Looking back on 2013

So, it's finally come... the very last day of 2013. Man, in some ways the year feels so, so short, but in other ways it seems incredibly long! The things I've done this year, the changes that have happened, the friends I've met and made, it's been a BIG year.

Haha, so considering this is an HTTYD blog, I'll just hit some of the high points that happened to me this year concerning all things Dragon related! I'm sure I'll not be able to cover them all, but it has been a pretty fun year. Click the "read more" to see the full story, but be warned that it might have some slightly frightening images.

Happy Birthday Inhonoredglory!

I hope you have an amazing bday, Glory! I wanted to make you something, so I shot for what I am usually decent at: line arts. I don't usually mess those up, so that was where I decided to start. Then the next question was what to make the subject matter of the image. I immediately thought of the Doctor because I know you've been really, really enjoying him lately! Then I thought, "Yeah... but I met her and became friends because of HTTYD, and surely she would still want Hiccup in a bday gift." After that, (perfect timing!) the new HTTYD2 trailer came out! I felt that I ought to mix the Doctor and HTTYD together. I mean, that would totally work in Doctor Who! He's seen a whole lot weirder than Vikings and dragons. Anyway, I remember (I think) that Blink was the first episode you watched? It was my first, and it was so interesting to see the Doctor dealing with the Weeping Angels that I wanted to throw that terrifying foe into the picture as well. And if we're gonna have one frightening enemy, why not throw in the apex of all scary creatures? Yep, I do love to draw a Skrill, and thanks to that story you wrote, he has become the apex of all HTTYD foes in my book! Anyway, I kind of liked the back to back dynamic of Hiccup and the Doctor... so very different and yet in some ways quite a lot alike! I had never drawn the Doctor before this, so I was actually really pleased to see that he didn't look terrible in the end! I hope you like it. I mean, it's the Doctor, Hiccup, Toothless, a Skrill, and a Weeping Angel all in one image... surely that's gotta be somewhat likable! I do hope you'll have a great day!

Oh, and here is a translation key for the rhunes!

It has been great to know you and to be your friend! I am very glad I had time to make you something, and I do hope you like it. Have a wonderful birthday, Inhonoredglory!

A HUGE thank you for the Christmas gifts!

Ok guys, I'll just come out and say it, I was just SOOOO surprised to get stuff from you two this Christmas! It means a whole lot to me and the gifts are just spectacular! Seriously, I couldn't be happier, and I want to thank you both, Rima and Glory, very, very much for them! I'm just gonna post them here and mention a few thoughts on them!

So this is a poster gif made by Inhonoredglory for my little fanfiction thing, Dimension Splash, and I just LOVE it! The fact that the image makes it out to look like a film is really funny and cool because a friend of mine recently was joking around with me saying it should totally be turned into a six movie story. Anyway, yeah, it actually does a beautiful job of capturing a lot of the elements of the story. And of course, if anyone has read the Chronicles, they will know that Hiccup, Toothless, and Link are definitely the main characters. And Hiccup and Toothless are actually older now, so this poster is sooooo perfect for this next big step in the story! That little blue flurry in the middle also hints at the very mysterious and powerful forces that are swirling around in the shadows of the Dsplash plot, but these forces are really starting to come to light, and they are very, very deadly! Man, I even love the font! Thanks so much Glory! I really went nuts over this when I first got it, and I love it to pieces! Makes my thing look a lot more epic than it sometimes feels to me. I appreciate it a lot!

I was very excited to get even one gift from the fandom, so when this next one suddenly popped in, I was pretty much bouncing off the walls because it was just sooooo lovely! Rima had made it for me, and I really like the watercoloring. It makes me wish I was better in that medium. Anyway, if you open it in a new tab you should be able to clearly read the quote. It is yet again, a quote from my Dsplash stuff, but I NEVER saw my own writing as being nice enough to put into such a pretty art piece! Makes that moment feel every bit as lovely as I could have ever hoped! It is actually taken from the Chronicle Aftermath, and it is two different characters speaking, but for the sake of spoilers I will not describe the scene any more than that! Anyway, I hope that if any of you read Aftermath, you will think back on this art piece because it captures the feeling so perfectly!

Happy Snoggletog/Merry Christmas!

So, I decided to do a little art piece for the holiday! I was up until one o'clock one morning scribbling away at this thing, but I am pretty happy with it. Haha, it is sort of supposed to depict Snoggletog four years after GotNF, and as you can see, some traditions have been created! I thought the idea of older Hiccup and Astrid during Snoggletog was cute, and then I started trying to thin what they might do. I then thought it would be GREAT if Toothless decided to return Hiccup's helmet to him every year, and NOW Hiccup's helmet is the cool leather one from the second movie. No need to point out that this one covers his face and can probably hold twice the amount of Toothless's drool! Astrid is still making her signature drink, and I am sure it is every bit a horrible as the first time. So, yeah, Hiccup has decided to try and hide this year, and he might could avoid Astrid, but come on. He doesn't really think that he'll be able to keep a Night Fury from finding him, does he? Yep, he's going to get two kinds of affection in the grossest ways, but even gross affection is still affection, and I am sure he will take it well. As usual, the image is bigger if you open it in a new tab or window.

