#this comic took WAYYY too long

[kaeladrawsstuff]

The Sorceress' Revenge 2: Aftermath

(aka the long overdue 10 page fowlham comic hahaha)

BOY THIS COMIC TOOK SO LONG TO FINISH AND I PROCRASTINATED ON IT A LOT... SO GLAD IT'S FINALLY FINISHED

[reds-skull]

I really should draw Soap more with his red mask, as you all can tell I love it

[rmbunnie]

Red Hood Characterization

This is really long so I'm putting a cut here, I've been thinking about Jason Todd's character motivations and the question of whether or not his actions are based in a Moral Code (I don't think so, not to say he's without any morality) and I talk about that in more depth here.

I saw someone say on here that Titans: Beast World: Gotham City was some of the best Jason Todd internal writing they'd seen in a while, and I've been a Red Hood fan for 8 years or so now? pretty much since I read comics for the first time, so I went and checked out and I thought it was good! The way the person I saw talking about it as if it was rare and unusual made me wonder though, because as well-written as i thought his stances on crime were, there wasn't really anything in it that went against the way I conceptualize Jason?

This kinda plays into a larger question I've been thinking about for a while with Jason though, which is that, do people think that the killing is part of a fundamental worldview that motivates him a la batman, and that worldview is the reason he does the things he does?? Because 8 years ago i was a middle schooler engaging with fiction on the level that a middle schooler does, so I simply did not put much thought into it beyond "poor guy :(" but ever since I actually started trying to understand consistent characterization, I don't really see Jason as someone who's motivated by a moral code in his actions the way batman or superman is!

tbh my personal read is that he's a very socially-motivated guy, his actions from resurrection to his Joker-Batman ultimatum in utrh always seemed to me like every choice made leading up to his identity reveal was either a. to give him the leverage and skill necessary to pull off his identity reveal successfully, or b. to twist the knife that little bit more when he does let Bruce find out who he is. Like iirc there's a Judd Winick tweet like "yeah tldr he chose Red Hood as his identity because it's the lowest blow he could think of." And I think that's awesome, I think character motivations rooted so deeply in character's relationships and emotions are really fun to read! I also think it's where the stagnation/flatness of his character comes from in certain comics, because if his main motivation is one event in one relationship that passes, and he is not particularly attached to anything in his life or the world by the time that comes to pass, it's a little harder to come up with a direction to go with the character after that, because there isn't much of a direction that aligns with something the character would reasonably want? But I do think solving this by saying "all of the morally-off emotionally driven cruelty he did on his way to spite Batman was actually reflective of his own version of Batman's stance that's exactly the same except he thinks it's GOOD to kill people" isn't ideal. To be fully honest, it seems to me like he never particularly cared one way or the other about killing people to "clean Gotham of crime," he just did everything he could to get the power necessary to pull off his personal plans, and took out any particularly heinous people he encountered along the way (like in Lost Days.) Not to say I think the fact he killed people keeps him up at night anymore than everything else in his life events, I just never really thought he was out there wholeheartedly kneecapping some dude selling weed or random guy robbing a tv store for justice.

Looping wayyy back to my question, Is this (^) contradictory to the way he's written/the overall average perception of the character? Because like I enjoyed his writing in Beast World i have zero significant issue with anything there, I just didn't believe it would be a hot take, like yeah, that is Jason. It's been a while since I've read utrh and lost days, but I don't think my takeaway directly contradicts either of those too bad iirc. Idk all this to say I think Jason killing and being alright with killing is an obvious and objective fact, but i guess i've always seen it as more of a practical tactic than a moral belief, and I think taking the actions made during the lowest points of a character's life where he is obsessively focused on this ONEEEE thing and trying to apply it as a Motivating Stance to everything he's done after that, doesn't really follow logically for me.

[claudvents]

Sleepy Red disaster.. | Rodamrix Alternative mini comic (2)

finally finished! The background takes WAYYY too long and is wayy too tiring. I geniounly do not know how to make all of those proportions and stuff..

Anyways, heres a mini comic of what had happened when i got hyperfixated on couple of fandoms at the same time..

(Ignore my grammar on page 4.. i have made it in the middle of the night and was really tired. I meant to write "Uh- are you okay? You have been here for a while.."))

This time it took me almost 12 hours.. sigh

[creationsofimaginationsblr]

Let me pet the snake, you coward!

No! Stanley, would you stop laughing and help me!?

...you should let Polly pet the snake.

Oh, not you too!

Polly (the player ghost) can't interact much since only their hands are actually solid, but my lord, they *will* pet any snake they find.

This took Way too long! I don't usually do comics, so forgive the lack of colors, but this was super fun! Thank you, @blackkatdraws @braisedhoney and @beartitled for the inspiration and amazing art!

Here's a written description of the comic, inclusion the text:

Polly and Stanley are watching something on a tv that is poorly balances on a turned filing cabinet. The Narrator (Neil) see's them, and wonders what going on and what could have Polly so excited, thinking to himself I wonder what those two are doing

The two of them are watching a fight between A giant yellow snake/centipede (an arrow, apparently???) and another Narrator it seems, as Polly explains to Stanley who they are and what's going on.

