#I genuinely want to know if I'm problematic and just don't know it :D

[imhatsunemikurealz]

I'm probably going to lose a lot of friends for saying this, but...

I never, ever got the hate for Serena.

Okay, first thing you need to know is, this is coming from a multishipper (someone who ships multiple pairings with the same person). I like Pokeshipping, Negaishipping, Amourshipping, and Journeyshipping.

Second thing you need to know is, I have one big theory about Serena.

Serena is intended as a self-insert for female viewers.

Her relationship with Ash is hyped up more than Misty's, her goal (I do legitimately believe Showcases are her main goal, and that it wasn't just to get Ash's attention) is extremely hyperfeminine, she has almost no discernible personality whatsoever, and she has tons of alternate outfits.

Okay, so these may be stereotypical, but, as someone who was once a little girl, romance and fashion are often interests of little girls, and they were definitely interesfs of mine. Just look at the girlsgogames catalog and all their dress up and dating games!

When I was little (6-12) I watched every Pokemon season, but BW was my first and XY was my fave. I wanted more than anything to be Serena. I drew her in my sketchbooks, when I first got my hair cut I asked my friends if I looked like her (i did not), and I was a diehard Amourshipper (I also loved Misty and Iris and their respective pairings, but Serena was my favorite).

I thought Pokemon Showcases were the coolest, most adorable things ever.

Okay, this isn't just me defending Serena solely because I like her, so, i'll give you a lot of reasons why I don't understand why she's hated.

For starters, a lot of her worse actions and qualities (her throwing a tantrum over losing a showcase, the snowball thing, ash being her goal) have no excuses, but there are two interconnected explanations for them.

Serena is extremely insecure.

Serena is a child.

Serena is an insecure child who has no idea what a relationship is supposed to look like.

Also, several complaints bashers have about her are either completely unwarranted or, honestly huge stretches.

Complaint A:

Serena is a stalker.

Serena is not a stalker in my opinion, Wanting to meet your old friend again now that he's close to you...doesn't make you a stalker. Keeping something that reminds you of them doesn't make you a stalker. And accepting that old friend's invitation to travel with them definitely doesn't make you a stalker.

Complaint B:

Serena only exists for fanservice/to be sexualized.

What...uh...the fuck? If your first thought when seeing a child character dressed in perfectly normal clothes who just happens to have many alternate outfits (which are also very normal, aside from when they're literal stage outfits) is "This character is intended as a sex object"

I'm not going to throw around horrible accusations, but...I do think that's creepy.

Complaint C:

Her dream being Showcases is problematic.

Showcases are based on the Japanese music industry, which, while that industry and culture is extremely messed up and dehumanizing, being an idol is also a common dream for young Japanese girls, which goes with my theory of Serena being intended as a self insert for female viewers. I personally don't think this indicates the writer's view of women, as the other pokegirls had far more acceptable goals.

Complaint D:

Showcases were never even her goal, it was solely to get Ash's attention. I'm just gonna say it here...I don't believe that one bit. See how crushed she was on her first loss? She wouldn't react like that if it wasn't a genuine dream for her. Her theme, Doridori, doesn't reference being in love at all, it references wanting to find her own purpose in life. And that thing she said to Ash after kissing him, about being beautiful and being with him being her goal...once again...she's a kid. She has no idea how relationships work. She thought that was what he wanted to hear. And when she returns in Journeys, she's a Coordinator. She's been pursuing her goal without him.

Complaint E:

She's immature and a crybaby.

I feel like a lot of people forget that the Pokemon protagonists are all like, 10. They act, and often look, older. Ash is the only one who actually acts his age, and even then, he acts way older in gens 4 and 6. Serena strikes me as acting like an actual child, trying and failing to be mature and serious. She's very irrational and doesn't take failure well. She reacts to things with what she thinks will work, not what will actually work, and it builds up a sense of dramatic irony when people realize that no, it won't work. Of course she's immature, she's literally 10.

So, anyway...this was me trying (and probably failing) to defend Serena.

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for pretending my original fictional characters are my "friends" for the purpose of asking questions online?

Alright, so hear me out: I'm a writing hobbyist, I run a long-term D&D campaign, I like writing characters a lot and sometimes do it even outside of any stories, you could even say that it's my passion. Whenever I create a character that would have experience with something that I don't, I try to experience that thing myself, or if I can't, I ask others online about their experiences to make sure I can write my character accurately.

Here's the problem: back when I used to ask questions online from a writing/creative perspective, I felt like a lot of them concerning more controversial topics were getting dismissed and I got a lot of unsolicited writing advice unrelated to the original question. The most infuriating were always "You shouldn't write a character like that." or "You should change this integral part of the character to remove the issue that you're having."

Now, you can have whatever opinions you want about writing certain aspects of characters, but I would kindly ask you to shove them up your ass. I firmly believe that you can't judge a character accurately merely by their character traits written down in a vacuum, the execution is what really matters. One trait that could be seen as problematic when written badly can really enhance the character, story and it's themes if incorporated correctly. I'm not going to remove integral story-relevant characteristics of my OCs, and I sure as hell am not gonna delete them entirely just because an internet rando didn't believe that I could do them justice. Literally the entire reason why I'm asking these questions in the first place is because I'm trying to be as respectful/accurate to your culture/ethnicity/sexuality/gender/religion/disability/anything else. I GENUINELY want to learn and understand, so why don't you at least try to give me the benefit of the doubt instead of assuming it'll be done terribly?

Anyway, to give some examples of the questions that I've asked that were met with this kind of response:

"How would you write an autistic character who uses ASL but doesn't like to emote with their face?" (Was told to simply "make" the character like using their face even though it would go against how their other symptoms interact with each other, plus it would change how other characters view them and thus the story itself)

"What kind of slang would a black character raised in Brooklyn use?" (Was told to not write a black character using slang as a white person.)

"How would a Muslim character go about leaving their religion after losing their faith?" (Was told that the mere idea of an ex-muslim person was offensive)

I don't know if other writers also struggle with this, or if I'm just the unluckiest and always attract those kinds of people somehow, but after having to deal with it way too much I simply started lying and pretending that my characters are real so people would stop questioning my writing choices and just focus on answering my actual questions. For example, instead of the three questions above nowadays I would ask:

"Me and my Autistic friend are learning ASL together, but she doesn't like making expressions for sensory reasons. Is there anything else she can do?"

