#scheels style

[stqrryeyez]

Manicure

pairing: Captain John Price x gen!Reader warnings: nothing!! just fluff and possibly ooc Price(?). I haven't written anything in two years, so this has a high possibility of being awfullll synopsis: taking care of your husband by painting his nails. 1.3k words.

“I would sweetheart, but you know I can't.” he states. Which was fair. You understood it was a shot in the dark question, just a sliver of hope that he’d agree. You’d expected this response anyway, not that Price’s masculinity was that fragile - far from. Painted nails just wouldn’t suit his line of work and wouldn't suit his general aesthetic.

You dropped the whole conversation, forgetting about it until the next time you got around to painting your own nails. Clear polish. It wouldn’t violate any of his dress codes or interrupt his image, but he still got that little bit of time to relax and get taken care of, rather than just him taking care of you, on top of all the paperwork he had stacked up on his desk. You wanted to treat him, take his mind off his seemingly unending workload for a while. 

 It was just past 10PM when you had caught him, the sun now firmly set and the moonlight glimmering through the still open blinds of his office, the only other light illuminating the room was the Scheele’s green banker’s lamp at the corner of his desk. The amber light highlighted the dark circles he was sporting, his head resting in one hand whilst he scribbled away at the pages with the other. He was glaringly obviously overworking himself, to the point of exhaustion. You couldn't help but feel sympathetic for him, witnessing the state he was in was heartbreaking.

 “John?” 

“Yes, love?” he replies, moving his head to look at you, quickly wiping the tiredness out of his left eye, his gaze holding admiration and pure love for you. 

 “How long are you going to be? I have something I think you might like.” you question, not wanting to disturb him too much, but in the same breath, hoping he was nearly done so that you could finally spend some time with him, take care of him for once.

 “Give me fifteen minutes sweetheart, then ‘m all yours for the rest of the night.” 

 Within the fifteen-minute wait (which only ended up being ten due to your husband’s impatience), you settled on the sofa, the little bottle of nail polish on the side table, yours and John’s favourite tv show on in the background, focusing on that until he was done.

 At his call of “Love?”, you patter back into his office, carrying a nail file and the little bottle of clear polish, just hoping he’d agree this time. You hid the items behind your back, sitting down in the seat on the opposite side of the sturdy, walnut desk he slaved hours of his life away over.

 “So, I know you said you didn’t want me to paint your nails because of work, but I have an idea if you’ll hear me out.” you offer, waiting for his response.

 “Go on…” He adjusted himself in his seat, encouraging you to continue, indicating that he might not be against the idea, just that he needed to know what you were planning.

 “Found this whilst I was cleaning the other day,” you say, taking out the nail polish and showing him, putting it on the desk for him to inspect. “Clear polish. Doesn’t affect your style or your job, and it tastes like shit so you might be able to stop biting your nails so often.” You knew he had a nasty habit of doing that when he was anxious, so to be able to minimise that would benefit him greatly.

 John studies the bottle for a little longer, holding it up towards the light, his brow furrowed in that way he always did when he was thinking. He nods subtly, handing the bottle back to you approvingly and holding his hands out palms down, not saying a word.

 “You want to talk about what’s vexing you?” you ask, angling the light over his hands so you could get the best view of what you were doing. As he lets out a heavy sigh, he begins to talk about work, something about “Laswell’s got me workin’ around the clock.”, and “So much fuckin’ training next week, there’s a mission being sorted in Afghanistan with Sheperd, so need to be prepped for that.”

Nodding along with his drawl, putting some words of advice in when you felt was necessary, you filed his nails down to a uniform length, making sure they all matched each other, smoothing out the nail beds, eliminating the top layer of his nail so the polish would stay on for longer. 

His calloused hands in yours were heavy, grounding, solid, yet his touch was feather-light, gentle, silk. Eventually, the conversation petered off into silence, the sound of both your breaths encapsulating your hearing, the steady rise and fall of his chest just in your eyeline as you opened the bottle of polish and began to coat his nails with the liquid.

You start from his left pinky, his hands curled perfectly around your own, easily manipulated by your touch, silent commands you mutually understood. Half-lidded brown eyes struggle to stay open when you look back up at his face, cleaning a little excess polish that spilled over onto the lateral nail fold of his fingers with your thumb. His cerulean irises latched onto yours, the adoration in his eyes evident in the way he looked at you.

Focusing back on his hands, you complete the final swatch on the right pinky, recapping the bottle, then hooking his fingers over your hands, blowing gently on the polish to dry them quicker. “Fifteen minutes and they’ll be fully dry. Sofa?” you ask, wanting to move out of his office to somewhere a little more comfortable, get the man out his space and into yours at least once today. Watching him nod softly, you arise from your chair, opening the door for John. 

“Ladies first,” you giggle, making your husband laugh, the rumble from deep within his chest finally emerging. You hadn’t heard him laugh properly in days but it felt like it could've been a lifetime without. The sound of his laugh could have cured the worst of diseases just upon hearing, seeing the way his eyes got those little crow's feet round the corners and his top lip disappeared into his moustache made him look as if he was glowing, like he was radiating pure gold. 

