#peak character design for me is making them Creature

[greenlovescats]

Sometimes I sit and I wonder how much being obsessed with warrior cats as a small child actually shaped me

[toonagi]

more attacks yippee ^_^

characters in order (as always, top -> bottom, left -> right)

Fir & Siefha ( @beastwhimsy )

One-Kind ( @shiniestapocrypha )

Ryth, Villow and Sipa ( @moonybeasty )

Whirlpool (Jacks2007 on ArtFight)

[slitherpunk]

games i liked in 2023 (And Other)

I like games ! You know that ?! and I played a lot 2023! and I liked a lot :). They aren't in any specific order, it's just a little highlight of games that stood out to me this year. I've attempted to write a few thoughts on each so I hope take a look. I wrote playtimes for some also but that is very subjective.

-Ones that actually came out 2023-

Lunacid https://store.steampowered.com/app/1745510/Lunacid/ I think I mentioned enjoying this in 2022 but it officially released so I can say it was one of my favorite games in 2023 :3! I like to feel around this game's walls for secrets. I like the npcs that are full of hope and whimsy despite the bleakness of its world. Chill and occasionally spooky first person dungeon crawling around moody caverns and ruins varying from underground forests to vampire castles and blood lake. (Blood lake!!!! Lake of blood!!! Big creature there.) Lots of fun weapons and spells to find, I like the one that lets you turn blood into coffins.

~20 hours

Orbo's Odyssey https://feverdreamjohnny.itch.io/orbos-odyssey If you played the massively popular demo for "Peeb Adventures" by feverdreamjohnny then you know that Johnny makes some fun and funny games and this is certainly one of them. speedy and satisfying platforming! funny dracula moments! short and sweet.

~2 hours

A Walk in the Woods https://mooncaller.itch.io/a-walk-in-the-woods Quaint little GBStudio game :) Made by some friends of mine for a jam :) It's cute I like it. There's minigames where you catch bugs and birdwatch.

~30 minutes long

Undertale Yellow https://gamejolt.com/games/UndertaleYellow/136925 I've only completed the pacifist run and checked out a neutral run so far. as the title somewhat implies, this is a prequel to Undertale where you play as the fallen human who had the yellow colored soul. This Undertale fangame has a lot of charm!!! A lot of battles really feel like they could have been in the original, with quite a bit of extra flair in some circumstances.

~10 hours

vs really cool bird https://bobacupcake.itch.io/vs-really-cool-bird you know that really cool bird that rob bobacupcake made well you can fight it in undertale and it's really fun. yeah two undertale fangames. . . wat of it …

~30 minutes

Misericorde: Volume One https://xeecee.itch.io/misericorde I wont lie the main draw for me into this was cute anime nuns I sure didn't know a whole lot else about it when I dug into it. But it's (the first part of) a VN murder mystery! And I enjoyed it a whole lot. All the characters are memorable and I really enjoy how all of them have differentiating designs. The protagonist is so failgirl. She sucks so much and I love her. I'm very intrigued by the mechanics of the game's world, it clues you in near the beginning to expect something a bit supernatural/fantastical, which gives you (and later the protagonist) a curiosity about what's real and what isn't. The music is all very impressive too, with the ost reaching past 100 tracks varying through post-rock, folk, drum & bass, and others. (Remembering when the track "Scandal" played and my friends and I took a moment to be like- okay hang on this track pwns.) Big fan of its haunting locals and how the aesthetic of the game fits them well. Also the humor is a lot of fun, and I love all the moments getting to know the different characters. Very excited to see the eventual continuation of this.

~12 hours

Absolutely Perfect Specimen https://chambersoft.itch.io/absolutely-perfect-specimen It seems like a lot of people are craving toxic horror yuri lately. Here's a recommendation. It's a VN about the android maid "Pan" and the mad scientist girl who created her. Horrifying & gut wrenching & largely about having other people define you. The art and music is haunting & poignant and matches the ever increasing feeling of dread throughout. It's yuri with the chunks. Peak robotgirl horror for those who can stomach it.

~90 minutes

Wordhopper https://kokoscript.itch.io/wordhopper Very quaint word search type puzzle game for ms dos! I think its style is very slick and that's pretty impressive to see. Chill game with nice vibes and eyecandy visuals. also it was so cool to have played this and then ended up seeing the dev's booth at Vintage Computer Festival Midwest. I was like omg woah I just played this.

~bunny

Bossgame https://lilyv.itch.io/bossgame This game is yuriful as f*ck. Delightful humor and fun character dynamics! A simple-to-understand-difficult-to-master boss rush battle system that makes you satisfied to get it right, and enticing to get just a little farther if you get it wrong. There's a lot of detail and charm to this game's menus and dialogues and win screens, I remember noticing that once you beat a boss there would be some marquee text that would pass by with some prose on it. I love how it balances its silly moments with its heartfelt moments and its high octane moments. I like the character development and revelations had throughout the plot. & I like how good the protagonists are for each other :) It's very sweet. It's hype as hell. if you want some boss rush action paired well with that sweet sweet girl's love, you *will* play this game.

~5 hours

Elly's Adventure https://bikwins.itch.io/ellys-adventure Very cute and witchy!! You are the little witch girl "Elly" on an adventure to get your toys back!! Feels like a pretty authentic gameboy type experience, it takes a lot of design cues from Kirby's adventure and the like. I am a big fan of how playful it feels.

~1 hour

Nour https://store.steampowered.com/app/1141050/Nour_Play_with_Your_Food/ This was a treat for me, but I understand that not everybody is going to get it. It's a game where you play with food(and food accessories). And that's it. It knows what it was going for. I think a lot of people were expecting something else for some reason. It's a cute little toy game and I felt satisfied with my time with it.

~food

Hi-Fi Rush https://store.steampowered.com/app/1817230/HiFi_RUSH/ Do I have to say this game is super fun? It's a big one everybody probably already knows it. This game's dopey humor made me laugh a lot and I'm not afraid to admit it.

~12 hours

WHISKEY.ST2007S https://bonicle.itch.io/whiskey-st2007nes One of the last games I played in the year because it released super last minute. Does anybody else get a rush when running a shopping cart down the parking lot? This emulates that feeling. Short game where you collect whisky stones in the whisky stone dimension because you forgot to go christmas shopping until the very last minute. it rules. It's very short you can go play it right now & get a highscore.

~5 minutes

re:curse https://devpalmer.itch.io/re-curse Discovered this one near the very end of the year also. Fun little rpg maker horror/humor game about a weird scientist lady, her butch, and an evil clown computer virus that figured out how to warp reality. I got a kick out of it. and also enjoyed digging through the game's files, which was actively encouraged by the dev, which I thought was very fun.

~90 minutes

-Didn't technically get to until 2024 but released last year-

SWOLLEN TO BURSTING UNTIL I AM DISAPPEARING ON PURPOSE https://1207.itch.io/swollen-to-bursting-until-i-am-disappearing-on-purpose People love to dunk on a lot of indie rpgs for being "quirky Earthbound inspired and about depression" or whatever. Earthbound's great. If people can nail the kind of humor and absurdity it likes to pull off while also balancing difficult topics I think that deserves a high mark. SWOLLEN TO BURSTING was fun. Bizarre and charming places to explore & distressing secrets to find. I like how it blends meander-around-the-town gameplay with Yume Nikki sort of exploration and effects. Also I'm a big fan of the music. I like how it has the lofi sound which matches the early 3d look of the game.

~6 hours

HalOPE https://starbage.itch.io/halope Another for the fans of sweet little rpg maker games that have a lot of heart. HalOPE is about an incomplete little angel wondering through worlds. Each has a theme, usually to do with an emotion or feeling, and they do well at evoking that feeling as well as its antithesis. a lot of the music is very homey and charming at moments and unnerving at others, sometimes lonely, all doing well in their corresponding chapters to further the feeling of its specified theme. There are so many delightful characters and designs in this & I found myself feeling really attached to their tiny little stories. The narrative at the core of it all hit me. If I may be vulnerable, I cried a whole lot at various moments in this game. It was really cathartic. I feel very excited for people to experience this game.

