#cw ​neil gaiman

[rainbowpopeworld]

If you haven’t watched Danny Motta react to seeing Good omens for the first time, I HIGHLY recommend it! The last episode, which obviously includes his reaction to the Final Fifteen, was posted today. I laughed a lot at each episode. Also the schadenfreude was real for me, particularly because he does this for a living. 😅😓 And my heart broke again, as usual 😭💔

@queermarzipan was live-blogging them hilariously, at least until their classes started 😊😘😂 Here’s that link

The first link⬇️ is to the whole series playlist and the second is just to the last episode. Note: he goes in knowing basically nothing about Good Omens and he doesn’t know about the season 3 situation. Danny does mention NG a couple videos in because he learned about the victims coming forward and wanted to make his position clear.

[fellshish]

idk i think sometimes we can extend a little kindness and understanding like people will grieve good omens if season 3 gets cancelled and that’s very human it doesn’t mean they don’t care about victims of sexual assault too — a body can hold many emotions

[anetherealpoetess]

Neil Gaiman, let’s be realistic. A 21-year-old working in the home of a man four decades her senior cannot truly give meaningful consent to any type of sexual encounter, let alone within mere hours of meeting him. Even though you are denying it was not consensual, the fact you have conceded the sexual encounter did happen at all is a full confession. You are, by your own admission, a predator.

[smudgeandfrank]

Good Omens Season 3 Update!✨️

Gaiman has offered to take a step away from being a part of S3. This is the path I was betting on happening, and I think it's the right decision moving forward. Nothing is finalized yet, but I'm glad that this is now on the table for the sake of the show's future. 💖

We'll see what happens from here, but I think this is a hopeful sign, my darlings! 💖🫂💖 Remember to breathe and take care of yourselves! 💖🫂💖 Sending love and hugs!

[highlyillogicalandroid]

Hi. This is going to be a post about the Neil Gaiman allegations. But it's also going to be a post about fandom and how we treat each other on this hellsite (affectionate). So strap in.

Something I really wish folks would keep in mind right now is that we. don't. know.

We don’t know how this situation is impacting fans in their lives offline. For example: I have tangential professional and personal connections to Gaiman that are making this very difficult for me on both practical and emotional levels. I didn’t want to share that on tumblr, but at this point I feel like I have to.

We also don’t know what someone has personally been through or how this might be affecting their mental state. Let me tell you, as a sexual assault survivor, reading anon hate in my inbox that said, “You’re a NG apologist and deserve to be r*ped like his victims” was not a treat. Especially when all I’d done was continue my normal fandom activities. I hadn’t spoken about the allegations AT ALL at that point because, guess what, I was feeling triggered, and seeing constant (often untagged) SA discussion on tumblr had me in a very bad place mentally.

And not all of us know what to do with the love we held/hold for Gaiman's works. You’re not selfish for feeling lost or confused or bereft when an author whose work you admired turns out to be a trash person. And the fact that Gaiman was also outspoken in supporting issues like LGBTQIA+ and refugee rights makes these revelations hurt even more. You’re not naive for believing that a person like that was worthy of admiration. You were operating with the information that was available to you.

You’re also not obligated to separate the art from the artist, nor are you obligated to stop engaging with his works altogether. You're not obligated to decide right now either way. You can take your time. You can change your mind later. Or not.

This is HARD. And it’s okay to acknowledge that. Give yourself some grace. Then do the same for others.

Remember to love each other.

[thedoctorajcrowley]

I am truly a nobody in the vast fandom that is GO. I stand on the periphery reblogging things with thirsty tags and reading fics. However, I love this book and show with my whole heart.

I am standing here holding both ends of the dialectic: I am sad, devastated that we won’t get our 6 episodes and all the lovely bits that will need to be cut. I am sad we won’t have more than 90 minutes of David and Michael acting out the characters that they and we love so dearly. I am exhausted that another fandom has been hurt by the bad actions of one man. And my heart aches for the victim survivors.