I also preserved the line art, so you can see it in both its forms. I actually think the line art has a certain appeal to it, and I'm glad that I kept it. The painting style I used was really quick (mostly because I was rushed for time!) and watery, and I hope it still looks good. It is really just supposed to be cartoony and cute as opposed to what I usually shoot for which is at least a little realistic.

I also want to very warmly dedicate this painting as a gift to all my good friends in the HTTYD fandom, most notably Toothlesslove, Glory, Rima, and AddyD. Haha... as well as all the many fine editors on the wiki! I hope you will all have a really wonderful holiday.

And, on a serious note, I know it sounds cliche, but I really do want to remember the real reason for this holiday. HTTYD is great fun, but I must say that the mercy of Christ is far more beautiful, impressive, and awe inspiring than even the greatest fictions could ever aspire to be. Today is a wonderful opportunity to remember the birth, perfect life, and sacrificial death of my Lord. I really do want to grow in gratitude to Him for the rest of my life. Merry Christmas everyone!

One Does Not Simply Destroy a Gemnode

Alright, this is my next Dsplash Chronicle. It is VERY un-HTTYD related, but it is also sort of significant, and it shows what Hiccup's actions have unleashed. Marvel fans, this features a very famous character. Anyway, it is only five pages. More interestingly, I do have a kind of fun Snoggletog/Christmas post to make tomorrow. It has artwork, so hopefully you will all enjoy that. Just a warning, this Chronicle is a little foreboding and sad.

Call me confused.

Why on earth is Toothless licking his lips before he goes into this dive? It's very cute, but I am completely confused! Gah! This trailer has so much good stuff in it. The movie's just gonna kill me! I am having a hard time making enough posts to adequately cover what we saw in the trailer! Imagine what we'll be doing when the film actually comes out! So much to spazz over!

Also, I LOVE how older Hiccup is a little closer to Toothless's size! For some reason it makes him feel a whole lot more like an equal when he rides Toothless, almost more like they are one thing as opposed to an incredibly epic dragon and an incredibly small boy. Don't know exactly why, but I do like how Hiccup's new proportions look when he is strapped onto his dragon!

I don't usually do this...

But I am gonna make a Hiccstrid post!

Yeah, I am usually not a big fan of romantic pairings, especially teenage romantic pairings. Hiccup and Astrid were completely that in the first film, and though I didn't dislike their relationship, it was never all that interesting to me. I DID like some moments that resulted from it, especially Romantic Flight and the moment afterwards when Toothless seems to tease Hiccup over his first kiss. That was cute. Still... that's about as far as my appreciation for Astrid and Hiccup's pairing went. I thought their relationship was charming in GotNF, and I thought it was a bit annoying in RoB (come on... are we seriously gonna turn Hiccup and Astrid into stereotypical awkward teens just for the sake of awkwardness?). But now we get to see just a little glimpse of them in the trailer, and though I've never been a huge Astrid fan, I think I am about to be one!!

That little moment in the trailer (as well as the short scene we got to see from when the President went to DreamWorks) have really displayed that Hiccup and Astrid have matured a LOT in their relationship, and it is GREAT! I'm not really interested in a continued teen drama, I would like to see progress get made if progress is reasonable. And these images... just, WOW! Astrid looks so much more feminine than I am used to! In the first film, she is pretty much more alpha male than all the guys (so saith Jay Burachel), and I feel sure that she is still her very tough, vikingly self (I mean, she's got a battle axe on the back of her saddle and she's jumping over the twins and stealing sheep in dragon races), but it is nice to see her grow into a young woman. She is HOLDING on of Hiccup's braids! Just... ok, I admit, that's super charming! I really hope that she and Hiccup will continue to grow in a mature relationship. They are both so much older, so the potential to see them actually get married is clearly there. It's so sweet to see how close she and he have grown over the last five years! You would NEVER expect to see first movie Astrid acting like this with Hiccup, but seeing it now feels kind of natural and beautiful. I like that a lot. I think she has been aged very well, I think Hiccup looks very manly, I think Astrid looks beautifully feminine, and because of that I actually have gone and written a Hiccstrid post! Man, the second movie has so many potential ways to grow so many different characters. The director's decision to age the teens kind of scared me at first, but I couldn't be more pleased with it after seeing where he's going! Man, June can't come soon enough!