#(unless i'm terribly misunderstanding something)

[arisenreborn]

painstakingly going through and fixing tags 😩 mostly removing the arisen/pawn identifiers because I'm too inclined to making role-swap stuff lmao

[aceof-stars]

Miles Edgeworth is both extremely perceptive about other people’s intentions and motivations, but also terrible at understanding how his own actions affect others. It’s quite an interesting nuance that I think is often overlooked.

When Edgeworth returns in 2-4, he is already aware of what Phoenix is lacking as an attorney before he even knows the full extent of Phoenix's crisis (Maya being kidnapped). In their first conversation, Edgeworth says: "In order to understand this case, you have to understand a certain "truth"". He knows that Phoenix's current motivation for being a defense attorney is flawed (cue his "we are not heroes" line). However, at the same time Edgeworth doesn’t fully understand how his actions of disappearing have affected both Phoenix and Franziska.

Another very obvious example of this is in AAI (I think?). In response to Kay asking: “Have you guys not decided if you are going out, or is it just one sided?” Edgeworth says: “‘Decided’…? Shouldn’t the parties involved naturally just know…?” Edgeworth thinks people in a relationship should instinctively perceive the feelings of the other person without communicating. He doesn’t consider the possibilities of misinterpretation or misunderstanding.

So in the context of Wrightworth, essentially what I'm saying is that unless something like fear is holding him back, Miles definitely knows about Phoenix's feelings. It's Phoenix who's off somewhere deluding himself.

[blazehedgehog]

Thoughts on the whole Mr. Beast situation?

None at all and even googling it doesn't really spell it out very well. I guess someone in his network was accused of grooming? Not even he himself. Just someone he employs. And people were upset it took him so long to say or do anything about it.

Listen. If there is one person on this planet I do not care about, it's MrBeast. He is incredibly rich, getting richer, and he exists in a world entirely separated from all my interests. He is way too much of a general purpose Youtuber for me to care about. He is a content factory brand to me and I am deeply suspicious of him on every level, because he feels like a fake plastic human putting out fake plastic videos.

In my entire life, I have only seen half of one MrBeast video, ever, and it was fairly recently: I was pet sitting for a cousin last week, her son watches MrBeast, and their Samsung Smart TV auto loaded to the 24/7 MrBeast channel where he was doing some kind of isolation chamber challenge.

I was surprised how earnest and personable Jimmy himself actually was, but his entourage controlling the isolation chamber were like... they reminded me of Biff Tannen's goons from Back to the Future or something.

That vibe of being like, some combination of Yes-men, nobodies, and D-list clowns. Most people probably don't even know Biff's cronies even have names (from left to right: Skinhead, 3D and Match). They are only here to crawl around in the star's shadow and laugh at all their jokes.

The dudes in that MrBeast video felt the same way. They felt like they were grown in a vat of Youtube Prank Channel parts.

So strike one: I do not care about MrBeast. Unless he gives me two million dollars. Then I'll watch every MrBeast video ever made until the day I die.

Two, I feel like pointing fingers and accusing someone of being a groomer is like, the most boy who cried wolf witch hunt of our era. I am rapidly reaching my tolerance level for finger pointing about intent because I feel like half the time I hear about it, it's nothing. Obviously it's different when it's DrDisrespect and multiple investigations have proven he was arranging a meetup with a minor and even the man himself has come right out and said "it's true but I never went through with it so technically by the strictest letter of the law I didn't do anything illegal!"

But I also feel like there are certain communities both on discord and on tumblr where accusations of grooming get thrown around a lot more casually by the younger crowd because it's an easy way to lash out at somebody you don't like.

From the perspective of a guy like MrBeast, I'm sure if he really put his ear to the ground he'd hear a hundred accusations of grooming going in all kinds of directions.

If he was a little slow launching an investigation? He's only human. His team is only human. And treating allegations like that seriously enough to do a real thorough investigation takes a lot of work. Again, if he jumped at every time somebody pointed a finger, he'd be wasting a lot of resources. I'm willing to give him slack here. It's terrible when it's real, but a lot of the time it probably isn't.

I know sometimes I say dumb things on this blog. I can think of at least two posts right now from the last year where it sometimes hits me that I said something really dumb. And that's not even counting all the stuff I'm sure some people just straight up misunderstand me about.

But this feels like busy-body stuff. The supposed groomer was already fired on the same day the investigation was started. They haven't even found anything for or against her yet. Beyond that, who cares.

[barblaz-arts]

OMG ITS SO COOL THAT ONE OF PUGSLEY’S KIDS IS A MANANANGGAL !! and a boy ??? mananaggal ?? (unless im completely misunderstanding that)

anyways as a filipino its just so cool to see stuff with my culture in it (those posts abt the wenclair fam going to jollibee made me so happy!!!)

btw, what made u decide to create those characters as pugsley’s kids?

Something that I'll give the show props for is subverting what would usually be represented genderwise for monsters. Gorgons are usually women, but they had a boy be one(the only thing I like about him--). And there isn't a lot of female werewolves out there in media. And I'm not talking about stories that are about werewolves. Cuz yknow. Duh of course there'd be female werewolves. But I'm talking about stories about monsters. If you have a show about different monsters or fantasy characters and there's a werewolf, they'd usually give you an angsty and/or wild dude as the main werewolf.

But Wednesday's(the show) main werewolf is a happy girly girl. The only other similar instance I can think of at the top of my head is Ruby from Once Upon A Time. That's probably why the twist in Ruby's episode was so shocking. You expect the dude to be the werewolf. Not the femme girl who dyes the tips of her hair and would probably cry if she ruins her manicure.

Anyways. Monsters that are always majorly represented by one gender is boooorrriiiiiing. Let's mix it up a little.

Sorry that got long.

So! About Pugsley's kids!

I'm not sure about the B&W series, but in the animated movies, Pugsley's a bit of a hopeless romantic. So growing up, I like to think he got around. The problem is he also has terrible luck with women, so none of them lasted, not because he's fickle -- he would fall in love deeply every single time -- but because he just has dog shit luck. He is Fester's nephew after all. So all three kids are Pugsley's from different baby mommas. I'll talk more about em later.

