#Personally I'd argue he has autism or ADHD

[hunter-sylvester]

Skullflower is Autistic: A Breakdown.

Buckle the fuck up.

Disclaimer: Don't take any of this too seriously.

Also all of this was written over a year ago with only minor edits. I'm just posting it now cause it's been rotting in my drafts and, like, fuck it.

I've wanted to try and make a comprehensive breakdown like this for a while just because I love these characters and very heavily interpret them all as autistic (with ADHD as well.) But this is just the perspective of one guy. And I probably overstate it but the fact that we can all have our own very personal interpretations about media is what's great about analysis & fandom.

Hunter Sylvester.

Yes I'm doing Hunter first, what do you think I am? Unbiased? Please.

Autistic Perfectionism. Hunter's autistic perfectionism is something I've mentioned before and somewhat struggle to describe satisfactorily. But to me the most obvious example is his inability to deal with the idea of Emily joining Skullfucker as a cellist. Obviously, there's the queer angle to this but I think two reasons can play a role at once. He's in love with Kevin so he doesn't want a girl that Kevin picked to be a part of their band. Additionally, I'd argue that he can't deal with the idea of having a girl cellist as their bass player because it in NO WAY fits the mental image that Hunter has in his mind of what he wanted Skullfucker to be. It doesn't match the perfect idea that he's dreamed of, that he holds onto for dear life, so he can't deal with it.

Hyperfixations. "Hunter's been into a lot of things since I've known him but he's stuck with metal longer than any of them." - Kevin. Need I say more? Well, I will anyway. The guy hyperfixates. I think the closest thing we have to a canon confirmed hyperfixation is Dungeons & Dragons. Because of what in my mind is a combination of Autism and ADHD in Hunter, they don't fully leave him. He still likes and plays D&D, but he's not as obsessed with it as he used to be when he made his dad buy him the most ridiculous game terrain that fucking lights up.

Special Interests. I think one of the easiest claims to make is that metal is a special interest for Hunter. He entrenches his entire life in it and reaches for it when a stressful situation happens to try and make himself feel more okay. (getting his hair cut off by Skip and relating his new look to Jason Newsted) It's clearly something that comforts him, having been obsessed with it ever since his mom left. Which, regardless of the specific circumstances, is a horridly stressful situation for any 12-13 year old.

Struggles with social interaction. He doesn't seem to have a lot of friends. He gets along with Robbie, Kevin (obviously) and the people he plays D&D with but that seems to be it. Especially whenever the situation gets very stressful, Hunter's mind immediately reaches for his comfort interest to try and make it through (or to lash out). He can't easily just be comfortable in a strange social situation. Or a strange situation in general.

Stims. Hunter stims by playing guitar. That's it, that's the whole point. And there's this little move:

Kevin Schlieb.

Neutrality. The way Kevin just takes Hunter and Emily as they are feels autistic to me.

Struggles with social interaction. And he clearly wants it to be easier for him. He wants to connect to people but he doesn't know how. It's not like he doesn't understand people. He does. He understands Hunter better than Hunter understands himself. "sometimes he's not so nice to people when he's uncomfortable" "You are afraid of everybody" "you treat everybody like shit and you make them hate you" But that understanding of how people think and work doesn't translate to his direct interactions with most of his peers. Maybe because he understands other neurodivergent people but not neurotypicals. The fact he does have a decent read on, at the very least, his best friend could also be indicative of the extra work Kevin has had to put in over the course of his life to try and understand people to begin with.

Directness. A lot of Kevin does feel direct to me. I suppose in a 'what you see is what you get' sort of way. He obviously has the whole protagonist thing going on which tends to end you up with pretty neutral, earnest and open characters.

Stims:

Emily Spector.

Gets overstimulated. Emily's outbursts could be attributed more to a struggle regulating her emotions. It's not a huge stretch to assume her mystery medication is a mood stabilizer. However, the idea of it being a combination of being overstimulated and then no longer being able to deal with her anger on top of the distress she's already feeling feels apt to me. This is a stretch, but, we only ever see her have outbursts at school. A nightmare environment for the stimuli sensitive. Emily is by far the character out of the main three we spend the least time with, which could easily explain my previous point away. We hardly see her out of school to begin with. But I think there can be merit in taking it as a part of the story, rather than an incidental effect of her being left by the wayside.

Black and white thinking. "So first you tell me that I should hate him, and now you want me to help him?" - Emily. No, he didn't say you should hate him, Emily. "You have every right to be mad- especially at Hunter!" - Kevin.

Directness. I mean she literally calls up Kevin to ask him if he wants to go fuck in a parking lot and more power to her. But it is very direct.

