If youāre caught in the shadow then turn around
Lost in the darkness, you will be found
If you hear my voice, follow the sound
āCause Iām here to guide you home
Gladiatorās Seventh Anniversary
March 26th swings by once more, and this time Iāve been celebrating this milestone for nearly a whole month :āD We have twenty Gladiator-arcs-themed artworks by now, and hereās our grand finale! A little more grand than every anniversary up to date, I hope!
This particular entry comes in two forms, however! And hereās the second one:
Say hello to the FIRST GLADIATOR ARTWORK VIDEO! :āD
Yeah, it wasnāt always meant to be the first xD I have two other videos in the works, and one of them is at least over halfway done (with rudimentary animation in it too :āD). Still, this occasion demanded it! And so I decided to go for a video this time, hopefully the next videos wonāt take too long to finish!
This hasnāt been an easy year for me, despite Iāve certainly written a lot of things Iām reeeally happy about (that you guys will be seeing later this year). Quite often Iāve found myself losing traction, hope, faltering against many obstacles in my life. Iāve made big and small mistakes here and there, and Iāve had low points, even if none quite as low as the one I hit two years agoā¦
Still, at the end of the day, this story has always had my back in its own way. Iāve been able to find peace by writing it, even in the darkest of moments. Going over all the progress Iāve made with it, and looking ahead at everything thatās yet to come often fills me with the willpower and strength I need to keep going, no matter what. So, after a year of blackouts, water shortages, internet collapses, countless setbacks with my real-life plans and now even a pandemic, Gladiator has always been the safest harbor I can find refuge in when everything else fails.
This big finale is, of course, meant to encapsulate the growth of Sokka and Azulaās relationship throughout the first half of Part 2. At first I had wanted to draw scenes from each arc I had skippedā¦ but that didnāt quite work out as well as that after I revisited a certain movie, which features a BRILLIANT OST, and it had two songs that Iāve now poached outright for Gladiator purposes :āD Strange Sight is a song that really works well for Sokka and Azula in general (from Sokkaās POV), but the bulk of the song really sounds more like it fits these two in Part 1 xD yet the very conclusion of the song changes its toneā¦ and thatās the part that inspired me into making this video/artwork set!
The first scene depicted is AzulaāsĀ āblunderā, when she nearly admits she loves Sokka despite not being ready to say it out loud. He is thrilled, but sheās very flustered, so he gives her space while she blushes stubbornly in her Bargeās cabin (?). The second artwork comes from a scene I always wanted to depict in art, even while I was writing it: Azula watching Pohuai Stronghold at a distance while Sokka is enthralled, looking at her (even blurts out sheās beautiful because heās a goofball like that xD). The third scene comes from their escapade to the healing hot springs, on the same chapter Sokka gives Azula her secret betrothal necklace. The fourth scene is the crazy kiss these two steal in the airship factory, when they lose sight of Ozaiās retinue and make out amidst the factory equipment, steam and whatnot rising around themā¦ because thatās just the stuff they like to do xD The fifth scene is taken from their chaotic anniversary arc, once they had already patched things up and were drying each otherās hair with towelsā¦ Azula dried Sokka, his hair was a disaster afterwards and she laughed her ass off while he did his best to take revenge xD the sixth scene depicts a much darker moment, Azula using her gold fire to fight back against Seethus, underground (not sure if it shows, but clutching Sokkaās hand is what allowed her to use gold fire properly in the midst of such a desperate situation. And the seventh scene is meant to portray Azula in that arc too, after she has rebelled against her father and takes off with Sokka, putting more distance between herself and Ozai than ever beforeā¦
The final one isnāt really derived from a particular scene of the fic, instead itās the image I always get of these two when I hear the end of that song. āYouāre not aloneā is definitely one of the most important things Azula needs and deserves to hear. Though itās not only for her to hear itā¦ itās for her to know for sure that itās true, that she has a partner who will stand by her through thick and thin, to the ends of the world if need be. That no matter how bad things can get, she knows heās on her side and always will be.
It has taken quiiiite a while to develop their bond and relationship to this extent, but I have to say it has been such a wonderful process for meā¦ as Iāve said in the past, Gladiatorās Part 1 was the story of how they get together, but Part 2 is the story of how things work now that they are together. Thereās a strange, general perception of romance storytelling, and it even expands into IRL relationships, Iād say, that suggests, whether intentionally or not, that relationships stop developing, evolving, growing once theyāre consummated. I donāt know if the fairytaleĀ āthey lived happily ever after!ā is to blame for that, but personally, I donāt see the point in watching a relationship be built up from the ground only to witness a brief glimpse of how it works before the curtain falls. Thatās why Gladiatorās Part 2 has been the exact opposite of that. Both Azula and Sokka had a lot left to grow and develop after Part 1 was finished, their partnership did too, and thereās like a gazillion plotlines, new and old, that will be crucial in building up the biggest, baddest climax of the story so far. Thereforeā¦ Iād like to think my point has been made? You CAN tell a story about this side of a coupleās life together. Whether people stick around to read it is another subject, but if youāre working with a couple as dynamic as these two, getting them together is barely the first part of the journey.
I make it no secret that Part 2 is definitely my favorite chunk of the story, especially the chapters that are being published nowadays (and those that will be published in the future), so part of the reason why I went all out here is because I really, REALLY wanted to cherish everything this part of the story embodies for me and, hopefully, for everyone who has read and enjoyed it.
I deeply thank everyone who has stuck it out with me through this journey, no matter if you were here from the first moment or if youāre a newcomer who hasnāt even caught up yet. Iām also really grateful if you donāt know the story at all but still took your time to even drop a like on any of these posts. It has always been scary to be a creator on the Internet, both because of the potential backlash against what you do and, perhaps even worse than that, the indifference of people who donāt really care much about what you create, regardless of how much work youāve put into it, and how much youāve grown so you can make new ideas a reality. But thereās people out there, really wonderful people, who have always been supportive of my crazy creative efforts, always sticking by me no matter how difficult it could be (and no matter how long this story gets :āD). Iām far from a perfect content creator, and sometimes I get discouraged by the stupidest thingsā¦ but when you guys show interest in what I do, when you say how much the story means to you, it never fails to revitalize me and get me going once again.
So this big celebration is for those of you who stick by me, who support me, who encourage me at my lowest and highest alike because you believe in me and the story Iāve been telling for SEVEN YEARS NOW :āD Itās also for those who may yet return to see what mayhem Iāve crafted for these two in the years since they stopped reading. And itās, without a doubt, for myselfā¦ because now Iām certainly far more confident with my art than ever before, and because everything I make for these two gives me all the right feels just when I need them. Finallyā¦ itās for Sokka and Azula, most of all. The two sides of my beloved OTP, who have been by far the most inspiring characters Iāve ever worked with, and who deserve the entire world, as far as Iām concerned. Granted, Iām a jerk and I wonāt make things easy for them in the coming yearsā¦ but we all know they can be stronger and prevail! At least, I hope you all believe that as well as I do xD
So, as always, hereās to you, my supportive readers, to these wonderful protagonists, and to the story that chronicles their many adventures on their way to changing the world, as they always have meant to! Thanks to all of you for your support, and keep an eye out for Gladiatorās next update, dropping tomorrow!
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