#tried to mix things up with different styles and eras

[gay-impressionist]

Hello!! I’m trying to expand my music selection and was wondering if you could recommend a few French artists that you like?

This was so hard 😫 I almost sent you a list with like, 30 names, but realized it would be overwhelming lol

I added some song recs from these artists, to give you a starting point

Feu! Chatterton : La Malinche, J'ai tout mon temps

Claude François : Soudain il ne reste qu'une chanson, Magnolias for Ever, Comme d'habitude (original song that Sinatra turned into "My Way"!)

Gaël Faye : Irruption, Paris métèque, Petit Pays

Téléphone : Un autre monde, Ça s'est vraiment toi

Clara Luciani : Respire encore, Nue

Charles Aznavour : Emmenez-moi, For me formidable

La femme : Si un jour, Sacatela, Paradigmes

Christine & The Queens : Christine, Saint-Claude

Niagara : J'ai vu, Je dois m'en aller, L'amour à la plage

Hoshi : Et même après je t'aimerai, Pleurs de fumoir

Eddy de Pretto : Kid, Mamere

Minuit : Flash

[ultimate-marysue]

My personal body headcanons for the Batfam

Bruce: He is a tank made of pure muscle. Like many other users have put forward (recommend especially @frownyalfred posts on the matter), that's not an easy feat to pull off. It is a testament to Bruce's willpower and dedication to Batman that he's even able to maintain it. Also, I think he took really good care of his scars in the beginning so they would be as inconspicuous as possible when sleeping around as Brucie. Once he gets older and leans more into the father persona he stops caring as much for anything that's going to be covered by his suits and shirts.

Barbara: I hated the fact that her disability got completely erased, so that's the first difference. If you want to have her be Batgirl again, you should do what Gotham Knights did and make it so there are lasting effects and limitations. I'm sorry, but it feels so cheap to me that they just erased disability rep cause they didn't know how to write a strong disabled woman. Skill issue. Also Barbara is built like a brick in my heart of hearts, she's a rectangle with the density of a neutron star. I also think she has one of the healthiest and normal diets of the Bats, mainly cause the physical requirements of Oracle aren't nearly as demanding.

Dick Grayson: I'm not going to reinvent the wheel here by saying Dick Grayson has the perfect acrobat's body. My headcanon is that he gets it naturally. Not that he can just do whatever you want, sadly with their line of work you need to meet a series of requirements. I mean it in the sense of 1) proportions 2) really high metabolism from constant exercise since he was a child, probably the fastest tied with Cass 3) he doesn't need to work out as much outside patrol as the rest to keep his body mass. Every single robin after him low-key hates him for creating a fighting style that only he can do effortlessly.

Cassandra Cain: like mother like daughter, my girl is thick. None of that waifish, delicate ballerina shit. She's short and she has muscles most humans haven't heard of. Average goon tries to knock this 5 feet nothing girl only to be met by an unmovable object. Also, probably contender for top most scarred bat of all. She just looks like she could fuck your shit up without breaking a sweat and that's probably because she could. Also I think she has short legs, giving her an even lower center of gravity. She's just a brick wall.

Jason Todd: my man is one of the few bitches in this family with a normal, healthy, percentage of body fat. He's built like a strong man instead of a body builder, and the fact that he can be sneaky with all that mass is terrifying. I think for a minute there he wondered what he was doing wrong and why he didn't look as lean as Bruce. Then he figured what Bruce had to do to keep Batman's body in line and Jason said "fuck that, I'm not doing all that". In his villain self destructive era that waist was snatched, but the second he started taking actual care of his body it did what body's do. Considering how he mixes so many fighting techniques I can see him building his fighting style around his needs instead of the other way around.

Steph: she's the curviest of the Batgirls, which is why she favors so much the "indistinct blob" silhouette. As any woman with a boobs size above an B cup will tell you: people get disgusting really quick. I think part of her struggles with Robin was trying to wrangle her developing body into a fighting style designed for a very naturally lean boy. Balancing is harder when you have a large set of bazonkers, they don't tell you this in the comics but it is the truth. She also lacks the super fast metabolism other Bats have, and I can see her trying really hard to fit in the mold only to realize as she grows older that she can do her own thing.

Tim: I think Tim, growing up as society kid and then forcing himself into the Robin role, never learned what eating healthy is. I headcanon him having some sort of ED (I think he would evolve through a few of them as he grew up), not because I like throwing angst at characters (though I do) but because it makes sense to me giving his background and personality. EDs are not only about "looking thin", but also about feeling in control. Also, Tim hanging onto the Robin title reminds me of child actors trying to force their developing body's to stop at a kid size so they can keep playing their character. I could write a whole post about it, but for what's relevant, the ED headcanon doesn't mean Tim is just super thin. I think his body is fluctuates the most out of any of the Bats, depending on where he's at mentally and age wise.

Duke Thomas: my boy is built for parkour. He's got the longest limbs in the family, he's got the reach. He keeps waiting for puberty to hit him like a train and give him Jason/Bruce levels of muscle mass, but he's just too tall. Like, yes, he can bench press Jason, but proportionally he's so much taller than all of them by then he just looks noodly. When he puts on the body armor though he makes Batman look like a Barbie doll. Anytime he's looming about, Jason accuses him of overcompensating. Duke just pretends to not be able to hear him from up above. Also pls DC give him long hair that floats around him in the same way Batman's cape does?? Pls, just give him magic girl hair that defies gravity.

Damian: I've said this before but this poor child grew up being told he'd one day be as huge as his dad but grows up to be Talia 2.0. I think he does inherit Bruce's height, but is distraught to never be hulking mountain of muscle like OG Batman. Little does he know Bruce isn't naturally that big either, and it's only through frankly unhealthy means he maintained that body. Everyone else agrees to never tell Damian about it so he won't even think to try it, and instead focus on reassuring him he's more than strong enough to inherit the title if that's what's bothering him. It ends up playing in his favor, Cass is proof that you don't need to be huge to instill the fear of God into people. And the way he moves, like a panther stalking his prey, is more than enough to make the rogues quake.

[inmyheaddd]

play stupid games, win stupid prizes - jameson hawthorne x reader

a/n: this feels different from my usual writing style, idk if i like itt, lmk what u guys think! warnings: swearing, suggestive jokes??, possibly ooc jameson (his fboy era), popular reader x popular jameson wc: 1k masterlist

you couldn’t have been more reckless. really. jameson hawthorne? out of all the people?

it was supposed to be a one time thing, a stupid 7 minutes in heaven dare at a stupid party, his stupid friend who gave him your number, and his stupid decision to text you after the party. and your stupid decision to text him back.

—

lunch break finally came. you were sitting in the cafeteria as your friend swirled her iced coffee, “girl, how’d you get jameson hawthorne to literally be thirsting over you?”

you giggled and looked at him briefly, he was sitting a few tables over, but you could see the way his eyes were fixed on you. 

you shrugged as you turned your attention back at your friends. “guys, it’s not even that big of a deal, we’re barely even together.” the smile on your face said otherwise, one of your friends raised her eyebrows at you.

“i promise! besides, he’s the king of “casual,” and “mixed signals,” you know? i shouldn’t get my hopes up.” 

“i mean, this whole thing has been going on for 2 months now, things with him usually last a week. he’s definitely feeling something.”

“stop!” you exclaimed with a laugh, “you’re actually going to get my hopes up. don’t do that!” you snuck a glance over to his table, and he was talking to his friends.  

like he could sense your gaze, he looked at you, offering you a wink with his signature smile. you smiled back and looked back at your friends, only to find them all looking at you with the same expectant, knowing look on their face. 

“what?” your voice pitched higher, you felt like you were in court.

“you look so in love, it kind of sickens me.” your best friend piped up. 

“i’m not in love.” you shot back. a little crush was way different.

—

it was the end of the school day, jameson found you after class and walked to the car park with you. “i saw you at lunch today,” he glanced at you before wrapping his arm around your shoulders, steering you both to his car. 

“yeah? i saw you too.” you tried to bite back a smile as you glanced up at him. 

he hummed, “you seemed excited, what were you talking about?” the teasing tone in his voice was as clear as day.

“not you,” you replied, rolling your eyes at his cheshire cat smile, and when it only widened at your reaction, you continued. “i can assure you.”

he chuckled, “yeah well, some of your friends can be very loud. i wouldn’t be too sure.” 

you pursed your lips, “hmm, i have no idea what you’re talking about.” you shook your head, trying to change the subject before your cheeks could heat up any more. “where is your car anyway?” 

“relax, princess. i know where i’m going.” he chuckled, before finally arriving at his car. 

it was new, you realized. bright red, convertible, lamborghini, and the license plate was different. 

it wasn’t his usual “WRECK2002”, and after looking for another second, you noticed something.

“are those our initials?” you couldn’t help but laugh at the thought of jameson picking it out. it was cute in a way. 

“yes, they are. you like it?” his hand traveled up and down your back as he watched your reaction.

you hummed, “it’s alright, i guess.” you said smiling at him, knowing fully well you were obsessed.  

his grin widened as he cocked his head to the side. “guess i’ll have to do better next time, then.” he replied with another wink, before he opened the passenger seat door for you. 

“guess so,” you said, not tearing away from his gaze once as you got in. 

he closed your door for you, and then began to lean over the window. 

his lips hovered over yours, teasingly close, making your breath hitch. your eyes flickered down to his lips.

but then he pulled back, moving a strand of hair out of your face and giving you a grin. you couldn’t help the scoff that escaped your lips, and he he chuckled at that. douchebag.

—

he got into the drivers seat and started the car, one hand on the wheel as he leaned back in his chair. 

you tried to ignore the way his adam’s apple was on full view, the way his jawline looked so sharp, you really did, but it was damn near impossible. 

“where to, princess?” 

“my house, obviously. where else?” you replied with a hint of sarcasm.

he shot you a look, one corner of his mouth lifting. “and here i thought you’d want to take a detour. maybe show you a few of my favorite spots?”

“and what might those be?” you asked, playing along, even though you already knew where this was going.

“let’s see…” he tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, pretending to think. “well, there’s this one place, it’s called my bedroom.”

you rolled your eyes, unable to stop the smile tugging at your lips. “you’re nothing if not predictable, jameson.”

“predictable?” he repeated, feigning offense. “i’ll have you know, i’m full of surprises.”

“oh really?” you asked, leaning back in your seat, watching as he drove with one hand casually draped over the wheel, the other resting dangerously near your leg. “surprise me then.”

he glanced at you with an amused look on his face briefly, before turning his gaze to the road. you couldn’t miss the mischievous glint in his eyes and his turned up lips. “you should be careful what you wish for.”

—

he pulled up to your house, and before you could move, he was already opening your door, standing so close you could feel the heat radiating off him.

his eyes flickered to your lips, and your hands found their way to his chest. just as he was about to break the space, you took a step back, on your tiptoes reaching up to ruffle his hair. 

after muttering a small, “thanks for the ride,” and walking off, smiling to yourself in achievement, jameson let out a scoff of amusement, maybe even disbelief.

just as you got to the door, you turned around, giving him a little finger wave.

jameson was still standing there, dare you say even gobsmacked. his head was tilted to the side, and his eyes were narrowed ever so slightly. he had a challenging grin on as his face as he waved back, sending you a chin nod.

