Stars to be 'Heaven'.

I'm not even going to go into it here for sake of some levity, but I completely believe this is where magic and glyphs originated too. From the constellations in the Stars.

You should also keep in mind that the promotional art is literally depicting the Collector as a biblically accurate angel. Other evidence? Our lovely Xeno Robinsion (Hunter’s VA and king of accidentally leaking information) talking about TOH and referring to The Stars as being Heaven.

B: History of The Demon Realm and the TOH Gods

First of all - we need to be on the same page here that whatever the Collector is, and the Titans, are both (and so far the only known) actual gods. On top of the powerscaling of them both, these kids are the only two characters with distinct yellow and red eyes - which seems to be an art direction choice to indicate their status, and perhaps also a connection.

As Heaven existed before Earth and Hell, I believe the Stars existed before either the Demon or Human realm did. Furthermore, I believe The Stars are probably connected to both dimensions through their skies. The Collectors (tentative name) and The Titans I like to think, both originated from The Stars. Then there was a civil war.

In the bible, to the best of my non-christian knowledge, there was a war between the rebel angels and heaven that caused Hell to be created and the fallen angels banquished there. In Greek Mythology, a similar story plays out - the losers being The Titans who were banquished to the underworld of Tartarus by the Olympians. In the bible, the Nephilim / Titans / Giants were said to be the hybrid sons of the fallen angels.

We know The Titans ruled over the Demon Realm (already explained as Hell earlier). What if they, like the Titans in mythology, were banquished there by fellow Gods (the race of Collectors)? Perhaps they eventually came down to finish the job thousands of years later, with mass casualties on both sides.

Perhaps the Collector was the only child. Perhaps King's dad thought it too cruel to kill a child simply for being born on the enemy side, and resorted to trapping him in a disc instead. King's Dad was (obviously) alive when he trapped the Collector - then who killed him? It could not have been the tiny Titan Trappers. There had to be other Collector Gods.

C: Who is the Collector (as a Character)?

A child god, who just wants to play. He was a child trapped inside a war that he didn't quite understand, and rationialized it in their young brain as a game. Collectors (yes tentative name) vs Titans. Just like a few familiar someones:

It was surprising to a lot of people that The Collector genuinely only wanted to play with King when they were released. It might make more sense with this context provided. He might have guided the Titan Trappers to hunt down the last remaining Titans out of a miscommunication not to kill them, but as a game of Hide and Seek (the same game he proposes to King when they meet). He interpreted their hiding from ongoing war as a game.

It also seems bizarre to me that a character we pretty much all know they are going to redeem, would be responsible for a genocide.

I highly believe that the Collector is an orphan, too. The Owl House has a clear penchant for orphaned children, but more than that as I explained in another post, he fits the bill for "child-characters-who-get-adopted-into-the-owl-house-family".

Much like the reconcilliation of Humans and Witches is ongoing in the show, I would love to see the reconcilliation of the Titans and Collectors. I even hope that maybe King's Dad was a pacifist, who yearned for King to be born long after the war ended and mend things with the Collector himself - both as innocent children without prejudice for eachother. To open The Stars once more and allow free travel for humans and witches through.

[empire-of-thieves]

Spore: The Old Forest

I wanted to describe the unusual cavern that I have in the Empire of Thieves. Called Spore, it is a huge mushroom forest that actually has three towns within it. The first town I wanted to mention is Old Forest, which consists of giant mushrooms that have been petrified and houses carved within them.

A noble family of wererats and their faction ("The Alchemists") controls Old Forest out of a tower built into the largest of the mushrooms. They have dominated a group of goblins called Gray Tribe that also live in Old Forest. Beyond those 2 groups there are only a few humanoids living there -- most people are afraid of getting kidnapped by the wererats.

Spore is in the Upper Empire so the roof of the cavern presses up against the Underbelly, which is what the City Above* calls its sewers and cellars and tombs. Consequently, the roof of the cavern has some tunnels and shafts through which daylight can shine down or rain can fall.

I used Midjourney to create some fun Hieronymous Bosch style illustrations of old gross mushrooms.

*I call it The City Above because I am steering clear of describing the world, to the point where I haven't even named the city or its Duke.

[slovakbabe]

15 year old me was funny. wdym someone did an art history project and mentioned in hieronymous bosch’s earthly delights men were in hell and u nodded

[antifascistblackmetalnetwork]

Morvigor - De Spiegel (full EP, 2024)

For all of its colonial crimes and its important role in imperialist politics nowadays, it's a fact that the Netherlands have been for a long time one of the places where the arts have been the most developed in capitalism. This might be most obvious in the visual arts, with such unavoidables as Rembrandt, Hieronymous Bosch, Vermeer and of course the mighty Van Gogh, but it is also true of other fields, including music and metal - and maybe particularly black metal, as Terzij de Horde, Fluisteraars and Grey Aura, among MANY others, demonstrate. Morvigor, today's feature on our Network, is yet another example, and one that should REALLY be better known - and like the ones we mentioned, they are also rather experimental and atmospheric. There are abrasive post-black crescendos here, sure, but also acoustic passages, clean vocals and melodic passages in a way that is more "proggy" than what the term usually implies, sort of a concoction of Borknagar with newer bands like Gaerea with generous doses of "Dutchness". The cover, painted by artist Frank Stolwijk, is another example of that, and with the lyrics helps bring in even more the listener into this whole aura of existentialism and emotion; indeed, the band christens itself "expressive black metal", and the label really does give an idea of what to listen to here. The only problem is "De spiegel" is it's too short at only two tracks and around 20 minutes, because we really wanted more!