Struggles with social interaction. And apart from Skip & Co. having a particular hate-boner for Hunter, Emily might actually be the most widely ostracized for her lack of social finesse. Which would check out because society is brutally cruel to girls. Kevin is shown to have some positive interaction outside of the other two main characters, so is Hunter. And, yes, so is Emily. But it's only with the janitor of the school, who she is implied to have had previous interactions with. Having your only friend at school be the fucking janitor is not a neurotypical experience. I know I certainly got along easier with a handful of teachers than I did with my peers back when I was at school.

Whatever this is. Fam, I've BEEN there...but it's not neurotypical:

A 'little' note to end on: I want to state that I love all three of these character very dearly. I don't pretend that I don't have a favorite, but they are all amazing. There's various reasons why Metal Lords is such a comforting movie, but a big one, is that the characters act in a way that feels incredibly familiar. They act like me. They act like my autistic friends. We make weird facial expressions, we understand the world and each other through our interests. The way all of them talk feels so close to home. (The swearing is actually part of that. A lot of real people swear and over-censoring of that tends to bug me but that's kinda beside the point lmao)

[a-random-person-on-the-interent]

CALLING ALL PEOPLE WHO DISLIKE THE LOST CITIES AND THINK THEY'RE SHIT

we need to make like a discord or something to talk about it, or like write essays which I think I'm planning on doing, because the lost cities is shit, I feel very strongly about this as a disabled person, and you might ask why would me being disabled have anything to do with it, EUGENICS and the Talentless and even how disabled people are treated by the narrative. Because didn't Keefe descripe feeling talentless people as being hollow and not quite complete, WHICH IS WHAT DISABLED PEOPLE (or at least people with Autism like myself) HAVE BEEN CALLED FOR YEARS. I really want a charcter to have been born with a disability (ADHD, ASD, EDS, down syndrome, Dyslexia, dysgraphia, ect) or for the series to recognize that being talentless is having a disability or even the series to recongize mental health conditions (PTSD, BPD, Depression Schizoprenia, delusions) like Sophie has all the symptoms for PTSD, and one could argue she's dyslexic with her not being able to read runes. Also back to the eugenics talk, eugenics in history have been useally used on disabled people, like myself. There are no LGBTQ characters which can be fine, I'd like some but it's not a big problem expect... EUGENICS. the elves soiciety is based on Eugenics meaning that if someone was gay or lesbian or aroace, they probably would be scorned if not it being banned to be gay or lesbian. What about trans people? well the lost cities seem to function on that they are perfect the way they're born, and if one is not born perfect (Like the talentless) you are socially exiled. The susicde rates must be massive there, but I doubt anyone will talk about them because they'll be shamed.

Let's not even get into Exile cause that is just Touture, and I'm not kidding solitary confine meant is torture, fintans cell tourture, I'm not saying it isn't effective cause it is. but the elves claim to be morally superior to humans than do that. Memory breaks would also count as tourture as you are breaking someones mind till they are practically dead. And we saw how that effected Aladin. What about the white room tourture they had Vesperia be in for centuries. there politcal system is fucked too, Cause a friendship is just as important as a romantic relationship so if they wanted them to be completey unbiased the councliers shouldn't be allowed to have friends or family, and that doesn't stop the heart from from falling in love with someone and giving them special treatment.

I think anyone with half a brain could tell you that feeding carniverous animals strickly vegan diet is bad, so let's move on to the education system and I'm 90% sure that elves are just lying about how much they helped humans, like I'm 100% sure that Mr. Forkle only thinks he inspired Loki, cause if you know any myths about him you'd know they are not similar at all well maybe aside from the shapeshifting like didn't at one point they say they helped them discover electicity, like eceletricity was ORGINALLY discovered in 600 BCE they at that time were probbaly still living among humans, like I'm sorry but you guys probbaly didn't help with anything and might've actually prolonged the process because you thought you knew better. and y'know what they probbaly haven't even gotten to the center of the earth yet which is 2,9000 KM down, but back to education, it's so heavily bias, that all the other speices that aren't elves are like what the fuck is this, this isn't how it happened, so my best guess is that it's full of misinformation. Y'know what I should make a skit of, "If I was in the lost cities"

[n64gamepak]

I recently posted a headcanon analysis where I elaborated why I personally think Luigi has autism (which you can read here!), and I was requested to analyze Mario potentially having ADHD.

Just like last time, please keep in mind that having these traits does not necessarily mean you have ADHD.

And also, just like last time, I'll be focusing on Mario's portrayal in the recent Super Mario Bro's movie, since that is his most recent adaptation.

Potential Spoilers Ahead. Read At Your Own Risk.

Mario seems to be impulsive, blurting out his thoughts and jumping headfirst into things without fully thinking things through. There are multiple instances of this throughout the movie, one of the biggest being his fight with Donkey Kong, and impulsively challenging Cranky Kong without fully thinking things through.

