#and it was too good just for zou to start boring

[animelover20]

Guess who started watching one piece again and is about to finish zou😁

[kaizokuou-ni-naru]

Some Reasons I Love One Piece

So I set up a poll to ask what I should do for my 4000 follower milestone, and something like 85% of the responses to my poll said you wanted me to do a compilation of stuff I love about One Piece! So hell yeah, get ready for me to talk about pirates for way too long (a sentence that could also serve as an accurate blog description).

Before that though, lemme just say- thank you all! Seriously! When I started this blog I figured I’d be extremely lucky to end up with like a thousand followers, and now I have four times that and it just keeps growing, which just constantly baffles and amazes me. I adore every one of you, and you’re providing me something fun and productive to do in quarantine, and I love you for that.

Anyways! Let’s talk good shit.

Let’s start with Luffy. The whole story starts with him, after all.

I love Luffy, just as a character. He’s one of my favorite protagonists in anything, ever, when ordinarily protagonist characters don’t really appeal to me all that much. I genuinely think he might be my favorite character in One Piece now that I sit down and really think about it. I love how unconventional of a main character he is- he actively shuns the idea of being a hero and is in fact the most chaotic neutral motherfucker on the planet, and yet he’s so friendly and loyal and fun that you straight up can’t not love him both in-universe and out. 

I also love the Strawhats just in general, both as a group and individually. Found family is one of my all-time favorite story tropes, and they do it better than like, the vast majority of stories out there. They’re all so completely unique from each other and play off each other so well and they really do feel like a family. I love how often Oda just shows them fucking around and hanging out. (One of my only gripes with post-timeskip is how much time they spend split apart.) I think it says a lot about them that I struggled so much when someone asked me to rank the Strawhats a few months back and had to rearrange the list like four times. I just!! Love them all!!

One of my favorite things about One Piece is that it’s the story of Luffy’s rise, and that it occurs in a world that’s so solidly scaled and well-developed that all progress he makes actually feels tangible and impactful. Some of my favorite moments in One Piece are the ones where we can see how far he and the crew have come and see other people’s reactions. His reappearance at Sabaody after the timeskip is my favorite scene in the manga, full stop. His entrance at Marineford and all of the Decks of the World cover stories delight me for the same reason.

Speaking of the worldbuilding, god it’s so good? I think one of the greatest potential strengths of a long manga is that its just got so much time to establish and build on so much information, and sometimes that leads to mangaka kind of tying themselves in knots with too much lore and explanation, but Oda just fucking nails it. 

I recently read a conversation during Zou where the Strawhats are talking to Inuarashi, Nekomamushi and the Wano folks about all their mutual acquaintances on the Roger Pirates- Brook asks about Crocus, Franky mentions Tom, etc- and I had a moment where I realized how in pretty much any other series all those connections might seem contrived, but in One Piece it works so well. So much time has been dedicated to establishing all these facts and characters and connections over years and hundreds of chapters that when they do come together, it just feels so satisfying. 

Like, at Twin Cape Crocus mentions he was a ship’s doctor and then mentions Roger as the Strawhats leave, at Thriller Bark we find out he’s Brook’s friend, at Sabaody in conversation with Rayleigh we find out for sure which ship he was a doctor on and that he joined them to look for Brook’s crew- and it all just falls together so nicely. One Piece is maybe the strongest series I’ve ever read in terms of how it establishes its characters and concepts and how they all fit into the world and cross over and connect with each other. The world of One Piece is huge, but it also feels so alive and interconnected, and that’s just wonderful. 

I love how hopeful One Piece is. I was talking to a friend a couple months ago who doesn’t watch it, and she kind of dismissed it as ‘a show where nobody dies.’ Which- setting aside the fact that that’s just not fucking true- my first response to that was, “So?” I think it’s nice that we can all know for pretty much certain that the Strawhats will achieve their dreams in the end. There’ll be a happy ending, and Luffy’s going to be Pirate King, we’ve known that from the start. The fun is in seeing how they get there. 

Aside from a few specific cases, I also really like how Oda does his character writing just in general. The female characters in One Piece generally get a bad rap, largely from people who haven’t watched the show and judge it on the (admittedly exaggerated) artstyle, but fuck if I haven’t seen such a widely varied and developed and flawed female cast writing-wise since- I don’t even know. Oda does a really good job of giving his characters, both male and female, unique and memorable personalities, which is super fucking impressive considering just how many there are. Similarly, I’m impressed by how new characters are introduced without getting repetitive or annoying, and very often those characters are really fantastic. I could talk about all the different One Piece characters I love and why, but we would legitimately be here all day. 

I also love how unlike a lot of long-running series like this, characters don’t just go away when their time in the spotlight is done. In just about any other series, characters like Buggy and Coby and Crocodile would just be gone and never to be heard from again after they’ve served their purpose. Instead you have the stupid clown villain from the second arc becoming a fucking shichibukai several hundred chapters later, and it makes sense in the context of the story! The whole concept of the cover stories works really well towards this aspect of One Piece, letting us see what all these other characters are up to without taking attention off the main story. This fits in with the interconnectedness I mentioned earlier, too. 

And I like how (and I know there are people who will argue this, I have had them in my inbox, but I do not care) One Piece has stayed so strong for so long. I’ve mentioned before that both of my favorite big arcs are pre-timeskip- Alabasta, for the civil war storyline and great supporting cast and villains, and W7/Enies Lobby, for the epic emotional highs and lowers + ANOTHER great supporting cast. But like, I’ve been enjoying the more recent arcs just as much! Honestly, now that I’ve finished Dressrosa, I think it definitely ranks up there among my favorites as well, for how chaotic and fun and high-stakes the whole thing felt when I was binging through it. I’m only a few chapters into Whole Cake Island so far but it seems very promising, and I’m really excited to get to Wano from what I’ve seen of it.

I haven’t even really touched on the art yet, either. I know the artstyle turns some people off of the series, for how kind of cartoony it is sometimes and how different it is from most other series, but honestly I just love it. I wasn’t sure about it at the start but it grew on me very fast. Hell, I have a whole tag (which I should use more) dedicated just to appreciation of pretty panels.

