another, earnest-er argument for maxwell/torse (we love torsewell here)
[Was gonna add this as a reblog to my previous argument for torsewell post but then it got away from me and came back a monster]
For sure I really want more Torse because I love him so far and am a staunch "robots are hot" believer, but I also see Torse & Maxwell as just a genuinely good match.
Throughout the episodes we've gotten so far, Murph has emphasized Maxwell's fixation on fair fights & good matches, which bleeds into a fixation on fairness & equity in general.... though Max's definitions of those terms veer a bit from the norm. Our neurodivergent king, just like me fr
Max never uses weapons (beyond improvised ones) in battle, asks after the rules in the fighting pit, and justifies his actions against the Fehujar by claiming they broke the rules first. His understanding of fairness is rigid, but he'll opportunistically use or create loopholes for himself. I adore him, what a fun guy :>
And socially, Maxwell repeatedly, vocally disapproves of any potential relationships (amongst anyone) that would be between someone & their subordinate. He shuts down Marya's teasing about Freyja and any overt ardor from Freyja herself because he is her boss and that would be an abuse of power. Maxwell expresses those same sentiments about Olethra shipping Dawderdale and Daisuke.
Max's respect for Barney Ballaste comes from his skills as a technically excellent fighter with good sportsmanship. During the fight (and after I think) he likens his opponent to a Revington man, someone who would be Maxwell's own peer. His equal.
Torse is an ally, rather than a subordinate, and more importantly he is a competent fighter who has proven he can hold his own in seemingly hopeless situations. He is willing to kill and die for his cause and his companions, understanding the vast expanse between his physical abilities and that of others'.
Like Maxwell, Torse's peculiarities around fighting are often treated by outsiders as inconvenient, unnecessary, or nonsensical. As Torse has told the crew, there is a tiny window for him to switch between his wind-up hearts. We've already seen how dangerous that moment of vulnerability can be for him, alongside the perpetual vulnerability of keeping his back-up heart on his person, a constraint reminiscent of the dangers that come with Maxwell's exhaustion after fighting as The Max.
There are safer ways to battle than what they've chosen, being in the fray and paying a price in the aftermath, but their methods are non-negotiable for them. (Well, Torse's was negotiable but Olethra failed that roll v_v)
I think Maxwell would respect that about Torse, and vice versa. Torse, more than anyone we've met so far, is an equal to Max in skillset, station, and belief system. And that equivalence, that connection, is something Maxwell deeply values.
Torse reaches out on the basis of their similarly serious demeanors, but I think his root desire is to find someone who understands the world like he does. Who might not have the exact same backstory but nonetheless provides a sense of belonging.
Because I think that's a major thread of tension in both their characters right now: the genuine enjoyment of people marred by the ever-present fear of not being able to belong, connect, or provide anything of value. The persistent, gnawing, subconscious belief that they are out of place and taking far more than they've ever been able to give. Being an ill-fitting cog or, worse, an unnecessary one.
They believe they owe everything to their respective legacies. Their senses of self are directly tied to those banners they carry. Maxwell proving his grandfather's belief in Zood and funding of Comfrey were correct decisions would, in his mind, prove that his own beliefs and actions are worthy of respect. That he himself is worthy of respect.
Torse's rebellion against the regime that ruined his home, keeping not one heart but two, goes directly against the fatalism that drove his fellow Zernians to rid themselves of the hearts they felt were too painful to keep. Torse welcomes twice the agony, carrying the iron heart of his decimated home and the golden heart of a softer, kinder world. Giving either of them up would be anathema to the cause he fights for.
Torse and Maxwell would understand each other, and I think both of them are desperate to be understood. They do belong amongst these delightful, whimsical people who care about them earnestly, but it doesn't seem like they believe it, as we can see from how obviously they crave validation of their usefulness.
The importance of mirrors being hinted at in Cloudward, Ho! has got me fixated on foils, harmonies, twine braiding with its twin, people we turn to when we can't "look yourself in the goddamn mirror". Maxwell deserves an equal, a good match, to prove his belonging and his value by reflecting his own goodness back at him in a way he cannot ignore.
