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bao3bei4 · 5 months

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why zines? how zines?

i was on a panel at fanworks con 2023 about zines today. it was a lot of fun! i decided to turn my portion of the talk into a post for my friends who couldn’t make it to the panel.

this post includes my thoughts on:

why make a zine

how to generate ideas for zines

how to finish your zines

how to build an audience for your zines

so why zines? what are they? [ZEENS, rhymes with beans], pronounced that way because it’s a shortened form of the word magazine, are basically just that: self published magazines. but why make a zine over, say, a blog post? or any other piece of art.

i have basically three reasons. the first is that making little books is cool. it’s genuinely awesome to make physical zines and have the product of your labor in your hand. it’s a great feeling to finish a project and feel a concrete reward, and a lot of times we don’t get that in our lives.

the second reason is that zines give you absolute editorial control. you can put anything you want on a page. whatever layout, whatever order, whatever fold, whatever content. you name it, you can do it. this is something other venues rarely give you. for artists, it’s phenomenal. and for the rest of us, it gives us the ability to become artists for a little bit, as we lay things out.

the third reason is that zines can be absolute shit. in fact, the more shit they are, the more diy and punk they are. they have an incredible lineage of stolen copy paper and anarchist politics. all that to say, is that there are no standards. the zine ethos is say what you wanna say. it’s tremendously freeing to go fuck polish and respectability, i’m making my project.

because of these three reasons, i want to encourage you to get started making zines by describing common challenges and worries and giving you several practical tips for each on working past them. so, in order, they’re “i don’t know what to make a zine about,” “i struggle to finish projects,” and “no one will read my zines.” let’s get into it.

first up, “i don’t know what to make a zine about.” i think this one is pretty common, even for experienced zine creators. sometimes you’re in the mood to make things but you have no clue what. a lot of people suggest to just go with random words or whatever pops into your head, but i’m picky! i find that unsatisfying! so here are some tips for people in the same boat.

ONE: what’s distracting you? work with it. because anything can be a zine, let the things you’ve already done serve as inspiration. photos you’ve taken can be formatted into a zine. is there a game sucking up your attention? make a zine about it. the song stuck in your head can turn into a lyricbook, forgotten works in progress or sketches can be resurrected, cannibalized, or even published as incomplete zines. if you’ve been busy with real life, maybe the recipes you’ve been making—even if, especially if, they’re struggle meals, can turn into zines. interview your most interesting friend. summarize a book you read recently. even if you’ve just been doomscrolling, that’s a zine too! i got a zine last weekend called bay area newsreel which was collecting recent articles about local news from leftist perspectives gathered up into a handy volume. your attention is a gift, so look at what zine fodder it’s accumulated for you naturally.

SECOND: add a twist. sometimes i have an idea but it isn’t quite right. it just seems too straightforward. so i try to develop along a single axis of content or form. what this means is basically go against your instincts, or rather, your first impulse. that first idea is very hard to walk away from, but doing so often gives you an idea that gets you unstuck. so for content, add a different perspective. for me this is often a theoretical approach. when i was stuck on my scum villain zine, turning it into freud zine let the words start flowing. next, on form: present it differently than your first instinct is to. if my first thought is “essay,” i try to figure out how to chunk out the information into modules or how to add interactivity or what kind of illustrations to add. if my first thought is “this could be a fic or comic,” i try turning it into an essay. saying things a different way often gives you a new perspective on the content as well.

THIRD: copy! make your take on the same thing as someone else. it’s not stealing—well, ideally it isn’t. make your original take and give credit where credit is due and ask permission if necessary. but engage with the medium!!! making zines without reading zines is the same thing as trying to write a paper without citing sources, or a novel without reading your contemporaries. that is, you can do it, but it’s hard. zines are a genre into themselves so figure out how to situate yourself in their ongoing dialogue. an example of this from my own practice is that i own a zine about queer gods and mythological creatures from chinese history. reading it i was like. why don’t they talk about this. why don’t they talk about that. and that became the basis for my own zine, guaitai the strange and the queer which focused on queer chinese history and literature instead. different zine, same inspiration.

all of my ideas suppose you have SOMETHING going on. what if you truly have nothing. my advice? adapted from my “how to write an essay” blog post, is to read a book. read an article. read something. and then post about it. and then turn your posts into a zine. don’t start entirely from scratch — give yourself a scaffolding. so first. read something and tell someone about it. i wasn’t lying about calling myself a consummate poster. it’s a big part of my thought process.

second up, what if “i struggle to finish projects.” i’m no stranger to having a bunch of half finished half started projects lying around. but here are some zine-specific tips i have for addressing that.

FIRST! go smaller; go shittier. reduce the scope of your projects. make one pagers, lists. once when i was feeling stymied, i made a physical zine about movies i’d watched that month, just listing them with a couple bullet points on each film. i eventually turned it into a bigger digital zine where i listed movies i’d watched over the past several months with more thoughts on them, and nicely formatted. but that was something that came out of reducing my scope from “i need to write a manifesto on a movie i’ve watched recently” to “well i can just tell people about it” to “i can say two things about it.” and something actually got finished.

SECOND. your friends are a great tool for accountability. something i like to do is zine jams with my friends. nothing fancy, it’s just we’ll sit down for an hour and go we’re going to make something in this hour. or, for a bigger scope, we might work separately but commit to making a zine that weekend. it’s nice to have community and it’s nice to feel a little bit of a friendly deadline. i recommend this even if you DON’T have problems finishing zines. it’s a good time.

THIRD. a lot of times if the words aren’t coming easily, it’s because i’m not trying to say the right thing. keep in mind that your zines don’t have to be “content.” this little paper zine i made about movies wasn’t made to share online; in fact, it’s not available online. i didn’t make it according to what other people would see or be interested in. you can and will burn out on making “marketable” content. corollary to this: sometimes what i have to say is something i DON’T want to share online. it might not be that it’s boring, it might be that it’s too personal. and i share a lot online, i write personal essays after all. but some projects i stall on because they’re really just for me, and i’m again, focused on making content. so this piece of advice is about rejecting the tyranny of the imaginary audience.

and the next challenge is about embracing that audience! what if no one reads your zines, something that’s entirely possible. well there’s plenty you can do about that.

FIRST. cultivate zine community. read other people’s zines! talk to them about their zines! this greatly increases the chance that they will do the same for you. don’t go in expecting reciprocity; do it for its own sake, but it’s a great place to start. try asking people at zine fests if they’d be willing to trade with you, for instance.

SECOND. write for yourself. it’s cheesy but it’s true. you really have to. if you’re not proud and happy with what you’re making on its own merits, what’s the point. now because this is a cop out tip, i’m not counting it as a tip on its own.

so SECOND PART TWO. make your zines more accessible. if they’re not free, make them free—yes, you deserve to be compensated for your work, but it’s up to you to decide if you want a bigger audience first. if your zines aren’t short, make them shorter. make them short enough that you can post their entirety on social media or something else easy for your audience to consume. it’s a big ask sometimes to get someone to download your pdf! if they’re physical, hand them out to people you meet. remove all the barriers to entry.

THIRD. related to this, change medium. if you’re not making physical zines, try printing them out. if you’re not making digital zines, try digitizing them. both of these offer access to new audiences and new people who might be more interested in one form than another.

i hope these thoughts encourage you to make a zine! if you do, please let me see it. i love reading zines.

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rhoorl · 5 months

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Week in Review | Dec. 10

Hi! How are you? I can't believe we're nearing the midway point of December! I am happy to get back to my typical Week in Review style after an abbreviated version last week!

Same shit different week for me when it comes to my TBR, I add more than I can read. But alas, here's what I got to:

Fics I read this week:

Frankie Morales

I Like the Way You (Frankie) by @undercoverpena - I've kept this series in my Current Compulsory Series section for weeks, but I'm pulling it up to the top this week because we got the final part this week! It's always a bit bittersweet to me when I get to the end of a series, especially one I'm following in real-time. I loved following along each week and immersing myself in this story and I’m sad it's done (but hey, great news, I can now reread it from the beginning and binge!). Great job Jo! 💕

While I'm talking about Jo, here's this saucy one-shot Coming Under the Christmas Tree

Joel Miller

Footprints by @sin-djarin - This brought back some Christmas morning nostalgia for me! Joel as a dad and the love he has for Sarah makes me melt. And we have an Uncle Tommy appearance too!

Mr. Ben

SOS by brnn on AO3 - I’m not sure if this creator is on Tumblr, but if they are let me know! I had several chapters of this story built up that I hadn’t caught up on and when the final chapter dropped I binged what I had left! Mr. Ben and OFC Clare are adorable.

