#it's just done via paneling instead of actual seconds between lines

[zukkaoru]

ik asagiri said that the anime can do things with timing that a manga can't but like. the pacing of bsd is actually so much better in the manga

[popculturebuffet]

Shadow Into Light (Lena Retrospective): Magica’s Shadow War

Hello all you happy people! And welcome back to Shadow Into Light, my look at the life and times of Lena Sabrewing. We’re in the end stretch, just two more installments after this: one covering what may be my favorite episode, and the other covering Lena’s season 3 appearances, as unlike Seasons 1 and 2 she shows up outside her own episodes fairly often and most of those apperances touch on how far she’s come or her life in some way shape or form, so I really can’t skip over them. 

But before we can get to the end of Lena’s arc, we have to once again go back where she came from. Previously I covered the one and only apperance of Minima DeSpell, a character Lena took some inspiration from. But Lena is a combination of Minima and another Ducktales 87 character but this time one from the show itself, in the same episode we meet Magica no less. Given how much frank loved the original, it’s not a huge shock one of the most vital and intresting new characters from the reboot was partially taken from an episode he probably watched 80 dozen times. So how does the original shadow stack up with her rebooted counterpart? Is the episode any good? And should I watch invincible. The answers to this question are under the cut!

To answer your question on invincible.. Yeah you should. It’s gorgeously animated, has a MASSIVELY talented and diverse cast, and perfectly adapts the original source: Adding in great new stuff and shuffling things around to work better for the pacing of a tv show. And after loosing The Tick to Amazon’s greasy clutches, not to mention Danger and Eggs and Alpha House before that with no formal cancelation so they coudln’t move elsewhere, i’m not taking any chances despite the odds being far more in invincibles favor. Check it out, just mind that it has a shocking amount of gore, if you like superheroes.  Or even if you don’t, it’s pretty much guaranteed to have someone you like doing a voice. 

Enough shilling for an unrelated show though, let’s get to this one. We open with our introduction to the De Spells. Magica is hovering over a caludron with a diabolical new plan to steal Scrooge’s #1 dime. Why? 

Or at least I didn’t. I knew why she wanted the dime itself mind you: The Dime has picked up some powerful emotoinal energy from being around Scrooge all his life as he built his fortune, made his way square and fought Teddy Roosevelt. All that good stuff. So naturally if used in a spell, that spell is going to be massively powerful. I just didn’t know what the spell was.. and now I do.. i’mmm underwhelmed. She wants it to gain the midas touch, i.e. the ablility to turn things she touches into gain, using the dime as a power source for an amulet. 

 Magica, via her potions and spells has the powers to do just about ANYTHING. And her goal is.. make some things into gold. She has a giant volcano laier, whatever resources she needs to go after Scrooge, and in this series at least can buy a haunted house on a whim. She HAS money.. why would she need this. And second... the midas touch is a bad thing. You cant’ USE or enjoy anything because it turns to gold> That was the whole fucking point of the myth. If it removes the weakness than fine.. but again it seems like a lot of effort for something with a short range and heavy possible drawbacks. I tfits her personalty to a point but even then she has better spells. I’m going more with it simply allowing her to supercharge.. is it more simplisti? yes. Does it make more sense than “Give myself a power that can easily be turned back on me by just making me touch myself “ yes, yes it is. 

Meanwhile the boys dick around playing Candid Camera with a new camera Gyro gave them that is no more advanced than your average instant camera. You’d expect this new invention to come in handy against Shadow Magica. And you’d be right. You’d expect the boys to at least suggest hte idea before the climax. You’d be wrong. This big is just.. irrtating. It’s just the boys being dicks to everyone by taking embarssing photos and really adds nothing to the episode of any remote subtsnace.

Conversley Magica continues to be the highlight, as her check in with airport security gets her through as she has no fruit. Ah the days before they throughly scanned us and most tsa jokes were about shoving hands up someone’s ass. Seriously.. why. .why is that a common joke. I’ve never had it done but unless you fully consent to it it’s not fun to get your hand up there but it was an oddly common gag for a long time.I.. really don’t get it. 

She arrives in america and buys a haunted house, to the realtor’s shock but eh it’s a sale. The black mold just makes it more sinister. Magica sicks Shadow Magica on the bin, with an elaborate plan but giving the Shadow one hour to do it because otherwise it will disapate.. given it dosen’t it’s likely more Magica trying to keep her double in line, having ran into trouble earlier with shadow her trying to steal the wallet of what I can only assume to be gus goose. So he was on vacation tha’ts where he was.. from what I don’t know he dosen’t actually do work and the house of mouse hadn’t been established yet. Maybe Gramma Duck just gives him vacation days. 

So the shadow ALMOST gets away with the dime.. but accidnetly knocks over a pedestal and warns Scrooge and the Boys, who manage to chase her off. Scrooge having only one magical nemisis in his Rogues gallery, that we know of, knows who did this and prepares for an attack.  Magica.. berates her doppleganger and while she considers a spell to power her up, decides against it since what would stop the Shadow from betraying her. The shadow agrees.. and locks Magica and Poe in a closet and makes the potion herself, taking on a creepy new form and planning to raise an ARMY of shadows. 

And here... is where the split between Lena and The Shadow is very deefinite. While Frank and Matt kept the shadow and Magica really not getting along and only working together out of necisity on both ends.. the shadow here REALLY is just magica. Just as evil and ambitious, and just as sneaky. The only diffrence between the two is the shadow’s logical weaknesses of being a shadow, i.e. light weakens her and she can only hide in darkness or other shadows, and how they were born. Shadow magica is every bit as evil and devious as the main one. I do get why she stuck in Frank’s brain though: the idea is simple but ingenious, someone’s shadow gaining sentience, and the cool tricks you get with that as she ducks and darts between shadows. It’s really good stuff and frank expertly expanded it with lena, making her basically humanoid duck other than where she came from, but still using the neat tricks with the shadow itself for Magica’s imprisoned form and later the shadow army. It’s a good example of taking a really good idea.. and making it even better, by having said shadow being deal with not being considered a person by the person who spawned her and really ramping up the idea of a shadow army, which Shadow Magica eventually summons, from about ten guys to an entire cities worth. The shadows also you know come from people instead of just thin air but semantics. Point is it’s a very good concept and done really well esepcially for the 87 cartoon, and while Frank’s take was unique and very well done, it dosen’t make the original any less good. 

And it’s shown off with a cool sequence of the shadow infiltrating the manor and nearly getting to the dime with Scrooge having rigged the place to all hell with lights as a percaution. It nearly wins but louie uses a shadow puppet to scare it off. While Scrooge ponders this latest attack Poe shows up, and offers Magica’s help.. but Scrooge rightly dosen’t want it, as he can’t trust her and only agrees when the boys bring up the power bill from keeping the lights on. 

Now getting Magica on board is not an idea: The shadow’s a threat to both of them and they need each other. The next part though.. is a bit stupid and drags the episode down a bit. Magica asks for the dime to beat the thing. Now Scrooge wisely is hesitant to do so.. but everyone else treats it like his usual greedy antics. Thing is.. it’s not. We don’t, at least in this adaptation, know what Magica wants with the thing or the full extent of what she can do with it or if she even actually needs it. While getting her help is one thing, giving her the DIME well...] ]’ii98[[

Why would you give someone you KNOW wants to use the dime to conquer the world or whatever the thing she wants? It’d be like handing Thanos the Infnity Gauntlet to take out Galactus. Yes, your handling a big problem.. but your burning the world to do it. It’s just so frustratlingly dumb. There’s a good idea in there, Scrooge being forced to lend Magica the dime, but it’s buried under Mt. Contrivance! 

So Scrooge reluctantly goes along with operation:seemed like a good idea at the time, and cleverly puts the dime in an empty stadium. Unfortuantley the lights malfunction and Shadow Magica summons MORE Shadows, and now has an army. Launchpad ends up being helpful, also he’s in this episode for some reason, by pointing out shadows need light.. and thus another logical weakness as killing the rest of the lights renders them weak and allows our heroes to lure them to the vault where Magica waits> Magica is able to weaken it with the spell.. but even with that the Shadow SITLL is too powerful.. 

Enter the cameras, which take out Shadow Magica, saving the day. We get a lesson about trusting Gyro’s gadgets for.. some reason and Scrooge stops Magica from fleeing with the dime with a shadow puppet. Smiles and cheese sandwitches all around

Final Thoughts on Magica’s Shadow War: This episode is not half bad. While the Dime Thing is mindblowingly moronic, and the camera thing is REALLY poorly set up, I have not had a more apt use for that Scott Pilgrim Panel yet, the sheer concept and June Foray’s sheer force of personality as both magica’s makes it work. It’s a fun, engaging adventure and a solid chonk of classic ducktales. As for how it relates to Lena it does so decently. But with this our side trips are at an end. Only two episodes left! And then onward to the lilo and stitch crossover arc! Yes really. Kev wanted a buffer before getting to the Season 2 arcs and I loved tha tshow as a kid so why the fuck not. 

Next Time on Shadow Into Light: Lena gets welcomed to prime time bitch as Magica pulls a freddy and stalks her through her dreams. Sadly she did indeed forgot about the power glove. Can the rest of the kids break away from dreams of high school musicals, becoming a garfild, giant legs and libraries long enough to save Lena? Will we have a very queer in the best way possible musical number about Lena and Webby’s anniversary? Will I talk about Huelet? In order, yes, yes, and probably. But join me anyways won’t you. 

If you liked this reviews, subscribe for more. If you have a ducktales episode from seasons 1 and 2 of the reboot or the whole of the 87 series, drop me a line through my ask box, my dm’s or my discord, technicolormuk#6550. Reviews or only 5 bucks an episode for tv. Other prices on the blog. Or if you can’t spare that much, join my patreon. Even a buck or two a month helps reach my stretch goals and the more of those I hit the more disney content you get a month. The current one is only 5 bucks away. I’m 15 and if I hit 20 that guarantees a darkwing duck review every month AND reviews of the super ducktales mini series. But if you can’t that’s cool and I get it times are hard, it’s why I have to shill so hard. But until the next rainbow, it’s been a pleasure. 

[make-me-imagine]

🍭 13 Days of Halloween: Day 10

Request: The Reader and 12 go trick or treating, and 12 slips an anonymous love note into the readers candy hoping they wont know it’s from him. (re-worded slightly from original request)

Requested by: @polliwogboi​

Pairing: Twelfth Doctor x Reader

Gender: Neutral       Triggers: None       

Words: 2,307      Genre: A little Humor and some Fluff

Requested Tag: @fictionalhoomanofnowhere​​

Notes: This is my first time writing for 12 so I hope I wrote him correctly; I wish I could watch DW but I don’t have an HBO subscription :( I’m also unsure of how I feel about this, but I hope you like it lol. 

If you’d like to check out 2019 and 2018′s 13 Days of Halloween, as well as my 2017 general Halloween/Fall stuff here are the links: x2017x, x2018x & x2019x

Walking down the steps of the most recent house you stopped at, you turned back to the Doctor with a smile “I still cannot get over the fact that this planet celebrates Halloween, AND that they give out candy to adults” 

“Yes, well, you’re welcome.”

You looked at the doctor with a quizzical stare “What do you mean ‘you’re welcome’?”

He leaned a little closer, small smirk present on his lips “Who do you think introduced the holiday in the first place huh?” 

You considered his comment for a moment, the initial surprise faded quickly “That actually makes a lot of sense.” 

He winked before you continued down the road, your bags of candy swaying in your hands “I’m pretty sure someone gave me an entire tomato” you commented, peaking into your bag.

The Doctor snickered “Must be the same lady who gave me a cucumber”

You had both dressed in a classic Earth Victorian-styled outfit paired with a masquerade-style masks. As you passed the line of houses, you looked back momentarily, smiling at the array of lights and decorations lining the streets and houses. It did really remind you of Earth, though, instead of pumpkins, the people on this planet carved faces into the trees lining the roads, giving an all year ‘round Tim Burton’s Halloween Town feeling. 

“That was fun” you commented, turning back and continuing towards the Tardis.

“Well it’s not over yet” the Doctor said with a small smirk. 

“What do you mean? We went to all the houses.”

“Yes, but, we still have one more stop” he stopped in his tracks, you stopping along with him.

Stretching out is arm, he motioned towards the Blue Police Box. Looking between him and the Tardis you smiled “No”

“Yes” he motioned his arms in a shooing gesture as you turned and approached the Tardis. The Doctor watched you with a smile on your face, his hand reaching into his pocket gripping around a small piece of paper.

Stopping at the Tardis door, the Doctor moved to stand next to you, lifting your hands at the same time, you repeated the action you had been doing all night. Knocking three times and yelling “Trick or Treat!” you were startled when the Tardis door flung open.

Looking down, you see two large candy bars lying in the Tardis entry way, you smiled, letting out a chuckle “You’ve got to be kidding” you said in disbelief.

Leaning down, both you and the Doctor grabbed the candy, the Doctors gaze fell to your opened candy bag. Considering for a moment whether he should toss the note in or not, he decided not to as you began to rise. Entering into the Tardis, you looked up “Thank you!” you yelled out, knowing the Tardis could somehow hear and understand you.

You turned back to the Doctor with a smile as you set your bag of candy down “I’m going to go change and then we can go through our spoils okay?”

He nodded with a smile as you turned and quickly went to your room. The Doctor eyed your bag before leaving the room to change. 

By the time he came back, you still had not returned. His eyes fell to the open bag again as he wracked his mind for a decision. ‘Just do it, just put it in the bag’ ‘No, it’s stupid, it makes no sense’ “Ugh” he sighed out loud as he fought with his own mind. 

He leaned against the Tardis control panel as his mind flashed back to a conversation you had months prior as you sat in a park and watched a boy pass a young girl a love note, you assumed it said ‘Will you be my girlfriend, Yes or No?”. The Doctor made fun the action, but you insisted that confessions via note were cute, and could often be romantic and poetic. 

Not that long after than, The Doctor found himself writing a small note to you, his confession in tact, romantic and poetic as you had commented. But he quickly ripped it up. Only to re-write it multiple times. The most recent note, the one currently in the grip of his palm was simple, purposefully vague as to possibly go anonymous in your mind.

‘You’re presence is a gift and I wish to never part with it, I wish to never part with your smile nor your kind heart, or your kind eyes. I would ask you to stay with me forever if I could’ he spoke the words in his mind, was it too much, or too vague? The first note he wrote was longer, full of more detail, but he did want to be vague, but maybe he shouldn’t? Grimacing at his own sappy thoughts, he looked back over at your bag as he thought of how much he had been debating telling you of his feelings. 

With the note, he could possibly play it off, someone else put it in your bag. Specifically the young man you had met a few days previous in the town. He was quite smitten with you. The Doctor rolled his eyes at the thought, a sense of jealousy passing through him. 

Suddenly the Tardis made a noise, it’s lights flickering. The Doctor looked up “Oh be quiet! It’s not your decision to make!” 

He sighed as the Tardis blinked again. Turning, he tossed the note into your bag ‘There, I did it. And now I can’t turn back. If y/n believes it from the young man, I can learn how they feel about them, and possibly me in the process’ he thought to himself as he turned away “There, happy?” he spoke out loud.

“Who are you talking to?” you asked as you entered the room again.

The Doctor turned quickly, slightly startled by your entry “Tardis” he said, motioning his hands around.

“Ah” you said with a smile as you looked around as well. Approaching your bag, The Doctors hearts beat rapidly as he realized what he had done, and that he couldn’t turn back. ‘Just play it off, wait it out’ he thought.

Grabbing your bag you suddenly moved to sit on the floor “Alright, let’s see what we got huh?” you asked, looking up at the Doctor, who repeated your action “This reminds me of my childhood” you commented, nostalgia running through you as you smiled widely.

The Doctor smiled fondly at you as you dumped out the content of your bag. His eyes raked over the pile of candy, looking for the note, but seeing it had been buried. Maybe you’d miss it? Think it was a loose candy wrapper and throw it away?

The Doctor, having dumped out his candy as well was distracted when he saw a certain candy in his pile. Hearing him make a sound of disgust you see him pick up a particular candy - which of course you didn’t recognize - he pinched it between his fingers as if it was a dirty napkin he didn’t want to touch. 

You chuckled, reaching out and snatching it from his hand, looking at it you couldn't make out what it was, giving him a quizzical look he motioned his head towards it “Try it”

“With how you reacted to it, I don’t know if I want to” staring at him for a moment and seeing him give nothing away you shrugged “Fine” unwrapping the candy it appeared to be a sort of toffee.

Tossing it into your mouth, the Doctor watched closely, waiting. You sucked on the candy for a second, the almost caramel like taste lasting for only a second before it switched to a sour, almost rancid taste. Grimacing you quickly spit it back into it’s wrapper with a ‘bleh’ sound before shaking your face “Ah, no, ew, what even is that?” 

The Doctor laughed at your reaction as you tossed the candy into the trash, disgust still on your face “Give me something better” you said motioned towards the candy. The Doctor, still amused, reached over, picking up the previously mentioned tomato and handing it to you. 

You looked at him with disdain as he chuckled. Instead you reached out, grabbing a random mysterious candy, opening it and shoving it into your mouth. The Doctor waiting for your reaction, smiled when you sighed in relief “Tastes sort of like apple”

Continuing looking through the candy, the Doctor explained the ones he knew, as you traded some and tried some. The Doctor remained distracted as he waited for you to find the note. His hearts seemed to stop when he saw you see the paper and grab it. He watched for a moment before asking “What’s that?”

You glanced at him, shrugging your shoulders “A note?”

Opening it you read the words, your heart skipping a beat as you did. For a moment, you thought you recognized the handwriting, but it did also appear different. Looking over at the Doctor he rose his brow “So? What is it? Trick or Treat?” he joked with a smile, trying to play off his nervousness. 

Hesitating for a moment, you read it out loud. The Doctor seemed to be as confused as you were as he suddenly rose from his seat on the ground “Perhaps it was from that one man, Tom? Randy? you know the one that clearly fancies you, maybe he slipped it in when we stopped at their house earlier” he stretched his body as he spoke, seemingly uncaring of the confession you received. 

Trying to ignore the pang of disappointment you felt you looked back at the note “You mean Adric?” you asked somewhat amused at his clear forgetfulness of his name, looking back at the note you read it again “Perhaps you are right, he did seem...interested” and he did flirt a lot with you when you and the Doctor had stopped at his house earlier. 

The Doctor looked back at you, seeing you re-reading the note again and again, clearing his throat “Do you, uh, like him, as well then?” 

You glanced at the Doctor, thinking you saw, trepidation? nervousness? “Uh, no, not really. Besides, even if I did, I couldn’t stay could I?” thinking for a moment, you rose from the ground “I think I will take it back to him tomorrow, and tell him how I feel”

"No!” the Doctor suddenly said, making you look at him surprise “Uh, I mean, no, we don’t have time, we must leave tomorrow, times to be, places to save you know.” 

You stared at him for a moment, suspicion rising “I can’t just disappear can I? That’s quite rude.”

“Well it’s like you said, you can’t just stay, so what’s the point? Besides he’s quite pompous, a little childish, not right for you, he’ll surely get over it quickly” he suggested before turning and walking down one of the halls. 

You couldn’t help the suspicion and hope growing in your mind, looking at the handwriting again, you noted that it really did look familiar, like The Doctors, and it was written as though it was purposefully disguised. Looking back up, now at the empty hallway. You moved to follow the Doctor. 

“It would only take a moment you know!” you called out, not knowing exactly where he was “I could just, take the note to him, say I’m sorry I don’t feel the same, and now I have to leave!”

“No point!” you heard the Doctors voice from a nearby room.

