#but yeah my mcu faves essays

[imogens-temult]

HEWWO i as a friend (wait am i a friend? ) wanna know your top 3 marvel characters but mainly i wanna kn ow wh y. also i love ur gifsets BAI

HEY!!! (yes of couRSE!!!)

OH okay wELL, i’m always bad at the why bc i’ve never been good at explaining myself but okay..

natasha romanoff, my love my life my everything. this was never really a choice, it was like the character chose me, you know when you just connect with a character like they were made to be a part of you? yeah same. (i mean when i have the money my black widow tattoo is happening so like she’s gonna be part of me forever.) also, she happens to be the most badass ever, i mean those SKILLZ, and that killer thigh move murder me now. that scene in the avengers still gets me !!!! every time. the growth she’s gone through. she cares so deeply, just does her damnedest to hide it. slowly beginning to let her guard down with people she’s learnt to trust (also, the emotional wall and the lack of trust thing is so me and i just feel that on a deep level), making friends, finding a family, blossoming to become the best version of herself. the strength she has, her sense of humour, the way she just IS. i could honestly talk about her for hours on end. she just has a special place in my heart. also, i have the biggest weakness for redheads and scarlett so some say this was inevitable. she doesn’t realise how much she’s worth, and how important she is and how LOVED she is. mother and soul of the avengers. the strongest avenger. (y’all know i just started crying)

hope van dyne, oH now where do i even begin. at this point i feel like all my faves choose me. she’s snarky, cute, slight daddy issues, would kick your ass tomorrow if you asked her to teach you how she did it afterwards. oh and she has a giant heart, it’s so big you could probably hear it beating from miles away. her emotions are delicate and she likes to hide that as much as possible, but sometimes you’ve just got to let it out you know?! the way she was always fighting to be the one in the middle of the battle, be the one in the suit, the one taking a stand. she has these strong ass beliefs and wants to be the one trying to do something about it. also, those wings, and her skillz and everything good god she could murder me tomorrow and i’d be very freakin’ grateful. also, my heart can’t take her love for scott. the only het couple that mATTERS.

carol freakin’ danvers, the power she has. i’m mostly just inspired by carol. the “i have nothing to prove to you” line hit me like a brick. sometimes i wish i was like carol, because i spend 95% of my time trying to make people proud of me, or happy, and worrying about what other people think, AND SHE DOESN’T GIVE A DAMN. and that’s one of my favourite things about her. this life was very much forced on her, and the way she deals with it is incredible. her sarcasm and wit is literally everything. also, her friendship with fury is life, and giVE ME CAROL AND MARIA NOW. when she’s trying to discover herself again, and realises that she’s worthy af and she doesn’t need anyones approval, it hit me like a tonne of bricks. i want to be a little bit more like carol danvers. also, she’s so freakin’ powerful, and like honestly that bit in endgame i’m still yelling tbh.

SPECIAL MENTION to my baby boy bruce banner, who if i was any character in the mcu it would probably be him, he has my entire heart and soul. this grumpy, stressed, science geek, that shows all his emotions (by turning green but you know i don’t quite go that far) he has a giant heart, he is so smart, and ridiculous, and clumsy at times and basically i would die for bruce banner, he deserves the world and he was very almost 3rd place and then i felt bad leaving him out of this post to here we are. DAB.

[yelenaisace]

MCU/Marvel Characters Tag Game

thankyou for the tag <33 @meidui

blorbo (favorite character, character I think about the most):

Tony duhhh. I'm not even kidding when I say i can legitimately write an essay on how much I love him <3 + he's the one that got me into MCU/Marvel in general. He's such a complex character and the things that really made me admire him the most are when he conquers his personal demons. One of the things that I love about him the most is that he just tries to be good, and there's just something so inherently human about it that you don't really see in other popular superheroes. And while his actions/decisions may sometimes be vilified by people, I've always empathised with what he does because I (and Steve LOL, see that Captain America/Iron Man Annual (2021) Issue #2) feel that his heart has always been in the right place. I can go on and on about him, but I once saw someone say this about Tony (especially 616!Tony i.e.) is that while all superheroes are willing to risk their lives for a noble purpose, Tony's willing to sell his soul.

