ThesaArt

[thesaart]

Paper Theater

Hooks attached to eyes, joints move with astral hands strumming strings. Move up and down, back and forth throw those bombs and flash that smile. Inside it's all hollow anyway so let the snow burry you. Hide away or protect those that never cared to meet you. Your heart outside your body, your audience laughing at your silhouette. All you are a crumpled old paper doll.

[advanced-shrimp]

worm being just so smart

[thesaart]

She has exactly as many braincells as this video implies

[advanced-shrimp]

there's a memory of you burned into my sheets and the details are starting to get fuzzy

[advanced-shrimp]

acrylic on canvas 💜

i am creating unsafe environments for those around me and I see myself mirrored in their lifeless bodies floating in my coffee

[thesaart]

Alive

[kohi-karasu]

About *that* line, and why I think it was most definitely intended to be romantic.

I've talked about this line before in my essay on why I think Mine's feelings for Daigo are reciprocated, but I would like to take a bit more of a deep dive into this particular scene and why, to me, it's soft-confirming Minedai/Daimine, completely aside from the whole bottle thing and the entirety of Dark Ties - that's a whole different can of worms, but I feel like this line is the most definite proof we have that Daigo's feelings for Mine aren't just those of a strong friendship, but romantic in nature. So, here's why I think so!

First of all, to get that out of the way - yes, the translation is accurate. I double and triple checked to make sure the Japanese version says the same, and it's fully unambiguous too, so it's not like someone translated this line wearing fujoglasses or something. (The translation I'm using here is the one by @/Hisana on Youtube, all of their RGGO translations are very well done.)

Anyway, as we know, this RGGO story is about their (in RGGO) first bar outing. They drink together, we get a timeskip, Mine tells Daigo a random story that makes him laugh, and then Daigo hits Mine with this:

It's a 180° change in topic - nothing leads up to Daigo suddenly inquiring about Mine's personal life. While that part can be explained by a boss just wanting to get to know their subordinate better, if you really want to see it like that, the way Daigo goes about it definitely can't be. It's even more evident if we look at the Japanese line:

The とか at the end of the phrase signalizes that Daigo is inquiring about a relationship partner (gender neutral btw!) as one of many things Mine could potentially have going on in his private life. But why is this the first thing Daigo's mind goes to, if he just wanted to know Mine better? What about asking about his hobbies, favorite foods, friends and family? The fact that he asks about neither of those, jumping straight to a potential relationship partner, makes the とか…… suddenly feel like Daigo is trying to sound casual and nonchalant about what is a very obvious advance on Mine to everyone with eyes.

(What's more, 交際している相手 carries the light nuance of someone Mine is currently dating. It may not make a huge difference, but it is worth noting Daigo is inquiring about Mine's current dating life, where instead he could be asking about stable relationships like marriage if the idea was just to get to know his subordinate better.) And it does seemingly strike Mine as odd, reacting to the inquiry dumbfounded if not flustered.

And then, of course, the biggest giveaway to me that this scene was intentionally written with romantic subtext is the fact it then gets interrupted by Daigo's phone.

Which is, like, the oldest trick in the book of romance media - interrupting a tense moment that could lead to certain romantic developments, especially with phone calls lol. If Daigo's inquiry was supposed to be a casual conversation between friends, there would be no reason to interrupt this moment. And actually, we have proof for that in Dark Ties!

Funnily enough, I've seen people trying to discredit the Daigo scene using this moment in Dark Ties, because "Kanda asked about Mine's relationship status too though!!" I think it's obvious that the context of these moments is very different though (Kanda has a reason to breach this topic because they're in a soapland, and he's clearly doing it for horny reasons because he wants to talk about girls with Mine lmao), and I'd go even further: I think this scene further proves the romantic nature of Daigo's inquiry. The reason is simple: Mine doesn't react uncertain or flustered to Kanda's question. He gives a straight answer to the question, and the scene doesn't get interrupted by anything either. There's no buildup nor tension, no phone calls interrupting Mine's reply. The "new scenario" of Dark Ties, which I'm pretty sure includes the Kanda Bro Time scenes as they don't really count as side content (imo), is written by Takeuchi according to the DT credits. Takeuchi also wrote the Daigo/Mine character story from RGGO, as far as I'm aware. It's the same writer portraying similar scenarios very differently depending on who's the one asking Mine the question, and I can't help but feel this was intentional on his side. (It's also worth noting that this same Kanda Bro Time event pretty much confirms Mine being gay. So I wouldn't be surprised if these two scenes were written to go along with each other.) There's more to be said about the context of this line within the full RGGO story - like how I think the full story reads like a classic romance drama plot that hinges on Mine recognizing Daigo's flirting (and thus growing rightfully suspicious of him allegedly meeting with a woman, or how Daigo leaving with a woman could be read as a subtle call for help to Mine to signalize he's in trouble, since he couldn't talk about it). But I think that part is a bit more open to interpretation, and since this post is already getting long, I wanted to focus on what's actually textually there.

