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thimbil · 3 years

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Having some thoughts about the references and inspirations used for the Bad Batch’s designs.

So Boba Fett is my absolute favorite character and Temeura Morrison was perfect casting. I went to see the 2008 TCW movie in theaters because I was so excited to see him again, even if he was animated. You can imagine my disappointment. Whoever was on screen was not Temeura Morrison. You could sort of see a resemblance if you squinted and didn’t think too hard about it. They replaced Temeura with Racially Ambiguous G.I. Joe. If I didn’t know better and someone told me the animated clones are space Italians from the moon of New Jersey I would buy it. One Million Brothers Pizzeria and Italian Bistro. Not that there’s something wrong with being space Italian, I just don’t think it’s the right choice for the Fetts. The design got slightly improved by season 7 but it still bugs the hell out of me.

I did eventually get into the show later and (of course) got invested in the clones. Unfortunately, they were largely sidelined by the Jedi storylines. Out of the two new main characters created for TCW, Ahsoka definitely got more development and focus than Rex. When they announced The Bad Batch, I was excited to see a show specifically devoted to the clones… at least that’s what it said on the tin. We have all seen what lurks beneath those stylish helmets.

Jango Fett, you are NOT the father.

So who is?

Based on interviews with Filoni, it sounds like the Bad Batch was a George Lucas idea. And like all his ideas, it’s super derivative. The original trilogy directly lifted elements from sci fi serials, westerns, and samurai movies, more specifically Kurosawa films like The Hidden Fortress. For The Bad Batch character designs, the influence is obviously American action and adventure movies.

Now let’s get specific. Bad Batch, who’s your daddy?

Hunter

Sylvester Stallone as Rambo in First Blood 1982. That bandana has become an integral part of the iconic action hero look. You see a character wearing one and it’s a visual shorthand for either “this character is a tough guy” like Billy played by Sonny Landham in Predator 1987, or “this character thinks he is/wants to be a tough guy” like Brand played by Josh Brolin in The Goonies 1985 or Edward Frog played by Corey Feldman in The Lost Boys 1987.

Hunter’s model is closest to the original clone base. If you look closely you will see the eyebrows are straighter with a much lower angle to the arch. His nose is also not the same shape as a standard clone like Rex, including a narrower bridge. It’s certainly not Temeura Morrison’s nose. Remember what I said about space Italians? It didn’t take much to push the existing clone design to resemble an specific Italian man instead of a specific Māori man. The 23&Me came back, and Hunter inherited more than the bandana from Sylvester.

Crosshair

The long narrow nose, the sharp cheekbones, the scowl. That’s no clone, that’s just animated Clint Eastwood. Not even Young and Hot Clint Eastwood from Rawhide 1959-1965. With that hair, I’m talking Gran Torino 2008. The man of few words schtick and family friendly toothpick in lieu of cigar are pure Eastwood as The Man With No Name from Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns A Fist Full of Dollars 1964, For a Few Dollars More 1965, and The Good the Bad and the Ugly 1966.

In a way, this is full circle because the actor Jeremy Bulloch took inspiration from Clint Eastwood for his performance as Boba Fett in ESB.

Wrecker

In an interview Filoni lists the Hulk as an (obvious) inspiration for Wrecker. Ever seen the old Hulk tv show from 1978? Well take a look at the actor who played him, Lou Ferrigno. Would you look at that. Even has his papa’s nose.

You could make the argument that Wrecker was influenced by The Rock, an appropriately buff ‘n bald Polynesian (Samoan, not Maori) man. But look at him next his Fast and Furious costar Vin Diesel and tell me which one resembles Wrecker’s character model more.

Tech

Tech is a little trickier for me to place. If he has a more direct inspiration it must be something I haven’t seen. That said, his hairline is very Bruce Willis as John McClane in Die Hard 1988. His quippiness and large glasses remind me of Shane Black as Hawkins from Predator 1987. In terms of his face, he looks a but like the result of McClane and Hawkins deciding to settle down and start a family. Although, Tech’s biggest contributors are probably just everyone on TV Trope’s list for Smart People Wear Glasses.

And finally,

Echo

Oh Echo. Considering he wasn’t created for the Bad Batch, he probably wasn’t based on a particular character or movie. But if I had to guess, his situation and appearance remind me a lot of Alex Murphy played by Peter Weller in Robocop 1987. However, Robocop explored the Man or Machine Identity Crisis with more nuance, depth, and dignity. Yikes.

The exact tropes and references used in The Bad Batch have been done successfully with characters who aren’t even human. Gizmo from Gremlins 2: The New Batch 1990 had a brief stint with the Rambo bandana. I could have picked any number of characters for Defining Feature Is Glasses but here is the most cursed version of Simon of Alvin and the Chipmunks. Suffer as I have. Marc Antony with his beloved Pussyfoot from Looney Tunes has the same tough guy with a soft center vibe as Wrecker and his Lula (also a kind of cat). Hell, in the same show we have Cad Bane sharing Cowboy Clint Eastwood with Crosshair. I actually think Bane makes a better Eastwood which is wild considering Crosshair has Eastwood’s entire face and Bane is blue.

So we’ve established you don’t need your characters to look exactly like their inspirations to match their vibe. So why go through the trouble and cost of creating completely new character designs instead of recycling and altering assets they already had on hand? Just slap on a bandana, toothpick, goggles, and make Wrecker bigger than the others while he does a Hulk pose and you’re done. Based on the general reaction to Howzer it would have been a low effort slam dunk crowd pleaser.

But they didn’t do that.

So here’s the thing. I like the tropes used in The Bad Batch. I am a fan of action adventure movies from the 80s-90s, the sillier the better. I am part of the Bad Batch’s target audience. Considering what I know about Disney and Lucasfilm, I went in with low expectations. I genuinely don’t hate the idea of seeing references to these actors and media in The Bad Batch. I don’t think basing these characters on tropes was a bad idea. If anything it’s a solid starting point for building the characters.

The trouble is nothing got built on the foundation. The plot is directionless, the pacing is wacky, and the characters have nearly no emotional depth or defining character arcs. They just sort of exist without reacting much while the story happens around them. But I can excuse all of that. You don’t stay a fan of Star Wars as long as I have not being able to cherrypick and fill in the gaps. This show has a deeper issue that shouldn’t be ignored.

Why do the animated clones bear at best only a passing resemblance to their live action actor? In interviews, Filoni wouldn’t shut up but the technological advancements in the animation for season 7. So if they are updating things, why not try to make the clones a closer match to their source material? Why did they have to look like completely different people in The Bad Batch to be “unique”? Looking like Temeura Morrison would have no bearing on their special abilities and TCW proved you can have identical looking characters and still have them be distinct. In fact, that’s a powerful theme and the source of tragedy for the clones’ narrative overall.

Here’s Filoni’s early concept art of Crosshair, Wrecker, Tech, and Hunter. (Interesting but irrelevant: Wrecker seems to have a cog tattoo similar to Jesse’s instead of a scar. Wouldn’t it have been funny if they kept that so when they met in season 7 one if them could say something like “Hey we’re twins!” That’s a little clone humor. Just for you guys 😘)

None of these drawings look like the clones in TCW, much less Temeura Morrison. Let’s be generous. Maybe Filoni struggles with drawing a real person’s likeness, as many people do. But he had to hand this off to other artists down the line whose job specifically involves making a stylized character resemble their actor. Yet the final designs missed the mark almost as much as this initial concept. Starting to seem as if the clones looking more like Temeura Morrison was never even on the table. It wasn’t a lack of creativity, skill or technical limitations on the part of the creative team. I don’t think there is an innocent explanation. They went out of their way to make the final product exactly how we got it.

This goes beyond homage. They could have made the same pop culture references and character tropes without completely stripping Temeura Morrison from the role he originated. It was a very purposeful choice to replace him with more immediately familiar actors from established franchises and films. It wouldn’t shock me if Filoni, Lucas, and anyone else calling the shots didn’t even think hard or care enough about the decision to immediately recognize a problem. And I don’t think they believed anyone else would either. At least no one whose opinion they cared about. Those faces are comfortingly familiar and proven bankable. They are what we’re all used to seeing after all. They’re white.

Lack of imagination, bad intentions, or simple ignorance doesn’t really matter in the end. The result is the same. Call it what it is. They replaced a man of color with a bunch of white guys. That’s by the book garden variety run of the mill whitewashing. There’s no debate worth having about it. For a fanbase that loves to nitpick things like whether or not it’s in character for Han to shoot first or Jeans Guy in the Mandalorian, we sure are quick to find excuses for clones who look nothing like their template. Why is that? If you don’t see the problem, congratulations. Your ass is showing. Pull your jeans up.

#star wars #the bad batch #unwhitewashtbb #wrecker #crosshair #tech #hunter #echo

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mandareeboo · 3 years

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For drabble monday. How about the pilot finding Mark and thanking him for saving them? If not for his actions, Nolan would have killed them like the first pilot. The boy needs all thanks and praise he can get after the final.

"Put on your mask," Cecil said. There is no hello. No questions about how his jaw is feeling, or how his teeth are regenerating (a weird side effect of Viltrum healing, Mark thought. Useful, but weird) or whether he was up for company. The man just strolled right on in and demanded things from him.

Mark struggled to sit up. "Cecil, I'm not doing any superheroing-"

"Shut up," he said, somehow just as blandly. "And put your goddamn mask on. You've got a visitor."

He turns and leaves Mark with about ten billion questions. Visiting the GDA medical center is basically impossible if you're not high-level clearance or Debbie Grayson. Half the reason he hadn't asked for William was because he knew the pain in the ass they'd have to put him through just for a five minute chat.

Also: his mom had to approve any and all visitors, as he was still technically a minor. So. Like. Double-weird they didn't know his identity.

But Cecil's hovering just outside the door like a weird Uncle that only shows up to steal leftovers at Christmas, so he reluctantly grabbed the mask off the side table and pulled it on. Freshly fixed by Art, his mom had said. (God, he hoped Art wasn't too upset about all the blood).

There's a dozen scenarios running through his mind as the door slides open. Maybe Titan- he'd heard through the grapevine that he'd become a big shot, maybe he'd come to ask for his help again. Could be the Guardians, but they were all working hard fixing the shit his dad broke, so it seemed redundant to hide his face (they deserved to know what the child of such a monster looked like. They HAD to). He almost expects Amber to strut in, having kicked enough government balls to tell him off for almost dying.

It's a woman- middle-aged, if he had to guess. She's in full military get-up, helmet tucked securely in the crook of her elbow. Thick brown eyebrows and the typical regulation shave.

"Invincible, sir," she said.

"Oh," he said. "Uh, hey.... you?"

"We've not met before, sir."

"Oh, thank god." Mark slapped his chest a little. Crisis averted. "And, uh, no need for the 'sir' stuff, okay? Sir is..." my dad's name, he almost jokes. It stings. Too soon. "It's not necessary."

The soldier's features softened a bit. She probably could tell how young he was. Mark hated that about his voice- how it gave away that he was some idiot in high school.

"I flew the other jet that aimed at Omni-man," she explained. "He was going to kill me. I was running out of ammo. I could... I could almost feel the dispassion in him as he tried to hit me." She shuddered. "You saved my life, Invincible. I came to thank you."

"Oh, shit. Right. That." Frankly, Mark had forgotten about the second jet. Hadn't really had time to process outside of mangled bones and teeth and the metallic screech of metal as people blew to bits around him. The effortless crunch of that man's skull. (That night in Titan's tower, when he watched his father float away, and had been too ashamed to tell his mom because he thought he'd failed. He could've saved her then. That's when he failed). "It's uh... I mean, it's not nothing. Your life is important. I just had a lot going on on my plate that day."

"How old are you?" she asked.

Mark bristled. "That's a little confidential, lady."

She winced and backed off. "Right, right, sorry. You just... remind me a bit of my nephew."

Mark sighed, gently tapping the back of his skull against the wall. Damnit. Now he felt like an ass. "...I'm not legally able to drink," he said finally. It was a wild concept to admit to. He could fight to the death but heaven forbid he crack a Budwiser.

