#I feel the need to make actual fanart for this ship but something is holding me back. That something being my own anxious self dammit

[acourtofthought]

My husband finally put into words for me something that has been the main problem with this whole Anti Gwynriel because of Gwyn's past narrative.

According to Anti's, it's not ok to ship Gwyn with Az because she's not healed enough and hasn't shown that she's ready for a relationship.

According to Anti's, fanart of Gwynriel in provocative positions are not appropriate because it's disrespectful to Gwyn due to her SA, that she needs to first give verbal consent before we're allowed to imagine what a HEA for Gwynriel might look like.

And at first, it almost feels like a gotcha for them because you question whether you're disrespecting real survivors by saying, "she doesn't need to give consent for us to ship them since it's a book." This statement is true, I don't think readers should be forced to abide by real world morals when it comes to possible paths a characters arc might take, however it makes you pause for a moment to question whether what you're saying is disrespectful to those who have been victims.

But he actually flipped that entire thing on it's head when he said, "if the issue is about consent, then why is only being applied to a SA victim? Shouldn't consent be applied to everyone?"

It was kind of a lightbulb moment for me because those Anti's never vocalize how it's wrong for people to ship Eris & Az, Mor & Emerie, Vassa & Lucien (SA victim), Lucien, Jurian & Vassa, the LoA & Helion (because at this point they are not a consenting pair), Nesta & Eris. There are a bunch of non canon, non consent ships in this series and nobody has an issue with those. Nobody takes up the crusade arguing that it's wrong for people in the fandom to imagine those pairings together or drawing fanart of them in NSFW positions. Most of the time they're celebrated but has Emerie consented to having a sexual relationship with Mor? All she did was call her beautiful and Feyre had done the same in ACOMAF. Why do they never call out fanart of that pairing? Or Neris after Nesta harshly rejected him? Where Eris is currently suffering torture at the hands of Beron and we've got no clue as to his sexual preference. Also, Elain only consented to a fully clothed kiss in the bonus (remember, she grew up with human morals which she still holds fast too, she didn't jump right into bed with Graysen), we have no evidence she wanted more yet there's plenty of NSFW E/riel artwork out there and I'm betting some existed before SF, before she even consented to a kiss.

The only time I've ever heard anyone argue for consent or argue against NSFW art is in relation to Az and Gwyn and the message they're sending is that only female characters who have been SA need to give consent before fans should be shipping them.

That's when the shipping agenda makes itself known because if no other non-canon / non-consenting pairing disturbs them to the point they need to create post after post surrounding how wrong people are for shipping them, then it's clear to see that it's only Gwyn being shipped with Az that they take issue with and when only E/riels make these arguments, it seems highly suspect.

Gwyn's SA is irrelevant in terms of consent because EVERYONE should have consent before engaging in physical acts with others no matter their past. However, Gwyn's SA should not be the weight dragging her character down, the scarlet letter on her chest that means the fandom isn't allowed to give her the same treatment that all other characters receive. Where we're free to imagine and create fanart / fanfiction / headcanons (even the NSFW variety) for any pairing that we desire, regardless of their past or preference, even those who have never expressed romantic interest towards one another, except for Gwyn.

Consent in the actual book will be important but consent having already been given in our imaginations so we can imagine possibilities beyond what is currently written is the right of any reader.

[anime-grimmy-art]

It’s this time of the year again, folks. Time to wrap up the art Ive made in the last 12 months in another Year in Review! I’ve noticed that this is my fifth Year in Review in a row, so I’ll be making an extra post looking back on the progress in those last 5 years!

I've got a lot to say about this year, but purely art wise, I've gone all when it comes to comics, damn! I've kinda found a format that is messy, and therefore more time efficient, yet still looks good. I even made 2 animatics and lotsa shorts/reels! All that on top of opening coms twice, and, oh yeah, MAKING A WHOLE ASS 4MIN ANIMATION ON MY OWN.

How is my hand still alive.

2023 has been….interesting, to say the least. The first half year I was working on my thesis project, aka making an animated short all on my own (in the art department), which makes it honestly surprising how much I managed to churn out between animating. Trigun rly did have me in a choke hold.

Summer was a bit more spotty, esp. with me not being able to draw anything during August as I was writing my thesis (and doing commissions). And towards the end of the year, Kingdom Hearts tried to save me, but alas, Genshin Impact has finally sunk its teeth into me and dragged me to the bottom of the rabbit hole. It all started with me watching a story summary and lore videos while I was sick after my thesis and I was too intrigued to not dig deeper and well, first I fell in love with Kaeya and then the ships started dropping in left and right.

I’m not gonna lie, the last few months have been weird. I finished my masters in October, and have been on job hunt since, sadly without success so far. I’m existing in this weird limbo of still not grasping I’m not a student anymore after 18 years in education, not really being able to accept I’m an adult, yet desperately trying to find something so I can make a routine, cos rn Im too scared to build a rhythm as I know I’ll have a so much harder time readjusting again. It’s left me in a weird emotional state, where most of the time I feel fine, but when it counts, there’s just, nothing. No joy at getting my diploma, no anticipation to finally go to a convention again, neither any sadness hearing my grandfather died. It frustrates me that it extends to my art as well, there’s excitement over ideas and concepts, but no motivation to pick up the pencil, which makes me either not finish art at all or making so many shortcuts and just ending up with sth not satisfactory to me since it’s not the idea I sought after.

Tho, not everything is doom and gloom. I DID finish a whole ass short animation and got my masters degree, that IS sth to be proud of. Also, while Im struggling at drawing, I’ve also kinda started integrating my shortcuts into my style and some stuff I’ve thrown together actually turns out real good nowadays. Also, and this might be a bit of a weird one, I’m so fucking happy to know I can still enjoy gay ships. I’ve been a bit uncertain over the last few years because when I was around 16-18, I had a real big yaoi phase, which mostly came from the fact so much stuff came out that tickled my brain in the right way (Free, Haikyuu, etc.). But over the years, my enthusiasm died down, and I even started to resent some ships because it’s all some fandoms produced. I often found myself liking a hetero ship more than the popular gay ship, which really made me not wanna stick around because I did not care for most fanart and you can only go through a tag with art you don’t care about so long before you lose interest. I think in retrospect that it rly had nothing to do with the ships being gay ships but rather cos the fans just shoved it in your face when you didn’t care (and shipping culture nowadays also can get real scary). But I’m so happy to see I can still get obsessed with a ship and it’s all thanks to Haikaveh/Kavetham. It really just needed the right flavour for me to dig in again. And oh my god, I FINALLY like a ship with a SHIT TON of art and fanfictions, no more scrounging the crumbs from the bottom of the barrel. 

Anyways, enough lamenting. Here’s to hoping I can bite my tongue and get shit started properly in 2024, and that my brainrots may make me obsessed enough to churn out an obscene amount of fanart again.

[illicien]

What drew you to winterbaron as a ship? What kind of content do you read? Is it different from the kind of content you write? Would you like to rec a few winterbaron works? My friend is into the ship and I'm trying to see if it's something I might like but all the fics they've recked me are kind of the same in tone so I'm looking for others opinions for some variety.

Hmm! I've sort of answered some of this in the past so sorry to my moots getting this rehash.

A friend of mine dragged me into WinterBaron (kicking and screaming!!!) rather simply, actually, though what kept me here was the more grand implications of her simple origins. I'm kind of a sucker for a true power bottom, and fanart my friend kept sending me implied the fandom saw Zemo as such, and I was at least a little bit intrigued there. Enough to take a deeper look, at least.