Following him into the living room, you watch as he plops down onto the sofa, desperately trying not to smudge his nails on the fabric of the throw cushions. You place yourself down in his lap, his hands hovering awkwardly over your shoulders, your back against his chest. You take one of his hands in yours, blowing cold air gently on his nails to dry the polish faster, just wanting him to get comfortable. Whilst waiting, you put on the newest episode of the tv show the two of you were watching together, sinking your body into his. 

Finally, you feel his hands come to rest in your hair, trusting his judgement that his nails were dry, his nails running over your scalp. The constant, rhythmic motion of his hands circling your head were like a silent lullaby, restoring comfort that you hadn’t felt in months since he’d been away on missions. It didn't take long for you to fall asleep in his arms, the unfaltering rise and fall of his chest and the ever-present warmth of his body encapsulating yours working better than any sleeping pill ever would. 

However, just before the realm of slumber consumed you, you felt a light kiss to the crown of your skull and a hushed “Thank you, love,” in your ear.

[vvvolfram]

Looks like Wolfy hasn’t been using this blog. I think I’ll take over and use it less as a company blog and more as a personal Venuza one.

Hi, I work for Venuza’s ✨Shining Star!✨ as a gym trainer and social media manager, but I’m also a contest star on the side. We work to make Venuza shine bright and sparkle on in this concrete jungle.

You can call me Scheele, any pronouns.

This is my sunset Muk, Prince. :}

I have two other Muk that I still need to take pics of, and a Sylveon who’s been loaned to me from a breeder a few towns over. Hoping I can bring Venuza’s sparkling style to rotomblr!

[amphibimations]

Some thoughts about how I’ve been using color in my WH drawings

So I’ve actually been using color pretty intentionally when I design the outfits for the characters, I’d like to talk about my thought process behind some of it!! A note that these are ideas that i’ve been building on as i’ve read the book, so I haven’t always used them consistently and i’m still building on them as i keep reading more of the book.

1) Cathy and Heathcliff always wear blue

In my first comic, I happened to choose blue for Heathcliff’s outfit. Not for any reason, I just thought it looked nice. Once I started drawing cathy, I decided to put her in blue too because having 2 characters in the same color works as a visual metaphor connecting them. After reading the ‘we share the same soul’ part I realized them wearing the same color constantly works even better, and started making a conscious decision that no other character I draw for WH will ever wear blue, to emphasize that the color represents their connection specifically. I also think this color works really well for them because of the color’s association with weather, sadness, nighttime, and ghosts.

2) Edgar and Isabella wearing green and red

This is a thing that doesn’t have that deep of a meaning behind it but i think its really funny. I chose those colors because i had drawn cathy and heathcliff throwing a red and green book that they hate and so i was like ‘haha. They also hate Isabella and edgar. i should do those colors.’ Also i think it worked out because i will sometimes give cathy more of a cyan-blue which is closer to edgar’s green, and heathcliff more of a indigo-blue which is closer to isabella’s red. I do think the colors I decided to use also speaks to how well the characterization of the siblings was written in their introduction, because just based on their first scene I decided red for isabella because she seemed more passionate and intense, and green for edgar because he seemed more meek.

3) Saturation of colors

This one i havent been consistent on, but i’d like to be more so in the future. And its less of a metaphor and more just because of how dyeing clothes works, but I tend to use more saturated colors for connoting wealth. Which is why, when cathy gets back with her new outfit from the lintons, it is such a deep blue, and why i added more brown to heathcliffs outfit and made the blue a bit faded once hindley started making him work. I mean im using pretty saturated colors for all of the characters right now because this is a cartoony style, but if I do make that graphic novel some day I think i’ll be more consistent with this idea.

4) A Mistake

When i was reading the first few chapters I knew going in that there was a ghost in the book, so when Cathy 2 showed up I thought she might have been the ghost at first. So in my head i pictured her wearing white even after i realized she wasnt the ghost. Even though the book SAYS she’s wearing BLACK…. Cathy 2 im so so sorry i robbed you of your goth girl colors i wont do it again. (i know her dress is probably black because she’s in ‘Official 1800s Husband Mourning’ over linton but come on u cant tell me she wouldn’t be goth if she was living in the modern day.)

5) other colors

I don’t really have a reason for the colors of lockwood, nelly, hindley, or hareton. I just thought they looked nice. Joseph wears blacks and greys because hes boring and mean. Idk i do think blue and orange being opposite colors sort of could work to highlight the difference between Heathcliff and Hareton (being put in a similar situation but having different endings). Like i said im still updating these ideas, haha.

edit: another thought i just had is that it would be so so funny to make the color of edgar’s clothes scheele’s green specifically. Get arsenic poisoned, idiot.

[drifting-pieces-blog-blog]

Breaking down the comics: Shattered like Stained Glass (issue 24)

Moon Knight, Issue 24: Scarlet Moonlight. 

IT’S HER! Also look at this cover. I love when they do this well. And that pose! She is just stunning. 

And then you have Moon Knight over there…Not sure what he’s doing. He’s having a moment. 

I’m so excited to bring you this. I love Stained Glass Scarlet. Her relationship with Moon Knight is so amazing. She does good in her own way, acting as a deadly vigilante and in a way acting in ways that Moon Knight/Marc would love to act. 

Considering that when we first met her, she was a grieving mother set out to kill her own son who had turned into a murderer… It’s facinating to see her progress in her goals and abilities. 

So let’s get to it! 

And right off the bat we have an opening page that is just outstanding! 

