#sorry i tried to keep this short

[cheekylittlepupp]

I know everyone loves the evil power couple trope with Ascended Astarion, but what about something angst?

What if you slowly descend into madness, slowly become more of a monster, more of what he feared most. The first years or centuries where you two are together you are the grounding force, you are the one helping him retain his humanity, you are the one helping him from fully descending and becoming like his master, or even worse.

But with time you slowly start losing everyone you love, everyone you care for, anyone you start making an honest connection with. They'd either slowly vanish from your life or Astarion's fits of jealousy would get the better of them. Some would die peacefully, others would find their way back to you in pieces.

You'll have to come to terms that nothing really matters, nothing except Astarion. Your master, your lover, your world, the only person who would be with you, forever, for better or worse.

This is where the roles reverse and he's the one who's doing his best to hold onto the person he once fell in love with, doing his best to not fully lose you, but even with all of his power, he feels powerless.

After you start becoming worse he decides to finally sequester you into that deep chamber he talked about centuries ago. At first you would get the occasional visits from your servants, but gradually all of those visits will subside and the only one coming through that door would be Astarion.

The only blood you will be allowed to consume will be his, he will be your life force, figuratively and literally. Your entire life will revolve only around him. Finally, you'll be the obedient pet he once wanted.

One day he would cup your face and stare into your eyes, hoping to see the person he once fell in love with, slowly realizing what he has done, maybe a tear could run down his cheek which he'd instantly brush off, burying those thoughts deep inside him, as deep as his old self was burried. "The person of your dreams, the hope of them, is your own worst enemy"

Centuries after he will finally let you out, you will be a true vampire yes, why wouldn't he grant you that when your entire life is now dedicated to him, you will be practically worshipping him, entirely devoted to him, body and soul (or what's left of it anyway) You will be a strong vicious beast ready to be unleashed whenever he desires.

Years, centuries or millena of this Astarion would slowly start wishing for an adventurer to come and end his suffering, his and yours. You dying in his arms with a smile on your face, your cold fingers touching his face as you tell him that you love him one last time, yours eyes finally closing forever. Or idk maybe both of you dying together at the same time? romantic~

[dbphantom]

I'm a OP manga reader, sell me on watching G-8

Sure!

G-8 is post Skypiea filler and starts with the Strawhats landing right in the middle of a walled-in marine base after they fall from the sky island. They have to figure out how to escape this 'impenetrable fortress' with Merry without anyone getting captured or killed.

To do this, most of them go undercover and infiltrate the marines so they can buy time, regroup, and figure out a plan.

It goes about how you'd expect.

(If only Garp could see him now, lol).

The guy on the left in the above picture is this arc's amazing antagonist, Vice Admiral Jonathan.

He is so cool that he cameos in both Stampede and Film Z.

G-8 has some of the funniest jokes in the series, including this iconic scene:

The way it pairs off the Strawhats at the start leads to some great extended interactions between crew members who don't directly talk to each other too often, like Nami and Chopper + Usopp and Robin. They're all very in-character, too.

It also lets the Strawhats show off in their respective areas- Chopper ends up in the medical wing, Usopp works with the shipwright, Sanji is dragged to the kitchens...

[Spoilers in case you're not post Water-7]

It even takes time to emphasize the set-up for the Klabautermann reveal, just to make sure you remember it before the emotional gut punch that is Water-7.

[End spoilers]

It's got a really endearing and memorable cast of side characters as well, who all get roped into the Strawhats' shenanigans.

G-8 also has one of Robin's coolest outfits.

The entire arc is basically a 4D chess match between Jonathan and the Strawhats, except the entire crew is shoveling pieces into Luffy's mouth as fast as they can whenever Jonathan isn't looking.

G-8 is what I show people who want to get into OP, but don't know if they'd enjoy it. It's short (only about 11-12 episodes iirc) and it encompasses everything I really love about early One Piece. I think it's a great litmus test for if you'd like the vibes of the show as a whole. Also, it is so well-integrated into the story that most anime-onlys don't even realize it's filler unless they're told.

Honestly, I would put G-8 on the same entertainment level writing-wise as some of the better movies. It's fun to watch, the jokes are great, and the characters are all enjoyable. I really recommend giving it a go.

[crystallizsch]

despite twst being a "villain" game

i love it when i see how certain characters speak to certain people. like how people just relate to their struggles/personalities/etc.

there’s riddle coming to terms that not everything has to be perfect, unlearning from what he has been taught growing up that not everything has to be followed to the letter;

ace who is gungho and earnest about what he believes in and has the natural inclination to defend those he grows to genuinely care about;

deuce always striving to improve himself despite setbacks and being aware of his own shortcomings;

leona who acts like he’s given up from being cast aside his entire life and coming to terms to the fact that there are people that do look to him as a leader, as someone who’s worth something;

floyd who unapologetically just does what he wants, choosing to do things that interests him at the moment;

kalim choosing to be happy and kind always, living life everyday to the fullest knowing what he’s gone through;

jamil with the expectations and obligations to essentially "perform" and do things for others more than for himself, especially when he has the potential to shine by himself with his own abilities;

vil rejecting gender norms and restrictions, while still being confident in his own masculinity, and also wanting other people to bring out their best and truest potential even though he may be strict about it;

