#a wish upon the stars

[xskyll]

Any Lightning Struck Heart fans out there? I recently finished the fourth book in the Tales of Verania series. I decided to take a crack at drawing Sam and Ryan’s wedding in commemoration. I felt bad not including Tiggy, but I’m not creative enough to imagine what he looks like. So instead, I figured I’d just draw Sam’s mother best friend Gary and his step-dad soul-bonded sort-of-familiar Kevin. I figured they’d be appropriate inclusions since it’s their son’s friend’s wedding.

If you’re unfamiliar with the series, I highly recommend it! The humor is very early 2000s, especially in the first one. I described it to a friend and she said, “So like gay Shrek?” which I guess is accurate in a certain sense. Anyway, I loved Prince Justin’s development in the series, so I’m excited to read the final book, since it centers on him.

Fun fact, I couldn’t remember if Ryan’s hairstyle was described in the book, so I just Googled “douchebag haircuts” and went from there. If you’ve read the series, you get it.

[mmm-crackling]

i think my favourite character in this whole series is todd, duke goldwaithe. he’s shy and adorable. his ears. i just can’t.

[mellosdrawings]

The Star, the Sun, and the Moon

[herzspalter]

I just started the Wish upon a Star event in TWST and immediately thought of this

[ficklesprite]

How does one attract the haiku bot to your blog without getting caught?

[miss-sternennacht]

[stellabyystarlight]

Happy 4th twst anniversary!!! the most special boy for the most special day 🫶

[artist-issues]

I repeat: I do think Wish should’ve had a Blue-Fairy-like wishing Star come go on the adventure with her. Just so that she could “get to know” the Wishing Star, learn that it does care about what happens to her and wants what’s best for her, and then through that personal relationship, come to believe the actual message of most Disney movies, which is:

“Have faith and even more than what you wish for will come true.”

But sure, if you want to go ahead with your crappy “The power to make your wishes come true is in you,” yeah, make the Star a voiceless faceless blob. You don’t need it anyway, right?

(Tap for higher quality 🫢 My art. Give me credit if you’re going to use it.)

[daily-trey]

When you wish, upon a star Makes no difference who you are Anything your heart desires will come…to…you.

[respectthepetty]

Upcoming Taiwanese BLs

We are over halfway through 2024, and as usual, I've only had two Taiwanese BLs (Unknown, Anti Reset), so even though I'm sitting on a stack of BLs to watch every single week from other countries, call me Smaug because I need MORE!

Honorary Korean BL: Uncovering the Curse of Taekwondo (2024)

Former friends (and possibly lovers) reunite at a funeral after going their separate ways for over a decade, but, honestly, I don't care about the plot because this comes from Hwang Da Seul who was behind Blueming, To My Star, and Where Your Eyes Linger, so I know it's going to be amazing. There is a movie and a series version, and the movie already premiered at the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival in South Korea at the beginning of July. The runtime was 154 minutes, but the series is eight episodes around thirty minutes each and is currently seeking distribution.

First Note of Love (August 2024)

My most beloved, Charles Tu, from my favorite BL HIStory 4: Close to You is finally returning to me in the form of a washed-up singer who stepped away from the spotlight due to a tragic event only to be dragged back in by an up-and-coming composer who is also a longtime fan. It is a joint production with Thailand's Star Hunter Entertainment (the company behind Big Dragon, Love Senior, City of Stars, and Sunset x Vibes) and features a side couple of a Thai singer and a Taiwanese agent. It will involve singing, but I'm already too comfortable in my seat with my snacks to care.

Fragrance of the First Flower Season 2 (2024)

The lone GL holding down this list finished filming late last year and Gagaoolala has been releasing BTS images since filming began, so it'll likely land there once it is released. The series is a continuation of the 2021 first season, which people were not thrilled about because of the ending, so this season should solve some of the angst we were left with by exploring the two women actually coming together to navigate life as a couple.

The Only One (August 2024)

Directed by Liu Kuang Hui, who directed Your Name Engraved Herein, written by the same folks behind The Untamed, and based on Mu Su Li's novel A Certain Someone which is about two boys whose parents are dating and move in together, so the mains go from enemies-to-??? and the only reason for the question marks on a Taiwanese BL is because the word on these BL streets (and his MDL page) is one of the actors works heavily in China, so this might be the reason this one has been was in limbo even though filming finished earlier this year, but the socials are still posting it's coming this year.

