#i might have to make a longpost at some point lol they got me in my feels

[sea-buns]

The new twenty one pilots album has me revisiting my love for the band and the themes throughout are really lining up with where I am in my own life atm. Viewing the passage of time through the lens of a band that you've listened to from such a young age and seeing how you've grown and changed alongside their library and I'm. I'm in shambles.

[angorwhosebabyisthis]

i think probably the core issue of lorien legacies, beyond anything to do with individual characters, is the mixed metaphors.

more specifically, about politics.

[longpost after the cut; a lot of talk about racism, xenophobia, fascism--including ecofascism--genocide, and all of the above being poorly handled. also some deeply upsetting anti-indigenous awfulness wrt the w-word.]

the writers try to make the series Heavy-Hitting and Deep and Socially Conscious by addressing real-world political issues like racism, fascism, religious fundamentalism, dictatorship, colonialism, genocide, and so on... and instead of trying to build it into a coherent dynamic with any kind of real statement about any of it, they just blindly grab at every political issue they can find and slap it together into a jumbled mess.

they don't actually understand any of the things they're talking about. and the most disturbing part is that they don't even limit themselves to drawing on bad neoliberal takes, and/or captain-obvious shit like 'genocide bad.' they ALSO draw on the politics of fascists and racists--sometimes unironically, sometimes putting it in the mouths of random protagonists without reason after establishing that it's supposed to be a bad thing, sometimes doing shit that strawmans itself into confirming the Bad Guy Fascism and what have you--and often they mix those metaphors in ways that are anywhere from bizarre to horrific.

('ya so the great replacement theory was completely right actually! the people you're genociding a hundred percent have dedicated their entire life, purpose, and remaining culture to exterminating yours. it doesn't matter if their survivors are down to the single digits, if you fail to kill even a single one of them they WILL successfully wipe you out. they will literally have your last few survivors rounded up and put into prison camps. three cheers for them!' jesus fucking christ.)

(don't get me started on shit like tossing blatant racist caricatures of north korea and its political issues into the mogadorians at some point, because why the fuck not, and then piling on the anti-japanese racism with a dump truck at the end of the first series and throughout the second. internment camps.)

(jesus fucking christ.)

and like. people don't react to this shit the way they realistically would. you cannot tell me that not a single one of the majority-POC cast in the second series would not rip a black hole into nine's irl-racist and scifi-MAGA, white-man-in-a-position-of-authority ass, or the shit that john's white-man-in-a-position-of-authority ass brings about himself under the guise of ~kindness and peace.~

and there's no logic to the kind of shit people will say and do about this stuff, especially in the sequel series. sometimes they'll express, like, basic antifascist/anti-racist/humanitarian/decent-in-general beliefs, and other times the most absolutely wild shit will come out of their mouths which either directly contradicts things they've said before--and might say after--or pulls from other blatant parts of that same horrific ideology. there is no rhyme or reason to most of it. it's just a clown car of racist/fascist/xenophobic nonsequiturs. what the hell.

and when i say nine is irl-racist in reborn i mean he casually calls a native american child the w-word as a '''lighthearted''' punny joke about his legacy. the kid is not even from any tribe whose culture they originate from; they never specify, because of course they couldn't be bothered lol, but miki is from alaska. on top of that, they had the dick ass and balls to have him randomly throw in a Very Special Episode scene where he talks about how his family are the direct-action variety of activists who he got separated from when they blew up an oil pipeline.

and he does not fucking blink at this. he doesn't say anything about it, he doesn't uncomfortably not say anything about it, he just goes on with the friendly conversation about his legacies which nine just called him a w-word for without missing a single beat.

and the ecofascism. good unholy fucking god the ecofascism. probably the most fundamental driving force of the entire first series is that if you don't ~take care of your environment~ your entire race/ethnicity/culture deserve to suffer and die slowly in the results. yes, all of them. it doesn't matter who was responsible. every last one. including the masses we see protesting on mogadore in flashbacks/visions.

also did i mention the Great Fascist Cult Leader who is responsible for the loric's genocide is a race traitor who took charge of wiping out his own? because that is a thing. it's a thing.

like. man i could go on. i could go on. and in other posts i probably will, because WOW is there a lot to unpack here. but it really does all come down to the fact that the writers wanted to sound meaningful and important and socially conscious, because that's what seems to be hip with the youth nowadays, and they don't have anything to say.

it's just gibberish. gibberish that arranges in some very telling ways as to the beliefs of their own that they are putting into the books. but gibberish.

and it pisses me off in a different way to have realized this, but god damn does it make it less tear-my-hair-out distressing than racking my brain trying to figure out what in the goddamn fuck am i looking at here.