The soldier slowly shook her head. "You're too damn young to go through all that." She touched his arm with a surprising amount of diplomacy. "I can't ever explain to you how much that little action meant to me, Invincible. It was an instinct in the fight, but that instinct saved me from never seeing my family again. You saved so many lives that day, lives you don't even realize. All thanks to the little things." She briefly squeezed and backed away, saluting. "Thank you, Invincible. If you ever need anything at all, I left my number with Director Stedman. He set the whole thing up, actually."

Mark's fingers wound through the flimsy sheets. His eyes stung with unshed tears. He didn't want to cry. He wanted to be someone worth such adoration. He wanted to be a hero.

(Deep down, he still wanted to be like dad.)

"Anytime," he rasped, finally.

"Never again," the soldier returned. "If there's a god out there, you'll never had to go through that again."

"Then I guess god must hate me," Mark attempted to joke, but his snickering immediately turned into half-choking, wheezing attempts to keep his breathing under control. "Every time I look in the mirror... I'll see his face."

#It's hard to tell the gender of the second pilot #but the voice struck me as more feminine personally #Invincible #Mark Grayson #Cecil Stedman #Drabble Prompts

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fefeman · 3 years

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I said I'll make a joke about it, so here it is, Asterix characters as operators as if they've always been here.

This is, obviously, a shitpost.

Asterix the Gaul (5*)

the welfare operator of the hypothetical crossover

class: Brawler guard

Race: Liberi

DP cost: 9

Trait: Block 1 enemy

Talent: Magic potion (elite 0/ elite 1 / Elite 2)

Increase redeployment time by 30s. When deployed, gain 2/3/4 charges of magic potion. When using a skill, attack +50/75/100% and activate the skill bonus effect.

First skill: "Les baffes" (Init SP 40, SP cost 50, duration 20s, Auto-recovery)

ASPD +60. if a Magic potion charge was used, all SP are refunded at the skill's end.

SP cost 30, duration 20s, auto-recovery

ASPD - 30, Att + 80%, and target is pushed back moderately. If a Magic potion charge was used, the target is pushed back extremely strongly, and each attack can hit up to two targets.

concept notes: I made him a brawler guard because he's rarely using anything else in the comics. Asterix is very strong while he has potion, his S1 gives him roughly the double DPS of flint, and his S2 can send even heavy enemies flying... but once he's out of potion his skills are a bit subpar. And because he needs to refill his potion, his redeployment time is longer than usual. His first skill means "the slaps" and his second is the sound he makes in the comic when punching a roman away. He is a Liberi because of the small wings on his helmet.

Obelix (6*)

The 6* of the theoretical crossover.

class: Resolute defender (or enmity defender if you prefer, like Mudrock & Vulcan)

race: Forte

Trait: cannot be healed by allies

DP cost: 36

Tallent 1: Fell into it (elite 0/ elite 1 / Elite 2)

HP increased by 15/30/45%. ATT increased by 15/30/45%. DEF increased by 15/30/45%. Art damages taken are increased by 20%.

Tallent 2: "Ils sont fous, ces Ursus" (Elite two)

Take 12% fewer damages from Ursus enemies (including the emperor's blade) and deal 12% more damages to them.

Skill 1: Roasted boar. (Init SP 30, SP cost 60, last 30 seconds (15 for the roasting, 15 for the healing))

Stop attacking and begin to roast a boar. Halfway through the skill, start eating the boar, recovering with each bite (attack) 5% max HP

Skill 2: Big Boned (Passive)

Increase first talent effect (+ 15% max HP, +15% attack, + 20% DEF)

Skill 3: Menhir slam (Init SP 15, SP cost 20, last 15 seconds)

Deal 300% area damages on the tile in front of him, then deploy a menhir on this tile if possible. Menhir has the same HP, block, and def as Obelix, but 0 ATT. It disappears at the end of the skill.

Concept notes:

Firstly, I chose the Resolute archetype to echo how Obelix isn't allowed to get magic potion because he fell in it as a kid. Likewise, he's not getting healing because of it. The same even also gave him his first talent, which is just a massive increase in stats, at the cost of a vulnerability to art. To push the whole "no healing" thing further, I made it so only one of his skills allows him to heal himself, and not very efficiently. His talent "ils sont fous ces Ursus" (these Ursus are crazy) is a reference to his famous catchphrase and also to the fact it's the blade of the emperor who seem to dislike the Gauls the most... I guess this is revenge. Obelix is mostly a brutal block of stats on par with Eunectes, but he doesn't have a lot of way to sustains himself.

He's a forte because of the small horns on his helmet.

I may if I'll do Panoramix/Getafix later.

#shitpost #arknights #asterix the gaul

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zosonils-art · 3 years

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👀 may we know more about rhythm man?

we sure may!!!!! rhythm dump under the cut as always

rhythm man was made to do a variety of tasks relating to sound! mostly he either does sound checks for important devices like hydrophones, sonar, seti listening devices, stuff like that, or he analyses the audio that they pick up in greater detail than any human or almost any computer can. someone [probably dr light, who created him] showed him a rhythm game pretty early in his life, and he instantly fell in love with the game genre and, more significantly, the concept of music itself. he's still doing the job he was designed for, but his real passion and arguably what he's better known for in-universe is creating music, which he uses his intricate understanding of audio to excel at

he makes a point of being a cool guy to be around! he's nice, fun-loving, and always has a joke ready. he's very encouraging of others, and thinks everyone should get to chase their dreams and do what makes them happy. when there's no bright side for him to look on, though, he doesn't really know how to act, and as such he feels uncomfortable confronting serious emotional situations and has a bad habit of repressing any negative feelings he doesn't know how to deal with and just letting them get worse. he might be developing some resentment towards his work for how much of his time it takes up that he'd rather be spending pursuing his interests, but oops that's not a fun feeling! better bottle it up and not think about it

all robots are neurodivergent but rhythm in particular has SO much undiagnosed adhd. he [probably] doesn't mind his job, but he can't pretend to be nearly as enthusiastic about it as he is his music, and tends to come off as distracted and spacey when he's at work. he's also capable of entering a hyperfocus-like state that temporarily re-allocates computing power usually dedicated to spatial awareness and sensory processing to focus on something else, which was designed to let him analyse audio with even more precision. rhythm occasionally uses this feature as intended, but more often finds himself turning it on while he's making music or playing a game to get into the groove more

he'll gladly enjoy any genre of music, but anything under the electronic umbrella is his favourite to listen to and create, especially bass music and all its subgenres! outside of genre preferences he likes songs with a lot of tiny bits and pieces and intricate details to notice - i think he'd really enjoy bill wurtz's music, for instance, due to just how much is going on in almost every song. he posts the music he makes online, and has a pretty sizeable following for both the novelty of a robot that makes music and the fact that everything he makes genuinely slaps super hard. being a robot, his criteria for 'good' music is all very simple and objective stuff like whether it's in key or has a time signature that makes sense or follows a pattern rather than just being random sounds, so he's able to appreciate almost any music for what it is and can name the number of songs he actively dislikes on one hand, although despite his best efforts to be forgiving he's a bit of an audio quality snob

the only sound he genuinely doesn't like is white noise, because the total lack of a discernable pattern or anything notable freaks him out. it's hard-coded into him to try and find meaningful noise in very fuzzy sound, and even if he analyses it back and forth on every level and concludes that it's just random aural static he's still left with a feeling of unease about it. his headphones have a sort of noise-cancelling mode that completely blocks out most background noise so he can maintain a conversation without constantly pausing to overanalyse everything he hears - without the noise cancelling he's got the world's worst case of auditory processing disorder. he's weak to psychic cry because it's just a really violent blast of white noise, and is one of the only bosses susceptible to its stunning effect because the sound freaks him out so badly he has to stop for a moment to force himself to ignore it

almost everything about rhythm came from the idea i had for his stage! i imagine it functioning as a sort of rhythm platformer where almost every moving part is timed to the beat of the stage music. it's the obligatory yoku block-spamming stage of the game, but in theory if you follow the music and jump across in time with the beat you'll make it through without much trouble [and maybe even have fun! in a stage with *yoku blocks!!*]. other stuff like constantly-spawning enemies and the attack patterns of rhythm himself would also be on that same beat cycle! as for theming, his stage is a mostly-vertical climb up a radio tower - wily's reprogramming takes his repressed frustration over not always getting to focus on his passion and upgrades it to outright spite, and he decides that actually you WILL listen to his mixtape whether you want to or not and proceeds to hijack the biggest radio tower in mosteropolis and override every single station with lofi beats to take over the world to

rhythm is the first robot master idea i ever had that wasn't a reference to something else, although for a pretty long time he was only a stage idea and a name. maybe that's why his design changed more throughout his development than any of the other guys [even between the sketch and the final lineart for this art i refined his look like 3 times]. initially he had a more 'tough'/punk-ish look, with spikes on his helmet and around his wrists and ankles, but i ended up phasing most of those elements out in favour of the led lights and generally less intimidating look. i briefly considered having his design reference rhythm heaven somehow, since it's my favourite rhythm game and the only one i'm any good at lmao, but nothing came of that - perhaps his stage enemies could have some rh references in their ranks instead, chuck some screwbots up there or something. he also had massive anime sunglasses at some point but it's better for that design to never see the light of day

he also likes dancing! hence his funky moves in the art. his body shape isn't compatible with every dance style what with the clunky robot limbs and having a stereo for a chest, and he definitely wasn't built for physical agility, but with a little practice he can pick up most dance moves no problem. he's definitely a dance battler, and i think he would love rhythm games that trick you into exercising like dance dance revolution or just dance. rhythm man does a frame perfect ddr tas in real-time on an actual cabinet

that about wraps it up for the rhythm infodump, thank you for asking about him!! as always here's the unfiltered and transparent versions of his artwork

#i'm really proud of myself for coming up with the quaver headphones. i think those look neat #zos draws #mega man #mega man oc #robot master oc #rhythm man #zos answers #zos talks #anon #zoriginal characters

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optimisticrunawaygalaxy · 2 years

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Do I like Spider-Man: home coming? No, no i do not. But I will always and forever go feral for these GI-FUCKING-GANTIC METAL WINGS??

Like??? and the fact that its mainly just metal but he still got the big feathers?? Bro this entire design is cheffs kiss honestly (I know that that is just concept art)

Pretty sure they used this design for the movie, which is sadly not nearly as fuggen HUGE, but still very very dope

I realy wish they went with the other design, with the huge wings and all, because a lot of the promo art still used that design and the wings where clearly meant to be like, a LOT more bird like, folding into themself and all that (like this):

On the other hand I LOVE his body design, like-

????? THATS SO DOPE?=?? SO clearly hand made and not profesional but still skilled and someone (in character) thought about practicality

also the helmet? slaps SO much ass

I love this whole things color scheme, super dirty browns and grays, only accent is green (pants and eyes) and even for the pants its dirty and washed out. The fur colar is the only bright thing on the design and clearly is meant to draw back to the original vulture design (shudders), it also draws the eye to him and his body :D

#I should be drawing #i realy should be #but i mean LOOK AT HIM

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cosplayinamerica · 3 years

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Medieval Sub-Zero : west_coast_ccprops93

The character I cosplay is an original concept Sub Zero from the video game series Mortal Kombat. I reimagined him as a medieval character complete with armor head to toe, sword, shield and of course a knight’s helmet that resembled the menpo mask depicted in the video games.

There are elements of samurai, Roman, Viking and medieval European influences. The character I created spawns from a love of all my favorite fandoms such as Lord of the rings, Fantasy RPGs like Skyrim and the Witcher series. Mortal Kombat on the other hand has a deeper place in my heart since it was major part of my childhood and a video game that my brother and I bonded over. We both equally know all the lore to each character and together have played and beaten almost every game in series over the years.

Sub Zero was always a character I gravitated towards growing up. His combos in the game were brutal and worth taking the time to learn, and of course his ice powers (who wouldn’t love that?). His story line is incredibly interesting being the grandmaster of a mystical Ninja clan called the lin Kuei.

Sub Zero to me is a stoic, formidable character and his presence always reminded me of someone of nobility such as a knight. Of course that is not the main reason why I chose to go medieval. all my cosplays including work I’ve done for others to an extent have been original designs. This has allow me to be more creative and free with my builds instead of stressing to replicate for accuracy.

