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đENG Translation: Elle Men Special: A Fashion Odyssey with Kris GuĆĄtin
Article written by Ajda Gregorc, published in the November/December 2024 ELLE Slovenia Magazine. Print and digital versions of the magazine are available for purchase.
Scans and English translation by @kurooscoffee, review by @weolucbasu and a member of JokerOutSubs, proofread by IG GBoleyn123.
Full article translation, scans, and Spotify link are under the cut đ
đ§ Article available in audio form on Spotify.
Elle Men Special: A Fashion Odyssey with Kris GuĆĄtin
With Kris GuĆĄtin, the music author and guitarist of Joker Out, we escaped to another side of music, and with that, to his other passion. We talked about style and everything connected to it. There will also be no shortage of this in the band's third album, titled 'Souvenir Pop', which is released on the 15th of Novemberâone week after the issue of Elle youâre holding now. How perfectly synchronised we are!
PHOTOS URĆ A PREMIK, STYLING ALENKA BIRK
At Ljubljanaâs Moderna CafĂ©, on a fresh but lovely autumn Tuesday, when everyoneâs still at work or in school, he arrives in a dark green jacket with a checkered pattern, awesome trousers, and her necklace. This time, the menu is not serving music and life, but matcha and "all things fashion." Iâm in a regular trench coat and a white T-shirt, but luckily he doesnât judge people by their styleâinstead, the style might be what piques his interest to converse, if it's good, of course. Besides, he's the one being interviewed. So, letâs begin! AJDA GREGORC
Interviewer: When did you first discover your personal style or the field of fashion? Was it in childhood or a bit later?
Kris: I roughly divide my life into two periods: before I first held a guitar, and after. When I really got into playing and ventured into music, my world opened up in all areas. Discovering fashion definitely falls into this second period, so the post-high school era. To be completely honest, my style in high school wasnât something Iâm particularly proud of today. (laughs) My girlfriend and I still have a photo of me wearing cargo pants and a black sweater, which is a proof she truly loves me, since that look was far from the best choice. (laughs)
When did it evolve from just a aesthetic impression to self-expression?
My first contact with fashion as a form of art or expression was during our band's first music video or fashion shoot, when I realised that this is also something you need to consider as a musician. At first, it seemed to me like a fairly peripheral element, but as our career developed and we met new people who gave us more insight into this, I began to understand its significance, what I could personally gain from it, and what we as a band could gain. This quickly developed into standard practice. I was increasingly exposed to fashion; we had more and more costume rehearsals and stylings, and two years ago, we even got our first proper stylist. And then I really committed to itâat around nineteen or twenty. Before that, my philosophy was always to "just wear whatever I first find in the closet," but then I shifted to "I'll wear things that would make me stand out from others". But this process was a long one.
So, your style development with the band inspired your personal growth too? Iâve always wondered if a young person is compelled to mature in every area when so many 'big things' happen all at once, as they did for you.
Maybe you do "grow old" in terms of personality sooner. Yes, at first I wanted, and still want, to primarily express the difference or uniqueness that I feel inside myself through music, but then I discovered that this goes very much hand in hand with fashion, so I started looking for my expression there as well. Today, it's almost an equally important part of my day.
Which fashion ideas or directions attract you? Youâve probably encountered a lot of inspiration during your travels on tour, right?
Definitely, but speaking purely origin-wise, I think Iâm just like any other rock musicianâwe draw from the rock aesthetic of the â60s and â70s, which was also very "in" when my fashion awareness was born. Back then, around 2016 to 2018, here were a lot of flamboyant shirts on the music scene, with a slight hippie influence, which was the starting point. Only later did I start getting interested in slightly more modern clothes. When I was younger, I found myself in street fashion, that sort of Eminem-esque, hip-hop vibe, so very baggy clothes, which I then began to reject when I made the shift toward the â60s and a slightly psychedelic aesthetic. It makes perfect sense, as humans tend to jump between extremes. When I had worked through that style, I started discovering the aesthetics of the â80s and late â90s, which was also reflected in music at the time. The best example that comes to mind is Dua Lipaâs previous album, which was in the style of the ânew â80s,â and the fashion matched that as well. Today, the early 2000s style has come back, but I havenât fully decided whether I like it or not. As a musician, I was, of course, initially inspired by other music groups. Arctic Monkeys were a big inspiration for us both musically and visually, as was the whole British rock scene, including bands like The Kooks and Oasis. That entire aesthetic has always been strongly present with us. I doubt thereâs a single inspiration board at our shoots that doesnât include a photo of one of those bands or, for instance, the Beatles. And that aesthetic has always been close to my heart, too.
Rockers have always been associated with more masculine fashion elements, while in recent years, many male musicians have been experimenting with more feminine style elements (for example, Harry Styles and Lenny Kravitz). David Bowie was already the one who back then started to blur these fashion boundaries. You, too, wear such pieces and dare to stand out with them.
It happened quite naturally, as the stylists we worked with always chose slightly more âunmanlyâ clothing for me. This doesnât necessarily mean womenâs clothing, but rather somewhat more androgynous pieces, which I quickly embraced. I found them interesting and appealing because thereâs a lot of fresh expression in that style that I donât find in traditional menâs clothing, though I donât want to overdo it. I also started experimenting with them personally, choosing many more varied colours. For a while, I was very fond of pink, and lately, Iâve been playing around with orange. On the cover of the album 'Demoni', I wore an orange-pink sweater.
Are we, as an audience here, already mature enough for a musician to present his feminine side through fashion? Does that require courage?
It does, there will always be people who wonât understand you. But for me, when it comes to the stage or a shoot, Iâll wear anything, and if I feel good in it, I donât worry about what someone thinks. When I walk around "in civilian clothes," however, especially in Ljubljana, I am still aware if Iâm dressed somewhat "untraditionally." Thereâs a certain boundary that I still need to break within myself. On stage, itâs easier because itâs not necessarily a hundred percent my expression; Iâm playing a certain character, but personally, sometimes I do need some courage to show up in a particular style. However, the awareness of being different is stronger in Ljubljana than in other parts of the Western world. For example, I never felt that way in London, but still, our capital isnât the worst when it comes to this.
Speaking of influences, what about other artistic or cultural movements?
I love art deco, the aesthetics of the '20s and '30s, though it doesnât influence my daily life. In terms of photography, Damon Bakerâs black-and-white style is beautiful. The vintage camera aesthetic has recently won me over, which will also be reflected in our band. Musically, over the past year, Iâve been listening to old Italian chansons and older French music, chansons as well, so Iâm clearly feeling very retro this year. (smile)
Will the third album visually stand out from the previous ones then?
Yes, it will be very different. In the last two, we used a lot of colours, but there wonât be as many in this one.
Style can be an excellent tool for expressing an artist's authenticity, but with increasing success, the artist can also become its slave; the line is thin. Do you ever feel the pressure of having to express your fashion style in your private life as well?
No, Iâve never felt like my style owns me; itâs always been the opposite. Iâve always felt like I want more, like I want to dress even better than the day before, especially when it comes to my music career. Perhaps style only hangs over my head a bit when I have no inspiration and would rather wear sweatpants on an ordinary, relaxed day. Thereâs nothing wrong with that, of course, but then I do think about what would happen if I ended up somewhere in the middle of the city dressed like that.
It seems that Joker Out has developed a distinct style despite outside influences.
Yes, today we are already very complete in our style. Others have definitely had an influence on us, and I think itâs great that each of them tried to express themselves through us â it was interesting to experience how Joker Out was seen by Ponorelli, and how AndraĆŸ DrobniÄ or Karlo Kirri did. Of course, there is a difference in this, but it also aligns with the development of our music and aesthetics, so all these influences are very welcome.
How much of your personal fashion identity is therefore reflected in Joker Out?
Maybe, as someone who is not an external observer, I can't answer that, but I can say that I was always one of the first to give feedback to the stylist when we were creating our outfits, approving moodboards, and so on. So, I have definitely shaped our style in a direction that suits me. On certain "blind stylings," when we just dressed up, I quickly threw something on myself and then helped look for pieces for the other band members.