Neil goes to sit down, quite intrigued, then freezes. Wait a minute, he thinks. He turns to the ghostly player who slowly turns to him in return. Their grin widens as he observes them, Idiotic smile, no thoughts, just vibes, and (most importantly) They are wayyy tooo excited about this. He slowly turns towards them. "Player, no." He says firmly, addressing them in a formal way as he always does. Their grin only gets bigger. "Polly, Yes!"

Flash to a few minutes later with The Narrator having to hold Polly back from going to pet the giant snake that could maybe eat them whole. Polly is determined to do this as the Narrator struggles to hold a literal ghost back, mumbling about when did they get so strong? Polly just wants to pet the giant new friend. Stanley stays near the tv, laughing at the two of them in the company of this bucket.

[tmntxthings]

一∑ leonardo hamato。・゜・☆

(pics from pinterest)

> raph’s < | > donnie’s < | > mikey’s <

—————————————————————————

version: rottmnt aka rise

aesthetic: blue + hobby-oriented

song association: me and your mama by childish gambino

—————————————————————————

author’s note: same concept as donnie’s & I picked that song bc leo’s a little shit and would pick it for the title (turns out it’s a banger too)

> Profile <

name: the greatest ninja of all time leonardo hamato

nicknames: leo, lee, nardo, leon

aliases: the greatest ninja, champion, neon leon / prime time

location: NYC babyyyyy

species: red slider turtle duh & lou jitsu's looks

age: ~sweet 16~

height: 5'5 (hehe, donnie wishes he was taller than me)

weapons: my rad ninjocity skills, odachi / cool swords

appearance: handsome ;) lovely green complexion, superior red facial markings, sturdy shell, original blue bandanna, super handsome, lean green crime fighting machine, and did i mention handsome?

personality: uhhh definitely the funny / punny one (don't believe a word donnie says), all-around amazing, the cool one too, quick-thinker, trouble maker and savior, really i'm just the whole package, confident.. most times, protective, cunning, brave, the list can go on and on

likes: cool things, like swords and comics and jupiter jim movies / lou jitsu movies #hotsoup, family, senor hueso, gram-gram <3, magic shows, attention, affirmation, hugs, blindsides / backstabs / betrayals, drama, (but what you should take away from this is that i put family wayyy before donnie put family :p) pranks, being #1, competitions

dislikes: kraang / anyone who comes for my family, draxum, apologizing, boredom, getting sentimental or serious, when no one laughs at my jokes T^T, leading, losing

other: i don’t really know what to put here, but profile application complete (that took wayyyyy too long heh ((put a check mark right here anyway :P)), after your school project is over you should swing by! yk so i can beat your ass in mario kart or any other game you think of ;p you should hurry cause i’m getting boreddddd and may just have to portal over, don’t worry i’d never dream of annoying you while you do your homework :D what else should i put on this thing…agh forget it i’ll just tell you about my day so far, i woke up looking as dashing as always, time-skip past playing on my phone / eating / mundane other stuff that’s boringggg and boom, fighting against the foot clan bc those guys are back again?! lemme just say i took out most of them, my hermanos could hardly keep up with me fought very well.. it was such a team effort.. :p that should be enough right? as donnie would say, parting is sweet and all that jazz, but don’t worry i’ll bless you with my presence shortly.. meaning right now, ~portal timeeeee~

[kay-wren]

I'll Come Running - R.C. - Chapter 58

"Well I don't care what you have to do to keep her! It's always cheaper to keep them than to replace them. If she won't move to New York, make it an offer she can't refuse." Rafe demanded over the phone as he walked through the kitchen the next morning. He leaned up against the counter to watch Jessie make breakfast for Charley, who was still fast asleep in the king size bed. Jessie whipped her head away from the stove long enough to put her finger to her lips to tell her husband to quiet down. It was way too early for him to be yelling, especially over work. He simply nodded his head with pursed lips and furrowed brows, clearly agitated but listening to his wife. She giggled at the sight as she went back to making breakfast.

The conversation continued for a few more minutes until Rafe abruptly hung up and flung his phone down beside him. He never moved from his spot on the counter, instead he folded his arms up, clearly in thought as he looked down at the ground. Jessie decided to lighten the mood as best she could by walking over to him and leaning on him with her arms wrapped around his neck.

"It's wayyy too early to be this frustrated." She simply said with a soft smile.

"Yeah well working out of three different time zones makes stuff like this kinda hard." Rafe explained through frustration. He wrapped his arms around Jessie's waist, albeit a little more aggressively than usual, looking at her soft eyes with stern ones. She dismissed the look, knowing it wasn't for her and kissed his lips gently.

"What's the problem now?" She asked, genuinely curious.

"My secretary doesn't want to move." Rafe simply stated through a short temper.

"So find a new secretary." Jessie replied as if the answer was obvious. Rafe just paused for a moment, trying to think of an appropriate explanation.

