#i made. illustrations??? lol. to go w this originally. it's not the same without them but. absolutely not reposting them <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[frog-songs]

there are things that steal you slowly.

little by little piece by piece until it seems like an inevitability —

like the end was never very far from the beginning, and the poison leaves an empty shell.

can you live a half life well?

​sometimes what you think you survived was really just taking its time. and yours.

[willowistic22]

Van life!newsies headcanons

Hello, i have recently been obsessing and/or pining over living in a van/bus. So i will project my pining to my favorite pretty paper boys like what everyone does in the newsies fandom! Very healthy and smart idk lol so here’s my take on this au for each of my ships!

*i know some ppl might not agree with all these ships but these are just my personal favorites pls don’t come after me for something i like :)*

@jaelynn-is-slightly-confused thanks for deciding which headcanons i should write first :)

A pretty long list so you might have to sit down for this one 

Javid

They converted an old american school bus

I actually have a headcanon that modern!jack comes from a rich family (maybe not the family his parents were born into but his parents worked pretty hard to be successful y’know) so that’s how they were able to buy an old school bus

So they were able to fit in a shower (not one of those foldable kinds) and a built in toilet. A pretty decent kitchen. A stove, oven, microwave, and all the other utilities necessary. Was able to fit both a washing machine and a dryer. Has a proper closet.

To fit davey’s needs, they put in a tiny book shelf. But it’s too tiny to fit in all of davey’s book (he’s got a shelf full) and was forced to give some of them away he cried a little. Jack did the same for his art supplies he cried a lot.

Jack is an illustrator and Davey is a writer. (Davey the hopeless romantic Jacobs mostly writes romance wow what a shocker) If Jack can find the time to paint on a canvas he will. It usually ends up getting sold which he doesn’t mind. 

Jack painted every inch of the bus exterior wow we’re all so shocked no we aren’t I lied :) "Jack why...” “We need to be festive when we travel, Dave!” *face palms*

They have one cat which is still nameless in my head so ://

Newsbians

They live in a school bus 

Kathrine’s a Pulitzer so you know how they can freely afford it (now that i think abt it i think old school busses sell for really cheap prices but idk) 

The shower and closet are a must have for Kathrine. She takes over most of the closet space and takes the longest in the shower. Sarah is a foodie so she built herself a whole kitchen and Kathrine is not allowed to touch anything without her permission. Even fitting in a huge fridge. They also fit in a proper working desk and a couch. Also made some sort of balcony on top of their bus so they can stargaze on top of there 

Kathrine is a reporter and Sarah is a physician in the telemedicine industry (she meets patients through video calls and such, not face to face) 

Morning coffee is a tradition for them at this point. They cannot drive the bus without having one cup of coffee 

They have two cats still nameless too ://

Ikeshot (lmao moving to my rarepairs so quickly. i mean i originally reserved the van life headcanon for them but i got too obsessed and now i’m writing this list hehe) 

They settled with a sprinter van 

it started just as an idea for their honeymoon to do a road trip around the us, but it ended up being longer than a hundred days of honeymoon and it turns into being their first proper room 

Their shower is built in and it can only fit one person. The bed takes up the whole back space. Their closet is kinda small but they don’t mind bcs Ike mostly lives in Hotshot’s clothes anyways. The kitchen is limited but they have a pullout barbeque at the back of their van, under their bed. Hotshot is a master at barbequing. 

Ike is a translator and interpreter. He also uses his hobby in crocheting to build a small business he makes cardigans :) (credit to @violetwolfraven for that little idea) Hotshot is an accountant. Very boring ik but i have a headcanon he’s good with numbers so that’s cool (well idk i feel like he’s good with math and economics) 

Bringing the playstation has always been a priority, so they built in a tv. They like to chill in the bed and play together. Mario kart is a ruthless game  

Occasional weird midnight dancing sessions is a tradition 

they have a cat named Sparks and a dog named Lewis. It’s a dalmatian which made Hotshot tempted to name him Spot :) 

*cut to a vicious argument between Spot and Hotshot which was also egged on by Ike and Race* 

Jomike (ok look i love my rarepairs alright pls let me ship in peace) 

They got a sprinter van 

Their kitchen took up most the space bcs mike and jojo are practically professional chefs. When asked to throw down in the kitchen, they will thRO W   D O W N

They even use a teal palette specifically for their kitchen. They have a one person shower but no built in toilet. a fair amount of plants as decoration. in the back of their van, they have a built in pull out dining table and two benches (built under their bed so they’d have to stop and open the back door to have a proper dinner) 

Jojo is a reporter and mike is a computer programmer. Their job requires a proper desk to work on so they just installed a foldable table in between their seats up front. 

their clothes are just stored in cabinets since they share anyways. it leaves a good amount of wall space to play a projector for netflix *cue the soft cuddling in bed* 

breakfast in bed is the most on brand thing for them to do 

they have a cat named Dixeleta. She’s an outdoor cat so they have fun doing outdoor activities together. Hiking, kayaking, etc. 

Sprace 

They live in an old sprinter van Spot got from an old family member

They have the type of bed that can turn into a living room (seats and table etc). They use a foldable shower bcs they want the space. Their kitchen can be extended out with a latch by their sliding door but that’s only when they need to use a stove and oven. Since they’re the type of people that just throws on the closest clothes they can grab they just use cabinets to store their clothes. 

ok i’ve mentioned it before about sprace but i’ll mention it again. They have three cats named Racecat, Spot Clawlon, and Romeow :D all named by race if you’re wondering. 

