Soggy

[somepomegranatetea]

you just can't quite capture this scene in gif form i feel

[stiffyck]

Few things in Lars and the real girl that mean a lot to me:

- despite Bianca being an anatomically accurate sex doll, Lars never touches her or even looks at her with any sort of sexual intent. There's something deeply soothing and comforting about the way he treats her and looks at her. (I think reading Lars as asexual is honestly a really good way to look at his character too. I feel like having no interest in sex makes it hard for people to connect with their partner, especially if that partner is allo. Lars never seems interested in his coworkers porno talk at work, he never talks about or really views Bianca as anything sexual, he never entertains or answers questions about Bianca and him that are sexual in nature, and when he's asking Gus what made him finally feel like a man, he asks almost hesitantly- like he doesn't want to- if it was sex.)

- Lars does not like to be touched. He's working on it as the movie goes on, but it's something that never gets fully "fixed", and I don't think it does even in the future. I'm sure it gets better, gets less painful for him, but I don't think he'd enjoy hugs or prolonged touch anyways. Idk something about Lars constantly backing away from people who get too close to him, constantly trying to remove himself from other people in his personal space- it just feels really good to see. I'm sure this is something that made a lot of people feel sad for him, but honestly it's just comforting to me.

- the whole bowling scene. It was just Lars and Margo- until the group arrived and I was a little scared they'd be mean, but no. They just join the two and they all have fun. There's high fives when someone manages to get a good throw, but Lars is never forced or pressured to share a high five. Besides just that, he's there with them, and he's not forced into the conversation, but he's included and welcome. Him tearing up in this scene was so beautiful.

- Gus trying to do better. He's a fucking asshole at the start of the movie, but he learns. He's feeling guilty, thinking it's his fault that Lars is delusional, but eventually still goes out of his way to help and learn. He learns the difference between delusions and hallucinations, and he talks about it at work, knowing there's a big chance his coworkers will mock him, like they've done in a previous scene.

- the older ladies chasing Gus and Karin out of the house to spend some time with Lars. The scene is so simple it's almost painful. They bring him food. They knit and chat while he just sits with them. They tell him not to worry about anything, to just eat his food and relax a little.

Idk this movie is just... it's just so sweet. It means so much to me. I think it's my new comfort movie now. First time I watched it, I cried like a baby the whole time. Second time I watched it, I just really enjoyed everything about it. There's something so soothing about how the entire town comes together to help and support Lars, despite a lot of people not understanding and not knowing what to do at first.

[pumpkinnii]

Decided to participate on a DTOA dynamic and ended drawing this cutie, I did it to derust myself bc it's been a while since I drew in digital but it wasn't bad at all!!! Had a ton of fun and finished everything in 4:26 hours, way faster than I expected. Probably it's bc I've been drawing in traditional so I'm not as rusty as I thought :>

[sokodraws]

bigger than me...

[edibleteef]

Finished Benoni art :3

Pomegranate, an art print by lucas Kerr

This is a gallery-quality giclée art print on 100% cotton rag archival paper, printed with archival inks.

[buns-of-men]

When is it sexist? - A Handy Chart

[tovakiin]

My favorite moment when playing FFXIV for the first time was seeing the men in the same ridiculous subligars as the women.

[perquisitemagnate]

In order:

World of Warcraft

Dark Souls

Final Fantasy XIV

[azothelement-deactivated2019010]

Seriously, Dark Souls is so good about this, I accidentally became female and didn’t even know about it until I was changing my gear.

[dracophile]

Sorry, that last bit is funny to me because I’m just imagining this knight changing and looking at a pair of breasts like “…Those are new.”

[snapfoo]

THE LAST COMMENT KILLED ME

[pcare-o-dactyl]

[justanotherdmdammit]

[brink-of-insanity-georg]

[7-inches-of-satanic-panic]

Robert never being held or even really hugged as a kid by his dad so he curls up in the mech suit cockpit because it's the closest thing he can get to that feeling send post

[crescencee]

this song is vaguely Robert coded in my head

[noxiousgrace]

You're not reaching, i completely get it

Robert just never stops being tragic 😭

"I'm feeling detached

There's no coming back

I wanna say that I hate you

The hate in my heart

It drives me so far

Away from the things I always knew"

Could either be about the possible story of his ex which he talks about during his brief "therapy session" with phenomaman, or could be about his complicated relationship with shroud.