—

as you lay in bed, facetiming your friend and giggling nonstop about what happened, a thought crept in. whatever this was with jameson, you silently hoped it wouldn’t end up like everything else with him usually did —wrecked.

taglist: @sweetlikeanangel @x-liv25-jamieswife @thecircularlibrary @wish-i-were-heather

@whatsamongus @littlemissmentallyunstable @sheisntyou @maybxlle

@anintellectualintellectual @tornqdowarnings @emelia07 (if you would like to be added or removed lmk 🤍)

[zenkindoflove]

Tomorrow is my one-year anniversary returning to writing fanfic. This is going to be a bit of a sappy post reflecting on the last year and celebrating some of my wins/new things I've challenged myself to do.

October 17, 2023 is when I started to write the very first chapter of Burn Forever with Me. I had finished the ACOTAR series about two weeks before and had spent those two weeks reading all the Elucien fic I could. I could feel I had a story in me, so I set out to write it in a month thinking that would be it and I would get it out of my system.

It had been a while since I had written. From 2006-2012 I wrote fanfic very regularly across a few different fandoms. Most of those stories can't be found online anymore. I took a three year hiatus from my Big Bang Theory multichapter fic at the end of 2012, and didn't finish it until 2015 when I had a burst of motivation. I didn't write again until another burst of motivation hit me (Game of Thrones ending) and wrote another one-shot in 2019.

By this point in 2023, I kind of thought my fanfic writing days were behind me. I didn't expect this new resurgence in my life that came about because of this series/this ship. I've tried so many new things writing for this fandom and pushed my writing in directions I never anticipated.

Since last year I have... -published 441,592 words. -published 20 fics (a mix of multichapter and one-shots) -completed four multichapter long fics (huge for me because I used to abandon multichapter fics all the time in my first era) -Written for several ships, including rare pairs, not just my OTP which is all I did in the past -Created many OCs, including my focal OC Alexius. Up until now I thought I was kind of hopeless when it came to writing original characters. -Wrote fanfic for three appreciation weeks -Wrote MM smut for the first time, and lots of it. I have been reading MM smut for two decades, but did not have a calling to write for a specific ship until Eris x Alexius -Co-written two fics with @crazy-ache -pushed myself in what styles of writing I tackle, including writing epistolary for the first time as well as challenging myself to write action/fight scenes which always scared me in the past -world building in general also used to scare me and now I think it feels so much more approachable as I've been filling in SJM's holes. -I think my smut writing has evolved a lot too. While I wrote smut in the past and I think I established what my writing voice/style was for smut, I have really had the opportunity to solidify it and try it in different scenes and contexts. I feel a lot more confident than I did back then.

I wanted to highlight these because I think as writers, we are often too hard on ourselves, and it helps to put into context all of the ways we've improved if we are mindful of our progress. I definitely encourage you to sit down one day and remind yourself of all the new things you've done from your starting place. Making this list really put into context all the ways I've changed as a writer in just a year.

I still have a lot more I want to do and new challenges to face in the next year. I hope if you read this, it does help to show you that you can take long breaks and even if you take a step back from writing, you will always be a writer and it'll always be a hobby you can return to and improve your skills, no matter how long its been.

[violetscanfly]

It's been a while huh? How about a long ass trolls au post? Would that be anything?

Ok but seriously I'm obsessed with them and wrecked my sleep schedule for two nights in a row because I was having so much fun drawing them. I haven't seen any crossovers yet and I have many thoughts about how the mdzs/trolls lore works.

I was thinking about making each clan a different type of troll (the lans would fit classical so well etc but I wasn't really into the cupid aesthetic lmao) but the point of this at the beginning was just to get rid of major art block by drawing cute trolls so I just did whatever :'D

The gist of it is Wei Wuxian is a rock troll adopted into the pop troll society by the jiangs and in his yiling laozu era he fully leans into the rock side of himself that he used to suppress to fit in. I had to make Chenqing into an electric guitar, obviously, (rip wangxian duet) and he uses it to control rock zombies. As usual he gets resurrected by Mo Xuanyu (Did he die by being eaten? Maybe.) and his final form reflects both his love for pop while embracing his rock side as well. Also yes, the Jin trolls are yellow, so.

Since the Lan clan are not really classical trolls I thought they're instead more of the love ballad type of pop, (fits the lans only love once thing too!) so, very sentimental. Which makes Lan Wangji stand out by being cold and seemingly closed off while he's secretly composing love songs for Wei Wuxian. Design-wise I felt the lans would wear more layers and keep their hair tied but I wanted to differentiate the style from Wei Wuxian's ponytail so it's either a half tied up (down? since troll hair goes up??) or a bun. I thought it was funny to give Lan Wangji a huge hairpiece to keep the high hair thing going even when it's tied. Also it kinda marks his age, the taller it is the older he is. Maybe it's a status symbol as well.

I didn't really put too much though into A-Yuan since I just randomly decided to add him cause baby trolls are adorable but basically just Wen colours and the pigtails are homage to manhua A-Yuan whom I love.

Overall I tried to mix design elements from both ips and I really like how they turned out. I think that's all for now. :'D

[confused-cakepop]

Lloyd Garmadon headcannons!

🍬 He's the only one who has ever been able to pickpocket ronin.

🍬 Used to eat toothpaste as a kid cause he liked the minty taste to it. He also hated brushing his teeth and had a lot of cavities cause of it. "Why would I need to brush my teeth if I can just eat the toothpaste!?" -lloyd

🍬 Had to have a cap put on one of his teeth.

🍬 Would have gone through an emo phase if it weren't for tomorrow's tea. Or at least would have gotten piercings and had a grunge like style that would end up not actually being a phase. (he kinda did go through an emo phase but it would gave been so much worse without the tea.)

🍬Since his grandma was the one sending him candy at darkleys I like to think he got his candy addiction from her.

🍬 Chronic sleep-walker. He'll wake up in a bathtub or sitting on the kitchen counter and not know what happened.

🍬 He's the biggest cat person ever and tries to take a stray back to the bounty whenever he can. He acts like a cat too and shows affection via biting people (softly).

🍬 Has anger issues he has a tight grip on. Feels like he's not allowed to get mad since he's the leader and he's supposed to be a mediator and listen in an unjudgemental way. He doesn't want people to be scared of him.

🍬 born to say "post this s*** on ig reels" forced to say "well it's OK! You tried and that's all that matters! Just try and work on that more in training!"

🍬 Allergic to soybeans (it's an oni thing).

🍬 Used to copy the mannerisms of the other ninja when he was younger cause he looked up to them and now he does in subconsciously.

🍬Gen z.

🍬 Doesn't like to label his Sexuality or gender and when he tries to it causes him to have an identity crisis.

🍬 Does embroidery as a side hobby but isn't very open about it. Will fix people's clothes up when they get damaged and can stich up wounds if he needs too. He tries to make the designs fit the person's interests like birds for zanes appron or sea creatures for nyas jacket.

🍬 Has accidentally called kai "dad" Before and felt so humiliated by it he didn't speak to kai for like 3 days.

🍬 Drew his master plans with chalk when he was in his villain era. Sometimes when he wants to connect with his inner child he'll draw plans for missions in that same brand of chalk.

🍬 Still gets back pain post season 4 cause of how bad his posture is (and his bad sleeping habbits). Will never admit it when it's aching though and tries to just brush it off.

🍬 Mixes different slushie flavors together at a convince store and swears the potion he just made is revolutionary.

🍬 Weird about getting gifts cause he didn't get much at darkleys that wasn't a trick or some prank and doesn't like the idea of people spending money on him like that. Always stressed that the gift he got someone isn't a good one.

🍬 Goofiest laugh ever.

[pumpkinstrawbrew]

🆃🅷🅴 🆆🅸⨢.🅲🅷🅸🅽🅶 🅷△🆄🆁.

>>> the grim adventures of jon n' jack. feat batman n' spiderman. <<<

...

it was only a matter of time, before i would have made another crossover with those two. i can't deny, that they are very 1:1 for me, when it comes to comics supervillains. so why not to mix one awesome n' beloved thing with another? esp since funny enough, they do have quite a few similar plot-points. well, the halloween themed costume aside. i mean it goes as far as jack once having the bat-themed boyfriend pal, which reminds me of someone else, i know.

anyho'...

i've tried to make my notes more or less readable here, but they still might be a bit scattered. i attempted to keep them as short as possible, but i just cannot talk 'small'.

1. the first art is low-key based on underdeveloped AU, that i have about the early comic scarecrow n' modern jack meeting n' hitting it off serial killiar style. considering, that both of them possess killing methods, which have a noticable tradmark to it, i imagine that they will leave one hell of a mess behind, while traveling across the country. in that timeline, batman is dead. n' jack's shitty foster dad was killed off earlier on. neither of them knows what to do with themselves, since the people who they had *twisted* emotional conection with are gone. without any direction, they meet in the middle, n' decide that they can as well team-up n' try to make being a villain fun again. jon might experiment on their victims *or torture them if its his ex bullies* n' then give them to jack, who would scoop their brains out and put candle inside their skull. n' uh yeah, he literally did it in the comic. i was honestly surpised that marvel come up with smth that creepy. it really sounds more alined with dc, if anything. but either way, here they are. two *grieving* psychos going downtown. they will make one another so much worse, i imagine. n' they will totally kill that npc dude btw.

2. dark magic n' the drip. or jon n' jack at their corniest. like, jonathan looks like he watched too much the nightmare before christmas n' jack dress up like count dracula for no reason. it's so random-ish n' cheesy. but with this being said, i love both of those designs, n' think, that they really suit the vibe of comic issues in which they were featured. jack always came off as a he-witch to me, but it was nice to see it being played on in a different way. n' then, crane really rocks his own outfit as well. i totally need to draw him in it more often, haha. they dress up for a halloween party for real this time. n' well, i added batman n' spiderman into the mix here, bc i kinda wish that they got to fight / interact with those versions of jon n' jack. it would have been fun for a few reasons. also this can be technically counted as shipping art, but can be viewed as your typical gloating bad guy n' helpless hero thing too. n' to clear any possible questions, i only create stuff with adult peter parker. like cartoon era/late early comics, 20 smth one. i love my spiderman being of age, where he can legally mingle with his villains, not be detained at school lol.

3. the classic four from the timeline, when the comic plots were a bit more ligthearted. aka during the times, when the deadly mercenary n' crazy scientist were robbing banks, instead of harming *torturing* people. i love dark stuff, but there is charm to how 'simple' the scarecrow's and jack's goals once were. n' i love how the scarecrow used to do the lil, dorky dances. it really suits him. n' since at least 2 or maybe, most of jack o' lanterns are southernish in their roots like jon, i had an idea of them having a country dance *in the middle of graveyard* kinda just makes sense to me, haha. batman and spiderman merely happen to find them like that. n' well, it's kinda awkward. esp bc they technically don't do anything bad. i also imagine spiderman being like 'oh, so you have one of those too'. which is mostly a ref to how both the scarecrow n' jack were called 'the reject from land of oz' by other characters. they can rejoice here.