While more socially aware than Luigi (who I argued in a previous post was autistic), he still struggles a bit socially, mostly due to his lack of impulse control. He sometimes blurts out his thoughts 

While this might be a stretch, I feel like their chosen occupation (and who takes over which priorities of said job) is due to Mario’s ADHD. Plumbing is a very hands on, active occupation- Perfect for someone with ADHD. While Mario tackles the more hands on aspects of the job, Luigi handles the more technical parts of the job (Luigi recording the voicemail for the Mario Bros. Plumbing number, most likely creating their website, and taking calls)

Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria, especially with his dad. 

Minor struggles with texture- seen with his clear dislike for mushrooms (and still not being able to stomach them throughout the movie!)

Occasional fidgets. (him rocking back n forth on his feet, fidgeting with his hands, etc)

Seen in concept art (here!) Mario’s side of the brothers’ room seems more disorganized and messy, while Luigi’s is more put together and neat.

Just like last time, this was a mostly rushed post with me jotting things down off the top of my head! If anyone wants a more detailed analysis, using majority of the mainline and spin off games, send in an ask or two! I'd love to if more people would enjoy that.

[stray-syst3m]

Developed a nasty habit recently of scrolling through fake claiming subreddits (y'all know the ones) and I've noticed quite a bit of bullshit. So here's a list of things that apparently mean you're faking, but are actually just regular activities you might do and correlate or relate to your experience as a system or autistic. I'm also going to give my argument against them in the bullet points. (These are mostly about traumagenic systems but I also mention autism)

1- using dancing as stimming. My reasoning this is wrong is that stims are "repetitive body movements or repetitive movements of objects" and people stim for different reasons. Even neurotypical folk stim. Reasons folk may stim include, but are not limited to sensory reinforcement or stimulation, to regulate sensory input by increasing or decreasing sensory overload, etc. Dancing is a good example of this. It is a repetitive body movement often used to reinforce sensory input or, in my personal situation, increase sensory input when I feel like I need more stimulation. Let me guess, it only counts as stimming when it's violently flapping your arms and fitting into an ableist stereotype, huh?

2- "strange" names. Why should I even argue here? This is just transphobia rewrapped as "calling out fakers." My name is Richie. That is not a strange name, is it? Would I be fake claimed for being an alter? (Probably but not for this.) If my name were Arson, if course I would. However, I chose my name. Many alters/ headmates do. We are individuals and we are allowed to change things about ourselves as we please and this does not suddenly make us fake systems.

3- using neopronouns or multiple pronouns. Same as above. I'm not re-explaining that part. Also plays into ableism. This is why I'd be fakeclaimed. I use he/wolf pronouns (and some others). I'm a man and I highly identify with wolves due to my innerworld self. We are autistic as well and many of us have cat neopronouns due to our special interest in felines and warrior cats. Our brain is wired differently than neurotypical folks in multiple ways and the way we connect to gender and the world is perceived by us in a way different to others, hence us being transgender. Due to our high interest in cats and the fact it ties into most aspects of our life, we ended up identifying with them on a gender level as well.

4- having animal alters. This is a noted thing in DID systems. Do your research before fakeclaiming, jeez. Or just don't fakeclaim.

5- Being alterhuman in any way. Alterhumanity is a thing. Some people are alterhuman. Some people are also systems. There is going to be overlap.

6- Having any fictives from "recent" media. The definition on recent is loose to them. Is Bambi recent? We have a Bambi fictive. Is he too recent for you? Or maybe our fictives from warrior cats are too recent. Fictives exist sometimes, especially in autistic and ADHD systems.

7- having factives. At all. Even though factives are a noted thing in psychology? My therapist has brought up factives (not by that term) without me bringing them up.

8- having littles. Or not having littles. This is confusing to me. I see them mock littles for being too adult but also for being childish! How do you want them to act, then? And when a system doesn't have any littles, somehow this means they are lying about having trauma in childhood.

9- Experiencing a headspace in any capacity. Yes, even just daydreaming one. This is a therapy technique actually taught to systems to help us communicate internally. It's a thing many of us build on our own, in order to communicate. This is normal. It is a noted thing in DID research.

10- you have a singletsona. DID is a covert disorder. It is a common thing to have a single being the whole system masks as. This is normal and cited in research on DID.

11- you don't have a singletsona. Some people want to exist as themselves. This is also normal in DID, especially in those who are aware of their system and are working on communication and healing.

12- you have any online presence. Disabled people exist. Get over it.

13- you talk openly about being a system. Ever. Apparently being open about this part of our life is bad.

14- you haven't been diagnosed. This one pisses me off a lot. Was my mom's cancer not cancer before she was diagnosed with it?

[januarymoreau]

Neurodivergency Coding in Disney and Nick Shows

Okay this was requested by @gstone97. I'd like to talk about neurodivergency coding in Disney Channel and Nickelodeon shows. Disney and Nick shows have A LOT of neurodivergent coding, and whether they give neurodivergent traits to characters unintentionally or intentionally to mock neurodivergency is something I've considered but have not come to an answer on. Personally, I believe the neurodivergency coding is unintentional, but I'd have to research it more. Seeing as I'm autistic and have ADHD, most of these characters will be characters I believe to have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or ADHD, but if you'd like to add any characters that have any other neurodivergency I'd love that.

