#MyStreet critical

[aro-laurance-zvahl]

what do you think about MCD being made canon to the "MyStreet" series aphmau did

Alright so I’m gonna preface this with how I’m incredibly biased AND uninformed about MyStreet. I haven’t watched a full episode of it since December of 2015. I immediately didn’t like it and how it characterized the characters I knew and loved. Everything I know about it is from second hand knowledge, so the factuality of it is probably suspect

So with all that out of the way, I don’t like it. It just doesn’t work. They’re too different and I doubt it’s at all something MyStreet even needed cause I know it had a lot going on it already.

It also probably locks MCD into an ending? From what I’ve heard it’s basically Irene/Aphmau got depressed after being locked away(?) so she created a generation for her and her friends to live a life again but together and happy. The issue that presents is of course now MCD has a vague ending. Aphmau steps into the role of Irene and seals herself away, which is...not an ending I’d want to accept for MCD, at least not without it being revived and then that being properly built up to (but then again, I didn’t particularly enjoy MCD Rebirth either because of how hard it leaned into Aphmau being Irene so for me to accept that sorta ending it would have to be told from season three on, not from the start)

But at the end of the day, MyStreet just isn’t my domain, i just do not know about the series to really say much for certain. I can’t say how well or how not well it fit into it. All my feelings towards it kinda just boils down to...I don’t like MyStreet, I don’t like what it did to the MCD characters, I don’t like that it overtook MCD in popularity, I don’t like the influence it’s had over MCD. I’m certainly not gonna like that it tried to dig up MCD’s corpse so MyS Aphmau can have her goddess arc.

[vylanka]

rest in peace to laurance's boob window </3

[mouchiiarts]

Anon you're right on the money about why a lot of people don't like ZaneChan/Zana. I myself LOVE this ship but even I agree that ZaneChan/Zana was hella rushed. They only have maybe 3 of 4 significant scenes together before their kiss which definitely didn't lend to this impression. Which is such a shame!! They have such a fascinating dynamic which could've been explored!! Zane and Nana are shockingly similar to one another and deal with deep-seated feelings of inadequacy but have polar opposite coping mechanisms. This interesting and really rich dynamic, which anon explained perfectly, was just,, not used at all. It was cut short by ill-timed comedy or other characters or the plot or Aarmau TM or what have you. Honestly that's probably one of my biggest gripes with Mystreet is the constant need to shove Aarmau down everyone's throats. I'm mostly indifferent to Aarmau as a ship. Not my thing, I prefer them as friends, but I'm not against them being together (so long as we're ignoring all of PDH and FCU 😬). But as soon as it was obvious that other - honestly more interesting - ships were being pushed aside in favor of Aarmau, it started to get grating very quickly. I can easily name multiple Aarmau moments from S5 pre-ZaneChan/Zana kiss but Zane and Nana only have 3 or 4????? 2 + 2 ≠ 5 the math is not mathing bro 😮‍💨

I think a lot of reasons why people hate Zana/zane chan is bc Jesson CAN NOT stop pushing there “AARMAU IS THE ULTIMATE SHIP PROPAGANDA”

Hear me out. Now I know a lot people don’t like the ship bc it kinda came out of nowhere and was v rushed which was true. But Also Nana herself having to be this “yes-man” to the relationship really makes her a flat character. Especially bc the only reason she was on Starlight was bc she blackmailed Zane. Now the making of Zana is really interesting bc we show a dynamic of two similar but different people.

Zane is the shadow of his brother and in turn decides to turn his back on the world. While Nana is the shadow of her silbings and decides to change herself to make the world notice her. This is a very interesting dynamic one I wish we didn’t have to rush bc Jess wanted to get back to the plot.

Also I think it’s Nana’s lack of character depth that makes her seem terrible. With Zane his dickness is well developed with his backstory and his nice moments of development are nice. We never get this from Nana, we also never get her backstory or even meet one of her ELEVEN siblings. So everything dickish that Nana does is just dickish bc we really don’t have a basis of why she does these things.

Zana could have worked as a ship if we established Nana’s backstory early on and gave them actual problems to work out instead of doing somethign stupid like Nana kissing garroth not realizing. Bc the funny thing is THEY BOTH HAVE ISSUES THEY COULD WORK THROUGH.

Like how Nana does rush into all of her relationships and how Zane runs to Aphmau’s side everytime she has a minor problem. They could work through these problems and maybe even have arguments and I would have enjoyed

~~

[iridiss]

Aaron’s such an underrated character on Aphblr tbh. He’s become one of my favorite characters in the cast as I rewatch more and more of Mystreet. Aaron will tease you, but he’s also one of the best characters in the cast to go to for emotional support. He’ll tell you as it is, smack you upside the head when you’re being crazy and shake you back to rational normalcy, but then he’ll sigh and tell you you’re gonna be just fine and everything’s gonna be okay. He is the number one (and on occasion only) holder of brain cells in the whole neighborhood. He’s the most sensible, and often the word of wisdom/rationale, much more so than Katelyn or Lucinda or Zane or Laurance are. This can often make him come off as a serious character, but he’s still down to clown! He just does it in a different way!