"You're all getting kids

You're all bowling pins

That I would strike down if life was a game

So thoughtless and cruel

You think you're so cool

I don't think you deserve another Day"

Color coordinated to who he could be referring to in this verse:

Society moving on from him (or what he perceives as being left behind)

The public putting pressure on mechaman to fulfill his best (during the scene where he just walks away from the press and later shows someone saying he should've died instead of being a "mecha quitter"), the press jumping on every opportunity to peg heroes down a notch for one reason or the other, in typical press fashion

Shroud and the red ring

Honestly i could be reaching as well, but both the song and roberts life are about loss so the parallels are endless imo

My counterattack in the song-assocation tennis match i decided to start:

No salvation in this nerds reach according to him, the z-team is there to beat some sense into him anyhow

[crescencee]

YES you get it. He has the potential for tragedy all around. It's just an endless cycle at this point </3

-

I miss the love that I know I lost

I miss the one that I love a lot

Drinking alone in the parking lot

When is it gonna stop?

-> This could be interpreted as being directed toward the Mecha Man suit, the life of a hero, and/or his father. By losing the suit, in a way, he's lost yet another piece of his father and himself by proxy.

This 'love' that he knows he's lost is the Mecha Man suit; he can't complete his family's legacy.

The lyrics "When is it gonna stop?" could have 'It' refer to the legacy itself too. He doesn't know when it'll truly end, because without the suit, he'll never be able to complete the legacy in the first place. He misses the idea of that. Hates the idea of disappointing, of shrouding his father's name. Even if he has reserved feelings about him.

-

Moving onto Yellow now....

LEGEND =

RED = SHROUD

GREEN = ROBERT

BLUE = MECHA MAN

Taken at a glance, I'm trapped within a second delusion

-> him becoming a dispatcher and just simply being 'Robert Robertson the Third' to his team. Nothing other than that.

That eats away at everything I ever knew

-> the allure of being Mecha Man, of truly believing that Robert is just a front and nothing more than that. he is Utterly and Entirely Mecha Man in his head, and he's been that way for the past 15 years. he's only known that life.

I'm eating at a cake that tastes so dull and empty

-> eating at a cake could refer to his hero work. he keeps doing it over and over, keeps exerting himself and offering everything he's worth but he comes out empty.

I'm nothing but the puppet that you went and made me

-> could be referring to the way he was pretty much forced into the role of Mecha Man by his father. hell, he doesn't even have a unique name, he's the Third. There's a legacy. He's been groomed into this role from the day he could walk .

(there's also another interpretation of him believing he HAD to become Mecha Man after his father's death, truly thinking he had no other option, but that's tragic in a different way and relies more on him becoming a 'puppet' willingly)

->

'Cause of the death was nothing but a curious mind Falling down above while acting cool and sly he Was doomed right from the start to be a worthless failure

-> his thoughts on the matter long after he wakes up from the explosion, and in extension, some people's thoughts about him after he woke up. some people even referred to him as a 'mecha coward' for not dying and fulfilling their expectations of him.

We smile with a grin and lock him in the jail here

-> could be interpreted as being about the explosion; something flickers in Robert's mind, the out of the blue realization that This Could Be It. This was the end, this was it, this was everything. This was the day he could complete his legacy.

The "we smile" section is highlighted in blue as a metaphor for the mecha man suit smiling as they fall to the ground. Jail is also highlighted in blue for the same reason, but because the suit itself is a prison.

also do not worry I'm pretty sure I'm reaching as well LOL. we can reach together, but I do think your ideas were really sound!! I loved your interpretations of the song

here's another robert robertson esque song for thought :)

[noxiousgrace]

First of all - absolutely yes on the song choice

Second of all - the picture having the words "volcanic bird enemy and the voiced concern" matches dispatch so much it's almost funny how it's wasn't even intentional

Roberts entire speech about the z-team being phoenixes and the connotation that Robert himself is also on the path of redemption- albeit a different version compared to the z-team. Because in the case of z-team burning their villainy and rising as heroes, it's robert burning down the pedestal he put mecha man on to allow himself room to exist outside of it. (Especially with him getting drunk alone in his apartment and saying that he can "see a life without mecha man")