As for what made me choose em

Dante - I've previously mentioned that I headcanon Pugsley as a pyrokinetic because of his love for explosives. I think it'd be neat if he had a girlfriend who came from literal hell and had a baby demon with her

Jasper - some time back when the fandom was still super active, people making their nevermore sona was a trend on twitter. I actually wanted to join and have mine be a manananggal, but I couldn't because I was both busy and was never really a fan of drawing myself(not cuz of like self esteem issues. im pretty darn cute actually! i just prefer to draw other people). but i still wanted to draw a manananggal in Nevermore, and I figured just having it be an OC for Pugsley's child is the perfect opportunity

Briar - those faceless students are sooo damn cool. I love them a lot. I wanted more from them in the show. So I'm just making the content I craved for. Also a faceless little girl whose aunt is Wednesday, pokerface queen, and looks up to her for it? Too funny and cute of a thought to me.

[melancholic-pigeon]

During my class, we talked about the difference between like, Catholic guilt versus the kind of atonement that's associated with Yom Kippur. The phrasing that was used was "course correction", which my moral OCD really found helpful. It's not "you're a terrible person who must suffer in repentance", it's "Who do I want to be? Where did I stray in being that person over the last year? How can I correct my course so that I am closer to the person I want to be next year?"

I talked to my therapist about certain things that recently happened that I won't devote any more air time to specifics on unless I'm forced by someone else's actions. And I've been thinking about it and turning it over in my head, because it still has me pretty shaken!

But basically, I got a very clear, very vivid image of the kind of person who says "Kindness is so important, unless I'm the one being unkind, then it's okay". I found a pattern of unkindness and justifications afterwards for said unkindness. I realized the path I've been going down this past year leads to a destination I find revulsive.

I don't want to be mean. I don't want to let my anger eat through my load bearing walls. I don't want to be the kind of person who snaps in anger, who defends others snapping in anger, who spends her time justifying her outbursts of poor emotional regulation and who blames everyone but myself for my own big feelings.

I've been down this path before, and it's something I'm ashamed of. I don't like being full of rage, but it's way too easy for me to get swept up in someone else's excuses for why their own uncontrolled rage isn't destructive and totally won't ruin all their relationships or give them a reputation for being a combative hair-trigger who will scream at people over innocuous things or miscommunications and then scream at them more for tone policing when told screaming at people for misunderstandings is rude.

I don't want to be fueled by anger. I don't want to be bitter and mean and judgmental and suspicious. I don't want to turn into the kind of person who spends their day arguing on tumblr dot com about how actually I am special enough to be trusted with the death note because I am a Good Person who would only use it on evil people. I don't want to be the kind of person who lashes out every time I misunderstand someone and then punishes them for clearing up the misinterpretation because it made me look bad.

I don't want to be a bully. I don't want to enable bullies. I don't want to defend bullying. And I want to get better at actually listening to the voice in my head (maybe the voice of HaShem) telling me "Hey, you know better than this, you know this is wrong, why are you letting a charismatic bully sway your actions and pull you along to defend them?"

So, yeah. This year I'm working on improving my de-escalation skills and getting a much tighter rein on my anger. Rage is like fire: it's a great source of energy, but it will also destroy you completely and turn everything you love into ash if you don't keep. it. controlled.

I want to reaffirm that it's not okay to blow up at people because you're having a bad day. That if I've done this to you, I'm really, deeply fucking sorry, and I use that in the New England Intensifier way. I fucked up a number of times over this past year, I'm not okay with it, I don't WANT to be okay with it, and I'm just...sick of being angry. I'm sick of watching people hurt each other. I'm sick of being complicit. I'm sick of holding the idea that "being mean is not praxis" is a controversial viewpoint that should be kept away from activism rather than a preschool level ground rule for how not to actively make your community worse and more hostile.

I'm tired of all of it. I don't want to be in this place anymore. It's dangerous to all of us when we lean into the idea that our anger is paramount and angry responses are always justified.

I just....if your behavior towards other activists on your side is to treat them like you're the mustachioed villainous husband in a lifetime movie about an abused soccer mom and then criticize others for telling you that's shitty, that's a bad thing! But I've historically been way too easy to shame into accepting this premise, and it doesn't matter why I ended up there. What matters is that I did, in fact, enable this behavior from people, excuse this behavior from people, and defend proponents of this behavior. And I hate that I did it, but I did.

Frankly, it makes me ill to think about. But it makes me more ill to think about not even trying to do better.

This year, I'm trying to do better.

Fast easy if you're fasting, everyone ✡️

[celestialaviva]

I'm curious, what relationships headcanons do you have for the Alan Becker characters?

For example, what is the relationship between the Hollow Heads/Color Gang? Or do you have any ships?

Sorry if I'm annoying, I'm just really curious!

You're alright!

To be honest with you, I mostly consume AvA/M content than create my own headcanons ^^;;;

That is to say, I don't think too hard about mine? They just. Float around, and come up whenever I draw something and I just go, "Ah yes. That is them."

I don't ship anyone and mostly see the CG as best friends who live together like a family. Not totally siblings but just. Just found family? It's very hard to describe but here's some duos:

Orange and Green - I see them as creative rivals. Also kinda see them as the responsible ones of the group- even though I actually headcanon Orange to be younger than the four, he just has responsible one vibes lmao. They're said to be close since they're the first to make contact with each other, and I imagine Green was at first responsible (sort of) for Orange for a little while in the beginning until Orange became confident and comfortable enough around the group. I feel Orange interacts with Green the most in the group because of this.

Green and Blue - They hang around each other a lot, and that kinda makes me think that they always did even before meeting Orange. Minus Orange, they seem to be the ones with eyes for detail in the group, so they likely bond over that too sometimes. They look after each other often, checking in on each other. Green's impatience and Blue's pacifism clash sometimes, but they almost always seem to be on board with each other's ideas.

Green and Yellow - They like to one up each other especially in competitions. I feel they annoy each other the most and are spiteful of each other. But, I can see them just having each other's backs anyhow. Chill when chill, unless either one of them disturbs the peace, yknow for fun. They are both mischievous for sure.