[rainbowsandalchemy]

Color Response 8: The Sound of Earthly Delight

Response to The Awl article “Rose Madder, the Pinky Red of Stephen King's Worst Novel and Hieronymus Bosch's Perverted Playground”

I found this article, written by Katy Kelleher, to be broadly informative. Ms. Kelleher explained the origins of Rose Madder, how the pigment is made, and the history of pink. She also included tidbits such as the fact that a man named Henry Perkin created “mauve.” This is the kind of detailed information that makes my day. However, because I never matured past the eighth grade, I knew as soon as she mentioned the role rose madder played in Hieronymous Bosch’s The Garden of Earthly Delights, that this response had to be a play list beginning with several recorded versions of the music written on one of the naked bums in the painting. 

https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/periods-genres/renaissance/hieronymus-bosch-painting-naked-bum-music/

(For the CNN story about Amelia Hamrick, the college student and music major who discovered the butt music, see the news feature here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5lasImOZfQ  )

The naked bum music will be followed by a selection of feminist music decrying the fouls of toxic masculinity. 

1-3: Various Renditions of “Naked Bum Music”

4. “You Don’t Own Me” by Leslie Gore

5. “Respect” by Aretha Franklin

6. “Men Explain Things to Me” by Tacocat

7. “I’m Done” by The Julie Ruin

Link to “Men Explain Things to Me” by Tacocat

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1w2ci2C86Fk

Link to “I’m Done” by The Julie Ruin (Check Out Kathleen Hanna’s Rose Madder-esque pants)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWqR0w9ohN8

[ankhisms]

did not at all know that hieronymous bosch was going to be a plot point/mentioned a lot in this book and the first time they started mentioning a painting with funky little creatures and the first time the author described the magic creatures appearing in different places with the characters seeing them i was like oh that sounds like a bosch paintings creatures and then they finally mentioned him by name and i really was like

THE WEIRD CREATURES PAINTING GUY!

[comrade-meow]

Last week, the Lancet medical journal became briefly internet-famous when it published the following sentence on its Twitter account: ‘Historically, the anatomy and physiology of bodies with vaginas have been neglected.’

The sentence is a pullquote from a bigger article, but boy does it capture the imagination on its own. Like a Hieronymous Bosch painting, you can return to it again and again, always finding something new and surprising to appreciate. There’s the musicality of it, all those four- and five-syllable words that roll pleasantly off the tongue. There’s the faintly macabre invocation of ‘bodies’, followed by ‘with vaginas’, suggesting a collection of corpses accessorized with (but not necessarily attached to) a bunch of birth canals. There’s a straightforward descriptiveness, too, almost evocative of content meant for children: if you liked Bananas in Pajamas, you’re gonna love Bodies with Vaginas!

But the weirdness of the sentence is ultimately outdone by the ubiquity of language like it, reflecting a recent but indisputable shift in the way that academic and activist communities, including in medicine, talk about women. There’s a whole new world of terminology out there, all of it centered on bodies and biology, that studiously avoids any mention of whose body it is. It’s a world of menstruators, people with cervixes, vulva owners — and, of course, bodies with vaginas.

This is an interesting development given that any mention of vaginas was not long ago declared taboo in activist spaces. Productions of The Vagina Monologues, once an iconic feminist play, have been repeatedly closed down over the past five years after protesters complained that it implicitly excluded women without vaginas. A 2014 celebrity benefit to fund abortions for disadvantaged women in Texas, titled ‘Night of a Thousand Vaginas’, also came under fire for being ‘hurtful and exclusive’ to trans women. At the time, the message to women was clear: vaginas are canceled. Don’t talk about them.

But now ‘women’ as a category is canceled too, for the crime of failing to include vagina-havers who don’t consider themselves as such. ‘Female’? Same deal: it’s not the language but the entire notion of sex as an identifying factor that has been problematized.

It’s hard to overstate what a weird coda this is to the history of medicine as an institution, in which women’s bodies were often the object of fear, suspicion, and harmful ignorance. From superstitions about menstrual blood, to Freud’s disavowal of the clitoral orgasm, to a medical establishment that turned a blind eye to the ways that female physiology and biochemistry differed from men’s, the healthcare system (of which a journal like the Lancet is a part) has been riddled with biases that continue today. For decades, women were seen as a sinister other, their bodies too dark and dangerous to explore, a no-go zone on the map of humanity.

