#and in my opinion they reflect the ideas of these two twitter posts

[floraslibrary]

'booktok, brainrot, and why it's okay to be a hater' alisha not alhisha on youtube

(tags expand on my thoughts way more, but the a short addition/TDLR of thoughts: There is a loss to not acknowledging the impacts writing style can have on the meaning of the writing, even if it is something seen as simple, such as the romance genre. And to tie in the linked video; there is almost a loss of criticism (for the lack of better words) when it comes to criticising books in some spaces, but as much as people say 'let people enjoy things' exists, its counter part of 'let people hate/critique things' should also exist)

[dramioneasks]

HP FESTS: Dramione Month (Part 6)

Dramione Month 2024:

Eclipse by galaxy_skies - M, one-shot - Three days later, when he feels a little less cursed and a lot less hungover, Draco scours the Malfoy library for books on memory charms and owls her a list of titles via Potter’s address at Grimmauld Place as repentance. Two days after that, Hermione sends him a book on curses and a London address that he assumes is hers as forgiveness.

The Mentor by arborlibrary - M, one-shot - Several months after the Battle of Hogwarts, Draco Malfoy is assigned to be a mentor to Hermione Granger as she prepares for a fight to the death against her friends. He goes to visit her in the dungeons to get a headstart, but learns that none of the contestants have any idea what he's talking about.

Pale, Rich, Jealous, Extremely Attractive by arborlibrary - G, one-shot - “Granger, this book is objectively bad.” He glanced up at her from where his copy was propped on his desk before him; it was the first time she hadn’t scolded him for being off-task at work. “I know! That’s what makes it so good!” “Bella’s sartorial sense alone is enough to have her Avada’d. Seriously, what’s with all the beige?” // Or, Draco is intrigued by the book Hermione has started reading at work, and he can't help but share his opinions as he goes along.

Broom Bunny by arborlibrary - T, one-shot - Hermione Granger has a type: Quidditch players. Her latest crush is the least likely yet.

Amends by galaxy_skies - T, one-shot - “You look nice when you smile,” she says, because her parents raised her to be bold and an ugly old hat put her in a house meant for the brave and because she was never afraid to speak her mind when the truth was right in front of her, shining like the light reflecting in Draco’s eyes.

His Home by Lexxus - M, one-shot - Draco and Hermione fell in love one ordinary Thursday ten years after the end of the war. Their story had a rainy beginning, a sunny middle, and a snowy end. [WARNING: CHARACTER DEATH]

in every universe (but one) by thisisdd (thisisnotdd) - E - Collection of drabbles and one shots that served as entries for Dramione Month 2024 -- originally posted on my twitter @thisisntdd.

The Various Employment of Questionable Tactics by augustaoctavia - E, 5 chapters - What started off as a simple missive between a professor and a student's mother soon spiraled into something so much more--something so unexpected. Loner Potions Master and Professor at Hogwarts, Draco Malfoy, discovers his precocious student has pilfered ingredients from his private stores. After a failed attempt to communicate about her misdeed without descending into childish bickering, Draco and Hermione Granger agree to discuss the matter that evening at the Hog's Head. Whiskey will be required to get through this conversation, he can already tell.

jamais vu by euphrasie_pont - E, one-shot - jamais vu (noun) – the opposite of déjà vu; the experience of being unfamiliar with someone or something you know should be familiar; the illusion that the familiar is being encountered for the first time. - When Hermione reconnects with Draco Malfoy and starts spending time with him again, he’s so different he might as well be an entirely new person. Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s a good idea for her to go and fall in love with him. But during the crisp metamorphosis of autumn, when the leaves are changing and maybe he is too, Hermione can’t help but do it anyway.

Hermione Memoria by MarinaJune - M, 10 chapters - Hermione leads a happy life, one full of friends, books, and all the unique coffee mugs she can find. There are moments, however, where she's struck by a sharp sensation of remembering...something. Or, perhaps, someone.

Dare you do it? by Hyemi_28 - E, one-shot - Hermione plays a Truth or dare game with the girls, and she has to sneak into the Slytherin locker room and has to bring a proof, that she was there... but suddenly the Slytherin team arrives back...

Busy Nights and Moving Flights by terryboot - E, one-shot - The vanishing steps at Hogwarts usually bring misfortune to those who encounter them, but today is Professor Malfoy's lucky day. – or a ‘stuck in something' kink PWP

Perfect Day by CarolineSedgefield - T, one-shot - A drabble written for Dramione Month's careers week, in which Draco and Hermione's vocations may not be what they initially seem.

Falmouth Falcons - Player No. 4 by Sessediz - T, one-shot - Hermione loses a bet to Ginny, meaning she has to both attend her Holyhead Harpies match that weekend, but also pay full attention without the distraction of a book. Her apt attention to the game sparks an interest, and not just her own.

Careers Free Day by Peaches_on_Waffles - G, one-shot - Hermione seeks out medical attention to help with a rash.

Disarmed by You by anna_hawk - G, one-shot - In the aftermath of a heated duel, Auror partners Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger, are forced to confront the unspoken feelings they've been hiding.

Brewing for Attention by anna_hawk - G, 11 chapters - After years of playful rivalry and tension, Draco Malfoy finally devises a ridiculous yet charming plan to get Hermione Granger’s attention—by staging a series of potion mishaps that land him in St. Mungo’s repeatedly. Hermione, now a busy and brilliant healer, finds herself reluctantly amused by Draco’s antics. What begins as exasperation turns into something deeper as she realizes Draco's efforts were all to spend more time with her.

Heal me now by Hyemi_28 - M, one-shot - After years of working as a successful healer at St. Mungo, Draco Malfoy saved Auror Granger's life one night... After he was been appointed to her personal healer, his life turned upside down, when they started their secret relationship at the examination room...

Paper Dolls by Sessediz - M, one-shot - Boy meets girl, girl meets boy . . . it's a tale as old as time, but time isn't what's being studied by these Unspeakables.

adventures in cursebreaking by greenappletheory - M, one-shot - Hermione Granger seeks out the assistance of Cursebreaker and ex-husband, Draco Malfoy, after entangling herself with an unknown and most definitely cursed object. This takes place eight months after Hermione’s 45th Birthday, so consider this a part two and my formal apology.

All It Takes (Is One Kiss) by Lexxus - E, one-shot - On New Year's Eve, Pansy's "one-kiss-theory" leads Draco and Hermione to a dark corner of a Muggle club, where one quickly becomes much, much more.

All That Glitters by AsIfYouCouldOutReadMe - E, one-shot - Hermione Granger is days away from passing the most important legislation of her storied career with the Ministry, but today is her Anniversary and Draco has just the thing to distract her. OR Draco dresses up as Edward Cullen to cheer up his busy bride

Cursed and Charmed by anna_hawk - G, 7 chapters - When a dangerous cursed artifact surfaces at a high-stakes auction, Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy find themselves reluctantly working together to destroy it. What begins as a mission of duty quickly evolves into something unexpected as they navigate old rivalries, buried secrets, and a tension that neither can ignore.

Healers/Doctors by Peaches_on_Waffles - G, one-shot - A Healer from St. Mungo's is summoned to Azkaban. [WARNING: Character Death]

Full moon by Hyemi_28 - M, one-shot - Draco thought Hermione died so he wanted to follow her to the death, but suddenly a small body slammed into his embrace.

[nanabansama]

Who Hurt Amane

I recently got an ask about this topic! And I feel I've been pretty vocal lately about who I think did it. My opinion isn't new or unique, but because of this ask I wanted to lay out the facts to explore other possibilities and also reinforce why I think it is who I think it is.

So without further ado, let's list out the facts.

1. Amane has been getting injured since first year.

Tsuchigomori makes it pretty clear in Chapter 13 that Amane has been covered in injuries that "never go away" since first year, among other things like having no friends and skipping class.

Most can agree that Amane wasn't being abused as a toddler (post-Tsukasa's return) or at the Tanabata festival. He does not show any particularly concerning signs of a child who is being abused or bullied, and his bare skin shows no sign of injury. I think that rules out Amane being abused his entire life, or at least not as severely as he was during his second year of middle school.

We've seen Amane at two different points during his first year, though, and neither had him visibly injured. Those being his and Tsukasa's middle school entrance ceremony and during the 1968 school festival.

I feel it safe to assume that the physical abuse hadn't yet started at these points in time. (though considering Amane's dour attitude at the festival I wouldn't be super surprised if he's hiding scars...)

Also, remember that Tsuchigomori would have to notice these injuries, so I'm going to rule out the possibility that Tsuchigomori could skirt by on technicality just because Amane is hiding injuries on his legs or chest. Tsuchigomori wouldn't normally be able to see hidden cuts and bruises, so I believe he must have started noticing Amane is being injured sometime later in his first year. Remember, Amane still has about ~6 months worth of time to obtain visual injuries. That's a lot of time left.

We can at least confirm that Amane has no friends and skips class, though. Or at least see the beginnings of this. In Chapter 101, Amane confirms he has little to no involvement with the school play his class and Tsukasa are putting on and instead chooses to focus on fixing the clock. There's also a bonus comic where Amane calls out how peculiar it is that Tsukasa has so many friends while Amane doesn't.

It should only be a matter of time before we start seeing him covered in cuts, too.

2. Tsukasa isn't injured.

This one's a little harder to prove, but bear with me here.

We've had a few opportunities to see the twins during the murder suicide.

Here's Amane after stabbing Tsukasa:

And here's Tsukasa's body below Amane's in the same chapter that the above image was posted on Twitter to promote:

Take note of how pristine Tsukasa's arm looks: We get such a clear view of it, and yet all we see is a bit of blood splatter. I've seen this image dismissed before because Amane's arm is also missing his bandage (note how his right arm is bandaged in the art before this) but I still think this is substantial evidence to support the idea that Tsukasa wasn't injured like Amane was.

And if that's not enough for you, I have something else for you to consider:

This is Hanako in The Hell of Mirrors, a place whose mirrors reflect your greatest fears.

I've seen many people remain unconvinced that the character in the mirror is Tsukasa, thinking it must be Amane himself. And I can understand where they're coming from--why shouldn't he fear Amane? He's his old living self, the volatile one that committed the crime of murdering his little brother. That, and it's a mirror--why wouldn't it reflect the person inside?

So let's compare the face in the mirror with Amane's face.

Notice how the face has zero bandages. Amane has one on his left cheek, one above his right eyebrow, and one on the right side of his neck. The figure in the mirror has no bandages, not even on his arms.

This on top of the fact that I believe his little brother's dead body makes far more sense for Amane to fear than his own. If Amane himself is supposed to be his greatest fear, it makes more sense if it was him actually committing the murder, rather than his body on the floor after committing suicide. From what I understand of Amane, that would fill him with more disgust and self-hatred than anything.

