Post #762623981911261184 — The Missing Numbers

<a href="https://possiblyfunny.tumblr.com/" style="text-decoration:underline;">possiblyfunny</a>: What's good, y'all! It's me again, so you know what that means :) You all know how I function by now. I write things down in the order they appear in my brain, so things may be a bit scattered, but if you can look past that, then I hope you enjoy my ramblings.In today's issue of The New Yap Times: THOSE FUCKIN' CHARACTER REFS HOLY SHIT—So, those character references, amirite? First off, those things are fricking fabulous. Good stuff, Starry. Secondly, y'all know how this goes by now. I've got a lot of things I wanna say and I don't know how to say it, but hopefully, this will get easier the further I go. So! Let's start going down the line--shall we?"Fire" Red Yuuji: MY BABY-! Okay, okay, lemme stop lmao. But like, look at him. He looks so good! Y'all have no idea how much I celebrated when I saw that my boy Fire got a pair of snow pants and some boots like LET'S GO-! He's not on a mountain in jeans and sneakers anymore; he's got some (keyword: some) appropriate snow gear! Plus, that jacket is still clean as hell. Not gonna lie though, I was kinda like Ehhhhh (unsure) about the new frostbite for him, but after looking at it for awhile I'm more like Ehhhhh (positive). I like it! He looks like he toes the line between being cold/unapproachable and lookin' like a sad baby seal. 9.5/10. (I only have one major complaint about Fire as a whole, and it's a big one: I don't know how you've done it, but you've somehow made him look even more huggable and yet I still cannot hug him. It's a sin >:( Don't worry though, he's really a 10/10, I'm just sad and petty-)Leaf Aoyama: The Babygirl! Yes ma'am! (I'm so happy that she and Fire tied for once-) She's so beautiful, and I love her hair and eyes! I liked the subtlety of the old markings, but I mess with the new ones heavily. She looks like she's got some gnarly burns on her hands, which is kinda worrying. Plus, I really like the little additions to her outfit. I like her little socks (I think they're socks??) and the necklace/heart locket, too! Where'd she get it? Who's in there? I wanna know! Hopefully, she will share it with us one day. 10/10. (Bonus for Leaf: I know I already mentioned it in the comments of the actual Leaf post, but THE ESPEON!? HELLO?! Imma need the lore for that-)Blue Gary Oak: PRETTY BOY ALERT HOLY MOLY- Okay, genuinely, Starry, why did you make him so pretty? Jesus- Anyway, moving on- This man is fabulous, and I need him to help me with my wardrobe. He's got STYLE! And his eyes, man, his eyes are GORGEOUS! The jewelry, the aviator jacket, the button-up—he got that shit on tho! Onto his body though, I really like all of his freckles. And I had always wondered why he had bandages on his wrist for his researcher outfit, and I kinda put two and two together to speculate why, but I didn't want to be right. But I have confirmation that I was right with the updated reference, and now I'm just sad :( But in spite of that, his design is still clean with lots of effort put into it. Another 10/10. (Also, Blue named some of his Pokémon and I think that's sweet. Otto and Akira are adorable names and I would like to meet them and spoil them with treats thank you-) (It also makes me really sad that Blue self-harms. Like, I expected it, but still. He hurt himself, and from the looks of things, still does. He doesn't deserve that. Hopefully, we can help Blue wean off of SH later down the line by offering some alternatives and a listening ear.)"Glitchy" Red Tajiri: Then there's this rat bastard (affectionate). Where... where do I even start with this dude? Don't take anything I say about this man the wrong way, his design is peak and the art is amazing, but he looks so... wrong. Like, ewww, bro. I know he hasn't eaten in god knows how long, but why doesn't he look alive? Why tf is he printer paper white? He just ain't right man. (Slenderman lookin' ass. Bro looks like he bites. Probably microwaves his cereal before he eats it, too. Don't tell him I said that-) Nevertheless, creepy shit aside, I really like how disheveled he looks! Torn, dirty clothes, shoes with holes in them, and long messy hair—it fits him and I mess with that heavy. Also, the viscera that comes with that super glitchy form is crazy! It looks so cool, but it can't feel good in any manner. He's so skinny, too! I am deeply concerned for this man, probably more than I initially was for Fire, and that's saying something. Again, another 10/10. This man has grown on me significantly. (Also, his poor Pokémon team :( What happened to them? I'm curious but also afraid to find out. I also like how his Team has Gen 1 sprites. Nice touch-) (Also, me looking at that digital viscera form with MissingNo limbs ripping out of his chest. "Mhm..." Adds it to the Parasite theory. "Mhm.")Okay! It's been a while since I started writing this (it's currently 2 AM for me lmao I started at 11) and I think I'm done—with this version! You thought I was finished? NO. I have more thoughts about these references—lots of thoughts—mostly about the Spoiler Edits and Blacked out parts, along with the new Biographies/Descriptions. But that's for a different time and post. This was just me rambling about the updated designs because I have no one else to yap to about it at the moment. So, there will be another, more theory-driven edition of The New Yap Times coming eventually, but not tonight.Anyway, time for my closing statements. To Starry, you cooked with these drawings bruh. These are awesome and your art just keeps getting better and better. Keep it up! But be careful not to burn yourself out. To the Mods, I know y'all're probably cooking something up in secret. You guys always be moving in the shadows, so just know that I look forward to it ya sneaky little devils, and I hope y'all are all doing well. And specifically to Mod Hells, I hope you feel better soon homie. Being sick sucks, so I'm prayin' for you :) Take care of yourself.But that's all, folks! Until next time. Thank you for reading The New Yap Times!