rook being able to pick out so meticulously the beauty in everything and everyone whenever no one else is able to;

idia with his introverted yet very passionate energy towards things he cares about;

silver with his love and dedication for those he considers his family;

malleus with his loneliness and bringing out his genuine self with someone he's able to consider a friend;

i know some of these sound pretty surface-level but these are the ones that just came to mind at the moment, these are not my full-on thoughts on each of them

my point overall is i just really love seeing when there’s a character that REALLY speaks to someone that doesn’t particularly speak to me because it gives me a whole new perspective on characters i initially didn’t care about or didn’t like and makes me appreciate them more

also it just shows how how these characters are different enough in that sense so that there are characters for everyone to love and relate to 🥺💕

i could gush more about relationship dynamics as well but this is getting long enough hfdsfjsljlks anyways i would love to see others’ own takes and why a particular character(s) relates to them or why they just like them in general 👉👈 i want to spread some good vibes 💖 but anyways idk these are just my thoughts 🤧

[doodleodds]

Happy Valentines, Akira. Happy Valentines, Asshole.

If you can’t read what Akechi’s secondary inner-dialogue says cause I obscured it too much behind his regular dialogue, here’s a transcription in panel order: Hello, you fucking- Ah- Hello, Akira! Fuck off, why should I tell you- Just a soda- there’s a new flavor.

I don’t want your shitty gift. Oh- haha! You’re so sweet.

I hope I choke. They’re lovely, thank you.

Like hell. Likewise. There’s no way it’s just a coincidence. Still though, it’s a funny coincidence.

[hestzhyen]

Food in the Edgy Sword Manga: A Summary

This is long because I hit the image cap but I at least managed to keep things succinct for once in my life.

In short: Kagurabachi has been using food as obvious symbolism for connection, trust, general well-being, and/or mutual understanding since the beginning.

Chapter 1

Moments like these are cherished memories that Chihiro keeps close to his heart. Note his relaxed, open posture compared to the next image.

Three years later, Chihiro is turning down Mr. Shiba's small offer of comfort. He still relies on Mr. Shiba and cares a great deal for him, obviously, but his heart is closed off now.

Vs. Sojo Arc

Chapter 3

Our first obvious glimpse into the kind nature Chihiro tries to smother with edginess. He'll turn down comfort from others but he'll easily offer some to a scruffy orphan. He even makes sure he gets down to her eye level to reassure her when doing so (Hinao also did the same earlier in the chapter). Take notes, Mr. Shiba.

World's Hardest-Working Uncle Figure doing the clarifying monologue shtick to perfection as always. Just so we know that this bit with Char is perfectly in-character for Chihiro.

Char doesn't trust Chihiro yet, but she's willing to help him with his own quest at least. They connected over the meal (short-lived as it was).

Chapter 5

Chihiro being run ragged by a hungry, lonely little girl should trounce any lingering doubts that this guy is an uncaring revenge bot. You can tell by his thoughts and dialogue here that despite his brusque attitude, he's more focused on Char's quirks and well-being than the information she can offer him. And Char reciprocates by starting to let her guard down- his altruism when providing security and comfort gets her to trust him completely.

Again food being used to reference someone's well-being. Living as a science experiment in captivity was terrible even when she still had her mom (obviously). But Char's safe now with access to good food through Chihiro. Or so she hopes.

Chapter 6

Chihiro's cherished memories of his dad are corrupted thanks to the trauma sorcerer. A meal interrupted, trust and safety shattered. Only hatred is left according to Chihiro when he comes to. ...But he's not exactly the most trustworthy guy when it comes to his own status.

Instead of the science lab or the cell itself we see a tray of indistinct mush and water in a cage. Just a gentle way of bonking us over the head that the food metaphors are supposed to be obvious- and that whatever is waiting for Char back there with Sojo is not good for her (or anyone really).

The comfort Chihiro offers is a bit awkward and messy, but it's still wholesome as fuck. He's willing to give it at his own expense too. Someone please give this boy a hug.

Chapter 11

Poor Mr. Shiba. One day he'll find someone who appreciates his awkward attempts to help people. At least Hinao didn't turn him down despite the poor presentation.

Between this scene and the grilled smelt from Chapter 1, it's pretty obvious that Shiba sucks at trying to be a source of comfort, but at least he tries.

Alone and back to being mistreated. Oh, Char...

Chapter 15

Just like Chihiro, this represents the precious memories Char has of her mom. When she was safe and loved.

And once again, safety and comfort are brutally ripped away from a child and their only parent.

... but what was lost can be found again in the right people.

May nothing bad ever happen to Char again. I mean it.

Chapter 17

Ah, one of my favorite tropes! Interrupting a fierce battle scene to show the combatants having a casual chat! This time, there's no comfort or security to be had through sharing food, though. Instead, this is exchange is purely about connecting and understanding each others' views.

A bit of trivia: these guys are probably eating hanami (a.k.a. sanshoku) dango which are usually eaten while viewing cherry blossom trees in the spring. They're sweet and thus extra unappetizing for Chihiro (he dislikes sweet foods and drinks in general).

Sojo initiates and eats a single dango. He begrudgingly accepts that Chihiro's view of Kunishige's legacy is legitimate.