The better discovery wasn't that the fandom had decided he was a power bottom, but that there was a strong push and pull of power in their dynamic. Bucky has all the physical power between them, it's a big thing, he's strong as hell. On the other hand, Zemo is just a guy, and yet despite that Bucky should logically have all the power between them, Zemo's intelligence and knowledge tend to leave him with an edge. That continues to be the fascinating concept about Zemo to me, but that's a different matter.

So for me, it's the manipulation, the push and pull of power, it's Bucky trying to break free of being the Winter Soldier and Zemo trying to decide if Bucky's just like every other super soldier. But it's also about understanding that Zemo knows Bucky in ways most people alive don't. He knows and understands Bucky's history as the Winter Soldier both through his research, and as a man who did horrific things on behalf of his country. And that thought can sometimes lead to softer moments of understanding, I think, that can be enjoyable in fic.

As for content I read vs write: I generally gravitate towards dark fic with these two, though there's plenty of really good stuff that isn't. There are some excellent explorations of kink in the fandom for them which is refreshing. I don't really write them as dark as I read them, since I enjoy writing the power dynamics more than the overt manipulation, but if you're looking for more tonal variety I'm sure I can make some recommendations! (Under the cut!)

** Please make sure you read all of the tags thoroughly. What I enjoy in fiction may not be to your taste, and I respect that, but the best I can do is to link to the site with the tags. 💜

Recs (under 20k words)

Just A Little More by @six-demon-bag epitomizes a lot of what I've said above, and if I didn't start out with it on the list here I'd be doing myself a disservice for how often I reread this.

Bucky goes into a painful rut and Zemo seizes the opportunity to sink newer, more subtle hooks into him.

Breathless by @zsparz is one I like to return to whenever I'm looking to feel sad but don't have a lot of time to read. I can't explain why this one hits me so hard but holy smokes does it make me weepy. Sparz is great at making me cry, though, so like - anyway.

The water kept rising. Bucky could hold his breath a long time underwater, and he remembered vividly how he’d acquired that knowledge. Sam might find him in time.

But Zemo would be long dead by then.

Past Indiscretions by @sagegarnish makes me laugh, genuinely. The whole idea of it brings me a lot of joy, and the execution is delightful.

Bucky and Zemo are trapped in 1941.

Unfortunately Bucky's past self is the only one who might know where the missing Pym Particles are that they need to get home.

When young!Bucky pulls Zemo into an alley, Bucky is forced to watch as a drunken forgotten night from his past becomes a lot clearer.

Recs (20k+ words)

That Which You Fear by @spintwinwb is a trilogy that starts off feeling like an AU and turns into something really fascinating imo. Lots of extra goodies here for comics fans, too.

Instead of freeing the people of Westview, Wanda pushed out across multiverses to get her brother back, and the entire world was caught in the crossfire. Cast in a new, peaceful life in upstate New York in a world with mutants, no Avengers, and no HYDRA, Bucky Barnes struggles to reconcile memories and dreams that no longer make sense with what he thinks he knows about himself.

One Two Many by @six-demon-bag is sweet and fun and complicated, and I really did try not to double-up on authors here but agh. What am I supposed to do??

Bucky and Zemo meet on an anonymous dating app and find a deep connection in each other. In the meantime, they grow closer in person without realizing they’re falling in love online too.

Too Good To Be True by AnadoraBlack is really one of those fics where the tropes are used so well, imo. A very enjoyable read.

Bucky wakes up with no recollection of where he is, how he found himself there, and what the heck is going on. There's also a ring on his finger, and time lost. What the living FUCK?!

The Original Sin by @zsparz because I might as well completely fail at the "only one per author" in spectacular fashion. This sits here because it sits on a very peculiar line between canon and AU and just... like I said. Sparz makes me cry. This isn't a departure from that fact.

Bucky and Zemo keep meeting over the course of several lifetimes. Zemo remembers everything. Bucky doesn’t, but there’s an eerie impression of familiarity he can’t shake — an old pain he can’t explain, with roots too deep for him to reach.

AU Recs

Removing Bucky and Zemo from the context of their complicated history in the MCU can highlight different aspects of their characters that are really interesting to explore, as someone who finds their unique characters quite interesting as well, though I also know it isn't for everyone. Neither of these recs are short so if you don't mind an AU, set some time aside for these ones.

It Started Out With a Curse by Thorny is a fun AU I never really expected to find in this fandom. I personally have a history of writing in fantasy settings so this one has a special place in my heart.

What happens when the King and Queen of a human kingdom slight a powerful fae Lord known only as "The Baron"?

Enter a world of FairyTale/Fantasy Shenanigans as Prince James navigates his deadly curse and his confusing feelings for one (seemingly) cold and untouchable fae Lord. Meanwhile, something sinister is afoot trying to gouge a rift between the feywilds and the human kingdoms...

A Gentleman and a Scholar by EternalBeta is a no powers exploration of their dynamic that's... Beautiful. It also tackles a lot of things about kink that it feels like most fic and stories generally seem to ignore. There's also an amazing sequel series.

(this series doesn't have an easy summary available so I uh... I'll give it a go here: college student Bucky has a thing for his professor, and a whole series of bad decisions behind him. The trouble is, Bucky is impatient, and Professor Zemo doesn't fuck students. So Bucky better hurry up and graduate.)

Many of the writers above have at least a few WinterBaron fics, and I do highly recommend checking out their collections. Sparz and Six-Demon in particular have some really widely varied concepts and stories they tackle, and if you're curious at all I'd also recommend checking out Sholio who has some excellent Sam/Bucky/Zemo fics! I didn't toss recs here because they weren't the heart of the ask, but I gobbled those up easily for some very sweet treaties.

[katyspersonal]

Stance about proanti disco horse (TW: personal CSA details)

I don't really like being a fence-sitter, especially at the risk that some mutual might grow really attached to me only to feel "backstabbed" once finding out we're not on the same page at all, and since this topic became more active after Fromsoft 'approved of incest' (debatable but it at least looks it!) and a certain person whose server is VERY appropriately literally named "a cult" makes a list of people in Soulsborne fandom to side-eye, avoid and shun, I wanted to say what I think

1) I do NOT sympathise with antis. Just try to accept this. They are insensitive loosers without basic common sense that need an excuse to feel like they are contributing to the "noble battle" and turned out to make lives of survivors of the thing they claim fictional works nOrMaLiZe uwu worse on multiple occasions. They are incredibly vile in what they accuse people of based on what they explore within the safety of fantasy, and as if they are not doing enough harm under guise of "protecting" us, survivors of incest, abuse and pedophilia, they are even eating their own if their fellow antis are "too tolerant" to proshippers. Enough instances of an anti showing sympathy under specific circumstances and being shunned too on the "if you're not with us then you're against us" notion. Antis are CULTS, plain and simple.

2) I am also disgusted by how antis tell proshippers "to seek therapy". Every person has dark impulses deep within, regardless of whether they had trauma they now cope with or not, that many people will never realise they have, and creativity is a healthy way to let them dwell. What person chooses to do with the characters is not a mental illness that somehow ruins them and the world around them. You don't get to hold having """morally better""" dark interests over proshippers and claim to be superior on that matter, and if you claim to not have dark interests at all you are just laughable in your pretence. And above all, I am upset at how trauma that I've survived is trivialised to the fanfics and fanart people can't stand.

3) People who are simply disgusted by incest, abuse and pedophilia in fanworks are NOT antis, however. Antis are people who actively police creativity, try to isolate shipper of the thing from the fandom by DMing people to unfollow them, accuse them of having horrible intentions and paraphilias, tell them to seek therapy and all that. As heartbreaking as it could be to lose a mutual over this problem, disgust is an understandable reaction to such ships and everyone should be allowed to detach from a person that posts something they're uncomfortable with for their own mental health! People have a right to not want to engage with such shippers, that doesn't make them fandom crusaders. It is a mistake that might come from someone's exhaustion with actual antis, but respectable personal discomfort is different so let's not jump onto seeing everyone as an enemy! The difference is: do they see their disgust as a personal boundary, or as a sign that you are a harmful monster they should fight?