"What are some examples of actual slang used by black people in Brooklyn? My friend is from there but he likes to mess with me by coming up with fake words and pretending like they're slang, at this point idk what to believe."

"My friend lost their faith and is planning on leaving Islam. They don't have access to internet due to their parents so they wanted me to ask about what could be the possible consequences and how go about the process, or even where to start."

Also, obviously, I do way more research than just these questions, but I also really want to know the opinion of people in these communities about these topics and the discussion that develops from it. That's not something that simply reading a book or an article on a topic can give you and I believe that interacting with the community itself is an important part of properly portraying characters that belong to them as well. Still, a few of my friends told me that it's kinda shitty of me to lie in this way, especially when the end goal is to be respectful about certain traits yet me lying to these people is a sign of disrespect in their opinion. Personally I don't see it that way, I simply want people answering my questions to treat them seriously and if presenting them as real scenarios is what gets them to do it I feel like I have no choice, it has nothing to do with the respect I have for the communities in question.

Also, if this matters at all: 90% of my writing is entirely personal and will never be published in any way at all, the other 10% being the writing that I do for my D&D campaign which only my players get to witness.

So, with all of that out of the way, AITA?

What are these acronyms?

[legallyschrodingers]

Do you have any favourite ships? Any media you're interested in or just duo that you enjoy the dynamic of!!

Ok I barely join some popular media they're more like the quiet ones sooo

So uhh Napolington -

I usually stick to one ship in a fandom and call it a day,but in the end Love is love and as long as it's not really problematic I'm fine,Like when I first joined the Napoleonic fandom I stayed with my pairs till this day and those pairs were..(It may be in order)

And these pairs were pure gambles :D aka

I assumed relationships in FANART😨😨😨(Thank you Amino)

•Napoleonic

-Lannes&Ney:I feel like this Pair isn't talk ABT often😔😔😔My only history with them is that they're the first Marshals I found and paired

-Bessimu:Ill tell you a silly story of how I may have shipped them but I like their contradicting personalities!(they're literally the "inside you are two wolves" meme)

....uhhh ok after some thoughts this ship is sort of my guilty pleasure.Like it's literally corroding my brain

-Massoult:OK GUYS HEAR ME OUT-

ok but genuinely I was relieved knowing they're relationship was pretty good (yk more support to the ship rather than just saying they both liked looting-)The letter from Massena also helped and I like imagining them interacting in my head which IM NOT TELLING YOU OR I WILL GET TAKEN TO THE PYSCHE WARD/but genuinely every knew irl or fannon interaction thats positive makes genuinely ecstatic and full of Dopamine(overall I like a tired grumpy man with a...tired...and old man idk)

-I have more actually it's just that I can't explain all since they did say"Media"so my generals but Classical music ig is next

{A ship I feel like my reasoning should just be kept since I'm on thin ice with this is Bethomoz,thank youu}

•Choliszt:Classic, literally unrequited love,I feel bad for Liszt ngl he seemed so genuinely sweet to Chopin (irl)and Chopin is just annoyed(from what I read)this is also the next ship you'll see in the fandom

Berlix- I heard somewhere Berlioz just casually calls Mendelssohn "Love" or something like that overall they seem quite nice for eachother that's all

Prokshos:I love them SM (Rns_williams drop another Prokshos fic and MY LIFE IS YOURS/SRS)I love the escalation from admiration to rivalry between them and even in the end Shosty still cared for Prokofiev:)

{Some rarepairs}

Vivaldi&Bach:They seem honestly so sweet for eachother.Bach's admiration for Vivaldi was so big he transcribed a handful of his concertos (And I think transcription is like a compliment since your spreading the work of an artist you think is great)Oh and look! They're blue and red what a twist

Paganini& Vivaldi: Literally those "AngelxDevil" gacha trope, They're also both Italians and from what I read Vivaldi was considered a Virtuoso before Paganini came in,Id like to see more stuff ABT them

Paganini &Mozart:Mostly a twist thing I genuinely don't hold that much love for it but I do find them funny and silly!

-Some other pairs(Pairs that I don't really think ABT but still pairs)

•Alberose(Genshin)

•Saintpierre(Frev)

•Saintmoulins(Frev)

•Robesmoulins(Frev)

•Madohomu(Madoka Magica)

•Zhongven(Genshin)

•Gakukai(Vocaloid)

•Skk(BSD)

•Shin Skk(BSD)

Anyways thats maybe all I can cram:,)✧･ﾟ:❀✧･ﾟ✧･ﾟ:❀✧･ﾟThank you to whoever asked ABT this!Maybe we can even talk further if anyone who saw this happened to have something to say!!!🌸🍓🫶🫶

-yours truly

Oh once again I'm sorry for unorganised and probably worng wording so if you want clarification pls tell me😭😭😭😭I'm scared I got something misunderstood

(ANYWAYS WHAT A TRIP THAT WAS AMIRIGHT????){pls laugh/j}

[vitanithepure]

A penny for your thoughts on Gale x all other companions ships!

Thank you, thank you, thank you for the ask Anon! I'll even give them away for free! :D

Okay, so all of them... in no particular order and with very mild spoilers:

Gale x Lae'zel 💜

Oooh, l like the idea! I often talk about Gale being patient, but for this one to work I think it's Lae'zel who would need much of it. They have a super fast and solid friendship foundation (much to my surprise, but I absolutely love it!), but they also have some extremely different views on physicality so Lae'zel would need to maintain her interest beyond that for it to work. I see it as a solid relationship, lots of eye-rolling and shared curiosity - acting like an old married couple from the get-go. 

Gale x Shadowheart 💜

I kind of see it? But two things need to happen for it to work for me. Gale would need to tone that curiosity down, because Shadowheart starts off as a very private person, so him poking and prodding about both her and/or that mysterious artifact she's carrying would only raise her hackles. And as for Shadowheart - she needs to drop Shar down the drain. I don't see a place in her heart for anyone while still being a worshiper, and Gale is also too much of a man of faith to get involved with a cleric of Shar. Otherwise I see them as a super sweet couple, spending their life quietly, never far from each other, always walking hand in hand. 

