#I am very aware that the two ships in general are compared a lot

[zizzy-rie]

Had a realization a few days ago...

I am not being delusional, am I?

You guys see it too, right??? Hahaha

[shadyr4m]

REWATCHING SEASON 2 EPISODE 7 OF ARCANE

+ some of my highlights and notable moments that I enjoyed bc people can’t understand media anymore

This is mostly an infodump of stuff I can fit into a twitter thread/didn't rly want to make into a thread. I'm not great at words so I apologize in advance, I am sure there are many people much better at analysis than I.

I want to start off by saying I am heavily invested in timebomb so this is very much going to be a ship analysis. If you're looking for someone unbiased i am very much not the person for that 😭

FIRST OFF:

The disc on the music box is adorable!!! It features au Powder (who I am going to refer to as just Powder for the duration of my analysis) and au Ekko

Compared to the normal Disc

This is very obviously because it takes place in a different universe, one without Vi or "Jinx".

The first scene starts off with AU Ekko writing in his notebook. (Cute mention is Powder's doodle in his notebook!!) Then we see flashes of the wild rune. This is when AU Ekko switches to canon Ekko.

Also one of my favorite silly images from this episode is this one.. Powder is being so adorable and Ekko is just scared out of his MIND. it's so silly.

In the Last drop, Powder asks Ekko. "What is up with you? You've been out of it all day?". One thing I noticed in my rewatch is that i think Powder is aware this Ekko isn't HER Ekko. This is just one instance of many that makes me think this.

This hideout seems so much more vibrant and loved, similar to Jinx's hideout after Isha. It's colorful. There are guard rails that I like to think was pushed by Vander. We can see Ekko's art scattered around. It just shows how much more support and family Powder has compared to Jinx, which i mention a lot.

Id also like to note Ekko being shocked au him went to powder for help. In his mind at this time he believes Jinx to be all that is left, no more Powder. Through out the episode we see that change.

Notice how Powder gets upset at Ekko in this scene. However, she doesn't react explosively like Jinx would've. She handled it in a way that shows she had support. She told him to leave instead. Again, the main difference between Powder and Jinx isn't only Vi but also the existence of multiple support systems that Jinx simply didn't have.

THIS FLASHBACK! Oh my god this flashback. The fact it happened after he upset Powder? I think it shows just how much he truly cares about Jinx/Powder. He remembers VIVIDLY the day that he thought he killed her. Jinx was his childhood best friend, and I don't think that kind of feeling ever truly goes away. He doesn't want to hurt any version of her, not even the alternate universe her. We see that showcased more later on. Also, random probably insane note. He is interrupted by small children playing, having fun. This isn't a coincidence, it shows he does miss the moments from when they were kids.

While talking with Heimerdinger, we see Ekko look at Powder multiple times. Watching her laugh and be expressive, he smiles. When she doesn't return it we see him get upset. Once more this brings me to my point that he doesn't want to hurt her. Considering he hasn't known this Powder very long you can see where I gather my point that he doesn't want to hurt her in GENERAL. Any version of her.

THIS SCENE!! He is such a bad liar it's adorable. This brings me to my earlier point, Powder knows what's up!! She suspects something 100%. He is talking about this dream her like it was real.

"You aren't the kind of person who helps other people with their projects. Your ideas change the world. I can't shake the feeling that that's who you're supposed to be."

Are you LISTENING TO THIS? He is obviously talking about Jinx. You can tell this by the first sentence because obviously Powder IS that kind of person. He's starting to see that Jinx is just a part of Powder, one that is unavoidable and that he unknowingly appreciates in a sense. Like two sides of one coin he can't see Powder without Jinx and that is good. I think it is here he realizes truly just how much he cares about Jinx.

This whole montage is beautiful but I want to zero in on two things. Powder's reaction to the notebook and how she looks at Ekko after. NOW THIS. This is the nail in the coffin for her. She knows that this is not her Ekko. She has fully gathered that he isn't from this universe.

Also heimerdinger totally knows how Ekko feels you cannot tell me otherwise. Pushing him to go to the party? yeah he knows what you are.

THIS WHOLE SCENE. I AM NOT ANALYZING THE WHOLE THING HERE BUT IT IS GORGEOUS. I saw someone talking about how it was animated on 4's to signify the way Ekko can only go back 4 seconds and I honestly shed a tear. THE SONG TOO? I encourage everyone to look at the lyrics because they're beautiful.

Okay now for my favorite part of this episode so much to dissect and i'm totally going to mansplain but yk..

"I used to dream the undercity could be like this" — That sets the tone for the whole conversation and just what world he is talking about. The canon one.

"But somewhere, I got consumed by all the ways it wasn't. I gave up on it. Gave up on YOU." — Heavy emphasis on this line. Once more he is talking about Jinx. He is talking about how he got so consumed by the way that Jinx wasn't good, and he gave up on her. Believed she was irredeemable. Powder showed him that Jinx is capable of love and happiness, it's just under that tough protective shell. The undercity in the metaphor is Jinx, from my interpretation.

"I promise i'll never forget this." — Now time for my insanity. He doesn't forget this. That's why he saves Jinx from ending her life in the first place. He remembers Powder and knows that with the right support Jinx doesn't have to be the way she is. It's not that she "needs to be fixed" she just needs to be LOVED, like Powder. He sees that now. He sees how in the au the love that everyone shares for one another shaped the undercity beautifully, and made everyone in it much healthier mentally despite going through hardships. That is beautiful. People with mental illness are not unlovable they just need more support, it can't be cured, or fixed just healed. Mental illness is always there it is how you DEAL with it that matters.

Nothing too major to talk about with the kiss. It's sweet I love it, but nothing too notable for me to say about it.

Finally, Ekko leaves the au. I have seen people say that this is a sacrifice, he could've had everything he wanted and he gave it up to save the people at home. But i take insanity to another level. I see this as him appreciating his home. He knows he can never truly love this Powder because she isn't the version he fell in love with. He learned to appreciate Jinx even through her flaws, and that while this world has everything he could want and more he can have that home too.

I am experiencing HEAVY timebomb brainrot if you can’t already tell. I was tired of people taking things in the complete wrong way with this episode, if anyone has different views pls tell me I love hearing how other people took certain scenes. there are a few scenes I love but I would’ve made this post way too long..

[breadlover64]

BINGQIU VS LIUSHEN/ANY OTHER SHIP WITH SQQ PART 1

BEWARE I HAVENT READ SVSSS IN A WHILE AND I MIGHT’VE MISSED SOME STUFF! Feel free to correct and give your opinions about this.

Theres gonna be two parts to this bc tumblr can’t take all my writing sooooo 😛

In the SVSSS fandom, I’ve noticed that compared to other mxtx’s novels, the mc gets shipped with half of the cast more often and is more widely accepted in the fandom compared to the tgcf and mdzs fandoms (if you ship Hualian or Wangxian with anyone, it will get you death threats, istg 😓). However, with Shen Qingqiu, while of course he gets shipped with his love interests, another really popular one is him with Liu Qingge and many other characters in the novel. I do think this also has to do with the fact that the fandom is more chill than the other two fandoms. Shen Qingqiu in general is just VERY shippable. But why? Why do some people like liushen more than bingqiu? Obviously, I know this is simply a preference, but why do people prefer it more than the canon couple? Well, I have some speculations. First, while I love Bingqiu, I can admit that their relationship is not for everyone; even for me, they’re my least favorite main couple of the three (it's just my opinion, DONT ATTACK ME🙏) because their dynamic can be seen as somewhat toxic. Luo Binghe is very obsessive and kind of yandare like in the novel, and yes, he does have character development and regrets his actions and never really wanted to hurt Shen Qingqiu. I personally don’t feel like we see as much of this development until the very end. At least for me, I feel like we should’ve spent more time with a changed Luo Binghe, and I KNOW he was influenced by Xi Mo. I still didn’t feel completely satisfied with the Luo Binghe arc. I do think we see more of his development in the extras, which is what made me like Bingqiu a lot more, but I just wish we could’ve seen this in the main story instead of optional extras because I think the extras really show Luo Binghe’s growth and his love for Shen Qingqiu in a healthier way. I am aware this boy is very mentally ill. While I’m not a writer, as a reader, I think mxtx could’ve done more for him because he can end up more dislikable for some people and just less appealing of a love interest. I personally LOVE Luo Binghe and how chaotic he is, but again, that is not for everyone, so I can definitely see why some people don’t like him as much. With Shen Qingqiu, this is a bit different. I felt that by the end of the novel he had massive progress and huge development for his character; even if he still has his flaws, you can really tell he has changed and grown throughout the story, but he’s still himself if that makes sense. I felt wayyy more satisfied with his arc than Luo Binghe's; however, I will say that Shen Qingqiu has this sort of shame. While I wouldn’t necessarily call it internalized homophobia, he does have this sort of stigma towards gay people and him being gay himself. And while it can be funny, if you really think about it, even by the end of the novel and in the extras he still has this shame of sleeping with Binghe and showing basic affection, but I won’t really criticize this much because he does improve in this a lot by the extras. By that point, it really feels more like shyness than the shame he felt at the beginning when he first discovered Luo Binghe's feelings. So I will argue that Shen Qingqiu arc is pretty well done and concluded by the end of the book; at least to me, it really did feel like he changed. Okay, so the second reason is because Bingqiu got together when they were both still ‘not at their best’. What do I mean by this? Well in tgcf Xie lian had to endure a lot of torture and experience several traumatic situations and almost released face disease and killed a bunch of people with it. He was clearly very mentally unwell! And for Hua Cheng, he also went through a lot of trauma with his mom dying when he was young and the abuse he went through from his father and the kids who made fun of him to the point where he wanted to end his life, and then later he became a ghost with his parasocial attachment to a god. We see these characters at their worst, but when they get together, they are already 800+ years old and have lived a long life and matured and learned from their experiences.