Let's start this post off by talking about Cat Valentine from Victorious.

Although many have said that Cat may just have trauma (and I'm not arguing with that, she definitely has trauma), I'd like to argue that Cat also has Autism Spectrum Disorder. She says inappropriate things during inappropriate times. https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=246172576497297 If you watch this video you can see multiple times where she says inappropriate things. This could lend to my next point which is that Cat doesn't understand social cues. I can't find the exact example, but I believe there's a scene where Cat doesn't understand an expression. Cat also frequently uses self stimulatory behavior, also known as stimming. Additionally, Cat collects stuffed animals, which could be considered a hyperfixation.

The next character I want to talk about is Max Russo from Wizards of Waverly Place.

I'd argue that Max has ADHD. He struggles with his grades, as we see through most of the show. However, he is smart, he just needs a different learning style. One of my favorite episodes with Max in the show is the episode where the school gets a new principal and he starts doing really well in school. Despite common beliefs, Max is NOT stupid. Additionally, Max has a hard time picking up sarcasm. There are a lot of episodes where he takes things literally, which could be a symptom of autism but can also be a symptom of ADHD. He seems to go through brief phases where he's obsessed with things, such as when he gets obsessed with the idea of being Family Wizard.

Another character I believe to be autistic coded is Spencer Shay from iCarly.

Spencer's Wiki page even refers to him as "weird, eccentric." A lot of autistic people can come across as weird. Plus, Spencer's interest in art could easily be considered a hyperfixation or special interest. Plus, Spencer doesn't understand social cues. He brings home an ostrich and doesn't seem to understand why it's a problem. I definitely view him as autistic.

Another character I headcanon as autistic is Skylar Storm from "Mighty Med."

Although I could write a whole other post about the autistic coding of alien or other-worldly characters, this isn't that post. Skylar shows a lack of understanding of social cues, likely because she's from another planet, but even as time goes on Earth she fails to grasp them. She frequently says inappropriate things. She often fails to understand that Oliver is flirting with her. I would definitely argue that many of these could be due to not being from Earth, but I would definitely say she's autistic-coded regardless. Many alien characters that find their way to Earth are autistic-coded, and she definitely fits in there.

Finally, I'll talk about what to me is the most obvious autistic-coding of a character on Disney Channel: Dez Wade from Austin & Ally.

Dez fails to understand common phrases, a reoccurring joke in the show. He also fails to understand tone and doesn't seem to comprehend when people are mad at him. He seems to have a special interest in film and has a very almost obsessive relationship with Austin. He struggles socially and has difficulty making friends. I could go on and on about why he's autistic, but I won't.

Overall, I don't know why so many Disney and Nickelodeon characters are neurodivergent coded. It could be an attempt to mock neurodivergency, or it could be a completely innocent accident. I'd like to believe it's not on purpose or if it is it's not an attempt to mock autism or neurodivergency, but it's definitely possible. Also, if you're a Disney or Nickelodeon fan who's neurodivergent please watch "The Proud Family." They have a character who gets diagnosed with autism.

[princesssarisa]

Beth March for the 7 questions ask?

Three facts about them from my personal headcanons.

She's on the autism spectrum, or would be if she lived today.

She probably couldn't put into words why she's so especially close to Jo out of all her sisters, when on the surface they're opposites. But deep down she knows the reason why, besides "opposites attract": it's because they're both misfits. Meg and Amy are much better at following the rules their society expects of young women; Jo and Beth never fit that mold, Jo because of her tomboyishness and Beth because of her shyness. This mutual sense of being different draws them closer together, even though they're different in opposite ways. (I headcanon them both as neurodivergent – ADHD or bipolar Jo, autistic Beth.)

If she had lived, she might have eventually and unexpectedly fallen in love and gotten married. I don't think that would have been impossible. But it would have to have been with a very unique, understanding young man. He might be the only Little Women OC I'd ever be tempted to create.

A reason they suck:

She doesn't think she was ever meant to live long, because she never wants to leave her family, get married, or lead a "normal" adult life. What does that say to those of us in the real world who have that in common with her?

A reason they are great:

She's one of the kindest, most loving, most unselfish and generous people you'll ever meet, and she shows just how valuable the most easily-overlooked person (sickly, shy, never leaves home, etc.) can be.

A reason I relate to them:

I'm also "young" for my age, don't have any grand ambitions, and just want a quiet, peaceful life near my family.

(what I consider to be) the top tier otp/ot3 for that character:

None.

Five things that never happened to the character that I believe should have happened:

Someone (maybe Jo) should have taken time to imagine what her life would have been like if she hadn't gotten sick. That someone should have told her, or at least spelled out to the readers, that even if she had lived with her parents until they died, and then maybe moved in with Jo and Friedrich to help care for the children at Plumfield, that even if she reached old age without ever marrying, having children, or "achieving" anything outside the home, her life would still have been happy and valuable.