Gale x Astarion 💜💔

I can't be normal about them and it's all @malewife-mansplain-magus's fault 😭Do I see it working? Yes! Do both of them need to put a lot of work into it? Of course. There is no easy start for that relationship I can think of. Astarion will always be a brat at the very beginning, but I believe Gale would quickly catch on his posturing and wait it out. And in the end both of them want the same thing, even if they don't know it at first. And I'm willing to die on this hill. Do I also believe they could work as a "bad" couple? Both at their absolute worst? Yes, in a very toxic, irredeemable way. For some time. 

Gale x Wyll 💜

Sweetness overload from the beginning to the very end. No problematic behavior here, just respect, love and devotion. I'm still thinking about @galedekarios's gifset, it lives absolutely rent-free in my head and I swear it's the stuff dreams are made of. I see it working no matter the decision Wyll makes when it comes to his pact, Gale will be there and make use of that mind of his to come up with solutions, and Wyll will be their defender till his dying breath. Classic Disney experience. 

Gale x Karlach 💜💔

Ah, the "I got a thing growing in my chest and it's not my heart" duo! I can't come up with a reason this wouldn't work. Those two are shaped to fit with literally anyone willing to give them a chance. This would be the adorable instance of the lovable and quirky extrovert adopting the quiet and dorky introvert. It's hard to imagine Karlach's enthusiasm not infecting Gale in the most positive ways, that is exactly what he needs, and I'll be damned if Gale wouldn't fight for her, to convince her to give him time to take care of her problem, like they found a way to solve his. Potential for heartbreak though? Over 9000 😭

Gale x Halsin 💔

That's...tough. On the outside one would think they are a perfect match, both are kind, reserved, willing to go out of their comfort zones to help others. And at first I think that would work. Halsin would genuinely care for Gale, but seeing how Halsin's romance pans out… no, I don't think it would survive. Gale is in it for the long run, I don't see it working "long distance" so to speak, and Halsin obviously needs some space from time to time. 

Gale x Jaheira 💔

Hm… truth be told I don't see Jaheira in the market for love anymore. I didn't see her back in BG2 and I don't see it now. For me, she is forever Khalid's soulmate and I can't see her giving her all to anyone else. I also don't think Gale would be interested in, again, being someone's second choice. Even though I know they are both capable of looking past it, I don't think they would be 100% happy.

Gale x Minsc 💛

I have never been more on the fence about a ship than here. It's a big yes and a big no. It would be an amazing thing, differences can bring people together and there are enough of them here to last a lifetime, but on the other hand… Minsc is not out here for romantic or physical aspects of love! He loves life, he loves kicking evil's butt! He loves Boo and he loves protecting the weak! He is here for all the platonic things life has to offer and I love it for him!

Gale x Minthara 💔

No, I don't see it happening the way the game goes. For Gale to meet Minthara he would need to go through betraying the people at the Grove, and we know what his reaction to that is. I don't see it going forward from being resentful towards her, and I don't see her possessing the patience to wait him out, she would have zero incentive to do it too. There is just not enough to build up that relationship in those circumstances.

Thank you again for the ask and please, if anyone wants to talk about anything BG3 related, feel free! As much as I found I love talking about it, I want to hear all your thoughts as well!

[lanaevyssmoved]

i hope this doesn't come across as an attack, i'm genuinely just curious. on the one hand you say that a fictional character and headcanons for that character or actions/attractions towards that character is never cause for being mean to anyone, but also that people who headcanon astarion to be mentally young and still fuck him are weirdos. i just don't see how it's less 'problematic' to say that you find astarion sexier as an unhealed abuse victim/abuser so you're going to go the ascendant route than it is to say you find astarion sexier when he's mentally underage. both of those things are bad in that they'd be shitty to do to real people, but in the context of fiction i don't understand how one is fine and the other is weird or evil.

for what it's worth i agree with your astarion age opinions! i absolutely think it is weird to be attracted to someone you view as a child! it just feels incongruous with your other takes on fiction.

i think people romancing and sleeping with a character they are viewing as a child/teenager is strange, that's all. i didn't even say 'don't do this!' i just said it's "weird and sus", because i want to help people realise how they are sounding to others, who may instinctively judge them and possibly attack them. at the end of the day, i can't stop people for going against d&d lore for their own preferred headcanon, but what if they're misunderstanding? what if they don't know lore? what if they're just explaining themselves poorly? what if they're just not aware they're making themselves sound this way?

i don't put this on the same level as telling someone they are a terrible person because they say, ascend astarion or keep astarion as a spawn, since we're talking about him, and saying "bit weird you wanna sleep with someone you think is akin to a child". one of these could have dangerous connotations to real life, it could genuinely paint someone has a dangerous person.

i am victim of a romantic relationship where someone picked me because of my vulnerability. to share a bit about myself, i have abusive parents who purposely sheltered me from the world to control me. they did not even allow me to get a job, or to go out and meet people. i was told, from a very young age, that the world will hurt me and they won't understand me (because of disorders i have) and they will keep me safe. they never want me to leave. and thus i have mentally aged 'slower' than i should have. i shan't say more than that, but this person i met, and became aware of this, immediately sought a romantic relationship with me, which led to them using my lack of experience in life and lack of know to also control me, and continue to infantilise me and keep me as 'young' as they could. control my entire life, my money, what i do, where i go, what i dress, everything about me. i know how terrifying it is to be chosen by someone because of 'mental immature', being 'under developed'.

when i think of this, and think of people who choose astarion while viewing him the same way- do you know what i think? "do you realise how much of an abuser you sound like?" you are those people who choose someone due to how easy it would be to abuse them. so yes, i worry these people just aren't aware of how dangerous they sound. i word it like 'weird' and 'sus' because i would never target them with such harsh and powerful language, but i think that alone is enough to make someone think about it, maybe enough to realise they need to change how they talk about astarion, or adjust their pov.

i've had friends come to me in tears because someone attacked them viciously for a choice they made in the game, a choice available to everyone, a choice there because you are allowed to pick it. that they are legit a bad person to their core because they picked something in a damn game. this is no where near the same to me as wanting a sexual relationship with someone you think is mentally underdeveloped. they cannot be compared.

i hope this all makes sense and i didn't miss one of your points, admittedly i don't want to look at this any longer.

[zelda-cooper]

Thoughts, Headcanons and Comments on Negaduck (My AU).

