#SPECIFICALLY MERMAID

[anonmousegosqueak]

As a gift to the lovely, amazing, perfect @theyarereal (and also because I feel so bad for forgetting my lad)-

I'm not quite as solid on og cod characters, I get the fandom vibe but I don't actually know 'em in game. But- he's also the main character so... Not much real in-game characterization?

Mouse's hybrid 141: ROACH ADDITION LETS GOOOOO (no I didn't forget about Gaz and Price, I just got so excited someone commented that I had to write this RIGHT NOW)

Gary "Roach" Sanderson (loml)

There are a few different options so I'll list 'em in no particular order.

The obvious, a roach hybrid.

Give him the antennae, giggle at said antennae

Likes to play rock-paper-scissors against himself (he's so cute I can't-), y'know what would help? Extra hands.

Mute or at least selectively nonverbal = bugs don't talk! Well- they don't talk to me at least...

He's cold! Snow mission! Bugs cold!

I don't know, I don't have much except for the name

I mean... Puppy?

So I've already kicked Soap off that animal, our favorite Scot ain't hogging it up (though I would say Captain MacTavish and Sargent Soap would be different)

He's doing all this stuff, following his captain's every word without a complaint, very "loyal dog" vibes I'm the actual campaign.

Continuing that, it doesn't matter how many times he almost died, he's gonna take orders. He's gonna fight. He's going to win.

Man's literally fought through an exploding building and then simply went on to fight through a snowy forest like it's nothing.

Who knows, maybe he would prefer to bark over speaking?

It's cute af, what else do I have to say?

Last but not least- Human.

Okay so this is more for if I were to make a fic

But, I don't know? I just can't think of anything else for him?

Someone with so many "animalistic" (more like autistic I relate to so many of these 💀) traits such as the loyalty to an insane degree, not speaking and only making vague sounds, being entertained by something like playing r.p.s. against himself, being a goofy goober who likes to be in small spaces-

And then take that guy and make him a human?

He'd fit in well with the others, he understands some of the non-human bits of being a hybrid, like an honorary part of the pack.

The kinda guy you just forget *is* a human

I don't know if I like this, I feel like I'm missing something that's *RIGHT THERE*, but what can you do? I bet someone will come up with something better, until then I'm sticking with human!Roach.

[rui-drawsbox]

i dont know but at the moment shes getting married to malleus -also wanted to design some outfits lol-

[courtmartialme]

mermaid riza concept that i drew for mermay, forgot about for months, then picked up again this past week and got obsessed

[nibbelraz]

Little fish can't help complementing how stunningly beautiful this stranger is, doesnt know they will be married in 3 seconds

Shang Qinghua

[chirrups]

more mer hermit?

Port Jackson or tawny nurse mumbo?

Leopard shark Grian?

banded bamboo shark/blacktip reef shark Gem?

of course, it's mer-may afterall!

[mossy-paws]

they’ve been cooked…. (PHIGHTING!)

Yea Twitter really liked these ones lmao, anyways the first one was for a trend and the second one is just a silly follow up to it LMAO

[g0nefischin]

Doing the classic skeletons now :-D

Sans is an Ocean Sunfish and Papyrus is an Atlantic Lobster!

[ohno-the-sun]

Yippee newest chapter of Under the Surface is done! I hope you all will enjoy this one

Art is scene in the fic lol

Also I made a playlist for it check it out if you like

Has vibes, character arcs and spoilers so fun

[emry-stars-oc]

Now that mermay is over. I have more mermay content. Much thanks to my buddy silvermasquerade who I wanted to talk about a mermaid au with (specifically their twin oc girlies who feature heavily here) and who had a hundred good ideas because now I’m terminally obsessed

So what if there were merfolk dolphins and they lived in an aquarium that does shows and stuff and most of them have an assigned human “handler” to help manage things and maybe to perform with. I think the merfolk are mostly like rescues or relocations?? At any rate the current set up of humans they work with are largely tolerable and even likeable so that’s a plus 🙏 and yes I’m unlearning embarrassment so you get to see my whole sketchbook layouts

