#gay pining as a shared character motif

[hollowwhisperings]

Multifandom Silliness: Who's the Lan Wangji in this Series/Ship?

if you don't know your Mo Dao Zu Shi (or its sanitised, webseries adaption CQL/"The Untamed"), allow me to briefly introduce him for the purposes of this Silliness:

LAN WANGJI (courtesy name)

gained the title "Hanguang-jun" during a war, in reference to his "bringing hope wherever the chaos is" AKA being The Cavalry to even the most desperate of fights. the title roughly translates to "Light-bearing Lord" and additionally refers to the brightness/strength of his [sword glare] & his white robes.

had been Gay Pining for decades by the start of MDZS: his white robes now a symbol of grief, acting much like a war widow.

the "gay" part was not public knowledge but LWJ is VERY HOMOSEXUAL.

BUFF (& pretty): LWJZ is buff as all heck, nvm what his Pretty Boy reputation might say. he regularly does one-handed pushups, often while writing with that other hand. MUSCLES.

he is a famously talented musician: he uses this to not only destroy evil but also further his Gay Agenda, composing a love song when he was 15.

Poetic License: LWJ relays his observations & opinions very concisely and poetically, signalling his high intelligence & artistry. this is something lost in translation to english, where being concise is interpreted as being somewhat rude & socially awkward.

is VERY petty, if you have the background context to realise his beautiful words are often veiled insults.

"Equals": is Gay for one Wei Wuxian, someone both infamously evil & famously selfless. WWX is unanimously understood as being a genius: their first meeting involved a moonlit duel where both found in the other their "true equal" in every sense, martial & intellectual.

a romantic & an idealist, one who became Jaded but who eventually found his faith restored via...

spoilers: LWJ & WWX end up happily gay married and are very public in their affections.

NOW THAT YOU UNDERSTAND, let's figure out who Else is the "Hanguang-jun" of their respective Stories!

KINGDOM HEARTS: Riku

"Hanguang-jun": not-so much in the earlier titles of KH but, overall & ESPECIALLY as the series goes on, Riku's Strength is depicted as a literal, blinding Light. he also has white/silver hair.

Gay Pining: while not outright stated, context established Riku as 1) Gay and 2) PINING. it's literally a Plot Point (sometimes even THE plot).

BUFF (& pretty): Riku is just that much older than KH's protagonist, Sora, to ensure Riku is considered Tall, Strong & Handsome. the "pretty" part comes from being an Anime boy.

PETTY: before he felt secure & at peace with his Gay Pining, Riku had A Whole Villain Arc because of an Assumed Love Triangle that was not in his favour. he has technically outrgrown this now but it WAS a big enough deal in the overall plot fo be something he Can Never Live Down.

"Equals": the subject of his Gay Pining is thematically paired with Riku at every opportunity. they fight in-synch, their hearts beat in tune, they are sources for each other's Strength.

while never seen singing or playing instruments, DDD features Riku finding & manifesting his "heart song": it doesn't become "music" until Sora does the same on his side of the dream. the song their hearts make together? the leitmotif of KH as a whole: "Dearly Beloved".

Poetic License: Riku prefers action to words but most of KH's theme songs are from HIS POV. another instance of his relaying great depth with few words? Chain of Memories has 2 poems, one to end each "Side" of its story: Riku's poem is VERY WOW.

Riku is, if the above had not made it glaringly apparent, at heart a romantic: he believes in True Love, in legends about paopu fruit & forever, in sacrificing yourself for who you love. this, uh, kind of blew up in his face upon hitting the "edgelord" phase of puberty: fairy tales are about princes and princeSSES, not knights. Riku's idealism made him susceptible to manipulation as those ideals were put into question.

Riku does not currently believe he can have his own Happily Ever After: he has, instead, resolved to ensure that his Dearly Beloved has HIS (even if it's not with Him).

A Song of Ice & Fire: Brienne

"Hanguang-jun": Brienne is considered the embodiment of all a knight should be... were it not for her being female. she "goes where the chaos is" (the Riverlands, where the War of the Five Kings has left the land lawless & fraught with danger) and saves the helpless. in one of Jamie's dreams, Brienne bears a literal sword of light and so turns his nightmare into [an unrealized crush] sign of Hope. she bears a very shiny Valryian Steel sword named "Oathkeeper".

Gay Pining: while Brienne is female & her love interests male, her FIRST love was a gay man & her SECOND love is VERY QUEERCODED. she pines and she pines in a very "it will never be, he'd never feel the same because of who i am, i am devoted even as he knows it not" manner that is Very Gay Pining-esque.