Yellow and Blue - I love this duo in canon! Even in the very early episodes, I've always loved that they seem close. Blue often being the emotional one and Yellow often being the one trying to comfort them. I don't know man, I see them as soft towards each other? But not afraid to mess with each other either.

Red and Yellow - Prankster duo. They enable each other's curiosity and terrible ideas. Though, I do think Yellow wouldn't always be on board. It's funny to me Yellow is more cautious while Red just goes straight into situations so Yellow unfortunately has to deal with that.

Red and Blue - I don't see them often together but I always find them so wholesome. They compete over little things, push each other playfully, and awe over cute animals. They're just. They wholesome

CG and Purple - I love the idea of Red and Green being the friendliest towards Purple. I mean, that's true in canon too, with Green especially. Blue and Purple would bond over plants. Yellow and Purple would bond over code, and be competitive with each other as well. With Orange, Im not sure? They're okay with each other I guess?

CG and Mango - Neutral, Im guessing. They're forgiving of a grieving old man/lh but would certainly not forget about the entirety of s3. Now whether or not Mango and Purple live together, I honestly do not know. I do like to think Purple is welcome to stay in Mango's home but they just go elsewhere often, whether to stay in minecraft or do some temporary job.

For the Hollowheads:

Chosen and Dark - They were best friends, and then fell out due to a misunderstanding. I don't really want to believe Dark is truly dead, but Chosen would unfortunately believe that. Angst™. Tbh I actually don't have much for them unless canon tells me more, so this is all I have.

Chosen and Orange - Siblings. I've always liked the idea Orange looks up to Chosen, and I guess Chosen would kinda be uncomfortable with that. And then AvA 6 ep 1 happened, so now Orange knows Chosen is a dork. A very caring older sibling dork. Who kidnapped and endangered him- but still.

I unfortunately have nothing for Victim. (Canon and Fanon)

This is messy, and I apologize profusely

[yuseirra]

woke up really early in the morning and I'm drawing...I get really sentimental at dawn, allow me to just drabble away...

In my opinion, the character Kamiki is one of two extremes:

Either he is extraordinarily evil, or he is extraordinarily kind...

Looking at the story, Ai was protecting that person by risking everything—her own happiness (she wanted to be with this person forever), even putting her career in danger. She took everything upon herself, saying she couldn't give up because those children were hers with that person, and she decided to raise them.

In that case, it’s the latter. No, it really has to be the latter because I’m not bad at psychological analysis, you know? At least up to the point when they broke up, that really was his personality. I thought, "Huh? What is this?" and after that, I really watched closely, and I even managed to predict what he's actually done. I DID THAT.

I’ve never been a mother, but from a mother’s perspective, there’s this natural instinct to protect and care for one’s children, right? Especially if there’s affection for them. I'm not all about maternal love is absolute, or something like that, what I'm coming from is that, if you have children, unless you're a really terrible parent, you want good things for them and YOU are the one that shields them from harm, and watch over them and all... You get these sorts of feeling when you look at little kids who aren't your own as well, if they ARE your own, I feel like that protective, loving affection would only increase.

But Ai asked her CHILDREN a favor to help their dad. This means... her feelings for her boyfriend were as powerful compared to her feelings as a mother, you know? The fact that she, as a mother, is counting on her children to aid him... it means it was a very strong desire, something she deeply wished for. It even...I don't think it's the perfect word but overwrites? makes her set aside her feelings as a mother if it means she can help the guy. She loves him so much. THAT MUCH. He's really someone she loves and wants to tend to. She couldn't give up on him... It also means that she trusts him that much as well because why make her own kids get close to someone who can be dangerous?

Given this, I think it’s not just highly likely, but practically certain that Ai’s boyfriend was an exceptionally good person.

For someone to evoke such deep feelings in Ai, they can’t be ordinary. Ai had a strong distrust of people, you know. She was very wary.

Kamiki... there’s something about him... When he talks, it feels like he’s accommodating others to an excessive degree, suppressing his own emotions and enduring while being considerate of others. That’s what I sensed.

Just like Ai had her own pent-up frustrations but still smiled, this character seems to be doing the same thing. He has no inner monologue when he appears in the present, so it’s hard to fully grasp his thoughts, but he must be in pain. If you look at the flashbacks, it’s clear he used to be, but like Ai, he doesn’t show it on the surface, which leads to misunderstandings.

After hearing his voice, I’m even more convinced;

This person seems like an exceptionally good person. Could he really be capable of doing something bad? I get the feeling he’s exactly the kind of person Ai would choose... Ai truly risked everything for him. She gave all her heart to this one person and I feel THAT'S why she was happy about having their children as well.

I believe this character would absolutely do the same for Ai and their children. I’m pretty sure I’m right. I keep looking at him, and the way he acts is very sweet. He doesn't have to be that way, but that behavior is consistent... this really gets to me, it's so contradictory to the accusations he's been faced so I end up talking about a lot because I keep seeing things. Is this guy REALLY evil? I guess it'll be sorted out soon but I'd even go as far as to say that he could have really done.. nothing so wrong... anyhow Ai really loves him. That's really endearing... and if he's what I think he is, he really is someone who can deserve that.. everything clicks to me if he is!!!! I won't have a clue on what's up with all this if he isn't!!

It's a bit late to say this, but my favorite type is "someone whose heart is so generous that they sometimes suffer losses, but they accept it with a broad understanding."

It’s not about a specific character; that’s just the kind of person I consider my ideal type...

I sometimes wonder, "Am I reading the character this way because I want them to be like that?" But honestly, I didn’t really have any thoughts like that until I read chapters 152-154.

I can recognize characters like this when I see them. I’m serious... because I always have them as my favs. (I'm still being really cautious regarding this guy but I see signs of him being this way)

I understand why Ai liked this character so much if that's the case then. It’s because such a person is incredibly rare and a gift to the world...You want to protect these types of people, preserve them, and help them out. I feel like that's what she wanted to do for him.

At this point, I want to think "Whatever happens, happens." I really need to stop thinking so much about this subject, it's a comic and it's all about having fun, but..

That character, in my opinion, is one of two things:

Either they’re a psychopath who's been acting all along, or they’re a total pushover, someone with an unusually high threshold for anger, drowning in self-doubt, who keeps enduring without being able to express their rage.

