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kjzx · 2 months

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An important thing to remember as an artist that started out drawing characters crudely and then started learning the fundamentals, at first your art will not look nice.

At first, drawing faces and bodies in different positions will make your characters look weird, then poor perspective will make your characters look weird, and finally when all the kinda things I mentioned above will be dealt with, just the hype of finally knowing how to draw anatomy will bite you in the ass because you can do all these things, you can draw them correctly or close to that, but whether that's figure drawing knowledge gaps, or awkwards poses/composition, or just not a very harmonious combination of realism and stylization in facial features or in general, but your before and after pictures might get this look of "clear objective technical improvement but many would consider it a downgrade"

That's a very common thing. I used to be in this before/after art community, and it was so toxic it was a meme within the community that no matter how much you've improved there will be people that will say that the before is better. There's a seed of truth to these words though, what they fundamentally get wrong is this implication that you "ruined your art"

That's a big example of why you shouldn't listen to non-art people for art advice. Keep going. You're closer to your art dreams than you ever were, you just need to look into all these things like the remaining knowledge gaps or personality to your art you might've lost as you were on your anatomy grind.

Keep creating, keep looking at art that inspires you and try to think of how to make yourself like your art better. Don't get stuck on it, if it begins being unfun, please do take a breather. Also, none of that is objective, people will still prefer things different to what you find beautiful. It's alright, create what you like, that's what this post is about. If you don't wanna, don't focus on aesthetics, just the process of creating art is fun and will eventually get you in the right place, that's what I do, I just occasionally throw in things I like and sometimes they work. Take care.

These are my current thoughts on the topic. I wouldn't take them too close to heart, this is just a blogging site and I'm blogin 👍

#Art #Art tips #Art community #Art advice #Technicality wise I have a very very long way to go #But as someone who finally started seeing and incorporating what I genuinely Like in my art it's a bit like opening my art #folder or sketchbook and kind of getting a feeling like I'm on a page of an artist I like and would actually follow #(Not bc of how I currently handle posting my art and how I choose pieces to post but I'm talking about my art archives so regardless)#An insane feeling #Also!!!!!#I chose not to include it in the post because it stood out against the main point of the post #but what the so-called Tumblr art style is all about is kind of related to this #Most of the people you'll see if you google Tumblr artstyle would have 'passable' or even 'decent' art #if they sticked to drawing thin anime girls with Eurocentric features #Current art idea floating around or almost like an unspoken rule:#If you wanna draw fat people/non Eurocentric features/disabilities or any minorities you gotta be a level above the people drawing today's #conventional beauty standards to be considered an equal to them among *gestures vaguely*#I hate that but that's something you have to keep in mind as you deal with art criticism #And as opposed to that #By harmonious in this post I mean very vague ideas and the many many ways you can stylize a real person #These are two ideas you can't detach from each other entirely but I do believe that we can discuss them separately #Just because a good drawing of an ethnic minority is going to be judged harsher than an opposite of that doesn't make it the worse drawing #Again that's why you gotta dismiss opinions of people who don't draw well and by that I'm obv talking artists better than me #Just getting that out of the way #//rambles #My thoughts on this whole topic inspired by this tweet that called the Tumblr art style too ambitious for the artists' skills and that #if anything that's something that should be praised in people #I thought that's a very interesting topic in a wider sense #I strayed away from it but as you might've noticed I wrote a post on the topic in the tags anyways #Sigh

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insertpinkchiphere · 3 months

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//I know Lambda has the potential to be a little freak on here, idk how to go about making him one though.

#//there's just vague vibes?? and idk where to go from there fnjmgnj #//maybe he can idk try to fit bigger things inside of him? short man hubris or something #//gesturing at him #//you get what i mean right?#recharging... {ooc}

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spacedlexi · 2 years

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If you could make one change to TWD s4 what would it be?

a 5th episode. the whole season felt pretty rushed especially the final episode with it being an hour shorter than the 3 other eps. it wouldve been nice for it to get the breathing room it deserved. i understand its highly likely due to the fact that telltale was in the middle of going under and likely didnt have the budget to do it similar to the length of s1, and i know a lot was cut, which is really unfortunate

when it was still airing and we didnt know how it was going to end, i was expecting there to be about a full episodes length of time dedicated to the delta, but we really only get the raid at the end of ep3 which is about 30? ish minutes? out of a 2 and a half hour episode... i really wanted more delta. i wanted to know more about the actual base (not the boat) and the war they were fighting and with who. it felt like they set it up to be something bigger but it just never payed off? the kids just blow up the boat and go home lol and the delta group is no more quite easily (someones gotta be wondering what happened to an entire crew of people + a small ferry that took multiple horses with it plus weapons and ammunition, that left to find recruits for a war they were losing??). while i really enjoy the end of ep3 (its very intense), i Really wanted for the delta to be harder to fight/escape. the delta works Fine as an antagonistic force for s4 the way it is currently, but it couldve been fleshed out more. having lilly as the head of it (or at least the head of the expedition?) helps to give it more of an emotional impact but it still left me wanting...