4) Not all proshippers are innocent. There is a merit on what you could tell about a person based on what they think of fiction and how they judge it. If you want to be sure, you need to look out for the logic someone puts into their ships. For example, if someone simply discusses their pedophilia ship as something messed up yet fascinating for them, or it feels as though they're never focusing on power imbalance and manipulation aspect of it in their fantasy as horror element but instead it is just a matter of fact, or is a survivor that dwells on their trauma this way wishing their groomer was """nicer""" OR went further - they're basically Just A Guy that doesn't engage with fantasies the same way as you do. Like, it is just a guy ok? However, if they go into spiel about how age is just a number or age of consent in other countries or how maturity is psychology and not amount of years lived or how some teens are presumably mature enough to consent *flashback to yandev's suggestion about 'test for ability to consent'* etc etc..... this is probably a freak. You get the principle. If you can't help being suspicious of someone over their dark interests, you need to hear out this person's logic regarding the concept to tell which one they are, instead of assuming everyone is guilty OR everyone is innocent. Trust me, most proshippers absolutely do not want to make actual predators to feel safe in their 'let's ruin some fictional guys' interests circles, not only the trauma survived ones.

5) (STRONG trigger warning for CSA, skip to #6 if anything) Personally: I don't mind most of the incest and abuse ships. I was living under the same father figure's sexual and just emotional abuse (rarer, physical) since age 8-9 and into late teens, and only could do something to get away from him at the age of 20. Somewhere when my puberty started to kick in, I had a dream that I had an older brother and we were living under this hell together, with him protecting me from him at the expense of enduring worse physical abuse... but we were in supportive "relationship" through it. I think it altered something in my brain chemistry, that made me associate incest ships where one sibling cares for the sick/miserable/weak one and protects them, or where they're up against the same hardship or the same bad guy with safety and warmth instead.

As for the abuse ships, again, during puberty I was having guilty thoughts of seeking """consensual""" sex with my stepfather. He was not allowing me to seek a partner of my age on the side, naturally, and I was going rabid. Nonetheless, I had a will of steel and repressed those feelings, never acting on them, for the sake of what very little remained of my ruined pride. But it left me with the interest of what would happen if not, that I can take out on fictional characters (for example, a certain mutual who likes Sulyvahn x Dancer knows what I am talking about :p). If this is something I must uproot from how my brain developed, I'll do it when I am ready and consider it an improvement, and not when some no-life looser online tells me that what I can do with fictional characters somehow makes me as bad as the person who harmed me. 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

5.1) Yes, this does mean that my blog is safe for people who like Lorian and Lothric or Miquella and Malenia or alike popular pairings. I don't really 'see' these ships personally (Aldia and Blind Swordsman are better alternatives respectively sorry lmao) but I did like artworks with them; if not because they are drawn well then as expression of support for people to do what they want. You can tell my contrarian bias is sprouting wonderfully No you did not just hallucinate my like under MalMiq fanart in 4 AM delirium and yes I am aware that I have two mutuals who openly ship it (you girls know who you are)

6) Many people avoid these ships purely based on fear of harassment and not because of genuine conviction. I could make an essay on how Miquella and Radahn is aKtUaLy not incest, but on the first glance it is. And you know what happened in the fandom after Fromsoft "approved of incest relationship in their story"? Right, people who don't mind incest ships or even openly support proshippers or even ship this stuff themselves popped up like mushrooms after the rain!! This should be telling that most people are neutral or even interested, and ALL that holds them back is lack of strong support, but what can be stronger than approval of the creator of the darn thing? If you want to make a change in how people engage with fiction and promote healthier alternatives to problematic ships, you cannot do it through holding the threat of isolation and bullying over their heads. The best way to promote healthier ships is to actually ship them, as well as passionately discuss characters who are popular to put into a problematic ship in healthy non-ship context. I think more people should promote their ideas this way, because being afraid is not being convinced and your "allies against weirdos in the fandom 🥺" WILL backstab you as soon as they feel safe to do so. Sure, I will be laughing at how frail that "allyship" turned out to be when that happens. You won't be laughing, though. Allies that are simply here out of fear of harassment are not allies, so watch your back.

7) The argument about "such fanworks help groomers to fish victims" works in reverse. Many people are convinced that a pedo will grab someone's adult x minor fanfic and go at a kid being like "hey do you want something like this? 👀" or similar stuff.. Usage of fanworks really happens to fuel the dynamic when the victim got already on the hook. And when there are no fanworks, the predator will create or commission such works on their own, initiate RPs and whatnot. However, the way questionable fanworks actually help to create new victims is isolation of the person who enjoys such fanworks. Some person, a minor, enjoys an ship between adult and minor, between siblings or noncon, and their peers start shunning them for it from the fandom. They just happen to have no one to confide in about these interests and no one to talk to. Like I said in previous pointer: if someone has these interests, they will not evaporate with fear, they will just get concealed. That person, bullied for what they like to do with fictional characters, will not """seek therapy""" like antis told them. What they WILL seek tho, is someone, anyone who will listen.

And THIS is where an actual predator lurking on some dumb community Discord server will spot the vulnerable, isolated, lonely minor and chime in like, "damn I like this stuff too, we are against the world, too bad people are so judgemental of us, right? :)". Cult-like shunning creates both victims to get scooped by another cult AND victims of individual predators. No matter how much you or anyone else is uncomfortable with certain fanworks and themes, do not allow this "freak" to fall out of the community. It is dangerous out of the loop.

____________________________

Alright I hope that I've made myself clear on the topic. I've been questioning on whether to add something so personal here or not, but decided to do so. The last time I tried to discuss this topic without showing my own wound, I got yelled at for being insensitive looser who'd speak differently had they experienced anything like that personally, so.... :^) There are times where who is speaking matter. I don't want any pity for my trauma, it's alright, really..

At the same time, if you don't like me after this post you can hardblock or softblock without any grudges from my end (pay close attention to number 3 in this post, making personal boundaries is not the same as being an anti)

[prince-liest]

i know you didn't mean anything bad by it, but it really discouraged me to see you rb that anti-reader-insert post. i write and enjoy both reader-insert and shipfic (my 2016 baby-in-fandom roots were in shipfic, but i'm pretty active in the reader-insert community as well these days). i really look up to you as both a current med student would to a resident (i'm an m2) and a writer would to a more-experienced/established writer, so i guess seeing you agree with a post that disparages a part of the fanfic community that we both engage in made me feel upset.

i definitely understand where people come from when they complain about xreader fics flooding the tags. i've felt that exasperation and annoyance of scrolling through the tags both on ao3 and tumblr, searching for fanart or shipfics of my favorite characters, only to be inundated with reader-insert works that i'm not in the mood to read. so, i get it.

i guess my point is: i look up to you. i really enjoy your writing. and because of my parasocial connection to you (i.e., enjoyment of your fandom takes and writing), it hurt my feelings that you seem to hold a pretty negative opinion about a side of the fandom writing community that i happen to pour a lot of myself into.

please don't feel pressured to respond to this at all-- residency is hard enough without some random anon on the internet nagging at you about some random reblog that is not nearly as important as patient care or saving lives. i don't even really know what the purpose of telling you this was; i'm not trying to change your opinion about reader-insert or anything like that. i think i just wanted to let you know how i felt seeing your reblog, with no expectations that you do anything with that information /gen. but yeah. i hope you're able to get some rest and take some time for yourself soon, and i look forward to continuing to your fics in the future.

