#he also isn't a party guy

[princessofghosts-posts]

Fandom view of Percy

Ok y'all,let's unpack this one too.

My last serious post was about Percy backstory and how his trauma is rarely acknowledged by the fandom and sometimes by Riordan himself. At the end of it I also wrote how the fandom is most at fault for this,and how it also inflicted on Rick writing of him.

And let me tell you why and how.

First of all the "Percy is dumb and can't do anything without Annabeth" stereotype. Fortunately this one is slowly fading away,but I tell you that in the PJO italian fandom it was something. Most of the ff I read had this,or a variant of this,stereotype. It got to the point that I also started to think about it too,before remembering how he was in the books. 2018/2019 was war on Wattpad for this.

Percy is extremely smart and has an high Battle IQ. We are talking about the same dude that fought Kronos and won (credit to Luke's help too) and kept the world from being destroyed twice. The only reason why people started to believe that was because Percy himself has loe self-esteem,so people often don't realize how much things he downplay of himself. Also,do I need to remember you all that most of the first 5 books no one explained things to him? They literally thrown him out there in the greek world,after a basis tutorial,and said "go figure out it yourself". Chiron and Annabeth never told him about his prophecy,so it was normal for him not understanding shit. He didn't know and nobody told him about it,and that's something I'm always mad about,but he isn't stupid for this. He actually adapts to a situation pretty quickly,even when he almost doesn't know anything,and that's impressive. He was the one to make the plan in TLO,he positioned the campers and went to help them right and left when he could. It was his plan,not Annabeth's. He does a lot of things without her,both in PJO and HoO,so he isn't confined to her and he can still function without her. Like she can without him. They have each other back and help each other,sure,but he was never depended of her.

Then we have the "silly guy obsessed with blue food",another popular one that I hated for how much it got redundant. This also is almost everywhere and I'm sick of it because people don't understand what really means for Percy blue food.

We are introduced to blue food in TLO,when Percy talked about how it all started because Gabe didn't believe the food could be blue,and that it was stupid. Sally went out of her way and made sure that the food was actually blue,and ever since then they had it as a sort of tradition. The blue food was born to oppose their abuser. And that's why for Percy is so special. Because it was the only thing that Gabe couldn't ruin for them and couldn't snatch away,and it's also one of the few things that Percy had controll over during his childhood. All of the other things? Gone,Gabe took them all with his gambling habit. But he couldn't break the blue food. And that was something that probably grounded them. In PJO he only talk about it in the TLO,but in HoO,during their stay on the Argo II,he always ate something blue. And again in this situation,blue food didn't changed meaning for him,because it's the only familiar thing he still have of himself while everything is going to shit. Like the seeds kept Nico alive in the jar,blue food grounded Percy to a small sense of comfort and controll in what was happening. It's more deep that what people thing.

The "joke/a frat boy that would stay out partying all night and make horrible jokes to his friends" after he got accepted at the College in New Rome. Not a very popular one but I saw a couple of them,and N O. That's not Percy. Percy personality is nothing like the "popular guy" troupe,he would stay in his and Annabeth apartment rather than staying out all night. He is extremely good at met others comfortable with him,but e is actually pretty awkward and shy around people he just met. The would spent his time with his friends or doing something he likes,rather than taking part in frat parties. He ain't a frat boy,he is one of the most kind and gentle character out there. We are talking about the same guy that turned down immortality and godhood (who actually does that??) because he wanted the gods to be better parents. He is everything except this.

"Percy was disappointed after Nico told him he wasn't his type anymore" is one of the worst probably. This actually is everyday and I'm sick of it because the jokes are old,overused and OOC. Fortunately some people actually get the memo and are aware of it,but most of the time the jokes are still there. Which sucks.