What about this photoshoot, where Alenka Birk took over the styling? Did you let her take the lead with her tactics, or did you collaborate on fashion choices? How did the communication go?
I didnât know Alenka, who, by the way, is an excellent stylist, before. She was recommended by UrĆĄa (the photographer, ed.). Later, she confided in me that she had also worked with my father. Alenka focuses on elegant men's fashion, which is a departure from this more fluid fashion; and this suited me because I had never really been photographed in a men's suit, jacket, and tie. I wanted to try something new. I hadnât seen the outfits before the day of the photoshoot when we met in her small studio in the morning. There were nine of them in total, and we only swapped out a piece or two in at most three of the looks.
This is more of an exception than a rule in fashion photoshoots. Does that mean you felt good in them?
Yes. In some more so, obviously, but in others, you have to trust the people you're working with. When I first look in the mirror, I always keep in mind that if something isn't optimal, it doesn't mean it wonât work well on camera. Even if the pants are too short or creased, it's still worth photographing them, because the photo can be edited later, whereas on stage, it's a different story, and everything has to already be perfect in the mirror. Working with Alenka was very simple; we clicked really well, and I will definitely work with her again.
How linked are your confidence and the way you feel on stage with your styling?
Very connected. As a musician, you want to enjoy yourself as much as possible on stage, and the people who come to listen to you and pay for the ticket deserve to see you at your best, which means you have to feel good in every aspect.
You recently attended Ljubljana Fashion Week. Which of the local fashion designers do you like to follow?
As far as the Slovenian fashion scene is concerned, Iâm still quite the beginner, so I only knew the designers we had worked with. This was my first time visiting the Fashion Week.
Which shows did you watch?
On the first day, all of them. I didnât like everything, but what stuck in my mind was SarivalenciÂč with their somewhat "country club", Lana Del Rey vibe, and golf moment. I also really enjoyed the Belgrade Fashion Week, as there was an obvious Balkan touch, which I would love to see more of in Slovenia.
ÂčSarivalenci is a Slovene high fashion brand created by fashion designer Sari Valenci.
You are a fan of vintage clothes and second-hand shops. What do these pieces have for you that new ones don't?
Honestly, I donât know if thereâs an objective explanation why. I started getting into it because it was popular, and at the same time, it gives you the feeling of getting a more unique piece. At the same time, you're shopping sustainably and not contributing to the production of unnecessary new textiles on Earth, which is great, but I would be lying if I said thatâs my main motivation. What I like the most is the experience of "flipping" through clothes, where each piece is different, like a treasure hunt, compared to regular stores where you "flip" through the same clothes in different sizes.
Did your mum, who comes from the Netherlands where people have been aware of this for many years, introduce you to this concept?
I wouldnât say we talked much about it at home, but I literally lived it. This is probably true for Slovenians in general â almost all the clothes I had as a child were from older peers, or I would take something from my dad, too. When I was done with wearing the clothes, my brother would wear them too. Every piece of clothing that came into our house was passed around, which is a great practice, and itâs still like that today. My sister "stole" half of my sweaters, my mum sometimes takes something too, Maks borrows jackets from my dad, which Iâve also done myself. It's like we all share one big closet! (laughs)
So you have influenced each otherâs style in your family, or rather, you still do so? Who has otherwise had the most influence on your style in the past, and who does today?
I donât remember ever looking at my parents as role models in this regard, as I didnât really think about it back then, but they definitely influenced me, at least subconsciously. When I see how my mom dresses today, I see parallels with my own style, so she probably did influence me, perhaps more than my dad. As for street style, which I mentioned at the beginning, it might have been inherited from my uncle, my auntâs husband from the Netherlands, who wore loose sweaters and listened to hip hop. My mum also had an uncle from the Indonesian side of the family, whom I never met, but he was very eccentric. Some of his clothes made their way to us over the years, and when I looked at these pieces in the closet, I was fascinated by how they reflected his personality. Asian fashion became a bit closer to me because of this, and I might even explore it someday.
The heart necklace you wear all the time, even today, is from your girlfriend. Do you ever dress your girlfriend or does she dress you?
My girlfriend is very fashion-oriented and has played a big role in my fashion development. She has always encouraged me when I tried new clothes that, at the time, seemed more radical to me. In this way, she partially shaped me. We also really enjoy shopping together. She dresses me more often than I dress her, which means I ask her for opinion. There have also been times when weâve dressed the same when it comes to basic pieces; weâve never really styled each other, but there will probably be time for that in the future.
Where do you like to go for vintage pieces in Ljubljana? Did you find any gems while on tour across Europe?
Textile House Vintage Shop is, in my opinion, by far the best in Ljubljana. The next one is Humana on Stritarjeva street, where I find something every now and then. Abroad, weâve visited many vintage shops in Dublin, Paris, and London. In the latter, I always go to Brick Lane, which is a street with vintage shops in the east side of central London, where the more hipster area starts. The downside is that it quickly becomes quite an expensive experience.
What kind of information can you deduce about a person based on what theyâre wearing? Who, in your opinion, is truly well-dressed?
A personâs style is never a reason not to engage in conversation with them, but it is a very strong stimulator of my interest in that person. If I think someone is really well-dressed, I automatically assume they might think similarly to me and be interested in the same artistic, musical, or visual directions, so Iâm more eager to talk to them. However, Iâve often met people who didnât seem interestingly dressed, and later realised they were amazing people, even if they dressed completely casually.
Your audience expresses itself very differently in terms of fashion, as your parents also mentioned in a recent interview for Elle. How do you as a band perceive this?
Yes, what they meant was that it is no longer the case that you have to be "appropriately" dressed for a rock concert. When we observe the audience from the stage, I would say that the most typical thing for our time is that we are no longer genre-bound. Not just musically, but also in terms of fashion. 30 or 40 years ago, you would see people at a rock concert in leather jackets, black shoes, and jeans, and that was it. Today, you have flamboyant outfits with blue and green hair in one corner, gothic style in another, and of course, people in simple t-shirts and pants somewhere in the middle. And no one feels like they donât belong; everyone sings our songs, and thatâs really nice.
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Stevie Fic
This is a Stevie first meeting fic based on this amazing art and concept by @your-unfriendlyghost Like most of my stuff its not betaed. Enjoy!
*************
Evie really fucking wants to hit something.
Itâs probably a bad idea considering hitting something-Â well, someone- Â is what got her here in the first place, but right now it feels like her options are fight or cry and she really doesnât want to cry.Â
The bench in the holding cell is cold under her bare legs, her skirt not long enough to properly cover them, but she canât bring herself to care in the slightest, despite the fact sheâs sharing the holding cell with two guys, one a drunk sleeping off a hangover in the corner, the other a tough looking greaser she vaguely recognizes from school, whoâs flicking a lighter idly, clearly bored out of his mind. Her right hand is aching something awful, knuckles all split and bloody, but she clenches her fist tighter, letting the skin pull back, watches the small cuts reopen and the blood well up, filling the tiny cracks in the surrounding skin. It smarts something awful, but itâs kind of mesmerizing all the same.Â
She focuses on the sharp sting, pretending the tears pricking her eyes are because of that instead of the fact that momâs here talking to the police sergeant but sheâs still never been further away.Â
How did this even happen? A year ago her mother was her favourite person in the whole world. It was the two of them against the world, always had been, ever since dad died back when she was six. Mom never used to have a problem with how she dressed or did her hair, never used to care if she made lewd jokes or chewed with her mouth open because momâs own manners were even worse and she liked them that way. A year ago if any man mom was seeing raised a hand to her mom wouldâve punched him herself, fuck the consequences or the injuries, because she wasnât ever gonna let a man know she was afraid of him, even if she was. A year ago if Evie had swung at someone for a good reason mom wouldâve bailed her out and took her out for ice cream, smiled her crooked smile and told her she was right proud of her and her fighting spirit, made her promise to keep it close to her heart.
