#cw misogyny mention

[disventurecamptakes]

whenever someone says that td fans are misogynists, i look at disventure camp fandom. /nbh, i don't read this blog, i just rant here.

-🪚 anon

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[epic-the-musical-confessions]

I'm in need of clarification on what counts as "belittling". Because you've posted a few confessions where others belittled people's criticisms of Epic, particularly regarding the (very valid) critiques of racism and misogyny and the mishandling of SA. Constantly saying "it's not there" or "if you want to see it, that's your business" and the like.

What exactly classifies as "belittling"? Because I'd argue those are far more belittling.

Thank you for asking for clarification! You're right, I did do that earlier on, mainly due to my own internal struggles with how to deal with those posts, if they actually broke the rules or were just on the line.

I know one of the more recent ones I almost didn't post, but because of a post very early on that I had allowed about Eurylochus and another ask I had put clarifications in the tags about said subjects (and posted the other anons disagreeing with the take as well which I do cut off after a certain point as to not dogpile any anons), I gave a warning that it's near the line. But again, that was before the small break I took.

Now, an ask like that would get deleted and I'd post a rule reminder.

However there are some asks that I think are a little ignorant on their subjects. But not necessarily belittling. Those asks may be marked with a question mark for clarification if needed, or posted with a warning that they're near the line. I also allow respectful disagreement/clarification.

Belittling I'd classify as actively dismissing or making fun of a criticism and/or opinion in a mean-spirited way.

Again, earlier on I've given a lot of people warnings/benefit of the doubt. I will now be more harsh on anything like that, and will delete future asks like that.

Again, thank you for asking for clarification anon.

Tldr: you're right, I did allow those with warnings in the tags based on earlier decisions in making this blog, but will not be so lenient anymore.

[townofcadence]

🕯️ :]

🕯️ to Hear some Inner Thoughts

I wonder how this kid would feel if he knew I was trans? He mentioned pheromones and he's talking about---what basically sounds like hunting women for sport? I dealt with that enough growing up. I hated when guys talked to me like I was a potential conquest, or when I got catcalled or ogled or--- or treated like a piece of meat, when I was just trying to live my life. And I transitioned pretty young. It's kind of ....hngg. I feel skeeved out just thinking about it.

Does he even know he sounds like that? I mean, he's a kid, maybe he hasn't had to deal with boundaries being put up. Or Japan is different? I don't know. But he might not realize. I hope he doesn't-- when it's not about girls, his heart seems in the right place.

Maybe I should say something? I-- mm, but it's Naoto's friend and I don't want to cause issues for her. But still... I can't imagine they feel comfortable if he says stuff like this around them, too. Maybe I'll just--- I'll be gentle about it? But I should say something, right? As the adult. And as a fellow guy? It shouldn't be some girl's responsibility in the future. I should-- I should say something. Maybe in private.

Maybe I'll just check too that the detective wouldn't be too upset if I do. Or at least I'll warn her. Then if it's something else, she can let me know before I jump the gun.

[dappy-dappernette]

One of my hcs for the difference between Germany and Nyo Germany has to be like- While Ludwig was able to chill out and let his guard down over the years, I feel like Monika took much longer and still is a lot more harsher, stricter, and to an extent more commanding than Ludwig. This is mostly because as girl she's most likely faced a lot of misogyny, especially as a female nation in a very patriarchal society. I feel as if in order for her to be taken as a fraction as seriously as Ludwig was, she would feel the need to have to push herself to be more stern and more outspoken than him even as things died down she would still feel the need to be that way.

[roomwithavoid]

i’m so tired of being endlessly faced with unending cruelty no matter where i go online. i just want to be a kid again. too naive to feel so hopeless and too innocent to know that what i’ve just heard was a rape joke. before everyone was so fucking jaded. before andrew tate and before don’t say gay and before i decided i would never go outside again because im so scared of what’s out there

i wanna be a kid on club penguin inviting other kids to look at how i decorated my igloo. i want to go on forums for pokémon and my little pony and talk about how much i love meowth and how fluttershy is best pony. i want to go on minecraft servers and tpa to people’s creative plots to do a skin competition or collect youtubers heads in head shops. i want to go on deviantart and look at gumball ocs and users with licking cat emoticons as their profile pictures.

i want to be able to make friends everywhere i go online. i want to be able to scroll five minutes without hearing about why everyone’s gonna die in five years. i want to be able to go outside without being terrified of everyone on the street because it’s been drilled into me that everyone and everything is a threat.

and i’m sure someone will come after me. say these are my white tears at having to face an ounce of struggle in my life

i don’t care anymore. clearly, nobody will ever care about other people ever again, so why should i even try.

fuck the internet. fuck america. fuck other people. fuck the fact that i can’t help but care about other people.

i just want to be happy.