Din Djarin

Safe to The Touch by @linzels-blog A touch-starved Din gets some lovin’. 💕

A Baker’s Dozen by @avastrasposts Part 2 in Mel's series saw Din come into the bakery. This was so sweet (no pun intended!).

Other Characters

Good Things Take Time by @oonajaeadira - This series is so good! I've had it recommended to me several times and I've been slowly working my way through it, savoring it because I don't want it to end! I read Parts 2 and 3 this week along with the various drabbles in between. The chemistry these two have is *chef's kiss*

Current Compulsory Series:

These are the series I am keeping up with at the moment.

Holiday Prompts (Various) by @trulybetty - A healthy serving of delicious stories this week. I officially want to move to Maplewood, well, maybe visit. I'll be honest, I'm not made for the cold anymore. 😆 Also, Tim and Cagney continue to be a favorite as are Frankie and Mav! And Dieter made me google Christmas hippo socks which somehow I already did not own! 🦛

Delta Palms Tropical Resort (Frankie) by @linzels-blog The rollercoaster I felt with this latest chapter … I have to know what happens next!!

Destiny & Deliverance (Dieter) by @mysterious-moonstruck-musings This latest chapter had me all up in my feels. These two are 🥹💕

Paranoid Heat (Javi P) by @goodwithcheese I think I've finally managed to pick my jaw up off the floor from the spicy scene in the latest chapter.

Undercover (Tim Rockford) by @secretelephanttattoo Another great chapter update this week, El!! Grumpy Tim and his pet fish are living rent free in my head.

It’s Never Too Late (Javi P) by @javierpena-inatacvest - There is some dad Javi content I need to catch up on!!

Posts from the week:

The moodboards @wildemaven puts out are always gold, but this Frankie holiday-themed board just made me swoon

@laurfilijames made me think about which holiday movies the TF boys would be into. I also hastily made a graphic lol. Speaking of asks @maggiemayhemnj gave me an almost impossible this or that choice. My friend @laughing-in-th3-purple-rain offered up these choices.

If you need a badge for any Pedro boy, @morallyinept has you covered

We got our first look at Pedro in Freaky Tales and oh goodness … the scar. Seriously help us all whenever the Gladiator photos leak.

In case you missed it, the fun writing challenge that’s going around here's another plug. I finally have an idea … now I just need to write it. I think I’m going to end up throwing it back to my college days and cramming this in at the last minute….

Feral corner:

There was simply too much to keep track of this week. I was overwhelmed by thots. I think this post sums things up well.

This photo altered my brain chemistry. This photo of Pedro as Dieter and THEN this video… oh hey Working Title Dieter. 😏 Frankie tummy always gets me. Javi P in this jacket. Talk about gifs you can hear. This outfit - he knew what he was doing when we wore this right?

@foralonglongtime - no pressure but I’m very excited about the prospect of this…

This scene from TLOU forever changed me.

Garrett Hedlund: This man was utterly too much this week. Exhibit A, Exhibit B, Exhibit C, and finally, the post that started my spiral.

Things I watched:

I didn't make it to the movies this week, Mr. Rhoorl went and saw Godzilla Minus One and loved it. He's a huge Godzilla fan so he was pretty excited to see it. I’m off fo work tomorrow so I’m planning on seeing Wish.

Something that is releasing soon that I'm excited to see is Rebel Moon with Charlie Hunnam on Netflix. It looks like it will be available for my UK fans this week, but we in the US have to wait until the 21st.

Personal Stuff

Busy week. Both Mr Rhoorl and I had PTO on different days this week and we both had our plans thwarted by a sick baby. She's ok now, all good! Otherwise, we've been mostly laying low. I have managed to get most of my holiday shopping done and our Christmas cards arrived so that's exciting! We've also been checking out the various theme parks - I love the way they decorate this time of year! We did a holiday cookie stroll at Epcot last night and it was yummy

Fic updates:

I had Benny Miller brain rot again (when don't I at this point?). Anyway, the result was a third part of what I guess is now the unofficial "Are You on Mute" series. I do have plans for wrapping those one-shots up into something bigger. I just frankly keep having thots I have to get out and it's distracting me😆

I did manage to get a good amount of writing done for the next chapter of Delta Landscaping. Hoping to get the new episode out early this week. Whenever I get down on myself that I'm not updating that series fast enough I remind myself it's essentially like 6 different series in one so therein lies the delays 🫣

This can be such a stressful part of the year, so I hope you are able to take some time for yourself! Have a great week and thanks for reading if you made it this far!

Masterlist

Working Title (Dieter, series, ongoing) | AO3

Delta Landscaping (Triple Frontier, series, ongoing) | AO3

Turbulence (Frankie, one-shot) | AO3

Are You on Mute? (Benny Miller, one-shot) | AO3

Are You on Mute? Part Two

Are You Alone

#rhoorl week in review #rhoorl fic rec #pedro pascal characters fic #garrett hedlund

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gaycrittercentral · 1 year

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Im curious and new to the fandom what are Sam and max's personalitys I don't understand them really much but I like the characters! Do you have any tips to help..? A easier way to understand their dynamic

Oh hi welcome to the fandom bud!! :D hmmmm let’s see, how can I summarize these two dumbasses…well, the show bible is a fantastic place to start if you’d like to hear from the creator himself! There’s a lot of really interesting stuff in there, including a page or two that goes into detail about both of their personalities. Really neat stuff!

But let’s see, if I had to summarize them…well, I guess I’d put it under a cut cause I’m gonna ramble a bit lol

I guess I’d say that they’re just a couple of lunatics who enjoy doling out their slanted version of justice and accompanying it with their constant banter. They’ve been best friends and partners in crime ever since they were children (and in fact still have tons of baby photos framed around their office lmaooo) and it shows. They’re often described as having their own language, and they have incredible physical comfort with each other, with Sam frequently seizing Max to fling him at people or use him like a weapon (Max likes this, notably) and Max occasionally using his partner like a cat tree. And while they like to poke fun at and do slapstick on each other frequently, it’s clear that they’re incredibly close and really care for each other. Also they’re gay as fuck lmaooooo canon just doesn’t know it

Ooh here’s something I think gets misinterpreted a lot! Sam is not as reasonable and moral as he might seem. He just looks that way in comparison to Max, but he is honestly just as deranged in a lot of ways. He just hides it behind his carefree cadence and friendly smile lmao. It’s the kind of thing where if you ignore what he’s actually saying, he sounds calm and friendly and nice, but then you tune back in and realize he’s suggesting they wrap Max in tinfoil and stick him in a microwave for fun, or casually threatening some bizarre form of violence against something. I think it’s best summarized by this meme lmaooo

That said, he is still the more reasonable of the two of them, and probably the only one capable of feeling guilt or shame. It’s just that hanging out with Max kind of obliterates any chance of those feelings sinking in for long.

Oh and for Max, one thing I think is good to remember is that despite his frequent zero braincell behavior, he does in fact have a decent amount of intelligence. Which is kind of frightening, actually. He’s not as verbose as Sam, or at least doesn’t like to be, but he’s got smarts enough to make witty jokes and concoct his own plans and whatnot. He’s just also a goblin who likes clobbering people with flyswatters and would totally eat pizza off the floor lmao.

Conversely, Max isn’t exactly as deadly as he claims to be, either. Like, he’s still an absolute terror, but I think it’s important to remember that all one really has to do to keep him at bay is push his head away lmaoooo he arms too dang short

Ok but that’s all a bit in the weeds, so let’s see…basically, Sam is a cheerful goof who would really like to be a cool film noir detective, but is too busy having fun to keep up a serious facade for long. And Max is an irrepressible scamp who just likes to cause trouble and get into fights and wander around aimlessly. Sam does have his own weird sense of justice that he wants to uphold, but Max is kinda just happy to be along for the ride, and both of them are really only fighting crime and solving cases because it’s fun for them. And they’re a little codependent. Lmao.

