#I mean... tangentially

[egophiliac]

(breathing into a paper bag) FRALIO....

can't believe they gave us another guy. oh my god. so I guess Kelka is more, uhhh, more OOO then, and Fralio is Ankh? not that it matters too much, although they do seem to be doing something with the connected Riders so. who knows. anything goes! or if I may, anything gOOOes! god. of course they're the Ambition parallel. of course they are. oh my god.

fortunately there's nothing else they can throw at me right now that could possibly --

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[withthewindinherfootsteps]

I sometimes see the opinion that MXTX took the clichéd tropes she'd critiqued in Scum Villain, and played them straight in MDZS. But though a lot of them appear in MDZS, I'd argue that none are actually played straight at all!

The main point of MDZS's tropes is subversion. Yes, WWX has a 'tragic backstory', even an arguably overused one (orphaned by his parents at a young age, forced to live on the streets with nobody to rely on, etc) – but how things differ in how it's used. Tragic backstories are normally used to build sympathy for a character, to make us care and get invested in them. But... we're never actually shown any of those street days, we're never shown and never dwell upon how much he suffered during them. They're only really mentioned in passing and whenever dogs come up! If the goal was to make us feel bad for WWX, this would be very ineffective writing. But what's actually important here isn't that WWX went through tragedies – it's how he doesn't let the tragedies he went through define him. He doesn't dwell on them, the narrative doesn't dwell on them, it's never used to earn sympathy points... because what defines WWX is his choices and how he chooses to act, not a backstory completely out of his control. What gets us invested in him is his personality and the character writing of MXTX, not tragic events used as a substitute for identity.

And this trope treatment fits extremely well with WWX's personality itself – he's someone who 'forgets the pain as soon as the wound has healed'*, but also who actively chooses to focus on the present because you can't change the past; someone who holds the belief that 'gains and losses [should] remain uncommented on' when choosing what to do.

The use of the tragic backstory isn't the only thing that's subverted, either – the other main thing is the 'blackening' of the protagonist, and its impact on the protagonist's fall. After being thrown into the Burial Mounds, on a surface level it does seem like this blackening has occurred: the first thing we see when he returns is his gruesome torture of the Wen cultivators; he's 'forsaken' traditional cultivation in favour of an 'evil but more powerful' path; and frankly, Sunshot-era WWX is terrifying. But MDZS is not a blackening story, and so the events of the Burial Mounds aren't used as a catalyst for that purpose. Though it's true that WWX's not entirely the same person he was before (because how could be be?), underneath it all, his morals, worldview and core** stay the same. Though gruesome, his revenge is directed towards the ones who wronged him, not those past that and certainly not the entire world. His experience in the Burial Mounds doesn't lead to him being some evil, blackened overlord... like everyone says he is at the start! That's subverted, because again, WWX's values and choices are more important to the story than genre conventions.

But the most crucial thing? What leads to WWX's downfall isn't any blackening! It isn't any vengeance or morally dubious actions***– he was praised for those things during the Sunshot Campaign! No, what leads to his downfall is something completely unrelated to that, something which would've disappeared had the trope been played straight. It's him doing what's right by defending the Wens, it's him following his moral code when it opposes the world's, it's him standing up to the injustice of others – not others standing up to the injustice of him. That's the subversion here.

(Also, once again, the fall of Lotus Pier, the Burial Mound, etc, aren't used for sympathy points – and if it was relevant, they wouldn't have been used to excuse any actions, either. Using tragic events as an excuse for doing bad things is critiqued many times in MDZS, through characters like Xue Yang and Jin Guangyao. And that's not exactly a trope subversion, but it is a critique of badly handled 'excuses'.)

These are by no means all the tropes MDZS subverts – the nature of guidao vs the usual nature of modao being another very major one – but they're the main ones that feature in Scum Villain.

So, though at first glance MDZS seems to play the tropes MXTX critiqued there straighter, it's not a simple case of using them as cliches, and we see that by how they're used to impact the narrative, and how that differs from what they're traditionally used for. MDZS doesn't fall back into clichés Scum Villain satirised – it's the subversion to Scum Villain's exploration and critique.

--

*Which I know is generally used negatively, to describe someone not learning a lesson from a punishment, but it really describes WWX in general, too. He doesn't dwell on that pain, he does his best to move on from it.

**...heh

***And, because it's often debated – whatever the morality/culpability of Nightless City is doesn't even matter! The events happened at a pledge conference against him that was already taking place. WWX's actions there didn't make people want to kill him because that was explicitly happening beforehand.