[johnhancockslover]

Is it true that a lot of redditors moved to tumblr? Reddit has gotten exponentially more misogynistic lately

[anendtopursuit]

certain corners of the jayvik shipping community erasing jayce's love for mel and insisting it was never real is frustrating for various reasons

the first (and imo most concerning) is the casual disregarding of mel's character and relationship (a black woman as a primary love interest! something that is unfortunately not as common as it should be!), falling not only into the incredibly common misogynistic fandom tendency to dismiss/demonise women who "get in the way" of mlm ships, but also into the misogynoir of the "disposable black girl" trope - something i implore you to research and consider not only when interacting in fandom spaces but also when critiquing the show itself and its treatment of mel/sky. similar sort of issues come with people dismissing mel's affection for him as manipulation when she's arguably far less manipulative than viktor (gestures @ the whole "he was the person who set jayce on this path the entire time" bombshell), their relationship was always mutually beneficial, and we're shown her perspective multiple times without their relationship ever being portrayed as insincere. how is it not manipulative for jayce to use mel's influence to become a councillor and push heimerdinger out etc, but it's manipulative for mel to make suggestions about the usage of hextech? would you think the same way about these actions if it were viktor doing them?

second of all: insisting that jayce's love for his literal girlfriend must be fake because he's in love with a man feels so oddly strict and binary for such a queer fandom/ship. if paralleling viktor and mel's scenes leads you to interpret his relationship with viktor as romantic, then surely his relationship with mel must still be romantic too for that comparison to make sense? bisexual erasure is especially prevalent when it comes to men and male characters (due to biphobic and misogynistic beliefs about bisexuality being "a women's sexuality" caused by "female promiscuity" or some archaic bullshit like that). insisting that he can only love one and not the other, and then dismissing his affections for mel if you decide he loves viktor, also just reeks to me of the "pick a side" mentality and, again, is weirdly monogamous for such a queer fandom. i realise this may sound like a reach to some people since jayce isn't explicitly canonically bi, but i still think it's a good idea to be cautious about how you have these discussions and any implications they may have, especially if it impacts a real life community that already regularly faces erasure

tl;dr you can be a jayvik liker and also be normal about mel medarda and meljay. please for the love of god be normal about mel medarda and meljay.

[heartless-aro]

As an aro ace woman, there’s something fascinating to me about seeing people, including acephobes and arophobes, in recent days talk passionately about the 4B movement and discussing the backlash against it. It’s interesting how, now that a substantial number of the people doing it are straight alloromantic allosexual women, choosing not to have sex and choosing to be nonpartnering are being spoken of as radical acts that society punishes women for. How come it isn’t radical or subversive when I do it?

Aphobia and misogyny intersect in so many ways, but when they do intersect, so many people only want to acknowledge the misogyny aspect of things (which is important, but still not the entire picture). I’m aware that aromantic and asexual women are not the only women affected by politicians declaring “childless cat ladies” to be worthless or sexist men resorting to rape threats at the slightest hint that some women may choose not to date or have sex with them. But I do wish that people were more willing to acknowledge how aromantic and asexual women are disproportionately harmed by the violent reactions misogynists have towards women who say no.

[disventurecamptakes]

I guess I'm officially the person who bitches to you about HunTessAlly after each episode comes out because no one would wanna listen to me :P Anyway, that last scene between Hunter and Tess. WHY DO THE WRITERS KEEP DOWNPLAYING HOW MUCH TESS MEANT TO BOTH HUNTER AND ALLY IN THE FIRST SEASON??? SHE WAS PART OF THEIR CHARACTERS TOO! Hunter cared about her and helped her deal with her depression. They both liked their kiss in the kissing episode. Ally was there for Tess when she had a breakdown in that cave. Tess was there for Ally when Hunter kissed her after they all agreed to wait until they all spoke to do stuff. Also the "...You two have something real. I noticed the moment you two spent all night talking at the Awake-a-thon last season". WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT YOU FUCKING FELL ASLEEP. YOU WERE FUCKING CONKED OUT. The writers fucking up Hunter, Tess, and Ally are making me realize I only stuck around as long just to watch HunTessAlly. I literally could not give less of a shit about everyone else. Oh boo-hoo you still have feelings for a whiny baby that you ghosted for two years. Oh boo-hoo the racist, homophobic, transphobic, misogynistic piece of shit feels alone. Okay, I'm exaggerating a bit, I like Gabby, Ellie, and Grett.