Ooh, y’know what else has some really great analyses of these guys across different incarnations of the series? @h-worksrambles’s excellent discussions of their voices! Here’s the one they wrote on Max and his voice actors over time, and here’s the one on Sam. There’s a bit in the latter one where they talk about how Sam has a sort of shallowly-hidden temper that tends to burst forth on occasion, which I had never really given a lot of thought to but that I feel has deepened my understanding and enjoyment of his character! Definitely check those out, they’re a great read. :>

#and that’s all I got!! hope this is interesting at least lmao #always fun to ramble about these dumbasses eehehheheh #sam and max #sam and max freelance police #freelance husbands #I guess? I mean I didn’t explicitly talk abt their relationship but like they gay. so #asks

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focusontheheart · 6 months

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Meet the Team - Bookmancer

You can also find her on: Twitter @ bookmancer_myth IG @ bookmancer_legendarium AO3 @ Bookmancer_Legendarium

Hello, Bookmancer here! I had no idea that when I played the robot dinosaur game, my life would be divided into two phases: before Horizon and after. I discovered Horizon right around its release. I was fascinated by the trailer and captivated by the Tallneck, which is still my favorite machine. I'm continually awed by the storytelling, visual beauty of Horizon's world, and depth of its characters. HZD actually got me into virtual photography because it’s the first game that really encouraged me to pause, look around, admire the world, and fiddle around with how to capture its beauty. Because I do so much VP, I always like to look at paintings and photos to try and replicate them. I started in the fandom through VP before indulging in my love of writing to share fanfic - and now this dating game! I’m always awed by other content creators in the Horizon fandom and out. They think of such creative things, and everyone is very encouraging. I'm excited to further explore Seyka's story in FOTH and Horizon 3 and am fascinated by her as a mirror to Aloy's stubborn compassion, but flavored by tribal connections Aloy only just made through her found family. But for the near future, I want to write more deep-dives into the psyche of the characters, their hopes and insecurities, and how they play off of each other. I’d also like to draw more and take more shippy VP!

See the Q&A with Bookmancer below the cut!

Q: What is a favorite piece of work you've done (i.e. completed, working on, in concept)?

I've written some fanfic for Horizon - some published that I really like and actually came out how I wanted to, and some that's still living in my brain and I have to pay its rent in the form of chanting "I should write this already…" But I'm pleased with my fic "who can take my hand in the flood?" and want to write more of the ever-growing GAIA Gang being happy and healing. I’m working on a Seyloy fic of her getting welcomed into the gang.

Q: What are some of your favorite tropes to write, draw, or read?

I love friends to lovers! Also, star-crossed lovers, opposites attract, fish out of water, rivals learning more about each other and coming to a powerful understanding, and bodyguard AUs.

Q: What is an unexpected thing or fun fact about you?

I've got a language learning club going with some friends so we can pool resources and offer encouragement. I love learning about absolutely anything, and I'm getting into crocheting. Outside of FOTH writing, I write fanfic for various fandoms. I do a ton of VP and it's probably doubled my playtime in HFW. I love swimming, and I can only whistle by inhaling, not exhaling.

Q: What has been your favorite thing about working on this project so far?

I've loved seeing the outpouring of creativity, the fandom uniting for something that's so beloved to so many, and learning a metric Horus-ton about… well, a ton of things! Every day, I'm amazed over and over again, and I'm so thrilled I to get to see this come together up close. Everyone is incredibly talented and inspirational, and every bit of it has been collaborative and uplifting.

#focus on the heart #foth #foth dating sim fangame #foth visual novel fangame #horizon forbidden west #meet the team: artists and writers #writer: bookmancer #aloy x seyka

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scarlettrose567 · 3 months

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MyHouse.Wad: What a fucking trip

Just finished MyHouse.wad. And goddamn, just goddamn. First of all, it is a fucking fantastic game let alone considering it's a free mod, easily on par with the original doom in terms of quality.

My overall impression is that this is a type of game that could ONLY come out as a mod. I mean, can you imagine say the next Call of Duty game where you can beat the whole thing as normal, but if you dig deeper it has a whole separate game exploring an endless house?

That all being said, two main gripes

The final fight was waaay too large/long, and if it was half the size it would be twice as impactful imo.

Ending is somewhat underwhelming, although that's somewhat inevitable since it's not going to straight up tell you what happens.

Oh yeah and 3) The labyrinth.

I love the idea of the labyrinth, however wish it was developed slightly more. I don't want there to be any enemies, but maybe a scrap of story or flavor would've been warmly welcomed. As is it's completely optional and you can't do anything apart from leave. However, it is indeed very unnerving (loved the touch of having the doors you open while inside being louder than average when they close by themselves).

Oh yeah, plus the blood appearing in the airport's bathroom did feel a bit janky/random and somewhat frustrating to trigger.

But in general it's all in the spirit of what it is trying to accomplish, and it absolutely excels in making you feel on edge, like the House is trying to get you to leave while drawing you in further and further.

But, you may be asking, what about the central mystery? What the heck is MyHouse.wad about anyway??

So, I won't rehash the exact wording (you can find that online easily enough), but to put it simply the creator of the mod is allegedly brushing up an old .wad file found in the floppy disc of a deceased childhood friend, and a journal as a word document plus some photos are attached to the mod when you download it.

Reading over the journal, a few odd section stuck out to me. He mentions that an old childhood friend passed away, and yet the very next day he writes "I never imagined that I would be saying goodbye to my friend so soon." Not something you would say about someone you only knew when you were a child, and hadn't been in contact with for years.

He starts working to restore and add things to the .wad he found. Over time, he becomes increasingly obsessed with it and it starts to affect his dreams.

He dreams about a house burning down, and finding a still born baby in the attic, of being hunted and finding refuge in a cave...

Something *very* strange happens on Dec 16. He seems to revert to a childhood persona, writing "it'll be nice to have some time away from the school", despite mentioning his job earlier, and "i'm sure they'll be a lot of fun and there wilL be plenty of laughter and good times". The day after he makes a comment about lack of sleep.

He dreams more. He dreams his reflection winks back at him, that he enters his bathroom mirror and finds comfort in that strange world.

He dreams he is in a car crash, then a plane crash. He survives the car crash. He does not survive the plane crash.

Valentines day: "Happy Valentines day to the only person I ever loved. For a short time, you brought a little happiness to this painful existence called life. I hope we can be together again one day. In the meantime… I’ll keep looking for that other someone who can be the ray of light in my life that you turned out to be."

He mentions how "After 13 years" he finally has the skills to finish the map, despite him mentioning he worked on it first 20 years ago with his childhood friend, according to the original description for the .wad.

He writes how the map is altering code by itself, growing when he's not looking;

"Without my guiding hand, the map doesn’t know what to build. But I can help it. Guide it. It seems to respond to my designs, changing them to match my emotional state. It knows what I’m feeling. It knows how Thomas felt."

He dreams of lying on a beach, safe and content, only to realize it is all fake. He writes about the agony of a heaven, and eternally being tormented by your own anguish, and how lucky his winking self is, to live a mortal life on a real beach, finding happiness in the small things he can control.

He finally publishes the mod, with no further entries apart from how he managed to publish a "safe" version. He won't allow the House to corrupt anyone else.

So, what to make of it all.

First and obviously, he clearly knew his childhood friend a lot more recently than his childhood, and the Valentine's Day strongly supports the fact they were partners - however, I do think they weren't in contact for at least a few years before his friend died. The "13 years ago" comment, plus the fact that items in the mod state "It was not to be" when picked up suggest that they were together for a time after, but then broke up. Both the crash and plane crash suggest something went wrong - maybe they fought, maybe there was an actual physical action - who knows. The airport section of the map further suggests that perhaps one or both of them traveled away from where they grew up? Moreover, the creator's comments about a "mirror version, happy on that other beach" suggests that maybe he made a mistake, and he's tormented knowing in another universe he could have been happy with his partner.

During the Brutalist area of the mod, you find two dogs - one completely harmless, the other a two headed monster that can kill you relatively easily if you aren't careful. But if you kill one, the other dies as well. Similarly, they can never meet each other. That could be a metaphor for their relationship - they couldn't be together, but couldn't bear being apart either.

However, there is of course a far darker possibility. A few items in the mod tell you "I want pop", and "The boy deserves a milkshake." This suggests a father-son relationship of some kind. Indeed, the very first area outside the house itself is a nursery for very young children, suggesting at some point he and his childhood friend adopted a child at some point. However, the fact that the house can burn down at some point, plus the constant dreams of disaster and the stillborn child could point to the fact that the child died somehow, possibly in a violent manner. If this is true, this would explain why they broke up, and why the original creator buried the memory - it was simply too traumatic to think about, until the death of his former partner forced these memories up to the surface, leading to him creating this mod as a coping mechanism. His comments about dealing with his own thoughts for eternity also suggest this - he could not bear to think about what had happened over and over and over again without being able to change anything.