in the beginning of ep 3 abel talks to clem about doing whatever it takes to protect his home/family (and how clem can relate to that, and how they are on opposite ends of the battle still fighting for the same thing). i wouldve liked to actually SEE more of this home and whats so worth kidnapping children and turning them into soldiers to fight for it. like they talk about how it actually seems like a pretty strong community with running water/food/heat/beds/walls/etc, like they try to make it a little bit of a grey area, but also they are making child soldiers which is...not very grey.... like we know theyve kidnapped kids in the past, and from the conversation with lilly it sounds like they take people of all ages with some sort of frequency. how does a group like that function? its definitely through fear and not loyalty. how many people are there willingly? how big is this community? is lilly the one in charge of the delta or does she also hold fear to someone higher up than her? is the only thing worth saving about this community the fact that it has created a "safe" place with bountiful resources? but is that worth saving/is it really safe if everyone there lives in fear? and how strong can a community actually be if ran only through fear?

these are not questions that are ever really asked let alone answered, and moreso are just given the middle finger to while the kids just focus on getting their friends back (which in fairness i guess still makes sense for a bunch of kids who dont care and are making their own community built around supporting/helping each other since they were all abandoned by the people who were supposed to take care of them (first their families then the school faculty). they dont give a shit they just want their friends back and fuck you die). it just feels like there was an Attempt to set something up, but they didnt have the time for a real payoff, and therefore just made them Evil... like we couldve put a little bit more of a focus on how both the delta and ericsons are fighting for the safety of their homes, but the delta is built around fear and force while ericsons is built around community and support and love

minnie is the most interesting part of the delta and its because of how conflicting she is as a character/how shes an example of this stark difference between ericsons and the delta, since she goes from being a supposedly sweet/non violent person at ericsons to being completely brain broken by the delta to the point that she kills her sister who dissented against the group. sophie wanted to go home to ericsons, minnie was brainwashed into fighting for this new community to the point she saw it as her new home, and wants the rest of the kids to be there with her, since she thinks its safer for them at the delta than ericsons as long as you "do what youre told", and she wants to kill clem because she sees her as getting in the way of this goal even tho the other kids dont want it either. AGAIN there are bits of set up here and there but the contrast between the communities feels more like a good/bad dichotomy instead of asking interesting questions

LIKE all of these aspects ARE THERE i just wanted them doubled down on a bit. with how vaguely bad the delta is they just feel like generic villain instead of something more interesting that had been alluded to with abel and how hes also just fighting to keep the home he cares about safe. again we only get about?? an hour? hour and a half? in total throughout the season dealing directly with the delta. they couldve used more fleshing out

and to completely change the topic if we got a little more time in s4 then the party scene in ep 3 wouldnt have been cut down lol. i think kent confirmed that there was supposed to be a chance to walk around and talk to everyone, but you can just tell since the camera pulls back like it usually does when you enter gameplay after a cutscene, but then it just cuts to another cutscene 😔 every time i play it makes me sad knowing what could have been. i feel like with the atmosphere of having "one last party" before everyone could possibly get taken/die in like 6 hours wouldve led to some interesting conversations

#OOF didnt mean to ramble on about the delta like that............. but i really wanted the delta to be more fleshed out and it just...wasnt #and they ended up being pretty flat when they had the potential to be pretty interesting #and couldve contrasted ericsons more obviously instead of only being lightly touched upon #twdg #replies with lexi #incognito #long post #sorry for the essay 💀#like i was expecting a big climax with the delta but its over pretty quickly #SORRY im sure this post is slightly incoherent i rambled too much and now im too tired to edit it into something more concise #*gestures vaguely* you get what i mean #hoo boy....this is long...........im sorry for doing this to your dashes #im posting this now before i keep adding more #ive already deleted about 3 paragraphs #👀💦

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monty-glasses-roxy · 8 months

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Good morning to this doozy of a question!