BUFF (& pretty): Brienne is a giant of a woman & triumphed over older, more experienced men in a tournament melee. SHE HAS ALL OF THE MUSCLES. she is not, however, considered "pretty" and her nickname of "Brienne the Beauty" is meant as a cruelty. Jamie Lannister, however, has Accidentally Swooned over Brienne at least thrice (in the books, doing more than just "swooning" in That Dragon Show).

when Jamie is fevered and delirious at being Unhanded, he finds comfort in Brienne singing to him: it's unknown whether her singing was any GOOD but it makes sense that she'd secretly enjoy music (& that this interest was never encouraged in her childhood).

while she is not an eloquent speaker, Brienne is a romantic & an idealist: she has had moments of profound insight. only moments, however: she's never received the kind of privileged education that LWJ had.

"Equals": Jamie Lannister, undeniably.

...ASOIAF is not kind to idealists & unlikely to give ANYONE a "Happily Ever After". that's what Fandom is for: many a "fix-fic" has been written in response to That Dragon Show, and artists have made truly beautiful images showing Brienne with her dreams realised.

Genshin Impact: Diluc?

"Hanguang-jun": Diluc is very deliberately designed in homage to Batman, the Dark Knight... but his Pyro Vision inevitably results in his brightening the night, where he chases chaos & saves others from great peril.

BUFF (& pretty): while Genshin Impact limits its muscular models to NPCs & enemies, Diluc is ALLEGEDLY "buff" and should be so following the logic of his being 1) a former knight and 2) an active claymore wielder. Genshin, as a very anime-game, makes ALL its playable characters pretty: Diluc's 5-star skin "upgraded" his hair to REALLY push that point home, enabling him to reach Peak Pretty Boy.

Diluc, as a fancy rich boy, PROBABLY knows how to play at least 1 musical instrument: Mondstadt's patron god IS an Orpheus Expie, after all. his various VAs have certainly put their musical talents to use, in fancovers or in other series they've worked in.

eloquent & concise: this varies from dub to dub but the Vibe remains, if only for his Blatant Batman Invoking.

just like LWJ, Diluc is a romantic & an idealist who has grown jaded over time.

Gay Pining? the ENG dub, as all english dubs seem to do, translated Diluc's Very Queercoded Word for what one Cavalry Captain Kaeya once was for him into... "adopted brother". in CHINESE, however, similar if not identical words used to describe LWJ & WWX in relation to each other: their vibe is more "Bitter Exes" than the "Mourning Widower" type of Gay Pining exhibited by the others in this list.

Genshin's story is ongoing, Diluc's home region has had its main story on Hold so as to return with Greatet impact. hopefully Diluc won't end up like EITHER of his Creative Inspirations (Batmab & Murata Himeko) when Genshin's main story returns to Monsdtadt & Diluc.

Voltron Legendary Defender: Shiro or Keith?

"Hanguang-jun": as the Leader of Voltron, Shiro brought hope to the universe. he may have piloted the Black Lion but the grey in his hair Sure Did Foreshadow his hair going wholly white (& his ultimately piloting a "white" lion-esque ship for humanity). Keith is ever connected with darkness: he is Shiro's successor in all things but ever walks in his shadow (very much deliberately).

Gay Pining: Shiro is the character "canonically" gay but it's KEITH who exhibits all the Trademarked Characteristics. Keith has a Dark Phase about his gay pining. Keith accepts his gay pining during his attempt to redeem himself. Keith resolves to ensure his beloved's happiness, often at the expense of his own. Keith spends the entirety of Voltron (epilogue included, ouch) screaming "i am a gay widower whose love died unrealised & now i fight about it".

so it turns out that deep space astronaut training &intergalactic warfare don't give you much time to showcase any musical talent you may or may not have.

Poetic License: as leaders, both have their moments of profound, concise wisdom. Keith is angstier about it though.

"Equals": Keith & Shiro start out on UNequal footing but, during the series itself, Shiro attempts to make Keith his successor for his (believed) inevitable demise: Keith spends his time metaphorically kicking and screaming that NO DYING ALLOWED, the two eventually compromising by BOTH of them taking up leadership roles. all the space/time shenanigans ALSO, incidentally, enable Keith to pull a "not a little kid anymore" on Shiro, cementing their new status as "equals" (again, forget S8).

Buff & Pretty: as anime boys, both Keith & Shiro are Pretty. as an astronaut-turned-supersoldier, Shiro starts out BUFF. post-Space Whale family reunion trip, Keith becomes "buffier "but remains very much in Pretty Boy territory.

