#but when ppl are this worked up over 'what if [female character] was Also a bad person in a way that's reprehensible to our current morals'

[shinraelectricpowercom]

Current Events in Silm fandom rlly reinforce my feeling that, despite claiming an ethos of acceptance/tolerance of anything that doesn't hurt ppl, a lot of ppl in the section of Silm fandom I frequent do follow a set of socially-agreed-upon mores about what concepts are "not acceptable" to discuss or propose (or the ways in which certain topics must be discussed to be acceptable), that you all seem to have agreed on despite the things those mores restrict not being harmful to anyone.

And when someone does say smth that violates those mores, the response is disproportionate to the amount of harm done (which is typically none, imo). I know it's tempting to say "but we just want people to be comfortable and safe", but treating ppl badly for the sin of sharing thoughts you dislike is NOT the same as preventing people from doing things that are harmful. The former is much more of a harmful behavior than the sharing of the thoughts that sets it off. Fannish etiquette, people: you shouldn’t act like someone’s meta makes them morally suspect just because you disagree with it; save the “this is morally bad” for things that are ACTUALLY harmful. We're all stuck on this website together & if you want to have any sort of community, you need to ACT like you're in a community, and that means letting other people say things you dislike. Block them if you need to! I block people all the time because i know it's better for me AND for them if we can both blog in peace.

I am not particularly comfortable with the young-queer-on-tumblr silm fandom rn due to this tendency to rebuke things that are uncomfortable rather than harmful. Maybe that's fine with you. But if your goal is to make all fans feel comfortable and accepted, you need to actually do that. If your goal is to make people who share your unwritten rules comfortable in your space, you need to admit that, and write those rules down, and curate your space so it follows them.

Edited 8:10am PST to clarify the specifics of the behavior I find concerning.

[choccy-milky]

bruh i need to vent about a rude comment i got on my recent chap and also about clora, cuz its something thats been on my mind for a while now. it has spoilers to my most recent chap tho so im putting it below

so in my most recent chap clora gets hit by the killing curse but thanks to seb sacrificing himself for her, it doesn’t work/she survives. and I got a rly rude comment about how that’s super cringe and that clora is a "shoe horning of every possible manifestation of Mary-Sueism I have ever seen." theyre dropping my fic after almost 500k words bc apparently THAT’S where they draw the line and that "just somehow pulling it out the bag and surviving a killing curse from the power of love. In simpler terms, it’s absolutely cringe worthy" and "forgive me if I rolled an eye at the yet again invincible nature of Clora Clemons-the-one-eighth-Veela-extraordinaire"

BUT LIKE LMAO TELL ME U DIDN’T READ/WATCH HARRY POTTER WITHOUT TELLING ME. that’s literally what happens to harry??but its only cringe when it happens to our "mary-sue" clora? like yeah sure love magic might be a bit cringe but IM LITERALLY JUST PULLING FROM THE SOURCE MATERIAL. of all the things to take issue with in my fic and interpretations, theyre taking issue with something that’s canon BAHAHA.

and since im on the topic of clora being mary sue can I just say I hate the misogyny/internalized misogyny that i've seen some people (NOT A LOT, THANKFULLY) treat her with. like i get it, im not pale and blonde and as conventionally pretty as clora is, but even if I was, is that a reason to hate me?? and does being beautiful and well-liked = mary sue? bc as far as I know, mary sue is a chara who is just naturally amazing at everything and doesnt need to try hard and theyre just inexplicably great for no reason (like mc in the base game BAHHAA) if anything the mary sue in MY fic is seb LMAO (but hes a boy so its ok). like clora has worked hard and studied magic all her life due to being a squib and wanting to make up for not being able to DO it. she isnt good at flying, seb is still better at her than duelling, shes really short sighted when it comes to doing/thinking whats best for others and can be a huge idiot.... and like. the only guys that have even shown interest in clora on a real scale have been seb and leander (and then lawley for blackmail purposes, and also bc he hates seb) so its not like literally everyone is falling over themselves for her?? like her interactions with the main cast of boys (ominis, garreth, amit) theyre all indifferent to her LMAO but still, the fact that shes pretty and guys here and there might look at her and go o shes cute! doesnt make her a mary sue SORRy thats just called being attractive idk its just annoying that ppl automatically see a nice kind beautiful female character without any VISIBLE flaws and go SHES TOO PERFECT!! MARY SUE!! WAH IM JEALOUS! and like I get it bc when I was younger I probs would have been annoyed by clora as well due to my own insecurities and internalized misogyny but hey, how about u just realize that’s ur own problem and your own jealousy, and not a real one HAHAH anyway ive since evolved bc I used to be a ‘not like other girls’ type girl back in highschool. trying to be super tomboy-y bc I thought being feminine was cringe and too basic but now ive embraced it and love girly things and dresses and charas like clora who are still strong and showcase their strengths and weaknesses in subtler ways, and I want to smooch her and make out with her. get behind me clora ill protect you🤺🤺🤺

[murfpersonalblog]

Gotta wake up to this anon in the tags, undoubtedly referencing/shading what I reblogged here:

Nonny, at least say it to my face if you wanna call me an internalized misogynist, just cuz I don't cosign the predominately white court of popular opinion's dogma that ONLY sees Lestat as the female-coded victim of Louis' "abuse" of the crossdressing campy Queen Mother de Lioncourt; while you reject any acknowledgement let alone honest discussion of Lestat as the patriarchal Coven Master terrorizing his fledglings/children--even in effing 2022 when he's setting Rat Catcher ablaze with the Fire Gift in Louis' honor & kicking him out in to the hurricane--another round in the stormy romance of you two.

And plot twist: I (mostly) agree with nonny about Anne Rice, and how she engages with (trans)gender through Louis--and I agree with Nalyra that there's also complexity to how AR engages with Lestat LATER--10+ years AFTER IWTV & her daughter Michelle's death.

It's not at all easy to pin down, especially when in these convos about Loustat & gender, the most integral part of their dynamic is ALWAYS EXCLUDED by Lestans: CLAUDIA. She's only babytrapped cuz, as I've said 1000 times, Lestat was hyperaware of LOUIS' emotional/behavioral resemblance TO LESTAT'S MOTHER, GABRIELLE; and Louis' "maternal instinct," that resembled ANNE'S own excitement to be a mom.

Anne Rice is NOT saying Louis (or even Lestat!) represents her as a woman (in METAPHOR, not biology, DUH) cuz he crossdresses & gallivants around twirling his hair & flicking his limp wrists--I already discussed the effect of 18th century Franco-European dandyism on an 18th-century vampire stuck in the Rococo period (X X), where clothing is just ONE aspect of how masculinity & femininity are expressed--BY MEN.

Gender is MORE than Loustat crossdressing. Like I've said: it's misognyist to assume that everyone crossdressing is female-coded, while blatantly ignoring their BEHAVIOR--just like Nalyra said:

I have screamed & hollered from the rooftops this whole time how the power dynamics between Loustat are being grossly misunderstood or outright overlooked, as everyone gets distracted by fun & c*nty Lestat. Somehow, ONLY Lestat gets to represent Mother, but LOUIS DOESN'T!? Sus! But I'M the misogynist homophobe for calling y'all RACISTS who can't acknowledge/accept a Black gay man in a suit (or cardigan) as a female-coded representation of motherhood, when the show's beat y'all over the head with it 1000 times? SUS!