(In this specific au the list of names and animals on the top left (above) are the merms, the right side list is the reverse timeline but we’ll get to that later)

Anyway I’ll put some ‘who’s who’ + rambles under the cut, for now @silvermasquerade GET OVER HERE I HAVE YOUR CHILDREN AND SECRET OTHER ART

Ok so. The merfolk are: silvermasquerade’s girls Adaline and Alyssa, the two black haired dusky dolphins

Alyssa (ponytail)’s human is Bo, Adaline won’t take an assigned handler but if she needs an assistant for her performances she’ll borrow someone (usually also Bo). They’re beautiful and so much fun to play dolls with and I love them. I also love forcing Bo and Alyssa to get through the initial absolute refusal to cooperate bc once they figure each other out they are so funny to me

(The rest of these aren’t going to have pics accompanying them because I’m hitting image limit smh)

My contributions to the merms are Quinton, the spotted dolphin who’s (current) human is a yet un-designed and completely un-introduced dude named Rhydian (annoying, sometimes pretends that the merfolk aren’t as sentient as they are bc it’s ‘convenient for him’). Luckily I’m thinking Q eventually gets put with Kallistos instead, who’s one of his besties in canon. He’s also mercilessly, lovingly teased for not being overly subtle by merfolk standards with how intrigued he is by Alyssa’s handler

Estes, a nondescript seal who doesn’t perform atm but ended up taking to one of the employees (Lolo) who was therefore given defacto responsibility of Estes bc she’s so snappy with anyone else. Lolo also happens to be someone that frequently helps train new employees so when Taorna is hired, he also accidentally gets on Estes’ good side. Oops 💕

Mercer, the unreasonably large orca that was brought in who also doesn’t yet perform because they have no one to work with him on it. He’s not quite built for the elegant types of shows they put on anyway, if they ever do a pirate drama he’d make a great sea monster tho.

And Liana, the common dolphin with the yellow ribbon in her hair. Her handler is Ambrose (eyepatch guy) which means she’s almost immediately teased/razzed by the other merfolk for how well the two of them get along. “He’s handsome and kind and -“ “girl please. he’s a HUMAN” but you best believe they are the media darlings and look so cute in their matching costumes

One day I’ll draw them with their humans bc you absolutely have not seen the last of them, I’m obsessed almost to the point of concern, I also need to figure out how to get Betony in here fr. If you thought Mercer towered over them before oh boy

[deepwaterwritingprompts]

Text: There are a finite number of mermaids, ocean spirits us sailors claim as patron saints. Any gift from one is worth more than gold: a shell, a song, a wriggling strand of hair.

[skecherss]

Tim n some chickens

[comickergirl]

Okay one more drawing to make it an even twenty. XD In the Name of the Mermaid Princess!

[liothebiblioklept]

I wanted to draw a dragon but Im currently incredibly brainrotted on Mitsuba from tbhk, so naturally to fix this I just turned him into a silkwing obviously. Last one kinda looks like pinkie pie lol

[hotwaterandmilk]

2024 English language manga releases I'm enjoying

Here are a couple of titles I've picked up in English so far this year that I've enjoyed. Most of these I read digitally in Japanese for one or two volumes a couple of years back, but opted to wait and purchase the English print versions for my collection.

I feel like all of these books are worth the purchase price, but don't have the energy to do individual posts for each of them. So here's a very smooshed together post covering a few 2024 reads.

GOGOGOGO-GO-GHOST! from Yen Press

Akechi Ushiro is a heavily flawed, hard-working woman whose disregard for her own wellbeing results in her coming face-to-face with her equally flawed guardian spirit, Masako. The pair decide to combine their forces and begin tackling the obstacles in Ushiro's life using curses.