So Race is a social media manager and Spot is a physician in the telemedicine industry. 

They’re very lazy to constantly look for a coin laundry service. They make a schedule to do the laundry once a week but sometimes they just forget. 

Their first drive of the day will always include karaoke. They can’t tell whether their cats love or hate their singing voice most likely the latter but they’re in denial.

They cuddle each other in bed with their cats. While watching tv, to sleep, or just chilling together. 

Redfinch 

They got a mini bus

They have a built in shower, bathroom, and closet (not sure why since they don’t really care about their clothes all that much) They have a proper kitchen, fit a washing machine and dryer, plus a little seating area with a small table 

They have two big doberman named Zara and Zoey and a cat named Marbles. Pretty outdoor pets so they frequently take them out for hikes and such 

They have a ‘balcony’ on top of their mini bus to chill together. As in all five of them :)

Finch is a music producer and Albert is a photographer and videographer. Albert mostly works with tourist as their personal photographer, but he has land gigs with big companies/people. Finch works with a label that has given him to opportunity to work at home but sometime still need to stop by a studio to meet with artists or other producers. 

Finch only needs space to store his laptop, notebooks, and guitar (but he ends up hanging it on the wall anyways). Albert takes up a whole cabinet for all of his equipment. 

Not Finch waking up at an ungodly hour when a spark of inspiration comes to him, which ends up waking everyone in the bus. *cut to Albert furiously dragging him back to bed*

They installed a tv near their bed for playstation sessions or cuddling throughout a movie

Their driving karaoke is usually accompanied by their dogs which only tortures Marbles. She hides under the blanket to save her ears. smart cat hehe

Snipesmalls (Never wrote anything for them but I do love these girls :)) 

They converted a mini bus 

Sniper takes up most of the closet space, but it doesn’t matter because they share clothes anyways. A built in toilet and shower. Their kitchen has a navy blue theme to it. It was Smalls’ idea. They have a washing machine and dryer and also a proper dining table.

Sniper is a nurse in the telehealth industry (basically just like telemedicine but deals with more than just clinical services) and Smalls is a medical transcriptionist. 

They have an Australian Shepherd named Blue. It’s because of her blue eyes it’s so beautiful :O Blue likes to stick his head out while driving. 

They have a built in tv for their playstation and movies but sometimes they bring out the projector to watch while chilling outside. 

They have done the most traveling. Hopping from the US to Europe and Asia. 

They may like to share clothes but Sniper really likes to be fashionable wherever she goes. “Ok so since we’re planning to go hiking tomorrow, which hat should I use?” “Sniper, we’re hiking up a mountain, not a vogue fashion runway” “And so what if I pretend we are? Use your imagination babe! Now which one?” *sighing*

It is a nightmare to convince Sniper to give away some of their clothes She cries every time her clothes are being given away but gets happy when they go shopping for new ones and it’s the same cycle every time this happens  

They also like to go to music festivals and have picnics together 

Blush 

They live in a mini bus

They rarely buy clothes or give them away plus they share clothes so the closet is pretty small but hella messy because they’re lazy at folding their clothes away. A simple built in shower and also a foldable toilet. The kitchen is pretty equipped because Mush is a master chef. They have a little seating area with a table. Alternating as a working desk and dining table

Mush is a dietitian and Blink is a therapist, both in the telemedicine industry. 

Neither is allowed to drive if they haven’t gotten their morning coffee 

Mush is mostly then one doing the karaoke while Blink drives 

they like to have picnics together

goes to random concerts. it doesn’t need to be a really big artist. they’d simply be happy if they get tickets to any sort of concert. They prefer to see local underground artists to discover more music and such but they sometimes save up to watch big artists too. 

they’ve only been around the us and canada but are planning on going to other countries too 

Belmerttons 

they live in an old school bus 

So buttons is a huge fashionista so there is a proper closet and drawers that are mostly used by himself. A built in bathroom and the door has a mirror per buttons request. they also fit a washing machien and dryer in the bus per buttons request too. Their bed is full of decorative pillows and a few stuffed animals per elmer’s request. Their kitchen is small but does the trick. also has a little seating area with a table 

Buttons is a fashion stylist but also a designer. Elmer is a math tutor for all ages

they love going to different kind of events and festivals. one of the reasons why they wanted to live on the road in the first place 

to get buttons to give away his old clothes, elmer has to assure him it’s for a good cause bcs buttons loves all his clothes. Buttons still get a little sad and pouty when those days come but picks himself up again when elmer offers a disney movie night on the projector with some snacks

oh yes, they bring lots of snacks on the road 

They have a cat. still nameless soz 

the cat is very fluffy and sheds a lot. which is kind of a problem especially on buttons clothes 

“you’re lucky you have a cute face” -buttons while he’s cleaning the fur off his clothes 

Spromeo 

they live in a mini bus but kinda looks like a hippie van (idk how to describe it but it’s a mini bus with a hippie kind of style to it yknow) 

they have two separate areas in the bus. one up front where the driver and passenger seat is. also coupled with a tiny sofa and a table. that’s where they do their work and dine. very comfy and cozy. 