Onto the song itself now hejsjejshshe

"Caught in the wires

Staring at nothing

Off in a dream, dream, dream

A dream not worth discussing"

These lyrics are like watching robert and mecha man trying to coexist in the same body. He could've had aspirations that differed from what his father expected of him, but in the end he gave into the expectations and let his need for literally anything else to quiet down, but till this day that want simmers beneath his skin (especially when one of the dialogue options at crypto night with blazer is that heroism is the "only thing he's good at" and not the only thing he wants to do). He has dreams, just nothing that can outrank the life he surrendered to

--

"Cannibalize all versions of myself

Where I wait for the eruption to collapse me into hell"

Letting everything continue until it hits a breaking point, he knows he will break. He lets himself lie in the self-percieved shame that comes from how fragile the grip he has on his life is. Imagine white knuckling your life but still losing control in the end, truly hell for this poor bastard

-----

"Caught in a fire

Buried in you

Off in a dream, dream, dream

All I know is right now, I'm through"

This entire chorus is just robert after the crash, how hurt and how over he is with everything but his dads illusory voice does not let him rest

----

"Head underwater

The baffled king composing Hallelujah"

Honestly this could just be roberts dad haunting his career beyond the grave, every time he gets close to 'completing the legacy' he probably imagines how perturbed yet proud he is of his son. (During the interview with the press, if you answer the last guys question robert says "he would be proud, that I'm alive right now" i honestly do believe robert meant what he said here, and wasn't just making his dad look good. Bobby could've wanted robert to follow in his footsteps but also lament the fact that it implies robert would also end up dying in the suit. Which is kind of ironic considering bobby died outside of the suit)

----

"Cover the door, trapped you in

Then they scoff and wait for apologies

Will you kiss their hands and lay back down

And die in a city you've nevеr been?"

This could be a parallel to how the mecha man mantle hangs on robert like a chain instead of something that's meant for him, meant to fit comfortably. He's absolutely trapped and (largely) without gratitude he continues to serve los angeles despite everything. Los Angeles has never been home to Robert, it has just been Mecha Mans patrol territory.

----

Hehehe here's my counterattack:

It's a little bit of a reach but parts of the song have some correlation to robert imo

Side note: i completely forgot to respond to your interpretation because i was excited about the song you linked 😭😭 i absolutely loved every parallel you drew, especially between the cake and hero work. Mecha man smiling whilst plummeting is absolutely amazing

[crescencee]

this song is vaguely Robert coded in my head

[noxiousgrace]

You're not reaching, i completely get it

Robert just never stops being tragic 😭

"I'm feeling detached

There's no coming back

I wanna say that I hate you

The hate in my heart

It drives me so far

Away from the things I always knew"

Could either be about the possible story of his ex which he talks about during his brief "therapy session" with phenomaman, or could be about his complicated relationship with shroud.

"You're all getting kids

You're all bowling pins

That I would strike down if life was a game

So thoughtless and cruel

You think you're so cool

I don't think you deserve another Day"

Color coordinated to who he could be referring to in this verse:

Society moving on from him (or what he perceives as being left behind)

The public putting pressure on mechaman to fulfill his best (during the scene where he just walks away from the press and later shows someone saying he should've died instead of being a "mecha quitter"), the press jumping on every opportunity to peg heroes down a notch for one reason or the other, in typical press fashion

Shroud and the red ring

Honestly i could be reaching as well, but both the song and roberts life are about loss so the parallels are endless imo

My counterattack in the song-assocation tennis match i decided to start:

No salvation in this nerds reach according to him, the z-team is there to beat some sense into him anyhow

[conman167936]

Guillermo Del Toro is the only director who would shoot Gepetto making Pinocchio as if it were Dr. Frankenstein creating the monster.

And then shoot Dr. Frankenstein creating the monster as if it were Gepetto making Pinocchio.

[cherryjennn]

Even more devastating, the scene where pinocchio was made was very violent in looks and almost angry but gepetto grew to love his creation like a son but the scene of making the creature was loving and attentive but victor grew to hate his creation .

