#I tend to have more aesthetic attraction to masculinity but I have more romantic attraction to women because they’re closer to me

[itsso18plushuh]

Here’s my “certificate” of humanity:

I’m not a porn bot, I’m just a stupid human that likes interest stuff and prefers their stuff to be censored if possible. Maybe it’ll have my art on here.

Anyway, thank you, loves.

[astrowrld300]

Astro observations

Pt 3

Leo placements are not afraid to be romantic and I love it

Even though Sagittarius placements are super optimistic, the suns are never afraid to say when they are unhappy with something. It can come off as complaining and miserable after a while

Sagittarius suns are also more prone to depression because of how optimistic they can be sometimes, so when the harsh truth of reality hits and comes crashing down on them, they can’t handle it

The non-chalant taurus sun is just an act. They feel. A lot. They’re literally just too lazy to show they care sometimes. And when they don’t care, it’s never personal, but they’re never too lazy to freak out on you for messing with one of their material things.

Venus-Neptune conjunct/trine natives are mesmerizing. They’re beauty is dreamy, ethereal and absolutely out of this world

Virgo rising women have a very distinctive, sexy walk. It’s that hip swaying, one foot in front of another momentum. Could easily be a model just from their walk alone

Virgo men are usually always short and look like nerds

Virgo women are usually on the smaller/petite side. I see most struggle to gain weight or keep it. They also might be lean their whole life.

Taurus moon is a hella underrated placement when it comes to loyalty. These babies are generally too lazy to go out of their way too cheat on you. The sneaking and lying, they don’t have the energy for all that emotionally. Would rather just stay loyal until they leave

Aries suns and cancer risings are naturally built, they don’t need to work much on their bodies to have an attractive build

Leo mars get so mad when their ego is hurt and have a huge praise kink in bed

You could have been outshined by your siblings during childhood if your moon is in Leo, or your mom could have neglected you emotionally and not given you the attention you deserve

Help why are gemini moons so good at love bombing. So are Leo placements and aries venuses but that’s because they lose interest fast. Gemini moons can literally not have any interest in you at all and still love bomb tf outta you

Cancer men are funny asf. Their humour is like a gay best friend. Libra sun men are like this as well

Libras a masculine sign but they’re so feminine and gay. Both men and women

Taurus is a feminine sign but can be so masc sometimes. It’s more in the personality for women and the physicality for men

You need to prioritize self care if you have venus in the second house

Taurus men are the chillest people yk until you start doing them how they’re really doing you

Aquarius and Leo suns have the same amount of ego because they’re sister signs. Leo just isn’t afraid to show it and it’s a little bit more of a god complex for Aquarius

Aries moons start to throw things when they’re upset

Brush your hair out during Leo full moons!

Lilith in the sixth house natives tend to struggle keeping up with daily routines. They may also fall victim to sex scandals in the work place

Libra risings have such a classy, sweet and angelic look but are literally the opposite in reality

It’s exhausting trying to get emotional depth from a gemini moon, don’t even try

2nd house moon synastry makes the house person super possessive and insecure over the moon person, constantly trying to hold them down. There’s a lot of jealousy both emotionally and physically in the relationship

Capricorn risings give of crazy office siren vibes

Libra moon women know that beauty comes from within. They also have such a good eye when it comes to aesthetics and beauty. Their sensitivity to conflict is so cute, it’s they’re need for peace and harmony that makes them so attractive

Mercury at 0 degrees natives have no idea what they actually sound like

Everyone talks about Leo and how big their egos are but no one ever talks about Libra sun men. They always think they’re the prize when dating and their egos are huge

Pisces moons really do have those big dreamy eyes. Both men and women

Mars in 7th house natives tend to direct and put alot of their energy into relationships and partnerships. It may not even be intentional, you might find relationships just tend to drain your energy more than anything else in life

Aries moons are super masculine and have such defined jaws, even more then the sun

Cancer sun women have that timeless kind of look and can pull off so many different timelines of beauty

Taurus moons have thick necks

Gemini moons all have their eyes super close together. They also don’t mean anything they say

Capricorn and taurus women are such bread winners. They truly mastered the law of money

You’ll never see it coming but Taurus men will actually play tf outta you. Any sign has the potential to, but you really don’t see it coming with taurus men

Natives with Pluto in the eighth house are really resistant to change and may struggle to let go of destructive habits

Aries venus has this huge rep for being players but they actually feel super intensely when in love. They don’t like superficial relationships and want a deep, intense connection. Maybe they should stop going for emotionally unavailable people just because they like the chase …

Virgo moons make such good gardeners, it tends to be really therapeutic for them. Doing chores around the house like washing dishes is also super emotionally therapeutic for natives with Virgo moons

Pisces and Aries moons are more likely to get addicted to substances, but for different reasons. Pisces moons use it to escape reality while Aries moons use it to numb the intensity of their emotions

Instead of drugs, 5th house moons/mars/saturn natives use the pleasure in life to cope with emotions or trauma

Earth moons are super sensitive to light and loud noises

Taurus suns take their self care so seriously. It’s like an entire ritual to them. Their whole life even

10th house venus can indicate looking better as you age

Personal Leo placements will be the type to not be interested but decided to keep you around just for the attention anyways. Especially when it’s in the venus. This goes for the men and women

Virgo risings and gemini venuses are so adaptable to the people they hang out with

Gemini moons are babies to me, they just wanna be heard

Cancer rising women always have fat asses I’m not even joking.

Aries risings, venus 10th house and cancer rising natives age so gracefully

It’s such common knowledge for Pisces moons to be lowkey drug addicts but no one ever talks about how easy it is for Virgo and Gemini moons to get addicted to substances. These moon natives are constantly in their heads and always analyzing their emotions, using drugs to shut it off

Leo mercuries talk like children when they’re excited

Having your sun at 8 degress may cause you to have an obsessive personality, especially in circumstances where your ego is involved

Suns at Virgo degrees have such small features, especially if the sun is Cancer or Aries

There’s no point on trying to hate on a Virgo moon, they hate themselves more than you ever could. And the more you try and help them with their insecurity, the more they’ll push you away. They genuinely do not believe your reassurance, they’ll ask you for it anyways though.

Leo women like to take advantage of Pisces men. I’ve seen this scenario so many times both personally and within celebrities, Leo women like the power they feel when they’re using Pisces men.

Having a Virgo moon indicates your mom was extremely nit picky with you and strict asf while you were growing up. She was a perfectionist while raising you and had higher expectations from you vs her other kids. Your mothers lowkey made you hate yourselves I’m so sorry.

Leo mercuries and mars sometimes yell when they talk and don’t even realize. Aries mercury’s know they’re yelling, they just don’t think it’s a big deal

Mars in the first house is extremely intimidating. You could be 5 foot tall and still have this scary energy.

Mars-mercury conjuct in a synastry chart is super underrated. The energy is matched so well during convos and they get each other so passionately. Things get crazy aggressive when arguments pop up though.

Scorpio suns are possessive and jealous over the people they love while taurus suns are possessive of material things and the stuff they own.

Aries mercuries will say the rudest shit to you and then say they were just being honest, but it’s true. These natives hate delusion so much and will keep you in check

Having your mercury at the 17 degrees can make you naturally dramatic when you talk or come off as louder when speaking.

Virgo 4th house natives like their home really clean

People with prominent 9th house placements value education and higher learning so much. If you want to hurt a 9th house stellium, criticize their intelligence and academic accomplishments

You can have a lot more problems with tech during mercury retrogrades when you have heavy/personal Gemini and Virgo placements.

Leo mercuries ( especially those born in the generation with Pluto in Aquarius) are you guys okay? You’ll be having one of the hardest transits for almost 20 years.

