Bouncing off the walls!
Yesh! I'm really that happy! Today the most awesome thing came in the mail thanks to the very great Wendy Darling. It was my copy of the Wraeththu Photo Book. I let out a ridiculously long happy sound when I caught sight of the envelope in Dad's hands, totally ignoring the fact that his girlfriend probably thought I was some kind of nut. (I'm pretty sure she did before that already. No harm done.)
I'm dedicating this entire post to the absolute sheer genius that is the picture book so if you'd like, turn away now. I promise this entire post will be dripping with squee. Never before have I ever had a book so completely filled with such perfect pictures of some of the world's most beautiful people.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I realise I've never actually blogged about Wraeththu to begin with. It's a series by the very talented and truly wonderful Storm Constantine about an androgynous race that takes over humankind in the future. They're adept at spiritual things, live much longer than humans and are generally highly sexed creatures that require a healthy amount of aruna. All in all, this is definitely one of the best things I've ever read in my life. (I admit to not reading that much but I do love to read and this series is and always will be amongst those I treasure the most.) The characters are very very endearing and I've found myself completely fascinated not only by some of the main good guys but also some of the not so good ones. Diablo who comes out in the 5th book definitely has me waving my fan flag although he's kind of dysfunctional and Ponclast is starting to come off as the tortured soul that one can't help but sympathize with. Anyway, I highly recommend this to anyone who is reading this post now, if you like fantasy and enjoy slash.
Next up, I'd like to highlight the photographer of the book, Marja Kettner. I really really love the way she photographed everyone. Everything looks larger than life, totally like how the Wraeththu should be and then some. I think few photographers can capture feelings and situations the way she does and I really like her style. The models didn't look uncomfortable either so I think it shows that she's probably a personable yet professional photographer. From what I read, she handled a great deal in putting the book together for which I'm ridiculously happy. I can only hope another such book is in the works!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
And now, before I burst a vessel in sheer excitement, onto the models!
Sven Louis Weber is definitely the most alluring human alive. He's got a beautiful pouty look that is completely endearing and he carries off Pellaz perfectly. He looks every part the Tigron with that serious and commanding expression yet on the other hand he's the epitome of the lonely character I must admit to having a soft spot for. Every time I flipped the page and he was there I had to withhold a high pitched squee that I knew would come out had I not been careful. There were...a few pages... where I could not refrain from the aforementioned squee. An example would be the 3/4 shot of him on Page 69. That is definitely one of the best pictures in the whole book! For that, the squee was followed by a giggle. By then I was pretty much hoping at the back of my mind that I'd somehow freak Dad's girlfriend out and perhaps she'd leave him or something fortunate like that.
Additionally, he designed and made many of the outfits in the book which is something I have great respect for. I've always wanted to pick up sewing but haven't come across a good opportunity yet. It looks really difficult and everything in the book looks very intricate. Not to mention the time and planning and all. To top it all off, he was 19 when he did all that, 3 years ago. Just. Wow.
Sandro Kopp. One of the most regal people I think I've ever seen. It's no wonder he was one of the Elven Princes in Lord of the Rings. He really has this commanding air about him. I think he was one of the more daring models in the sense that he went one of the furthest in playing Caeru. On a really tiny note though, he's slightly too... "perfect" for Rue, who I always thought would look just a little broken. Nonetheless, what he lacks in imperfection he makes up for with a whole lot of Tigrina air.
Gerrit Wolf pulls off the inner angst of Cal kinda well. He's got that evil "holier than thou" yet not look down pat and it's very Cal-ish.
Matthias Ritzrau as Ashmael pretty much hit the nail on the head. He's got that otherworldly general look to him which is menacing and kind of sexy.
Elly Kloppe is literally Cobweb stepping out from the pages of We Dwell in Forever. She has this stunningly magical look about her and has that strong yet gentle vibe. I see Cobweb as one of the deepest characters in the series because he's gone through quite a lot and has certainly turned out to be a very lovable har. I think Elly pulled that off perfectly!