(I don't want to flood people's dashboard so)

scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me cuteness aggression, character that is So Shaped):

Yelena <33 honestly I started liking her before Black Widow came out just on the basis that she's canonically asexual in 616 + I saw that Florence Pugh was gonna play her in MCU. And hello??? A badass Russian assassin who can kill people with her bare hands and has the same sexuality as me?? Listen, there's not a lot of asexual characters out there okay, and when they are, they're not exactly in a media that I would want to watch (I literally cannot force myself to watch something just on that basis alone so). While watching Black Widow, I was just so smitten by her!! Look at her, she's so cute!! A squishy lil baby that i wanna cuddle with and give kisses all over her face <33

scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave):

Kate!! Idk, is she underrated? I don't venture out much bc I like being in this stevetony fandom bubble so idk if she is or not <3 but cmon, look at her and how can you not ADORE her?? she has a good sense of humour, she just wants to do her best in helping the people around her and she's so relatable LOLOLOL bc if I were to ever meet Tony (yes ik he's not real, im not actl insane guys even though I've said I am 100000 times), I would NOT be cool also and would just follow him around the same way she did with Clint

glup shitto (obscure fave, character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and I won’t shut up about it for a week) :

DUM-E LOLOLOLOL!! BRUH I WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO SCREAMED WHEN I SAW HIM IN SPIDER-MAN NO WAY HOME OKAY?? You guys can all judge me if you want but I do not care! I have never, ever been happier!!!

poor little meow meow (“problematic”/unpopular/controversial/otherwise pathetic fave):

Wanda. She IS controversial (in MCU) and I get it because of reasons that I wouldn't be able to explain as clearly as someone else (im incoherent 99% of the time). I'd love to be able to say that I have a strong moral compass that points North all the time to be able to not like her, but I can't help but do. I didn't like her before WandaVision, however, I do blame the writers for that and wished they didn't write her MCU origins the way they did!!! UGH!!! But yeah, the part that made me start liking her in Wandavision was that last episode where the townspeople were confronting her for her actions and she was just crying because she finally realised that her actions are hurting people. And I guess im just excited to see where her character arc is going to go, and I'm fine if MCU wants to make it a redemption arc or a corruption arc because (to me) she's complex and interesting enough for it.

horse plinko (character I would torment for fun, for whatever reason):

Tony, of course, horse plinko should always be your blorbo <333 i just love seeing my favourite characters (in whatever fandom) be tormented <333 you think Marvel has tortured him enough? Yeah, well I like to see fic writers hurt him 10x worse bc he suffers beautifully okay? Have u seen those panels of 616!Tony just full-on crying/bleeding/bruised (with a full-on existential crisis to boot) and mcu!tony with the bruises on his face and tears in his eyes??

eeby deeby (character I would send to superhell):

Howard Stark (616!Howard Stark especially), must i elaborate?? lol.

tagging: @thahiree @avengersprotectionsquad @alwaysash13 @dodqerevans and anyone who wants to do it (you can choose the fandom u want to talk about, it doesn't have to be mcu/marvel!)

It's fun reading people's thoughts on characters LOLOL

[fearlessleaderbucky]

bunch of little things from the comics that i like to compare with the mcu to figure out what i would like to see going forward:

it's kind of a bare minimum petition in a way. i'd call this a comparative essay but it's too messy to be an essay so, let's just start LOL... im not actually that well versed in comics im more like "oh yeah i dig this" and run w what i like

first off sam in the mcu i actually really love what they've done with him. might be because i can't help but love sam since he's so damn charming. i guess one glaring difference between comics sam and movies sam is the way they carry themselves—compared to mcu sam, comics sam has been doing this for decades. he is rougher around the edges while having his big heart anyway, which is a really nice contrast and makes sense given how long he's been working as falcon lol. so what are the differences that can be found/how did the mcu adapt some of sam's comic traits?

he's a social worker and a community organizer! he also runs a veteran support group, not that different from sam being a counselor in the mcu. in tfatws it's shown that sam helps sarah whenever he's around in delacroix, in turn helping out the whole community—showing that they're (the wilsons) are very loved by all the members in their community, and this is a very important thing! a connection to a community! a purpose for a character to want to fight for others, to have something they love and protect and make it believable at the same time. it's lovely.

sam's heart being too big and moving people / seeing the best in others carries on super well in the mcu. everyone's familiar with sam giving shelter to stevenat in tws, sam never wanting to fight karli, sam being kind to john, etc. it's a lovely detail and one of my fave things about him so that's also super satisfying :)

so now in terms of sam wilson as a character what would i like to see more? it already started during tfatws when he confronted all those politicians on live tv but cap sam makes the point of not remaining quiet and speaking up, something that usually costs him public approval but he remains strong and tall about what he believes in. not being afraid to take a political stance despite people wanting him to stay neutral.

