#milne ask

[ask-team-geode]

can we honestly e date? you’re so beautiful. You always make me laugh, you always make me smile. You literally make me want to become a better person... I really enjoy every moment we spend together. My time has no value unless its spent with you. I tell everyone of my irls how awesome you are. Thank you for being you. Whenever you need someone to be there for you, know that i’ll always be right there by your side. I love you so much. I don’t think you ever realize how amazing you are sometimes. Life isn’t as fun when you’re not around. You are truly stunning. I want you to be my soulmate. I love the way you smile, your eyes are absolutely gorgeous. If I had a star for everytime you crossed my mind i could make the entire galaxy. Your personality is as pretty as you are and thats saying something. I love you, please date me. I am not even calling it e dating anymore because I know we will meet soon enough heart OK I ADMIT IT I LOVE YOU OK i hecking love you and it breaks my heart when i see you play with someone else or anyone commenting in your profile i just want to be your girlfriend and put a heart in my profile linking to your profile and have a walltext of you commenting cute things i want to play video games talk in discord all night and watch a movie together but you just seem so uninsterested in me it hecking kills me and i cant take it anymore i want to remove you but i care too much about you so please i’m begging you to eaither love me back or remove me and never contact me again it hurts so much to say this because i need you by my side but if you dont love me then i want you to leave because seeing your icon in my friendlist would kill me everyday of my pathetic life.

[crystallinegazer]

Do you think that shadow sometimes just flips a coin, to see whenever or not he should punch or kick some poor sap across the face once per week?

[quote-the-pooh]

"If I had a nickel for every time Pooh was accused of murdering me, I'd have five nickels, which isn't a lot, but you'd think he'd act less suspicious by now."

— 'Piglet'

[skwtches]

ive never seen any winnie the pooh related media but im so in love w the way u draw tigger an that rabbit character that i now wanna see it

AWW THANK YOUU I’m so flattered omg <333

[touch-me-unscientifically]

lawrence arabia live...

source

[winnie-the-monster]

Paper

Winnie the Pooh, always

[komsomolka]

Hitler’s former chief security officer on the Eastern Front, Major General Reinhard Gehlen, was recruited in 1946 by the USA largely because of his detailed knowledge of the Soviet Union and of communist activities. Gehlen offered the US his intelligence archives and his network of contacts in return for his freedom and that of his colleagues. He handpicked 350 former agents to join him, a number that eventually grew to 4,000 undercover agents. This group soon acquired the sobriquet ‘Gehlen Organization’. When the ‘Iron Curtain’ was drawn in 1946, leaving the Western allies with virtually no intelligence sources in Eastern Europe, Gehlen’s vast store of knowledge made him very valuable. He went on to head West Germany’s intelligence organisation, the BND, until 1968. The BND had a clear anti-communist focus right from the start, and the organisation was populated by many former Nazis. [...]

In contrast to the Stasi files, West German secret service (BND) files relating to the Nazi past are still kept under lock and key. In 2012, the Linke party faction in the Bundestag requested that BND files on the Nazis be made accessible. At the same time, the party also asked the government to release all files concerning any collaboration and possible obstruction of due judicial process in the prosecution of Nazi war criminals. These requests were rejected – even the files relating to top Nazi, Adolf Eichmann, remain secret.

Stasi State or Socialist Paradise? The German Democratic Republic and What Became of It by Bruni de la Motte & John Green with Seumas Milne (Contributor), 2015.

[cephalopadre]

mechtober day 22: the second day of tfcon! during the idw artists panel, alex milne was asked how ultra magnus and prowl look down and he jokingly answered "well maybe he has cameras installed on his lower body and display the captured video on a screen on his chest". and yeah, i'll incorporate that into my worldview LMAO

the panel was lovely, very glad i got to go :)

[salemoleander]

solving counting sheep webweave

MCYTblr AU Fest Summer 2023 // sources under readmore

Created as a treat for the absolutely stunning fic by @theminecraftbee!

