The One and Only SteveCrafts2k

Welcome to my blog. Here, I will talk about and reblog shows, movies, and art I like, and sometimes shows I dislike.

[stevecrafts2k]

Ko-Fi Commissions Start Now.

Hi, I'm Steve. Years ago, I started a Ko-Fi page. It did not gain traction.

Until now. Since I've been more active on Tumblr, I decided to revitalize my Ko-Fi page. I need at least $1,300 for a gaming PC, and while my relatives are willing to pool together money for it, I want to do my part in contributing too. So I decided to put my spriting skills to use.

You are able to buy a non-OC sprite for $20, and an OC sprite for $15. I repeat, a non-OC sprite for $20, and an OC sprite for $15. Simply click "request this", tell me what character you want (please attach a screenshot or a reference image for a non-OC or OC character.), and I will do it.

SteveCrafts2k's Commissions

Commissions Open! Click to see SteveCrafts2k's commission menu.

[stevecrafts2k]

What a total tool.

I have never seen a creator be so vindictive and bitter to his fans. And for what?

"We're negotiating scheduling with our host networks as we speak. I know this is frustrating, but I promise you we're finding a solution." That's it. That's all he had to tell them. But no, condescend this person, look down on them and CAPSLOCK SCREAM at them all the while.

The way you're going, you're only alienating the fans.

[stevecrafts2k]

This coming from the guy who took a moment in QotD to directly tell fans they're in the wrong if they like villainous characters, as if he had the power to tell people how to think.

[mother-of-platypus]

After Zag, now even the VAs. No wonder they forgive Felix so easily for committing genocide and sexually assaulting Maribug, those thing aligned with their own value. Fuck off zionist pigs.

[stevecrafts2k]

Ahem...

What do you mean this show has Zionists on the production team? I assume Thomas Astruc is pro-Palestine, so what the heck is happening here?

[themattress]

Dameon Clarke as Perfect Cell: A History

0:01 - 1:55 : Dragon Ball Z 1:56 - 2:11 : Dragon Ball GT 2:12 - 2:50 : Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2:51 - 3:12 : Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2 3:13 - 3:18 : Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3 3:19 - 3:24 : Dragon Ball Z: Sagas 3:25 - 3:47 : Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3:48 - 4:06 : Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2 4:07 - 4:23 : Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3 4:24 - 4:28 : Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai 4:29 - 4:36 : Super Dragon Ball Z 4:37 - 4:51 : Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit 4:52 - 5:11 : Dragon Ball Z: Infinite World 5:12 - 6:43 : Dragon Ball Z Kai 6:44 - 7:11 : Dragon Ball Xenoverse 7:12 - 7:39 : Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 7:40 - 8:02 : Dragon Ball FighterZ 8:03 - 8:14 : Dragon Ball Legends 8:15 - 8:25 : Dragon Ball: The Breakers 8:26 - 9:35 : Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot

From his debut in Dragon Ball Z through his minimal input in Dragon Ball Z: Sagas, Dameon Clarke had a consistently smooth and charismatic yet intimidating voice for Perfect Cell. However, starting with Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi, his voice seemed to gain an extra level of bass and his shouting got raspier. I'm not sure what was going on with him, but while a step down it didn't become a problem until Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit and Dragon Ball Z: Infinite World, where he gives the only two bad performances in the role. The sound of his voice and line delivery in Burst Limit is wretched and nigh impossible to take seriously, while for what little he had to do in Infinite World he somehow managed to briefly use his lisping Semi-Perfect Cell voice instead of his Perfect Cell voice, in what is supposed to be a huge dramatic moment! After this, he unsurprisingly retired from the role, which was taken over by Travis Willingham, a competent enough replacement although obviously not quite the same.

