#NO MATTER WHAT FANDOM-RELATED PIECE OF MEDIA I CONSUME

[damnfandomproblems]

Fandom Problem #6645:

Can I just say

Being offended is not anyone's problem other than your own.

Does it physically hurt you?

Does it trouble you mentally?

If it does are you purposefully choosing to interact/consume more content of it instead of blocking, filtering, avoiding it?

If you can't avoid it due to improper tags (or smth else) have you tried blocking the person(s)?

If you refuse to do the bare minimum to curate your own online experience then you have no right to complain when you see something you don't want to.

What other people do online, in fiction, or in Fandoms is not your business, nor do you have the right to dictate what others create. No matter how offensive/problematic it may be to you. This applies not only to small creators but big ones too. If you don't like what's in a game or show then avoid it. You are not being forced to consume that content especially when you actively look for it just to hate on it or harass the creator.

Any "criticism" you have for any media should be ASKED for BY THE CREATOR, and no one is obligated to consider the "criticism" seriously. If the creator disagrees then they disagree and you are to either leave or tolerate it if you still want to consume their content.

I feel like this is something that Fandoms forget alot. Especially one's with many children. Many people believe content creators of any kind are meant to bend to their will. That could not be more false. You the reader are responsible for your own experience, and it is not the fault of the creator if they make something you find offensive and you still continue to consume it.

The creator makes what they want and you will either like it or you won't.

I have loved much content and many I have left for various reasons. Never ONCE did I complain about it. I found new content to love and I put the old ones behind and I've not heard from them since. It does not matter what problem you have with a piece of media, if you are not willing to tolerate it then leave it. If it upsets you then leave it, and don't comment about it again.

This may or may not be on topic but I think it relates well enough.

[mania-sama]

If you don't mind me asking, who are your top 5 (or top 7) favorite (fictional) characters ever from any media? Why love them?

thanks so much for the ask!! i always love your questions <3

God, this is a hard one. Because I've consumed and fallen in love with so many pieces of media in my life, it's hard for me to tell who exactly my favorite characters are. The pool is just too big to choose from! But I'll try my best regardless!

Also an important note that as I grow older, this list could very well become out-dated very fast. Who knows what I will see or what medias I will consume that will alter my perception of reality?

In no particular order:

Bakugou Katsuki [My Hero Academia] -> THE OG. I REPEAT. THE OG ONLINE OBSESSION. My history with My Hero Academia goes way back on my online persona, when I was a wee lad and experiencing my first online hyperfixation (Warrior Cats not included). I had him as online nickname and profile picture on multiple accounts and instances. I look back and cringe on this era of my life, but I still will not stand for slander on this character. I obsessed over him because he is an incredibly well-written character, with faults, passions, interesting qualities, and an insane amount of character growth that, arguably, rivals Zuko. His character motivations still stand out to me to this day. I quit reading/watching BNHA around the war arc, like right when it finished and Midoriya fled the scene. No particular reason for quitting, I think; I just moved on from that part of my life. But, Bakugou will always stick with me just a little. AND YOU KNOW WHAT. I liked him when everyone else still hated him. I liked him before it was cool to like him. Shout out to 2020-2021 me for being an OG. I'm still a "Ground Zero" truther to this very day.

Percy Jackson [Percy Jackson and the Olympians] -> Anyone that has read the PJO and/or the following series will not be surprised to find him here. He's like Spiderman but better, which is saying a lot because I really, really like Spiderman. Percy Jackson is there for every kid who has ever felt out of place in this world; for every kid who has struggled in succeeding in any aspect of their life; for every kid who grew up in a household different from their peers; for every kid who behaves in ways that other people don't seem to understand. Spiderman was a character created to represent the reader of superhero comics: a teenage white boy. Of course, later iterations of Spiderman come to represent more individuals, but that is not who he was originally. Percy Jackson is a character that comes from a place of necessity. He is a character that represents the reader of PJO: a kid who doesn't quite fit in with the rest, for one reason or another. Percy is funny, ultra-overpowered, relatable, and still gets his happy ending. Nothing more to want in a character, really.

Robbie White | Axe Boy [Identity V] -> My hunter main for Identity V. I don't really know how to explain why I love him so much, and how he has become a character I get emotional over very fast. I seem to find one random character from a game and attach myself to them like a jellyfish. Not only is his backstory devastatingly heartbreaking, he is adorable in all of his animations, standby motions, emotes, etc.. He has carried me to many victories, and he will continue to carry me in every match I play. I literally forced myself to download IDV on my laptop and play a few matches just so I could get his Little Nightmares crossover skin. No matter how far he falls from meta, they can never make me hate you Robbie.

Kugisaki Nobara [Jujutsu Kaisen] -> I had a LOT of internal debate over this. I guess I can't confirm until I leave the fandom, but for right now, she's definitely one of my top favorite characters of all time. I'm considering writing an analysis on her because she is just so good. I have never seen a female character in a piece of media that isn't explicitly feminine embody femininity so well. It actually impresses me to a degree I cannot reasonably tell you. She's just perfect. Everything about her is everything that I want to be as a woman. She's comfortable in her own skin, confident not in a man-ish way, but in a distinctly feminine way. What gives that she wants to feel pretty and strong in a physical way? Who is saying that she can't have both? Not to mention that she's also extremely strategically smart. I love her. I really, really do. Sometimes, I imagine strangling Gege's avatar and it makes me very happy.

Oikawa Tooru [Haikyuu] -> I honest-to-God cannot believe he made it here. I tried so hard to find a character to replace him. I did not want him here out of SPITE. But here he is, somehow, and not replaced by Miles Morales (who, upon reflection, would only be here because I did not want Oikawa to be here. Miles didn't even make my honorable mentions. That is proof enough, I suppose, that Oikawa somehow deserves his spot). I've talked about it before, but I'll reiterate it here: Oikawa is a character that is very, very easy to toy around with. He is THE teenager, and THE adult. You can project pretty much any anxiety or worry onto him and it'll make sense because he's got so many self-worth issues it's laughable. I don't want to spend more time talking about him than he deserves. I am as disappointed as you are that he made this list.