sam's struggles on wanting to do what's right by him and at the same time having some struggles according to how he's perceived by the public because it's always going to be an important conversation to have and again, this character is not one to shy again from stances like these. when tfatws was coming out lots of people were uncomfortable by how “political” and by the race conversations that took place in the series. i don't think they'd shy away from it anyway but still something i truly wish to see how they handle. esp with a not-white team working on it heh

more moments of sam being truly sure of who he is and killing it bc i love him

sam's connection to his family and how they influence him to be who he is, and sam's own little family composed of joaquín and shaun and redwing (currently just joaquín and redwing in the mcu) to have his own support system besides the guys we already know

just. sam :)

moving onto bucky, mcu bucky is... kind of starting to be his own character at last? like i remember watching tfatws ep 1 and going OMG HE HAS A PERSONALITY so it was a big deal. so it's a bit of a clean slate, right? so here are the things i wish the mcu would implement for bucky but i highly doubt they will but i love to dream anyway:

ideally seeing where the character is right now they could, yes, take an approach to winter soldier 2018 since it fits bucky's current character arc of learning to forgive himself and try to do good.

really want the mcu to stop pushing the white wolf narrative and trying to erase the winter soldier from bucky, seeing as how ed brubaker is responsible for bringing bucky back as the winter soldier and how he feels re:mcu bucky, i feel like the least they could do is let him still keep the winter soldier, just. reclaim the name like in the 2018 run, etc

bucky is a loving character. he just loves so damn much. if comics sam is sharp around the edges but soft inside, bucky is soft around the edges but firm inside. he's not afraid to call sam and nat his best friends when they're captured specifically to lure bucky out

he feels so much for people, he acknowledges the burden and the pain he carries to do better and take back his mistakes, and tries to take care of everybody without ever putting himself first, and endures So much.. talk about being a meow meow

super good with kids somehow?

please mcu give him friends who love him that's all i actually ask from you. bucky is loyal to a nauseating degree. even when sam and nat get captured it was literally illegal for him to break them out but what did he do? break the law, of course,

he's hilarious. for real trust me he's hilarious. like there's something wrong with him (affectionate)

so to sum it up: just dont be afraid to make him kind and loving bc thats where bucky shines most. as for the sambucky dynamic in general i just want them to still be themselves. just like this :)

[bayrut]

SO since you’re the marvel expert here, which marvel movies are good in your opinion? I want a TED talk, please explain yourself with full detail bc ily when you talk about thing you like 💖 (I’m preparing myself to hear some bad takes tho)

ok so hi camila I am currently during a lab meeting so i will be able to finish this essay, but be warned this is,,,, extremely long i hope tumblr even lets me post this. but here are my favorite mcu movies in no particular order. like they’re all good, then i have a tiny section for honorable mentions of some movies that have a certain few good elements but overall are not Good TM. then i have a special mention for The Movie that shaped superhero movies forever (even though it is not my fave). 

If you find this too long and decide to not read that it okay!!! i totally get it. but if you don’t read my reply at least read this:

comic books are like a story and art/visuals right? but the two things that movie makers forget about when adapting a comic book to the screen are exactly that!!! the story and the visuals. they thing that they can make a movie where everyone punches everyone and throw in a few jokes and people will be please (and they are, look at how much money they are making...) but i am not pleased. there is no story, they don’t care about character arc. and the visuals are ugly, the art in comics is supposed to help the story, to help the plot flow, like the fights should tell stories in the way that they’re organized, and the visuals should be breathtaking and serve the plot. and this all is not hard to do like: just hired a good choreographer for the fights and learn how to shoot shots properly and that’s... it. and it has been done before in some of the movies i mentioned and some shows *cough cough* watch daredevil *cough cough* so yeah it is doable but the directors dont care and would prefer to make mindless action movies with jokes and label them as ‘superhero movies’ because they know people will eat that up.

