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lesyasun · 2 years

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◆ 200 Essential Sims 2 Mods, Defaults and Fixes ◆

I have just reinstalled my game and currently reorganizing downloads folder. I thought that it could be helpful to share the resources that I use. If you're starting over just like me, good luck! We can do it :D

All the mods are listed in the random order. But important ones go first. I also added tiny descriptions of what each mod does. Also, let me know if you notice that some of these mods conflict. I’ll appreciate ♥

This is an endless list, so I’m hiding the part of it under the cut. I also decided to share the PDF and word version of the list for convenience. Have fun! ♥

◆ DOWNLOAD ◆

Clean UI - changes user interface to minimalistic and modern one.

Clean UI for Bodyshop - the same style interface for Bodyshop.

Bodyshop Brightening - redefines the lighting used in BodyShop. Must be put in Documents/EA Games/The sims 2/Config folder!

Minimalist Bodyshop Background - put in the Documents/EA Games/The Sims 2 folder and click F5 when you are in Bodyshop.

Minimalistic Logo Screen

No Pause Frame - removes the red frame that appears when the game is paused.

Default book covers and novel icons

Better Bubbles - replaces the default blurry low-resolution Chat, Thought and Yell Headline Bubbles with brand new high-quality textures.

Talk to Me - a speech icon replacement mod that replaces (almost) all speech icons with TS4 icons.

Camera Mod Compilation

Widescreen Camera Cas

Maxis Match Lighting Mod by Dreadpirate

Maxis Roofs Default Replacement by Curiousb4

Clean Neighbourhood Templates by Jawusa - these neighborhood templates allow to create clean custom neighborhoods with no Townies/NPCs or if you want to play in EA's neighborhoods, but without the playables.

Clean and Empty Stealth Hood Plates by Jawusa - allow to get rid of Maxis families that appear in neighbourhood's bin.

Rural Charm terrain and road default replacement by Criquette

Linden HOOD Trees Replacement

Birch HOOD Trees Replacement by Sixfootsims4

Pine HOOD Trees Replacement

Palm HOOD Trees Replacement by Anima

Redbud HOOD Tree Replacement by Suratan-zir

Ginko HOOD Tree Replacement by Suratan-zir

Lowedeus HOOD skies + by Zena-dew-drop + by iCAD + by iCAD#2 + by iCAD#3 + by iCAD#4 + by iCAD#5 + by iCAD#6 - hood sky replacement which also can be seen from the hood view. Some of them have animated clouds!

Seasons Skylines - a custom objects that adds more realistic background in a hood view

No More Bluriness by Simnopke - replaces snow and beach textures into HQ.

Moon Replacement by Simnopke

Sun Replacement by Lowedeus

Neighbourhood decorations can be placed anywhere - enables neighborhood deco to be placed on/overlapping lots

No Rocks Hood Deco Mod - gets rid of those deco rocks that serve as placeholders when using certain hood deco.

Sim Shadow Fix - fixes Sims' shadows shown as black rectangles.

ACR - makes all the romantic interactions autonomous.

Pregnancy Wear Any Outfit - allows your sims to wear any outfit instead of maternity clothes. If the outfit hasn't got a pregnancy morph, it will appear on a sim without a pregnant belly.

Community Time Project - enables the passing of time on community lots to be spent on the home lot. When your sims come home from the community lot, they won't travel back in time as in vanila game.

Simblender - can teleport sims onto your lot, set family relationships, move sims in, make townies, give skill points, set career levels and more

No Plumbobs - removes plumbobs above sims heads and in hood view above lots too.

Sims 2 Sliders - various extra sliders for Sims faces in CAS. I have most of them except for asymmetry ones.

Invisible Stop Signs – makes the stop signs in the hood view invisible

Busy Roads NH Traffic Default Replacement - replaces Maxis’ neighborhood cars

OMSPs - special tiny shelves that add extra slots for clutter

White Roof Trim Replacement

White Floor Edge

White Wall Top

Antiredundancy - spawns one NPC per type instead of 3.

No Townie Regen - doesn't allow the game to spawn new townies when you create a clean hood

Breadfruit Tree Fix - yes, it’s a very important fix that must be in top 50 :D Maxis Breadfruit Tree is broken and when the lightning strikes it, the fire effect never goes away. This is so annoyiiing.

Build/Buy Mode Enabled on Community Lots

Community Skilling - enables your sims get skill points on community lots. By default they can’t gain them.

Sleep on Community Lots

Business Runs You - it will manage the employees, making them take breaks automatically, giving them reasonable wages automatically, etc

Autoyak - adds phone options to call friends. Automatically picks and chooses existing friends and calls until relations are repaired. This mode is required for the Business mod above.

Autosoc (AL directory) - adds "automatic socializing" to your sims. Sims will automatically use (un)friendly/romantic interactions to boost their relationships quickly.

Bathroomusesyou - handles many configurations of bathroom usage.

Macrotastics - tons of shiny features for automating tedious and repetitive gameplay, including motive-maintenance, businesses, socializing, and skilling.

Lighten Up! A Mod for Brighter Computer Screens

Custom Computer Screens

Sims play Sims 4 instead of SSX

Sims 3 TV Shows default

Day Setter - allows to set any day of the week. Can be useful when you move out sims.

Painting Easels by AnoeskaB - adds new easels and canvas sizes.

Exercise Equality - a fix that makes all the exercise machine equally used when they are used autonomously.

Exercise Tweaks - fixes energy drain for some machines/activities.

Batbox - there are many fixes. But I mostly use it to fix First-Born Syndrome. It’s a bug that causes all children born to the same 2 parents to look exactly the same. Save your game. Pick "Fix..." and then "Rerandomize Sim Generator." The game will boot you out of the lot, which is why you need to save the game first. Go back to the lot and give birth.