Both are extreme to the point of being inhuman, but I think it’s the latter. I really believe it’s the latter...

and it's stressful seeing that kind of person being misunderstood if he is you know!! I think this is it though!! Because Ai wants to protect him with all her might and I get that if he's really like this!!

[starryknightwrites]

Does anyone else think the Miraculous writers let a few loud minorities impact their writing to the point of stunting it?

*Leak Spoilers Ahead*

I think there's a reason why Season 1 and 2 are more beloved than the rest. The showrunners let their audience get into their heads and they took all the wrong advice- in the last two seasons especially. Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but it's difficult to ignore at this point.

A part of the fandom thinks Marinette is a creepy stalker? Let’s explain that away with an unnecessary but sympathetic backstory we never alluded to before, stretch it out for several episodes and make what used to be comedic teen girl hijinks super traumatic so no one can ever interpret it in bad faith again.

 A part of the fandom thinks Chat Noir is an entitled sexual predator who is a brat to Ladybug? Let’s cut his screen time and make sure he never disagrees with her again (unless he’s under a spell we can blame it on) so that he’s the perfect love interest and no one can ever interpret his normal human reactions in bad faith evermore.

A part of the fandom thinks Adrien is so passive he needs to replaced? Let’s have him apologize for his compassion first method and maybe throw a chair or something to prove himself. In the name of love.

A part of the fandom is harassing us about redeeming Chloe? Let’s make it painfully clear how evil she is in a glorified salt fic so that no one can ever interpret her in good faith again.

When people misunderstand your intentions, you don't scramble to "fix it" and try and make things black and white for easier digestion. You stick to your "problematic" guns, dammit. In trying to be perfect and play to everyone, you appease exactly no one.

I think this is partly an unfortunate side effect of the social media era of television. Showrunners never used to interact this much with fandom. Public forums like Twitter are a double edged sword because nowadays they’re a necessity for marketing, but everyone has access to you on there. Every Tom, Dick and Jane with an opinion and no boundaries can rage at you to their heart’s content at all times of day. And it’s easy for us to say “Well, why didn’t they just walk away/delete Twitter?” but even Tumblr users with 80 followers will lose themselves a bit on a bad anon day. I can only imagine dealing with that hundreds and hundreds of times over while also having the pressure of writing the trajectory of a worldwide acclaimed television show on your shoulders that EVERYONE has an opinion about that they are more than happy to rant at you. I think more of us might crack than we expect. And TA cracked.

People with a following have spoken time and time again about how they were unexpectedly affected severely by public ridicule and toxic parasocial relationships on social media. It’s terrible for anyone’s mental health and I think the Miraculous show runners are no exception. The pressure and the push and pull got to them and I think we’re seeing the results of that here. It’s good that TA is stepping away from the show- at least in part from what I gather- after Season 6 because I don’t think it’s healthy for Miraculous or him if he stays onboard. He’s seeing the show now through a filter of all its criticism, of a hundred random takes, and it just comes across incredibly stunted, unnatural and resentful in his writing. Like walking on eggshells and being bitter about it the entire time.

I understand they want to take input from their audience and feel pressure to write the show "correctly", but sometimes fandom ideas- especially the saltier ones- are worse. Sometimes you should just ignore criticism, no matter how loud and long it’s screamed at you, do your thing and hope for the best. At least you'll reserve your energy and passion that way and someone's going to bitch regardless. Sometimes you should write that salt fic just to get your frustrations out and then delete it.

[steadfastmockingbird]

The hardest thing about living with dyspraxia and the associated poor muscle tone is that most people don't realize I have it unless I tell them, and most of them don't seem to believe me. A good third of the people I mention it to have never even heard of it, as a condition, or say something like 'haha, you just want to excuse being clumsy'.

This leads to conversations like 'no, really, I am doing this as fast as I am physically able to without making a colossal mess' and being told that I'm going slowly on purpose because clearly I want to cause trouble for myself or other people.

It's ironic that nothing has actually changed since I was a kid and nobody was willing to believe that there was anything wrong then either. I got punished so many times for dropping things because someone would pass me something like a glass of water, not wait to see if I had a good grip, and just let go and then everything would hit the floor. To the point that my parents declared that I must be doing it because I liked the attention that came with being punished, and sternly told me that they were going to stop punishing me for dropping things because I was clearly getting some kind of perverse joy from punishment. Like, no dipshits I just have shitty muscle tone and ridiculously poor fine motor control. I don't want to break my favorite cup or drop my dinner all over the floor or crack my phone, but if you don't hand me things properly and wait a second longer for me to take them, I can't help it.

I swear though, people think everything kids do is on purpose. After the age of five or six you're not allowed to do anything by accident, misunderstandings aren't a thing, you're just a malevolent little demon-creature intent on ruining their lives. My parents, teachers, and extended family were all in agreement on this. I was a Bad Child for falling over and injuring myself all the time (on purpose, for attention) dropping things all the time (for the sheer joy of being screamed at and locked in my room) and having terrible handwriting (because fuck those teachers specifically, am I right?).

And that's still the case now. I take second longer stepping off the train because I have to make sure my balance is holding? Clearly I just want all those commuters to be late to work, because I'm malicious and want them to suffer. I deserve to get shoved out the way and hit the platform. Hands shaking when I go to the bank? Can't possibly be a medical condition, must be because I'm hiding something, what am I up to. Call security. Make adjustments to make my life easier? How dare you use those resources, there are people that actually NEED those!

When I learned at 23 that I have dyspraxia, it started with a personal trainer at my gym who noticed that my balance and coordination are exceptionally poor and said I reminded her of her little brother, who'd been diagnosed as a teenager. I took it to disability services at my university, who eventually put me through testing and diagnosis and confirmed that yep, I'm a wobbly one, and interrogated me about why I'd 'left it so long' to get this investigated, because y'know, ten year old me just didn't want help or support so didn't seek it out on purpose. Didn't get any actual advice or support though. My parents still don't accept that I have anything at all going on. There's nothing wrong with being clumsy, they say. You don't need to label everything. Why are you so obsessed with having a medical condition. You just want attention.