Hey, there anon! First of all, it may make you feel better to know that I actually have absolutely nothing against x reader fics at a baseline. It's not my thing, I don't read it, but I don't have enough of an opinion on it to dislike it. I'm a big proponent of "write what you want" and while I've never written x reader content, I've roleplayed plenty of canon x OC ships back in the day, and write a lot of stuff that needs the dead dove tag. This post, to my understanding and in my intent, was meant to express humorous frustration with the ongoing issue specifically of a lot of x reader fics (particularly in the last several months, I suspect either because of Tiktok or due to Twitter's downward spiral) being tagged with irrelevant tags. I've actually had to ask on multiple posts something like "Why is this tagged with [canon ship]?"

Most people have kindly removed the tag and explained that they thought it was good exposure and didn't realize that wasn't how things work on Tumblr, which is great, but it's still frustrating that it's hard to scroll through a lot of tags without seeing lengthy and explicit x reader fics that are either tagged with unrelated ships/characters/fandoms, or undertagged with blockable x reader tags.

Even if I did dislike x reader, though, I just want to emphasize to you: I really appreciate that you look up to me and I'm really happy that I'm able to provide some encouragement to you in the form of someone with a similar creative hobby on the same career path, but also, my opinions on matters of personal taste really don't matter. I am, at the end of the day, A Random Person On The Internet Who Has A Blog, and I encourage you to look at opinions of mine that grate on you and think: "Eh. Just another random person I don't happen to agree with. Whatever, I guess." and move on, because in the long run this will be more fair to both yourself and me. There are indeed actually popular but harmless parts of fandom that I'm growing to dislike a little bit, and it feels strange to be unable to casually refer to or joke about that without being worried that it will hurt someone's feelings that I don't personally like the same thing they do. This is actually some of why I'm on Tumblr and not Twitter - the parasocial issues tend to be stronger on there! I confess that I don't really know exactly what to do about this problem yet, but I'm going to endeavor to not censor myself (as long as I'm not being a dick, ofc) while also encouraging people to not put me up on too much of a pedestal.

At any rate, I'll clarify in the tags of the post what I meant by my reblog, and I hope this at least offered some reassurance to you!

[yuseirra]

what do you think of aquakana chances to be endgame? lately i am wondering and feeling like it wouldn't make sense for them to end up with anyone else as much as i see hate towards them

Hey anon~ :) good to see you!

I'm confident about the predictions I make about my series. I've got so many things right thus far. Here's some (spoilers up to ch 160!)

I predicted that Aqua had feelings for Kana all along. (Ever since I picked up the comic)

I predicted that Ryosuke and Nino would have visited the hospital, not Hikaru, immediately when 155 dropped. (The guy has no reason to kill Gorou, and he wouldn't have had an idea about it if he were to send Ryosuke to Ai on his behalf)

I had a vague idea that Ryosuke and Nino would have been close acquaintances after her mention of him in 158, I was like, wait, why is she talking about him like that? were they dating..? but I didn't write that because it felt like a stretch;; turns out they REALLY were; (I have no idea why the heck would nino wish to date such a guy but I guess...okay..)

I predicted that Hikaru would have only wanted to send the bouquet to Ai, and he never intended to "scare Ai" after I read CH 154.

I predicted exactly what Ai would have said in her video message towards Hikaru, that she lied about being unable to love him and actually had feelings for him all along (when CH 152 was the newest chapter)

I predicted that Ai would have trusted Hikaru with her children and had him in her plans about her future (I had a vague idea of it when I saw her making the the phone call)

I predicted that Hikaru would have wanted to raise his children with Ai but she left him on an abrupt note to "save/protect him from the burden that is her"(after 152)

I predicted that he would have had no idea why she broke up with him, but also that he would have been totally unable to hold her back as it did (also after 152)

These are just some of the things that I was able to guess in an accurate sense (I've been SCREAMING about a lot of these things since June? July? and it's all confirmed now despite Aqua claiming there's somehow more to it)... if my line of thinking is correct, then there's a lot more that I will guess right. I'm looking forward to that being a reality. At this point, I feel like I can predict the "feelings" of the characters of this series if I really set my heart to it.

I can't predict the exact outcomes that'd result from these emotions the characters have, but I still can see the things they have very low chance of doing, to say the least. So, the things that WON'T happen or won't do. It's a bit like erasing the odds, but there are still many possibilities left...

There's hate towards Aqukana?? Why?; I don't really understand why they'd have the hate but I guess it may happen..

However, they're the ones that's got me back reading the series! If you see my older onk fanarts from last year, they were the ones I drew! :)

When I saw that ep where Aqua confesses he had feelings towards Kana all along to his visions of Gorou in.. CH 150? was it? I was like YES!!!! I knew it!! There is no way that it could have been any other way... it's been so obvious... Even before the whole Hikaai thing hit me like a truck, Aqua and Kana was a ship that was just...there. It's something that's very strong in the plot despite you liking it or not.

Aqukana is the endgame ship. They like each other and the feelings they have are mutual, so it's definitely going to be a given that it's going to be the ship for both characters.

However, whether they would actually end up together is a bit ambiguous… I feel there's high chance that they will come to at least acknowledge their feelings towards each other. Aqua's too focused on his parent's affairs right now for him to focus on his own love life, so we first need to get that out of the way.

If onk gets a "happy ending", then they can end up together.

Here's an analysis I have of them: Kana trying to be Aqua's "favorite idol" is actually what keeps her from becoming his lover. The fact that she will graduate from being one is ACTUALLY a good sign in terms of the ship's outcome. Ironically, she has to step down from being one in order to be on an equal standing with Aqua and come to love each other as a person.

The more I read this series, I feel that this work is emphasizing that fantasizing about the other party is not the right way to love. Ai struggled because people failed to recognize her flaws and insecurities as a person, and people like Nino and Ryosuke could not forgive her for being human(which is such... an ugly, and an entitled thing to do. They have no right to have treated her like that.) People send out expectations then get disappointed all on their own because their "idol" could not fulfill their delusions. Even if they're the "good" fantasies, at the end of the day, you have to accept that idols are just people too. I feel that's the message and what onk has been trying to express as a whole.

Gorou's approach from the very first chapter was a lot healthier as a fan, he accepts Ai's feelings when she says she wants her happiness as a mother as well as being an idol, and he's there to support her and her wants. He's the "good fan", while people like Ryosuke and Nino are his polar opposites.

Hikaru's approach about her was actually pretty decent too. In 154, he recognizes that Ai was just an ordinary girl. He STILL loves her despite her flaws and even while believing she didn't love him back. That's why I started to think maybe he really is the right guy. I understood why Ai said all these things about him. I keep stressing this, but he didn't like her because Ai was an idol, he loved her because he thought they understood each other and felt "they were the same". They really are in many ways. I'm going to draw something based on that after I reply to you )

Aqua actually understands Kana really well, as a person. That's a good sign. That part was prominent in the earlier part of the series, when he supports her having disguised as Pieyon in ch 35. He liked her and took an interest in her even before she was scouted as an idol, and that's pretty similar to how Hikaru was towards Ai. Aqua doesn't like Kana because she's an idol, he likes her because she's hardworking, and loves the determination, the strong gazes she has. He's also aware that she's sensitive and has a sharp tongue. (ch 150) These traits of Kana doesn't really go anywhere because that's how she is as a person. He will love her, whether she becomes his favorite idol or not.