He’s supposed to contrast Aphmau’s louder, more extroverted, playful, ditzy, eccentric personality, by being quieter, more rational, more responsible, more cautious and careful, more reserved, a word of wisdom to contrast her crazier, chaotic energy and pranking and punning and ponies and general whimsical tomfoolery. But that does not, by any means, mean that he is not participating in the antics. Just because he’s the only one who thought to bring a first aid kit and a safety harness doesn’t mean he’s not jumping off that cliff with everyone else in this crazy cast. You tell him to dig, he’ll bring shovels. He may sigh or say “oh god not again” when shit goes awry or the gang decides they are Dead Set on doing something insane for the 10,000th time, but by god he will commit. Aphmau kidnaps a baby and goes on a mad chase for a comedic bit, and he never complains about how “stupid” and “reckless” and “obnoxious” his girlfriend is, he just says in a completely calm tone, “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go save my girlfriend.” And he chases after her immediately lmao.

Aaron enables the antics and participates in them, and if you rile him up or challenge him damn well enough, he will throw himself into the group antics with an unbeatable, fiery fervor. If the boys decide they’re all gonna pretend to be Santa and his elves in order to cause prankster-variety chaos one day, Aaron would join in and go right alongside them. He’s here to make sure it all goes to plan. He’s here to make sure you don’t break any bones when you jump off that roof like a madman. He’s here to help you run away from the cops, help you break into the building. He may chide you for doing it in the first place (“do you even know what you’re doing?!”), and if needed he may drag you back home if you’re barking up the wrong tree and it’s nothing but detrimental to you, but if it’s viable for the bit, he absolutely will show you how to break a window correctly.

And he can be a little shit if he wants to, too!! He can snicker at you and tease you and make quips, and I bet if Aaron himself dedicated his energy to it, he would make the best of pranks. He’s not an asshole that’s full of himself and too serious and stoic and cool for being silly, he’s not a whiny bitch, he’s actually very incredibly supportive. At times, much more so than Garroth, Laurance, Zane, Katelyn, etc. He’s reliable, he trusts Aphmau a lot, he knows how shittily Aphmau cooks and still does his damndest to support her, and he will force himself to eat her biohazardous cooking just to make her happy. He is the chef of the household. He’s good with animals, animals love him. He’s a kind guy!!! He’s just got his own unique energy and vibe to him, that no one else in the cast really has, and I really appreciate that core trait of him. He’s a grounding character. He’s probably got his own ways that he’s weird and eccentric that are a lot more hidden than Aphmau’s. If we didn’t have Aaron, the entire neighborhood would have burned down ages ago, ten times over.

I genuinely do believe he’d make a fantastic dad, being a combination of a soft and gentle and tenderly loving man, and responsible enough to always bring safety helmets and bandaids and snacks, very supportive of his kids development, emotionally available as a great source of genuine advice and wisdom while still getting plenty of encouragement. He would probably want to make an effort to be a very different parent than his father was, and since he was emotionally neglected as a child, he would refuse to do anything similar to his own kids. He’d be a good influence (and Aphmau would be the bad influence LOL)

He’s kind of a teddy bear of a man <3 If he weren’t so heavily wolf-themed, I’d say a bear would be the best animal that’d fit his personality and energy. He’d protect you like a bear, he can be really fucking terrifying if he wants to, but he’d only use that power to make sure Aphmau gets what she wants and needs to make her happy. He’d never use that terrifying intimidation factor of his on his friends and loved ones, never as anything more than a single look that has a derailing Garroth/Laurance/Travis/Dante/Gene/etc. get right the fuck back on track and start backpedaling, like if they started saying or doing something careless or stupid that made Aphmau feel worse. He’s quiet and reserved with that tired, grounded, solid energy of a bear. He’s a big guy. But he can also be really soft and supportive and sweet. He takes more time to come out of his shell and let down his walls, but when he does, he really dedicates his life to the few people he manages to trust. And it’s that thick outer shell that makes Aphmau a good match for him, because she’s kinda the only character in the cast who’s able to bring him out of his shell so easily.

She’s kind and extremely friendly, unstoppably and unendingly so. She’s sweet and naive and selfless in the way that proves to Aaron that she’s not trying to get anything out of him, she’s not lying to him, and she would never neglect him or just…abandon him like a discarded toy once she’s through with him. She’s not scared of him. She sees the best in everybody, and sees that there’s something more underneath that scary, prickly outer shell of defenses that’s managed to push everyone else away and keep the likes of Laurance and Garroth and Katelyn on their toes. She sees what no one else does, she sees the true beauty and the kind heart he has underneath. Even in MCD, when he’s literally held a sword to her throat and threatened her life multiple times, she can still sense that he’s full of shit and there’s a kind heart underneath, and if she does a little cultivating, extends a hand of gentle kindness and genuine affection, a kind of love and affection he’s never really seen before and been starved of all his life… it works wonders, and he steps out to meet her. He changes, drastically, because she sees the best in him, and that makes him want to become the best version of himself that he can be, for her. Where he might hate himself and grapple with feeling unloveable, Aphmau is there to remind him none of its true. And so he tries to keep her nightmares away in return, sticking by her side, taking care of her, cooking for her, encouraging her to keep doing everything she does best, defends her against the bullies that make her feel like she’s not good enough, and takes her by the shoulders to remind her that she is good enough, and all the voices out there and in her head that tell her she’s not are full of shit. Because he knows first-hand, better than most, the good things she brings to those around her and the wonderful presence she is in others lives, and how wonderful she is as a person. He trusts her. He’s here to guide her along in her path to becoming her fullest self, to give her that last big nudge to boost her along the way. Likely on a cosmic level, mainly, with her becoming Irene.