(I'll answer soon bare with I may have gone off in the tags again about why not now whoops)

#/genuine. good morning this is an interesting one #by doozy i mean i haven't gone over this myself in forever #and not at ALL for this version #please hold while i refamiliarise myself with my own au lore lmao #... and also maybe tweak it #because it recently hit me where to take this au #i have a structure and an ending in mind now which i kinda didn't before #well i did but it wasn't quite as... /gestures vaguely/#don't get me wrong ruin meteors ending is not concrete #but it's narratively satisfying to me with the new structure #needs a lot of work to get it where i want it still #this structure? complicated. not something I've tried before #AND i don't want to LOSE what had previously made Meteors... well Meteors #but yeah now that i have a narratively satisfying ending hopefully for the WHOLE structure #and not just half #it's a good idea to go back and maybe update this #i have an actual GOAL for the story now that ties up what the POINT of half of the structure is #and i didn't have that when i started so yeah gotta go over that #if you read this far in the tags then Hi!!!#thank you for the reminder i needed to do this!!!

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caffeinatedopossum · 1 year

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I'm ngl everytime I see a post that's just terf discourse (like a terf arguing with someone) I get that awkward feeling like I walked in on something I wasn't supposed to. Like when you stay at a friend's house as a kid and their mom and dad straight up just start yelling at their kid or each other 👀 like I am here, witnessing this. Just yknow... just in case you care. You look ridiculous and I have no idea what you're talking about

#like i obviously do not like terfs (terfs unfollow me right now) but i also have no idea what theyre even trying to say ever #so it makes it a little harder to hate them. just because im not entirely sure what they're saying i just know that it sounds roundabout af #and shady as hell. sometimes they say stuff thats just straight up awful and transphobic but usually its like #weirdly veiled bad takes. like ??#'im not saying if youre trans you should die in a fire but you dont identify with your birth sex in a way that i dont like #you should consider it'#like thats what everything they say sounds like and i just dont get it. like are you aware #just. are you aware. not sure what you should be aware of but just *gestures vaguely* i think you should be more aware of it #just because you say youre not saying something that doesnt actually mean you cant be saying it. like are you aware of that?#it makes it to where im not sure if theyre lying or just straight up confused as hell #cause im confused for sure

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erstwhilesparrow · 2 years

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trying to put some thoughts in order. under the cut for length.

0: soulmates as straightforward romantic trope

i mean, i get it. sometimes i get sad and go read the sappiest, shippiest, fluffiest fic i can find and it does help. (and yeah, i know it's more complicated than that sometimes but this isn't the point.) it'd be really fucking nice if there was someone out there 'meant for you'. convenient. a little less lonely. someone who gets it when no one else does. someone you can be sure of. someone you can pour your whole heart into, knowing you're doing exactly what you're meant to.

1: soulmates as assigned seating

no frills or bells. you meet them and you know and that's it. what you do with that information is entirely up to you. is it any different from group project assignments handed out by a teacher? is it any different from meeting a person and deciding you like them enough to stick around? what undeniable truth can mark something as ephemeral as a relationship? is it nice just to have someone or something else make the choice for you? would you have even looked at each other without the prompting? did you fail to look at others because you were not prompted? do you wish it was someone else but resign yourself to this anyway because it's not like it matters, you don't have to choose to stick with them? does that become half the reason you're still here, because you could still leave any day now?

2: soulmates as unwelcome imposition

a reaction to an unpleasant intrusion on your life. something binds you to them, and it doesn't feel right or good or any of the things soulmate is supposed to mean when people tell you about those. can you get rid of it? if it can, what does it mean that something supposed to tie you together forever can be removed? if it can't, can you love someone when given no choice? what can you hold on to that is solely your own, once a relationship begins to define you? where do you fit into the worlds of people who are not bothered? do you overcorrect in the other direction and hurt someone who did not mean to inflict this on you? are you being less harsh than you should be because you have been told this is supposed to be good, because you know what it will look like? what will you be made to do to "make up for it"? what evidence will you have to collect to prove you don't want or need this?

3: soulmates as unforgiving want

that thing where you don't realize you're hungry until you're presented with food, but with a whole person, and there is no satisfying that particular hunger. did they meet you and find you lacking? are you somehow lacking because you cannot be sated by what has been given to you? or is it instead that it is supposed to wear on you like this? would you have been this discomfited if it had never been pointed out to you what you could have had? how do you moderate your expectations back to "reasonable", if such a thing exists when it comes to soulmates? will any relationship you have after this measure up now that you know the depth and intensity of feeling you are capable of? have you ruined every pleasure you could experience by indulging too much here? have you ruined it for yourself by refusing to take? does it really get worse the longer you hold back? are you refusing to let go, to let time soothe this ache for you?

4: soulmates as unremarkable prologue

it works. it's good, actually. it's how you met. no preconceptions, only both your futures ahead of you. is this better than all of your previous relationships? what makes it better? would you call any of those previous relationships "real" love now? who did you leave behind in going through with this? do you wish you could have had this sooner? would you rather have had them all your life? is all of this more real because you followed the rules? what might have happened if you had pushed in any direction other than the one you were meant to? could you have done this with another person, a different one that no one chose except you? are you relieved to have the uncertainty taken away from you? do you feel there is another uncertainty about how willing you would have been to care for this person if you hadn't started this relationship knowing? are you going to ask your soulmate these questions? what are you relying on to keep the two of you together?