As the conversation goes on, Chihiro accepts Sojo's interpretation in turn. Both of them are correct. And yet:

Chihiro painfully finishes his dango while Sojo is content to leave just the first one eaten. This is Chihiro being willing and able to swallow the whole truth and all it's implications, no matter how unpleasant the experience is. Meanwhile Sojo cares more about being the one with the "most correct" interpretation. Chihiro ended up getting more out of the conversation than Sojo did, which gave him the edge he needed to win the fight.

And that's the end of the Vs. Sojo arc. The food references aren't as common past this point, but they still show up to give some extra context in a few scenes.

Rakuzaichi Arc

Chapter 19

Hakuri's just a fuckin' mess dude- alone, insecure, and can't give himself any kind of reassurance. Given what what we can infer from his monologue, it's pretty obvious this guy is going through it and not coping as well as he thinks he is.

Chapter 26

Our spaghetti queen and parfait king share a meal to let us know that they're pretty comfortable with each other... though outsiders might not get what their deal is. It's casual and they chat like they've known each other for a while. Tafuku and Hiyuki's relationship is solid despite the yawning chasm between their personalities.

Once again Shiba's good intentions are turned down. At least Char is comfortable enough to let Team Goldfish know about her wants and needs now though!

Meanwhile, Hakuri isn't ready or willing to let anyone console him, but least we have better insight as to why he struggles to keep his shit together. Most people would- and we haven't even seen the worst of his circumstances yet.

Chapter 28

After a few days of encouragement from Chihiro and helping out, Hakuri finally lets himself be treated a little. He earned himself a bit of security and respite but is still uneasy, and thus quick to let the warm fuzzies go (hence passing the ice cream to Char instead of bringing it with him). Neither Chihiro nor Shiba have any themselves.

Chapter 35

Oh man. Oh boy. Time to really get into why Hakuri is the way he is. This could be a whole post by itself but I'll try to be brief. (Honest.)

Shout out to the KB Confession account on Twitter for letting me ramble in their inbox with that long-ass submission about how Hakuri relates to food in this series. I've reworked it poorly here (so much for being anonymous I guess).

Sazanami prison food looks better than what Char was getting, but it's not out of kindness- everything in this place exists for the Rakuzaichi. Hakuri obviously sees himself as no different. He threatens to keep Ice Lady alive no matter what she wants because that's his job; there's no affection or compassion involved when he provides her meals.

Ice Lady seems to want to genuinely connect with Hakuri though. Even when she fails to manipulate him, she keeps the offer of companionship open to him since she's empathetic to his situation.

It works as she thought it would, but maybe not as she hoped. We see him coming to trust and find comfort in her as she leaves less food behind each time, but she's unable to find the same in him. His insistence on their one-sided relationship through food only pushed Ice Lady further and further away despite her apparent growing affection for him. He got it all wrong because he didn't know any better. It's painful to love and be loved as a Sazanami- especially a worthless defect like him. Hakuri wasn't able to understand the ramifications of how fucked up his situation was until Ice Lady slit her throat in his face.

Up until this point, providing food was a positive thing- people connecting and usually finding comfort. At the bare minimum it allowed Chihiro and Sojo to understand each other before the end. But Hakuri inverted and distorted the meaning of sharing food with someone. His actions helped him break free from his family's grip by revealing that he doesn't know what it means to properly offer and reciprocate genuine human connection. So now Hakuri probably associates sharing food with being used and hurting other people.

That's why we haven't seen him share a meal with Team Goldfish or anyone else yet IMO. For all that he's attached himself to Chihiro, he still hasn't exchanged any food with him. Hakuri only trusts that Chihiro saw something worthwhile in in him, that through him there might be hope outside the cage after all. He's barely beginning to see himself as a useful tool. Once he gets to the probably not a horrible human being mindset is where we might see him be able to open up and try to share food again.

Chapter 43

The normal loving family that could have been, if not for Kyora and the clan's slavish devotion to the Rakuzaichi. It's sad but not suspicious that Mrs. Sazanami isn't included much in the meal- all signs from this chapter point to a joyless arranged marriage after all. Her not participating with her husband and sons speaks volumes about how distant and miserable she must have felt despite (presumably) making that spread. To provide care, comfort, and love while not being able to partake of it is all too common for mothers.

And so, another arc concludes with people sitting down to eat together despite some of them being doomed to die. And an exploding building. Gotta have both in Kagurabachi.

Kamunabi Arc

Chapter 45

Hey Chihiro, whatever happened to waking up with fresh hatred every morning? lmao

I love these goofs so much. It's just snacks on a coffee table, but it shows that Hiyuki and Tafuku have earned some level of trust from Team Goldfish. Shiba trusted them enough to supervise their stay in the same room as his sleeping nephews at least. And Char's already completely won over apparently. This manga does not miss on the found family wholesomeness.

Hiyuki might see the Kamunabi as a sort of family. At the very least, they're an important safety net for society as a whole. Hence us seeing the food again- protection and security.

So who and what will be next? Chihiro bonding with Hiyuki and Tafuku? Kazane turning someone's offer down? Chihiro, Hakuri, and some new coworkers chatting over lunch in the Kamunabi's cafeteria? I'm definitely going to be on the lookout! Until next time, Bachibros.