~5 hours

-Favs I finally got around to that didn't come out 2023-

An Outcry https://quinnk.itch.io/an-outcry Kind of sad it took me so long to get to this one, but glad it meant I got to play the "definitive" updated version of it. Apartment wandering RPG maker horror. Bum smokes from your neighbors and use them to save the game. I wish I could unwrap a lot more of what I like about this game than I can without spoiling too much. But if I could, I'd probably go on for too long. Let me attempt to be succinct & not giving too much away. You can tell pretty early on that An Outcry is about taking action when necessary & not turning a blind eye. What it explores about player vs protagonist agency is very fascinating to me as well, and I enjoyed learning about the inspirations for why the game's narrative works the way it does. The character Anne is such a sweetie and I love her a whole lot. This game has a very tangible feeling, this apartment complex is dirty and crumby, it smells of smoke, and there's a surrounding desperation you can feel.

~5 hours

Pigments https://punkcake.itch.io/pigments Honestly I had gotten this game in a bundle and while I was playing it I hadn't looked at the name and I just kept calling it FRUIT. On call with my friends I'd be like "hey im gonna play more FRUIT". I straight up didn't read the title screen. But it's called Pigments. You play as a fruit and you try to paint the whole floor and not get sliced by buzzsaws. Fun little arcade type game.

~fruit

Bridge, October 3rd https://lowpolis.itch.io/bridge-october-3rd Very short vignette. I like it. It's what it says it is. I'm not going to overexplain.

~like a minute

-Other Games I Want To Mention-

Pseudoregalia https://store.steampowered.com/app/2365810/Pseudoregalia/ I think a lot of people might have already known this one but I felt like it was a pretty fun 3d platformer. There were a few issues I had with it (boss fight at the beginning was frustrating, and I got lost a lot [but it looks like there's been a map patch by now, so, perhaps for some that is a fix]). I enjoyed it but sure felt weird that the only accessibility option was to give the protagonist pants. What kind of joke is that?

~5 hours

Mushroom Musume https://mortallymoonstruckgames.itch.io/mushroom-musume (Disclaimer, this game is still early access, but I saw a lot of people talking about it last year. SO I will mention here?) Haven't played much of this yet, but I have enjoyed what I played so far!! As of writing I've gone through 6 playthroughs, I feel like I've hardly scratched the surface and I've been so impressed by its depth. It's very charming, you never know what sorts of fairytale shenanigans are going to happen, and it's very cool to see how your different stats will affect things. It very much plays out like a roguelike vn. Which is not the sort of thing you may expect to make much sense but it pulls this off well. Also all the mushroom girls are very cute and I love them very much. I hope the sad goopy one who had bugs in her skin rests in peace.

~mushroom

Knuckle Sandwich https://andybrophy.itch.io/knuckle-sandwich -_- Hm. Where do I start with this one. I was pretty excited for this one since the demo and kickstarter in 2018. I felt like the demo was a hell of a hook that got me curious & horrified. As time went on, it seemed to be shaping up into something really cool. turn based combat with action commands and wario-ware-type microgames?? with a banging soundtrack?? like, count me in!! Then it released and well, the gameplay, art, music all delivered. It was very fun and engaging in those aspects. But the story… oh it just devolves into disappointing nonsensical randomness. The whole hook at the beginning seemed to be completely thrown away for the wild goose chase plot that ensues, leaving you to wonder if it was ever going to be relevant again. It felt like it had no idea what it was trying to say or do. It disappointed me that a game that has so much good in so much else about it gets brought down so much for me by this plot.

~12 hours

Rhythm Doctor https://store.steampowered.com/app/774181/Rhythm_Doctor/ (Putting this one in mentions because it is early access.) I really enjoyed the act 5 release. When I first saw this game, I kind of shrugged it off, thinking "that base mechanic doesn't seem like it will last". I thought it was basically just that one ghost shooting game from Rhythm Heaven which I Hate. Well let's just say I am now seeking penitence for my previous transgressions. It's really fun. There's a lot more to it that I didn't know when I first took a look. Also, consistently amazed by people's custom levels, I had no idea that its level editor allows people to do so much in it, I look at some levels and think "This editor seems as complex as an industry standard video editor". I'm looking forward to what they're planning next, very curious how they could possibly one-up the last update.

~rhythm

El Paso Elsewhere https://strangescaffold.itch.io/el-paso-elsewhere This was really fun & funny so far but unfortunately I had been encountering an issue with a certain level where the game would crash. I reported the issue, got a response, and there has been an update since then so I think there's a possibility that it got fixed but I have not tried yet. I would like to return to this sometime but having to relearn controls midway through is always daunting to me.

~?

-Things that looked good but didn't get around to-

Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood https://store.steampowered.com/app/1340480/The_Cosmic_Wheel_Sisterhood/ Still don't know a whole lot about this. But there are witches, and I like witches.

Casette Beasts https://store.steampowered.com/app/1321440/Cassette_Beasts/ I haven't felt thrilled about Pokémon lately. I know a lot of people seemed to really enjoy this little monster-collecting-rpg. The style is appealing to me as a die-hard gen 5 fan. I started playing it but haven't set aside the dedicated time for it yet, but I'm excited to dig in more when I do.

Little Goody Two Shoes https://store.steampowered.com/app/1812370/Little_Goody_Two_Shoes/ Started watching a friend play this, and I'm certainly curious.. Some sort of horror fairytale but also there's yuri? Yum. Enjoyed the style and animation in the nightmare segments that I saw.

Venba https://store.steampowered.com/app/1491670/Venba/ I've picked this up a while ago but still haven't gotten around to it, but I'm eager to, I've heard nothing but good things.

Goodbye Volcano High https://store.steampowered.com/app/1310330/Goodbye_Volcano_High/ I think there are gay dinosaurs in a band and it's going to be the apocalypse? I have also heard nothing but good things about this.

-Things I watched friends play-

Signalis https://store.steampowered.com/app/1262350/SIGNALIS/ This was a pretty big one. You probably already know it, right? Watched a friend play this and I missed various parts but I understood a solid bit of it. hey. robotgirls are always getting put in these fucked up situations. have you noticed this? one time i got really high and cried about it. it isn't fair

Bomb Rush Cyberfunk https://store.steampowered.com/app/1353230/Bomb_Rush_Cyberfunk/ This one was also probably big enough you don't need me to sing its praises. but it looked really neat. swag.

-Various Thoughts-

Lately I've been thinking more about design and narrative. I feel like I haven't been doing as much analysis as I should be when it comes to games. I want to dissect more what games are saying and figure out meaning. Also attempt to see how the mechanics aid in that. I feel like most of my own work is pretty abstract & random. I simply make what I like. While that's fun and all, I still want to improve in a lot of ways, especially in having more of a theme or message. Figuring out how other games accomplish this is obviously a good step toward this.

If you saw games here that interest you I highly urge you to take a look, many are pretty short, and I pretty explicitly wanted to highlight some smaller titles. If you know me you know I like to uplift small games. (Save for the occasional big game, but that's rare these days) I think it's healthy for you to play and support independently developed & published works. I don't want to ramble too much this time about why that's important, but I hope that you might have found something you may enjoy here and if not then I encourage you to find small stuff that you would like. And I would like to encourage everybody to share their findings as well! Little games need our help to be seen and talked about! They don't have the budgets the big ones do for advertising, and advertising on your own is a whole ton of work. If you like something, spread the word! I'm sure the developers would very much appreciate that.

[noirfren]

And it is finished! I ended up making my own lazy girl template for multiple reasons but I had so much fun drawing everyone's OCs! I hope the art is to your liking <3

I'm pretty new here so I haven't seen many OCs yet so please drop your OCs down below for a possible round two, I can't wait to see more of everyone's work <3

and for our stars tonight! Gwen- @daisansekai fumbling the whole time drawing him, hands down one of my top favorite ranfren OCs, peak character design I'm speechless.

Quinn- @iwilldevoururmum Gave me some serious cuteness aggression the whole time she's looking at me with them big ol' eyes, her hair is just so soft and fluffy I must squish her till she pops, cutiepie.

Muri- @lorrainailurophile little creature, she's like a bug to me, a bug that's lovely even if a little scary, places her in a glass bottle.

Nuri- @nuri4ever Pretty hard to miss! I was glad to see sweet Nuri on here too, she's just so lovely and fun to draw I have been wanting to draw her for a while and I finally have a reason to.

Converting everyone's designs into my art style was lots of fun! everyone's characters are so lovely and well made, forgive any design errors that happened in the process and enjoy this little treat!

[hotvintagepoll]

Okay, but now I must know your opinions on Putt-Putt games! (Gotta disagree with you. Putt-Putt Goes to the Moon is clearly the Best of them all)

i haven't played all the games (including Goes to the Moon, sadly), but here are my unfiltered reviews for all the ones I have played!

