photo saturday: shadow guy

Sometimes you just end up with the most basic or perhaps most on-the-nose version of a character when you're fucking around. So today's DnD Character Colouring Book is dedicated to that idea.

It started, as many things do, with the idea of a sorcerer. A Shadow Sorcerer specifically. And so, the most on-the-nose version of that is a shadow-skinned tiefling wearing all black/dark grey.

I don't hate it as an idea. I also worked out, after the fact, that if I used him as a replacement character for the Friday night game, he would absolutely be part of Mr Grumpypants' backstory in some way and the two of them would potentially hate each other.

Anyway...

This week's soup was beef and rice... and very thick, because I put not only the rice but also some cornflower, because it was a little thin before I did that. Yeah, turns out two different thickening agents make for thick soup, who would have guessed.

Thursday Night DnD was good... between the massive amounts of rain that had continued throughout the day. But DM Fluffy pulled a bait and switch on my character, which made me [confused labrador face.gif] both during the game, directly after the game and the day after the game. So, you know, the same thing I did to him during Witchlight.

The less said about the fact that I then came home and managed to spill milk all over the kitchen counter and floor and then had to mop and clean and it was a whole thing and didn't end up being able to do what I was going to do with the milk... the better.

Friday was Chiro Day, so, there's that.

Friday Night wasn't DnD... but it was Slightly Unfulfilling Board Game Night. And I can't even be salty about it, because it was my choice of board game and it was just a little... m'eh. And then we followed that up not actually playing a game but just asking each other pop culture trivia questions from the cards. Can I remember the name of the game? No. It was green though. Oh, there it is... it was Geek Out.

So basically we sat around asking questions like "Two Comic Book Characters with Red Hair" (Wally West/Kid Flash, Roy Harper/Arsenal, Jimmy Olsen, M'gann M'orzz/Miss Martian, Mera, Kate Kane/Batwoman, Archie Andrews, etc) or "Two Named Disney Kings/Princes" (Prince Eric, Prince Charming, King Stefan, Prince Adam (Beast), King Fergus, etc). Which was fun. Even if I disagreed with the game's stated interpretation of "franchise".

Anyway...

Today was more or less a rerun of last weekend. Although we did go to the new Coles in Norwood... which is lovely and shiny and new and it still won't make me want to shop there, but it's good that it's there for those times when the Foodland doesn't have specific things I want.

Then we did a brief trip to a different Kmart, in order to try and find something for Ma that it turns out nobody has because it's on clearance. So that was a lot of sound and fury signifying not much of anything.

photo friday: hot boy warlock

So, sometimes you just fuck around and make a Hot Boy Sorcerer... and then later you think... how about that, but recoloured and rethemed as a warlock.

Which is how we started out with Sabola Black (and when I looked up what the name Sabola meant, I discovered that Past Me is an asshole, because it means "pepper"... so... basically Black Pepper)... and end up with Lucca LeClaire. And Lux. And then realise that you probably don't really want a warlock for your backup character. But at least this one is more of a fully formed idea.

Also, I need to make a character who has a pseudodragon familiar at some point. Because 75% of the warlocks I design end up as Pact of the Chain and 75% of those end up with pseudodragons. What can I say... tiny dragons are my jams.

I am leaning very much in a sorcerer direction though for an actual back up.

Anyway.

I think I said this last time, but part one of the secret of Pea and Ham soup is mint. I mean, you know, beyond the obvious. And part two, now that I can't easily get my hands on ham steaks, using kransky as the ham portion works really well.

It was good soup.

Thursday Night DnD also happened. So, mark that one down in your notebooks. Granted, we'll be off the first Thursday in July, but fingers crossed we might be able to make it to that point. The game itself was decent... some bandits learned that when they get told they should walk away, they should walk away. Also, I would have been in a lot of trouble without some temporary hit points I got.

Friday... everybody decided that they didn't want to play with me. So, it was supposed to be Chiro Day, but I got a message first thing to say that my Chiro was sick. So that's going to be next Friday instead.

And then Mr cancelled Friday Night DnD at about 4pm. So I had freshly baked bread to dip in my soup.

Anyway.

Today was things and also stuff.

Supermarket. I'm making up a beefy tomato-y soup this week, so wish me luck with that. We also somehow saved more money than we've saved in weeks at the supermarket and also spent more money. So I don't know what happened there.

Then we wanted to go to Kmart because I wanted some slippers. And came away with many really warm things. So bonus points there. My feet are currently very warm.

So, that's that.

movies: spider-man - across the spider-verse

I'm still slightly annoyed that I never got the opportunity to see Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse in cinemas. Because I was blown away when I finally saw it.