"She knows too much." Rafe responded with a guilty look. At that Jessie couldn't help but giggle a little. She then decided to pause to come up with a solution of her own.

"Well then you'll just have to kill her." Jessie joked with a shrug of her shoulders.

"That's a very real possibility." Rafe cracked a smile as he joked right along with her, to which she laughed. He brought Jessie closer to him to kiss her harder, this time getting a little more heated, until they were rudely interrupted.

"Oh god, okay, ya know what? It's sickening enough for me to be hungover and now I have to watch you two play tongue hockey!" JJ mumbled as he walked in the kitchen with squinted eyes. Jessie couldn't tell if that was due to the massive hangover or the fact that the two of them were making out right in front of him. "Seriously get a room." He sassed.

"Our room is occupied by a three year old little girl." Rafe sassed right back as JJ took a seat at the bar.

"And so your solution is to have sex in the kitchen? Seriously there's dozens of rooms in this house." JJ mumbled as he rubbed his eyes. The couple just couldn't help but laugh. Jessie dismissed his snide remarks and went to the fridge.

"Hey grab me a beer outta that." JJ said mindlessly pointing over that direction still holding his head.

"Seriously, Jayj? You know a beer is not gonna help." Jessie scolded as she opted for the milk.

"Yeah, and kooks don't typically drink this damn early." Rafe joked. JJ just groaned in annoyance as he laid his head on the cold marble counter. He looked quite comical they had to admit.

"You're getting toast instead." Jessie exclaimed as she went to grab the bread from the pantry. JJ knew better than to argue, especially when he was this hungover.

"Rafe will you go wake Charley up? I don't want her sleeping all day." Jessie asked. Rafe gave her a look that said he really didn't wanna do that. Jessie noticed.

"Oh come on, you're gonna have to be the bad guy at some point. She'll live." Jessie reiterated. Much like JJ, Rafe knew better than to argue. Instead, he marched back to their room.

Jessie slid the cinnamon sugar toast over to her brother, who's head was still laying on the counter. She figured he was asleep, so she snapped her fingers to get his attention. It worked, and he jolted his head up with eyes open, but not for long considering the pounding headache he just remembered he had.

"Eat up, I don't want you puking on the floor. This shit's probably priceless." Jessie joked as she pointed to the toast. She then brought him a glass of milk as well.

It wasn't but a few more moments until Rafe rounded the corner with a sleepy Charley clinging to his hip. Her head rested comfortably on his shoulder and Jessie could tell she was almost back asleep. She sleeps just like her uncle: anywhere at anytime. Rafe looked smitten as he just rubbed her back, wanting her to choose when to wake up. Unfortunately, he had to let go considering he got a call as soon he as he entered the kitchen. He huffed and gave Jessie a sympathetic look as he had to pass her off.

"What?" Rafe snapped as he walked out of the room. JJ watched as he marched away and looked back at Jessie.

"Does that not bother you?" JJ mumbled as he took another bite.

"What?" Jessie asked.

"The constant phone calls, the bad mood he's in, the stress?"

"That's all just a season. We're all going to find a new normal at some point and he won't be this busy." Jessie said dismissively with a head shake. JJ just shook his head in disbelief as he looked down at his food.

"How many times did you see Ward on the phone, stressed out, talking about business, and all that other shit?" JJ asked, allowing for a pause for his sister to think. "Right, a lot. Probably almost everytime you saw the man. That man had been running that company for decades and never got a break. The only time that man was ever off his phone was when he was entertaining all the other rich goons around him. You're kidding yourself if you think that's gonna change, sis."

Jessie just sighed deeply with an annoyed look on her face as if she knew a lot more about this situation than JJ did. She hated that he was so confident in his speculation. He decided to back off.

"Alright, alright..." JJ said as he held his hands up in surrender. "But all I'm sayin is... if I ran the same business he was running, I'd do hard drugs too."

JJ meant that as a joke, but to Jessie it was anything but. She didn't even want to think about the path her husband could go down if he didn't draw some boundaries and take a break every once and a while. But then again, Rafe had seen first hand the man that his father had become, so she liked to believe that he would be self aware enough to not let that happen. After all, he already revolved his life around Charley and her the second they came back into his life. She had to hold on to that truth to not let her mind run wild with doubt and fear.

Jessie was pulled out of her thoughts by a clearly flustered Rafe coming back into the kitchen, now breathing a sigh and scratching the back of his neck. He came to stand right beside his wife, putting his hands on the countertop and stretching his neck with his eyes closed. JJ noticed it too.

"You alright there, big guy?" JJ asked with knitted brows. Rafe just opened his eyes slowly to give JJ a subtle glare and brought his eyes over to Jessie, who had the same look of curious concern on her face.

"I'm fine." He muttered. "I'm going to get in the shower, if Pope comes down tell him I've got people coming at noon and he needs to be ready."

The siblings simply nodded their heads, trying not to push it.

"Do you need me to do anything?" Jessie asked with sympathetic eyes, genuinely trying to be of any assistance she could. Rafe picked up on her fragile tone and immediately shifted his attitude as best he could.