Honorable Mentions:

Razor & Xiao [Genshin Impact] -> They would've made the list if I could've put one above the other for real. Silly whimsical attachment with immense appreciation for the character writing vs serious love for the writing and development of the character beyond words. Simply an impossible choice.

Akabane Karma [Assassination Classroom] -> He was my favorite character of all time at one point in history and is still the inspiration behind my Tiktok nickname (that I may change one day). Unfortunately, it's been a long time since I've watched the anime and I can't remember much of what drew me to Karma in the first place that isn't already achieved in other of my favorite characters. Still, I thought I'd honor him here.

[miru667]

How do you manage to stay in a fandom for so long? I'm always mario jumping from fandom to fandom every 3-6 months

Oh, so many reasons. I think I've answered this before but in a much more concise way so idk what happened here when I tried to answer again from scratch but uhhh I wrote a lot lol?? Long ramble time. 😂

I found this fandom at a point in my life when I really emotionally needed it, so I got really attached to it. I stayed because of the friends I've made in it and because of the OCs I got invested in, both mine and other people's, and every so often something invigorated my interest like a new roleplay I got to join or new concept art that got discovered.

I'm also just a really dedicated person (for better or worse) and I still have ideas that I want to get out there creatively. I don't get a lot of free time, and I rarely have energy for hobbies after work so my time passes slowly in the sense that I may still be in the middle of appreciating a thing, meanwhile everyone else has already sped through and processed it and moved on.

So I've gotta be really careful about choosing what to spend my limited time and energy on. It sometimes takes me a whole month to draw a piece of art that I'm proud of. It would be a huge waste of my time to spend so much energy on a fandom that after 3 months I think I might not care about anymore.

And like, if it's going to take me a month to draw 1 thing, what am I going to choose? Fanart of a character from a show that I just finished that I might possibly move on from in 3 months? Or art of my darling Audrey OC that I've been developing for years and whom I know will always bring me joy for the rest of my life? It's not a hard choice! Like I'm sure it's obvious by now but I really love my oc. It's gotten to the point that I look for her in every media I consume. I like characters because they remind me of her, and I like plots because they remind me of her. When I watch a movie and end up loving it, I'm not going to be drawing fanart for that movie, I'm more likely going to be drawing Audrey Grace in some way that's consciously or subconsciously inspired by that movie. I'm sure other people with beloved ocs can relate to that, too.

Back to media consumption: I'm constantly watching new things, shows, movies, letsplays, and I'm able to love them just fine, but I never participate in their fandoms (unless you count reblogging fanart as participation. I personally don't). I just don't feel motivated to and I feel like it's unnecessary. I shouldn't need to prove anything. You can appreciate media without engaging in fandom. In fact, I encourage it, because a lot of what I see in fandoms these days is just stressful, at least to me. And I don't want that stress. I'm much happier as a person when I don't have to read other people's opinions, discourse and drama over some show's themes or ships or whatever. I can just quietly revel in my own enjoyment of the show without being tainted by anything else, and my love for it is not any less valid than the person who's livetweeting their loud emotions while watching the same show and putting out fanart 1 hour after every episode. Bless them, though.

And I guess that's mostly what I do these days with the Onceler fandom, too. Appreciating it more quietly these days, I mean. It's just that...I have a fandom related oc so I draw her. And I have friends here so we do stuff together and we reference fandom inside jokes no matter what activity we're doing. If I encounter art that deeply moves me personally, I reblog it, just like I reblog art for other media on my sideblog. When anyone has a fandom history related question, I'm eager to answer because I don't want the past to be misrepresented or misunderstood. And also, since it's been over a decade, this fandom has long ago become my daily normal. I can do whatever I like but I can't really "leave" this fandom unless I delete all my social media and cut off all my online friends. And delete my memories of the past 12 years of my life as well. Just become a completely different person.

So I guess I can reverse the sentiment: I can't relate to people who hop fandoms every 3 to 6 months. 😭 All the power to you, but that's just not the way I happen to live my life, nor the way I engage with the media I consume! The Once-ler fandom was the one exception. It was special.

But who knows, anything can happen in the future. I'm not so proud that I'm purposely blocking myself from looking at other fandoms or anything. I just go with the flow! Right now I'm slowly making my way through jjba, an omori playthrough, a Plague Tale playthrough, and urusei yatsura season 2 (the new anime). Probably nothing will come out of any it except for a bunch of Audrey inspos, but again, who knows. XD I'm also going to an idkhow concert soon, and I've bought merch from their store already. Does that count as participating in a fandom? Maybe not. But now that I think of it, even if I "join" another fandom, it doesn't necessarily mean I'd leave the onceler fandom either, so maybe it wouldn't matter haha.

Thank you for the ask and thank you to anyone who's read my entire answer!

[nunyverse-scribe]

If there’s one thing I noticed in recent times when it comes to fan engagement with art and artists (TV shows, books, movies [franchises], etc.) is that a big factor in the downward spiral in media literacy and critically analyzing what we engage with is that a lot of people… feel sort of obligated to getting defensive for the specific things they like. And they assume any critique or criticism is a form of ill will or malice towards the piece.

Which I think is SUCH a terrible mindset to have when engaging with any piece of art or media, especially in a time where there’s this general push for dumber downed media for the masses to consume and likewise less critical thinking. I notice a pattern where there are people that will give a million disclaimers about how much they love the media they’re about to critique because they know the average fan will dogpile on them and assume it’s someone who doesn’t like the art that’s critiquing it. Or I notice when a subsection of fans of a media start critiquing it, there’s another crowd in the fandom that say “if you don’t like it so much, then why are you watching it 😒” even though that’s not the case, the critiques come from a place of love. That’s not right, it’s not good to have this general consensus that to love something means to ignore or outright accept glaring problems in relation to it.

We as audience members, we as fans of a certain thing, need to be able to be ok with the fact that the shows, movies, books, etc. we enjoy might have some negative elements to it that we HAVE to be critical of. Sometimes the thing we dislike is something as small as a trope we’re tired of seeing. Sometimes the thing we dislike is a LOT bigger, though, such as questionable messaging subconsciously implemented due to the writers’ internalized bias.

And honestly THAT is what matters most to me when it comes to this type of thing.