4. the develish & undead duo!! my friend once told me to try n' watch older superhero cartoons, and at first i was like 'welp, they prob be hella boring'. but then i caved in, n' watched a couple of superfriends episodes. as result, i fell in love with their scarecrow's desingh! it was unexpected tbh. usually, i prefer jon's older, classic scarecrow look. so no straw hair, less features exposed, just a hat n' a sack on his head, but their version of him actually did it for me. i find their crane both creepy n' cute. n' i also read on wiki, that he might be undead. so that bit interested me as well. non-human jonathan crane, what a concept! him returning from the grave just to be a menace to batman. n' to accompany him, there is an undead jack o' lantern from the ghost rider comic. his corpse literally got possessed by satan. anyways, both of them raised army of zombies. both of them undead n' prob won't ever get out of their spooky suits, since i don't think that they can. n' funny enough, jack's hometown was called sleepy hollows, if i remember correctly. so they can haunt people there, make it into a truly cursed land.

5. the last one was kinda spontaneous on my part. the other day, i was looking at what kind of action figures the scarecrow n' jack have. saw one, where jon was looking kinda strange, all black n' yellow. which is how i find out that he *apparently* got yellow lantern powers in newer comics, even if it was like for 10 seconds or smth. i didn't read the issue itself, but i found the idea kinda fun, n' his design was decent enough for me to get interested n' wonder what i can do with it. then, a bit later, i saw that jack had a venom-funko figure. i don't think, that he was ever canonically venomized in any of the actual comic issues, but once again, the mere idea of it happening was enough for me to consider doing smth with it. i mean, a venom-like tongue, but its made out of fire? dang. that's kinda cool. so yeah. the yellow lantern scarecrow n' symbiote jack o' lantern being the double trouble. if they weren't enough of a mean goblin-man before, now they surely will be.

[marimayscarlett]

By all means *eyes emoji*

Hi 👋

I took this ask as an invitation to figuratively dive into Richard's coat closet, and tried to compile every coat he wore in the last 30 years.

And oh boy, this man surely loves a good coat. He's the one member of this band who consecutively wore a coat on almost every tour and really takes a liking in the dramaturgical effect of wearing long (often times dark in color) coats and later reveiling additional outfits underneath, especially in later years. It fits his somewhat dramatic stage presence and he started quite early with these kind of stage outfits!

I subdevided this overview in two sub-topics to give this post somewhat of a structure, because this will be long.

1.) Richard's coats on stage (organized by year and tour)

1.1) Firstly, the plain black coat from the Herzeleid tour which he wore in 1995/1996. It's from what I could find the first time he wore a coat on stage while playing for Rammstein.

1.2) Addtionally, he wore the shiny red and silver coat during the Herzeleid tour as well as partly on the Sehnsucht tour in 1997. Same as the black coat before, he forwent any additional outfit underneath.

1.3) Also on the Sehnsucht tour, Richard wore the somewhat futuristic (reminded me a little bit of Star Treck costumes) black and silver coat which is clearly visible in Live aus Berlin. It suited the whole style of this era quite nicely and fit into the vibe of Till's cyborg/futuristic jacket as well.

1.4) For his outfit during the Reise Reise tour in 2004/2005, Richard settled for a black military-style coat. The button rows seem to be reminiscent of french military uniforms from the 17th and 18th century (as well as the button lines and the embroidery on the collar of the underjacket) and his pants were designed in a similar style. The lining of the coat is bright red, a theme which would occur numerous times over the years.

1.5) During the LIFAD tour, Richard wore a grey-mottled coat made out of a somewhat leathery material, adorned with silver buttons and a red armband - again he incorporated a red element in this coat, just like with the one before. On a sidenote: He once mentioned that Michael Jackson was an inspiration for this armband because Richard liked the cool look of it - his leg-belts (visible in the right picture) also kind of resemble the harness Michael wore on stage and in some videos during his Bad era.

1.6) An absolute personal favourite of mine: The studded coat Richard chose for the 2013 part of the Made in Germany tour, oftentimes paired with the torn black and red top underneath. This one also got red lining, as well as a fine red line near the cuffs of the coat.

1.7) In 2016 for the Festival tour, Richard wore coat in a more cosy and snuggly style, which marked a break in the clean cut coat-aesthetic up to this point. It was more in the style of a cardigan with a zipper instead of buttons. The armband made a reappearance as the signature red element (mirrored by a red band on his pants), and red lines along the seams added this colourful accent.

1.8) For the 2019 tour leg of the Stadium tour, Richard mixed things up by wearing a two piece combo made out of a leathery material, with a studded cap on the right shoulder and red elements in form of the usual arm band and a red folding in the front. The lower part of this outfit was removable, so the upper part remained as a jacket.

1.9) In 2022, he wore an all black coat with a belt and flaps along the shoulders, as well as snap fasteners as buttons; it overall resembled the typical look of a trenchcoat and seemed less rigid then the previous ensemble.

1.10) A true fandom favourite appeared on the scene in 2022 when he presented the infamous chicken coat. This one was already known from the "Freeze my mind" music video (from 2021) from Richard's side project and other band Emigrate. Different than in the music video, where a vest completed the look, Richard again after years went on stage without any outfit under it. This coat was used by him also during this year's tour leg.

1.11) Another personal favourite of mine is the black coat with red lining which he wore during this year's tour. Affectionatly dubbed "the vampire coat", this coat appears to be quite clean cut and simple, but has a very nice and dramatic effect on him (choosing gifs this time to underline this sentiment).

2.) Richard's coats off stage

Here are some of the coats Richard wore off stage during band fotoshoots and outings. Not counting normal jackets or parcas here.

2.1) The fur-lined coat during the Rosenrot fotoshooting:

2.2) The reoccuring black coat with fluffy fur elements, worn by him while being presented with awards in 2005 in Berlin as well as during the Echo award show in 2009:

2.3) He wore another black coat which looked pretty similar to the one before but is still slightly different during a signing in Paris 2004:

2.4) And a brown/beige kind of trenchcoat was his style of choice for the Fashion rock night in 2009:

2.5) During the outdoor shooting for the LIFAD album, Richard wore another black coat:

2.6) And lastly, the fancy embroidered coat Richard chose for promotion pictures for (I think) his first album with his band Emigrate:

Not sure if I was thouroughly enough and found every coat he ever wore, but I think the presented ones here really express his love for this piece of clothing in general 😊 I'm looking forward to either seeing a new coat on Richard next year or a return of his vampire coat 🦇 (Still hoping to see the studded coat someday again).

(Used picture sources: Rammwiki and the Rammsteinworld gallery - wonderful rabbit holes to get lost in.)

[smash-64]

2024 Game of the Year Countdown #11: Super Mario Odyssey Nintendo Switch, 2017

I got this game for Christmas in 2018, and I’m not quite sure why it kept falling down my backlog list, but I never actually put it in and gave it a try. 

While I have a lot of nostalgia for Super Mario 64 and still think it’s the best 3D Mario game, I have always felt that Mario games work best as 2D side-scrollers. Perhaps that’s got something to do with growing up in an era when gaming = platformers, I’m not sure. The Galaxy games were only okay, and I had no taste for Sunshine. 3D World was decent, but it felt phoned in, at times. Odyssey feels like a return to form, despite a few issues I have with it.

One of my favorite things about Mario games is that if you’ve played one, you can come back and play another years later and the controls feel familiar. Odyssey feels great and all the movements and jumps Mario had in 64 are still there and generally work the same. Tutorials feel unobtrusive (for once!), despite the fact that they are so frequent. The camera does still fight you though, which is annoying. 

Theming in most worlds is well done, especially in colors and design. However, I found the music to be generally lacking. We do get a few fun songs for scripted events, but I didn’t think any world tracks were special or memorable, which was a bit disappointing. 

As for the worlds themselves, I found myself returning to certain ones much more often than others, such as the one that gave us Mexican Mario. Some only saw me as long as I needed to be there, and I never returned. It’s not too different from any other Mario game in that respect.

I used to hate when games gave us dozens of costume changes, thinking it was “empty” additional content. And while it’s fun to put Mario in a sombrero or a wedding dress, I do miss the power-ups we once had, and the corresponding costume changes that went along with them. I fully understand that you can’t just make every Mario game with only mushrooms and fire flowers, that’d get stale after 40 years of Mario games. Additionally, Mario games have kind of tried to draw a line between 3D and 2D by generally keeping the traditional power-ups in the 2D games. Instead, the 3D games will embrace a new gimmick like Cappy, FLUDD, or, most regrettably, motion controls. But, it was still a little strange that we didn’t get any mushrooms or super stars, two of the most iconic things in gaming. (I know some stars show up, but they aren’t the invincibility super stars I’m talking about) Most of the power-ups we do get in Odyssey feel restrictive, if I’m honest, since they limit our movement. I doubt people were clamoring for Manhole Cover Mario or Sunglasses Moai Mario, even if I do appreciate the throwback to Super Mario Land with that one.

My biggest gripe with the game is more of a mixed feeling than a straight up gripe: there are too many moons. After just a few days of play, I had 100 moons and had only been to two worlds. The game has so many to encourage exploration and to get us to try new things; but moons are so easy to get, it almost feels trivial to get them. Stars in Mario 64 felt much more…special? They weren’t necessarily difficult to get, but most required more work or thought, and therefore felt like more of a reward at the end. Moons are literally everywhere.

However, I like that each world has so many moons because when I really enjoy a world, I can spend more time there. You can buy hints to find new moons from Toad, and I have yet to run out of hints in any world. So by that measure, I like how many moons there are. Like I said, it’s a bit of a mixed feeling. 

When I really think about it, they might have put so many moons in to appeal to people with short attention spans or little free time. Play for 10 minutes. Get three moons. Feel accomplished. It still doesn’t change the mixed feelings I have, but this sort of style is a change from some of the 100 hour JRPGs I’ve been playing, so I kind of welcome the change of pace. Additionally, really frustrating moons can be passed over because there’s always an easier one somewhere nearby. It gives players a choice of how they want to play, and I have to appreciate that.

As I made my way through the game, I found new worlds less and less interesting. I can’t quite grasp why this was happening, short of just wanting to see the ending, but while I spent a whole week exploring Mexico, I was trying to get out of Soup World as fast as possible. By the time I got to the very end, I was ready for the final fight. It’s weird to feel this way with Mario games because it feels like I’ve left a part of my childhood behind by not enjoying Mario games as much. I still had a good time with Odyssey, but I doubt I’ll be returning to it very often.