[eddiegotout]

celebrities that spin out over anonymous hate not even like death threats or something just twitter accounts are so embarrassing to me. just don't look king some of us are tumblr users getting paid dozens of dollars an hour and we cope just fine. make a bed from your thousands or perhaps millions of dollars and lay down to deep breathe i'm sure it will all be okay <3

[ourflagmeansgayrights]

context, if such a thing even exists

stede: i think we should ask the crew to provide their own linens when they visit

ed: aw, what? what kind of shitass inn doesn’t even do linens for their guests?

stede: we can still do linens for regular guests, i just think-

ed: oh, cmon, we can’t give the crew worse service, they already hate me

stede: they do not hate you-

ed: well they might if we skimp on the linens!

stede: ed-

ed: i’ve gotten really good at washing linens, actually. i don’t know if you’ve noticed that. see how little jizz is on our sheets?

stede: …i mean, there is that rather large—

ed: ok that’s from literally a twenty minutes ago that doesn’t count, you know that doesn’t count

stede: alright, alright

ed: we literally haven’t even gotten out of bed yet

stede: fair enough

ed: if i wasn’t good at doing laundry this sheet would be just one big jizz stain and you know it

stede: this is true, you’re right. you’ve done an excellent job, sweetheart

ed: aww thanks babe :)

stede: im just a bit worried about the foursome

ed: (experiencing a sudden coughing fit) the what?

stede: the foursome? jim, olu, archie, and zheng?

ed: oh. oh. (clears throat) i thought you—nevermind. um.

ed: uhh what about them? you think i can’t handle their post-orgy cleanup?

stede: well…

ed: wait, seriously? it’s just two extra people, mate, it’s not that much more mess

stede: it’s not the quantity i’m concerned with, it’s the. well.

ed: …well?

stede: well. the thing is, archie always refers to sex with her partners as “goop sex”

ed:

ed: goop sex

stede: yes, goop sex

ed: are you sure she doesn’t call it “group sex” and you’re just mishearing her?

stede: no, it’s definitely goop sex

ed: hm

stede: admittedly i’m not completely sure what goop sex actually is—unless you happen to be familiar…?

ed: yeah no i’ve never heard of goop sex

stede: darn. well, in any case, i imagine there’s a very strong possibility that goop sex stains fabrics!

ed: hm, yeah, probably

stede: so you see my concern

ed: i do, yeah

stede: with the linens

ed: mhmm

stede: especially since we only have the one set!

ed: mhmm

stede: which we should probably do something about, actually, if we want to provide free linen service to our guests. although maybe we can wait until after the crew visits so we have an excuse for not doing their linens? what do you think?

ed: mmm

stede:

stede: ed, darling

ed: hhwhat sorry huh

stede: you zoned out for a moment there

ed: oh shit, my bad, babe

stede: no worries! i was just wondering where you’d gone to

ed: right, well, i’d gone to goop sex

stede: yknow i probably could’ve guessed that myself actually

ed: specifically i was thinking that we should try and figure out what goop sex is

stede: i

stede: hm.

stede:

stede:

stede: okay, but—

ed: oh cmon don’t give me that

stede: ed, th-

ed: i saw your face just now! i bet you already have some ideas!

stede: ok but ed we really only have the one set of linens!

ed: and you’re telling me you’re not willing to risk those linens to try out some of your guesses about goop sex?

stede: y—i’m—well. I-I mean,

ed: yeahhhh that’s what i thought, you fuckin pervert

stede: alright well i better not hear any complaining when our only set of sheets is reduced to one big goop stain!

ed: that is a price i will gladly pay to let you try out your goopy sex theories on me

[mousemannation]

is jannik like. Cosmically allowed to win turin since aryna didn't win the wta finals?

[candied-cae]

I know some folks have been saying “Ed wanted to die in the same place he laid next to Stede-“ WRONG! HE WANTED TO DIE WHERE STEDE LAID NEXT TO HIM!!!

The place Auntie points out as being where his head was crushed by the cannon ball is the exact spot where Stede’s head had been during the arrest and that’s even more insane than the first option. (Anyway, I wanted to correct that assumption. It’s only a matter of like 2 feet, but I still find it an important detail, and figured a visual might help!)

[seriema]

when sophia said "i want to be free..." when romeo said "maybe this is what freedom feels like." when both of them thank p for the mercy of death. you understand.

