Kim's Musings

Here is that Caine x Tenna comic I promised to share. But no kiss! Sorry guys, but I only promised to draw them kissing if Caine won that last round, but Caine didn't won. Tenna did. I gotta keep my word. But hey! There is always the next Tumblr Sexyman contest, next year! Haha! Enjoy!

Tumblr post and contest by @mimosa-sexypeople-contests-2026

Ooo, a design sketch for the waterfront cafe! I've already written a lot about the significance of this particular locale in Rebellion, plus some of the implications for its design shift, but I love getting the wide shot of the entire structure in its new form.

One interesting detail that doesn't seem to have made it into the trailers is that there are lights(?) hanging from the trees (replacing the bells that were previously there in Rebellion). I don't know if these will be added in as a late-stage change or if they got dropped somewhere along the line, but I'm intrigued, especially given Shaft's use of lighting to "shine a light" on things or symbolize insight (aka "lightbulb moments").

The whole point of this cafe is that it has no entrance or exit - there aren't any exterior shots in Rebellion, but you can see it in the production notes - so adding water doesn't change the fundamental paradox. What it does is create a "glass half empty/glass half full", which is a visually recurring motif throughout the film, and adds the slow, ominous dread of "frog boiling" - as something is clearly very wrong, and none of the characters seem to be fully aware of it. This place, which used to be under Homura's (sub)conscious control doesn't seem to be that way any longer, and that does not bode well for her entire project.

The water lilies also suggest that this place is "stagnant" as these plants can only flourish in relatively shallow areas where there isn't much of a current. I also can't tell if the glass in the lower half of the dome is actually broken, or if that's a trick of the light, but either way it adds to the fundamental asymmetry of the top vs. the bottom, as well as the growing sense that something is wrong.

I've seen speculations that the flooding is due to Zi Dian Xiang's water powers, which may be true, but for me, this scene makes me think of how Mitakihara floods every time Walpurgisnacht comes, and how Walpurgisnacht is associated with both fire and water. The fact that the stained glass in the dome is evocative of Walpurgisnacht's mandala also suggests her influence here - compare with the other grassy hillside from Rebellion, which has also gone a verdant makeover.

for the first art i took the lyrics from this song ↓

numbered them <3 so going down the list:

1. very ambiguous. the way the handguard meets the barrel feels very G3 or even PSG-1 to me, but a thirsty woman thinks of water.

2. again vague, but again the way that handguard sticks out on the sides feels very MP5A1 to me.

3. one of the last super vague ones. pump-action shotgun, Mossberg 500 or Remington 870 maybe? there’s just so many of these.

4. FN SCAR-H in 7.62x51mm NATO

5. KRISS Vector, likely 9mm Parabellum or .45 ACP

6. a little vague. AR-15 with a super long barrel, minimal magwell, and banana mag makes me think CMMG Mk. 47 Mutant, though.

7. oof ummmm there’s a lot of this sort of gun too. that said, i feel pretty good guessing 7.62 TKIV 85, chambered for 7.62x53mmR Finnish. that’s mostly based on the wood furniture’s silhouette and how the back of the bolt sort of makes a slope with the wood.

8. AK assault rifle, AKM or AK-47.

9. M1911 in .45 ACP

10. M110 SASS in 7.62x51mm NATO

11. ughhhhhh some kind of AR-10?? a newer reproduction from like Daniel Defense or Troy with like pic rails and mlok all over it

12. Remington Model 770, but that’s just a guess

13. RPG-7 with a HEAT-FS PG warhead

14. that may be a black SCAR-L, but my guess is one of the kurz-er HK416s, though i couldn’t find any with a gas block quite like that. i just know that handguard i guess.

15. M16 with an A2-type handguard, so either an M16A2 or M16A4.

16. Dragunov SVD in 7.62x54mmR

17. yet another M110 SASS in 7.62x51mm NATO

caomor - 🩵🗡️

2 years later and still waiting for the new Madoka Magika movie...