#and art isn’t bad ever. you can improve definitely and there’s layers but i think that view of Bad and Good art is why many ppl are afraid

[eponymous-rose]

Talks Machina Highlights - Critical Role C2E127 (March 2, 2021)

Tonight’s guests are, of course, Ashley Johnson and Marisha Ray!

Marisha, on her thought process behind the date: “It was a fascinating study on designing something with another player in trying to navigating how to do that in a way that makes sense and wouldn’t be too metagamey or overly scripted or anything like that. I had a bunch of ideas thought out, then I just typed it out and sent it over to him, and then he interpreted it as such.” Liam had ideas, but Marisha wanted him to keep the details a surprise. The theme of “let’s start over” was the leading motif for the design. Three acts: pre-game cocktails at the Nestled Nook, picnic in a field of Xhorhasian wildflowers, and then close it with after-dinner drinks and hot tub at the Steam’s Respite. And the very last thing was “and all the cats were dogs”. Brian: “What was his response to that?” Marisha: “He texted me and was like, ‘Are you serious or is this dog thing a joke?’”

Ashley is asked what it was like to know it was coming but not know the specifics. “For both of us, I don’t think we thought it was going to be right then. I think because it’s been so long in the relationship between Beau and Yasha and it felt like such a natural progression for the two of them, and they’re both awkward together. I think there was something to just being thrown into it.” She spent time thinking about what things Yasha would talk to Beau about on a date. “We got to maybe one of them. It was just so fun! Exploring romance in D&D can be super weird, especially when you’re streaming. But it felt like that’s where our characters were going. There was that excitement of trying something that is out of my comfort zone, and I think so much of Marisha was part of that, as being the initiator as Beau, where I was like, okay, this is where it’s going it. Let’s do it, let’s see what happens!” She mentions how “fun and freeing” it is to trust your improv partner in something like this.

Marisha: “I just wanted Beau to be a fuckboi!” But she highlights that it’s hard to deny the deeper connections that come up in D&D scenarios. “They’ve been with each other through so much that it’s difficult to deny when those bonds start to happen.” She texted Liam in a panic before the game. “What do I wear? And he said, ‘In the game or in real life?’ Both!”

Marisha was expecting a Sam curveball at some point. “My/Beau’s reaction of ‘I love you!’ was pretty accurate. She does care! She’s not just  a troll trying to ruin our shit.”

Marisha on Yasha liking dogs: “I clocked that shit when you bought a dog figurine.” She keeps notes about all the members of the party when they reveal things like that.

Ashley has started taking more detailed notes, partly to play catch-up for events she may have missed earlier. “Turns out, notes are very helpful and can help you in your RPing!”

Favorite parts? Marisha: “The fade-to-black moment at the very end, and I think it’s because Ashley’s eyes--maybe this is going to get weird--we had this moment where we were in the hot tub at the end, and I looked over and was like, ‘hey’, and you looked over and were like, ‘hey’, and I was just dead. I will never forget the look on Ashley’s face. There was just a pure moment.” Ashley: “That’s so funny, because I was going to talk about this one moment with Marisha. It’s just clicking into the scene and clicking into the moment.” Marisha talks about how the moments associated with the game have real, tangible emotional connections. Brian highlights that the emotional side of things is what you remember the most after the campaign is done.

Character thoughts on Kima? Marisha: “I was like, step on me! Please! Both of you! We’d be friends.” Ashley: “It’s also that nostalgia that feels so good at the table. These characters we know and love are still living and breathing and happy together and just kicking ass. For Yasha it was an amazing example of a relationship that works in this world, and something beautiful that these people who are different but are connecting. It was a lot of-- it was cool. I think Yasha’s a very big fan of Kima and Allura. When she gave over the sword, Travis texted me and was like, it’s the Holy Avenger. Looking it up and talking about it, it was like, holy mackerel, this sword is insane. But there’s going to have to be some conversations had to attune with the sword. But I like that Matt presented that challenge, that this isn’t necessarily in your class, but let’s do some RP and see what happens.”

Where’s Yasha at with the Stormlord right now? “I’m curious to explore that more, but knowing that the Stormlord was the first person to bring her back to her own will, of pulling her out of whatever was happening with Oban and the Laughing Hand for however long. It’s also weird to see the relationship that the clerics have, and I think Yasha’s still figuring out how to be her own person, but also... not serving somebody, but still trying to figure out that relationship with her god. But again, he saved her from a very, very dark place, and I think that’s something she values and holds on to.”

Cosplay of the Week: An amazing Essek! (Blushingvioletcosplay on Instagram)

How is Beau handling the Eyes? “All the theories! It’s hard for it to not feel like a ticking time bomb. I always have to try and separate my theories from Beau’s theories. That’s acting and shit. I, Marisha, am very interested if I can somehow utilize this to our advantage. Beau, also interested but simultaneously terrified that it might be a bad idea and I might just get further initiated. When it comes to Matt, you know there’s always something more lurking underneath all of this. As players it’s kind of our job to navigate that.”

How about Yasha? “I think it’s one of the things that didn’t really come up in the date, which is funny, because it’s something I was thinking about. Me as a player, that’s something I’m extremely stressed about. We don’t know what’s going to happen. We kind of got into it, but I think the fact that Lucien was listening, and the Eyes, I think it made me as a player as Yasha very nervous about interacting with Beau, because I don’t know what they’re picking up on. There’s so much we don’t know, and Lucien is so confusing, and the Eyes, and with Matt... we don’t know! It’s a point of extreme concern for Yasha, especially someone that she has feelings for and cares about, it’s an extra level of I don’t know what this means and I can’t lose this person, but I need to protect at all costs.”

What was it like for Beau to discover that Dairon and the Soul not only listened but took action? “That moment was so deeply powerful. Honestly, I was just as taken aback as Beau was. I never in both mine or Beau’s thought process did I think Matt would take action in that way, or that would ever be handled. And I think that’s what makes it so emotional. You condition yourself to think these things just happen, so much so that they permeate your D&D game. So rarely do abusers get held accountable for their actions. What was powerful about it was that he was, and other people cared. That alone was so emotionally impactful, and I was completely thrown by it. I feel like I had to walk away from that situation kind of unpacking those things. What does that say, what does that mean? Same thing for Beau, where the cycle of abuse has happened repeatedly to her with no repercussions to anyone who’s causing it. It’s why she’s always had a weird tenuous relationship with the Soul. It throws you into these layers of reconciliation and thought. I didn’t think this was going to be addressed. What does that say about society? So many different layers to peel back. It all speaks to so many real-life experiences that happen every damn day to so many people. There’s not many examples in media of abusers getting handled, and especially not in a way that’s not some sort of device to motivate somebody.” She highlights how rare it is that the abuser was handled without pulling the victim into the mess. I’m definitely not doing what she’s saying justice with my speed-typing.

How is Yasha feeling about solidifying her identity as a protector? “Putting together this character and starting to play as her, there was a part of me that wanted-- when I work on characters, you go through the list of questions you have as an actor, what’s your motivation and all that stuff. But I very much wanted to see if I could have a character that doesn’t necessarily know what their purpose is, because I feel like a lot of people feel that way. I think when we see movies or TV shows, there’s always a character who says, I know what my purpose is. I wanted to explore what it meant to not know what that is. I left that open with Yasha, and I didn’t want to set that for her, because I thought that was an interesting thing. I still like that idea, but in the conversation with Beau and knowing the date was coming up, there were a lot of internal conversations I was having of how is Yasha feeling in this moment. At the end of the day, I feel that’s a very solid purpose for Yasha in this moment, of all I can really provide is protection - and of course she can provide more than that. But now I’m just, yeah, I think protection for her is the best way she knows how to describe her purpose.” Brian: “And once we arrive there, the goal is to find a greater purpose, to be of service.” Ashley has tied in Yasha’s protectiveness with her grappling with loss.

Fan art of the week: A second amazing Essek! (by Saturday_sky)

Thoughts on the amulets: set-up or bad luck? Ashley: “I thought they were a set-up!” Marisha: “I think [Astrid’s] an opportunist. But I think it’d be much more convenient if anyone other than her killed Trent. To what end, I don’t know.” Ashley: “Me, personally, how I interpreted her crying in that alleyway, I felt like she was crying because of a betrayal. But I don’t know! I think she definitely cares for Caleb.” Marisha: “I also got betrayal tears. That felt like guilt-crying to me.” Brian: “I don’t like any of this.”

What prompted Beau going full assassin? “If they were to get in and out and I could have jumped over that tower without killing that guy, I would have.” She didn’t have a lot of options as a monk and not a rogue assassin, but needed a quick and quiet way to get him out of the way. “I went through so many ideas in my head. I thought of an idea to dump all of the ball bearings under him, then light fireworks” to try to get him to fall off the edge.

Is Yasha’s hope for Molly still alive? “Yes. I think that because Yasha has been on the other end of doing terrible things under someone else’s influence, she has a lot of forgiveness for people. At this point, of course, it’s hope that he’ll come back or have some type of recognition of his life as Molly. There’s a lot of questions. I don’t think she’ll ever give up on him.” The only moment of hesitation was when Lucien was cool with Gelidon leaving with Beau.

How are they feeling about their odds? Ashley: “I feel really great about the ideas that the group has to get out of tricky situations. This one I’m nervous about.” Marisha: “I agree. We have our little side player thread, minus Matt, and I don’t see how we’re getting out of this without some sort of compromise that’s not necessarily in our favor. I think we’re going to get out of it, but I don’t think we’re going to get out of it completely.”

Ashley didn’t tell Brian about the date after the episode ended, but wound up blurting it out right before he was about to watch the episode for Talks.

#long text post #critical role #critical role spoilers #talks machina #talks machina spoilers

[theelliottsmiths]

It makes me really sad how people happily consume deep, obviously hard won, creative output but aren’t at all prepared to accept that sometimes that battle gets a little ugly. Like you’re consuming content that obviously attracts a lot of criticism, and is completely impossible to do even from a practical point of view (recording, touring, etc.) without leaving the security blanket of employment, social security or society’s approval but expect the people in it to just ... not ever stand out or to misfit or be uncomfortable. It reminds me of what we had the other day, there is a fascination with darkness and wildness and being rebellious, but rarely are the onlookers prepared to deal with the blood and the tears and the dirt. I don’t understand that.

I mean I am basically expected to defend Richard at this point, but the thing is, he’s probably insufferable a lot of times. What gets to me whenever this comes up though, is that all the attributes people apply to him that are negative, almost all exclusively come from himself. Like, people read those interviews and for like one exception where Schneider is being a dick, it’s not like the others say “Richard was too controlling and dramatic” it’s him saying “yeah, I did that and that’s why I moved.” It’s like ... all the negative things people believe about him come from himself. People think he thinks he did the main stuff on Mutter because he went and said “I did too much on that album.” Because the rest of the band is pretty mum about it. And it makes me suspicious, and again, sad for him, that he is perceived that way because he goes out there and dares to show that vulnerable and flawed side of himself and admits what he’s done, and now he’s the boogieman because the others don’t say what they did, too.

Sorry for the emotional ramble, I’m thin skinned today, but I don’t know, people that make themselves vulnerable that way often get treated that way, and it just depresses me.

Disclaimer for the previous anon: this isn't about you specifically, this is a general thing

I think a lot of the issue is that most of the community on Tumblr are quite young and are still coming to terms with just how grey people are (not to mention we have no experience with 40 year relationships because the majority of us are half that, literally babies when it happened)? Because the reality is yes, people have flaws that are more offputting than lovable quirks and that's okay. The expectation that none of us should ever be annoying or have moments of cuntishness or self-centeredness is unrealistic and unfair, and the guys understand that well enough not to hold it against each other forever, especially when it's actively being improved. There are limits and he hit them, but that doesn't mean throw the whole boy out. He has so many good traits that balance it out!!! They clearly decided he was worth enough to them in other ways to keep around, the good times were enough to outweigh the bad ones.

I honestly think they all agreed, Richard included, that sanding it down into just saying it was Richards fault and moving on is the best course of action. I wouldn't be surprised if he's going a bit overboard to almost atone for it, downplaying other people's parts in it because it can't be denied that he was having a bad time. If you assume his heavy drug use was involved theres a whole other layer of regret and guilt and heightened emotions that could compound to make his reaction to his own behaviour worse. I just almost teared up considering that maybe he brings it up to remind himself and to show everyone else that he's trying? All of this post is essentially fanfiction with sources but that even more so but listen... Ouchie, right? Whereas most of the others are more forgiving of themselves and their behaviour so it's faded to a greater degree. If he shut up about it a bit more I wonder if they'd ever bring it up. He really does beat himself up and insist it's all in the name of his art.

We have slightly different opinions on the importance of Artistic Pain and Suffering, I know you side more than Richard on that than I do, but I can definitely agree that there's an issue with people loving the end product but rejecting how it came to be in the first place. That doesn't make any sense the way I worded it huh? If you want moral purity then anything outside that is going to feel like a blow. Is that why they say you should never meet your idols?

Related to that none-thing I just tried to say, there's also the fact that Richard has gone to therapy and worked on this stuff: He does acknowledge his issues and how they affected everyone else, and it's pretty clear the others appreciate that. A lot of it, even from our limited knowledge, has clear origins so I don't doubt that they take everything he's been through personally into consideration. I imagine the same can be said of Till and to a certain extent all the others too. You can't look at them through a purely individualistic lens, that's not how they think.

You know how a lot of people with mental health issues get into periods of hating themselves and can list a whole bunch of overinflated reasons why they're terrible awful bad waste-of-a-fleshsuit humans? Sometimes when Richard is discussed it's like people are listening to that and they agreeing without taking a second to evaluate the objectivity of the source. It's hard to look at for too long for some people. Till is treated way more sympathetically; his Bad Traits are less grating for people who don't know and aren't actually around him, I suppose.

I'm trying to find a quote by I think Paul about how he had to read a book of some kind to be able to understand and talk to Richard, Tumblr is impossible to search, but it really does highlight the effort they all put in that we don't see. They have long, long conversations with each other, they didn't just get angry, yell a bit, and then wait for things to change. Sometimes people forget that personal growth is a thing. He's not the same person in 2021 as he was in 2011 or 2001 or any other time.

Uh. Here's a cute Richard to improve the mood

#richard zk #me rambling #Rammstein

[renaerys]

What are your thoughts on the blues? The reds are my otp and I like the greens but I have to confess the blues don't do anything for me. My frustration with this ship stems from people making them "perfect ". They're always the first to get together, stop hating each other early, rarely have turmoil and if they do they get over it quickly. They're written as too cutesy imo. I feel like people think just because bubbles is the sweet one and boomer being her counterpart that means they would get together quickly. It's annoying because the blues can be complex if people bothered to attempt to flesh them out. Bubbles is still a ppg and boomer is still a rrb. Contrary to popular belief and writing they would have difficulties moving forward from enemies to friends then lovers. I really feel the reason they're the least popular of the 3 ships is because they're rarely fleshed out in fics and given obstacles to overcome. Even singular fics focusing on them leave much to be desired. I feel for blues fans because I know they're frustrated with the content for their ship and how it's written. I'm not into the ship and I'm frustrated along with them because Bubbles/Boomer have the potential to be a great ship if people took the time to actually flesh them out. It's not right that the reds get to be complex and so do the greens but the blues...just get to be cute and one dimensional. You and maybe 2 other authors are probably the only ones who actually give them a personality and character. Definitely not trying to bash authors but I do feel as though this a discussion that needs to be had. The blues deserve better and this is coming from a reds fan.

Thanks for this thoughtful ask! I’ve heard this concern before from others, and I also have issues with it generally. I can’t speak to other authors’ intentions and don’t pretend to know their preferences or interpretations, so please keep that in mind for what I am about to say here. I am speaking only for myself. 