So in conclusion, I either think that 1.) Tsukasa wasn't being physically abused, 2.) that he happened to stop being injured in the days leading up to the murder, or 3.) that if he did have injuries that they were in non-visible places. My default is that he wasn't, though.

And this leads us to...

3. Amane forgives them

Amane fully understands that his injuries aren't normal. That even in the cases that injuries like his could be justified, that his might not be. Regardless, he forgives it. He's allowing this to happen to him, and he refuses to tell Tsuchigomori the details.

After witnessing this, Nene comes up with the theory that Amane could be getting bullied, but if that were the case, I don't see why he would forgive some random bullies. The fact that Amane forgives them for their crime against him is an impactful moment! The chapter ends on it, even.

I believe the fact that Amane forgives this is crucial to understanding who did it.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ⋆.⋆⁺₊⋆ ⋆⁺₊⋆ ⋆.ೃ

While we don't know Amane's full backstory yet, given what we know so far, I think the only two possibilities are either Tsukasa or their mom. And frankly, I think it would be weird for us to know as much about Amane as we do now and have the person injuring him be someone we haven't even met yet. Not impossible, no, but you'd think they'd be more important to his life if Amane forgives them, right?

Let me argue against the idea that it's his mother, as well. The injuries started in first year, not when he was a child. By all means, Amane seemed to be an average child up until middle school. Take note of his appearance during the 1964 Tanabata festival, when he was 8. The only really concerning things we saw were a lack of parental supervision and the fact that he was disappointed his brother wouldn't spend time at the festival with him.

In fact, we've seen very little of their mom, with the most damning evidence against her being when she rejected Tsukasa as her child after taking him to a shrine to be exorcised. Other than this, we've seen no evidence that she could be hitting her children. I personally find it weird that she would only start hitting them in middle school, if she is the cause of all this. And only Amane, at that. (I will admit I find it odd that her son getting injured didn't concern her to the point that his teacher had to step in, though.)

I also need to stress that we haven't seen Amane interact with or mention his mom since he was 4. Tsukasa's relationship with their mother is much more important to the story than Amane's. But who has Amane interacted with? Whose relationship with Amane is very important to the story?? (hint: it's Tsukasa)

Unfortunately, I don't actually know why Tsukasa is hurting him. We know so little, it's still possible it isn't him. But we also haven't seen Amane interact with Tsukasa during the time period in which we know he was being injured. This seems... intentional, to me. As if Tsukasa were somehow involved, in one way or another.

Something to consider, though, is that Amane was being injured around the time he turned thirteen. The 1968 school festival is only about two months before his 13th birthday. Thanks to Kou, we know that Tsukasa knows Amane is going to kill him and commit suicide when he turns thirteen. I'm not necessarily saying that this is why Tsukasa would have hurt him, but it's interesting, to say the least.

Anyway, this last part is a lot of conjecture, so I've separated it from what I view as actual facts about the person hurting Amane. But what do you all think?

[greatqueenanna]

Delving into Hans' Sociopathy

Prince Hans is canonically a sociopath. Jennifer Lee intentionally wrote the character with specific behaviors and traits that align with this label. Within this analysis, I wanted to do an observation of Hans’ overall character and talk about his sociopathic behaviors.

The purpose of this essay is to only talk about his first film appearance. I do not mean it to be an analysis of whether he will return, if this will remain a canon aspect of his character for future appearances, or if he is capable of redemption. This is also not a post that is trying to get you to hate the character or use it as leverage for whatever opinions you may have. It is simply an analysis.

I am also writing about a fictional character, so a lot of his personality is over-exaggerated. Please refrain from using this as a tool for diagnosing yourself or others or as a general representation of these labels and disorders.

I want to emphasize that I am talking about a character who is both a villain and a sociopath. However, please avoid confusing these two things as one. Not all individuals with ASPD (sociopathy) are bad or engage in criminal behavior. For more information, you can read about it here. If you want to know the thoughts of someone with ASPD (sociopathy) on this topic, I asked a friend and you can read their response here on various related subjects.

Now that all that is out of the way, let's dive in.

Part 1: When Was This Confirmed?

Jennifer Lee first confirmed that Hans was a sociopath during an interview with John August and Aline Brosh McKenna of Scriptnotes, in Episode 128: Frozen with Jennifer Lee.

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Jennifer: Hans is a villain from the minute he hits her with the horse, in my mind. Aline: Really? Jennifer: But I am slightly a sociopath, I think. He’s just calculating from that moment.

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John: But clearly he’s a very talented sociopath. Jennifer: He’s very talented. He’s charming. He mirrors everyone. And actually, the original story had a lot to do with mirrors. In many iterations of the story we talk about mirrors and we bring them up. And so I held on a little to that, what Hans is is a mirror as a lot of charming, but hallow or sociopathic. Aline: And she’s (Anna) also so lonely that it’s like she’s falling in love with her reflection in the pond. Jennifer: Yeah, exactly. And he mirrors her and he’s goofy with her. He’s a little bit more bold and aggressive with the Duke, because the Duke is a jerk, so he’s a jerk back. And with Elsa he’s a hero.

---

She later further confirmed this during a Q&A event with fans on Twitter (X), in response to a fan asking if Hans was ever a good guy during the early productions of Frozen.

---

Santino Fontana, Hans' voice actor, also confirmed this in an interview. You can see this interview here, the Frozen segment lasts from approx. 15:35 - 19:35.

Santino Fontana: Yea, He's a good-looking guy. Also, a sociopath, but yea. - Broadwaycom, Show People With Paul Wontorek Interview

---

Part 2: The Traits of ASPD (Sociopathy)

According to the DSM-5, those with ASPD are described with some of the following traits.

Ego-centrism; self-esteem derived from personal gain, power, or pleasure. Failure to conform to lawful or culturally normative ethical behavior. Lack of concern for feelings, needs, or suffering of others. Frequent use of seduction, charm, glibness, or ingratiation to achieve one’s ends.

To summarize, sociopaths are those who - lack empathy for others, have self-esteem that is based on personal gain and power, disregards social norms and manipulate and charm others to get what they want.

---

There are also some anecdotal traits that are not directly referred to in the DSM-5, but talked about within ASPD communities and from those who know those with it. One trait is the concept of mimicry or mirroring. The idea here is that a sociopath will mirror the behaviors of another person in order to either charm or intimidate them - or in some cases, try to fit into social norms.

M.E, a person with sociopathy, describes this behavior as “métier, or bread and butter” for those who have sociopathy.

I think mimicry is interesting, and I think a lot of empaths think it's freaky. What I find more freaky is what constant mimicry suggests – that you have no baseline "you," that you are always just reactions to outside stimuli. I have a good friend who was initially very frustrated that I didn't seem to have defaults: no default understanding of right and wrong, no default beliefs, no default personality even. Everything had to be reasoned, everything had to be constructed anew. It can be frustrating for me too. It's time consuming. And sometimes it disturbs me how impressionable I am. Being a blank slate, sometimes I can surprise even myself with non sequiturs or unpredictable behavior. It's sort of scary. – M.E. Thomas - Sociopaths, Mimicry, and Blank Slates – Sociopath World

Part 3: Hans' Behaviors Throughout the Film

Lacking Empathy

Hans shows this behavior directly during and after his reveal, and more subtly before the reveal. The reason for this is because, obviously, they wanted to keep Hans' true intentions secret as much as possible, mostly due to John Lasseter's insistence to make the reveal more shocking. However, Hans' true nature does shine through in subtle ways throughout the narrative.

Let's focus on the more direct portrayals first.

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Direct instances of Lacking Empathy

During the reveal, Hans realizes that his 'True Love's Kiss' will not work because he doesn't love Anna. What makes a lot of this scene especially unemphatic and cruel, is how Hans actually looks like he is enjoying Anna's pain. Hans looks straight into Anna's eyes, smiling and slightly laughing, as he verbally insults her and tries to quicken her death. In this scene, he is simply enjoying telling Anna how he actually feels, and seems relieved to be rid of her.

Later on, Hans reveals to Elsa that Anna is 'dead'. When Elsa falls to the ground in anguish, he walks behind her with a smile on his face, ready to decapitate her until Anna intervenes.

Later on, something that my sociopath friend also mentioned, was how uncaring and completely nonchalant Hans was when he realizes that Anna is still alive and that he has lost. He just seems confused that Anna is alive. He seems very unemphatic even towards his own situation - that he's in trouble now.

The director says that her stand-out moment for him was when he questions Anna’s comment of being ‘just her’. For me, it’s when he stands up after being knocked out by the blast, without even acknowledging that he’s in deep shit, and just says ‘but, she froze your heart!” I laughed so hard. Only sociopaths would do this shit. “Anna, how dare you. You should be dead.” - "B.G."

---

Subtle Instances of Lacking Empathy

The subtle instance of Hans showing a lack of empathy is how he lacks genuine awareness for people he supposedly loves. Hans says a lot of things, but doesn't really show it.

For example, during the scene after Elsa runs away. While Hans and Anna are walking towards the Duke, Anna is visibly cold. Hans notices that she is, but instead brings his jacket closer to himself. He asks after the fact if she is ok. Anna replies "No". Hans responds by immediately asking her if she knew about Elsa's magic.

In other words, after hearing directly from Anna that she is not ok, Hans disregards her feelings to ask about the situation. He doesn't offer his coat, a hug to warm her, or even asks her if there isn't anything he could do to help her. While yes, there is a crises going on - Hans supposedly loves and cares for Anna. Yet, he is not really showing that care, only asking an empty question.

---

Another instance that shows this idea of Hans saying things but not showing, it is during the Castle Siege scene. Hans tells Elsa "Don't be the monster they fear you are!" But then immediately plans to kill/incapacitate her with the chandelier. He is trying to give off this impression of trying to help her, but does something completely contradictory to his words.

As a small side point before moving on, I recognize that some disagree that this was his intention. I feel that the scene pretty much speaks for itself, with little room for interpretation.

Here we have Hans looking directly at the Weselton's Henchman, and then looking towards his crossbow.

Then, you see Hans change his gaze towards the ceiling, way above the henchman, straight at the chandelier, and keeps staring at it as he moves towards the henchman.

As we see here, in a different angle, he is directly aiming that crossbow towards the chandelier.

I would also like to point out, that although I do not feel A Frozen Heart by Elizabeth Rudnick is entirely Lore Friendly (but apparently is part of the Book Canon Universe now as of All is Found: A Frozen Anthology), it is good to note that this scene was also acknowledged in this book.

Hans looked around the room desperate for a plan, and noticed the giant chandelier directly above Elsa. (...) True, it might kill her, but would that be so bad? One less obstacle to the throne.” - A Frozen Heart, Rudnick, Pg. 226

Thus, if this novel recognizes the intention behind this scene, then it was something present in the script and/or character notes at the time the author was writing the novel. Keep in mind, this scene is never actually mentioned by any of the creative team. Thus, the author had to be made aware of this to include it in her book.