5: soulmates as pretty veneer

it looks like it works. maybe for a little while it even does. but something's going wrong, though it wouldn't look it from the outside. can you pin it down, to the day, to the hour, to the second? can there be a satisfaction to seeing clearly your coming end? can true love of the kind you were told stories of be like a chain? were you kind of expecting it to be? does true love go sour in that way, or were you always faking it? are you faking it now? are you faking it well enough? is it a kind of love still, to look the enemy of your enemy in the eyes and agree to their proposal? do you understand the shape of your mutual adversary? are you too busy making it all look right so you can finally get that happiness you were promised? do you believe it, when other people say they want what you have? do you believe that they could? do you believe it could have ever worked out? does believing anything help with the reality of it?

6: soulmates as open wounds

you can't forget them; you aren't allowed to. the mark it leaves on you is obvious, and the absence of your other half even more so. does being told you were born incomplete make it so? is there really something wrong with you? does being hurt by something meant to help mean you're the one who failed? is there something to fail? in what ways do people find themselves indelibly bound to one another for the worse? is it better than forgetting, than being forgotten? does defiance come easier from this? is this punishment for defiance? what do the people who look at you say about that visible absence? will you look past them to something outside their concerns? is there anything out there? is this safer in its consistency?

7: soulmates as puppets that can see their own strings

the question is not one of circumstance or of compatibility or of care. the question is structural, is composed of people pressing buttons and flicking levers in a system where they will never see the end result. does it need to be two? does it need to be love? are any of the words you're using to describe this relationship necessary to talking about what is happening to you? how deeply embedded in romance is the language around relationships? does this simplify aspects of your navigation around and into each other's lives? does it smooth away important nuances? do you find yourself wishing for uglier words to describe this situation? do you find those words? do you find the script? do you recognize it for what it is, or will you keep playing the role it sets out for you? what story ends up getting told here? what does it mean for you?

#sparrowsong #is this. do you get what i'm saying here??#'i am going to be direct and straightforward this time' i said.#'i will not hide my meaning behind several layers of half-finished thoughts and sideways metaphors' i said.#'it will make sense and have answers' i said.#sweet fucking stars.#if i keep doing this i'm going to have to actually come up with a working definition of soulmates #i think there *is* something i'm specifically referring to when i say soulmates but it's not defined well enough to. like.#do more than gesture vaguely with #anyway if you read all that i will accept reading recommendations #the closest you will ever get to falling in love

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partyinthemysterymachine · 1 year

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if you know, you know!! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

#my art #and i don't make the rules here!!#this is OLD ART. from like. Last Year. when i was Still getting my Art Bearings back lmao #i need to be drawing some ref ideas for a commission i'm trying to pursue and then i opened up this #hands on hips. just bc i have adderall now doesnt mean i always get to do what i want LOL #anyway. vague gesturing. If You Know--

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isalabells · 2 years

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aahhh babe, ‘tis thee age old story once more. Guess the setting has changed (lmao) @notajoinerofthings but everything else remains the same 🤩:’) 💕 (sorry I wanted to post this ever since this exchange happened in... 2016? Still need to put it up in my about bc I adore it. Also boy I truly never change my icon huh)

#notajoinerofthings #it's like we d o be in the vicinity of same interests (German tv or British weirdos or Hörspiel stuff)#we just rarely direct our love towards the very same object of affection in that area #and it literally never happens at the same time [vague hand gesture] case in point where we're once more diametrically opposed #I suppose when I decide to get back in touch with German tv will be when you temporarily opt out fjskskd #that being said I am once more a week late with the podcast but expect an ask update this week #a painful one bc it's Wecker time and you know what that means resp what they will be discussing #misc

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kavehater · 6 days

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Truthfully it would be easier if I just isolate myself from everyone simply because after so long of just shoving things down and being told to shove things down and being told to get over it and stop being sensitive I’ve become so much more sensitive after being so unfeeling and it’s ruining everything