Percy was confused about Nico confession because for him it was so out of blue. It happened after the conflict and the newly fresh ended prophecy where he actively took part in,and untill 12 hours earlier was still fighting for his life. He has a low self-esteem,remember? So of course when it cames to relationship he doubts himself often and don't see himself handsome. This is the same guy that in MoA asked himself how could Annabeth still love him after knowing how and what he was. You think he thought that Nico got a crush on him? Nah. He is also pretty obvious when it cames to his own relationships (because he is pretty aware of other people's). BotL had the whole crew in love with him and he was clueless of it. He never took it on personal and was probably confused on how,why and when. So the "I'm not your type!" jokes are stupid and after a while not funny,and extremely repetitive.

"Percy is OP and could fight a god/overthrown the whole Olympus without a problem". Did we read the the same books? Apparently no because this is bullshit.

Most of this was born from the fact that Percy isn't afraid to call out wrong doings,especially the ones done by the Gods,and he can be quite disrespectful with them because tired of their games,and another part is because of the Akhlys scene in Tartarus. But half of those things are in his thoughts. They are still Gods and he is a demigods,those are things he can never change and can't go beyond. He is powerful but not that powerful. He can't overthrow the gods both for the difference of power and because it would go against Percy himself as a character. His fatal flaw is loyalty. His is loyal to his friends,his loved ones,Annabeth and his dad too. They have an ok father-son dynamic (I already talked about it in the other post),and going against the Olympians would be going against his father too. And again,he did all of that shit in the first serie because he didn't want to end up like Luke,and now people hc him that way? Naaah. That's crazy. And the "Dark Percy" everyone talk about is just the one that snapped in Hell,where he wanted to survive. Why does he have a fault at that and why people think it's a different Percy than usual? It's the same,only when he is pushed to his limit. There isn't a Dark Percy,it's just Percy that did everything and the gods still decided to use him again and again because they can. Which is depressing as fuck but put emphasis on the distances that there are between Gods and demigods.

There are probably more but I already covered the main/most popular ones. Of course if there are any others you want to discuss about feel free to comment, rebblog,ask,or something. I'm always open to deep talk and overanalyzing of characters.

Now,going on with the last part of this post,at the start I said that the fandom view of Percy influenced Rick writing of him. And I want to explain why.

You see,while some author are completely out of reach from their audience,there are some that are pretty familiar with it and like to mingle with the fans. It's not something bad actually,it means the writer take us in consideration and is aware of how the readers feel about his books. Constructive criticism really do wonders for a product. But it also has his negative effects too. When the author is too close to the fandom,they can assimilate some of their idea about a certain character.

Take the Rowling for example. That woman was out for Draco Malfoy fans since they put him on a pedistal,and went on about how "he is so misunderstood","he is an anti-hero","he isn't evil he just didn't have a choice","Draco is the best character ever,idk why people never talk about him","he is so underrated",and many more. She actually took part of a CG (acting like another reader) with some fans only to emphasize how bad he actually was,and not misunderstood,and those same fans kicked her out because she didn't understand his real character. She then proceeded to dislike him more and I think she published a couple of updates on Pottermore about him,and how the character wasn't an innocent guy everyone made him about. Crazy right? But put emphasis on how much shit can happen when an author gets too close with their readers.

Rick is also close with his readers,and he is quite loved by the fandom. He interact with the fans a lot between books and series updates,or when someone ask him a question on the books/characters. And again, that's quite ok and sweet and all,but it can also damage the author view of his own characters when the whole fandom decide to mischaracterized them.

I didn't read the new Percy Jackson serie and I probably never will because I'm going to stop at Nico serie. Rick showed that he values more quantity over quality,and at this point he is just writing books because he can. I stopped at HoO a couple of years ago,and I'll read TOA only to have a good picture of what happened before TSATS since I've wished for years to have a Nico centred serie.But I'll stop there. Anyway I'm not immune to spoiler and quite like to spoil myself,so I'm always updated. And this is why,I want to ask,what the fuck was Riordan thinking with the way he wrote Percy? Because apparently he is a totally idiot that needs Annabeth to say smart things for him to do something. Like he can't think with his brain and needs Annabeth for everything. And wait! Who else interpreted Percy that way? Oh right! The fandom. The fandom that Rick fairly interact with. You think that an author doesn't know what his readers think about his books or characters? Especially if it's something that almost everyone agree on about? That they don't know or care? Wrong.