Now? Momâs so different she might as well be a different person, and if this is the thanks Evieâs going to get for defending her, well, she can fucking fend for herself. If mom wants to simper and smile and bend over backwards for a man who treats her like dirt and Evie even worse she can fucking do it. If she wants to take his side and fuss over his broken nose while Evieâs stuck in this fucking cell then good riddance. But Evieâs never gonna throw a punch to defend her again, not ever. Hell, she might not even stick around the house. If momâs gonna choose a man she met three months ago over the daughter sheâs raised for the past sixteen years, why bother? Home hardly feels like home anymore anyway, what with Deanâs clothes in dadâs old dresser, and his presence sucking the air out of every room. Momâs art supplies have been shoved into the closet to make room for Deanâs unemployment papers, and last week Evie got home from school to find heâd thrown out all her model airplanes. Sheâd sobbed- sheâd been collecting them since she was six, and building the green one was the last thing she did with dad before he passed- but mom just told her to stop acting like such a child because they âwere only toys anywayâ and went right back to cooking Dean dinner. As if she didnât know those planes meant absolutely everything to her. As if she hadnât scraped and saved to buy her one for her birthday every single year without fail. Like she didnât even care.
A fresh wave of anger rushes through her at the memory, and the next thing Evie knows sheâs on her feet, her fist connecting with the concrete wall. She feels more than she hears something in her hand crack, and the fresh wave of agony is definitely similar to when she broke her arm back in kindergarten, but she doesnât even care. It feels good. She wants to hit something. She wants to hurt. She wants to throw punches the way her mother taught her in the hopes they will somehow help her forget said motherâs betrayal.
âHey!â A cop with cropped brown hair raps on the cell door with his baton so hard the bars rattle, âknock it off!â
She glares at him for a second but drops back onto the bench. She tells herself itâs because she really does want to get out of here, preferably today, but deep down she knows itâs because the manâs cold eyes and the way he swings the baton make it clear heâd be all too happy to use it on her.Â
âCrazy bitch,â she hears him mutter as he walks off,and she stiffens, suddenly wishing sheâd spit on him while she had the chance.Â
âWhatâd you expect?â A different voice answers, âThese greasy chics are all the same. Wild as rabid dogs.â
A snicker. âAnd they dress just as poorly. My Adeline ever stepped outta the house wearing something like that sheâd never be allowed back in.â
Their voices fade, getting reabsorbed into the racket of the precinct, but there words have already sunk into her skin, leaving cuts under her surface, making a home in the piece of her thats hates herself. She shivers a bit, hugging her jacket tighter around herself, and glowers at the linoleum floor, pointedly ignoring the prickling uncomfortable feeling of being watched. Between her outburst and the copâs shouting itâs little wonder half the precinct is staring, but she refuses to give them the satisfaction of meeting any of their gazes. Besides, itâs not like she isnât already used to being looked at like sheâs a freak.
â--I mean?â Evie recognizes Deanâs voice easily, even over the din of the rest of the station, conspicuous due to its deep cadence and domineering tone, âthatâs not normal behaviour, nice girls donât do that. I really think I oughta press charges.â
Her head snaps up and she glares at him, snarling, despite the fact heâs pretending to ignore her. Even if he doesnât see it, mom will, will know that Evie is nothing short of genuine in her hatred, that she regrets nothing.Â
Besides, she knows the threat is an empty one anyway. Dean talks a good game but he knows better than to actually press charges for something like this. The cops hadnât dragged Evieout for her side of the story yet and theyâd been all too happy to put her in handcuffs- Deanâs ruined shirt and self righteous anger when he stormed in here had seen to that- but when she does get a chance to speak sheâll be all too happy to explain why she punched him in the first place, and that probably wonât go over too well with a judge.
Of course, mom could always lie for him, rendering her whole defense useless. But Evieâs trying not to think about that. Surely mom still loves her somewhere. Surely she wonât let her own daughter go to the cooler for a half baked crime even if she doesnât.Â
Right?
âItâs those friends of hers,â mom defends, letting out a trilling, fake laugh, smiling as placatingly as possible at Dean and the cop theyâre sitting across from. Her eyes dart towards Evie's and away so fast sheâs half convinced she imagined it, âtheyâre such terrible influences. She didnât mean it.â
âShe broke my nose.â
And I'd do it again, asshole, Evie thinks. Her hand is killing her, but if it wasnât sheâd have clenched her fist at the mere thought. That was the one upside of this whole situation: sheâd finally been able to do what sheâd been wanting to do for months. Sheâll be dreaming of the satisfying crunch Deanâs nose had made when she deviated his septum for weeks.Â
âSheâs your daughter,â Dean continues, âDonât you think she ought to be punished?â
âOf course I do,â mom simpers, cosying into Deanâs side, gazing up at him with such a sickeningly sweet look Evie wants to vomit, âBut donât you think pressing charges is a little harsh? I mean, sheâs never done anything like this before.â
âWell you have to do something, Caroline, sheâs out of control. Talking back, giving me attitude, not listening to you either-â
He keeps going but Evie tunes him out, done listening to his bitching, God knows she already hears enough of it at home. She hates that heâs here, that he lives with them, that heâs ruined every good thing in her life. She hates the way mom looks at him.Â
Most of all she hates that she only swung at him once.Â
The guy across from her with the lighter is still flicking it rhythmically, the clicking sound oddly sharp, distinguishable even over the overlapping conversations in the precinct itself, but its owner doesnât seem so bored anymore. In fact, he keeps glancing over at her and then quickly looking away every time their eyes meet. She has half a mind to tell him heâs gonna waste all the gas in his lighter if he keeps it up, or maybe offer him a cigarette in exchange for a light, but she figures the boys in blue might decide to take some issue with that and she isnât about to get a full pack of marlboros confiscated when she only just bought them.
âFine!â Dean is suddenly looking right at her, voice rising above the precinct for real this time, âI wonât press charges this time, but Iâm sure as hell not paying her bail. She can rot here as far as Iâm concerned.â
The rage is a tidal wave bursting through a dam, all consuming and back full force before she can even blink
âLike you could pay it anyway, asshole!â Her unbroken hand is slamming into the bars and he should be grateful for it because itâs the only standing between him and Evie wringing his thick neck, âLast I checked you were a broke, unemployed loser spending my momâs hard earned money because youre too much much of a fuck up to have a single cent to your own name!â
He sneers, cruelly, but doesnât rise to the bait. Sheâll catch it for sure next time sheâs in the house, and heâll probably find something of hers to break in the meantime, but for the moment he manages to hold himself together.
âEnjoy the holding cell Evelyn.â
âSeriously?â She turns to mom, half desperate, half pleading, knowing it wonât make a difference and hoping foolishly, childishly, that it will anyway, âYouâre just going to let him leave me here?â
âEvie-â
âYouâre my mom.â Her voice breaks.
Mom flinches, but she hides it well. Evie notices, because she knows her tells, knows the slight trick of her left eye is her way of hiding heartbreak, just like she knows mom never really got over losing dad as much as she always tried to convince herself she did, knows Dean saw the loneliness that festered in momâs heart and twisted it to his advantage. She knows that mom is strong in some ways but not all of them and that a part of her has given up. She just hadnât realized until now that the part of her that gave up had given up on Evie.
âI did it for you,â her voice is shaking, and Dean could be screaming and the precinct could be burning around them and it wouldnât matter because all she can see right now is her motherâs apologetic brown eyes and the fact that she has let her down for the last time, âfor you. Not for me. And this is the thanks I get?â
âIâm sorry,â mom whispers, shame twisting her features, âbut- but you did a bad thing Evie, and-and we donât really have the money for bail right now anyway. Theyâll only hold you for a day or two anyway and then you can come home and weâll figure this out, the three of us.â
âCome home?â She canât help the scoff that forces its way out of her throat, âYou think you can leave me here, after everything, and Iâll just come home like nothing happened?â
âYou donât mean that.â
âTry me.â
âDeanâs right,â mom shakes herself and the glimpse of her true self is gone, replaced by the shell of a woman filled with Deanâs slimy thoughts, âyou need a few days to cool down. Youâre impossible to talk to right now.â
âImagine how much more impossible to talk to Iâll be when I'm gone and your sack of human shit boyfriend wonât even let you try to find me!â Evie yells at her retreating back, âHuh? Huh, you fucking bitch! Fuck. You.â She punctuates the last two words with a weak rap against the bars, but as suddenly as her anger overtook her it has drained away, leaving nothing but misery in its wake.