Onec again Bill Sienkiewicz and colorist Christie Scheele have just gone OFF. I applaud them and am so enjoying seeing their style get finer and neater and just AMAZING. 

We open on a meeting in a restaurant where a group of mob bossess setting up new territory. As they come to agreements, they shake on it and an figure in red appears in the doorway. 

"The Crossbow, an odd weapon of choice in these days of more convenient guns, is a customized job equipped with a clip of five "Quarrels" or "Bolts"... All of which cna be fired in rapid succession without reloading." 

And with that, the mob bosses are dead. 

The culprit? Signs her signature with lipstick. 

Look at that crisp looking Moon Knight. That is beautiful. Also, again we see him relying on instinct. A theme we will see pop up a lot with him. Going where he feels he is needed or where he feels the call. 

The running man is a waiter that worked at the resturant. He points Moon Knight in the right direction and keeps going. 

In the distance, Moon Knight spots someone in a red cloak making a run for it. 

She takes a shot at him, making him dodge and giving her enough time to dissapear. 

Of course WE, the reader, know who the bad guy is because of that amazing cover. A common problem with comics. They'll put a huge spoiler across the cover to draw in the reader, but then it leaves no mystery. 

Moon Knight turns back to the site of murder to find Flint struggling to open a bag of chips. 

Can we just say that I love Flint. He’s so tolerant of Moon Knight. This is about as close to friends as Moon Knight himself gets. 

Seeing the S on the wall, Moon Knight is able to figure out just who it was that he was chasing. 

"Suspicions confirmed. A woman, a red "S" overlooking death...One year to the night after the first death. Scarlet.... Stained Glass Scarlet... Scarlet Fasinera... Lady of sorrow and darkness..." 

"Eh? You mumbling, Moon Knight? About what?" 

"About a lady, Flint. A lady who thought she might be a nun, or maybe an actress... And who turned out to be both. A lady whose son did his carzy best to kill me a year ago... Just before dying himself." 

I just love her design. She’s just stunning. 

He tells flint how Scarlet was left alone 'in this bleak, decaying neighborhood'. 

Flint notes that the men that died were making money from the decaying neighborhood. Big shots in the mob. 

He asks if Moon Knight knows her. 

Moon Knight says he does then runs off. 

"Then what's her name? Hey! What was that you mumbled back then?!" 

I love Flint. He puts up with so much. 

Moon Knight returns to the last place he saw Stained Glass Scarlet: The Cethedral. 

He finds it the same as before, decaying and being broken down by time. 

Climbing to the attic, where Scarlet had previously made her home, he finds a receipt from a florist shop for a funeral wreath delivered to the Bronx memorial cemetery. 

And there, he finds her. 

"There'll be five more like that soon." 

"I know, Moon Knight, and it's only the beginning... But they won't be cheap granite like this one... They'll be venetian marble and they'll cost fourty thousand dollars apiece." 

She left the clue on purpose, drawing him there to find her. 

He asks her if she believes in ESP. 

"It wasn't coincidence that I found myself drawn to this neighborhood..." 

"And you think it was ESP? Call it fate, Moon Knight, and I'll believe." 

"All right--Fate. What's it about Scarlet, why?" 

"I've declared a one-woman war on crime, Moon Knight, focusing on the syndicate." 

She wants to stop the ones that have made a living out of destroying neighborhoods and that made money off of victims. 

"Oh, I'll stop a cheap hood from mugging an old lady, all right - but my real targets are the ones who've set up shop in boardrooms and tax shelters." 

The ones that turned her son towards crime and forced her to kil him. 

Moon Knight is disturbed by this new vendetta. 

He asks her if she's the same Scarlet he met who wanted to be an actress or a nun. The one that tried to save the lives of her husband and son and who hated guns. 

She is, but she is no longer 'passive' or 'fatalistic'. She has 'lost her religion and gained a realistic attitude'. 

He asks her why she took the money too. 

"Why not? It doesn't belong to them. Besides, I... I've always wanted to remodel the churge...After my other work is done." 

He then asks if she's going after the mob leader "Manny Sindone". She tells him how Manny was a cold blooded killer at 18, killing a girl brutally just because she refused to date him. 

She talks about how the police and press all know exactly what's going on with Manny but have been looking the other way. He's seen as a respected member of his community. 

Moon Knight gives a good point: "You're telling me nothing new, Scarlet. Why do you think I'M dressed like this?" 

Oh Moon Knight... You know damn well why you're dressed like that.... 

Scarlet tells Moon Knight that he was the one that gave her son his first Heroin and this is how her son became "Mad Dog". 

She puts it to him that Manny will die come nightfall. "Who would you rather have walking the streets? Me....Or Manny Sindone?" 

She leaves and Moon Knight watches her go. 

"Morning at Grant Mansion: The black wreath commemorating another death--that of Marlene's brother, Peter Alraune has been removed from the door by the Butler Samuels only moments earlier... And now having changed to Steven Grant in his mind if not entirely in his garb, the man who is sometimes Moon Knight enters the hall." 

This signifies that Moon Knight is officially being recognized as their own alter by the writer. 

My question is where did this get lost during the other writers and iterations? 

Back to this story, recall that in the last issue that Marlene lost her brother and with her father also gone, she's gone through a lot of loss since meeting Marc. 

