#and gender is a construct anyway

[incorrectbatfam]

In 2024 I will begin documenting my daily journey of joining a Batman-themed boyband

Stay tuned for details

[sprunkimortality]

*turns saves into a girl*

Saves: "W- Was I supposed to feel something...?"

[tiredyke]

y’all really think cis dudes who dress femininely as a joke for views online are more enlightened and nuanced in gender than literal trans women lol

[bartimaeus]

Do you remember that day in 1901 When we fled to the South Downs The sound of the sea and the smell of wildflowers And you were all mine For that day You were all mine And we were free

[bayetea]

I don't like the judo flip in moa as much as the next guy but in my eyes it's largely the result of rick not taking female violence half as seriously as male violence (a result of viewing women as weaker and inferior to men such that their acts of violence don't need to be taken as seriously) and not so much anything about annabeth herself. like I do genuinely feel that annabeth is a complex heroine and definitely one of the better ones in the realm of ya action-adventure fiction produced in the past 25 years but she is still a girl being written by a man and all I'm saying is that her writing clearly reflects that sometimes (more in tags)

[seaglassdinosaur]

I know we collectively agree that Hiccup isn’t romantically inclined, and his getting married and having kids didn’t make sense in the epilogue, but consider: Hiccup getting married for political reasons.

It’s a marriage of alliance, which is recognized both by him and his partner, and they enter it without expectations of romantic involvement. Since they’re now married, they live in the same castle, spend time together, and Hiccup finds he really likes his spouse. They’re funny, get along with his friends, and has the same interests and values. They both probably speak multiple languages. She understands why Hiccup is so dedicated to making the Wilderwest better, and holds similar views. She’s a good politician (her job after all, was to be an ambassador). Hiccup likes spending time with them, and the feeling is mutual. They’re not in love, they have their own lives, but they’re dedicated to each other and eventually decide to raise children. They teach their kids how to train hawks and hunt with dragons, riding, history, the Languages, and all the necessary skills of their world. They’re not in love and they’re happy together.

[mxtxfanatic]

There’s something to be said about how gender is weaponized in tgcf. Like, the gods can transform between different physical genders, but their powers aren’t divided into “girl weak, boy strong.” Ling Wen is more powerful in her male form because her followers worship her as a male god. The Brocade Immortal forces her into her male form when she wears it not because that affords it more martial skill and power but because it can’t handle being pressed against the female form of the woman it loves. Shi Qingxuan is the opposite: his female form is more powerful because he is worshipped as a female god, and he enjoys that. The gods go between their forms depending on which one brings the most benefit, making gender into a weapon.

Then we have Xie Lian who, though never physically transforming into a female form, repeatedly and successfully uses people’s gender assumptions as a shield. He makes himself into a bride as to not use an innocent civilian as bait to catch a ghost, and he later disguises himself as a mother to hide from the crowd of cultivators. Because his enemies in both cases perceived women as weak and fragile, the ghost bride did not think to see if Xie Lian was a threat, and the cultivators were embarrassed at having barged in on a “defenseless woman” dressing with her “child.” The shield of “woman” allowed Xie Lian to fool his enemies and complete his goals in both cases.

Anyways, just thought this was cool.

[deviantnation]

I need Jonathan Byers 5 or 6 years later. I need him not going to univerity but living a life he's happy with regardless. He probably works a mundane job, maybe at a music store, or a thrift shop, but does photography as a freelance job on the side. But most importantly, I need Steve running into him and being confused as to why he feels things when he sees Jonathan with painted nails. They're probably chipped and black except for one singular thumbnail, which is blue. Steve also doesn't know what to make of it when he sees half of Jonathan’s hair dragged into a messy top knot. Let him be a little unhinged about seeing Jonathan, expressing himself in ways that Steve finds unsettlingly and decidedly feminine. Let him be further unhinged when Jonathan doesn't even seem to care.

[misspermitted]

Me: I’m not having any gender issues. I am completely cis-gender.

Also me, rewriting my main character as a trans man: I am just an ally

Also also me, after buying a binder and putting it on, in tears: I’m just normalising transwear, because I’m a good ally

Me, a week later, googling drag king makeup and doing it obsessively on myself: Drag isn’t about gender I’m just challenging gender aesthetics because I’m a REALLY GOOD ALLY

Probably me in a few years, actually getting top surgery: I’m just being a really really good ally 🙃

[vulpinesaint]

my thesis statement will of course always be that the angels + demons in good omens are aspec (and nonbinary) but crowley specifically was so aromantic this season. man who goes "oh, romance? yeah, i know how that works. practically an expert. i've picked up so much from the way that people talk about it and represent it in media. i know all the perfect steps to execute romance. it has nothing to do with personhood and feelings; there's a certain list of requirements, certain steps that you take, certain subjective prerequisites to be fulfilled, and then you'll have romance. easy. simple." when he has no idea how romance actually works because it's never been something that was accessible or valuable to him. the general conventions for love seem so simple from the outside when you pick up an idea of it through cultural osmosis but not any real experience or investment in the idea. maggie and nina come in to tell him that he can't be messing with people's love lives because it's serious and personal but how should he know? when you're outside of it and don't even realize that you're outside of it, romance is just a thing that happens. and it seems so simple...

