#also the 'no meta' rule is not rlly canon

[foursaints]

Did I read the tags wrong or were you saying you could see Barty as a gryffindor? If so, can I ask you why you see that? I’m always curious about how people see characters in terms of which house they could fit into.

(bear in mind this is me being crazy about him and not rlly how i formulate him in canon/in seriousness. we are exiting the realm of plausible character meta & entering googoo gaga bartyland.)

ok my barty is slytherin to the bone. realistically the sorting hat decided between that & ravenclaw before picking the former relatively quickly. but I often think about barty in terms of the archetypal knight or more specifically as a Lancelot-type figure.

barty is a tool wielded in service of other characters, and often he puts himself at their disposal. i LOVE seeing him and regulus (or even evan) in that dynamic, where he willingly gives himself up to bloody his hands for them/act as their sword. he's extremely self-sacrificing, which a slytherin or ravenclaw is traditionally Not.

but he is also handsome & strong & clever & brave (all in his twisted sort of way) and i think that combined with his utter servitude makes him an almost fairytale knight (compared to say, james, who has all the former but isnt non-autonomous like that. james frequently acts as a leader, as most of the "heroic"/"knightly" hp characters tend to). the knight motif is EXTREMELY Gryffindor but barty subverts that in a compelling way.

lancelot is a figure who is supposed to be the ideal knight but is so ruled by devotion/desire/lust for a forbidden lover that he throws it all away for One Person, and in doing so basically brings an end to all of arthuriana. very barty-coded imo. his self-sacrificing devotion/bravery is probably the first Gryffindor trait that anyone thinks of, and the most antithetical to slytherin. HOWEVER, I think the fact that his Lancelot-esque devotion is "selfish" in that way (all for one person, no matter the consequences) ("I will do anything for you, no matter how ugly") undoes any connection to an otherwise Very Gryffindorish role.

its interesting to watch him embody gryffindor values while inverting them so entirely in the Way He Does It. it's like a mirror image

[phaltu]

zan, i wanted to ask you something - and i hope you don't mind the lengthy ask, but i'm gonna split this into two (or three). i wanted to ask you this because you are one of my favorite writers in danmei, and i wanted to get your two cents on this. so. if there's one thing that i've noticed in danmei fandom, it's that there seems to be two groups of ppl - i'll call them A & B. A are those who don't necessarily create, who are more there to rlly digest and meta the texts. if they do create 1/

- then they're most likely to be canon compliant, e.g. following mxtx's rules of no switching, no separating. B is what i would call the transformative one, who aren't rlly canon compliant and who break those "rules", so they switch up dynamics or separate the main cp. personally i'm not inclined to switch or separate, but even so, if it's not done because bottoming is seen as "weak", which is another thing altogether, then i think it's all good? and my ask is - 2/

- i've seen ppl in group A diss ppl in group B, calling them stupid for shipping character a of main cp with side character b (regardless of whether or not they want that ship to be canon, which is not usually the case), and even outright saying that ao3 sucks (which is okay, warranted, giving that ao3 lacks in the blocking/reporting feature), but generally i'm just a little.. surprised because i come from fandoms where practices in group B were the norm, ppl would go ham with canon 3/

- and altho both groups are not mutually exclusive, you can have someone who is very canon compliant in their own fics but reads more transformative works, i just. i guess i'm confused (and paranoid) because i don't know what should be, or is the right "approach" re: fandom. on the one hand, i like canon compliant, and do write canon compliant, but on the other, i would also like the wiggle room to create freely. i don't want to be cancelled by group A for having OOC characterization 4/

or get called out for "writing OCs with the characters' faces just pasted onto them". and i know, i get the irony, why am i, a fully grown-adult (ha!) so concerned abt what other ppl on the internet think abt me and my whims? a few years back i was worried i wasn't wild enough with my fics, because i was very canon-compliant, and a few years later i'm worried i'm not canon enough. just - may i ask what is your approach to fandom, in general and in danmei? i know i said only 2-3 asks but ;_; end/