One could argue that this line, as well as this RGGO story in general, is merely fanservice/fujobait. Which may or may not be true, but I think with the direction they've taken in Dark Ties (pretty much confirming Mine being gay completely aside from his crush on Daigo, which is pretty rare and goes beyond the classic fujobait) I'm inclined to believe it's a genuine attempt to write their relationship as reciprocated love, as far as they were allowed by Sega. I just hope the trend continues and they'll grow bolder/be granted more freedom in regards to daimine. So this concludes my analysis, let me know what you think of this line!

[thesaart]

Behind the Mask

This mask given by god, it breathes and moves within its bounds. Do you wear the mask to contain the pulse that isn't fully yours or do you throw it away? Is this a gift or a mockery of your desires, of your wish to love? This fear you feel is that what elation truly is? A fear that sits deep inside your bones that emerges at the worst of times. In tragedy we find comedy, that's what makes a fool and your gift is this mask that is fully yours. Oh what cruel fate you where dealt but here do not cry after all this is your price. And now go and make THEM smile.

[nocturnalwxii]

🌴🌊🐠

[thesaart]

Dearest Friends

[thesaart]

I got inspired by the beautiful knight character design @macksarts made of Caine

[thesaart]

Developer

He was here before any of us. Just how did he never abstract?

[thesaart]

TADC character from my memory

[thesaart]

Your art is sooo pretty :0

It's very shaped

thank youuuu i love my fanky shapes

[thesaart]

Oath

I made demon/monster designs for Majima and I really wanted to do more, so next is Mine. Like with Majima i took his tattoo as my main inspiration. I love that Mine has the Kirin and i adore how important the mythological creature is to Mines entire story. That's why i made him a Kirin centaur with a mane and tail like golden fire. It was important to me that he looks regal and almost divine with endless riches surrounding him, creating a pool beneath his hooves that slowly fills with blood dripping from his hands. His actions create boundless fortune but trap and drown him in turn. But then a light breaks through the endless blackness. And this light makes the proud and cold creature reach his hands out towards the comforting hue. Offering not just his riches but also his blood in pure and complete loyalty

[thesaart]

Flowering Scales

To be free is to choose those who will hold your leash. Blind, the one eyed demon lifts their gaze. Who will be worthy to point their yellowed teeth and redden claws?

Post by @thesaart · 1 image

💬 0  🔁 9  ❤️ 33 · Snake Bloom · With each new step blood red petals flow from split flesh. Hands bound to direct the demons yellowed fangs a

[thesaart]

Snake Bloom

With each new step blood red petals flow from split flesh. Hands bound to direct the demons yellowed fangs and bloody claws against new and never ending faceless souls.

[thesaart]

Stuffy Air and Distant Looks

The barkeep gazes at you, up and down her eyes go. She pushes a drink at your direction. The glowing liquid swirls in its glass actively drowning a spider wedged inside. "Drink! by The Laughter you need it." With a lazy smile she adds. "Don't worry I'm also the doctor of this place."

"one two … I swear this painting teleports I already wrote it down". A muffled chuckle escapes the man next to the confused duck. "My dear surly your counting skills need work, see it barley moved." The mans mask hides both his eyes and smile. With his tone so dry he turns around and says "Also check your eyes this painting is a forgery."

"My my haven't seen you in while." Says the moon to the man. "I wondered if you'd still remembered my little game." "Oh well of course I'd never miss such spectacle." "Ha, I see shadows don't hide lies. So tell me fool, why are you really here?" "Oh why to play a game of cards, say my dear moon do you fancy a round?"