The constant use of mirrors within the mod also tells us how much he wishes things had turned out differently - how he wants to live in a different dimension altogether, where this didn't happen, where he remained with his partner. The fact that if you leave the house without grabbing all the items might suggest they also sold (and potentially demolished) the house itself.

The house that can never leave his mind.

#two shots at midnight #doom #myhouse.wad #house of leaves #theory #fan theory

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picapicamagpie · 1 year

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Sing Birds: Concept Art Edition

Warning: I go a bit insane over birds sorry not sorry. This is more of a deep dive into the design of Sing birds and what the “canon” is on them.

Body

Much like how there appears to be two different dog body styles (Suki, and then every other dog breed), there are two types of bird bodies in Sing. You have the ones that are just shaped like real birds, like this ostrich and the flamingoes. And you have the ones that have a human-like posture that most of the Sing animals have, like the cranes. I know the Sing wiki calls them herons, and they could be, but they are lacking the same markings as herons. Also their entire audition was Eastern Asian themed and the crane is a very important animal in East Asian culture. Here’s a stick figure showing just how human-like the body of these cranes are:

Wings

Sing makes it very clear that its birds have feather fingers and their wings work as arms and hands. The concept art isn’t accurate to the final design. In the films, birds have a whole single feather for each finger, rather than hands that look like they’re covered in multiple feathers. Many Sing birds are shown holding things with them, manipulating objects with them, and Hobbs can bloody drive a car with his. Again the cranes are a great example and have very distinct hands while retaining their feathered wings. Real birds have their hand and finger bones fused and could never use them to hold anything. But Sing birds have evolved some way to keep their hands and wings at the same time. I have a couple of theoretical explanations on this but it gets too biological and I’m already wasting my time on this massive post no one will read.

Beak

I can’t attach photos because I hit the limit, but the ducklings in the Sing 2 audition also demonstrate that in this universe, birds’ beaks are more flexible. Real birds have rigid beaks that are not like lips at all (though they are incredibly sensitive), but in Sing birds, beaks are basically just their lips. This is common in most animated birds, not just Sing. I won’t get into the biology of how birds are able to produce speech without lips because I’ve rambled enough but in Sing we can see that beaks are more flexible and essentially just lips and have the same range of movement. They must not be as hard as real beaks and must be softer in order to move this way. Bonus note: the middle flamingo here has feathers that swoop down like hair. I used this same idea for my bird oc.

Something very interesting is that Sing birds canonically have teeth. Real birds don’t have teeth. But somewhere in the evolution of Sing animals, their birds kept them.

Legs

Something interesting in this concept art is that their “knee” bends the way a human’s would. Again birds generally have a “knee” that bends the opposite way (I could go on for ages about this but basically it’s not a knee but an ankle; birds are digitigrade, just like all felines and canines, and are considered to walk on their toes. Their real knee is usually just under their feathers, and it moves like ours). I imagine the Sing creators, like most non-bird-insane people, assume that this is a knee and bird legs are the same as human legs. You can see this in the cranes again and how the legs look basically human. I’m guilty of this too; my bird oc has humanoid legs. Because hey, if a digitigrade wolf like Porsha can have human legs then a digitigrade bird can too. Fun fact: Old World monkeys like proboscis monkeys (Klaus) are also classified as digitigrade.

Extra Concept Art

Concept art for the puffins in Sing 1. Not much to say except that these aren’t puffins. They look a bit more like masked lovebirds? Wonder why they changed the species.

And to round it off: Couples from Les Calmars! A nice interspecies mix here!

Flamingo and crocodile couple 💖 interesting they planned for flamingoes as early as Sing 1. And she’s SO CUTE WTF

A rooster and a hyena? 😂 Love this one. There was also an ostrich with a hippo but I hit the photo limit.

Despite so few birds appearing in the films, Sing has taken a really varied approach to them. Some look basically just like real birds (the roosters, the flamingoes), and some have the more mammal-like body type of the rest of the animals (the cranes, the penguins). The closest thing I can get the “canon” rules for Sing bird designs:

🪶 Can have a body that is either the same as a real bird’s, or can have a body that is more mammalian and like the rest of the Sing animals. Each individual species can have either body type

🪶 Still has teeth

🪶 Has a wing hand, where the feathers work as fingers and thumbs, while still retaining the whole wing (they all still have wings and don’t have just feathered arms)

🪶 Can have legs that function the same as a real bird’s or can have legs that are basically just human, like the rest of the Sing animals

🪶 Their beaks are able to move like lips

🪶 The jury’s out on whether or not they can fly. I headcanon that they can, but we’ve yet to see it. I’ll do a whole new post for my specific headcanons though because this one is long enough

The only “in universe” explanation I can come to is that the animals in Sing have evolved different biology to our own ones. Whatever started them on the route to becoming more intelligent/sapient also changed their bodies slightly. All are bipedal now, even animals originally lacking proper feet like a walrus (I’m looking at you, Mason) and have the same rough body shape. They’ve lost a lot of their natural animal behaviour, for example none of the tailed animals use their tails for expression. Porsha, Jimmy, Suki etc; all their tails just kind of hang lifelessly. With the exception of that one audition sheep, they don’t make any animal noises. I can think of only a few exceptions, such as Buster and the wolves using their ears for expression, Ash scattering quills, etc. Out of the “big 3” anthro animal city media - Sing, Zootopia, Beastars - the Sing animals are the most human and homogenous, with the least variation between species’ behaviour and have the least natural animal traits shown. The Sing koalas don’t have their extra thumb. Sing walruses stand on two feet rather than… whatever the heck it is that walruses do. Clay only had one wife and not a harem pride of lionesses. What I’m trying to say is real animals ≠ Sing animals. I can only hope Sing koalas aren’t riddled with chlamydia like most real koalas are 😂

If anyone wants to see a deep dive on other species just let me know! I’m not as knowledgeable on other animals as I am about birds but I’ll give it a good shot! Also Tumblr app formatting is godawful I’m so sorry I can’t shorten this post or remove the weird gaps even though it’s too late now

#this time on posts that interest only me:#I warned you I’d be insane about birds again #IS MY OBSESSION SHOWING?#it’s basically a guide on how to design a canon compliant Sing bird character #plus some random stuff I noticed #sing #sing 2 #sing movie #sing 2016 #sing 2021 #sing headcanons #no characters to tag :’)

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archandshri · 2 months

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22nd March ‘24 - [arch] Mad About Munch, Warm-up sketches and daaarknesss???

Good evening, Shri! I forgot that it is Friday, but at the beginning of writing this, I have an hour and 27 minutes until Friday is over, so I WILL be on time!

Wow, like a lot has happened? But I also don’t have tons to show for it. (it’s because I’m working on cool secret project that I’m not allowed to talk about which is fun!)

Stuff i have been doing

Museums :0!!!! I have been travelling and in my old age apparently, I like old art now???

Gathering a lot of reference images - photos, but also general inspiration

Finally organising my digital space a bit! I backed up like 3 years' worth of Procreate images and cleared out half my iPad

Getting some of my sketchbooks, especially comic development, digitised and onto Google Slides! I follow a similar process to when I was at uni still, with a huge PowerPoint for a project that contains reference images, inspiration, plot bullet points, and links to google docs where I write the scripts, development sketches and finals. It makes it super easy to go back to important parts of the development and be reminded of things I might have lost in the development process

Warm-up sketches because you bullied me into it (affectionate)

Continuing to explore colour

2 things I would like to tell you more about: 1) Edvard Munch!!!!!! If you ever get the chance to visit the Munch Museum in Oslo, do it!! I hadn’t seen a whole museum dedicated to one guy before, but seeing so much of his work in one place, in person really helped me understand it better. They also had a fantastic audio tour to rent that made it super accessible. I had just come from thinking about colour last week and becoming more comfortable with darker colours, and I had been thinking about personality and narrative in settings and backgrounds - both of which he does really well. In particular, The Sick Child, Eye in Eye, and The Sun stood out to me.

2) Play. AGAIN!!!!! I feel like I’m constantly having to fight myself, reminding myself to let go, play around, and explore without the expectation of a final outcome. You told me to try some 20 min warm-up and cool-down sketches - which I’ve been doing and has been going great! They’re not all perfect and aren’t supposed to be, but I’ve also had some really fun outcomes that wouldn’t have happened otherwise. I also feel like I’m getting more of a grip on colour :0

Plus, I’ve found that I haven’t wanted to post my terrible sketches or even my better ones?? Which has been nice to make without the need for sharing. However, I have found myself craving a final image to share with all of Tumblr and Instagram, thinking of possible images that would do well on those platforms. I think there is a small part of me that wants to create those because it would be fun, but I think it’s mostly to fix the number-shaped hole :/ Hank Green made a good video which mentioned the fact that platforms are EXTRA BAD with teaching creators to be addicted to them, even more so than consumers. Video here. It’s good.

