#steven heller

[fashionbooksmilano]

Milton Glaser : POP

Steven Heller, Mirko Ilić, Beth Kleber

Monacelli Press , New York 2023, 288 pages, 25x30cm, ISBN 9781580936132

euro 55,00

email if you want to buy booksinprogressmilano@yahoo.it

An overview of the work of illustrator and designer Milton Glaser during the 1960s and 70s

From 1954, when he co-founded the legendary Push Pin Studios, to the late ’70s, Milton Glaser was one of the most celebrated graphic designers of his day, whose work graced countless book and album covers, posters, magazine covers, and advertisements, both famous and little-known. Glaser largely defined the international visual style for illustration, advertising, and typeface design and interest in his legacy continues unabated, with modern creatives acknowledging his influence; for example, in 2014 Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner enlisted Glaser to design the ad campaign and branding for the show’s final season.

His renowned work garnered solo exhibitions at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Creator of the iconic 'I ♥ NY' logo and cofounder of New York magazine, Glaser received numerous accolades and lifetime achievement awards. Across thousands of works across all print media, he invented a graphic language of bright, flat color, drawing and collage, imbued with wit. This collection of work from Glaser’s Pop period features hundreds of examples of his design that have not been seen since their original publication, demonstrating the graphic revolution that transformed design and popular culture.

29/10/23

[pelomundodascidades]

Antonis Antoniou+Steven Heller, Decoding Manhattan, Manhattan, New York City, USA, 2021

[starbrattt]

artists: various, all personal sketchbook pages featured in Free Hand (Heller & Talarico)

[lyricthecat-12]

Happy Internacional Asexuality Day! 🖤💜🩶

[galaxy-candy-pop]

Drew some fanart!

[crossroadsofchaos]

Aroace and ace flag versions of the Izutsumi, Peridot and Mordecai edits. Posting them separately from the AAW posts, since they're not aro-centric.

(Aro flag versions/AAW post links: Izutsumi | Peridot | Mordecai)

[thisisanerror]

Esther Heller as a space rock (she’s an offcolor Star Diopside), she’s learning to take pictures with a primitive earthly device.

[pinkshgum]

do u guys see my vision. they're each other coded. in a way

[autisticsupervillain]

It's Fictional Throwdown Friday!

This Week's Fighters...

James Heller vs Steven Universe!

Conditions:

Speed Equalized. Both start in base.

Scenario:

After the events of Prototype 2, James Heller moves to Beach City with his daughter in an attempt to quietly return to human life. When Steven cheerfully greets him, Heller is distrustful of his friendly attitude and decides to use his shapeshifting powers to get some more intel. Discovering that the local gems used to be galaxy conquering alien invaders, Heller concludes Steven must be working with them. Steven tries to explain (again), but Heller won't listen to his "fucking weird, fucking rambling shit".

Analysis: Steven

Countless years ago, long before the advent of human history, the small, insignificant planet of Earth was discovered by an alien race known as the Gems. The Homeworld Empire would have mercilessly sucked the planet dry, if it were not for the second thoughts of their leader Pink Diamond. Unable to convince her fellow matriarchs of the error of their ways, Pink instead waged a war against herself using the pseudonym Rose Quartz.

This…. is not her story.

This is the story of the son she left behind. This is the story of Steven Quartz Universe.

Growing up mostly unaware of his now dead mother’s dark past, Steven was raised by his homeless father Greg Universe and trained by the three remaining Crystal Gems Amethyst, Garnet, and Pearl. In his youth he’d mostly lazily hang around Beach City and go on missions to subdue Corrupted Gems, or Gems who were forcibly turned into monsters by the Diamonds corruption blast as the fled Earth. However, after Steven would inadvertently lead Homeworld back to Earth, the young boy would be forced to confront the lies his mother left behind and stand against the Homeworld Empire.

Thankfully, Steven develops a wide plethora of powers abd abilities to protect his friends and family. Inheriting all the powers of his mother, Steven can create a pink shield that can manifest in a variety of different ways. It can appear as a small frisbe and a body encompassing bubble, even growing spikes to ward off aggressive adversaries. He can also bubble his fists to increase their punching power. These shields are made if hard light, much like a Gem’s physical body is, which would likely explain how customizable they are.