(capitalism. capitalism is what i'm looking at here. and also racism, antisemitism, xenophobia, and just plain being fuckin stupid.)

lord.

[disabled-bnha-abandoned-blog]

Sorry for being so inactive for the past month!!

i really have been wanting to post but i'm dealing with a toxic home environment as well as getting into inpatient care in january so things have been kind of a mess.

I get that i don't owe anyone an explanation or an apology (and that im talking about some pretty personal stuff on here lol) but i really appreciate you people for being so supportive and liking the random shit that i spew out of my ass.

i really plan on posting more but im in an ~~interesting~~ place mentally and physically with really nothing to help cope with that other than venting my ass off on tumblr.

in a way i think tumblr has helped me get out of my self isolation shell and make new friends (irl and online)

I also know that this account has been so beneficial for me. I really only started it because i was diagnosed with a bunch of stuff in a really short amount of time and i didn't know how to deal with it so i just randomly searched "autistic bnha" and "adhd bnha" and "ocd bnha" etc. etc. and the posts made me so happy!

After an hour of scrolling the posts stopped and i decided that i really wanted to post again (bc prior to this i didnt post bc i was afraid of being termed again)

i really didnt expect people to like what i was doing so i was very surprised when i got encouragement from other people and a lot of agreements and cool conversations with people started happening and it really got me through a tough time.

admittedly i've gotten ~~worse~~ but that was from irl mostly. But this still makes me feel a lot better

ok now you might be wondering "what is the point to this random longpost?"

my point is: i assume i will be posting less and less until i get out of the situation im in. its sad to admit and I WILL KEEP POSTING but it'll most likely be at ungodly hours of the day.

on another note: tanjirou

thank you :)

[moved-to--farmer-pia]

Hii it’s nice to meet you! Do you think you could write an exchange between Shane and Gus at the saloon? Shane hangs there so much, so I can see them being friends, or acquaintances at least 🥺

ok so i dont imagine you wanted 800 words but i got a little carried away bc i love shane AND gus lol.... i definitely think gus really tries to look out for shane. Since shane says he never had much family growing up id like to think gus could be a sort of older brother/father figure... anyway here u go!! i hope you like it friend! thank you so much for sending me an ask!

read more bc longpost

Just as it was every night, the Stardrop Saloon was full of life this friday. The crackling of the fireplace mingled with the jaunty music coming from the jukebox, and the whole room was drenched in golden light. Easy conversation and quiet laughter floated lazily through the warm summer air. The entire room seemed to be filled with an aura of calm and happiness… except for one particular barstool. 

Shane swirled his glass, watching the foam atop his beer shift back and forth. It was almost empty. He looked up to wave for another round, but Gus was already there to take his mug and refill it. Shane nodded in acknowledgement and thanks as Gus set it back down on the bar. 

“What’s on your mind tonight, eh Buddy?” Gus smiled, drying his hands on a towel and crossing his arms as he awaited an answer.

Shane rolled his eyes and took a swig of his drink. “Nothing I feel like talking about,” he mumbled.

There was a knowing smile on Gus’s face- tinged with sympathy and sadness. “How’s Miss Jas?“ he attempted.

Shane cringed. A wave of feelings rushed over him that sent him back in for another sip. He used to know how Jas was… He was with her all the time when she was a baby- when her real parents were still around to do all the actual parenting. But as circumstances changed and they both got older it felt more and more impossible to connect with her. He didn’t know anything about how to be a dad. Even if he did have the time or energy on his days off from work to hang out with her, he had absolutely no idea what they could possibly do together at this point. What did girl children do? Jas had lots of dolls, and he saw her jumping rope some days… sometimes she and Marnie played ‘tea party’... If Jas had been a boy, then maybe then they could go fishing or throw the gridball around, But he couldn’t imagine any little girl wanting to play dress up with her gross older cousin just because 8 years ago someone put his name on a piece of paper saying “godfather.” 