The failing to write a polyamorous relationship after leading us on for a whole fucking season is genuinely giving me the most motivation to write a fanfics of HunTessAlly because I know that I, a person whose most experience in fictional writing is the few comics I make and whatever fictional stories I had to write for school, can make a better story with these characters than a group of people who write stories for a living.

The first scene between Hunter and Tess was cute though, I'll give them that.

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[epic-the-musical-confessions]

fandom crit cw (I hope that tag is okay I don't know how to do content warnings anymore, sorry)

my confession is that, the way people have been behaving pretty much ever since Thunder Saga makes me remember why I basically stopped being 'in fandoms' in the first place. Which sucks, because I love fanart and fan content a lot. And for a musical, especially one in it's early stages like Epic, there's pretty much only fan content to consume outside of the initial media. Maybe I'm just nearly 30 and the fandom is mostly made of teens and early 20 year olds, but I keep seeing behavior patterns (especially around discussions centering black characters) and being like 'surely, we know better by now, right? We've already been through this with other fandoms, we learned to do better, right?'. and I can give the teens a pass, to an extent, because they're literal children who need to be given the proper space and time to grow and learn but man, there are some full ass adults who are acting like they're still 14 and I just? I have to block them.

I don't know, it makes me sad, and I feel really bad for the cast, especially Barbara. As far as I know no one has come for her explicitly but it can't be nice to look at the character you play and see some of the absolutely baseless and nasty things people have said. Life of an actor and a woman? Maybe. still sucks, and i hope she sees the love for the character and her voice more than the hate.

I don't know, at the end of the day, I wish people would take more time to stop and listen and be kind.

Sorry, I really needed to ramble and put all this out there anonymously. I think I'm just going to avoid Epic for a while outside cast content. I don't get a lot of time to just relax and enjoy things, I'd rather not get bombarded with 'discourse'.

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[kitabasis]

Ok no clue if anyone but me wants to read this but: who gives a shit. It's my blog I'm rambling about my transmasc hamlet wip on it.

(Rambles under the readmore so it doesn't take up space if you're not interested)

In the kingdom the story is set in (I'm not entirely sure about the rest of the world, we are verrrry early in development), there's a very strong belief that you owe your parents for giving you the gift of life/your body, and thus it is your duty to obey them, take care of your body, continue the lineage, etc. This sort of naturally extends into their worship of the Allfather, their creator god, who everyone has duty to as they have duty to their own parents, although with some slightly different aspects due to the cosmic scale of the Allfather. Filial piety is general The most important moral value in this society, and a lot of the other moral and religious rules proceed from it. I'm still working out why, but there's some sort of sexism in their creation myth that is used to justify misogyny, although you still owe filial piety to both of your parents.

The Hamlet-inspired OC was born to the king and queen of the kingdom the story's set in, and assigned female at birth. Normally this would be just an inconvenient setback, but the birth was very difficult, and the doctors told them that it would be very risky--both to the queen and to a second hypothetical child--for her to give birth again. The king and queen couldn't divorce (haven't decided if this is solely for political reasons or if divorce just isn't allowed or is looked down on), and if the king had no heir, the throne would go instead to his younger brother when he died, which they didn't want to happen for personal and political reasons. However, this kingdom runs on primogeniture, so they needed a male heir.

Hence, the baby was raised as a prince. It's important to note that "hiding your gender" is seen as morally wrong in this society, because a) they place so much importance on procreation and gender roles and b) because they think you shouldn't hide your body, as it is a gift from your parents, and that you thus dishonor them by hiding it. The prince feels very guilty about this, but has decided it is not immoral because by doing it he is honoring his parents by obeying them, and by the fact that the entire thing is meant to continue the royal line (of course, he feels guilty about feeling guilty, because one shouldn't feel guilt for obeying their parents).

The prince is, in fact, transmasc, although he has no idea of this because, among other reasons, the term and idea simply don't really...exist in the popular consciousness of this setting, although of course trans people do. He has an incredibly messy relationship with his gender and sex (and sexuality--he might be bi or pan, but currently I'm fairly sure he's exclusively attracted to men), and of course he cannot talk about it with anyone.

Now that he is of marriagable age (he's probably 16-19?), there is concern both by him and his parents (before his father dies, of course) about actually continuing the line past him, because in their panicked, post-difficult-birth rush to ensure the throne didn't go to the king's brother, they...sort of forgot to consider the fact that, to continue the line past him, he would need to get married and have a child with a cis woman--and even though this is a fantasy setting, that sort of magic isn't included in the magic system.

