#love how I just have a new artstyle now

[galaxydestroypants]

Dr. Raito my beloved <3

[kwc-verlucrey]

Veronica :)

[fail-fren]

Btw I've finally watched and finished trigun stampede and.... yea I didn't like it all that much

[viviiyon]

hi! I really like your ghost!clover au :0 love your artstyle in general it's so nice to look at

question about it: would clover's soul be able to be used like a dead human's soul? (so can it be absorbed by a monster or used against the barrier?) or does it still function as if clover was still alive?

hope you have a great rest of your day :)

aaa thank you for your interest >:DD

Technically the soul is still functioning as it would be, albeit the main thing's just that it's now suspended in their new form. I'd like to think that despite the surrounding body being based off monster magic, they arent just melting like an amalgamate because the determination isn't leaking out of the soul itself if that makes sense-

If going based off how it'd work in undertale, fighting them would probably be the equivalent to fighting a monster although once done, a regular human soul would just be left behind and that's that-

but since this were to take place after UT's true pacifist, then monsters would probably have no motive to take their soul ifeel- 😔😔

[bogkeep]

Would you recommend the SSSS comic? I know little of it beside the very beautiful artstyle and premise

to answer the question of if i would recommend SSSS as a comic: yes, yes i would.

a description for those who don't know: Stand Still Stay Silent is a post-apocalyptic horror + adventure webcomic set in the nordics (norway, sweden, denmark, finland, iceland) that have been isolated from the rest of the world and gone back to their old gods. the the world outside of safe zones is full of trolls and beasts - humans and mammals that got infected by a horrible virus and turned into monsters. the story follows a ragtag crew that ventures into the old world (derelict denmark) on an expedition to collect books.

the comic updated every workday until it concluded in 2022, and consists of two Adventures. the creator had plans for many adventures with these characters in this world, but ended it after two when she wanted to take a new direction with her life.

what i love about it:

- the art is GORGEOUS. it's been a huge source of inspiration for me. open any page and it's a masterpiece, and you will ask yourself "how the FUCK did she update this FIVE DAYS A WEEK"

- the characters are wonderful and endearing. i just, i love them so much. i am so thankful lalli hotakainen exists he is one of my #1 blorbos forever

- the world is so cool. the blend of chunky sci-fi and norse mythology fantasy magic slaps. it goes so hard. i fell so hard for this comic when i got to the big ferry ship with a viking style dragon head prow added to it. it's everything

- it really really gets nordic cultures. it's difficult to explain all the dynamics and nuances but it just gets it. it brings me as a scandinavian a lot of joy to read a story that speaks to my heart this way. the attitudes, the language barriers, the cultural differences... it was so refreshing to me in a media landscape dominated by american stories. when the pandemic hit, i decided to reread the comic because i found such an odd comfort in seeing how it depicted the scandinavian countries reacting to, well, a pandemic.

- there's kittycats

what i don't like about it:

- the most glaring and obvious flaw is that everyone in the comic is white. there's not a single character of color anywhere, not even i background shots or the prologue. there's no mention of the saami people (the indigenous people of northern europe), either. i believe this was done in ignorance more than malicious intent, but the implications are Extremely Bad and it's been bothering me (AND MANY OTHERS) since day 1. that is the number one caveat i will give to anyone wanting to check this comic out. i've been in the discourse trenches and i am not going to excuse this. it's just bad!

- you can tell in the middle of adventure 2 that the creator has kind of lost interest in the work, around the time when she found jesus i guess. like, very few people can keep up work on the same creative project for years and years and years and i think it's fine that she wanted to drop it, but it's a bit sad to see the comic dragged to its end like a limp corpse, and feeling like the creator no longer really cares about the characters.

- minna sundberg has said and done some questionable things, presumably gotten somewhat radicalised over time, and has also converted to hardcore christianity which is what her new works are about. there's nothing about this in SSSS - there is a moment of christianity represented in the story in a sort of mythological sense, just like the other religions, but this was written before minna's conversion. her new works... are a Choice. i have much to say about them, and i have, and im not gonna rehash it now.

SO YEAH hopefully this will help you take an Informed Choice! i got into this comic in 2015 and was deep in the fandom and it's for better or for worse part of my soul foundation now.

i also recommend A Redtail's Dream, minna's "practice comic" before SSSS, based on finnish mythology and the kalevala.

[purgemarchlockdown]

How Magic Depicts Pain

(also known as: I told myself to hold back on Amaneposting but the new process shots have made me think)

So in-universe, Magic is a watered down and sanitized version of what actually happened in the cult that switches between from Milgram's usual anime artstyle to a papercut/felt-like storybook one. The general tone of Magic is very high energy and happy. It's a very colorful MV all around.

This doesn't stop the darkness from seeping in of course, most notably in the lyrics and at the end of the MV which involves a stylized depiction of abuse.

I'll get to that part, but before the ending of the song we get two showcases of pain.

The game show scene:

And the stage light scene:

We will get to the stage light in a bit but let's talk about the game show first! The metaphor isn't subtle. Amane messed up, she said the wrong thing, made a mistake, and so, she gets punished.

It's not treated as anything too serious though, Amane makes silly cartoonish facial expressions, her movements are over exaggerated and silly. It's comedic, it's nothing to be taken too seriously.