And, too, I am relieved and grateful that those who could fought bts for us to even get those 90 minutes. I am grateful we get to see Terry’s dream ending and David and Michael together on our screens again. I am aware (though realize I don’t know the full details) of how close we came to getting nothing at all. 90 minutes is a short movie but I remember so much can happen in a movie and all the world building has been done.

Outside and beyond this dialectic, I want to express gratitude to the fandom. The bits that I see from where I stand on the edges is a delight. I see people giving others permission to mourn and permission to celebrate and the nuance to recognize both can be true at the same time. I see posts encouraging others to have faith that those bts love this story as much as we do (if not more) and as a result we are not facing total cancellation by Amazon.

I see fans stepping in to provide comfort and reassurance where before we may have turned to the one man who nearly wrecked this all for all of us. Many looked up to him as a type of parent figure, especially queer people who may not have had a supportive parent in their own lives. And I see the fandom as a whole stepping into the void that was left. He didn’t make GO and the fandom the magical place it is, the fans have done that.

And for that, I am endlessly grateful.

[badaziraphaletakes]

NO GOS3 UNLESS N*IL G*IMAN IS GONE!

Cannot stress this strongly enough. To whoever is watching and analyzing these things to make a decision: We want a Season 3 WITHOUT N*IL G*IMAN.

[dawnscales]

I saw people on twitter talk about how Jack Black and Neil Gaiman are 'good Jews' because they are not 'evil Zionists'. The reason given? They are for a two state solution.

And I don't know how to tell this to none Jewish people kindly but uh.................... that. That's Zionism?

Believing in Palestinians right to have their own State, self determination and the right for a safe home, for education, for a life free of Hamas and Terror in a Two State Deal is Zionism because the other state in this deal???? Is still Israel. it is still a Jewish state. It is still believing in our rights to return and stay in our ancestral homeland.

Being for a two state Solution, for peace and for working together can and is part of being a Zionist !! And also you don't get to call people good or bad Jews that is antisemitic as fuck.

[bohoteacher]

Navigating Betrayal: Reconciling Admiration with Disillusionment

Like many Neil Gaiman fans this month, I've been shocked and distressed by the news regarding the SA allegations. I won't go over the details, as they're readily available online. I'll start by saying that I believe the accusers, and even the most lenient interpretation of events is still troubling enough to discredit Gaiman. For a long time, I didn't know what to say. I was just shocked and, somewhat naively, felt betrayed. I don't typically idolize actors, authors, or other public figures—I'm here for the characters, they're who I love and believe in. So, how did I end up believing in this man and his rhetoric?

I only had a parasocial relationship with him, which is to say no real relationship at all. But I took his Masterclass on writing, spent hours taking notes, and learned from him. I feel betrayed by someone I saw as a beloved teacher. I know this is insignificant compared to what the women who came forward experienced, but it's a valid feeling, and I needed time to process it. My initial reaction was to throw out and discount everything he’s ever written or done—of course it was.

This isn't just about my love for Good Omens, although how can it not be? I learned so much from this man—about writing, about not being too hard on myself, about the creative process. I read his books to my middle school classes, and we all learned how to be better people from them. Today, I saw and bought Instructions, a children’s book by Neil Gaiman illustrated by Charles Vess, from the used bookstore where I volunteer. It was a used copy, so no royalties will go to him. It’s a beautifully illustrated book where the main character walks through a land that clearly symbolizes life, learning lessons like saying please and "if any creature cries to you that it hurts, if you can, ease its pain." How could someone write this and then do what he did? I asked myself. "What an evil hypocrite," was my first thought. But then I recalled a line from another author, Stephen King. In The Stand, a character is described as "awake at the lectern, but asleep at the switch," meaning they know the right thing to do and can talk about it, but in the moment of choice, they act without integrity.

I don’t know if I’m making sense, but I think it’s too easy to label Gaiman as simply evil, as if he intentionally manipulated us by saying the right things just to make us read or watch his creations. The reality is likely far more complicated. Within this man is the amazing, thought-provoking, life-affirming wisdom that many of us have tried to live by, but also the hard, thoughtless, selfish cruelty that led him to abuse young, vulnerable women. The wisdom does not justify the abuse, and the abuse does not nullify the wisdom.