Esp. when I explicitly say Louis AS Woman, Louis AS Mother--nonny, grab a dictionary and realize that I didn't say Louis IS Mother, Louis IS Woman--it's SIMILE. It's METAPHOR. It's PARALLEL. It's CODING.

It's highly problematic to reject AR's own words being "not solid" evidence (anon), or downplay it as outdated/irrelevant (Nalyra), just cuz it doesn't align with your own interpretations. That's not how proper analysis of primary sources works. It's CONTEXTUAL evidence about the processes of personal growth; just like it's contextual how AR couched her shift to Lestat in direct relation to her tryna move past her maternal depression/grief via Louis. You cannot discuss one without the other, but that's all I ever see far too many ppl do: downplaying the foundational conceptualization of these characters within the books, film, and show alike; and hiding behind accusations of homophobia & misogyny rather than honestly engaging with the characters and their behavior. You wanna talk about misogyny? How about MISOGYNOIR, and how y'all don't know EFF ALL about BLACK MOTHERHOOD, and the hypermasculinization of Black gay men, to even BEGIN to fathom everything Louis represents in contrast & relation to Massa Lestat.

Cuz there's CERTAINLY a marked lack of discussion or acknowledgement about how race factors into all of this. I see NO mention/discussion/analysis of Lestat by that anon rejecting the other side of the conversation I'm arguing against--esp. the white privilege Lestat enjoys that allows him to be far freer with explorations of gender & sexuality than black!Louis, and thus embraced by his predominately white cis female fans--who find it so effing impossible/offensive to see the ways that HIS BEHAVIOR directly contradicts the feminist ideals about agency & autonomy they allege to hold oh-so-sacred--"crushing what you cannot own."

Which only further indicates that this particular propping up of Lestat in the fandom is being done at Louis'' expense in bad faith by bad actors running to everyone's accounts on anon and obfuscating the context they're even responding to.

Claudia never lied: "It's a STONING."

[leavingsunsets]

hello!

I would like to request hcs (if that's fine with you, because I saw you're more on the fics side :3) for Kinro (bro deserves more love), Sai and Ryusui with a very emotional and empathetic reader, who tries to mask it by acting all cool and unbothered, but it doesn't always work well. I prefer it to be on the more romantic side, but I don't mind the platonic one! It can be either female or gender neutral reader. I will rely on your intuition and creativity.

I hope I explained everything quite sensibly and understandably. ._.

Have a wonderful day!

Ohh my gosh hello hello! I don't mind hcs as well, since i lovw these characters so much like mwah mwah mwah (AHEM AHEM magic man COUGHCOUCGHFOUCGH) but anyways im doing gn reader so lots more ppl can enjoy tehee. here it is !!

"𝙋𝙤𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙮 𝙝𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣."

[gn!reader]

𝙆𝙞𝙣𝙧𝙤

Tbh i feel like Kinro is KINDAAA similar in the same sense?? like, all cool n stuff but hes actlly a real sweetie sometimes mwah mwah mwah. also ur right he deserves more love hes literally just a loveable guy

At first i think hed be surprised, like, all, "woah, uh, you good"

but then, i think among the three, isnt that fazed. hes around ginro almost 24/7 cmon.

but once he gets used to you he just stares when you get all cool and so indifferent then he goes "its okay to be sad about it" then you just start beating his chest bawling and he pats your back

platonically, thats what hed do. Like, hed just silently offer support while you tell him your troubles or thoughts. like nod along or put a hand on your shoulder in silent encouragement or just seem so cool while spouting out some wise words. (he puts a hand on your shoulder and you look at him, the wind blows his hair slightly, the light capturing him in a perfect angle. "i understand that feeling. i felt hurt when ginro laughed at the rip in my pants too" he whispers so coolly and you bust out laughing)

romantically, hed be more initiative in this type of stuff i think. like, if he saw you going away on your own hed follow after to talk. or be more nervous cuz this time hes ACTIVELY trying to cheer you up, like tryna be comforting even if his words come out awkward or something like that. "uhmm, thats bad.. uh.. do you wanna. do you wanna hug?"

either way, 10/10 this man will never disappoint, he doesnt, and he didnt. he is underrated and we should talk about him more def

𝙍𝙮𝙪𝙨𝙪𝙞 𝙉𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙞

Ohoooo. this maaan is likeeee. i dunno man i feel like he literally has the same reaction to every single type of person.

encouraging, supportive, and just a big big ball of sun

hed just pin you down as an interesting person and spout some compliments

even when you first meet and he sees how you work hes like "👍!!"

So lets say close friends now. he sees you go 'its okay. I dont care' and he sees you be all 'im going to dramatically sit on a rock and have a glistening tear down my face lit by the sun' and he'll like, smack your back 4 times going 'ITS OKAY MY FRIEND ITS OKAY'

Platonic?? just like that. how he treats everyone which is of course very special. goes 'hey, its alright. like really. im here to be a bud and give u some encouragement' and be all like 'DW MY FRIEND' and just even gives u nice talks

ROMANTICALLY?? kind of the same, but but but but. he litrlly goes and does smthng to cheer u up. like litrlly does the same as platonically, but later even when ur all cheered up, brings u to a nice place like a nice view. Doesnt SAY anything cheesy but ltrlly aheaeha RAWR ryusui nanami i cant believe you just took me to a nice dinner date

𝙎𝙖𝙞 𝙉𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙞

okay hmmm. idk depends on the intensity of it he MIGHT be averse?? Not entirely but as long as youre not bawling and sniffling i think ur good 👍

ok so u first meet right? and then he meets u 'oh cool person ok. rlly chill' then after awhile he sees you start sniffling over someones sob story and hes all like 'aweee'

NOT IN A 'thats cute' WAY LIKE. HES JUS LIKE THINKING 'OH THIS PERSON RLLY CARES ALOT THATS SWEET A LITTLE'

maybe that might be a bonding factor. Like, the fact that ur empathetic and soooo YKNOW, YOU

so like when u werent close he was all like 'ohh. ahhh wow. i see.' now hes all like 'haha theres my little gober gomble with the gummy goo' but he will never say that ofc grrr

PLATONICALLY. hes as goober as can be. literally being all friends friends with you and loving your company. like, actively approaches you and goes 'hey!!!! :3!!'. literally a sweetie yall talk about stuff and the whole time hes like :3 and all supportive and encouraging throughout whatever ur feeling, blue or yello, red or green.

fixes my bowtie. Now. ROMANTICALLY?? so this is only it does blossom after the platonic stage. he does the same things, except all 'hmgngmg omg.. its them...' inside now. More active tending to you in your moments, happy or blue. like cheering if ur cheering, fretting over u if youre sad over smthng, stuff like that. or angry, like going 'PLS PLS PLS PLS' holding you back from hitting someone on the head. literally just the same in platonic but hes so so so sooo in love with you and loves you, for being you, more than anything

