#I also really like Arven but that’s a given he’s a sweetheart

[redenne-moon]

I already knew I liked Grusha’s design, but after battling him just now… 100% my brand. Husband material. Could see him becoming the kind of character I fixate on for drawing and rp 😆

[a-tale-of-legends]

speaking of hair do you think there is any symbolism to the characters who have one eye covered by their hair like lusamine and gladion for example

Oh yeah definitively.

The typical trope of characters having one eye covering their is usually used to evoke shyness, simply not being a very social person, a hidden personality or past, or, you guessed it, ✨trauma✨. And of the characters that have these bangs, they are kinda fit the bill.

Lusamine is the most interesing to me, bc it tells us so much, both before and after we know her story. Before, Lusamine looks like a generally trust worthy person. She seems kind, parental, and incredibly devoted. But then you look at her hair, and how it interacts with her face. For the sake of this post, let's just talk about her bangs. Lusamine's bangs doesn't fully cover her eye. You can see it ever so slightly peeking out. It kinda acts like this...hood, i guess, leaving an overcast shadow around her face. It helps make her otherwise more kind face feel more.....ominous. Her smile doesn't exactly look kind anymore, and her eyes don't seem that welcoming. Like there's something more that your missing. And then you actually get to know her, both in her actions throughout the main game, and what you learn from Lillie and Gladion. Going with what I said before, I do think Lusamine is a woman defined by trauma ( honestly, as he rest of the aether family is), but also someone who is still very cruel to those around her, a stark contrast to how she appeared before. And all of that is still conveyed through her bangs. Hiding one eye, but not fully, her bangs acting as a hood that cast a shadow over her face....it's really good!

Gladion is a similar story: a kid who has been traumatized by the loss of his father and the cruelty of his mother bc of that loss. Unlike Lusamine, his hair fully covers his eye, with you only being able to see it from the side. Again, it's a good way of showing his personality: someone who has something to hide, someone who more than what you think, someone who is possibly hurting. But what makes his hair special to me, is that it really cements the idea that Gladion is an emo ass teen who wants to look cool. If I'm remembering correctly, Gladion's rips in his clothes where done himself? And between the posing and the clothes, you cannot tell me that Gladion thought the hair covering one eye wouldn't be the coolest thing ever. That he would look so cool and mysterious. But, to not bully him too much, I can also see his hair as a slight defiance towards his mom? I dunno how he used to look when he was young, but given how Lusamine pretty much controlled how he and Lillie used to dress, I can imahine the freedom of Gladion being able to do fuck all with his own hair. Though, ironically, if his hair wasn't always covering his eye ( quickly checked the pokeani to see if that was the case and it wasn't! both of his eyes where visible), it would have made him and his mom more similar design wise.

What I said about Gladion, can be said for Arven too, tbh. Hidden past, hidden personality ( as in he's a sweetheart), lot's of trauma- the whole package. I will say, it's particularly funnier with Arven, bc at least Gladion tries to look intimidating and still kinda acts like how you would expect him too. But Arven is so insistent that he isn't sweet and nice even though he very much is. His tough guy act is actively failing lmao. Fucking dork.

And I know, I know there's Cynthia and Volo, but I think you guys would get the point already lol. Though I think Cynthia is pretty funny too. Her bangs are definitely there to make her look mysterious, and she is, but what's hidden is that she's actually a lil goofy. At least in the anime she is. And she's pretty disorganized, which is something you don't expect a woman like her to be at first glance. Honestly, she's a very funny subversion of expectations here lol.