Her musical compositions should have been published, even anonymously or under a pseudonym.

During her final months, she should have talked with Meg and Jo about a subject that's not even brought up again after Part I – the idea that the scarlet fever that started her decline was Meg and Jo's fault, because they wouldn't go to the Hummels in her place when she asked them to. She should have told them never to blame themselves, that she had been caring for the sick baby for a week and was almost certainly infected already when she asked them to go. Though it isn't mentioned, I suspect that Jo wouldn't have been so crushed with grief and depression after Beth's death if a part of her didn't still feel it was her fault.

She should have had more one-on-one interactions with Meg and Amy; even though she's clearly the closest to Jo, it would be nice to see more of her relationships with the other two.

After her death, someone (maybe Laurie in one of his ignorant moments) should have made a passing comment that she was "too fragile for this world," and someone else (either Jo or Amy) should have argued against that perspective. I'm just sick of seeing critics say that Beth has to die because she's too fragile for this world, and I wish the book spelled out that she wasn't.

Five people that character never fell in love with and why.

Laurie. He's a good friend; that's all.

John Brooke. Ditto.

Mr. Laurence; he's much too old and is more of an honorary grandfather.

Friedrich Bhaer. She sadly never meets him, but even if she had, he would just have been a good friend.

Frank Vaughn. Another friend, but not a love interest.

Fred Vaughn. Unlike Frank, he has nothing in common with her.

[descendant-of-truth]

Sora was a big neurodivergent mood in KH3 specifically and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it

It's most prominent towards the beginning of the game, where Sora is asked to follow his heart to open the new world portals, and we see him struggle to do so not once, but twice. (With the same posturing, even)

Like he genuinely cannot think of where to go or what it is in his heart that he's supposed to be following, which is really interesting to me because I don't think we've seen this behavior from him before. But at the same time, it makes sense, because he's basically being asked to use his intuition, which is... pretty difficult to do on command

The two scenes are different in one way though, in that what triggers Sora deciding where to go is different each time. The first time, his subconscious is clearly telling him to visit Olympus, as shown by the way he flexes his muscles like three different times upon hearing the word "hero"

But for one reason or another, it just doesn't fully click with him until Goofy brings up the "may your heart be your guiding key" line. I don't know what exactly is blocking his brain from realizing he wants to go to Olympus but there's definitely Something going on there and I'm endlessly fascinated by it

The second time, he arguably doesn't follow "his" heart at all; he follows Roxas's.

Which yeah this is still him following his own desire to bring Roxas back, but it's interesting how he doesn't keep the focus on himself for very long if he can help it

Though it's not too hard to imagine why considering Donald and Goofy's reactions to his struggles

Acting like he isn't taking things seriously, noting that this particular struggle is becoming routine... like I said, major parallels to what a lot of neurodivergent folk go through.

In general, there's a lot of people thinking Sora should just Know Things without being given clear instructions, and then he tries to get clearer instructions on what to do and he's kinda just given a shrug.

And while Sora does eventually figure this all out, it's without any direct input from the others. It also doesn't help that they spend a lot of the game telling Sora not to follow his heart (which is telling him to help Riku save Aqua) because it would be too dangerous, while also... telling him to follow his heart. But only to accomplish what they need him to do.

Yeah it's no wonder he's still stuck wondering what "following his heart" is supposed to mean by Re:Mind, AKA after he's already defeated Xehanort

Sora is trying so hard in this game to be what people want from him and they're making that super complicated by being unclear on what exactly it is they want him to do. That's not entirely their fault since they don't actually have all the answers, especially Donald and Goofy, but it's clearly affecting Sora regardless.

(Probably unrelated/unintended but the Heartbinder is also odd to me? It's meant to make his "inherent gifts" stronger, the gift in this case being... connecting with others?? I know it's just there as a summoning mechanic but is there a reason Sora needs extra help with this, or a reason Yen Sid thinks he does? Is it because of how he lost his powers?? Does that make it a parallel to a disability aid???)

Also worth noting, though not directly a neurodivergent parallel, Sora's confusion over romantic love in this game (expanded upon in the novels) also falls into the category of "things everyone else just Understands inherently that Sora doesn't"

Quoiromantic Sora my beloved

In conclusion Sora is neurodivergent and it became a lot more apparent in KH3, where he has arguably the vaguest instructions and overall least suitable conditions for him to thrive

[aroaceleovaldez]

"extremely autistic coded" no he's not?? And before you get pissy, I'M autistic. I'm all for representation, but claiming characters that are blatantly not fitting just sucks. I want rep to be right and accurate, not just some random character bc he's everyone's favourite. Hell, if Rick said he was, I'd be pissed bc it'd be the shittiest, most inaccurate portrayal ever.