Hiruzuka Miyako's darkly funny tale of a woman taking control of her life alongside her queer sister spirit is such a delight . Featuring a rough-and-ready art style that helps underscore the macabre elements at play, the entire first volume is scathing in its humour and unashamed in its portrayal of Ushiro's flaws. I was surprised when this one got picked up by Yen Press a while back, but so happy to see it enjoying a stateside release. If you're after something that doesn't always play nice, GOGOGOGO-GO-GHOST! might well be for you.

Edit: If you haven't read it before, this Japanese interview with Hiruzuka is worth reading for a bit more on her background and the creation of the series.

Pass the Monster Meat, Milady! (Akujiki Reijou to Kyouketsu Koushaku) from Kodansha USA

A sweet little fantasy romance between two individuals who find solace in one another despite being reviled by the general public for their interest in monsters. One loves defeating monsters in battle while the other loves cooking them!

Melphiera is a smart, capable heroine while Aristide Rogier du Galbraith is a dashing and supportive hero. The manga art is a bit low in detail, but the characters and story are absolutely worth your time. I'd love to see the LNs that the manga adapts in English someday too. I mentioned in tags before this whole series gives me the types of vibes I enjoy in historical fantasy romance novels, so if you like that kind of content this might be a good title to check out (or recommend to friends who appreciate romantasy but haven't tried manga before).

In The Name of The Mermaid Princess (Mio no Na no Moto ni) from VIZ Media

In a country where being "unhuman" or in some way supernaturally inclined is seen as a curse rather than a blessing, Princess Mio takes medications to suppress her mermaid-esque traits and please her father. Her perspective changes when Yuri, a tutor from her fiance's home kingdom, encourages her to be herself and embrace the things that make her different.

I've seen people say this is a bit too obvious in its parallels between fantasy oppression and IRL issues, but this is a Ribon manga for young girls so yeah it's on the nose but I think it works for the audience it has in mind. Tashiro Miya's artwork here is gorgeous and both leads are quite endearing (Mio is SO freakin adorable I can'ttttt). Overall a solid little series with nicely packaged volumes for those after something for a younger audience.

The Moon on a Rainy Night (Amayo no Tsuki) from Kodansha USA

A romantic slice-of-life tale featuring two high school girls, one of whom is a budding pianist (Saki) and the other a loner who is hard of hearing (Kanon).

I don't normally go much on high school romance but the way this series blends classic GL melodrama tropes with genuine issues in an earnest manner works for me. While we see things more from Saki's viewpoint as she eagerly tries to learn more about Kanon and tries to figure out her own sexuality, we do also come to understand Kanon's thwarted ambitions and the difficulties she has with letting people in.

Kuzushiro's art is quite whispy and cute, with all the characters tending to look quite well-realised on the page. While I prefer romances that feature a character with disability to centre their perspective, I do feel this does a decent job of portraying both girls as they try to navigate their deepening relationship. YMMV on this though, particularly if you are d/Deaf or hard of hearing.

Sketchy from Kodansha USA

Ako is living an unfulfilling life with a dull job and even duller boyfriend, but she suddenly finds herself thrust into a whole new world upon encountering a mysterious young skateboarder.

Sketchy, while ostensibly about women taking up skateboarding is more a snapshot of their individual lives and the role having a hobby plays once you're no longer a child. Ako's story particularly resonates with me (I literally worked her job at a similar age) but all the characters prove interesting in their own way.

Makihirochi's art is a bit more experimental than others on this list and may not be to everyone's taste, but I do think Sketchy is still worth checking out even if you're not entirely sold on the art (which I think has improved since I first became familiar with her work through Itsuka Tiffany de Choushoku o in Comic Bunch). Titles like this, which, let's face it, have low levels of mainstream appeal, don't often get English language releases so I highly recommend supporting this one if you have the opportunity to do so.

[nekky-nek]

It fascinates me that there are people who don't hear a voice or have a home theater in their brain, so I'm curious. I would love to know how concrete the images are or what kind of voice you hear in your head if you do.

[scarapanna]

[WIP] I'm back on that animatic grind/silly

"Ehhh Shadow Miiilk that's a bad idea mimimimi-Shut"