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i have rule i semi-adhere to for media criticism which is to ideologically meet shit where it's at (or where it's presented to me). i like to call it the "i didn't make you market it that way" rule--like, if lancer's union was just presented as a sci-fi setting, that would be fine. i don't expect all sci-fi settings to be communist utopias! but when the creators of lancer use the word utopia like 20 times & bandy around words like 'mutual aid' and 'post-scarcity' and 'anticapitalist' when describing it, then to me that becomes absolutely fair game. similarly if someone says 'stardew valley is fun i like farming :)' then i'm not gonna reply with a long post about how it's ideologically petty-bourgeois--but if they say 'stardew valley is anticapitalist', then they've opened up that can of worms and it's fair for me to point out that the worms exist.

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my butch and femme flags! these are meant to be used by any LGBT person who identifies as butch or femme, whether it be as a gender, modifier, presentation label, relationship or social role, or anything else! go here to see the stripe meanings.

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DONATE 🇵🇸ㅤ𐙚♡ Scroll and read ↓

@esamadnan19 is a lot like me, he's a lot like a lot of us. Issam describes himself as a reserved, reclusive, independent person who would do anything for his family. So can you imagine how difficult it is to ask for financial help? No one should be in this situation. No one should be trying to survive behind walls while being hunted by israeli bombs. Issam, just before the genocide, married his forever love and now that home they shared together has been destroyed. Winter is here, and they are trying to survive. They need food, water and shelter! Please, consider donating to this beautiful couple. Every dollar counts! Even $5 / $10 can make a difference if we all contribute. Thank you and bless you. ㅤ𐙚♡

Vetted Links

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🔗 https://gofund.me/c7ddcdbe

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Last day to submit your answers for the DA romances survey!! During the weekend I will put together all the results

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too sleepy to play dragon age so take this instead

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Let's dance, let's sing

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Mythal and Solas: Manifestation

I'm fascinated by how newly revealed Solas lore add context to everything he did n DAI.

Taking on a body is a turning point for Solas, but also for his relationship with Mythal. We know form DAV it was...unhealthy, to say the least.

You learn more about Mythal's character once you draw parallel between Morrigan & Solas. Both of them said to be, by Mythal, people she cared deeply about. Yet it doesn't mean she is above using them.

DAO:

Flemeth: You have been itching to get out of the Wilds for years. Here is your chance. As for you, Wardens, consider this repayment for your lives. Morrigan: Mother…this is not how I wanted this.I am not even ready- Flemeth:You must be ready. Alone, these two must unite Ferelden against the darkspawn. They need you, Morrigan. Without you, they will surely fail, and all will perish under the Blight. Even I. Morrigan: I…Understand.

DAV:

Mythal: You have so long observed the world. Why not consider joining it? Solas: But I have no desire to live as humans. I have the Fade. Besides, this talk of taking on a solid form…I think you underestimate the danger. When you took the glowing stone to build your body, did the earth not shake?  Mythal: The lyrium gives us the strength we had when we were of the Fade. We are the best of physical and spirit. I need your wisdom, Solas, to withstand the louder voices who will go too far, like Elgar’nan. I need you. Solas: This is madness. You must know that. (Sighs) I will always follow where you go.

Mythal (or Flemeth) wants to have something from both Solas and Morrigan. Bring Solas to her side. Send Morrigan to acquire an old god soul. In both cases, Mythal shows a similar manipulation strategy. 

Try to present it as something they would want (Solas, wouldn’t you like to experience something you looked at for so long? Morrigan, wouldn't you like to finally explore the world beyond the Wilds?)

Frame the request as if that’s the right thing to do and only they can help (Without your wisdom,Solas, others will go too far. Without you, Morrigan, warners will surely fail.)

Appeal to what they feel for Mythal (I need you, Solas. Without you helping the wardens, Morrigan, I will die.)

In retrospect, all the signs were there. In the very conversation she ignores his boundaries, coerces him into giving what she wants and ignores his wisdom.

p.s.: It's unfortunate that we don't really have much information about Mythal and her side of the story when Elvhenan was forming. I wonder why she took on a body in the first place.

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"Bioware's writing has gotten worse"

Ok, so I'm going to rant post about something and make it everyone elses' problem.

So, I recently came across a video that compared a scene of a queer character interacting with an unsupportive character in Dragon Age: Inquisition and a similar situation Dragon Age: the Veilguard. The video and the comments seem to imply that one scene is markedly worse than the other in a way that is immediately apparent. I want to push back against this.

Aside from the transphobia/anti-nb shit that is suggested by the video's framing and rampant in the comments, saying one scene is worse than the other is a mischaracterisation and discounts a lot of queer experience.

