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swan-swan — The Duke and the Bandit
Published: 2009-02-24 05:08:02 +0000 UTC; Views: 8615; Favourites: 208; Downloads: 66
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Still a bit of a WIP, but I made progress!Just because I don't ship Tokka, Taang, or Toko doesn't mean that I want Toph to be relationshipless. And just because she's awesome enough to not need some guy in her life doesn't mean that she doesn't want one. And this ship has significant canon foreshadowing status, ranging from helmet-sharing to shoulder-guiding to "We could go look for her!" to huggles at the end....
And, long and short of it, don't be surprised if this thing pops up with a few more pieces. I have ideas.
I'd like to thank a lot of fans out there for uploading some stellar fanart of these two to give me further inspiration and reference as I went along, and MAJOR props to for giving the Duke such a great later design....mouthgrass and metal helmets ftw! I think the former might have been , but she was the direct inspiration anyway...
And I think that in trying to distance his appearance from that of Jet, I wound up making him look too much like Zuko. Oh, well. I may still fix that.
As for Toph, I was considering giving her a tattoo--any suggestions? Lotus? Badgermole? Momo? Evil Runaway drawing? Silhouettes of blimps and ships and whatever else she took down?
I also opted to give her shorter hair. Most of the other older-Toph designs seem to work with that, so it works for me. Besides which, every other girl grows her hair out...Toph can be unique. Her shirt design was kind of random...I mixed her Fire Nation outfit with something fancily Earth Kingdom. If you want to know what I picture her basic character as being like, think June. Mixed in with a bit of Tsunade from Naruto.
I loves me my shipping ships. Indeed, I does.
Toph and the Duke belong to Bryke.
The pic is mine.
I gave him his spear. Or his pike. It's a pole weapon.
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Comments: 90
SO glad there's a handful of us out there who ship these two, they're SO cute!
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Well Toph does get married at some point in time! we know this now!
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I am sorry but that looks more like Jet than the Duke, just saying.
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This is amazing! I ship Th Doph too!
Instant fave!
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Cute, I kinda flex between them and Toko, but like Toko more.
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I wasn't really on board the whole Dukoph thing, buuut . . . this is a great pic, and a great title, too.
"As for Toph, I was considering giving her a tattoo--any suggestions? Evil Runaway drawing?"
Oh plz, plz, plz!
"Silhouettes of blimps and ships and whatever else she took down?"
YES YES YES
"If you want to know what I picture her basic character as being like, think June."
I TOTALLY think June is older Toph, too! She calls people names, hangs out with a blind mole creature, and kicks ass. 
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And you added the little grass bit like Jet! Nice touch... I ship The Toph!
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This is the best Avatar match-up EVAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Well done.
As for the tattoo:
I don't really think Toph would get a tattoo. Not that it doesn't suit her personality, but would she really want to get some skin art that she can't even see?
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I think momo with his tail looking like it's wrapped around her arm. That would be wix!
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<3 This is the best Toph pairing in my opinion
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Oh, goodness, I love this. <3 I stumbled upon it by accident and just staring at it totally makes me want to write a fanfic about these two--and I've never cared one way or another because in the show, both of them were just such kids. But the way you drew them--I love it. I love how they're leaning against each other and the whole thing just screams friendship and support to me. It's so relaxed and comfortable--and I mean that in the best way. I hope you draw more of these two. ^_^
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He looks a little like Jet.. But that just might be because of the peice of grass in his mouth
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oh didnt see all the other comments bout the boar whoops
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i love this picture i never rly thot about them as a couple! mabye for a tatoo for toph i thought like a flyin boar? love this pic
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FUCK YEAH THE DOPH.
I think that Toph would get something that means "don't mess with me..." and definitely get that "The Runaway" wanted poster tattooed on one shoulder.
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Older!Duke is cute.
I mean, I totally didn't just type that. XD
But, um, anyway. The freckles and the wheat are a nice touch.
I also like that older!Toph still has short hair - she doesn't seem the sort that would want to fuss with a long mane like Katara's.
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I am kinda torn with The Duke/Toph. I don't know if I should dislike it immensely or think it has potential. :/
Still, grownup! The Duke/Toph is a pretty good idea.
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I really like this Pic!
Idk, I thought Toph would look good with Teo... Not just because they're both disable, but just because they look cute.
But this is really awesome!
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Okay, Toph/The Duke is the only Toph pairing supported by canon, though there is the Toph/Sokka/Suki TRIPLING which, unorthodox as it is, seems (lightly) supported as well. I've always had the theory that Suki likes girls too, so— uh, anyway, how old is The Duke? Is he about 8 or 9, or is he just short for his age? He seems like a short guy to me. So when Toph is 20, he'd be 16? 18? It certainly could work eventually. I like the picture.
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Bleh. I never got this pairing. Just because they spent a little time together and had a quick hug at the end?
I prefer Toph unpaired, or Sukkoph for crack pairings.