Because EVERYONE is susceptible to the subliminal propaganda in a piece. You, me, your neighbors, your parents, kids, the elderly, everyone. And even moreso when we choose not to question or challenge the things in the media or art being fed to us.

Why? Because to just accept any glaring problems in (with the example I’m typically using right now in this rant) a specific narrative purely because as a whole you like the story means that you are allowing that narrative—and likewise other narratives you’re bound to consume and internalize—make the decision on your thoughts and the decision on your principles and moral compass.

To combat that you have to do as I stated above: challenge those attributes of the story or art or whatever that are relaying questionable messages. Even if you, generally speaking, really like it.

QUESTION why that creator will depict women, or POC, or disabled ppl, or queer ppl, or another marginalized identity in the certain way that they do. QUESTION why a creator’s art relays a certain commentary on the systems of fascism, or capitalism, or the patriarchy, or police brutality, or any other oppressive system. Especially because this art and these stories we engage with don’t exist in a vacuum: what came before it to lay the foundations was experiences of the creator, what was there alongside its creation was the creator’s personal principles and ideals, and what comes after it is the impact it will leave on minds and ideologies it will spread.

I dunno, I say this because I enjoy critically analyzing the stories and the art that I love. I will watch a TV show or read a book and I will connect with a lot of aspects of it, I will love it, I will recommend it to others. However, I will also have long conversations with fellow fans (usually friends) about the pitfalls, I will take note of certain aspects of the story that were questionable choices, and I will view it with a critical eye. And maybe it’s just because I’m a writer myself, but I feel like being that nuanced and careful with how you view the art that you love, to praise AND critique it, is in itself a form of love or passion for the art.

And I really wish more people understood that? Especially when it comes to art, things aren’t black and white. They are allowed to be good and bad at the same time. Characters are allowed to be likable but also horrible people. And I feel that having this mindset of “I like it therefore I see it as perfect” is a very, VERY dangerous one to harbor.

[shanksxbuggy]

aren’t they brothers? I haven’t reached that part yet but I heard they were sworn brothers, not blood related but isn’t it creepy like shipping ALS?

Shanks and Buggy? No, they haven’t referred to each other as brothers, and the only time is when a Marine is operating on their own misconceptions. I’m not sure what you know (spoilers ahead?) even in the future, people believe Buggy’s debt collecter is his older brother, because Buggy’s whole gimmick of falling upwards relies on misconceptions to hype him up.

In the ASL flashback, you’ll see they refer to each other as brothers and make an oath. Shanks and Buggy don’t even call each other family. They grew up in the context of being crewmates and fellow apprentices, and that’s where their pride is.

You’ll also see in the future arcs, there are canon couples who are childhood friends and refer to themselves as sister or brother, but they still clearly fall in love. It’s not uncommon to say two people are like siblings just to explain how close they are.

Just the term sworn brother doesn’t necessarily mean ‘you guys have sworn to be brothers’, it can be used to describe a very close bond between male friends. The official one piece info never acknowledges them as brothers, not in the supplemental info or marketing.

It’s strange to me to see this argument in the English-speaking fandom, because where my family’s from people will use brother or sister to describe others all the time.

I think what I see is that people believe growing up together automatically means siblings? But in a lot of East Asian media, the standard for adoptive siblings isn’t just growing up together, it’s whether or not they choose to see each other as siblings. Not only that, Shanks and Buggy were apprentices on a pirate ship with like a hundred adults on that ship, this was not a traditional family setting.

There’s a lot of ships people will say you can’t ship for some reason. Some people don’t like shipping the Straw Hats together because they’re a found family. But you should consume the story and decide for yourself what you like.

I take this opportunity to ask you not to hassle people over something like this, no matter what your opinion. It’s just not worth it. I see artists who get disheartened by the negative comments they get. So I will not accept hateful behavior towards artists and fans. I appreciate it if you left that stuff in your own space. I hope this explanation clarified some things for you.

[clockwork-stars]

[ask game] Hi!!!!!

List 5 things that make you happy, then put this in the askbox for the last 10 people who reblogged something from you! get to know your mutuals and followers <3

Okay I can't promise that I will put in 10 people askbox because I am scared to bother but I am answering because it's fun

Movies. I don't talk about it often on Tumblr for some unknown reasons but I currently have an obsession with movies that is making me deeply happy. I am watching too much movie for my own well being but it is fun and it feels nice so who am I to tell myself to stop (lastly I have seen Mutt that was really nice!)

Books and reading in general. (Not so) ancient bookworm here that used to read multiple books a week and that is now happy when they end more than 2 books in a month. As much as I don't read as many books as I did before, reading makes me happy. Truly. Mostly fantasy, I am not gonna lie but reading truly feels magical

Okay this one is weird but trust me on it: Notion. Being able to do organisation in my life, having so many Notion page or Excel sheet for so many thing (I might have at least 4 different systems/place where I report the movies I watch/things about them). It just feels nice to do so, to be able to do statistics with it (yes I am weird) to have pretty notion pages to motivate me to things.

Uni. Yes I had at least 4 anxiety crisis that were uni related this week but still I love it so much??? I am absolutely fascinated by what I am studying I just always want more and if I listened to myself (and that capitalism wasn’t a thing) I would just spend the 10 next years studying in multiple fields.

Being in fandom related space. On Twitter but also on tumblr lately, interacting with people, consuming fan made content, going to convention, watching new content with theories and random pieces of content all over my mind. No matter the fandom, no matter my implication in it (there are those fandom where I am barely liking some tumblr post then there is this where I am managing the Twitter jail account, and then in the middle those where I read fanfictions as if my life depended on it without ever interacting with this fandom on social media. I have a lot of types of interactions). Fandom life and fandom interactions just make me feel good and make me happy. And seeing people happy to be there or happy to have new content often make me love the original work even more (typically doctor who) because of how much it makes others people happy.

I could continue but the ask was for 5 things so here we are 🫡

(Apparently I am unable to just list things and feel the need to always explain so sorry and take this freaking long answer-)

[sasubaeuchithot]

I was reading one of the comments on chapter 13 that essentially praised you for how the username YoungAndOverIntelligent was very accurate because your intelligence shows in your writing and I was nodding along saying DAMN STRAIGHT (might not be able to claim the title of no1 Sasuke glazer cuz that's naruto's job, but trust and believe I AM the no1 kh glazer, I will fight anyone who tries to disagree I fear 🤷‍♀️) and then I read your response and.

oh.

