Ms-scarletwings - Of Carmine Carnations

this is how the movie went right

(because we deserve this)

(because you deserve this)

(because i deserve this)

(because i had to)

(because i wanted to)

(because i could)

(i don't know)

Hornets - Kitty Horrorshow

Who are your favorite irkens in invader Zim?

Precious anon, this is like walking up to me pigging out on a box of oreos, and asking me which individual cookie is my favorite in the package. The answer is probably “the one I’m currently eating!” with a dumb, cockeyed grin before I turn and reach for the milk.

So thank god you gave me a plural option. If you didn’t, I’d find it challenging to not say Zim himself. Series protagonist, an absolute riot, complex, and, well, it’s hard not to absolutely adore the vibrance Richard Horvitz’s voicework breathed into him.

Skoodge, on the other hand, is one of the characters most of all I have long wanted to see more official content of, most especially even though impossibly in the TV show. He’s usually the one I’ve cited as my favorite Irken over the years. He’s relatable, hilarious, endearing, repulsive, somehow inspiring, but most of all extremely interesting for how unique of an outlier he is in the show when he’s not being the universe’s preferred butt-monkey. Ted Raimi made him pretty easy and fun to listen to, and he has this history and dynamic with Zim incomparable to any other character in the franchise that just... it had so much potential that nickelodeon really slept on. I’m fairly certain I even heard Vasquez complain a bit in a dvd commentary about how underutilized Skoodge went when the series was cancelled. There were serious plans to involve him more as part of the actual main Earth cast and a couple of the unfinished scripts incorporate that, and I’m always one to recommend them. Not even to mention that there was a pitch in the works for an episode where he and Tak would both get screen time.

And speaking of Tak, she’s up there as well, as cliché as it might be in this fandom. The Dibship is nice to have and all, but it just doesn’t scratch that same spot her flash in the pan performance did. Goes without saying she had incredible value as a recurring foil to zim, and like skoodge, she stands far apart from other Irkens in a way that gives her so much more personality for it.

The current tallest, of course, but definitely Red a deal more than Purple. Out of all Tallest we know of? Miyuki, hands down.

If Zib counts, he deserves mention, for no other cause than the fact that he’s kind of the entire reason I got back into invader zim to the point of it over taking so much of my blog activity. That’s not even an exaggeration much, the brainrot started anew with finding out about him. The horrid thing.

Tenn and Larb purely for their proximity to major parts of the series’ world building. Gashloog has a funny name and reminds me a lot of when I used to work in food service myself.

If I could only pick one Irken to kidnap from the horrors of Jhonen’s writing and provide a good home to? Table-headed service drone Bob, any day.

Honestly we need to please PLEASE further normalize comfort OCs, fan-inspired OCs, fan-AUs, OOC tags, etc.

I feel like what this becomes born of so often are people who get really latched onto some ideas and qualities they can project or add onto a canon inspiration, but they’re so darn afraid of distinguishing that extension as their own original creativity + the canon material. Of putting something out there that’s theirs and dear to them. They’re afraid of putting their own ideas out there without grasping at certain interpretations of [thing that is already popular] to somehow… validate it? And understandably there is an unfortunate sort of vulnerability that can come with that. But the double edge of that sword lends itself to the actual growth and self esteem development that can come from authenticity.

And in any sense, I’m all for mischaracterizing canon assets- in an honest and upfront way. Transformative art is still art in its own right and it’s a a common way for younger and inexperienced creatives to toy around with concepts or to try a hand at accentuating, deconstructing, or paying tribute to what traits of the source material they love.. or hate! Instead of clowning on the OP, hell, I’ll give them credit tbh for owning their personal divergence from the canon as exactly what it is without defensiveness, at least in that snapshot.

But honestly people on the large trend lately do severely overestimate the assumed originality of their blorbos themselves, and don’t often recognize that there’s both nothing usual about nor inherently “cringe” about building upon classical tropes. Same goes for inspired creations as long as you’re not like, legitimately committing intellectual property theft. But near all is fair in personal hobby and exploration.

That infinite chain of possibilities and freedom is a great deal of fiction and creation’s entire appeal as a concept, after all.

Yet at the same time, there’s merit and usefulness in not getting carried away to the point of changing the concrete material of the original works themselves. The enjoyment someone takes in media canon is neither above or below that someone can take in OOC concepts, so maybe it’s actually healthier and more fun for everyone involved to know which is which and where to find it.

And like maybe we can all stop being jerks to each other as well I think that’s a pretty awesome side objective.

Let's talk character design for a bit. I love our villains' designs, because SP incorporated so much into them. Personality, motive, and the fact that this is our own universe completely inhabited by animals are all aspects which are folded into the baddies' appearances like a stubby calzone. Just imagine a stubby calzone for a second. What a cutie.

Consider Arpeggio's design, for instance. The beret, bow tie, monocle and itty bitty mustache suggest he's sophisticated, classy, has accumulated a bunch of wealth; throw in there the fact that he's the game's final boss as well as his voice which we briefly heard in He Who Tames the Iron Horse and you already know we're facing an eccentric millionaire genius in the last episode without even meeting him yet. The haircut, beret and cape also hint at him being inspired by Renaissance artists, the designs in his intro cutscene referencing Da Vinci. If he's reserved as the final villain in the game and just such a huge threat, then why is he so little? He seems like a brainiac but could never be as menacing as Rajan. And there you have it: just a perfectly rounded character solely presented through his design.

It's all also reflected in the choice of species for each character. Black widows mate and kill: the Contessa. Roosters have a sense of abrasive moxie and eagerness to mate: Tsao. Bulldogs have an attitude with a mug similar to a gangster's: Muggshot (also the term underdog here, his bullies never considered him a threat and in the end he... um... murdered them? idk). It all goes hand-in-hand, it's just so effortlessly perfect, even when it doesn't have to be.

So, despite its initial trajectory, this post was always intended to be, and you guessed it, anti-Thieves in Time rhetoric. Because I was just thinking today about its villains and like, the choices are just so underwhelming. In the cutscenes, El Jefe wears a military uniform because he works in the military; the Grizz wears a tracksuit because... he's a rapper ?? I know I've addressed this like 89319821092 times already but what's with the choice of species too? We've done tiger already, next. They could have gone with anything else, even another cat animal like a puma would make more sense, just to push the design to its limits. Like it's nothing groundbreaking but it would make more sense for a cheetah to wear his sports tracksuit and have his skill set because it's a really fast animal. Where. Are. The. Ideas. I wanted new, exciting animals we never saw prior. Ant-eater, octopus, zebra, eagle, platypus. Give me an otter at this point, I'll take it. Why not utilise an animal's characteristics to come up with some innovative ideas instead of yet another tiger, or an elephant who is, guess what, fat, or a skunk who, and i can not stress this enough for the love of fuck, stinks. *Sigh*

So anyway, yet another post idea brought about by Thieves in Time slander. Will it ever end?