He’s very sweet, he’s sweet to Aphmau, Aphmau’s even sweeter to him, and genuinely I’ve learned to love the big, fluffy guy and I really appreciate him and his impact on the other characters the more and more I see of him. I don’t really know how I would enjoy Mystreet or MCD or the Aphverse without him. If he were real, I would love to give him one big hug, I bet his hugs would be amazing (topped only by Garroth’s rib-crushing bear hugs)

[mac-audcheese]

La la laaaa I’m gonna present u guys my modern fashion ideas for mystreet cus I CAN :)!!

Aph first ! She’d be cool girl y2k face

(second isn’t crazy y2k but ykwim) def crop tops, statement belts, and some light scene jewelry

Garroth next, he’d def dress jock but when mf wants to dress up, he serves (thanks to laur)

Guys PLEASE let him serve please i think he'd look amazing

Omg Dante Dante I love him he’d dress block/primary colors even as casual fs trust me guys

This is because of his hair I loooove the combos

Nana obv would be so croquette she’s absolutely the one wrapping her food in ribbons (also y2k)

Now this may be a lil controversial but I think katelyn would like doin some blokette like look at my visions

Let me dream guys cmon,, also shed be the Adam Sandler lesbian TM to make it better

travis, honestly, he'd rock streetwear and probs like a skater look

idk i'd let him look cool guys he can be cool

now lucinda's is nonnegotiable a boho look you can't take this from me it IS her y'all

aaaaaaaand the finally for today: Laurance, who's totally alt maybe ?? honestly they could do whatever style he wanted

whatever the trans masc's are into these days

anyways erm these are just my personal thoughts/interpretations, i'll probs do a part two soon cus i love shit like this and i have a lot more thoughts teebeeh

[packcoventhing]

Pushing the genderfluid!Blaze agenda and forcing her into your retinas rn

[mouchiiarts]

@zenixromeave these are some excellent tags and HOLY SHIT YOU'RE RIGHT I FORGOT ABOUT THIS. I guess I forgot bc meif'wa were literally forgotten by the narrative and world building at almost every opportunity in favor of werewolves. Which was so disappointing bc I wanted to learn more about meif'wa so badly. Gosh, I meant to bring up the shit Aphmau said to Kai (the shit about meif'wa eating fish and calling toilets litter boxes?????? Hey. Hey Jess. What the heck.) That was so insensitive and weird. Also the fact the fact that meif'wa continue to solely be associated with East Asians up to and including racism is extremely gross. :[ (honestly I think the reason this happens so often in Jess' series could be due to the era of the internet she grew up on where stuff like this was unfortunately very common. Still doesn't make any of this okay tho). Literally the only meif'wa character who wasn't coded as Asian (as far as I could tell) was June and she only showed up for a few mini games and then never again. Yeah and the werewolves being a fill in for black people was,, so bad and has aged like milk in the sun. Thanks, I hate it.

Something that's always bothered me about Mystreet (and especially the later seasons once we start focusing on werewolves and their lore and stuff) was how the racism aspect was handled.

I think on paper the werewolf racism wasn't necessarily a,, bad idea to include this since it's a very real topic and this could have been a good instance of explaining this kind of thing through metaphor/allegory (although whether its inclusion was a good thing is also up for interpretation imo. Personally I think you could include it but you would need to be extremely conscientious and knowledgeable through research about how to tackle this in a realistic and respectful manner). I just feel it's so weird that werewolves are the only ones who seem to get hit with the racism button and no one else does?? Meif'wa don't, witches don't, demons don't (at least in Mystreet) so why is it only the werewolves? (oh hey Jess' not so blatant werewolf fetish what are you doing here?)

And what constitutes actual racism in this universe? Are there slurs? It seems to be implied a few times when werewolves get upset being called 'dogs' or anything similar. And I think 'furry' could be read as one too? And it seems like 'cat' could also be one for meif'wa (although that was mostly a thing from a Halloween special mini series that was a zombie movie parody with magic cats so idk how canon it is). But meif'wa aren't considered as much of an issue as werewolves in-universe which,, okay??? Why?? Surely there's a stereotype about them scratching stuff up all the time?? If there are stereotypes about werewolves shouldn't there be some for meif'wa? And Zianna, when meeting KC, says that she's heard meif'wa are "so easy going". Couldn't that be considered a micro-aggression in some contexts? But no one says anything about it? It was so weird. Also I'm pretty sure Zane called KC "kitty" once or twice which again,, wouldn't that also be considered a micro-aggression??? I feel like I'm going insane

Like there's so many instances of Aphmau using terms or doing things which other werewolves find offensive (like calling Aaron alpha which,, I'm not touching that with a 39 1/2 ft pole) but meif'wa being called kitty or other variants are fine?? This also isn't helped by the fact that the meif'wa literally have no culture or lore development whatsoever.