“You should ask Marnie,” he said after a long moment.

Gus nodded. He looked at Shane. Then he leaned down, his elbows on the bar, and said quietly, “You’re doing a good job, Shane. You know that. Jas loves you-”

He was interrupted by a bitter laugh from Shane. “Yeah, sure. And a big man in the sky named Yoba makes all our choices for us too.”

Gus overlooked the latter part of Shane’s statement, as he was used to Shane’s flagrant disrespect of religion. “I mean it,” he pressed, “She tells me whenever I go to pick up eggs or milk from your Aunt that she wishes you were around more. She’s just a kid, Shane; none of the things you’re so insecure about matter to her. She just wants her father figure around.” 

He waited with bated breath for Shane’s response. He feared he might have been overstepping, but He’d seen Shane nearly every night for years. He knew more of Shane’s secrets and fears than Shane probably even remembered telling him. He knew Shane like family, and he knew Marnie and Jas just as well. He knew that if Shane was ever able to get out of his own head, things would start working themselves out because Shane was kind and smart and capable.

But things weren’t that easy, and currently Shane was staring daggers at Gus. Gus swallowed nervously with a sheepish grin. 

“No. Jas doesn’t know what’s best for her. I’d be a terrible influence if I was around more.” The disdain Shane felt for himself in that moment could likely be heard all the way from Zuzu City.

There was a long silence then. The jukebox still played- now Robin and Demetrius were there, dancing carefree. Shane clutched his drink and stared tensely into empty space while Gus looked sadly at him. He didn’t like being put under a microscope this way. He was about to stand up and leave when, once again, Gus anticipated his move and put a hand on his arm to stop him.

“Marnie believes in you, Shane. So do I.” He faltered for a moment before continuing, “So did Jas’ parents. And before you say anything, I know that they wouldn’t regret their choice one bit if they saw you all today. You’re a good guy, Shane. And Jas is lucky to have you.”

Shane didn’t know what to say. He just stared in shock at Gus before hurrying out of the Saloon.

The next day Gus spotted Shane teaching Jas to skip rocks on Cindersap Pond. 

٩(*•͈ ꇴ •͈*)و ̑̑❀ thank you for reading!!

[maxladcomics]

If you have time to, could you explain how you go about planning/making your comics? Other than drawing them, I mean. Like, how do you plan out what happens in a page, how do you go about scripting it, that kinda thing.

WELL- (This is gonna be a long post, so block the tag #longpost or #Maxramble if it’s too much!) 

I unfortunately keep most stuff in my head- but I’ll explain some small things that might help out!

I keep the base of every character set down, so I understand how that character behaves, and when I already know their backstory and how they react/behave to other characters, it makes their actions easier to put in a scene rather than plan out properly. Instead of asking myself “Hmmm how would they react to this-” I can trace back to those details I already know, and help myself realize how they would respond.

For instance- the comic I have in the works right now is much easier than the other ones I’m not working on >3>.. because it has Fell and Fell Undyne, who I’ve drawn a lot and grown attached to and they’ve got a lot of history with each other and they interact in fun ways. I haven’t done that much of Swapfell Papyrus, and Underfell Alphys. While I definitely relate to these two- it’s REALLY hard to figure out their ‘base’, especially since Alphys’s Past comic starts with how hers will be built, and show what she grows into and why- IT’S SO COMPLICATED AND I NEED TO LOWER MY STANDARDS SO I CAN JUST DRAW IT AND GET IT OVER WITH.

Anyway, that was a bunch of rambling.

So yeah, first: Character basics. Then I move onto the plot. 

I have a vague setup for the comic I work with, and while I wish I could put more details in, it seems like this is how I like to work and there just isn’t any way to fix it lol.