Similarly, he can summon bubbles to contain objects, sending them home for later use. It should be noted that, while this has a sealing affect on poofed gems (that’s what it’s called when a gem’s physical form is temporarily destroyed), organic beings seem unaffected by it and can break free of these bubbles with ease.

In regards to his movement options, Steven can levitate, controlling the speed at which he falls to the ground in a manner basically synonymous with flight, even being capable of halting his own momentum.

His half gem physiology also grants him a rather bizarre biology. For example, he cam voluntarily shapeshift his own body, even influencing his own age, though this appears to be the one ability he has yet to truly master, as it is often subconsciously influenced by his own image of himself and can easily spiral wildly out of control. His, uh, body fluids also seem to be similarly affected. Don’t worry, it’s not as gross as it sounds.

For example, his spit csn heal the injuries of others, healing Connie’s eye sight and fixing Lapis’s broken gemstone. His tears, meanwhile, can resurrect dead animals and people as unaging pink “zombies” with special powers, such as hair that contains a pocket dimension and a voice that can create portals. The most bizarre trait of his, erm, fluids, is his ability to make plants sentient by licking their seeds, creating an army of Watermelon Stevens fiercely loyal to and protective of him. In great enough numbers, these creations can overpower the Crystal Gems and even threaten the dangerous fusion Malachite with just stone age era technology.

Plus, when knocked out, he can telepathically communicate with and even possess other beings from astronomical distances away. He can even communicate with the Diamonds, despite their diamond auras initially warding him off. Being half diamond himself, Steven should have a similar aura and, thus, similar resistance. Hell, given his aura outright overpowered theirs, his resistance should be stronger.

He can fuse with other Gems to become stronger and, uniquely, can fuse with humans. In fact, Steven can do a lot of things that Gems can’t. His half human biology grants him an immunity to weapons designed specifically to counter gems, causing them to merely harm him at worst or harmlessly tickle him at best. But, this resistance has limits as certain weapons like the Rejuvenator can nullify his powers. Still, he doesn't need to resist an attack to deal with it, as his regeneration is so good that he can heal from broken bones and cracked skulls so fast that he never even notices them.

Similarly, Steven is supremely tough and fast, capable of moving fast enough to appear as a blur in eyes of normal humans long before he mastered his powers. As a teenager, he can fight some of the toughest of the Crystal Gems foes, such as Spinel and Jssper, single handedly and fight them blow for blow. This is impressive on both a skill and a strength front, as both Jasper and Spinel have proven themselves able to defeat the toughest members of the Crystal Gems on occasion, though not without their best weapons available. Keep in mind, the Crystal Gems have been alive for centuries and were known to take down entire battalions during the war on their own. On the strength front, it’s impressive because of what it would mean Steven scales to.

Both Jasper and Spinel have fought Garnet, someone capable of turning sand into glass with the force of her blows and cleaving mountains in half. Most impressively, Garnet could tear apart Peridot’s escape pod, which survived getting blasted down to Earth from orbit at massive speeds. This would put her strength at around 142 kilotons of force.

Source:

Steven is, by the end of the series, definitively one of Garnet’s equals, seeing how he can fight opponents on a similar scale to her. Even at the age of 13, he was able to contend with Bismuth, evenly while actively trying to avoid hurting her.

But all this shies away from the true power Steven wields.

With Steven’s Pink Mode transformations, Steven can channel his full Diamond potential, going from competing with Jasper to actively stomping her. What’s more, if Steven is seperated from his gem, any buffer between him and his full power is completely removed.

The now emotionless and remorseless Gem Steven is all of Steven’s power without an ounce of his humanity or restraint. He's capable of nearly blowing Yellow, Blue, and White Diamond away just by screaming and can effortlessly deflect attacks from all three. This is especially impressive when you consider the Diamonds are the strongest gems in existence. Together, three of the Diamonds could light up the entire night sky from Homeworld to Earth all the way in another galaxy. To create that much illumination, each of the Diamonds would individually be exerting an energy equivalent to 803.33333333 kilofoe. And Steven's Gem form and fully transformed Pink Mode can overpower all three of the Diamonds.