I also have mostly not ironed out the magic system, but I know it involves spirits, and that the royal family is known for their magical abilities. Once a king is crowned, he becomes magically connected to all of the previous kings' souls, who basically hitch a ride, adding all of their experience, magical power, and opinions to the new king (yes it does kind of represent the weight of tradition and legacy). This also tends to result in a king acting rather differently post- than pre-crowning. Also, all of the kings in this line traditionally have the same name. It's not a horrifying loss of identity don't worry about it :). This is also part of why the kingdom is so traditionalist--the same king has, in some sense, been ruling since its foundation.

does anyone want to read my rambling concepts for my high fantasy hamlet retelling where hamlet is transmasc and was raised from birth as a boy bc of dynastic reasons and also pietas (sorry for the latin. It was just how i thought of it when i made my notes and now i can’t stop) causes so many problems. And the narration seems to be third-person limited from Hamlet but actually it’s revealed at the end to be Horatio telling the story.

[tmasc-confessions]

There’s a rumour going around my friendgroup that I’m transmisogynistic literally just because I’m gay and it’s actually ruining my social life.

It’s really that simple. I have “t4t 🩵” in my instagram bio, and I’m a gay guy. I personally define gay as “non women loving non women”. Therefore, my scope of t4t-ness is trans men and nonbinary people.

Well, about a week ago, one of my close friends (a trans girl) asked me out. I told her I was sorry but that I wasn’t really interested and she asked me why; I told her I wasn’t interested in women that way and she said “but you have t4t in your bio” and I had to explain to her that while yes, I do, my t4t attraction doesn’t extend to trans women since I am not attracted to women.

She asked me if I’d date a nonbinary person who has a dick. I said “well, yes, because they aren’t a woman.” She then tried to hold me still and kiss me (she had me backed up against the wall) and I had to very roughly shove her off me because she’s very physically strong and I couldn’t get her off me any other way.

Now, I should clarify; nonconsensual kissing is legally defined as sexual assault where we live. What she did was attempted sexual assault and it FELT like it. I was fucking terrified and cried myself to sleep that night.

Anyway, she’s now used my rejection and shoving her off to tell all our friends that I “hate trans women” and that I reduced her to her genitalia (WHICH I LITERALLY FUCKING DIDN’T!!! SHE WAS THE ONE WHO ASKED ABOUT IT!!!)

I tried explaining what had happened and now our friend group is basically divided in half; the ones who refuse to believe she tried to assault me and are now calling me a liar and a transmisogynist (four transfems and one transmasc who loves playing white knight), and the ones who believe me but “don’t wanna stir up drama” so they don’t do anything about it (two transmascs, two nonbinary people, one cis girl.)

I feel incredibly alone because my own fucking friends don’t wanna dump her for what she tried.

The only two people who ACTUALLY care and are actively airing her right now are one of my transfem friends (the only transfem in the group who believed me, actually, because all of the others refuse to believe she’d have done that); and one of my transmasc friends.

I genuinely don’t know what to do. I’m having a horrible time. I feel like all my friends are too wrapped up in identity politics to believe me about literally almost getting fucking assaulted and/or stand up to her for it. I just hope shit gets fixed soon.

That’s fucking horrible anon, I’m so sorry that happened. 🫂

[irishmammonagenda]

ngl, my least favourite character has to be leviathan.

like, the calling himself an otaku, (idk if he has body pillows or if thats just fanon, so i wont add it) being obsessed with a fictional female anime character, being shown to have a bad temper. (think after mc won that one TSL quiz start of the game)

idk bro has those 'nice guys finish last' self-depreciating vibes. in my head i can 100% see him being extremely misogynistic. he just feels like a stereotypical incel and i'd be insanely uncomfortable around that. it just reminds me of real life men and events yknow.

(this is on account if i met him in real life mostly. i get that his character has more depth. dont hang me)

[nebulouscoffee]

The thing about Kai Winn's storyline ultimately being a tragedy is, it's not only a tragedy because her fate (in the eyes of the non-linear Prophets) was already known and nothing she did or said was ever going to make them acknowledge her- not only because she wanted so badly to have a big role to play in the grand, historic story of the newly independent Bajor and just couldn't handle the fact that she was never meant to- not only because the Prophets spoke to Sisko and Bareil and Kira and literally even Quark but not her- not only because she was deceived and raped and killed in the end- but most of all because, it was partly her love of Bajor that killed her.