So, believe me when I say that Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse knocks that first movie completely on it's ass as far as visuals are concerned.

It is not hyperbole to say that legitimately any single still from this movie is an absolute work of art. You could also play this movie with no sound or no dialogue (well, maybe keep the music) and it would not only work, but it would be beautiful to look at.

Also, something something, there will be spoilers of a mild variety.

I can very much track the moment when I realised "oh, this movie is going to be breathtaking"... and that was when the Da Vinci Vulture showed up in Spider Gwen's universe. It's not a spoiler, it literally happens almost at the start of the movie.

But just looking at every single different art style that is blended and merged and overlaid and still feels like a coherent visual theme but at the same time being legitimately different and unique. They did it with the first movie, but that was other styles stepping into the consistent world of Miles' art style. This is taking Miles and the others into multiple different universes and realising that Spider Gwen's universe is water colours (there is a moment when her backgrounds start to run... that is... breathtaking), whereas Miles lives in a halftone dots universe, but it's also the tiny things like the very specific way that Jessica Drew Spiderwoman's eyebrows are drawn, or basically everything about Spider Punk and the total 90's shit show that is Ben Reilly's Scarlet Spider. And that's just the beginning.

I also love that this story is more centered around at first Spider Gwen, then, when we get to Miles and his universe, it's more about the relationship between him and his mother rather than him and his father like the last movie.

It should also be pointed out that I did not know going in that this was the first part of two part story, hence the movie ends with a "To Be Continued" screen. I was not expecting it and that legitimately made me throw up my arms and say "WHAT?!" somewhat louder than I'd intended. Which did get a laugh from the entire row of preteen boys in the back of the theatre.

But as such, it doesn't feel quite right to judge this movie too harshly on it's story, since it's essentially the first half of longer story. It doesn't wrap the story up, it legitimately stops with plot still in motion, things unresolved, tasks still yet to undertake.

Having said that, compared to what we have right now in Across, the story of Into the Spider-Verse is a tighter, more well crafted one. Not least of all because it takes just under two hours to tell a complete story. Across the Spider-Verse is going to take at least four or five hours to tell it's story, taking into account the probably length of the Beyond the Spider-Verse movie to come. Will they work as well when they're combined? I don't know yet. But I do know that they'll never be as tight and concise as Into, just because they can't be.

Also, once again, from someone who never really notices music in movies... the music in this movie is fantastic. Could I point to an actual song and say "I know what that song is without looking it up"? No, no, I could not. But as with Into, the music in Across definitely fits the vibes of the movie.

Everyone does a great job with the voice acting, from Shameik Moore and Hailee Steinfeld as Miles and Gwen respectively, through to Luna Lauren Velez as Rio, Miles' Mom, Karan Soni as Mumbattan Spider-Man, Daniel Kaluuya as Hobie Brown/Spider Punk and Jason Schwartzman doing his very Schwartzman thing as villain Spot.

Visually, this movie gets 42 out of 5. Because, you know... well, actually, if you know, you know. And the story is good, I just don't think it kicks that element out of the park in the same way as Into. So, while they will get the same score, consider this one below Into on the list. I reserve the right to adjust that opinion after Beyond comes out.

It is though, the most visually stunning Spider-Man movie... or possibly just movie, full stop, period... I've seen in a very, very long time.

yani's rating:5 Spider-Persons out of 5

photo saturday: sixty-ish percent of thirty percent

Am I going to get in some amount of trouble for this week's DnD Character Colouring Book? We'll see I guess. But also this is what happens when you're in a DnD group and people make their characters in Hero Forge and you think... well, you think that clearly they don't spend as much time in Hero Forge as you. Also that bad design hurts your eyes and your brain. And also, they're straight men, what do they know from fashion.

But also, you think, well, that's your character, you do your own thing, they look however you want them to look.

So then maybe you just get inspired to Fuck Around And Find Out what your own version of their characters might look like, for your own, you know, edification. And just purely as an experiment, because, you know, why not. And maybe that will be the way that you'll proceed to see said characters in your own head, because nobody lives there other than you (well, you and all the voices... hey guys) and you can have whatever head canon you like.

Also, yes... I like knee boots. What of it. I actually didn't completely realise they both had similar lengths of boots until after both of the models were done.

This is also why names have been changed to protect the innocent... or possibly the guilty. Or maybe me, or just because it's funny.