They got people that frequently check social media for them and update them on the most big things. For years the fandom had a popular hc on Will (the one about how he could glow in the dark) and in TSATS he apparently can actually glow in the dark. The hc isn't an hc anymore because it's canon,and that's not a coincidence. Like how Percy got written like a stupid idiot. His own author mischaracterized him because the fandom has a different view of him,so he decied to stick around with it.

We are our own greatest enemy. We fear that new fans (especially the ones that will enter the fandom with the TV-show) will mischaracterized the characters once the future seasons will be out,but we ourselves have already done that. And this time it got so bad that Riordan himself decided to stick with it. As if he never wrote Percy like the genius fighter he was. And I'll never like this.

[rabbitinthemeadow]

Alas, the cradle of my heart waits elsewhere || Four

[oakthefrog]

Dream is over party

[dwemer-osha]

Honestly as a trans person I don't even mind gender reveal stuff on principle, but I think they need to be treated less as "this is something that will define my baby's life forever" and more "baby's first gender". Like we can still celebrate milestones in a pregnancy and be excited to know something about a baby that's coming, but it's when it becomes the end all be all that it starts causing issues

[aestheticitii]

i like to think the reason volo is so surprised that togepi likes him is that he actually hated togepi at first.

now, i'm assuming it's the same togepi as in PLA and dimensional shenanigans mean that he was pulled in with the wrong version of her.

so, allow me to set the scene, under the cut:

this story takes place almost six years before our protagonist (who is akari, in my heart) arrives in hisui. volo, seemingly a young man, arrives at cogita's place, due to a letter she sent to him.

she reveals to him that the pokemon nearby have been spooked badly by something, or someone. he agrees to take a look, if she'll share a particular book with him.

so, volo sets off and finds an injured hisuian decidueye, who attacks him with impunity. during this fight, he notices and correctly deduces that:

a) this decidueye was injured by someone, and

b) he has something to protect, likely a child

because of the book that's promised to him, and because volo sees value in having such a strong pokemon aid him, volo begins his attempts to "befriend" the decidueye.

the next day, while he's still injured (for which cogita displays motherly concern, which volo dismisses due to his resentment of her), he returns to heal the decidueye—and leaves some berries that not only help heal injuries, but are also good for young pokemon to eat.

this goes on for roughly a month before decidueye decides he can trust volo with the existence of his child—togepi, then a helpless egg. and volo, while he refuses to analyze it, actually enjoys spending time with decidueye. it's the first time he's done so in years, since the passing of the two pokemon who had followed him through his childhood (and died for it).

but good things aren't meant to last. though decidueye heals up nicely, he's still rather weak because of his injuries, which were long left untreated. he lasts for another three months before he entrusts togepi, still an egg, to volo, expending the last of his energy to go find an heirloom he and his deceased mate wanted to leave for their child.

and volo hates togepi for it.

every time he looks at the egg, he considerd smashing it. "if it wasn't for you, decidueye would still be alive." he can't fathom decidueye's actions, nor can he accept it as "selflessness (on decidueye's part)" instead of "selfishness (on togepi's part)".

mind you, togepi is an egg. she can't do shit.

but he always stops himself before he does anything he'll regret, eventually convincing himself that raising a pokemon from the beginning ensures loyalty—at least until togepi finds a better master, or learns that volo could do nothing for her father.

but volo, despite how twisted he is, ends up charmed by how togepi follows him around. even if he's rude and cold at times, though he does the bare minimum, she still looks at him as if he's hung the sun, the stars, the moon—even the clouds in the sky. and volo is weak to that genuineness, despite thinking that togepi has every reason to hate him, even though he internally treats it with revulsion.