If you are a fan of A Frozen Heart, and include it with your personal canon, I have an fairly old analysis where I go into a lot of these concepts with the novel as well.

---

Another big thing that shows Hans' lack of empathy is something that is foreshadowed in Love is an Open Door. I'm going to quote some lines from my Meant to Be analysis on this song, that show how Hans actually doesn't really show any empathy towards Anna and does not focus on her at all - he instead is more concerned with himself and his goals.

Both Anna and Hans mirror each other - both felt neglected and underestimated by their families and thus want something more from life. However, the focus on how they go about mending their pain is very evident in the first few lines of this song. Notice how Anna focuses on people - she references Elsa closing doors and losing connections with her. Hans comes and gives her the attention she craves, and in turn, she focuses on him. She says - I bump into you. I see your face. Hans, on the other hand, focuses on Arendelle. I've been searching my whole life to find my own place. But with you, I've found my place.

Many fans have also pointed out this specific lyric here - Hans: You - Anna: And I - Hans & Anna - Are just meant to be. Pointing out how Hans never actually referred to himself directly. He and Anna only really refer to Anna herself. Hans says you (Anna) and Anna refers to herself (and I).

Desire for Power

This one is fairly obvious - as Hans himself explains quite clearly his intentions for being kind to Anna and the people of Arendelle.

As thirteenth in line in my own kingdom, I didn't stand a chance. I knew I'd have to marry into the throne somewhere - As heir, Elsa was preferable, of course. But no one was getting anywhere with her. But you - You were so desperate for love you were willing to marry me, just like that. I figured, after we married, I'd have to stage a little accident for Elsa. But then she doomed herself, and you were dumb enough to go after her. All that's left now is to kill Elsa and bring back summer. (...) No, you're no match for Elsa. I, on the other hand, am the hero who is going to save Arendelle from destruction. - Prince Hans, Frozen (2013)

Hans makes it quite clear in his tropey villain monologue here (haha) that he wants to be a King. It didn't matter to him where he went or who he married, but he was determined to make it happen - even if it meant having to murder someone to get them out of his way.

Hans also shows a complete disregard for social norms in this way of thinking. He believes that murder and manipulation is an appropriate way to achieve his goals, and feels no remorse for his actions, but instead (as stated by B.G) confusion when he fails.

There are many theories as to why Hans feels he needs this power, to the point of hurting someone - A Frozen Heart tried to give a background for this, giving the blame to his father and brothers for abusing him. The novel is not entirely far off, as Jennifer Lee herself has stated that Hans is a product of being raised without love.

However, while the details for Hans' background is still fairly mysterious, we can conclude that Hans canonically had a rough childhood whether you choose to only use the film's clues and Jennifer Lee's words, or go by A Frozen Heart.

I think Hans is a tragic figure because he's a consequence of being raised without love. - Jennifer Lee, Reddit (2014)

When it comes to ASPD, while the direct cause is still currently unknown - environmental factors, such as child abuse, are believed to contribute to the development of this condition. Thus, Hans was raised in a home without love, and it led to him developing ASPD and valuing power over anything else.

Manipulation

This is the biggest aspect of Hans' portrayal, and also the biggest hint through out the film, is how he manipulates and mirrors people. We begin with Hans' introduction - before and after the infamous "just you?" line.

When we first meet him, he is much more panicked. He just caused a scene and hurt the Princess after all, and then they started awkwardly tumbling around on a boat. He's not interested in Anna at this point, and doesn't want to get in trouble. When Anna falls on him in the boat, he just says "um..." and ignores most of her comments, including calling him "gorgeous". He goes straight into trying to apologize and smooth things over.

However, right after the "just you?" line, suddenly things change.

He smiles after her when she leaves, he stares at her during the Chapel scene, and seems to be following her around to the point where he is confidently able to catch her when she trips, and knows exactly what to say to get Anna to like him.

"I would never shut you out." - Seriously, how does the awkward guy in the beginning of his intro that didn't respond to Anna's silly advances, suddenly feel confident enough to just proclaim to the same girl he just met that he would be an emotional support for her? The sudden shift in his demeanor is actually a bit jarring when you think about it. Someone cannot go from awkward guy to confident prince charming so suddenly.

It goes even further than this when he starts to mirror Anna. Here, I am exploring Love is an Open Door again from my analysis, with how Hans mirrors Anna.

The rest of the song is them directly mirroring each other, representing an almost robotic relationship between them - the cover image for this analysis directly shows this robotic aspect on the clock tower, when they mimic the gears.

A funny thing actually happens during Anna's announcement of their marriage. Hans is actually switching between trying to appeal to Elsa while also keeping up with Anna. Let me show you what I mean.

Hans is trying to act stoic and reserved in front of Elsa, to match her tone. However, Anna keeps interrupting him and making him trip over his words. Hans eventually gives into Anna's goofiness and just loses his composure completely and just copies Anna, basically becoming her clone in her behavior. You can see here how he struggles to keep up with both women at the same time.

You can also notice how Hans keeps trying to look at Elsa to see her expression and reaction to their relationship. Anna, on the other hand, while she does look at Elsa occasionally, she is shown to be more infatuated with Hans and looks at him most of the time. Hans is trying to appeal to Elsa, while Anna just wants Hans’ support.

Later on during this scene, he completely sheds this goofier persona and goes back to trying to be stoic, like Elsa. He is even adopting her more serious and disinterested expressions, opposite to Anna's expressions that he was just mirroring moment ago.

He completely stops mirroring Anna here, and goes straight into trying to appeal to Elsa and match her tone. Right after this, he goes back to expressing Anna’s sadness again.

Since the beginning of his introduction, Hans has shown three different personalities that contradict each other. His awkward self that forgets to introduce himself and rams into people with horses, his charming self that is charming, fun and sensitive, and his stoic and reserved self that appeals to royalty.

This mirroring behavior and personality shift continues later on the film.Hans is shown to be kind and generous to the people of Arendelle, not having a mean bone in his body. This persona matches how he acts for Anna after their first encounter. However, Hans adopts the Duke's personality to threaten him, that is confrontational and even a bit childish.

"Do not question the Princess. She left me in charge, and I will not hesitate to protect Arendelle from treason!"

Hans literally starts yelling at the Duke, and accusing him of treason, which is an extreme accusation - just as the Duke is yelling and making accusations against Anna. He is pretty much copying the Duke to get him to back off in a way that he will understand.

Remember what Jennifer Lee said in the Script Notes interview?

Jennifer: Yeah, exactly. And he mirrors her and he’s goofy with her. He’s a little bit more bold and aggressive with the Duke, because the Duke is a jerk, so he’s a jerk back. And with Elsa he’s a hero.

Hans pretty much switches between these three personalities throughout the film. Goofy and charming with Anna, stoic and heroic with Elsa and Arendelle, and confrontational with the Duke.

---

Other Hans Analyses

New - These I have written recently and have updated info.

Irredeemable Monster - Should Hans Make a Return?

Meant to Be - Frozen's Secret Villain Song

Frozen in Fear - Comparing the antagonist's reactions towards magic.

Old - May have some ideas that have missing info and overall needs updating

Different Perspectives - Why a Frozen Heart does not Support a Redemption for Hans.

Wolf in Sheep's Clothing - Hints that lead to Hans' Betrayal

[eossa]

How I'd Make Tumblr More Profitable

Yes, this is going to be controversial, since I know nothing about the behind-the-scenes spending, economics, and all that jazz. But I've been on Tumblr for long enough to have a rough idea of the userbase wants - which is what positions Tumblr in a niche other sites don't really utilize. Most of the points I list here are about improving the experience of existing users, as keeping users might be harder for tumblr than attracting new ones.

Please note that this posts reflects my personal opinions and some stuff I've seen people complain about it. Do not attack me over anything I've written here, it's not worth my time and I will resort to blocking if I'm being bothered. Constructive criticism is fine and encouraged!

[under the cut because this got quite long] [last updated 20th July 2023]

Features to Add

Block posts. Xkit has/had this feature, it was great. Sometimes I just don't want to see a specific post, and others probably agree with that.

Send asks and replies from sideblogs. Would literally make a lot of things easier and better.

Delete individual reblog additions from a post. Sometimes, you have a post where there is one"relevant" addition, multiple "irrelevant" additions ("yes!", "[repeated phrase in bold]", "this is a must reblog"), before there is a "relevant" addition again. But right now, you can only remove all reblog additions, not just individual ones. I feel like this would be a neat feature.

Direct blocking of anon hate which also tracks the IP and blocks the associated account(s). No rights for cowards, that's all I'll say.

Features to Bring Back

Reblog chains. Prev tags are the backbone of lots of interactions on here. If I click on someone's username in a reblog chain, I want to see that post on their blog, not their blog starting from the newest post. The loss of this feature is one of the things people constantly complain about in the replies of @changes.

Several text formatting options. As a theme maker, it would be nice to have proper preformatted text again - it makes code so much more legible. Other formatting options I miss are marked/highlighted text and text lines, which are really helpful to visually break apart passages of text.

Features to Ditch

Tumblr Live. There I've said it. If I want to see stuff like that, I have TikTok, IG Reels, Pinterest Reels, and YouTube Shorts. Twitter also has something like this. It's oversaturated, and aparently there are still enough cyber security concerns that it's not even accessible outside of the US and Canada.

Ads in lightboxes. Especially on mobile, there are already more than enough ads on the feed, no need to add more nested inside other elements.

Features that Make Money

Pay for NSFW. If this site allowed full nudity etc. again but hid it behind a paywall, we'd kill two birds with one stone: The site would probably still be allowed on the App Store, and the money influx would be huge. The userbase would also increase again.

(If Tumblr Live is kept.) Pay to snooze Tumblr Live permanently. It's the most complained about thing in changes' replies, so I feel like people would pay on a subscription base just to not see TL anymore.

Pay to increase limits. 250 posts per day is the maximum that can be posted - and there are people hitting those limits. If there was an option to buy a higher limit (500p/d, 750p/d, etc.), people might generally use it. Like those add-on charges for mobile data. Same goes for posts in the queue, posts in drafts, images in a photoset and so on.

Pay to pin posts at the top of a tag or search result. Ebay Kleinanzeigen has this neat feature where you can push your small ads to the top of a search query so that more people can see it. This could be a cool feature to try, as it would work in a more content-aware way than Blaze does.

Pay to buy inactive URLs. There are some really cool usernames on here that are taken by blogs that haven't updated for 5+ years and only have one post (or none at all), and I feel like it would be neat to be able to buy one of these cool usernames attached to an empty account. To make sure that usernames attached to redirect or something else don't get bought, tumblr should send an e-mail to the username owner - if the user doesn't react to that for 3 months, the usernames changed owners. [added 13th July 2023]

Existing Features to Improve

NPF posts. I feel like a combination of legacy and NPF would be neat. Think selecting a main element like in the legacy editor (e.g. video, image, audio) and then adding a caption that can add different content types like NPF does. Or at least create a better overview over NPF variables and release the full base code with documentation to make things easier for the web designers on here. There are more issues with the NPF format but I won't list everything people dislike about it here.

