#SHINING FORTH

[moontidez]

“we’re family — and best friends, too!”

[thevalleyisjolly]

Thinking about how many of the main characters in Andor Season 1 are, from their perspective, living in different stories and genres. Syril is the classic disgraced detective obsessing over the failure of his last case. Dedra is the brilliant lone career woman in a high-pressure male-dominated workplace. Skeen, Nemik, Taramyn, Gorn are the unlikely band of misfits attempting to pull off the heist of the century; Vel and Cinta are embroiled in espionage intrigue with Luthen. Mon Mothma's deep in the midst of a political thriller, complete with the trope of a troubled home life. Kino and all the prisoners of Narkina 5 are caught up in a grim prison drama.

Part of the brilliance of the show is that it embraces each of these characters as the protagonist of their own narratives. Dedra is very clearly an antagonist to most of the other characters, but in her interactions with her colleagues and Syril, you can sympathize with how she is dismissed and put down and harassed. Syril's scenes wouldn't be out of place in a detective show - the lone officer, demoted from his position, waking up every morning to a depressing house and a mindnumbing job yet continuing to pursue his self-identified duty with a relentless sense of righteousness and persecution. Mon Mothma's story tangentially intersects with Cassian's, but both enriches and is enriched by the contrast in perspective - the broader context of galaxy-wide politics with the immediate realities that people live with, including for Mon herself through the impact on her family life.

And then we come back to Ferrix. Maarva, Bix, Brasso, Bee, Wilmon, the Daughters, the Time Grappler, the whole community. Where the season starts and where the season ends, with a call to fight the Empire and a community that answers. A community full of different people with different motivations and methods and views and yet maybe that's the point of the whole story. Even though on an individual level, characters might seem like they're in different stories or genres, facing their own challenges and seeking their own goals, everything occurs under the context of Imperial fascism. No one can escape it, no matter what story they think they're in or how big or small their role in it.

Syril and Dedra aren't just lone agents dismissed by their superiors, they're people embracing a fascist system and doing everything they can to uphold it despite how they themselves have been treated by that system. The Aldhani team, Mon Mothma, Luthen, their enemies aren't really the garrison at the dam or the ISB's surveillance or the endless rebel infighting; they're only the immediate faces of the Empire's oppression and division. The Narkina 5 prisoners aren't just trying to live. If all they wanted was to stay alive, they could have continued working until they died. It's the Empire who is responsible for how they're being treated, and they'd rather die trying to take them down.

The uprising on Rix Road brings it all home. After all the places that the season has taken us, all the challenges and arcs that these characters have faced, it comes back full circle to where we started - with ordinary people living under fascist rule. Some work with it, some against it, most try to keep their heads down and survive it. All alone in their personal stories and obstacles...except they aren't, not really. The Empire's rot is in all their lives. There is no escaping the reach of fascism, no matter what kind of life they try to lead or what decisions they make. Individualism won't save anyone - in fact, it's what the Empire wants. For everyone to feel alone, either singular and insignificant against an insurmountable force or otherwise striving endlessly to be the exception above the masses, the heroic underdog who overcomes massive obstacles (and everyone else) to save the day and get what they want.

Ferrix wakes up and in doing so they wake everyone up. None of them exist alone. Everyone is part of this, whether they are for or against the Empire. And when all these people and their stories come together, meeting, clashing, struggling, harmonizing... that's when a revolution starts coming into its own.

[bruhstation]

Did Lady manage to help exorcise and/or destroy Alfred for good or are the jumper cables whispering a little too loud in my ear

lady hasn't appeared publicly yet back in 1985 and was observing everything from the shining time world. she did turn alfred into a ghost, after all, and held some sort of attachment to the people she imbued with the gold dust. in the end though she believed that alfred being sent back to the shining time world is justice. it was the younger rws trio (more like edward since he's a gold dust patron like alfred) that exorcised him. since alfred masqueraded as a human but had no known relatives the railway held a small funeral for him. nobody knew what to say during the eulogy since he was so esoteric. but like the deeply condescending kind. gordon thought it was the worst funeral he's ever attended

[dr-gl0rbiez]

cant lock in on raymond….the sketch i drew….he looks off…..raymond im sorry……

[etherealplans]

sorry for being a toxic eddiegirl. i will do it again

[tarn-ati0n]

I swear to God I sound like a Saturday morning cartoon villain the way I talk about weather.

[rmorde]

Trigun Manga Reaction

Here we go! Chapter 8 Volume... Huh?

Voulme 2? I thought this is still Volume 1. Am I tripping?

Anyway! Just a moment of appreciation for this parody page of he cover.

This while thing is so "busy" yet it still make sense. There's so many elements layering on top of each other. It should be a confusing mess. However, I can still easily pick out the four components that tells a story.

Component 1: Vash as a happy salary man being served a drink by a geisha (judging from the hairstyle and accessory) with shadowed eyes on the opposite end of the page.

Component 2: BDN at the dead center. The text makes it a bit difficult to confirm if he has a top knot, but he definitely is rocking a traditional Japanese look. He looks menacingly at Vash as he drinks.

