#deserving of respect as a human being?

[musicrunsthroughmysoul]

The only reason I got through work today was because I had two free periods (including one right after lunch, so I had an extended lunch) and I used one (my extended lunch) to write/continue my current WIP on my phone. And now that I'm home, I'm thinking of getting in bed and continuing to write while I watch a Big Country concert on Youtube that I discovered has a setlist I'm super interested in seeing (considering that it's from 1994, and while I consider it progress that I watched and listened to Without the Aid of a Safety Net, I'm simply not that interested in anything the band did live post-WtAoaSN unless it involved a cover of a woman's song, or a woman, such as Carol Laula).

[rosefires20]

My brainrot today is thinking about just how incredible for a character Eowyn is.

Genuinely. The series might not have many female characters but the ones we do get go so fucking hard.

To me, Eowyn is literally the definition of defining being a woman for oneself. She rejects the roles she is given despite acknlowdging the importance and its mostly because she knows part of the reason is that she is a woman.

The reason why she is obsessed with Aragorn isn't because she loves him but because she wants what he has. She wants the freedom and courage and bravery that Aragorn has at every turn. She literally has multiple conversations during the Two Towers about how what she fears most is a cage. All this girl wants is the freedom to be and not be forced into a role. The best thing is that she literally gets that.

The segment of Return of the King about Eowyn and Faramir is literally about her piecing together what she truly wants. She doesn't want Aragorn. She wants freedom and the ability to choose. Faramir does nothing but encourage that in her. Their love story is literally one of the healthiest love stories I've seen in a long time because at the heart of it, their love is a place to return home to for both parties. Both go off to lead and help their people for a considerable amount of time before returning to each other but that does not diminish their bond. Even Faramir, I believe, falls in love with her bravery and dedication to her loved ones. The reason she went to Pelenor Fields and Gondor with the troops of Rohan was because she had things she wanted to fight for. She wanted to fight for herself, her people, and her loved ones. She is the one who protects Theoden after he is killed so that his body gets the treatment it deserves. She encourages Merry and helps him go to the battle because she sees her struggle in Merry. They feel helpless standing around when there are things to be doing.

Let's also not forget the fact that she was around Grima Wormtounge just as much as the King was. She was exposed to the same poison and awful words that eroded the king. It's even implied that her care for him is part of the reason why Theoden was savable when Gandalf showed up. She had the same power and bravery as everyone else even if she didn't see it in herself.

Then at the end of the day, SHE decides where she wants to go and what path she wants to walk. She walked the path of a warrior. The path of a princess/ruler. The path of a caretaker. But in the end she decides which elements truly mean something to her outside of gender definitions. That is what makes her character so incredible to me. In this she literally kills one of the biggest enemies in that battle with such a badass line.

[ciderjacks]

infantilization

[pucksandpower]

So … this happened.

The Formula 1 community — and sports fandom as a whole — needs to have a serious conversation about the dangerous commodification and objectification of athletes.

And I know, I write fanfiction — what right do I have talking about any of this? But there is a reason why the cardinal rule of fanfiction is to keep it far removed from those featured in it. Because those of us who create and consume it know about the importance of boundaries.

Boundaries … that are repeatedly being crossed by so-called fans who choose to forget that Formula 1 drivers and all athletes are human beings while sickeningly violating their privacy and encroaching on their safety in real life.

Things need to change.

This is an issue of morality, dignity, and security. It cannot continue.

[butchvamp]

we know EA interfered a lot with veilguard, i definitely do attribute the "sanitization" of the setting directly to EA's meddling, i even think to some extent taash's quest and the corporate representation feel of it all was influenced heavily by EA and not just weekes. and i think a lot of the companions being so shallow and their quests feeling half-baked is also mostly due to time constraints and rewrites/cut content-- the writers genuinely did do the best they could with what they had, and i feel for them and their frustrations. but. there are also just a lot of really bad decisions made elsewhere, too. like i said the racism has always been present in these games and it's always been a problem, it's literally baked into the worldbuilding, though i can definitely agree that some of it was potentially made worse specifically in veilguard due to constant rewrites and the loss of context and cohesion, but like... it was always there to begin with... and it's not "unfair" for players to point this out.