But then, at least we made it on the map.

The new rubric, on the other hand, leaves nothing to point at, no territory of our own. It’s all casual dehumanization (‘bodies with vaginas’), decategorization and language that leaves us with little room to discuss the common biology, anatomy and experiences of the group that once called itself ‘women’.

Simone de Beauvoir lamented that women were a perpetual other, the object to a male subject, defined not by their own characteristics but by the ways in which they weren’t men. But now it seems that there are men and there are women — that is, anyone who cares to claim the label — and then there’s that other category. You know. Those people: menstruating, lactating, vulva-owning, a loose assembly of body parts that no longer merits its own name, let alone its own movement. The other-twice-removed. It’s an irony of this brand of inclusion: the more we stretch to respect and recognize the humanity of some groups, the more one particular group of people, always the same one, gets nudged toward the margins.

In 1993, Ruth Bader Ginsburg famously said, ‘The decision whether or not to bear a child is central to a woman’s life, to her well-being and dignity. It is a decision she must make for herself. When Government controls that decision for her, she is being treated as less than a fully adult human responsible for her own choices.’

A week ago, in an awareness-raising tweet centered on the new Texas abortion law, the ACLU reproduced that quote — only bowdlerized to erase all traces of sex-specificity. Every ‘woman’ became ‘[person]’; every ‘she’ became a ‘[they]’.

Of course, feminism has always purported to define itself as the radical notion that women are people. But it’s a fair bet that this isn’t what anyone had in mind.

[theangrypokemaniac]

@nyarthsis

If Team Rocket 'always had a heart for unpopular Pokémon', that's an admission their Alola catches aren't particular loveable creatures, so I'm not thinking anything too controversial.

You're saying they take pity on the animals no one wants, as in it's normal for me not to find them adorable.

Some Pokémon, such as Lucario, become fan favourites without the advertisement of a regular role the anime. With Wobbuffet, Bewear, Stufful, Mareanie and Mimikyu, do people like them for themselves, or because of their association with Team Rocket?

I think its the latter. I can't imagine there would be such interest in them were they to be owned by a Twerp or appear as a one-off. Really then, it's not what or who they are, it's to whom they belong that matters.

Alola has really devalued catching. Rather than be true to the source material, so battering a Pokémon into submission, as Ash did with Bulbasaur, Primeape, Muk, and many others, now you have to ask their permission!

Bewear didn't even get that. She hung around for no reason, and her 'friend' Stufful was belatedly tacked on. I see why those two were left behind, as Team Rocket had no right to take them elsewhere.

In terms of welfare, Mimikyu and Mareanie are better off staying with them, free and safe, rather than locked in the insalubrious depths of H.Q., but then it never bothered the writers sending previous Pokémon into an uncertain future, so what difference does it make now?

It can only be that, like their predecessors, there is no intention to ever bring them back, but unlike the rest, the fans can't even be allowed the vain hope of a return, not with this rather awkward disposal.

It's feasible that Jessie and James could call their base and request old monsters to join them, but it's difficult to imagine they'd fly across the world to Alola, wander through the woods, pick 'em up and go all the way back again. Why make parting so final and irreversible?

It does imply that Game Freak don't like them, so why should I?

I keep noticing this fickle attitude. A new era starts, we're expected to fall instantaneously in love with every element, beg for more and yet more. Then, once the next region arrives, this adoration asked of us is meant to evaporate and immediately transfer to the next batch.

Well why start to like them, if eventually the makers don't care, to the extent you wouldn't even know previous Pokémon had ever been alive?

Have you heard one mention of Seviper, Yanmega, Dustox, Cacnea, Carnivine, and Mime Junior since they left?

Why were they happy to chuck Wobbuffet after Sinnoh, yet fetched for Kalos?

How could Team Rocket live without it for an entire generation but suddenly it's indispensable again? What do you imagine the rest of their Pokémon felt about that?

Have Jessie and James wondered allowed how Arbok, Weezing, Lickitung and Victreebel are doing?

What of the last two generations?

What is this nonsense where every character is so detached from the past?

Supposing I was to force myself to appreciate them: since they've gone, never to return, I'd be dissatisfied with the show, thus no better off than I am now.

My feelings don't run on a switch. I can't find myself besotted one minute then dump the object of affection without a second thought, just because Nintendo want it from me.

Even if I had a more positive opinion of the current interpretation, there's no benefit to becoming involved when it's all so fleeting.

Mareanie is ugly, with three teeth. I think he's a sea anenome, so ought to be more attractive, but it's covered in nipples instead!

It looks like a bonsai tree growing breasts, reminiscent of the hideous content lurking within an Hieronymous Bosch painting.

The idea that all Mimikyu copy Pikachu, the most famous Pokémon, when in their world it's nothing special, is too stupid for me to accept. How could that be coincidence?