See Your Love (Filming Complete)

This co-production with Japan is about a rich man who falls in love with his hearing-impaired caregiver. It finished filming at the end of May and will have those sweet sweet Taiwanese BL cameos from some Be Loved in House: I Do and Plus and Minus folks PLUS it will be the first cameos for the Kiseki: Dear to Me guys since the company that produced their show is the same one for this show.

Impression of Youth (Filming Complete)

Very little is known about the plot of this teacher-student romance, but it comes from the same folks who produced DNA Says Love You and one of the mains, Muji Hsu, was also the lead in 2020's Because of You. Filming finished at the end of May, and the company stated it would be out before the end of the year.

Islanders (late 2024/early 2025)

This is based on a novel, Islands, by Lolita Hu, features some well known Taiwanese actors, and for a bit was under the name Sea of Intimacy. It's being presented as an 'older BL' but the MDL summary is sparse of the BL-plot: Hung, a successful entrepreneur, has three intimate relationships: his wife, his mistress, and his girlfriend. The lives of these individuals in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s are intertwined because of romance, but their story extends beyond that. When Hung faces criticism on social media and loses everything, the way they react tells us how they see the world.

Wishing Upon the Shooting Star & The Young Gangster (2025)

These two deal with completely different plots but are together because of one reason: Ray Jiang. He is the director for these two and was the director for Unknown, My Tooth Your Love, and We Best Love. The companies behind them have stated the series are coming next year, but the guess is Ray's busy schedule is part of the hold up since he has a Netflix series in the works and apparently a film featuring Sam Lin (We Best Love) on the way. The Young Gangster is based on a novel and deals with a research assistant gathering information on the mafia (and we know how the mafia works in BLs), while Shooting Star deals with a man wishing that nobody notices him once he returns to his hometown after being fired. The wish backfires and nobody recognizes him, not even his dad or the boy he confessed to in high school! BL Mafia, Sideways Wishes, and Ray Ray are my favorite types of snacks!

Pray in Love (2025?)

A police officer falls in love with a man only to realize that man is the son of a prominent leader on the day of his arranged wedding in which he was hired as security for the event. The series already released a short film of the basic premise for fundraising efforts and festival rounds. Apparently, filming has started on the series, but there is no concrete confirmation from the production company.

Eternal Butler (2025)

Edited to add thanks to @cankersoregirl! This is a sequel to VBL's Anti Reset and began filming in early July. It focuses on Ever 4 who is sent to be a bodyguard for a young rich man only to encounter a rebellious man.

That Year, 162 Rainfalls (In Production?)

Is this a movie? Is it a series? Is it happening?! Who knows, but last year, it finally got funding and a director attached to it, but the real kicker is Lin Pei Yu is the screenwriter, and she is the writer behind all of my favorite Taiwanese BLs: We Best Love, HIStory 3: Trapped, My Tooth Your Love, Kiseki: Dear to Me, and so much more. Basically, the company struck gold getting her for this story about two archers and best friends. One gets confessed to but admits he actually is in love with his best friend, but before love can happen, the best friend has an accident and falls into a coma. It is based on a novel of the same name, and the plot is way more hefty than this, but I know Lin Pei Yu will make it work!

Four Seasons (Pre, Pre, PRE-Production?)

This is supposed to be four different stories focusing on different seasons, and is rumored to be VBL's next group of shows since the company has stated it wants to continue its formula from last year of releasing slightly connected shows. VBL/Vidol was behind Stay by My Side, VIP Only, You Are Mine, and Anti Reset. Winter is about a scrooge CEO and a florist who is hired to decorate for the CEO's Christmas event. Spring is about two boys meeting on a bus and falling in love over music. Summer is about a market owner and a chef falling in love over food. Autumn is about two former best friends seeing each other ten years after graduating and exploring their hometown together.

Connecting to You (Pre-Production?)