Also the fact that race fetishes exist in Mystreet is,, a very fucked up choice. Why was this decidedly a thing for Sylvanna?? It's so weird and uncomfortable and she does this IN FRONT OF HER HUMAN BOYFRIEND ERIC. It felt so distasteful and just should've been excluded entirely.

Also none of this is helped by the ACTUAL racism present in Jess writing (especially with KC bc holy shit she was a hot mess) and other stuff which I honestly can't name off the top of my head but it sure exists :/

TLDR: why was racism included in this Minecraft roleplay YouTube series to begin with it's weird as fuck

.

[dantes-gf]

watching jess’ ENTIRE vidcon panel

[bread-squid-uwu]

general reminder to DNI if you support endogenic systems.

[starhvney]

𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐄 𝐃𝐑𝐈𝐋𝐋

𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆: mystreet garroth x fem!reader

𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘: your boyfriend finally pursues a career that he chose for himself, so to show him your support you surprise him at his training.

𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐒: fluff, firefighter garroth guys firefighter garroth this is in fact not a drill, established relationship

𝐂𝐖: none!

𝐀/𝐍: this fic is based off of @artists-who-rarely-draws hc that garroth would be a firefighter in the mys universe! aren’t firefighters just sooo >>>

𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓

you were so happy for garroth, nothing but overwhelming support for him was in your heart as he finally was able to pursue something he truly wanted to do for a career. after zane had officially taken the reins of the ro’meave corporation, your boyfriend had immediately enrolled in a firefighting training academy.

he had mentioned his interest in the career path before, but you didn’t realize just how passionate about it he was until he excitedly came home from the first day of the academy, rambling about how well he did.

it warmed your heart, the childlike excitement in his eyes when he detailed the training he went through every day. it was so different from his time in college, when he told you he was majoring in business with a disinterested shrug and a dull look in his eyes.

last week, as you and garroth sat on your couch for your movie night date, you saw that the pd fire academy was asking for volunteers for their upcoming rescue drill. from the corner of your eye you glanced at him, debating whether you should bring it up or not. he had been particularly focused on the rom-com that played, the reflection of the brightly colored screen lighting up his eyes. on a whim, you applied to volunteer without saying a peep, turning your phone off and snuggling up to him with a smirk on your face.

this morning as he asked you what your plans were for the day as usual, you briefly shrugged off the question with an excuse of running a few errands. he gave you a small confused look but shrugged it off, leaning down to kiss you and leaving in his cargos, boots, and the pd fire department shirt that hugged onto his muscles that seemingly continued to grow by the day.

yes, you were very supportive of his career choice.

now, a few hours later, you find yourself in a dim building, the room illuminated by the orange lights shining into the “smoke” that the fog machines dispersed. not only did it look like the building was on fire, but the lack of ac in the summer heat added to the ambiance, and had you slightly regretting your decision. you looked down at the tag that they had given you before escorting you to your spot, telling you to lay limp until you were successfully “rescued”.

legs disabled from fallen debris, half-conscious. critical condition.

you lay there for quite a while, wondering if garroth would even be the one to get you. your doubts are thankfully squandered when you hear him, calling out a code call to presumably another fireman. his familiar footsteps turn into the room you’re in, and you hear his breath satisfyingly hitch in his throat before a disbelieving huff follows. 

quickly, you clamp your eyes all the way shut, ignoring the tempting urge to smile as your plan sets in place.

“victim, victim, victim!” his deep voice calls, the noise of the thick material of his uniform meets your ears as he slides on his knees next to you. 

“she’s light,” he calls to the other pair of heavy footfalls that enter the room. “find an exit, i got her.”

you crack open your eyes, turning your head and looking up at him as a cheeky smile threatens to break on your lips. for just a split moment he narrows his eyes as they meet yours, tongue rolling against the inside of his cheek as he fights off his own urge to smile.

“…errands, huh,” he mutters under his breath, shaking his head as he leans forward to read the tag on your shirt. he snaps right back into his profession, one of his hands reaching to grab your shoulder in a reassuring gloved grip. “you’re going to be okay. i’m gonna get you out here safe.”

a part of you wants to laugh at how serious he suddenly became, but through your want to tease him you instead found yourself repressing a giddy giggle. the summer heat was most definitely affecting him through the heavy layers of his gear, as a sheen of sweat covered his face and stuck the small bit of his golden hair coming out of his helmet to his forehead. 

you only get to admire him for a moment, before he quickly shifts his knee to part your legs, one of his hands grabbing onto your thigh and hitching it up. at the same time, he easily gathers both of your wrists into his other hand, using it to lift your torso off of the ground. he smoothly ducks his head under your shoulder, lifting you up and using his own shoulder to hold you on his back.

