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stelladess · 7 months ago

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Spoiler ahead for the CN livestream, so chapter 14 stuff and brief IS5 mention (also anime season 3 confirmed now). Do not keep reading to avoid spoilers. Just some of my early thoughts. Stream of conciousness, not having thought things through much kind of thing. Kind of just rambling. But tl;dr is that I am excited and it looks good to me.

So, they keep using Civilight Etherna to describe "Theresa" and even outright ask "is she really Theresa?" in the live stream, so no its not a full on resurrection... so from a certain point of view, I was right. Her kit seems super good, she a bard also the freebie operator. Since I do not have Skalter this is good news for me. Big buffs, can do true damage... is neat. Logos is... outright busted. His S1 is insanely good AFK skill which can just auto kill weaker enemies who enters his range, not even an attack and his S2 seems fine, his S3 is also insane. Depending on the numbers he might outperform Eyja but we´ll see, that is always the test is it not? Amiya gets to be an incantation medic, with an outright busted talent (passive health regen on skill, off and on skill gives max HP boosts, this applies to all operators for both it seems?) and a pretty good looking S1 (attacks two enemies, bonus damage) and an amazing S2 with a big burst of damage at first, then slow and true damage with targeting two enemies and.... once per mission... again. Its... fine, I´m not salty.... Anyway, the big star, is limited (I had hoped she would be freebie since her original was limited but oh well) Walter.... or, W has now picked a name for herself, we will have to learn the context in chapter 14, Wis´adel (she has a different S but my keyboard lacks it, it is pronouched as a "sh" sound though). Wis´adel is a flinger sniper who makes all other flingers irelevant and is absolutely busted. Because I am a big W fan (depending on the day it is either her or Kal´tsit who is my second favorite operator) and flingers were in a really bad spot I am kind of ok with this but I still prefer they do not just blatantly directly power creep operators or go too far on insane damage numbers. Her damage seems... a bit too high in my opinion, but because I love her as a character and am excited for her story going forward and her kit seems fun, just really overtuned, I will be pulling. And I guess Degenbrecher and Mlynar already brought us up to this insane damage level so I should not be surprised. Power creep is something I have kept up in many many games I play and there are times where a later power crept state was my favorite period of the game so I will not go and get too hung up on the power creep. Also, I was right to take notice of the floating black crown parts I think cause it is even more prominent now. Bunch of story related stuff here but I wanna wait with talking about that until I have sorted my thoughts and maybe even read chapter 14. On that note, story for chapter 14 has me INCREDIBLY hyped. 13 was my favorite chapter, dethroning chapter 8. And I really wanna know what they are cooking next! Also IS5 has a Kal´tsit boss... she wields a sword!!!! (There are some interesting stuff about Kal and weapons that comes up occasionally, this is in the past it seems so maybe we find out what the deal is?)

I do think its a kind of bad decision to make IS5 sarkaz themed though, I like the sarkaz stuff but I feel IS is best used for parts of the world not explored in as much depth elsewhere. (I think it works with IS3 doing something explored a lot elsewhere but I kinda do not want them to keep doing that). But back to positive stuff the character designs are great. Wis´adel design has really grown on me, I think its a huge downgrade from what she wore before but it feels like it fits her so I am fine with that. Amiya has improved her fashion sense, at first I was sad at no more big coat/cape but that turned out to just be cause the blurry art... she went for a long coat instead of big coat that was actually a normal coat but just too big for her. So it still is something actually made to fit her but still retains the big coat look to some extent. Civilight Etherna boobs seem bigger then Theresa´s(?) Is it to contain the myriad souls? Deep lore implications about this at least! Logos uniform is good but like, so are all Rhodes uniforms. I do not feel it is exceptionally good for a Rhodes uniform but it suits him. Oh and also we see Wis´adel studying in one of the PVs, Hoederer must be so proud she is finally taking her education seriously~! Lastly on addressing the name situation... I will keep using W until chapter 14 is out on global to avoid spoiling people, after that I will probably switch to using her new name. Names are a very important thing especially when you pick them yourself.

#arknights #ak cn spoilers #cn spoilers

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peaterookie · 6 months ago

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PREVIOUSLY ON PEATER'S INSANE RAMBLING ABOUT HIS OC - part 1 here :) i seriously recommend reading this first.

and yknow what? I should probably cover all of the christmas perrins all in a row because getting rid of all of them rn would better fit the writing flow better-

oh. there's a picture limit. god fucking damn!!! see you later then!!!

okayyy here's the later that everybody had asked for. we were talking about christmas perrins last time, got it.

~Christmas Perrins ~ peater gets sidetracked talking about his favorite holiday

BAM!!

combining all four christmas peaters will grant you the ultimate christmas weapon i think.

I used to host two Secret Santa events on the Sony Sketch Amino, where my ocs starred as the host of those events and got their special little designs and such. it was really fun... maybe there will be a third secret santa perrin in the future........

i also wanna show you these art i made for the event. the characters beside perrin are part of his #awesome gang called the pinwheel quintet

left to right is berry(blue girl), audie (yellow they), and lu (red guy) ofc perrin is the green creature. the four genders.

wow that improvement kinda go hard though

the third christmas perrin is aaaallso from a pinwheel quintet drawing!!! not much lore but i found the design cool.

can you guys tell that i like christmas

~ 2020 - 2021 ~ Thieves are coming to town!!!

March 2020 Perrin was a hallmark in his design history i think because for starters, I finally cracked the code on his design and how I want to draw him!

If you had paid attention to how his hair was drawn, which is completely understandable if you didn't its ok, he has always had a tuff of hair that completely sticks out. sadly, i dont think this was ever obvious to people given how it blends in way too easily when it's positioned towards the right, so i moved it towards the left to make it pop out a little.

his hair has always been a bit inconsistently drawn throughout the years, but i think after this you will notice that i start styling it very consistently because i started finally *getting it* around this time.

hopefully this makes it better for people to understand. listen. i had to suffer drawing those early designs so you guys still sit and listen to me complain about a 12 year old's shitty character design.

along with a new design for Perrin, Kirbypeater also makes a comeback after being shafted for almost 4 years!!

I mainly picked him back off from his mid 2015 design, but made some refinements and changed the direction of his tuff of hair lol. I also made him a separate character from perrin kinda. he's a bit more child-like and friendlier than the human perrin.

2020 also brings two new awesome AUs onto the table!! The first one being based off of Persona 5, where the Pinwheel Quintet becomes Phantom Thieves and such. This was made for an art challenge in Sony Sketch Amino and I did a whole fanfic for it but it's really bad.. I'm not showing you.

All I can tell about the story is I think i turned evil or something and their superpowers got taken away, so now they gain the persona powers and shit and they have to steal my heart to turn me good again.

Second au is also from a Sony Sketch Amino art challenge. Created by the same friend that made that one reference sheet of underswap sans lol (hi yan) and the story was co-written by meeee!!

This challenge revolves around a detective mystery, where the participants are given the plot and a prompt per week, each week the story updates giving them more details on the mystery and they eventually have to find out the perpetrator of the crime and stuff.

The story i think goes that a rich ass woman invites people to her party to see her awesome shiny diamond and so people come and then uh oh! the diamond's gone!! so then the detective (yan's oc) goes up to you like ur gonna investigate this with meee and then they do that and a bunch of stuff happens and oh my god peater's the thief all along?!?!?!? holy shit!!!

credit to @hinatas--oj for the art. haha. didn't expect to see this drawing in a while huh.

that story was so fun to make though. so then we made it into an au and i think my friend is making that story into a visual novel game!! so excited!! woohoo!!!!

ok, moving on.

holy moly!! new design again!!!

heavily deviating from the usual striped sweater, i completely abandoned the original story i wrote for him and wrote a different one, so that's why he looks really different.

oh yeah, i completely forgot to mention the cheeks on the ref before this. that was added as a little nod to him being heavily inspired by chara undertale back then. check chara's design they have pink cheeks :)

i think he was supposed to be a bounty hunter or something iunno that whole thing was also scrapped.

also i added his 7th birthday design on there because it kinda kicks ass.....

~ 2021 - 2022 ~ The AU Era

hooohhh boy

look I'm gonna be frank with you guys, I don't think this era was exactly my proudest. I think it's because the more we approach the present, this is gonna be the thing closest to the current me. you can kinda excuse all the other embarassing stuff from the earlier ones because i was young but honestly i dont like looking at this stuff sometimes 😭

but it's okay!!! this era is super cringe but it's time to fucking ball!!!

icky style.

this one was just me refining the prev design a bit more. i think i might added too much detail though. also he looks really fruity here which is just really funny to look back on now

speaking of fruity, some of you might've noticed that he also went by any pronouns in this ref and the prev. this was sorta something randomly added that gets retconned later on. (he does by he/him only now.) this doesn't mean he's cis though. he could be trans? or a third mysterious thing? who knows.

also! the introduction of peater piper!! his pipe weapon!!! it is the most powerful pipe to ever touch fiction. i felt like the baton thing wasn't anything significant enough + severe downgrade from the sword so i changed it to a pipe. feels like it fits his sewer rat vibe.

i think this stage was just particularly experimentative, going in very strange directions that i dont usually take so you're gonna see a lot of strange characters popping up now.

awright!!! let's tackle these three now!!

Swap Perrin - So you remember the Lu guy i mentioned during the christmas part? Well i made a funny swap au once and peater gets swapped roles with Lu! he is acoustic and likes hamsters.

Harlequin Rabbit - There's a lot of drawings i made of him but this is the only bareable one i can find. this bastard is a fucking god of the rabbits or some shit and he can travel through worlds but he's a FUCKING ASSHOLE and a FUCKING LOSER and EVERYPERRIN BULLIES HIM!!! I ALSO HATE HIM!!!!!

SpaceBun - This cute motherfucker is from a story that Lu imagines in his funny little brain of his where he's an awesome bunny space ranger and perrin is like, his love interest character kind of. she kinda has godly powers? she's a sweetheart. i love her. you should love her too. (also by far the hardest to draw and color in my drawing because she actually doesn't have a real reference sheet.

alright, more aus.

Roboperry - Not actually an AU, but they kinda snuck in there as part of the perrin group through a simple doodle i made. A friend became REALLY obsessed with it and now it's part of my story along with normal Perrin. They're a sweet little idol robot that loves Perrin very much <3

YanLu Perrin - AU where Lu is a yandere that wants to GET PERRIN!! honestly this guy's just a blank slate, wow, almost like senpai from yandere simulator, which this was based off of!!

P5PT - He's back!! with a fresh look!! Lookin' cool, Perrin.

OmorPea - yeah.

Demon AU - Based off of this vietdrama i saw of a group of witches living in the human world and terrorizing their neighbors with their magical powers. This instead is Perrin being a demon and terrorizing the neighborhood by being fucking evil.

AstroDome AU - AU where Audie (the yellow they) is a sad starving child that tries to sleep off their pain by being in their dream world. Perrin in the dreamworld is one half of a powerful crow god and he is a fucking bastard!!!

MM AU - Also new design!! He's not seen above but I do wanna talk about his character a bit. He grew up in a poor family and due to a series of unfortunate events, had to abandon his family and live on his own, deciding to become a thief to survive. Though he didn't want to live like this, he gets extremely good at his job and becomes an infamous thief in the cities. I think this AU was part of the reason why i got really into lupin iii later on

All of these Perrins were in like a Perrinverse situation where they interacted with each other and I drew a shit ton of art for them. All of these AUs, aside from Masquerade Mystery, AstroDome, Roboperry are now defunct and not being used sadly. It was fun while it lasted.

~ 2024 ~ Now?