Think about it- her whole regression during that final arc with Dukat is so tragic precisely because she was THIS close to redemption! Throughout the show, we see that her brain processes information in very rigid, binary ways: if you are not my ally, then you are my enemy. If you disagree with even one of my opinions, you are my enemy. If you refuse to endorse and support me in this mission, you are my enemy. That's part of why she's so easily swayed by fascist rhetoric, I think- she's just unable to cope with nuance. (This is foreshadowed in 'Shakaar', where she puts the whole of Bajor under martial law just because Shakaar disagreed with her over how she was handling soil reclamators.) Her personal narrative is I am the one who will save Bajor -> anyone who gets in my way is my enemy and therefore an enemy of Bajor -> I must stop them using any force necessary for the good of Bajor because I am after all the one who will save Bajor.

But when Sisko discovers the city of B'hala in 'Rapture', she is for the first time forced to accept the truth that he really hasn't been faking this whole "talks to the Prophets" thing- he's the real deal. We learn later on (when she tells "Anjohl" about how she honestly felt nothing the first time she saw the wormhole open) that a small, small part of her actually always doubted the existence of the Prophets. Now, she is faced with definitive proof that they are not only very real, but they also really do have a bond with Sisko. And for a while, she even comes to terms with this! In fact, at the end of the episode, she and Kira have possibly their first completely honest exchange:

KIRA: Maybe we're the ones who need to trust the Prophets. For all we know, this is part of their plan. Maybe they've told Captain Sisko everything they want him to know.  WINN: Perhaps. I suppose you heard that Bajor will not join the Federation today. The Council of Ministers has voted to delay acceptance of Federation membership.  KIRA: You must be very pleased.  WINN: I wish I were. But things are not that simple. Not anymore. Before Captain Sisko found B'hala, my path was clear. I knew who my enemies were. But now? Now nothing is certain.  KIRA: Makes life interesting, doesn't it?

Like, YASS babygirl- you too can learn to handle nuance!! I believe in you!!💪💪

And later on, at the onset of the Dominion War, she comes to Sisko for advice herself. She doesn't want to see her planet colonised again, and she's even willing to put aside her desire to be the main character to ensure it doesn't happen. Driven by pride and the need for power as she is, she is also driven by the desire save Bajor (and preferably be the one saving Bajor, which is the subsection of this desire that ultimately ends up being her downfall) - and she does briefly decide that cooperating with the Emissary is the best way to do this! I think about this scene from 'In The Cards' so much:

WINN: ... I have asked the Prophets to guide me, but they have not answered my prayers. I even consulted the Orb of Wisdom before coming here and it has told me nothing. So I come to you, Emissary. You have heard the voice of the Prophets. You were sent here to guide us through troubled times. Tell me what to do and I will do it. How can I save Bajor?  SISKO: You want my advice? Then this is it. Stall. Tell Weyoun you have to consult with the Council of Ministers, or that you have to meditate on your response. Anything you want, but you have to stall for time.  WINN: Time for what?  SISKO: I don't know. But I do know the moment of crisis isn't here yet, and until that moment arrives we have to keep Bajor's options open. I'm aware that this is difficult for you, given our past, but this time you have to trust me.  (Winn holds Sisko's left ear.)  WINN: Very well, Emissary. We put ourselves in your hands. May we all walk with the Prophets.

In the earlier seasons, Winn would often casually make claims that the Prophets had "told her" something, or that she was just "doing what the Prophets asked"- and her political position as Kai always allowed her to just lie about being in contact with them all the time. Now, you can see the sheer humility- the embarrassment, even- on her face as she (for the first time) openly admits to Sisko that she has never actually heard them speak before; and that they clearly "prefer" him. Yes, there's some (understandable imo) bitterness here- but not at him, at THEM. And when she tries to read his pagh at the end- something she probably does to dozens of people every day, most of whom would unquestioningly believe anything she declares afterwards- she doesn't even try to pretend she felt anything there. It's one of her most genuine moments in the whole show, you can just SEE the redemption arc in reach and it's so heartbreaking!!

I think 'The Reckoning' is a huge episode for her too, for many reasons- but let's talk about how it sets up this fascinating parallel between her and Kira (who Odo describes in this episode as having "both faith and humility"). The Prophets choose Kira as their "vessel" because she was "willing"- meanwhile, Winn was right there just begging to be a part of this! Here she is, with a Prophet right in front of her face- and she prays and postures and begs and prays some more, all just to get ignored. Kira's brand of faith is very, "I am ultimately insignificant and I surrender my power and my body and pagh to the Prophets"- Winn's is more, "if I do all the right things, then I will be able to prove to the Prophets that I am worthy of their attention, worthier than everyone else, and maybe then they'll appoint me the saviour of Bajor! It's My Destiny, You See!! (Why Isn't This Happening For Me??)" And the events of this episode are kind of a big slap in the face to her honestly, because they sort of prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Prophets have no interest in her. Maybe stopping the battle was also an attempt at regaining some kind of agency with them- I DID THIS, I pulled a switch and it had a direct effect on the Prophets, so there!! (Whatever that effect entails). She does care about Bajor. Of course she does. But her ideal configuration of Bajor involves her being a major player in its salvation, which she was just never meant to be. And this is why she's so tragically susceptible to Dukat's manipulation- he was the first person ever to tell her everything she always wanted to hear.