It's referencing reality, acknowledging the real world's view of Pikachu as the star, so if it's breaking the fourth wall, it invites disbelief.

Wobbuffet does sod all. It's a complete dead weight and has no attacks. Yet it's the one to survive generation after generation. Where's the logic in that?

I suspect his popularity rests on being there so long he's considered part of the furniture, the sole catch in which you can invest an emotional connection whilst fairly certain he'll remain around.

By now it ought to have developed some semblance of a personality, but it's as faceless as ever. Other Pokémon that have been and gone had a bit more about them, but Wobba's so bland no one can summon the energy to write him out.

If he went, what would you miss? Breaking out of his ball and hissing 'WAAAAAHBUHFEH'? Is that so integral?

I have several objections:

What is it meant to be?

Why does its tail have eyes?

Why is that never mentioned?

Is it a sort of quadruped, or has it only one foot with four toes, arranged like the bottom of a medical walking stick?

A lot of my reactions to Pokémon are influenced by encountering them in the games. With Wobbuffet, I remember first coming across it in the cave near Blackthorn City, and just as you're winning the fight, it pulls out Destiny Bond and suddenly you're both down.

When you finally get one, it's tricky to train. You have no choice but to guess whether the opposition will launch a physical or special move, and mostly you get it wrong. He never learns anything else and doesn't evolve, so it's that forever.

Persevering with Magikarp is worthwhile, but what's to be gained from taking any time out to fight with Wobbuffet?

The anime eliminates this problem. You're aware of the nature of the approaching onslaught because you can see it coming, and the opponent said it aloud.

In this context Wobbuffet should be the most powerful Pokémon in the universe. Come on, it can deflect every attack!

Is it? No. It has a successful defence about once a generation, and still loses the battle. I can't say if it's worse to be utterly pointless, or to not fulfil one's potential.

I resent it muscling in on the motto, as if it's considers itself of equal rank to Meowth. No it's not!

When I was young, there was a tendency for magazines to refer to Team Rocket as a duo. Meowth was judged to be in the same position as Pikachu: a main character yes, and valuable enough to be accorded the privilege of liberty, but still very much owned by people.

You would see references to Jessie and James as his Trainers, though how they assumed this worked went unexplained. Even if shared, one had to have to caught him, thus be his proper owner.

Later on this developed into them being three equal members, and the term 'TRio' emerged, but now, although perhaps not officially recognised, there's an attitude of treating them as a quartet.

It's just wrong! Wobbuffet's not been around since day one. He didn't join Team Rocket voluntarily because he had nowhere else to go. It was a choice made for him by his original Trainer, so out of his hands, or rather his flippers.

If he was an independent Pokémon who just tagged along one day, that would be different, but it belongs to Jessie. Promoting one of hers means James is lesser, and no longer equal.

In each generation Team Rocket catch at least one local Pokémon, but as Wobbuffet's there, it ends up with Jessie having more on her side than James, and I dislike the imbalance. Plus the one he does get is violent.

It can't be solved by giving him another new one, as then he's captured two in the region, and she has only one, so again it's skewed.

Whilst Wobbuffet does count in numbers, he's not on the level of the rest, who fight regularly. He's both there and not simultaneously.

I'm still irked the way Lickitung was ejected to make room.

It was the best Pokémon they ever had! It took out Pikachu, Vulpix and Bulbasaur with one move! It would've won those Princess Dolls for Jessie if the writers hadn't changed the rules so that Lick only affects those of sound mind!

It was as if they realised their mistake too late, and so Lickitung was featured less and less to avoid it dominating a fight, then hurriedly traded away for something reliably feeble.

The following analogy you may not understand, but I think it fits rather aptly:

There's a game called Final Fantasy VIII. One of the side quests involves you racing through a castle under a time limit. If successful, you are rewarded with Odin as a Guardian Force, which is a deity that will provide a defence.

Unlike others, he is out of your control, but every so often, as you enter battle, he turns up and annihilates your opponents. It's very welcome.

Unfortunately this game was programmed by bunyips, who clearly didn't want the last section of the game to be accidently easier for you. Oh no. If you're progressing, it ain't gonna be through luck, or turning the console on and off until he arises.

Therefore, towards the close, you come up against ex-friend Seifer. Odin is fixed to rush to your aid, but when he does, bloody Seifer slices him in half, horse and all!

He killed Odin, the ancient King of the North! The Lord of Valhallah! The Father of the Vikings!

It's not normal fighting death, it's irreversible. He's gone for good.

After this Gilgamesh introduces himself as a replacement. He too will randomly appear and set about the enemy.

The problem is that whilst Odin destroyed monsters unfailingly, with Gilgamesh it's a rarity.

He uses four swords, and which you get is also a lottery.

One is the same as Odin's, two deal average damage, but not death, and the worst one depletes 1 HP, so it might as well not have bothered.