HOW DID I MISS THE ACRONYM NO OH MY GOD I CAN'T STOP LAUGHING I'VE BEEN SOOOOO BAMBOOZLED DAMN ITTTTTT THAT'S TOO GOOD UGH

Even in your inside joke of a username there exists humour indicative of high level smarts 😔

Okay but on a more serious note, I genuinely have to once more thank you for sharing your work with us.

I've sent an insane amount of Asks to you these past few weeks; at least, insane considering how rarely I generally send Asks, and how you're the only person I've sent more than two to.

Fanfiction has been a pivotal part of my life for as long as I can remember myself, and I find that it's an incredible way to, among other things, express your love for a piece of media, to make friends with people in the same community and give back to the fandom, to practice and hone your writing, and most importantly, to have fun.

It's very soothing to have a comfort read that perfectly encapsulates my thoughts and feelings on these characters and on the world that Kishi has carefully crafted but, in the same breath, basically wasted, in a fandom that I feel like so often misunderstands the point.

There are many fandoms I've been in, thousands of fics I've read, millions and millions of words consumed in the past three-four years, and hundreds of literary works (both fanfiction and not) that have, in some way or another, left their mark on me.

But Kizuna Hikari has always stood out to me the most. Maybe that sounds unbelievable. Out of all the beautifully written works I've read (the number of those is actually astronomical), I'd still pick kh over every single one of the works that have ever pierced my soul?

Yes. I can't put it into words, exactly, but there's a feeling that engulfs me every time I think about it that is so unique in its warmth.

Both because I especially love Naruto, multiple flaws and all, and because this story hits every mark that it's aiming for dead-on.

Not very many stories can achieve that.

Most fanfiction, no matter how gorgeous, or well-written, or enthralling, or in character, feels like fanfiction. This of course doesn't have any effect on how much I love it; the vast majority of the time, I long for that exact feeling of a fanmade work infused with copious amounts of the author's love and passion for their creation. It doesn't matter that it's fanfiction.

But there's a degree of believability in kh that brings about a different type of comfort.

Naruto's ending sucked. It makes me miserable to think about it. The Naruto fandom, for a fandom that insists on the show's greatness, collectively misses the point of an alarming amount of the story's arcs, characters, and overall essence in a way that has me seriously concerned for the world's media literacy.

But kh is so concentrated on, and deeply rooted in, the realistic depiction of a differing outcome and the consistently in-character portrayal of Naruto and Sasuke and their simple, but still incredibly complicated, relationship, without either of their ideals and convictions taking the backseat in the name of conventional romance; romance that also just doesn't fit these characters.

It's been three years since I first read it, and it continues to be equally wholly satisfying, and provides me with what I initially didn't even know was the idyllic, fleshed out exploration of the events following that final battle that I needed.

It also helps that I relate to/crave and ache for the, in my eyes, inherently queer type of love/attraction that exists between your Naruto and Sasuke way more than that of any other romantic love story that I've ever known.

In other words, the meticulous planning, loving effort, and skillful writing that make up your story have bewitched me, body and soul.

Wow, this took a direction I couldn't have foreseen. I only started this rant to whine about missing the YAOI acronym

okay you've turned me into an embarrassing jelly goop of a person on the floor over here 😭 I've trained myself to be good at taking compliments but this is making me blush and squirm because it is so beautiful and kind and like do I deserve this???? (yes i do, i keep telling myself, because I believe your sincerity but even my therapy trained brain is too flustered to work correctly 😭😭😭)

but lmaaaoooooooo i love when people fall for my username. the height of humor to me is making people think I'm pretentious but really my brain is just a twelve year old giggling at the word "sex"

[genshinconfessions]

"Actually, Nahida only takes a smaller form because she's the youngest archon--"

So you're telling me she identifies most with a child body.

"Well, no, see she's just short-"

But you just related her form to her age and how she percieves her age

"Yeah, but she's so mature-"

Because of the trauma. Literally as a result of her trauma. Maybe she could've aged differently and chosen her form as such should she have been given a proper upbringing, but that doesn't change the fact that as of now she Views herself as a Child and Projects The Body Of One.

---- I'm sorry, I can't - with Sigewinne being revealed, I've been seeing more shit sexualizing children and I'm Tired. Lets just put it to rest, okay? Tall body models? Typically adults, no exceptions come to mind. Medium body models? Some young adults and some teenagers.

But characters with the Smallest Model? It's not just short. Look at their proportions. If they were just short, they'd still have similar proportions to the previous models, but they don't. Their heads are largened with softened features and their body shape matches other child models in the game. An argument for body type also doesn't work given Genshin isn't exactly inclusive and such logic would only apply to one of the three model categories. They are children. Stop fucking around with your "AcTUaLly" - It doesn't matter. You are attracted to CHILDREN and need HELP. If not help, then to be on a list. Either check yourself and improve, or at least quit making excuses so the rest of us can ignore you as we so please whilst also redirecting younger members of the community.

Not to mention, those that plea and cry that their "waifus" aren't actually children and are just short adults, typically don't have that reflect in their content created and consumed. Maybe I'd take y'all a little more at face value if y'all actually y'know, drew and wrote what you supposedly believe. Hell, it'd still be a problem if it were Jean or Lisa being sexualized, but drawn and written blatantly as children.

Also, anyone that may want to say "oh, you don't believe in short people" - I DO. I AM a short person. A short asian person who has been infantalized and not treated as an adult. But I have also been a child who was sexualized. And now both intermingle in my life. I am sick and tired of it all. It's all just shitty excuses. Thirst after literally anything else. Work out whatever you have going on with consenting adults instead of projecting it onto public media that has an audience of varying ages Including Minors. Additionally; Venting, coping, and exploring darker topics via fiction is NOT the same as GLORIFYING and INDULGING. That line should be Very Distinct.