Romantic Idealists: Shiro was his academy's Poster Boy for a REASON. Keith screamed of "i am angsty because everything i've dreamed of has died" but seems at least 25% returned from the side of cynicism by the end of Voltron (in s7 because, as above, There Is No S8).

[therainscene]

It’s blink-and-you’ll-miss-it, but the Alan Turing poster really tells us so much about Will that I consider it to be a significant piece of foreshadowing for S5.

First, let’s dissuade ourselves of the notion that Will chose Turing for his hero project for nerd reasons -- Will’s preferred flavour of nerdery is escapist fantasy, not computer science. He doesn’t know what an IP address is and the first thing he thinks of when he hears modem noises is a movie he likes.

No, he chose Turing because he admires him for being a gay man who accomplished so much in his short life.

On one hand, that’s pretty heart-warming -- the fact he’s willing to identify with other gay men and look up to them as role models shows us he’s making good progress in accepting his identity. On the other hand, it’s heart-breaking, because Turing’s story is not a happy one -- he was caught having a sexual relationship with a man and forced to choose between jail or chemical castration. He chose castration.

I remind you: Will identifies with this guy.

Will is growing up under the twin specters of AIDS and homophobia and likely assumes he’s destined to die young too. He’s been abused and bullied so much, I imagine he’s heard and internalized it all: that he deserves to die, that he’s disgusting, that he’ll never be fulfilled in life.

So when puberty begins crawling its way inside him and implants those shameful desires that make gay men so worthy of abuse... he chooses castration.

For all the sad pining he does in S4, we never really see Will express desire for Mike -- he never checks him out or shows signs of nervousness when they touch. He behaves with perfect platonic decorum at all times...

...unless we consider That One Scene With The Hose.

Sexual interpretations of this scene are controversial, and I can understand why; we’re so used to seeing Will as this innocent, immature little boy that it's shocking to catch him fantasizing so lustfully, even though these sorts of thoughts are pretty normal for a 15 year-old. But I think that’s the point. We’re supposed to feel uncomfortable about this, because Will feels uncomfortable about it too.

He’s done well in accepting his identity, but he’s an absolute repressed mess when it comes to accepting his sexuality.

So, that’s what the Turing poster tells us about Will. Here’s where the foreshadowing comes in: Will is not the only queer-coded character to have been metaphorically castrated.

Henry’s experience bears striking similarities to Turing’s: he too was caught engaging in a natural but forbidden behaviour and forced by his government to undergo a medical procedure to suppress that behaviour.

His villain speech to El in 4x07, which is ostensibly about his powers, also reads very strongly as a scathing criticism of heteronormativity, and it’s covered in rainbow motifs.

The metaphor here is obvious: Henry’s powers are a manifestation of his homosexuality.

Which implies that Will’s homosexuality can also manifest as powers. They’re repressed because he’s repressed.

It’s not a coincidence that the sexual tension was through the fucking roof in the infamous sauna scene. Every time Will’s supernatural ability to sense the Mind Flayer triggers in S3, Mike is also nearby.

What’s interesting about Mike is that his queer acceptance issues mirror Will’s: Mike has a healthy relationship with his sexuality (he casually checks guys out and plasters his bedroom walls with posters of buff dudes) but he just can’t bring himself to accept what this implies about his identity.

Always with the symmetry, these two. They complement each other perfectly; one’s hang-up is the other’s strength. They have a lot to teach each other about being queer.

And as repressed as they are, I think they want to learn from each other -- Will lets himself get flustered when Mike flirts with him in his bedroom, and Mike hangs on to every word of wisdom Will shares with him in their heart-to-hearts.

Internalized homophobia is a powerful force, but their bond is so strong that it empowers them to fight back.

Henry’s powers symbolize his anger at being mistreated and his desire to take that anger out on the world... but Will’s powers symbolize self-acceptance and love.

So he isn’t just going to defeat Vecna with his powers, and he isn’t just going to get the boy: these two things are one and the same.

[do-you-ship-this-comic-ship]

propaganda:

PLEASE HEAR ME OUT! This is a actual comic based ship for the both of them. They teemed up in Teen Titans and had A LOT more canonical homoerotic evidence than A LOT of really popular ships, their characters are just unpopular in general. They were each other’s first superhero few friends and they HATED each other at first, Eddie had a crush on Rose which led to him being jealous of Jaime but if you ask me - HE WAS ACTUALLY PINING FOR JAIME. They became close friends, genuinely good friends like when Eddie lost his powers, Jaime was there for him, they are always together, there’s an entire issue dedicated to their relationship (gay), Eddie unlocks powers solely because of Jaime, Eddie has a nickname for Jaime which only Eddie is allowed to call him, his friend, Paco makes fun of them for being too “bromantic” which makes Jaime get a little too defensive… the last thing that Eddie thinks about before he dies is Jaime’s laugh, I KID YOU NOT. And their thought bubbles sometimes will say the same thing as each other like they have shared telepathy! Red x Blue motif and they get formatted as “the other couple/duo” and I love their banter so… They were just so in love to me.