Even afterwards Amane gets helped up by (presumably) Yuri, you don't Have to worry. It's all fine and good and not that serious, and even if it, was the two of them help her up! It's a perfectly fine situation with nothing dark lurking under the surface that might suggest otherwise.

Now since the Milgram MVs are taken from the person's mind, most likely, Amane is downplaying the severity of the abuse done to her. Not only that but she's portraying her own pain as an exaggerated and comedic reaction to it. It's not that serious, she's just overreacting.

Amane does this a lot throughout the song and in outside material, she tends to downplay to abuse or explain why it's actually a good thing.

But it’s not scary at all, because it’s love I can really think it’s great. See isn’t it a great thing?

Amane Momose Does Not Consider Her Own Pain as Something Serious, or at least when it's pain caused by her abusers.

Moving out of the gameshow and into the stage light, the cat's pain is treated in a similar way at first. The scene even directly parallels the game show scene:

Like with the game show, the reaction to the pain is depicted as something childish, a tantrum over a small scrape, nothing that really needs to be fret over.

Until we switch over to Amane's View:

The camera is shaky, the cat isn't crying but hyperventilating. It's still a scrape but instead of the exaggerated criss cross, its a row of scratches on the cat's face, there's even a few on the cat's cheek. It's depicted seriously, there's actually weight to the injury here.

Now, what does Big Sister Amane do? Big Sister Amane who Yuri (after Gachata hurt her) helped just a few moments ago? Big Sister Amane who wants everyone to be happy? She helps.

She grabs a first aid kit, I don't know How she got it but she does and she does the best she can to to fix the cat up. She's hiding away as she does this, she knows she isn't supposed to but she does it anyway because it helps someone!

And it works! You can see how happy the cat looks in the image. It's not just a vague "we will support you" gesture like the hand Yuri gives Amane. It's an actual tactile action that Helps Someone.

And they can't have that. They can't have Amane help someone out like this.That's against their rules, that's against their beliefs, that's a threat to their control.

So they punish her.

Let's talk about the ending scenes, and the possible torture that Amane went through.

I'm not going to show all of them as that's a whole other post on it's on really, but it's notable that, the most egregious acts of violence and abuse in the entire MV, are sanitized. There turned into storybook images, Amane has exaggerated and cartoony expressions, the mentor figures are far away from Amane and are standing to the side as she's getting hurt.

We know from the process shots that a taser was involved and yet in Magic it's depicted as this:

It's...still bad, it's still depicting electrocution, however instead of a taser being used against her it's an abstract electrical burst. Even now there's a distance between what actually happened and what it shows.

And yet the pain still comes through, even with the storybook visuals, it's not the same as the Game Show where it was turned into a finger flick. It's still depicted as something Painful, just distanced from reality.

It transitions back to the regular art style after Amane prays, or more accurately, begs, that she can be better. She's given a wand (pipe) and wings and is told that yeah she Can be a better girl!

Not that she's already a good girl, only that she can be, eventually.

And, after all, aren't good girls supposed to have hope no matter what?

(End Notes: I hope people like the way I formatted the screenshots lol, I had a lot of fun with it so I hope it flows well!)

[mellybabbles]

If KOSA pases and tumblr explodes, I'll leave this here.

Thank you all. Seriously, I've managed to pick myself up, and finally become the person I want to be, because of you all. Mutuals, followers, or maybe just some random that popped by and thought "cool, have a like/reblog" You have all helped me recover and actually take that step into becoming a better person. I'm happy, and I can say that with full confidence. You've all given me an unfathomable amount of joy, and let me meet the love of my life, and people I thought I'd never be able to interact with. For my mutuals:

Thank you @italic-doing-random-shit for inadverately helping me take that first step into trying out tumblr properly again, instead of running away. Thank for you being an amazing friend and always being there for me. Thank you @largefound for giving me the pushes I need to get confident on my art, and branch out and try new things. Thank you for being one of the best friends I could've asked for. Thank you @tundra116 for being a mood booster every time I see soem crack fuckin post or ask in my inbox. You motivated me to keep going and give others the same joy you give me, even if for a split moment. Thank you @still-got-no-idea for fulling up my notifs and giving me a big smile every time you begin to like my posts. We don't talk much, but I'm glad we're mutuals. Thank you @panda-of-the-trash for motivating me to actually be creative with my ideas, and inspiring me to properly write. Thank you @godofautism for accidentally teaching me to be more aware of what those around me are feeling, and allowing me to take a step into treatment for my alexithymia. Thank you @systematic-err0r for being the mutual I always really wanted to get to know. You're always giving comments, reblogs and likes to the point the support can be mindbogling at times. Thank you @c00kietin for motivating me to give new people a chance, and to finally work on the relationships I have now. Thank you @phymarsh for giving me that first boost of excitement of an inspiration of mine following me and interacting with me. For giving me a smile every time I see you on my dash. Thank you @switchthedragon for always remaining strong, inspiring me to do so despite all the hate and threats I was receiving. Thank you @liliallowed for inspiring me to try new artstyles and finally figuring out the one I love the most. Thank you @inka-boi for being one of the biggest beams of light, helping me to learn how to sympathize again and love myself and others. For helping me to go back to my roots and mend what was broken. Thank you @juno-punk for inspiring me to make my own OC's and AU's, instead of locking myself up with shame in fear of what others would think if I made them. Thank you @mikerooksi @lust-sans-vios-rpaccount @wonkus-bonkus @doodlenovaa @killersansofficial @dustsansm1 for showing me back to the joys of interacting with new people and finding joy in it, instead of forcing myself into uncomfortable situations. Thank you @safwunnz for making me feel noticed and big in the grand scheme of everything. Allowing me, even if this might all be gone, to feel like I've made enough of an impact to reach out to artists that inspired of me in the first place. Thank you @elizakai for the first step in art. You're the reason I draw and enjoy it, allowing me to actually have something to do when I'm in a pit or rut of depression. Thank you @/swiftmitsu @/artpepkin for making my month by a simple button click. For all the smiles and laughs your art and animations have given me. The joy I once never got to experience. (Too nervous to ping) Thank you @ant1quarian for allowing me to read stories that actually make me feel like I'm there, and escape how horrible reality can be sometimes.