This here is more of a commentary blog and maybe a rant, it can also be considered as a headcanon blog and also for Negaduck fans (which I feel like the majority will curse me A LOT for not agreeing with either group, OG and DT 2017). For those who want to, they can read it as they wish, but I'm already advancing that it's LONG and will have some low-level words (I'll censor it, but it's still worth it). Feel free to leave comments about your opinions... And preferably, the comments should be healthy...

So... I woke up these days and thought to myself... "Do you know what would be good today? Talking about a character idolized by the majority of Fandom as the best villain in Darkwing Duck and a hidden passion for many people and suffering hate from everyone ? YAY!!! =D" (yes, I have self-love... Don't worry, this is just a joke).

Me after this blog:

Ok, clarifying something for everyone here... I like Negaduck himself, I really like his concept and even his personality. Characters that are basically chaotic, crazy and the reincarnation of evil itself, I love that concept. My problem with Negaduck is kind of his Fandom... People put him on a pedestal and say he's the ultimate villain and the rest is just the rest... I'm talking about a kind of toxic part of the community, like those who make meaningless or simply problematic ships (sorry for those who ship, but Darkwing Duck and Negaduck would NEVER happen in this ship, they are literally mortal enemies and in OG it's worse because Negaduck is an alternative version of Drake). My problem is not the character, the problem is his toxic fans and the fact that he is always considered one of the best villains and blah blah blah. Guys, I see Negaduck as a good antagonistic figure to DWD. The vision of what Drake could become if something went wrong. A criminal genius who has no scruples about getting what he wants and who will do the worst things in the world to get what he wants, including threatening his own companions, the Fearsome Four, with death. A psychopathic maniac who is so toxic that he is basically disgusting and chaotic. Think of classic Disney villains who were the antithesis of evil, like Jafar and the Evil Queen. They're almost pure evil, but they're still charismatic. Basically a villain we love to hate.

Having already spoken my vision, let's move on to the Headcanons and also criticisms of both Negaducks (the OG 1991 and the DT 2017). Just remembering that I like both versions, but I have my criticisms of them... It's never an attack on the fans, it's just constructive criticism and my view of the character. And let's start with what people apparently idolize the most... Negaduck/Jim Starling from DT 2017. Starting with the most controversial one here that will cause me more attacks from the fans, but ok! =D

The story they made for Negaduck is, to say the least, curious... He was the original actor in the Darkwing Duck series in the Ducktales Reboot universe, whose career took a break after the series ended and he wanted to return in the new film. His name is Jim Starling (pause to praise the idea of the name and her reference, the team is to be congratulated on this honor), he is apparently a duck in his 40s and, apparently, serves to draw a parallel with the DW of original series. The original protagonist of the series that many people followed and to be the antithesis of Drake Mallard, who is the new modern Darkwing Duck of this generation. There are things that I genuinely like about this new Negaduck, like the fact that he is his own character and not an alternative version or copy of Darkwing, the metalanguage with the original Darkwing Duck being a series in Ducktales and things like that... My problem is what they did, the execution... I don't know, I don't like how they wrote Jim, he often makes parallels with the OG protagonist Darkwing Duck and seems to demonize him, while exalting the current Drake Mallard who is nicer, the which I honestly don't like. Besides... WHAT THE F*CK DO HAPPENED WITH JIM AT THE END?!?! A CRAP SCENARIO FELL ON HIS HEAD AND HE BECAME GOO, THEN HE BECAME NEGADUCK?!?! What did they give the screenwriters?! Give me, I want 2 of these...

Okay, calm down... Back to focus... I don't like how this ending happened, it kind of takes away the idea that he's a human and makes him turn into a mutant, which I don't approve of since the fun part is that Darkwing Duck and Negaduck are human, but they're impressive they survive something that would kill them (like old cartoons) and don't get a scratch. The justification they gave to Drake is good, that he always stands up because he has impressive willpower and that he is stubborn. But Negaduck... No! I would change that yes, Jim would survive even though that thing fell on his head and crushed him, but it would have just been a "scene" that he did, but he would appear injured and, if he appeared again, it would show him with scars from that incident . It would be much better... Now, his motivation... It's kind of whatever... I don't hate it, but the way it was done I didn't think it was cool, even though the justification was valid. I've seen some people making fun of him that he just "wanted attention", which is kind of true... But considering that ND is evil incarnate, you can accept it. Oh, and one last aspect that I liked and that was in the classic series... When Negaduck is completely unstable and basically insane, his eyes become spirals. That's awesome, I'm not going to lie. :³

Alright, now let's move on to the 1991 version of Negaduck from Darkwing Duck. Here they will probably give me a lot of hate attacks too...

Negaduck OG is the counterpart of Darkwing Duck from the Negaverse, an evil version of Drake Mallard who went to the Primeverse for who knows why and is wreaking terror in St. Canarian... He is the leader of the Fearsome Five, a criminal genius and also one of the most dangerous villains. That's in the sense of... He has a BUNCH OF GUNS THAT HE TAKES OUT WHO KNOWS WHERE AND EXPLOSIVES THAT COULD DESTROY THE ENTIRE CITY!!!! Besides, he is a genius criminal strategist and basically almost destroyed the city and even the multiverse in one of his madnesses. For that reason alone, I really like the concept, a person who basically represents chaos in person (Paddywhack doesn't count here, because he's literally a chaos demon) and who is one of Darkwing Duck's smartest villains who almost defeated him. My main problem with him is... He's basically a version of DWD from another universe and he's evil. I don't know about you, but this sounds so generic... There's this with Superman, Batman, Spider-Man multiverse story and "What if"... It's not that I don't like opposite versions of heroes, I do... But when it's a separate character from him. Reverse Flash, for example, is a completely different person from the Flash, Dr. Zoom. Making Negaduck just an evil alternative version of Darkwing is a bit boring because it's a bit limited... Besides, they didn't properly explore the Negaverse itself... ND is a good character, yes, but it's just this lock that makes me think: "Really? One more? Okay...-_-". I like what DT 2017 did, separating Negaduck from Darkwing Duck, in the sense of giving him an identity and not making him an "evil Darkwing Duck from another reality", making Negaduck his own person. Negaduck's parallel with Darkwing Duck becomes more interesting and palpable, whereas in the OG it's kind of a tired trope. There are certain versions that I applaud standing up, like the Hulk and Batman with one of them, but otherwise it's written in a generic way until...