both things can be true-- EA absolutely fucked these people over, and we shouldn't be speculating conspiracy theory-type shit about the writers hating fans or whatever when we know. we know EA interfered, we know there were creative differences, we know they ruthlessly laid off a lot of the people that poured their blood, sweat, and tears into this game! EA is both stupid and actively malicious, they get no sympathy from me. veilguard absolutely is a casualty of the current state of the gaming industry. and i also think there were a lot of poor writing decisions made independently of that as well, that are fair to criticize and question. a lot of these problems are the same problems we've seen in every single DA game, and this consistency makes it clear this is not just an issue with corporate overreach.

but i really feel for everyone involved with making this game, this shit was clearly a very long and tiring fight, i can't even imagine the kind of constant corporate shitstorm they had to deal with for ten fucking years, and personally there is no NDA in the world that would keep me from talking shit. so these guys are stronger than me lol

[sneakyboymerlin]

Merlin is kind of like a dog to Arthur. I mean this in all of the good and all of the bad ways.

[lotus-pear]

rewatched madoka magica again today bc i fucking hate myself and to absolutely no one’s surprise i went through all five stages of grief in a single evening

[springtrappd]

marta svetek -- voice of gregory, vanny, roxanne wolf in fnaf: sb and its dlc, ruin -- has joined kellen goff in voicing her thoughts on ai reproductions of her voice. again: if you want voice actors to maintain a living wage (and their own mental health), please respect her wishes and ensure that this kind of behaviour is heavily discouraged in the future.

full text of thread below the cut for brevity:

Been getting tagged in all kinds of posts and popular TikToks of people using AI voice clones of my FNAF characters to have them sing or say all kinds of random stuff. You might think it's fun. But really it's contributing to the problem all VAs are facing in the wake of AI. The more these AI voice clones get used, the more they're normalized, and the more businesses see it as a viable alternative to real VAs when making content for you. Slowly but surely, most of your favourite VAs will be out of work. Not to mention what this will cost in terms of future generations of VAs. Incredible performances we'll never get to experience because most businesses will more often than not go for the cheapest, quickest option as soon as the technology is up to scratch. This is made even worse by the fact that we currently have very few legal protections against the unauthorized use of our voices using AI. And we're being pressured to waive those too, for a fraction of their worth. This is one of the big reasons the current strikes are a thing. If you enjoyed my work in FNAF and have any respect for the amount of time and effort VAs put into bringing characters to life, don't use AI voice clones in your fanart. I can't express how violated I feel every time I hear my voice say words that aren't my own. And just in case it wasn't clear - I have never consented to having my voice, likeness or any of my performances synthesized into AI voices/avatars etc.

[pfhwrittes]

i said this on my other blog but if any of you (but especially any one who is an addict) needs an open ear to talk to, i’m here.

if you relapsed last night/today, i love you.

if you white knuckled your sobriety last night/today and you’re exhausted, i love you.

if you wobbled or felt doubt or had that fleeting thought of “just one to take the edge off” and feel guilty and ashamed, i love you.

i love you and i want you to be kind to yourself. you deserve love. you deserve comfort. you deserve kindness.

[ignorant-rat-carcass]

Seriously, and I can’t stress this enough;

FUCK. THIS. SHIT.

[kick-a-long]

three things can be true at the same time. 1, christian (and ex-christian) arab, muslim, etc cultures are all deeply steeped in antisemitism. 2, muslims, christians etc who do fight antisemitism come from that same culture but are some of the loudest and most cherished allies. 3, there are tons of christians and muslims who aren't antisemitic, don't give two shits about jews neither hate nor love, full stop, and treating all christians and muslims as suspect is racist as hell.

antisemites are not subtle, smart, ethical, truthful or just "misspeaking"/"well meaning" when they cover their antisemitism with antizionist talk. they tell you who they are in a million different ways and treating large groups like they are all antisemites for being born is as wrong as hating all woman, men, blacks, whites, etc for the same.

idk. i just don't want to end up funneling my anger at the media and the amsterdam pogrom and the many many attacks against jews around the world into bigotry. i have to periodically remind myself that most people are normal and the jew hatred I'm constantly exposed to is done by people who mean to do it and want me funneled into the same bigoted bullshit that they are steeped in. i never want to abandon my humanity to become a racist like that, especially not because racists attack me.