But then, much like Cell himself, Clarke ended up returning more powerful than ever! His performance in Kai is chillingly good, with him having mastered that extra bass and raspy shouting in a way that makes it work in the role and breathe all new life into the character. He kept this up in most subsequent video games, although he sounded a little overtly raspy and hammed his line deliveries up too much in the first Xenoverse game...most likely since the material there was practically begging to be goofed on. He dialed it down in Xenoverse 2, doing it only when appropriate. Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, however, is a fascinating case where he tried to shake things up again, maintaining a guttural, bestial growl in his voice. The effect is wonderfully unnerving, making Cell sound like a true monster who is only playing at a relaxed, gentlemanly demeanor, but his true sadistic intentions leak through all too clearly.

Dameon Clarke: truly the perfect voice actor for Perfect Cell.

[themattress]

Reblogging ten days later because I have more to say.

Again, I don't know what was happening exactly with Clarke during the time period from Budokai Tenkaichi to Infinite World, but what I do know is that it was extremely worrisome back then. As you can plainly hear, the deeper voice and raspier inflections just didn't carry that same level of menace and charisma as how he used to voice Cell, and more concerning was the fact that it was gradually getting worse. By Super Dragon Ball Z, you could begin to hear the straining in his voice that would go on to overwhelm him in Burst Limit and Infinite World, necessitating his replacement by Travis Willingham. The eeriest coincidence is that this was close to matching the exact trajectory of Linda Young's decline as Freeza, with the difference being hers began a game earlier (Budokai 3) and concluded a game later (Raging Blast) prior to being mercifully replaced by the late, great Christopher Ayres. So after that happened, I was ready to accept that we'd be hearing Travis Willingham voice Cell in Kai.

But as I said, Clarke returned with a vengeance in Kai, and I cannot gush over him in that enough. Not only was it an incredible comeback in terms of how he sounded - mastering the deepness and raspyness in his voice to the point of sounding just as menacing and charismatic as he did at the start - but his actual performance was on the whole even better than his original one in DBZ! There were no more awkward deliveries due to the need to match the lip flaps; he sounded totally smooth and natural. And here's where the story gets wilder: this was supposed to be his final outing in the role! Clarke didn't intend on this being a comeback; he returned to voice Cell because at the time he was planning to retire from anime and anime-based voice acting completely and figured this would be a fitting book-end to that career. It's why Willingham still voiced Cell in Ultimate Tenkaichi and Battle of Z.

What changed? Apparently, it was because after Kai, Clarke's next big role was...

Handsome Jack drastically changed Clarke's approach to playing Cell, for the better. He was allowed so much free range and ad-libbing in that role that, if permitted the same for Cell, he felt he could keep returning to voice him. Just check out this video from Xenoverse 2. You will probably notice how in many cases, the actual lines from the script displayed in the text below are not what Clarke is actually saying. That's how it is for him in his modern video game showings (Xenoverse, Xenoverse 2, FighterZ, Legends, The Breakers and Kakarot). He's still got the menace and charisma down pat, but now he's infused the role with a huge amount of Handsome Jack-esque sardonic humor, strengthening Cell's character as a result.

What else is there to say but "on behalf of all DBZ fans: thank you, Borderlands 2!"

[stevecrafts2k]

Reblogging this 2 years later, but I'd like to try something similar for Chris Sabat's Vegeta and Piccolo. As someone looking to impersonate him, I find it fascinating how both of them reflect his change in approach when voice acting, most importantly around 2008-09.

[possqueen]

TRICKY AND THE DREAM CASTER DEMO DROPS MAY 7TH!! LISTEN!!

[hagiomoto]

They got a literal war criminal on The Boys. The former IOF actor Tomer Capone literally admitted to terrorising Palestinians. I'm not sure why you still want to watch this show

[hagiomoto]

[katbuchm]

Be more specific: He has a breakdown after the incident with the girl and describes emerging from the army with a 'death wish' from the shit he'd done. That does not necessarily excuse what he did but that description is an insane psychofication of the actual interview.

[hagiomoto]

He's only sorry that the experience made him a Joker, he is not sorry at all that his action hurt Palestinians. And he's still an Israeli. Stop defending him.

[stevecrafts2k]

No one without remorse would break down the way he did. His actions were horrendous and he should be tried for them, but if he truly didn't care, he wouldn't have developed PTSD.

Somewhere in his heart, he knew he did wrong. And now he'll have to spend the rest of his days atoning for it.