[lynn-tged-posting]

tged webtoon ep 167 spoilers and thoughts in the middle of me trying to get through midterms but it's okay because in this ep everythings starting to look up and IM SO HAPPY ABOUT IT

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GENUINELY THEIR EXPRESSIONS IN THIS EPISODE I LOVED SO SO SO MUCH both the goofy ones and the serious ones im so AAAAH MY HEART HAHAHAHAA ALSO ALICIA IS SO SO SOOO PRETTY AND COOL LOOK AT HER LOOK AT HERRR

all the shots of her in this ep r so so good,,,, clock his ass, your majesty,,,,, to save the world,,,,,,,,,

ALL THE SILLY EXPRESSIONS MADE ME SMILE SO SO WIDE they're so bug-eyed . i see where lloyd gets the creature from /lh

we dont see these expressions very much compared to the other ones so im very happy about this HAHA it's silly cute i am absolutely using these as reaction images

JAVIER DIDNT SAY MUCH IN THIS EP BUT HIS PANELS ARE FUCKING GOLDEN TOO HIS FUCKING SHRUG AS IF HE DOESNT KNOW WHEN HE ABSOLUTELY KNOWS WHATS GOING ON HERE ALKDFJLSDJKFHSDFHAHAHAHAHAHA

i love lloyd hes hilarious but javier how does it feel being the funniest person in the room at all times . he didnt even say anything in this ep i love him sm . goofy ass "i dunno ¯\_(ツ)_/¯" HAHAHAHAHA

also i really like this panel in particular. feels like an unintentional callback to dragon king's chef where michael does the same thing LMFAO

ALSO THIS PART WHERE ARCOS AND MARBELLA ASK THE QUEEN TO PUNISH THEM INSTEAD OF LLOYD IM. EATING MY FIST. how even though they're completely aware that he's not really their son they wanted to protect him anyway, AND THEN IN TURN LLOYD IS WILLING TO OUT THE TRUTH JUST TO PROTECT THEM??? IMMEDIATELY??? JUST LIKE THAT??? HELLO??? HELLO???

THIS GOD DAMN FAMILY IS FULL OF MARTYRS. GET ME OUT OF HERE

if i had a nickel for every time i got attached to a media with themes of martyrdom as a method of protection. id have two nickels. which isn't a lot. but it is amusing that it's happened twice. staring at tmnt

in this moment lloyd does not even care what risks might come with him stating outright that he's not actually lloyd but it doesnt matter all that boy is thinking about is protecting the people that he cares about, protecting the people that care about him,,,, eating my arm . HE KEEPS DOING THAT. HE KEEPS DOING THAT HE KEEPS PUTTING EVERYTHING ON THE LINE FOR THE PEOPLE HE LOVES

EVEN ALICIA FUCKING POINTS IT OUT, IN THIS PANEL SHE SAYS SMTH LIKE "when theres something u need to do, u go to the limits for it" or something like that i actually dont know which translations are correct but either way i interpret that as like. whenever lloyd has something he wants to protect he'll go above and beyond for it, no matter the cost. that cost more often than not is his own safety im gonna beat him up.

like buddy its happened enough times that her highness is CLOCKING U ON IT. BUDDY. BUD sob emoji loud wailing

i also really like this panel in general its just super cute heehee look at them . sillies. i dont typically ship characters and i dont typically multiship but alilloyd seems very sweet and i hope we get more of them talking and opening up

also i really wanna add these two panels because they made me giggle so fucking bad. lloyd u silly motherfucker LMAO "huh" HAHAHAHA

live footage of me looking at the work i still have left to do that i have not even started and its due within two days. god i fucking love the sillies so much

OOHHH ANNND MY FAVORITE PANEL OF THIS EPISODE

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH LLOYD REALIZING HE'S NOT ALONE AND THAT HE HAS SUPPORT IS MY FAVORITE FUCKING THING EVER!!!! YESSS YES YES YES YESSS IM SO FUCKING HAPPY GOD FUCK

u have friends and family behind u . ur not alone anymore algjkdlsaghhadfjasd UR NOT ALONE LLOYD U HAVE PEOPLE BEHIND U TO CATCH U WHEN U FALL YAYYYYY YAYAYAYY even the system is there IM SO HAPPY

i like the way he phrased his realization too, because yeah the more time went on the more he thought "i have to find the solution" cause he's been leading these projects for so long now, it's kind of just how he's been operating even back in korea, bc he spent so much time on his own. and here in lorasia he's the one with powers, he's the one leading the charge, so he has to take responsibility... but him realizing now that its not "i" but "we" makes me so so so incredibly happy,,,, ur not on ur own anymore u have people u can trust and they trust u back, regardless of whatever title or skill effect u have, ur not a single person leading, ur a team working together,,,, U GOT FAMILY AGAIN,,,,,,,, ghhhh,,,, WAAAAHHHH

when i hit this panel i started kicking my fucking legs around im so serious the joy i felt was PALPABLE

so incredibly happy to see his determined face make a comeback, like fully this time, so so happy!!!!

and these panels as he's leaving,,,, him being worried abt them still (and ofc he is, bc when he lost his parents as suho he was also going off and away to study), but he also trusts that theyll be alright,,, i think idk if im interpreting this right but thats how i see it

i really like how the artist drew these panels, the lineart on the side of the setting sun being lighter/softer i really like how this looks!!!! this feels new this feels so full of hope and im SO HAPPYYYY

also bisexual lighting. i know what you are. imagine that pointing forward at the viewer emoji i dont have it on my emoji keyboard bc my phone is old

i want to mention too that alicia calls the count and countess mother/father-in-law. i dont have much to say on that i am just JAWDROP EMOJI at that LMFAOO

and there he is,,,

his stupid fucking plotting evil face . it's back . WELCOME BACK LLOYD,,, BACK TO THE SHENANIGANS,,,, WE ARE NOW ON STEP THREE OF FOUR FOR PROFIT!!! THE ?????? SECTION!!!! what the fuck is he planning

okay thats all for this week thanks for stopping by :3 sorry there wasnt much insight here my main TLDR is YIPPEE YIPPEE YIPPEE basically

[lyledebeast]

Disney Villains, Disney History

For some reason I've resisted comparing Colonel Tavington from The Patriot, who is often disparaged as a Disney villain, with Captain Rouchefort in The Three Musketeers (1993), who actually is a Disney villain. Well, fuck that! There are too many fun comparisons to not make a post about them, and as I've thought about the two films more, a lot of other comparisons have occurred.

Both feature main characters who are based on and share the names of historical figures but reduce them to a handful of egregiously exaggerated qualities. Cardinal Richelieu was a powerful 17th century man who probably did engage in some shady business to maintain power at some point, but he was hardly the campy stage villain Tim Curry plays. General Cornwallis made some costly mistakes during the American Revolution, but he was hardly the buffoon Tom Wilkinson plays.

Both films also ask us to suspend our disbelief where the heroes' violence is concerned. In The Three Musketeers, the titular characters set Richelieu's carriage aflame and roll into a camp occupied by Richelieu's guards, causing their powder supply to explode into flames that engulf their tents. Guards are fleeing as this is happening. In a film intended for adults, some of them would be on fire. Yet in The Patriot, the militia blows up a supply ship anchored just a few yards away from a courtyard full of Loyalist civilians, one of whom mistakes the explosion for fireworks. These scenes are so strikingly similar that it's hard to believe one is from an R-rated film historical drama shown in high school history classes as an accurate reflection of the time.

That the middle of The Patriot is so cartoonish gives Tavington's burning of Pembroke Church with its congregation inside a particularly savage punch. One might say the only parts of The Patriot that would not be at home in a Disney movie are the war crimes. Both Tavington and Rochefort are very much aware of being the villain in thejr respective stories, and they are both having an absolutely marvelous time. Rochefort takes such relish in ironically evoking the musketeers' motto that Richelieu reprimands him for trying to cause a riot. It's the only villain line that could threaten Tavington's "And indeed you may (be forgiven), but that's between you and God" at the top of my list. The crucial difference between these scenes is that the swords Rochefort collects from his former fellow musketeers and the uniforms he burns all magically reappear in later scenes. When he gleefully menaces the king, who is also a teenager, with his rapier, the musketeers come to the rescue before he can stab him. The civilians Tavington orders locked inside their church, including women and children, die.

If we consider the extent to which The Patriot is a Disney movie, the problem does not lie with its villain. Tavington is exactly the kind of scenery-chewing, queer-coded, elegant villain utilized in varying forms from Sher Khan to Ursula to Jafar. The character who does feel out of place is the hero, Benjamin Martin. Not only does he fail to stop any atrocities that do not involve his own children (and Gabriel still up dead at Tavington's hand later), but he commits some of his own. I don't know if the solution to The Patriot's myriad problems is to give plot armor to characters besides the hero, but it's interesting to see horrific things happening to innocent people set as a standard of adult-friendliness. Apparently, grown men can abide Disney movies if they contain buckets of blood, none of which belongs to the hero.

I am aware of The Swamp Fox in which the titular character is based on Francis Marion, officially making it Disney's The Patriot. I don't remember seeing it as a child, and I haven't made much of an effort recently to see it because I think it would make me more insane than anyone needs or wants!

[werewolfenforcer]

Hello!! Here is a post going in-depth about my self-insert character I use for self-shipping and generally just making him interact with characters I like! As a warning, he's very non-compliant with Star Wars canon. I genuinely just do what I want with things, because I'm here to have fun. If you don't like him, sorry! Please don't come and scold me about it or tell me he doesn't fit or he's a "mary sue" character, because I'm well aware of it.

Some of his experiences are informed by my own as a neurodivergent person.

As a side note, this is a transgender character with no themes or story involving medical/physical transition, so a warning if that may affect you negatively. I myself am a transgender man, and I do not have those options. I enjoy being feminine, so it may reflect in the character. If you try to start discourse or argue with me about this sort of thing, I will block you.

Name:

Molotov Levix

Species:

Werewolf

(canine humanoid shapeshifters from an Outer Rim planet called Rask)

Age:

30

Gender:

Male, he/him pronouns (female-to-male transgender, no physical or medical transition)

Sexual Orientation:

Gay

Height:

5’2” or 158 cm

Weight:

~130 or so pounds, or 59 kg

Faction:

Galactic Empire

Job:

Enforcer for Darth Vader, labeled on record as an Inquisitor so he at least has an official designation. He has far more freedom than the actual Inquisitors, and with little ambition or desire to advance in power in the Empire, he moves rather fluidly among its ranks, in ways some have compared to a ghost. Molotov completes what he is assigned to do and does not make waves or interfere with any internal matters unless, for some reason, Vader instructs him to do so.

Abilities and weapons:

Use of the Force (mostly the Dark Side), superhuman senses of smell and hearing (on a canine level), heightened agility and speed due to being a werewolf, shapeshifting into a bipedal wolf form, hot pink lightsaber

Physical Appearance:

Molotov is short and lithe, although his frame is soft and somewhat feminine. He has an oval shaped face and soft features. His bright green eyes are round, and his lower eyelashes are longer than the others. His skin is pale, but not to the point it looks white.

His hair is brown and fluffy, falling past his shoulders. There are multiple blonde sections in his hair, including two in his bangs. He has side bangs that are fully blonde in color and reach down to his chin.

Instead of human ears, Molotov has pointed, furry brown wolf ears. They are attached to his head in the same place human ears would be. His ears can move. He also has a fluffy wolf tail that is also covered in brown fur. Molotov displays a lot of canine body language, so his ears and tail often unconditionally emote. This can sometimes make it difficult for Molotov to conceal his emotions.

Molotov does have claws, but his hands are regular human hands, and not any type of paw. His claws are able to tear through fabric with ease. Unlike a normal human's, all of his teeth are sharp. He has a powerful bite, and can tear flesh from bone. He is capable of breaking weaker bone with his back teeth.