Because he's all about a fair fight, right? Rules applying to all parties?
If Torse, his undeniable equal, belongs in this whimsical world amongst these whimsical people, contributes invaluably to their cause, and chases dreams worthy of respect... then by Maxwell's own internal logic the same must be true for himself. And vice versa for Torse's understanding of himself. (You're precious Torse I'll fight anyone who says otherwise and, as evidenced, so will the zephyr crew)
Sometimes in a world of wonders, you need a person who already speaks your language to illuminate your path through the clouds.
,,,and that's my argument for why the hot yet gentle-souled big strong robot man should interface (horny) with the bruised & bloody knuckled gentleman brawler. they have gold heart parallels and should makeout about it
i will never not take steve and eddie’s bonding scene in episode seven as eddie realizing he is getting too gay for steve and immediately self sabotaging by bringing up nancy (to prove steve is into a girl and keep him firmly in the realm of unattainable and therefore eddie is Safe From Falling)
Ep.12 Torsewell thoughts w/ extra Maxwell analyses (reaching critical earnestness)
[Tangential spoilers for parts of Fantasy High and Neverafter. Completely avoidable, just skip the section between the orange lines]
There's something weirdly moving about Torse singling out Maxwell to ask if the Zephyr's crew would ever go on an adventure in Zern.
I think it's kind of beautiful that Maxwell has been treated as someone who's only now developing sky eyes, a newbie adventurer, but here Torse seeks his help specifically. He turns directly to Max & refers to the ship as "your family's vessel", addressing him as not only an adventurer, who will of course continue adventuring, but the exact kind of adventurer his world needs.
Not to project neurodiversity (I will) but I do really adore that there's a character that doesn't treat Maxwell's serious, disciplined behavior as something that needs to be broken away from to be a proper adventurer. So many of Murph's characters feel like they're reckoning with the alienation of not being able to be what everyone expects they should be.
CAUTION: Fantasy High & Neverafter spoilers!
Riz's lack of desire for romantic/sexual relationships makes him feel apart from the experiences of his peers and fosters within him an intense fear of loss, abandonment & isolation. He manifests an entire tulpa out of anxiety of being seen as an abnormality.
In Neverafter, Gerard is a prince in title but has never been able to master, or even understand, the complexities of being a ruler. He was cursed as a child, growing up isolated in the body of a frog for years, and sees his human form & title as safety. Not a burden but the lifting of one.
Yet Gerard's inability to meet the requirements of his station strains his relationship. He sees his very nature as a failure of & burden upon the person that makes him feel human. He cannot be what the person who brings him closest to normalcy needs, and his alienation literally de-humanizes him. I love Gerard of Greenleigh and every moment I think of him fills me with agony.
HUZZAH: Spoilers for other campaigns over!
ANYWAYS Murph's characters so regularly have this undercurrent of being fundamentally unlike others in a way they are hyperaware of, hypervigilant of, but have absolutely no control over. Which so intensely evokes neurodiverse & aro/acespec experiences that I'm dizzy with it. I am drawn to Murph characters (& Murph GMing) so much because. Yeah. YEAH. THIS GUY GETS IT. This guy knows The Alienation. The Othering.
Which I'm really elated to see continues in Maxwell, with his Revington rowdiness & his adventuring spirit that's so disparate from that of his crew. Especially with how he's been bonding with Torse, someone from a people that could be classed as both robot and alien. Two fictional entities that have been heavily associated with asexuality, autism, neurodivergence, and othering. For better and for worse.
Torse is not just a compassionate look at the outsider automoton trope, he himself is acutely aware of how he is othered from Zoodians AND his own people.
He sees the flourishing abundance of Zood and agonizes if his own home was a punishment, and what for. (Like Gerard cursed as a frog, alone among frogs in a pond) He sees all these whimsical, frivolous people and is hyperaware of how his own personality & appearance contrast. And unlike all the Zernians who gave their suffering hearts up to their completely unfrivolous autocrat, Torse carries two.