[erisluna35]

Astruc saying we shouldn't judge the characters' morality meanwhile he goes out of his way to reblog Chloe defending posts to write judgemental posts about her lololol. Ok bud.

For context, Anton's probably talking about this:

Y'know, I had put off answering on this thinking I already got an answer but then I encountered another post being like this:

And I'm just like, sometimes I think he just sees anyone going against Marinette as kinda tainted.

Chloe being her bully of course is irredeemable compared to her corrupt politician father who'd abandon the "heartless" daughter he raised to be that way cause at least he never directly went up against Marinette.

Luka here is being compared to villains. If his intended meaning for this is just that Luka was planning to make a wish or authority or something, he could've just said so, but he just had to put "villain" in there like a Freudian slip.

[stevecrafts2k]

I wonder where Alya fits into all this. She's essentially Marinette's true partner, her confidant, her best friend. But in Revelator, Lady Chaos, and Sadnansi, she often pushes back against the lie, even going rogue to recreate the climatic final battle so she can find what it is Marinette's hiding from her.

She's going against Marinette here, so would the show begin to treat her as "the enemy"? A traitor after Marinette trusted her?

[frubble-warrior-129]

I think the biggest mistake this statement displays is the rushed process they expect the character to go through. Like unlearning a lifetime of selfish behavior can be done on a dime and where her senses of guilt can turn on like a switch is flipped.

This explains not only Chloe’s writing until her downfall, but also the many other redeemed characters in this show. Andre flips on a dime for Zoe, and Felix flips on a dime for Kagami. With neither having to face consequences for their actions because they’ve grown past it… Even if we don’t see said growth play out in any productive way.

To say there’s no reason is to say you haven’t written one. Felix had no reason to change and yet he… “did” for the sake of those he cares about. You have written a reason somewhere in there, you just need to tap into it.

Chloe, in this hypothetical, is just supposed to be completely stop being mean as a character, and naturally that felt completely unnatural to the writers. Not only is this not how an arc works, but I think having redeemed characters be squeaky clean takes away from her’s and other character’s depth and development in changing that they should have. They’ll never be complete paragons and that’s ok. No one really is, but they’re continuing to work towards it and through their flaws. That’s what makes a redemption arc.

[generalluxun]

Many times the show pushes people to act this way or that way in order to make an episode work. Heartfixer is just the most recent example.

Thomas is a liar.

He is just trying to shift the blame and 'poor us' the situation... much like his protagonist is at the moment.

[pandaofsecrets]

Chloé's arc is a pile-up of weird assumptions from every possible angle.

First there's the assumption that Chloé redeeming herself must have something to do with Marinette or involve her being nice to Marinette. I find it very telling that when Astruc tries to imagine nice Chloé he imagines her going "Marinette, what have I done?" Like, my dude. Marinette often isn't above starting shit herself (see Zombizou, and to a lesser extent Frightningale). When it comes to people Chloé needs to apologize to, Juleka is way ahead of Marinette on that list.

Like, I don't imagine Chloé ever being that close to Marinette either. Even in the distant eventuality that she does get redeemed, I see Chloé and Marinette as sisters-in-law who basically tolerate each other for Adrien's sake. To me, Chloé is Adrien's friend first and foremost, and she'll be way closer to him, Nathanaël and maybe Alya than anyone else on the team. But you know what? That's fine. Sometimes people just don't vibe with each other, and they don't have to.

Then we have the assumption that being nice to other people means they'll automatically be nice to you in return ("There'll be no reason, it'll come out of nowhere, the fact that she'll face something nice and say..."). That worldview simply isn't built to handle someone for whom being appeased and enabled at the cost of her growth is the entire problem. But instead of taking a good long look at the logical conclusion of his own dumb ideas and realizing that they are, in fact, dumb, Thomas chooses to bury his head in the sand and get mad that people don't work the way he thinks they work.

Then there's the assumption that being good or bad is intrinsic to a person. That good is something people are instead of, you know, something they do. So any good Chloé does is ignored because something something she did it for selfish reasons, while Marinette is constantly excused because "she meant well".