Entering, you see him looking through a pile of random objects and books “Why don’t you want me to Doctor?” you asked, your voice not quite accusatory, but genuinely curious.

The Doctor hesitated for a moment before turning to face you “Just don’t see the point is all” moving, he walked past you.

“You’re not a very good liar sometimes you know” you commented, making him stop in the doorway. 

“Why would I be lying?” he asked softly. 

You took a step closer to him “You’re also not as good at disguising your handwriting as you think” The Doctor stayed motionless, still facing away from you “You wrote the note didn’t you?” 

There was a moment of silence before he spoke “And what if I did?” the question was soft, quiet. 

You smiled to yourself as you looked back at the note in your hand “If you did” you looked up, staring at the back of his head “Then I would thank you. And I would tell you, that I...wish to never leave your side either. And that if you did ask. I would stay forever.” 

The Doctor had a swell of emotion as you spoke, your voice soft and sincere. Turning slowly, he met your eyes, seeing that you were nervous, as you fiddled with the note in your hands. 

Moving towards you now, the Doctor stopped in front of you, close enough to feel his breath on your skin “You would stay?”

You met his eyes, seeing them full of hope, you nodded lightly, your voice coming out just above a whisper “Forever- ” you paused “if you wanted”

“I do” he replied quickly, his own voice quiet. Reaching out, he took your hand in his “It is all I want, it has been all I wanted since...” 

“Since when?” 

He smiled lightly, bringing his other hand up, he gently touched the side of your face with his fingers “Since the day I asked you to be my companion”

A small smile grew on your face as he spoke, knowing that on the same day, you wished you could stay with him forever as well. You stared into each other’s eyes as you both realized you had been harboring the same feelings, and same wish. To be together, forever, or for as long as time would allow.

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[tsarisfanfiction]

WIP #46

(Send me a number 1-60 [or a fandom/character I guess] for the corresponding wip) because I’m bored and brain-fried and have too many wips that’ll otherwise never see the light of day.

For @janetm74 who actually asked for ‘Thunderbirds, 31′ but 31 isn’t TAG so we’ve got the closest TAG one instead. (top tip: wips are mostly arranged alphabetically by fandom and the TAG wips are 46-59!)

It was really only a matter of time before someone hit Scott!whump, wasn’t it?  Snippets of this one have actually appeared in previous ask games, so you get the whole thing this time (because I don’t remember which bits I’ve already posted).  Fun fact: this was my first attempt at Virgil’s PoV!

There was always something wrong about Scott in Thunderbird Two.  Of all the Tracys, he was the least likely to travel in the green behemoth that was, in Virgil’s private opinion, the heart of International Rescue.

And yes, that included John.

Gordon was his co-pilot, his wingman, his back-up.  For all that the aquanaut was, well, an aquanaut, there was honestly no-one else Virgil would rather behind the controls of his beloved girl if he was needed elsewhere. Heavy lifting, or – his least favourite – medical duties could sometimes pull him elsewhere, and in those moments his immediate brother would take the helm with a joking smile but steady hands that would never let anything befall Two (if only, he thought from time to time, because without Two Four would be grounded).

Alan was all nervous energy, a genius pilot but too cocky for Virgil to ever be truly relaxed when Two was in his hands, but it was far from uncommon for his youngest brother to be perched behind him, screens and panels showing readout after readout as he assessed situations and started remote assembly of pods when time was particularly of the essence.  Sometimes, often, he knew Alan desired the speed of One, but he also liked his comfort and short of pulling Three’s own seats into One (a feat done once, never repeated), there was no comfort as a passenger of their first response craft. Or even as the pilot, in Virgil’s opinion.

John was an unusual passenger, unlikely to be Earthside for a mission – and even if he was, quickly wrapping things up and ascending back to the lofty heights of Five and the world at his fingertips – but when he was Earthside, well, Thunderbird Two was his ship of choice.  He didn’t pilot her, for all that he was trained, but no matter what Scott would mutter, John was stubborn about always using Two to get to the danger zone.  Something about reckless flying and too much gravity. Virgil couldn’t truly say he understood, because John’s aversion to gravity had never been a point in common between them, but he did at least appreciate that Thunderbird One was fast, and generated far more Gs than any atmosphere-bound craft had any right to make.

Statistically speaking, Scott did travel in Two more than John did, but as he didn’t spend over three hundred days in the year off planet, Virgil wasn’t quite so fussed on the literal numbers.  Scott in Two always, always meant something was wrong.  Maybe One was out of action (again) but Scott wanted to be on the rescue anyway.  Maybe the world was conspiring against them, and Scott just wanted to be with his brothers rather than haring off at triple their speed and leaving them alone and vulnerable (Virgil knew that really One was more vulnerable than Two, although his eldest brother could never see it that way).

Or maybe, the worst wrong of all that always lined Virgil’s stomach with lead and dried up all the saliva in his mouth, Scott wasn’t fit to fly.

John was hovering, holographic form always a little too dull to accurately capture his brother’s vibrancy. Gordon had flight control, gloved hands firmly on the yoke as though he was her designated pilot.  Alan had co-pilot, booted feet reaching the floor with little difficulty nowadays – he would out-grow Gordon soon – as he flicked switches in uncharacteristic silence.

Virgil was in the medbay, scanner clutched in his hands like a lifeline as it told him nothing that he wanted to hear, and many things that he didn’t.

Scott was in the medbay, doing nothing.

Danger dogged their steps with every rescue.  They knew that – had always known it, even before the Zero-X blew their father sky-high as he tried to save the world – but it never made it any easier when it got closer than normal.

As normal for them was less than a second’s escape – buildings collapsing the moment their trailing foot left the threshold, planes erupting into fireballs the instant they leapt clear – closer was barely possible.  Closer was a Thunderbird coming home with deep gouges.  Closer was broken bones and terrorised faces.

Closer was their eldest brother lying motionless in his ‘bird’s medbay because it had taken thirteen minutes to find him after the snow roared down.

Avalanches were a messy business.  Survival rates were low, some of the worst odds International Rescue ever faced, and there was no denying that their own past experience did nothing to help whenever John uttered the word in a brief.  This one shouldn’t have been too bad, as far as snow monsters went.  Out of season, with few people in the huts that dotted the lower reaches of the slopes and fewer still outside.  Ten people were reported missing.

They found nine, all fortunate and breathing, before the second one struck.

Alan had been in Thunderbird Two, holding her steady in the air because the large Thunderbird would have done more harm than good if she’d landed and providing a much-needed birds’ eye view of the danger zone.  It had been entirely due to the combined information from him and John that had let them find the nine lucky people so quickly.

Gordon had been on triage in the hut deemed safest in the event of a second avalanche.  Virgil had just reached him with rescuee number nine when it had struck.

Scott had been heading up the slope, travelling scant inches above the snow via jetpack, searching for person number ten.  One’s drones had been with him, scanning furiously even as John hijacked them to give Five even more data than the space station had already obtained from other means. Those same drones had given them a glimpse of blue, grey and white all jumbled together before going dark.

It took two minutes for Virgil and Gordon to force their way out of the semi-buried but still standing hut. One more for Alan to configure a pod and tentatively lower it from the module even as they realised their original one would take too long to excavate from the snow.  In those three minutes, John had triangulated all the data he could amass from Five to provide the most viable search area.

Five minutes to find a body, cold to the touch.  Rescue number ten had never stood a chance.  Face down and neck broken, he would have been killed almost instantly during the original avalanche.

Fifteen minutes was the time limit.  Nine people had already defied it, surviving anything between half an hour and an hour under the snow before International Rescue reached the scene and dug them out. The Tracy family never had that much luck, and an avalanche was their own personal hell.  They knew, in that cold-fist-closing-around-their-hearts way, that Scott would not be number ten.

Twelve minutes and the pod’s heat sensors showed yellow-green in a sea of blue.

Thirteen minutes and their eyes showed them blue in a sea of white.

Scott had been wearing his helmet when the avalanche struck.  As Virgil knelt to ease his limp, cold, but breathing body from the frigid prison, he’d thanked their parents for that fact silently but profusely.  Still intact, the helmet had stopped snow clogging his airways, and had enough of an air supply to stop Scott from suffocating to death in the thirteen torturously long minutes it had taken them to find him.

In the medbay, scan finished, Virgil finally removed the life-saving gear.  The detached feedback from the scan told him as much, but he sighed resignedly when there was no response.  Scott didn’t gasp dramatically as his recycled air supply was replaced with the real deal, nor did lightly closed eyes snap open.

“How is he?” John asked unnecessarily as Virgil’s hand lingered under brown hair longer than strictly necessary after lowering the now helmetless head back down onto the stretcher.

“Cold.”  Virgil humoured him, knowing full well that John had been desperately analysing the results of the scan as they occurred. Their suits were well designed for the varied environments they found themselves in, and while Scott had shown up far, far too cold in their initial search for him, as soon as they’d got him into the security of Thunderbird Two the hint of a shiver had taken hold and Gordon had encouraged it with a single blanket.

Scott’s uniform was somewhere in the middle as far as easy to remove International Rescue uniforms went. While Gordon and John’s specialist environments necessitated almost vacuum-tight uniforms, and Virgil and Alan had heavy-duty but therefore less clingy attire, Scott wore a streamlined flight suit that didn’t adhere precisely to his body but wasn’t exactly loose either.  Still, the zip tugged down easily enough and Virgil manipulated his rag doll of an eldest brother out of the tough material delicately before clearing away any leftover snow trying to chill him further and cradling him in blankets.

John watched in an agitated silence, the distance between their physical bodies never so apparent as when one of them was hurt and he was twenty two and a half thousand miles away. Sooner rather than later, Virgil knew the space elevator would be docking at Tracy Island, but before John could leave Five he needed to get One nestled back safely in her hanger.

The Thunderbird had escaped the avalanche by never landing, set to an autopilot hover by Scott upon his arrival to the danger zone because despite being smaller than Two, her VTOL posed just as much of a risk to the stability of the snow.  With Gordon at the helm of Two, and a universal desire for the whole family to be together landing Alan in the co-pilot seat rather than their brother’s Thunderbird, it was up to John to remote pilot her home.

Hypothermia was not the only issue Scott had been hit with by the avalanche.  None of them had done the exact calculations – John might have done, but if he had he hadn’t shared them – but Scott had been swept a fair distance by the sheer might of the snow and the journey had been far from smooth. Something had knocked him out in the tumble – what, Virgil couldn’t begin to decipher – and while his ribs were miraculously okay, thanks to the support of his flight suit, his left arm was bent awkwardly.  Already, beneath the blankets, his skin was blossoming in the reds and purples of early bruising.

“Any change?” Alan asked, his hologram flickering into existence beside John’s.  Gordon was just visible at the edge of the projection.

“He’s warming up,” Virgil assured them, eyes never leaving his eldest brother as shivers slowly intensified.  “No sign of consciousness, though.”  He leant forwards, running his hands gently through gelled hair.  The scan didn’t indicate a concussion to accompany the rest of Scott’s injuries, but with no evidence for why he was remaining unconscious barring the hypothermia itself, Virgil needed a more hands’ on check to reassure himself that there would be no further complications.

“We’re almost home,” Gordon chipped in.  “Make sure you’re both ready for the landing.”

“F.A.B.”

Securing Scott was easy, straps looping over him and cinching tight but not too tight against the stretcher.  The temptation to stay standing beside him, watching like a hawk for any sign of change – good or otherwise – was strong, but John made a small noise in the back of his throat and Virgil forced himself to take the two paces away from the stretcher and collapse into a fold-out seat.

“Thunderbird One has landed,” the astronaut informed him, and Virgil managed something that was almost a smile.

“See you soon,” he said, and John returned the almost-smile before floating with purpose.  With the limitations of the holograms, it was difficult to tell where he was headed, but Virgil knew there was only one place John wanted to be.

Their landing was soft, softer than Gordon had ever managed before, and Virgil shot out of his chair and back to Scott’s side as soon as he felt the wheels connect solidly with the runway. The touchdown had done nothing to disturb him, eyes still softly closed. His skin was pale, and the shivering was still gaining in intensity, but Scott’s face was as peaceful as Virgil had seen it since the Zero-X.

He pulled the scanner back out, running another one just for something to do as Gordon taxied them back into the hangar.  Scott’s temperature had risen marginally, still too cold but headed in the right direction.  He adjusted the blankets cocooning him as Thunderbird Two finished her rotation and the hydraulics either side of the module whirred into action, raising the body of the craft.

Someone had remembered to call ahead – a flash of guilt coursed through Virgil as he realised that should have been his job – because as the module door lowered, letting in the orange flickering light that indicated mechanical movement in the hangar, Grandma was standing there, arms crossed and finger tapping nervously. She didn’t wait for the door to finish lowering, jumping into the module as soon as she could and heading straight for them.

“What happened?” she asked, wrapping an arm around him firmly for a moment before taking the final step to Scott’s side and tutting at the results of the scan.

“Avalanche,” Virgil responded, even though he knew she knew.  Old hands that had yet to lose most of their dexterity pulled at the blankets, exposing Scott’s throat enough for her to press two fingers to his pulse. “Nine survivors, one fatality.”

“Broken arm and extensive bruising,” she mused, light fingers dancing over her eldest grandson’s body as she confirmed the scanner’s results for herself.  “His suit protected him from the worst of it.  Let’s get him inside.”  Virgil nodded, reaching out to activate the hover jets on the underside of the stretcher before releasing the clasps that held it to the wall.  Hurried footsteps indicated the arrival of his younger brothers, finished with their flight checks and anxious to see their eldest brother.

“Is he awake yet?” Alan asked, blue eyes filled with hope.  Virgil shook his head as Gordon placed a hand on the youngest’s shoulder.

“Your brother will be fine,” Grandma assured them all before he could find the words to explain Scott’s condition.  “A little battered and bruised, and rather cold, but some rest and home cooking will sort him right out, you’ll see.”

Gordon’s mutter that home cooking would do more harm than good wasn’t as quiet as he’d clearly intended, but Grandma ignored the slight as she put a firm hand on the hovering stretcher and started to guide it towards the house.  Virgil paused, checking his two younger brothers over thoroughly.  Alan was pale, shaken at the sight of Scott’s limp body, while Gordon headed over to the discarded uniform and picked it up.

“He’ll be alright,” he told them.  Both nodded sharply.  “John’s coming down; Alan, why don’t you go meet him?”

Neither asked why John was coming down if Scott was going to be fine.  It was a much appreciated fact that sometimes a hologram wasn’t enough for reassurance, and none of them would ever begrudge John the chance to be there in person.  Alan nodded again and left.

“I’ll clear up here,” Gordon said.  He was feeding the damp uniform through his hands, most likely unconsciously.  Damp, half-melted snow littered the module, and the remaining pod.  “Go help Grandma.”

Virgil didn’t protest, although he gave Gordon a final look over before turning to leave his ‘bird. They all needed to feel useful, finding something to do while they waited for Scott to wake up.  He would have cleaned his ‘bird himself, but Gordon’s order had been a hidden plea: I want you with Scott.

“I want her spotless,” he said instead, and Gordon laughed.

“Yes, yes,” he dismissed. “Now go help Grandma keep Scott in bed.” Because that was going to be the hardest task of all.  None of the Tracys made for a good patient, but Scott was the undisputed worst patient of all.  Alan and Gordon would try for subtle, the elder blond with more success, escape attempts made when they were left alone for too long.  John hid in Five, well-practiced in manipulating holograms to make him appear healthier than he actually was – although the arrival of EOS had put a stop to that particular trick.  It was the thing that had finally got her into Scott’s good books.  Virgil himself knew that he gave his brothers a little too much grief, largely because he knew how to treat his own ailments better than they did.

Scott didn’t bother with subtlety.  The moment their backs were turned, and sometimes not even then, he would be forcing himself up and out of bed, determined to carry on working no matter what. He’d never been a good patient, but it had only worsened since their Dad’s crash.  Knowing why didn’t make it any easier to deal with.

Not bothering to change out of his uniform, he ran after Grandma and the stretcher, catching up with them just outside the infirmary doors.  Scott was still unconscious, a fact that bothered him considering there was no sign of injury that would cause it, but it made transferring him from the stretcher to the soft bed far easier.  A pile of warm blankets were gently tucked around him, mindful of the broken arm.

As Grandma fussed with an IV line, more a precaution than a necessity, Virgil turned his attention to the limb.  It was a clean break, simple enough to reset and splint.  Scott let out a noise of complaint as the bones were dragged back into place, and both he and Grandma immediately looked at him.  Brow furrowed, hazed blue eyes flickered open.

“Scott?”

“Vrrgg?” his eldest brother slurred, eyes slowly focusing on him. “Whh..?”

“We’re home,” Virgil told him, resting a hand on the blankets over where Scott’s right shoulder was buried.  “The rescue’s over.”

Scott blinked at him slowly, the haze of confusion not quite leaving his eyes.

“Rsscu?”

“Let’s focus on getting you warmed up for now, Scott,” Grandma cut in, smoothing his hair back gently. She gestured sharply with her other hand – hidden from Scott’s view – to the reset arm.  Virgil took the hint, returning to strap it up, knowing that he’d need to mix up a proper cast for it if he wanted any chance of it healing properly with Scott’s reluctance to rest of any length of time.

“Buh-”

Scott’s protest was cut off by the door slamming open, the pitter-patter of Alan’s booted feet flying into the room.  Behind him, at a more sedate pace, John followed, turquoise eyes raking over the scene in front of him sharply.

“Is he awake?” Alan asked, skidding to a stop by the bed.  “Scott?”

“Ara?” Scott started. Virgil lunged up to stop him as he made his first attempt to get up.

“No, Scott,” he said firmly. “You’re still too cold.”  Scott didn’t fight him, a sign that he was still confused.  It didn’t go unnoticed by either Alan or John, the former losing his smile and the latter narrowing his eyes for a moment.

“Go get yourselves changed,” Grandma told them.  “He’ll still be here when you come back.”  Hoping she wasn’t including him in that order, Virgil busied himself with fussing over Scott, fixing the blankets he’d dislodged and hushing any attempts to ask about the rescue.

“It’s over,” he repeated as his two brothers left the room with orders from Grandma to also locate Gordon and make sure he got changed, too.  “Stay still.”

“Virgil,” Grandma warned, and his shoulder slumped.  “You too, young man.  You’re still wearing some of the snow.”

He hadn’t noticed, but when she mentioned it he realised that the creases of his uniform still carried damp white.

“I won’t be long,” he promised Scott, who looked at him with wide blue eyes.  They reminded Virgil of Alan.  Usually it was Alan who reminded him of Scott; he didn’t like it the other way around.  “I’ll bring you back a drink.  Think you can manage that?”

“Drrnk?”

Virgil sighed, and turned to Grandma.

“I’ll bring him something,” he told her and she nodded with a tired smile.

“You do that,” she said. “Now go get out of that wet uniform before you catch a chill, too!”

With a last look at his brother, still too pale but thankfully shivering properly at last, he forced himself to leave the room.

When it came to Grandma, there were fights that could not be won, and unspoken orders to be heeded nonetheless.  It was not as simple as tugging off his uniform, throwing on some casual clothes and running back into the infirmary with a warm, sugary drink in hand served with a straw to sip it with, so he begrudgingly threw himself under a hot shower, allowing his own body to warm up after too long in the snow himself, albeit not buried like his big brother.  Still, a shower did not have to be long to be effective, even if he would usually take the time to let his muses grow amongst the gentle hiss of pouring water, and within five minutes he was thoroughly warm and worming his way into clean clothes.  A quick blow with his hair dryer got the worst of the water out of his hair, but he forwent the gel to return it to its usual style.  Certain younger brothers might have a field day about his hair not being carefully sculpted, but a certain hypothermic older brother was worth a little bit of pride.