[kevin-the-bruyne]

Branded Pairing Heteronormativity and the Subtle ways that First and Khaotung Spill Outside Those Outlines

Right off the bat I'm going to absolve myself of all culpability by saying that this is a solicited opinion so all anon hate can go to @kattyangel 🤣. The second thing is that this is an opinion that will talk about very nuanced subjective topics like heteronormative standards and conventional attractiveness in a country I'm not even from so go into it knowing that even subtle shifts in worldview can change the way we perceive these things. My only claim to fame here is that fan service is my hyperfixation and I have watched at least couples compilation videos of all GMM branded pairs but for the vast majority of them have watched shows/vlogs/interviews fairly extensively. So without any further ado let's get into what the connection is between First's height and his pairing's inability to perform heteronormativity well. A branded pair has two main ways of connecting to heteronormativity. One is via the individual's connection to their audience which at this point we know is majority female with some degree of romantic interest in men. Second, is via the dynamics of the couple itself.

For example, the ideal pairing is someone who's individual unit BOTH seem like they are interested in women but when put together can also believably fall into a 'top' and 'bottom' role. The categories of 'top' and 'bottom' here follow from the yaoi 'seme' and 'uke' narrative traditions but its less about who penetrates or is being penetrated and more along the lines of who's 'the wife and who's the husband' which is just a confusing mix of relative closeness to femininity, perceived dominance and certain physical features like height/resting bitch face and skin color.

The vast majority of branded pairs fall under this paradigm at GMM: GeminiFourth, TayNew, BrightWin, JoongDunk, PondPhuwin, ForceBook and the recently officially divorced Ohmnanon.

If the individuals have a strong connection to heteronormativity themselves, but fail to perform it with each other then they tend to fail like PerthChimon. So what happens when individuals within the unit aren't that straight to begin with? If at least one can perform traditional masculinity then they're in the clear! Famously, OffGun are husband and wife like no other and I hope they and Off's voodoo dolls of him and Gun prosper for the length of their lives. This format of pairings is not that common in GMM but litter the industry quite a bit, Zeenunew and MaxNat are pairings I'm quite familiar with that follow this.

What happens when both have low affinity towards traditional masculinity (especially in the way they interact with fans) or they're a little too queer in their dynamic for heteronormativity? Well that leaves you with *my* favorite pairings: EarthMix and FirstKhaotung But they're challenged in slightly different ways. EarthMix's primary dilemma comes from the fact that they're very likely actually dating and gay couples sometimes just won't have a heteronormative dynamic. Mix has always rebelled against being 'bottom' and he's usually the one refusing to play this game. Earth on the other hand just with his natural old man tendencies still fits into the top/husband role well while Mix can be pigeonholed into bratty wife/bottom when push comes to shove. But oh my poor sweet First, born with the personality of a man who's at least 5 inches shorter than him and obsessed with his idiot best friend who hated being the good little wife during his PoddKhao era so much that he really came into Firstkhao with his arms swinging like 'never again'. First and Khaotung have their personalities and aesthetics switched. Khaotung is both the more effeminate of the two and also the more dominant. If you've been following their dynamic since The Eclipse then you will know immediately what I'm talking about. So much of The Eclipse fan service felt like they were playing out top and bottom in reverse and then just remembering that First is indeed Too Tall for this to ever work lmao. I'm struggling to think of a single pair other than PerthSaint where the top was shorter let alone a full 4 inches. I mean fans nearly staged a coup at an event to have them renamed Khaofirst and I feel like they had come so close to convincing First too 😂 They've changed a lot now and Khaotung has cooled it, maybe to be more helpful to First but primarily because I think he's discovered that being the bottom in this dynamic comes with added benefits of being a sugar baby princess who gets waited on hand and foot. But First is also a sugar baby princess which is why he says things like 'I'm trying to be cool' or doing something macho and then immediately undercutting himself with a nervous little 'Was that cool?' or whining at fans to stop flirting with Khaotung instead of having a possessive lover dialogue like Phuwin's little 'you can flirt with him but he needs my permission to flirt with you'. First is performing machismo slightly worse than the 'bottom' of a different pair like what can I say askdjkfhdjh

Firstkhao are doing husband and wife well on stage nowadays but I think in less practiced formats they will revert to their original dynamic and First's 'top' persona breaks often. They hit a besotted wifeman equilibrium for First sometime during only friends and that kind of works for them both and I think they're trying to stay there for the most part. But that's what people who like First and Khaotung like. A vast majority of lesbians fall under the category of besotted wifeman so I mean it's really working out for me. It's just that sometimes it's a little painful seeing First try so hard to be more like Kant in RL and I'm just like babygirl please you're fine your friend over there looks like he likes getting fucked in the ass no matter what you do but alas 😔 Meanwhile every time Khaotung acts like a naive little helpless baby it feels like he's taken another step towards nirvana.

[punksocks]

Aspects that indicate MUTUAL attraction??

That’s there’s no chance for one sided love ..

This is an interesting question because the chemistry can be off the charts (pun not intended) but due to timing (divine timing even) the attraction can remain/become one sided. Sometimes you can even have a case of mutual attraction that stays unrequited because of whatever extenuating circumstances. Sometimes it’s just destined not to be and that’s alright too. with free will and all that it’s anyone’s guess where attraction will go if it goes anywhere at all.

But I can give you some synastry for strong romantic attraction !

-Venus conjunct Asc: this is like the “bam that’s my type” overlay. The Ascendant person is the aesthetic ideal for the Venus person. Everything about the Ascendant person will charm and infatuate the Venus person. The Venus person can also charm the ascendant person pretty easily in most cases. Easy placement to learn someone’s love language if the connection isn’t based on looks alone.

-Mars conjunct Asc: The Mars person will see the Ascendant person as an embodiment of their ideal s*x appeal. It’s another synastry aspect that can be kind of shallow (do they like each other just because of the intimate connection?) but can be a starter for significant attraction. Like sparks at first sight, especially for the planet person.

-Pluto conjunct Asc: Intimidating but oh so revealing. The kind of synastry that isn’t for the faint of heart and may scare certain types away (people that aren’t very plutonic may be curious but may run away from this sort of connection). This is the type of relationship that is going to make the Pluto person go through some sort of change as their shadow side and depth are illuminated with their time with the Ascendant person. The bond can be as dark and dependent as it is hypnotic. The Pluto person can sometimes lash out at the ascendant person because they feel so exposed. This synastry tends to play out best when both people are mature and sincerely care about each other (and the Plutonian connection will expose the truth about their feelings about each other). The connection feels fated.

-Venus Square Mars: The tension pulls the two parties together. Usually the strongest tension comes when the feminine energy is the Venus and the masculine energy is the mars. Can be tricky because ultimately the tension comes from different expressions of love and passion, so if either party is too insecure it can cause the connection to feel more fragile and need more work. The positive side of this is that the two parties really expand each other’s experiences and when they put effort in they can be each other’s most intimate and impressive partners. And the chemistry from the tension is explosive on every level. Never a boring day together for better and for worse.

-Moon conjunct Venus: the emotions and the romantic expression of the two are on the same level. The moon person feels enamored and at home with the Venus person, and the Venus person feels cared for and safe with the moon person. Just really sweet and lovey dovey energy all around that can help the connection last. In the short term it’s warm and renewing and in the long term it can bring a lot of peace to both parties.

-Venus/Mars square Pluto: More intense chemistry. Again not for the faint of heart. The Pluto person will bring about transformation and change in the Venus/Mars person. The two can explore uncharted territory together in terms of romantic/intimate expression. This synastry will often have the Venus/Mars person expressing their deep desires for love and intimacy for the Pluto person. The two will never be the same after this connection.

-Most Scorpio Synastry (but especially moon, venus, & mars overlays): this is so intense, it’s relatively easy to underestimate how deep the passion for this connection can run, especially for the person with the planets in Scorpio. There’s this layer of depth there that’s inherent to Scorpionic relationships, but it’s interesting how this tends to play out. I think it depends on how developed both parties are. The Scorpio person can become obsessive and enamored and the other person can become indulgent on being obsessed over (especially if the overlays are in 1st/8th/10th and to a lesser degree 5th). This can cause a lot of passion and intensity and the intimacy can be unparalleled. But also there’s always a volatile nature to this sort of chemistry. Obsession is a classical double edged sword. There’s passion but there’s also power and control and possession. The connection can be unstable or unbalanced with this sort of energy. If the Scorpio person is underdeveloped they can quickly get controlling and expect the world from the other person. But still a very intense connection nonetheless.