It's frustrating. I'm really just venting here. I hate having this. I hate seeing five year olds with better manual dexterity than me. I hate that I have to explain myself constantly. I hate that I can't drive because my reaction speeds and coordination are so bad. I hate that people don't extend me any fucking grace when I'm literally pushing myself to the limits just to keep up with their normal.

[prettypastelpetals]

RANT (TRIGGER WARNING)

There's been so many blogs in a row on my feed writing rapish and just plain horrifyingly sad shit. Whatever happened to writing regular angst or smut or literally anything else?? Why are we writing this character raping, spewing mysogynistic shit and whatever other horrifying things??? Just because the character is big and scary you want to write about the OC or reader being defiled for a fic?? I don't want these kinds of fics across my feed, but the writers doing it i've liked past fics and now I don't know what to do, because sadly, most of the fandoms writers have written some form of what is called Dub non-con or non-con...... Which is just rape guys. T^T Plz stop this trend, I hate it. As a person who went through an abusive relationship and SA, i hate getting reminded of it through the media I chose to get away from it in. It's also so popularized in romance/smut books where the male lead is supposedly Morally gray but they always make him abusive in some way and the MFC likes it....... I'm literally at my end here guys.

Being Morally Gray doesn't mean the ML has to be terrible to the FL. My Brother in Christ, you can make him a villain all you want i'll still find him attractive even covered in another persons blood. But forcing the plot line to move on and create more misunderstandings because you want to write smut is stupid. Literally wrtiting the FL going "I just want to talk to him" and that ALWAYS leads to sex is irritating. I want the main characters to have more thoughts than just how hot and fuckable the other is. It's getting to be a problem here. Like I like smut and angst, but you have to actually plan it out.

You can make your men villains without making them rapists..... Just FYI. I don't know what is going through other womens heads that fantasize this stuff, of a man forcing himself on you that you think of because he's hot....... let me tell you, he could be the love of your life and it's STILL a TRAUMATISING experience. And for the people out there writing it and reading it because "It heals them or helps them", YOU NEED HELP.

This is not normal, unless you are writing it as part of the story and it's supposed to be there for development or storyline purposes. It is never ok to write the MALE LEAD as the rapist. A scenario for this would be the Main characters past boyfriend or a random man, maybe a family member or friend.

NOT THE MALE LEAD.

I really hate having to tell people this, but it seems the fanfiction world has devolved into everyone just writing smut and nothing else.... I want storylines! I WANT PASSION, DRAMA, EVERYTHING.

Also for those writing books and shit, make the groveling better. Ya'll say "He'll grovel a lot" and all he does is give puppy eyes and tells her he loves her and she gets with him. I WANT TO SEE HIM SUFFER THE SAY WAY SHE DID. I WANT TO TEAR HIM APART WITH FEELINGS THE WAY SHE AND I WERE. You HAVE to make the groveling worth it, because i invested so much time into this book and it wasn't worth it half the time. I want the man on his KNEES for making me cry for the shit he did. I want GOOD reasoning and character development. It shouldn't be something that happens after 15 chapters of nothing but pain and then they get together and it ends. Thats boring and leaves the readers hanging becuase we never really got the climax.

I think you should put it like this.....

say its a 25 chapter book. the first 10 chapters are pain, the next 10 are the groveling/fixing shit and the last 5 are them getting together with the epilogue. this can be adjusted, but keep it equal. Sometimes make the groveling longer for the type of angst happening.

If it's bad enough that the main character is considering death/Suicidal than the groveling NEEDS TO BE DEVESTATING TO THE MALE LEAD. He NEEDS to have huge moments of despair and realization and they need to work together after that.

I feel like I should make another rant on Female leads needing to be more than the "I'm not like other girls"/"Strong female lead" archtype that is a bitch to everyone for no reason other than being edgy. Cause you know what I like more? A female lead who is KIND and feminine without being hypersexualized. Whose sweetness hides her dark past. Because that storyline will always pack a harder punch that the jaded bad girl who lashes out like a wounded animal.

For reference..... match-ups for couples.....

Jaded Bad girl X Jaded Bad boy is okay....... you gotta be really good at writing it....

Sweet girl with Jaded past X Jaded Bad boy is fantastic, give it a little more like the boy bullying the girl without knowing her past and shit goes on.

Sweet girl X Bad Boy is still top teir.

Bad girl X Sweet Boy isn't one of my favorites, but plenty of people like it. I personally don't like golden retreiver type boys, but that's because I have a softer personality.

again, opposites can sometimes make a story better than pairing two of the same types together. Just because it's Mafia doesn't mean the female lead is going to constantly be fearful and screaming just because she's girly.

And FYI, being kind and soft and sweet can be just as much a strong female lead. And I think she's often the better female lead. Stop trying to make every girl Katniss Everdeen or Tris Prior....

Theres nothing wrong with kicking ass in a dress or skirt and heels.

[buttermander]

D&D Coroika Au : Blue Team and Rider

So here they are , the main event of chaotic blue team , plus the paladin they drag along.

Goggles - Kobold Rogue ( Arcane Trickster Subclass )

The most chaotic member of Blue team by far, Goggles was initially reluctantly exiled from his pack of kobold due to his often disruptive antics going on for far too long. He has a surprising sense of humor for a kobold , often using his talents as a rogue to sneak up on others and mess around with them, though he can just as easily use the dagger he carries around. His party has taken on the role of his new " pack " and he makes sure to remind them of this, with Bobble being the one he is closest with. His goggles actually have a practical purpose ever since his exile given how sensitive kobold eyes are to the sun.

Bobble - Kenku Bard ( College of Valour )

Bobble is the living opposite of the typical perception of kenku, having no ill will towards anybody unless they do something truly terrible to those she cares about. This makes her different then most kenku since they typically only make commitments to preserving their own lives. She often breaks into song with the drums she carries on hand and her ability to mimic the voices of others, with Goggles joining in to create quite the cacophony. Her presence adds some noise to this party that one will not forget for a long, long time.

