#idk i feel a lot of kids don't have respect for adults bc adults are like. mean to them.

[quicktimeeventfull]

also like tbh i strongly feel that if a younger person doesn't know how to use a piece of technology that you are familiar with the correct response is to like. teach them. you know. like if you run into a child who doesn't know how to run an .exe file you can just take like five minutes out of your day to show them and then they will know. 99% of the tech we grew up is genuinely pretty simple, so if someone doesn't know how to use it it's probably a lack of familiarity more than anything else. ‘easy’ isn’t the same thing as ‘intuitive.’

ime kids are usually pretty gracious about doing it the other way around? like basically every time i've been struggling with an app or something in the presence of a younger person they've just taken my phone and showed me how to do it, or gone ahead and done it for me. so it's really not difficult to do the same for them.

[ghostofbambifanfiction]

how do you feel about minors reading your fics or fics which might contain more explicit topics (be it substance abuse, heavy topics like eating disorders etc, and of course sexual topics). there has been conversation in other fandoms I am in on these and a lot of "adults" (I say adults bcs some of them are 23-25 which from my perspective is like oh you sweet summer child) are saying minors should not interact with their content, should not comment/bookmark/reblog, should not send them asks (anon or not) on their stuff with some of them saying they are ready to block individual suspects (aka minors who interact) in order to prevent them. and idk my perspective is that I wouldn't want to alienate anyone from the fandom, but would much rather focus on curating a good fandom experience and making sure young people dont take away too much from these fanfics because it is all fiction after all.

the reason i ask is because you are (i think) 7 years older than me but have been an integral part of my experience in the jily/marauders fandom since i was like quite young?

I think it's not up to me to check on what age my readers are or gatekeep my writing from anyone, and the same goes for any other writer. I write what I want to write, I stick the appropriate age label on AO3 and once it's out there in the world it's the reader/reader's parents' responsibility to seek out suitable material. When it comes to my writing specifically, if there are underage kids reading my fics, I'm not worried about that because my content is comparatively quite wholesome and the message I always try to instill is that an aspirational romantic relationship is one where kindness and respect, and not toxic, controlling behaviours, are key. I don't think there's any detriment to reading content like that, in fact I wish it was a more popular aspect of romance fiction in general (which is part of a wider conversation about what kind of behaviour is romanticised in fiction, but ultimately any writer is free to write whatever the hell they want). On a wider scale, when it comes to fandom in general, it's up to parents and guardians to talk to their kids about what they're read and what messages they're taking away from any media they consume. I'm a parent and I would never ever consider it a creator's responsibility to monitor what my child is doing, because it isn't their responsibility, it's mine, and I'm not here to be anyone else's mommy. If I get an ask from a 15 year old who tells me they love my fics, I'm happy that I've written something that brings them happiness, and I'm not going to alienate them, scold them, or talk down to them simply for being young.

[minijenn]

Jen Tortures Herself With Every Dreamworks Animated Movie Ever: The Boss Baby: Family Business

So would you believe me if I told you this movie is better than the first Boss Baby? I mean it's not... much better, but still, improvements were made here. Let's talk about them.

We jump foward to a now adult Tim, who has fallen out of touch with his brother Ted (the original Boss Baby) and struggles to connect with his daughter Tabitha. He soon discovers his baby Tina is on assignment from BabyCorp to stop a new villain intent on wiping out all parents. Tina gives both Ted and Tim a formula to make them both young again, recruiting their help on this mission and roping them into all sorts of Mischief ala the first movie but... like I said, marginally better.

So yeah, once again, very silly plot for a very silly movie. And yet... I don't know, it feels more... genuine than the first one did? Like it leans less on the obvious "oh look at funee baby in suit talking like a businessman" (though there is still plenty of that) and leans more on character interactions and I gotta respect that. Especially since it actually gives me a reason to care about Ted and Tim this time around, actually strengthening their bond and reflecting on how they weren't there for each other growing up like they promised they would be, and how they're given a second chance to change that now. Idk, just some pretty nice thematic stuff in there, along with Tim learning to be a better dad to his kids along the way (daddy issues in Dreamworks movies, they never stop, I Swear).

The characters here are... ok. Better than they were in the first movie, I mean fuck, the titual Boss Baby is toned down a lot and is honestly one of the least painful parts of this. Tim is also better, mostly bc he's actually an adult here so he's not your annoying kid stereotype like he was before. Tina is... kind of annoying, being the source of all of the "business baby" jokes and she grates on the nerves every now and then. Tabitha is ok though, getting some good development alongside Tim. Then we have our villain, Armstrong, who is... surprisingly funny? Like he isn't the funniest dreamworks baddie by any means, but he was certainly watchable. Hell, you could kind of say that for this movie as a whole, really.

The humor here is a little better, striking surprisingly a little more mature than last time (featuring an insane joke about agnostics like what the fuck Dreamworks I never would have thought you'd ever reference religion again after Prince of Egypt holy shit). The emotional beats also hit just a touch more, feeling a good degree less forced than the first movie's. And yet for everything this movie does well, I think its biggest problem is it drags on for far too long, just meandering with scenes that don't need to be anywhere near as long as they are, into a movie with a longer runtime than it probably should have had. It gets... tiring, after a while, and you get to the point where you just want the damn thing to end.

The animation here is really nothing special, basically looking identical to the first movie's, though I will say a few of the imagination sequences were sort of eye catching here. The music is also pretty simplistic but there were a few diagetic songs that I thought were... ok enough. Pretty unoffensive in that reguard, though of course, the pop songs just couldn't keep their nose out of this movie either.

Like I said, its far from being anything resembling good, but fuck, I watched Spirit Untamed last night and this was better than that and it was also better than the first movie, so that's gotta count for something. Even then though, it doesn't count for... that much.

Overall Rating: 4/10

Verdict: Pay tribute to the Greatest Dreamworks Character Ever: The Agnostic Kid

Previous Review (Spirit Untamed)

Next Review (The Bad Guys)

[ruthlesslistener]

Oohhh I get it now. But tbh if I'm going to be honest, at least proshippers hide their stuff away in their respective dark areas/behind safe walls and even tag and warn people about the dark content they make. Antis dont, they just invade places and engage in the said dark content just to get mad at it. At least from my own experiences from them. Idk I just see most proshippers as responsible in managing what they make, while antis don't. I actually got a taste of dark content from antis myself as a kid, in a lot of callouts made by antis lololol. And not because the proshipper were demanding their content be known. Its been like that even now actually, where dark content gets shoved in people's faces purely because an anti is trying to act like a hero. Though this is just my experience with them.