So regardless of the fact he does go to watch her concert of not(it would be better if he does), their future is bright, if Aqua decides to accept his feelings and head to the future. I feel like he's working towards that in fact, even in the end of 160, he has those sparkling white star eyes, doesn't he? He's telling his dad to "disappear", and that's a warning, I don't think he's going to stab him. If you're up to actively hurting someone, you don't show off the cards you have. If he was going to stab Hikaru, he would have just gone and done so without a word. What Aqua's doing here is telling him to leave. From Aqua's perspective, if Hikaru would just listen to him and leave on the spot somehow, he'd really just be able to head to the future with Ruby...(I don't think things would go that smoothly since this is a manga and things need drama, though.)

But I don't know just what events would break out in the story just yet. If there's just one ship that'd happen in onk at this point, it'd be Aqukana with all the buildup they have, but there's just so many things that can happen in between that could occur as an obstacle. The author might suddenly? decide that they want the ending to be "bittersweet", "realistic", or have everything turn out to be all "fiction" and end the story on a note that it's the heart that matters no matter the outcome or whatever.. it's really up to them to decide although I really do want them to get a happy ending after all this; I feel like the authors could have this desire to put in a twist to it all and leave a bad taste to it which I really hope not. I wouldn't like to see that happen after seeing all the suffering the characters had to go through.

However, like what you said, it doesn't make any sense at this point for either Kana of Aqua to end up with someone else at this point. At least that much of it is clear. I'm with you on this one, and I can firmly say you're right. So either they do end up together or they end up with no one.

Overall, I predict the chances of them actually becoming a real, happy, loving, dating couple to be about 80%. The other 20% comes off from the authors putting in a twist for.. some value they may have as a creator!

Thanks for the question~ It's been awhile I talked about Aqukana, but they're also something I can talk about! :) I may be able to do that more if the plot touches on their relationship. RN the dad is sort of taking all the spotlight.. but there's going to be more to the plot, I'm sure. I like the dad, but he isn't the main character.

I really do hope they get the development and some proper closure!! The fact that they held out so long to get their screen time means that it's going to be handled in the very end. That's not a bad sign, quite the contrary, actually. If anything, there is going to be more that's going to come out of their relationship, I just don't know if they WILL handle it delicately but I hope they do!

[soullessjack]

so one of my other problems with babyjack is that the fandom just seems to have this sort of collective cognitive dissonance about it, in almost any context or discussion. like this post as probably my only standing example (bc it’s the only one to have gotten traction), there are all these tags about how babyjack leads to bad dean criticism, or how it’s nice in aus but they want canon complex jack, and like I’m not entirely disagreeing with that, but it is so fucking frustrating that people are still ignoring the actual problem with it and either only focusing on the most surface level issues that personally affect them or their corner of the fandom, or making up some point of acceptability for it that frankly isn’t theirs to make.

it’s the autistic experience of our struggles never being seen or cared about until they become other people’s inconveniences, and our voices being used to say something else entirely. when the main takeaway of that post is how the fandom’s treatment of jack being in a way he’s explicitly shown to hate being treated directly mirrors autistic people’s struggle for autonomy in the real world, I really do not need you to make it about how it makes your golden website boy dean look like a big meanie pants, okay? that’s definitely a part of it, but it’s not at all what we are talking about, and it 100% should not be the only reason you care.

and especially when the other takeaway is how this is just a smaller scale issue that comes from autistic infantilization, the absolute last take I want to hear is that you find that infantilization acceptable as long it’s an AU or something else separated from canon. believe me, I’m beyond glad more people actually prefer canon complex jack—like, I don’t think you guys understand that that is legitimately a rarity to find here— but the thing about babyjack is that the concept itself is inherently ableist, and directly relies on his complexities (and the representation he means for us) being removed and erased so that he can even exist in the context of those AU’s. It feels very… ‘have your cake and eat it too’ to me.

I’m trying not to sound angry or accusatory, but I am also tired of having to force civility on a problem that’s pretty much just an open secret thar everyone collectively ignores and beats bushes around solely because they prioritize #domesticdestiel over all. I mean, do you guys even hear yourselves sometimes? Like half of it just boils down to “Autistic infantilization is always bad, except for this one context where it makes my ship look domestic and redeems my blorbo,” and it’s getting really fucking annoying to have to constantly explain something that is not only painfully easy to understand, but is understood and actively ignored, and still play nice so that somebody out there might listen.

So many people will say they like canon Jack and want more of him from the fandom, and I more than agree, but motherfucker you have a blog! You have the tools! Be the change you want to see! He doesn’t have to be your fav or your blog thesis blorbo, but if you want it, you are literally fully equipped to make it! Write some meta, draw some fanart, whatever. Better yet, you could even stop engaging with and perpetuating content that actively pushes down on what you want and, I must reiterate, is actively harmful and ableist. If you want domestic silliness go right ahead, but you don’t need to resort to ableism to do it.

I don’t think I’m asking too much or asking rudely, and frankly I don’t even think I owe niceties to anyone when it’s a problem that has been openly ignored for 6 years and holds plenty of bearing in the real world concerning my identity and community and shit we face constantly. Outside of our screens, we are constantly fighting for autonomy and recognition and representation, and even to be seen as people. Online spaces, especially fandom spaces, are a huge source of escapism and support that we wouldn’t get otherwise. So for the love of god, please stop bringing that fight here.

[oshiawaseni]

I recently am now looking through the mha fandom for the first time and discovered your blog. Looking through your posts and analysis you seem like you’re quite knowledgeable about Horikoshi’s writing or him in general and are confident about the potential of bkdk being canon. In fact, quickly looking through the bkdk tags, a lot people on here are quite confident about the relationship, whether viewing it platonic or romantic. Now I kinda expected that, as a bkdk shipper as well, but I became confused when I found alot of people implying that Horikoshi “ships” bkdk or encourages it. For the longest time I’ve only ever consumed the anime and never really knew what’s been going on in the fandom. So I don’t know much about Horikoshi, but I swear I heard way back about him not liking the ship bkdk and deliberately implying the relationship between Izuku and Uruaka. The questions I’m getting at here is, what makes you think that Horikoshi wants bkdk to be canon and is there any hints about it outside of the main anime/manga that supports that? I acknowledge how it’s hinted at that bkdk heavily “need each other” or something like that in the anime/manga, I just always thought it was always going to be platonic and that Izuku and Uruaka will be end game. Maybe it is that and everyone is just joking about Horikoshi, idk I’m confused and lost lol.

Okay what you're asking for is a little strange, because Hori's storytelling really does speak for itself, his heart shows up the most in his writing of bkdk, but here goes…!

In regards to Hori’s feelings about them, hmm I’m going to get there one day soon(tm), but I’ll give you two examples outside the manga that show bkdk are important to him and why Hori is a bkdk like us.

First is when an interviewer was asking about Kirishima saving Katsuki and Hori responded to him with a sentiment that sounded a lot like “actually the takeaway from this scene was bkdk. that it was a bittersweet moment because Izuku couldn’t be the one to take his hand… but the decision was made." He really deflected the topic away from Kirishima and pointed at bkdk "Look at them instead".

Showing importance of that decision to bkdk’s development because THEY are what’s most important to the series, not any of their relationships with the main side characters. (And then we got the parallel to this where Katsuki feels he didn’t have what it took to take Izuku’s hand during the Deku retrieval arc. Regrets, regrets, regrets... everywhere. Now Katsuki is dead and Izuku "still hasn't told him ____")

My second example is something I bring up on twitter a bit, but that's only because it's so validating.

So you know when Katsuki died, every bkdk was crying and/or freaking out, right? Back then the mood was… “How is Izuku going to react to this?” And in a lot of bkdk’s hearts, we imagined Izuku kneeling at Katsuki’s side, embracing him, possibly acting very protectively over his body. People drew fanart of this.

I also had this kind of vision of him... but back then, MANY of us did.