[yesokayiknow]

do you have anything more about the bigeneration au for 12 and 13, I'd love to hear what you think their dynamic would be.

-they take great delight in confusing everyone any time they can. twelve calls thirteen old man and thirteen calls twelve young woman and it makes them laugh every time. while they love the fam equally thirteen tends to end up chatting with graham and (badly) playing footie with ryan while twelve does yaz's nails and hair and it's nice that they don't have to force themselves to do activities that don't feel right

-twelve actually tells the fam things! like still not a lot but at least they hear the name time lord before like a whole year has passed lmao. thirteen really fucking hates it. he's like tough. stop trying to be unknowable bitch. he (pretty vaguely) tells graham about river and the three of them just sort of sit together sometimes reminiscing

-while they generally are pretty chill they also have a competition on who can explain the most things the quickest. every time something new happens they're like standing in the corner visibly shaking waiting for the fam to pick one of them to explain. thirteen starts the points system just so she gets picked more often, and then twelve starts composing little tunes for whoever asks the smartest question. the fam think it's adorable

-twelve convinces yaz & ryan to go to uni. thirteen's like we don't really have time and twelve's like There Is Always Time For Education. unlike thirteen, who would literally die if left alone, he's always trying to gently encourage the fam to have lives outside of the tardis. he's also trying to convince thirteen that being alone's okay at times (it's not going well)

-twelve's still lecturing at st luke's in his spare time (though it's harder, without nardole and bill and missy). whenever he's having a particularly bad day thirteen turns up to his lectures and shouts corrections. he will never ever admit how much it amuses and distracts him

-they still fall out sometimes, because who do they hate more than themselves? they both can be pretty condescending and impulsive and it turns out that it sucks to be on the other end of that. thirteen refuses to take care of herself in a way that borders on obsessive and hates when twelve tries to keep her safe; twelve tends to isolate himself for days upon end and hates when thirteen tries to drag him back into sociability. they usually keep these arguments away from the fam. the first time they really really lose it at each other in a public space is when they first encounter the cybermen. it takes. uh. a while to get back into a good place after that

-twelve mainly gets frustrated with thirteen more than the other way around because she literally refuses to show any pain or negativity Ever until it all explodes. this is partly because a lot of the coping mechanisms she instinctively wants to use are little quirks they started doing due to the loop in the confession dial and she doesn't want to trigger him. when he realises this he's like i'd rather you tapped out the seconds when you feel trapped than yelled at all of us actually.

-sometimes twelve's like hey you're going all cold and weird again. go kick something. and thirteen's like fuck off and then she goes and punches a cushion and yells into a black hole and comes back later like thanks you were right. and sometimes thirteen walks into a room and takes one look at twelve and walks right out and goes and gets his guitar and chucks it at him and after like five hours straight of playing he's like thanks man i really needed that

[mswyrr]

more on michelin stars

I genuinely think it's going to be an important plot point in s3 re: why exactly Sydney wants a star and why *one* specifically. I went and researched and discovered something I used in my fic, which is that one Michelin star restaurants are excellent cuisine that normal people can still afford. And that connected, for me, to what Sydney had told Marcus about how going out was so special when she was a kid and she wanted to share that kind of amazing thing with people:

We didn't really like eat out a lot growing up, so when we did, it felt special even if it wasn't.... I wanna cook for people and make them happy and give them the best bacon on Earth (1x08)

I'm so hopeful/convinced that the research they have with, like, Matty (the chef who plays Fak) right there on set, means the writers know that about what one star places can be like. And that it's meant to be part of this - more humane vision of excellence for Sydney, where their spot is AMAZING, but it's not a cruel kitchen culture, it's not only for the rich.

For her, it’s *part* of her vision, where she says: 

“I think this place could be so different from all the other places we've been at. But, in order for that to be true, we need to run things different.“ (1x03)

But Carmy sees a star and all it means (all he’s ever known it to mean) as a repudiation of that kind of humanity. You say the word "star" and immediately Carmy goes "fuck stars" (2x01) as pure self-defense - because stars are just pain and suffering to him. They're NYC chef and everything that mess became.

He's so traumatized by the whole thing he doesn't think to ask the right questions: why do you want one? What is your vision for it? Why do you specifically want *one* instead of two or three? What timeline do you have in mind for getting there and how can we strategize on this together?

Instead, because he wants so desperately to please her, despite that instinctive, self-defensive "fuck stars" he relents and asks - okay, are you sure? Are you positive this is what you want? Really?? It's terrible. It's just dread and fear and throwing up every day before work. You really want me to give you this?

(I’ll give you anything you want)

He never asks the right questions. Just assuming the level of pain which is his only experience of this is what the thing IS--playing into that theme about how people only know what they're taught, only know what they are given, and if we are given pain and patterns of it it is so hard to even imagine things can be different and, when you can imagine it, still so hard to actually get there.

(It’s not a coincidence that the ASL sign is one of the few positive, healthy examples of kitchen culture Carmy witnessed - we only know what we’re taught, and it can be hard work to even figure out what “not shitty” IS let alone doing it)

So he's assuming all of that and it's like - if she's his CDC, does she want him to push her as hard as he was pushed? Push himself that hard again? He doesn't want to do either of those things. But that's all he knows. And she keeps saying this is what she wants. And he wants to give her everything she wants.