Maxwell is not exactly what his father believes he is supposed to be, or else this entire adventure would not have happened, but he isn't an adventurer in the manner of his crewmates either. Like with Torse & his hearts, Max does not fit perfectly into either role because he is the sum total of his imperfect parts. Maxwell isn't quite Gotch nor quite Wind Rider.
He's a Revington man. The title he preens more genuinely about than his own surname. A symbol of his self-actualization & rebellion in the path he chose to walk despite others' view of it. Rowdy yet disciplined; brutal yet tempered: thrill-seeking yet serious. Being like a Revington man is the highest compliment he ever pays people.
So I really do GET why Maxwell tears up at Torse declaring "I have never felt a stronger hand of flesh. Whatever they teach at Revington, the world should know". He's being praised for this identity that's the closest thing to Maxwell's very essence you can get without remarking upon his actual soul.
The Revington Man is Maxwell's aspirational self and saying that it's something worthy of others' aspirations is... bro,,,, Torse's genuine compliments game is UNMATCHED. My nose would start bleeding. I'd collapse. The fact Max only cried a little bit.... maybe Revington DOES give you super strength.
I truly just love how much of a kindred spirit Torse is for Maxwell, and that Torse seeks him out for this reason. He likes that Maxwell is serious, it makes him feel far more comfortable than someone frivolous ever could.
An exuberant friendship ritual surrounded by onlookers would be uncomfortable and painfully isolating. Torse finds connection in serious, candid conversations that forsake pretense. The firm touch of a handshake you give your all to. Dancing amid an ebullient celebration of plenty would just be a reminder of all he does not have & cannot be.
Because more than being a sign of naivete, whimsical frivolity makes Torse feel othered. His formidable stature, seriousness, and inability to sugarcoat his words rubs people the wrong way. They don't understand it. Maxwell is similarly singled out for his priorities, inability to read the room, and "tone issues".
But Torse likes that about him. He finds a kinship in those traits. (He's the neurodivergent robot smokeshow Max got by being autistic)
The crew is great for getting Max outside of his own shell and showing him the beauties of the world, but his friendship with Torse gives them both the safety to revel in what they don't want to change about themselves. Someone that recognizes all the hard work they've already accomplished and finds a home in the person they already are. (To be clear, both types of relationships are healthiest when you have the other kind, too.)
Torse telling Maxwell "It would be a little less lonely, I think" after discussing how isolated he's felt in Zood, how their plenty made him believe the suffering of Zern was punishment, drives me mad.
Torse is on a skyship full of people looking Max dead in the eye and telling him his company would make him feel less alone. Asking for his companionship on a mission to liberate his homeworld not just for his competence but for the comfort of his presence.
Sensing a kindred spirit? Torse you found a home in this man from 2 worlds away and you wanna settle down there. No room in your heart for anything other than rage?? You've already cleared out a dresser drawer, 1/4 of your closet, and space for a toothbrush. YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE TEETH. You are making the room like a centuries lost chain-smoking knight who treats a skyship like a u-haul!!!!!!
You like him soooo much because you've never felt a stronger hand of flesh & everyone should learn what is taught at his alma mater & he carries the banner of his people in his heart & his serious nature makes you believe he can help your people & adventuring with him would make you feel a little less alone. BE SO FOR REAL RN TORSE. YOU ARE SO OBVIOUS.
And Maxwell listening Torse's offer with rapt attention & head cocked. Quickly replying with an airy, excited "I think we would very much like to do that". Nodding excitedly even as he's casting a glance at his crew. Sprinting from a friendship ritual with Daisuke and offering his own "friendship ritual" in a hand outstretched to Torse. Being moved to tears by Torse praising his grip strength and attributing it to his fucking college. Even just remembering to race over to warn Torse of incoming garlands. I KNOW WHAT YOU BOTH ARE.
They're driving me to madness. They make me so sick.
AUGH I love torsewell sm. As the youths say, they "match each others freak". And I hope if the Zern adventure doesn't happen this campaign that we get a sequel or at least a Max & Torse's crazy adventure epilogue.
Harp rambles about how Olethra MacLeod's transness makes Cloudward, Ho! better
I love how naturally Cloudward, Ho! avoids Olethra's deadname while also weaving her transness into her identity & backstory.