Block people. The block feature should make sure that the person being blocked doesn't see any posts made by the person they were blocked by, even if those posts were reblogged by another user. Also, like IG does, there should be an option to block either just a specific blog or the IP address attached to block side-blogs and other accounts of that user.

Color palettes. The color palette options for the dashboard are generally a nice idea but I think it would be better if there was a dropdown menu to choose a palette from rather than having to click through all the different options. For example, if I want to go from Cement (light mode) to Dark mode, I have to click through 10 options until I reach Dark again. There has to be an easier way. [added 20th July 2023]

Other Improvements Needed

Nuke spam bots. Users are reporting all the spam bots, yet, it doesn't seem like they are dwindling in numbers. Also - at least this is how it's being perceived by the userbase - tumblr isn't doing enough on their end to reduce spam bots. This is definitely something that needs to be fixed.

End hateful and criminal activities. It's the year 2023, yet there are still outright N*zis, violent tr*nsphobes, literal p*dophiles, and other people committing to the daily bit of hate speech and other illegal activities (fraud too considering all those fake GoFundMe sites) on this website. I'm not saying free speech should be banned but there is a bright red line between what is free spech and what is hate speech (or should get you jailed considering fraud and p*dophilia).

A through-out, perhaps even interactive, beginner tutorial. "The site is too complicated to use for new users!" – then explain how it works in easy terms, with examples, images, and videos. Every other application or web app has walk-throughs, just do the same here.

Improved ad relevancy. The ads I see on tumblr are usually so out-of touch with the userbase, and many of them feel like the sort of stuff you see on a spam-ridden torrenting site. I feel like increasing the relevancy of ads to what the users usually blog about would cause a higher click-rate and turn-over-rate than the current ads do.

Summary

There is probably more I could add, but that's it for now. Should I make any later additions directly to this post, I will mention it to prevent misunderstandings. If you have any ideas or constructive criticism, let me hear about it in the replies or reblogs of this post.

[the-mellow-drama]

ANOTHER DRABBLE

My WIP Remain Anonymous uploads every other Monday. Come hang with me on Twitter or on Tumblr cuz I post more there :)

Hermione hadn't told Draco said in so many words that they would be Harley Quinn and The Joker for Halloween. She simply played the movie and hoped he took the hint. But before she could even play the movie, he asked a million questions regarding the "talking box" and when she finally got the movie started, the anticipation had worn off. But it was still entertaining to watch the TV reflect of his silver eyes as he started at the screen in awe. 

At the end of the movie, she asked him what he had gotten from it.

"That Harley chick should wear more clothes, don't you think?"

She had tried to argue that Harley looked fucking stunning but he wasn't having it.

When the costumes arrived by post, she took them out of the packaging and made a few adjustments to them to make them more realistic. The day of Halloween, Draco snatched his costume off the bed and slipped into the bathroom. It was a purple suit, and while there usually was a green vest, she Transfigured it into a simple green tie, leaving his chest showing. 

Somehow, he was still unsuspecting, practically oblivious to her plans. 

Hermione hated to admit it, but she was slightly worried to put on her own ensemble. The t-shirt fit tightly across her chest, the fabric exposing her midriff. The leather fabric of the shorts fit perfectly around her waist, stopping halfway down her butt. She slipped into the fishnets first, pulled up the shorts and laced the silver heels to her feet. She painted her lips red in the mirror, smearing it slightly before sweeping blue and red eyeshadow across her lids.

When she finished, she looked slutty. And sexy. The best look, in Hermione's opinion. 

When Draco came out of the bathroom, a look of lust flashed across his features before he shook his head and his eyes glazed over with something else. 

'What the bloody hell are you wearing?" he managed to get out, and Hermione noticed the very unfortunate thing taking shape in between his thighs. 

"My costume. I'm Harley-" she spun around, revealing the expanse of her thighs that were not covered by the shorts, "-and you are the Joker. We watched the movie a week ago."

"I know that, Granger. You are not going out like that," his tone was final.

"And why not?"

"You're showing too much. I don't want anyone else to see this much of your body." Her breathing picked up and Draco smirked, eliciting a shiver from Hermione. He stepped up to her, cupping her face and pulling her lips to his. Draco's arms banded around her waist, and when his hand slipped down to cup her arse, she reluctantly pulled away. 

"I-I have to-your hair-" she whined, her resolve disappearing as the seconds went by. All of a sudden, his hands were gone and the warmth of him disappeared. "Draco-"

"You have to do my hair, remember?" He flashed her a smirk, and she groaned, her knickers utterly ruined. 

"All right, then. Let me get my wand," she sighed, scooping up her wand and charming his hair to be bright green.

He sat in the makeshift hair chair in the bathroom, pulling her down and giving her a quick kiss before tracing his fingers over the lettering across her chest.  Hermione stood up straight and his hands fell to her hips. "You know, if you were just wearing this for me, I would enjoy it even more."

She huffed, "I am. Now, let's go. We can't be late." Hermione stomped her foot at his insistence to just stay home. While that sounded like a wonderful idea, and her knickers weren't exactly disagreeing with him, she knew that missing Ginny's well-planned party would be in very poor taste.

At the fireplace he turned to her with pupils blown black and said, "Promise we only have to stay for an hour."

"Two hours, and you can take this-" she waved her arms at her scantily clad body, "-off of me when we get back."

"You know, it's cute that you think I wouldn't take it off of you. I thought you were smarter than that?"

Curse him.

"Come on, Draco, we don't go out like this a lot anymore."

Draco grabbed her and pulled her against him, grinding his hips into her, and sucking on her pulse point.

Hermione's eyes fluttered shut. "Fine. One hour."

Draco straightened up and pulled her toward the fireplace.

"One hour." He demanded before pulling her toward the fireplace, and in a moment, they are gone in a flash of green.

***

An hour later, they arrived back through the Floo and Draco made good on his promise.

[cyarskj52]

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MR. KEKE PALMER'S BOYFRIENDUPDATED JULY 17, 2023

Keke Palmer’s Boyfriend Doesn’t Know His Place

Keke Palmer and Darius Jackson. Photo: Rebecca Sapp/Getty Image

Is this how a second gentleman should be acting? After a video surfaced of Usher serenading Keke Palmer at his Las Vegas show on July 5, her boyfriend Darius Jackson decided to share his opinion on the family matriarch’s dress. “It’s the outfit tho.. You a mom,” he wrote on the Elon Musk app. Mr. Keke Palmer’s Boyfriend was saying her outfit — a black sheer, long-sleeved polka-dot dress with a bodysuit peeking out underneath — was unfit for a mother to wear in public. According to his misogynist logic, moms shouldn’t have fun at concerts in cute little black dresses because that is a threat to the traditional family. “We live in a generation where a man of the family doesn’t want the wife & mother to his kids to showcase booty cheeks to please others & he gets told how much of a hater he is,” he added in his follow-up tweet. Mind you, he and Keke are decidedly not married. The couple have been dating since 2021, and their first child was born in February of this year. “This is my family & my representation,” he kept going, for some reason. “I have standards & morals to what I believe. I rest my case.” He has since deleted his profile and scrubbed photos of him and Palmer from Instagram.

Twitter, however, kept up the fight. The internet dug up Jackson’s old tweets, which include seemingly defending police brutalityand liking a post that calls Tracee Ellis Ross a “female loser” for posting a topless picture of herself at 50 years old. The petit-incel vibes combined with conservative ideas about family and policing isn’t going to get a lot of Palmer fans on his side. The two people at the center of Jackson’s ire appear unbothered through it all. Palmer posted a picture in the allegedly offensive outfit on Instagram with the caption, “I wish I had taken more pictures but we were running late!” Meanwhile, Usher liked a tweetwhere a user understood Keke’s behavior, saying, “It’s Usher like cmon now. I could see if it was Jacquees,” where Jacquees replied, “😂😂 Leave me out of it.”

Despite Jackson’s departure from the internet, Palmer is rightfully not letting his misogynistic words go. She’s now selling merch reminding moms that they can be hot as well as an empowered parent. “One thing is certain and one thing is true, IM A MOTHA, through and through! ‘IM A MOTHA’ and ‘Stevie to the bullshit’ shirts available NOW!” captioned Palmer on Instagram with a video where she sang to her baby. “To all my mom’s out there, how did your baby change you?? Mine empowered me! On such another level, my perspective changed because when my baby is good I’m GREAT! Look at that face! Gratitude galore.” Palmer is even alluding to the baby daddy drama in her live shows. At Broccoli City Fest Sunday, Palmer changed the lyrics of “Bossy” to reflect her mother status. “Lil booties matter, my son gave me some ass/ I’m my own boss and I got my own cash/ I don’t need a *****, only thing I need’s a bag.” A couple days ago, Jackson was just Palmer’s low-key man; now he’s generating enough online discourse to last for weeks. Embarrassing.https://www.instagram.com/p/CuVoiM5r_iF/embed/captioned/?cr=1&v=14&wp=744&rd=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vulture.com&rp=%2F2023%2F07%2Fkeke-palmer-boyfriend-usher.html#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A17773%7D

RELATED

Keke Palmer Discloses Her Baby’s Possible Star Signs on Fallon

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[peppertaemint]

I don't know if you've seen the new pic Kibum posted, but if you're online I'm sure you've seen the drama about it now...

I don't get it though, usually Key will say himself when he posts something if it shouldn't be shared, so I wonder if even he didn't see a problem with it at first? Why is one picture such a problem? Is Taemin not allowed to exist in public while enlisted?

This isn't a dig at Baekhyun cause I'm glad he was able to do these things, but didn't he have youtube videos coming out while enlisted? And I know he was all over his verified twitter all the time? How is just one picture different than that? Is it cause of the platform? Even though its not Taemin's bubble and he makes no money from it? Would their be so much drama if it had been posted to instastories?

I saw people saying there were articles, but there were articles written when Taemin went to Keys show?

I dunno where I'm getting with this, other than enlistment is confusing, I hope Key and Taemin in particular are okay, and I can't wait for this overlong awful enlistment to be over...

Hi Anon.

I have Bubble so I received the scolding directly via text! That was a shocker, lol. I'll give you my unvarnished opinion on this but as a warning, I'm going to be brutally honest about all of it. You're asking completely legit questions here.

The situation is nuanced, and I think for a lot of fans just the idea that they did something Kibum didn't like and felt the need to tell everyone off about was enough to either upset them or make them scared and 'fall in line." I deleted the posts I made and then I reflected because I never share Bubble content. But this time I made an exception — why did I do that? Because EVERYONE did.