[cowboyjen68]

Hi, Jen! What’s up? Do you have an advice on how to write good butch characters? I’m thinking about writing a romance novel and one of the main characters is a masculine-presenting lesbian.

I would say the best way to get a well rounded view of butches is to ask as many as you can what they experience as butches. Don't really ask for a definition but about experiences they think are unique or common to butches. Figure out what they tend to share. What words they use to describe their daily interactions with other people and especially women and other lesbians and butches.

For me there is a vast difference between butch and masculine presenting. I don't "present" i just am. My aesthetics are technically a presentation but only in the context of a social stereotype. I look like a butch woman no matter my clothes. It is just that I feel better in what is called masculine clothes and that translates to feeling more comfortable and confident.

I can't dress out of my butchness. Drawing in the experiences butches have to your stories will create a realness about the characters. Some of that is the conflict we often share about being butch, or butch enough or what that means to us in the world and even in the context of our attraction to and relationships with women romantically or friendship wise.

Decide which dynamic you want if any on the romantic end. Butch/Femme, Butch4Butch etc. And having it not be set in stone can also bring a realness. Not all butches know what they are attracted to without some outward and inward exploration, which can often lead to disasterous or confusing relationships. I fought off being attracted to femmes AFTER my first girlfriend was a Femme. I over thought the idea that maybe we were emulating man/woman and it got me in a bit of long term relationship trouble. Now that I have fully embraced my attraction to femmes life is easier and better. That is just one example, but common enough lots of lesbians can relate to it.

I wish you luck and I hope you find your muse and inspiration if you haven't already.

[bisexualpositivity]

Hi! I'm submitting an ask mostly to... Maybe seek some validation for how I'm feeling and out of curiosity if anyone feels similarly.

So, I am a bisexual woman, that much I'm certain of. I've only ever had romantic relationships and been intimate with men, not due to lack of wanting to, more due to lack of queer femmes I was attracted to and that were also attracted to me. I'm in a long term relationship with a man - although he is very accepting and has said he doesn't mind if I want to sleep with other women (and not because he thinks it would be hot either, just because he doesn't want to stand in my way if I want to explore the "other side" of my sexuality) but I'm not really a casual hookup kind of person, so I have no plans of actually doing that. I'm mostly pretty confident in my identity even without having the experience. Anyways, all that is besides the point but maybe it's relevant. Idk.

If I had to define my identity more specifically, I guess I would describe myself as biromantic and demisexual, but it's a bit more complicated than that still.

Basically, I feel like I am demisexual only when it comes to my relationships with men. I am not/only very rarely sexually attracted to men when I have no romantic interest in them. It's very rare for me to see a man in the street that I am immediately sexually attracted to. I may have an aesthetic attraction to them, but it's not sexual at all, it's more like looking at a flower or a beautiful sunset. However, it's different with women. It's much more frequent for me to be immediately not just aesthetically but sexually attracted to a woman I see, even without any romantic interest. As for folks in between, I generally tend to be attracted to androgyny and femininity more than masculinity, on average.

Part of me wonders if it's because as a woman, I subconsciously feel more "intimidated" when it comes to being intimate with men, so I need a certain level of connection to feel safe enough to even consider getting to that point, whereas another woman feels more "safe" and less likely to hurt me?

And another part of me feels some sort of guilt about it, like I'm unfairly sexualizing women the way society likes to do to us. I don't approach the people I feel this way about, of course, I just wonder if there's a societal conditioning aspect to how I feel, like I've seen women be sexualized more throughout my life while men were the romantic interest, so is that why I inherently think of women as more sexual/physically attractive than men? Because that's how I've been taught to see women? I wanna think I don't objectify anyone, and it's not inherently objectifying to be physically attracted to someone, right? But what if this is me subconsciously doing that thing where some people don't value f/f relationships the same as m/f ones, and don't take it seriously, reduce it down to "it's hot" and that's all?

That's the point where some doubts creep into my identity, I guess. Since I have no romantic relationships with women under my belt, can I really know? (The old familiar questions we and other people constantly ask ourselves! Which I hate!!) I've had some crushes, but due to lack of any possibility of pursuing (most of my girl crushes were very much straight) they always ended up being kinda surface level. So... what if I only see women sexually, not romantically? Like if I were to try and date a woman, what if I realised that romantic part just wasn't there? And if that was the case, would that be wrong?

Basically, I know I'm bisexual, for sure, but sometimes I wonder if I'm somehow bi for the wrong REASONS if that makes any sense. It's like bi imposter syndrome or something.

Okay I'll wrap up this wall of text- sorry for using the ask box to have my little identity crisis lol

I'll try to respond to individual parts of what you've said here.

what if I only see women sexually, not romantically?

Are you familiar with the split attraction model? It's definitely not perfect, but what you're describing would definitely resonate with a lot of the people who use it. The SAM was originally created to better explain how someone can be asexual but not aromantic and vice versa. You may have heard terms like "biromantic asexual" and "aromantic pansexual" - those terms make use of the split attraction model.

(In fact, you yourself used "biromantic" and "demisexual" to describe the way you currently identify ^^)

if I were to try and date a woman, what if I realised that romantic part just wasn't there?

If that's a description that best fits your personal experience, I don't see a problem with it at all. While it's possible you might be suffering from internalized homophobia and/or your feelings might change someday to include romantic attraction to women, there's really no rush to figure out these things for sure.

Some gay men will meet a woman they're attracted to and no longer identify as gay, vice versa with lesbians. Plenty of gay people in that exact situation will choose to see those men/women as exceptions to the general rule of their lack of attraction to that gender. Neither of these groups are in the wrong.

Point being, you're the one who decides which labels fit you best, imposter syndrome be damned. Nobody else can make the decision for you, and that's one of the most beautiful things about being queer 💗

[atanx]

any subnautica character headcanons? especially the side characters, they're my faves :]

Sorry anon im normally better at answering my asks :P but alas exams had two write two in a week :)) not fun but anyway! thank u sm for the ask <3

Hhh I have sooo many character hc i could write a novel anon alvnqjcoqofpqf (partly because i do have a wip all about the subnautica characters and the journey to 4546B + ensuing canon divergence but pssshhhh)

So I think I'm just gonna choose the characters I've thought the most about:

2ND OFFICER KEEN

I hc his name as Roman Keen - I saw it in the fic "Survivors" on Ao3 and honestly I think it's a really good fit :3

He's 28 and has been working for Alterra since he was 17, most of which has been with Captain Hollister, who has become somewhat of a parental figure for him. He joined because of a love for flying and space, which his family disapproved of, and so he doesn't get along great with them.

I hc him as genderfluid - on some days, he feels like a man, and on others, he feels like he had no gender at all. He hasn't got himself totally figured out and mostly uses he/him pronouns, being unsure about how he feels being adressed with other pronouns.

He's a gay disaster and crushes pretty easily and hiding that does not come easily to him, although he mostly manages. When he first sees Jochi Khasar, it's instant aesthetic attraction. He finds him fascinating, and Khasar seems to find him fascinating, too, since he starts flirting with him and they develop a relationship over the eighteen-ish month journey to 4546B.

He's ace, and although fine with talking about sex, isn't interested in having sex himself.

Even though he comes across as stiff, he's not actually all that stiff as a person. He is just very responsible and aware and is thus anxious to fulfil his responsibilities as 2nd Officer to the best of his abilities. For things unrelated to work, he is still responsible and mature but not a stick in the mud. He's a fan of adrenaline rushes and actually used to do illegal racing as a teen.

Keen works well under stress, but as soon as the stress abates enough, he will have a breakdown.

He has an annoying-sibling type relationship with CTO Yu >:33

CTO YU

I also liked the name "Emily Yu" from the same fic as before, and I hc that her Chinese name is "Yu Jian" with 'Jian' for strong, healthy.