Another thing if you wouldn't mind, is that while it's true that dark content can lead to a lot of things in real life. I personally see that it has to be allowed to exist, because dark content shows the dark realities of life and that we shouldn't just leave it/ignore it. I seen victims of abuse for example, who had their experiences validated from reading dark content/about their abuse in stories. Or like the fact that a certain famous entertainment company doesnt want to show blood in their content because of "violence" in shows where kids and adults are watching, where some have pointed out that not showing even a small proportions of what violence can do (blood) will lead to a very naive understanding of the consequences of violence. Shocking because this is a western company, and the TV show in question involves guns and... you get the idea. Don't get me started on censorship and how that can get out of hand so easily.

I don't think I'm explaining this well but yeh. Dark content is needed and should be allowed to exist in my personal views, but should still be allowed to exist behind close doors and away from people who don't want to see it. You can delete this ask if it makes you uncomfortable, I'm just trying to put my two cents into this convo. But yeh, I prefer to live in a world where dark content exists and not one where its nothing but "wholesome" and "pure".

.

[Tone: calm and neutral]

Oh no yeah I agree with you 100%, this is my exact stance on things and is a mirror to most of my experiences- hell, I like exclusively dark content and part of the reason for that is bc I came from a psychologically/emotionally (and sometimes physically) where 'we're all just a big happy family and you're ruining it you little freak' was a big problem. Stuff that's just pure and wholesome actually makes me feel uneasy and on edge all the time because I always feel like the other shoe is about to drop, while horror is comforting because I can read the situation and know what's happening. Part of the issue in my household also stems from the fact that my dad has an issue with differentiating fiction and reality (he suffers from untreated ocd and paranoia and a whole slew of other issues), and he used to blame the stuff I was reading for making me 'disrespectful' and 'cold' whenever I dared to have a negative emotion- hence me just seeking out more and more fucked up shit so that I could vent my anger without getting cussed out (though it also was bc I wasn't allowed to watch anything over a G rating til I was fucking. 16.). Without going into more detail, he used extremely similar tactics to antis and that's why I have such a strongly negative response to them, discounting all of the times where I had nasty run-ins with them. I very much hate all of them and it is because I had to deal with people like them my whole life. It wasn't fun.

I have very few actual squicks, and if I'm in a curious mood I'll also read stuff even if it disgusts me- and hell, sometimes their are exceptions. Captive Prince is a series I'm very fond of full of rape, csa, incest, and psychological abuse, but the reason why I love it despite the content is because it is a very compelling story about how horrible all that abuse is and how deeply fucked up it can make a person, as well as how awful the victim can seem when your pov is being manipulated by the abuser. The problem I have isn't content-based as much as it is the people, and, to the lesser extent, the tone of some of what they make.

See, what soured me on proshippers aren't people who are quietly making darker content and posting/tagging it properly (those are just normal writers and artists imo), I'm talking those who proudly proclaim themselves as proship, aka the vocal few balls deep in The Discourse who make it their whole personality trait. They're mostly centered to Twitter rather than Tumblr nowadays, but the problem with said vocal minority is that they are. Well. Extremely fucking annoying, entitled, tone-deaf, and just overall awful people. Almost everyone who proudly flaunts that they're proship is so balls-deep in the discourse that they feel personally victimized by anyone who shows any negative reaction to the gross shit they're into bc that automatically means they're a puritan, when sometimes it really is just an expression of disgust. Twitter proshippers are a whole different breed than Tumblr ones after the porn ban, but unfortunatly I keep getting their arguments shown to me when I'm on the site scrolling for furry porn and its...bad. It's real fucking bad. Not as bad as antis half the time but certainly not much better in how they treat people and their personal boundaries.

It's also the people who will take content that's pretty fucked up and spins it through a fandom lens that also gets me, though most of the time I just block and move on with a bad taste in my mouth instead of getting actually angry. And by 'fandom lens', I mean people who will take a rape/abuse/etc situation and then go 'oh but what if they're a couple with only a few pokes at the fucked up elements in canon. Ex, some (admittedly few, but they exist) people ship Mohg and Miquella as a reciprocal pairing despite it being a kidnapping and nonconsensual body modification incest-for-power situation, and that just...it feels so wrong. It's just so shallow and such a bad take read on a complex situation that I cannot stand it, it makes me want to run the opposite way. I have zero authority to force people to not do things ofc, I'm not a fucking cop, but those people give me the vibe of someone who'd not help you out with an abusive partner because 'oh but his posessiveness and controlling nature is just so cute, and he clearly loves you so its okay!' and that rings the alarm bells of someone that I do NOT want to be around even if it logically means nothing.

Does that make sense? It's a convoluted mess, but I hope I made it more clear that it's not so much the content that bothers me as much as it is the people and how they use it.

[lowkeyrobin]

my rules!

disclaimer! my blog is best read on the tumblr dark mode, so if you're in any other theme, sorry if some text looks like shit or if dividers look kinda wonky

^also dont use my banners without permission, if you aren't gonna ask at least give me credit idk it makes me a little eh yk?

dream team stans + wilbur soot/lovejoy stans dni. same w anyone who idolizes/defends abusers/creeps in general.

if you're a bigot (racist, homo/transphobe, abelist, antisemite, zionist, etc) please leave

same with proshippers/proship defenders/anyone who sexualizes actors/characters/ppl especially when they state that's not okay/they're minors. ( lots of actors probably don't even know what fanfiction or fandomculture is, just respect them as actual ppl and don't be weird about them)

^ I don't condone parasocial people/activity. if you are parasocial, creepy or invasive, please block me. do NOT interact with my content nor read it. you're not welcome here

if you use ai to write/draw/anything BLOCK ME. youre not an artist or a writer, go touch grass, you must have a 1st grade reading/drawing level if you're seriously that desperate. ; that goes for template editors too... I'm an editor myself, it's not hard to learn. get out bruh that's cringe 💀

any adults who say minors dni and then interact with minors dni yall annoying

if you request a person/character who isn't on my list then there's a big chance I'll ignore it lol I'm sorry, those are just ppl ik the most and I can make not very ooc and I'm comfy writing ab them!

don't request any smut. it makes me and most of the ppl I write about uncomfortable lmao

I only write they/them / gn readers, sorry. I will write transmasc/transfem readers but only if requested, and bare with me on that cause I'm just a little nonbinary guy, idk much about being trans masc/fem

respect me as a person, I'm not a robot, I'm a real human lmao

please please tell me if using cc's real names or writing about them is against their boundaries so I can fix my mistakes!!