So this is my opinion (don't take it as gospel because I have no access to anyone's thoughts). I think Key misjudged the reaction to that photo and how berserk everyone would go. He sees Taemin all the time; we haven't seen his entire face since his birthday in 2022 (lol). And, we've had virtually no communication from him in almost two years. "We" went nuts. Can anyone blame us? No. But Bubble is a paid service, and Kibum always reminds us not to share his shit. I never share anyone's shit publicly anyhow, but again it was ubiquitous, so I joined in. See the problem?

He had every right to get mad and remind of his boundaries and Bubble policy (there are financial penalties you can face for sharing stuff too btw). I also think he probably felt remorse over sending it in the first place since he likely misjudged what would happen. Is it all about breaking Bubble policy? No. And I don't think it's all about him being annoyed at fans breaking his trust either.

Baekhyun did have a personal YouTube account that he setup himself to use to communicate with fans during enlistment. It's my understanding he did this as a way to keep in touch without it having any links to promo/work. But, do you remember how he had to delete it all, and then he came online to tell us it's okay etc? I think that SM caught wind of extra scrutiny on people doing civil service enlistment, and it was a precaution. I also think this is why they've cooled it on Taemari, and it could be one of many reasons why Taemin stopped doing any posts at all. I'm not saying it's THE reason, but I think it's likely a factor.

There is a lot of criticism of celebrities who do civil service enlistment, and that criticism was present before the investigation involving Ravi and others came to light. People have been criticizing the option for years, saying it's how celebrities get out of doing "actual" service (let's put aside arguments about why that's wrong/insane, etc). Instead, put yourself in Taemin's shoes. He started service one way and is finishing it another. Wouldn't you want to avoid public ire and scrutiny over how you're spending your time in enlistment, ie. "living it up" etc. In my opinion, that's the worry over the photo being everywhere and now in news articles.

Why is the concert different? He went with Lee Soo-Man on the non-Beyond Live day as a private citizen, he kept his face covered the entire time—he even dressed low key. I have the same shirt that he wore (lol, imagine my surprise) except it's the branded version. He wore the non-branded version. Though he did have a Prada bag so maybe my argument falls apart but it wasn't like, in your face, was it? Anyhow, I hope you'll see my point. When he went to that soccer game, Jimin and Sungwoon were also there but they were in a fancy box. He did not sit in the box - he was just with the regulars in the stands. It wouldn't look so good to be in a fancy private box when you're supposed to be serving in the military, would it?

When Minho served, whenever he called Taemin he said he could never show his face. He was allowed to call him on VLives (or comment, lol) but he said specifically he can't show his face. They even argued about it. To bring this full circle, Bubble is a paid promotional, parasocial service. Even though for Kibum, sharing the photo is "private," it's still part of his work as an idol. So technically Taemin was in paid content. Is it a big deal? I really don't think it is (also is he definitely not discharged already?! o.O) so no one should feel sad or bad or whatever. Next time anyone shares anything on Bubble, I know it won't get shared. That's just how the fans roll. There's a level of respect here that is a breath of fresh air tbh.

Why is Baekhyun on Twitter whenever he wants but we don't hear from Taemin often? Personal choice. And that's a choice to be respected. It's not our business unless he chooses to share. Existential perspectives aside, we're part of "work" and the man is not in work nor getting paid for it right now, so he doesn't need to do shit. lol.

[punk-pins]

had a really bizarre experience today. cw political conspiracy theories and the racism/antisemitism/islamophobia that entails + homophobia/transphobia. long post, kind of rambling, it’s almost 3am, might delete later.

long story short I was in a situation where I was in a gathering of 4 adult (40s-60s), white, moderately wealthy trump republicans. one of which was my father, a woman who is an acquaintance of my father, and the other two were a couple. my father is a trump republican from the economically conservative side– he’s not on twitter, he like watching the stock market ticker on fox news, he likes the idea of trump as a political outsider. (our relationship is strained for it, and we avoid discussing it.) the woman was a trump republican from the side of so-called culture war– she expresses her views online, she thinks the american youth are devolved from her generation, her husband is a retired police officer so she has a lot of opinions about racism in america.

so obviously this group got to talking politics. this was not a conversation I wanted to participate in, but they were adamant they wanted my participation in it, and I wasn’t in a place where I could leave or refuse without causing larger issues. I was calm, I was safe enough to disclose my views come from being a lesbian, and in general I tried to respond as neutrally as possible.

the woman in particular told me directly, multiple times, how I only hold my opinions because I’ve been indoctrinated. she said “indoctrinated” so many times, it was just absolutely bizarre to say that to someone’s face. she repeatedly interjected that she wanted me to feel safe to share my opinions with her, that she didn’t want me to feel ganged up on, while insisting I wasn’t at fault for anything I said because I was indoctrinated.

in this conversation, I was asked if I believed in the “lgbtqia,” because “there are gay people who don’t believe in it, you don’t have to join,” as if it’s an organization. someone offhandedly mentioned “the transsexual issue.” they discussed a conspiracy theory that obama could have destroyed all racism in america in 2008, but instead allowed an islamic brotherhood to come into the white house take over all foreign policy. that obama still controls the current biden administration as a puppet master. they held a firm belief that the younger generation dislikes capitalism from pure laziness and entitlement.

when I said a lot of younger people don’t see themselves settling into economically conservative views with age because they don’t see the opportunities to gain wealth afforded to previous generations, the couple proudly told me about how they earned everything they had by working through college and getting good jobs. in the same breath, they also told me their daughter (my age) had never worked a day because of her indoctrination, and will be graduating college with what’s basically a mortgage in debt. I said exactly, you were able to pay your way through college and enter the workforce, but that’s impossible for your daughter to do because of increased cost + stagnating wages, plus her degree is now a requirement for entry level corporate work, not a bonus, so she will have a harder time accumulating wealth. they laughed it off because they’re convinced the situation is a moral failing on their daughter’s part, and doesn’t reflect on american economics or their parenting at all.

when it came to gay indoctrination in schools, I said well a hundred years ago left handed students were beaten for not using their right hand, and so all students were right handed. a decrease in anti-gay violence allows more students to express and experiment with how they want to be. it’s not that there’s an explosion of gay people since you were in school, they just weren’t safe to come out before. that bit sort of got through a little, but they were insistent that are “new identities” being pushed onto kids, and how could anyone ever want to be anything but straight? I would’ve lost my shit if we really got into it on these ones, but thankfully the topics shifted.

it was just one bizarre “why would you ever say this to another person in real life?” moment after the next. like are you willfully stupid or do you actually think your generation solved all problems in the world when you decided to settle down, and now everything else is extraneous nonsense made to make you look bad? do you really think your sheltered opinions matter on intercommunity issues? do you not understand how insane and rude and entitled you sound? I never expected or desired to change any of these people’s minds on anything, I was just trying to get through the interaction walking the tightrope of asserting myself so I wouldn’t hate myself after and not devolving into argument that would be counterproductive to the bigger situation going on.

the interesting thing is though, my dad didn’t say a word throughout the entire discussion. I know he agreed with them on a lot of points, but he never spoke against them, or to defend me from pointed comments made towards me. and after, when he was apologizing that it got political, he said he didn’t say anything because he was hoping they would stop. he didn’t try to change the topic, he didn’t speak up for me, he just let it happen, and apologized that it “wasn’t a safe space” for me after. and I think that’s really telling about trump republicans in general. his disapproval was entirely silent because he was not willing to speak against the others on any particular point, even the insane shit, even when it was hurting someone he loved directly in front of him, because that would destroy his credibility in the eyes of the other trump republicans. it really is a fascist fucking movement.

[arpitpareek123]

Building Your Personal Brand Through Social Media

In today’s digital age, social media is more than just a platform for sharing selfies, memes, and cat videos. It has evolved into a powerful tool for personal branding—where you can showcase who you are, what you stand for, and what you offer to the world. Whether you’re a student, a professional, an entrepreneur, or someone looking to grow in your field, building a personal brand on social media is an important strategy for long-term success.

Here’s how you can effectively build your personal brand through social media in a few key steps.

1. Define Your Brand

Before you begin using social media for personal branding, it’s crucial to have a clear understanding of what your personal brand is. Ask yourself these key questions:

Who am I?

What do I want to be known for?

What are my skills, values, and passions?

What are my long-term goals?

Your personal brand should reflect your authentic self. It’s about showcasing your expertise, interests, and personality in a way that feels natural to you. For example, if you are a graphic designer, your brand might focus on creativity, design tips, and personal projects. If you’re a student aspiring to be a marketer, your brand could center around digital marketing trends, insights, and your journey in learning new skills.

Once you have clarity on who you are and what your brand represents, it will be easier to stay consistent and focused as you begin using social media to build your presence.

2. Choose the Right Platforms

Not all social media platforms are created equal, and not all are suitable for building every type of personal brand. You need to be strategic in choosing the platforms where you’ll share your content.

LinkedIn is perfect for professionals looking to grow their network, showcase their skills, and share industry insights. It’s a great platform to build your brand as a thought leader in your field.

Instagram works well for visual storytelling. If your brand involves art, fashion, design, photography, or any visually driven industry, this platform is ideal.

Twitter is excellent for sharing quick thoughts, industry news, and engaging in conversations with people in your niche.

TikTok and YouTube are great for video content. If you’re comfortable on camera and want to create tutorials, vlogs, or personal stories, these platforms offer great reach and engagement.

Start by focusing on one or two platforms that align with your brand and audience, then expand as you grow.

3. Create and Share Valuable Content

To build a personal brand, content is key. The type of content you share will shape how people perceive you and your brand. Here are some content ideas:

Share your expertise: Post about your knowledge, skills, or insights in your field. This could be in the form of blog posts, how-to guides, tips, or even short videos.

Document your journey: People love following a story. Share your journey, whether it’s learning something new, overcoming a challenge, or your progress towards a goal.

Engage with your audience: Social media is a two-way street. Respond to comments, ask for opinions, and engage in conversations. Building relationships with your followers is a key part of building a brand.

Consistency is crucial: Posting regularly keeps you in front of your audience. Whether it’s once a day, once a week, or even a few times a month, find a schedule that works for you and stick to it.

Remember, valuable content doesn’t always mean “perfect” content. Authenticity is important, so don’t be afraid to share your experiences and challenges along the way.

4. Engage with Your Community

Building a personal brand isn’t just about pushing content; it’s about interacting with others and building relationships. Social media is a place where you can network, connect, and learn from others in your field. Engaging with your community can take many forms:

Comment on other people’s posts: Engage in discussions, offer your perspective, or ask thoughtful questions.

Join relevant groups or communities: Whether it’s Facebook groups, LinkedIn groups, or Twitter chats, participating in niche communities can help you connect with like-minded people and grow your visibility.