Okay, last one to go through.

This one really got slapped with the Monkey Punch art style lmao. Not to say that's a bad thing, he looks pretty awesome. It was honestly really hard to draw him right in my new style, it took quite a while to get used to it but it was all worth it!!!

Will there be a couple more changes to his design in the future? maaaaybe.. But I'm happy with how he is now, the previous design got way too out of hand with the details.

With this post approaching its end, I wanna say to Perrin: I'm deeply sorry that I couldn't care for you well enough these recent years!!! I am very occupied with current projects, and while I'm unable to care for you now, you are more than just a character, you are an intergral part of my life and I will never forget that. With you reaching 10 years of age now, I promise that one day through these next 10 years that I will come back to you again with even more energy and passion that I had in the past. But for now, have this post and the drawing as a present from me to you :)

And thank you for whoever read BOTH POSTS through the end!! you are fucking wild and I would really love to hear what you thought of Perrin and his lore. I really wonder how long this took to read actually

uh what if i made it longer

and a bit longer

and a biiiiiit longer

maybe a biiiiiiiiiiit mo-

#peaterookie art #peater oc #peater rambles #perrin torigoe #lu aikal #berry neri #audie moore #i also just wanna mention that i think its funny how his skin got darker over time #and how like he progressively got older too #early human peater was around 11-12 #cant wait when his actual age goes over his canon age #that would be wild bro

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veebs-hates-video-games · 5 days ago

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Ok, I know this is an extremely unpopular opinion, and I wish I'd had a different experience with it, but Ode to Castlevania is quite possibly the least fun I've ever had playing Vampire Survivors. Part of that isn't really its own fault, because it's very jarring going back to it right after playing Halls of Torment, which does a lot of stuff better than it does, but part of it is definitely just that I don't like it very much. It's kind of a bummer as someone who's really enjoyed Vampire Survivors in the past and who's played Castlevania games on and off since the NES.

Probably one of the biggest internal issues I have with it (i.e. not comparing it to external stuff in other games) is that it's one of only two DLCs that just dumps all the new content on top of everything else already in the game instead of having a self-contained adventure mode. My previous least favorite DLC? The other one with no adventure mode.

When done well the adventure stuff is great at bringing back the sense of progression the game has without having to wipe your entire save file and start over, and it's also great for highlighting the new content and letting it shine on its own. It's also a good way to teach people the new, larger maps in more approachable chunks and give some direction for how to start tackling them.

But then there's also external comparisons to make, since I've been playing other stuff in the same genre that's improved on some stuff, and I'll use Halls of Torment since it's what I've played most recently. It's also another strictly 2D game that's heavily referencing classic games with its aesthetic and some of its design (specifically stuff like the first couple Diablo games in this case), so it's a more direct comparison in some ways than some of the fancy 3D games in the genre.

Visual clarity is so much better in Halls of Torment. Like holy crap you can actually tell what's going on so much better even with ridiculous late game builds and hundreds of enemies on the screen. With the exception of certain elemental DoT setups I can pretty much always see everything going on on the screen and the background level art, and even all the enemies well enough to navigate a path through them.

Vampire Survivors tends to deteriorate into having a zone of death around you that's mostly clear, and then the entire rest of the screen is the visual equivalent of unintelligible gibberish. It's still playable like that, but I can't actually see any of the fun Castlevania references in the level design or even the enemies half the time, which is half the point of this DLC.

The UI is also much better in Halls of Torment. There's so much more information easily available, especially in the pause screen. It's kind of annoying in VS having to just remember what has to be done for the next set of unlocks, while I'm HoT you can just pull it up in the menu at any time. Want to see what stats actually affect your weapons? In VS it sort of tells you in the collection, which you can't access while playing. Otherwise go look it up online. HoT again just has all this stuff in the menu.

And speaking of challenges/unlocks/achievements, the VS ones aren't usually all that interesting most of the time and just amount to "play the game with this character or weapon or whatever". The ones in HoT are easily the best I've ever seen in the genre, and probably some of the best I've seen in any game in a while. Some of them are also just "play the game and it'll happen" ones, but a lot of them are little mini-puzzles where you have to figure out a moderately clever setup you might not have otherwise tried to be able to pull things off in a single run.

There are other differences that are mostly just design decisions that aren't inherently better one way or the other, like the mutually exclusive upgrade paths for things in HoT that let you significantly change how a character or weapon plays from run to run, but that isn't anything wrong with VS, just something I appreciate about HoT.

I guess what it comes down to is that Halls of Torment has a lot of QoL features I miss, and it's built a lot of interesting stuff on the foundation from earlier games. Vampire Survivors was already getting kind of bloated, and the lack of adventure mode to give a more curated experience of the new content really kills any motivation I have to play through the rest of Ode to Castlevania.

#vampire survivors #halls of torment

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possiblyimbiassed · 4 years ago

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The lying liars who lie

Years and years late to the party, I’ve finally gotten my hands on all the DVDs of BBC Sherlock, and I thought it would be fun to watch the extra material carefully, one piece after another, and also listen to at least some of the show makers’ commentary of the episodes. But at this point, after S4 where DVDs seemed to be a constant lying device in general, I tend to look at them with a bit more suspicious eyes...

I still love the show of course, but now that I’ve taken this deep dive into all the special features, I find them a truly hard thing to try to wrap my head around. Even this long after the fact, I’m amazed by the amount of shameless, self-congratulatory BS in the DVDs, where the people involved can’t have enough of complimenting each other and their show, while they skillfully avoid to discuss anything actually meaningful about the plot line. ;) For example, Moffat claims in the S2 DVD that “In fact, you’ll never see a more obsessively authentic version of Sherlock Holmes than this one”. But if we follow their light-hearted commentary, which basically takes the show at face value, I’d call that not just hyperbole, but an outright lie. If you want to see the ‘authentic’ stories from ACD’s work in this show, you’ll definitely need to go much deeper into the subtext and meta levels - neither of which are mentioned on these DVDs of course. Here’s my own (rather subjective) ‘review’ of the whole thing, trying to pinpoint why I view most of the commentary of the show from its own makers as an advanced art of deception.

(My musings under the cut)

Series 1 - a wealth of extra material

First of all - as many of you probably knew already - the whole of the Unaired Pilot is added to the DVD of S1. In the extra material about the making of the series, they (Sue Vertue, Mofftiss and others) talk about what things they changed between the Pilot and ASiP, claiming that many changes were necessary improvements once they knew that they had a whole series and a lot more time at their disposal.

Which I can perfectly understand and agree with in general. But I think what’s missing in their discussions is more interesting than what’s actually there (”Mind the gap” ;) ). Things that I would expect from the show makers when they go to the trouble of comparing the pilot version with the aired product. There’s not a word, for example, about the fact that they added both Mycroft and Moriarty to the story in ASiP - two characters who later turn out to play major roles and appear in almost every other episode until the end of TFP. Or about the choice that one of the screenwriters would play Mycroft.

Neither do they discuss why they chose to relocate the place where Sherlock was challenged by the cabbie from 221B to Roland Kerr’s School of Further Education. Instead they focus on the details, like for example the new design of the interior of 221B.

Not to mention the fact that almost every scene in the Pilot is mirrored in ASiP (as pointed out long ago by @kateis-cakeis X), but at Angelo’s in the Pilot Sherlock follows the events with the cabbie while looking in an actual mirror. I even noticed that in the Pilot the cabbie is offering Sherlock dark-coloured bottles with the pills in them, while in ASiP those bottles are transparent, as if the cabbie is offering Sherlock to play Black or White in the chess game that he is simulating. What’s with all these mirrors, though? Not a word on the DVD... ;)

Now, even though these rather remarkable choices are neglected together with a great bunch of minor ones, I still think that the most interesting fact about all this is that they actually included the whole pilot version within this DVD, which is sold by the franchise. Why even do this, when it raises far more questions than it answers? The only logical reason I can come up with is that they’re laying out a track of little hints that anyone with a deep enough interest in the show to actually buy the DVDs can try to follow. And it seems to me that lying by omission is one of the first steps in the long line of cryptic and misleading author comments on this show. But at the same time, they clearly want the fans to have access to it all, even the abandoned version.

Moving on to Series 2, time for bigger lies

In the extra material of this DVD Benedict himself describes how his character "faces one of his deadliest enemies in the shape of Love, and it comes in the form of Irene Adler, who is this extraordinary dominatrix [insert here a bunch of superlatives regarding Adler]...”. And then we see how Adler whips Sherlock with a riding crop (without any kind of consent, I have to add) while he’s lying on the floor, and we have Lara Pulver telling us how it was to have a go at Benedict on set. So Holmes whips dead bodies and Adler whips living; seems like a match made in hell! :))

Gatiss claims, grinning with his whole face, that “they’re clearly, absolutely made for each other”. OK, so I think we can see Sherlock being intellectually impressed by Adler, and even trying to protect her from Mycroft, and we can see John acting jealously. We can also see her being dressed and styled as a perfect, female mirror of Sherlock. But I’m still at a loss what all this has to do with love on Sherlock’s part? Especially since he’s not even responding in any fashion to her various attempts at seducing him.

And there’s more: Paul McGuigan, the director of ASiB, claims that the scene where Sherlock has a conversation with Adler inside his Mind Palace about the crime case with the car that backfires "is a part of a kind of love story, if you like...” No, I don’t. Maybe it’s just me, but if their aim really was to convey to their audience a love story between Sherlock and The Woman, I think they failed miserably. All I see is a guy ’mansplaining’ to a clever woman how to use her brain, while she’s trying to flirt with him by expressing her admiration (to no avail, though) and make deductions at the same time. Nothing new under the sun, really. John did the same thing repeatedly in ASiP (without making own deductions) and got far more attention from Sherlock, but I’ve never heard any of the show makers call that ”a love story”. But by ’lie-splaining’ the scene with Irene to the audience, they try to manipulate us all to see it as such...

In all the direct commentary of this episode, where Steven, Mark, Sue, Benedict and Lara are present, I get the impression that every time they even touch on the relationship between Sherlock and John, they hurry to add the term “friendship” or “man love” or similar words in case they forgot them at first, avoiding even the tiniest possibility that there could be anything more going on between them. They even explain that when Irene calls them “a couple” she does not mean anything romantic. This whole approach feels almost paranoic in the midst of all the laid-back jokes and light-hearted talk about the filming. It’s as if a sort of restrictive, heteronormative filter or blanket is being constantly applied, to teach the audience the ‘no homo’ lesson of it all. And the more I listen to this, the more tiresome it becomes.

In the commentary Moffat does reveal an interesting detail, though: that the ‘Flight of the Dead’ in ASiB was inspired by a cut out scene in the Bond movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service. To me this is just one more reason to question the ‘authentic’ quality of this scene, as opposed to possibly taking place in Sherlock’s Mind Palace. But I digress...

Listening to the commentary in general, it’s like it’s aimed to distract the attention from what’s going on at the screen rather than highlight it and try to explain their intentions. They do mention that Irene didn’t actually ‘beat’ Sherlock in the end of ASiB, but there’s no explanation of this obvious deviation from canon, where Adler does indeed fool Holmes, taking advantage of his prejudices.

The rest of the extra material of S2 is mostly about technical stuff, special effects and such, and also about filming techniques and Benedict’s delivery of fast deductions. But the part I really do love is the one where Andrew Scott talks about how much he enjoyed playing the scene where Moriarty dances before breaking into the Crown Jewels. That’s one of my favorite scenes of he whole show. :) Also, the takeaway message from this DVD is Moffat’s words at the end:

“These are still the formative years of Sherlock Holmes, and the most important thing about this series is not that it’s updated; it’s the fact that those two men are still young and they’re still at the beginning of what they don’t yet know is gonna be a lifelong partnership”.