The brown haired cop doesnât have to rap on the bars this time to make her behave. She slinks back to the bench, a woman defeated.Â
She doesnât cry, but itâs a near thing. In fact, she still might. Itâs taking a lot of harsh blinking and biting the inside of her cheek to keep the tears from falling, but she refuses to crumple here, to be weak in front of a room full of men who have already seen her humiliated and powerless, men who have actively participated in making her that way. They will not get the victory of seeing her cry too. They wonât.Â
âHere,â suddenly the boy with the lighter is next to her, holding out a stained, but soft looking rag. She must have stared at him a beat too long because he clears his throat awkwardly, cheeks reddening ever so slightly, âfor your hand.â
âOh,â sheâd all but forgot about her split knuckles and probably broken ring finger, but when she looks down she can see that itâs started to swell something awful, which has in turn increased how much sheâs bleeding, âthanks.â
She struggles to wrap the rag clumsily around her knuckles. Without meaning to she makes the mistake of accidentally twitching her broken finger and drops the rag with a hiss, instinctively cradling her hand closer to her chest.
âHere, let me- I mean- I can wrap your hand for you? If you want?â Lighter guy offers. Heâs endearingly awkward, and, Evie has to admit, kind of cute, with his thick dark hair and glowing bronze skin. He looks about as rough as most guys from their side of town, intimidating with his leather jacket and seemingly instinctual scowl, but he doesnât seem scary. Not really. Not when heâs this kind.
Wordlessly she holds out her hand and he takes her wrist with a gentleness thatâs unprecedented from such large callused hands, clearly used to hard work, as he carefully threads the cloth over and around her knuckles, covering most of the cuts without tying anything too tightly.
Sheâs almost disappointed when he pulls away.
âYouâre real good at that.â
âYeah well,â he grins, suddenly roguish and Evie can see how he could be mean if he wanted to, âitâs not exactly my first time bandaging bruised knuckles. Might be my first time bandaging them on a girl though.â
âOh yeah?â Despite her misery she can feel a smile tugging at the corner of her own lips.
He nods. âYou oughta join a rumble sometime, looks like that right hook of yours does some real damage.â
âHe deserved it!â Evie snaps.Â
âLooked like it,â The boy agrees, holding up his hands in surrender. Heâs quiet for a minute, then adds, âSounded like it too.â
Something about the way he says it makes her pause.
âHe was gonna hit my mom,â she admits, shivering at the memory of Deanâs rage and the way mom had tensed, hands flying up to shield her face. Sheâd said after, when Dean was still screaming and everything had gone to shit that heâd never done it before, but her reaction had told Evie otherwise. âHe was standinâ over her and I could see him pulling back and in that moment it felt like my options were hit or be hit. So I punched him.â
âTuff.â
Evie blinks. âYa think?â
âYeah,â he nods, âI really do.â
Something in her chest relaxes at that, at not only his non judgemental assessment of her actions but his clear approval of them. She hadnât realized how much she needed someone on her side until now.
She looks at him, really looks at him. Aside from his thick hair and smooth skin, heâs got slightly crooked teeth and a strong nose. His eyes are angry, but righteously so, not cruelly so, and there is kindness hidden in the curve of his cheek and the calluses of his hands.
âYouâre Steve, right? Iâve seen you around school before with that friend of yours. The blond one.â
âSodapop, yeah,â He gives her an odd look, slightly pleased but clearly taken aback, âI gotta be honest, Iâm not used to people knowing my name and not his.â
âOh,â Itâs her turn to blush, âwell, I-I guess he never really made much of an impression on me.â
âWell since you seem to know my name, does that mean I made an impression on you?âÂ
âNo,â her cheeks are burning and she doesnât sound convincing, even to herself, but if sheâd seen Steve Randle doing pull ups when she walked past the boys gym class once and made a point of learning his name, thatâs no one's business but her own. It didnât have to mean anything. It didnât mean anything before now. âShut up.â
He laughs, and she should probably be annoyed because heâs definitely teasing her but itâs such a nice sound, carefree and inherently defiant, that itâs hard to do anything but enjoy it.
âSomeone call for a jailbreak?âÂ
Before Steve can properly answer theyâre interrupted.
Speak of the devil, Evie thinks, silently cursing Sodapop as he grins through the bars at Steve, flanked by an older boy wearing ascuffed letterman jacket and the brown haired cop from earlier. He couldnât have waited to get here just a few minutes longer?
âTook you long enough,â Steve rises fluidly to his feet as the cop unlocks the cell, and nods at the other boy, âHey superman. Whatâre you doinâ here?â
âGotta be over 18 to bail someone out Steve-o,â Sodapop singsongs, before the older boy can get a word in, âanâ I figured you wouldnât want me gettinâ mom or dad involved unless I had to.â
âThanks man,â Steve pulls them each into one of those odd half hugs boys do, clapping the big one called Superman on the shoulder as he pulls away, âspeaking of, any chance youâd be willing to sign for one more person? Iâll pay the bail, I just need your signature.â
He looks over his shoulder expectantly and Evie realizes with a start that he means bail for her.
âWhat? No! Steve you guys canât- I donât got the scratch to pay you back-â
âWell I ainât about to leave you here by your lonesome all night, and it donât seem like your momâs fixing to come back anytime soon. Darry here wonât mind signinâ the papers since Iâm vouchinâ for you.â
ââCourse not.â The older boy agrees.
Evie bites her lip, considering. She really, really doesnât want to stay here, especially without Steve for company, but she also doesnât have the funds to pay him back.
âI really canât pay you back-â
âListen, if you really wanna pay me back you could agree to go out on a date with me?â
âO-oh,â she smiles down at her feet, âI- yeah, Iâd love to.â
âReally?â
He really shouldnât sound so shocked. Sheâd basically been the one to admit to liking him, after all.
âYeah. Really really.â
âIâm Evie by the way,â she tells him as she and Steve walk side by side out of the precinct, realizing she has yet to introduce herself, despite how long theyâve been talking.
âOh,â Steve's grin is playful, âI know. I make a point of learning the names of pretty girls.â
âI guess I mustâve made an impression on you too, huh?â
He gently takes her non broken hand in his, twining their fingers together.
âYeah,â he agrees, âI guess so.â
#the outsiders#steve randle#evie the outsiders#stevie#sodapop curtis#darry curtis#please give this some love I sacrificed sleep and very important schoolwork for it#meet cute
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it's probably decently obvious that my main lemon demon design was created BEFORE seeing any fandom depictions (or even really that much official art past the logo) because of how violently he stands out in comparison to other designs. it's a little obvious that my inspiration was self-contained and it granted me a bit of creative freedom along with a completely different train of thought while designing him. his three eyes however is very much a relic of 2022 because I was designing a lot of demons with asymmetrical faces at the time and well, why not make another
anyway here's a comparison of him to my most recent lemon demon original design (where it's a bit more obvious I was influenced by somewhat of a fandom culture)
extra bonus rambling under the cut
my general design process has actually stayed relatively contained with a few exceptions like soft fuzzy man's color and weirdly neil himself. yeah sorry chat neil is the first guy that was highly influenced by someone else's design you can shoot me too if you'd like. but I legitimately believe he's the only real example because every other character that has a design remotely similar to someone else is likely due to us both following a similar source material (like my cabinet design being based off polybius) or there being only so many ways to interpret the design (gef the mongoose would've fallen into this category if it wasn't for the fact I made him Joker colors)
in general I tend to follow a mindset of how "weird" I can make a design or how much I can push a lyric/implement it into a design. I also like to twist around the convention and try new things. a good example of both of these apply to my doctor amnesia design.