Not only does it arrive but a fraction of the time, but it's in a fraction of those times that it's of any assistance, which is something of a comedown.

Lickitung is Odin: didn't see it often, but it tore the place apart!

Wobbuffet is Gilgamesh: once in a blue moon it provides rescue, but it's on a lot lower percentage than it's predecessor.

It's difficult not to be disappointed.

[arthistoryhelena]

Hieronymous Bosch (1490-1500), ‘The Garden of Earthly Delights’ [Oil on Canvas], Museo del Prado, Part 3 of 3

Hello and welcome back to the garden of earthly delights, with a side of delightful art analysis! This is the third part of the analysis of this painting. The first part covered the structure, formal characteristics and triptychs (I love a triptych), and the second part looked at the left and central panels. This part will discuss the third panel and anything else not mentioned (miscellaneous). go!

r i g h t   p a n e l :

This is the lovely Hell panel where evil flourishes and humans can only reap eternal damnation because they have been naughty bois and succumbed to temptation. Cheerful stuff.

Notable Features:

Cities on fire

War

Torture chambers

Infernal taverns

Demons

Mutated animals feeding on human flesh

People are attempting to cover genitalia and breasts with their hands - the eroticism has gone because humans have eaten from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, so can feel shame.

There is a contrast between pleasure and torture; for example, there are a few people being crucified by harp and lute in an allegory of music, and a choir sings from a score inscribed on a pair of buttocks. This aligns with the classic narrative of indulgence in leisure activities (like music and revelry) is sinful.

The “Tree-Man” in the centre is the focus; his head supports a disk of demons and bagpipes (more sexual symbols) (bc bagpipes are sexy, obvs), and his body, made of a broken egg shell and supported by thorny trunks that pierce the body, is entered by a man with an arrow up his butt.

Animals punish humans according to the deadly sins committed. There is a giant bird-monster (Prince of Hell) excreting humans and feasting on them. This is a contrast to the central panel where animals are featured as part of the landscape and are generally passive bystanders to the humans’ actions. They are transformed into active characters that carry out punishment for sins they have witnessed.

The punishments shown in this panel are supposed to be the consequences of lust and sexuality shown in the first two panels. During the Middle Ages, lust was seen as the worst deadly sin (most people were too poor to commit gluttony or greed tho) so it was important to convey this in the painting.

The emphasis on music in this panel also reflects the idea that lust was “music of the flesh”. It could also be seen as a commentary on travelling minstrels (travelling entertainers) who were rather promiscuous.

Bisch Basch Bosch:

There is very little information on Bosch. He was a mysterious man and little is known about his provenance. We know he was Dutch and lived 1450-1516, but beyond that we’re left guessing.

Largely, this painting is regarded as a warning against lust, but there is no information on why or for whom it was commissioned.

[krissidanielle]

An Art History Primer

by Kristian Krawford

      I spent many years studying art history in school and dearly loved it. So allow me a few moments to share the fruits of my education with you. Here is your art schooling without the cost of tuition. And you can really impress your friends with all your refinement!

    We begin in Egypt from 3,000 to 330 BC. The style was marked by stiff figures in profile, subject matter was gods and goddesses, kings and queens, jackal-headed deities and the occasional cat. Egyptians were strong believers in the afterlife and decorated tombs with things they felt one needed in eternity.

    Greece from 1200-200 BC. Not much art has survived from this period other than pots, all decorated in geometric patterns—zigzags, chevrons, checkerboards, diamonds. Also Homeric scenes and later some Kouroi statues.

    Rome from 700 BC- AD 500. Virtually everything we know of Greek art comes to us from the Romans. They were the ultimate copycats, conquering the Greek world and plundering their treasures. They did the same to Egypt. They were the first art patrons and art collectors. A tradition that continued for centuries.

    The Dark Ages AD 600-1350. This title is a misnomer as it was a very exciting time in the world. This was the era of beautiful churches, of Charlemagne (my own great-grandfather), the university and of some really beautiful art.

    Charlemagne was King of the Franks and the first Holy Roman Emperor. His empire was called Carolingian and he set out to change the world. He built monasteries and churches, basilicas, murals, sculptures and frescoes—almost none of which have survived. What have survived are beautiful illuminated manuscripts from this time period, which is also called Romanesque because it draws on Roman models.

    One way it was Roman-like was in its bigger and better churches. The architecture at the time, centered in Paris, was called Gothic by Giorgio Vasari, who intended it as an insult. It means “crude and barbaric.” Gothic style was simply the over decoration of a house of God. Elaborate stone tracery, crested finials, painted details—miscellaneous doodads. All crafted by anonymous artisans.

    A French historian (Jules Michelet) coined the term Renaissance, meaning “rebirth,” in the 1800’s. And because the subject is so broad and involves so many artists, I could go on for pages. So for the sake of brevity, some things will receive only a passing mention.

