#obl rants

I warneth thee who dareth read this entire autistic character design ranteth (bad metaphors and like overanalyzing the character design are coming)

Like subtle differences but yeah the changes mentioned in this image below are changed!

The first iterations of Gwen, her pupils aren’t always dilated, too many eyelashes on one eye (I counted) and there’s the wrinkle! And don’t even get me started on the edges! So Sharp! I color coded an image of the differences

Red: the shape in the hair stand bottom goes from triangle to oval

Orange: the triangle in the top of her bangs are more curved and wider then the original

Yellow: Eyelash number the same on both sides, also they become curved instead of straight

Green: Nose became smaller and less sharp (word of the day, sharp)

Light Blue: less sharp and more “feminine lips”

Dark Blue: The eyes in the og look like triangles guys I don’t know what to say I might be going crazy

Purple: hair spike becomes a little more rounded. Also hair in buns (I know wild) for easier silhouette (more of that talk about character design coming after this) but also curves to contrast the og straight hair that spikes

Pink: pupil size

I couldn’t point it out on OG Gwen very well but her body isn’t curvy either! That is only changed after! I will go over that more in the eventual post I have about the sexualization and the idea of specific beauty standards in girls that are reinforced and forced in children’s media and how this includes it as a criticism but this isn’t the time y’all!

I want to talk about the character design of Gwen then I will discuss the meaning of the shapes and shit so get excited

One major change between normal Gwen and OG Gwen silhouette. The silhouette character design is to make your character recognizable. Most major characters have a recognizable one. Look at these two Gwens, it’s very clear which one is more recognizable (sorry I know my drawing of the silhouettes is bad but pretend they are good) even just the head is better silhouette

Also rule of threes. The normal Gwen uses this perfectly with the three circles, which is also why Mickey Mouse is so recognizable!

Now the fun part, SHAPE PSYCHOLOGY!!!! This is going to help with personality of Gwen

I’m going to start with the sharp Gwen on this! Triangles in positivity can be representive of power but often can be warnings and hazard signs! When we get a lot of them, facing many different ways, it can make a feeling of danger in the piece and character!

In the new Gwen, circles are the motif. Circles are often connected with good feelings, a main one of gentleness and balance. Obvs this is what the creators of the Gwen in the company wanted but it can also mean stuck in an enternity, which is what Gwen truly is in.

The only thing that’s the same between OG Gwen and normal Gwen is symmetry. Which resembles some stability and order. Which Broken Gwen breaks

Now broken Gwen is so similar to OG Gwen with the sharp edges again. Everything is wrong but this character design is more interesting to me. The lack of symmetry first shows how unstable she feels like drawing wise. On the left side of her body literally has nothing (right now but I do think the tentacle arms are going to be a thing) which adds to the feeling of unease. And this represents her inside instability and the freedom she has now with the lack of order.

I want to talk JUST about the lighting in this movie, because it is incredible.

I was watching the movie the other day and watched how constant the shifts of light are until I realized what they were doing. the light was meant to represent hope and maybe holiness.

every time Jud talked religion the room would light up, glares and everything, and suddenly. The first scene with Jud and Beniot Blanc is a perfect example of this.

And every time Wicks talked religion, it was dark and there remained no light in the church.

and even when wicks was “rising again”, there was no holiness to the scene, only fear. And I find that SO POWERFUL

Because in no way was Wicks the savior of this story. He was the villain. He was the disgusting villian. Despite trying to frame himself as Jesus.

I want to take a second and talk about the new knives out movie, Wake Up Dead Man.

This one might be my favorite so far because I think it nailed some of Christianity on the head better that other movies and shows. And as an Ex Christian I want to talk about

I’m trying to make my posts more interesting with gifs I’m sorry. anyways. In each Knives Out movie, they deal with a different topic, like in Glass Onion is was Billionaires. And this movie covers Christianity/Catholicism specifically. Our main character, Jud is not the man you think is a priest or pastor. He killed a man while boxing (daredevil core) and converted then. And he has a different idea of the religion than other people do. He has this quote below in particular that becomes important later

Jud is the best version of a Christian. He doesn’t force anyone to join it, he supports people the best he can AND he’s imperfect. He accidentally killed a man, he punched multiple people but he’s kind and caring. I was worried that with this narritive it was going to be like super Christian, wanting me to be Christian and shit, but it wasn’t. It portrayed the good and the bad.

Wicks is the idea that I have grown to know about Christianity. and he is a disgusting man. He manipulated all of these people, every SINGLE ONE! And it’s disgusting and they recognize that all too well. Which makes the reveal of the killer all the more meaningful.

spoilers under cut