#I still really like that idea thus the first comic

[kakusu-shipping]

Another self insert based entirely one someone else's self insert. @lunayumes has such a habit of making the prettiest and loneliest self inserts, but unlike Your Turn to Die I've SEEN Dungeon Meshi and thus can make her at least a little less lonely.

Emile's a Gnome/Half-Foot hybrid who was raised by his parents far from most civilization. When his mother (half-foot) died of old age his father (gnome) took his own life, unable to live without his wife, leaving their son of indeterminate age completely abandoned on a farm in the middle of No Where.

Emile saved up the funds to leave his home and go traveling in hopes of learning more about his heritage and culture he was deprived of and eventually found himself on The Island. Naturally he gravitated to the local library to read everything they had on Gnome and Half-Foot culture and History. This is also where he meets Emi, who goes to the library mostly just to get out of her empty house when he husband, Chilchuck, is away.

Neither of them are very sociable people, but eventually Emile works up the courage to talk to this very pretty Half-Foot he sees regularly. Surprisingly, they have a lot in common and end up hitting it off.

Emile eventually convinces Emi to leave Chilchuck, partly because he's formed a crush on the woman, but mostly because she's his friend and he wants what's best for her, and this clearly wasn't it. He knows what it's like to be alone all the time. When Chilchuck eventually comes back to talk to Emi and the two make up, Emile remains pretty Anti-Chilchuck for a while afterwards, mostly just giving him dirty looks. Emi doesn't seem to notice.

That's about all I have. Again thanks to @lunayumes for letting me use her S/I as a base for mine!! Anything is subject to change at you're request!!

[loserifer]

i survived another week under capitalism's thumb. w me. anyway, here's some Tension >:)

Page 5/?

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reblogs are appreciated!!! 🕺🕺🕺

[thewebcomicsreview]

You know, it's always struck me as a little odd how little most webcomics actually attempt to adapt to their medium. There's basic strips, the old 2k era 4-square, the endless scroll of Webtoons, and a few weird experimental things like Homestuck, but most webcomics I run into tend to stubbornly stick to conventional portrait-oriented page layouts.

It's… readable, I guess, but that format doesn't seem to work very well for either desktop or mobile viewing. It wastes a lot of screen-space, and usually makes it impossible to actually view the full page without making the text too small to read.

Have you encountered any interesting webcomics that experiment with more landscape-oriented layouts? I'm kinda curious about how well that would work.

So, there's this dude Scott McCloud who wrote about comics in the 90s. His first book, Understanding Comics, is literally the book on comics, it's the one schools make kids read. This third book, Making Comics, is a pretty good practical advice guide I'd recommend, even if it's not his groundbreaking seminal work. In between those two books was one called Reinventing Comics

Reinventing Comics, written in 1993, was basically a book of predictions about how this newfangled Interweb was going to revolutionize the art of comics creation. Like a lot of early-90s stuff "Wow the internet!" stuff, it has a lot of inaccurate predictions, and thus isn't super well remembered (though, unlike a lot of early-90s predictions of the internet, it at least vaguely resembled reality).

Anyway, one of the big things from that book was the idea of the "infinite canvas".

Which was basically the idea that a comic didn't have to be constrained by the size of the screen because you could scroll it. And this was a big idea in early webcomics, you heard this phrase a lot. And you'd see infinite canvas techniques like "What if the characters are falling and the comic is really tall to sell that?"

(Read Narbonic)

Which is basically the one and only example that actually took off, because it turns out that scrolling horizontally sucks and no one really wants to do it except as a one-of gimmick (as Homestuck does). The much bigger impact of the internet was that a webcomic could be infinitely long and still reasonably expect it's readership to have read it all, but I think McCloud missed that one. So while there were a bunch of "landscape" webcomics where you scrolled horizontally, none of them took off, and even the ones that were well received are long gone.

Adams himself would make Zot!, which is a vertical scroll comic that had a bit of a gimmick with parallel story beats being literally parallel. I think he even did some branching paths, and experimented with comics that you could read in different directions or that looped back on themselves.

But then Homestuck just did that better because, as I mentioned, infinite depth ended up being a lot more impactful than infinite width. It turns out that making a comic really wide calls a lot of attention to itself and makes the comic annoying to read. And it doesn't mean you can't do it (Homestuck did it!), but it does mean it can't be the gimmick you hang your comic up on unless you've got a really good reason for doing it.

[positivexcellence]

Jared Padalecki Talks Boys Role (‘Just Let Me Know If I Have to Get Naked’) and How It’d Be a Supernatural Reunion

Jared Padalecki is hoping that if he visits The Boys, he’ll get to keep his clothes on.

Supernatural creator and The Boys showrunner Eric Kripke has been vocal about his desire to get his former leading man on the Prime Video drama, calling Padalecki “the Pokémon I haven’t collected yet.” Thus far, Jensen Ackles, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Jim Beaver, Rob Benedict and Christian Keyes are among the Supernatural vets to pop up on the comic book series, while Alexander Calvert recurred on the spinoff Gen V.

Bringing Padalecki onto the show is a matter of “finding the right role. Look, I want to. I mean, even if it’s just for a guest shot,” Kripke told TVLine.

But with the announcement that there’s only one season left after this current fourth one, have there been any recent conversations between Kripke and Padalecki about how to make that guest spot a reality before time runs out?

“We talked a little bit recently. I mean, we talked today,” Padalecki told TVLine on Friday.

A month ago, Kripke called the actor following the cancellation of his CW series Walker, which will come to an end with this Wednesday’s episode.

“He’s like, ‘Hey, dude, a) so sorry about Walker. I know how much you loved it and great show. Would you be interested in coming to play up in Toronto [where The Boys shoots]?'” Padalecki recalls. “I was like, ‘Absolutely. Just let me know if I have to get naked or not because I gotta start working out now.'”

Despite the potentially urgent need to get into the gym, Padalecki notes that the role is still a ways off from actual production.

“He and I have talked about what it could look like. It’s not written yet. He said it wouldn’t really be until 2025. We wouldn’t shoot until probably January-ish,” Padalecki shares, adding that he’s game to “go play in the playground [of] the guy who created Sam Winchester. I’ve had good times in his playground, so I’m happy to do it again.”

As for what kind of character he’d like to portray, Padalecki has his sights set on a villainous supe, with “the power of wearing clothes,” he says with a laugh. “No, I don’t know. You know what’s funny is that, yeah, I have some ideas, but to Kripke’s credit, all my ideas for his time on Supernatural paled in comparison to what he came up with. So I wouldn’t even want to put anything in his head. I just want him and his f–ked up mind to think of something cool for me to come and do, and it’s going to be better than anything I could have dreamed up. The way his brain works is wildly interesting and outside of the box… So I’ll just go with what he creates.”

Of course, if Padalecki comes on The Boys, there is potential to have him in a scene with his Supernatural co-stars Ackles and Morgan, who play baddie supe Soldier Boy and CIA officer Joe Kessler, respectively.

“Let me just say that’s not the first time I’ve had a conversation where that has been pontificated. But yeah, that would be a lot of fun,” Padalecki says, before jokingly adding that all three characters would be naked for the reunion.

Well, Kripke does have a habit of putting Supernatural alums in nude scenes…

tvline

[synergysilhouette]

"Batman: Caped Crusader" review

Binge-watched this show, and I wanted to be one of many people to share my thoughts on this--plus I was spurred on by getting a wish of mine granted from the show. Make sure to check out the show if you can!

The animation is beautiful--I know this is a weird comparison, but soemthing about the animation reminds me of 2010s Scooby Doo animated films, and I kind of adore that.

The voice acting was...fine--I can't tell if it was poor performances or poor direction; Hamish's Bruce Wayne sounds too raspy/rugged some of the time, like he's still playing Batman, and many of the other actors felt like they were just reading lines rather than performing lines, not enough emotion. IDK if they're more used to live-action work, but voice-acting is a different ballgame, since your voice is all you have to convey the character. A lot of performances fell flat for me, but it wasn't 100% unbearable, just underwhelming. I have some people I'd recommend instead (both familiar to the role and otherwise), but I don't wanna start anything.

LOVED Harley (but not her costume)--Jamie Chung had one of the better performances in the group, and I really LOVED the angle they did for Harley; I feel like the media often flanderizes her as the goofy crazy chick, so seeing her actually utilize her psychology skills (like I've been asking for!) is so satisfying. That said, the outfit has GOT TO GO. Gold and black is gorgeous, but it ples in comparison to her black and red look. And a weird nit-pick; when I first saw the stills, I was under the impression she was wearing a carnival-esque mask rather than face paint, and I find that idea a lot creepier. I wish we'd gotten more of Harley's antics--and even seeing her get close to Bruce in the way she did with Barbara and Renee--before revealing her as a big bad to the public. And I appreciate that she isn't 100% evil; she is doing what she believes is a noble cause, just doing it in an illegal and unethical way. I needed a backstory!

Not enough Batman--Maybe it's just me, but it definitely felt like there were some episodes where Bruce and Batman were supporting characters and more focus was on the GCPD. While I don't mind it too much, I enjoy superhero shows for the superheroes, not the heroes; this is why I had a love/hate relationship with "Gotham."