I don't write anything w pregnancy tropes, kids (other than qsmp eggs) and character versions of cc's (mostly bc I can't remember a lot of c! lore and whatnot), aus (other than soulmate & apocalypse aus and maybe some others, shoot your shot) incest, rape, stepcest, age regression (personal discomfort) age play, etc

if a person/character has (platonic) next to them, that's me warning you I might only do platonic stuff with them because I don't feel romantic attraction to 12yos (I'm not weird, you don't have to worry about me lol)

^with that just note that anything I write about those can be viewed as mostly platonic and I in no way find the child I'm writing about romantically attractive, thank you

I'm okay writing poly relationships! just don't be weird w it

don't sexualize anyone I write about!

it doesn't matter if they're adults or just fictional characters, I find it wrong to sexualize people who prob don't even know what fandom culture is / sexualize their every move. find another blog if you're that mad about it. (I mean as in its your whole personality, just keep it away from me lol)

[dumbdomb]

just so yknow tht post by kittenteeth have pornblogs in their dni!

so, nsft blogs are not pornblogs. "pornblogs" are accounts that are mostly impersonal, and very heavily show content that is extremely graphic and no other content. typical blogs i see post lots of thin, light skin, nude women or lots of content that clearly belongs to someone else (whether it be an independent swer or studio production). these blogs are violating the tos and community guidelines and risk being reported or terminated by the website itself.

bc i post lots of nsft, it only makes sense that i limit who i interact with (not reblogging from and blocking people under eighteen years of age). if someone has a description or pinned stating something like: nsft or kink blogs dni, then i avoid interacting and usually block that person to prevent accidentally interacting in the future. i never intended to strictly post nsft content, and i don't. this is a personal blog. i just try to maintain safety, respect, and limit my interactions to fellow adults around here.

i agree with kitttenteeth about not wanting older men lurking around and interacting, i also do not want that. i sometimes can't believe how many people i find that are closer to my age, that i have to block bc they are intentionally following and seeking much younger people... it's giving too "maps" for my comfort levels. though there are a few older people that have stuck around, it seems most have left for other platforms and got busy with work, kids, life, etc...

please do not refer to my blog as a pornblog just bc i post nsft and kinky content. if you view all nsft blogs this way, regardless of what they post, please block me. sex-negative, anti-kink, and anti-porn people are not welcome here. my blog welcomes ace/aro/allo kinksters, poc and people with different views on sexuality than what is normalized in western and mainstream society. ...and please do not involve other users if this was an attempt to harass me. it's not necessary, if you have questions about what someone allows or has boundaries with on their blog, it's best to ask the source for clarity rather than create a bigger situation out of nothing.

edited, october 6th, to include:

nsft and pornblogs were never synonymous, except to sfw users who didn't want to be around anything sexual or kinky at all. idk what you mean about "making your space safe for people like you" but i'm also ace and kinky. i'll post the tag below i use specifically for aspec content...

i think if there's ever any confusion about the intention of someone's dni, limits, boundaries then the best way to understand is to contact that person directly- which would've been the other blog in this case, not mine. it wasn't my dni, it was hers. regardless, this has been sorted and i have no ill feelings about it.

i appreciate you taking the time to think about this and write back. this post was for clarity and transparency, not a reprimand. i had no intention to make anyone feel bad and was mostly worried if i'd accidentally crossed some boundaries here (which wasn't the case at all and why i wrote everything out explaining things). i try to be very respectful of people's dni and how i'm interacting with different posts from everyone (since my blog is not entirely nsft, kinky, etc and i do post other things).

[shishikusas]

what’s ur thoughts on the recent happenings with masa? im kinda torn on it myself tbh

hello anon, i'm glad u asked bc i felt like it would be awkward to bring up unprompted

i have a lot of complicated feelings, but most of all i am really concerned for masa's well-being, bc he posted some kind of disturbing vent art before completely vanishing and its been over a week and there has been no activity at all from his account and idk. i just have a bad feeling he has hurt himself..

this isn't me DEFENDING him though, i feel like i should make that very clear if anyone's been on twitter, you've probably seen the thread that was made basically listing all the things masa's done that are bad and i agree with some parts, but others i really don't get

for example: masa's drawn weird stuff involving kids! nothing that could be classified as CP, but still weird nonetheless, and i don't like it at all! this is including adult patch, which i wish i could forget the existence of bc i legit never looked at the lyrics until very recently. it's also important to mention that he hasn't drawn anything like that (to my knowledge) since 2013... almost 10 years ago. so i don't think he's about that anymore, but it's still something that definitely happened

there's also many people parroting the idea that masa doxxed a minor, which is FALSE. he never did anything of the sort. what DID happen was masa brought attention to a person illegally streaming the spider and the kitsune-like lion, and tried to ask him to take it down to no avail. people then sent him personal information on the guy (via DMs) and he essentially was going to use it to take legal action. it may seem harsh, but this person's reupload had almost a million plays on spotify and was actively profiting off of a song that a) masa owns and b) masa wants gone from the internet more than any song he's ever made. eventually, masa apologized on twitter, saying that his fans were never supposed to see this and that it wasn't supposed to go down this way. he deleted all the tweets relating to the spotify guy too.

theres a bunch of other stuff i could get into but it would make this post WAY TOO LONG!! so i'm not unless someone asks abt something specific

one last thing: the reactions i've seen from some 'fans' after his meltdown (idk what else to call it) are fucking disgusting. i've seen ppl say that he's overreacting, that its just bait, or just actively making fun of him for it without a shred of empathy. he very clearly has something going on mentally and we have no idea what his personal life is like, so it's just cruel to act like that. people like that have no conscience and i don't respect them at all

more than anything, i believe in giving people second chances and if/when masa comes back, i am willing to continue being a fan as long as he doesn't pretend like nothing happened. still, i'm really concerned that he won't come back :((

[golbrocklovely]

i'm gonna rant about this for two seconds just bc i saw a lot of stuff about it on twitter and don't really feel like bitching about it there lol

so the teen wolf movie… i knew from the get go this was gonna end up being shit the moment dylan wasn't gonna be in it sksks

but what i've heard about this movie (bc highkey i ain't gonna watch it sorry), it somehow is worse than imagined.

i used to love teen wolf. literally watched it as it was airing. used to have a blog dedicated to it, used to do live recaps on my personal tumblr. i loved that show. but i started to not care about it around season 4/5ish. basically, they introduced too many characters and i just didn't care about a single one of them. hilariously one of the characters i despise is now loved deeply (theo) so… go figure.

but what i don't understand is… why are any of you surprised that jeff davis did what jeff davis does best and fucked up teen wolf?

like this man was notoriously hated for years in the fandom after season 3 bc everything he did to the characters sucked ass. and then topping all of that off, the queerbaiting. that man originated it (not really, but you get my point) so why are you guys surprised that he basically did all of this again just a decade or more later??

of course this movie was a cash grab and not really meant to bring back the love or respect the fans' love for this story. it was just to make money and keep the property rights going.

personally, if i was going to make a teen wolf movie, this is what i would have done:

the overall theme of the movie - letting go of the past.

assuming you could get most of the cast to come back, this is how the movie would have went: after everyone graduated high school (at least the main cast like scott, lydia, stiles, malia, that group), they all immediately left BH. maybe even make it seem like it was a supernatural reason or something, like something pushed them away from BH but they didn't know it at the time. years later, scott is starting to see visions of allison again, like how this movie alluded to it in the trailers. have the others start to see it too. maybe they even see past monsters coming back and haunting them, which makes them all go back to BH. imagine it kinda like in "it" where all the adult versions of the kids didn't remember their old home town, but once they are told about it, they are drawn back. kinda sorta like that.

they get to BH and everything seems okay-ish. hell, maybe you can even make it where it's their 10 year hs anniversary or something just so you get to see all the familiar faces. all of sudden, old monsters that they have fought and killed before come back. bring out all the old hits, maybe some new ones - idk. then, have allison appear. but she's not how she used to be.

she's now void!allison.

each of the main characters has to go on their own journey and fight their own battles - past monsters they once faced they now have to deal with again. there is a bigger monster controlling all of the older monsters (maybe it's void!allison or maybe it's someone pretending that it's her) and if these monsters aren't defeated by the red moon (or some other bs werewolf lore shit that can be made up idk) these monsters will ACTUALLY come back and start killing all the citizens of BH bc in the current period they are only half as strong as they could be. and make it bc, as deaton had mentioned oh so many years ago, BH is a beacon for the supernatural. and something buried deep in BH is drawing this Main Monster to create and resurrect all of these old monsters.

and the whole point of the movie is showing that even tho they moved away from BH and continued living, none of them ever really moved on from what happened to them. you can have malia have to face off against her mother again. lydia maybe is back in eichen house or something. as for derek and scott, they are facing bigger issues.

scott - he has to get over losing his first love, allison. especially since in this state, she is trying to constantly kill him and his pack. he never truly got over her death, and so in the end… he has to kill her. bc realistically allison wouldn't want to be fighting him or trying to kill him or any of her friends. and more she is "alive" the less like her she is being. she is becoming more and more a monster, and scott knows that that isn't something she would want. maybe even have it where the Big Monster offers him the chance to have her be actually resurrected and not just used as a puppet if he relinquishes his powers to the Big Monster.

derek - he has to face his fears and forgive himself of his family's death (along with his first love's death as well). just a lot of forgiveness on his part, especially since now he has a kid. his kid shouldn't inherent the trauma that derek has had just bc he never truly got over it. have derek face off not only against past monsters, but maybe against himself. the Big Monster might try to persuade him to die and give up his powers bc he'll at least be with his family again. maybe derek finally realizes that he isn't alone in this world bc he has family living rn. and this makes him want to keep fighting.

and this would be a great time to note that if dylan didn't want to come back like he did irl, you can blame it on him being a human and not a supernatural being. or idk, come up with a bs reason like he's overseas taking care of the kids that he and lydia clearly and definitely had bc they are meant to be together.

they are just able to defeat their past demons, and they all band together and defeat the Big Monster in some way or another. all the other side characters that have existed can be included in each of the main casts' stories in one way or another. maybe have them be each other's tether or whatever. idk, i'm not working out all the kinks bc i ain't writing this.

in the end, they all live, maybe one of them can have a moment of almost dying - but they all make it out in the end. allison is still dead tho, bc she is meant to be dead. even tho it's heartbreaking, it's a part of life that scott can now finally accept and move on from. much like the rest of the characters and their past. they are finally healed.

see… wouldn't that have been better than whatever the fuck happened in the movie lol

[shina913]

Hiii! Only bc we're similar-age married moms + NamKook biased (you have good taste!)

Do you think the scenarios you write in fics will influence the messages you (eventually) deliver to your kids about relationships, safety, consent, intimacy, etc? I'm just now seeing the parallels for me with our tween!

Hello, HLJ 💜 Idk if we hit the jackpot or are in perpetual suffering for choosing to be NamKook biases 🤣 Either way, I'm loving it and I love torturing myself when it comes to those two!

Also--super long answer incoming lol I apologize in advance!

Personally, I'm still working on setting my own boundaries, being more vocal about what I want, how I want it, or what I *don't want. I just lacked the tools growing up so am now trying to find help in doing all that as an adult! It's a great method of self-discovery, especially with therapy!

When I write--and this happens often--I project conversations that I wish I had, things that I should have said, discussions or arguments that I could have pushed for, or actions that I would have taken in my own past and present relationships (romantic or platonic). In fan-fic, there's a lot of wish fulfillment not just for the reader but for the writer as well.

Having said all that, yes absolutely--it affects how I educate my kids re: relationships (platonic or romantic). We always tell them that 'no' qualifies as a complete sentence and that it's perfectly okay to say that when you're not comfortable doing something.

Obviously, there are things that they have to do--like chores and stuff where 'no' is an unacceptable answer 😅

But seriously, I always try to teach my kids to ask first and never presume/assume. If that person says 'no,' then they need to back off. They're allowed to ask why and if that person gives their reason (or sometimes that person won't give one), then they need to respect that.

Teaching them accountability and respecting and setting boundaries is a challenge but I think it's a lesson that is worth repeating over and over until they get it. It's extremely helpful as they get older and not to mention that it goes a long way!

In terms of vocalizing what they want--everyone is different, of course. But my hubs and I create a safe space where it's okay to talk about how they feel and why they're feeling it. And my only hope is that they'll find future relationships where they feel safe enough to do the same.

That's all you can do, really! We have no control over other people and how they react but we can at least teach our kids or equip them so they can deal with these things.

*******

Send me asks! 📩 if you write fic and people can inbox you random-ass questions about your stories, itemized number lists be damned.

[cloverandcrossbones]

This is a bit long but I have a story:

When I was a teenager on Twitter (where I made most of my online friends) someone new joined our social circle, who I'll call "Jane" for this post, who always felt kind of off to me. She was just kind of immature and oblivious and frequently made up contradicting stories. She and a couple of my friends would flirt and roleplay a lot and eventually one of them even briefly online dated her.

When we first interacted she was excited to learn I was bi because she was just figuring out that she was a lesbian and she asked me for Yuri reccommendations. So I gave her a few of my fave romances that really helped me come to terms with my identity and were really close to my heart.

And she replied "Oh I meant like, porn :/"

And I was like "Oh, sorry I can't help with that..." (not because I never looked at any but bc I wasn't comfortable sharing anything like that with an adult)

And I wondered to myself "You're a 25 year old woman how do you NOT know how to find your own porn? And why are you asking a teenager?" (I didn't share my age for a long time but I would tell ppl I was in high school so she knew I wasn't an adult)

And then one day everything on their account was purged and replaced with a message from their mom saying smt like,

"It has come to my attention that my 13 year old son* has been pretending to be an adult woman named 'Jane' and having sexually explicit text conversations through private messages with adults. I will not be pressing charges against any of these adults since I don't think they knew he was underage in the private messages. I will, however, be shutting down this account and banning him from unsupervised computer time."

