artoflumeria

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a self portrait of sorts

and a little bit of the process behind it (well, sort of):

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The Stories and Symbolisms behind the Garden Codenames (2): Hemlock/Hypericum/Otogiri

[manga spoiler alert]

It has proved that there's A LOT to talk about Yor's codename in the first part, so here's part two which is about other codenames of the Garden assassins.

Basically we are introduced to three more characters who are affiliated with the Garden. We have learned that there is a hierarchy within the Garden. And we know that only one new character will be joining us in the new arc - Hemlock.

A. The origin of Otogiri

Hemlock is in fact not Hemlock in the JP version. His codename is 弟切 Otogiri, or hypericum in English. At first glance, it makes sense why the English version takes the liberty to change the plant. Hemlock is highly poisonous. It's easy to read and makes a better codename than Hypericum.

However, I don't think the English version should have taken the liberty. There are two things the English version has missed.

Ch.115

First of all, there's this story behind the name Otogiri, and the symbolism that comes with the story. The plant is named Otogiri 弟切: the brother[弟]-killing (or cutting [切]) plant. The name of the plant has its origins from a legend about a takajo 鷹匠 (the word is often translated as "falconer" or "hawk master") from the Heian Period 平安時代. There are two different versions of the legend but the main plot remains to be the same:

A falconer killed his younger brother for revealing his trade secret (that the otogiri could be used to stop bleeding hence it is used as a medicine for raptor's wound) to others.

Is it a coincidence that a "falconer" and his raptor appear in sxf? (Short Mission 16)

The spots on the yellow flowers are said to be the blood splattered by the younger brother, and therefore the flower language for the plant is "resentment" and "revenge". This is what makes a plant with high medicinal value ominous.

B. Themes and renewed symbolisms

Like the story of the Sleeping Beauty, this medieval folklore has its influence on modern pop culture. In 1992, a visual novel video game named Otogirisou was published by Chunsoft for the Super Famicom. (Now if you remember, Chapter 94 is also inspired by another visual novel video game, Banshee's Last Cry, also published by Chunsoft for the Super Famicom.)

Endo's tweet

If you compare the stories of the Sleeping Beauty and Otogiri (the video game), they share a common theme - as a revenge, a curse was placed; thus the people in the story tried hard to reverse the curses with love and kind wishes.

A scene in the game: "The flower language of otogiri is... 'revenge'."

In the Sleeping Beauty, the cursed object is a needle; in Otogiri (the game), the cursed object is a sword. Is it a coincidence that these objects have become the weapon of the assassins who use the names of the stories as their codenames?

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C. Poisons and Medicines

The other thing the English version has missed is that Otogiri is, first and foremost, a medicine - the younger brother was killed because he had revealed to the others about the medicinal value of the plant. But the tricky part is, without the backstory or the folklore, otogiri or hypericum could totally be a harmless, highly medicinal herb. (Without war, is it possible that he could grow up as a person contributing to the society in a normal way?) And the irony is exactly that - for most of the English audience who doesn't necessarily have the knowledge about this Japanese legend, hypericum seems to be too harmless and even beneficial to be a codename for an assassin. So much so they have to change it into a plant that is highly poisonous.

But what if it's deliberate?

We have four codenames revealed: いばら姫 (Thorn Princess/roses), 弟切 (otogiri/hypericum), ぎんピー (gympie-gympie) and アザミ (thistle). Even if thistle as a plant is slightly toxic, gympie-gympie is considered to be one of the most poisonous plants - she's also the known poison expert in the group:

Ch.116

We expect the assassins to be dangerous. Naturally we would expect the codenames to be plants that have dangerous features, like thorns, or toxins. But we will also have to consider how the Garden sees them, or more exactly, how the Garden sees itself:

All of these plants are medicines. Even roses can be medicine. And yes, even gympie-gympie can be medicine.

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I'm not saying that the Garden is righteous, but at least we have to understand that at least from their perspective, they are doing the right thing. The other hint we get is the title 剪定者, translated as "pruner" in the English version. To "prune" is not only to merely "cut off" things; it is to ensure a fruitful growth. There is a nurturing side in the action. That is exactly why it's equally important for them to be dangerous and to be "medicinal" at the same time - they didn't do it because they are blood-thirsty.