Batman (and Bruce) isn't quite likeable enough--In earlier incarnations, Batman was more kind and caring before becoming more emotionally closed off with time, but here he's that way from the get-go. Not to mention that Bruce Wayne puts on a facade around everyone, even people he trusts (he probably did that anyway; I can't remember), and his session with Harleen really frustrated me because I don't expect his walls to come down immediately, I don't expect them to be this high this early. I wanted him to be a bit warmer and transparent, rather than curt and cold like he's usually seen in the show. I feel like this is an issue often seen in comics, too; people prioritize Batman's "coolness" and thus push his feelings to the wayside.

Using underrated and familiar villains--I'm sure the real experts are gonna chew me out for this one, but as someone who got into comics in the 2010s and didn't catch up on the acclaimed 90s series, it was fun to see villains I loved and villains I didn't know; one of the best things a popular property can do is use underrated characters, since it helps the show feel original and fresh (thus why "Teen Titans" is so enjoyable; the whole franchise is underrated).

Too modern for the 1940s--I can't put my fingers on it exactly, but the vibes feel too modern; I assume the 1940s was for aesthetics, but since everything else feels updated (from the way people talk to Harley and Renee seemingly being open about their feelings for each other), I don't think it was a wise choice to have it both ways. I see no reason not to have it in modern-day, but I suppose you'd have to get more creative with technology.

Barbara and the Robins--First off, I should've gambled with someone that Jason would be a redhead; I'd have made SO MUCH money. Secondly, I'm not crazy about how all four kids are orphans; If I recall correctly, both Carrie and Stephanie's parents were alive when they joined the Batfamily. In any case, I'm confused on why Barbara is significantly older than them when they're all supposed to be within the same age bracket (I think; someone has told me otherwise since posting this, so I could be wrong). Not to mention, a part of me worries that because of the quartet's young ages and Barbara getting so much screentime as a lawyer, we won't get any of them as Robins or Batgirls unless something drastic happens, and/or we get a time jump.

Overall, I think my biggest gripes are the voice acting and how Batman/Bruce Wayne is written. That said, I enjoyed the show overall. IDK why HBO Max dropped it. Hopefully season 2 will introduce Poison Ivy, Catman, Tim Drake, Ghostmaker, and Gardener, since the finale already showed us a certain someone who IS coming to Gotham.

[sabrondabrainrot]

🌦️Dark Sun and 🔅Servant Sun

I tried my hand at designing Servant Sun and Dark Sun.

I'm getting more caught up on the lore!! Click underneath for art closeups and more Lore rants and AU idea! Plus, I have sketches and a comic WIP I've been working on.

😉

There will be rambly spoilers to where I am in the Lore.

For Dark Sun I was inspired a lot by the thumbnails, they give him red eyes a lot in the thumbnails and I like the smarmy red eyed look of the guy. Tried to capture his 'regal-holier then thou' attitude in his design. He's still Sun though, so I used OG Sun's palette (my first Sun design!) to reflect the fact they have the same beginnings. I don't trust anything he says but I know something has totally happened to his Moon (I'm really banking on the idea he ATE him/ ATE his intelligence chip) so he carries his Moon's bell and he also repurposed the star pattern of Moon to parade it around as like a symbol his Moon is at his heal. I don't know if I like his final look but I think it's because I gave him dramatically darker shading vs the other Suns.

Servant Sun! Here's my take on him. He's been suffering for over 10000+ years under Lord Eclipse abuse. We saw how he was being punished just because Lore Eclipse was bored! I feel really bad for this Sun, it was hard to draw a design for him. I think despite his servant title Lord Eclipse just keeps him around not only to keep himself sane but also a trophy/slave to show off to Moon and the others in the afterlife. I had this like monologue for SSun basically, "The sound of bells long ago stopped ringing for the daycare attendant turned servant but Lord Eclipse still can hear the sound of metallic chimes when the neurotic servant cleans thanks to his fanciful additions." (aka the chime of chains) He's also got an apron that's falling apart and SSun used random old fabric to patch it up (it wasn't random it was his old clothes). I was really inspired by Meagancandraw's design of Servant Sun!

Here's my AU sketches. I'm planning to clean these up and maybe color them? This is basically just the AU idea that I think Sun is going to somehow get reborn but be a being reborn from star power and negative star power? I don't know if it's possible? He becomes a mix of the two in my AU. I know some current spoilers and basically I know he may be immune to negative star energy? He can also hold Star Power uniquely and it 'taste good to him'. I will never let go of the fact he told Moon it taste nice like dried watermelon. His untrained magical outburst was also compared to be as powerful as Golden Freddy's. There's big theory he's going to die or be sacrificed but I have this idea what if he's essentially remade? idk just rambly thoughts. So yeah, he has a cool new look to go with his magical transformation.

BTW he is very sad cause he can't be near his family in this AU my brain cooked up. He's basically radiation incarnate now <3 His eyes are cracked because they're intensely pouring out Star/Negative Star power. Just a constant pull and push of power circulating in him.

this is the comic idea I have currently. I don't have a ton of motivation so any encouragement to finish this comic idea would be super appreciated! I'm not a comic-type artist so this is out of my comfort zone (I've made a few comics but usually they are pretty janky)

ON TO THE RAMBLES - spoilers BEWARE:

NEW MOON MY BOY PLS YOU ARE HIDING STUFF FROM YOUR FAMILY. BOY NO. HE IS GONNA USE RUIN TO BRING BACK SOLAR?

Blood Moon just took Ruin. Also Dark Sun repaired Ruin after Molten took him to die in the dead dimension?? BOY??? Also, Dark Sun did something to Eclipse??? Bro is plotting. I wish I could get a read on Dark Sun but I don't even know how much of the truth he's been sharing thus far. He has no reason to tell anyone the truth and so far he hasn't hurt anyone just stole a bunch of data from Moon and built a bunker to escape total dimension collapse...He's just a big wild card for me.

Then there's New Moon, He's just actually going crazy after meeting Old Moon. Sun can tell something is wrong with his brother!!! I hope he can help him but spoilers tells me otherwise. The family is trying! Earth heard out Eclipse and Eclipse is getting Earth proof that Moon is currently cray-cray. Lunar is kind of hanging near Sun and Earth because the creator is now actively trying to kidnap him. So much spicy drama.

I don't pay attention much to the Freddy side of the plot but he's also dying?? bro??? What about Francine? The missing mom/wife? Poor Francine's suffering, she needs her mom and dad! I like that Puppet is hanging around her grandchild more it is very sweet. Foxy also got his 'bestfriend' Puppet a house/condo. hmm-Mmmhmm. Definitely no romantic tensions there. Definitely not.

(side bar, I don't ship Kidscove but I do ship the Foxy and Puppet do they have a ship name? Also no hate to Kidscove I just think Foxy treats Sun like a kid a lot. I like the gooseworld Kidscove. Sun laid eggs, so wholesome.)

Lunar is just waiting for news on his trial and I am in suspense hoo boy...Then the stuff with FC being put in a new body and Frank is not happy about it. I def can tell there's big lead up to the astral bodies making a big move I just wonder what the move will be. I feel like now Lunar and FC are going to end up being more intwined then they might think.

Also I love Dazzle!!! AAAGH! She and Jack are so cute! I loved the ep Sun took Dazzle and Lunar to the store that was so sweet. Can't wait to see more of them! They're such a cute dynamic! I like seeing Lunar put his best foot forward to help Dazzle too.

I can tell Moon is slowly distancing himself from the others but it's like this odd thing where he's no longer obsessed with Solar being back per sei...but he's obsessed over how HE has to be the one to bring Solar back in his way because HE promised and he wants to be better then Old Moon and yeah...he's got a very warped perspective I feel like? But Molten and Ruin BOTH pointed out Moon is being possessed by something so I think he's definitely sick? Or something is keeping him from seeing the error of his way.

Rambles over :)

I do plan to draw Solar and Eclipse and Lord Eclipse next but I'm stuck on what I want to do for Solar's design :P I might make a poll in the future!

[fountainpenguin]

Short Version: I don't even know how to begin explaining this, so take these 'fic doodles with no context.

Wish Fixers, my chronically unhelpful beloved...

Long Version (City Lights AU #ridspoilers beyond the above implication. Mentions of death and trauma; it gets pretty dark)

Nalooksthrough, I tag you below because I cited your co-dependent toxic friendship comic and said it was cool- If you don't want to click, that's all the tag was :)

So I started outlining my Dale backstory 'fic (Lemonade and Papercuts) since I am the most predictable person alive and of COURSE I can't resist 7 years of trauma and intimacy anxiety <3. But planning a 'fic like this requires many pieces and many questions.

First and most obvious- How did Vicky lure in Dale? From previous planning, I've already decided that since they're the same age (maybe one year off), they probably knew each other in school or activities.

Ex: Squirrely Scouts & Cream Puffs... Not unreasonable- Throughout the series, many kids participate and the organizations seem to have a big following in Dimmsdale. Vicky's sister Tootie is in the Cream Puffs and Vicky is seen bossing them around in the Season 0 episode "Scout's Honor" ("Oh Yeah! Cartoons"). There's a comic by the same name depicting Remy in Squirrely Scouts (after "Fairy Fairy Quite Contrary" but before he gets his memories back in "Remy Rides Again" and I always thought it was cute). I mean, look at him:

Pictures courtesy of the FOP Wiki

It's not unreasonable that Dale - who's also rich - might've gotten into that (especially since Doug is big on the cowboy theming and of all the rich parents, he's probably the one most okay with his son playing in dirt). Something scout-related could be an option even if Dale and Vicky went to different schools.