Steven comes to her with a question: 

"Marlene... Can I pose a hypothetical question to you? Suppose some one you knew to be basically good... Had done something bassically bad..." 

Steven my friend... Read the room. 

Marlene is upset by this. 

"This doesn't sound hypothetical to me--in fact, it strikes altogether too close to home." 

She turns to leave. 

"Hey, what's wrong? Come here, Babe..." Steven tries. 

"Not now, Steven. Just get on with your question." 

"Uh....All right... And suppose this person were about to do something even worse..." 

"Such as?" 

"Well, for example....Eliminating someone." 

"I'd stop it." 

"Yes, but say it wasn't that easy. Say the person being eliminated were...evil. Say the person deserved to be eliminated." 

"If you mean killed, why don't you just say it?" 

"Okay, Killed." 

"Then maybe I wouldn't stop it." 

"But then you'd have to stand by and watch a murder committed by someone you...you care for. And the alternative means letting a previous murderer go free..."

Steven is having a hard time with this. 

"Why settle for either?" Marlene cries, reemembering her brother. 

Steven is still oblivious. 

He wanders off, still deep in thought about Scarlet and fails to notice that she's still deeply in pain over her brother. 

But then again, Steven hasn't lost anyone, has he? Marc has lost his brother and many others. Even Jake understands the pain of loss and comfort of his friends. Steven has always stood solitary with just Marlene and his mansion staff. 

Back at the church, Scarlet looks over pictures of her past. Pictures of her young son before he became the killer he was. 

Done with the past, she collects her crossbow and sets out. 

Moon Knight on the roof is ready to go. He tells Frenchie to get ready to head to Jersey. 

"Marlene was right--It doesn't have to be a choice! There's no reason I have to accept either of the two evils!" Moon Knight is back and ready. 

Stained Glass Scarlet is sneaking past security guards of Manny's mansion. 

In the mansion, Manny Sidone is holding a meeting with his big time guys, talking about the murders at the restaurant. 

She considers killing them all. After all, not a one of them is innocent. 

Moon Knight arrives as Scarlet prepares to enter the mansion. 

He tackles her telling her that he has to stop her now and then stop Manny once he's committed a crime that is stoppable. 

Waiting for Manny to commit a crime is something Scarlet clearly does not agree with (She and the Punisher would get along and I want to see this so much). Especially since Manny now commits his crime by just telling others to do it. There is no way to catch him in the wrong. 

Their argument is noticed by the guards. 

She apologizes to Moon Knight and he tells her not to do it. 

Too late. She shoots and kills the guard. 

Forced to work with her, she starts to take out and kill the guards. Moon Knight feels the conflict as he begs her not to kill them. 

She breaks away while he's fighting a guard and heads inside. 

While Moon Knight keeps the guards busy, she makes her way to Manny. 

She takes her shots and they take theirs. Taking a bullet in the arm, she advances on Manny. 

She tells him who she is "A mean mother" created by his destruction of her son. 

She wants everyone to know who she is and pauses to write her "S" mark in the wall in her own blood. 

As she writes, he pulls a gun on her. 

Moon Knight bursts into the room to find the crossbow and gun aimed at one another. He knows they will both go off and he can only chose one to save. 

"Both hearts targeted and only a split second in which to choose... Which will it be-Avenging Angel or Corrupt Devil?" 

He throws his dart and knocks the gun from Manny's hand. Not a second later the crossbow fires and an arrow plunges into his heart. 

"Thank you, Moon Knight...The night's work is done." 

She leaps through the window. 

"One side of him says it's over, let it be... The other side says no." 

She stops at the train tracks where a train approaches. She tells him that she is too tired to keep running. He can stop her now, but she will always be who she is. 

He takes a shot, but he misses. He doesn’t have the heart to stop her. He knows he can’t. He knows she is right. 

(Also spoilers to the next review: Black Spectre review coming soon!) 

This is why I love Stained Glass Scarlet. Her relationship with Moon Knight has always been a fantastic thing. She isn’t a friend, she isn’t a love interest, but she is his first moral ambiguity. 

He respects her. He wants her to heal. He wants her to give up the violence and bitterness, and revenge. He wants her to be happy and move on. 

Perhaps he sees himself in her. Perhaps he sees Marc’s pain and inability to let go. Perhaps he sees the reason he became Moon Knight the hero. He wants to protect her, a fellow traveler. She kills those that have caused great harm and pain. But Moon Knight himself can’t stand the thought of murder. Of her losing herself in the darkness with each step into death. 

He also notes that he is afraid she will die in her quest for vengeance. A woman that once had such a promising life destroyed by so many things that fall close to home. As Marc lost his own family through choices that left him running… 

Steven does not understand Stained Glass Scarlet, but you see him confused and questioning why he feels the way he does. Moon Knight is also upset and doesn’t know what to do. 

Honestly, I think they see Marc in this. They see their own system. They see how wounded she is and her choices and they see where they could have gone. They see how Marc could have come from the desert and taken up his guns and done the way she did. They see how easily Moon Knight could have gone on a different path. They see all her pain and wonder if Marc will ever be able to heal. If there is still a chance they too could go her way. 

Considering who they are going to fight next, this is a concern that will stay on the back of Moon Knight's mind for a long time.

[silverjetsystm]

what colour do you associate with your muse?

* interview the writer | Accepting

Answered for Steven and Jake here. Since Marc's the one who wears the vestments, he gets his own post.