Not even having aventurine could fix this 😔🙏 LOLLL

#I cannot go a single day without that stomach drop feeling #for instance when someone says something vaguely allusive to another #when someone says something mean to someone else #when someone casually mentions something #that I have yearned for for so long or just genuinely really really want like it’s nothing and I’m like oh .#and the things I refer to are not material really they’re just some aspect of friendship #most of the time #Eris’ situation forced me to put a lid on me feeling this way so I can be more selfless to the struggles of others #I remember my heart just dropping when I was on the dash late at night and just seeing her talking with this one girl while she was activel #ignoring me and truthfully I got scared of myself for feeling that way because it felt sinful to be upset at something like that #I was so ashamed #but now this is daily #to me being friends doesn’t need such grand gestures I think truly the depth of things is measured the lack of hesitation to do the smalles #things #and truthfully I can do this for as many people as needed but it wouldn’t really be reciprocated #and it’s fine; me doing anything is kinda an act of charity I’m not expecting something back from someone specific #I just wish god could reward me with someone of my own is all #as the days go by I don’t even know how much more I can tolerate before things go awry #permanently #but I just get this feeling I won’t be around to find out what being normal feels like #I know life is unfair and acknowledge that I’m the first to do so #but there is no way it’s this unfair #it’s almost like knocking on a hollow object and you expect to hear some echo or reverberation but even that aspect is empty and soundless #uhhh yeah #so that’s on how I have such embarrassing and bad coping mechanisms #dora daily #because I genuinely do not feel comfort anymore with anything except a few random things and even those are constantly ruined #it’s why I can’t concentrate because I seek out those comfort activities just so I don’t panic but I get comfortable #but it’s too comfortable and doing anything apart from said things makes me panic again so I’m just stuck in a loop

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pyrrhiccomedy · 2 months

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So I've been learning French for a while and 'faire' is actually an incredible word. Like what a fucking breakthrough in economy of language.

Faire is a verb that is usually translated into English as "to do/to make," but it covers way more actions than that, which is very confusing for new speakers. because (I have realized) that's not really what faire means.

Faire is actually a word that just gestures vaguely in the direction of the object of the sentence and goes "you know." "Je fais du velo." "Je fais du courses." "Je fais mes valises." I'm biking. I go grocery shopping. I'm packing my bags. You're just sort of pointing at a bike and going "you know, the obvious thing you'd do with it."

English: "You mean RIDE it??"

French: "Sure whatever."

Like idk I just really enjoy the concept of a catch-all verb that you can just slap onto almost anything because who fucking gives a shit, you get the idea. There's a bike. what do you think I'm going to do with it.

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weirdmageddon · 8 months

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i love these tags this person is so right

actually, can you imagine if dave was raised by B1 roxy?

i wanna get into this actually

(ok i had to spend a few hours rewriting this because IT DIDNT FUCKING SAVE AFTER FIVE HOURS OF WRITING WHEN MY COMPUTER UPDATED WHILE I WAS AFK so it would mean a lot to show this post some appreciation. i LOVEEE hearing what other people have to say)

even though these things mom does are presented in an extravagant, kitsch, jokey way, her intentions always came from a place of sincerity. she is simply Funnie

but rose reads too far into it and assumes things that aren't there, that her mother is passive-aggressively feigning interest in rose's interests simply because the things she does are so extra. "why do all of this if not to mock me"

im telling you right now if dave lived in this household he wouldn't assume antagonism, he'd go,

don’t forget who LITERALLY patented tangible jpeg artifacts as their post-scratch adult self and scattered shitty scummed up statue of liberties all over the planet. theres no way some of that overboard artful shit wasnt post-ironic / circling back around to genuine funny sincerity

dave's natural state is funny sincerity like roxy. he's had the natural capacity for this type of humor from the start and this is the direction he goes towards when he grows out of his brother's shadow by the end of the comic. dave and roxy share an earnest “so bad its good” type of humor

(lots more under the cut; the length of this meta analysis just got unwieldly with all the pictures and whatnot)

despite the alcoholism, roxy is a supportive mother. she's not the ideal guardian but hells of a lot more supportive of her kid than bro is. if she knew dave's interests she would totally indulge in them with some over the top silly goofy haha shit as a genuine gesture simply because she loves him

rose isn't too keen on it though. but she is more similar to dirk in her natural state of thinking of overthinking shit and assuming the worst, like the tags said

and yes dave got the sweet cuddly yet sometimes backhanded ouppy gene from roxy, probably even moreso lol

roxy's even said rose "sounds like girl dirk"

side tangent here, but this is something i wanna talk about.

i dont think bro should ever be in custody of children ever but if theres anyone who would be up to the task it's rose probably. i know she'd be able to keep up with him. not only does she have a defined personality (dave is more malleable and absorbs his environment like a sponge), if anyone can pick apart B1 dirk's batshit brain and probably be right on the money it's her. lil cal has been pumping patriarchal nonsense into bro's head and rose would be able to bring the fucking facts to the table without losing her own and being a living example of a badass little girl. i also don't think bro would try to force masculine roles onto rose like he did with dave, seeing as she is a girl, so she would actually have more of a leg up and get some passes that dave was never afforded. and rose wouldn't stand idly and accept any bullshit; she is no doormat. and i think this would earn bro's respect

but anyway, from this, couldn't we conclude roxy "sounds like girl dave"?

