"Temporary" alt account cause my main got hacked :/
I can't donate money to any cause. Stop dming me. I'm sorry terrible things happen to you but you will just be wasting both our time if you ask me for money
Now has blog decor! (credit to @silliusstan, @graphicdesignevident, @lazycat-graphics, @guardianangelgraphics, @855753sblog, @iwantmycarkeysback, @evangeliki, and @heartorchidlove
Art tag is #apple arting and talking tag is #apple yowls
I dont think I ever clarified that I just went in and modeled her locs vertex by vertex. I placed every single polygon by hand. No curves and nothing procedural about it. Im too picky for that
ONCE AGAIN, the bar has risen for professional gaming companies!!! If our friend on Tumblr can do it, they can certainly do it while getting paid to do so!!!
Pretend all ingredients are at your finger tips - if someone asked you to please cook a potato dish for a gathering RIGHT NOW what are you automatically gonna be cooking
Classic breakfast potatoes. Just. Boil em for a few minutes, coat em in butter and seasonings, fry em in the oven. My reasoning is that it’s a good side dish and I can make a whole bunch for people to basically snack on. You can grab some while other people aren’t looking a shove em in your mouth. They’re crispy and crunchy and a good side but if you’re picky they can also be a main dish. Yeah
So I promised this at least like... four months ago, and it has taken me a while to actually get around to finishing it. So, here it is, after so long, my analysis of Venomshank as a character. Under the cut.
Venomshank can best be described as a tertiary character. While he is important to the plot and arc of the main character (Sword) he doesn’t actually show up much within the text, so far only having around fifteen pages that he actually appears in in Death in the Family, and having five total lines of in game dialogue – not including those from the Possessed vs Bitten phestival. Despite this I find him incredibly interesting, as what little information we are given is enough to construct a decent read on him as a character. And as said before, his presence in the story does greatly influence Sword, meaning he is actually a rather important character deserving of more attention. So, I hope to break down what I like about him as a character within this analysis – trying to keep as many of my opinions and personal head-cannons out of this as possible.
In-Game
Venomshank is… very simple within the game itself – much like most of the deities. Unlike some of the other deities, he does have a sword event, and with it – splash dialogue that plays when he appears in a match. However, these do not give many insights into his character.
As seen here, this text mostly surrounds his relation to his zombies, which he refers to as his ‘army’ and his 'minions'. There does seem to be an almost grandiose nature to his announcement, calling forth his army and asking the player rhetorical questions, which could be read as almost familiar, perhaps even joking. Within the text of the game this could also be him indirectly talking to Sword or at least hinting to this fact – especially with the note about ‘training’. His multi events are similar, but almost more muted, more so announcing his presence to the people he is sharing the space with – compared to his previous announcements when solo. They are also – strangely polite, offering more to ‘assist’ his fellow than some of the other deities simply stating their presence. Though all this should be taken with a grain of salt as the in-game matches are non-canon.
I shall briefly also mention his design in this section. I think a full design analysis is probably something I’ll do later down the line because I am a massive fan of it. (And how else do I explain him being my favourite before the SFOTH QnA). The element I specifically want to mention is his mask – which is explicitly said to prevent him from biting people while feral. Now, from what I understand, him going feral is something that is fairly rare – however, he still wears this mask at seemingly all times – even within the comfort of his own home as shown in DITF. This small element can imply two things: 1 – he doesn’t trust himself enough to not go feral when not wearing his mask and 2 – he doesn’t want to hurt anyone when in that state, especially Sword. This does indicate a level of care, and some potential guilt.
SFOTH QnA
The long awaited SFOTH QnA was a great bit of clarification for everyone who is unreasonably obsessed with the deities, including giving us even a shred of information about Illumina, Playground lore with Windforce, and building Firebrand’s mysterious disappearance – but most of all in our case – clarifying Venomshank’s personality, with only three questions, nonetheless.