it’s seperated by a thin wooden wall. through the doorway is where the rest of their living quarters are. a bed, small kitchen but fully equipped, a shower, and foldable toilet. instead of a closet, they use a dresser since they don’t really have many clothes anyways 

so specs is a history teacher and tutor for all ages. (he’s a history nerd hehe). Romeo is a photographer and cinematographer. mostly a tourist photographer (kinda like albert yknow) 

specs likes reading history books, but he mostly does his reading on his tablet and laptop to save space. the same for romeo and comics btw 

their bed is full of pillows 

they have a cat named snowy. a lazy indoor cat. but she loves to cuddle with them in bed

they’ve also done some traveling to other countries. mostly neighboring countries but are dreaming of going to places in europe and asia. 

they enjoy doing lots of board games when they’re not driving 

romeo has a ukulele which he constantly uses to serenade to specs. sometimes to snowy but mostly specs 

woah that was long akjghflkjasfbj; h. will i write a oneshot with this headcanon? maybe but who knows. just needed to put it out there that i’m pining on living on the road with the loml and some cats and go on an adventure together. anyways hope whoever reads this enjoy and sorry for writing a long headcanon list hehe 

[comicteaparty]

July 15th-July 21st, 2019 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party week long chat that occurred from July 15th, 2019 to July 21st, 2019.  The chat focused on Radioactive Underground by Ezra Rose.

Featured Comment:

Chat:

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- WEEK LONG BOOK CLUB START!

Hello and welcome everyone to Comic Tea Party’s Week Long Book Club~! This week we’ll be focusing on Radioactive Underground by Ezra Rose~! (https://tapas.io/series/Radioactive-Underground)

You are free to read and comment about the comic all week at your own pace, so stop on by whenever it suits your schedule! Remember, though, that while we allow constructive criticism, our focus is to have fun and appreciate the comic. Below you will find four questions to get you started on the discussion. However, a new question will be posted and pinned everyday (between 12:01AM and 6AM PDT), so keep checking back for more! You have until July 21st to tell us all your wonderful thoughts! With that established, let’s get going on the reading and the chatting!

QUESTION 1. What has been your favorite scene in the comic so far? What specifically did you like about it?

QUESTION 2. What do you think caused Robbie’s scar that is briefly seen? Further, why is Robbie taking medicine? What might all this have to do with Griffin’s particular concern for how Robbie is doing?

ezzy

Wow what a wonderful comic surely who ever made this comic is very smart and also handsome

RebelVampire

QUESTION 3. At the moment, who is your favorite character? What about that character earns them this favor?

QUESTION 4. Which aspect of the world has caught your eye the most so far? Why does it interest you? Also, how do you think it will play a role in how the story unfolds?

RebelVampire

1) my favorite scene is probably the first scene we see robbie at maki's. i liked the little flirty dialogue and then the ultimate payoff with it at the end. like i really felt like i was in robbie's shoes during it cause i wasnt sure if there was chemistry and then the "robbie with an i e " thing really sold it for me. just a great banter setup i can really appreciate. 2) Given the opening scene, I gotta imagine Robbie was fighting monsters or w/e he fights in the underground and took on a challenge he wasnt ready for. And that probably nearly killed him and thus why the scar and medicine. Cause the medicine is probably keeping his heart going or something like that. As for Griffin's concern, Griffin gives off a kind of motherly feel to me despite the aggressive attitude. And it seems she and robbie have a sort of mother-son bond (at least a little bit). and ya know, mom's worry when their sons almost die.

3) my favorite character atm is probably robbie. While this could change as the characters become more familiar, I really just like Robbie's design. It feels edgy and relateable at the same time without being overboard. I also think it super suits his personality. 4) I'm really interested in the underground aspect of the comic. Cause it really doesn't feel like their underground, yet it's clearly a thing. And given robbie's crush isnt from the underground originally, itll be interesting to see how the cultures differ. Since there already seems to be some inequality going on. In terms of the story, I definitely think the underground's probably...status in society is probably a breeding ground for crime. hence robbie's entire life situation.

ezzy

>:3c

RebelVampire

QUESTION 5. What has been your favorite illustration in the comic so far? What specifically about it do you like?

QUESTION 6. Why do you think Yui was supposedly kicked out of the family business, and how do you think she got involved with Griffin? What theories do you have about the rest of Griffin’s crew? Alternatively, who do you most want to learn more about?

RebelVampire

QUESTION 7. Which characters do you enjoy seeing interact the most? What about their dynamic interests you?

QUESTION 8. What do you think the ultimate goal is for Griffin’s group as for why they steal? Is it just for money, or is there some larger picture? Further, what do you think Robbie’s personal investment is in the whole thing?

RebelVampire

5) My fave illustration...s is probably the ones of Griffin on this page. https://tapas.io/episode/1357536 Griffin looks so cool, and something about this up-close shot choices really made me appreciate her really cool, badass design. Instantly won my heart over as a top-contending chara for favorites. 6) Yui sort of strikes me as the type who rebels just to rebel. Like the teen who never got out of the rebellious phase because she's 2kool4skool. And from what we've seen with her relationship with her family, rebelliousness is not well-received. And I can see from her families perspective how it kind of just looks like Yui lazes around and then throws attitude. I don't really have theories about the rest of the crew, although I definitely do want to get to know the completely non-human world. They'd be a great insight into the rest of the non-humans that are in this world.

