#i'm a simple man i see different interpretations of the same guy and i begin clapping like a seal

[lepitorus]

i love seeing other people's fnaf headcanons so much.... it's like a weird little dog show to me. oh your henry's hair is so lustrous what's his grooming routine.

[once-in-a-blood-moon]

Jo Explains with Tarot : Solomon's Unforgettable Past

Incoming long winded explanation/analyzation about the Festival of Flowers from Solomon's "Unforgettable Past" Devilgram, but doing it with tarot cards. So, spoilers ahead and lots of nonsense beyond this point if this isn't your thing :) I broke this into sections so it'd be easier to read...hopefully.

Please note: these are my interpretations of the cards. Your interpretations may be different, and that's okay! That's great even. That just means there's more to learn from the cards than just one perspective. So neither of us are wrong, we just see things in different ways. Don't be afraid to expand with your own thoughts if you want!

So, I realized something recently. One of the days on the Obey Me calendar was the Devildom Flower Festival, held annually on June 20th. And I think it's safe to say it's the same festival you visit with Solomon in his card "Unforgettable Past."

In that, he explains the war the Devildom commemorates every year and the legend behind it. The timespan of the war was 7 days. So...from June 20th (not counting it) we'd see that the war started on June 13th.

Why does any of this matter? Well, it probably doesn't to anyone but me, but here I'm going to explain the significance of those dates with...tarot cards!

How this works is how you would calculate your personal birth cards. It's really simple. Just add up all the numbers in the date, but not before making each digit a single digit, to get your results. Usually you get two cards, though there are special instances where some might get three, but's not as common. (I'll use a random date as an example: 8/10/1983 - 8+1+0+1+9+8+3 = 30. There's only 21 major arcana cards that are applicable, so you'd break the 30 down as well to get 3 - the Empress. To get the second card from 3, you use what adds to make 3 which would be 1+2, put those together and you get 12 - the Hanged Man. It's kind of like the reversal of what we did to get the first card. I hope I explained that well enough.

---

June 13th

With that out of the way, let's start with June 13, 6/13. This would give us 10. The tenth card in the major arcana is the Wheel of Fortune. Break down 10, and we get 1. The first card of the major arcana (ignoring the Fool since it's the zeroth card) is, ironically, the Magician.

The Magician card focuses on what you already have and expanding on those skills. Pictured in the card, there is one of each suit from the minor arcana laying on a table (one wand, cup, sword, and pentacle). Those represent the ace cards of those suits, which usually indicate beginnings or starting points. Essentially, the Magician already has novice level skills to help him navigate through his journeys, and as he experiences more his knowledge will grow and he'll "collect" more of each suit. He's an innovator, a go-getter, and as long as he keeps his head on his shoulders and doesn't get ahead of himself, he'll progress just fine. Also pictured is the Magician holding a candle in the air while pointing downwards with his free hand. To me, this could represent a guiding light, a symbol of the fifth element: spirit (as above, so below), a eureka! moment (the lightbulb over someone's head), or that he's declaring his own start - like charging into something with vigor. He's also got an infinity sign above his head, but that'll come in later...

The Wheel of Fortune focuses on chance and opportunity. Sometimes it's an indication of reigning in a new future or era, whether it's within our personal lives or seeing it unfold through society. A few things to note in the illustration is the little red guy??, the sphinx, and the snake surrounding the wheel. To me, I see the red guy kind of fox-like, or even devilish. Regardless, he's sneaky, cunning, willing to take risks to see himself come out at the top in the end. The sphinx is holding a sword, reminding me of the Justice card, or the suit of swords. The sphinx is logical, wielding rationale as a weapon should taking the risk turn to be less than ideal or difficult. A sharp intellect, if you will. And the snake, to me, represents the temptation of wanting to go along with something for the sake of knowledge or curiosity. There's also the three animals and one angel in the corners of the card, but I won't go into detail on them for the sake of brevity. But to me, they represent higher wisdom, or that the fate of the wheel is divinely guided.

-

According to his Devilgram story, he'd spoken to a demon in the human realm, which sparked the brazen idea that he could convince the Demon King and his citizens to work under him. It was an opportunity, a risk he was willing to take if it meant a more favorable fate/outcome for the human realm. Obviously, Solomon thought that he had what it took to get the king to see reason, whether it be through charm and wit alone, or through more brutal means. By that point, he was already able to subjugate demons to his will, so why not go father when the opportunity presents itself? Perhaps even doing so to test his own strength and power.

So, he had the skill, he had the charisma, but he also had the arrogance of the Magician in reverse. All he had to do was take matters into his own hands for the sake of "furthering human kind's development," find an opening, show just how powerful humans could be, and strike. And he struck hard. Solomon took his risk and fought with everything he had in him. Alone. That day, he held the destiny of the human realm in his hands.

---

June 20th

Onto the eighth day, June 20, 6/20. Adding this gives us 8, which is the eighth card - Strength. And then 1+7 = 8, so put those together to get the number 17 - the Star.

The Strength card is just about that: strength. Strength doesn't have to be physical. More often than not, our inner courage defines our true strength. In this card, we see a woman who looks to be petting a lion. Whether she's attempting to befriend him or trying to soothe him, she's showing great bravery by approaching the situation with calmness and gentility. In the face of what could be a problematic situation, if not dealt with swiftly/correctly, this card reminds us that we have the option to fight with fearlessness, approach with a silent confidence, or we can choose to walk away altogether. Then that leads us to either being the bigger person or being cowardly, depending on the issue at hand. So, remember I mentioned the infinity symbol above the Magician's head? The lady in this card has one above her head as well. This, to me, is a call back that we have the skills to handle any problem that arises. We are equipped with strength and courage and any learned tricks we may have up our sleeve to give us the upper hand.

The Star is one of the more positive cards in the tarot deck (aside from the Sun of course). Maybe uplifting is a better way to describe it. This card holds hope for a brighter future, a better tomorrow. The Star reminds us that it's okay to heal, breathe, and wish upon hope that things can get better. The sky is the limit. In this illustration, there's a woman pouring water back into what looks to be a river with her foot hovering over it. It's almost like she'd lost hope to the cruelty of life, but she's ready try again and slowly dip her toes back in. She's allowing herself time to do so, reflecting on why she wants to and why she's ready, like affirmations. The ripples in the water remind me of both the ripple effect and of manifestations. By taking the initiative, good things may come her way or she may make change within the world around her. Also, in her other hand she's got another pitcher that's pouring out water onto the ground. We can take this either that she's unknowingly nurturing something in the midst of her finding herself, or that by enveloping herself in this new hope, she's actively pouring out the old.

-

On the eighth day, Solomon vanishes, ultimately putting a stop to the fighting. What led up to this decision, we don't know. Although, you can ask Solomon if "the sorcerer" just threw in the towel, to which he stills for a moment, almost as if he were offended or caught of guard by our question. He doesn't elaborate on that further, only responding with- "maybe. We'll never know for sure." It's telling that to him it obviously wasn't a matter of giving up. There was more at stake than just his pride or lust for power. And he made the decision to walk away when he probably could've went on for much longer.

And why would he leave a field of flowers as a "parting gift" if it meant nothing? He's a pretty cryptic guy, after all. But again, we don't know why exactly he did so. It could've been a promise that humanity would further on its own and they'd one day see he was right. Maybe it was the hope that the realms could coincide someday and that he recognized the Devildom's power. Or simply, it was his version of a "white flag." No matter what he originally meant by them, the flowers would go on to be the focus of the festival to commemorate the Devildom's victory. In Solomon's words, "it's a day to hope for peace and prosperity throughout the land."

[t4tozier]

a little over the 500 limit, but for the fic DVD commentary ask - all of "you're a dog (and I'm your man)" 👀

OH BOY. yes let’s get into it. i’m sure i will continue to add more as i think about it but before i even break down any individual lines let’s start with the background. i’m putting this whole thing under a cut it’s going to be so long guys

i wrote the beginning of this (which ended up becoming the middle) on my commute home from work. yes i was driving. don’t worry about it. i couldn’t get it out of my head and i wanted to make sure i didn’t forget anything. i think it may have even been the same day i read your lovely fic (link here) because i was just like i have so many Thoughts and it definitely inspired my prose as well as the idea of jace performing the rituals to help porter ascend.

i just went to the fic on ao3 and saw that almost none of the things that were supposed to be italicized were. that’s fantastic.

anyway the first lines that i wrote were actually

The spell turns the air hot, thick and oppressive. It envelops Porter in its entirety, choking and soothing all at once. It feels like rage.

i knew this one was going to be from porter’s perspective as soon as i wrote these lines—i believe it actually started off as just “the air is hot.” the reason i bring so much attention to these lines is because i wrote them bc i was driving home and it was humid as FUCK out. that is the only reason this drabble came to be; it was hot and then everything else i wrote kind of just flowed out after.

i know that in your fic porter was the one on his knees in the center of the circle, but i can’t help the opportunity to add some more prayer imagery in there, which is where we get the opening line “Jace worships on his knees.” guys i love this line. it’s so simple but tells you exactly what we’re doing here. i think i tend to do this a lot, where it’s just one simple line that gets you right into the idea/action. idk if it’s lazy writing or not but i do love doing it :)

Porter’s not a god—not yet, not yet—but Jace’s ritual castings leave his lips like a prayer. Ritual has dual meaning here; it’s the longer form of his spells, yes, but more so it’s the contents of the spell itself. It’s as if the act of believing in Porter’s godhood is its own source of the magic that powers his sorcery, an ouroboros. He still doesn’t really know where Jace’s magic comes from. He thinks it’s divine. In the literal sense, of course—but he can’t help but hope that killing him, bringing him back, tied his new blood to a new god. He wants to be the font of Jace’s power. He has to be. It’s only right; why should Jace be tied to anyone, anything, but his god?

i love seeing porter’s perspective of everything happening. i think that this is almost a different interpretation than we typically see with starbreaker/porter; i feel like it’s typically that jace is the devotee and porter couldn’t give a fuck about him, so it’s kind of fun to explore not only porter giving a fuck but also wanting jace, being possessive over him, hopingwantingpraying that jace isn’t just bound to him through the shatterstar but also through his divine magic—and his genuine, true devotion to porter.

i hate the second sentence in this paragraph i’m ngl. i debated having it in there because it’s like. this is kind of implied right.

Jace kneels in the center of the room as he casts, head bowed and voice low but measured and clear. His fingers dance through the air; they weave magic through every particle.

these lines were very inspired by your fic i loved the imagery of jace’s casting. it also helped to tie the lines i had already written into the larger story.

Rage, Porter knows what to do with. It settles under his bones, into all of the slivers of his mind. It fuels his existing power (worthy of a deity, worthy of a following) and gives him a purpose, a drive unlike any other. Jace, on the other hand, he has a harder time accepting. He presses his fingers to Porter’s thighs, his stomach, his biceps, as if touching a statue, delicate and revering. But then, Porter bends the knee, and it feels like he’s taking his oath again. It is its own type of devotion, he thinks, as he sucks the magic off Jace’s fingertips, sweeter than devil’s honey. After all, what is a god without his followers?

Jace may not be a barbarian, but he needs the rage as much as Porter. When he’s on his back, he pushes Porter’s fingers harder against the jagged edges of the crystal in his chest, begging without words for more, more, more. Porter always gives it to him. He’ll give him anything he wants. Jace is his most loyal worshipper, from the beginning to the end. He deserves to be rewarded for his efforts. When they build temples to Porter’s exploits, weave tapestries of his rise to power, carve his story into stone, Jace will be pictured at his side—now and forever. The god and his sorcerer. Jace may not have died willingly, but with his second life comes nothing but devotion to the one who killed him in the first place. There it is again, Porter thinks. Devotion.

i’m also not a huge fan of the first couple of lines in this first paragraph LOL. i wanted a visceral description of porter’s relationship to his rage but just never landed on exactly what i wanted. however. the second half of the paragraph? oh. absolutely delicious.

i’m a sucker for religious imagery within sex what can i say. this drabble doesn’t dig too deep into that but this section is kind of a hazy look into what sex and worship looks like for both of them, with jace touching porter like he’s at the altar and porter taking jace’s fingers into his mouth. whether he can actually taste the magic or not is up for interpretation, but i think it’s very fun if so :) you also see a bit of the rage manifesting as desperation and masochism with jace which i also enjoy.

i wrote this before looking into porter’s character sheet too much—i still haven’t fully landed on his barbarian/paladin split, but at the time i figured he’d at least be level 3 and therefore had taken an oath (of devotion, here). i think it’s very interesting to imagine a young and naive porter who actually started out as a paladin before becoming kind of disillusioned with the world around him and turning that devotion into conviction (👀). i’m literally just spitballing rn i didn’t think about this part when writing.

and some of these lines also go back into the idea of porter treating jace well because he’s his only devoted follower and he understands that there’s a certain amount of give and take that comes with this. he needs jace as much as jace needs him.

i’m also 95% sure i wrote this before the official reveal that porter killed jace. i wrote it the day after ragenarock pt 1 and i believe that it was revealed in pt 2…so i was pleased with myself for that :)

The classes are more intertwined than anyone likes to think. Innate magic, innate rage. Jace may not be a cleric, either, but he worships like one. His touch is that of a believer. It feels like love. He heals Porter when the ambrosia breaks his ribs, not meant for mortal bodies, mortal blood. (Not for long.) When Jace performs his own version of Lay on Hands, pressing his palms over the other’s heart, Porter thinks he could even be a paladin. He doesn’t have the heart for it—not that Porter did, either—but when Porter clenches his fist and Jace falls to his knees, shatterstar glinting in the moonlight, the veneration with which his eyes gleam tells Porter he can devote himself just fine. More than fine, really.

Perfect.

i also loveee this paragraph. it reminds me of when porter is teaching fig about how she can make rage work for her when she’s trying to become a paladin—of course, he’s trying to make her his champion, but i think especially with jace, the connection between classes really shines through. and of course i had to include a bit of the shatterstar controlling because it’s sooo juicy and delicious.

my notes app drabble ended at “devote himself just fine” but it felt too abrupt so i added a little bit to the end. i think it works, though.

literally tysm for sending this i had such a fun time breaking this all down!!

[robotnik-mun]

I see Boom Eggman and Jimbotnik get compared to AoStH Robotnik a lot in terms of being "comedy-centric" Eggmen, but AoStH Robotnik doesn't seem to attract your ire in the same way that the other two do. What is it about AoStH Robotnik that makes him better than the other two in your eyes?

Well you see, it goes something like this-

While AoStH Robotnik is indeed a comedy centered take on Eggman/Robotnik, it's also made clear that for all his hilarity he's still pretty bad news- he constantly tries his hardest to kill Sonic and gleefully tries to do the same to the various citizens of Mobius caught up in his schemes, and is kept in check by the fact that Sonic is always there to stop him. As much as he is an object of ridicule he's not really harmless, and his villainy is never in question. Heck, the guy once carried out a legitimate terrorist plot that left even Sonic reeling. He's a Comedy Villain, but he's still definitely a VILLAIN first and foremost and unquestionably malevolent.

Boom Eggman by contrast... well to begin, Boom's overall humor doesn't really appeal to me a whole lot (or at least in the first season), so there's that. While Eggman IS the best part of the show, the problem for me is that most of the time he's not really treated as being much of a threat even by the show itself- he functions more like a troublesome, cranky neighbor and public nuisance most of the time. It's hard for me to appreciate an Eggman who comes off as being less competent than Dr. Doofenshmirtz, even in the context of this being a different interpretation of things. Before the coming of Boom my least favorite iteration of Eggman was from Sonic X for similar reasons, but even THAT version of the guy was more dangerous than Boom's version.

That doesn't make Boom Eggman bad or worthless, mind you, but its just not what I'm looking for in an Eggman.

Now, as for Jimbotnik? Its a lot more simple than all of that- I don't care for this iteration of Robotnik because he doesn't strike me as a new interpretation of Eggman so much as he is Jim Carrey playing Jim Carrey again. In Jimbotnik all I can see is Ace Venture, The Mask, The Riddler, The Grinch, etc. I have nothing against comedic takes on Eggman or Robotnik, but not all comedy is created equal, and in this case I can't help but be a bit cynical about the fact that Carrey is playing the guy the same way he plays virtually every major role he's ever had.

And much like Boom Eggman, the fact he's skinny really doesn't help. It's really a shame because I DO like the fact he IS treated as being legitimately dangerous and that while Sonic makes fun of him, it carries with it a tinge of Spider-Man syndrome- namely that Sonic's taunts are as much to make himself appear confident while chipping away at Robotnik. It's a bit of a monkey's paw for me.