First of all – Look at him
That aside, I think it’s best to actually dive into the analysis. First of all, his first question was surrounding Sisyphus, his pet crow.
While this question was more so clarifying lore about Venomshank – it does also give us a little bit of insight into his character, and his relationship with Sword – which is a large part of him as a character. First of all, I want to mention how this question is answered, particularly with the usage of exclamation marks. Because of the format of these videos, the tone of the text has to be portrayed through the character’s facial expression and the way their text is written. In this case, the usage of exclamation marks indicates a bright, cheery tone, paired with the expression on this one. This immediately tells us that Venomshank is at least in some way, friendly and happy to talk. Additionally, referring to Sword as ‘little’ immediately informs us that he does have an affectionate and caring relation to Sword (it should also be mentioned that the QnA was written before Venomshank and Sword's relationship was reconned to a mentor-apprentice relationship), though taking the whole quote as one – this does begin to indicate his slightly overprotective nature, emphasised by the usage of an ellipsis, which in this case indicates him trailing off to a halt, perhaps not wishing to share more.
The next question was about his feral episodes.
The sprite used for this is made to appear more sheepish, this indicates that this is something that he is ashamed of in some way. And linking back to the idea I brought up when discussing his mask – guilty about. Additionally, Venomshank refers to this as a ‘monstrous state’ as he is in some way distancing himself from this, and furthermore indicating that is a part of him that he does not like, and deems as something inhuman (or, in-inphernal I guess). His feral states in general are really interesting, we don't really know much about them, only that he looses all sense of rational thought with his only goal to bite and infect as many people as possible. And again, this is something that he likely ashamed of to some extent.
The final question was about Sword, and is my favourite.
This answer is very, very explicit in Venomshank's unconditional support of Sword and Sword's desires, and that he does not care what path his apprentice goes down, indicating that Venomshank is quite selfless when it regards Sword. He seems to be focusing on what Sword wants, but also what is best for him, or at least what he believes is best. There is also the matter that he is being pragmatic in this response, that he isn't sure that Sword will be that powerful, and that he's clumsy - which you could read into as his belief that he needs to be kept safe.
And then he wishes us a safe day. What a nice man.
Death in the Family
And this is where everything is recontextualised. Where most of what we know about Venomshank comes from. Here we get the most of who Venomshank is, and learn the main thing that seperates him from the rest of the Swords - his deep paranoia and overprotective nature, and most of all, his willingness to see Inphernals as an actual threat.
First of all, he is immediately introduced as Sword's mentor within the first few pages, but not in person, at least for now. He is given the title of being Sword's mentor, the person who is looking after him and ensuring that he can survive in the 'dangerous' Crossroads. There isn't really much elaboration on this, and Venomshank does not get brought up again until his first appearance.
This first apperance is interesting. Venomshank is being framed from Sword's perspective, and in this situation, he serves as an obstacle to his goal of finding Medkit. Therefore, Venomshank is framed as being intimidating - his height emphasised with upward pointing angles - and the usage of the contrasting colours of green and black to convey the sense of intimidation he gives off when scrutinising Sword. However, in previous frames, he is also shown to be exasperated, and some of his dialougue indicates he is used to this kind of thing happening - and when he believes that Sword is being sincere, he does relent and let the boy off with nothing more than a light lecture - a lecture that he has clearly said before.
Now, in this scene there is the emphasis on Sword being 'careful' and being 'safe'. Venomshank's paranoia coming in, or at the very least the hinting it. He is not being harsh on Sword because he is being overly strict, it is because this is the safest place for him. Now, typically this kind of 'safety' thing is used to indicate that a guardian character is in someway being manipulative - but this is later disproven in Venomshank's case - he does, genuinely, wish for Sword to be safe. But this desire for safety does lead to some of Sword's plight. Again, Venomshank is presented as an obstacle to the plot, a problem to be worked around.