....i'm. also autistic. I say Nico is autistic-coded because he shares a lot of traits that I do, as an adhd and autistic person. Specifically traits that I was literally told are diagnosis criteria. Yes, autism isn't one-size-fits-all, but ultimately, objectively, Nico does fit the criteria. He's canonically ADHD, and autism and ADHD often have comorbidity. He has several traits common to autism that are looked at when diagnosing autism.

Also, coding isn't the same as representation or headcanons. Coding is implied in the text, intentionally or not, but not explicitly confirmed. If it were confirmed, it would be representation. If it weren't in the text, it would be a headcanon. I've analyzed this series to the moon and back. I don't say "Nico is coded as autistic" without meaning it. It's also important to note recurring themes the first three books in the original series (in which Rick was focusing heavily on themes of learning disabilities) - TLT introduces Percy and Annabeth, who are ADHD and dyslexic. Sea of Monsters introduces Tyson, who's coded as having down syndrome. Then Titan's Curse introduces Nico, who's coded as autistic. There's a pattern that can be used to back up the claims of subtext. There is a basis. Is this coding good? Are they accurate or offensive portrayals of those learning disabilities? Those are literary arguments that get to occur jumping off of that subtext. You're absolutely welcome to your own opinions, and these types of literary debates are good! But ultimately, the fact is that the subtext is there and your opinions are opinions based off of that subtext.

Also, Nico isn't everyone's favorite. He's just a major recurring character. Nico and Leo both have autistic coding- heck, you could argue Annabeth does as well! That's like saying "Reyna can't have aspec coding because she's everyone's favorite" just because she's also a major recurring character.

You're welcome to debate and have your own opinions, but that's what making your own blog is for. Or joining a book club. This blog is my blog and I talk about Nico (and Leo, and sometimes Annabeth) being autistic here, based on my own experiences as an autistic person. Complain about it on your own blog, not in my inbox.

[bi-demon-ium]

ok umm i've really not seen any kate stuff? anywhere? so i'd like to hear your thoughts on kate (preferably angst) please!! you are awesome btw <3

ok i don't actually know if you are intending to talk about book!kate or show!kate but i will be mostly if not completely discussing show!kate rip if that was not what you meant but i've seen the show a lot more recently

OKAY. so. i'll start small with some headcanons:

kate is soooo autistic. and adhd. audhd my beloved. yes i say this about pretty much every character i like but with kate it's PARTICULARLY true. (i believe i said in the mbs server the book!kate feels like she has adhd with a side of autism while show!kate feels like she had autism with a side of adhd and i stand by that. but it's vibes based not like, literal.)

but like she can have trouble expressing her feelings, even to herself. she'll either be unable to hide her reactions/expressions, or she'll barely have one at all, and seem unbothered. she's also very blunt and unafraid to state her opinion to anyone, even if it seems "rude". but she isn't rude, really, as it's not that kind of "blunt truth" some assholes like to parade about when they're really just being dicks to everyone. she's still kind, she only says something negative if someone has done something negative (ie, "you are very unpleasant" to someone actively antagonizing everyone in the room is on the table, but just randomly insulting someone for the sake of "blunt honesty" is not. she's never like, mean.)

also shes GAYYYY. or possibly bi, i don't have an opinion on that. on one hand lesbian energy on the other i could definitely see bi bi bi. but if you don't think her and martina got something on i don't know what to tell you. that being said i could also see her as a-spec, but not necessarily in a way that conflicts with Whatever's Going On With Martina. (to be fair, hpwever, one could argue martina was more into kate than vice versa, i could see an argument for aro kate for sure)

green beanie is comfort beanie. she very rarely takes it off. where do you think she got it? angsty answer is somehow it's from her dad, but realistically she probably got it later in life. (doesn't mean she didn't choose it for similar reasons, though... not knowing why she was drawn to the green hat, not remembering it's the same shade as one her father wore....)

also the bucket. i do wonder when she got the bucket. this one, while again a milligan-related reason would be super fucked up (in the fun sad way), i feel like. i feel like it's more that as a kid she felt like she needed to be Prepared. maybe something happened where she wasn't, or maybe she just felt like she wanted to be ready, just in case, all the time. but like. her getting a bucket, modifying it herself, experimenting with different ways to put it on her belt, the inventory changing over the years as some things were discarded or added over time... idk i just think. kate developing her bucket

kate & constance was so good and i want to see more of their friendship. so bad. each realizing the other isn't so bad bc they're forced to work together... chefs kiss. also, the only person other than mr benedict we really see constance actually seem to openly like in some capacity.

