#you might get a lot of art from me in this style over the break cuz im making stuff in this for a personal thing of mine. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

skz317cb97 · 1 year

Text

Color Theory

Jeongin x Female reader

Word count: 7.2k

Synopsis: Your world is varying shades of grey until you meet your soulmate, Jeongin, who brightens up your life in more ways than one.

A/N: 18+ ONLY! This, I swear to God, went from I have no idea for this story to 7.2k words and I have NO idea how. I hope you enjoy though! If you do please reblog, like, comment, shoot me an ask. I love hearing from you all it makes my day! As always warnings and smut below the cut!

Warnings: 18+ONLY MDNI! Cursing/strong language, character death, unprotected piv sex (please use condoms), cum shot, cum eating (a teensy bit). I think that's everything but if I missed something let me know and I'll add it asap!

Your mom was teaching you your primary colors. You had learned your shapes and you were working on numbers and letters and now she was working on your colors, an important part of your mother’s world being an artist. Your mom didn’t get why you were having such a hard time getting them right when you had picked everything else up so easily. It was your dad that actually mentioned the possibility of you being color blind as he was passing through the living room where you and your mom were playing during a break from his writing.

She realized your dad might be right so she set up an optometrist appointment for you and had your eyes examined. When the doctor looked, he determined that you had monochromacy or in other words you were completely color blind. It was quite rare really, most people that were color blind had trouble seeing certain colors, but you saw none which was so rare it happened to one in thirty-thousand people worldwide. Being a girl made it even less likely as well since color blindness occurred more in men than women but you were the one in thirty thousand apparently. Your mom’s heart broke a little knowing you’d never get to know and love colors the way she did but she made sure that art was still a part of your life.

You were thankful for that because art ended up being your outlet, your escape, your fantasy world to get lost inside. Any form you could create in you would, drawing, pottery, pastels, but you especially loved painting. You used an array of colors but only ever saw varying shades of gray so you used a lot of texture in your art as well. You became quite well known among the avid art collectors in your city for your unique style and the lack of your ability to see colors. Your paintings were variations of colors chosen by someone with no idea what color was, with the textures it was art that came off the canvas. Your name finally got passed around enough that one of the more selective galleries asked you to do an exhibition. You were working on some canvases for that when your mom walked into your studio. She set down a tupperware bowl and made her way over to you. She wiped at paint on your face shaking her head.

“You wear as much as the canvas does sometimes.” You nodded knowingly.

“I know sometimes I get lost in it and the next thing I know I have spackle caked in my hair.” If anyone understood it was your mom. She looked at what you were working on.

“You’re using a lot of pinks and reds in this one.” You looked at it.

“Have I? I stopped looking at the names on the tubes.” Your mother nodded, examining the amazing work you’d done only knowing black and white and the grays in between.

“I think this one will be my favorite when it’s finished.” You smiled. She was so proud of you. Then she pointed at the food she brought, knowing if she didn’t, you wouldn’t stop and eat. She distracted you just long enough to get you to break away and feed yourself. About halfway through your food your mom got up, squeezed you and kissed the top of your head.

“I’m going to get home sweetie. I have to make sure your dad eats too.” She shook her head at the likenesses you shared with your father.

“Don’t stay up all night.” You nodded knowing damn well you probably would. You had paintings to get done.

“Okay mom I won’t.” Your mother looked at you knowing it was complete bullshit but smiled and headed out.

“I love you sweetie.” You waved as you headed back towards your canvas.

“I love you too mom.” You put your headphones on and got lost in your canvas again. When your dad walked up behind you he scared the absolute shit out of you. You looked at the time and were surprised at how late it was, you pulled your headphones off.

“Dad wha-” The look on his face told you something was horribly wrong.

“It’s mom...” He said and you started to shake your head no as tears came to your eyes.

“No.” He walked towards you trying to grab your hand and you backed away.

“It started to rain, and the car slid...” You kept shaking your head back and forth.

“She’s okay she’s just hurt. Right?” Tears streaked your dad’s face.

“Right?!” Your dad shook his head no.

“She... she didn’t make it sweetie.” You collapsed to your knees and your dad grabbed your shoulders making sure you didn’t hurt yourself falling. You looked up at the half eaten food on the table that she had brought you. If you weren’t so worried about the stupid exhibit, if you had just taken enough care to eat, if she didn’t think she had to bring you dinner, she’d still be alive. When you left your studio that day, you locked it and refused to step foot in it again.

Your dad made all the arrangements and somehow you made it through your mother’s wake and funeral. You moved in with your dad after your mom died and took care of him. Made sure he ate, lifted his head from his computer from time to time so his eyes didn’t burn out of his head. You had wanted to get rid of your studio. Just sell it and let whoever bought it toss the paintings, but your dad wouldn’t let you. He told you to hold onto it, just because you didn’t feel like you could now, didn’t mean you never would. He hoped one day you’d go back to your painting. Two years went by and as fast as your name had been passed around it disappeared from people's lips just as quickly. You were glad.

You were starting dinner and writing down a grocery list when the house phone rang. Your dad was elbow deep in his novel, he wouldn’t stop for a house fire, so you answered it.

“Hello?” You heard a man clear his throat on the other end of the line.

“Oh hi! Uh, My name is Yang Jeongin...”

“We don’t want to buy any but thanks.” You hung up and started to head back over to the food on the stove. You just stirred the sauce when the phone rang again. You sighed and walked over to answer it again. More irritated this time, you were going to burn your dinner.

“Hello?!” He cleared his throat again.

“Hi sorry, I’m not selling anything I’m trying to find an artist by the name of y/n?” You froze, speechless.

“Hello?” Click. You hung up again and walked over to the dinner. The phone rang again and you let it but it kept going and going. You stormed over.

“What do you want!” He was surprised at your outburst.

“I... I... uh are you Ms. Y/n?" His voice had gotten small and you started to feel bad for blowing up on him for no real reason. You sighed taking a deep breath.

“Yea. I’m y/n.” He suddenly got very excited on the phone.

“Oh! Okay um I'm so sorry to bother you but I am a HUGE fan of your art work and I was wondering if you’d be willing to do a commissioned piece for me?” You pinched the bridge of your nose trying to fight off the headache that was creeping up behind your eyes. You sighed.

“I don’t paint anymore.” He hummed.

“Oh...”

“Yea so goodb-”

“Why not?” You were starting to get angry again. You had listened to him and answered him, what more did he want?

“That’s really none of your business. Goodbye.” You hung up and finished dinner. You and your dad sat at the table together as you ate.

“Oh who called earlier.” You shook your head taking another bite.

“No one.” Your dad hummed looking at you.

“What?” He shrugged.

“No one called three times in a row.” You sighed frustrated by your dad’s persistence sometimes.

“Okay! It was some guy asking me to paint him something. I’m not going to.” Your dad nodded.

“Some guy? Did he say who he was?” You nodded and continued to try and focus on your meal and not the conversation you didn’t want to be having.

“Yang... Yang Jeon or something like that. It doesn’t matter, I don’t paint anymore.” Your dad dropped his fork.

“Yang Jeongin?” You shook your head.

“Yea that was it.” Your dad sat there speechless.

“What dad?” He finally snapped out of it.

“You’ve never heard of Yang Jeongin?” You shrugged.

“No?” To be fair when you painted you didn’t keep up with anything on tv or the news. Even now that you didn’t paint you still never really turned on the tv.

“His family is the Yang in the LeeYang corperation. You know that name.” Well yea everyone knew that name, even if you lived under a rock. There wasn’t a single household that didn’t have something made by the LeeYang corp.

“Jeongin is the grandson of the head of the company and his dad is on their board of directors. He was just named the city's most eligible bachelor; his family is old old money.” You shrugged, picking up your plate and walking it to the sink.

“Okay so what. I still don’t paint.” Your dad picked up his plate and took it over to the sink too.

“You could.” You started to fill the sink with water and soap. Your dad stopped you and made you look at him.

“It won’t start to heal until you do sweetie.” You stuck your hands down in the water and shook your head as you tried to will away the tears welling in your eyes.

“No dad.” He sighed, kissed the side of your head and went back to his computer to get back to writing while you cleaned up dinner dishes. That night you laid in bed restless, hoping the clicking of your dad’s computer keys would put you to sleep like they had so many times as a child but you couldn’t. At around two you hollered.

“Bed dad! Brains need sleep to write novels!” You heard him sigh heavily and get up. You weren’t sure when you had turned into the parent. He stopped at your door.

“Goodnight sweetie.” You nodded.

“Goodnight dad.” Thankfully, eventually, you did manage to fall asleep and get a few hours of rest. The next day while you were doing the grocery shopping your cell phone started going off. You grabbed it thinking it was probably your dad wanting some sugary snack. He needed to start eating better and if he asked you for cupcakes you were going to get him apples and bananas. It turned out it wasn’t your dad. It was an unknown number but local so you answered it.

“Hello?”

“Ms. Y/n? It’s Jeongin. PLEASE don’t hang up!” You sighed and pushed your cart down the aisle. Holding your phone with your shoulder as you continued to grab things.

“It’s really not a good time Mr. Yang.”

“I’m sorry I really don’t mean to be a pest. Please call me Jeongin.” You stopped and held onto the phone.

“What can I do for you Mr. Yang?” He let out a nervous laugh.

“Uh well I was hoping that maybe you might reconsider doing the commission? Money is no object...” You hummed.

“I’m aware of who you are and what you have Mr. Yang. I don’t really care. I’m also certain that I’ve told you three times now that I no longer paint.” You hung up on him again and went back to grocery shopping. Jeongin was frustrated. He was usually one to accept a no when that was the answer but he loved your work and he didn’t know why but he needed to get you to paint one for him.

He’d bought so many of your canvas’ from other collectors,for a good deal of money since you disappeared and were no longer painting. No one knew why just that you left the scene two years before, overnight. It had been difficult to dig up contact info on you and after going through all that Jeongin was hopeful that if he asked and said the right number that you’d paint for him. Apparently you didn’t give a shit about numbers which Jeongin found endearing as much as he did frustrating.

A couple days later you were reading a book in the living room when the house phone started to ring. You closed your book, got up and answered it.

“Hello?” Nothing silence.

“Hellooo?” You heard a breath.

“Fuck off perve-”

“Wait wait! It's... I’m not... It’s Jeongin.” You rolled your eyes and sighed irritated that this man was calling you again.

“What do you want Mr. Ya-”

“To apologize...” You stopped surprised to hear his answer.

“For what?” He was surprised to not hear a dial tone.

“For being pushy and not taking no for an answer the first time. If I offended you, I’m deeply sorry.” You felt a little bad. He hadn’t offended you he was just picking at a scab he had no idea about.

“It’s fine Jeongin...” He let out a sigh of relief.

“Okay, thank you for taking my call. Have a good day Ms. y/n, goodbye...” You stopped him just before he hung up.

“WAIT!” He hummed acknowledging he was still there. You were already kicking yourself. You couldn’t believe you were about to say what you were going to say. Why were you going to say what you were about to?

“I’ll do the painting.”

“What?!” Jeongin couldn’t believe his ears.

“I’ll do the painting. Email me your specifications and-” He interrupted you.

“ANYTHING! Literally just do anything you want and tell me a price!”

“Okay okay Jeongin fine.” He wanted to ask a question but he didn’t want to push his luck either. He took a chance.

“Uh would I maybe be able to come by your studio sometime? Once you’ve started?” You hadn’t been to your studio in two years. Your dad stopped by to pick up mail every so often but you had no idea what kind of condition it was in.

“Maybe, let me get it started. Typically I don’t have spectators, especially not the customer.” He understood that and was thankful you were even considering it.

“Yes okay that’s fantastic! Thank you! Thank you so much!”

“Okay Jeongin, I’ll be in touch soon.” You both said goodbye and when you turned to go back to your book your dad was standing there.

“Did I just hear you say you were going to do the painting?” You opened your mouth to complain about his eavesdropping but he quickly cut you off.

“You know what! Forget I said anything! I didn’t hear a thing!” He ran towards the kitchen for a drink and back to his computer before you could start in and you shook your head going back to your book. It was pointless trying to read anymore. All you could think of was a canvas and how you’d move the paint across it. You slammed your book closed, grabbed your car keys and headed towards the studio.

When you got there you stood at the door for a long time. The last time you’d been in there was the day your mom died. When you finally willed yourself to go in it was like stepping into a time capsule. All your paintings were exactly where you’d left them and the one you had been working on was still propped against your easel. You walked up to it and looked at it like your mother had, then picked it up and moved it against one of the walls. You grabbed a fresh canvas, put it on the easel and stared at it, looking for the picture inside it. You stared and stared but you couldn’t see it anymore. Something your mom had planted in you was what made you see it before but she was dead and so was the plant. A whole week you kept going back staring at the blank canvas finding nothing in it.

Week two you were standing in front of the blank canvas, your headphones on trying to find some kind of inspiration. You about jumped out of your skin when someone tapped you on the shoulder.

“Jesus fucking Christ!” You turned and there was a man in a button up shirt and suit jacket. He had fox like eyes that were narrow but some how still seemed kind. You both stood there stunned for a moment. You pulled your headphones down.

“Uh... can I help you?” You wanted to be mad that he’d intruded but he was so beautiful you couldn’t bring yourself to be. You were just curious who this man was standing in front of you staring at you. He shook his head as if he were getting the thoughts in order.

“OH! Uh, yea! I’m Jeongin, we spoke on the phone?” Oh. No wonder he was one of the most eligible bachelors in the city. He was a work of art himself. You still had no idea how he found your studio or what he was doing there.

“Oh Mr. Yang yes, um...” He smiled his eyes scrunching up.

“Please Jeongin is fine.” You nodded.