_____________

WHEW and thats. yeah. thats it. Again i am so sorry for the disproportionate pics n headers EVERYTIME i literally crop them on my own sometimes n i dont know where else to get them. but yah i hope u enjoyed and sorry it took soo long :333 !! Hcs are easier for me 2 do than fics because they take less time and like, hmm, its not that hard since theres no plot planning or proofreading or anything like that. but yes WOOO ENJOY I HOPE YALL KEEP ENJOYIG THE RARE FICS IS PUT OUT IM SO SORRY FOR THAT TOO 😭😭

[vermillioncrown]

This is going to be a huge post because you've picked up so much of what we put down I'm just 🥰🥹

@sunshinerotting replied to your post “(@rozaceous) dpnf ch 11: housebroken”:

will be rereading immediately but i love your guys’ characters very much and the way you write the canon characters makes so much sense. the way the people in that house interact with each other is so interesting to me because if tim was actually the normal boy he thinks he is the entire balance would be thrown off. no one else could’ve done what he does in that dynamic. they’re like a jigsaw puzzle to me. i have more thoughts give me a sec

thank you so much! roz and i keep joking that this fic is now an au of an au of an au of an au... and on and on, and then it's like. what makes this still a fic and not a fully original setting and work? we had to sell readers on a lot, that these characters (outside of our SIs) were still some flavor of canon. especially, "who is the core of tim drake?" and yeah, he's so not fucking normal. but he's not obviously wacky, either.

​out of order now i don’t remember chapter numbers: when jason showed up like a huge asshole i texted my friend about it. very much “he WOULD fucking do that but by god is it PISSING ME OFF” and it was!! love that genuinely. might not be what was intended but i do think he IS odd and sad and unable to move through the cycle of grief fully enough to show back up like a haunting and not expect it to get to allie like that. zero ability to understand how loved he is. 10/10 more...

GAH to know you texted abt our fic!!!! 🥹🥹🥹 best praise tbh. and the second sell: how is jason an asshole but worth rooting for later? or at least, allowed into the enclosure lol. we might not have had it summarized as neatly as you did, but roz and i are in full agreement you Read jason here. that's exactly what we wanted, that's so much of what we take from his character in various canons.

allie reminds me of a bobcat which feels weird to say but she’s so nonthreatening outwardly and she minds her business but the second someone steps in on her people it’s like Oh. oh right. teeth and claws. when jason showed back up i felt so much for her. there was no way for her to move. korvin acts in ways similar to me, which i will examine on my own time and not in your comments. i do love how everyone in this house has their own preferred flavor of Avoidance

you also have such a read on allie, i love it. i'll leave her to roz but i'll say my piece that i sometimes get bummed that korvin's so obviously wacky + a lot of gender stuff at play (the audience/demographic of ff readers, we live in a society and all that) that make more ppl focus on korvin over allie whereas they're both equally wack. and korvin's behavior makes the most sense when taken as a convoluted male re-socialization of someone initially female-socialized but rewarded in a male-dominated space. AND both of them are AuDHD, word of god putting that out there. add on the isekai brainworms, and yeah, isekai is just an extended analogy for masking → hence the different flavors of avoidance

tim is somehow the most well-adjusted in this regard, before jason shows up maybe, and thats so crazy. tim drake. Tim Drake ????comparatively well-adjusted to anyone ??? i know i’m forgetting something so i’ll come back but writing that down genuinely through me off a little bit. lol

you also recognize that jason ranks above tim in "well-adjusted" here, god, how does it feel to be so correct. and tim is well-adjusted here! he's never had to be a vigilante! but he's also much lonelier than in canon. something that made retrospective sense while we were writing is that he fell out of liking ball sports (despite not being a desk nerd) is that...who does he have to enjoy them with in this au?

threw not through. anyway I FORGOT ABOUT RUTABAGA. I AM SO SORRY RUTABAGA. the amount of love between the characters is so important to me bc it’s always there no matter how fucked the bats are about showing it normally. the brownstone does end up feeling like a safe space like it somehow feels so easy most of the time and then when tangential forces (sorry dick) show up it’s like the air changes. but allie and korvin and tim all have such Personalities its insane it works out like that.

RUTIE BEST GIRL, forgiven lol. YES YES YES there is so much love and it's like, the love doesn't stop you from doing the work. the bats are so fucked up, and we only get a glimpse of dick and korvin's relationship where you can see the maladapted consequences on both of their parts, dick not being fully equipped to "raise" korvin and korvin wanting to be easy/convenient for dick. and korvin's deep-seated not-abandonment issues tied with family and cultural trauma/burden.

(i still stand by the "good older brother dick grayson" tag, he's just. oh there's a lot. if you read between the lines there's so much being implied for TPAC)

but having allie in this 'verse, allie and korvin together ground each other. that's why they're so co-dependent in the beginning (it's healthier at the end), that's why they still had the wherewithal to seek an outside friend, and yes, that is why the brownstone is like that. their place that they made with their own hands.

obviously jason was an issue initially (it felt redundant to write that sentence) but he’s such a necessary part of them by being 1) necessary to allie and 2) the catalyst allie and korvin needed to end up where they are. i do think ppl that important to each other need one big unavoidable conflict to avoid stagnation like obviously he was a necessary part of the story but he was a Necessary Part Of The Story. does this make sense?? four strand braid.

AND YES DUDE you literally. we were writing this and we had the vibe, but we literally did not articulate it to each other until the very end that jason's actually necessary to make all of them normal. i love everything you're saying about needing one unavoidable conflict to resolve. he is part of a four strand braid. it's so strong. it's critical. korvin still finds jason annoying and vice versa. and yet they'd both say the household contains all of them by the end.

i just like that they start off alone and end up together. that’s my thing. jigsaw puzzle. polycule of all time. i can’t think of a way in which another person would ever get that close to them the dynamics are so perfect to me. every need is accounted for. its like a perfect little box in my mind. i think thats it for now lol i’m happy you guys write together. not just bc i love it but also bc it’s so clear u guys have fun doing it and that makes me happy <3

WE MADE IT. it's one thing to prescribe "hey guys this is a polycule" but selling it? the logistics of a polycule? not so easy, and it has to be tailored to the situation and characters. not all of them are romantically/sexually involved, nor do they have straight-forward relationships (hence, qpr), so having you say it fits and they seem seamless is like. top tier praise. coherence, it's everything we've aimed for.

thank you for all of your thoughts! we do have tons of fun and that's why we love sharing what we have! and we hope to keep doing projects like this, or we'll just be at each other's side while we work on our individual fics.

[shinjisdone]

More Female MC brain rot thoughts pls?🤲🥺

I take it for TWST? Ngl my brainrot is running low...mostly because imo being female in twst is just a little "difference" for characters and Settings where these differences are valued/seen and therefore treated differently. No one would outwardly be different or not in character just because you or MC is female.