7) I probably enjoy seeing Robbie and crush chick the most. They've got really cute chemistry that just makes me squee on the inside. And I also hope he continues to be called Robbie with an i e for a while. 8) I think the answer to this question depends on perspective. Most of the crew, like Robbie and Yui, are probably just in it for the money. While I think Griffin is in it for the money, I also think she has a bigger picture idea. Like eventually aiming for the grand jewel and making people super pissed. Or more I should say, she's waiting till they can make the heist of a lifetime and retire on a beach in Hawaii. As for Robbie's personal investment, besides money, he kind of maybe just has nothing better to do? So far my impression of him is hes the type to think hes not good at a lot of stuff besides running and fighting. Thus morals be damned, lets steal things? XD Plus if he needs medicine, hes gotta pay for it somehow. So to summarize, his investment is needs money + belief in lack of job opportunities. I think if something better came along hed be heavily tempted.

RebelVampire

QUESTION 9. What sorts of art or story details have you noticed in the way the comic is crafted that you think deserves attention?

QUESTION 10. Who exactly do you think Griffin is? In other words, what’s Griffin’s backstory and why is Griffin invested in stealing? Further, why do you think Griffin keeps the group at arm’s length and has them drop her off at random locations?

RebelVampire

9) One deal I appreciate is the balance of Griffin's design. Like there's this right blend of human and non-human traits that you could even guess she was a half-breed before anybody even said anything. And being able to get that across immediately visually is really A+ work there. 10) I think Griffin was probably someone a lot like Robbie. Just in the underground, nothing to do, no opportunities, and so she took the easy route of theft. However, I think she was at least once part of a bigger organization (given the connections she has) and that she kind of betrayed them and ditched them. Like I said earlier, I think she's both in it for the money but kind of has some bigger idea picture about retiring in style or something like that. As for keeping the group at arm's length, I actually think it's to protect them. Cause she clearly seems to know dangerous folks who know her and have a bone to pick. So by not letting the others become too notorious, she keeps the heat on her.

ShaRose49

I started this one awhile ago and I thought it was very well-drawn(edited)

ezzy

Thank you i try very hard

RebelVampire

QUESTION 11. What do you think are this particular comic’s strengths? What do you think makes this comic unique? Please elaborate.

QUESTION 12. Why do you think the new girl working at Maki’s has come to the underground? What might it have to do with her relationship with her parents? Further, what role do you think she’ll play in the larger story?

spacerocketbunny

1. Favourite scene is probably the one where everyone is in the diner after the heist! The banter is fun and I like how the characters interact. Yui and Robbie are great, they act like siblings who can't stand each other but of course cover each other's asses if they get in trouble. Also the moment when Robbie meets Sky, she asks his name so she can label his food but then he asks for her name and she pauses like "why are you asking the server's name lol" 3. Ummmm Griffin because she's a mysterious babe?? Love me a stoic lady with questionable motives ;)) also Sky is so sweet, I love that she's an artist! 4. Love the demons and other folks that are integrated into the world, it's a lot of fun! I hope there'll be more interesting people to see :)

5. The latest pages with Griffin on the phone look great, great colours, nice backgrounds, I like how the colours are starting to become more dynamic! 6. Mmmm my guess is that she's a bit messy and callous and probably messed something up in the family business. Too early to make any hard speculation but if anything I think it was Yui's fault probably... I want to see more of what these heists are for, and how their group operates. I'd like to see more on Griffin and her origin since it was pointed out that she was a %100 human (I'm assuming the other half is demon?) 7. Right now Yui and Robbie because of the bickering they do, but now that I've seen Sky blush after interacting with Griffin I'm

9. I like the style of the comic, it's angular and sharp and I like the character designs! I feel like the comic's aesthetic and mood is still being realized but it's progressing with each page and I can't wait to see how it develops further! 11. Like previously mentioned I think the style is definitely a strength, it's fun and offbeat and I like that it's one that I'm not seeing in the comic scene right now. The character interaction is great too, even as early as it is I'm already invested in these characters and I want to know more about them, they're a fun lot and they all play off each other in a great way. I'm interested to see where this comic goes and how it'll develop, I'll definitely be checking back for updates

RebelVampire

QUESTION 13. What are you most looking forward to in the comic? Also, do you have any final thoughts to share overall?

QUESTION 14. Who do you think Solomon Reiki is, and what does they want with Griffin? What does this have to do with the guard who Griffin fought during the heist? What could this mean for Robbie and the rest of the crew?

RebelVampire

11) I think the comic's strength are definitely the character designs. There's a lot of personality packed into them. Not just the main characters we've seen so far but even the side characters as well. It makes for a really dynamic setting and cast that immediately catches your eye. Somehoe all the designs also really suit the tone of the story as well. 12) I feel there definitely has to have been a falling out with her parents. And she fled to the one place where she thought they would never look for her or something. Given she seems somehow hardcore herself, I could totally see her joining the crew and going on thieving adventures. Or at the very least being an informant of some sort. 13) I'm looking forward to learning more about the rest of the crew and seeing how they all play off each other. Cause that will definitely have a big impact in terms of how the heists go. 14) Given my previous theories, I think Solomon Reiki was Griffin's old boss who is super pissed at Griffin's betrayal of leaving. But until recently they havent been able to find Griffin so hence the guard. Heard some rumors and sent the guard to confirm whether its the traitor or not. Of course, this probably gonna put the rest of the crew square in sights and get them unwanted attention from bigger criminals or something like that.