I was listening to the Imp and Skizz podcast earlier (Episode - Rendog pt 1), it’s a great podcast, they chat about Hermitcraft a bit but mostly about what being alive is like and being a creator, I really recommend them too. Anyway, Skizz said he was once told to ‘create videos that he wanted to watch.’ And I think it’s a good approach to have when creating. What do I wanna see/ read?

I would love to chat to you about the balance between dark tones and silliness in storytelling too, but it is 11pm and I do have to get up early tomorrow. Plus, I’m not sure I have enough thoughts yet. But for now, it’s left me thinking: what do I want to make? Am I campable of silliness in stories? I want to tell stories with an undertone of darkness, that discusses difficult themes, but how to we do that while keeping it entertaining and not just Too Much(™)?

I dunno, just thoughts I’ve been having. I wanna get them down, even if I don’t have any solutions yet. In the meantime, please accept these sketchbook pages in lieu of philosophical answers.

Thank you for listening to my rambles once again!

Love <3 Archie

Ps. I saw Frozen the musical and it was Very Sibling, and I cried. It made me think of you and I think you would like it (it’s only a bit different to the film but it makes such a difference omg)

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cottonchronicles · 1 year

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an updated disney princess legacy challenge

hello!

i have been playing my own version of disney princess legacy challenge since a year and a half now, and i’m about to finish it soon. i have immensely enjoyed playing this legacy, and would like to thank its original creator, MissPlaying. in my game, i created my own version of the challenge by combining rules from three sources and adding my own spice on the mix. i think the result has become a much more story-oriented and aesthetic heavy version that is more challenging than the original but prioritizes the narrative over task solving. i have a lot of respect for the previous versions, and mine is just one take among the others, but if you’d like to give it a try, go ahead!

my sources: MissPlaying: the original version Melinoe: a more challenging take on the original Irene van den Berg: an aesthetically oriented version on the pinterest

some notes: i didn’t want to follow the original order or go chronologically because then all the classical early disney princesses come one after the other, making it a bit boring in my view. shuffling older and more recent princesses makes it interesting with very different types of characters following each other, and this particular order worked well for the transitions within my storyline. second, i focused this around the disney princesses whose films i actually watched, so pocahontas and some of the newer princesses are lacking, but feel free to add them if you want. lastly, when i started playing this, i had very few packs. so my rules kind of reflect the way i gradually acquired more of the packs. feel free to tailor it according to the packs you have! for each gen, i determined a city to live and an aesthethic. if you follow those, please tag me in your photos, i’d love to see!

snow white windenburg. cottage-core

After the death of your father, you soon realized you were not wanted at home anymore. Although you left that place brokenhearted, your optimism soon fills your new life in a cottage with joys of kindness. You have always loved children and animals, and enjoy turning your home into a fun place where kids can eat cookies, do their homework, and play, while animals become your lifelong friends.

Start as a young adult

Complete the friend of the animals aspiration

Have 7 male children friends with all different personality traits

Find your spouse around your home

Never open door to strangers and don’t talk to elderly women

Have 4 children

Max singing skill

Max baking skill

Have pets (forest animals preferably)

[some of the earlier versions has snow white make seven babies as dwarves. i think that makes this gen something like a mini-100-babies-challenge, and players can’t focus on snow’s own story. instead, i just made a club with 7 little boys as my dwarves and focused more on snow’s story of getting used to her new life. my version is quite easy as you see--i was still new to the sims and found it very challenging back then lol! feel free to tweak it a bit to make it more difficult for yourself. (if you have Cottage Living EP pack, go ahead and exploit those possibilities!--i didn’t.)]

tiana . the princess and the frog san myshuno. city pop

Your family’s cottage life is cozy, but there is much more you expect from life: You want to stand on your own feet, earn your own money, experience what the big city has to offer, and taste all the different flavors cuisines of the world provide!

Start as a teenager

Have the ambitious and foodie traits

Work at a bistro (fast food part time job) during teenage years

Father must die before the end of Tiana’s teenage years

Complete the master chef aspiration

Try out all flavors of San Myshuno

Marry someone unattractive, lazy, or with green, OR AN ALIEN

Marry at the romance festival

Own and run your own restaurant before turning elder

Have two kids

[i ended up marrying a normal human sim, and involved an alien later in my game. so i don’t know how it would play out with an alien sim, but go ahead if that sounds interesting to you! at this point the only occult sim variety i had was the aliens.]

megara . hercules san myshuno. film noir

Your parents are in love despite having such opposite personalities, but somehow you never believed in true love. Regular family life bores you, and you have as independent a personality as your mother does. Yet, as you move out to start your own life, you meet the wrong kind of people...

Start as a young adult

Have the noncommital and self-assured traits

Have the villanous valentine aspiration (you don’t have to complete it)

Complete the secret agent career

Have one bad relationship before finding your main partner

Never marry but keep a strong relationship with your partner

Betray your partner but win their heart back

Have an evil friendenemy (this will be your Hades)

Only have one daughter

[megara’s sassy attitude really spices the game up! i had very few worlds back then, and with film noir aesthetic i thought the city went very well, but feel free to put her in another world that you think works better.]

cinderella willow creek. midcentury

Your mother never had a strong maternal instinct, and on top of that having lost your parents so young, and growing up mistreated in a strange household, you have always longed for the warmth of a loving family life. You have always dreamed about taking care of your own home, children, and spouse with all its simple domestic pleasures.

Start as a teenager

Have the romantic and neat traits

Have a family aspiration (I had superparent, but feel free with any)

Mother must die while Cinderella is a toddler and father must die while she’s a child

Have an evil stepmother and two mean step sisters

Live in a lot with filthy trait

Do all the cleaning, cooking, and laundry until getting married

Meet your spouse at a party, leave the party midway

Have four daughters

[tbh the first three disney princesses (snow, cinderella, and aurora) seem to be all obsessed with getting married lol. that was the norm back then, these films were made in 30s-50s! so in my mind cinderella’s home after she gets married is midcentury-modernist in decoration but suburban and somewhat conservative in family lifestyle. with her previous maid-like treatment by her step-family, she was perfectly prepared to be a housewife haha. making a lot of kids suits her too. in the story, ariel had six older sisters but for me that was simply too much, so i made it three + ariel.]

ariel . the little mermaid brindleton bay. kawai

You are just full of energy, and so curious to discover the world! Your family means well, but they are a little overprotective. But it doesn’t hurt to break just a few rules, right?? There is so much to explore and collect out there!

Start as a teenager

Have the clumsy and cheerful traits

Complete the collector’s aspiration

Mother must die before the end of childhood

Have a pool and swim in it everyday

Max dancing skill

Marry your teenage love but never have friendly interactions with them before marriage (Ariel is mute! So mischief pranks and romantic touches are okay, but try to avoid speaking with your love interest as much as you can.)

Have a collection room

Only have one daughter

[i didn’t have Island Living EP pack when i played this, so i made sure that cinderella’s husband was an alien lol. i imagined, instead of swimming in the ocean, they were swimming in the outer space. it’s a bit weird i know, but worked out fantastically well for my storyline! if you have Island Living go ahead and make them actual mermaids.]

jasmine . aladdin magnolia promenade. bohemian

After your mother’s death, you grew afraid of leaving the safety of your home for a while. You really enjoy a serene, peaceful lifestyle, but then again... Someone who interrupts it with crazy ups and downs might become the love of your life after all!

Start as a teenager

Have the loner and self-assured traits

Mother must die before the end of childhood

Have a tiger companion called Raja

Visit the flea market when it comes to town

Don’t leave house unless it’s for school until your first flea market

Marry a poor, criminal street rat OR someone who comes with the welcome wagon

Have a night travel with your partner, going places you never been to

Live with your partner’s alien best friend for a while, and he should control people’s minds (this a really good mod for improved aliens, giving them extra powers--if you have Realm of Magic GP, feel free to make the Genie a spellcaster instead)

Have kids until you get to a daughter

[you can find tigers in the gallery! simmers did a wonderful job creating very realistic tigers. this is not in the rules but my jasmine was really into yoga and self-care, pampering herself with aromatic baths etc. i think that fit very well. that’s partly why i chose magnolia promenade instead of oasis. i thought the latter would be too basic (agrabah desert=oasis desert), and jasmine’s life in the palace was so lush, so i thought some commercial town would work well for her pampered lifestyle.]

nala . the lion king oasis. girl next door

You and your best friend were always a handful as kids, on monkeybars, pirate ships, swings, running around, playing, screaming, and just having the good adventurous life overall. But now your bestie is gone... You miss them so much, but will the two of you ever come together again?