“Yes of course, Jeongin. How did you find me?”

“I hope it’s okay. I called you a few times and then your house, your father finally answered, he told me I could find you here.” Of course he did you thought to yourself.

“I don’t mean to be impatient I’m just excited to see any progress that you’ve made, no matter how little!” You turned and looked at the blank canvas behind you as he started looking around the room at your artwork.

“Which one is mine?” You pointed at the blank canvas and he looked surprised.

“Oh... I see. Um... well... what’s wrong?” He didn’t mean for the question to come out like it had but as soon as he asked it your face scrunched up angry.

“What do you mean what’s wrong?! It doesn’t just create itself! Why don’t you try to make art out of colors you can’t even see and see how quickly you get it done!” He put up his hands trying to calm you.

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean to offend you I just meant like... is it why you stopped painting?” You tossed down your headphones angry.

“I’m pretty sure I said that was none of your business!” Jeongin was doing a terrible job at digging himself out of the hole he’d created.

“You’re right I’m sorry it is, I didn’t mean to pry I just, if I can help...” You walked over to the door and opened it.

“Right now you can help by leaving.” He bowed and walked towards the open door. He looked at you as he passed by.

“I’m sorry I intruded. I won’t bother you again, I’ll wait for your call.” He rushed out and down the stairs towards the exit of the building. You slammed your door shut and walked back over to the canvas picking up your headphones and staring at it angrily. You glanced over at the painting you’d worked on the night of your mom’s accident and then did a double take. You saw the shades of red your mom had mentioned when she had looked at it. How? You rubbed your eyes expecting everything to go back to normal but when you opened them you saw shades of blue in other paintings lying around along with the red.

They were all so bright it almost hurt to look at them and then slowly you saw yellow start to seep into your vision. First a pale yellow then a yellow as bright and vibrant as the reds and blues you could see now too. It wasn’t just the paint though everywhere throughout your studio reds, blues, and yellows popped. You rummaged through your paint tubes grabbing the colors and started smattering them across the canvas adding spackle and sand, cotton and ripped paper. When you stepped back you were covered in the vibrant colors and you had Jeongin’s painting started.

That night when you went home your dad was as happy as he could possibly be to see you walk in covered in paint. You didn’t mention the colors. What if you went to bed and woke up and they were gone? You decided if it didn’t go away you by the time you were done with the painting, you’d tell your dad. The next morning when you woke up you looked at your coveralls from the day before and there, smeared all over the front of it, was red, blue and yellow. You were ecstatic! You pulled on another pair of old bibs and ran to head to the studio. Your dad hollered on your way out the door.

“Hey! Breakfast! Most important meal!” You waved as you grabbed your keys.

“I’ll grab some on the way! See you for dinner dad!” He waved and smiled, grabbing his toast and coffee, heading back to his own work as the door slammed closed behind you. When you got to the studio you started staring at the canvas blankly again. When your cell phone rang it gave you an excuse to look at something else other than your half-finished painting. It was Jeongin. So much for not calling you. You felt kind of guilty for going off on him so badly the day before so you answered.

“Hello?” He always cleared his throat before speaking to you, like he was struggling to form his words.

“Hi y/n, it’s Jeongin... well yes... you know that. Uh... would you like to meet me for coffee tomorrow?” You were confused, did he have more questions? He probably wanted to fire you or...

“Like... a date?” You asked and he started to stammer. This man was the most eligible bachelor?

“Well... um... yes? If you want to! No pressure! I’ll still buy the painting either way!” You were a little flabbergasted.

“Uhhh... I... yea... I guess so.” He let out a huge breath.

“REALLY?!” You couldn’t help but laugh a little at his shock.

“Yes Jeongin. I will meet you tomorrow for a coffee date.” He laughed and you could hear the smile in his voice.

“Great okay! Uh... eleven? The shop around the corner from your studio?”

“See you then.” You hung up and started staring at your canvas again frustrated. You made little to no progress the rest of the day and you went home discouraged after having such a burst of inspiration the day before. The next day you went to the studio early, trying and failing to make a little more progress. Before you left to head to the coffee shop you took a couple pictures of what you had done on your phone so you could show Jeongin. When you walked into the café Jeongin was already there waiting at a table. You walked over and he stood up smiling pulling a chair out for you. You bowed smiling.

“Thank you.” He nodded, his cheeks a little pink. The two of you ordered coffee and broke the tension with a little small talk. The conversation naturally evolved into likes and dislikes and you asked a lot of questions about Jeongin trying to keep the topic of conversation off of you. Before you knew it an hour had gone by.

“Oh, wow has it been that long?” Jeongin asked.

“Yea, I should probably head back to the studio and try to get some more done.” Jeongin’s eyes lit up.

“More?!” You had completely forgot to mention the painting.

“Oh yea, well... after you left the other day I made some progress and got it started, here I’ve got some pic-”

“Can I walk you to the studio and see?!” Jeongin’s eyes were scrunched up and his dimples were showing. You’d had a nice time; you didn’t see why not.

“Okay, but only for a minute, I need to work more.” Jeongin stood up excited. He grabbed your coffee ticket and his and started for the register.

“Oh you don’t-” He shook his head.

“Oh no... there’s no way in hell you’re paying for your coffee.” You chewed at your lip and smiled, looking down nodding. He was usually kind of shy around you, soft spoken, so to hear him say something so assertive... well it’s shouldn’t have done the things to your body that it had. Jeongin paid and the two of you walked towards your studio. When you got there Jeongin walked up to the partially finished canvas and looked at it. Something about the way he looked at it from different angles and so closely reminded you of how your mom used to look at your paintings and your heart squeezed inside your chest.

“It’s amazing the way you use colors like this while not being able to tell them apart. This is beautiful already. I don’t know why you would ever stop painting.” Your heart squeezed tighter in your chest and you looked over at the painting from the night of the crash. Jeongin kept looking at the textures and colors, the words that came out of his mouth next shocked not only you but him too.

“Was it your mom’s accident that made you stop, don’t you think she’d want you to continue?” He’d seen articles about the accident when he looked you up. Your jaw dropped as tears instantly welled in your eyes. Jeongin stopped looking at the painting and looked at you as he realized immediately he’d overstepped.

“What?” You heard him loud and clear you were just in disbelief.

“I...” You had snapped here and there at him but this was an all-out explosion.

“DON’T talk about my mother and DON’T assume to know me because you like my work Mr. Yang!” He shook his head.

“It’s not that! I...” You cut him off.

“Is the painting worth more to you knowing that my mom’s death was what made me quit!? That I couldn’t look at a paintbrush or canvas because all I saw was memories of my mother!? Do you need to know that to feel more connected to it!? My mother died because I was stubborn and she brought me food so I’d eat while I worked on my stupid paintings for a stupid exhibit that didn’t even matter! She crashed driving home after leaving here! I killed my mom! My selfish need to create at all costs killed my mom!” Jeongin shook his head as his eyes teared up.

“y/n... no...” You looked at him your cheeks and neck damp with your tears. You started pushing at him screaming.

“Get out! Get out! Just leave me the fuck alone! Leave me! ALONE!” You sank to the ground in front of your canvas just like you had the night your mother died. Tears were streaming down Jeongin’s face now too. He wanted to hold you. Tell you that you were wrong. That your mom dying was just an accident and it wasn’t your fault.

“Get out...” You sobbed, your words a whisper. Jeongin didn’t say anything else he turned and walked towards the door. Just before he shut it he spoke, his voice low.

“I’m sorry.” The door clicked closed and you laid on the floor crying until you fell asleep. You woke up to your cell phone ringing. You grabbed it and squinted looking at it. It was your dad. It was dark now, he was probably worried. You quickly answered.

“Uh... hello?” Your dad could tell he’d woken you up.

“Oh thank god! I was worried when you weren’t home for dinner.” You started apologizing for worrying your dad like that.

“I’m so sorry dad, I fell asleep and I guess I slept longer than I...” You turned on the studio lights and when you looked around you saw greens, and purples, orange. You stopped talking.

“y/n?” Your dad’s voice pulled you back to the conversation.

“Uh slept longer than I meant to. I’m sorry dad I’ll sleep here tonight and be home first thing in the morning.”

“Okay honey, text me when you leave and please be careful?” You hummed absent mindedly.

“Hmm I will dad. Love you.” You hung up and immediately started going through your painting tubes again, you grabbed greens, purples, blues, reds, you mixed new colors and threw paint on the canvas like it would put itself where it needed to go. A lot was still black and white but now there were so many colors! When you finished the painting, you stood back taking it in. It was the most beautiful piece of art you’d ever made. It was vibrant, colors and textures rising off the canvas but it also had a feeling underneath, a sadness, the loss was still there even though you’d gained so much color. You started to cry again, at the pain, at the beauty. When you finally pulled yourself together you pulled out your phone and texted Jeongin.

You: The painting is done. I’ll have it ready for pick up in two days.

Jeongin: I... what?

You: You still want it right?

Jeongin: YES! I DO!

You: Okay it’ll be ready Friday by five

Jeongin: I’ll see you Friday five o'clock sharp

You saw the chat bubbles appear and disappear over and over like he was writing and deleting something multiple times.

Jeongin: y/n?

You: Yes Jeongin, what...

He tried to write sorry a thousand different ways but no matter what he typed out it wasn’t right. Sorry over text for what he’d done wasn’t right.

Jeongin: Thank you

You: You’re welcome

Two days had come and gone and you could still see all the same colors. Inspiration was coming to you a bit more freely now that you’d completed Jeongin’s piece also. You still hadn’t told your dad that you were seeing colors, you still didn’t know what it meant or why it was happening so how were you supposed to explain it to him? You were working on something new when Jeongin knocked at your studio door. Right at five, just like he’d said. You opened the door and he stood there a moment just looking at you. He shook his head and snapped out of it.

“Uh hi! I might be a little early.” You opened the door more letting him in.

“No you’re fine, right on time. You walked over to the completed canvas leaned against the wall and Jeongin followed. When he looked at it his eyes welled up with tears instantly.

“It’s beautiful.” You bowed.

“Thank you.” You whispered. Jeongin turned facing you.

“y/n... I...” He was sorry. He wanted to say he was sorry but his words refused to come out once your eyes bore into his, big and glassy. He took a step towards you closing the space between you, his hand cupped your cheek and before you knew what was happening his soft lips were pressed against yours. Your eyes closed tightly as you kissed him back. He pulled away and you stood there, your fingers pressed to your lips, your eyes closed. When you finally opened them everything was in full color. Red and purple and every color in between. A tear slipped down your cheek and you suddenly realized it was Jeongin. The colors were appearing because of him. He swiped your tear away.

“Please... don’t cry...” You shook your head wiping your face.

“No Jeongin you don’t understand... I don’t know how or what is going on but... I can see colors!” His face scrunched in confusion.

“I thought you’re color blind.” You shook your head smiling ear to ear.

“I am! I was! I don’t know! Every time I’ve been near you more colors have slowly appeared and just now when you kissed me... I can see it all! I can see color!” You threw your arms around his neck and kissed him again. Jeongin wrapped his arms around you, tilted his head and deepened the kiss, taking your breath away.

“Will you go to dinner with me tonight?” Jeongin asked with his forehead resting against yours and you nodded.

“Yes, yes...” You kissed him again and then looked down at your paint splattered overalls.

“Uh... let me run home to get cleaned up and changed?” Jeongin shook his head smiling so big his eyes almost disappeared entirely.

“Text me your address when you’re almost ready and I’ll pick you up.” You were grinning like a fool, you kissed him again three pecks and started backing up towards the door.

“Lock up for me please!” He nodded and you dashed out the door to go get ready as quickly as possible. When you ran into the house you almost ran your dad over.

“Woah woah there speed racer where’s the fire?” You were an idiot. Only just then did you think to tell your dad, everything happened so fast.

“Dad!” He smiled happy to see you so excited about something.

“I can see colors!” He stood up straight and looked at you crazy.

“What?” He asked like he knew you were pulling his leg.

“Dad I swear to god, every time I've seen Jeongin, after I would start seeing certain colors, then he kissed me today and it’s not black and white anymore dad I can actually see colors!” You thought your dad’s reaction would be excitement, hugging you, maybe crying. His face scrunched up.

“He kissed you?” What a dad thing to do, miss the whole point and zero in on that part.

“Yes dad he kissed me.” You rolled your eyes. If at all possible your dad started dadding even more.

“Well I haven’t even met this boy and he’s kissing you?” You shook your head laughing.

“Dad! I told you I can see colors and you’re worried about a boy kissing me?” He shrugged, pouting a little.

“I’m happy but I just would like to know this young man’s intentions.” You hugged your dad.

“Well you’ll get to meet him tonight, he’s picking me up for dinner in a bit.” You started running up the stairs towards your room.

“I have to get ready!” Your door slammed shut behind you and your dad finally let the smile creep onto his face that he’d been holding back. It sounded to him like you’d found your soulmate. It was instant like that for him and your mom too. One touch and they knew. Your dad still missed her every single day, he always would.

Surprisingly you were able to get dressed quickly and you cleaned up nice. A nice black little dress, your hair pulled up and actually paint and spackle free, a little bit of eyeliner and mascara. You noticed a pretty red lipstick that popped out at you and chose that for a final touch. When you walked down your dad was sitting in the living room with Jeongin who looked as nervous as the first time he’d talked to you.

“Dad?” He smiled innocently.

“Yes pumpkin?” You pinched his arm.

“Stop scaring him.” Your dad feigned pain and laughed. He leaned down and kissed your cheek.

“Have fun sweetie.” You smiled and motioned to Jeongin for you to leave. He stood up quickly and walked over by you, his hand resting at the small of your back instinctively.