It seems to have gotten funding, but it's been quiet since which isn't surprising because when it comes to Taiwanese BLs, nothing is really heard until filming begins or even after it ends. I still have my hopes high because this is *THE* BL for me as it deals with a man who can see colored threads connecting people and one day runs into a policeman whose thread connects to him. The thread between them begins to change color, from silver-grey to yellow, representing friendship, and even to red, representing love. If I have to sell an organ or two to fund this myself, I. Will. Do. It. I NEED THIS!

And this wouldn't be a Petty Post if I didn't include this final one:

HIStory 15: Freed (GIVE IT TO ME!)

I don't care if this a long shot. I don't care if I seem crazy always asking for this. I. Deserve. It. HIStory 3: Trapped ended with our best mafia boy in prison, and it's time he got out! The HIStory franchise has not had a series since 2022's HIStory 5: Love in the Future, and although there have been rumors that a HERstory story might be next, I think bringing back a popular story would be just as good. I will ask for this every chance I can until I get it, and I plan on living a long life, so I got time!

[aenslem]

Tagged by @mithrandirl to show some before and afters on coloring and sharpening. Thank you for tagging me <3 I love posting these things, they actually show how much work you do to create something, it's not just cut out a scene from a show and it suddenly becomes a perfect gif, you actually have to do so much to make it look nice. Lately I experiment a lot with sharpening, and I realized I do not have specific settings for it now, I just go and use whatever I think suits my gif atm. Same goes for colorings, I prefer to create a coloring from a scratch for each gif, that way you don't have to fix whatever went wrong when you just used psd on a different scene :D

Tagging @thyla , @leqnardmccoy , @dearemma , @villainelle and whoever wants to do it, it's fine if you don't, have fun <3

[misshollyslair]

Sort of a new year piece in advance, because I'm moving during the holidays and this is the last painting I'll be able to complete and post before 2024 comes around :) It's a bittersweet end of the year for me, but 2023 was rich and eventful, and I'm grateful to have found my home in the world 🇩🇰 Thank you all for your continued support ❤️

[clairedaring]

P'Joe, there it is again! Ming, I can't see it. Let me help you with that. There, you see it? Make a wish. You said it's a superstition. Well, I have something I wish too.

MY STAND-IN (2024) | 1.12

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Is it anywhere confirmed that the tweels are part of a mafia?

I read somewhere that in one of the birthday vignettes one of them said that their parents are part of the eldritch sea mafia or smth

That would be incorrect! The twins never formally state that their family is a mafia. For that matter, no character does. Both Jade and Floyd do have various birthday vignettes (most notably Birthday Boys and Platinum Jackets) where they talk about their parents and drop dialogue which would imply the line of work their father is in is shady. For example, the twins were taught suspiciously specific self-defense skills such as lock-picking and how to escape from ropes. The Leech parents are also constantly worrying for the safety of their sons... but why, hmm? Some concern is expected, but in what situation would a kid need to know how to lock-pick and escape from binds???

On numerous instances, Jade and Floyd mention that their dad has many "connections" and "business associates" who try to gain his trust by giving his sons gifts, so he makes them sign contracts which state that they won't be looking for favors in return. Again, not normal people behavior. There's the insinuation that the family is well-off, and that the Leech dad is concerned about how one dresses (this is where Floyd gets his love of shoes from), which could relate to how the mafia has very strict codes about presentation and behavior. Floyd has also said that he has been to many formal, stuffy parties (presumably for family business) and he didn't enjoy them very much.

The twins themselves are just as evasive when the subject of what specific work their dad does comes up. It is mostly Jade who does not elaborate on the family details beyond a certain point, whereas Floyd tends to terrorize others with the knowledge of it. One instance of the latter is during the Wish Upon a Star event, in which Floyd asks Idia if he really wants to know what their family does for a living. The idea seems to frighten Idia, even though he is not provided the answer. When Jade is asked what their parents do in his Birthday Boy vignettes, he replies with insisting, “They simply run an independent business that dabbles in a bit of everything. Nothing out of the ordinary, I assure you.” This coming from Jade… We cannot entirely trust it. All of this together comes off as sort of suspicious, and it has led to the popular (and widely accepted) fan theory that the Leeches are a mafia family. We won't know for sure until TWST outright confirms it, maybe in a Coral Sea hometown event or something.

[venusaur-propaganda]

Drawing Venusaur with every Pokemon pt. Jirachi