MUST PROTECC GIRL BCUZ THEY GIRL:

Ace (ur his best friend and the school is filllled with jerks who'd see u being a girl in NRC is a reason to bother u for. Course he gotta protect you! Would not treat u differently)

Deuce (is aware how vicious bullies can become when they see an "anomaly" around to feel powerful of. He was one himself. Also tends to think that Girls just need protection in general. Gets real serious and panicky real quick when u are in trouble. Will beat ppl up for you)

Riddle (confused on why ppl are/would be bothering you??? Do they not have manners??? Will not treat you differently, let alone not follow the rules, but is aware that you might have a hard time as the only female. Will make sure you aren't bothered and follow the rules but expects you to give your best just like any other student)

Trey (very chill. Knows you might have a hard time and rather indirectly lends a shoulder. Is emotional Support unlike Riddle who would cuff anyone who is mean to you)

Jack (a good boy who hates the injustice in this school in general. Just looks out for you but wouldn't be in your face like ADeuce)

Azul (once he takes a liking to you of course. Will Trick ppl and condemn them to a 'poor unfortunate soul' by having them work in Monstro Logue and give you free Drinks served by the bullies (once ☝️ the next one u will pay))

Malleus (he would protect u regardless but end up believing that women need to be protected ALL the time just cuz u got in trouble ONE TIME (and then another...and another...) and will kinda hover over ur shoulder as ur??? Protector???)

Sam (looks out for you and is ready to lend and ear but it'll cost ya)

Vargas (No STUDENT SHALL FEEL UNWELCOMED, HE WILL DO EVERYTHING TO HAVE U FIT IN)

YOURE A GIRL? HAW-HAW:

Leona (While he does respect women, he likes to make fun of you SO MUCH. Its too tempting, too funny, too entertaining. He won't disrespect you and will talk more normaly with you than others but when he sees an opportunity to make fun of you? He seizes it, be prepared.)

Ruggie somewhat (Like, he's not scared of you. Will always put up a front of being strong and in a group and if he needs you to fear him or not take him too lightly and targeting you based on your gender will help him get there, he will use the opportunity to be mean.)

Floyd (not in a mean-spirited way but more like a 'OMG a girl in an all-boys-academy! Thats so funny! Hey, hanging out with you must be interesting, right?' Just teases you to get you riled up, nothing personal.)

Jade (also just to rile you up but less mean and direct than Floyd. Just wants to have fun with you.)

Crowley (would sometimes make jokes and think theyre funny - they are not and Ace tells him off)

MAY DAY MAY DAY, A GIRL HAS ENTERED THE CHAT:

Idia (first goes HUUHH??? what are YOU doing here???? But will calm down. Girls aren't super scary but he is sure to keep his distance just like he does with everyone else.)

Rook (more fascinated than anything. You being here must be fate! Ah, he shall watch you very closely to see what your destiny has in store.)

I literally do not care:

Jamil (he has so much on his plate that meeting you for the first time will just have him raise a brow before returning to his food umbothered. He already has to deal with Kalim dont become a Problem child too.)

Kalim (Will go 'Oh!' Before promptly bot caring that you are a girl. So what? Friends are friends and he wants to be yours!)

Vil (just...dont care. Hes got his business to take care of and not enough time to take a look at you 💅)

Epel (is kinda surprised but then just is not and wont care but will protect you when you need him. It makes him feel STRONK and MANLY.)

Ortho

Silver (would notice it and promptly fall asleep after)

Lilia

Sebek (*grabs by the neck, shaking u* HUMAN IS HUMAN AND A NUISANCE TO WAKA-SAMA)

Cater I think wouldnt????

Crewel (puppy is puppy and puppy must O B E Y)

Grim (henchwoman is henchwoman and must give T U N A)

Trein

[diminuel]

Thoughts on your thing with Crocodile not experiencing anxiety or rather comments? I don't know!

Anyway. In being trans you experience, typically, gender dysphoria and gender euphoria. Some trans ppl don't experience heavy dysphoria or experience it only about certain things. Like for a while I got weirdly dysphoric about my nail shape, but I was fine wearing skirts and makeup and not binding. But. Euphoria! It's a thing you experience in being trans. I guess what I mean.

For me, I always had an off feeling, but not much dysphoria. When I was recognized by he/him and male, though, I felt this incredible "high," I guess. As you said, Crocodile doesn't much experience dysphoria, but, I infer, he does feel euphoria. Thus, if what you were asking when you asked for thoughts was, is this how this works/is this somewhat accurate. The answer is that it is an accurate rep for sone trans people! I dont tend to see this way of being trans a lot in media. Anyway, i know you asked for thoughts, and I just really like how you've gone about showing Crocodile so far! And, it's rep i dont see of myself often. :D And sorry if this was a bit long.😭 I'm just excited to see my kinda of tranness being represented cause in media it's largely absolute dysphoria and self-hatred. Anyway, thank you, and even if/when you stop drawing this series or branch out, keep up the awesome work! I love your art a lot. You've got me seriously considering starting supernatural -3-

Thank you for your input! ♥♥

As you said, I think there are many different stories you can tell about trans characters and maybe the way I'm doing Crocodile isn't great for everyone, but if it resonates with some people that makes me happy~

I also just really like doing explorations of concepts of being a woman/ mother in particular worlds, how those ideas can or must be rejected, when there's space to embrace them, etc etc. I think an exploration of Crocodile where the change to male wasn't motivated entirely because of gender identity, but other things, such as the discomfort and danger of being a woman out on the sea as compared to the danger of being a man out on the sea etc etc, is also interesting. Though I don't know if that would still be a trans!Crocodile exploration and not rather just a female!Crocodile one?

P.S Yes, watch Supernatural, I can only recommend it! It's of course an entirely different genre, but it's really interesting. It was the first TV show I really watched and got into fandom for that wasn't anime >w<

And after One Piece with its over 1000 chapters and episodes, you are well equipped to get through 15 seasons of Supernatural ;D

[shen-daozhang]

ooh i saw your tags in the post about ppl hating female characters for the same things they love about male characters, and i thought about sqt vs jgy, so i wonder what you think about both of them! (if you feel like answering! it's not like a 1:1 comparison)

*vibrating* Yea I like those characters a normal amount why do you ask!! (Also I had a super busy week at work and I kept thinking about this ask and monologuing about it in my head, so thank you for the enrichment in my enclosure)

(very messy thoughts incoming!)

Ngl, I never considered how they are similar until this ask, and there are a lot of ways that they are! A background that includes abuse, being seen as less-than for the circumstances of their birth (SQT as a Butterfly Boned Beauty Feast, JGY as an illegitimate son of a sex worker), both gravitate towards powerful men to protect themselves, both are navigating the confines of society trying to move upwards, again, in order to protect themselves. Also both use torture (or at least the 0.5 timeline SQT does)! So that's a fun little similarity.

Now, a big difference is there is the element of revenge in JGY's actions on top of the base need to survive (and a desire to thrive in a world that looks down on you), and I think considering his intelligence he would have gotten away with his plans if not for the completely buckwild re-introduction of WWX back into the plot after his death. I personally think SQT is just focused on survival, and even when she is cruel to Chu Wanning in the 0.5 timeline, I believe she does so because considering TXJ's own treatment of CWN she thinks that is want he wants, and doing so will improve her standing with him (which, sidebar, I am always floored by people who hate on SQT for hurting CWN while they woobify TXJ). Her accusation of Ye Wangxi is only done in an attempt to survive, and I think should be viewed in the lens of the danger that Mo Ran's planted evidence places her in - she's a known Beauty Feast and you know in the world of Erha the second she is out from the protection of Nangong Si her life is likely literally over.