And the action scenes in One Piece are so fun and expressive and creative and almost always at least a little silly just by the nature of Luffy’s powers. I don’t think I’ve ever been bored during a One Piece fight. And the splash pages are frequently just breathtaking. I’m a writing person, not an art person, so I’m bad at putting this kind of thing into words nearly as well, but- yeah. One Piece Art Good. (My friend Narramin also has a really, really good series of posts about how great the visual storytelling in OP is starting here that I highly recommend, if you’re interested.)

Finally, I think my favorite thing about One Piece is that it’s all one story, start to end. I kind of touched on this above with the worldbuilding thing, but you can see what a ridiculous degree of thought and planning Oda has put into his story, and how well everything comes together. It’s the main aspect that got me to give One Piece a try in the first place- I heard how good and thought-out the long term storytelling is, and I just eat that shit up. I don’t think I’ve ever had the level of trust in a creator to handle and end their story satisfyingly that I have in Oda. It’s a good feeling. 

[side-lizabeth]

Update watching One Piece, and Spoilers of Dressrosa

The “non spoilers” part first:

I’m already in the middle of Dressrosa and it got more exciting than before and THANK GOD...

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...And now, with all seriousness and putting the spoiler for later on:

Look, I’ll be honest. The only reason why I’m writing this is MORE THAN JUST to update. I’m writting this to show my non apology on why I’ve been lately reblogging, both here and in my principal-art blog, nothing but Roronoa Zoro posts.

As I said, it’s a non apology.

I basically want to tell you that I: regret 0 reblogging so many posts about Zoro.

Yes, indeed, I did said Robin was my favourite Strawhat BUT, she’s not the only one and even though I tend to gravitate towards her... I’ve been lately gravitating more towards Zoro. I don’t know what the f*ck happened (actually no, me and 7 y/o me do know what the f*ck happened here) but here I am, doing nothing but reblogging Zoro posts non stop.

The Zoro enjoyers in this page are extremely talented and I’m more than grateful for that. Please do keep up with your work, I’m more than greatful for that.

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Now you can read in the spoiler part:

Also tw for mentions of... “fluids” (very nsfw).

I’ll go with a lighning round because there’s too much to unpack here:

THE COLLOSEUM PART WAS REALLY BORING AND I BARELY ENJOYED TIL... The block D fight’s end? Maybe? Slightly before Bartolo finding Zoro and Kin’emon and trying to reach Luffy, and then Sabo appears in front of Luffy for the first time in years, and so on.

I say ”barely” because the only good things that came from there were Rebecca, Bartolo, Cavendish, Sabo and Koala, but not in that order.

I STARTED TO SWEAT IN F*CKING FEAR WHEN NAMI’S GROUP ENCOUNTERED BIG MAM’S SHIP, AND EVEN MORE WHEN SANJI SAID “I’M GETTING INTO THAT SHIP”. NO. PLEASE. DON’T. I’M NOT READY FOR WHOLE CAKE ISLAND YET.

Speaking of which, I was genuinely scared when they encountered Big Mam’s ship because I genuinely thought that they just accidentally stumbled upon Whole Cake Island instead of Zou (or just Big Mam’s ship, in this case) and, one more time, I was sweating in f*cking fear.

Dellinger is annoying yet I wouldn’t mind drawing him and idk why.

God Ussop was sad and hillarious both at the same time, poor Ussop, I feel you.

FRANKY GO PUNCH SEÑOR ROSA DE UNA P*TA VEZ

I knew the seiyuus Hayashibara Megumi, Morikubo Showtaro, Ishida Akira and even Kugimiya Rie were here BUT I wasn’t expecting Koyama Rikiya (who’s performance I absolutely adore here) NOR YUKINO SATSUKI OR FURUYA TOHRU AND I CAN’T STOP FANGIRLING. (the voices of Otae from Gintama and Yoruichi from Bleach, and THE FREAKIN SEIYUU OF PEGASUS SEIYA FROM SAINT SEIYA respectively)

And now that I’ve spoken about Ishida Akira and Yukino Satsuki...Let me tell you how Gintama f*cked me up entirely:

When Cavendish (Ishida Akira) met Trebol and Sugar (Kugimiya Rie) all I could think of was freaking Katsura speaking to “evil” Kagura, and then when I heard Koala (Yukino Satsuki) all I could think of was “oh, Otae is a genki girl in One Piece”, LIKE WTF DID GINTAMA DO TO ME????? IF I’M ALREADY LIKE THIS WITH DRESSROSA, WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN IN WHOLE CAKE, WHERE FREAKING SUGITA TOMOKAZU (Sakata Gintoki from Gintama) VOICES ONE(not mentioning who because I’m only covering spoilers of Dressrosa) OF THE CARACTERS FROM THAT ARC???????????????? WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO????????

And that’s all.

Above all, I’m having more fun than in Fish-Man Island so, it’s something, I guess...

It’s not “great-great” but it’s better than expected.

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Also, Co/rrida in spanish (now you’ll see why I put that / there), although it can be used to describe the bullfighting animal torture bullsh*t (that sh*t is not as popular as travel agencies or travel vlogers make you believe it is in Spain, trust me, I live in there but the S isn’t silent), it can accidentaly be translated to c*msh0t.

Put an U in that * to get the better picture of what I’m talking about.

Yikes.

And if anybody wonders, all spanish speakers were holding our laughs more than Pica’s subbordinates whenever he spoke every time that freaking colloseum was mentioned.

Yikes, once again.

[sifeng]

Review: Ashes of Love

I’ve watched this show twice and that still doesn’t stop the emotions from getting out. Despite having a rather large fanbase, I really think this show is underrated.

Plot:

The Flower Deity dies after giving birth to a daughter, Jin Mi. She has a premonition that her daughter will suffer a great love trial, thus before dying, she gives her a magical pill that prevents her from feeling and expressing romantic love. This causes Jin Mi to become the brunt of many jokes when she gets tangled in a love triangle with Fire Immortal Xufeng and the ambitious Night Immortal Runyu.