there's not even a grunt heard from his lips, but his heavy breaths brush against your arm as he uses one hand to pin your hand across his chest and to your leg, freeing his other hand. he has always been strong, but the extra training he has put in lately gave him an insane boost. through the material that covered him, you could still feel the bulk of his muscles from underneath you as he toted you through the building.

it was amazing, how easy he made it look. you found yourself back outside in seconds, having to close your eyes again from the sudden bright sun reflecting into your eyes. he held you so firmly on top of him that you barely moved as he jogged you out to one of the stretchers set up outside, sliding you down onto the material. 

he pauses for a second, his lips twitching as he pats your legs twice. “i’ll talk to you about this when i’m done,” is what he says without words, begrudgingly turning to run back into the building with another huff.

one of the supervisors lets you get up, thanking you for volunteering and giving you a water to rehydrate from the stuffy room you were stuck in. it’s only about fifteen more minutes of waiting before the rest of the volunteers are retrieved and the drill is over. garroth quickly walks your way as soon as he spots you again, pulling off his helmet and shaking out his pressed-down hair. his jacket has been shrugged off now, red suspenders hanging down on his cargos and his black shirt damp from sweat.

“and… why did you not think to mention this to me?” he asks, raising an accusatory brow and pulling you into his embrace.

“i wanted to see you in action. besides, if i told you, you might’ve chosen favorites.”

“hmm,” he hums lowly, rolling his eyes as he leans down to press a kiss against your forehead. “i would argue against that, but even for a drill i’d save you first.”

“ro’meave! quit flirting with your girl over there and get your ass over here! we still have to debrief.”

“yes, sir!” he calls back, turning to you with a sheepish smile as he tucks his chin down, looking at you through his lashes.

“i’ll see you in a sec, sweetheart. and don’t leave, you still have some explaining to do.”

©starhvney, 2024. please do not steal or repost my works as your own.

[mouchiiarts]

No, it's not "bad" to change her name. Nana/KC is a fictional character that people include in rewrites for a Minecraft roleplay series lol. I feel there isn't much need to overthink this. "Yoko" also sounds cool as shit dude I love that. Go ahead and change it! Rewrites are all about changing a series to how you would've written it, go for it!

Although I love her name and decided to keep it for my own mystreet rewrite, her name was absolutely so half assed. It's definitely taken from both MHA and Final Fantasy. (Nana comes from Final Fantasy with a pink haired cat girl who has a very similar name and Ashida likely comes from "Ashido" from Mina in MHA. Hell, I wouldn't be shocked if Nana's name was a weird variation on Mina's name.)

But I don't think there's anything wrong with wanting to change the name bc you don't vibe with it. I've done that for other characters. As long as you're being respectful about the name change, it's all good!

TLDR: Change Nana's and other characters names all you want op, we're all here to have fun at the end of the day!

I recently saw some discourse surrounding the name Nana, but genuine question: is it actually that terrible to change it?

Like I understand being icked out by people changing it bc they thing it's a "bad name" n whatnot, and that it ties in to her backstory or something, but personally I feel like it just doesn't suit her character super well?? Like the vibes are off to me idk. I've been toying around with different names for her and the one I've been calling her recently is Yoko and I kinda fuck with that?? Is that bad???

Honestly though I do also feel like her name was a little half asked on Jessons part, not that there's anything wrong with the name itself but to me it kind of feels like something they put together last minute.. idk maybe I'm wrong about this but like I actually do want some constructive criticism and maybe a little guidance here please

[nyxtsu]

Yap session about Zane~Chan

Zana/Zane~Chan gets a lot of hate as a ship, but I think it's the healthiest romance in the series.

I personally don't think it's THAT rushed, maybe towards the end, but they didn't just come out of nowhere, it was set up in s2 and they had moments here and there in seasons after that. It was clear even before Starlight that it was set up to be something in the future. But that's besides the point. Their relationship shows healthy communication and growth between two people, and an overall good representation of how a relationship should be. It shows mistakes and flaws within the relationship, and how it's important to communicate and try to fix these things.

Despite how Nana is in relationships, and despite how Zane had never been in a relationship before, it's surprisingly the most mature romance we see.

In the beginning, we see Nana sort of trying to rush things, like she's known to do. Zane tells her that it's okay to go slow and that it's best for them. She takes this criticism and tries to better herself. Zane comes out of his shell a bit more thanks to Nana. In the 'Nana accidentally kissing Garroth' thing, Zane showed true maturity in the way he handled that. He was sad at first, but once Nana explained, he said he believed her. He believed her because he trusted her. That kind of trust is so important in relationships. I think they both truly try to understand each other, because they genuinely care. I think that's a great representation of problems within relationships and working past them. For a Minecraft roleplay.

A lot of Zane's growth as a character was on his own or with the help of Aphmau at the beginning of Mystreet, but we definitely see even more of it in his relationship with Nana. This is how it should be! A character going through self improvement on their own, throughout a series. We see him grow as a character, we got more lore as we went on, saw him warm up to the people around him, etc.

But Nana... my babygirl... what did they do to you...