really the main things going through my head were "well he didn't state HOW many eyes", chosing an eye color that often is overlooked in conventional beauty standards to elevate them and cause you to think, while leaning into the somewhat otherworldly nature she's depicted in by giving her blue skin, a color I associate with the song.
another fun thing I'll do is create a "design pipeline" where I'll take an attribute and run it through a list of connections before we end up in a place long past where we started or just combining a bunch of traits that could be interpreted that way, resulting in designs like this.
though wolfgang isn't my weirdest design, he definitely did not start where we ended off. I believe before the wizard of oz theming for clown circus was set in stone (a choice that has EVERYTHING to do with oz explodes and an element I'll explain later), he was some kinda mirror object head that had absolutely nothing to do with his current namesake. since I wasn't satisfied with that design, I kept a relative aspect of the personality and shapes and thus ended up creating a really interesting take on a character who is largely depicted as... well there's no really good way to say this, but Bad.
since I was working with a new fresh aspect I started by making him a wolf... and then connecting him to "there's a robot in my head". this kind of connected the dots to ultimately make him associated to the tin man, since no one was connected to that character for the wizard of oz element and it was up for grabs (this is also how he somehow got associated with toasters via connecting the previously mentioned song to "what's in the toaster", etc etc). these pipelines of connecting songs that aren't normally related, but making them Work in a believable way makes designs more interesting for me and gives them a bit more purpose and personality. I think this is what ultimately makes people get a bit lost on my interpretations considering they aren't super simple by just being about One Song, but by being about multiple that aren't originally related in the source material. just like how I connected dr amnesia to when he died, explaining a bit of her more mildly supernatural or off-putting elements by making the man in that song her father.
the final real design element that I focus on is the strange rule I follow in terms of how these characters are shaped. there's a massive sort of "alice in wonderland" theming going on in terms of how human/humanoid designs look in contrast to designs that look less and less human. their proportions become more cartoon and shaped, their sizes are affected etc etc all while the human/humanoid characters stay relatively normal next to each other with more believable design elements.
here's the horrid long strip of nearly 100 different character renders next to each other to get a general idea on what I'm talking about
the silhouettes of the human characters "pop" less because they're supposed to contrast to their nonhuman counterparts. which isn't something I normally do, but given the source idea of a sort of "wonderland", I think it works in this specific context.
in conclusion: I'm design autistic and like to use designing to try new things, which is why I fucked that lemon up. sorry about that chat
#guy on the right is completely unaffiliated with the ncu which is why I don't think about him that much sorry ld#also imagine him with half circle black eyes like the logo design because that's legitimately the only colored art of him#nobody has ever actually asked me about this before so I will no longer wait for permission#debating whether or not I should even main tag this I want this self contained to my followers#but it's late so I'm sure no one will see this anyway erm#edit: fuck it it took like ten morbillion years to write the bonus stuff I'm main tagging#lemon demon#mos text post
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Any tips/tricks for people who are starting to draw Egon or any of the ghostbusters?
The key to capturing the likeness of an individual character in your art is identifying features and proportions. Just like how general stylization or exaggeration of art can't be achieved without knowing the basic fundamentals of it (the "you've got to know the rules to break them" deal), you can also study the fundamentals in specific character's appearances to capture likeness and differentiate between them!
It really just comes down to studying them and their individual features and figuring out how to translate them into your style. I'll use Egon as an example in a little tutorial/rundown on that below the cut:
I've made this mostly unstylized study of his (Harold Ramis's) real proportions and features so we can learn the rules before we break them.
(If you guys want me to make a study like this for the other three, I can! :])
First, I identify the character's foundational shape to assist in stylization. Egon has very rectangular shapes in his appearance.
(For the other Ghostbusters, I'd say Winston is diamonds, Ray is circles, and Peter is squares.)
Then, we spot the most defining facial traits to help us out. For Egon:
Tall face
High-angled jaw
Squared forehead
Long, hooked nose with high nostrils
Flat, thin lips
Small, dark, deep-set and downturned eyes
High-arched eyebrows with low ends
Things like moles, freckles, dimples, and wrinkles can also help a lot as either just features or to convey age. Egon, for instance, has dimples when he smiles! :)
You can add whatever other creases and scrunches you deem necessary. I personally also enjoy the undereye crease for that "mature" flare.
Things like hair and accessories can be included as "identifying features," but they're two of the very few things we can easily change about our face, so unless it's essential for identifying the character (like it is for a lot of anime styles) or you're planning on never drawing them in situations where they don't have them, try not to use them as a crutch!
(I say this because I tend to draw Egon with his hair messed up or without his glasses, and I like him to still be recognizable.)
My style tends to simplify curves and angles to create a more interesting silhouette, and I emphasize and exaggerate features and apply a lot of shape language, but I do my best not to lose the identifying traits that make the character look like themselves.
It's sort of a balancing act, and it's never perfect (people's faces are squishy and can look slightly different from angle to angle and depending on what facial muscles are being used) but I hope this at least helped a little bit!
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I wanted to talk about the Black Parade uniforms and it kind of turned into an entire essay. My ideas on the intention behind each costume and their cohesion as a group really evolved over the course of writing this, and I think it brought into focus a lot of things I knew subconsciously but hadn't articulated. I also noticed a lot of details I had never seen before. This has futher convinced me that 1) costume design and what you can say with it is really fascinating and 2) this is S-tier costume design of all time. And it's really long so I'm putting the rest under the cut.
What I would have loved is a Weezer-style picture of the five of them standing side by side, full bodies visible, but unfortunately that doesn't seem to exist. They're either covering each other up, or posed in such a way that details aren't visible or cut is hard to compare, so I'll have to provide a variety of visuals. This weirdly blurry poster is the closest thing I could find to a Weezer picture, so take them in as a group and refer back as necessary. I want to start by saying, obviously, that they look amazing both individually and as a set. "Dark marching band of death" is a really fun concept that is very well executed. But this isn't their first time doing a look as a group - think back to Revenge for a minute, when they really started to think about their costuming as a band. Gerard has talked about how then, they were kind of closing ranks against the vitriol coming their way. They needed to feel like a team, a gang, and dressed like one. I think some of this mentality has carried over into the Black Parade uniforms - they're less defensive, (there's no bulletproof vests), but in taking on new, nameless identities they have removed themselves as individuals from the equation, which is protective in its own way. What's left are stage personas, and the more you look the more you see that these were designed by someone who is very familiar with the history of the band and how each member presents themselves on stage. It's absolutely genius costume design, because when everyone is in uniform, the little differences are more noticable and tell you so much about the intention behind each variation.
Before we really start, I have to confess that I have no history in costuming or even a lot of familiarity with marching or military bands. I can only say I find costuming interesting, so I've read a little about it, and I went to high school in America and almost all my friends were in marching band. Someone who is more educated in these things could probably give more specific insights and have a better vocabulary to talk about it, but do not underestimate me. I am deeply obsessed with MCR and got A's in English, so let's find some meaning in symbolism! But please remember that with all art, there is no one interpretation. And remember going forward that these costumes were designed by Colleen Atwood, based on sketches she was given by Gerard, so there's no telling what elements were brought in by her and what elements Gerard had planned originally. If anyone has sources on that, PLEASE let me know because I'm very curious about the design process.
Also, I'll be using the uniforms as they appear in the WTTBP video as the standard, with acknowledgements toward variations seen in posters and the FLW video. It's worth noting that in many live performances they wore different, less unique jackets, and often forewent the pants for black jeans. This is almost certainly because they were easier to perform in and they didn't want to subject the originals to the sweat and rowdiness of regular shows. Ok, here we go! Here are some pics to refer back to throughout.
Starting with the band as a whole, I want to point out two things: first, marching bands evolved from military bands. The individual costumes vary in how "military" they look, but you can definitely see the influence when you look at them as a set. I imagine they leaned into that a bit because of the military elements on the record - the suggestion in Mama that the patient was a soldier, maybe even a war criminal. We also know they've done military aesthetics before, in The Ghost of You music video, and that the band was formed in response to 9/11. Suffice to say, the military is on the mind, and this is a continuation of that.