[magic-is-something-we-create]

HI I AM COMING TO BEG U FOR HELP HOW DO YOU MAP OH MASTER OF ART

HELLO HI I AM HERE TO AID U MY BROTHER IN ARMS!!!

this got very long and i tried to cover things that helped me when first getting into hand drawing maps, but if there's any other places where you're struggling let me know!!!! ive got a lot in my brain im just going from broad to narrow here :)

BIG SCALE:

great ways to make continents that look like continents include

- peeling an orange or equivalent citrus messily and laying out the pieces of peel, and copying those shapes pros: realistic coastlines that would fit together like in real life, if you get into the nitty gritty these can also serve as tectonic plate templates. cons: messy. might not have oranges on hand. can be hard to scale up and transfer to digital - getting some paper and pouring a bunch of doodads of some kind on it, then clumping them in vaguely the shapes you want and tracing the coastlines. things i have used in the past include dry macaroni, beans, dice, and paper stars. pros: potentially less messy than oranges, more control over the shapes, scales up easily cons: coastlines will be less realistic tectonically if that's a concern (for both of those i usually then take a picture of what i get and start editing in my drawing program of choice from there)

other strats to try: taking a grungy brush in your drawing program of choice, making it Huge, and scribbling a few clumps, then on another layer going in and tracing around the edges to make the coastlines. using a map from real life and cutting chunks out and rearranging/copying/warping them to make a collage you can trace for coastlines. etc

SLIGHTLY SMALLER SCALE:

country borders were, until quite recently, determined mainly by geographical obstacles like mountain ranges, rivers, canyons, oceans, etc that are very hard to cross. also borders will be highly disputed when it comes to warring states or eras without, like, satellites and bureaucracy and such!! making them fuzzy or jagged or having areas where both colors mix or stretches of land where no one knows where either country ends is in fact very fun and cool and sexy

mountains usually are chains, and so are islands. i like to make big curves across the world map where i think it would be cool to put mountains, and when those curves extend into oceans i like to put island chains on those as well. if you choose to do whole ass tectonics with your orange then do those on plate borders

biomes can get really specific in their placement if you want to be hyper-realistic, or you can put them wherever you like. personally i like a little realism a little "fantasy world can have whatever you want in it". deserts are usually on one side of mountains, and on the other is really lush. the higher the mountains the larger the areas and more extreme the difference between the two. outside of that case, youll usually get forest > grassland > desert in a gradient. also remember there are multiple kinds of everything

HOW TO DRAW THESE THINGS

good ways to draw rivers include: tracing blood vessels from photos where you can see someone's veins through the skin, dead trees or lightning, or cracks in stone. theyre all fractals and how detailed you want to get is up to you. BUT they always flow downhill and eventually meet the ocean (the ultimate downhill), usually starting in the mountains. also those fractals all go kinda reverse of what you might think; the ends feed into the main river, not the other way around. i used to mess that up a lot

PROTIP: canyons and the like are almost always old riverbeds. use the same method as you do making rivers, just widen the brush, maybe draw a border around the shape instead of just a line

mountains: personally i prefer using premade brushes for mountains just because the one (1) time i did them by hand it took me like four hours for one mountain chain. this video has some tips on different mountain styles if any of those look good to you, otherwise there are about a bajillion videos like that out there!!

biomes in general: just a little texture is usually plenty! doing some bushy edges on deciduous forests, pointy bush edges on pine forests, a few little grass lines and sand dunes, etc etc is usually plenty to get the point across :)

SMALLER SCALE

roads are personally the bane of my existence. i try to treat them like rivers just a little straighter, depending on what time period you're emulating you might go curvier. also they dont care about maintaining width or what direction the fractal goes in humans just put those shits wherever they walk a lot. in contrast railroads are usually pretty straight, simply because trains are built different than cars or wagons or people

cities are almost always on a source of freshwater and a valuable resource that draws people for work in the early days. also they'll have like 10-20x the landmass of the city itself in farms around them, less if theyre on the coast and have access to lots of seafood, more if theyre more landlocked. those farms can be farther away if theyre more industrialized and can transport the food en masse easily. you also dont have to draw the farms just kinda mention them in the story if relevant

towns can be on smaller rivers, lakes, or even just by natural springs. you wont find permanent settlements in places where water isnt accessible (unless you have magic to fix that which is always a cool detail)

EVEN SMALLER SCALE

city maps i have 0 advice on other than roads get thinner the fewer people travel on them, industry will be on a very different side of town than the rich people for smell and noise reasons, and especially when emulating pre-car times, think about how far you would feasibly walk in a day. if you want characters to be able to know pretty much the whole city that they live in, it's gotta be reasonable for them to walk to the farthest edge of their knowledge and back home (or to an inn) in a reasonable timeframe, if they have a home. also big cities tend to have colleges, trade schools, and a bajillion and one jobs that need doing. magic cities might need mages to maintain infrastructure, non-magical cities need people who light the streetlamps when it gets dark, waste disposal is Hugely Important, etc etc etc

it can sound boring at first but coming up with the odd maintenance jobs people have to do in cities can be a really fun creative exercise, and it might inform how the city is laid out, too!!

IN CONCLUSION

think of the world in layers. landmasses + oceans -> biomes and geographical landmarks -> countries and borders -> settlements -> districts. i literally have those on different layers in clip studio so i can futz with them more easily.

also realism is not the be-all-end-all of this. there's lots of room for symbolism and environmental storytelling in maps, as ive ranted about in the past, and stuff doesn't have to make absolute sense in the real world to work well for your world. breaking the rules is like, art 201 and it applies to ever part of the art in question <3

i hope this helped!!!! again pls let me know if you have any more questions i love helping out :D

[beautifulpersonpeach]

Jimin, dude, man, bro, wtf? What in actual goddamn fuck???

Listen, there like 3 Jimin solo songs I like and I am not a big fan of some of his vocal choices but let me tell you I was really hyped and hooked when the teasers came out. The drama, war anthem-ness, the grandeur of everything, I liked it all. So I was quite disappointed when the news of him rapping came out because I've heard him rap before and it was bad, and I especially was reluctant to watch the whole MV after I heard a snippet of it on my tl (the stylistically autotuned rap part, yeah). I was afraid to be disappointed after such great teasers.

despite my fears I finally watched the MV... fuck... WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK PARK JIMIN??? It's so damn good! Even the rap part??? I LOVED it. Separately it doesn't sound very nice but combined and mixed it somehow works well. And his stylistic vocal choices, the way he changes his voice all the time, it's amazing, it keeps you hooked and anticipating what comes next, it keeps surprising you, even shocked at some point. I haven't been a fan of bts songs since the fake love era (even black swan is not IT for me, it's really good but not THAT great) so it says a lot. this one is easily one of my faves EVER in their discography.

The song is a statement. A grand opening. Empowering.

BTW, the song is totally a type of song that you would play in your car while driving around with your friends and singing-shouting along. Wow, just wow.

*

Ask 2: Opinions on set me free pt. 2 seem to be divided in some circles 👀👀👀 ofc because of the vocal processingz that’s a common complaint for so many years already lol. I mean Pdogg is the main producer of the album so idk what they expected… personally i love the song and i think the vocal processing works but i think i can understand some people have different tastes and expectations… at the end of that day it was a choice consciously chosen by jimin and his producers. It’s there for a reason imo. I’m happy though that jimin really tried something different!!!!! So many people were expecting a ballad for this title instead we got a banger lol… and like you said Yoongi’s style is obvious even when he doesnt have a hand in making it directly… now i’m so curious what like crazy will sound like!!!! But i wanna ask if youll be making a post for set me free bpp???

***

Posting these two asks now because my inbox is already getting out of control and between getting zero sleep and a flight I've got to catch in exactly 73 minutes, I'd rather briefly get out some thoughts now, regardless of if they're coherent or not, because I don't know when next I'll have time.

Hi Anon(s),

I don't think I'll ever write a full review for this song, because there's a lot about it I don't want to talk about, a lot I don't want to share and would rather keep to myself.

That said,

Everything about Set Me Free Pt. 2 is right up my alley and objectively brilliant. Every single thing about it: the melody, the autotune, the chants, the rap, the fact the whole thing plays out in the same prison, the way Jimin uses his body as a canvas for inscriptions that only enhance his storytelling, the performance.

I have nothing to say to anyone who doesn't like this or that about it. Rapper Jimin was in my wishlist for PJM1 so... and I'm a hiphop head who listens to Travis Scott-type autotune at least a couple times a day. Plus I've got Yoongi, that nasty, autotune-loving, foul-mouthed cat as my bias. Joon and Hobi aren't that much nicer either. Anybody reading this to hear me say something critical about this song should wake up and smell the matcha.

Some things I want to gush about:

First of all, the instrumentals. PDogg went stuuuuuuuuuuuupid on this track goddamn.

This song is pure trap. An orchestral, haunting trap anthem is what Set Me Free Pt. 2 is.

It is so sick. So maddening in how good it is. No wonder he was so excited about Jimin ending k-pop in 2023, the song he produced is easily the best produced Korean song so far and believe me when I tell you that is really saying something, because the competition this year has been stiff.

*

The Vocals

Jimin's voice is the most emotive in BTS. That's one reason I love it. Another reason is because nobody's vocals in BTS, in k-pop, fuck, in all of Korea, drips as much sauce as Park Jimin's. I've said before, Jimin sounds inhuman almost, I describe his voice as serrated steel coated in honey and wrapped in silk because it sounds distinctly metallic, but can be oddly soothing. But with Jimin, there's a tone he takes sometimes that has this undercurrent of nasty, of unapologetic vulgarity, and in Set Me Free Pt. 2, he uses autotune to amplify it to brain-piercing perfection.

PDogg brilliantly uses autotune to aid Jimin in sending a message.

The shrillest, most distorted we hear Jimin is when he raps after the first chorus, and that's by design. The use of autotune in this song is intentional, and we can see this because every time it ratchets up, Jimin is being crude and uninhibited - as though it's a second voice, an alter-ego, or Jimin himself speaking the deepest truest thoughts he holds, pushing them to the surface after suppressing them for nine years.

PDogg has used this sort of autotune on Jimin's voice before, in the second chorus of Black Swan (timestamp: 2:24 - 2:50)

It's hidden in the backing vocals in Black Swan but felt in full cathartic force in SMF pt 2. And it feels incredible.

Stream:

*

The Message/Lyrics

This is the part I don't want to write about because I'd rather keep my thoughts to myself. Not because I have special insight or think I've discovered something no one else sees or whatever, but because it's the only thing about this song that stayed within my expectations of who I think Jimin is. Plus I'm certain various interpretations will be offered by many other bloggers, so I'm okay sitting this one out.

That's the most I'll say now.

[mightybee113]

RAISE A SUILEN reminiscences on the challenges they faced every day since their time as THE THIRD (temp.) until they became a band that has their unique personalities as their strength [2020/08/19]

Coming from the "BanG Dream!" series as the 3rd real life band, starting with only real life activities until they were added onto the anime series as well as the game "BanG Dream! Girls Band Party!", RAISE A SUILEN (RAS) has become an indispensable band for the series. They now celebrate their first album "ERA"!

Starting as the backup band THE THIRD(temp.), the band that had members with very unique personalities that almost couldn't believe they could be a band, gained popularity because of the chemical reactions that happen when they are together. The 5 members, Raychell (Ba/Vo. LAYER), Kohara Riko (Gt. LOCK), Natsume (Dr. MASKING), Kurachi Reo (Key. PAREO) and Tsumugi Risa (DJ CHU²) talk about the path they've taken until the release of their 1st album. 

——————-

"Our different personalities come together to make up RAS for what we are"

— "ERA" is an album that compiles all of your work until today. How were things back when THE THIRD (temp.) started its activities and when RAS became a 5 member band?

Tsumugi: Back when I met with everyone for the first time, I didn't really know which direction the band was going to take. So, when I opened the door to the meeting room, I went "Huh…?!". That's because they were a mix of  cute girls and beautiful ladies so I thought "What in the world is this band going to be!?" and then I was even more confused on what the direction of the band was.

Raychell, Kohara, Natsume, Kurachi: (Laugh)

— It is true that you give the impression of a band with people who have very different personalities and careers.