(In the same conversation she kept saying yes, this is what I want, she expressed admiration for the designer chef outfit he later buys her as a gift - he wants to give her everything she wants, even when it seems like a terrible idea he’s torn about)

I think this misunderstanding is intentional and it’s going to come out in S3. A one star restaurant fits so perfectly with what we know of Sydney’s goals and love for her work! And Carmy not able to even conceive of something better because of the patterns he’s stuck in and finding his way to her vision makes sense for him.

I think Carmy figuring out how this work can be joyful and humane is going to be a huge part of S3. Sydney not becoming lost in the high stress environment, not following in younger!Carmy's footsteps living a life of pure drive and dread, and Carmy finding that for the first time.

I do think that, given where they both end in 2x10, there’s going to be a period of conflict and a real bunch of issues for both of them - but with themes and ideas like this seeded into the story there’s so many ways to make s3 start out in a bad way and then really end in joy in a beautiful way?

[mewsmagic]

Clothes Shopping with Collei, part 1! (platonic/not ship btw!)

[synintheraven]

Now that the weekend is over I wanted to share these here aaand take this opportunity to thank @sihtricfedaraaahvicius for gifting my bunch of Sihtrics (part 2, lol) to Arnas my beloved and @whitedarkmoonflower for gifting my Finan drawing to Mark BUT also because she was extra nice and gifted a copy of the s4 Sihtric and Sygtryggr drawings I did for her to Arnas and Eysteinn!!! (That last bit was unexpected as I only asked her to give Mark my drawing so naturally I'm over the moon and want to give her a big virtual hug (regardless if she gifted my art in my behalf or hers, I'm still crying) 😭😭🥰) Anyway long story short, you're the nicest guys thank you so much!!!! <3

Additionally, you can find unedited HQ pics of these drawings >here< on my portfolio (recommended to open in Chrome, for whatever reason it doesn't show up from the tumblr app) 💕

[march-of-the-moths]

do you have a ref for your piral…..

SMILES SO SWEETLY. GLAD YOU ASKED !!!!!! VERY GLAD

^ my piral [don’t mind the chemicalfuzzy @ , I go by it on every site that isn’t this one]

ANDDDD to anyone out there who doesn’t know him !!! this is Damon, and As You Can See he is very very based off hit album the downward spiral by nine inch nails. design-wise he’s also kind of based off a heart and club moth [first design] / a comet moth [second design]

he gets 2 whole designs one that’s just. The normal one [IN QUOTATION MARKS LOL], and another that’s him after title track + Hurt happens [yeah they. They happen btw] [and then there’s these 2 other guys that revive him all weird later on , I’ll . I’ll talk about all dat in some other post but that’s the idea

he has been the number 1 plaguer of my mind lately BUT I do have a whole lot of other album based ocs I cherish dearly INCLUDING OTHER NIN ALBUMS !!! I do plan to post them all eventually I’m just very shy LMAO

under the cut is just extra stupid drawings . see him face :}

[retroautomaton]

howdy! I'm also a robot enthusiast and I'm trying to get better at designing robot characters. I absolutely adore all of your robot designs, especially the sweet salt cosmonauts! do you have any advice for designing robots?

Ohh thank you~!! ✨✨

The biggest advice I can give is to study the functionality! That’s the most interesting part of robots to me, and influences all my designs. You definitely don’t have to understand the mechanics completely, but getting an idea of the basics, and knowing what the function and purpose of the robot is, and what parts help to carry out that function, is always a good starting place!

Here’s an example of how I was mostly focused on the saw mechanics of the shoulder, because that’s what was important to the story, and made the rest mostly aesthetic driven.

Whereas with Thylo, I had an idea of how I wanted his legs to look, and built the mechanics around that, to serve the aesthetic, but it also plays into his motion, and how he stands, and his balance.

For Snap, both her new and older designs are more personality driven, and wanted to keep her more ‘human’ elements more round and approachable, and her mechanical parts sharper, to sell that they’re weaponry, and that she’s both kind and a fighter. But even her sharp aspects are never perfectly straight, keeping it fun and light-hearted.

Her’s is also a transforming design, and every little piece serves that function, especially the head area, and I consider how the panels will fall or open, or attach. Again, it doesn’t have to be mechanically accurate, but if you’ve got a solid idea of how the physics work for the character, it really sells the design!

Even for less humanish designs, you can give a clear idea of the robot’s function through decals, or how it affects the environment/other characters.

Here’s a little example: let’s say I wanna make a robot whose purpose is to lift boxes on top-shelves, and bring them down to a pallet. It would need a way to see the box, a way to reach it, and to push it onto the pallet.

So, I’ll play with the idea of his functionality first. I could go with some sort of scissor lift, or hydraulic system, but I settle on mostly a telescoping mechanism, and build a little warehouse, or dock worker aesthetic around him.

In short, I’d say just study mechanism that interest you, play with their shapes, their motion, figure out the purpose or character of your robot, and how they function, and what ways you can best convey that through their design! Hope this helps! ✨

[burymeinwillow]

Hellooo I didn't see someone asking this before but maybe I'm blind. I was thinking of starting to watch Bonanza and Dr. Quinn. I am interested but I'm a little afraid of how big they are so to speak? I thought asking you what you like about them would be cool? Your posts are so nice!