----------------------------

Honestly I think it's all about who you follow! I follow a wide variety of folks and funnily enough, people I mutual'd from one danmei are rigid with canon and people I mutualed from others are WAY more open to being like group B. Both have their pros and cons-- the former, I have to end up seeing ships and concepts and pairings I loathe untagged, and with the latter, I can't run blockchain on their insane friends that rant like they and the author because then I'll accidentally block people I actually like talking with.

anyways my approach in fandom has really...always been to just do my own thing. compared to how I was when I participated in Voltron, I don't really get involved in discussions about characterizations and meta and critical analysis or what not. First, because I like to put that energy towards writing personally, and while others get joy out of it, I don't particularly personally, and second, I pretty much have only 2, 3 friends I talk about the danmei I consume with when it comes to actual headcanons because we're on the same page when it comes to how we interpret texts, so it's fun.

I love making things for fandom and I like consuming things and I love fandom community that way. I love the what-ifs and the horny ideas and what not. But critical analysis and head canons and meta in general is just not my shtick. anything i have to say about the character, i say it through fic which brings me to my last part in this rambling answer which is that as long as the fic feels right to me, it's going to go up.

I've written some OOC stuff myself but as long as you have the confidence in what you're writing, people are going to be really forgiving. Sometimes when I doubt myself, I think about all the people tweeting wildly incorrect meta with their whole chest talking about how you need reading comprehension if you don't see it their way, and channel the same inner confidence, as misguided as theirs may be.

if someone was to rip me for my characterizations I'd feel hurt for sure but I don't pre-emptively think about it when I'm posting something. If I do, it's kind of a "well if it sucks it sucks I guess" which is part in due to me just getting slapped so much irl that fandom is low on the list of things to spend time having a crisis about

also if you're following anyone that says ao3 sucks just unfollow them. mute them. get rid of them. if they're mutuals mute them. so many mutuals have to cycle through the mute bin for my own sanity and in some cases, our friendship

ANYWAYSSSSSSSSSSSSS long rant over just post that fic!! do it!!!

[abbeyfangirl]

dragon age: all characters (companions)

I’ve been in this fandom for a hot minute now and I want to update my opinions on characters :)

Origins

Alistair: super sweet dude who literally is not the stereotypicalchantryguyfightme. He’s a great example of healthy masculinity and I totally wish he was bi because I have an entire essay on that— also: he’s a poc! His mum was brown. In game he’s got dark features. if you really want a blond/blue-eyes/white guy, make your warden that. or accept that brown people can be noble and moral. or just draw cailan, idk. just because BioWare whitewashes doesn’t mean you should.

Leliana: someone hug my singing girlfriend before I crush her under with my own hugs. Also: nugs. Yes! Shoes. Yes! She likes how I style my hair? YES!! I honestly think she’s super duper and it pisses me off whenever someone’s like: yeah she enjoys killing people and the Game. ok. and michel de chevin willingly participated in genocidal marches through the alienage he grew up in with his elvhen mum. 

Morrigan: dirty swamp witch that i stan and also have a v big crush on. tiddies. Have a son with a GW so we can raise him with our tiddies out in the forest. she’s also white-passing, as her father was chasind and all people we’ve seen that are chasind are black. therefore, she is biracial. therefore, poc can be goths and don’t shy away from giving morrigan a darker skintone. if the devs had of been thinking, she’d have a darker skintone.

Zevran: Actually is the best romance, I think. Loves consent, therefore I will stan him so hard my skull cracks a little. Also: he is a very brown boy and if he’s white in da4 I’m seriously going to throw all canon out the fucking window. genuinely a good person who needs to be told so. 

Wynne: grandma who only likes my friends who go to church. but also super sweet and I’d rest my head on her bosom (in a platonic way omg ZEVRAN)

Sten: angry quiet boi. the bestest boi. I totally would give him a kitten for a gift and bake him cookies. Thicc softie. I think if I had DA:O and i knew how to use mods i would mod the fuck outta him. sorry.

Sha(y)le: who’s gender? idk her. See also: fuck birds and authority. pound ur ass into the ground you feathery meatbag little shits. fuck songbirds.

Dog: such a good boi. thicc. thinks Alistair is a whiny fuck and is Morrigan’s only friend. love him. he’s the cutest companion. bet.

Ohgren: honestly forgot about him bcc he’s such a shitbag. also: he could’ve been a really cool addiction recovery type but NOPE. probably would have a trump shirt in a modern au and would catcall wlw and hit mlm. no thanks.

Awakening

Anders: he acts like rlly straight but he’s so gay I can smell it. also he’s rlly cute and fun and I love him so much.

Justice: MAYBE i’M selF CONSCious OF THE twitchING. is the friend that genuinely doesn’t get dick jokes but is ur 110% ride or die.

Nathaniel Howe: honestly is sort of a white knight/neck beard a little, but it’s kind of charming with his whole velanna m’lady?? grump boi. annoying soul patch that I’d mod out SO FAST—

Sigrun: would have ROMANCED the FUCK out of her. why she even entertains the idea of fucking with ohgren makes me realize most of the writers are dumbfucks.png. peppy little emo. 12/10 would die if she kissed my cheek teasingly.

Ohgren: why. why. why. I’d have brought Shayle over. Maybe Zev? Definitely Dog.

Velanna: she was written to be an annoying feminist and you can tell but I deadass am a kindred spirit with her bcc I too am deadpan annoyed with Thedas’ general population too. love her. Would’ve loved to romance her. She’d totally be one of those who’d get all tsundere and be like “n-no i hate you” *kisses the fuckin soul out of you then blushes so hard she’s now a tomato*

Dragon Age II

Anders: fuck the cops. i don’t care. fuck the cops. (vine reference). also: do i hate him for blowing up the chantry that would eventually annul a huge collection of his people? no. read dalishious’s meta on Anders. v intriguing. didn’t they retcon the fuck out of the reported deaths too? like there was like eight Templars and Elthinia in there. Templars killed more “abominations” in a day than Anders in the game canon—

Aveline: initially thought she was fine and then realized she’s shit to my lil brother and I will fucking clap her ginger ass. See also: whorephobia isn’t a joke so fuck off with treating Isabela badly, you tit.

Bethany: sunshine. Literal sunshine. I feel my freckles grow in her presence and i love it. she’s my little baby sister and I’d slam that ogre so fuckin hard before it touched either twin.

Carver: there has to be a mod where both twins survive. I love them both to bits. My babies. carver is my bitter, angry little brother and I can relate because I too am very angry and would totally clap my own ass. hes so genuine and I don’t get the competition between Beth and Carver. Like, both are fuckin stellar in different ways. In this essay I will—

Fenris: honestly, I don’t get the general hate between him and Anders. Fenris’ main arc should’ve been a recovery arc, not drunken moping and revenge. he deserves better. give him a soft sweater instead of his spikes and let him love himself as much as I love him for MAKERS SAKE. like when you really think about their relationship, it could’ve been an eye-opener for fenris and finally some legit sympathy for anders. but we all know that if they had of teamed up that Meredith would’ve been dead before the end of Act 1 so.

Isabela: whorephobia is not a joke. oversexualizing your only appearing brown woman is so poorly written. how about we appreciate her and her lovely bosoms but also let people tease her about her heart of gold? her innate understanding of freedom? instead of just a wave of dick? please?? can we give her some pants for when she fights? can we accept that i fall for rogues who hate themselves?? fuck. also whomever draws her x femHawke x Merrill literally is after my own heart.

Merrill: my fucking babygirl MARRY ME. Fenris could’ve been her older brother type, but NO. she and Isabela should’ve been canonical gfs instead of Isabela/Fenris (no shaming the pairing tho!!). I love how she’s written as neurodivergent. V nice. Sometimes I just look her up and cry because she’s fucking everything. Also: she’s in the Dalish origin and she’s far from being white. Why did they make the most innocent/naïve character really white? hmmmm.

Sebastian: whew that boy. Would totally be that annoying Mormon at your door but you still let him in bcc he’s super sweet. Also: huge ass bible thumper and should get his head slap because you said the maker loved all his children why do you defend a complicit old hag you annoying attractive fuck—

Varric: totally is a bard and the devs couldn’t handle the idea of him being one bcc it might make him look less straight. is the only grey morality person I don’t want to fucking bash in with a fry pan. he sees people and I like that, but you totally know he’s siding with mages every time bcc him and Anders are like besties. I’m sorry. I don’t make the rules. “Professional Younger Brother”.

Tallis: I know nothing about her but she seems okay. I think she was an escaped slave and honestly? Fucking props. Spy on a shitting organization, idk what you’re doing, but your VA was that cool lesbian from SPN so I think ur okay?

Inquisition

Blackwall: Redemption Arc 101. Love him to bits. Sad dad bunwall. good man. actually atoned for his sins by actively becoming a good person. his initial design is 80% hotter im so sorry but so not.

Cassandra: was way browner in the last game. would romance the fuck outta her. I love me a butch lady who melts at my dorky recitation of poetry. BioWare is a coward. also is the worst choice for divine. but not a bad person. could use some more guidance or get her ass whipped by a dalish elf about religion or a circle mage kid whos like “yeah bud i didn’t ask for the templars to whip my ass everyday for existing.”

The Iron Bull: I think the Qunari/Vashoth were a little based off black people (the whole anti blackness thing where ppl are scared of them bcc of whatever reason) and it pisses me off that he had a weird ass dubcon thing with Dorian in banter. It doesn’t make sense— he’s an A+++ dom and would not jump straight in role play without at least checking in at first like wtf BioWare.

Cole: his mother was chasind so he’s like not supposed to be that white? or like biracial? albino? idk. love him to bits tho. He’s neurodivergent and I deadass love him. romancing him? idk. I see why ppl think it’s fuckin nasty but also like as a writer I’d age him the fuck up so fast before my inquisitor even THOUGHT about that. like idk. I’m down with him being a sweet little bro character tho. he’s a babe. love him.

Sera: had the worst fucking writer I’ve ever seen and I willingly read the twilight saga twice by a shit ass racist white lady who okay’d pedophilia. like. Fuck you Kristjanson suck your own dick you fuck. had the worst options in regards to speak to her. has a thicc case of internalized racism that literally most of the fandom just loves to use against her. my lesbian neurodivergent queen. Would write a thousand fix it fics for her. Love her to bits. im gay.

Varric: I haven’t played DA2 so i don’t get why everyone wants to romance him but like. a dwarf romance? yes please. Idk he reminds me of my uncle so I only see him as fun uncle material. Deadass should adopt Cole and Merrill and co parent with Blackwall for Sera. dads? fuck yeah. love me some wholesome, present fathers.

Dorian: is a gay stereotype that I love/hate so much. and he’s also just as bad about being a creep bcc he sexualizes qunari men (in banter). I attribute that to shit writing tho. I want to protect him from all the “omg gay best friend!” people. he’d clearly be that tired gay that wouldn’t give a diddly damn about ur het romance. wanna talk about politics? he’s ur guy/gay.

Solas: “me, an intellectual:”. I don’t hate him, but I’m not about him. He comes off as mysterious and suave (which he totally is) but I deadass would not save him from himself because he’s a racist, exclusionist eggshell. idk. not my cup of tea, but I can totally see the appeal. And he’s interesting, I’ll totally say that. “I think the Dalish are garbage but they made you” is not a compliment. it’s so offensive. and such bait for “quirky girls” which I’m no fan of. Would be Achilles and let Patroclus (Lavellan in his case) die before he realized how his pride is literally a waste of time. If he gets a redemption arc I hope Lavellan gets to slap him before getting him to teach all about ancient Arlathan and show that the Evanuris weren’t all total dicknozzles. (Aka I really have a hard time believing that they’d be slavery cult things. especially since they’ve compared elves to indigenous ppl, Jews and the Romani.)

Vivienne: it’s so racist that they’d make a black woman be pro-slavery. That’s such internalized racism. She could’ve been the cool ass “educate yourself first before you speak, fool” ice lady, but NO. the devs could’ve kept the “Templars are a tool that I proudly can mandate” and the “circles are very good education” and we. Could. Have. Romanced. Her. Like. Fuck. Sake. I just wanna give her a hug and say “love yourself omg!!” and not even in a romantic way. Also: she and morrigan should not have been so antagonistic towards each other. I’d expect them to have great respect for each other, as they both moved up in the world through hardwork and very little help. They could learn different magic from each other too and still maintain that rival respect “oh you” mood. Sidenote: probably the cooler option for Divine. if her approval is high enough she’ll love and be loyal to you forever and i can’t see her agenda being bad. she improves the circles exponentially and tells all the antis to suck her pretty painted toes.

Josephine: an actual disney princess. romanced her my first playthrough. I love her so much. she just makes me so happy. And she’s like: “Integrity, Loyalty, peace. That is what it means to be a GREY WARDEN good fucking person.” she’s the person who would let you hold her hand if you got anxious and she’d be that person who shouldered the whole group project with finesse and poise and would probably lie for everyone as to not be mean. i love josie. her and leliana’s relationship is so cute, too. whether it’s romantic or not: women supporting women.

Leliana: if you leave her hardened you must hate her. why. she becomes so against herself. i like how shes feminine and lighthearted because that’s so powerful-- to remain hopeful when the world is hopeless. (its hard to know when to soften her/harden her so i get it but. google it. she deserves to be happy and sweet again.)

Cullen: uwu war criminal with shit ass “redemption arc” that was actually a half-assed (at BEST) recovery arc. Recovery isn’t linear, it isn’t pretty, and even the broken need to be told they are wrong in order to heal right. Like I’m offended by that bullshit. I’ve had to do some mental health recovery in the past and unlearning lots of toxic ideologies— which I’m still unlearning— and it bothers me that he gets an easy pass because he’s hot. It’s one thing if you like Cullen, it’s another thing if you hold him accountable.

[gandalftheweeb]

everyone talks abt mitsuki but what do you think abt the dad? i’m honestly not sure what to think of him. it seems like kacchan and his mother’s arguing in common in the house and that Masura tries to diffuse(get it) the yelling but fails.

ok so i have a Lot of stuff to say abt masaru.

i haven’t been able to get to my meta abt the bakugo household dynamics and how they impacted katsuki yet (i rlly need to), but to oversimplify things this is basically how i see their dynamic:

masaru –> katsuki –> mitsuki.

mitsuki holds power over katsuki, and they both hold power over masaru.

the reason, put simply, is bc he’s clearly very timid–or at the least non-aggressive/assertive. in either case, he fails to mediate/diffuse conflict bc of it, and in a household where your ability to control conflict with assertion determines your position in its hierarchy, that’s,,,not good.

in other words: essentially, i see masaru as a doormat.

and it’s not good.

the thing that i think people don’t realize abt katsuki’s parents is that they aren’t bad for him bc they have bad intentions, or are “abusive”, they’re bad for him simply because their actual personalities are that which will perpetuate his issues in the role of parents.

to oversimplify again: bakugo ended up as bad as he was, largely, bc he was never given adequate discipline (there are other factors, but this is a big, big one that is too often overlooked).

the problem with his mom is that she’s too aggressive. she doesn’t discipline him, she fights his fire with her fire in order to stifle his and put it out. i’ll save the nitty-gritty of how and why for my meta, but it’s not hard to understand that this not only won’t have the desired affect on katsuki, it’s also like pouring gasoline on his fire. katsuki’s fire doesn’t need to be put out, it needs to be contained–given a place where it can burn as much as it wants but still with clear boundaries (aka, rules that don’t smother his sense of freedom and autonomy).

obviously, everyone notices this about his mom, one way or another. a lot of people who see its affect on him blame her for the bulk of his issues, and while i am of the opinion she’s the more crucial factor between his parents, his dad isn’t much better. frankly, he’s almost worse.

bc masaru is unable to stand up to katsuki, due to katsuki’s assertiveness and his lack of it.

realistically in a household like this with a kid like katsuki, katsuki would probably take his anger out on his dad, since his dad doesn’t stand his ground (either at all or well) and bc of how his mom treats him (which leads to him feeling as though he has no control). however, while i do think katsuki does this, i don’t think it’s as bad as it would be irl, bc i have doubts abt hori putting that potent and dysfunctional of a dynamic in a family and not highlighting it more (like with todoroki, for example).

so, in canon, i’m pretty sure that masaru’s issue is just that he can’t stand up to katsuki. which, since katsuki formulates respect around how well others measure up to him, means that katsuki has no respect for him. in fact, his dad’s lack of assertiveness probably pisses him off just as much as his mom’s over-assertiveness.

so, essentially, where his mom gives too much, his dad gives none at all, which is just as bad.

but, you can’t condemn him for it, as it’s just his personality. the same to mitsuki. the impact is very negative and very important to consider, but it’s not made intentionally. mitsuki and masaru honestly just have no idea how to properly parent katsuki, and it’s taken it’s toll, unfortunately. but that doesn’t mean they don’t love him, or should be labeled “abusive”, at least in my book.

(this is all also why aizawa is so incredibly, fiercely important for katsuki, since he strikes the balance between mitsuki and masaru.)

look forward to seeing how this impacts their relationships in the meta tho bc oh boi this family is a Mess.

[hqrbinger]

So, hypothetically

If Bito is a playable character, would she be a main DPS type or would she be more of a support role? Tank/shield or otherwise (Coming from her lore, she doesn’t seems to strike me as healer)

And what would (or was) her Skill and/or Burst be like?

-Shima

hmmmmm i've been thinking abt this a lot recently

bc like i was debating between tank, support, or dps. they all could fit some part of her

but in the end, i ruled out support bc that role requires helping ur teammates and she rlly doesn't work with anyone like all the canonical supports in the game do and she's a very solitary person, so that didn't really suit her and i ruled out tank/shield for similar reasons

instead i am opting her to be a standalone main dps, not bc i want her to be some mega powerful meta character (even tho that's part of it bc i am a whore for those big dmg numbers yk LMFAAOA) but also j bc after she lost her brother, she does not like working closely with others

i was thinking about designing her kit for phys bc she canonically doesn't carry her vision anymore but i'm not too sure MSJDKHSFDKS but i'm still working on the details so i haven't gotten that far yet KLMFAO

[taocastleprincess]

tagged by @bakubros -- this was really fun, but i feel like i don’t s/o my girl-faves a lot, so i’m disgusted and ashamed w myself. i’ve got to make change.

RULES: List 10 of your favorite female characters from 10 different fandoms and tag 10 people.

Jun Tao - Shaman King // she’s my fave CANON female character, because the Taos own my ass, but if i were including non-canon chars, ‘Sharona and her band of Lys’ would’ve tied w her for my faves lol.

Mira Olivier Armstrong - Fullmetal Alchemist // uhhh she’s badass and could kill a man with her bare hands, end of explanation.

TOORU HAGAKURE - BNHA // loud, bubbly, adorable, leader of the Best Girls Gang, stole my heart in a single episode, I’m love her.

Gel - Hunter x Hunter // we literally know nothing about her in canon besides the fact that she’s rlly pretty and loves cute things/ppl and you know what? same. (also she was 10000% ready to throw down w Parriston??? we love badass women, we stan.)

Yachi Hitoka - Haikyuu!! // i had to warm up to her a bit, but I now love my daughter unconditionally and her backstory is way too relatable.

Iris West - CW’s The Flash // the glue that holds the Flash team together, a passionate and competent journalist, an independent woman who didn’t let herself fall apart when her husband was assumed dead (or worse) for half a year, beautiful, caring, a pillar of justice and morality, goddess-tier, ouafhuqdiukwdh i could go on for ages actually. Iris West could beat me up in an IHOP parking lot and I would thank her.

Michaela Pratt - HTGAWM // i love a woman who’s smart and beautiful and better than 99.9% of her peers and completely knows it. I would also let her beat me up in an IHOP parking lot at 3AM.

Veronica Lodge - Riverdale // everyone hates Riverdale, which is not only unfair, but also a true shame because they’re missing out on the powerhouses of the entire show which is Veronica Lodge and her amazing wardrobe.

Arya Stark - Game of Thrones // she could kick my ass, your ass, her ass, his ass, their ass, the asses of the new gods and the old... the Starks have my loyalty forever, so ofc it would be her or Sansa... but I’m feeling like loving Arya today so.

Rouge the Bat - Sonic the Hedgehog universe // there was a really good meta post floating around on here about how important she was to the franchise and how the creators go out of their way to respect her character and not demean her with weird fanservice or negative stereotypes about women/femmes and that’s how she usurped Amy Rose’s place in my heart.

now i’m tagging @angelheartlovely @amegafurimasu @josejaygiron @loopyloo2610 and whoever else wants to do it.