Headphones - Half-Elf Ranger ( Gloomstalker Subclass )

Headphones is a progidy with a bow and arrow, and a childhood friend of specs. She takes on a more protective role of the party, ready to let an arrow fly right at any potential ambush should the time come. Headphones is often annoyed by the antics of Goggles but things get quickly resolved with the unusual kobold, he's even taught her how to use smaller close ranged armaments in case she was ever cornered in a close range brawl. Given how half elves live in two worlds given their heritage, Headphones finds comfort in her found second family of eccentric folks.

Specs - Human Cleric of Mystra

As a cleric of Mystra, Specs often finds himself seeking out new knowledge of magic which leads him on his many travels with his childhood friend Headphones. These travels would eventually lead him to end up adding Bobble and Goggles to their ranks, forming what is practically a second family. Specs often carries around multiple scrolls so he can study and utilize various spells, along with various remedies in case his magic is ever depleted. He's often the planner of the party when it comes to making decisions, though these plans are usually disrupted by Goggles leading to plenty of improvisation.

Rider - Human Paladin of Bahamut

Formerly a lone wandering paladin only accompanied by his trusty Warhammer, a kobold related misunderstanding followed by an impromptu team up led to Rider being dragged along the travels by this merry band of adventurers. Given his worship of Bahamut he is rather knowledgeable of all manners of draconic creatures , though this still couldn't have prepared him for anything like Goggles. While he was rather cold with the party at first, a mutual respect was slowly formed and Rider slipped into a role as the protector of the group with his shield and hammer in hand. He may not admit it but after a while of traveling Goggles has said he's seen the paladin crack a few smiles here and there.

So here's the main party, let me know what characters you all may wanna see next in the au. If you want to make some fanart of my au then I'm cool with it , I haven't even got down definitive designs for most of the cast.

[pttucker]

SCREW YOU SECRETIVE PLOTTER! GIVE BACK OUR DOKJA! 😡

Some small, wishful part of me is hoping that it's a big ruse or a big misunderstanding or something. I'm really trying to recall if he ever outright said that Dokja had to die or if Joonghyuk just assumed that was the end goal of egging him on. Because he specifically took him saying that he needed him for something when he could have killed him right then and there.

Granted, that something may not be good, but it'd be a little strange for him to want Dokja dead if he had a scheme in mind that required him alive. Unless something that's happened since their big fight has changed his plans?

Oh man though, Secretive Plotter calling Joonghyuk out for going against his ideals, and Joonghyuk himself knowing that he's being a hypocrite and not following his own vow to kill all Constellations. He gets so upset when Secretive Plotter points out that if he succeeds in his goal of destroying the Star Stream, Dokja will die.

It's actually kind of ironic because Dokja himself has had the goal of destroying all of these terrible Constellations and likely would have joined Joonghyuk in destroying the Star Stream, even if it meant that he would die in the end (because it's Dokja), except he has also realized that maybe various Constellations aren't actually bad (and atm he finally wants to live). Like, he's super hard on himself and blames himself for being no different from all the Constellations he hates, but that's not how he sees others (now) and that's not how Joonghyuk sees him.

Even if Secretive Plotter actually made a really interesting point that I'd never thought of before...and don't necessarily agree with, but a point nonetheless. No wonder Joonghyuk was so angry at Dokja when he found out about TWSA if he construes him reading the novel as being no different from being one of those despised Constellations, just watching on for their own enjoyment. Or in Dokja's case, for his own self-preservation, which Secretive Plotter equates to Constellations consuming another's life to extend their own.

And they even mentioned the comments! Which is something I thought only Dokja would ever mention, especially in regards to him potentially making things worse and just meddling in the world in general...sort of like how a Constellation does by creating scenarios and bounties and sponsoring Incarnations and so on...

Of course, I don't think this really translates 1:1 because there's a huge difference between watching a real person suffer for your enjoyment and doing nothing and watching a character that you would never think is a real person suffer, not to mention the fact that you don't actually have any way of helping them. Dokja could try with his comments but ultimately what happens in TWSA wasn't his decision and, again, none of it was real from his perspective so why would he even try?

And when it suddenly was real he started doing everything in his power to make sure his companions, both "real" and "not", got to see their happy endings.

So yeah, I love that Joonghyuk may have been upset before but now that he's cooled down he absolutely sees that Dokja is not one of the Constellations that he swore to bring down with the Star Stream, and honestly I wonder if even Secretive Plotter sees him as that, or if it was just him trying to goad Joonghyuk into giving up on him again.

Sorry Secretive Plotter, Joonghyuk may not be able to verbalize his feelings for Dokja, even to himself, but he at least knows he's never abandoning him again.

All that said... I guess now we start the epic rescue mission?

Oh, and now Joonghyuk gets to explain to everyone exactly what (and who) happened to their precious Kim Dokja. That'll be fun.

[danpuff-ao3]

🥝 and 🍐 for the ask meme! 😃

Hiya Lissia!! Thanks for the asks!

🥝 What’s your favorite trope/AO3 tag to write?

Oooh! So many! Enemies to lovers is a big one, though I don't always tag it...the ships I ship often fall that way, aha! Getting together, angst, unhealthy relationships, age gaps...all the fun stuff! Ooh and there's the spice, too...first times are a special love. And parseltongue kink...my oh my.

Though I guess stripping away all of the more general type stuff, I really love writing infidelity, or other betrayals. I like it best when my OTP is cheating with each other, but some days I'm in a particularly brutal mood and search for them cheating on each other.

In some ways, that I hate to admit, part of it is just...a testament to the strength of my OTP, the irresistibility of their connection. My great love of all things angsty and wrong.

A lot of it, though, is just working through how deeply impacted I've been by infidelity. My father has never been faithful in his life. And in a truly twisted decade long period he dragged his entire family into a very toxic relationship. My dad and his partner cheated with each other, and then on each other. And even once they broke up and he married his now-wife, I don't think it truly ended until...well, let's just say it had no choice but to end.

I was once engaged, and cheated on. I've seen how cheating has impacted so many people in my life. And it's so...selfish, and terrible, and I don't condone it in the least.

...unless it's fictional and getting my boys together, dang it.

🍐 Is there anything in canon that you absolutely hate and love to fix in fics? A wrong choice made, a fuck-up in characterization, a misunderstanding never cleared up, a conversation never shown onscreen, etc…

SEVERUS SNAPE DID NOT DIE I REFUSE, I 100% REFUSE, IT DIDN'T HAPPEN, FIGHT ME ON IT.