And on and on it goes.

[stevecrafts2k]

For a professional writer, Astruc doesn't seem to get that character arcs aren't and shouldn't be instant.

[fauxridium]

Vamp squad in one of the iconic soul eater poses because i love the idea of the three of them being besties

[richardsphere]

Like i cannot stress enough how much the letter doesnt actually represent "the truth". they keep framing it as representing. If marinette gives Adrien the letter, it tells him a version of the truth. One where marinette had no hand in the big lie, one where she didnt know until Mister Agreste. A version of the truth where Marinette only found out about the truth during Mister Agreste, and merely struggled with finding a moment to break it. A version where she didnt literally choose to kill Adrien rather then risk the secret getting out, a version where she didnt attempt to deny him therapy. A version of the narrative where she didnt "Correct" the interviews.

the letter only represents a version of the truth. But as we all know: While truth can have nuance, it cannot have "versions".

[stevecrafts2k]

Why is it that this show wants people to continue to root for Marinette even as she becomes just as bad as Gabriel and Lila, the villains?

At least with Volpina, she was akumatized. Marinette was more than willing to have Alya make her own sister think she would let Brandy die of her own free will. At this point, I really do anticipate the moment she uses the rings on Adrien. She may as well.

[flutterbuggs]

Thomas try not to speak in RIDDLES WHAT DOES THIS MEAN!?

I think he genuinely doesn't know either.

[richardsphere]

Also note the not-so-subtle word-manipulation: "why do villains generally want the miraculous" Once more making it clear that the shows definition of villainy isnt about morality, but simply about opposition to Marinette and her personal goals. The implication being that the simple act of wanting to tell Marinette no about her abuse of power, qualifies Luka as a villain. If he werent trying to spin a narrative, he could've just as easily said 'why do people want the miraculous' instead.

[starguardianniom]

Apparently you're either with Marinette ornot and if you're not with Marinette you're a villain and there's no in between it seems.

Luka really did himself a favor shipping himself to Brazil to save himself from her. And yet she still had to go bother him with her problems and of course take the coward way out so he wouldn't remember her telling him her secrets that are apparently so horrible that when he learns them he ask for the miraculous to save her from the consequences of it yet apparently he's seen as a villain for it like all the other ones who asked for her miraculous? Are you kidding me?

Luka you need to stay in Brazil Marinette will ruin you if you come back to Paris.

[take-my-eeveelution]

As I saw someone point out in another post - the visual aspects of that scene also made Luka look bad. Marinette’s pink eyes with the snake-bug unification made her look like she’d been crying, and Luka was grabbing her and demanding her miraculous so he could “fix it” for her. Visually, the viewer’s gut instinct is to see Marinette as the victim because of those things and because Luka is for once straight up telling her she’s 100% in the wrong, that it needs to be fixed and that if she won’t, he will. And when questioned, Astruc replies with the word “villain” - and like @richardsphere , I’m pretty sure that word usage is deliberate.

[erisluna35]

This brings some weird alternative interpretation for this post I saw somewhere else:

So... Is he messing with us again? Was the wording, calling Luka a villain intentional or is he just paralleling Luka with villains who want the Miraculous for a wish? Cause Luka was gonna use it for a wish?

Honestly he should just quit speaking in riddles condescendingly. It's giving the wrong impression if he merely meant Luka wants to use it for a wish.

[stevecrafts2k]

If you told me in 2015 that Miraculous would devolve into Astruc justifying abuse apologia and that if you don't agree with Marinette, you're the villain, I wouldn't buy it for a second.

I don't know how a creator can have his fictional daughter gaslight her boyfriend, shatter his rings, try to talk him out of therapy, reverse time so she won't have to deal with the consequences, and drag so many people into this, and still believe she's the hero.

[matchafigs]

your lack of whimsy is showing

[stevecrafts2k]

[wisteriasymphony]

It's so incredibly over.

[wisteriasymphony]

Okay, I'm going to try and reformat all of my (and some other peoples') thoughts over here as best I can.