yeah okay. we havent even gotten into their penchant for funny typos or misspeaks, deliberate or otherwise

so, dave's environment

the sentiment "god you hope you can be as good as your bro at this some day" might have been genuine at the time when he idolized bro but of course he's not able to express that in any sort of sincere fashion because he's in dirk's fucking household. and this level 10 irony shit isnt doing dave any favors

his role models were the Internet and a vague idea of what Bro was like. So he built up his facade based on irony–not the literary definition of irony, as Rose might be quick to point out, but a popular concept of irony based on the idea that things that didn’t make sense actually made sense in some roundabout way. As a master of irony, Dave probably reasoned, he could see in a way other people couldn’t why a world that was scary and didn’t make sense really did make sense, and could therefore convince those people that he was superior to them. And he would wield his knowledge to maintain the appearance of superiority by calling everything ironic and pretending he didn’t care about things that didn’t make sense, and he would use walls of vaguely rhyming words to keep everyone at arm’s length so they wouldn’t discover his insecurities (source)

roxy's style is the embodiment of post-irony. being raised by mom lalonde would be like being raised by joel vinesauce ok

what can i say ….. (getting meta about this actually, hussie got these jpeg wizard wallpapers from a spyware website. link takes some time to load because internet archive)

rose is quick to read post-irony as actually being a joke/insincere, which in bro's case would be true. but i believe dave's natural instinct, outside of the influence of bro, is to read post-irony as genuine, which is exactly how mom serves it. we see this as early as act 3 from him; he understands her motives better than rose does herself:

and in act 6 intermission 2 i think it's pretty clear

but the thing is, it's always genuine from her. dave wouldn't have to second guess it because he's not one to naturally second guess someone's sincerity; that was learned due to his bro being virtually unassailable

there two types of ironies at play here:

seems like a joke, is actually genuine (roxy)

doesnt seem like a joke, is actually a joke (dirk)

you can make the argument that the second is is more psychologically destructive because it makes you question the reality of what is genuine sentiment and what isn't. dave never knew what was genuine and what was irony so he just sort of existed in this sincerity-ironic limbo and always did the opposite of what he genuinely felt on principle even if it always did originate from a genuine place.

"it just a joke bro i was just being ironic i dont actually x" is so much more trust-breaking and psychologically damaging than "wait are you being serious" / "i am being so fucking fr rn davy gravy" / "ok thats actually pretty fucking awesome. giant ass wizard statue" / "RIGHT"

how much about dave would change do you think? his character arc would be completely different for one thing, i think he'd have it good aside from mom's alcohol issues. he'd be left with the sweet and funny parts of him that we see at the end of the comic. the fake coolguy stuff is out, but this remains. this is dave in his element and we see it as early as act 1

he'd probably have no shades growing up in the lalonde residence* either cause those were given to him by bro straight out of the crater as an extension of his own cool image. and john gave dave ben stiller’s aviators for his 13th birthday to replace them so he could “spread his wings”

dave said he was wearing them for the ironies but i kind of doubt it. maybe post-irony but there was some reacharound to it being genuine because dave never put those pointy anime shades on his face again.

*though... it’s kind of hard to imagine him without his shades at all? B2 dave still got stiller’s shades from stiller himself so maybe getting them is a universal constant. i can imagine mom getting him them as a birthday gift cause shes pretty wealthy and probably could buy it out in an auction. but also itd be cool if john still gave him it as a gift

dave is actually a lot more genuine and easy to read than he lets on even when grappling with his upbringing with B1 dirk (again, see this post). this can be seen all throughout he comic but a good example is the evolution of thoughts about his interest in the preserved dead things in his room:

if B1 roxy was dave's guardian he probably WOULD have pursued paleontology because she wouldve indulged him in it and probably find it cool and worthwhile to pursue, instead of allowing dave to flounder under ironic detachment, being poisoned by irony to the point of gaslighting himself into believing he doesnt actually believe he thinks this shit is cool. even if it was indulged in this such a way; a superficially kitsch and ironic appearing presentation, it comes from a genuine place and inspires genuine interest. just read the comments.