And then comes Series 3...

...and its extra material, with the most blatant attempts at deception so far, I believe. At this point Sherlock is called a “psychopath” by both the show’s characters, John’s blog, Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman as if it were true, which is a big deviation from ACD canon. That simply doesn’t happen there; while Holmes is sometimes described as eccentric, no one in the books is ever claiming that Sherlock Holmes has some kind of mental illness leaning towards cruelty and egotism - not even his enemies say this about him. In the show, however, they begin in ASiP with making him torture a dying man for information (something that is not included in the Pilot). And in S3, where they avoid discussing the reason why they turned Mary Morstan into a ruthless assassin, this major shift is glossed over by the fact that in the same episode (HLV) they also turn Sherlock into a murderer, who cold-bloodedly blows the brains out of a blackmailer for threatening to make said assassin’s crimes public.

But without ever getting into the “why” of it all, the cast and crew seem overly happy and smiling describing these rather morbid choices as something positive; “fantastic”, "fresh and new” and "amazing” are their choice of words. Benedict claims that Mary, who has literally shot and almost killed Sherlock in HLV, is now "a new best friend of Sherlock’s”. Amanda claims that Mary “is protecting John” when she shoots Sherlock in the chest. Now they’re both psychopaths, and poor little John is forced to stomach them both because he’s addicted to danger. In Amanda’s words, Mary also “kind of gets in between the two of them, but she wants them to be together as well”. Which is a load of BS considering that Mary tries to kill the protagonist of the story.

Lars Mikkelsen thinks it’s “such a good script” because “you’re mislead as an audience”. But he never gets the chance to expand on what the misleading actually contains, because then Mofftiss cut in to express how much they love playing with “what ifs”. As if this whole mega-budget project of a show were just a big experimental playground without any actual story to tell.

Benedict repeats his line from HLV that Magnussen “preys on people who are different” and Moffat also says he “exploits people who are different”. Which is really confusing, considering what we can see Magnussen actually do in the show. Lady Smallwood and John Garvie are two well-established, powerful governmental politicians whom Magnussen blackmails by finding their respective pressure points. In Garvie’s case his pressure point seems to be alcohol problems in his past, but according to media he’s later arrested on charges of corruption. Lady Smallwood is blackmailed on the basis of her husband having sent compromising letters to a minor many years ago, in spite of later claiming that he thought she was older and stopped when he found out the truth. And then Magnussen is blackmailing an assassin who recently threatened to execute him but shot Sherlock Holmes instead, in order to try to get at Sherlock’s brother Mycroft, another powerful governmental figure.

But what does media seeking out dirt on certain people in power and their families have to do with “people who are different”? Despicable as the method may be, isn’t this unfortunately how political power play usually works in our society? Or are TPTB somehow a repressed minority group now? Unless this whole “people who are different” accusation is actually about something entirely different, something that none of the show makers even cares to mention... ;)

In these DVDs, none of the involved persons is ever discussing the change of roles with regards to canon, though, or the (lack of) logics in this turn of events, or even a hint about the narrative motivation behind them. It’s all about the great Drama, the extraordinary visual effects and the aim to endlessly “surprise the audience”. Which is fine by me to a certain extent, but when this is all that’s being said, it feels extremely superficial, as if the audience is merely seen as a bunch of consumers that have to be triggered more and more by horror, special effects and cliff hangers to be able to appreciate the show. (“Warm paste” indeed, like Gatiss has later criticized some viewers of wanting...) While the "why”; the idea behind this surrealistic adaptation, made by self-proclaimed fanboys of ACD, is not even touched upon. Around this, the silence is total and therefore totally confusing.

Maybe I shouldn’t even go into Series 4...

...but why not, since I’ve already started? :)

First of all, there’s a lot of extra material on this DVD and I particularly love the parts about the music and composing and Arwel Wyn Jones’ work with the design and build-up of John’s and Mary’s flat and the interior of 221B. Those bits are truly enjoyable. What I could live without, though, is the leading commentary that kind of instructs us, the audience, how we should interpret the show.

Benedict is on it again on this DVD, telling us that in TST they picked up where they left off in S3 and “It’s a very happy unit of three people that then become four.” Why does he feel the need to make this statement, considering how S3 ended? Actually, if there’s anything I totally fail to see in S4, it’s happiness. The banter between the three of them may seem entertaining for a while, but who could have a relaxed, warm relationship with someone who tried and almost succeeded to kill you less than a year ago? Without any sign of remorse? Now there’s a dark tone of discomfort and mean jokes that feels forced and not even a bit happy to me.

But Martin tells us how excited John and Mary are about starting a family and Amanda mentions how much they’re looking forward to the baby. Again and again it’s repeated, as though trying to rub it in: “they’re in a good place, they’re a loving, married couple”. Yeah, right - a child that (judging by TSoT) wasn’t at all planned and now with an assassin for a mother... Twice we see the new parents complain that their daughter has the mark of Satan on her forehead and debate which horror movie she’s from. The clichéd hypocrisy of it all is sickening, and I’m willing to bet that it’s really meant to be. ;)

But Gatiss chimes in, deciding for us all that the christening of Rosie is “a funny scene” and “they’re enjoying each other, enjoying being on adventures as a three”.

An interesting detail is that Gatiss also tells us that the working name of this episode was “The Adventure of the Melting power Ranger”. So this little blue guy was that important? :) And - even more interesting - is when he says: “Cake is now the code for violent death”. So how should we interpret Sherlock, John and Molly going out to have cake in TLD then, on Sherlock’s (supposed) birthday?

These might be jokes, though, but when they tell us that Sue cries every time she sees Mary’s death I strongly believe they must be joking. How could anyone feel truly moved by this overly sentimental long monologue where far more efforts are put into reacting to Mary’s speech than saving her life? And John’s mooing like a cow, is that also moving? :)

One thing Martin says about TLD that actually disgusts me is regarding the morgue scene where John assaults Sherlock and Sherlock lets it happen: “From there, really, their relationship can only sort of rebuild, that’s the absolute worst it can get”. As if outright physical abuse would be something that makes you want to rebuild a relationship? Wow - just wow... How far can they go with this crap?

Anyway, when we finally arrive at the absurdity of TFP and Sherlock’s ‘secret sister’, everything is of course discussed as if she actually does exist on the given premises, and everything she does is ‘real’, no matter how impossible it would be in real life. The abandonment of any attempt to have the story line make logical sense is skillfully covered up by more distraction with fascinating technicalities of the film making process. This is where Gatiss makes his now almost classic statement that after Sherlock and John jump out of the window at 221B when a grenade explodes there, it’s just “Boop! And they’re fine.”

Of course there’s no serious attempt at explaining this logically. Except perhaps Gatiss claiming that they both landed on Speedy’s awning - whatever good that would do to them, since the awning is leaning downwards, but never mind... But we never even saw that happen, did we? A great deal of time is then dedicated to show all the precautions to have Martin and Ben jumping safely at low level onto a madras supported by empty cardboard boxes.

Sian Brooke did say something interesting about Sherrinford, however, that got me thinking. She said that Eurus “wants revenge for the years and years that she has been held captive” there, isolated, and that in TFP the Holmes children are now “lab rats” and “it’s an experiment”. On a meta level, I think we can indeed see this episode - and maybe the whole show - as a kind of experiment, but maybe we, the audience, are also lab rats? Since Sherrinford is slightly shaped like a film camera (not commented in the extra material, of course), it leads my thought to all the adaptations through the years and years where Holmes and Watson have not been allowed to be together. A whole century when Sherlock Holmes has been held captive, restricted by the very same sort of heteronormative filter that all this extra material imposes; it’s like Sherrinford, isn’t it? Which gives all the more meaning to Moriarty’s arrival to the island, accompanied by Freddy Mercury’s “I want to break free”...

I think I’ll let the final words in this little exposé come from Mark Gatiss in The Writers’ Chat (my bolding):

“Moriarty is a fascinating thing in that in our sea of ongoing lies, one thing we’ve genuinely been completely consistent about is telling people he’s dead. But no-one believes it! And it’s a rather brilliant thing.” Again - self-congratulatory statements. But instead of providing some actual evidence of the death of this character, who has kept popping up in almost every episode since his supposed demise, they think that the more a confirmed liar repeats something, the truer it gets? And the more we’re supposed to believe them? Well, all we can do is wait and see. :)

Tagging some people who might be interested:

@raggedyblue @ebaeschnbliah @sarahthecoat @gosherlocked @lukessense @sagestreet @thepersianslipper

My earlier meta on a similar topic (X)

#bbc sherlock dvds #Deception in BBC Sherlock

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auncyen · 3 years ago

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Ok ok so I'd been idly thinking about updating "Chats with Joker in Mementos" for Royal for a while, except as far as I know there aren't any transcriptions for the Royal Mementos chats like there is for Vanilla...

So...after some questionable use of my time, I now have a list of a good chunk of the starters in Royal. Only starters, not responses, since the point of the fic is having Joker be the one to respond, and I didn't transcribe ones I didn't think would be interesting for him to respond to, but still, if anyone does ever look to do a complete transcription, this might be helpful as a start? Or just interesting if you want to see what some characters talk about. Spoilers for third semester below cut.

Ryuji: Man, we really bust our asses to get stronger in here. I wish it meant we got stronger in the real world too.

Ryuji: Man, I had this horrible dream last night… Can’t remember a thing about it, though.

Ryuji: Ya know what? I guess Mona does have a mask, technically.

Ryuji: Yo, the way he jumps behind Shadows is so sick!

Ryuji: Yo, is it just me, or is fallin’ asleep getting tougher every night? At this point, I’m outta ideas of what to do.

Ryuji: Kinda fiendin’ for some ramen right about now… Maybe I’ll hit up Ogikubo when we get back.

RyujI: So lately, I’ve been tryin’ to work some training into my nightly routine before bed.

Ryuji: Hey, is it just me, or is Morgana’s sword basically the same size as Joker’s knife?

Ryuji: My mom made gyudon last night! My fave! Now I’ve got, like, fifty times more energy than usual!

Ryuji: This phantom thief stuff feels real as hell whenever he’s flyin’ around with that grappling hook.

Ryuji: Dude, that grappling hook is awesome! He looks like a freakin’ superhero with that thing!

Ryuji: Aww man, I just can’t get enough of those Akihabara maids…

Ryuji: Aren’t knives kinda hard to use ‘cause of their shortness? I definitely prefer my own shit.

Ryuji: I always thought darts looked easy—just aim for the board, y’know? But, it’s waaay harder than that.

Ryuji: Every try the monja in Tsukishima? That stuff is LEGIT.

Ryuji: Yo, does this outfit really make me look like I’m part of some biker gang?

Morgana: Listen, it’s not that I look like a cat. Cats just happen to look like me.

Morgana: I repeat: I am not a cat. To prove it, I took an actual bath yesterday.

Morgana: So, cats love to chase mice, right? I don’t get it—where’s the fun in that?

Morgana: I’m always so entranced by Panther’s whip technique!

Morgana: Panther, we have matching tails!

Morgana: You know, I’ve never actually been in a car before. Is it anything like I am now?

Morgana: I definitely made the right decision giving him the code name “Joker.”

Morgana: I’m willing to bet Joker’s skilled enough to use throwing knives.

Morgana: Anime, books, movies… Phantom thieves sure are popular.

Morgana: Last night I dreamt that Phantom Thieves were kicking some serious butt—let’s bring that dream to life!