The scene in Inquisition is very dramatic: the language is flowery and elaborate, the performances are intense, it is a very compelling and dramatic scene. The framing for the scene and visual tone communicate a great deal of intensity and anger from Dorian: there are heavy shadows and dim lighting from torches that flicker, creating a scene that visually has a darkness and instability to it. The blocking of the scene puts a great deal of distance between the player character, Dorian, and his father, representing the distance in their relationship. It is very much a well crafted scene.

Now, the scene in Veilguard is much different: it opens with a very casual tone and atmosphere, the lighting of the scene is very warm and saturated. It feels like we are at a dinner table having a friendly conversation. Then, when the bomb gets dropped, we start to get close ups of each of the characters, interrupted by wide shots of the whole table. The shot of the table reminds us of the physical separation between these two characters, an echo of the rift that exists between them. We then get various close ups of each of the characters which get progressively closer, mirroring the intensity of the scene and the emotions.

Ok, so now we have the "Dialogue," the actual matter under discussion and point of comparison for these two scenes.

As mentioned above, Inquisition's style in this scene is deliberately intense and dramatic. It feels almost Shakespearean. We are given exposition on why Dorian's homosexuality is frowned upon, we get a tug of war between these two characters and the pain they both feel is palpable in the performances: the way Dorian's father speaks with such pain in his voice and Dorian's ferocity and anguish illustrate how this conflict isn't what either of them want, how the values and cultural circumstances have burned this bridge between them.

Now lets look at Veilguard. Right off the bat someone might feel critical of the sort of awkward start to this conversation. I won't lie, it was quite funny to hear someone go "here are some vegetables...so I'm non-binary." It's clunky, it's awkward, it's a strange way to introduce the topic but if you call this "unrealistic" or "bad writing," frankly I don't think you've seen many people come out.

Coming out is often awkward, painfull, and full of conflicting feelings. There's so much hesitation and anxiety baked into the very concept that there isn't anyway to bring it up that isn't awkward. This is actually a pretty realistic way to depict it. Furthermore, the actual conversation is also what I would call pretty realistic for an outing: the child tries to put it in as simple of terms as they possible can, lay it out in a way they think anyone can understand only for the parent to simply reject the explanation. What follows is a brief exchange that rapidly increases in intensity that is brought to life by some well done voice work (though, personally I think the music was a bit over bearing and did a little too much heavy lifting; I would have preferred the scene silent).

You can feel their frustration that is only further compounded by the mother's past behaviour and general presence. Even in this short video clip you can tell right off the bat that this mother child relationship isn't the most healthy, so this is just more fuel to the fire for them. The exchange is brief, harsh, and loaded with baggage and past bad blood between these two. You don't need to even know who these characters are to feel that. This is a much more realistic example of a character coming out to an unsupportive parent. It is laden with tension, awkwardness, unresolved anger, the burden of past expectations. There is, bluntly, a lot going on in this scene. Even just from this short clip you can get so much from these characters and their relationship while at the same time conveying a pretty impactfull and, honestly, real feeling queer experience.

So, no, one scene is not "worse" than the other. One scene has a deliberately awkward moment to convey the difficult and uncomfortable nature of coming out while at the same time communicating a great deal of character and struggle.

The other scene is an intense and dramatic confrontation that is meant to be more instep with the dark and intense tone that this scene holds within the narrative.

Both are well crafted scenes with deliberate directorial, cinematographic, character, and music choices that successfully convey what these moments are supposed to represent.

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Not everything needs old woman Yuri in it

You're like a terrorist to me

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It’s wild to me to see transvestigator conspiracy theories online that could be so easily explained by natural human variation. That woman has a deep voice? Yeah, sometimes they do. A woman has broad shoulders?? Maybe she plays rugby or hits the gym a fuckton. There’s a “bulge” in her tight pants?? Maybe her vulva is just fat. All the “markers” of trans woman that transvestigators use to harass any woman aren’t even things unique to trans women.

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Tumblr is so nice. I can be boring and useless here in peace

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may the rest of this year be softer

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Morrigan in the outfit from the Veilguard artbook I fell in love with this design

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I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being a fan of Chappell Roan I just think some of them need to realize and accept that they are a fan of a mainstream popular artist making popular pop music and therefore straight people are going to play it at weddings and it’s going to be in commercials for DoorDash and stuff. And that’s literally okay. It’s actually good. It’s good and normal for gay people to be making popular music. Idk if it just hasn’t sunk in for people yet that she is very popular. Ok I am telling you now. The woman is very popular

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