SQT is also just not as smart as JGY, which isn't a slight towards her, JGY is obviously brilliant on many fronts. But I think there is an element of SQT batting above her level, and that leads to her downfall in both timelines. Another glaring similarity is the fandom reaction to them and their actions being a smidge... shall I kick the hornets nest and say hypocritical especially when compared to the actions of the main character? Or other characters in the story who get woobified? (I will also throw Ye Bingchang from Till the End of the Moon into this category). At the end of the day, they are people who are just trying to survive in a deeply messed up world in the only way they know how. Now! Are they both innocent of any wrong-doing because of this? Of course not! That's what makes them interesting and why I gravitate towards these types of characters. The TL;DR: of this is essentially, "people doing fucked up stuff to survive in a world where you have to do fucked up things to survive? It's more likely than you think!"

I will say the fandom's feelings towards JGY has chilled a bit lately, but people were nasty towards him back in the day. Unfortunately, people still are towards SQT and I don't see that changing. I actually ended up including her in my 0.5 fic because I was tired of seeing fics that she either didn't appear at all OR was killed off in a way that was obviously done with malice on behalf of the author. Now she uh doesn't meet a happy end in either of my fics where she features but she's actually a character I really enjoyed writing, and I hope I did it with some sense of sympathy.

There was more I wanted to say but this is already long so I shall post this before it withers further in my drafts! <3

Also gonna link my own fics in case anyone is curious since I mentioned them. SQT appears as a character in this one here - my take on "hanahaki but worse" which has a sad ending - and her death is an inciting incident in this one, an AU where Chu Wanning is the one who got the flower and has become a zealot trying to cleanse the cultivation world (a WIP but I will finish it!).

[andros-paidophonoio]

My take on TSOA and Miller in general just to put it out there is that I like her writing and the way she describes a kind of idyllic, kind of proto paradisial love, it is very evocative and shows a very elegant and intimate presentation of affection in a way that I can see why ppl resonate with it. And the difference between her and some works attempting to imitate that style is....pretty stark lol. I think the stories are executed well in what they are going for, it's just that what is being executed--the approach to comfort and romance, the particular fantasy and desire being displayed is not something that suits my personal tastes or general approach to stuff at all. And this doesn't have to do necessarily even with historical or mythological "accuracy" but more how the stories themselves work for me, as works within their own universes.

(Some of my breakdown of my opinions under the cut. It's not "hate" bc I genuinely do not hate or even really dislike the works. I'm more trying to express my personal thoughts, and I'm happy when I do read things that make me have a lot of thoughts. Also I talk once again about Til We Have Faces)

I think what gets me about both books and the depiction of the ideal love vs cruel world etc is that they are stories that want to believe in the Inherent Internal Goodness of the characters despite their actions and seeks to kind of justify them morally by emphasizing their vulnerability and kindness in the society and world. Which is fine and all, but one thing that I personally find interesting is when one can be interested in and sympathize with characters but also you can see the way they hold and exercise and exploit power over others. Especially in historical settings. I get that especially for more romantic genres, there's a need for some handwaving of this so we can focus on happiness and arc of the focus characters, but it feels honest to me if they're appropriately terrible and unlikeable at times.

I get the fantasy that's kind of being presented is wanting to Be Good and Just and Beloved and have a blissful harmonious familial dynamic but that being in conflict with The Society...if I had to sum it up its very much that 2010s Tumblr "We Deserve a Soft Epilogue my Love" sentiment. Along with a desire and and love for men who are gentle and well-meaning and who have primarily *emotional* reciprocating expression... I get it ...but once again it doesn't really dig deeply into the discomfort of certain dynamics aside from the more acceptable "we must identify with the protagonist so they must be the Persecuted, and those outside are the Persecutors" aka the Homophobic/Toxic Masculinity/Rapist archetypes who are out there, Other.

Personally, after I read and was thinking about these books for a while I pulled out my copy of Til We Have Faces and revisited that. Now, I'm biased bc it's one of my favorite books, but it strikes me a lot as an interesting book to read parallel to Circe. Both retelling a classic myth from the perspective of an antagonistic figure, where a female character is regarded as ugly and abject (and a big source of the abjection coming from an abusive, powerful father) and because of that abjection, find and take comfort in other sources of power and influence. The stories are very different of course in both intention, but I felt like one thing I liked about TWHF is how it allowed its main character, Psyche's ugly stepsister Orual, to both be a rejected figure and one who suffers, but also show well, the way she also exercises privileges and power over people. She is treated terribly, rejected from being gendered as a desirable "woman" and a woman's role bc of her ugliness (while also being denigrated for being a woman), she desires love she has been denied violently, and it's not surprising that she acts in unsympathetic and judgmental ways. Throughout all this, She is also a princess, and later queen who believes she is descended from the gods, and in her society controls and sometimes takes the lives of her slaves, servants, and subjects. There is no contradiction; one can be a victim and also Lord power over others that you do not even realize. Her story and emotional journey is very interesting because it does not shy away from this complexity and discomfort, and it presents a world that is (in that novel, fictitious) but feels very ancient and alien in its practices and values.

In contrast, the worlds of Circe, Circe is not really given a chance to exercise power uncomfortably over anyone in the same way--she does do her cool Witch Behaviors but they are always Justified Actions, against once again The External Persecutors --violent rapist men, or Heartless gods. We don't need to face the discomfort of what it would mean for her to say, have attendants or servants or have a kind of hierarchy or what it means to. She basically Bootstraps herself into her power and is the Underdog the whole time.

Similarly in tsoa, we are presented with the kind and peace-loving Patroclus who is once again the Persecuted (by this time the External Homophobic Mom lol), and it goes out of its way to show his empathy with the womensuffering and the pain at The Society that causes the forbidden love to be forbidden. And maybe all this dancing around makes it easier for the average person to identify with the main characters bc whew who would want to identify with anyone who does anything BAD or in any way right???

But the thing is for me is that maybe we DONT "deserve" the Soft Epilogue, maybe, like Orual, we as people are a mix of shitty and exploitative in ways we refuse to acknowledge, even as we are tormented by our own Persecutors and traumas and lack of power in our lives and etc. but that doesn't mean u can't desire and seek happiness or be someone interesting and worth empathizing with... Idk I'm just not interested in the artistic tendency to want the character to be The Good Person, and the way we show someone is The Good Person is to show How Persecuted They Are, to be worth understanding and loving.

That's just my insta-thoughts, may expand later (I would like to write a more in depth analysis of TWHF bc I'm tired of the Very Christian analysis being the only one) but yeah. Idk in how this translates to my fanwork or whatever I'm not interested in justifying anything anyone does or "defending" or attacking faves. I'm interested in what I'm interested in, and it won't always line up with everything else. But that's ok, there's always room for different things, I'm carving out my spot of fun here like everyone else.