I had my first fan reaction from a couple of people that recognized me from the previous year. As soon as I took off my helmet they shouted “omg it’s the Kenobi guy from last year!, we can’t believe you out did yourself this year”. This was at a small event located in Temple, Texas that I attended with a local comic con. Other than that to my surprise I’ve received lots of love and admiration from the online cosplay community and my peers.

Normally it’s tricky to change up a character online then to receive negative reactions from people. Luckily the people I communicate and engage with are for the most part other cosplayers and makers who accept originality. I absolutely cannot wait to attend a convention this year and get dehydrated while looking awesome!

THE OUTFIT

The entire costume revolves around a basic male armor template Purchased from Evilted.com and a basic knight helmet template from my friend Ashen Warrior props. The rest is completely free hand using Eva Foam.

Over the course of 2020 I started off first by building the chest armor. I loved the aesthetic of Sub zero’s shoulder armor from Mortal Kombat 11. By complete accident from a incorrectly measure forearm piece fit perfectly atop the shoulders. Continued from there and added the noticeable arch that swoops up towards the neck. I didn’t know at the time but eventually it would cause issues for mobility when wearing my helmet. I loved the look and continued to keep the shoulders the same despite movement complications.

From there I Made my own MK dragon symbol stencil, slapped that on the chest using Eva foam and called it good. The lower torso was missing something so I added interlocking armor that also covered my waist. I did this after browsing concept art and paying homage to the classic ninja Tabards depicted in the video games. I continued to add layer after layer through the year.

As I stated before there was no clear vision for what this costume would look like in the end. Eventually I would complete the armor just by doing free hand foamsmithing.

Late 2020 and the beginning of this year I decided to retire my original sub zero costume and recycle the materials. That was my first costume but it felt right to use the materials for this evolutionary step in my cosplay journey. The original costume was made using parts from a cheap sub zero costume from Spirit Halloween, cotton fabric, a leather bomber jacket from a yard sale and whatever I could find.

These were the missing pieces to Medieval sub zero and added layers of details that sold the character and satisfied my creative hunger. The shield and weapons were also done free hand and referencing random pictures from google. I learned a lot from doing costume and prop weapons commissions through the year.

Keeping the costume comfortable, form fitting but also provide full range of motion for posing and traversing crowds. This forced me to slow down and think before I made, making sure that each piece interlocks correctly. I don’t use any software on computers at the moment (it’s something I should definitely be doing and would save me a lot of time). Now it’s my most detailed and comfortable costume to date.

My wife and I recently did a photoshoot at a local state park. We hiked a mile or two up and down hills and across creeks. Other than being hot under the armor which is expected I was absolutely comfortable. The hardest part was really taking the time to build something durable that should last many conventions and hikes through the woods.

DISCOVERING COSPLAY

My awareness of “cosplay” and prop making didn’t start until late 2019. Before then for years my brother and i would dress up together for Halloween. We both have always customized our costumes since we were young. We were very close growing up and what kept us tougher through our parents divorce and other hardships in our childhood was video games. We grew up very poor but our imagination was rich. We spent our childhood acting out our favorite characters. Then using sticks as lightsabers so on and so forth.

Flash forward 20 years. What motivated me was a Sub Zero mask my brother mailed to me as gift. I had just moved to Texas from Oregon with my wife and daughter. During that time, i slowly sunk into a deep depression and a bad place mentally. I felt isolated, alone and lost. I was away from my childhood town, friends, family and all that i knew. I contemplated suicide which was something I struggled with for years. This was something I’ve dealt with all my life. I have PTSD and depression from events in my childhood and teenage years. Each day is different, I’m either really happy or fearful , anxious and angry. I am always in fight or flight mode.

Well, my little brother sent in the mail a cheap Sub Zero costume and a really expensive mask out of nowhere as a gift. The costume was too small and there were aspects of it that I did not like.

Sure I was appreciative that he gave me a costume but I knew I could remake it. So with no costume making, sewing or cosplay knowledge at all. I set out to make a Sub Zero costume and was determined to make my brother proud. I borrowed my wife’s grandmothers sewing machine and went for it.

Taking apart the original armor pieces, a leather bomber jacket and whatever I could find I made something out of shear will. After that I felt confident enough to make my brother a costume as well but this time using Eva Foam. I spent weeks researching and overspending on materials from Amazon.

Eventually we both had our dream costumes and I was so proud ( mind you they were terrible) but we thought we looked so badass and worth taking out. That same year he flew out to Texas and we attended our first convention together and first time portraying our favorite characters. It was a dream come true. Having people complimenting and taking pictures with us was mind blowing, we felt like celebrities for a day. Two bothers from a small town now in a large convention amongst thousands of people, a community that embraces dressing up and expressing your fandom.

Prop making has changed my life in ways I never thought it would. Personally it unlocked this creative and artistic passion I never knew I had. I’ve always been creative but not focused. It’s a hobby that keeps me sane and happy. It’s a beautiful and wonderful way to express one’s self. Keep making, painting, sewing or doing what you love. Hardships in life are unavoidable but your own personal happiness is always in your control. I still struggle to this day but now have an outlet creatively and a community of friends /colleagues.

https://linktr.ee/West_Coast_CCPROPS

#sub zero #sub zero cosplay #Mortal Kombat #mortal kombat cosplay #cosplay feature #cosplay interview

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cobraonthecob · 4 years

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Tried a drawing challenge two years ago, abandoned it, then decided to use the rest of the space to showcase my ARC squad!

description from my dA under the cut, it’s quite long:

So two years ago I did a weird art style challenge with Nightfalcon but then I abandoned the project due to how rare a dragon is to show up in a 2D animated show (at least, in the shows I knew, I got desperate to use MLP's style aksjfkw) and looking back, I might do the challenge again but actually follow through from lineart to coloring bc I didn't know how animation worked back then, hence the stars still on the models even though it shouldn't be there bc they're tiny details and dots. So I tacked on my ARC trooper squad to fill in the rest of the page and because I needed to design them. I drew them four years (!!!!) ago in this doodle: www.deviantart.com/cobracatdra… (Twistedjaw is now Twist and will get a redesign, but I wanted to work on my ARC squad before then) i just realized i forgot to put eye highlights in Wave's eyes, oh well, it's fine, he has the same eye color as the rest lol Shroud and Orca have the standard clone cut, but they have different personalities and scars - Orca is a little more social with his vode than Shroud is, along with Shroud having black pauldrons while the rest of the squad has the left grey pauldron and a different colored right pauldron. Shroud, Bolt, and Wave became ARCs shortly after the Battle of Geonosis, while a few months into the war, Orca, Dolphin, and Whale were promoted to ARC troopers, hence the different colored pauldrons. I changed Bolt's tattoo color from yellow to black simply because it's more likely that black ink was available for the troopers (though Hardcase has blue ink for some reason ahahaha) and also so that it shows up on his skin a lot better Wave has the sides of his head shaved but grows the rest of his hair to the standard clone cut, while Dolphin I wanted to give him the Sokka warrior wolf tail kind of look (though he doesn't grow his hair out there) and Whale I kept him shaved bald. Then I slapped on scars on them because I could >: D Designing their helmets was also pretty fun - Orca's I changed the design slightly to cover the entire helmet, but the original concept is still there - keeping the design to the forehead/top of helmet Shroud's helmet's face is painted because I thought it'd fit his more serious "mask" personality - he has a tendency to hide his emotions under the guise of having it all together. Bolt has symmetrical lightning bolts to throw off nat-born commanders if and when he takes off his bucket around them. Wave's was really hard to do - I knew I wanted the cheeks of the helmets to have the same "symmetrical patterns on helmet, asymmetrical face underneath), but I also wanted to evoke a seafoam theme on the helmet - then it hit me. I could just do paint splats so that it looks like sea spray, so I did. Dolphin's design goes from his helmet all the way down his chest plate, so I'll draw that later, but this is a rough estimate on how much is on his helmet. Whale's was also difficult to design, I didn't want to go basic on him, but I didn't want to repeat the design I gave for Dolphin, so I put his whale design on the top of the helmet.

#nightfalcon arts #star wars #star wars: the clone wars #clone trooper oc #arc trooper oc #arc trooper shroud #arc trooper wave #arc trooper bolt #arc trooper orca #arc trooper dolphin #arc trooper whale #nightfalcon

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alphabees-writes · 5 years

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Glee - S1 E4 (Preggers)

And from this moment onwards, Kurt Hummel proceeded to steal every single damn scene he was in. I’m actually unironically excited for this one. I didn’t think that could still happen! Here goes!

I will always love this Single Ladies scene. I will always love season 1′s Tina/Kurt friendship. Also, Brittany’s here, inexplicably. Did he pay her for this? In Pixie sticks, perhaps? Or Monopoly money?

“Kurt’s Superstar Playlist” is the most adorable name his playlist could possibly have. All we get to see on it are 4 Beyonce songs, and 1 Gwen Stefani - but it’s a cute little insight.

God sometimes I forget how cute Jenna Ushkowitz is and then this scene really slaps me round the face with it huh!!!

WHY are you filming this, Kurt? What are you using this for? I’d love to know. I’d say it’s just to check out his own dancing technique but it’s in black and white… Where are you posting this!!!

I want that swingy-suspended chair thing he has in his room sooooo bad

Ok now the fact that this is being filmed is giving me fic ideas…

BURT HUMMEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! BURT F U C K I N G HUMMEL BABIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

God the look of fear on all three of their faces when they see Burt??? Don’t you worry kids he’ll come around real soon…

Burt’s approving nod when he yanks on Kurt’s unitard… God I love this man.

The LOOK on Kurt’s FACE when Brittany says he’s on the football team… I can hear his inner monologue like “bitch we may be in the basement but I will make a window to throw you out of”

Kurt just wants to relate to his old man so bad :( Baby boy he’s already so damn proud of you!!! Also that LAUGH.

He really just slapped Tina’s ass! And she completely rolls with it, the absolute champion. Also, the subtitles Netflix provided me with were (smacks bottom) and I just love that.

Oh god it immediately cuts to the WORST scene. Terri learning to give birth. William Schuester trying to help. Just let me perish, RIB?

Shout out to Kendra’s actress for somehow managing to make her character even more despicable than Terri!

Actually the shit she says to Will here is almost valid… All three of them are fucking awful huh!

Seriously why are Kendra and Terri the best actresses on this whole show? It’s the only reason I care about this fake pregnancy arc anymore…

The teacher’s lounge is always either an arid, desolate wasteland, or the only watering hole within 100 miles where all the thirsty ass teachers congregate. Take your pick.

Why does Will pretend to hesitate before going to sit with Ken and Emma? They’re the only people we ever see you talk to dude!!!

Ken with the psychoanalysis, wow. Just hit her right there buddy!

THAT’S HOW SUE C’s IT!!!

Rachel really just EXPECTS every solo… I almost forgot how bad she was when she started. “Maria is MY part!” Not anymore!! Kudos to Lea Michele for managing to make Rachel really sound like she thinks she’s the victim when she really isn’t.

Tina’s face… She was seriously happy. Season 1 Rachel SUCKS for even trying to take this from her. She IS talented. She IS ready!

Everybody else knows it’s a fat load of BS… Kurt lowers his sunglasses to look at her like she’s a bug beneath his shoe. Also, Kurt, why sunglasses? You don’t start getting hangovers ‘til next episode, sweetie!!

“You’re trying to punish me” I think being a total martyr might be one of Rachel’s worst traits early on in the series. I get that performing is her deal, but she can’t even take a second to at least fake being happy for Tina? Unreal.

Everybody else just moving straight on with it is hilarious. They’re all so happy for Tina and don’t give a shit about Rachel’s melodrama, which I’m living for!

I wanna be all “Finn’s an arrogant bastard for assuming Kurt wanted to ask him to prom, grr!!” But then I remember Kurt’s canonically in love with him at this point, so I’ll let him off this time

Kurt’s devious little smile when he asks Finn for a favour… I love one (1) boy!

AHHH THE TRYOUT SCENE. INCREDIBLE. This might honestly be my favourite scene from season 1. It’s definitely up there, anyway.

Cute brotherly Furt moments. Finn putting that helmet on for him. “Red’s your colour!” And they DON’T make Kurt get all giggly about Finn just being nice to him? Kurt just telling him he’s really cool? Pure.