LTW Variety - lifetime wants for careers are no longer strictly aspirationally correlated, and will instead vary by appropriate interests and personality.

Physiology Fix - fixes the broken physiology skill that makes your Sims gain body skill points instantly.

Maxis Modular Stairs Passage Fix - sims can walk under modular stairs.

No 20k Handouts - eliminates the magic 20K handout when a sim moves out or graduates from college.

No Eat Crap - Sims will talk considerably less when eating, especially if they are in a hurry (because they're tired, starving, need to pee, have more orders.

No More Leafy Plantsim Hair

No Memory Uneducated - your sims won’t get a bad memory about not going to college when they grow up into adults.

No Quitting - prevents employees from quitting just because you didn't read their mind and realize they wanted a raise. They will complain but won't actually quit.

Nossrespawn - eliminates respawning of Secret Society members.

Townie No Memory Loss - prevents the game from erasing townie's memories when you marry them or move them in to your house.

Perfect Plants - gardens & shrubs will always stay in perfect condition.

Pet Coats Enabled All Ages - kittens and Puppies with patterns! ^_^

Pets and Children Share Bed - allows Pets and Children to use the bed at the same time.

No Rod Humble - this mod will nix Rod Humble from coming to your lots, and dropping off presents filled with computers. EDIT: This mod seems to conflict with Visitor Controller. Use this one instead.

Rug Fix - allows to place Maxis rugs diagonally or off grid.

Same Sex Marriage - replaces Joined Unions with Marriage for same sex couples. Includes relevant wants, fears, and memories.

Separate Top/Bottoms for non-Everyday Clothes Mod

"Shop-at-home" Hacked Coat Hook - allows to buy clothes at home.

Gussy Up Mod - allows to change your sims and townies/NPCs appearance and clothes for each category.

Simply Leftovers - allows your sim to put away leftovers as single plates instead of a whole dish.

Slot Enable Package - enables additional slots on the Maxis counters

Smarter Ep Check - the mod itself does nothing but requires for many mods by Cyjon5.

Television Placement Mod - allows to adjust the height of TVs

Watch TV from All Chairs - allows sims to watch TV from 45 degrees angled chairs.

Townie Apartment Residents - apartment neighbors and roommates will be chosen from the townie pool rather than social groups.

Traits Project - adds extra traits to your sims. The traits are objects that must be put into your sims inventories. Some of the traits are actually not just pictures and can influence sims’ behavior.

Use Inaccessible Beds - lets your sims get into a double bed where one side is against a wall.

Centerpiece Enabler for Maxis Small Objects

Equal Genetics - changes genetic rules for eyes and hair. It allowes recessive eye/hair colours to overcome dominant ones.

No More "Dance Face" - fixes the stuck confused face animation.

Pregnancy for All Genders

Same energy gain for any bed

Smart Beds - makes sims smarter about bed usage

School Vacation Mod - kids won’t go to school in summer and winter. EDIT: Unfortunately, doesn’t work for me.

Sunbathe Anywhere

Build Sandcastles Anywhere

Visitor Controller - allows to ban or control certain sims groups on community lots

Turn On and Offs Replacement

Zodiac compatibility overhaul

Personality Please! - opens up the more extreme personality interactions and animations (usually only available to sims with 0-1 and 9-10 points in a certain personality) to more sims by changing the threshold to 0-2 and 8-10, respectively, and other fixes.

Go Steady for Adults + Last Name Dialog

Visitor Snacking Fix - visiting sims will no longer raid the fridge for snacks during parties if other food is available.

Interest Age Mod - now all sims’ interest levels are truly random and not dependent on their age stage.

University Lifetime Wants (uni_ltws) - enables University career LTWs.

Sim Transformer - turns your sim into any supernatural.

Freezer Clock - this object will allow you to stop the time in the sim world and/or freeze a sim individually in a middle of an animation sequence. Useful for portraits.

Abort Bed Making - fixes the issue where once a Sim has "Make Bed" you can't cancel it (they won't stop moving, they just have to do it).

Age Transition Teens Keep Love - stops teens from losing their crushes/loves when age transitioning to adult/YA.

Antidateflowers - resident sims no longer drop off date flowers on their own doorsteps.

Glowing Desserts Fix - baked alaska (from the base game) and crepes suzette (from Nightlife) don’t glow after you load a lot or take them out of a Sim’s inventory or a fridge.

Community Lot Arrival Delay Fix - your sims will always be the first to arrive, and other visiting sims will start to appear shortly after.

No Welcome Home Hug - prevents kids from autonomously hugging their parents when they arrive from work.

Brighter Autumn Leaves

Bring Hobby Friends From Work Fix - fixes bug that causes a sim to bring the same Hobby Friend home from work EVERY DAY for the rest of their lives.

Arms at Side poses for BodyShop - in BodyShop, the thumbnail poses show the arms at the sides, but the poses used inside BodyShop are with the hands-on-hips.

Default replacement noses for cats

Chinese&CoffeeSitDownFix - sims will now look for somewhere to sit down other than just the room they are in when eating chinese food or pizza, or drinking coffee/espresso, juice, or an instant meal.

Apartment Buttlers - butlers and nannies can now enter the apartments of the people who hired them.

Call NPCs - reverts a "fix" made in FreeTime that prevents sims from calling almost all NPCs.

Fewer Tourists - the game is hard-coded to expect 12 tourist families of 4+ members each. If it doesn't find that, it gets annoyed and pouts by not generating tourists at all.

Genie Initialization Fix - fixes a critical EA bug regarding genie creation.