Putt-Putt Saves the Zoo: a classic. a slowburn. the same every time but that adds to its aura of stability, the old world, a pocket out of time undisturbed. also there are cheese puffs and you can have putt-putt eat them over and over if you don’t care much about saving the elephant

Putt-Putt Travels Through Time: more hectic, meandering, a loop in a loop: the clues ever spiraling outward, the chaos of time unlocked vying with old prospector stereotypes and a deeply inaccurate Middle Ages. a singing hourglass asks putt-putt to resolve reality and he responds “and my homework?” Notable for its wagon wheel fruit snacks (edible if you want to sacrifice the entire old west portion and shoot your gameplay in the foot) and the talking floating lipstick wearing car i had a crush on as a 4 year old.

Putt-Putt Enters the Race: a!!! banger!!!!! yes you get stuck in the vegetable garden too long. yes you wonder why Outback Al, a supposed zoologist, doesn’t know what a baby yak eats. but there’s a cat stuck in a tree and a dog with buried treasure and sometimes the shed is on fire! this is riveting domestic drama and the cherry on top is the number of milkshakes one can order. (a lot.)

Freddi Fish and the Stolen Conch Shell: the most perfect of the freddi games in my opinion for channeling noir coral reef aesthetics into a chiming, dark-hue’d mystery. shady characters galore (also a monkey). an intense climax with true stakes. a squid with a cabaret act. freddi peaks. (the seaweed looks soooo edible.)

Freddi Fish and the Hogfish Rustlers: ok this one kinda beefs it ngl. yes there’s an old timey bar yes you can order a root bear soda. but the vibes? the QUEST? the menace of the deep? lacking. there is one cool part where you can intentionally drown a ship, but otherwise the aesthetic is too brown to really go full High Noon.

Freddi Fish and the Case of the Creature of Coral Cove: the character design in this suuuuucks I couldn’t tell you why I just hate all of them. BUT there is a taffy machine and I love the finale of running around the house flipping open secret doors and bribing dogs, so I give it points for that.

Freddi Fish and Maze Madness: aptly named because this game has been driving me insane for years. I played it last week and I’m still stuck on level 31. what the fuck. humongous entertainment said let’s make a game for 8 year olds so we can really let those little suckers know they ain’t shit because this thing is impossible

[alpaca-clouds]

Some thoughts on Nocturne S1

Oh boy. I am gonna talk about this a lot more during the next couple of days. But let me right now quickly just do a vague collection of thoughts I have so far.

I am gonna put them under the cut, because of spoilers.

I love that Maria and Richter are siblings for all intents and purposes

I also love the general theme of found family going through it and how found family in of itself is an act of rebellion

I very much appreciated the random "No Gods, no Masters" graffitti in the background of episode 5.

The character designs for the Black characters are PEAK. I do not think I have ever seen better designs for Black characters in 2D animation. They have the low nose bridge, they have the two colored lips, they have the bright palms. I am in love.

Edouard is my son. I love him so much.

I KNEW ORLOX WAS GAY! I JUST KNEW IT! But also, I am gonna write so much Orlox/Mizrak stuff, you are not gonna believe it.

The theme seems to be that in general: "When in doubt, the character is gay." Which I very much approve of.

I love that they brought in the Otherworld as an entity.

And that we deal with the Old Gods. (Though it being Egyptian gods kinda makes me go: "Anne Rice much?")

Expect a write up on Sekmet, though xD

I just love how freaking GIANT Erzebeth is! (All I wanna do, is see you turn into, a giant woman...)

Edouard being a good and sentient night creature is the stuff I am here for.

Alucard to the last minute rescue, eh?

I feel kinda let down that we never learned more about Drolta.

Also, being the person who wrote essay upon essay about colonialism: I very much enjoy the heavy emphasis on colonialism here.

I love the heavy, heavy emphasis on songs and music in this one. That was a theme I did not expect.

I am looking forward to see Vampire Tera

Also: We got finally a confirmation that Castlevania vampires are created through a baptism of blood.

Did I mention Edouard is my son?!

[ganondoodle]

Since you said it's ok to send you random ask, i've always found your "monsters" design to be really really gorgeous, and I wanted to know : in any form of media you've interacted with, what's PEAK monster design for you ?

i have been thinking about this ask alot bc ... i dont ... know? theres a problem with what counts as a monster really too, most are either some sort of anthro/furry or the horror gore type of monster that instills you more with disgust than awe

i guess theres some i really like but idk if thats what id call 'peak' (though its rarely JUST the design but their vibe and stuff too);

(its a lot of zelda.. sorry)

Eldra, Farodra and Naydra (engl Dinraal, Farosh(?)) though Eldra is def my fav one of them, i like how they are a little more less typical dragon- with the fur around the neck the floppy ears and kinda goofy face yet manage to be the most ethereal, awe inspiring creature i have ever seen in a game with how they act and are presented as (in BOTW!!! do not mention anythign sonau/zonai with stupid magic pebbles to me about them i will manifest worms into your tea)

Leunen (Lynels) (botw) -i could not find a better picture wtf, fav are white and silver ones) FINE they had some pretty neat new horn designs in totk- idk i just like them alot, rather simple if you think about it, horse lion plus horns- but its so well put together it just kinda scratches my brain in a good way (also how intelligent they clearly are, like the way they fight and act and also even their death animation is so??? huh?? you are just gonna treat them like any other mindless monste- *remmbers they treat ganondorf even even worse all things considered* .. nevermind you're good)

'Beast' Ganondorf (twilight princess) its my favorite beast ganon design (even if it technically is just kinda a man boar .. again) though if ww gan had a non puppet beast form that one would most definitely be my fav lol (i will not get over the fact that some descriptions call this a hideous beast EXCUSE ME???? WHERE???) (honorable mention here, darkbest ganon from botw, pig on fire but it looks cool as fuck)

Nimbusgarde (ww) .. (engl .. darknuts?) do i need to say anything? (i could throw alot of ww design here) not sure if it counts as monster but they are not human so ????

the pathless bosses- (here in order, Cernos, the Godslayer, and Kumo) all of them are rad as hell (except for the final version of the godslayer ... liek im sorry but it looks to boring compared to any other one lol) again not just the design but man do i love them

since i dont know what would count as a monster or no i could just list my fav characters here bfmjbfmjsbmj like radahn (elden ring) is just kinda a zombie, aurelion sol (league of legends) is a space dragon, the forest god in princess mononoke, Narisha (skyward sword- sky whale)- i could go on but this post is long already (honorable mention to Omus in nausicäa, weird bugs but also something divine, though it is much more how they are treated and the vibe etc)

in all honesty though i cant think of one that i would describe as perfect, what i want of a monster design is to be ... cool but also a little weird, big hulking monsters that have something off about them and something that makes them 'other', but also not, as much as i like bloodborne, just bloody gory messes of rotting flesh, AND not just as a monster to kill, i just crave a game or otherwiese piece of media where the cool monsters arent just there for you to kill- the perfect one i guess would be something kinda big scary weird and off but while non verbal clearly not a mindless beast?

and here is the thing; my own characters do not furfill that, my designs are really rather conservative, much to my dismay, anthro of a mix of animals, maybe an extra arm thrown in- Eadrya, one of my favorites, is really just a blueish furry (yes they have fur) and their demon form is a mix of seals and catfish with some extra arms, too many teeth and a mouth that goas wayy to far (if they want) - Shargon is a feather dude with extra arms and his demon form is really just a chinese type dragon crossed with a bird, throw some darts at the color wheel, done

together with my problem of my monster characters losing their 'otherness' vibe within the story rather fast bc the majority of my characters are non human and speak and you see them in all sorts of emotions and parts of life- they lose that divine, unknown vibe and i HATE that that happens, i want them more akin to the forest god in mononoke but thats not possible unless i start from scratch

and i really dont mean to make myself look bad to sound self depre- ... however you spell that; i really am rather dissatisfied with my own designs but mostly just roll with what i got bc i never seem to be able to actually achieve what i want

even my redesigns often really make things LESS interesting (unless maybe the og was just ... human, but they are blue eyed with golden hair and white so that makes them divine you seE-), the skyward sword dragons as i redesigned them made them much more classical dragon, in part intentional bc i was drawing a connection of them becoming the botw dragons at some point, but by all means the canon design is much more weird and unusual than what i did with them, you could apply the same to even demise, his canon design might seem a little uninspired but really what did i do? inject him with some classic satan spice like that makes it in any way less stereotypical evil demon ??? lol

im sorry this post devolved into whatever this is but i really am trying to answer sincerely, i am confused about it myself, what counts as a monster, what doesnt, there must be more that i really loved but why cant i think of them, why do i design characters like this when i really want something much more different, i dont know, i feel like my brain is in a cage, why do i keep making things less interesting in an effort to make it interesting, am i falling into the corporate trap of cool sells who am i what am i doing