They also look a bit like skeletons. Obviously they would occasionally do the face paint, but the uniforms themselves suggest a ribcage with the horizontal silver lines, and at some angles the stripes on the pants also really contribute to the image. I know most people have already realized this, but I wanted to point it out explicitly because it took me an embarassingly long time to see it.
Alright, I'm gonna talk about them individually now, going from my personal least to most favorite. Taste aside, they're all individually really interesting.
5. Bob
(I can't find another good Bob picture, just scroll up to the blurry one)
It's not just because I don't like Bob, I genuinely like this one much less than all the others. It might be because it's less tailored - the others look much sharper, he looks almost rumpled in comparison. The lose fit might be because as a drummer, he needed better range of movement, but I'm not a drummer so I don't know. The cut of his jacket looks kind of naval to me, which is interesting. His stripes are also very minimal compared to the others. Overall, his looks the least like it's part of a set. I don't necessarily think they meant to set him apart, but maybe they did, considering he's the only non-original member (I'm counting Frank as an original member) and the only one not from New Jersey (which, I only point out because they ALWAYS point that out to people who mention they're a Jersey band. We're from Jersey, Bob is from Chicago.) Maybe it was a subconscious thing, or maybe as the drummer his costume was designed to make the most of what would be visible sitting and partially obscured by the drum kit. It does have a very dramatic collar. That's probably also part of the reason they gave him a more distinctive haircut for this - I'm not gonna talk about hair much, but it's worth mentioning. Overall, I don't have a ton to say about Bob because I don't think of him much (sorry, but not really).
4. Frank
Frank's is really interesting. His is the least traditional-looking, which is why it's here in the ranking, but I like it and I think there's a good reason for that. Those stripes on the sleeve are a really strong look, and the material of the silver has kind of a tarnished/dappled look you can see better in other photos. I've seen people say it's a subtle camo pattern, but I'm honestly not sure - I think he's supposed to look a little less new and shiny. The blockiness of it widens him and gives him a lot of presence that might be lost if he was dressed more like the others, and it compliments his performance style well. That's particularly important in the WTTBP video - on that float, he simply doesn't have room to be as wild and energetic as his standard performance was at the time, so this uniform helps him stand out and draw attention to what thrashing he is able to do. As far as bucking tradition, he also is the only one without shoulder tabs (those little loops). There's something funny about that - those tabs are meant to hold loops and eupalletes that would signify rank, placement, or achievement, which apparently you could not give to Frank if you tried. I think this lack of traditionality is reflective of Frank's more punk sensibilities, having come up in the Jersey scene. His playing style evolved over time as he and Ray influenced each other, but at the start he was very much their punk guitarist and coming up in that scene continued to influence how he conducted himself as a musician. I think this uniform marks him as a non-conformist even within the group.
He also has that patch with a red cross on the sleeve, the only bit of color on any of them. I don't know what to make of that, maybe it's just for the Catholic vibes.
Honestly, Frank's feels the most like what people would expect from an "emo" marching band uniform. Especially considering the poster, where he's found a hole to stick his thumb through. I don't think he's wearing it in the video, but in that poster he has this belt with some kind of weapon?? Maybe?? We get it, he's a dangerous little man.
3. Mikey
Mikey's uniform is by far the most military - it's not just the medal, it's also the cut of the jacket. And he's the only one with a fun little belt, which helps keep the silhouette look nice and tailored even though the jacket flares a little at the waist. We all know the medal is a reference to his death in The Ghost of You video (there's no way they didn't know we would make that connection) and it wouldn't surprise me if the rest of his uniform looks more military because it was built around that idea. But also consider Mikey's stage presence at the time - due to his discomfort on stage, he used to be really stoic, standing in the back, getting the job done with little showmanship. I think that presentation lends itself well to a classic military figure. Mikey is also pretty thin, and the long jacket and it's strong, solid construction keeps him from looking too Victorian-orphan waifish (especially with how pale they all are), and more like a dead soldier boy.
Additionally, Mikey's costume leaning so hard into the military side helps them look more military as a group. It keeps the association in your mind when you look at the others. Also, he's wearing a little necklace here, which I've never noticed before, is he wearing that in the videos?? I think it's an anchor, which is fun considering he died on a beach.
2. Gerard
Yes, Gerard's is #2 in my ranking. I'm sorry, I might have a slight bias knocking it down from #1. But maybe not, let me defend myself when I get there. Anyway, Gerard's is the most classically marching band, which makes sense considering he's the frontperson. In fact, he has one of those braided loops on his shoulder we talked about earlier, demonstrating.....something, it seems to vary a lot, but we're probably meant to think leadership. He's not wearing it the WTTBP video, but it's there in Famous Last Words. He also has that fancy little star thing on the shoulder, which definitely seems to suggest rank. Otherwise, his uniform is very basic. He's the template that the others' uniforms are variations of. And it's a great look! He's also got nice big buttons compared to the others, three whole rows of them, which is a nice touch to make it look a liiiiittle more feminine. Because, of course, the back of the jacket is corseted, in a genious stroke of gender that puts the entire outfit in a new context. I think this is a good example of how Gerard likes to play with androgony by balancing masc and femme elements. The cut of his jacket makes his shoulders look wide and his waist narrow, but not so narrow it looks terribly feminine (just a little, taken on its own). A lot of this is achieved by the piping - notice how on Bob, Mikey, and Frank, the top row of piping (I might be using that word wrong but let's go with it. I'm talking about the silver stuff across the chest) is pretty much the same length as the bottom row? On Gerard, they start out wide way up on his shoulders and get progressively narrower at the waist. It's still a mostly masculine silhouette, but then you have the counter balance of the big buttons and his little white pixie cut, both of which lean just a little further toward femme than masc. It's an androgynous look that leans toward masc as a whole, until he turns around and, boom, corseted back. Showstopping. He also had those black leather gloves that give some nice formality, and maybe a touch of impersonality. They make it so that when he's in full uniform, the only skin you can see is that of his face. They're like an edgier version of the usual plain white marching band gloves.
1. Ray
Going purely by aesthetics, Ray's is my favorite. It's the fancy one, most obviously distinct by the flourishes around the buttons on his jacket. He Mikey are the only ones with pure silver shoulder loops, and Ray has more silver piping on his jacket than the others. In some pictures he's wearing this really ornate knotted tassle thing? You can see it in one of the group pictures above. He isn't wearing it in any of the videos, which makes sense as it could be really annoying while playing. The cut of his jacket at the bottom also looks formal to me, but I'm not sure why. Overall, the ornanamentation could be a reflection of his playing style - the same caveat here applies to Frank, in that they influenced each other through their parnership as guitarists, (and Ray has a lot of influences from different genres), but at the start he was their metal guitarist, and the guitars in metal are often complicated and showy. And he's their soloist, they need to show him off a little.
Additionally, the construction here is giving him an absolutely wild silohette. Like Gerard, the piping on his jacket gets progressively narrower to suggest a smaller waist, but without the really long stripes at the top to make the shoulders look broader. Those vertical lines across the front add to the effect because they're curved inward - which is interesting, because everyone else's uniforms are composed of entirely straight lines and sharp angles. And his jacket is cut REALLY high on the side. I can't tell if Ray's pants are more high-waisted than the others, or if it just looks that way because of the cut of the jacket. You see the stripe of the pants go all the way up his hip, and since he's already tall with long legs, it really accentuates that. It's hard to tell, but I think his pants are even a little more form-fitting than the others. The other day I saw people commenting on a gif of Ray in the WTTBP video about how they never noticed how long his legs are - this is why!
We talk about how part of what makes Ray such a compelling performer is how he moves, and I think this costume was designed to compliment fluid motion. The tailoring and curves of the piping avoid making him look too rigid or blocky, as a marching band uniform could easily do, and the high cut of the jacket lets the line of his legs continue uninterrupted. Honestly, this is a favorite look for Raygirls (gender neutral) for a reason - I think they knew exactly what they were doing putting him in a pretty, well-tailored uniform that accentuates his movement. (Caveat here that I'm a Raygirl (gn) so I'm definitely biased, and they all look great in their uniforms, but I do think Ray's is.....uniquely flattering, and I don't think it was an accident).