No Auto Urn Cleanup - prevents sims from cleaning up urns autonomously.

No Neutral Spell Alignment Shift - neutral spells such as Cleanius Corpus and Creatum Nutrimens won't cause any alignment shift.

Plantbaby Changes - plantbabies now get only half the skills of the parent sim.

Reputation New Friend Fix - fixes a reputation rewards bug where the game overwrites a variable, potentially befriending sims like Baby New Year.

There Can Be Only One Professor - game will generate one rather than two professors for each major. Gender will be random.

Community Phonebooth Replacement

Community Lot Parties - allows you to throw any party at any time on any lot.

Dazzle No Motive Loss - this mod prevents motive loss when using Dazzle interaction it adds energy instead of subtracting it.

Desk Locator - makes your sims to put their homework on a certain desk and not drop it on the floor. + some mesh recolours.

Pregnancy Controller Fix - removes unused and excess Pregnancy Controllers from your lot. All they do is bloat your saved game files and slightly slow down your game.

Leaf Pile Fix - if you tell a Sim to rake leaves, they will stop at one pile instead of continuing with more piles if they aren't having motive failure issues. This mod fixes that.

Default Glass Doors and Windows by Slig - fixes Maxis blue glass.

Put Your Books Away - sims will not drop the books on the floor after they finish reading them.

"Talk About Hobby" Want Fix - with this mod, the Talk About Hobby want is not fulfilled when the other Sim rejects the interaction.

Toddler Pet Stroke - toddlers can now use a cute stroking interaction on pets.

First Kiss Interaction Enabled - enables first kiss to be used any time you wish as long as the relationship score is high enough between your sims.

Food Already Available - before a Sim decides to cook or take a snack autonomously, the game checks if there's food already available on the lot. If so, it prevents them from doing it.

Front Door Hack - deliverypersons should no longer be irresistably drawn to the inaccessible door of the mausoleum in the backyard when making their deliveries. Garage doors are not considered front doors regardless of level.

Blocked Doors Can Close - doors that stay open because they are blocked by objects on the same tile are able to close with this hack.

Gypsy Matchmaker Fix - allows to interact with Matchmaker on a community lot.

Mean Interactions to Any Age - enables mean interactions for teens towards adults/elders and vice versa. Now teens can argue/be argued, tease/be teased, annoy/be annoyed, gross out/be grossed out and fight with anyone older than them.

Random Stereo Station - makes newly bought stereos choose a random station when being turned on for the first time instead of always choosing salsa.

Accessible toddler high chairs - allows sims to access any high chair from left and right sides and also access diagonally placed highchairs.

Already in Crib Fix - this is for the problem of parents and nannies getting babies and toddlers out of one crib only to place them in another.

Kittens and Puppies Eyes Fix - fixes the bug when new born kittens and puppies do not use default eyes.

Children can get cereal from fridges

Timing Fix - fixes broken aging or aspiration decay or any other timed event not working in certain lots/neighborhoods.

Transparency Fix - will prevent Sims from randomly getting broken transparency.

Pie Menu Strings Text Fix - fixes broken pie menus plagued with redundant functions, grammar mistakes and missing translations.

Look at Me Now - makes your sims look straight at you. Useful for posed screenshots.

FX Cube Default Replacement - this is a small package with replacement for fx cube, that shows only in nhood decorating mode and disappear in other modes, so it’s very useful for skyboxes and skylines.

Less Square Water Lilies Default

Baby Bottles From Mini-Fridges - sims can now grab baby bottles from the University minifridge.

Listen to Music - allows your sim to listen to music from chairs/armchairs.

Ladybug Extender - now ladybug loft can protect more squares from the bugs in your garden.

Nobabyharassment - sims spend less time around toddlers/babies and don't try to bathe them for 57th time in a row10.

No Dishes in the Bathroom - sims will not autonomously wash the dishes in bathroom sinks.

No Corrupt Death - the formation of the corrupted death memory, as seen in gossip of the form "jagged lines", "tombstone", "dead Sim", is now suppressed.

No Drop Tired Baby - eliminates pointless dropping of tired babies and toddlers.

No Reassign - attempts by non-selectable sims to reassign workers are ignored. Managers and community lot owners will not be able to randomly reassign workers when not controllable.

No Road Pillows - sims may no longer hold pillowfights in the road: The target must nowbe in the same room, and a nearby bed in the room is required.

Studio Lamp - the best lighting for portraits.

Mixedup Background Rug - the plain background for portraits of your sims. Some recolours in Curiousb Colours + Aelia's Retro, Jewels and Autumn colours, Pooklet's Unnaturals + Anna's Colours + Nyren's Colours.

Basic CAS Background

Prettier Bubble Bath Texture Default

Level Numbers Added to Job Titles

Phonehack

Plant Fixes - seasonal maxis plants fixes + some texture defaults.

No More Stupid Werewolf Hair

No Maid Hair - allows female maids to spawn with a random hairstyle.

Buyable Aspiration and Career Rewards

"Select your cemetery" after sims died - fixes the bug when last sim died on apartment lot, his/her urn/tombstone is sended on random community lot.

Mirrors Go Down with Walls

“Ask Sim on Date” by Phone Want Fix - with this mod, the Ask [Sim] on Date want is not fulfilled when a Sim you ask out on date by phone rejects the invitation.

Couples Counseling Icon Fix - replaces the icon of the Learned Couples Counseling memory, which originally has broken transparency, with almost the same icon of the Reunited With [Sim] memory, which is not broken.

Crepes Suzette Fix - this mod fixes the serving plate with crepes suzette. By default, it looks empty when there’s one crepe on it, and a crepe shows up on it when it’s actually empty. Now, it looks empty if it’s empty, and a crepe shows up if there’s a crepe on it.