“It was very nice meeting you sir. I promise I’ll keep her safe.” Your dad could feel it when he’d met Jeongin too, whatever pull there was between you was strong. Your dad knew Jeongin meant it from the bottom of his heart when he said he’d keep you safe.

“I know you will.” Your dad smiled and headed up to his study to put his nose to his screen, he had a novel to finish. Jeongin was an absolute gentleman the whole night, opening your car door, helping you in and out, helping with your chair. You had gotten cold on the small walk you took and Jeongin put his jacket over your shoulders. You burrowed in and it smelled like his cologne and something that was just him, you couldn’t place it but it made you feel warm all over and your body erupted in goosebumps. Jeongin had been holding your hand and noticed.

“You’re cold, let’s get back to the car.” You nodded and he led you back up the walkway towards his car. He opened the door again and helped you in before closing it behind you. He ran around and got in shutting his door then looking and smiling at you. You wrapped your arms around Jeongin’s shoulders and kissed him deeply. Your lips parted, tongue teasing. He held your face as you made out in the car for a while. When you pulled away you gripped at the collar of his shirt, panting and biting your lips.

“This is where I’d invite you to spend the night but I live with my dad.” You huffed out a breathless laugh and Jeongin’s heart raced faster, spend the night?!

“Uh... I live alone, you could come back to mine...” You smiled and kissed him again.

“I’d love to.” You sat down in your seat and buckled your belt. Jeongin’s smile was so big his dimples looked like they never ended. He started the car and headed towards his apartment. If you could call the penthouse of a building his grandpa owns an apartment. When you were with Jeongin you never thought about the fact that he was a Yang and came from money. He was just Jeongin to you, shy, sweet. The apartment reminded you quickly.

“Holy shit! You live here alone?!” He walked towards you and pulled you close.

“Not forever hopefully.” He said cocking an eyebrow at you and you laughed. You started to laugh but then Jeongin’s lips were on your skin moving down your neck and your laughs turned into breathy pants. He claimed your lips again and you started to unbutton his shirt before running your hands up his firm chest and pushing it off his shoulders to the ground. You started to kiss across his shoulder, gently grazing your teeth against his skin and he shuddered. You pulled away and turned, your back facing Jeongin now.

“Will you unzip me?” He walked up behind you, his face buried in your neck as his hands worked your zipper down. Your dress fell off you and when you turned around you were completely naked and Jeongin’s brain checked out.

“Fuck you’re a work of art!” You wrapped your arms around his strong shoulders and kissed him.

“Take me to bed Jeongin, please.” His lips couldn’t be bothered to leave yours as he led you to his bedroom. You worked at his belt pulling it open and off before tossing it and starting on his button and fly. When his pants were loose, they fell and he stepped out of them as he continued leading you towards his big soft bed. When the back of your legs touched the bed you crawled back on to it. Jeongin confidently dropped his boxers and rightfully so. He was not... lacking. He crawled on top of you hooking his arm under your knee and pulling it up, spreading your legs open for him. Before he pushed into you he looked into your eyes. He looked like he was watching the film of your future in them.

“I think you’re my soulmate.” When he said it is when it clicked. Of course. You nodded, your eyes tearing up. When he sank into you, you moaned closing your eyes, a tear slipping down. Jeongin let go of your leg and wrapped it around his waist as he pulled out and pushed into you deep again. He leaned over kissing the skin your tear had rolled down. You opened your eyes and were in awe at the sight of him above you. His dark hair, narrow eyes, his strong chiseled frame held up over you so he didn’t crush you under him. You pulled him closer wrapping your arms and legs around him, wanting him to crush you.

“Faster please...” You whispered and Jeongin’s body moved faster on top of yours. You could feel the pressure building already. You gripped his hair and kissed him as your bodies moved together his cock constantly moving against that place inside you that made your toes numb.

“God yes! Right there!” He fucked you harder and you could feel your climax making the hundred-yard dash towards the finish line.

“I... I... I’m g-gonna cum! FUCK! Don't stop!” Jeongin’s lips overtook your moans as he rolled his hips into you. You didn’t know how he kept doing it but every time you were with Jeongin he showed you new colors. The colors exploding behind your eyes as you came were moving and alive. Jeongin didn’t slow down. No, he sat up as your hands still gripped and clung to his shoulders and fucked you faster with the intention of reaching his own climax and prolonging yours.

“Yesyesyesyes oh it feels so good Jeongin! Mmmm...” a few beads of sweat dripped down the hard lines of his torso as he felt his orgasm approaching.

“Oh go-fuck! I’m gonna cum jagiya!” You moaned and nodded unable to form words anymore. Jeongin pulled out and came on your tummy and pussy. He stroked his cock as he coated you in his cum. He trembled as he worked every drop out onto you. He sat back on his legs, his head towards the ceiling, his eyes closed as he caught his breath and came down. You laid there a million bumble bees buzzing inside you. You ran two fingers through his cum and sucked on them. He looked down at you sweaty and laughing from the euphoria. Once Jeongin was able to function again he ran and got a washcloth to clean you up with. When you were all clean he crawled back into bed and pulled you close, your head resting on his chest, listening to his slow steady heartbeat.

Later, after some digging, you found out you were in fact soulmates. Jeongin never knew why he was so driven to collect your art but it had felt like each piece he got was a piece of you, he felt closer to you with each one. Then he finally searched for you to ask you to paint something and well the rest played out. Jeongin took all the artwork he purchased and opened a gallery for you. You continued painting and even finished painting what you’d been working on the night of your mom’s accident. It was put up in the gallery as a memorial to her. Your dad finished his novel, you found the love of your life and your love for painting again. Your life was no longer a theory of color, it was a spectrum, a prism. It was all the colors your mother had dreamed for you and more.

Please do not repost or translate any of my works. My blog and stories are NSFW and 18+ ONLY! Minors, ageless, and blank blogs will be blocked!

@acciocriativity @caroline-ds-world @chansynie @ughbehavior @jquellen27 @jisuperboard @fixation-dump @lachinitaaaaa @rinrinndou @bangchans-angel @laylasbunbunny @owo-manii-uwu @armystay89 @b00dyguts @purplenimsicle @caticorn61 @lauraneuuh @channieandhisgoonsquad @minnysproutgriffinteddy @svintsandghosts @the-sweetest-rose @alice630 @3rachasninja @m0ri-apeuda @eastleighsblog @linoification @mlink64 @smally97 @fun-fanfics @chansducky10 @starfire21 @cessixja @siewoon @berryberrytan @binnies-minsung-fanclub @lethallyprotected

#stray kids smut #skz smut #yang jeongin smut #jeongin smut #skz317cb97 #cal 🖤#skz317cb97 soulmate au series

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dyssonant-skyline · 2 months

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2. What's your favorite and least favorite design in either show?

9. Since you mentioned drawing your redesigns, I have to ask - is there any way I could see Verity having a jolly ol' time on a swing? I was looking over your art again and the thought just struck me on impact out of nowhere.

13. Where does Lilith fit in Hellbound Hostel? Is there anything planned for her yet / concepts you're tossing around?

9. I know this probably isn't what you were imagining but!!! I love conversations on swings and I wanted to draw Eden and Verity together.

2. Favorite and least favorite designs are hard to figure out, most designs I like have glaring details I don't and designs I dislike have potential somewhere in the design. I'll pick the ones from Hazbin that I like/dislike the most as they are, speaking roles only.

Carmilla Carmine is my least favorite design. Her hair completely throws her design off balance imo. I hate the fact none of these characters have ears and I thought Carmilla’s earrings were dangling from her hair at one point. When her hair is down, her design is better I guess… but then there isn't anything that screams hell or sinner in her design. The hairstyle at least alludes to horns, without it she is just a grey human with red eyes and slightly big arms. I kind of wish she kept her extremely long fingers from the pilot, but that wouldn’t tie in well with her fighting style imo??? Eh.

Breaking my own rules since they never speak but, but this design ruins every scene it is in. What an attention grabbing eyesore, it was impossible to watch the overlord meeting with her just sitting on the side orz

Sir Pentious is probably my favorite design in the show, but the story behind his design just makes me sad. I don't like his tail and the eyes pasted all over it, slithering on your eyes?? ow. The hood acting like hair and flaring out is very enjoyable to watch. His palette is also more balanced than most characters. Prefer him without the hat though.

Breaking the rules again, my real favorites are background characters.

13. In Hellbound Hostel, Hellborn are created through a ritual that only requires one participant. Eden is more like a creation to [Lucifer] than a daughter and she has no mother. Sort of an [Adam] parallel. I might shift Lilith's role/traits to one of the Sins, Idolatry.

The Sins are effectively Eden’s family as they are all fallen angels that rebelled with [Lucifer]. A lot of the early/pilot stuff with Lilith shows her as wanting rebellion from sinners and I think Idolatry would also stoke that flame. She is a champion of individualism and finding your own “gods” to worship. She believes that the free will that humans were granted makes them superior to The Creator.

As for the aspect of someone from hell residing in heaven as a potential villain? I have some ideas but most of the conflict I’m figuring out right now is episodic conflicts centering around the hotel, like a power outage and trying to get residents excited for a hellborn holiday.

Thank you for asking! :D

#dys draws #dys rants #ask game #hazbin hotel redesign #hellbound hostel #hazbin critical #hazbin hotel critical #hazbin hotel rewrite #hazbin hotel criticism #hazbin hotel critique #charlie morningstar redesign #vaggie redesign #reblog

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goron-king-darunia · 7 months

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Eggtober 6th 2023

"Splat" or "Fun with Colors": Raw Egg.

(Clip Studio Paint, Gouache Brush, Pencil brush for details and highlights. 12 colors, I think? 1 Hour.) I actually really liked the rough version I made, so you're gonna get that one at the end as well, for anyone who also likes the rough one better than the smooth one.

But first... I finally discovered a feature of CSP, so now I am unstoppable and I will NEVER AGAIN have to ask myself "How the fuck did I do that?"

Because now I have EVIDENCE. Now curious friends, followers, and my forgetful ass, can watch the full process of how I made a thing. Including what references I used so it's clear how much is iterative and how much I am drawing directly from the visual reference. Today I had to do a lot from imagination because I couldn't find an exaggerated splashy egg, but sometimes I really am just making a study and trying to do a one-to-one recreation of a reference. So now y'all get to know all my filthy little secrets. I was intending to grab footage starting with Eggtober 1, 2023 but OBS needs a version of an NVIDIA driver that will absolutely wreck my computer with BSODs because I own a junker apparently. But it turns out CSP (or at least V2, IDK if it was in V1) has a way to capture a speedpaint natively when you create the file.

Now I am unstoppable, powerful. No more taking a break from art when life gets busy and coming back to pieces I drew 10 years ago and wondering "How the hell did I manage that?" I can just check. It's over for all of you. Once I practice anatomy again and start being able to draw shapes and volumes perfectly from imagination, I will become all-powerful. I will ascend. Hell, maybe someone might even pay me if I learn to draw anything that isn't an egg or a meme. XD Radical self-confidence, baby. I can art now, and I have evidence. My horizons are infinite!

And now, hopefully, any baby artists that are just starting out can get an idea of how I do it from this and future pieces so I can pull you all up with me in a bid of apotheosis. For the EGGsthetic! (Aesthetic.)

I wonder which version of this egg @lady-quen's breadbugs will snap up?

And I wonder which one @quezify will like best? My money's on the sketchy one.

I can't tell which I like better honestly. The smooth one us much more "My aesthetic" because it matches how I render eggs but... The rough pencil-y gouache lines you get with light pressure really remind me of how the classic modern quezify eggs look, and I of course only started doing eggs because of the first Eggtober so, like. On the one hand, smooth and painterly look that goes with all but one of my previous eggs (Eggtober 1, 2023 was a study from memory of quezify's style, after all). But on the other hand... dramatic color changes! Textrure, shine! Colors that aren't in the actual references! EXPRESSIVENESS. Two different moods on the same egg art and I really dig both of them honestly.

#Eggtober 6 2023 #Eggtober 2023 #my art #art by GKD #Raw egg #style experiment #speedpaint

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littledigits · 5 months

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Hi! I absolutely love your work and your art style (and I think Hilda is one of the best animated shows ever made!!) I want to dip my toe into drawing, mainly because I want to be able to do little sketchy character drawings for my D&D campaign lol. Is there any particular book or course you might recommend for getting started? Thank you!

thank you so much ! <3

I would say if you want to start drawing , do whatever makes it accessible and fun for you to start. I cant go hardcore into learning, i need some indulgence to keep it fun.

Its hard for me to recommend anything off the top of my head. there is SO MUCH GOOD STUFF OUT THERE NOW ADAYS. also you may look at a book or a course and the way its explained wont make sense to you, but someone else could put it a different way and it could click better! Everyone has a different workflow and different methods, so what i'd recommend is just poke around in some youtube videos and just watch a few beginner ones, see what methods you vibe with. But at the end of the day do what you feel like is most fun and dont sweat the details

DONT BE AFRAID TO REFRENCE THINGS! When I was in school for animation, one of the first things you did to learn to draw on model was draw overtop of the model sheet and break down the proportions. (how many 'heads' tall is it , how many 'eyes' wide is the face). If you see a style you like, learn from it !