This revelation is particularly bad because Thomas is, essentially, implying Marinette was in the right to lie. This is at worst a necessary evil because Adrien cannot handle the truth about his father. The idea that abuse victims must be treated at all times with kid's gloves to prevent them from having hard-to-deal-with outbursts, even when that coddling is antithetical to their growth and independence, IS ABUSE APOLOGIA. Not only that, but this seems to indicate that Adrien might never be told the truth in the entirety of the show's run, and the glimmer of hope that many people were holding on to this season was that Marinette was meant to be interpreted as a tragic figure in the wrong. Apparently not so.

We're at a point now that Marinette actively trying to cover up any instance of Gabriel's flaws (such as Lady Chaos), to the point of involving multiple people in Adrien's life into this conspiracy, is much more damaging to Adrien than if the original truth was immediately shared with him. The season itself has framed all of this as a horrible idea that will blow up in her face, but if this is how he frames the situation can we really expect the fallout to be treated with the necessary care?

Also, Adrien being sheltered from the truth because he will get akumatized is a Watsonian excuse, not a Doylist one. Adrien is not a real person, so any actions or reactions he or anyone else in this show have... are something the writers choose! He would only get akumatized if it was written that way, and so far he's only gotten akumatized in scenarios where Gabriel was literally controlling him through his amok. I'm sure if they wanted him to know they could write a scenario in which akumatization would not occur.

(And even then, couldn't the turmoil he's already going through be enough to get him akumatized? He's not exactly happy right now.)

This is just such a disheartening reveal, probably on the level of Thomas's old tweets about there never being a reveal. If I wasn't already emotionally invested enough in my own fan works to be inoculated against most of the bullshit happening in Season 6, this might've been what finally got me to jump ship.

[stevecrafts2k]

In other words, he agrees with Gabriel. He agrees with Marinette. He truly believes you either deserve abuse (Chloé) or that you're forever broken from it (Adrien).

Does Astruc even see his words? Does he not see how dangerous this is?

[stevecrafts2k]

"I'm not sure I did the right thing, but sometimes you're willing to do anything for the people you love."

Congratulations, Marinette. You're just like Gabriel.

That is the exact excuse he used to justify isolating and controlling Adrien all his life, that the world will break him, and that keeping him inside that mansion will keep him safe, happy.

And now you're doing the same thing to him, except using a guilded cage of lies instead of the literal cage of his mansion. Astruc, you must be so proud.

[flightfoot]

Wait. So they have an entire separate bedroom we haven't seen before, complete with an attached bathroom?! Marinette's family really IS doing very well.

[aquaaquila]

A fair reminder that this entire building segment is Marinette's house

Like Marinette doesn't live in an apartment, she lives in a tiny mansion and that's the biggest misdirect this show ever did.

[flightfoot]

To be fair, the bottom floor is the bakery, so she effectively lives in a two story house, not a three story one.

[generalluxun]

The storefront is the bottom floor. I see three sets of windows above it. +Attached Business in the heart of historic Paris. That is big money.

[generalluxun]

So I nerded out and did some digging. The avg real estate in the area the original bakery it was modeled after goes tor on average 10k euro per square meter. The building the OG bakery is in(which is not an exact copy!) is 227M sq. Dive that over four levels and you actually get a reasonable guestimate for the floorspace of the home.

In US units its a little over 2400 square feet split over 4 floors. So about 600 per floor. Something like 15x40 as a very rough layout. Looking at that building its a pretty reasonable fit if not on the small side. This is ballpark.

So 10kx227.

2,270,000€ in property there.

It's also a generational bakery so baring some very bad business decisions it should be fully paid off.

No wonder they could fund a trip to China on a whim. They are very secure.

[stevecrafts2k]

N O R M A L G I R L W I T H A N O R M A L L I F E

[miraculous-metamorphosis]

Mod CN- This is the worst fucking day of my life (im half Moroccan)

[miraculous-metamorphosis]

Mod CN- This is about Morocco guys.

[stevecrafts2k]

This entire playlist should speak for itself.