Exercise Bike Fix - fixes various problems with the Exerto Super Exercise Bike.

Glowing Computer Fix - turned off computers don’t glow as if they were turned on, each time you have loaded a lot, or taken them out of a Sim’s inventory.

Go Under Spiral Stairs - with this mod, Sims can go (and you can also place objects) under the highest part of newly bought spiral stairs.

Half Wall Fixes - fixes meshes of half walls' rails and posts.

Insects Sanity - a bunch of mods that make insects sensitive to weather and environment, and make insect-related interactions more reasonable.

Jump Rope Outside.

Memories About Roommates Fix

No Greetings NPCs - gypsy matchmakers (from Nightlife) and Garden Club members (from Seasons) don't come to greet your Sims and present themselves whenever you play a particular family for the first time or right after you have installed an expansion pack that introduces one of those NPCs.

No University Aspiration Change - with this mod, the game doesn’t ask you if you want to change your Sim’s aspiration, right after they have finished their sophomore year.

Passers Dress Properly for Cold

Smooth Firefly Jar Light Animation

Basketball Fix - fixes the lot view of the basketball court.

Marriage Postmortem - the marriage "spouse" line is no longer automatically disconnected after death.

Functional Yoga Mat

"AnyCounter" Espresso Bar Station - invisible espresso bar counter.

In-And-Out Invisible Pool Spot - sims can dive in the pool from the floor anytime they want : no need to go all the way to the ladder or diving board to get in the pool, they can also get out without a ladder, and big dogs can swim in the pool, too.

Visitors can't take from Money Tree

Eat More Talk Less - will completely bypass the conversation if the sims is in desperation for energy, hunger, fun or bladder, or is in a bad mood. Sims with maxed social will talk less.

Better Phone Messages - replaces the pointlessly nasty telephone messages with more courteous ones. It also adds the feature that when the sim you are calling isn't home because of work or school, it will tell you when they will return.

Diagonal Easel Mod

Maxis Premade Sim Templates Hider - hides Maxis sims templates in Bodyshop and CAS.

#ts2 #the sims 2 #sims 2 #sims 2 maxis match #lesya2022ts2restart #sims 2 mods #sims 2 mods compilation

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groupfazza · 1 year

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حمدان بن محمد يعتمد موعد النسخة 32 لكرنفال القفال خلال الفترة من 26-28 مايو الجاري 🔻

اعتمد سمو الشيخ حمدان بن محمد بن راشد آل مكتوم، ولي عهد دبي رئيس المجلس التنفيذي لإمارة دبي الفترة من 26-28 مايو الجاري موعداً لانطلاق سباق القفال للمسافات الطويلة من جزيرة صير بونعير وحتى شواطئ دبي والمخصص للسفن الشراعية المحلية 60 قدما، والذي ينظّمه نادي دبي الدولي للرياضات البحرية في ختام فعاليات الموسم الرياضي البحري 2022-2023.  وتأتي إقامة السباق العريق في إطار حرص سموه على نشر ثقافة الحفاظ على الرياضات التراثية استمراراً لنهج المغفور له بإذن الله الشيخ حمدان بن راشد آل مكتوم -طيّب الله ثراه- الذي دشّن السباق في العام 1991 من أجل صون الإرث الثقافي وإحياء تراث الآباء.  وأكد سمو ولي عهد دبي أن تزايد أعداد المشاركين في هذا السباق التراثي الكبير عاماً تلو آخر، يعكس قيمته ومكانته في المجتمع الإماراتي، إذ يجمع السباق مختلف فئاته للاحتفاء بالموروث الثقافي والاجتماعي العريق لدولة الإمارات.  ووجه سموّه اللجنة العليا المنظّمة لسباق القفال بتسهيل مهمة المشاركين كما وجّه بتعاون كافة الجهات المعنية لإنجاح كافة مراحل السباق الكبير الذي سينطلق من عمق مياه الخليج العربي من جزيرة صير بونعير مروراً بجزيرة القمر وصولاً إلى شواطئ دبي لمسافة تزيد عن 50 ميلاً بحرياً، لإخراج هذه الاحتفالية التراثية على الوجه الأمثل.  ودعا سمو الشيخ حمدان بن محمد بن راشد آل مكتوم جميع المشاركين في السباق من لجان تنظيمية ولجان معاونة وشركاء وداعمين ومُلّاك ونواخذة وبحارة إلى التعاون في إنجاح الحدث لاستمرار السباق على الصورة المشرفة التي جعلته حدثاً يترقبّه الجميع في هذا الوقت من كل عام.

His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, has approved the dates of the 32nd Al Gaffal Long Distance Race dedicated to traditional 60-feet sailing ships. The heritage sport event will take place from 26 to 28 May.  Organised annually by the Dubai International Marine Club, the event takes place at the end of the marine sports season. Sheikh Hamdan noted that the iconic annual race has made significant contributions to reviving the UAE’s marine heritage. The race, which has grown in popularity over the years, celebrates the role the sea has played in the society, culture and economy of the nation throughout its past.  His Highness directed the Higher Organising Committee of the event to ensure the seamless organisation of the tournament, which will chart a course of 50 nautical miles starting from Sir Bu Nair Island, passing through Crescent Moon Island, and ending on the shores of Dubai. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed urged all those involved in the event to work together to ensure the success of the event.