Drawing overtop of a character and breaking it down is a great exercise if there is a style you want to mimic. Understanding the proportions helps because then when you draw, if it looks -off- you can test out your own . Who knows, maybe you accidentally made the body too long or short! People are afraid to trace or draw over, but its a great exercise as long as you dont take credit, especially if you're not just doing it for something to look pretty but you want to *understand* how it was done. This helps a lot in building your own style ! my style is a mish mash of everything i've loved and worked on over the years, and it changes over time. So if you see something and you're like 'ooo thats COOL how did they do it' , save it , break it down , maybe you'll learn a few new things !

also I recommend to start with simple shapes ! I put some screen captures from rough sketches that Scott Lewis did, who is a senior animator on hilda. Even as an experienced animator he knows how important the fundamentals are (which is why hes good at his job haha). I think if you want to do fun sketchy things for DND , keeping it simple is the way to go :) you'd be surprised how much expression you can get out of shapes ! I hope this helps you get started on drawing all the endless DND shenanigans that I'm sure live in your head :D .

#thepaisleyelf #starting to get into art for dnd drawing is best reason #as someone who loves shitposting dnd doodles it is pure bliss

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soundbluster · 23 days

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for a while since i got into transformers 3 years ago and i loved the franchies instiantly even since i was a kid especially the designs of transformers and Seeing fan arts and fan Designs and fans make thire own continuity made me me want to start learning to draw when im ready but i don't know how to draw cybertronians so do you have any tips and advices for someone who want to learn to draw transformers characters both Traditional & digital art?

Biggest advice I can give is: "Break a character apart into simple components!"

Drawing bots is honestly not that difficult, I find it much easier than people because you can more easily break a character apart into simplified blocks.

When it comes to designing characters it can take a few times to get one you're happy with so doing lots of basic sketches can help. References are always useful too! Every artist uses references.

Here's how I do it (In this case I'm doing an alt design for tfe Nightshade):

(It's not a definitive guide as you kinda have to figure out what works best for you both in terms of technique and art style. I'm aware my art style is definitely not for everyone, as it veers more on the cartoony side. I've had comments about how my faces all look effed up etc XD)

Initial sketch

Break a bot down into basic shapes, circles and sausage shapes for more rounded characters and boxes for squarer ones. I normally start with the head and draw the rest of the body down from it (torso and arms then legs then any back kibble that might be visible) Think of it like the protoform beneath the armour.

To help with figuring out a pose I'll often use my toys. It can help you visualise where their arms and legs etc go along with whether part of a bot is actually visible from a certain angle. For example in this case:

(Yes that's my cat chilling in the background)

This can help you to figure out if a certain design can pull a given pose, for example would a bot with kibble on their hips or arms be able to move their legs or arms a certain way. I used POTP Elita one as a reference for my SG Megatron a lot for example as they've got very similar builds. But this is not essential.

(There are mannequin apps on mobiles etc. you can use to help with pose references too, and image searches are always useful for references.)

For more dynamic poses it helps to think about how the character is moving, so add a curve to the torso/spine to add to any implied motion etc.

Details

Once I'm happy with the basic shape and pose I typically add the armour over the top. Again the head is usually the first bit I do. You can see I got a bit lazy with their left hand and just did a scribble here XD

Inking

Normally when inking I do the edges of each armour piece first then add any details on afterwards in a finer pen. Generally I'll do one body part at the time eg. fully ink the arm before doing the head etc. Its best to make sure you do parts that are in front first!

Here's the finished picture:

Though it'll need some digital cleaning up at another time.

As for digital art...

I can't really give much advice on starting a drawing digitally as I never quite got the hang of it (colouring and corrections I do digitally but all my line art is traditional), I need the feedback of a pen in my hand and pressure on the paper to get it right.

These days the Hardware I mainly use is a refurbished huion art tablet (it was about £120 when I bought it) that's probably the cheapest your going to find a graphics tablet with a screen. BUT it's really not essential to get one especially if you're just starting out. Basic graphic tablets without a screen (just a pen and a pad) are much cheaper or you can use a mouse. I used a mouse for ages when I was first starting out.

In terms of software, for colouring and edits on the PC I use GIMP (I've been using it since like 2009 so I'm not really going to change any time soon!). It's freeware software and can do a lot of stuff, but it's user interface isn't the most user friendly especially if you're not familiar with graphics software but there are plenty of tutorials available for it. I'll try to remember to make a post showing how I use that another time :) as I'm not at my computer at the moment.

There are plenty of alternative image manipulation/graphics software to use as well, some free, some free but with ads, and some paid for (either one off payment or subscription). It's best to see what other artists have to say about them though as I've never really used them!

#my asks #my ask box #fan art #art stuff #how i draw #my ask is open #ask me stuff #nightshade #transformers nightshade #earthspark #transformers Earthspark #tfe #tfes #nightshade malto

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ta-ni-ya · 5 months

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Helloooo everyone!!! Since I’m back from my break I wanted to reconnect with my mutuals since it’s been over a month

I’m doing another challenge with 20 mutuals 😀 that’s a lot damn (I’m sorry if some other mutuals weren’t added- I can only do 20 as its my limit ;-;)

Since I couldn’t find a reference for 20 people I tried making my own ;-;

Well it clearly has less space for each character so I’ll only be drawing till shoulders or chest max if possible- I’m also deciding to draw chibi due to the space but I might change my mind and go with my original art style since I’ve never drawn chibi before 🤷🏻‍♀️

Here’s the list of the mutuals I’m gonna draw and since there were many I only chose 20 but incase I don’t get any response from few which I think is the possibility idk why, then anyone is free to join after I make an announcement about free spaces ^^

I’ll be taking the last remaining place as always 🤡👍🏻

You just need to choose a number for your place and please dm me your oc as well (in case you don’t have an oc you can just send me any picrew one you got ^^)

About the outfits- the theme is Christmas obviously 😼 and here’s a little idea how the outfits may be:

Make sure that I’ll only be drawing till chest most probably so choose your outfit designs accordingly

Also tell me if you want Christmas hats since that’s optional :D

Thank you so much for your support btw! I love you all so much 🤧❤️

@muitsuri @vexinghearts @frostburn-shoto @muichinno @yuichiroleftarm @unofficialmuilover @demonslayeranimex @theyluvsmilo @kurumi-igarashi @cloudymistedskies @axolotl321 @kakajuri-fics @aeolia18 @strawberrycuwu @ahashiraswife @tokito-dulya20 @snowmist-hashira @kiyokatokito @theyslaydemons @silliestsakura

#art #drawing #artists on tumblr

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kasarasun · 2 months

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Hi! I loved your Illustrator Shen Yuan au and wanted to know if you had more ideas for it? I feel it makes a lot of sense especially with SY’s ability to recognize literally every plant, animal, and character that showed up in the novel instantly and Qing Jing being the peak of the four arts. Also, if he played a major role in editing the wiki, do you think any of his written headcannons or speculations may have come true? Do you think he and airplane ever just use his art style to distinguish cannon fodder from the rest or do they still follow the rules of his art style despite him having never drawn them? If the first then him meeting Tianlang-jun and ZZL would be hilarious cuz he may just brush them off. Also, how does this go with Liu Qingge’s character design being different than imagined (pretty instead of burly)? How do you think this would play into a post cannon reveal? Are there any other common or uncommon hc’s in the fandom that you would combine with this?

Thanks!

going backwards with your questions: (this will be long, forgive spelling, etc, errors)

Headcanons: this is already the product of multiple headcanons! For one, SQH is solidified as the author instead of a prophet, because SY as the artist means that the world is malleable, to a degree. Also I believe in black-haired Mobei-Jun (irrelevant haha). I also would say the hc where if Shang Qinghua 'writes' something with enough intent, it might just happen.

Also, the 'world' being made of paper and so is from someone/somewhere but i forgot. Sorry ahahaha

I think this makes SY and SQH both paper/creation gods. (Discussed further later on in this mess.)

Tianlang-Jun, Zhuzhi-Lang, and Liu Qingge: The thing is, the 'design' applies to mobei Jun because SY has explicitly drawn him. Binghe's 'design' is same the PIDW official art's because this is only physically, (the contours of a creature's skull rather than binghe's nail polish) because they're real people and persons, which is an important theme that breaks character designs that include distinctive clothing. Also because of this realized state, nothing can be more real than anything else. Through the lens of a reader, we might imagine the 'world' being this collage of the artist, but this isn't the case.

That brings me to my next point: what of the world that hasn't been 'illustrated'? Of course, we can have a creation myth instead of an actual explanation:

The God who brings ascension from nothingness carves the mountains, shapes the moon, culls the suns, and folds the paper beasts, men, and flowers. The God whose palms raise all things into the light so creates the three realms. The God creates and creates and creates.

The God who witnesses watches the creations grow simpler, watches creases deteriorate, watches rushed work. The God who witnesses sees the God who arises with the world in hand grow tired. The God who witnesses paints the paper cranes, refolds the rushed creations, and refines the creases. (The God who watches paints over a tear in a silver leaf. The God leaves the gold leaf be.)

The God who paints the birds and beasts never folds the fresh paper. So concludes the creation of all and every.

(Where the silver leaf of paper is mobei-jun and the golden one is binghe.)

Shen Yuan's headcanons: of course, Airplane is the writer. He takes precedence. His headcanons only applied to his 'domain', and his 'power' only exists in the origin world (though this may change as the idea develops), and draws power from Airplane Shooting Towards the Sky's work. His role is lessening the burden, but the work has already been done.

On postcanon reveals: Shang Qinghua totally gets caught first. Actually, it's the airplane extra with the 'daddy admires you' scenes! He is forces to explain, and along the way he kicks SQQ under the bus. I won't say too much on how this spreads, but probably Mobei saying something to someone. Maybe he calls Qinghua the heavenly emperor/ the ascender in front of all the peaklords. An Ding probably already knows.

why the ascender? Airplane translates literally into flying machine. So, warp that into ascension and omnipresence. Airplane Shooting Towards the Sky ascends reality from nothing (darkness) to something (sunlight). This applies to everything, so it is comparable to a system or machine. Behold, the really irrelevant, misplaced, and overly subtle Rain World reference.

The God who Paints the birds and Beasts from Drawing the Beast's Ire warps the Ire into attention, and then Airplane's protagonist and his cool monsters drew his attention, then the poor writing his ire.

Meanwhile, Shen Qingqiu is only minorly accosted by peak lords. The problem is binghe, upset that Shizun was drawing other people. Drawing the Beast's Ire drew like 2 other characters. One is Mobei-Jun. The other is a modern-clothing binghe. He's also upset that Shang-shishu and Shizun share something as grand as the creation of the world together, and the fact that SQQ is the lesser. Additionally, unlike Mobei-Jun, he wasn't made specifically to please his God! Unfair!

Of course, binghe is very happy about this as well. He's Shizun's favorite character!

This might be high time to mention more headcanons: there are temples and shrines dedicated to airplane and occasionally the witness/the painter in the endless Abyss. This is due to the first heavenly demons, probably. How else did Xin Mo get there?

Anyway, they'd be like airplane folding paper front and center and then the painter doing his thing off to the side. Of course, there are a decent amount dedicated only to the painter.

On additional creations: Maybe Shen Qingqiu/Yuan and Shang Qinghua get together and make OC animals. They're all entirely harmless. Shang Qinghua writes their names, their abilities, and a nice good description while Shen Qingqiu/Yuan paints. Maybe it doesn't do anything. Maybe it does. It's a change of pace either way.

#my writing #Ask Response #svsss #Shang Qinghua #Shen Qingqiu #ask #text post #long post #scum villian self saving system #shen yuan #mobei jun #luo binghe

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williamshamspeare · 5 months

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You like all the Papa Louie customers eh? Name one good thing about every customer (currently)/lh

*slicks back hair* It's showtime.

Akari - Her coolness factor is unreal. Love the motorcycle, love her whole biker getup, and it's reasonably possible she might be a reference to that Akira anime thing. Which would be pretty sweet

Alberto - BRASILERIO NUMERO UNOOOOOO!!!!!!!!! Also him hating dentist appointments is quite the amusing fun fact. I like how his favorite holidays have had a general consistent pattern in all the games (favor SJ in the sweet games, SL in the savories)

Allan - Love his pompadour! Also glad that Flipline wasn't ever afraid of keeping his unibrow and missing tooth throughout the years... Also that one Brody's Gallery fanart probably awakened something within me. Sideburns are hot, y'all

Ally Kabam - They just revealed her so we don't really know all too much about her, but that doesn't mean I can't sing her praises! And by design alone, I can tell you that she's a STRONG customer: Brimming with both style and personality! Definitely setting the tone for the rest of the lineup, let's hope the rest of 'em live up to the hype

Amiria - They did throw quite a curveball revealing her to be a Tacodale local, but I dig it! Also great to have an official dental worker around! Designwise I absolutely adore her coat in the Style B, fuzzy thing that it is

Amy - That color scheme is a real treat, I say I say. And she's something of a fine art appreciator according to the little info snippet we got out of her creator on the forum, love that for her too... Plus the whole romance novel aspect adds to it quite well!