I think it's too simplistic to say Gaiman is despicable and always has been, hiding it from us all along. This doesn't acknowledge the complexity of human nature—that there is potential for both good and bad within us all. As it’s said, possibly by Terry Pratchett or possibly by Neil Gaiman, “It may help to understand human affairs to be clear that most of the great triumphs and tragedies of history are caused, not by people being fundamentally good or fundamentally bad, but by people being fundamentally people.”

Gaiman is a man who has done some fundamentally good things and some fundamentally bad things. I can’t forget either one.

This is just my opinion. I know some people want to cancel him, while others want to exonerate him. You do you. As for me, I will continue to love Aziraphale and Crowley. I will continue to read and create fan-fiction. I will continue to find comfort and wisdom in books that have meant so much to me over the years. But I will also remember that they were created by a very flawed man whom I can no longer trust.

I understand that opinions on this matter vary widely. I know some people might feel that not discarding everything associated with him is wrong, but this is where I stand. I’m not looking to debate this or be told how I should react. I just needed to process my thoughts in writing and move forward in the way that feels right for me.

[seventeendeer]

this isn't at all meant to be condescending or finger-waggy because 100% we all have blind spots like this, but I'm really, really hoping that the people who never found Gaiman's approach to his own fandom concerning in any way will take this all as a learning moment.

he was an older, hyper-famous author engaging directly and frequently with an online audience of largely vulnerable young marginalized people. he presented himself as cultured and worldly, and made himself approachable as someone to go to for advice, encouragement and "wisdom." his manner of speech was extremely pathos-heavy and clearly intended to be comforting and encouraging in exactly the way his target demographic needed it to be to swallow every word. the way he spoke about stories and creativity was designed to make young creative hopefuls feel special and important, while sweeping real analytical techniques under the rug - in hindsight, likely so no one would think too critically about the disturbing amount of patriarchal abuse played for cheap shock value and voyerism in his own body of works.

Gaiman saw a target demographic that was desperate for an older creative role model to tell them they were worth something, and he exploited that pain to twist a narrative around himself where he was king and any critique leveled at him or his works were the enemy.

to be clear, he could have been innocent. he could totally have been just an out-of-touch old man saying nice things to people because he wanted to be kind and he thought he was a lot smarter than he really was. red flags are warning signs, not a surefire way to tell if someone is actually "secretly shitty."

but if you used to look up to him, PLEASE take this moment to revisit the ideas you absorbed from him. did you take his words to heart because they seemed to have objective merit? or did you take them to heart because it felt good to believe what he said? do you still hold these values? does knowing he was intentionally manipulating his online audience make you less certain? do you need more information from a different source before deciding one way or another?

again, I'm just really, really hoping people on here will take a moment to reevaluate the ideas and opinions he's injected into tumblr fandom culture, because his reach is immense and he has absolutely been manipulating popular perception of relevant topics to gain further influence and control the narrative around both his own and Pratchett's legacy. please, please take this moment to notice what he's been doing - and next time someone tries to pull the same shit, hopefully we'll be able to apply what we've learned from experience.

[wolf-and-raven-dreaming]

Want some angst?

Have some with this piece I made WAAAAAAAAYYYYY back when The Sandman released on Netflix.

[fellshish]

I hate how these neil gaiman allegations are being treated like some sort of hbo show where you have to declare banners or something, a war where you have to choose a side. It’s so human to be unsure, to go back and forth, to not know how to think and to still listen more and to read more and to doubt and doubt and to second-guess. These are human lives and i hate that they’ve become a debate and battle ground of sorts in a messed up race to be the most morally correct the fastest

[angie-words]

So there are rumours that production on season 3 of Good Omens has been paused. Not cancelled, just to be super clear. I'm feeling a lot of things:

- relief that the studio might be addressing/reckoning with the allegations against Gaiman (I've felt a growing discomfort at how the victims' stories seemed to have been ignored by more mainstream media - Disney halting production on The Graveyard Book appears to have opened the door)