Molotov's lower legs are furry, and he has canine paws instead of human feet, complete with claws and paw pads. He can move in relative quiet because of this.

Perhaps most interestingly, Molotov's blood, muscle, and internal tissue are a bright lime green color, instead of the typical red shades found in humans. This is especially visible when one looks at his mouth, as his tongue and the rest of the inside of his mouth are green. When he blushes, the color will progress from a light green to much more vibrant shade.

Clothing:

Molotov wears a black Imperial uniform, although the shirt collar is bright red. His belt is white, and the metal accents of his uniform are gold, instead of the typical cold metallic color. He wears black gloves, although the fingertips have been pierced by his claws.

The black and red put an emphasis on his connection to Vader, making his proximity to the Sith Lord hard to ignore. The white belt is a much more personal touch, one that he wears both to stand out more and as a reminder of his connection to the Force. The gold accents are present because they compliment the colors better.

The very unconventional uniform is a luxury he is afforded by his connections to Vader. Although it can be the subject of derision and an annoyance and eyesore to some, it also stands as a reminder that Molotov is untouchable for the most part, unless one wishes to provoke Vader’s ire.

Due to his strange ways of navigating the Empire's hierarchy, his ability to appear in unexpected places, and his connections to Darth Vader, he is very recognizable. Although other Imperials may be rude or unfriendly to him, they typically will not act with malice.

Personality:

Molotov’s true personality is rather sunny and jovial. He tries to be optimistic and friendly towards his fellow Imperials, although this behavior can earn him the dislike of others more than their approval. His intelligence and stubbornness can prove to be an annoyance, but it is also a valuable benefit at times.

Molotov remains fairly calm and composed around others, even when someone tries to prod at or provoke him. He takes insults and hostility with grace, and will sometimes direct jabs back with biting wit or remarks that aim to dig under the skin of who he's speaking to.

Despite his outgoing nature, Molotov can and will grow to dislike or even resent others over time, depending on how truly hostile their interactions are. He enjoys banter and doesn't take offense to it, but can see through to when somebody is trying to be genuinely cruel.

Molotov is skilled at recognizing when others are trying to manipulate him or bully him. He may call it out, depending on who it is. He is good at standing his ground and avoiding falling victim to such things. He himself prefers not to lie or manipulate others, but he will do it if necessary, and he isn't bad at it.

When Molotov loses his temper, it manifests into more of a quiet anger. Grit teeth, low growls, and piercing glares, instead of yelling and lashing out. That's not to say he never has an outburst, but it takes a bit of pushing to drive him to that point.

When it comes to those he has an attachment to, he displays a very canine-typical level of loyalty. He cares deeply for them and will go to great lengths to defend or protect them. He does not take kindly to others speaking ill of them, but does not lash out, either. He becomes anxious if he finds out those he cares about are in danger or hurt, and often gets antsy, desiring to find and assist them.

To those he is romantically attached to, his loyalty is unwavering. It isn't uncommon for him to follow them around like a dog with its master, and much of his attention and time is dedicated to them. His love and infatuation can sometimes lead him to overlook flaws and negative traits in partners or romantic interests. Molotov may also sometimes find himself drawn to those toxic or negative traits.

Despite this, he still is not blind to any bullying or manipulation on the part of a romantic partner, and it is common for him to hold his ground and call out the behavior. Molotov's devotion to those he loves leads him to work around such things to the best of his ability. He would likely feel unfulfilled with a partner that didn't sometimes push and test boundaries, finding the idea of such a relationship somewhat boring. He prefers something more interesting. Molotov is not interested in a partner that cannot also handle the times he himself may have an outburst or lash out.

He very much enjoys general galactic fauna, and they are a particular interest of his. Molotov's favorite creature is the tauntaun.

History:

A Jedi Initiate from his early childhood, Molotov was always an energetic and curious child. Remarkably intelligent, he was far ahead of his peers in all matters but social interaction. Due to his awkward nature and his tendency to show more interest in learning than making friends, he was seen as something of a “weird kid”.

His intelligence and proficiency in the Force caught the attention of Jedi Master Shaak Ti, who took an interest in Molotov from his time as an Initiate. Due to his skills and intelligence, he was made a Padawan rather early, at 10 years old, with her as his Master.

Molotov first met Anakin Skywalker at age 7, when Skywalker joined the Jedi Order. He took an immediate liking to Anakin. The two got to know each other more properly when Molotov became a Padawan, which Anakin was 12 at the time of.

Over the years, the two were close friends. Around age 16, Molotov began to develop romantic feelings for Anakin. He kept these feelings buried and suppressed, knowing the Jedi Order forbade such things. After the Battle of Geonosis and the beginning of the Clone Wars, when Anakin was knighted at 19, Molotov, then 17, became somewhat discouraged about their friendship, much less a relationship between the two.

As a teenager, Molotov found that it was difficult to avoid falling victim to his canine instincts that left him prone to develop strong attachments to others. These were feelings he pushed away and did his best to ignore. He was mature for his age and able to think critically and see nuance well beyond what others his age usually could.

Upon turning 18, Molotov was knighted by the Jedi Council, partly because of the onset of the Clone Wars, but also because they believed his skills and maturity made him suitable for it.

The Clone Wars were rather traumatizing for Molotov. He was placed in command of a smaller Legion of Clones, the 433rd. There were a good number of instances where he and his clones worked closely with Anakin, Ahsoka, and the 501st, as well as a few times he closely assisted General Kenobi. Despite his success as a Jedi General, the strain and horrors of the war greatly affected Molotov.

Near the end of the Clone Wars, when he was 20 and Anakin was 22, Molotov finally approached Anakin with the feelings he had harbored for years. The situation resulted in a bit of drama between Anakin, Padmé, and Molotov, but it resolved with Anakin and Molotov being able to have their own relationship.

It was short lived, lasting only a few months.

Molotov was present in the Jedi Temple when Order 66 was carried out, and managed to make his way out with the use of his powerful senses of hearing and smell, using his senses to detect who was around and how far away they were. He used this information to avoid running into clone troopers that would have killed him.

Out of sheer luck, Molotov was able to swipe a ship with an R2 unit and get out alive. He spent a number of months in isolation before being found and captured by the newly formed Galactic Empire. He was quick to surrender, not wanting to be killed.

When brought before Darth Vader, he quickly renounced his loyalty to the Republic and Jedi Order, proving far more loyal to the man he loved than any institution. This was only exacerbated once he learned of Padmé’s death. For Molotov, it mattered more that Vader wasn't just alone and miserable.

Though Molotov's presence was a knot in Palpatine's smooth plans, the Emperor saw his presence as something that could potentially be a benefit. Molotov's skills and intelligence would be a powerful asset for the Empire, and he could use Molotov as leverage to control or manipulate Vader if needed.

Molotov served as an Inquisitor for a time, growing adjusted to being in the Empire and learning how it and those in it operated. He began to learn, more out of necessity, how to precisely spot behaviors and read people in a manner that wasn't as necessary in the past. He was eventually removed from that position and put in place as Vader’s enforcer, though he is left as an Inquisitor in records, as being Vader’s enforcer doesn't have a typical, proper designation. It also provides plausible cover for his position to someone unfamiliar with him or what he does.

In his current position and place, he may carry out jobs Vader feels he is too busy for, or do things as simple as keep an eye on people Vader feels need that. Molotov also takes orders from Palpatine at times. He carries out anything he is tasked with with ruthless efficiency, and rarely fails.

Relationships

(sometimes characters may appear anachronistically in things, in their most well-known positions at a time they might not. I don't adhere to the canon timeline that precisely or choose exact times for when all events are set. As stated before, I'm just here to have fun, and I don't take canon the most seriously):

Darth Vader:

Darth Vader is the main target of Molotov's attention and also his romantic affection. Although Vader rarely displays overt affection towards Molotov around others, he is somewhat more open when it's only the two of them. Although he keeps thick walls up, Molotov is able to get around them, and he can often figure out things Vader may not outright say. Despite his stoic nature and outward lack of emotion, Vader is deeply protective and possessive of Molotov, and is easily angered over matters regarding the werewolf. Molotov is the only person who ever sees any softness from Vader. The Sith Lord does sometimes try to bully Molotov into what he wants, but Molotov stands his ground. He may be one of the only people able to stand up to Vader without being killed.

Under his outward shell, Vader cares very deeply about Molotov and is terrified of losing him. He sees the werewolf as the one thing he has left that keeps him from being completely miserable and alone in the galaxy. That fear can manifest in toxic behaviors or anger at times, but they are still emotions almost no one else is granted the luxury of being the object of.

Director Orson Krennic:

After meeting Krennic and a period of tension developing between the two, Molotov had to persuade and reassure Vader and wrestle with his jealous and possessive nature until he finally allowed Molotov to have a relationship with Krennic. The two get along well, but despite that and despite their relationship, it doesn't always prevent Molotov from severely getting on the Director's nerves. There is quite a lot of banter between the two, and they bicker at times. Molotov sees Krennic's over-the-top, dramatic behavior as amusing but also endearing at times. The relationship situation creates another strange dynamic and point of stress and dislike between Vader and Krennic.

Grand Admiral Thrawn:

At some point, Molotov became acquaintances with Grand Admiral Thrawn, another alien in a human dominated system. The two shared intellectual, philosophical, and even artistic interests. Molotov was also intriguing to Thrawn, as he operated much differently than a typical Imperial. The two are not necessarily friends, but they are amicable and find each other pleasant.

Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin:

Tarkin does not like Molotov. He finds his demeanor annoying and insufferable, and he also dislikes Molotov because he is nonhuman. The Grand Moff has little reason to act maliciously towards Molotov, as he is useful for the Empire and it would cause trouble, but he cannot stand him. Molotov makes a conscious effort to be less irritating to Tarkin, but he usually makes some mistake somewhere. Tarkin will tolerate Molotov and try to be civil, but often ends up sending the werewolf murderous glares anyway.

Admiral Firmus Piett:

Molotov and Piett get along well. Molotov is a rare person that doesn't place more stress and exhaustion on the Admiral, and it's refreshing to speak to someone who isn't serious and expecting perfection. Molotov worries about Piett, and makes an effort to try and help him feel less stressed. The two could perhaps be considered friends.

(more to come later probably)

[aurora-313]

Hello!

First I would like to say that I just got caught up with your story Black and Blue and I really love your writing. To be honest I never really gave too much thought to Kaien Shiba’s character at first (my favorite Shiba was always Kuukaku👀)but this story made me think how cool it would be if Ichigo knew earlier about his Shiba roots earlier on. I think he found out eventually in the novels but I wish we got more Shiba family moments in the manga, it would make Ichigo a less lonely character and would overall better his mental state throughout the manga.