Thank you all for giving me the love and life I'd lost from being beat down. For those who weren't pinged, I was too nervous. Thank you all so much. For all my friends outside of tumblr that are mutuals on here, you all know how much I care for you and I'm happy to have you all in my life. Thank you for everything.

[ikroah]

I've given everything I have, didn't know I'd run up such a tab, Oh, Lord, ain't the reapin' ever done? —“Ain’t the Reapin’ Ever Done,” Eddie Noack (1972)

It Keeps Right On a-Hurtin’ #25 - Ring-a-Ding-Ding IV

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Read IKROAH on Archive of Our Own

Notes / Original Pencils / Transcript:

Notes:

At long last! As I've mentioned a few times, this issue got...delayed because I spent 2023 getting divorced, falling in love again, going outside, touching grass, laughing, playing, et cetera. But even if you toss all that aside this issue would still have been a doozy because I've been wanting to try an issue in this artstyle, and with a much large page size, for...well, for over a year now, ha. The thumbnails for this issue are nearly a whole year old!

Usually I have a lot of fun commentary about how a script changes over the course of working on an issue, or how the production panned out, but the making of this issue has been stretched over such a long time that I can't even begin to really describe it. Lemme just show you the original pencils so we can get out of here and move onto the next one, which will hopefully take far less than the time it takes to carry a pregnancy to term.

Oh, actually, there is one thing! If you spotted this happy couple on the first page, then check out @memepipboy's comics too.

Also, here's Vulpes in the dead Yamcha pose.

Which is also about how I feel after going on a bender of productivity last week to get the whole issue colored before it slipped away again.

Original Pencils:

Transcript:

EXT. NEW VEGAS STRIP. A small plaza outside the casinos is flushed with lights and people, all coming and going, even at such a late hour. The crowd is monitored by the Strip's POLICE SECURITRONS. Two people are exiting a casino: ROSE OF SHARON CASSIDY, and

MESSENGER: AGNES SANDS!

AGNES: Oh God, I'm--

AGNES: --wait, are you NCR?

The MESSENGER that has called out AGNES' name is a surly and middle-aged man in uniform.

MESSENGER: Correct, ma'am. I'm a messenger.

AGNES: Courier, huh.

CASS: Hell do you want, boot boy? We're busy.

MESSENGER: Your presence is requested at the embassy on the south side of the Strip.

The exchange has caught the eye of a BYSTANDER READING A NEWSPAPER.

AGNES: You said requested, as opposed to, um, required?

MESSENGER: Yes. I'll be blunt with you, Sands: the incident near Gecko and your subsequent desertion have made you a fugitive of military police since 2269. I'm sure you know that--but this is not an arrest.

MESSENGER: This isn't even about your personal case, necessarily. It's only from chance reports at the Mojave Outpost and Boulder City that intelligence was made aware of your presence here at all. The NCR merely wants to let you know that you--as well as your companion--are persons of interest to us in two of our other open investigations: the Legion raid on Nipton, and recent terrorist attacks on merchants in the area such as Crimson Caravan.*

CAPTION: *Various events of IKROAH #7-16. -Lou.

MESSENGER: There's also some other matters, which are classified.

CASS, at AGNES' side, listens intently. Then she glares at AGNES, who is grimacing but avoiding her eye contact.

MESSENGER: Now, our intelligence officers only want to speak to you, not arrest you. So there should be no cause for alarm or any worry on your part. It's your choice to come to us willingly--and on your own time. But--

AGNES sweats nervously.

MESSENGER: My orders are to make this next part very clear. This is merely the current state of our interest in you and your companion. If your presence does become required, as opposed to merely requested, by the NCR--and it very well may--

MESSENGER: --consider this a nice, friendly notice. I'm here because the NCR knows where you are. And the NCR wanted you to know that, because it wants you to keep it in mind as you mull over whether--and when--you might be feeling co-operative. That is all. We'll be in touch, Miss Sands.

The MESSENGER departs. The BYSTANDER READING A NEWSPAPER observed the entire exchange. The moment that the MESSENGER is gone, he speaks:

BYSTANDER: Ahh...I must admit, it does make me glad when people discuss my work.

AGNES: W-what?

CASS: Pardon?

BYSTANDER: And it was fortunate, as it turns out, that you were spared that night in Nipton.

AGNES: Oh...oh no--

CASS: --YOU?

BYSTANDER: Very fortunate indeed--

The BYSTANDER grins.

BYSTANDER: --that you were spared from the burning tires, spared from the teeth of the dogs, spared even from the cross and stake--all of this, there, was the finest work yet of VULPES INCULTA--against the profligates of the west, and for the glory and the might of CAESAR'S LEGION.*

CAPTION:*IKROAH #9. -Lou.