Austin - His design is straight up just a bottle of awesome sauce and I love that for him. Also shoutouts to him being autism rep, even if it was an obscure post from Tony... He's got that sauced up special interest swag

Bertha - Underrated queen. The fact that she's umpired 856 consecutive games calls to mind the image of her personally swimming to the mainland and back during the events of Freezeria Deluxe so as to not break the record, that's entirely headcanon but still it counts! It counts. And her Halloween costume is BOTH Jason Voorhes and Freddy Krueger at the same time, which is just. LOL

Big Pauly - An icon! His golden confidence as a salesman shines bright as the sun, and he's one of the very few characters to appear in every Papa Louie game/platformer if that means anything. I like to imagine he's one of those fast-talking infomercial type salesmen, the Billy Mays of the Flipverse. Can you imagine, in-universe Big Pauly YTPs

Boomer - Her entire design screams "America" but America doesn't exist in the Flipverse so she straight up came up with all that by herself. Amazing. Plus you gotta love how she lets all her hair down in the Style B

Boopsy & Bill - They absolutely SELL the ventriloquist gimmick. Y'know, to this day I still wonder how they managed to get the mouth animations to work... Also the style swap they do is a wonderful visual gag. They've got a boatload of personality

Brody - A greasy disheveled mess of a man. Everyone's favorite character archetype! Kinda crazy how active his flipdeck details him to be: Switched majors multiple times, an active caricature artist in Powder Point, lover of cult classic movies and friend of Skyler... He's a lot to work off of, he is

Bruna Romano - Looking at her orders over the games, you notice she tends to order dark rich flavors more often than not. Rather interesting... Also I love that she manages the band on top on playing in it, not something you see characters do every day

Budwin - Honestly kind of surprising how quickly his flipdeck made me feel for him. Suffering from chronic drowsiness, had to drop out of college, barely even making a living... And he still manages to make it to the Papa's establishments with a smile on his face

C.J. Friskins - What a weird little man (affectionate). Bro straight up wears a cat tail on his BUM at all times and made his debut as the Lunar New Year guy (a holiday which has yet to reappear), he's got this really offbeat, perhaps even offputting charm to him

Cameo - Or DrydenTH3Cultivar, as you know him online. The man is a VIGILANTE GAMER what's not to love about that!!! Also his whole outfit is kind of ridiculous in its own beautiful way, what with the whole peanut necklace & wristband combo. And the Crocs! Oh, the Crocs

Captain Cori - I do wish we got a little more info out of her flipdeck, but what we have to work paints a hell of a vivid picture! With her Pirate Bash getup and her wonderful new Halloween costume, she's just brimming with what I can only describe as "tough girl swag" (also she has popeye arms and that's amazing)

Carlo Romano - The fandom's favorite twink. Most people don't seem to talk about how he jumpstarted Marty's career in SatS, which is honestly kind of incredible to me... Also his Mocharia order was freaking hilarious with how much he hates coffee

Cecilia - There's just something about the way she existed for 11 whole gamerias without any info, then Matt & Tony basically building her entire backstory into the Bakeria plot (or vice versa, who knows what order it happened in)... She really is the flagship Bakeria character. And that's not bad at all

Chase - Has got to have had one of the most incredible flipdecks of all time. I think about the Oilseed Springs Reptile Extravaganza and Petting Zoo a whole lot more than I bet most people do, especially what the pyrotechincs and stunts entail... Also Smokie's one of the cutest pets I have ever laid eyes upon

Cherissa - Finally, an essential oil saleswoman who's trustworthy! Her whole cherry theme is honestly rather captivating, 'specially how the Style B transforms her into a cordial-based entity. I can tell they had fun designing her! I also adore the way they did her hair

Chester - There's something about this old man I can't help but find as a guilty pleasure. He's cranky, he's a gossip, he hoards doomsday supplies and has a permanent expression of contempt... Irresistible!

Chuck - I used to think that he was a Calypso Island local, kind of hilarious to think that's he's just a model (a stock photo model even) who happens to be associated with the island's trademark Surf Shack. Nearly all his outfits so far have been Hawaiian shirts, I wonder what they'll do for his Halloween costume

Clair - Love the family dynamic, but this is about each character as an individual. So! Clair's really fun to imagine and build headcanons around. Her being a physician with hectic hours, on top of being a loving mother... There's like so much you can do with a character base like hers! Plus her Style A is as classy as it gets. I've always been just a little curious about that button belt-thing she wears

Cletus - People seem to find him off-putting at best, with the whole sleeveless look and the bunny costume, but frankly I don't care. Let the old farmer man have weird eccentricities! He loves going antiquing at auctions! He operates a scrapyard where people can pay to find goodies! He's one of the most interesting characters in the whole cast if people just care to look into him deeper!

Clover - The back of her hair kinda looks like an explosion, which you gotta admit is pretty badass. Putting that aside, the checkerboard fit really suits her! Puts the ska into the ska-punk that is Scarlett and the Shakers, heh. I also like how she always carries drumsticks in her dress like a prop, more customers should carry props as part of their outfit honestly

Connor - The people of the forum really like to dunk on him, but frankly there's no one as much of an underdog as he is! I gotta hand it to Maz for helping me find the potential within him, there's so much that can be done with his character if you just look. I also really enjoy his orders in savory gamerias, that chicken sandwich would be LEGENDARY

Cooper - Sometimes being basic can be a good thing, and I think nobody else displays this as well as Cooper does. He's a simple man! Cooks his pancakes in the morning, looks out for his brother in the afternoon, he loves his family & his cat, and most importantly he's HAPPY. He is content with life!

Crystal - Oh how fabulous! Oh how decadent! Crystal is one of those customers that truly lives up to their name, I simply adore her gaudy aesthetic. Especially that sparkly texture on her shirt! Love it when they go for that kind of shading. Gotta give a shoutout to Cannoli too, love how he's like a cross between a mink and a feather boa (no limbs in sight)

Daniela - The theorizing about her military-based design choices was WILD before her flipdeck came out. Even afterwards, Daniela has always been something special! I do like the way she's consistenly ordered caramel & chocolate, and she's a top contender for the most GORGEOUS hair in the whole Flipverse when she takes down the bun

Deano - He's always been one of my favorite customers, really. Hell, I wear my own boater at an angle because of him! I also do like the hints towards him having some kind of connection with space, what with dressing up as an astronaut for Halloween and favoring Comet Con a couple times. Subtext is awesome!

Didar - Hell yeah! I loved his connected design with Simone from the get-go, but he really came into his own after the flipdeck came out. An amateur filmmaker, sasSugarsquatch hunter, AND a Maple Mountain resident all at once! Like I said with Brody, I love when characters are multiple different things at once. And there's the fun fact about his name translating to vision in Hindi, genuinely nice touch from the boys at Flipline

Doan - I don't know why people use the "exists in real life" excuse to leave out customers who are as much a part of this universe as any other character. Doan's got a pretty good deal going for him! I love the fact that he's canonically the artist behind Papa's branding and his posters, which means he's likely the one responsible for that Mousse poster in Mocharia (lmao)

Drakson - I've posted about it before, but the most charming part about him has to be the contrast between his dark and brooding design & his colorful cheery Hello Kitty-esque orders. Flipline knows how to implement a hilarious gag here and there! And as it stands right now, I really like how mysterious and edgy the band itself seems to be. I mean, on-stage argument and offstage fights? Sign me up!

Duke Gotcha - The face of Nowtime News has been getting a lot more popular as of late, and honestly it's all deserved! The Breaking News segments in the new games are probably my favorite new feature of the post-Flash era, and his expressions are a huge part of what sell 'em, so good on him for that! Duke... Gotchaaaaaah

Edna - She's like the patron saint of the X-Zone, if you think about it. Seriously though, I really find it interesting how she was tied to the X twins and the overarching lore of the Flipverse (properly honored in her fantastic Style B)! And her being an old seamstress gives her a great pinch of flavor on top of that

Elle - We may not know anything about her or even who her creator really was, so there's not much to go off with her... But that's kind of her charm, in a way. She could be anything! She's a mystery about herself, and that's pretty cool if you ask me

Ember - Spicy one! People don't really talk about her also being a scoutmaster, which is a shame because that's one of my favorite aspects of her character. Every day I pray Camping Season becomes a holiday just so we can get her in her official scoutmaster uniform

Emmlette - She's a drama teacher, how can I not love her? Being a student of the performing arts myself, I really do see a lot of my past acting teachers in her. They really did do their research when they made her! Also if you don't love her egg motif, you're just lying to yourself

Evelyn - Every time I think of her, I think of that one fanfic that accurately predicted her to be a retired movie star. Like it actually blew my mind when they revealed her flipdeck, that was a crazy day in Flipline history if you ask me. And they did hint that she'd be Olivia's grandma with those black olive wristbands, I always like to see design hints like that!

Fernanda - I often think about how she's the one who convinced Franco to take the risk and start Fernaco Architecture. There's something frankly so sweet about how the name of the company would also be their ship name. Plus, everyone loves a good poncho! And her jewelry's pretty great too

Foodini - Showing up at the end of every ingame day, it's probably safe to say Foodini's one of the most iconic characters to the whole franchise, up there with the ranks of Papa Louie himself! I really dig the whole game show host aesthetic, sometimes wonder if the hat design choice was a reference to the late Chuck Barris

Franco - He's absolutely rich with lore. Moving to Burgerburgh for his architecture job, starting a family there, then moving back to his hometown to chase his dreams and become an architecture magnate... He's made a veritable mark on the Flipverse as a whole! Also he has a really fun bodytype

Georgito - Honestly, Tony was goddamn hilarious for this one. Imagine being the original George friend who was insistent on being added as a specifically wealthy customer, and then getting depicted as the leprechaun of the Flipverse. Godspeed, Tony! Georgito himself is a rather dapper individual on his own, and I will say he's probably one of the very few cases where "smooth shading" hair has looked genuinely good

Gino Romano - My favorite Romano! I always do love an underdog. The way that he's a repeat fan of St. Paddy's Day and Bavariafest does paint quite a vivid picture of his flavorly tastes, and the fact that he was one of the founding members of the band is an interesting tidbit! And one more thing, I think it's pretty heavily implied that he has gigantism—making him another member of the disability rep crew

Greg - Kids usually hate tomatoes, so it's refreshing to see one that can't get enough of them! Also the fact that the sentient tomatoes from the platformers became one of his core personality traits. lol

Gremmie - The classic Freezeria closers have a soft spot in my heart, and Gremmie's no exception! There's plenty to be said about his uniquely crooked posture and his face-covering hair, but what I really like about him is how threatening his general vibe is. Wish he was a closer more often...

Hacky Zak - Yeah yeah, his old hair wasn't any good at all. But it does go to show that Matt & Tony listen to the fans, I really started to like Hacky once they changed it up! He rocks that hoodie, you have to admit

Hank - As short of a flipdeck that he has, Hank's definitely made his mark as a remarkable customer. I enjoy the way he's had very brief moments of being a closer, and the fact he hates night shifts does stir the imagination quite nicely. Plus, it's kinda funny how they always reach for him when they need a policeman character even though he's literally just a highway patrolman

Hope - There's something about her that's particularly unique. I think it's the unnaturally wide eyes, the resting grin, and how messed up some of her orders can get (WHAT was that BTC Freezeria order??) that makes her come off as vaguely unsettling... And I wouldn't want to have it any other way. Honestly it's great that they can go so wild on a KCP customer, goes to show that everyone has a place and a personality in this universe

Hugo - DJ Honey Buster is in the house! Him and his Warped Records record store have quite the history in the Flipverse, what with that one Travel Trout post designating it as the last of its kind. Hugo's a fighter! I also love how he modeled his DJ persona after his favorite kind of sauce. You'll never catch him eatin a burger with no honey mustard

Iggy - Every series with an ensemble cast of characters has to have at least ONE nerd, let's be real. Iggy sure does deliver! I love his color scheme, the way the highlights of yellow contrast the purple is really striking! And his flipdeck info is a lovely window into the in-universe sci-fi situation, I wonder what a show based off of Meteor Blaster could possibly look like

Indigo - Lots of forum FCs fall into the "fashionista" category, but frankly I don't think anyone does it like Indigo does! She absolutely KILLED it with Volcano Gala, I imagine that it was her and her alone who designed all those special outfits (even Pally's). And we love her for it!

Isadora - If you read between the lines of her flipdeck, it seems that she's another member of the implied disability crew! Honestly her flipdeck info pretty accurately aligns with the experience I had in middle school, so I did find the thing personally relatable for what it's worth. Also I like to imagine she made her Style A by cutting up the school uniform that was her Style B and turning it into a brand new outfit

Ivy - She's really so much more than a funny hairdo, if it weren't for her we wouldn't have Travel Trout! And who doesn't love her outfit? I've seen plenty of people lobby for her scarf in PLP and I couldn't agree more, she's fashion

James - Don't be grossed out that he uses a plunger as a weapon, it's clearly a drain plunger and not a toilet plunger. He's not swinging around a toilet pooper or anything. I'm getting off track, James is great! Love that he's one of the few customers to tout a name tag, and his unique facial proportions leave quite the impression

Janana - They literally couldn't have exaggerated the banana motif more. And that's what I love about her! On the other hand, I like how her flipdeck info couldn't have less to do with bananas. Most of the outsiders seem to be surprised when I tell 'em she's actually a music agent. I also like how the bands she manages have slowly started to show up more in the games lately

Johnny - Another character who has a whole lot going on under the surface. Behind the whole "attractive werewolf lumberjack" thing that most people fixate on, the man sells Christmas trees he chopped himself & consistently earns medals in the annual Woodchop Show! More people should talk about the Maple Mountain Woodchop Show if you ask me, tbh

Jojo - What can't be said about Jojo? In terms of gameplay, he's probably the most unique customer in the series! And there's the mystery on whether he's balding or has a luscious head of hair, since we never see him without some kind of head covering—I love seeing everyone's different takes (I'm a balding truther myself)

Julep - She comes packaged with some fantastic lore about Cornelius Poweder and the history of Powder point, and that flower dress in her Style B is frankly gorgeous. Also her whole name/design is a play on mint juleps, which is great

Kahuna - He's got a great contrast with Gremmie as the island's two surfer dudes, him being the native Hawaiian to Grem's Californian surfer dude, but he's also very much a force to be reckoned with by his own merits. Like his surfboard craftsmanship and surfing prowess! By all means, Kahuna is indeed the best surfer on Calypso Island at any given time! That's just canon, we all know Gremmie's an amateur at best...

Kaleb - I liked him ever since I laid eyes on him, the mystery behind what his deal is was probably his biggest draw at the time. And they revealed him to be the Hot Topic manager Funko Pop collector... I can earnestly say I did NOT see that one coming. Also his familial relationship with Trishna is pretty cute!