So we have Mr Grumpypants, a tiefling fighter with Some Definite Issues™ and a big old sword. Which has a name, because of course it does. But, issues. Because, I mean, a tiefling who makes it look like his broken horns are perpetually on fire. Yeah. That screams maybe Daddy Issues, maybe Dead Wife Issues, maybe Betrayed by Everyone He Trusted Issues. Maybe Impulse Control Issues. Who knows. We're filing that one under "Issues". And who is definitely a criminal, no matter what he tells you. Definitely a criminal. 100%.

And then we have Huntress, which is the first Gender Swap character for that particular player, so that's new and exciting. As is the "Sounds a bit French, is it German, could it just be getting late and the accent is sliding around" accent. But also, when it says that a wood elf has "copper skin", they don't mean that literally. Like the "copper dragonborn" skin tone in Hero Forge, which is also fucking terrible BTW. They mean, "medium brown skin tone with a very, very slight hint of a reddish caramel" that is "commonly found among those with Middle Eastern and South Asian heritage". But, you know, that's fine too. Is my version a little dark... maybe.

But when you combine these two with my Bird Boy... well, you've got the 30 Percenters. Which isn't so much an "In Universe" name as a "Meta Universe" name.

Yeah, I'm going to get in so much trouble.

Do I care? Not so much.

Anyway.

I have, several times this week, considered collecting two of every type of animal, possibly in some kind of ark like structure, you know, just in case. Because of all the rain. Of which there as been a considerable amount, but also like, quite heavy versions of same.

What I will say, is that I'm actually glad I'm no longer in the Portrush Road apartment with the occasionally and intermittently leaking roof. Because that would have sucked.

This week's soup was... Chicken and Barley... essentially. Although it was one of those soups where I changed the way I was slicing the vegetables up about halfway through... so most of it was kind of julienned, but the first few not so much.

It was overall decent though.

Thursday Night DnD actually happened and everyone was in attendance. Which is a rarity these last few weeks.

Friday Night DnD was good... well, our first real kind of exploration of a full on combat/dungeon. It went... interestingly. See also Tiefling With Issues. But it did end up being something of a late night, since we were deep in the combat and it made more sense to finish it than try and pick up mid-fight next week.

Anyway.

Today was first supermarketry... then we went to the movies and followed it up with some lunch on The Parade to celebrate Ma's birthday this week.

Also, note to self. Yes, you are correct that there is a reason that you're not a huge fan of the movie theatre on the Parade. Not the cinema itself, that's fine. But the fact that our visit coincided with a birthday party of about 15 preteen boys.... all jacked up on sugar on a Saturday morning. And going to the same movie as us. No bueno.

Afterwards lunch was good, then Ma toddled off home.

Oh, also, and for reasons I don't quite understand, the place where some of my blog images used to be is no longer there, the work around I tried for my "current moods" didn't work... so that's the end of that I guess. At some point I'll summon up the interest to actually modify the blog layout.

photo saturday: peacocking it

Some left over Wonderwalls content this week... so, behold, some weirdly angled flying peacock action. And if you've never seen a peacock flying, you're missing out. How much, I don't know exactly, but some at the very least.

Anyway.

This week's soup was kinda sorta minestrone. By which I mean that I start with the idea of minestrone and just stick whatever I happen to feel like/have bought that week. Mostly this week that was broccolini. But I also put some baby spinach in, which worked pretty well.

Thursday Night DnD actually happened. But it was only four of us plus DM Fluffy... which is, you know, always more chill, but something we can only do a limited number of times when there isn't actively plot happening. But there was some weirdness and some interesting moments.

Friday Night DnD was more fun. We also leveled up between last game and this one... and again after this game... but that's a feature, we level up pretty fast for the first few levels, then it tapers off. Also, the Big Tigger Energy continues. With a side order of Talking Too Much and Talking Too Fast.

Essentially I'm kind of exploring the idea of "what does a high intelligence, average/low wisdom and charisma character feel like?"... So he gets ideas and needs to run all the way to the end of the idea before he can put that idea to one side and pick up a new one.

What I've also noticed is that I end up leaning forward and kind of hunching as a way to get into the roleplay headspace... which is less good for my actual spine. So we might need to adjust that going forward. I think it's essentially part of the earnestness that he seems to have, but also, in-world, I feel like maybe it's because he's spent the last several years living and working with people a couple of feet shorter than himself, so he's used to crouching and leaning down to talk to people.

Also, the group vibe is just different from anything we've done before. We'll have to see how that pans out as we move forward.

Anyway.

Today was basically just the supermarket. We originally had other plans, but the vibe wasn't really there.

So we'll potentially do things next week.

Oh, and it turns out that the old blog mood images are very dead. Which is just great. So, let's try a whole other way of doing it that might just annoy the hell out of me.

Current mood: