#i really went into a a long discussion here about female portrayal in fiction

[tamelee]

I think a lot of sakura hate is undeserved. Like ik she's said and done some things that were out of pocket, but then again so did almost everyone else and no one else gets scrutinized as much as her. I don't even like her and her fans are incredibly annoying, but I feel this much is true. I think she'd still be one of the most hated characters in all of anime if her undeserved hate went away, so it doesn't really make much of a difference. I feel like her hate is kinda like sasuke's, sometimes it feels like he gets hated on just for being sasuke bc ik some things he's done would've been swept under the rug if another, more popular character did it (eg when he killed some samurai) for sakura, there are lots of incel fanart memes dudebros made to make fun of her, so it seems like they hate her for just being a woman who rejected a loser man and likes a better man. It's no wonder her fans are so annoying, that's what happens when your fave character gets undeserved constant hate. My fave is sasuke and sometimes even I wanna do some petty annoying shit just to piss his haters off too lol. Also since she's a woman, there's definitely some misogyny at play when her character is being analyzed by men. Or even women with internalized misogyny. It's stupid to deny that, misogyny is the most normalized oppression everywhere. So many ppl don't even realize they're being misogynistic, that's how normal it is. Sure it's not always the case but ignoring it is just being dumb. Her fans using the misogyny card to actual genuine criticism is definitely stupid though. Like it's possible to not like a woman and not be misogynistic ofc. Also when they use that when sns fans ship sasuke with naruto instead of sakura, that's even dumber 😂 how is not shipping a woman with a man and instead shipping him with another man misogynistic in any way lol. But yeah, I'm definitely not on her fans side, or even a fan of her myself, but I can still acknowledge this

+ 2 Asks - long post:

When talking about critiquing characters and analyzing stories, it doesn't really matter who's doing the talking – whether they're fans, critics, or just people who love or don't love a particular show or character. We can't always figure out why (especially anonymous) people feel the way they do and how do we even discern the motivation or background of those who do so? —whether they're misogynistic, incels, dudebros, fans, or critics of whatever other stories, among other factors. In fact, in this case it’s pretty irrelevant? Or only relevant here because you brought it up.

Nevertheless, that doesn’t take away the fact that a significant portion of the 'Naruto' audience finds Sakura's character unlikable. She consistently is found at the center of conversations about the most disliked Anime characters. This is ultimately a reflection of storytelling, rather than solely an audience reaction. And that leads to a broader discussion about Kishimoto’s writing where many blame his lack of skill in writing when it comes to the portrayal of female characters. (Opinions may vary, so does mine.) Dismissing criticism by categorizing critics as incels or misogynists is oversimplifying it tbh because of course they harbor specific biases against a character like Sakura which in itself isn’t fair and would definitely make it ‘undeserved’. (I really wouldn’t use that term for a fictional character unless we talk about the story itself tbh.) You yourself say “not always the case...” So that doesn't mean Kishimoto's portrayal of Sakura or any other character, and the genuine criticism she receives for universally disliked traits, is any less valid. Many perceive her as selfish, and Kishimoto himself has used that specific term (and even worse) to describe her. So, you can’t deny that this foundation of her character exists. Her decisions and behavior make sense even if people preferred to see it differently. 

Though, when analyzing, it is important to keep the Shinobi world in mind, and only our own as reference. And that’s exactly why the hatred Sasuke gets is not the same.... :

The amount of hate/criticism has nothing to do with a comparison though. Sakura's actions are often deliberately misunderstood, twisted to fit certain narratives that are in her favor and even exaggerated to counteract the hate like the first ask said. On the other hand, Sasuke is generally misunderstood and is hated for it. Often not getting even a tiny bit of compassion because some people struggle to see beyond his exterior and just ride the Naruto-verse’s moral/value waves from the narrative. Where the entire point was that those ideals needed change. 

SAVE HIM!? Why is it always so actively ignored that Sakura tried to kill Sasuke twice but him defending himself or fighting back is ‘so incredibly evil’? This ‘resolve’ of hers becomes even more significant to Kishimoto’s message when we consider that she intentionally represents the same ideals that led to the genocide and with that- agreed to eliminate him without attempting to understand him even once. Repeating history in the meantime where, again, that change is necessary. And you start with trying to understand the other, something Naruto had to learn too and actively had to find that answer by himself. Never once did she actually listen to Sasuke when he tried to open up and instead twisted the few words he got out to make it about herself. Not only disregarding his (and Naruto’s) trauma but shitting on it, thinking he, of ALL people, would feel happy with her abandoning her family and friends for him and comparing her feeling lonely without Sasuke to his entire clan being murdered what forced him to grow up alone. I mean, hello? Kishimoto was saying something very loudly there and it’s nothing positive about Sakura and that certainly has nothing to do with a lack of writing skills, the opposite actually. Even if she was briefly a teammate, she rightfully became irrelevant to him, and her decision to get rid of the (in her and the world's eyes) “criminal” was entirely for her own sake because she couldn't bear to see her crush behave like one and deal with her irrelevance.  

She rejected everything Sasuke wanted, needed, and desired, including his central 'why' in the story. She reduced him to a moody handsome boiii with no goals of his own, one she neither could nor wanted to understand. She tried to insert herself into his goals without him giving her any reason to, and when unsuccessful, she wanted to discard them altogether thinking he was ‘too far gone’. Like Sasuke as a person as a whole was her ‘burden’ to bear simply because she wanted to be somewhat relevant. Even Kakashi said it :/ although he thought she did it all out of the kindness of her heart. (Ffs, Kakashi I like you, but no.) Now, please consider EVERYTHING and then think again why Sakura thought of Sasuke as a burden or why she felt burdened by him while lying about her trust in him to Sai? 👀

The importance of Sasuke having a goal is immense because he grapples with survivor's guilt. A goal provides a reason to keep going, a way to carry the pain and blame he places on himself. It allows him to be strategic and have a plan, which is the only source of hope that things may eventually improve. He rejected what Naruto stood for because he found it distracting and hard to trust at that point. OF COURSE he fought so fucking hard against it. No matter his feelings for Naruto, relying solely on effort like Naruto wasn't something he could do. Especially considering how his beloved brother had betrayed him in the worst possible way.

Now, here's a question for you: why would Sakura need to receive compassion or 'deserve' it when, as a character, she rarely demonstrated it herself, especially when it comes to the person she claims to like so much? And if anyone thinks that was out of love in any way, which it wasn't, then what does it all mean for Naruto????

If you genuinely believe there was any point in the story Sakura tried to save Sasuke for Sasuke’s sake then I hope you’re able to read the story again and question this very rigorously for yourself. Not just her actions, but what Kishimoto tried to actually show/tell and use them to measure how it stands against the bigger Themes also.  

Lastly: the whole point of needing to kill Naruto was BECAUSE he cared for him lol, read Sasuke's monologue again if it helps. That his bond with Naruto had too much of an impact on Sasuke. His one and only, his most important person/friend, only bond left that kept him from truly being alone, Naruto’s life in itself too much of a threat to his heart even when separated, blabla- should I go on? 🤔      

[ramblingguy54]

Re Mabel, Lilith and Marcy getting flak— I wonder if it has to do with what seems to be a general aversion to female characters acting selfishly, especially if it has consequences. Like, I feel that's a huge part of why the live action Disney remakes fall so flat; women/girls *all* have to be "strong female character who never does anything selfish or wrong". So instead of being seen as what they are (great characters with strong arcs) Mabel, Marcy and Lilith get, as you said, demonized.

Disney remakes I'd say do contribute to the issue of how those interpret other female character depicted in a more flawed manner as simply selfish people and nothing more. However, that's simply a drop in the bucket being apart of a much larger issue of how female characters are depicted throughout stories. This isn't just a problem to be found in other Disney related material, such as their remakes portraying their iconic female leads, rather it's one rooted in shallow writing as early when the whole mantra, "Girl power!", became a an unfortunate trope some stories still utilize to this very day. Female characters aren't allowed to show weakness whatsoever. They've gotta be strong, unwavering, and perfect role models to follow, right?

See, therein lies a serious contradiction. It's not about gender whether you're male, female, or choosing to be both, depending on your lifestyle. They're all people and what do we undeniably share as a trait? Something binding us together symbolically?

Weaknesses. We’re all vulnerable, carry baggage, and even are capable of doing selfish stuff hurting people when we didn’t intend to. People follow what they believe in their convictions to be “correct” from developed ideologies. Buckets of grey, more or less.

Let me throw an example out here. Belle from Disney’s 2D animated iteration of Beauty & The Beast showed what a strong female lead can be capable of. She took none of Gaston’s shallow nonsense, was conflicted about her place in their judgmental village, and most importantly didn’t see Beast’s humanity, until being saved from the wolf pack attack. Belle was a role model who was strong, capable, and intelligent, yet didn’t rely on shallow ideas I mentioned above.

A consistent issue I’ve tend to notice is people zeroing in on a characters actions, rather than observing why they went about committing them, or simply ignoring outside forces, like other characters, playing a role in, too?

Mabel’s selfish desires caused Weirdmageddon!

Marcy’s fear of being alone got them all stranded in Amphibia!

Lilith is responsible for Eda’s pain and suffering with this curse!

Mabel being solely responsible for Weirdmageddon is a take I’ve seen people throw around leaving me absolutely puzzled by this mind set. How is it the girl’s fault when Dipper & Ford decided to keep that orb containing a dimensional rift Bill needed their little secret? Those two made a choice to keep something under wraps for their own reasons, which came back to bite them pretty damn hard. Mabel was terrified of the future, growing up, drifting away from her brother, and most importantly was scared of becoming bitter about it all. There’s a reason why Mabel stated to Dipper in A Tale Of Two Stans, “Can you promise me you won’t get stupid...?”, given it was foreshadowing her inevitable breakdown of trying to run away from these issues.

Bill Cipher took advantage of an emotionally desperate kid’s need for an uncompromising happy ending is what it all boils down to. Mabel’s only morally questionable action was not wanting to accept their reality, which Dipper had to snap her out of this self destructive behavior. Hiding away in some imaginative place doesn’t fix the problems you’ve got in front of yourself. They’ll only grow bigger. An important rule of life is allowing change to happen, but it’s equally so to remember how crucial a stable family connection is, too. Dipper leaving Mabel to struggle alone in life wouldn’t have been an ideal scenario for either of them. Something I’ve seen people seem to forget is after Dipper helps Mabel become content they think she’s getting her way, while he is giving up his dream. Yet, for some reason, people forget this small important exchange between the two.

“Hey, Dipper. I appreciate what you said back there, but, if you want to take Ford’s apprenticeship, I won’t get in your way.”

“And miss out on your awkward teen years? You wish!”

Mabel gave Dipper a third option to pursue his goals, if he genuinely wanted this dream of working underneath that author of those journals the kid was crazy about. However, Dipper saw Mabel, as well as the message of family ties, more important than anything else, even working underneath Ford. To Dipper, Mabel’s sibling bond was his greatest dream to fulfill. While Mabel may not be a character I gravitate towards, as Dipper is someone I relate to a lot more, she did experience a journey of emotional growth in learning to understand Dipper’s needs are just as important as her’s. The sock puppet episode encapsulated this idea of her developing maturity.

Marcy Wu’s entire arc in Season 2 was very interesting to see play out. There’s a defining difference in how Marcy’s a lot more independent, than she used to be when Anne watched over her at their school. While she still can be clumsy, Marcy has become very physically competent in taking on riskier situations demanding precise accuracy. Although, there’s a definite lingering fear of solitude when Anne was going to let the Plantars leave her behind in Newtopia. True Colors’ revelations completely add a new layer to it.

Knowing now Marcy didn’t want to be alone without Anne & Sasha re-contextualizes this moment of remorse from her. Sure, she’s sad to see the Plantars go too because the girl is also fond of them, much like Anne. However, another thing I’d say it’s because she didn’t want to see Anne leave, naturally. In spite of these conflicting feelings, Marcy reluctantly lets her return to Wartwood not only considering she knew they’d meet up again, but maybe it could be out of possible guilt for playing a part in manipulating Anne & Sasha into taking the Calamity Box. I wouldn’t put it past Marcy if this was part of her reasoning. After all, she was quick in trying to make amends, by saving Sprig from dropping to his death and sending Anne back home to protect her from Andrias’ wrath. Whatever thing Marcy could do to show her compassion she would gladly do.

If the theory of Marcy having a rocky relationship with her parents is confirmed in Season 3, I’m theorizing it’s more against her father than mother, it puts another weight of tragedy onto why she trusted Andrias so much with spilling her heart out to him. Marcy thought she’d finally found an adult, who wouldn’t undermine her beliefs, personality, and actions. Marcy didn’t view Andrias just as a friend, rather a father figure she felt comfortable venting her emotional issues toward. Andrias saw this kid with low self esteem issues thinking, “Yeah, she’ll be a perfect pawn to use and throw away when I get what I need.”, making Marcy Wu arguably the most tragic character in this trio of people used as a tool by a greater evil.

Marcy never intended to hurt Anne or Sasha. She only wanted to live a life free of pain, which her dream was mangled severely by Andria’s ambition for multiverse conquest. This girl was someone who wanted everything in their world. Marcy didn’t know the box would accurately work, even if she did use her friends in a highly morally wrong fashion. Although, the kid read about this box in a book, so Marcy did have an idea being somewhat aware what she was getting herself into. At least, more so than Anne & Sasha were, who thought it was a silly looking item to steal from a thrift shop.

Seeing everything fall apart for Marcy, as her friends back away from this haunting realization, is easily on my list of top crushing moments from the series. It rivals that of Sasha willing to fall to her death to save Anne’s in exchange. There’s such a poetic gut punch in bringing it full circle for Marcy. She wanted everlasting friendship, but now Marcy’s decision caused them to step away from her. In terms of lighting, I love the dramatic nuance of having a shadow cast over her. Marcy stands alone by herself to stir in emotional grief. No one there is gonna comfort Marcy, preferring to let their silence speak loudly. 

Marcy Wu desired to have her cake and eat it, too. The poor kid lost her friends, trust in Andrias, and her own life, in spite of it being temporary, trying to make amends for all this guilt. She wished so badly to have freedom to choose, only to have none at all in the end. The moral of this story is be careful what you wish for.

Lilith’s whole issue she struggles to overcome is realizing how flawed and corrupt the Emperor’s Coven is, as well as the idea of Covens’ in general. Lilith’s mentality was all about order, control, and obligation to a greater magical cause. What added depth to Lilith’s character is her connection to Eda wasn’t an obligation of some kind. She loved being there for her sister determined to do anything to undo the curse Lilith placed upon Eda in their childhood. Belos saw a prime opportunity through Lilith to use her sister as leverage, so she wouldn’t compromise that oath to the Coven for Eda’s safety. Any episode focusing screen time on their dynamic you can sense the love and respect Lilith has toward Eda, regardless of their differing views on how magic operates. She still cares for her.

The tragic twist of Lilith being responsible for Eda’s curse shows the circumstances of their sisterhood being challenged by this very world they live in. Lilith only went through with cursing Eda because of Belos’ mentality about winning by any means necessary to justify the end result. It’s exactly why Lilith wanted Eda to join her Coven to heal this curse and make her abide by the laws she believes in, killing two birds with one stone. Lilith being bitter about Eda’s skills surpassing her own for that magical competition certainly played a part.

It’s made more than evident in their climatic confrontation in Agony of a Witch. Eda calls out Lilith’s incompetence, as their exchanging blows in finding it hilariously ironic she can’t be beaten at her worst. Lilith, having enough of being criticized, spills the beans about how it was so easy to curse her. Again, Lilith was only speaking out of bitter rage when she blurted the truth. She never took an ounce of enjoyment in hurting her sister, as you can clearly see the immediate regret and hurt written across this woman’s face. This isn’t the face of someone who relishes in their sibling’s suffering. It’s the face of somebody that has made a terrible mistake. A mistake Lilith never wanted Eda to find out about wanting to sweep it under the rug. To know your sibling has placed a curse on you in the most awful fashion would anger any person in that unfortunate position.

Lilith wanted to make amends, but the damage was already done. There wasn’t a chance Eda would hear out her sister’s pleas after dropping a bombshell of this magnitude. Eda had enough of Lilith preaching about order for the greater good when she pulled a toxic double standard putting something chaotic upon her. To have a curse placed, which can transform anyone into a mindless creature, endangering everyone you care about stings all the more to know it was her sister. It wasn’t someone with an evil master plan, like Belos. This culprit was someone Eda placed her trust into, since childhood. Who’d be there to the share that pain of scraping her knee had the gull to put her through this kind of Hell. The sad truth is, Lilith didn’t want any of this to occur. That curse was only meant to last a day and Eda wouldn’t have any more problems. A worst case scenario of something minor transforming into a larger issue.

It’s a disturbing reality check for Lilith when Belos, being the clever manipulator, uses the very knowledge she valued against her in justifying petrifying Eda. This flips everything Lilith held dear in her own values upside down. What she thought was “correct” for years only badly affected their world and citizens. Belos undermining her hopes for Eda’s cure defining it all under their Titan’s will to dispose of anyone, who doesn’t follow their rules, paints a genocidal picture to what Lilith viewed through rose tinted glasses. She wasn’t supporting an individual of equality, but one of a power hungry dictatorship. Belos was going to slaughter all people or any living sentient creature that stood in his way.

While I wouldn’t call Lilith’s arc great, as Season 1 did suffer from Disney executive meddling with Dana’s vision of the series, it was certainly a good one, overall. There’s a real weight and somber symbolism to Lilith being a product of a flawed magical system. Season 2 could easily explore more of her redemption because denouncing your beliefs after holding them stubbornly to your heart isn’t an easy thing to process mentally. Lilith devoted herself to that idealism for so very long, where you don’t just move on from all that with a flick of a switch, so I’m very interested in seeing what Dana and her crew will accomplish next for Lilith’s development. They could easily very well remedy problems in pacing I had with Season 1.

To sum up this very lengthy answer of mine, please keep writing more complex female characters. Break the boundaries of stereotypes that women shouldn’t show vulnerability. It makes for a more introspective story, instead of conforming to stories following a silly status quo for women in fiction. 

[izzyinarchive]

discussing the final season of carmen sandiego

*spoilers* umm....so yeah, i finished watching carmen sandiego, and i’m left in a state of perpetual sadness and despair. i feel like the ending of the show wrapped up wayyy too fast, and kind of left off on a bit of an unsatisfactory note for some of the characters. although i love the large and diverse cast of carmen sandiego, one of the drawbacks of having all those characters and arcs and storylines makes it harder to cram in a satisfying conclusion for everyone in a twenty-minute episode. so here’s what i would do if there was more time. 

let’s start off with the threads that i think were tied off pretty well: 

julia & chase devineaux: i wasn’t really a shipper of julia and devineaux but i actually really enjoyed their relationship throughout season 4. we see a lot of character growth from devineaux in the way that he interacts with julia and the world. julia pushes devineaux to become a better person, to see things with a broader perspective and from other people’s points of view. and he does really change a lot into an understanding person instead of the overconfident, arrogant detective we first saw him as in season 1. in addition, he also grows to respect julia as a person and partner, and it’s completely adorable how he looks at her while zari tells julia that they’ll follow her lead. also i love how he keeps wearing his lucky cat jacket from san francisco in season 4.  

el topo & le chevre: okay, i was pretty much shipping these two the minute they showed up on the screen together. you can tell how much they care about each other throughout the series. whenever one of them gets hurt, you can really see how they prioritize each other over whatever thing vile is planning. when things are good, they’re so sweet and they have so much fun together. and they take dumb cute selfies. they’re so, so adorable, and this season definitely brings the shipping fodder. and they end the season moving on from vile and running a food truck together. the only thing i’m mad about is that we definitely needed more screen time from them. 

shadowsan: i didn’t like shadowsan in season 1 but over the course of the series he really went through a lot of major character development and i love how he’s now basically a grumpy dad figure to carmen. the season ends with him finally reuniting for good with his brother in japan, and it’s a satisfying conclusion for his arc. i also love how he was the one to help carmen in the finale when she’s struggling with the brainwashing thing. which is way better than the brainwashing being resolved by some bs like true love’s kiss. (also carmen and gray are way too hurt and they’re super not ready for a relationship.)  carmen sandiego is a show that emphasizes the importance of family with this father-daughter duo, and i think that’s something really valuable. also i’m interpreting that shadowsan isn’t permanently moving to japan, but rather just visiting his brother. he’s still definitely going to be there for carmen going forward when she needs him. 

player & carmen’s friendship: i love this show for having a male/female friendship with absolutely no romantic feelings going on. it’s a solid friendship, and depicts a wholesome, supportive relationship. absolutely no qualms here.

and here’s all the stuff that needs expanding/fixing: 

tigress: i actually really love tigress as a character, and i personally think that there should have been more of her in the series. i would have liked to see more depth and motivation to her, since she has a lot of character potential. i don’t really know how i would rewrite tigress’s arc, because it’s virtually nonexistent and there’s not too much to go off of. i don’t think she needs a redemption arc, but i would give her more of a spotlight. (also low key fictional-crushing on her.) i would like to include sort of a tigress-centric episode, which can also generally be more expansion on the inner workings of vile.

cleo & saira: villain couple. villain couple. they need to be a villain couple, enough said. i would rewrite season 4 to have include an emotional downbeat moment in which saira struggles with being able to fit in with society and humans and being completely awkward at it while cleo, in all her regal and ettiquite-esque manners, tries to help. this wouldn’t really help with the main plot, but it would be humanizing and provide character depth. i feel like this could be the b-plot in the tigress episode somehow. 

coach brunt: you don’t betray family. at this point, coach brunt has lost the daughter she raised, who, in her mind, has basically backstabbed her entirely. coach brunt was also betrayed by shadowsan and left for the police to find, and in season 4, malestrom basically abandons her to drown. and it’s highly likely that somewhere in her backstory she’s been betrayed many times, likely by her own blood family, which would provide context for why she’s such a loyal person to vile, who she thinks of as her found family. in rewriting season four, i’m adding one extra episode that’s solely on the backstory of coach brunt. in this episode, we would explore brunt’s upbringing and the first time she is betrayed by someone she considers family. in my opinion, coach brunt was likely pushed to fall by another influence, but she also makes the conscious choice to choose revenge over moving on. potentially, we could also explore brunt’s budding friendship with the mechanic, who we never see again after that one episode, as well as a reflection upon this from her adult self. 

gray & the freaking mind control thing & his moral struggles: *sighs* i can see what the show is going for, but i really just don’t see it in the execution. the way that gray struggles with morality is like it’s an on and off switch. he’s either graham, basic civilian, or crackle, basically evil. in that one episode, he flip flops between being overly heroic, even taking out time from his day to specifically track down a random kid to return his wallet instead of just dropping it off at the police station or leaving it where he found it. and then the flip side is like he’s just robotically relapsing into stealing mode, where he just suddenly has to impluse to steal literally anything. i feel like this flip flop wasn’t really a good portrayal of his struggle and didn’t really demonstrate many active choices made by him. and the way that he’s just like “i’m actually just evil” when he confronts carmen at the lab is just super one-dimensional. i just don’t buy it that he flips to vile so quickly in the span of a few episodes. i feel like there should have been more active reflecting and the decision should have been dragged out longer. 

also it’s revealed in the finale that gray also changed his crackle rod to not go beyond a stun, and i think this was a nice touch, because it demonstrates his aversion to murder, which calls back to the first caper, in which he’s confronted with killing the archeologist at the excavation site. but he doesn’t end up having to make that choice, because carmen stops him. but this time, it’s his own choice to take that step away from vile ideals. i don’t think gray is ever going to be a “hero” of the traditional sense or have a complete redemption arc, because it just doesn’t fit him. to be honest, i don’t know what the future will hold for gray, but i definitely think of he will fall somewhere along the lines of red x (teen titans) or catwoman’s (in certain comic runs) gray morality. (and i think the way gray returns to vile kind of screws this up.) he’s still going to steal stuff sometimes probably, but he’s not going to straight up murder people. he would probably be the type to work for himself alone mostly, but be okay teaming up with the good guys sometimes. definitely no joining evil organizations tho. 

gray & carmen & the “i know you’re in there somewhere fight:” i definitely ship these two, but i think they’ve got a long way to go before they’re really ready to admit their feelings for each other. i’m happy that the “i know you’re in there somewhere fight” didn’t culminate in a kiss scene being the thing that snapped carmen out of the trance. because that is just so cliche and not the message of the show. instead, it’s shadowsan who does. and that makes sense going along with the themes of family. i think the issue with this i dislike how there is no more elaboration after carmen supposedly kills gray. this is her best friend. i would imagine that the reaction would be greater, since he was also her friend and teammate during the months they were both working under vile. and then when carmen’s brainwashing wears off, she agonizes that she killed her best friend. but that’s it. the “i know you’re in there somewhere fight” is the last screen appearance of both of them together. then it’s directly cutting to taking down vile. there should have been a hospital scene where carmen rides with him in the ambulance and talks to him as he’s unconscious, and leaves behind a note for him to read when he’s awake. 

i just really think there should be a “heart to heart” scene somewhere in this finale where they confront their feelings (not romantic stuff, but more about like shared trauma at the hands of vile and their broken apart friendship). this could happen at that sydney cafe. both times carmen and gray go on a “date” she leaves him sitting there alone, bewlildered. i think the finale should include a scene of them leaving the cafe together and then walking away and waving to each other. this shows development in their relationship, and that they are now closer, but it also visually shows that they still have differences as they walk away with a sort of two toned kind of environment angle that shows the different paths they have chosen. (and carmen calls him gray. and he doesn’t correct her.) it’s more of a see you later, than a goodbye though. we’re also getting rid of that part of when gray says he doesn’t want to complicate carmen’s life in the hospital scene. instead, he’s going to ask for a sheet of paper on which he will write an indiscernible letter to carmen. (the same letter will be seen in at the carmen brand outerwear hq a few scenes later for continuity, but unopened at the time, as if carmen’s not yet ready to read it. i feel like both of them need to heal a bit on their own before they’re ready to reconnect. gray knows he has hurt carmen in the past but he also knows it will hurt her if he disappears without a trace, so he’s leaving her with the choice if she wants to see him again instead of making the choice for her.)

ivy & zach & found family: carmen leaves a note behind for ivy and zach and leaves to find her mother. i feel like this did not handle team red’s found family very well. basically, the whole show is setting up this importance of family, especially found family not blood family kind of narrative. vile blood runs in carmen’s veins but she chooses to do good and find her own family. ivy and zach both choose carmen, their found family, over their racing career. i think that they should have stuck together, and when carmen goes to find her mom, they would have been totally onboard dropping her off at the airport and saying a “see you soon” or actually driving her to carlotta valdez’s house in lydia (the car). i just don’t think that splitting them up via a note is really a satisfying conclusion to the whole found family aspect. and in that time skip carmen really should have stopped by to say hi to the zach and ivy and the acme squad instead of maintaining the air of mystery. that would have definitely pushed the family feel, instead of the mysterious loner archetype. 

that time skip thing: yeah, no. this part was completely not needed and unhelpful. instead, we’re going to have carmen hug her mother at the airport, and go to visit all of her friends and found family, especially shadowsan in japan and ivy and zach in presumably boston. and the time skip will be a few onths not two effing years. i think it’s natural for them to grow apart a bit and pursue their own personal goals in life after vile’s gone, but they’ll definitely be staying in touch and reconnecting and seeing each other pretty often. and lastly of all, carmen will meet gray at the cafe in sydney.

basically, this is how i would redo the episodes for season 4. 

episode 1: the beijing bullion caper. (this episode remains as is for the most part, i would like more expansion on lady doksu and shadowsan's past since it seems like their pasts are more tied together than is revealed)

episode 2: the big bad ivy caper. (this episode remains as is for the most part.)

episode 3: the robo caper. (the scenes in which carmen first meets the robot and ivy runs it over with a truck can stay the same. where we start to deviate is with gray’s story with a revised, more complex, and in depth view of his moral struggles. instead of being unaware largely as gray flops between graham/crackle, he’s going to be a lot more aware. he’s still going to rob the house, but instead it’s because he feels hopeless that since he was previously a criminal, that’s all he’s ever going to be. gray doesn’t want to be a civilian, and feels like the only thing that he can do instead is be a part of vile. however, when he sees carmen again, he’s going to realize that if she got out of vile, then that means he has a chance to get out of it too. gray comes to a crossroads of deciding between carmen and vile, good and evil. 

episode 4: this will be the episode that concentrates on tigress, with a cleo/saira b-plot. most of this episode will take place within vile, and give more insights on the workings of the organization. 

episode 5: the himalayan rescue caper. (this episode is going to get a real makeover. with the insertion of episode 4, this creates more actual space between the last time we see gray grappling with his big choices, which makes it feel like more time has passed. so it actually feels like he had more time to think. carmen’s still going to try to rescue gray, and the part with player can stay the same. as gray is manipulated by malestrom, i think this episode should further emphasize how vile manipulates their recruits and amp up the shittiness of how malestrom is acting. i think malestrom should say something along the lines indicating that vile is gray’s only family left, this is what he was born to do, he belongs with them, and make up a bunch of bullshit lies about carmen. malestrom will portray this stuff as the “truth” and then say something like “we told you to the full truth, while carmen was hiding your past from you. didn’t you say you wanted to piece together more of your past?” (which gray did express interest in a previous episode.) since more time has passed, malestrom will play the “if carmen wanted to rescue you, she would have done so already. she abandoned you.” card. of course, it’s not easy to get into a super advanced vile facility, so instead carmen’s going to be having more struggles with getting in, which is the real reason she’s taking a while.) i want to keep the scene where he says that his name is crackle, not gray and not graham. i think this scene is particularly painful because graham/crackle is kind representative of the two sides of good and evil that gray thinks he has to choose between. gray will accuse carmen of abandoning him, both in the present but demonstrating that he’s still hurt by the time when she first left vile, and all those times when she kept secrets from him and disappearing in sydney. carmen asks him to leave with her, but instead of him being like “i’m bad, and i was always a villain,” he’s just going to be hurt and feel manipulated and be so conflicted. i feel like gray would choose vile, but not because it’s where he belongs but because he’s afraid of being brainwashed again if he doesn’t agree and because he just wants to know the truth, which vile happened to tell him first (and carmen had been hiding it from him for a while). why would it make sense for gray to willingly side with vile because he’s “throughly bad?” actions speak louder than words, and it’s clear that he’s definitely not evil enough for vile. 

episode 6: the vile history caper. (we’re just going to keep this episode as is for the most part. but like more el topo and le chevre moments.) 

episode 7: this will be the coach brunt backstory episode, piggybacking off of her hurt feelings about maelstrom’s intended betrayal. 

episode 8: the egyptian decryption caper. (this one is just going to be as is for the most part. the cleaners kidnap carmen, but we’re going insert one more painstaking scene of gray learning of vile’s plan to kidnap carmen. he’s not going to know they are planning to brainwash her. he’s going to feel conflicted and try to protest, but then realizes that now that he’s stuck with vile, if he goes against them he’s probably going to get brainwashed himself. and the brainwashing was really traumatizing, so it’s understandable he’s really afraid of it happening to him again.)

episode 9: the viennese waltz caper. (mostly just keeping this episode as is, but more worrying gray scenes. i feel like he should have had a bigger reaction to seeing carmen so unlike her personality. carmen’s lack of empathy should have pushed himself to question if vile is really a healthy place for anyone if they’re so willing to brainwash his best friend in a greater capacity. i think gray should recognize how bad the situation is but he still won’t act upon it since he’s trapped in the nostalgia of their old squad and since he’s been abandoned by carmen before, he’s too afraid that reversing the brainwashing will result in a repeat of her leaving him again. and he’s still afraid of the brainwashing.) 

episode 10 + 11 + 12. the dark red caper. (yeah, this episode is kind of just way too quickly wrapped up. i’m going to expand this into a three parter so we have more time to focus on everyone. basically, we’re going to expand this for the angst. and because this is the last season and i need more content. i feel like we can follow the general plot trajectory but with more nuance and include the improvements i wrote above about the finale. absolutely pushing the found family trope to its limits, and less vagueness since there’s not going to be another season. oh yeah, and the scene when carmen fights shadowsan, i feel like they could have amped up the emotional stuff and make it as much as about him being her dad figure as the doll because #foundfamily. and also the extra time gives more space for all of that other stuff like endings for all the characters, and more team red found family, and a bit about the non-jailed vile operatives, and the acme team, and also maybe a little infrastructure rebuilding montage, and also that carmen and gray moment.)  

basically i just want a satisfying ending for gray, and i love him, and he can’t just stare out of the hospital bedroom and agree to stay out of her life while melancholy music plays. 

[lilydalexf]

Old School X is a project interviewing X-Files fanfic authors who were posting fic during the original run of the show. New interviews are posted every Tuesday.

Interview with Vickie Moseley

Vickie Moseley has 252 stories at Gossamer, some of which have also made their way to AO3. She has obviously contributed a ton to the fandom over the years! I’ve recced some of my favorites of her stories here before, including Giving Thanks, Stunned, and a bunch of post-eps for particular episodes, including “Firewalker” and “Pine Bluff Variant.” Big thanks to Vickie for doing this interview.

Does it surprise you that people are still interested in reading your X-Files fanfics and others that were posted during the original run of the show (1993-2002)?

Not really. Well, actually, it has always surprised me that anyone would read my stories even during the heyday of the series, but that’s my self-consciousness talking. That people are discovering The X-Files is not at all surprising and that they are stumbling on fan fic is a natural extension and I find that wonderful. My husband and I never watched Grimm when it was on network TV and we’re currently going through that series, so it’s the streaming-on-demand-there-isn’t-anything-new-on-TV times we find ourselves.

What do you think of when you think about your X-Files fandom experience? What did you take away from it?

Friendships. I have a group of women that I’ve been friends with for over 20 years. Until this year we gathered in person every year. We are in contact on Facebook messenger all the time and a conversation will start up just out of thin air when we haven’t conversed for months! It’s been wonderful knowing these women from all parts of the country (and the world for that matter).

And strangely enough, medical research. My writing tended to focus on ‘injured Mulder’ (or Mulder Torture as we termed it) and I also liked reading that in fan fic. Two years ago this managed to help me in real life. My husband experienced a bilateral pneumothorax (both lungs collapsed spontaneously). One of my favorite stories that I have read and reread is “Short of Breath” by the incomparable dee_ayy. She did some serious research while writing that story and it’s all in that fan fiction. I’m not saying it’s the same as a medical degree, but I knew what was happening, why the doctors where performing certain procedures and it really eased my mind as we went through the whole experience. I never would have known what was going on if I hadn’t read that story so many times.

Social media didn't really exist during the show's original run. How were you most involved with the X-Files online (atxc, message board, email mailing list, etc.)?

Email was the ‘social media’ for the day. That, and newsfeeds. There were two newsfeeds in the beginning: the official FOX website had a message board, and there was one on ‘alt.tv’ which was an internet newsfeed where fans posted spoilers and discussed episodes. The alt.tv newsfeed got tired of the fan fic writers posting stories so a separate newsfeed was formed just for fan fic. EMXC, which was an AOL mailing list, was invite only and somewhat exclusive at first, but opened up to everyone. When the old OSU (Ohio State University) mailing list turned into Gossamer and Ephemeral, the fandom, and fan fic just skyrocketed.

But what you lived for the most, as a writer, was actual feedback. Emails from people all over who read your story. It was nice to get a quick ‘Hey, read this and really like it!’ but the wonderful emails, the ones you kept in folders on your inbox, were the ones that went into detail, sometimes critical, sometimes grammar related, but always showing where you could improve, or where you touched someone. Every friend I have from the fandom started as feedback, either to me or from me. I’m on AO3 and I appreciate ‘kudos’ but I really love getting comments.

What did you take away from your experience with X-Files fic or with the fandom in general?

Confidence in my writing. I learned a lot from other writers. Constructive feedback was a gift! I may never write the great American novel but I don’t think I’m afraid to give it a shot after all my years in fan fic.

What was it that got you hooked on the X-Files as a show?

They had me at ‘aliens’. I’m a sucker for UFO shows. Was front row center at Close Encounters of the Third Kind, read many of the UFO standards, still watch Ancient Aliens on History Channel. I was waiting for The X-Files based on the tiny blurb in the 1993 Fall Preview Guide from TV Guide.

What got you involved with X-Files fanfic?

I kinda got fired from a job I loved and couldn’t go back into that arena for a long time. I was so depressed I was cleaning out my kitchen cabinets. My husband ‘gave’ me the internet for my birthday just to get me out of the dumps. I went straight to ‘yahoo’ and typed in X Files. After reading all the character bios I saw a ‘hyperlink’ (yes, that’s what we called them in 1995) to something called ‘fan fiction’. It was the OSU tree directory of about 100 fan fiction stories. I was instantly hooked.

What is your relationship like now to X-Files fandom?

I still love the show and all the fans I run across. I was not happy with S8 or S9 but I did watch The Truth. I was on Haven for a while during the reboots (S10 and S11) but it wasn’t the same. I’ve got all the seasons on DVD or blu ray and both movies. When I hear from fans, I’m so happy to connect but I don’t go out and look for new stories anymore.

Were you involved with any fandoms after the X-Files? If so, what was it like compared to X-Files?

None. My heart belongs to Mulder ;)

Who are some of your favorite fictional characters? Why?

Captain Kirk, Spock, Captain Picard, Will Riker, Luke, Han, Leia, Poe, Rae, Kylo at the end. I like strong characters but it’s OK if they have flaws. I’d like to see more strong female leads in science fiction (Gammora and Nebula are favs of mine, too). I love Brea Larson’s portrayal of Captain Marvel!  

Do you ever still watch The X-Files or think about Mulder and Scully?

Sure. When the Pandemic hit we started going through the series for maybe the 20th time. It’s nice to watch them on a larger TV screen. Kim Manners was a genius with lighting and showing just enough of the ‘monster’. I suspect he will be better appreciated in the future than he was at the time he was alive.

Do you ever still read X-Files fic? Fic in another fandom?

I still go back and read my favorites from XF. I read Blood Ties by Dawn about once a year, the whole series. I go back and read the Virtual Season X seasons. We had some really good stories in those years.

Do you have any favorite X-Files fanfic stories or authors?

Too many to list! Dawn, of course. Susan Proto (I co-wrote with her), Sally Bahnsen, dee_ayy, Suzanne Bickerstaff’s Magician Series was the first (and only) fantasy I ever truly liked! I loved all my co-writers and there are plenty of writers that I wish we’d gotten around to collaborating.

What is your favorite of your own fics, X-Files and/or otherwise?

I’m proud of Out of the Cold because it’s Mulder before Scully. I’m partial to the Flight Into Egypt series because I like ‘righting’ what I thought Carter got wrong in the end.

Do you think you'll ever write another X-Files story? Or dust off and post an oldie that for whatever reason never made it online?

I keep trying! I’m working (have been working for almost a decade now) on a Flight Into Egypt story set at Christmas. Each fall I drag it out of mothballs, write a paragraph or two and get busy doing Christmas stuff. Funny, but it was easier to find time to write when I was a working mom of 6 than as a retired grandma of 3.

Do you still write fic now? Or other creative work?

I’m putting together a cookbook for my kids and grandkids of all our family recipes. It’s not just the recipes, but the stories behind them. It’s a WIP (work in progress).

Where do you get ideas for stories?

I had a book, just a cheap paperback of unexplained events—all true stories, supposedly��that I got a lot of ideas from. Or, like Carter, I would see something in the news and it would turn into a story. One time I had a dream about our Pur water filter and it turned into a fan fic.

What's the story behind your pen name?

My older sister named me because my Mom and Dad let her. I never used a pen name. That’s my real name, you can google me and find out all about me. I used to have a wiki page or so my kids told me.

Do your friends and family know about your fic and, if so, what have been their reactions?

My kids used to tell their friends that ‘Mom is famous on the internet’ as a joke. Most of my friends know. My other life is in politics and the two lives usually don’t cross but once on a campaign I was asked by a reporter if I was the ‘same’ Vickie Moseley who writes fan fiction. If I had lied, that would have been the story—that I lied about this hobby of mine. Like it was something to be ashamed of or I was ashamed of my writing. So instead of ducking the question I said ‘yeah, have you read any of my stuff?’ Fan fiction was not mentioned in the finished article.

Is there a place online (tumblr, twitter, AO3, etc.) where people can find you and/or your stories now?

I’m on AO3 but only a partial list. My website is still up thanks to Mimic.

Is there anything else you'd like to share with fans of X-Files fic?

Back when I started writing (1995) it was a sort of commune. We all loved reading fan fiction, we didn’t want the story to end with the credits. So if you wanted to read, you were encouraged to write, too, so that others had stories to read and share. It was a cooperative arrangement very much like the old Literary Societies back in the 19th Century.  I really miss that, so I hope that on some level that is still going on.

(Posted by Lilydale on November 10, 2020)

[btvs]

random thing i wrote this evening for fun

Media’s Portrayal of Drug Use and Its Effect on Teenage Girls and Celebrities

Alternatively Titled: I Hate Sourcing Things So This Is Really Informal and I Like Long Titles and Hate Conclusions

Celebrities, especially female ones, are scrutinized and demonized by the media for their drug use and concurrent mental breakdowns. However, said celebrities ended up in this unhealthy mental state because of the media’s effects. As I mentioned in a previous paper on the subject (News Bias Analysis: Celebrity Culture in the Media), I stated, “Many female celebrities are consistently exploited and treated terribly by the media and paparazzi, which often eventually leads to mental health issues, a breakdown, and/or death.” This paper will go further into the ways the media handles mental health and addiction issues, the portrayal of drug abuse in fiction, and how those affect both the everyday teen girl as well as teen girls growing up in the spotlight.

The criticism of celebrity culture is not something new. Many people have written and spoken about the subject, especially during and after crisis events with specific celebrities. One recent example of a past crisis being drawn out is Britney Spears. Spears is currently going through the process of ending her conservatorship and failing. I have come across many Youtube videos analyzing how she is still trapped and why it all relates back to her breakdown in 2007. In February 2007, Spears went through a mental health crisis which was, quoted by her, a direct cause of being famous. While shaving her head, she described that she was tired of everybody touching her. Although Spears has recovered and is in a more stable environment thirteen years later, we are still discussing this event because of its significant impact on pretty much everyone who was alive and immersed in pop culture at the time. This topic should have ended years ago. The fact that Spears still is trapped in her conservatorship and that people still have to speak out on it further proves that celebrities cannot be given a break by the media no matter what they do.

As I have spoken about before, Britney Spears and many other female celebrities who become famous at a young age tend to start out their career being sexualized. This is not only a problem in celebrity culture, but a problem with the way society treats all young girls. Teen and preteen girls especially are essentially forced into being someone they are not. The problem here with celebrity culture, though, is teen girl celebrities are never given a chance to explore their own identity. They are forced into being role models and stuck with labels based on their accomplishments, beauty, and perfection. As young, impressionable girls, these celebrities are more likely to experience mental health struggles, which are caused by the media, and then they start to become criticized by the media.

Beyond Britney Spears, I can name off the top of my head many other female celebrities who became depressed, addicted to drugs, etc, at a fairly young age, including Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, and Amy Winehouse. The problem at hand escalates when the media, instead of helping celebrities with their mental state and recovery, turn around the blame onto the girls themselves. It is a rare occurrence to see a sober and healthy celebrity praised for their recovery. When celebrities go to a mental health facility, headlines note it as a “crisis” or some other phrase with negative connotations. There is always something dramatic the media wants to find and report because they cannot stand the fact that maybe they are the ones who were in the wrong. In the case of Amy Winehouse for example, they only realize when it’s too late. During Winehouse’s addiction, she was made fun of when it was clear she was struggling. It became funny to the audience when the media made jokes about Winehouse’s drug use. From this I gather that there are two approaches the media takes to celebrity addiction. One is to joke about both the celebrity and the addiction and not take it seriously, and the other is to dramatize and demonize the celebrity. This contrasts severely with the way the media themselves portray addiction in fictionalized worlds.

Growing up, I watched the television show Skins. Skins’ storyline focuses on a few different groups of teenagers and each of their lives. There are multiple characters who can definitely be considered addicts, but it is played off as quirky and cool personality traits. As a teenager myself at the time, I saw drugs being romanticized in this show, and drugs being demonized in real life. The disconnect between the two gave me only one choice: was I going to focus on a fictional, dreamy world that seemed fun, or real life? It is so enticing to be immersed in these television shows that portray beautiful drug use as the norm and ignore the fact that people, usually celebrities, in real life are being seen as disgusting and nonhuman for using drugs. This is not just present in Skins, the one show I mentioned. It can be seen in all kinds of shows, movies, books, etc. Drugs are so normalized to the point that when people, even teenagers themselves, think of what it means to be a teenager, they think of being rebellious, sneaking out, doing drugs, and having sex.

Female celebrities have this a bit harder. They can grow up as the kind of teen girls I described, watching romanticized media and not facing the reality of what drugs do to a person. But in addition, celebrity culture inherently involves drugs because of the encouraged partying, high rates of mental illness, etc, all specifically caused by the media itself. In another paper I wrote (Issue and Hypothesis), I described the vulnerability factors of drug use specifically to celebrities: “Being in the spotlight all the time, having paparazzi chase after you, the pressure to do everything perfectly, be a role model, the hard work; they are all vulnerability factors to addiction and death.” These celebrities inevitably start to use drugs since it has been normalized and encouraged. However, as they grow older, the media decides that it actually is not okay. There is no redemption for “bad” addicts and celebrities, as seen by the media, are always bad.

[sharp-teeth-and-archived]

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐄𝐆𝐀 𝐑𝐏 𝐏𝐋𝐎𝐓𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐄𝐓 / 𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐄.

First and foremost, recall that no one is perfect, we all had witnessed some plotting once which did not went too well, be it because of us or our partner. So here have this, which may help for future plotting. It’s a lot! Yes, but perhaps give your partners some insight? Anyway BOLD what fully applies, italicize if only somewhat. Long post!

MUN NAME: Bambi / Eden     AGE: 18       CONTACT: IM, Ask, Discord (search discord up on my blog)

CHARACTER(S): a shit ton

CURRENT FANDOM(S): Dragon Age, rdr2, assassin’s creed, star wars (sorta??)

FANDOM(S) YOU HAVE AN AU FOR:  Modern verse, r.dr2, da, skyrim (haven’t touched my bio for it for a while so I may have to touch it up a bit) and that’s pretty much it for any au verse. They’re just crossover verses.

MY LANGUAGE(S): English.

THEMES I’M INTERESTED IN FOR RP: FANTASY / SCIENCE FICTION / HORROR / WESTERN ( my brand ) / ROMANCE / THRILLER / MYSTERY / DYSTOPIA / ADVENTURE / MODERN / EROTIC / CRIME / MYTHOLOGY / CLASSIC / HISTORY (my 2nd brand) / RENAISSANCE / MEDIEVAL / ANCIENT / WAR / FAMILY / POLITICS / RELIGION / SCHOOL / ADULTHOOD / CHILDHOOD / APOCALYPTIC / GODS / SPORT / MUSIC / SCIENCE / FIGHTS / ANGST / SMUT / DRAMA / ETC.  ( I’m open to most things, it just depends on plot & muse )

PREFERRED THREAD LENGTH: ONE-LINER (it happens but I tend to not favor it) / 1 PARA / 2 PARA / 3+ PARA / NOVELLA. / ALL

ASKS CAN BE SEND BY: MUTUALS / NON-MUTUALS / PERSONALS / ANONS.

CAN ASKS BE CONTINUED?: YES / NO / OCCASIONALLY   - only by Mutuals?:  YES / NO

PREFERRED THREAD TYPE: CRACK / CASUAL / SERIOUS / DEEP AS HECK. / ALL

IS REALISM / RESEARCH IMPORTANT FOR YOU IN CERTAIN THEMES?:   YES / NO.

ARE YOU ATM OPEN FOR NEW PLOTS?:  YES / NO / DEPENDS.

DO YOU HANDLE YOUR DRAFT / ASK - COUNT WELL?:  YES / NO / SOMEWHAT. 

HOW LONG DO YOU USUALLY TAKE TO REPLY?: 24H / 1 WEEK / 2 WEEKS / 3+ WEEKS / MONTHS / YEARS. / DEPENDS ON MOOD AND INSPIRATION, AND IF I’M BUSY

I’M OKAY INTERACTING WITH: ORIGINAL CHARACTERS / A RELATIVE OF MY CHARACTER (AN OC) / DUPLICATES / CROSSOVERS / MULTI-MUSES / SELF-INSERTS / PEOPLE WITH NO AU VERSE FOR MY FANDOM (really depends on if you have oen in mind and we discussed it, it’s just not posted) / CANON-DIVERGENT PORTRAYALS / AU-VERSIONS.

DO YOU POST MORE IC OR OOC?: IC / OOC. ( varies, but overall I tend to post more ooc? )

ARE YOU SELECTIVE WITH FOLLOWING OTHERS?: YES / NO / DEPENDS.  

BEST WAYS TO APPROACH YOU FOR RP/PLOTTING:  im me or talk to me over discord

WHAT EXPECTATIONS DO YOU HOLD TOWARDS YOUR PLOTTING PARTNER: Not too much? I’d like for there to be a plot in mind, but I can understand if that’s not the case. I’ve had instances where I want to interact with a character, but have absolutely no idea in mind. Usually sendign in an ask meme can help in that regard.

WHEN YOU NOTICE THE PLOTTING IS RATHER ONE-SIDED, WHAT DO YOU DO?:  I strive to not be one-sided myself, but I do have instances where I can’t think of anything. I’m not sure? Maybe ask the other person if they’re into it or if something else is at play (dealign with real life problems and it just affects their mood voerall).

HOW DO YOU USUALLY PLOT WITH OTHERS, DO YOU GIVE INPUT OR LEAVE MOST WORK TOWARDS YOUR PARTNER?:  I always try to give ideas of my own if I have any. Coming to a equally agreed, general idea is fine. I’ve had instances where I was on both sides of this, but I always try to add input and be equal with the other person.

WHEN A PARTNER DROPS THE THREAD, DO YOU WISH TO KNOW?:   YES / NO / DEPENDS. - AND WHY?: Sometimes I don’t notice it, but sometimes I do. Generally, I like to know, but I understand if someone doesn’t wan tto reach out. Just at least try to let me know and we’re fine. 

WHAT COULD POSSIBLY LEAD YOU TO DROP A THREAD?:  It depends really. Sometimes I just don’t have muse for a thread, or an instance where I have dropped a muse entirely. Sometimes it can be timing, but that’s rarely the issue. Most of the time it’s just I can’t think of anything and I feel like it hasn’t really gone anywhere? I have stuff in my queue for a while, so soemtimes it appears that way until it’s posted and I’m sorry about that.

WILL YOU TELL YOUR PARTNER?:   YES / NO / DEPENDS. ( I do have instances where I was forgetful and I haven’t told my partner int he apst adn I’m sorry about that. )

IS COMMUNICATION IN THE RPC IMPORTANT TO YOU? YES / NO. - AND WHY?: I don’t need to be tlaked every day, but stronger friendships ( ooc & ic ) are formed when I talk to a person. It doesn’t need to be often, but it helps me understand your chaarcter and your approach. With that, I can come up with ideas and understand you rmuse more. I understand if people aren’t fond of ooc chatting, that’s completely understandable to me.

ARE YOU OKAY WITH ABSOLUTE HONESTY, EVEN IF IT MAY MEANS HEARING SOMETHING NEGATIVE ABOUT YOU AND/OR PORTRAYAL?: Criticsm is a good way to grow. Criticsm is different from completely bashing a perosn’s portrayal and not giving any pointers (ex: “your portrayal sucks.”). Or even for a person. If you feel like I am portraying something wrong, like depression or something similar, let me know. If you feel like Lydia’s adhd isn’t properly portrayed, let me know. 

DO YOU THINK YOU CAN HANDLE SUCH SITUATION IN A MATURE WAY? YES / NO.

WHY DO YOU RP AGAIN, IS THERE A GOAL?: All of my muses are written and taken an interest in for different reasons, sometimes I don’t even know why I decided to write them. I roleplay because I love exploring different characters and dyanamics and it’s easier for me to write like this than forming my own story. But a goal in mind? Be a good rp partner I guess? Or at least try to make things interesting and try my best to portray my characters correctly or in an intruiging manner. 

WISHLIST, BE IT PLOTS OR SCENARIOS:  Varies on muse. I have different plots in my wishlist tag: ( wishlist ). 

THEMES I WON’T EVER RP / EXPLORE:   Potential triggering content ahead. Rape, noncon, abuse, incest, drug use -not alcohol- ( lyrium I can write fine, it’s just the realistic stuff I can’t do. ), inappropiate under age stuff. Themes where I write a stalker. Sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, and racism will never be mentioned by any of my characters. I won’t write smut probably ever, so themes with that I tend to not write. Very likely more, I just can’t think of anything. Within dragon age, I do have a characetr ( Sera ) who will refer to elves as elfy-elves and be pretty anti-elf, which can be triggering to others. Also, animal abuse or gore of any kind.

WHAT TYPE OF STARTERS DO YOU PREFER / DISLIKE, CAN’T WORK WITH?: I can’t work with starters that don’t really have any dialogue (handing something over with nothing vocally said is fine, but when someone is just sitting there, that’s harder to work with unless somethign is plotted). Generally, I like outside circumstances to be explained (locaiton, where in a game/setting this might be occuring, etc), I really like when dialogue is added and body landguage is explained/noted.

WHAT TYPE OF CHARACTERS CATCH YOUR INTEREST THE MOST?:  Honestly? it varies. I tend to really be into deep, complex characters or characters that appear can be sterred in that direction with more added. Bubbly, energetic characters, fighters (typically female). Quick witted or flirty characters & mysterious types. 

WHAT TYPE OF CHARACTERS CATCH YOUR INTEREST THE LEAST?:  I hate using the term but mary-sue/gary-sue. I hate saying that, but if a character has no flaws, I won’t be interested. Or characters that seem to just be placed there with no development. 

WHAT ARE YOUR STRONG ASPECTS AS RP PARTNER?: I try to add as much effort, or at least a lot of effort, in replies & interaction. I am very open-minded and when I get passionate about soemthing, you can really tell. I am easy-going, so feel free to tell me if you want to drop a thread or have a concern. I tend to work well of other’s people’s ideas, usually able to add my own.

WHAT ARE YOUR WEAK ASPECTS AS RP PARTNER?: I am slow and my queue tends to be slow since I try not to overhwelm myself and stress myself out to the heavens. I try to reach out, but sometimes I just can’t think of anything to say. My muse can be very flickle at times, so replies to stuff can vary. My msue tends to be more for ask memes than replies at times. 

DO YOU RP SMUT?:  YES / NO / DEPENDS. 

DO YOU PREFER TO GO INTO DETAIL?: YES / NO / DEPENDS. 

ARE YOU OKAY WITH BLACK CURTAIN, FADE TO BLACK?: YES / NO.

WHEN DO YOU RP SMUT? MORE OUT OF FUN OR CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT?:

ANYTHING YOU WOULD NOT WANT TO RP THERE?:  all of it

ARE SHIPS IMPORTANT TO YOU?:   YES / NO 

WOULD YOU SAY YOUR BLOG IS SHIP-FOCUSED?: YES / NO. ( I love ships, but I am selective with it and require chemistry -unless I know your muse and you occ super, super well-. It’s nice but it isn’t he full focus of this blog. I want to explore my characters and witness other people’s characters and their development. )

DO YOU USE READ MORE?:  YES / NO / SOMETIMES WHEN I WRITE LONG STUFF.

ARE YOU:  MULTI-SHIP / SINGLE-SHIP ( Jacob ) / DUAL-SHIP  —  MULTIVERSE / SINGLEVERSE.

WHAT DO YOU LOVE TO EXPLORE THE MOST IN YOUR SHIPS?: Varies on muse, but for my rdr2 characters I’ve been really wanting a sorta of “outside” character where they aren’t directly involved in the gang, but they are in a relationship with oen of their members. Where my muse,w hose in the gang, will tell you rmuse about it and the whole aftermath of everything. Where their partner will understand to an extent, but try to undestand? if that makes sense? I also want enemies to work on a job/project together and deal with that. But this all also varies on muse.

ARE YOU OKAY WITH PRE-ESTABLISHED RELATIONSHIPS?: YES / NO / DEPENDS.  ( I find it easier to write to assume people knwo each other, but an immediate friendship isn’t required. Like my muse may know yours or hear about yours, but they haven’t directly met you before ). 

► SECTION ABOUT YOUR MUSE.

- WHAT COULD POSSIBLY MAKE YOUR MUSE INTERESTING TOWARDS OTHERS, WHY SHOULD THEY RP WITH THIS PARTICULAR CHARACTER OF YOURS NOW, WHAT POSSIBLE PLOTS DO THEY OFFER?: I have a large amount of different muses, but all of my muses all bring something new to the table. Want a guy who seems nice, but can be an asshole with a flick of a dime, who has a secret betrayal plot hidden behind his back? Pick Robert. Want a guy who’s humurous but seems to be hiding under a fake persona? Pick Charley. Want a female assassin who’s very talented anr professional in her work to a fault with her work-alcoholic ways? Pick Evie. Want a sweet and caring character with a heart of gold and will give you advice and comfort? Pick Cassie It depends on the plot, too, but I try my best to add as much to reply to to another. If you ever want more added, tell me! I could give multiple plots, so it’s really hard to put something down.

WITH WHAT TYPE OF MUSES DO YOU USUALLY STRUGGLE TO RP WITH?:  If someone isn’t interested or outwardly hateful of my muse without a valid reason when starting to interact. Beign enemies is fine, but maybe we could write how it became that way? This really varies, so don’t let this steer you away. Just give me something to work with, brign soemthing to the tbale, and I’m usually fine.

WHAT DO THEY DESIRE, WHAT IS THEIR GOAL?:  Varies on muse. Robert: fame/recognition, a legend made out of him. Charley: just to live life happy? He wants to be okay money-wise. Evie: to take down the Templars & help the people of London, not fail and always be successful and outwit her foes. Cassie: everyone around her happy. Sean: His gang to be successful, btu also be sucessful himself, he wants to be admired as well.

WHAT CATCHES THEIR INTEREST FIRST WHEN MEETING SOMEONE NEW?:  Just using the same muses lmao. Robert: Someone who just listens to him and isn’t quick to make fun of him. Charley: If they have a sense of humor and someone he can stand, he’s pretty much fine tbh. Evie: If they can give her any information or aid with her cause. Cassie: How they are feeling. If they let her just listen and seem more open than closed off. Very personality-based. Sean: soemtimes looks, but mostly if they have a similar personality as him.

WHAT DO THEY VALUE IN A PERSON?:  Evie: devotion, kind spriit, efficiency, loyalty. Robert: willingness and empathy despite having little himself. Charley: Honesty. Cassie: Consistency. Sean: reliability. 

WHAT THEMES DO THEY LIKE TALKING ABOUT?:  generally all of them like books (except Sean), events around them, their interests.

WHICH THEMES BORE THEM?:  For half of them, anything mundane or boring. Anything that isn’t relating to anything that’s spoken around / surrounds them.

DID THEY EVER WENT THROUGH SOMETHING TRAUMATIC?:  Robert & Charley (more Robert) witnessed a murder, Robert actually doing that act. Cassie: hearing about the violent nature of her father’s death. Sean: the things he went through with the bounty hunters.

WHAT COULD LEAD TO AN INSTANT KILL?:  A gunshot or anything that could overpower them.

IS THERE SOMEONE /-THING THEY HATE?:  Sean: rich people, Scots for some reason, English people sometimes. When someone disagrees with him on soemthing he is passionate about. Pronouncing and Irish word wrong. O’Driscolls & anyone that’s an enemy of the gang. Evie: Templars, Starrick & Lucy Thorne. People who lie or misled her or others. Injustice. Robert: Someone makign fun of him tbh. Charley: People who don’t plan out anything or are really reckless.

IS YOUR MUSE EASY TO APPROACH?: YES / NO.    - BEST WAY TO APPROACH THEM?: Talk to them. Initiate a conversation. Pretty much that across the board. 

SOMETHING YOU MAY STILL WANT TO POINT OUT ABOUT YOUR MUSE?: None of my muses are perfect. Some are worse than others, but generally msot of my muses will listen to you and usually be nice to you if you appraoch them well. All my muses are different from one another, so expect different results / reactions

CONGRATS!!! You managed it, now tag your mutuals! ♥

TAGGED: stole it

 TAGGING: steal it and pelase tag me ! I want to see your results

[diepower]

THE MEGA RP PLOTTING SHEET / MEME.

First and foremost, recall that no one is perfect, we all had witnessed some plotting once which did not went too well, be it because of us or our partner. So here have this, which may help for future plotting. It’s a lot! Yes, but perhaps give your partners some insight? Anyway BOLD what fully applies, italicize if only somewhat.

MUN NAME: Kaiman     AGE: 27       CONTACT: IM, ask, discord

CHARACTER(S): Meninas McAllon, Orihime Inoue, Retsu Unohana, Mashiro Kuna, Tier Harribel, Charlotte Chuuhlhourne

CURRENT FANDOM(S): That I write in? It’s gonna be Bleach, OVW (super selectively im just here for one person), ASOIAF (barely- literally when the mood strikes and that one is private also). I have a lot of current interests in general though.

BLEACH FANDOM(S) YOU HAVE AN AU FOR: While I don’t have anything fully established... I’ve been working with an ASOIAF au (for Harribel & Unohana specifically, though I’m considering it with other characters too), A Dorohedoro AU (for Unohana and Orihime), as well as a Persona AU (more specifically 2&3) for Orihime. I’ve also got a number of post-canon AUs or continuities for all my characters as well!

MY LANGUAGE(S): English, super basic Spanish, barest ASL, fairly good French

THEMES I’M INTERESTED IN FOR RP: FANTASY / SCIENCE FICTION / HORROR / WESTERN / ROMANCE / THRILLER / MYSTERY / DYSTOPIA / ADVENTURE / MODERN / EROTIC / CRIME / MYTHOLOGY / CLASSIC / HISTORY / RENAISSANCE / MEDIEVAL / ANCIENT / WAR / FAMILY / POLITICS / RELIGION / SCHOOL / ADULTHOOD / CHILDHOOD / APOCALYPTIC / GODS / SPORT / MUSIC / SCIENCE / FIGHTS / ANGST / SMUT / DRAMA

PREFERRED THREAD LENGTH: ONE-LINER / 1 PARA / 2 PARA / 3+ / NOVELLA (2para is a sweet spot but it really doesn’t matter to me)

ASKS CAN BE SEND BY: MUTUALS / NON-MUTUALS / PERSONALS / ANONS.

CAN ASKS BE CONTINUED?:   YES / NO    ONLY BY MUTUALS?:  YES / NO

PREFERRED THREAD TYPE: CRACK / CASUAL NOTHING TOO DEEP / SERIOUS / DEEP AS HECK.

IS REALISM / RESEARCH IMPORTANT FOR YOU IN CERTAIN THEMES?:   YES / NO.

ARE YOU ATM OPEN FOR NEW PLOTS?:  YES / NO / DEPENDS.

DO YOU HANDLE YOUR DRAFT / ASK - COUNT WELL?:  YES / NO / SOMEWHAT. (i let them build up too often but some of yall are too quick to reply jkglfjdgsd)

HOW LONG DO YOU USUALLY TAKE TO REPLY?: 24H / 1 WEEK / 2 WEEKS / 3+ / MONTHS / YEARS / DEPENDS ON MOOD AND INSPIRATION, AND IF I’M BUSY

I’M OKAY WITH INTERACTING: ORIGINAL CHARACTERS / A RELATIVE OF MY CHARACTER (AN OC) / DUPLICATES / MY FANDOM / CROSSOVERS / MULTI-MUSES / SELF-INSERTS / PEOPLE WITH NO AU VERSE FOR MY FANDOM / CANON-DIVERGENT PORTRAYALS / AU-VERSIONS (italicized are okay, but under really specific circumstances)

DO YOU POST MORE IC OR OOC?: IC / OOC.

ARE YOU SELECTIVE WITH FOLLOWING OTHERS?: YES / NO / DEPENDS  

BEST WAYS TO APPROACH YOU FOR RP/PLOTTING:  I’m pretty anal about plotting in that I often refuse to RP unless it’s been plotted or I liked a starter call. And in the case of the latter, I’ll still hop into DMs to plot further depending on where the thread takes us. That said, the best way to reach me is through IMs or Discord (available on request). The only time I turn down plots is if I feel like it would put my character in an OOC situation, and I especially dislike my character being one-sidedly used as a tool to further another character’s development without anything being reciprocated (this happens often especially wrt my healer characters)

WHAT EXPECTATIONS DO YOU HOLD TOWARDS YOUR PLOTTING PARTNER: Communication is really important to me, especially with regards to comfort regarding certain plot elements, and approaching other in-character situations that might have multiple different solutions. I think it’s important that both characters involved get the same amount of development out of writing a thread, and I really hate the idea of being imbalanced as far as that goes (more on that below). That said, I’m always perfectly down to spitball plot ideas and tweak/refine other concepts because I really do enjoy plotting, it’s just super important to me that things are communicated clearly. I get extremely distressed and frustrated IRL if people just kinda throw stuff at me, and it often kills my muse.

WHEN YOU NOTICE THE PLOTTING IS RATHER ONE-SIDED, WHAT DO YOU DO?: I make an active effort to come up with plots that are engaging and beneficial fairly equally to both parties. I mentioned this above, but especially in the case of writing my healer characters, I have a huge disdain for characters being used as tools to further development while getting nothing substantial in return. That said, I try to be very aware of this in terms of a potential writing partner being on the receiving end. IMO it feels like shit, but I definitely don’t want to make someone else feel that way either. That said, so long as stuff is plotted out clearly and me and the writer are both okay with it, then it’s fine. COMMUNICATION IS KEY, BASICALLY.

HOW DO YOU USUALLY PLOT WITH OTHERS, DO YOU GIVE INPUT OR LEAVE MOST WORK TOWARDS YOUR PARTNER?:  I kinda just like to throw spaghetti at the wall and whatever sticks, I’m down to fly with. I have a lot of ideas, but again, I like to give my partners the option of doing whatever they’re comfortable with, and h aving equal contribution opportunities.

WHEN A PARTNER DROPS THE THREAD, DO YOU WISH TO KNOW?:   YES / NO / DEPENDS.

- AND WHY?: Everyone has their own circumstances, I really don’t mind. If it’s one I’ve been especially looking forward to, I might be bummed, but it’s no skin off my nose really.

WHAT COULD POSSIBLY LEAD YOU TO DROP A THREAD?: I don’t typically drop threads or abandon them during their writing. The only thing that would make me do so is offensive content, or huge plot elements being introduced that makes my character ooc and wasn’t previously discussed during plotting.

WILL YOU TELL YOUR PARTNER?:   YES / NO / DEPENDS.

IS COMMUNICATION IN THE RPC IMPORTANT TO YOU? YES / NO.

-AND WHY?: I already feel like I need to take a lot of extra steps to understand others and be understood, and that isn’t something often reciprocated. In my experience, just honest communication is the quickest solution to issues that crop up during writing. For those who HAVE actually had me reach out to them in this way, I really do try to be polite and respectful while being straightforward so the situation can be resolved without any hurt feelings.

ARE YOU OKAY WITH ABSOLUTE HONESTY, EVEN IF IT MAY MEANS HEARING SOMETHING NEGATIVE ABOUT YOU AND/OR PORTRAYAL?: As long as it’s constructive, and not merely negativity, I welcome it. After all, I can’t fix a huge flaw in my writing without having an alternative solution. I’m open to accepting feedback and critique, especially wrt Meninas since my portrayal is quite a large departure from popular fanon perception (from those who choose to pay attention to her, lol), but I also thrive on suggested remedies and solutions to issues in my writing.

DO YOU THINK YOU CAN HANDLE SUCH SITUATION IN A MATURE WAY? YES / NO.

WHY DO YOU RP AGAIN, IS THERE A GOAL?: I like to tell stories, and I like to tell narratives that take root in emotional expression and how those feelings can act as a vehicle to the storytelling. I want to move people through feeling, because it can be a powerful experience. I use a lot of inspiration from themes in my other favorite series, as well as inspiration from my own personal experiences as well. I tend to pick characters who have one or two traits in common with myself, whether those be negative or positive. I’m very excited to share all the things I have planned for Meninas, as she’s certainly my most ambitious project to date.

WISHLIST, BE IT PLOTS OR SCENARIOS:  For Meninas specifically, I want to interact with Squad 11 and Squad 9 during the CFYOW verse I have planned. Hisagi specifically would be interesting because of the clash of ideals, in addition to being the only other living person to be able to relate to the horror of being under Pepe’s thrall. I’d also like to steal Ikkaku’s bankai, and have more fight scenes. Lastly, Meninas doesn’t do much of anything in CFYOW, so more interactions with Mayuri and Squad 12 would be cool.

THEMES I WON’T EVER RP / EXPLORE: I don’t mind briefly referencing darker themes in my writing, especially wrt my own personal experiences, but I want to be very clear that I refuse to write at length or romanticize these themes. I refuse to write anything involving rape, homophobia, transphobia, racism, pedophilia, etc, with this in mind.

WHAT TYPE OF STARTERS DO YOU PREFER / DISLIKE, CAN’T WORK WITH?: Unless previously discussed, I struggle with starters that have a character pushing mine away. If the situation is super OOC for my character to be in, or frankly too mundane. In Meninas’ case, most domestic stuff is a snoozefest for me (but I LOVE this for other characters).

WHAT TYPE OF CHARACTERS CATCH YOUR INTEREST THE MOST?:  *saoirse ronan voice* Women. UHHH but no, for real... I like fleshing out female characters quite a bit. Personality types are varied, but I like characters who have some level of nuance to their emotional expression whether it’s an internal or external struggle. I like powerful women too, and the exploration of “strength” as a theme (esp at the intersection of the theme of “femininity” and its expressions) whether this is external strength or internal fortitude. I think I play a wide variety of characters who have vastly different thoughts, beliefs, and forms of expression, but I try to find something in common with who I portray to act as a touch stone. I also like characters who have themes of “justice” and nuanced morality.

WHAT TYPE OF CHARACTERS CATCH YOUR INTEREST THE LEAST?: 99% of male characters. And I also hate tsunderes gjklsdjfd

WHAT ARE YOUR STRONG ASPECTS AS RP PARTNER?: I really like my writing style especially wrt using emotion to set a cinematic scene and overall tone. I think I’m really strong with conveying emotion, especially with things that are often unspoken. I try to communicate with partners clearly and establish rapports. I love writing headcanons and have a TON of plot ideas as well.

WHAT ARE YOUR WEAK ASPECTS AS RP PARTNER?: Oh I’m the slowest replier on the planet and I’m apparently intimidating lol

DO YOU RP SMUT?:  YES / NO / DEPENDS.

DO YOU PREFER TO GO INTO DETAIL?: YES / NO / DEPENDS (i prefer to go into detail about sensations, rather than the actual acts as it comes off stifled and weirdly technical)

ARE YOU OKAY WITH BLACK CURTAIN?: YES / NO

- WHEN DO YOU RP SMUT? MORE OUT OF FUN OR CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT?: Honestly I just do what Meninas tells me.

- ANYTHING YOU WOULD NOT WANT TO RP THERE?: Kink stuff is weird territory for me, absolutely gotta be discussed in private and comfort levels clearly established.

ARE SHIPS IMPORTANT TO YOU?: YES / NO. Relationships in general rule, and while I do have a romantic ship that plays a large part in Meninas’ plot, the romance comes secondary to the plot itself. I really enjoy writing and developing romances, but more than that I like establishing connections. I love the relationships I’ve got planned with Giselle, Candice, Liltotto, and Bambietta because there are going to be a LOT of drastically different things that inform my portrayal of Meninas coming from these relationships (both positive and negative, but ultimately places of growth).

WOULD YOU SAY YOUR BLOG IS SHIP-FOCUSED?: YES / NO. Like I said, plot comes first. And especially in the case of Meninas, she has a lot of self exploration and reflection to do before she can engage in a healthy relationship or address any feelings of romance. I do place a large focus on the formation of her relationships and how they shape the way she relates to other people and grows as a person, but I am extremely sensitive to making sure I’m not writing a female character who’s entire development is dependent on a romance with a male character- perish the thought lol.

DO YOU USE READ MORE?:  YES / NO / SOMETIMES WHEN I WRITE LONG STUFF.

ARE YOU:  MULTI-SHIP / SINGLE-SHIP / DUAL-SHIP  —  MULTIVERSE / Singleverse.

WHAT DO YOU LOVE TO EXPLORE THE MOST IN YOUR SHIPS?: For Meninas, it’s a matter of her acknowledging, understanding, and accepting that she can be worth more than how useful she is to others. She had a series of traumatizing and character defining experiences regarding love, romance, and personal worth that strongly shaped the way she perceives her relationships to others and her emotional expression. Trust is another huge factor for me, Meninas needs to be around someone she believes in. Strength is another aspect. She likes someone who challenges her, keeps her on her toes, and is sturdy like physically. Because she’ll break you. THAT SAID- Meninas tends to be open wrt her body, but closed off when it comes to her heart. Hate to see it, love to write it.

ARE YOU OKAY WITH PRE-ESTABLISHED RELATIONSHIPS?: YES / NO. As long as the premise makes sense. I like relationships to have some matter of significance and planning, especially because of how I’ve written the way Meninas picks and chooses who to get close to in Silbern depending on what suits her interests. Genuine friendship is a weird thing for Meninas, as most of her relationships are formed out of convenience. If you aren’t useful to Meninas’ schemeing, then she has no interest in dealing with you beyond platitudes and keeping up appearances and will interact with you as such.

► SECTION ABOUT YOUR MUSE.

- WHAT COULD POSSIBLY MAKE YOUR MUSE INTERESTING TOWARDS OTHERS, WHY SHOULD THEY RP WITH THIS PARTICULAR CHARACTER OF YOURS NOW, WHAT POSSIBLE PLOTS DO THEY OFFER?: WE LOVE DUPLICITOUS WOMEN! No, but at the core of my Meninas characterization, the sentiment is “Everything is not as it appears” even down to the relationships she has with others. Meninas’ entire personality is constructed as a survival tactic from an early age (in addition to being a way to make herself more useful as a tool to others, and thus seen as having more worth in general), and as a result, she hasn’t really allowed herself to live life as a fully realized person. Her plots generally offer silent rebellion, playing a role in regards to her self presentation, chaotic mean girl level bullshit, and cool fights/training. Also you get to interact with a big buff lady. That said about her personality, it depends on the verse. CFYOW Meninas will be more unhinged, while post-CFYOW Meninas will be more honest and rowdy.

- WITH WHAT TYPE OF MUSES DO YOU USUALLY STRUGGLE TO RP WITH?:  Muses who are standoffish or disengage right at the start. Meninas doesn’t interact with people without a certain purpose, so if they aren’t interested, she’s not going to be either.

- WHAT DO THEY DESIRE, IS THEIR GOAL?:  Revenge, strength, redefining what “power” means in terms of how the world works. She wants to see the Shinigami dead for their role in her parents deaths, and feels the same about Yhwach.

- WHAT CATCHES THEIR INTEREST FIRST WHEN MEETING SOMEONE NEW?:  Ability, potential threat, perceived strength, where loyalty lies; how potentially useful you can be to her.

- WHAT DO THEY VALUE IN A PERSON?:  Strength both in a physical sense, but also in belief and convictions. Honesty, and understanding the flaws of the world they live in.

- WHAT THEMES DO THEY LIKE TALKING ABOUT?:  Fighting, beauty, freedom, abolishing Quincy classism based on blood purity, music, fashion, blacksmithing.

- WHICH THEMES BORE THEM?: Blind loyalty to Yhwach, talking about the horrors of war as if it doesn’t concern them, Bambietta, Quincy supremacy,

- DID THEY EVER WENT THROUGH SOMETHING TRAUMATIC?:  Her parents were killed in the first Quincy war and she was left abandoned and grew up literally fighting for her life and living on the streets. She often likens fighting pits to the bowels of Hell (and I often play with the ironic theme of crawling out of hell to appear as an angel or something divine). She is consumed by a quest for revenge, and strongly believes her ends will justify the means taken to fulfill her ideal. As a direct result of these experiences, her emotional health and maturity is severely affected, and she doesn’t view herself as a person worthy or capable of feeling as much as a tool who, in the right hands, can be utilized to bring about the revenge she craves.

- WHAT COULD LEAD TO AN INSTANT KILL?:  (1) Men who feel non-consensually entitled to her body. That said, she’s done a fairly excellent job at maintaining control and an unassuming threatening nature despite the widely known understanding of her Schrift ability and how it augments. (2) Someone touching her Quincy cross, as it’s her most precious and private item. (3) Anyone who dares get in the way of her plans that can’t be manipulated in some other useful aspect.

- IS THERE SOMEONE /-THING THEY HATE?:  Meninas hates Yhwach, and the Shinigami most predominately, but she also harbors disgust for Hollows as an instinct. That said, her young life was spent detached from Quincy culture (in addition to being a Gemischt and the inherent isolation that comes with that status), so despite her early induction into the Wandenreich ranks, Meninas does not harbor the same Quincy nationalism and loyalty that others of her race do. They’re a means to an end, and just happen to help her become stronger.

IS YOUR MUSE EASY TO APPROACH?: YES / NO. - Best ways to approach them?: She comes off as easy to approach, but if you want genuine Meninas I’m sorry the number you’re trying to reach has been disconnected. Goodbye!

SOMETHING YOU MAY STILL WANT TO POINT OUT ABOUT YOUR MUSE?: Everything I’ve written about her is based in headcanon! I’ve got both a lengthy biography as well as headcanons gathered in the sidebar links on my blog.

CONGRATS!!! You managed it, now tag your mutuals! ♥

TAGGED BY: @bazzardburner​ TAGGING: i think this has made its rounds so steal it!

[killjoy-loveit]

A Little Bit Like Clover

Request: Oh yay! May I please request a Rowoon/Seokwoo Barista!AU? One shot or scenario, Romance/Fluff, female reader, any POV where he falls for a a florist who works in a flower shop right across from his coffee shop. I don't really have a specific plot in mind other than that 😅 thank you! 💕

A/N: I would like to clarify that everything written in this story is complete fiction and isn’t to be taken as a true portrayal of reality. To the anon who requested this, I’m so sorry it took me so long :( I hope that the story lives up to your expectations!! Side note: I wrote this in a style similar to that of one I tried previously for another story, I personally like this style a bit so lmk what y’all think of it :)

Also this was proof-read by the absolutely wonderful 💚💚 @uwunnie​ 💚💚, whom I wish to thank for taking time out of her day to check over it for me!!

Word Count: 3,914

Genre: Fluff, overall v cute imo

May 3rd, 20XX

     The nice old man, Mr. Jones, that owned the bookstore across the street decided to sell. He would always come in on Tuesday of every week to buy flowers for his wife’s grave- Tuesday’s had been their date nights he’d confided in you one day. Sometimes Mr. Jones would choose her favorite flowers, other times he’d tell you to make a pretty bouquet. You were sad to see him leave, but you knew it was inevitable. It was difficult for him to run the store on his own, especially with him going on in years. Now you just wondered who would become your new neighbor. Would they be nice? Would they change from a bookstore? The possibilities were numerous.

June 1st, 20XX

     After almost a month the bookstore was successfully purchased. Still, you were unsure of who owned the space. You’d yet to see one individual frequenting the establishment, though it would be hard to pick them out anyways. There was always a gaggle of people moving about the old storefront nowadays, pulling out all of the old furniture and books. Clearly it wasn’t going to be a bookstore anymore. That small discovery made you a bit sad. You would miss going over there on your days off and finding new books to delve into.

July 15th, 20XX

     Finally you met the new owner of the store across the street. He’d come in right as you were finishing up a bright bouquet that would be one of the samples for a party planner you worked with. You’d glanced up as the bell had rung, the typical customer service smile coming to your face. As he stepped up to the counter, you wiped your hands on the apron tied about your waist. 

     “Hi, welcome to Oopsy Daisy. How can I help you?” Your voice automatically switching into the chipper, vibrant tone you used to interact with customers. It must’ve shocked him, you thought, as you noticed his eyes widen a tad.

     Nevertheless he smiled politely at you and extended his hand. “Hello, I’m Rowoon, I bought the store across the street from you.”

     Surprised, you reached out your hand to shake his, mouth parted slightly. “Oh, wow. I was wondering who’d bought it- now I know.” You laughed lightly, then proceeded to introduce yourself.

     “Well, I just wanted to come over and introduce myself. I’m not sure if you know, I changed the layout into that of a coffee shop, so if you ever decide to come check it out the first cup of coffee’s on the house!” 

     “I’ll make sure to stop by soon!”

July 16th, 20XX

     You were up earlier than usual as orders had piled up, what with it being the midst of wedding season. Oopsy Daisy wouldn’t open to the general public for a few hours still, which would leave you plenty of time to make decent headway on the orders. But you would make no progress without having a cup of coffee first. And what better time to try out the new coffee place across the street than right now? 

     Despite the early hour, right about the time typical business people would be floundering for their first cup of coffee, the shop seemed relatively empty. Two or three customers were placed throughout the shop, two at separate tables sipping on their coffee and looking at laptops, the other sitting in a comfortable chair with a book in hand and a coffee set on a table beside them. The store didn’t seem to change too much, despite the switch to becoming a coffee shop. Bookshelves lined the small brick wall that separated the coffee counter from the seating area. Small tables and comfortable chairs were scattered throughout the area, giving it a cozy feel.

     Walking up to the counter, you saw Rowoon standing behind it- pretty relaxed, a book in his hand. A mix of to-go cups and porcelain mugs caught your eye as you got closer, each one had the store name and logo printed on. The logo being a heart made of coffee beans around the shop’s name, which is succinctly called ‘Kinda In Love With Brew’. That made you smile.

     “Your store’s name is cute.” You said after reaching the counter, pulling his focus away from the book in his hands.

     “Oh, hey! I wasn’t sure when I’d see you again.” Rowoon grinned. “And thanks, I came up with it myself.”

     “Really? I wouldn’t have guessed that.” Shifting on your feet, you fiddle with the zipper on your bag.

     He just laughs, shaking his head. “A lot of people say that. Do I not seem like I could come up with a cute romantic name for my store?”

     “No, it just seemed like a mild romantic sort of name and I guess I didn’t see you as that type. Clearly I was wrong and shouldn’t set out to find a job in profiling.” You joke lightly.

     Rowoon sets his book down, leaning his forearms against the counter. “Now that we’ve adequately discussed my shop’s name, should we talk about yours? Or save that for another time?”

     “Another time perhaps, I’m on a bit of a time crunch.” 

     With that said, you quickly order a drink of Rowoon’s recommendation. And once the drink is in hand, you make your way back across the street. 

October 28th, 20XX

     It’s been a couple of months since Rowoon opened ‘Kinda In Love With Brew’, and you’d met on many occasions. It had become a habit to pop across the street for a coffee when you knew you would be slammed with orders. And he’d taken to coming over and chatting whenever business was slow, leaving his store under the watch of one of his employees. Normally people got on your nerves, which is why you ran your store all by your lonesome- not one employee to help you out. But somehow Rowoon didn’t. You weren’t sure if he had some charm to him that made it harder to be annoyed by him, or if your personalities just meshed well together.

     Either way it didn’t matter, you were well into becoming friends. Which is why it almost didn’t surprise you when he knocked on the door to your shop well past closing. After letting him in, you’d questioned his arrival.

     “Well,” He replied, taking a deep breath. “I saw the light in your store still on and I wondered why you were still working. It’s almost one in the morning.”

     Glancing over at the clock on the wall to confirm his words, your jaw dropped slightly. “I didn’t even realize… I just got carried away, I guess.”

     Rowoon raised an eyebrow at you. “Carried away or frantically trying to finish an order before the pickup time?”

     You smiled sheepishly at him. “Maybe it was more frantic than being carried away.”

     “I just don’t understand why you refuse to hire some help around here.” He sighs, looking intently at you. “You’re practically running on fumes at this point. If you keep this up then you’ll have to start turning away customers.”

     “I get annoyed by people easily, especially if I have to explain things multiple times. It just wouldn’t work if I tried to hire someone to help me. The cons would outweigh the benefits.” You mutter, picking at your apron awkwardly.

     “I don’t think they would if you found the right person.” Rowoon chided. “But right now what you need is sleep. Go home, get a good rest and finish the order later.”

     You shook your head quickly. “I can’t. They’re picking up the bouquets at nine and I haven’t even finished half of them yet.”

     “Let me help you then.”

     At first you’d been hesitant to let him assist in the bouquet making, but he’d actually done a good job. It turns out that he catches on rather quickly, so after observing you make two arrangements he was able to start making them on his own. It was nice having someone next to you, working in harmony, conversation flowing naturally. This wasn’t something you’d experienced before, and you found that you enjoyed it. Not to mention you actually finished a lot faster than you would have on your own. Hours faster. Once all of the arrangements were finished though, before Rowoon could leave, you promised to repay the favor or at the very least treat him to a meal when he was free. 

November 14th, 20XX

     It was about five o’clock in the evening when Rowoon rushed into your store, completely frazzled and unkempt. Luckily there was no one inside your shop at the moment, though this was because you were technically closed to the public. The asters you were holding falling to the counter in shock. Never had you seen him appear in such a state, he was typically calm albeit a little goofy. Yet here he was, standing before you, out of breath, with panic written all over his features. 

     “What’s wrong?” You moved out from behind the counter to where he stood at the entrance, hand smoothing down his back in an attempt to calm him down.

     Rowoon gulped in a deep breath. “There’s- there’s a lady in the store, and we already called the ambulance, but I don’t know what to do! How am I supposed to help her? I can’t-.”

     You cut him off, worry seeping into your veins and activating your brain. “What happened for you to call the ambulance? Was she injured? Did she slip and fall? Is she bleeding?”

     At each of your questions after the first he shook his head quickly. “She went into labor!”

     Eyes wide, you stared at him, mouth agape. “And you just left her there? What’s wrong with you?” You smacked his shoulder lightly before rushing out of your store to his.

     Sure enough, once you got inside you saw an obviously pregnant woman, sitting on a chair breathing heavily. A man was standing beside her, appearing very panicked, holding a phone talking to a person you believed to be an emergency operator. Only a few other people, all coincidentally men, were in the store, but each one of them appeared nervous and anxious on behalf of the lady who had just gone into labor. All of this energy couldn’t be good for her. The lady in question, looked scared, and all of the people around her weren’t calm either- which was helping nothing.

     Hearing the door close behind you, you determined that Rowoon had followed you. “Go get wet a cloth with cool water, wring it out and bring it to me.” You stated without looking at him, but he quickly followed your orders and moved past you.

     Without hesitation you raised your voice to address the people in the coffee shop. “Everyone who is not with the woman in labor, please leave! I understand that you came here for a coffee fix, but right now might not be the best time.” 

     As the other customers departed, you were left alone in the store with three other people: Rowoon, the lady in labor, and the guy standing next to her. As you approached, her gaze was flickered between you and the guy next to her.

     “Hey,” Voice calm, you pulled a chair up beside her and sat down. “What’s your name?”

     “V-Vee.” She hissed out, teeth gritting in pain.

     You worked on keeping your voice as calm and soothing as possible as you conversed with her, trying to help ease some of the nerves. Rowoon had appeared with the cloth in the midst of your conversation, which you’d handed to the guy standing next to her, telling him to help keep her cool. Overhearing the emergency operator state that the ambulance was still a little far out, Vee became panicked. She was blubbering about how she didn’t want to have her baby in a coffee shop, she wanted to have it in the hospital after getting an epidural, how she wasn’t ready yet. 

     “Breathe,” You reminded her, while you tried to come up with some words that might help. “The ambulance is coming, and soon enough you’ll be able to get to the hospital.” You locked eyes with her. “You can do this. Just think, in a matter of hours you’ll be holding your little one. Isn’t that amazing?”

     She nodded slowly, muttering under her breath. “I can do this.”

     It wasn’t long after this that the ambulance arrived, sweeping her and the man with her away. Which just left you and Rowoon in the store. Of the two, you were clearly the one with the level-head currently, as it appeared that he was mentally checked out at the moment. After guiding him to a seat and getting him a glass of water, you flipped the sign on his door to say ‘closed’. Then you began cleaning up spilled drinks, most likely occurring from witnessing a woman go into labor. Cleaning the spilled drinks didn’t take too long, thus you continue cleaning the rest of the store as you’d seen Rowoon do many a time through the wide windows of his cafe.

     Even after you finished cleaning, Rowoon still seemed to be in a state of shock at what had just happened. So, you did the only thing you could think of- you took his store keys from him, shut off all the lights, dragged him outside and locked up. 

     “Come on,” You murmured, hand wrapped around his wrist. “I’m going to make you a cup of chamomile tea.”

     Making your way across the street, you led him into your store, which you locked after entering, and up the stairs in the back to your apartment. Minutes later Rowoon was sitting on your couch, a steaming mug of tea in his hands. You were starting to get a little worried, as he’d yet to say a single word. 

     Sitting down beside him, you looked at him with concern. “Are you okay?”

     He turned to look at you, the glaze that had previously taken over his eyes dissipating. “I think so,” Rowoon breathed out softly, taking a sip of tea. “I wasn’t expecting anything like that to happen in my store.” 

     Laughing quietly, you patted his arm. “I don’t think most people expect a woman to go into labor in their place of work, unless you’re at a hospital that is.”

     Cracking a joke, it seems, was the right move. Rowoon was able to relax a bit more as your conversation went on. Stories were exchanged of the wildest things to happen in your stores, though you were pretty sure he won, what with what happened tonight. He expressed how amazed he was at your ability to keep calm in such a situation, praising how you’d even helped to calm the soon-to-be mother. That night, Rowoon stayed over- the two of you falling asleep on the couch with a worn-out blanket covering your legs, an old rerun playing in the background, his mug of tea sitting empty on the coffee table.

December 22nd, 20XX

     Snow gently floated to the ground, setting the perfect atmosphere for the holidays. Normally it didn’t snow in this area until January, so it was exciting to see it appear before the new year. However, the snow did nothing to calm your nerves as you built the courage to go to the holiday party currently taking place in Rowoon’s cafe. Through the window you could see the crowd of people smiling and laughing, even managing to hear snippets of the music playing inside each time a new person went inside. 

     Wringing your hands, you finally resolved to pull yourself together and walk across the street. It couldn’t be that hard to step into a building you’d been in numerous times before, could it? Rowoon had invited you, said he was looking forward to seeing you there- you couldn’t just not go. With a particularly deep breath as your fuel, you stepped out of your store and quickly crossed the street after checking the road was clear. You hadn’t been in front of the door to the cafe for more than a second before it was opened by Rowoon himself, a bright smile on his face as he pulled you inside.

     “I’m so glad you came!” His eyes crinkled at the edges. “Do you want some cider? Or hot chocolate? I also have eggnog, a few different wines and ales, or water, if you prefer.”

     “So many options,” At your words, a dusting of color rose to Rowoon’s cheeks. “But I’ll have to go with the first one, cider.”

     His hand remained wrapped around your wrist as he led you through the party, weaving around multiple groups of people, smiling and greeting them as he went. Rowoon only letting go of you to pour a cup of warm cider, which he handed to you with a grin. Shortly after, the two of you fell into a comfortable silence, observing the party-goers together. That is until someone came up, pulling Rowoon away for some reason you couldn’t quite catch. Rowoon had seemed reluctant to go, glancing back at you as he was led somewhere else.

     As you didn’t really know any of the people at this party, you kept your place beside the refreshment table. Time passed by rather slowly as you watched everyone socialize, Rowoon having disappeared somewhere among them. Despite his tall stature you couldn’t manage to pick him out in the crowd. Heaving a sigh, you continued to sip at your drink, wondering how long you should stay. With the amount of people in the cafe, if no one stayed around to help Rowoon clean up, he’d probably be here hours afterward. Since he’d helped you on multiple occasions before, the desire was there to help him in return.

     Although maybe it wasn’t just that you wanted to help him. Rather, maybe you just wanted to be alone with him. Your mind flitted back to the week prior, when Rowoon had invited you to the party. 

     He’d walked into your store, head bent slightly, teeth denting his lower lip, and almost walked right into a display of primrose and snowdrops. If you hadn’t moved fast enough he would have bulldozed right into that display, one that had taken you a bit of time to get just right. You had run right over to him, grabbing his wrist and jerking him away at the last second. Rowoon had looked up then, shocked as he stumbled and had to keep himself from toppling over.

     “I’m sorry,” You’d apologized breathlessly. “I just spent so long on that display and you were about to walk right into it.”

     Rowoon glanced back at where he’d just been, eyes widening a fraction. “No, I’m sorry I should’ve been paying attention. I was too lost in my thoughts.” He offered a sheepish smile.

     Eyebrows raised, you cocked your head to the side. “What were you thinking about so deeply you forgot to pay attention to your surroundings?”

     “Oh, I was thinking…” He paused for a minute, eyes flickering to the ceiling. “Of the holiday party I’m having next week. Would you be able to come?”

     At first you’d been a bit hesitant, mainly because you were aware there’d most likely be a lot of people you didn’t know at the party. But Rowoon had managed to convince you to come. Besides, it was much too difficult to say no when he looked at you with hopeful eyes. 

     Hours passed by- hours you didn’t note because at one point you’d left the safety of the refreshment table to find Rowoon. Instead of finding him, though, you’d managed to find an old book of poetry half-hidden on a bookshelf. This book had kept you entranced as the party continued and as it eventually wound down. 

     “Enjoying yourself?” 

     You glanced up from the book to see Rowoon standing next to you, and the rest of the cafe empty. “Is the party over?” 

     He nodded, a tired smile overtaking his face as he sat next to you. “Yeah. Sorry I left you alone the whole time you were here. I kept trying to come and find you, but I kept getting pulled about by other people. Being a party host is exhausting.” Rowoon finished with a sigh, elbows coming up to rest on the table as he set his head in his hands.

     “It’s fine,” You murmured, setting the book down on the table. “I managed to keep myself occupied.” Silence permeated the air between you for a minute before you stood up. “Do you need help cleaning up?”

     “What? Oh no, you don’t need to help clean up.”

     “But nobody else stayed behind to help. You shouldn’t have to clean this all by yourself, look at the mess!” You gestured at his cafe, which had empty paper cups and plates strewn about and streamers hanging loosely on the walls. 

     He stood up, taking in the state of his cafe, lips pursed. “You’re right, it will be hard to clean on my own.”

     You waggled your eyebrows at him. “Of course I’m right! Now come on, let’s get to cleaning.”

     Before you could walk away to find a dustpan and broom Rowoon’s hand grasped your wrist, stopping you in your tracks. “Wait, I… I need to tell you something first.”

     Turning back to face him, head tilted, eyes focused on him. “What is it?”

     He blinked rapidly, mouth opening and closing a few times before he blurted out a sentence so jumbled you couldn’t properly understand him. You had to ask him to repeat himself, which he did, but he was so quiet you couldn’t hear him. 

     Finally, after you couldn’t take the anxiousness anymore, you propped your hand on your hip. “Rowoon, please, will you just say whatever it is? It can’t be that difficult to say.”

     “I’m so happy that I bought this place, and that I was able to meet you because of it. I don’t want to ruin our friendship if you don’t feel the same way as I do, but I need to tell you that I don’t want to be friends with you- I want to be more than that.”

     You watched as he bit his lip, his eyes flitted nervously around the room as he awaited your response. “You want to be more than friends?” He nodded swiftly. “Are you saying you have feelings for me?” He nodded once more. A smile broke out onto your face, one that he hadn’t caught yet because he was avoiding looking at you. “Hmm, well, I guess we can’t be friends anymore.”

     Rowoon’s eyes jerked to you, going wide, mouth parted slightly. “Huh?”

     You stared at him innocently. “Does this automatically mean we’re a couple, or do we need to go on a date first?”

     He sighed, relieved. “You really drew that out.”

     Most people tended to grate your nerves. Most people made you want to whack your head against a door repeatedly. Most people were capable of making you wish for a solitary life. Most people felt like weeds, popping up at the most inconvenient of times. However, Rowoon wasn’t like most people. If he were compared to a weed, he wouldn’t be the kind that covers any and everything like Kudzu, rather he’d be the kind that helps a garden thrive, like Clover. In this way, it’s safe to say that he grew on you unexpectedly.

[in-defense-of-the-horror]

Hey guys - trying a new thing here. If you’d like to read a spoiler free review of Cube, you can check out the link above. If you’d like to read a more personal, detailed review (SPOILER WARNING) click the Read More link below.

For a long time, when people asked me what the first horror movie I ever saw was, I would say Cube. Technically speaking, that’s not true. I had seen horror movies before, but most of them were classics that I just grew up with like House on Haunted Hill or Thirteen Ghosts. I never really thought of them as horror movies, and they never really scared me. Cube was different.

I saw this on the Sci-fi channel when I was about 6 or 7, back before they started spelling it “syfy.” I remember the night very vividly. I was living with my uncle at the time, and he’s always been really into science fiction. I was probably a little bit too young to have seen it. In comparison to things coming out today it’s pretty tame, but at the time this was pretty gory for a child to watch. I think the main reason I was allowed to watch it is because I was a pretty mature kid, I knew my limits pretty well and all the adults in the house trusted me not to watch something if I started to get too scared.

I came in just as the movie was starting, and right away I was hooked. I thought that first room was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. I loved the way the light came in from the cubes in the wall and the details of the etchings in the glass. The way the doors opened was so pleasing to watch, and I was amazed at how different such a similar setting could look when the man went into the next room and the lighting changed.

And then the man died.

I was horrified. I had been so wrapped up in this wonderful set that I hadn’t even considered the guy would be in danger. The close up of his face right as the blood starts to drip down and his body falls apart into little cubes left me unable to blink and I was so confused until the camera focused on the net, still dripping with the man’s insides. As it folded back up into the ceiling of the room I was so overwhelmed. It was unexpected, and I had never seen anything like it in my life. It disturbed me, but I had to see more.

I don’t think I’ve ever been so quiet during a film. I felt for the characters, I needed them to make it through, I had to know what was happening and why they were there. I couldn’t tear my eyes from the screen and even as my mom came in and was questioning whether or not I should be watching anything so violent, I think she could see that I needed to make it to the end.

I was stunned by the conclusion of that movie. It was the best and worst thing I had ever seen. The imagery really stuck with me, I’d never seen on-screen deaths look so real or so terrible. The premise kept me up at night for weeks - I kept wondering if I went to sleep and I woke up somewhere that wasn’t my bed, would I be able to survive a situation like that? Do we really live in a world like that where the creation of something so terrible was even possible? 

There were a lot of layers to the movie that went right over my head as a child, but I got enough of it to know that it was deeply fascinating. I didn’t quite grasp the concept that the Cube had been made possible by our own complacency as a society and a lot of the social implication was lost on me. The other big thing I missed was the unsettling nature of Quentin’s relationship to Leaven. I didn’t see the flirting or understand what exactly was happening when he assaulted her (I also didn’t really understand the age difference - because they all just looked like adults to me) but the characterization and dialogue was done in a way that even being unable to grasp the specifics of the situation, I knew who to like and who to root for when.

What did stick with me was Leaven. She wasn’t my favorite character the first time I saw the movie, but she did strike a chord with me. The fact that someone could get out of a terrifying situation with knowledge (or in Leaven’s case, almost get out of a situation) was really inspiring to me. I read a lot of Harry Potter - so it’s not like she was the first female character I had seen use intelligence as a means of survival, but it was the first time I really thought about it that much on a conscious level. They all would have died in that Cube, were it not for Leaven’s puzzle-solving ability, and that was just amazing to me. Consequently, I was one of the only children to be asking about prime numbers and permutations before I knew how to multiply decently.

Something else that stuck with me was the feeling that the movie left me with. I was anxious, paranoid, and morbidly curious. I didn’t know a movie could do that to me, and the thrill-seeker in me loved the adrenaline rush coming from the screen. At the time I didn’t have the words to associate with everything I was feeling, but it made me feel so alive. 

That was about the time that I started paying attention to what movies had the capacity to scare me. I didn’t think there was anything in the world that would be as terrifying or as inventive as Cube, but I knew I wanted to be involved in whatever kind of movie it was. When I saw trailers for things that were tense or gory, I asked to see the movie. I started visiting the horror section when we went to Blockbuster (I know, I’m old) and looking for the covers that made me feel the same thing that Cube did.

I strongly believe I would have ended up being a horror fanatic even if I hadn’t seen this movie. It’s so deeply a part of who I am - and I was already a fair way down the path to becoming a horror fan when I saw this movie, I just hadn’t realized it. That being said, Cube did change my life and it put me on the path I’m on now. It sparked my love of this genre and it made me consider so many new things. 

I have to admit, I was a little bit afraid to watch it today. This has been one of my favorite movies for so long, but it had been so long since I’d re-watched it that I thought it wouldn’t possibly be as good as I remembered, but it was. It’s got a good story to back up all the horrific imagery and it talks about things that are relevant and timeless. It accomplishes a lot in an hour and a half, and the special effects were so good - even when compared to bigger titles that have been released in the last few years.

Looking back on it, I can see how it influenced not only the horror genre, but my preferences as well. One of my favorite modern franchises is Saw, and I don’t fail to see the similarities. I grew up fascinated in this genre thanks to this movie that’s all about testing people’s limits, puzzle solving, and the will to survive. I remembered it because of complex, visually disturbing traps. When Saw hit theaters just a few years after I had seen this for the first time, I didn’t ever think to connect the two, but I knew that it made me feel all the same ways Cube did, and I loved the series for all the same reasons.

While it’s hard for me to overlook a deep, personal attachment that I have to this film when trying to look at it objectively, I like to think I’d be smart enough to like this film even if it hadn’t changed my life. 

It isn’t perfect. There are moments that are overacted, bits of dialogue that don’t seem entirely organic, and I don’t think that a bit more character development would have hurt. There is also the portrayal of Kazan. Having a differently abled character is arguably some great representation, but the way that his condition is discussed (or not discussed, as the case may be) is something that, while feeling very authentic under the given circumstances, might seem insensitive compared to today’s more progressive standards.

I think, in a general sense though, that this was an amazing film. It was inspiring in its time and it’s still one of the best horror movies available to stream from Netflix today. It is one of my all time favorites, and definitely my favorite when it comes to the science fiction subgenre of horror.

[everythingtimeless]

Welcome to EverythingTimeless’ Weekly Roundtable, a sprawling discussion in which your friendly neighborhood Mod Time Team breaks down episodes of our favorite show, Timeless. We can’t promise to be coherent, but we’ll try our best. Lovely header gif courtesy of our pal @lady-demelza.

This week: Season 1, Episode 1 - Pilot

Sarah: I think that we should first state that we are currently blogging this from what we consider the present: Wednesday, the 11th of July.

Ann: I hate to break it to you, Sarah. But it is actually the 12th of July.

Sarah: Well, I am in the past. Apparently. Changing it.

Ann: *Lucy screams in the distance*

Sarah: Can we call ourselves The Time Team? Time Team Part II?

Gissane: I like The Time Team Part II!

Ann: So I am actually just now rewatching the pilot (because if there is anything I excel at it's procrastination) and I still die over 2 things right off the bat: the cinematography of this show and MA'AM.

Sarah: That scene? With Lucy, Wyatt, and Kate silhouetted by the fire? Gorgeous.

Gissane: Agreed. It's STUNNING. And good grief, ma'am. Ma'am is everything.

Ann: Omg, for a minute I thought you were talking about /our/ Kate and I was VERY confused.

Kate: Ma'am forever and always. The little battles that Lucy and Wyatt have in that first episode create some great tension.

Ann: I swear she is a little happy when he gets time travel sick. And I appreciate that level of petty.

Sarah: Oh, definitely Ann. In retaliation for that self-satisfied look when she couldn't handle all of the seat belts. Surely.

Kate: He gets that same look when he tells he he needs her very modern bra.

Sarah: Perhaps we should start from the very beginning? I'm told it's the very best place to start.

Ann: The very best.

Kate: Maria Von Trapp was a wise woman.

Sarah: Lucy: First impressions.

Kate: Besides her phenomenal hair game? This woman is incredibly intelligent, but even better, she is witty. But Lucy in that classroom? All confident and full of facts. Leading lady swoon.

Sarah: Leading Lady Swoon™

Gissane: I loved Lucy's excitement! She puts so much heart into everything she does, and she is flat out perfect.

Ann: My first impression of Lucy was OH BUT I LIKE HER. She's a nerd through and through, in that she is hella passionate about history and is basically just Jazzed Beyond Belief about it all.

Sarah: I could definitely do with more of Professor Preston.

Kate: And having trouble with the establishment bros getting tenure? I was indignant on her behalf. But it leads nicely into her struggle to start her own legacy or fulfill her mother's. Which I think if you juxtapose with the last episode makes you go DAYUM.

Gissane: Amen to that, Kate!

Sarah: Definitely, Kate. But is also makes her intelligence and success working as part of the Time Team more satisfying. She's the fricking best.

Kate: She really is.

Gissane: Lucy was so easy to love from the moment she was on screen. Maybe it's because Abigail Spencer is a brilliant gorgeous unicorn, but she just had so much personality.

Ann: It's funny rewatching this after so long, and after being such a fan of everything about it, how different they all were at the beginning. It's like as much as I loved Lucy from the get-go, I did NOT like Wyatt.

Kate: So true. They became such a cohesive and indivisible unit i was hard to go back and see them before.

Sarah: Amen, Ann.

Ann: He was brash, kinda ruthless, and a little unhinged, to be honest.

Sarah: I thought Wyatt was boooorrring.

Ann: The dimples happily remain unchanged, however.

Kate: And besides the ma'am that stopped my heart, I was so very worried that Wyatt was going to be Vanilla Male Lead #950643

Sarah: Yes, Kate. Yes. I was like - Oh. Pretty and Generic.

Gissane: You know what I just realized, we never get a scene of what Wyatt's doing before he gets called in. We have Lucy's life and Rufus', but Wyatt nothing and now I'm very intrigued. Are we even told where he was? My memory is blanking on this.

Sarah: No! You are so right, Goose.

Sarah: We start in medias res on Wyatt.

Kate: I think Wyatt is meant to be the mystery as he is the military man. Shrouded in secret missions and all that.

Sarah: I think it also keeps him as Generic Military Pretty Boy.

Ann: I really expected him to be a cardboard cutout of the media's interpretation of a Super Soldier. As well, this episode did a really good job painting him as such. I was so happy to be surprised later on.

Gissane: And I agree. I didn't have any thoughts on him particularly rather that I didn't care. But then he mentioned his wife's death and I was like oh? Tell me more. Tell me more about the mysteries behind those blue eyes. Please and thank you.

Ann: I am at that scene right now. The whole jail scene with him and Lucy really deepened my interest in all of the characters.

Kate: And Rufus. Rufus is never not just everything and more.

Ann: E V E R Y T H I N G.

Sarah: I think that's one of the aspects of this show that really hooked me: It took character archetypes I thought I knew, and made them real, likable, and interesting.

Gissane: That entire scene in the jail is perfection. I get chills every time I think of Rufus' speech to the guard. Brilliant. EPIC.

Sarah: Fun fact: Malcolm Barrett improvised most of that speech!

Ann: He did?? I didn't know that!

Kate: That scene is even more profound now.

Gissane: That's when Rufus went from aww, what a sweetheart to OH MY GOD, YOU ARE EVERYTHING TO ME.

Sarah: Yeah! Kripke and Ryan talked about it at the screening I went to. He also improvised the "the back of the bus was great" line.

Kate: What this show does with Rufus, giving him this complex, meaty character and actually allowing for discussions of race through history is one of my favorite parts of the show.

Sarah: Yes, Kate.

Gissane: All the awards because that scene was the episode's best -- context and performance wise.

Ann: Hard agree, Kate. And they did it right from the start and kept it up the whole damn season.

Sarah: The moment Rufus says to Mason that it has never been a good time to be a black person in history was when I knew this show was self-aware. You can have fun, you can have irreverence, you can have a family show and still address very real, very important, very serious issues.

Kate: It's a perspective that demands to be told. I could not be happier they were brave enough to.

Sarah: And by Malcolm Barrett, who is the most perfect cinnamon roll as Rufus.

Gissane: This show's self-awareness is what makes it so unique. Time travel? Cool, it's been done a couple of times. But to actually highlight the negativity in history makes it much more unique and intriguing.

Ann: Another thing the show does well? Guest characters you care about. These random, one-off historical people...somehow relevant and fleshed out in 45 minutes every week.

Kate: I could write sonnets about Timeless and their guest characters. Maybe I have and they are hidden in my sock drawer... you don't know.

Sarah: Kate Drummond appears. Could be some sort of Male Brand Strong Female. But is somehow so careful and wonderful

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Delve into the kickass history of the amazing female journalists who could have served as inspiration for the fictional Kate Drummond with this week’s Historical Hour with Hilary, our resident historian!)

Kate: She is ballsy and capable. I love her.

Sarah: Both Lucy and Wyatt's interactions with her.

Ann: Exactly! Kate Drummond was brilliant. Also kickass red lipstick, which is bonus.

Sarah: Are meaningful and lovely.

Gissane: And so dedicated to her work. No distractions. I loved that!

Kate: And I think it is important they chose her, a character she who was fated to die. Because they make us love her and it makes the implications and the desire to change history to save her real for us. Just as it is real for the Time Team.

Sarah: Right, Kate. Contextualizing what it means to change - or not change - history. Kate is someone Lucy admired and had to watch die. Kate is someone Wyatt identified with immediately on a very intimate level - and had to watch die.

Ann: It's so powerful.

Sarah: Wyatt, as we see briefly here, is obsessed with saving his wife because he feels responsible. But in the very first episode, we see him save someone from their "fate" - only to see that effort thwarted minutes later.

Ann: OH A WILD GARCIA APPEARS. Quite literally wild. But also dayuuum.

Sarah: AND WHAT A FINE SPECIMEN HE IS. I will never not love Goran Višnjić.

Gissane: WHAT A COMPLEX SPECIMEN. And now he is someone I literally couldn't for the life of me imagine caring about and yet, here we are.

Kate: I could stare at those broody eyes, flippy hair, and angular cheekbones all the days.

Sarah: He could have chemistry with a piece of anthracite.

Kate: Yes, Goose. I knew the second he was supposed to be our "villain" we were in for a much more layered portrayal of a man with much more to show us.

Ann: That's the brilliance of well-written character-driven stories. I demand more.

Kate: We all did, so much so they were forced to renew it. Hahaha But I digress.

Ann: You also speak the sterling truth. (CONGRATS CLOCKBLOCKERS.)

Kate: (PAT YO SELVES ON THE BACKS, SIRS AND MADAMS)

Gissane: Can I just mention how much I love that fandom name?

Kate: You most certainly can, and I will heartily second it.

Ann: Also can we talk about the supporting cast for a quick second? A Denise Christopher or a Jiya Marri perhaps? Because again with the fleshed out, interesting REAL secondary characters.

Gissane: YES. And right from the start they're both such a presence on screen. You instantly want to know more.

Kate: I love Denise and her no nonsense attitude. I need to you save time guys. You will do it. I will need you again. You will do it. Wonderful, thanks, bye.

Ann: Ha ha ha, exactly!

Kate: And smart, capable Jiya! Rufus was making heart eyes at her in the very first scene and I both understand that on a spiritual level and am here for it.

Ann: Again though, another example of characters I expected them to just leave as cardboard cutouts. But nope. Not Timeless. No simple Hard Liner Bosses or Nerdy Tech Girls here. We get warm, lovely, interesting people.

Sarah: And then he asked her out like a normal person instead of weirdly objectifying her. And then she said yes like a person instead of being some strange Unattainable Manic Pixie Dream Girl.

Gissane: Shout it from the rooftops, y'all. From the rooftops!

Sarah: Yes - Annie. We actually get people!

Kate: And these people are women! How often does that happen?!

Ann: This and Wonder Woman? *laughs to keep from crying*

Kate: And women of color, no less. Be still my heart.

Sarah: I think one thing that really struck me upon rewatch was what a STRONG pilot this is. I always give myself the 3 Episode Rule.

Ann: Yes Sarah! I was just thinking that as it concluded. I immediately want to watch 15 more.

Sarah: Which is: Watch 3 episodes of a show before deciding it it's worth a watch. There wasn't huge amounts of obvious exposition. The plot was not throw-away.

Kate: It really had everything I was looking for.

Sarah: We were invested in the characters. And, as a person who is very picky about time travel, it handled that aspect so well.

Ann: I think, aside from Back to the Future, it's one of the only pieces of media that has handled time travel in a way I enjoy. Because OBVIOUSLY Back to the Future.

Kate: You can always tell when writers care about their characters because they give you no choice but to also. And they managed that with all of them which is no easy feat.

Gissane: See I liked the pilot. I didn't LOVE it. Until like the second rewatch after I'd already been invested, but it was just right to keep me wanting more. And then episode two happened. I have never looked back after that.

Ann: Oh man, episode 2. I think that is still my favorite episode.

Kate: I am not emotionally prepared to discuss episode 2. Lock it up, you two.

Ann: Gah, ok. You're right. That's for next week.

Sarah: So if we're going to sum up our feelings on rewatch:

Lady Swoon™

Wild Garcia Yes

Rufus FTW

Ann:

No One Likes Wyatt Yet

Kate:

(except Kate for shallow reasons only)

Sarah: Because that hat. Always the 40s fedora on classy, attractive gentlemen.

Gissane: He should always wear hats.

Kate: Ah yup. I mean all the Timeless men are yummy. I just want them all in various period hats for my viewing pleasure and I am not sorry.

Ann: And you shouldn't be.

Sarah: Never apologize.

Kate: The ladies, too. We are blessed.

Sarah: Any final thoughts on the first episode before we bring this Lifeboat back to dock?

Gissane: It's a damn good pilot when you think of it. So rich and full. And so very promising. I've converted about five of my friends into fans already. I'm stupidly proud of this.

Ann: I've got a question: What time period would you you guys travel to?

Gissane: One cannot simply choose. Nope. Don't make it.

Kate: Time travel questions are hard because being a lady in history could truly suck.

Ann: Yes it could. And probably will?

Kate: But I am not going to pretend like I didn't read all the Jane Austen and wish I wasn't Elizabeth Bennett.

Gissane: S A M E.

Ann: Oh hell yes. Or watch Meet Me in St. Louis and want to wear one of those outfits Judy Garland sports and sing on trolleys?

Sarah: Don't want to go all Owen Wilson on y'all, but send me back to that Lost Generation in Paris 1920s.

Ann: Only if I can drink with Hemingway.

Kate: Obvi.

Sarah: So long as you are Brave and Strong, Annie.

Kate: Can we just quickly pour one out for poor Amy?

Gissane: I wasn't prepared for that one, Kate. BRING AMY BACK.

Kate: Timeless and their twists man. MY HEART STRINGS CAN ONLY TAKE SO MUCH.

Sarah: *frantically makes buttons and posters* BRING BACK AMY. SAVE AMY 20K17.

Gissane: Seriously. MAKE ALL THE POSTERS.

Kate: They rip her away from us and Lucy and right before the episode with Robert Todd Lincoln. It is too much. I need to rest.

Sarah: May Robert Todd all carry us softly to sleep. Thanks for the great chat, ladies. Cannot wait to really unpack and dig in.

Gissane: Cheers to that. Til next week!

Kate: Agreed. Until next time!

Ann: See you IN THE FUTURE! #godiamsolame

[letsdiscoverkitty]

Have you seen To the Bone yet? If so, any thoughts?

I was unsure of whether to post about this movie or not, especially seeing as there has been a lot of covered both on social media and in the news. There have been many differing opinions on the latest Netflix movie, and everyone is going to find different things good/bad, so this might be a long one I am afraid...and I will definitely put a TRIGGER WARNING on this, because, well, you know why.

I must admit that when I first saw the two minute trailer for ‘To the Bone’, I was very worried about how the rest of the movie would follow. In that trailer were some quite disturbing images and one scene that stuck in my mind was when Ellen (played by Lily Collins) is counting out the calories on a plate of food that has just been placed in front of her, next to her sister, Kelly (played by Liana Liberato), and her exclaiming ‘it’s like you have calorie Aspergers or something’,  to which Ellen raises her fist in the air to and shakes it....I was hoping against hope that the trailer might have just been a bit over-the-top and that hopefully they would be putting across a HELPFUL and EDUCATIONAL message rather than glorifying/romanticising the illness. My hope mainly stemmed from both Lily Collins and director Marti Noxon, having bravely spoken about their past struggles with Anorexia. Sadly that was not meant to be.

They had what could have been an amazing chance to educate people on the reality of suffer from an eating disorder and messed it up by overly romanticising and adding an extremity of ‘Hollywood’-esque spins to make it more ‘likeable’/attractable to audiences. In doing so they have only played into the stereotypes of eating disorders and likely made sufferer’s themselves feel worse. Of course there is always going to be a fine line to tread when making a film about such a raw and touching subject, and there are going to be things that are deemed ‘inappropriate’ to show/talk about but I feel that they neglected this and yes they stayed away from some subjects, they did not in any way steer away from overly judging someone’s suffering based on their APPEARANCE. There were times whilst watching this movie that I simply couldn’t stop myself from shouting ‘NO’ and ‘why would you do that?’ at the screen because I was so mad.

Upon finishing the movie, which I will admit I paused at times because it was getting so dull and I went off to do other things, I felt, well, I don’t think there is really a word to sum it up. It was not TERRIBLE but it was so far from ‘okay’ or ‘good’. It kind of just ‘was’? Personally I would not reccommend someone watch this movie if there are in a rocky/vulnerable place recovery wise and definitely not to someone who is in the depths of their illness (however, as the producers of this film probably well knew, there isn’t much you can stop someone with an eating disorder watching something that could be potentially triggering)

Okay so let’s start with the ‘good’ or ‘okay’ bits...

I liked the scenes that involved Ellen’s sister Kelly. I found that these scenes were some of the best in the whole movie as it really showed the emotionally pain and hurt that close family members go through when a loved one is suffering from an eating disorder. There is one moment in the film which I particularly liked, when Ellen and Kelly have gone to the top of a hill to look over the city at night and they are sitting there and Ellen says to Kelly “I’ve got it under control. Nothing bad is gonna happen.” to which Kelly replies, as she looks out over the city, “I bet a bunch of them who are about to due just said the exact same thing” - in which she is implying other ED sufferers. I felt these scenes between Ellen and Kelly were very raw and real and brought to surface a lot of things that are not often discussed in the awareness of eating disorders. Thumbs up from me.

Obviously the very release of this movie has brought up a lot of discussion about eating disorders, which is great, awareness is essential. People have been talking about it, it’s been in the news and on the radio, however it is sad that the movie itself was unable to continue to educate on the reality of suffering from an eating disorder and trying to find help.

I will give it to them, they did touch on a few of the horrible side effects of suffering from an eating disorder; most notably one girl who miscarried whilst in treatment, that was a tough/hard hitting scene. As well as bringing up a few other eating disorders.

Family therapy and relationships was touched on quite well, however I do not feel that they developed this very well at all. Great that they are showing that it is about the whole family unit and people needing to work together, however the majority of ‘therapy’ scenes were left to Ellen sitting in an office with this ‘radical doctor’ and simply replying with sarcy one-liners. 

I feel that they did think about Ellen as a character though. They mentioned that she had had to drop out of college because of Anorexia and now didn’t really have much to her ‘life’. Sadly again I think this could have been built upon, and I feel like the storyline of her posting a picture of something she drew on tumblr and a girl killing herself was just a bit unnecessary/where was the development/therapy/support behind this?!

The candy bar was kind of touching, although not done in the best of ways in my personal opinion, but there was a bit of hope installed. 

Now, to the troubles I had with the film, of which there might be quite a few to say the least...

Okay so I need to get this bit over with....the very fact that they asked a person who has struggled with anorexia in the past to LOSE WEIGHT just for a film is utterly RIDICULOUS. I don’t care if it was done with a ‘nutritionist’ or with doctors alongside, this is just not okay to ask of anyone let alone someone who has suffered from Anorexia. Dieting and a history of Anorexia is a no no even when that person might have been in remission for years, it is a very fine line and dangerous thing to do. Not only that but it also adds even more to the misconception/stereotype that you have to be ‘skeletal and about to die’ to suffer from an eating disorder, which is so far from the truth. The image near the very end of the film of Ellen curled up in the foetal position naked was in my opinion, extremely unnecessary (along with all the computer touch-ups and photoshopping...just no) and already it has been noted that many of the images from the film have found their ways to ‘pro-ANA’ websites.I could rant on for a LONG time over this portrayal of a cis-white young middle classed female suffering from Anorexia Nervosa, but I shall stop here.

The lighting, make up and unnecessary touch ups used in the very close up scenes were too much in my opinion (leading on from above comment that they focused far too much on WEIGHT and APPEARANCE). They had too many scenes where Ellen was stripped down and made to either stand on a set of scales or be examined. I’m sorry but the camera lingered there for so long and was just so damaging for anyone who might suffer from an eating disorder, and for spreading awareness to the general public BECAUSE EATING DISORDERS ARE NOT WEIGHT DISORDERS.

Now, let’s also talk treatment...that was no Doctor, I am sorry and I know this was a fictional piece but what Doctor in their right mind would put people who suffered from an eating disorder in a house and tell them that they have the choice to eat or not and that that’s okay...when you are so sucked into and lost in the illness, it is hard to see anything beyond it and you literally cannot think straight. There were no nurses, no supervision, no constant checks or vitals being taken etc. And as someone who has been through that early stage of recovery I can say that the only way that you can begin to start to even think more clearer/start to believe that food is not the enemy and that recovery is an option is THROUGH EATING. The mind literally shuts down and it is hard to focus on anything other than the illness; this only begins to clear with adequate nutrition for a period of time, only then does some logically cognitive processing begin to return. It doesn’t just happen in one snap moment, which the movie does imply at some points, and that everything is ‘fine and dandy’ from there on out. It also isn’t about how someone ‘looks’ and I feel like the scene where Collins was naked on the floor as she ‘looked down on herself’ and she asked if that was really her, feeds into that misconception that it is about how someone ‘looks in the mirror’ or sees themselves. There was no talk of body dysmorphia, nor suffering from an eating disorder AT ANY WEIGHT...

Talking of the treatment ‘house’, I thought it was great that there were people there with all different eating disorders, however I was thoroughly disappointed that that was literally all we learnt about them. There were no other character developments, no elaboration on the reality of suffering from binge eating or bulimia, or even what their ‘stories’ were. All we got were a few labels ‘thrown around’ almost like a little tick box for the director to be like ‘yes we put that in, done, let’s move on’ and some incredibly unhelpful behaviour talk. Yeah, well done. 

Talking of characters, let’s talk about Lucas. I LOVED that there was a guy in treatment, there needs to be a lot more awareness made for boys/men who suffer from eating disorders. However I was thoroughly disappointed when the only character development we had was that he eventually wanted to have a relationship with Ellen after following her on tumblr for years, and then meeting her in the house...he tried to make a move on her that literally comes out of nowhere and was just, unnecessary? 

On that subject, when someone is suffering from an eating disorder and is malnourished, there IS NO SEX DRIVE; the only thing they tend to think about is food food food food. There is no desire or time for anything else, it is just the disorder and I feel this was not put across at all.

Even the doctor (whose name I can’t even remember) says that he thinks that Ellen and Lucas would make a good couple...now where in a patent treatment plan does ‘match making’ lie? I tell you; nowhere. Relationships between patients is never recommended because the reason you are in treatment is for your health and wellbeing and to be with someone who also suffers from similar struggles is just, I’m sorry this doctor’s tactics were low. 

Another of his wonderful ‘life changing’ therapy techniques was to get Ellen to change her name to Eli...like what? I’m sorry but how is this meant to help the patient work on healing their relationship with themselves and food and life? It came out of nowhere and lead to nowhere. No discussion about WHY it might be helpful or how it could provide her with a way to move forwards...just nothing.

Mr magic therapy doctor also decided to take the patients on a trip to an art gallery and make them play around and dance in water...great, but this is not some huge recovery turning point and, Idk they just never really explained any of the therapy things he was trying to do with her, it was all very vague and wishy washy and yes there was a message in going to that art gallery but it wasn’t some ‘magic answer’

Ellen’s turning point came when she went to go back to her mother’s (who now has another partner) and she stays on their ranch (?) and runs up into the mountains and then comes back and allows her mother to bottle feed her? I’m sorry, I know everyone has different struggles but I found this scene extremely difficult to watch and, idk, degrading? Because it is sending out the message that those who suffer from an eating disorder are ‘weak’ and ‘fragile’ and need to be ‘cuddled and cared for’ and okay their relationship may have a lot of healing to do and maybe she wasn’t held much as a child and I feel very sorry for her, but at 20 years old they need to be given the tools in order for them to build on their relationship and work together. And yes she might need her mum to hold her hand at times and give her a hug and cuddle etc, we all need that but to be bottle feeding her from a babies bottle whilst she is cradled in her lab was just a step too far in my opinion and made me feel very uncomfortable.

Behaviours....lord were they everywhere. The way she was pushing food around the plate, cutting it into very small pieces. The purging advice that was being given in the treatment house kitchen?, the vomit found under the bed, the different foods they were ‘allowed’ to eat (because yes the patients could chose exactly what they wanted to eat (a whole tub of peanut butter for one girl or two boiled eggs for another), and that restaurant scene...I am sorry but that scene was hideous and horrible to watch. And the fact that they pretended to be cancer patients...no.

I feel like they romanticised quite a lot of the realities of living with an eating disorder - many of which I am sure were to add that ‘Hollywood’ touch to make it more marketable, however I think it has done a lot more hurt than good.

As for the ending...I hated it. Okay great, Ellen was ready to head back to treatment and push forwards and have a life beyond Anorexia, however there was some TERRIBLE acting, followed by her walking up to the door of treatment and that was it. No talk or recovery or how to reach out for recovery or how to ask for help. No sign of her actually going THROUGH recovery and having those ‘little wins’ that make you see how worth it it is. No. They made sure to focus a straight on face shot with heavy make up to make her look even thinner and that was it. 

What would I have done differently?Pretty much 99% of it. And the biggest bit that I WISH they had put in would have been HOW to get help and what the process of recovery entails. Because despite being in the house for the majority of the film, Ellen spends the whole time refusing ‘treatment’. It would have been nice to have seen her move forwards and begin to learn what having a life can feel/be like again. I would have liked a bit more HOPE. I really hoped that this film would be more informative and less focused on the weight/appearance side of things, but this is Hollywood I suppose. Could it have been done in a slightly different way to help this? yes. I do not believe that films are the right route to go down to raise awareness, a series, perhaps, and documentaries too, but this was just a shambles. I know I said at the beginning it was not terrible, I think I take that back now, on reflection it was terrible and I know everyone will have different reviews but I was left highly disappointed and saddened by this piece of work.

[jspark3000]

Ugly Asian Male: On Being the Least Attractive Guy in the Room

Statistically, I’m the least attractive person in the dating scene. Alongside black women, the Asian-American male is considered the most ugly and undesirable person in the room.

Take it from Steve Harvey, who won’t eat what he can’t pronounce:

Eddie Huang, creator of the groundbreaking Asian-American sitcom Fresh Off the Boat, responded to Steve Harvey in The New York Times:

“[Every] Asian-American man knows what the dominant culture has to say about us. We count good, we bow well, we are technologically proficient, we’re naturally subordinate, our male anatomy is the size of a thumb drive and we could never in a thousand millenniums be a threat to steal your girl.” 

Asian-American men, like me, know the score. That is, we don’t count at all.

Hollywood won’t bank on me. Think: When was the last time you saw an Asian male kiss a non-Asian female in a movie or TV show? Or when was the last time an Asian-American male was the desired person in a romantic comedy? And more specifically, when where they not Kung Fu practitioners or computer geniuses? I can only think of two examples: Steven Yeun as Glenn from The Walking Dead and John Cho as Harold from Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle. So it takes either a zombie apocalypse or the munchies to see a fully breathing Asian male lead, or a Photoshop campaign #StarringJohnCho for an Asian protagonist with actual thoughts in his head. 

It’s so rare to see a three-dimensional Asian male character, with actual hopes and dreams, that Steven Yeun remarks in GQ Magazine:

GQ Magazine: When you look back on your long tenure on The Walking Dead, what makes you proudest?

Steven Yeun: Honestly, the privilege that I had to play an Asian-American character that didn’t have to apologize at all for being Asian, or even acknowledge that he was Asian. Obviously, you’re going to address it. It’s real. It’s a thing. I am Asian, and Glenn is Asian. But I was very honored to be able to play somebody that showed multiple sides, and showed depth, and showed a way to relate to everyone. It was quite an honor, in that regard. This didn’t exist when I was a kid. I didn’t get to see Glenn. I didn’t get to see a fully formed Asian-American person on my television, where you could say, “That dude just belongs here.” Kids, growing up now, can see this show and see a face that they recognize. And go, “Oh my god. That’s my face too.”

Growing up, I never had that, either. I can’t help but think of this scene from the biopic, Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story, in which Bruce Lee watches the controversial Asian stereotype played by Mickey Rooney in Breakfast at Tiffany’s to a theater filled with derisive laughter. This moment with Bruce Lee is most likely fictional, but the weight of it is not lost on us:

This was a powerful moment for me as a kid, because I grew up with the same sort of mocking laughter, whether it was watching Short Round in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom with my white neighbors, or being assailed by the Bruce Lee wail in the local grocery store. I knew they were laughing at me, and not with.

“But hey wait!”—I’m told, with fervent knowing, “I know some Asian guys who are hot!” and I’m pointed to an infamous Buzzfeed list that shows “the hottest Asian men who will prove you wrong about Asian men,” with zero irony. Yes, I’ve seen the list. And yes, they’re like I expected: hard-rock glistening abs that are impossible for the working Asian dad, with classically European, chiseled faces and surgically-lifted eyes. More than that, it plays into the same creepy objectification of Asians as sexual play-toys.

Perhaps even worse than the portrayal of Asian men is how they’re not. More often, an acting role becomes “whitewashed” to suit a global audience, or an Anglo-American is the audience-avatar as a safety net for box office returns (remember, the last samurai in The Last Samurai was white). 

I know this is a shrill, ill-discussed subject with all kinds of variables, but from the prosthetic slanted eyes in Cloud Atlas to race-bleaching in Ghost in the Shell to the the “Yellow Peril” demonizing of Asian males as evil ninjas and drug dealers in Daredevil and Iron Fist, Asian-Americans—especially males, as females can still literally serve as co-stars—are vastly both mis- and under-represented. We’re used for a footnote joke at the Academy Awards (the same year that there was a campaign called #OscarsSoWhite), an overly loud insane person in raunchy comedies like The Hangover or Saving Silverman, or a “funny foreigners” punchline in the falsely interpreted romantic comedy, 500 Days of Summer.

One of the obvious reasons that Asian-Americans are sidelined in the mainstream is because there’s no money in it. It’s that simple. Freddie Wong, in his parody video of Ghost in the Shell casting Scarlett Johansson, says it best:

“Because, as a studio executive, the immorality of whitewashing a beloved work of Japanese culture is outweighed by my fear that audiences won’t want to watch a movie starring an Asian woman. And I don’t have the balls to take that risk. Besides, whatever political outrage this decision evokes doesn’t materially effect how much money I make.”

In other words, we’re stuck in a Catch-22. There can be no roles for an Asian-American unless it guarantees a profit, but since we’re not portrayed regularly in most media, there’s never a chance for Asian-American leads to draw a profit in the first place. I get the bottom line here, and I’m not so oblivious to consider that investors are all idealistic innovators. The creative risk is too daring. From an executive’s point of view, I can almost painfully understand.

So besides whitewashing an entirely Asian property, the next best thing is to throw in a scrap of representation by using the whole stereotype.  Make the Asian guy the smartest or the martial artist, and there’s your token diversity. It’s why major Hollywood blockbusters have now made shoehorned references to China: because they’re a huge source of box office revenue, and a pandering shout-out to China, no matter how forced or unoriginal, will mean more ticket sales. (It’s even going the other way, with Chinese movies like The Great Wall casting a white role to get more sales in America.)

Yet these roles have little nuance and only serve to further someone else’s plot. I’m the Manic Pixie Dream Girl and the Magical Negro, rolled into a non-threatening sidekick or the meditative Zen master. I will never be the action star or the romantic lead. God forbid that an Asian-American male would ever win against a non-Asian.

In some cases, Asians have capitalized on their own mockery by making fun of themselves in minstrel-like deprecation. I was surprised to find that the first winner of Last Comic Standing was a Vietnamese-American named Dat Phan, until I saw his routine, which went for the lowest hanging fruit possible. If you can’t beat the laughter, why not become the jester? Even other Asians want in on their own sabotage. 

Representation for the Asian-American only seems to happens when it aims for the least common denominator. The cheapest move, of course, is to completely hijack the “exotic quaintness” of Asian culture without going “fully Asian,” in order to boost a pseudo-masculinity. It’s easy: throw in Chinese tattoos or an Asian-type mysticism, and the non-Asian character instantly gains credibility. You can make up an Asian-sounding name, like “David Wong,” actual name Jason Pargin, a white author at Cracked.com, or Michael Derrick Hudson, a white poet who uses pen name “Yi-Fen Chou,” and watch the doors open. All the benefits, none of the fuss. Use my name without the actual struggle.

Of course, Asian-Americans are accused of allowing such undercover racism in the mainstream because we’re silent, passive, and obedient. We’re easy targets. We don’t typically march or cause disruption. We’re not socially involved. It’s why a huge clothing company like Abercrombie & Fitch can make shirts with Asian stereotypes like “Two Wongs Can Make It White.” It’s why Stephen Colbert (whom I love, by the way), can get away with non-apologies when he cracks yet another Asian joke. It’s why Ryo Oyamada, a 24 year old Japanese college student, can get run over by a police car in New York, and the officer goes free and no one chants in the streets.  

If you replaced the race with any other, the response would be louder, with solidarity on every side. Asian? No one cares. Literally and statistically, no one cares. Worst of all, it appears that Asians don’t care, either. It’s always a surprise when we speak up. You can drag an Asian-American off an airplane, and the most noise you’ll hear from other Asians is that they just don’t want to be seen as noisy and displeasing. 

The thing is, there are no shortage of Asian-American men who are physically and intellectually desirable, who could portray themselves as fully living beings with compelling stories and relatable conflicts. Is it possible that the mainstream, for all its talk about diversity, is afraid of encountering a man who is both Asian-American and attractive? Is it simply intolerable to witness an Asian-American switch lanes between the sidekick and the star? Has the Asian-American male been permanently imprinted as comic relief or Karate expert? Is it too culturally explosive to pair an Asian-American male with a non-Asian female? Can we really handle an Asian alpha male who gets the girl at the end? (Much less a non-Asian female lead get an Asian guy at the end?)

I have to admit that some of this is on us. No, I don’t mean that we brought it on ourselves. I would never, ever perpetuate blaming the victim. I mean that we can still fight against the pervasive, seemingly impermeable walls around the identity of the Asian male, by reaching and demanding for more challenging roles in every sphere of media. The shift in perception of the Asian-American male coincides with a shift in self-perception. 

Is it also possible to take a creative risk without guarantees? I know today’s market is less likely to pave new ground, with its risk-averse eye on sequels and reboots and recycling the same tale, but I wonder how we can tell new tales without resorting to the cheapest, easiest cliches, without exploiting Asian culture for “mystical credibility” but celebrating its uniqueness with a thoughtful exploration of both its treasures and its trials.  

I’ll leave you with a quote from Lewis Tan, the half-Asian-American actor who was rejected for the role of Iron Fist. In a recent interview, he says:

“I’ve turned down a couple roles. My agents will tell you when I first signed with them, I turned down the first three or four things that came up. I’ve just turned down roles that were super-stereotypically Asian that I didn’t feel represented me and I didn’t want to do. Not to necessarily say they’re bad roles, but it just wasn’t me. I’m not going to do this dorky Asian accent and just play someone in the background. That’s not why I’m here to act. I’m here to represent and to make stories that I believe in and to achieve new things in the industry.”

[yuesli]

this will probably be long but please read it through to the end if you’re going to make a serious reply (or at least the section on the thing you’re addressing)! basically it’s my stance on this awful aizy-boy discourse that’s been going on since it’s come up on my dash and honestly looking at some of the posts in the tag really frustrates me sometimes. i wanted to make a more informative (?) explanation on it for anyone who is confused or doesn’t agree with me. here we go!

white-washing: white-washing is not okay, so there is no reason to be surprised if you or an artist you like is criticised/called out for doing it. white-washing is when a poc character’s skin is lightened; whether it is intentional or not, it is still whitewashing and erases representation of poc. therefore it is a racist practice and if you or an artist you like do it, welp there’s no nice way to put it, you’re being racist. there are tutorials for colouring darker skin, and you could also use a ref of the character (in regular lighting) to colour pick from. if you’re still learning and need someone to point it out as an honest critique, cool! just a sincere apology and editing the offending drawing would be fine! however, if you consistently do this and try to excuse it by saying you’re just learning with actually changing anything, that’s being racist. please don’t say “draw whatever you want!” because that’s just inherently telling them it’s okay to erase representation of people of colour in the media. “so an artist draws a character lighter than you don’t like” - it’s not only that we don’t like it, it’s that it’s not accurate (a critique on the actual technicalities of the art), as well as harmful to poc, who are already severely underrepresented and therefore racist (a critique on the ethics of the practice). defending your favourite artist by claiming they’re not racist while being fully aware of their white-washing habit is not a good argument at all. if you do not want to be considered racist, condemn white-washing instead of supporting an artist who does it. p*ycho au: this au created by the artist in question demonises people with mental illness; i don’t know too much about the au itself since i really don’t want to be involved with it, but as far as i know it takes the mental breakdown of a real person as a plot device of some sort which leads them to become dangerous and murderous (and includes other characters who are also murderous “as a result of mental illness”). the au itself is titled after a slur used against mentally ill people which is incredibly disrespectful and not okay. the au associates mental illness with dangerous/murderous tendencies, which adds to the already disgusting stigma surrounding mental illness. there are real people who are mentally ill. there are people in the hamilton fandom who are mentally ill. by supporting this au you are supporting an inaccurate and harmful portrayal of them as murderers and killers, which in turn makes it difficult for them to live in a society where they are seen as “abnormal” and “dangerous”. “it’s a fictional au, people should be able to draw what they want!” yes, but you still have an obligation to be socially aware and respectful, especially to a marginalised group. if your au is harming others, no, you shouldn’t “draw what you want”. “it’s just an au, it’s not actually going to make people think mentally ill people are dangerous”; media has a lot of influence on the opinions and perceptions of people, especially younger people in the fandom. in addition to that, you are actively enjoying something that portrays a group of people in a harmful and dangerous light. do you not see something wrong with that? if somebody made an au that demonised a particular characteristic of yours that you can’t help, would you be okay with it? please show some sympathy and understanding. please do not speak over those in the hamilton fandom who actually suffer from mental illness. gender-bending: gender-bending is transphobic, and as a result, generally frowned upon. it is transphobic because it implies that there are only two genders, and very rarely includes trans / nonbinary people (if at all). most often genderbends portray characters with what society views as conventionally “feminine” and “masculine” traits (for example, a male-to-female genderbend wearing a dress, having longer hair). this promotes gender stereotyping (not okay!) if you want to make a “genderbend au” that is respectful and considerate of people outside of the gender binary, include trans people / people outside the gender binary in your au! or even better, don’t “genderbend” and if you want to draw a male character in a dress, do it without making them female and avoid conforming to gender stereotypes. the artist in question does a lot of genderbend au related things, which is inherently transphobic. if she refuses to stop drawing “genderbends” and you support her, you’re basically ignoring the problem and being disrespectful and transphobic as well. the apology: of course, after a while aizy-boy issued an apology. however it didn’t seem particularly sincere (it was titled with an excuse to her actions instead of acknowledging she was really at fault “NOBODY’S PERFECT LIKE ME OK??”) and did not address the genderbending issue or the act of demonising mental illness. she made excuses for problematic things she did for the p*ycho au and also went on to just talk about her new au as if to replace/compensate for her actions. another excuse she made for the choppy apology is that her english is not fluent, which is somewhat understandable, except there were so many things she didn’t address properly that you’d think she’d be able to communicate by asking somebody in the fandom to help translate, or perhaps attempt using an online translator. she didn’t exactly apologise to any of the people or groups she harmed, either. anyway, i personally don’t really accept this apology, but i won’t dwindle on it since that’s completely subjective and i don’t want to make or promote any false assumptions. attacking artists: a lot of you are saying not to attack artists and just “stop fighting”. i agree with the sentiment but honestly it is right to criticise an artist if they are doing something harmful with their drawings, and considering the situation involves transphobia, racism, and stigmatising of mental illness, you have to understand that people have every right to be angry or upset. no, no one should be verbally abused, but just constantly saying “they don’t deserve this hate !!!!! everyone is just jealous !!!!!!” is ignoring the issue at hand because in the end, this whole argument boils down to the controversial issues i mentioned above in bold and not attacking pieces of art itself. we need to discuss + speak out and against these things because ignoring the problem and pretending it doesn’t exist won’t solve anything.

i’m sorry this ended up so horribly long but i wanted to provide a full explanation to anyone unsure of what the topics above mean and how they are harmful. i don’t hate on aizy-boy’s art; she’s got a wonderful style and good skills. but the things she draws and how she deals with the situation cause serious problems to arise, and i really support what exadorlion and lauwurens have said so far. if any of the wording i have used surrounding those three issues is wrong/outdated/disrespectful please message me and i’ll edit it right away! if you’ve made it this far thanks for reading and have a good day.

[ladystylestores]

Georgia’s Long Lines – The New York Times

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Good morning. Republicans are considering their own police reforms. Brazil’s president is threatening a military takeover. And Georgia’s primary was a mess.

Chloe Mexile Benard got in line to vote in the Atlanta suburbs at 7:30 a.m. yesterday, according to The Guardian. She did not vote until almost noon.

Marneia Mitchell, a stationery designer in Atlanta, was starting her fourth hour of waiting in line when she told The Times, “It’s despicable.”

And Greg Bluestein, a politics reporter at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, called yesterday’s primary elections in Georgia “like nothing we’ve ever experienced.”

In several counties around Atlanta, voting machines malfunctioned, and thin staffing because of the coronavirus left fewer poll workers to deal with it. As a result, many Georgia residents had to choose between enduring hours in line or losing their right to vote.

Yesterday’s problems were worse than usual — partly a result of recently bought voting machines — but were also part of a much larger issue. In no other affluent country do citizens regularly have as hard a time voting as they do in the United States. Most of our elections are held on workdays, and a shortage of election equipment and workers often forces people to wait in long lines.

The waits tend to be longest for African-Americans. One study of the 2016 election, using smartphone location data, found that voters in black neighborhoods waited 29 percent longer on average than voters in white neighborhoods.

And as was the case in the 1950s and ’60s, Georgia has again become a battleground over voting rights. In the 2018 midterms, the state had the country’s longest waiting times, according to a Bipartisan Policy Center analysis. Republicans in Georgia, who control most of the state government, have frequently opposed efforts by Democrats to make voting more accessible.

It was not fully clear why yesterday’s lines were worse in the Atlanta area than elsewhere in Georgia. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican, blamed local officials — who are heavily Democratic — and said they had not properly trained election workers. Local officials, in turn, blamed him, saying he had not provided adequate training resources. Virus fears among election workers and high turnout, after George Floyd’s killing, may also have played a role.

“No corner of the state had a fully functional voting experience,” The Times reported. Michael McDonald, an elections expert at the University of Florida, wrote: “I have never seen the scale of election failures happening in Georgia today. This does not bode well for November.”

In yesterday’s election results:

THREE MORE BIG STORIES

1. Republicans respond to police violence

Senate Republican leaders have assigned Tim Scott of South Carolina, their only black member, to lead the drafting of legislation that conservatives could rally behind.

Republicans face a dilemma: For decades, they have built an image as tough on crime, and it has helped them win many elections, often by winning the votes of whites who previously voted Democratic. But public opinion has shifted significantly, amid growing video evidence of police brutality and racism, and Republicans are trying to figure out how much to change their stance. For now, several congressional Republicans have changed their tone but not yet supported new policies.

In other politics news:

President Trump floated a false theory that a 75-year-old man in Buffalo who had been knocked to the ground by the police was “an ANTIFA provocateur.”

A group of white counterprotesters in New Jersey, appearing in front of a pro-Trump sign, mocked Floyd’s death, with one man kneeling on the neck of another who was facedown on the ground. One of the counterprotesters was a corrections officers and was quickly suspended.

Democrats are increasing their pressure on Joe Biden to pick a black running mate.

2. Funeral for George Floyd

Two weeks after Floyd died at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, he was laid to rest in Houston, in a grave next to his mother’s. Two rows of police officers saluted as Floyd’s coffin went past. (The Times recently profiled Floyd’s life.)

As the service began, the New York Stock Exchange went silent for eight minutes, 46 seconds — the length of time a police officer held his knee on Floyd’s neck. It was the longest moment of silence on the stock exchange floor in its 228-year history.

3. The threat to Brazil’s democracy

Daily coronavirus deaths in Brazil are now the highest in the world. Investors are fleeing. And President Jair Bolsonaro and his allies are under investigation.

In response to the chaos, Bolsonaro is raising the prospect of military intervention to protect his grip on power — an ominous prospect for a country that was under a military dictatorship as recently as the 1980s.

More on the virus: A Times graphic compares the death toll to the toll from historical disasters.

Here’s what else is happening

The founder of CrossFit, Greg Glassman, has resigned, after BuzzFeed News published the details of a call with gym owners in which he maligned Floyd and shared coronavirus conspiracy theories.

Paramount Television canceled “Cops,” the once-popular reality show that ran for 33 seasons and that civil rights groups criticized for its portrayal of African-Americans. Separately, HBO pulled “Gone With the Wind” from its new streaming service, but pledged to bring back the 1939 film that romanticizes the Civil War-era South “with a discussion of its historical context.”

Lives lived: Bonnie Pointer was there at the creation, when she and her siblings decided to form a vocal group called simply the Pointer Sisters. But before the 1970s were out, she had left the group to pursue a solo career. And then they hit it big, without her. She has died at 69.

BACK STORY: Facial recognition

IBM announced this week that it opposes using facial recognition for mass surveillance and racial profiling. We talked to our colleague Shira Ovide, who writes The Times’s On Tech newsletter, about the problems with the technology.

“Facial recognition is terrible at identifying people with darker skin,” Shira said, pointing out that some research found it has no better than a 50-50 chance. “And there’s a dangerous tendency to over-rely on this kind of technology, even when it’s not accurate.”

She added: “We don’t know when facial recognition is misused. What if law enforcement agencies use it to identify people who are attending peaceful protests, like the ones happening now? Do we want to live in a surveillance state where everyone is in a vast database and we can be identified on sight at a massive scale?” That, of course, is the situation that China’s government is trying to create.

PLAY, WATCH, EAT, STREAM

How to feed a crowd

A key part of the Sikh religion is providing free meals as an act of faith, and many gurdwaras — the places of worship for Sikhs — have large kitchens, ample numbers of volunteers and regular food donations from community members. Some gurdwaras serve more than 100,000 people every day.

This tradition has enabled Sikh communities across the U.S. to respond to the increase in hunger caused by the pandemic, while many food banks have struggled, Priya Krishna writes.

Reckonings in culture

In the publishing world, a viral hashtag this week encouraged black and nonblack authors to compare their pay, in an effort to highlight inequality. One example: A white science fiction writer said he had received $3.4 million for 13 books — more than $260,000 per novel — while a black female author said she had received $25,000 for each installment of her award-winning science fiction trilogy.

In theater, more than 300 artists — including stars like Viola Davis and Lin-Manuel Miranda — published a statement that outlined how artists of color are unjustly treated.

A guide to TV streaming bundles

Inspired by this clever interactive from Bloomberg about the best streaming bundles, we asked Adrienne Maxwell, an editor at Wirecutter, to offer advice to anyone who’s gotten rid of cable television or is thinking of doing so:

When trying to decide whether or not to cut the cord and what services to subscribe to, I think the first question anyone should ask is whether they still want access to live TV and, especially, sports. Hardcore fans who love to watch a variety of sports and want access to their local affiliate broadcasts are probably better off sticking with cable.

If live TV is not something you care about, then it really does come down to personal viewing preferences. The beauty of streaming is that you aren’t locked into a contract, so you can subscribe to one service for a couple months, get caught up on their exclusive content that you love, then cancel and switch to another service.

But if you’re more of a “set it once and forget it” type, I’d say some combination of Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+ is likely to be the most satisfying for the most people.

Here is Wirecutter’s more detailed guide.

Diversions

Games

Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Only state with a two-vowel postal code (four letters).

You can find all of our puzzles here.

Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David

P.S. Cooking for kids can be exhausting, especially if they’re picky eaters. The Times’s Kim Severson and Ted Allen, the cooking-show host, can help. At 8 p.m. Eastern today, they’ll discuss how to cook healthy family meals.

You can see today’s print front page here.

Today’s episode of “The Daily” is about George Floyd’s funeral.

The Times is providing free access to much of our coronavirus coverage. Please consider supporting our journalism with a subscription.

Ian Prasad Philbrick and Sanam Yar contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com.

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