AGNES and CASS are transfixed where they stand, taken aback by the reveal. CASS scowls while AGNES squirms with terror. She remembers:

The raging fires and the horror show of NIPTON. Crucified bodies and dogs to eat the corpses.

VULPES: During our talk in Nipton, I admittedly became quite curious about you, Agnes. You had intrigued me for some reason, and I wanted to know what it was. Only later did I finally place it.

Her hands up in front of her face, a futile barrier between herself and three men. Benny. His gun, pointed at her, shining in the light from the moon and the lantern.

VULPES: A tabloid story from the news on the radio. A courier shot in the head near Goodsprings Cemetery.

The SECURITRON with the cowboy face, VICTOR, carried her out of her grave. Or so she was told.

VULPES: --who miraculously returned from the grave. It was you.

There were three men. Two besides Benny. She found them later, one was dead and the other had two more with him.

VULPES: It was also you, as I would later discover...who slaughtered that pack of Great Khans in Boulder City. Clearly no ordinary courier.

VULPES: Why, even now, you assassinate the leader of the Chairmen in his own casino--in his own bedroom, no less. Very impressive.

AGNES: But how did you--

VULPES: Know? From one saboteur to another, I do have to commend you, Agnes. You're quite covert...for someone who had no reason to realize that she was already being watched, that is. Just as we have been watching Benny, the dearly departed.

VULPES grins wider.

VULPES: My network of frumentarii have detected something of a conspiracy in Vegas...something about a certain piece of platinum, I hear. Which reminds me--the mail has gotten so unreliable lately, don't you think?

AGNES is visibly panicked as VULPES continues.

VULPES: The NCR'S interest in you is not misplaced, Agnes Sands, given your recent exploits.

CASS is suddenly going down the casino steps--

VULPES: But I doubt that they are as quite aware of the bigger picture as--

--and raising her fist, and--

VULPES: the--

--punching VULPES in the face.

SFX: WHAM!

VULPES is flung to the ground, his nose bloodied. One of his teeth have been knocked clean from his mouth. He stares upward, in disbelief, up at the furious woman who's laid him out.

VULPES: Ah...yes. Rose of Sharon Cassidy. I've--

PTOOEY. A wad of spit splats against VULPES' cheek. CASS points a finger at him as he shuffles back onto his feet.

CASS: Get my name out of your mouth right now. I'm not afraid of you. You just piss me off. And unless you get lost I'll deck you so hard that you forget my name. Hopefully how to form complete sentences, too.

CASS: I think we've heard enough, you goddamn dogfucker, and whatever you're selling, we don't fucking want any.

VULPES: Ah...so no less impudent than last time, despite...well.

VULPES wipes the blood from his face with the back of his hand, muttering from behind his palm in LATIN.

VULPES: Sī cognōscere nōn vīs canis senex tum nēquam praeter futuendum eris.

VULPES reaches his bloody hand toward his dislodged hat.

VULPES: Agnes--the Legion has a particular use for you, a use which comes with certain courtesies that are not extended to your companion.

VULPES: ...she would do well to keep this in mind.

VULPES returns his hat to his head. AGNES has rejoined CASS at the base of the steps.

AGNES: "Use?" What use? I don't have anything--I mean, I'm not--whatever you--whatever the Legion wants with me, I don't know anything. About this, or about Benny. If you want the chip, I--

VULPES: Agnes, Agnes--you're a terrible liar. Or else just terribly naive.

VULPES turns to leave.

VULPES: If the NCR is interested in you, and they are, then seizing you for ourselves is certainly useful enough on its own. But truthfully, this isn't about the NCR. The Legion is interested in you--I am interested in you--because Mr. House is interested in you. You and that chip.

AGNES: Mr. House!? But I...no, no, I just thought the chip--

VULPES: Vale, courier. And vale, Rose of Sharon Cassidy. And be safe in your travels, if you can help it--you never know when somebody might be watching.

As VULPES departs, a SECURITRON approaches behind AGNES and CASS, casting a shadow over the both of them.

[chubs-deuce]

Hi!! Love your artwork and your Charlastor AU with Dawn!!

I was wondering if you think Alastor would make any dawn-themed dad jokes and puns in your AU, and if he does, what would Dawn and Charlie think of them? I can’t really think of any off the top of my head right now, but I know ‘a brand new dawn’ is a phrase he could maybe use!

Again, love your art!!! If you don’t mind answering questions about it, do you have any advice for artists who want to improve their drawing or any practices that have helped you develop your skills? And are there any particular artists that really inspire you?

You’re one of my favorite artists and I don’t know how to explain it but your drawings have so much life in them!! 🌟

sdlksdflkj thank you so much omg!!!

I'm so glad you're enjoying them ;W;

And he would be insufferable with them lmfaoo, especially because I'm sure Charlie would hop in on a few of them and add to the pile as well xD

One more I can think of rn is "Oh, I was wondering where the sun went!" whenever Dawn enters a room, because the implied punchline is "but then it Dawned on me" or something? XD idk I'm not good with puns sadly

Now regarding the art advice!! This one got HELLA long so I'll hide it under a cut for everyone's comfort lmao

I know it sounds shallow and like worthless advice, but a huge huuuuge part of getting better at art is to just... make art! Practice makes perfect - it develops your motor skills, gives you somewhat of a muscle memory for certain basic shapes that are a necessity to have a good feel of for good foundation sketching.