A friendship that gets increasingly toxic until it spirals into full-on abuse sounds really interesting (and @nalooksthrough portrayed this idea beautifully imo in THIS comic I can't stop thinking about).

Sounds fun to write, so let's go with that. What's next?

Hey, remember when 7 years ago, I headcanon'd H.P. as Dale's godfather because of this doodle in Da Rules that specifically refers to Pixie godparents and depicts a fluffy-haired kid in a purple shirt?

I recently found out I still had Dale listed as a godchild of H.P. on his full character profile on my fanfic sideblog. I was waffling over whether to retcon that (since I hadn't yet done anything with it), but I started brainstorming whether I COULD do anything with it.

I've always written Wish Fixers in 'fic [e.g. Origin of the Pixies] as a therapy business run by H.P.'s dad (which H.P. bought off him out of spite despite not being licensed for therapy) but, like...

Does Jorgen know H.P. isn't licensed? I can't see why he would... As far as he knows, H.P. owns and runs the place- especially given my lore that Wish Fixers has been in his family for many generations. Sounds qualified to me!

In "School's Out! The Musical" (episode that Da Rules screenshot is from), we learn Pixies are at the back of the line for godparent work, even under creatures like unicorns (Hence the Musical's plot requiring them to remove magical creatures from earth before they could assign themselves to Flappy Bob).

I said in a recent liveblog post that I'd always imagined this was a punishment given to them due to H.P. absolutely failing as godfather to Dale- Thus, the origin of the doodle on the page for that rule. But... I never decided what happened.

See, Dale SEEMS like a guy who would qualify for a fairy. He was probably pretty miserable under Vicky's 7 years of torture and he's still holding onto that trauma in his adulthood.

DID he have a fairy?

I'm just saying, we know from S4's "Wish Fixers" that H.P. is legally(?) allowed to make contracts that swap a fairy godparent with a pixie one if godkids choose to sign of their own free will... Hmm... I'm connecting dots I don't think I like... (I am lying).

I mean?? Dale clearly did not get out of the pit due to magical interference. If I'm committing to the doodle being Dale and reflecting an actual godfather-godson dynamic between him and H.P., then something sure went wrong there. I can't NOT make Dale suffer...

What on earth could've made Dale sign a contract for something a fairy couldn't give him? We know from "Nectar of the Odds" canon that he wished to see his dad, and thanks to previous liveblogs, I DO already have a headcanon of Dale being extremely desperate for his dad's love... Hmm... I can work with that.

I went down a rabbit hole trying to answer the question of how Vicky secured lemons for 7 years for Dale (and other kids) to work with. Here are some lemon tree facts:

- Lemon trees bear fruit after only a few years - They can bear fruit multiple times a year (depending on variety) - A single lemon tree can produce 1,500 lemons in one growing season - Dimmsdale is in California - a state known for lemon orchards.

That feels likely... An orchard of even a few trees can keep you going for a while.

But lemonade doesn't sell for much compared to other things Vicky could've set a kidnapped child up to do (Ex: In "Microphony," she has kids doing a bunch of other tasks like answering phones for her babysitting service, painting houses, and washing cars).

So... WHY lemonade? What is going on that makes this the thing Vicky has Dale do for 7 years?

And who owns the orchard? I need Vicky to obtain lemons without being stopped for 7 years.

Is it a Dimmadome orchard? Maybe, but several episodes imply Vicky's not familiar with the Dimmadomes - and she probably would have turned Dale in for cash reward if given the chance - so those are two things I need to keep in mind.

Does the orchard belong to her family? That's a possibility- Vicky is shown drinking lemonade after "Nectar of the Odds." She definitely could've bought it - It can't be too expensive unless prices were jacked up after she lost her cheap labor - but it's a drink she's seen with in multiple episodes. She definitely likes it.

And we know from "Timmy's 2D House of Horror" that Vicky's parents are terrified of her. It's not likely they'd stop her from taking lemons from the family orchard.

One problem... If Dale goes missing when he's about 9 (Closer to 7 or 8 in my planned timeline), Vicky is also 9 or younger. Are her parents scared of her when she's that small and inexperienced in the ways of the world?

In "The Switch Glitch," she's 5 and seems mild and sweet until 10-year-old Timmy mistreats her- She clearly didn't have memories of Timmy, implying she totally regressed to how she acted when she really was 5. Worth pointing out she goes off the deep end and chains up Cosmo and Wanda, so... she IS mean even at age 5. But also, she's 5. She wears the same purple hair bow in "Switch Glitch" (at 5) that she does when Timmy drains the meanness out of her in "Vicky Loses Her Icky," which is interesting.

So that begs the question... Can I turn my Dale backstory 'fic into a double story of Dale abuse AND Vicky going from a pretty innocent child to Totally Messed Up? Keeping in mind that according to Vicky in A New Wish, Vicky IS the one responsible for abusing him and he "spent 7 years' worth of Saturdays in a factory underneath a lemonade stand."

If that's the way I want to play it... Something happened to send Dale and Vicky down the dual victim-and-abuser path, destinies intertwined. And for some reason, Vicky stuck with the lemonade theme.

Dale just says he spent his Saturdays "in a factory underneath a lemonade stand." It's not out of the question he and Vicky made more lemon products than just lemonade, especially given Vicky's love for money (and those 600 lbs of lemons one tree can produce in a year). We can assume they changed locations a few times or someone would've found the trapdoor on Timmy's lawn. Plus when Dale started his abuse, Vicky hadn't started babysitting Timmy, whom she only met when he was 8.

So, I've set Dale up to be lured in by Vicky because they were friends. I like the idea of things gradually getting worse as Vicky slowly morphs from a friend into a very cruel person. If Vicky was bullying him, what stopped him from just... leaving?

Vicky's transformation was probably subtle if he stayed for so long..... I also pointed out in a recent post that Doug's underground milk empire where he uses hypnotized people for labor bears a striking amount of similarities with Vicky's lemonade stand, even down to the general vibes of "trapdoor entrance" (although it's implied there's another entrance in small building).

And if we want to be technical about things... We don't know if Doug and Dale pressed charges against Vicky. She clearly continues to babysit Timmy and other kids after "Nectar of the Odds" (Season 2).

In Season 4 ("Channel Chasers"), Doug remarks that Timmy's parents should've guessed Vicky was evil because of the Chip Skylark song "Icky Vicky," but he doesn't mention Vicky kidnapping his son. That's.... sus. He even offers to buy a car from her in Season 3's "Engine Blocked" (after Dale's escape).

Why would such a powerful guy let all of that slide? Did they just not have enough proof? Did Vicky wipe the place clean? Did Dale "not want to make a big deal about it" because he was so exhausted and grateful, he just didn't want to think about it or struggle with the legal system? Was he covering for her?? Was he scared to speak up?

... Did Dale not tell his dad the whole truth about where he was?

What if Dale was - in some vague and early concept way - in on the lemonade scheme from the beginning, back when he and Vicky were friends and she wasn't so cruel? Maybe she turned on him and sentenced him to the pit before long?

Why the underground-ness of it? Why the lemonade, which probably doesn't turn much profit... as lemonade. Unless you have unrestrained access to tons of lemons that you can turn into multiple products - Dale DID call it a factory - and no one is stopping you from accessing them...

... but how do you set up a situation where kids have access to a whole lemon orchard - presumably carefully maintained - and the adults don't take it away from them (Because... surely they would've found Dale and multiple other kids if they strayed close).

And Dale didn't leave. He does in "Nectar of the Odds" - apparently of his own volition - but not before. Was he kept there mentally as well as physically?

We KNOW Vicky can't be monitoring him 24/7 because "Nectar of the Odds" is the only episode depicting her paying attention to him, while others show her doing many other things in many other places (though it's worth noting Dale says in that episode that "Vicky's kept him locked up for so long").

Did he stay so long because it was the perceived better fate up until he miraculously crossed paths with his dad (via fairy magic) and took the risk? Would he have gone back in?

Maybe it wasn't supposed to get this out of hand. Dale and Vicky were young when this started... Somewhere between 7 and 9 (given that Dale was kept there for 7 years and Vicky is 16 when he escaped and he tells 9-year-old Dev this happened when he was Dev's age).

Maybe there was an accident. Something not just Vicky, but even Dale felt the need to cover up, especially in regards to the orchard and the fact that it needs to be Vicky's consistent source of lemons (and not something she lost out on before Dale's escape... an illusion of ownership maintained. Kids can't own the orchard, but what if they fooled people into believing it wasn't owned by kids?)

Hmm... some kind of accident that got two mostly innocent kids into huge trouble, thus setting up a horribly intertwined fate where if one of these toxic co-dependent friends backs out and squeals, even the squealer might suffer worse compared to trucking along on the cruel existing path.

tl;dr - if Vicky and Dale accidentally killed the orchard owner but they were kids and terrified to tell an adult lest they go to jail for life so they hid the body in the basement (or like ?? threw it to the coyotes or hyenas that inexplicably lurk on the fringes of Dimmsdale??) and are trying desperately to wipe their hands of this by pretending the lemon orchard is still operational so no one investigates until they can figure out a plan, and then Vicky hardens herself as a trauma response and manipulates Dale into believing it was solely his fault and she'll pin him with murder charges if he gets cold feet and turns her in, and he's miserable and gets a fairy (then loses his fairy via Pixie contract through Wish Fixers, presumably in an attempt to negotiate a way to protect himself from Vicky and somehow not gaining the ire of his father) and then H.P. (lawyer and unlicensed yet de facto therapist pulled two ways) is suddenly Dale's godfather and trying to comprehend what the flip is going on between misery and manslaughter while he's also juggling Gary, Betty, and Flappy Bob at the same time in preparation for the Musical because we know he spent 37 years on that plan...