Source:

However, Gem Steven runs the serious risk of killing Steven’s human half, due to his gemstone not being connected to his body, so it’s unlikely he’ll use it willingly. In fact, Steven is highly unlikely to use his most dangerous powers in combat.

Steven’s greatest strength, as well as his greatest weakness, is his empathy. He’ll always sacrifice his physical and mental health to protect others, which has caused him series problems. This tendency, plus his constant exposure to life threatening trauma, as caused him to develop a severe case of PTSD, which can make his powers go haywire of not properly checked in. At it’s worst, it can even forcibly transform him into a giant unstoppable monster.

But, despite all his weaknesses, Steven managed to save Earth and Homeworld. He succeeded where his mother failed and nade tge Diamonds change their minds. Because he’s not his mother. He’s more. He’s Steven Quartz Universe.

Analysis: Heller

It had only been fourteen months after the first Blacklight Virus outbreak had ravaged Manhattan. Fourteen months since New York City begain putting itself back together and its people began to truly live again when the second outbreak struck. Alex Mercer, once the begrudging savior of New York, had completely abandoned his humanity. He'd seen the selfishness of humans and grown disgusted with it, prompting him to unleash a second strain of Blacklight on New York. Deadlier, faster, stronger. This new strain would burn humanity down so that Alex could rebuild something from the ashes.

This attack would leave Sgt. James Heller without a family. He would come home from his tour overseas to find his wife and daughter dead. Stricken with grief, Heller would request reassignment to the front lines of the Manhattan quarantine, hoping to go down swinging to join his family in the afterlife. What he'd get instead was a once in a lifetime shot at revenge against the man responsible. Heller would go at Mercer with nothing but a knife, successfully slitting Mercer's throat.

Unfortunately, this is Alex Mercer we're talking about, so he just regenerated. Impressed with Heller's unrelenting determination, Mercer would transform Heller into one of his "Evolved", allowing James full access to all the powers granted by the Blacklight Virus, while still allowing him to keep his higher brain functions and humanity.

Mercer would attempt to manipulate Heller into helping to bring about his new world order, but Heller would eventually see through his tricks. This would backfire in the worst possible way for Mercer, as James Heller had nothing to lose and wanted nothing more than cold blooded revenge.

James Heller has all the powers you could expect from the Blacklight Virus. He can regenerate and shapeshift down the cellular level, allowing him to regrow from nothing but a puddle and shapeshift himself into any weapon he could possibly need. He can turn his arms into blades and claws to slice apart tanks, create spiked shields that can reflect rockets, grow armour to become completely bullet proof, and turn his arms into whips to pull helicopters right out of the sky. He can even alter his body's density to allow him to glide through the air.

And, like any good bioweapon, Heller can assimilate anyone he touches, copying their genetics and memories perfectly, allowing him to shapeshift into them and even copy their powers perfectly. Using this trick, Heller would devour his way through the ranks of Mercer's Evolved lieutenants, copying all of their powers. He can summon Hunters, giant bio-organic monsters that can crush tanks with their punches, to assist him battle, unleash the Blacklight Virus as a gas, and unleash massive Devastator attacks when he has enough biomass stored within him. Such as the tendril barrage Devastator, which shoots tendrils out of his body everywhere, absorbing everything within a mile radius of him.

Despite having a loud, bombastic temper that would put Kratos to shame and not being good with technology, Heller is a very intelligent and strategic fighter. He has all the combined experiences of every marine and Blackwatch soldier he's absorbed on top of everyone Mercer has and he's smart enough to see through Mercer's bullshit when he tries to string him along. He's frequently able to play the military, Blackwatch, and Mercer's Evolved against each other when he needs to and is skilled enough to take on groups of Evolved at once, many of whom have his same powers.

But despite his monsterous powers and quick temper, Heller would not lose his humanity. He would spare his former commanding officer after learning he too has a daughter and would go out of his way to protect the pastor at a local church. Heller would not succumb to the inhumanity that Mercer had. Not when he had a daughter counting on him. When he learned his little girl was still alive, he found the drive he needed to overcome Mercer once and for all.