And the intriguing thing about Dukat's deception is, it doesn't all fall apart at one go. It falls apart in layers. And this makes for some excellent, excellent Winn characterisation imo.

First, she thinks the pah wraiths are the Prophets- and they tell her, hey, The Sisko has faltered, Bajor needs you, and only you can fix this. Good lord, imagine finally getting to hear those words after a lifetime of silence! And it's very telling that her first reaction isn't to gloat like she would've in the earlier seasons, but instead to humbly- even anxiously- pray. Bajor needs her, the "Prophets" have asked her to do something, this is her moment! Then, this random lovely Bajoran farmer comes in and tells her even more things she has always wanted to hear- that her activism during the Occupation (ignored by Kira and Sisko alike) saved lives, that he always wondered why the Prophets would choose an alien as their Emissary, that surely Sisko and his followers were mistaken- and finally, "our world will be reborn- with YOU as its leader". Sounds good, right? But THEN she finds out she's been speaking to the pah wraiths and the lovely farmer is a devil worshipper actually. And she tries the "wash away my sins" approach- she wants some kind of quick fix ritual that will "purify" her, so she can continue to be Kai the right way. She even admits to Kira that she's always been power hungry and she wants to change- and I believe her! Unfortunately, Kira then tells her something she doesn't want to hear- that she has to step down as Kai. And surely that can't be, right? She's the saviour of Bajor! She's so complex... it's not simply her love of power that this scene reveals imo, but more significantly, her inability to see herself as not a vital part of Bajor's history; of this whole larger narrative. Like-

WINN: I'm a patient woman. But I have run out of patience. I will no longer serve gods who give me nothing in return. "GIVE ME"!! ADAMI MY BESTIE MY GIRL MY BUDDY THEREIN LIES THE PROBLEM!!!

So, okay, fine, now she's swayed over to the side that maybe the Prophets aren't that great, and maybe the pah wraiths are the true gods of Bajor (because they were willing to talk to her), and maybe she's okay working with the devil worshipper. But then it turns out he's DUKAT- and at this point, she's literally murdered someone, she's ready to stop this, to go back to Sisko and set things right- but then the book of the Kosst Amojan lights up because of the blood she spilled. She did that. It happened as a direct result of her actions. She's just so desperate to be acknowledged... to have a role to play in all this, no matter who offers it to her. So the pah wraiths actually giving her a reaction isn't something she can resist. And here's where things get even more tragic.

WINN: But the prophecies! They warn that the release of the Pah wraiths will mean the end of Bajor.  DUKAT: The old Bajor, perhaps. But from its ashes a new Bajor will arise and the Restoration will begin.  WINN: Who will be left to see it?  DUKAT: Those the gods find worthy. It will be the dawn of paradise. And you, Adami, are destined to rule it.  WINN: You're sure of that?  DUKAT: It is meant to be.

Again with the ease at which she's swayed by fascist rhetoric! Let's be clear, she was (and is) absolutely against the Cardassian Occupation. But her worldview is built on the pursuit of being "worthier" than everyone else, of being "closer to god" than everyone else- her expectation of faith is that it's some sort of determiner of who's doing it The Most Effectively, rather than it being a practice- and she just completely misses that any sort of plan that executes masses and spares whoever is deemed "worthy" is... literally exactly what people like Dukat did to her planet. Something something faith as competition, faith as determiner of inherent superiority, faith as a way to gain power via proximity to god… never faith as submission. And the worst part is she’s self-aware. It’s heartbreaking.