(theres a zelda artist with a style so strikingly genuis in shape, color and just .. DESIGN that i want to chew my nails off bc i cannot design like them, their designs and redesigns are so different yet sensical and so full of crisp shapes i have never seen before it drives me nuts and i would want to give them a shoutout but i think they dont like me so aaaaarhekjbfhgdknbgdfklbg)

[kasarasun]

Hi! I loved your Illustrator Shen Yuan au and wanted to know if you had more ideas for it? I feel it makes a lot of sense especially with SY’s ability to recognize literally every plant, animal, and character that showed up in the novel instantly and Qing Jing being the peak of the four arts. Also, if he played a major role in editing the wiki, do you think any of his written headcannons or speculations may have come true? Do you think he and airplane ever just use his art style to distinguish cannon fodder from the rest or do they still follow the rules of his art style despite him having never drawn them? If the first then him meeting Tianlang-jun and ZZL would be hilarious cuz he may just brush them off. Also, how does this go with Liu Qingge’s character design being different than imagined (pretty instead of burly)? How do you think this would play into a post cannon reveal? Are there any other common or uncommon hc’s in the fandom that you would combine with this?

Thanks!

going backwards with your questions: (this will be long, forgive spelling, etc, errors)

Headcanons: this is already the product of multiple headcanons! For one, SQH is solidified as the author instead of a prophet, because SY as the artist means that the world is malleable, to a degree. Also I believe in black-haired Mobei-Jun (irrelevant haha). I also would say the hc where if Shang Qinghua 'writes' something with enough intent, it might just happen.

Also, the 'world' being made of paper and so is from someone/somewhere but i forgot. Sorry ahahaha

I think this makes SY and SQH both paper/creation gods. (Discussed further later on in this mess.)

Tianlang-Jun, Zhuzhi-Lang, and Liu Qingge: The thing is, the 'design' applies to mobei Jun because SY has explicitly drawn him. Binghe's 'design' is same the PIDW official art's because this is only physically, (the contours of a creature's skull rather than binghe's nail polish) because they're real people and persons, which is an important theme that breaks character designs that include distinctive clothing. Also because of this realized state, nothing can be more real than anything else. Through the lens of a reader, we might imagine the 'world' being this collage of the artist, but this isn't the case.

That brings me to my next point: what of the world that hasn't been 'illustrated'? Of course, we can have a creation myth instead of an actual explanation:

The God who brings ascension from nothingness carves the mountains, shapes the moon, culls the suns, and folds the paper beasts, men, and flowers. The God whose palms raise all things into the light so creates the three realms. The God creates and creates and creates.

The God who witnesses watches the creations grow simpler, watches creases deteriorate, watches rushed work. The God who witnesses sees the God who arises with the world in hand grow tired. The God who witnesses paints the paper cranes, refolds the rushed creations, and refines the creases. (The God who watches paints over a tear in a silver leaf. The God leaves the gold leaf be.)

The God who paints the birds and beasts never folds the fresh paper. So concludes the creation of all and every.

(Where the silver leaf of paper is mobei-jun and the golden one is binghe.)

Shen Yuan's headcanons: of course, Airplane is the writer. He takes precedence. His headcanons only applied to his 'domain', and his 'power' only exists in the origin world (though this may change as the idea develops), and draws power from Airplane Shooting Towards the Sky's work. His role is lessening the burden, but the work has already been done.

On postcanon reveals: Shang Qinghua totally gets caught first. Actually, it's the airplane extra with the 'daddy admires you' scenes! He is forces to explain, and along the way he kicks SQQ under the bus. I won't say too much on how this spreads, but probably Mobei saying something to someone. Maybe he calls Qinghua the heavenly emperor/ the ascender in front of all the peaklords. An Ding probably already knows.

why the ascender? Airplane translates literally into flying machine. So, warp that into ascension and omnipresence. Airplane Shooting Towards the Sky ascends reality from nothing (darkness) to something (sunlight). This applies to everything, so it is comparable to a system or machine. Behold, the really irrelevant, misplaced, and overly subtle Rain World reference.

The God who Paints the birds and Beasts from Drawing the Beast's Ire warps the Ire into attention, and then Airplane's protagonist and his cool monsters drew his attention, then the poor writing his ire.

Meanwhile, Shen Qingqiu is only minorly accosted by peak lords. The problem is binghe, upset that Shizun was drawing other people. Drawing the Beast's Ire drew like 2 other characters. One is Mobei-Jun. The other is a modern-clothing binghe. He's also upset that Shang-shishu and Shizun share something as grand as the creation of the world together, and the fact that SQQ is the lesser. Additionally, unlike Mobei-Jun, he wasn't made specifically to please his God! Unfair!

Of course, binghe is very happy about this as well. He's Shizun's favorite character!

This might be high time to mention more headcanons: there are temples and shrines dedicated to airplane and occasionally the witness/the painter in the endless Abyss. This is due to the first heavenly demons, probably. How else did Xin Mo get there?

Anyway, they'd be like airplane folding paper front and center and then the painter doing his thing off to the side. Of course, there are a decent amount dedicated only to the painter.

On additional creations: Maybe Shen Qingqiu/Yuan and Shang Qinghua get together and make OC animals. They're all entirely harmless. Shang Qinghua writes their names, their abilities, and a nice good description while Shen Qingqiu/Yuan paints. Maybe it doesn't do anything. Maybe it does. It's a change of pace either way.

[goldstarknight]

Today I want to talk about Duel Masters. Specifically: The Duel Masters anime from the early 2000s.

For those who don't know: Duel Masters is kind of the little brother of Magic: The Gathering. It was also made by Hasbro and there is a lot of fascinating history between the games. You can listen to Maro talk about it here.

The thing about the anime is that it is a parody dub that gets more unhinged as it goes on. Feels like watching an abridged series on YouTube.

For some reason the official localization team was allowed to do a parody dub instead of a faithful adaptation that takes itself way too seriously for its own good. As a result the official version of the English Duel Masters dub (which was shown on childrens' TV programs in the early 2000s!) is closer to Yu-Gi-Oh! Abridged than Yu-Gi-Oh! (which would be the most obvious comparison).

I mean it: they didn't just go for some light dialogue changes. No, they cut tedious, tropey dialogue, inserted pop-culture references, added some 4th-wall breaking jokes about common tropes in shows like this and sometimes even heavily edited the footage for comedic effect. There is a scene where they put a bad disco filter over the video and make a character sing karaoke. Seriously, I can't convey how weird this gets at times. The only thing separating it from an abridged series you'd find on YouTube in the 2010s is probably the lack of swearwords. And that's not really the kind of thing you'd miss anyway.

It gets even more unhinged in the final season. I assume they knew the English version wouldn't be continued since the TCG failed to catch on in the west, so they just went all out. There is a scene pretty late into the series where two characters are dueling and one of them summons a creature, but the wrong summoning animation plays. The characters then complain about the editor they hired on Craigslist. Again: this was meant for children's television. Not the internet.

A lot of jokes went way over my head as a child and I took it super seriously, but rewatching it with a friend last year had me howling with laughter at times. Maybe it's not your sense of humor, but if you like silly anime parodies, I urge you to check it out.

Also, if you speak German, I recommend you watch that version. The localization team did a great job of adapting the jokes and the voice actors really leaned into it. Can't speak for other European versions, but maybe there is something there too. :D

Here is a random assortment of my favourite characters to pay tribute and hopefully whet your appetite:

First we have best girl Mimi, Kokujo, an edgelord and Matrix-aficionado and Jimmy Three-Horns from Iowa.

Yumama, who had her name changed from Yu Fua just so the dub could make "yo momma" jokes and EXTREME BUCKETMAN.

Knight, one of the most pathetic mentor figures I have seen in all of anime (I love him for it) and Dr. Root with his weird crow-mouth (peak or rather "beak" character design).