[now, for an intermission, things volo has definitely thought about togepi:

(after she presents him with a daisy because she thinks it'll look good against his hair) "i wonder if there's anything in that empty head of yours. silly girl, you should be worrying about yourself."

(when togepi tries to change his towel when he gets a fever) "i know that it's only a matter of time. i know that. but if i close my eyes, i can return to the past and take you with me. so, just for today...i..."

(after someone says that it's amazing how well-behaved togepi is) "that's like remarking on a daughter obedient to her father. in exchange for gems and other finery, she plays a quiet, docile fool, until she has no need of him. that's why...i need to find the rest of those plates soon. so that...we can remain together i will never be betrayed."]

and togepi, despite being young, can understand volo is hurting, but is ultimately a good person. volo is not only the closest thing she has to a dad, but she's also the only one who can worm into his heart now, or so cogita says. so she makes it her life's goal to make volo happy, because she hates it when he's unhappy, even if it means making very questionable decisions and hurting someone else she loves.

[now, another intermission—things togepi has definitely thought about volo:

(after he smiles sadly) "ah...don't smile like that." (smushes his cheeks, causing him to snort and laugh) "please let him always be happy. please let me make him happy.”

(after witnessing a father-daughter pokemon duo in the wild) "a father? the way you're looking at them...it seems like you also don't know what a father is." (after being told what a father is) "ah, that's not true. it seems we're not the same. i have a father...and i'm not old enough to be yours..."

(after being told what volo wants to achieve) "if the world is remade...then will you and i ever meet?" (cuddles in beside volo) "but you said, 'we'll do it together.' so...whatever you need me to do...i'll do it."]

after all, it only makes sense that volo's pokemon are equally crazy, and possibly very devoted to him. that craziness is why n lies to volo—it's not that togepi tells n their plans, it's that she's frighteningly devoted to him, almost in the same way some members of team plasma acted.

[by the way, cogita also gifts him some letters from his deceased mother (who was her niece) that she found while cleaning. that's actually the reason she calls him, because it's his mother's birthday. they end up celebrating it for the first time in a looong time, and cogita thinks she might've raised him right (nope)]

[o4o41]

Teenage mutant ninja turtles 2003

Imagine if we scored in both ways. A secure girl and a strong woman(mom) in a T-shirt

[ctl-yuejie]

i think - especially after the last episode - the audience will generally agree that chueam is also just a 22 year old making mistakes and having her own vices etc.

at the moment, I am not sure how deliberate the writing is for her character because p'jojo is tweeting a bunch about lesbians being the best and saving the gays (which I appreciate in a lot of ways) and it makes me wonder how intentional it is that besides the messiness of everyone around her - which she has also contributed to - her friends do burden her with cleaning up the mess. she is the leader of the gang and yes - mew had the role of table saver and collecting everyone after a drunk night out - but she also is the spokesperson for the group in a lot of sitations and currently i am pondering the fact that mewray decided to throw a party but then got too drunk and high to be awake so she had to represent the group, talk to the police and coordinate with top to solve the situation.

she does try and micro-manage her friend group based on her own image she has of everyone (and even what her ideal friend group is supposed to be like) and maybe tries but mostly fails to actually run fruitful interventions for ray so her outburst at him is a bit misplaced, but i cannot help but think that the stress of suddenly being the one person (plus april having to step in) in charge of the party made her explode.

there are a lot of instances where the others do take on the role of caregivers, but I am curious whether the gendered roles the group sometimes falls into is sth the show wants to comment on.