Morgana: I can teach you everything you need to know about being a phantom thief. Relax—you’re in good hands!

Morgana: *yawn* I didn’t get enough sleep…

Morgana: I couldn’t fall asleep at all last night. I just laid there with my eyes open…

Morgana: I like Yongen-Jaya; it’s a great place for a stroll.

Morgana: Is Shujin Academy the only thing in Aoyama?

Morgana: I was vegetating in front of the TV last night, and I have to say, there are some pretty decent shows on now.

Ann: The bakery had a sale yesterday and I ended up buying everything they had!

Ann: The Ferris wheel is a must for me at theme parks, every time. I love being able to just relax.

Ann: I have an upcoming shoot at a theme park, but what sucks is how I can’t go on any of the rides.

Ann: Last night I dreamt I was eating a chocolate bar, then all of a sudden, it got mad and started chasing me!

Ann: Every once in a while I have a dream where I get chased by a Shadow…

Ann: I’ve been sleeping really well since I started getting all this exercise.

Ann: I was up late watching TV last night, so I might be a little sleep deprived…

Ann: I tend to do my clothes shopping in Kichijoji—it’s fun looking through all the resale shops.

Ann: I hate when people ask me to say stuff in English just ‘cause I lived overseas.

Ann: It always bothers me when foreign movie subtitles leave stuff out or take too many liberties.

Ann: I was talking to my overseas friend the other day—her straightforward attitude was really refreshing!

Ann: I was talking to Shiho on the phone and before I knew it, three whole hours had passed!

Ann: Joker seems like he’d make a good cook, doesn’t he? I mean, he’s great with his knife and all…

Ann: It’s actually quite exhilarating to attack with a whip. I wonder why that is…

Ann: Whenever my foreign relatives come to Japan, they always rave about how much they love Japanese food!

Ann: Do you think there’s anything I can do about my outfit? I feel like I stand out too much in this…

Ann: Is there a difference between a whip and a grappling hook?

Ann: Ya know, Skull’s always been into skull designs and stuff.

Ann: Wouldn’t a grappling hook be awfully handy in the real world?

Yusuke: I wish to paint the world as only I see it. The best way to succeed at this is through practice.

Yusuke: It’s fun to walk around and inspect different temples and shrines. The architecture is always impressive.

Yusuke: If Shadows are sentient, do you think their being moved by a painting would invoke a change of heart?

Yusuke: There have been times where I was compelled to create three-dimensional art.

Yusuke: I’m quite curious about Mona’s Western-style sword…

Yusuke: I hear whips are quite difficult to use. Where did you learn how to wield one?

Yusuke: Joker using a grappling hook…. That would make for a picture-perfect composition.

Yusuke: Mona, what exactly do you have in those pouches?

Yusuke: Creating a piece of art is pointless unless I can convey the full essence of the subject.

Yusuke: Art museums stimulate my creativity like no other place—I wish I could live inside one.

Yusuke: Skull and I both use long melee weapons, but they’re total opposites of one another.

Yusuke: Why does my outfit have a tail? I don’t understand…

Yusuke: I considered growing my own bean sprouts, but it seems to be more expensive than buying them grown.

Yusuke: I once had a dream that I washed up on a deserted island. I painted as much as I pleased… So wonderful.

Yusuke: I may specialize in Japanese-style painting, but I’d like to learn some Western techniques as well.

Yusuke: That grappling hook is very useful. I should find a way to utilize one in my daily life.

Yusuke: The other day, I went into the mountains to gather vegetables so I could cut back on food expenses.

Yusuke: I tried to paint a landscape of the starry sky once, but it’s quite difficult to do so from within the city.

Yusuke: India ink isn’t my specialty, but I’ve been experimenting with it in some recent work, just for fun.

Makoto: I may have stopped being a doormat for adults, but people are still calling me a “teacher’s pet.”

Makoto: A phantom thief’s body is their most vital asset. We need to make sure we eat balanced, nutritious meals.

Makoto: Do you enjoy visiting theme parks? I’ve rarely been to one myself.

Makoto: Fox looks cooler using his katana than I had originally imagined.

Makoto: I had the weirdest dream… I was at school, but I was wearing my phantom thief outfit.

Makoto: Would anyone care to learn how to drive, while we’re here? This place seems as good as any for practice.

Makoto: I know it’s not very healthy, but I do enjoy eating ramen from time to time.

Makoto: Once I’ve graduated, I’m going to buy a motorcycle and go on a road trip.

Makoto: I’ve been working on my grades because I still want to attend college, despite being a phantom thief.

Makoto: I want to read a certain book, but it’s out of print. Where do you suppose I could find a copy?

Makoto: Maybe I’m just burned out, but waking up has grown awfully difficult lately.

Makoto: The grappling hook’s cable seems pretty strong, but it’s scary to think what could happen if it snapped.

Makoto: Once my sister brought home some sushi for me. It was indescribably good…

Futaba: I heard rhythm’s an important part of fighting, sooo… I started playing a rhythm game!

Futaba: There’s going to be an event tonight in the MMO I play. I can’t wait!

Futaba: This MMO I’m hooked on is really cool. Do you wanna play with me? Oh—it’s in English, though.

Futaba: I’m about to beat the game I’ve been playing. Wonder what I should play next?

Futaba: I’ve been going outside a lot more, so now I’m sleeping way better than I did when I was a shut-in.

Futaba: Guess what? I’m making a game called “Hungry Hungry Mona”!

Futaba: You know who’s a really good driver, is Sojiro. He can parallel park with his eyes closed!

Futaba: If you could shoot grappling hooks from your hands, you’d probably be able to get around just using those!

Futaba: Ya know, I’ve thought about workin’ out and fighting alongside you guys.

Futaba: You guys should try playing shooters! It could help you improve your gun skills.

Futaba: Last night I had a dream my hard drive failed… That was scary.

Futaba: Wouldn’t it be cool if you could mod the grappling hook so it was electrified?

Futaba: Sure, the internet’s convenient, but it’s not like it can do everything. Don’t overestimate its capabilities.

Futaba: I wonder if I’d be okay going to some place by myself if it wasn’t crowded. Inokashira Park seems nice.

Futaba: Yesterday Sojiro bought me my favorite instant yakisoba!

Futaba: Maybe I should get a gun too, just for self-defense… Nah, my hands need to be empty.

Haru: I found this cafe in Kichioji with phenomenal tea—would you care to try it sometime?

Haru: I ordered kusaya but they refused to make it—they said they couldn’t get the smell out of the kitchen.

Haru: I feel like I need to learn more about the world, but I’m not sure how to best go about it.

Haru: Recently, I’ve been finding rare delicacies rather enticing…

Haru: Even lately, I sometimes dream about doing phantom thief things with Mona.

Haru: If you’re having trouble getting yourself to relax, I recommend herbal tea.

Haru: Asakusa is a wonderful area—I love how it’s this blend of the old and the new.

Haru: Ever since I started high school I’ve been taking the train in the morning, but I’m still not used to it…

Haru: Queen, your mask looks like it’s made of iron. Doesn’t it get heavy?

Haru: Joker’s so acrobatic! He’s really got the hang of that grappling hook.

Haru: I don’t think I’ve gotten this much exercise since I was in ballet.

Haru: Let me know if you ever get a tear in your clothing—I’m good at sewing, so I could most likely fix it.

Haru: I dreamt that the vegetables I’d been growing all died… I was so sad.

Haru: Your weapon seems fun, Skull. Do you want to swap sometime?

Haru: Sometimes it’s impossible for me to fall asleep on days that we’ve been to Palaces, no matter how tired I am.

Haru: You know, before this, I’d never considered using an axe for anything other than chopping firewood…

Haru: My hands have gotten all calloused… I supposed it comes with the territory in gardening.

Akechi: I have no intention of changing my stance on matters, no matter what anyone may say.

Akechi: Pancakes... I don’t want to hear that word again for a long, long time.

Akechi: We don’t have much time left. Please do what you can to avoid getting sick.

Akechi: The enemies are stronger than ever. Don’t let your guard down.

Akechi: A world that panders to your every whim is so mundane. Where’s the thrill if there’s no competition?

Akechi: Do you prefer my previous outfit or this one? Moving around’s become much easier for me.

Akechi: This place is immense. If there weren’t train tracks everywhere, I’d bring my bike here.

Akechi: We’re working under the constraints of a time limit, so I’d appreciate it if you could be more efficient.

Akechi: If you’re looking for a way to train both your mind and your body, I highly recommend bouldering.

Akechi: You think I’m frightening when I fight? Well, I’m afraid you’re just going to have to accept it.

Akechi: I meant to tell you, regarding Shido… Thank you for keeping your promise.

Akechi: You may not like working with me, but I’m counting on your assistance until our goal is achieved.

Akechi: When we’re riding in the car like this, it’s easy to forget that we’re actually inside Mona.

Akechi: The Shadows here behave differently from the ones in the Palaces, don’t they?

Akechi: I’m getting a bit hungry. I should’ve eaten beforehand.

Akechi: I enjoy spending time in Kichijoji. It’s not very big, but there are plenty of trendy shops.

Akechi: Riding in the car may beat walking, but it doesn’t stop my legs from growing stiff and sore…

Sumire: I have a few different superstitions for good luck in my routines… They get sort of hard to drop.

Sumire: It was already hard for me to believe Palaces existed, but to think there’s such a massive one under Shibuya…

Sumire: It’s a bit cramped in here with this many people…

Sumire: I get stiff all over from just sitting in the car.

Sumire: Why is the one desert you get to eat during the week so delicious?

Sumire: A phantom thief outfit represents a person’s image of their rebellion, right?

Sumire: I wonder if I should try incorporating another sport into my gymnastics training.

Sumire: I wonder what I could use as inspiration for my performances…

Sumire: Swords are actually pretty hard to wield.

Sumire: Whenever I travel, I always end up buying some sort of good luck charm.

Sumire: Your outfits are all so unique. I can see coordinating them wasn’t a priority.

Sumire: This time of year, a heating pad’s an absolute must for keeping warm.

Sumire: Sometimes people will just walk up to me and ask me to show them a standing split.

Sumire: I’m in top shape today! Let’s keep going.

Sumire: Do you all stretch beforehand? You could pull a muscle if you don’t.

Sumire: It’s too bad gymnastics competitions aren’t on TV more often.

Sumire: Fighting makes for a pretty good workout, doesn’t it?

while I didn't transcribe responses, I did notice something a bit disappointing: neither Sumire nor Akechi seemed to have responses for anyone else. It's possible I missed one?? But not being able to remember any, they must not have many if they do have some. A bit odd.

#persona 5 #p5r #p5r spoilers #to pick from later

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hollypies · 3 years ago

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I don't really know how to ask but do you have any advice for new artists?

Uhm, yeah!!

Im not the best at explaining, but I'll try to make sense!!

Alright so. First thing is like, what style you want to draw or what style you already might have! I used to look at a bunch of different artists and find ones I liked and then note littke things they did. Say like, you like the way they draw hair or clothes, or how they shade, and you take the things you like, draw it and change it to suite your style even more! All artists do this I think, its like. It's just something we do!

Shading is also really important! You don't have to shade of course, but for me personally it's my favorite part! This is some advice I got from a friend a few years ago when I was just starting digital qrt. Try to avoid shading with grays and blacks. It can look good for some things, and if it fits what you're you're anf uou like it, keep doing it! But it doesn't alwasy fit. It can make your characters or scenery look dark or scuffed. If you wsnt to use a dark color but you don't wanna use black alwasy go for a color that goes well with the current colors anf! Make it a lot darker !