I just wanted to point out a few aspects of the story I really appreciate:

1.) Lisa is my favorite Vizard after Shinji (I started loving her cause of her zanpakuto release against Harribel) and I really love the natural companionship between her and Kaien. It’s not a ship I ever thought of but the way you write it makes me like it. I kinda just love older Bleach ships like GinRan and UraYoru.

2.) I really like the characterization of Shinji. I have seen it in a few fics where they say Shinji is older than all of the Vizards and some go as far as saying Shinji is in Shunsui, Ukitake and Unohana’s age range. We don’t know Shinji’s canon age but I love the headcanon that Shinji is a part of the older generation of Soul Reapers. So the part where Kaien said Shinji is a few hundred years older made me happy. (I kinda just love characters that act like idiots but deep down they’re serious people)

3.) I also really like the Ichigo and Kaien bond in this fic a lot. The adults Ichigo surrounds himself with mostly see him as a tool to fix Soul Society’s issues (his father included) so I really like that we have a reliable adult that Ichigo can be vulnerable with and lean on. In canon the only adult that Ichigo has that type of bond with is Ikumi (love her!) but she’s not spiritually aware. So it’s nice to see an adult who knows the whole situation being reliable.

4.) I also like the conversation between Urahara, Isshin and Ichigo in Chapter 36. I love Bleach and truly appreciate all of the arcs BUT I firmly believe Bleach would be so much shorter if Isshin was just freaking honest from the start. I actually really like Isshin’s character but if I looked at this from Ichigo’s perspective I would feel so betrayed and IMMENSELY annoyed. So seeing Ichigo tell him off was kind of satisfying. I also really like how Urahara handled the conversation. (Though to be honest good freaking luck to him figuring out how to fight Aizen without Mugetsu cause damn… only Ichigo can match his spirit energy😭😭)

And lastly I have a question I am very curious about. Do you hate Old Man Zangetsu? I noticed the way True Zangetsu was talking about him was really harsh so I was just wondering about that. Personally I love Old Man Zangetsu but I know this early on he is probably mostly Yhwach

SORRY FOR THE LONG COMMENT!!! I just had a lot of thinky thoughts while reading this story and makes me wonder for what’s in the future cause if Ichigo is accepting himself faster how would that factor into Orihime’s kidnapping, HM arc and future confrontations with Aizen (favorite character in all of Bleach😔✊)

Anyways thank you for the amazing story!!!!

Hi friend! Sorry it took me so long to respond to your comment! Real life's been kicking my butt lately. You know how it is.

I love Kaien as a character. I'm pretty sure I've driven a few people on discord mad with how many ideas, concepts and story beats I've come up for my favourite trident wielding dumbass. Heh.

Funnily enough, the idea of shipping those two together came later in the story, around about chapter 10 or so. It was a whim that I decided to give it serious consideration. And why not? There's nothing wrong with two lonely adults, who suffered through comparable traumas, wanting someone to warm their bed at night. They just click. (But god help them if the DADs cough Ukitake and Kyoraku find out.)

Shinji is a bit of an odd ball to write for me. I tend to think he's not quite as old as Ukitake or Kyoraku (definitely not as old as Yamamoto or Unohana), he's the generation after them. I place Kensei and Love in roughly the same age bracket too.

You bet your ass Kaien wouldn't put up with any of the 'ignorance is bliss' crap Kisuke, Urahara or even Isshin peddle on a good day. And he obviously doesn't. The problem, rightly pointed out by characters and readers alike, Kaien can be stubbornly self-righteous. A trait sadly magnified in the worst possible ways after his death and resurrection (I've alluded to it, but this event horribly messed him up). Hence their current mess of Ichigo being furious with Kisuke and Isshin's crap.

That part will be rewritten, I'm thoroughly aware I gave Isshin an unfair showing but the nucleus of the confrontation will remain the same. Bleach would be much shorter, yeah, but at the same time, there can be some arguments that Isshin had his reasons for him keeping secrets. The thing is we're not privy to those because, really, they boil down to thin justifications for plot convivence: "Oh, by the way your mother died because of some obscure prophesy that's never been so much as alluded to in the previous 450+ chapters. So the 9 plus years you spent grieving, blaming and torturing yourself were basically for our (Kisuke and Isshin's) scheme to turn you into a perfect martyr. By the way, you can't actually do anything to bring us to justice because you need to fight this war and all of reality will be destroyed if you don't." "... ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!!!"

I don't hate the Old Man so much as I hate what he represents. The amount of backflipping, backwards writing, retconning and garbage to justify TYBW arc's existence is cheap and show 'Oh no, this story's actually been super connected all along!' is frankly premium grade crap.

More than that, the "justification" for sabotaging Ichigo makes no sense. He wants to "protect" Ichigo, yet according to the TYBW, he's spent the entire story consciously truncating and stagnating Ichigo's growth, pitting him against his own soul; relenting bits and drabs to ensure his own survival, only releasing control completely when his own annihilation is on the table.

Instead of the much more reasonable explanation of Zangetsu deciding that the best way to reach Ichigo is to give him what he subconsciously wants; a sagely parental figure who takes the time to teach, guide and support him. The things Isshin specifically isn't. Because lets face it, on every level conceivable level Isshin fails as a parent.

Instead of being a subconscious commentary on how Ichigo views his family life, its some grade-A nonsense to give Ichigo an excuse to receive yet another power-up that ultimately amounts to nothing beyond giving him some contrived connection to the villain.

Hey Kubo? Did you forget you already DID that with Aizen? And people say he doesn't recycle plot beats.

So, uh. Yeah. That's my rant for the Saturday.

I don't mind the long comments. I like the thinky-think thoughts. :D And I'm glad you look forward to what I plan in the future. I'm admittedly in a bit of a rut until I get that confrontation re-written so right now I've been focused on my reincarnation AU.

That one's delicious angst for another reason. The twins have been taught their Quincy craft when they were young, hidden away from Isshin, and now they're suffering the consequences. THE SECRETS ARE TEARING THE FAMILY APART!

[beevean]

Just post your Hecula rant you coward >:(

LET'S GOOOOOOOOO

I am embolded by the sheer amount of Dracula/Jonathan (harker, not morris) content floating around, I think people have realized by now that I'm a disgusting degenerate who very much likes the trope of "creepy ass old man falling in 'love' with a young boy/girl under his thumb" :'D

So this is a translation of this post, which I translated because I noticed some people seem to be interested in Hecula :)

Obviously there's going to be extensive talk of grooming and abuse.

It's hilarious how I fell into this rareship hell simply because

I memed too much about everyone in CoD wanting to fuck Hector (which is true and I can prove it);

no i will never stop using this image it awakened something in me worse than the Stabbing Scene

And then yeah, everything fell apart :'D

First of all I just want to say one thing: if CoD was more famous in the fandom, many more fans would accept the idea that Dracula fucked his Generals in between genocides. C'mon man, the set up is perfect. Y'all are cowards, I tell you :P

But other than that, it is interesting to compare the differences between Isaacula and Hecula.

Isaacula is your typical villain/simp ship. Isaac adores Dracula, he's literally crazy for him, he would destroy himself for him, and Dracula is like, "okay". Personally I like the idea that Dracula is perfectly aware of how much Isaac worships him (not that Isaac even tries to hide it lol), and takes the opportunity to manipulate him just the right amount... and c'mon, if a pretty boy offered himself to you like this, what would you do, not take advantage of the situation? 👀 But he sees Isaac as he would see… I dunno, his throne? It's there, it belongs to him, no one would touch it, he doesn't have to do anything else. It's not interesting.

Hector is interesting. Hector is a prodigy in the art of Devil Forging. Hector is a skilled fighter. Hector is smart (and so is Isaac, but he's a lot more emotional so he may seem dumber). Hector, after a childhood spent believing he didn't deserve to exist, is now realizing his own worth. Cold, proud, obedient Hector, without Isaac's fanaticism but far more efficient, and just as grateful to his benefactor.

I think there is a possibility for Dracula to be attracted to Hector. And yes, the mental image of him suddenly realizing one day that the shy little boy who one day knocked on his front door has grown to be such a handsome man in a short time makes me want to bite the flesh off my arms and it drives me insane <3

Not only that, but if I really wanted to be cynical, I could also point this out:

:)

Speaking of Leon, I can now get to the point of what I call the Bride Hector AU: Dracula, gone insane with grief over the loss of Lisa, clings to Hector tooth and nail (literally lmao) and insists on using him as a substitute for his wife.

It has been pointed out to me that, in that scene in LoI where Mathias proposes to Leon to join him in immortality, his goal may also have been to replace Elisabetha with his best friend. Mathias was clearly out of his mind with grief, and he trusted Leon, and he couldn't even comprehend that Leon maybe didn't want anything more to do with him. He just wanted company. He didn't want to experience his immortality alone.

But Leon was free to tell him to go fuck himself, rightfully so.

Hector, who is as handsome as Leon, as strong as Leon, and as dear to Dracula as Leon used to be (although in different ways, the two are not friends obv) does not have this freedom. Hector swore allegiance to Dracula, Hector became one of the strongest creatures in the world thanks to Dracula, and he still trusts the only person who granted him the right to exist.

Hector should be grateful to Dracula.

So, don't you think that kissing him isn't the least he can do to his Lord to compensate for all that he has given him? Or offering his neck? Or accepting to be brought to Lisa's old bedroom? :)

It's very, very easy for Dracula to get Hector to give him what he wants, even if Hector doesn't reciprocate Dracula's feelings at all. He doesn't need tricks or magic, he can simply exploit the loyalty of a poor boy who has no one else, and who by now is so used to being his Lord's favorite that he can't even consider disappointing him.

On the other hand, at the heart of it all there's an old man unable to move on. As a vampire, he's frozen in time, and it's very difficult for him to accept change. He became a vampire in the midst of grieving the loss of his first wife, and now he has lost his second one too? He can't do it. He can't handle the pain. He breaks. He needs someone.

And Hector just so happens to be right here, this pretty boy who can be seduced, who can help him feel less alone.