Start as a child

Have the adventurous and outdoor loving traits

Gain the responsible and empatethetic traits before becoming adult

Eat only grilled meat

Max out fitness skill

Spend your teenage years camping away from home

Marry your childhood best friend

Never see your childhood best friend during teenagehood

Have two kids

[it felt perfect for nala to be the born in a household with a tiger pet. she’s normally not counted as a typical disney princess (being an animal, lol), but the pinterest version adds her, and i found that really fun. if you have Jungle Adventure GP, feel free to incorporate that!]

aurora . sleeping beauty newcrest. minimalist

You were born with a serious illness (or was it a curse?...) and barely had a chance to meet your parents. In your small, peaceful life, you were still happy growing up, but will your illness come in the way of your finding love, or will love conquer all?

Start as a teenager

Have the lazy and good traits

Complete the soulmate aspiration

Live in seclusion with good friends of the family from toddler to young adulthood

Have a big birthday party for becoming a young adult

Die on your young adult birthday

Live as a ghost secluded in a room until ressurection

Your love interest should revive you

Max singing skill

Have only one daughter

[aurora in the film lives a very humble life with her fairy godmothers, so i thought minimalist aesthetic worked well for her. after she died, i revamped the house to make it look ruined and covered with vines; aurora’s ghost was trapped in the upper floor bedroom with no stairs going down. her lover was downstairs in the ruined house, working on creating ambrosia for weeks. this was my most romantic gen in this legacy.]

mulan mt. komorebi. boyfriend

Your parents are so in love with each other and are so happy to show it all the time that it kind of makes you sick. Your mother, believing that love can save someone from anything in the world, keeps urging you to find a partner ASAP. But that’s not what you want!! Maybe running from that and doing the exact opposite (SUCH AS JOINING THE ARMY) is what you need actually...

Start as a young adult

Have the unflirty and clumsy traits

Complete the military career

Has to accept every outing invitation until marriage

Hang out only with men during young adulthood

Marry a coworker

Max snowboarding skill

Climb the top of Mt Komorebi

Become famous

After completing all the other tasks, have a holiday named after you

Have three daughters

[i moved mulan into a military barrack before she reached the captain’s rank when she moved out to her own house. you can find some really cool barracks made by simmers in the gallery. i thought of this a bit too late, but if you wish, you can move mulan much earlier in the legacy so that your later gens coming after her can commemorate their ancestor on mulan day!]

belle . the beauty and the beast britechester. dark academia

Growing up, your household was hardly a center of culture and learning, and we can’t exactly say that your family lineage focused on higher education. But you always loved books, and dreamed about publishing your own works one day. Very well disciplined, you plan to go to university and accomplish amazing things, but who knows what fate keeps in store for you?

Start as a young adult

Have the bookworm and loner traits

Complete the academic aspiration

Turn down every outing invitation until marriage

Visit library twice a week until marriage

Finish a distinguished humanities degree in Britechester on an A GPA

Marry a werewolf

Help your spouse turn human

Live an isolated life with robots until your spouse becomes human again

Max out logic or flower arrangement skill

Have two daughters

[i’m still playing this gen! i don’t have much to say yet, but the robots are intended to stand for the living household objects in the film (the candelabra, clocks, tea wares, etc)]

alice . alice in wonderland sylvian glade. steampunk

You are a curious child with full--some might say crazy--imagination. Let’s go on an adventure into the past and discover what our grandmas were up to!

Start as a child and finish before turning a young adult.

Have the erratic trait

Find the hidden world in Oasis

Have a Chesire Cat

Have one big tea party

Stalk one person with white hair

Spend a night at each of the earlier Princess houses

[this is the 11th gen that i added as a nice postscript to the whole legacy. it’s intended to be only a half-gen. i plan to use a mod to live in sylvian glade.]

that’s it! i’m ending with a picture of belle at her university dorm for now since i haven’t got to alice yet. in the rest of the blog i’ll post more detailed photosets for each gen. i LOVED this story, so i can’t wait to share it with you!

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deathsmallcaps · 10 months

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Maybe it’s just because there’s only so many ways to draw a type of thing, but I have seven thoughts about Elemental (2023) after watching it again lol.

1. It showcases a lovely balanced relationship between artists. Ember, of course, has an eye and hand for glass making, and Wade sees the potential and ability she has; how her light shines through to the world and him, figuratively and literally. Meanwhile, Wade’s way with words is more subtle, but really reaches in deep and converts visual art into emotion; it takes a good writer and speaker to convey feeling into accessible ideas. And Ember recognizes his talent, and lets it touch her.

They bring light into each other’s lives; without each other, they were fine and functioning and almost happy, but when they have the other, that’s just the icing on the cake.

2. The art style looks worse without motion. Both characters are constantly unconsciously moving in every shot; Ember flickers and Wade drips. Plus, the way light works with them and around them doesn’t translate well to a still image (especially with Ember; it’s hard to draw without outline, and I think it helped with visibility and stability on the screen, but in stills it looks awkward.).

A lot of fan art I’m seeing seems to struggle with this outline/still problem, again more with Ember than with Wade, but a lot of artists have added their own spin and style and made it work. I think the problem is directly related to how it’s difficult to capture water, fire and light ‘sources’ like the moon via photo. So if the art style for that particular aspect is turning you off, and you’ve only seen stills, I’d suggest you watch a bit of video or a good gif set (there’s already quite a few) before deciding whether it’s worth watching or not.

3. Speaking of art, this movie really reminded me of Studio Ghibli movies. Maybe there’s only so many ways to draw something, or maybe it’s just the Howl’s Moving Castle (both book and film) and Ponyo fan in me, but Ember for sure took a lot of visual inspiration from Calcifer, it’s the red outline and such, and Wade the waves from Ponyo. It was fun to see! Also tbh I saw some Dr. Seuss CGI movie shapes in their bodies.

4. Ember and Burnie breaking the cycle. When Burnie left Fire Land for Element City, he was following his dreams (and he even started enough of a trend that his whole neighborhood because a new fire town). But his Sad disagreed with him. As a last attempt at connection, Burnie bowed a Bok Sa (sp?), a very deep bow, to his father, to show respect and love. His Dad did not return the gesture, spurning his son and his dreams, and turned away.

When Ember leaves for the glassblowing internship, she performed a Bok Sa for her Dad (and it’s so intimate guys. Like it’s almost embarrassing to look at because it’s raw and passionate and I really admire the creators for Not restraining it). Burnie sees a chance to show his daughter that he loves her, and that he respects her dreams (despite his and Cinder’s sacrifice of emigration from Fire Land, which is a big theme in this movie), and so he holds back the hurt his father laid upon him, so many years ago. He does a Bok S- back. It’s wonderful. I’m not sure he would’ve done that at the beginning of the movie, but his love for his daughter won out in the end.

(I just wish that the mother-daughter relationship received a little more canon consideration as well, but I appreciate the movie for the relations it did focus on.)

5. The city fucks up in a big way, and of course it’s up to the people affected to solve it, at least in the short term. Despite water being a huge hazard and supposedly already gotten rid of in fire town, there’s still a water train that passes regularly and always displaces enough water to kill a fire person. And in terms of the dam, there’s so much bureaucracy that Gale (the city safety officer?) found it easier to (nearly) shut down a business than to get a health hazard (the broken dam) fixed.

And when Ember covers up the hole, she leaves it! Her tempered glass doesn’t get support, and it eventually cracks and floods Fire Town, nearly killing lots of residents and leading to Wade’s evaporation.

6. Feel free to add on but I’m surprised that no globe has really talked about the disability angle yet. I i afraid I don’t have enough experience being physically disabled to talk about it in a nuanced enough way but oh well. It’s there. The way the fire people needed different transportation (also there was a fire person in a wheelchair. How things that are safe for others could kill them (Cinder nearly died while carrying ember because a guy dripped on her, which is a thing that others would find mildly inconvenient). How Wade’s nephew casually mentioned that Ember could die if she stepped off her mobility aid (the floatie) and proceeded to mess with it. And of course the shame, embarrassment and fear of being excluded & discriminated against.