anyway, rant over, these are the best marvel movies: (open at your own risk this is extremely detailed, 4 word pages long and i did not proof read it, it took me over two hours to write)

the best marvel movie of all time must spider-man: into the spider-verse but that’s probably because they spent so many time on it to get it right. also, it’s probably cheating to consider it the best movie, since it’s animated so it does get the whole comic book vibe best automatically. but really the movie is funny, like a spider-man movie should be, the art is beautiful it is Art and honestly anyone that doesn’t think the same can unfollow me. i tried the first time i saw the trailer and also when i watched it in the cinema. Art. although the dialogue is a bit poor, and they did my girls gwen and peni dirty. but john mulaney is in it so!!! definitely one of the superior movies. the art is so beautiful i write and cry about it all the day but the fact that each character is done in a different style, and that the background and scenery is so,,, detailed,,, like it’s beautiful. even besides being a good superhero movie, it’s an amazing animated movie when compared to the trash kids get these days, where all characters look the same in a movie but also from a movie to the next. also the soundtrack was kinda amazing for the movie. tl;dr: i want my spider-verse 2 now please and thank you, the 10 second teaser was enough for me to tear up

black panther is one of the best marvel movie. i know a lot of people have focused on the diversity aspect of it and how we need black superheros so i won’t focus on it too much, you already know that. but. the costumes. are so beautiful. they spent so much time designing costumes. the plot was interesting, which honestly,,, i can’t say the same for most superhero movies these days. the movie encapsulates the magically tehcnological vibe that wakanda gives off in the comics, and honestly all the actors did a great job. also, the casino fight scene... like help that was too beautiful. superhero movies fight scenes should feel like a well-organized and elegant choreography, and honestly i’m so upset that a lot of movies decide to be like whatever they can throw in punches and that will. like in comics the punches and kicks serve to fight a narrative, to help the flow of the images move. it’s not an action movie or one of those war movies where whoever punches whoever else and that’s done. those are comic book adaptations. i need to see the flow of images. the art. where is it. anyway. black panther has that in probably all fight scenes, and i would like to say thanks to everyone who worked on that aspect. like for real fight scences looking pretty is a big part of why i like or don’t like a superhero comic book, movie, or tv show (on that note, go watch daredevil). also, the movie was funny enough but not a joke. like a comic book should be. loved it

logan: ok idk if this is an unpopular opinion and idc, but the xmen movies are far more superior than the other movies. they just get the vibe right. logan was a beautiful movie. it was different than all other movies in the superhero genre, it is violent but not violent for the sake of violent, it was violent to portray how violent life it. it wasn’t showing blood just to show blood. it captures so many emotions like intense grief and regret correctly, it is an actually Good Content movie, like many adults treat the superhero genre as a joke, and i think logan shows that it should not be treated as a joke. also, i think the characterisation of logan (like i mean the character himself) was much better in this movie compared to the xmen movies. like there he is just brooding and rude, but in logan i think he stopped being a 2-dimensional character. anyway, love it, teared up at the end, we should get more xmen movies and in general, superhero movies like this

ok i might be biased because i know the script by heart by now, but guardians of the galaxy is also one of the greatest movies based on a comic book. idk how much you know about gotg, but the comics were not doing great before the movie, but after it like marvel started making new runs and they all became popular. anyway my point is: the story was beautiful, the images and background were Beautiful, it was funny, it was a movie about not belonging anywhere but finding people to call home, about finding a reason to live. all the characters were like whatever i just exist i don’t matter and!! they found home. a lot of people treat the movie as a joke because of how light it is and how the characters are all different stereotypes of ‘funny sarcastic character’, but it really is beautiful. and the soundtrack.... can i just say... genius, superior, amazing, fantastic, i could go on for days. that opening scene where star-lord is alone and singing??? the way it is filmed??? the choreography of it all?? like idk it’s just too good. i have lots of feelings about gotg. the second one wasn’t as good, i didn’t like the main plot it was a bit Too Much but i liked the continuing theme of finding home with Yondu (who deserved better imo) but yes gotg is a superior movie

