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A bit of backstory... I've had a complicated history with blue inks. Ever since elementary school I've disliked blue ballpoint pens. Something about them is just... "blah". When I got into fountain pens last year, I carried this prejudice along with me, focusing on purples, greens, browns, grays - pretty much anything other than boring old blue or black. Soon enough, though, I got swept up by sheer variety of blue inks and the enthusiasm people have for them. I started from the edges, with vivid sky blues like Iroshizuku Kon-Peki and subtle blue-blacks like R&K Salix, gradually expanding my comfort zone inward toward the standard, medium blues. While I often find "the one" ink of a certain color (however short-lived the title proves to be), I've never found "the one" blue ink. I've tried many nice blues - Namiki Blue, Waterman Blue, Ottoman Azure, Bad Blue Heron, Eclat de Saphir, Diamine Sapphire, etc, etc - they were all either too light, too dark, too flat, too purple, too green, or just too not-quite-well-behaved-enough to really have the "it" factor I needed to declare them "the one" bottle-worthy standard blue. Until now. Ink: Noodler's Liberty's Elysium Pen: Pilot Vanishing Point, F Paper: Staples Sugarcane notebook http://i513.photobucket.com/albums/t331/InkandPaper88/Libertys%20Elysium/Review_zps7f4a26da.jpg Liberty's Elysium is a true blue, leaning neither towards purple, as many standard blues tend to do, nor towards turquoise, as do many sky blues. In keeping with the Noodler's tradition of historically themed inks, this ink is dedicated to those who fought and died for the sake of religious and political freedom in colonial America. http://i513.photobucket.com/albums/t331/InkandPaper88/Libertys%20Elysium/Color_zpsead45cde.jpg This ink is surprisingly close to Sailor Jentle Sky High, but it is a richer, more neutral blue. It also seems to write a bit broader than other inks - a seemingly common characteristic of Noodler's inks. Overall performance is good. It will feather and show through on the worst papers but no more than any other ink that isn't an iron gall or Noodler's Black. http://i513.photobucket.com/albums/t331/InkandPaper88/Libertys%20Elysium/Compare_zpse622cfff.jpg You can see the color and shading here, but there is a depth and vibrancy to the ink that goes beyond what I can be captured in a picture. I think that is what people are seeing when they compare it to Kon-Peki, which also has that quality, despite being much more turquoise than Liberty's Elysium. http://i513.photobucket.com/albums/t331/InkandPaper88/Libertys%20Elysium/Detail_zps5771827b.jpg As it was quickly (and loudly) discovered following this ink's release, Liberty's Elysium is not a true "Bulletproof" ink. That said, it is *highly* water resistant, and, given the quirky tendencies of other Bulletproof inks, I think this is actually just fine. http://i513.photobucket.com/albums/t331/InkandPaper88/Libertys%20Elysium/Waterproof_zps56aa92eb.jpg Add to all of the above that it is one of the cheapest inks by volume that you can get in the US, and Liberty's Elysium is a no-brainer for me as my "the one" workhorse blue. Of course, being "the one" is a far thing from being "the one and only". In particular, Eclat de Saphir gives a nice change of pace, and Kon-Peki is a delightful indulgence. Sky High is also a nice compromise between indulgence and practicality. And there are times when the sheer brazen dullness of Namiki Blue or Waterman Blue is charming in its own way... I guess what I'm really saying is that if feels good to pretend that I've settled something.

Don't forget to take my flex pen poll and win a brand new, high performance flex pen! So I was on my quest for the perfect blue when I heard about a vibrant, waterproof, true blue. I jumped at the chance to try it. So far, my favorite pen to use with this ink is a Parker 21, and I just adore it with plain, basic cursive italic. Here are some comparison photos of some comparable blues on a few papers: World's cheapest notebook paper. (I bought 200 sheets of this stuff for about 50¢ in 1998. It actually accepts inks pretty well, so while it's the cheapest paper I've ever bought, and is see-through, I'm beginning to think it's not THAT bad.) Staples Bagasse World's Cheapest Copy Paper

Here's a saturated blue that's sadly not unique enough to strike my fancy. While its behavior on copy paper leaves me disappointed, it's very good on Rhodia, if a bit unremarkable. Being the sheen junkie that I am I'd rather find a comparable color with lots of sheen from Diamine than spend the money on Ottoman Azure. Still, there are far worse inks you could get. http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/xq90/18/fdnx.jpg Please remember to vote on this ink in the poll!