Collaborate with others: Partnering with other creators or professionals in your niche can expose you to new audiences and strengthen your brand.

Being active and involved shows that you are not just self-focused but genuinely interested in what others are doing.

5. Be Authentic and Consistent

Authenticity is the foundation of a strong personal brand. Your audience wants to connect with a real person, not a carefully constructed facade. It’s okay to share your achievements, but it’s equally important to show your struggles and the lessons you’ve learned.

Consistency is another key factor. Stay true to your brand’s voice, style, and message across all platforms. This means having a consistent tone (whether it’s professional, friendly, humorous, etc.) and visual identity (like colors, fonts, and imagery).

The more consistently you show up as your authentic self, the more your audience will trust you and recognize your brand.

6. Measure and Adjust

Building a personal brand takes time, but it’s important to measure your progress and make adjustments along the way. Use the analytics tools available on social media platforms to track your performance. Pay attention to:

Which posts are getting the most engagement?

What type of content resonates best with your audience?

What times and days are your followers most active?

Use this data to refine your strategy. You don’t need to be rigid—adjust your approach based on what’s working and what’s not.

Conclusion

Building your personal brand through social media is a powerful way to take control of your narrative, showcase your talents, and connect with others in your field. By defining your brand, choosing the right platforms, creating valuable content, and engaging with your audience, you can establish yourself as a thought leader and grow your influence. Remember to be authentic, stay consistent, and remain open to learning and adapting as you grow.

Your personal brand is a reflection of who you are—so embrace it, nurture it, and watch it flourish.

[psysmlindseyguest]

Reflection One M1A5

In learning about this course, The Psychology of Social Media, I found it very interesting that the catalyst for this class coming to existence was the email craze of the late 90’s; I also did not know that emails were even considered a form of social media until starting this course, I thought only websites and apps like Facebook, Twitter (now X), and good old MySpace were the prime examples of social media, but when reflecting upon my own personal experiences with email, I had AOL and AIM as a child. I can remember picking my first username on my dads dial up computer, I remember the kids chat rooms and asking “ASL”, meaning “age, sex, location”, so when I do look back and reflect upon my own personal experiences with an email service like AOL, I can say that would most certainly be considered social media and not traditional media, because traditional media is one way, and social media is two way. I guess I just needed to wrap my head around the idea that social media represents tools meant for digital communication between parties, where traditional media shares info without facilitating conversation. In completing the assignments for the week, like the first Facebook post in the group, I knew that I was a habitual deactivator, but I did not realize just how little I use Facebook in general, leaving me not really seeing classmates’ posts, so I had to actively seek them out before writing this just to see if anyone had responded to my introduction (no one had). In learning about opinions on technology as well as predictions, it showed that while technology can be somewhat predictable direction wise, it may not be time wise, for example, people thought we’d have flying cars by 2024, but we don’t- just poorly self-driving ones. Other fun things I learned: mobile games are social media, so is crowdfunding- I did not know either of these. For blogging assignments, you can see I chose Tumblr, this is because I used to blog here on Tumblr, so I was familiar with the platform. I’m looking forward to progressing in this course and learning more about why social media makes me so anxious. I mentioned this in my Facebook introduction, but I take frequent breaks from social media, and I would love to learn more about why it is so draining for me.

[nightcatssketchbook]

Oh, I didn’t know you were new to Tumblr! Good luck learning the lingo, there’s a lot that I don’t know even if it came about during my time on here. To be real with you, Urban Dictionary has helped me a lot. I had no idea what tone tags were until I checked them up haha

Also, after reading what you said about the “you don’t owe anybody anything” statement, I’d definitely like to amend that (for anyone else reading, it was in the tags of my previous reblog):

If someone is genuinely sharing their opinion, discussing, etc. and things get a bit heated, that’s chill. We can still try to hear each other out and meet a resolution. But, if the person I’m talking to doesn’t seem like they want to consider outside opinions (based on previous arguments they’ve had, what they’ve said earlier in the conversation, etc.) then I don’t feel the need to continue interacting with them. In other words, if I get the feeling someone is just trying to pick a fight with the intent to win, then I don’t want to invest any more time with them. To figure out if that is truly the case is down to an individual's discretion though.

Even then, I wouldn’t necessarily block them, now that I think about it. I’d probably just stop replying. I would block them if they harass me about it though. I guess new and old Tumblr users alike should take away that there isn't really a hard and fast rule about when to block someone.

But yeah, I really like the point you made about forgiveness. It reminds me of this Twitter thread that started out with an offhand comment:

And people got MAD, made snide retorts back. And I’m sure if this happened on Tumblr, a ton of people would've blocked him. Just because they didn't agree/didn't like the vibes of the post. But then they never would have seen the rest of the thread:

He totally reflected and owned up to it! And a ton of people just. Wouldn’t have seen it. Because they blocked him. And that’s a shame, I think, cause it takes a lot to own up to doing something wrong, but it’s something I majorly respect when people do. And I know this isn't a one-to-one analogy, because he was still able to make an apology, whereas that wouldn't be possible between two people if one of them is blocked. But it's the closest example I've got

(Also sorry, I skipped parts of this thread. These are just the screenshots I could find since I don’t have a Twitter account and can't see the original. This thread was a pretty popular Tumblr repost, and that’s how I know it)

So yeah! I'm glad you brought that up, because I totally wasn't considering when a person does genuinely want to make amends. I was only thinking about trolls and those wanting to create discord. And automatically assuming other people have ill-intent is NOT how I want to go about my life.

No joke you guys NEED to get more comfortable blocking people. No more insulting people in public over different blorbo opinions no more making 2k long posts on how whatever ship you don't like shouldn't exist we've grown past that shit. Consistent posts about shit that make you uncomfortable? Block. Rancid blorbo opinions? Block. Is mildly annoying in your replies? Block. Pisses you off for reasons so petty you could never admit it publicly? Block. YOUR mental health will improve from not being upset 24/7, THEIR mental health will not be at risk of you lashing out because you happened to catch their posts on a bad day, and EVERYONE ELSE will benefit from not seeing the most embarrassing arguments known to man on their dash. "Oooh but they didn't deserve it-" dude you're presumably running a personal blog as a hobby not a public service. Who fucking cares.

[ladymcres]

i’ve already ranted about the ridiculous amount of hate build gets on twitter, but please, let me say again how childish and hypocritical things are getting. Let’s start from the beginning.

Weirdly enough, the vp photobook behind the scenes and a certain amount of vp content start to come out the moment rumor has it bible and build will get a new show for just the two of them (content that had been around since may apparently). Back then I thought they were starting to hint about a kp s2 focusing on vp, because that would have been smart. Clearly, I was wrong.

The announcement event starts, bible and build are revealed to be working with sammon on something very sammon-like. Sammon, for those who don’t know, is a prolific writer, and had some of her books turned into tv shows (Manner of Death and Triage, just to mention the most popular). She definitely does not need to plagiarize anyone.

One of the kp writer starts to go on a rampage on twitter, claiming she was betrayed by someone in boc and and unfollows build on twitter.

Reminder: a show has just been announced, but build is weirdly silent.

Couple of days pass, and guess what? The aforementioned writer withdraws from daemi house, stating she didn’t want her bad actions to reflect on her colleagues or something along those lines.

Today, Build decides to speak up about the issue and clarify everything and to apologize if unintentionally he hurt anyone. He stated that he never shared anything about 4 minutes, that he never stole ideas from the kp writers and that his relationship with them was over. Also, he apologized to the fans for all the mess that was going on even though really, he shouldn’t have. He literally did nothing wrong in this case. I also kind of appreciated the fact that he didn’t involve Bible (it could have been the easiest way) and that he mentioned it was a personal issue. He ends up breaking down because obviously getting continuous hate for something you said years ago will break anyone at a certain point, and when that hate gets revamped by people who you were kind of friends and colleague with, it just hit harder i suppose.

One would think that after all the shit the kp writers did to all the members of the cast, this time people would show reason and side with build, right? I thought something we all agreed on was that writers are trash m. Well, no, because some mile and apo stans decide it’s time to side with the writers because apparently poi talked about sa in her allegations (not directed to build, from what i gathered on twitter, but of course that wouldn’t matter if you’re keen on hating someone). Adding this later because i just got more info. Poi posted on her ig pictures of blood and injuries, hinting at the fact that she had been attacked. Guess what? The pictures had been downloaded from pinterest and she had to admit she was fine and nothing had happened. Again: disgusting behavior.

Now, my opinion on this matter is: the kp writers didn’t like to be sidelined by boc and first, they tried to bring the attention over them with the photobook, and then, poi decided to go for the jugular with her accusations. Attacking build is the easiest way to gain clout these days, everyone and their grandmas know that. If she’d tried something like that with mile, apo, jeff, barcode or bible, the whole kp fandom would have eaten her alive, but build? Build is an easy target, considering what happened in the past. Also, if she had actual evidence of what she claims, she would have brought them out and Build wouldn’t have had the guts to hold a public speech. We’ve been saying for months that poi and yok are dangerous, that the actors were uncomfortable when they were around and when one them actually speaks up about what’s going on (and clearly it’s not easy for him, because from what i gathered he was close to her), people need to go and be dickheads. The kp writers have been acting like they own the kp cast from the beginning, so it really doesn’t surprise me that exactly when the two actors who would have brought them the most money (let’s be real here, the moment vp raised, nobody really cared about the kp dynamic anymore) go and announce they’re working with a popular writer for their upcoming show, the female writer decide to feel betrayed and plagiarized? I find that suspicious, not going to lie. Also, there is the fact that build literally had a full break down, he was devastated. Who would like to be dragged through the mud the moment an important project of yours is announced? And to those saying he was faking it, i suppose you can believe what you want, but obviously it wasn’t something planned, it was clear not even bible was aware he was going to speak up.

At this point, i’ll cherish pete, vegad and kp s1 with all my heart but i really wish neither build or any of the cast will ever have anything to do with the writers anymore.

Edit: this post was written before poi came out with her screenshots. I legit don’t know what to think anymore, but one thing i can tell you for sure: until this whole mess well be cleared, i will not show any kind of support for neither of them

Edit 2: i will riot if build doesn’t get the justice he deserves

[maxwell-grant]

Character Bingo: either Koichi

(either? You talking about Jorge Joestar Koichi, who is just Koichi with a propeller for a head, or Yasuho? Yasuho rules, if I get asked about her she gets her own post when I finish JJL)

.....eeeh.....

I don't really care for Koichi, actually I kinda dislike him for the most part outside the context of his dynamic with Jotaro (which IS pretty great but, that has way more to do with Jotaro than Koichi). I get the appeal of Koichi and I get why the idea of him is solid: He's the most boilerplate generic shonen jump protagonist imaginable who, instead of getting a giant robot or learning martial arts, is dragged kicking and screaming into bizarro bullshit battles with superpowered scammers and serial killers (plus way too many sexual predators, and Yukako just barely, barely avoids skirting that line), who's forced to grow and make due with seemingly useless abilities made strong through applied cleverness, and who winds up growing a spine.