[imasimpforstevengrant]

Why do we like this clown so much?

Change the "we" for "I" and you get an usual tag I use whenever I post my content in Tumblr. And it sounds funny at first but whenever you start diving into that phrase, the deeper it becomes. So, I finally have decided to share my thoughts about this strange but wholesome attraction to this deeply flawed character. It's not something I usually do since I don't know how to write down my feelings properly and also in english so please forgive any typos (I'm from Chile so don't be surprised lol).

So...Why do we like this clown so much?

Why was it that a character precisely designed to scare and to disgust the fuck out of us ended up unchaining a series of feelings that shouldn't have taken place in a beginning?

Let's take a look at the background: Joaquin Phoenix was cast as Arthur Fleck/Joker in 2018. The first image of him as the aforementioned character revealed a deeply disturbed man. We knew the plot. A man driven to insanity after a brutal history of abuse, creating concern in people if the upcoming film would inspire real life violence. Incel violence and mass shootings, more specifically.

(the image in question)

As 2019 arrives, the two trailers generated so much hype that media needed to fuel its concern about it. Since it wasn't your typical comic book film, media basically bombed our minds making us believe this film was going to be a total disaster, an excuse to cause harm to others among other nonsense, as if the film would justify everything Arthur would do in the film, eventually. As the release date is closer, the film receives thunderous applause and unanimous praise from critics. At this, fans rejoiced and expressed impatience to watch the film.

October 5th.

People left the theaters amazed, shocked and genuinely moved by the inhuman treatment Arthur received in the film. The fear media tried so desperately to infuse in us with all the incel bullshit and such turned out to awake one of the most positive, best feelings in humans:

E M P A T H Y

The word that so gloriously cleared away any dark thoughts or actions not only proves media was wrong but it turned out to ridicule it in way nobody will forget: Hundreds of people advocating for mental illness, calling out to the kindness that could change a person's bad day and questioning how politicians and rich people are indifferent to social problems proved how much as a society we have changed in comparison with the one shown in the film.

However, since we are on Tumblr, I'll get straight to the point and try to explain why the fuck does this clown has us dying out of love and compassion (and lust).

I. Background.

As nurturing as we women are for a biological matter, we see a man deprived of a good job, is on seven different medications, working like a slave to sustain his ill mother, putting aside his own health and well-being to look for her, struggling to make his dream of being a comedian despite everyone stepping on him, underpaid and treated like a freak for a disorder he did not ask to suffer, which makes it impossible to be indifferent to all the horrible ordeal that eventually will reach the limit of what he can tolerate without going insane. It is impossible to not say or think, at least, that someone (even if it's just one person) should stand for him just as it is impossible not to feel the need to throw ourselves at him to shield him from people who hurt him or simply offer him our shoulder whenever he has had a bad day, specially when he learns he was sexually assaulted by his step father.

This horrid behaviour terrifies newer generations because they get a taste of what being a social outcast was like more than thirty years ago in comparison with today, where there's more acceptance and treatment for mentally ill people like Arthur. We see in him someone who could have been saved with a proper education and emotional support instead of descending into madness as a criminal. Others simply saw themselves being treated like him at some point in their lives and couldn't help but put themselves in his shoes.

II. Personality.

TRUTH BE TOLD:

There's something called "attraction by proximity". It is the explanation to the eventual love you feel whenever someone doesn't catch your eye at first terms of physical attraction but his/her personality does attract you. This happens to be the base of this situation. His shyness, introverted nature, tenderness and innocent desire to make people laugh and put on a happy face awake some kind of tenderness we cannot resist. This combined with the gloomy background increases our understanding (but not justifying) of the bad decisions he'll eventually take during the course of the film. This traces a line of harsh, almost hurtful contrast of the violence he shows later on the film. Once again, it is not justified in any way but it is certainly understandable.

III. Appearance.

Arthur Fleck is unconventionally attractive.

This happens to be a plus for most women. He is out of the male beauty standards (no abs, not too muscly or particularly tall), which makes him even more unique. It is precisely the fact that he's not a model one of the reasons women love him. He could easily be your man next door or your colleague or the guy you always see but never dare to talk for fear to bother him Because it's about proximity. Arthur looks like your common neighbour. He's not meant to be your typical desirable male protagonist at all.

... And yet.

Jesus Christ, he's so fucking hot I can't even---

It's not about how beautiful his green eyes are, his long slender fingers, his hair or his smile only. It's the charm behind it.

Another "magnet point" is the way he dresses. I know he's impoverished and his wardrobe tend to be repetitive but it is so unpretentious, so simple that is hard to not fall for. The modesty of the shirts, ironed trousers reminds us of a mature man deeply withdrawn into himself, love starved and longing to be seen and loved by others, like a war veteran who still fights the most important war: with himself. Is someone who needs to be listened and understood.

AND OF COURSE WHAT'S NOT TO LIKE ABOUT IT?

He's also brought back the old gentleman outfit, white shirts, red/yellow vest, red suit and elegant dancing moves and the retro style of the film boosts this attractiveness.

People keep comparing him with the previous interpretation of Joker (Leto's) whose costume appealed to young women with a tattooed, gangster, mumble rapper crazy-guy wannabe which didn't connect with the audiences (young people in general). This supposedly was to match or even have a sexy, tormented and desirable villain like Marvel's Loki. We all know how that story ended but it's the link for the next point below.