(*IDK if this kid was possibly trans and this was how they explored womanhood or if it was just a part of the ruse to gain access to lesbian porn, tbh I don't really care bc it doesn't change the fact that they were literally a child.)

I was one of the few completely unsurprised by this revelation. Some of my adult friends were in hysterics because they had been some of the main people "Jane" roleplayed with and they were frankly shocked and disgusted.

The woman who had briefly dated and broken up with Jane was just...horrified. I still remember her tweeting "I feel sick..."

and then over the subsequent weeks she would remember all of the flirtatious and sexual messages they had exchanged, not to mention the heart to hearts they had had, and the betrayal she felt now knowing that they were completely fictitious on Jane's part...

I felt bad for her but I also had never understood why Jane didn't feel off to anybody else? Like, maybe it was because I was also a teenager but she had never felt like my adult friends she felt like a fellow teenager, in fact a significantly younger teenager (I was probably 16 or so when this happened and she seemed so childish to me). Plus we all KNEW she lied about shit often and shamelessly.

Anyway, I guess my point is:

Kids, lie about your age, lie about your name, don't share personal details, do what you got to to keep yourself safe; but PLEASE, don't go around interacting with adults in sexually explicit topics! And don't get romantically involved with anyone you can't be honest with!

It's okay to interact with adults in mutually respectful ways, and even to ask questions about sensitive topics if you find people you trust, but not with adults who think you are a fellow adult.

Kids on the internet now a days are literally wild.. like when I was 12 and on the internet, i was lying out my asshole I was telling people about my kids and my wife. I was talking to them about taxes and how I miss my college days.....now 12 year Olds are out here telling their AGE?!?! OR REAL NAME?!??! I was literally fucking Garry that worked at staples and had 2 children for like 4 years...

[tehjleck]

Idk if I can handle following bc you post a lot besides dnd content but you remind me a lot of my first DM. (Im 30 for reference) I was 16 when my mom said she had a coworker who played dnd and told him abt me (biiig lotr fan). The coworker told my mom I could play with his group and if I liked it he could write me in. It was 3e, and I played that for yeaaaars. I taught all my friends 2 play after that ofc, and I still teach my new adult friends to play dnd and dm for them. He was a really cool dude, teaching a younger person abt the game. Just like a classic gen x nerd. He had a basement full of nerd shit that blew me away. Always had mtn dew/snacks for me n my buds, tasteful cheesecake drawings of fairies n shit on the walls, never made a bad influence. I was a very a pretty dogmatic kid, and he always leveled with me when I still didn’t know things like “is this the hill you want to die on”. You seem like a stand up dude even if I don’t want to see a lot of atheist stuff on my dash (practiced occultist, can’t rule anything out, for legal reasons), and I wanted to let you know I see you man. Respect 🫡

I've had so many people say I should stick to D&D stuff on here, and I really wish I could. But NOT speaking out against things you feel are wrong is compliance, and I have never been compliant (haha).

I started playing this game in the late 80's, and the 'Satanic Panic' was hilarious and as pathetic as it seems... just another example of uptight christians freaking out over things they don't understand.

D&D is the greatest game ever made. Period, end of story. Similarly, I started playing this game when one of the older kids in the neighborhood invited me in to their campaign. My first character was based on the Elf from the *old* game, Gauntlet. In the first adventure, I got a Silver Dragon mount - it wasn't a very serious game, but it did get me hooked for life.

I hope you still play, and I hope you pass it on too. That is the way.

Thank you for the kind words. Be safe out there, fellow human

[rubberbandballqueen]

you know how sometimes when you’re a kid on the internet, you end up talking to random adults, who’ll often give kind words and advice once they learn/figure out your age?

i never really thought much abt how they must’ve felt in those moments until recently, but now that i’m in a similar position to them, i wonder if this feeling of mentorship is what they felt too.

[extantformoflife]

*holds up a megaphone* thoughts on ruby pokespe and also wallace being his mentor/role model/parental figure because norman is the worst

aha yes I have SO many thoughts about this!!!!

starting off Norman is indeed the worst and I have many many thoughts about how that impacted Ruby growing up and how we see that reflected in his behavior in the manga. like. the thing Ruby does, especially in the beginning of the rs arc, where he is clearly shown to refuse to let anyone know he's even semi capable at battling, even in situations where his life is at stake?? that's. that's not normal.

there's multiple ways to interpret these kinds of things obviously but to me a lot of Ruby's early behavior suggests that he does not feel safe telling people no, or at least does not feel that his refusal will be respected. but if it's not safe to tell someone that you don't want to battle (or you have reason to believe they won't listen to you) you know what you can do? you can pretend to be an idiot! you're not refusing to battle, you're just so prissy and materialistic that you'd never be able to even if you tried. you're not saying no, and no-one can get mad at you or hurt you for saying no.

but! that is actually not really what you asked so moving on. Wallace. we all love Wallace. hm. take that might be surprising to hear? I don't think he's a very good mentor. or, at least, not yet.

there's no doubt that Wallace is LEAGUES better than Norman (has not dangled Ruby off of a building) but also I think it's..... pretty clear? in his interactions with Ruby? that he doesn't. really know what he's doing.

specifically, I am talking about the scene near the end of rs where Wallace stages that thing where he posed as a fake competitor to make Ruby loose and then proceeded to tell him off for the way he's been acting. and, to be clear? I think that Wallace made some points! someone did need to talk to Ruby about that!!! my problem is specifically the way he went about it?

Ruby is a child! a conversation like that should have probably taken place in a space where he felt safe, and not. y'know. DURING an eco terrorist attack. also, personal opinion here, but again given that this is. an eleven year old. maybe offer him some support and stuff instead of just telling him what he was doing wrong? idk.

restating that I love Wallace and.... honestly of all of the clumsy attempts by adults in pokespe to scold a protag it's. one of the better ones we see (cough cough professor oak) I just do not think that? Wallace was working with all of the information in that moment.

anyways I guess what I'm trying to say is I think Wallace has the potential to be a good mentor figure for Ruby! but until he has all the information about Ruby and Norman that its gonna be extremely hard for him to handle situations appropriately. like. you handle a well adjusted child and a kid who's been the victim of some pretty long-lasting child abuse differently, y'know?

Wallace is doing his BEST and Ruby is ALSO doing his best and they may not!!! have everything worked out just yet!!! but they're already doing better than Norman and I think if they keep trying and learning that they can only get better :)

I would talk about this more but uhhhhh I'm on my phone so I can't reference anything. idk I might go into more detail at another time bc I love talking about Ruby he is my favorite silly fancy lad.