Based on what I have seen in this fandom and conversations I’ve had with fellow fans, I think there are a few different explanations for the issue you raised, none of which is dispositive. 

1) Certain creators may not like Blues as much as other ships, but because Color Code is pretty much expected in most PPG/RRB fics and art, they throw the Blues in there anyway and end up de-prioritizing them. That’s not unexpected, but probably explains the lower effort put into them compared to other ships. It’s side-ship syndrome and you see it across fandoms. Unfortunate, but pretty ubiquitous. 

2) There are fandom headcanons regarding ship dynamics and character personalities that appear to be widely accepted, and among those is the lovey/saccharine Blues dynamic. That’s neither good nor bad, but it is pervasive. In concert with 1) above, you have a recipe for a low-effort side-ship that the author/creator isn’t super excited about, and it shows through the recycled tropes that barely reach beyond a skin-deep level of nuance. I suspect that the popularity of high school fics exacerbates this issue at least in part. High schoolers probably are not dealing with experiences such as getting older, questions of marriage/family, careers, debt/finances, and other hazards of adulting that are ripe for interesting dramatic tension and added layers of complexity in a relationship. Again, this is neither good nor bad, just an observation. 

3) Separate from 1) and 2), I get the impression that a not insignificant portion of the fandom actively updating fanfic these days is on the young side (teenagers/early 20s) and/or does not have a lot of personal experience with romantic relationships. None of that is bad! Please don’t mistake me, it’s awesome that there are young people creating and contributing, learning and having fun. I encourage and support them; I used to be one myself (and I still have so much to learn and improve on, as we all do). No one can improve without a safe space to practice and learn, and I feel very strongly about contributing to making that space safe and welcoming to creators of all skill levels. The downside of a younger or inexperienced pool of active writers is that it is probably more difficult for those writers to write nuanced, “realistic” relationship dynamics--if they have not lived those experiences themselves (or at least been around long enough to watch them happen to their peers), then how can they possibly be expected to write about them in a story in a believable and honest way? It’s a tall order, and an unfair standard to hold them to. I’m sure some can do it, and my hat’s off to them; they are certainly better writers than I am. But I suspect most cannot. I say that from a place of experience having been there myself. I look back at my fics from like 10 years ago and cringe fondly (what could I have possibly known about adult relationships without ever having been in one myself?). 

And that’s not to say teenagers can’t experience meaningful romantic relationships. They absolutely can and do! But when you’re living it in the moment, it becomes hard to take a step back and objectively analyze it as an experience. That really only comes with age and lived experience, which allow you to look back on those times without being emotionally compromised by your personal feelings. You can see the “good” and the “bad” much better in hindsight. And importantly, you have the emotional intelligence and maturity to write about it honestly. What might have seemed romantic at 16 might feel very different at 26 when you factor in experience, worldliness, and cultural/life education that really can only come with age. At least, that has been my experience. (I reiterate that I am only speaking for myself and my journey, not for any other authors.)

All this for my point 3) is to say that the frustrations you have expressed with Blues in some stories coming off as “too cutesy” or being “perfect” or “rarely hav[ing] turmoil” in their relationship are likely due to the fact that at least some of the writers of those stories probably don’t have the life experiences that would adequately prepare them to write a nuanced, complex, romantic relationship. Real life relationships that are “successful” are hard. They are work. Happiness takes so much work when happiness requires another person’s engagement and fulfillment as an equal member of your team. The honeymoon phase is real, but it doesn’t last, and I think that is where some stories miss the mark. I’m all for Blues (or any other ship) to be genuinely happy in love. Who doesn’t like a happy ending? But romantic success isn’t a destination, it’s a never-ending journey with ups and downs. Personally, I’m interested in reading about the ways a ship navigates those ups and downs, and how the characters decide that despite hardships, it’s worth weathering the struggle together because they are happier together than they would be apart. 

But that’s so hard to execute! Professional writers, filmmakers, and screenwriters think it’s hard to execute! I have tried to do it myself, and I look back on my recent fics and I’m like okay cool, but we can and should do better next time. It is not easy, and I don’t want to give you the impression that I think I’m amazing at it or that it’s not hard to pull off. That could not be further from the truth, and anyone who tries to tell you otherwise is lying to you. It’s definitely a discussion that should be had in any fandom no matter the shipping preferences. All I can say is that I encourage my fellow writers and creators to keep practicing. We can all do better.

#i guess i'll tag this unless someone yells at me #ppg blues #boomubbles #this ship is lovely and i love reading them in fics <3 #but there's always room for all of us to improve #Anonymous #ppg meta

[sirbadgerduke]

Retrospective Thought: Top Ten Games of The Year 2020

Another year, another batch of games have been released to highs and lows, to praise and woes. 2020 May have sucked big time due to COVID and restless political protesting/outrage, the selection of games have been pretty good if a bit middling overall, especially with the beginning of a new Console Generation. Here’s my top ten games of the year, titles I adored and had a blast with. 10) Cyberpunk 2077(PS4/XBOXONE/PC)

A bit of a controversial choice considering the dialogue surrounding it and CD Projekt RED. Needless to say that while it’s downright buggy and unplayable on the base PS4/XBONE versions, Cyberpunk 2077 is still a stellar Immersive Sim with RPG elements thrown in. A great story and a great cast of characters set within a sometimes gorgeous map make up for many of the “shortcomings/Broken promises'' in my honest and trivial opinion. Gameplay is solid/fun whilst needing some fine tuning in areas here and there and the music is top notch to boot. I’d honestly have to recommend getting this later on, after the major big patch coming in Feb as hopefully the bugs and glitches will be cleared(hopefully) by then. Still a great, memorable ride underneath the bugs, glitches and weird design choices, just be cautious if you plan to get it now.

9) Resident Evil 3 Remake(PS4/XBOXONE/PC)

While not quite as fantastic as the Resident Evil 2 Remake and mirroring similarities to the comparison between both original titles, Resident Evil 3 is still a really great Survival Horror Action title in its own right. Obviously it’s focus is definitely more on the action side of things, but while RE5/6 failed to even have a glimmer of horror, here RE3R still has a level of sheer terror in the form of Nemesis both in the beginning and in key moments. Nemesis himself, whilst in the background more than he was in the original, adds a layer of paranoia and dread as you think about where he’ll pop up again ready to take you out. Worth a check if you like the original RE3 game in my opinion.

8) Maneater(PS4/XBOXONE/PC)

A “Megashark Sim” game that could easily be mistaken for a long lost 2005 PS2 game remake or remaster for the PS4/XBONE Generation. Maneater is just pure, unadulterated dumb fun. Growing from tiger shark pup to Megalodon Tier Mega Shark, whilst a little repetitive every so often, is chaotically great, one that really makes you feel like the Apex Predator of the ocean, especially when you take down shark hunters with ease. The story is portrayed as this Reality Show, narrated by Chris Parnum, it takes itself serious enough with some earnest sincerity. If you’re looking for a good mayhem filled fun, pick this title up.

7) Doom Eterna(PS4/XBOXONE/PC/NS

Sequel to the sublime 2016 Reboot, Doom Eternal is one of the best Boomer FPS games to come out in 2020, if not THE best FPS game. An FPS that requires your attention to what weapon you are using and what enemies are currently hunting you down during a hectic gunfight, it often plays both like a Character Action and Puzzle title in equal measure. Continuing and expanding upon the story from the 2016 title, the lore and plot itself go into some both equally dumb and badass levels of nuttery you can only find in Doom. If you love old school shooters and Doom 2016, check it out if you want to rip and tear demons into a pulpy, bloody mess. 

6) Final Fantasy 7: ReMake(PS4)

I haven’t played the original so my experience may be very different to those that have. I enjoyed this title more than I thought I would; from the combat down to the even the music(a strong point of many Final Fantasy games good or bad.)and the story itself is a rather great romp. The Characters, the art style, it all hits the checkmarks I look for in a Final Fantasy game and then some. While it’s not my favourite Final Fantasy, it's definitely in my top tier, even down to the combat which is both really stylish and flashy whilst maintaining a level of tact from the games in the series of yonder. Definitely worth a check out if you’re a fan of Final Fantasy games. 5) One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4(PS4/XBOXONE/PC/NS)

Aah, Musou titles that take an IP and franchise, gives it that Dynasty Warriors coat of paint and goes “that’ll do!” are a treat when done well. PW4 is one such title that does it super well, even to the point of introducing the Manga’s/Anime’s staple Giant Characters as authentic as they can do. What is left is a rather fun, meaty and character varied Musou title that isn’t just “DW but X” like certain others are(cough cough, Fire Emblem Musou). The fact that both Kaido and Big Mom are both playable with their forms makes me so glad that this particular Musou franchise is going strong. Huge recommendation if you’re a OP fan.

4) Nioh 2(PS4)

I adored the first Nioh title a lot; it’s locales, characters, weapon selection, enemy variety, etc. Nioh 2 is essentially “Nioh 1 but an actual budget behind it” and I’m here for it. Both a prequel and a sequel to the previous title, you play as a Shiftling, a half yokai/half human as you set out to track down the Yokai that slew your mother. Mission structure, enemy variety and level design has been improved by a huge margin, surprisingly whilst combat is granted with more options and a wider selection of weapon styles to test out with many QoL improvements that help to keep your attention firm and focus on the build you want to go for. 3) 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim(PS4)

Oh boy, where to start with this one helluva trip of a title. Half Visual Novel and half RTS, Aegis Rim is a big Sci-Fi mecha romp definitely worth the praise and more. When I mean a Sci-Fi Romp I absolutely mean it too, not to spoil the plot or story of the game but I’ll just say it never lets up and goes 100% hard into the themes and concepts it presents to you. The RTS side of it is also super fun as a simple yet deep system with plenty of ways to upgrade your sentinels and plenty of ways to fight Kaiju. I honestly would like to go into further but that’s spoiler territory, trust me and get it for yourself.

2) Ghost of Tsushima(PS4)

Another “Samurai” game only less fantastical and more grounded, taking part in an Era of Japanese history many media don’t often go. Not much left to say due to a previous review of this title but here is the surmised version; a fantastic and gorgeous title that takes elements of various other titles and improves on them whilst a surprisingly well done story of honour, vengeance and protection wraps it up in a neat, tidy package that also includes a surprisingly fun Multiplayer component. 1) Yakuza: Like a Dragon(PS4/XBOXONE/XBXS/PC)

Aah, the Yakuza franchise, a franchise spanning more than ten games which includes remakes, spin offs and prequels. A new protagonist, a new setting and even a new combat system with a story beginning a new journey that will hopefully be of quality as Kiryu’s. There’s a lot to say that a series that changes and shakes its foundation in a way that would’ve been too risky for others to even attempt, is attempted by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios and met with success and love.Yakuza 7 presents both it’s protagonist and story in a parallel of Kiryu and the first game but offering a different path and take. Kiryu is a legend, a sorta “god” if you will in the Yakuza underworld, whilst Ichiban is a nobody, a rung in a low level family and whilst Kiryu is a one man army who will fight with conviction and resolve, Ichiban has a party, friends who will pick him up and push him forward if he ever falters. A review is in the works in which I will go into more detail of just why Yakuza: Like a Dragon is my Number One GOTY of 2020.

And there’s my list of the greats of last years(arguably lol) , a shitty year that surprisingly wasn’t a total train wreck of releases, hopefully 2021 fairs much better with many great releases planned fixes for certain titles.

#yakuza #yakuza 7 #yakuza: like a dragon #yakuza: lad #resident evil 3 #resident evil 3 nemesis #ghost of tsushima #cyberpunk #cyberpunk 2077 #maneater #Nioh 2 #13 sentinels: aegis rim #one piece #one piece pirate warriors 4 #final fantasy 7 remake #Final Fantasy 7 #Final Fantasy #Capcom #cd projekt red #ryu ga gotoku #vanillaware #tripwire #koei tecmo #square enix

[lutrain2020]

Meet the Creator!

Introducing: Squido!

Commission:  I haven't and don't really intend to. I don't want to take anyone's hard-earned money. Just ask me to draw things and there's a good chance I will.

Social Media:  Tumblr: @sky-squido​ AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sky_squido/pseuds/sky_squido

Tell us a little bit about yourself!

Call me Squido! I love to draw and write but I'm also super extraverted and I love interacting with humans so always feel free to chat with me! Aside from drawing and writing, I just love being outside and have a tumblr sideblog dedicated exclusively to nature photos I take. I love mountains, the ocean, the sky, and just about everything else in this beautiful world of ours! If you ever feel like having an internet stranger give you a thousand word rant, ask me why my favorite color is blue and you will not be disappointed!

What got you into creating? what inspires you to keep creating?

I've been drawing for as long as I can remember and can't seem to stop, though I take long breaks sometimes I always seem to come back to it again. I try not to have anything in mind when I draw, but to start sketching and let the drawing happen. Sometimes I find that what I'm trying to draw is not what my drawing wants to be (if that makes any sense) and change what I'm making halfway through. It makes drawing a really relaxing and carefree therapeutic experience! Writing is different. I've always enjoyed writing, but I didn't write much and never shared my writing with anyone because I thought it was super pretentious. It wasn't until entering High School and joining the literature club and making a deal with a friend that we'd share our writing with each other that I actually gained any sort of confidence in my ability and sought to improve it. Being in that club and sharing my pieces at the open mics was a really encouraging experience! I invite everyone to share their writing, even if it's with some random internet stranger (I'm open anytime!) if they're unsure of their abilities. A little encouragement goes a long way! Now that I'm on Discord, ao3, and tumblr, I receive so much more feedback than I ever have before! It's been super encouraging! What inspires me most is definitely nature. Even if my ideas aren't directly related to the outdoors, I get my best ideas there. Fandoms are also a great idea generator. The sheer volume of headcanons and prompts is enough to make me dizzy with ideas!

What's your creative process like?

I love sketching. My favorite thing about drawing digitally is that I can sketch as much as I like and never worry about wasting materials! Often times my sketches turn themselves into drawings without permission and other times they stubbornly remain sketches for all eternity. I always dive right in because I have no patience and the idea I started out with generally isn't that great but in the process of pursuing it, it spirals out of control and sometimes the idea gets better and sometimes it gets worse but I just kinda roll with it. Creating is a really chill process for me and while I regularly scream stuff like "I'M DRAWING ON THE WRONG LAYER NONONONONONO" or "NO HECK FRICK SHOOT IT SMUDGED HECK HECK GET THE ERASER QUICK," the creative process is a great way for me to unwind. I'm the same way about writing. I never plan or outline and just kind of roll with things. I mean I generally have the basic jist in mind, but I try to not have a plan so I can keep the story driven by the characters and not force them into acting the way I wanted them to in the outline I made hours or even days ago. Creating is my opportunity to break free so I don't really see what good a plan or outline does me. I'm a pretty spontaneous person!

What kind of mediums do you like to use?

I like to take pictures, but it's not really my main focus. I've been mostly digitally drawing—I use my iPad Pro and Procreate—but lately I've been pencil sketching with just your average everyday mechanical pencil (I'd forgotten how nice the texture of paper was! Clearly I spent too much time drawing on my iPad!). I have these Stabilio chalk pastels I love to pieces, but have also spent a great deal of time with watercolors. Digital is my primary medium currently, though.

Is there a specific scene wrote that you are particularly proud of?

