By chance, could you also explain what is the 2ptalia AU? I thought it was something msde up by the fandom, and not an official AU like the Gangsta AU. And where could I read the 2ptalia AU "chapters"? Thank you ☺️
Hi, sure!
2ptalia has no actual content in terms of chapters, but the concept itself as well as several 2p Designs are canon. Himaruya just basically shared several designs and claimed he had drawn these characters reimagining them as if they ran "an evil organization". The term "2p" refers to the trend of several multiplayer games (such as the Smash Bros. series) to give the 2nd player (the "2P") a character with a different color scheme in case they select the same character as Player One.
Japan, Italy and Germany are the only characters to have been given a canon color palette for their 2p Versions. The most common portrayal of 2p!America, 2p!England and 2p!France originates from their 2p!Nyo!Counterparts, which unlike the guys have canon designs:
Nyo!China and Nyo!Russia received 2p designs too, but interestingly the fandom didn't seem to have used them much as a base for the most popular portrayal of their male 2p counterparts. Nyo!Canada and Nyo!Prussia received a 2p colored artwork too:
There are, then, sketches that have "2p" in their file name. These are believed to be the canon 2p portrayals of the Allies:
I think the one on the left is meant to be 1p!Russia for reference as Hima worked on the 2p design. I think the final design for 2p!Russia would've been the one on the bottom. Note the lack of scarf probably standing for him having lost it completely.
Interestingly, the tentative 2p!China design on the right seems to have been repurposed as a base for Gangsta!China, judging from their hairstyle.
Austria possibly also received a canon 2p as he appears in a sketch alongside what are pretty clearly 2p!Italy and 2p!Germany despite the lack of color. It is unclear whether Japan is meant to be his 2p counterpart or not, however, since his outfit looks closer to the one Kiku wears:
The same blog entry also has a couple more sketches which do not appear to portray any 2p. Another artwork that is believed to be a 2p is this alternate coloring for Poland, as it had "2p color" written beneath as a description of the picture:
Interestingly, this is the very first mention of 2Ps, as the blog entry with Poland dates back to 2008, whereas everything (well, the little we have of it) else belonging to 2ptalia was posted between 2011 and 2013.
So basically, 2ptalia as a concept is canon, but several designs aside and the indication Hima gave of them being more hostile and evil compared to their 1p counterparts, everything else was made up by the fandom.