Practice also develops your eye for compositing and for how color theory actually applies in practice, it basically helps you develop a more consistent grasp on art as a whole :D

There are some things I've learned over time that definitely helped speed things up though xD

here's some rough sketches I did just to demonstrate what my rougher drawings can look like - also a little diagram (on the right side of the image) of things I keep in mind for the average proportions of a human body!

I tend to sketch very loosely and try to capture the overall vibe and silhouette/rough shapes first before I even think about adding details - there's a certain flow, squish and stretch to everything that's just much easier for me to get a good feel for when I use quick, loose brush strokes and as few lines as possible to convey a concept.

Repeatedly sketching humanoid characters of various shapes, builds and sizes for years genuinely helped enormously in getting not only faster but also more consistent with it!

I'm fairly well practiced with hands and expressions especially at this point since I like to focus on those in my art often, so those come fairly easily to me as well now!

Something I learned along the way about keeping a certain liveliness to my artworks is that sometimes you have to forego anatomical correctness a bit if you want to fully express specific emotions - if you try too hard to keep everything perfectly proportional and realistic, it can make the outcome look stiffer than you might've aimed for - this is something I actually struggle with in my cleaner artworks :'D The ones I do proper lineart for, since a lot of the flow of the original sketch gets lost in the process haha

As for artists/artstyles that inspire me...

There's @/southpauz for example!

Her artstyle is unbelievably expressive and her eye for compositing and her use of shapes is SUBLIME - it inspired me to let loose more with my expressions, exaggerate features a bit more and to push the way I try to vary facial features :D

Then, back when I had that massive Rise of the TMNT phase, the artstyle of it has actually greatly influenced how I draw today!

It manages to be detailed and highly recognizable despite its deceivingly simple style - it exaggerates shapes and uses it to communicate personalities, emotions and action super effectively and taught me a lot about utilizing those more efficiently myself :D

And last but not least Ishida Sui - the mangaka behind Tokyo Ghoul (which used to be a highschool obsession of mine)

His striking use of colors, textures in abstract, yet symbolically heavy ways and his courage to be rough and expressive rather than looking polished, yet also having such a solid understanding of realism blew me the fuck away as a teen and still does now!!!

His art may have less of an influence on my style today than it used to back then, but I think in my more exagerrated, more horror-esque drawings you can kind of see it still :'D Either way I greatly admire him as both a writer and artist.

-----

I'm genuinely so so flattered that you enjoy what I do enough to give me such high praise, thank you so much for writing me such a wonderful ask <3 I'm glad I got to gush about some of my favorite artists/artstyles for a bit haha

If you have any more specific (digital) art related questions don't hesitate to reach out!! I love giving pointers about a subject I'm so passionate about, we don't gatekeep helpful information in this house!!! <3<3<3

[shadale-s-safe-space]

I don't know much about you as a person, but from what I can gather you've had a long journey with art, but still have the motivation to continue even when its rough. I'm sure you didn't start out making masterpieces, so if its not too much trouble, do you have any advice for a 16 year old artist losing motivation? i feel like im stagnating right now and its awful

Idk man, all I can say is, draw watchu want without the care who's gonna see it or what they gonna say , commit to new ideas and care less about pleasing everyone, because I know that way too well, I started learning by drawing animals, flowers and nature, "you should draw something else", switches to furries " No you must do human portraits", draws humans *no one fuckin cares*, and I felt miserable drawing what I didn't want all the damn time just trying to please everyone and be liked, hell, I still do that sometimes cuz I'm a dumbass. When in reality, when you do your own thing is when you're the happiest, this internet bullshit? Yeah don't trust the likes and favs, people like what they find relatable, no one really knows how much time you've spent on your drawing or how much you love it, when a 5 min doodle you did could do more than a painting that took 2 whole days to complete just to be scrapped in a new speedy record, paint what you love for yourself and you only.

Don't be shy to learn new things, I have tons of stuff I don't post here cuz I know people wouldn't care about it, but here for this post, have this that I practiced when I felt too depressed to think of anything good and wanted to step back from the MD artstyle

You'll see, you'll thrive when you draw what you want, and get yourself a drawing buddy! That way you'll stop focusing on the internet and more on each other, and each other's improvement. Tbh I struggled with that one. Since everyone I had were not into art irl, I somehow managed to find someone after 10 years of drawing alone. I honestly wanted more people to join in and make an improvement circle, but unfortunately that never happened.

I found myself twice as productive now than ever, even though I'm not active here as much I am still drawing and making things, ofc giving you more comics! And other fun things in the future I hope.

If you're struggling to draw something just do it, man commit, i was uncomfortable drawing men and male characters for years, I've wasted so many years being "too uncomfortable" and draw a naked person like yeesh who fucking cares, it's for studying.

And ofc if you feel like you're not improving at all please, please experiment with your artstyle and try something new, please refresh your mind, I was stuck for years doing the same thing over and over, same colors, same 2px brush, drawing like a machine same shit over and over, I felt so stuck and lost, but also afraid to do something new, idk why, I guess I never felt good enough or deserving of it. I also didn't go to art school, I am NOT a professional, nor will i ever be in my opinion. Hell, me feeling like I'll never be good enough left me afraid to try and apply for art school, they were asking for sculptures, different mediums all that scary stuff and I was like, I don't.. know.. how to do those things... I can't build a portfolio in less than 3 months?!?! I don't even know how to use half of what they're asking for!!