Raychell: At first, when I saw that I was completely different from everyone, I thought "Can we even have a band with these members?!" (Laugh). But, looking back at it now,  we were a band that had members who excelled at different areas and I think that's a good thing. When we had our first show together, I could only think "Wow, everyone is amazing" and my respect for them grew even more. For example, Reo-chan prides herself in her dance, so I wasn't worried about her performance. Risa-chan has a freedom in some parts of songs for being the DJ so she could stir up the audience instead! After noticing all of those unique features, I thought "Well, maybe this might just work!". I think everyone is really good at their own roles.

— Because you're so different, the possibilities are many, right?

Raychell: (Looking at Kohara) We even have someone who can play guitar on her back!

Kohara: (Laugh). But, around 80% of my play-style comes from after I joined RAS. I really wanted to challenge myself with something new. Because RAS is like this, I was able to do many things I probably wouldn't have tried otherwise. In that sense, our different personalities come together to make up RAS for what we are. For example, Raychell-san's singing style is completely different from how she used to sing as a solo artist before. I feel like RAS coming together changed us.

"Raychell-san's voice is RAS' blood"

— I see! Were there other challenges from your early days you'd like to share?

Kurachi: My first time playing in a band was with RAS and THE THIRD (temp.). The first time I've ever used an ear monitor to perform was during "THE THIRD 1st LIVE" at Shimokitazawa GARDEN. I remember thinking "Wow, the vocalist really gives this song more emotion…!". To me, Raychell-san's voice is RAS' blood and that blood was also running through me at that moment. I was so impacted! I thought "So this is how a band is!". It was a lot of fun.

Natsume: I used to work as a support before joining RAS, so I didn't have the same experience as a newcomer when we started THE THIRD(temp.). But, when I saw the song that Elements Garden-san had made for us, I had a lot of feelings! I thought it was an incredible song and at the same time, it was really difficult and fierce. It really hits you with a lot of different components one after the other and it was the first time I'd experienced that. We perform anime songs on our basis but they are very difficult songs. Through being in RAS, I could train myself in that matter.

Tsumugi: For me, BanG Dream! made for around 90% of my first experiences but, being a DJ and rapping were 100% my first time. So, among the members I was the only one who truly was an amateur (Laugh). Because I had never been a DJ before, I worked really hard to not hold everyone back… And well, I still feel the same way to this day. It's nothing but training very hard every day!

Raychell: But now your rap is our unique characteristic!

Tsumugi: CHU²'s rap is something that I try the hardest to get the closest to her. I always think "CHU² would probably do this like that!" and it really is a challenge to try and picture all her feelings. If I were to sing myself, it would probably come out different from her rap (Laugh). That high-energy rap is something only she can do.

Kurachi: I have the same feeling! Whenever I can't decide something, I try to think what PAREO-chan would do and then I'm able to decide. That's the charm of a mixed media project.

— You are a band that was created for real life concerts so, having the characters being born from that, made you get closer to them, right?

Natsume: That's right. RAS started out as a real life band and the characters were created from us but, I'll have times where I'll play in a certain way and then I notice I'm doing something MASKING would do. I feel like we influenced the characters but they also influence us.

Raychell: I agree. After understanding the personality and singing style of my character, I started to think "I should sing this part like this instead, LAYER would do that". This is true for concerts but we also had a stage play where being able to portray her like that made me realize a lot more sides of her and deepen my understanding of her character. I wondered why LAYER was troubled by Hana-chan (Hanazono Tae) but now, I understand it better and I can show those feelings on stage more. Becoming LAYER on stage was something that I enjoyed a lot.

"In that play, I became my character herself, not just her voice"

— Among activities that have happened until the album, which one struck you the most?

Raychell: To me, it was the first time I went on stage as my character, during "BanG Dream! 7th☆LIVE - RAISE A SUILEN "Genesis"" that happened on Budokan. I had that stage as my goal as a musician as well so it was a very emotional moment.

— It was a special stage for both you and LAYER.

Raychell: That's right. Around 10 days before that show I was so nervous I couldn't even sleep… Just thinking about it already makes me want to cry. I was really nervous!

— Watching that show, we really can't imagine that you were this nervous. It was a magnificent performance!

Kurachi: I had no idea Raychell-san was that nervous either! (Laugh)

Raychell: (Laugh). We had the second day of BanG Dream! 7th☆LIVE, and only during our day we had people coming in until the very last minute. But, a lot of people got to know us for the first time on that day and we played our very best. I remember thinking, come and see what we're made of.

Tsumugi: For me, I think every stage is important, but when we performed on "Animelo Summer Live 2019 -STORY-" it was very memorable. I come from Okinawa where we didn't have a lot of big festivals so I would always watch AniSama on TV and think "Wow, that's amazing~". Being on the stage that I used to watch in High School, together with these members was something I will never forget.

Kurachi: This is going to be recent but I'll pick our stage play, "We are RAISE A SUILEN~BanG Dream! The Stage~". We would see each other every day for a whole month during preparations and I feel like we became so much closer during that time. It was like we were a family. Even now, thinking about it makes my heart warm~.

— Do you feel like your relationship with each other has changed?

Raychell: Ah, I don't think it changed that much-.

Kurachi: Raychell-san is like a mom (Laugh). She made us jerky onigiri!

Tsumugi: That's right! CHU²-chan loves jerky onigiri and there's a scene in the play where I have to eat one. So, she said "Wouldn't it be better if you tried an actual jerky onigiri so you could do this scene better?" and then she made some! 

Raychell: Where would you have the chance to eat jerky onigiri otherwise?

Tsumugi: (Laugh). I was very happy with your kindness.

Kohara: I'll pick the stage play too. It was the first time the BanG Dream! project attempted something like that. In that play, I became my character herself, not just her voice. Because of that, I had to pay attention to all her mannerisms, always thinking "Ah, LOCK-chan moves this way!".  Seeing the way everyone approached their characters made me learn a lot of things.

Natsume: I'll pick "THE THIRD 1st LIVE"! I had worked with bands before but we really couldn't fill Shimokitazawa GARDEN back then. But, on that day, the audience was filled to the max! Seeing all those white lights the moment we went onstage really impressed me. Also, Otsuka Sae-chan stepped down as our support guitarist and Riko-chan joined the band during that day too, and this is shown in the anime later! This is a very big show because of that for me.  And then, on "THE THIRD 2nd LIVE", Tsumugi Risa-chan joined us and it was announced that THE THIRD was over and RAISE A SUILEN would begin. I remember the audience going "What-!? Woah-!" which made me very happy. The way RAS was created was very memorable to me.

“I thought "What a chaotic song….!" (Laugh).”

— This time, your first album "ERA" will compile every single song you've released so far. First, I'd like to hear more about the making of the new songs. The third song in the album, "SOUL SOLDIER" was first performed during last year's end of year show, THE CREATION ~We are RAISE A SUILEN~, right?

Raychell: This song uses a 5 string bass as well as a 7 string guitar to give it that deep sound. I believe it'll become an indispensable song for our shows now. As for the singing, I have to really pay attention to the highs and lows. I like this song a lot, I think it sounds so cool!

Tsumugi: When I first heard this song, I thought: "What a chaotic song…!" (Laugh). I think it's the most chaotic one we have so far (Laugh).

Raychell: The rap in this song is very impactful, right?

Tsumugi: The rap is really hard. It's well paced with a lot of shouts and it almost sounds like a chant instead.

Kurachi: Also, we've been using flashy synthesizers for a while but this song uses the piano sound as a support instead. You can hear a jazzy piano in the back, especially in the 2nd part of the first verse. In that way, I think this song brings us a new feeling.

— Back then, RAS songs were always heavy on the EDM-styled synthesizers but now, it's like you're able to have songs that are not necessarily like that.

Kurachi: That's exactly it. "R･I･O･T" (Debut song) for example is definitely simpler than our more recent songs. Back then, they used to be simply flashy songs.

Raychell: I think this change has to do with the Staff team coming to watch our shows and other activities. While they see us playing, they think "Couldn't RAS do something like this as well?" and so a new challenge is made. Our sound has changed a lot since the beginning and I believe it has to do with the fact we bring a lot of different sounds in just one song. Agematsu (Noriyasu)-san from Elements Garden has come to watch us before and said things like "Maybe you could try something like this next time" and "I'll make a song with a faster tempo!".

// You can read the rest of this interview here

Interview by 杉山仁 Translation by @mightybee113 Source

[lacrymatoryao3]

Redemption Was Just The Beginning

Chapter 4: Three Months Later: December, 1899

[1][2][3]

To the world, Arthur Morgan is dead. As he tries to face the idea, in a lush valley in Ambarino he comes face to face with a woman from his past, and they must reckon with an era long gone. Especially when she has secrets of her own.

(Rated explicit simply because eventually there’s smut in this.)

Tag: @photo1030

5,540 Words (AO3 Link)

Arthur awoke as the dawn began to break. He didn’t get up right away, lying in bed and finding comfort in the warmth of his covers and in the room compared to what he saw outside his windows. Once the winter came it seemed to never stop snowing for very long. The mountains were hard to make out, blanketed in white against the clouded sky. The mostly fur trees cascading down the land were so heavy with it the branches bent and sometimes it would slide off in sheets to the deep, icy ground. When the wind came through there was nothing but a freezing fog.

It made him think about those cold days and nights trapped within those dilapidated log buildings in Colter.

Arthur had to admit, as he was taking care of himself for the morning, there were some things about ‘normal’ life he was taking to easier than he had expected. He enjoyed having a bed instead of an old cot, having walls around him and a roof over his head once his instincts finally came to realize he was safe within. He now had a routine once Dr. Anderson deemed he was well enough to do so.

Still, his old life lingered in him. Fighting him.

Arthur shaved, mostly to please Ana, focusing more on the task than the man that was reflected back to him. He doubted she was up and around yet, but if she was she would comment about the things he usually muttered to himself. He applied a small amount of an aftershave she had bought for him. It had an expensive smell, though it probably wasn’t the case for the kind of town he was in, like a bunch of different herbs mixed with citrus fruit.

He put a bundle of plants into his mouth to chew, something to keep his teeth and mouth clean. She made the boy do the same. He slipped out of his night clothes and washed himself up as he worked the taste out of them. He opened his window and spit out them out, closing it it quickly to prevent the chill from entering.

He went to his dresser, looking at all the new things Ana had gotten him to decide what to wear. Even after so many years apart from him, she still remembered the kind of things he liked. She had picked out the same style of button down shirt in different colors and patterns, a few pairs of dark denim pants, and a couple of sets of buckled suspenders, socks, more union suits for the weather.

He simply threw on the first things his rough and calloused hands touched. She bought him more things to wear than he expected. Had he been able to go with her to the general store she would have treated him like a dress up doll. He was never one to care about fashion, but when he put himself together it made Ana happy. Which as nice, he supposed. In a way it was, having someone around who cared about him. She wasn’t as aggressive as Susan Grimshaw was, the poor woman, but she was about as bossy if she needed to be. Always was.

Hanging on hooks next to the door were three coats. For summer, which felt like an eternity off, there was short navy blue canvas coat. For spring and autumn a black knee length cotton duster. For the winter which everyone in Cain Valley was suffering with a chocolate brown sheepskin leather jacket lined with with cream colored wool. Draped over it was a scarf and in its pockets a pair of black deerskin gloves.