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- WEEK LONG BOOK CLUB END!

Thank you everyone so much for reading and chatting about Radioactive Underground this week! Please also give a special thank you to Ezra Rose for volunteering the comic and creating it! If you liked Radioactive Underground, make sure to continue to support it via some of the links below!

Read and Comment: https://tapas.io/series/Radioactive-Underground

Ezra’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ezrarose

Ezra’s Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/ezzymourao

Ezra’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuperSonicSoda_

[dedalvs]

Bodzvokhan: The Orcish Language from Bright

The Orcs in Bright lived most of their existence in the Pripet Marshes. They spoke their own language, but as the Russian Empire grew, many learned to speak Russian, as well. When Russia began a campaign to exterminate the Orcs, they emigrated to many places, including the United States. The Orcish language had an old, ancient script (Vukht) which was replaced by a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet. After the emigration, the Orcs reclaimed their old writing system and began using it once again (with some modified Cyrillic letters used for sounds not present in the language when the Vukht was originally in use).

The language itself is SVO and somewhat agglutinative with minimal case marking. Phonologically, it’s highly permissive of consonant clusters, and has low-high vowel harmony. The Cyrillic writing system is, of course, alphabetic, and the Vukht is abjadic. This is a rundown of the phonemes and how they’re spelled:

These are the original six vowels of Bodzvokhan. They come in pairs like this, so every affix that takes -i with high vowels will take -e with low vowels, and vice versa. These are high and low with respect to one another, not in terms of their exact IPA definitions.

A couple of important notes here on the Vukth (ignore Cyrillic for the moment). The abjad works by placing the two lines you see in the low column below a consonant to indicate that there is an [a] vowel there. Without that, it’s assumed that there is either no vowel or [ǝ]. The original semi-vowels *j and *w are used for the vowels [i] and [u], respectively, and the low mark is used below them to indicate [ɛ] and [ɔ]. Because consonants indicate the vowel that occurs before them, the symbols for [a] and [ǝ] are never really used, and don’t differ from one another (this is also due to the fact that [ǝ] is never written at the end of a word, so usually you only see that glyph if it’s [a] at the end of a word and not obvious).

Here’s an illustrative example:

These are two different words that are nevertheless written with the same characters. The main characters are, in order, <vʀbwʣ>. In the first word, though, <v>, <b>, and <w> have the low diacritic beneath them, meaning that the vowel before them is [a]. When it occurs before <w>, the interpretation is that they combine to form [ɔ]. Thus the first word is pronounced [a.vʁaˈbɔdz], which means “I plant it”, and the second is pronounced [ǝ.vʁ(ǝ).ˈbudz], which means “I yank it”. Each of these can also take a final -a or -ǝ, respectively, but it’s usually left off (more on that later).

The Cyrillic should be uncontroversial, save using <э> rather than <е>. This is done because <е> is used elsewhere. The vowel <ы> was used basically for the “other” vowel in Orcish, and is used in Russian borrowings for the original <ы> vowel. For that reason, it can be pronounced [ɨ], but that’s usually done only by those fluent in Russian, and only in Russian borrowings. Otherwise, it’s just the symbol used for [ǝ]. Also, unlike in the Vukht, the vowels are always written.

Otherwise, the romanization is straightforwardly i, e, ǝ, a, u, o. In the scripts, I didn’t differentiate between [a] and [ǝ] at all (they were both spelled a), since (a) Final Draft doesn’t support <ǝ>, and (b) I was going to be on set to make sure it was always pronounced right. Plus, unless the word has all [a] or [ǝ], it’s obvious which it should be.

Now here are the consonants:

All of these were romanized as you can probably guess (so: ch [tʃ], j [dʒ], sh [ʃ], zh [ʒ], kh [x~χ], h [ħ]. ng [ŋ], y [j], and r [ʀ]). There are just a couple of notes to make.

There are some sounds present in the chart which have spellings in both systems that are no longer present in the language. At this stage, the phonemes and letters associated with the proto sounds *[ɢ], *[ʁ], *[ɣ], and *[ʀ] are all pronounced [ɣ~ʁ], and are all romanized as r. It’s only in the two orthographies that those sounds are still differentiated, leading to some complex spellings one has to remember.

Aside from the glyph for y [j], the entire palatal column has been borrowed from Russian, and from Cyrillic. This entire series is not native to Bodzvokhan, and is not spelled with native Vukht characters.

Those familiar with Cyrillic will doubtless have some questions about the characters chosen for the sounds not present in Russian. I went with systematicity over adhering to any specific Cyrillicization scheme, figuring that the orthography would have been created by a missionary some time in the late 1700s/early 1800s. I think it works very well as a system, but hope it works historically.