"Sky’s golden scales are glowing with reflected light from the sun while beneath them, the same pulsing blue in her mane runs like a river as her very skin is alive with electricity. The sun’s beginning to dip, fading through the color wheel from yellow to deep orange to scarlet and the world is bathed in watercolor and hue shifted through the rainbow until all that was blue becomes red. This new alien world begins to darken as red fades to deep purple-pink, the clouds catching last vestiges of gold in their pillowy folds, yet Sky continues rippling with lighting, the bright blue flowing like blood through her veins and the gold shimmering in the eerie azure glow. We weave through the winds and zephyrs and I close my eyes and let the breeze caress my hair and when I reopen them, I’m standing back on the ground again in a world long since darkened by night. I place my hand over my beating heart where Sky is still laughing with joy and smile because once you’ve awakened your dragon, you don’t need wings to fly anymore."

Is there someone who inspires you and your writing or art?

Every fanartist and fanfic writer that posts their stuff online is an inspiration to me. Even if their stuff isn't very good—especially if it isn't very good—it's a huge testament to the courage of the creator and their bravery in expressing themself! I sat on fanfic and fanart for years and never shared it and here were kids half my age putting out art that was their first experiment in a new medium and a little shaky but it was still out there and they were still being supported by the community and that really inspired me to reach out and stop lurking in fandom and actually get involved!

is there something that you struggled with that made you grow as a creator?

I feel like everyone has these periods where they were just gaining confidence in their artistic ability but suddenly everything they make is trash and they're not happy with any of it and they feel so down and worthless and "where did all of my hard-earned ability go? Will I ever get it back?" I think this is a pretty common experience and when I find myself there, I find it most helpful to share what I make anyway, even if I hate it, with someone who I know will give it to me straight because they'll point out the deeper problems—the root of the issue—that I hadn't even noticed and I can use that information to grow as an artist. Bad pieces are just as valuable as good ones. There was also a time where I had a lot of trouble developing a style. I did a lot of experimenting and never found anything I liked. What happened is I just kept drawing and whatever popped out eventually evolved into my style. I used to get frustrated that I couldn't draw anything without a reference, but after years and years of using references and drawing some of the same things over and over again, you won't need the references anymore. I mean, they're great and you should always feel free to use them, but over time, you won't need to look up a picture of every little thing you try to doodle.

What got you into writing or art?

My silly twitchy fingers can't ever seem to stop drawing! Same with writing. Words and ideas follow me around, little plot bunnies pestering me until they get written down somewhere. I was greatly inspired by the works of C.S. Lewis in my writing, especially his Cosmic Trilogy. My art style was aided by Hiromu Arakawa's Fullmetal Alchemist, which was a valuable stepping stone in developing my own style. Other than that, it was my own insatiable desire to MAKE THINGS that spurred me onwards. I don't think I could stop if I tried!

What's your favorite part of the creative process?

After you've got that first paragraph and you've found a flow and you've got a topic and you just GO. I get into the zone and the story starts happening on its own and I'm not an author anymore, I'm just a channel between the world of the piece and the page. That's my favorite. I love watching things take shape. I love shading a sketch for these same reasons. The whole drawing comes together and becomes A Thing and it's the most exciting time to be a creator. Something else inside you has taken over and you're just along for the ride. I have no idea if my experiences are common at all but this is what it's like for me!

What's your least favorite part of the creative process?

EDITING. I HAVE ZERO PATIENCE. THE THING IS DONE. WHY DO I HAVE TO KEEP LOOKING AT IT. CAN I POST IT YET. This leaves me with a lot of holes in what I make and I can't do a very clean, super detailed drawing unless it's for an art class and I'm forced to keep working on it. I have a terrible habit of never proofreading my things!

What's your favorite type of scene to write?

AAH hard question! I love writing description and places where I can really let my inner 19th century romantic be unleashed but I also love a good emotional moment between two characters. Something tense. I like fight scenes, but I try to keep them brief and interesting. Sometimes I find scenes where I have no idea what's going on and I try to avoid that, but it's really hard sometimes.

What's the hardest for you to create?

I have so much trouble with endings. I can generally figure something out, but there's always a moment of panic before the end like "heck I wrote everything I wanted how do I wrap this up????" That's probably a byproduct of me planning nothing XD I sometimes have trouble with characterization and making sure everyone acts the way they actually would. The hardest part is continuing after you have an "oh heck what do I do now" moment that breaks you out of your zone and all of your ideas and plot threads turn invisible or evaporate or go wherever it is they go when you're looking for them.

What's your favorite genre to write?

ANGST ANGST ANGST ANGST. Wellll... scratch that. I love something adventure-y and plot driven with a lot of really meaningful character interactions. I've always had trouble putting my writing into genres, but I guess that kind of speaks for itself in a way.

What fandoms do you enjoy creating for?

Linked Universe is the fandom I have created and posted the most for by a LONG SHOT. I found LU shortly after making my tumblr and I joined the Discord shortly thereafter. Since then, it has been nonstop inspiration and creativity for me! I tend to get sucked into one fandom and it consumes me for a few months before I silently drift out of it and never think about it again. LU is the fandom I've been the most active in EVER though—and it's still going—so there's a good chance I'm never getting off this ride.

What's the work you are most proud of?

AAAAAAAAAAH MY BABIES. okay um here's the first and only fanfic I've ever posted anywhere but I'm really happy with: https://sky-squido.tumblr.com/post/618964544219463680/turn-back-time-a-linked-universe-fanfic I have a lot of other pieces kicking about, but they're not fandom so I haven't shared them yet. I probably will after I touch them up a bit.

Do you have any fics inspired by real life stories?

Not really? I don't really know where my ideas come from to be honest!

Where do you post your finished works?

my tumblr. I tag stuff #squido writes and #squido draws so you can find them easily. I also put them on the discord but they get lost in the stream of other works pretty quickly so stick to my tumblr. I also have an ao3 now! https://archiveofourown.org/users/sky_squido

If you have any fun stories about the pieces you made, please do share!

Turn Back Time was actually live written in the Discord, but entirely unplanned and in the #angst channel! It was just a headcanon but then I started describing it and like 2 hours and 5k words later I'm sitting in the Discord like "what just happened??"

#Meet The Creator #lutrain2020 #linkeduniverse #lu

[ikkydikky]

Here it comes! Time for an end of the year “Here’s what I drew this year” list. Mainly just to archive my art now for future’s sake and tell myself my thought process and how I felt about it now.

I’m skipping over sketches and going straight to stuff that was finished and polished and I’ll explain each image as we go. Buckle up boys its going to be a long one. 

We’re going to go to the first image I did this year and explain how things went from there!

Drawing #1, Scrubbed off Katia Managan 

March 3rd 2017

Art is actually kind of hard when you don’t know what form, line consistency, anatomy, or any of those things are! In fact I only know about two of them right now! And how to put into practice one of them! This image shows what its really like to start out with base-nothing. The idea is cute! And I’ll probably redo it later on when I am probably a years worth better. It marks however the first thing I really posted online. To me, that makes it special.

Drawing #2, Sigrid, but smug.

September 9th, 2017

BIG gap between the two! And not a lot of improvement, or maybe a lot of improvement? Who knows. I think this image was the first thing I did digitally that I put up for other people to see, and it was exciting! There’s absolutely no construction to this. Prior to this image being done I was basically drawing people’s heads and circles. Like, pages upon pages of circle grinding to actually know how to draw a circle digitally.

The main reason why there was such a gap between March and September was due to me graduating high school. I basically didn’t feel like drawing at all when I already had the work load of school ontop of me. But the art starts coming a lot faster now. Yes you can see there was a huge prequel influence. 

Drawing #3, Blushin Bob

September 29th, 2017

Art is something that you can really do a lot of, but you can easily get burnt out on. Animal crossing is actually one of my favorite games out there, and to try to pay tribute I drew this. Not uh, not exactly my favorite. 

This image has me trying basically 3 new things I’ve never done before. Shading, clothes, fur tufts, and bodies. Yeah. Not exactly my best job at any of those. The shadows are, very inconsistent and its clear I didn’t really know how to do it properly. The fur is atrocious with it looking like spiked tumors, and the shirt rides up way too high like hes wearing a shirt thats way too short! Also he might be a bit too skinny. 

This is kind of an image that broke me. At the time I was trying to fix every error when I just couldn’t, from the arm in the first attempt being god awful, to how the shading and shirt looks. I genuinely think this is the worst image in my library, and I knew it at the time since I drew nothing for all of October. You know. The month that’s meant to be the most inspiring artistically?

Drawing #4, Gondola The Peaceful Giant

November 12th, 2017

This was actually just a shitty paint up I did of a sketch practicing perspective. It was mainly for a draw thread on 8chan’s /v/ and probably my only work I’ve posted to an image board. I think generally doing art for anonymous people is a bit thankless. Its great for practicing but it really gives back no validation.

Keep in your memory these clouds, I’ll be talking about those later. 

Drawing #5, Bunny, The space mechanic.

November 12th, 2017

This character was a mistake, not the drawing but the character! This is my first actual tabletop character and boy I flubbed it. But this is art retrospective. Not roleplay retrospective. Anyway. A portrait done with a new pen style that I don’t think worked out too well. It comes off a bit too rough and gritty. But it makes for unique coloring when it comes to painting. I’ll actually have some more to say about that in a bit too! This also marks the point where I really got into drawing again. See. The table top group I’m in rewards you for drawing pictures of your characters, no matter how shitty it is, as long as you do your best, you get a reward in game. Its actually a really, really neat system!

Drawing #6, Oh dear god why.

November 16th, 2017

This is going to be a reoccurring character, so. Lets get to talking about it here. This character was as far as I know, a joke character made by a friend that got turned into a full blown character for a campaign, she is nonsensical, random, actually crazy, and worst of all, vibrantly colored. She is the Deviant Art Sparkledog as a character. Which funny enough, is her character name. This was my first attempt at really going ‘sexy’ and ‘nude’. And actually I think Sparkledog is a perfect candidate for it because its already cringy and god awful to look at! So it hides my bad attempts at a sexy lady behind an already cringy character. Thanks friend.

Anyway to talk about the art its self. It was done with no ref or pose. And I think it kind of shows. Everything’s proportionate to a degree but something about the perspective of the whole thing feels... off. Of course the background is just slapped together with glue but I mean on the character. She’s laying on the ground but not in a way that I think is possible or comfortable.

This also goes as my second attempt at fur, it’s, better. But definitely not good. Ontop of that this is probably my first attempt at an actual muzzle! Pic below related.

Muzzles are really hard to do. For some reason. If you ever read Loomis’ Fun with a Pencil it becomes slightly easier, but it also kind of isn’t. A month later and I still struggle with them, A lot of my joke sketches I often forgo any sort of attempt at drawing a muzzle and go for round head shapes, this works out if the character’s species is a prey type, as the eyes for herbivores are often on the side of the head, while for predators, its facing dead ahead. On another note, apparently I can just *do legs* with almost ease. I’ll touch on this more in a bit.

Drawing #7, A background for the end.

December 2nd, 2017

Tabletop is a wonderful thing, art groups are also an amazing experience to ever be apart of. The group I’ve been with has been an amazing experience for me artistically as I’ve learned to grow so much more. This is an image I did as soon as I woke up on my birthday. Friend A. did the character sketch. Friend b. did the coloring of the characters, and I got to practice something that I’ve wanted to do for ages.

Environmental art.

Ontop of character art and such, one thing that always draws my attention is environment art. Its something you can always get lost in. Your eyes can search to every corner imagining what it would be like to be there. Genuinely amazing works of art is often environment art. 

Its also time we talk about the clouds. I hope you remembered them from the gondola picture. See. Clouds are all about layers, and layers, and layers. Especially when done in a thunder storm. They’re something I might recommend painting if you ever want to start out! I do however think the clouds in the gondola image work a lot better. But I think that might be from the several things I did to trick myself to think they look better.

 And that’s all there really is to say on this image. Which is a problem. I learned a bit more about perspective and how floors work when under character’s feet... and how to do lightning kind of. But there isn’t much else. If I were to do this more I’d probably add another cliff to the background. A mountain, a landscape just beyond the fog, because it seems unfinished as it stands. 

Drawing #8, Oh dear god why, Revengeance.

December 5th? 2017

Probably the only unfinished image that gets posted! So lets talk about it. I think fur is my least favorite detail to make ever.Yet it also is my favorite when its done. The tail also might not be the best but its league’s better than my first attempt! But lets talk about the main thing about this image.

PAWS.

I don’t have a thing for paws, or feet, that’s not my kink. I think footjobs are sort of appealing sure but I don’t care much for it. so this was my first attempt at paws, and I think I did damn well. However, digitigrade legs are something I still have an issue with, and I am working towards fixing that. I don’t think furry characters look great when their legs are humans, but with paws. As well I think legs are the easiest part of the body to draw in some ways, that might just be me.

The face also is a bit of a mistake? Its better than its.. original incarnation...

[NOT EVEN THE DEAD KNOW PEACE FROM THIS EVIL]

Animal faces with human features is the proper way to do things, but human faces with animal features is... Hell incarnate.

Also that ass took me like 30 tries to get right god damn. 

Drawing #9, The last hoot for today.

December 18th, 2017

The last one for today. Some point after Christmas I’ll post probably another three drawings. But this is the final one. Lets talk about a few things about myself.

Art style is all about inspiration. You pick up inspiration from everywhere. Specifically from art styles you really, genuinely enjoy. You might have noticed the art style at first was I Wanna Be The Kazerad and then to something completely different from Kazerad but not distinct from anyone else. This is the process I think to finding your own art style. Emulation.

You might also noticed I ditched aliased (pixely) lines in favor of smooth lines, this was because I was having a tiny issue with drawing at large scale. For some reason I always liked zooming in real close on my 2000x2000 canvas and drawing tiny little things. The bunny picture is a really good example of this. He only took up the tiny corner of my much, much larger canvas. Speaking of his part of this post, lets get into color.

There’s been 3 ways I colored things, the first was plain flats, second was with a sort of homemade crayon brush (Ala Bunny and Gondola), and third was a unique way in how I did the eyes of this image. Looking at them closer you can see theres, actually a lot of rich detail in them!

This was a pretty easy thing to do and it has such amazing results that, I want to do a full image using it just to try it. For how I did it, I use krita, and how it handles gigantic brushes is like most art programs, by automatically raising the spacing between each ‘use’ (for a lack of a better term.)

Here’s what the blue part looks like with a white background behind it and the layer count to make this beside it. (Only one of them visible.)

It also kind of hits close to to another artist I’ve been following pretty closely as of lately. (And more recently on tumblr.)

You might not have heard of @jamdrawers , and you should definitely check them out if you haven’t. They are someone who, in my eyes, has such a wonderful art style. Other artists that do a style with pixelly, aliased lines don’t even come close in my opinion. I bring jam up here because of a few things, the art style he presents has thoroughly inspired me to pick back up trying to draw in aliased lines again, and because going forward I’ll continue looking to him for inspiration. Also if you read this jam tell winrarphile I said thanks for getting me into your art. 

Now, when it comes to the owl its self. I regret not adding a thicker outline to all of her character, and instead kept it to just the head shape, as well I do think she comes out a bit bland. Of course color wise its to keep in theme with the rest of the table top groups color theme. But outline wise? Definitely needs work. I tried a ‘hair style’ for her but that didn’t really work out either. So I kept it to the three feathers at the top of the head. I also think I spent more time on this image than I did any other, to quote myself “I’ll finish this owl up in about an hour or two”, which quickly lead to 8 days instead, just through procrastination.

Don’t do something in art if you really don’t want to do it. You can easily, easily get fatigued and burnt out with out delay, but among this procrastination came other sketches that, I don’t think I’ll post here, but helped me learn hands somewhat. So there is that.

Thus ends this posts governing topic. If you read this whole thing, good job. If you didn’t and skimmed to the end. That’s fine too! I understand I got a bit wordy but, I genuinely wanted to lay out my thoughts about all this.