7. More Men Should Cry!!! It literally saved Wade’s life lmao.

#elemental spoilers #elemental #elemental (2023)#pixar’s elemental #wade ripple #ember lumen #yes I have brain rot #also all the fire people (afaik) had lighter colored flares coming out of the corners of their eyes #the older ones had little crows feet red/dark orange lines too #it’s a nice touch #also I’m surprised that no one has really talked about the disability angle yet. I don’t think I have enough exp being physically disabled #to talk about it in a nuanced enough way but it’s there #the way the fire people needed different transportation (also there was a fire person in a wheelchair in one scene!)#how things that were safe for others could kill them (Cinder nearly died because a guy dropped on her which is a thing other people could #live with easily though they would be annoyed)#how Wade’s nephews messed with ember’s mobility device (a floatie) and flippantly mentioned show she could die without it #etc. and of course the shame fear and embarrassment of being excluded and discriminated against #which can be interpreted though so many lenses #AND

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tamelee · 10 months

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What are your thought about modern art? I know a lot of artists on the Internet absolutely hate modern art, and talk about it like it was the thing that was killing art in general.

Personally I don’t agree at all, I think contemporain art can bring very interesting concepts and experiments.

And usually the people I’ve seen criticizing contemporain art were the one who make an obsession about realism. Tbh I think realism is kinda overrated…

But I’m curious to hear about your opinion :D

Well, I don't think contemporary art equals a certain style anyway as it is made by people today. You see realism and abstract now as well as in our history (not photo-realism ofc.). The father of my mother (so my grandfather, but it feels weird to call him that as I never knew him) was a well-known painter here in the Netherlands and his art was very abstract with lots of colors and shapes. So what some refer to when they say 'modern' often in such discussions is mostly the more 'simple' styles where they criticize it and say "a child can make this" where the comeback is "but you didn't".. At times they refuse to call it art as it requires little to no skill. Where the actual skill doesn't really get the recognition anymore. That's when these concepts becomes experimental and it makes people talk. I guess AI in a way is part of that as well though still in a much lesser form, but a bigger issue.

If I put up a simple photo of a child depicted in a wooden box and said: "Look, isn't that great?!" You'd probably think I was out of my mind but if I told you that it was Chris Hadfield as a 9 y/o pretending the box was a space rocket because he had an ambition to become an astronaut and actually realized his dreams later- only then it becomes interesting. A picture itself doesn't always tell a story (it can) and in 'modern' art a lot of the time the same thing applies. Yes, like the taped up banana which earned the title; a piece of art.

Authenticity (as vague as that is) as told by Pine & Gilmore can actually be measured by something (a story or art etc-) being faithful to itself and/or whether it says what it is. (At least that's what we in general do when it comes to communication in business.) The banana obviously is just a banana and the creator of this absurdity said they were making fun of the person (multiple) spending 120k on a rotting banana and said they deserved to be scammed. Which fair, I don't necessarily agree with it, but in that sense, they're being true to the message. This is how you can measure most media and businesses because it almost always works. (It is a bit more complicated than this, but you get the idea.)

But here's the kicker, people, in this case 'artists' or people who call themselves one, idk, can give their creation whatever message they want despite the visuals. Though spending 120k on a rotting banana is most likely money laundering and the artist must know that as well.. so, to then say it's just 'funny critique' regarding art and capitalism and "believing" the buyer got scammed, changes the message a bit. Yes? How valuable is it then really?

Not all art has to have some deep value-driven meaning at all, but most 'modern' "art" pieces that require no skill need other ways to gain attention and do so by provoking the audience. Marcel Duchamp was called an artistic genius because he turned a urinal upside down.. a damn toilet.

How does that compare to an actual drawing where someone put their heart and soul into the making of it through perhaps even years of experience, where you can see the person has skill? Or the making of a sculpture? Even things like graphic/interior design? Have we realized what happened to photographers? If you want to talk about the toilet as 'a piece of art' or even a simplistic circle because to you ~somehow~ the meaning behind it changes the world, then bring it along to your TED-talk and actually talk about it. Become that storyteller. It is proven that through the PSE (picture superiority effect) visual elements leave a lot more impact on your audience compared to just text or speech and that you remember it better by 65%. But to replace masterpieces in art galleries and auction them off for thousands/millions worth that we know goes also into money laundering regardless and call it art? And there must be some sort of meaning.... I guess? Nah. I have no clue what 'killed art' specifically because I'm not too knowledgable on that topic, but if this is art, then why aren't we calling your average Tiktokker professional movie directors/actors etc? Why isn't your YT-short or Tiktok clip an actual short film instead? How about calling this "thought-provoking art" just a concept as you say? Or the jpg that I forgot to include in my powerpoint? Comedic relief? An idea? And yes ideas can be art, but not every idea is art. AI images are generated prompts, but certainly not art and their makers are prompters and definitely not artists. So I agree with you that it can be experimental or perhaps provoke interesting concepts, but depending on the... 'art' and its intention... we should call it as it is. That's what I think. Perhaps 'modern art' in that sense as a term is too broad to judge.

So when you say realism, do you mean hyper/photo-realism specifically? Or just realism in general? Because as an artist my own opinion is that I wouldn't want to draw photorealistically as it takes too much time and if people can't tell whether I actually used up all my time to draw it or took the photo, even used photo-bash.. then for me, I don't really see the point in putting in all the effort. But, it is an amazing way to learn how to draw though, that's how I started. Looking at photo's and replicating it. In my earlier art I tried to render it to the best of my abilities as I had no idea how to draw so I had to look at pictures and see how light falls, how colors blend, what skin does and how it reflects.. On Instagram I often got comments that it looked so real, like a photo. I didn't know what to think of that, because even though it is a compliment, it wasn't a photo, I actually drew it and so it almost feels like an insult somehow. Does that make sense? I now want to almost erase parts of what I've learned when it comes to things feeling 'real' and stylize my art better. That's not something you learn in photo's but by finding out a tiny thing you like and then doing that over and over again until the next tiny thing. And lemme tell you... that is hard. So, I don't think realism is overrated, I think stylized art, often recognizable from an artist is severely underrated.

#asktamelee #art talk

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humberg · 1 year

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💕 self-love time! talk about which ones of YOUR creations (edits, artworks, fanfics) you like the most then send to other creators to do the same 💕

This is such a neat idea! Thank you for sending this to me!

Amongst all the chaos and ideas that I have going through my head I currently have two creations that are on going that I’m liking the most.

Obviously both of them are Kerry related 🤷‍♂️ 😂

But I think overall it has to be this VP of Kerry from my ongoing series of exploring Kerry’s mental health. This was one of the first photos I had taken and it turned out to be one of the most powerful capturing the raw emotion and depth in his eyes.

Mental health has always been an important part of my life. I’m open to share that I’ve been struggling with my mental health, quite recently actually. I’ve had ongoing depression and anxiety, and I found that the thing that distracted and comforted me the most was the idea of having Kerry as my muse to express and kind of educate people around the stigma of mental health, as it was clear Kerry also struggled with his mental health in game. It’s such a delicate and fragile thing, something that not many people like to talk about and it’s something I believe we should all be aware of and kind of embrace. So, the current series with Kerry is actually things that I have experienced and occasionally still experience myself. I’ve done 3 now, and I plan to do more but it’s a lot of trial and error as I’m still very much new to Virtual photography :)

And on the flip side, my other current pride and joy is Kerry’s new fashion show 🫶

It was a pure accident, I originally wanted to draw Kerry in comfy clothes with the V in the background, and I’ve kind of fallen in the Pinterest rabbit hole with all the posed outfits I came across. Just something for a little bit of fun for when I find time amongst both working and daily errands etc.

I mean, who doesn’t want to see Kerry run the cat walk?!

#thank you for sending this over to me!#Im not sure who to tag but if anyone else wants to have a go at this for themselves I would love to see!#this was a lot of fun!#kerry eurodyne #cyberpunk 2077 #cyberpunk kerry #cyberpunk 2077 fanart

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tumblezwei · 1 year

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I’m so tired of creators thinking adult animation has to be nothing but crude humor and shock value. Velma feels so unnecessarily mean-spirited and disrespectful to the IP. This show has no right to use the Scooby-Doo concept the way it did. If it had been an original premise it probably still would’ve been bad but less offensive than stripping away everything about SD that people love. Also hilarious how Norville gives a crap about being a beta when Shaggy had multiple girlfriends across series.