What is a webweave? Previous art: Third Life | Void Falling | Attempt 33 | Martyn | Limited Life | Nightingale Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | singing songs to the secrets behind my eye | A Hundred Things We Had Not Dreamed Of

Pt. 1: The Specialist’s Hat, Stranger Things Happen p.63  / Kelly Link ◆ Requiem Angel / Daniele Valeriani via @satanasaeternus ◆ Maschera Venetian Joker Mask / Atelier Marega Mask ◆ Macbeth 1.5.57-61 / Shakespeare ◆ Watch / Carol Milne ◆ Excerpt from Salt Is For Curing / Sonia Vatomsky via @geryone ◆ Carved Damascus Steel Bird Knife / Robert Mayo ◆ Excerpt from STOP ME IF YOU’VE HEARD THIS ONE BEFORE, Calling a Wolf a Wolf / Kaveh Akbar ◆ off to finish it at the source / @catcrumb ◆ Excerpt from The War of Vaslav Nijinsky / Frank Bidart ◆ Having a cat is great tweet / @premeesaurus ◆ Secrete / Kate MccGwire via @snailspng

Pt. 2: I am asking you to endure it. / @intactics (Deactivated 12.31.21) ◆ Hi! You have great eyes / @illness (Deactivated 3.25.18) ◆ Taste for Independence Cat / @alisonzai ◆ Support Mental Health pin / @snailspng ◆ A Barn at Kronetorp, Skåne / Gustaf Rydberg ◆ Living: There is a period when it is clear... / Jenny Holzer via @funeral ◆ Neighborhood Plague, Fjords I / Zachary Schomburg ◆ Ugly, Bitter, and True / Suzanne Rivecca ◆ It just keeps happening / @mothcub ◆ Shepherd with Flock of Sheep / Anton Mauve ◆ No Longer Evil cat / @b0nkcreat ◆ Excerpt from All Our Futures / Jody Chan via @geryone ◆ Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stitch / Carol Milne via @knithacker ◆ Deep Dark Fear (9.29.2013) / Fran Krause @deep-dark-fears

Pt. 3: Read more pop-up / @screenshotsofdespair ◆ Combination of Painter Javier Palacios and Enoch 18:14 /  @mountainqoats ◆ Wandering Albatross ◆ Diomedes ◆ Forgive dead players: OFF / @screenshotsofdespair ◆ Inktober52 Angel / @lastmousequeen-blog ◆ The Heavenly Host / Violet Oakley ◆ Excerpt from No Rush / Todd Dillard ◆ I will not go gentle magnets / @carpethedamndiem ◆ Excerpt from cain / José Saramago via @ilumark (Deactivated 2.5.22) ◆ Excerpt from Salt Is For Curing / Sonya Vatomsky via @geryone ◆ Purple / @ungfio via @sosuperawesome ◆ Excerpt from Lessons on Expulsion / Erika Sánchez via @geryone ◆ The Practical Companion to the Work-Table, Containing Directions for Knitting, Netting, & Crochet Work / Elizabeth Jackson via @knittinghistory

Pt. 4: Excerpt from A Ghost is a Memory / GennaRose Nethercott via @tolerateit ◆ What’s done is done / @thatsbelievable ◆ Excerpt from Ante body / Marwa Helal via @geryone ◆ Minor Resurrections / Elisa Gonzalez ◆ Mirror ◆ Coming back / @ungfio ◆ Candlestick ◆ Flame

[archie-sunshine]

Sorry to just kinda creep into your ask box like this but you know your shit better than I do.

So I ask you like the awkward goblin I am if you have any advice for someone trying to get into making comics? Cus like, I'm lost af and I vaguely remember you mentioning that you learned to draw from comic books.

quick correction, i got into drawing from a comic drawing WORKSHOP so i've specifically worked with professionals for whom comics are an art form and full time job.

SO! Lets talk about comics!!

comics are complicated. it's about as close to animation as you can get on a still page, so it's an art form that follows similar principles! some things to keep in mind as you read comics that may help you in your endeavors are:

-panel placement -pacing and -story

I've just flipped to a random page in this issue of mtmte (thank you alex milne) as an example

So lets break it down.

In our first panel, drift establishes the action (we are in a fight!) and he's posed in a sort of triumphant mid swing after icing two cons, taking up the majority of the panel to convey both his speed and importance. this tells us we are likely winning this fight. This also tells us drift is on a roll.

but AHA! the next panel has rodimus grappling someone. we're close in, the tension is high, this could go either way, you're leaking in to read his text, and ah, he's struggling, oh no-!