“Rehearsing–” “PRACTICING!”

Finn tells Kurt he’ll be murdered if he uses his music and Kurt comes straight back with that rum chocolate souffle line. This show would be NOTHING without Kurt.

And THIS is what I mean when I say Kurt was a Gryffindor from the get-go. Even now he’s refusing to be anything less than himself for anybody, even the jackasses that harass him every day when he’s on their pitch.

Shut the fuuuuuuuck up, Puck!

“Hi, I’m Kurt Hummel and I’ll be auditioning for the role of kicker.” What did we do to deserve him?

His starting pose… His hips… The footwork… “That was good, right?” His whole ATTITUDE. THE ROYAL WAVE.

As if the TV network would cancel Sue’s news segment for having a few Cheerios in the glee club?

Oh god. Quinn telling Finn she’s pregnant. The fucking cinematography here… The camera work, the audio mixing…

“Think of the mail… Think of the MAIL…”

Did Quinn seriously just say “Ask Jeeves” told her the hot tub could knock her up? I mean, I know she’s lying, but ASK JEEVES? That should’ve tipped Finn off more than anything else…

Damn. Season 1 really had the power to get me shook, laughing, and then crying in the span of 30 seconds? Or maybe it’s just because I can’t stand seeing Diana cry…

Sandy lets his kettle whistle for far too long, it stresses me out

Sue just… Offers this fired man a job? I know she’s got Figgins by the balls over the stockings commercial, but come on, surely the council would get involved or whatever???

Rachel sucks right now but god damn it Taking Chances gives me chills every time I hear her sing it… And she’s so cute when they tell her she got the lead!!!

If musical stuff is so frowned upon socially here, how are they expecting to get a full cast for Cabaret? Especially if NONE of the other glee kids are interested?

And there’s no funding for the arts but they have a whole ballet studio on school property…?

Sign #12 That Mr Schuester Is An Asshole: He just straight up tells Rachel that he’s the only person that likes her, which is wrong for so many reasons

He does have a point about Rachel needing to take a step back sometimes though. I hate that she’s so awful sometimes that I have to agree with Schuester.

He’s not HURTING you Rachel, he’s giving a chance to grow to somebody else!

Jenna did a beautiful job with this solo… Tina’s so cute too! I love her singing this sweet song with her goth aesthetic

This scene between Mr Schue and Tina was almost sweet BUT:

Sign #13 That Mr Schuester Is An Asshole: He did NOT need to touch Tina’s shoulders, or get that close, or whisper to comfort her.

Don’t take one for the team, Tina! Take one for YOURSELF!

I’ll let him hugging Finn slide because, wow, Finn’s breaking my heart right now…

However I will not let it slide that he’s seemingly taken him off campus for lunch…???? Dude, take him to your office. This is creepy as all hell even if he has good intentions…

“I got this at the school library. Did you know that you can just… Borrow books from there?” Protect him. Protect him at ALL costs. He was so genuinely inspired by watching Kurt make those goals that he went to a library for the first time in his LIFE oh my goodness

Oh god. The camera panning from a random father and his young son, over to Mr Schue looking at Finn? HE’S NOT YOUR SON MY GUY, HE IS YOUR PUPIL. PROFESSIONAL BOUNDARIES!!!

Terri and Will are both brushing their teeth with no toothpaste… Freaks…

Have I mentioned how much I adore those little background choir soundbites between scenes? They did so much for this show…

SHUT! UP! PUCK! Drink your fucking character development juice already!!!

Kurt just casually dropping in Sun Tzu’s Art of War… He just knows that. He’s prepared to just drop that in conversation. Son, why are you so ready for combat,

Also the way Kurt commands their attention? They can rag on him all they want but they all know he’s legit…

Look at all these doofuses in their football gear busting a move. Look at Kurt sat at the front just watching, judging, as he was born to do

MIKE! KILLING! IT! I love that they let us see a sneak peek of his moves… Serious HC that Kurt making the football team dance is the first time that Mike really got to show off his skills

Kurt shooing Mr Schue away like that gives me life!!! Sit down old man

“All right boys…” And they all look so concerned behind him lmao… “Oh– SNEAK ATTACK back to the ring…” Mike’s trying so hard to keep in time. I love him. OH and there’s Matt! Most valid glee club member simply because he never says anything.

“Comb through the hair… SLAP THE BUTT!” And they’re all trying so hard… 10/10

“I’m your best friend,” says Puck, to the boy he has been consistently fucking over for four (4) episodes, and presumably many years prior…

I really do hate Puck for the first part of this season but god damn does he have some lines. “’Sup, MILF?” “Well, CALL the Vatican! We got ourselves another ImMaCuLaTe CoNcEpTiOn!”

I remember the first time I heard the term “Lima Loser” but I didn’t know the show was set in a place called Lima (I would’ve been, like, 9) and I thought it was lime-a-loser. Like he was going to have limes thrown at him. And it was this big, serious threat…

How the FUCK did Terri get into Quinn’s car? Why is that never addressed? Like, ever? Quinn doesn’t even ASK?

Do this many people turn up to American high school sports events irl??? And do they really play the national anthem? That must get old

Why are all these football players 30… I’m so thirsty for realistic casting…

BURT’S HERE TO SEE HIS SON!!! We love a proud dad.

“I TOLD YOU! I TOLD YOU!!!” And now he’s doing high kicks. Kurt’s doing the absolute MOST.

I will never understand the rules of American football… And I mean NEVER.

“Ring on it on three” I love that it has a code name. And they were all too busy being dudebros to call it Single Ladies…

The one dude on the opposite team who starts boogying along is the real MVP

NEVERMIND. BURT BOPPING IN THE STANDS IS THE MVP!!!

“Can I pee first?” Legendary

Burt just going “he’s so little…” In the middle of the silent crowd…

MY BOY NEEDS HIS MUSIC!

BURT’S SO FUCKING PROUD I’M ACTUALLY CRYING??? YOU CAN HEAR HIM SHOUTING “THAT IS MY BOY!!! THAT IS MY SON!!!” THROUGH THE WHOLE CROWD!!!!

I feel like Puck seeing Finn and Quinn kiss and then the crowd going silent as he walks away is meant to make me feel… Bad for him…? But we’ve only ever seen him be mean to Quinn, really. You’ve got to earn those moments!

Ah… The skincare routine. He’s thriving.

Burt! Hummel! Is! Proud! Of! His! Son!

Burt… I’m pretty sure he assumed you wished his mother was alive. As opposed to her corpse being at the big game.

Oh boy here it comes…… Chris looks SO young here. So scared. So vulnerable. The way he slightly stutters… He nailed this scene. So much.

He’s gay!

He knows.

Do they make sensible heels in sizes for three year olds…? Asking for a dad

The raw EMOTION on Kurt’s face. It’s killing me.

This is the starting point… “I’m not in love with the idea, but I love you.” And it only gets better from there…

And he THANKS his SON. He’s sure. He’s so sure, Burt, and you are going to be so proud of him forever.

Finn gives Quinn that blanket his dad gave him when he was a baby… Did she give it back? I fucking hope so…

You tell him, Finn! Puck IS an asshole!

MIKE’S IN GLEE!!! SO IS MATT!!! And Puck’s here I guess, yay… He’s got a season or so of sucking to go before I can get excited about that.

“Regionals” here we come? My guy, let’s get through sectionals first…

Rachel’s big, cruel smile when she thinks she’s going to be handed Tina’s solo. Why would she presume that it’d just get handed to her??? I mean, I know why, but like, why… And she has the audacity to look like she’s been betrayed. Not even slightly, hon! You deserve nothing if not getting one solo is all it takes for you to quit!

This Sue’s corner genuinely gets me through some shit. “There’s not much of a difference between a stadium full of cheering fans and an angry crowd screaming abuse at you - they’re both just making a lot of noise. How you take it is up to you. Convince yourself they’re cheering for you. You do that, and someday, they will.” Hits me hard!

This one was longer. Primarily because of Burt, I will admit, but it can’t be helped. Perhaps it’s the best episode of season 1 because of Burt! Now that’s a break through…

#Glee #Glee Season 1 #Rosie watches things and then says things about the thing

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theashemarie · 5 years

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Meet Me on the Rink | Pearlina

["I like to go fast, Marina told her last week, and Pearl sees it now. The long profile of her body as she moves the quad skates, gliding as fast as she can around all the people, in tempo with Wet Floor’s Don’t Slip. She’s built for it, all those long lines, those muscled legs, the pumping of her arms. It’s intoxicating to watch her, especially for someone like Pearl, who loves these skates and this rink like she loves her home. Someone like Marina is exactly who she needs."]

[Roller Derby AU. A belated offering for Pearlina Week!]

[A collab between @theashemarie and @katiemonz. Concept by Ashe and Katie. Written by Ashe. Companion art piece (and punny nicknames) by Katie.]

[Crossposted on AO3]

☆ Reblogs appreciated! ☆

↪Chapter 1: [Don’t Slip] (You are here!) ↪Chapter 2: [Pick Me Up, Jump Lightly]

------

Ch. 1: Don’t Slip

The rink is almost full, which isn’t surprising. Fresh2Death is a popular team, even if Pearl’s barely heard of the other team, so people will show up in droves regardless of the actual match. From her vantage point in the stands, she can see Marie’s head, her gray-white hair pulled back and barely visible from under her backwards cap, and she easily recognizes the relaxed angle of her shoulders. The match is going well for her team. They’re in the second period and they’re up quite a few points—and, most importantly, her jammer currently has the lead, which means that she can end the jam if their point advantage looks to be in danger.

The jam is over a minute in so Pearl imagines that it won’t last longer, but she’s still on the edge of her seat. Fresh2Death’s current jammer—Loch Mess Monster (Four to her friends)—is small and fast, just like Pearl, and she’s good at finding openings in the pack, especially when her team is setting up for whips and walls. Pearl’s raced her a few times and they’re pretty evenly matched on the open track, though Pearl is better at leaping around the curves. Still, Four is good, so when she takes a hard hit to the side and is knocked out of bounds, Pearl feels her legs twinge a little when she lands on her knees. She can hear the smack of her kneepads all the way up here.

Four gets up easily and is forced, as according to the rules, to reenter the pack behind the person who knocked her out. Just barely, Pearl sees her glance at Marie, who is shaking her head. Keep going, she’s saying. We can score more points.

Because she was the first jammer to break through the pack at the beginning of the jam, Four has control over when to end the jam before the two minute limit is reached. The safe move there would have been to just end the jam, because the knockout put her back quite a few feet. However, her teammates, the blockers, are doing a great job stopping the other jammer from passing them and scoring. Plus, Marie is known for her risky moves, even on a runaway game like this one. She’s a legend in Inkopolis’s derby scene for a reason.

Four gets back on the track and is immediately accosted by the skater who knocked her out of bounds. Luckily for Four, a vertical grate is right in front of them, scattering the pack as everyone either sails through it in squid form or attempts to swerve around it. Just beyond, there’s a patch of green ink—Four’s team’s color—and Pearl sees her eyes land on it. If she can get herself into it, she can free herself of some of the blocker pressure and get some speed.

But the other team’s blockers see it too. And Four’s blockers see them. The other jammer is somewhere in the pack, closed on by Fresh2Death’s blockers and stuck behind a wall of two skaters. The other two blockers move to play defense, attempting to keep the other team from walling Four off.

Pearl feels her leg start to bounce. Four jukes toward the left, heading toward the inside of the curve, but then swings to the right. She passes one of the other team’s blockers, gaining a point, and then is blocked off by two more. The skates are loud on the floor as they shove at her, trying to knock her out of bounds, but she lowers her center and sails right into them. They throw their arms out, blocking her pass, and she jukes again, this time using the curve of the floor to head left again. Two of her own blockers meet her and they whip her forward, right into the ink.

She slides in and disappears, nothing more than a small ripple. Two of her blockers follow, flanking on either side, and when she hops out, she’s passed all four of the other team’s blockers. Marie waves her arms and whistles, a sharp, high pitched sound that Pearl knows well, and Four jabs her hands onto her hips multiple times, signaling the end of the jam.