- anger that his actions hurt so many and went unchallenged for so long; how he has harmed the livelihoods of those who work on the show; at how this has affected STP's family

- sadness that we may not see Sheen and Tennant bring Aziraphale and Crowley to life any time soon (edited as it originally made it sound like I was saying it would never happen)

- comfort as I recall that there are many writers, artists and creators who have already given the show many endings we can take solace in

Of course I also feel this:

[ineffable-endearments]

I want to make a much longer post about this, and will do so later, but I am in fact quite happy about this news that GO is getting a conclusion that will be movie-length.

I understand people's disappointment. At the same time, this story deserves a canon ending that we can share with the world at large, and people behind the scenes have obviously been working incredibly hard to make at least that much happen. Making an end to the story without Neil Gaiman's involvement was always going to be a very difficult needle to thread. I am overjoyed that people love this story enough to try.

And obviously, Neil Gaiman had to be removed. I love and believe in this story on its own merits, but we couldn't move forward pretending nothing happened, and we also couldn't ask the cast and crew to keep working with him.

We get to see all the most important parts of the end, and we get to disentangle NG from it as much as possible. This is ultimately good, in my opinion. But this is not a judgment on you if you're sad. I hope you find comfort soon.

[brokenheartedtheologian]

I think (seven?) women have come forward discussing Neil Gaiman’s predatory sexual behavior at this point. He taught at Bard College (after I graduated) so I’m feeling worried for my fellow Bardies. Anyone heard anything?

On the bright side, I’ve mostly seen Gaiman’s fandom on Tumblr respond in a healthy way. They’ve focused on believing and supporting survivors and practical steps for preventing further predation. They’ve been aware that an ecosystem of innocent people make money along with Gaiman, and showed nonjudgmental support of anyone’s choice to boycott or continue enjoying his works. They’ve remarked that if Season 3 of Good Omens ends up canceled, they will make sure Aziraphale and Crowley get their happy ending in hundreds of fanfics.

They have analyzed Neil Gaiman’s past behavior for red flags, without victim blaming anyone who didn’t see them. Some fans initially struggled with believing accusations, but even those paid lip service to the importance of honoring survivors.

The most astonishing thing to me is that I haven’t seen a single woman attacked for “asking for it,” and “leading Neil on.” I didn’t expect his nanny or his tenant to get attacked this way, since most people understand landlords and bosses can lean on people. But I did expect the fans in their early twenties who put up with sexual pressure to maintain connection with their celebrity hero to get unfairly attacked for “poor judgment” or gold digging or something.

I haven’t seen a single attack of that nature. I’ve seen empathy, and love, and a full understanding of how rape from someone you admire, someone you’ve said “yes” to in the past, can feel worse than stranger rape (which after all, is rare).

The way Neil Gaiman’s fandom responded to the news made me feel safe. And every other response to a famous man’s sexual misconduct I’ve read in the past has made me feel unsafe. I am uplifted and feel society has actually learned something from MeToo, actually made progress.

[hertenskylarks]

More 2 Cents on S3

So, I know there’s already a lot of talk going around. Here’s my 2 cents. 

In light of the recent news, I keep hearing a lot of “Oh, I hope the third season doesn’t get canceled,” and “Oh, I hope it does. Fuck Gaiman,” and “Oh, what about Terry’s vision? What about the fans? What about closure?”

I have absolutely zero control as to whether or not season 3 is made. Many arguments for and against it have already been made. I don't want to beat a dead horse, but I will offer this perspective from my own personal experience. 

I’m a swing dancer, and my rapist was my teacher and one of the first people who ever taught me how to dance. One of the things that made me hesitant to come forward was that he was one of the most likable characters in my scene. He was the funny, goofy guy who wore funky printed shirts, he was sooo nice, he couldn’t possibly be a rapist, right? Right?

Seeing people praise him, hearing people talk about how great he is when I knew what he did to me… It drove me absolutely mad. I just wanted to shake people and say, “No, you don’t understand! You don’t understand who he is!” But I felt like I just couldn't. I felt his reputation was too iron-clad to say anything.