[accursedthing]

[plounce]

elle and emmett from the legally blonde musical are one of those m/f couples that i think work best as a woman and a man purely because their relationship and how elle wouldn't stay at harvard for him because she has grown to want true respect & success more than a man she loves' approval/desire is like so important to the themes of the story and it's the whole point and it's part of what makes them so good. on the other hand emmett could be such a hot butch lesbian it's crazy i want to eat drywall when i think about emmett forrest but a butch lesbian BUT it simply would not improve and in fact would detract from the themes of the story. they have to be m/f

[dimsilver]

btw re: the homeschooling debate and related things - this site has been absolutely wonderful for getting to appreciate people who aren’t automatically My Sort of Person. it’s actually opened my eyes to look for and enjoy all sorts of things about in-person people that I don’t automatically connect with. I’m not even sure how to express this but basically this site of such a good outlet for people’s inner selves that I am constantly confronted with the richness and complexity and honesty and quality and beauty of people who aren’t super similar to me and I think that’s awesome.

[d-dormant]

if i had a nickel for every time i read a bit of the maleficent novels in english and realised the russian translation i'd read years prior is shit out of ass and the original's completely different i'd have TOO MANY FUCKING NICKELS I CAN'T BELIEVE IT HAPPENED AGAIN

if you can believe it in russian she says "and you won't be one, wish as you might" i am going to start biting into furniture ive spent the last few days thinking up how to even bring the characters to that state for the fic (diaval wishing to be a human? since when?) and even managing to do that somewhat only to find out its not even what she says and she says the very opposite thing sjskshdgajaoatquqoshdgshjahaa

[sexylinoleum]

Based off that one Ralsei valentine. He is such a weirdo.

[deermouth]

Why is every mental health org website like "We practice trauma-informed, patient-led care" and then that gives you zero actionable information on whether or not they'll call the cops/EMS on you

[petrodragonicapocalypse]

this album art fucks so hard i'm gonna listen to it to see if it's any good

[leavingautumn13]

the group chat getting silly with it has fundamentally altered my brain chemistry and decimated the plot of the followup to that oneshot i posted a while back.

"i'm sorry about your years-long friendship that's exploding in spectacular fashion over accusations of your bestie's dad being a murderer. making out about it can't hurt, right?"

i should not have to say this but i'm going to anyway: may's an adult.

[something-about-sunflowers]

Right. So. I really need people to get okay with people disliking or even hating Ed. Like. As soon as possible.

I have always maintained that people are allowed to feel however they want about Izzy but they need to show the fans the bare minimum of respect by keeping it out of the tags and off their posts and out of their askboxes, as well as not moralizing over the fact that we like the character that they hate.

I feel the same about Ed.

I say this as someone who does still love Ed and is happy to see where this season takes him when he gets his chance for growth past his destructive spiral. (Note: I did not say 'self' destructive, because while he is hurting himself, he is also hurting others and that should be acknowledged.)

Think of what it tells survivors of DV/IPV when they see you say things like 'I can't believe people are vilifying Ed over what he's doing to Izzy'. You don't even have to be a survivor to find discomfort with a character who is doing those things. Regardless of how the season in full treats his behavior, what we've been presented with so far has very obviously been compared to a DV/IPV situation. The crew staged an intervention and held sympathy when Izzy cried. Even someone who doesn't like Izzy might find it difficult to still love - or even like - Ed at this association.

All this aside. It literally doesn't matter why someone hates Ed. As long as they have the common decency to not put outright hate in the character tag or on other people's posts or askboxes and not moralize over people who do still like/love the character it's fine. Which I have not seen really anyone doing anyway. At least not with any frequency with which to warrant the amount of 'give fans of Ed some grace' or 'you shouldn't hate Ed he's literally so sad and has never done anything wrong' type posts I've seen since the s2e1 clip came out.

It really is frustrating that Izzy-antis have used all the right phrases in this type of discourse without actually holding to any sort of principle of common decency, because really: Someone hating your favorite character does not affect you. Pointing out the things they did wrong is not hate (though it should, ideally, still be tagged as '[character] critical' or some such similar term). Having a reason for reprehensible behavior does not excuse said behavior.

We do not need to close ranks around Ed the way the Canyon tends to with Izzy because there is no wide-scale attack on his character or the people who still like/love him. Yes, have some grace to his fans but let's not create an environment where people feel like they're not allowed to criticize the character at all, even untagged on their own accounts.