In conclusion, I think the rate at which I’m getting better is decent, Mistakes are being ironed out each new drawing I take on. Each study and figure drawing adds onto the many experiences I’ll use for later in my artistic career, and I think the rate at which I’m drawing is far too slow for my own tastes, as such its a goal for the upcoming year to get a lot faster with finishing each drawing so I can quickly move onto the next. Thank you for reading this.

Have a noid chewin’ some pizza as a reward for coming down to the end.

#art #my art #kazerad #prequel #long winded spiel

[robininthelabyrinth]

Norse Myth LOT Fic 2: Victory in Anticipation (Coldwave)

Fic: Victory in Anticipation (Ao3 Link) - Chapter 1/3 Fandom: Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, Norse Mythology Pairing: Mick Rory/Leonard Snart Sequel to Victory in Waiting - read first

Summary: Leonard Snart is dead and his soul has gone to Valhalla, the home of heroes, and that's the end of the story.

Well.

Not quite.

A/N: I highly recommend reading the first fic in this series first.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Every morning, after he’s awake but before he opens his eyes, he thinks – perhaps today.

Perhaps today he’ll wake up and see a dirty off-white ceiling with a bootprint smack in the middle, like the house on Lennox Street that was always secretly his favorite, or the vast height of a warehouse roof, or even the dull unrelieved slate grey that could stand for either Iron Heights or the Waverider.

Perhaps.

And then he opens his eyes and is blinded by the glint of golden shields, layered over each other like roof-tiles.

Nope.

Looks like it’s just going to be another day in fucking Valhalla.

Len sighs and rolls out of bed.

He does not like his bed, despite its fine carvings, because it was made by people who have a shit understanding of the finer arts of mattress-making – there’s a goddamn midpoint between sleeping on a lumpy set of rocks and drowning in a pile of fluff and fur – but he’s willing to admit that part of it might be his overall disappointment in the fact that he’s still here.

He wanders down to breakfast.

���Well met, Snare,” Ivar says, raising his – you know what, Len is going to call it a cup, despite its very obvious horn shape. He was never into Viking lore; insofar as he ever learned anything about mythology (religion?), it was about his own Judaism, a bit of Christianity (for Lisa, in case she cared – she didn’t), and maybe some Greek mythology because Xena.

He’s aware that that’s not a good basis for dealing mythology anything, but if he’d have realized it was going to be relevant to his life – or death, as it happens – he’d have read up about it first.

“It’s Snart,” Len says, not for the first (or, he suspects, the last) time. “Don’t suppose anyone’s done anything about my request for cheese, have they?”

“As we’ve explained several times,” Haukr, the man sitting next to Ivar – not as broad, but twice as smart – says, rolling his eyes, “the goat Heiðrún’s udders give mead, not milk.”

“Has anyone asked?”

“No.”

“I’m going to do it myself,” Len says.

“When you inevitably get yourself killed, I’ll laugh at you tomorrow,” Haukr says practically.

“Maybe this time I’ll wake up in the right place,” Len says. He doubts it, but a guy can hope, right?

“Snare here is Jewish,” Ivar tells another person, coming over from the sleeping area yawning. “Didn’t even know you could have Jewish einherjar before him.”

“What’s Jewish?” the other man grunts.

“The ones that don’t work on the seventh day,” Len sighs. He’s had this discussion before.

“Oh, them,” the man says. “Liked them. Can’t they not eat pig or something?”

This part of the discussion, too, is repetitive. It doesn’t make it less annoying.

“Not unless it’s necessary,” Len informs him.

“Is Sæhrímnir –”

“No, the giant boar roasting over the fire – though I see it’s gotten itself back off the fire and has pranced back into the forest on its dainty little hooves to let you bloodthirsty assholes hunt it down for today’s dinner again – before being plopped into the cook-pot is definitely not kosher. But since it’s the only thing to eat in this place, it’s fine.”

“Huh,” new guy says, scratching himself. He obviously doesn’t care, and he moves on without another word.

Again, not unsurprising. Len has had this conversation before. Verbatim.

“Is there an eight-letter word in Norse for ‘boring’?” Len asks Haukr. “Because right now I’m feeling it being ‘Valhalla’.”

“You shouldn’t blaspheme,” Ivar says, but by this point he’s gotten pretty used to Len and the admonishment isn’t quite as strong as it had been in the beginning.

“Where’s Leifr, anyway?” Len asks. He and Haukr tend to hang out a lot. “Not like he could go anywhere.”

“Tried to peep at the valkyries again,” Haukr says.

“So, dead?”

“Yeah. Already.”

“Fucking idiot.” It’s not like the valkyries don’t come by every night to serve everybody beer (mead, if you feel like being pedantic); Leifr’s just dumb. Dumber even than Ivar, and that takes some doing.

Haukr grunts in agreement. “You coming out with us?” he asks, jerking his head towards the armory, which is primarily armed with spears and knives and other such things.

Len makes a face. He appreciates a good knife as much as the next guy, but he doesn’t actually like fighting for the sake of fighting. That’s more Mick’s game.

He misses Mick.

Len crushes that thought before it’s even formed, because he doesn’t actually want Mick to be dead anytime soon, even though his presence might be the sole thing that makes this place tolerable. Mick would probably enjoy crushing them all.

“No,” he says instead. “Going to work on my ‘fruit and vegetable’ petition. I’ve never appreciated a salad more.”

Haukr laughs and shakes his head. “You’re as crazy as old Håkon, and he’s Úlfheðinn,” he says, amused.

Len smiles the smile of someone who has no idea what the fuck that means and is increasingly tired of having to ask people to translate for him. He thinks it might mean something like berserker, but with wolves or something.

Haukr doesn’t bother explaining, opting instead to get up from the table and head out to the fighting fields, Ivar close behind him.

Len waits until they’re gone before slinking out of the main part of the great hall. It’s a big place – possibly infinite – but he’s found a few places which aren’t so crowded that he can relax and think about what to do about his currently untenable situation.

Thinking he was going to die is one thing. Waking up and being informed that you’ve been recruited to fight in the army of your adopted father (what even), who is apparently the big tall scary guy with the one eye sitting on the throne in the middle of the room with the two ravens (what even), and then basically being ditched by said adopted father (at least that’s familiar?) to practice until you’re called upon for service of some unspecified sort - that's a whole different kettle of fish. This is not Len’s idea of a good afterlife, no thank you.

Not least because Len doesn’t actually like being of service to anyone. Ever.

He doesn’t go anywhere near said big tall and scary, who’s preoccupied with other things anyway – other gods come to talk to him, sometimes, usually Tiny Hammer Guy (Thor? Thrum? something?), Mr. One-hand, or Shiny Farm Guy, and sometimes he goes out with them, but either way, Len started his time here in Valhalla by observing, and he may not know much about the god everyone calls the All Father, but he knows everything he needs to about the guy.

Including the wisdom of not even thinking his name.

Len never liked bullies, and that applies to gods, too. The guy rubbed him the wrong way by claiming to be Len’s new father (what even, part forty two) and nothing Len’s heard about since has improved his opinion even a little. Slaughter, war, manipulation, treachery – seems like this guy’s stock in trade makes him well suited to be one of Len’s criminal companions, but not necessarily one that Len would ever work with and certainly never for.

Reminds him a bit of his real father, actually, if Lewis wasn’t a dumb fuck. Luckily for Len’s mood, he-who-shall-not-be-named-but-isn’t-nearly-as-cool-as-Voldemort-yes-even-book-seven-Voldemort is absent today.

There’s a croaking sound as one of the ravens settles down on the table next to Len.

“You are not wrong, who deem/That my days have been a dream,” Len tells him.

“That’s ‘A Dream Within A Dream’,” the raven croaks back, annoyed. “Wrong one, again.”

“Guess I don’t know my Poe,” Len says.

“Just make the goddamn Nevermore joke already and get it out of your system,” it says.

Clearly Muninn. Huginn actually thinks Len is pretty funny, even if he’ll never admit it – at least, he does after Len treated him to a ten minute lecture on the concept of intrusive thoughts after that one time when he’d decided to come visit while Len was taking a bath and perched on the edge of the bathtub.

Len had also accused him of being a pervert, but Huginn had responded by pointedly commenting on Greek mythology, which, fair. Not relevant, since Len’s a Jew, but fair.

“I’m not plagiarizing Neil Gaiman,” Len informs Muninn primly. “You ever read American Gods?”

“I’m a raven.”

“And that’s an excuse for illiteracy?”

“I can read!”

“So you’re just lazy about keeping up with good literature, that it?”

Muninn rolls his eyes – not a thing Len knew ravens could do before he came here – and flies away out the window, presumably to go about his information collecting rounds, the nasty little snitch.

The Big Guy might have a mild inclination to keep an eye – the one he’s got left, anyway – on Len, but Len’s learned the skill of being just the right mix of incredibly well-behaved and incredibly annoying that drives jailors out of their skulls in Iron Heights, and the gods have nothing on them.

(At this point, the ravens showing up isn’t a demonstration of the Chief’s interest so much as it is their own morbid curiosity.)

Len heads towards the currently empty throne area, only to nearly get tackled by a giant husky with bad breath that’s bigger than Len is.

“Geri, damnit,” Len says, trying not to laugh. “Geri. Geri, we’ve talked about this. We do not jump on people to say hello.”

Geri licks Len’s face, entirely undeterred.

“Oh god, no, you eat corpses, Geri! I can smell it! No! Stop! Desist!”

Eventually Len manages to untangle himself, mostly by virtue of spending a good ten minutes scritching Geri behind the ears until the gigantic beast rolls over onto his belly.

Then he spends another ten minutes giving Geri a belly rub, because Len is weak if you walk on four legs and are adorably fluffy. At least, he is if no one's looking.

“Good Geri,” he praises him. “Who’s a good boy? You’re a good boy, yes you are, Geri, good Geri! Such a good doggie. You’re the best doggie, yes you are, my little corpse-eater, you. Oh, ugh, I’m going to have to give you another toothbrushing later, aren’t I?” Len makes a face as Geri’s breath rolls out in a miasma that stinks of eau de dead thing. “Yes, yes, I am, aren’t I? Still, not your fault your master’s a dumbass, yes he is. But it’s not your fault, is it, because you’re a good boy.”

Geri yips happily, tail wagging like a madman. Someone told Len that Geri’s actually a wolf, which is clearly just ridiculous. Sure, he’s big, pony-sized big, but he totally looks like a slightly larger version of a husky Len saw once. Maybe a husky-Newfoundland mix or something. And have you seen the size of the goat on the roof? Now that’s big.

Admittedly, Len’s never actually seen a wolf – Central City was more coyote territory, if anything - but seriously, Geri’s way too cute. His brother Freki, too.

“Where’s your brother, huh?” Len asks, not expecting an answer.

“Afghanistan,” Huginn says, flapping by lazily in Muninn’s wake. Huginn’s the faster of the two ravens, but sometimes, for no reason, he takes a meandering path.

Len can sympathize. His thoughts do that sometimes, too.

Doesn’t mean he has any patience for Huginn’s shit.

“Three words, birdie-boy,” he says. “Cognitive behavioral therapy. I’ll thought the shit right out of you.”

Huginn barks a laugh and wheels out the window as well.

“I’m threatening him with Prozac next time,” Len mutters, getting up off his knees. Geri yips happily and jumps up as well, tail wagging happily. His head easily comes up to Len’s torso, even bowed.

He is a very big doggie.

Len absently puts his hand on Geri’s ears as he walks through the entranceway that the gods usually use. Sure, the other einherjar avoid it like the plague, but no one’s ever actually said that humans weren’t supposed to go through that way.

Also, there are apples.

Len nearly broke down and cried the first time he saw the tree with the golden apples. Sweet, sweet Vitamin C. If he ever sees Mick again, he’s apologizing for all the stupid things he ever said about vegetables being optional and/or best served in ketchup form.

But he’s not going apple-picking today – not least because Ms. Goldilocks Iðunn nearly caught him again last time, and he’s not sure giving her big wide eyes and a quivering lip is going to work yet another time.

(“You don’t understand,” he told her. “I’m craving salad. Salad!”

She covered her mouth. “That’s not an excuse,” she replied, but she’s about three seconds away from cracking.

“I’m dreaming of beets. Beets. And turnips. That’s a fate worse than death.”

She made a slightly strangled sound, struggling to keep her face from smiling.

He decided to switch tracks. “Is it true that they call you Þjazi's booty?” he asks, having heard that story just the day before by the fire.

“Yes, it’s true,” she replied, slightly puzzled.

“Well, now I know I’m doomed,” he sighs dramatically.

“…why do you say so?”

“In the words of my mother’s people, the booty don’t lie.”

Her howls of laugher had followed him all the way out of the orchard, apples safely in hand.)

No, today he’s going to continue his explorations of the other parts of not-Midgard-that’s-Earth-it’s-the-other-one-fuck-Norse-naming-conventions. Aesirgard? Asgard? Whatever. Sure, he could limit himself to Valhalla, but he’s already figured out the pattern of the place: sleeping quarters, eating hall, bathing area, armory, repeat ad nauseum. It’s like someone built the whole place based on the copy-paste function.

At least there’s some variety out here.

Today, he’s going for the big barn-like building. Going by the smell, he’s going to guess that it’s the stables. Luckily, he still has one of Iðunn’s apples left; he figures he’ll be all right.

He doubts there’s anything valuable there – he’s already gotten bored picking leaves off of Glasir, because what’s even the point of stealing golden leaves that no one else wants? – but he believes in being thorough.

Since he apparently has forever.

Or until Ragnarök, anyway. Whatever that is. People don’t like to talk about it for some reason.

Len cracks open the door and slips in, Geri padding along silently behind him.

“Well,” Len says, squinting around as his eyes adjust to the relative dark. “It’s…definitely a stable.”

He walks over to the first pen, then stop and stares.

“Goats,” he says flatly. “More giant goats.”

The goats ignore him, as goats have a tendency to do.

“Do you eat sweaters?” Len asks them. “Mi– my partner, he once said that goats ate everything, but that they liked his sweaters best.”

They don’t answer.

He steps back and studies them at a slight distance. “Any relation to old Heiðrún?” he asks. “You’re a lot smaller than she is, but you’re also, uh, more male.” He pauses and wrinkles his nose. “Oh, man, now I really hope that all that she-goat mead isn’t a milk substitute, because ew. This is why food should come out of prepackaged plastic wrap.”

The goats continue to ignore him.

Len wonders if they have names.

Geri abruptly yips joyfully and darts ahead, into the dark of the stable. Len frowns and trots after him, only to find him happily chasing a circle around a long-suffering looking cat, which is having exactly none of it.

A very, very fluffy, very, very, very large cat.

“Holy cat,” Len says, because – wow. “Look at you. If you ain’t the most gorgeous kitty I’ve ever seen, I don't know what is,” he says sincerely, because the fluff. It’s so – fluffy. It’s massive. It’s a dire version of a Norwegian forest cat, or a Maine Coon, Len’s not sure, but he’s leaning towards Norway because, well, context. But still. The cat is as big as a small bear, and the fluff has got to be a whole another bear just by itself. “You must hate rainstorms.”

“You have no idea,” a voice says from behind him.

Len manages to keep himself from jumping in surprise, and turns.

“Okay, no. No. This is a step too far. Explain this to me - why does Viking heaven have Mr. Ed?” Len asks accusingly.

The horse, giant like the rest of them, well above a normal horse’s size and Len has seen horses before so he knows, brays a laugh. “I like that,” it – he? Okay, yep, definitely a he, this is 100% a stallion and not a gelding and also why does Len do this to himself – says. “Mr. Ed. A talking horse, I assume?”

“Old television program,” Len says resentfully. “No one here even knows what television is.”