iron man, like how do i even describe this movie without insulting it... it launched the MCU. it is iconic. RDJ is amazing but not only him, everyone in that movie is great. and honestly all the iron man movies are great. (if you compare with how tony stark is portrayed in the avengers movies, like he’s way more shallow there). the movies make sense, the fight scence have that dramatic and elegant element about them. the second wasn’t my fave, but still was extremely good. the third was amazing too, like the ending of it with the suits and all that... the portrayal of mental illness, like panic attacks and anxiety,,, like this is truly what the movie genre should be about. not just mindless fights, it is about stories, and that is why most superhero movies are not good. normal people go and like them but i can’t enjoy them. and not just me (and comic book readers), like people who enjoy them are usually the people who are okay to go watch a random movie with good jokes (because that’s what most superhero movies are these days, bad plot but good enough jokes for people to go pay 15$ and see them). i mean i am ok with those movies too, but since i read comics i don’t and can’t really enjoy those movies. i think when people tell me they don’t like marvel, it is most often because they are people that read (not just comics) like they read books and care about plot and what is the movie really trying to say so when they’re asked why they dont like the movie they’re like oh it’s a dumb superhero movie... and i can’t argue with that because most superhero movies are like that right now... they profit off the fact that some superhero movies (like iron man) were huge hits that revived the genre, and profit off the fact that people think they will automatically enjoy the movie and wil go watch it, so they don’t care about actually writing a story...

xmen days of the future past this is,,, such a good movie,,, i’m a sucker for time-travel when it’s done right, and the slow-motion quicksilver scene with the music,, can i just say,,, poetic cinema,,, beautiful,, my only complaint is that there are not enough relevant female characters but like,,, it looks how a comic book movie should look like,,, anytime i’m on a plane i have to watch it... also,,, i discovered 2 years ago that a lot of scenes were filmed at my university so like,, it holds an extremely special place in my heart, i can’t believe i’ve been in the same buildings where they filmed it, it’s crazy..

doctor strange: ok ok dont @ me yet please listen. i know story-wise it is meh, they didn’t do it well (but i have real high hopes for the sequel, but that’s a talk for another day) but the visuals!!!! the visuals!!!! the fights!!! the way that they morph like reality during the fights,,, it’s just,, so beautiful, one could get drunk just by looking at it,,, also,, the sanctum sancotrum looks so pretty. the fights flow amazingly well (kudos to the cape). the dormammu scence!!!! oscar-worthy!! like i know the plot wasn’t great and the movie is zelma-erasure but!!! it looks like a superhero movie should look like and look i’m an arts kid that’s why i like comics because they’re pretty and the pictures tell a story. like of course i read books i read a lot but the visuals are so important for comic books and they should be for comic book to movie adaptations and they’re often not but doctor strange had it

ok one of my faves it ant-man and also the sequel but let’s focus on ant-man for a second, it is goofy but has lots of emphasis on the family subplot and that’s beautiful. this movie should have gotten an award just for when Luis tells stories like that scene is iconic. a lot of people think it’s a dumb movie because it focuses a lot on being funny but actually like the themes!!! aborded. like being in jail then not being able to find a job, then trying to steal again just because you need money because you wanna see your kid, like the power of showing this!! people treat it as a joke like ha ha look he is an engineer and he is working in an ice cream store, but here again no it’s an important story and comic books are books like @ movie directors where is my story??? why are you making a movie but forgetting the story??? how and why?? anyway ant-man had a story!! and also the scott/cassie father/daughter relationship.... like.. my heart. also the visual when ant-man becomes too tiny... very pretty

ok now for some movies that arent the best but have some really good elements that have to be mentioned

thor ok so a lot of people think it is not good but loki in it... i swear tom hiddleston is a great actor and just like,,, the way he portrays despair and like sadness and grief (over himself! about losing himself) is really beautiful... like even in the dark world his performance was really good,,, the Dramaticism of it all.... amazing,,, but his character was done so dirty in the MCU, like loki and wanda and strange are supposed to be the 3 most powerful sorcerers in the marvel world and the MCU was like there you get a small knife, as a treat (like don’t get me wrong i want loki to have a knife but...) also his character deserves more depth than that... like the comic books are breathtaking i’m so sad they did loki so bad... they erased the fact that loki is genderfluid, that he has complex morals, that loki is the god/goddess of stories not just whatever he is supposed to be in those movies... anyway i’m hoping for better characterization in the show, especially that they also hired a female actress to also play loki so we might get genderfluid loki,,, but also i dont wanna have hope and clown

big hero 6 (yes it counts do not fight me): although the animation was very similar to the animation these days, like it was not Special like into the spider-verse, the story is cute, it tackles important topics like grief and how do deal with grief, which is good considering that most kids movies these days just rehash the same topics and don’t care about the plot lines or what is learned