In reality at the end of the day, art is what you make of it and no one can stop you, search for inspirations and don't be afraid to try, yes you'll fail fist 2 or 10 or hell even 100 times, but you'll come back with more knowledge than ever.

For ending I give you the most confusing drawing to ever exist [dw he's just sleeping on top of her and she's just ghasping for air but awe romance or sum lol] is it weird? Yeah but I had a fun time making it hahaha

Idk I'm bad at putting my thoughts together, but hopefully some of this helps.

[centrally-unplanned]

Bocchi The Rock! is really hitting sweet spots for me on how it presents its main character’s core plot concept. Bocchi is essentially K-On! but if main girl Yui was too introverted to function instead of too stupid to function; which is a challenge to make interesting. The Yui of this show, Hitori, is a social train wreck who convinced herself learning guitar would substitute for having a personality and make her friends, with the expected 0% success rate. The plot follows her new desperate attempt to achieve friend-dom by joining a band. Which is a character concept that gives us some extremely relatable content: 

Yet the show does still have the challenge of making a character who sucks at socializing be the main character of a Slice of Life show about socializing. Its a comedy, obviously, but still that can get repetitive fast, these character types are often side characters for a reason. Shows like WataMote keep it fresh by making main girl Tomoko a degenerate scumbag on top of a shut-in, its the *degeneracy* that powers the show; you want to have an angle on characters like these

Bocchi’s angle is both character & directorial. On the character side, what endears me to Hitori is how much she is halfway there on understanding social interaction. She might be a breathing pink stress ball but she isn’t clueless, she knows, kindof, what you need to do to make friends - her panic-attack levels of social anxiety just preclude it. So you get opening scenes like these, where she dresses full-musician to go to school to inspire musician-types to talk to her:

And it falls flat on her face because she has been there for months already and still refuses to initiate anything:

But that is what fashion is for! She did look good, in another context this would work (and does accidentally to trigger the ~plot later)

Or when learning about her new also-weirdo band mate Ryo, she goes from “yes friend!!”:

To, 5 seconds later on hearing that she spends her time visiting ruined buildings & second-hand clothing stores, “oh no, not like me at all”:

Which is actually pretty smart for 5 seconds of thought, Hitori groks that interests correlate with personality and people relate to being alone differently.

The point is that Hitori’s social failure is stacked on top of social insight, the humor derives from what she gets right vs wrong. Her *almost* getting it is more enjoyable, and more importantly way more likeable, than her just flailing. She holds the stupid ball for sure but you get why, she is trying to throw it away at least, which is endearing instead of frustrating.

More exceptional is how the show communicates her struggle; she can’t talk good right? So tons of her dialogue is internal dialogue - which you have to spice up somehow, static shots w/ voice narration is not very fun. Bocchi has a grand time playing one of anime’s trump cards of having fantastical brain-scape setpieces to communicate mood. That ‘she is a loner’ revelation ain’t settling for some sparkling pink-background; we have a full apocalypse to carry her aborted dream instead:

Communicating information hits the same struggle as emotion; this is a show about music after all, and another of anime’s strengths its presumption the audience actually is interested in the details of the niche hobby stuff the show is about. But Hitori-in-actuality couldn’t teach someone how to breathe let alone music tips, so instead we get random artistic cutaways to diagrams and explainers by imaginary instruments:

Which I love! Its expressive, you can shift the artstyle in a way that doesn’t clash, it lets the animators flex technique, and the information gets across without dragging down pacing (a lot of media, *unable* to do this, simply cuts the information out entirely, primarily to spite me). 

And of course since all of this is happening inside Hitori’s head, she is, apparently, immensely creative - I love her now, teach me your ways my gumball princess! Her head would be a great place to be if you could lobotomize the anxiety somehow. All this means that Hitori, while awkward, is rarely cringe - partly because the directing always cuts away from any shots that would focus on cringe, but mainly because Hitori is too interesting to be cringe, you got other things to think about.

All in all Bocchi the Rock is my favourite silly-Slice-of-Life show of the season, and I hope it continues this level of playfulness going forward.

[diablademon]

I finally watched 'Baron Omatsuri and the secret island' movie.

I didnt want to watch it at first because I thought the artstyle was too wierd. But I learned that this movie was the creepiest of the one piece movies so I gave it a chance.

Nami gettin mad at Usopp was the most realistic of the argument.

Nami getting mad at Usopp for leaving her alone was normal for her, shes hot headed and rely on others to keep her safe. Usopp didnt even take it to heart that she yelled at him. But him saying betrayal was her thing and she slapping him and couldnt forgive him was understable. Nami can lie, trick and steal. But she doesnt betray her love ones. And betrayal is a sour spot for her.

Zoros and Sanjis anger isnt what I didnt really get thou.

Zoro and Sanji arguing isnt new and I didnt really see anything that stuck out between them for them to act that way. Especially not the part where Sanji Yelled at Nami when they couldnt find Usopp and Chopper. Sanji takes all kind of abuse from Nami, he have never been mad at her for ignoring him or her talking to another guy before. At most he get mad at the guy that Nami is talking to.