“There aren’t really a lot of new einherjar these days,” the horse says, shrugging. Given how huge it is, there’s a lot of shrugging going on there. Whole muscle groups are involved.

“How many hands are you?” Len asks, studying him. “I don’t actually know how big a ‘hand’ is, but I could probably math it backwards.”

The horse brays again. “I don’t think anyone’s ever counted, honestly,” he says when he’s done snickering. “I like you.”

“Thanks, Ed.”

“Ed?”

“Well, you haven’t given me any other name to call you by,” Len points out. “Not like there are any nameplates either.”

“Good point,” the horse says. “But no, I like Ed. Keep going with that.”

“Gee, thanks. And what should I call Goats 1 and 2? They’re one short for the Billy Goats Gruff.”

Ed snickers. “Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr,” he says. “Teeth-barer and teeth-grinder, respectively."

“Really?” Len says. He doesn’t mean to be doubtful, but they’re, well…kind of placid. “That’s like naming your Pekingese ‘Bruiser’. Unless they’ve been turned into a vampire, because in that case, name away. Still pissed they never gave him a name in the movie…”

“I don’t even want to understand what twists your minds just took,” Ed says, but he’s definitely amused. “You know, I haven’t said that about anyone for years; you should be complimented.”

“I successfully piss off Huginn and Munnin on a regular basis,” Len informs Ed. “I am complimented.”

Ed snickers.

“So, does the cat have a name?”

“Cats, plural,” Ed corrects.

Len immediately scans the area for a second giant cat.

“Rafters.”

Len looks up.

“That’s a lot of fluff to balance on one rafter,” he says admirably.

“They don’t have names, I’m afraid,” Ed says. “Freyja just never bothered.”

“Actually, that makes sense,” Len says thoughtfully. “They are cats. Cats are above such petty things as names; they are merely kind enough to sometimes answer to descriptive terms barely worthy of their worship.”

He’s joking, of course, but he swears the cat that Geri is trying (unsuccessfully) to convince to play with him gives him an approving look.

“Right,” Ed says, shaking his mane. “You’re going to give them an ego.”

“They’re cats, they already know they’re superior to us,” Len says dismissively. “I’m going to be stereotypical and call you Rumpleteazer, okay?” he asks the one ignoring Geri. “Likes to create chaos with her partner, Mungojerrie, who can be Mr. Rafters up there.”

She considers this for a long minute and purrs approvingly.

“I think that’s the furthest any man has gotten with Freyja’s cats since I’ve met them,” Ed observes. “Well done. What will be your next trick? Hoop-jumping? Fire-breathing?”

“I like you,” Len tells Ed. “You’re kind of a dick. I appreciate that in people.” He pauses. “And horses, apparently.”

Ed shuffles his legs in mock-embarrassment, which makes Len have to rub his eyes because he would have sworn –

“Yes, there are eight,” Ed says.

“Thought I was seeing double,” Len says gratefully.

“You should probably get back,” Ed says with a sigh. “They’ll eventually notice you’re missing, and time in the Hall works differently from out here. It’ll be almost evening for them.”

“I’ll be back tomorrow,” Len offers. “And here, something to remember me by till then.”

He pulls the apple out of his pocket and offers it to Ed.

Ed stares at it for a long moment.

“What?” Len asks, a little uncomfortable. “I thought horses liked apples.”

“We do,” Ed says. “It’s just – that’s a – you know what, never mind.” He leans forward and lips at the apples, picking it up delicately with his teeth before crunching into it with all sounds of evident delight. “Thanks.”

“No problem,” Len says. “Should I bring some Sæhrímnir-meat for the Hammerhead Hannigans tomorrow?”

“…they’d probably like some bones,” Ed allows. “I see that you’re very frustrated by no one getting your references.”

“I’m bunking with people who think similes are the height of humor,” Len says sulkily. “They even like puns! It’s not as much fun if someone’s not groaning.”

“I knew someone once who’d like you very much,” Ed remarks. “Now go.”

“Yeah, yeah. Geri, heel,” Len calls, whistling sharply.

Geri bounds over and Len rewards him with scritches.

“…just so you know, you disturb me greatly,” Ed says.

Len snickers and heads back to the hall, ducking back in just in time for Huginn to fly through the window like a bat out of hell.

Len wonders what the news is, but opts to go help himself to some Sæhrímnir, because it has in fact been a while since he’s eaten. Oh, look, they’re having it ‘boiled in the cook-pot’ style. Again.

“Have you considered alternate forms of preparation?” he asks Andhrímnir.

“Don’t start with that again,” the god-cook replies. “You don’t even know what a fricassee is.”

#dccoldwave #leonard snart #mick rory #my fic #norse mythology #victory at end

[dlamp-dictator]

Allen Rambles About Persona 5

AKA Allen’s Ramblings XVI, but... well, you guys know by now how I do things when tagging fandoms and everything. Anyway, I’ve played about 30 hours of Persona 5 and wanted to give my thoughts so far.

Now, I have been waiting to get my hands on Persona 5 for years. This game was suppose to come out years ago and we in the States finally have it. I gotta’ say, I was salivating when my preorder came in on time for once. The artbook, the CD, the Morgana Plushie, it just felt so unreal to have it all in my hands... but enough gushing and onto my thoughts. I’ll try to keep spoilers vague, but keep in might I’m at the third main dungeon by now. I know the Persona series is really big on not spoiling story-related matters, so I’ll be polite and tried my best to keep things general. Like when I talked about Tales of Berseria I’ll be breaking this down into the good points and not so good points, but first I need to talk about...

The Aesthetics

Oh Lord the aesthetics of this game. The cell-shaping, the red motif, the slickness of movement, the music. Everything just feels so smooth. Hell, this is gonna’ be a new tag for the blog now these are aesthetics are so good. I can’t just stick this one category and call it done, I need give this its own header to break down all I love about how this game looks and feels.

Relateable Topics

I have to say, I’m surprise how much I connected with a lot of the events happening in the game. This isn’t a story about accepting death, this isn’t a story about solving a murder, this is a story about kids trying to fix what they believe is a broken, corrupt world, and dammit you can just relate to that. Before you even begin the game it tells you none of the events in it are related to real life or real people, but Atlus is lying through their goddamn teeth if they think I couldn’t see this stuff happening for real if it hasn’t already. I won’t say what exactly happens, but every scandal that’s uncovered, every problem that’s seen, every case that’s been discussed in this game you can actually see happening in real life. Hell, I’m sure you could look online and see some articles talking about this stuff even here in the US. I won’t spoil anything yet, but... just trust me on this on.

Character Designs

The character designs look fantastic. I love everyone so far in both casual and Phantom Thief attire, with Ryuji and Morgana having my favorite designs. And I have to say, I’m rather surprised how much I like these two specifically, but I’ll get more into that later. Despite having a large amount of black for most characters, the designs really pop out. I’d say that’s due to a lot of the backgrounds being brightly colored, but still. I can’t wait to see other party members and how they look in game. The art book only does so much.

The Artbook

Not much to say here save for making a pun. The Aesthetics art book is... just a really good artbook with a lot of sketches, concept designs, and references in it. It’ll totally help for if I want to do fan art of these characters. And unlike SOME GAMES *cough*trailsofsteel*cough* this game doesn’t have blatant spoilers in their artbook and interviews. So yeah, points for the artbook, real nice.

THE MUSIC

I. Love. This. Soundtrack. I’m not music elitist, but the one thing that just makes me go nuts for any song is solid, audible bass, jazz, and brass. It’s why Persona has always had good music to me, and this entire soundtrack just hits every note in just the right way. This soundtrack is so good I could just... just... [RETRACTED] all over these songs. My favorites so far as Last Surprise, Layer Cake, and Rivers in the Desert... not that I’m far enough in the game to hear that last one, but... y’know.

Okay, so that’s it for the aesthetic, now onto the good points about the game as a whole.

The Good

The Intro

Thankfully, the intro of this game is not hours of hand-holding like in Persona 4. You are right into the action, and even after the intro stuff you still get a bit of freedom to move a little. I think only after a second play-through will tell how long your hand is held and how much freedom you truly have in the beginning, but for now I say this is leagues better than P4.

The Voice Cast

I haven’t heard the Japanese dub since I’ve always been dubs-over-subs, but the voice cast in English sounds great so far. My favorite so far has actually been Morgana and Ryuji, characters I didn’t think I’d like as much as I do right now. Ryuji is just the right mix punk kid and emotional softy that makes me really warm up to him, and Morgana’s cute, but confident sounding voice goes well with her personality. Major props to Cassandra Morris for voicing her. Wait a second... didn’t she do Asahina in Dangan Ronpa? No wonder I like her performance. And special shout out to Jamieson Price as Sojiro. I may not have gotten to hear him as Tager in BBCF, but at least I have hear him in this game. And while I’m talking about the voice cast I must admit that I have mixed feelings about Igor’s voice actor, I know why his voice was changed, but... I still prefer Dan Woren. Hopefully I’ll just get use to it.

Smoother/Faster Combat

The combat has definitely improved in both animations and overall feel. On the fly Persona swapping, lightning-fast menus, flashy as hell attack animations, this game has really improved in terms of quality with it’s combat. As someone playing this game since P3, the combat in that game was fine for turn based, but with this game I’m going to have some higher exceptions for future Turn Based RPG games, and the next SMT game especially in terms how combat feels.

Improved Social Links

The Confidant system is sooo much better than the other two games. Non-Party member social links finally have a higher purpose than just giving you better Personas during fusions. It feels so good to know that my allies don’t just help me with my fusions, but in the actual story as well. From selling you health items and weapons, increasing non-active party members EXP growth, improving the Phantom Thieves PR (and making dungeons easier to traverse through), and so on. It really feels like every person gives me an edge as a rebel of society. And the stories they’re telling so far have me interested. Again, spoilers, so I won’t go into detail, but just trust me on this one.

The Not So Good

Like with my Tales of Beresia Rambling, there are still some issues/critiques I have of this game as a fan. Again, I’ve played Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona 4 Arena, Ultimax, and small handful of SMT games outside of the Persona series so these might just be nitpicks, but I still think they’re worth saying. And for the folks that have seen my Berseria rambling, these points are going to be much longer and more in depth by comparison. So... let’s get started with that.

Demon conversations are still hit-or-miss with me. I like the idea of convince my enemies to my side, when it comes to fusing and hunting for the right Persona in those dungeons it can be a huge pain.

Money management is still balls hard in this game. I’d recommend demanding money every chance it comes along if you already have that particular persona and you don’t need the extra EXP. Trust me, it’ll disappear in a flash.

The early game is brutal. Story dungeon take longer that in past games, and with the small SP pool you have it’s gonna’ take several days to beat it. If you’re struggling through the first non-scripted major boss and even the boss of the dungeon, that’s normal as far as I’m concerned.

Social stats are back and they’re as annoying as ever. It was fine in P3 because their were just three and only effect you near mid/late-game. It was annoying in Persona 4 because they controlled not only social links, but better paying jobs as well (and again, money management is balls hard), as well as prevent certain dialogue options (which SUCKED). And again in this game certain dialogue options can’t be chosen if you don’t have the right stat level. This starts happening in the early game when all your stats are low, practically taunting you about your low level. That’s drives me up a goddamn wall. It doesn’t help that it took me until the second dungeon fully grasp which places upped which state and how. It took 15 hours to realize this shit... goddamn...

After playing Devil Survivor 2, seeing physical attacks that cast from HP for you not apply to your opponent annoys me to no end. This makes physical enemies very unfair and it’s part of what makes the early game so hellish. Those guys take out half your health and are still good to spam that crap.

The dungeons are a daytime option only, and that’s something that’s annoyed me since playing Persona 4. Persona 3 had this done best by having the dungeons at nighttime access, making balancing social life, grinding social stats, and grinding levels so much easier. I was hoping that’d be the case in P5 since “student by day, thief by night” was the tagline, but apparent it should be changed to “student by day, thief by the afternoon, too tired to grind social stats by night.”

As of the third dungeon, I feel like the game is really pushing me to clear the Palaces when I’m not prepared to. All my party members keep pushing me to hurry and clear them, and while that makes since in the story, it makes doing the actual prep work really hard. Also, the third dungeon/arc feels really hand-holding until the dungeon unlocked, which annoyed me a little.

Though not directly effecting the game, the whole Atlus-Streaming thing just... leaves a bad taste in my mouth. It’s a shame that those without access to the right system can’t enjoy the game with their favorite streamers/let’s players.

Yusuke’s inclusion and joining the party could had been written better, and that’s all I’ll say on the matter since I’m trying not to spoil the game past the first dungeon. Message me if you want the details.

The localization is... not good. I’m seeing a lot of “Mr., Mrs., and Miss” thrown in along with Japanese honorifics and it’s a bit emersion-breaking. A lot of the pronunciations could had been done better too. I still stand by the voice acting being good, but the directing and instructions feel a little... off. Maybe that’s because the game is based in Tokyo, which might be a little more culturally mixed, but compared to the other two games this feels messy.

A real minor nitpick, but I still have mixed feelings about the dungeon lair/prison theme of the new Velvet Room. I mean I get it, but it feels a little forced and heavy-handed to me.

So yeah, a few nitpicks aside, I’ve really been enjoying this game. If anyone has any advice for getting through the rest of the game or just some tips in general that don’t spoil the game too much please reblog and add them here. Personally, I’d wait for a guide to social linking and stat grinding before getting this game, but as a Persona fan, I say this game is good so far. Hopefully it gets better as I continue to play it.

#persona 5 #your dictator is speaking

[fxgacious-blog]

really  LONG  CHARACTER  SURVEY.   RULES.  repost ,   don’t  reblog  !    tag  10  ! good  luck  !   TAGGED.  @vrepit-sa   TAGGING. @viridisleonis, @techspecialistofvoltron, @lothcir (won’t let me tag you but whatever, idgaf), and anyone else who wants to

BASICS.

FULL  NAME :   tixxis zharor NICKNAME :   tix AGE :  two hundred and sixty three BIRTHDAY :   never celebrated it and does not remember, was never raised to consider birthdays significant ETHNIC  GROUP :  kariian (go look at @vrepit-sa‘s kariio posts, they’re rad af and the source of this headcanon) NATIONALITY :   empire-galran, subrace-kariian LANGUAGE / S : primarily central galran & kariian, but has a familiar and more than working knowledge of many alien languages on a first-hand basis (without need for a translator and does not have one) for the sake of more accurate cryptography and encryption SEXUAL  ORIENTATION :  pansexual ROMANTIC  ORIENTATION :  grey aromantic RELATIONSHIP  STATUS :   single and wholly uninterested HOME  TOWN / AREA :  – CURRENT  HOME :   qewreka high-security apartments, aoria t-42 PROFESSION :  arms dealer

PHYSICAL.

FUR: varying between violet and lavender, kit markings still noticeably prevalent (varied in color; mauve, plum, lilac, byzantium) EYES :   canary yellow FACE :  high cheekbones, facial symmetry, generally narrow, strong jaw LIPS :   full, cracked, and scarred in two places from being deeply split COMPLEXION :  heavily freckled under fur BLEMISHES :  n/a SCARS :  extensive scarring on right cheek in the form of claw marks, earned from continuous insubordination; deep and uneven keloid scarring along her throat, inflicted by another fighter in the arena as a result of lack of focus; many scars from various lacerations earned in the arena, training, and missions; several small facial scars as well as a crooked nose as a result of a break that did not heal properly TATTOOS :  n/a. HEIGHT :   6′0″ WEIGHT :   142lbs (has considerable muscle for her size, but is technically underweight and relatively small) BUILD :   athletic, lithe, lean FEATURES :   noticeably smaller than average, large ears ALLERGIES :   n/a. USUAL  HAIR  STYLE :  just a mess of poorly managed mane hair, kept relatively short as a result of scarring on left side preventing proper hair/fur growth USUAL  FACE  LOOK :   pissed keeps fur around face properly trimmed for the sake of personal comfort – letting it grow without care generally leaves it long enough to get in her way and make her uncomfortable USUAL  CLOTHING :   when out of her normal attire (pre-aoria, armor – aoria verse, bodysuit and eighty layers of jackets), 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 are examples

PSYCHOLOGY.