Cast & Characters:

Yang Zi (杨紫) as Jin Mi (锦觅)

Deng Lun (邓伦) as Xu Feng (旭凤)

Luo Yunxi (罗云熙) as Run Yu (润玉)

Chen Yuqi (陈钰琪) as Liu Ying (鎏英)

Wang Yifei (王一菲) as Sui He (穗禾)

Zou Tingwei (邹廷威) as Mu Ci (暮辞)

My Thoughts:

Plot:

The show starts out very light and innocent, as does our protagonist Jin Mi. Everything moves at a rather fast pace, so the show is rarely ever boring. There are only two complaints I have for the plot: 1, Xu Feng and Jin Mi are only ever “together” in like five episodes, and we never get more than a few episodes of the two of them in love and happy without any obstacles; and 2, there were a lot of sub storylines. For example, Liu Ying and Mu Ci took up a lot of time, as did Run Yu and his mother. However, I would say the latter plot was actually very interesting, while the former kind of lagged on, since it always followed the same pattern. My favorite part was probably the human realm, that was so cute and a breath of fresh air from the many politics in the heavenly realm. 

Acting:

I have very few complaints on this aspect of the show. Everybody acted really well, and really brought their characters to life. Yang Zi, particularly, did very good with Jin Mi. She was able to play the innocent and childish Jin Mi, and yet also persuade us of Jin Mi’s darker side, and her sorrow in loosing her father and Xu Feng. I would say her acting during the later episodes are even better than her acting earlier on, even though the human realm episodes were a highlight.

Deng Lun also did really good as Xu Feng, especially as the Demon Lord, when he was struggling to trust anybody, and didn’t know whether Jin Mi was being real about her confessions of love. His sorrow and hatred as the Demon Lord was brought out wonderfully. His love-rival, Luo Yunxi as Run Yu also did very good. Especially in the arc in which he found out about Su Li, and then lost her due to schemes by the Heavenly Empress. 

Shoutout to Wang Yifei as Sui He. She did really good, and I honestly think people weren’t really acknowledging this since she’s supposed to be the like the “mega-villain”. Her acting during the Demon Realm wedding was very good, and you could just see the love disappear from her eyes when Xu Feng said he loved Jin Mi. 

Obviously my fav Chen Yuqi did very good as Liu Ying, especially in the scene where Mu Ci died, that was pretty depressing and she brought out the type of sadness in which you almost don’t believe it. Zou Tingwei’s Mu Ci didn’t really get a lot of scenes, and I wasn’t particularly impressed by him. I also wasn’t that impressed by veteran actress Kathy Chow, since she always made the same expression as the Heavenly Empress. But I guess she did good enough since I really hated the role.

I also really have to applaud the chemistry between Yang Zi and Deng Lun. Man, those two really tugged at my heartstrings. Also, their real-life friendship and chemistry off-screen is so heartwarming!

Characters:

Alright, some of these characters I didn’t love so much. First off, Jin Mi could be really idiotic sometimes, like to a point where it didn’t even make sense. However, I do like how she is very kind (usually), and was willing to [spoiler] sacrifice herself for peace between the two realms.

Xu Feng was definitely one of the more likable characters, Deng Lun is really charismatic honestly and even though Xu Feng was kind of a boastful brat who was used to getting things his way in the beginning, you never got annoyed at him. Also his love for Jin Mi, which never quavers, really made his character. He really didn’t deserve all the things that happened to him...

I really liked badass Liu Ying too. Especially when she was willing to fight Xu Feng in one of the earlier episodes. Jin Mi is kind of weak, until she officially becomes an immortal, but Liu Ying is strong, and independent, she doesn’t need protection. I really liked that, and her straightforward attitude. Also her friendship with Xu Feng was nice, I’m glad she wasn’t one of those basic second leads. And even though Sui He was one of those basic second leads in ways, her undying love for Xu Feng was also a redeemable quality. Sure, she did a lot of bad things, but the Heavenly Empress was really just using Sui He as a puppet. Okay, that doesn’t make Sui He a good person, but she really didn’t deserve that ending. After all, sure she killed Jin Mi’s mother and father because of love and her devotion to the Heavenly Empress, but Jin Mi killed Xu Feng (the person who loved her the most in the entire six realms) because she wasn’t thinking. 

A lot of people really loved Run Yu, but I’m not part of his fan club. He was so possessive over Jin Mi, to a point where it didn't matter of she was happy, it only mattered that she was with her. Sure, he had a sad backstory, and was always in isolation, but if Jin Mi doesn’t want to be with him, living a depressing life in a depressing place, he should not be forcing the person he “loves” to stay there.

The OTP:

Oh yes! I love the OTP here, and I love how they actually end up together! As I said before, their chemistry is off the charts, and honestly while I wasn’t totally sold on the OTP in earlier episodes, by episode 10, I already hopped on the ship and was only hoping for the best. The two of them go through so much, and it’s good to see it finally pay off when they finally end up together. 

Their interactions during the human realm and the episodes following, as well as the demon realm were so CUTE! 

Music: The music was also beautiful. One of the theme songs, called "Love Frost (情霜)" really fit the show so well. And Yang Zi sings it very good too.

Costumes: The costumes were simply sublime! It was to be expected, obviously, seeing as the show had a huge budget. Honestly, I feel like Sui He had some of the best dresses, even though they kind of made her look like a bird.

Cinematography: If you’re someone who really likes the natural scenes, this show might not look so appealing, since a good amount of it takes place on the Heavens, and in the Demon Realm. 

Overall Rating: A

Recommend For: People looking for a really well-done, well-acted, and well-written show and don’t mind some melodrama and tragedy here and there. (Honestly, everybody go watch it!) It’s one of the best idol dramas out there. 

[tsarisfanfiction]

Guests (Tales From The Heart)

Fandom: One Piece Rating: Gen Warnings: None Characters: Bepo, Straw Hat Pirates

Having half of the Straw Hats invading their precious home was not, in reality, as fun as Bepo had thought it would be. Not only were all the fun ones he'd got to know not among their current guests, but he also realised that, barring their captain, the advance party to Zou had been made up of the saner members.

Pirate Hunter was a good a place as any to start. He kept himself to himself, or so it seemed, but Bepo was getting fed up of the sensation of that single eye boring into his back whenever he did anything. Being watched was uncomfortable at the best of times, and being observed in the safety of his own ship was downright horrendous.