In Starlight, Nana felt like a character thrown in there as a love interest for Zane. Her character didn't have much growth or depth before that, and all of a sudden in Starlight she's telling her deepest darkest secrets to Zane. While I think that they really did grow closer in "Aphmau's Year", and I do not think she was wrong for suddenly telling him about her past, it felt like bad writing on Jessons part. It just gives the feeling of "oh lets finally give this female character some depth so she can be with this male character." If that makes sense. I wish she had that growth or that lore was revealed earlier on, not just for her relationship with Zane.

So, of course Zana has its faults here and there, but I don't think it's because of their relationship dynamic or anything, I think it's the fault of bad writing (especially on Nana's part). If their story had more thought put into it, and the writers weren't so focused on one ship(Aarmau), it would have been much better. I still think it's great, and I love them, but it could have been better.

Nonetheless, they have a healthy relationship, and they send a good message to the young audience about how things work in relationships. They don't have a very suspicious age gap! And they don't punch each other or sexualize each other to a concerning degree!! Stares at Aarmau and Travelyn.

[that-one-i-think]

Another episode of me being incredibly honest.

Some of y'all really need to suck it up and be greatful that Aphmau is making a final season of mystreet. Like, criticism is absolutely allowed but it shouldn't override your excitement. Act like an orphan getting bland oatmeal, it's not great but food is food.

Honestly, it seems like some of y'all lack understanding that this will most likely be it, BUT if we want to encourage Aphmau to make more, we have to actually be encouraging. I wasn't a mystreet fan, but I still watched it, and I am going to watch the newest season. I am at the very least going to give it a good send off, because that's what the series deserves.

Sure, it's being sent to a different channel, so what? Her newest fans have no real understanding of what is happening, and do you really want comments of "What is this?" And other stuff? There's other things too, but if we apply logic and understanding, none of the bigger complaints are even major.

It is what it is, enjoy what you can.

[the-wonderer-of-the-web]

LOOKING FOR BETA READERS!!!!!

I’m finally starting my phd/mystreet rewrite and I need beta readers

Requirements:

•in the aphblur community

•willing to give constructive criticism and not just praise it

[aphverse-confessions]

mystreet season 5 was poorly-disguised fetish fuel. jesson groomed us all

.

[shadowqnights]

*grabs a can opener*

Spill them worms

oh my gosh i started writing out an essay, accidentally refreshed and deleted it, and now i'm back trying to figure out how to word this.

i'm one of the freaks who actually likes mcd aaron and i love rewriting him. and i'm of the mind that one of the best ways to make aaron and aph more interesting in both universes (and fix a lot of stuff in aph's case) is by having them as werewolves - aph, whether knowingly or unknowingly, entering pdh as a werewolf. aaron being a werewolf in mcd. reversing their roles in each universe.

but the aph thing is a whole OTHER can of worms so specifically in relation to the dog rule in mcd. i'm super passionate about werewolf aaron. this is a crash course for some of my rewrite thoughts. strap in because this one is going to be so long i am so sorry.

in my rewrite aaron is actually not a werewolf at all by technicality since he's cursed by a member of the divine. as opposed to the other wolfkin, there's no way for him to have wolf features in his human form, no ears or tail. he's got a purely human form and a purely wolf form - albeit an unusually massive wolf, but in all other manners resembles a natural animal. he can only be one or the other, nothing inbetween.

his backstory ties very strongly into the ultima origins that you see in mystreet as well. simply put because if i start i'm not going to stop - aaron makes a sacrifice to try and save his dying lily, angers a member of the divine and is transformed into this new form as punishment only to find the efforts in vain nonetheless. cue falcon claw's tragedy.

being a wolf fits aaron to me in a number of ways - firstly that he's literally a lone wolf. he's determined to isolate himself, wander alone and unbothered. he believes that the only way to fulfill his end goal is on his own because his beef is personal. there's no need to get involved in other people's affairs. he has walls up, and while being very gruff and self-serving, has a secret soft side - usually with children. otherwise not much matters to him except vengeance and dying. he's a wandering wolf vigilante of sorts, without even meaning to. he describes himself as a broken human. to me he leans entirely into his cursed form in his grief and becomes very much animal. he barely ever speaks as a human and barely even takes that form unless critically injured/fatigued; he is nothing but a wolf. he tries incredibly hard to see the world as an animal would, but there's a frustrating shred of his human morality that forces him to do the 'right thing' - like saving aph, like saving dante. it's also just a plain interesting approach to his character that makes him more complicated

and because he's this gruff, silent old dog who's convinced he has to die alone, of course the young bright kids are going to flock to him. in this way i love indulging in the dog rule in the way that aaron is the oldest, in some ways the wisest and has lived through a lot of hardships in both human and animal form. and in that animal form he can become the perfect mentor for members of the younger cast who need his guidance. as a wolf aaron is more than anything else a survivor, and other survivors tend to seek him out of instinct. he tries to distance himself, insist that he is a lone wolf *doomed* to live out the rest of his days spiraling in animal hate, in anger, fighting and mauling and earning new scars until the day he can kill zane and then die. but that is very much the human part of him reflecting on the animal part. the animal knows violence. the human justifies it because his suffering has led him there.