John had beaten him to the kitchen, a hot squash – blackcurrant and apple, from Scott’s personal stash – steaming on the counter.  Virgil glanced around the room to make sure nothing was broken.

“You haven’t taken it in?” he asked, wrapping a hand around the container.  It was almost hot to the touch.  John shrugged.

“I’d drop it,” he said, plucking a blue straw from the collection in the cupboard and neatly dropping it into the top of the cup.  Virgil couldn’t disagree with the possibility and scooped it up, straw bobbing in the dark liquid, before continuing on to the infirmary.

Alan and Gordon were there, both out of uniform as per Grandma’s orders, and trying to get a laugh out of Scott, if their antics were anything to go by.  Scott himself, Virgil was pleased to see, appeared less confused than when he’d left.

“I have a drink for you,” he announced, passing it to Grandma as he perched on the bed by Scott. “Think you can manage some sips?” Scott was still shivering but managed a grateful smile.

“Will i’ tas’e goo’?” he asked, still too cold to pronounce his words properly.  Virgil gently brought the head of the bed up slightly before propping Scott up in a more upright position with the use of many pillows. Gordon helpfully readjusted the blankets as Alan crawled onto the bottom of the bed.

“It’s from your own stash,” he promised, taking it back from Grandma and holding the straw to his lips. “John made it hot, so be careful.”

“’M alway’ ca’ful.” Scott mumbled the biggest lie Virgil had ever heard before accepting the straw and taking a sip.

“If you say so,” he said, wrapping an arm around his shoulders to help keep him in place as he drank.  He was still cool to the touch, despite the blankets wrapped around him firmly.

Scott hissed as the liquid entered his mouth, and Virgil tightened his grip even as he rolled his eyes.

“I warned you,” he said lightly, as John entered the room and perched on the end of the bed, watching Scott carefully.  Scott took another sip, more cautiously the second time.

...tbc one day..?

[imagine-fight-write]

RANDOM - Banana Fish Review, Vol. 1, Part Four

(This was one of my fav gifs looking for gifs of Shorter.)

*There will be pictures/gifs included tomorrow, because this is already late & loading them is taking forever, for some reason.

Haha, no, I actually prettied it up 1/5/21. Yes, I’m glorious.

No I’m actually Dio DIO in this situation, who am I kidding.

(This transition from Caesar to Dio fascinates me, by the way.) (The GIF.)

The JOJO reference is because I’ve finally finished Diamond is Unbreakable! It was fun! I enjoyed it a lot! Ready for the next part!

But back to Banana Fish.

Hope you enjoy this!

So my plans failed again. Who is surprised? (Not me.)

I apologize profusely for the gaping void of Banana Fish-ness left since last I posted.

No really. I now have an alarm set for every Wednesday.

Let’s see how this goes. News Update: Maybe next time.

Also, my internet is still blitzy & rotten, otherwise I would’ve posted this yesterday (the 15th).

Now on to the in-depth, delighted gushing - er, review, of Banana Fish!

*Also, this is part 4, and 4 is a special number for me. Because of this guy:

And I can spell his name correctly!!! (It’s Ulquiorra, from Bleach, my 1st anime fan gushing love.)

Yes, I’m strange. Moving on.

So, brief recap, since I’m not sure anyone has read Part 3, given how terrifyingly long it is. If you missed it, here’s the link:

https://imagine-fight-write.tumblr.com/post/632014616404344832/random-banana-fish-review-vol-1-part-3-my

Please love & like it & repost to the rest of the Web. I worked tremendously hard on it.

Yes it’s long, but oh, it was delightful! There was snark! Delicious food! Wine! Fabulous mustaches! Mysteries! I gushed so much!

(And snarled at the wonton waste of good breakfast food, which I will not forget & always condemn.)

*I mean, I know people who will throw up if they have breakfast in the morning. But it’s important to eat so you have energy to do things & feel good.

And Dino took a perfectly beautiful breakfast & essentially wasted it for no good reason. I was so mad.

We meet Dino Golzine, a.k.a., Ash’s worst nemesis /enemy (note, I can’t spell nemesis) and major reason for why his life sucks.

(Although society doesn’t help either. Though the police try. They really do. Except what’s his face who’s complete scum & thoughtless, but we won’t meet him til Vol. 2. Plus I don’t think he has a name?)

But yes, Dino Golzine. All around awful person, and not safe around children (or anyone, really.) He’s low-key in this scene, mostly using verbal assaults (to great effect) but just you wait. There’s a reason he’s a mob boss.

Ash snarks, to great effect, but he’s no match. Dino has all the cards and all the dice (cards & dice being metaphors for power, & how he involves awful, painful memories of Ash’s past & tries to manipulate & order him around. Brrr.)

But Ash rallies, and ultimately refuses returning to be Dino’s heir / toy.

We meet Shorter! Huzzah!

(End of recap.)

It’s clear right away Shorter & Ash are old friends. They exchange quips about Marvin. We learn Marvin holds a mean grudge, so savvy readers can guess it’ll come to play later (it does.)

Shorter’s last line is strange.

“Just don’t put me in the position of having to kill you.”

Which is kinda out of the blue. I don’t know what to make of it. It doesn’t spoil or fore-shadow anything (unless in a very confused, round-about way) because that never happens later. So I’m confused.

Ash laughs it off and goes zooming off on his motor-bike / motorcycle (not sure which).

Note, from this short scene we already learn Shorter has his own sources of information - he knows Ash went to Dino’s, fast enough to be there before their conversation ended (unless he was just lucky to be there already  - why was he there?). He already knows about Ash’s talk with Marvin, with enough detail to warn Ash about Marvin’s temper & that Marvin likes him, which is a bad combination.

Shorter is smart & cares about his friends, warning Ash about Marvin. 

Aren’t friends great?

Especially after meeting such a dominating if soft spoken monster like Dino?

The answer is yes.

Next, we get this hilariously great shot of Ash running up the steps to his dingy apartment (pg. 47.)

 It’s reminiscent for me of a scene in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Part 1, when Jonathan & Dino have their epic fight in the Joestar mansion.

There’s a part where Jonathan does this epic flip up to a second floor via sword (it’s epic) & it ends with this a few-seconds-longer-than it-needs-to-be shot of his butt. You can’t miss it. I’m usually oblivious to such things & I noticed it. I laugh every single time.

Anyway, back to Banana Fish.

(The atmosphere of grunginess (it’s not a word, I meant dirty, ugly, rough) & spartan furniture is great. Just look at those walls. I adore it. 

(But would never want to live there.) Ash is clearly not rich & after Dino’s rich mansion, this is a stark contrast.

Also, there are no pictures or posters on the walls (which are festooned with dirt and cracks instead.) In fact, there’s almost nothing in terms of personal effects at all.

This baffles me. I mean yes, I assume they’re all dirt poor, living in a gang & working for the mafia on the side isn’t something you do for the luxuries. But surely they’d have something.

Or maybe it has something to do with Japanese decorating aesthetics? Meaning, Japanese appear to be more spartan than Americans in terms of decor (see the book, In Praise of Shadows, for example.) 

* I can’t spell aesthetics. Why do I even use that word?

The apartment just looks extremely bare compared to others I’ve seen in movies depicting this era. Is what I’m saying.

Look at those bare walls. (It hurts me.)

Thoughts? Comments on how Japanese, Americans, and Europeans differ in basic decorating styles? Comment below!

Also remember as always, Banana Fish is both set & was written in the 1980’s, well before the “modern” style we have now.

Unless - wait. There is something very important to Ash which he’s clearly hiding in the apartment he goes to, which I assume only Skip & select members know about.

So maybe this isn’t actually Ash’s main base, where he sleeps & hangs out?

Yes, that must be it.

If you’re confused, I’ll explain once we get done with this section.

Moving on.

We meet Skip!!!! (Pg.47)

Black characters (and Latino) are still, alas, extremely rare in manga, anime, & other media, so all the cheers for including Skip so early & as such an important character.

Because Skip is very important. For multiple reasons. More on that later. Also note, 1 of the gang members Ash busts earlier is also black.

Again, the dialogue is great here between Ash & Skip, establishing Ash’s trust in him. Which is no small thing.

Skip is like Shorter, (agh, both their names start with S) sweet, but also has a nose for news.

Arthur’s going to get it, hah!

There’s yet another reference to it being early.

Though there’s no specific time mentioned . . . Nope, not since Ash found the poor, dying banana fish dude.

Does Ash usually sleep in? Is he a night owl? He was wandering around at 1 in the morning last night, after all.

*Yes, technically it was early morning, but it was still dark, so bite me.

But then, he was also suspicious & keeping tabs on his 2 gang members. So, who knows.

But I’m going to guess he’s a night owl.

Ash sits on the bed, and after Skip mentions everything is good, “him, too”.

 Ash gives his 1st real, genuine smile. Gentle, relieved, no hard edges. Just pure happiness & relief. It’s sweet.

(Also, I just realized the “him, too” is supposed to be a surprise / shock for the reader & I spoiled it earlier. I do apologize.)

Skip offers to get coffee but Ash declines, deciding to nap, which reminds me:

Actually, drinking coffee before you take a nap can, for some people, actually make you sleep better.

Also, short cat naps (15-30mins) can boost your energy and mood.

Naps are good for you!

I almost wondered if the comics Skip had on the table might’ve been manga, but remembered it was the 1980’s and, far as I know, manga wasn’t big the U.S. yet. Alas!

Which is funny if you think about this being in a manga.

Skip goes to leave. Ash puts his hand in his pocket and gets this intense, almost fierce expression on his face (middle panel, pg. 48).

I was absolutely baffled by this reaction for a long time, but finally figured it out. Ash’s reaction is supposed to be baffling, because what he realizes right here will be revealed in the next few pages.

Skip, concerned, asks what’s up, but Ash brushes him off and sends him off to buy coffee. (After which I sincerely hope he takes a nap, because he needs one, he’s been up all night.) Sleep is good for you!

Skip is able to buy coffee with a single coin. A single coin.

(Sorry, I couldn’t resist.)

All my tears, and curses on inflation and overpriced coffee! And Starbucks!

Anyway, we learn Arthur’s going to get it (and Skip is the best spy ever) and the scene cuts to:

Our favorite person (not) Dino Golzine, tending his orchids.

I like this. It’s a rather unique hobby for a villian. I assume to give him a refined, elegant, and exact air.

He’s interrupted by Angie & his fabulous mustache (snickers) and this delightfully comic scientist person (who might be important later? The face sameness makes it difficult to judge, & I’m too lazy to consult my other volumes, which are not close by.)

But his entrance is priceless (pg. 50). I mean seriously, please go find it if you haven’t already. It’s dramatic, with a big WHAM! & he looks so cartoonish. 

I love it.

Dino tells him, essentially, “don’t disturb my orchids” and me being an non-gardner person, I wonder: is it actually true loud noises can disturb flowers?

Comment below!

Anyway, Dino quickly establishes yes, he did send Ash’s gang members to kill the poor banana fish guy who started this whole mystery, and yes, it was important.

There’s a great panel (pg. 51) of scientist dude, drawn much less comedic, the whole panel black except for a white aura around him sweating and clearly in distress.

He whispers, “It - it’s gone.”

Dino snaps to attention with a leonine look, exactly like a cat who has just spotted another cat. It’s easily my favorite picture of Dino so far, very striking.

The dialogue is brilliant and snappy, short and direct.

“What is gone? . . . You’re positive? . . . Just a small amount.”

And we get the grand reveal:

Ash, taking out a bullet shaped capsule (was the shape intentional by Yoshida?). A capsule he’d clearly taken from the dying banana fish guy. There’s a great panel on the bottom of pg. 52 of Ash’s questioning expression and a ?

He unscrews the capsule and pulls out a tiny vial.

Thinks of the address the dying banana fish guy gave him.

Ash goes into the next room, where we see the silhouette of someone sitting with a plaid blanket draped across their knees.

He expresses his first real look of vulnerability, and gives a wonderful line:

“Go see . . . Banana fish . . . He said it and died. And you say it and you might as well be dead. Who did this to you? Griff . . . Please tell me, big brother.”

Everything clicks together (almost.)

Griff /Griffin is the soldier shown way back in the very beginning. The one who left for a few minutes and came back insane and shot up his squad.

Who’s now a human vegetable.

Banana fish is clearly responsible. Somehow.

And Dino is mixed in with it (of course). Pieces are coming together, but questions still remain.

Until next time!

[valhallanrose]

Sabina ( @arcanecadenza ) did this lovely prompt of A Kiss for Losing a Bet between her OC Dante and my Zelda, which immediately made me spiral and now I have a second meeting fic from Zelda’s perspective because I ultimately am now a fan of this pairing. Dante’s just baby, I can’t help it.

Fic under the cut for the sake of your dash

Zelda heard the locked shop door pull as if someone tried to open it, she’d been wrist deep in a flowerpot full of dirt, getting it ready for one of her other plants to be transferred into it. There was a moment of panic, several moments of just standing around with her muddy hands wondering what to do before she remembered that she was, in fact, a magician. 

“Oh, just a moment!”

She quickly flicked her wrists, the dirt vanishing into nothingness before she crossed the room to the window beside the door. Zelda was already half leaning out of the stained-glass panels before they were fully open, polite smile on her face as she spoke. “I’m sorry, we’re closed at the moment, but I’ll be open again tomorrow…”

When she got a good look at who had been trying to open the door, a really good look, she could have just about died. 

Dante stepped down off the stoop as she laid her hands on the windowsill, face cherry red and eyes wide as he approached the window with a casual sort of smirk that had her mind committing a minor malfunction. She was frozen as he leaned in, bracing his arms on the windowsill and speaking to her in a hushed sort of tone. 

“That’s alright. I came looking for you, anyhow.”

The night she’d kissed him, over a game of cards with just enough blackberry liqueur helping her throw all inhibition to the wind, she hadn’t expected to ever actually see him again. She didn’t visit taverns, certainly didn’t gamble, and figured that the odds of him actually looking her up were rather slim. 

So the fact that he was standing in front of her right now, outside her shop?

Fuck. 

“What, you want me to absolutely demolish you in cards again?” She teased gently, watching with some delight that his own cheeks turned pink. “Can’t say I’d be opposed, but I don’t own a suitable deck at the moment. Or is this just an excuse to lay one on a stranger when you bet a kiss again?”

Zelda propped her chin in her hand, a smile pulling at her lips as he flushed, and found herself taking him in all over again. 

The dim light of the tavern hadn’t done him justice. She couldn’t easily see the freckles scattered across his skin, so many more than she had, couldn’t see the different shades of brown swirling in his eyes. Her eyes followed the loose curls of his hair down the sides of his face, over the curve of his cheeks...down to that beauty mark in the center of his lower lip that she found she wouldn’t quite mind kissing again. 

She idly wondered if he’d taste like orange juice and gin again if she did. 

“I like to think I don’t make it a habit of kissing strangers.” Zelda heard him say, drawing her out of her reverie and making her refocus on the conversation at hand. “Though, if you’re so eager for a recreation, we don’t have to be.”

Zelda chuckled and rolled her eyes, reaching out and gently pushing his glasses back up his nose when they started to slip. Her voice lowered to a purr, much more characteristic of when she got a little tipsy than her usual self, but...something about him just made her bolder than usual.

“Oh, but you aren’t a stranger to me. I’d wager I know you far better than you think.” She murmured, watching his Adam’s apple bob slightly as her hand lowered to smooth out his necktie.

He lifted a brow, expression somewhat roguish despite the growing flush on his cheeks. “Oh really? Have we met before? I’d hope I wouldn’t forget such a face.” 

His hand lifted, brushing a few pieces of hair out of her eyes - surprisingly at height with her even as she leaned down from the window. Zelda only laughed, shaking her head and taking his hand in hers. She turned it over in her palm, lazily tracing her fingers over the lines of his hand as she spoke. “No, but I do read palms, and yours were quite easy to get a look at over the table.”

Dante groaned dramatically, leaning hard into the windowsill and rolling those warm honey eyes in her direction. “Oh, and this is the part where you predict my impending death and tell me there’s a dark, handsome stranger in my future, isn’t it?”

She smacked his palm lightly, playful over aggressive, and shook her head. 

“Hands tell a story, Dante. I can read them just like an open book.” Zelda’s hand started to pull away, her tone becoming nonchalant as she continued. “Of course, if you’re worried, I can always just keep it to myself…”

When he grabbed her hand again and nearly smacked it down on his own, she had to bite back laughter, his expression somewhere between disbelieving and curiosity as their hands settled on the sill again. 

“No, no, I’d like to see what you think you know. But if you’re wrong...you owe me a favor, to be called in at any time.”

“I’m rarely wrong, so I’ll take that bet. I’d like to maintain my winning streak.” Zelda giggled softly, lowering her gaze to his hand in hers. For a long moment, her fingers passed down his, following the shape of his hands and the lines of his palm before she looked back up at him. 

She didn’t notice the way his eyes lingered on her face, too focused on her quiet words as her thumb idly stroked over his palm. 

“As I said, hands tell you a lot about a person.” She said softly, trailing the very tips of her fingers across the center of his palm and smiling a little as his own fingers twitched. “And not a lot of people think about it. You can probably tell I’m a gardener just by looking at mine.”

“And not at all by the absurd number of plants I can see over your shoulder.” Dante teased, and she felt herself flush again under the intensity of his gaze and the curve of his lips. Instead, she just managed a roll of her eyes, lowering her attention back down to his palm instead in hopes that would somehow keep her from making a fool of herself.

“Palmistry, on the other hand,” she chose to ignore his amused snort, “tells more about a person if you know where to look.”

Her fingers shifted, tracing first over the curved line arcing around his thumb. “This one here is your life line.” 

“Ah, so this is where you tell me I’m going to die in three weeks. What do you think, food poisoning or mugging gone wrong?”

“Five minutes, using the pruning shears in my back pocket.” Zelda shot him a grin as she looked up to meet his own mischievous expression, snickering under her breath before her gaze lowered again. “No, the mortality thing is a misconception. Your life line focuses on your general well being, your passion for life, major changes and events in your life.”

She lazily drew her nail along that line, trying not to focus too hard on the chipped green polish that made her quite aware she hadn’t done shit to take care of her hands for a few days. “Yours is a long and strong line, meaning you’re dependable, but...it’s forked. Forked lines are usually indicative of a new path, redirection, and life change. And angled toward the Mount of Moon...traveling to far off places, which we know is true, dear traveling salesman.”

Her gaze flicked up briefly, searching for a reaction before her eyes dove back down and her cheeks heated when he realized he was watching her, not their hands. She held his gaze, brown nearly searing gold in the sunlight that made her feel a little weak until she managed to spit something coherent out.

“What? Something on my face?”

His face turned pink, but he shook his head, gesturing for Zelda to continue before she lowered her gaze. She pulled her hair idly over her, the ends brushing his palm as she lowered her fingers to the heel of his hand. She didn’t move it, though - she needed the cover to pretend like she wasn’t blushing like mad when she really took in how close he was. 

“This one here, in the center of your palm, is the head line. Yours is long, deep, and curved...you’re a person who’s intelligent, has an excellent memory and concentration, but you’re a romantic. You’re creative and open to new ideas, unafraid of exploring concepts and beliefs unfamiliar as you go. And here…” She tapped the next line, highest on his palm. “This one is your heart line. This one is wavy and double-forked - that means that though you weave both romance and practicality into your life, you’ve experienced less in the way of serious relationships.”