After devouring Alex Mercer, James would unleash a tendril barrage so large it covered nearly all of Manhattan, absorbing all of the infected in the city before retracting at Mach 7.87 and generating a kinetic energy equivalent to 106.24 kilotons of TNT.

Source:

The nightmare was over. The infection was gone. And Alex Mercer was dead. Only one question remains for James Heller and his daughter. What now?

Throwdown Theme:

Throwdown Breakdown:

Alright, starting out, the strength gap here in base is basically nonexistent. 106 kilotons vs 142, with a slight advantage to Steven.

Both of these characters have ways of winning the fight instantaneously that they would likely never open with in character. Sure, Steven could just go Pink Mode and vaporize Heller with literal star destroying strength... but he'd never willingly or intentionally do that to someone. Meanwhile, Heller could catch Steven off guard by spraying him with the Blacklight Virus, as Steven is ironically one of the only Crystal Gems that would actually get affected by it due to being organic. But Heller's whole goal was to stop the spread of Blacklight, so he'd never do that either. That and Heller would have to unleash the gas right on top of Steven to actually infect him, as Steven's bubble shields are air tight and would likely block it.

Both combatants are a bit outside of each other's wheelhouse, with one being a sentient humanoid virus and the other a half human, half alien Gem hero. They're not quite like any enemy that the other has fought before. Sure, Steven has fought shaoeshifters, but none of them have quite the variety or creativity that Heller has, as his entire moveset basically is shapeshifting. While Heller has fought shield users and has far more combat experience than any human being realistically ever could, due to his stolen memories, but Steven's shields are much stronger than any that Heller has had to break, being capable of withstanding the entire ocean being dropped on him all at once. And that's on top of Steven having spent most his childhood either training with for fighting against Gem warriors with thousands of years of war experience themselves.

Heller would be able to assimilate Steven if he gets his hands on him. In fact, given the scenario, he'd likely want to so he can learn more about the Gems supposed plans. But he'd have to get through Steven's shields first and that's a bigger issue. They're far too durable for him to break reliably and, even if he could, Steven could just create more. Given that Steven's shields are made of hard light and not a traditional form of matter, Heller likely wouldn't be able to absorb them either. I'd even argue it's entirely possible for Steven to win by just incapacitating Heller by trapping him in his shields like a bubble, as he wouldn't really be able to get out of that.

But in the other hand, Heller only needs to really touch Steven once to win, as he has no resistances to assimilation. And there are ways he could land that, such as by catching Steven off guard with a tendril through the ground or by distracting him with hunters and getting him while he's distracted. Hell, he could even just shapeshift into a random person while Steven's distracted to sell the illusion and catch him off guard. I don't see it as likely that he'd go after someone Steven knows in Beach City or anything to that end, he's not Mercer, but he does still have disguises from people he's absorbed in the past.

But even with those strategies, Steven is still more mobile in the air. Mobile enough to at least limit their effectiveness. Steven's hovering constantly shown to be just as, if not even more maneuverable than Heller's gliding in the air. But then again, Heller's tendrils can spread far enough to coat Manhattan, so even then Heller can still fight from that distance.

I think this fight hinges on both's tendencies in a fight. Steven is very defensive, which makes it very likely that he'd primarily use his shields to avoid Heller's onslaught, and he's very pacifistic. I feel like that makes it pretty likely that Steven would go for trapping Heller in a bubble until he cools off fairly early on. Meanwhile, Heller's first response in a fight is to try and meet his opponent pound for pound. He's going to try and power through and overwhelm Steven first and foremost. Heller is not stupid at all and once he recognizes he can't get past those shields the conventional way, he'd certainly go for those other strategies. But it is not what he'd start with and it'd take him a bit to switch gears. Especially as he's never fought someone like Steven Universe, both in power set and in mindset.