“A grand slam,” the girl sitting beside Pearl says. She’s one of Pearl’s teammates, a blocker that keeps Pearl safe while she’s running jammer. Their team, Creatures of the Smack Lagoon, is Fresh2Death’s rival, and both Pearl and her companion are here to scope out the competition. Three (“Kraken Skullz” during a match) is one of Pearl’s closest friends on the team, and one of the most skilled blockers Pearl’s ever had the pleasure of playing with. She trusts Three more than she trusts herself sometimes.

“All thanks to Eight.” Pearl indicates one of Fresh2Death’s blockers, a tall, dark-skinned girl with the strangest hair Pearl’s ever seen. She’s one of Fresh2Death’s strongest skaters, and she’s currently looking up into the stands, probably trying to spy Three.

Eight (“Agent 8”—a joke Pearl isn’t sure she gets but which brings Three intense glee) and Three are close. Closer than they should be, considering they’re on rival teams. But, the captains don’t know and Pearl isn’t going to tattle. No fraternization is the rule, but Three laughs in the face of most rules. Eight, who is quiet and seems to have a wicked intelligence behind those eyes, doesn’t seem to care either, but Pearl has trouble reading her sometimes. Still, they seem happy, so Pearl isn’t going to say anything.

Three waves down at her, trying to get her attention. “Yeah, I saw. That was a sick whip. She grabbed Four’s hand and threw her so fast toward that ink. It’s like she’s got super strength or something.”

Pearl grimaces, because she gets that. Eight is notorious for her whips, specifically because of that strength of hers. Sometimes, Pearl doesn’t think it should be legal, but other times she sees plays like that and she doesn’t care.

“Looks like she’s off the next jam. I’m gonna go see her,” Three says as she stands. Eight is tugging her helmet off and slapping another blocker in so Marie must feel pretty confident in their lead now.

Pearl nods and watches Three go. Her long hair sways as she bounces down the stairs and Pearl sees her lean over the railing to give Eight a hug.

Alone now, Pearl checks her phone. No new messages from Callie. The last one is seared into her memory—find the new girl. She groans and stuffs her phone back into her pocket. Easier said than done, apparently.

“This seat taken?” A new, unfamiliar voice asks, and Pearl looks up. The only thought she has is tall before her brain gives up entirely. Because she is tall, but she’s also beautiful, and smiling, and has long, strange hair just like Eight’s which is also somehow nothing like Eight’s. And yeah, she’s talking to Pearl. She’s smiling at Pearl. Pearl in her dark, desperately-needs-a-wash hoodie and her baggy eyes and her bruised knees.

“Sorry,” the woman continues, and her voice has a musical quality to it, all lilting and enchanting. Of course it does. “This place is packed, and I saw your friend leave. I hope it’s okay...”

“Uhhh,” Pearl begins, suddenly losing control of her tongue. She shakes her head to snap herself out of it. “I mean! Yes! Fuck, yeah, it’s open. Please.”

“Oh good. Thank you.” She sits primly next to Pearl and tugs impulsively on her jacket. She’s wearing tight, ripped jeans, a bandanna around her head, and a leather jacket over a soft, green shirt. She’s also got boots that Pearl really admires.

“Marina,” she continues, holding out a hand for a shake. It’s so formal that Pearl almost has to do a doubletake.

“Pearl,” Pearl answers, limply grabbing her hand. Marina’s hand is calloused like a Turf War regular’s, but her shake is strong and Pearl forces herself to tighten her grip. Competitive to a fault, she’s not going to let anyone one-up her.

Even if she is undeniably gob smacked.

“You ever been to a roller derby before?” Pearl hears herself ask.

Marina laughs, a high chiming sound, throws her head back with it, exposing the long expanse of her neck. Pearl feels her stomach bottom out. It’s such a strange feeling; she usually isn’t this desperate or pathetic.

“A few,” Marina answers, covering her hand with her mouth to hide her smile. “You?”

“Me? Oh, a few. Yeah.” Pearl looks back to the track, wishing that they’d just get on with it so she’d have something to focus on other than how hot she feels under her hoodie. Carefully, she shrugs out of it, so she only has her tank top between her and the world.

“Excellent,” Marina says. She leans forward on her knees. “It’s always nice to sit next to someone who knows what’s going on.”

Pearl swallows and decides that she very much doesn’t know what’s going on. Not really.

+++

Roller derby has been an underground sport for a while. Adapted from human roller derby, it never really reached the same notoriety as Turf War or Tower Control or Rainmaker or Splatzones, mostly because it didn’t require much ink. The rules were left mostly unchanged from the human sport, though a few obstacles were added to make the game more interesting, both in an attempt to draw more fans and to challenge the players, who had no problem jostling and skating around in circles for two minutes.

Grates were added to break up the packs and add a little variety and forethought. It wasn’t just skating in circles anymore. Now the skaters had to look further ahead and plan their moves well in advance. Jammers could escape walls in a grated section of the track, blockers could get in front of jammers, and pivots could maneuver into a better position. The skaters could either squid through the grates, losing a little momentum, or go around, breaking up the pack. (Personally, Pearl thought anyone who went around was a chump. She preferred to flip through the grates, maintaining as much speed as she could by pushing off with her skates into a forward roll, sliding into squid form, rolling through the grate, and then landing on her feet, losing only a little of her speed in the process. It was an advanced move, patented by Pearl “The Pearlverizer” herself, but she still thought the best strategy was to just take the momentum hit if it meant remaining in the pack.)

Ink was added to increase strategy. Before each period, the captains were given a precise amount of ink to lay on the track. The amount was the same for both teams and the captains could use it both defensively and offensively, either giving their team long stretches of breathing room where they could gain speed or providing a roadblock for the other team. Jammers usually always go for their ink, because it enables them to score easy points, so enemy blockers often have to cut them off before they can get to it, often by herding them away from it. Other times, the captain may put a long line of ink on the track perpendicular to their movement, forcing the enemy team to cross paths with it. They either have to jump over it or risk losing momentum or even getting stuck.

Otherwise, the rules were the same. Each team fielded a jammer and four blockers. The jammer was supposed to lap the other team’s blockers to gain points. The first jammer to break through the pack at the beginning of each two-minute jam was named the head jammer and could then control when the jam ended (before the two-minute time period was up). The blockers attempted to both block the other team’s jammer and to assist their own jammer in scoring points. The pack was a dangerous place full of shoving.

Needless to say, Pearl loves it.

She once had dreams of making it on the Rainmaker scene, but then her teenaged rebellion kicked in and she decided she needed to do something more dangerous and unorthadox to get her father to pay attention to her. Growing up rich and largely isolated on a massive estate had done some things to her sense of the world, so when she stumbled onto roller derby, with its team play not unlike what she was used in Rainmaker (except now with physical violence!) she was smitten. She joined a small team and quickly found her place as jammer. Small and fast was the name of the game, and Pearl was one of the smallest and fastest.

Derby became her home, even as she moved from team to team. Eventually, she ended up on a team with Three. Then they ended up on Tsunami Calamari, headed by Callie and Marie. Now she’s on Creatures of the Smack Lagoon because Callie and Marie can’t get along when it comes to derby. And she still loves it. She adores it, and not for the same reasons her teenaged self did.

Things are good. She has a family. She has a passion. She has a place.

And now, apparently, she has a crush.

+++

Fresh2Death wins the match, unsurprisingly. Marie puts Eight back in after they lose a few points and Four is traded out for a few jams so she can rest, but it’s still a blowout. Three never returns to reclaim her seat, most likely because she can see Pearl’s flushed, panicked expression from her new spot near the front. She even sends Pearl a thumbs up, the cheeky little shit, and mouths something that looks like “she’s gorgeous!!!” with a huge smile. Sometimes, Pearl regrets letting her friends know just how gay she is, because then she ends up in situations like this: in public, suffering from a panic because a cute girl is talking to her with no help coming her way. Some wingman.

Most surprisingly though, Pearl manages to get herself under control after a couple jams. Marina is clearly more interested in the match than in her, if the way she’s leaned forward onto her knees with her hands over her mouth is anything to go on. Her eyes are trained on pack, especially on Four as she’s put back on the field, and she hoots and hollers with the crowd when the blockers get rough or a jammer breaks through. At one point, she even springs to her feet to yell at Four to push it, and when Four shoves her way through, gaining three more points, Marina cups her hands around her mouth and hollers so loud that Pearl feels her hearts stop, simultaneously, for a second.

Between jams they talk, mostly about the match, but sometimes about the weather. Pearl hangs on every word but tries to make herself seem aloof and calm, answers with a smoothness that she definitely isn’t feeling, and she can tell that Marina is interested in her, especially when she smiles her most wicked, killer smile—the one she reserves for moments like these, when she’s trying to impress someone with the sheer force of her suave persona. She’s realized that most people are drawn to someone who seems comfortable in their own skin, and Marina seems to be no exception.

“How long you been into derby anyway?” Pearl asks after Four calls the end to another jam. She’s been the lead jammer far too many times this period, which is making the match kinda stale, in Pearl’s opinion. She likes them best when it’s an equal fight—more interesting that way.

Marina, who had been standing and bouncing slightly as Four hopped the corners and was whipped forward by Eight again, plops down next to Pearl. Her jacket, long discarded during the heat of a jam, is pooled on her seat but she doesn’t seem to mind as she sits on it. “A little bit.” Marina’s face is flushed with excitement, tinted the same neon green as Fresh2Death’s outfits and ink, and her hair is wild, moving as if it has a mind of its own. It bounces with each head movement and even brushes into Pearl’s bare shoulder a few times, igniting a few sharp nerve endings under her skin. She has to stop herself from shivering every time.

“You really like Fresh2Death, huh?” Pearl indicates Marina’s hair, its color, and her shirt.

Marina shrugs and looks down at her hands, suddenly pensive. “I’m new in town and they’re the first team I stumbled on. Plus, they’re one of the best.”

Pearl can’t argue with that. Both Fresh2Death and her own team are top ranked, always winning their matches, but she’s also a little biased. “What about Creatures of the Smack Lagoon?” She tries to sound nonchalant and not like Marina’s answer has the possibility to destroy part of her. After all, her team is her family, but, for some reason, Pearl finds herself very invested in Marina’s opinions.

“They’re good,” Marina answers, causing Pearl to relax a little. “They play a little dirty, but I admire that. Their main jammer is a sick skater. She’s so fast.”

Pearl looks up at her then, suddenly terrified that Marina is playing with her. She has to know, right? This can’t be a coincidence...

But Marina’s face is so earnest, without a hint of deceit, and Pearl has no choice but to believe that she really just doesn’t know what Smack Lagoon’s main jammer looks like. It’s possible, considering the helmets and the face paint and the speed.

(And the fact that Pearl tries very hard to keep people from figuring out who she really is. She’s not the rebellious teenager anymore and she understands what kind of press Hime Houzuki: Roller Derby Princess would get. She has a deal with her father that she keep a low profile—as low a profile as she can manage while playing on one of the top teams—and in return he lets her do what she wants without comment. He even helps fund the league, albeit under a false name. Really, it’s amazing what a difference a change of hair and clothing will do to keep you hidden. When she’s doing things on behalf of her father, she’s all soft edges, soft expressions, longer hair, and poofy dresses. But in the derby scene she’s all teeth, sharp edges, ripped fishnets, studded bracelets, short, bobbed hair, and snarls. No one ever recognizes the soft, humanitarian princess from the news.)

“Yeah,” Pearl answers, trying not to sound too proud. “She’s fuckin’ stellar. She’s one of my favorites.”

Marina smiles then and nods. “I’ve only been to one of their matches, but I plan on going to more. Would you like to join me?”

Pearl has a flash of panic, because she can’t very well agree to that. But she so desperately wants to say yes. But she can’t. Oh fuck, what will she say?

“Oh wait...” Marina cuts in, as if reading Pearl’s mind. Is her facial expression that obvious? “Creatures of the Smack Lagoon doesn’t have a match for two weeks.” Pearl breathes out softly, because she forgot about that. Callie is out of town and they can’t very well have a match without her.

“The Fishnets are up against Fresh2Death next weekend,” Marina continues. “Wanna meet up then? It’s nice to have a friend who’s into these things.”

Pearl doesn’t want to sound too eager, but she also is so eager, so she says “Yes!” way too quickly. It makes Marina laugh and she smiles again, a warm thing that makes Pearl ache inside.