I'd hoped we'd get a casual mention or two (bc trans Beardsley PC is a given) but then the Gotch patriarch got corrected on her gender and her parents get shown to be her staunchest supporters. Then moments like those were creating depth in Olethra, other characters, & the world.
Longspot Gotch misgendered Olethra because he's always dismissed his father's eccentric investments. Comfrey MacLeod was useless to him until he could seize her assets, one being the MacLeod homestead. He hasn't interacted with or checked in on the MacLeods in years, hence why he got Olethra's gender wrong and seemingly only knew her as Hutch's kid.
His info is that out of date. I'd bet he even forgot Olethra's deadname. When Longspot casually remarks "congratulations to the young lady" and moves on to discuss repossessing her home, he demonstrates how irrelevent the MacLeods are to him, his compulsive use of ettiquete, and how he values propriety while being morally bankrupt.
Hutch and Artemesia loudly supporting Olethra's transfemininity immediately textures their specific brand of libertarianism. They're not just allies AND homestead libertarians, their allyship is directly informed BY their beliefs in sovereign citizenship and individual freedom.
Plus, if Hutch didn't easily treat Olethra as his daughter, repeatedly make Olethra's transness a point of pride, or didn't mention it at all, I would've had a much harder time believing they'd willingly let Olethra off the homestead. Their familial closeness would've felt way less fleshed out and sensical.
Bc irl libertarians (in my experience) would NOT support their trans daughter like that and WOULD hypocritically confine her. Hutch and Artemesia's support of Olethra speaks to their values, care, & protectiveness. It makes them characters, rather than caricatures. I knew they'd say they love each other bc it felt earned!
Hutch's parenting of Olethra hints at what Comfrey was like as a parent, too. How he values freedom, self-ownership, and eccentricity like she did. Yet Hutch channels his feelings of abandonment from being 2nd to Comfrey's work into being a very present parent with Olethra. He's emotionally vulnerable, values her as a person, listens to her input, and does creative projects with the entire family.
Olethra openly tells her dad she's leaving instead of sneaking off because their relationship feels safe enough to do so. She can adventure without anxiety because her family is a firm anchor at their homestead, but hearing Bert sing still makes her homesick.
It's a family dynamic decision I absolutely appreciate for our transfem PC, especially because I know Beardsley and Brennan don't avoid addressing transphobia and abusive families. Beardsley's transmasc PC Pete in Unsleeping City has an extremely transphobic father who gets cursed when he tries to say Pete's deadname. Pete has to break harmful ties to live his life truthfully. He has to find happiness despite his family's cruelty.
So Olethra getting to have a ride-or-die, passionately supportive, loving family means everything. Especially with the transphobic panic that's been fomented by bigots irl.
Because transness isn't simply tolerable or ignorable. It's loveable and admirable and beautiful. Hutch thinks his daughter's identity is worth fighting for. He's inspired by her, proud of her, not despite her transness but for it. I'm so glad they went this route for Cloudward, Ho! It's very cathartic.
AND Olethra's transness makes her dynamic with Marya so much cuter. Olethra clearly adores all of the Wind Riders, but she has a particular attachment to Marya! Her runaway luggage has Marya merch she made by hand. She specifically seeks Marya out when she wants to get Monty on the crew.
Olethra hides behind Marya when Lord Mordecestershire confronts them, despite Marya's thin frame and short stature. Despite having the options of ripped 6ft tall Van, built af boxer Maxwell, broad charmer Monty, and actively extremely protective Daisuke. It's comedic, but also very in-character.
How's this relate to Olethra's transness? Well, think about the recording from the Wind Rider Society's first expedition. Marya is the youngest pilot in Wind Rider Society history at around 18 years old. She's fierce, quick with a gun and brilliant with their airship. She's a highly respected, awkwardly charming, self-assured young woman who wears a beautiful silk pirate shirt and a tactical corset.
Her femininity and her feralness coexist with ease. I can see how she'd become an important figure for a young transgirl living on a libertarian homestead, comfortable with guns and raised to be scrappy.