(one last point: some people say characters like Dori and Sigewinne are a salesperson and nurse respectively, adult professions, yeah? Well friendly reminder, Barbara is ALSO a nurse. Fischl is an adventurer, and she's no older than 16. We are going by FANTASY LOGIC in which children can wield weapons and explore nations with little to no supervision! The given profession of any character as well as their attire means nothing in that kind of world.)

i'm sorry you've had to go through such things, anon :///

but i agree with you; it's a problem that definitely extends outside of genshin but for some reason, ppl seem so desensitized to it and shrug it off as 'oh waifu go brrrr' which is quite irresponsible imo

i'm a big proponent of 'fiction is fiction and you can think whatever you want as long as it doesn't harm anyone', but in this case, these things DO harm ppl; they harm all the very young children who play genshin and partake in fandom discussions

it's very important for everyone to realize that even if a piece of media is fictional and thinking/saying/doing certain things won't hurt the characters, your actions will absolutely set an example in real life, very possibly harming the younger members of the fandom

the line is quite gray sometimes, in fandom circles, and it might be hard to tell what's 'okay' and what's 'not okay', but i think most ppl have a good sense of what's simply enjoying a character vs sexualizing them

and hence, it becomes our responsibility to call out the things that are disturbing and potentially harmful. even if the original person who did those things won't change, you've at least spread awareness to others and let them know that [whatever the thing was] is unacceptable

katheryne from liyue

[pjwarriorcats]

Into the Wild

So… what’s the deal with these cat books anyway?

If you’ve spent a decent chunk of time on the internet, you’ve probably encountered them in some form at least once. While by no means the largest fandom on the internet, nor even the largest book series fandom, Warriors fans are pretty prolific, particularly on art-sharing websites and on YouTube. 

The series itself began in 2003 with the release of Into the Wild. Since then, the series has only grown tremendously, with over 90 additional chapter books, graphic novels, super editions, guide books, ebook exclusives, and more (quick note for your own reference: I myself managed to read an even 60 of the main series books before I finally gave up). The children’s book series is written by Erin Hunter, a pseudonym shared by a team of writers and editors, currently consisting of Victoria Holmes, Kate Cary, Cherith Baldry, Tui Sutherland, Inbali Iserles, and Clarissa Hutton, and formerly Gillian Philip (fired after a run-in with what she called the “woke warriors” of publishing—more on that at another time). Different books were worked on by different members of the team, so the pseudonym was devised in order to keep them all organized together when placed on a library shelf.

[Alt Text: The cover art for the first Warriors book, with an orange cat sitting in a separate box, against a forested background where two more cats approach each other: Artist credit]

The books are about feral cats who have created an organized society of four Clans (each with around 15-20 cats) for themselves in the woods, complete with traditions, customs, a code of rules to live by, and a religion to follow. Built around this general premise, the series has since followed multiple plotlines, and many different characters have starred as the reader’s point of perspective in each book or arc.

These books hooked their claws into multiple generations of young readers. People found enjoyment in discussing their favorite characters, predicting future events, creating fan artworks, arguing over their favorite Clan and territory, and so much more. Furthermore, the basic premise outline left plenty of room for people to devise their own characters, Clans, and stories. Communities popped up around the internet, filled with people’s original Warrior Cats characters, sharing them with each other, creating artwork and animations, writing fan fictions, drawing comics, and developing stories. Roleplay forums related to these original characters (OCs) began appearing everywhere that they could, anywhere that had even the barest technological capability for it: DeviantArt and Wattpad comments sections, Minecraft multiplayer servers, online MMOs like Animal Jam, even MIT’s Scratch programming website. It was everywhere.

And it still is.

I can’t account for DeviantArt or Scratch anymore; it’s been a long time since I’ve traversed through those forums. But I can say with certainty that the Warriors Community has not stopped talking and creating and sharing what they’ve made since it began. The books are one thing, but it’s the fandom I really find fascinating, even all these years since leaving it.

There’s not really any way to consume every single bit of content created by the fans of the Warrior Cats books; there’s just too much of it. I’ll give you as big and as varied a sample as I can at a later time. There’s some extremely remarkable things out there that they’ve created. But the truth of the matter is that not every piece of media made in Warrior Cats’ honor necessarily deserves to be consumed, nor every creator supported. The series is not free from controversies, ranging from accusations of cultural appropriation, to zoophilia, to ableism, and more, and I hope to discuss some of those, as many as I can, as well.

Long story short: there’s a lot to say about the Warriors fandom. Let’s get into it!

[Alt Text: A digital painting of a large cream cat and a small grey cat running together through a birch forest. Artist credit]

[angel-is-not-creative]

Azuma- Otaku, Japan’s Database Animals 

I am much better at watching anime than I am at reading anything so this was incredibly difficult for me.

In order to understand this I had to relate it back to my own experience in fandom. I have been an avid participant in fandom culture since about the age of 12 (when I made tumblr) so I would say I am pretty well-versed.

What it seemed to be saying at the beginning is that if there is a piece of media that is relatively liked by consumers, both the audience and the creators will find ways to parody it and sell it in different ways. Many fan creations are imitations of worlds that are often imitations of other worlds (it is an endless cycle).

As this becomes more common the line between what is original and what is a "knockoff" becomes more blurred. When everything is inspired by something else in some form, when are you copying and when are you just drawing inspiration from a story.

Originality stems from the way each individual event plays out through the story, the overarching narrative, however, a narrative cannot be sold or expressed as a commodity such as stickers.

The author then goes on to talk about the newer generation of Evangelion fans who did not want to immerse themselves in the fictional world, but rather wanted to be able to separate the characters from the show and use them in other works (like erotic telephone cards). This is something we see a lot in fandom nowadays, everything within a story is up to interpretation, headcanons run wild. Looking at the most popular show of 2010's fandom Hetalia (which I will be talking about in depth when we get to it) was frequently removed from canon, even by the creators. This allows for more freedom for fans to connect with characters and stories as well as take some creative interpretations in fan works or cosplay.

Particularly, they like to take characters and add "moe elements to them" and I mean Hetalia shows us this too

I mean literally cat ears and nurse outfits are the definition of these moe elements that are added to characters in "parody" work.

"Within the consumer behavior of feeling moe for a specific character, along with the blind obsession, there is hidden a peculiarly cool, detached dimension— one that takes apart the object into moe-elements and objectifies them within a database"

While this typically happens with female characters I don't think it is exclusive to them... as displayed above. Who cares if a character is well-written within their story? Can we put them on a body pillow? Cause that is all that matters to a lot of fans.