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wow he looks so much like jet
who'd of thought he'd turn out to be cool when he grew up
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AHHHHHH!!!! I FREAKING LOVE YOU!!!!! THIS IS MAH SHIP! <333 (my current Toph ship, that is...)
Amazingly done!
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I'm a Tokka shipper, but man, this drawing is great! nice work! I especially love your Toph!
How about the flying Boar for her tatoo? 
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Thanks!
And I was thinking about the boar.
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even though i'm against The Duke and Toph as a relationship i really do like the picture 
There is one thing you might want to be aware of in the future though. On a perfectly cloudless evening,sunsets are like an oversized rainbow on the horizon . It goes R-O-Y-G-B-I-V with Red starting at the bottom going up to Violet. Other than that it's perfect
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I actually directly reffed the sky from "The Awakening."
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before i start i should probably say that i'm a Forever Tokka Fan ... so that is going to bias my opinion
That being said i am more receptive of other shippings (except Sukka) for the beloved duo ... For example, i would totaly understand if Sokka rejected Toph because of his continuing love for Yue (who is litteraly "alive in spirit"). That relationship actualy brought me to tears when they parted, and once again in The Swamp when i saw how much Sokka blamed himself for her physical death (which is really saying something about how they touched me, because normaly i'm a cold-hearted, stone-faced, emotionless jerk when it comes to fictional relationships ending in death).
Now, for my reasoned argument against The Duke.
I personaly don't see Toph getting with The Duke as a possibility. Firstly because of the apparent age difference. I haven't done any actual research on The Duke (so i don't know what the general consensus on his age is) but he strikes me from somewhere around 8-10 .... maybe 11 if you look at the fact that he's a fairly compitent fighter. That means that he's way too young for Toph to even register him on the emotional attraction scale and he's at a point to where the only attraction towards her is, "Wow, she can fight blind. She's pretty cool."
Granted, Toph and Sokka aren't exactly the same age either but at least they both know something in regards to love and relationships.
My other problem with The Duke being with Toph is the complete lack of character building for him. We know absolutely nothing about The Duke other than that he's close friends with Pibsqueak, he's a freedom fighter, probably an orphan, and he cares for his friends. Not that any of those things discount him from having a relationship with Toph. We just simply don't know anything about his likes, dislikes, his humor style, hobbies, or anything about his deeper self.
Granted, he's just an 8 year old kid. Therefore he hasn't actualy had time to build much of a deeper self, thus (esspecialy if you're a firm believer in nurture over nature) anything is possible for that building process.
Lastly i'm going to attack the shoulder-guiding thing in the awakening (like any other childish shipper would 
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I like this piece..they look great
The Duke is kind of young for Toph in my opinion..I prefer to have her with Teo though.
The Duke could have Meng instead...just an idea...
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Meng's about Toph's age. XD And "too young" is never really an argument I accept with this show.
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I guess so for some rason i have a liking for \Teoph
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Jeez, the coloring of the sky is phenomenal... this is one of your best backgrounds to date. Also, having that big open space around the back-to-back Toph and Duke really emphasizes a solidarity between the two.
Adding mouthgrass to the design of "John Wayne" over there is a great touch. The smooth, lackadaisical look suits him. XD
(I think other people have said this, but Toph's arm seems to be a bit off. Even with muscle, it would probably thin down a bit more from the shoulder. And the tatoo could probably be the Earth Kingdom symbol...or maybe the kanji for "Champion.")
Anyway, nice work! (Sorry for the long comment.)
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Thin it down more? Hokay!
Thank you very much. ^_^
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Holy cow, ive been watching all your art, and this has got to be one of, if not, the best you have so far. Its subtle, and not overwhelmingly obvious, it portrays their characters quite well, and above all, its a great concept!
Amazing!
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anyway is good (but i still think is too bad ending for a great character in the show, only opinion, ok?)
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I personallly am a Taang fan, but that doesn't mean I still can't be a TophXThe Duke, right?
BTW I love that way you drew The duke, but from one artist to another, you should work on Toph. *puts hands up* Hey, thats just me opinion.
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What's wrong with my Toph????
Seriously, what's wrong? I needz improvementz.
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What my critical eye spotted was the hair. You should try, instead of the parts of it seperated, try drawing them close together like real hair. I'm not trying to be snotty or a know-it-all, because I had the same problem and this is what someone told me.
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interesting idea, and certianly a cute picture. The only thing about the paring is that he seems a little young for her, he was what 6 in the series? I don't know but I do like his older design. As for Toph's tattoo I can definitely see her getting one, maybe a ring of thorns around her bicep, or a depiction of a rock javelin trailing from her shoulder down to maybe her elbow. all in all a nice piece, I definitely get a content feel from it, maybe a warm friendship in the stead of a romance.
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Eight. Nine. Four-year difference. Not that big a deal; cuts in below the five-year line. It's a bit of a gap, but if he's eighteen and she's twenty-two, same sort of thing. Especially if he can crack a few villainous skulls.
People ship Toko and Tokka, so...yeah. ^_^
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