“Your fate line expresses how much of your path is controlled by destiny as opposed to your own will, and yours is…” Zelda stifled a laugh as she took in the line in question. “Well, let’s just say you’re very self-driven. You chose your own path, not the one laid out for you by others. And if your sun line is anything to go by...you’re willing to work hard for that success. It runs parallel to your fate line, meaning you could continue to grow that success and gain quite the reputation for yourself, but...it’s short, too. Don’t forget to stop and enjoy life, take some time for yourself, especially when it seems like you’re stuck in place.”

Zelda was quiet for a moment before she stiffened, realizing with some horror she’d practically been petting his hand for a good ten minutes and wanting to die a little inside as she cleared her throat. “Or, you know, die in three weeks via carriage accident and all your ex-lovers will come to your funeral to mourn.”

There were a few more beats of pause, and Zelda wanted to die just a little bit more, turning her face away as she started to withdraw her hand. But...his own shifted, just enough for him to lay her hand in his palm just as she had done to him before.

“So you get to know all about me, and I haven’t got a thing about you?” She heard him say, tone playful, idly noticing when she looked up that he was now studying her palm. Zelda watched as he carefully adjusted his glasses, brows quirking up when he lifted his gaze back to hers and gave her a light smirk. “What does your hand say, hm?”

“Oh, kotyonok, what makes you think I’d give that information over so easily?” Zelda grinned, feeling suddenly energized and impulsive all over again as she reached out and grasped his tie carefully. She pulled him into the window opening ever so slightly, placing a kiss on the corner of his lips before leaning in to murmur in his ear. “Hasn’t anyone ever told you a magician never reveals her secrets?”

Delighting in the way his face flushed, and ignoring her own reddening cheeks, she leaned back and pretended to consider the idea for a moment, then made a face as if she’d had an epiphany. “Well, not until she’s at least taken you on a proper date. How about you swing by at seven? Then you can learn all about what my hands tell you.”

The only answer she got was a sound very much like a mewling kitten as Dante, red faced, managed a nod and a sheepish sort of smile as Zelda straightened. With a final, very cheeky wink, the panels of her window swung shut - and she would wait a long, long time, until she was sure she was alone to laugh nervously in the empty and quiet shop.

“I am in so much trouble.”

(kotyonok - Neviv/Russian for kitten)

[ifishouldvanish]

Editing tips, I guess?

Hey uhhhhh, so I've gotten lots of new followers over the past few weeks and wanted to do some kind of thank you?? Also, I have seen a fair share of "omg HOW" in the tags on my edits (which??? always make my day?? my week??? my life????)

Anyway, I thought I'd share some of my ~techniques with y'all? So here goes:

(lmao this got really fuckin long so cuuuuuut)

1. Make EVERYTHING a Smart Object

Okay, maybe not EVERYTHING, but seriously. Do it. It will save ur editing life. You ever shrink something down and then an hour later change your mind and decide you want it bigger? If you're not using a smart object, it’ll get blurry when you scale it back up and you’ll be fuCKED!

To make a layer/group a smart object, just right click on it in the layers panel and select "convert to smart object". This makes Photoshop store the layer's original data in a separate space for safe keeping (an embedded .psb file, to be exact) -- so you can shrink it and enlarge it as many times as you want without any lossiness.

As soon as I paste/place a screencap, texture, or whatever into my document, the first thing I always, ALWAYS do is convert it to a smart object!!

Why, you might ask?? Continue to item No.2 :)))

2. Harness the POWER of Smart Objects!!

The reason I am obsessed with Smart Objects is because I am obsessed with making any edits as non-destructive as possible. If you use “Image > Adjustments > Levels/Selective Color/etc” on a regular layer, that’s a destructive edit. Same goes for any Filters (such as blur/sharpen) and transforms (Warp, distort, perspective). You lose the original data that was there and the only way it can be undone is with ctrl+z. Might not seem like a huge deal at first, but if you keep chugging along for an hour and decide, “hmm, maybe i went too hard on that levels adjustment after all...” your only options are deleting the layer and starting over, or uh... hoping it’s still in your history panel.

However, it's really easy to avoid destructive edits when you use smart objects!! Because all those adjustments, filters, and transforms become “Smart Filters”. Smart Filters have all the non-destructive advantages of performing these adjustments via adjustment layers, but have the added bonus of ONLY effecting the layer they’ve been applied to, instead of cascading down and effecting all the layers beneath. (Which can be a good thing sometimes, but that’s a whole other topic)

Smart filters are attached to their ‘parent layers’, and can be hidden, deleted, or modified (by double-clicking their names) at any time:

Can I hear a wahoo???

Other cool things about Smart Objects:

You can copy a Smart Filter with all its settings to another layer by alt+click+dragging it over

You can change the order in which Smart Filters are applied by clicking and dragging them around

You can edit a smart object independently/in a sort of 'isolated' mode by double-clicking on its thumbnail!! I like to use this for edits that are specific to a given screencap-- like cutting out the background and any initial adjustments, like levels and selective coloring. Once you’re done editing the contents of the smart object, hit ctrl+s and it will automatically update in the main document!

But really, the biggest thing for me here is psychological. I know I’m much more willing to try things and experiment when I know that I can easily go back and tweaks things at any time. Otherwise, I’d stick with adjustments I don’t really like all that much simply because it would take too much time/effort to redo them.

3. Don't even THINK ABOUT using the eraser tool or I will STOMP YOU to death with my hooves!!

Use a layer mask instead. Please I am begging you. It all comes back to making your edits as non-destructive as possible. If you erase something, it's gone forever. When you mask something, you can make changes to which parts are visible/not visible as often as you want.

For the newbies or the otherwise unacquainted, a mask is a greyscale ‘map’ attached to a layer (or layer group) that controls its opacity. Black areas give the layer 0% opacity, white areas will give it 100% opacity, and you can use shades of grey to achieve partial transparency. You ‘draw’ on these layers with the your trusty brush and paint bucket tools.

You can create a mask by selecting a layer and then clicking the little mask icon at the bottom of the layers panel (it’s the one with the little circle inside the box). Draw black on the parts you want to hide, and if you erase too much on accident? Just paint back over it with white!

I love masks, and sometimes i will throw an already masked layer inside a layer group and apply a second mask to said group. This way I have two masks that can be edited independently from each other. Like layer mask-ception.

So anyway, yes. Eraser tool? Don’t know her.

4. Try using channels to create masks!

This is a technique that works REALLY well for cutting out complex shapes, such as wispy hair (or feathers!) -- provided there's strong contrast between the subject and the background, and the background isn't too busy.

This is also a fantastic method for capturing alpha transparency. For example: If you have a neato paint stroke/splatter/watercolor texture you want to use as a mask, but has a solid background that’s getting in the way of things. This method will capture all the semi-opaque areas flawlessly!!

While editing your image (which you had better have made into a Smart Object!!!) do the following:

Switch from the "layers" panel to the "Channels" panel.

Toggle through the R, G, and B channels, and decide which one has the most contrast for the areas you are trying to mask.

Ctrl+Click that channel's thumbnail. This will create a selection marquee.

Switch back to the layers panel

Click on the target layer/group (the one you are trying to mask)

Click the mask icon at the bottom of the panel (the one with the circle inside a box)

Release the selection and invert the mask if necessary

If you're using this method to cut out a subject from its background, you probably won't want alpha transparency. In this case, select the mask thumbnail and use a levels adjustment on the mask itself to bump the contrast until you have more of a cutout effect!

It sounds like a lot of steps, but it’s really simple! So I made this handy GIF: (click to view from beginning)

Sometimes you won’t want to use this method for the entire image, but just a specific part. For example, if you’ve cut out a character with some other method (magic wand, manual brushwork), but are having a hard time with their hair in particular. Use this method to create the selection, but instead of converting the whole selection into a mask, use the brush tool to apply the mask only where you need it! You can invert the selection itself with shift+ctrl+i.

5. Outlining text

The font I used here is Salomé, which is actually a solid typeface with no outlined version. But you can make virtually any font into an outlined version if you so desire!

There's two possible methods here, actually:

The Easy Way:

Add a stroke layer effect to the text layer (by selecting the layer, clicking the little “fx” button at the bottom of the layers panel, and choosing “Stroke...”)

As far as settings go, aligning the stroke to the inside usually yields the best result/maintains the integrity of the letterforms.

Make the color of the text itself match the background.

If necessary, use the lighten/darken blend modes to create the illusion of transparency.

If you need true transparency (which I didn't until I decided I wanted to apply a gradient over the text), you'll have to try something else-- The Also Easy But Less Than Ideal Way:

Right click the text layer in the layers panel and select "convert to shape".

Now you can edit the fill/stroke the same way you would any other vector shape.

Again, you’ll want to set the stroke alignment to ‘inside’. For vector shapes, those settings are a little hidden. You’ll wanna open up that little dropdown in the toolbar with the line in it, and click “More Options”.

This is semi-destructive, so if you're working with a lot of text you might have to edit later, consider duplicating and hiding those text layers first so you'll have a 'backup' of it.

And while I’m on the topic of text...

6. Try breaking up your text layers!

I know a lot of people like to draw a neat little text box to put their text in, and then they center it all nice and neat and probably use a small font size to make it subtle and stuff... and that’s cool. Everyone’s got their different styles and things they like to emphasize in their edits and there’s absolutely merit to that sort of thing (case and point: the bulk of my dear @herzdieb’s work), but. Listen.

I love typography. I love a good typeface. The stroke widths, the letterforms, the ligatures, the serifs... I get like, horny on main for a good typeface. I like to make the text on my edits BIG, so that those details can shine. I also like doing interesting things with the text. Jumbling words/letters around, distorting them, deconstructing them and just...  letting the text really ~interact with the rest of the composition instead of just kinda politely floating on top of it.

I’m not saying you have to do that kinda stuff. Or that I think neat little floaty text boxes are boring, or lazy, or whatever. It’s just... personally, I get really inspired by type. Fun type treatments are one of those things I LIVE FOR, something of a ~signature of mine, and I encourage everyone to just... try it? To use text as more of an integral Design Element and less of a... idk. A caption?

So if you have a quote, or even just a word... put each word (or letter) on its own text layer. And then: make ‘em different sizes. Make the words so big they don’t fit on the canvas. Rotate each one at a fun angle. Scatter them around. Go nuts. Use masks to chop parts of the letterforms off. Make ‘em overlap. Just have at it. Or, as the kids these days are saying: go absolutely fuckin feral.

If that really just isn’t your style, or doesn’t work/make sense for the edit you’re doing, fine. Delete all the layers and just do a text box or whatever. But. I’m tellin u.

Give it a try.

At least once.

Just... a lil taste.

7. Understand the difference between lighten/darken vs screen/multiply

For a while in my photoshoppin' youth, my understanding of these blend modes basically amounted to "darken makes things darker, and multiply makes things really darker", and vice versa for lighten/screen. But there's an important difference between how these blend modes work, and if you understand them, you can use them more... strategically? I guess?

Darken and Lighten are kinda misnomers tbh, because they technically don't really darken or lighten anything. What they actually do is make it so that only the areas of the layer that are darker or lighter than the content of the layers beneath them are visible. This produces some pretty nifty layering effects that you can't achieve with screen and multiply.

Here’s an example: (if you’re reading this on a phone with the brightness dimmed down you probably won’t be able to see the differences)

Without any the texture applied, you can really see the noise/graininess of Crowley’s jacket in the screencap. You can also see the ‘seam’ where Crowley fades into the background-- the jacket is a green-ish black, while the background it’s fading into is more of a purple-black.

With the texture set to ‘Screen’, the whole image becomes lighter across the board. Crowley’s jacket gets lighter, and so does Aziraphale’s jacket and the pink cloud thing. This does little to nothing to obscure the poor image quality and disguise that ‘seam’.

But with the ‘Lighten’ blend mode, ONLY the dark parts of the image appear lightened, and not only do they appear lightened, but they get kinda equalized. Notice how the patchy jpeg artifacts on Crowley’s jacket disappear, how that color seam smooths out, and how the brightness of Aziraphale’s jacket and the pink cloud doesn’t change at all.

This isn’t to say that lighten/darken are better and that you shouldn’t use screen/multiply. They each have their uses. But most often, I find myself using lighten/darken because the way they work is honestly really helpful? And just cool af?

8. Masking individual frames on gifs

If you ever feel like torturing yourself by making a gif that has frame-by-frame masking, my advice is don't try to mask each frame from scratch. You'll get patchy/wobbly results from the masks being slightly different on each frame.

Instead, mask the first frame, then alt+click and drag that mask onto the next frame. Make any minor adjustments to the new mask as needed, and repeat for each frame. This saves time and more importantly, keeps the masking consistent on areas with little to no movement, which makes a HUGE difference in how smooth the final product will be.

If you look at the edges of the animation, they’re nice and steady and consistent. It’s only the parts that have a lot of movement (like the back of his neck) where you can see any ‘ghosting’/wobbly-ness happening.

Sometimes the mask will move when I copy it to the next frame. Like, for the whole document. It gets nudged 20 pixels down or to the left or s/t every time. I have yet to figure out why, but I’m betting it has something to do with shooting myself in the foot with the frame 1 propagation settings at some point during editing?? ANYWAY, when this happens, just unlock the mask from its layer (click the little chain icon between their thumbnails) and move it back into place.

In these cases, I also like to pick a spot with a hard edge (such as the shoulder in the above gif) as a reference point of where it needs to be moved to. It kinda sucks having to do this for every frame, but you already signed up for some suckage when u decided to mask every frame of a gif, so I mean... 👀

9. Don't be afraid/too intimidated to do manips as needed!

Manips can be tricky if you're really striving for realism. There's light sources and color grading and perspectives to reconcile!! But when you're doing an artsy Edit with a capital E, odds are those kinds of discrepancies will be thoroughly camouflaged by all the levels, black and white, etc adjustments you're doing!

Something I run into often is, "I like this screencap, but the top of their head/hair is chopped off :(" But if I go back through all the screencaps from the scene, there's usually another frame where the camera is planned/zoomed out enough that I can steal the rest of their head/limb from it! And since it's from the same scene/shot, the lighting and color grading should already be a perfect match!

A super simple example:

So I wanted to use this picture of David and Michael for this edit, but 1) They’re standing on the wrong sides for their characters, and 2) part of David’s arm is covered up by Michael’s.

Of course, the easiest course of action would be to just mirror the photo so they’re on the correct sides, but 1) mirroring faces tends to yield wonky results, and 2) that still wouldn’t give me a perfect, free-standing cutout of Crowley to place wherever I want in my composition (as opposed to being forced to awkwardly position him off the edge of the canvas to hide the fact that the other arm is missing)

Fortunately, it only took all of like, two (2) minutes to draw a crude selection around his good arm, copy and paste it into a new layer, flip it around, and add any necessary masking to get the shape right.

My point here isn’t to teach y’all how to do manips, or to pass this off as an impressive example of one. Because it’s really, REALLY not. My point here is to demonstrate that even something as tiny and simple as this can really open up your options for what you can actually do with an edit/composition.

So next time you’re feeling limited/inconvenienced by the crop of a screencap, just... you know. Consider whether or not it’s worth attempting a quick and dirty manip to fix it.

Another Example:

Sometimes you’re torn between two screencaps. You like one element from Screencap A but also want some other element from Screencap B. What to do? Just frankenstein ‘em together. Layer one on top of the other, get them lined up, and mask out the necessary parts.

It’s easy to get hung up on stuff like “Uh... should Crowley’s shoulder be doing that?” but let me assure you that like... the people looking at the final product are none the wiser to your butcherwork and will not notice. Especially if you’re going to add a bunch of contrast and color adjustments later on. (in fact, sometimes I’ll apply those adjustments first so I’m not distracted by any discrepancies that are going to come out in the wash anyway)

“I dunno... 🤔🤔 doesn’t seem anatomically correct... 🤔🤔🤔🤔” thought no one.

Point is... point is... dolphins you can get away with a LOT more than you think you can. Don’t let the desire to make these kinds of manips perfect get in the way of just... making them good enough. The bar isn’t that high, I promise.

10. Know what inspires you

What types of edits get you EXCITED? What kind of work do you see on your dash and go, "oh, I'm reblobbin' THAT!!1!"

I know for herzdieb, she's all about emotional pieces. She likes matching words/lyrics/poetry to on-screen moments and punching you in the feels with both. She hears a song, or reads a poem, and the lightbulbs go off for her, and she does her thing.

As for myself, I just live for the aesthetics of an edit. The colors, the fonts, the composition. I almost never know what text/screencaps I'm going to use when I start an edit. I just see a font I like, or a color palette, or a texture, and think, "I wanna use that!"

And once you know what inspires you, collect that inspo! I hoard textures and fonts. I have them organized into neat lil folders. When I wanna make an edit, that’s where I start. I just browse through them all until one or two start calling my name. Herzdieb collects songs and quotes and poems. Maybe your thing is color palettes, or aesthetic-y photos. Or whatever.

The point here is make the kinda stuff you like/want to see. Not the kinda stuff everyone else is making or the kinda stuff you notice gets the most notes.

11. Be able to let go of things that aren't working

I often begin an edit with a rough idea of the style, colors, or layout I'm going for. And I almost always end up doing... something totally different.

So don't get too fixated on what your initial ideas are. Be open to experimenting and just let the edit be what it wants to be. If something looks nice, do it. If it doesn't, don't try to force it just because, "well, I was inspired by this piece that did xyz and I wanna try it too".

When you see a certain effect that inspires you, just keep it in mind as a possible solution for the next time you make something-- don't make it into a benchmark, or some imaginary 'goal' you have to meet for This Edit You Are Working On Right This Moment. In fact, sometimes the elements I end up ditching are the very ones I started with, that initially sparked my inspiration. And that's okay. Inspiration can be a moving target, and if your vision for something changes, let it.

You wanna know what inspo reference I was looking at when I started that “Temptation Accomplished” edit?

Fucking this: https://search.muz.li/YTdiNjkwN2Rh

You might be thinking, “how the fUCK was that the inspiration??!! Your edit looks nothing like that at all!” ...and you would be 100% correct, and that is 100% my point. I spent a good hour or two trying to incorporate that cutout text layering effect before finally accepting the fact that it just wasn’t working for the edit I was making. And it wasn’t until then that it actually started to come together.

12. Be patient, and take the time to explore all your options!

I’m not gonna lie, y’all. I spend hours on my edits. I usually complete them over the course of 2-3 days/sittings. I rarely have a plan. 99% of the time I'm just throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks. When I get stuck (when, not if), it helps to step away from it and come back later with a fresh perspective/set of eyes.

Every single edit I've posted, I have at some point felt like giving up on because I thought it looked like garbage (and not just because I was being self-deprecating/doubting myself, but because at those points, they simply weren't finished/something about the composition just wasn't working for me)

Work through those moments, and if necessary, take a break/sleep on it. It's always after I've exhausted my early ideas that the really good ones start to come to mind!

Here’s how the character poster edits I did progressed:

In Classic Me™ Fashion, I literally started off with just... textures I liked, and a font that I liked. Now, there were obviously a lot more ‘steps’ involved in both designs, but hopefully at the very least this gives a sense of how things get from point A to point B.

So uh... thanks 4 comin 2 my TED talk. I hope u learned at least one (1) cool new thing or maybe just feel vaguely inspired by this rambling mess?