Some, but not all, of the native Vukht consonants have a special geminate form used only when the consonants appear as true geminates (so you’d use them for a theoretical word ǝnni but not inǝn). This is a list of them:

Those should be fairly self-explanatory. In addition, there are a number of Cyrillic extensions that are used for Bodzvokhan. I’ll discuss them after I show them:

Russian has an entire palatal series that’s written by having two sets of vowels. Each of these made its way to both the Cyrillic writing system and the Vukht. The sequences [jɛ] and [jɔ] actually do occur in native Bodzvokhan words, so the character are sometimes used for that, rather than the traditional sequence of the character for <j> followed by the modified character for <j> or <w>. Old *[jɔ], though, eventually developed into modern [œ], and so now the new character <ё> is used for that vowel. In parallel, the character <ю> is also used for new [y]. (So now Bodzvokhan has an eight vowel system.) Other characters are used variously in borrowings, with the old Cyrillic character <я> used now in English borrowings where [æ] is wanted.

The old Cyrillic soft sign <ь> was only used in the Cyrillic writing system for Bodzvokhan, and only in borrowings—and even then, inconsistently. The hard sign <ъ>, though, developed a life of its own. Old sequences of stops followed by *[ʀ] have evolved to become hard consonants—probably velarized. Or something like that. As a way of marking these, the hard sign is used following stop consonants. There are no longer any sequences spelled with a stop glyph followed by the glyph for r in either the Cyrillic version or the Vukht. (In addition, velars became uvulars before r.)

Anyway, that’s more or less the phonology. Stress is on the second-to-last syllable of the root.

I see this is way longer than expected. lol I’ll show you some minimal grammar stuff, then.

Nouns distinguish singular and plural, as well as nominative and genitive. Here are some examples:

NOM. SG.: dri “stone”; qǝs “summit”; dǝzhn “language”

NOM. PL.: drif “stones”; qǝsif “summits”; dǝzhnivǝ “languages”

GEN. SG.: drin “stone’s”; qǝsǝn “summit’s”; dǝzhnǝn “language’s”

GEN. PL.: drim “stones’”; qǝsim “summits’”; dǝzhnivin “languages’”

If you take those same three types of words (ends in a vowel; ends in a consonant; ends in a consonant cluster) and switch out the vowels with low vowels, then you get low vowel suffixes. Thus, with örq “orc”, you get örqeva, örqan, and örqeven.

Verbs agree with their subjects, direct objects, and indirect objects, and also mark aspects, polarity, and a few voices. I’m actually going to be super lazy and put up table images, because why not this is huge anyway. lol

These are all things that come before the root. So if nǝd is “give”, ǝmvrǝnǝd is “I give it to [him/her]”, kvǝvrunǝd is “You gave it to me” (can’t have a geminate [v] like that, so the [ǝ] breaks it up), khngrbǝzninǝd is “They always give them to you”, and khngrbǝznunǝd “They always used to give them to you”, etc. The nominalization can be used to make regular verbal nouns, but also complex infinitives, like ǝngvrhunǝd “for me to have given it to you”.

There are two types of suffixes that can come after the verb root:

The position 4 suffixes are optional (used only when needed), and the affirmative polarity suffixes are generally not use save for emphasis at this stage (which is why many verbs end with the verb root, in practical use).

The third person agreement prefixes are also used to form agentive nouns. Thus, the verb form pegazdasa, which means “s/he works regularly”, is also the noun to mean “worker”. (In fact, as a noun, the final -a will always be on there, whereas for the verb most of the time it will not be.) These nouns, then, don’t have the usual case frame, as their “plurals” are actually just plural verb forms. Thus:

NOM. SG.: pegazdasa “worker”

NOM. PL.: khegazdasa “workers”

GEN. SG.: pegazdasan “worker’s”

GEN. PL.: khegazdasan “workers’”

That gives you some of the major points of the Bodzvokhan language. There are adjectives, they come before the noun, and they agree in case and number. There are lots of borrowings from Russian, and some from English. Here’s probably my favorite sign that the art department came up with:

Öl Ruf. Öl El. “Dark Times. Dark Ale.” lol The ale is called Omarzo Gǝrrul “Ugly Gargoyle”. And that word mark for the word omarzo, “ugly”... Just brilliant. You know, I first came up with the Cyrillic script for Orcish, because, based on my understanding of what I discussed with David Ayer, that was the only one that was going to be used. But then he said he wanted another script—more angular and crude-looking—so I came up with the idea of the old script that was reclaimed. I didn’t like the look of it at first, but when I saw what they did with that word mark, I was like, “All right. This works. This is good.” Those art department folk are wizards. There was a guy there that had an Ugly Gargoyle ale shirt with that on it, and I’ve never coveted anything so bad...

Anyway, that’s an intro to the Orcish language, Bodzvokhan. Hope you like it! Up next is Elvish!

[whateverisbeautiful]

Richonne in Retrospect

#9: The Co-Parenting (3x12)

Y’all. 😭 This moment is like our first glimpse of Rick and Michonne co-parenting Carl. 😭 And it’s so sweet (and now super emotional) that they give off such family vibes in this episode.

So after Michonne reminds Rick that the mat did in-fact say “welcome”, 😋 Carl tells Rick he wants to go get a crib for Judith.

I feel like there’s a lot of moments in this episode that cement why Carl is beyond his years, because even for him to think of getting something practical for Judith lets you know he takes on part of the responsibility of raising her, especially considering his dad understandably wasn’t exactly in the best state when the baby was first born.

