C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶

@csbernard

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jul 7

Well, now I'm conflicted. Though she seems to like them, all the same...

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jul 3

As the project originally came together, I immediately loved that Shao and Ozzy were ver distinctly different visually speaking, with height, weight, and physique very quickly becoming a shorthand for the contrasts between the leading ladies. I found the distinctions very endearing.

Illustration: Aušrinė "Ozzy" Haakonsdotter, a chestnut color unicorn woman with blond hair and green eyes, and Lóng Shǔ Shàonǚ, a brown field mouse woman with dark brown hair and brown eyes, stand side by side. Shàonǚ holds a scepter over her head while smiling while Ozzy rests her hand on her hip and grimaces. Illustrated by @agonwolfe.bsky.social

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jun 27

This recent piece by bluhcat.bsky.social is a personal favorite for the fact that, despite the exaggeration, it gets Ozzy's bold figure across to the viewer. The devil-may-care expression and casual use of her lightning magic is also captivating. It depicts her as someone impossible to ignore.

Illustration: Aušrinė "Ozzy" Haakonsdotter, a chestnut color unicorn woman with blond hair and green eyes, poses with one hand down the back of her neck and the other at her side. She is dressed in a purple athletic top, torn black work slacks, and a black work shirt. Her blond tail is pulled into a loop.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jun 23

One of my favorite outfit design innovations from agonwolfe.bsky.social is the subtle snake motif in this vest. It touches on how Agrius is one of the few characters in our little escapades that is genuinely off-putting visually, yet he works VERY hard to make this aspect part of his mystique.

Illustration: Agrius Augusto de Silva, an albino hybrid bat man with white hair and red eyes, leans against an outdoor wall. He is dressed in brown corduroy trousers, a white button shirt, and green and black vest with gold trim. His hair is pulled into a man bun and he is wearing pince new spectacles. Illustrated by @agonwolfe.bsky.social

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jun 17

A lamentable loss to the Looney Tunes "chase" catalogue was the mynah bird from the Inki shorts. But given that the mynah bird was the SUPPORTING character to Inki an, albeit cute and precocious, Sambo stereotype African hunter kid, there's very little cultural presence that the character had.

Screenshot: The mynah bird (incorrectly spelled "minah" in the Warner Bros. catalogue of characters) from the Inki animated shorts. The mynah bird is a charmingly deadpan character that would inform some of the features of Droopy Dog later in the middle of the 20th Century. Featured in several shorts between the 1930s and 1950, the mynah bird was notable for his downward curved bill, stooped forward, slumped shoulder posture, long feet, and droopy eyes. He had a distinctive "two-step" skipping walk that he did in rhythm to Felix Mendelssohn The Hebrides, alternatively titled "Fingal's Cave." Not unlike Droopy Dog, the mynah bird seemed unfazed and unhindered by any efforts by the protagonist Inki or any of the other hazards in their shorts to capture or harm him. Humorously, when sometimes captured or in danger, the bird would inexplicably overpower and escape the worst threats. Endearingly, this sometimes meant he would rescue Inki, showing no hard feelings toward a young kid simply trying to learn to hunt and fend for himself in the wild. Though he would still have fun at his young rival's expense.

Regrettably, Inki himself was depicted as a wildly racist stereotypical "Sambo" child. Because of this, the Inki animated shorts are wildly inappropriate and, rightfully, barred from broadcast. And while some efforts have been made to "rescue" the charming mynah bird from obscurity, the simple fact that his original appearances make for a very, very unfortunate point of discussion that Warner Bros. Studios has been wary of provoking.

It is an object lesson in how "comedy often ages poorly" and why it is very important for successive generations to evaluate their collective sense of humor.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jun 16

While most tricksters are disposed towards benevolence or malevolence, Lǐngzhǔ Huī eschews such dichotomies. Mortals that draw his attention are subject to his capricious flights of fancy and his amusement. He considers them inconsequential creatures that should be grateful to be "given purpose." 🦊🎭

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jun 12

Even Wikipedia makes a short statement that they WANTED Orko, but the crew lamented technical issues. Which, I think, is just them being polite about saying they couldn't cover the costs.

Screenshot: Billy Barty as Gwildor, a Thenurian who invented the Cosmic Key. He was created to replace Orko, who was going to appear in the film, but was scrapped due to his design being too complex to produce in live action.

-- Excerpt from Wikipedia's article "Masters of the Universe (1987 film)."

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jun 7

It's just a case of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass striking again.

Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass

Humpty Dumpty makes an appearance in Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass (1871). There Alice remarks that Humpty is "exactly like an egg", which Humpty finds to be "very provoking". Alice clarifies that she said he looks like an egg, not that he is one. They then go on to discuss semantics and pragmatics when Humpty Dumpty says, "my name means the shape I am".

A. J. Larner suggested that Carroll's Humpty Dumpty had prosopagnosia on the basis of his description of his finding faces hard to recognise:

"The face is what one goes by, generally," Alice remarked in a thoughtful tone.

"That's just what I complain of," said Humpty Dumpty. "Your face is the same as everybody has—the two eyes,—" (marking their places in the air with his thumb) "nose in the middle, mouth under. It's always the same. Now if you had the two eyes on the same side of the nose, for instance—or the mouth at the top—that would be some help."

-- Excerpt from the Wikipedia article on Humpty Dumpty

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humpty_Dumpty

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jun 7

Full disclosure? The ONLY reason that it seems like we've splurged on all this Ozzy art simultaneously is that several things happened where previous orders from a couple artists compounded into each other. If you're worried that the mouse is being pushed aside... simply bear with us.

Illustration: Aušrinė "Ozzy" Haakonsdotter, a chestnut coat unicorn woman with blond hair and green eyes, looks over her shoulder while smirking. Illustration by @lpanda.bsky.social

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jun 7

Fear about defining his manhood and of struggling with emotions is Alan's journey in the film. And having the same actor playing his emotionally distant father and an avatar of the board game that forces Alan to face his terror in the form of certain death is an extremely powerful subtext.

Screenshot: Sam Parrish (Jonathan Hyde) from Jumanji (1995). Sam Parrish at the shoe factory he owns and operates.

Screenshot: Van Pelt (Hyde) from Jumanji (1995). Van Pelt grimaces while standing in the Parrish household.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jun 6

Shàonǚ was born in what is today known as Shenyang, China on 6 June, 1644 by the Western calendar. This was the day when Beijing fell to the rising Qing Dynasty. Shao's father took part in this campaign. He later received the news of his daughter's birth on that day as an auspicious sign. 🗓🐭

Map: Battle of Shanhai Pass in 1644. With all of Manchuria under its control, the newly proclaimed Qing Dynasty moved against the weakening Ming Dynasty. Manchu Qing forces marched from their capitol of Shenyang, then known as Mukden, to capture the ancient Chinese capitol of Beijing. After a Ming general defected and opened his checkpoint along the Great Wall of China, Qing forces swept across northern China and captured the city on 6 June, 1644. Arrows mark the passage of Qing and Ming forces under the self-proclaimed Ming emperor, Li Zicheng and the regent Dorgon of the Qing Dynasty, blue for Ming forces, red for Qing.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Jun 1

Oh, we're going places, people. Don't know if you'll enjoy it. But the itinerary is already booked.

Aušrinė "Ozzy" Haakonsdotter, a chestnut coat unicorn woman with blond hair and green eyes, pouts seductively against a charcoal color backdrop. Illustrated by @purplepardus.bsky.social

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· May 29

Despite protests from Lincoln and Grant, Jefferson Davis and Robert E Lee flatly declined to intercede. Which led to Union withdrawal from prisoner exchanges. Lost Cause propaganda not only obscures this wholesale murder, it protects Lee's reputation from a more critical historical analysis.

Photo: Robert E Lee, Virginia Monument, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Frederick William Sievers, sculptor, 1917. The monument prominently features an equestrian statue of Lee on his horse, Traveler. Lee's statue is mounted on a plinth above a collage of Confederate soldiers from Virginia. These include infantrymen, an equestrian statue of an officer carrying a Virginian state flag, bugler, and other soldiers. The monument's base reads "VIRGINIA TO HER SONS AT GETTYSBURG."

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· May 29

But there is a more sinister aspect to it, pushed by Lost Cause propagandists and those influenced by their representation of the Civil War. Namely that the Union halted prisoner exchanges because Confederate soldiers were routinely murdering surrendering Black soldiers.

Photo: Memphis National Cemetery Plaque. The plaque details the Battle of Fort Pillow, Tennessee and its aftermath. That aftermath included the indiscriminate murder of Federal troops, predominantly members of the United States Colored Troops (USTC) by troops commanded by Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest, who would go on to become the first Imperial Wizard of the original Ku Klux Klan founded in 1865.