Also before these spoilers are notes of what the babybones behaviors are like- they’ll help me understand how the babies act and get an idea of how Fell can respond to them throughout the comic. This is normally what I have noted down when I bring any new character into a comic, so I can understand how they’ll act first, and how my characters can respond/behave around them.

These notes I’m showing, will be the first scene I’m working towards, so from point A (the start of the comic), and the goal is point B, here: (spoilers ahead! But vague spoilers, it doesn’t even spoil the first page)

(Thank you Anon Paps for the ideas!)I mean there’s not much, so I need preferably a point C which is here:

and other than that, the rest is in my head, but I can summarize it fairly simply. With Undyne’s help Fell decides to take care of the babybones (UT Paps asks him earlier in the comic to take care of them but the kids make everything difficult for him so he needed to talk to someone), suddenly ghost, things get a bit easier and something happens with Levee to make him a lot more tolerable. 

There was an idea of Fell protecting the kids after something, but I can’t remember it, I might bring that in if I figure it out lol. But yeah the comic will mostly be meant for cute/funny stuff and to encourage myself to draw more, which is how I’ll plot out the inbetween’s for each point. I also have a vague ending planned but that’s a secret :D…. and not noted down *quickly scribbles it down*

ANYWAY TO THE SCRIPT.

So while Paint Tool SAI version 2 has a text feature- I usually write out my scripts on Open Office Writer (Basically microsoft word, but free) and try to keep it to AT MOST, one A4 page. This depends on what’s happening in the page and how much talking is going on. In the past I’ve had to cut pages into two because there’s too much text.

Script for page 2: (Might not be full script, there’s more to this but it might not fit on one page AND I KEEP FORGETTING A BIT OF IT)

(Out of context script is hilarious omg)

Obviously not shown: There’s a panel break (Silent panel) between a point in this script so far. After Fell says he’s going to call someone else, it’ll show Undyne looking extra confused, then Fell calling another number. 

So with my script I have a basic idea of what’s going to happen (or in the case of funny comics, usually a punchline to work up to) and build the page in my head as I script. If it doesn’t work then I do have to redo the script or even cut out scenes I like because they wont work. It happened a lot in the Drinking comic.

I guess the easiest way I can explain it is, the Point A, B, C and finale are the important points that HAVE to happen, and I consider every scene between that a mini point I can reach, but I don’t have to and it’s ok to cut them as long as they don’t mess with the main points. (…Although they can. All the shenanigans between Short Fell and Fell changed a lot of the other plot points I had, honestly most plot points are changeable, but I usually pretend they’re fixed so I have an idea of where I need to go. WHAT REALLY MATTERS IS THE START AND FINALE OK-)

It makes it much easier since Papyruses and Undyne’s are so.. enthusiastic, that they’ll usually do something without needing a prompt. I love characters like these.

Anyway, onto the drawing of the page: I don’t have any extensively rough scribbles to show, but I usually try to consider who’s in the scene (and if I have to, turn the perspective a certain way so I don’t have to keep drawing 3-4 characters every panel) and how they respond to whatever they’re given. If they’re in a relaxed scenario (like the Drink comic) then how do they respond? Which characters do they naturally gravitate to?  

I usually plan this stuff during scripting of course but anyway-

I’ve been drawing larger panels lately (Inspired by UnderlineAU) and usually draw smaller ones when the scene calls for it, like a silent reaction, or something happening in the background. As usual- I think that showing the character from the waist up is a good place to start so you can show body language and how they react without saying anything. Do they close off when someone comes near them but try to act friendly- or are they genuinely friendly? ALL FUN STUFF TO FIGURE OUT. 

Anyway, I try not to end the pages on something that’s too..??? That feels too much like an ending, I want people to continue reading, or know that there’s another page. Obviously I don’t cut a joke short and end it on the next page, but what I mean is.. with, say if all the characters said goodbye to each other at the end of one page and it seemed like an ending, then suddenly they’re talking again in the next page- it’d be weird xD.

I think I did something similar to that in the babybones comic? I vaguely recall them saying goodbye, and then having one or two panels to have them talking about the next place, so readers knew there was more. So that’s the kind of thing I mean

…..WOW THAT WAS A LOT.

I’m not sure if I have any more to say lol, but I hope this helps??