"No, baby, I'm fine, it's all gonna be fine." Rafe whispered as he cupped her face and gave her a reassuring look. He admired her beautiful face for just a moment, and took in his favorite sight of his two girls. He planted a sweet kiss to Jessie's lips and slowly peeled his fingers away. JJ tried his best not to ruin the moment by being disgusted with the public display of affection. With that, Rafe backed away and headed for their master bathroom. Jessie watched as his back muscles tensed as he clinched his fists on the way out. She could tell he was still deep in thought about anything and everything.

- - -

"Pope, I'd like you to meet Mr. Singh. Mr. Singh, this is Mr. Heyward." Rafe introduced the two men who were now standing in the grand living room, both dressed in collared shirts and perfectly ironed pants. Not Pope's preferred wardrobe, but he knew he had to dress to impress-- literally.

Rafe had his driver take the rest of the crew out for a day at the beach, with security standing back modestly of course.

The two men shook hands and exchanged nods of approval.

"So, Mr. Heyward." The man spoke up in a thick Bahamian accent. "I hear you have something of great value to me."

Pope had no idea what to say, after all, he'd never done this before. Pope's words got caught in his throat for fear of saying the wrong thing or giving off the wrong vibe. Despite Rafe's brief teaching before the meeting, Pope still forgot everything, now only looking at Rafe to rescue him. Thankfully, not too much awkward silence lapsed before Rafe quickly stepped in.

"That's correct, Mr. Singh." Rafe played it off as he rubbed his hands together and dawned a confident smile, making sure to look the man directly in the eyes. "It's a cross. Seven foot long made of pure gold and adorned with diamonds and other precious stones. Appraisers say it's priceless."

"Your father and I have been business partners for a long time now, Cameron. And although he hasn't screwed me yet, I would like to know... how did this young lad get involved?" Mr. Singh asked with furrowed brows in Pope's direction. He ran his hand mindlessly through his beard waiting for an answer. Rafe didn't waver.

"This cross— the cross of Santo Domingo— was found by this young man. And he wants to make sure that when this artifact is sold that it's sold to the right partner. Someone who's... going to appreciate it as much as he does. And of course I thought who better than you Mr. Singh?" Rafe calmly stated through a kind smile that Pope couldn't help but tell was fake. That's all these pleasantries seemed to be... fake. But Rafe told him it would be. These were negotiations, nothing more.

"Well that is a fair point but I still do not see how this man found you, Mr. Cameron? And if you found him then... why aren't you wanting this "priceless artifact" all for yourself?" The Bahamian asked with a knowing smirk. Rafe expected the man to always be looking to get under his skin.

"Well that's really none of your concern, Mr. Singh. Because what I have in front of you right now is much more important than any backstory you claim to need."

Pope just watched as the two men eyed each other up and down, clearly playing a silent game of dick measuring. He thought he was ready for this, apparently he wasn't. Still, he couldn't stand the thought of not saying something. He finally cleared his throat.

"It's worth at least 500 million dollars."

Rafe just pursed his lips just enough to keep himself from scolding Pope. No straight answers was what he was told, and yet here he was, spewing a cold hard number to this man. Luckily, Rafe was good at not letting anyone see that he was upset. Now was not the time to lose it.

Mr. Signh was visibly shocked that Pope spoke up. He raised his eyebrows and let out a slight chuckle as he leaned back in his chair, now feeling like he had the leverage.

"Well well well... he speaks!" Mr. Signh exclaimed as he clapped his hands together.

Rafe looked at Pope with a grin that he knew held so much sarcasm. Rafe decided against saying anything else, feeling like Pope needed to sort this one out now. Pope felt the judgement, and just decided to roll with it.

"Yeah I do..." Pope stated calmly, now inhaling deeply and rubbing his sweaty palms on his perfectly starched khakis. "And I want you to know that this cross isn't to be altered in any way if I sell it to you. I want this in a museum on display somewhere. I feel that that's what it deserves."

"Fair enough, Mr. Heyward..." The man leaned in once more with his hands folded together neatly, giving Pope an oddly genuine smile. "But I feel that Mr. Cameron has yet to inform you that... I'm more interested in... off the record purchases. One's that don't get put in museums but... ones that put 500 million dollars cash in your pocket today. Is that something you'd be interested in, Mr. Heyward?" He whispered. Pope looked over at Rafe, unsure of what to say or do. Rafe gave no physical indication of what to do. After all, this was his cross. Rafe's input or previous coaching clearly didn't matter to Pope.

"Well yeah but-"

"But what, Mr. Heyward?" Mr. Signh asked with harsh eyes and a tilt of his head. Pope just sighed.

"If it's not going in a museum or to a good cause... then I can't sell it to you." Pope said sternly, finally finding his voice. Mr. Singh looked down at the floor and tapped his freshly polished leather loafer against the expensive rug.

"Very well, Mr. Heyward. But just a word of advice." Mr. Singh said as he stood up from the couch and looked between the two men in front of him. "Mr. Cameron... doesn't do honest deals either."

