#fan interpretation

[technicalt]

full soul design

(yeah i saw the comments 😭..i see it tho👀👀)

[dazzlep0p]

Glamrock Kris interpretation + little Vessel parallel <3

[hushedhannya]

First time drawing the moms

Outfits inspo from the Trailer Park Ladies trading card btw

[floryd]

well as i said i would, here is finally a more detailed art work

this is my imagination of how i think Raverne would look like! surprisingly there are so little fan designs i was shocked, so i referenced those, crowley (of course) and some fanfictions i’ve read describing his appearance

as cocky as i am, i am really in awe how his face came out, worth the 3 hours i spent drawing!

also a transparent model, maybe if i ever make memes in the future i will use it, i may even make more emotions for him!

[miomediator]

What the Hydrangea means, a heartfelt message from Tetsuya Nomura

Long thread ahead, interpretation of the new KH artwork for the 24th Anniversary

Ok, this is huge.

First of, it's a new piece of artwork from Director Nomura. So it's always a win in my book. The watercolor illustration is gorgeous, whether it's the droplets, the material on the umbrella, coat, the sky, the flowers, it's beautiful.

But that's not it. It's from Tetsuya Nomura, the big brain man himself!! And while I didn't see anyone or any post diving into it yet, I believe I'm into something.

It's a message. Sure enough there's a little text on the bottom left of the picture. I'll dive into each part beginning by the text itself.

"25同年に向かって 頑張り中です 応爰ありがとうございます"

"We are working hard towards the 25th anniversary Thank you for your support"

A direct acknowledgement of the anniversary, a professional and proper thank you to the community.

But I believe there's more, ooohhhh yes. That's just the official surface part. Because it's Nomura, everything is subtle, hidden, smart.

And that's why we'll turn our attention towards, not Young Xehanort yet, but the flowers.

Yes, that's not the first time we have a flower on an official artwork.

There was a bleeding heart (and a dandelion) on a KH Uχ 2nd anniversary artwork. And while I don't quite remember its meaning, I know there's always deep symbolism associated to flowers.

So I looked for the hortensia (hydrangea in english) flower meaning on the internet. And lo and behold, the results we're quite interesting!

"deep gratitude", "sincere apology", "metamorphosis".

Now that's promising. But is it Xehanort who's apologizing? Perhaps. But remember, Nomura said that he relates more to Xehanort that Sora himself. Maybe it's a message from both of them, toward a different person? Xehanort towards Sora(?) or Eraqus (??), and Nomura towards the fans.

Those hydrangea are blue purple-ish, which of course means something different for each color: -Blue: inner peace, forgiveness, introspection -Purple: spiritual transformation, strong emotions (!!)

Let's keep in mind that's it's the western meaning, so let's look at the japanese meaning of the flower (it's one of the most popular flower in Japan):

"an awkward sincerity", "gratitude after making a mistake", "June's rain" The first one is similar but the second one? Is Xehanort apologizing and acknowledging that he made a mistake?

Also the website mentions that the hydrangea blooms during June.

That would explain the umbrella and raincoat! And the rainy weather on both artwork in general. But this time he's not facing us. His face is hidden. Thoughtful? Ashamed? Crying, perhaps? Hence the rain pattern.

Well the flower website seems to hold the answer:

"It (the flower) is often gifted to say 'I am sorry' or 'thank you for staying despite my silence'.

Through Xehanort, Nomura is apologizing for the long periods of silence while thanking us for staying tuned and engaged in the series despite it all. As for the 'mistake', I'm not sure if it's for the early reveal of KH4 or for the silence itself.

But it might call for a 'metamorphosis' as mentioned earlier in this post. A transitional period. A new self blooming, while the other is washed away by the rain~

Another website mentions that "others think the hydrangea earned its name because the flower requires so much water to thrive."

One could thrive with an emotional release, cleansed and healed by the rain perhaps? Xehanort sure isn't shielding himself from the rain this time around, but rather facing it. (kinda remind of KH3 where Roxas and Axel symbolically fight each other under a heavy rain, while Utada Hikaru sings 'let me face my fears')

Anyhow, this hidden message would explain the 'awkward sincerity' part of the flower meaning. Something that he couldn't express directly, so he chose Xehanort and this illustration to do so.

While the KH lore bits have to be heavily taken with a pinch of salt (mainly due to speculations without concrete proof) I strongly believe the emotions put into this message are sincere.

At the risk of paraphrasing the website, here's the conclusion to this post and message:

"Gifting a hydrangea, it is to leave a breath of emotion on the doorstep. To say "I'm listening" without a word. It is to invite tranquility, a soft transformation, listening to yourself. In a world in constant rush, the hygrangea whispers that we can also love in silence."