Component 3: Meryl and Milly running in a hurry but for two clearly different purposes. Meryl looks like a traditional restaurant staff frantically trying to serve a lot of guests. Meanwhile, Milly doesn't look she's working anywhere near the food service industry with her get up and the tool that she has on hand.

Component 4: The Bad Lads drinking in celebration while an ambulance seems to be sounding its sirens as it parked near them.

Look. I may seem to be too obsessed with this gag page but it's crazy how its a fucking busy mess that still works at telling a cohesive story!

With just this two page drawing, I can infer easily that someone is in danger and may need to be hospitalized - so the ambulance was called and asked to stand by. Milly is probably the heroine about to save the day with the overworked yet eager to help Meryl. The party the Bad Lads are having is a big distraction at a possible murder attempt starring Vash as the victim, the geisha as the accomplice, and BDN as the mastermind.

I'M SORRY BUT HOW THE FUCK?!!!

And don't get me started on the scaling of each figure and the silhouettes. Just... I'll just repeat, Nightow is amazing for how pretty AND technical his drawing is. It's so clean. Wow...

Sorry for getting derailed. So, back to the chapter.

Ok. I lied. Let me just appreciate Winter Mery and Milly here. I love them so much and they so fucking cute here with their dynamic pose... solid silhouette... Clean fucking lines... Sorry... Give me a minute!!!

Sigh~

Interesting. So, '98 rearranged the sequence of events here. This happened a bit later... which I think is better. It adds more impact on Vash's duel against BDN.

These guys are no stormtrooper shooters. They having really good aim!

They didn't hit Vash. Okay. Maybe the tails of his coat now have fresh bullet holes, but aside from that, Vash is fairly intact. The Bad Lads have great accuracy.

This is an intriguing way of drawing a spinning gun. It's simple but effective in visually communicating that that is what BDN is doing. A good choice. Thinking about it... If three twirling guns in a blur of circles were drawn, it would be too distracting and BDN will be overwhelmed in the panel.

Cool foreshortening. Incredible detail on the filigree. And a bonus Goofy Face Vash!

So so fucking glad '98 was faithful to the manga with these scenes. Meryl and Milly were such badasses here.

Huh... Well that's a huge difference. There's not much:

GASP! It'S VaSH tHe STampeDE!

vASh ThE StAMpEdE?!

VASH THE STAMPEDE!!!

It can get a bit much... sometimes in '98. So, this is refreshing.

WHAT...

WHAT THE FLYING FUCK?!!!

So, those lines by Miss Purple Avenger from the filler episode were originally from BRILLIANT DYNAMITES NEON?!

I-

Oooohhh.... Pretty art... Wait no... I can't distracted. I'm mad!

I'M VERY VERY MAD!!!

OML! This is much more intense! IT ADDS SO MUCH WEIGHT TO THE DUEL!

Oh my goodness... This nuance... WHY WAS THIS CHANGED?!

Not to say that Miss Purple Avenger and the episode featuring her was bad. It was actually great! Her version of July was nightmare inducing... and her confrontation with Vash was truly tragic too but.... Uhm...uh... AAHHHH!!!! I CAN'T CHOOSE! THEY'RE BOTH GOOD!

Oh... break my heart into fucking pieces will you huh?!

LOOK AT THESE! Manga Vash getting cheered on by the people! People were supporting him! He is being treated nicely as he deserved.

Even in '98! It was not as overt at this page. However, that scene of the captain from the beginning of this chapter replaced these panels instead and is just as effective. '98 Vash has people believing the good in him.

TRISTAMP VASH WAS ROBBED!!! HE NEVER HAD THESE!!! That poor precious boy! The few precious people who supports him only showed up near the end... and... and...

Now getting even more upset again with the Jeonora Episodes in Tristamp!

It's so not fair!

Oooh. A cinematic page!

HOLY SHIT!!! THESE PAGES ARE AMAZING!

I can't believe this. This fight is better in the manga!

I am not dissing Studio Madhouse for what they've done tho. The '98 Duel was epic too! They did great! But all these crazy angles and perspectives in the manga just elevate the overall awesomeness of the gunfight. It's just more immersive.

Tbf to the '98 anime, this is a nightmare to animate faithfully. With the technology and techniques at the time, this would be so difficult to pull off beautifully - going topsy turvy in one smooth motion for two characters at the same time in a fight scene with a complicated moving background? Yeah... The animation staff would go insane. It's totally understandable that they simplified this duel into extreme close ups and strong facial + gun drawings instead.

I hope Studio Orange re-hashes this fight in some way tho... or does the Episode 1 duel count?

Sigh... With the my discovery that Miss Purple Avenger's lines were actually BDN's, and that the outrage towards Vash for not remembering anything about July belongs to the Bad Lads', these words have become so much more meaningful.

It's also now more effective at convincing me that Brilliant Dynamites Neon have hidden depths.

Oh... Ow... The detailing here is just ow for the hands of an artist. Perhaps I overreacting, but those fine lines in the crooks and crannies make me wince.