But for the most part, we knew it wouldn’t be practical in the middle of a fight setting and then come January, Horikoshi showed us he felt the exact same way as us about them with his Volume 37 cover “illustration.” It was like a brainworm image of Izuku and Katsuki he couldn't get out of his head unless he drew it for the cover, something he felt bkdk deserved, but he couldn't give it to them in the manga because of the unrealism and impracticality of it happening mid-fight.

What I’m saying is: when Katsuki died, all bkdks dreamed of Izuku holding him close and/or protecting him and Horikoshi turned that collective vision, that many of us felt in our hearts, into a freaking volume cover.

As bkdks, we have this idea in our heads of these characters; what motivates them, what or who are important to them, because this far along the story, these characters are basically writing themselves. And by him and us connecting on this feeling Izuku has with Katsuki, Hori is confirming the way we see Izuku and the importance of his intense love for Katsuki as "the correct version" of Izuku that also exists in HIS mind, and he showed his hand to us of him being the biggest bkdk out of all of us. He quite literally is our King of BkDk.

The reveal of this cover is the moment I knew, without a doubt, that Hori was one of us. And that's not even factoring in that Edgeshot quote. Even that is a whole thing in itself to unpack, which I've done multiple times already.

If Hori's chosen composition and overall mood for this cover weren't already damning enough evidence for his love of bkdk and intent on making them canon, the other thing of note is that the red fingers in their background are HEAVILY inspired by Berserk.

When I saw it, I got flashbacks of the eclipse, and the hand that lifted Griffith out of Guts' reach. It also turns out there was a very similar "lovers" pose between Guts and Casca for that eclipse content. And then there are all of those Spider-Man death embraces with Gwen Stacy.

The inspirations for this volume 37 for the hero comic-loving Horikoshi are quite clear: Izuku is embracing his future lover.

[grilledcheeseandguavajelly]

I have been seeing a lot of discourse on certain tags lately about fanfiction and writing fics that are “out of character”. And I don’t like conflict, so I was keeping my nose out. But now I’ve seen some things that I just can’t let go, and as the self-proclaimed fandom mom, I feel like I need to step in and state this loud and clear—

Fandom is for you.

The whole point of fanfic and fanart and cosplay and anything fan related is for you, the fan, to take a work that has already been created and have fun with it. Make it your own. Dive in and explore and do what you will. Fandom is meant to be a creative outlet where you can share ideas and art with other people who have the same interests as you.

THAT BEING SAID: it is never. And I repeat, NEVER okay to gatekeep fandom. And yeah, I fucking hate the word gatekeep. But it’s the only way to describe what I’m seeing happening. And so I’m going to use it again—

It is never okay to gatekeep fandom. It is never okay to gatekeep characters. And to throw negativity at anyone’s work, let alone come straight out and tell them that they’re wrong for shaping a character a certain way— I’m sorry, but where do you get off? I am completely understanding of wanting characters to stay true to the source material. I am completely understanding of having your own opinions about/expectations for a character and wanting them to behave a certain way. But YOU, my dear friend (or rather, we), are not the creator of those characters. Which means that we have no right to tell someone else what they can or cannot do with them.

The whole point of fandom is to let your imagination run wild. And if that means that a typically good character leans more evil in a fic, fine. If they make decisions you don’t agree with, great. If they do things that directly contradict what would have happened in the source material, even better!!

LET. PEOPLE. CREATE.

Let them throw characters into crazy situations and analyze how they react. Let them stretch them out like putty and poke at all of the soft bits inside. Let them shape them into something completely other just to see what happens. Let them be curious. Let them explore. Let them have fun.

Fandom should be fun.

And the second one person starts dictating what is right or wrong for a character or a ship, that’s the second it stops being fun. And that’s when fandoms die.

Don’t gatekeep something that doesn’t belong to you. Because again— It doesn’t belong to you.

You are allowed to have your own opinions. You are allowed to have your own expectations for characters. But who do you think you are, to flat out tell someone (or a group of people) that the way they write someone is wrong? That the way they have imagined something is wrong? That their creativity, their expression, their joy, is wrong? Or, as I’ve seen more recently, when someone gets dejected by the posts you’ve made telling them they’re creating wrong, you have the audacity to tell them “that’s okay, now that you know you did something I don’t like, you can reevaluate your work and try to improve!”

How dare you.

Because once again, I hate to break it to you, but you’re not the creator of these characters. And I’m going to go out on a limb and say that the actual creator is probably just so happy to see the diversity of idea that has sprung from their creation. So who do you think you are, to dictate an entire fandom?

If you don’t like it, move along. Click out of the fic, find something else to read. I understand having frustrations when things don’t go as you’d hoped, when a piece of work that you were excited about crosses those outer lines of your expectations and you feel disappointed. Again. But you know what? That’s your expectation. What about the person halfway across the world who reads the same fic and finds themselves in it? Finds a small piece of comfort that encourages them to hold on for just one more day. What happens when your words completely discourage the creators of your fandom, have them second guessing themselves? What happens when they lose confidence and stop creating completely? What happens when the fandom dies, and suddenly there’s nothing new to explore— to your standards or not?

You are allowed to have your opinions. Of course you are. You are allowed to express them. But you are never. EVER. allowed to tell people that they are wrong for making art that you don’t agree with. For using their imagination in a way that doesn’t fit into your small box of approval.

Let creators find happiness.

Let creators create.

[olderthannetfic]

https://olderthannetfic.tumblr.com/post/718540890786922496

The crucial difference, to me, is that fandom is for fun and guilting people into changing what they do for fun generally does not work.

I've been in a fandom situation like anon describes. In a book fandom some years ago there was a lot of discourse over the appearance and ethnicity of characters with very sparse book descriptions in fanart and the way racialized stereotypes feed into those choices. I agreed with a lot of the points - though not always how they were made; there was a lot of that early Tumblr "we're not obliged to be nice to our oppressors" rhetoric used as an excuse to harass people. I didn't receive such harassment myself, and I actually liked a lot of the POC-centric headcanons that some of the fans were promoting and adopted some of them for my own. I started making fanart where one or more of the characters were POC.

But ultimately l stopped making content for that fandom around that time. The feeling of scrutiny and having to self-censor and second-guess myself before choices as inconsequential - in the grand scheme of things - as how dark I make the skin of a fictional character I draw for my own fun and for an audience of like ten people - took the fun out of fandom. I don't have a lot of self-discipline, I can't just sit down and make things. If I make art, it's because I got a random bout of passion to create something in my head and I carried it through before the excitement ran out. Putting any brakes and checks and "but what will people think of this?" in there means the art never sees the light of day.

And maybe that was good for the POC artists in the fandom - one less white artist drawing two characters of unspecified ethnicity as white. I'm sure some people reading this would be like "good riddance". But if the goal is to drive away white artists so POC artists receive more attention, then that's a little harder to make sound appealing, isn't it? I mean, I wouldn't even take issue with it if that were the goal, fair's fair and all that. But then don't present it as "oh we just want our POC ships and characters to stop being snubbed!"

(In an ironic twist, the book has since received a visual adaptation with white leads and the substantial diversity that was previously found in fanart even pre-discourse disappeared basically overnight. Which just goes to show how silly it is to act like individual random-ass fanartists have much impact. )

...The other crucial difference is that online settings are inherently anonymized in a way a real-life engineering workplace or whatever isn't. Most people don't know the demographics and ethnicity of most other people they interact with, unless it specifically comes up. Even on places like Twitter this continues to hold true, and it drastically changes what it means when POC fans' content and opinions are ignored, and how to fix that. I don't have a point here except to say that a lot of this discussion seems to assume racist bias is targeted when it very much isn't, and act like "just stop being racist and ignoring fans of color on purpose, you dicks!" is a viable solution.