Conclusions
So now that we've talked about all of them, I think we have some interesting contrasts to make. Gerard and Mikey both have very classic looks, but Gerard's is more marching band and Mikey's is more military. Mikey and Bob both have very military looks, but Mikey's has a much more solid construction. Gerard and Ray are both on the marching band side of the spectrum, but Gerard's is classic while Ray's is ornate. My favorite contrast is between the guitarists - Frank's is blocky and rigid and tarnished, Ray's is curved and fluid and shiny.
The interplay between similarity and contrast is what makes this so compelling as a group costume - just by looking you can tell who's the leader, who's the tragic figure, who's the outcast, who's the rebel, who's being spotlit.
In closing, thank you Colleen Atwood and Gerard Way for designing these and the rest of the band for wearing them, I will never get tired of looking at them.
#mcr#my chemical romance#the black parade#will probably come back and edit in more pics im out of time rn#gerard way#ray toro#frank iero#mikey way#bob bryar#i guess#see how many times i can misspell silohette#to some extent idk if anyone reads this cause its nice to have my thoughts organized but also if im nerdy enough to write it surely#some people will be nerdy enough to want to read it#*idc not idk
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Do you ship it?
reason under the cut!
okay i have to get this out of the way first: - a common headcanon is that they are siblings. which. no, dont ship this if you think they are siblings, thats weird and gross. blegh. - i (submitter) do not believe this! they have a rivalry, yes, but they aren't siblings! made by the same creator, sure, but that's a constant theme throughout the game. made by god, and made by humanity. they have a more interesting dynamic as strangers! - below is a copy and pasted (and slightly edited for the sake of clarity) rant from a discord server !! when i posted about some of my art about them, a pal of mine asked what the source material was! so that is that rant.
OKAY ULTRAKILL !!!! blue guy (V1) was a machine built for A Big War before humanity fails!!! its the character you play as in the gayass bloodplay shooter game <33 hes made to destroy. the first think you know about her is her name, her objective (FIND A WEAPON) and where she is (APPROCHING HELL) and three things: - mankind is dead - blood is fuel - hell is full WHICH MEANS THAT THE ROBOT USES BLOOD AS FUEL!!!! she needs blood to live and she will use the souls of the damned to do that. anyways so she was an actual war robot in the Real Life!! V2 (red) on the otherhand was a robot made after the New Peace that humanity made before their final death. they were meant to promote peace and are awesome!!! i also love their battle mechanics... silly :) in 1-4, V1 fights V2!!! its very interesting because v2 bows before the battle, showing it is but a curtesy, or a show of power, but it;s not personal. it was never personal, before. after the battle, v1 takes v2's arm, knuckleblaster. LATER ON. 4-4. they fight again. v2 has a new arm, whiplash, and sits upon a throne, awaiting v1's arrival for once they get to their area of Greed. it's so personal now. they fight, and they kill. v2 dies fully, and v1 takes the arm again. parts of v2, engraved into their arms and beating into their code. its very interesting to meee!!! taking a part of your dont even get me STARTED on the contrast between the soundtrack and how the visuals of each level are so vastly different!!!!! dont even get me STARTEDDDD because clair de lune and claire de soleil comparisons. hakita you are a genius!!!!
plus, all the fan interpretations are also fun!! comics based around the gore of the thing. art made for the sake of understanding these two. thank you for your time. if you headcanon these two as siblings, good! vote for i dont ship it and leave me alone please! thank you :)
tag: @bright-honey
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I love Doma, so much- besides his character alone, imma post things I like about his design. Cause I can ĂčwĂș If you wanna see my simpus supremus post, read more under the cut! đ
Ahem... LOOK AT THE SIZE OF HIS HANDS ! ! He's huge! This is a me thing maybe but that's veryâšpleasantâš Other than that, the design for his hands are so elegant.. yet strong- he has long nails as the upper two, which- slayyy~
The blood-like pattern is visually appealing, honestly just such good design. If you want to make hands more interesting, have some kind of detail like this to draw your eyes to them. Gah... GAH đ„
His range of expression! And just.... his face- For someone with no emotion, he sure has studied expressing whatever he wants accurately. Surprise, joy, sympathy, sadness, determination- you name it, he can fake it. And as is the point of his character to some extent, he has beautiful eyes. Both in shape and color. đ
His eyebrows are wonderful, it's not often creators make a character this attractive and then give them a set of nice and thick eyebrows. I feel it's so common to think of it as unattractive but.. honestly- I disagree. I have had thick eyebrows my entire life, and I am extremely grateful for that. Anyway, this next one is just.. demons in general from Demon Slayer. But! Their teeth, they are so large. Every demon with these kind of teeth just... they seem so- idk- comfy looking. It's odd, but very appealing! (I checked in with some friends and they agree! Demon chompers are very nice to look at!
HIS HAIR! For real, long long ago, when watching the hobbit and lord of the rings, something flipped in me in regard to what I find appealing on men. Long hair. There is a reason I love Tolkien's elves ahah. And it's just the same with Doma. đ„° Regardless if it is beautiful, smooth and soft or jagged and wild- it does not matter. Men suit long hair so much more than they think, it makes me so happy whenever a character is given long hair. And I mean LONG, not that "barely touching the shoulders" bs. That's not long, that's medium.
It actually pains me when someone draws a man who has long hair- with short hair. Like.. slay, live your dreams. But come oooon- let the 10% of men with long hair in fiction keep it, plz- I beg. (not actually that serious, do what makes you happy <3) With some help from two of my friends, I'd like to point out his build and how he visually reads vs. his behaviors! While Doma is quite a big guy, with broad shoulders and a very tall frame. He acts and is drawn very innocently! (Note: Slim waist alert đ„)
He is often drawn in a way that makes him seem quite harmless. He sits in a way that makes him seem smaller than he is (Especially during the upper moon meeting), he's often smiling, laughing and otherwise messing around. He also somewhat slumps his shoulders sometimes. All this really makes his behavior stand out, since it is such a contrast to how he makes himself appear. He talks down to people in such a casual way, he's creepy at times, intimidating- and that gets multiplied by 100 when he no longer acts all aloof and sweet.
On top of all this- he is very muscular, but he wears a baggy turtleneck and very loose pants. Which is anotherfor him to seem far less intimidating visually.
This has all been manga so far, but here's an honorable mention to the anime. This scene was so well done. He is smiling softly through the entire scene, but does not express as much as he does while being upper two. His voice range moves but not along with his expression, which make it feel as if something is off and I love it.
Sidenote, the voice actor they picked for him- chef kiss đ Some of this might be a reach, or personal conclusion of course. But when I have an interest, why not share it. Maybe some people will agree, maybe some won't. Either is fine! And feel free to tell me what you agree or disagree with, or just what you like about this guy. I am happy to hear đ
#joetamy#tam speaks#the first thing before the cut is my art ^^#demon slayer#kny#kimetsu no yaiba#doma#douma#long post#Ultimate Simp Post#maybe I'll make more in the future for other characters.. I love them all sm!