BUT THEN! SHOCK! An action has disrupted our expectation, drift has stabbed this guy in the face!! payoff!!

aaaand ahhh... release. the action is over, drift has won, the page is paid off. we take a step back, and the framing here is clearly comedic. They are standing over a corpse griping over who's kill it was, so the framing makes them feel smaller and stupider, because this is objectively a stupid argument.

see what im getting at here?

The first and last panels are splash panels, they introduce us to the action, as if we're zooming in on a shot, then zoom us out to move on to the next scene, but in the middle there are two panels that draw us into the scene, invest us in the action, because they're so close up.

when you work on a comic, consider how a reader would consume this page. is this page one they're meant to linger on? or one where the reader should be on the edge of their seat prepared to flip to the next one?

when you place the panels, you set the pace and emotion of the page like a pathway for your readers to walk down, so its up to you how the pathway is laid out!

happy comicking!

[ask-team-geode]

milne, if you could travel back in time, what advice would you give to your v1 self?

[soberscientistlife]

It occurred to Pooh and Piglet that they hadn't heard from Eeyore for several days, so they put on their hats and coats and trotted across the Hundred Acre Wood to Eeyore's house. Inside the house was Eeyore. "Hello Eeyore," said Pooh. "Hello Pooh. Hello Piglet" said Eeyore, in a Glum sounding voice. "We just thought we'd check on you," said Piglet, "because we hadn't heard from you, and so we wanted to know if you were okay." Eeyore was silent for a moment. "Am I okay?" he asked, eventually. "Well, I don't know, to be honest. Are any of us really okay? That's what I ask myself. All I can tell you, Pooh and Piglet, is that right now I feel really rather Sad, and Alone, and Not Much Fun To Be Around At All. Which is why I haven't bothered you. Because you wouldn't want to waste your time hanging out with someone who is Sad, and Alone, and Not Much Fun To Be Around At All, would you now." Pooh looked at Piglet, and Piglet looked at Pooh, and they both sat down, one on either side of Eeyore in his stick house. Eeyore looked at them in surprise. "What are you doing?" "We're sitting here with you," said Pooh, "because we are your friends. And true friends don't care if someone is feeling Sad, or Alone, or Not Much Fun To Be Around At All. True friends are there for you anyway. And so here we are." "Oh," said Eeyore. "Oh." And the three of them sat there in silence, and while Pooh and Piglet said nothing at all; somehow, almost imperceptibly, Eeyore started to feel a very tiny little bit better. Because Pooh and Piglet were There. No more; no less. Author - AA Milne Illustration - EH Shepard

[novafire-is-thinking]

Thoughts On Pharma’s Design

A little while ago, I was chatting with a friend (hi Sparrow) about Pharma’s design, and she made an observation that made me realize something interesting. It might be a stretch, but it’s a really cool stretch.

Here’s Alex Milne’s original Pharma concept design next to the new/current one:

When I first saw these side-by-side, I immediately noticed how the new one looks so much better, but I couldn’t put my finger on the why right away. There are plenty of other TF jet designs that look similar to the old design, and they look good.

Why does Pharma in particular look better with the downward-pointing armor?

In my conversation with Sparrow, she said something like, “the sharper points of him point downward,” and then it hit me:

The Angel of Death

(Or Grim Reaper)

The way Pharma’s wings attach high on his shoulders and point downward so that they look like the Angel’s…the scythe-like shape of Pharma’s arms + wings…the way his eyes go wide during his murderous medic arc in a way that resembles the hollow sockets of the Reaper’s skull…

EVERYTHING.

It’s poetic to me how Pharma’s design aligns with the tragedy of his life: how a guy who was supposed to save lives and bring healing descended so far into madness that he became a twisted Angel of Death instead.

Someday, I want to ask Alex Milne if this was intentional, but even if it wasn’t, he’s a genius.

[skyacya]

Hello! I got into transformers recently and I've been scrolling through Tumblr for awhile to find TF related content. I happen to come across your blog and dare I say your illustrations are stunning!🧡 The color choices and the line work is absolutely amazing.