At the end of the day, the problem I see here is people with actual institutional power (in this case, people making design choices of big-budget media) need to make more and better POC characters, and then the fandom will follow - rather than expecting fans as an amorphous collective to pick up the slack where the mainstream dropped it. Those are the people you need to be putting pressure on. Funnily enough, the people I virtually never see accused of racism is the people who were actually in charge of the aforementioned visual adaptation...

--

[pickypickypeak]

hey is it just me who just find it baffling why Starboy even has a fandom? Normally I don’t like to be a party pooper regarding interests and selfshipping is fine but I never like how his fandom ignore Asha’s ENTIRE DANG ARC and think it’d be better if a twink was there. Yes we need more black lead romances but it screams regressive to me. Because I remember Disney was constantly hit with piss poor takes abt romance from “critics” and now y’all want a romance? Even if they give the Starboy x Asha ship y’all want ppl will then say it’s forced het. It’s just sad bc I appreciate the movie as is

Exactly, I also hate to be a killjoy when people feel inspired to actually be creative and do something in the fandom by making fanart or fics instead of just moaning endlessly about something they half read on tiktok (that was also… mostly made up). I still don’t hold anything against starboy or even an asha romance concept, I just think it’s sad that 1. People think she NEEDS a boyfriend in order for wish to be a good movie and 2. They act like disney never gave us a heterosexual couple?? Come on now. Many starboy essays I see around can be summarized with: “why did they get rid of the sexy twink??😭” which is… I mean… And I’m not trying to diminish people’s work, really, I’ve seen some AMAZING fanart for asha and starboy. I just wish they stopped with the insufferable captions (“we were robbed!!!! This is wish as it should have been!!!!”) because what they do is only fueling further hate from half disinterested people who will look at their posts while scrolling and say “yeah, this was so much better, disney sucks”. And yes, about the critics; people spent years criticizing snow white for being “weak”, then when a latina actress was cast as her and said the same thing, The Knights of Snow White rose to defend her because she’s apparently everyone’s favorite princess now.

[brookiidookiii]

oughhh jock! jock i love you jock. for the ask

Oh thank you for this. They’re my childhood OTP so I do have a lottttt to say. Sommeliershipping permanently doomed me to only enjoy rivals to lovers dynamics

1. What made you ship it?

First off they are constantly touching each others chests MY GOD. Not to mention how often they get up in each others faces holy shit.

That is ZOKE levels of closeness. Jesus

I think you have to be dumb to not see why people ship it. Also that whole “need to be dominated” scene with dawn, then jo shows up right after that and bosses him around. COME ON. Then the rest of that scene and how it played out. Him poking her chest and then she pushes him away in a way that’s like “oh I’ll show you who’s boss.” Squat thruster ‼️‼️‼️ (why did she do that) Plus she seems to have genuine respect for him which is really nice. She’s given him the most nicknames out of everyone too.

Also 2/5 of bricks confessionals are about jo. The other three times he’s just talking about himself. I thought that’d be fun to mention. Jo wants to feel good about herself and brick wants to be a fashion designer and he can make her cute clothes i think.

I am never going to let anyone ever forget about that “maybe brick and jo wanna kiss and make up?” line UGHHH. Even Chris low key shipped it. There’s just sooo much to them. Also comedy potential with lightning thinking Jo’s a gay twink the whole time and idk maybe there could be something with jock and lightning. I’m convinced at least a few animators shipped them.

Just WIWJWJEN there’s so so so much. She’s the only person who convinced him to go against his code. That man is devoted. And then when she pulled him out of that grave and there was music playing and they zoomed in on them holding hands.. I initially shipped them because when I was younger I was looking for fanart and came across a fake screenshot of them kissing and 9 year old me beloved it was real 🥲 you can imagine my disappointment when they didn’t end up smooching. In the finale they’re constantly next to each other too. There’s way too much going on between them, I also take Jo’s dream about letting a guy win because she found him ‘attractive’ as a jock crumb. + they have a good ship name.

That rock climbing scene where brick talks about his rock wall climbing badge or something and jo seems genuinely impressed for a moment, then he goes on and says how he dislocated his hip and jo is like “oh never mind he’s weird.” LMAOOO. Brick really wanted to show off there huh. They’re both so fucking stupid iwhwnsnens

Plus we know Jo’s type is dark hair and cleft chins. She really needs to kiss her rivals okay

2. What are your favorite things about this ship?

Basically everything I mentioned before. Bricks “need to be dominated” basically confirms that jo would be his type, what can I say. And he calls her ma’am, and is just generally very respectful even when she gets under his skin. I really really love how jo tries to get under his skin, it’s so fun. And brick is slowly losing his mind. Also he didn’t vote for her in ep7, he voted for lightning, and we know that because jo got her marshmallow first, meaning lightning got one vote from brick. That is soo. Yeah. He probably would feel bad if he voted for her. He probably didn’t vote for her in ep4 either.

And he breaks his code for her. Like, his entire thing is never leave a man behind, and jo convinces him to leave everyone behind. And that causes his first elimination but MANNNNN…. He really really respects her. And I really like women who bully their boyfriends, it’s so fun. There’s probably so much more that I could say about them that I forgot to add.

3. Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

When people write their platonic dynamic in fanfics is always so. Meh. They treat it like she just harasses him but he views her as an equal, and she sees him as a competitor she can actually have banter with. Also please stop calling them mlm/wlw solidarity. I’m not saying that because I ship them but because she has made it her life goal to make his as miserable as possible. HOSTILITY.

I’ll make my own analysis on their rivalry, not to be shippy but so people just understand how they interact because a lot of people don’t get it.

Jock is very very special to me. The only way I can enjoy m/f ships is if they’re fighting 24/7. It’s awesome. Plus he’s also the only man I can ship with Jo tbh. Other m/f Jo ships make me like ehhhhh I dunno

[goat-and-a-pig]

See the Light Info Post!

Here's a couple of things that you need to know for next month:

-I will be posting one chapter daily. Due to the fact that April is a 30-day month and not a 31-day month like I originally planned, the story will begin on March 31st with the prologue and end May 2nd with the epilogue.

-If I miss a day of posting, I will post two chapters the next day so that I stay on schedule. Please don't come for me if I post late! I have a life that will get busy mid-April and I apologize in advance but you shouting at me can't make the chapter come any sooner. Thanks!

-I will post the actual chapter under the read more so that a) people won't see spoilers accidentally and b) people can look at the other stuff I've posted without having to scroll down so far.

-This fanfic is mostly about family! Yes, there's romance, but it is not, I REPEAT, NOT, between the character in Rapunzel's role and the one in Flynn Rider's role. DO NOT TAG MY FANFIC AS INCEST. I WILL BLOCK YOU.

-I'm posting the summary tomorrow!

-You can send asks about the fanfic all throughout the month! I'm not going to reply to any that have a spoiler as their answer, so don't get offended if I don't answer. I'll be holding a headcanon ask day on May 3rd so that you all can ask your burning questions. All throughout the month you can ask for clarification on something in the chapters posted. I have a lot of knowledge that might make some things make sense that I couldn't fit in there (and some that has nothing to do with it at all lol). I can't wait to see what you come up with!

-Feel free to make fanart! NO INCEST, PEDOPHILIA, OR BILL SHIPPING. As, I said before, I will block you. I would also prefer no NSFW, as I am ace and I made this fanfic friendly for all ages, just like Gravity Falls itself is. But I'd truly love to see your fanart, please tag me so that I can find it easier!

-If you post anything about my fanfic, please give me credit where it's due. Thank you!

-I'm also going to post an internet friendly acknowledgements for all of the people who deserve the acknowledgement, probably also on May 3rd.