    The Renaissance can be divided into High and Low or Early and Late. The major artists of the Early Period were Giotto (first to paint three-dimensional people); Masaccio (mastered groups of figures); Lorenzo Ghiberti (spent 21 years working on the bronze doors of the Florence Baptistery aka. Gates of Paradise); Donatello (invented relief sculpture); and Filippo Brunelleschi (architect of the Duomo and first to apply the rules of perspective to art).

    The major artists of the Late Period were: Sandro Botticelli (known for sensuous human forms, i.e. Birth of Venus); Leonardo da Vinci (arguably the most famous artist ever of the most famous painting ever, i.e. Mona Lisa); Michelangelo (started out in Florence, moved to Rome to paint the Sistine ceiling); Raphael (another darling of the papacy and one of my personal faves. I love School of Athens); Tintoretto (he closes out the High Renaissance with a Mannerist style); and Titian (greatest Venetian painter, he painted a lot of mythological subjects).

    Some interest tidbits about Leonardo before closing out the Renaissance entirely. Leonardo wasn’t just an artist. He was a scientist, architect, engineer, draftsman, inventor and jack of all trades. He studied the human body by dissecting cadavers and imagined flight hundreds of years before the Wright brothers. He was interested in everything, yet finished almost nothing. He was a master of unfinished work. In fact, the Mona Lisa is one of only a handful of pieces he ever completed. And it was his personal favorite that he carried with him until his death. For centuries, Mona Lisa has remained an enigma. Not just her identity but her unusual expression. Is she or isn’t she smiling? According to Vasari, Leonardo painted a very melancholy sitter. He employed magicians, jesters and theatre performers to entertain her while he painted. It was while painting this portrait that he developed his sfumato technique (Italian for “like smoke”) in which colors and form subtly merge. It would become his trademark.

    The Northern Renaissance is also divided into Low and High. These are the best known Low artists: Jan van Eyck (founder of Flemish painting, he painted the Ghent Altarpiece); Rogier van der Weyden (known for attention to detail and portraits of nobles); and Hieronymous Bosch (known for fantastical landscapes of a dark, medieval world).

    The High Artists of the Northern Renaissance are: Albrecht Durer (not to my liking but this German artist is known for his engravings and woodcuts); and Pieter Breughel the Elder (Flemish painter known for allegories and parables of peasant life).

    Baroque came after the Renaissance. It was a time of courtly festivals and royal ceremony. The term meant to be an insult—“degenerate.”  Caravaggio was the most famous Baroque artist. A rogue character (even tried for murder), he was a naturalistic painter known for dramatic light. He placed ordinary people in his paintings of religious subjects. Scandalous! Peter Paul Rubens painted nobles while El Greco was known for his elongated figures. Rembrandt, considered the greatest Dutch painter ever, was known for his unusual lighting in which he made the most ordinary of people look mysterious. Jan Vermeer, also known for interesting light effects, enjoyed painting the Dutch bourgeoisie. Lastly, Velazquez was a great Spanish painter most interested in royalty.

   From the 1700’s to the 19th century, there were four major art movements: Rococo, Neoclassicism, Romanticism, and Realism.

    Rococo (c. 1730-1800) was art of the boudoir. It was a flirty, fanciful way of decorating the canvas. The main artists (all French) were Francois Boucher, Jacques-Louis David (I can’t stand that guy), Jean-Auguste Dominique Ingres, Eugène Delacroix and Gustave Courbet.

    Neoclassicism (c. 1750-1820) was a genre in which artists copies the simple designs and restrained ornament of the ancient Greeks and Romans. The main artists Jacques-Louis David (I still can’t stand him), Antonio Canova, Jean-Antoine Houdon (known for his amazing bust sculptures of Ben Franklin and George Washington) and Jean-Dominique Ingres.

    Romanticism (c. 1780-1850) was melodramatic portrayals of imaginary subjects. The best known artists were Eugène Delacroix, Francisco de Goya and William Blake—a wonderful writer who illustrated his poems.

    Realism (c. 1848-1875) was basically a reaction to the excesses of Romanticism and some Neoclassicism. In this movement, it was the Americans who led the way. Many were painting beautiful landscapes of their young nation on large canvases. The landscapists were Thomas Cole, Frederic Edwin Church, Albert Bierstadt and Thomas Moran. Realist artists were Winslow Homer and Thomas Eakins.

    Ah, Impressionism! Who doesn’t love it? It all began in 1874 when a group of Paris-based artists who’d been rejected by the Salon were mockingly called “Impressionists” by the April 25th issue of Le Charivari magazine. The name stuck. The style itself was marked by a close observation of nature whereby marks of pure color are placed side by side to create the effects of light on the canvas. They also differed in subject matter, tossing out literary subjects, mythology, and even history. They focused instead on scenes of everyday life. They also abandoned contour, modeling and precise details.