[crescencee]

this song is vaguely robert robertson coded in a way. shaking my fists and gesturing to it wildly

((-> specifically in the ending of Episode 8 where Invisigal kills Shroud and Robert is left standing there, stunned. He got what he wanted. He got the Astral Pulse back. Shroud's dead; he'll never be able to hurt someone again.

His father was avenged. Just not by him.

....But at what cost? He doesn't care about that. About vengeance. Not anymore.

He'd lost someone else to the path of villainy - someone he actually cares about.

(He could've done something, done more for Visi. He shouldn't have kicked her out of the team. Given her more of a chance. It wasn't her fault she did villain shit while- being a villain.)

And somehow, nobody else, not even the people around him, his team, seem to care about her except for him and Blazer.

But they've won, so who he is to impede on that?))

[noxiousgrace]

I associate this song with the ending where he kills shroud, if roberts anger was a song it would be this imo. especially during the bar scene where he glasses the bartender, the Kubrick stare coming from a man who lets his rage simmer until the very last second and comes out as violence is so good

[crescencee]

oh HELL yeah this is awesome. currently listening to the song you just added as I type this and. Wow. I love your interpretation toward his anger. thank you for your addition

[noxiousgrace]

Thank youuuu!! Absolutely loved the song you used for the villain visi ending ^^

I have other songs i associate with robert, such as this one:

A lot of the lyrics in this version tie really well to how heroism has consumed roberts life, how he "feels like a mob without a name" (him just being mechaman and robert robertson takes a back seat damn near permanently)

Even just the opening : "a lonely life has worn a hole through me" is so him, because i strongly believe he has a tendency to isolate himself, given how he has no friends to speak of at the start of the game. Also considering his way of grieving, which is by dodging anybody in his life who could've possibly cared about him at the time (there's no way chase is the only person he avoided from the brave brigade, especially with the truckload of trust issues elis betrayal would've caused)

Ugh i could go line-by-line on the connection between this song and roberts life overall before the z-team

How the corporation this song talks about is literally the monetized hero system and companies like sdn that exist in his universe, how his entire identity goes against rescue being reserved for susbcribers. (He doesn't show any signs of being paid for his job as mecha man which i absolutely love)

Urhehdhgshs so much to yap about

[crescencee]

this song is vaguely robert robertson coded in a way. shaking my fists and gesturing to it wildly

((-> specifically in the ending of Episode 8 where Invisigal kills Shroud and Robert is left standing there, stunned. He got what he wanted. He got the Astral Pulse back. Shroud's dead; he'll never be able to hurt someone again.

His father was avenged. Just not by him.

....But at what cost? He doesn't care about that. About vengeance. Not anymore.

He'd lost someone else to the path of villainy - someone he actually cares about.

(He could've done something, done more for Visi. He shouldn't have kicked her out of the team. Given her more of a chance. It wasn't her fault she did villain shit while- being a villain.)

And somehow, nobody else, not even the people around him, his team, seem to care about her except for him and Blazer.

But they've won, so who he is to impede on that?))

[noxiousgrace]

I associate this song with the ending where he kills shroud, if roberts anger was a song it would be this imo. especially during the bar scene where he glasses the bartender, the Kubrick stare coming from a man who lets his rage simmer until the very last second and comes out as violence is so good

[starg0ld]

[frishbi]

making the man mecha again ⚡

[hell0w0rld112358]

the religious symbolism in dispatch hits you like a truck in this scene

like holy shit. 3 generations of fathers offering their sons to sacrifice themselves to live and die as selfless heroes for humanity? 3 parts of a greater trinity as mecha man? the rosary cross hanging from his neck like a noose when it’s already been established he has suicidal tendencies and expected/sometimes hoped to die in the suit that was thrust on him by his father how the cross was thrust upon jesus by his father. im not religious but i eat symbolism up like this every timeeeee this is so fuckin peak.

[moth-grrrl-mavis]

Invisigal: "You're not a real hero if you hide behind armor"

Flambae: "real heroes put their ass on the line"

Robert: Is fucking covered in battle scars and has a bullet hole in his ear

[edibleteef]

Wip, I'm planning on posting Claire's story as like a comic/webcomic . I'm gonna have a bunch of more sketchy type paintings for the backgrounds while telling the story, then one full painting for the end of each post/chapter