With that, the man strutted out of the mansion with his goons in tow. Pope and Rafe both watched as he ominously walked out of the room. Suddenly, Pope whipped his head back around with fury as he looked at Rafe with narrowed eyes and a puffed chest. He looked like he was trying to control his breathing.

"What?" Rafe spat with arms slightly extended.

"What does that prick mean by not doing honest deals? You know what? Never mind, I know exactly what he meant by that! That guy's not from some museum! He's not a collector!" Pope fumed as he now paced around the room.

"Oh he's a collector..." Rafe corrected defensively. Pope had to physically stop and ball his fists in that moment to contain himself. He pursed his lips and let the pent up air out slowly through his nose. Suddenly the collared shirt he had on felt suffocating, and he hastily unbuttoned the top button.

"That's not what I meant, Rafe. He's a black market collector and-"

"And he'll make you more money than you ever thought possible if you give up the damn merit! Dude, I understand you're new to all this, but you gotta understand, I'm not... and I'm telling you... this is what gets you and your little friends to full kook just like you all wanted!" Rafe seethed as he now met Pope where he was standing, being sure to point a finger towards his chest.

Pope had to pause once again to contain his anger.

"My little friends are also your sister and your brother in law. God, Rafe, I thought you understood by now!"

"Understood what?!"

"... We're not friends... we're family... you're family. We all let you in on this despite having our reservations about you because we love Jessie and chose to trust her. You still don't get it! You're still trying to do things your way and you're not understanding that we can sell this cross to the right people, make money, and still keep the moral high ground! We may want to be kooks... but we're not gonna be sell outs to get there..."

"If you're gonna be a kook you're gonna have to-"

"What you just did was not treating me or anyone else like family. This is not just a transaction, Rafe."

Rafe matched Pope's demeanor, now eyeing the man in front of him up and down with fists planted firmly by his side and his chest slowly heaving up and down. Pope could tell he had so much left to say, yet he didn't. Instead he walked away still fuming. Despite everything that just happened, Pope had to admit he was impressed. Not a punch thrown, not a shove, not even one more venomous word.

Rafe marched back to his hidden room, planting himself firmly on the bed and rubbing his eyes furiously as if to try and forget the memory of what just happened. Rafe felt like he had been punched in the gut with all the family talk.

"This is not just a transaction, Rafe."

Rafe didn't understand family... he understood transactions. That was the problem, and it broke his own heart. After all, that's all he was ever taught. Life was not a journey, but a game, a game that his father taught him to win. Ward toured around as a "family man" but Rafe knew he was anything but. He couldn't help but wonder if he would ever view life as more than just transactions as well. He needed Jessie here to prove him wrong, but she wasn't. Rafe started to sob with his head in his hands as he grasped the weight of Pope's words. Jessie and Charley were clearly his family, but the Pogues? Maybe he wasn't as open minded as he thought. Years of hatred and a brainwashed narrative will do that to a person. Then again, he thought he was doing the right thing by Pope and the others by trying to make the most money, not giving much thought to Pope's true intentions. Maybe that was his problem, he was never taught to move morally, only strategically. The sudden rush of emotions and flood of childhood traumatic memories overwhelmed Rafe. He needed Jessie, but she wasn't there.

Before he could process what he was doing, he felt his legs move towards the pantry right outside his hidden door. His mind was numb, only processing what felt like weights around his feet weighing down his legs. He felt drunk and out of his mind and yet he had nothing in his system. He scoured the cabinets for anything he could find, of course, all the wines, champagnes and whiskeys one could possibly imagine were right where they were supposed to be. He quickly grabbed the closest whiskey he could find, not even bothering to grab a certain brand and downed one big swig. The burn down his throat still wasn't enough to drown out the pounding in his head. He held his eyes once more trying to forget. He stumbled back into his bedroom and towards the master bath, not from drunkenness, but from losing his senses altogether due to the overwhelming anxiety he felt. He managed to catch himself as he placed his arms on the marble sink, slowly looking up at himself in the mirror. He took notice of the blown out pupils and wet bloodshot eyes.

"Be a man, men don't cry!"

Rafe heard his dead father ring in his ears the same way he heard him when he was ten years old. He physically groaned at the thought and put his head down feeling like the weight could snap it right off. Given the migraine he was suffering from, he wished it would.

Speaking of migraines, Rafe remembered he was in the bathroom, and behind the mirror would be some medicine that could help. With that he sniffled, wiped his face and tried to pull himself together despite nobody being around to see. Suddenly the suit jacket he had on felt like a straight jacket, and he immediately pulled it off. He rummaged through the cabinet sure enough to find the bottle of pills he was looking for, but when he opened it up, it was not Tylenol he found. It was a plastic baggy of the all too familiar powder. God, why'd he have to hide that shit everywhere he wondered. Even after he decided to get clean he still couldn't seem to escape his former self who undoubtedly had the best hiding spots. Still he stopped in shock as he looked at the contents of the bottle. He expected to immediately throw the bottle down and run out of the bathroom out of fear. Instead, he gripped it tighter out of anger for contemplating his next move. He still felt drunk to his senses, yet now he was filled with rage. Rage that this bottle had so much control over him in the moment. He gritted his teeth at the thought of the cocaine undoubtedly taking his headache away... and all the other pain he was feeling. He needed his Jessie... but she wasn't there.