FEARS :   being touched, small spaces, insignificance, irrelevance, being forgotten ASPIRATIONS :   to give herself a purpose, to be remembered (whether it be fondly or with anger), to better herself, to earn her own pride POSITIVE  TRAITS :   ambitious, innovative, confident, adaptable, methodical, analytical, cerebral, intelligent, imaginative, self-assured, exploratory, thorough, resilient, adventurous, athletic, brave, careful, charming, determined NEGATIVE  TRAITS :   aggressive, bossy, cynical, envious, greedy, impatient, manipulative, cruel, impulsive, insecure, possessive, sarcastic, selfish, unstable, lustful, vengeful, deceitful, suspicious, vindictive, callous, obstinate, fickle, hateful, egotistical, corrupt MBTI :   istj -- the examiner ZODIAC :   unknown TEMPERAMENT :   choleric SOUL  TYPES :    warrior, strategist, engineer ANIMALS :   snake VICE  HABITS :    drinking, lip biting, growling, foot tapping, cracking knuckles, jaw clenching, eye-rolling, head tilting, humming, promiscuity FAITH :  n/a GHOSTS ? :   n/a AFTERLIFE ? :   n/a REINCARNATION ? :   n/a ALIENS ? :   definitely not POLITICAL  ALIGNMENT :  aligns with jack shit, does not care EDUCATION  LEVEL :    extensive

FAMILY.

FATHER :    kolir zharor (deceased) MOTHER :    aravra zharor (unknown) SIBLINGS :   n/a EXTENDED  FAMILY :   n/a NAME  MEANING / S :    n/a HISTORICAL  CONNECTION ? :   n/a

FAVORITES.

BOOK :  tixxis has read every book she has ever found, no exaggeration. as such, it’s hard to narrow down favorites; they generally include topics like psychology, sociology, tactical analysis, engineering, mathematics, history (mostly military), cryptography studies, criminal case studies (preferably unsolved), foreign languages, and technical/mechanical diagrams. while it’s seemingly unlike her, however, she also has a fondness for poetry -- especially in foreign languages, as she finds the cultural differences interesting. MOVIE :   n/a 5  SONGS :  n/a DEITY :   n/a HOLIDAY :   isn’t particularly interested in galra holidays, but likes researching the significance of foreign holidays MONTH :   n/a SEASON :   n/a PLACE :    her drawer-bed and ‘balcony’ (if you could call it that) on aoria t-42 WEATHER :    cold, not humid, still, quiet, calm SOUND :   welding torches, footsteps in snow, liquor poured over ice, clatter of coins and jewelry, beeping (in the ‘nothing is wrong and this is the noise my tech is supposed to make’ way, not the ‘help me everything is going wrong and these are your last warnings’ way) SCENTS :    hard liquor, blood TASTES :    see above FEELINGS :   silk, smooth metal, precious stones ANIMALS :    tixxis pretty much enjoys any animal, generally from a scientific and analytical perspective, but likes fish both for taste and hunting and appreciates the challenge of hunting larger prey (and the company of animals with similar temperaments to her own) NUMBER :  n/a. COLORS :   purple, black, red, navy blue, gold, silver

EXTRA.

TALENTS :  mechanics, engineering, cryptography, programming, scientific research and development, invention, long-range combat/sniping, infiltration, manipulation, tactical analysis, martial arts BAD  AT :  close combat, subordination/accepting authority, physically overpowering another with strength alone, handling anger TURN  ONS :   domination, submission (occ.) begging, biting, bloodplay, electrostim, humiliation, exhibitionism, choking, dirty talk, gagging, forced nudity, hair pulling, iceplay, bondage, titles (master, sir, etc.), knifeplay, marking, praise (receiving), scratching, spanking, teasing, stripping/putting on a show, whipping, blindfolds, collars, degradation, rape play, slapping, servitude, leather, lingerie, lace, orders, orgasm/pleasure control, punishment/reward, competition, fireplay, beating, objectification, someone stop her TURN  OFFS :   weakness, inexperience (although taking innocence is fun for her -- she just gets bored of it quickly), lack of confidence HOBBIES :    sparring, programming, engineering, crpytography and creating her own codes, learning languages, binge drinking, weapons development, sex, target practice, hunting TROPES :   arms dealer (former reds with rockets for sale/gangland gun runner), bad samaritan, the baroness, beta test baddie, black cloak, the chessmaster, chronic backstabbing disorder, combat sadomasochist, complete monster, the corrupter, even evil has standards, the gadfly, asshole victim, hope crusher, magnificent bastard, manipulative bastard, smug snake, you have outlived your usefulness QUOTES :     “ you know how wives, no matter how cleverly their unfaithful husbands lie, almost always see through them? why do you think that is? it’s because they make excuses, that’s why. humans are creatures that are extremely sensitive to artificiality. so if a husband who never talks about work suddenly starts complaining about staying late... that unnatural-ness makes the wife think there’s something more to it, and so on. it’s the out of place words uttered to hide the truth that actually expose the lies even more. so do you know how one can make someone think the truth is a lie? by boldly, unreservedly offering up the truth.  ” ---  “ sometimes, if he possessed the right information, he neither had to do the job himself nor pay to have it done. a lot of people lived with secrets that could destroy them, and if you knew their secrets, you could manipulate them to do things for you that reduced them to the condition of puppets. ” ---  “ please, don’t torture me with cliches. if you’re going to try to intimidate me, have the courtesy to go away for a while, acquire a better education, improve your vocabulary, and come back with some fresh metaphors. ” ---  “ most people tend to think the best of those who are blessed with beauty; we have difficulty imagining that physical perfection can conceal twisted emotions or a damaged mind. ” --  “ stop what? cheering you up? or is life supposed to stop because you did something horrible? i’ll tell you the real, horrible truth. no matter what you do or how bad you feel about it, life just goes on. life doesn’t give a fuck that you’re sorry or upset or deranged or tormented. life just goes on, and you gotta go with it, or sit in the middle of the road and feel sorry for yourself -- and i don’t see you doing that. ” --  “ when it comes down to it, i let them think what they want. if they care enough to bother with what i do, then i’m already better than them. ” ---  “ if loving someone is putting them in a strait jacket and kicking them down a flight of stairs, then yes, i have loved a few people. ” ---  “ if you have nothing, then you have everything, because you have the freedom to do anything without the fear of losing something. ”

MUN QUESTIONS.

Q1 :   if  you  could  write  your  character  your  way  in  their  own  movie,   what  would  it  be  called,  what  style  would  it  be  filmed  in,  and  what  would  it  be  about ?           A1 :   it would be space alien catch me if you can.  Q2 :   what  would  their  soundtrack / score  sound  like ?           A2 :   anger and unrepressed sexual tension. Q3 :   why  did  you  start  writing  this  character ?           A3 :   because i can’t watch something with aliens without making an alien.   Q4 :   what  first  attracted  you  to  this  character ?           A4 :   alien, asshole alien, pretty and strong asshole alien. nah, but developing her with the freedom to use the vastness of the vld universe was pretty much what attracted me the most.  Q5 :   describe  the  biggest  thing  you  dislike  about  your  muse.           A5 :   i would fucking hate tixxis in person. Q6 :   what  do  you  have  in  common  with  your  muse ?           A6 :   lack of morals, sarcasm, we’re both fucking tired Q7 :   how  does  your  muse  feel  about  you ?           A7 :    she’d probably both relate to me and want to kick my nose into my skull Q8 :   what  characters  does  your  muse  have  interesting  interactions  with ?         A8 :    sendak and pidge are my faves so far. Q9 :   what  gives  you  inspiration  to  write  your  muse ?         A9 :    music, quotes (as you can see from the eighty seen above), my own emotions, (re) watching vld, etc. Q10 :   how  long  did  this  take  you  to  complete ?           A10 :    toof cuking long

#headcanons #closet #DAMN IT REILLY

[justanothercinemaniac]

Epic Movie (Re)Watch #106 - An American in Paris

Spoilers below.

Have I seen it before: No

Format: Blu-ray

1) The only person I know who shows up in this movie is Gene Kelly and that’s 100% because of his work in Singin’ in the Rain.

2) First line.

Jerry: “This is Paris and I’m an American who lives here.”

You know, I kinda figured that out from the title. But thanks.

3) Gene Kelly’s Jerry is pretty much the personification of so many art students.

Jerry [about people criticizing his work in English]: “They might be saying the same thing over here [in Paris] but it sounds better in French.”

4) If only more art students I knew were as honest as Adam.

Adam: “Im a concert pianist. That’s a pretty pretentious way of saying I’m unemployed.”

5) This whole relationship is a little bothersome to me.

Adam [about his friend’s lover]: “She’s a little young for you, isn’t she?”

Henri: “No! She’s only 19!”

The actor playing Henri was 36 and Gene Kelly - who played the other man in this woman’s life - was twice her age at 38. Not only that, but we learn the reason this girl (Lise) is with Henri is because during the war he took her in and looked after her while her parents were on the run. That sounds more like a father figure than anything else...and they have sex because of it.

(GIF originally posted by @centralperksource)

6) The use of ballet to introduce Lise and the contradicting parts of her personality (which, outside of the ballet, we don’t really get to see) is a unique device.

7)

Henri [about Lise]: “She’s the gayest girl in the world!”

Have you watched “Supergirl”? I beg to differ.

I’m sorry, I had to make that joke.

8) Jerry has this little monologue about how he’s depressed because he doesn’t have any money and what he does to get un-depressed involves the spending of money on things to cheer him up...which he can’t do because he doesn’t have money (which is why he’s depressed in the first place). Almost every art and college student alive can relate to that.

9) In most musicals characters are not aware that they are singing and dancing. In An American in Paris though, there are many onlookers enjoying the random song and dance numbers that take place near the cafe where Gene Kelly and company frequent. Which presents so many logic questions, the primary of which is this: how are they so good at randomly breaking into song and dance while having it be perfect?

10) Remember how I said Jerry is representative of so many art students?

Jerry [to a woman who was critiquing his art]: “If you say something nice it won’t make me feel better and if you don’t it’ll bother me.”

And then there’s this.

Jerry [when someone offers to pay him money]: “Gee, I don’t know.”

Milo [the woman offering the money for his work]: “You don’t know?”

Jerry: “I never thought it’d be an issue.”

11) There are a lot of great songs in this musical, but I have to say “I Got Rhythm” is probably my favorite. It just has a lot of fun and a nice positive energy.

12) I love Milo. She is a layered female character who is as interesting (if not more so) than the male characters and even reprimands Jerry for his fragile masculinity at one point.

I wish we’d gotten more of her. I wish she and Jerry would have ended up together, but there wasn’t any passion in their relationship. Just mutual respect (which is nice).

13)

Jerry [to Milo]: “You should get married again. You need it...everyone does.”

14) Ah the “meet cute” which is actually “meet creepy” because Jerry is just staring at Lise - a girl he doesn’t know - from across the club and then forces her to dance with him.

(GIF originally posted by @ohrobbybaby)

Lise: “Now please, I would like to return to my table.”

Jerry: “In a minute.”

No. NOW. She told you what she wants. You’re making her uncomfortable. This isn’t cute, this is you forcing her into a situation she has said she doesn’t want to be in so let her go dude.

15) This random woman at Lise’s work, well...

Wendy: “I always get a rash if I have to decide anything.”

You should have that looked at. Either by a doctor or a psychologist, because making decisions for yourself is like the most basic thing human beings need to be able to do. Do you get a rash whenever you have to decide what you’re going to have for breakfast? What you’re going to wear? Do you make any decisions for yourself? Am I reading too much into a one off line? Should I move on?

16) This movie - like many movie musicals - features someone tap dancing on a piano while it’s being played. Wouldn’t that mess up the sound of the piano?

17) Most movie musicals use a song as a break from the story (the best exception being The Nightmare Before Christmas) and An American in Paris isn’t really any different. It’s like the movie hits pause for a little while to give us this song and dance. It’s entertaining, but is it necessary?

18) This line may not have been so true if I didn’t watch this movie at the end of 2016.

Jerry: “Civilization has a natural resistance against improving itself.”

19) This lyric may not have been so powerful if I didn’t watch this movie at the end of 2016.

Henri [singing]: “I’ll build a stairway to paradise with a new step everyday.”

That’s a good motto for 2017.

20) There is this extended scene inside concert pianist Adam’s head where he is having a concert. In this concert Adam serves as pianist, conductor, audience members, and even some other random musicians. It’s an interesting peak into who he is as a character, while also being the most development we get for him.

21)

Adam [after Jerry is relating woman problems]: “Women act like men and still want to be treated like women.”

Or you know, people. They want to be treated like people.

22) When Adam realizes that Jerry is dating Henri’s girlfriend - something neither of them know - his reaction is absolutely hilarious. ESPECIALLY when Henri sits down and begins talking about Jerry’s love life without realizing who Jerry’s dating. Even giving romantic advice! And Adam is just freaking out, trying to smoke a cigarette, dropping it in his coffee, drinking his coffee, smoking the cigarette, etc. He even tries to change the subject!

Adam: “Did I ever tell you about the time I gave a command performance for Hitler?”

Watching Adam in this scene is what makes it and I love that.

23) Oh, and then Jerry and Henri sing a song about how beautiful the women in their lives are not realizing it’s the same woman in both their lives.

24) Lise [when Jerry asks him if she’s in love with Henri]: “It doesn’t matter if I am or not.”

FUCK THAT!!!! DON’T MARRY SOMEONE OUT OF A SENSE OF DUTY!!! ONLY MARRY THEM OUT OF LOVE!!! THAT’S IT!!!

25) The entire film has had Adam telling Jerry that Milo being his sponsor is a bad idea. Then Adam and Milo meet at a bar in a New Year’s Eve party and Adam starts bashing on Jerry’s sponsor saying it’s a bad idea.

Milo: “I’m Jerry’s sponsor.”

Adam: “I know you are.”

26) This final scene is...classic movie musical to a fault.

It’s this 20 minute ballet with no lyrics replaying a bit of how Jerry and Lise actually met and a bit of how he wishes things had gone, but is mostly just how the dude is feeling at the moment when she breaks up with him. If you’ve seen La La Land you’ll definitely see that it takes some inspiration from this scene artistically speaking.

But my feelings on something like this have always been that it is entertaining on stage with a live audience, when there’s that tension of the possibility of messing up, but when it’s in a movie it’s prerecorded. They’ve done it already perfectly or else it wouldn’t be in the film. So it’s not as entertaining to me and when it goes on for 20 minutes (and is basically the end of the film) it bores me a little.

I think this is just something that has become a victim to changing tastes, and was probably really well regarded in its time.

I liked An American in Paris. It’s not the best old school movie musical I’ve seen (Singin’ in the Rain might have that honor), but Kelly is entertaining as ever, the music is good, and the art design is very compelling especially during that last ballet. If you’re a fan of cinema as a whole or musicals specifically, you should see it at least once.

Up next: Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.

#An American in Paris #Gene Kelly #Oscar Levant #Leslie Caron #Musical #Epic Movie (Re)Watch #Movie #Film #GIF

[gam702mjordan]

Game 3. Part 3.