ok i hate and i really mean absolutely hate the new spider-man movies because the are bad but far from home has to be acknowledged for jake gyllenhaal as mysterio but not just about jake, in the end he is just an actor. you know that scene where he is doing his ‘illusions’ towards the end of the movie and it never ends and everytime you think the scene is over and we’re back to reality it turns out we’re still in the ‘illusion’??? just this scene and i really mean just this one scence did it right. like it’s like a comic book. when i watched it i was breathless i is beautiful. anything else in that movie i don’t care at all

i like venom but not because it’s great, the plot is very weak and it doesn’t look great but tom hardy is really good in it... like him losing it over having a symbiote in himself, being like Stressed and Anxious and A Disaster TM is really good... like when he goes to the restaurant and eats that lobster alive and sits in the tank... like amazing and superb love it

and finally, i can’t make this list without mentioning the movie that really made the difference:

avengers ok so avengers was not the best because it really did not care about black widow or hawkeye or hulk at all (their characterization is horrible and butchered in all the movies), and i don’t even like captain america, and thor is annoying, so basically tony stark, loki, and our buddies at shield carry the whole movie, but this movie is so important in terms of like, it’s the first movie that really like started the crossover movies for superheros, the ‘let’s put it all together and hope people don’t get confused’. without it like really the MCU (and DCU, even though idc much about it sorry) would be nothing like they are today!! but yeah like it did so many characters dirty like the characterization sucks, the plot is rushed,,, but like it’s okay. oh and the fight scenes are good! like you still have the whole elegant choreography element of it, which exists in the first few crossover marvel movies like this one and age of ultron (that movie was dissapointing i was so hyped for ultron as a villain and then they made him out to be a tuna can) but then for like civil war and endgame and all that it’s just huge fights and everyone hitting anyone and i don’t care for that like you get lost the only info you can take out is like: oh, there is punching happening. you don’t get to enjoy elements of it and how all the characters are interacting and collaborating together to make a visually pleasing scene simply because those fights are. not. visually. pleasing. anyway. also the shawarma scene was superior. 

[kylosrehn]

your opinion on mcu clint!

ask about my opinion on... 

hmmm. i liked him when the avengers came out. like, he wasn’t my fave (that was always tony and now also steve ahsdfjghk) but y’know. i liked him. and of course i shipped him with natasha because damn that chemistry and unspoken connection and your world in the balance and you bargain for one man and is it love, agent romanoff? and you and i remember budapest very differently and i just!!!!!!!! fifteen year old me was all over that shit! 

and then my interest in the mcu as a whole kind of waned. like, it came and went in phases. some movies are like… i don’t even remember when this came out and others are like omg counting down the days ‘til the release! but yeah i fell into a sort of mcu coma and next thing i know he has a whole ass farm family in age of ultron?? and i just?? don’t get it?? like what was the point of establishing this flirty dynamic between clint and natasha in the avengers and having her wear an arrow necklace in the winter soldier if they planned on him having be married with small kids all this time. why? did they want to shock the audience? was it just so the avengers could have a place to go after ultron attacked the tower? was it to show that hey, superheroes juggle dirty dishes and after school activities, too! or something? or were they just desperate to include laura because she’s (one of) clint’s wives in the comics, kind of like how they threw sharon into the mix because she’s a prominent comic book character and one of !comic steve’s most iconic love interests? they easily could’ve made laura clint’s sister or sister-in-law or something and the story would’ve remained more or less the same. and i think this is when people generally started turning against mcu clint, right? i mean, i’m not 100%, like i said, i missed a lot of fandom time, so i’m not really sure where the clint hate came from or when it started, exactly, just that he’s kind of an unpopular/disliked character in the fandom nowadays (and not just post-endgame.) 