[unproduciblesmackdown]

being alive at the time i gleaned some general elements abt encanto but never actually heard we don't talk about bruno beyond awareness it existed popping off & i think i heard like the title recited off key off rhythm but in a way that indicates speak singing nonetheless lol so upon experiencing it it's like oh but it's the Verses? while the last refrain goes harder but prior to that it's comparatively underwhelming to said verses which feels appropriate like verses / pieces of a larger picture & that a "we don't talk about him" as a disappointing Lid on infinitely richer more characterful & dynamic "but: talking about him" instances. like well personally it'd be like um seven foot frame....anyway besides being able to firsthand go like oh damn Real (the kind of thing you know exists if alive at the time) it's like alright hang on lol. one thing when a core theme is yeah like "is it a refuge if 'especial' vulnerability ultimately gets pushed out rather than made safer" subset like the parties whose even observation of truths (problems) & drawing attention to them is seen as Ruining Things, like if you're painted as Making futures that aren't simply what's desired or reassuring rather than a guidance via just observing & sharing the truth. but then it's like whaddaya mean living in fear of bruno stuttering and stumbling you could always hear him sort of muttering and mumbling lmao like now that's just Association between the Truth Perceiving & Telling behavior & behavior that's just apparently distinctive of the same person. & like Not Accidentally when [what if people were magic] specifics are obviously primarily abt a metaphorical meaning & like, indeed it was made clear like oh this situation isn't Just b/c [boo we hate your prophecies] & that [an Ability that isn't directed towards what anyone Wants / is "weird" even by these magic standards] isn't Coincidentally given to someone who just so happens to already be "weird" in other ways & be set up to have a different perspective & be pushed away due to having the supposed "extra" vulnerability of unmet needs / insufficient support, same as someone who doesn't "correctly" have any kind of magic ability....like yeah banger and also like Oh Yeah Kind Of Devastating re: that metaphorical resonance allowing for like [set the metaphor aside] now hang on with this about this disabled family member lol. misinterpretation to The Ruinerrr / The Problemmm / The Maliciousss etc (i.e. the scapegoatinggg) despite their efforts likely entirely to the contrary. then despite like, efforts aside, Just Existing, always kind of muttering & mumbling like & what of it. & then like oh sorry weird pets. weird [auspicious for adaptable tenacious thriving surviving; either way simply creatures, existing] pets.

truly like As Is The Idea I'm Sure quickly becomes like hands behind back standing at the window Uh Oh Sisters musing on all the [disabled person] metaphorical & already literal elements there. blair witching it in contemplation like We've All Been There whether being so resented for the mere disruption of "existing in a group as the 'abnormal' odd one out" or like people talking shit abt anything associated w/you as soon as you've left the room, which is also made relevant like, this wasn't Only directed at this person when seemingly permanently gone, nor were they unaware / unaffected prior....pacing in the Musing parlor like things don't Have to be compared to billions but i only ever even see so many things & it's like billions sure is like "get scapegoated rword" & then said scapegoating is presented as only beneficial & we hate autists & even beyond that it's like, grabbing billions, Imagine If Things Meant To Be About Something Were About Something. quite a contrast when they are & furthermore like, deliberate thought & Care for [who gets scapegoated & why] & the truth of like, people getting pushed aside & out who have a key perspective & are primed / liable to come through for others similarly vulnerable & the supposedly Ruinous, Problems Generating disruptiveness is actually the strongest effort to make essential changes to a group. & come through with like, it'd be undermining thee point if it was "reassuring" us like oh haha people will be supportive b/c bruno will be more normal, so great that it Didn't like no, no Normality Reassurance(tm), presence of abnormalities(tm), Good, & everyone Can Deal b/c if you don't then it's pushing this person away, is exactly what happens, including even if they're still Around but are being mistreated b/c that is entirely part of that pushing away like anyone's victim blaming is ready to pounce at any time but if someone can't stand to stay / leaves b/c they can't see another option like that's not out of nowhere nor Regardless of what full support & flexibility they were getting lol. these Active Measures everyone loves so much, which are everywhere always & would include Staying & Trying To Make It Work & those efforts would be "disruptive" & resented & Bringing It On Oneself & etccc smh