The Plaque: U.S. COLORED TROOPS AND THE BATTLE OF FORT PILLOW - Buried in the Memphis National Cemetery are the remains of 248 mostly unknown Union officers and soldiers - including 109 graves representing the U.S. Colored Troops - who fell at Nearby Fort Pillow. In the spring of 1864, the Union outpost, located on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River, included some 600 soldiers of the 2nd U.S. Colored Light Artillery (35 men), the 6th U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery (269 men), and the 13th Tennessee Cavalry (approx. 293 men). Early on April 12, 1,800 troops commanded by General B. Forrest attacked the fort. Though outnumbered three-to-one, the Federals defied Forrest's demand for surrender. Soon thereafter, the Confederates stormed the breastworks and took the fort. (Continued on the other side) (The other side is not included in this photo) Sponsored by the W.E. A.L.L. B.E. GROUP INC., USCT, MEMPHIS ASALH, JOE WILLIAMS, DESCENDANTS AND OTHER AFRICAN AMERICANS, JUNE 2018

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· May 29

I keep thinking about prisoners of war during the US Civil War because there is a misconception that prisoner exchanges between the Union and Confederacy were halted to deprive the Confederacy of much needed manpower. Which may be true, in part.

Illustration: Returned prisoners of war exchanging their rags for new clothing, originally sketched by art correspondent William Waud.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· May 29

I'm distressed by the thought that some Southerners and conservatives say that "JFK was the last good Democratic President" because Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts during his term. They believe Kennedy wouldn't have been as friendly to the Civil Rights Movement.

Photo: U.S. president Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Among the guests behind him is Martin Luther King Jr.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· May 20

We let bluhcat.bsky.social do something again. And Bluh's ability to draw such stunning eyes keeps hitting me with their startling presence. I've been eager to see more of what she can do since the first image. Minus the Hasbro influence and with my regards to Lauren Faust.

Illustration: Aušrinė "Ozzy" Haakonsdotter, a chestnut coat unicorn woman with blond hair and green eyes, rubs the back of her neck. In a close-up she uses her right hand to run her fingers through her hair to rub the back of her head and neck while wearing a black shirt with a grey trim. Illustration by @bluhcat.bsky.social

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· May 18

🐷➡️ ⬅️🐷 Red Sonja (1985) is a bad movie. But it was the sort of bad where we all still had fun, because it remembered to bring a meat-headed Austrian along for the ride and it's hard to stay mad at a movie when everyone's swinging swords everywhere. 🐷💬

Film Poster: Red Sonja (1985) starring Brigitte Nielsen as Red Sonja and Arnold Schwarzenegger as Lord Kalidor. Sonja poses in the foreground, while Kalidor looms in the background. The tagline reads, "A woman and a warrior that became a legend."

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· May 17

Me, ever since I learned about Konto 5 and then seeing most media produced between 1950 and 2000 depicting German generals, admirals, and field marshals as being personally loyal to the Nazi regime exclusively out of a sense of begrudging honor and duty and not because of Nazi slush fund payments.

Screenshot: Homer Simpson (Dan Castellaneta, voice) lying in bed with furrowed brow and angry eyes.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· May 5

This is unsurprising. This lies somewhere between my "Christopher Lee playfully terrorizing Peter Jackson with his SOE kill count" knowledge with my "Christopher Lee ACTUALLY learned occult magic on a lark" pet theory.

Screenshot: Saruman (Christopher Lee) in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001).

Screenshot: Count Dooku (Christopher Lee) in Star Wars: Attack of the Clone (2002).

Screenshot: Count Dracula (Christopher Lee) in Dracula (1958).

Screenshot: Fu Manchu (Christopher Lee) in the eponymous The Face of Fu Manchu (1965).

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· May 1

It's very disappointing that MLM scams and religious cults are indistinguishable at this point. Once upon a time, the "sale of indulgences" being one of the most crucial motivations for the Protestant Reformation, it has come full circle as core tenet of American civil religion.

Photo: Donald J Trump, the 45th and 47th President of the United States, stands in front of a staged fireplace flanked by two American flags. In his hands, he holds a copy of the God Bless the U.S.A. Bible. This particular bible was the project of US country singer, Lee Greenwood. This bible contains the King James Version (US) or Authorized Version (UK) of the Christian Bible packaged with American political documents, including the US Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and the Pledge of Allegiance. Originally launched in 2021 as a memorial to the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks in 2001, this bible has become synonymous with Trump and his political movement, acting as a symbol of Christian nationalism in the United States.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Apr 29

That is to say, it's happening. Now. Hopefully to be ready with... stuff... by sunrise. 📒🖊

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Apr 28

Hey, anybody remember this? It's one of those things where I had a brother who loved playing it while he served in the army during recreation time. The sheer amount of setup time required some serious commitment.