I think this is the main point of this, that a lot of fandom culture revolves around removing characters from their story and portraying them in a way that we want to see them. This is where fanfiction and alternate universes arise from, and it allows for fans to take a piece of another work to make their own.

[thenukacolachallenge]

Masterpost!

PLEASE NOTE THAT I FOLLOW FROM @pinkcatminht AND THIS IS A SIDE ACCOUNT :)

hello! I’m dia, and this is my fandom and writing account!

FANDOMS:

-Yu Yu Hakusho -One Piece(long time fan, caught up with the manga, loved the live action. ‘#opspoilers’ is my spoiler tag for the animanga, ‘#dia watches opla’ is my spoiler tag for the live action) -Wotakoi(Love Is Hard For Otaku) -Mortal Kombat -Fallout -The Outer Worlds -The Legend of Zelda -Stranger Things -Nope -other occasional things i’m currently forgetting lmao

for most of my fandoms, i tag by character, not by the name of the piece of media itself. feel free to go through my character tags! (they work best on desktop! sorry mobile users)

i have an absolute fuckton of OCs lmao. i have a masterlist where you can learn more about them :D

some tags i use frequently(they work best on desktop! sorry mobile users):

#dia drabbles - my writing! #others works - writing that isn’t mine! #others ocs - if i post about an OC that isn’t mine, this will be the tag :D #funny - the laugh tag! primarily memes and shitposts related to writing and fandom stuff. #reference - writing references! this is largely catered to my writing, so not everything in here may be relevant to writing advice as a whole. #prompts - writing prompt lists! #tips - ideas and reminders to improve your writing and fandom experience :) #oc asks - questions about OCs, to help flesh them out! #fandom wank - anything fandom or purity culture related. this tag sucks but if you want my opinions on Fandom Things, it’ll likely be in here.

Some things of note:

1. This blog is for ages 18+. This is non negotiable. please keep in mind that i will block if i find you are lying about your age and you follow me.

2. Series-typical content warnings apply. many of these works i’m a fan of contain mature content. please be mindful of potentially seeing those things if you follow me. if you are unsure of what specific content you may see, feel free to search the above-listed media’s mature content warnings. i tag my individual works as best i can. if i miss something big that isn’t covered by the subject matter in the above works, please let me know.

3. I am here to have fun, and I do not care about things like note counts and engagement. if this is something that you focus heavily on, then my blog may not be for you. i treat this very casually. this is a hobby for me. i follow over 300 people and i realistically cannot consume every bit of content that all 300 people are posting. if you want me to see something specific, consider tagging me in it! it’s not a full guarantee i will see it nor that i’ll have the time and energy to read it, but i will do my best.

4. I am neither pro nor anti-ship, but a secret third thing(a grown adult who pays taxes and has better things to worry about than shipping nonsense). behave yourself accordingly. i block with extreme prejudice. if you’re that upset about what people do with fictional characters, you should consider putting that energy into helping people in offline spaces.

that’s about it, thanks for reading!

[oennpellmell]

I was thinking that the other after reading a yet another discussion about how women didn't have any sex drive nor phantasm because it wasn't in our evolutionary nature as a mean to reproduction. You the usual "only male orgasm is necessary"... as if nature gave a damn about only giving pleasure center to the beings with semen or had any write in stone logic about reproduction. But I digress.

So while all those men debate on why it wasn't technically possible for female to, you know, like sex, or anything related to it, the same way men did (as an argument as to why it was more difficult for men to control their libido), I though: "Does any of those weirdos not realize that the erotic industry is literally dominated by women consumers. That most of fandoms shipping and fanfics are in majority carried and created by girls and women, which HIGHLY contribute to the success of a media, as the more they are involved in said fandom, the more likely it will gain popularity. That there is an entire genre (Yaoi) catering to the ladies pornographic and erotic interest and that in any bookstore, the entire erotic section is practically entirely sold to a female audience?"

And it isn't just the naughty side of fandom/media. I cannot prove it because it is anonymous, but I convinced that AO3 is mainly composed of a female community, that is on the author side than in the readers side. Every time, I read one fan fic I can tell from the way it is written that a woman is being it. Women have always been the most efficient silent marketer of all those medias and when I read guys saying women don't understand anything about video game and fake interest into, I am thinking that if I type said game on the Google search engine, I know that all the fan merch and creation I will find will be mainly done by girl. Or queer people, because their community is also a big factor into that underground marketing. And I am a bit tired of this hypocrite view. Producer and big studios keep on saying that things that could cater to a female (and/or a queer) audience will not work, because, in fact, they are afraid that it will chase away their precious male consumers if the latter hear it isn't just for them. They think only their view matter so they choose to completely ignore what the real demographic of a fandom is really made of. It is the equivalent of an immature boy club that have build a tree house with a "no girl allowed" sign: If girls were not talking about it, that treehouse would lose its interest in a week. That is why they continue to do marketing survey with teenage boys (and when they do create stuff that is based on it, it is usually a flop) instead of expending to the entire human population. And when they do on piece of media they claim to be for everyone, they made so insanely badly without much effort to let people know about its existence, which they use afterward as an excuse to go back to their usual way because "obviously it isn't working."

Leading to douchebags claiming afterward the "females" do not and cannot enjoy media nor have elaborate taste of it, the way males do, because they cannot project nor comprehend the deepness and multilayer of a fiction. As they are creature of present, therefore their brain can't imagine meaning beyond concrete representation; that they can even understand that two actors not really related by blood in real life can play member of the same family on screen. thus, they only pretend to be interest to attract the male attention. this is pretty toxic and I would really like it to end.

[27variettysworld]

Week 9: The reality of being Kpop fans in this era  

To The World, this is Tania last blog  

For the last posts for my Tumblr blog, I will talk about the reality of being K-POP fans in this new generation where everything is modern. First let me brief you about what fandom is and how do they work?