... Would that be one messed-up yet hyperspecifically canon-compliant 'fic or what?

These thoughts have been haunting me all weekend and I HAD to get my "I'm not that kind of lawyer or therapist" joke out of my system, so there's your context. #Sorry. Is this the direction the actual 'fic will go? ... It's not the direction I really had in mind, but ?? It's off the wall and therefore I must shake it in my teeth. I can't not write Dale backstory this horrific. what. hey.

[solar-wing]

⚣ ATLA/LOK: The Four Nations & Homosexuality ☀️

I'm planning to write for my favorite characters from the Avatar universe again. Any OGs from my first account know I started posting content about ATLA and LOK, specifically Bolin and Mako, WAAAY before I started posting DC and Marvel content among others.

So I wanted to talk about something I found really interesting about homosexuality within the four nations and their attitudes towards it regarding acceptance and whether they embraced or turned away from it. And since we are soon getting a new Earth Avatar series, we might as well start with the Earth Kingdom.

EARTH KINGDOM

First, let's consider the element of the nation itself and what it symbolizes.

Earth is not just the element of strength, but also the element of endurance and rigidity. In simple terms, it's a tough and stubborn element.

Also, Earth is a hybrid element, meaning it can be used in defensive and offensive manners easily.

Concerning its nation, it can be shown how citizens of the Earth Kingdom would more than likely be very conservative and adverse to any change or diverting from societal standards in the norm.

They're stubborn and stuck in their ways, so they may not react the most positively to displays of affection between same-sex couples. But, it can work in both ways.

As mentioned, Earth-benders and citizens, in general, tend to be very stuck in their beliefs, meaning if one were to have a more liberal position on the matter of social and romantic relationships, they would be just as defensive and stubborn in that belief as someone more conservative and traditional.

This goes back to my saying that Earth itself is a hybrid element. A mix of defensive and offensive tactics. Just as much as people way attempt to push their beliefs onto others, they're just as quick to defend their beliefs and ideals.

I'd also argue region/location within the Earth Kingdom is a major factor. If we're talking places like small villages or cities like Omashu in the animated version, you may be met with pushback and intolerance. But, places like Kyoshi Island where its founder was a lesbian so likely had very liberal beliefs concerning such topics. Also Omashu from the live-action since that version portrays Oma & Shu as a lesbian couple, and even Ba Sing Se since big cities are proven to attract a more liberal-leaning population.

But, interestingly enough, in the comics, it's stated that the Earth Kingdom is the slowest to accept change, and their default is still heterosexuality. Obviously, this comes from the rigidness and stubbornness of the Earth element itself. So even if Ba Sing Se has a more 'liberal' or rather "diverse" crowd, doesn't mean that crowd is automatically open to homosexuality. Ideally, the only known place in the Earth Kingdom where you could experience the most acceptance and grace from others would be Kyoshi Island

In summary, on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most accepting & embracing of homosexual relationships and 1 being the opposite, I originally was going to give the Earth Kingdom a 5, but remembering how it's stated in the comics that they are the slowest to accept change which checks out, they got bumped down to a 2.

It is a very big nation and thus has the potential to plant different seeds of belief and opinion, however, it's clear in the show how rigid and otherwise, unshakeable denizens of the Earth Kingdom can be. They have their beliefs, and they strongly stick to them.

Even with someone like Avatar Kyoshi who had to go and make a whole separate Island where she and her people could live in peace and prosperity without certain influences affecting them, they still have yet to come around to the idea that other people live with different interests and beliefs, and that there is truly no 'default' for even one person.

Acceptance Rating: 2/10

FIRE NATION

Starting with a focus on the element itself again, fire is the element of power, as described by Iroh. It can burn things in its path, but can also give life. In simple terms, it's an element of strong will and desire to expand and consume, literally and metaphorically.

Fire is also mainly an offensive element, with the capability of modifying certain offensive moves into defensive ones.

Its nation's citizens and benders heavily share these traits with their element. They tend to be willful and proud, and while that doesn't necessarily equal being close-minded, pride can very well lead to stubbornness.

This is evidenced strongly by the political government of the Fire Nation, with its monarchy power having complete and total influence and control over its citizen's lifestyles and choices. If one Fire Lord feels strongly about something and makes it into law, another Fire Lord can come two generations later and reverse and change it.

This is shown in the nation's history, where homosexuality was actually tolerated (I hate using that word) in the Fire Nation for a long time before Fire Daddy, ahem, I mean Fire Lord Sozin's rule. It was during his reign as Fire Lord that Sozin outlawed same-sex relationships and marriages among the Fire Nation and its citizens.

Some speculate it was due to the clear pressure he faced being the sole heir to the throne since his sister was born a non-bender, something that was frowned upon in the royal family. A potential heir to the Fire throne had to be a firebender, with no exceptions. Therefore, Princess Zeisan was allowed more freedom and control in her life than he was, as evidenced by her embracing Air Nomad culture and being confirmed as a lesbian.

It was common knowledge that Sozin and Zeisan had a very antagonistic and tense relationship with each other, despite them being siblings. They were pitted against each other from a young age which caused a rivalry between them. So, it's completely possible to speculate that Sozin implemented the law to spite his sister who fell in love with Sister Rioshon, an Air Nun.

it's also completely possible to theorize that Sozin harbored homosexual tendencies and feelings himself, especially towards his best friend, Roku we all know was the Fire Avatar before Aang. Again, his being a royal prince and next in line for the throne threw a wrench in this since Sozin was expected to marry a woman and produce an heir. So his potential feelings for his best friend could never be explored due to his duties and responsibilities to his nation.

So since Sozin couldn't have what or who he truly wanted, no one could, and thus, same-sex love and marriage were banned. And that didn't change no matter where you went in the nation unlike the Earth Kingdom where you could go from village to village and city to city and the rules would be completely different depending on where you were.

Again, fire is the element of power and will. And if it was the will of the Fire Lord to ban same-sex relationships in the nation entirely, then everyone had to fall in line. Meaning the door was opened for more conservative and traditionalist views to be voiced in opposition to same-sex relationships.

While some may have had differing beliefs and ideals, they more than likely had to keep it to themselves, especially among the nobility. This can lead to harboring feelings of anger and resentment, rather than love and acceptance, causing people to react harshly to any displays of such affection and behavior, just like Sozin.

As I said, fire as an element itself is primarily offensive in nature. Reflecting on its people, and especially its governing body, this is clearly shown by the notion that one person's opinion and belief can be pushed onto everyone around him if he or she so decrees it.

With that, the Fire Nation gets a 3/10 on the scale. Again, in the past, they were at minimum tolerant of it. which is not much if we're being honest. Tolerant actually is kind of insulting. But, after Sozin's rule, that tolerance more than likely dwindled and hasn't improved much following his reign as far as we know.

I'd like to think that Zuko as the Fire Lord, having seen much of the world and all its different dimensions and lifestyles people have lived, he'd at some point in his reign reverse the ruling, but that's a far-fetched hope knowing these writers and creators (no shade...mostly).

Acceptance Rating: 3/10

AIR NOMADS

Air is the element of freedom. It's flexible and lacks restriction, moving in any direction it desires. And because of its lack of constraint, it becomes easily adaptable in any scenario, whether it's evasion, offense, defense, etc.

However, the element of air is primarily and almost purely used as a defensive and evasive practice among its population, due to its nation as a whole choosing to live as pacifists. But, do not be misled. As mentioned, air as an element can be just as powerful offensively as it is defense-wise.

Just as their element, the benders of the Air Temples were very open and flexible people. As monks and nomads, they chose to forego many earthly and physical connections, seeking spiritual enlightenment. Because of this, there were never any non-benders in the Air Nomads.

Any child born from an Airbender was an Airbender themselves. Also, due to their style of life and spirituality, they were very adaptive to any situation they were placed in, making them very open to any and all change around them.

While they lived by the teachings of the monks and masters of the Air Nomads, they lived freely and openly, just like their element. The most restriction they had was as children or masters/monks that lived at the temples, males and females were not allowed to live together in the same space.

I'm not sure if this applies to temples as a whole as I've seen conflicting information. Some say the rule applies to temples as a whole, which would mean the Northern and Southern Temples were only inhabited by male Airbenders, and the respecting Eastern and Western temples were inhabited by female Airbenders.

But, I do remember a specific scene from Avatar, during the 2nd season when Appa was lost, and he had a memory of when he was a baby bison, and he and Aang met for the first time. I remember the monk facilitating this was a female Airbender, so that's why I'm not exactly sure what is concrete.

But, it does make sense as in many of Aang's flashbacks to his time at the Southern Air Temple, we mainly only ever saw male Airbenders. Thus, many have speculated that this specific rule would inadvertently encourage exploration and curiosity for these young Airbenders regarding their sexuality as they matured and eventually left the temples as adults and master Airbenders.

Also, on this, no child from the Air Temples was raised by their parents. They were only raised by the monks, enforcing that common belief and practice they all had. While they of course had their own identities, they were all taught the same thing from an early age, if an Adult Airbender met and had a child with someone from a different nation, that child likely being an Airbender would be sent to the Air temples to be raised by the monks.