But then... After complaining so much, I just want to say something... This in no way makes one version better than the other, each version is different and they all have their mistakes and successes. I've seen people comparing both versions and saying that the old Negaduck was better than the 2017 one, but I think it's slightly stupid. Each version is for a different audience, if you liked it, fine, if not, that's fine too. I've seen @o-dandelion-o compare both versions and say that the 2017 ND is a crybaby (I would personally give that to the 2017 Drake, but ok...) and that the 1991 ND is superior... It was probably a joke , but it's worth highlighting... Guys, it doesn't make any difference to me! I'm a writer and I can play the character any way I want! I don't agree with the vision of certain artists, and that's okay! I respect their vision! Only that! I want to make it extremely clear that my version of Negaduck mixes these two, the original and the 2017 version. I took the concept of him being his own character, Jim Starling, but I kept the chaotic and evil incarnate essence of the original. It's an alternative universe created by me and my friend, that's all...

Anyway... I think that's it, thanks to whoever read this... Until next time...

Final arts made for @anniesilveratl2 .

[kutputli]

"The gothic horror of everyone being problematic abusive vampires is achieved by making all the cast removed from the structural imbalance of whiteness." They definitely would've removed the structural imbalance of whiteness, but genuinely asking, do you think then the fandom would be satisfied? Because I believe other things would be a problem, like antiblackness, colorism, different seual orientations etc. Which I'm not saying it's on the same level of what a black Louis with a white Lestat represents, or that it would be wrong to have those other conversations, it wouldn't at all... I just find it difficult to put everyone on the same level of privilege or lack of it, where we can finally judge them based on only the actions. I don't know if you're even possible to write/cast a show like that, I have never seen one. D:

It's a valid question! And I agree, that removing whiteness from the leads does not automatically put everyone on a level playing field in terms of identity. (We see that already with how the casting of Assad and Jacob has affected their characters).

And a story where everyone has the same level of privilege of necessity becomes a rather insular, undiverse show, of which we have seen many, many.

The reason I suggested specifically that Lestat should have been recast, is that the goal of the showrunners is focussed around him. I disagree with that choice, because for me Jacob's Louis warranted being the heart of the show from beginning to end, but it is clear that for the showrunners it is Lestat's narrative arc that is reason for telling the story. Whether he is an anti-hero or a redeemed villain, the point is that he is THE protagonist, to the point where he intrudes into the narrative even when there is no reason for him to. It is because of the weight of that characterisation of him, that I would have wanted him to not be white. Then specifically we could see how this experiment of an abuser in season one and a lyncher in season two going to a rockstar (redeemed?) in season 3 would land. Without the cushion of whiteness.

The Gothic element is the most stark when it comes to this kind of fucked-up protagonist, and I think the story with its audacious writing would have been so much stronger if the safey net of whiteness has been taken away from Lestat. (Not to mention, imagine what a role for an actor of colour to sink his teeth into.) The other power imbalances and identity heirarchies would have continued to affect such a Lestat and the other characters - that's fine, it adds to the verisimilitude of a story told across specific histories and locations. But that one specific concept of the monstrous patriarch who is also a romantic lead, that concept for once being removed from whiteness - I think that would have made for some brilliant TV.

(Of course, in that case the producers might have felt more compelled to get a more racially diverse writers room, even additional show runners, and all of that, too, would have been to the narrative's benefit.)

[bearly-holding-on]

For the Salt Ask! 7, 8, and 12!! :D

7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

I don't think hate is the right word, since I can't really say I hate any characters, but whenever I see Aura come up in fandom conversation, I'm thinking "oh brother here we go again" because they water her down to practically nothing. I have very little memory of Dual Destinies, but I do remember Aura being a lot more than just "Metis's wife" (which she never was in the first place, but I think people say this so they can call Cykesquill "problematic").

8. common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

That Turnabout Big Top is a "bad case." I think a lot has to do with them having a bitch in their ear yapping about the inevitable result of Capcom USA neglecting to change Regina's age in localization (maybe they thought it could stay because 16 is an age of consent in many states and you can also drop out of school, work full time, and drive a car; I genuinely don't know). It's almost all people ever talk about when they're hating on it. At least back in the day, it was Moe's testimony and penalties, something actually mattering in playing the case, that people used as their reasonings, but I personally think Moe is hilarious. Shu Takumi's love of magic tricks really shines in this case, and I think that's such an important aspect of examining just about any creative work: how much love was involved. I sound like some kind of hippie, sure, but it's really obvious, especially with modern media, when a creation is hollow and made with no passion for the project at all.

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

LARRY! LARRY LARRY LARRY LARRY!

I love him so much! He is the spark that ignites the flame of Phoenix's story! He's who takes (or finds, as clarified by the anime) Miles's lunch money; heck, he even joined in with Miles defending Phoenix (though less formally). Maybe he knew he was the culprit or maybe he forgot he picked up that exact amount of money but still defended his friend. He tries his best to help any way he can and doesn't have a bone of malice in his body.

He stepped up to aid in Phoenix's defense of Miles, believing in him just as he believed in Phoenix during the class trial. He called Miles when Phoenix fell off Dusky Bridge. He formed a connection with Misty Fey by studying under her and maybe that could have provided Maya with just a little bit of closure (but we'll never know because Maya and Larry are two deeply traumatized characters who don't really allow themselves time to decompress and process all of that: Maya for Pearly's sake and Larry because he's repressing everything he can).

He is constantly learning new skills: sculpting, engineering, salesmanship, illustration, writing, acting, and baking. He wants to improve himself, but his self-esteem issues never let him see just how far he's come.

I just want him to know he can and should be proud of himself.

[disdaidal]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers (except me because obvs I have done it). Spread the self-love ❤

D'aww thank you hun! I'm not sure I can answer with five because all my favorite fics written by me don't even exist on the internet anymore. 🙊 But I can always try~

To the Moon and Back is something I'm currently working on and very excited about. It's a multichapter Final Fantasy 7 fic, Cloud/Zack, omegaverse, rated E etc.