[demonsfate]

Seen Pucca talking about this and I figure it's a good time for me to share my RP server horror story. Pucca's experience reminded me why I don't ever join servers at all anymore. Okay, so I was a part of this DC server (directed toward a specific franchise but y'all probs know what it is if you know my other blog) and my GOD. It was wild. One thing, people weren't all that interested in threading with me. And usually when my muse does get acknowledged, he's either treated like the butt of the joke or for ppl to "put down." (Understandable in a way since the comics themselves do that to the poor guy. But my characterization was a very serious one that I wished people would respect)

My character brags, he gets put down, my character jokes about something, he gets put down, my character gets jealous - feelings don't matter. And it'd be one thing if these were how the characters would realistically react to mine. But then there was one of the mod's characters, and he had very similar traits to mine - arrogant and all that. Except... every muse hyped him up. For some reason when my muse brags, arrogance is bad. But when this muse bragged, arrogance good. Clearly it's a bias for the mod - who was a real big problem themselves but I'll get into that shortly.

Then there was a problem with a guy who was clearly jealous of a ship I had - they tried to do all they can to catch my ship partner's attention and try to "woo them". This eventually lead into a kind polyamorous thing which I didn't want because my muse, being a super jealous type, wouldn't so easily enter one. And again, when he expressed that, he got put down. And tbf, a lotta this arise from a proper lack of plotting with the ship partner, but it still stressed me tf out.

The mod I mentioned before was a huge jerk. They clearly had a lotta money (which is probs another reason why everyone "worshipped" them) and then like a snobby rich person, they put down everyone who buys anything "cheaper". They spend HUNDREDS, sometimes even THOUSANDS, on those ball joint dolls. Then they openly teased (made fun of) me for buying cheaper figures. Even though it's like, my current mental and physical state does not allow me to work rn and also? Even if I could? Not all of us are in a position where we can afford to buy pricey af dolls. Go fuck yourself.

What I'm about to talk about is a little controversial but. A trans woman wanted to play a "gender-bend" version of a male character (but as a female) and basically the cis people gained up on her to tell her how bad she is for that and everything. She gave her reason, that playing male characters makes her dysphoric and whatnot, but then they asking her why she wants to write the character despite the fact she gave her reason over and over again. It basically ended with her apologizing after being bullied for it and saying she won't do it. This one, of course, is a touchy topic but the fact that cis people were talking over a trans person flabbergasted me.

OH YEAH, and after that... somebody wanted to "brighten the mood" so sb @ me to give facts about my character, since I was hyperfixating hard and knew so much about them (y'all know how passionate I get!) and then this other fucking person starts GUILTRIPPING ME???? acting like I'M bad because that person was interested in my muse?? And THEY start going on about how nobody cares about theirs and how I'm ""lucky""?? Despite the fact they had WAY MORE threads than I did at the time??? Like literally wtf!

And finally... the weirdest fucking thing... nude posting. Despite the fact that this is a DC RP SERVER, almost EVERYONE started posting their nudes??? Some even posting videos OF THEM GETTIGN FUCKED BY THEIR SPOUSES?! Like it's so wild, it's almost hard to believe it was real. Like I knew I felt like I was on drugs when I saw what was happening. Eventually that same mod came back and even they were like "uhhh?? guys??? Maybe let's not post our nudes in a server full of STRANGERS?? You never know what weirdos might be here??" and then that's when people stopped. But it was like... holy shit. I just never saw that happened before??? These weren't even ppl with OnlyFans or something. It was just so bizarre. And I'm ok if ppl are fine with showing off their naked bodies and stuff if they wanna. But is a RP group really the appropriate place??? Especially when there's nothing inherently sexual about the server??? Like it felt highly inappropriate to me and just weird.

It got to the point where the original creator of the server (a mutual of mine) told me how nervous the place made them and how they don't feel comfortable going on. They thought it was their fault but then I explained that it is a horrible place full of toxicity and everything. They left the server, and eventually, so did I. This isn't the only reason why I don't join RP servers anymore. There was also another where whenever I spoke about my headcanons for my character, another person who rps that character would get so fucking upset and basically try to change the topic or get me to stop talking. Or straight up say they don't agree. OR when I point out how one of my "headcanons" IS canon, they literally called original writer STUPID! (Therefore calling me stupid too because I abide by that canon???) And one time when we agreed on something they said "omg I can't believe we finally agree on something!!" and made a big deal out of it and I literally told them we didn't have to agree on anything, that our takes are supposed to be unique to oursevles and it's something they shouldn't have to worry about (or get upset about lmao) and I've had other bad experiences, but this server was just the Worst. I think there are more bad moments too, but this is all I can remember rn.

[acourtofthought]

as a hardcore gwynriel shipper... I don't want Az anywhere near Gwyn, does that make sense?

"Try it, pretend you're Gwyn right now and have a crush on Az. But then imagine that you hear how he yearns for Mor while simultaneously jerking off to Elain's headache powder and flippantly talking about killing an ally because that ally got a bond with the third sister while his brothers are with the other two."

Like Jesus he really needs a big glow up for me. Like that anon I don't understand the hype for Azriel either and I'm not one of those ppl who wants to do the opposite of being hype and act all different on something that is hyped, no. I always want to be hyped like rest of the fandom but honestly I don't understand this one lmao. I was all confused after finishing the books and I was like this is your man? Really?

Gwyn is in top five of my fav sjm female characters, I adore her sm and I can't wait for her book if sjm wants to dive into her character so I gotta protect my baby first!! STAY AWAY FROM HER AZ!!!

I get it!

I think there are some of us who know Gwyn and Az will be good together, it's clear based on the interactions they've had and the fact that they're both competitive and while loving their friends and family, still enjoy keeping to themselves at times in quiet, shadowy places. It's also hard to ignore that his shadows respond to Gwyn is a way that's adorable to read about.

The argument doesn't even need to be, "they're afraid of Elain" or "they don't like Elain" because his shadows do all sorts of things with all sorts of people (despite Az telling us they vanish when she's around).

Really, the only thing we need to know about his shadows is that regardless of what they do with everyone else, Gwyn is the ONLY one they've responded to in the way they have. Curiosity, playfulness, singing in answer to her song.

It doesn't matter if they like or don't like Elain, they've never been playful with her the way they have with Gwyn and that's major.

We know Az is ending up with someone so it's clear to see who his match is and support that match because it's a good setup.

If I focus on the potential than it's easy to ship Gwynriel. But when I stop at look at the current reality, there are way too many hens in Azriel's henhouse and the Az right now needs to be far away from Gwyn until he gets his head on right.

I'm glad Gwyn is in the dark on how he acts around Mor and Elain. I am glad she's never been in the room with Az at the same time as the other two. I'm thankful SJM has written it where Gwyn has separation from all of that because yeesh. It is not pretty and I kind of hate that Gwyn's first romantic encounter of her choosing (unless SJM has her dipping her toes into the dating world with someone else) is with a guy that's got such a messy love life right now. She does deserve better than who Az currently is.