All that to say, Airbenders would be the exact opposite of conservative. They technically wouldn't even be liberal since, again, they detach themselves from earthly limitations in favor of a higher spirituality.

So, since they don't subscribe to earthly practices or beliefs, they would be the most accepting nation of homosexuality and same-sex relationships. It's not in their nature or belief to judge others either so they wouldn't show any hostility or intolerance to LGBTQ+ people and relationships.

Just like their element, they practice freedom and adaptability to the world around them. And just as air is primarily used in defensive manners, they still will defend their beliefs and practices, they just avoid direct confrontation, preferring evasive maneuvers.

Just a quick note, the Air Nomads are what I like to think of as the example of how this world should have been. I read another column that detailed how the creators of the show ultimately created institutionalized homophobia because they couldn't imagine a world without it, and that's in large part due to the heavy influence of Western, colonial, Christian, and to be quite frank, European imperialism on the show's writing.

It's a fact that's becoming increasingly more well-known. Before European and Christian colonization/imperialism, many cultures and communities were not just accepting of same-sex relationships and LGBTQ+ identities, they embraced it! While there were definitely pedophilic relationships that were wrong and grotesque no matter what time period it was, same-sex relationships were just as normal as opposite-sex ones. There was no "default."

So in simple terms, the Air Nomads accept and embrace everyone, no matter who they are or how they live. As long as they don’t wrong and harm others, and even then, they see everyone as equal and deserving of respect and love. And that's what our society should be based on. Of course, they were killed off in an entire genocide, which, say what you will and think what you think, but the one culture that accepts and loves everyone as they are being killed off...ironic, don't ya think?

Acceptance Rating: 10/10

WATER TRIBES

Finally, water is the element of change. Like air, it adapts to its circumstances, but more fluidly and gracefully. Yet, unlike air, it relies on the flow of energy, turning its defense into an offense and back. In whatever scenario that sees fit, a Waterbender can change their liquid offense into a solid defense, or turn a solid offense into a gas defense.

This clearly makes the water an element suitable for either an offensive or defensive strategy. Its unique ability to change its form to fit its circumstances gives its user an extreme advantage in combat or any other risky scenario.

Now, even with this in mind, ironically enough, the people of the Water Tribe are not the most in sync with their element as far as when it comes to living standards.

While yes, in combat, they adapt and adjust accordingly to their needs and goals in the fight, in regular practice, they're more conservative and less open to change than you would initially believe.

Also, as confirmed in the LOK comics, while the Water Tribes are not openly homophobic, they are still lacking in accepting and embracing the concept that there is not one rule that applies to all when it comes to who they love. Which, when you think about it, checks out.

The Northern Tribe operated heavily off a patriarchal society as we saw in the first season, and it took Paku nearly getting his ass whooped by a teenage girl who was the grand-daughter of the woman he loved but refused to wed since it was arranged for them to start to change their ways. Even if the Southern Tribe was a bit ahead of their Northern counterpart in this sense, they still suffered from the restricting roles they placed on themselves concerning gender.

Giving props to Fire Nation and Air Nomads, they never had restrictive rules on who could fight in battle, even if the Nomads as mentioned tended to avoid conflict. However, the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes both practiced and thus, were limited by their rules that men were only allowed to serve in the army and in the guard.

Of course, we've already discussed the Earth Kingdom is the slowest to accept change, but for the Water Tribes, this is a bit unnatural, and if this is how they act regarding gender, it says a lot about how they would react when it comes to same-sex relationships.

So, it's understandable why Kya advises Korra and Asami to keep their relationship to themselves. But, I personally don't believe they should. Creating change means people are going to be uncomfortable. Oh well, boo-hoo, they'll get over it.

But, this does at least check out with the hybrid offense/defense nature of water bending. People of the Water Tribe will stand their ground and defend what they choose to believe in and love. And while they may not openly go out of their way to push their beliefs onto others like those in the Fire Nation, it doesn't mean they don't still have ways have doing so. Like water, I imagine their approach to such a subject can vary.

With that, Water Tribes get a 2.5/10. They're ahead of the Earth Kingdom in the sense that they've realized excluding women from fighting hurts them more than it helps them. Also, it's highly plausible that if a woman can learn how to fight, a man can learn how to heal, but I digress. However, they're still lower than the Fire Nation since this is less of a government-forced ideology and more of a societal norm they place on themselves.

Acceptance Rating: 2.5/10

I like doing analysis like this. If anyone thinks of other topics to discuss and do a deep dive into, send it in my asks!

[welcometogrouchland]

one thing i find interesting about Dana’s words about Caleb and Evelyn from the livestream is how she seems to center events from Evelyn’s perspective (she refers specifically to the "Evelyn and Flapjack" lore when the question prompting the discussion also named Caleb, tho I don't think that's like. A calculated decision, it might just reflect who she views as the most significant characters in the grand scheme of things)

it’s about what Evelyn was doing in gravesfield, why Evelyn liked caleb, how she first presented herself to him. it’s about her family that he married into, the Clawthorne family, blood members like Eda, chosen/adopted members, like King and honorary members, like Luz. That’s who the story really centers around, so it makes sense that when approaching this nugget of lore, they'd tackle it from Evelyn's POV.

But i just find it interesting bc it’s so unlike 90% of the fan content centered around that era. Like most of the things ppl make related to Evelyn and the Wittebros is usually set from one of the brothers perspectives (with a couple of exceptions! @/moonmeg’s comics and @/litfeathers various drabbles and dubs all have a good balance of Evelyn and caleb/philip perspective!). Obviously this is mostly bc we got the Wittebros lore first (all the way back in yesterday's lie) and because we know (marginally) more about them, people have been playing around with them for longer and with more material.

But I'm honestly really interested in Dana's version of the story! Especially considering it seems like Evelyn had much more agency in the story than we give her credit for. She's the one who went to gravesfield, reached out to Caleb, presumably taking either the romantic or platonic initiative and thus setting things in motion. Why? we don't know! Dana says Caleb seemed more reasonable than the rest of the population in gravesfield, that they bonded over flapjack like dog owners over pets, which is all very interesting when we know he was a witch hunter, implies a lot of interesting things about why he was doing that career and what his status in the town social climate might've been like, but that's where fan interpretation comes into play, so I digress.

(also, this is a tangent but I'm a big fan of Dana implying that Evelyn took initiative? We only have huntlow to go off of but generally speaking the show likes to subvert overdone or overly stereotypical m/f romance tropes- while not being too pointed about it and still leaving room for nuance and characterization- and I like the idea that if they had the chance, they would've done that w/ Caleb and Evelyn, with her being the passionate Romeo and him being the more longing, pining-maiden type in the relationship hehehe)

Point to all this being, I think it's very funny how we all got wrapped up in the mystique and intrigue of (Belos' biased, carefully crafted and incomplete) narrative of ~the tragedy of the brothers Wittebane~ bc he was our main source that we failed to consider that Evelyn, who fits the character archetype TOH likes to use as a focal/viewpoint character much more cleanly that either Wittebane (what with being a young woman, a 'weirdo' estranged from her home, a Clawthorne, etc), might've actually been the perspective we should've been looking at things from. Dana's based for this actually

[mamashenanigans]

MHA The Boys AU

Seriously. Who would like to read it?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’m still working on the AU that won the poll. Outlining it, but, due to my silly brain, I came up with this AU idea after watching two seasons of The Boys, so I REALLY wanted to share it!

Anyway, this is A LOT of brainstorming, so Read More under the cut

This AU takes place in the modern setting of The Boys, with Supes (those with superpowers) being created with Compound V. Vought, the evil corporation that manufactures Superheroes to market products, films, and etc for money, still experimented with the compound on some people prior to the present of the fic. One of the first(and actually true) superhero was Captain Hero, who has since died awhile before the events in the story. Captain Hero had fought in some wars, but gave that up as he hated having to use his power that way and instead wanted to help children. Vought saw the marketing opportunity and used him as a basis for what they have continued to do. Thus, the Captain Hero comics.

AFO was the first naturally born Supe, his mother having been experimented on and gaining only small spike growths. The twins were born and Garaki, the head scientist with the Compound V trials, decides to experiment on AFO since his power was the greatest supe ability to ever manifest. Although Yoichi is still frail since TTTS happened, Garaki still uses him as a control due to them being identical twins. After the experiments on him, AFO would always be brought back to Yoichi, who was the only person that treated AFO as a person and not just some lab rat. Yoichi was everything to AFO, LITERALLY, but Vought saw how they could use Yoichi to control AFO since his power and lack of parental figures was starting to create a monster. Vought gave up on allowing naturally born supes due to how terrifying AFO is.

The only entertainment they had were the Captain Hero comics, given in the hope that it would make AFO want to be like the hero. As in canon, he liked the Demon Lord more, but Yoichi always loved Captain Hero, so he eventually goes along with Vought’s plan to make him a marketable Supe because he wanted Yoichi to be happy and see him as a hero just like the one he loves in the comics.

At some point, Yoichi met Kudo and the latter realized that Yoichi was a pawn of Vought to control AFO. He tries to convince Yoichi to leave, but Yoichi knew he had to help keep his twin in control and also knew how hard it would be on AFO(and himself honestly) if he left his brother. After getting into a fight, Yoichi accidentally reveals Kudo’s plan and, in his anger, tells his brother that he WANTS to. AFO starts going insane and, when Yoichi tries to leave, he reaches out screaming at him and accidentally blows him up with a new Supe power he took.