Arthur bundled himself up, putting a new hat on his head. It didn’t look much different from his old one that he gave to John, except it was made of fabric instead of leather and there was a fine silk ribbon around it rather than an old haphazardly tied rope. He carefully left his room, finding the kitchen dark and empty. He slipped out the back door, trudging through the frozen mounds and enduring the biting northern air to a roofed space with walls made out of piled of short logs. He picked up the old axe that leaned against a tree stump in the middle of them, gathering enough logs that would make a suitable amount of firewood. He placed a log on the stump, hauling the axe over his shoulder and chopping in in two with a single heavy motion. At first he needed rests between, but after a few weeks his muscle memory kicked in once he became accustomed to the monotonous chore again.

For a moment, it was like Arthur was with the gang again. Doing what he usually did when he was around, as everyone half alert wandered around him for a cup of coffee and Pearson’s leftover stew from the day before.

He carried the wood to the kitchen porch, dropping it into a rack. Returning inside the lights were on. Ana was at the stove, with a serious expression on her face at first that brightened when she looked at him.

“Good morning!” She said cheerfully, taking a ladle and pouring the hot type off coffee people liked to drink in Mexico made with spices and a cone of unrefined cane sugar from a clay pot into a matching clay mug. She placed it on the table for him.

“Mornin’ Anie.” Arthur replied, sitting at his place at the table. He took a sip from the mug. It had a flavor he found overwhelming the first few times he drank it, but now he enjoyed the taste of the sweetness and cinnamon that mingled with the cloves and a thing called anise.

He watched Ana check if the frying pan was hot, cracking eggs into it. As they cooked she prepared other things. On the plates she laid down warmed corn tortillas, spreading refried beans onto them. The fried eggs went on top before being smothered in a chunky red sauce made from tomatoes, onions, and chilies.

The smell brought Ana’s son trudging down the stairs. He scratched his head still tried and sat across from Arthur, not really noticing he was there at first. Once he did his posture changed, suddenly shy and looking cautiously at him. Arthur noticed he did that a lot around him. Arthur studied him every time, just as the boy was doing to him. His face didn’t have Ana’s features. He didn’t know what her husband looked like, but there was something oddly familiar about them. There was something in them that brought up a long, bottled up memory back to the surface. Then there was his eyes again. Not just their color, but the way they scanned him and took note of everything about the stranger in front of him.

“Hey there buddy!” Arthur said as gently as his drawl could, a tone he often did with Jack, “I don’t think we’ve really been introduced yet, have we?”

Ana set the plates on the table and sat between them. She shifted in her seat nervously, taking a deep breath, “You’re right! I’m so sorry I should have thought about that sooner!”

She reached over to the boy and rested her hand on his shoulder, “My son, this is Señor Callahan…”

Ana paused and looked at Arthur to make sure she chose the right alias she had discussed with him. He nodded and she went on, “He is going to be staying with us a while, okay?”

“Hello, sir.” The boy said softly.

Ana smiled and everyone began to eat, “I think you two will get along fine once you get used to each other. You probably have a lot in common! You both like animals, especially horses, hunting, fishing, shooting.”

“Outdoors-y kid, huh?” Arthur said.

“Oh yes! If I can keep him in here for more than 10 minutes I consider it a miracle.”

Ana was the one who mostly led the breakfast conversation. Mostly to distract herself from the myriad of thoughts in her head. She considered asking him if he remembered. At least, if his were the same as hers. She quickly answered that question: no, probably not.

She thought about the past a lot when she alone. Sixteen years old, fleeing into a country she never had been to and barely knowing the language. The night she met Dutch Van der Linde, a man she had after the years still respected. Though after what Arthur had shared, she felt he was no longer worthy of it. He saw her for what she was then, a girl all alone doing desperately what she knew to survive. Looking back it didn’t seem like an accident. Both of them targeting a drunk and fat rich man stumbling through the California city they wandered into, him agreeing to split whatever the fool had after she knocked him out with one punch. Was he really aiming for her? After all, he had a habit of taking the vulnerable under his wing, winning them over with his idealistic charisma. He bought her a meal. He offered a bed, safety, a community. All that silver tongue of his that dripped like a rattlesnake with venom, with the tone of a snake oil salesman peddling questionable cures of the street, did was take her from one gang into another. The cycle was exactly the same.

It wasn’t all bad. When she had met Arthur he was also young, still with a boyish face despite the rest of him being a broad and burly man. He wasn’t one to easily warm up to strangers, like her own son. He was wary of her, to the point of standoffish. He had always been watching her, scrutinizing her every move to learn what kind of person she was. It took months for him to hold a conversation with her. It took longer for him to trust her enough to work with him.

The night she left she considered it the last time they’d cross paths. Then like a miracle he was brought to her, on the verge of expiring. As he improved over the months she looked to see how much had had changed. It was hard to do at first. She had been so focused on him gaining weight, getting those nasty bruises to fade, getting his breathing back to normal. He did seem calmer, jaded by his old life, instead of the thrill seeking man he was when she ran with the Van der Lindes. Lord… When a robbery was a successful he turned into such a beast. Not in a bad way, as she could recall. There were times she would replay the night after he, Dutch, and Hosea had committed their first bank heist when she was comfortable in her bed.

The introspective sadness within him had now become his norm. It was there previously. She saw it after Mary chose her father’s wishes rather than her own, when they collectively mourned Hosea’s wife Bessie when she died, again after the murder of Dutch’s girl Annabelle, and the tipping point when he found out the fate of Eliza and that little boy she had with Arthur… Isaac, she thought he was called. It had started to become too much. Made him weary.

It wasn’t something she couldn’t feel in herself. He had been there when her brother’s men, ones he stole and corrupted when their father was hanged, had finally found her. He watched her slaughter them, men she once knew and trusted as an innocent child. He witnessed her come face to face with Fernando, planting a bullet between his eyes. An unforgivable sin… Murdering a sibling.

They were never completely different. They were both broken people. She just was the one with sheer dumb luck. Her loyalty was to herself and conditional to all others. He never would have gone willingly. Not for Mary, not for his son, not for her if her he knew what she was hiding from him for the time being.

The boy left for school as Arthur helped Ana clean up. The troubled face Ana had earlier returned. She took a deep breath, “Your death has reached out paper.”

“Did it now?” Arthur draped the dish rag over the sink and picked up the Cain Valley Review that was on the table. He looked at the article. It was on the front page, but not the top headline. Seeing the title ‘ARTHUR MORGAN, OTHER MEMBERS OF VAN DER LINDE GANG, BELIEVED DEAD’ made one of the corners of Arthur’s mouth twitched, his voice was low, “So it is…’

“You are, officially, dead.” Ana said softly, oddly sad to say it out loud, “Good thing you’re using a different name. At least for a few years, until people forget.”

Arthur put the paper down and started slowly scratching at his cheek, wishing he had a damn cigarette, “They ain’t gonna really forget me. There’ll always be people lookin’ for me, no matter what is said. Especially if they wanted my head.”

It hit him like a slap across the face. He knew it was happening when Blackwater failed. That life was all over. He thought he’d be happier about it, like he imagined. The world was changing… It didn’t want men like him any longer. Instead it left an empty feeling in him, like he didn’t want it after so many years of badly looking for a way to have it. Maybe because it wasn’t completely on his own accord. Too much business was left unfinished.

Ana took one of his hands, covering it with hers, “It’s not easy. You will mourn yourself, and there will be times you don’t think you can adjust. Trust me, for a couple of years it was almost unbearable for me… But I know you, Arthur. If anyone can do this, it’s you. You are one of the most adaptable men in this world. Of all the things you’ve managed to survive, you can get through this.”

“I guess…”

They wished each other a good day. Ana watched Arthur from the window making his way to the stables. She wished she could have held him.

In front of the large barn doors there was a man with fiery red hair underneath a green plaid flat cap clearing away the snow to get them to open all the way.

“Mornin’ to ya, Mr. Callahan!” O’Hogan greeted loudly in a thick Irish lilt, “Just in time!”

“Mornin’, Mr. O’Hogan.” Arthur replied while being handed a second shovel, getting to work.

O’Hogan made a dismissive wave, “Call me Owen. What’s yer name, anyway?”

“Arthur.”

That made O’Hogan laugh, “Really now? Like Mrs. Gardener’s boy!”

Arthur blinked, then he sighed and shook his head, “Oh yeah?”

“Around here all the time, he is. Hands on learner, and a fast one fer a 10 year old. Not wonder he hates sittin’ at a school desk.”

10… I swear Ana told me he was 9…

After a couple of hours they finally went inside. The stables were bigger that it looked on the outside. The stalls were large, roomy and very clean for the horses who stuck their heads out over the gates to peer at who arrived. Arthur was in awe of the amount it held. Every stall had a horse in it mostly, save for the ones the children took to school. They were segregated by their use, on one side the horses the stage coaches used that were cycled in and out, the other the personal horses. The coach horses were big and hardy breeds, ranging from the usual Belgians, Shires, and Suffolks. A couple were Cobs. The horses that belonged to the compound were branded with a diamond with a G inside. They were all fine breeds. Ana always had an eye for the pretty horses, Dutch Warmbloods, Hungarian Half-breds, Missouri Fox Trotters, Mustangs, Norfolk Roadsters, Thoroughbreds.

Arthur approached the familiar Dalmatian Appaloosa, “Hey there, boy.”

Enrique sniffed at his hand, lowering his head to let him pet him between the eyes. It sent Arthur back to when Ana obtained him. He was so angry. Horse theft an offense punishable by hanging, the gang had bigger plans than that. At one point.

“Yeah…” Arthur whispered, “Gettin’ old. Ain’t we all?”

Surrounding the heating stoves in the middle of the stable aisle were buckets upon buckets of warmed melted snow. Arthur and O’Hogan used them to fill the troughs in the stalls. They hauled in bundles of hay and buckets with special grains for feed. When the horses had their fill the stage coach arrived. The two men led out fresh drafts and replaced the ones running for hours, covered in sweat from their hard work. They dried them and brushed them, putting warming blankets on their backs. They checked their hooves and put them in the newly vacant stalls, refreshing their feed.

“So, hear you’re havin’ a baby soon.” Arthur said.

“Number six! Should be here any day after that new year! Hopin’ fer another girl ta even it out!”

The new year… 1900. Damn…

“Six?!” Arthur cried, “How the hell do you fit all them in that house of yours?”

“Boys share a room. Girls share a room. The wife an’ I have our own. Lot easier now, that our oldest Mary Bridget is 15. Gotta get her prepared, ya know? Besides, we came from large families. My ma had 10. My Rosaline was one out o’ 12!” O’Hogan explained, “What about ya, Arthur? Ya have any kids?”

Arthur went quiet for a moment, “Once. He and his mama died some years back.”

“Sorry ta hear that.” O’Hogan patted him hard against the back, “Always rough.”

The least pleasant responsibility dealing with horses was shoveling their shit. With as many as Ana kept, there was a perpetual stream of it, and a lot of it at that. They were constantly hauling out wheelbarrows of it to go inside a large covered chest. Farmers loved the stuff, apparently. O’Hogan told Arthur once the planting season came all of them around the town would stop by. They raked plenty of money from it.