Plenty of people have tried to match James Heller's onslaughts with their own. No one has tried to play it defensively against him and wait him out. Meanwhile, Steven has fought plenty of more aggressive opponents he's had to fight down and wait out. Heller isn't equipped for this fight for the same reason he wasn't genre savvy enough to avoid this fight in the first place. No one in the [PROTOTYPE] universe with powers who is as unflinching good as Steven Universe.

This Throwdown's Winner is...

Steven Quartz Universe!

[echoarts03]

My favourite ace characters are Alastor the Radio Demon and Ashley the Spider-B*tch simply because they are villains who want to and probably will one day take over the world, but don’t mind helping out the protagonist for their own amusement/self-preservation.

Honestly, that's probably one of my favorite villain tropes as well LMAO.

My favorite ace characters consist of Alastor from Hazbin Hotel, Lilith from the Owl House, Mordecai from Lackadaisy, Peridot from Steven Universe (implied by a storyboard artist), and, if the fandoms headcanons are anything to go by, Cuphead from...well, Cuphead. XD

[clytemnestraaa]

top five books (at the moment)?

fantastic question! all time fav books in no order:

the traitor baru cormorant by seth dickinson. DO NOT get me started

a memory called empire by arkady martine

catch-22 by joseph heller

in memoriam by alice winn

silently and very fast by cathrynne valente

from the last year or so:

prophet by helen macleod and sin blaché

briefly, a delicious life by nell stevens

what the living do by marie howe

she who became the sun by shelley parker-chan

ninefox gambit by yoon ha lee

[twixnmix]

Keith Haring painting a mural at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, November 1989.

Photos by Steven A. Heller

[adorablenerdcat]

Crossroads 8/CR8

So we knew, as soon as Creepy Uncle Misha was announced as "headliner" (I use that term loosely obviously) that we were in for a Heller con. It's a shame that Creepy Uncle Misha running his lying, inappropriate, queerbaiting, crowdpleasing, showboating mouth has overshadowed the whole con but here we are. I paid for a pic and an auto from him, and I honestly wish I hadn't. The auto was a scribble and thank you, no interaction, no eye contact, no smile. Pretty much the same with the pic. He was the only celeb that was like this. It's like he only switches on when he's the centre of attention. Who knew?! (Oh, us. We did)

So I'm not getting into the crap he spouted, and I'm just going to give you my favourite bits from all the panels I went to and the celebs I met. I haven't laughed as much as I did this weekend in an age!

*Firstly, Mark Shepperd is an amazing human being. He's as gruff, rude, bossy, dry, funny and adorable as you'd expect. He told me off twice. I loved it! And I love him ❤️

*Same with Rob Benedict. Had a lovely chat with him about the podcasts and his and Ruth's baby. He sang Fare Thee Well and Creep in the final panel, it was goosepimply hauntingly beautiful. Utterly magical.

*Am now a little bit in love with Tomer Capone. He was humble, gorgeous, funny and an all round lovely guy. Gives amazing hugs too!

*Karen Fukahama was tiny and gorgeous. She's really funny and I adored her. Such fun on her and tomers panels. Cannot wait till Season 4 of the Boys. No spoilers, but it sounds EPIC!!!!

*AlCal was also a lovely hugger! I asked for a Jack wave but he decided we were hugging instead so that was a bit special. Also felt quite sorry for him in one of his panels as there was some kind of weirdo who asked him if he'd found a black feather...very strange and stalkery.

*Jim Beaver was exactly how you'd expect him to be. He called me darlin' on multiple occasions. Life made lol. His panels with Steven Williams were one of the highlights of the weekend. Those two need a podcast together. So so funny.

*Cindy Sampson was my biggest surprise. Wasn't overly keen on Lisa at all in the show, like many people. Cindy is a bloody joy. She has no filter, just like me! She was brilliant, loved meeting her.

*Special mention for hilarity goes to the start of the Alcal, Rob and Creepy Uncle Misha panel. In passing, someone said "oh no, he didnt". If you know anything about the British, you'll probably know what happened next. (If you don't, Google British pantomime!) It descended quickly into a traditional panto back and forth, but our US friends had no clue at all what was happening. Bless Ruth for educating Rob in our cultural heritage, he was able to explain it to the others. Left most of the audience cry laughing.