The following page is Sword discussing Venomshank with Sisyphus (a little ironic, honestly) with him using one, very specific word. Terrified. Venomshank is terrified of him roaming Crossroads. While this is likely somewhat hyperbole on Sword's part (we see that he is regularly allowed to leave the house to go visit Medkit and Rocket) it does also indicate that Venomshank is very open about these fears, so much so that Sword is certain that Venomshank wouldn't help him in the search for Medkit. The emphasis landing on the fact that Lost Temple is a different faction, and its him going there that would be the problem.
Now - is that fear justified? Yes, in many ways, but not to the extent that is shown in Venomshank's actions. Crossroads is markedly safer than the other regions, sure, but it is still somewhat dangerous - and anti-diety sentiment is likely widespread throughout the Inpherno, something that could be directed to Sword if he is too loose-tongued. Something he likely does have a habit of being. And all the other factions have constant conflict, powerful governments or dangerous wildlife. Which Sword doesn't know about. We'll come back to that.
Venomshank during training is very different to the scenes before, so we can presume this is much closer to the typical dynamic between Sword and Venomshank on a day to day basis. Venomshank is openly supportive, giving clear markers and genuine advice for Sword to try, clearly invested in his growth as a swordsman. This advice is constructive in nature, rather than belittling or discouraging - and also shows that Venomshank does have deep knowledge on the world of the inpherno and sword fighting in general - which is to be expected as he is a deity and would have an intimate awareness of these subjects.
Then, of course, we have Darkheart. The two brothers' dynamic is quickly established in one panel. A dark teal colourpallete with downward tappering lines evoke the sense of dread falling over somebody, and the one word sentence of 'Darkheart' states it plain and simple. Darkheart is the last person Venomshank wanted to see. Venomshank is also quick to ask what Darkheart is doing there, and when Darkheart is his usual, coy self, Venomshank reacts with exasperation and irritation - try to cut to the chase and get Darkheart to spill what he's here for. Its clear these two know each other well, and that Venomshank doesn't have time to put up with Darkheart's irritations. This does change when Darkheart brings up that he needed to discuss something with Venomshank, which leads him to dismissing Sword to speak in private.
Now… Venomshank's paranoia. Anxiety - whatever you want to call it. He is clearly exceptionally wary of mortals, and the reason for this is at first unclear… but we'll find out what this is later on. In fact, this wariness seems to be directed at 'the public' and that he specifically dreads communing with them. Now, given the previous emphasis on safety that he had before - and the general dread about mortals and the public - I believe this emerged from a fear of mortals. That he believes they could pose a threat to, most likely, Sword, and maybe himself. He wishes to keep Sword safe and is… overcompensating heavily doing so.
I'm just going to rip the band-aid off now - Venomshank is being very overprotective, which has led to a good chunk of Sword's naïvitey. Sword didn't know about the Scorch, the Church (arguably the biggest threat to the deities), the Lost Temple civil war - or even basic facts about Lost Temple wildlife - all of this is vital info about Sword's spawning faction. And why is that? This information would likely only benefit Sword and his understanding of the world, and even help Venomshank in keeping him safe. But… well, he doesn't. And that tells us that Venomshank is intentionally keeping information from Sword, likely in a bid to keep him safe.
Most interesting of all in our case is the Scorch and whatever happened with Firebrand. In fact, Venomshank is directly compared to Firebrand as having 'always been the softie next to [him]'. Now, before the Scorch, Firebrand is remarked to be one of the kindest and most beloved of the dieties, with his few of mortals being like that of an owner to a pet. Venomshank being a softie next to him - while could be the teasing of Darkheart (Darkheart is, somewhat unreliable as an informant due to his nature as a chaos diety and seeming love of causing discord and strife - however he is also closest with Venomshank, so its safe to assume that most of his dialouge can be trusted) does also indicate that Venomshank is incredibly empathetic, generally kind-hearted, and cares deeply for others. This is also tied in with his 'heart of gold', which expresses roughly the same sentiment.