kate & sticky underrated. their talk before the cheating was such a good scene. i also want more of this dynamic

i should also mention kate & reynie, which i do genuinely like--the hug is sweet--but i admit is my maybe least favorite of the society dynamics with kate. although i do enjoy the contrast between kate "IM GONNA GO CLIMB THAT TOWER" wetherall and reynie "please why am i the only voice of reason holding this group together" muldoon

i've only explored it in that one fic but i actually think kate & mr benedict would be such a good dynamic, especially because in the show it's inexplicably established he's into engineering. LET THEM BOND OVER BUILDING WEIRD SHIT PLEASE

okay to get a little more into specifics methinks,

i just think a lot about kate like. immediately after season one, and--we'll just. we'll ignore season 2 for now, let's set this in my current anomalous idea of them all in season one (which, rip wetherall farm, but is currently number two & rhonda off at the airshows with mr benedict, constance, milligan, and kate in the house) so like just.

you've been alone your entire life. you've been independent, and you've grown up thinking that the only person you ever had just left you one day for no reason, and in doing so broke a direct promise. and then now, you not only have friends who've you learned to rely on and not just try and do everything yourself, but suddenly you have reliable adults. and more importantly, more specifically, your dad, who never left you but had been taken. had been erased, and even brainswept had never truly stopped looking.

and kate isn't stupid. she heard his story. she knows he must have been through Some Shit. and that he'd have come back if he could. but there's still that pain, that ache, of how long he was missing, for like, more than three quarters of her life! he vanished when she was 3! but now it's like. oh. he did want me. he was taken. he was taken.

so that's an almost identity altering shift in her worldview. and on top of that, her current world is now so completely different: rather than independence and circus life, she's got friends her age who genuinely like her, who she's bonded with through major adversity, and she has adults who actually listen to her and like her. and she has her dad.

and it grates sometimes--she's independent, she doesn't need to be treated like a baby! but also it's like. it's bizarre, because they care, but they don't condescend to her, they do understand she's intelligent and capable even if they want to protect her. and she's never really had adults like that before. not since she was three

so it's a weird mix of like being sort of happy/pleased, because they care, she can rely on them, and being kind of annoyed/frustrated because while she's learned she doesn't need to be entirely independent she still struggles with it. because she's kate wetherall, and she's always prepared, and she feels like she has to be prepared for what will happen if they leave if they're taken from her. she can't rely on them completely, can she? what happens when she loses them again?

and then the mix feelings of old long-buried resentment/anger under buried sadness/loneliness under a crisp crust of i'm perfectly fine, mixed with the new feelings of anger on his behalf, at curtain, sadness at the missing time, at how close he'd been for all these years without either of them knowing it, sadness for him, for herself. but like all of it is still like. under her trying to pretend like she's fine. (and her difficulty expressing emotions, even to herself, does Not Help.)

not to mention as much as genuinely loved the mission in some ways--her new friends (including martina), the adventure, helping people, her bucket coming crazy in handy, etc.--it wasn't exactly a cake walk.

she has nightmares, sometimes: about martina's face when she walked into the waiting room. about sticky's face when he walked out of it. about falling and falling and falling except there aren't warm, safe arms to catch her. about the nodes attached to her face and the long, metallic spires pointed at her, ready to wipe her like her father had been wiped. about her father leaving and never coming home, never being found. about being caught. about losing her friends. about curtain. about all of it.

but she doesn't want to share it because one, she doesn't want them to feel guilty: she did what she had to, and she doesn't regret it. two, and more importantly, she doesn't want them to not let her come on the next mission. (kate had already kind of had the idea that they would have another--they were a team! teams didn't just split up!--but now she's sure of it. curtain's still out there, after all, and he didn't seem the type to just give up.)

i think maybe constance might bully her into talking about it--we already know she can feel dreams (with her comment about sticky dreaming about steak and sticky asking her how she knew that) and as they're on a more even ground she'd be more likely to actually say something. but constance would poke at her about it and probably get her irritated in the process.

(also possible, she talks to mr benedict about this, bc again im a sucker for their dynamic + part of the problem is not wanting to hurt milligan's feelings, and one thing i like about this is i think mr benedict would be extremely kind and understanding about it, and really help like, gently guide her through it, and she'd be like wow adults have never actually helped me before, wild, and then the second she leaves he's like [collapsing into a mess] oh god. oh god. because on one hand he just desperately hopes that helped, and on the other hand, he's having a million crises. oh god. he put actual kids in danger. she's so small number two. number two she's so fucking small and she's having nightmares and it's my brother that took her dad and ohmygodohmygodohmygod. like literally it's like he goes from "kalm" to "PANIK" the second shes out of range. like the dissonance between mr benedict (around the kids, a calm and kindly mentor who seems to know what he's doing for the most part) and nicholas (0.0003 seconds from a panic attack rn, full to the brim with anxiety and guilt) is. hilarious, in a sad way. but i digress, mr benedict tangent over, sorry)