She is 29, a year older than Keen, which she teases him with, and has been working on the Aurora for 4 years, since finishing her master in engineering with a focus on spacecraft engineering. She worked herself up the ladder by virtue of 1) having a master's degree 2) hard work and successful projects 3) spite (someone (rightfully) insulted one of her ideas once) and 4) a little bit of nepotism.

I hc her as a cis bi woman who uses she/her pronouns. She enjoys both more feminine and more masculine styles for herself, although her style is rather tame and doesn't become hyper-feminine or hyper-masculine. She doesn't like dresses.

She's into Berkely, with her first being sexually attracted to him and then also experiencing romantic attraction. She enjoys his sarcasm and teasing him.

Even though she likes to be silly she gets serious in serious situations. She has a tendency to think that her way is best and has worked over the years to curb that down and be more open to other people's thoughts. When she does truly firmly think that her way is better though, she will stick to that unless presented with a better option and will put everything into trying to make that work.

In very stressful situations she tends to... sort of zoom out, distancing herself from her emotions and achieving a strong focus to do what needs to be done. Afterwards, she struggles with feeling the impact of what was going on, sort of feeling like it happened to someone else. It's a mild sort of depersonalisation. She works well under stress in general but needs some time to recuperate and destress. If she doesn't, her body will respond to the stress via tense and pulled muscles, headaches, stress-rashes etc.

BERKELEY

I don't have a particular reason why but I hc his first name as 'Cedric'. Honestly not too sure on that, if I find one that clicks more for me I might pivot to using that but this is what I've got for now!

He's 27 and he is not a routine member of the Aurora staff. Instead, he is part of the extra engineers meant to oversee construction of the phasegate at 4546B and hadn't met anyone from the Aurora before. He has a Bachelor in engineering but found studying so unpleasant he decided he was not going to go for a master and instead started and apprenticeship into job on a spacestation relating to phasegate maintenance.

He is intersex, which wasn't noticeable until puberty when he started developing boobs. Because he identifies as a man (he uses he/xey pronouns), he decided to opt for puberty blockers and later hormone therapy. He would have been fine with his boobs but society made him feel really shitty about them and he got top surgery.

He works out very regularly because it makes him feel good and enjoys jewelry and make-up, although he hates bracelets that move because he hates the sensation of them moving and bumping along his forearms whenever he has to tinker with something. He is somewhat introverted, not caring all that much for social interaction, and indulges in sarcasm a lot. He doesn't like the feel of long hair so he always wears it in a buzzcut. He's also chubby and built like a (short) bear.

He actually doesn't cope with stress well at all and only made it through school and a Bachelor's degree by luck, a lot of caffeine and the knowledge that if he doesn't manage at least a Bachelor's, finding a decent-paying job he likes will be very hard in Alterra-space. He finds it preferable to listen to others although not uncritically.

At first Emily annoys him to no end but as he gets to know her better (and she also tones it down) the annoyance changes to fondness. They become good friends and he eventually falls in love with her. He is pan and demi-romantic.

[batsarebetterthanpeople]

What do you think lesbians are attracted to in women that we can’t be attracted to in men?

It can’t be anything about femininity or masculinity obviously. That’s both sexist, and cultural so can’t be what drives woman-only attraction.

It can’t be anything about stated identity because someone could lie just as easily as they could tell the truth in such a statement, and it makes no sense because homosexuality and heterosexuality exists in other species with no stated identities. It’s not like other animals without gender are all pan.

Saying idk it’s the vibes or some indescribable trait women have that men can’t but “I can’t explain” is a nonanswer.

Soooooooo what is it? Or do you think any sexuality but bi/pan is just cultural performance or an identity rather than an inborn orientation?

I am a gay man. I neither am a lesbian nor have sex with lesbians. I differ to lesbians on what lesbians are attracted to. Idk why you're in my inbox babe.

But I will say that for me I'm attracted to femininity in men, including trans men but I'm not attracted to women, and I assume it's a similar thing for lesbians but with women instead of men.

Also being attracted to femininity/masculinity isn't sexist, usually that just comes down to preference, which can stem from internalized bias but doesn't always. Like I assume you if you're a lesbian that you have a preference for butches/studs or femmes, or maybe you don't. For example I tend to give all guys a chance regardless of aesthetic, size and gender presentation but my whole life I've only ever been romantically interested in three guys and they were all skinny feminine punk/goth types. I imagine that's a preference that I have.

Anyway logic doesn't have much to do with sexual preference in my experience. Logically I'm a huge bottom so I should be into guys who top but that usually isn't how things work out for me. Logically I prefer the physical act of giving head to people with vaginas and I'd probably have more luck finding someone with that equipment who wants to get eaten out if I was into women but I'm woefully attracted to men and I just have to hope that a trans guy finds me on Grindr, or just eat ass. Logically, I don't want to get pregnant so it would probably be safer for me to be into people who can't do that to me, but again, woefully attracted to men. I look at a woman and I just can't muster any sexual appetite for her. Sorry.

Although to be fair my disinclination toward women does on the rare occasion apply to men. Like for example I might be convinced to KaiKai with a Trixie Mattel type or a Nina Bo'nina Brown type but you could not get me to KaiKai with F1nn5ter. I don't know why he just doesn't register to me the way that most women don't register to me.

So yeah I am giving you a fucking non answer because sexuality isn't about logic or reason. It's words we have to describe sexual attraction, which I hate to tell you this, is a vibe. It's all feelings. Feelings of sexual attraction.

You TERFs are so obsessed with white patriarchal notions of concrete reason that you never realize the very obvious answer that some things just aren't about logic or reason, they're about experiential reality. And then you wanna pretend like you're anti patriarchy.

Feelings don't care about your facts.

[t4t-apexeclipse]

describing the genders ive assigned to the sides

i kinda did this earlier but not in depth and i wanna really drive home how gender these guys are

Roman: he/they. heavily transmasc trans man, doesn’t identify with feminine genders in the slightest, but doesn’t mind gender neutrality. will still absolutely dress “femininely” as well as “masculinely” and loves to dress as over the top as possible. all man left enby

Logan: she/he/it. loves gender. gender is her special interest <3 loves to research genders to try and understand it even more, and adopts various genders into its personal identity. his gender tends to fluctuate between several different labels depending on the day and she dresses accordingly

Virgil: they/them. allergic to gender. fears gender deeply. it’s too complicated and intimidating so they want nothing to do with it. they dress like they’re staying at home no matter where they go. sometimes wears socks with sandals to piss people off. their gender is no

Patton: she/he. a dad who’s a mom and a dad. a momdad. not a parent because that’s too neutral. she celebrates both his genders and cherishes them. she kinda treats his genders like they’re her kids in a way. he loves them both equally, even if she spends more time dressed as a dad than a mom (genders are treated equally, but aesthetics? he’s always fucked with the dad aesthetic. the dadsthetic)

Janus: they/them. they respect gender from a distance. like they have a decent understanding of how it all works, they just said no thanks. they don’t appreciate the idea of being shoved in a box that’s meant to say who they are. they’re not a gender, they’re janus. that’s all they need

Remus: all pronouns. gender hoarder. eats gender for breakfast. attracted to gender sexually. and romantically. gender is yes <3

[vossn]

8, 10, 11, 18, 21, 25, 28, 34 for the pride asks please :3

Hiiiii >:3

8. Describe your gender without using any words traditionally related to gender:

If you say giraffe I'll be chasing you around the house with a mop soaked full of bong water. Fish. Dancing in my boxer shorts to Karma Chameleon with a coffee in hand. "A city in flames" by Imaginary Authors. The Witcher.

10. Something that gives you gender euphoria (whether you're cis or trans):

My combat boots. People have commented that I walk more upright when I wear them and they make me feel like I'm exuding mayor "don't fuck with me" energy and I could step on anyone that dares to get in my way. I'm still the same quivering creature I was before but y'know. Euphoria.