Well, I say Marc but this is mostly MK.

Black and white chiaroscuro. In the Early Days, the MK outfit had a mostly black bodysuit with white gloves, boots, and cloak. This is the void era and I love it. I think it led to confusion - 'is anything black or is it white in shadows????'

First appearance with the cape attached to wrists.

Werewolf by Night (1975) #32 Writer: Moench; Artists: Don and Howie Perlin; Letterer: Holloway; Colorist: Rache

Bless him. (This ^ is pre-origin and gets retconned)

MK (1980) #26 Writer: Moench; Penciler and Inker: Sienkiewicz; Colorist: Scheele; Letterer: Rosen

Moench refers to MK as "the jet and silver [insert quality here]" throughout his time in the comics. Which is how I picked the blog name c: I don't know why Moench picked this language but #26 may hint at it.

"First there is black. Then there is light, and all the colors of jazz. And there is sound in these colors. A wailing trumpet drips cool violet, threaded with smoke. Heavy blue lumbers from the bass...While the clarinet tempts and tantalizes in hot pink counterpoint. But the drum. The drum beats blood red."

The Jewish day begins and ends at sundown. (This is also before MK was specifically confirmed as Jewish).

'Hit It!' (#26) is a masterpiece.

Eventually, they go all out and make the suit white. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it's really ugly. Gold gets to live as an accent color.

West Coast Avengers (Vol. 2) #21 Art by: Al Milgrom and Joe Sinnott

Shalvey created a new black and white outfit.

MK (2014) #2 Writer: Ellis; Penciler and Inker: Shalvey; Colorist: Bellaire

Cappuccio continued it with his own style. I adore Rosenberg's use of colors too. She adds a really nice turquoise glow around MK and Mr. K.

MK (2021) #2 Writer: MacKay; Artist: Cappuccio; Colorist: Rosenberg; Letterer: Petit

Yami Yugi Voice: Mind Crush

MK (2021) #17 Writer: MacKay; Artist: Cappuccio; Colorist: Rosenberg; Letterer: Petit

Does Marc get his own color? If Steven is green-blue with sunlight on glass and Jake is magenta-red neon drenched shadow. Not necessarily. Marc's internal dialogue is teal and is the bright moon in the darkness. The mask has been worn for so long that he became it.

[danthatartman]

Books I read in 2023

Heeeeeeeeey Tumblr, I'm alive! Warning for very long post.

Given how little I ended up drawing during the back half of the year, I want to do a different kind of summary to close out 2023. And, since I already posted my thoughts on almost every movie I watched on Letterboxd (https://letterboxd.com/NotThatCrypto in case you're interested), I wanted to share the books I read during the last 365 days.

For 2023, I wanted to read at least a book per month, with a secondary goal of reading two per month. I ended up with 16 total reads. Not quite two per month, but probably the most I've ever read in terms of different books in a year (If we don't count that time I got obsessed with fanfics and read what must have been the equivalent of 20 novels in like five months a few years ago.)

Anyways, let's get started.

1: Tress of The Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson

Sanderson is my favorite writer, and this year he and his team delivered the Year of Sanderson kickstarter, which ended up including 4 novels he wrote in secret during the pandemic. Tress is the first of these novels.

I found this to be a delightful story. Sanderson really flexed his style muscles for this book. It's probably his most beautiful in terms of prose and rhetorical figure usage. You can really tell he wanted to make a novel *for* his wife.

It gave me the vibes of older fantasy tales, while still retaining much of what I love about the Cosmere and Brandon's books in general. I do wish some things were a little more unpredictable, as the twists were a bit too clear right from the very early chapters, and would have liked to be more surprised. I'd probably rank it among my top 5 fave books by him, specific spot undecided.

4.75 stars out of 5

2: I'm Not Mr. Monster by Dan Wells

I started reading the John Cleaver trilogy last year, this is book 2. On the one hand, I think I preferred the atmosphere and pacing from the first one. On the other hand, Wells managed to dive so much deeper into John's psyche here, and that really carries the whole book. There's also some concepts that I felt could have been expanded more upon, but guessed that would be done in the last book (We'll get to it later) Overall, some improvements over the first, and some things that felt weaker to me.

3.75 stars out of 5

3: Queer: A Graphic History by Meg John Barker and Julia Scheele

Read this because I was dealing with some personal stuff earlier in the year. It's a graphic novel that details some of the more theorical and philosophical aspects to queerness and sexuality throughout the years. Found it to be really well explained but at the same time, brief. It serves as a really good jumping-off point to get into the subject, which I want to do in the future. Scheele's illustrations are awesome and really help to highlight and simplify the most important information.

4 stars out of 5

4, 5 & 6: Percy Jackson and The Titan's Curse, Percy Jackson and The Battle of the Labyrinth, and Percy Jackson and The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan

Like with the John Cleaver series, I started reading Percy Jackson last year, after a friend of mine really recommended it, and wanted to read them before the show premiered. I read these in succession, so I'll list them together.

Titan's Curse was really good, probably the most emotionally complex Percy Jackson book, and I'd probably rank it second or third amongst the five.

Battle of The Labyrinth is probably my least favorite from the whole series, as it felt repetitive and at times like it dragged on for too long.