that is to all say like. Woww when clearly basically the core thread was these beats of like, the crucial site of [thee scapegoated], & why that comes down on someone & how that plays out. endless ideas about how someone weird(tm) & disabled (&/or queer. but there's no Or here lol. & again like it's a Context like, to even be the one person without kids? likely not living up to "full" correct sexuality in that way alone; any oppression's logics of "inferiority" being logics of ableism, ready examples being that "inferior" race, gender, sexuality (& their experiences as people classed as inferior) all being pathologized as disordered) are seen & treated as someone Ruining Things & who cannot belong like whew. bracing. winding. which, i also recall like i was watching with headphones & during this one dialogue pause i was like "?? what's this Extra Sound i heard there" & had to go over it like twice before being hit upside the head like well it Was still the dialogue pause but it was also bruno Stuttering in a very quiet whisper for the duration of that pause before continuing like iiiiiiii x_x

[that-was-anticlimactic]

hottake but r.enee r.app actually wasn't that good in the new m.ean girls movie musical - y'all are just attracted to her

[dreadintrusion]

If you genuinely think voting for the guy actively providing weapons and aid to people commit actual genocide is the lesser evil, there's something deeply wrong with you

its unfortunate that its true though. would I rather not have either? yes - but if you don't think trump will make what is happening right now much much worse, you are willfully blind

I do not see your logic, its called Lesser Evil for a reason, its evil but its not actively fucking providing even more evil.

it also says something that Netanyahu would prefer the return of trump back in office, which idk about you is a massive red flag to me.

[derichelieu]

Being the only woman in my department is wearing me tf down 😒

[vettely]

.

[nyx-010]

A funny Take It Like A Man thing - George remains convinced the straight men he comes across who have encounters with men are all in denial about their sexuality, secretly gay but deeply ashamed of themselves and too cowardly to overcome it. Even though he began to engage sexually with women while in the midst of his addiction. 

[brightyearning]

ugh I just know that if I get into writing fanfic it'll ruin me. but i'm only in the mood to read a juicy story only I can tell 😮‍💨

[g0reoz]

actually the real reason i'm a xhaka kinnie is the fact that i love hangin out with old people. and old people generally love me! and if someone was a little bitch i would probably threaten to let their grandpa live at my house too if we're being completely honest

[soldhissoulforrocknroll]

my catholic family who always drilled into my head the dangers of moral relativism are now entirely steeped in it. It's okay when Trump and co. do XYZ, because biden did it once

(Biden who is both a fascist and a communist, and a persecutor of catholics, despite being catholic. But he's a fAkE catholic because he likes aBoRtiOn.) But even operating under fundie catholic beliefs for a second here, the fact that Trump is trying to extend IVF access ought to inspire the same rage my dad feels towards abortion, because the catholic church teaches they're both "murder" of the unborn. And yet... it doesn't. Plenty of reasons why it doesn't, all of which exposes both my dad's and the religious right's hypocrisy and concern with population control and control over pregnant people's bodies. I could go on about that but i have a goddamn thesis to work on and instead I'm ranting into the void about this

It's getting to the point where my dad called Abraham Lincoln a wannabe dictator? And said Trump hasn't extended executive power as much as Lincoln did so it's fine, actually. I shouldn't be surprised from the guy who turns into a chattel slavery apologist at the mention of George Washington, but here we are

conservative christians are so annoying because they want to be persecuted for their religion desperately but they live in the most aggressively christian place on earth. so they'll be like "I can't believe you hate me for being christian" and you'll respond "no I don't care what your religion is, I was raised protestant just like everyone else around here, I hate you because you voted for a fascist who wants to kill everyone I love and start world war three" and they'll just keep on with "why do you hate me for being christian" "I literally don't, it's the fascism thing. I'm going to stop speaking with you." "you can try to punish me for my faith but I will never abandon the LORD." "good for you keep it up but could you stop voting for fascists while you do that." "this is just like when the romans fed us to lions."