IV. Transformation

This is a particularly strong point considering how much we loved to watch the process of this weak, powerless, forgotten caterpillar into a beautiful and visible butterfly that will gracefully stir its wings for everyone to see its colours.

When Arthur transitions to the Joker, it's so cathartic to see taking revenge on those who wronged him (even when we're not supposed to root for him) like seeing his shyness fading away into a vivid confidence when dancing half naked in the bathroom, or witnessing him making way to make his name known to people in Murray Franklin's Show:

Adding to this newly gained confidence, there's another turn on: the way he walks.

At the beginning, his pace is hunched and limping, displaying his submission to violence, which makes the viewer more satisfied to see his broken yet beautiful soul turning the past pain of his existence into art: he lets music guide his moves as a way to tell the world he's a new man by cutting most of the sick, evil roots that harmed him, that he's invincible, that no one can stop him. Watching this cathartic display of euphoria was the most iconic scene in the film, following his speech at the TV and the inevitable meltdown that caused Murray's death.

Going to further appreciation, even his clown make up is beautiful. Why? Simple. The combination of colours, shapes and the intimidating glare just embellishes even more the character.

The dark blue triangles in his expressive eyes makes the light green colour to highlight, specially in dark backgrounds, giving the impression he's piercing your soul whenever he stares directly at the camera. Same can be said about the red smile and emerald green hair. They boost an already intimidating look.

The cold and warm colours paint a picture of a man full of intense emotions, mirroring it in a simple yet masterful artistic way.

Another interesting point is the way Joker dresses. Usually we had almost every single live adaption of this character in purple coat, hat, etc. But this particular version is not following any comic, which gives more freedom to creativity and once again, out of the standards of what we could have expected.

Red is a colour related to passion, action, love, strength, motivation and excitement. As for yellow, it indicates freshness, happiness and enlightenment and finally, green. Green is renewal, growth and regeneration. Colours that represent a new stage in his life, a mirthful chapter at last. We finally get to see our battered, always humiliated protagonist (or hero) descending into madness, but finally free from his repressed man who held his soul captive like a bird to fly away, to never come back. An insanity that despite being his downfall, turned out to be his ticket to freedom as he walks to the light in Arkham Asylum dancing at the end.

Ladies and gentlemen: behold the film nobody asked... But the film we fucking deserved.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk

❤️💚💛

[dent-de-leon]

Hey man, love your theories and analyses! Can I ask you, and sorry if you've already talked about this, what differences do you see between the Shiro Keith interactions and the Holt siblings interactions? I'm interested because you mention how intentionally (?) different they are. Thank you!

 Ok, sure! Let’s go through this:

There’s a huge maturity gap between Pidge and Matt that we see right away. Pidge is very easily excited and eager to show everything off to Matt, and people joke that she’s trying to show off in front of her big brother. With Shiro and Keith, it’s clear they’re on the same level. They’re both paladins and leaders. Keith never acts like a younger sibling the way Pidge does in front of Matt. Because he’s not

Going off the clear distinction between these two dynamics, its important to look at the difference between Matt inspiring Pidge and Shiro training Keith. Matt does his best to lead by example–because he’s the older sibling, so he has to be a good role model for his little sister. Understandable. However, that’s not what happens when Shiro decides to train Keith as his successor. He doesn’t say This is how I became the Black Paladin, and if you work hard like me, you can reach my level. No. Instead, he tells Keith that he already has that potential and argues that he could take up Shiro’s mantle alone and be a great leader. Shiro’s not trying to set an example for Keith. He already sees that greatness in him and just wants Keith to realize it. Furthermore–when Matt tells Pidge to study hard, she immediately does. When Shiro tries explaining what Keith has to do to prepare being a leader, he outright cuts him off and refuses to acknowledge it 

Pidge and Matt do this back and forth, good-natured teasing thing a lot. Matt will claim he’s so cool and Pidge well be like, Uh, not really. Siblings  tease each other all the time, so it’s expected that they like to push each other’s buttons every now and again. But we never see this kind of behavior from Keith and Shiro. 

Matt and Pidge also often seem like they’re speaking their own other language, they have little nicknames, pet peeves, inside jokes, secret code, and can go on and on like they’re right back at home and nothing’s changed. It’s what you’d expect from people who grew up together 

With Keith and Shiro, it’s never so simple. They don’t have dorky nicknames or secret pass codes or look at one another and just go “stop that, you’re annoying me.” Their interactions are never so carefree and familiar. There’s a noticeable gravity and distance there, a sense that–while they’re closer to one another than anyone else, both are still holding back and tiptoeing around this…whatever it is they have. That’s not how characters with a brotherly, platonic relationship behave 

Going back to Matt and Pidge, their seamless familiarity does come with this notion they’re always on the same wavelength. To the point where Hunk groans and goes, “Oh yeah, you guys are definitely related.” Again, Shiro and Keith don’t have that kind of dynamic. Not at all. None of the paladins ever comment on them being like brothers or way too similar–let alone annoyingly so

There’s also the fact that there’s a level of intimacy you see between Shiro and Keith that is not at all like the familial love you see expressed through the Holts. Literally any of Shiro’s or Keith’ Longing Gazes would look immediately out of place if you tried to argue their dynamic was purely brotherly. Like, compare Matt being proud of Pidge and Shiro’s face when Keith tells him he’s going to make it. There’s a clear difference

Speaking of intimacy, let’s look at the first hug we see for sheith turns out and the way the first hug between Pidge and Matt goes. Again, one is framed and presented as distinctly romantic and intimately private, while the other is clearly familial:

And I’ve talked about this a lot before, so I won’t waste more time going into it here, but–the way Pidge reacts to losing Matt is distinctly different to how Keith grieves Shiro. The way Keith continually carries a torch for Shiro while everyone else tells him Shiro would want him to move on–it’s very characteristic of someone mourning a lost lover. No one tells Pidge Matt would want her to just give up and get going. Keith’s grief-stricken outbursts about how no one else cares about Shiro the way he does also supports this. Pidge isn’t in a position where she feels like she has to justify why her loss is so deeply personal the way Keith does, everyone just gets it. But Keith going out of his way to do so–and spiting everyone else in the process–sounds like a character who’s lost their lover. 