Another thing about shading is figuring where you want the light and where you want the dark. And what I mean by that is which side has shadow and which doesn't! This is another thing I was taught ! My old friend Sea (who's art was amazing and I looked up to them) used give a lot of advice, so most of the stuff I learned comes from them or just me playing around in ibisxpaint.

Alright! Next is anatomy!! There's a few things to remember so I gonna make it as simple as I can! For people I alwasy start with more or less basic shapes. Use a circle for the head (you can use other shapes as well!!) And then put lines where the face will be looking. This helps later when you're actually drawing the face. Also use basic shaped for the body and hips. I personally use squares and rectangles, but like I said!! Use other shaped to for more dynamic shapes! I'm trying tk to that as well so !!

Here's just some other basic things I picked up on. Hands alwasy go a little below the waist, so when I draw the arms and hands somewhere else I always picture in my head where it'll be. This is a littke hard to explain haha but! You can also use your own arm or look at references! You only need the basics for anatomy in my opinion, because if everyone was straight on all the time it'd hurt some character designs. It can help your character look more stylised!! So when drawing dknt worry to much and just keep the general position and then stretch it to how you wanna look!

I cant draw feet so I can't help you with that sorry :(

Legs are fairly easy though! Ok so when I'm using my first name sketch I like to also use a shape for the base of the waist. It helps with remembering where to start the legs and also it helps with knowing how long the arms have to be. Look at references if you need to, either of real people or how others draw! That helps a lot.

Kinda being a hypocrite because I don't normally use references 🙃

And how could I forget!! The face!! Faces qre fun to draw , but they can be a littke tricky. I used to struggle with them because I started out as a cat artist. It was.. the only thing I drew. So remember that!! Eye position matters. I mean the pupil bt that haha. My friend Sea once. Informed me that the way I used to draw eyes was wrong. One was bigger than the other and the way the pupils and irises were positioned made all my characters look cross eyed. Harsh to say to a twelve year old but it was true .

Q good way to check eyes is to flip your art around! This also helps with anatomy I general but it's very useful for the face! Once you see whats wrong or if it doesn't look how you want, fix it on that side and then flip it back. It may take a few minutes of tweaking but! It works reallt well!!

Go ham with the mouth honestly! Do whatever! Just remember that teeth do curve in the mouth

And finally! Ears 😬. I used to really struggle with ears. You don't alwasy have to draw the ears, you can cover them with hair and such, but it is good to figure it out! Ears are on the middle of the head. Like. Ok so where the eyes are! Use the eyes as a guide as to where to put the ears. Thats what do I but id recommend looking into it further due to it taking me years to figure it out 😔

Hand hands. Yeah. I dont have anything for that I'm sorry ! I'd say just learn the basic shape of a hand and figure it out. That's literally all I did and im still not sure I know how I did it.

ALSO DINT FORGET TO STRETCH YOUR WRISTS OR U WILL PAIN :[

And the advice that generally makes people mad. Practice ! I'm. Im q self taught artist, and ever since I was littke I just. Drew on my own. I practiced anf changed styles a lot to get where I am now, but I wouldn't have done it if I hadn't been dedicated. It helps that I enjoy making art and I like putting out there for people to see! But it does take a lot of time in the beginning. And you'll improve each time you draw!!

And as I've said, your art style is yours. You might find a way that is way different from anything I said, and that's good! There's tons of ways to do anatomy and figure out shading and just! Honestly just have fun with it :)

Also I won't be able to help with scenery and perspectives for rooms and. See I have derealization and it. It makes it hard to figure that out and its just. It's complicated for me ! I'd recommend asking someone else about that in particular!

Hope this helps! If there's anything specific I missed please tell me and I'll try to ! I'll try to help!

#holly answers #art advice #waah!! someones actually asking ME for advice 🥺💞?????#thas crazy haha!!#love u anon hope you figure it out!!#mwah mwah!!#sorry if this wasnt helpful #and i hope uou see this!!#if u do read the tags as well hello 👁💗💗💗💗💗#long post #this was a littke hard to write because i have trouble reading anf. comprehending what i read so i really really hope this helped

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jackwolfskid · 4 years ago

Text

Creator's wrap 2020

Rules: It’s time to love yourselves! Choose your 5 favorite works (fics, art, edits, etc.) you’ve created this year and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you’ve brought into the world in 2020. If you don’t have five published works, that’s fine! Include ideas/drafts/whatever you like that you’ve worked on/thought about, and talk a little about them instead! Remember, this is all about self-love and positive enthusiasm, so fuck the rules if you need to. Have fun, and tag as many fellow creators as you like so they can share the love! <3

I was tagged by @lilolilyrae thank you <3

ok now I have to think back on the good stuff, that happened this year...

(the order is random)

1. All the drawings I made for In Your Stead and Ceremonial by @lilolilyrae . I’ve never made so many drawings in such a short time. They’ve helped me a lot to develop my art style and versatility.

Andy & Quynh’s wedding, Lykon, Andy x2, the family, Nicky & Joe, Nile, Quynh, happy end illustration, Chrome is annoying

The Old Guard and its fandom were such a huge source of joy in the more bleak parts of this year. I never would have gotten so deep into it without all of this art work!

2. The secret santa gifts I made for @rupzydaisy and @lttrsfrmlnrrgby. They showed me how much skill I’ve built up in the year since I’ve gone digital with my art.

The Old Guard secret Santa, Andromaquynh secret santa - I even made the last one into my first fic on Ao3!

3. This year was the first time I decided to actively study anatomy and make reference sheets in order to improve my lineart. It all started with some random tumblr post about maned wolves and so far culminated in this drawing.

4. One of the first digital drawings I started on is this piece of the DC Super Hero Girls. It’s a super fun animated remake that made me want to draw the main characters in my own style. Since I was fairly new to the art program and digital in general I spent ages on it before I deemed it finished enough for posting. I’ve been working on a part 2 where they’re wearing their hero outfits for quite a while now. It’s probably gonna take even more time because I’m using a different art programm now and I mostly forgot how the old one works. The downside of an upgrade is forgetting how you managed to function without it. XD

5. I’ve started to design my frst OC this year! I’ve been in love with African wild dogs ever since I saw them in the wild and got inspired by their dexterity and grace to create a parkour athlete in their honour. Here’s the first glimpse of her:

I still haven’t decided on a lot of context around her and I’m constantly struggling to find good parkour reference pics. Please let me know when you have ideas for a name!

This was fun, there was a lot of good stuff to look back to this year. I’m tagging @cryhardanddanceharder @unstatedmartini and everyone I’ve already mentioned in this post.

Also @andromachete @kayivy @mortt-artsy @andy-the-scythian @notablogtobefollowedunless I loved your entries for the secret santas

I’m excited to see what all of you will make of this challenge <3

#tag game #art #my art #the old guard #secret santa #African Wild Dog #challenge #creators wrap 2020

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carbootsoul · 3 years ago

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also i saw you got hades!!! what do you think so far!! it might be my favorite game of all time tbh i have almost 100 hours in it :’D

ok so i have played hades before, since my friend bought it months ago and we used to hang out while i played it (not as much anymore since we're occupied making our slow way through the aa games but like) and i got to like. early elysium playing with her so the last few days have def not been my first acquaintance w the game but GOD IT'S SO GOOD. tragically no game can compare to ace attorney in terms of how much brain space it's cursed to take up at all times but hades is without question my second favorite game. i think having played w my friend a bit was good tho bc it let my OVERWHELMING EXCITEMENT abt this game simmer a bit before i bought it and now i am just. incredible excited. i have a billion thoughts so heres another readmore lol

i've never liked roguelikes since i hate losing progress on things or doing things over and over again but hades works somehow?? like (ok today i was weird overcaffeinated so i've been a little hyperfocused anyway) but i spent like 5 hours literally doing the same thing over and over and it was SO FUN. altho i met patroclus three times before realizing he wouldn't talk to u until you opened his bit in the codex and that fact is bringing me physical pain :( u know me i always go for the dad characters in media so my main goal since i started the game has been to reunite him and achilles and it's driving me insane i missed all those opportunities to give him nectar >:( also it's fun because it's one of those pieces of media that i can like. trust if that makes sense? it was the same way with rgu where i can see what they're doing and trust the execution will be good and there won't be anything weird and homophobic/sexist/etc in the middle that i'll have to ignore. its rly nice.

also also zag is genuinely my favorite video game protag ever (along with apollo justice who. inarticulate rambling i love him so much) like he enhances the game so much. his little witty commentary all the time (side note the fact that the game has subtitles is so nice and something i didn't realize i wanted until they gave it to me) and how he's so stubborn and he knows to stand his ground (his conversations with hades in the final fight r so good) but also he's a genuinely kind person and he loves his friends and family and puppy dog and :pleading: i've got a soft spot for talking to achilles bc i like achilles but also i love how zag responds! he loves his family and he's so grateful to them for taking care of him. love that. the way he talks to meg and than is awesome too like it would be so easy for them to write a protag who gets annoyed with them both but he DOESN'T and i LOVE HIM. idk i think the game has such incredibly human and loving characters for something whose main cast is almost entirely immortal.

im rly glad i decided to buy it for myself tho! it's fun to start like. strategizing in the game. like the shield is my favorite weapon (bc i like ranged attacks but can't aim for my life) and then having doom on the special.. chefs kiss. love walking away from an enemy and then them dying behind me. idk i love it so so much. game of all time. i also am OBSESSED w how well balanced it is. like everything seems somehow both super hard and completely achievable and thats so fun. like the hades boss fight? the fact that he has three stages (i think) is jsdklfjsf especially since i can barely get through the first but also i can get through the first so i know i can get through the rest and thats soo good. like the way you can tell you're improving both because you're stronger but also the game has such a good learning curve that you actively get better at the game??? kjsldfj i love how much there is to discover!! going to the codex and seeing how much you haven't found is so exciting and idkidk i love it.

anyway yeah i love this game so much. (i could gush for hours abt the art and CHARACTER DESIGN OH MY GOD but like i'm sure u already know so. i will leave it at the fact that i saw zag and than interact for the first time and my only thought was oh my god it's narumitsu. i mean than is obvious but zag has backwards phoenix hair. also chaos... chefs kiss oh my god. NYX???? HYPNOS?? PATROCLUS AND EURYDICE AND ORPHEUS?? was going to keep listing characters but then i wouldn't be able to stop so :sob:)

#leo.ask #this is so much but i have soo many thoughts that i've just been gathering all day lol

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cosmic-navel-gazin · 4 years ago

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This is something a bit different from me, but in light of the recent announcement from Ubisoft that there’s going to be a remake of Prince of Persia: Sands of Time coming out in January 2021, I thought I’d share some thoughts.

(This started out small but got outta hand so super long post incoming, no spoilers for the games)

So first off, a bit of my history with the original game.

I’m a big fan of the Prince of Persia (PoP) franchise, and I’ll fully admit that nostalgia plays a big part in it. You see, in many ways this 2003 classic was my real entryway drug into the world of videogames.

It wasn’t the first videogame I had ever played. My friends had consoles, there were some games on the school computers, but I didn’t own games as a kid. As far as my parents were concerned, these were all the spoils and soul damning devices of Lucifer himself. You know how it is, every generation goes through this thing of blaming all the world’s problems on a new artform: rock and roll, comic books and then videogames.

So yeah, a gaming console or buying games for the home computer was a BIG NO-NO!

But of course, the more an authority figure says you can’t have something, the more you want and crave it. It was only a matter of time until the opportunity presented itself to me.

And then the day finally came.

It was just me and a couple of friends, going to this new magazine store near the school. And there it was: the dvd case that came with a gaming mag for like 5 euros if I remember correctly, stupid cheap for such a great game.