Kasey O - For some reason she's also one of the less popular customers, which is frankly a crime because good GOD she's badass. Like, she straight up leads a wrestling stable! She WON the Women's World Championship!! She has a charity and visits kids in hospitals in her own time!!! And to think that some people are so shallow to relegate her to the "dorito girl" with unconventional facial proportions, god knows how that's measured... Sometimes the fans disappoint me beyond what words can describe

Kayla - Whatta lady. There's something about her rise in the acting world that I aspire to achieve, rising from commercial work to Windie acclaim... That's how my wildest fantasies play out, isn't it the way. There's also something to be said about her fantastic choice in jewelry! I always prefer to keep her in her Style A because I love that bracelet so very much

Kenji - Another underrated customer to shine a light on! While his flipdeck info practically boils down to "he eats (wow!)", there's some hidden depths in his goofy little alternate outfits and the fact that he hates dining etiquette more than anything else. Man does NOT bother with the cutlery I can tell you that much

Kenton - A character created by someone I'm acquainted with, that's a first for this list! I was very hyped to see Kenton rise up to the top, all the way down to seeing his Style B be designed before it made its appearance ingame. Did you know that according to his creator-made bio, he didn't see his parents hardly ever growing up? (just his dad specifically, mom died at age 7)

Kingsley - Hail to the king baby! This guy's been through a lot of different suits throughout his career (I specifically remember him touting the all-yellow suit throughout my whole childhood), and every time he serves it on a golden platter. Even without the Customerpalooza thing in his name, the man is one of the most iconic characters of the franchise, and a solid character in his own right! He doesn't like hecklers, which I find amusing

Koilee - That koi dress seriously BLOWS ME AWAY, I cannot get over how good it looks with that scale detail. Like genuinely, the way they drew that blows me away... Peak Flipline artstyle. And as a character, I love how she lives so peacefully in Sakura Bay while balancing a job over in Oniontown. I like to imagine there's a sophisticated train system that gets her there, and that she got fired from the aquarium before vacationing in Oniontown to get her mind off of things

LePete - The first of the three baddie fans, LePete definitely stands out in the trio. He comes off as more serious than the other two, which I really like to lean into in my ongoing Life in the Flipverse comic... And also he wears a COCONUT on his HEAD that's amazing come on! I do like how he's the only one to never have actually been to Munchmore before, at least canonically speaking

Liezel - WOohoo! People have sung her praises plenty before, so I'll take the time to appreciate the lesser-pronounced aspects of her character, like how she didn't favor the same holiday twice until Mocharia or her undying dedication to spumoni. Spumoni's great! Wish it was more widely available... Also the whole "parmesan kiwi" thing in sushiria was one of her more memorable moments, especially before her flipdeck reveal

Lisa - A fantastic Burgeria era customer, one of the best even! That unique hairstyle really makes her stand out in the grand scheme of customers, and I find that they did a really good job establishing her role in the Fernaco family while making sure she was her own person as well.

Little Edoardo - It's definitely easy to see why he is (or was) Tony's favorite character! The elder of the Romano Family Quartet, this man is a notably unique addition to the family in multiple ways. His early streak of having weird gameria orders was fun, even if that title was later relegated to Xandra and Xolo. And of course, the Pastaria story was really adorable to see unfold! Edoardo and Olga make such a cute couple, which I know is something of an unpopular opinion but it's my opinion nonetheless

Lloyd - FINALLY, they let an old man be athletic for once! Lloyd's one of the characters that admittedly weirded me out the first time I saw him, but ultimately grew on me as the time went on. And it's also pretty neat how they let us have a centenarian customer on the official payroll, too

Maggie - From aimlessly drifting through life to Taco Mia worker to accomplished politician, Maggie's got one of the most comprehensive character arcs in the whole series! There's also something to be said about her representation of Cinco de Mayo, which I'm hoping to see possibly return in Paleteria (I know it'll go hard in this game I just KNOW it)

Makaila - Well, there's always gonna be one character you struggle with... She may be a landlord who rubbed capitalism all over the shores of Calypso island, but I do have to admit that her hexagon motif & Style B dress-coat combo really do strike a fantastic design! And I guess that in a meta sense, it is nice to have a more morally ambiguous customer in the mix

Mandi - I'll admit it's a bit harder to distinguish where the line is between real life and in-universe for Mandi, even more so than with other IRL customers, but nonetheless she makes it work! The owl motif is really really cute, especially with that Wendy's Wheels kart! Wouldn't be surprised if she dresses up as an owl for Halloween, heh.

Marty - Scarlett and the Shakers just wouldn't be the same without him! Marty's diamond motif doesn't come up as much as the other members' respective suits do, but I think that kind of adds to his own offbeat style in a way. He's definitely more of a free spirit with the burguitar and all, I just know he brings a unique flavor to the band. Outside of that, I like how one of his more noteworthy traits is having a beloved hatchback

Mary - MarySue is one of the fandom's most decorated ships, and for good reason! Mary is one of those characters who is completely brimming with personality, from her flipdeck all the way down to the design of her kart. Painter by day, bagpiper by night, full-time pug enjoyer! She's like the sun to Sue's moon in that sense, with her enthusiasm for life meshing with Sue's hard-working demeanor

Matt - While I know this is about the customers as characters and not real individuals, I have to give a shoutout to Matt for being one of the most genuinely pleasant people I've ever had the pleasure of knowing. As a customer, I really dig how he goes full sports fan in his Style B! And for one of the hockey teams no less, you don't see those get much rep in the Flipverse

Mayor Mallow - As far as politician characters go, you have to admit this guy's inherently one of the funnier ones. I mean just look at him! The way is posture tilts so far back, the rosy cheeks he always has, having a big letter M for a belt buckle... I can just tell they were having so much fun when they designed him. Also he loves parades and hates debates, lmao

Mesa - Another no-info KCP winner, so we have to go on design alone for her. And her design really carries her far! She just oozes style, from the top of her mini top hat to the bottom of her fiery patterned dress! And the color orange really elevates the red-black color scheme of her outfit! Dare I say it, her design is strong enough to rival those of the official customers. She deserved her KCP win through and through

Mindy - She's quirkyyy. Love her evolving look throughout the years & how her hair color is always fluid... I wonder if she's ever experimented with being a redhead. Wonder what other hair experiments she's done on herself and her boyfriend, I bet that man's mop was nasty before he met her (honestly the more I think about their dynamic the more I realize just how fun it can get)

Mitch - The funny man!!! Mitch and his messy mess!!! Big fan of how he contrasts with his coworker Maggie, while she's made big things of herself and is very accomplished all Mitch wants to do is eat food like Kenji and go outside. And eat hot chip and lie. The outdoorsman aspect is something I realize I kinda gloss over in my head more often than not

Moe/The Dynamoe - Again, fan favorite characters! I already posted that long and comprehensive speculation on Moe's possible Moe-tivations and the creation of the alter ego Dynamoe, so let's focus more on his design: It was a real stroke of genius to have him turn the color scheme on his head between outfits! Compare that to Joy/Ninjoy, where the red/blue of her work outfit can combine to be the purple of her hero costume... Neat stuff innit? Love his spiffy white gloves too

Mousse - Oniontown's definitely one of the more dingy locations in the Flipverse, and Mousse provides a pretty comprehensive window into that seedy underbelly that hides under the surface of tourism and history. I'd do anything to get official backdrops of the Gingersnap Lounge... The twins also really make themselves known in their orders, always keeping the light/dark food theme consistent between games. Or is it whipped cream/choco mousse theme? Hm

Mr. Bombolony - His name is DOB for crying out loud... He writes PARODY SONGS and SINGS THEM for the morning announcements... And even just his design, that goofy oversized shirt he proudly wears... There isn't a single aspect about this man that isn't absurdly hilarious, and I completely adore him for it. A walking legend. Dob Bombolony, destroyer of worlds and purveyor of DadCringe

Nevada - If I were a member of the Flipverse, I would ABSOLUTELY stop by her storefront and grab me some genuine ocean jewelry. One of the things that I've always liked about Nevada is the way she accessorizes her head specifically—the feathered hairpiece, those tinted glasses, and the double braid of her hair are what make her an icon!

Nick - I've always had a soft spot for Nick. He's just a sorta clumsy kid who loves life on the rapids, sometimes he wears his safety gear and sometimes he doesn't. What you see is what you get with Nick, and that's what I like about him! Also I wonder how he ended up being friends with Mitch, though the two of them being outdoorsy types seems to lead to an obvious conclusion

Ninjoy/Joy - Ahh, what would the Flipverse be without her? I always found it downright fascinating that the vigilante hero of the Flipverse is related to Papa himself by blood. And her distaste for Nowtime News is incredibly interesting too, for all the questions it raises about what the tension is like: Do Duke Gotcha and Shannon have the same beef as the rest of the corporation? How does Nowtime depict The Dynamoe? And what does Joy think about the corporation when she's not busy being Ninjoy? All very intriguing questions that just wouldn't be possible without her, you go girl

Nye - He canonically has a sugar daddy. Straight up, his creator has confirmed that he has a sugar daddy & has created a design for said sugar daddy. That is INSANE especially for what this series is... But enough about that, Nye stands quite well on his own even without that aspect of his character. The Style B he wears does an incredibly excellent job of balancing two different patterns without it becoming overbearing on the design, which is pretty tough to pull off well!

Okalani - Even after the hotbed of controversy that was her flipdeck, I find that Okalani's really a great customer through and through. I just know she has the most wonderful friendship with the other island locals... And you can't deny that her hairstyle is beautiful

Olga - Like I said with Little Ed, the marriage and relationship has gotta be one of the cutest things Flipline's done! And the fact she still wears that wedding dress as her Style B outfit is both amusing and adorable, if I do say so myself

Olivia - They managed to strike a beautiful compromise between goofy and stylish in her design, a trait befitting of her status as the party girl! She's also quite a shining example of how to properly execute an offbeat color scheme, everything comes together really well in both her outfits (and the holiday ones too, but those ones switch the colors up)

Pally - Never gonna be able to forgive the fans for how they treated Pally at first. There isn't a better representative for PLP out there! The gimmick of having outfits from the ingame holiday clothes selection was great at displaying the lesser-used items, but I think Pally really found her true potential when the flipdeck hit the pages—she might just be the most powerful optimist in the whole Flipverse! And I mean the WHOLE Flipverse, across every dimension they have

Papa Louie - The man himself. The FACE of the series. The Italian mustache monopoly man with the pizza procuring prowess... And we really do owe it all to him, Flipline Studios wouldn't be what it is today without him! As a character, I have to say that he's surprisingly versatile. Some depict him as the friendly lovable chef that the universe paints him as, some show him as a despicable greedy crook who throws anyone under the bus at the drop of a hat... And frankly I'm glad that he gets this much variance

Peggy - Country girls make do. Peggy's design might not be the flashiest, but she really does feel authentic as a cowgirl. And it's quite charming how she's like the flagship character for spicy foods, even more so than Ember the firefighter and Mesa the, uh... Fire motif! On top of that, her hairstyle is an interesting one to pick apart as well. I always imagined that her cowgirl activities kick up enough dust to make her hair go stiff, which is why it curls up against gravity like that

Penny - Love her or hate her... Who am I kidding, why would anyone hate her! Even the most jaded of us have to admit that the whole flower motif she has is adorable. And there's also something impressive about her being present in every game in the franchise, all the way back to the original WPA! I wish some of the Youtubers were more normal about her, though... But bemoaning the weirdos isn't what this list is about

Perri - I must say it's quite bold for a cyclist character to never be seen wearing a real helmet, but there's so much more to Perri than just her looks. She lives in a WINDMILL! She bought a windmill and turned it into her HOME! One can only imagine the whimsy that she lives through every day

Petrona - If anyone in this universe deserves the title of girlboss, it's Petrona without a doubt. Her flipdeck may not have been the longest, but it got the job done quickly and efficiently. Much like herself! I like how even her design reflects her no-nonsense attitude and determined work ethic

Pinch Hitwell - Sometimes I think about how the only named baseball player we know of so far is a substitute batter. And how he's apparently a good enough substitute batter to appear on a poster for oatmeal cookies... Also how he doesn't even order oatmeal cookies in that game, despite being on THE POSTER FOR IT alright enough of that tangent. I have to be genuine here, I really consider Pinch one of my favorite customers! There's just something so charming about his looks, his new outfits for each town, and the way he always keeps finding new ways to surprise us

Professor Fitz - Again, no ensemble cast of characters is complete without at least one eccentric scientist! Professor Fitz delivers on every front, from his bow tie to his lightning bolt hair, and the notable tinge of green in his outfit really helps him stand out in the realm of scientist characters. And we can't forget that his title of professor isn't just as a scientist, but as an academic too!

Prudence - People rag on Flipline for having weirder names as the games went on, but she goes to show that odd names have always been at the heart of the series. Her relationship with Pickle is really nice too, very fun to see someone who carries a dog in a bag! For some reason I've always associated her with Elle Woods of Legally Blonde (and vice versa)

Quinn - And here she is, the reigning queen of the closer lineup! Her constant presence as a closer marks her as a familiar face to even the most fledgling greenhorns of the franchise. The vast amount of differing headcanons I've seen for her do well to stimulate the imagination, from the divorce scenarios of the forum to the rom-com fanworks this site has to offer! Whether they revolve around Timm or not, it's always a pleasure to see people's takeaways on such a unique customer

Radlynn - Radish girl radish girl radish girl. As far as the baddie fans trio goes, her position is unique in that she personally MET Radley, and that iconic knit hat was a gift from him to her! There's also something special about how her Style B is literally Radley's very own outfit from his own debut appearance, down to that wide brimmed hat and goggles. That's dedication

Rhonda - Glad to have a real trucker on the character lineup, and as far as trucker characters go, I don't think I've ever seen any quite like her! I don't express it often, but she's definitely one of the higher tier customers in my personal rankings. And her relationship with Rico is by far my favorite official canon pairing!