We know that will change and I trust SJM will do her best work to show us that Az is in a better place before moving on with Gwyn.

For now, I am glad he admires her for her hard work and skill. I'm glad he believes in her ability to make it through the Rite. I'm glad he found her irreverence charming and wants her to be happy.

But I am REALLY glad he's not shown any sexual / romantic interest in her yet (I still think he's clueless as to why the thought of Gwyn's happiness made him smile) because I'd like to see his past become his actual past and staying there while he spends a little time not obsessing over females before their story picks up.

[visionthefox]

I totally agree I hated Earth at the beginning same reasons as you pointed out in your post. Right now I feel she is getting better BUT why is she giving g therapy to his family? The only ones I find ok are Foxy and Roxanne (but still have my doubts because they are friends(?)).

I don’t know why people think that by hating a female character is immediately saying like “you don’t like women” or things like that. It’s weird besides during the whole run of SAMS Earth has been the only female, until Pollux got introduced but she is a secondary character that rarely appears.

Also in the Lunar and Earth show were Lunar is supposed to be a main character he gets pushed to being a side character and have Earth be the center of the episode or just Earth and Monty. Like the dynamic started good at the beginning both getting same screen time and what not (i do understand that the VA’s can get sick or get occupied since they have lives outside the RP channel) but idk maybe wishful thinking but I want Lunar to be main and earth too.

yesyes! like, ok, one thing they say is truth- she was the FIRST famale, character to be added into the cast, and people ran to "hate spam" so much so Davis felt the need to talk on this twitter - I remember it still.. (idk if the post is still up but ye) (also I never actually saw any hatefull comment? if anything jokes and mean comments but to the character, never the VA??) so like, thats one point, BUT! the situation! imagine if -say, EC had to talk to us? as ask us to trust the process whet the CODE stared to be sentient? not another AI, like Eclipse CLEARLY is, (left over data, is not the same as a line of code! isnt it?) imagine then. the HATE KC would have had.. and what? ppl hate man now? because they would have a evil evil male or say- they them villain? no. then why is this the case with someone who was FORCED into the show! sure, she can be a nice change of vibe, the wholesomeness the show needed when done right. she doesnt have to be sonething she is clearly not even close to be! she doesnt need to be a professional?! let her be the kind bestie, the soft woman who listen to you, that one person who accept is not wise, but is there for others! that!! works better! the fact ppl say "oh I want x to have a therapy session with Earth!" is so weird... she is clearly not a therapist.. let her be a emotional support! that too, I get it, SAMS has too many characters, is why Lunar had to be moved- works in lore and for the cast. is more money, and respecting his old mention of needing space.. now.. this was HIS idea, HIS channel..in a way.. he is like Sun.. they wanted a excuse to be seen and hear, yet thet got pushed aside..

[destinyc1020]

Hey Destiny We swoon over Tom and the way he talks about Z the little smile that breaks when he’s answering question about her, that boy is down bad. Now we’ve followed Z for awhile so we know she’s equally down bad just better with interviewers when answering questions but IYKYK. Is there a part of you that would like her to let her guard down and spill nothing profound or anything like that just forget herself and spill😂

😄 haha....

Well, tbh, I try to respect whatever celebrities choose to disclose about their private life and what they choose NOT to disclose.

I know that as a fan, my only job really is to just support an actor's work, and that's pretty much it? 🤷🏾‍♀️

I don't HAVE to know the inner workings of everyone's private rlshp, especially if they choose to be private about their personal life.

With that said, I've already felt like Z has already spoken pretty candidly about Tom? Idk if it's just cuz she is shy and more reserved than him that ppl just don't pick up on it, but Z has been talking about Tom since the 1.0 era.

She's talked about how he's a "great dude", "the nicest guy", how he can basically do anything he sets his mind to doing, how he's the one who makes her "the happiest", how he's her "celebrity crush", how he's the one who she texts first when she wins an award, etc. 🥰

I feel like she talks about him quite a bit actually!

We might be getting a little more insight into her feelings about Tom (and just rlshps in general) with "Challengers" press interviews since that film (and her character) deals more with adult male/female dynamics when it comes to love and rlshps than say maybe Euphoria.

We'll have to wait and see! (I know, I know lol 😆)

But if she chooses NOT to disclose anything about Tom, then that's fine also. 🤷🏾‍♀️

I'm honestly fine with whatever ppl choose to disclose. We already know they're super happy and in love. We don't need them to spell it out for us lol 😆

[mirandahamilton]

what were your thoughts on seven kings must die?

LOADED ass question lol

controversial mayhaps but i liked it well enough! in the sense that i was entertained, and i did get some satisfaction from my viewing experience.

positives:

i really loved the updated intro/credits!

finan's narration was a cool change

the acting! it was all hitting for me :) i think harry especially did a great job, imo he had the most character work to do and i really felt his conflict (maybe this is gay bias but idc). the new actress for eadgifu did a really good job as well, her character was consistent and i enjoyed her interactions with uhtred

the action sequences were very well done and i loved the battle

sets, costumes, hair/makeup...all looked great!!

the ending! loved the callback, and although i wish we'd seen more charcaters in valhalla ik most of the actors weren't available so it's cool. really enjoyed the ambiguity. althoooooough unlike most ppl i don't think uhtred went to valhalla at the end (would love to chat/debate on this one)

uhtred getting stabbed at the final battle....lowkey i was emotional esp when sihtric and finan found him and he was serving cunt dead

aethelflaed shoutout :( miss my wife and i think they did the female characters so dirty but i would have turned it off if they went to aegelesburg without even namedropping the queen

i really enjoyed osbert & edmund being besties (BUT their stories should have been more developed)

i go into my critique below lol but i won't apologize for unironically vibing with the catholic guilt evil homosexual drama. in many ways it hit for me and i shan't be issuing an apology

i loooooooved the new locations, especially the shetland islands

problematizing the christians 🙏

negatives:

WHERE the abject fuck were any of the women characters???????? STIORRA? hild? aelfwynn? aelswith?? eadith???????? like??? not even a shoutout????? make it make sense. this was the most offensive thing for me and i won't be getting over it anytime soon thanks

i wish we'd heard something about cynlaef and aelfwynn!!! wasn't he like besties with aethelstan?? would have been so easy to make it work smh

pacing :/ it was impossible to tell how the story was meant to be moving through a concrete sense of time. a quick look at the wikipedia for king aethelstan shows that there were years between his coronation and the battle of brunanburh, yet the movie makes it seem like from beginning to end the story takes less than a year? and it's also unclear how much time has supposedly past since the end of s5. it started off pretty slow, but regardless i was admittedly engrossed by the halfway mark

sloppy evil gay drama :/// like in some ways. listen. i am not complaining lol. but i think it would have worked much better with more breathing room. ingilmundr was just so clearly intro'd as a villain, and i would have preferred seeing some more subtlety and cunning over a period of time, plus some actual internal conflict for him. by his last line ("i grew fond of you, but my love for my people prevailed") it seems as though he did have some genuine affection for aethelstan, and even though he completed his mission in the end i wish there'd been more depth there.

