#ianto questions

[iantoisalive]

What kind of alien is Ianto fighting today?

[thetrinitytest]

if ianto jones (NOT gareth david-lloyd. actual ianto jones) walked through your door and said he wasnt dead and he needed a kidney and you were the only match what would you do

i am holding his face in my hands, kissing that man on the forehead, and asking him if he wants the left or right one

[thelineofisstillhere]

This has plagued me for years and I need someone to explain. What is happening in this scene?! Is it just that Jack was worried Ianto was scared and when he isn’t actually the Captain gets mad? Because it seems like a bit of an overreaction.

It almost feels like Ianto is being flirty at the start “Shivers down my spine,” so I wish they had stuck with that vibe. Especially as Ianto spends the rest of the episode being a playful and sassy bitch, it would have fitted in.

Justice for janto moments that could have been enhanced.

[kalechaos]

”I love you”

”Dont”

yk what im going to fucking kill myself cause wtf was that

[dw-humps-n-snarkives]

My two cents at the Johnto discourse since "complexity" is at play here:

1. The audio has explicitly called back on the imagery of mirrors representing the fact that the events that took place in this particular audio is an alternate timeline. Everything in this audio did not happen in TV Torchwood's canon.

(Although, I'm one of the people that don't believe in canon when it comes to the Whoniverse, but we're speaking in narratives here. You can argue that TV John is still capable of doing such things considering what transpired in the episodes involving him, but there's still a particular part of his character that we tend to overlook which I will be picking up at #5).

2. You are ALLOWED to be uncomfortable with the contents of this audio as you can with many other forms of media and many types of fandom. This audio was an experimental approach to Torchwood as a whole, John is Jack's narrative foil and his character is supposed to show that "this is what would happen if Captain Jack Harkness never attempted to be the better person in any chance he gets."

Jack is not a good person, but he's not inherently evil either. John is definitely not a good person, you could say he's Jack's evil counterpart, but you can still see a sense of humanity in John's character especially when you see him interact with Jack.

(See: The latter portion of TDOCJ when Jack realized that John went back to him because he wanted to stop the universe from collapsing, the entirety of Peach Blossom Heights in The Sins of Captain John, and smidges of dialogue between the two where John's behavior can be easily labelled as "a crazy and clingy ex.")

3. Ianto wasn't the only one who suffered in John's reign in the audio (I know that sounds horrible since I'm putting him aside but bear with me here, he'll have the whole portion after this).

Gwen was coerced to have sex with John and it immediately moves to the part of the timeline where John deliberately killed Gwen, John killing Rhys when he was (understandably) upset with not being informed that his girlfriend died, Tosh was literally treated as a disposable, and you could barely get anything from Owen since he was only mentioned once.

What Ianto went through is undoubtably SA. The way John toyed with Ianto is completely unacceptable and it should not be glorified, romanticized, or repeated in any way, shape, or form. That being said, as a fellow polycule Ianto, Jack, and John enjoyer, this audio is definitely NOT the sole reason why people ship Johnto, or conjure ship content involving John.

I'd like to refer you to this post involving Ianto's many horrible non-consensual happenings in his relationships throughout every Torchwood timeline out there (with Ianto ALWAYS being the victim). John and Ianto's relationship in this audio is also the potential outcome of "if Jack and Ianto's relationship were to be more toxic and unethical in the workplace" (and their relationship in TV Torchwood was hardly on equal grounding, too).

A VERY IMPORTANT ADDITIONAL NOTE:

I'm not stating that Jack and Ianto's relationship should be seen in a negative light, pointing out the flaws and toxic traits of a relationship doesn't make their love for each other and entire relationship any less valid. Their relationship is complicated and that's normal, I'm only pointing out the power imbalance in Jack and Ianto's relationship when viewing it in a workplace setting (being Torchwood).

Said power imbalance doesn't mean I'm ignoring the choice of both Jack and Ianto to start and keep the relationship going as they are both consenting adults, whatever problems that may cause between and outside them will follow (it's just unfortunate that in Ianto's story, he always gets involved in fucked up arrangements in his relationships because of Torchwood, whether platonic, familial, or romantic).