So, I circle back to the Scorch, the deities are forbidden to comminicate with mortals because of this - and this, tied in with Firebrand's now missing child, indicates another of Venomshank's sticking points with mortals and the public. He is just as aware as the others that getting involved with mortals is not a good idea… yet he still does. He's still at least freinds with Zuka and he takes care of Sword who - well, we don't know enough about Sword in that regard to say anything concrete. On the flipside of this, we have all of his previously mentioned paranoia, his fear of the public. Most of this centered around Sword to a large extent, and we come back again to that question.
Why didn't he tell Sword about the Scorch? Or anything going on in Lost Temple? What is the point of keeping Sword in the dark if he does genuinely care about him and his well-being? I suppose that comes down to him wanting to keep him safe again. Perhaps he thinks that Sword is better off in the dark, better off not knowing about the world outside the walls of his dwelling, a temporary dwelling - sure - but it is still compared consistently to a cage. There is also the matter that maybe, he doesn't want to dwell on the Scorch - now this is me really reading into a handful of panels, but he dismisses what Darkheart is talking about (who I presume to be Firebrand's child or somebody related to the dieties), so it may not be out of question that this is the case.
All in all, Venomshank seems to want to keep Sword safe, even to Sword's own detriment. He is scared of the public and mortals, identifying them as an actual threat compared to the other Swords who more so only see the mortals as pets, playthings, or nuisances. Perhaps this is him seeing and correctly identify the rise in hatred or apathy towards dieties, and knowing that it is likely he could be on the recieving end of a mortal's ire. Or it not him, Sword who he's intensely invested in the wellbeing of, and… well, he is the reason behind Sword's scar - though we aren't quite sure what the full story behind that is. If I were to theorize, it was either a complete accident (they are sparring with unseathed swords after all) or something that relates to Venomshank's feral episodes, which… I think is more likely but I can't be certain.
So, who is Venomshank as a character? Well, he's… kind, really kind, and sweet and caring, with a genuine interest in the safety and well-being of those around him, and the people he considers freinds and family. But he is also paranoid and overbearing, scared of the people around him being hurt, by himself or others, even if he does want them to follow their own path in life.
And do I have any theories for what's going to happen later on in the story? I have a few. I just know this isn't going to be the last we see of him. He's going to show up again, and he isn't going to be happy. I reckon that right now he is panicking, unable to find Sword and desperately trying to search for him, and I think he'll stop at nothing to get Sword back, and that probably won't end well for the Church, or maybe Redcliff.
In other words I think we may see him go feral on screen. And I kind of want that to happen, I suppose.
Gaaah, anyways. That's all I really have to say. I love this stupid ball of feathers more than life itself and it was about time that I actually wrote about him. Anyways, hope you enjoyed reading my autistic ramblings and have a good good day traveller :þ
First of all. His QnA answer where he says he’ll support Sword no matter what….. That has been living rent free in my brain for weeks, he is SO SWEET
The idea of a deity being afraid of mortals is sooooo fascinating. I can imagine he’d be scared moreso of HIMSELF, scared of accidentally hurting anyone, and after the Scorch and how many mortals lost their lives, he’s even more terrified at the idea that he could cause something like that. (Venomshank OCD will be real in 2026 plspslslpslsls)
Also YEAHHH he’s doing the “I’m gonna protect my kid by telling them nothing” thing, which NEVER works out well. Ouhhh Venomshank ougshjddjfrnd I love him….