During lunch Arthur and O’Hogan sat on the floor in front of stove.

“So how’d you get into all this, Mr. O’Hogan?” Arthur asked.

“Always did it. Started out with them English bastards with their fancy estates in ta Irish countryside,” O’Hogan said, “Got tired o’ ‘em. Came here ta find they like us about the same as ‘em. Mrs. Gardener was the only advert fer a job that didn’t say ‘IRISH NEED NOT APPLY’. Here I am, better fer it.”

A few of the personal horses needed their hooves trimmed and shoes replaced as the task near the end of the day. They split the four, Arthur first grabbing the halter of a Tiger Striped Bay Mustang. It came back to him how to do it instantly. He bent one of the horse’s legs between his thighs, removing the old shoe and nails before cleaning the hoof with a knife that had a bent tip stroking it downwards. The knife also worked to trim the frog overgrowth away from the sole. The large nippers came next, taking excess off the outer hoof. He filed the rough edges down, trimming the sole a bit before brushing it and feeling it. He repeated with the other hooves, moving onto re-shoeing them with a fresh batch Mr. Johnson had made the day before. He lined the shoe up, they were well crafted and heavy, tapping the nails carefully into the hooves.

He took another, O’Hogan taking the last. It was amazing how good the disposition was on the horses, even the wild caught ones. The training they went through was rigorous, with expertise that the rich often only enjoyed.

The stable doors opened and the group of children came in on their horses after the school day ended. They were led by Ana’s son on his own Paint. The others were on smaller, shared Morgans. The three of Liang’s were piled at the front and back, the oldest girl at the saddle and reins. O’Hogan’s two school aged children had the boy in front, the girl sitting modestly behind him. The two boys of Johnson’s holding onto each other on theirs. O’Hogan and Arthur greeted the children and took the horses before they ran off to their homes. The only one who took care of his own was Ana’s son, who quietly dismounted and led Josefina to her stall. He took the harness and saddle off himself, carrying it to the storage outside her gate. He went into his pocket and took out the boiled egg he saved from his lunch, cutting it in half to share with his horse while he brushed her and blanketed her.

“Mr. Callahan!” The boy called out to Arthur with his books and lunch tin in his hands, “Mama wanted me to let you know she would like you to bring Enrique and whatever horse you’d like to the house. She needs to bring you into town for help with something.”

“All right.” Arthur answered, “Thanks for lettin’ me know, uh, Arthur.”

The boy ran out. Arthur wiped sweat from his forehead, trying to make sense of the small details he learned about him. He gave up for the moment, focusing on what was at hand. He got Enrique ready, then studied the horses.

“I know just the one!” Mr. O’Hogan shouted to him, leading a white and gray brindle coat Thoroughbred mare out of her stall, “This little lady here is called Delfina! Think she’ll suit ya very nicely.”

Arthur’s eye brightened in a gleeful delight. Delfina was a large and proud horse, a refined creature with a well chiseled body for her athletic nature especially for racing. He patted her on the neck and whispered to her, calling her a ‘fine girl’. Her spirited-ness came out as she nuzzled his pockets looking for treats, huffing when she couldn’t sense any. She was tolerant being tacked and saddled. It took him a couple of tries, which was embarrassing for him, to hoist himself onto her. He adjusted himself a bit, getting re-accustomed to it after so long by his standards.

He wrapped Enrique’s reins around the saddle horn, leading him as he learned to handle Delfina to the house. Ana waited for him on the porch with something hanging in her hand, that old gun belt Hosea had given her around her waist over her tweed coat holstering the same pilfered Schofield revolver and the knife that came from Mexico with her.

She stepped down to him, exchanging what she was holding for Enrique’s reins, “I have something for you. All I ask is you don’t wear it in the house and keep it away from my son without supervision.”

He looked it over, a gun belt with its weapons still attached. It was a thick and heavy thing, elaborately tooled into the black leather to have flowers and leaves all interconnecting with long vines. Among them on the holster was something written in Spanish in flowing, commanding lettering.

‘QUIEN CON LA ESPERANZA VIVE ALEGRE MUERE’.

Arthur buckled it around his hips, “What the hell’s that mean?”

“One who lives with hope dies happily.”

“I take it this was your daddy’s then.” Arthur pulled out the weapons, inspecting them.

“Of course. My Tia managed to recover it when they hanged him. Better someone use it than sit in a box in my wardrobe. I’ve maintained them, but couldn’t bring myself to wear it.”

They were old, but still in good condition. The handgun was a long barreled Volcanic pistol. The handle was a polished turquoise, inlaid in the stone was a motif of a skull and a rose tangled together with thorny stems. The blackened metal was engraved with a baroque style showing the silver underneath. The knife was customized the same. It had a long and wide blade, despite a few nicks it was still razor sharp.

Ana watched him with an amused smirk, “Looks nice.”

Cain Valley had a similar layout to Strawberry as Arthur followed Ana. The only difference was an actual bank and more houses branching out from the bricked main road on side streets. It wasn’t a dry town either. The saloon had the biggest sign, touting itself as the first business in the area since 1856. It was a busy place for being so remote, especially for the season. He saw many confused visitors carrying supplies for winter sports, Ana stopping and giving them directions. That must have been the biggest draw. The place was too well settled for just mining, or logging, or agriculture.

Ana had a name for herself, like the unofficial queen of the town. Every local knew her, greeted her. It was no different at the gunsmith when they walked in. She flipped through the catalog, Arthur perusing the displays.

“What would you recommend for a hunting rifle?” Ana asked.

“It depends on what you want to hunt, Mrs. Gardener.”

Ana nodded, “Something for medium to large game, but good for a beginner. This is going to be the big gift for my son for Christmas.”

The gunsmith left the counter and gathered three rifle models from their displays, apologizing to Arthur when he unintentionally bumped into him as he looked at the repeaters. He set them in front of Ana. The rifles he offered were a Springfield, a Rolling Block, and a Carcano. The Rolling Block and Carcano included scopes, good for long ranges. The gunsmith explained the advantages, drawbacks, and powers of the weapons. Ana picked them up and handled them, carefully considering the best one.

Arthur noticed the subtle changes in her when she held them. She was no stranger to rifles. She was no stranger to any weapon that could harm and kill. That angry, violence searching girl was still in there. He had a flashback to the time when she fully showed it to him. A bounty hunter had tracked them, after a high value robbery. She had thrown her knife into his groin. As he screamed in agony rushed to the shotgun he dropped, using the bullet meant for Dutch to blow off hunter’s head in a scarlet spray and emptying the rest of its ammunition into the limp body.

“I think I’ll take the Carcano.”

“Good choice, Mrs. Gardener. I’m sure little Arthur will love it. Want extra ammo on top of it?”

“Of course, thank you. Can you box it up? I don’t want him seeing it.”

The gunsmith hoisted a nondescript carrying case from under the counter, laying the gun and ammo inside and closing it. Ana paid for it in full. When it was Arthur’s turn he bought an Evans repeater with a few extras. He attached a strap onto it, slinging it over his shoulder to take out.

The ride back was silent after Ana secured the rifle case to the back of Enrique with rope. Arthur kept it to himself at first, until it threatened to boil over.

“Arthur, huh?” He muttered.

“Hm?” It didn’t register with her.

“That’s the name of your boy.”

Ana nodded, still not getting what he was trying to imply, “It is, yes. Arthur Francisco.”

Arthur sighed heavily, “You told me he was nine. Everyone else is sayin’ he’s 10.”

“Did I?” The tone in her voice was puzzled, but he couldn’t tell if it was genuine or the one she would use when purposefully being evasive, “He’s 10. His birthday was a few days before you came. Why?”

They were too close to home for Arthur to push it, “Just tryin’ to figure it all out is all.”

The house smelled of the dinner Ana had left to finish before she left. A meat stew made with fatty beef called Birria. Arthur observed Ana’s, Arthur Francisco, as they enjoyed it. He often would scoop spoonfuls of it into one of the tortillas, folding it and eating it.

He couldn’t take it anymore. He had to start getting the boy to talk to him.

“How was school, Arthur?” He spoke up, feeling strange addressing the child with his own name. He has met others before with it, but it still felt different.

Arthur Francisco swallowed before he replied, “Fine. We learned more arithmetic today. Miss Svensson drew a star in my book for it.”

“That means you’re good at it then!” Arthur commented, “Hey… If you got four apples and I gave you three apples, how many you got now?”

“Seven.”

“Right! Clever!”

Ana smile and joined in, “And there was no problems with the Millers today?”

Arthur Francisco explained while preparing another tortilla, “Weren’t there today. Haven’t been all week. No one knows why. Not that anyone wants to know, since no one really likes them.”

Everyone joined in the cleaning up. Arthur kept going with the boy to get him to open up, even as they moved from the kitchen to the living room and up until it was his bedtime. Arthur Francisco wished Arthur a good night before following his mother up the stairs.

Left alone Arthur sat down at the secretary desk, pulling his journal out of his pocket. As he opened it he became distracted the windowed cabinet. Inside where many other ledgers and a few business related papers. Slipped into the corners where the glass met the wood were cabinet card photographs. He took them and studied them. One of them was a younger Ana, sitting with a spindly looking man dressed like those Bohemian dandies that wandered around Saint Denis. He looked at least twice her age, and he didn’t resemble her son much either. On her lap was a toddler who was probably no more than 3. He flipped the picture. Written on the back was ‘Mr. and Mrs. Jacob M. Gardener with son. 1892’.

“That was your husband?!” Arthur blurted out in surprise, as Ana returned and passed him to go to her chair.

“He did the job.” Ana said plainly, “He had money. He had land. He died not long after we were married. I inherited everything as his only next of kin, with the provision my son takes it over when he’s an adult.”

Arthur was struck by the lack of affection in her voice. It only gave him more questions about it. He put the photo back, moving on to the others. The next ones he had a slight recollection of. Mostly because he was in them. It had been Ana’s idea to do them those years ago. They made a decent sum going after a train and she had convinced him it would be fun. One was just of him, mounted on that prized horse of his Boadicea with a cigarette hanging from his lips and a rifle propped up on his shoulder. That one said on the back in Ana’s writing ‘Mi queridísimo – 1888’. The companion to it was of both of them. Ana sitting in her traditional Mexican dress, her hair loose down her back. Arthur was behind her, one of his feet resting on the same crate and his hands hanging off his thigh. That one was ‘Arthur y yo – 1888’.

He took a pencil on the desk and started scribbling down his thoughts from the day.

I am dead. I guess not many men can experience their own deaths. I had always thought about it. What it would be like. I understood it as nothingness. No doubts. No fears. Yet, I’m still here and the unknown of that scares me. I don’t know if I can manage living this way. There’s no relief in it like I hoped. I’m not alone in it, I know that. Annie had done it. She’s certain I can, but I’m just not convinced. She seems to do it well. Makes it look too easy despite once being a prized heir of her daddy’s revolutionary gang down there in Mexico, who got her wings clipped as soon as she posed a threat to that brother of hers. She won. She made it. Can I really do it? Death might have been easier. I deserved that path for being the awful brute I am. I’m a bad man, I shouldn’t pretend to be anything else. I still don’t believe in a God or a Devil. Maybe I should after all this bullshit. If there was I would unquestionably earned the burning.

On the opposite page he did what he knew best to get the nervous energy out: he drew. He sketched out his intended grave on that beautiful spot near the Wapiti reservation, that nice cross Charles had created with his own two hands. He wrote underneath it:

Does anyone except Charles know where it is? Did anyone else go there by now? Would they even mourn me?

He moved on to his next sentiment.

There’s something about Annie’s son. There’s something she’s not telling me about him. I don’t think even he knows. I hope it isn’t what I think it is.

[badlydrawnarsenelupin]

what kind of hanfu would you envision lupin wearing :3c

// Hello anon, first of all: thanks for sending something so catered specifically towards me (designing useless alternative outfits for my blorbos). Second, I just want you to know that this was one of the most redraw-heavy, hair-pulling, triple-digit-layers experiences you've sent me on. Also lots of reading and research, which I am now going to make you read.

There's a lot of different styles of hanfu depending on the eras, the three main, popular styles these days are from the Tang, Song and Ming dynasties. There's more but you don't need to know about them here lol.

The ones I've drawn here aren't like.... super historically accurate but more of a mix of modern hanfu + Lupin-vibes for the✨aesthetics.✨

This is called Feiyu-fu/飞鱼服 from the Ming dynasty, which translates to 'flying-fish uniform' for its depiction of the Feiyu/飞鱼 in the embroidery. It's not actually a fish but a dragon-like creature, with wings and a fish-shaped tail (guess why it's called flying-fish lol). It's one of the more popular types you see in modern hanfu because it's just really elaborate and cool looking.

Speaking of elaborate, here's a closer look at my suffering!

Historically, Feiyu-fu was one of the type of clothing to be bestowed upon people by the emperor. There's like different tiers depending on the embroidery, the dragon or the Long/龙 is like exclusively for the emperor and then following that in order of tier are: Mang/蟒, Feiyu/飞鱼, Douniu/斗牛, Qilin/麒麟 etc. Those guys, unlike the Long has 4 or less claws instead of 5. If it's confusing, don't worry about it, they're basically different types of mythical "dragon-like" creatures.

There's a whole culture of gifting these specially embroidered clothes (from the imperial court to court officials, nobles, foreign royalty etc.) and it's pretty prestigious to get one. I found it fitting for Lupin since:

it's very lavish and opulent, also high-status

seems very much like the type of thing Lupin would somehow get his little thief hands on✨

unrelated but the two white stripes down the front on aren't a thing, I made it up for style + to add the lupine flowers on it (although they kind of look like wheat??? I tried my best ok)

Okok so fun fact, later in the Ming period, the Feiyu started to not be depicted with wings for some reason, and it became really really hard to differentiate it from the Mang, so some people just started wearing their Feiyu as a Mang... because it's a higher tier and second only to the emperor's Long-clothings. I just think that's funny and it reminds me of Lupin lmao.

Here's a more casual style with the Feiyu-yesa/曳撒 robes + a zhaojia/罩甲 on top!

So the flower here on the zhaojia is the plum blossom, or meihua. It's known as one of the four "gentleman-ly" flowers along with, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum (梅兰竹菊).

I thought the gentleman-ly theme was fitting for Lupin... although the four flowers' symbolism is more for strictly pure, noble and righteous characters.... That's ok, it's how Lupin thinks of himself anyways psh

Close-ups for the long-hair enjoyers. The little thing he's wearing is called fa-guan/发冠, it's basically a little crown-like thing that's used to hold up hair, sometimes coupled with a cloth/ribbon. The version on the right is a style very commonly seen in cdramas these days but it's historically-inaccurate... it looks cool though lol.

More details! These are called hebao/荷包 and they're basically little pouches to store things in, like money or handkerchiefs. They can also be used to carry fragrant herbs/perfume. They can also gifted from young women to men they like :^))))

For alternative hanfu styles, I think something like the modern Tang dynasty-inspired hanfu would fit Lupin as well... they're more flowy and with larger sleeves that you can hide stuff in... They look best in motion! An example from those videos of skateboarding hanfu guys.

Alright that's finally done! I'm going to go and pass out for the next 10 hours _(┐ 「ε:)_

[emilee-has-legs]

that one really cool sim tag thats been going around.

wasn't tagged by anyone in particular, but @loafysims and @ravensccfindss both mentioned me in this tag recently so i thought i'd give it a shot. also my need for attention is a bottomless pit so.

1.) What’s your favourite sims death?

honestly, the classic, putting a sim in a pool and then taking out the ladder. theres no common sense to the action it's just genuinely so funny.

2.) Alpha CC or Maxis Match? 

technically im maxis mix, but i tend to lean very hard to maxis match clothing.

3.) Do you cheat when your sims gain weight?

no not really. if i want them to loose weight i'll have them work out

4.) Do you use move objects?

if you dont use moveobjects, i think legally we can consider you clinically insane.

5.) Favorite mod?

this is so hard... ummmmm, probably like better build buy. i spend a good amount of time in build mode and use debug/live edit objects a ton when i build, so it's pretty useful.

6.) First expansion/game/stuff pack you got?

i think it was get to work, i even bought it in a physical case thingy and i still have it lying around somewhere. (as well as seasons.)

7.) Do you pronounce “live mode” like aLIVE or LIVing?

LIVE mode.

8.) Who’s your favorite sim that you’ve made?

you're asking me to pick a favorite? out of all my children?? i honestly can't pick a favorite, but here's layla, and i love her.

9.) Have you made a simself?

yeah, i've tried on multiple occasions, but none of them have ever really captured my essence all that well. eventually i gave up and just started using my mascot sim, Nellie, for my quote-on-quote "branding"

10.) What sim traits do you give yourself?

im gonna go ahead and give myself five traits assuming we all have the "more traits in cas" mod:

creative, goofball, loves-outdoors, squeamish, foodie.

11.) Which is your favorite EA hair color?

the darkest brown swatch is my go-to.

12.) Favorite EA hair?

ima be so real rn i dont use EA hairs at all.

13.) Favorite life stage?

young adult. might be biased because that's around my age-frame

14.) Are you a builder or are you in it for the gameplay?

builder. i have the most fun in either buildmode or cas.

15.) Are you a CC creator?

not offically, but i've converted defaults and skin details for personal use before, and i've even released some load screens.

16.) Do you have any simblr friends/a sim squad?

yeah baby, check these amazing people out.

@loafysims

@inspiredsimmercc

@pikaburr

@rhdweauni0

@dizzyscabiosa

@ravensccfindss

@gabrielle-kl

@nihilismtrcit

17.) What’s your favorite game?

i cant decide, it's between the sims, halo 3, minecraft, stardew valley, and splatoon. i want to play zelda: tears of the kingdom as well, but its just not in the budget rn sadly.

18.) Do you have any sims merch?

no.

19.) Do you have a YouTube for sims?

yeah actually, if you can ignore my 13 y.o sounding voice, check me out

20.) How has your “sim style” changed throughout your years of playing?

omg so much. here are some side by side comparisons of my different eras/progression.

(its the way the first sim looks like she could be a trademarked lego piece that gets me)

21.) What’s your Origin ID?

pretty sure its just emilee-has-legs. i have a couple of builds on the gallery if you wanna check me out, i just never posted them on here because that was before my simblr era.

22.) Who’s your favorite CC creator?

dogsill, softerhaze, greenlamas, ceeproductions, sentate, serenity and simstrouble take the cake for me

23.) How long have you had a simbIr?

i've had my blog for a minute but i only became an active simblr like a couple months ago.

24.) How do you edit your pictures?

i dont really edit except for a few touchups in picsart, and also srwe.

26.) What expansion/game/stuff pack do you want next?

probably get together, never got around to purchasing that pack and there's a couple things i want from the ep.

tagging: anyone who wants to have some fun. it was nice to chill on call with friends and fill this out. cya besties ily.

[1001orbust]

Hello! In short, this blog will be tracking my attempt to watch all the movies that have ever been on the ‘1001 movies you must see before you die’ list, as much as possible in chronological order by release. As of now there are 1245 movies total in this category. I’ll watch specific movies out of order when there’s a opportunity for it (like doing it with friends, at an event etc) or I’m interested in watching it, because otherwise I think I will actually go insane, but aside from that I’ll try to generally watch a lot of the list in chronological order.

In long, I wasn’t a huge movie watcher for most of my life and only started to get more into it in the last 5 years or so, and I’ve gotten increasingly interested in it as a medium but I’m still not very “well read”. It’s also only in the past year that I first started to watch and get interested in older movies (like pre 1970s), due to having friends that liked them and a film class I took. I decided I wanted to watch a lot more movies from throughout history and study the medium a lot more, but it wasn’t until I stumbled across @891movies ‘s blog that I learned more about the 1001 movies list and the community of people that try to watch all of them, and also that because there’s different editions of the list there’s actually 1245 total movies that have been on the list at any point. What a scam. Anyway, as a relatively newbie movie watcher, the natural conclusion was to immediately decide to try to do this too as a way to watch a lot more movies and learn about the medium. No way you’ll escape from watching 1200 movies alive without knowing about film history!

However, that wasn’t crazy enough for me. Partly due to the influence of my friend @everybatman69 who decided to try to read every batman comic published from the beginning in chronological order, I somewhat hubristically went, “hey, you know what would be cool? If I tried to watch the 1245 movies all in chronological order.” Just because I think watching through all those movies in linear order and seeing the development and change in trends of film kind of in “real time” would be fascinating and really cool from a historical perspective.

This is, notably, the EXACT OPPOSITE of what most people giving advice on watching the 1001 movies list tell you to do- ie, that it’s a lot easier to maintain interest and morale in the project if you mix it up and watch things from different eras and styles all the time so you don’t get tired of it. Which, yeah that is pretty sensible I must admit. Still, I’m curious about how doing it this way will go anyway. Like I said above, to make this easier I definitely will watch individual movies out of order if I’m interested in them or the opportunity presents itself because I think this project would drive me crazy otherwise, and also it would totally suck to have to wait ten years before I get to watch movies I want to watch. Honestly I’m willing to be pretty lenient on this depending on how difficult it ends up being- I don’t mind if I watch a lot of movies out of order, just as long as there’s still a significant part of the list that I watch in order and can see the progression there. I’ll also leave the possibility open that I can axe the chronological order thing entirely down the road if I’m really struggling with it.

I plan to write reviews on here of every movie I watch for the project. I’ll also have “bonus” reviews for extra movies that I’m interested in and decided to basically insert into the 1001 list to watch as well in its respective time period (as if the list wasn’t already long enough, eugh). Also maybe reviews of random other movies I watch and movie talk in general? Idk we’ll see.

Anyway, my starting line is that I’ve currently watched 46 movies out of 1245. (Yeesh.) Strictly speaking there’s another 40 odd movies that I’ve technically watched, but they were so long ago or when I was young enough that I don’t remember much about them, so I decided to just count them as not being watched and I’ll rewatch them. So since there’s not that many of them, I’ll write short reviews for everything I’ve already watched first, with full reviews for a couple of them that I have more to say about. After that we can get this show on the road.

You may imagine that this project will take me a long time. Like, really long. If I watch one movie a week, this project will take me 23 years to finish. That’s fine. The journey’s more important than the destination in this. I’m just here to watch some movies and have a good time.