I like to think that at least once, the Avatar cycle seemed to skip the Water Tribe—like people knew it was the water tribe’s turn, everyone was looking for them, the tests are done on all the kids, but like 60-80 years go by and no avatar until some Earth Kingdom kid shows up. People wonder if the cycle skipped a generation or what, but nothing serious was going on at that time so they shrug and move on.
It’s only many many years later that someone is researching Swampbender oral history and someone tells the story of “Ol Stinky Jess, she was a funny one, could light the swamp on fire an’ all sorts o’ shenanigans! Best catfishgator catcher in the tribe, she was” and thats literally it, she just lived a totally chill life in the swamp and nobody knew what an avatar was at the time so they just rolled with that funny gal’s odd bending ways.
The source of the quote: a scene in Avatar the Last Airbender spoken by a man that lives in a swamp and has a spiritual relationship with the trees. His name is Huu.
....this is the quote I was sent yesterday?
I was quoted as saying the same thing as this....this......swamp man??
Have I been compared to a half naked, leaf wearing, swamp living, tree hugging man with THAT hairstyle???
STARLING. PLEASE.
Am I not so much more gorgeous than he is? So much more powerful? What in all of Xadia could ever make you think he and I are anything alike?
Now excuse me, I must have some words with mun. She should have informed me of this before I answered.
So I’m planning to do a fully colored drawing of Ol’ Stinky Jess as soon as I can get to it, but I’m also rather nervous trying to design a character that a lot of people have apparently grown attached to and may have their own mental images of by now, but I’m ALSO impatient and want to show off the concept work I did yesterday, so I’m gonna make this post separate from the main Stinky Jess post and save that reblog for the finished piece.
But anyway, HERE'S WHAT WE HAVE SO FAR:
Okay let me explain my choices/thoughts here:
She’s relatively young here, maybe 18-22. (Costume changes as she grows are an option)
It has always been my plan to make her tall and gangly. I feel I succeeded! Which delights me, because ya’ll don’t know how challenging it is for me to draw any body type other than “average.”
Iconic swamp tribe leaf hat is HARD TO DRAW FROM THE FRONT but I MANAGED IT
I wanted some callbacks to the swamp tribe as we see them in A:TLA, BUT this is also supposed to take place somewhere between 700 and 1,000 years PRIOR to the show, so it only makes sense there would be some cultural/fashion differences. If anything, I worry I made TOO MANY similarities to the modern-day garb, because fashion changes, but some things also make sense because of the setting (and the show super simplified their outfits), so I’m probably overthinking it?
Our one glimpse of female swampbenders in the show has them in skirts, but that’s not the main reason I gave her a skirt. No, the MAIN reasons are 1) modesty (which I think fits, esp. since this would have been closer to the time when the original settlers came from the Southern Water Tribe, which sported a lot more clothing), and 2) I thought it would be super in-character and funny for her to do that thing where you “gird up your loins” i.e. tie up your robe/dress/skirt for fighting/action. It just feels like something she would do. XD (I actually tried this and you def need a long, full skirt for it to work, although she might just tuck the ends into her belt.)
I was experimenting with the leaf shirt but I really like it! Just makes sense to me that they could make cool clothing out of sewing leaves together. =D The neck hole could be as simple as a hole cut in a large leaf (there’s likely some kind of underpinning to keep the leaves from tearing). Tempted to add leaves sticking out over her shoulders.
Pigtails because that also feels like her. I had to restrain myself from adding freckles, as that felt like one too many clichés.
Anyway, what do ya’ll think? Any suggestions/ideas? Anything seem really off? Feel free to leave a Reply/Ask, I welcome the feedback!
Yamato, the only man who has two elements under his sleeve. Known among the rebel’s as their best warrior, second only to the Avatar, and the general pain in the ass for the Fire Nation, Yamato specializes in combining his elements to manipulate wood.
Though, he affiliates with the swampbenders more. Yamato still considers himself an outcast.
"If you listen hard enough,you can hear every living thing breathing together, you can feel everything growing. We’re all living together, even if most folks don’t act like it. We all have the same roots, and we are all branches of the same tree."