Rico - Byeah incarnate. His character arc happened humourously quick, with him being a rough biker in his intro and then immediately mellowing out once he hit the shores of Calypso. The chili arc was a great one too, with his recipe making it all the way into the ranks of Papa's very own restaurants! His chili even gets served up at the Pastaria, and they're a very high class establishment so you KNOW his chili is god tier

Ripley - We have a customer directly tied to Munchmore! Hell yeah! Her expeditions were by far one of the most interesting things to happen to the blog since, well... Ever! I really do miss those posts, they were a great way to get a better look at that dimension & Ripley's quirky way of speaking was a sight to behold too

Rita - The forumers have a bad tendency to sell Rita short. While her Burgeria job may be a noted part of her personality, she's also got some extra depths of her own! Like how she straight up moved to Burgerburgh when she won her job, or the way her outfit's slowly evolved over the years. I'm not kidding, that outfit progression is genuinely a sight to behold! And of course how can I not mention the film buff aspect of her personality, considering she's basically the FACE of Sugarplex Film Fest

Robby - This man was stranded on an island for 3 years. It's highly likely he was the only survivor of the shrimp boat capsizing... And how did he emerge from this experience? As a PIRATE! I dare say that's one of my favorite takes I've ever seen on a castaway story

Rollie - Oh, how I love him. There's just something I personally find so charming about Rollie... It might be his outfit, maybe it's his detailed backstory, the Halloween costume definitely factors into it... But one thing is for certain: His status as my all-time favorite customer isn't going anywhere! Keep rollin' on, you magnificent man

Roy - I'd argue he's just as important to the series as Papa is, if not more (at least for the mainline gamerias). The perpetually exhausted heir to the franchise's name, Roy really is much more than a mere delivery boy—he's the wheels that keep the original Pizzeria moving! And I really like how much of his personality comes out in the Style B, he clearly knows how to rock outside of work

Rudy - He's definitely the one who keeps the punk in ska-punk, that's a given. And he also goes to show how even a bassist can be a standout member of a band! Even outside of Scarlett and the Shakers, he's got quite a unique set of circumstances. His flipdeck establishes his deep connection to Powder Point as a town, as well as showing how much he absolutely despises Guy Mortadello above anything or anyone else... It's always funny when a flipdeck lists a character's hates as another established character

Santa - Ho ho ho! Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night! Figy Pudding! While it's incredibly funny on its own that Santa is real and casually eats at restaurants in broad daylight in this universe, it's also really funny how his existence means that every customer in this series now has a Ryu number of 2, if you're familiar with that at all. I've known people who want Santa Claus carnally

Sarge Fan - What I find fun about him is that while the other two baddie fans at least have some connection to their respective bosses, Sarge Fan kinda... Doesn't. Radlynn met Radley when she was young, LePete found a crumpled poster of his hero, and Sarge Fan... Nothing happened, he's just like that for some reason! Love a guy who's just an inexplicable little freak. Also he runs the Pop Dart stand in Powder Point when Foodini's off the clock, which is its own little mystery in itself

Sasha - She's part of the school's marching band and debate team, she's an apprentice cheesemaker, she's always got a loving family to fall back on... We have a pretty clear picture of what Sasha's life is like, don't we? And of course there's her notable obsession with the creatures of Munchmore, which seems to imply that her memories from her time there were deeply cherished, formative even

Scarlett - And of course, the face of Scarlett and the Shakers! I really like how it's listed that she hates Pop Music (girl would NEVER be a Swiftie, in fact I bet none of the SatS members are) and how she wears so many different hats as a member of the band, metaphorically. She's the lead singer, she writes all the songs, and she'll even bust out extra instruments when the show calls for them! Talk about a renaissance gal!

Scooter - I remember back when playing the platformers in my youth, she became my go-to character pick because the skateboard was just THAT fun. And I also really groove with her cherrybomb motif! Plus, she's a strong contender for the hardest pose anyone's ever hit in a flipdeck

Shannon - She was Nowtime News before Nowtime News was even a fleshed-out thing! I've always been fond of her eclectic style. Especially how her sweater used to have a mismatched button, I wish they didn't patch that out... Team Gotcha just wouldn't be Team Gotcha without her

Sienna - She is REALLY dedicated to autumn! Even if Thanksgiving gets replaced someday (hopefully), I'll never be able to see her favor any holiday outside of that three-month bracket... She just straight-up is the season of fall incarnate, see? Anyways she's also got quite a backstory on her back, having grown up in Toastwood only to find a new beautiful home in Portallini! Something about the detail that she's struggling to make friends also makes me feel for her, like a window into her personal life

Simone - She's THE lo-fi girl and don't you forget it! One thing I always liked about her is how her outfit and hairstyle look like something straight out of the Sims future expansion pack, if that's anything to go off of. Gives her a really pointed vibe, it does! And let's not forget how the meaning of her name is "listening", to go alongside Didar's meaning of sight and vision—they did their name research!

Skip - There's a lot of things I like about Skip. His ever-present love for pistachios, his trait of being a tailgating football fan, heck even the way they designed his stubble... But above it all, what I really think is the best part of Skip is the tenderness that he has deep down, shown by his care of Pastrami. Rat owners tend to be mistreated by their peers, just as the animal itself is strongly associated as being a pest to be eraticated, so the fact that he proudly carries Pastrami everywhere shows that Skip has true compassion that shines beyond the hatred and intolerance of the world around him... And for that, I can't help but love him

Skyler - Remnants of Skystone may be long lost media at this point, but I'm glad that we got Skyler out of it! On top of being references to the now-gone MMO, her outfits are absolutely stunning on their own, quite unlike anything any of the other customers have. There's also the touch of her being a jewelry student who uses her talents for steampunk cosplay, which is a fabulous way of making it make sense in-universe!

Sprinks the Clown - I've always had something of a deep respect for those who pursue a career in clown performance, even having dreamed of such a thing as a youth myself. So I may have something of a soft spot for a working clown like Sprinks, sue me. I quite like how they explained her Style B as her dedication to the craft even on her worst days, which I also find really admirable! You have to be strong to be a clown, and she's certainly stronger than I could ever be

Steven - While his looks are deceivingly simple, his creator left a paragraph that really defined how I perceive the man. I believe it was implied that he plays in a punk-metal band at night, which is already pretty badass on its own! Seems to be supported by his consistent favoring of Groovstock, which is pretty good attention to detail from Matt and Tony. Steven's bio also mentioned that he has a "hot chest" multiple times, for whatever that's worth...

Sue - The second half of the whole that is MarySue, Sue is a true powerhouse of a character. I have to compliment how well they work as a couples dynamic, with Sue's irritability and Mary's general exuberance, I can easily imagine how Mary helps to relieve the daily stress that Sue endures while Sue helps keep Mary grounded in reality... Even if we don't explicitly see it, they really do have great chemistry!

Taylor - Taylor's probaly one of the best classic customers in the set, franky speaking. I do appreciate how his outfits contain remnants of bygone eras, such as his walkman in the Style A and the power glove in the Style B... Really goes to show how long this series has been around, hm? And I really love how they accomplished the earbud effect by utilizing the back hair sprites!

Timm - I'll be damned, he's fantastic! He's definitely made his mark around here, what with the association with Quinn & all the baggage that comes with that. And I do often think about his "very manly perm" alongside his prominently displayed chest hair... Put that in your pipe and smoke it, eh?

Tohru - While I may have had my qualms with her general reception, I cannot deny that Tohru is a very solid character in her own right. I gotta respect the fact that she's a stage crew member, of course, and her being a let's player opens up a world of possibilities for fun gaming scenarios to put her in. And her design, of course! I really do adore the button motif they gave her in the Bakeria refresh, and her updated pigtails are honestly a real treat to look at. And the color scheme's great too

Tony - Aside from being the creative genius behind all these characters, Tony's a pretty fun customer to have around himself! Love love LOVE that Mothman costume, and how it pushes the boundaries of what can be done in the Flipline artstyle. I also find it fun how you can customize the length of his hair once you unlock both his styles

Treble - They were a star ever since they first appeared! Gotta say that them receiving their flipdeck in the eleventh hour of pride month was one hell of a clutch. Flipline did a really good job on the characterization front, I don't think any of us were expecting them to be an auto shop high schooler but I'm not complaining! Only makes the alt-punk outfit more poignant, really

Trishna - Fashionista! As a customer, she adds distinct flavor to the Whiskview Mall employee lineup while still managing to fit in with the general vibe. She also absolutely nails the fashionista angle, from the casual Style A to her over-the-top elegant Style B! And you gotta love that custom phone case she touts in that flipdeck pic

Utah - Being the only non-closer Calypso Island native in the original Freezeria, Utah definitely had an important impact in her debut appearance. I theorize that's how she became such a popular customer in the first place... One thing I like is how pink lemonade quickly became one of her defining characteristics, I mean just look at her Wendy's Wheels kart! Oh, and she absolutely killed it in her Summer Luau exclusive outfit... I dare say it's even better than her regular styles

Vicky - It's been said before but I have to reiterate it, Vicky haters are the weakest link. She's got impeccable style, she's got mom cred with Mindy, and she maaay not have that much talent as a makeup artist but we still love her just the same! I really do find it wholesome how she and her daughter both run the salon, a true family business that it is

Vincent - And speaking of family business! Always ready with the customer coupon and Style B deliveries, it's easy to get familiar with his recurring face. And apparently vice versa, considering he goes all across the globe for his deliveries & remembers EVERYONE'S name that he meets... Honestly that's kind of insane when you wrap your head around it! One thing I found surprising is that the bag he wears is entirely removable with the right tools, and doing so reveals that his jacket had a secret zipper all along... The intricacies of the character models never cease to amaze

Wally - The Mayonnaise Man himself, where do we even begin... Well, how about his fishing history? Ever since his debut, he's always had an association with fish, with the whole anchovy thing kind of being the entire basis of his flipdeck. Fishing is clearly in his blood, with what we see in his Style B alluding to either a hobby or a history as a fisherman, probably both... Yeah yeah I know, I've said it a thousand times already, but the hidden depths of these characters really do go a very long way.

Wendy - She's so cool! Even the two-tone plastic frame glasses start looking a little badass when she sports 'em, not easy to do that! And we gotta give her the respect she deserves for being the driving force behind all these Wendy's Wheels updates, which remain to this day the greatest ongoing blog feature (not counting sneak peeks)

Whiff - He may have bad posture and an odd expression, but that shouldn't get in the way of his worth as a customer, should it? For what it's worth, the man's outfit really compliments his character, and you're just flat-out lying if you deny how hard he rocks the tattoos! Like come on, they're gummeels! And considering the artstyle, you have to admit that it's pretty funny that he hates leg day when nobody has any legs

Whippa - The other Oniontown twin, let's see. I talked about the twins' info with Mousse, so let's shine more of a spotlight on their designs this time. Love 'em! Love how their opaque shades build them up as threatening people from the get-go, love how their outfit patterns are shared between styles, and it's quite good how they're both essentially the skinniest twigs to walk the Flipverse so far. Whippa in particular really goes above and beyond with her outfit, that slick white hairstyle absolutely slams down! And the Style B, oh good LORD that is one hell of a slick Style B

Willow - There's always gotta be a goth girl, hum? As far as goths go, I appreciate the unique angle they went for with Willow! They weren't afraid to go all out with the teal, and her Style B only goes farther with the bright colors! Her flipdeck info serves a good deal too, she's a very shy poet and she cares for her pet tarantula Jackie very dearly. Speaking of, Jackie! The greatest pet in the whole Flipverse, bar none, even past the likes of Smokie and Pastrami

Wylan B - Y'know, there's some kind of subtle nuance in the way both he and his dad try a little too hard to be seen as "cool" that comes back around to being cringe, but both in generationally different ways. A neat touch all things considered... Also that Style B goes absolutely INSANE

Xandra - Weirdgirl representation! While there's plenty to be said about her and her brother's place in the universe, this is still about their strengths as indiviuals. One thing Xandra has over her brother is her fabulous tutu and the makeup to match! Plus, her clown costume is kind of just generally better than Xolo's

Xolo - As for things that Xolo leads the race in, one need not look farther than his magical fantabulous scarf! Really, I think that it's one of his best features, alongside those rockstar-like torn sleeves. Definitely paints him as the rougher, tougher side of the family... Also, his pants being all patched up with patches connects him to his foster mother Edna in a really cute way

Yippy - Cookie Scouts! We know about them thanks to her. She's really a lot more hardworking than she seems on the surface, given how she somehow makes enough money as a cookie scout to visit the restaurants as often as the grown-up regulars do. And her Creameo belt buckle wass a very inspired choicie to go along her cookie theme

Yui - I'm not entirely sure what official information for her is out there to be honest, but even without it, she's a very strong customer! Her orders certainly make a strong impression, and that Style B of hers might just be one of the greatest Style Bs ever put to a KCP contestant!

Yuko - Hey, the first customer to carry around a prop! That parasol of hers is probably one of my favorite design decisions done to a recent customer, especially how it makes her Style B shine like the sun! Her info was also quite full of surprises, such as how she's the mother of Prudence and how she was one of the original Pizzeria apartment residents. Can't wait to meet Espen!

