I feel like my involvement with Johnny Test as a franchise is basically over at this point. For those who’ve been with me for a long time now, this might come as a surprise that I’m finally letting go of what people have been referring to as Dexter’s Lab, but with whipcracks after all of these years, but there’s a lot that I wanna get off my chest about the state of the franchise, along with how things will go with my side of the situation going forth.
At this point, I’ve come to accept that Johnny Test, as a franchise, is likely going to stay dead in the water for real this time, especially with how the second season of the Netflix revival not only silently came out with barely any fanfare, but also became the final season, likely for good. I know a big chunk of the JT-related stuff was back when I was obsessed with the Vampire Twins to request art featuring them from multiple artists (Which is something that I deeply cringe at now, and fully regret for how stupid and childish that was. I apologize to everyone for that era), but in the last few years, I’ve been slowly making them more and more into their own thing, distant from what they were originally.
The Ultraverse V-Twins have changed a lot, with things like aging them up and changing their designs to reflect that, giving them more fleshed-out abilities and personalities, and overall just making them my own characters at this point. Don’t get me wrong, they still fit with my Primal Eternity idea, as that’s the one aspect of my JT stuff that I wanna keep around to somewhat of a degree. As for that project’s future? I could think of more ideas for characters and doodle them out, like I have before, or maybe I could take a small break from that project for a while. Im not sure. Regarding the bigger picture, I feel like/hoping to get some more work for it done after this break, before the franchise turns 20 next fall. We’ll just have to wait and see on what happens next. As for now, the V-Twins, while having a small connection to their origin franchise, will be their own thing going forward. Since they’re basically my own character after the series that they were based on is likely going to stay dead for good (which blows, but that’s just how it is), it’s the least I can do for them. In the meantime, Maryanna, now that she’s my mascot, is probably gonna be the hero of her own adventure. Time will tell on how her story will play out.
Regarding other things related to JT, I wanna give a quick shoutout to @rominadrawsart16 and @arti-squid. While they’re more active in the small JT fandom than I am, I love how they use character from the show to further their own skills as artists, similar to what I’ve been doing with Maryanna recently. If you haven’t already, please give them a visit.
And to give my thoughts on JT being dead and buried, I have a few conflicting thoughts. One part of me wishes WildBrain did more with the IP when making the Netflix revival, as alright as that was. Another feels like they should’ve go for a complete reboot to the franchise to start with a clean slate, and another feels like the series didn’t needed a revival in the first place, as shocking as they might sound. Unless the two seasons commissioned by Netflix were all that were planned, Johnny Test wasn’t really a show that needed to be brought back in the first place. After everything that had happened to it (The CW merger that caused the show to suffer budget cuts after Season 1, the infamy it got during the 2010’s due to how it became generic slop, etc), it feels like the show was basically doomed from the start. As much as I wanna go more into that with greater detail, that’ll be saved for another day.
So basically the short of what I’m trying to say is this; Johnny Test, as a franchise, is probably over for real this time, my involvement with it, outside of JTPE and supporting my friends, is (mostly) done, and the Ultraverse V-Twins (especially Maryanna) are here to stay.
It was a wonderful idea, really! If one of them couldn’t break the barrier, then surely their combined might would do it! And it had! It had worked, even if their remaining humanity was sacrificed. They’d done it, they’d made it where everyone could escape, could leave!
… Except for them. Someone had to close the portal. And it all would have been fine, if not for the remnants of the GIW. One last hail mary from the imbeciles, they all supposed. Trapping them here within the Zone.
Separated from their families, from the pair of children they had agreed to raise. At least their siblings would watch over Ellie and Jordan. Kyle could hide them, make sure they were safe. Jazz… Jazz was gone, the final straw in this plan.
They screamed, they raged, they destroyed in grief for those that didn’t make it, and for those who had but had nowhere to go. No portals opened, even as they tore at the green around them. They fought, any that thought they were weak, that they were merely a beast, an abomination trapped in chains of science and gold.
There was nothing that could be done, Frostbite had said, sympathy in his voice. No way to turn back the clock with how entwined they had become, Clockwork had explained. The only thing they could do was wait, Pandora had tried to sooth, despite it doing nothing.
They wrenched open the coffin in a hazy fury, tearing apart armies like it was blades of grass. Their maws devoured dead who had lost themselves and become mere husks and thralls, lashing tails ripping through armour like it was nothing.
And then as titans, they clashed with the one who had once stolen the city here. There was no desperation from them this time, no armor besides scales unbreakable as flames and storms and ice and thorns ripped islands apart. There was no desperation besides that of their opponent’s.
There was a pleasure in their victory, before it was wrenched away. What use was a crown when their family wasn’t there? When their daughter, their son, their children were not there by their side?
Paulina laughed, hysterical as ectoplasm dripped from her maw as Kwan howled. Their body was covered in it, their rampage that had no use, no reason leaving a trail of destruction behind them. Is this what they wanted?
No.