11. Favorite (or just one you love) piece of LGBT media?

Cloud Atlas! It has 8 (I think) story strands and one follows a gay couple. The aesthetics of that story line have shaped me a whole lot and even though it doesn't have what I'd consider a happy ending, I'm glad to have seen it when I did.

18. How old were you when you got to attend your first Pride? Who did you go with?

I was 15 or 16! I went with a group of friends, most of them I am still in contact with a decade later. It was great fun and I don't think Pride ever felt as exciting as it did that day. I can show you some pictures if you'd like?

21. What message would you give to your younger self?

"It hurts and it is difficult, that doesn't mean that it's wrong."

25. What queer discourse frustrates you the most?

I'm tired of a lot of in-fighting and as someone who is not great with social rules, I hate going into spaces where I feel lots of contradicting rules apply. So I keep to myself and run as soon as I see discourse on the horizon. Is it cowardly? Maybe. But it's self-care to me, and if I don't have the energy then it is what it is.

28. Do you experience both romantic and sexual attraction? Do you experience them the same across any gender(s) you are attracted to?

I do experience both and to a variety of genders. It ebbs and flows, honestly. At the moment I find myself really attracted to masculinity (attracted is too little of a word, it makes me a little unhinged. feverish. But that may be due to envy as well, most definitely actually but not exclusively.) in either way but in general i am just always, 100% in love with all kinds of people. I experience it in a very mish-mashed-together way with very little borders between romantically, sexually and platonically, so it's just one big soup of love. Also if I have "my" people, that I have gotten to know and love, my attraction to them will likely not waver because gender and type of attraction tends to matter little to me then.

34. What are you needing most right now (what would make your life easier or more fulfilling in regards to existing as queer)?

More resources in the area where I live! Please, for the love of fuck, support your rural areas and not just the capital city. Also a law reform.

[roleshirked]

Do u have a long post somewhere about why you think bishonens are lesbian coded? Cause i would like to read it. I see it as the other way, bishies are het coded its why bifauxnen (females that resemble bishies) tend to be into men sch as with Kashima in GSNK and the protag in Ikemen Danso Reiya but nonthlsss lesbians like bishonen imagery bc gnc women are deemed unpopular and ugly thir ssa deemed bad & dirty irl while bishies are hearthrob princes with fangirls whose f-attraction is celebrated

i don't, mostly because it's a meme take, but i am so glad someone else sees a nugget there, lol!

the non-meme answer is super subjective: growing up as a kid plugged into the internet age and reading any josei/shoujou manga i could get my hands on, i wound up projecting way more onto the bishounen in those stories than i did the women protagonists. these are stories written primarily by straight women for other straight women, and as a result the men often (though not always) come off as way more sincere and compassionate and enigmatic and charismatic than men irl. also they're super pretty. so as a little closeted lesbian girl it was super easy for me to equate that with "i could be that!", especially since bifauxnen were so few and far between. i don't think i even discovered the term until my twenties.

you mentioning bifauxnen is huge though and i do agree they tend to be not nearly as lauded in fandom circles, which is weird imo. i disagree that they're het-coded; i think they're lesbian-coded also, but often shoehorned into het relationships as endgame in order to upkeep the genre and/or not sideline other plots. but i also latched onto them for the same reasons i do bishounen despite that: they're gnc, they embody masculinity in a way that is wholly not masculine, etc. etc. rose of versailles is to date my favourite piece of media of all time and oscar francois de jarjayes is my favourite character of all time. i have and had and will get into internet arguments with people who try to force a trans narrative on her, it tells me they didn't read the story or pick up on its tenets at all. ikeda-san has gone on record stating how oscar stepping into her womanhood and identifying it in her own way despite how her father raised her is directly a reflection of japan's expectations of women and wanting to subvert them in the 70s.

i think the reason we see less of characters like oscar or kashima or haruka or even utena is equal parts a genre problem and a reader problem. if we consider the market, most women who enjoy bishounen content do so because it's fulfilling a fantasy, and a woman character taking the place of that decidedly male character, even if aesthetically they are identical, ruins the fantasy. and if we consider the genre, bifauxnens more routinely pop up in stories where either the plot's focus is not romance or the character's focus is not romance. and if they're made to be romantic, they are paired with a man as endgame (see: oscar's side-stories with both marie and rosalie but ending up with andre), because it is likely the story this is taking place in is a shoujou/josei story, and so they have to preserve the straight woman's fantasy, etc. etc. i'm not saying you're wrong, just that the "access" to these two types of characters are different. i would kill for standard josei/shoujou stories that had bifauxnens instead of bishounens! i want nothing more than unassuming lesbian content that caters directly to my aesthetics. unfortunately my tastes and the genre i primarily consume tend to be at odds (and i fix this by developing my own lesbian bifauxnen content, but i am not linking that here, sorry.)

this is super rambly and has no point, i'm sorry! i'll leave you with a rec for a comic that is recent and features a semi-bifauxnen as one of the two women (!) protags, "The Guy She Was Interested In Wasn't A Guy At All!". it's a cute femslash comic about two classmates, one who is mistaken for a boy while she's working by the other, and shenanigans ensue.

[mickules]

Hopefully I don't sound like a killjoy, and if I do I apologize- in my opinion, I don't think Celeste would love Gonta romantically? If only because she's picky with the men she likes I feel...

That said, I could maybe see it platonically! She'd definitely use him as a bodyguard for sure.. Again, sorry if I put a damper!! I don't mean to diss you or anything!

Otherwise I agree about Nagito needing to see the ultimates as people and that I too don't jive with Kokichi.

[From this ask] I want to preface this by saying please don't ever worry about dissing me or upsetting me if our interpretations are diametrically opposed! I am not precious about pairings or headcanons or the like in the least, super chill 👍 I'm always down for hearing other's interpretations! Is it canon-compliant? Is it complete crack? Familial? Romantic? Platonic? Hell, you could walk into my home and state "Actually I think Taka and Mondo's relationship is doomed to end in misery" and I'd say "Ah! Do tell! how does that come about? but also how'd you find my address?"

If nothing else, platonically or romantically, Celeste and Gonta would have a really compelling dynamic to explore - the real noble raised as a complete unknown looking to rediscover his heritage, and the fake noble clinging to her dream of ascending to aristocracy, juicy!

Kokichi is a menace, and I'll have none of his fancy jiving footwork in this house.

@ididnahthither Personally no. However! I've seen some nice variations of Kirumi, Mukuro and Sakura with Taka, I think matching the girls' sensible and dedicated natures with his own - and a lot of pairings with Celeste! Often with Celeste initially pursuing Taka based on how he fits into her desired aesthetic, feelings developing later, and I'll admit- they do have the spooky goth couple look down. I think the one that surprised me with how well it could work was Leon with Taka. Leon's volatility being shown as more performative, and in fact he uses his social fluency to hide his nervous need to be liked - it creates a compelling dynamic with Taka who cannot read a room to save his life, and wears his heart on his sleeve.

That is actually kind of adorable

Given Leon's over the top, dramatic personae - calling Makoto, as someone who totally understands him, his 'soulmate' fits well into his all or nothing style. No half measures with Leon Kuwata.

He kind of reminds me a lot of Klavier Gavin from Ace Attorney, although not a suave - they're both very outwardly loud and flashy; both drawn to the spectacle of being a rockstar, but are internally much softer and in need of reassurance from those around them than you might have thought.

(Thanks so much!! :D)

fem!mondo and fem!taka are a blast to mess around with!