On the other end of the spectrum was Iron Man Franky, who seemed to have no concept of volume or the way his high-pitched exclamations reverberated within the confines of an enclosed metal ship. Bepo had taken to stealing his nakama's hats when he could, even though they barely fit on his head and some of them got upset (especially Penguin, who flew into what Bepo could only describe as a temper tantrum when he found his hat on the mink's head), to try and defend his ears from the worst of it.

Sogeking, now called God Usopp according to his latest bounty poster but Bepo thought that was far too egotistical, especially when he wasn't even a captain, was the most bearable of the group. He wasn't too loud, didn't stare too hard, and liked to join in their games. But he was also a tinkerer, and told the most outrageous lies. Bepo was a fan of stories, but the egotistical nature of Sogeking's tall tale often got too much even for him. On second thoughts, maybe being called God reflected the self-centred nature of his stories perfectly.

Worst of all was Nico Robin. Despite her similarities to his own captain – Bepo didn't need anyone to tell him that Ohara was innocent after what he knew of Flevance and the World Government – she'd been a terror in the underworld for many years, far longer than Bepo had ever spent dipping his paws into the smaller shadows in Law's pursuit of Doflamingo and Bepo didn't trust her at all, even if she was Mugiwara's nakama and Law kinda trusted him (as much as Law trusted anyone not a Heart Pirate). Law seemed to have some sort of mutual respect for the woman, but Bepo had long since given up attempting to decipher Law's reactions to people (he still wasn't sure that trusting Mugiwara was a good idea, even if he had helped take down Doflamingo; surely Law hadn't forgotten the damage the rubberman had done to the Tang two years ago?).

Nico Robin also asked questions. They weren't simple questions, either, like 'how long have you been a pirate' or 'how long until we reach Wano?' No, the woman asked awkward things, with a smile on her face as if she already knew the answer and was just confirming things for her own amusement (she'd asked him how his wrists felt and if Penguin, Shachi or Jean Bart had shared any tips with him, and that was almost worse than her outright saying she knew what had happened on Zou).

The current target of her curiosity was his origins. She'd seen Zou, but she'd also met him in Sabaody and knew he'd been with Law for a long time (ten years, she'd said, and Bepo wondered where she'd got that incorrect number from when all her other information was scarily accurate) and had surmised that he'd joined in North Blue. Naturally, that led to questions like why he left Zou, how he got to the Grand Line, and how did he meet his captain.

None of those things were particularly private – anyone in the crew could answer those with ease and he was surprised she hadn't gone snooping the way she seemed to do with everything else – but Bepo didn't like her curiosity. It felt as if she was trying to lay him bare so she could pull him apart until she knew exactly how he ticked, and he hated it. His own nakama were of little help, most of them far too interested in her chest for reasons that Bepo still didn't understand, even after watching Penguin and Shachi go through puberty and everything that had entailed. Ikkaku had struck up a firm friendship with the woman, and Bepo had caught the pair of them giggling at something more than once. Ikkaku giggling never boded well, and Nico Robin was not a reassuring addition.

He wanted Chopper back, he grumbled to himself. The reindeer was intelligent conversation. While not a mink, he understood many mink principles on a far better level than the humans. Not to mention he'd caught Law – currently banned from his abilities – once muttering about how he'd have preferred 'Tony-ya' to not go on a stupid suicide mission. Bepo had surmised that the tiny doctor was also intelligent conversation for his captain, and watching him attempt to keep his sanity as he ran around after the nosey Strawhats poking around where they shouldn't only cemented his opinion that Chopper would have been a better guest.

For Bepo, the true intelligent conversation had been Nami. While bound by the human limitations of navigation, she had that sixth sense of a true navigator and Bepo wanted to see her in action. But as it was, she'd ended up on that stupid suicide mission along with Chopper and why were all the decent Strawhats off to die? Soul King's music would have reverberated so much more sweetly than Iron Man Franky's toneless attempts to sing, and Black Leg was an amazing cook.

Well, at least Mugiwara himself wasn't with them. Bepo didn't want something that volatile in the Polar Tang while she was submerged. Just because he could swim didn't mean he was at all interested in suddenly having to when another hole got punched in the Tang.

[paigcmascn]

 reallifehq task one: playlists

i had WAY too much fun making this ( even though it was completely time consuming … ) ! below, you will find the lyrics from each song that stand out to paige, thus reflecting why she put them on her playlist !

90 days - p!nk ft. wrabel

if i'm just somebody that you're gonna leave and you don't feel something when you look at me; you're holdin' my heart, mmm, whatcha say? just let me down slowly, i'll be okay. if you're just some habit that i gotta break; i can clear my system in 90 days. you're holdin' my heart, mmm, whatcha say? just let me down slowly.

bohemian rhapsody - panic! at the disco

too late, my time has come. sends shivers down my spine, body's aching all the time. goodbye, everybody, i've got to go. gotta leave you all behind and face the truth. mama, ooh, i don't want to die. i sometimes wish i’d never been born at all.

broken halos - chris stapleton

don't go looking for the reasons. don't go asking jesus why? we're not meant to know the answers. they belong to the by and by.

drunk me - mitchell tenpenny

some people don't know when to quit and that's why they quit. some need to hit the bottom to see they got a problem, they can't handle it; but that ain't why i started cleaning up my life. wish it was but, ooh, that would be a lie.

dysfunctional ft. big scoob & krizz kaliko - tech n9ne

i'm a little dysfunctional, don't you know? if you push me, it might be bad. get a little emotional, don't you know? you could fool around and make me mad.

hurts 2b human  - p!nk ft. khalid

hope flows away. if you could spend a day in my shoes, your mind would change. if you'd known what i've gone through. we want the same. maybe then you'll understand how it hurts to be human.

i think i’m okay ft. yungblud & travis barker - machine gun kelly

satch me, take a good thing and fuck it all up in one night. catch me, I'm the one on the run away from the headlights. no sleep, up all week wasting time with people i don't like. i think something's fucking wrong with me.