Last Olympian however, was super enjoyable for me, even though it did also repeat some actions sequences in terms of structure. Would rank it highly as well.

As a whole, I found the Percy Jackson series to be a blast, and it scratched my greek fascination itch. Percy is a really well realized character, and I adored reading from his perspective.

I do wish I had read these books a bit younger though, as I obviously encountered some stuff that left me wanting more as a result of the target audience. Not at all faults of the books, but good to point out.

Titan's Curse: 4.5 stars out of 5

BotL: 3.5 stars out of 5

The Last Olympian: 4.25 stars out of 5

7: The Binding by Bridget Collins

One of my most dissapointing reads. Its characters never clicked for me, and I found the book to be too tropey and like it didn't do enough with the premise or its magic system. It left me feeling frustrated, especially after I'd heard some really fantastic things about it.

I will award some points for the writing style though. It was very beautiful, and was what made me power through, other than my curiosity.

2 stars out of 5

8: The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

While I think it is quite easy to see where the story is going right from the start, I think the journey to get there is super compelling. I like Haig's style, and only wish this one had been slightly longer so it could dive more deeply into each of the protagonist's possible lives. Some really cool imagery too.

Enjoyed it, and want something similar that explores the things that this one didn't.

3.5 stars out of 5

9: The Alpha's Son by Penny Jessup

Cool queer love story that also happens to involve werewolves. I honestly think the shapeshifter aspect of the story is undercooked. The relationship between the two main characters is interesting but I also think sometimes it develops too quickly.

Action is definitely not this book's strong suit, and given how much the third act focuses on it, it feels a little underwhelming. However, the style and characters are good enough that I am interested in reading the sequel, which came out a few weeks ago.

3 stars out of 5

10: The Frugal Wizard's Guide to Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson

Back to Sanderson. Book two of The Year of Sanderson was an incredibly dissapointing one for me. I think this is the book of Sanderson's that I've liked the least. The humor never clicked, and I found the protagonist to be quite unlikeable. The illustrations for this one felt very disconnected from what I was reading too. Sefawynn was really cool though, best part of the book. The writing felt too dry, and while the tech seemed interesting at first, at the end I felt there was a more compelling story to be told with it.

2 stars out of 5

11: The Werewolf's Guide to Life by Bob Powers & Ritch Duncan

Funny that I read two books with "Guide" in the title right after the other. Read this as research for some personal stuff. Really cool book, written as if werewolves were real, basically functioning as lore and instructions if you were to turn into one. No real story here, other than the few examples of "real life cases" they share. Fun writing style, with interesting ideas about the genre.

4 stars out of 5

12: Yumi and The Nightmare Painter by Brandon Sanderson

Third year of Sanderson book, and back to the Cosmere. I adored this one. I think Sanderson wears his influences on his sleeve a bit too much here, but that also made me love the book all the more.

Both Yumi and Painter are extremely interesting as characters. I also think Sanderson really captured the feeling of mystery with the worldbuilding and plot that his best works do. The imagery it sprung to my head was really beatiful, and the gorgeous illustrations by Aliya Chen are breathtaking.

Uses a bunch of really evocative and interesting concepts, and in superb ways. I do wish some of the secondary characters were more fleshed out, and I feel like the ending is a bit too tidy.

This is a story I really wish there was more of, but Sanderson has said he has no plans to revisit these specific characters. I hope at least the world is explored further, cause that was such a great setting. Had a blast with Yumi. So glad Brandon got so much better at writing romance with this and Tress.

4.5 stars out of 5

13: This is How You Lose The Time War by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone

Okay, this one was very interesting. I'd heard about it before it blew up on socials, but I have to admit that that was what made me dip into it.

While I liked a lot of the concepts and the general structure of the book, I was not a fan of the authors' writing styles. They just moved too quick, and I felt they spent too much time describing certain aspects when others drew my attention more.

Red and Blue's relationship doesn't feel organic to me, and given that it is the main driving force of the story, I found it disappointing. I also found some descriptions to be more confusing than poetic.

While in concept this is a mighty interesting read, I think some things fall apart when put in practice.

3.5 stars out of 5

14: I Don't Want to Kill You by Dan Wells

Finale of the John Cleaver trilogy.

I feel like it starts off a lot stronger than how it ends, but still really liked it. I think I prefer it to the second one as well, but can't help but feel that it didn't manage to recapture a lot of the powerful ambiance of the first installment.

Well's prose also read much sharper and refined here, and John is a fully realized character. It's very uncomfortable to be in his mind, and yet I couldn't help but keep going.

Glad there is more after this, as I do think that these characters and world can be explored further. Excited to see where it goes. Also very curious to read more of Dan's work, as his way of thinking interests me a lot as it is so different from mine.

4 stars out of 5

15: Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl

Quick read that my students (a whole different story for another day) chose for their reading assignments so that they could practice their English. I adore the movie and was excited to read the source material along with them.

Really liked it! We read a lovely illustrated edition. The story's scope feels just the right size, and Dahl's writing style is a real blast. I do think the last two or three chapters are too quick, and would have liked to see a stronger conclusion to the story.

4 stars out of 5

16: The Sunlit Man by Brandon Sanderson

Final year of Sanderson book, and also final book I finished this year. Appropriate that it's number 16.

This book has me a bit conflicted. Sanderson jumping so far into the future of the timeline, but doing so with a character we are very familiar with feels risky to me. I think it reveals a lot of things that changed my expectations for Stormlight.