Anyway, I'm knee deep in conflu so I'm about to go to bed, but any questions at all about the con, please ask! Even if you just want a chat, I'm around x

[fairfieldthinkspace]

The Dolan Difference: First Executive DBA Cohort Leads the Way with Groundbreaking Research 

In today’s fast-paced business environment, professionals need a program that combines real-world challenges with strategic decision-making skills. Fairfield Dolan’s Executive Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA) program is a game-changer for senior-level professionals eager to elevate their careers. The first cohort is already immersed in cutting-edge research across various business disciplines, including analytics, marketing, and finance.

The Dolan Executive DBA program stands out by allowing students to balance research with professional responsibilities. Over three years, students complete a chapter of their dissertation with each course, culminating in a comprehensive defense. This hands-on approach integrates theory with practical applications, preparing students for success in both academia and their careers.

What truly sets the program apart is its faculty. Each student is paired with an advisor who specializes in the student’s research area, providing personalized guidance throughout the program. These experts help students refine their research to make meaningful contributions to their fields.

The first cohort’s innovative research topics highlight the diverse perspectives shaping the future of business. Topics include:

Ronald Elowitz: Innovation Ecologies and Sustainable Practices (Advisor: Carl Scheraga, PhD)

Glenn Heller: The Impact of Gene Therapies on the Insurance Industry (Advisor: William Vasquez Mazariegos, PhD)

Rosemarie McLaughlin: The Impact of a 1% Excise Tax on Share Repurchases (Advisor: Steven Kozlowski, PhD)

Emily Ott: Gen Z Motivation and Millennials as Managers (Advisor: Mousumi Bose-Godbole, PhD)

Shilpa Rosenberry: The Impact of Post-Covid Remote Working Policies on Working Moms (Advisor: Yifeng Fan, PhD)

Deborah Stewart-VanOrden: Eliminating Waste in Government Defense Contracting (Advisor: James He, PhD)

Greg Tanner: The Influence of Board Composition and ‘Prestige’ on Company Performance (Advisor: Michael McDonald, PhD)

As these students continue their dissertations, their groundbreaking insights will underscore how the Dolan Executive DBA program is driving innovation and shaping the future of business leadership.

[bookclub4m]

Episode 209 - Design

 It’s episode 209 and time for us to talk about the genre of Design! We discuss graphic design, interior design, the line between design and art, fonts, kerning, footnotes, and more! Plus: Anna talks about evidence synthesis and search design!

You can download the podcast directly, find it on Libsyn, or get it through Apple Podcasts or your favourite podcast delivery system.

In this episode

Anna Ferri | Meghan Whyte | Matthew Murray 🦇 | Jam Edwards

Things We Read (or tried to…)

Make Your Own Pixel Art: Create Graphics for Games, Animations, and More! by Jennifer Dawe and Matthew Humphries

The Wright Style: Re-Creating the Spirit of Frank Lloyd Wright by Carla Lind 

The Design of Books: An Explainer for Authors, Editors, Agents, and Other Curious Readers by Debbie Berne

Maker Comics: Design a Game! by Bree Wolf and Jesse Fuchs

Patternalia: An Unconventional History of Polka Dots, Stripes, Plaid, Camouflage, & Other Graphic Patterns by Jude Stewart

Design: The Definitive Visual Guide

Other Media We Mentioned

Graphic Wit: The Art of Humor in Design by Steven Heller and Gail Anderson

Bear and Breakfast

Two Point Campus

Cat Cafe Manager 2

Soviet Bus Stops by Christopher Herwig

The Man in the Glass House: Philip Johnson, Architect of the Modern Century by Mark Lamster

The 99% Invisible City: A Field Guide to the Hidden World of Everyday Design by Roman Mars and Kurt Kohlstedt

Links, Articles, and Things

Folio - 019 - immanence 01 - with jam edwards & garbageface aka gnostic front aka karol orzechowski

Jam's Pokémon design 

Kerning

River (typography)

Ampelmännchen (East German pedestrian walk signal)

16 Design Books by BIPOC Authors:

Every month Book Club for Masochists: A Readers’ Advisory Podcasts chooses a genre at random and we read and discuss books from that genre. We also put together book lists for each episode/genre that feature works by BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, & People of Colour) authors. All of the lists can be found here.