It'd be really interesting to see how someone goes about developing their relationship as women- A huge part of how Mondo presents and interacts with others is how he's tied his identity as a man to his reputation; his strength and pride as the leader of the Diamonds, and this is what has boiled over into his toxic masculinity. Approaching Mondo's crises and dated view of gender expectation from the lens of Mondo as feminine rather than masculine would be fascinating

@yaysof11037 [the pride comic!] In my main non-despair au I've got Mondo in my head as Bisexual, although takes his sweet time recognising his attraction to men as more than just 'admiration'. The pride comic however doesn't take place in that au, so although at first I was gonna have him with the Bi flag, I thought it might be more in line with the spirit of the comic if I left it open; so people could imagine what flag they wanted instead :) (lol I did actually mention it in the tags, but it's easily overlooked XD)

In my mind, I tend to see Takemichi as having a platonic found family style relationship with the Oowadas, basically like their 3rd unofficial brother- Mondo still being the youngest, but Takemichi as a sort of moderating, long suffering, middle sibling. I've mentioned in [here] (in the asks after the readmore) that I don't have anyone specific that I pair Daiya with. In my little non-despair au, he's somewhat of a permanent bachelor, and has only really had casual relationships previously.

I'll admit that Daiya and Michi isn't one I've seen before! Takemichi does have the briefest hint that he might not be traditionally heterosexual, so him nursing a crush on Daiya wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility. However, perhaps it's because we're introduced to Daiya through the lens of his little brother Mondo, I have to say that personally I can only really see Daiya as a sort of pseudo brother figure to the members of his gang.

Daiyakure is a pretty popular pairing, and it was a bit of a surprise to me when I first saw it! And whilst it's true they never meet in the games, I think people like to explore the sort of loose and wild dynamic they could have, and since there isn't an established interaction people can go crazy with it!

BIG OLD DISCLAIMER

UNFORTUNATELY BECAUSE TUMBLR IS A FANTASTIC WEBSITE WHICH IS VERY MUCH DESERVING OF A PAID SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE; *looks straight into the camera like the office* I'VE MANAGED TO DISAPPEAR SOME ASKS, WHILST I HAD THE ANSWERS FOR 'EM HERE IN MY DRAFTS FORGIVE ME IF IT WAS YOUR ASK WHILST I TRY TO WORK OUT WHAT THE HELL THE QUESTIONS WERE

I definitely remember something about being surprised that said I wasn't too into romance in [this ask] (which I also linked above ^) I think the rest was about being jazzed for Hina/Taka interactions, perhaps from the [pride] comic?

"I'm not romantic" *continually posts romance*

yeah, that's very fair XD I was thinking in the grand scheme of all the shows I like, and found that there are very few canonical romantic pairings that I'm invested in, and the number of headcanon ones I have, I could count on one hand.

It's worth mentioning here that the only pairing I really personally ship in Dangan is Taka with Mondo. However! I'm happy to talk about any pairings as well as ones where Taka and Mondo aren't together, zero issue there! My brain just doesn't really connect the dots of any others without prompting. My internal relationship needle mostly points to platonic like a true North, unless I see something that catches my eye and it knocks it off course XD

Taka and Hina share so much boundless passionate energy, and a certain naivete - I love to see them form a close alliance!

This ask was asking since I drew Kaito and Maki as adopted siblings in the previously linked ask dump ^ and [this one], the query was something like 'Since you drew them as siblings I assume you don't ship Kaito and Maki?'

In the original ask someone said that they saw Kaito as Mondo and Taka's kid- but I thought out of the cast of V3 Maki was a better fit than Kaito, so for that one ask, I put them as adopted siblings! In my own opinion however, Kaito fits better as Hiro's son, and upon further reflection I think Maki suits Fuyuhiko and Pekoyama best! Which of course would definitely make them not siblings.

In terms of their actual dynamic in the game, Maki's slowly defrosting nature and subsequent unyielding loyalty toward Kaito seems to be implied to being equivalent to a blooming crush. Whereas Kaito's own notion of romance is more oblique. Is it requited? Unrequited? The game'll never tell! To my mind, I don't pair them romantically- rather I lean toward Maki perhaps having an initial unreturned crush on an oblivious Kaito, but what forms instead is a strong friendship.

This ask was something like 'what do you think of saimota?' I don't remember if there was anything more to it.

I can't quite get a bead on Shuichi as a character - he's mostly reactionary, with those around him being the instigating force on how he choses to act. He seems starved of friendship because of his quiet and nervous nature so a warm, energetic presence like Kaito or Kaede certainly has him come out of his shell (literally). Shuichi and Maki have some similar traits, as well as sharing their heroic adoration of Kaito. The game seems to point toward Maki's interest as romantic so it wouldn't be disingenuous to suggest that Shuichi's might be too.

(next set of asks [about Takaaki mostly]) (previous set of asks [about Daiya’s accident])

[deanismysavior]

oh i love the idea of Mike demisexual! I saw your post and i was wondering bc you talked about El in it, and as you are a gay Mike truther, do you think now that he had some romantic feelings for her bc he formed a strong bond with her? I don’t know much about demi so i don’t want to sound rude or anything..just curious

I mean, I don't really believe Mike ever developed sexual attraction for El, and speaking from my own experience as a demisexual person, sometimes it can be a bit murky identifying the differences between romantic and platonic love at first because emotional intimacy plays a much larger role in attraction than physical attraction/intimacy does. This is why a lot of demisexual people tend to find themselves developing feelings for close friends, people they look up to, or people that they have to be around for sustained periods of time: attraction doesn't necessarily happen immediately, but over time, it can develop from the gaining of mutual trust and emotional intimacy. But we also view friendships similarly because we, as people, value emotional intimacy and therefore look to quality and depth in our friendships rather than quantity or status typically. These feelings don't always become clear until later if what one was feeling was romantic or platonic. But of course, this is me speaking to personal experience, and the way other demi people think and perceive might be different. Is it possible that Mike could be biromantic/bisexual and demisexual? Sure, but I do think if that's the case that his physical attraction/aesthetic attraction tends to lean more towards men or masculine features as we see him develop a close bond with Will, an infatuation with Eddie, and a fixation over El, but when she was first introduced, she was presented as having more masculine/boyish features. Basically, I think that Mike probably confused the two feelings because he values friendship and emotional intimacy first and foremost, but likely discovered later on that he wasn't attracted to El like that.

[thelostgirl21]

Careful not generalizing that statement.

"Regardless of gender" can indeed be applied to both.

Some people use "regardless of gender" to mean "I love all genders (sometimes equally, and/or to various degrees), so gender doesn't factor in my choice of partners".

Meaning they find people of their own gender, and other genders than themselves, sexually attractive based on the way they perceive gender and gender expression.

If they call themselves "bisexuals", I think it's indeed the right definition and label for them, and that some bisexuals genuinely feel like they are sexually attracted to people regardless of gender (and it's perfectly valid).

If they call themselves "pansexuals", then I believe it also fits the definition of pansexuality, and I tend to refer to them as "gender-positive pansexuals".

Usually, many of them will feel at ease under the bisexual umbrella, and/or will be using both labels as well.

While some would also rather use a label that truly specifies that they like all genders, and prefer just going by pansexual.

Then, you have what I call "gender-neutral pansexuals".

i.e. Pansexuals that don't sexually (and/or sometimes emotionally, if also panromantic/panalterous) relate to the gender of their partner(s).

Personally, I'm exclusively sexually attracted to people that I perceive as being geeks (in case anyone tries to argue that sexual orientation is about WHO you are attracted to, not HOW. Gender is but one of many identities people have. They can also be geeks, bookworms, scientists, musicians, cinephiles, gamers, etc.), but I've never felt like my sexual partner being a man remotely mattered, or that masculinity was a sexually attractive trait for a person to have.

And yet, the person I'm sexually attracted right now happens to be a man. More power to him! I respect that he identifies as a man and enjoys being a man.

But I don't get romantically or sexually aroused by people I perceive as being male, female, or non-binary.

I don't "sexually vibe" with other people's gender(s), if that makes any sense?

Gender can be aesthetically attractive, sure! But I don't get why it's supposed to arouse anything in me other than some external aesthetic appreciation.

However, I get strongly romantically or alterously "aroused" in the presence of people that give off a strong "geek vibe".

My partner must be a geek (or be perceived as one) to "turn me on" alterously, romantically or sexually.