And finally Tom & Stu (might be the same guy, depending on the localization).

Alright, got that off my chest. Hope this was interesting to you. :)

I usually stick to posting (pixel) art, but I really wanted to share this with the world.

[maidenvault]

I’ve finished this year finally having seen all the films of Guillermo del Toro that he hasn’t basically disowned (and some of them again) and these are my notes.

- The Hellboy movies are still so delightful and sweet. Peak romance. And the concept of drift compatibility in Pacific Rim still makes me foam at the mouth, it’s so good. Too bad he’ll probably never do one of these sillier kinds of movies again.

- Also I have new thoughts about what I think Pacific Rim was really trying to do with the conflict between Mako and Pentecost, even if it ultimately comes across…not well. But that would have to be a whole other post maybe.

- Do not understand why Blade II is so highly regarded. Some cool creatures and a cool soundtrack and WS is charismatic as usual, but that’s really it.

- Geometria is a hilarious early short film of his you should seek out if you haven’t seen it.

- I was so excited about the idea of GDT doing noir and can’t believe how boring Nightmare Alley is.

- Pan’s Labyrinth is one of those films that just does nothing for me emotionally even though I love the idea of it and it’s so well crafted. I feel like it’s actually too much like a classic fairy tale in the sense that it’s about situation more than character, I just don’t get invested. I’ve always much preferred The Devil’s Backbone which is comparatively under-seen.

- Same with Cronos. Everything about it is such a great idea done well, I just don’t care. 🤷‍♀️

- Crimson Peak, we all know. It gets better every time I watch it and I can’t recommend the Arrow blu-ray enough.

- Since I love Pinocchio, I have v ambivalent feelings about GDT saying after Frankenstein he just wants to do animation now. I want to see him make something really badass again. I want him to do Swamp Thing instead of that overrated af James Mangold. I need to keep seeing the amazing production design he always uses.

[sharb]

Sharb's SAGE 2023 recommendation list

SAGE is over and I've taken a look through some really good games this week. Wanted to shout out some of the ones I thought were really cute in no particular order.

With over 200 games I can't play through and recomend all of them so please if you're interested in any of these I recomend going to https://sagexpo.org/games.html andlooking at some of the other games available.

These are just the games I've played, if you don't see your game here that's not a comment on the game's quality, just what I had time to check out.

Remember to click the thumbnails to get access to the game's pages

I was immediately interested in B.U.D.D. for it's art and references to games like wonder boy, what really surprised me about it was the humor as it's actually funny in a cute way.

If you like wonder boy or classic sega adventure games I can't recommenced B.U.D.D. enough.

@cyanroxanne pitched this to me as a SHMUP for people that have trouble getting into SHMUP games, after playing the demo and taking a minute to figure out how the game works I actually had a lot of fun with it. I could definitely recommend this to people who wanna get started with the genre, really amazing art too feels like it's a treat just seeing what the next area looks like.

RPG games can be really hard to push on SAGE because of how many games there are to go through and how long they can take to complete, a lot of streamers tend to pass over them for the sake of time so they can cover more games.

So here's my RPG recomendation, Cubenen Gardens is a game being made by @thegamedawg who actually got me to play test his game months ago, the game's still in development but what I've got to mess with so far the game's strongest aspect is it's characters and world building as you help Micheal (the saddest sopping wet creature on the planet) navigate a mall trying to find a rare monster but gets wrapped in more and more conflict.

David gets keen is really short but it has a really strong gameflow to it, my only gripes with it is that the ability HUD could be given more clear graphics as your moves are represented by circles which can make it hard to figure out what they belong to without pressing their corresponding buttons.

Beyond that the grass stage is amazing, playing the level normally gives you a pretty average platformign game but when you start building up speed using your spin move on slopes you can get to insane speeds and just fly through the level skipping puzzles and enemies and clearing the level in seconds, it's really fun when you get the hang of it.

@wootinaboot

Meander land is a really small game by @whiskerfjords game's really fun to play casually, I thought the story and characters were really cute and I'm actually really excited to see what Whisker makes next.

Out-class Hunter from @7hrone returns again with a brand new level to check out, it's a return to Doom style third persons games, specifically SRB2, it's been fun following the development of this game and watching it improve each demo.

Lemme know if you can find the cool cactus, you'll know which one I'm talking about if you follow my games ;)

Prototype N is just a really really solid action platformer game from @arriettylunaris each level has a lot of thought put into it's design and the weapon combinations can be a lot of fun to mess with, I really can't recomend Prototype N enough.

I can't get over how much character personality this game oozes, feels like around every door I'm going to run into something new I like either being a character or a game mechanic that's just fun to mess with, each character brings their own moves and their levels take advantage of a lot of their movements.

I'd compare this to those old 90's Disney game adaptations but this game easily out does them in terms of design as the designs look like they were ripped right out of an old 1940's cartoon shorts.

Peak meme aside, I actually had a lot of fun playing this, Super Freaks is a fun lil platformer game with references to a tonne of other works, you probably saw this game referenced countless times this Sage but it is just really goofy fun, tho I would really recommend playing this with friends if you can, game feels like it was designed around the kind of multiplayer chaos, if you saw the stream I was part of you can see why.

Sorry to all my friends who have heard me talking about this game all week non stop and seeing me reverse engineer SMBX 2 to [redacted] but this was easily my favorite game this SAGE if not the most replay-able, I keep booting this up just to try and make it thought the level as quick as I can.

So if you're like me you've probably been seeing @punkitt-is-here s pony comics or more specifically, the Susan Tax payer comic and the charm, humor and personalities of all of them absolutely coats this game.

It requires a bit of set up, you have to download SMBX2.0 separately in order to play this and SMBX has it's own set of issues that kinda bleed over into some of the issues in the game that need to be ironed out but beyond that this is a really fun demo to play and I absolutely can't wait to see where this goes.

Techpack currently is one Namco inspired arcade game, Tech has put a tonne of time and research into how to nail the old arcade style. The only thing holding it back right now is that the only game available is really simple and short, but man I'd be kicking myself if I didn't mention the presentation on it alone is enough for me to recommend checking this out, really reminds me of the old Namco collection games on playstation.

Now put my rabbit in as one of the cameos :gun_emoji:

Ok that's all the indies I could cover, some honerable mentions that I've been wanting to check out include

kid bubblegame JLFJ 2 Veggocalypse Mekanikko

As for the fangames I've played

Here's a game I wasn't expecting I'd be recommending, Mushroom Kingdom Fusion has been in development for over 15 years and always felt to me about quantity over quality but this new demo really impressed me.

The game is starting to take shape and there's actual structure to everything where as before it was just an open sand pit for them to figure out what to do with.

There's still a lot to be done but what's here is just a blast to mess around with. something really satisfying about struggling with a level, switching over to Samus and just blasting all the enemies and bosses away, tho I assume these characters will be unlocked in the final game as most of them are completely over powered.

This does bring me to one complaint though, Mario needs a buff. Mario is by far the hardest as he has few defense options and a lack of a health bar that almost everyone else have a huge advantage over him, and Mario having a health bar isn't too far removed from games like SMB2 and the modern 3D games.

But regardless I never thought I'd play this game and actually try to beat levels so I could see more, secret hunting is finally rewarding and expanding and finding more of the world is really fun. The game's length is absolutely HUGE, one world is about the size of an average Mario game which is insane.

And I'm really happy to see that loading has been optimized tho I don't know if that's because I'm running a machine that's not made 15 years ago.

@velacosmos has been working hard on creating a new Demo for SAGE and this one actually surprised me.

Taking influence from mario maker 2, Shang Mu Architect is a Freedom planet challenge level maker. which is quite impressive on it's own but has a tonne of extras.

Namely now there's actually a story mode to go along with the game, truth be told I'm not too big into freedom planet's cast to really know how well this game captures their personality but I still think it's really cool to actually have something that doubles as a proper freedom planet fangame since as far as I'm aware we're yet to see an actual game that actually follows the original games style.

Your mileage is definitely going to depend on how much you enjoyed the original freedom planet but I definitely think this is worth checking out.

Of the top of my head way back when stealth was pitching a mobile port of sonic 3, I swear I remember one of the ideas was expanding the match stages into full fledged level.

Sonic 3 Chronicles is an interesting "what if" scenerio where after angel island instead of falling into Hydrocity Sonic and co continue past the cutscene area and into the endless mine from match making.

