#i maintag. look at him. They are spinning

[ranvwoop]

i did however figure out how to do this

[paradoxlemonade]

I need to play soul void again

[selfchiller]

The mistake people are making is thinking that Jean and Harry are foils, actually. They're not. Kim and Harry are foils. Kim and Jean are foils.

Jean is not Harry's sane, sober, "together" counterpart. He is not a normal guy who was "driven mad" by Harry. He SAYS as much, multiple times.

Jean is Harry. And he knows it! And he can't fucking STAND it.

The seething tar pit of hypocrisy IS THE APPEAL!

Also I think he's funny.

[stuffedsand]

fun random things i notice in mvs time

not maintagging this is my own silly post. mutuals get to see it tho

ok so throw down. yippee. i was looking at it for reference purposes cuz that greenhouse 3dmodel is intricate as hell i want to spin it around and look at every detail btu i cannot. anyways thats besides the point

from what i can tell throw down and weakness are the only mvs in which the lines are distinctly coloured w the prisoner colour (purple in this case)

-- similarly from what i can tell bugmuu is lineless - but her shadows have a harsh reddish glow effect that threw me off and made me think she had coloured lines too

--half has cool ass lighting but it also made me mistake it for having coloured lines -- it doesnt, it just has a lot of colour shift

-- tear drop has lighter brown lines but like. i didnt pick that up i thought it was lighting fuckery like half again lmao

actually i cant tell for teardrop the lines r too thin

its probably artistic choice but notable to point out that

in weakness, only haruka is lined with purple, his mom and young haruka are lined in black

in throw down, him n those he talks to are lined with a reddish brown (?) but background nurses and patients r lined in black

also in throw down, the line colour gets darker towards the end, fully black at bridge (ethics is a delusion), most noticable purple when hes in the birds of paradise shirt ("gardening fit")

--minor detail but at the end of the bridge they use the typical anime "no light highlight in eye" which i think is partially why i read the expression with so much despair even at my first watchthrough lmao. i like studying expressions in animation man

anywyas not sure what the line colour could mean i just think its very neat and i need people to know im insane about studying and looking at every detail of animations. its also mostly about throw down cuz thats the first song i noticed it in+ the song im looping for reference purposes rn

it could symbolise the fact that its a "dreamlike" world and not representative of their actual realities but..... every other song uses black lines and most of them are set in fictional, symbolic representations of their surroundings so. idk im probably reading into it too much cuz im insane and procrastinating on hw. i will go do said homework now goodbye moots who read this far

[thevalleyisjolly]

cumulous for the character asks? 💛

I want you to know how much I love you right here and right now <3

favorite thing about them

*cracks knuckles* Get ready for the Cumulous Appreciation Manifesto!  I have so much love for this funky little pastel death monk, and here it is:

He’s such a subtle and complex character!  There are so many elements to Cumulous that seem contradictory at first: he’s very practical and actionable (meta perspective: Zac’s respect for the game) but also deliberately makes time for those character moments of connection (see: spending hours crying on the ship with Theo over Lazuli, having that talk with Ruby after Jet’s funeral).  On many levels, he’s a typical tough war guy (the whole bit with Joren and the crossbow bolt and “That is absolutely badass”), but it’s not central to who he is, it’s not an identity that he struggles with like Amethar or Liam.  When the war is over, he can put it down and be gentle and value softness, and it’s like Liam recognizing that a war guy is something you do, not something you are.  Then there’s the whole Order of the Spinning Star, which I wish we’d gotten to learn more about, because they are all about protecting Candia’s magic and where does that drive come from?  What motivated him to join the Order, why is he so dedicated to this cause and to Lazuli?  And then how he's so intense and focused on his goals, but also so supportive of the other characters at the same time.  Deliberately making the time to talk with Ruby about Jet, not talking about guilt or vengeance or hollow comfort, but about Ruby’s life and reaffirming her agency at a time when she felt despair and only saw one way forward; pledging loyalty to Saccharina with full enthusiasm when everyone else was still hesitant and following through on that by being willing to die (and very nearly dying) for her; going to support Amethar when he went to take on Calroy- this funky little pastel monk just wants to support his party and he will go at it with 110%.

least favorite thing about them

A meta complaint, and understandable considering that he came into the game later, but how much of his character and character arc had to be pushed to the background (curse you LA fire inspector and your perfectly reasonable if character-frustrating requirements for fire safety!)

favorite line

His entire conversation with Ruby on the ship, but especially:

“I know that I’ve seen the insides of all these bodies with the wet sacks and the weird bones that they have inside of them, but I know that there is something in there that is not there.”

and

“You say that you’re dead, but I think you should also consider staying here with the living.  ‘Cause we will all die, but you don’t have to do it just yet.”

brOTP

I am here for the Cumulous and Liam dynamic, and the complexities of being seed guys and war guys

OTP

Ardent Cumulous/Theo shipper, ever since Episode 8 in the middle of the battle when Theo gets into the rowboat, Cumulous says “I like your sword,” Theo responds “I like your whole vibe,” and then Cumulous pauses and gives the softest, most amazed “Wow” with a disbelieving smile on his face, and that’s all I needed, thank you very much

nOTP

I don’t think I’ve seen a single Cumulous ship in the whole time I’ve been here, so rarely enough, no nOTPs yet!

random headcanon

Lighthearted headcanon, since I just wrote the Cumulous Manifesto above: He’s great with animals, and especially dragons.  He would love to have a full time dragon living at the monastery in the new Candia, and only the fact that even the nicest dragons are not tame dragons is stopping him from extending an invitation.  In lieu of dragons, he keeps a coop of chickens, who might not be as big or as dangerous as dragons, but who have much the same chaotic temperament.

unpopular opinion

Being a secondary character does not make him any less of a character.  Just because he’s not Lapin 2.0 doesn’t mean he’s not as developed as a character.  Just because he comes in after Lapin dies does not mean he should die so that Lapin can come back (a frequent take that particularly irks me: people don’t have to like Cumulous or want him around, but they can respect that some fans do and not maintag posts where they wish he dies so that Lapin can return). 

song i associate with them

The Call, by Regina Spektor, although I remain endlessly fascinated by how quickly and confidently Zac answered “Shallow” when asked about a song he associated with Cumulous

favorite picture of them

I love this fanart by @criticalrolo so much, it is my phone wallpaper and sometimes I turn on my phone just to look at it for a while because it is so beautiful.