+++

A few days later, Pearl and Three are skating around The Lagoon, the skating rink nearest Inkopolis Square. (There are at least three in downtown.) There are two rinks in this building, one banked and one flat, and Pearl and Three have made a tradition of a weekly Wednesday meetup, where they race each other around the banked track and then take to the flat one, Wet Floor blasting over the speakers, lights flashing in disco patterns. They skate together, talking and practicing jumps, spray ink on the rink and see how much speed they can gain in the smallest splotch possible. It’s an excuse to goof off and let off steam, Pearl from her double life and Three from whatever it is she does during the week. Pearl really has no idea what she gets up to and knows better than to ask at this point.

The truth is that this rink belongs to Pearl. Her father built it as a birthday present a few years ago and it’s what Creatures of the Smack Lagoon calls home. It’s also what Pearl calls home, especially on the weekends, when she’s free of any sort of responsibility. If she could, she would spend all of her time in here, skating in circles, screaming her lungs out along to every song that she knows. She feels her freest when she’s on skates or when she’s singing, so when she’s doing both she’s pretty sure she could fly.

“So,” Three says as she and Pearl skate together on the flat rink. Their rhythm matches the song and their feet move in synchronized movement, only falling out of sync when they come to a corner and Three has to lengthen her stride to get around at the same speed. “Did you see Fresh2Death’s new blocker? I never found her.”

Pearl sighs, because she forgot all about the whole point of being at the match. Rumor had it that Fresh2Death had a new blocker, one who was supposed to change up the whole team dynamic, and Three and Pearl were supposed to get a look at her, see how she played. Callie was adamant that they find out about her before the annual Fresh2Death/Creatures of the Smack Lagoon rematch next month, so they could adequately prepare. But it seemed like Marie was hiding her away for now.

Callie and Marie were cousins, everyone knew that, and they got along most of the time. But, when it came to derby, they couldn’t stand each other. Too many different opinions on how a jam should be played, how a team should be organized, how strategies should work. Most of the time, they were best friends, hanging out together during the week without problem, but when the weekend came and matches took over their lives, they were like acid toward each other. It was incredible to see, truthfully, but Pearl understood it. She led a double life too, albeit a completely different kind of double life, but she understood how it worked.

“Why don’t you ask Eight?” Pearl says eventually as they round another corner. The rink is empty, as it always is on Wednesdays, so she feels pretty safe talking about Three’s compromising relationship.

Three shakes her head and flips so that she’s skating backwards. Her expression is serious. “She would never tell me. You know how it is. When it comes to derby, we’re enemies.”

That’s true and Pearl knows that it hurts Three a little. She loves Eight with her whole being and it’s hard for her to turn it off when they’re facing off on the track. Eight, meanwhile, is way better at compartmentalizing her life, though Pearl has noticed that she tends to lighten up on her blocks when it comes to Three. She never really shoves Three too hard.

“Well, I guess Marie’s hiding her away until the big match. Guess we’ll just have to think on our feet.”

Three nods and flips back around so she can match Pearl’s stride again. It’s pretty uncommon for them to just skate in circles like this, all told. Usually, they skate erratically around the rink, dancing to the music, flipping from one foot to the other, jumping, skating on one foot, just generally showing off to each other. But, today, something is different. Pearl begins to feel a little antsy as they complete their third circuit.

“So,” Three begins again. “Who was that at the match anyway? She seemed into you.”

There it is. Pearl bites her lip and focuses on her feet for a second. She’s not sure how much she wants to say. She trusts Three like a sister but this whole thing with Marina feels precious in its newness. Does she want to tarnish that with idle chatter?

Oh, who is she kidding. Of course, she wants to talk about it. “She’s just a girl,” she says, trying to sound nonchalant and not like she was completely blown away. “She’s new to Inkopolis and she’s really into Fresh2Death.”

Three winces and cuts across Pearl’s path so she can skate in the middle of the rink while Pearl continues her circuits. The playlist Pearl loaded up is almost over, only a few quiet songs left, so they can easily hear each other from across the rink. “Ouch man. That’s rough. Too bad she’s not into Smack Lagoon. Then you’d actually have a chance.”

Pearl can’t help but laugh at the gentle teasing. “Hey!” she calls, indignant, and she cuts her loop short so she can speed toward the middle, where Three is rolling around on one foot, clearly taunting her. “You bet your ass I have a chance! She asked to meet up next weekend!”

Three puts her foot down and pushes off toward Pearl. They circle each other, in a sort of familiar stare off. “Wow, I’m impressed. When I saw her sit down next to you, I was sure you were gonna piss yourself. Congrats on holding it together.”

Pearl takes a light swing at her head but Three easily dodges by bending over backwards. “You’re the fuckin’ worst. Why do I hang out with you?”

Three grins a toothy grin and heads toward one of the entrances to the rink. Easily, she hops up onto the carpeted half-wall. “Because I keep your ass safe on the track!” she calls, and she begins to unlace her skates.

She has a point, but that doesn’t mean Pearl has to say so. She skates up to her and allows herself to slam into the wall with a loud bang, like a child skating for the first time. Three drops a skate to the ground and tugs at the laces on the other.

“You gonna go?” she asks. “Because I think you should. Fishnets versus Fresh2Death right?”

Pearl leans back on the wall, stretching her back and getting some of the pressure off her aching knees. Skating is fun, but it puts a lot of stress on her legs. “Yeah, and of fucking course I’m going. You think I’m gonna pass this up?”

Three shrugs and the other skate lands next to its twin. Three hops down and stretches down, a cooldown exercise to help the muscles in her legs. Her socked feet slide a little on the slick rink floor. “It’s hard to tell with you. Sometimes you flip and run away. Sometimes, good girl Hime gets in Pearl’s way.”

“I do not—”

Three grabs up her skates in one hand and waves over her shoulder. “Whatever you say. Just don’t screw this one up. She likes you. I can tell.”

Pearl watches as she slides into her clogs and leaves. Then, she looks down at her own skates, pink and scuffed, the same pair she’s had for years. With a sigh, she hops onto the wall and picks at the laces. When she lands back on solid ground, everything feels too heavy and slow.

Desperately, she wishes she could live on those skates.

+++

That Saturday, Pearl finds herself a seat in around the same spot as last week, and she waits. The Fishnets are a better team than last week, but word on the street is that Four was injured in practice the day before. Usually, that kind of thing would barely phase her, as a quick ink bath would heal her right up, but a pulled muscle is another matter. Those sometimes don’t heal right away.

Still, Pearl spies Four’s familiar helmet as the team skates in. She has the star, so she’s still going to be the jammer, at least here at the beginning, which makes Pearl worry a bit. She doesn’t want Marie to push Four too hard before the big match. She wants a fair fight.

Fresh2Death and Smack Lagoon don’t face each other often, just once a year, in a giant celebration of the sport and to ring in the summer. It’s usually a packed house and all proceeds go to charity, but it’s always a tight, heated match. The past two years have seen two giant upsets, wherein Three was almost splatted against a grate the first year and taken out of the match (Smack Lagoon lost that year) and where, the next year, Pearl managed her first grate flip, kept her momentum, and managed to grand slam (pass all four enemy blockers and score all four points) in the last jam, which gave them the win last year. This year though, it’s anyone’s game, and it all comes down to that mystery blocker that Marie’s hiding.

Pearl watches all of Fresh2Death skate in and doesn’t see the blocker. She didn’t think she would, to be honest. If Marie is keeping her hidden, then she’s not going to put her in in small potatoes match like this one. Besides, she probably knows Pearl is here.

Pearl sits back and waits. She’s dressed in nicer clothes today, because she likes to believe this is at least a little like a date—dark-washed jeans that fit like a second skin and a flowy, pink crop top. A gray leather jacket is tied around her waist and she’s wearing her favorite pair of boots. They’re heavy like skates and make her a few inches taller, and she sincerely believes that they bring her luck.

Fishnets has a solid lineup, so they hold out pretty well in the first period. (It also helps that Four is a little shaky and has to be traded out after every jam she plays.) Fresh2Death is only ahead by a few points, which keeps Pearl on her toes. Still, between every jam, she glances around, trying to spot Marina, but she’s nowhere to be found. It’s pretty disheartening, and when the first thirty-minute period is over, and they send in a Squee-G to clean up the ink so that the captains can change the layout if they so wish, she can feel her stomach tying itself in knots. (The Squee-G is a new addition and there’s rumor that they stole the plans from the Octarians. Pearl isn’t sure if she believes that though.)

When the second period begins, Pearl decides that she’s had enough waiting. If she’s going to be stood up, she’s not going to just sit here and take it. She could be at home right now, stuffing her face with ice cream, or at The Lagoon skating in circles with screamo music pounding against her head.

She stands to leave and makes it halfway down the stairs when she hears a voice calling after her. She doesn’t want to believe it, but when she turns she sees Marina, standing where she was just sitting. Marina waves her over, her long arm easily identifiable over the crowd and Pearl tries to keep herself from smiling too big. She takes the steps back up slowly, not as the pouncing, two-at-a-time pace that her body desperately wants.

“Sorry I’m late,” Marina says, playing with the end of one of her tentacles. She’s dressed similarly to last time, with those jeans and the green shirt, except this time she has a forest green flannel tied around her waist. “I was a little nervous...” She chuckles unsteadily and Pearl is shocked at her honesty.

Carefully, Pearl puts herself back in her seat, right next to Marina, and decides that she might as well tell the truth too. “It’s okay. Glad I’m not the only one.”

Marina smiles then, at ease. “So, what’d I miss?”

Pearl launches right into a quick play-by-play, watching Marina’s face as she intently listens.

+++

After the match, Pearl walks Marina through the parking lot. There aren’t that many cars because almost everyone takes public transportation so it’s pretty deserted. Still, Pearl will feel better if she sees Marina off, especially because she can see her own car with its familiar driver idling nearby. She’s not sure if she’s ready to explain that to Marina quite yet.

Marina walks right up to a motorcycle, parked illegally on the sidewalk. “I was in a hurry,” she says sheepishly as she pats the seat. “I was scared you’d be gone by the time I got here. And I was almost right!”

Pearl almost feels bad for that, but what else was she gonna do? She’s been stood up one too many times.

“Well, I’m glad I stuck around as long as I did,” Pearl says instead of all that. “Didn’t know you had a bike.”

Marina tugs the helmet on and flips the visor up so Pearl can still see her eyes. “Yeah, I like to go fast.”

Pearl can relate to that big time. “Yeah? So do I.”

“You want in?” Marina opens up the storage compartment and produces another helmet, this one almost exactly like the ones that the skaters wear on the track. “I promise to drive carefully.”

Pearl glances toward her car, at her driver who’s watching her with the low lights on. She so wants to hop on that bike, but she’s not sure where the night will take her, or where she’ll end up. And she has a brunch tomorrow with some of her dad’s associates’ kids. Hime getting in the way. Just like Three predicted.

She sighs and pushes the helmet away. “Nope, sorry. I have to be responsible tomorrow. You know how it is. Besides,” she grins then, trying to be coy, “we just met.”

Marina doesn’t seem that hurt by her refusal, which is a good sign. She drops the helmet back into its spot and closes the storage. “That’s cool. Same time next week?”

Pearl nods. “Of course. Don’t be late!”

Marina laughs and swings her leg over the bike. She turns it on and speaks a little louder to be heard over the engine. “I won’t! See you next week, Pearl!”

She speeds off, hopping the curb and swinging out into traffic with barely a turn signal. Pearl, feeling windswept and a little warm, watches her for a few seconds before trotting to her car. When she gets into the back, she slumps into the seat and doesn’t say a word to the driver.

+++

Next Saturday finds Marina waiting in the parking lot for Pearl. Unlucky, but not the end of the world, Pearl thinks as she thanks her driver and gets out. Marina’s in overalls today, a light denim with a green tub top underneath and her leather jacket around her waist. Boots again. Pearl threw on her shortest jean shorts and her biggest, pinkest t-shirt, tied in the back to give it a little shape. Boots again. They both love boots.

“Nice ride,” Marina says as Pearl jogs up. Her eyes don’t leave the car, where the driver has expensive sunglasses over his eyes.