[travelingthief]

Do you remember being a little girl and thinking/being told you could only like purple or pink because those were the only “girl colors?” And boys got blue and green and red and yellow and literally every other color. What the fuck was that about?

[star--anon]

feeling kind of sad at the moment and now I'm thinking about Minho losing his identity as a human

not that he forgets who he is, but more so that the idea of being Useful and Sacrificing Himself To Save The World becomes ingrained into his head.

Teresa tries to reassure him with it, Janson taunts him with it, he's forced to feel it every time they strap him into the machine.

In Safe Haven, Thomas holds him so tenderly and kisses him so sweetly, and all Minho can think is that he's a burden on Thomas' sleep and a leech on Thomas' patience.

He tries to cry as quietly as he can, and it breaks Thomas' heart.

[nyahida]

even though they explained away arlecchinos "father" title with a non queer reason, i also am glad that there was some more gender affirmation. clervie said "king" (our text translation botched it and translated as queen >:/) and said "perri doesnt like to wear dresses" and just was totally happy with it like "more for me then"??? its so sweet.

(also honestly if i think about it, i kind of relate. being abused by a mother has played a certain role, though far from exhaustive, in my disconnect with the frame of womanhood - theres no way i am something of the same as this wretch ok??)

[impossible-rat-babies]

I love doing the occasional pollux art bc I miss him v dearly, but it’s fun and nice to see likes bc it feels like a chorus of people going look at him go!!

[allthoseotherworlds]

It's honestly pretty frustrating sometimes how I feel like so many people say they love Martha, but mostly what I actually see people saying about Martha is how much she probably does/should hate the Doctor for not returning her crush, or sometimes how much people hate Blink/Family of Blood/Last of the Time Lords because they were hard for her.

And like, the former of those is frustrating because a) Nobody is obligated to return someone's romantic feelings, b) Being oblivious to someone having a crush on you might suck for the other person but is not actually a moral failing and c) Martha was sad about it but like. She didn't leave because she was furious at the Doctor for not returning her crush? She left because she knew her crush wasn't reciprocated and wasn't going to be, but couldn't get over it on her end while travelling with the Doctor. And also because the past year had been pretty traumatizing for everyone, including her and also the Doctor and also everyone else who was on that ship thing.

Anyways

I just wanted to talk for a bit about the things I like about Martha, or that are interesting, that are unrelated to those points above.

I think she's the first companion in New Who to join Unit, and I think still the only one to be a medical doctor with a strong scientific backing. Which is cool!

I think it's interesting that in the first episode she appears in, her family is shown to be kind of messy and kind of frustrating, and it feels like that's something she's a little glad to be getting away from for a bit when she travels with the Doctor (though it's not the reason she travels with them). And then, at the end of the season when her family is in danger she prioritizes their wellbeing enough to snap at the Doctor about it. If I remember correctly their phones were tapped or something and it wound up making things a bit worse, but I appreciate the nuances of her relationship with them and how important they are to her despite the messiness.

Despite all the ado made about her crush on the Doctor, I really loved how she really seemed to get the point of travelling with the Doctor. I think that she nailed both the joy and excitement of the unknown, and the compassion and sense of care that motivates the Doctor's travels, and which I think is vital to all of my favourite companions.

It also contrasts in interesting ways with how her personality shifts after she stops travelling with the Doctor - she still cares about people's wellbeing and seems to value the things she learned while travelling, but working with Unit and Torchwood does make her more military, and then of course doing freelance alien fighting (? or something?) in the End of Time.

I think Martha and the Doctor are an interesting duo because they contrast each other in interesting ways. They're both compassionate, hopeful but practical, and good at what they do, but they reflect those qualities in ways that almost, but don't quite, fit together nicely. They don't conflict, really, but they're not quite sustainable either.

They work well together and care about each other, but they're too similar in some ways and too different in others to ever quite see eye to eye, which is why they end up going in different directions. And I think that's not anyone's fault, or indicative of any deep flaws in either of them. Or even really a tragedy, because Martha seems to be doing new and interesting things every time we see her, with plenty of options available and a decent rapport with the Doctor whenever they show up.

Anyway this got way longer than I meant it to. Tldr: There are so many more interesting things to say about Martha than just "She must hate the Doctor". Here are some of them.

[pestercide]

Not male not female not non-binary not agender not genderfluid etc etc but a secret thing,, I dunno what that thing is