I love westerns and I don't need romance romance but I am also not feeling the newer series like Yellowstone if that makes sense? So I thought maybe Bonanza and Dr. Quinn would be the ones to try.

Hello!! Both VERY good and fun shows!! But yes both can definetly feel like quite the undertaking, especially Bonanza (looks at the 14 seasons)

If I'm to say what I like about Bonanza we might be here a while and this post will get very long, it is my favorite tv show after all, but I'll try to keep it short! I really overrall enjoy the characters and family aspect of it. All the adventures and situations they get into and how they interact with each other and the people around them. Bonanza is more of an anthology series, where each episode has it's own plot and the series doesn't follow one main plot (well I guess the main plot is following The Cartwrights and the stuff they get into each episode). The anthology-ness of it sometimes might make it easier to watch, cause honestly you can kinda skip around the episodes and seasons and watch the ones that you think sound interesting plotwise if you don't feel like starting from the beginning and watch all the episodes (or if you start at the begining to familiarize yourself with the characters and get tired of watching it in order). But keep in mind this is a long TV show that started in 1959 and ended in 1973, so the show look and feel rather different in the later seasons than in the first ones, but naturally it still follows the same premise. You REALLY do not have to watch all of it in order to enjoy it.

In Bonanza you kinda have everything. You got humor, drama, action, extreme sillyness and more dramatic darker themes and lots of other things and I really like that! there is romance also but it's more like.... what girl is Joe dating this episode and then you never hear about her again. and also

While Dr. Quinn is probably best to watch from the start and work your way through it. It's alot more heavy on the romance side tho (the cheesy campy good kind of romance mind you). It's a very feel-good and sweet TV show that also isn't afraid to get dark and dramatic and also being cheerful. I like it cause it gives me a wierd 90's romance drama nostalgia that I really love along with family drama.

HOWEVER if you feel like trying out some other older western shows that aren't as lengthy as Bonanza and Dr. Quinn, I can recommend these:

The Magnificant Seven (1998-2000)

The Young Riders (1989-1992)

Bordertown (1989-1991)

Little Men (1998-1999)

I also totally understand not vibing with newer shows like Yellowstone! Personally I really don't watch alot of newer westerns cause they feel to gritty for me. I prefer the vibe of the 60's-90's westerns.

[porcubus]

Something i'd like to point out

We can assume the final part of p2 of the canto was not only from heathcliff's perspective but dante's as well, considering we know they can look directly into their memories when resonating with them.

we did not get a new cg for carmen's appearance. This is something you could chalk up to time on the artist's part, and wanting to focus purely on "main" story cgs perhaps? But for this im gonna assume it was purposeful

For those who aren't aware or need a refresher, this CG is from ayin's perspective, from ayin's memory of laying with her in the grass in the past, in the first game

its personal, and there's only one body who could have this image in their mind.

when viewed this way, the lack of even a redraw feels more intentional 😀...?

[trauma-bot]

ouuuu i need the lore... i love selfships so much.... nuze lore please.... if you want..........

YAY YAY YAY. im gonna try so hard to keep this somewhat brief to leave room for any more questions but we'll see how that goes <3

so to preface this E does have a toyhouse bio that you can look at if you're curious! it has a more in-depth look at his personality and whole deal. you can also look at his gallery if you'd like; thats where his references and other artwork for him are stored!

ALRIGHT. RAMBLING UNDER THE CUT

a lot of it is very much to fulfill my weird convoluted fantasy of "what if i lost all hope for a future that i exist in and was convinced that i was going to succumb to the claws of my trauma and rot there forever (basically dooming myself in my own narrative) thus becoming the absolute worst version of myself in what i believe to be my final moments only for someone (two someones in this case) to love and believe in me so much that, despite it all and despite everything that was done to me and that ive done myself, gives me enough hope to undoom myself". i'm normal i swear.

also just generally im a big big sucker for stories about survivors of trauma being there for each other, and in that way i get a lot of comfort from nuze.

SO. NUZE LORE... (once again shout outs to my bestie night for coining their ship name lol)

i guess ill break it down like this, starting with N/E. (alt. ship name being pupE love (coined by another bestie of mine charlie)) E knew N back at the manor and they were close friends then, N was the first person E came out as trans to (by that i mean. N helped E work through his tumultuous robo gender feelings in real time) and N was the only one E really felt comfortable around. (other than tessa! E was also friendly with V back then as well<3)

however, E was also badly traumatized by his time in the manor, and of course Canon Events happen. E, as a disassembly drone, is now much more muted, detached, numbed, and devoted completely to their directive. he's very very very repressed and his specific brand of memory issues as well as the fucked up memory dreams causes him to dissociate and spiral a lot. he also distanced himself a lot from N for reasons even he isn't entirely privy to. something in his hardwiring just told him that N would be safer the less E stayed with him. and N is!!! really saddened by that!!! its normal! E has to learn to not be an emotionless object and actually let himself feel and need and yearn, and N is a big help with that (uzi is as well ofc!!)

