Lord Cusu-Cusu

My copy of Miki Takaesu's single "Red Star" finally arrived in the mail earlier today after having to wait two weeks lol. I scanned and ripped all the contents of the CD, which I already uploaded to the Internet Archive for those who want to check that out. I'll be uploading the single to YouTube either today or tomorrow.

I wouldn’t describe my current state as “in an art block” but I definitely feel stifled in some ways. Something [or, someones, harhar] that makes me feel a little better are my Lord and Saviours, Cusu-Cusu. Lately, I have been drawing nonstop and quite frankly ridden with inspiration but my stupid perfectionism and depression won’t let me finish anything or even be in the mood to. However, those four wonderful ladies bring me so much consistent comfort that even if a drawing is a simple sketch, I may be so inclined to actually finish it. Which is still something I struggle with but Hey ! Look ! This one’s finished and it looks great !! SHE looks great. And it only took me just over 2 hours so I don’t have much of a reason to not do these kinds of drawings all the time.

I also love drawing her with a slightly disgruntled look, I have ever since I started drawing her. It’s really fun and weirdly fitting to draw her with a pout or a scowl; crossing her arms, fed up with whatever she’s looking at. Maybe she got sunburnt, maybe the vessel in which she carries the water she’s collected broke, or anything else… Considering Cindy’s character, she could have come across her friends, once again cursed, and she’s thinking about how it’s gonna be soooo annoyinggg to chaperone them until the situation gets fixed. That wouldn’t be surprising.

Obviously the inspiration behind this drawing is taken from ancient Egyptian art but it was accidental that it would be so obvious in this drawing in particular. I’m especially uneducated on geography due to my awful memory and how my disability affects my learning, so when it comes to widening Cusu-Cusu’s aesthetics, the struggle comes from not only a lack of knowledge on specific cultural designs etc. but also considering the geographical differences. Example: the differences between north, south, east and west [in Africa, for this particular circumstance]. One of the first lessons I ever remember having in school was about the baseline of Egyptian history, real basic stuff, but it stuck with me enough that it’s the main inspiration that I can easily access for Cindy. Separate from school, I also grew up around various African imagery in general: shows, picture books based on folk tales -albeit briefly in the grand scheme of things-, however, since it was outside of school, I never got any lessons on the particular details, and now I can’t really be bothered to do my own research. I don’t want Cusu-Cusu to be the reason as to why I would do academic research about so many cultures when Cusu-Cusu themselves aren’t trying to do that at all. I should not be the one to decide where each member could be from when nobody who designed them was thinking that. The mystery is… interesting… right ? I don’t know…. Cultural appropriation is such bullshit and I’ve always felt shame for loving Cusu-Cusu because of that. I don’t want to make anyone mad but I’ve been driving myself crazy with thinking if giving them specific regional signifiers would even be reasonable, or if keeping it basic would be best since I have no actual understanding of those things. Sometimes I used to think that I should’ve just kept them looking like characters in The Flintstones but that thought is completely stupid and very worthy to abandon.

It's been a while since I posted, so here I am playing as Kei on mix mode! I've been busy working now, so I have to balance that plus school :(. ANYWAYS, I captured this back in December, but was too lazy to post. Around then, my PS2 started having issues, the disc drive and CMOS began failing, which meant I couldn't access some features on DS2001 like View Mode. Luckily, the disc itself isn't scratched, which was my biggest worry. I hope to eventually replace the CMOS battery (I somewhat taught myself how to solder) and lubricate the laser carriage to fix those loud noises from the disc drive.

I believe that masks are quite substantial to Me and Kei’s tribe and culture, whether as an accessory or ornament. The evidence for that is lacking, other than it’s one of only two factors in Me and Kei’s character descriptions, purpose, and collective syzygy. The masks are acknowledgeable, at all. They’re questioned unlike the horns, so we know for certain that the masks are indeed strange. What we also know is that the mask itself is the burden, a cursed item that whence worn, the curse is set upon the wearer. That’s evident.

Now let’s theorise. Important question : did Lord Cusu-Cusu make the masks or were they already made and it put the curse onto them? An insane thought [all of this is] but it does align with what we know. It’s a rhetorical question, though, so let’s move on from it.

But of course Cindy and Sahara thought the masks were strange, all masks are strange !! Just look at Texas’. And If the idea of the ‘cursed mask’ is so set in stone then it can be believed that Me and Kei don’t usually wear un-cursed masks, so their friends coming upon their mask wearing selves is immediately suspicious. That’s why Cindy and Sahara referred to a Cusu-Cusu tribe elder because it’s out of their realm of understanding [more on that later].