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crossovershipstournament · 11 months

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SIDE 2B: ROUND 1: Gyro Gearloose (Ducktales 2017)/Hazel Rainart (RWBY) VS Sally “Thorn” McKnight (Scooby Doo Franchise)/Skwisgaar Skwigelf (Metalocalypse)

Propaganda for Gyro Gearloose/Hazel Rainart:

Final DTLS ship of the tournament, and the icon of this blog! One's a murderer who can shapeshift into a 'werewolf' (it's not just during the full moon, it's just something he can do due to in-universe reasons) and has healing abilities. The other is a grouchy scientist who has been put through the wringer by life, and a few specific persons. Originally, Gyro was just supposed to keep Hazel and the Murder Kids (Mercury and Emerald) at the bin as a means of hiding them from Salem and also keeping them out of James' and everyone else's hair (they do not like him because of the aforementioned murder).

Surely a gay scientist would be wise enough to know the dangers of falling in love with a big, beautiful man who is currently living in his house and would be able to restrain himself.

...We can guess what happened next.

Anyway, through further shenanigans, they get together and have actually been together for a while now. Also they have joint custody of a pair of twin girls with James and Qrow (that's a LONG story, so much happens in this AU). They're a completely unexpected pair, both in-universe and outside it, but they're actually very sweet together. Which is fun, because we call them Salty and Sweet.

Propaganda for Sally “Thorn” McKnight/Skwisgaar Skwigelf:

Okay I admit I might possibly be the first and so far only person to do this since I only came up with one fairly recently (in a post that kind of flopped hard) but honestly it kind of tracks and does open up fan fix possibilities: both belong to Warner-backed virtual bands, both are guitarists, and both are neo-pagan to a degree (Wiccan and being into Norse mythology to an almost literally religious extent). Even if with that said there might some slight divorce shipping elements since Skwisgaar is canonically notoriously bad at commitment.

Art Credit:

Gyro/Hazel art by me, @/astro-b-o-y-d Sally/Skwisgaar art by @/kannra-orhara

#Crossover Ships Tournament #Poll Tournament #Gyro Gearloose #Ducktales #Hazel Rainart #RWBY #Sally McKnight #Sally 'Thorn' McKnight #Scooby Doo #Hex Girls #Skwisgaar Skwigelf #Metalocalypse

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sugarplanet · 1 year

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Realizing How Important Storytelling Is To Art

For a lot visual artists, writing fully fleshed out stories doesn’t seem to be as widely an exercised skills. Many have scripts, storyboards, outlines, footnotes, or loose ideas in their reference folders or notes apps but it can be hard to connect the dots all the way. I myself find writing to be pretty taxing (thank you short attention span) while I do love making lots of unsorted detailed lists of traits spread out among characters and little factoid sheets, telling a full cohesive story was a bit harder to get into.

For some of my latest character development project, I’d imagined a world in which religion and culture was heavily developed around astrology and astronomy on a planet where humans and gods were once the same thing, the effects of which can even be seen even in a post modern wire-punk dystopia. I had some ideas I thought were cool and ideas for outfits and quirks but not much to tie it all together. It wasn’t until I found myself no longer satisfied with just doing that alone, looking at what I developed thus far, that I remembered one of the key aspects of growth as an artist; references. If you need pictures of tigers or knees so you draw tigers and knees correctly, it stands to reason you also shouldn’t rely on the confines of your brain to help you write a fleshed out made up universe.

For this character, Jet, I set him up with some cool animal transformation powers.

I also didn’t know where his powers came from. He just needed to have them and be the way he was because it seemed really cool. When I started questioning other aspects of my designs (why is this character some sort of patron saint of moon worship with healing powers and why does she have an annoying talking rabbit god side kick? And what does she want with this dude? Why didn’t I make the rabbit a backstory and also visually cuter?)

A while ago, I had gotten a book on astrology on a bargin-bin surfing whim and lately I’ve been sifting through it in bits and pieces at a time in the mornings. Right now, I’m finishing the long decoding each western zodiac sign. I’m not a strong believer in astrology but I did find it interesting and it lead me to research on non western perceptions of the “zodiac” and where there were differences and similarities. I looked up how they’re used in modern terms and what they meant back when they were first a thing. I even dabbled in chakras and their ties to astronomy in some spiritual practices. Inspired by my research, I started cobbling some things together like wet sand into a sand castle.

If your zodiac sign and its traits could have some sort of iconic embodiment, it could be cool animal powers. Perhaps since gods separated themselves from humans and fled to the stars, the moon, the sun, to other planets, then their relation to your zodiac sign could be significant. Jet is a Leo born in the year of the monkey and born during a pretty improbable alignment of planets closest to the earth during a solar eclipse and is therefore a special case special boy. (The only challenge is making that interesting while not letting it overshadow his actual character) Building a magic system with a more clear idea of what my world looks like and having intention behind what I’m pulling from and where to use it was a lot easier as well.

I even managed to change the look of my costar to suit the color coding theme and to look less like a weird monk of vague lineage and denomination and more like a kid who only really has a magical bunny as a parent, teacher, and friend for the longest before clinging to Jet. (Not to mention change her rabbit pal drastically to a more cohesive design...)

Not only was I feeling more confident in my design work, but I was having fun working on this project again. I’d encourage everyone to do a little homework if they’re feeling stuck as well but please keep in mind that you’ll want to do so mindfully. You have to first have any idea at all of what you’d like, an overall theme, and a place and time where your story happens. Consider what you’re basing the world you’re building on. You can look up significant historical events or scientific breakthroughs as a basis for the world building. I’d also recommend keeping notes next your concepts as you’re working them over lest you design something really cool that you fall in love but that is totally ill fitting to what you’re making that look FOR.