Also he's gay af and anyone who thinks he had romantic feelings for Lily is just deeply confused. People can have very intense friendships, tyvm.

Those are the big ones. Stop doing my man dirty like that.

ALSO: Harry Potter is not an Auror, wtf bullshittery is that?? Jk if you like it, cool, that's gravy. I just can't wrap my head around it. Hasn't he fought enough evil for one lifetime? Can't he go teach at Hogwarts or play Quidditch or own an antique shop or something?? Let the man rest, dang it!

Fruit Asks!

Answered: 🍒; 🥭; 🥝, 🍐

[gloomiedyke]

Right???? I totally agree putting your kids first whenever you can, and I've always REALLY admired devoted parents, but... Long distance parenting is totally a thing? Even if for some reason Michelle (or Henry) decide they don't want to live in London (which, it seems ridiculous to set up that possible plotline just to do nothing with it), there are a lot of parents who have to be away more often then not due to their jobs, and that's been true since long before we had phones and facetime and plane rides to make it easier. Especially with divorced parents, or parents with busy/travel-heavy jobs.

I feel like the message of that final ending was "unless you give up your career, social group, and happiness in order to be around your kid in person 24/7, you're a Bad Parent who is Selfish", which is just a shitty thing to insinuate, especially since I'm sure a lot of long-distance and travel-heavy parents probably really identified with Ted.

I don't think that's what they were aiming for, obviously -- I think they were trying to highlight Ted's idea of selflessness (which is heavily influenced by the trauma of his father leaving permanently via committing suicide), but... that's not really what came across. And even THAT doesn't seem super healthy to me, idk.

I came into this show looking for healing and found family, not a lonely Mary Poppins ending, y'know? I mean I get it if he would genuinely rather be around Henry more, but if Michelle had primary custody anyway, will it really be that much more? Why can't Henry spend summers and spring breaks in London? Why don't they ask him where HE'D rather live, considering he's 11 or 12 by the end of show, which is definitely old enough to have an opinion?

I don't know, for some reason this just feels less like Ted finally chasing his own happiness and more like Ted making a trauma and guilt/anxiety-induced decision. Which feels like a terrible place to end a story that is primarily about growth, forgiveness, and bettering yourself.

But maybe I'm misunderstanding something the writers were trying to say, who knows

Well I loved everything except for the ending-ending, which I (kinda) prepared myself for. Like, I have Thoughts™ about how unhappy Ted looks in that final shot :)))

Also all the Beard/Jane stuff??? Why was this toxic, abusive relationship played as a straight love story complete with an emotional wedding that Ted wasn't even there for? Because, you know, he's off in Kansas with only his son for company, given that the only other family we know about are his rocky relationship mother, his ex-wife, and her doesn't-care-about-football boyfriend. I legit had hope for a hot second as he rudely ignored the game, thinking Michelle would wise-up, leave him, and move to London so Henry could be near Ted... but no. We have that whole scenario laid out beautifully by Rebecca, people literally beg Ted to stay, the whole Richmond family comes together in perfect harmony... and he's left isolated coaching a kid's team without even his BFF anymore.

I don't want to delve into a whole analysis at 1:30 am and I definitely don't want to dismiss the whole episode based on our last few minutes because damn, there was a LOT I really, really liked, but this is precisely what I was afraid was going to happen. Your ending matters. The beat you leave the audience on matters and sorry, but leaving Ted alone -- a sensitive man with an anxiety disorder who has spent three years building a found family for himself -- because Real Fathers are there to ruffle their kid's hair 24/7 is just a shitty take imo. Thanks but no thanks, Ted got off that plane with Beard.

[eoharu]

this will be my overall thought about this drama theme, and let me start it with changhee. it surprise me that changhee suddenly got into debt, he even paid it with all money he saved for 10 years working his ass off, more mind blowing that it was a debt that coming not from his fault nor ignorance but from his utmost sincerity. he even insist a noble act not to tell anyone the real reason, even to his closest friends.

but being the changhee, just like his friends said, he cannot keep it inside him. so he tell the water porter boy about Return to Paradise film, which ironically similar to what happen between him, hyeona and the dying hyung (I'm sorry i forget his name). he tell about his story subtly to him.

This synopsis is very similar to what happen between the three, second paragraph is definitely changhee sending away the hyung gently until he find his peaceful final moment, but reading the line "he also gives sheriff unknown period of jail time" makes my heart ache. I mean, the hyung got to die peacefully thanks to changhee, but changhee whose still alive has to endure many cosnquences for it. it clearly weighed him down, not only about the money, but also his relationship with hyeona. we've literally seen him breakdown. and honestly he doesnt deserve to suffer, after all selfless effort he did for others...

after the ending, comparing all events that happen to all characters, the "unknown period of jail time" said above feel like life itself. and as long as we live, we'll never fully liberated. we'll feel like as if we jailed; caged not knowing when we'll ever be at utmost peace and happiness. because it is life, just like the tide, push and pull, seconds ago i was happy and now i feel like shit. and it's constantly goes like that as long as we live. but this mbl really told me that amongst this crashing waves, we're not a helpless soul being tossed here and there. we still can find a little space where we fight back and can take control, where we can make choices to make us feel liberated; even only for a moment.

gu never feel liberated because he always feel whenever he has good day something bad always follows, he never had a perfect day. i think that's most of us perceive life, unless we feel complete happiness we think our life is a shit. but what a relieving revelation from mijeong, not a day, let alone a lifetime, life should be filled with happiness. it only need five minutes a day. it's okay even if you're happy for ten seconds. collect it diligently and it'll make life bearable. I think that's such a powerful mindset to carry on this exhausting life.

and i think that's somehow gu is liberated. such a silly me to think the choice will be either he's dead or he totally leave his dark life and live happily with mijeong, even to the point he stop being alcoholic. it should've been obvious that they won't choose such extreme choice, it's a slice-of-life and throughout the episodes there are always two side of coins and they coexist.