Needless to say, AFO’s brain basically cracks at that point. The only thing that remains of Yoichi is his hand, which Garaki was more than willing to embalm for him to continue to try and keep him quelled. Vought also revealed that they have the recording of him killing Yoichi and, if it is released, no one would ever follow AFO again, so he sticks to his role as the face of the All for One #1 hero group, but also because he still wants to make Yoichi happy.

Since AFO is taking the place of Homelander, everyone is absolutely terrified of him and walk on eggshells all the time since he could snap at any moment even though he puts on a calm and heroic facade. Toshinori is a new hero added to the team with the ability to turn into a super powered version of himself(like he is in canon) for a short period of time. He is the Starlight character that joins because he really believes in being a hero before he realizes what is actually going on behind the scenes. I’m still trying to figure out what other heroes or villains take the place of the rest of The Seven from The Boys.

All Might does become a mole for One for All, the equivalent of The Boys team from the show. Kudo is the Billy Butcher, Bruce is the Frenchie, Banjo is Mother’s Milk, but I’m stuck on whether the other users of OFA are all there or if AFO or Vought has killed some of them. I’m thinking of maybe making Nana Queen Maeve’s replacement, but she has been working with One for All and maybe is the one that brings All Might into the fold?

AFO is known as The Suit since he still wears his signature suit and coat as Vought decided to go with the edgier look like Batman.

The story present has Izuku winning a chance to spend a week with the All for One team and will have a part in their new movie. His favorite hero is the new one, All Might, so he’s super excited to finally meet him! Buuuuuuuut, Izuku has eyes just like Yoichi’s and AFO takes notice quite quickly. He starts trying to bogart Izuku’s time and convince him how he’s so much better than All Might. Izuku ends up accidentally finding out about Nana and All Might being in One for All and they decide to bring him to Kudo and the others before he says anything stupid. Kudo notices the eyes too and learns from Izuku how AFO has been acting. He decides to use Izuku to get close to AFO to gain any evidence to prove how much of a monster he is.

This puts Izuku in a very dangerous position, especially because AFO is creeping towards cracking completely. Vought has spread the lie that Yoichi was killed by those in One for All to gain sympathy towards their hero team and to keep AFO’s denial in tact lest he goes mad over actually being responsible for Yoichi’s death. He had already stated that it’s all Kudo’s fault and Vought runs with it.

Unfortunately, Kudo’s vengeance gets the better of him and he forgets the day Yoichi died until it’s too late: Izuku is with AFO and he finally snaps, superimposing Yoichi over Izuku. Now, One for All needs to do whatever it takes to save Izuku from him and also take down Vought and their superhero team by gaining then revealing sensitive information. Kudo’s idea: find the recording of AFO killing Yoichi, his own twin.

I’m also thinking Hawks will take the place of Mallory, the agent working hard to take Vought down and help with witness protection, funding, and passing evidence off to the government.

I’d love any ideas y’all might have for other MHA characters to be involved!

Let me know what y’all think!!!

[emillyverse]

Production stages of the Fan Comic of "The Wish Kingdom" !!!

(written by @annymation)

And as promised, here is the "schedule" I said I was putting together for the Comic fic production process.

In the end, this isn't really a "timeline", it's more like a list of what I'll do to build the comic. I want to make all the processes very clear and described to give you an idea of how it will be done and a small idea of how long it will take.

Remembering that I am a human being, not an AI to do things quickly, I have another life beyond networks and this project.

Besides the fact that none of us are being paid to do this comic (although I really wanted to, I'm not going to lie), all of this is being done on the basis of love, affection, positivity and adoration for the initial concepts dispensed by Disney, their classic films that really made that company grow and the main messages conveyed by Walt Disney while he was still alive: "If you can dream something, you can make it happen!" and "It's fun to do the impossible!"

So please be patient and kind to me and the entire team! I already love, adore and thank everyone willing to follow our project.

<3

Well… Let's get started!

1- Rereading and Separating the text:

Starting today (02/26/2024) I will be re-reading Anny's fanfic, separating all of her text into scenes, highlighting the following points:

Atmosphere

Characters (designs made by @uva124)

Speeches and facial expressions - the message

Thus defining "who says what, how and in which place?"

Since I will be doing the setting art myself, as the story progresses, I would really appreciate a little help. I'm guessing if you're reading this you've probably already read The Kingdom of Wishes and consequently imagined the scenarios! If you find any images online that remind you of the locations of the scenes in your mind, you can send them to me as a reference! I'm always open to references for drawings!

2- Make the "Thumbnails"

I don't know what term foreigners use to define the thumbnails that make up the first drafts of comics, but here in Brazil, we call them "Doll", in reference to the fact that the sketches are a "test doll" for the comic strip .

Anyway, I digress! It is at this stage that I define the composition of the scenes through sketches. This is where I define what appears or not in the scene, what the scene will be focused on, how I will guide the reader's eye by the meaning of reading the scene, where the lines, the characters, their movements and others will be located… It's a planning phase on how to portray the scenes; the most complex I would say.

3- Review

Here I take a break for two days or three days at most, to relax and forget about the project for a bit. I come back with new energy and review everything that was done, ask for opinions and suggestions from the team, in short, I give a great evaluation and improvement in everything!

4 - Finalization and Publication

In this last step, I transform the sketches into final artwork using graphite pencils, colored pencils and pens that I have available.

When they are all finished, I will publish the comics here and on all my social networks!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Finally....

I would like to say that yes, I will be posting spoilers for all these stages, watch them at your own risk!

Remembering that English is not my native language, so I really hope everything was understandable! But if you have any questions, you can send questions to me or any member of the team!

And if you want to know a little more about my arts, you can check out my Instagram!

Kisses full of light and stars!

Let's work!!

[skythealmighty]

This is Melvin Sneedly. He's the kid with the fluffed up hair and the bowtie; remember that now!

So. Um. I'd like to offer my own AU to the table! It's called Pranksterswap, and how it works is Melvin swaps role with both George and Harold. At once! They don't swap personality, though, that stays the same. (ALSO, THIS AU FOLLOWS A MISHMASH OF THE BOOK AND SHOW, NOT THE MOVIE.)

Let's start by analyzing our main G&H, shall we?

WARNING: LONG POST. SORRY.

George Beard and Harold Hutchins

They still write comics as Tree House Comix! In fact, they even have matching button pins- courtesy of Harold's mom, who I like to imagine is a bit of a craftswoman. There's one key difference though- they started comics in first grade, not kindergarten.

George is still our loveable dumb humored writer, he's just a little less rough and tumble than before and a bit more cautious (Harold played a big influence on that). He wears pants now! And a backpack all the time for his notebooks.

Harold played a lot more influence in the early days, leading them both to be a lot less jump-into-danger-at-first-sight. Sometime after they start making comics, he gets the idea of art school from his mom (who went to art school), so they both plan out to go to art school so they can make comics forever.

They're... mostly model students. They both have ADHD, but only George is medicated, so Harold tends to unknowingly space out. (George has the Hyperactive type, Harold has the Inattentive type.) Really, the only rules they break are "doodling in class" and "selling comics on the playground", so they don't see the principal often.

This doesn't mean they don't get prank ideas; they do, but when they get them they usually hand them off to...

Melvin Sneedly

Melvin is... still Melvin, mostly, with a different progresssion. Especially in kindergarten, he very much felt unchallenged and bored, but without G&H causing mass mayhem, he didn't turn to tattling- instead he turned to online classes, and then to studying his classmates like a lab experiment.

Potty humor and childish jokes eventually became what he tried to figure out, mostly by nature of him growing up with more "sophisticated" humor. Though he didn't end up completely getting it, he did end up appreciating some of the wordplay and figuring out the "formula" so he could join in.

Though he still didn't quite "get" it, seeing other kids laugh at his jokes was a point of pride and made him happy. Thus begins his more juvenile sense of humor.

By the time George and Harold started selling their comics, he was studying other possible ways to make his fellow students laugh, and also keeping tabs on what his classmates did for fun. Naturally, he bought a pretty early copy, just about when he found out about "pranks", and well, things were pretty much set in motion.

Using the first Tree House Comix as a guide, he did his first prank on his first grade teacher, and burst out laughing at her reaction, something finally clicking for his sense of humor.

The rest is history, really, though a lot of his pranks quickly became much more complicated after that, mostly to test his inventions and intellect. A lot of them were inspired by Tree House Comix, of which he was now an avid reader- which, of course, eventually ended up in...

Captain Underpants!

Melvin makes an off-hand joke while trying to get out of weekend detention (he has the Invention Convention that weekend, where he can proudly share off his prank inventions! Come on!), and it accidentally turns Krupp into the Captain, which as we all know makes things so much more complicated.

Unlike G&H, Melvin does realize the weight of what he's done pretty well, and is frankly kind of horrified about it. As a result, he treats Captain a lot more genuinely than canon G&H do, and ends up in the fray alongside him more often than not using technology to make up for his lack of superpowers.

The books/show end up leaning far more towards edutainment just by nature of the main characters- Captain is kind of clueless, and Melvin likes sharing knowledge. As a result, Captain here is a bit more knowledgeable, though he does tend to retain all-over-the-place fun facts more than other things.