[se7ens-oc-heaven]

Ok sooo. Rex becomes the champ at age 16, he probably manages to keep the title at least for 4 years before he begins to earnestly Legend Hunt sometime in his early 20s. Idk if he manages to keep the title during that, i'd imagine he can defend it fine for a bit, but he's less invested in Staying Champion by that point so it's possible he gives it up/lets someone more deserving or active take on the mantle. So thinking about that and how actively (or more likely inactively) he engages with his league duties and fellow league members:

Milo - Rex does better with Milo as he gets older and gets to know him better. He never hates the guy or anything, but interprets how Milo tends to interact sort of as being talked down to/babied and he doesn't do well with that especially as a kid/teen. As reaches more equal footing with Milo though, and as Milo does a lot to help Rex out bc that's what Milo does, Rex warms up to him considerably. I can't imagine them having a lot in common per se but Rex learns to think highly of Milo as he gets older.

Nessa - Personally I don't have a good feel for Nessa fsr so it's hard to say? I'm not entirely sure if Rex would have thoughts one way or another, although he likes her style a lot.

Kabu - Rex admires the guy's fire and stamina, and looks up to how long he's been able to pursue being a gym leader. Rex doesn't aspire to be a gym leader, but seeing an older adult able to commit to something so long term gives Rex hope for his own goals. However, Kabu can come off as strict and discipline-focused at times, and this sort of approach very much does not mesh well with Rex lmao

Allister - Allister is probably a huge Comfort Zone for Rex in a manner of speaking. Rex does better with and is more patient with kids, and Allister's more withdrawn nature reminds him of his cousin Ritsu. Rex is also a ghost type trainer primarily, as referenced above, and the reasons for being one are Also pretty tied to the exploration of death and the dead, even if the motivation is different from Allister's. I'd imagine he talks a lot to Allister to get thoughts and feedback from someone with experience of a close shave with death, who's very close to ghost types and likely more familiar with them than Rex himself is.

Opal - Opal was probably the one he had most trouble with outside of Chairman Rose. He has huge issues with adults that he interprets as doing what they want at the expense of others, and Opal would definitely read that way to him. Plus she's crafty and indirect, which the rather straightforward Rex is easily confused by. She had stepped down when he achieved Champ status, but continued to be present as a mentor for Bede for a bit longer, so I'd imagine Rex had some continued exposure to her for a bit... much to his consternation lol

Bede - eeeh. Rex can understand where Bede is coming from, but the guy has caused him a lot of hassle, and tends to come from a really self-absorbed standpoint. Rex doesn't do well with these types, and doesn't have any energy or sympathy to provide for others. He's a little preoccupied with a tragedy in his own life and dislikes having to entertain those who can't even fathom that he maybe has something more important on his mind than, say, competitions.

Melony - He likes her fine. She means well. But Melony's fussing and nagging can get on his nerves sometimes. As Rex gets more adjusted to the group dynamic he learns it's not unique to him and she's just Like That which helps a lot, but he doesn't respond well to her way of interacting at times, and, unlike the others Melony can be rather set in her side of things, so it's hard for Rex to warm up to her.

Piers - Piers is a good balance for Rex - an older brother who will step in and watch out for others' backs, but also knows when to give them space and do their own thing. Rex also admires his stances and how he sticks to his principles, and while Rex will dynamax, he never does so with Piers out of respect of that (although if Piers were to call him out for it he'd gladly change that practice). After everything Piers has done for him and Hop, and for everything he does for Spikemuth and the other gym leaders, Piers is held in high regard by Rex. (It doesn't hurt that his music rocks and they're both Obstagoon trainers. Rex loves hearing stories about Piers's Obstagoon and comparing them to his own lol)

Raihan - he's like. Meme photo pals with Raihan of a sort? I'd imagine they're also good battle pals, but I picture the two of them engaging in no-context photo conversations that baffle the others in the group chat and/or their social media. Examples include Rex sending blurry images of himself seconds from death as a Legendary comes after his ass (and Raihan committing to the meme bit in reply); and eventually the two of them starting this odd running joke of taking the worst quality pictures of each other to send - or post - with zero context.

Leon - Leon is Rex's closest older friend, a sort of older brother figure for him given the close association to him and Hop. While Leon does become the Champion and become more absent in later years, he most likely has kept more in touch with Rex where possible, out of worry and concern. He is also the one who gifted Rex his starter Miki, to make sure Rex wasn't alone during one of the roughest periods of his life, so Rex always thinks highly of Leon and hopes to support him in kind someday.

Chairman Rose - Rex overall was indifferent to Rose, kinda disliked his vibe but couldn't care enough. It wasn't until the Eternatus bullshit, which nearly got Leon and Hop killed, that Rex truly hated the chairman. I'm not entirely sure what becomes of the league chairman status given Rose turns himself in, I haven't checked in a bit? I originally wrote this forgetting he turned himself in so this is probably a moot bullet point lmao

So yeah! Hopefully this basically gives some insight on his dynamics with the others. I think the basic takeaway here is as Rex gets older he finds it a LOT easier to get along with them, as Rex tends to be hyperaware of the gaps between 'teen' and 'adult', so lessening that gap goes a long way.

And Rex is a bit of a hothead, but generally prefers to be friendly with people so long as they don't have beef with him, so I'd imagine if anything he gets closer with a lot of them by the time he's stepped down and mellowed out as an adult.

Q: Is your oc Rex close with any Gym Leaders, since he's the champion?

AAAA IDK WHEN THIS GOT SENT IN BUT HELLO TY!!

Excellent question, I haven't thought too hard on it so far but I do have Some ideas?

I'm gonna go down the list of leaders to think more on this in a reblog, but tl;dr version of league attachments afaik is:

Rex is closest to the former champ Leon due to being neighbors and buddies with him and Hop;

he Cannot Stand Chairman Rose after maingame events;

I think he gets along well with Raihan at least as online pals bc I can easily envision him sending stupid selfies his way?

I can also see him being cool with Piers bc Piers is one of the few adults in his life who actually goes out of his way in canon to help the player with shit that the other adults would minimize or do less for which is a Big Thing for Rex and his storyline

I'd also imagine, since Rex is Shield-based and also primarily a Ghost Type trainer he probably does well with Allister and tbh I can see him talking to the kid A Lot for various reasons

...Aside from the chairman these are all like my biggest faves so there's obvious bias on who I've thought about for this lol. BUT I do like a lot of the gym leaders overall so this sounds like a fun thing to think on more!