As for the story itself, the book takes a bit to get started. It's first act felt a little frustrating to me. That really seemed to change once the second act started. It's a lot more engaging and exciting. Sunlit is the most standard Sanderson novel out of all the secret projects. That's not a bad thing necesarilly, but I do think the other two Cosmere focused ones felt a lot more exciting and innovative as a result.

Nomad as a character felt a bit muddy. It almost felt like reading three people at once, something that sometimes happens to Sanderson when characters are viewed through other POV's, except this time it happened within Nomad's own. Auxiliary rules though.

Worldbuilding is probably the best and most enticing part of Sunlit. I also think the ending was very cool and I really wanted to continue even after the end.

3.75 stars out of 5

And that's it!

I read a lot of Sanderson this year, but I also managed to read a bunch of books that had been on my TBR for a long time. I was excited to delve into some genres I'd not read much of before. I'm also glad to have read books that might have not been my cup of tea, that always helps to make better sense of my tastes and to train my skills too.

As for next year, I *might* continue reading more of Riordan's work, as well as checking out what's next for John Cleaver, BUT I want to go back to The Wheel of Time first, I'll probably dedicate January and February to that.

I want to get into some more epic fantasy series, so First Law, Farseer, and Malazan are all on my radar, but I will probably choose only two of those. Discworld has also been popping into my head recently, doubt I'll dive too deep into it for now though. Might keep going with Gentleman Bastards too, I love Lies of Locke Lamora.

I want to read more sci-fi as well, been thinking of going for The Expanse or Murderbot.

Wind and Truth comes out in December, so I want to read as much non-Sanderson before then, we'll see how it goes.

I'm going to try to reach the 2 books a month mark, but won't make any promises, as a lot of things are in flux in life right now.

I am open to suggestions for books if anyone has any! Would love to hear ya'll's thoughts on that and the post in general. xoxo!

[levc-egm]

Random comentary: Nostalgia Paradox.

(I made this two years ago? damn.)

Like I said I'm going to start sharing my fanmade tracks more. So I’ll start with this one, one of my favorites made for SAHcon 2021.

NOSTALGIA PARADOX.

Like it says on the description, it started as a sequel to  October (By  Erik "Jit" Scheele) since it was suggested as an idea for songs to put in the album. Yet it quickly got off rails once I gave up trying to do that and did my own thing.

I was trying to capture a similar sense of familiarity in vibes from October. A more playful track to pump up the listener and having a true sense of childhood enjoyment even if for a moment. This is why I decided to do a section using good old snes soundfonts.

Tho even If I think the main melody is kinda catchy. I still love the emotional piano and strings transitioning to a inspirational section where everytime it loops it adds something on top to make it grow and grow as a climax! like, Yeah it’s supposed to be nostalgic about what I liked about the Homestuck OST. But it’s also an invitation to keep going foward, using your nostaliga as a driving force.

I COULD say I didn’t directly remixed any homestuck track for the most part and only used some of its style as a way of backing up this message? But the truth is that I like to make new things rather than covers just, because. 

(PD: I also drew the cover... I think it looks neat.)

[sheldoney]

get   to   know   the   mun.

tagged   by:  actually I stole this from @gallntry

tagging: @oculusxcaro  @bitofthisandthat @amillixnvoices  @jokerous and anyone   else   who   wants   to.

what’s   your   phone   wallpaper:  a very sexy picture of jim parsons when he modeled for an australian magazine and had blonde highlights. he was styling. i couldn't help myself.

what’s   the   last   song   you   listened   to:   mr kitty- hold me down

what   book   are   you   currently   reading:   stephen king's the stand

what’s   the   last   film   you   watched:   knock at the cabin

what’s   the   last   series   you   watched:   i watched some clips from the big bang theory

what   are   you   craving:   i just ate lunch but i am craving some yakisoba for dinner

what   are   you   wearing:  really short cotton shorts because it is in the 90's and my grey animal aspca t-shirt

how   tall   are   you:   5′6.

do   you   have   any   piercings   /   tattoos:   i used to have tons of piercings but i took them out because i used to play with them all the time and my eyebrow piercings fell out anyways

do   you   wear   glasses   /   contacts:   i wear both but i don't wear contacts much anymore because they burn my eyes

what   was   the   last   thing   you   ate:   i ate my leftovers from last night / they weren't that great

what   is   your   favourite   colour/s:   purples, reds, blues, some green

what   is   your   current   obsession/s:   still the big bang theory, anything dc related

do   you   have   any   pets:   no, someday i am planning on getting a german shepherd

do   you   have   a   crush:   heh heh yes....

who   is   your   favourite   fictional   character/s:   i have many, too many list but my top are the joker (tdk) harley quinn, loki, sheldon cooper, darth vader, and scarlet witch

where   was   the   last   place   you   travelled:   just north of here. i had to get supplies like gummy bears and homemade beef jerky and fudge at scheels.

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

PISTOL-PACKING STRAIGHT OUTTA THE FASHION HOUSES OF NEW YORK, PARIS, ROME, & TOKYO -- IN THE MIGHTY MARVEL MANNER.

PIC(S) INFO: Mega spotlight on assorted house ads for the "Dakota North" Vol. 1, an American limited comic book series published by Marvel Comics from June 1986 to February 1987. The series was co-created by writer Martha Thomases and artist Tony Salmons.