There’s also this sense of desire and desperation about Keith’s feelings for Shiro that are nowhere present with Matt and Pidge. Keith’s constant fear of losing Shiro and desperation to be with him are far more characteristic of unrequited love

We’ve gotten snippets of Pidge’s backstory since the beginning, but with Shiro and Keith, the writers are always holding back. As if there’s something more to their dynamic they’re trying to keep very secretive about. And given all the parallels between sheith and zaggar already, I wouldn’t be surprised if we got a prekerberos flashback about Keith falling for Shiro and mourning his disappearance 

I could go on and on about other things–about all the parallels between sheith and zaggar as opposed to Matt and Pidge, about how plenty of people on the staff have supported sheith in a romantic context and therefore can interpret it that way, about how Keith and Shiro’s intro felt like the way to introduce two love interests–but I’ve talked enough already, so yeah. Long post short–they’re two completely different character dynamics, and when people claim sheith can only be platonic or brotherly, it’s always really confused me. I just can’t see it. Especially when compared to two characters who are siblings 

[problematic-camren]

LAND, specifically Lauren, said in an article that they were in a better place, and they hope and wish Camila is too. And that's all that matters. They also were upset with that one interviewer that called them 'divas' and tweeted about it. Something about people shouldn't pin women against women. But now they shade the former fifth member? I'm having a hard time, please enlighten me on this matter man, I trust you.

I actually have said everything I needed to say in my previous posts, but because you asked nicely, I’ll share one last opinion about this issue. (This is the last one because I’ll be busy for a few days, and also, this shouldn’t be a big issue, really, and I don’t wanna talk about it anymore after this.)

Okay, so…

Whether they have moved on or are in a better place now, they still have a right to share their story. Just like celebrities releasing tell-all books years later, or Taylor swift (whether you like her or not) making music and videos about her shit, 5h are people too with a story to tell. They have a right to share their story.

A few points:

• the facts are simple: Camila left the group. What they showed us was symbolic of their group losing one member. What’s shady about that? It’s just plain facts. It’s not news. A member jumped off. They lost a member.

It will be shady if they gunned her down or pushed her into a pit of snakes or did a mockery of her name or anything. But no, All they did was show a two second frame of a fifth member falling backwards, and then all of them falling backwards later on.

Let’s NOT invalidate what 5H have gone through when Camila left the group by calling it “shade” or “unnecessary”. It’s like saying that one side in any history stories/books is unnecessary coz it’s shady. Imagine if we get offended by the stories of the aborigines and how their lands were stolen from them, coz past is past, they should move on, and they should just be quiet about it. I’m not saying Camila or 5h are colonizers lmao, it’s just an example of how there are always two (or more) sides to every story. And both are vital to be heard in the shaping of history.

Yes, maybe they could have chosen other ways to tell their story, but let’s be real, whether they choose to do an interview, or they wrote a book, or they cry their eyes out in front of a camera as they share their own experiences, people will still find something to hate on. People will still call them shady, one way or the other.

Their intro was nothing new to us. They didn’t even serve new tea.

Yes, it could EASILY be deemed shady, but it also could easily be interpreted as a simple telling of a story. Like I said in my previous posts (linked below), there are always two (or more) sides to a story. Camila gets to share her experiences through her album (her hurting and her healing), and 5h, by principle, should also be allowed to share theirs. And a member jumping off is not shade. Because Camila basically jumped off their ship.

And people saying that “Camila didn’t shade them, they shouldn’t shade her”… Guys, Camila left them. Of course she wouldn’t be shady. She already had the upper hand (she has a dream team, she had established her network, she had successful collabs, she had a pet project on the works), she didn’t need to be shady because she’s busy living her life. (And no i don’t hate her for it. I’m actually happy that she’s found her freedom because I know how it feels to suffer mentally and be trapped in an unhappy space where your soul couldn’t flourish. I get her.)

• they’re now in a better place, accdg to Lauren. So that means they have come to terms with their pain. Some people avoid issues when it’s still too raw or painful for them, once they get into a place where they have accepted their situation and are ready to move on, they also have the option to talk about it or face it. (Like Camila avoiding finishing IHQ because it was too painful for her, and then finally coming to terms with it, and with that healing came the writing process, and then her sharing the song to all of us. We all have our interpretation about IHQ, but it’s her story to tell, regardless of what our interpretation is. She’s free to share that experience).

Again, a fifth member jumping off the stage which is a direct reflection to Camila leaving the group, for me, isn’t shade. It’s their own narrative. It’s their story, how is it shady to tell your own version of the story? It’s not even a tell-all. It’s a simple fact we already know. That Camila left. That’s all the intro was about: They lost one member. That’s all.

And maybe it’s unnecessary for us, but maybe it’s necessary for them. Sometimes, to fully move on, we have to lay all the cards on the table. Them showing that part of their experience (Camila leaving/ “Camila jumping”) is probably their way of telling us that they lost a member and now they’re stronger than ever. It’s a simple flow of the story. A story should have a beginning and an end for it to make sense. The beginning may be painful or offensive to us, but it’s THEIR STORY TO TELL. Maybe they needed to show us the beginning, so they could show us their end (or a start of a new chapter).