I never really thought of those match stages as being connected to the main stages but this does a rpetty decent job of introducing new gimmicks and mechanics to go along with those stages.

The game is definitely rough around the edges and needs a lot of tightening up but what's here is a cute game that does it's best to follow sonic 3.

Also Mighty is here... I don't know why but thank you.

Gatoslip is a hack of Sonic the hedgehog created by @vadapega a very small demo with a tonne of personality put into it.

Yes, this is a hack, you're going to need an emulator in order to play it. Now which emulator do I recommend?

Probably the steam workshop if you still have your copy of sonic 1 before SEGA took it off the store page.

Vada's always been an inspiration for my art and it's great to see him finally go for something that really expresses his personality. The writing's great, the battles are really cute and I love the strategies for defeating enemies. Game's filled to the brim with visual gags with one gag in particular giving a lot of "replay value" (you'll know what I mean when you beat it)

can't wait to see where this ends up.

Again check out

https://sagexpo.org/games.html if you haven't yet, this just scratches the surface of what's available and there's a tonne of great games I looked over in this list.

[parallel-2-anywhere]

D&D Cartoon Characters As MTG Cards

Was it the D&DBeyond free adventure where the carton kids were the pregens? to coincide with the new Players Handbook? Was it a Brazillian car commercial that stirred a long dormant foreign fandom? Was it my friend @bubblytarts slowly being dragged into Magic the Gathering kicking and screaming? In any case. I decided to try and think what legendary creatures from throughout Magic The Gathering you could Secret Lair style reskin for the kids from the Dungeons and Dragons Cartoon! All of them are going to be legendary creatures who can pilot their own deck. Join me!

Starting with Sheila!

Sheila the party rogue could of course turn invisible via her cloak. So Etrata, Deadly Fugitive working with cloak to turn creatures face down while also caring about assassins (a rogue subclass) was peak. It had to be done!

Next is Presto!

Presto having the random item hat could have been Delina Wild Mage, but consider. Using Averna to build a cascading shell into wild cards and having Delina in the 99. Also pair with Flamekin Herald (who you could make Varla from the one episode) and give the commander cascade!

Next is Bobby!

For Bobby the Barbarian my thought was Maarika (who yes I know was first Zangief but shhh). The fact excess damage is turned into breaking stuff feels perfect for the club he gets and you can put the Secret Lair Crash Through for Uni in the deck to get double duty of the excess.

Next is Diana!

Diana I wanted to make a monk proper because like. Yes her title is acrobat but... ya know. And that led me to Prowess and Narset, Enlightened Exile! You can make the exile aspect into being on another world, but honestly I think any prowess commander can do here!

Next is Eric!

For Eric. I admittedly struggled a bit, BUT I ran into Jared Carthalion, True Heir. The Monarch mechanic feels right for an Eric card to play into. Several episodes of the show temporarily tempt Eric with or properly give him power and authority over the others, like the time he became Dungeon Master for a day. And the ever changing head of the monarch works very well for that. Added to the fact that while you are the monarch nothing hits you is perfect for the shield!

Next is Hank!

For Hank I was gonna do the ranger aesthetic, but more than class, Hank is "team leader boy." SO I went with Tazri, Beacon of Unity. Cuz a 5 color commander that can bring out the party is perfect, caring about the card types that mirror the titles they were given, and also it cares about the party mechanic and gathering the gang and their allies. Something well within the purview of a good team leader!

Finally Venger!

For Venger affinity for artifacts is the funniest mechanic to give the bbeg who spent the whole ass show chasing after 6 or so magic items. The fact that Rakdos also lets you bring in Beholders, Goblinoids, Slaad, Giants and other classic D&D Monsters from both the Adventures in the Forgotten Realms and Battle for Baldur's Gate. Things like Asmodeus, Acererak, and even more villainous icons of the Realm along with powerful artifacts!

And that my friends are my picks! I hope you enjoyed them..............

Psych! Doing one more for Niko!

Niko is from Stormwreck Isle and then the adventure of Uni and the Hunt for the Lost Horn. Designed mostly to ensure there was a healer class for mechanic reasons all we have about Niko is a throw away line about being "new to the D&D multiverse". so how do I use that?..

SIMPLE. So I hear "New to the multiverse" and I think "Flip Walker" showing a newly sparked planeswalker! So. Looking through the existing Flip Walkers I settled on Tamiyo! Focusing less on dealing damage and more about protecting other planeswalkers and gaining informational advantage seems like the kind of thing someone new to the multiverse would focus on. Plus caring about spells when they flip into a planeswalker adds to them being a caster class. It's kind of a stretch but hey. I had so very little to work with.

And with that. For real. I am finally done!

These are only my takes though. What would you set these characters as as commander cards, is there one of them you wanna build? What would you put in their deck? Let me know! If I do end up brewing any of these I will post decklists via Moxfield! :D

[thealmightyemprex]

Fantasy month:Middle Earthathon Part 2 Lord of the Rings 1978

Ah this movie,the first theatrical feature length adaptation of Tolkien .There are a lot of fans who dont like this movie ...I am happy to say I love this films,warts and all.Its an important part of Rings history that folks either goof on or ignore and while I get it , I think there is a lot to love about Ralph Bakshis Lord of the Rings

Also shout out to my friend @the-blue-fairie who is also a fan of this film

In this 1978 film Frodo Baggins (Christopher Guard ) is informed by the Wizard Gandalf (William Squire ) that he has gained posession of the One Ring which is sought by the forces of Mordor , and eventually must partake in a quest o destroy it

So I actually saw this film as a kid.I saw FEllowship of the Ring in theaters and I wanted more Lord of The Rings,but the films werent out on DVD yet ,I was too young for the books ,and to my limited 2001 knowledge there was no other LOTR stuff....Till me and my grandmother went to the local blockbuster and found ......Another version of Lord of the Rings on VHS .I immediately rented it and to my surprise it was an animated film that adapted not only Fellowship but the next book as well the Two Towers ,so I felt like I was getting a sneak peak at what the next film held like Gollum,Treebeard,Gandalfs return,etc .I actually think I might have seen this film sleightly more then the Jackson trilogy (Mainly due to it being shorter )

Now the main thing to point out about the anijmation is it is done through Rotoscope,a process where you take live action refrence footage and draw over it,which can lead to very realistic movement .This films use of it is devisive to say the least .I personally like the rotoscoping it gives the film a unique look thoughI do feel they might have stuck to close to refrence costumes ,when I think they couldve gone a bit more creative ,especially in the creature designs ,cause the orcs legit look like guys in costumes and wow does the Balrog cetainly look like a winged lion guy .I have heard some folks say the character costumes look a bit generic ,but I actually kind of enjoy that asopect ,like I dunno why Boromir is a viking or why Elrond is a Roman Emperor ,but I kind of dig it

So Lord of the Rings has a LOT of characters and I cant go every single member of the cast .The cast consist of several British theater actors (A lot of them having appeared on Doctor Who ,like a majority of the cast was on Doctor Who at some point) and the cast has a few notable names,being who's who of "OH that guy !".....So I am gonna start with the "HEy that guy"s that stood out to me then wrap back around to other primary characters

John Westbrook (Who I know as the REd DEath in Roger Cormans Masque of the Red Death ) makes a brief appearence as Tree Beard ,and I feel his wonderful deep voice fits the character (I have seen a few folks assume hes Christopher Lee but its not,its John Westbrook he just happens to sound a lot like him )

Andre Morell (A very accomplished actor who I mostly know for playing opposite Peter Cushing in Nineteen Eighty Four,Hound of the Baskervilles and Cash on Demand )plays Elrond ,giving a commanding and dignified presence to the elf .SAdly he passed a way shortly after the films release,.....WEird coincidence same also happened to Cyril Richard who played Elrond in the Hobbit

Alan Tilvern (PRobably best known as RK Maroon in Who Framed Roger Rabbit ) plays the Inkeeper and he brings a good nature but also some bumblingness to the role

Annette Crosby (An actress no stranger to fantasy playing the Fairy Godmother in Slipper and the Rose and Granny WEatherwax in Cosgrove Halls adaptation of Terry Pratchett Wyrd Sisters ) is MARVELOUS as Galadrial ,I actually like her a bit more then Cate Blanchett in the Jackson film.I really dig the Pool of Galadrian scene in general and her amused reaction to Fordo offering her the ring

Phillip Stone (A regular of Stanley Kubrick ,most notable for bring the menacing Delbert Grady in the Shinning ) brings a wearyness but also a kingly strength as Theoden ,I think he really does a greta job

David Buck(Who I know for being one of the Skeksis in the Dark Crystal) is a very solid Gimli,not many lines but I like how Gimili is characterized as Buck makes his few lines count.Great animation moment ,is when Gandalf tells Gimli his cousin Blin died,and wordlessly you see the heartbreak on Gimlis face before he wanders off to be alone

Now we get to the four most noteworthy castings:Gollum,Boromir ,Legolas ,and Aragorn .