Everybody read the analysis right NOW it’s so freaking WORTH IT it’s so GOOD
Something I haven't seen anyone mention yet is how the opening tale in the pilot is clearly refering not to only Gwen herself, but ALSO Olivia, who to me is clearly supposed to parallel Gwen's role as the captive princess of the Park's kingdom
Putting aside the whole "Princess trapped in a tower" symbolism which is *painfully* explicit here, this conversation with her father makes it clear what role she's supposed to play: while it's not clear if this scene happens at the beggining of the Park's history or if it had already existed for a while, what IS clear is that Olivia's father is, well, grooming her to continue his legacy and take over the Park's operations, watching over the guests from afar and keeping the magic flowing while sitting contently in her gilded cage, with all her shiny toys and machines. He frames it all as a big shiny gift for her, compensation for something that happened in the past while also urging her to forget that same past and accept the now
So naturally Olivia complied and became some sort of "ruler" of the Park, at the very least acting as a (human) face for the public. And she has kept this role for YEARS, so much so that in the present she STILL remains on the same damn room, just now bedridden and surrounded by medical staff and freaky androids instead of toys. She's a much of a prisoner of the Park's underlying structure as Guinevere is, the main difference being that while Gwen apparently recognizes that and is constantly trying to escape, Olivia probably never realized she was one to begin with (how could you, if most of what you've ever known was a prison?)
That is also the reason why adult Olivia seems so distraught about Gwen's scape: she doesn't realize she's living in a cage and so can't for the life of her understand why Gwen, her friend/toy/surrogate mother figure(?), keeps escaping. She rationalizes it as an error in Gwen's programming and thus is always trying to "fix her", not necessarily out of malice but because she's desperate to keep her one and only companion at her side, jailed together, forever
It's downright tragic and a GENIUS idea for a villain: a captive princess that rules her kingdom from afar while subsequently being a slave to it. I can't wait to see what direction the show takes
My least favorite things about anti- UBI discourse is always the techbros whining that "nobody is going to work anymore! People will just watch Netflix all day!" and I have 2 responses:
1) Who the fuck cares. Who the fuck cares what people do with their time! That's kind of the fucking point!
2) People aren't going to stop laboring. Housework (look, it's right there in the word!) will still need to be done. So will maintenance on our homes and personal spaces. Children will still need carers, as will the elderly and disabled. There are millions of examples of ~work~ that we do all the time, uncompensated, that won't suddenly stop because we aren't forced to sell our labor to provide corporation's profits.
I'm not surprised that what is traditionally women's work is invisible to these dipshits, but it never fails to anger me.
Field studies have been conducted in several countries now, and the result is always the same - people will just flop about for a couple of months to recover from the burnout most people who have a job live with, and then they look for something to do. Some get a job with reduced hours, and some start doing charitable stuff like volunteering in soup kitchens and teaching others to do whatever their particular skill is. They socialize more, they are happier, and on average, people will work more, not less.
But the thing is, employers suddenly have to think about how to make their jobs appealing enough for someone to come and do them! It's hard to find someone to work for you for long hours under horrible conditions, if they can just choose not to; which shows you how voluntary our current system actually is.
So this one time I was in a hospital recovering from an emergency surgery on my leg, and had to be there long enough that they had to change my bedding, so, doped up on three kinds of pain meds and antibiotics my dad wheels me into the hallway while the nurses work.
"dad" I say, my eyes barely open "it's Colonel Sanders" while pointing down the hallway. He looks, and at the end of the hallway, there's a portrait of an old man, the donor who paid for the wing of the hospital I'm recovering in.
My dad explains as much to me, and goes "I mean the guy *kinda* looks like him, but why would Colonel Sanders pay for a hospital wing Mississauga Ontario? I think those drugs might me messing with you"
Then the nurse comes out of the room. I go "hey, who is that picture of?"
She looks at the portrait. She looks at me. She looks at my dad. She looks at the painting. She looks at me again.
Video captions: And stop trying to show your ex what they missed out on! Stop trying to teach your family a lesson for not believing in you! Stop trying to shit on your haters! Do it for you! Do it because you deserve it! Do it for YOU! Water your dreams with love! Don’t put no hate and resentment, and try to — “oh Imma fucking show them, Imma show” — FUCK THEM! Fuck them, do it for you! They don’t matter! They NEVER mattered.