And it's about to get even more heartbreaking, because she truly believes she has arrived at her girlboss moment in the finale (I think the tragedy of her being a rape victim and knowing this and having to hide the body of the one (1) person who was looking out for her while being stuck with her rapist speaks for itself.) After kicking Dukat out on the street (lol), she studies the eeevil texts and realises that to set the pah wraiths free, you need to make a sacrifice. So now she gets to deceive him in return. And she does! The look of shock on his face when he discovers she poisoned him is priceless imo, and her triumph as she taunts his dead body, the sheer joy on her face as she casts off her Kai robes, when she recites those incantations and something actually happens- and that too such a large pyrotechnic spectacle- is so sad knowing what's coming. Because ultimately, the pah wraiths want to destroy Bajor, right? And Winn just doesn't. Of course they don't choose her. Of course they choose Dukat over her! She really thought that by tricking and murdering him, she'd made him the unimportant piece of the puzzle, that she was stealing back his thunder- but tragically, it turns out even the pah wraiths see her as disposable. Of course they resurrect Dukat (a man who's proved time and time again that he wants to see Bajor & Bajorans destroyed) and turn her into the sacrifice. The way she screams "NO!" here breaks my heart- she's betrayed her planet, and it was all for nothing. (Dukat's "are you still here?" is particularly devastating.) I think it's very significant that her final words are "Emissary, the book!"- it shows that in her last moments, she's owning her mistakes- she's stepping away from power and putting Bajor first, and leaving her own fate in the hands of the Prophets. Who, of course, once again ignore her, and choose to save Sisko instead. God.

The utter tragedy that even in the pah wraiths' plan, she was just a pawn. That she died at the hands of the gods she thought chose her, but used her, all while the gods she'd coveted her whole life stood by and did nothing. The Prophets chose Sisko because they believed he would put Bajor's interests over even his own- and now they ensure he will be back one day to see the new Bajor. She never will.

Yes, it was her pride that got her here. Her mean streak. Her inability to cope with nuance. Her inability to see herself as ultimately insignificant. Her inability to surrender to a higher power in any way that didn't involve becoming more powerful herself; more relevant, more "close to god". But it was also her love of Bajor. Because if she'd cared about Bajor less, then maybe the pah wraiths might have chosen her- or at least spared her, or taken her to their realm after she burned, the way they did with Dukat. Now, she ends up being the one thing she never wanted to be: insignificant.

Honestly if I had to summarise the tragedy of her arc in one sentence, it would probably be Kai Winn: Too Evil For The Prophets, Not Evil Enough For The Pah Wraiths. She and Dukat are not the same! She is a perfectly pathetic, sad and wet blorbo and I am holding her gently in my hands while apologising for her crimes <3

[princelylove]

Dearest Prince,

Your La Squadra post is one of my favorites and it got me curious about some of the guys.

Ghiaccio is a name we barely see on your blog and I would love to know more about your interpretation of him. Whatever it is you got; from the regular facts to the complete degeneracy, I am interested in knowing.

Thank you for your time and interest, as well as your patience, I've been lacking in the "sending asks" department.

Heart heart xoxo

Oh, Ciocio. My favorite 4chan user. Sure.

Ghiaccio is one of those characters that, to me, are so established in my head that I feel as if I'm doing nothing by elaborating. It's very clear cut. Incel that actually goes to the gym and has a job, so he's automatically better than other forum users, yet he's not because he's always on there and is the first to make fun of 'the losers.'

Ghiaccio has a certain sense of superiority because he's not in that sort of Hazamada-ish porn addict incel category- yeah, he's a virgin in his middle-to-late twenties, and has basically no eye are el friends, but he's not a fucking degenerate. He's better. Yeah, he doesn't inherently see women as objects- it's just, uh, factual that they're only after... certain things.

Ghiaccio has a very complex relationship with women. They trigger his abandonment issues worse than any man could, even if all they're doing is acting indifferently. No matter what you do, you can't win. Play into it without trying? Tease. Don't play into it without trying? Prude. Bitch. Play into it on purpose? Whore. Don't play into it on purpose? You're playing hard to get. It's not like Ghiaccio actively thinks of women as lesser, or just less intelligent- obviously he doesn't think like that, intelligence has nothing to do with sex, jackass- it's just that those are the first words that pop into his head when he's angry and it seems like the one he has eyes for is leaving.

Always leaving. It's always something. He did something wrong again, and your stupid woman brain thought he'd just get it and would understand entirely when you didn't tell him what it was, and- He'll calm down eventually.

His relationship issues with women could stem from a lot of things. It could be his mother, the fact that he never had a long term relationship with a girl his age, the fact that he mainly consumes media (porn, or fetish content.) that objectifies them- any number of things could be it. His sexism actually isn't in the classic 'women are in their prime when they're younger' way, it's more of a 'women prefer older men because older men are real men' way. Which can get confusing at times, because he's the type to project heavily onto the women in his life, and he's not very good at explaining himself.