Finally unable to take the pressure that kept building in his skull and in his mind, he created the perfect line of coke that would carry him through until his girls got home.

[bubblegum-and-ciggarettes]

Spoilers For S2E1!

(Some of Comic Spoilers too)

I said I would probably most a more spoiler discussion post so let’s go!

Alright let’s start with the intro. In the intro we’re introduced with a Mark that eventually saw his dads view and helped take over Earth with him. I wonder, how long did it take to convince him? Was it before he got beat by Omni Man? Was it after? How long has it been since he took his dads side?

We know that The Immortal went straight after Omni Man once he was resurrected, and I assume the events of Omni Man killing his coworkers were the same. Or maybe he didn’t kill them yet and that’s why Mark was more susceptible to join him? It’s just weird it would take so long as we’re led to know an underground bunker has been made and that Rex died fighting already. Plus Eve has a new look which shows the passage of time.

Its very curious to me how Mark acted in this universe. He seemed just like ours and yet was so cruel. He genuinely thought he was in the right and wanted Eve to join him so bad. He didn’t even kill her, just paralyzed her and said he would visit. Did he see her as a pet? The way Omni Man claimed he did with Debbie? What even happened to Debbie? Was this one in favour of Omni Man and that’s why it seemed much easier to get Mark to be on the Viltrimites side?

What also surprised me was the fact that the act of Mark being good, of not taking his fathers side, was rare in the multiverse. Usually the main character is good in most other universes and is bad in a few. Like Superman for example, who’s a hero in most, but still feels like he’s a monster for being a villain in a few. Usually I’m not a fan of the hero mc being upset over being a villain because it’s not that many universes and obviously they wouldn’t be good in all of them, but for Mark it’s different. In his world, him being good is in the minority. He’s so worried about turning into his father and now he has actual proof that it’s so easy for it to happen. I feel like the fact he’s mostly bad in different universes works wayyy better and actually let’s the audience not roll their eyes over one or two evil versions.

The bit with The Immortal being wary of Mark will definitely show up again once all his other selves join the fight. I wonder if that’s what happened in the version we saw at the beginning too; if that Mark was trying to move on like ours, but in this case he actually did follow his fathers path.

Loving Angstrom so far too. I love how you can already see the complexity and insanity in his character. We know that Marks killed many in the different universes where he exists. We know he knows this. We also know he knows that our Mark is good. And yet, after he WILLINGLY sabotages himself he blames our Mark for everything. For killing so many people. We even see how he went from cool and collected, from being a pacifist who knows that Mark is good and doesn’t deserve to die, to be a cold bloodthirsty genius wanting revenge.

It wasn’t even that Mark was brutal towards the Mauler Twins and co. We don’t see him draw ANY blood from them, even though he easily can as we see him crush The Immortals head in the intro. He’s intentionally holding himself back to not actually hurt them, and Angstrom can see this. I think this was done intentionally to show the viewer how not-at-fault Mark was, and how he doesn’t deserve whatever’s coming. He doesn’t even fight anyone else until the end. I can just tell Mark is gonna have a rough ass time in this season. Boy is just suffering and is gonna face hell itself only a month after his dad tried to kill him.

I know some plot points of the comics, but not much than knowing the events, and so I know there will be a big Invincible fight, but I don’t know what will make them all agree to try to kill our Mark. I also know that Mark gets a new suit eventually; a black and blue suit. The new title card starts with covering the whole thing in blood, and then we see a crack of blue starting. I think what they’re gonna do is reveal the title card in the color scheme of his new suit by the end of the series. I don’t know when exactly he gets his new suit, but I think it’ll probably be in the last episode. You can kinda see the lettering on his name being black in the title card, and I think it breaking away to reveal his new suit scheme will be really cool.

This episode, while not super exciting, was great at setting up the atmosphere and feelings Mark and Debbie are going through. It’s good at showing how much everyone else has moved on compared to them, because they were the most effected. It also handled the main villain lead up super good. Villains being unhinged is always amazing. Especially when we can understand why he wants to kill Mark in general, but doesn’t have any reason to kill our Mark specifically. Can’t wait for the new episode next week!