Since it's my very first FF7 fic as well as my first published omegaverse fic ever, I was initially quite nervous to even start writing it let alone publish it. It has three published chapters on ao3, all of which have gotten positive feedback so far (and subs, I see ya <3), which obviously inspires me a lot. I'm already having lots of ideas for future chapters and also few good ideas how I'm going to end it, something which doesn't always happen to me (I just go with the flow, most of time). The story also has some non-traditional omegaverse elements because well, omegas and alphas don't always have to be so stereotypical, I think, and... truthfully... I just had a mighty craving for some sloppy bottom/omega!Zack the fandom is feeding me absolute crumbs in that sense and seems to think cloud's dick is just a pretty accessory XD I'm feeling like I can actually make my own rules here and it feels pretty damn good right now.

A Touch of Cinnamon, Gallahir/Witcher. Roommates, Friends to Lovers, multichapter, rated E. I answered in another tag game already why this story was such a passion project for me last autumn, but yeah. It was inspired by OneofWeb's Buttercup Tattoo series (some really nice works there <3), and I genuinely enjoyed writing and planning it. Like I also mentioned before, it's still a work in progress but never say never. :D

There Must Be An Angel (Playing With My Heart), Harringrove/Stranger Things, Homelessness/Guardian Angels, multichapter, rated E.

How this story originally got its inspiration, well... once upon a time I watched a Japanese gay porn movie with a plot (gasp) and uhh, I might've expanded on that a little bit. *hides* Sadly the story only has one chapter that's been lying in wait for almost two years now, but... I am still thinking about it sometimes. I really liked the original idea (:P) and I still like the following story idea that I came up with, so hmm. Maybe if I get inspired to write something for this ship again, I could be tempted to continue this.

As for other two... I used to write plenty of rps bandfic back in the day and that one AU one-shot (or was it two-shot? anyway) I wrote somewhere around late 2008 I think, got a little bit smutty, a little bit 'problematic' as well, and man... what can I say, I still like that one. A lot, actually. The ship I wrote that fic for wasn't super popular in that band either but didn't matter to me.

And the fifth? One of my future works perhaps? :D

As for tagging... I already tagged a few people in previous tag games and I don't know how many of you actually care about doing these things, so... feel free to take this from me if you see this and want to do this. <3

[kneelingshadowsalome]

lmao im sorry for making your blog a space for arguments, but, as the autistic engel anon, i am autistic 😭😭

i genuinely only sent that ask because that's how i myself am perceived by people and how i often end up feeling. the sarcastic "self-indulgent" was the thing that i thought would make it clear where im coming from.

i dont know if this is a language barrier sort of thing but i dont know why That would make people assume that i am not autistic, or why me making that kind of ask to comfort myself is suddenly turned into this kind of conversation lol

especially since i hear the term "loser" towards myself a lot (as well as its synonyms) from other people who don't understand me and don't believe that i could be autistic (because of being a woman, being able to mask well, living in a country that isn't educated on the topic well enough yet)

so like. idk! im sorry for saying something that anon found hurtful, but i think that across most communities that are jokes/sayings/etc that are okay for some people and aren't okay for others. so im sorry if what i said was indeed as hurtful as the other anon described it. i genuinely didn't intend to hurt anyone especially since i sent that ask after being mistreated by someone close to me and wouldn't want to someone else to feel hurt by it

and if that was the case for most people then maybe it would really be better to delete it? im not sure, but thank you as a writer for creating something so beautiful in response to my ask 🫶🩷

Look! 🩷 My darling autistic engel anon. I loved your ask and the first thing I did in the morning was write a little something for it because I thought it was adorable, relatable and delightful. The fact that you came to me of all ppl with that prompt, then came to thank me and say that it’s beautiful?! means the world to me! I don’t want to delete it 🩷 Of course if the majority of people came to me with torches and pitchforks I might reconsider but it sure doesn't look like it, and I trust that those who didn't like it just scrolled past, unfollowed, blocked, you know, the usual. At the end of the day, this is just a silly little cock blog curated by an autistic dumbo :D

I’m here to provide myself and other people a romantic escape, I'm here to address all kinds of funny crazy thirsty tropes, issues, kinks, whatever through writing because it's a much more controlled and safe environment compared to real life. But I can’t please everyone and it’s a bit futile to even try, I'm not perfect. Someone might find my blurbs and fics too fluffy, for someone else they're too angsty, too kinky, too vanilla, too this, too that, insensitive, problematic, boring, evil, I dunno. What other people perceive as cute, beautiful and self-indulgent might be something completely different to others. We're all different and for me your ask happened to bring joy 💌

[feyrevelry]

𝐑𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒

main TWs: violence, drugs, alcohol.

♛ ⸻ This muse is heavily based on my RL DnD character! :D Not a rule, but fun to know? I guess?

♛ ⸻ I write on discord! Moots, feel free to ask for it c:

♛ ⸻ 25+ ONLY.

♛ ⸻ Most important rule: Communication is key!! You'd like to share an idea? Go right ahead. Don't like where the plot is going? Let me know. You want to scream about our muses? YES. Writing is so much more fun if the muns get along. I promise, I don't bite.

♛ ⸻ Second most important rule: Don't be a dick. Be an adult and act like one. I'm here to write and have fun. The block button and I are besties, and I use it often to curate my space. Keep your OOC drama, IRL political discourse, callouts, IRL bigotry and asshole-ery faaaaaar away from me. If you think it's cute to police someone's content, ships or make assumptions about their morals OOC because they enjoy dark content, block me (and go touch some grass).

♛ ⸻ Dead Dove friendly. Content warning: violence, abuse, gore, monsters, sex, gaslighting, manipulation, drug use / abuse, canon-typical fantasy racism and overall offensive / problematic themes. I'll do my best, but triggers won't always be tagged (major and obvious ones aside should they occur). If you're triggered by any of these, this blog isn't for you. Trigger tag is " tw: trigger "

♛ ⸻ I'm selective and mutuals only because I'm very busy ooc and run multiple blogs. Which also means there will be phases of tumblr inactivity, or me focusing only on a select few threads / muses until I have time to tackle older drafts.

♛ ⸻ I only follow back if I see potential for future threads. If I follow you, I want to interact! Don't be shy <3 I will also assume that if you follow me (back), you're fine with me sending you memes, tagging you in starters and sliding into your IMs to plot. I won't follow if you have a lot DNIs, if your rules page isn't accessible, if your main verse/s for your (multi)muse isn't Baldur's Gate or DnD related, if you use heavy formatting (overly spaced out punctuation and words, all caps or lowercase for entire paragraphs, all bold or italics for entire paragraphs... my brain just says no).