After Lisa's death, Dracula becomes... protective. Very protective. He will no longer allow anyone, not even God Himself, to take away the only light of his life. Which not only means protecting Hector from all the beasts that would dare to harm him or worse, but also making sure that the boy doesn't slip away from him. Dracula has complete control over his castle and all its residents... so Hector, love, you better be nice and don't do things that might displease your Lord :) like, for example, running back to Isaac, who meanwhile he's dying inside of jealousy :) oh, but don't worry, you're the favorite, so nothing will happen to you! But Isaac will take the fall :) so he will hate you even more, and your relationship will break down, and Hector will truly have no one left but his Lord :)

Or his husband :)

Dracula loses it more and more, he needs Lisa, he needs to feel sure that he will never be left alone again. He gets the morbid idea of marrying Hector and calling him his wife, even giving him the wedding ring that used to belong to that poor woman whom Hector might have seen as a mother figure. He can't escape. Now his Lord is his husband and Hector must behave accordingly, and if Dracula wants to be called by his first name and pet names while he fucks Hector on Lisa's bed, well, he has to do it. What can he do about it, say no? Hahahaha you're so funny <3

(A little appreciated perk is that, as a Devil Forgemaster, Hector is far tougher than a normal human, and he can conjure Fairies to heal most of his wounds. A perfect match for a ten-feet-tall cold vampire with sharp fangs and claws :) you're welcome, Hector dear <3)

Hector, needless to say, has a hard time clinging to his sanity. He doesn't want any of this. He doesn't want to be the sex toy of the person he once could have seen as a father, he doesn't want him to suck his blood so often that he's practically anemic by now (because, among other things, let's not forget that he still has to work), he doesn't want all these scars around his neck that almost form a collar he can't take off, he doesn't want Isaac to hate him and envy him for a situation he refuses to understand, he wants to be seen as Hector, as a person.

But he can't hate Dracula. Dracula isn't cruel with him, he just needs some help. Dracula did some good things too after all, and it's true that Hector can't live anywhere else, because only Dracula appreciates and accepts him. There is still a small part of Hector, the boy who was stoned by his peers and slapped by his mother, who still loves Dracula, to a certain extent.

But the more Dracula degenerates, the more the outside world doesn't seem so terrifying, compared to the madness of his Lord...

He's not Isaac. He is loyal and obedient, but he's not willing to objectify himself to this extent.

In short, I really really like this kind of dynamic, an older man seducing a younger person into a relationship of trust and dependency, until the younger person escapes and takes their life back into their own hands <3 and yes, while the idea of the older man thinking of the other as simply a warm body to fuck is appealing in its own right, I'm growing to love the alternative of him instead falling in "love", but it's a twisted, selfish, all consuming love.

tl;dr: hecula hot

And just in case, I have written 4 fanfics to explore these ideas :)

If you have a good tool, you use it, don't you?

It is forbidden to touch the Lord's belongings

Honeymoon (technically a spoiler but I long gave up on that)

Shame (the only fully SFW fic so far lmao)

[drackpa]

I really love Dredge but it felt extremely unfinished. I m aware that this isn't a big publisher and that there is a roadmap but if something feels like a let down, it feels like a let down.

It starts out feeling like such a fantastic game with a variety of interesting characters and their stories. I thought we'd meet more of them: different traders and fishmongers, more people to help and get to know. People who change (maybe in weird ways) or die. But new people stop appearing a few hours in. The same traveling trader is present at every location through the game. There are also a few characters that seemed really interesting and as if they had something more to say or do but nope, you do one fetch quest and that's it. In the beginning of the game you help a woman who builds a small house on an island. Nothing happens with her after that. You can visit her but it's always the same dialogue. This happens with some other characters too and it makes the world feel so empty.

Overall the last two to three locations feel very boring. Lots of the same, very short fetch tasks with a bit more murky water. Compared to the beginning of the game, this feels generic and uninteresting.

I managed to finish upgrading my ship COMPLETELY half way through the game. This is something that could have been slowed down or made more interesting by having the before mentioned different traders or even more upgrades. Maybe building plans to find etc. I also managed to catch all fish pretty quickly and never struggled with it. There is one power that makes it ridiculously easy to catch the strange fish so as soon as I had that there was no challenge anymore.

The last two areas felt so boring, I even stopped playing the game for a few days despite the fact that I was hyperfocussed on the first few hours on my first day and forgot to eat because of it.

The true ending is wonderfully done but very predictable. The "secret" ending is not secret at all and I thought it was the default ending. You basically get it if you are the type of player who likes to explore every inch of a map and the map here isn't really big and there aren't that many islands to explore.

I loved the fishing mechanic but almost never used it for the last few hours except when a quest requested it. I never farmed for money but ended the game with over eight million.

The game tries really hard to be progressive and that's not a bad thing. But among quite a few female characters there are only two women who are vital for the main story line to make sense. And one of them doesn't talk or appear the entire game and is the generic sexist love interest to give the male protagonist a tragic backstory/motivation. There are also some character of color, which is neat but they are all incredibly unimportant. So I wouldn't really count this as counter-lovecraft. It's all well in lovecrafts spirit: women and poc do exist but they are aids and observers in a white mans journey. And with "man" I not only mean the protagonist who is entangled in this story, it's also other white men who are vital to the main story line. Maybe this is a commentary on how men fuck everything up constantly and are the only ones feeling important enough to get into this mess while women are just trying to chill and live their life. But idk that's kinda boring and I like women who do stupid shit if it's not framed as if they are doing the stupid shit because they are women. I am not one to clutch my chest in agony when media doesn't fit my perception of how good stories should be done. It just makes the game more boring to me. Which wouldn't be such a huge problem if some other parts of the game weren't so boring as well.

All of that aside, this game is really good! For the first few hours. But it's a huge drop after that. I hope the devs will keep updating the game and I will definitely come back to it at a later point. Fantastic ideas, beautifully done. Just unfinished

[pinkseas]

(kicks the door down, fire surrounding me like a stage concert) I AM SAID AO3 USER COMMENT YOU WILL NEVER FIND MEEEEE I READ YOUR REPLY TO MINE AND BAWLED you get me you gget me so hard ao3 user anomaly98!!!!!!! (i did say in my comment i dug thru ur tumblr and here i am yet again)

not because i'm a prick not revealing myself thoughg i just have self esteem issues bc of liking qpr xiaolumi. yeah thas righrt i am shy of exposing that i dig this side of the r/s and i don't delve into the romantic one ever. prolly cus i'm an aromantic myself but like YOU KNOW- i just want to pop in to rlly emphasize the fics really do mean a lot to me in words you got it better described. that qpr in general has a different feel to intimacy and it fits them so nicely as people who are?? i guess, lonely but surrounded? (lumine to her friends who doesn't understand her enough, xiao to the adepti in that same matter, and the people of liyue who will never listen back to him), and here's another few disgustingly picky thing i got that your fics have that i tend to do in brainrotting it; most in lumine's pov and having her see through xiao's vulnerability firsthand. gosh that is so rare, you'd think bc he's always portrayed strong boi yaksha to protect the traveler all the time, but not in this perspective. and when yuou have her care for him both in the shower and bed just sends me straight face first into bed squealing crying blood of the consideration of ~~~~this whatever invisible distance~~~~ they have like its on lumine's condition to be aware of; she insists and ask first, and xiao is still allowed to say yes And no- and ~~~~this whatever closeness~~~~ xiao is reluctant to provide and its only to lumine's promptings in their friendship he accepts it, and felt warm enough to reach out if not in a ghostly touch.

very specifically, i love to see them not so in love with each other- i mean they can fall in love anytime (and in my interpretation they're a lot slower than yours in development but still a path to qpr eventually). i see their relationship as,... very fragile, but very grounding. its this small important part of their life they can shed their masks and be vulnerable like your recent fic to find each other's answers and resolve through it together because they're the Only two people of this world to understand (aside aether, aside all ppl xiao lost) that makes their dynamic so meaningful and i hope more ppl can see that side of them. ao3 user anomaly98 this is why YOU GET MEEEEEEEEE

deep breath.

if you do not wish to be found i will not search please know my inbox is always here i will welcome you with open arms <- pretend im saying this like Really Dramatically real somber real like. idk. like the way an ancient narrator begisn the story and reads the prophecy THAT kind of drama thats the vibe

its okay i would simply never assume u were a prick and i 100000% understand the insecurity that comes with enjoying certain aspects of ships and ESPECIALLY insecurity rooted in Being Aromantic and Enjoying Things In An Aromantic Sort Of Way like ive gotten way better its prob the only reason im able to write them how i want now but i ABSOLUTELY have been there i Understand

lonely but surrounded is SUCH a good way to put it. i genuinely do think lumine is close with a LOT of the others, i think she has a lot of trust and care for them, but its not the same. its not the same depth, not the same commitment, you're SO right comparing it to like. idk !!! idk. lumine once had aether who understood everything so easily and xiao had the other yakshas they both had a family, once, they both had people who understood, once, and now no matter who they love and trust in that matter they are alone. and that's something i love so much about the dynamic i envision for them, the fact that they're able to share such a unique loneliness, the fact that in not being understood by anyone around them they're able to understand each other. there's a level of distance and disconnect between them and those around them that doesn't exist with the other. its SO fucking important to me.

xiao is SO often depicted as being either a) very protective, strong, unbreakable etc or b) very vulnerable and fragile and i fairly often see fics of like. one of them protecting the other, almost? or less that but fics where the dynamic is Skewed, where one of them has the Role of protector and the other the Role of protected, where those roles are set in stone. and i think them being on the same wavelength, capable of protecting each other at any point, equally capable of either- that's so fucking important to me. it's not just that one of them is vulnerable, its that they're vulnerable with each other. it's not just that one of them will fight, it's that they'll fight for each other and fight together. it's equal. it's shared. so much between them is shared. their loneliness, their otherness, the unique way they feel about each other, their grief.

"i love to see them not so in love with each other" no bc this FUCKS. in my little brain i imagine it still takes time but i do definitely write it as being faster, and i think i imagine it as faster too? less rushing into it or any sense of need to be closer and more of just clicking so quickly, so easily, that what follows feels natural. "very fragile, but very grounding" is another REALLY good way of putting it your MIND oh my GOD!!!!!

idk just. for me so much of it is the small moments? sometimes when im walking out in the preserve the wind is cool and the air is fresh and the sun is warm and i think oh, this isn't so bad. this is lovely. and that's the kind of vibe i try to go for with them. contentedness over happiness, smaller gestures over grand ones. a quiet kind of love.

okay im losing my entire thought process idk that i had one to begin with admittedly but yknow. time to think about them for 120 billion years and never ever stop i wish iwasnt so tired id try writing more Literally Right Now. might try anyways and channel the sleepy into some sort of rly peaceful early morning/late night scene who knows

[sleepsentry]

for the ask game, number 8: unpopular fandom opinion(s) regarding gravity falls. also, love your work. ^_^

Thank you! ^^

Of course these are based on my assumptions about what's popular and these are takes I haven't seen around in the wild.

This kinda just devolves into a headcanon list towards the end. haha ^^'

OK so hmmmm oh boy there's a lot:

Gravity Falls is NOT the best thing ever it just had a bunch of really talented people working on it who made it super fun. But it's far from a golden standard and I don't think it should be held up as a standard, that idea is reductive and creatively stifling.

I don't like comparing Amphibia, Owl House, Duck Tales (2017), Inside Job and many others to Gravity Falls. The similarities are superficial and those shows shouldn't be living in Gravity Fall's shadow. They deserve to stand tall and cast their own.