“It’s my dad’s.” It’s not a lie. Pearl gently touches her hand. “It’s nothing.”

Marina looks down at the touch and smiles a small smile. “Right. Just unexpected. Let’s go in.” She reaches down and squeezes Pearl’s hand between her fingers briefly, sending a sharp spike of warmth through Pearl’s whole body.

The match today is boring, in Pearl’s opinion. There’s too much of a skill mismatch so Fresh2Death has the whole thing cinched in the first period. But all is not lost because Marina leans over after the first period is called and mutters, “let’s get out of here,” right next to Pearl’s ear. Pearl shoots to her feet and leads the way.

Pearl’s car is long gone so their only option is the bike, which Pearl hoists herself onto with only a little hesitation. Marina’s second helmet is a little too big on her, and she has to keep pushing it up when it slides over her eyes.

“Where to?” Marina calls over the rev of the engine.

Carefully, Pearl wraps her arms around Marina’s middle. She can just feel one of her hearts against her arm. “You like to skate?” Pearl asks, on a whim.

“A little, yeah!” Marina laughs.

“You know where The Lagoon is?”

“Of course!” Marina kicks the kickstand back and pushes off. Pearl leans into her back, only a little terrified. “Hold on tight! I’ll have us there in no time!”

+++

Because it’s Saturday, The Lagoon is packed. Marina parks a decent distance away and they walk in side-by-side, hands barely brushing. There are teens hanging out around the entrance and they all recognize Pearl. She gives them a hard look and, somehow, they read what she means: don’t say anything. One even opens the glass door for them.

Inside the music is pumping. Pearl isn’t sure who’s DJing tonight, but they’re using one of her playlists so at least they have good taste. She offers to pay and sends Marina off to find a table after getting her shoe size. In reality she just walks up to the counter and the skate attendant hands her two pairs without a word. Then, she goes by concessions and orders some soda, just in case.

Marina has her boots kicked off by the time Pearl finds her and she accepts the skates without a word. They’re in pretty good shape because Pearl has standards, even for her rental skates, and Marina pulls them on easily. She begins lacing without a single moment’s hesitation and that’s exactly when Pearl begins to realize that Marina might be better at this than she thought.

Pearl scrambles to pull her skates on as Marina quickly laces up the second one and stands. She easily glides toward Pearl and turns in a short circle right in front of her.

“When you said a little...” Pearl begins as she comes to her feet. These skates aren’t the ones she’s used to, so she slides a little before she gets a feel for them.

“I was being facetious,” Marina admits with a smile. “I love to skate!”

She reaches a hand out, palm up, a clear invitation, and Pearl easily accepts it. Marina tugs, skating forward on the hard floor. Easily, they crest onto the wooden floor of the rink and watch as the crowd of people circles around the rink. The lights paint their bodies with splotches of green, purple, yellow, red, blue, and Pearl gets lost in it for a second.

“I hope you can keep up,” Marina teases.

“You kidding?” Pearl scoffs. “I was born in skates.”

“Hm, we’ll see.” Marina looks down at Pearl with a gentle twinkle of mirth behind her eyes. “Short stuff.”

Pearl puffs up like an angry bird. “Hey, if we were all tall mountains like you, then no one would be!”

Marina chuckles. “I guess you’re right. Shall we?”

There’s a lull in the flow of people coming up, where a couple kids just left for pizza. Pearl easily pushes off and sails right into the gap. “Keep up with me!” she calls, and is rewarded with Marina’s frowning glare, eyebrows pulled tight as she follows quickly. She overtakes Pearly quickly and gets a little too close, bumping right into her. But, Marina’s instincts are fast and she grabs Pearl before she can fall, towing her close to her side.

Pearl feels herself flush and she quickly tries to recover. Easily, she gets her feet back under her and pulls away, but Marina refuses to let go of her hand.

They skate side-by-side like that, hands clasped, for a few rounds. Marina’s stride is longer than Pearl’s but Pearl keeps herself angled toward the center so that when they take the curves she can keep up. On the straightaways, Marina tugs her, going a bit faster, so that Pearl has to speed up or risk getting left behind. It’s not so bad though—Pearl is used to going much faster than this, with nine other people pushing and shoving her, so this is a delightful change of pace.

After the fourth or so circuit of this, Pearl feels a little braver. She lets go of Marina’s hand—which causes Marina to make a sound of discontent—and easily angles herself behind her so that she can grab onto her hips. A conga line of two, Marina picks up on what she’s doing quickly and puts on hand on top of Pearl’s for a second, just to make sure that she’s holding on. Then, she speeds up.

Pearl pushes too, sliding her feet in short busts to get as much speed as she can, but she can feel herself dragging a little, especially as Marina takes the curve wide to avoid all of the people skating on the inside. Really, they’re not supposed to be going this fast, but Pearl is the owner so no one will say anything to her. She feels her hands tighten on Marina’s sides, fingers digging into the fabric of her overalls, and, eventually, she gives up trying to skate with her. Instead, she squares her stance and allows herself to be dragged. On the corners, they drift like a drag racer, Pearl sliding wide to overcompensate for the speed, and she whoops as Marina pushes even harder.

I like to go fast, Marina told her last week, and Pearl sees it now. The long profile of her body as she moves the quad skates, gliding as fast as she can around all the people, in tempo with Wet Floor’s Don’t Slip, she’s built for it, all those long lines, those muscled legs, the pumping of her arms. It’s intoxicating to watch her, especially for someone like Pearl, who loves these skates and this rink like she loves her home. Someone like Marina is exactly who she needs.

Marina throws her hands up, lets out a loud yell, and coasts through the next straightaway, giving up the speed for a small moment of relief. Pearl lets out a yell of her own and the people around them echo it, everyone joining in a moment of celebration. The DJ turns the music up a little and the crowd speeds up in return. Slower people filter to the edges while everyone else begins to move their feet a little faster.

Marina takes them to the wall, where she slams into it. Pearl easily detaches herself so she doesn’t crash into Marina, and stops next to her. Together, they lean against the wall, the carpet biting into their palms, breathing heavily, and Marina begins to laugh.

It’s a free sound, one that Pearl hasn’t heard in a long time, and Pearl watches as it takes over Marina’s whole body. She shakes with it, breathless, and falls over so that she’s leaning against Pearl. Her head lands in the crook between Pearl’s neck and shoulder and she can feel Marina’s breath against her skin.

“Thank you,” Marina mutters once the laughing has passed. “I needed that.”

Pearl, her body alive with the sheer sensory overload of everything that just happened plus Marina, merely leans her head so that it’s resting on top of Marina’s. “So did I.”

+++

That Wednesday, Three and Pearl don’t talk, just skate wild circles around each other in an attempt to push themselves to go faster. There’re small patches of pink ink scattered around the banked track, which they hop in and out of to gain even more speed. Pearl pushes herself hard, but then thinks briefly about Marina and nearly takes a tumble at a speed that would have definitely left her a little splat of ink on the track. That’s when she decides she’s had enough.

She skates to the wall and grabs her water bottle, which she squirts into the mouth and down her throat. When she puts it down, Three is there, sitting on the wall and kicking her heavy skate-clad feet against it.

“So, your mystery girl.”

Pearl can’t help the giant grin that crosses her face.

“Oh, you sly squid.”

+++

After that, Pearl has to set her sights on the big Fresh2Death/Creatures of the Smack Lagoon match. It’s only two weeks away, and Callie has them scheduled for matches or practice both weekends. As a result, Pearl is prepared to make some hefty excuses if Marina asks to see her. But, to her surprise, the requests never come. When Pearl texts her asking if she wants to hang out, just in case, Marina tells her that she’s busy for the next couple weeks but that she misses her.

It’s a surprise, since she never mentioned anything. But then, they’ve been on like one date. Maybe two if you count the first time they purposefully met at the match. Maybe three if you count the time before that. Pearl isn’t exactly in a position to be asking questions.

Still, she’s a little disheartened. During the week, she stays home and doesn’t talk to anyone (except on Wednesday) and on the weekends she finds her way to The Lagoon, where her team easily wins their matches. Pearl “The Pearlverizer” falls back into the jammer groove quickly, and Three “Kraken Skullz” does a great job on blocker, like always. The matches are easy as pie.

One evening during the week, when she’s sick of her own shit (she spent the day playing video games and sunning herself out by the pool, all the while moping because of how lonely she was), she texts Marina asking for coffee. Marina answers quickly. I can’t today! But how about this time next week?

That’s after the big match, which means that Pearl will be free as a jellyfish. ok! u coming to the big match at the lagoon this weekend???

Marina’s reply is fast and curt. I’ll be there. ;)

+++

The day of the match, Pearl opens the rink early so she can make sure everything’s ready. The staff have been briefed and she’s paying them massive overtime because today’s going to be hectic. The banked track is on the second floor and only one set of elevators is working, which means that they’ll probably have quite a few impatient people hanging around the lobby. Also, the lower, flat rink is closed, which is another thorn because it’s Saturday—their busiest day—but Pearl can’t spare the staff to run it.

Everything goes smoothly for the most part. Tickets are bought and collected, concessions goes smoothly, the stands fill steadily. No one forgets their skates. Callie paces back and forth, her long hair swinging wildly against the back of her legs. The grates are in their places. The Squee-G, on loan from another rink because Pearl hasn’t gotten around to ordering one, works perfectly. Judd appears with two splattershots and two ink tanks, already adjusted to the two colors, which Callie inspects to insure they’re equal. He sweeps away to let Marie do the same. Three’s helmet is missing but they find it in a locker.

Pearl stretches before putting on her skates. Her fishnet tights are ripped from last match, but she hasn’t bothered to buy new ones yet. Her white, cropped tank top and black athletic shorts are the same ones she’s been wearing all year and they’ve seen quite a few tumbles, but they’ve held up. Her skates too, white and pink, recently cleaned of scuffs, are familiar, the pair that she’s been using for two years, frequently repaired and cleaned.

Everything goes a bit too smoothly. It makes her suspicious. Before the match, Callie calls everyone together and gives a speech, but Pearl hears none of it. She’s too busy scanning the bit of the crowd she can see, trying to find Marina. Once Callie’s done, they all put their hands in the middle of the huddle and chant their old chant, Smack! Smack! Smack! Lagoon! before throwing them up and breaking. Three pulls Pearl away, fidgeting, looking nervous, and Pearl braces because this is it. There has to be something wrong. There always is.

“I need to tell you something,” she says, but is interrupted by the announcer, booming out “It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for! Welcome Fresh2Death to the rink!”

The crowd roars and Pearl watches as the team skates out, followed closely by Marie. Marie and Callie lock eyes from across the rink and Pearl can practically feel the lightning that sparks between them.

But then, her attention is dragged away because a very familiar sight appears right behind Marie. Tall, with her wiggling hair—so much like Eight’s yet nothing like Eight’s—pulled into a high ponytail, and dressed in a green and black checkerboard skirt and black crop top. It’s—

“Holy shit,” Pearl hisses. “It’s Marina! Marina is their new blocker?” She rounds on Three and sees her face, not surprised like she expected, and something inside her shifts uncomfortably.

“That’s her name? It’s nice,” Three says.

“You knew,” Pearl accuses. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Three holds her hands up, a gesture that proclaims innocence. “Eight told me like ten minutes ago! I didn’t know!”

“How did Eight know?”

“I guess Marina talked to her! Look!” Three points across the rink, where Eight is clearly caught up in the same argument with Marina, if their body language is anything to go on. Marina turns to look at them and her hands rise to cover her mouth. It almost looks like there’s tears in her eyes. “Looks like Marina didn’t know either. Small world.”

Pearl stares across at Marina and sees her shake her head. Her hands come down and she mouths something slowly, hand stretching out toward Pearl. Didn’t know. Pearl deciphers. Talk later?

Pearl breathes out slowly, tries to calm herself. She nods once, right in Marina’s direction and it seems to calm Marina down immediately.

So, it’s just like Three and Eight then. During derby, they have to pretend not to know each other. Fine. Pearl can do that.

(At least, she thinks she can.)

#splatoon #splatoon 2 #pearlina #pearlina week #off the hook #ashe writes #ashe talks #katie #i took the time to post this here #even tho i'm pretty sure it's not gonna get reblogs #oh well i'm proud of it #i wrote this in about 6 hours. my wrists are DEAD #long post

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jeanjauthor · 5 years

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Writers? This is the artistic version of a short story.