♛ ⸻ If you don't want to interact with me, I genuinely don't care whether you unfollow, soft block or hard block. Just keep in mind I have the memory of a soggy sponge. If you only unfollow or soft block, I might not even realize and could still try to interact. If you want no interaction at all, please just hard block.

♛ ⸻ This blog is multiship, male lean (I feel more comfortable writing M x M ships). Matter of fact, I love to ship, so if that's something you'd like to do, slide into my inbox, send shippy memes, etc. I do write smut on dash now (wow), which will be tagged with a plain and simple #nsfw. If things get very kinky, I still prefer discord though.

♛ ⸻ Need an ice breaker? Send memes! I may not respond to all of them and not every meme will spark a new thread, but... send memes. If you want to turn a meme into a thread, DO IT. No need to ask.

[heretherebedork]

In Be My Favorite, I just can't with how everybody thinks that Pisaeng is absolutely perfect and Kawi is the only one with problems. Like, Pisaeng ALSO has so many problematic characteristics! (And so I'm sorry because this is sooo long!!)

Pisaeng's negative trait of being conflict-averse and not taking action until he either gets a mighty kick in the butt or it's actually already too late and he's standing at the altar led to many problems, especially in the original timeline.

2. This negative quality of Pisaeng is very well reflected in the original timeline and has led to, among other things: (A) That Pisaeng never approached Kawi and shared his feelings for him, (B) that he never sought a conversation with Kawi to clear up the misunderstanding at the Buddy Story, (C) that he never (officially) came out, (D) that he never had the clarifying conversation with Pear and (E) on top of that marries her (because he probably also wanted to avoid a conflict with Pear here, which doesn't sound so unlikely after episode 7).

3. In another timeline, Pisaeng accuses Kawi of why Kawi didn't realize he had feelings for him for over 10 years. Whereby I wondered how Kawi should know that, because Pisaeng wasn't completely honest with Kawi in this timeline either and sent him completely different signals here, too, by being about to marry Pear. I can understand Kawi, who was completely perplexed and surprised at first.

4. Kawi didn't know about Pisaeng's feelings for him in the original timeline, the feelings which started much earlier than we assume in the first episodes, and Kawi only learned about it in timelines three/four, (from his point of view, the encroaching kiss from Pisaeng at the end of the episode).

He just cowers away from conflict so much, until everything is about fall apart (sometimes even after everything has fallen apart, he says nothing.)

No one is perfect and, frankly, no character needs to be perfect.

Sometimes, they just need to be likeable.

Added because I can't give short answers

Look, Piseang is conflict avoidant and learns better and starts standing up for himself and coming out and finding Kawi and confessing to him and taking to Max.

He is not perfect and I definitely prefer him that way. Perfect is boring, see Pob from Don't Say No who genuinely was perfect.

Piseang is plenty flawed but he is flawed in a way that is answered by visible growth that takes time but is seen again and again and becomes increasingly more selfless.

Did he literally assault Kawi in a timberline that no longer exists? Yes. But we've also seen how that future will never happen now because his choices and growth keep in going the more time he spends around better people.

Now, why he would never have spoken to Kawi in the original timeline makes the most sense since he did so exactly what he said he would which was wait for Kawi to tell him what he wanted and then stepped in to save him all without ever speaking to him and, honestly, probably had no idea how much any of that meant to Kawi since they never spoke.

But yeah. Piseang isn't perfect and I like that about him.

Only Max is perfect.

[naileadevoras]

This is hard to ask because I'm genuinely curious but how does one do a call out / psa for someone they know is problematic and nasty, especially when they claim to be a person of color but you know they're not because you were friends with them on Facebook and know they're the whitest of whites? I feel like it's lowkey doxing and don't want to stoop to their level while trying to warn others. Do I even mention the mutuals who also know this fact? And they just let them do this?

i feel like the first thing u need to do is figure out the pros & cons of making a call out post & think about how it'll affect whoever is involved . if you really want to write one , i suggest messaging the person in question first tbh ( you can also message the mutuals in case they have further info that could help ur case ) ; maybe find out why this person has been claiming to be a poc ? it's always better to know both sides of the story . also , posting messages might be the best form of ' proof ' without using their actual name / photos to dox them . however , i've never written a psa myself so here's a few i've found just in case you need ideas how to go about writing one [ a , b , c , d ]

[starrygalazy]

Uhhhhh hmmmmm Aighty

I'll try and talk without spoiling too much lol

So! Viktor! Aka Husky, yall can use either name- Husky was what he originally had, and then I decided I needed a different name- so I thought itd be funny to give the most feminine guy in Starborne one of the most masculine-associated names lol.

Also if you're new here and dont know who Im talking about

I'm talking about this twink

And genuinely, I loved drawing his design SO FUCKING MUCH, compared to everyone else I very much got carried away with the textures n such but I mean look at that!! Absolutely one of my best/favorite character designs

I also like that he very much knows what he likes in terms of femininity, as do most of my make characters bc yall were written by a girl who likes feminine guys, aint no toxic masculinity here (except sometimes Leo). Like, Vik loves being a very soft sort of feminine, he's very nice with that- but, just like how femininity and masculinity is a spectrum, so is Vik. He's more feminine-androgynous, but that doesn't mean he likes dresses and skirts and makeup and hyperfeminine things for himself, which is something I see a lot- bc just bc someone is comfortable with their femininity doesn't mean they're always going to be comfortable wearing hyperfeminine clothing, it's- again- a spectrum. Hell, Allister wears more skirts and dresses than Husky. And thats perfect, thats exactly how I want them to be!

But also, what else is Vik?

A painter, for one. That's what he is the first time we see him- hes a mixed media (acrylics & watercolor) painter who uses his ice powers to add a bit of extra texture to his art, the ice melting causes a lot of nice effects. And he tends to mostly be an abstract artist, although I wouldn't be surprised if he's decent at drawing people as well- just tends to be abstract. He likes to paint from vibes and how something feels to him, a preference that both causes and was caused by being in touch with his own emotions. And you can see more about how his mental state progresses through years through his art- from using cold and dark blues with splatters and splashes of black and red so dark you can barely see it, to light pastel clouds outlined by drips of silver and crystallized white.