There was doubt, there was fear, there was anxiety. I didn’t know much about the game, only the old 1989 DOS Prince of Persia:

This had the same name but looked different. I was seduced immediately.

The case stared longingly at me:

It’s not my fault, I was bewitched and I bought it.

My symbol of rebellion, my first big transgression, and my first real treasured posession that I bought with hard earned money.

PoP:The Sands of Time was my original sin so to say:

Accurate representation of what happened that day

I furiously installed the game as soon as my parents left the house. Played it for a couple of hours and stood in awe at the thing - the cinematics, the cool parkour moves, the arabian nights setting, the time manipulation to undo mistakes when platforming or in combat, the Prince breaking the fourth wall saying:”no no no, that’s not what happened, let me start over” whenever I died and got a game over…

You have not experienced true fear if at some point in your life you didn’t feel the cold sweat running down your back as you hear the very distinct sound of your parents’ car arriving when you’re doing something “prohibited”.

As soon as I heard that sound, I quickly quit the game, uninstaled it (I could not run the risk of them finding out I had tainted their machine with a videogame *gasp!*), and ran to my room to hide the game before opening the door for them.

Neetheless to say, I never made much progress since I had to start over every time after quitting and uninstalling the thing. I would just play those first couple of hours over and over, never knowing how the story progressed, but I was happy all the same. At one point I knew every line of dialogue, every music cue, every sound effect of that beginning part. It would be some years before I got my first laptop and finally managed to complete it.

All of this to say that the game means a lot to me. Not just as a product or piece of entertainment. This wasn’t casually playing on someone’s gameboy advance or PS2 to have a bit of fun and pass the time.

This was more intimate.

It was just me; the game; a dark room and a blanket; and a sincere and charming, simple but compelling story told seamlessly through mechanics that only enhanced it. This was me witnessing gameplay and storytelling going hand in hand in a way that even many of my other favourite games don’t do, or don’t do as well (there’s usually some disconnect where a game only manages to really excel at one but not the other).

Ok, so on the announcement and trailer:

youtube

As a big fan you might think I was super hyped for this.

But I gotta say…no, not really.

I’m not super angry, but I’m not really excited either honestly. And I don’t think it’s just the rough and uncanny character models and animation that people are pointing out all over (although that doesn’t help).

I guess to talk a bit on that, I should stress out that my problem isn’t that it doesn’t look realistic enough. To be honest, and this is going to sound rich from a big Witcher 3 fan, I think that the gaming industry overall, moreso big tripple A titles, seem to have this unhealthy obsession with photorealism. Like, I don’t need to see the characters’s pores to care about these polygon people. Strong art direction is what I feel is more valuable. I just don’t think this arms race to photorealism is sustainable. Games are taking longer to make and fund, and I’d rather have dev teams spend more time polishing and refining the games’ mechanics and/or story if the trade-off is less “realistic” graphics.

It might just be personal preference, but I wish we were getting more stylized character and world design. Go look at some screenshots for Pathologic 2, a game that came out last year that hits that sweet spot between full-blown cartoony/caricature and realistic by today’s standards:

And I think that is somewhat what they were going for with this remake’s character models (or I hope it was). But it’s still not quite there, hopefully they’ll work on improving those so they can hit that sweet spot also.

(in defense of my hipocrisy and love of The Witcher 3, I think the more realistic look was appropriate for the world they were portraying, it benefits from it. However I don’t think I would love it any less if it had less detailed models and environments)

One last thing on the graphics.

I will say this though, at least from the footage we see in the new trailer the team seems to be capitalizing on colour. Big vibrant reds, blues, whites and yellows in the environment look great, and really captures the 1.001 nights/arabian nights feel that I absolutely love. I appreciate that since there’s always this tendency for remakes to suck all the colour and life from the original (in both games and movies), regardless if it fits the setting and tone or not.

Anyway, I think the reason I’m very much without a big reaction is that I believe the 2003 original is a true classic, a masterpiece even - I guess I should stress out that when I say masterpiece, I don’t mean it’s perfect. Just that the whole is bigger and better than the sum of its parts, that the things it does right, it does so right, that it completely overshadows the flaws.

The story, the art direction, the gameplay (the holy trinity of platforming, combat and puzzle solving), the brilliant introduction of the dagger of time as a gameplay and story mechanic (one of my favourite mechanics in all of gaming), the music, the charming duo that is the Prince and Farah, the tight pacing with the game being just the right length and not overstaying its welcome, the outstanding level design where you’re never stuck doing one thing for too long (the game is always juggling between combat, story, platforming and puzzles, mixing and matching)…

Looking at all these things, I just really don’t think we need a remake because I don’t think there’s that many glaring terrible flaws that could justify it.

Adding more scenes and content could be good, or it might backfire: bloat and ruin the game’s already excelent pacing and fluidity (which I think is the main keyword that better describes the original, everything flows superbly). The original was only 6-8 hours long and it is better for it. I’m not confident that adding dozens of hours of gameplay like the big tittles today would help at all.

The only real improvements I can see are:

tweeking and perfecting the combat (I’ve seen it mentioned that they’re implementing a targeting system which sounds good);

perhaps also better Farah’s A.I during combat when you have to help protect her from swarms of enemies;

Maybe throw in a couple more enemy types? The cut sand tigers for example?

usual things like adding the option of subtitles, add the ability to skip cutescenes;

But other than that…

I don’t even think the graphics of the original look bad. They’ve aged of course, with the game being 17 years old, but still. I installed it last night and played through the first hour to take some screenshots and I think they’re still good:

I can understand the MediEvil remaster, the Spyro remaster or the more recent FFVII remake in terms of wanting to update the graphics. I can understand that not everyone can easily go back to these low poly lads:

But this game? I know I’m influenced by nostalgia and all, but I don’t think it needs that makeover that badly, especially when compared to these other remakes and remasters. Funnily enough, I just noticed that these examples I just listed were all PS1 games. PoP: SoT was a PS2 , PC and Xbox game. PS2 era games have aged far better visually and don’t need that big a makeover in my most humble opinion.

It would be one thing if the original was out of print like a Rule of Rose scenario ,where you can’t find the game unless you go to ebay or something and it’s stupid expensive. Or if it was a pain to get running on modern systems like it was with Grim Fandango, until it got a remaster.

But no, you can find the Sands of Time trilogy and the PoP (2008) reboot on GOG and Steam (on Steam only there’s also the PoP:The Forgotten Sands midquel). So there isn’t the usual problem of the game no longer being accessible to people who want to play it, which helps justify the need for a remake.

The original still plays nice, sounds nice and looks nice, so I guess this all goes to show that at the end of the day, this remake just feels a bit unnecessary to me, at least from what little the trailer showed (I would love to have my bitter cynical ass proved wrong though!).

Maybe I just have a superhuman tolerance for older games and how they look, I really don’t have that big a problem if the game itself is good or interesting, so I don’t always think older games need remakes.

Maybe my falling out of love with Ubisoft in this last decade has curbed forever any hype I might have for their announcements, even when they pull out my son, my baby boy Prince of Persia out again.

Maybe I’m just burnt out and too pessimistic about remakes, remasters and adaptations (although game remakes usually do better than film ones).

And this makes me a bit sad because I don’t want to sh*t all over the first piece of “new” Prince of Persia content we’ve had since 2010??? Oof, it’s been a while.

Especially knowing that Yuri Lowenthal is coming back and excited to voice the Prince again. And I also don’t want to be too harsh since we’re looking at an alpha of the game. But so far I’m just very numb to this, I do seriously hope it turns out good and that they don’t rush it out the door. But I’m not convinced we need a remake in the first place. The original is a milestone, a game changer. I’d rather see a game that had great ideas and poor execution being remade than something people already love and consider a masterpiece.

Guess we’ll see how I feel once more news and footage come out.

Oh and feel free to share your own thoughts on this remake. I’m curious to know what both fans and newcomers alike think.

small edit: I can’t believe I was just watching this Sands of Time playthrough on youtube and at one point it is said: “Another game that is designed similarly to this is Soul Reaver actually.”

Of course! I didn’t even see it! All of my favourite things are connected!!! Maybe that detail was another thing that helped me getting really into Soul Reaver as I was first playing it.

#prince of persia #prince of persia: the sands of time #prince of persia remake #ubisoft #videogames #my ramblings #I can't seem to write a short post to save my life!

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comrade-shrimp · 4 years ago

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do you have any tips for starter-cosplayers?

Ofc bb! This may be a lil long so strap in!

1. The first thing to do is remember you're a starter, you're a beginner, you're not a professional! It's okay if your cosplay isn't 1:1 accurate! Don't compare yourself to other cosplayers who have been doing this stuff for YEARS, because it's unfair to you! Just like any other form of art, you improve your skills and you'll soon learn how to style a wig or do your makeup or sew!

2. Speaking of other peoples cosplays, DO take notes from the cosplays you like! You ARE allowed to take inspiration and ideas from other cosplayers, ESPECIALLY if they do tutorials or drop the websites where they buy their stuff! You like how that cosplayer styled their wig? Well then style your wig like that! Its okay! You don't have do your own thing all the time (I've ripped ideas from so many cosplayers before skdjakd, I'm actually buying the exact same wig and horns for my schlatt cosplay that another cosplayer uses, because they actually dropped the list and websites and product names for us to use! It isnt cheating!)

3. It's totally okay if you don't make any of your stuff and buy everything instead, like, it isnt a big deal and it DOESNT make you any less of a cosplayer! I cannot make props to save my life, so most of my props are bought and I just repaint them, its 100% okay and don't stress yourself out over it, cosplay is about having fun and sometimes it's more fun to dress like the character than to actually make the props and clothes yourself

4. Similarly, thrift stores and those stores like goodwill are a GODSEND!! People actually will donate their old cosplays to goodwill so sometimes you can find stuff there that's actually FOR cosplay! Why spend 50$ on a shirt for a cosplay when you can find something similar at goodwill and just modify it it a bit. (Just be conscious while you're buying things from thrift shops and other cheap stores, a lot of people who are really tight on money depend on those types of stores to get the things they need, so dont go buying out the entire store ok?)

5. Something I wish someone had assured me when I began was it's okay if your cosplay isnt 100% accurate to canon. You're allowed to add things, remove things, etc. The most common cosplay I see where people go ham with their design is Junko from Dr, people literally add so many accessories to their cosplays of her I love it omg, they add kandi and crowns and makeup and just so many fun details her canon design doesnt have! If you think something would look cool with the cosplay, then do it!

6. If something is dangerous, for the love of god please dont do it for a cosplay. Do NOT dye your skin grey, do NOT put your contacts inside your eyelids for that cool color transition on tiktok, do NOT wear ballet shoes to walk around in, do NOT pose with REAL weapons, do NOT take photos in dangerous/inappropriate places (like those hetalia cosplayers who went to a holocaust death camp memorial in cosplay, or cosplayers who take photos on REAL graves) keep yourself safe and dont be disrespectful please omg

7. Do research when you're buying stuff!! Always check the reviews on products you're thinking of buying! Like for instance, if you're buying contacts for a cosplay, research what people have said about the company you're buying from, and if there are MULTIPLE accounts of peoples corneas being torn out of their eye while removing the contacts, maybe consider another company to buy from (cough cough), research is always good to not only get a good looking product, but also a SAFE product

8. Try to accept real criticism! Assuming people are being respectful and kind about something, you should listen to them and maybe try out their suggestions! Obviously you're not obligated to ACTUALLY take their advice and change things about your cosplay if you're happy with it, but sometimes it can be super helpful! (When I did homestuck cosplays people would actually give me advice at cons, and then theyd actually offer to do my makeup for FREE, I regret not getting their insta names because they were so sweet and literally taught me how to do gamzee makeup that looked cool and scary 😭 if I ever cosplay gamzee again I already know how to do his makeup and their advice really helped! Especially since i was still a baby cosplayer back then)

9. Have fun and always ask advice from senior cosplayers! Most cosplayers are willing to help you out! And will actually be flattered that someone likes their cosplay enough to wanna replicate parts of it! Try to always be nice and respectful towards other people and dont put yourself down if you messed something up! It's okay! Just have fun and remember we're only human!