Call them shady bitches, it’s your prerogative, but even Lucifer has his own story. Even a villain has an origin story. Even The Joker has an origin story.

And just because one side has decided to share a part of their history, doesn’t mean it’s a direct attack to the other side. Sometimes, we just have to tell our story. Coz we’re all humans. We all have pain and we all have our own experiences of the same moment or situation.

I hope I was able to explain my thoughts properly. And I hope that we find it in our hearts to understand 5h, like we tried to understand Camila when she left the group. I know some of y'all may feel offended or hurt because we all are protective of our idols, but the best way to see through a person’s pain is by trying to put yourself in that person’s situation, and try to imagine how it would feel like and how it must be like to live through that experience. Empathy and compassion will make us less defensive and less hostile because we see and understand a different point of view. It may be hard to understand at first, but if we try to dig deeper, we might be able to see the bigger picture.

Nobody is a villain here, just a bunch of stories for us to read.

A reminder that I Stan both Camila and 5h. It’s possible. We may have favorites, but it’s possible to stan both. Just acknowledge that all of them are not perfect, and it’ll be easier to not hate anybody.

And now I’m really done explaining. Lol. Please guys don’t send me anymore asks or arguments. Let’s breathe.

Goodnight!

https://problematic-camren.tumblr.com/post/164695995823/5h-on-vmas-2017

https://problematic-camren.tumblr.com/post/164701721638/im-so-done-with-yall

[beautybeyondchristle]

Have you ever encountered someone who unexpectedly and unconditionally guides, teaches and loves you whole-heartedly in the sea of chaos of your life? No one knows how hard it is, but because of his teachings, everything changed from every little aspect of my life. He made me see and feel the chaos of the real world and I started to embrace myself. He is the male version of Malefiscent, wild and cold hearted yet if his heart is touched, anyone can see everything, an angel in disguise. Ever since, I used to be lost kitten in this universe, but when he passes into my realm; he is like a roaring lion whose toughness is contagious.

I used to be that dream girl of everyman: smart, good-looking and optimistic. But as you go deeper inside, you'll see the misery beneath her heart. And that is how he sees me, someone he need to save from the sea of misery. Although he is know for being stubborn and hard headed man, contrast of my image, he insisted to help me. In our first year as classmates in Senior High School, I used to be head over heels to his friend. Instead of supporting and tolerating his friend in his dirty and malicious deeds, he forcefully open my eyes to the real version of the man I used to adore, a 100% percent playboy indeed.

In the middle of our first semester, our section decided to compete in the interpretative dance organized by Ms. Samson. The tagalog song that we used was "Mahal ko or Mahal ako" where cupid tricked and tested us. When we started creating our own version of dance, Jc used to pester bill and bully other members whose thinking and visualizing our dance. But when I called him to come over so we can practice the first steps, he is like a thunder that quickly comes and obey me. Whener we had a sudden practice, he will chat in our gc that he could not come because he's not in the mood so I need to insist that he needs to come or else we will have different partners. After a long debate, he will still come in our practice. While doing the routines in the dance, we are used to have a mini play between us and that is by staring at each others eye without blinking. Guess what? He always lose because after five seconds that he will look at my eye he will laugh hardly as if it has no tomorrow.

After how many months, April of year 2019, we started having our conversations in social media. And that was the beginning of I know the mask of a hard-headed guy in the school, a loving son to his mother and younger siblings. He would always send me pictures of him with his mother and youngest sibling Princess, smiling brightly as a sun. He always tells me his dreams for his mom when he have decent work: a simple and yet loving ambiance of a house. Despite of teachers telling him harsh accusations, i can see how eager him to reach his dreams. And it hitted me hardly that all my murmurings and dramatic problems with my mother was a huge trash. He wake up my senses on how important my mother was, in my life.

July of the same year, we are officially in relationship and that is where I can see how soft hearded he was. When I'm alone walking in the street, I ignored when there is some beggars begging for any amount. But everday that we encountered some beggars, especially if it is elder, he used to give some amount and food that he have. Sometimes, he will stop by and help others like on the side of the church was an elder who had a hard time in her wheelchair. I'm used to it and one day i saw myself helping him doing his own courtesy of showing care, respect and love to others.

On our seven month as partners, he opened my eyes into the real world. I have developed a strong personality outside for I not to be easily broken by other people's judgement. They might be blinded by our naughty and devilish side but our golden heart will always speaks for who we truly are. A malefiscent outside but an angel in disguise for anyone who can touch his heart and know him deeply, my beloved Jc.

[anti-yuri-on-ice]

Hi, my friend thinks Y//o//I is positive representation, whereas I feel it's nothing more than fetishization. I've tried to drop the topic because I'd rather conserve our friendship, but she keeps telling me to provide evidence and won't back down. It's fine if you don't, but I've seen this blog backup their points with sources, and I'm wondering if you have a compilation of your more thorough analyses on why Y//o//I is fanservice. Thanks for all you do.

Hello, I am that one gay man who works here, love when girls decide what is good representation for me.  First off we have our obvious links to another gay man’s review.  Important things for you to have are uncensored kisses and censorship in Japan.  Regardless they’re gonna bring up these points, crush them.Other Links;It’s Up To InterpretationAn Adventure Into The UnknownThe Choreography of the Butt

So guys, you finally did it, you unlocked Mod 3′s opinions on representation.  I’ll say two things straight up;1. Not everyone, especially not every gay man, will agree with me2. I am fine with people liking fanservice, I’m fine with people liking fetishistic stuff, my issue is being handed porn and people going “look it’s good representation of you!”