And of course he’s still a kid tho, so Rick is about to shut the request down cuz he’s not about to have Carl just go run and grab something by himself. But Carl tries again at convincing him and you can tell “no” is not an answer Carl has any intention of taking.

It’s def not a coincidence that Michonne would be brought along on this trip with just Rick and Carl and that she’s getting to see firsthand their family dynamic and personal insight into Rick trying to navigate being a single dad.

Now knowing Richonne was planned around this time, this is clearly to position her as a future Grimes family member.

And this future Grimes family member smoothly steps into the conversation when she casually tells Carl if he’s getting a crib he’s going to need the box. Carl says what and then Michonne repeats that the crib box will probably be heavy. I love that this line is a subtle way to let us know Michonne had a child.

And then she says, “You are getting a crib right?” And I love that she’s just talking to Carl like a person and not a little kid cuz she already knows he’d respond better to that than any remote babying.

And Carl, thinking he’s grown, says “That’s what I said”. Lol. And so then Michonne sort of leans in Rick’s direction to tell him she’ll go with Carl.

I love this cuz it’s such a perfect way to handle it. Like in one fell swoop she was able to let Rick know she would look out for his kid while also helping Carl’s case for getting to go. Look at her already strengthening the family. 🙌🏾

And this made me think about that deleted scene from the season 7 finale where she spoke life into both of them and it’s just sweet that this season 3 episode lays the foundation for that moment seasons later.

(Side note: If I thought that finale deleted scene should have been included in the original cut before, I really really think it should have been included now. Like how was a moment between Carl and his parents cut? I don’t understand.🤦🏽‍♀️)

And I love Rick’s look after she tells him she’ll go with Carl. Like that look just says he’s thinking “Are the three of us kind of operating like a beautiful family right now?” (Lol these are the kinds of direct quotes from the character’s minds that you can get exclusively here. #extra😋)

So then he stands up and he clearly likes the offer cuz he tells Carl, “Right there. That’s the deal”. And honestly it’s adorable cuz one; he seems pretty happy that Michonne was able to find this happy medium and two; he’s co-signing with his soon-to-be co-parent. Here for it. 🙌🏾😊

I love the mom and dad vibes given off in this scene and in this episode. And also I’m seriously going to miss story lines with the three of them. 😭 There always so good and I wish we would have gotten a lot more.

Rick co-signing with Michonne here is big cuz, if it wasn’t clear before, this confirms that Rick trusts Michonne. 💯

He knows he can trust her with his son, which is a really serious thing to trust someone with, especially in their world.

And it’s also like, since Rick knows Michonne is a safe person for Carl to be around, maybe Rick also likes this plan cuz he’s thinking Carl can spend this time with her and then give Rick the scoop on what vibe he gets from her. Which we sort of see happen when he later asks if everything’s okay with her. But I’m getting ahead of myself. 😋

Basically, it’s a big deal that Rick would let the most special person in his life (apart from Judith) go with Michonne without him there to supervise and that he so confidently agreed to let her go with him. Y’all, Homeboy trusted her before he even realized he trusted her. 👌🏽 

He’s still a cautious dad tho cuz he still tells Carl to holler if he gets into any trouble. But like Carl’s with the Queen so he’ll be fine. 😌

It low key should have been the opposite, where they tell Rick to holler if he gets into trouble since he was about to be left alone with Clear-mode Morgan lol. 😂

And then we have that quick moment of Rick and those wandering eyes lol cuz he def quickly checks Michonne out before she leaves. We all see you, ‪Slick Rick‬. 😋

Again, I think it suggests that R&M are supposed to be in the phase where they’re more aware, not fully aware, but more aware of their attraction.

Also, in this episode we get this phenomenal performance between Lennie James and Andrew Lincoln. Like anytime I see this episode, the performances are just as captivating as the first time and this is legit me after I watch their scenes in this episode, every time lol...

And one thing from Morgan and Rick’s interaction that’s now made me super emotional is the moment when Morgan asks Rick if his boy is dead and Rick says no and then Morgan says, “He will be.” And he later tells Rick that him and his boy will be torn apart by teeth or bullets. 😥

It’s depressing cuz that’s literally what the engine of this show was. Rick keeping Carl alive. No matter who made Rick feel like Carl wouldn’t make it be it Shane, Morgan, or even Lori in season 2, Rick was determined to keep Carl alive and create a new world for him. Against all odds, he was going to raise his son to be an ultimate survivor.

That’s literally the show at it’s core and what we were most rooting for and the one W Rick was supposed to get, at least from my perspective. We wouldn’t have anything else story-wise had it not been for Rick’s determination to find his son since Day One. But now that driving force and that hope is being unjustly ripped away.  😔 

Plus, when Morgan updates Rick on how he lost his son he says that his walker wife was standing right in front of Duane and Duane had a gun aimed at her but he couldn’t do it. And while the circumstances were very different, I feel like this was meant to parallel Carl and demonstrate why he’s a different type of kid because when the time came to take out his own mom he had the strength to do it.

I feel like this, amongst many things, suggested that Carl had what it took to beat this world, so I’ll never understand why all of that has now been taken away. 😥

But on a lighter note, the thing I love most about “Clear”, both when I first watched it and now, is that it lays the foundation for the best friendship on the show, in my humble opinion.