[bigfan-fanfic]

OC Details - DA OC Canon Posse + MGITs

From @3n-vee‘s “Extremely Detailed OC Ask Meme”

For Tash Adaar, Owain Bonneville, Henry Lucas, Cal and Ava Hawke, Morgan Walker, Aster Amell, Katie Cousland, and Reyn Caron

I started with Tash, then decided to only do the fun ones and add more characters. *shrugs*

The Basics

1. Age, Birthday, Star Sign (Tash only)

12-13 at the beginning of Inquisition, 15 at the end of Trespasser. Born 18 Guardian, 9:28 Dragon. Sign: Fervenial

3. Orientation and Relationship Status

Tash is a child, but when he is older, he will find he is gay. I kind of ship him with Kieran so that everyone is one big happy familly (Aster is cousins with the Hawkes, Cal adopted Tash, who eventually marries Kieran, son of Morrigan and Morgan.)

Owain is also a gay man who I have not yet settled on a canon relationship for. but whom I ship quite hard with @herald-divine-hell‘s OC Amayian Trevelyan

Henry is a panromantic asexual man whose relationship status I have not decided yet. Perhaps Cole.

Cal is a bisexual man married to Varric. 

Ava is a straight woman married to Sebastian but also in a polyamorous relationship with Fenris. 

Morgan is a biromantic and demisexual man in a committed relationship with Morrigan. Although I also ship him with @herald-divine-hell‘s OC Alexandra.

Aster is a homoromantic graysexual man married to Alistair. 

Katie is a bisexual woman and single. 

Reyn is a demiromantic bisexual man who I might decide to put in a relationship. 

6. Headcanon VA  (Tash only)

Unknown - although Tash does have a Marcher accent, slightly less thick than Blackwall’s. 

7. Occupation (Tash only)

Former Lord Inquisitor, Lord of Ylenn Basin, and Heir to the Viscount of Kirkwall - also Knight-Enchanter?

12. Own any pets?

Tash has a pet fennec fox named Harold. 

Ava and Cal have a mabari pet named Socks. 

Aster has a mabari hound that originally belonged to the late Elissa Cousland that he named Barksy, although to anyone besides Alistair or Aster, he must be referred to as Ser Barksy or Lord Barksy.

13. Have any kids?

Morgan, of course, has Kieran with Morrigan. He wouldn’t mind more if she was up for it. 

Cal has officially adopted Tash with Varric as of Trespasser. 

Ava and Sebastian are trying for an heir to the throne, although she may already be pregnant by Fenris. None of the others have children.

Owain, Aster, and Katie will want children eventually. It’s more complicated for Alistair and Aster since the Ferelden throne passes by blood. Aster wouldn’t mind taking care of Alistair’s child by a surrogate should circumstances prevent adoption.

Reyn doesn’t think children will happen for him, as a Warden, but should a child be born, he will love and care for them above all else.

Henry is undecided on children. As is Tash.

15. Can they sing? Can they dance?

Tash loves to dance and sing. He’s an average singer, but was trained well in court dancing, and enjoys making appearances at balls and events. 

Aster is more clumsy than a drunken druffalo, and is terrible at dancing, but he’s a surprisingly good singer, who would sing many duets with Leliana back during Origins. 

Cal and Ava only sing when drunk, although Ava learns to dance well. 

Owain both dances and sings like a trained bard. 

Reyn and Katie never sing, but both are passable dancers. 

Morgan likes singing to Morrigan and Kieran, and dancing with his wife (and occasionally with Zevran or Leliana), but isn’t comfortable with very many others. 

Henry can’t dance very well, and can only really sing in a crowd, but does both on his own anyway.

18. Have any special keepsakes?

Tash keeps a pair of specialized horn cushions Josephine had commissioned for him at Skyhold and finds them wonderful to sleep in. He also adores the handcrafted chess set he whittled with Blackwall. 

Owain will keep anything given to him or made for him by his lover, wearing it if possible or at least keeping it nearby. 

Henry has his phone, with all the memories it brings. It has long since lost its charge, but he keeps it close anyway as a reminder. 