It's easier to ramble about a set topic with clear facts. It's objectively correct that Venesia- yeah, Venesia, say it in their fuckin' dialect you God damn [REDACTED. Reason for redaction: contains slur.]- is the actual name. Feelings aren't something you can fact check on a different tab.

It affects him more when a woman doesn't show interest in him. When a guy does it, it's like yeah, of course, fuckin' low value male would be jealous of him. Ghiaccio struggles with his self worth and meeting his own expectations. It's a lot of internalized loathing that presents itself as "Of course you're using me for dinner and want me to pay. You're trying to cuck me." Since Ghiaccio never really learned proper coping mechanisms, he usually just beats the shit out of whatever piece of furniture is closest to him. Goodbye, end table. It was nice knowing you.

Ghiaccio knows nothing of gentle love, but he knows he has to act right or his darling is going to freak out on him and give him a massive headache. He thinks he's above the guys that hit their bitch their partner, but he always manages to bruise them in some way, shape, or form. He has a bit of a problem with grabbing his darling too tightly and not easing up.

It's both a possessive thing and a complete accident. He just doesn't know what to do when you panic in front of him- holding you down works, usually? Yeah? Going for your throat should be fine, you can feel like you're secure in one spot, why the fuck are you hitting him now???? He's not going to seriously hit you, stop freaking out, holy shit. He's not a bad man that's planning on raping you or some shit, jesus christ, can you just calm down and think rationally?

When you actually calm down, likely after he gets pissed and fucks off for a while, he'll come back to check on you. He likes you. You should eat. He cut up some shit things for you. He just doesn't like when you're sobbing and assuming shit and acting hysterical.

He's really trying. He's really, really trying. It's hard to calm down and be the man his darling needs, but you keep saying such moronic shit- it's fine. It's fine. You're just a little stupid, he can work with that, if you start to listen to him.

Ghiaccio's good for hugs and that's about it. He won't let anything harm you. It's stupid to think that he'd just allow some other guy to touch you or speak to you enough to harm you. Come on, stop crying, he's right here, he can give you what you need to survive and be happy, he can be good to you if you don't piss him off intentionally. He can, and will. He's just frustrated right now.

The next day, when the bruises form. . . it's hard to hide how pleased he is. God, that's hot. Should give you more. What's a better way to get frustration out of his system?

[bonebabbles]

I keep starting and abandoning posts that go into my drafts, as I try to stay tasteful about how fucking revolted this part makes me. Like, I'm legitimately unsure if the very relevant trauma I have is making me see things that aren't here

But first we see that Star Flower is trying to ingratiate herself to the group, just after she reappears from chapter 5. Chapter 5 is about how Clear Sky is still abusive towards his son, and she comes in after stroking his ego, stressing how alone she is, and appealing to how she'll be loyal unlike his child. (She glances over at Thunder, directly implying this.)

Now in Chapter 9, she's babysitting and trying to care for Milkweed's kits (in spite of discomfort from Milkweed), taking a wet sleeping space away from the others, and pulling more than her own weight "without complaint." Putting herself through harsh sitations to prove her worth.

All while trying to appear extra attractive to Thunder, and later Clear Sky. Basically every man in power who can "protect her"

Like, am I going fucking crazy? With how we later find out that Star Flower was "promised as a mate" to One Eye's subordinate Slash, is... is that hypersexualization? One of the extremely stigmatized symptoms of sexual abuse?

She goes to find Clear Sky alone to throw herself at his paws, and he's very quickly attracted to how she promises to perfectly obey him, have no needs of her own, and finally be the perfect servant that he desires

"I don't deserve your trust because I am dirt. I understand you because I also regret something. I'd die for you. I'll never betray you unlike those who have."

This isn't manipulation. She means this. The story is playing their romance sincerely. She's comparing "betraying" Thunder by telling her own father about an assassination ambush to Clear Sky's history of child abuse, physical assault, and murder

She believes she's on the same level as this; a monster who murdered a childhood friend in a fit of entitled rage. She was a victim of One Eye who really believes that the way her father used her means she "understands" this monster, deserves this treatment.

And Clear Sky LIKES that.

He likes that she will have COMPLETE FAITH in him. That she will follow him WITHOUT QUESTION. That she will OBEY his orders. That's fucking verbatim, that's THE TEXT!!!

WHILE HE'S STILL CRYING ABOUT "ive tried to atone every day" FOLLOWING THE LAST TWO BOOKS WHERE THE ONLY SHITTY THING HE DOESN'T DO IS MURDER INNOCENT WOMEN

Am I insane?? Am I wrong??? Am I missing something here???? Why the fuck is the fandom takeaway "haha sexy girl steals his dad." Did I read the same book