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âWhy am I grinning? I guess I've been unusually happy lately...â
vibe song to go w this đđ€
#vibe song below the cut cause the embed looked huge#based largely on the quote above#it's hard to imagine a guy like this /grinning/ of all things; it's rlly cute :''3#also based on a drabble i wrote last night#farmer star gave him the bouquet the night before#the next day he's come to visit seb like he always does; but this is the first hangout as bfs so they're being dorks about it <3#stardew valley#sdv sebastian#stardew sebastian#sebastian x farmer#farmer star#my art#doodles/sketches/wips#also experimented with seb's hair; have more on the side and over his face like his overworld sprite#i like both his portrait and overworld designs so figure i'd experiment w combining aspects i like from each#also also the song makes my heart flutter and i feel it fits the vibe
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Springfest yippie
#splatoon#splatoon 3#splatoon springfest#squid sisters#splatoon deep cut#callie and marie#artists on tumblr#I made the bunny and chick designs headpiece things before realizing they were eggs whoops#from the first screenshots on Twitter you canât tell#this unpleasant gradient shows up at your front door#these are pretty much the designs in game with some small tweaks so not really a redesign#art#my art
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Random old grayscale doodles
Including my probably favorite Ellis expression Iâve made from a forever unfinished BMB comic:
#blind man's bluff#ladyredms#l4d2#you know they're old bc they're black and white hahah get it [GUNSHOT]#the divorce arc affected me on a deep level LMAOO i have never been so distraught over fictional characters breaking up before#fun fact: the âis somethin' wrong?â doodle is the first thing i drew after about 5 YEARS of quitting art#my love for bmb literally reawakened my motivation for doodling THAT'S how insanely beautiful and well-written bmb is#i might redo the post-cut comic someday i do love the moment it's based on#bonus points if anyone can guess the moment (i'm very predictable LMAOO)
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started reading trigun
#trigun#trigun maximum#(idk how to tag this)#my art#kept seeing art of this dude and i know there an anime happening now or soon and figure i'll read it before i get spoiled anything. keep#seeing it since i was 14 yet never actually learned a single thing about it. only thing i knew was: 1 the blond guy is the main character.#2 i think theres a desert + its scifi ish. 3 i think the 'bleh' meme come from this. im only 2 chapter into maximum rn but i hope the panel#gets easier to read because often its just too busy to be comprehensible. also the pacing is a bit weird but apparently first manga was cut#short so fellas did their best im sure. anyway i want to know why everyone love this guy so i'll keep reading. so far his twinkish demeanor#and torment have picked my curiosity
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GGS TEAM PAST!!!
#DUUUDE THIS WAS SO FUN#dreadful#veji#art#splatoon#splatoon 3#grand festival#grand fest splatoon#Man I shed like a few tears by the end of the reveal news thing#Like not out of sadness cause my team lost but just from the joy that all this happened and I was here for it.#I never got to experience splatoon 2âs final fest so Iâve waited 3 years for this and IâmâŠ. Just so happy!#If you couldnât tell from the colours in the drawing Iâm team future btw#I laughed so hard seeing the results lol we got NOTHING#Oh and I guess I should put my reasoning for my pick of future#so here it is:#I picked it because the future scares me. But itâs gonna happen anyway so I might as well look forward to it#I canât let myself worry about where Iâll end up and who Iâll be when Iâm older#But I do need to keep looking forward#I also chose it cause of deep cut. Like that was a big factor in my choice#Their music shaped my tastes. I just love it so much#And sure the characters themselves arenât as fleshed out as the other idols#But they still mean a lot to me as splatoon 3 is the game that got me into the franchise#Even though I played 2 before 3 could never fully enjoy it as I came too late#I missed every splatfest cause I got it a year before splat3#So I could never connect the way I did to 3#Hearing anarchy rainbow for the first time changed me man. I fell in love instantly. It just means so much.#As an autistic person I actually surprisingly donât really stim that much. But hearing anarchy rainbow just⊠flipped a switch.#I couldnât stop moving. Literally like DJ Octavio man. It was a crazy experience to just feel like I had to move.#to walk around or something. To wave and flap my arms. Copy their dances. It sounds a little weird and childish when itâs written down#But itâs true. Splatoonâs music showed me that my autistic stimming was something I should embrace.
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Tuvok: The Monastery Years
#and yes that same song is playing while he cleans#I like imagining Tuvok & that monk he was assigned to having a friendly but antagonistic mentor-mentee thing#like how he was like 'Tuvok...what if I told you that your crush didn't like you back?' (WHAT!?) 'Hypothetically.'#Tuvok seems like the type of guy who'd take things he was subjected to and subject other people to them. In this instance: scrub the floor#by hand as punishment for something#comix#st voyager#st voyager fanart#Tuvok#In my head teen Tuvok either shaves his head before going to the monastery (more canon)#or he refuses to cut his hair until it catches on fire like three times and then he shaves it even though he only needs to cut it (funnier)#Tuvok: -waiting for a comment about his hair- ... / Monk: ....-never mentions it as a power move- v_v#they dont make em like this anymore! what? bad? <- first draft but vetoed for being too ooc in wording#bea art tag
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completed my sophomore year of college :-) (and now im gonna sleep for the next 2374039475347 years)
#meandering#HI GUYS SO SORRY FOR GOING SUPER AWOL longtime followers will know this is usual for me HAHA#first semester where i end things off with all a's :-) safe to say changing my major to art was the right choice#(what was it before?) bio HAHAHA im not super cut out for it which is unfortunate given my love for biology but thats okay#i hope u are all doing well!!! hopefully i can get back to drawing as usual#things have been very busy as of late but now that im on break i will Not be as busy which is cool#i am currently drawing spottedleaf as a request from a friend just to get back into the swing of things so keep an eye out for that#and for the folks who read my tags if yall wanna make a request for me to draw a warrior cat u may do so ^_^ i wont answer them but i will#hopefully see them and get to them and i'll just use them as practice to get back into the swing of things#but i will not change my requests are closed thing HAHA but thats ok bc if u read these tags u know u can do so
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Some attempts at a design for Selena :3. The second image is inspired by the wedding in Haunted Castle, but I changed Simonâs outfit cause idk I just canât picture him being comfortable in a suit.
The last two of these are way more headcanon-y lol. Theyâre under a cut mostly in case my headcanons and story ideas change d(^^ ). One of them was inspired by a Kikuo song I was listening to while drawing lol, the song âLetâs Go to Heavenâ.
#castlevania#castlevania games#selena belmont#castlevania selena#castlevania ii#castlevania 2#castlevania simonâs quest#simonâs quest#castlevania ii: simon's quest#haunted castle#simon belmont#akumajou dracula#akumajo dracula#art post#my art#I remember seeing someone make a post somewhere about how it was weird that#a lot of the cut items from the first Castlevania were things like high heels and a love letter and stuff#I wonder if Simonâs wife/girlfriend was supposed to be a character at one point in it and she got cut for some reason#idk itâs interesting to me that sheâs only ever appeared in like deliberately noncanon content ya know?#like Haunted Castle was even called not a Castlevania game by its own lead director#the two novels with Simon girlfriends in them were never intended to be canon just fun side stuff#especially the ones that were choose your own adventure books lol I love the art style in one of those#anyway Iâve been trying to think of ways to write her lately but its so easy to end up accidentally falling into annoying tropes alas đđđ#especially ones the series has already used before oof#currently my idea so far is since Simon himself is kinda the chosen one hero guy trope in CV1#and ends up subverting that trope by genuinely failing a ton getting hated by the public and possibly dying at the end#maybe Selena might work as initially the damsel in distress and call to action trope and subverts that later????#I also have always thought she ends up the Mysterious Woman somehow hmmmm#itâs a hard headcanon to incorporate without just pulling a Dracula X chronicles and oh no sheâs a vampire aaaaa but thatâs been done đ#I am also aware that not everything you write has to be 100% completely new and original and perfect but aaaaaaa
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There was supposed to be a second half to this, but I can't wrap my brain around how I would draw it :(
#pmatga#my art#betrayus spheros#aunt spheria#betrayus then responds to mei with 'once.'#nahh but that would be funny if he did#I had somewhat of a conversation in my head but it never really went anywhere i don't think#the main part of it was betrayus just going 'yeah we dated.. for like a WEEK!'#(when they dated? i have no idea lol)#and then he goes on to say that he thinks spheria is into older men (he's younger than her by 9 years I think?)#but before he could finish that sentence mei cuts him off with something but idk what#I wanted it to be a moment were mei tries not to give away that she likes him and that's why I drew this thing in the first place#but i couldn't even draw!! the part that started it!!#creativity is wild!#also trans masc betrayus :handshake: trans fem spheria#pmatga oc#mei liĂĄn
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