Though Èdouard Manet is the founding father of Impressionism, it is Claude Monet who is most often associated with it. Other stars are: Edgar Degas (he favored ballet dancers); Auguste Renoir (young women and rosy-cheeked girls); Alfred Sisley (the only Brit in the mix); and Mary Cassatt (the only American and most famous woman).

    From 1874 to 1886, the Impressionists exhibited together a total of 8 times, but long before they broke up, the members were moving on to other things.

    Post-Impressionism is a catch-all term to describe all the art that came after Impressionism. It also relied on the use of bright colors and splashy brushwork, but differed in what artists were feeling and saying. The stars of this movement were: Georges Seurat (inventor of Pointillism and a personal fave); Paul Gaugin (the native-loving man of bright colors); Vincent Van Gogh (most mad and magnetizing); and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (decorative posters of cabaret life).

    Expressionism was marked by sometimes violent colors, abstract forms and emotional subjects. The big Expressionists were: Edvard Munch; Henri Matisse (inventor of Fauvism); Wassily Kandinsky (inventor of Abstraction); and Amadeo Modigliani (lover of long, lean bodies and necks); and the Viennese love-chronicler, Gustav Klimt.

    Cubism is my least favorite genre so will receive scant mention here. It was the first totally abstract art movement—not at all representational—relying on geometric forms. Created by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, they were influenced by Cézanne, modern science and African masks.

    Dada was a brief European anti-art movement that sprang up after WW1. It spawned the likes of Marcel Duchamp, Max Ernst and Man Ray. I take back what I said about Cubism being my least favorite. Dada is.

    Surrealism came after Dada and although it was primarily a literary movement, it translated well into art. Basically about the relationship between dreams and the unconscious, this movement gave us Marc Chagall, Joan Miró and Salvador Dalí.

    Constructivism was another brief art genre, this one centered in Russia. It spawned no internationally known starts, only regional artists on a mission.

    Abstract Expressionism was about bigness—big canvases, big brushes, big cans of house paint, big male egos. It was also almost totally American. The main men were: Jackson Pollock (big drips and splatters); Willem de Kooning (brushy abstractions); and Mark Rothko (large blocks of color).

    Pop Art is populist art. It’s representational and easily comprehensible. It’s spawned some very famous artists—Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein, to name a few. These artists rejected nature and instead focused on the manmade.

    Minimalism came after Pop Art and spawned Frank Stella and a few minor artists.

    So what genre is the art of today and where is it headed? Well, all the art since is generally lumped into the category of post-modernism and involves artists deriving their work from both natural and manmade sources. Today artists even use a third source—the wonderfully human imagination. Artists also create their work from many different mediums. Today, we have oil painters, acrylic artists, watercolorists, charcoal and pencil artists, collage artists and even mixed-media artists who use a combination of all of the above to create their unique works. And let’s not forget digital artists who create their imaginary worlds entirely on computer. Though future historians will have a difficult time categorizing the art of today, one thing is for certain: they won’t lack for interesting and beautiful paradigms to study.

[niconebula]

So, in the bottom of this promo image there’s a colour inverted snippet of none other than ‘The Garden of Earthly Delights’.

None other than because I mentioned this painting in a post a few weeks ago about the Collector being an Angel. And specifically referenced this painting as part of my 'proof'.

Hieronymous Bosch was a big inspiration for the design of the Demon Realm and the series in general. He was a Catholic painter from the 1400s who had one of the most unique styles of the time, and kind of ever. Basically anyone who's studied art probably learned about him in highschool.

My theory is, this painting is a triptych and the inspiration goes so far as to imply there might be three distinct realms to the Owl House universe. The left is The Garden of Eden, the middle represents modern day Earth, and the right is either end times or Hell (which would be the Demon Realm in this case).

Time is dwindling and I won't put the full explanation here (refer to the second part of my other post), but basically I believe there is a Celestials (heaven-like) dimension represented by the Garden of Eden, and that the Collector is a fallen angel who crashed into the Demon Realm.

Furthermore, the rings around the Collector's eye in this image are literally biblically-accurate angel inspired so I think we are right on the mark with this one.

[trickormemes]

Westworld starter sentences

season 1, episode 2 — “Chestnut” 105 starters feel free to change gender pronouns ‘read-more’ added for length content warning: cussing, sexual themes [episode 1 here]

“Wake up, _____.”

“Do you remember?”

“You’re being an asshole.”

“Hey, that’s the spirit!”

“Given it’s your first visit, I have a few personal questions.”

“Do you often experience social anxiety?”

“What is this for, exactly?”

“I thought that you couldn’t get hurt here.”

“The only limit here is your imagination.”

“How far you want to go is entirely up to you.”

“Figuring out how it works is half the fun.”

“You want to ask, so ask.”

“Are you real?”

“Well, if you can’t tell, does it matter?”

“You don’t have to worry about what most people would do.”

“We could stay here a while, if you like. Take as long as you want.”

“You think he had an existential crisis?”

“I think there’s something fucked up going on with his cognition.”

“And I think you feel exactly the same way I do.”