ANYWAY also kate and milligan. like. getting to know him again, and vice versa. this is personally painful for me. like so many years, this disconnect between them hurts, but like. it starts with that hug, with her letting herself lean into his side, letting him put an arm around her shoulders, and he's like. in tears a bit. and like. then over time just. trying to tell each other about their lives--particularly kate recounting her adventures--and marveling a bit at how similar they are in many ways. milligan slowly getting memories back and remembering her as a little girl and seeing her now, all grown up but so small and hurt still, and like. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

i also have so many thoughts head full on them & mr benedict, and also throwing in constance and everyone really, but that's too many and this is already long and i dont even know how to put it to words so i'll refrain for now. anyway my point is: kate wetherall. hug her please

[the-lincyclopedia]

All of this is true. I think it's also important to add that headcanons are for you! If headcanoning Simon as autistic makes you happy, especially if you're autistic or are wondering if that diagnosis might apply to you, then go ahead and believe it! While it's true that Simon has a lot of potential causes for the symptoms he displays, he also has a lot of autism symptoms. I've definitely seen people make headcanons with less evidence--because again, headcanons are personal! Obviously if you're on a crusade to convince the whole fandom that you have Simon's One True Diagnosis, that's different, but headcanon him however you want!

All of that said, as an autistic person myself, I identify way more with Baz. I'm an anxious overthinker who frequently comes off as conceited or rude because I don't know how to avoid that, or avoiding it takes way too much energy. (I'm also from a family with money and live in the shadow of a tragedy in my mother's life.) Baz's super senses can seem similar to sensory hypersensitivity--a lot of autistic people hear noises that most people don't notice and are sensitive to bright light, etc. Plus, Baz always being cold seems kind of like proprioceptive dysregulation, where the signals your body sends your brain about how you're physically feeling are messed up somehow.

I know Baz doesn't go off the way Simon does, but I'd argue that being socialized into an upper-class family can put you in kind of a behavioral straitjacket, even if you're autistic, and make you lash in rather than out. The rejection sensitivity dysphoria that comes with ADHD and maybe with autism as well (research is ongoing) is such that I would go to pretty extreme lengths to avoid upsetting people unless I have a really strong reason to do otherwise (though obviously I frequently mess up socially and upset people anyway). Point being, Baz knows how to play nice for certain situations that he's been in before, and he goes along with what's expected at times, but he also often comes across as an asshole, and I feel that.

What I'd love to see explored, personally, is both Baz and Simon being autistic, because I love that sweet sweet neurodivergence solidarity.

I feel like one thing we don’t talk about enough is how Simon is autistically coded — he displays so many of the common traits!

thanks for this ask anon! I do think there have been discussions about this within the fandom, but perhaps not ones getting enough exposure. I know I’ve read a few myself but I can’t seem to remember who was discussing it (and my search of Tumblr isn’t giving me answers at the moment.) If any of my followers were the source or part of those discussion please help me out and chime in with your thoughts! 

I will preface by saying that in no way am I any kind of expert in any of the diagnoses I mention in this post. These are my thoughts and my personal experiences with these and with friends and family with these diagnoses, not intended to be a sweeping determination or even an opinion that confirms or denies this theory. 

I do think this is a very complicated issue because there is so much to factor in as far as Simon. There are the years of neglect in the care homes, the way the Mage has treated him, the traumatic events of his past and the ones in Carry On itself. The fact that he is definitely dealing with the after effects of that trauma in Wayward Son. His depression. And traits that may point to autism. 

There is much crossover with other diagnoses as well and often diagnosis can be challenging, when one is not in proximity with the actual person being focused on. ADHD, anxiety, OCD, PTSD--many can have overlapping symptoms within diagnoses and can often make a determination of any of those challenging. Childhood and adolescent PTSD most certainly has many points of similarity and overlap with ASD.  Simon may well have elements of both. 

Social withdrawal is a common finding in many diagnoses as is reduction of positive emotions. We see more of that from him in WS, which I think points to more PTSD and perhaps depression as far as those are concerned. 

His cross chewing and other physical manifestations from CO can be associated with autistic coding. His outbursts and anger and physicality in expressing his emotions and frustration are probably multifactorial. Sleep disturbances also seem to fall into a shared overlap if we were going to try to do a Venn diagram of these. He most definitely has issues with verbal communication but it is hard to delineate to what extent his environment and neglect in the homes played a role in that and what is perhaps inherent. Simon is able to read the emotions of those close to him fairly well, even if his interpretation in regard to himself if sometimes flawed, particularly when we get to WS (ie he can tell Baz is unhappy in WS but he doesn’t add that up to Baz being unhappy because Simon is unhappy, that he can’t help Simon, and that may be a complex interplay of PTSD, depression and some autism too.) It’s a very nuanced topic. 

I think this is definitely a jumping off point for a discussion. I’m not sure I’ve answered your ask other than to acknowledge I’ve seen discussion about this but perhaps that discussion has not been as accessible or widespread as perhaps it should be and that Simon’s history itself makes this a complex point of discussion, as there are so many factors that play into his characterization.