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Oh gods. I think my brain is finally giving out on me. It's 6:28am here and I think I really need sleep now. I'll continue this when I wake up. I think I've been running on hyper since I got back at 4:00am and the tiredness is kicking in at long last. Off to bed now!
I'm dedicating this entire post to the absolute sheer genius that is the picture book so if you'd like, turn away now. I promise this entire post will be dripping with squee. Never before have I ever had a book so completely filled with such perfect pictures of some of the world's most beautiful people.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I realise I've never actually blogged about Wraeththu to begin with. It's a series by the very talented and truly wonderful Storm Constantine about an androgynous race that takes over humankind in the future. They're adept at spiritual things, live much longer than humans and are generally highly sexed creatures that require a healthy amount of aruna. All in all, this is definitely one of the best things I've ever read in my life. (I admit to not reading that much but I do love to read and this series is and always will be amongst those I treasure the most.) The characters are very very endearing and I've found myself completely fascinated not only by some of the main good guys but also some of the not so good ones. Diablo who comes out in the 5th book definitely has me waving my fan flag although he's kind of dysfunctional and Ponclast is starting to come off as the tortured soul that one can't help but sympathize with. Anyway, I highly recommend this to anyone who is reading this post now, if you like fantasy and enjoy slash.
Next up, I'd like to highlight the photographer of the book, Marja Kettner. I really really love the way she photographed everyone. Everything looks larger than life, totally like how the Wraeththu should be and then some. I think few photographers can capture feelings and situations the way she does and I really like her style. The models didn't look uncomfortable either so I think it shows that she's probably a personable yet professional photographer. From what I read, she handled a great deal in putting the book together for which I'm ridiculously happy. I can only hope another such book is in the works!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
And now, before I burst a vessel in sheer excitement, onto the models!
Sven Louis Weber is definitely the most alluring human alive. He's got a beautiful pouty look that is completely endearing and he carries off Pellaz perfectly. He looks every part the Tigron with that serious and commanding expression yet on the other hand he's the epitome of the lonely character I must admit to having a soft spot for. Every time I flipped the page and he was there I had to withhold a high pitched squee that I knew would come out had I not been careful. There were...a few pages... where I could not refrain from the aforementioned squee. An example would be the 3/4 shot of him on Page 69. That is definitely one of the best pictures in the whole book! For that, the squee was followed by a giggle. By then I was pretty much hoping at the back of my mind that I'd somehow freak Dad's girlfriend out and perhaps she'd leave him or something fortunate like that.
Additionally, he designed and made many of the outfits in the book which is something I have great respect for. I've always wanted to pick up sewing but haven't come across a good opportunity yet. It looks really difficult and everything in the book looks very intricate. Not to mention the time and planning and all. To top it all off, he was 19 when he did all that, 3 years ago. Just. Wow.
Sandro Kopp. One of the most regal people I think I've ever seen. It's no wonder he was one of the Elven Princes in Lord of the Rings. He really has this commanding air about him. I think he was one of the more daring models in the sense that he went one of the furthest in playing Caeru. On a really tiny note though, he's slightly too... "perfect" for Rue, who I always thought would look just a little broken. Nonetheless, what he lacks in imperfection he makes up for with a whole lot of Tigrina air.
Gerrit Wolf pulls off the inner angst of Cal kinda well. He's got that evil "holier than thou" yet not look down pat and it's very Cal-ish.
Matthias Ritzrau as Ashmael pretty much hit the nail on the head. He's got that otherworldly general look to him which is menacing and kind of sexy.
Elly Kloppe is literally Cobweb stepping out from the pages of We Dwell in Forever. She has this stunningly magical look about her and has that strong yet gentle vibe. I see Cobweb as one of the deepest characters in the series because he's gone through quite a lot and has certainly turned out to be a very lovable har. I think Elly pulled that off perfectly!
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Oh gods. I think my brain is finally giving out on me. It's 6:28am here and I think I really need sleep now. I'll continue this when I wake up. I think I've been running on hyper since I got back at 4:00am and the tiredness is kicking in at long last. Off to bed now!