basically, i think if B1 roxy raised dave, their relationship would have a surface level appearance of being bizarre or over-the-top but they’d have an unsaid mutual understanding that it’s completely in earnest and just build on each other's funny and absurd gestures of affection. rather than seeing it as one-upping each other, it'd more like collaboration of some silly bullshit that you take a step back and look at full and just say, "fucking incredible"

speaking of paleontology, mom had the proto-ectobiology lab. maybe they'd be able to use the equipment to appearify paradox ghost imprints of the dead shit to create paradox clones of things from the cambrian era??? sounds like a fun mother son bonding activity. and theyd actually put the sciencey shit in the household to use

oh god i know exactly the kinds of music shed listen too also growing up as a teen in the 80s. she on that (post)-punk/art rock/new wave/new romantic mtv stuff. XTC shit fr. this is a B-52S HOUSEHOLD. maybe the associates for the campy melodramatic flair. so he gets to keep the record on his shirt cause he is an enjoyer of the shit in her vinyl collection. dave would still gravitate towards musical expression and music itself but of more variety outside of just rap, with an 80s-90s, even 70s flavor due to mom’s influence. see this for perhaps a glimpse. she probably visited new york city a lot for business trips and because the music scene was cool as hell around that time, imports came straight from jfk airport, she probably got in on that a bit and have remnants in the form of vinyls and cassettes. in this way she could be distributing void to dave (influencing him with forgotten / presently irrelevant music). now he can REALLY rave about bands none of his friends have heard of. “hey davy grvay watcha listenin to” (he holds up vinyl cover) “omg snakefinger”

btw dave lalonde would look like this to me

#homestuck #homestuck meta #dave strider #mom lalonde #roxy lalonde #hs #strilonde guardian swap

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pucksandpower · 19 days

Text

A Crime Against Fashion

Charles Leclerc x fashion designer!Reader

Summary: you love Charles more than life itself, but everyone has a breaking point … and yours is those damn pants

You stride into the spacious open-concept living room of the luxury apartment you share with your boyfriend, tossing your leather tote onto the couch with a huff. Another long day of design meetings and fittings for your upcoming spring collection has left you completely drained.

But your frustration isn’t just from work stress this time. No, it’s those blasted pants again.

As if on cue, Charles emerges from the bedroom wearing the dreaded blue and white tie-dye atrocities that have been your nemesis for weeks now. You can’t hold back a small groan of exasperation.

“What’s wrong, mon cœur?” Charles asks with his trademark lopsided smile, those warm emerald-colored eyes crinkling at the corners.

You gesture helplessly at the offending garment. “Charles … those pants. They’re just … how can I put this delicately? A crime against fashion.”

He glances down at the loose-fitting psychedelic nightmares, seemingly oblivious to their ugliness. “What do you mean? I think they’re kind of funky.”

“Funky?” You echo incredulously. “That’s one word for them, I suppose. Hideously unstylish is another.”

Charles pouts, sticking out his full lower lip in that irresistible way he knows gets you flustered. “But chérie, I really like them. They’re so comfy and casual.”

You shake your head adamantly, trying not to get distracted by how criminally attractive he looks even in those ridiculous pants. “No, nope. As your girlfriend and a designer, I simply cannot allow you to go out in public wearing those any longer. It’s a matter of principle!”

He raises an eyebrow skeptically. “Oh? And just what do you plan to do about it, hmm?”

A mischievous grin tugs at the corners of your mouth. “Well, I do have a few ideas …” You lunge toward him playfully.

With a yelp of surprise, Charles dodges out of the way, those long legs carrying him across the living room as you give chase. You laugh breathlessly, finally managing to catch him and wrap your arms around his slender waist from behind.

“Quit running away from me, Leclerc!” You tease, nuzzling against the back of his neck. “You know this is for your own good.”

Charles twists around in your arms until you’re face to face. His expression is one of feigned indignation but you can see his warm green eyes are dancing with amusement. “I will not be bullied about my clothing choices by you, Y/N Y/L/N! These pants are staying and that’s final!”

You answer by promptly planting a line of teasing kisses along the sharp line of his jaw, making him shiver. “Is that so? We’ll see about that, pretty boy.”

That evening, you make a point to avoid looking at or even acknowledging the offensive pants for the rest of the night. At one point, Charles good-naturedly tries to get a rise out of you by draping the tie-dyed nightmares over the back of the couch right in your line of sight. But you simply turn your nose up with an overdramatic harrumph, refusing to take the bait.

“Very mature,” Charles chuckles from beside you on the couch, his knee brushing against yours in that casual yet intimate way.

You shoot him a pointed look from the corner of your eye. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. I’m simply refusing to lend any credibility to those … those …” You wave a hand vaguely in the direction of the pants hanging over the couch.

“You mean my pants?” Charles supplies helpfully, that infuriatingly charming grin stretching across his full lips.

“Ugh, don’t even call them that! Actual pants deserve more respect.” You lean your head against the back of the couch in exasperation.

Charles scoots closer until his side is flush against yours. He cups your jaw in one of those large, calloused racing hands and gently turns your face until you’re meeting his molten gaze. “You’re just jealous that I look better in them than you ever could, mon amour.”