#journal #my art #character design #concept development #world building #original art #writing stories #brblog

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shykpop · 4 months

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MOONBIN icons, + like or reblog If you use

#icons #120x120 #spirit fanfics #icons 120x120 #kpop #kpop icons #astro #moonbin #moon bin

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norae-oftheweek · 1 year

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Member for Eternity: ASTRO's Moonbin

Last month, tragedy struck Kpop fans across the globe. Very suddenly, we lost our Moonbin. Beloved by us all, he will be missed.

I was not an ASTRO fan, myself, but Moon Bin's impact on the industry was something revolutionary. He was your favorite idol's best friend. He was the industry's love. He was a bright light to us all.

Moon Bin was born January 26, 1998 in Cheongju, South Korea. He was a child model and actor who was beloved by the public immediately. He debuted with ASTRO as "Moonbin" on February 23, 2016. He served as their Main Dancer and Center. He also performed in a sub-unit with fellow member Sanha.

Moonbin was an icon in the industry. He was famously very kind and friendly. He worked very hard during his time here.

Moon Bin passed away in his home on April 19, 2023. It was his mother's birthday. Police confirmed that it was self-afflicted. Fatagio Entertainment asked that fans show respect to his friends and family in this time. A separate vigil was held for fans to mourn him.

He will serve as an inspiration to us all, countless idols and trainees to come, and to his younger sister, Moon Sua.

We will see you among the stars, Moon.

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dailykoreanpop · 1 year

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Grief and shock as K-pop star Moon Bin, member of boy band Astro, dies age 25

Seoul/ Hong KongCNN —Global fans reacted with shock and grief over the death of 25-year-old K-pop star Moon Bin, a member of the popular boy band Astro.

His music label, Fantagio, confirmed Moon Bin’s death Thursday, and said he has “suddenly left us and became a star in the sky.”

“All Astro members, Fantagio colleagues, executives and employees who’ve been together for a long time are deeply mourning the deceased in such great sadness and shock,” the music label said, adding Moon Bin “always loved and thought of the fans more than anyone else.”

The star was found dead in his home in southern Seoul by his manager at around 8:10 p.m. Wednesday night, according to an official at Gangnam Police Station.

Gangnam police told CNN Thursday that authorities believe Moon Bin had taken his own life. “No signs of foul play have been found related to this case,” police added.

Social media filled with condolences as fans expressed their upset at the celebrity’s death, the latest to cast a spotlight on the often intense pressures celebrities face in the competitive and stressful Korean entertainment industry.

The hashtag #moonbin on Twitter was trending globally with over 2.6 million tweets, some posts written in English, Spanish, Indonesian, Tagalog and Thai.

Meanwhile, social media videos showed fans in Chile setting up a memorial for the late star, lining a wall with white and purple balloons, the theme colors of Astro.

A fan who commented on the video shared on Twitter said: “Rest in peace Moonbin… You had words of [comfort] for others. I wish you had talked about your pain… Rest sweet angel.”

“You’re a star in the sky now and watching over the people you love. Hearts and thoughts go out to his loved ones and all AROHAs,” MTV Asia tweeted, referring to name Astro’s fans call themselves.

“We lost a bright light, who was really contributing to the lives of his family and his friends and his fans and that bright light is gone,” said CedarBough Saeji, assistant professor of Korean and East Asian Studies at Pusan National University.

Saeji, a self-confessed Moon Bin fan, said amid the discussion on the pressures of Korean society and its celebrity industry, it was also important to remember the accomplishments of the young star.

“Moonbin was phenomenally talented dancer and singer. In recent years, he’d started writing some of the material for Astro as well. And he’d also been acting in a bunch of web dramas that had been quite popular. There’s really no limit to how far he could have gone if he continued his career and continue to mature as a performer,” Saeji said.

Child stars

Many K-pop icons start training as young teens, honing their singing, dancing and acting skills for years before they are even allowed a chance to debut their first song.

K-pop idols are known to be subject to intense pressure from their strict management, which has been linked to a mental health crisis in the industry.

South Korea has the highest rate of youth suicide among the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) nations.

In 2021, the suicide rate in South Korea was 26 out of every 100,000 people, and while the country’s overall suicide rate is falling, deaths of those in their twenties are rising, according to the country’s Health and Welfare Ministry.

Moon Bin debuted with Astro in 2016. The other members of the group are Jinjin, MJ, Cha Eun-woo and Yoon San-ha.

He also performed as part of a subgroup called Moon Bin & Sanha, which toured in Asia in recent months.

Prior to his death the duo had been expected to perform next month in Busan, as part of the port city’s bid to promote the 2030 World Expo, and in Jakarta on May 13.

Moon Bin entered the entertainment industry as a child actor, making his debut in 2009 in the Korean Broadcasting System TV drama “Boys Over Flowers.” The series was widely popular and its dubbed version aired globally, gaining lots of fans from Southeast Asia.

His sister, Moon Sua, is also a K-pop celebrity, performing as part of the girl group Billlie.

Credit: CNN

#astro #moonbin #moon bin #fantagio #cnn

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dollarbin · 3 months

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Nickel Bin #6:

Randy Newman's Louisiana 1927

Don't drop the needle on Randy Newman's 1974 Dollar Bin problem record, Good Old Boys, with anyone else around. The record starts with the all too hummable pop nugget Rednecks in which Newman drops the n-word not once, as Dylan would a year later in Hurricane, but over and over again.

Yes, Newman had a plan in mind - Good Old Boys is a concept record about what its like being racist white trash - but it's 2024 and your neighbors, your kids or your cats might hear the lyrics, see you grooving along to them and then decide to call the cops, or at least write you off as something worse than a redneck.