Post-Mortem:

Working on the theme of one minute, and the emotional theme of despair (which I was given by Alex Mitchell and his emotion generator). I have created a very basic game book. Working in the idea of ‘one-minute’ into the narrative itself. I incorporated the idea of one minute into the plot itself, and used despair as the core emotion on one of the characters and built my story using that as a foundation.

Before I started even the idealization part of the project, Alex gave me the emotion of ‘despair’ from his random emotion generator. So- this was the core foundation of my narrative, and as soon as he said it, the idea of ‘The fear’ sprang to mind immediately. I took that and then made Stu’s despair due to the bad trip the emotional axis of the conflict. I just didn’t know how I was going to utilize it yet. On the flipside though, I wanted to create something sweet. Despair is a heavy emotion, I personally felt that their should be another side to the piece, hope, the blossoming out of despair into joy, and bliss, There needed to be a light at the end of the tunnel, as it where…

The idea came from a concept in Tom Wolfes; “the Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test”. It’s a book about Ken Kesey and the merry pranksters- Californian Hippy renegades in the 60’s, they’d put on big performance art/multimedia projects, where people where encouraged to take mind altering substances. Anyway; They had a term called ‘intersubjectivity’, which happens when you take hallucinogens with someone. It’s a like a psychic link to people, one of the later chapters says it perfectly, written by the at the time editor of the L.A Free Press; Claire bush. She says:

“Take it again? Oh, probably someday… but no urgency, no desire to run to my friendly corner pusher. I think the best way is to take it with a lover, but someone you’re willing to have live you in head for a long, long time. Not too many of them around. It’s a closeness not easily dismissed”- (The Electric Kool-aid Acid test. Tom Wolfe. Black swan press. Page 251.)

I realize now that I must have been inspired by this passage subconsciously. I only thought about this after the fact and feel the it perfectly fits the aesthetic message of the game. Of how shared experiences like this are exercises in bonding, especially the bad times, if you have friends that stick around even during the bad, and it’s not even a problem, because they know that you would do it for them to, that’s real, and that’s what I wanted to make, I sought to make a realistic game, and I feel like I really achieved it. The dialog is some of the best I have ever done, it reads like people talk. I know there is a lot of gratuitous swearing and all three of them say the work ‘like’  when the link sentences together to much. That was intentionally done though. It wanted to imitate the removal of one’s filter while high, and the ‘likes’ are littered throughout because I wanted to create the effect of brain fog, having them say like a lot was to emulate them trying to conjure thoughts. There is not a lot of accurate male representation in modern media (Not totally vacant, but definitely barren), and I feel like the worst culprit is gaming. As the male power fantasy is what sells right?! Not that there is anything wrong with that; catharsis is healthy. I wat create narratives based totally in grounded cognition, relatability is a powerful thing. Just look at most of the modern musicians that are coming out nowadays; Courtney Barnett, Cra Seat Headrest, Yellow Days, Mac Damarco, Stella Donnelly, Rex county orange, the list could go on for ages. They are so popular with people is because of their relatability. It’s the grounded cognition thing, people empathise with characters because their struggles our a metaphor for our own. The ideal self is a constant battle with the real self. I just want to be as honest as I possibly can be. No matter what the genre is be it sci fi or surrealism, fantasy or farce.

Now, about the style. I chose to make a game in the genre of mumble core, which is ‘media about nothing and everything’. The focus for me as writer was to create a game of dialogue that was so realistic and as close to how a person would talk as I could, thus; The story itself is very basic. Lo-fi and hopefully naturalistic. As my intention was to make a mumblecore interactive fiction game, and the fundamental style of mumblecore is its stripped back, budget and almost ‘acoustic’ feel, it’s all very ‘coming-of-age’- young adults navigating life, real people dealing with real situations and mostly It’s true and honest. Inspired by this, I wanted to keep it simple and focus mainly on dialogue. It’s a tale about three male friends at a house party, one of them is about to go off to university (Lewis), one is about to start touring his company (Alex), and one of them isn’t doing anything (Stuart). They descend together on the last house party of the summer, being that it’s the last time that these three will be a back together for a while, it’s an important night for these three friends, because of this, they have decided to take LSD. Stu though feel inferior to his mates that are starting their life, this makes him feel like garbage as he compares himself to them, and thus he starts to have a bad trip. You play as a Lewis, the gameplay is very simple, the goal of the game is to just have a conversation with both of your friends, and that’s it. As an I.F game, it has very low functionality, calling it I.F. is undeniably a stretch. More like a game book, this is mainly dude to my completely lack of understanding still when it comes to coding. Though, I personally feel like it ties into the lo-fi vibe of mumblecore. Which was totally planned… and not just indicative of my inability to learn coding (Yes, Yes, It is).

How I assimilated the theme of ‘one minute’ into my narrative was via the drug. Due to the nature of hallucinogens, they cause people to perceive time differently. Inspired by the idea- I used this as a vehicle to narratively explore an alternate analysis/interpretation of what one minutes could mean. Instead of using a timer, or similar gimmick. I chose to focus in on and investigate ‘the passage of time’ whilst under the influence and how time is perceived in flow states. Layering that with the concept of Stu potentially ‘breaking time’- Its may be a tiny bit of a stretch, but it fits the theme. I want to leave the interpretation of whether they have actually broken time to the reader, I personally have my own opinions on the truth of the piece, but I’d rather just leave it open, interpretation can be incredibly effective at making a piece personal.

Though the theme was one minute and the emotion I was given was despair, as I said earlier, I wanted to have some hope, and how I chose to get the message of hope across was through having the player character play as Lewis (who is somewhat of empath). This was my own personal message. Fostering Empathy was my goal, most likely inspired by death stranding no doubt. Enthused by this I have created a piece of art that is truly representative of intimate male friendships. Theres’ not enough of it out in media (or maybe I’m not looking hard enough). I don’t know whether the piece ‘challenges conventions’, and what does that men for me, do I need to be constantly pushing the boundaries, In the feedback forms, alex Mitchell asked me what I thought the chosen genre brings to the medium of games, I hadn’t really thought of it until he ask, it made me look inwards and wonder if once again I was just ‘artistically masturbating’, but I don’t think that was my intention, I wanted to make something that people could see themselves in. I think the realness of the piece is what it brings to the medium. It’s a game about opening, and not bottling up all the toxic energy inside. At least that’s what I think, as with anything, interpretation is fluid. For me, apart from some tongue in cheek satire sci fi I have done, this was my first foray into art like this, creating something true is much easier than fantasy. All I had to do was write from the heart (Yuck, yeah I said it, No shame).

The challenge came from starting the project. I think maybe because it was honest and personal that the task itself was daunting, I planned the thing to death once again, which as I have star=ted in previous posts is one of the things that I struggle most with. When I stopped procrastinating, and sta don to get the thing out, the words just started flowing out of me. It was almost free associative. I would look at the plan now and gain, the parts came out in kind of a mess and it was up to me to make some kind of coherent linear storyline from the random thoughts, despite this, I couldn’t be more please with the finished piece.

The other challenge came from learning twine, I put so may hours into learning the software., and none of it has been sticking. Its really shows in the final piece. Parts loop and if the player doesn’t have the understanding (which is my fault) to navigate, they will miss huge chunks. In compeison to the farce game though, it’s a a massive improvement, from zero to about a three out of an hundred, but its still something. If I was to create another I.F game in twine, I think I’d be able to explore something a little more complex such as branching pathways.

One of my favourite bits and the one that most people seemed to comment on was the bit about Stu breaking time, it was the one moment that everybody gave me feedback on. I don’t know what it is about that moment. Maybe because its related to the theme. Maybe because everybody’s had moment like that, where they’ve been drunk and gotten locked on to some small detail and then had an adverse emotional reaction to something ridiculous or asinine.

Personally, This is my favourite project I have ever worked on, its intimate, true and honest.

[brandbaskets]

New Post has been published on https://brandbaskets.in/josh-radnor-aya-cash-on-their-romantic-comedy-social-animals/

Josh Radnor & Aya Cash on Their Romantic Comedy Social Animals

From writer/director Theresa Bennett, the romantic dramedy Social Animals is an honest look at how life doesn’t always turn out the way we want, expect, or hope it will. When Zoe (Noël Wells), who’s facing eviction and dealing with a failing business while being resigned to a life of one-night stands, meets Paul (Josh Radnor), who’s in a marriage (with Jane, played by Aya Cash) that lacks any sort of honest communication, together they realize that while their whole world is unraveling, it might actually lead to a new beginning.  

At the film’s Los Angeles press day, Collider got the opportunity to sit down and chat with co-stars Josh Radnor and Aya Cash about why they wanted to play these characters, what makes this romantic comedy different, telling a story without a villain, shooting at a video store, and working with a female director, both on this film and in general. Radnor also talked about his desire to direct again, and Cash talked about having to say goodbye, as she goes into the last season of her FX series You’re the Worst.  

Image via Vertical Entertainment

Collider:  I have never watched a movie where I’ve hoped a couple broke up, as much as I hoped these two would break up, which was a little emotionally weird. It just felt like that’s what was best for these two. 

AYA CASH:  You can be good people who are bad together. That’s all right.  

JOSH RADNOR:  Good people, bad together. 

CASH:  Yeah, that’s the tagline! 

How long ago did you guys read this and how much did it change, from when you read it to when you actually shot it? 

CASH:  I read it two years before we shot, so I don’t remember how it changed. I thought it just went into the black hole of meetings that happen, when you’re an actor, which is that you go in to meetings and you think you have a great first date, and then you see the movie that you didn’t get. So, I was like, “Wow, she’s so great! We got along. I liked the script,. But I guess she felt differently or hired someone better. But two years later, I got a call and they were like, “Do you want to be in Austin in two weeks?” So, I didn’t see how it changed. I just got to come at it anew. And then on set, the script was pretty set, with a little bit of improv, mainly by Fortune [Feimster], who is a creative comic genius. We stuck fairly close to script, with a little bit of improv. 

RADNOR:  I read the script and just tore through it. I really liked the character and I felt like I had some intuitive sense of how to play him, and I had a great meeting with (writer/director) Teresa [Bennett]. I had never been to Austin, and I loved her taste in music. The whole thing just aligned. I can’t remember how far in advance I got the offer and met her, but it wasn’t like we showed up on set and there was a wildly different script. She wasn’t very precious about it, but we stuck to the script, by and large. If something wasn’t working or we wanted to re-phrase something, she was so open to that. She kept her cool, in the best kind of way, as a first-time director. 

CASH:  She also took seven years to write it, so it changed a lot in those seven years. 

RADNOR:  We didn’t get all the old drafts. We just got the latest draft, which was the shooting draft. 

What was it that you were excited about, with getting the play these characters? Were there things that you felt that you hadn’t gotten to do? 

CASH:  For me, that’s definitely true. I don’t normally play mothers who are responsible business people, so I was excited to do that. Obviously, she is going through something and there’s much more under the surface. Normally, I get cast in the Zoe role, so it was really fun to play the Jane role. When I first met on it, they said, “Think about both characters,” and I said, “I think Jane is more interesting to me right now, just because I’ve been doing the other for awhile.” That was really exciting. We all have different sides to ourselves, and there’s a part of Jane that rings very true to me. It’s not necessarily my best side, but it’s a side, and it’s fun to express that and explore that through a character. 

Image via Vertical Entertainment

RADNOR:  Yeah, I liked this notion of polarity and opposites. I got to be in a romantic comedy, where you’re falling for a woman, and it’s this great romance, but then there’s also this crumbling marriage that’s at the heart of it, that’s kicking him into the arms of this other woman. All romantic comedies are essentially about what’s keeping them apart, and what’s keeping him from just jumping into this thing with Zoe with both feet is that he’s married with children, and he actually loves his kids and his wife. He’s got a moral compass, which I think is a fun internal conflict to play. His heart is drawing him one way, but his sense of basic decency and his marital vows are keeping him in this other place. When you’re an actor and you’re considering roles and seeing how juicy they are, you’re looking for that stuff that’s roiling underneath, and that keeps it from being basic and easy to crack. All of that internal combustion is good fuel, and it’s fun to play. 

I enjoyed how this is really just a simple story about these people who are trying, but it’s just not necessarily working. We’re so used to big, flashy movies nowadays that it’s really nice to see an intimate story where people are trying to work things out.  

CASH:  Yeah. It’s so easy to have a villain or to have someone to blame, so that then you can be like, “Great, I know who to root for.” You’re kicked around in this movie, a little bit, as far as who you’re rooting for and what you’re rooting for, which is interesting to me. 

RADNOR:  A lot of movies sort people into types and say, but anyone who is even half awake in life knows that life is more complicated than that. 

Josh, I loved the fact that your character owns a video store because I have all of these nostalgic memories of being in a video store when I was a kid. It was just was so sad that there was no one in his video store.  

  RADNOR:  I know. That video store was amazing. They actually had both of my movies (Liberal Arts and Happythankyoumoreplease), which I was thrilled about. And in terms of the production design, wherever you pointed the camera, it was so rich with color. 

Aya, you’ve said that you were looking for more female directors to work with, which is something you got from doing this project.  

CASH:  Yeah. 

Was there a specific point where you noticed that you weren’t working with many female directors? 

CASH:  The moment you notice it the most is sex scenes. Doing sex scenes with male directors is a whole different feeling. 

RADNOR:  You should be clear that you mean sex scenes with male directors directing the sex scenes. 

CASH:  Yeah, not in the #MeToo way. It’s just a totally different vibe. And also, the language between men and women around the sex stuff, even if you’re being careful, adds another layer. When you can be franker about what’s going on, and what you’re feeling about a sex scene, about showing your body or not showing your body, and about the reasons why we’re showing sex, a frank conversation can happen when you’re working with women. It’s so interesting, doing a sex scene surrounded by a female crew. Even if there’s a female director, it’s mostly men on the crew. We had a female DP, and all the heads of department were women, so there were a lot more women on set than I’m used to. You don’t notice, until you get the opposite and you’re like, “Oh wait, it can be like this!” That’s not to say that there aren’t great men in this industry. It’s not to say that there isn’t a place for both. It’s not like it’s been so traumatic to work for men. But you don’t even notice that there’s this other option, and there needs to be more of that other option. I’m working on developing a movie, and there is a scene in the shower, where I would be in the shower, and it’s the first time that I’ve considered doing nudity. It’s my own shower scene, and I’m not sure that it’s necessary, but it’s the first time I was really like, “It might be important here, and here’s why . . .” 

Josh, have you noticed whether you were or weren’t working with many female directors, yourself? 

RADNOR:  I’ve actually probably worked with more female directors than male directors. A lot of my feature work has been with women, Pam Fryman directed 200 of the 208 episodes of How I Met Your Mother. I worked with a great director, named Kimberly Senior, on Broadway, in a play called Disgraced. I’ve worked with Jill Soloway (on Afternoon Delight). I’ve worked with a lot of female directors and not had a bad experience. A set is a very delicate ecosystem and, as a director, I always want to create a space that the actors just feel really comfortable and really safe in, so that they can be dangerous in their work. You want them to feel that you see them, and that you’re going to pick their best takes and you’re not out to humiliate them. I think women are particularly good at creating that fertile environment, where great, risky work can happen. 

Are you hoping to direct again soon, yourself? 

RADNOR:  Oh, yeah.  

CASH:  This is where he’s gonna announce his next movie, starring me. I did a reading of his, a long time ago, and he didn’t cast me, and he’s regretted it ever since. He was like, “Don’t worry, I will write you a movie.” Right? 

RADNOR:  Am I supposed to just sign on off this? 

CASH:  No, I’m just putting it in print. I’ll shame you into a job. 

RADNOR:  So now, if I cast you in my next film, people are gonna be like, “Oh, it’s because she shamed him in that interview for Collider. That’s why he did it.”  