Fandoms are becoming more widespread as a social and cultural phenomenon including numerous aspects of current society and its consumer culture. (Gray et al., 2007; Hills, 2002; Jenkinsand Shresthova, 2012) For example, fandoms give birth to professional fans by shaping their existing professions like journalism and academia and shaping it to a new profession like commemorative writers, video games streamers and bloggers. (Jenkins, 2006b) Fans discover that the joys associated with popular culture are entwined with their identities. They occupy fandom-related social roles. (Duffett, 2013, p. 18). All fandoms have their own culture, rules and jokes. If we compare the western and Korean fandom culture, there are a huge difference. We can see from the concert culture. For K-pop, every group have they own designated cheer light or what we usually call as a Ligh stick. Every time there is a concert, the fans will bring their Ligh stick to the concert venue.  

Furthermore, there is another thing that fans commonly bring to the concert venue or outing, which is a photocard. Photocards can also refer to cards that come with albums or other merchandise, such as K-pop albums. Some collectors would swap some of their duplicates with other fans or purchase particular pieces from various internet merchants. The old generation fandom did not collect photocard in the past but for this generation, fans are more obsessed with collecting their favorite members photocards than the album.  

I do collect photocard as well especially NCT Jeno!!

"A person with a relatively deep, positive emotional conviction about someone or something famous, usually expressed through recognition of style or creativity," is how fandom studies define fans. In short, fandom is where a person likes and idolizes a particular singer, actor, streamers and more. I believe everyone has one celebrity or public figure that they look up to.  

Fandom name  

 In the K-pop world, I identify myself as NCTZEN, which is a name for a fandom of NCT. Nowadays, a name for a fandom is common, the older generation did have a name for their fandom, which is not surprising that every group in this generation have a fandom name as well. Fandom names in K-pop must have a unique meaning and may not even be terms that are taken from the name of the artist. For example, “ENGENES” a fandom name for boy group ENHYEPEN, this word works on both as a paronym to “engine” and a reference to “gene” as in to mean a DNA connection between the group and the fans. In all cases, the fans must identify with the name. With the existence of fandom names, I believe it helps the fans to identify themselves on which fandom they belong to. Fans can express themselves, connect with one another, and set themselves apart from other audiences by using fandom names. Even popular western singers and bands like Taylor Swift and One Direction have their own fandom name which is Swifties and Directioners.  

The reality of being kpop fans in this era  

The industry is becoming more toxic now, even between the fandoms. Fan war happens almost every day and you can often see it on social media. The problem with the new fandom is that everyone judges easily, and everyone cancels the idol easily for a small reason like smoking or dating. The amount of Sasaeng fans or what we call stalkers has grown so many now. A lot of celebrities and idols are afraid of Sasaeng fans because these people are the ones who leak their personal information, numbers, private social media accounts. Even worse, they can be the ones who will follow celebrities or idols everywhere, it doesn't matter if it's overseas or not. These people are just obsessed and delusional too much about being close to their idols will make their idols like them back. Which is very disturbing.  

Thoughts? 

Being a Kpop fan in this generation does need a strong mentality. Sometime the fandom can be the one who destroys their own idols mentality. For example, one of NCT members is having an anxiety attack and when he come back from hiatus to join the group activities, a lot of comments from its own fans are body shame his chubby face. People need to know that you’ll gain weight if you are under medication and it’s normal. And sometimes, you should always say something nice cause you don’t know how the person mentally is.  

Thank you!

(788 words) 

Reference  

Ribeiro, A. C. (2024, August 7). Journey towards a fandom name: the Sabrina Carpenter fan base case. Stanly. Viewed 27 November 2024 https://event.stanlyapp.com/post/journey-towards-a-fandom-name-the-sabrina-carpenter-fan-base-case#:~:text=The%20fandom%20name%20can%20be,to%20choose%20a%20fandom%20name? 

Fuschillo, Gregorio. (2020). Fans, Fandoms, or Fanaticism?. Journal of Consumer Culture. 20. 347-365. 10.1177/1469540518773822. Viewed 27 November 2024 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/322273679_Fans_Fandoms_or_Fanaticism/stats  

Gray, J., Sandvoss, C. & Harrington, C.L. (2007) " Introduction" in Fandom: Identities and Communities  in a Mediated World, NYU Press, New York, pp. 1-16  Viewed 27 November file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/Fandom_Identities_and_Communities_in_a_Mediated_Wo..._----_(Introduction)%20(1).pdf  

[changelingsandothernonsense]

Also, I find that as a very niche artist, I am often told that my work isn't shareable because audiences can't "relate" to what I'm painting as it's of an OC and his story and not "Insert popular character from popular fandom here."

I don't think people realise how demoralising that is? I am being told constantly that my art is only worth sharing with others if it's related to currently popular media. That the time and effort it takes to create a piece is literally worthless because the subject isn't a part of popular culture. Months of work and dedication are worthless to audiences because they can't relate to things unless it's this week's no.1 blorbo.

I rarely get interested in something when it's current. Most of the things I like are because they speak to me on an emotional level. It doesn't matter if it's 20 years old or 80 or three months. I don't create art because I'm trying to gain a following. The following is a nice bonus but it will always remain small because all my subjects are very personal to me. To say that my subjects need to be popular to resonate with audiences actually reinforces the belief that I'm an alien who's emotions and creativity can't be related to in any way. Not really a great world view to have.

Art isn't meant to be dictated by what's currently popular on the internet. If you can't relate to a work because you don't recognise your current blorbo, then I don't know what to tell you.

Art isn't a consumable, it's not some crap you buy from temu that you'll throw out in a week's time because it broke. It's meant to last and when art is treated only as consumable content... well suddenly we don't want to share anymore.

To those who like my work, regardless, I really really appreciate you and your support. I love to see your feedback and I post because of you.

something that really sucks about being an artist on the internet in 2024 is that a lot of people don't know how to respond to art anymore. not ALL people, but a noticeable amount of them. they look at a piece of art that you made, that you care about and put time and effort and love into, and they'll say "wow! this is just like [THING YOU'VE NEVER HEARD OF]!" or "omg! it's exactly like [THING THAT ONLY HAS SURFACE LEVEL SIMILARITIES AT BEST]!" and i know those people don't have bad intentions. they're trying to say that they liked what you made. but that's not how it comes off. it comes off as reductive. as dismissive. and the worst thing about it is, if they simply ASKED what my inspiration was, then i'd love to tell them. no art is without a muse and we're all impacted by our experiences. my problem with this type of response is the assumption, and oftentimes the insistence that your thing MUST be based on or inspired by this other thing. that they only value your thing BECAUSE they can make some weird connection to something that is, 99% of the time, either unintentional or entirely unrelated. it just hurts. what did you like about my thing? did you like the colors, the composition? did you like how it made you feel? those types of reflections are so much more valuable than "your story/character/etc reminds me of [other story/character/etc]". and i hope you can understand why.