4. Creating ships and pairs that could potentially be toxic for either or both parties is not a new concept. If done right, liking complicated ships and pairs only means you find the dynamic, the narrative, and/or the reaction between each persons interesting, it could even be used as a study for people who are interested in making a story because stories cannot exist without conflict. This also means you don't actively support the good or bad things about a ship or a narrative, that's the point of having an audience in the first place: members of fandoms are meant to criticize the source, whether it's in a positive or negative way, because people find a way to make something new out of it in the most creative way possible. That's what fandom is.

5. Captain John Hart as a character was never meant to be taken too seriously in the first place. His behavior in The Sins of Captain John proves as such, and using him at TDOCJ was a perfect way of presenting the exaggerated "what-if" situation as he perfectly thrives in parodies and he thrives in the purest form of pettiness and unfiltered, somewhat childishly edgy entertainment. No doubt, he's a murderous, selfish asshole, but liking a villain character doesn't reflect your character as the viewer and consumer of the character's content (See: The Master).

Remember that this is Torchwood, the show where everyone is capable of doing the most unethical and immoral thing to get to their objective, and Captain John Hart and Ianto Jones are not exempted from such influence.

Most importantly, always handle discourse in a civilized manner. Coming after people while making a point will become futile as there will be no discussion made when someone gets hurt.

You're allowed to critcize the content, but don't judge the people who enjoy it. Appreciating a supposedly problematic ship does not reflect on their overall humanity.

[iamsuperwholocked]

Tosh: What time is it?

Owen: I don’t know; pass me that saxophone and we’ll find out

Owen: *Plays sax loudly and extremely out of tune*

Ianto: WHO THE FUCK IS PLAYING THE SAXOPHONE AT TWO IN THE MORNING

Owen: It’s 2 am

[quietwingsinthesky]

one of my favorite things about doctor who is that, by necessity from the ever-rotating cast of companions and the doctor’s own changing face, you could never possibly argue that there’s one single pairing for the doctor to get with that would be the True One For Them. they’ve lived too long, loved too much, for it to ever be just one person.

[jakowskis]

trans owen AND autistic owen posts in his tag today. inspired

[iantoisalive]

What did Ianto name the group chat with the team?

Alternatively who refuses to get an iPhone so the messages are green?

[anthonycrowley]

i love jack harkness so much just as a concept i really do. bisexual who cannot die. i'm already sold.

[ashdoesfandomarchieved]

everything i’ve learned about torchwood via @eggmuffinwaffles has been against my will

[ask-torchwood-13]

Hey Ianto, if you were a dog, what breed of dog would you be?

Well, personally I think I would be more of a Bernese mountain dog... Just don't ask Jack this question.

[dw-humps-n-snarkives]

Has anyone made a fic of Ianto using the ghost device from S1Ep3?

[copperbadge]

Weird question alert.

I was scrolling through Tumblr today and saw your username. I have to ask - are you the Copperbadge? The one who once wrote a Torchwood fanfic called The Theory of Two Centres in 2008?

Last year I went through a really devastating experience and needed some comfort. I cast my mind back and remembered that great fic where Ianto Jones lost his memories. So I started googling to find it, after quite some time (because I couldn't remember what it was called or who wrote it) I eventually found it again.

That fic is THE fic for me. It's stayed with me through the years and it bought me as much joy re-reading it as an adult as it did when I first read it all those years ago.

Anyway I hope that it was you and that you're not too weirded out by some random on Tumblr bringing up your Torchwood fanfic from 16 years ago.

That is indeed me!

I'm so sorry you had to go through such a stressful and difficult experience, but I'm glad you could find the fic again and take comfort from it. As a writer it's wonderful to hear when I touch someone with my fiction, but especially when it's able to give something.

Lord, 16 years ago. That's too long.

I hope you're in a better place now, and I am not at all weirded out :) I sometimes write to inspire, sometimes to explicate or explore, but I always write as a way of reaching out. I'm so pleased it helped you.

[iantoscoffee]

ianto and bisexuality.

being unsure, questioning yourself all the time, being told to label yourself and that same label later being “unvalid”. the stereotypes, the accusations of transphobia and the “best of both worlds” are the reasons why some people to this very day struggle with accepting themselves and ianto is a primary example of that. he doesn’ t refuse his sexuality nor he is ashamed of it; what upsets him is how hard it is for him to live in a world where others’ opinion on you (labels) are more important that the person themselves.

from: torchwood the twilight streets (book) from gary russell