[emma-whoisleft]

GENERAL INFORMATION ➤

Full Legal Name: Emma Esmé Vanity

Emma = “Whole, universal”

Esmé = “Esteemed, loved”

Vanity = “Excessive pride in or admiration for oneself”

Nickname(s): n/a and don’t even try it Age: 18 Gender & Pronouns: cisgender female; she/her Sexuality: Greyromantic and bisexual with an outward preference for men driven by her traditional values and life plans. Date of Birth: March 27th Horoscope: Aries

Strengths: Courageous, determined, confident, blunt, passionate

Weaknesses: Impatient, moody, short-tempered, impulsive, aggressive

Likes: Comfortable clothes, taking on leadership roles, physical challeng individual sports

Dislikes: Inactivity, delays, work that does not use one’s talents

Hogwarts House: Slytherin Nationality: English on her father’s side; a quarter Moroccan via her mother’s. Emma grew up just outside Yorkshire and is very vocally proud of the region, flawed accents and all. 

Occupation:

Emma is currently a student, but she has big plans for her future and no doubt that she’ll be able to accomplish them — which isn’t a surprise to anyone who’s ever met her. Not many seventeen year olds purchase, renovate and successfully run a Quidditch camp as a summer project, and very few others have done simultaneous Ministry internships. 

Ultimately, Emma wants to work at the Ministry of Magic’s Department of Magical Games and Sports. This is made easier by the fact that her father is the Vice Head of the department and her godfather is the Head, but she genuinely wants to build her career upon her own merits. She plans to start as a Junior Regulations Analyst with a seat on the International Event Coordination team. Her goals are currently to change the relationship the Ministry has with corporate sponsors and private companies to increase the funding ceiling and strengthen key partnerships.

Then, within five years, her goal is to create her own, new position (Executive Liaison, final title pending!). Through that, she believes she would run her own staff as a department-within-a-department and be the official point of contact for team owners, sponsors, donors, private partner companies – such as her camp and similar programs – and key suppliers of equipment, uniforms, brooms, balls, etcetera. 

She plans to use whatever downtown is leftover to work on the Department’s overall public relations strategy and inter-Ministry reputation.

Summarized in One Word: Headstrong

APPEARANCE ➤

Faceclaim: Phoebe Tonkin  Height: 5′4″ Hair Color: Brown Eye Color: Brown Noticeable Features: Resting bitch face, and the ability to instill a primal fear in someone with nary a glance. 

Typical Outfit or General Fashion Sense: Emma is usually dressed for capital-B Business. her wardrobe consists of black, grey and other neutrals and she opts for simple lines, minimalist looks and the simple intimidation of clear wealth. Streamlined, with hints to reclaimed masculinity; she has more blazers than any eighteen year old should, but she can seriously rock a little black dress, too. 

HISTORY ➤

Hometown:

The Vanity family has always have a longstanding history of residing in the North Country of England, on the outskirts of Yorkshire and the Humber. Although grand in scale like most pureblood manors, the inside of the estate is considerably warmer; it features dark-paneled wood instead of marble and walls painted in warmer hues than one might normally see. The untouchable artifacts that one might find in other homes have largely been replaced with Quidditch memorabilia, family photos, and bookshelves.

There is a grande ballroom for throwing events and the foyer is invariably pristine, but the layout contains several dens stocked with comfortable couches, ever-burning fireplaces, and shelves of whiskeys and wines brought up from storage in the basement. Everything is sleek and kept up to a standard of perfection, but the family and all those who lived there before them worked hard to ensure that the place seemed approachable to newcomers. Charms ensure that the house always smells of sharp vanilla, burning wood, and pine.

The grounds feature a lake surrounded by willow trees and a trail that leads through a hedge maze into what used to be a prized garden and have since become home to a miniature Quidditch pitch used by Emma as a child learning to fly; the hoops now stand only as tall as she is, but it remains there as a tribute as the flowers grow back around them.

The home is conveniently located only two miles from the practice grounds of the Appleby Arrows, the former team of Eoin Vanity and a family favorite for the last eight generations.

Financial Status: Upper class Spoken Languages: English, and a little bit of German. Enough to have a conversation, but not enough to consider herself fluent. She’s working on some Arabic, having taken an interest for Antonin and Tazie’s sake.  Dream Job: Decision maker of the entire world Bad Habits: Emma will tell anyone who asks that she has none...because of course she will. What she means by this, however, is that she has no "traditional vices” like smoking or drinking. Bad habits, though, she has plenty. Despite holding herself to a strict schedule, she is late for nearly everything. She is also a bit of a packrat; her bag is filled at all times with disorganized papers and lists that make perfect sense to her, and that she won’t just get rid of on the off chance she one day needs them again. She’s also a fairly close-minded person. She’s not curious and prefers to stick to what, who and where she knows best. 

FAMILY BACKGROUND ➤

Mother: Yvette Vanity Father: Eoin Vanity (neé Shaper) Sibling(s): n/a Pet(s): n/a Cousin(s): Amycus and Alecto Carrow (second cousins) 

MAGICAL ABILITIES ➤

Wand: Alder, 9 ¼ inches, mermaid hair core, inflexible. Information on the core can be found here [x] and here [x]

Patronus (and which memory they’re currently using to cast a patronus if they can, or which one they’d use if they could): 

Although she has not yet been successful in casting it, Emma’s patronus would take the form of a camel. Camels are symbolic of perseverance and stamina. People with this patronus are often superbly adapted to their own situation and personal element, but clumsy or inflexible in situations that are unfamiliar. The camel is a symbol of a strong work ethic and a stubborn attitude. While those with a camel patronus are often short tempered with small annoyances, they have almost limitless patience for life’s most difficult hurdles.

Eventually, Emma will use the memory of holding her firstborn son Gus in her arms to cast the most successful patronus she’s ever been personally capable of. For now, her selections oscillate between Quidditch Cup wins, opening day of her camp and her New Years Eve vacation to Russia with Lucinda. 

Boggart: An oversized, string-bound marionette doll. At face value, it is a very real fear of hers: dolls have caused the hairs on the back of her neck to stand up since she was a child. Even as a little girl who had not yet discovered the joys of Quidditch, Emma wouldn’t allow dolls of any sort to be allowed in her playroom– including, to the dismay of her mother, the collection of Victorian-era china dolls that she was supposed to take under her wing. On a deeper level, however, the boggart represents so much more: the fear of not being in control of her actions, of being a puppet of her family, of everything in her life coming with strings attached. 

OWLS: Ancient Runes, History of Magic, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Potions, Arithmancy, Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures NEWTS: Transfiguration (A), Arithmancy (E), Herbology (E), Defense Against the Dark Arts (E); Charms (E); History of Magic (O); Potions (INCOMPLETE)

What Kind of Magic do They Excel at: (OOC NOTE, this ended up becoming more of a pro/con thing than an ‘excel’ thing, but I like it so I’m keeping it oop)

Emma’s grades have always been stable and in the mid-range. However, she’s always known that her career path leads through to the world of sports somehow and that knowledge is enough to bolster her through any lower points in her academic career. 

Nonverbal spells are Emma’s specialty, as she has never been one to show her cards and depends on the elements of mystery and surprise when she’s looking to make an impact. She is heavily guarded when it comes to her arsenal, and so she stared making nonverbal spell-casting a priority. Her constant need for control over situations has lead to her holding her wand too tightly; it makes her wrist movements less fluid than they should be. 

Along those same times, the type of magic she is most gifted at is defensive magic, an interest that’s only increased in the current political climate. She can pull a shield, she can deflect, she can make herself a smaller and less easily seen target. It’s not about winning for her; it’s about surviving, just knuckling down and making sure that the crossfire doesn’t decimate her. These spells being largely nonverbal is an added boon for her safety; they draw less attention and can’t be as easily combatted. 

Personality wise, Emma is abrasive and that’s a quality that has carried over into her magic; when she tries spells, they are a bit harsher than intended. For instance, she knows a thing or two about first aid spells but if she had to heal a teammate’s broken nose on the pitch, there would be more of a crack to it—and, likely, leftover bruising—than if anyone else had tried.

Outside of dueling/magic situations, when Emma is on the offense, she prefers to do it through soft influence: with her words, with her power over people, through other channels other than violence. She knows her limits as well as the limits of others, and she’s never been able to stomach using violent magic against someone else…not that she’s ever tried, to date.

If she ever did have to make a show of physical power, her years on the Quidditch pitch have given her a predisposition to do it with actual physicality, not her wand. She has no problem smacking an unwelcome hand away or giving a well-placed shove. 

In terms of subjects she does NOT excel at, Emma is terrible at cooking and by that same logic she is terrible at potions. She doesn’t have the precision, intuition, or gentle touch for the subject. 

PSYCHOLOGY ➤

MB Type: The Logistician

Few personality types are as practical and dedicated as Logisticians. Known for their reliability and hard work, Logisticians are good at creating and maintaining a secure and stable environment for themselves and their loved ones. 

Yet Logisticians can be easily tripped up in areas where their practical and methodical approach are more of a liability than an asset. Whether it is finding (or keeping) a partner, learning to relax or improvise, reaching dazzling heights on the career ladder, or managing their workload.

As parents, people with the Logistician personality type are often the most comfortable. Their sense of responsibility and honor blends well with a tradition that has been in place since time immemorial: to raise one’s children to be respected, contributing members of home and society. As with most commitments, Logisticians do not take their roles as parents lightly, and will make it their work to ensure that this tradition is upheld to the highest standard.

Logisticians approach relationships, as with most things, from a rational perspective, looking for compatibility and the mutual satisfaction of daily and long-term needs. Blind dates and random hookups are not Logisticians’ preferred methods for finding potential partners. The risk and unpredictability of these situations has Logisticians’ alarm bells ringing, and being dragged out for a night of dancing at the club just isn’t going to happen. 

Logistician friends are not spontaneous. They are not talkative, or particularly playful in their affection. What Logistician friends are is loyal, trustworthy, honorable and dependable. Logisticians are a very methodical personality type, and this loyalty isn’t given away lightly. Often slow to make friends, Logisticians usually end up with a smaller circle, but they consider that circle to represent a promise to be there for the people they care about, and Logisticians’ promises are not easily broken.

When it comes to the workplace, Logisticians are almost a stereotype for the classic hard-working, dutiful employee. In all positions, the Logistician personality type seeks structure, clearly defined rules, and respect for authority and hierarchy. Responsibilities aren’t burdens to Logisticians, they are the trust that has been placed in them, an opportunity to prove once again that they are the right person for the job.

Enneagram: ISTJ [read more]

ISTJs are responsible organizers, driven to create and enforce order within systems and institutions. They are neat and orderly, inside and out, and tend to have a procedure for everything they do. Reliable and dutiful, ISTJs want to uphold tradition and follow regulations.

ISTJs are steady, productive contributors. Although they are Introverted, ISTJs are rarely isolated; typical ISTJs know just where they belong in life, and want to understand how they can participate in established organizations and systems. They concern themselves with maintaining the social order and making sure that standards are met.

+ Perseverance + Planning + Detail Orientation – Stubbornness – Tactlessness – Resistance to change

Moral Alignment: Lawful Neutral 

Archetype:

45% Athlete - The Athlete's focus and drive are unparalleled. Staying healthy and being fit are paramount to them (as for winning, that doesn't hurt, either).

44% Royal - When the Royal walks into a room, they command attention. They are the one in charge, and they enjoy reaping the rewards of their hard work.

11% Intellectual - The Intellectual is the ultimate dinner-party guest. Engaging questions and thoughtful debate are their trademarks.

Temperament: Choleric

[itsallavengers]

108

108- are you hitting on me?

It hit him one day like a freight train. Like a brick wall. Like... like a very heavy thing, hitting him very very hard.

Steve was close, and he was smiling softly down at Tony, and he’d just complimented Tony on how smart he was looking for the New Years’ party whilst his hand guided them over to the buffet via the small of Tony’s back and it just hit him. It became so stunningly, blindingly obvious in that moment that he simply refused to believe that he hadn’t seen it before. It was impossible- he was Tony Stark, he always noticed these things. Always always always.

“Wait,” he stopped them both in the center of the room, which, in hindsight, was probably not the most subtle or Generally Great way of doing things, “are you fucking hitting on me?”

And hell- Tony exaggerated a lot of things on the daily, but he sure as fuck wasn’t lying when he said that he would have done anything in the entire world to never see Steve look the way he’d done at that moment ever again.

His face dropped like a stone. The hand on Tony’s back snapped away like he was burning and he opened his mouth quickly, eyes wide, a little bit horrified, like a rabbit caught in the biggest brightest headlight you could think of.

“Uhh,” Steve stumbled, and Tony watched his face burn crimson as he looked down at his shoes in mortification, “I... I- I don’t- I mean... I was just... I’m-”

A few people had turned to look at them both curiously, and Tony would have said something, done something at least a little bit more fucking tasteful, but honestly, he was too far deep in shock to do anything but stare blankly and watch as Steve became more and more embarrassed.

Finally, Steve just looked at him once last time more before mumbling an unintelligible excuse and then turning on his heel, walking through the crowds with remarkable speed for a guy so big.

Tony just kept staring. He couldn’t fucking help it- he had no idea how to process what he’d just realized. Years. They’d known eachother.... so long, and Steve had always.... and it had been- it had... all this time?All this fucking time?

“What the hell are you waiting for, buddy?” Someone gave him a gentle shove forward, and Tony didn’t know who they were, couldn’t really say he cared much either, but they seemed to be wanting to help, so he listened to the last bit anyway. “Go after him before he runs for good!”

Slightly dazed and definitely confused, Tony... well- Tony did.

Jerking forward like a man possessed, he pushed through the crowds incredibly impolitely, hands moving people out of the way as effectively as he could without just outright shoving them out of the way. People yelled and drinks were spilled but honestly, it was Tony’s fucking champagne so they could deal with it or they could get the fuck out. “Steve!” 

The blond head ducked out of the door before Tony could catch it, but he refused to be deterred. Leaping onto one of the dining tables, he shouted off hurried apologies to the general area beneath him as he ran over the expensive tablecloth and pristine food, before dropping off at the end and then running to the door, the crowds having finally thinned out by that point. “Steve!”

Tony caught him just as he was about to turn the corner, and this time when he said his name, it was more a breathless yell with the starting sound of an ‘S’, due to the fact Tony had begun sprinting the length of the corridor in order to catch up with him. Steve turned, looking at him in mild terror as Tony careered forward, shoes leaving little bits of mashed potato as he went. “Tony, what are you-”

He would have finished his sentence, were it not for the sudden presence of Tony’s mouth on his own, sealing the words right up between both of their lips. 

It was a bad kiss. Or- well, not a bad kiss, exactly, because Tony never gave bad kisses- just a slightly... disorganized one. Tony was still slightly out of breath and Steve hadn’t turned right, which sent them both stumbling into the wall, and then Tony went and slipped on the wood-paneled floor, which just sent him half-crashing into Steve’s stomach, only stopped from getting a faceful of floorboard because of Steve’s fast reflexes.

Yeah. All in all, not his finest moment.

“Tony, what in the fuck-” Steve started, beginning to pull him up gently, but Tony wasn’t giving up this time- not now he knew, not now he’d connected every dot and cross and line and saw with his own stupid eyes what Steve had been trying to tell him for so long now-

So he kissed him again. Made sure to angle up right and everything. He curled his hand around the back of Steve’s neck and put the other one on Steve’s shoulder, pushing him gently back against the wall and then putting everything he had into that damn kiss. “How long have you been trying,” he spoke the words into Steve’s mouth and Steve, who had previously been distracted by the fact that he had discovered another tongue in his mouth, shivered a little and then tugged on Tony’s hips, drawing him in.

“Long enough to make me start lookin’ stupid,” he replied quietly.

Tony just laughed, unwilling to actually remove his lips from Steve’s own and so saying “you’re not the idiot who didn’t fucking realize he could have been getting this for years,” against Steve’s teeth instead.

Steve smiled, but then pushed Tony away gently, which was not what he wanted at all. Tony went, though- pouting the entire way, mind you.“Do you... do you mean this?” Steve asked softly, his eyes flicking nervously around Tony’s face like he was searching for a tell, “do you really... I thought you seemed pretty- uh- unwelcoming-

“That was not unwelcoming, oh my God,” Tony squeaked in mortification, dropping his head into his hands, “that was... that was ‘this can’t be real, in what universe is it possible that I am allowed to have this’. Not... never unwelcoming.”

When Steve still looked at him with the flutter of doubt, Tony stepped forward and put his hand on Steve’s cheek. “I promise,” he said desperately, “I am utterly head over heels, madly stupidly embarrassingly crazy for you, Steve, I’m not sure whether or not you noticed-”

This time it was him who found himself being shut up, and it was quite possibly the first time in his life in which he was happy about someone cutting him off mid-sentence, because it meant more Steve-kisses, and in the space of roughly 1.2 minutes, Steve-Kisses had managed to become his most enjoyable practice in the world. Which was saying something.

“Hey,” Tony said, looking down at his watch for a second, “New Years day in five minutes.”

Steve, bless him, didn’t even pause for a moment, muttering “If we keep it up, we get to kiss eachother into the next year,” into Tony’s jaw.

A grin split Tony’s face and he lifted his watch. Four minutes, fifty-four seconds. Yeah. They could probably manage to make out for that much longer. “I’ll start the countdown now,” he informed Steve, before grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and then tugging him in again.

Despite Tony’s promises, the New Year came and went without them actually noticing. Turns out they ended up... rather occupied.

[lottesseenaghoul]

RE:169 quick thoughts before I go into rabbit hole of tg posts on tumbler (edited)

So I was expecting the scans to come out on Thursday but was surprised to see some fresh panels in the uta tag and FLIPPED.jpeg at my behavioural economics lecture. Honestly not the best place for getting a nosebleed xdd

Anyways here are some of hot takes I got from reading the chapter. More nuanced meta probably on its way. I read it on mangastream and I did screenshots there.

The chapter starts with the first part of Uta’s tattoo quote and ends with the second part, forming a sort of narrative framework to read it.

We jump straight into the fray, with contrasting shots of Yomo’s damn fine looking face and Uta’s there as well, clearly guided by very basic thinking and mostly intuitive, emotional impulses:

Like this is typical, stereotypical “unhinged” face people do in mangas. A mix of enthusiasm and bloodlust, it says this guy went “insane”. Ugh. Uta’s mental health warrants a LOT of unpacking nevertheless so let’s leave this face’ implications for later. 

We glimpse their fight styles then:

Uta is on the offensive, honestly his is such forceful, visceral way of attacking here - straight up fuck up your opponent with the sheer force of your blow. He is shown to be a lot more nuanced and deliberate in previous fights, steering clear from attacking and content with evading the blows, dealing some psychological damage afterwards. But that is Uta just half-assedly toying - clearly he doesn’t stop himself with Yomo. The reasons can be manifold - that’s how they’ve always done it; he’s so pumped, he stops thinking and loses himself in pure bloodlust; he’s in a serious crisis - this is my preferred angle.

Now his fighting style, besides the raw strength behind it, is also quick and agile. In a second Uta gets behind Yomo, and tries to strike through his body mid-air. His face looks like this:

Very unstable.

Uta’s pupils are incredibly large here - again, a visual reminder how little conscious control he might have in this situation. OR how vicious his intents are.

My impression is that when he’s led by such murderous motivation (whatever its composing parts), Uta moves intuitively, we don’t see him playing around or allowing to be struck. Here he has the initiative but Yomo can so far fend off or otherwise deal with his attacks.

I’m honestly so thirsty for Yomo in this chapter, just look at this fine motherfucker:

{I’m interjecting to thank my lord satan for my pan-shipping, slutty heart because now UtaRen became another ship I love. Add in some Itori and you have another one. This one just keeps on giving <3}

Also Uta is so messy here, my baby all playful like a rabid hyena. 