Again, I just love how irrelevent Olethra's deadname is but how important her transness is. It isn't something that's slapped on or glossed over. Being a transwoman is an essential, undeniable part of Olethra MacLeod. Do not separate. It boosts her character & the overall story. It makes me so happyyyyyy
I'm already at a "please don't fucking ask me to pick favorites" level of endearment for all the Cloudward, Ho! player characters. Especially with how they're so intertwined.
Now that I've regained coherence I just wanna ramble about all the cool intersections and parallels we already see in the premier:
Olethra and Maxwell are both grandkids of 2 very important figures to the OG Zephyr crew, but Maxwell's grandfather was the wealthy benefactor whose wealth funded the aeronauts while Olethra's grandmother is the former leader whose MIA status jumpstarts the entire journey.
Olethra and Maxwell's interactions with the OG members are already being colored by their grandparents' yawning shadows. I can see Maxwell having to surpass the barrier of Being An Outsider, while Olethra gets burdened by what the OG crew believes MacLeod would want for her. Especially Daisuke for Olethra, since he promised his ex-wife to protect her and has spent YEARS doing just that.
And, on the flip side, the entire OG Zephyr crew is gonna be dealing with their celebrity status among the newbies AND how long it's been since they've worked together. The chasm of time between that time and the present. The chasm between who believed in Zood (in MacLeod) and who didn't.
On a lighter note!!! Olethra is such a big fan of all the OGs but I really adore all the hints that she grew up with Marya specifically as her gender ideal. You can see it in their character art ofc, but there's also an instance of Olethra firing off a gun that is ENTIRELY reminiscent of Marya in the opening film reel. Marya wore (and still wears) a TACTICAL CORSET. That's the kind of gender expression that cracks eggs wide open.
Speaking of eggs and closets. It's VERY fun how Maxwell and Olethra's queer identities are woven into the narrative. Olethra was raised by violently supportive libertarian parents who place prime importance on an individual's freedom to do whatever the fuck they want and WILL kill you about it (and also secret bodyguard Pappy). Her transness is explicitly confirmed and supported multiple times, it's integrated into one of the first references to her. (I really hope Beardsley gets to dive deeper into Olethra's experience living her gender, they and Brennan always do such a phenomenal job of it!)
Meanwhile, Maxwell was raised as the 7th son of a (formerly) wealthy family, who are entirely preoccuppied with Keeping Appearances and Following Etiquette. "Rowdy" being a word offensive enough to send the family into hysterics, Maxwell's gloves covering his fighter's hands, his glove biting compulsion, and the entire fight club 28 perception check make homosexuality not even subtext. That's just text.
What are you doing covering up the evidence of the intricate rituals you use to touch the bare skin of other men? Why do you have oil in your back pocket if not to be constantly prepared to get oiled up and bloody with other men?
It's just fascinating how the integration of Olethra and Maxwell's relationships with their identities already sets them up to have such a dynamic. Your father is batshit, but he supports you unconditionally and goes out of his way to remind you of it. My father is buttoned up, acceptable, and smothers my passion in order to shove me into acceptability. Your grandmother is our mission and the Zephyr's heart, my father is an antagonist and our last name is... on the Zephyr.
We are both adults just now climbing out of our family's shadows.
Like COME ON MAN. THAT'S GOOD SHIT.
Also I'm ecstatic about the tension established between Maxwell and Monty before Monty is even introduced, because the dyamic between Lou's "you can't help but love 'em" charmer PCs and Murph's "2nd place winner of the cringefail dude competition" loser PCs is always such an underrated part of intrepid hero campaigns.
Maxwell bringing "3 star goodreads reviewer who Has Some Notes" all the way to the party where we meet beloved author and environmental activist Monty is a killer bit already. I need it to be the twin flame to "You have to promise not to be mad, Gerard". I NEED IT.
okay,,, I'll definitely add onto this when we see more from all the characters. Or immediately when I think of something tomorrow. BUT IM JUST SO EXCITED.
looking at how Goro Akechi became a foil of Akira Kurusu thru their childhood (attachment styles)
(Content Warnings for discussing all the stuff in Akechi's childhood specifically, bad parenting, neglect, mental illness. Take care of urselves)
waking up to the tags @1derpu2 added on another post of mine about Akechi ("#I don't think I could survive in his position") had me thinking of a 15-16 year old Akechi, and how survival even feels to him.
