Just A PSA To Anybody Writing Fic About Joel Miller, This Is What His Bed Looks Like.

Fantasy Wardrobe: Popular Men's Fashion of History

Fashion is one of my favourite worldbuilding components and choosing which way I want characters to look, is one part of research that is more fun than work. The use of different styles give each culture a defined feel and could act as a symbol of all kinds of lands in your WIP. Since it is your WIP, you can play with different elements of the garments and pay fast and loose with the styles.

Shirt

The shirt is the key to every other item of clothing on this list. The shirt was always worn under everything. It was often made of linen and worn by all classes. The shirt was often embroidered with blackwork and was sometimes even able to peak out from slashings in the garment over it. Shirts were seen as an intimate item of clothing. You should hear about the chaos that occurred when Anne Boleyn found out that Katherine of Aragon was still sewing Henry VIII's shirts.

Tunic

The tunic was worn by all classes. The tunic could be sleeveless or with sleeves. Tunics usually reached the knee or mid thigh when worn in hot climates and could be cut to the hip like a regular shirt today. They were belted at the waist.

Doublet

The doublet was a jacket worn over a man's undershirt. The doublet was usually laced or buttoned up at the front, reaching from the neck of the wearer to the hip of the waist. The doublet was often padded in order to keep the wearer warm.

Jerkin

The jerkin is a tight fitted jacket worn again over the shirt that is buttoned or laced at the front. The jerkin could be worn with or without sleeves. Leather was a popular material for these to be made and was worn by both classes.

Breeches

Are pants. Most breeches stopped at the knee though some reached the ankle, similar to today's trousers. Breeches could be in laced at the front and were worn by every class of men.

Hose

These were a style of pants that usually ended above the knee. Hose were often worn with a codpiece, a rather bold fashion statement for men. Hose would have also been worn with stockings held up by garters. Hose might be padded at the things to add some flare to the look.

Overgown

The overgown is rather like a great loose jacket worn over the doublet or jerkin. It was usually sewn with fur for warmth and made of contrasting fabric than what lay underneath.

Justacorps

This is the classic knee-length coat worn by men 18th century. Men would wear this over a waistcoat and shirt. This was a popular fashion for highborn men. It does still look fine.

Kaftan/ Caftan/Boubou

This is a large robe that is pulled on over the head with long sleeves. It can have a v-neck or round neck. They are usually heavily embroidered.

Achkan/Sherwani

This is the long coat worn by Indian men. It is usually buttoned up at the front, reaches just below the knees and is long sleeved.

Mizu, femininity, and fallen sparrows

In my last post about Mizu and Akemi, I feel like I came across as overly critical of Mizu given that Mizu is a woman who - in her own words - has to live as a man in order to go down the path of revenge.

If she is ever discovered to be female by the wrong person, she will not only be unable to complete her quest, but there's a good chance that she'll be arrested or killed.

So it makes complete sense for Mizu to distance herself as much as possible from any behavior that she feels like would make someone question her sex.

I felt so indignant toward Mizu on my first couple watchthroughs for this moment. Why couldn't Mizu bribe the woman and her child's way into the city too? If Mizu is presenting as a man, couldn't she claim to be the woman's escort?

However, this moment makes things pretty clear. Mizu knows all too well the plight of women in her society. She knows it so well that she cannot risk ever finding herself back in their position again. She helps in what little way she can - without drawing attention to herself.

Mizu is not a hero and she is not one to make of herself a martyr - she will not set herself on fire to keep others warm. There's room to argue that Mizu shouldn't prioritize her quest over people's lives, but given the collateral damage Mizu can live with in almost every episode of season 1, Mizu is simply not operating under that kind of morality at this point. ("You don't know what I've done to reach you," Mizu tells Fowler.)

And while I still feel like Mizu has an obvious and established blind spot when it comes to Akemi because of their differences in station, such that Mizu's judgment of Akemi and actions in episode 5 are the result of prejudice rather than the result of Mizu's caution, I also want to establish that Mizu is just as caged as Akemi is, despite her technically having more freedom while living as a man.

Mizu can hide her mixed race identity some of the time, and she can hide her sex almost all of the time, but being able to operate outside of her society's strict rules for women does not mean she cannot see their plight.

It does not mean she doesn't hurt for them.

Back to Mizu and collateral damage, remember that sparrow?

While Mizu is breaking into Boss Hamata's manse, she gets startled by a bird and kills it on reflex. She then cradles it in her hands - much more tenderly than we've seen Mizu treat almost anything up to this point in the season:

She then puts it in its nest, with its unhatched eggs. Almost like she's trying to make the death look natural. Or like an accident.

You see where I'm going with this.

When Mizu kills Kinuyo, Mizu lingers in the moment, holding the body tenderly:

And btw a lot of stuff about this show hit me hard, but this remains the biggest gut punch of them all for me, Mizu holding that poor girl's body close, GOD

When Mizu arranges the "scene of the crime," Kinuyo's body is delicate, birdlike. And Mizu is so shaken afterward that she gets sloppy. She's horrified at this kill to the point that she can't bring herself to take another innocent life - the boy who rats her out.

MIZU'S ONE MOMENT OF SOFTNESS AND MERCY, COMING ON THE HEELS OF HER NEEDING TO KILL A GIRL TO SPARE HER THE WORST FATE THAT THIS RIGID SOCIETY HAS TO OFFER WOMEN, AND TO SPARE A BROTHEL FULL OF INNOCENT WOMEN WHO ARE THE CASTOFFS OF SOCIETY, NEARLY RESULTS IN ALL OF THEIR DEATHS

No wonder Mizu is as stoic and cold as she is.

And no wonder Mizu has no patience for Akemi whatsoever right before the terrible reveal and the fight breaks out:

Speaking of Akemi - guess who else is compared to a bird!

The plumage is more colorful, a bit flashier. But a bird is a bird.

And, uh

Yeah.

I like to think that Mizu killing the sparrow is not only foreshadowing for what she must do to Kinuyo, but is also a representation of the choice she makes on Akemi's behalf. She decides to cage the bird because she believes the bird is "better off." Better off caged than... dead.

But because Mizu doesn't know Akemi or her situation, she of course doesn't realize that the bird is fated to die if it is caged and sent back home.

Mizu is clearly not happy, or pleased, or satisfied by allowing Akemi to be dragged back to her father:

But softness and mercy haven't gotten Mizu anywhere good, recently.

There is so much tragedy layered into Mizu's character, and it includes the things she has to witness and the choices she makes - or believes she has to make - involving women, when she herself can skirt around a lot of what her society throws at women. Although, I do believe that it comes at the cost of a part of Mizu's soul.

After all, I'm gonna be haunted for the rest of this show by Mizu's very first prayer in episode 1:

"LET" her die. Because as Ringo points out, she doesn't "know how" to die.

Kind of like another bird in this show:

Nothing like Dream being an absolute moron on Twitter to have every ex-dsmp fan woken up from hibernation

"i saw you in a dream then it came to an end i wonder if you'll come visit me again you're taking your time to reappear i'm starting to believe that when i call your name"

check out the wonderful ghostflower animatic made by @tikklil here:

some agrotale stuff

based on this doodle i made. i liked the design so im making it into an actual thing

I always liked the idea that they both work at NASA post true pacifist

“You never gained LOVE, but you gained love.”

Save the world

jayce and his disregard for personal space

surprisingly, viktor is quite the hugger. Only jayce knows this, of course.

This is how that scene went right