Legolas is played by Anthony Daniels AKA C3P0 from Star Wars ,in a very rare film apparence that has nothing to do with that frsanchise .Hes also the only actor from the film I have seen discuss the film ,where he discussed his disappointment in Legolas being blonde and how if he had known that he wouldve played it diffrently.....I have no clue what that means .Anyway,I actually like Daniels voice as Legolas ,and I like how friendly he can be whether it is reuniting with Aragorn or his quieter moments with Gimli ,while also working in the serious moments where hes sensing danger

Boromir is played by Michael Graham Cox who I know as Big Wig in my favorite animated film Watership Down .Honestly performance wise ,I think Cox is one of the best ones in the film ,you feel him as a proud warrior who just wants to help his people ,but also his corruption and eventual guilt.His last stand against the orcs is an amazing scenes,it feels grizzly ,and theres a moment where he lets out this kind of warrior scream that has stuck with me .So Cox is really good and I think Brian Selby and the BBC thought so too .....CAuse he played the role again in the excellent 1981 BBC radio version

Peter Woodthorpe best known to me for playing a villainous hypnotist in The Evil of Frankenstein and Old Joe in the George C SCott Christmas Carol,plays Gollum,and like Michael Graham Cox he reprised the role in the BBC production.Gonna be completely hones,I love Woodthropes Gollum .....In the radio production ,I think hes a bit better there,but he also good in the film ,just more subdued but still showcasing his madness.I think hes very creepy and enjoy him both here and in the radio version

And now lets get to the BIGGEST name in the film:legendary actor John Hurt ,who even back then was a name actor and I just gotta say,,,,,He is MY Aragorn ,no9 disrespect to Robert Stephens from the radio production or Viggo Mortensen from the Jackson films who both do a fabulous job as well,but this is one of my favorite performances by Hurt .He exudes sterength,confidence,but also moments of doubt ,be mysetious but has a warmth .When I think of Hurt as an actor I tend to think of victims and villains ,so the fact he had this chance to play a heroic character is pretty awesome and he gets some pretty great line reads favorite being "Then we must do without hope,there is always vengence ! "

I actually dont have much to say about most of the rest of the cast (Simon Chandler and Dominic Guard are pretty decent as Merry and Pippin while Frazer Ker for me is a bit to saturday morning villains as Saruman......Or Aruman,yeah due to executive meddling ,they kep switching from callrng him Saruman and Aruman ) so lets get onto three of the primary characters I havent talked about yet

William Squire is pretty good as Gandalf ,a bit over the top,but I feel one needs to ham it up if your playing a wizard .I do love how he casually flicks the ring in the fire .Will admit I do wish they were able to get their original choice Alan Napier (Who I feel wouldve been a great Gandalf ) ,but Squire is a very good Gandal

Now lets talk about the most hated element in the film....Sam .Michael Scholes plays Sam ,and he plays him very...Comical ,Sams comic relief ,and I dont hate it like other people do but it is a very strange take on Samwise.That said I am curious ,if Bakshi did do a sequel how this Sam would handle the more heroic elements

However if the film does a character really well,,,,,Its Friodo .Christopher Guard delivers on the journey from almost niave to world weary yet having this inner strength .When being chased by the Black Riders ,weak due to a wound ,him standing up against them is very powerful and my heart breaks at his final scene where he discusses for him its just about getting to Mount Doom and not returning .While Ian Holm is my favorite Frodo in the radio production ,Chritopher Guard is a close second and I so wish he got to finish the character arc

I've mentioned a few favorite moments such as the pool of Gladrial and Boromirs last stand but other scenes and elements that I love here are

1.The Black Riders.Of all the villains here,I think they are the most effective ,very creepy and intimidating with the best moment being them attacking the beds (Which Jackson borrowed for his film

2.Boromirs Death ,which is just heart breaking and I especially love the look on Aragorns face

3.Lothlorian ,just seeing the character,even if briefly just relax and bond after the trials in Moria.I especially love Frodo listening to the song about Gandalf and admitting "We knew so little of him in the Shire ,he was just Gandalf to us " and Aragorn assuring him that the old wizard liked of all his names Gandalf the best ,like Awwww thats so sweet !!!!

If I have a complaint ,other then "God I wish Bakshi made part two".....Its that I think the Fellowship of the Ring parts are stronger then the Two Towers parts .Once Boromir dies it does drag a little

That said I love this movie and do reccomend it to fans of the Jackson film or books .I got a soft spot for it

@ariel-seagull-wings @themousefromfantasyland @countesspetofi

@amalthea9 @theancientvaleofsoulmaking @princesssarisa

@barbossas-wench @princesssarisa

[seeyouonsaturn]

Making myself a lil intro post to pin

Hello everyone! My name's Two (short for 217), though I'm apparently going by Saturn on this blog, which is also fine! I'm in my mid-20s, agender (they/them) and I really love cats.

I was obsessed with TFA (and Prowl, my first love) when I was 13, fell out of the fandom for a long time, and now I'm back! My husband is still beautiful as ever. He's literally shaped me as a person.

I'm getting into other Transformers media now, but I'm still new! So far I've seen Transformers One (4 times. my beloved), TFP, and I'm almost done with Cyberverse.

I'm a selfshipper and OC enthusiast. I don't care much for canon/canon ships, I LOVE making OCs and throwing them at characters I like instead. OC creation is my favorite ever thing to do so expect to see my little guys. And they are kissing my blorbos. Because I'm having fun 🧡

I'm a romantic at heart and am kissing my blorbos daily. But that said, I'm a sucker for angst and exploring dark themes, and will happily inflict pain and suffering upon characters I love and also any observer that gets attached to them <3 sorry not sorry. I am feral for dooming the narratives!

I'll list my favorite characters and OCs under the cut because I have can't-shut-up-disease and autism-fueled insanity so there's a LOT! Asks about either are always very very welcome and I will love you forever.

Lastly, this is a harassment-free zone, we are all friends here! Please take your hate and bad vibes elsewhere, if you want to police how people enjoy things, this is not the place for you. Yes, this means you, antis. Go away.

Selfships/Most Beloved Blorbos

Prowl 🧡 | TFA | the one the only, my beloved husband of 13 years and going strong. Nothing and nobody could ever dethrone him from his top spot he's so special to me. The only s/i from any fandom ever who I'm genuinely not fully comfortable sharing (it's new to me too. Sorry I'm weird about him). We are legally married. Nothing bad has ever happened to him.

D-16 | TF1 | my sweet boy my precious beloved I could have fixed him. He's my little guy. I love him. I want to hold him gently. I selfship with him but I also ship him with Orion I don't care. There are infinite universes and he has two hands in all of them. Well, most of them. He deserves to be loved.