Because arguably Akechi has been in survival mode since he was born. Even with a mother doing her best to provide, poverty fundamentally rewrites the brain especially at such a young age−
(Tangent: Akechi's dessert blog actually reminds me of Brennan Lee Mulligan during the d20 Misfits & Magic actual play discussing his character [Evan Kelmp, an unhoused orphaned kid] ordering from desserts at restaurants in order to maximize caloric intake for his money bc stuff on the dessert menu actually tends to contain the most calories– ANYWAYS)
–and he also can feel the underlying tension in how his mother is treated, how he himself is treated, how there is no support network for them. I can imagine that's part of the lure of an ensemble kid's show like Featherman: reliable companions who take your hand rather than slapping it away.
I've done a lot of reading into attachment styles and attachment trauma (bc it's interesting and also haha ;] trauma) and it is a really cool lens to view the differences between our two Wild Cards Akechi and Akira.
adding a reblog with an attachment theory rundown! actual discussion of akechu attachment stuff below cut
There is no better fit for Akechi than a Disorganized Attachment style after finding his sole caregiver and financial (his mother) dead by her own hand after years of her focus being split by the work she needed to do for them to afford survival, before being passed around by distant relatives who viewed him with contempt, if they acknowledged him at all.
The world treated him and his mother like vermin, so of course no one else is trustworthy, of course the people who take advantage are evil. Of course everyone takes advantage. Just like his father, who is the root of this whole horrible thing (the thing being Goro's life, the thing being Goro)
His mother left him violently, voluntarily (from his pov, suicide & mental illness are complicated), so he must be someone repulsive. Incapable of being loved. If he wants others to love him, and he must in order to get close enough to his father to kill, then he must be anything other than himself.
One of the symptoms of disorganized attachment and attachment trauma is the inability to regulate emotions, leading those with it to feel things with an intensity they can't control, soothe, or explain that can fluctuate between emotions rapidly.
And doesn't that markedly fit with a kid who has awoken such disparate personas that are both him? His entire relationship with the world (there must be justice but there is no such thing as justice) and his inner psyche does explain why he brings up Hegel. If you have both Loki and Robin Hood inside you, thesis and antithesis, then isn't it a comfort to know their existence somehow makes sense? That you are synthesis rather than just chaos and pain.
Meanwhile, from the little we hear about Akira's parents and how Persona 5 frames the adults around him, the Avoidant attachment style fits best. He is fiercely independent, with such a strong sense of identity despite with the masks he wears for others that he has the true Wild Card ability. He stands his ground with his morals, even when everyone around him is telling him his life would be easier if he gave up.
He has a strong internal moral center because he was never attached enough to his caregivers that they'd be able to influence his cognitive assimilation. Why trust someone's moral judgment when you can't even trust them with your vulnerability?
This is why Akira and Akechi are so fascinating as foils, as rivals, and as people who know each other better than anyone else could. Akechi walks around as a fake, appealing version of himself that Akira sees through clearly. And Akira likes the bitter, vicious, angry version of Akechi because it's honest. That is the underlying intensity of people he knows is hidden behind the masks adults are convinced are their faces. (Where's your rage? RISE RISE RISE)
Akira and Akechi match so well not because they have a hidden ugliness, but because they view the pleasant masks people wear to excuse or ignore injustice as what are truly ugly. And their difference lies in Akira's belief that there is good in people while Akechi's upbringing has him convinced that humanity is rotten to its roots.
And Akechi wants Akira's beating, caring heart between his teeth because there is still a lonely little child in his own chest who loves Featherman and just wanted a better life for his mom. And who won't fucking die, no matter how Akechi tears the world apart to match his perception of it.
Akechi has spent years trying to kill his heart, which has done nothing but soaked his masks in his own blood.