I'm not enough of a Randy Newman buff, nor am in the mood, to try justifying the record (here's a good attempt to check out if you're interested) but I do want to take a moment now that rain has momentarily stopped in Southern California to talk about the record's most shimmering, and slightly less problematic, ear worm about flooding: Louisiana 1927.

Let's listen (and don't worry, no need to cover the cat's ears for this):

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Warm Disney strings provide the opening, then give way to Newman's iconic piano prodding and hazy vocals. By the time the strings reemerge in the second verse they chase one of the richest drum tones I know and together they guide us to the chorus. Everything sounds majestic.

But Newman refuses to offer straight-forward pleasure. After Side 1's paradoxically sympathetic and deeply judgmental portrayal of a modern, singularly awful white dude, Louisiana 1972's lyrics pivot the record into a three song examination of Huey P. Long, one of the Great Depression's prequels to the even more loathsome Donald Trump. Long is the subject of a bunch of books I have not read, including All the King's Men, and Louisiana 1927's refrain of "they're tryin' to wash us away" and its second verse's oddball storytelling about a belittling, elitist visit after the storm by Calvin Coolidge introduces us to Long's version of Trump's "I'm so proud to be a deplorable" populism and racism.

What was Newman thinking? Why'd he undercut such glorious music with obtuse menace? Couldn't he have provided us with a hero, or at least something banal, to bask in and compliment all that rich sound?

Maybe he was busy refusing the public's potential broad stamp of approval in thoroughly Shakey style and thereby ingratiating himself with the kind of people (like, far too often, me) who need to be reassured that they are not victims of the mainstream. The irony, of course, is that Long and Trump's brands were, and still are, largely based on the same exercise: they generate their self-serving support by loudly rejecting any moderate, popular or ethical center.

Maybe that was Newman's plan. Or maybe he's way smarter than me (of course he is!) and had another plan in mind, which leaves me the dumb redneck. Or maybe he was just being an obscuring grump.

Either way, this still-lovely song, together with its sonic and thematic predecessor, 72's enslaver's sales pitch sing-a-long, Sail Away, has served as a godparent to a lot of equally lovely anxiety inducers ever since.

To begin, there's Lambchop's foul mouthed If Not I'll Just Die, which sounds like some psycho is standing in for Bert Bacharach.

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And then there's Cat Power's almost unendurably beautiful The Greatest. Warmth and grace mask over brooding terror as Chan Marshall interpolates the tones of both Louisiana 1927 and Moon River into her own composition, leaving us awash once again in beauty but never at ease; after all, Chan was a step away from killing herself with drugs and booze while she sang about being lowered down and pinned into the earth.

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Once she wanted to be the greatest. But now? Yikes. Thankfully she made it through. It's been 15+ years since she offered us such terrifying beauty; the sun's shining now and Chan is busy gleefully covering Dylan.

Even so, there are more storms coming. Way more. But hopefully they will wash away Trump's grip on our country (not to mention Stephen Stills next comeback attempt) rather than flooding anything too precious. Hopefully we can come together and convince Randy Newman to write something positive and beautiful for once (and not have him turn around and lend it, ironically or sincerely, to the forthcoming Toy Story 7).

#Youtube #randy newman #cat power #lambchop #nickel bin!#stephen stills sucks

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akaraboonline · 1 year

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Moon Bin, a member of the K-pop group Astro, died at the age of 25.

Moon Bin, a well-known member of the K-pop group Astro, died on Wednesday, April 19. He was 25.

Moon Bin, a member of the K-pop group Astro, died at the age of 25. Astro's label/management business, Fantagio, confirmed his death in a statement following allegations that a manager discovered Moon Bin dead in his Seoul apartment. There was no mention of a cause of death. "First and foremost, we apologize for having to deliver this sad and painful news. "On April 19, ASTRO member Moonbin unexpectedly left us and has now become a star in the sky," according to Fantagio's statement, as translated by Soompi. "Although it cannot compare to the grief of the bereaved family who had to say goodbye to their beloved son and brother, his fellow artists and the staff here at Fantagio, who have been with him for a long time, are also deeply mourning the departed amidst tremendous shock and sorrow," it continues. It pains us even more to have to break the news to Moonbin's admirers, who have shown him nothing but love and support. Because we know how unrivaled the late was in his devotion for his followers, whom he was constantly thinking of, the pain is all the more terrible." According to the label, Moon Bin's family has requested a private funeral with "family, close friends, and agency colleagues in attendance." To allow everyone to "respectfully mourn the departed and say their goodbyes," the label requested that fans "please refrain from speculative or malicious reports." Moon Bin's career began as a young model and actor, with appearances in music videos and the iconic K-drama Boys Over Flowers. He signed a contract with Fantagio early on and progressed through the ranks of the company's training program, which is how he became a member of Astro. The group's first effort was a web series called To Be Continued, which they followed up with their debut EP, Spring Up, in 2016. Moon Bin worked on various TV projects for the next three years, while Astro released a run of more popular EPs, culminating in the release of their 2019 debut album, All Light, which topped the Korean charts. Later that year, Fantagio stated that Moon Bin will be taking a break from Astro because to unidentified health issues. Read the full article

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joesanimationblog · 1 year

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Academic Blog Post 4

In this blog post, I will be analyzing the album cover of the Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention album "One Size Fits All" using denotation/ connotation and myth I aim to relate this analysis to lyrics in the album where relevant.