aaron's dog rule functions best with others. his relationship with aph works best starting from distrust and disinterest and growing into a friendship/mentorship. because there is a canonical foundation for them to have a bond - because they are/were both lords, both once cared incredibly deeply for their chosen people, both have survived hardships and both of them despise zane. they have a mutual goal and their working together makes sense. if you're that one oomf who likes aarmau then i like to think of them in mcd as having a relationship akin to that of Wolf Children (please watch highly recommend) but as a wolf i feel he would make a great mentor for her too. in a way that only aaron specifically can deliver. i don't explicitly make aph animal, per say, the way that nicole and aaron can shift. but metaphorically there is very much something animal in her. same as dante. the both of them, to me, are younger, they're like cubs trailing at aaron's heels and after some time he takes them in, but aren't physically transformed in any way (though i have AUs where they definitely can).

they have differing relationships to him. aph certainly begins as a naive sunshine character - and as she slowly learns about her world and its history, that sunshine fades a little. she wants so badly to fit in amongst the ordinary people of phoenix drop; she works hard to learn and become one of them. even when (in rewrite + rebirth) she becomes lord out of desperation, merely thinking she's doing these people service by keeping phoenix drop alive, she's trying to be One of them. this animal side of aph to me arrives in the form of her magicks. she finds that not only does her light heal, that it is also quite literally a searing, burning light, something that can hurt. worse, that she feels a sickening rush of power, realising that she has this violent and unpredictable form of self-defense. as this naive pacifist, it offers the bridge to a new chapter of her life that she isn't prepared for; it solidifies that she isn't ordinary, that she woke up for a purpose. and that her allegiances are changing - especially in s2, in the wake of everything falling apart, everything being different and wrong, the people who went into irene's dimension with her are very much the only people who understand. she seeks companionship with aaron because she is ashamed of the feelings inside of her, that she describes as animal because she doesn't know what else to make of it. her magicks feel like an animal separate to her human self because in a way those are irene's magicks, that's irene as a distinct Piece of her, and those things are wilder than the body she was reborn in.

-> incorporating parts of loverman into this, also why aph becomes so strongly bonded with katelyn. because their magicks call to each other. fire and light. they both burn and they end up relating strongly to each other and being weirdly attracted to each others magick. they are both destructive and animalistic, it's just that katelyn is far more attached to her humanity.

aph finds aaron's silence comforting rather than disarming. everyone else finds him weird and a little bit offputting / alienating. she is rather comforted by it. she's spent so long trying to learn what it means to be human because she was born into a human body without any memories - so much so that being with aaron, who is hardly ever human, brings her a lot of comfort. in a way, she finds the most peace with people who are very grounded and well connected to the earth and nature - with zoey, kiki, cadenza, namely, and then aaron. her friendship group, excluding that of her guards, have certain connections to the earth and have very nurturing personalities. she's drawn to that by nature (thanks irene!).

and aaron specifically, who spends the most time as a wolf. when he's not fighting, he's hunting, travelling, and resting. in a human form, i feel there's not much for him to teach her because she's already been through this period of struggle in her mortal body - she's already learned from people like garroth, donna, brendan, namely in rewrite. she has people who can teach her how to fight and how to be a diplomat. she's had a number of mentors and a strong circle of friendship to guide her. she has so many human companions. but aaron is so much more complicated than that. as a wolf, i feel she would seek him out as a teacher. even on the more metaphorical sense that she feels like a broken human, and the only individual who could possibly understand or at least empathise with her place in the world is him. she wants to run wild with him, wants to be in the thick of the woods, the middle of nowhere, wants to pretend as if she could be cursed, too, as if she could find a form that relieves her of the weight of human fears. perhaps then she could embrace this power inside of her.

dante is different because its dante and he's ALWAYS different in some way. god. where to begin. okay so dante is also metaphorically animal in a way that is specifically only in reference to his relationship with aaron. he is aaron's brother and a cub to him in a way that starts out transactional. back to the loverman elements of rewrite for a second:

-> at this point aaron is almost Always using his wolf form . ignore that he was human when he saved aph because i didn't know what i was doing yet. aaron, as a wolf, still has a Shred of 'justice', hence why he finds himself so regularly saving people. because even as a human he considered the circle of life very sacred, and in keeping with kul'zac's teachings as a hunter he was very much so respectful of wildlife and only killing out of necessity rather than for sport or selfish gain (as in, hunting for food and using the absolute Most of those bodies, not taking more than needed). he was very faithful to his shepherd in that regard (until the period when he was cursed. but that's a whole other post). post-curse there is a very deliberate change when aaron becomes a little bit carried away but through it all, he is very conscious of that circle of life. that cycle. even as this vigilante figure, he's very specific with the fights he picks. he saves lost children in the woods, he mauls shadow knights & and in short he sees fit to punish the people/creatures who harm the weak and defenseless for sport, for selfish gain, because (1) that personal justice that is a part of his former worship/morality he can't shake, and (2) maybe a small part of him hopes that if he lives that way for long enough, kul'zac will restore him OR take pity on him and let him die.