Despite all the refinements older Uta keeps about himself (suave clothing, neat hair, designer mask studio, antiques in glass cases, chess), he didn’t seem to have done much growing up, emotionally. Donato comments on it like that:

You just gotta love the fact that for most of the manga Uta keeps the facade of actually being the least reckless of the ghouls. But I trust Donato on this, who seems to know Uta’s darker impulses fairly well. Possibly better than Yomo and that dude got his fair of beating from Uta too.

What got me interested is how Amon had commented how pointless Clowns endeavours were. Initially I thought it’s Donato who said it, but later on he tells Amon that he would soon understand...

Oh Amon looks fine AF too. Be still my slutty heart!

Furuta says something possibly pivotal for the incoming plot arc:

(IDK wtf this is, but if even Furuta comments on it as if he was both grossed out/scared, it must be important. Oh, he meets Kaneki too, no biggie. “That’s just freaky!!”, I love you Nimura)

Back to my boys, Yomo is getting beat up but mostly evades Uta’s attacks and looks more and more pissed. Uta just looks like a dumbass. Or rather as stupid as cats who torture smaller critters for fun and recreation do:

Also we get a glimpse of his kagune. It seems to be very elastic, easily changing shapes as Uta sees fit. It was just this gigantic mass of RC cells in the beginning panels, now it’s much more resembling the spider legs en masse that we remember from his fight with Juuzou:

But what is most important here, we finally get the first shot of Itori. She is wearing a mask in the beginning, and it’s important in context of what Uta will be saying shortly: edit: It’s Itori speaking, thoughts on that in a different post.

She’s an observer in that panel, very significantly voiceless, not shown to be nearly as amused as Nico here:

Uta’s Itori’s words are honestly a key to Clown’s philosophy and deserve a meta of its own. [In the beginning I thought these were Itori’s words, especially after I saw “Kanekichi” being mentioned; it’s how she had referred to Kaneki before.] - no wonder, it was my brain’s way to remind me I was far too concentrated on Uta to consider the awesomest queen Itori :/

Uta Itori says something very interesting here:

Obviously, if he were to be an OEK, first or the second one, that would be right up the alley. But even if not, it hints at very interesting possibilities. I want to see Ishida expand on it in some flashbacks. 

The most important words are coupled with shots of Itori slowly taking her mask off. It has a very dramatic effect.

Theres a heck ton to unpack here. Honestly I would never think Uta would look at his value system from that particular angle. Edit - and he wouldn’t because he is currently in the midst of a mayor meltdown. It’s Itori who actually bothers with explaining.

He She refers to the coldness of their existence as ghouls, of how senseless it is - like a vast, cold void stretching infintiely in front of them. 

Uta’s ways of searching for warmth are probably the only ones somebody as uprooted as him could come up with - he sees drawing blood, wounding (but also getting wounded - Uta seems to have a very laissez faire attitude to him perishing eventually as we remember from his talk with Donato).

According to Uta  Itori, Yomo is the warm one. For him her, it’s via bloodletting that he can get closer to taste it. Edit Uta def seconds that in the panels to come with his own actions

 I still think there’s some theatrics involved in this speech, as the next panel shows....

God, way to make your opponent unsuspecting of your next move Uta. 

And we get another important shot of Itori. She’s clearly positioned as somewhat stradling the line between Uta and Yomo but this series consistently shows her as being closer to Uta nevertheless.

Her eyes are shining so bright here, it’s clear she’s in deep thought and possibly a bit torn apart with what’s happening here. What Uta says clearly strikes a cord but her taking the mask off, idk it may signal some important differences between her and Uta’s worldview. That or it’s a sign she identifies with his words deeply. Edit ditto, these are her words and the scene took entirely different meaning and made me Love Itori, the first time since reading the series.

Honestly Uta is just beginning tho, as he has some creepy words about dreaming of the day where he would get his hands stained with Yomo’s blood. He actually left Yomo on the ground to have this mini speech properly. He’s posturing as far as my impressions go - Uta reverts to his younger persona, sans earlier sentiments of not wanting to cut his fun short by killing the only one ghoul who could match him somewhat. 

The most important thing in this chapter is what Yomo says next...

Here Uta is, going off about his strange blood kink and Yomo goes all shonen manga on him. But it’s not the same shonen posturing he did in previous chapter. We don’t see his eyes - we see Uta’s and that dude is honestly #shook. 

Naturally he reacts in ways only Ishida can think of. Honestly how Yomo’s words are literally drowned out by Uta’s uncontrollable and histerical laughter is such a masterful move:

This is the guy who dug up Ren from the ground because he was his “friend”. Now he’s just a mouth apparently.

Idk but this seems like the key panel for analyzing Uta from psychological angle. This dude most pronounced feature is his mouth which is nothing like human’s or ghoul alike. It’s like he’s truly the chaotic trickster god with none of the sentiments he was hinted to possess.

I was talking with @gaiajulz and I love how she pointed out that it seems like Uta is actually drowning out Yomo’s heartfelt words and he isn’t even fully aware he’s doing it. With Uta’s firm worldview, he’d rather go full crisis-mode instead of acknowledging how vulnerable and in need of closeness he is. 

Honestly Uta is soo Washuu-like in this panel, like Furuta’s older brother or something. First screech like a  Cthulu monster and then do a little happy dance!

What’s important is how Uta links what he sees as Yomo’s nivete with his emotional honesty and lack of any hidden agendas. Yomo is pure and good and this is why he is naive enough to trust a world like this. Uta saw so many sides to it, he literally sees no other option than to play the fool, including fooling around with one of the precious few of potentially close people in his life.

I also think he kind of looks like crying? From laughing so hard maybe. 

The chapter ends with my baby going full kakuja (predictably it’s his shifty face that’s the most inhuman part here, just a mass of flesh) and this flirty words:

Renji seems so shocked, it’s possible he had never seen this form. Either way he’s speechless.

And Uta’s philosophy is hinted at again - he’s willing to trample his friend just to feel anything. 

What we are dearly in need of is some good meta on Uta’s mental health, how his values feature into it and how his own actions contribute to it unraveling. Obviously such speculations are about as scientific as psych profiling but I feel it would be very important to try and understand this character better.

And boy, is there a lot to unpack here... 

Edit - crossed the parts where it’s suggested it’s Uta who summarizes Clown’s philosophy. It’s Itori and I don’t get my brain could hint at the discrepancies in my own thinking but not make the definite link. Gotta love that sweet ADHD folks.

[ebjow301]

Evaluation.

At the very beginning of this project, I had envisioned my work as being a carry on from second year by exploring the same ideas just in different ways, I had left my work at a finished stage but with much more to learn. At the very end of year two, I had started to touch upon Psychogeography, I wasn't aware that the work I had been producing fit perfectly into this topic, so this is where I picked up for 301. 

I got off to quite a rocky start, I didn't really know the direction that I wanted to head in, only the topic that I had in mind. Combine this with the Covid-19 situation that carried on roaring. I found it a real struggle for the first couple of weeks due to the uncertainty of the circumstances. As the second lockdown was announced, I decided to pack up my things and more away from Plymouth and back home to Barnsley with the hopes of being able to return in the following month. Being back home finally gave me some reassurance and I felt much more comfortable to be able to dive into my studies. I started out by learning the basics on Psychogeography, which mentioned that this was normally practiced outside in open areas, which I think is where the challenge began. From here on out, I decided that I was going to begin my project based upon my movements made within the home, this allowed me to contrast my previous work where I studied my movements made outside of the house. Lockdown helped me in this scenario as I wasn't travelling outside as much, especially now that the weather was dropping cooler. 

I had to gather up new materials, having left all of my own in Plymouth, so I went and bought all of what I was imagining I would be using; charcoal, chalk, acrylic paint, watercolour paints, oil paints, wood and canvas. 

Right now my key focus for the work was Psychogeography, but I was also looking into my immediate surroundings; noise, light and key items that were around me on the daily. Along with the routines and rituals that I did within my everyday life which incorporated into the movements that I was making. 

Life drawing sessions were important to me at this stage as they were the only things keeping me motivated to carry on being creative. I started to take inspiration from my life drawing studies, in particular the quick studies where my work was much more fluid and instinctual. I carried this on within every session and worked on this aspect more by focusing on line, I started making fluid coloured ground to work upon to see how they would look with work layered upon them which is where my first influence for my 301 specific project started. After exploring a great list of artists to help me along the way, I was super inspired by the works of both Giuseppe Pinot-Gallizio and Richard Long, two very different artists that I drew ideas from in different ways. I was in awe at Pinot-Gallizios ‘Industrial Paintings’ where he worked on large scrolls with a combination of hand drawn and machine drawn marks in a variety of different materials. As a result, I ordered myself some rolls of paper. I stuck these down to the carpet in areas that were the most travelled within my home; the front room and the top of the stairs. Keeping these down for a few days, the paper slowly became work and marked as more and more paths were being walked upon them - much like how Richard Long religiously walked upon strips of grass to compress it. Once complete, I hung these up outside to allow the sunshine to shine upon it which highlighted the most marked areas of the work. I began to work upon this watercolour paints, charcoal and oil sticks building up layers of my mediums to identify and enhance these areas, this created a whirlwind of lines and paths crossing one another. The outcome was very much like the contours shown on maps to show the reader the height of certain areas. 

I became engrossed with the idea of depth and studied different ways of how I could apply this into my work. I experimented with clay, layers of emulsion, textured paint and ultimately polyfilla working mainly with items found within the home. This integrated into my ideas of the work itself being home orientated. Polyfilla became my final medium and was the most effective for what I was trying to show.

Throughout this experimental period, I began to completely eliminate colour from my work. I initially started with my common colour way of white, pink and black but felt that people were drawing connection to the colours which isn't what I intended. Working with white, as Robert Rauschenberg has stated, allowed for the work to be viewed as a blank canvas. I was really happy with the work that I had just produced and had envisioned placing more paper down around the home, but the one issue that I was having was embodying a sense of self within my work. Living at home, I had three people walking upon the paper, along with two dogs, I thought about putting the paper just in my bedroom but this still wouldn't be just my own marks. I was thinking ahead to how this piece could be displayed within my room and strung up onto my bed, which is when I moved to printing my body onto the paper instead. This one print changed many aspects of my work. I started to move away from mapping my movements made around my home and was focusing on areas that I would commonly visit; my bed, the sofa and my studio chair. These became my focal point and I started to map my bodily movement via the use of my body being printed, now looking more at one fluid movement captured in time. I created multiple of these prints in all of the areas stated and experimented with the comparison between prints made into the same space as there were clear similarities between these, and also with printing multiple times onto the paper over and over again. I integrated this into my everyday routine taking the prints as I got into bed at night, as I sat on the sofa for my morning coffee and when I moved into my studio to begin a day of work. 

I loved the prints alone and they looked amazing when strung out onto the washing line outside as the bright light enhanced all of the creases that my body has imprinted into the paper. But I knew that I wouldn't be happy until I had worked out a way to carry this along into paint. Polyfilla became my new best friend and was the perfect medium to achieve all of the depth that I wanted into my work. I used a wallpaper scraped to apply my polyfilla in straight lines along with drag out the filler to create smooth connections to the wooden grounds. 

Coming full circle, I started to incorporate my first pieces of work into my resolved pieces by tearing and sticking the paper onto the ground of the work using layers of paint and duct tape. I wanted these to be ever so slightly visible when the work was done to show the progression that I have made throughout the module. 

At the time when I thought that all of my work was complete, I had my final crit and was given some constructive criticism from my tutor. Some of white I took on board and others that would have completely disregarded the concept behind the work that I have worked upon throughout this module. The main two being an exploration of other paints and colour, and also to apply something to the paintings that would contrast them to allow there to be balance. I didn't want to explore other types of paints as the household paints were all a part of the concept in the works foundations, was comfortable knowing that emulsion paint changes and fades over time and that is simple part of the art works progression, I also didn't feel that the exploration of different shades of white would support my work in any way at this time as I am not material based, I also didn't have time on my side. However I was willing to attempt to work something into my painting to accentuate what was already there. We spoke of colour and differing textures within the crit, maybe something like another panel to go alongside it. 

I collected my ideas for a little while and decided that I wanted this ‘thing’ to be a part of the actual work and to link in with the idea that I have created. I bought myself some timber and sanded this down until completely smooth, working onto the wood in acrylic paint. The hardest part here was adding colour again, I wanted something that was going to pop off of the painting which, luckily for me, was white so anything goes. Working with the theme of self, I went with what felt right for me and painted the wood in the complementaries pink and turquoise. I combined this with fragments of colour, negative areas, sharp lines and a matte finish, all of which contrasted the work that it was to sit upon. I applied the wood to the painting in areas that I felt were clear paths within the work I had already made, I did this using a drill and screws. Due to the texture of the polyfilla, it allowed for a gap between the ground and the timber which I really liked, it added a completely different side profile to the work. I left the screws slightly protruding from the work as I felt that this signified the difficulty that I had coming to terms with adding something new into work that I had previously considered finished. I view the wood as myself making the print onto the paper which was the start of this work. 

I feel that I have made some very important steps within this module to help me excel as an artist, and also within my next studio practice module. My work took lots of turns but I feel that I have led a clear path and thoughts to show where/what all of my ideas evolved from. I have left this body of work as resolved, but also at a stage where I still have plenty more things to explore. I am feeling very comfortable with the decisions that I have made throughout. 

[naturecoaster]

The Story of Citrus County's Oldest House

The John Paul Formy-Duval House (Duval House) is considered to be the oldest remaining and continuously occupied home in Citrus County. John Paul’s journey to the Floral City area began with the story of his father, Jean Gerome Prosper Formy-Duval, who was a physician in the Court of King Louis XVI. (second half of 18th century) Being a “Royalist” might have been trouble enough during the French Revolution, but Formy-Duval made matters worse for himself by using his connections as a doctor to create fake death certificates allowing certain individuals to seek new lives abroad. He then had to escape when one or more of the “dead” individuals were captured, and thus he began an adventure that would carry his family name to an area in Florida now known as Floral City. Before John Paul was born, his father, Dr. Jean Prosper Formy-Duval (1729-1821), had fled to Saint Dominique, today known as Haiti, where he owned land gifted to him by the King. Jean Prosper’s new life as a planter did not last long due to a slave rebellion in 1791 that forced him to take to the sea in an open boat.

Jean Gerome Prosper Formy-Duval. CC license After being rescued by a seaworthy vessel, the group ended up in North Carolina.  Dr. Jean Formy-Duval died there in 1821.  Two of his sons traveled on to Florida where John Paul eventually settled in a thinly populated area in what was then northern Hernando County. John Paul had followed his older half-brother, Alexander, to Tallahassee, where Alexander later was elected to the Territorial Congress.  John Paul moved on to Ocala, where his first wife died. In 1854 he married Elizabeth Ann Trantham and their first child, Mary Ann was born. It is said she was the first white child to be born in Ocala. John Paul Formy-Duval moves to Floral City During The War Between The States, John Paul enlisted at Crystal River and survived, acquiring land in what is today Citrus County. An 1863 deed from Allen Munden to J.P. Duval reflects his ownership of Lot 1 Section 15 T 20 SR 20 E.  J. P. built this house about 1866.  Before the upstairs was completely finished, he learned that his house had been built on Lot 2 of Section 15 instead of Lot 1; this location was just 1,321 feet (¼ mile) to the west of the actual property that he owned on Lot 1 of Section 15.

Samples of paper money, issued by the State of Florida during the Civil War. 1861. Black & white photonegative, 4 x 5 in. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. Leaving this house unfinished, he built a similar house on his island property now known as Duval Island. That house remained until it was destroyed by a storm in 1913.  The Lot 1 Section 15 land that he did own became the property of his son-in-law, James Baker in 1883, and it was later laid out and surveyed by W. H. Havron, surveyor, and Senator Austin Mann.  This occurred after John Paul’s death.

Hackett. View of Lake Tsala Apopka - Floral City, Florida. 19--. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. Duval House originally built on High Ground The Duval House sits on one of the highest spots in Floral City, well away from the low-land near the lake.  The land in front of the house and to the east was cleared for the planting of crops. Sugar cane, cotton, corn, etc were grown.  Due to the lack of trees in the area at that time, one could anticipate seeing the Tsala Apopka Lake from the second-story porch.  In the 1860s, it may have been the reason the porch-front of the house faces east, so the lake could be viewed.

Historic Duval House shows period House Design and Accommodations

A large cistern located on the southeast corner of the Duval House was used to catch rainfall and store it for household use. It was typical of the early period of settlement, and up until the second decade of the 1900s, for cisterns to be a common feature of a home.  The large cistern is located at the southeast corner of the Duval house.  Its purpose was to catch the rainfall and store it for household use.  This cistern is unique in that it has a central brick shaft.  It is about 20 feet deep and is lined with cement. Originally the kitchen was not attached to the house - a common home building practice to reduce the potential of a fire hazard.  The north wall of the kitchen was removed and the kitchen building was moved and attached to the south wall of the house.  The original exterior siding on the house can still be seen in the kitchen.  Cooking was done by the Metz family on a wooden stove in the winter months and on a kerosene stove in the summer to reduce the amount of heat generated into the house.

The original kitchen was not attached to the house, as was common in that day. The possibility of fire and the heat generated in a kitchen made the preferred method to construct the kitchen near, but not attached to the house. Image by Diane Bedard. Later Residents of the Duval House W. H. Havron, the surveyor, lived in the Duval house for a time.  As a surveyor, he, also, laid out the southern boundary when Citrus County was formed from Hernando County. Judge Nelson also lived in this house, and it was owned by the prominent Floral City landowner Adolph O.F. Roux and his wife Carrie for an unknown period. The Duval Preservation Trust purchases the house in 2011 In 1935, the Duval House was purchased from the Rouxs by the James Metz family, remaining in the Metz family through four generations.

Lynn Bassett (L), Bob Metz today (C), Marcia Beasley (R) taken at the Duval Donors Dinner held in 2017. Image courtesy of Floral City Heritage Council. It was purchased in 2011 from the great-grandson of the original Metz by the Duval Preservation Trust, Inc., a 501 c 3 non-profit corporations created for the preservation of this historic building. The Metz family lived on the lower floor Three generations of Metz family lived in the two downstairs rooms; one of the upstairs rooms served as a guest room with the remaining upstairs used as an attic for storage and a children’s play area.  Individuals in town have related that they recall roller-skating in the upstairs play area. The first floor South Room was the main living/dining area and it also served as the elder Metz bedroom.  An indoor bathroom was added on to the east side of the fireplace in the 1940s.  Prior to that period, an outhouse had been located a short distance away from the house to the south.

The fireplace had been completely covered on the main floor. Image courtesy of Floral City Heritage Council. When the Trust purchased the property, the fireplace was completely covered-over with paneling and wallboard and the ceiling had been lowered in this room.  In the early years, a wood-burning stove provided heat and smoke was expelled via a flue attached to a cut in the chimney. In later years, the stove was replaced by a propane heater mounted on the wall.  Scorched marks above the heater were prominent on the paneling and wallboard.  It was fortunate that the house never caught on fire. Duval House shows Knob and Tube Electrical Installation When electricity first came to Floral City in 1913, the method of installation was referred to as “knob-and-tube.”  There are numerous places throughout the house where that installation method still remains.  However, it is not in use and only retained for the exhibit. The first floor North Room was the bedroom used by the second and third generations of the Metz family.  When James Metz acquired the house, a closet had already been built in front of the fireplace in that room and it connected with the back wall of the bathroom in the South Room.