Ch.116

The idea of "the dose makes the poison" is universal. In Japanese there is this phrase "変毒為薬" - to turn poison into medicine. One would have to be very careful if they want to cure the nation with dangerous plants. You have to use them sparingly - one would not want to overuse them. This could be one of the explanations why Yor doesn't have as many missions as Twilight does. Interestingly, Endo has played with the idea of poison 毒 = medicine 薬 before.

Extra mission 2

See you all two weeks later!

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Leonid Pasternak  (Ukrainian, 1862–1945) - The Torments of Creative Work

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Spy x Family volume 15 omake chapter translation

Volume 15 of SxF was just released in the Japan, and along with the new illustrations I posted about the other day, a 2-page bonus/omake chapter was also included, featuring Henry and Martha. I created translations of the pages, and big shoutout to @rafaron1223 for using his superior editing skills to put my translations into the pages 😃

Also, for those who haven't seen, Martha is on the cover of volume 15.

I like how the inner cover of young Martha for this volume matches the inner cover of volume 14 (young Henry).

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Spy x Family Jump Festa 2025 news

The SxF panel at Jump Festa just ended! The biggest news (that was actually leaked a few days ago) is that the official release date for season 3 is October 2025!

Unfortunately there wasn't any exclusive season 3 content for them to show, since the date is still so far off. But we got to see some fun shenanigans from the voice actors, like live drawings and line readings. Also, Endo blessed us with the below illustrations made specifically for the event - pirate Forgers 🏴‍☠️

The live drawings Endo did of Bond and Yor. So amazing how he could draw them perfectly with just a pen and paper!

We also got a season 3 promotional drawing from Kazuaki Shimada.

And lastly, we got a quick look at the first page of the upcoming chapter 108.

Melinda asks why Yor is here and Yor asks why she's a fortune teller. Melinda seems flustered, saying something like "Oh, that's right, it's a festival, so anyone came in" and then saying that she was helping out at the festival through the woman's society, though that's not related to the question at hand (why she's a fortune teller).

And that's about it. I was hoping there would be at least a new key visual for season 3 or a teaser, but I guess it's still too early. We'll hang in there!

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Observations made on Mission 104's storyline settings.

Mysterious Plant

• Features

The plant's features are a combination of a few carnivorous plants that inhabit the rainforests, which occupy lands near the Earth's Equator.

Stigma - Corpse Flower (Amorphophallus Titanum)

Petals - Rafflesia (Rafflesia Arnoldii)

Body - Pitcher Plant (Nephentes Rajah)

• Geschocran (ゲツショクラン, getsushokuran)

Through a few attempts and references of finding out the possible Kanji words referred as Katakana characters in the flower's name, the possibilities are:

Getsu (月, ゲツ) - Moon

Shoku (植, ショ) - Plant

Ran (蘭, ラン) - Orchid

But since Japanese is not my first language and the interpretations done here could be a little off, it serves as an exercise in the learnt language.

• Witch's Crib (魔女の寝床, majou no nedoko)

The word "寝床" may translate as either a "bed" or a "crib", where if taken as literal had meant a witch's sleeping place.

Another take on the word "crib" in its archaic use would be "one's resting place", where it may refer to the place for those who lost their lives. Taking into consideration of the cauldron-like shape of the flower's body and it's carnivorous plants' inspired features, the flower's name may indicate the victims that fell into its trap and ended up being drowned in the said cauldron-like area (a shared trait of most carnivorous plants).

Ancient Builds, Chichen Itza

The snippet of the older civilisation's building shown resembles that of the Chichen Itza, with the Temple of Kukulcan on its centre.

In a possible symbolism, the snake that appeared in this chapter may refer to the said temple being dedicated to the Mayan Feathered Serpent deity, Quatzalcoatl.

Equinox's Sun Alignment

• Temple of Kukulcan

The setting sun during the spring and the autumn equinox casts a shadow illusion of the Feathered Serpent descending the temple.

• Angkor Wat

On a similar occasion of the spring and the autumn equinox, one could see the sun rising above the building's central lotus tower from the perspective of the western entrance.

Note: To some, this chapter may come off as bland. But to those who appreciate both geography and history, this release gives off an additional take on the author's skills in weaving the intricate details of realistic elements into his worldbuilding ventures that thus add in the depth of this series all while building up the main tale. And standing by the latter perspective, it's an impressive take by the author while expanding the series' characters.