I'd imagine for the rest of them he gets on fine, but Rex does also become something of an absent champion after a point too, so it's possible he just doesn't quite bond with them enough While Champion (although I'd imagine the league themselves don't limit their friendships and associations based on Active Champ status so this still leaves room for friendships after the fact imo)

[prettyboykatsuki]

UM pleek advice i’m turning twenty soon nd i’m scared 🥹💔 ageism eating me alive i feel like i havent lived my teen years because Brown Parents just idk… IDK!!!! im over reacting i think but im crying everyday like my youth was stolen from me cuz abuse and insecurity and pandemic but idk what to do now i feel so lost and seeing ur posts u just seem so smart and excited about life and exploring urself so i come humbly for advice 😞

i know this feeling bc i have the same parents but like i really mean it when i say life doesn't start for a lot of people until they're 25-30+

i was blessed with older siblings and cousins in my life and pretty much all of them say the same thing. my cousins did all the fun teenager things and even so they're all so much happier now then they ever were before.

you're never gonna be 15 again, that's true. but the life you imagined or dreamed of living at 15 isn't the only life you'll ever live and really isn't even that important. you have a romantic idea of it because you never experienced it.

but you have the rest of your life. do you know how long that is? you're only 20. that's nothing. 25 is nothing. 30, 31, 32. you're just starting in comparison to the rest of your life. the only reason you feel that way is because you're suffocated and the idea that being young is everything but it simply isn't. statistically if you only live to be 60, you have 2 entire thirds left to exist.

don't listen to people on the internet who can't fathom being over 17. adulthood is only a curse if you glorify being young. and you're not even an adult. any real adult thinks you're a kid. the only person who thinks your old is a person who's sitting in calculus one who eats lunch at 10am. why are you listening to them anyway?

i don't especially like being young honestly. there's nothing i look forward to more than getting older every year. i want to be 50 with a garden. i want to spend the rest of my life being a good person. i am so comforted by the fact i still have all this time.

you are so lucky to be alive. you must believe that the time you have left is a gift.

being young is only easy for those who come from privilege. but any person with responsibilities knows how suffocatingly lonely it can be trying to care for yourself and make something of your life.

and it's because of that gradual reality that you have to believe life hasn't reached it's potential. that this isn't your limit. if you're incessantly thinking that you've wasted so much time, than how will you grow? if you're constantly chasing at teenage years that you'll never get again, how will you learn to love the fully realized version of yourself?

if you spend your 20's looking back how can you look forward to the rest of your life? is it fair to yourself to ignore all that's made you who you are, just because you missed out on certain experiences?

look at how far you've come. look at how much it's taken you. look at all this life you have left to keep pushing. i know it feels like you're meandering, but the virtue of living is gaining experience. every minute you engage the world is meaningful to your life and this isn't a hope thing but a universal truth. it is the only facet of existence that has been respected since the beginning of civilization. experience that you can only gain now by opening your eyes to whats around you.

life is hard now. you are going to do your best. and maybe your best is ugly. it never feels good enough. it's not as good as what other people do. but it's yours, so solely. and if all you ever do is worry about the life you haven't lived instead of cherishing the life you have, you're going to feel miserable and you don't have to feel that.

you'll never be 15 again not once. you'll never know what that's like and it sucks. i won't tell you to feel fine about what you might've missed because i know and i get it.

but maybe you only want to be 15 because you think it would've changed who you are now. maybe you think the you now isn't good enough.

but you are. and it is. and there's nothing to be afraid of. every day of living despite it's many solitudes is worth it. even the worst of your tomorrows are to be cherished. you are so young. a drop in the massive of sea.

but that means you can go anywhere and do anything. with time, with patience, with struggle, with tears. you have now and tomorrow. between then nothing will change. you will do it a thousand times, and then you will look back and suddenly be so different. this is your finicky existence.

the only way to not be afraid of getting older is believing with your heart that living is meaningful. count your blessings and celebrate your small joys. you have the rest of your life to do that. i think that alone is something worth celebrating.

[scandalsavagefanfic]

Hello! I am a huge fan of ur writing. I've loved everything I've read of yours. I've read alot of what you've posted, except for a couple of the tags that are squicky for me (so I'm very thankful you tag very thoroughly). No judgement for the squick, it's just not for me. & when I'm having a bad day, I usually just go thru ur ao3 and find something to reread. I think about Therapy's Bruce & Jason every damn day. While I obvs appreciate ur darker more "problematic" content (I really vibe with some of the themes you write about bc of my own trauma, & so it's very cathartic to read about in a fictional setting), I am truly a sucker for ur more happy content. The Happily Ever After verse also lives in my head rent free. Idk more wholesome stuff just seems more special when you write it. Anyways. I would die for you. But the point of this ask is cause I'm curious as to why you don't like Urban Legends? I'm sorry if you already talked about it here or on twitter and I missed it. I was just wondering because I really enjoy your take on things and would love to hear why you dislike it. I've been enjoying it so far personally, but I am always open to DC comics criticism.

Aw thank you so much! I'm so flattered by everything you just said. You're so sweet ❤❤❤❤❤

I haven't talked about Urban Legends here or twitter (I haven't been very active in either place lately. Just a lot going on and no energy 😔) but I'm happy to do it here.

Before I start though, I just want to add a standard disclaimer and make it clear that if you like it, there's nothing wrong with that and you don't have to let me ruin it for you lol. Like what you like.

That said, since you asked...

I said this when I was talking about it on discord, that there is a difference between hope and expectation. I always hope that a new story centered on Jason (or anyone really, but things have been especially egregious for Jay for 15 years) will be good or at least treat the character with a minimal level of respect (to be honest, the bar is super fucking low). But my expectations always temper my hope, to keep it from getting unrealistic. Because my expectations are based on experience.

The long history of Jason Todd, since even before his resurrection, has been one of retroactively trying to make him "a bad seed" in order to absolve Bruce of any responsibility in his death.

I don't even expect DC or their writers to start honoring the fact that Jason was not an angry, reckless Robin (and less of the later than Dick or Tim and definitely Damian). There plenty of ways that retcon can be folded into his history and be compelling and sympathetic. And if they're going to stick with that retcon, I'm only asking that they do it in one of those compelling and sympathetic ways because Jason was 15 when he died, heroically, in one of the most selfless acts in comics, to save a woman who literally handed him over to be brutally murdered. He was 12 when Bruce plucked him off the streets, he'd been homeless and fending for himself for at least two years. I personally think that Jason's story hits harder for him and Bruce if their original, canon relationship, of Jason as starry-eyed and eager to learn and absolutely devoted to Bruce and Bruce to Jason, is preserved. But Jason's origins does leave room for a meaningful interpretation of him as angry and frustrated at the lack of meaningful results of Bruce's methods.

And that's really where my irritation at stories like Batman: Urban Legends, Cheer and Batman The Adventure Continues has it's roots.