OVERVIEW: "Just like movie trailers, house ads are an important part of the deployment of the medium that is often cast aside, because they represent an uncomfortably naked commercial aspect. Also like movie trailers, they are often much better than the actual thing they exist to promote. Take, for example, the house ad promoting the mostly forgotten "Dakota North" miniseries from 1986: it’s a thing of wonder; of beauty, even. Tony Salmons, an artist known more for his comedic touch, draws the self-assured protagonist gazing directly at the reader, holding a gun to her side, not pointing at the reader or any possible antagonist (this is a pose rather than a promise for action). Her jacket opens, promising something that wouldn’t pass the PG-13 rating, only to be blocked by the title of the series. Above her, a single word with dots enhancing each letter: S*T*Y*L*E.

such a note-perfect evocation of that famous adage about how “all you need for a movie is a girl and a gun” (a quote attributed to Godard, but goes much further back to the days of "Birth of a Nation" director D. W. Griffith). It promises everything the reader might want, and it owns, entirely, any criticisms that might be lobbed at it.

Is it shallow? Exploitative? Pandering? Heck yes! It’s STYLE. Nothing in the actual series looks quite this good, though possibly this has more to do with the terrible print quality. To this day I can post that particular house ad on social media and pick up engagement like no one’s business – you don’t need to know anything about "Dakota North" to be impressed by it. The image is iconic enough to stand on its own. What it promises, nothing can truly deliver. Better stick to your dreams.

Here’s an important thing: I attribute that the ad was drawn by Tony Salmons (and probably colored by Christie Scheele for that matter), because he was the artist for the series and he has a rather unique style (sorry, S*T*Y*L*E) of his own. But his name isn’t on it. For most house ads, especially in ye olden days, you won’t see artist signatures, and finding out who made what is a game of guessing and digging. It’s a massive part of the comics industry – or used to be before the internet pushed all ads online and off my mind, that has almost nothing written about it."

-- THE GUTTER REVIEW, "Style, Baby, S*T*Y*L*E : An Ode to Comics House Ads," by Tim Shapira, published July 3, 2023

Sources: www.thegutterreview.com/style-baby-style-an-ode-to-comics-house-ads, Pinterest, various, etc...

[jaimee2001]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Spanx Stretch Twill Chino Shorts Womens Large Smoke.

[marcopollio]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Nike youth size 6Y black white star slides slip on shoes unisex boys sz summer.

[gbumr]

T-MOBILE from CZAR.BE on Vimeo.

Client: T-Mobile Agency: Etcetera Creatives: Massimo van der Plas & Raymond van Schaik Agency producer: Marieke Prette

Production Company: New AMS Film Company

Directors: Salsa DP: Menno Mans Executive producer: Jelani Isaacs Production manager: Miel van Welzen

Crew Ukraine Service production company: The Martini Shot Executive producer: Sveta Liagina Producer: Olga Tarasenko 1st AD: Alex Orlov

Crew Netherlands Assistant producer: Annely Valk Gaffer: Dave Honschooten Best Boy: Rolf Roodhart Electricien: Andrea Raffaelli Focus Puller: Floris van der Lee Styling: Kik Scheele Styling: Rachelle Elbertse Make-up: Jacqueline Hoogendijk VTR/ DATA: Joep Bannenberg Production Intern: Dennis Engels

Post-production Offline: Annelien van Wijnbergen, Kapsalon Grading: George K, MPC (Moving Picture Company) Online: Tim van Paassen, The Compound Sound: Kees Kroot, Soundcircus Music: Massive Music

[loumiiy-16]

Le bâtiment Büngnerhof à Riga est une construction historique remarquable située dans le centre de la ville. Il a été conçu dans le style néoclassique par l'architecte Heinrich Scheel et achevé en 1820. Le Büngnerhof est connu pour son élégance architecturale, avec ses colonnes ioniques et sa façade bien préservée. Il abrite aujourd'hui des bureaux, des résidences privées et parfois des espaces commerciaux.

Büngnerhof building in Riga, Latvia

Latvian vintage postcard, mailed to Callongton, England

[lemondedelamode]

Roos Abels by Daniel Scheel for InStyle Spain September 2022 

[age-of-moonknight]

“Ghosts of The Past,” Marc Spector: Moon Knight (vol. 1/1989), #25.

Writer: Howard Mackie; Penciler: Mark Bagley; Inker: Chris Ivy; Colorists: Christie Scheele and Joe Rosen; Letterer: Ken Lopez

[silverjetsystm]

♘- fall outfit

Outfit Headcanons | Accepting

They do like their layers, regardless of season.

Grant does look like Marc's old merc outfit here. -looks at Quint's ghost look-

Hulk (1978) #15

Writer: Moench, Penciler: Sienkiewicz, McLeod; Colorist: Oliff

Timeless look of Marc's civilian style (t-shirt, jeans, olive military jacket, bandage).

MS: MK (1989) #14

Writer: Dixon; Penciler: Velluto; Inker: Palmer; Colorist: Scheele; Letterer: Lopez

Jake's One Outfit goes here. I swear the traffic light look is supposed to be brown and green.

Hulk (1978) #17

Writer: Moench, Penciler: Sienkiewicz, Janson; Colorist: Olyoptics