There is no inside access to the upstairs of the house. Access to the second floor is solely by entrance up the stairwell from the front porch.  A handrail was added by the Duval Trust for safety. At the top of the stair, looking back to the second-floor porch, one can see the name “HAVRON” above the stairwell, referring to the surveyor of Floral City who once lived in the house.  The second floor was never finished.  Some door and window frames are complete and some are not.  The walls, floors, and ceilings are just as they were when the house was left by John Paul Formy-Duval. Some visible signs of water and termite damage are retained for the exhibit.

The Duval Historic Trust Also retained are the signs of children amusing themselves, even writing on the walls with chalk on the south wall.  “Eula May Stokes” her name was written by someone.  She later became Eula Amay Stokes Murphy when she married Buddy Murphy in 1940. The second or north room upstairs was used as a guest room and for comfort, the walls and ceiling were covered with fiberboard.  There was a factory in St. Petersburg which made a wallboard like the one in this room.  The product was made of palmettos.  The bed shown now in this room was originally found downstairs.  It was made for the senior Mrs. Metz by her son, Jim Metz after she had broken her hip and could no longer use a regular bed. If you want to Visit the Duval House... Since the Duval Preservation Trust has owned the house, it has been opened to the public for the annual Floral City Heritage Days.  The historic Duval House is one of 6-8 historic homes on the Blue Banner Tour of Historic Homes as part of Floral City's annual Heritage Days event, held the first weekend in December. To arrange a special tour of the Historic Duval House for a group, contact Bill Metcalfe, Floral City Heritage Museum Director. Museum phone: 352-419-4257. For information about the Floral City Heritage Days event, call (352) 637-4203, visit www.floralcityhc.com or email the-fchc@hotmail.com Read the full article

[pogueman]

How Apple's iPhone has improved since its 2007 debut

These days, we yawn and roll our eyes at each new smartphone model. The changes seem to be tiny—evolutionary. Where are the big steps forward?

Well, it may be that there aren’t many big steps left to take. Every kind of machine evolves, finally reaching an ultimate incarnation of itself. How often, for example, do you replace your refrigerator? Or your air conditioner? There just aren’t many compelling new features left to add.

Even so, we’ve come a very long way since 2007, when Apple (AAPL) released the very first iPhone. Every year, there’s another model, each faster and loaded up with more features. As we prepare for the September 12 unveiling of the 10th-anniversary iPhone, here’s a chronology of what was new with each year’s iteration.

The iPhone gets a total body makeover every few years. This year, it’s time.

iPhone (June 2007)

The very first iPhone introduced a very long list of firsts. The big one, of course, was that it was all touchscreen—no typing keys. Not just a touchscreen—a multitouch screen, with all of those touch gestures we now take for granted, like “pinch to zoom” and swiping through lists.

It also introduced visual voicemail, where your messages appear in an inbox. Its email and web browser apps were full-fledged, showing all the formatting you’d see on a desktop computer—a first for phones.

It’s also worth remembering what the first iPhone didn’t have: A front camera. A camera flash. Video recording. Cut and paste. GPS. MMS (sending photos as text messages). A memory-card slot. Voice dialing. Word-complete suggestions. A choice of carrier (it was AT&T [T] only, and really slow).

And there was no app store. You got 16 apps, and you were happy.

The base model cost $500, and packed 4 gigabytes of storage.

As I wrote in my review in The New York Times: “The iPhone is revolutionary; it’s flawed. It’s substance; it’s style. It does things no phone has ever done before; it lacks features found even on the most basic phones.”

Here it is: The Apple product that not even Apple guessed would change the world.

iPhone 3G (July 2008)

The second iPhone was intended to address the first phone’s Achilles’ heel: Its excruciatingly slow internet. This model took advantage of AT&T’s 3G network, which was at least twice as fast as the old one.

The storage options doubled, to 8 and 16 GB. A white color option debuted. And the phone gained true GPS. (The original phone simulated GPS by triangulating from known WiFi hot spots and cell towers.)

This iPhone was called 3G because it could get onto the 3G cellular networks (and NOT because it was the third-generation iPhone; it wasn’t).

Software: Focusing on only the hardware of the iPhone is missing the bigger picture: Each new phone is accompanied by a new version of its system software, which we now call iOS. In general, each new iOS version’s features also work on earlier iPhone models.

The iPhone 3G, for example, was accompanied by the debut of the App Store, a single, central catalog of add-on apps. The idea that you could download new programs directly onto the iPhone, instead of having to transfer them from a computer, was a huge breakthrough at the time.

iPhone 3GS (June 2009)

The “S,” Steve Jobs said, stood for “speed.” This phone was faster in every way. Its camera got bumped up to three megapixels, and gained a long list of features: auto-focus, tap-to-focus, exposure lock, auto white balance, auto macro shots, “rule of thirds” grid lines, and a 5x digital zoom. A new magnetometer permitted the creation of the Compass app.

The S in “3GS” stood for speed.

Software: Video recording! And voice control of music playback and dialing.

iPhone 4 (June 2010)

The comfortable rounded plastic back disappeared in this redesigned model, which had crisp edges and hardened glass front and back panels—plus the first “Retina” screen (much higher resolution). A front-facing camera appeared on this model, plus, for the first time, an LED flash.

Apple also added a second microphone, at the top, for noise cancellation during calls, and a gyroscope, which can precisely calculate how you’re turning the phone in space (handy for games).

This was the first iPhone that could run on the CDMA cellular network, the one used by Verizon (VZ) and Sprint (S). Once Apple’s early exclusive contract with AT&T ended in 2011, the iPhone 4 became the first model offered by Verizon and other carriers.

No more rounded back in the iPhone 4.

Software: iOS 4 introduced FaceTime video conferencing (over WiFi only) and limited multitasking, including an app switcher.

iPhone 4S (October 2011)

This model introduced Siri, the voice assistant that paved the way for Microsoft’s (MSFT) Cortana, Google (GOOG, GOOGL) Assistant, Amazon (AMZN) Echo, and so on. The 4S was, of course, faster, and its camera received its usually resolution bump (to 8 megapixels, good for 1080p hi-def videos).

The iPhone 4s—starring Siri.

Software: iOS 5 was a big one. It introduced iMessages, the Notification Center, Reminders, built-in Twitter (TWTR), iCloud, and the ability to let nearby computers get online via tethering (Personal Hotspot).

iPhone 5 (September 2012)

The iPhone 5 had a thinner body and taller screen; compatibility with much faster LTE cellular data networks; and a faster, better camera, capable of snapping stills while recording video.

With this phone, Apple eliminated the 30-pin connector that it had used for charging and syncing all iPhones and iPads to date—and replaced it with the tiny Lightning connector. Millions of people had to buy and fuss with adapters.

The iPhone 5 introduced the Lightning connector for charging.

Software: iOS 6 introduced panorama mode for the Camera app, more Siri commands, one-tap responses to incoming texts and calls (like, “Driving—I’ll call you later”). Apple also replaced Google’s fantastic pre-installed Google Maps app with a shockingly incomplete Apple app. Its guidance was so poor, Apple CEO Tim Cook wound up apologizing for it and suggesting that people use Google Maps instead.

iPhone 5s (September 2013)

Apple’s fingerprint sensor, cleverly embedded in the Home button, let you unlock the phone without a password for the first time. As usual, the camera got better and the processor got faster—its A7 was the first 64-bit chip ever used in a phone. Apple replaced its time-honored, coin-shaped iPhone earbuds with the blobbier AirPods earbuds.

(A budget model, the iPhone 5C, came out at the same time, in a choice of five plastic colors. It was otherwise essentially identical to 2012’s iPhone 5.)

The iPhone 5s, starring the Touch ID fingerprint reader.

Software: iOS 7 was a huge software release. It introduced a massive and controversial redesign. Its sparse look eliminated “skeuomorphic” design elements, in which on-screen things depict real-world materials (lined yellow paper for Notes, leather binding for Calendar, wooden shelves for iBooks).

iOS 7 also came loaded with new features: AirDrop made it simple to shoot pictures, notes, and contacts among iPhones. Control Center is the panel that slides up from the bottom of the screen to offer commonly used settings. In the Camera app: slow-motion video, zooming while recording, photo filters, and 10-frames-a-second bursts.

iPhone 6 (September 2014)

With this model, Apple followed Samsung’s lead—and went for bigger screens. There were now, for the first time, two iPhones in the same line: the iPhone 6 and the larger 6 Plus. Both had faster chips and Apple Pay (wireless payments at special cash-register terminals). The 6 family gained a barometer to detect altitude changes (?!), and upgraded wireless components that permitted WiFi calling.

The upgraded cameras offered slow-mo video at 240 frames a second (quarter-speed), phase-detection autofocus (faster and more accurate), and optical image stabilization on the 6 Plus. The front-facing camera got better low-light capability, burst mode, and HDR (high dynamic range) ability.

The iPhone 6 dramatically increased the iPhone’s screen size—and body size

Software: In iOS 8, Apple finally added a row of three next-word guesses above the keyboard, to save typing. The Continuity feature permitted interaction between the phone and a Mac, like calling and texting from the Mac, or copying on one device and pasting on the other. Family Sharing allows up to six family members to share stuff they’ve bought from Apple (music, videos, apps, etc.).

The Camera app gained a self timer and a time-lapse mode, iCloud Drive (Apple’s version of Dropbox) debuted. Eventually, in iOS 8.4, Apple Music came along—its subscription music plan.

iPhone 6S and SE (September 2015)

In addition to the usual speed and camera-resolution enhancements (12 megapixels, 4K video), the 6S and 6S Plus introduced what Apple calls 3D Touch: a pressure-sensitive screen. You can press harder on an app to see a menu of common commands, or peek into links or lists without actually leaving the screen you’re on.

(The iPhone SE packed most of the same features of the 6S into a much smaller body—the traditional iPhone size—to the delight of the small-handed.)

The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus introduced a pressure-sensitive screen.

Software: The iOS 9 update introduced a front-facing “flash” that works by overcranking the front-facing screen by 3X. It also debuted Live Photos, which are three-second video clips that you can capture with every photo.

iPhone 7 (September 2016)

Most people will probably remember the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus primarily as the phones that killed off the headphone jack. But these models also gained waterproofing (up to 30 minutes under a meter of water), a larger battery, stabilized camera even on the smaller phone, better low-light photos, an array of four LED flashes on the back for greater brightness, stereo speakers, and a Home button that doesn’t actually move, but instead just simulates a click using a vibration motor.

On the iPhone 7 Plus, Apple installed two lenses: one wide-angle, one a 2X zoom. This is true, optical zoom, not the cruddy digital zoom on most previous phones.

The iPhone 7 and 7 Plus had no headphone jack. They’re shown here with what Apple hopes you’ll use instead: the AirPods.

Software: iOS 10 introduced a huge range of small tweaks, and a couple of big ones. First, there has been a colossal revamp of Messages, Apple’s text-messaging app, adding a wide range of visual treats, animations, and effects to dress up your message. Second, iOS 10 requires fewer steps to unlock the phone—for example, to check the latest alerts or fire up the camera.

iPhone 8 and 7S? (September 2017)

Nobody knows for sure what Apple will unveil in the new iPhones on September 12. But the rumor millers seem pretty confident about a few things:

A massive redesign. No more black panels above and below the screen. Instead, a gorgeous OLED screen will extend to all four edges of the phone.

No more Home button. You’ll have to get back to the Home screen, and perform other functions, using new swiping gestures on the screen. (Or maybe there’ll be an on-screen Home button.)

Face ID. You’ll be able to unlock the phone by looking at it.

Pad-based charging. As on the Samsung Galaxy, instead of plugging in a cable, you’ll have the option of setting it down on a pad) to charge. (That’s why front and back will be glass.)

AR features. Augmented reality means seeing graphics overlaid on the camera’s view of the world around you: arrows that show which way to walk to get to the nearest subway stop, for example, or info boxes that identify the prices of apartments in nearby buildings.

Nosebleed price. The number people are kicking around is $1,000. However, there’s also some intel that a less expensive iPhone model or two will be released simultaneously, without the OLED screen.

Software: We already know what iOS 11 will bring, because Apple’s told us! It will be a lot of nips and tucks, like auto-Do Not Disturb when you’re driving; a more real-sounding voice for Siri; screen recording; more compact photo and video formats to save space; and person-to-person payments within the Messages app, like Venmo.

Here’s my complete writeup of iOS 11.

See you on September 12!

We’ll be at Apple’s unveiling show at 10 a.m. Pacific time on September 12, live-blogging the event and posting a complete set of articles, photos, and videos about what’s new.

We’re pretty sure you won’t want to miss it!

  More from David Pogue:

Gulliver’s Gate is a $40 million world of miniatures in Times Square

The 5 best new features of this week’s YouTube redesign

Samsung’s Bixby voice assistant is ambitious, powerful, and half-baked

Is through-the-air charging a hoax?

Electrify your existing bike in 2 minutes with these ingenious wheels

Marty Cooper, inventor of the cellphone: The next step is implantables 

The David Pogue Review: Windows 10 Creators Update

Now I get it: Bitcoin

David Pogue’s search for the world’s best air-travel app

The little-known iPhone feature that lets blind people see with their fingers

David Pogue, tech columnist for Yahoo Finance, welcomes nontoxic comments in the comments section below. On the web, he’s davidpogue.com. On Twitter, he’s @pogue. On email, he’s poguester@yahoo.com. You can read all his articles here, or you can sign up to get his columns by email. 

[wristwatchjournal]

Christopher Ward C65 Super Compressor Watch Review

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Is there another genre of watch that’s more overdone than vintage-inspired dive watches? Even so, there’s something about Christopher Ward’s new C65 Super Compressor that is worth a closer look and, consequently, this review. Besides, can you believe the brand finally moved the logo to 12 o’clock?

The story of the Super Compressor case has been told numerous times, but it’s worth revisiting since this style of case is not common. The Super Compressor watch case was patented in 1956 by a now-defunct Swiss firm called Ervin Piquerez SA. It’s a rather inventive piece of case design. Designed for diving, its seal became tighter the deeper it went. External pressure increases with depth and this caused the Super Compressor’s spring-loaded caseback to press more firmly against the O-ring.

Mention Super Compressor and most people think of a watch with two crowns and an internal rotating bezel. This design became popular in the 1960s if only for the reason that it was different. But from a design standpoint, an internal bezel meant that watchmakers could do away with bulky rotating bezels that usually broke up the lines of a watch. This led to sleeker dive watches and many watch brands took advantage of it. There are numerous vintage Super Compressor dive watches from brands like Longines, Vulcain, and, most famously, Jaeger-LeCoultre. And it is this iconic case design that Christopher Ward decided it would use for the C65 Super Compressor.

Measuring 41mm in diameter, 13.05mm-thick, and 47mm from lug to lug, the Christopher Ward C65 Super Compressor has very contemporary dimensions. It has wrist presence, but it isn’t so large that it feels like you are wearing a dish on y our wrist. Much of the height comes from the caseback, which protrudes slightly because of the Super Compressor design and also because it has a sapphire caseback. Bevels on the case flank help disguise much of the watch’s height and make it look thinner than it actually is. The case has a nice mix of brushed and polished surfaces. Water-resistance is a very adequate and fitting 150 meters.

There are two sizable crowns at 2 and 4 o’clock. The first controls the inner unidirectional rotating bezel and the second is used for winding and adjusting the time. To help owners differentiate them, the crown at 2 o’clock features a bright orange ring whereas the crown at 4 o’clock is embossed with the Christopher Ward logo.

Curiously, the crown at 2 o’clock that controls the inner rotating bezel isn’t screw-down, so it’s easy to turn it by accident. And even though it clicks into its 120 positions with precision, there’s a surprising amount of play when the crown is at rest. Perhaps it’s just the piece that I have but it bears mentioning. Thankfully, the crown at 4 o’clock is screw-down; it’s buttery smooth to wind and clicks into the time-adjusting position with exactness.

In keeping with its vintage-inspired origins, the C65 Super Compressor features a heavily domed sapphire crystal under which sits a handsome dial. Personally, I would have preferred a more period-accurate acrylic crystal but I completely understand the masses’ preference for a sapphire crystal.

The C65 Super Compressor is available in two dial variants, Ocean Blue and Black Sand. I chose to review the former because I think it’s an interesting color choice on Christopher Ward’s part. In person, it looks like a shade that is halfway between aquamarine and teal. It has a sunburst finish that makes it look especially radiant under the right light. There’s no date window.

However, the highlight of the dial must be the position of the logo. Since its rebrand in 2016, Christopher Ward has placed its logo on the 9 o’clock position of the dial. While it is certainly unusual, it’s not a dealbreaker for me. It’s bold and I applaud the brand for it. Unfortunately, a good number of people have expressed their consternation at this decision. I’m also pretty sure it has driven some potential owners away. No matter, the logo is finally at 12 o’clock. I’m not sure if this is going to be the case for future releases but it gives the dial of the C65 Super Compressor a sense of symmetry that has been missing from the brand’s watches for a long time.

Legibility is good thanks to the substantial hour and minute hands and large applied indices. Furthermore, the minute hand extends all the way to the rotating bezel, which makes it easy to read and set the time accurately. Super-LumiNova Grade X1 GL C1 isn’t the brightest luminescent material around but at least general application on the hands means they are still visible in the dark. The indices, however, only have a small plot at their ends and the inner rotating bezel isn’t lumed. This makes telling the exact time in the dark challenging but not impossible.

The attention to color coordination is remarkable. For example, the minute hand is orange and so is the 12 o’clock marker on the inner rotating bezel. Additionally, the first five indices are anointed with small orange plots to mark out the first 20 minutes that are usually highlighted on dive watch bezels.

My only gripe with the dial has to do with the inner rotating bezel, specifically the choice of typeface. It’s confusing because it reminds me of the instrument panels of vintage muscle cars. I think they made a mistake here. It looks more fitting on an automotive-inspired watch.

There are three strap options for the Ocean Blue model that I picked out. You can get it with a stainless steel bracelet, a brown vintage strap, or a matching blue strap. The blue strap makes for a striking but matching combination. Unlike some leathers which are stiff and require a break-in period, this leather strap is super soft and pliable right out of the box. It also has a quick-release system for easy strap changing. Lug width is 22mm.

Inside the C65 Super Compressor beats the Sellita SW-200. This is a reliable alternative to the ETA-2824, and many other brands use it. There’s not much to say about it other than it beats at 4Hz and has a power reserve of 38 hours. Christopher Ward says it will run to within +/- 20 seconds a day. I found mine to run within these parameters. It’s good to see that Christopher Ward is using a no-date version of the movement, so there’s no phantom date position. Once you unscrew the crown and pull it into the first position, you are ready to set the time.

The Sellita SW-200 is visible through a sapphire display caseback. Some people will probably question the benefits of a see-through caseback at this price point but I always find it more interesting if I can see the movement at work even if it isn’t elaborately decorated. Furthermore, the highlight here isn’t the movement. Instead, it’s the anodized orange aluminium compression ring that gives this type of case its name. The movement has very basic decoration. There’s a custom rotor with what Christopher Ward calls a “Colimaçoné” finish.

Yes, vintage-inspired dive watches are done to death, but the C65 Super Compressor is a worthy, interesting addition to the genre. Modern Super Compressor watches are still relatively uncommon, and Christopher Ward’s take on this type of watch is thoughtful and refined. The choice of colors is gutsy and refreshing, and the quality is fairly high. Oh, and the brand’s logo is finally at 12 o’clock. The Christopher Ward C65 Super Compressor as tested with a leather strap is $1,025. The price on bracelet is $1,145. Learn more at the Christopher Ward website here.