also, fwiw and as other people have said, unhinged to go 5 seasons with no queer characters only to haphazardly throw a couple in the follow up film...and have them be villains!!! gay people CAN be villainous lmao but idk how intentional they were being about any of this

overall just felt rushed. there were a lot of parts that would have benefited from some breathing room and dramatic build up. plus we didn't get to connect with a lot of the characters, and the writers were relying on viewers to care based on the tv series -- mostly fine for our mains like uhtred & co, but a real disservice to the newer characters. even finan and sihtric didn't do much besides follow uhtred around, which is par for the course but i wish they'd had individual arcs. ingrith's death didn't hit that hard bc she barely had lines. aelfweard's too, and he needed to be built up as more of a threat (even tho his death is mainly supposed to serve as a character moment for aethelstan).

hollow villains! i wrote abt ingilmundr above, but anlaf and astrid were so 1 dimensional. and the writers could have tried a little harder lbr. and let astrid SPEAK

ALDHELM. ok. his death was such a waste. james did an incredible job, but it felt so meaningless. oooh ah uhtred was upset. but he was upset already? and it didn't make him turn his back on aethelstan????? so tell me quickly what did we accomplish

aethelstan's redemption....i feel like he went from being a villain to back to besties with the squad in 2 seconds and i think it should have been fleshed out more. like i'm fine with them reuniting and i was rooting for it but i think we could have gotten more of aethelstan realizing his mistakes and showing remorse, and demonstrating that he has changed -- uhtred will probably always have his back, but besides Realizing Things he didn't really do anything to show that he has grown and prove that he's different and better than edward -- this was an issue throughout the movie, but it stands out the most with him since his actions drive most of the plot

no offense but where tf did uhtred get his little army from

[kidflashimpulse]

You notice how the author of Dark Crisis YJ does everything that the villain in Dark Crisis Young Justice does as well. Rewriting the past of the YJ to be more bigoted. Check. Using female characters as props/centering them around male characters. Check. Ignoring and not caring about POC characters/treating them badly. Check.

!!!!!!!!!!!! now THIS is the meta commentary meghan wishes she could achieve LOL

all this time it was a self insert but as the villain omg

i wish meghan could see this how can i @ her meghan fitzmartin pls self reflect

the thing is, at first when the series was being published i didn’t want to be too critical of her. I wasn’t too familiar with her work (as in i usually don’t keep track of all the comics that i read and their specific authors especially cause of the nature of binge reading oops) but its not exactly a secret that being a woman within a classically male dominated field isn’t the easiest thing in the world. It’s horrible that genuine criticism can be taken and twisted into something that could put the chances of continuing to support women/marginalised ppl in these work spaces at risk and is an unfortunate thing that needs to be considered.

But i also think it makes it all the more important for people especially within these spaces to also self reflect over their own biases and internalised misogyny. Not to be self righteous or over having a moral high ground, but because it perpetuates good/healthy practice for people to adopt. These things have a trickle down effect.

From this series alone and what i’ve read others mention with respect to her previous writing, it seems to be a recurring thing that she keeps using female characters as plot props. This is a problem because she’s supposed to be able to cover social topics (from what i’ve seen when ppl were first optimistic about her handling yj dc) where intersectionality is very much a thing and clearly something she has no grasp of because her own bias loudly comes across in her own writing.

sorry for this unwarranted think piece lol, i just think it’s a shame that the series ended up like that, oh well lol

[epickiya722]

I really wanted to say something abt it, as you brought up how ppl seem to want Toga and Ochako to fight over Deku.

It reminds me of when some bkdks say that "If one of them was a girl, nobody would bat an eye and say that they are canon right away", and while i think that's true to some degree, i think things wouldn't change that much if Katsuki was the girl, specifically. At least, not when it comes to this group.

Bc, Kacchan is somehow controvertial over him being a schoolyard bully and insicure kid, and the fandom blowing it WAY out of proportion. I think that would happen the same way if he was a girl, but now added a much thicker layer of mysogyny.

Bc then they would most definitely pit him against Uraraka, just like they do to Toga, and be as horribly sexist as one can possibly be. Bc just like Toga, he wouldn't fit the perceived "perfectly sweet, wholesome submissive wife" role that they want Uraraka to be in so badly.

I'm saying this reminds me of what you said, bc this group, (made all basically of men), don't hate togachako and bkdk just bc they're homophobes, no, they actually hate any ship that have these two with other characters.

Bc they also have a twisted want for mha to insert in some harem shit between any girl Deku has a any interaction with so they can project onto him as the protagonist surrounded by women, and in the end be satisfied with seeing Uraraka become the pretty, submissive housewife bc that's her job as the nice main girl.

So if anyone else has a genuine shot with Deku or Uraraka, it breaks that illusion that this is what they are going to get, no matter what. And that's what they are used to getting.

Absolutely agree, Anon!

I feel like if Katsuki was a girl, there would be that group of people who would call her a bitch and "she and Izuku wouldn't work out" and definitely would view Katsuki as too "dominating" due to personality.

I hate this for several reasons because if you're shipping IzuOcha because you view Uraraka as the "perfect, submissive little wife" and that's it, you are not a true fan of her.

Like no one who is a genuine fan of her would look at her as just some "wife" for Midoriya because she's "meek and sweet".

First off, she's not "meek and submissive". Uraraka isn't a shy character. She's a lot more outgoing and social than Midoriya himself is. This is the same girl who even decided to do her internship with GUNHEAD, a Pro Hero named GUNHEAD.

Yes, she is a sweet soul. Yes, she is kind. But Uraraka isn't meant to be a girl that should be viewed as submissive because she is a nice girl. On Midoriya’s part, it's like saying he must be with her because "that's what a real man would do". He can't be with a guy, he can't have emotions. He can't cry. It's the only way some of these "fans" will actually like Midoriya. If he "gets his girl" at the end. Even though the story never was about them like that. Hell, if it was, Uraraka would have been introduced in the first episode and Midoriya would have some monologue about liking her or she is seen admiring him from afar behind some trees.

They don't care for his or Uraraka's characters like that.

Sexist and misogynistic, indeed!

Second, damn, can these kids like finish school first? We really need a timeskip where they're married? Like they can't beat the bad guys first?

Like I want a graduation timeskip! Ain't this story about how Midoriya and the others become great heroes? Last time I checked, marriage isn't needed for them to be good heroes. If it was a requirement, All Might would have been married.

And the harem thing? Ooooh, the amount of headaches I have probably gotten from going into certain tags on AO3 and here and seeing Midoriya being shipped with every single female character before I can get to the filter and exclude buttons.

I just can't sometimes, Anon.

I know a lot of Shonen and other genres in anime and any other media have certain tropes they use over and over, but sometimes it's nice to break away from said tropes.

Off topic kinda, but speaking of harems and girls, I love how in canon that they girls don't harbor romantic feelings over Midoriya and fight with each other. I also love that while they express Todoroki's pretty boy status, they don't fight over him either. They mention he's handsome and move on. Like I love that right there.

When some common tropes are taken and twisted into something a little more tolerable or feels not so played out.