he's secretly very particular. even when he can't admit it, his sense of justice is strong. saving aphmau was dubious because she was unknowingly in fer salem (southern wolf tribe) territory and was injured. but she cried for help and he answered. but specifically when aaron is hanging around phoenix drop, he's tracking a volatile shadow knight that attacks him immediately in wolf form, and that alone is enough for aaron to decide that the shadow knights (or just merely. the dudes with That scent specifically) are bad and kill regularly in mass for sport, therefore need punishment.

he sees dante for the first time and thinks of him as a bird, a prey animal, because he acts like one. he is skittish and tentative and blindly wandering through unfamiliar woods. and aaron goes ok that one isn't to be hunted. so when later he finds a shadow knight cornering the group including dante, who he vaguely recognises, the Right thing to do is to attack the shadow knight. (which happens to be gene, therefore saving the life of dante + his companions. so by extension saving aph again, plus garroth and laurance).

dante and aaron are all about transaction. aaron saves dante's life. so then when dante finds him bleeding out in the woods, he saves HIS life. the debt is repaid, but then the other does something to begin a new debt, and they become trapped in a cycle. dante kind of despises him because at that point he has such horrifically complex feelings on gene. such terrible baggage that he doesn't know if he hates him for attacking gene or loves him for attacking gene. it's weird and fucked up and more than anything he knows that he at the very least owes aaron something, so with that in mind he grits his teeth and helps to heal him. which is a slow, gradual process, because aaron has a LOT of wounds, more than just the ones gene inflicted in the fight. dante doesn't even know that he has a human form at this point - it's merely his sense of kindness to take pity on this animal that tried to (and possibly succeeded, since he has no idea of gene's fate yet) kill his horrible older brother. in aaron's weakness, he can't control the wolf, so he turns human briefly and dante realises that he's getting involved in something way more complicated than he bargained for. story of his life. still, he perseveres - and aaron is a stubborn, lonely idiot, and a wolf does not need human medicine. so dante gives up on trying to convince him to come back to phoenix drop and treks into the woods on the daily to tend to aaron's wounds. which he protests but all in all is wayyy too weak and tired to actually Fight it.

in this way they very gradually earn each other's trust and aaron begrudgingly hangs around. dante saved his life again, so now he owes ANOTHER life debt. and aaron is all about paying back debts. in his youth his love language was acts of service, his very bonding with lily was full of debts and transactions and trading.

so as a wolf he lets dante stick around and protects him. the cycle of debts continues in increasingly obsessive/codependent ways [in ways that i'm reluctant to talk about unless asked because loverman spoilers but in short aaron becomes a brother figure for dante, relieving him of the baggage left by gene.]

in this way i consider dante a cub because he's young and he's CLINGING to aaron in a way that, while still a little bit pathetic, its made better by the fact that aaron reciprocates some amount of care towards him and they take care of each other. he's a good brother. when they get close, they get CLOSE. it takes a while, of course, like a year+ to fully earn each other's trust. he's a cub in the way that he's young, barely 19 and has been treated akin to a sopping wet stray dog abandoned too many times. and in a metaphorical sense his shelter becomes an older, wiser wolf who is somehow far more kind and gentle and less animalistic than his human biological brother. and beneath that gruff exterior there is genuinely care in aaron; his care for dante specifically re-inspires a certain purpose in him and opens him up to a future Beyond zane that doesn't just involve his own death. in that way, by association, dante to me is a dog/wolf of his own, and would even consider himself as such because of his relationship with aaron. he is very attached to the idea of being non-human because of his suffering, in which i think he would relate so incredibly strongly to aaron. maybe he secretly wishes he too was gifted with a curse that allowed him to endure pain in the form of a wolf and spare him of human things like regret and remorse. and he's drawn to the mystery of the shapeshifting characters - he is enamoured with nicole at first because he is the first to pick up on her fox form.

aaron also draws dante down a path of maturity and sets his character development in motion - he becomes a bit more merciless, brutal, unforgiving, able to stand up for himself better because of aaron's influence. as if he grew up as a dog kicked down, abandoned and mistreated and neglected, and as he grows up he is taught that he has teeth, and he is allowed to use them. plus the fact that you can take dog rule dante really literally and explore his entire life through that lens but specifically i also love the idea that this pathetic human boy is so attached to his teacher/brother, so obsessed with the idea of sharing someone's blood that isn't gene's, that he fully leans into it. he is someone's animal brother. his wolf brother. his kin. they protect each other. and when the time comes aaron has also grown and while he's always been far more gentle and protective over children, he is especially fond of dante's child [ dmitri, not nekoette's rewrite self, i'm a dancole believer. ].

and in this way they kind of make a fucked up little family. dante and aph consider each other brother and sister - dante finds a new brother in aaron, who thus takes on the role of mentorship for aph.

and . and that's literally just a starter. a very basic crash course but yeah idk i approach them in different ways dependant on what AU you're asking me about. everything i've talked about here is specifically rewrite thoughts + dog rule but honestly i wouldn't be opposed to making dante a werewolf in kennel au or something. and aph as a werewolf would also be really cute and i'm a big fan since she already is one in my mystreet rewrite . one big wolf found family.