Akira looks Akechi in the eyes, straight through those masks, and steals his heart from off the chopping block. And he keeps it close even as Akechi turns the blade on him in a rage borne of fear.
They're gay as hell thanks for coming to my ted talk. might improve after work
amongst all the ace attorney characters, i can really see ema skye, simon blackquill, & klavier gavin (ofc can see others too, but them especially) getting involved in cases & community orgs bolstering the rights of incarcerated individuals
cause the aa universe is fictional but still based off irl systems, and the dark age of the law wouldn't merely involve the courts. we just happen to experience the whole tangled mess from that angle. but it's obvious from simon's whole shtick (and also so many other things) how fucked the treatment of both the accused & convicted is. justice isn't served if the sentence a convict serves in itself is unjust
and i just cant imagine these very justice-minded individuals, who have their own experiences with themselves or loved ones being incarcerated, not doing shit about that. at the very least theyd be a part of a literacy access group, but with their life and career experiences theyd def have momentum
idk man i love these games but i wish i could find more fanworks handling like. such a big human rights issue irl thats also present thematically in these games. but make what u wanna see ig
I really, truly adore fics where Character A does visual art (maybe secretly) as a hobby and their feelings for Character B are revealed through pieces A's created of B. So much its my lifeblood.
But I feel like when A draws, their art style is almost always implied to be representational and realistic. 1:1 sketches in a notebook. And as a fic writer who's understanding of art is very second hand, I get it dude. I feel you /gen
I do love naturalism, don't get it twisted!! (I shan't milord /ref) But there's a lot to explore with styles, techniques, & subject matter. Soooo
I have some proposals that might better fit your ships/blorbos of choice. Or just be fun!
Artist ship fic prompts/ideas:
A hates portraiture. Haaaates drawing people. Doesn't make no damn sense. They love doing still-lifes & landscapes (objects & places) though, and their feelings for B are revealed in how many of their pieces are of B's objects, objects B gave them, or important places in their relationship.
A hates drawing people, but loves drawing animals. Animal forms just make sense, and they're cooler! They keep drawing 2 animals together over & over, and those animals have a striking resemblance to A and B....
A does animal focused drawings typically seen as "cringe" in the mainstream. This is my Warriors OC it's a medicine cat like you're a medic. This is how we'd look as a cool dragons. I love you.
A is struggling financially and has started doing furry art (maybe they're a furry themselves). They've refused to accept what they see as handouts, or don't want to owe favors, so B commissions A to design them a fursona. And keeps commissioning them. Perhaps even anonymously. Sugar Daddy but if that daddy were a meerkat/raccoon hybrid.
A has a very cartoony or simplified style, and when drawing their friends they must choose what to emphasize or simplify. What A thinks their most easily recognizable elements are. B has some self-perception & self-esteem issues, but seeing what A focuses on makes them look at themselves in the mirror differently.
A has synesthesia and all their works that B is drawn to are actually how A perceives B's voice. Laughing, singing, talking fondly, even screaming.
Abstract or color-focused artist A. You are yellow to me because yellow is the happiest color. You keep changing colors in my mind's eye because you're always showing me new sides of yourself. This is your motif, it is in all of my works.
I am the kiki to your boba, and I think that's beautiful.
A does mixed media or collages, and they keep putting in physical elements from their life with B. Music sheets of B's favorite songs, corners from letters B's written, receipt paper from late-night diner trips, etc.
B is very expressive or physically active. They move through the world with intensity. So when A needs practice with gesture drawing, their chosen subject is usually B.
B is the only person who can accurately guess what the hell A's trash sculptures are supposed to mean (or they help them come up with fake meanings to please an art prof).
Here's a little bird paperweight I made. I love you. Here's a clay figurine of your favorite video game character. I love you. Here's a piece that's too flawed to sell, but you thought it was cute so have it. I love you.
I only ever doodle in the margins of my notebooks but our little doodle selves are going on an adventure. Also all these singular eyes are based on yours.
Hmm this got away from me. Maybe I should actually write fic,,,, nah.
If anyone sees this and likes any of it, feel free to use or just ramble about ur blorbos in reblogs/comments. Or add on with ur own ideas!!!