Coming forward was one of the scariest things I ever did because I was so sure people either wouldn't believe me or wouldn't care. And, as predicted, that was the case for some. You can only imagine how I felt when someone I used to call my friend went on to have him officiate her wedding. You can only imagine how I felt when the response from the organizers of the dance scene was to ask me to avoid mentioning Y-Town Swing in social media posts (Oops) to protect their reputation. You can only imagine how I felt when they continued to have him as a teacher, or when they updated their safe space policy to say they are not responsible for anything that happens “outside a Y-Town swing event.” 

Oh, so if he raped me in the bathroom at the event instead it would have made a difference? Right, sorry, didn't realize the location or a rape mattered that much.

Anyway…

This was all in the confines of a small dance scene, in a small city, in a very niche hobby. Now, imagine how it must feel when your rapist and abuser is a fucking best selling author, praised as this ally to women and LGBT people, he’s the quirky guy who has a Tumblr and actually responds to his fans and he’s so cool, he’s one of us, he can’t possibly be a rapist, right? Right?

I can only imagine how fucking mad it drove his victims to know who he really is and see him put on such a high pedestal. 

So, however this all unfolds, I will say this. The people I care about most are the victims. I say this as someone who loved and still loves Good Omens, I say this as someone who was torn up about the final 15, as someone who rejoiced when S3 was originally announced, before all the allegations came to light. I care about the victims. 

But what about the fans? Listen, it’s a fucking TV show. Do you really mean to tell me the ending of a fictional fucking story is more important than the very real people he’s hurt? Not having an ending to your favorite show does not hold a candle to the trauma of being sexually assaulted. There’s no comparison. Not in the same ballpark. Not even in the same galaxy. 

But what about Terry?

Terry is dead and in his grave. I am sorry to say this, but whether his vision comes to life or not, he will never be the wiser. It makes no difference to him. If I could wave my magic wand and have Terry alive and well and Gaiman dead and in his grave, believe me, I definitely would, but that is not the hand we were dealt. 

So please, all I ask is this. Before you go spouting shit like, “I hope we don’t lose S3,” or “I just need to know how it ends,” put yourself in their shoes for just a second.

Imagine you are Claire, or Scarlett, or any of his other victims. Imagine you are sexually assaulted by someone whom the world just puts on a pedestal. You have to sit there and listen to him get praised as being “such a great ally to women and minorities” and “he’s one of us,” and “he’s so brilliant. He’s so cool. He really listens to his fans. Look at this quote of his I got tattooed on my body.” And for years you just sit there and take it, because you’re so fucking afraid that no one will believe you if you come forward, you’re told your story “isn’t enough,” you watch him get richer and richer while you’re stuck with the therapy bill for everyting this “great ally of women” did to you. 

Now imagine that you finally come forward. You finally muster up the will to speak your truth, and tell people what he did to you, and you find that you’re not the only person he’s hurt. The world is finally hearing your story and learning what a manipulative monster he is. 

And now, I want you to think very carefully about what it means if we still get S3. 

S3 means press tours. It means more reviews praising him as a genius. It means certain people being contractually obligated to say nice things about him, or at the very least, not say negative things about him. It means, once again, seeing his fucking horse face or his name everywhere, on Amazon, on billboards, on busses, on posters, in adverts. Only now, it's AFTER the world heard your side of the story.

Just imagine how that would feel. 

So, if it wasn't obvious by now, my stance on S3 is… I don't really want it to happen. Not out of spite or some deep seated hatred for Gaiman (although, ya know, fuck that guy) but out of consideration for the people he's hurt, as someone who knows exactly how it feels to see the person who hurt you get put on a pedestal. 

I understand that production is paused and people think he may be getting removed from the project. I'm not going to comment on that because "paused” can mean a lot of things and there's so much we don't know yet.

There will be other shows. 

There will be shows that DO have satisfying endings. 

Media and shows can be replaced. 

But there is no such thing as being un-raped.