[radiatorbucket]

BROOOOOOO ok this took wayyy too long to make but this is my character from my story the locket her names Lillian and she's a vampire more will be revealed when I finally release parts of my comic

[femmeleatherface]

thoughts on: northstar's leatherface (1991-1992)

FINALLY finished the comic book adaptation of the third texas chainsaw massacre movie. it took a while because i kept getting distracted and also only really had short bursts in the morning to chip my way through it, but i finally finished it and it was...

fine!

incoherent rambling under the cut. CW's for piecemeal discussions of the comic's graphic violence, antiblackness, and ableism

thoughts as an adaptation

it definitely took a while to get interesting. the first couple issues were pretty dull, following the film's plot pretty closely, or at least what i remember of it. (admittedly it has been a while since i saw the movie, and i didn't much care for it when i DID see it)

except since it was an adaptation into a comic book, there was way less space to explore anything so the pacing was a mess. for example, i remember the roadkill scene in the movie being one of the better parts of the movie, but it comes off as a scatterbrained mess in this comic because the writers are so busy not only adapting the film script they've been given, but also setting up for new things later

the last two issues definitely veered wayyy off from the film, though, and they're ultimately what make me glad that i did finally seek this out. i doubt i'll read this again, at least not for a while, but there were some interesting things going on in those last couple issues i'll be thinking about

the good parts

the main interesting thing was how in this version instead of the sawyers carting around grandpa's desiccated corpse like he was still alive they just? replaced him?? with some random guy whose family was going to put him in a nursing home??? because they "needed a grandpa." the implication being that OG grandpa finally died and they felt they needed to fill his familial vacancy, and it didn't matter if the person was actually related in any way, just so long as they had A Grandpa

it's a different take on the twisted, rotted family decaying from within, which as a gothic horror fan is one of my FAVORITE tropes. also it opens up the franchise to a unique explanation for where all the new sawyer family members keep coming from with each consecutive chainsaw sequel. unfortunately the comic was not very interested in exploring this "the saw is family but all family is replaceable" concept, which is a shame

also the structure of the narrative was very much in the "descent through dante's inferno" tradition, just the further along you get the more and more terrifying and nightmarish things become and the further and further the protagonist's understanding of the world around them begins to slip. it's a great story structure for horror, and this comic did it well enough. nothing special, but the way it tweaked the narrative slightly so it was the final girl, michelle, becoming as violent as the sawyers the further along the nightmare went, was a nice touch

overall, the comic kind of made me want to see a chainsaw movie combining these two concepts. like, a more psychological approach that ends with the final girl made so violent and twisted by what she's endured that she ends up being welcomed into the family and replaces one of the members she killed. kind of like texas chainsaw 3d, except better and more fucked up and less. "do your thing, cuz"

it would be interesting, at least. like "do your thing, cuz"

major problems

ultimately though this is a very flawed comic and i think most of its issues stem from the fact that it's trying way too hard to be shocking and in so doing leaves no impact

the biggest example of this is the way the comic utilizes violence and the gore. but honestly, if it were just that the comic is super gory that would be fine. the leatherface: tcm3 movie was so massacred (ha) by censors, it's nice to see a version of the story with all the gore intact (and then some). the problem is that the comic uses gore as a crutch of the horror and discomfort, forgetting that the original texas chain saw massacre movie conveys its horror and discomfort without gore through the use of disturbing imagery and concepts

it's weird, because the leatherface: tcm3 movie actually managed to do this... a little bit... there's a scene where the little girl character begs and pleads for the chance to bash ryan's head in, and it's treated like a big deal and a coming of age moment by the sawyers because she's never done it before. a bit forced and obvious, but still, very gruesome and disturbing

in contrast, the comic doesn't have that scene, and the little girl charcter doesn't really do anything overall? instead leatherface bashes ryan's head, and the novelty of the scene comes from getting to see ryan's eyes bulge while brains explode out of his skull, i guess. but we've SEEN leatherface bonk people on the head before in other chainsaw films, and we've SEEN this kind of violence throughout the whole comic, so what does this scene even add? nothing!

there's a similar thing going on with casual antiblackness throughout. the comic goes out of its way to repeatedly emphasize that benny is black, either by having him say something really unnatural-sounding about it or have the sawyers calling him slurs or say otherwise racist things constantly. like, basically every time benny appears, this happens

it goes beyond feeling like there's any thin, overwrought point to it and ultimately just feels like the comic is othering benny because ooo, blatant racism, how nonconformist. it makes the writers come across like white middle school boys who just found out that slurs are a thing and are pretending that saying them makes them cool, but really it's just because they are immature and want to say naughty words. and i do not particularly care for it

and then finally there was the goddamn ableism in this. it was. SO BAD. starting in the second issue it started being narrated in the third person from leatherface's pov, which i honestly really like as a concept. it fits with his character and the way he interacts with the world without tripping things up with a traditional first person sense of self. problem is, like with benny being black, the narration goes out of its way to constantly emphasize that leatherface has a cognitive disability in the most repulsive ways, just constantly dehumanizing and infatalizing him. and then there were three issues of that, oh my god...