On that note Alex Hirsch is just some guy and I don't like his stuff on its own that much. He's not that funny or interesting to me, but he is just some guy. Hope he doesn't turn out to be a shitty dude. *shrug*

Stanley is overrated (I love him but jeez guys. He's not that endearing.)

Rick and Morty x Gravity Falls is a terrible crossover, tonally, technically and thematically. (I also am just very unimpressed by rick and morty in general)

Stanchez is bad. Rick can eat my shorts. Stan "deserves better". Obviously the fan creations are good. But they don't change my mind about the base idea.

The stans both did nothing wrong ever and I love them deeply without comparing them. (joke I know they fuck up, but they fuck up together.)

Fiddauthor is mid and boring. It comes off as amatonormative and people overall are very exclusionary over it wich is just being a dick and using a ship preference to justify it. (I dont mean to be mean but yeah, you guys are doing fine you can take some salt.)

Ford and Fidd are more like siblings than a couple.

Ford and Fidd both dismissed eachother and the miscommunication was on both of them. (Similair to stan and ford it's no one character's fault)

Ford and Fidd's relationship has more emotional weight viewed through the platonic lense of fidds being older than ford by two or three years and "adopting" him as a "little brother" in college, and how that followed them into their 30s even when the age gap had long become irrelevant. Rather than just "gay sad nerds have marital issues" as fun as that sounds.

Fiddleford is a crazy, scary, adorable, kind, stupid, genuis. This man contains multitudes, I try my best not to flanderize him into one over the other. He can be all those fun things.

Fiddlestan is inherently more funny and compelling than fiddauthor. (To me, to me.)

Fillbrick wasn't the devil incarnate he was just a shit dad, wich fair enough is very bad. Haha (idk there isn't enough of him for me to truly hate and I'd rather not assume the worst, I deal with abusive parents enough in my day to day I don't need to add one to my fav silly show haha)

Billford isn't "toxic" it's too bizarre for that, and much is left to be inferred about both characters and their dynamic. (Again, assuming the worst instead of something more fitting and fun) It's obviously bad for ford but I thought everyone hated him when he isn't nice to stan or being shipped with fidds so it should be cool. (Sarcasm)

Dipper and mabel fuck up equally and mabel is generally more empathetic and aware of the world around her than dipper who hyperfocuses. (Been there pal.)

Mabel is more similar to Ford and Dipper is more similar to Stan

Dipper is a good boy but a bit on the boring side for me. He's fine. I like him well enough.

Mabel is more relatable to me, but I relate to dip's anxiety disorder so bad.

Dipper would NOT grow up to look like Ford. He'd look like shermy or stan.

Mabel would grow up to be bigger and broader than dipper. She'd also be the one to get glasses and look more like ford. She's already halfway there with the hair and jumpers (sweaters)

Jokes about ford failing to impress girls are cringe, heteronormative and bad. And ford doesn't like anyone. (Bill is his own can of eldritch worms)

Dipper doesn't like girls in the way he thought he should and that's why his crush on wendy played out the way it did, it was never really about her, it was about his relationship to her. How she helped him find someone to admire, and was kinda his first real friend who he felt was cool and understood him, heteronormativity made him think he liked her romantically. He so obviously didn't that it hurts my soul.

Mabcifica is underrated as hell and more interesting than dipcifica. That being said.

I do ship dipcifica but in a queer way. You guys don't get it. They're queer.

The cis/heteronormative takes where pacifica and dipper have children together and dipper looks older but Pacifica is just her kid face on a sexy lady bod make me uncomfortable.

And that's why Dipper, Mabel and Pacifica could grow up into a polyamorous "Vee" relationship. [When one person is dating two people who aren't dating eachother, in this case obviously cause they're twins. It forms a "V" from Pacifica to the Pines twins ^^]

What was this ask originally about?

[captnjacksparrow]

Hi.

How is it possible that the studio let ops and eds of Naruto feature in the anime? I mean c'mon, even a child can see how romantic they are. The lyrics, the visuals, the story/feel and meaning, all of it!!

Kiss me kiss me all night?? Really? How else are people supposed to interpret it? Even if some other studio was commissioned to make them, it's not possible that they just brought the ideas for ops and eds out of thin air. They must have submitted the concept/storyboard/song/lyrics beforehand to Studio Pierrot. No way studio Pierrot was not aware of how romantic they were. Not possible. It wouldn't have happened without their tacit approval and permission. Studios just don't work that way.

I am sure the studio was very aware of Sasuke and Naruto's romantic love, the producers aren't stupid or inexperienced. So they deliberately let the eds and ops be.

So what, it was just queerbaiting knowing SNS would never actually happen? Fanservice? What else could it be?

Also, how cruel and fuck those fuckers. 😤

I cannot predict the exact reason, anon.

But I am pretty sure, it was not for Queerbaiting. Definitely not!!!

As you and I both know that the world we currently live in is majorly Homophobic. I am just speaking generally. The fact that we cannot even google 'Who was Naruto's first kiss?' and expect an honest answer that it was Sasuke. Please don't Google this question unless you want some extreme bleeding from your eyes, ears and nostrils. Same with Youtube, Twitter, Reddit... Like you cannot even talk about SNS in a general discussion.

So, what we can infer from this is that such Homophobic creeps does exists in majority.

If I really want to bait people to watch this Anime, why should I target people whose numbers are very less as compared to the people who constitutes the majority??? What do I even gain???

What I would do is to make some steamy scenes between SS and NH in all my ops and eds, and it would definitely catch everyone's eyes!!!

I've said this countless times and I will say it again, I don't ship SNS in a sexual way but as Soulmates. But if someone ships them sexually, I don't get bothered at all or rather I enjoy their content all the same. 

Having said that,

Just ignore those ops and eds for a moment... Let's talk about posters, most of which were drawn by Kishimoto himself.

Click on the picture for better resolution. Because there are lot of details in the following poster.

Now, what do you understand from this picture??? 

The above poster screams 'Sexual Innuendo' on many levels. Even to my unromantic eyes, I could see the hidden stuffs blatantly.

Naruto was seen eating watermelons and watching a battle between two beetles which was marked with Blue and Red... which indicates Sasuke and Naruto. And for every 4 wins, he strikes the name on the notepad that’s next to him, (you could see the words SA, NA written on the paper, meaning SAsuke and NAruto). It seems Red Beetle won the first round. LOL.

Sasuke was seen doing 'something questionable' while looking at Naruto. If anyone who claims that Sasuke's actions were normal, then they must be really naive. It’s just not!!!! No matter how you look at it....

Pinky was seen wetting over her beloved 'Sasuke-Kun'.... I mean she was literally wetting so bad... Look at the water getting sprayed from the water hose. Also look at the placement of her hands. ROFL.

Am just going to leave it at that!!!

What was Kishimoto trying to convey from this??? 

Pinky wets over Sasuke... Ok, we all know that. 

Sasuke, ummmm.... Also likes Naruto in THAT way??? That's a news to me!!!

Logically speaking, Sasuke is the popular character especially among girl fans. Everyone wants to self-insert with him in some way. If I am an author who created a character like Sasuke, why would I make him look at Naruto ‘like that’???... Instead I would get more money if Sasuke looked at Sakura in a teasing manner. Just look at the popularity of that hot garbage ‘Sasuke Retsuden’..... I could easily make a Sasuke’s version of 50 Shades of Grey and sleep on a Golden Bed. I don’t have to design a poster in this way!!!

And then there's this,

This is another handiwork of Kishimoto where Naruto and Sasuke were seen tilting their heads in the opposite direction and looking at each other like they were ready to kiss each other!!! I will forcefully make my sibling to get treated from the Hospital if she looks at me like that!!! 

And finally this...

Sasuke is looking at Naruto with some seductive sensual look. I think this is the movie poster of ‘The Bonds’. It’s not Kishimoto’s work but SP’s. Imagine if Sasuke looked at Pinky like this!!!! 

All these posters were drawn with some ‘Sexual Innuendo’... blatantly or subtly. What is the need for that??? Queerbaiting??? Well, if that’s the case, Kishimoto could’ve stopped with that famous Chapter 3, ‘Accidental Kiss’ and be done with it. There’s no need for VoTE1 and VoTE2 confessions. And all those repressed feelings and stuffs. 

Because the pattern of Queerbaiting is that you already know it in your heart that it’s a Joke. I repeat you will know it’s a Joke.

For example, Naruto and Sai. 

2 Chapters in, we saw Sai was making 10 Dick Jokes about Naruto 

and he was also seen interested in Naruto’s well-being like wanting to feed Ramen, protecting him from Sasuke and Karui’s attacks. 

This is called Queerbaiting. Making one of the secondary male character to be 'seemingly' interested in the Main Male Character and usually it won't go anywhere. And we know it.

As for Fanservice, I've seen one and SNS don't even qualify under that.

Yes, In Japan, KakaIru was the popular ship.... More popular than SNS. Hence, Kishi made a cute scene where Kakashi saves Iruka from Pain.

This is called Fan Service!!! It means you do something for the fans which doesn’t change the plot in anyway. 

What I call as an extreme fanservice was pairing up Naruto with Pinata and Sasuke with Pinky. Just imagine if Naruto married Pinky and Sasuke married Karin.... Do you see any change in the storyline of Boruto???? Absolutely Nothing. Still, Sasuke would have preferred to be around Naruto and his Son.... Naruto would have adopted a new kid called Kawaki. This is the laughable fact of Narutoverse. No matter whichever girl they marry...... Their bond would have remained intact. 

So Queerbaiting, Fanservice...... You guys can go out and eat popcorn!!!!!

All those Openings and Endings with romantic subtext, I see them as an extension of  What Kishimoto was trying to convey through his subtext in his Manga. And we should be happy that the Studio didn’t try to censor it.

Let’s take this one!!!! 

We saw Naruto’s important people in this same ending.... He had Iruka, Kakashi, Sakura (I seriously don’t know why this Biashhh was there.... probably to evade extreme homosexual vibe and since Naruto is the titular character) and then Sasuke!!!!

However when it comes to Sasuke’s side it was crystal clear.... It was just Naruto and Naruto alone. And that’s the truth. Otherwise why did he leave Naruto in VoTE1 with such a painful expression? Whereas with Sakura he looked like ‘Why is this girl coming in my way?’ especially he was showing his back to her the whole time???

So, the Studio knew it. They definitely are not some dunce who just want to spout some meaningless stuffs out to the public. They really did their utmost best to convey their relationship through these ops and endings. 

Especially this.... LOL!!!!

The sexual tension that was emitting throughout this ending was easily noticeable, even without the song ‘Please Kiss Me’!!! And this is the only ending that featured just Naruto and Sasuke. And with that Song placement, the tension becomes almost palpable.

Do I think this ending was accidental???

No freaking way!!!!! 