[OHHEHEHEHE do NOT ever apologize for your long analysis asks idc how messy you consider it these are a huge highlight of this blog for me and it makes all the work i put into the refs worth it!!

i need to respond to this stuff without giving too much away now.. trust me when I say that for these design updates, a LOT of thought went into the changes, both aesthetically AND for what they mean regarding the stories. but though i know all the meaning and intent being them, i wanna leave it all open to interpretation and theorizing as best as i can…

that said i want to talk a LITTLE about it bc dear god this is such a good analysis and observations LOL

re: Fire - his new snow fit was smth that took a lot of mulling over and was decided on based on the fact that he’d get it in universe from… somewhere. :) the updates to his frostbite were also VERY deliberate- for one i was worried the old stylizing would be read as blush when seeing him out of context… i wanted it to be clear that this is a severe injury. i def did my best to make him toe the line of….. Unapproachable, and Aesthetically Pleasing. im very glad i pulled that off!!

re: Leaf - ill admit to keep it real a large drive behind changing her markings into burn scars was bc i didn’t like drawing the chain markings on her arms LOL. but the change is also a deliberate choice that i won’t elaborate much more on.. its definitely less subtle, but i think weird scars can be easily justified in the world of pokemon. as for her pokemon… all can be explained in due time! though id certainly suggest putting that scanner and dex to use ;)

re: Blue - blue’s always been focused more on Fashion over Function- if there’s one thing he cares about, it’s appearances. him being more of a prettyboy is intentional by virtue of the fact that he tries to look attractive and such. the…. other thing is smth ive mostly kept as subtext, particularly happening in… recent works. :) but its not something i intend to treat lightly once it’s explicitly acknowledged. i honestly considered hiding it like with other things on these refs but that just seemed like overkill ultimately.

as for nicknames- god i really want to give other pokemon nicknames that reflect their trainer’s personalities. the problem is that immm just bad at naming things tbh. Leaf would have a fully named team, and Blue would too, or at least a few more than just Otto and Akira. i was thinking Dusty for his Jolteon… ill probably head back and edit names in as we work em out! the refs will definitely be good to glance at from time to time. fires team is nameless and reds team would be ………. immature.

re: Glitchy -

this is the best possible thing you could’ve said about him. thats all i can really say

anyways!! thank you so so much for all your thoughts- again, things like this really do make it all worth it! i really look forward to your next theory session, but you take care and take all the time you need, okay?

thank u so much for the compliments man,, 🥺 it really does mean a lot. i can really tell ive improved a lot esp looking at the new and old refs side by side and it makes me so happy!! ^-^ im glad u can see it too eheheh.. ill put my side by sides under the cut bc its kinda wild to look at

and as someone whos been seeing all the behind the scenes work unfold…. god im so excited for when the secret the other mods have been working on gets to come out !!! they’ve been trucking away and its exciting to see :D]

((ps from mod hell: thank you so much our strongest soldier i love you))

old vs new comparisons: