#and bakudeku is starting to grow on me

[cvnt4him]

Y'all what are we doing shipping izuku and shota aizawa. MR aizawa..... ERASERHEAD.. and izuku midoriya. Like I can "pass" the time skip vers.....no, no I can't.

Izuku is like 23-25 in ts I suppose it's not TOO bad bc he's still canonically an adult, BUT WTF???? Aizawa is maybe like in his 40s and mind you.....IZUKU USED TO BE HIS STUDENT. am I the only one finding this weird🙁🙁

what's even worse..

WHAT??? dawg.

[bakudekublogblog]

the way katsuki just IS izuku's first love drives me nutty. like he just had a big ole crush on him with his huge-ass heart eyes and he chased him around with maximum puppy-love smitten energy

[flying-cat]

people who undermine the importance of izuku and katsuki's relationship throughout bnha because of "annoying shippers" or because they just don't like katsuki are insane because their relationship is literally so? important??? to the entire story???? katsuki is the deuteragonist of bnha. he was one of the first characters to show up. he was the first other person to know about OFA. so much of the manga is spent showing his development. if you deny his character development and relationship development ("relationship" does not always mean romantic relationship) with izuku, you are quite literally denying a massive part of the series. the manga starts with them and ends with them. you're allowed to dislike him but if you dislike him so much that you, in turn, start hating how izuku is a "punching bag" or a "doormat" for the entire series because he doesn't stay angry and vengeful at people even though a massive part of his character is that he's compassionate and kind even to people who aren't to him or used to not be, and you seriously think that that makes him weak, and you just start to dislike the main two characters of the series, i think you should. idk. stop reading, probably. read the revenge fantasy shit that you obviously want to read. there are like seven million manhwa available to you where the character gets the revenge you so desperately want to see.

[hestia-tunnnblr]

Ok now I’m being serious.

Apart from those leaks looking fake, I’m gonna take one for the team. All the ships I ever ship seriously, like SERIOUSLY have always become canon, one way or another (one of them dying(reylo)). But with bkdk I always have my doubts and was (I don’t even know why don’t ask me) scared to ship it seriously. Now I’m gonna say it. Just because maybe there’s someone messing with us.

I SHIP BKDK/DKBK SERIOUSLY !!! MY OTP!!! BEST SHIP EVERRR SOULMATES FOR REAL LOVE THEM!!! CANON FOREVER AN EVER !!! 🥦💥 ❇️✴️💚🧡

If they are true then officially will be the first couple I ship seriously that doesn’t get canon. It wouldn’t effect me, just one of dozens 🤷‍♀️ so I SHIP THEM SERIOUSLY.

[arsonisticartichokes]

God, it's so fucking ridiculous to see a creator actively make a heart-felt video about how queer shipping isn't something to be demonized, only to see multiple people in the comments go "Yeah, most queer ships are fine, it's just the WEIRD, UNHEALTHY ones like BAKUDEKU that are the problems!" Like, holy shit, not only was the discussion absolutely not about if it is morally correct to only ship "healthy" things (which I have my own person opinions on that I could rant about but to summarize quickly: almost no fictional dynamic is 100% healthy, especially in a story like MHA that has shit like CHILD SOLDIERS. Also only enjoying "healthy" dynamics doesn't make you a better fucking person, this is fiction.) but also HOW is it at all productive/even fucking important in the context of this argument to bring up an incredibly popular queer and go "Yeah, you're allow to find representation through character dynamics, except that one, if you do that it's wrong, and evil, and you are a terrible human being actually (:"

People annoy and confuse the shit out of me.

[pinkykats-place]

BakuDeku ft. Midoriya-Sensei

Some include the new hero suit

AO3 Fanfic Recommendations

Disclaimers!

None of the stories below are mine.

Some contain mature content.

Read tags. Check Ratings.

@kyuriart gave permission to use art.

Note: If you read any of these stories and like them please let the author know with a kudos and/or comment!

Midoriya-sensei's boyfriend by @silverynight

Summary: "Midoriya-sensei?"

"Yes?"

"Is pro hero Dynamight your boyfriend?"

Izuku wishes he didn't blush that often because it makes it look like he's lying. He gets those questions a lot, but hasn't gotten used to them.

"No."

"Are you dating a pro hero?"

"No."

"Is he your husband then?"

"No." Izuku holds himself back from covering his red face with both arms like he did in high-school when he was too flustered. "Ka–I mean, Dynamight-san and I are friends. There's nothing else to it."

{One Shot}

Rated - Teen & Up

Eight years and counting by @silverynight

Summary: "For young Midoriya?"

All Might already knows it's for Izuku, but the question is not exactly about that and Katsuki is perfectly aware of it; he can see it in the soft smile of Izuku's mentor, he can see it in the way his blue eyes shine with knowledge.

Katsuki blushes, but he doesn't look away from the former symbol of peace. He's not that middle schooler hot-heated kid anymore. He's done hiding his feelings behind anger and he's not ashamed about what he feels for Izuku. He's pretty sure All Might knows about that, he's probably waiting for a confirmation.

Katsuki nods, blush spreading down his neck.

"It'll take years to make something like that."

"I'm aware."

{One Shot}

Rated - Teen & Up

how i long for our trysts by nikkiRA

Summary: Most nights the only thing he has the energy for is crawling into bed beside Izuku and falling immediately to sleep. It’s why they’re taking such a risk and doing this here.

That and because it’s hot. Sneaking away to fuck like they were teenagers again. That and Izuku’s suit. Katsuki has a Thing for Izuku’s suit, how nicely it contours to his body, how strong he looks in it. Anytime Izuku got dressed up, all Katsuki could focus on was how much he wanted to undress him.

{One Shot}

Rated - Explicit

all my emotions feel like explosions (when you are around) by tiffaniesblews

Summary: He really could not think of a time in his life that didn’t include Midoriya Izuku.

OR: Bakugou pines for 4200 words.

{One Shot}

Rated - Teen & Up

see you at home by marsbarrss

Summary: “Deku, you dumbass, you forgot your lunch again,” he grumbles, pushing the wrapped lunch box into his hands. The floral print flashes up at him.

“Ah, Kacchan, you don’t have to make me lunch, seriously!” Izuku flounders, but he accepts the offering anyway. He sort of has to, or else Katsuki will flip his shit. “I can just eat at home…”

The class immediately erupts in chatter, jumping to question both men about their relationship.

Five times Katsuki disrupted Izuku at work, and one time Izuku disrupts Katsuki at work.

{One Shot}

Rated - Teen & Up

have you heard about the rumors? by DetectiveKirigiri

Summary: Everyone assumes pro hero Dynamight and infamous UA-teacher-slash-pro-hero Deku have been together for the longest time, but the thing is, they aren’t even dating, and Katsuki hasn’t even grown the balls to confess yet.

So what do their ever supportive and encouraging classmates do? Help Katsuki plan out the perfect confession to Izuku.

The only problem? So many rumors are starting to spread all at once. Also, they barely have any free time, and Izuku has papers to grade.

WIP | 14/? Chapters

Rated - Teen & Up

love is a gentle thing by tenthuser

Summary: Izuku takes pride in knowing Kacchan better than anyone else, but as they grow older, he realizes there are still things left to learn.

{One Shot}

Rated - Teen & Up

Happy with that? by polkahdotti

Summary: The first issue was that he and Midoriya hadn’t spoken in seven years, and likely the stupid brat didn’t even want to be a hero anymore, and had completely moved on from Bakugou for good.

The second issue was that the suit was nearly finished.

And Midoriya didn’t know a damn thing about it.

— — —

Or: Bakugou manages to be a pining loser and oblivious about his own feelings and Midoriya isn't much help. They'll figure it out.

Complete | 2 Chapters

Rated - General Audiences

wreck my plans (that's my man) by Icantthinkofagoodusername7

Summary: One of the students raises her hand and upon being called on asks, “Dynamight, sir? Is Mr. Midoriya your husband? Your rings match,” She points toward the chain around his neck.

With that assumption, the other students also start to whisper about how right this student likely is.

”Wait, that’s so right. Plus they seem so close, Dynamight’s always hanging around here.”

”Oh also a couple weeks ago when Yui, Haruko, Mizuko, and I came here for lunch, Mr. Midoriya was on the phone with his husband and called him Kacchan, which could be a play off of Dynamight’s given name.”

“Oh my gosh that’s so cute, y’know if they aren’t married I wanna figure out who goes by Kacchan, that’s so cute.”

”Also, remember when Dynamight showed up like a month ago or something and then after he left, Mr. Midoriya was wearing his wedding rings?”

”I’m just seeing evidence after evidence.”

*

OR 5 times Midoriya and Bakugou nearly reveal their relationship to Midoriya’s students + the 1 time they actually do

{One Shot}

Rated - Teen & Up

Recharge by @silverynight

Summary: "Your childhood friend is taking too many extra shifts; he'll pass out soon at this rate."

Aizawa does that a lot lately; he casually walks into Izuku's classroom or his office, only to drop random information about Katsuki. It's usually something Aizawa disapproves of.

Izuku sighs, looking up at the window from all the essays he has to grade. Lately, Katsuki is making him worry too much.

The funny thing is that Aizawa believes he has some secret power to make pro hero Katsuki stop or change his mind; sure, they're friends, and he often listens to Izuku (yes, he also pays him a lot of visits) but it's not like the young teacher can work miracles.

***

A glimpse into their lives during those eight years.

{One Shot}

Rated - Teen & Up

"Midoriya Izuku to the help center (your students are looking for you)" by Gyrotoes

Summary: Izuku Midoriya and Bakugo Katsuki and their cycle of behavior on field trips.

— — —

or Deku and Bakugo goofing off on a field trip when they're supposed to be in charge of 20 teenagers

Complete | 2 Chapters

Rated - General Audiences

You Gave Me Purpose, Kacchan by wowschreave

Summary: UA Teacher Izuku x Pro Hero Katsuki; basically a fic about the eight-year gap!

This is a journey about two heroes as they navigate their paths post-war and fall in love.

Complete | 22 Chapters

Rated - Teen & Up

Oblivious heart by @silverynight

Summary: "You're amazing!" The young man says after a while; listing all the things he likes about Izuku the most, his courage, his determination and his selflessness until he makes the teacher blush to the tip of his ears. "Can I get you something? A coffee? Something to eat? Maybe we can go somewhere else–"

Katsuki, who just got back with their food, places Izuku's latte and the croissant in front of him, as well as his own breakfast on the table. He sits quite aggressively next to the teacher and puts an arm around his shoulders.

"Who the fuck are you?" He hisses, clearly irritated at the fan still standing next to their table.

{One Shot}

Rated - Teen & Up

Busy by annasmith80

Summary: Izuku can’t shake the feeling that something’s off. His best friend has been distant lately, and no matter how hard he tries, he just can’t figure out why. Did he do something wrong? Is Bakugo mad at him? Did Bakugo get bored of him? All he knows is that Bakugo was suddenly busy and he won't tell him why.

Meanwhile, Bakugo is determined to do anything it takes to make Izuku happy. And what he thinks will make Izuku the happiest is the chance to be a hero again. So, he sets out to make that happen—no matter the cost.

Bakugo decides to fund a project to create a custom power suit for Izuku, but the expenses quickly spiral out of control. To make ends meet, Bakugo takes on a series of odd jobs on top of his pro-hero work: spinning signs on street corners, valet driving, appearing on a bizarre game show, and even modeling. It’s humiliating, exhausting, and leaves him busier than ever, but he’ll do whatever it takes to make Izuku happy.

Complete | 22 Chapters

[retrofailing-icor]

I'm more open on ships than anything but sometimes I gotta point out how odd ships can be.

Like how Izocha is so underdeveloped that it makes me genuinely cry.

Or how bakudeku had to grow through sh/t before actually fixing things.

Or how tgchk started off the same foot as bkdk.

I'm happy the people get to ship their ships. Cause like. You can ship the weirdest ship in front of me as long as it's legal. And I wouldn't fkn mind.

But the moment you tell me "character is a homewrecker! They're ruining the ship!" ? ... ?

I'm sorry. WTF DO YOU MEAN.

"Izocha is canon! Uraraka ruined bkdk!!!" THE F/CK SHE DID NOT???

"IZOCHA CANON! YOU GUYS SHOULD STOP SHIPPING YOUR TOXIC BKDK. BAKUGO LITERALLY TOLD HIM TO SWAN DIVE" how the hell does Bakugo ruin izocha.

"tgchk was better! Deku just had to be the main problem" BACK THE FK UP—

BACK THE FK UP. BACK THE FK UP.

if you wanna ship. Then SHIP. don't drag other characters and blame them for your ship not ending up the way you wanted it to.

Don't blame Uraraka bc bkdk couldn't be canon. Horikoshi legit said no ships will be canon.

Don't blame Bakugo for "getting in the way" of izocha. He isn't in the way.

Don't blame Deku for being a wall that separates Uraraka and toga. HE AINT. HE AINT.

At times like this I genuinely wonder what tf is going on through people's heads.

Cause when I ship I don't blame a canon character.

Take it for example I'm a hardcore bkdk shipper. But god do I worship Uraraka. She has matured so much that seeing her fall for Deku at the end makes me genuinely cry.

No this isn't about tgchk. This is just me complaining about how Uraraka doesn't need a man or Deku or toga to be strong and independent.

Toga and Deku were Uraraka's keys of development and what made her mature. To see her linger on them both makes me genuinely sad. Like wdym she's still not over them both? Wdym she still needs them? No she doesn't. She's come so far on her own. God please they don't deserve Uraraka 😭 my queen my girlboss 😭

But back to the main topic.

Shipping is meant to be for fun, but if you diss another character for "getting in the way" of your ship, you might as well just stop being in the fandom at all.

Dissing on my girl like that. MAN F/CK YOU. dissing on Deku and calling him a. Green goblin? F/CK YOU TOO. like back the fk. Up. My kids did nothing wrong. Go shoo. Shoo. Leave this fandom you aren't welcomed here.

This also just doesn't apply to bkdk, izocha nor tgchk btw.

I get pissed every time I see someone shipping two characters then diss another character for getting in the way.

And I'm not dissing the ship here I'm dissing the shipper. Like damn. What typa Wattpad bullsh/t did you read up your a// tf?

To make things short? No. Character does not get in the way of said ship. (Unless you're the man from Nana then I accept)

Come at me. I will protect my kids from your delusional a// they did nothing wrong to get in the way of your ship.

[epickiya722]

When I tell you I'm so sick of this.

Yes, yes, Bakugou used to be his bully and all that yadda yadda. Oh my gosh, wow, a bully in the story! How dare such a thing exists!

Okay, stop clutching your pearls. Even Bakugou knew he was a total ass and it's not something he ever got away with like that, let alone he does grow up, so chill.

But if you're gonna go that route, throwing Todoroki in there to be like "it makes sense to pair them instead" is kind of strange because even though Todoroki didn't bully Midoriya, they did still immediately start on the wrong foot. I mean, Todoroki could have killed Midoriya in their match but I don't see people going "I don't understand how people can ship them, it doesn't make sense to me when Todoroki could have seriously killed Midoriya that one time".

I have seen people ship Midoriya with characters worse than Bakugou, but OMG, it's their ship that gets tackled on the most and at this point, I see it as a trend.

I see it as someone has to do because they're a follower.

Honestly, it's just getting ridiculous.

If the ship doesn't make sense to you, it doesn't make sense to you, who cares? But posting about it like this and then tagging it, doesn't do anything good.

No one who has caught up with the anime and manga would post about the ship in a rather negative way would be "it doesn't make sense to ship them".

"What if they aren't caught up?"

Even so, does it need to make sense? Is it an actual necessity for someone to have a ship to make sense if at the end of the day they're just entertained by the mere thought of it and not bothering you about it?

Take it from someone who ships Miruko and Burnin and is her favorite MHA ship at this time. We ain't see them have no onscreen interaction. That didn't stop me though and going "Hey, I think you two would look cute together".

There are ships in this fandom that have a way worse relationship in canon and still people ship them.

"I see art that depicts them being cute together." Okay, so and? Are you losing HP from it like some video game character that has yet to move out the lava? Do you grow a horn every time you see cute ship art of it? It's not the only ship drawn out there being cute together. It's not like there aren't cute moments in canon for them. Then stop looking at the art. Why are you looking at the art? If you keep seeing BakuDeku art, clearly... you're in the area. Probably on purpose.

I know if I keep seeing art of a ship I don't like it's a me problem because I have the choices to not follow certain people, block the tag, etc.

Maybe you shouldn't be in the MHA fandom at all given the amount of art for them anyways that's official.

Look, I'm not bothered by someone not liking Bakudeku. Could really give zero crap about it, honestly. I have ships I don't like either.

But what bothers me is posting about it, attacking the ship and tagging it.

We all have our opinions and I believe, good or bad, post about them.

However, people do shit like this and then mask it as "having an opinion" when really they probably want to start drama.

"But, Kiya, what if they're not trying to start drama? What if they don't know the proper way to tag?"

I call bullshit and I don't care. Oh, yes, I sound like a bitch, but let's be real here.

Stuff like this happens no matter where. It doesn't just happen on Tumblr. People have done this over and over and over to the point that it is hard to believe that person isn't trying to start anything.

New or not, people by now should know that if they're going to say something negative about a ship, don't draw in the shippers.

If this person didn't want to start drama then why bring TodoDeku into this? "Make it make sense." That right there is a sign of "I'm starting drama". Uh, people do happen to ship TodoDeku. I even ship it. It's not like people don't at all in the fandom ship them and only ship BakuDeku, so stop.

It's not like this person or anybody who does this is genuinely asking and do what to know because maybe they are genuinely curious and/or considering the ship but first wants to know more about it.

No, they're just being hostile. This is not an opinion. It's an attack disguised as one.

If you don't like the ship, okay. But if you're going to post about it, don't tag it.

This isn't even about BakuDeku only anymore. I see this with ships that don't even have anything wrong with them and in different fandoms. It's tiring, it's annoying and just takes the fun out of shipping.

[problematicbyler]

an incomplete history of byler sexuality discourse

and how widespread fandom purity culture and homophobia created a flourishing nsfw sub-fandom

some may call me chronically online, but i call myself a fandom historian. i've been a member of some fandom or another since i was about thirteen, and i've always been interested in the rise and fall of fandom discourse. though it's annoying in the moment it's happening, i think it's very interesting and telling to look back at the overall arcs and trends.

so, let's talk about the many times the fandom has cancelled people over byler sexuality, and how each level of "hornygate" has contributed to the growth of the proship/byler smut community.

(i use the term proship in its intended definition, which is to say, not "problematic shipping," but rather being pro-fiction, anti-censorship, and anti-harassment; it is a position of believing the fiction one creates or consumes doesn't reflect a person's real life beliefs or morals.)

i have been a stranger things lover since season 1, a byler shipper since season 2, and an active part of the byler community on tumblr since season 4. i'll mostly be focusing on post-season 4 discourse because that's what i've really been most present for and that was the period that really marked a turning point in the fandom.

seasons 1-3

i wasn't as plugged into fandom discourse back in the day, but the broad strokes of early discourse was mostly thinly veiled homophobia. claiming that it was sexualization to assume will or mike could be queer despite blatant queer coding, implying that analysts were no better than will's bullies to assume his sexuality, etc etc. people were criticized for shipping byler at all because they were so young (but these people naturally had no issue with mileven, so, again, homophobia).

season 4 (may-july 2022)

now, season 4. this is where byler was brought to the attention of a lot more fans, and stranger things' viewership reached wider than ever. the byler fandom on tumblr booms from 4k to 100k over the course of season 4's release.

this brought a lot of new people who have never been in fandoms before, people who never learned don't like don't read or your kink is not my kink and that's okay or ship and let ship.

or, a lot of times, people who had only been in fandoms for celebrities and bands, which tend to have different rules when it comes to shipping and sex, because they're real people. hence a lot of young antis' conflation of character with their actors, but that's a different rant.

so with a rapidly growing fandom, a show ripe for analysis, and the art of media literacy bleeding out on the ground in front of us, the hellscape of the fandom post-season 4 in 2022 followed as such:

august 2022

jo/kendra gate where two extremely popular analysts were called out for "sexualizing" byler while being adults (early to mid 20s). they were dogpiled and harassed because one of them said that will was giving mike "bedroom eyes" (he was) and one of them said mike was checking will out (he was):

pyshiie and moogate. the proship side of byler twitter rose up and started to divide itself. i'll credit my own joining-the-dark-side to pyshiie and moo, formerly barbjeanisms, who were two popular artists called out respectively for sexualizing byler and generally being proship. similarly, people were called out and criticized for even following or interacting with those accounts after this discourse.

september 2022

hosegate is the most famous across the byler fandom, and it's when some users proposed that the scene in the pizzeria uses phallic imagery to imply mike turns will on (or vice versa) and a lot of people thought that was too sexualized, it caused a divide, and more fanpolicing, etc.

october 2022

the artist noodlesandtea was harassed for having liked arguably nsfw bakudeku art (they were shirtless, it wasn't explicit) on the same account where they draw characters who are minors. they also drew byler kissing, which was a problem for some? anyone who defended them was also called a pedo, naturally. noodles also got called out for having drawn fanart of the popular e-rated fanfiction....

the unmarked mixtape. a massively popular sequel to a massively popular fic, the red envelope. for a long time, those were the most widely recommended byler fics, but it very soon became taboo to even admit to reading them because the sequel has explicit sex and the first has them making out.

sonnet116 gate is another fic that was beloved and then rapidly turned on by byler twitter because it had implied, fade to black sex scenes. it was about them hooking up but had no smut. and even the non explicit idea of that was offensive and pedophilic of anyone who dared read it. around this time, another fic was called out for having will moaning into a kiss, because writing a teenager moaning was also offensive and pedophilic.

i'm told i (jana / troublebyler gate?) may have influenced a lot of people joining twitter for byler smut after writing illicit affairs and some other smutty oneshots in rapid succession, seeing a lot of byler shippers moving to the proship side of the fandom just to discuss and write byler smut. i also hosted a little fandom gossip column on my curiouscat where a lot of folks confessed to reading or writing smut while pretending to be "normal" in the "main" fandom. it basically revealed/implied that a large amount of popular authors, artists, and accounts were secretly pro byler smut, and that many proshippers were "undercover" in the "main" fandom.

the blocklist era. around this time the "main" fandom also created a "st twt safety" account on twitter which was basically targeted harassment and mass reporting of proshippers. the account does warn of some genuine bad actors sending gore images via dms, being racist, etc. but by far, the majority of it was simply calling out proshippers for sexualizing byler, sharing screenshots they thought were "gross," which only resulted in spreading nsfw content to unintended audiences of minors that likely never would have seen the nsfw accounts otherwise.

november 2022

practice kissing gate is where a handful of popular fic writers were criticized for writing practice kissing fics (such as undertow), and in fact, any amount of byler making out, because adults "fantasizing" about teenagers kissing was "gross."

the proship corner of st twitter continued to grow a lot thanks to so many lovely fan creators, all of whom i couldn't possibly list but who have done a lot for the community! but we continued to get bombarded with endless callout posts and block lists and witch hunting. people were unabashedly policing people's following lists and likes on twitter to call people out for engaging with any questionable users or content. (if you search byler twitter now you can still see the wreckage of so many witch hunts.)

onward through 2023

over time things have mostly calmed down, or at least enough of the folks on "opposing sides" of the fandom have mutually blocked each other to survive. this is likely also influenced by the hiatus leaving the fandom to quiet down, the collapse of twitter-turned-x having many users migrate their fandom content elsewhere, and the mass exodus of many people from the fandom for political reasons. if i had to guess, the ramp-up to season 5 will see all new conflict as more "casual" fans return to the fandom. but who's to say.

which brings us to now:

spicybylerpolls gate, wherein the byler tag on tumblr collectively had to reckon with the fact that people want byler to have sex and it doesn't make them creeps to vote in silly polls about it. people criticized the blog for being overly sexualized and pure fantasy versus more "acceptable" analysis, with many making sweeping moralizing statements about anyone who dared interact with the blog.

this has kicked off tumblr's own sort of horny revolution in encouraging folks to be more open on here, whereas previously we were confined to our corner of twitter.

so in summary:

people over and over again put fan creators on a pedestal just to turn on them when they're "betrayed" when a person's views did not one-to-one line up to theirs.

teens in the fandom especially were "betrayed" by adults in the fandom they thought were "safe" (and i would argue that self proclaimed "safe" adults in fandom are far more dangerous to real life minors than the proship fans who sexualize fictional characters but dont interact with real teens)

most everything has been fueled by widespread ageism at any fan over the age of 18, widespread homophobia and puritanism in regards to exploring queer sexuality or discussing sex at all

so much hate has been over what are essentially "thought crimes", with people watering down serious accusations like pedophilia into a petty insult over disagreements on fiction

and the cycle repeats itself endlessly until things devolve back into witch hunting and policing peoples following and likes etc

the best part to me is that every single cancellation just resulted in more people flooding to the horny side of the fandom to post more freely and without shame. every time a person on twitter posted screenshots of my account to say how "gross" it was (while simultaneously exposing my 18+ nsfw content to their audience of minors) i had a surge in followers. the more the fandom squeezes, the more people slip from its hold.

but that doesn't make the harassment campaigns okay, and it doesn't mean the fandom didn't do massive amounts of harm to real people in an attempt to protect fictional characters.

my hope going forward is that the fandom can coexist as a community where people don't have to like or agree with certain content to treat the people who create it with respect and dignity. and i hope that, while this side of the fandom might grow more on tumblr, we don't have to relive the same old discourses and go through the same cycles we went through on twitter.

and remember kids, the block button is both free and fun.

[darkietrashcan]

Analysis on Izuocha and Bakudeku

An epilogue about moving forward

This post contains spoilers for the end of the manga and volume 42

Izuocha.

I haven’t thought about them in a long while… it was the first ship I sailed for when I started MHA, then I deviated to Bakudeku. But please, I am not a biased woman on neither behalf. I will express my analysis and opinions on the matter as a shipper for both who CAN analyze facts with objectivity:

Bakudeku was NEVER gonna be canon and many of us knew it: first of all, because Horikoshi is a middle aged man writing a Shonen. Sorry for being so stereotypical, but it is a fair assumption to make.

Second of all, the blushing, man. Izuku blushed every time he was near to her: he was attracted. Maybe not a full developed crush but there was something stirring him up. Uraraka was a person Izuku admired.

She was the person that gave him the nickname Deku. SHE changed the meaning Bakugo had gave him initially: from useless, to a man who does his best. Uraraka did a wonderful thing right there and it stuck to Deku until the end of the series.

She also was his first friend alongside Iida and Todoroki. Healthy relationships.

Uraraka developed a crush. She was mesmerized and when she realized that plus the fact Izuku was so set to meet his goals, that she set her crush aside to follow her own path: she built her way towards becoming a woman with own goals to pursue. She no longer depended on that crush.

Toga came.

Firstly, she didn’t understand her. She hurt Toga’s feelings and something stirred her up since then.

(During these times, Deku leaves U.A and Uraraka gives her beautiful speech: she connects the people with Deku, and, begs for him to get recognized. A beautiful action.)

Let’s get back to Toga now that I got that fact out of the way.

Her view about life changed, so did Izuku’s with Tomura. They were the only ones who could talk about it, since they experienced similar situations. Uraraka is set to her goal of reaching Toga.

Here is where, for me, things change between them. I viewed Izuocha as a thing before Toga, before Uraraka decided to move on. Then, I viewed them more as very close friends. But it seems like feelings aren’t forgotten and this connection regarding saving other people: Tomura and Toga, united them spiritually.

In fact Uraraka never stopped thinking about Toga.

And this leads me to think that this epilogue meant more than just an ending to their individual stories. Because if you read my other analysis, you understand that I believe that Bakugo never stopped chasing Deku.

While Deku after losing OFA moves forward, becoming a teacher… Bakugo never let go of OFA: competing with Deku literally turned him into a better person. So he sought for that dream, built Izuku a suit, asked him to join his agency but Izuku refused. Because Izuku had moved on. And so had to do Katsuki. And for bkdks it hurts like hell because it is a new step into their relationship: growing as separate adults, who are FRIENDS now, fucking finally. They had a happy ending. But it hurt bkdk’s because Katsuki never let go and I am sure, had their relationship been romantically coded, with them blushing and acknowledging crushes like on Izuochas behalf, I would have taken it as a romantic rejection, too.

But it wasn’t bakudeku’s path because Katsuki’s story always was about learning to ackowledge his mistakes and atone. His story was never a queerbait because romance wasn’t a main focus to explore for his character. All that were just headcanons.. The reason why the apology felt like a freaking romantic confession for bkdks: While, in fact, it was the climax for his character development. Apologizing was finally accepting what he did and growing beyond that. And all the extra stuff just proves how regretful he is because of the bullying he did.

(One thing I have always been greatful for was that Izuku never replied to Katsuki’s apology because it was never needed. The apology was meant to be done, and done. Katsuki never expected a reply either because he understoos just what I said.)

Let’s sum this up: in this epilogue, Katsuki had to learn to move forward, get over Izuku.

And in my opinion it was now Uraraka’s turn to move past Toga: her guilt was paralyzing her. The path that initially made her into a separate woman from Izuku, with own goals to pursue, is now a weight to carry. Plus it is not that she didn’t do anything about it: from the epilogue it seems she has sort of an agency going on and the program to help children!? She is twenty five and accomplished so, so much!

Here is what bugs me from the epilogue: I believe theur romantic relationship was rushed because it was a short timeskip! Had this been long, had their introspection gone a bit longer, I would have believed it and sailed for them.

Izuocha went from a crush, to a strong, deep friendship, whose romantic undertondes diminished as time went by. The flames were never blown away: I do believe they loved each other deeply since the first day. But, since they had different goals, (Toga and Tomura) a romance couldn’t blossom.

But now, Izuku became a teacher separate from OFA and knows what he wants to do. And Uraraka also did her thing: the path cleared for both of them to explore their relationship.

Because, Toga became a weight for Ochako to carry, and it is not that her character becomes a push for a heterosexual relationship. Toga was not diminished to that! Toga was the representation of Ochako’s growth, because all she did, she did for Toga. For her story to not repeat a cycle. When she pushes Ochako, she’s freeing her. So that she can grow besides Toga: she already did a lot to pay homage to her. So yes, Toga pushes a heterosexual relationship but her character WAS NOT REDUCED TO A TOOL! She is pushing her to a new path, and this path is coincidentically a romantic path.

And deepening his relationship with Deku was Horikoshi’s idea of moving forward, for them, at least. Why is it bad that they decide to get together?

As Bakudeku’s we dreamt of a future where Bakugo and Deku get together building an agency together or just competing. Our moving forward was them to become a couple or a team or whatever. We dreamt of them getting together.

Now when it gets to Izuocha it is bad because they can’t grow as separate adults? When it is their choice to get together? This is their choice of keep growing as adults, explore a romantic relationship!? Isn’t this the same like bakudekus desire but for their ship?

(My ship too, bcs I always bkdk>izch)

So yes. I believe Izuocha was rushed, and a bit forced. But it is mainly due to HOW SHORT THE EPILOGUE WAS! Had it been longer with more introspection… man I would have bought it.

But I also as a mha fan have to accept that stories need to conclude and Hori can’t keep drawing and epilogue forever.

I am sure a lot of pieces are not put in this puzzle because this analysis stems from rough translations from the leaks.

But this is what I think about Izuocha and Bakudeku. And boy, if you don’t ship bkdk good for you, but as a HUUGE fan, I am hurt like hell.

(read my other analysis to understand)

[bakudekuficlibrary]

BakuDeku: Wrong Number

1 Series. 7 Works.

Anonymous asked: Do you guys have any Wrong Number fics? Just finished reading Bluebird and wanted more of that trope!

Bluebird by EtherealBeing ( E | 53,108 | 7/7 )

Dialing a wrong number was no unusual occurrence. Everyone did it once in a while, and Katsuki was well aware of that fact.

However, possessing this knowledge made it no less aggravating for him to discover — a full two minutes into his rant about his day — that he’d been venting his frustrations to a complete stranger. As if that wasn’t enough, said stranger was also inexplicably determined to hear his story to its end.

The Great Katsuki Bakugou Textmergency by brichibi ( T | 6,559 | 1/1 )

All right. Fine. Katsuki Bakugou loves Izuku Midoriya. The first step is texting that information to best bud Eijirou Kirishima. The second step is to accidentally send the love confession to that Stupid Deku. The third step is to PANIC and dial “squad” for immediate backup.

[Series] Wrong Numbers and Complicated Feelings by LoveGeek15 ( T | 32,325 | 2 Works | Complete )

It’s perfectly dark in Izuku’s room; not a single ray of sunlight could penetrate through these seals. The only light that shone in his abyss, despite it being three in the afternoon, was his computer —

'make sure you eat lunch idiot'

— and the above message that was displayed from the newest and strangest number in his phone.

(Izuku answers a spam call that ends up being more than just a number on his phone.)

Not Her Number by vintige ( Not Rated | 3,708 | 1/1 )

a wrong number. weird conversations. and katsudon withdrawal. and Christmas lights. what could go wrong?

or Midoriya Izuku misdials Ochako's number and ends up making a new friend (or something more!) just in time for Christmas

[Abandoned] Payphone by flowercafe ( M | 5,433+ | 3/? )

Izuku’s in trouble — like, SOS trouble. Lucky for him, he’s one phone call away from salvation. Hopefully his trembling fingers dial the right number, because it would really suck if he accidentally called a stranger right now.

or

The “I was walking home alone in the middle of the night and someone started following me so I ran into this phone booth with a lock on the door to call for help, but my hands were shaking so badly I accidentally dialed the wrong number and I don’t even know who you are but please help me" au — ft. a Quirkless Izuku whose misdial connects him to the personal cell line of pro hero Ground Zero.

[Abandoned] Who are you texting? by chetrambles ( T | 5,024+ | 2/5 )

Midoriya accidentally texts the wrong number, but instead of not texting it again, he kinda- does. His faceless friend slots into his life like he was always meant to be in it, though his friends are more than wary about the situation.

Bakugou had not expected anything more than annoyance from the idiot who couldn't remember his friends number, so he was as surprised as all of his friends when the nerd starts growing on him.

What happens when the lines of friendship become blurred?

[Abandoned] Kiss Me Through the Phone by dynyamight ( T | 7,759+ | 3/15 )

“You got all that, right?” Shinsou asks, readjusting his backpack on his shoulders. Midoriya hums absentmindedly. He’s still quickly jotting down the last few digits onto his planner. “And, you said tomorrow, around 7:00? At the library?” “Yeah,” Shinsou shrugs, “Or anytime really. The deadline isn’t until next month, you know.” “I kinda just want to get it done, as soon as possible.” Shinsou breathes out a snort. “Figured you’d say that much. Just make sure you got my number. Repeat it, if you need to.”

Midoriya should have done exactly that. Unbeknownst to him, Bakugou's phone number was just one digit off Shinsou's.

hang each night in rapture by Radiant_Allomancer ( E | 1,698+ | 1/? )

ooo somebody’s getting *defensive* I’m getting such an interesting picture of you already -angry hedgehog -foot fetish -daddy kink -will send threatening messages to friends and strangers out-of-the-blue -has the vocabulary of a middle schooler

shut the fuck up oh my god do you ever stop talking

do you know any other curse words besides fuck??

a bkdk wrong number AU

To see the original 2019 post, click here.

[sapphic-agent]

Thank you for the invitation! I've read your posts on Bakuguo's relationship with Izuku, and I agree with almost all of them, but this most recent post is the first time I saw you suggest that it's not just a mistake in writing on the creator's part but *deliberate* writing on the creator's part (forgive me if you've written about the subject before). The only way I could appreciate Izuku's relationship with Bakuguo was as an unfortunate side effect of Izuku's immature ideas of what it means to be a hero, and that as he experienced more of the world and grew into being his own hero, that he would eventually reject this need to tolerate Bakuguo's ... Bakuguo-ness. I also was informed that Bakuguo's behavior is a trope of manga characterization that the audience would expect from this type of writing, so I should just accept it.

But now, from what you've written, this might not be true. I've always suspected that some creators would have preferred to write about characters who couldn't actually carry a story *without* changing, but they didn't want them to change. (For example, Sukuna in Jujutsu Kansen is obviously the creator's favorite, but a story about Sukuna would require change, and the creator likes that monster just the way he is.). Are there clues that Izuku's creator is just using Izuku as a "Caretaker" character to enable the characters he does like to behave terribly and get away with it? (I hope this makes sense.)

I suppose the answer to this relies on how we look at "deliberate."

Do I think Horikoshi is intentionally undercutting Izuku's character to make Bakugou seem better? No. I don't think he has the foresight, skill, or self-awareness to even go about writing like that. I'm sure in his mind he thinks that by giving Bakugou more spotlight, he's making Izuku better written by extension.

And a lot of that has to do with the fandom. Horikoshi is an author whose decisions are very driven by popular opinion, it's why so many of his storylines and characters are all over the place. For example, almost as soon as Bakugou began to become popular (around the Sports Festival), Horikoshi started to give him more exposure. If you pay attention, you'll even notice how characters like Iida and Uraraka begin to fade into the background. This is even supported by the two of them not being very popular (especially Iida) in comparison.

And obviously, BakuDeku is very popular, the most popular ship in the fandom. Horikoshi would never make it canon, but that isn't to say he won't milk that fact for all its worth. By pushing Izuku and Bakugou together, he's feeding into that. Every time they so much as share a panel about it, BakuDeku shippers go crazy here and on Twitter. It keeps attention on MHA, and keeps revenue up.

Horikoshi knows that a large majority of the fandom will consistently read anything he releases as long as he keeps Bakugou and Izuku connected. Both Bakugou and BakuDeku as a relationship are essentially a cash cow that he can exploit.

But for Bakugou to actually improve and become a better person and for Izuku to come into his own as a hero, they need to be separated. They are both detrimental to one another's development, which is why Bakugou's character development sucks and Izuku's character seems so stagnant. They should have had to grow and learn away from each other before reconciliation was ever even thought about.

Does Horikoshi know this? Probably not. I don't think he even has the capacity to think this way. But it doesn't change the fact that he will gladly shove Izuku- and everyone else- to the side if it means Bakugou's stans keep reading

[nyxvamps]

i think what makes me not like most bakudeku fics/content is how meeeeaaan they make bakugou towards midoriya before they immediately start a relationship. like, i don’t need 50k words of bakugou suicide baiting and beating the shit out of midoriya just for him to go ‘kacchans amazing~~!” and their relationship casually becoming romantic within a year of the start of bakugous growth.

i like the ones where they’re years into their hero careers and bakugous been growing and learning from how much a shit he was before he learned that he’s not always gonna have everyone kissing his ass. i need the growth. i need something people. come on

[wincestwhispers]

happy wincest wednesday! do you think the samdean dynamic can be achievable in a universe where they aren't related? and would you read any fics about that? ( @burial-at--sea )

happy wincest wednesday ruby<3 tysm for the ask, this is a really good one!

To start off simple, yes i do think it can be achieved in a universe where they aren’t related but it’s gonna require some special circumstances. there’s a few reasons i say this, one of them is that i actually did start reading a samdean fic where they weren’t related and enjoyed it, which already answers your second question lol. i’ll explain below bc it’s gonna be kinda lengthy sorry

i didn’t make it very far in the fic before i got distracted and forgot about it but from what i read, it characterized sam and dean pretty well given that they weren’t related. in the fic they did still somewhat grow up together, dean’s little brother was adam and they all went to a hunting school. it was omegaverse so when dean presents shit gets complicated because omegas aren’t allowed at the school. drama and trauma happens. sam and dean don’t see each other for a while then meet up for a case only to sleep together which gets dean pregnant. then ensues all the secrets, misunderstandings, possessiveness and feelings which come to a head eventually. accurate presentation of sam’s jealously and protectiveness and how misconstrued dean would take it which was fun. i didn’t read very far past when sam found out dean was pregnant and almost lost his shit when he couldn’t scent dean and his baby cause of dean’s scent patches (delicious scene), so i can’t say much for the rest of the fic unfortunately, and im not speaking to the actual plot of this fic, but i would say the author as closely achieved sam and dean’s dynamic while having them be unrelated as i’ve ever seen. also i found the fic: ao3

the second reason i think it can be achieved is gonna sound like a reach but hear me out: bakudeku. okay they didn’t exactly grow up in each others pockets the way samdean did (though deku wanted to) but they still were a constant in each others lives from childhood and become quite codependent. they can both be toxic and unstable with one another, their whole lives revolve around each other and the biggest thing, all of their rules and morals get thrown out the window for the other. bakugou gets injured? deku’s killin people. deku is being an idiot? bakugou’s breaking all the rules to get to him and give him a speech. that’s samdean behavior if i’ve ever seen it; they’re always each other’s exception. Furthermore, i personally view bakudeku as having that “worse apart still fucked together” and “idk what they got going on but we don’t touch it” dynamic. they understand and know each other better than should be normal, have everything memorized and seem almost telepathic at times, yet will somehow STILL misunderstand the others feelings about them, and that’s just how they are like it’s normal.

TL;DR my unnecessary explanations: Yes, but they’ve gotta at least be childhood friends that go through a breakup/enemies phase and come out more codependent for the best results

[obsessive-dumpling]

If you don't mind, can I ask something from My Hero Academia? What do you think are Midoriya and Bakugou's greatest personality strengths and weaknesses? Why? What do you love about their dynamic? Sorry if you've answered these questions before.....

Also, If you don't mind me asking (again), can I also ask your top fav characters and fav moments from the series (BNHA)...? Thanks if you want to answer....

Hello! I'm so sorry, I'm not sure how long this has been sitting in my asks because I don't know about y'all, but mine is a black hole. (For real, I checked today and it said I had 8 asks but I could only see 2 and one of them was one I have been trying to delete for like ten years but it won't budge. So if you send an ask and I don't answer, know that it's due to the black hole. It will give you back to me when the time is right. I hope.) But I am more than happy to answer!

What do /I/ think are Midoriya and Bakugo's greatest personality strengths and weaknesses... There really isn't enough time and space for me to cover all my thoughts but...

Let's start with Baku, shall we? I think that his greatest personality strength is actually his charisma. *Crickets* Wait! Hear me out! Baku throughout the series is often painted into a position of leadership. In the beginning, it is thought that, that is solely based on his strong quirk. But it's not. He exhibits having that leadership quality even before him and Izuku are supposed to get their quirks. During the Licensing Exam Arc (as well as the Kidnapping Arc) Aizawa gives a whole [2] monologue[s] about this. Katsuki is a natural born leader and hero though he presents prickly. And I think the reason why is because the charisma he exudes is authentic and honest to his character and others can see that. He might be perceived as mean but he is trustworthy and he has follow through. Any joint trainings or missions we've seen him in shows that. His teammates may complain, but they don't actually question him. They trust him and his assessment, judgement, and execution of resolving a situation. Though not traditionally "charismatic", we have to give it to the man who has won "favorite character" as many consecutive times as he.

For Deku, it's much less nuanced and much more straightforward. His biggest personality strength is without a doubt his unwaivering belief in people. He truly believes the best in every single person. I don't think I need to expound on that one as much, as it is shown *waves at entire show* countless times.

Before I get into the weaknesses, I would like to point out that these two characteristics put together start to answer one of your other questions: "Why do you love their dynamic?" I love their dynamic for many reasons but when you face these two characteristics in these two different characters (who start out at odds) and make them face each other, something beautiful happens.

Izuku's unwaivering belief in Katsuki to be better, to be THE BEST, and Katsuki's unwaivering resolve to always show up as he is WITH expectation calling him to new heights, and then watching that cycle motivate Izuku to be a better version of his own self is just so....inspiring? The word doesn't feel big enough. They are the personification of an infinity symbol. ♾️ Just constantly pouring back into one another and becoming stronger for it.

It really brings back the meaning of "rivals" and what they should be. I feel like the Shonen genre has a habit of getting caught in its own equation of what makes a Shonen a Shonen and loses the meaning of what the genre was originally created to promote: rising above it all. Bakudeku does a really great job of calling out the bad points of the genre and resetting them back to a worthy messaging. We're all continuously learning and trying and growing to be the very best we can be. And that progress is never supposed to end.

With that said, let's talk about weaknesses.

Baku's is obvious: his pride. The boy ends up having amazing amount of self reflection, but it comes at the cost of having a painful amount of time for self correction. And he's still trying. And I'm certain that it is Horikoshi's vision to have him always trying and learning and growing some more. None of us are perfect, not even Kacchan of the Bakugo's. And that's, again, how it should be. Katsuki is a great character for wearing his flaws so openly on his sleeves from start to finish.

Deku's is less obvious I think: his pride. Yes, I think they both have the same downfall. Izuku's pride and arrogance does not come from the same place as Baku's. His comes from a fearless pit that allows him to throw his body around like it means nothing. Self sacrificial without the awareness. Dangerous combo. Baku has him beat by miles on the self awareness train. A strategic brain without self awareness allows him to overcome virtually all his obstacles without any consideration for the consequences to himself or those who care for him. This is a repeated theme that we see illustrated time and time again by Inko and by the end, all of his friends and Kacchan himself. Izuku's pride is arguably bigger than Katsuki's, which therefore makes it harder to overcome. To be honest, I don't think we've actually really seen this have ANY concrete improvement throughout the series as he regularly reverts to self sacrificing throughout the entire series BUT I do think it will be addressed by the end. He is, as of now, at least aware of his shortcomings.

I could talk about these two for days so obviously they are included in my last answer to your questions: top favs. So these are my favorites outside of our wonder duo (for the record all of my fav moments are bkdk):

-Hawks: I love the duality he lends to the series in bringing the question: how do you form morals you can stand on in a corrupt society? Specifically in a transitional generation (a generation between two times in history like millennials and Gen Z's (in their own rights)) while the world falls apart around you.

-Shoto: As someone who comes from complicated, multigenerational trauma, I really did not want to like Shoto or his story. I tried to get away from being a fan but honestly the ultimate move he developes and the resolution he comes up with for his own families story killed me. A flame that doesn't destroy?! Come on! He literally became peace! I didn't stand a chance!

-Koji Koda & Mezo Shoji with Spinner: Tackling the complexities of racism in modern times where people try to say it doesn't still exist. Holding everyone accountable, as they should. There is so much here.

-Tenya Iida: Define justice for me really quick. This man is trying his ducking best.

-Fat Gum: I'm so glad you're not dead! Sunshine incarnate. He makes me WANT to believe in myself.

-Mount Lady: Turn around of the century for me as a character. I love a "came in shallow but stood firm when everyone else ran" queen.

-Virtually every character in MHA because they all give the same message:

Be.

Better.

Be.

Better!

Be!

Better!

Be Better!

God all of THIS is why I love MHA. Why I love bakudeku. I know I'm going off now and I'm sorry but, it's fucking scary outside right now.

Our world is crumbling.

And I can hear man,

named Kohei Horikoshi,

who had no superpower,

but was an artist,

and used the talent that he did have to create a series,

that allowed him to SHOUT at the world to:

BE BETTER!

He wanted to create a symbol of hope.

And he did it.

And that is my absolute favorite part of My Hero Academia. 💛❤️💙

@dnana-2809-blog thanks for the ask 💛🥟

[frostfires-blog]

As someone who grew up with shoujosei series, I have quite a lot of manga series (Kimi ni Todoke, Ao Haru Ride, Maid-sama, Kamisama Kiss, Gakuen Alice, etc). But as I grew older I start to dislike them, even regreting my collections (the ones that I don't regret are Akatsuki no Yona and Fruits Basket). Then I grew tired and start avoid most het romance stories.

Then, I got into LGBTQ+ themed manga/manhwa, and felt so happy and liberated. After that, the only romance that I want to enjoy are only BL & GL media.

For others, I'm fine with either demographics, as long as it's non-romance focused, be it either shounen/seinen/shoujo/seinen (especially if they have strong bromance vibes).

That's me for the last 5 years, but last year, I can't help but love these series (I'm surprised that I love their het romance, too) : Skip & Loafer, Apothecary Diaries and Yakuza Fiancé.

So agree with you, that Apothecary Diaries have amazing feminism theme. And Maomao? One of my all time favorite character ever! Love her since ep.1.

Because you already watched Yakuza Fiance and Skip & Loafer, can I ask your opinion on these series? Do you also love the main ships of these series? Mitsumi and Yoshino are also some of my fav femMC, too....

Thank you @frostfires-blog for sharing your posts and made me realize that it's okay to love all kinda stories.

Reading how you love a lot of het ships from shoujosei & shounen series.

Also m/m non canon ones (especially BakuDeku, my all time fav ship ever). And the canon m/m ones (HuaLian, WangXian, and SasaMiya are my top 3). And the m/f ones (KyoRu & HakYona will always be my beloved and now with JinMao, too).

They are all beautiful ships! Love your posts so much 🌻💐

Thanks to you, now I can admit that I don't really hate those het romance focused shoujosei series all along.

Hi, thanks for sending in an ask!

═══════════════════════

-> Introduction: It is natural to outgrow things

Growing out of things you used to like is a natural part of life... That being said, I'm very sentimental and rarely find myself disliking something I was once fond of—unless serious circumstances are at play (i.e., Made in Abyss or Ruruoni Kenshin). Although a series, like Naruto, may no longer be my favourite and may have ended a long time ago, I still value it because it has been an integral part of my journey thus far. While I no longer write fanfiction for the series and don't post about it often, I still enjoy the series and occasionally rewatch episodes. Even if a series disappoints me by not ending in the way I envisioned, I can still appreciate the parts of the series I once enjoyed—for example: Bleach, Attack on Titan, Boku no Hero Academia, and Jujutsu Kaisen.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

-> The Division Between F/M pairings and M/M and F/F pairings

Even after I got into M/M ships, I never developed an outright distaste for F/M ships—so I can't fully relate to your experiences. However, there was a period when I found a lot of the main pairings in newer shounen anime dull since I felt like they were unimaginatively rehashing the same conventions. I think that a lot of the growing disinterest in F/M pairings is because of their heavy reliance on overused tropes and dynamics, which render them uninspired and monotonous. Whereas if one is new to M/M and F/F pairings, naturally the feeling of excitement and renewal returns. LGBTQ+ media and pairings also tend to naturally subvert traditional tropes and conventions found in F/M media by rendering gender power dynamics irrelevant and going against societal expectations. After watching several BL anime, I began growing dissatisfied with a lot of the problematic tropes and noticed the tropes and dynamics were also growing repetitive—which is part of the reason I started getting into danmei.

I suspect that a lot of the disdain for F/M ships among BL and GL fandoms is due to the unfavourable treatment they receive from F/M rival shippers—especially in shounen fandoms. Although this may not be the reason for your aversion to many F/M pairings—I still wanted to highlight this, as I oftentimes haven't been treated well by rival shippers in certain fandoms... Fortunately, I once read a post on this issue that made me aspire to be better. Although I can't recall it exactly, the gist of it was that disparaging F/M pairings because you prefer M/M or F/F ones make you just as bad as those who attack you for your preferences.

I decided that if I wanted fandom spaces to be comfortable for me, then I should start by striving to contribute to the solution rather than continuing to perpetuate the problem. All in all, I enjoy watching both shoujo and BL anime since collectively they provide me with the variety I crave. However, I'd greatly appreciate adaptations of works that are more diverse when it comes to implementing and subverting classic tropes. Ultimately, rather than focusing on the genders when I decide to support a pairing, I focus on their canonical interactions, relationship dynamics, aesthetics, and tropes. With time, I hope you'll be able to embrace the ships you like—whether they're M/M, F/F or F/M—without feeling guilty or uncertain.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

-> The Apothecary Diaries

The theme of feminism is implemented into the series so well and refreshingly that I can't help but want to talk about it any chance I get. Maomao is definitely one of my favourite characters too, though I'm sure everyone reading this knows that given she was #1 on my favourite female characters post.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

-> My thoughts on Skip and Loafer & Yakuza Fiancé:

I haven't really spoken on either series since they fall into that weird middle ground, as in I don't dislike them but they're also not one of my favourites... Also, before I go into detail about my thoughts, I'd like to emphasise that these are my personal opinions based solely on the first season of each anime. I understand that you can't always determine a series' true worth based solely on its anime—so if I'm wrong about some of my assumptions, please don't go off on me...

* Some rapid-fire questions to gauge my thoughts on both series:

Did I finish the series? Yes.

Is this series one of my top picks for a sequel season? No.

Would I watch a hypothetical season 2? Yes.

Would I be automatically convinced to read the manga if we never get a sequel season? No.

Would I read fanfiction of the series unprompted? Probably not.

Would I produce creative content for the series (i.e. fanfiction or edits)? No.

Would I consider making posts on the series (i.e. analysis, reviews, etc...)? Maybe.

Would its main pairing make my top 50 ships list? Probably not.

Would I recommend the series to others? Probably yes.

Would I buy merchandise from the series if possible? No.

> Yakuza Fiancé:

This series really wasn't what I was expecting... Although in hindsight I realise that is mostly because before I started the series, I was under the false impression that it was a shoujo or josei series when it was in fact a seinen. I still don't quite know what to think about it... The aspects of the series I liked were the music, voice-acting, art style and protagonist, while the aspects I didn't like were its male lead, romance and pacing.

The opening theme song was one of my favourites of last year and I still listen to it pretty often—for reference, it's done by the same band that did the second opening theme of Noragami. The ending song was pretty good too.

Although a lot of people didn't like the series' unique art style, I quite liked how different it was and thought it complemented the series' ambience well.

I liked Yoshino and thought she was an interesting protagonist. However, I feel like I wasn't able to get as good of an understanding of her as I would've liked as some of her decisions and traits felt somewhat inconsistent and ambiguous. Whether this is because I just haven't seen enough of the series or because of something else, I don't know.

As biased as it may seem, a large part of how much I like a ship and/or romance series is tied to how much I like the male lead. I personally just wasn't charmed by Kirishima. A lot of his actions, especially towards Yoshino, just seemed insincere, incomprehensible and uncomfortable to me. Consequently, throughout the series, I couldn't find myself wholeheartedly supporting them as a ship. To be honest, I kinda prefer Shouma with Yoshino...

The pacing and plotline of the series were a little too all over the place to me. I felt as if they were trying to do too much but at the same time didn't do anything. I would've preferred for there to be a more obvious goal with each little event tying into a bigger picture.

With a more consistent narrative, there would be more consistent character exposition and development which would culminate into a more authentic romance.

> Skip and Loafer:

In all honesty, I don't really remember this series well... I remember some isolated plot beats and the two leads but not much else. If I have time, I want to rewatch it before season 2 airs. From what I remember it was wholesome and upbeat in tone with some more serious issues being alluded to but never fully explored... I thought was decent but never overly attached to it as it never stood out to me the way similar series did. I couldn't help but feel that I wanted more from the series than it was giving me... Personally, I'm biased towards shoujo and josei romance series rather than shounen and seinen ones. I find that shoujosei series oftentimes portrays emotions, themes and character development in a way that is more complex and multi-faceted than their shounen and seinen counterparts. I'm also not a fan of the excessively blatant and oftentimes demeaning fanservice found in the latter two genres. In that sense, Skip and Loafer is one of the few shounen/seinen romance series I like and is probably my 4th favourite. That being said if I were to include shoujosei series in the rankings it probably wouldn't make the top 20 (but might make the honourable mentions).

I liked how quirky, steadfast and goal-orientated Mitsumi is. I would've liked it if she was given a little more character development though.

Shima is okay but I felt like I wasn't able to get a good enough grasp on his character because of the duality of his personality. I would've liked to see more of his perspective and background in the anime. I'm sure he is probably more complex in the manga but I'm just reviewing the anime here.

The main pairing was decent, but I have this nagging feeling that the disconnect between them is only going to grow, making me hesitant to fully commit to shipping them. I felt that the series went above and beyond to show how different they are but didn't do enough to show how much commonality they have.

I would've liked for the series' themes and characters to be developed a little more.

The fluidity of the animation was nice, but I thought the art style and character designs were a bit bland.

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-> Conclusion:

For I while I held onto the misogynistic belief that shoujosei romance anime could never compare to shounen and seinen action anime... However, I eventually recognised that pandering to others was only preventing me from enjoying the diverse range of content across genres... I'm glad that you've decided to embrace your liking for both different demographics and types of ships; knowing that I've contributed towards that makes me happy. I am consistently astounded that anyone bothers to read my ramblings, let alone be inspired by and learn from them...

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Thanks for all of your support! P.S. As you know, the ships you mentioned are all among my favourites, so I used them when selecting the gifs to break up my ramblings haha...