You can say I'm a little motivated to draw some robots now—but as someone who only drew humans in the past and someone who just joined the fandom. I've come to the realization that drawing robots is much harder than it looks🤲..

If it's not too much to ask, would you mind sharing some tips or experiences on how you started drawing them? Thank you🦐

Man, you have no idea how much seeing this made my day (〃´∀｀)! But sure!

The general idea I use is to break down characters into their most basic shapes, fx Transformers Prime and Animated has super strong shape language especially compared to G1 where everyone are squares

Before drawing a new character, I like to practice my muscle memory by isolating these basic shapes on top of a reference image. To get that proper giant alien robot feel it's especially helpful to practice big, squareish shapes (though depends on the character, some have more fluid shapes similar to humans).

With the overall shapes you can draw your desired pose much easier because you don't need to think about details yet.

When you have the pose down, you can continue on with the details. These are also just shapes broken down into smaller shapes. You just continue to break everything into shapes until you have achieved the level of detail that you want. Everything is shapes

When adding details, it's a good idea to have a bunch of references ready. I usually just go through an episode/chapter with the character I want and take a shit ton of screenshots

⊹⊹⊹⊹Some general tips I have are:⊹⊹⊹⊹

Find inspiration from different artists you like and see how they break down the characters (and try doing the shape practicing to get used to the feeling of drawing bigger shapes)

This is a strange addon tip but hear me out, a lot of R18 tf artists are insanely talented, like to an unlawful degree. Welcome to the rust sea of sin, I would add recommendations but I am a coward

Varying lineweight is especially useful to separate bigger shapes from details, otherwise it can quickly look busy and messy (look at Alex Milnes art before coloring, there it is very visible)

Alex Milne also uses full black in certain less visible/high contrast areas to create focus on the more important details. It helps to create a more balanced drawing. Also helps to hide areas you aren't confident about such as joints lol

Don't be afraid to exaggerate the lines, robots have a tendency to look stiff

Do not fear the shapes, the shapes mean no harm.

And lastly, thank you for your kind ask! There are many ways to begin drawing robots and I hope this may help in your journey down the rabbithole of giant sexy gay alien robots (ʃƪ˶˘ ﻬ ˘˶)♥♥

[decepti-thots]

it is SO noticeable when you read through MTMTE paying a lot of attention to the colour work in it (which i have done, because i really like burcham's work in particular) just how rarely it relies on "scary or menacing scene = Dark And Spooky" visual shorthand. a lot of early MTMTE stuff is pretty explicitly drawing on horror as a secondary genre- everything from the sparkeater mini-arc kicking things off to delphi to the overlord stuff. but you will pretty much never see those scenes fall back on "this will be Dark so it is Spooky", and often it's completely the opposite. the delphi stuff takes place in brightly lit snowy environments outside or uniformly lit medical interiors. that doesn't really change until e.g the later arc slaughterhouse, for example. the early stuff in particular is overwhelmingly bright no matter what.

what often gets used instead is unnatural contrast and startling colour combinations. for example, here are two scenes i think a lot of people might default to making dark for the sake of dramatic effect and tone setting if asked how to make them menacing:

both of these instead use a kind of "overexposed" look and contrasting colour choices which feel kind of strange and jarring. (the bottom right Whirl panel has those odd purple shadows contrasting with the bleached out yellowish walls, the red and green contrast on the sparkeater). it almost has this effect not of the moment in a horror movie where it's dark and you can't quite see whatever it is that is all Spooky TM, but when suddenly the flashlight falls on it and illuminates it all at once and makes you jump.

(i would imagine some of this relates to keeping milne's very densely detailed work readable, especially on pages that have so many small panels in them; bright and contrasting choices on the colour side will keep those busy details distinguishable even when those panels do not have a lot of 'breathing room'. if nothing else, the colour work in MTMTE does a lot of work to keep those smaller panels and dense crowd scenes readable, lol.)

[quietlotus]

“…but what I like doing best is Nothing.”

“How do you do Nothing?” asked Pooh, after he had wondered for a long time. […]

“It means just going along, listening to all the things you can’t hear, and not bothering.”

— A.A. Milne