i have to skip past a lot of things for the sake of not making this post so many words long but regardless; N/E is really special to me because they are two people who are in a very similar and scary situation and have had to see each other get hurt or even killed in many clone instances in many reset memory files. and its the just. the willingness to love despite knowing what happened to you and even witnessing it at times, to say "this is not all we are" and break free from those iron chains despite knowing how much it'll hurt and how dire everything is. E is so convinced that its all worthless and he couldn't be anything more than what he's used for, while N desperately wants a better life for himself and those he loves, and he's gonna drag E kicking and screaming to hope and healing. <3

NOW. UZIE :3 (alt. ship name is angelfangz)

E is MIA from the squad until like right after episode 3 canonically happens and is found by uzi and N. uzi does not trust E at first not one bit LMFAO. she doesn't hate him but like. her only frame of reference for murder drones besides N is V and J. and also E is like. he's weird and says weird cryptic things and is not exactly the easiest to talk to due to how off-putting and repressed he is. at first E is like "why is there a worker drone. in the spire. and we're all okay with this" but after actually getting more context behind Everything he's curious about her more than anything. he has to be swayed into betraying his initial directive (kill all worker drones. yknow) only because thats like all he knows how to do and would feel aimless without it, but once he is he's loyal to his new directive (help uzi figure out what the hell is going on with this solver business). yeah he treats himself like an object that can only find worth in being ordered around but we dont have time to unpack all of that right now. he unlearns it later i prommy.

uzi is like. spitefully resistant to getting to know E on a deeper lever, but this is uzi "no bonding thing" doorman and she cannot help but care about E and be concerned about his behavior. she will notttt admit that however and stubbornly holds her ground. it isnt until post-episode 4 when E and uzi are fully vulnerable around each other.

uziE is. so so very important to me. uzi has been outcasted and isolated for so much of her life, she's been treated as a weirdo freak monster by her classmates and becomes outwardly prickly and aggressive to cope with how little affection and reassurance she's been given. i know she's internalized it to mean there is something wrong with her that everyone else can see, and its only a matter of time before those who actually care for her see it too and leave her. and i know that the events of episode 4 confirmed it in her mind, that she is a freak monster and everyone was right to avoid and hate her, even though she never asked for any of this. thats a very familar feeling to me- and by extension E. E recognizes the feeling of being made into a monster against your will, of fearing and being unable to trust yourself, and of feeling like its best for everyone's safety to hide away. E and uzi find solace and comfort in each other for that. they dont see each other as broken irredeemable monsters, so maybe they aren't.

im stopping here because holy shit this got long but THERES A LOT MORE LOLL. tldr nuze altogether is very very important to me and i could talk about them forever and ever. they love each other all so much and they grow and heal and forgive and aaaaughhhgh<3 im normal.

[moon-upright]

Outlooks on the World - Esme + M6

headcanons about how my apprentice and the main 6 view life as a whole. because i got the idea in my head. i think this makes sense

Esme sees the world as a bad place, but individuals can make it better

After a stressful childhood which ended rather unfortunately, Esme grew resentful of the people and potential forces that made it that way

For much of her life she sees the world as an unfair place without true justice or karma — if there are higher beings, they are either uncaring or cruel

But she knows for a fact that there are good people out there, and she'd be doing them a disservice to forget them and say everything is all bad

One way Esme grows through and post-route, is improving her outlook on life and humanity as a whole, becoming less withdrawn and spiteful, more open

Julian's outlook is sort of the inverse of Esme's — the world is a good place overall, with some individuals and things that make it worse... (hear me out)

He very much loves the world and humanity. He likes people and he likes new experiences

This sounds very positive but you must remember that Julian views himself as one of these bad individuals

Julian does know that things can be unfair and unsafe at times - he's seen a lot of good people struck with misfortune, or even lose their lives

But he doesn't really feel spiteful or resentful of the world as a whole. It's just how fate can turn out (he also tends to find some way to blame himself)

Julian grows by learning to love himself — or at least not hate himself. Self-love might be something he will always be chasing, though. But as long as he doesn't give up that chase, he'll be okay

Asra views the world as just another place, and people are either good or bad, most in between

He likes the world fine, but his experience with the realms means his world is not just larger, but only one of many

He doesn't fully understand ALL magic, but he's close with it in a way where he sees that “fair” and “unfair” aren't always things that apply. “Good” and “bad” are nuanced. The world is colorful yet gray

Sees it as up to each individual to decide what they want and how much they can take. At least on a subconscious level, he thinks that whether he sees someone as good or bad is mostly a matter of his own conscience

He does need to remember that, if everything depends on his own conscience, then he doesn't have control over a lot outside of that

He also needs to maintain balance between all of his worlds - nothing wrong with not wanting to be shackled to one spot or a life you don't want, as long as you don't lose sight of the people in your life.

Portia has the same outlook as her brother, just minus the self-hate

She loves the world, people, and herself

It's not to say she doesn't also get her own negative streaks, but overall she likes who she is

She feels like there's excitement around every corner - and if there isn't, you can make some! (she loves books partly for this reason)

Nadia is in the unique position of having a significant amount of power over a portion of the world (even if it's a relatively small portion)

It's less about how the world inherently is, but how it currently is and what she can do to affect that

If Vesuvia is a microcosm of the world and Vesuvia is corrupt or unjust or bad, then she’ll change that. So she'll change the world

She also isn't among the people, so she isn't exactly a good judge of whether they're good or not. She can definitely say that the upper class is full of not-so-great individuals, but that makes up a minority

She knows that a ruler is nothing without her people

She's been fairly self-actualized since she was a kid, but she lost a bit of that during the plague - though post-route, she's even more of a force to be reckoned with (in a good way)

Muriel doesn't really care about how the world at large is — he's not very interested in traveling, meeting people, or experiencing new things

He's only focused on his life, and maybe the lives of those immediately around him

If it's just about his life, then he thinks it's pretty bad

He managed to find some peace and fulfillment living in nature on his own, but his childhood as an orphan and then a gladiator stains his view of his surroundings

He isn't trusting of others or really even himself.