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Spy x Family volume 14: bonus chapter and official timeline translation

Volume 14 was just released and it included a ton of great extras, including an extra bonus chapter and a timeline of events! Firstly, here's my translation of the 4Koma (4 panel) bonus chapter!

Lol at Anya telling Yuri to go to work 😂 I also love how Anya has a teacup once Yor is home ❤️

Next, much to everyone's surprise, Endo provided an official timeline...sort of. It doesn't have specific years and a lot of information is redacted, but it's something! Sorry for the sloppy editing, I pasted an excel sheet over the original text since that was much easier. Also, the letters in the "Character Age" column refer to the first letter of the character ("L" for Loid for example).

Did I forget who "Coco" was or was that never actually in the manga?

Even though much of the timeline is redacted, it does confirm a few things, like how old Henry and Martha were during some past events, and in the present, as well as Loid's age when he joined the army. I also find it interesting that Anya is included even though this timeline is about the wars...was the facility she was at involved with the war somehow? 👀 Were the experiments on her related?

Next, a bonus illustration of Damian picking his outfit for the gala, just like Jeeves mentioned in the latest chapter. Ewen is telling him to pick black since it looks more more cool and mature. But Endo says that the overlapping patterns make it hard to see, so he should pick white. Obviously being the creator, whatever Endo says goes 😅

Stella progress illustration. Anya is the only one with tonitrus...

And lastly, the main cover and inner cover featuring young and old Henderson (maybe Martha for volume 15?)

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Some interesting comments from Japanese readers about the name of the plant in the newest chapter, seems like gesshoku can be interpreted as either 月色(moonlight) or 月食(lunar eclipse)

(original JP comments below)

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Yes, please

i want the kids to bother him more LOL

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aww, i had never noticed that!

I mentioned this on Twitter, so I had to here as well. (Someone has brought this up before, tho I can’t remember where.) I love the attention to detail of the Forger kitchen in the manga. There are Bondman stickers all over the kitchen cabinets and drawers, at the perfect Anya height! 🥰

You can spot them in these panels

I think it’s so cute her parents are letting Anya make her house a home by sticking her stickers everywhere. (I was NOT allowed to do that as a kid.)

The apartment in the anime is iconic, but very sterile. It never changes. The manga apartment looks much more homey and lived in and I love the little details like these that shows a young child lives and plays there. For Agent Twilight to let her do this, the boy’s a big softie I think. I wonder what he thinks when he passes by these stickers all over his “temporary” home. ❤️

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ok i love twiyor reveals but can we talk about BRIAR SIBLING REVEAL??

i honestly do not know what yor's reaction would be, but i imagine that she took up such a violent and demanding job so yuri could live as peacefully as possible. so, when she finds out he's gone down an equally violent path, maybe she would blame herself for not keeping him safe.

or something :]

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AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

SPY X FAMILY SEASON 3 ANNOUNCED?? THE AMOUNT OF FORESHADOWING HERE HELLO??

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I just realized I never uploaded any information about my commissions so…

✨Here are my commission info! ✨

Please, make sure to read the extra information below before sending me a message.

Extra info: ● Please contact me via email: calandrisz@gmail.com

● I can do: OCs, pets, irl portraits, ships, mild blood ● I can NOT do: mecha, hard nsfw/gore

● Payments via paypal only. Send as “Close friend” via the email: calandrisz@gmail.com in USD, in 2 parts (50% deposit before starting and 50% after final approval).

● The more details of what you want, the better! Please tell me as many details as you can when you commission me. And if you have image references of what you want, send me those as well! I want to be able to capture exactly what you imagine.

● I may refuse a commission if I feel uncomfortable with its content.

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i can't even describe the sadness of seeing my hometown like this.

and then there still are people saying that climate change isn't real 💀

05/05/24: Inundação em Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul - Brasil (Fotos: Gustavo Garbino)

05/05/24: Flooding in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul - Brazil (Photos: Gustavo Garbino)

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tumblr has an AI toggle you should turn on to prevent your work being shared with training models/etc! it's under settings & visibility.

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cute 💕

Black mage!

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Primeira parte de uma série de ilustras em lápis de cor de final fantasy!

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First of a series of colored pencil final fantasy drawings!

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Agent Twilight. Westalis' top spy.

Can't win an argument with his baby daughter.