Once again tag responses:

@revenantghost

Yeah. The more I see his work, the more I'm awed by his skills. That's a cool detail that his design incorporate realism. I thought the glasses are for the light tho? But maybe it's like those the Olympian gunners wore during the competition?

The dead REALLY haunting the narrative? Looking forward to it!

@takeshidude

Ok. Monthly publication are still grueling but at least its not as nightmarish with weekly mangakas. No wonder the quality is consistent with the art. Nightow was allowed to breathe.

You make a good point. '98 did have a bit of a mystery woven into it. We know Vash the Stampede - we follow his misadventures and people kept saying who he is ad nauseam in every episode. However, we don't really know know him for quite a long time. It's a different, but no less interesting, spin to the story.

Which kinda explains I'm misremembering some scenes and characterizations? The last third of '98 made a long lasting impression that I kinda forgot about Vash's horn dogginess.

[isthei]

[fic] bro the local seer thinks he can save me from my doom with the power of friendship 😭😭 i’m so cooked

[cpirits]

(( SEMI-PROMPTED || @crimsononiarataki said: [ Large clawed hands would be holding Aether by the waist, the taller of the two leaning down as Aether's arms wrapped around his neck, almost as if to anchor them there, perhaps. Lips were melded together, softly and gently for now, a hum would erupt from the Yokai before he shifted to possibly lift the shorter off the ground. It wasn't that leaning down was hurting his neck or anything, he was mostly thinking that craning ones neck to kiss someone considerably taller was not very comfortable for too long.

Playfully he would nip the smaller individuals lower lip, fangs catching the flesh briefly before the Oni's pierced tongue would work its way inside the other's mouth, and probably basically down their throat as well. Hands would tighten wherever they were holding onto the other, and the kiss would likely only be broken once the need for air became apparent between the two of them. He would let out a faint noise before merely resting their foreheads together but there was no way he was putting the other down right away. No sir. ->Get smooched, Aether. ]

★ ━━━━━━ Hands grabbing their arms, Aether flushed as Itto kissed them, closing the distance between their bodies. When Itto moved, Aether went on tip-toe to continue the kiss, their body growing warm due to the pace of the kiss starting out slow, but change gradually.

A soft groan left the Traveler's lips when Itto nipped their lip, eyes closed and cheeks still tinted pink. Figuring they'd not be let down soon, Aether hopped and wrapped legs around Itto's waist, pressing into the other.

The tongue in their mouth made Aether gasp on the organ, sucking on it as Itto gave an intense French kiss that went deeper than any kiss Aether had known. Body trembling merely from the kiss, eye opened when Itto gave air, and Aether panted as they met foreheads.

Who knew a kiss could steal ones breath as it had? Aether for sure had no idea until that moment, hands around Itto's neck gripped their arms more, wanting to stay like that, in the Oni's hold. Though they soon spoke, softly. "Amazing... What else can you do with that tongue?"

[bacchuschucklefuck]

the nsbu table is five DM pets and rekha shankar

[doomxdriven]

"I am Rudbornn, Captain of the Exequias, and I have come for your life."

[beneathsilverstars]

i know there's many possible reasons why people do this but whenever people post like a bunch of different drawings in one sketchdump i'm like woah hold on... give them room to breathe... each of these deserves its own frame and space in the gallery....

it kinda makes sense when they're closely-related explorations of the same topic but when they r different concepts or characters or esp moods i'm like wait! i have different things to say about each one! i want to admire and reblog each one separately with discrete tag commentaries!!

i just wanna show my love to each piece individually 😭

[0825inee]

[thekatebridgerton]

hi I love the tattoo parlor/bookshop/flower shop bridgerton au you wrote a long time ago and I was wondering if I could write my version of that fic?? I'll credit you with the idea ofc also I'm a big fan of ur AO3 works particularly the gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss one 🩷🩷

Oh you're free to go ahead and write it, just remember to tag me so I can give you a signal boost in this page, sorry it took me so long to get to this reply.

And as far as my own fanfic goes, I want to sit down and write it, but I honestly have been so busy that I can't seem to find the time. And I want to finish it, I only have two or 3 chapters to go but so far updates are a time is of the essence issue.

[dulcevenganzaa]

whatre your thoughts on teenagers

ohhh i know people tend to brush her aside bc it's pretty overplayed but it's good. it's a great song even. i love the 70-esque vibe it brings (t.rex hi), tho i wish it leaned a bit more into its bluesy influence a little more. umm you could also probably line dance to it which is a good marker for me, personally.

but tonally (thematically?) it doesn't make a lot of sense in the record:( and i stand by what i said, i don't believe any song on tbp is a filler (and mayyybe you could say that they needed a 2nd (3rd?) single), but i think there's more layers to the song rather than just simply being a commentary on violence in adolescence, especially bc of the perspective it comes from, sure, it's an adult looking in but it's also an adult in a rock-band. < i do think the music video does a lot more to explore that dynamic in particular with the nod to pink floyd, which is i think the only direct (visual at least) link between tbp and the wall ? and the single cover art is a great moment in mcr graphic history imo

also any song with a vibraslap moment is kind of a winner