The Power of Style: How Fashion and Beauty Are Being Used to Reclaim Cultures by Christian Allaire

More Than a Glitch: Confronting Race, Gender, and Ability Bias in Tech by Meredith Broussard

Unmasking AI: My Mission to Protect What Is Human in a World of Machines by Joy Buolamwini

The Layered Edible Garden: A Beginner's Guide to Creating A Productive Food Garden Layer by Layer by Christina Chung

Exploring Game Mechanics: Principles and Techniques to Make Fun, Engaging Games by Maithili Dhule

Salish Blankets: Robes of Protection and Transformation, Symbols of Wealth by  Janice George, Leslie H. Tepper, and Willard Joseph

Extra Bold: A Feminist, Inclusive, Anti-Racist, Nonbinary Field Guide for Graphic Designers by Josh A. Halstead, Leslie Xia, Farah Kafei, Kaleena Sales, Ellen Lupton, Valentina Vergara, and Jennifer Tobias

Mismatch: How Inclusion Shapes Design by Kat Holmes

Reimagined Worlds: Narrative Placemaking for People, Play, and Purpose : A Designer's Manifesto by Margaret Chandra Kerrison

The Creative Gene: How Books, Movies, and Music Inspired the Creator of Death Stranding and Metal Gear Solid by Hideo Kojima

User Friendly: How the Hidden Rules of Design Are Changing the Way We Live, Work, and Play by Cliff Kuang and Robert Fabricant

Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism by Safiya Umoja Noble

Now You See Me! An Introduction to 100 Years of Black Design by Charlene Prempeh

Just Enough Design: Reflections on the Japanese Philosophy of Hodo-Hodo by Taku Satoh

Side Quest: A Visual History of Roleplaying Games by Steenz and Samuel Sattin

Decolonizing Design: A Cultural Justice Guidebook by Elizabeth (Dori) Tunstall

Give us feedback!

Fill out the form to ask for a recommendation or suggest a genre or title for us to read!

Check out our Tumblr, join our Discord Server, or send us an email!

Join us again on Tuesday, April 1st we’ll be talking about the genre of  Romantasy!

Then on Tuesday, April 15th it’s time for our Spring Media Update, as we talk about books and other things we haven’t read for the podcast.

[canon-asexual-poll]

Here is our bracket! Polls will be live tomorrow, Nov 14 at 10AM and will last for one week. Propaganda will be reblogged on this blog, but please put it on the poll posts or the character interest posts. Don’t submit propaganda through asks.

All round 1 matches will be linked below the cut after they go live

Caduceus Clay (Critical Roll) vs Diane (Lumberjanes)

SpongeBob SquarePants (SpongeBob SquarePants) vs Jughead Jones (Archie 2015)

Ca$h Piggott (Heartbreak High) vs Isaac Rydle (Val & Isaac)

Gwenpool (Marvel) vs Mousefur (Warrior Cats)

Todd Chavez (Bojack Horseman) vs The Professor (Gilligan’s Island)

Kale Romero (Monster Prom) vs Sakuko (Koisenu Futari)

Jonathan Sims (The Magnus Archives) vs Lore Woodwind (Val & Isaac)

Dr. Grissom (ARS Paradoxica) vs Coach (Monster Prom)

Lilith Clawthorne (The Owl House) vs Argent Adept (Sentinels of the Multiverse)

Maya (Borderlands) vs Luffy (One Piece)

Green Arrow (DC) vs Count Orlo (The Great)

Peridot (Steven Universe) vs Jody Marsh (Zombies, Run!)

Perry the Platypus (Phineas & Ferb) vs Alex (AJ & Magnus)

Bill Cipher (Gravity Falls) vs Fitzroy Maplecourt (The Adventure Zone)

Isaac Henderson (Heartstopper) vs Nellie (Rain)

Mordecai Heller (Lackadaisy) vs Takahashi (Koisenu Futari)