something sickening always happen to gu, he clearly cannot stop doing his job let alone the worst drinking habit, but then he make effort to notice and appreciate more about his surrounding, and especially since there's mijeong there embracing him as he is. he change himself step by step, every little step he takes make difference (putting down his alcohol is already a huge milestone). mijeong still have so many hatred but now she's also feel so loved since there's gu worshipping her; her saving her ex face from misunderstanding when she initially want him always to be perceived as terrible person is also an achievement itself.

gijeong and taehun face so many obstacles unresolved, but they still continue to love and understand each other. for me, the way they love even though their surroundings make it difficult, it's also their way of being liberated. changhee both experience owning a car and a store, but in return he also lose something big. yet, for his lose, his sincerity and good nature open a new path, to even better place he himself doesnt even know yet. I love how universe lead the changhee that has no real goal nor ambition to best places he's at first unaware. as if that's a karma for his good deeds and very fitting for his personality. he has no goal, so finally he's given one. one that make his fate always send people away will become a blessing, become his passion. that's somehow a littleㅡif it's not hugeㅡliberation for changhee who never have any desire nor passion within him.

that scene when taehun feel sorry about little kid because they'll probably face the harsness of the world, that's totally, exactly, what i always feel. i feel worried more than excited to see my little nieces & nephews grow up. but since life needs to goes on, for those who already live, what a living person should do?

this drama answer it so well. we're all served in these 16 eps how mundane life can be, it's exhausting, it's make you sick, even every little thing could annoy you. life often not goes in the way we want. in life sometimes we have really a limited choice. sometimes what we desire we don't get, sometimes we don't have any desire at all.

but it's really not always bad, and you, yourself, can make it better. you have choice and control to feel better by being grateful to every little thing happen around you, no matter how mundane it may seems. chatting with your friends, graced by nature, eat together after work, a coin that didn't fall the drain, someone calling your name... anything that make you smile, happy, or at least less miserable. if you're looking hard for it, you'll find it. gu didn't find his happiness all day long, and when he saw snow he feel better and that was enough for him. I think we're all, who's struggling to find happiness between our mundane life, could apply what he did too.

to be honest, at first i was taken aback by the ending, but after some reflection it's really such a nice, enough, and most importantly peaceful ending. like, i know life would be still exhausting as ever. but I'm kinda excited to collect my five minutes of happiness now. it feels like this drama, like how changhee hold the dying's hand, tell me as a matter of fact, that no matter how worst the life i get, i can be happy. I can go through this. i just have to move forward, and even it doesnt need big steps. i am able to be happy, make myself happy, and at last be at peace, even if it's only for a moment.

and then realization hit meㅡah... so that's what this drama try all along; to liberate me, liberate us.

[darkfinch]

y'know I didn't even realise at first that - unless I'm misunderstanding something - rabbit must've come out of retirement to teach quinn? and that's just, fuck, that's a lot. he could absolutely keep hiding from the world OR he could retraumatise himself and risk exactly the same thing that utterly broke him before in order to teach this kid and try to keep him safe*. and that is… A Lot.

* 'try' is the key word there. also pausing to acknowledge that it fucked quinn up a lot (and hurt a lot of others in the process) & was a terrible decision by any reasonable metric, yes.

like, we're still talking intent not impact here, though I do get the feeling that rabbit might be a more effective AND kinder teacher than most ("we're doing it together"). this realisation still kinda took my breath away.

I'm… glad they got each other out of it.

:333 I am. SO glad that you have noticed this, yeah. yeah. he's trained his entire life to be this thing and do this thing, he takes the first possible opportunity to Really be this thing, he does it successfully for a decade of his life, and then overnight is like. i can never fucking do this again. He can never take a job again he can never mentor a kid again because he can never live through this again, right

(it's a Difficult Enough Winter that babusia, who's usually a vocal proponent of Getting Back On The Horse, doesn't push.)

and maybe she sends the kids up to visit with him for a weekend, for a week, for some of the summer, because she gets nervous about him being all alone up there—but she never once asks him if he'll ever work again, or wonders aloud if he's letting himself get rusty, or asks if he'd be willing to mentor any of them. she Knows Better than to ask.

so rabbit's Weird Uncle Rabbit. he's silent he's standoffish he's intimidating. he's distant, he's nobody's favourite anything, everyone’s a little bit scared of him—

—and then quinn shows up on the porch with a shit attitude, a gleeful determination to be the best at everything he learns, and an instant fascination with rabbit, and rabbit's like……….hm.

and like he's still firm on No Mentoring, right, but he watches quinn nearly break his own thumb throwing a punch, and offers to teach the kids a thing or two. You Know, For Fun. and Safety.

quinn wants to show off with his slingshot (he can hit the really far can, now, look), so rabbit lets himself be dragged along by the sleeve to watch. gives him a couple pointers. 

Rabbit comes by to pick up mail from babusia’s house, and she’s like, “the boy never stops asking about Uncle Rabbit, when can we go to Uncle Rabbit’s house again, did you know he can talk to birds” and Rabbit starts popping by on weekends, maybe, every once in a while. 

And all at once Quinn’s hurtling towards fourteen and Rabbit’s feeling a terrible all-encompassing Dread for Months and he’s thinking, at least it’s someone I trust who’ll be doing it, she’s good, she’ll do a good job with him—and then Quinn’s mom says she’s not going to mentor him.

(quinn, whose mother never bothered to know him in the first place, who was dropped off with his clothes in a garbage bag, who half-expected to be shipped off somewhere else during his first few months at babusia's house)

And Rabbit, in a moment of absolute Terror and Anger and Betrayal and Impulse, goes, Fuck you, I'll do it.

(he has a few months to Prepare. He gets new gear, and puts his name back out there, and starts taking jobs again to make sure he isn’t rusty. He does a lot of deep, measured breathing, staring at the cabin ceiling. He gets very little sleep. It’s the most terrifying thing he does in his entire life and it’s absolutely worth it)

...and also, yeah, he’s Effective, he's an Effective Teacher, and he is [if not quite Kind] kinder than a lot of other people get. because he Knows quinn and Cares about quinn and wants more than he’s ever wanted Anything for this kid to be okay. He’s like, alright, we’re going to do this miserable thing together. You’re going to camp out in the woods with no supplies, and i’m going to be three feet away listening to you whine about it. Let’s go