Necessary Data >Brand: Christopher Ward >Model: C65 Super Compressor >Price: $1,025 on strap, $1,145 on bracelet >Size: 41mm-wide, 13.05mm-tall, 47.12mm lug-to-lug distance >When reviewer would personally wear it: Weekends and casual events. >Friend we’d recommend it to first: Anyone who is looking for an affordable, striking, and different dive watch. >Best characteristic of watch: The design and finishing of the case is outstanding and the dial is captivating. >Worst characteristic of watch: Choice of font for the inner rotating bezel is more suited to automotive-inspired watches.

The post Christopher Ward C65 Super Compressor Watch Review appeared first on Wristwatch Journal.

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MozCon Virtual 2020: Top Takeaways from Day One

New Post has been published on http://tiptopreview.com/mozcon-virtual-2020-top-takeaways-from-day-one-2/

MozCon Virtual 2020: Top Takeaways from Day One

Today marked day one of the first-ever MozCon Virtual! Even though we weren’t together in person, it was so exciting to get the best people in the industry together again.

So much of the day was different from what we expected six months ago, but the one thing we can always count on from our speakers is a MASSIVE amount of value. We’re talking insights, game plans, cheat codes — you name it, we’ve got it — and this year was no different.

Let’s get to it.

Sarah Bird — Welcome & State of the Industry

It’s always inspiring to hear from our fearless leader. Sarah hit on some of the changes that we’ve seen this year and how they’ve affected both us as people and us as an industry.

Sarah also laid out her thoughts on major SEO trends for 2020.

AAAAAND WE’RE OFF! #MozCon Virtual @Moz CEO, @SarahBird, discusses her take on the State of the Industry.

5 Timely Trends for 2020: 1. welcoming our robot overlords 2. entities 3. knowledge panel 4. localization of everything 5. new & ramping up search experiences

— James Wirth (@jameswirth) July 14, 2020

In closing, Sarah reminded us that we rise and fall collectively and that in the end, the world is our work. In difficult times we must all come together.

We’re all so happy to be able to create this virtual experience and allow for everyone to have something (somewhat) predictable to look forward to for two days.

Andy Crestodina — Thought Leadership and SEO: The 3 Key Elements and Search Ranking Strategies

Andy started off by walking us through the three key aspects of thought leadership: personal brand, taking a stand, and proving expert insights.

Then, very kindly, Andy laid out exactly what to do to fulfill each aspect.

Expert Insights

Create original research

Write books

Share novel ideas

Take a stand

Have a strong opinion

Don’t shy away from controversy

Inspire others

Build a personal brand

Have a social following

Be cited by others

Be influential

This presentation was 163 slides of actionable insights. It’s definitely one that we’ll have to watch a few times over!

#Mozcon thank goodness I can rewatch this content. @crestodina gave so much great knowledge. I’ll have to watch again and again.#winning

— Seth @ Goldstein Media (@GoldsteinMedia) July 14, 2020

Shannon McGirk — Great Expectations: The Truth About Digital PR Campaigns

Shannon came to set us straight: we aren’t showing the full picture when it comes to Digital PR, and it’s quite toxic.

She started out by showing a few of her own tweets and pointing out that she rarely, if ever, shares anything about campaigns that don’t “go viral”.

Shannon explained that we talk about Digital PR campaigns as if the majority of them are “huge wins”. The reality, however, is that most of our campaigns will be steady performers and the huge wins are actually just anomalies.

How we talk about campaigns:

How campaigns actually perform:



Aira put out a state of digital PR study and found that most campaigns only got between one and 20 links. When Shannon broke down the numbers for Aira, they were consistent: about 17 links were gained per campaign!

What do we do about this? Shannon challenged us to take as much time looking into what didn’t work as we do looking into what did work.

Using a custom made success matrix, Shannon and her team were able to spot the trends for both “successful” and “not successful” campaigns and implement plans accordingly.

Her parting strategy:

Take off the pressure of “virality” and focus on steady performers and fails.

Realize that steady performers can consistently impact weighty SEO KPIs.

Use the success matrix to review campaigns and catch trends early.

Robin Lord — Whatever You Do, Put Billboards in Seattle: Getting Brand Awareness Data from Google

Wow! Our minds are still blown from this presentation. Robin took us through some extremely valuable workflows for collecting and analyzing data.

When it comes to determining the success of your “brand,” the numbers aren’t straightforward. There are a lot of data points to take into consideration. In fact, Robin started off by asking us if we used multiple datasets, collected data on our competitors, and got granular. Needless to say, many of us knew we were in for a ride.

Need? Brand interest data.

Your new best friends? Google Trends. Census Data. Google Ads.

This analysis is blowing my mind a little bit (ok, a lot) ????#MozCon

— Meisha Bochicchio (@MarketingMeisha) July 14, 2020

Honestly, this presentation was so jam-packed with information that we had a hard time keeping up! Thankfully, at the end of his presentation, Robin laid out step-by-step instructions on how he collected, compiled, and analyzed all of this data.

Alexis Sanders — The Science of Seeking Your Customer

Determining your audience is about more than demographics and affinity data; it’s about truly understanding your audience as people.

Alexis took us through four questions we should try to answer when defining our audience:

What’s the key information?

What are they like at their core?

How do they choose products?

What’s their relationship with technology?

She even provided a list of free and paid resources that anyone can use to collect this information.

Takeaways via @alexisksanders 1. Make use of first, second and third-party information 2. Ask questions on Google Discover 3. Try Sparktoro -new tool for me! 4. Map your users’ journey againts content 6. Today is change and learning fast#MozCon #marketing pic.twitter.com/DH80dThomS

— Jackie Jiménez (@Jackiecr86) July 14, 2020

Alexis also explained that audience research is not something that happens only once (at the beginning of a campaign), but instead should inform the entire customer journey.

Her parting words encouraged us to learn fast and become in-tune with the constant change, instead of always trying to guess correctly!

Phillip Nottingham — How to Build a Global Brand Without a Global Budget

The marketing funnel is broken, we all know that. But if we aren’t focusing on getting people to work down a funnel, what are we working towards? Building our brand. Right. Well, how do we go about doing that?

Phil blew our minds with insights on how he helped Wistia change their mindset when it came to creating “brand awareness.” The first step was to stop calling it brand awareness and instead call it brand affinity.

Building an affinity to a brand means spending time with a brand. A KPI that usually gets lost in the mix of impressions, clicks, etc.

In his presentation, Phil breaks down the exact method he used with Wistia to get people to spend as much time on the site watching four videos as they did reading all 1,170 blogs.

Greg Gifford shared a great summary slide here:

Your new brand marketing strategy:@philnottingham #mozcon pic.twitter.com/kNjvhPtzTW

— Greg Gifford (@GregGifford) July 14, 2020

Dr. Pete — Moving Targets: Keywords in Crisis

We were so thrilled to have Dr. Pete back to speak at his NINTH MozCon this year. While this year’s conference was unlike any other, his presentation was just as insightful.

Dr. Pete talked all about spotting trends. Nothing about this year could have been predicted. There was no way that hair salons could have predicted that “how to cut hair” was going to be an opportunity keyword.

However, there is still a way to capitalize on these opportunities as we spot them.

Dr. Pete showed us exactly how we can use tools that we’re familiar with, and a few that we might not be familiar with, to spot trends and turn them into opportunities including Google Trends, Pinterest, Twitter search, and even Boing Boing Store.

There were some real gems in this presentation!

In Twitter Advanced Search, restrict to your language, relevant date ranges, and set a number of minimum likes. Go lower on that last one than you think – but this way you won’t get every random tweet on the topic@dr_pete #MozCon

— Ruth Burr Reedy (@ruthburr) July 14, 2020

Needless to say, Dr. Pete has officially gone nine straight years impressing MozCon.

Francine Rodriguez — Let It Go: How to Embrace Automation and Get Way More Done

2020 has really come out swinging. Francine voiced exactly what we were all thinking: “that’s enough!”

We have enough to worry about, do we really need to keep adding to the list?

When it comes to search engine marketing, there are a lot of moving parts and it can be excruciating to try and keep up with it all. There is a solution though: ROBOTS! (Someone call Roger!)

Google is constantly learning, so why not let them leverage their new knowledge?

Francine walked us through the different areas of PPC automation:

Bidding

Ad copy

Smart campaigns

Keyword matching

If you’re looking for a great example of letting go and embracing automation, Microsoft Ads is a good place to go. They allow you to import all of your Google Ads right into Microsoft ads so they can start running right away.

Rob Ousbey — A Novel Approach to Scraping Websites

What do we even say about this presentation? Rob is one of a kind.

If you take a look at the #MozCon feed on Twitter, you’ll notice far fewer people live-tweeting — that’s because they were busy taking notes!

Actual footage of me watching this session with @RobOusbey…

#MozCon pic.twitter.com/TwH6jgmkAK

— Brie E Anderson (@brie_e_anderson) July 14, 2020

Rob showed us how he scrapes websites (including the big G) in seconds using a few lines of code. He walked us through every piece of code needed to scrape G2, Google, and even Google’s Lighthouse tool.

He wrapped it all up by showing off exactly what he did to integrate Lighthouse data into Moz Pro’s SERP analysis.

Again, this is going to be one of those presentations that you have to rewatch multiple times. Or maybe even at half-speed!

Ross Simmonds — Designing a Content Engine: Going from Ideation to Creation to Distribution

We closed out day one with the Coolest of Cool.

Ross came in hot with some Disney references to make us think.

Disney movies — where do the storylines usually come from? Other stories!

In recent years we’ve seen Disney “revise” their previous movies to make them fit today’s world. And actually, some of the original Disney movies were “remixes” of Shakespeare’s plays.

Ross loves his four Rs (revise, remix, remove, redirect), and this year he gave us even more actionable plans.

This closing session really encouraged us to put on our “Sherlock Homeboy” hat and get curious about what others are doing, and how we can do it better.

A few places to find inspiration for innovation that Ross mentioned:

Your favorite website’s site map

Wayback machine for industry leaders’ sites

Wikipedia

There’s so much to do

For now, we’re calling it a day and getting some rest because we get to do it all again tomorrow!

If you want to access the speaker slides, you can sign in with your Moz Community credentials and download them on this page.

If you did join us today, what was your favorite session? Your biggest takeaway? We can’t wait to see you tomorrow!

Source link

[isearchgoood]

MozCon Virtual 2020: Top Takeaways from Day One

Posted by cheryldraper

Today marked day one of the first-ever MozCon Virtual! Even though we weren’t together in person, it was so exciting to get the best people in the industry together again.

So much of the day was different from what we expected six months ago, but the one thing we can always count on from our speakers is a MASSIVE amount of value. We’re talking insights, game plans, cheat codes — you name it, we’ve got it — and this year was no different.

Let’s get to it.

Sarah Bird — Welcome & State of the Industry

It’s always inspiring to hear from our fearless leader. Sarah hit on some of the changes that we’ve seen this year and how they’ve affected both us as people and us as an industry.

Sarah also laid out her thoughts on major SEO trends for 2020.

AAAAAND WE'RE OFF! #MozCon Virtual @Moz CEO, @SarahBird, discusses her take on the State of the Industry. 5 Timely Trends for 2020: 1. welcoming our robot overlords 2. entities 3. knowledge panel 4. localization of everything 5. new & ramping up search experiences

— James Wirth (@jameswirth) July 14, 2020

In closing, Sarah reminded us that we rise and fall collectively and that in the end, the world is our work. In difficult times we must all come together.

We’re all so happy to be able to create this virtual experience and allow for everyone to have something (somewhat) predictable to look forward to for two days.

Andy Crestodina — Thought Leadership and SEO: The 3 Key Elements and Search Ranking Strategies

Andy started off by walking us through the three key aspects of thought leadership: personal brand, taking a stand, and proving expert insights.

Then, very kindly, Andy laid out exactly what to do to fulfill each aspect.

Expert Insights

Create original research

Write books

Share novel ideas

Take a stand

Have a strong opinion

Don’t shy away from controversy

Inspire others

Build a personal brand

Have a social following

Be cited by others

Be influential

This presentation was 163 slides of actionable insights. It’s definitely one that we’ll have to watch a few times over!

#Mozcon thank goodness I can rewatch this content. @crestodina gave so much great knowledge. I'll have to watch again and again.#winning

— Seth @ Goldstein Media (@GoldsteinMedia) July 14, 2020

Shannon McGirk — Great Expectations: The Truth About Digital PR Campaigns

Shannon came to set us straight: we aren’t showing the full picture when it comes to Digital PR, and it’s quite toxic.

She started out by showing a few of her own tweets and pointing out that she rarely, if ever, shares anything about campaigns that don’t “go viral”.

Shannon explained that we talk about Digital PR campaigns as if the majority of them are “huge wins”. The reality, however, is that most of our campaigns will be steady performers and the huge wins are actually just anomalies.

How we talk about campaigns:

How campaigns actually perform:



Aira put out a state of digital PR study and found that most campaigns only got between one and 20 links. When Shannon broke down the numbers for Aira, they were consistent: about 17 links were gained per campaign!

What do we do about this? Shannon challenged us to take as much time looking into what didn’t work as we do looking into what did work.

Using a custom made success matrix, Shannon and her team were able to spot the trends for both “successful” and “not successful” campaigns and implement plans accordingly.

Her parting strategy:

Take off the pressure of “virality” and focus on steady performers and fails.

Realize that steady performers can consistently impact weighty SEO KPIs.

Use the success matrix to review campaigns and catch trends early.

Robin Lord — Whatever You Do, Put Billboards in Seattle: Getting Brand Awareness Data from Google

Wow! Our minds are still blown from this presentation. Robin took us through some extremely valuable workflows for collecting and analyzing data.

When it comes to determining the success of your “brand,” the numbers aren’t straightforward. There are a lot of data points to take into consideration. In fact, Robin started off by asking us if we used multiple datasets, collected data on our competitors, and got granular. Needless to say, many of us knew we were in for a ride.

Need? Brand interest data. Your new best friends? Google Trends. Census Data. Google Ads. This analysis is blowing my mind a little bit (ok, a lot) ????#MozCon

— Meisha Bochicchio (@MarketingMeisha) July 14, 2020

Honestly, this presentation was so jam-packed with information that we had a hard time keeping up! Thankfully, at the end of his presentation, Robin laid out step-by-step instructions on how he collected, compiled, and analyzed all of this data.

Alexis Sanders — The Science of Seeking Your Customer

Determining your audience is about more than demographics and affinity data; it’s about truly understanding your audience as people.

Alexis took us through four questions we should try to answer when defining our audience:

What’s the key information?

What are they like at their core?

How do they choose products?

What’s their relationship with technology?

She even provided a list of free and paid resources that anyone can use to collect this information.

Takeaways via @alexisksanders 1. Make use of first, second and third-party information 2. Ask questions on Google Discover 3. Try Sparktoro -new tool for me! 4. Map your users' journey againts content 6. Today is change and learning fast#MozCon #marketing pic.twitter.com/DH80dThomS

— Jackie Jiménez (@Jackiecr86) July 14, 2020

Alexis also explained that audience research is not something that happens only once (at the beginning of a campaign), but instead should inform the entire customer journey.

Her parting words encouraged us to learn fast and become in-tune with the constant change, instead of always trying to guess correctly!

Phillip Nottingham — How to Build a Global Brand Without a Global Budget

The marketing funnel is broken, we all know that. But if we aren’t focusing on getting people to work down a funnel, what are we working towards? Building our brand. Right. Well, how do we go about doing that?

Phil blew our minds with insights on how he helped Wistia change their mindset when it came to creating “brand awareness.” The first step was to stop calling it brand awareness and instead call it brand affinity.

Building an affinity to a brand means spending time with a brand. A KPI that usually gets lost in the mix of impressions, clicks, etc.

In his presentation, Phil breaks down the exact method he used with Wistia to get people to spend as much time on the site watching four videos as they did reading all 1,170 blogs.

Greg Gifford shared a great summary slide here:

Your new brand marketing strategy:@philnottingham #mozcon pic.twitter.com/kNjvhPtzTW

— Greg Gifford (@GregGifford) July 14, 2020

Dr. Pete — Moving Targets: Keywords in Crisis

We were so thrilled to have Dr. Pete back to speak at his NINTH MozCon this year. While this year’s conference was unlike any other, his presentation was just as insightful.

Dr. Pete talked all about spotting trends. Nothing about this year could have been predicted. There was no way that hair salons could have predicted that “how to cut hair” was going to be an opportunity keyword.

However, there is still a way to capitalize on these opportunities as we spot them.

Dr. Pete showed us exactly how we can use tools that we’re familiar with, and a few that we might not be familiar with, to spot trends and turn them into opportunities including Google Trends, Pinterest, Twitter search, and even Boing Boing Store.

There were some real gems in this presentation!

In Twitter Advanced Search, restrict to your language, relevant date ranges, and set a number of minimum likes. Go lower on that last one than you think - but this way you won’t get every random tweet on the topic@dr_pete #MozCon

— Ruth Burr Reedy (@ruthburr) July 14, 2020

Needless to say, Dr. Pete has officially gone nine straight years impressing MozCon.

Francine Rodriguez — Let It Go: How to Embrace Automation and Get Way More Done

2020 has really come out swinging. Francine voiced exactly what we were all thinking: “that’s enough!”

We have enough to worry about, do we really need to keep adding to the list?

When it comes to search engine marketing, there are a lot of moving parts and it can be excruciating to try and keep up with it all. There is a solution though: ROBOTS! (Someone call Roger!)

Google is constantly learning, so why not let them leverage their new knowledge?

Francine walked us through the different areas of PPC automation:

Bidding

Ad copy

Smart campaigns

Keyword matching

If you’re looking for a great example of letting go and embracing automation, Microsoft Ads is a good place to go. They allow you to import all of your Google Ads right into Microsoft ads so they can start running right away.

Rob Ousbey — A Novel Approach to Scraping Websites

What do we even say about this presentation? Rob is one of a kind.

If you take a look at the #MozCon feed on Twitter, you’ll notice far fewer people live-tweeting — that’s because they were busy taking notes!

Actual footage of me watching this session with @RobOusbey... #MozCon pic.twitter.com/TwH6jgmkAK

— Brie E Anderson (@brie_e_anderson) July 14, 2020

Rob showed us how he scrapes websites (including the big G) in seconds using a few lines of code. He walked us through every piece of code needed to scrape G2, Google, and even Google’s Lighthouse tool.

He wrapped it all up by showing off exactly what he did to integrate Lighthouse data into Moz Pro’s SERP analysis.

Again, this is going to be one of those presentations that you have to rewatch multiple times. Or maybe even at half-speed!

Ross Simmonds — Designing a Content Engine: Going from Ideation to Creation to Distribution

We closed out day one with the Coolest of Cool.

Ross came in hot with some Disney references to make us think.

Disney movies — where do the storylines usually come from? Other stories!

In recent years we’ve seen Disney “revise” their previous movies to make them fit today’s world. And actually, some of the original Disney movies were “remixes” of Shakespeare’s plays.

Ross loves his four Rs (revise, remix, remove, redirect), and this year he gave us even more actionable plans.

This closing session really encouraged us to put on our “Sherlock Homeboy” hat and get curious about what others are doing, and how we can do it better.

A few places to find inspiration for innovation that Ross mentioned:

Your favorite website’s site map

Wayback machine for industry leaders’ sites

Wikipedia

There’s so much to do

For now, we're calling it a day and getting some rest because we get to do it all again tomorrow!

If you want to access the speaker slides, you can sign in with your Moz Community credentials and download them on this page.

If you did join us today, what was your favorite session? Your biggest takeaway? We can’t wait to see you tomorrow!

Sign up for The Moz Top 10, a semimonthly mailer updating you on the top ten hottest pieces of SEO news, tips, and rad links uncovered by the Moz team. Think of it as your exclusive digest of stuff you don't have time to hunt down but want to read!

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