on that note… while i do like clint and don’t wish him ill out of spite, it just would’ve made more sense narrative-wise if he had been the one to sacrifice himself. like, the excuse they gave is pretty flimsy - oh, he has a family, that would be cruel! but, uh, hello, so does tony? so like, that’s null and void. but think about it. his story was pretty much finished in endgame. like, it would’ve come full circle - he’s atoning for all the awful things he’s done and he’s helping save the universe. he was ready to go. closure, y’know? and i’m sure the scene still would’ve been absolutely poignant and brutal and a very important moment for both clint and nat’s relationship as well as them as characters if it had been clint. yes, nat was waiting for a moment just like this, yes, this is her way of wiping the red out of her ledger, yes, it was her choice. but clint’s story felt pretty much finished while nat… i’ll be honest, it felt like they could’ve done a lot more with her and then just… didn’t. like, i don’t know where i read this, but apparently one of the many storylines that eventually got scrapped at some stage during development was that nat, during those 5 years, was working with kids who had been orphaned as a result of the snap. like!!!!!!! yes! this is wholesome!! this is good!! why didn’t we get that? plus, she has a solo movie coming out next year and now with her being dead in the present timeline, it just leads to a lot of questions. like, i think it was rumoured that it was gonna be a prequel anyway, regardless of nat’s fate in endgame, but it’s just a weird situation? like, here, learn more about this character that we just recently killed, so ultimately none of this is gonna… end up being used… in the present… because she’s dead… huh? and like, fans have been waiting for a black widow solo film for ages. scarlett has fought for this film to be made for ages. and it finally is. and it’s a film about a dead character. ugh. don’t get me wrong, i’m super hyped for black widow since i adore the spy/thriller genre and i’m hoping for this to have that gritty, political thriller vibe that the winter soldier had, but it just makes me question that decision. 

but, you know what? i still like him. that doesn’t mean i’m justifying his actions in endgame (but also i think the writers/russos were just desperate to make a reference to the ronin storyline, kind of how they briefly had !nomad steve, so they shoehorned that in rather clumsily) but i don’t, like… hate him? he’s just there. ooh, and i love the fact that clint and tony mended their relationship and that clint is the first one to recognize that he’s lost a good friend and drops down to his knees to honour tony in that deleted scene. and i’m still shipping clintasha. i regret nothing.

i’m sorry i ended up writing a whole ass essay again i’m the worst

[valyrfia]

hey friend! fello eurovision shitposter here :) first of all I want to say that im so glad to have finally found someone whos as convinced as i am that bulgaria should win this year! I had another question for you: so you post a lot of marvel as well and a lot of stony so i stalked your blog and im confused because you said you started to ship them more after civil war? idk im a huge stucky shipper and steve and bucky just seem to have the better dynamic no offense intended i just want yourview

BULGARIA. THEY’RE AMAZING RIGHT? I’m honestly almost more in love with this song that I was with Beautiful Mess last year (that’s a lie I still cry that my boy Kris didn’t win but I also adore Amar Pelos Dois so I’m not mad). Now with the footage of their AMAZING live performance at the London pre-party, I’m almost fully convinced that they are gonna clinch the top spot this year. I mean, imagine Bones with the camera work and lighting of Eurovision and the atmosphere of the arena. It’s going to be incredible I’m so excited. 

Moving on from my trash talk: why I ship stevetony and not stucky? Whoo boy this is gonna take an essay to answer, and it’s going to be difficult  a. because I can never remember all the reasons why I do ship stevetony (I always end up missing one lol) and b. because stucky shippers are…enthusiastic, for the lack of a better word. I love them, I respect a lot of them and I’m friends with people who ship it. But fandom is a tricky business. Stevebucky never did it for me as a ship. The explanation is long and complicated but it can be boiled down to a distinct idea: For me, adding a romantic element to Steve and Tony’s dynamic makes their interactions much more interesting and intriguing, while adding a romantic element to Steve and Bucky’s dynamic would almost subtract something quintessential from both of those characters. 

Friendships to me are almost more impactful on a person’s life than romantic relationships, god knows where I would be without my friends today. There’s a tendency in the media to push the obligation that the most important person in your life has to be your significant other. I hate that, frankly. Steve and Bucky love each other more than anybody else in the world, and for me, that’s beautiful. I guess I just never did understand the romantic connotations that people attached to what seemed to me, seemed to be a fully functioning, complete and beautiful relationship. 

Steve and Tony’s relationship however, you always feel like you’re missing some part of the story when you observe their interactions. From their respective monologues to each other, The Confession and The Oath to their familiar joking with each other right before everything goes to shit at the base in Siberia in CA:CW. You feel like you’re missing some part of their story. I, (it seems along with Jonathan Hickman, RDJ and Chris Evans) like to headcanon that this missing piece is a romantic plotline, but you can interpret it however you want. That’s the beauty of fictional works. It’s not the cold, hard canon that matters, but your interpretation of it. My experience is different from yours and to me that’s beautiful.

An essay is available below the cut, if you’re interested in how I actually stopped shipping stucky and started shipping stevetony (an origin story if you will.)