Thanks to that elder, we know that Lord Cusu-Cusu was angry with Kei and Me, something happened and it only involved them two specifically. There’s an implication that they had done something; It was an action that caused their god to seek punishment against them, rather then the choice to curse them being completely random. The curse was premeditated and decided. If a mask could be used as a way to protect themselves from being cursed by their god, that would mean that they knew that their god would’ve had reasons to curse them. What they had done, if they even did anything, is entirely speculative.

I don’t fully believe that the masks are wholly intended to be a shield from evil since Lord Cusu-Cusu isn’t shown to be entirely evil - still keeping in mind that its only aspect that we know of is a god that curses. Lord Cusu-Cusu is a respected sovereign, we know that from the team’s descriptions and, most obviously, that they named their dance team/ friend group after it, despite half of the members being damned by it. It’s likely to be a very tumultuous relationship. They might be totally unaware as to how bad of a god Lord Cusu-Cusu is. If the two saw the masks as a shield, then it’s possible that it was a conscious trick set up by Lord Cusu-Cusu. It knew they would put a mask on to protect themselves, so instead it set up trap-masks. If so, Lord Cusu-Cusu would not be scared of those so called “shields”, it wouldn’t be scared of anything that its followers created unless it could be considered sacrilegious. Evidence shows that Me and Kei made it angry, not the masks. If the curse lies within the mask, I do not think the masks go against Lord Cusu-Cusu in any way. Unlikely that masks inherently protect from Lord Cusu-Cusu’s evil.

Sahara’s epilogue is the backbone for that, it’s the only way we know that someone could put on a mask not thinking about it causing harm. Also, considering Me’s epilogue, once the curse is lifted, the mask comes off; the mask coming off is what separates the wearer from the curse. The mask being a cursed object but without the wearers knowledge is just as confirmed as the mask being a cursed object at all. Their epilogues are the only tangible proof of the masks being a vessel for the curse. Every other mention only states that the masks are unusual, not straight up deadly, and will come off when un-cursed.

Anything could be a vessel for the curse, not just masks.

—Even if you consider the mention of Me’s wild dancing not affecting the masks position at all, it is unrelated to the curse, as its stability is unusual because it doesn’t have any literal way to hold onto her head. Which is shown with Dragon’s and Micro’s having lacing at the back- Texas’ seemingly being made of a much more flexible material with a secure hold, example: latex [I don’t know about Utan, though]. Jumbo Max’s mask’s attachments are obscured and Shogun and Tomoe are definitely just wearing helmets [again, don’t know what’s going on with Hamamatsu].

Sahara’s whole character is that she’s lighthearted, she’s definitely innocent and young so she’s likely to decide to wear any random mask just because she thinks it looks cool. Obtusely disregarding that she just saved her friends and definitely should be weary about wearing weird masks that showed up randomly. We may want to assume that Kei and Me are more responsible and wore the mask with clear intent, but assuming that might be unreasonable since we know no aspect of their personalities [but we don’t know anything anyway so whatever]. Sahara’s reaction to the mask she found is partially reasonable if you consider that she is unrelated to Kei and Me biologically and geographically, which I always have. Therefore she - and Cindy - wouldn’t be as well versed in their tribe’s customs, which seems to be already true, based on the whole team’s descriptions and the aforementioned need of help from a Cusu-Cusu tribe elder. Sahara may not know the circumstances as to how they got cursed in the first place, the reaction that she and Cindy had is proof of that: confusion and heavy denial, the latter being more obvious and more important when being used as evidence of their lack of knowledge.

In her epilogue, Sahara’s mask may be revenge from saving the two. Lord Cusu-Cusu knew of Sahara’s obliviousness and played into it by planting a mask in her whereabouts. That would be quite easy since, still following her epilogue, she now lives in the wilderness with Me and Kei.

Separately, It’s possible that Me and Kei had a plan. Once again, maybe they indeed were running away from Lord Cusu-Cusu and - however they found them - wore the masks, understanding them as a way to protect themselves. But that’s assuming they would even have a sense of urgency to keep themselves safe as it’s very likely that they had no reason to fear Lord Cusu-Cusu at all. The masks could have been gifts, willingly worn as a way of respecting their god. We’ve already established how important Lord Cusu-Cusu is to them, they could very well have no suspicions at all.