These are all carefully planned and produced with thorough inspection. So, just like you said, anon, the producers of this studio know what their relationship was. They did their utmost best to bring out Kishimoto’s drawings into Anime reality. Despite all of these, still people couldn’t see the story beyond the surface level probably because of Homophobia or Lack of Understanding a media and it’s subtexts. They conveyed what they wanted to say without receiving any strong criticism and at the same time people still believe they are brothers/friends. So, it’s a win-win situation on many levels for both Kishimoto and the Producers.

The Day when someone starts to question themself that ‘Why Naruto and Sasuke were hiding their feelings if they were just friends/brothers?’.... Then that day, they will surely come to understand the real relationship between Naruto and Sasuke!!!! 

[variousqueerthings]

Number 5 is pretty much why I started shipping Hunnihawk

it's sneaking up on me for sure...

just had the episode where hawkeye's ex, carlye, made an appearance and there was a lot of interesting stuff around the kind of guy hawkeye is and why he can't do longterm commitment. figures he'd fall in love with someone who's smart enough to read him like she does (smart enough to know why it wouldn't work out and beats him to the punch)

and if you're going for a further read, fascinating to compare her saying she wasn't going to leave without saying goodbye, unlike a certain someone....

hawkeye's drawn to these impossible romances from the sounds of things (and if there isn't a problem, he will make one!), and bj is an outlier

he's a much softer influence on hawkeye, and talks about things like staying faithful to yourself, and holds him to his ideals, and doesn't need more from him than he has to give. I can also read them as non-romantic life partners, but generally am a big fan of the idea that whatever it is, it's happening so slowly that hawkeye doesn't even notice it and doesn't get that gut instinct to self-destruct

they're growing into one another, beyond the first charmed impression they had, which is different from carlye who knew she'd be treated as second to his practice, or trapper who was always going back to his wife

I also like that BJ seems to talk as much to peggy about hawkeye as he talks to hawkeye about peggy. whatever is happening I imagine she's aware of it, maybe even before BJ is

anyway, I believe that interaction was the first very overt flirting between the two of them? definitely made me raise my eyebrows. bold move guys

[thetaekookcloset]

Hello. I read your introduction on Jikook and it seems you took the effort to check on that ship ‘biggest’ hits to form an opinion.

I wanted to ask if you are aware of other ships ‘evidences’ as well. I am not in the fandom for long but Long enough to notice that every ship has their ‘If X ship isn’t real, then explain this ‘ …

So I wanted to ask about Jinkook. It is a very small ship compared to the big one but like every ship, their have their believers.

One of the ‘evidences’ it seems to be that JungKook is caught calling Jin ‘Yeobo’ more than once, sometimes correcting himself. It seems it’s a term only used between couples … meaning darling, honey or something like that. And not a very common term at all outside of this kind of relationship.

Do you know these occasions? What do you make of it?

Sometimes I wonder that people focus a lot on Taekook and Jikook and if it’s. Ot possible that, if a relationship really exists, if it’s not one of these low keys, very disreet and almost unnoticed like Vhope and Jinkook that nobody is looking.

Anyway, what do you think of these (about 3 different occasions ) that Jungkook called Jin Yeobo? ( imthink Jinkook shippers have other things also but this one is the one I found more suspicious).

By the way, I don’t believe in Jinkook… But maybe it’s because i don’t see it.

I’ll be honest, I’m definitely not as up on the big ship moments outside of Taekook and Jikook.

The thing about Jikook is that they do seem different to me.  Not in the sense that I think there’s actually anything going on between them, but with Jikook, I do think there’s a certain combination of tension and visible closeness that -- after looking into them more for myself early on -- I learned didn’t seem to have any indication of romantic interest or intimacy to me, but which I can understand other people leaning into and seeing the possibility of something more.  To me, their relationship reads so consistently as bro-y that I can’t say I really get it, but I at least understand the jumping off point, if that makes sense.

With Jinkook, on the other hand, I don’t even see that much.  I think you’ve really hit the nail on the head with your last sentence, anon: a lot of this stuff just comes down to the vibes we get, and with Jin and Jungkook I just truly don’t see anything other than an extremely familial platonic bond.

Because of that, I’m obviously not really going to see any possibility of the two of them being together romantically.  In fact, I feel like out of everyone in BTS, Jin and Jungkook have the bond that seems the most like true family to me.

They obviously love each other a lot, they go out of their way to bug each other but also comfort, and find comfort in, each other, and at the same time, keeping in constant close contact is clearly not a huge priority to either of them (based on the fact that they seem to often not even have each other’s phone numbers saved).

As far as their “shippable” moments, most of what I’ve seen very much seems like the stereotypical clips that have been slowed way down, tiny instances played over and over again because the “interaction” they’re meant to be showing is so brief that it’s hard to catch, and moments where the shipper is apparently a mind reader and can explain exactly what the members involved are thinking based on nothing more than completely normal eye movements.

I hadn’t heard about the “yeobo” thing, so I looked it up, and even in a compilation of occurrences, it was hard to tell if that was even what Jungkook was saying at all.  Not knowing Korean myself, I can’t really say one way or another, but based on the read I already have of their relationship, and the fact that “yeobo” is presumably only really used as a term of endearment between married couples, my guess would be that if Jungkook calls Jin this, he does it as a joke.

As for the larger point about ships like Vhope and Jinkook in general, and the likelihood of these less popular ships being the “real” ones, I have a few points. 

One is that everyone who says it’s not very likely for any intra-group ships to be real is technically right.  It’s not like it’s a statistical probability that one of the ships within BTS is real and therefore maybe it’s one of the less obvious ones that’s the real truth.  If they seem less obvious, and therefore less likely, then it’s probably because they are less likely.

Another is sort of similar but different, which is related to your point about these being the ships that people are paying less attention to.  Because, I mean, why do you think that is?  Maybe people are paying less attention to them because there’s less to pay attention to.

Why assume that they’re secretly living out a whole romance that no one is picking up on when it’s much simpler to figure that the people who act the most couple-y are the most likely to be a real couple, especially considering that the odds are against any “real” couples within the group in the first place?

Obviously we all have different ideas of what’s obvious and what’s subtle, what’s couple behavior and what’s purely platonic, and we all come to our own conclusions about the pairings most likely to be “real” within BTS as a result, but I do think there’s something to be taken from the fact that certain pairings are not just the most popular, but also the most vehemently believed in.

All that said, Jinkook are wicked cute, I just can’t imagine seeing them as anything other than brother-esque friends, and I feel similarly about the other common but less popular BTS ships.

[dontbipanicjonsa]

Did Kit suddenly lose his ability to heart-eye or is Pol!Jon actually a thing.

I'm late to the fandom but I just finished S7 and I'm having thoughts.

I'm a reader of the books, and I hadn't watched the show till now because... I suck at watching shows with hour long episodes and more than three seasons.

What made me decide to watch it was the Pol!Jon discourse I found on the Internet.

I know enough about the show to understand how unlikely and out of character this theory would seem to show watchers. At the same time, I fully believe that book!Jon would be fully capable of something like this. But also, even though I do ship Jonsa in the books, I can't deny that Jonerys is.....a big deal. Everyone expects it to happen. It's a highly anticipated pairing and....I just couldn't honestly believe Pol!Jon because it is just so against the general expectation.

So I decided to watch the show. And now I've finished season 7 and I am astounded.

Let me preface this by saying that I went into S7 already disliking Jonerys (sue me) but I still fully expected to have some serious doubts about the validity of Jonsa. I fully expected to be at least somewhat convinced of Jonerys. Even hating the idea of Jon and Danaerys together, I still expected more.

There are a number of things I would like to note here.

First, Jonerys is a romance that is told, not shown. Davos talks about Jon watching Dany's "good heart" (hehe) to tell us Jon is attracted to Dany. But then Jon immediately dismisses it- and not in a way that looks like he's deflecting. He's not only dismissing it, he's dismissive of it. His mind is not in the conversation, it is beyond the Wall.

Similarly, Tyrion says (not in those words), "yeah right, and Jon only looks at you longingly coz he wants a military alliance with you". Not sure what I'm supposed to think about that....? First, Jon doesn't look at Dany longingly at all???? Not once. Second, is this line supposed to suggest that Jon is looking at her longingly for a reason that is not desperately wanting a military alliance....? Because we already know that that's exactly what he does want. Wtf do I make of this statement?????

There are other examples, but the point remains. People keep talking about Jon and Dany being into each other, and that is what is supposed to convince us that they are into each other (well yea Dany is) but Jon gives no indication of looking at her longingly, of falling in love with her, of being intrigued by her even. He's a brick wall.

Alright, I'll concede one (1) scene where I saw legitimate attraction on his face for a second- that is the cave scene. Even there tho, it's hard to tell if he's just watching her reaction carefully or if he wants to bang her.

On the other hand, Dany shows that she is into him. Even so, when I say she's into him, I mean she's attracted to him and intrigued by him. I cannot believe she loves him.

Next, I think it's interesting that in the episode before (or was it the same episode?) Jon bends the knee, we have a number of people (Tormund, Beric) talk about stuff like- kings not bending the knee leading to people dying, knowing what's important (the fight against the dead), being the shield that guards the realm of men blah blah I don't remember the exact words. Then he sees the WW and the Army of the Dead (again) and sees a dragon die. And then, the first opportunity he gets, he bends the knee. I want to point out here that the scenes really emphasise on Jon's thinking face after every conversation he has during their little gay party beyond the Wall. They focus on the look on his face again while he's watching the Army. Multiple times. And there's clearly something going on in his head, gears are turning.

One other scene that struck me is the scene where Jon and Dany are saying goodbye to each other (the Eastwatch episode). In the same episode (if I remember correctly) Jon calls them strangers, and then the goodbye scene comes and Dany says to Jon's little morbid joke, "I've grown used to him". Him being Jon. Two things to note here-

One, Jon considers them strangers but Dany has gotten "used to him". Maybe it's nothing, or maybe it's an indication of how the two of them are absolutely not on the same page (about anything).

Second, Jon's face after she says that. It shuts down. Like a door slamming. And then he says that "wish you good fortune in the wars to come" line, which has ZERO romance, or longing, but a whole lot of bad precedent (does that make sense?). Ouch. The thought that occured to me here is that Dany is being somewhat obvious about her feelings, and maybe, just maybe Jon has picked up on it. And that is why he reacts the way he does.

I wasn't sure so I compared the scene with the Jonsa forehead kiss scene in S6, and Jon's expressions after that kiss.

My logic was this- I assume that either Jon has become aware of Dany's feelings in the Eastwatch goodbye scene, or his own feelings for her. One of these assumptions is true. Which one?

If Jon has feelings for Sansa, then his confusion/awareness/discomfort regarding that are seen in that forehead kiss scene. So if Jon has become aware of his feelings for Dany, let's see how these two scenes compare?

My dudes. There is no comparison. Go watch it.