-There's no swearing, only jokes about it (just like Gravity Falls lol). I can't promise that it won't make you say "Hot Belgian waffles!" for real though, when it comes to some suspense. ;)

I think that's all, if I missed anything I'll add it on later. Send me an ask if you're curious about a detail I might not have added in by accident! I'll see you all in the light of tomorrow.

Reality is an illusion, the universe is a hologram, buy gold, bye!

[preciousraltsshipping]

Ok a little ship explanation

This is a combination of two of the creators comfort ships into one poly relationship given it’s comforting to them

The ships are

Precious Metal Shipping

And Ralts Shipping

This universe mostly takes place at these character ages here in order

Ruby: 17 and a half

Wally: Young 17

Silver: 16 almost 17

Gold: 16 and a half

Given I feel those ages fit

Also these guys are inspired by pokespe and the games and my own headcanons really depends on what I write

Now a few comfort rules

Pls don’t sexualize this ship THESE ARE CANONICALLY CHILDREN (age like 11)

Feel free to write fanfic or draw fanart legitimately I’ll squeal especially if you send it to me

Feel free to adapt them however you like!

Also there is a discord! To speak about the ship join 👹👹👹 /nf

You can leave now but the dynamics between characters are under the cut if you wanna read my ideas

Gold x Ruby is a basic bad boy x Preppy guy but with a lot more of the prep complaining the bad boy needs to wash up a bit Also the prep being a admirer of romance so does romantic gestures often but soft ones compared to the forward actions of the bad boy (Think Ruby does hand kisses constantly) (And Gold does full out lip kisses sometimes it being one of the only ways to fluster Ruby)

Gold x Silver is the regular dynamic

Gold x Wally is another bad boy x prep but this time the prep is easy to fluster and they’re both lovers of cuddles and softness (If two of the couple are cuddling it’s likely these two given they both have touch as a love language) (also think of Gold as the kind of person who holds Wally’s hand in public if Ruby isn’t already)

Wally x Silver is different forms of trauma of Wally has medical and Silver has family also it’s prep x bad boy again (another detail I have a headcanon that Silver has IBD sooooo Wally probably is use enough to hospitals to help Silver through actually getting help)

Wally x Ruby is just adorable in general they have technically been dating the longest and tend to hold hands in public, Ruby prepares just for Wally like having water incase Wally has a coughing fit, Ruby listens to Wally’s rambles and Wally listens to Ruby’s, ect ect (Pretty much they are practically in sync)

Ruby x Silver is talking abt bad dads probably competing on bruises qwq but in all honesty they are adorable! Like Silver is use to standing alone but now Ruby is legitimately making breakfast and other things like helping Silver with his hair which is something Gold didn’t know how to do (They also often swoon over the other two together) (They’re so goofy)

[theghostbunnie]

hi, i saw your post answering nick deactivating all their profiles and i want to admit this since i feel kinda responsible but i think i mightve been the reason why they deactivated, you dont need to post this if you dont want to but consider this an admission of guilt of some sort

because nick had all xyr profiles still up even after the alligations happened for a good month or so, i spontaiously remembered their existance one night and realised that, by locking their profile on twt (i didnt follow xem back) and noticing that most of their art wasnt on there ment that alot of people wouldnt get to enjoy their art, and me being big on archiving content i like i decided to start up a blog on archiving their art since they were semi-big in the fairly oddparents fandom on twitter

since ive ran two previous art archive blogs before i made sure to check that nick had been completely inactive and not on any other account, making sure not to post any of their art already on tumblr since the blog was still up at the time and i had planned on saving those as drafts if something happened, and i had set up a small queue on whatever art i could find searching their username on google, and most importantly i let them know in the pinned post that if they wanted this archive taken down then i will 100% take it down

the next day after i made that blog ive noticed i had recieved two dms from nick telling me to take this down, i didnt actually read them fully, all i saw was "may you take this archive down?" and sprinted to deactivate the entire blog (i would be lying if i said i wasnt curious to know how exactly they found the blog, but thats me being nosey someone probably told xem, not very relevant to the conversation)

it wasnt untill i was scrolling through my main blogs post on a tag that ive noticed that they deactivated, and at first i thought that maybe it just showed them as deactivated despite changing their url or something since ive noticed it would sometimes happen, but nope, fully deactivated

i personally, as ive mentioned, wasnt mutuals with xem nor would i have really considered us accuaintences, more of a 'people who happened to be in the same soup isle in the same store' shtick, but they would sometimes send funny replies, i wasnt very big into the ship they were posting at the moment but i liked their art and they had shared some wc crossover art that made me happy since that was my special interest and it was sorta stuck in my head as a special little conversation ive had, and while digging i admitibly got sorta fascinated by masha / sasha in general inspite of the fact ive never watched camp camp before (trying to fight the demons rn)

i hold absoloutly no grudge against nick for telling me i should take it down as they have a right to and i explicitly said in the pinned that i would , i just feel very bad about the fact that ive made them extremely uncomfortable to the point where xe felt like xe had to remove their two only platforms they were active on in general, and again i feel very strongly about preservation of media for others to enjoy and it backfired and now no one gets to enjoy it, including the fact that they had made alot of fanart for a rarepair

(since the blog didnt really exist for more then 2 days and if you do want proof of the blogs existance heres a link to a reblog i happened to notice from someone i know -> https://www.tumblr.com/coolmika745/765034471884029952?source=share)

I'm gonna be so honest Idk how Twitter or archiving or alot of the stuff you just said works but maybe this information will be important to somebody so up it goes/gen

I still think it looks suspicious being accused of what they are they just go radio silent but everything is still just allegations at the moment

[lesbiansanemi]

oo for the ship ask game mitsuri and shinobu :3

I'M FINALLY ANSWERING THESE THEY'VE BEEN TAUNTING ME OMG anyways lol

I ABSOLUTELY SHIP THEM HEHE

What made you ship it?

I've always thought they were really cute together, but what really got to me with them was the concept of Mitsuri inspiring Shinobu to live again. I do adore Shinobu's canon character arc, I think it's my favorite in the whole series, but I do also find a lot of comfort in AUs where Shinobu comes to realize she has things to live for. I love when Mitsuri is what begins to inspire those feelings in her again, and I love fics and AUs where Mitsuri catches onto Shinobu's plan of poisoning herself and decides to do something about it to stop it. I think it's also fun from the angle of Mitsuri joining the Corps because she wanted to find love, I like turning her desires on their heel and she being the one who needs to save someone, becomes the "knight in shining armor" if you will. GAH there's just a lot I like about their dynamic, but this is really what made me think "oh yeah, I dig this" when it came to shipping them in a lot more genuine sense beyond "haha yay lesbians"

What are your favorite things about the ship?

I mean, it ties in a lot with my answer above, but it's really just their dynamic and the intermingling of their individual arcs and making them develop each other in ways they never got to in canon because they... you know... died lmao. (Again don't get me wrong I love their canon character arcs and honestly wouldn't really change them, just in fanworks, I do like getting to see them grow and move on in ways they weren't allowed to). Shinobu and Mitsuri really are just such complex characters, and letting them interact beyond the "haha cutesy lesbian wlw cheek kisses" fanart is just so fascinating and there's a lot to explore with them

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

I mean, I don't think this is unpopular among people who actually ship them, but more the kny fandom as a whole. The ppl who claim it's boring or have no substance make me roll my fucking eyes and yeah I def think its fandom's misogyny and lesbophobia thing at work cuz if they were guys and nothing else changed I know you ppl would be going feral over them. Like I said above, they have so much depth and such an interesting dynamic to explore! Ppl just don't actually think about them and shove them into "cute hand holding sapphics" at best because they don't... think about the female characters lmao. But me and the kny fandom at large have got mad beef over how they treat the female characters and sapphic ships