Zoe - Last but certainly not least, my favorite hippie! Speaking of props, I really love the way that she always has her guitar on her. And that beautiful paisley pattern that decorates her outfit really adds to her design too! I do like how her dream in life isn't anything overly ambitious or grandiose, she just wants to own a coffee shop and support the arts with it. Truly a good person to the core, she is! And her fear of heights is a very interesting cherry on top

That took a couple days, but it was fun! Really worth the effort. Can you tell how passionate about this series and all its characters

#papa louie #flipline studios #flipline #papa's pizzeria #I really hope I didn't miss anyone #also I intend to share this to the forum too so I had to pull the reins on the swearing a little #also the keep reading cutoff goes down a paragraph every time I edit this. I have to readjust it

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frankiesmileshow · 7 months

Text

Crystal Project Review

Ive been having a lot of fun with Crystal Project, a well made FF5-inspired RPG. The combat is very tightly designed and the exploration aspect is top notch. The art style put me off a bit at first, but I think it grew on me over time.

The game does a great job of slowly uncovering its breadth and letting you break its sequence through curious exploring. Lots of fun to search every part of its gigantic map for secrets. This is a game that loves hiding secrets within secrets within secrets. You might even occasionally stumble into a late game area, and exploring carefully could lead to finding items meant for the end of the game, giving your party a significant early game boost.

Exploring will often lead to surprise optional boss battles that are completely out of your league - but dying has few consequences in the game (you just lose a bit of money) and dying from bosses has no consequences at all, so you rarely feel truly punished for having explored too far, and its always worth it to have a peek at a boss battle.

Don't expect too much of a story. There is one, but it keeps a very light touch, this is mainly a game about exploring and fighting monsters. It does have characters and some personality, but dont expect something dense story wise.

It manages to avoid feeling like an open world game - it feels more like a linear game that just lets you break out of the confines of its intended path if you explore enough. It strikes a very good balance between having direction and having freedom. The world map just keeps expanding as you play, leading to many little shocks about the games' scope, a feeling you might be familiar with if you played Elden Ring.

The games combat uses a very well balanced, strategic system. Battles give you a lot of information to let you choose your actions carefully - you can see any enemies' next action in advance, and you even know who the enemy will attack next (notice the dotted lines in the screenshot above). Manipulating the enemies' current target is actually one of the fundamentals of the game- enemies choose their next target based on a "Threat" system which is entirely open to you as you fight, and many classes have abilities to help you manipulate this. Some class abilities also depend on the current threat state of a character - for instance, the rogues' many powerful skills only work if they are considered an enemy's bottom threat, and will otherwise always miss, which requires careful actions on your part.

The class system will be familiar if you played Final Fantasy 5 - you obtain new classes by exploring the world and finding large crystals, each unlocking a new one. The classes set a characters' stat growth on level-up, equippable items, main abilities and all have a unique "Innate passive" which are usually quite powerful (for instance, the base Cleric class receives a significant boost to all healing spells).

You can also add the abilities of a secondary class to your characters' moveset- like adding a clerics' healing spells to your Samurai. There is a lot of fun to be had mixing one class's abilities with anothers' passive boost - for instance, one class has an ability which makes the first action this character makes in a battle always target All enemies or All allies, allowing you to either massively boost your whole party or nuke the enemy party with a powerful spell usually meant for a single foe.

There are also passive abilities you can unlock from any class and assign regardless of a characters' current class, limited by a point cost system. These can range from a boost to max HP, to adding a poison effect to any weapon attacks, to allowing your character to equip a shield regardless of their class.

You can get very creative with the games' class system, there are countless ways to mix and match character abilities and classes to figure out some powerful strategy. The endgame has several challenges that might require you to make custom party setups just for them, turning the combat system into something resembling a kind of puzzle - though one with many possible solutions.

Boss battles have a way of feeling like a desperate struggle of improvising as your strategy falls apart - then winning by the skin of your teeth. This happens a lot. At least half of the boss battles for me ended with most of my party dead, and being one or two turns away from a full wipe-out.

I think the only real misstep is the games' analogue to chocobo breeding, introduced at the very end of the game. It feels tedious, I gave up on it after an hour of wasting my money on food for the creatures and not getting anywhere. Luckily it seems to be completely optional.

All in all I recommend it to anyone who likes FF5 and who likes RPGs that have a focus on exploring. Visually it might look a bit basic, but underneath that is an extremely robust game.

#game development #rpg #indie rpg #crystal project #final fantasy #final fantasy v #game review #video games

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anonymous-ace72 · 5 months

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Can you tell me the defining features and propogandic elements of busts from the different dynasties of Republic and Imperial Rome? That sounds super interesting and I'd love to hear about it!

Strap in.

Okay so the period that I’m going to be going over is roughly the span of time from the Republic period of Rome, all the way to Constantine, because that was the time frame my class covered.

So, to keep in mind, all of the portraits of Roman officials, whether they be emperors or otherwise, are idealized. Meaning, they are not true to life representations of these people; this is probably not how they actually looked, and you’ll see this become more prominent when we get into the imperial periods of Rome. What these portraits are in reality, are representations of traits that Romans typically admired and thought to be appropriate for rulers.

When you look at a lot of portraits from the Republic period, you’ll mainly see portraits of older people. During this time, only older people were allowed to hold powerful positions within the Roman senate, and since these were generally the people commissioning portraits of themselves, this is the bulk of what we see. It was mostly men, but some women were also depicted, which we’ll get to.

These busts portray older men, but these aren’t entirely realistic portraits, this is probably not what this individual actually looked like.

The official name for this style of portraiture is called verism, and it’s worth noting that it is pretty much a direct response to the style of the Hellenistic Greeks, who’s dynamic, emotional statues were seen as uncontrolled, with rule breaking tendencies.

These portraits are much older looking, because an older person was the physical embodiment of the kinds of traits someone from the patrician class would favor; traits such as wisdom, worldliness, piety, self-restraint. The wrinkles in the forehead and around the mouth are very pronounced and obvious. The man in this portrait might not have Actually looked like this in real life, but his real-life image did not matter; he’s trying to convey to the viewer that he is wise, and in-control of himself.

When you look at full body statues from this period, you see a strange mixing of styles, which is not uncommon, and Romans would continue to do this sort of thing in their art pieces. This is purposeful.

We see here, a man with a veristic head and an idealized body. The head is obviously meant to convey the meaning above, but the body is of a much younger man; it’s meant to convey strength and heroism. So, the entire sculpture together paints the picture of a man with the experience and constraint of an older patrician man, but the strength of a hero.

Portraits of women from this period would also be done in the veristic style, but not as intensely as their male counterparts. You can still see the agedness of this woman, and her distant expression of self-control, and dignity, but her wrinkles are not as deep and defined; she’s not meant to be as worldly as a man.

Some portraits will have individual elements mixed in with the verism. Take a look at Pompey, for instance.

He’s still keeping somewhat to the veristic style; you see from the wrinkles on his forehead and his mouth that he’s clearly meant to be seen as an older man, but his huge nose, round face and small eyes are personal traits that he really had- you see a statue from this period of time in Rome and you see that nose, there is no doubt that it’s depicting Pompey- but there’s also more to this portrait.

This is where we see some idealization start to slip back in. Take note of the hair; it’s reminiscent of Alexander the Great’s “Lion’s mane” that he’s pretty well-known for having. Pompey is choosing to depict himself with traits from Alexander, drawing a physical connection between himself and the great leader; embodying these traits and claiming them as his own, basically. He wants the viewer to associate him with Alexander the Great.

You’ll continue to see this with Caesar as well, the veristic style, but also the idealization. The idealization being him having a full head of hair, as he was reported to, uh, be balding, at least.

When we get to Augustus, he does away with verism entirely and fully embraces the classical Greek style of sculpture. He does this because he wants to connect his reign to that period of time in Greece; so right off the bat he’s making connections to legitimize himself.

Augustus’ portraits and architectural works are rife with propaganda, so that’s an entirely different beast that we don’t have time to go into, so we’ll just stick with busts and statues.

The first thing to mention about Augustus’ portraits is that he never ages. He died in his seventies, but he became emperor young, so his portraiture kept up the appearance of him as a younger man; this is part of that classicizing style, specifically the depictions of Greek deities, whom were shown to be eternally youthful. It obviously draws inspiration from Greece, as stated, but it also meant to convey his “godly heritage” due to his descension from Caesar, who was also “descended” from Venus. You can also usually tell when a statue of Augustus was made if you look at the feet. If he’s wearing sandals, it was made while he was still living, but if he’s barefoot, then that probably means it was after he died and was defied.

His skin is smooth, he has simple, sharp features which came to be associated with the julio-claudian line. These probably are not his true features- that idealization again- but the thing that identifies his statues the most is that lock of hair that looks like a crab claw. Remember that crab-claw. It will be back later.

A lot of his full body sculptures will include these little hints and nods to his heritage, as well as his various accomplishments and inclusions of other deities. These are promises for his reign. You see Tellus a lot, she was the goddess of the Earth, and Augustus used her image a lot to convey the bounty and peace he wanted associated with his reign.

As an aside: These statues were mainly meant as stand-ins for the emperors in question, as a lot of events needed the emperor to be physically present to do, so these statues and busts would be created en-masse and placed in different places so the emperor could technically be present.

Okay, back to it.

Remember those facial features Augustus generally depicted himself with? You should, because they’re gonna keep popping up for awhile.

Throughout the rest of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, every single emperor after Augustus will keep depicting themselves with these qualities. Tiberius, who ruled right after Augustus, did this as well, despite not even being related by blood to his predecessor.

Tiberius on the right, Augustus on the left.

They’re doing what Pompey did with Alexander the Great in his portrait: depicting themselves with features associated with Augustus to draw a connection to him, essentially drawing power from his influence.

In order, Nero, Claudius, Caligula.

We see this pattern throughout the Julio-Claudian line in portraits of Caligula, Nero, Claudius as well, though Claudius is unique in the fact that, while still using those features, he also chooses to return to verism in his portraiture, partly because he was older when he ascended, but mostly due to the fact that he’s trying to shake off the immediate association with Caligula by appearing as his opposite.

We subvert a little bit when we get to that period between the Julio-Claudians and the Flavians, when there were 5 different emperors in one year (which seems like nothing when we get to the soldier-emperors later). It’s a little bit of a return to verism, to try and shake off the chaos that was Nero.

This is Vespasian, he was considered the “anti-Nero”.

You’ll probably notice by now that a lot of emperors depict themselves in certain ways also as a direct response to their predecessors, basically going like “hey, I’m not like that guy.”

With the Flavian Dynasty, we see a semi-return to verism, the men don’t look as idealized as they were, but the women would continue to appear in that more, ageless, idealized state.

Hadrian comes along later and starts depicting himself with long hair and a beard. Hadrian loved Greek culture, so the hair and beard were meant to connect him with heroes and philosophers from that time, as well as to probably hide the facial blemishes he reportedly had.

The Antonine dynasty will be dominated by this “Hadrionatic look”, as well as still having that ageless, idealized look to (most of) them. We also see some head movement in these portraits, and the introduction of new, antonine features such as droopy eyelids, and arched brows.

Rinse and repeat, the emperors that followed with this dynasty will continue to use these features to connect themselves with each other, particularly Marcus Aurelius, whom you’ll see his features repeated with Lucius Veras, and Commodus. Commodus also drew inspiration from Hercules to imbue his image with heroic qualities.

From left to right, Marcus Aurelius, Lucius Veras, Commodus

Looks nothing like the Commodus from Gladiator.

This continues up until Septimius Severus, then gets flipped on its head when Caracalla happens.

His portraits are very militaristic in style, and vastly different from what we’ve been seeing. Short cropped hair and beard; he is also very distant from the viewer. Pretty much all portraiture up until this point engaged the viewer head on, but Caracalla’s neck is dramatically turned, his eyes staring up at the ceiling. He looks very cruel and suspicious, like he does not want you there. Fitting, He did kill his own brother so he could have sole rule. This is the most personality we see in a roman portrait, ever.

This high expressionism will continue for a while with the soldier emperors: this was a period of 49 years where 25 different emperors reigned. We don’t have portraits of many of them, aside from some coins, cause most of them didn’t live long enough to get to that point.

Most of this emotionalism is fueled by the rise in neoplatonic philosophy, which placed favor on emotions rather than physical characteristics.

Also, throughout this time we’ll see quite a bit of back and forth, a lot of “I’m not that guy” because soldier emperor portraits generally had 2 modes: either the more emotional Caracalla-esque appearances, or a return to classicism to evoke the feeling of Augustus’ glory age. These were usually used in direct response to the other.

Maximinus Thrax: Mode 1 Gallienus: Mode 2

When we finally reach the Tetrarchy, we are in complete abstractism. There are no more personality defining features, and it’s virtually impossible to tell who is who. Their faces are simplified, the only difference is that some have facial hair, and some are clean shaven; and this is only to identify who is the Augustus and who is the Caesar. We still see the eyes turned away from the viewer, keeping that distance between emperor and citizen. This is purposeful, it’s meant to convey the message that the individual is not important, the position is. All the figures look the same because they’re all ruling as one unit.

This abstraction is seen in Constantine’s portraits as well, the simplified face, the large eyes, the distant expression, but we see the hair has a little bit of detail, the comma-like look of Trajan, as well as the clean-shaven, youthful appearance of Augustus. Constantine, like so many before him, is drawing connections between himself and these past rulers, making a promise that his reign will be just as successful.

TLDR: None of these portraits reflect what these people actually looked like. They reflected values and traits that they wished to convey to the populace to instill a certain image about themselves and their subsequent reigns. They would even draw influence from past emperors and historical figures to convey the message about themselves that they wanted to convey.

#posts from the void #rome #ancient rome #I did this instead of working on the actual final paper I have to write for this class

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