Granted, what if they did suspect that Lord Cusu-Cusu felt a resentment towards them ? I don’t want to omit that because what IF ?? What if they realised that their God was evil and could curse them whenever it decided to so they made a plan to escape and what if that is what provoked Lord Cusu-Cusu ? But did they even willingly put the masks on themselves ? Because, yes, what if they weren’t running away ?? That they had no idea they were going to face Lord Cusu-Cusu’s wrath ? Meaning, it was a completely unexpected force. Did they wake up one morning to find a mask stuck to them ? And Is it that once the mask touched the skin of their faces, they instantly became affixed to it ? Is that the only way the curse can develop ? Was the curse’s development imperceptible, gradual, or quick ? Can they even see ?? Does everything around them only show up as images in their imagination ? If so, what if they have aphantasia, so they just, can’t ?? There’s no way they can eat, so how do they gain sustenance ? Is that a symptom, a conscious decision by Lord Cusu-Cusu that the masks make them starve ????!!??!!! That’s terrifying. I’ve sat with that thought for years, I can’t be the only one who is vexed by it. This is the really curious thing that we can’t properly discuss without theorising a timeline but we’re working with singular sentences here, and nothing is exactly clear. Let’s just lighten the mood a bit and talk about the design of the masks…

I’ve always loved their designs, that should honestly go without saying. Barring that they may not feel as idiosyncratic in the grand scheme of masks in this game, as they are as obvious as Discos Estrus’ [when it’s comes to how the designers implemented the individual teams aesthetics]. Far East Commander’s are particularly unique; Tomoe’s feels totally unexpected with its exaggerated cartoon alien/ insect shape rather than an angular, traditional Samurai helmet [see: Shogun]. Me and Kei’s masks are quite tame when it comes to African masks, at least from what I can tell. They don’t exaggerate any facial features, they aren’t invoking any animal, not even their respective ones, surprisingly, just a vague idea of eyes. Howbeit Me’s green stripes do look like whiskers. The designs are, in my opinion, a key part of the dream that is their individual personality traits. Kei’s is almost entirely symmetrical, adorned with an angular border and solid coloured pointed “eyes” which can give her an inscrutable look when compared to Me. Me’s mask’s “eyes” are almost entirely asymmetrical and are reminiscent of targets. The eye similarity is more apparent with the rings implying a sclera, iris and pupil. She can look aghast, nettled or rakish. It’s quite acerbic. That’s not to say that Kei’s is total humdrum, her formality in comparison makes them stand out perfectly from each other, she comes off as more thoughtful rather than direct. She isn’t staring at you with wild eyes, she isn’t even staring at all. Kei is framed, she is obfuscated and yet in her most candid moments, she could still be found stylish. Even their horns continue that idea, Me’s are stark white, stiff and the point is harsh, Kei’s are more tanned and curve in multiple directions. It’s a Kiki and Bouba thing. Character design 101.

I’ve been extremely depressed recently and I’m not getting better, drawings have stagnated because of that, so in the meantime, take some unfinished Cusu-Cusu drawings that I don’t care about or like enough to post on my main account.

This one of Cindy is actually quite nice ! I might redraw it because I changed the colours at the last moment and that really pulled it all together for me. I’ve always liked this one despite how different my artstyle has become [I do not want to go back], but I just never found a reason to post it. Until now, I suppose. All my appreciation for this drawing depletes when I look at the stone ring she’s lifting. I rightfully didn’t want to put any effort into it but despite this whole piece already being quite simple, it does kinda ruin it.

This was a Halloween drawing that I never really planned to post on any upcoming Halloweens at the time, just whenever it was finished, but I lost interest so I never finished it at all due to multiple factors. Sahara is the only one that really works, therefore she’s the only one I started to colour and I should really finish her up and turn her into a solo drawing because she still looks great. Cindy is a vampire with a wooden stake stabbed in her head from where her flower would usually be [I still think that’s a clever idea]. Kei is a ghost, a wee banshee like, I’ve always associated her with flow-y and gloomier aesthetics but it just didn’t really look like Kei, same with Cindy. Me is equally as generic. She’s a zombie, wearing a hoodie/poncho thing over a dress, all very tattered, worn out and covered in all kinds of muck and blood, with one of her horns broken in half. I quite like what I pictured her design to be, second to Saharas, but it doesn’t work well as a drawing, it would’ve looked too flat and boring but putting her in the far back didn’t fix that. Apart from Sahara, I’ll definitely try to come up with something else for the other three at some point. The main issue was that they didn’t follow the same design principles as their original designs, it was just gonna be a straight up black dress for Cindy and a white one for Kei. How boring.

This is an example of having a really specific image, colour scheme and composition in mind, but my artstyle not fitting it yet. This, objectively, looks fine, but I don’t draw like this anymore and I don’t want to. We may not know what Kei’s face looks like but this definitely doesn’t look like what I’ve always pictured in my head [and drawing what I pictured right has taken me some years, even though I still haven’t mastered it yet]. Anyway, at least this piece perfectly encapsulates the colours that I associate with her.

This Sahara one is boring and I abandoned it very quickly. She was gonna be holding one or more of the parrots that show up in the Jungle Rock stage and vines, flowers and other fauna were going to wrap around and frame her perfectly but ugggghhhh I didn’t want to do any of that. Her face is still cute but I really really didn’t like drawing like that anymore and was desperate for change. Somebody else should’ve drawn this.