“Do we know where the error originated?”

“Ahem. Can you stand somewhere else? I don’t want anyone thinking you’re representative of the goods inside.”

“I mean, can you believe this place?”

“This place seduces everybody eventually.”

“By the end, you’re gonna be begging me to stay because this place is the answer to that question you’ve been asking yourself. Who you really are. And I can’t fucking wait to meet that guy.”

“Well, I’m afraid that’s not gonna work for me.”

“That’s the best thanks you can muster, _____? You used to be a little more eloquent.”

“Do I—do I know you?”

“You can hear it, can’t you? That little voice. The one that’s telling you “don’t.” Don’t stare too long. Don’t touch. Don’t do anything you might regret. I used to be the same.”

“This is the new world. And in this world, you can be whoever the fuck you want.”

“No point in playing coy.”

“You can’t play God without being acquainted with the devil.”

“There’s something else bothering you, _____. I know how that head of yours works.”

“You think it’s sabotage?”

“The problem, _____, is that what you and I do is so complicated.”

“We practice witchcraft. We speak the right words. Then we create life itself out of chaos.”

“Let’s go get our feet wet, buckaroo.”

“This is, uh—well, it’s bigger than I thought it would be.”

“See something you like?”

“But I’m gonna make you beg for it, darlin’.”

“Don’t. He’ll only try to rope you into some bullshit treasure hunt.”

“First up, you’re gonna buy me a drink, okay?”

“Bring yourself back online.”

“Do you remember our last conversation, _____?”

“And you haven’t told anyone about our little talks?”

“I think it’d be best if you not mention the things we’ve been talking about.”

“Have I done something wrong?”

“There’s something different about you, the way you think. I find it fascinating, but others may not see it that way.”

“Have you done something wrong?”

“You should be getting back, _____, before someone misses you.”

“I told you, never open your mouth that wide, unless someone’s paying you for it.”

“I didn’t sleep much last night.”

“You having nightmares again?”

“You pay for the drinks, not the right to gawk at me.”

“You can just say “bitch.” I hear it enough.”

“This character analysis routine really isn’t half as charming as you think.”

“You’re wondering how to tell them from us, aren’t you?”

“Can we—can we finish eating?”

“See, this is your problem, my friend. You’re always worried about making a mess.”

“You are talented, driven, and inoffensive.”

“I thought you didn’t want to talk about work here.”

“Oh, shit… Well, don’t make eye contact!”

“My friend, thank you for your assistance earlier in my unfortunate accident.”

“Leave us the fuck alone.”

“As a sign of my humble appreciation, I’d like to offer you an opportunity of a lifetime.”

“They say a man who can tickle your humor can tickle your—“

“You don’t have to do this.”

“If I’m not your type, we can find someone who is. Someone who’s perfect for you.”

“Real love is always worth waiting for.”

“I said start the fuck over!”

“Are you lost?”

“Just strayed a bit too far from where I’m supposed to be. Same as you, I imagine.”

“We’re on holiday. It’s boring.”

“My father used to say that only boring people get bored.”

“I used to think it’s only boring people who don’t feel boredom, so cannot conceive of it in others.”

“I’m taking a walk. You’re welcome to join me if you’d like.”

“Let’s see a little spring in your step. Not much further.”

“Go fuck yourself.”

“You have any idea who I am?”

“That’s what I love about this place—all the secrets, all the little things I never noticed even after all these years.”

“You know why this beats the real world, _____? Real world is just chaos. It’s an accident. But in here, every detail adds up to something. Even you, _____.”

“What do you want from me?”

“Here you go, darlin’. And you get to decide what we’re gonna do with them.”

“Hell, it took you long enough.”

“You got anything to tell me, _____?”

“It’s beautifully done, really. But you see the cracks after a while.”

“That’s why I like the basic emotions. You know what that means? It means when you’re suffering, that’s when you’re most real.”

“You have it now. Whatever you want.”

“You see what a bored mind can conjure?”

“How did you do that? Is it magic?”

“Everything in this world is magic, except to the magician.”

“You’re not going to come back here again, are you?”

“Stay a little longer. We can talk.”

“You’re certainly a man comfortable with long, pensive silences.”

“You don’t need to be aggro, do you?”

“Well, then I guess you could add lying to your list of sins.”

“The only thing wrong with the seven deadly sins is that there aren’t more of them.”

“Don’t look at me. I’m the king of hygiene.”

“Look, uh, you gotta calm down. Okay? Let’s sit down and we can help you.”

“Keep your fucking hands off me.”

“Calm the fuck down and help me move this… thing before someone sees.”

“This storyline will make Hieronymous Bosch look like he was doodling kittens.”

“What is the point of it? Get a couple of cheap thrills? Some surprises?”

“They’re not looking for a story that tells them who they are. They already know who they are.”

“The only thing your story tells me, _____, is who you are.”

“Well, isn’t there anything you like about it?”