He loves animals because they're far easier to understand than humans - and if they hurt you, you can find out exactly why

Though he doesn't really see use of asking “why” any of that had to happen to him, because he doesn't think that much about justice — perhaps because thinking too much about it will make him start feeling worse, and he'd rather just forget

Nothing wrong with wanting to live quietly, but he could definitely become more in touch with his emotions and processing his trauma

He, too, judges people not on some overarching moral about how one should be, but more just on his own conscience - for example, he doesn't like Esme/MC at first, not because he thinks they're really a bad human, but for purely personal reasons.

Lucio doesn't really care about whether the world is good or bad

Like Nadia, he has an effect on the world around him, and that's what he sees

He thinks there's a lot of fun to be had and a lot of boring and bothersome things he’d like to get rid of

It's not about whether the people around him are good or not, it's about how they treat him and what they can do

If it's not his world, then it really ought to be

He'd agree with Asra as well, in that he believes it's up to individuals how they treat the world and their own lives

He believes in being the change you want to see, though he doesn't generally take into account what anyone else wants to see - for sure something to work on

[screamingcrows]

AAAHHHHH WEBBY KISS!!!! 🎲

To the anon who sent me this on the 22nd of May at 4am, I'm sorry it took a while lmao, I forgot~

You rolled 5! That's "a firm kiss" :3 ('Beta' is the webtoon segment)

When you accepted The Second's proposition to shift your role into a companion of sorts, your expectations had been low to say the least. A man rumored for his astounding arrogance and even greater achievements appeared far beyond the reach of such mundanities.

Much less that he'd willingly sacrifice hours of a, competent you hoped, subordinate for such a thing.

'We have all been growing increasingly agitated, I hypothesise this might ease the worst of it.'

Clear-cut responsibilities. Reduced hours. Increased pay. A trial period to establish the effect. There'd been no reason to decline.

Upturned lips and satisfied hums had become more frequent after your tools had been replaced with access to his private collection of old tomes and a couch dragged into the workshop. It hardly came as a surprise that he'd been correct, not if the way his gait oozed with satisfaction every time those crimson eyes locked with your gaze.

Omega's head was currently on your shoulder, the segments voice tinged with thinly veiled excitement as he continued to elaborate on his newly acquired responsibilities.

The mission in Sumeru.

For all their knowledge and perspectives, envy seemed to remain a well hidden constant in all versions. Perhaps Dottore realised the chaos that would ensue were he to delegate such an important experiment when the segments were already barely remaining cordial.

You were a cushion. A brief silence ensued as Omega adjusted, face turning towards you in anticipation. The simple smile and nod you provided would've been adequate, asking a follow-up question made him grin, a low chuckle passing his lips before continuing his monologue.

His hair was soft between your fingers, neatly styled strands somehow always managing to return to their original position. Times like these, the accusations made against both the man in your lap and the Fatui seemed ridiculous.

The steady hum of machinery, gears clicking as they turned and steady footsteps as someone paced back and forth. Omega's weight against your body, the heat from him providing a pleasant substitute for the usual cool air, the slight tone of bragging, it was all so painfully normal at a glance.

Words of praise had barely left your lips when the air was sucked out of the room, the doors swinging open with too much force as everyone glanced towards the disturbance.

Ruffled cerulean hair and a black and white mask. What remained visible of Beta's face was contorted in a chilling sneer, his eyes burning with fury as they locked on you.

Words weren't exchanged as much as barked, nothing able to stop the young segment's advance through the room. The white coat was pulled taught across his shoulders, arms clutching a leatherbound book tightly to his chest.

A hand on your cheek forced you to look at Omega, a knowing smile on his lips when he gently chastised your mind for wandering, clearly intending to pick up where he'd left off as if uninterested in the commotion, several segments and assistants trying to placate Beta with reminders of the altered schedule. The raging segment all but snarling remarks about how one shouldn't be entitled to everything.

Clamor wasn't exactly uncommon, a shaky breath leaving your lips as your eyes closed in an attempt at refocusing, wishing you could tune out the callous segment as they so easily did each other.

A jolt to your left ripped any shred of tranquility from your clutches, heart thumpind loudly enough to hurt as your eyes flew open just in time to see Omega thrown aside. The downed segment merely laughed as he reached for the beaked mask now resting on the concrete floor.

Before you could stand to aid, intervene, anything really, Beta's lips collided with yours and stole away any coherent thought. Sharp teeth carefully dragged along your lips, swiftly replaced by a prodding tongue demanding entrance.

Quiet murmurs and uneasy discussions at the blatant breach of protocol were drowned out when a firm hand placed itself at the back of your neck, fingers gripping so tight it bordered on painful as it held you captive.