Then, there are other less crucial personal preferences that may come into play (being aesthetically pleasing, having a bubble butt, being the right size to be the "little spoon", having certain personality traits, etc.).

However those tend to be cumulative. If you have red hair and freckles it may very well compensate for the lack of bubble butt.

The idea of being romantically or sexually "turned on" by a woman or any perceived femininity? I don't get it!

Give me a good, rational reason, why people expect every single human being to find other people's gender(s) to be a "turn on" and something they're attracted to?

So, when I say I have the ability to be sexually attracted to a person "regardless of gender", what I mean is "the very concept of having heterosexual or homosexual desires - or both - is extremely confusing to me, and I don't know why humanity got so emotionally and I sexually invested in other people's genders because other people's genders are neither sexually nor emotionally attractive to me, and just because something's a part of you and matters in terms of your own identity, shouldn't mean I have to be attracted to it!"

I have no general sense of "men are sexually attractive" until I come across a specific person I like (and have emotionally bonded with) that happens to be a man.

Or "gender-fluidity is sexual attractive", until I come across a specific gender-fluidly person I like (and have emotionally bonded with).

This is why trying to force all pansexuals to identify as being also bisexuals can be extremely damaging to our own sense of personal identity.

I don't have any sexual orientation based on other people's genders.

I have preferences, including an exclusive alterous, romantic and sexual interest towards geeks that I consider strong enough to be an orientation (although society only uses gender to define it).

But other people's genders shouldn't be forced into my sexual orientation.

That's why I grew up extremely confused and emotionally distressed as a teenager.

When I'm sexually attracted to a woman, she's usually the only person I find sexually attractive in my life at that moment (for reasons unrelated to her being a woman).

I don't generalize that sense of attraction towards other women. All other women appear to be unattractive.

However, I might emotionally bond with another geek I find aesthetically pleasing enough to develop a sexual attraction for while I'm already in a sexual relationship with her.

If they're a man, then I'll be sexually attracted to ONE specific woman, and ONE specific man at the same time, but again, that's not because they are men or women.

That's because I we share a close emotional bond (as a demisexual), they're geeks, they're good looking people, and something about their overall personality and the way we relate to each other "turns me on".

I feel like my pansexuality is something similar to the sex-positive asexuals that are being open to sharing a sexual partnerships with people of any gender, regardless of sexual attraction.

I'm simply sexually attracted to people that are geeks and that I feel emotionally bonded with, regardless of gender attraction.

That's what my own pansexuality means to me.

It's that utter sense of emotional and sexual disconnect between what attracts me to someone sexually, and the way they identify or express their gender.

And that's not a "regardless of gender" definition that I've seen many people that are comfortable defining themselves as bisexuals often use.

There are great overlaps between bisexuality and pansexuality, but not all bisexuals would feel represented in the definition of pansexuality (since some are not sexually attracted towards all genders or regardless of gender).

And there are pansexuals that would not feel represented in the definition of bisexuality, since they don't find men, women, or non-binary genders attractive and feel completely sexually disconnected from other people's genders.

The existence of pansexuals living outside the bisexual umbrella and having a sexuality that is no better or worse, simply different, is not a threat to the bisexual community.

If sex-positive asexuality (people that enjoy sex with partners they aren't sexually attracted to) exists?

Is it so far fetched to think it's possible to find another human being sexually attractive, despite the inability to find masculinity and feminity - and/or any variation of gender expression - remotely sexually arousing/interesting?

The way I tend to personally conceptualize sexual orientation is:

- Heterosexuals: I am attracted to a different gender (or different genders) than my own.

- Homosexuals: I am attracted to my own gender.

- Bisexuals: I am attracted to my own (homo) and different (hetero) genders. Can include all genders, and even be experienced as being attracted regardless of gender, when the gender of a partner won't prevent the sexual attraction from occuring. I might also choose to identify as omnisexual or pansexual, if I experience sexual attraction across the whole gender spectrum.

- Omnisexuals: I am attracted towards all possible genders.

- Polysexuals: I am attracted towards many genders, but not necessarily my own (you can be both heterosexual and polysexual).

- Gender-positive pansexuals: I am attracted regardless of gender, because I'm attracted towards all genders and have little to no preference, and/or simply feel like those preferences don't matter on the grand scheme of things. I might also choose to identify as bisexual and/or omnisexual.

- Gender-neutral pansexuals: I am attracted regardless of gender, because I fail to sexually connect with other people's genders. However, I can still be attracted to a person based on other physical, emotional, intellectual, relational, etc. traits an characteristics they have.

- Sex-positive asexuals: I enjoy having sex with a partner and am likely to initiate the sexual activity with them, regardless of my ability to be sexually attracted to them.

- Sex-neutral asexuals: I am open to be sexually active with a partner, regardless of my ability to be sexually attracted to them. However, I don't feel like the sexual component is essential to my relationship with that person, could go with or without it, and may wait for my partner to initiate the sexual activity instead of being the one actively seeking it. I'm comfortable being sexually active, but it's more something I do out of love and wish to do something nice for my partner (ex: like giving them a massage or cooking their favorite meal).

- Sex-repulsed asexuals: Being sexually active with another person makes me feel highly uncomfortable, and I do not engage in sexual activity with any of my platonic, alterous or romantic partners.

I know other people use different models to explain sexual attraction, orientation, and describe their sexuality, but that's how I tend to personally perceive it.

End of the day, what matters is that the person identifying as whatever they identify as can make it make sense for them, ideally without erasing other sexual identities in the process.

If I've got bisexuality wrong with my definition, I'm open to discussing it and adapting my personal definitions to better reflect and value the reality of those identifying as bisexual.

pansexual people will be like 'just let people use the label they feel more comfortable with !! language is made up anyway !!' and then when you say you're bi cause you're attracted to people regardless of gender they'll be like 'uhmmmm actually that's pansexuality :/'

[baya-ni]

SHADOW’s Queer Coding

I first started exploring this idea of Sk8′s implicit queer rep (as in stuff other than explicit same sex intimacy) in this post.

I know we like to joke that Hiromi is the Token Straight of the protag gang, but I argue that he’s as much an example of queer rep as any of our main characters, albeit in a less conventional and fanservicey way.

So that’s what this post is gonna be, an analysis of Hiromi/SHADOW as a queer figure, how his character fits the Jekyll/Hyde archetype as a metaphor for queerness and The Closet, the similarities between SHADOW as a skatesona and early drag, and how his character represents a larger problem of exclusion within queer fandom spaces.

The 1886 Gothic novella The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson is the origin of the phrase “Jekyll and Hyde”. What I’m calling the Jekyll/Hyde archetype, refers to the same thing; it refers to duality, to a character who is “outwardly good but sometimes shockingly evil” (as described from the novella’s wiki page).

And the Jekyll/Hyde dynamic has also long been associated with Queerness. The antagonism between Jekyll and Hyde as two sides of the same person resonates with many people as similar to the experience being in the closet, and many many scholars have written about this queer reading of Jekyll and Hyde. Do a quick google search if you don’t believe me.

Hiromi experiences his own Jekyll/Hyde duality through his SHADOW persona, which seems to entirely contradict with Hiromi’s day to day personality.

Whilst Hiromi is sweet, romantic, and generally very cutesy, SHADOW is mean-spirited, sadistic, described as “the anti-hero of the S community.”  And though these two personalities seem entirely at odds, SHADOW doesn’t exist in a vacuum, he’s very much a part of Hiromi. In the show, this manifests as SHADOW’s sabotage moves being all flower themed, as Hiromi works in a flower shop, and how he’ll “step out” of character when playing babysitter to the kids.

Below is passage from an essay titled, “The Homoerotic Architectures of Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” which reminds me a lot of Hiromi’s character, such that I think his character arc can be read as an allegory for coming out and self acceptance.