You can probably gather from that statement that he used to have some hard times, and he did. Vik is one of those people who, by the time we introduce them, has healed enough to the point where you wouldn't suspect anything is wrong other than the fact he's a character of mine lol. The trauma all gets revealed in backstory and flashbacks and talking, and the trauma he gains through the series is much different and will change him in ways his past didn't.

I'm currently in a phase with him where I'm really trying to figure out where in the story he gets introduced- because originally, it was going to be before INTEA, but it may work better if he's introduced early on into the D-Squad's formation, when everything is still a bit fresh. Before he actually does join the D-Squad though, but after he starts seeing Leo, he does kind of watch over their house a bit- that will have some significance.

Hmm

Not sure what else to talk abt with him

He used to be really childish. Like, problematically childish. And I'm ashamed of it- I was young and didn't know better, but I very much am ashamed of it and like how he is now a lot better. When I first made him, he was nothing more than a boyfriend to Leo, and their relationship unfortunately was pretty fetishized on my part. This was in middle school, by the way, so I don't know what the hell I was thinking.

With that said, I have a couple goals in mind for Vik- mainly to further promote ignoring gender roles and set a strong feminine male figure for the viewers without fetishizing him. I mean, this is a fully grown-ass adult man lmao. Its counterintuitive to act like he's not just because he likes being cutesy and doesn't feel like he needs to always act like a bitter old adult. Femboy culture is huge and he's a representative of a side that I don't see very often in media- the side that acknowledges he's a fully grown man who's been making his own decisions for a while, doesn't fetishize his feminine aspects, and acknowledges that just because he likes SOME fem clothing doesn't mean he has to like it all.

Ofc, to each their own. But a lot of characters in Starborne are meant to break a few stereotypes like this.

Sooo yea! Viktor Levitsky. Love him. Need to figure out when he comes in.

Yo can someone give me a topic or character from one of my stories to yap about pls

Im bored lol

[nevergonnasimpyoumikey]

Just my personal thoughts on the way I use Tumblr and the unity of this fandom based on the recent discourse here on Tumblr.

tl;dr: I appreciate every creator in this fandom but no one can like everything in this fandom. Also don't bash ships or send hate.

I came to Tumblr originally to interact with people who enjoyed my fics. I stayed to post about my fics and also to find content that makes me laugh or inspires me to write, and that's the content I reblog. I don't aim to reblog everything about GTA or V. My idea for my blog is that at any time I want to be able to go through it and be entertained and/or inspired. And I often do scroll back on the old posts (I have a bad memory :D) so that's working for me!

But sometimes I do feel about that. Just because someone's art or fic doesn't personally speak to me, doesn't mean it's bad or not worthy of a reblog. It's just not for me but I appreciate everyone creating content because it's not easy AT ALL. And it's nothing personal against people: even if my dearest friends post about something I don't care about, I don't reblog.

So I've been wondering if should reblog posts just to lift up other people's works, but how could I do that and also keep the original idea of my blog? Likes don't increase visibility (also I use my likes as bookmarks :DD) so they don't help. I'm too lazy to tag things. I played with the idea of making a side blog where I reblog everything but I just don't have time to do that, and I don't think I'd even enjoy that all that much. But if anyone does have time, please feel free to steal that idea!

So I didn't find a solution to this other than doing my thing and trying not to stress about fandom stuff. I like that this fandom is so diverse, but I don't have time or interest to engage with everything, nor should I or anyone feel obliged to. Unity in fandom doesn't mean that everyone should like everything. Just looking at AO3, there are different ships for story mode and online, fics about RP characters and OC's...... We're all into different aspects of these games and that's okay.

So I don't know what could connect such a diverse fandom, except the obvious: be friendly to everyone, ACCEPT that other people are into different things, and don't be a fucking asshole and send hate to people or post negative stuff. I hate people bashing ships, whether that's Michael/Amanda or Trikey or some smaller ship, and the casual misogyny in the fandom (although in my experience, this is definitely a bigger problem in the fandom outside Tumblr, but I don't wanna see any more hate for Amanda here either).

In conclusion: If you don't like something, trying to convince other people not to like that thing gets you nowhere. You can't "convert" people because this fandom is so diverse, even if it is small. Pointing out problematic stuff and taking action when someone is acting in a hurtful way is different, of course, but in general, just let people enjoy what they enjoy!

It's of course sad that some ships don't have much content, but the best way to deal with that is to post things about it anyway and hope that someone thinks "Wait, that actually works". I'm saying this as someone who would love to read more Michael/Steve but isn't inspired enough to write about it, not yet, at least... People need to feel safe talking about smaller ships. And if you don't want to see posts about something, blacklisting is easy and I recommend it with all my heart. This is your free time, you gotta spend it the way you want to spend it. Block out stuff that makes you uncomfortable with no remorse.

All that being said: if I ever made anyone not feel safe or welcome in this fandom, I'd appreciate you messaging me, anon or off-anon, so I can check my behavior.

[whyamiherethoooo]

I never post on this account, quite literally never. But the amount of shit I've seen on my feed lately about this whole Taylor Swift/Matty Healy debacle is outrageous and embarrassing for all of you.

Taylor does not owe us shit. And I'm sick of all of you "fans" talking about hurt and offended you are just because she is in a new relationship which does not involve any of us in the fucking slightest.

This romance is not "hurting" any of you, because it does not directly affect you. Stop acting like it does. You're all being oversensitive and obnoxious about all of this. Let her live her life. She's dating someone with a problematic past, okay? So what? How does that offend any of you? Have we not all had problematic relationships in the past?

Personally, I trust Taylor to involve herself with people who she knows are genuinely good human beings. She's a feminist, she wouldn't date a misogynist. Matty Healy has said offensive things in the past, he's a loose canon with his political opinions. I don't disagree with the fact that he's a shitty person. I do however trust Taylor Swift. And if she's trusting herself with Matty, then I can abide by that, and keep my opinions to myself.

And if you all want to openly disapprove post hateful things about her simply because of who she's dating. You're not real fans. Mind your goddamn business. Stay out of her life.

She has told us numerous times to stay out of her love life, and just enjoy her music. The people who are victimizing themselves over what a grown-ass woman is doing need to genuinely go outside, get some vitamin D, and throw their phone in a river.

My comments will be open for discussion because I will receive hate for this post and that's totally fine

Taylor needs to be known for the art she creates, not the men she dates.