Danny raised his head from the dissolving corpses to look towards the obliterated roof of the Keep, once so terrifying now turning to dust like the crown. The crown reforming above their heads, heavy and almost choking.
They would carry this weight together. Would restructure things, would do what they had wanted to do for Amity before the Barriers. They’d work together to rebuild the Realms, make it safer, make it safe for those newly dead.
No matter how long it took, no matter how hard it would be to fix the destruction they had wrought in this meaningless battle. (“Danny, you’re the spokesperson,” Sam spoke up, thorn-like scales ruffling. “You’re most familiar with the realms thanks to the Infinimap.” Fair. “We’ll need allies, we’re only nine people.”)
(“Let me talk to the egyptian afterlife,” Tucker sounded exhausted, hood folding back. “I’m most familiar with them… Star, Paulina, you’re both Princess Dora’s favorites-”)
(“We can do it. Just give us time.” “Maybe a to-do list.” “Clockwork. We need to talk to Clockwork, he’d be most familiar with this.” “Rest first, nerds. We’re all… exhausted.”)
(Valerie laughed tiredly, blades melting to heal a broken horn. “Time isn’t linear here Dash. You know that. I know that. For once we’re the ones with time to spare.” It would take years to get things up to snuff. Make things Safe for when they could bring their families here.)
Their eyes opened as the now flimsy chains shattered, a smile stretching across the shared face of their humanoid form. Soon. They could return to the mortal realm soon. Just a little more, and they could see their little ones.
They'd waited a thousand years, they could wait a few days more.
(also have sketch)
@fairy-lights-and-blobs @radiance1 You both seem to enjoy my Tiamat prompts/Aus lol
the most batshit insane traumatizing thing happened at work today & I won't know if people are dead bc of my inability to talk a man down from a mass murder until the news reports start coming out lollll
edit: it's all good there was nothing about a shootout on the news 🙏
If you can’t read what Akechi’s secondary inner-dialogue says cause I obscured it too much behind his regular dialogue, here’s a transcription in panel order:
Hello, you fucking-
Ah- Hello, Akira!
Fuck off, why should I tell you-
Just a soda- there’s a new flavor.
I don’t want your shitty gift.
Oh- haha! You’re so sweet.
I hope I choke.
They’re lovely, thank you.
Like hell.
Likewise.
There’s no way it’s just a coincidence.
Still though, it’s a funny coincidence.
The amount of characters going on about how great of a man Bi Han & Kuai Liang's father was is making me a tad bit suspicious that maybe Papa Sub Zero wasn't that great of a person (at least to Bi Han).
Is it just me who feels this? Cause that's the vibe I'm getting
What if instead of dying Lucy’s god became an archfey and fucked off, forsaking all of their followers. I could see that as justifiable for a minor god—maybe you don’t want your personality and existence to be dependent on a group of people small enough for a really big hurricane to wipe them out. Maybe you want to try your hand at self actualization, which you can’t really do as a god. Whatever.
But that would still mean Lucy’s grades would be screwed for the year, and the whole group would be switched to pass/fail.
Whatever god they’re trying to bring back seems like they want to stay a god, but would also only have a single living cleric so their nature would be heavily influenced by who that cleric is, and could still be controlled. Bringing back an established dead god with living followers probably reduces the risk of the god immediately dying or completely sucking ass/not being powerful like what happened with YES!(?), and we know the Ratgrinders LOVE minimizing risk. And choosing a dead god that represents something Lucy is actually passionate about preaching and proselytizing would make her work as a cleric much easier for her emotionally than, say, switching to Helio and just going through the motions, and bringing back a god would probably look good on college resumes.
Idk, that’s just an alternative theory to Lucy’s god dying based on what’s been established this season.
Hello!!!! I’m really glad to be here, and I hope you are doing great. I was scrolling through your blog, and I grew very interested in your Monster/Feral Creature designs you have made for the engines, it’s so cool and I really love what you do 🤩👏🏼.
So, I don’t know if you are taking in requests right now, but I wanted to ask something, hoping it’s not weird, and much more important, don’t upset or make the engines feel uncomfortable: can I have the company of Edward and Henry?? Right now I’ve been dealing with a lot mentally and emotionally, it’s been a rough time and sometimes I feel really down, but they both have been like my emotional support, my comfort characters ❤️🩹.
Well, I wish this doesn’t end being too long, and I won’t force you on doing anything if you don’t want to, just keep shining like a star and doing the wonderful things you do, HUGS FROM MEXICO 🇲🇽🫶🏼.
Thanks a bunch for the kind words! Always a pleasure to doodle these beautiful beasts together.💙💚
the time travel episodes in doraemon where they return to the past to change something only to realise it was their attempt at changing it at all that made the present what it is has fascinating implications vis a vis doraemon being there at all. on one hand yes they sent doraemon back to ensure nobita's life isn't shit. but in the first episode the grandson guy ( forgor his name ) mentions this was necessary to begin with because there is a future where his life is shit. with photographs of said life as evidence. so what's going on here