The album cover shows a red leather sofa against a backdrop of space, there is a hand holding a crescent moon in the left top corner and behind it is a scientific-looking diagram that seems to represent different orbits and how they relate. On the upper right of the album cover, there is a diagram annotated "DIAGRAM showing method of spinning Saturn". and in front of this is an illustration of a finger-spinning Saturn. There is a coin labeled mercury with the words liberty on its face to the left of the moon and a desk and chair to its right. Beneath the sofa is a scroll with medieval script font text reading "Divan, Divan...... Weisst du wer ich bin" which roughly translates from german to English to "sofa sofa, do you know who i am?". There is a hand at the base of the album cover smoking a cigar which suggests the image is a 1st person's perspective view. at the top of the album cover in the center is the text which reads "Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention One Size Fits All" as well as this information I will use the back cover of the album which displays a song list and a constellation map with random images of animals cars and people printed over top as a photographic negative. below this is a scene of what looks like a sinkhole or earthquake destroying a town with giant ants crawling under the ground.

Yes, this is a lot to unpack.

The imagery of a sofa appears in the songs "Sofa No.1" and "Sofa No.2" the second version has lyrics that are in both German and English but a fully English translated version is below.

"YOU ARE MY SOFA

I am the heaven

I am the water

I am the dirt under (beneath) your rollers

I am your secret dirt (smut)

And lost metal money

I am down your cracks

I am down your cracks and scratches (crannies)

I am the clouds

I am embroidered

I am the author of all edges (tucks)

And damask piping

I am the chrome dinette

I am all kinds of eggs (eggs of all persuasions)

I am all days and nights

I am here

And you are my sofa..."

So starting with the back of the album where we see a seemingly random jumble of objects over the constellation map, I think this is implying randomness and a desire for meaning, looking for patterns and applying meaning to these patterns seems to be a theme, the ballad of "Sofa No.1" and "Sofa No.2" has a gospel theme, it is almost like the sofa is a religious icon and much of the iconography on this album cover has been deliberately misrepresented or taken out of context to act as an absurd subversion, but it is not devoid of meaning. I think the myth of the back cover is suggesting that looking for meaning in the stars and forming these false icons as seen in the photographic prints of random objects is resulting in the destruction of the world below these icons.

Moving on to the front and keeping this analysis in mind we see more symbols, the hands moving the planets implying an interference with the natural order, the hand on the cigar signifies power, but also a level of irresponsibility or submission to vices which pared with the paintbrush creating explosions the bottom corner suggests the myth being that the medaling of the natural order in an irresponsible way leads to destruction - this idea is strengthened by the diagram of spinning Saturn, implying there is an intention and planning behind this medaling.

We then have the chair and coin sitting at balanced points in the composition implying a connection, I think the chair is a classic school desk chair, this next to the scientific diagrams evokes ideas of education and the coin may represent capitalism. Surrounded by all the previously mentioned icons is the red sofa, I think the sofa is a manifestation of the idea of home, it is our planet, it is a place to be passive, and everything apart from the sofa has implications of work or human interference. Perhaps the sofa at the center of all this false iconography and unnatural interference is both inviting us in to be complacent, and the scroll saying "sofa sofa, do you know who i am?" is implying that it is you that the sofa is. The song Sofa No2's lyrics give me this impression, the music is almost religious and the message is that the sofa is everything and like churchgoers praise god for being everything, the band and image are praising the sofa as a god while implying the futility of existence as part of a machine which is looking outwards for signs and symbols.

another song on the album called Andy has the lyrics below:

"Is there anything good inside of you

If there is, I really wanna know-woh-oh-oh-oh

Is there anything good inside of you

If there is, I really wanna know,

Really wanna know...

Something

Anything

Something

Anything

Show me a sign

If you don't mind

Show me a sign

If you don't mind

Do you know what I'm really telling you

Is it something that you can understand..."

Relevance

I find this analysis useful to my practice as much of my work is focused around absurd comedy as a language to discuss human emotion, social expectations and the structures which govern every day life. The album "One Size Fits All" has songs about space ships, poverty, religion, laziness, entitlement, echidnas, love and even a song about looking for meaning but there being a none. These songs are all linked through an absurd aesthetic and comedic style which can be seen in the album art. The artist behind this cover is Calvin Schenkel, the american illustrator behind almost all of Zappa's albums covers. Schenkel developed an art style which spanned across Zappas career and the resulting discography forms unified aesthetic visual language. I found this exploration useful it is a lesson in organizing chaos and justifying absurdity through consistent themes, consistent style and consistent subversion.

Bibliography

Hayward, S. (2022) Cinema Studies, pp. 1–559. Available at: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003125570-1.

Hayimkobi (2020) Frank Zappa's album covers by Cal Schenkel, part 2: The 1970s, The Music Aficionado. Available at: https://musicaficionado.blog/2020/07/15/cal-schenkels-album-covers-part-2-the-1970s/ (Accessed: January 11, 2023).

I used this source for the images which I attached and used for analysis.

ZAPPA, F & The Mothers of Invention. (1975), 'Andy', One Size Fits All [Spotify]. United States, Rykodisc.

Available at: https://open.spotify.com/album/4mp2SC1Wq9jZJINGPAKv0V?si=H19wTYIgQS6Nec6e-jvfkw

(Accessed 11 January 2023)

ZAPPA, F & The Mothers of Invention. (1975), 'Sofa No.1', One Size Fits All [Spotify]. United States, Rykodisc.

Available at: https://open.spotify.com/album/4mp2SC1Wq9jZJINGPAKv0V?si=H19wTYIgQS6Nec6e-jvfkw

(Accessed 11 January 2023)

ZAPPA, F & The Mothers of Invention. (1975), 'Sofa No.2', One Size Fits All [Spotify]. United States, Rykodisc.

Available at: https://open.spotify.com/album/4mp2SC1Wq9jZJINGPAKv0V?si=H19wTYIgQS6Nec6e-jvfkw

(Accessed 11 January 2023)

#Sources & Significance

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