Photo: A the map board for the Milton Bradley original 1984 board game Axis & Allies, depicting the world circa Spring 1942 and centered on Eurasia and the Indian Ocean. The map depicts the general borders of the Axis nations and territories (Germany and Japan, excluding Italy which is depicted as a territory directly under German control, along with its colony of Libya) and the Allied forces (the Soviet Union, United Kingdom, and United States). The game is played with pieces that simulate combat between infantry units, armored units, fighter planes, bombers, armed transport ships, submarines, battleships, and aircraft carriers.

Players could choose to either play until Germany and Japan were captured by the Allies, the Axis captured either Russia, Britain, or the Eastern US, or the Axis or Allies captured sufficient territories on the map. In the latter scenario, the map is divided into territories that are initially controlled by either the Axis or Allied forces, with each territory assigned a value point called an Industrial Production Certificate (IPC). If the players agreed to an "economic victory," then they would simply maneuver to capture as many territories and hold them uncontested for at least an entire round. Though produced in 1984, before greater restrictions came into force in American media, Milton Bradley and the game's creator, Larry Harris, were circumspect in making wartime Germany's national emblem the Balkenkreuz rather than the swastika.

Notably, the French (and to a lesser extent Belgian) colonial territories in Africa have either been placed under Axis control (Germany holds Algeria and Tunisia as a single territorial unit) or under British control, specifically western and central Africa. Which reflects the Axis subjugation of Vichy France that year. Meanwhile, Japan has already captured all of the British and French colonies in Indochina, the Dutch East Indies and Borneo, as well as the US territories of the Philippines and Wake Island.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Apr 26

It's after the Witching Hour - that mischievous time between midnight and sunrise. How many of you learned The Hearse Song when you were children? It's of uncertain origins, but was popularized by the mass death of World War I. My first time hearing it was the turn of the decade in the 1990s.

A. E. E Roberts Carriage Works hearse, circa 1900. The black carriage hearse, trimmed with white and silver, is pulled by two black work horses and driven by a mortuary worker in his suit and top hat by white picket fence near the cemetery.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Apr 24

To my eternal shame, someone in my small town felt compelled to declare their devotion to techno-fascism. The photo was taken a couple of weeks ago. I meant to share it sooner, but was very distracted. I've seen it around town, but it rolled up right in front of me by serendipity.

Photo: A Tesla Cybertruck with a galaxy themed skin.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Apr 14

📅⚰️🎗️

Screenshot: According to Ward Hill Lamon, three days before his death, Lincoln related a dream in which he wandered the White House searching for the source of mournful sounds:

"I kept on until I arrived at the East Room, which I entered. There I met with a sickening surprise. Before me was a catafalque, on which rested a corpse wrapped in funeral vestments. Around it were stationed soldiers who were acting as guards; and there was a throng of people, gazing mournfully upon the corpse, whose face was covered, others weeping pitifully. "Who is dead in the White House?" I demanded of one of the soldiers, "The President," was his answer, "he was killed by an assassin."

Excerpt from "Assassination of Abraham Lincoln," Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Abraham_Lincoln#Lincoln's_premonitions

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Apr 11

Funnily enough. I had just made a post regarding this very topic after our exchange. I was referring to this.

Photo: A Marlin Firearms 1895 lever-action rifle chambered in Marlin .450 caliber rounds.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Apr 11

This is in contrast to the lever-action rifle that Shamier Anderson's Mr Nobody uses in John Wick Chapter 4. Ironically, this was a modern, tactical version of Marlin's classic lever-action designs.

Photo: A copy of The Tracker Marlin Takedown Rifle as used in John Wick 4. It is a modern, tactical variant of a Marlin Firearms lever action rifle, custom built by Mad Pig Customs.

Screenshot: Mr Nobody (Shamier Anderson) from John Wick Chapter 4 (2023). Mr Nobody supports his custom Marlin Takedown Rifle, known as "The Tracker" on his left forearm while aiming with his right hand.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Apr 8

As project lead, I love all the artwork we get: paid for, gifted, traded, and so forth. It gives me a sense of accomplishment for what we're doing. Even if it goes by very, very slowly. And every now and again, I'll just be captivated and remember that our two leading ladies are... so pretty.

Illustration: A chestnut unicorn woman with blond hair and green eyes smiles to camera. Bust portrait illustration by @bluhcat.bsky.social

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶@csbernard· Apr 2

The painting shows how being a "good child" can be dangerous. Because if the unwitting boy answers truthfully, the Parliamentarians will immediately have a timeline of his father's movements. While lying would go against the virtuous principles his parents taught him.