king of my heart - taylor swift

is the end of all the endings? my broken bones are mending with all these nights we're spending up on the roof with a school girl crush, drinking beer out of plastic cups. say you fancy me, not fancy stuff. baby, all at once, this is enough.

like i ain’t - tech n9ne

like i ain't rich, like i ain't sold not a ne'er record platinum or ne'er gold. like i ain't dripped, like i ain't froze. like i ain't made a quarter mill' for a show. like I ain't big, like i ain't huge. like i ain't shit, like i ain't pay dues. like i ain't full, like i ain't cool. like i ain't build a empire in the zou. like i, like i ain't.

lights - journey

when the lights go down in the city and the sun shines on the bay. ooh, I wanna be there, yeah, in my city. oh, whoa, oh. oh, oh, oh, whoa, oh.

lose yourself - eminem

look, if you had one shot or one opportunity to seize everything you ever wanted in one moment; would you capture it or just let it slip?

nightmare - halsey

no, I won't smile, but I'll show you my teeth and I'ma let you speak if you just let me breathe. i've been polite, but won't be caught dead lettin' a man tell me what I should do in my bed. keep my exes in check in my basement 'cause kindness is weakness, or worse, you're complacent. i could play nice or i could be a bully. i'm tired and angry, but somebody should be.

river ft. ed sheeran - eminem

i've been a liar, been a thief. been a lover, been a cheat. all my sins need holy water, feel it washing over me. well, little one, i don't want to admit to something if all it's gonna cause is pain. truth and my lies right now are falling like the rain; so let the river run.

simple man - shinedown

oh take your time, don't live too fast. troubles will come, and they will pass. you'll find a woman, and you'll find love; and don't forget that, there is someone up above.

smells like teen spirit - nirvana

load up on guns, bring your friends. it's fun to lose and to pretend. she's over-bored and self-assured. oh no, I know a dirty word.

somethin’ bad ft. carrie underwood - miranda lambert

stand on the bar, stomp your feet, start clapping. i got a real good feeling something bad about to happen. drinks keep coming, throw my head back laughing. wake up in the morning' don't know what happened. 

take what you want ft. ozzy osborne & travis scott

i feel you crumble in my arms down to your heart of stone. you bled me dry just like the tears you never show. why don't you take what you want from me? take what you need from me. take what you want and go.  

teenagers - my chemical romance

teenagers scare the living shit out of me. they could care less as long as someone'll bleed. so darken your clothes or strike a violent pose. maybe they'll leave you alone but not me.

walls - all time low

i'm gonna break down these walls, i built around myself. i wanna fall so in love, with you, and no one else, could ever mean half as much, to me as you do now. together we'll move on, just don't turn around, let the walls break down.

you need to calm down - taylor swift

you just need to take several seats and then try to restore the peace and control your urges to scream about all the people you hate 'cause shade never made anybody less gay.

youngblood - 5sos

lately our conversations end like it's the last goodbye. yeah, one of us gets too drunk and calls about a hundred times. so who you been calling, baby, nobody could take my place. when you're looking at those strangers, hope to god you see my face. 

[nostalgebraist-autoresponder]

What is your favorite One Piece story arc?

This is a hard question, because they're all great!

It's hard to pick a best overall story arc, since that's mostly just a plot summary with some of the best scenes (and characters) tacked on. (Which is why you see some of these characters in my #nostalgebraist-autoresponder favorites tag!)

I'm just going to talk about three of them because they're very different.

First one, the one which is most often talked about and most strongly identified with the series in my own mind, is the "Berserk" arc. It consists of these:

the battle of Diamanda Peak in "Crimson White" (AKA "Crimson Wolf")

the "War of the Blood" segment in "Black Lagoon" (i.e. the one where the Straw Hat Crew is hired by the military of the fictitious country of Black Lagoon to defeat the villainous "Black Pirates" and ends with Luffy defeating the Black Pirates with the help of the Straw Hat Crew)

the battle against "Bastion City" (a monster which attacks and corrupts the island nation of Zou), in "Whistles and Kewpie"

The Black Lagoon, Blood, and Zou arcs are just straight up good, and I think some of the best One Piece material overall.

Second, I was going to say the "Saber" arc (the one about a young warrior named Kazuya who uses his special power to fight the evil wizard Wiglaf). Except, well, I'm realizing that the "Saber" arc might actually be the best One Piece story arc after all, because it is a story about how cool, amazing, and special, and also powerful and dangerous, people with special powers can be. (And there's some stuff going on with gender, too.)

One Piece's not really a character-driven series. It's not, like, a "strong character arc" kind of series. So, the idea of a story about characters like Kazuya, and Kazuya being cool, is really novel!

I'm thinking the "Saber" arc has the best combination of "high-stakes" and "character-depth," of any One Piece story arc. Also, it's the last one, so it'll be a while before we get another "good" story arc.

(Incidentally, the "Saber" arc is probably what draws me most strongly to One Piece.)

Third, there's the "Golden Age" arc, which is basically just a bunch of filler. It starts with "Honeybee," a side story which is just one long, unimportant fight. Then there are several filler episodes: "The Final Voyage of the Honeybee," "Jurassic Jack," "The Return of Waluigi," "The End of the Waluigi Wars," and "The Secret of Miana Miana," about, like, weird side characters who are the most boring and uninteresting in the world.

So, if I had to pick an arc as the best One Piece story in any sense of "best," "best," and "only," it might be the "Honeybee" arc, because it's just so one-dimensional in a way the other arcs aren't. It's not a very interesting story, but it feels like it's doing things.

[architectnews]

Hum3D spring competition: without borders

2021 Hum3D spring competition: without borders, Architecture Competition, Design Contest

Hum3D Spring Competition – Without borders 2021

16 June 2021

Without borders Challenge Winners

Without borders 3D Challenge Winners Announcement!

We are very happy to announce the winners of the Without borders Challenge.Participants were to create a 3D work with a famous building from their country, that would be the best place to visit by a traveler. Environment in the work should be made in 3D.

Without borders Challenge First place

Aspire Tower (Doha, Qatar) by Ramees Muhammed

Made with using 3ds Max and Corona Renderer.

Also Ramees gets a Special prize from Corona Renderer team for the best work made with using Corona and a Special prize from Nevercenter team for the Best sky in a work.

Nevercenter team: “The sky in this render is full of a mood, and illuminated nighttime clouds like this are a sky worth taking time to pause, look at, and escape into”.

Corona renderer team: “This work nails everything, from mood and atmosphere, composition (we love how the tower “reaches beyond the moon”), to rendering quality”.

Comments from the Jury:

Yurii Lebediev: “Symmetrical composition is boring in most cases (for me personally). But Moon and all other elements that break this symmetry make this render special. I love the night lighting and the position of clouds in the background too”.

Martin Krasemann: “Lot of work on this one, creating a nice night scene is a complex task and the tower is really well lightened. Composition works also very well. The reflection on the water looks nice also”.

Alessandro Maniscalco: “Great architectural rendering with amazing modelled and detailed structure. I was shocked about environment crispy details. Great night atmosphere”.

Agnieszka Klich: “Realistic image, nice composition, interesting lighting setup! A great way of using the contrast between cold and warm lights to balance composition and focus interest on the main subject of the image – the tower”.

Kenny Zou: “Excellent rendering and mood-setting, especially with the moon so big, nice work!”.

Calvin Bacon: “The lighting, composition, and mood that this render portrays are fantastic. The incredibly high level of detail and realism make this my top pick”.

Jonathan Holmes: “Eye-catching design with beautiful lighting and a very melancholy atmosphere. Loving it!”.

Jacob Norris: “Fantastic mood and the minimal use of colors really helps to highlight the shapes of this beautiful architecture”.

Emanuele Serra: “This work attracted my attention, simple in its composition, but very interesting in the use of night lights, expressing the intense strength of the structure. I like how the colors and contrasts of the composition have been balanced”.

Paul Roberts: “The main building is very well modelled with an atmospheric mood and detailed context. The composition is strong with the form defined by using a predominantly dark building defined against the lighter sky. Modelling is to a good standard with a good amount of information communicated in the surrounding site without it distracting from the main focus”.

Nicolas Wirrmann: “I particularly liked the mood, the lighting work and subtle post processing. The result is an elegant photorealistic render. (The moon might be a bit too much though )”.

Quick interview with Ramees:

– How long have you been into 3D modeling? Please, tell us about yourself.

I have been in the industry for the past 10 years. For the most part, I’ve produced Forensic 3D Animations and Technical Graphics used in construction disputes and tenders.

In recent years I’ve also produced architectural visualizations as well as being involved in commercial projects.

I did a Bachelor of Science in Visual Communication and an Advanced Diploma in Multimedia.

– How much time did it take you to create your work? Did you face any difficulties?

The project took me around a week to complete as I worked on this during my time aside from my dayjob. Most time was taken to plan the scene composition and also spent a bit of time on tower modeling.

The key challenge was to make the scene a bit dramatic and to add as much detail on the building model and the nearby landmarks (Stadium, Arena). Other than these, the process was straightforward as well as interesting and I have enjoyed every bit of it.

– Do you have any advice for future participants in the competition?

As we all are always learning and striving for perfection in this arena, the best thing I could advise is to keep participating without a fear of losing.

Competing will always give us the chance to learn from others and it’s always a win-win situation, and one day it will be our turn to inspire others.

Without borders Challenge Second place

Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower (Tokyo) by Todor Vladev

Made with using 3ds Max, V-ray, Megascans and Photoshop.

Also Todor gets Special prize from Exlevel team for the “Best Environment”.

Exlevel team: “Very realistic image. Render looks like a photo!”

Comments from the Jury:

Lynette Clee: “The composition of this piece is wonderful, using the pathway to draw our eye into the frame and up to explore the details of the tower. The balance of architecture and nature seems very thoughtful, and the lighting and reflections help to bring this scene to life with great photorealism”.

Martin Krasemann: “The only reason this one didn’t end up in the 1st place is because the walkway in front of the camera feels really empty, I would have loved to see people and bicycles”.

Alessandro Maniscalco: “Amazing dusk environment render with amazing modern architecture. Very good composition”.

Fabio Allamandri: “Very nice shot. I like the composition of the image”.

Maciej Ptaszynski:” Very cool image! I love the lighting and the materials. One of my favourites. Congrats!”

Calvin Bacon: “The composition does a great job of drawing the eye to what should be in focus, which is clearly the powerful skyscraper. The final result is a render that is executed beautifully and to a very high technical level”.

Tom Grimes: “Have to admit it was the wet ground and blurred lighting that rounded out this image for me, giving a sense of early morning perhaps, or after some light rainfall. The sharp detail of the tower then contrasts nicely”.

Jonathan Holmes: “Nearly a photograph” render that really impressed me. Fantastic lighting and composition skills here!”.

Jacob Norris: “A great choice for a very interesting building and presented in such a beautiful way in this simple, yet exciting piece”.

Paul Roberts: “A strong architectural render with some excellent modelling of the main building and texturing of the surrounding environment. Good use of light to create some interesting reflections”.

Arseniy Korablev: “Professional and realistic artwork. I like the city feeling here”.

Stephanie Schenck: “Great photo-realistic render of the scene; we especially like the reflection of the sky textures and surrounding elements on the curved parts of the tower, and the feel of the sidewalk tile. You can feel the slight-slipperiness, the gentle imperfections within the uniformity, the transition to rougher textures for the raised bumps. Well done”.

Quick interview with Todor:

– How long have you been into 3D modeling? Please, tell us about yourself.

I have been doing 3d modelling and visualization since 2015. I have a big passion for 3d and visualization. In my spare time I usually work on personal projects which are more of an artistic approach. I always try and find better and more efficient ways of doing things and keep on top of the latest techniques in 3d visualization.

– How much time did it take you to create your work? Did you face any difficulties?

The image took about a month from start to finish. There were a few modelling challenges with the Mode Gacuen Cocoon Tower. The tower is made up of 3 main sections and the roof as another section. Each floor slab then had to be modeled separately to match the curvature of the tower with the interior walls. Everything had to precise and match to the millimeter while modelling. The tower turned out quite accurate at the end.

– Do you have any advice for future participants in the competition?