The thing that sucks about it the most is that it's entered the right-wing grifter arsenal of "woke show = bad"

As much as I'd love to get actual thoughtful critique on the show, I know that for the most part it'll be red text on black background YouTube thumbnails that think the only critique even needed is that they made Velma poc.

It aside from that, yeah. It really does feel like the creators of this show don't really give a shit about Scooby Doo. It's like they kust looked at a photo of the gang and here like "well Fred's the white man so he's gotta be the asshole narcissist, Shaggy gets paired with Velma sometimes in other shows so let's just make him a reddit incel about it, Daphne isn't white now so she can't be rich" like it's weird a little bit.

Also one last thing but imo Shaggy having girlfriends before isn't really an argument I like to use against the "beta male" characterization. Like yeah girls have liked him but I'd still dislike what they did even if they hadn't. Because Shaggy is just a dude! He's a loyal fun loving dude who's confident in himself and does the most to enjoy his life how he wants. The part of the characterization I dislike is how they've made him so unlike himself in that regard.

#ask #anon #discourse tag

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akihabara-division03 · 9 months

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Makina’s Thoughts on Otaku Corps

Keiko Yumi

“Shian told me a bit about Yumi. I like some of her mangas, to be honest. She makes good content but I’m not super familiar with the content creator. I’ve seen her in passing, though. She’s pretty chill, but it always felt like there’s this weird standoffish thing about her. But after what Shian’s told me, maybe we’re not so different from each other.”

Criss Hiromi

“Ghost Girl? I’ve seen her videos before, they’re pretty fun. I’m a huge fan of horror games, and her content is entertaining. I mean… her personality on the internet is fun… but it’s kind of a pain in the ass offline… not like I leave the house enough to run into her.”

Nikki Yoshie

“I do look up to Nikki-san. I don’t often stream MOBAs since I prefer FPS and horror games, but we’ve played on the same teams and have battled each other before. She’s a good one… she always lasts the longest and I hate her for that. I mean that with much love and I’m kinda glad to know we got a good opponent. It’ll be nice to duel it out in the DRB prelims.”

Otaku Corps

“No hard feelings to anyone on this team, I do like them. But… I owe it to Anika to have our team live through the tournament. Plus my pride is on the line, so I don’t plan on losing. Not in video games…” Makina pushed the photos away from her, watching as they flew off the table. “And not the in the DRB.”

#hypnosis mic #hypnosis mic oc #hypmic #hypmic oc #hypnosis mic arb #hypmic arb #akihabara division #otaku corps #keiko yumi #criss hiromi #nikki yoshie #pixel syndicate #makina setsukura

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mknight0000 · 11 months

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The Great Cake Debacle- Cross Dimensional Answers Short Story

A/N: FINALLY!!!!!!!!!! Here is a little short story of my OCs from my Last Legacy rewrite. This takes place before the events of the rewrite but overall I had a ton of fun writing this.

As always, would love feedback if you have any for me. Please feel free to send me asks about my OC or the rewrite in general. Enjoy!!

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-Word Count: 1134

-Warnings: Swearing, Mentions of Food, Probably poor grammar (I try to proof read but my mind jumps a lot sooooo),

-Creators: Dev (creator and writer), Ciel (sprites, cgs, illustrations), Hika (bgs, illustrations, gfx), Lulu (writer), and Grace (writer)

-Carrd Link

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The yellow light flickers in the off-white-tiled kitchen, grout that hasn’t been cleaned in a hot minute separating each square. The white fridge hums, loud and clear, almost as if one could hear it when walking in from the front door. Brown, oakwood, cabinets hang from the wall, filled with mismatched plates, bowls, cups, spices, medicines, and whatever items needed to be stored hastily. It is most definitely not a kitchen one would see in the after photos of those famous remodeling shows, but it is perfect for Timothy and Megan.

Tim walks into the door, drops his keys off on the little table by the front door, takes off his shoes, and throws his uniform jacket onto the coat hanger. His eyes drag towards the pendulum clock that hangs on the wall, the two-dollar sticker from the flea market still on the bottom of it. 3:47 p.m. it reads. His bloodshot eyes look towards the kitchen. After a rough day at school, he figures he should reward himself so he makes his way toward the humming fridge. He passes the jigsaw-furnished living room. A poster of two beings from another world hangs from the walls, signed by the creator of the game Megan loves. It is one of her prized possessions. How she is into that game, he’ll never know, but it makes her happy. That’s all that matters.

Tim steps into the kitchen, and makes his way to the cold machine attached to the wall, opening its door. The light from the fridge illuminates his face, tired and exhausted from the countless exams and the head-ache-inducing lights. Looking at the various choices, he picks up a container holding a particularly delicious chocolate cake, covered in a rich chocolate frosting. Tim grabs the cake, and takes it to the kitchen counter, grabbing a fork from their designated utensil drawer, and taking one bite after another, savoring each one.

Tim finishes up the cake and recycles the container. Just as he finished rinsing off the fork, Megan walks into the door, clearly in the same exhausted state as her brother, coming back from work.

Tim turns around and asks, “How was work today?”

“Grueling as usual. Doesn’t help that the coffee shop across the street just closed so there are just more shitty customers to deal with,” she states, with clear disdain for her job.

“Damn, I’m sorry. Hopefully, you can find something you enjoy doing soon.”

She gives him a small smile. “Yeah, me too. Doesn’t help that the jobs available right now all suck, but as long as this paycheck keeps the bills paid, we’ll be fine,”

She goes over and opens the fridge that Tim had just rummaged through. It is then that Tim realizes he just made a mistake. A grave mistake. A mistake that he may not be able to come back from. In his tired state, he did not register that the cake he just ate down to the last crumb, was his sister’s cake from the other night.

He tenses a bit and watches as Megan looks for the cake.

Megan registers that the cake is not where she thought she put it but does not want to ask Tim if he knows where it is. He wouldn’t know where it is anyways. She closes the fridge and decides to look in the cabinets. Sure she could ask him, but she is notorious for being forgetful about where she places things. She loves her brothers and she knows their teasing about her forgetfulness is nothing but sibling banter, but it's not something she can deal with at the moment. So, she continues with her search. She looks through all the cabinets and even goes into her room to try to find the cake. Tim is still standing by the sink, guilt coated over his face. But he still does not speak up.

Megan walks back into the kitchen and stands there, frustrated and hungry, but then remembers something she has to do. It is Tuesday evening, meaning recycling comes tomorrow. So she approaches the recycling bin, reaching down to take it out. Tim realizes what she is doing, and turns around, away from her, focusing on the plate sitting in the sink, waiting for it to be cleaned, waiting for the impending doom.

Before she closes the bag, she notices something familiar and pulls it out to investigate it. On the plastic container, there is a price tag, detailing what was in the container.

Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Frosting- $3.99

However, this container did not contain a chocolate cake, it was empty. Obviously, when she bought the delicious dessert, there was a slice in it.

“Tim?” she asks, turning around to face her brother, holding up the container.

He turns slowly, guilt painted on his face. He gives his sister a weak smile.

“Yes?”

“Care to explain why this container that had cake in it, doesn’t anymore?”

He moves his eyes around, trying to find a possible out for the situation.

“Would you believe me if I said that a magical cat-man was in here like five minutes ago and stole the cake?”

Megan glares at him. Clear as to what her answer is.

“Okay, fine, I ate it without realizing it was yours. I’m sorry. On my way home from school tomorrow, I can get you another slice. How does that sound?” he asks her, clearly feeling terrible about the whole situation.

“Fine,” she states, punctuating her response by throwing the container back in with the other recyclables. “Just make sure it’s the slices from Benji’s Shop, and also pick up some sticky notes while you're there as well, I have a feeling I’ll need some anyways.”

She leaves the kitchen, and Tim decides to go into the living room and lay down on the couch. Megan joins him soon after, both of them sitting in comfortable silence.

“Is Andy and James coming over for dinner tonight?” Tim asks.

“No, they are going on a date,” she answers, “but they said they are able to come tomorrow. I was actually going to ask what you wanted to have tonight, maybe even get something from the pizza place at the end of the block, but since you pulled that little stunt earlier, I think I’ll just get something for myself.”

Tim turns to Megan, eyes filled with a pleading stare, and she smirks back, amusement clear on her face.

“Just messing with you, we’ll get some pizza.”

Tim celebrates briefly and falls back onto the couch as silence fills the room once again.

Sometimes it's tough for the two of them, what with their current situation, but they know they’ll get through it. As long as they have each other, cake disasters and all.

#last legacy #fictif #sage lesath #OC #oc x sage lesath #cross dimensional answers #writing #fanfic

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