In my introduction to Marvel, a couple of years ago, I did initially read Steve/Bucky fics more than any other pairing, but incidentally it was a Steve/Bucky fic that made me start reading Steve/Tony ones (oops I guess?) The Man on the Bridge by boopboop on AO3 was the one that got me invested in the Steve/Tony dynamic, it was the fic with the highest kudos on AO3 at the time that I was reading Stucky. It’s a really great fic 11/10 definitely worth the read (I think you need an AO3 account though) but what kept me going wasn’t the ship I was supposed to be reading it for, it was the dynamic between Steve and Tony. For example: you get great scenes like Steve and Tony bickering like an old married couple over coffee at least four times and banter like this out of nowhere: 

““I sent flowers?” Tony asks, trying like hell to play it cool. He gives her a desperate look that she ignores by default.

“Tony picked them,” Pepper says, determined as ever to ruin Tony’s reputation.

“He did, did he?” Steve asks knowingly.

Pepper leads them all into the wide social space inside. “He spent a lot of time trying to find your favorites.”

It’s dark enough to hide the fact that Tony’s ears are a little pink, even when someone has as sharp a vision as Steve does. That doesn’t stop him wanting to crawl back into his suit and hide. “Really? Do we have to tell him that?”

“He might think you don’t like him if I don’t,” Pepper says with a knowing smile flashed in Steve’s direction.

“I don’t,” Tony says firmly. “I tolerate him. Barely.”

“Uh huh.” Steve chuckles, his smile growing warm. “Right. I get it.””

and lines like this

“We - Nat and I - figured Rogers would come to you for help once he and Bucky made it out of Florida.”

“You did?” Tony asks, stunned. He can think of a dozen people Steve would have picked over him, even with the resources Tony has at his disposal.

Barton looks at him like he’s an idiot. “Yes,” he says, simple as that.

“And that brings you here why?”

“Because neither of you idiots have a single shred of self preservation between you,” Barton says bluntly. “That’s why you’re good for each other.”

and general power couple stuff

She hardly looks a day older than she had appeared in the recording they saw before leaving for London - but Tony knows that file was dated 1991. Her sharp features are paired with dark eyes and unnaturally pale skin, offset by a razor sharp, almost masculine suit. “Mr Stark,” she inclines her head, “Captain Rogers.”

She had been given no other identification in the videos, other than being addressed by Lukin as ‘Synthia’. Since they don’t want to give away how much information they have, Tony tips his head to one side and asks, “Should I know you? Have we met?”

“We have not, Mr Stark. Captain Rogers and I do have a shared acquaintance, however.”

“Don’t you dare talk about him,” Steve growls, tense at Tony’s side. The fact that he hasn’t rushed forward and unleashed that brewing violence is something of a shock. He’s practically shaking with his rage, every muscle in his body tense and strained.

Tony puts one hand on Steve’s arm, steadying him. “Look lady, I don’t know who you are but I’m tired of games. What do you want with us?”

She tilts her head, “Why not the pleasure of your company? You are Iron Man and Captain America after all. An unstoppable force. The two greatest superheroes of our time.”

even the goddamn villains ship it I was supposed to go into this fic and not come out the other side shipping steve and tony come on

there’s a reason that this is the only non-stevetony fic i’ve read in three years goddamnit 

*clears throat*

But yeah that was the fic that got me interested in the possibilities surrounding the Steve/Tony dynamic. Then I started doing some research and came up with the canon content (like their respective love confessions in 616 and the actors fascination with the ship (shoot me I’m weak okay)), and it’s been a wild ride ever since. 

If you’re interested in seeing their dynamic in action through a romantic lens, may I suggest Disrepair by Tippet for MCU and  Belief Space by magicasen for 616. Neither have huge confessions of love or anything like that, Belief Space does have one kiss towards the end but the focus point is Steve and Tony’s dynamic during the incursion crisis in 616 and Steve’s POV remains largely platonic throughout the fic. Disrepair actually has no romantic connotations in it, as far as I remember, but it analyses the MCU dynamic in such a way that you start to see what I mean when I say that Steve and Tony’s relationship would be ten times more intriguing with a romantic element. Both fics are interesting character studies of both Steve and Tony and I would highly recommend reading them anyway. Also Belief Space is my favourite fic of all time, and does not get enough love goddamnit, so there’s that. 

Anyway, I’ll finish your lovely ask by giving you what is frankly my stevetony song for Infinity War and the only song I listen to nowadays. It’s my fave. What else would it be in the month before Eurovision? It’s Bones by EQUINOX.