Every time one of these stories comes out, I think (or hope, rather) that this will be the one that remembers and respects the origins of the Jason and the Red Hood, that takes into account the changed sensibilities of comics readers in the 30 years since Jason's death and the subtle, 20 year, retroactive campaign to make him the "bad Robin". The "born bad" trope is played out and literally no one likes the message it implies. That some kids are just bad eggs and there's nothing parents or the adults around them can do. Especially when it's played as the kid's fault. If Jason's time as Robin is going to be characterized by anger, then it should be rooted in anger at the social injustices he witnessed as he grew up in an impoverished, crime-ridden, area and the horrors he faced raising himself when every day was a battle for survival. There are topical, meaningful, stories to tell with that backdrop.

But those are never the stories we get.

⚠⚠ Spoilers for Batman: Urban Legends, Cheer ⚠⚠

I'm particularly disappointed in Urban Legends because for the first issue, it looked like that was the kind of story we were going to get. I was put off by the first flashback of Jason being mesmerized by Bruce's guns, and I got that feeling in my gut that it was a bad sign. Jason depicted as impatient and overconfident and the scene with the guns is heavy-handed foreshadowing that got my spidey-sense tingling. I had a inkling then (in the first three pages) of how this story was going to play out, but it was early and I could still see many narrative paths that could lead to a satisfying story. My concerns were soothed somewhat and the little flame of my hope fanned, with the flashback of Alfred scolding Bruce, with Barbara's concern for Jason. A bit of worry returned with the way Jason ruthlessly pursued an addict who didn't appear to be a dealer and with the ending of the issue. The stuff with the addict sat wrong with me but the ending was tempered some by how despicable Tyler's dad was written. The scene was clearly set so that the reader could sympathize with Jason's decision and the scene with the addict could be brushed aside as a side-effect of comics over-the-top need for constant action, so I still held hope.

Issue 2 made me uncomfortable and it's where my hope starts to take a backseat to my expectations. I can dismiss Jason's self-deprecating internal monologue as unreliable narration, except that the flashback reinforces his thought process to explicitly show that it's not unreliable narration, and should be taken at face value. Jason faces physical abuse at the hands of his mother's drug dealer and when the flashback continues later, Jason kills the drug dealer. To be clear, this is a pre-Bruce Jason. His mom is still alive. He's like... 10. He kills this guy for shoving his head into a wall and implying Jason's mother paid for her drugs with sex. This is a scene that serves a single purpose. To show that Jason has always been prone to violence.

In the spirit of full disclosure, there is the small chance the drug dealer might not be dead. But the story obviously wants the reader to think he is, and it hasn't done anything to change that yet.

Starlin already did this story with The Diplomat’s Son in 1988 and he did it infinitely better. AND that’s still technically canon. So now I’m supposed to believe that Jason lost his cool bad enough to kill two douche bags before his sweet 16? Like it’s totally normal for abused kids raised in poverty, who’ve led hard and heartbreaking lives to just... haul off and kill people? That’s bullshit, and when taken with the Jason in the third issue, who is little more than an idiot thug, this story is really doubling down on some fucked up stereotypes.

Which brings us to the most recent issue. I went into this installment with very low expectations. I thought this story was going to be about Jason, through this experience with Tyler, a young boy with a similar background to Jason's, coming to the realization that Bruce's way is the best way and that Bruce did his best by Jason.

That would be annoying (in no small part because it takes increasingly absurd levels of plot armor to keep Bruce's no kill rule relevant, let alone irrefutably right). But I can probably live with that, if only because maybe if Jason officially falls back into line with the Bats crusade, maybe I'll get stories that treat him with respect, stories that don't relegate him to comic relief, dumb brute, or a background body with no lines in a story about the Joker burning Gotham (like Jason would just fucking stand there quietly for that).

And that may still be where the story is going, Jason realizing Bruce is right.

But holy shit do I not have the right words to describe how fucking insulting and gross issue three is.

From start to finish--including the flashback--Jason is written as cruel and fucking stupid. Like straight up dumb.

The entire issue is Bruce explaining the fucking basics to Jason like it's his first day. And Jason flies off the fucking handle and terrorizes a doctor he knows isn't a part of making the Cheerdrops, beats the shit out of some random addicts, and finally, when he can't accomplish anything on his own because he's a dumb brute he calls Barbara for help and rushes in with no information where he's promptly incapacitated and must now wait to be rescued by Batman.

This panel is the least of the issues sins but I can’t screenshot the entire story but it’s representative of the tone for the whole issue (and retroactively tainted the prior two issues).

This is beyond insulting. The only conclusions Jason comes to in this issue are the ones Bruce leads him to by talking to him like he can’t make the simplest connections. And like... in this story Jason can’t make the simplest connections.

This (and the Jason throughout the entirety of this issue) is a far cry from the Jason we fell in love with in Under the Red Hood, who was competent and strategic and intelligent enough to seize control of Gotham’s underworld from Black Mask (who’s no fucking slouch, he’s the first and only person to unify organized crime in Gotham) AND elude and manipulate Bruce until the time and place of his choosing.

This is a far cry from even the Red Hood and the Outlaws Jason who is competent enough to fight the League of Shadows and Ra’s al Ghul (among very dangerous and skilled others) and smart enough to create antidotes for mind control nanotech viruses.

As he should be, by the way. Jason Todd is one of the best, most comprehensively trained fighters in DC’s stable of non powered vigilantes. He’s not irrational or hot headed. He’s pragmatic, tactically minded, and patient. He’s a detective. Right now. Has been since he was 12. Bruce doesn’t have to make him one because he already is. 

Jason is not a stupid thug who uses his fists because his brain doesn’t work. And I can’t tell you how so very exhausted I am by this narrative. 

This is actually the most egregious example of Jason’s skills and intelligence being not just undermined but dismissed entirely. Even Morrison’s Jason had some degree of competency. 

The one, single redeeming factor of this story is the art. It’s beautiful. And Marcus To is a godsend he seems to be one of only a couple of artists who remember that Jason was a child when he was Robin and I’m literally only buying this book because of him. 

Anyway, I’m sorry. I didn’t want that to come out so... um... passionately lol. I’m just very very tired. My intention with this isn’t to ruin it for you, if you like it, that’s fine. 

But this issue shot this story to the top of my "Vehemently Despise” list. 1) Batman: Urban Legends (Cheer), 2) Battle for the Cowl/Morrison’s Batman and Robin, 3) Batman The Adventure Continues.

I hope the next issues somehow salvage this dumpster fire. But I’m not expecting it.

(Damnit. That sounded harsh again. To reiterate, I’m not trying to judge anyone who enjoys it, I just personally hate it and you asked me why lol 😅)