Melvin also has generally no qualms about Krupp finding out, but he's also spent so long anxiously agonizing over the scenarios of what would happen so he's still dreading it. Captain seems mostly oblivious to this.

So... yeah that's... about it! Sort of. There's a lot more that I haven't touched on, but this post is LONG as is. Colored versions of the drawings might come eventually! ...Eventually.

Oh yeah and feel free to send me asks if you have any questions!

[jinxed-thylacine]

I didn't realize how much people fundamentally misunderstand Eggman and Sonic both as characters and as a pair until now tbh.

No, Phantom Rider Sonic is not out of character for Sonic nor for Eggman. Let's look at right before Sonic accepted the Eggstreme Gear.

Going undercover is implied to be incredibly beneficial to Sonic, Tails, and Amy's plan, something Eggman agrees with:

Eggman took a sabbatical after Eggperial City was destroyed, then came across Orbot and Cubot watching the Clean Sweepstakes opening ceremony, and didn't like that he was being mocked:

He was at least happy to see Sonic and the Babylon Rogues squabble, but then Sonic got disqualified (which Eggman claims he hated because humiliating Sonic is his job), which gave Eggman an idea:

Since Sonic was indirectly responsible for Eggman's inspiration coming back, he felt like repaying him in some way:

And throughout the arc, Eggman is shown to have been honest about this (unless something happens in issue 74/issue 75). This scene from issue 69 sets up mutual benefit; Sonic can more easily create a diversion because he's disguised, Tails and Amy can more easily sneak onto the shuttle, and Eggman repays Sonic for getting him his creative drive back and also gets to watch the chaos that unfolds as Sonic disrupts the event as the Phantom Rider, which he wanted to do before Sonic, Tails, and Amy were disqualified (and Eggman gets to watch the event that mocked him get disrupted).

Sonic causing trouble on purpose for the benefit of the greater good isn't out of character, he just isn't usually so chaotic about it, nor that intentioned about causing chaos, because what he's doing doesn't require a chaotic course of action. He does it in Sonic Adventure 2 to some degree (this is made most clear, in my opinion, in the recaps before each level) and he literally tells Merlina in Sonic and the Black Knight "Guess I can't be the hero every time!" after being told "If you remove that sword and defeat King Arthur with it, you shall forever be the worst of knights, slayer of kings!" and proceeds to fight the Knights of the Round Table and King Arthur. That's just in the games, if we factored other media into this there's a lot more I could cover.

Now, to be fair, that tends to not backfire on him as bad as it could. In Sonic X, when he's destroying Eggman's mirror towers, everyone eventually realizes that Sonic is doing it for the benefit of everyone else; he doesn't care about that though. In Sonic and the Black Knight, once Merlina admits she was essentially scamming Avalon, Lancelot, Percival, and Gawain team up with him to stop her. In Sonic Adventure 2, Sonic's already a fugitive, so him causing some level of chaos to clear his name isn't something that really affects public perception of him.

In the comics, specifically the Phantom Rider arc, it does backfire on him once he's revealed to be the Phantom Rider, and there's some indication in issue 76's solicitation that there are going to be long-term effects in regards to Sonic being the Phantom Rider, meaning this would be the first time Sonic feels long-term effects for playing the villain (I'm actually surprised it took this long but whatever lol). The aftershocks might not be as bad once Clean Sweep is revealed to be untrustworthy, but there are still likely going to be some trust issues within Sonic's friend circle, which will be the worst ramifications we've seen from Sonic's chaotic good antics thus far.

Sonic is not against working with Eggman if there's a level of mutual benefit in it, and usually it happens because of some potentially world-ending catastrophe (Sonic Adventure 2, Sonic X, Sonic Heroes, Sonic 06, Sonic Frontiers). I actually think Jimbotnik sums this up best; "If I can't rule the world, I might as well save it!" However, Eggman is not above teaming up with Sonic if, from his perspective, the need arises, even if the world isn't about to end. If there's even a shred of mutual benefit, they are willing to work together. The Phantom Rider arc just has an example of them teaming up for, on Eggman's end, petty reasons.

Eggman's not above teaming up with Sonic if there's mutual benefit and Sonic's not above playing a villain for the benefit of the greater good. Phantom Rider arc is not out of character for either of them.

[pillowspace]

some general Headcanons, but if there is something noteworthy for any AU difference, I‘d love to hear elaboration! To the degree you feel like answering too obviously :).

Uuh one request i do have beside general HC.

that adoption au idea you had a while back. What was Evan Charlie sibling dynamic like?

(Quick note: I made this so long, I'm so sorry LMAO. I reached into my headcanons and rambled way too hard. FOR SHORT: Charlie and Evan are good friends but not best friends like Evan and Cassidy are. Cassidy dislikes Charlie at first while Charlie likes Cassidy, so they have a sort of one-sided enemies to friends thing. Charlie and Evan are best friends in that AU)

My personal headcanons for Charlie, Cassidy and Evan is that... Okay first of all, I'll give my general perceptions of Cassidy and Evan before I answer about Charlie. For the sake of context. Also also I like using they/them for Cassidy.

Cassidy and Evan are absolute best friends in my thoughts. Cassidy's more of a fighter while Evan's more flighty, and thus they're protective of him. I like to imagine that Cassidy is a good kid who fiercely stands up for others, but doesn't go about it in the most gentle of ways, and will easily pick a fight regardless of whether or not they think they can win. I like to think of Cassidy as scared of others in a dissimilar way to Evan, Evan reacting with tears while Cassidy reacts with bite and a lack of trust. Still, they have their wariness of others in common, so their friendship is deeply important to the other as they hold no fear of each other.

As for Charlie's relationship with the two, I like to imagine Charlie as being very close to the Aftons considering Henry and William's bond. I like to imagine her as being a little younger than Michael, but a little older than Evan and Elizabeth. A sort of... good middle age for her to have a relationship with all three of them. I think she likes Evan. When I imagine the Puppet, I imagine it trying to gently coax out the shyest kid with a gift. She finds him nice and likes to play with him whenever she can, but doesn't want to push into his space too much if he looks like he'd rather be alone. I'd like to think that, at one point, Charlie would meet Cassidy through Evan, intentionally or not. Charlie likes them! She thinks they're cool! And because I would find it deeply funny, I like to imagine that Cassidy does not like Charlie. At all.

Charlie's all bright smiles and getting way too close and personal. The thing with Charlie is that if a kid visibly seems shy (Evan), she'll take care in her actions. With a kid like Cassidy who shouts and tells people off? She assumes she can match this boldness and be best of friends for it. Which is why I have a doodle somewhere of Charlie saying that Cassidy bit her LMAO. Charlie makes Cassidy feel uneasy, and because Cassidy doesn't like to think of themself as being weaker for that, they just come up with reasons for why Charlie simply sucks (also why I have a comic where Cassidy thinks Charlie's fishing for compliments instead of asking a genuine question). They won't say this to EVAN though, they'll just grumble about it a bit and Charlie will wonder what she did wrong.

I do genuinely really care about Charlie and Cassidy as friends though, it's my favourite dynamic between the kids. Cassidy not liking Charlie is not the opposite to them being friends, but something that I feel would add TO their friendship, as they go through impossibly hard events together and learn to lean on each other for support as ghosts. And that is also why I have a drawing of them holding hands while Cassidy's visibly annoyed and a drawing where Charlie hugs Cassidy while they cry.

Sorry if that was long...! But there is my personal preferred way of viewing Charlie's dynamics with Evan and Cassidy.

(Note: I realize you also may have also wanted to know about the other Missing Kids too. They look up to Charlie. The kids were used to having an authoritative figure to lean against, so now that that's been taken from them, they see Charlie's protective caring nature and lean on it like a baby's instinct. But Charlie's a kid herself. She finds it... cute sometimes, and she does want to keep them safe, but it's overwhelming. She misses her dad too. Since I'd like to imagine Cassidy not finding anything parental in Charlie, I also like to imagine that adding to their friendship from Charlie's side. Charlie loves the other kids, but she's working with a situation that shouldn't have ever happened. I do have an appreciation for interpretations where they dislike Charlie, but this is just how you'll typically find me depicting them.)

---

Are you referring to this AU? I never did really draw it after that, which is a shame, because I thought about it extensively.

Generally, prior to the Afton kids being adopted into the Emily family, it's the same dynamic as I described. Afterwards though, Charlie has siblings now!! One moment it was just her and her father, and now she's got two brothers and a sister! So growing up like that, Charlie wanted to get to know her new siblings as well as possible, even better than when they had simply just been friends. (And honestly, I like to think that Charlie's a bit lonely. She was being bullied in FFPS, was she not?) Any tense relationships the siblings held with one another, Charlie and Henry did their best to remedy it. Michael's... dealing with a lot, it's still a time travel Michael AU that isn't centered on him, so he doesn't really know how to adjust to everyone quite yet. So while Charlie may have spent more time with Michael pre-adoption, he ends up who knows where, while Charlie balances things out by spending a bit more time with Evan and Elizabeth nowadays. Evan's lonely without Cassidy to play with, so he often goes to Charlie as a first option now. He trusts her. And so they grow closer and closer as best friends over the years who have each other's backs. By the time Evan gets back in touch with Cassidy, Cassidy and Charlie are both close with Evan, but not with each other. Until they are. Because I like Charlie and Cassidy having a one-sided enemies to friends thing going on.