Morgan has the ring given to him by Morrigan, as well as a smooth river stone that Kieran inscribed with the same rune Morgan has tattooed on his bicep. 

Aster still has the rose Alistair gave him, enchanted to never lose it’s beauty. It reminds him of his husband’s sweet nature. He also has a small figurine of a Circle mage that an older apprentice in Kinloch (Anders) made for him when he was very sad one day.

Katie has her charm bracelet from before she came to Thedas which acts like a talisman for her to know that she really did come from another world. 

Reyn has a scarf made for him by a stable boy he loved before leaving his family estate for the Academie des Chevaliers and a Dalish wedding ring given to him by an elven bride who he spared before going into exile and joining the Wardens.

Interests

19. Hobbies (Tash only)

Singing, dancing, writing, doing paperwork, chess, listening, dog care, designing fashion and furniture for the Inquisition, collecting Orlesian masks, and attending Orlesian theatre.

21. Fave food(s) and drink(s)

For some reason, Tash loves the notoriously awful-tasting Orlesian pastry known as the “Exquisite Misery.” It serves as an inadvertent power move in Orlesian circles, but his absolute favorite food is fresh-baked bread (reminds him of his home). Tash also enjoys hot cocoa ever since the Iron Bull shared some of his supply.

As a rule, Aster likes sharing Orlesian charcuterie with Alistair as a picnic in their chambers or the courtyard when they can get away from affairs of state. He’s also partial to fruit juices.

Morgan, Henry, and Katie all wish pizza was a thing in Thedas. There is a dish similar to it in Antiva, but nothing quite resembling it. Katie has gotten the closest to having actual pizza, being a noblewoman with cooks she can instruct. Morgan has inadvertently addicted Morrigan to coffee when he found out how to make it using magic. Henry likes water, but it’s hard to find a stable source of clean drinking water in Thedas. Katie adores tea.

The Wardens don’t often have fine food, and Reyn misses petit fours. He enjoys his personal Warden liquor mixture - Commander’s Concoction.

For Fun

37. Do they have any phobias?

Tash is a timid person in general, and is afraid of miscellaneous things from spiders to dolls with buttons for eyes. But no real debilitating phobias. 

Cal, Ava, Aster, and Henry all fear spiders.

Owain hates heights.

Nugs freak Katie out.

Morgan and Reyn feel fear, but have no phobias.

43. What pokemon would your character be (if they’re already a pokemon/gijinka tell us what they are, and how that’s affected them)?

Tash Owain Henry Cal Ava Aster Morgan Katie Reyn

44. What’s their pokemon team? Try to pick all 6.

Tash Owain Henry Cal Ava Aster Morgan Katie Reyn

45. Theme song (and a playlist if you’ve got it!)

Tash: “Shake it Off” by Taylor Swift or “It’s a Good Day” by Kay Starr

Owain: “Dog Days Are Over” by Florence + The Machine and for romance: “All You Need Is Love” by the Beatles

Henry: “No Rain” by Blind Melon or “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay” by Otis Redding

Cal: “Dream On” by Aerosmith and for romance: “I Can’t Help Myself” by the Four Tops

Ava: “Royals” by Lorde and for romance: “Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince” by Taylor Swift

Aster: “Can You Tell Me How To Get to Sesame Street?” (2000) and for romance: “Love on Top” by Beyonce

Morgan: “People Are Strange” by The Doors and for romance: “Beauty and the Beast” by Angela Lansbury

Katie: “I Love It” by Icona Pop feat. Charlie XCX

Reyn: “The Wanderer” by Dion

46. If this character was in a musical, what would their motif be (what kind of instruments do you hear, what’s the tempo, ect).

Tash: Simple peppy flute that gradually becomes joined by other instruments to form a full-sounding orchestra with complex melodies. 

Owain: Slow, sad piano that is joined by violin and becomes strong and anthemic. 

Henry: Plucked cello strings. Inquisitive.

Cal: Brass section, room for improvisation. Bright and joyful.

Ava: Oboe and Bassoon, deep and reflective. 

Aster: Fiddles and flute, playing simple fast-paced dance music.

Morgan: Orchestration accompanied by electric guitar - shouldn’t work together but it does here.

Katie: Sharp woodwinds and guitar. Very formal, almost like wedding dance music.

Reyn: Acoustic guitar trio. Perhaps Spanish guitar. Contemplative and sexy.

The Deep Lore™

49. What are some themes tied to your character’s story?

Tash, Aster, Henry, Katie- Loss of Innocence

Owain, Ava - Self-Acceptance

Cal, Reyn - Mutual Pining/Unrequited Love 

Morgan - Found Family, Parenthood