He adds a splash of color to Part 4 by highlighting the contrast between JoJo characters and regular shonen characters, and he adds to the fights he's in by having the kind of normal reactions to things that characters like Jotaro and Rohan don't have, which makes it satisfying when he's able to take on the bullshit on it's own terms. He's got a cool Stand, he has the most glaring and obvious character development in the series, and to his credit he gets a lot of genuinely impressive moments against Kira. I get the appeal of Koichi and why he's such a fan-favorite.

He just bores the shit out of me. Because, again, he really is about as boilerplate SJ protagonist as it gets, and I just find that kind of character grating and uninteresting and too obvious. He never really has anything interesting to say or add and is generally just the sounding board other wackier characters can bounce off of, with the attachment said characters have for him saying more about them than it does for Koichi. I hate his thing with Yukako, and I like the "Ed Edd n Eddy" thing he has with Josuke and Okuyasu in theory, but in practice, it usually just makes it so that he takes away from Josuke and Okuyasu's incredible chemistry and makes their scenes less funny than they could otherwise be (as proven by, every single time Araki ditched Koichi and had the two idiots hang out with fellow weirdos like Shigechi and Mikitaka). He just, he does nothing for me. Not to the point I dislike his scenes or episodes (well, save a couple of them) but, one of my less favorite side heroes for sure.

And I'm lumping this guy here because he has sound-based powers too and I don't feel like giving him a separate post

Anonymous asked: Bingo: Sandman/Soundman

Look, for the most part I generally always find the JoJo fandom's complaints of "Araki forgot" to be,

A: Proud ignorance in their own parts regarding stuff that Araki either actually did explain, sometimes more than he even needed to, or stuff that could naturally be inferred through the narrative, or even stuff that just doesn't matter and/or borders on "Twitter opinions on Batman's money" level of pedantic disengaging with the text or characterization Or B: Scrapped / retconned ideas that would have been unfeasible to work with long-term, ditched for the sake of telling a better story, like Stands being related to Hamon or Giorno's game-breaking damage reflection power that Araki wisely ignored the fuck out of and never brought up again (Giorno already got a ton of complaints for being overpowered even without it) Or C: Things that didn't live up to the headcanon / fanfic version of the premise that exists entirely in their heads and this somehow becomes an objective problem with the writing, which is why you get people saying "Araki forgot" things like the invisible baby (who was totally always gonna be the next JoJo, you guys) or Giorno not showing up in Part 6 (who was gonna do, what, exactly? Use GER to beat Pucci and ruin the story?)

Not that there's not a lot of things to talk about in terms of execution or planning or stuff that Araki planned poorly or didn't plan at all or, yes, did forget but, for the most part these discussions tend to be brutally obnoxious and not worth it.

That being said,

I just cannot think of another explanation as to what the hell happened with Sandman / Soundman other than just, Araki decided quick enough that the character he dramatically opened Steel Ball Run with, who got quite a bit of narrative focus in the early stages of the race, and who had pretty dramatically gripping reasons for partaking in the race as well as some mysterious implied powers being built up, was just gonna drop out of the story and resurface as a grunt for Valentine and then killed off. I guess it's not so much "Araki forgot" as "Araki stopped caring real quick", which is how it is with like 60% of all the crap people say he forgot

I mean, not that Steel Ball Run didn't turn out incredible after that rocky start, and I guess nowadays I'm not exactly super anxious to see how Araki would have tackled a Native American character (probably better than just about any other mangaka author would but still abysmally) but...man, what a letdown.

SICK Stand design, though. In the top for sure.

[jonsa101]

Do you think when Max double back and said “we never talked about it” do you think Helen took it as yes finally he’s opening up and that’s why she hug him and laugh that relieved laugh? And then she asked him that question and she realize he still doesn’t get it??

Aaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!! This is a great question and such a hard one to answer as well! I’ve honestly considered a lot of scenarios in my mind about where Helen’s mind was at before and after the hug. I have gone back and forth about it but after analyzing it for awhile these are my final thoughts on it.

In my last ask I got from @abriaashley, I had mentioned that there was a very brief moment in that rooftop scene that reminded of me their rooftop scene in 1.17. Before I answered this ask, I took a couple days to really make sure that I knew what I was talking about but after analyzing it I know without a shadow of doubt this is the exact same expression. To me, this brief moment below is the most important key in understanding everything that happened during and after their hug.

But in order to understand why Helen has this expression on her face, we need to first examine the scene where we saw this expression first. In episode 1.17, Max and Helen are having a conversation within a conversation about their relationship. Everything is subtext but essentially Helen tells Max that she needs to “triage,” she can’t be his “all of the above” and that she’s removing herself as his doctor. Of course Max is upset by this and with his wonderful Freudian slip he reveals his true heart’s desire when he says...

But what if I want you?

After this declaration, we get this expression on her face and then Helen STICKS TO HER RESOLVE!

In the context of this scene, Helen’s expression here tells me two things:

Max telling her “what if I want want you” is exactly what she wants to hear. She clearly has feelings for him and hearing that is supposed to tempt and sway her resolve. But based on their current circumstances the idea of them is simply not possible and it’s heart aching.

She clearly doesn’t want to do what she’s about to do in this moment but she’s BUILDING UP THE WILL POWER to do what she feels she has to do!

This is my interpretation of why Helen has that expression on her face. When I look at episode 3.10 where Helen has that same look before she hugs Max, I think the same reasons apply for this moment as well. As an avid Sharpwin shipper it’s easy to fan girl about these intimate moments and get carried away but when you logically look at their scene and the scene that took place right before, hopefully what I explain will make perfect sense to you.

Before Max and Helen’s moment on the roof, Helen had a GUT-WRENCHING scene with her niece. Mina is still heavily grieving her father and this explains so much of why she’s also had a lot of behavioral issues. She’s suffering emotionally and is desperately trying to find some semblance of peace and healing. Shanthi Sekaran, the writer for this episode, said the inspiration for this scene was Micaheanglo’s Pieta and how fitting it was for this moment between them.

“Pieta” which translates to pity or compassion, shows the the Virgin Mary compassionately holding on to the dead body of Jesus as she sorrowfully contemplates the death of her beloved son.

Like this sculpture, Helen compassionately holds Mina and comforts her as Mina is overcome with her grief and as Helen is trying to empathize with the depths of Mina’s sorrow! It’s just such a beautiful thing to witness and why I’m hoping Mina sticks around for the long haul. There’s so much emotional investment already and in this moment of their lives, they desperately NEED EACH OTHER! So when you look at everything from a wholistic perspective and you look at the chain of events that led Helen to be on that rooftop in the first place, does it LOGICALLY make sense that Helen would be in the headspace to address her relationship with Max or even kiss him? Nooooooooo!!!!

It doesn’t make sense!

If anything, her actions in this scene is a reflection of what she did earlier with Cassian when she broke up with him. As she made her niece first priority with Cassian, she is essentially making her niece first priority again with Max, despite being in love with him!

Let’s breakdown 3.10’s rooftop scene so y’all can know where I’m coming from.

Part 1 of this scene is Max and Helen discussing parenting and him emotionally supporting her when she feels like she had a parenting fail. This should have been the first clue for us to understand how this moment between them would play out because this issue with Mina was the main thing that was clearly plaguing her mind!

In part 2 of this scene, Max turns to leave and then after briefly hesitating, he turns around says

“I’m sorry about Cassian.”

As soon as he says this we see this same expression we saw in 1.17. Then Max continues and says.

I don’t know what to...say. I mean, we never talk about it.”

Y’all I said this in my last ask but this is a really big deal! This is Max’s first attempt to bring up the elephant in the room between them and it’s something that he’s never attempted to address before. Helen knows this is a big deal too and she knows where this conversation was headed. Hence why before the conversation could even go anywhere, Helen cut him off with a hug!

Like I said at the beginning of this post, the expression Helen makes before the hug is the key to understanding this scene in it’s entirety! Similar to 1.17 I believe the same reasons apply for her expression in 3.10 but vary slightly.

Once again, what Max is saying is exactly what Helen wants to hear but also what she’s been waiting for him to do! Unlike in season 1, Max and Helen are in completely different circumstances than they were back then. Subconsciously, they had feelings back then but now they are both fully aware that they’re in love with each other. The massive elephant in the room exists between them because they don’t talk about their feelings and they’re to afraid to voice that they’re in love with each other. There is no doubt in my mind that Max finally being able to at least broach the topic is something that she has always wanted Max to do. They seemingly don’t have anything that’s holding them back from being together but based by how I see it, the heart aching look on Helen’s face tells me that in Helen’s mind it’s essential she puts her sole focus into Mina, even if this is something she’s always wanted. (This Is KEY!)

Like 1.17, I think Helen was building up that will power to tell him that she’s happy that their friends even though she’s in love with him. That hug between them was a lot of things. It was deeply loving and heartfelt. It was cathartic with pent-up angst and longing semi-released but most of all, it was desperate and supportive. Despite this, I also believe that this hug was used to avoid a conversation that Helen didn’t want to have. If she allowed that conversation to go any further she would have 100% been swayed and would have probably given into her feelings. But Helen didn’t want to be swayed. She wanted to stick to her resolve that Mina is her first priority! Is this a problematic mindset? Yes! But after that emotionally charged moment with Mina I can see how Helen might think she’s making the right decision.

Also, I’m convinced that if Mina’s breakdown didn’t happen before Max and Helen’s moment on the rooftop, they would have probably had that conversation. But since it did happen, it totally plays a role in what transpires between Helen and Max.

For the moments after they hug this is how I interpret those interactions:

When Helen says to Max “what you said earlier” initially I thought she was referring to something he said earlier in the day. Now that I’ve taken a couple of days to really think about it, I just don’t think that makes sense. Again, after Helen’s moment with Mina, I don’t think she was in the headspace at all to talk about her feelings for him. This scene was more so about Max stepping up and being emotionally supportive of her and I think what’s she’s actually referring to is Max saying “But it helps not to be alone.” In that moment Helen recognized that Max will unequivocally support her and I think that’s something she’s incredibly grateful for. When Max responds with “what did I say?,” I genuinely believe he’s not thinking straight because he so overwhelmed and overjoyed to have Helen in his arms. Also, I think naturally he asks that question because he wants to know for future reference what he needs to keep saying to keep her in his arms 🥰.That look that she gives Max before she tells him that she’s really glad that they’re friends isn’t necessarily a look of disappointment because of Max. After I watched it again, that look to me is more so of a look of “I hate that I’m doing this but I have to do this.” As she is gazing into his eyes, it’s her final push to stick to her resolve! Her mind was already made up and she was going to see that decision through.