The closet, here, is a space not only for secrecy and repression, but also for becoming; it is the space in which queer identities build themselves up from “disused pieces” and attempt to discover the strength needed for presentation to the world. The closet is both a space of profound fear and profound courage—of potentiality and actualization. (Prologue)

Unlike the kid/teen characters, the show’s adult characters all lead double lives. When they aren’t skating, they have day jobs. Kaoru is a calligrapher, Kojiro is a restaurant owner, Ainosuke is a politician/businessman (but tbh his job is just being some rich dude), and Hiromi works in a flower shop.

But of the adult protagonists (so not Ainosuke), Hiromi compartmentalizes the most.

Kojiro leaves his face totally exposed such that he can be recognized both on and off the skate scene. Kaoru at least covers his face, but his trademark pink hair and constant use of Carla doesn’t make it very hard to connect the dots between him and CHERRY. He’s also always with Kojiro in the evenings, so if you don’t recognize him as CHERRY when he’s on his own, you certainly will when you see him interacting with Kojiro/JOE.

Next to these two, Hiromi seems the more adamant at separating his Work from Play.

Even when he’s been clearly found it, he still tries to deny that he and SHADOW are the same person. Miya even uses this to coerce Hiromi into helping him and the boys:

I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that the separation between Hiromi and SHADOW can be interpreted as a metaphor for being in The Closet. As SHADOW, he leads a secret life, one characterized by an tight-knit underground community with a vibrant night scene, where he behaves in ways typically frowned upon by larger society. He worries about being found out and judged by the people close to him.

But in Ep 4, the walls of his Closet begins to come down, or in this case is literally imposed upon by other members of his community, by its younger members, who don’t feel the same need to hide their passion for skateboarding or lead the same kind of double life.

We then see the line between Hiromi and SHADOW begin to blur.

He becomes less of an antagonist, and instead the audience sees him become a mentor and “mother hen” figure for the younger skaters. Later on in Ep 4, we see him casually interacting with the other protags in full SHADOW mode, not as an “anti-hero” but as a friend.  In Ep 6, he acts as a babysitter for the kids, and we see him totally comfortable appearing both in an out of his SHADOW persona throughout their vacation.

And I think that this gradual convergence of Hiromi and SHADOW will culminate in this tournament arc.

There’s something more personal that’s driving SHADOW to do well in this tournament. It’s not just for bragging rights or his pride as a skater, but the results of this tournament is going to have some kind of greater impact on Hiromi’s personal life. Personally, my theory is that Hiromi is using this tournament to prove to himself that he’s worthy enough to ask his manager out on a date.

Hiromi is no longer compartmentalizing, his two lives are overlapping and influencing each other. Recall the essay quote I cited earlier:

The closet... is the space in which queer identities build themselves up from “disused pieces” and attempt to discover the strength needed for presentation to the world... of potentiality and actualization.

This is exactly the case for Hiromi. Through skating, he is piecing together the disparate parts of him such that he can present himself to the world as a more unified and confident being.

And the show presents the very skating community that Hiromi has been working so hard to keep separated from his personal life- Reki, Langa, Miya, Kaoru, and Kojiro- as the catalyst for that becoming.

That, my dear readers, is queer coding if I ever saw it.

But there’s probably gonna be people claiming something along the lines of “But SHADOW can’t be queer rep because he’s Straight!” And I assume that’s because he shows romantic interest in his female manager.

First of all, Bisexuality. Also Ace/aro-spec people. And second of all, SHADOW is Hiromi’s drag persona.

And before anyone can say anything about how Hiromi can’t do drag because he’s straight (assumption) and cis (also an assumption) uhhhh no, fuck you.

Drag didn’t start with RuPaul’s Drag Race, that’s just how it got mainstream. And it’s also how it got so gentrified and transphobic. You heard me. But anyway.

Drag is, and has always been, first and foremost about exaggerated, and oftentimes satirical, gender presentation and performance. It’s about playing with gender norms through artistic dress and theater, not so much to do with sexuality or gender identity.

Literally, what’s the difference here?

SHADOW is a persona of exaggerated masculinity with a punk aesthetic. Regardless of his sexuality or gender identity, Hiromi’s gender performance as SHADOW is drag- that makes him queer representation, change my fucking mind.

Queerness is more than same-sex romance, and by extension, good queer representation is not limited to canonized gay ships. The very word Queer, in it’s ambiguity, is meant to encompass the richly unique experiences of everyone within the LGBTQ+ community.

In my opinion, Queer =/= Gay. I mean, they’re colloquially the same yes and even I use them interchangeably. But for the purpose of this post, they’re not the same, and that’s to argue that Hiromi/SHADOW’s lack of acknowledgement as queer rep illustrates a larger issue of exclusion within fandom.

I mean, this is something we all kinda been knew, but in the case of Sk8 specifically, there are a two main reasons why I think Hiromi is rarely acknowledged as queer rep.

1. He’s not shippable with another male character

Fandom favors mlm ships when it comes to what’s considered good queer rep. And the ultimate mark of good queer rep is explicit acts of romance or intimacy between two male characters. Unlike with any of the other characters in the show, we can’t point to Hiromi and automatically clock him as gay, especially because he expresses romantic interest in a woman.

So by default, he’s less popular, because “Ew Straight People” amirite /s.

2. He’s not attractive

This is really interesting, because like JOE, Hiromi is a beefcake.

But fans don’t thirst over him the same way they do over JOE. Granted, the show really plays up JOE’s muscles in a very strip-teasey way that literally encourages viewers to find him attractive. By contrast, Hiromi is pretty much covered head to toe and he paints his face in theatrical makeup- the point is to look scary, not attractive.

In essence, even though Hiromi engages in “queer behavior” through his SHADOW persona, his queerness isn’t palatable.

But I also think there’s some pretty insidious undercurrents of fetishization going on here, of both Asian people AND gay men. Which is... a whole other thing I really don’t have the capacity to unpack completely.

But basically, Hiromi doesn’t fit into any of the popular BL archetypes so he’s less likely to recognized as Queer. Relatedly, he’s also less often subjected to a fetishistic gaze as other characters. I mean...

So again, fans just don’t find him as appealing. Attractive characters are always more popular than ugly ones.

And I’m sure there are a lot of people who just don’t care for Hiromi’s personality, that’s fine, he does act like an asshole sometimes. But this post is meant to illustrate that queer rep takes multiple forms, and unfortunately I think a lot of media just tends to fall back on stereotypical portrayals of queer people for the sake of broader appeal. And by consequence, the fandom’s idea of what constitutes queer rep narrows to same-sex romance, usually between two cis gay men.

With the release of Ep 9, I know a lot of people queer people are going to find representation in the Kojiro’s whole “unrequited love” thing. But personally, I feel more represented by Hiromi, his journey of self-acceptance and subversive relationship with gender- that’s what resonates with me as a trans person.

And I think it’s important to see that kind of less palatable type of queer representation more acknowledged in fandom, and in Sk8′s fandom especially, because I know the demographics of this fandom lean heavily queer.

But that’s all for now, lemme know what you guys think :)

[lylahammar]

Okay but if we're all going to be fighting over Teddy and Robin, what are their ~types~ in terms of romantic partners? And what about the rest of the main cast as well?

Oh jeez ahahah

Wellllll Robin doesn't really have a physical type, they're more interested in an emotional connection! They do have aesthetic attraction, but looks are more of a bonus 😁 It's similar with Teddy! But Teddy's a lot more reserved with dating and actually doesn't fall for people easily. Teddy's only dated a few people in his life, whereas Robin has a good amount of exes.

Uhhhhhh Douglas likes attentive men! He enjoys being flirted with. Likes to feel ✨cared for✨ u kno? And he's really into comfortably masculine people (doesn't have to be cis, just anyone who's masculine without being insecure/toxic about it). Ray doesn't have a type at all! They were into Douglas bc the two of them are very close friends and had good chemistry.

Quinn is very attracted to direct, assertive women who aren't afraid to be brutally honest. She likes a woman who can kick her ass basically

Adelaide tends to push potential romantic partners away, but she likes it when they aren't deterred by that. When someone makes her feel desirable, she gets more confident about pursuing a relationship with them! I mean, as long as they aren't creepy about it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