I watched both scenes with sound off, and the difference is insane. Jon looks at Sansa's lips. There's a moment's pause that's full of tension, and then his face shuts in a way, but it's a bit confused, a bit thoughtful.

Jon does not look at Dany's lips. He does not look confused, or thoughtful. This is not a romance.

Side observation- speaking of showing and telling, it's funny how we're shown Jon looking at Sansa's wolf bits, and told that Jon looks at Dany's good heart. Yes I'm talking about boobs but wolf bits and good heart is funnier. We literally see Jon look at the wolf bits twice, talk about it himself, in a completely unnecessary conversation...as opposed to being entirely dismissive of the good heart, even when someone else brings it up.

Back to the main point, one last thing I'd like to talk about is the scene where Jon actually bends the knee (not really). First, there are still no heart-eyes. Definitely not from Jon. Second, it's funny how Jon uses the exact hand-grabbing move that Sansa used on him last season, when she was trying to convince him to do something he didn't particularly wanna do (like he's now trying to do with Dany). This means that

1) he learnt that move from Sansa. He knows how effective it is XD

2) if the Jonerys hand-grab is romance, it stands to reason that the Jonsa hand-grab is romance too. I mean both the grabs are suspiciously similar.

Then, even after Dany "promises" that she'll help the North fight the WW, Jon still bends the knee. I felt both an odd sense of urgency coming from him, and an understandable hesitation. Or maybe that's just me.

Now suddenly, he becomes complimentary of her. But there's something weird about his compliments. They are completely generic. "They'll see you for what you are" and in the later episode, "you're not like the others". Wtf does that MEAN ??

Here's the thing...Jon could have paid Dany a way more specific, genuine sounding compliment after bending the knee (complete with heart eyes). I mean she did just fly over the Wall to rescue him and his men. He could have said more, something meaningful, but he didn't. He bent the knee like a house on fire (that doesn't make sense but you get what I mean I hope) and paid generic compliments. Then he pretended to sleep until she left and then sighed very loudly.

??? Romance??? WHERE????

Then the dragon pit. Heart-eyes still missing.

Then the sex scene. What do I say? Lol.

No really. There are no heart eyes even during the sex scene. Honestly, idk what that face was. Not in love for sure.

Another side note- Arya and Sansa have talks while standing in the same place where the forehead kiss scene happened (wtf do you call that place again, the bridge.??) But no heart eyes. No lingering looks. There is no incestuous gay love between them, I can say for sure. All it does is prop up the odd incestuous vibes of the Jon Sansa scene in that same place.

ANOTHER side note- goddamn but does Sansa talk about Jon a lot.

Edit: I'm sure most of this stuff has already been discussed in other metas. My purpose here is only to put down my first thoughts after watching the season.

[xoxo-ren-xoxo]

On DreamSMP, SMPLive, and Fandom Spaces (a nostalgic retrospective)

I ended up writing an essay so more under the cut! I briefly mention NSFW but in no detail. Not tagging but if someone asks I can tag that. There are also allusions to certain content creators who have done bad shit, but I mention none by name nor their actions. Again, ask to tag.

I’m not sure how many people in the DreamSMP fandom have been here since the SMPLive days. I know I joined the whole SMPLive thing a bit late, and went more into the Lunch Club (yeah bet you weren’t expecting that) fanbase instead, but I think it would be interesting to compare fandoms, mostly focusing on ao3 fanfiction in relation to fan content and community. 

So there’s a lot to compare. I’ll start with Content Creator’s (CCs) views on fan content, including fanfics. In SMPLive and Lunch Club fandom the CCs generally had quite wishy-washy thoughts about fanfiction. Most of them seemed to appreciate fanart, but some seemed more uncomfortable with fanfiction. This especially applied to NSFW/shipping fanfics, which was completely fair, because it’s weird to ship real people or write NSFW stuff about them. There was also some controversy about ‘gore’ and super violent fanfics like the infamous ‘smpronpa’ fic, but as far as I know only one CC actually took major issue with it, and the rest simply joked about it a few times, and didn’t seem to care. Most CCs seemed vary aware of the shipping, and weren’t supportive of it, but did joke about it and didn’t seem to care that much. Aside from some cases (such as cscoop and traves) they did not seem to give two shits. Most just saw fanfiction as a little excessive, mostly from either not really getting it, or being kind of weirded out that people cared so much about them. There isn’t much concrete evidence to suggest anyone cared about it aside from a select few individuals and the infamous ‘serious stream’ (if you know, you know). The fanbase was also very split between ‘stans’ (ugh) who wrote fics, made art, and were perhaps obsessive or hyperfixated, etc, and ‘casual fans’ who tended to be gamer bros, who were also weirded out by the ‘stans’ and bullied them a bit, which was just silly in my opinion. 

In comparison, DreamSMP creators seem much more aware of fandom spaces and modes of fan interaction. Dream, for example, explicitly condones shipping fanfics (’so long as they know it will never come true’) between him and other CCs who are okay with it. There seems to be much more focus on CCs individual boundaries, sometimes to an absurd extend (’well they never said this wasn’t okay so it must be okay’ [in relation to writing something NSFW for example]). Due to the narrative element of DreamSMP (something SMPLive and certainly Lunch Club did not have, aside from personas and running jokes) there is much more space for the ‘stan’ type of fan, with fanfiction becoming much more accepted and celebrated. If someone wrote a fan song for SMPLive, they would likely get called ‘cringe’, but the same is not true for DreamSMP. I mean, it’s minecraft roleplay, so there isn’t really any validity in calling someone else cringe for enjoying it in a different way than you. You’re both cringe, embrace it. Additionally, fans tends to blur the lines between fan space and creator space much more than any regular fandom, meaning that DreamSMP creators tend to be more knowledgeable about things like ao3, wattpad, and tumblr. 

Now, is this a bad thing? I think it’s great that people are no longer attacked for making art or writing about their favourite CCs. There is a debate about RPF vs Fanfiction About The DreamSMP Characters, but that is a different story. I am more interested in the way CC interaction with fan spaces has changed the way those fan spaces interact as a community. In SMPLive days, people just kind of wrote and drew what they wanted because CCs did not interact with them. It was only when those works were brought to their attention that it became uncomfortable. I’m of the belief that fan spaces should be separate from creator spaces for the most part, and a CC shouldn’t be able to dictate fan experiences. As Dream said, ‘as long as you know it isn’t true’ and you’re not making anything illegal or extremely weird (like nsfw or RPF shipping) then it’s probably fine. I have an issue with fanfictions being read on stream, even if the author consented to it, because of the harassment that gets sent to the writer, and how disheartening it can be. Again, why are CCs in fandom spaces like ao3 and wattpad at all? Maybe I’m just too old to get it. Oh well!

Onto my next point of comparison, this one more specific to ao3, but I’m sure it could be applied elsewhere. The problem of oversaturation. Due to the supreme lack of ‘stans’ in the SMPLive/Lunch Club days, there was not that much fanfiction on ao3 (and about 1/3 of it was NSFW). You could go into the tag and scroll through every new fic in about 20 minutes every day, which was honestly nice. There were maybe 10 ‘big’ writers, and everyone was reading things like Floor 6 and Skyrates (shoutout to those who remember). I personally wrote a zombie apocalypse fic (Lunch Club + Wilbur Soot) which got a fair few reads and people seemed genuinely supportive of each other. It was pretty easy to filter out tags and find niches, and I met some of my now closest friends through that and tumblr. This was maybe early 2020. There was an abundance of creativity, too. The aforementioned Floor 6 (unfortunately now deleted I believe, since some of the CCs did some pretty shit stuff) was incredibly creative and engaging, and some of the ideas people came up with were outstanding. It was perhaps some of my most creative months, and I still recycle old unused fic ideas from that time for my own original work. There was a true feeling of community. You would see the same people over and over again, and if a ‘famous’ writer commented on your work, it was the best feeling in the world. I truly miss those days, especially coming up with ideas with my friends and thinking about them all day at school. It felt like a simpler time, almost. Which is sappy, for a post about SMPLive, but it’s true. 

Ao3 now is... very different. There are hundreds of thousands of fics. Perhaps even more, I don’t know. But I think one of the reasons I slowly got pushed out of the fandom is because it became so difficult to find what I wanted. There are still great fics out there, of course, it just takes 5 more layers of filtering to find them. But as I started to spend 1 or 2 hours scrolling new fics each day, instead of 20 minutes, I felt a shift happening. In the early stages, I wrote my own fics for DreamSMP. I loved it (back in season 1) and I wrote 68,000 words for one particular fic. However, I found myself reading fics less and less. When I tried to search for a niche, there would either be nothing, or a lot of fics involving characters or CCs I didn’t really care about. There were hundreds of fics which were completely identical, many more new writers (who tended to stick to wattpad back in the day) who’s work I also wasn’t interested in (nothing against new writers, but unless the concept is amazing, I will not enjoy the work if it is technically very poor) and suddenly a lot more shipping fic. Mostly Dream and George. Which is something I’m certainly not interested in. 

There also seems to be a difference in what counts as a ‘famous fic’. As I said before, when fics got popular, the writers were still just normal folks, just with more comments. Sometimes people would write spin-off fics for them, but nothing much else. A couple people drew fanart for one of my fics, but again, it was nothing compared to what it is now. Certain popular fics now get full animations, songs, fanart, and CC recognition for their work. It is an immense difference. And I’m not saying this is bad- it is good to celebrate writers- but I would also like to stress that due to the sheer volume of content, most writers get hidden completely, especially writing for a niche. It is strange, and I guess it is just an issue with huge fandoms in general. 

I would like to see something that isn’t sbi or dreamnotfound go viral, though. 

Lastly, I feel there is less sense of community in the current DreamSMP fandom. If I was a nobody trying to find a group of friends, I feel like it would be much harder nowadays than it was for me in early 2020. I met some amazing people back then who are still my friends to this day, through a single tumblr post that would probably be buried if it were posted now. Hell, this post will probably get buried. I knew people through ao3, through tumblr, and through discord. The fandom, I think, is so big now, that even on twitter folks have trouble finding a group. The entry point is now ‘be friends with someone who already has a group before joining the fandom’ rather than ‘scroll the three new posts and see if you recognize anyone’. This isn’t really something that can be helped, and I know it is a big problem I’ve had with other large fandoms. However, I also know that fandom isn’t always like this, and smaller communities do have that sense of friendship and recognition. I think this is an interesting topic and would love to hear what others think on it.

But yeah, those are some thoughts. I’m feeling very nostalgic for the ‘good old days’ right now, and I still can’t listen to the scooby doo theme song without feeling like I’ve been punched in the gut, so here we are. The ramblings of an old nostalgic fool (feeling nostalgic for a gamer fandom from two years ago). I am but an observer. 

If you wanna start a conversation, go ahead! I would love for this post to not get completely hidden immediately. Hope everyone has a nice day, and thanks for reading haha