Because that’s what piss on it is.  It’s basically pg-13 porn.  All these naked dudes to say semi “romantic” mostly-stalkerish things.  With dramatic zooms on their anti-gravity tears and shiny lips.  Like I’m uncomfortable to begin with but let’s talk about the obvious.

Everyone in this show is a fucking twink.

Yes they’re figure skaters, but they’re all twinks and here’s the thing see the twink demographic, it goes primarily to women who want to watch gay porn.  Just like how straight men want to watch hairless big tittied 18-year-old lesbians, women want to watch hairless soft 18-year-old gay men.  All the same.  You can also throw in all those other formulaic things for teen to middle-aged women!  Soft boys who have everything but god they’re just so sad and they’re crying at everything.  Cough every romance novel popular in these age ranges.  So first and most obvious point, they made characters to appeal to women.  What kind of characters appeal to gay men you may ask, well I’m sure some of us like twinks, that’s not a surprise but you’ll mainly find.

Bears.  Yes, we know by now I can’t do these without mentioning Otouto no Otto.  Why can’t I?  Why that would be because it’s a manga with a gay character written by a gay man to teach people about homophobia with no fanservice, despite the fact this author also writes gay porn.  It’s a very different kind of manga, it’s not solely about representation, it’s also about making things better, which I’d happily pick up any day.  This manga is one I’m very happy about.

But back to the point, when people want to appeal more to gay men, you notice a trend in bears, in muscular guys, in tough fighting scenes where they’re all gonna fight, they’re gonna take down the government, and then be forced to kill their loved one or watch them die!  Amazingly all that ridiculous manly, masculine stuff people make fun of?  It all comes in with gay characters too.  In the end, we’re still men, and a lot of us are still into this stuff or at least that’s what the sales chart tells us so.  

So if yuck on fuck ass is meant to be representation for us and not fanservice for fujoshi, why dd we take from the chart that says women, and not men?  Well, answer the first is well they wanted a figure skating anime.  Okay, why does that have to be gay?  Oh well, we need more representation (that’s a lie its because we have a stereotype that figure skating and dancing are feminine hobbies and all men in them are gay whoops did I say that out loud?).  Well, Mod 3, shouldn’t you be happy?  How could they have done this better?

Well my dear strawman of every other anon we get, let’s start by removing this;

The romantic scenes?  No the god fucking awful shiny lips what the fuck is that about anyway.  Seriously, I only ever see lips this shiny in women’s media, and I don’t get it, this is one someone needs to explain to me, why are you all so supposedly into this?  It’s not a focus at all in men's’ media, where did this come from?  And while we’re at it remove this

This is some stalker-ish shit that is the reason Jun// //jou Rom// /antica was a new york times best seller.  Oh?  Did we forget about that?  That while yuck on fuck ass may have sold well so did freaking New York Times Best Seller Jun/ //jou Rom//  //antica.  Number 6 in the manga category!  And oh boy look at this it’s almost like there’s no damn difference.

But hey.  That doesn’t mean all good representation is done by gay men, hell some of it isn’t done with gay men in mind.  But this is where you see a stark difference in what people feel is representation of them.  That’s because we’re all different, so different things relate to us.  But here’s the strict rule.

IF YOU AREN’T A MEMBER OF THE GROUP YOU DON’T GET TO DECIDE IF IT IS GOOD REPRESENTATION!

BEING A GAY MAN DOESN’T MEAN YOU GET TO DECIDE WHAT IS GOOD REPRESENTATION FOR LESBIANS!

BEING A LESBIAN DOESN’T MEAN YOU GET TO DECIDE WHAT IS GOOD REPRESENTATION FOR GAY MEN!

Yeah, guess what, it’s as simple as that!  I’m white, I quite frankly can not say if yoi had good representation of say Chinese people, based on my own opinions, I have to listen to the various opinions of Chinese people to find out what is the general consensus.  It’s that simple!  And another thing to note;

Gay men can like a thing without it being good representation!  Yep boys, I’m Mod 3, and I fucking like Ade// /kan!  Is it good representation?  NOPE!  Is it meaningless fanservice for girls?  Mostly yeah!  But I have fun with the story and it makes me laugh so I fucking like it regardless!  Things don’t have to be good representation to be liked!!  It’s that simple!!  You don’t need to use everything you like to fuel your moral superiority!

But back on topic, there are things by non-men that I feel I liked as representation.  I like N// o.6, that has emotional teen boys kissing, and that makes it hard to pin down what is so good there.  Might be the fighting and the murder and clear references to real life issues and also gay men destroy the government.  Like yeah, that sounds like the mentality of most of my friends.  Why do I like sam/ //flam?  Superheroes.  Also, I don’t feel sam // /flam is trying too hard for that female audience a lot of the time.  You know I have a list of things I felt were good representation of me, all contain violence.  I’m an incredibly transparent person.

But what makes the best representation?

It being canon and not treated as a fucking joke.

Oh yuck on fuck ass isn’t it SOOOO funny that a couple might get engaged!  Let’s hide the kiss and act all joke-y about it in interviews!  Let’s not have the characters actually talk about a relationship or if they want to be together like adults, let’s not have them even discuss if they want to get married, let’s just use it as a fucking joke for the lulz.  Hilarious.  Not tired at all.  Not done by 500 different shows.  Revolutionary.

If you gave a shit, you wouldn’t have made it a joke.

I’m done for now but expect me to charge back in with more and more links.  For now definitely, check out the review by the man I linked at the start and also check out Rantasmo’s Yaoi Fangirls Need More Gay.