CASH:  I don’t care! A job’s a job, baby! 

RADNOR:  You’re such a working actor dame. You’re like the Elaine Stritch of the indie film world. 

CASH:  Just bring it on! 

RADNOR:  Yeah, so, I have a script ready to go that I was gonna do, but other things got in the way. I’m looking to do something ASAP, so the answer is yes. 

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[joel-furniss-blog]

Glitch Art

Digital Manipulation is easy. That’s why I like it. You can pour hours into a painting or a drawings and have it come out mediocre, but with digital manipulation it only takes minutes to make a mediocre piece, and minutes more to bump it up to a good one. And if one is using Photoshop, it takes little skill to create a piece since all the necessary tools are laid out for you from the start, it’s as simple as diving right in.

Mindless? Perhaps. But I see the mindless as blissful. When I’m handling acrylics I suddenly become hyper aware of my surroundings for the fear that’ll splatter paint where it is best not splattered. Especially my jeans. Many times I have seen splotches of drying acrylic on my black denim and felt a dampened mood for the rest of the day because of it. Paired with other problems such as replenishing paint, cleaning brushes, and keeping my hands clean, I feel as if painting is one of the most disconnected methods of creating for me. While others might feel differently, I think there is a very prominent disconnection between me and my work in that particular field, but no such problem presents itself when working on a computer. Of course there’s the physical disconnect of working with the digital format, the barrier of the screen versus the physicality of the brushstrokes, but I’ve never been that wild with the brush anyway, and personally I feel more invested when I work with a computer. Swinging wildly with the brush might capture a raw physicality, but I think such erratic movements can break away from a trance or streak, having to start the process over again. But with a computer it’s possible to sit motionless for hours on end, building work with little to no distractions if the conditions are right. With Photoshop as a tool as well, it’s possible to build an entire portfolio out of a single image, simply by saving each step of the editing process. Everything is recordable and no changes are permanent, it’s possible to go one with an image then revert back to a previous step and create an entirely new creative avenue.

The ability to create art using the digital medium is a relatively new idea, forming at the dawn of our contemporary age in the 1970’s and becoming a heavily tapped medium in our lifetimes as an inescapable wave of technology is surrounding us. Technology as both a medium and a theme has been used as the basis for many works from David Hockney’s iPad paintings to Rachel Maclean’s multimedia explorations of the changing technological based world. And in such technologically turbulent times, when the digital is in our pockets and ever evolving, it still remains one of the most untapped and unregistered artistic movements in recent memory, mostly due to the adopted monikers and solely internet-based portfolios of many artists. With digital artwork in a digital age so much is representable and rapid that intellectual resources are incredibly vast, from the pop culture orientated alternate reality art, to epically scaled sci-fi or fantasy pieces, to more nostalgic based interpretations of retro games consoles and computers.

And this is one of the ideas behind my point of study, Glitch Art. Technological faults like glitches and software bugs now are rarely seen what with the increase in improvement on our electronic devices, but most adults today recall examples of their Nintendo 64’s or PlayStation crapping out on them, leaving them with repeated levels of vibrantly coloured pixels on an infinitely paused screen, or a character’s sprite replaced with a mangled mesh of colours or garbled texts. While unwanted a quickly reset by various tricks, there was something interesting about these small skips in the game’s code, a break from the regular to show the man behind the curtain, some even spawning entire characters and separate canons such as Pokémon Red and Blue’s MissingNo. But the idea of the glitch isn’t the only intriguing thing about them, the visuals also play a heavy part in the founded interest. Something about the broken yet still somewhat whole visual of a glitched-out screen is innately visual intriguing, the disjointed visage and analog blocks or waves breaking the screen definitely interested me when I was younger, a sort of uncapturable frame of a mistake unrepeatable by most means and easily reset in a few seconds.

Their difficult to explain, how they come about and even when they do appear, assort of indescribable corruption in code producing something sublime and even frightening, deconstructed and bent data that can twist human forms to become near unrecognisable pulps of colour and shape, broken to their barest forms on the screen. This sort of bent form is a change from the normally sought graphics we want, yet they themselves are interesting for their loaded aesthetics and offers the commentary of technological control and the usurp of such, instead of technology controlling us, we control technology.

While I thoroughly enjoy this form of digital manipulation and would like to replicate some aspects of it, it’s difficult to contextualise it into my project. I could rationalise it as my original view of Salford being warped, link it to the bad things I’ve read about Salford on the internet, or talk about how living hear is sort of like a glitch in my life. Or I could say that I’ve done enough far-fetched rationalising in my past sets and just enjoy making some mindless imagery.

One of my main interests in glitches and glitch art is the repetition of chosen sections, in which code is repeated over and over, sometimes with changes to their scale, placement, and colour to create a disjointed or continuous effect. I enjoy the use of repetition in my work to really push a point or idea, or just to seem heavy, and using Photoshop’s many selection tools and layers, the repetition is simple. I’ve also been playing with the oversaturated and inverted colours of these glitches, using sharpening tools and filters to create pixelated sections and disjointed blocks of neutral or vibrant colours. My subjects were taken from previous scans and photographs taken throughout my project with the present goal of changing them and altering them into completely different pieces while still keeping some level or relatability to the originals, sort of reusing the small recycling motif of my sculptures and paintings.

Overall, even if they had little driving force behind them in the way of rational relation to my original working ideas, I feel like the work I have produced is very good, although I could have defiantly produced a wider portfolio but unfortunately due to approaching deadlines, I must balance my focuses in their direction rather than this one. I feel like I will definitely continue with these glitch inspired visuals in future projects, or at least digital manipulation via Photoshop but hopefully with a renewed sense of reason in doing so.

Sources used:

- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glitch_art

- https://www.reddit.com/r/glitch_art/

- http://www.theperipherymag.com/on-the-arts-glitch-it-good/

- https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2013/oct/25/rise-of-glitch-art

#contextualresearch

[theglobetrottergp-blog]

Sometimes I refer to myself as a ‘hopeless girl’ as I STILL haven’t mastered the art of nail varnish OR walking in heels and my hair is pretty much always just straight or in a pony tail (I’ve now added curly to my repertoire!) That said, I still often get described as girly. I love make-up and wearing pretty clothes and I have way more shoes than anyone needs – albeit nothing with more than a 2.5 inch heel! I’ve made the mistake of backpacking before with ONLY practical clothes and spent the whole time wishing I’d packed some mascara and a pair of nice sandals. Seriously NO ONE can rock the trekker sandals and whilst they certainly have a place in your backpack, I don’t recommend wearing them every day or suffer the tan marks! I swear I still had a faint brown square on my feet the following summer! (It seems the only part of me ever to tan is my feet!) So with that in mind, I am certainly no beauty expert but I have picked up some tips along the way which I’d love to share with you!

  Let’s talk Make-up! 

I’m certainly not one of those girls who can’t nip to the corner shop without a full face of make-up but I don’t think I could go a few months without any at all so I compromise and take the essentials when I travel. I would recommend taking neutral colours that go with all your outfits and also avoid anything in powder form – it probably won’t last past the first flight and you will regret it when your backpack is covered in bronzer! Always look for make-up with SPF in it – 2 birds 1 stone! But most importantly you want make-up that stays put even in the most humid of conditions! I have spent the last 15 years or so searching for make-up with staying power and I’m happy to say I’ve had some break throughs recently and so I’ll let you in on these secrets now!

Foundation – AT LAST I’ve found a foundation which actually lasts all day. I’ve even fallen asleep in it before (beauty sin 101) and woke up looking like I’d just done my make-up! Thanks to my lovely friend Lisa who gave me my first Estee Lauder Double wear foundation for my birthday!  It’s not cheap at £32 but it’s worth every penny and though it’s a small bottle, I was impressed it lasted almost 4 months! It’s also probably the best colour match I’ve ever had which is no mean feat given how pasty I am! I really cannot rave about this enough! The only downside that I can see is that it’s only SPF 10.

Mascara – I absolutely LOVE Clinique’s High impact curling mascara. It does exactly what it says on the tin but also for travelling, you will need a reliably waterproof mascara. This isn’t branded as waterproof but trust me it is definately is! I was lucky to inherit long eyelashes but this is both a blessing and a curse. In the past I always found that pretty much any mascara left me with panda eyes at the end of the day but not this one!

Eyebrow pencil – Being a blonde, I’ve got fair eyebrows that you can barely see and so I’ve always been on the search for a solution which looks natural and not drawn on. My solution is Benefit’s ‘Gimme Brow.” It tames your existing eyebrow hairs whilst adding subtle microfibres giving you a fuller more defined look – I’m a massive fan!

Lippy – There has been a huge improvement in the staying power of lippies and lip glosses recently but I’m a big fan of Rimmel’s Provocalpse which is marketed as lasting 16 hours. I actually think it’s longer and sometimes I actually struggle to get it off without an oil based make-up remover! My best travel shade is ‘make your move‘ as it’s  a good every-day shade.

    Let’s Talk Beauty 

SPF. I’ve made the mistake of using normal sun cream on my face and the result was so many spots – I looked like I had chicken pox! So now I always use an oil free SPF for face only. I personally like No7 Protect & perfect intense advanced facial suncream with SPF 30. It’s also a bargain! Available from Boots only.

Perfume – no one likes a smelly backpacker! But you don’t want to be weighed down with a heavy perfume bottle! I nipped into Boots and asked for some samples. They are free and the perfect size to fit in your bag without weighing you down! You might have to be less fussy about which type you take but on the plus side you may discover a new perfume to love!

Realistically you’re not going to be able to stick to your full beauty regime so you will probably have to leave your toner’s, exfoliaters and face masks at home! I used to ditch most of this stuff when I travelled but your 30’s are not as kind to your skin as your 20’s so now I travel with a good moisturiser. I’ve just invested in the Number 7 protect and perfect travel kit which has moisturiser and serum in the perfect sized travel bottles which I will be taking to South America.

Face wipes These will be your best friend especially on long dusty journeys! Why not get some exfoliating face wipes (another 2 birds, 1 stone!)

Leave your favourite jewellery at home! You will be able to pick up some great bargain jewellery at markets all around the world and it’s a great momento to take home without taking up much space in your backpack!

  Let’s Talk Hair 

Argh the bane of my life! I definitely have a love-hate relationship with my hair! I’ve got long fine hair but lots of it and so me and scarves/hats do NOT get on! I tend to end up with a big matt at the back of my neck! Sexy! Not helped by years of bleaching my hair blonde and my hairdresser despairs every time I tell her how often I go swimming in chlorine! I lust after the sort of hair which dries smooth and without frizz falling into silky waves. I have the waves but I also have frizz and LOTS of it! But I can’t be carrying around my hairdryer or straighteners in my backpack so I’m always looking for a better travel hair solution! In the past I’ve embraced the curl, cut my hair short with lots of layers and just used a bit of frizz ease. It wasn’t great but better than the Hermione-look (otherwise known as the lampshade) when my hair is longer! This time around, determined to keep my long hair,  I’m trying something different and I’ll let you know how I get on! I’m giving the Brazilian blow dry a go (not what it sounds!!) It was on offer on Groupon and I’m a sucker for a bargain! Usually about £200 it’s well out of my price range! But on groupon I found a deal for £50 which is less than I pay for a cut and colour so I figured why not?! They infuse keratin into your hair (keratin is what makes straight hair straight) which has the effect of de-frizzing and taming your curls. It’s actually designed to improve the condition of your hair unlike chemical straightening which damages it and whilst it won’t promise you poker straight hair, it is supposed to make hair much more manageable and lasts up to about 3 months. Sounds great to me! Watch this space, I will report back soon!

Embracing the curl!

  Let’s Talk Clothes

I always try to take a combination of uber practical but not-so-sexy ‘travel clothes’ and a few nicer outfits. But most importantly you need to keep the amount you take to a miminum. Trust me, you don’t want to have to carry that kitchen sink with you every day! So here you need to master the ‘capsule wardrobe.‘ Basically everything you take should match with everything else. I love patterns and colours so I stick to neutral plain shorts/skirts/trousers/cardi’s and then add a few pretty tops and dresses to jazz things up a bit. Make sure your shoes are incredibly comfy. Wear them in a LOT before you travel with them. Also don’t forget to think about things like the grip on the soles! Have you ever been wearing a pair of lovely flip-flops when suddenly the weather turns and you are slipping and sliding everywhere trying to get to the nearest shelter! Rubber soles or ones with grips are best! I have just bought a pair of UGG sandals. They are incredibly soft and cushioned but have great grip. They did cost a fortune compared to most sandals (£70 gulp) but they are an investment and I’m sure after hours walking around cities in all weathers, I will be super glad I made the splurge! For more advice about what clothes to take, see my packing list for all weathers

  Let’s Talk the ‘P’ word 

Periods. The bane of our lives – seriously men have it so much easier don’t they?!! As a doctor, I get several consultations a day from women worrying about getting their periods when they are travelling! Especially if they are camping, swimming lots or staying somewhere remote or hiking! So I thought I’d draw upon my experience as a GP and share a few ideas with you. I suggest discussing these options with your own GP if you think your ‘lady time’ might come at a BAD time!

Progestogen only pill ‘The POP.’ This contraceptive pill MIGHT just stop your period altogether! This is not an absolute given so I suggest trying it out for a few months before you go away! I would say about 70-80% of women find their periods disappear altogether though a small minority will find they get erratic periods instead. The downside to this pill when travelling, is you have to take it the same time every day (tricky when you’re crossing time zones) You have a 12 hour window with the newer versions (like Cerelle) and 3 hours with the older generation POPs. Go beyond this window and you’ll be at risk of ‘spotting’ and pregnancy if you are using it as contraception.

The Combined contraceptive pill ‘The COCP.’ This contraceptive pill is a great option. You still have a period albeit usually shorter, lighter and less painful but you will know when it’s going to be as it occurs a few days after you start your 7 day pill-break. You can choose to skip your period altogether by back-to-backing your pill packets (i.e missing your 7 day break.) This makes it a great option for shorter trips of a couple of months or less. The down sides are that it can’t be taken by any one who suffers migraines with aura (sensory disturbance) as it increases the risk of strokes. It also slightly increases your risk of DVT’s so make sure to walk about lots on flights! On the plus side, this pill has a 48 hour window so if you miss one pill but remember at the right time the next day, you will still be covered for contraception. Go beyond 48 hours and you will need extra precautions for a week!

Norethisterone – a form of POP however this is NOT contraception! Taken 3 days before your period is due then 3 times a day until you’re happy for your lady time to arrive! Great for short holidays but not really a good option for longer trips abroad!

The Progestogen only injection ‘The depot.’ Reliable contraception, you don’t need to remember to take a tablet so great for the forgetful! However occasionally women have irregular bleeding on this so try it several months before you travel just in case! Not a good option if you have risk factors for osteoporosis or if you are planning to start a family soon – this can take several months before your fertility bounces back!

Remember none of these options are completely foolproof so make sure you have some feminine hygiene products with you just in case! You don’t want to get caught out somewhere remote!!

I hope this has been helpful and given you some ideas for how to looks good, smell good and avoid having ‘lady dramas’ whilst away! Do you have any tips you can share with us ladies? Do you have any questions about the pill options I’ve discussed above? I will do my best to be able to answer them!

Let’s Talk Girl Stuff! Beauty, Hair and Health Advice for Backpackers Sometimes I refer to myself as a 'hopeless girl' as I STILL haven't mastered the art of nail varnish OR walking in heels and my hair is pretty much always just straight or in a pony tail (I've now added curly to my repertoire!) That said, I still often get described as girly.

#beauty #fashion #girl stuff #hair #Luxury #make-up #periods #Travel beauty tips and hacks