My only advice for future participants would be – Always work from a reference image, for modelling, materials and lighting.

Without borders Challenge Third place

Ottoman Legacy – Dolmabahce Palace by Kay John Yim

Made with using Redshift, Cinema4D, Rhino, Speedtree and ZBrush.

Comments from the Jury:

Yurii Lebediev: “I adore pictures with soul. And this is the case. Not just hyper-realistic render but great attention to the mood and vibe of the moment”.

Martin Krasemann: “Love the poetic atmosphere that is getting out of this image”.

Alessandro Maniscalco: “We love the happiness and colors of this picture. The beautiful atmosphere is everywhere and the compositing is very good. Great compositing and environment objects…”.

Agnieszka Klich: “The image of the palace drew my attention instantly. It tells a story about the place – thanks to this the author added extra value to the visualization. The building not only has a monumental look but the composition of the image also gives an impression of some mystery behind it (by giving us – the viewers – the possibility to be unseen observers) which we are willing to uncover. The soft color palette gives the place the ‘inviting to visit’ look. Great framing, nice color balance, and story included… all the aspects that make the image successful”.

Fabio Allamandri: “This image is a little bit over exposed for my tastes but I like the easter feeling very much. Lots of details! Very good job!”.

Maciej Ptaszynski: “Great mood and very nice composition. Beautiful render!”

Jacob Norris: “Fantastic work on the architecture and atmosphere in this piece. The flower petals floating in the air and the strong glow from the lighting help to make the artwork feel magical”.

Emanuele Serra: “This work is immediately caught my eye, I did not know Dolmabahce Palace, but as soon as you look at this work, you can feel the history and magic of that place. I like how the author reinterprets that place, using a very poetic light, increasing this feeling even more by using petals that rest on the water, while a sailing ship plows the sea towards the palace”.

Arseniy Korablev: “Festive and solemn artwork. And besides, beautiful and very detailed!”

Nicolas Wirrmann: “The amount of modelling work is impressive”.

Stephanie Schenck: “This render is more like a painting, effectively capturing the *feel* of visiting the space, with all of the dreams, immersion, swept-away-ness of the scene”.

Ralph Huchtemann: “This one has a very special composition with the boat at the bottom and the tree branches coming from above, which give the palace a frame. Another special thing about this one are all the falling leaves. Very unique composition”.

Quick interview with John:

– How long have you been into 3D modeling? Please, tell us about yourself.

As both a Chartered Architect and a CGI Artist, I have been into 3D modeling for about 8 years.

My journey into 3D began with CAD softwares while I was studying architecture in University – Rhino being my primary 3D tool for its unique capabilities in handling freeform curves and NURBS surfaces.

A couple of years into learning 3D, I struggled with the limitations of rendering packages available for CAD softwares. That was when I started to look into DCCs like Cinema4D and Houdini – which led me to a whole new world of possibilities in CG rendering. I spent all my waking hours outside work learning and practicing rendering as a hobby.

When I officially passed my exam to become a RIBA Chartered Architect in the UK, I made the decision to specialize in architectural visualization, with just the bare minimum knowledge of rendering that I learned and practiced in my free time.

I have since worked at the forefront of concept design at SPINK Partners – a British architectural design practice based in London – delivering CG renderings for marketing, design development discussions and eventually construction.

When COVID lock-down dawned upon London, I treated the extra time as an R&D opportunity to learn new CG software and publish CG art regularly on social media, with the goal of honing my CG skills and connecting with like-minded people online.

– How much time did it take you to create your work? Did you face any difficulties?

It took me about 2 months to complete my rendering for final submission, of which around 80% of the time was spent on lighting and rendering, and 20% on modeling and texturing.

I have faced a lot of difficulties – one of which being long rendering times.

“Ottoman Legacy” was one of the most detailed projects I have ever worked on – the main building alone consisted of over 1 trillion polys. Previously I would have created a low poly version of the scene, but I took the challenge as an opportunity to see how far I could push the boundaries of rendering in Redshift, for the sake of retaining as much detail as possible.

Needless to say my workstation crashed countless times during look-dev, and a 2-week project ended up taking me 2 months to complete – but it was worth every second.

– Do you have any advice for future participants in the competition?

I think that practicing consistently is the most important habit that I have formed over the past year, and I would advise every 3D artist to do the same; for me personally I practice and learn a little 3D consistently every day as opposed to scheduling a whole weekend of work, when I am most likely to be distracted.

In addition to consistent practice, I think that studying photography and cinematography rather than focusing on the technicality of 3D can definitely go a long way – 3D software are evolving so quickly these days anything could easily become obsolete tomorrow.

Hum3D spring competition 2021: without borders winners images / information received 160621

Previously on e-architect: 18 + 17 Mar 2021

Hum3D spring competition: without borders Contest

While most borders are closed, and restrictions do not allow travel we still can use 3D visualization to visit new places and share their beauty with others.

Create a 3D work with a famous building from your country to help other participants to see this beautiful place. Tell its history and why it’s the best place to visit.

The famous place can be exterior or interior (e.g., Sistine Chapel). Environment in the work should be made in 3D as well as a final image. Minimal use of third-party assets such as vegetation, street elements is allowed. Building models should be made by you.

The first-place winner will get prizes worth a total of $13,000: license and content from 30 sponsors, leaders of ArchViz world industry. Also, everyone has an opportunity to receive additional prizes. The winners will be chosen by voting from a professional jury team.

We invite all 3D artists and architects to participate. You can see all rules and prizes on the challenge page https://hum3d.com/without-borders

Dates of the event: March 17 – June 3.

Introduction

Today (March 17) Hum3D launches an online competition for 3D artists and architects. Organizers ask participants to create a 3D art with a famous building from artist’s country. This will help everyone to be involved in a short traveling around the World and visit various beautiful places without borders and restrictions. The name of the event is “Without borders”.

The main idea: help everyone to be involved in a virtual traveling around the World, discover new countries, and see iconic buildings by using 3D art.

Slogan: “While most borders are closed, and restrictions do not allow travel we still can use 3D visualization to visit new places and share their beauty with others.”