and it's extra frustrating because in the middle of this i stopped to re-read jason vs. leatherface for friday the 13th, and that comic does a similar thing! it's narrated in the third person from jason's pov, for basically the same reason as the leatherface comic. and it manages to use the narration with so much more respect for jason as a disabled character. he struggles to understand his big gay emotions, but instead of mocking him and infantalizing him for it like the freaking leatherface comic would, it simply explores it as a facet of his characterization. and when jason vs leatherface does show jason as a more childlike character in terms of his relationship with his mother and how it fuels his anti-love crusade, it's tied TO that reationship, not his disability

so reading that and then going back to finish up the leatherface comic... oof. it hurt. this narration concept and leatherface deserved so much better, but instead they wound up in edgytown

conclusion

that was a lot. i have been working on this for nearly a week, let's wrap this up now

overall, very flawed comic. it's hard to say if it's got anything REALLY good in it, but it's got enough decent ideas that, like i said ages ago, i'm glad i read i

if anyone actually reads this and takes anything out of it, though, it should be to go read jason vs leatherface. because everyone needs to read jason vs leatherface

[karlyboyyy]

So I took a day off work specifically to work on my comic. But so far all I’ve done is spend wayyy too long trying to hang a piece of artwork on the wall and getting so frustrated that my very loud cursing scared the dog 🙃

[dreadful-duality]

Going Down?

That new teaser was something huh? Here’s a little comic based on that moment when Gregory’s in the elevator escaping Vanessa (except he’s a troll)

[lucdoodle]

(Read from left to right), this is my training on using different artstyle

[equus-ferro]

8, 18 and 51 for Lloyd? <3

8. Weapon of Choice(?)

His bolt action rifle! He would use a rifle over a revolver or pistol any time, because he wouldnt have to get in closer range to the target lol.

18. Have any special keepsakes?

He has this old compass that was gifted to him from his grandpa and a family picture with his parents and him as a child (he keeps it in a slim box to not wear it down more than it already is)

51. What were some inspirations for your character (people, movies, games)?

I have to be honest, there's no *real* inspo :( I remember making him blonde bc it's a haircolor I rarely saw on men in rdo. Then my brain went "i like traveling to Sweden. Let's make him swedish" for teh lulz, to use this ancient proverb. He ended up as half a swede; his (then teenaged) dad & grandparents immigrating to the US which was a weirdly good fit for the timeline in rdr (with the most swedes immigrating in the 1860s) but i only discovered that later :'D I also haven't had finished the main story by then because if I had known there was a lil norwegian settling in tall trees I would've used this to my character creating advances!

Lloyd's character and traits got defined by how I play in rdo, that he's rather picking flowers than picking fights, pretty defensive. I will also join you in the cringe club, as I gave him a lot of myself, too (the love for cats, reading, and a good joke, defensiveness, immense self doubt to just name some). Lloyd just has wayyy more backbone than I do lol.

I don't remover how I came up with picking his first name, but for his last name I pulled up a list of swedish surnames and found an alliteration to be quite funny. Did I ever mention his last name here?? It's Lindström. Ha ha

When I posted a comic with him on reddit, some commented saying he looks like Askeladd from the Vinland Saga anime and one guy said, like the air fighter ace from Blackadder Marches Forth. I saw neither, had to google both, there are some resemblances and I got a good laugh from it hehe.

Thanks for asking <3 (and sorry I took so long, had to type this out first)

[silverxcristal]

What's your opinion of the IDW Sonic comics ( assuming you read them )

I stop reading after the mini arc of "sonic had amnesia" so i dont know futher than that, start reading the chao race arc but then never checked for the next update

And in all honestly... MmmMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmMMMmmMMm I begin to lose interest as I begin to get more frustrated over the handle of some characters, relationships, and the constant spoilers of the covers and pages. Especialy on the Metal Virus Saga

The Neo Metal saga was very nice very good jklhjaskd Metal Virus last wayyy too long and tried to be serious but with the limitations the Sonic Team has with their characters... making it feel sloppy??? And the amnesia arc was upsetting, because it would be a fun concept to dig in but they resolve it in what?? two issues????

Also my notp begin to get blasted all over the way and it upset me how people took it as good when it has very negative layers on it, but rather than get upset and angry imma just walk away and let them enjoy it /nm

[chikkou]

What are you thoughts on the weird divide in Homestuck's lasting community. From what I have seen the two big parts are the reddit/discord faction which thinks the comic went downhill during act 6 and never recovered and the twitter fanbase that considers everything before act 6 to be unenjoyable due to its problematic elements. Obviously I am painting with broad strokes here but I wanted your position of the state of the modern Homestuck and its fanbase.

ive never even heard of this tbh but i do know that act 6 was extremely divisive pretty much from the beginning, and things didnt get better as it went on and hussie got more and more fast and loose with it LMAO

also interesting that theres people claiming that theres more problematic stuff BEFORE act 6... like did they forget about kankri and mituna and the whole ass the trickster arc? hello? 

personally tho i do agree that homestuck took a massive hit to quality in act 6, and while it did recover a bit in the latter half of the act, it took way too long for things to get back to a good place and thats due in large part to the many hiatuses as hussie was trying to work shit out with hiveswap. theres definitely plenty of good content in there - there has to be given how fucking long it is LMAO - but overall it was a pretty steady decline from the start of act 6 that didnt improve for wayyy too long. most of the people i know who dropped homestuck did so during act 6, either because it got boring or because they got sick of the constant sjw strawmen hussie kept adding LMAO