[wernerherzogs]

not to be gay and constantly starved for good representation, but i truly Cannot get over the fact that. yusuf and nicolo are not only a canon gay couple, but also that no matter where exactly any viewer's fandom interests lie regarding the old guard (2020) dir. gina prince-bythewood, they'll ALWAYS be a canon gay couple. like, you want a nile-centric fic? they're a couple. booker's character study? still in love. an analysis of andy's struggles over the centuries? yusuf and nicolo continue to choose each other over and over again in the background. there's no room for antis in this fandom. no one will take joenicky away from me. no one will tell me i'm being stupid, and reading too much into things. no one's gonna make the "the content creators and actors are just queerbaiting you" argument. no one CAN make it. it's indisputable. it's canon. IT'S HEALING.

[prettyboykatsuki]

i would like to know ur opinions on aging up discourse tho🙇🏽‍♀️

man lmfao it's pretty complicated i don't know how to articulate it. this is really long

cw for the typical discourse around this stuff, mentions of p*dophilia

in short every argument made against aging up uses the same basic logical fallacies. slippery slope, generalization, and assumption . the implication that every person who ages up fictional characters either is a danger to minors or is attracted to them in some way despite their being no empirical evidence or definitive way to conclude that about a person is, point blank, a bad faith argument.

fictional characters are not people - they're story telling devices. therefore they have no agency and cannot be effected by anything that happens to them. they're closer to a concept than a person. they're not real, they have no stake in real life - and the things we do with them are entirely made up. the argument should end there.

"but why age them up and not use *already adult character*" they are different character that accomplish different things. you wouldn't use blue to paint the sun

"im a minor and it makes me uncomfortable," i was a minor but im an adult now and i don't want to engage with any minors in this particular space which is why it's labelled 18+. most adults don't want to engage with minors over nsfw either. if someone does try to engage with or lure you with nsfw content knowing you're a minor, you are in danger and you should seek out a trusted person in your life to talk to and block said person. my job online isn't to make you comfortable and that experience is not indicative of every person online.

"why're you justifying having a crush on *canon minor character*" im in no way shape or form explicitly attracted to this character because he's a minor so there's not a crush to justify. im a person consuming a piece of media, and this character engages my interest and is drawn to be good looking. so i take him and engage with him in a way i like - that is how media consumption works. as an adult because im an adult.

even if we took sex/nsfw/romantic context out of the equation because that's normally what this argument centers on - i almost always contextualize characters in adulthood because that's the stage of life im in.

"why're you aging up a character just to sexualize them," im not. im aging them up because it develops their character in my mind and i find them more relatable. even if i did it wouldn't matter because it still means im transforming that character into an adult.

your assumption that people use this weird roundabout to justify their attraction to kids is based on the idea that actual predators and dangerous people online don't have spaces that are easily accessible and that their specific target is fandom.

"what about characters who are drawn as explicitly as children and meant to be depicted as children? is it okay then?" i find it deeply uncomfortable to age up a character who's next stage of life isn't already adulthood since it jumps through a lot of hoops. it's a boundary im unwilling to cross as it is for many others. if somoene does something i find unsavory, i block them.

at a certain point, ever single possible moral gray for this argument becomes bad faith. to break it down any further than necessary is simply a way to foster a "gotcha sicko!" moment instead of contributing intelligence to this conversation. people aren't actually looking to understand what this is or to break it down, they're just unwilling to think critically for fear of being morally ostracized by internet communities.

i hate to inform you, but having all the "right takes," will not save you from internet crucifixion. the sooner you have strong boundaries and morals in real life, the easier your life will be instead of trying to gain moral highground on random people online.

fiction indeed effects reality - but fiction isn't an inherent one to one to who someone is. fictions relationship to reality in relation to things like propaganda, and those affects all require additional context.

im in a stable relationship with a man i've been with for 5 years. he is a year older than me. i consume content about toxic relationships all day long. because what i do, what i find interesting, what i engage with are not inherent to who i am.

just like how watching a violent movie doesn't make you a violent person. just like how reading a book from a problematic writer doesn't mean you condone their actions. does everyone person who makes freud jokes agree with the things he was? you can have perceived correlations, bias is human nature but you can't decide anything definitively over something as trivial as fandom content on the internet.

morality and real life are largely based on context and awareness of the world. a man can be a murderer, but there is a stark difference between a man killing his abuser and a serial killer. your opinion of these people is formed and shaped by what context you know about them and evidence. real people have context necessary to make fully formed opinions on them and are effected by internet witch hunts.

and it is, your right, to not engage with someone based on a perceived context. but making assumptions and accusations as serious as p*dophilia is unbelievably dangerous and not rooted in anything.

when you create moral boundaries between you and someone else, assume the worst of them, you are creating a type of person to be othered. that line of thinking has been used for hundreds of years to commit acts of violence against unassuming people and it is dangerous.

"it's not that deep," it sure isn't. which is why you shouldn't fucking harass strangers you have no real context for. which is why the concept of aging up a character cannot be indicative of a persons morals and doesn't mean someone is attracted to kids.

if you want to have a talk minor safety online, there are plenty of ways to do that. there are plenty of conversations to be had about how adults and minors should engage appropriately.

but adults cultivating a space for themselves and other adults has little to do with minors. and unless you can prove, without doubt, that the person you're engaging with is bad - it's not your place to enact your perceived justice.

i would understand if there was some provable evidence in relation to fandom communities but there just isn't. the things that happen in this spaces have no effect on real minors unless minors are in the spaces they're not supposed to be in anyways.

aging up is a narrative tool, just like au's are. just like backstories are. we're all playing make believe and aging up a fictional character doesn't mean someone is a predator. end of story.