Anyway it was a blast trying to decipher the hidden message behind this artwork 😊 I was so excited to be one of the first to understand it, and being able to rely his feelings to the other fans.

TL;DR: Tetsuya Nomura thanks the fans for their support, along with a hidden message in the flowers aiming to apologize for the long periods of silence, but also perhaps inviting everyone to look inside and appreciate the series in a calmer manner.

It might also hint at Xehanort silently expressing regret and being introspective, hiding his face.

[sadisticlens]

Shadows of a War Photographer

A little something to capture Stefano's past before he drowned in velvet ruin.

Digitally de-aging him took quite a bit of work, but I wanted to portray the man he might've been in his war photography days. This one's straight from the lens of interpretation. Enjoy! 🥀 Image created with XNALara and Pixlr. 🥀 Video created in Clipchamp. 🥀 Music "War Behind the Lens" composed and arranged by me. 🥀 Vocals performed by me - inspired by Stefano Valentini.

🎧 Listen / Download "War Behind the Lens" at Audio.com!

[builderlife]

"Jax is canonically transfem!!"

Okay.

Cool.

Can we stop acting like everyone who doesn't immediately agree is committing a federal crime against media literacy?

Because apparently we've reached the point where saying "I don't personally consider that canon" gets you treated like you just kicked a puppy.

Here's the thing: People keep throwing around the word canon like it only has one universally accepted definition.

It doesn't.

Never has.

Fandom has been arguing about "Word of God" versus "Death of the Author" since fandoms exist.

Some people believe that if the creator says something outside the work, it's canon.

Some people believe the only canon is what's actually in the work itself.

Neither side invented this debate.

This is not a brand-new TADC-exclusive phenomenon.

It's literally one of the oldest fandom discussions on the internet

"But Gooseworx said—"

Yes.

I know.

Some people count creator statements as canon.

Some don't.

Congratulations 🎉 , you've discovered that fandom philosophy exists.

Now let's look at the actual show:

Where does anyone say Jax is trans?

Where does anyone mention transitioning?

Where does anyone reference another name?

Where does anyone use different pronouns?

Where does anyone say ANYTHING that explicitly tells the audience this?

...

Exactly.

So maybe, just maybe, the people who watched the show and concluded "Jax is a another gender than transfem" aren't actually delusional.

Maybe they just …watched the show.

Wild concept, I know.

"But the art!!"

Do you know how many artists post doodles?

Alternate universes?

Jokes?

"What if" scenarios?

Character redesigns?

Concept sketches?

Congratulations.

You have discovered artists 👍

When an artist posts an illustration, people asking "Is this canon?" is a completely normal question.

Not every drawing uploaded to social media is automatically in the show.

"But the VA said—"

Cool.

Voice actors are awesome.

Voice actors also aren't automatically the final authority on lore.

Sometimes they know everything.

Sometimes they know almost nothing.

Sometimes they joke.

Sometimes they accidentally spoil things.

Sometimes they misunderstand things.

It's perfectly reasonable for fans to ask where information comes from instead of treating every convention quote like it's carved into stone tablets by God.

"But it was supposed to be subtle!"

Okay...

Then why is everyone acting shocked that people didn't notice?

If your audience needs Bluesky posts, screenshots, Tumblr essays, reposted Discord messages, fourteen YouTube breakdowns, and a PowerPoint presentation to understand something...

...perhaps people missing it isn't the moral failure everyone keeps pretending it is.

The funniest part of this entire situation isn't even the discussion.

It's the absolute Olympic-level mental gymnastics some people are doing:

Person A: "I personally don't see it as canon."

Fandom: "So you hate trans people."

HUH???

How did we get from discussing fictional clowns to assigning strangers entire political identities because they have a different opinion about storytelling?

Do you know what's actually exhausting and maddening?

Watching people use "canon" like a gun.

Watching people tell artists to change fanart.

Watching people correct pronouns on fanworks that were made before any external statements.

Watching people dogpile someone because they said "I only follow what's in the show."

Watching people tell writers to change their fanfics

Watching people act like every disagreement is malicious.

You know what this fandom used to do?

Debate.

Now apparently every discussion has to end with someone getting called media illiterate, a bigot, or "problematic."

Can we maybe...not?

You think Trans Jax is canon?

Awesome.

You think creator statements count as canon?

Awesome.

You think only the episodes count?

Awesome.

You think the reveal should've been clearer?

Also awesome.

Those are all completely normal opinions to have about fiction.

The only opinion that isn't normal is deciding someone deserves harassment because they interpreted an intentionally subtle character differently than you did.

Touch some grass.

Drink some water.

Go draw your favorite rabbit

The internet will survive if some people says "I still read Jax as another gender."

I promise.