Zoro and Sanji are protective over Chopper and Usopp at times so them freaking out wasnt that suprising. But Sanji snapping at Nami is wierd. I understand its suppose to show how the crew is falling apart. But I dnt know what would make Sanji realisticlly snap like that.

Im also suprised Luffy didnt demand his friends whereabouts earlier. When the crew was arguing. That he would let his crew leave like that before speaking up I didnt understood. I understand he wouldnt know how to act as water 7 hadnt happen yet.

No real comments on Chopper and Robin, they did their own thing most of the time and was already gone by the time the drama happend.

But now to the ending.

I got hit with nostalgy when the creepy imagery started. It was something I recognized from old animes/movies but modern shows/movies havent been able to replicate. I didnt realise it was something I missed in movies.

It was great to watch. The artstyle didnt bother me that much as I thought it would. I wasnt prepared for the dad to do the killing blow to the flower. Normally Luffy is the one that take down the big bad while other help on the side line.

Now I just need to find my notes on which movie was worth watching next.

[mistymandalas]

wind waker is legitimately so angsty

Spoilers ig

also tw for mentions of murder

OOT’s world is dead. Drowned beneath the waves by the hand of the gods they worshipped. It is a relic of the past that only serves as a place for the master sword and a prison for Tetra. On top of that, Gannondorf is a bitter old man now, caught in the past of his failures, the death of his entire people. He is the only gerudo left in WW. And at the end of everything, Gannondorf feels the winds that always meant death for his people, this time coming for him.

the pirates legitimately thought link died after being thrown off the tower at the forsaken fortress. Grandma, in your absence, has grown sick and is slipping in and out of consciousness when you find her. And if you’ve ever seen one the Redeads from wind waker you’ve known true fear lol

and the only person who are actually doing anything are children. Link, Tetra, Medli, Makar (whose age is debatable but he’s young in korok years so shhhhh). When you get to rito village medli is the first person to do something about Valoo. None of the adults volunteer to help save Aryll. Makar and Medli take the role of the new sages, one of which is still getting the hang of flying.

and the past sages? Oh yeah Gannon murdered them.

The ideas and standards of the past are no longer relevant- in fact, they hinder the protagonists. Mostly Tetra. She gets an entire makeover from the king of red lions, whitewashed, and is told that she must stay in this dusty old castle a thousand miles from home ‘for her protection’.

And it dosen’t even matter in the end, because she gets kidnapped anyways. She would have been safer with her crew, where she belongs, and where her wisdom actually applies: her knowledge of the world and the people and the sea. She certainly knows more than link does (saves his life multiple times and is instrumental to the 1st half of the game), yet because of her ‘role to play’, she has to play princess while the real work is being done.

the goddess that were so present in OOT have drowned Hyrule and all its people. You meet three whole Goron’s in the game, with no mention of where the rest of them are or if they have been reduced to traveling merchants. As mentioned, the gerudo are extinct. Presumably, countless hylians were left to drown when the great sea came.

at the end of the game, I feel like it’s one of the only games that shows you how TIRED link is. And how young he is. He collapses after the fight with gannondorf is over, clutching his injured arm and staring at Gannondorfs dead body. That he has just STABBED IN THE HEAD. (Side note: up until this point link has done this silly little happy dance when he defeats a boss, jumping up in the air and pumping his fists. It is that much more striking when the final battle, full of dramatics and speeches and harsh color pallets, is served in silence. Link looks absolutely haunted by his actions).

Gannondorf towers over him, and dosent even give him the choice to fight him at first. He punches a literal child because he cannot afford to lose again. Link leaves him and the last remains of Hyrule to drown.

all of this is wrapped and packaged under this timeless cartoon artstyle that people take (or took) one look at and decide is a children’s game. All my Linked universe fans, this I feel like also applies to Wind. He’s almost 14, has killed a man and looked him in the eyes while he did it, yet the chain takes hits for him and underestimate his talent.

this game is so relevant to today it’s scary. The loss of land, the emphasis on how the next generation is what matters, how Gannon and the King look at the great sea and only see it for what is was and not what it is now, how beautiful and exciting it is for Link and Tetra. I love wind waker to pieces.

anyways thanks for coming to my Ted talk pls remember to drink water, do some stretches and take care of urself!! <333

[art-res]

Hey, I know you probably get a lot of requests so it’s fine if you don’t answer this, but I have a problem with most references I find on the internet, and that is that I can’t use them.

There’s nothing wrong with the references, it’s just that I have a very cartoonish and simple artstyle, with very little texturing and small details.

Most of the references I can find, however, are super realistic, detailed, anatomical references, and my response is usually. “Yeah but how do I translate that into my art style.”

Sometimes, these references are great. Especially ones centered around basic shapes, as a lot of my art relies on both geometric and organic shapes.

But, now to the point! Do you have any tips on how to use more realistic references to translate into a simple style? Again, perfectly fine if not.

Hi there! Love your question.

I’d recommend drawing over the realistic references to capture their 3D shapes. cartoon references may also already be copyright, so be careful on that.

I use Unsplash a lot and have a generator here based off that with no issues for copyright.

Here’s an example of what I do sometimes. Trace the image for 3D shapes or if I’m doing value study, values.

Then use the 3D traced shapes as a NEW ref. Now I can stylize how I want to since I understand the 3D shapes. I could now exaggerate certain proportions and it would look natural and in my style!

Most important part of art is breaking the rules lol

Hope this helps!