Whirl | I just found out about him and I am obsessed it was hyperfixation at first sight I need him so bad. I've always been weak for a bastard with a fucked up backstory, not to mention those long digitigrade legs are peak character design. Whirl I would do anything for you. 🚁

Honorable mentions

My favorite guys who didn't get their own blurb but they are still very dear to me. Including but not limited to:

Optimus Prime 🖤 [mainly TFP but tbh any] | Ratchet 🖤 [any] i'm an old man enjoyer | Smokescreen 🖤 [TFP] he's like a son to me | Knockout [TFP] | Wreck-Gar [TFA] | Starscream [any but TFP Star is a freak (affectionate)] | Cliffjumper [any] he's like a hamster to me | Sentinel Prime [TF1] mmm bastard

OCs

Please witness my beautiful children

PHANTOM-2918-4/Phantom/Bird | mainly TFA, has a TF1 version | decepticon-turned-autobot | shipped with Prowl | #oc: the courage of stars

Ash Majors | TFA | autobot-aligned human/techno-organic | also shipped with Prowl (long story) | #oc: just to be quiet

Skyline | TF1 | new high guard, then decepticon | shipped with D-16 | #oc: summer silence

Trixie | TF1, has a TFA version | unaligned alien creature | shipped with Sentinel | #oc: i'll be your animal

Wildside | TFA | neutral bot | shipped with Wreck-Gar | #oc: living on the wild side

Havoc | IDW/MTMTE | autobot | shipped with Whirl | #oc: step a little bolder

Bluescreen | TFA | decepticon | shipped with Lugnut (one-sided, pathetic) | no tag yet

Livewire | TFA, maybe TFP | autobot | shipped with Ratchet, best friends with TFA Longarm (what a nice guy!) | #oc: like a pulse

Razormane | TFP | predacon/nemean lion | shipped with Starscream | no tag yet

Leo Monti | TFP | autobot-aligned human | shipped with Smokescreen | #oc: next up forever

/Galatea | TFA or TFP | human-made bot/AI | TFA shipless, TFP shipped with Knockout but in the most angst-filled way possible <3 | no tag yet

/Briar | TFP | autobot-aligned human | shipped with Optimus (eventually) and Ratchet (even later) | no tag yet

/Joanna | initially autobot-aligned human, then M.E.C.H., then decepticon/techno-organic | Briar's best friend. Not officially shipped with anyone, but Megatron/Joe is too funny a concept to pass up. It would never realistically happen. Doesn't stop me though. | no tag yet

/not actively in use/lost attachment but I'm not deleting anyone

ship name list

☆

Background Characters

named background characters for some of my OCs' backstories. They all have their own info and I would be delighted to talk about them too!!

The New High Guard | Skyline's team | members: Comet; Crasher; Trickshot; Tripwire; Freefall; Whiplash | #iacon's finest | nhg

Leo's Family | Cousin Millie [besties with Dreadwing]; Aunt Gina [concerned about her children]

Other tags

#two talks | general tag for my posts

#two draws | art tag

#two's ocs | oc tag

#answered asks | self-explanatory

#oc ask game | ask game related stuff

#ask game reblogs | just the games <3

[cyberdragoninfinity]

Has anyone asked Carly yet 👉👈

NOBODYS ASKED CARLY YET i would love to talk about her ;w;

Why I like them/why I don’t: carly truly fills the absolutely lacking void of failwomen in yugioh and for that alone she's great but ALSO. BEYOND THAT. SHE'S JUST SO FUN AND GOD I WISH THE SHOW DID MORE WITH HER AFTER THE DS ARC!!! but that's been said to hell but everyone that's old news. I love just how optimistic and hopeful she is!! her conversation with z-one during the latter's DL event, where she's just so kind and hopeful of a good future that it moves even this complete bastard bag of bones, is so telling to me. just a good person who also is a little "bitch you live like this?" and that combination rules. love you carly

What I like about their appearance: THE GLASSESSSS i love swirly/opaque type glasses on characters, and it's so especially cute on her. also shoutout to her Dark Signer color palette and freaky eyes which will always forever rule So Fucking Hard

Do I prefer their dub names or original names?: i think i do like carly nagisa more than carmine surname wise, pondering on it now 🤔

OTP: AGAIN, GOTTA BE SCOOPSHIPPING. AND JUST WHEN YOU THINK YOUVE HIT ROCK BOTTOM, YOU WANT TO FUCK A BLOND GUY i love them to bits. the world if carly and jack got to do more shit together in s2

NOTP: not really as big on misty/carly.... REALLY not big on akiza/carly 8| this is a Grown Ass Woman With A Job Shes Not Dating a 16 Year Old.

OT3: much like with jack i dont think i really have one for her??? those two are simply made for each other u__u

Favourite card they use: Aslla Piscu is probably my favorite Earthbound Immortal design but i have a really particular fondness for her Fortune Fairies. all of them. theyre so comically pathetic i just have to love them SOPPING WET LITTLE CREATURE

Favourite moment they were in: the whole bit with her accompanying jack to the amusement park and trying to interview him still so so funny

Least favourite moment: any time they make her have to spar with mina and the coffeeshop girl over jack -__- just peak #yugiohwomanmoment slash NEG. AUGH.

Something I associate with them: From the Nebraska Plant by the Mountain Goats <-- *deranged* IT JUST REMINDS ME OF HER RELATIONSHIP WITH JACK IDK!!!

[titleknown]

PD MONTH CHARACTER: SEUVERHUND-3

Ah, so I am summoned to speak om my behalf. Very well then. I am Seuverhund, the raptor of the Inner Troughs...

...You seem unknowing. Hardly unexpected. Few folk not born unto filth know upon the troughs, and fewer still survive the fall and none unchanged. I was born as a beast unto filth, with teeth honed upon the wire-rats and weaned upon the blood of the unwise and incautious. Love was rarely found, and those who gave it died too often at the claws and venoms of loathly hands. 

I learned independence from its hunger for the needs of food and drink. I learned the breath of the smokeless fire, I fashioned the tallows of my skin upon simple instruments, and I became the shape of the flying ships to sail on the foul wings with the gutwings... 

...I ate of the Gutwings, by the by. I do not reccomend it, as they are bitter and for too much effort if not seasoned by hunger. But, this is for another story.

Beyond time, the years of which I do not know from this beneath, I grew and honed my trade amongst the beasts that pretended at civilization, those in great abodes living and unliving. fatted upon those lives above and below. I worked as a transport and a sell-sword, my body my weapon, for those afraid given in kindness rare but treasured, but for the beasts only until coin and meat was given, then they would be prey. Glutted creatures with concubines to massage their tumors, lean brokers clicking their mandibles with honeyed words above jingling chains. 

Some here remind me of those, but I am told the method of dealing with them is frowned upon and ineffective. More's the pity. Though... 

....as I drunk from the cup of life and slew tyrants breathing or deathless, the cruelty of the world continued. I had slewn the Crocodiem, burnt the Gehenna Towers to rust and gristle, staked the Eye of Tin Mountan and drunk its heart-blood, and still another tyrant came. Still more were kept in chains. Still more men and women were slaughtered and children gnawed from the remains of their forebears, and the pain continued.

And I, upon one crowned throne, discovered the truth. The Inner Troughs was not borne by hatred or by filth of nature. It was borne from the hands of one living, shaped by oily fingers from a perhaps kindly shape. And so, I did what I had always done. I went to slay him, beyond the highest peaks of our dripping depths.

It was the hour I first saw moonlight that I saw them, that team. they are pleasant, soft at times yes, but of good spirits and kind cheers. I enjoy the company of the Princess especially. She is... interesting to me.

This world is kinder, but I see many who make it cruel and who aim to make it crueler. Some of them are within the confederation they call City Hall, as is the man behind the horrors of the Inner Troughs. The Ugly Bastard they call him. Let them call him that. I will call him my enemy until mine cup is soaked with his blood, and I will pour the freedom until it reaches my first home at last...

--------------------------------------------------------

SO, the core idea behind this character was basically a bio-monster from a fucked up Pellucidar-but-monster-sewer with the personality of a Robert E Howard protagonist. I imagine her home having the vibes of stuff in the Creeping Rusty Meat school of stop-motion (Yes, including Mad God) along with very specific types of hentai (without the not-fun-kind of go-to-jail sorts of creepery therein of course) and broader general anime depictions of Makai.

To clarify a bit on her abilities beyond the obvious monster-strength and immunity to a great many non-cold things, they include that organic laser cannon, the properties of the slime upon her carapace (most notably its lubricant ability and flammability) and the ability to turn into an organic ship in which others can ride. Which I did not depict, because I wasn't sure of the design, but it is a thing!

Also, City Hall is actually an idea for a villain team for another character in my superhero stuff, but works as a very broader range of antagonists to fight. They're basically a team of bastards who work from the shadows to keep the world in the shitty status-quo it's in, named after that stupid "You can't fight City Hall" phrase status-quo-defenders love oh-so-much.

My ideas of their membership are loose and ill-defined at this time, but I know it would include an evil pink robot from the future who wants to take the slow route to destroying humanity, an evil ghost-samurai who's also a major CEO* and a living humanoid chocolate bunny who runs a sex cult. And yes, that last one is a reference to Veggie Tales.

As per usual, I post all this information, design, ect under a CC0 Public Domain License! Have fun!

*He gets away with this due to his true evil-ghost-samurai form being visible only to the good of heart. Which, turns out there's not a lot of that in the heights of corporate America they inhabit. So it's a real Emperor's New Clothes situation.