If you want tips of something specific lemme know and I can try my best to help out! :)

#asks #cosplay #when i say take inspiration from other cosplayers #i mean take inspiration #do not copy them omg #especially if its a cosplay thats their own take on the character #cough cough mcyt cosplayers who all have their own unique cosplays for technoblade and dream and schlatt and-

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juni-ravenhall · 4 years ago

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my opinions on mistfall!

under a cut bc spoilers and/or not everyone wants to read :D

overall experience:

its fun that there IS a sso cartoon now even if its not exactly amazing quality, and im happy to see if there will be more series or movies after this. it was fun to watch and see sso things in cartoon form too and i wish that we had more already (of sso animation in general). imagine if there had been a ssl cartoon? i also kept thinking throughout this, that it wouldn’t be hard for me myself to make an animated series with around the same length episodes and in a similar quality to this (aside from voice acting and music production), which made me feel a little inspired.

favourite scene:

skye taking photos of blaze and hanging out

positive points:

i like the background art a lot, i think the style of it, and the colour schemes, helps give the series a specific vibe that fits for an sso series in my opinion.

i like the concept art (i assume) illustrations which we saw in the recipes and other posts on sso ig, i think it looks a lot better than the characters in the series, but thats normal for concept art!!

the music is really good quality (whether or not its your taste, the quality is good) which is ofc bc its sso - theres already good music and not something they only did for the cartoon but something they care about in all of the starstable media.

i think skye is a nice character (despite the series’ overall low quality writing) and i like her design. i also think rania’s cartoon design (visually) is cute.

skye and rania being a teensy bit gay (minus points for sso if they dont end up really gay in later canon)

i like that blaze wasnt actually like... mean or anything to skye, and i like that shes a mare since typical stories like this usually have stallions. but i just like that there wasnt really any “ooh difficult horse” things between skye and blaze in the current time of the story, blaze actually was sweet to her most the time. blaze seemed pretty charming whenever there wasnt “omg fire” drama.

the animation itself (not meaning the details of the drawings or scene timing, just the actual frame by frame / puppet movements) was fine! not amazing, but absolutely fine.

points i have constructive criticism for, which doesn’t mean that i expected more from the series, but that we’re all allowed to discuss the quality and our opinions of media regardless of the target audience, budget, etc:

the writing was childish and rushed - this is not to be rude, but a matter that affects a lot of “media for girls / kids”, and a topic talked a lot about by Lauren Faust (creator of the FiM reboot of MLP) who wanted to show that a show about rainbow ponies “for little girls” didn’t have to be badly written, and could be engaging and interesting. if you watch the older MLP cartoons and compare to the first season of FiM (where Faust was still on the team) you can see a huge difference in quality of the storytelling, characterisation, etc. Mistfall, so far, did not subvert any expectation in the quality of what typical “cartoons for girls” are like, and is reminiscent of stuff like “The Ranch” (french horse cartoon) which imo is so bad that its hard to watch. (and ofc... that goes for a lot of “cartoons for girls / kids”, but doesn’t have to be like that.) in order to improve on this, the writer has to study more on storytelling and study from better writers.

on the topic of being rushed: no, it’s not an excuse that the episodes are short: - you have to ADAPT your storytelling and writing to the length of the episodes, not do a bad job and blame the episode length. being able to adapt to different types of media is a necessary skill if that’s what you work with. this comes down to proper planning and structuring the story and writing in a way that works for the length of the episodes. i don’t think that was overall done well here (at times it was okay), and bc of that, it feels rushed and has exposition thrown in your face instead of being shown through better storytelling. the classic thing with exposition is “show, don’t tell”. this is what the writers/directors should study, or pay more attention to.

the timing (length of shots, length of scenes, or parts of shots, etc) was rly bad at times and overall unimpressive - this comes down to the skill of directors and editors. to improve this they have to study more on the topic. bad timing and pacing can really ruin a good scene or a good story and make it feel disconnected and hard to immerse in for the audience.

the artstyle of characters and horses is fine at times, but appears very low quality at others (skye’s childhood scene really bothered me bc her kid-self had really badly drawn eyes in my opinion). this, like everything else on this list, is ofc something that appears in almost every single “cartoon for girls” that ever existed. to improve on this, most likely it’s not a problem with the artists but with the budget and the production timeline (allowing the artists more time to produce better quality art and animation), and it can also be a problem with the art direction, if the art directors aren’t very skilled or experienced (i don’t say that they aren’t, im just giving examples of what could cause these problems.)

the character design for all characters that aren’t skye, rania, or blaze was very lacking. none of the not-main-3 characters looked interesting or fun to look at, they looked very dull and like the most boring NPCs you could think of. even though its understandable that the mainest-main characters would have the most interesting designs, that doesn’t mean everyone else has to look that boring. this is an issue with art direction or character design. i think most likely there was just very little time (equals money) put into designing the other characters.

the horse design could be improved for a cartoon that focuses on horses this much. like, horses are a big part of the selling point here, so make sure that their designs and art/animation is good. at times even blaze looked awkward and uninteresting, as did the other horses.

“alonso” looks nothing like sso alonso and i don’t like that they used his character if it’s not going to have anything to do with him. they should have given this character a different name if they wouldn’t make him seem like he had anything to do with the sso character aside from being a male ranger. (also in the game he’s like 22 or something, skye is 15...?)

why did they add a “he’s cute” dumbass fucking stupid hetero comment for literally no reason other than adding a dumbass fucking stupid hetero comment?

considering that they “can’t confirm whether a sequel is happening or not”, it seemed very meh to throw in druid cult magic stuff and not really connect to it and now the series ended? you would have expected to find out more about the cloaked people, the runes, the magic that the ranger guy did, and blaze’s magic in general, and skye herself, why her mom is “a witch”.... thats a lot to throw in while saying that you can’t say if there’s a sequel coming to answer all those questions. (it wouldn’t have been a criticism from me if they said “we’re working on season 2″ or “there will be a comic book that continues the story” or anything that told us that these questions, in this particular iteration of a story in jorvik, will actually be answered. - and i assume they ARE working on the continuation of the story, but i dont agree with that they’re not upfront about it, when they left so many questions unanswered.)

at times rania’s blindness was handled stupidly and i think they should have gotten more consultation from actual people with visual impairment, but i think its still good to HAVE a blind character in the main cast and that it’s not a big dramatic story thing but just an everyday thing. at some points it was fine though; and i personally don’t think the scene with rania being able to see blaze was necessarily a problem - because - a lot of blind ppl can see sharp contrasts in light and dark, and this seemed relatively realistic to me when blaze is on fire. (however, the way it was drawn as if she could see the whole shape of blaze and skye could be criticised for sure, and makes it feel more like “i can see because of magic” and not “i can see bc THIS MARE IS ON FIRE”).

personal opinion which i said before, but i don’t think rania’s voice fits her at all, and it’s not the voice actor’s fault (i’m sure they’re lovely) but the casting and the directors. from the sso character, rania would seem a lot more lively, quick and adventurous, and not as calm and gentle as she appeared here. she seemed a lot too sort of motherly or just adult, instead of an adventurous teen who runs off on her own to do whatever she feels like. compare in-game rania going “MC, thats a jorvik wild!!!” and alonso going “stop talking nonsense” (paraphrased), to Mistfall rania going “jorvik wilds are really rare...” (calm, sort of disinterested, doesnt seem like she cares that much about adventures)

the voice acting overall was meh. i see this as a direction problem, not an individual voice actor problem (and the writing didnt help - it’s hard to provide good quality acting with a poor script unless you can just toss the script aside and improv, if you have good actors). it felt childish and uninteresting at most points and generic low quality for “cartoons for girls”. from a voice acting perspective i think skye had the best result. anyway, the way to improve this is for the director in charge of voice acting to not direct the actors to perform in this childish manner. (again, refer to cartoons with better writing and better voice acting, that have a very similar target audience.)

ok, i think that was everything that i wanted to write about for now, might think of more later lol

#star stable mistfall #opinion #text post #long post

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anatthema-art · 4 years ago

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most of these asks for the artist ask meme ive seen in person or youve already told me about so as your friend its my duty to make you share your shame to the audience <3 /lh

🌺Is there a piece you wish you had never made?

so like, regret is a hard thing to discuss for me because a lot of the things i regret in my artist career aren’t stuff that are funny bad art or whatever, because frankly i DON’T regret that stuff. i don’t regret my warrior cats days or drawing sparkledogs or whatever because i was a kid having fun and having bad old art is part of the process. a lot of the things i truly regret in my artist life are things that brought or bring up bad feelings, so this isn’t gonna be super FUN. sure, i have a ton of shitty pieces which i’m like GOD i wish i could make those better now and GOD i wish all my NITWTM pieces were like. good jdskjkskjsa

so like, the biggest and most obvious thing is the webcomic i ran from 2015-2020 because wow. first off. i was 12 when i started that, and nearly 18 when i ended it. a 12 year old kid really could not have predicted the absolute time commitment that shit required, and i REALLY shouldnt have tried to keep going even past my limits simply because i had already sank so much time into it. when you write something as a kid you dont really anticipate the fact that youre gonna grow as a writer and artist so much in a 5 year time span that what you write and connect with when youre 12 isn’t even gonna RESEMBLE the person you are when you’re 18. i wish i had canned it earlier and honestly it was a deep source of stress in my life for so long.

then there’s the old pieces i made with my friend group from like, 8th grade. first off like?? i gave my friend group fursonas back then for some reason and like?? didnt SHOW them to them i just?? drew them?? as cats?? which yeah ok thats dumb but then i drew like a piece with twenty one pilots lyrics on it and god all that shit brings me back such a shitty time in my life man and that friend group ended in such an awful way and i just regret all of it so much.

as an extension of that just the emo dog shit was so dumb like honestly its the one phase of my art i just kind of hate in of itself like it was really dumb like yeah i was a kid enjoying myself but just GOD it was such bad character design and building and none of my ocs had personality and they were so overly complex and its just like i think that phase actively hindered my ability to progress at making good ocs. also just. the edgy song lyric da titles man its just. like i know i go on about my warrior cats phase but honestly i have so much nostalgia from that time because i was just a kid having fun with cat books but the emo dog phase was just regret all around and it actively kinda hurt me as an artist

but yeah like. as bad as some of my old pieces are i don’t REGRET doing them. it’s all part of growth as an artist and its fun to look back on that stuff and see how youve improved. all the stuff that DOES cause regret is that shit with negative feelings attatched

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ericmhe · 3 years ago

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Godzilla Singular Point

I'm not much of a “binger” for the most part but I got the whole series Godzilla: Singular Point watched in about 4 days I think. Let's start positive: I think the 3D models for the monsters work a lot better than most anime 3D models, they're still fairly apparent but it seems like they blend with the rest of the art alright. The designs are mostly fairly good too, there's some ugly ones in there but I kind of don't mind them? Monsters can be ugly sometimes and not just cool looking, a few here and there in the cast doesn't hurt anything. It's nice to see some nods to the more obscure kaiju too, there's a lot of interesting and fun monsters from Toho's old movies and it gets a little tiring to be hit with nonstop Godzilla-Mothra-Ghidorah-MechaGodzilla incarnations every single time there's a new take on Godzilla. I like a lot about the premise, the apocalyptic rise of kaiju around the world as they bring their habitat/environment with them into our world, terraforming it into a world of monsters. It's not new by any means, but it's usually not the approach taken witht the Toho monsters and it's a good excuse to fit a lot of them into a setting quickly. The end credit sequence is pretty great, I hit 'watch credits' every time on my watch. Heck, the whole series might be better if it was more like its own end credits.