If you found this post useful, please consider reblogging to spread the word or following my art account at https://instagram.com/akufta.art <3

[karasucatt]

HELLO! Big fan of your Lion Narinder. Any lion behaviour to expect from him? Love your artstyle. What species of Lamb is yours? How do you depict the Lamb, the way you play them, or your idea for fanart? Do you have any outfits reference for those two? Will Narinder ever grow out his mane again? How does the modern AU of them pan out? Does Narinder get released from his chains? What are their favourite weapons and curses? Does Narinder have any side effect from being chained? I got inspired to make one of my Narinders a lion because of you as well, after @bluecheems lion Narinder.

Have a good month come to you and eat your meals regularly.

YES YES THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME A CHANCE TO RANT WITH SO MANY QUESTIONS

Any lion behaviour to expect from him?

Once Nari starts getting comfy he will nuzzle the Lamb a lot more, both in greeting but also in an affectionate way. He also roars on occasion!! Mainly on missions or when the Lamb takes him on Crusades and they loose him lol. He’ll groom the Lamb as well, commenting about how dirty they get during crusades and that he could spend his time doing something more productive(The Lamb knows he’s just being difficult. Every time they return Naris waiting to clean them up before they show themselves fully to the cult)

What species of Lamb is yours? How do you depict the Lamb, the way you play them, or your idea for fanart?

The closest I can get to answering the first question is actually a goat! The way I draw my lamb is heavily inspired by the Dreamurr family(specifically Asriel) so really they’re more like a goat with fluffy hair lol. As for how I depict them, well I love me a good codependent relationship turned two assholes learning how to heal.

My lamb sees themselves as the faithful servant to TOWW at first so they don’t speak(unless it’s to Nojular to announce to the others or during sermons), keep their wool short, and focus only on crusades and keeping the cult stable. It’s once they defeat Kallamar that they start opening up. The crown speaking to them gave them a new boost of confidence(and a tad bit of inanity) so they began speaking more, directing the cult, and focusing on their relationship with their followers more then crusading. With the indoctrination of the cults brand new Therapist(No one asked Focalor to do it they just took up the job themselves), the Lamb was able to work through a lot of their issues.

Now with Nari in the cult, they’ve started their ascension into godhood. This takes a big toll on their mental state, causing more murder episodes and mood swings. Nari knows how bad the ascension process can fuck someone up so he’s helping where he can. The Lamb appreciates it a lot.

Will Narinder ever grow out his mane again?

Nari actually likes it short!! The Lamb asks him this same question all the time and Narinder always says he likes it short. Though he does grow out parts just so the Lamb can braid and decorate it.

How does the modern AU of them pan out? Does Narinder get released from his chains?

I have comics and things planned for the Modern AU so stay tuned for those!! I can say that Nari does get released from his chains by the Lamb on accident. Now he has to learn how to live among mortals and the Lamb is marching straight to their Professor to try and learn more about the formerly sealed god.

What are their favourite weapons and curses?

I generally don’t use curses actually!! I prefer things with high speed and high damage so my best answer is that I like Swords!(I despise guns and hammers they so slow for my lambs nimble ass)

Does Narinder have any side effect from being chained?

He has PTSD from the imprisoning battle and gets the phantom feeling of chains on his wrists from time to time. While he likes his alone time he’ll actually cling to the Lamb once he’s spent more time in the cult. He’s terrified of being alone even if he won’t admit it.

Thank you so so soooo much for this long ask I really wanted to info dump lol! I do have my own outfit designs for them and I’ll leave them below(the Lamb is based off of when they first save Leshy from purgatory. The more recent design you see is based off of when all four bishops have been saved. I’ll make a proper reference for it one day lol)

[try02line]

Alright- i finally came around and made a lil fanart of the Wittebane brothers with the design of @angstyhikka in her clean page AU! I absolutely ADORE their and and will surely try make some other fanart as soon as I have some free time.

Now, smol disclaimer and apology, I did take this as an opportunity to experiment a bit with a new brush- the thing is, her artstyle is SO dynamic and visually interesting to look at, and it sort of inspired me a lot and made me want to try something new! I should have probably made some study and surely more practice rather than jumping right into this- but oh well, it is what it is-

Although the final result is a bit odd in some points, I do consider myself overall satisfied with the result. In particular with their faces and eyes! I think they look SO pretty, i would suggest you all to zoom on them bcs the texture really makes them- idk, it makes me feel as if they have a soul? If that makes sense?

I also made a version without lineart- i personally prefer it with my classic lineart as I feel it makes everything more cohesive and considering I am not an expert in doing sharp/soft edges to define forms, it helps a lot, but let me know what you think!

I also did struggle a bit with Caleb, I don’t think I usually draw … oldish people? Mature people? Something I definitely have to work on- ON THE BRIGHT SIDE, i think Philip looks adorable and his hair flows in a very nice way!

Here at the end I will also add a quick version I made with my usual flat colors just for comparison!

Not sure if I will continue experimenting with this particular brush, but It was very interesting and I really hope you can enjoy the result!

(Also not sure if is intentional, but I find it fascinating how their color palettes are inverted? Maybe is a me thing, but I always associate Philip with red due his childhood outfit and Caleb with blue due his jacket, so see them switched is very cute! But maybe that is just me-)

ANYWAY hope you all have a lovely day!!!!!!!! 🦊