Y’all I’m going to wrap this up here because this ask wasn’t supposed to be a meta but ended up that way! Lol! Though these are my opinions on what transpired in 3.10 that doesn’t change my opinion of how I see things unfolding for Sharpwin this season. I just think it’s important to put scenes in proper context. Though Helen might have said that they’re friends, it is so evident that she is clearly in love with him. Like Max, she can’t pretend or neglect her personal wants and needs forever! The great sleeping bear of her desire stirred and is wide awake! Sooner rather than later that bear needs to be fed!

Feel free to reach out to me through my Dms on Tumblr or on Twitter! @oyindaodewale. Also my ask box is always open! 🥰

None of the Gifs in this post are mine!

[pastorfutureletthembe]

Nah don't worry, it didn't come off as a disagreement, I always enjoy your inputs! I merely used it to explain why this analysis, while interesting, doesn't reflect my opinion but is still a valid interpretation.

Shiguang is really is a peculiar case, both because they indeed work well as friends/partners/queerplatonics/lovers and because the cultural context makes the storytelling different from what we're used to as an occidental audience.

Fans of american shows have been cursing over queerbaiting for decades while I personally was fed nicely with subtil japanese bromance since middle school. Imagine my surprise when I discovered chinese male friendships through 19DAYS and later Link Click. The no-gays-allowed policy really made me giggle because of course people would get ingenious in their writing to go around it.

The fact they thought that if Link Click was about two dudes it would be enough to make this story 100% aromantic is ludicrous, though. While the genre of Link Click is far from romance, it still started as a family show, character centric, and then turned into something of a thriller.

The story was always about two guys uncovering mysteries and helping people.

I personally would break space and time for friends and family, no questions asked, but isn't it natural to think only true love deserves the honor after all? I personally think the idea of time travel has been romanticized too many times to be free of the concept of the Ultimate Form of Love™. I mean, in the name of saving a dead wife AND a man's ego of course lmao.

So yeah, even chinese censorship or homophobic chads can't do much against, like, a century's worth of literature and cinema about going back in time for love. People can believe what they want, shiguang being gay or not is absolutely not the point: if the genders were different, they would also ship it, because that's just how the story goes and went in all previous media in the history of Time Travel. Regret might be the reason but you usually only want to go back so you can have happiness with someone again.

That's my take as far as canon goes: let it be, the story writes itself 😂

Now, about Lu Guang and his role in Cheng Xiaoshi's death, I have many, M A N Y theories actually.

The possession route is very plausible. Actually there are several threads about it on twitter supporting it. I cannot find the one where OP removes the red filter and Lu Guang still has red eyes but it's out there. Hard to say if dream sequence or memory, if original timeline or repeat.

A part of me is convinced that Lu Guang wasn't even part of Cheng Xiaoshi's life in the original timeline. Maybe there actually is a Time Agency and Lu Guang was part of it and he kinda grew fond of CXS while investigating his missing parents. Or maybe he was Vein's pupil until he realized how much of a psychopath he was and tried to bail, meeting CXS on a turn of fate.

Liu Xiao himself is a shady character who seems to have an interesting and tragic backstory. I wouldn't rule out the theory of him being an alternative version of Cheng Xiaoshi. Betrayed and left in a failed repeat.

There is still a tiny possibility that they pull a Kaishin on us and Lu Guang reveals himself as CXS's father. And if Lu Guang is actually Cheng Xiaoshi's friend since the beginning, could he be the one who gave CXS his powers one way or another? If so, wouldn't it save him to just... Keep them both from using their powers? Or did they gain their powers while on this post graduation trip after Cheng Xiaoshi's death? Are these powers only acquired after nearing death?

The darkest theory I have is that Cheng Xiaoshi has to die first for Lu Guang to reset the timeline... And there might have been times when Lu Guang killed him with his own hands in order to get a new chance at a better outcome.

Many secrets in Lu Guang's head and I'm pretty sure Yingdu Chapter won't give us the answers we seek. My take on all this is that if Lu Guang really wanted to save Cheng Xiaoshi's life, he wouldn't be in his life. But, you know: Man's ego, as I said. One of my theories is that he actually tried that one but failed (and the flash backs we saw of their meeting is actually Lu Guang failing at staying away).

But mostly: people tend to forget Qiao Ling's involvement too often. Her being in danger would be enough to make Cheng Xiaoshi risk it all, losing her would be enough to strip him from hope, sacrificing everything to save her is way too in character not to consider.

Why I think Shiguang can be canonically read as romantic

(I will only be using the donghua for reference, so no Studio Lan retweeting those fanarts (lmao) nor those especially gay manhwa panels (lmao x2) nor even the songs ("chase you to the end of the world, just to say your name once more" my beloved).

It's important to start off by saying that I'm aware Director Li said they ended up not making Lu Guang a girl because they didn't want romance to be seen as a must in Shiguang's relationship by the audience (and because he feels that "bros can have a good heart-to-heart connection with each other"). In my opinion that was a great move since it allows more freedom with how they write them than they'd have otherwise. I also think viewing Shiguang as queerplatonic is a great read too and it doesn't diminish their love for each other nor the importance of their relationship at all.

With that said, despite Director Li's words, there's been things that had me going 🤨 as someone who likes to adhere to canon relationships and read into the writer's intentions, so I wanted to share why I personally see them as romantic.

EPISODE 2

We've all seen this coming, right? Most obvious parallel ever, and in the second episode no less. We all know the similarities between both relationships, so I will just touch on those I consider the most important ones.

Lin Zhen and Yu Xia have gone to college together, and since then decided to start a business of their own - named after a mix of their names. They've been shown as being really close and having no romantic relationships. Lin Zhen also says that Yu Xia's happiness is her own, and then it's shown to us that she's gone through years of unhappiness just for Yu Xia. I believe you can replace their names with Lu Guang's and Cheng Xiaoshi's in your head without me writing all this again. And I'm not even going to get into the most obvious parallels like the special noodle recipe for each pair.

I think it's safe to say that Lin Zhen and Yu Xia are implied to be romantic. From that "one noodle" scene, to the close shot of Lin Zhen grabbing her hand, etc.

Now, I want to get into a writer's point of view and pose two questions:

1. What's the purpose of this episode, when even those which seem episodic connect to the overarching plot of season 1 (even the missing kid's case, as it leads to the involvement with the police)?

2. If we answer the previous question with the conclusion that it's meant to show us the nature/development of Cheng Xiaoshi's and Lu Guang's relationship, what does that say about it?

"Partner" in Link Click

Continuing with episode 2, what really got me thinking about the romantic intentions in their writing was the constant mention of marriage and anything in relation to it.

(may I remind everyone that the driver's comment was said when Cheng Xiaoshi was complaining about Lu Guang lmao)

They're telling us through "show don't tell" (for example, when Lin Zhen kept on eating the noodle despite knowing they'd kiss) and, also, connotations. They are presented to us as business partners, but then the entire episode goes on to tell us that there's more to them by tying their relationship to things percived as romantic. So what they want to really tell us is that beyond simple business partners, they're life-long partners.

And then, after establishing this kind of connotation to the word partner, Cheng Xiaoshi says this to Lu Guang in the next episode:

This doesn't stop at them. While it's the most obvious example, I think partnership in Link Click is intended to be seen as romantic, or at the very least dancing somewhere close to it. Let's go even further and take a look at our fully canon, heterosexual relationships and see briefly how their story is written:

1. Dong Yi and Xu Shanshan: both of them chose the comfort of each other's presence over moving on with their respective futures. Dong Yi had so much faith in their relationship and their love that he couldn't choose a life/future that didn't have Xu Shanshan - choosing to not go back to his family home nor go to that interview, and instead waiting for Xu Shanshan to define their relationship.

2. Liu Siwen and Ouyang: Siwen spent his entire life training with the purpose of getting his father-in-law's respect and marry Ouyang, going every year over and over to fight him. His perseverance and his undying love for her allowed Siwen to do the (seemingly) impossible.

3. Chen Bin and his wife: they're a tragedy. His wife understood Chen Bin the best, enduring feeling lonely because she loved him and wanted a future with him. But their relationship was cut short, so they promised each other to be together in a future life to make up for the time they wouldn't be in this one.

With this + the pictures I attached, it seems like Link Click has set this theme of "love is a life with you" for its romantic relationships, a partner that will fight to stay because they can't see a future that doesn't have their beloved. Going back to episode two, this applies even to the noodle ladies. When Yu Xia remembered what actually matters to her, she went back home - to the start, to her hometown. And, most importantly, to Lin Zhen.

So why is Shiguang romantic? Why aren't they queerplatonic, or just best friends, or bros or whatever else? Because besides what I said at the start of the previous paragraph, Shiguang's relationship mirrors a lot of the romantic ones. Each story and author writes romance and other kinds of relationships differently, portraying them in the way they perceive "this is what this kind of love is like". And beyond life-long partners, I think that the key elements of romantic relationships in Link Click are the ones I highlighted in bold above in the 3 canon relationships part - which Shiguang shares, too.

(I didn't mention this before with the het couples, but I find it a little amusing that season 2 happened because a man wanted to go to the past and get his wife back (still fuck you Qian Jin) and then we find out Lu Guang did go back to the past and got his boyfriend partner back lmao).

"Friend" vs "Partner"

So where is the boundary between platonic and romantic? What marks the difference between a (best) friend and a partner?

There is, for example, Liu Xiao and Li Tianchen's relationship. They aren't shown to have any kind of romantic undertones and there's even the very real possibility of manipulation on Liu Xiao's side. They're also never labeled as nor call each other partners, but instead Li Tianchen says he "met a new friend" and Liu Xiao says he's "going to meet an old friend" years later. So we could say for now that they have a somewhat close relationship (we see Li Tianchen go against Qian Jin to give the phone to Liu Xiao), but never cross that "friend" label.

We can even bring Qiao Ling and the boys' relationship. She's never labeled as a partner despite taking part in the side job and, more importantly, being super close to both of them. She is very important and a cherished friend to Shiguang, so why not call her partner too? I think it's intentional. Since she's been given a familial role already (calling Cheng Xiaoshi her brother when talking to Li Tianxi), she can't fill a partner role. I wonder why? because it's supposed to be a synonym for a romantic relationship. who said that.

So even best friends (Qiao Ling, arguably what Liu Xiao is to Li Tianchen) don't enter this close space that is being a partner. It's different, it's beyond platonic. Or at least that's what they've been showing us for the past two seasons.

I could go soo much more into this honestly, because I do think the little hints thrown here (the music videos) and there (tiny seemingly inconsequential details) are worth to be looked at too, but I wanted to get into the core reason that makes me go "woah so they're In Love fr". I hope I expressed myself well ^^

tldr; the series shows us a divide between having a (best) friend and a partner, giving "partners" romantic connotations.