[uncanny-tranny]

The thing that radicalized me about youth liberation was a conversation I had when I myself was a child. I told an adult (with respect) that I think I deserved the same exact respect as adults, and it was me who was yelled at for it.

It showed me exactly how fucked the dynamic is between children and adult, where children are seen as property that doesn't require respect.

[internetgiraffekid1673]

Time for the next edition in: "The Batfam Brainrot has taken over my life, temporarily turned this into a comics blog, and forced me to draw them all!" Today, it's time for a SPOILER WARNING!

Initial trace and half-baked background of Stephanie Brown! My beloved, my darling, my favorite child! Stephanie Brown has actually had a multitude of different superhero mantles and costumes! She's usually depicted as Spoiler or Batgirl (although she's also Robin IV), but not with this costume. Unlike with Jason though, I didn't feel the need to draw all these other costumes because this is my definitive favorite! This is more or less her original costume, and I think it's her best by far! The pointy hood and the full black face mask make her look so intimidating, but it's also really simple and easy to read, and that deep purple color being her ENTIRE costume is really unique for a vigilante! Even better, all of these clothes do look like things Steph may have just had in her closet, which is perfect since she literally did just throw on a homemade costume to start going after her awful father. It's cool, it's intimidating, it's unique, it's instantly recognizable, it makes sense for the character, and it's perfect!

Stylization time where I use my trace as a reference to freehand her into a chibi! This whole project has made me realize I really like drawing capes and need to come up with more excuses to give them to people, but Steph's cape is definitely my favorite so far. I think it's that it's actually a cloak, with the hood and the part of her shoulders. It just looks extra cool and is extra fun to draw! Probably due to the simplicity of her costume and the fact that she's my favorite, Steph was both the easiest and the most fun to stylize thus far.

Characterization pose! Steph is cheerful, kind, spunky, and energetic, so I thought whooping for joy would be a good choice. I tried to draw her so that, standing flat, she's just the slightest bit taller than Tim. I've got them all in a lineup that I'll post when I'm finished. I'm a big fan of Steph in both overalls and a ponytail. For me, it contributes to both her spunk and her sweetness. I also think spoiler's logo text is my favorite so far. I traced it off a comics cover, as per usual, although Steph doesn't have a solo comic in the Spoiler identity, so I had to steal it off a Robin comic. It looks like she used permanent marker or spray paint to haphazardly smack it on there and get in everyone's way, which is very on brand.

Other Batfamily Members:

Nightwing Edition

Red Hood Edition

Robin (Carrie Kelley) Edition

Red Robin Edition

[greywardenmonkey]

"solas wouldnt have loved anyone else because LAVELLAN *proceeds to describe things inquisitor can do to bond with solas regardless of race or gender* so THERE"

[calypsolemon]

to this day I don't like skybound as a season all that much but I do think there's a unique derangement people have about it where they read Way Worse Implications into what's actually happening during that season and don't actually engage with any of the fucked up shit that really went on and also they want to take the little existing complex character writing out of it to make it more morally digestable

[ilynpilled]

i can fully understand the gripes with certain misogynistic tropes/writing issues that are present in the execution of some of cersei’s writing, but i will never understand the “she should have a redemption arc” or “she should be more likeable/less morally dark” perspective. that is not what her character is or has to be to make it great. wanting more female anti-heroes or “redemption arcs” with moral greyness and complexity of the level that asoiaf gives to primarily male characters is entirely understandable, but do some of you people even like cersei as a character, like at its core? like this is not about criticising the execution of certain things when it comes to this character, this is about taking issue with her as a villain fundamentally, which i just do not agree with at all