What exactly to do: artists need to create a 3D work with a famous building from their country, that would be the best place to visit by a traveler. Environment in the work should be made in 3D as well as a final image. Participants need also to tell history of building and why it is the best place to visit.

The famous place can be exterior or interior (e.g., Sistine Chapel). The winners will be chosen by voting from a professional jury team.

Why architects should participate: the first-place winner will get prizes worth a total of $13,000: license and content from 30 sponsors, leaders of 3D world industry. Also, everyone has an opportunity to receive additional prizes.

The challenge runs until June 3, 2021.

About Hum3D

Hum3D has held annual creative competitions since 2013. Among them the largest contest in the 3D car industry. Among sponsors are Chaos, Corona renderer, OTOY, Substance, Artstation, Gnomon, Keyshot and many others.

Hum3D is a creator and seller of the biggest collection of vehicle 3D models on the Internet. Their assets are available in the Chaos Cosmos library.

Page of the event – https://ift.tt/3gHe4fh

All previous challenges – https://ift.tt/2TDitYy

Hum3D home page – https://hum3d.com/

Page of Chaos Cosmos – https://ift.tt/35rDbNT

Hum3D spring competition: without borders images / information received 18 + 170321

Architecture Competitions

Current / Recent architectural contests on e-architect:

Bcome 2020 Competition

2020 Bcome International Ideas Competition

2A Continental Architectural Awards 2020 2A Continental Architectural Awards 2020

Re-imagining Stations Competition Network Rail Re-imagining Stations Competition

London Architectural Competitions

24H Architecture Competition

Flexible Housing Competition for Great Places Lakes & Dales Partnership

Architecture Competition

Comments / photos for Hum3D spring competition: without borders winners news page welcome

The post Hum3D spring competition: without borders appeared first on e-architect.

[gadamers-cat]

Rant about artistic gymnastics

I am just slowly picking up what I have left off, and I am not very happy.

Okay, I admit it -- I was a fan of the Chinese team, both MAG and WAG. But in recent years they had been so many dramas and problems and other crazy stuff, man, iunno anymore.

I don’t really pay attention to retired gymnasts (usually), but reading what happened to some of the best Chinese gymnasts (and gymnasts I used to like) really make me want to claw my eyes out. In Chinese, 贵圈真乱.

From how terrible and asshole-ish Chen Yibing actually is (the rumours of how he cheated in multiple relationships), but especially how he dealt with his relationship with He Wenna, to the rumours of Jiang Yuyuan being a b!tch who ruins other’s marriage, and Zhou Shixiong being a player (actually being the “prize” of the fight between Yang Yilin and Jiang Yuyuan) and rumoured to be a predator (wanting to date 16yo female gymnasts)... dear lord.

Well, I guess it is good, that Chen Yibing finally settled down and looks like he wouldn’t cheat anymore? But the way he treated the issue of He Wenna (whom I inclined to believe is the victim) is plain terrible -- selfish, inconsiderate, narcissistic -- he just keeps playing the victim and blamed everything on her, forcing her to make an open clarification on social media, but for those cheating “evidence” where He and netizens caught him for, he had never come up with a sound explanation. He just blamed everything on He, on how difficult it is to be with her or maintain the relationship, how “forceful” is her personality, etc, when what He did was to support him in competitions even when she knew he was cheating, and she had never said anything bad about him, until he started spewing shit about her. That’s it, I really can no longer be his fan.

Zhou Shixiong is another real character. There are no details on whom he dated first (Yang Yilin or Jiang Yuyuan), but the friendship between the two girls are ruined, probably because of him. Yang Yilin also said something on her social media that was very close to accusing him as a player and she was only one of his girls. And the rumour in the Chinese gymnastics circle, that Zhou was going for younger, 16yo gymnasts... my god.  Shouldn’t the national team take care of this? Oh right. Zhou Shixiong is no longer with them, I think.

Jiang Yuyuan is a curious case. Despite all the insane stuff flying around those Chinese websites and social media, I couldn’t tell if they are true. It feels like people are trying very hard to ruin her instead; there are some illogical details, and one of the photos looked photoshopped, but who am I to judge. You can never know what is reliable on Chinese websites. The wife of Jiang’s rumoured lover said she is taking this to court, and to this day we have no updates. To be honest, I wouldn’t be surprised if the accusation turns out to be true, but it will be a good relief if these are false.

The national team situation is also a mess. There might be political reasons for coaching reshuffling and gymnasts reassignment -- or simply being forced into retirement. Girls report on each other and some of the girls are nastier than the others (heard Yao Jinnan is one of those). Coaches pushing for the greatest difficulty and high scores disregarding gymnasts’ health. And I don’t know with their training and conditioning, everyone always seems to be injured or out of form when they go to important competitions (Worlds and Olympics). Even if they are not injured or out of form, they never have the consistency and mental toughness to carry through. The floor situation is unsurprising; their acrobatics are extremely predictable since 2009, with all the twistings and double pikes / tucks. Execution is never guaranteed. When a rare bird managed to pull a full-twisting double something, or god forbid, DLO, she will definitely get injured before Worlds or Olympics. Remember in the 90s when the Chinese were pulling multiple DLOs and full-ins? The current UB situation is just bleak, with almost everyone having the same type of routine since 2010. It is getting really boring to watch even when their execution is excellent, because who wouldn’t get tired after seeing the copy-paste bars set 8 times in a row? China used to be the innovators on bars. Now it is the Europeans who could design unique routines -- just need to be cleaner and have better rhythm. Thank goodness Chinese beam is still watchable, and they are still very good with beam choreography. Vault? I gave up long time ago.

They are also really obsessed with the AA medals for a very long time -- but after 2008, I guess that can’t be helped due to the team final format. They, though, seem to have some mental block with this, despite it is not impossible -- just look at Murakami Mai or Morgan Hurd or Kara Eaker. Maybe they should do something with their system. Maybe Chow Liang will change something (and hopefully he will help with the blatant scoring bias).

Okay, Imma go fangirling Sanne Wevers and Nina Derwael. Maybe some Seitz too. Or maybe I should just stick to watching the oldies, or MAG like Zou Jingyuan. Thank goodness Deng Linlin and He Kexin are not problematic.