APOLOGIES IF YOU ARE REFERRING TO A DIFFERENT AU THOUGH, I think I have mentioned adoptions a few times before. I just figured that one though because that one has to do with Charlie, Evan, and Cassidy the most.

[oblivionsdream]

Hey @oblivionsdream !

I have 2 questions - bear with me…

As you know, I love your work, but have only just recently started actively engaging with it.

I actually first came across you and your Jester x knight OC’s at least a year or two ago, when a fellow DinLuke shipper tagged it with #dinluke, so it showed up on my feed. If you aren’t into Star Wars and are unfamiliar with it - that’s the romantic pairing between Din Djarin (the Mandalorian) and Luke Skywalker.

For a while, I actually thought that it was a medieval DinLuke au because there are quite a few fanarts exploring that ship in different universes (including ours) and different timelines, etc.

One of the things that lent credence to this idea was the fact that the king looks so much like the Jedi, Quinlan Vos.

The characters do also closely match the personalities that a lot of the fandom have collectively given Din and Luke on tumblr - like Luke actually being a feral mischievous gremlin underneath his serene Jedi facade, and Din actually being the more composed (and often lovingly exasperated) of the two.

It was a surprise when I looked more into it and realised that they are original characters, completely unrelated to DinLuke and Star Wars as a whole.

So I guess I’m just curious what was the inspiration behind the Jingly Menace and his steadfast, taciturn knight? Was it a song or a meme or just watching a medieval show and during a scene with a jester, you had a sudden burst of creative juices like “Eureka! Pretty jester x hot knight!”

Sorry if you’ve already answered this and I’ve just missed it while scrolling through your page.

My other question (this I know has been queried to JM himself but he nervously evaded the question) when JM is shown crying in one of the first pictures you posted of him, what was the actual reason that you had in mind behind it? Was it just simply because his attempts to get the hot mysterious knights attention had thus far been unsuccessful (from his perspective anyway) and he succumbed to a private moment of vulnerability?

Every time I look at it, I’m dying to know!

Anyway, love you! Hope the JM comic is still on the horizon at some point - coz I would buy and read the crap out of it!

Hey there!

I honestly had no idea what DinLuke is though I've seen the tags. My knowledge of Star Wars comes from whatever I have absorbed against my will being online and when my best friend made me watch the prequels a few years ago 😂

So Jester solely came to be because I've loved jesters for many years at this point. I just find them fun but there's never enough content for them out there so I just wanted to make my own oc. I also just love trickster characters- anything fae like or I always adored Loki in Norse mythology so he's very based into those kind of mischievous vibes and humor.

Augustine was purely accidental. I saw some Tumblr post about a knight or maybe it was about a jester and a knight (I no longer remember) so I thought it would be funny to doodle Jester with a random knight being a menace asking him about his big sword. Augustine was never supposed to be a character. But then I just kept coming up with other ideas for Jester and this random knight whose face he never saw and whelp here we are.

Soooo the crying. It was definitely a private moment no one else was supposed to witness. Part of something I find interesting with playing with Jester's character is the idea that sometimes the seemingly happiest and funniest people are also the saddest but they just cover it up with a smile. His backstory before coming to the castle is still something that affects him but also he feels lonely at court. He constantly craves the validation of attention he didnt really get as a kid and is constantly surrounded by people but also he feels very lonely in court. He is in a strange place of being neither noble but also not quite a commoner/servant. Nobility will look down on him and not take him serious because he's just a silly guy but the servants are wary to get too close because of his close relationship with the king and the fact that he technically has a higher status as Court Jester. He is one of Monty's closest confidantes but his own secrets keep him from being fully honest with his king. It's a strange place of feeling alone in the middle of a crowded court where everyone sees his silly jester persona and make up but no one sees beneath it.

I still hope to make a comic! Just trying to find the time to get all my ideas in order. Thanks for liking my silly guys!

[tobiasdrake]

We go from the best fight in the X-Men filmography thus far straight to Charles Xavier sitting in a room, looking into the camera and explaining the plot. Okay guys. XD

One of the main jobs this film has is to bridge First Class, which became more or less a reboot, with the original trilogy. So they can go in new directions and do different things with the characters without outright saying, "The original movies up through Origins: Wolverine aren't canon anymore, sorry."

Days of Future Past is what's commonly referred to as a soft reboot, where continuity gets to start over from scratch but with an explanation offered in-universe that connects it to the previous continuity.

Time travel and multiverse shenanigans are often the go-to for carrying out soft reboots. The Chris Pine Star Trek films, for instance, take place in an alternate timeline created when Spock and a bad guy traveled back in time and messed up the series canon.

The Marvel multiverse is basically designed to allow Marvel writers to make continuity-free re-imaginings of the Marvel universe and then go "That one is Universe 42069, it has its own canon somewhere out there in the multiverse unrelated to the mainline comics."

DOFP intends to do that for the Foxverse, liberating the cast of the newer X-films from the shackles of the old canon and letting them spin out in a new direction.

But before we can do that, Charlie Boy needs to explain the plot that will get us there.

Magneto chimes in to explain Mystique's powers, like Bobby and Kitty don't already know her. XD

Actually, come to think of it, Kitty only formally became one of the X-Men in Last Stand, the movie that took Mystique's powers away. And Bobby wasn't really an X-Men X-Man until that same movie, despite being present for the whole trilogy. They actually might not know who Mystique is.

Huh. Objection retracted.

Then again, Colossus recognizes her. And he was no more involved in X-Men Stuff than Kitty was.

Xavier goes on to assert that he, too, has watched First Class and thought it was pretty sweet. Don't let the face of Patrick Stewart fool you; Despite this personal history having never come up in the original trilogy, it is still an important part of the two characters' relationships with one another.

As an artistic note, I love how she shapeshifts into a human form when he says, "I knew her as Raven." A subtle call-out to their conflict from First Class - or, at least, what it was supposed to be in First Class even though the film doesn't convey it well.

We're told, in the film, that Xavier never appreciated her natural mutant self and preferred that she try to pass as human. They kinda botched their attempts to show it, but it was the clear intent. In a subtle reference to it here, when Magneto talks about her we see her in her true form, but when Xavier reminisces on how fondly he remembers her, she shifts into her human guise.

These two men both fondly remember Mystique, but they have very different memories of who she was.

(Where is she, anyway? Did the Sentinels get her? Is she still mutant-cured?)

Yeah, Xavier's good at that. Remember that time he was losing a tense negotiation with Magneto and Jean so he just started throwing punches, basically forfeiting the argument and pushing Jean into Magneto's arms as hard as humanly possible? Not so different from what happened with Mystique when you think about it.

Xavier offers a sanctuary for mutants on the run from the dangers of the world, and that's great. But his powers of persuasion leave much to be desired.

Logan gets all sad and grimly reports that Mystique killed again after that. Bit of a weird moment. Like, it's performed as if he's referencing the death of another character that was important to him. Something we would instantly recognize and be like, "Oh, fuck, my heartstrings."

I have no idea who that might be, though. He didn't even know her in her youth to be sad about who she became. One time she beat him up and then he stabbed her, and then another time she tried to trick him into having sex with her under false pretenses. That is the entire extent of their relationship.

Why are you so sad about Mystique killing people, Logan? Who did she ever kill that could be haunting you like this? Don't you have enough ghosts already? Do you really need to borrow Charlie's?

The Sentinels are using Mystique's powers to acquire Sunspot's heat powers and Colossus's steel plating and Iceman's cryokinesis.

Meanwhile, poor Mystique can't do any of that. It sucks when people steal your powers and then get whole new abilities you didn't possess out of them.

You know, you'd think in the decades she was hanging out with Magneto, the two of them would have done something about this. Did the fact that humans captured her and performed invasive experiments to steal her powers just... slip Mystique's mind?

"Less than 50 years." My dude, that is a long-ass time to be working on one project. XD These things were in production hell for half a century.

Xavier's like, "When Mystique killed Trask, it convinced the world that they needed his program. And then the humans stayed mad about it for FIFTY YEARS."

FIFTY YEARS. Two generations later, it was still just Trask that they were mad about. Nothing else that happened in that time, nothing in the entire original X-Men trilogy, ever moved the needle one way or the other. It was always about Trask. They were very slowly building the Sentinels the entire time and nothing else mattered.

Senator Kelly's entire anti-mutant career was pointless because humanity already had made up its mind to kill mutants with Sentinels. Trask is the one and only bullet point of history that matters. XD

I understand why this is so janky. Stopping the assassination of Trask is meant to be the emotional goal of the film. We have to stop Mystique from becoming a murderer, because that sets her down the road to being evil.

But "We have to stop her from killing the man making Genocide Machines" wouldn't be a compelling narrative on its own. Because. Like. Fuck that guy. Mystique did nothing wrong.

So the assassination also needs to be the apocalyptic cornerstone around which the fate of the universe revolves. Killing Trask has to directly cause the creation of the Sentinels, but the film also wants to be set in the 70's and has to account for the fact that none of this was a thing in the original trilogy.

So. The humans just. Stayed mad about Trask for fifty fucking years while working on the slowest weapons development project in the history of the arms race. Which has the knock-on effect of meaning that none of the mutant-human relations stuff from the original trilogy mattered, 'cause the humans were building the Sentinels behind the scenes that whole time.

That is an incredibly bleak revision. @_@

Nobody tell Charles, but if there was enough hatred towards mutants to sustain a fifty-year grudge over Trask's death, it wasn't really about Trask's death.