Because there’s been a lot of good friendships depicted in this series but the bond between Carl and Michonne really is something special. 👏🏽😊

I’m glad Rick let Michonne and Carl go on this little one-on-one venture cuz by the end of it not only would Michonne and Carl begin their path to becoming mother and son but their bond would play a huge part in Richonne as well. 

I love Carl and Michonne’s story line in “Clear” and that it continues on with this theme of Rick and Michonne co-parenting. Cuz Carl tells Michonne she doesn’t have to go with him but she reminds him, “I told your dad I’ll help you”. 

Watching this stuff in retrospect I keep thinking about moments that come later, like in 7x5 when Carl is trying to convince Michonne that they shouldn’t just sit and take this oppression from Negan (cuz that’s who Carl’s character is but I guess season 8 didn’t get the memo 👀) and Michonne says, “Your dad thinks differently.” And I love that by that point she’s without a doubt Carl’s mom and when she refers to his dad she’s also referring to her man. 🙌🏾

As they’re walking to get the crib, Carl thinks he’s slick and tries to pull one over on Michonne by asking her to take care of a walker while he runs off. 

...But see this ain’t Lori. So you aren’t running off on Michonne. 😂 She catches up to him and again talks to him like the little grown boy he is. And she realizes that Carl has walked past the baby place to which Carl vaguely admits that he has something else on his agenda.

(Side note: Seeing how little Carl is here and how little his voice is really makes me realize how much we watched this kid grow up. 😭)

I really love that quick moment of Carl looking into the restaurant and then thinking he’s just about to waltz in and then Michonne silently shutting that down with a quickness. She’s def a mom, y’all. Cuz that was a signature mom move lol. 

And then the next scene of them is Carl walking away cuz he knew not to push it with her and just run in the restaurant.

As they’re walking away it will always be so funny that in their little talk he says, “You don’t know me. You don’t know my dad.” Like just wait, Carl. She will. ☺️

And low key she knows them even here in “Clear” cuz as I mentioned before, I always got this vibe that Michonne understood Rick and Carl on a deeper level, even at the beginning.

Carl tries to reiterate his dad’s words when he says the only reason she’s here is cuz they have the same enemy and problem and that’s it, which is tough cuz Homegirl’s just trying to help.

But rather than give up, she allows her actions to show she cares and that she’s here for more than just “having the same problems”.

I love that when Carl says, “You can’t stop me” she levels with him and tells him, “Psst. I can’t stop you, but you can’t stop me from helping you”. It’s just a really sweet way for her to show Carl, he’s not going to push her away that easily. (And also one of the many illustrations that Michonne always be knowing what to say 👏🏽👸🏾)

Also she’s honestly such a strong person when I think about it cuz it can’t be easy to be around this young boy who’s a reminder that she won’t get to see her own son grow up to be this age, but instead she doesn’t push away, she allows herself to help this kid. And she’s perseverant cuz Carl was pretty determined to push her away. 

There’s so many subtle hints that Michonne is a mom cuz when they’re in the restaurant and a large group of walkers come at them she immediately makes sure that Carl runs in front of her. And then when they make it out, I love that when Carl is adamant to go back for that picture she lays down the law and let’s him know she’ll help him get it if he stops playing games. Issa mom. 😋

And of course she goes back inside and retrieves his family picture with ease. Cuz 👸🏾.

It’s very symbolic that she’s involved in getting this picture of the first Grimes family considering she will be apart of the 2.0 family. 

It’s like she’s both handing Carl a piece of his past while also forming this bond with him that will make her an integral part of his future. 

And while it’ll be a while before Carl’s fully aware that Michonne is his second mom, it’s like this moment is saying you can still love and respect your mom while being open to a new mother figure in your life.

It’s sweet that Carl seems to be genuinely appreciative when Michonne gets him that photo. And when he says he didn’t want Judith to forget what his mom looks like. *cue internal and eternal tears* It’s precious. 😭

This moment where Carl switches from angry to kind, really reminds you that this is a little kid who has been through a whole lot and so any of that tough exterior he has seems like it comes from just trying to make it, but at his core he is still a kid. And I love that Michonne was able to reach that inner kid in Carl.

And then Michonne also gets the famous rainbow cat and I love that it’s this seemingly small moment that does a nice job of showing us a new more playful side of her personality.

And Carl’s little smile when he sees that she got that cat. ☺️ She’s definitely won him over.

Like it’s really cool that in these interactions between Carl and Michonne we’re literally watching the making of a mom and son. 😊

It’s just all and all a great moment that makes me wish we had more of these little moments that develop all the quirks and traits of the characters as people as well as the bonds they have.

Also watching this back, I love knowing that this cat is going to come up seasons later when Rick and Michonne finally realize they’re in love with each other. 🙌🏾😊

For Rick to have taken note of this rainbow cat and not forget about it all that time later, must mean she was on his radar quite a bit. Here for it. 🙌🏾

Michonne tells Carl she just couldn’t leave the cat behind but what I really appreciate is that there was something in Michonne, Carl, and Rick that made them feel they just couldn’t leave each other behind either.

This episode is great for a lot of reasons but especially because this is when Carl and Michonne’s precious friendship took root and I love that their bond would only get stronger from here.  👌🏽😊