His teasing words further ignite the spark of competitive spirit smoldering in your chest. With a surge of determination, you press a slow kiss to the corner of his mouth. “Challenge accepted, Leclerc.”

Two nights later, as Charles arrives back at the apartment after a grueling day of training, he immediately notices that something is … off.

He pads through the living room toward the bedroom, brow furrowed in confusion at the odd scattering of fabric scraps and loose threads on the floor. Your sewing machine is set up on the dining table, various rattles and clanks echoing from the bedroom.

“Y/N?” He calls out hesitantly. “Everything okay in there?”

You poke your head out from around the bedroom doorway, cheeks flushed and hair slightly askew. But your eyes are bright with mischief. “Charles! You’re home, perfect. Come in here for a second?”

With a shrug, he follows you into the bedroom. Only to stop dead in his tracks, jaw dropping almost comically. There on the floor in a tattered, unrecognizable heap of fabric are … his beloved tie-dye pants. The ones you had so vehemently loathed.

“Y/N, what … how … why …” he splutters, seemingly at a loss for words as he crouches down and gingerly runs a finger over the ragged remnants.

Resting your hands on your hips, you try not to look too triumphant. “What can I say? The cat got to them.”

Charles’ brows knit together in confusion. “We don’t have a cat, mon ange.”

Oops. Think fast.

“Well, uh, I was actually cat-sitting for Max today! You know how crazy Jimmy and Sassy can be. Those little balls of fluff must have gotten a hold of your pants and just went to town on them.”

You shrug innocently, the very picture of wide-eyed virtue. “Who can blame them, really? I warned you those pants were a crime against nature itself.”

For a long beat, Charles simply stares at the remains of his pants, then at you, eyes narrowed. You can practically see the realization dawning on his stupidly handsome face. Before he can call you out, you pivot on your heel.

“Anyway!” You clear your throat. “Since those pants were so adamantly beloved by you, I decided to give the fabric a little … redesign. Just to prove my point.” You turn back toward him, dropping the robe you had wrapped around yourself, to reveal your new creation. “What do you think?”

Charles’ breath seems to catch in his throat as you reveal the vibrant blue and white tie-dye fabric, repurposed into a sleek mini-skirt that hugs your curves in all the right ways. You punctuate the look by posing with one hand on your cocked hip, letting the skirt’s flirty hem swish teasingly.

“Well?” You raise an eyebrow challengingly, unable to keep the triumphant smirk from tugging at the corners of your mouth. “I believe you said something about looking better in those pants than me?”

To Charles’ credit, he recovers his powers of speech relatively quickly, running one hand through those tousled chestnut curls. “Y/N, you … you look …” He seems to struggle to find the words, green eyes raking over your figure appreciatively. "Incroyable. Magnifique."

You feel your cheeks warming at his praise, suddenly grateful for your impromptu redesign. “So I’ll take that as a point proven then?” You prod teasingly.

Charles finally tears his heated gaze from your body to meet your eyes, crossing the room in a few long strides until he’s crowding into your personal space. You catch your breath as his calloused hands settle on the curve of your waist, fingers brushing tantalizingly over the tie-dye fabric.

“More than proven, mon amour,” he rumbles in that low, gravelly tone that never fails to make your pulse kick up a notch. “I stand corrected — this fabric was absolutely meant for you and you alone.”

Before you can react with more than a breathless giggle, he dips his head to capture your lips in a searing kiss that leaves you dizzy and melting against the hard planes of his chest.

As you slowly break away trying to catch your breath, a wicked grin curves your lips. Placing your palms flat against Charles’ chest, you lean back just enough to meet his lidded, lust-blown gaze.

“You know …” you murmur, trailing a fingertip down the taut line of his throat and relishing the way his eyes darken further. “Now that I’ve refashioned those pants into this skirt, I believe that means they’re officially off-limits for you to wear. Unless …”

You bite your lower lip coyly, letting the implication hang in the air. Charles cocks an eyebrow, a rakish smirk of his own playing about those full lips as he catches your meaning.

“Unless what, ma belle?” His voice is thick with undisguised longing as he pulls you flush against him once more.

Stretching up on your tiptoes, you brush a feather-light kiss to that sharp, stubbly jawline. “Unless you’d fancy giving this skirt a spin for me sometime, Mr. Leclerc,” you practically purr into the heated space between your bodies. “Because I can absolutely get behind that look on you.”

Charles throws back his head with a rich peal of laughter, the sound reverberating through you. As his hands roam possessively over the tie-dye fabric now molded to your curves, you decide you’ll have to put in a request to see that particular fashion show very soon.

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