I even made a diagram :

Thank you so much to whoever added this because I’ve been thinking this for years. Ive always drawn Cindy with Bettie in my mind [especially her fringe] and I’ve drawn her specifically referencing that shoot multiple times.

I’m actually working on something pretty big [all around ds2001 thing but emphasis on Cusu-Cusu] that has also been in my head for years but it’ll take forever so there’s no real need to talk about it yet.

I honestly don’t think that this was a specific inspiration since Cindy’s design is very common and has likely existed before this shoot. Bettie was a huge influence in pop culture in general just by her hair alone but Cindy’s design is likely just based on the “generic island lady” character type that you’ve probably seen before but not recognised it as a trope. Bettie clearly did have a HUGE influence on it though so she’ll always be an inspiration even if it’s unconscious. I mean, look at Cindy’s hair !! It’s impossible to not immediately think of her !

That Me has the darkest black hair in her team and I assume the whole game. I instantly noticed this when I was watching gameplay for the first time and I felt so stupidly proud when I did

I really love their stage. Like, they’re just out in the middle of some jungle and there’s a waterfall and a snake that looks really weird and all those rocks and all those bushes and trees and the fog that completely surrounds it all. EVERYTHING. I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT IT. I WANNA BE THERE. Ugh don’t even get me started on the remix where evRYTHING IS SUDDENLY REALLY DARK AND HOW THE LEAVES AND FLOWERS GLOW AND TGAT STINKING CORPSE LILY IS SPEWING OUT SOME GLOWING SHIT UGGGGHHHHH

Me and Kei’s horns !!!!!!!!!!!!! SUCH a cool design detail to add, makes these characters and the universe they’re in even more diverse. And I’ve always believed that they have no connection to their curse.

Their loud stomps they do that can fuck up the audio sometimes, similarly to that giant chunk of meat that comes down from the sky but does it way more obviously

Still love my headcannon that Cindy made the teams accessories and that Me doesn’t like to wear accessories as much, if at all

Specifically the eyes on Me’s mask, I’ve referred to them as looking like targets and I still really like that look

The physics on Cindy’s tail, it makes it look so cool, especially when it drags on the floor sometimes. Same deal with Dragon’s hair but I think her tail looks cooler in the game lol

Sahara has the highest quotient out of all the characters, ‘wild child quotient : 102’. Even higher than Shogun’s which is ‘Micheal quotient : 100’ so basically she’s more of a wild child than Micheal is themself

It feels pointless to say this but I haven’t seen any other drawings of Me so to me it’s pretty clear that her hair is in a single braid [ its modelled the same way Dragon’s is], but I also like to imagine that her hair is very curly so her hair being pulled back in a low braid helps keep it out of the way of her horns. I also recently [like over a year ago lol] started seeing Kei’s hair as micro braids [still up in a ponytail, obviously].

Their dances ??!!!!??!!?! HELLO ????? Before I even found out about the existence of DS2001, I was super fixated on Robo-Z, so when I saw Cusu-Cusu for the first time, instantly fell in love with them, then I saw their gameplay, then saw FUCKING ROBO-Z GOLD MOVESSSSSSS !!!! I screamed. I cried. I died. I shat myself. Also their quartets are reeAally good. I’d love to make a compilation of all my favourite moves if anyone would ever post good view mode footage

I have an idea that Me and Kei are twins, I don’t really think I need to explain this. They’re so just so similar in a way that other characters in other teams aren’t. I can get REALLY deep about it but that’ll be for later…

I’m so intrigued as to why Me and Kei’s quotients are 71 and 72 respectively. It’s most likely because it’s the average number for a quotient but still….. [I just have to look so deeply at every single thing because there’s nothing else I can do]

Obviously their relationship with each other. They just love and care for each other so much so the curse on Me and Kei is so much more devastating. Galaxy4 also have trauma but join together with the power of friendship to deal with it, Cusu-Cusu on the other hand, are not able to get over it. Not only is the curse happening right now, non of their endings are ideal. I can’t really imagine them all happy and together in a lovely sisterly bond because that just isn’t allowed to happen in their story. And who even are Kei and Me ?? We have no idea !! We just know that Cindy and Sahara love them so deeply and it all just makes so sad. But I love it

Saharas hairstyle being a reference to Pebbles from The Flintstones, I’ve never watched the show but it’s such an adorable reference and I just love bones as accessories.

COLOUR SCHEME !!! The colour scheme for the whole team is just perfect: how neutral yet colourful Kei looks, how Cindy’s dress colour and skin colour blend into each other and how her black hair provides a really good contrast, etcetera etcetera…

Probably the most specific headcannon ever but I think that Cindy likes wearing tails. I’ve done designs where the tail is just a really stylised fabric piece but I really like the look of her having an actual tail so I think that she personally would also really like it. Inspired by this tweet I saw on pinterest lol :