Artists...?

...WHY??

So...many...questions.

A lot of this breaks what writers call “the willing suspension of disbelief.” It’s where the audience is willing to overlook implausible things in order to keep following the story. At some point their credibility has a limit, a breaking point where their ability to suspend and ignore their disbelief will snap, like hanging a thread from the ceiling, and then putting too much weight on it.

Some of these weighty questions include:

Why is she "standing" like that? She looks like she's sitting on an invisible stool!

Why is her cloak/sheet still bound up like that if she's been fighting long enough to get her sword bloodied?

Why is she so pristine when the wyrm corpse is clearly freshly arterially injured??

Why does she have no shoes and pristine feet when she’s clearly touching a bloody corpse?

Why is the tag end of her cloak/sheet...thing...whipped up under one leg and over the other when she’s been chopping up a monster and now has to fight another one?

Again, why is she so clean??

There are so many WTF questions...

What is she sitting on?

If she’s not sitting on anything, how is she supporting her weight in that position?

She’s not being supported by her feet, that’s for sure--is she seriously en pointe with her left foot (the one on our right, visually)?

And the one on the left (her right foot), if it’s resting at a 45-ish degree angle on a corpse so freshly butchered it’s still spurting, how is it she’s able to keep it in place when it should be slipping out from under her by all the laws of squshy meaty blood-filled things?

Where is the missing V shaped wedge of that tail? Look at the angles on those two cut ends; there is clearly a whole big fat wedge of flesh that is missing! If there wasn’t, that tail would literally have been an L shaped structure with the cut angling on the diagonal down into the corner, and that is just disturbing to contemplate...

...Where are the arm bones in those dragon-wings?? Seriously, that is disturbing, seeing the thin metacarpals and phalanges (the “finger bones” of wings if you look at wings as nothing more than elongated & weirdly angled hands) ...but not the arm bones...so where are they??

...Now this isn’t to say the picture is all bad! The concept is actually a neat idea, looking like a cross of Lord of the Rings meets all those hedonistic Renaissance paintings of the Ancient Greek mythos. And it would be 100% correct to mix mythos like this, as the Renaissance painters were doing that all over the place, mixing Greek mythos symbology into Biblical art, and vice versa (all of which was fan art, btw).

The streaky effect of the Nazgûl is wonderful, though I’d like to see a bit more tattering (along the same diagonal upper left to lower right lines) on that right side of the Ringwraith fellow, there.

The Ringrwraith even seems to be bending the airwaves around and above him, with the effects of the clouds sort of streaking in toward that bright spot in the sky above and behind. It makes it look like the halo is sucking in all the Light before fleeing into the West, or trying to suck the Nazgûl off the face of the planet to hopefully disinterate its evilness out of existence...

The bright part of the sky also kind of looks like dragonbreath fire, even though the Fell Beasts that the Nazgûl rode upon aren’t evern mentioned (as far as I can recall) as being able to breathe fire like dragons. So that’s another point of coolness.

I have no idea what’s going on anatomy-wise of the presumed fallen and chopped up Fell Beast, but at least some effort has been made to provide it with a (weird) internal structure. If it really is a Fell Beast and not meant to be a dragon or a wyrm, then I can accept the odd anatomy and darkness of the...I’m not sure if those are bones, but I’m presuming that it has some bones in its tail, and if it’s a foul abomination style creation, I can accept the creator had no clue.

I do like the crispness of the woman in focus versus the Nazgûl who is equally clearly not in focus.

Certainly the woman definitely looks like a Renaissance painting of a Greek Mythos Action Sequence! She’s in a classic serene, poised action pose that no doubt has some sort of supporting stool & armature behind and under the original model for her to rest her arms upon.

The symbology of Shield Maiden of Rohan certainly gets the first two components of that descriptor down visually: for the first part, she has a shield (lovely round thing, very Classic Greek Hero With Spiffy Expensive Metal Shield), and she definitely is using it to shield herself from something. (Plus the sword.) The other part of the symbology is the “modesty sheet drape” under one thigh (gotta show off them nekkid thighs, Renaissance foiks!!) and up over the other, between the legs, blocking off any view of or access to the mons pubis...aka, shielding her maidenly modesty.

However, there is zero sign she’s from Rohan, because there’s zero symbolism representing Rohirrim culture...and the key element to Renaissance pictures of various cultures’ mythos were that they were rich with symbolism. The Rohirrim, the Riders of Rohan, were emphasized over and over as horse people.

Tolkienn also cribbed the Scandinavian culture for his descriptions of them (I suspect the Golden Hordes of the Russian Steppes, heavily influenced by the Rus folks who were Scandinavians who had moved east and mingled with the Mongolian Empire remnants who a little earlier had moved west. The Greeks knew of the Scandinavian peoples (no, really, they knew of them! Electricity is actually just the Latin word elektron (which comes from a similar-sounding Greek word I’m not going to bother to spell correctly), which meant amber, as in the petrified pine pitch being shipped down through Europe from the Baltic Sea in the far north, which is surrounded by Scandinavian countries.

Yet there’s no signs or symbols of Scandinavia about her, no knotwork animals, no amber, just pale blonde hair (which frankly could be representative of the British Isles or partial albinoism)... So while there’s a lovely Greek Mythos in Renaissance Paintings feel to her...it falls short of being a true copy/homage, which is unfortunate. It could’ve been so easily fixed, too, with a bit of knotwork braiding painted onto the cloak/sheet thing.

I will say that the folds of that sheet are spectacularly well painted, lovely depth and dimensionality to them!

Same goes for the condours of her body, and the tail of the wyrm. I fully believe these are three dimensional objects!

The lighting is beautifully done. Admittedly if the light is coming from that glowy bit of the sky behind the Nazgûl, she should be in shadow...except he’s a Ringwraith, and it’s 100% acceptable for light to go through him, since according to cannon, they’re not fully corporeal. This is a “plot” point where fans who know the lore are more than willing to suspend disbelief.

I’m not a rabid Tolkienn fan by any means, but I do know enough to accept that Ringwraiths are wraiths, and not fully of the physical realm. Plus, Greek Mythos Heroes in Renaissance paintings are supposed to be Bathed In The Light Of Holy Goodness, sort of an inner aura spiritual goodness radiance-effect, I guess...? Either way, it’s symbolism, it indicates visually that the Light (Good) will shine through upon Heroes (& Heroines) when they are being their Most Heroic...and it’s very well done.

(...Another question if that’s her helm on the ground, where is the rest of her armor? Where are her clothes?? Or is this meant to parody the “sword and magic helmet!!” trope and the helmet was providing all her armor and clothes up until the point she removes it to reveal she’s a nekkid Not A Man? And really, are Nazgûl so far removed from their mortal lives that they need nakedness to be able to tell males from females of their own species...?)

If this were a story, it would be a crossover fanfic with awesome potential...but it falls a little short of what’s needed to successfully suspend the reader/viewer’s disbelief.

Why is it important to do a better job next time, to get these details a little more accurate? Because most Tolkienn fans I know are rabid about it, & willing to nitpick any mistakes or inaccuracies. Cast your minds back to the huge raging fandom debates around the Lord of the Rings trilogy movies about whether or not Peter Jackson & co were “butchering the mythos” of Middle Earth.

Also...I’m trying to figure out how the Nazgûl is standing, and on what if he is indeed standing, though perhaps he’s actually astride the fallen Fell Beast, and simply swung himself around while she was chopping off & somehow disintegrating that V-shaped wedge of wrymtail? I can suspend some of my disbelief for that, though it does add to the overall strain of that willing suspension, and obviously there were too many other issues that ended up snapping it.)

As an editor, if this were a story, I’d be telling the artist to fix the wing bones, to give the woman some shining chain armor with a Rohirrim tabard, or boiled leather armor and tabard--at the very least a tabard with the Rohirrim symbols on it!!. I’d also at the very least slap some Scandinavian knotwork on it, if not the actual Horse of Rohan. (I’d also suggest using the accepted colors for the Rohirrim banner, green and gold, though I might keep the majority of the tabard white and just have a gold-and-green knotwork horse centered on the chest, or something.)

I’d also request there be more chunks of hacked-off tail all over. (Bonus points if one of them looks like The Lonely Mountain! lol...)

Plus, I’d give her at least a tiny bit of blood spatters around her boots and on her thighs & a little on the lower tabard, to show she’s been fighting in battle all along. However, I’d actually hesitate to put the spatters any higher than belt-line at most (and definitely do something different than that cloak/sheet thing).

Why would I hesitate to get the chest area bloody? Because of the symbolism.

Renaissance paintings had blood & gore, but only up to a point. She’s the heroic figure who slays the 3rd Biggest Nasty of the entire trilogy (#1: Sauron, #2 Saruman, #3 chief king of the Ringwraiths, the one she stabs in the face-hole), so she needs the symbolism of still being Clean And Pure Of Heart, aka no muss, mud, tatters, or blood in the torso (chest / heart) area.

In fact, if you just replaced the cloak/sheet thingy with just a tabard (a white one with a little knotwork on it, and put Grecian sandals on her feet...that would seriously fix a lot in this image. You’d still get to paint the glorious three dimensional folds arrowing down between her thighs, “shielding her modesty.” and you could put some of the symbols of Rohan on the tabard (horse, knotwork, etc) to make her more clearly the Shield Maiden of Rohan, and not just a shield maiden, while still retaining that Greek Mythos feel.

(Plus, you could have a bit of Side Boob showing on the side closest to the viewer to make it clear She Is No Man, and still avoid the blasted censorship issues rampant in modern society, particularly on this site these days.)

...Definitely fix the dragon wing armbones with a bit of shadowing to remove the fact they look like they’re translucent with nothing along the upper/leading edge... ‘cause once unseen, I cannot un-see-it, and it’s creepy as-is... >.>*

I love the color palette. It’s very dusky, as in nearing-sunset-dusk, with lots of earth tones. It looks a bit dirty in its hues (as tragically poised battlefields should), and yet it has kind of a “Romanticism golden afternoon light” quality to it. These are all colors that I 100% believe Renaissance painters had access to and would’ve used. Excellent choices!

At a quick glance, it’s a good painting. When you look at it a little closer, however... the contrast between all the high quality stuff (lighting, three-dimensionality, focus versus unfocus, at least half the necessary symbolism is there, etc, etc) and the lower quality stuff (oy that lack of proper dragonwing armbones, etc) means it’s really not quite the artist’s best work, and it could be so, so very much better. Why?

Composition is as important as technical performance.

Seriously, the way she’s painted is gloriously done...except for her positioning. The dragon wings (I haven’t even touched on the odd angles of the metacarpal bones on the left-side one, just the right one, which is well done for the “finger bones” but there’s no way it should be pointing up lke that), those wings are too anatomically implausible, though I’ll admit they’re more about visual framing than being actual key features.

And lastly, if you’re going for a glorious Greek Mythos Renaissance Painting look to the art...go the whole hog. Paint it like it’s Second Breakfast, Elevenses, Lunch, Dinner, Tiffin, Tea, Supper & Midnight Snack all rolled into one.

Hell, paint a Loyal Dog (a staple of Renaissance symbolism), put it down at her feet (to represent the hobbit Merry, who was with her on her quests), and give it a little Rohirrim helmet and/or tabard! Go the whole distance with this. I truly believe this artist has that kind of quality in them!

If they did, I do believe all the old Renaissance Masters would totally thumbs-up this painting, if those flaws were fixed and the symbolism ramped up to at least a 9, if not necessarily a 10, rather than just doodling around down near a 5 or 6.

If this were a story and I was the editor for it (and presuming this was done on a tablet / computer, since if it’s an actual painting, that’s harder to fix), I’d definitely strongly suggest the revisions and rewrites listed above. And then I’d pimp the hell outta this painting.

(Oh, and to fix the weird positioning of her body, I’d give her a Radiant Aura Of Goodness with some golden streaks of light or something angling out at all directions, so it looks like she’s kinda floating, rather than wondering if she’s “suspended” by secretly sitting on a stick or a tail spike or something. That would help strengthen my suspension...as in the suspension of my disbelief.)

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