I think Godzilla: Singular Point could have been better, but we've also seen worse recently. I've only dabbled in storytelling but I suspect a lot of its problems come from overcompensating, specifically: “Godzilla movies/media are dumb” being met with “Oh yeah, well how about one based on theoretical quantum physics” just didn't work out. I actually think what they use in the series is a fine technobabble excuse for the monsters having powers and durability beyond science, but I also don't feel like kaiju media really needs that excuse. It's fine though, I think the sheer quantity of the technobabble is the biggest problem with it. I've been listening to discussions of theoretical multi-dimensional physics for a while now, so I think I might have been better prepared than average but it's still a chore to get my head around so I know it's going to lose a majority of the general population. One big question I have is why did they give the main characters the wrong interests? Yun, who is into future predictions deals with the monsters, and Mei who is studying theoretical impossible animals deals with the future predicting technology end of the plot... I could get that if the idea was to raise tension by making the wrong people have to work outside their field of expertise, but that's not what happens, they're both pretty good “omnidisciplinary scientist” sorts who don't have much problem learning a whole new field. Honestly they really should have been assigned the other interests though, Yun studying fantastical creature ideas and Mei the future stuff.

While I like the premise and some of the stuff they do with the monsters, there's also a lot that's disappointing – The Kumonga-Megalon-Hedorah hybrids really need some explaining. Why are there three monsters in one species? Just to reference as much old material as possible at once? As far as I'm concerned Anguirus is the stand out star of the series and they kill him far too quickly. The series could also be called a fairly cozy catastrophe too, for the most part the worst thing happening for most people is losing their internet connection, kind of seems like a monster apocalypse should have a bit more than that going on. That said it's not nearly the disappointment that the Polygon Pictures trilogy is, which managed to take the most interesting and unique premise the Godzilla franchise has ever had and do basically nothing with it.

I might give Singular Point something like 6 out of 10, and I think a second season might have enough room for improvement that I'm not against it.

For the heck of it:

Shin Godzilla: The most common criticisms are right (dull, Godzilla has no personality, the humans are more random bureaucrats than characters), but so are most the common praise (topical in its way, punchy with its political critique, holy hell that weapons upgrade on Godzilla). Which one outweighs the other is a simple matter of personal preference. I don't have super strong feelings about it and it will be one of my least re-watched Godzilla movies ever, up with Godzilla's Revenge.

Polygon Trilogy: AAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRG. The only things worth watching are Godzilla Earth avenging Godzilla filius and Ghidorah's destruction of the spaceship (wasn't it Atrium or something? I'm feeling too lazy to look it up) but unfortunately there's an awful lot of crap around those bits. Ok, I exaggerate a little but not much. I kind of appreciate how they tried to subvert the classic “your life goals or your love interest” kind of scenario, but she wasn't much of a character so it didn't have much impact to kill her off and the main character is an unlikable jerk too.

Legendary's Monsterverse: Godzilla 2014: Too much of its run time is boring for me to recommend it but the monster stuff is too well done for me to ever dismiss it outright.

Godzilla King of the Monsters: I get why people have a problem with it, but I appreciate the story between Godzilla, Ghidorah, Rodan and Mothra enough to forgive it and it's my favorite of the Monsterverse. I don't have as much problem seeing the monsters through the weather effects as some people seem to, the only one I really can't follow is when Godzilla drags Ghidorah into the Gulf of Mexico. It does cut to the humans too much during the monster fights, but it's also trying to connect the stories. The goal of the human characters lines up with Godzilla's well enough that they can be considered to be on the same side, and that's why we see things like Godzilla charge Ghidorah, then cut away to humans where Ghidorah's heads slam into the earth somewhere in the background. It's fairly flawed, but...

Godzilla vs Kong: Holy shit over-correction much? I think it might actually work better as a stand alone movie than a continuation of King of the Monsters, yet it actually can't because of some elements like the Ghidorah heads. Notice how they say one skull holds the pilot, there's another skull in Mecha Godzilla? - clearly supposed to be the side heads incinerated by Burning Godzilla not the one Godzilla tore off in the Gulf of Mexico – not sure why everyone misses that. ANYWAY, it's a fun movie that gets to the main event as fast as it feels like it can and the monster action is solid. With the one exception that I really hate Godzilla being portrayed as defenseless against Mecha Godzilla – outmatched and needing help is fine, but utterly unable to do anything but get stomped is just not enjoyable to me. As soon as Kong comes to help double team Mecha G it gets a lot better though. - Quick note, why did “Team Kong” see any reason to sic Kong on Mecha G? We the audience know that since the robot is possessed by Ghidorah that once it kills Godzilla it'll go on to wipe out all humanity and anything else it comes across, but does “Team Kong” know it? If Kong knows it, would he care beyond Jia? I mean, it doesn't matter but it does nag me a little bit.

I honestly thing the basic story teased at the end of King of the Monsters in the news reel stuff sounds like a better movie than Godzilla vs Kong turned out to be but I'm fine with what we got for the most part. Except why did they dump all the other monsters? They've come up with all these interesting new monsters and they have Rodan and what-not and they just say they all haven't been seen? It's the most disappointing part of the Monsterverse so far if you ask me.

#Godzilla #Kaiju #Godzilla Singular Point #Singular Point #Godzilla vs Kong #Godzilla King of the Monsters

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tired-toby · 4 years ago

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it's been nearly a year since my first suicide attempt, since the worst summer of my fucking life that i STILL CANT REMEMBER.

and i feel like i've gone nowhere

i'm still the same piece of shit who couldn't even acknowledge the people she hurt, who still tries to victimize herself when she's anything but the victim, who is wasting the time of everyone around her

i know all this. i know these flaws. i'm self-aware and that makes it worse because despite everything i do i feel like i haven't gotten any better, like i haven't improved at all and if anything i've just sunk deeper into this pit

and it's not like i haven't had people reach out!

my math teacher has kept up with me the WHOLE YEAR yet time and time again i let myself fall short.

i want to be better. i need to be better, for the people that are here now and for those that i've hurt in the past.

for my guinea pigs. for my rats. for my dogs. for everyone.

yet here i am just fucking wallowing, crying on an empty blog that no one will read or give a shit about because it's just me.

i graduate soon. well. i /might/ graduate soon

god

i've fallen so far.

my friends are going to harvard, to mit. i feel like i'm just going to a shallow grave.

i wish things were easy, that i could take a few pills and just be /better./ i want to stop feeling this way, i just want to feel better. i've changed my ways! i only drink water, i eat healthier, i walk my dogs for two hours every day, i've taken up new and old hobbies. but i still fall into slumps, i feel like i am a slump.

i've barely told anyone but i haven't felt like myself in weeks and i'm so fucking scared. i feel like i don't know who i am anymore and the coping mechanisms that i've used to try and feel like myself aren't working like they used to. i feel like im fragmented and being pulled apart at the seams. maybe i'm giving myself too much credit

a overfilled trash bag thats splitting and spilling nothing but garbage

that's better.

i'm just overdramatic

i'm just tired

i even have a healthy sleep schedule, did i mention that? in bed by 10, up by 7. i walk my sister to the bus stop almost everyday.

i thought i did everything right. why doesn't it work why aren't i better why am i still the same asshole why am i no one why am i nothing why can't i just be better why am i not fucking dead

55 days until i'm 18

54 until the night i became the world's greatest failure

what kind of idiot fails to kill themself? twice, at that?

i feel like i'm faking this. i read these words i type and i cry and if eel like im faking it. that i'm doing it for attention. i'm manipulative, i lie to emotionally abuse people

i know this and i'm probably doing it now

seems like something i'd do

my mom says my laptop will be back soon, finally repaired. i don't think i mentioned it here but the harddrive broke and i lost everything

stories. hundreds of thousands of words and i WISH that was an exaggeration

my fucking POKEMON. ALL MY GODDAMN POKEMON!!! I BEAT SOUL SILVER WITH JUST AN AMPHAROS AND ITS FUCKING GONE. MARILYN IM SORRY. NOT TO MENTION ALL MY OTHER SAVES

all my art. all those sketches. i've barely drawn since, nothing feels right anymore. not like i know where my art tablet is anyway :/ that's just

gone

everything's gone

once i have a laptop again, i think i'll be happier. i hope i'm happier. my life is there, my happiness is there. it's not healthy to stare at a screen for who knows how many hours of a day but it makes me happy

i want to have fun with graey again. the weeks we'd spend just playing minecraft and stardew and we haven't been able to do anything because i'm just on my phone and a shitty school laptop that can't even run google and word at the same time

i don't know what i'm going to do. this whole thing is a mess, just so much bullshit. and it's barely the tip of the iceberg

i didn't even mention how my dad found another rope in my brother's room. part of me hopes it's not what i think it is and some part of how i once opened his girlfriend's snapchat and found him listed as daddy

fucking discord moderator lookin' ass. it's the trauma innit

i'm doing dnd again. it's not full campaigns, just one-shots with the sewer rats every other weekend or so where i dm and they can have fun.

i like making them happy

i love all of them. they're my family. caesar, crypt, xeno, cat, moe, roo, blink, cig, fox, graey, even fed and ag. if it weren't for you guys, i'd be nothing. i'd be gone.

caesar, you've been with me through everything. i wouldn't be here if you weren't there for me. i'm glad we're getting close again, i've missed your company

i'm glad i'm the one you tag when you see if anyone wants to watch u stream :)

crypt, for all the shit i give you i love you. when are we going to finish mamma mia together u rat ass bitch

xeno u are one of the funniest motherfuckers i've met, even if u are a literal fetus. whenever i see u join vc im always so fucking hyped

cat why r u so fucking racist. when r we gonna play phasmo

moe stop touching kids.

roo i am not gonna lie sometimes u feel like my mom i s2g granted u are geriatric so maybe that makes u my grandma. point still stands, also when r we gonna plot wren and dhova i want my twink-turned-twunk

blink i still need to dm u back give me a sec.

cig u are also a fetus but u are one of my FAVORITE people to brainstorm and plot with. UR BRAIN IS SO WRINKLY AND UR ALWAYS SO RESPONSIVE IT MAKES ME SO HAPPY!!

fox. ANOTHER FETUS. but also an amazing dm and just?? ur so creative. U ARE SO CREATIVE. UR CHARACTER DESIGN. UR ART SKILLS. ur so underappreciated?

graey when r we having the dildo battle. i will come to alaska and live in a shack in the woods with ur nasty unshowering ass if it means i get to punch u in the face irl and laugh abt the usual bullshit with you.

fed stop being british it's literally so gross idk how u do it. if u stop being british i'll stop bullying u abt ur terrible typing skills

ag u are just. cool. like if i had to pin someone as like the 'cool/chill' person of the sewers it would 100% be u i am ngl. play roblox cats with me u fucking coward

enough of being sappy. they need to stop accusing me of being a lesbian I AM NOT A LESBIAN

im happy again

thinking about them makes me happy

in other news celestial bodies by ghost data is a nice song

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