#if you disagree then block and be on your way

[semperama]

I love this fandom so much, I really do, but I just do not understand the need to be constantly litigating aspects of shipping and characterization with some (real or imagined) cabal of naysayers. Who cares if some Tommy stans made a blocklist? Who cares if Eddie haters don't understand him like you do? None of those Twitter/Bluesky people are seeing your rants, and if they do, they don't care, but the rest of us DO have to see it, and all it does is 1. make those of us who don't seek out the drama aware of it in a way we don't want to be, 2. contribute to a general air of negativity that's really draining, 3. create a cycle of reactivity and troll bait.

Call me crazy, but I don't think "discourse" should be anyone's primary contribution to fandom. It's just so unnecessary. You can choose to ignore or block people you disagree with and leave platforms that make it impossible to do those things. It's not good for your brain to allow yourself to constantly be ragebaited.

[blondesillyboylover]

"if you don't reblog this you're a horrible person/ I will block anyone who just scrolls past this"

Do you understand how harmful this behaviour is. I will not rb something, no matter the aforementioned message, if OP or a rb says something along these lines. Because guilt tripping is never okay. Because all you're doing is turning people away from the actual message and instilling fear or a feeling of duty to rb. This isn't how you get a message across, it's incredibly harmful and leaves people feeling shit.

Consider, this person doesn't rb. Consider, this person wouldn't like that kind of content on their blog.

Consider, this person isn't in a good headspace and doesn't want to be recommended this kind of content at the moment.

Consider, they don't like the way your message is worded and/or disagrees with parts of it or all of it.

All these are completely valid reasons not to rb something and you should respect that rather than stressing them. I struggle a lot with guilt, and seeing these add ons to a post makes me feel awful and terribly guilty, I cannot function for what might be hours after because of the pure stress it puts onto me. I have had breakdowns over this kind of thing because insults and accusations have been thrown at me simply because I don't want negative, reblog bait, guilt tripping media on my tumblr.

Please, have some fucking respect. If you're trying to get a message across, do it kindly.

[maul-of-shame]

Just popping up to give my two cents on everything going on- [TROP Edition]

The TROP fandom is vast, passionate, and filled with people who care deeply about Tolkien’s world. Whether we’re here for the lore, the characters, the worldbuilding, or simply the joy of engaging with a new interpretation of Middle-earth, we all share one thing: love for this universe.

And yet, for weeks and even months now, it’s become increasingly clear that some corners of this fandom have been struggling under the weight of harassment, dogpiling, and outright cruelty—all over fictional characters and differing interpretations.

I want to take a moment to say this clearly: No matter where you stand on ships, theories, headcanons, or canon interpretations, harassment is never okay.

Disagreeing with someone’s take? That’s fine.

Engaging in discussion? Encouraged!

But targeted harassment, bullying, sending threats, or trying to force others out of a space just because they don’t align with your views? That’s not just toxic—it’s unacceptable.

I have my own opinions, and I’m open about them. There are ships I don’t personally like, and I have my reasons for that, which I’ve spoken about before. There are interpretations of characters I don’t agree with. But having a different perspective has never meant—and will never mean—that I condone or support people being attacked for their preferences.

Fiction is a space for creativity, exploration, and discussion, not a battleground where people should feel unsafe for simply enjoying a story differently. Myself, and many others have faced threats, harassment, and cruel messages—some from anonymous accounts, others from people openly creating blogs just to send hate. I’ve lost count of the number of people I’ve had to block. It’s exhausting, and it shouldn’t have to be this way.

It’s heartbreaking to see the works of Tolkien—stories that have endured for generations, built on themes of resilience, friendship, and the fight against darkness—be tarnished by those who have no regard for basic decency. Tolkien’s world was never about cruelty, exclusion, or tearing others down; it was about hope, about standing together even in the face of overwhelming odds. And yet, some have twisted this fandom into something unrecognizable, using it as a weapon to attack, belittle, and harass others. It goes against everything these stories stand for, and it’s disheartening to watch a space that should bring joy and inspiration be turned into something toxic by those who refuse to respect others.

It’s okay to severely dislike a ship. It’s okay to find it uncomfortable, problematic, or simply not to your taste. It’s okay to critique the way a relationship is portrayed, to analyze its dynamics, and to express why you don’t engage with it. Fiction is meant to be discussed, interpreted, and even debated. But what is not okay is taking that personal dislike and turning it into targeted harassment against the people who create for that ship. Disliking a fictional pairing does not justify sending cruel messages, threats, or attempting to drive people out of a space just because their interests don’t align with yours.

No one is obligated to like what you like, just as you are not obligated to like what they do.

The solution is simple—curate your own space. Block, filter, and move on. Engage with what brings you joy instead of wasting time spreading hate. Fandom is meant to be an escape, a place to create, share, and find community. No one should have to feel unsafe or unwelcome simply because their creative expression doesn’t match someone else’s preferences.

To those who have been on the receiving end of hate, know that you are not alone. Your love for the characters, your creativity, and your enthusiasm for this world are valid.

No one has the right to police how you engage with fiction, nor do they have the right to dictate what you can and cannot enjoy. If you need to step back for your own well-being, that’s completely okay. If you need to block, curate your space, or disengage from toxic discussions, do so.

Your mental health matters more than proving a point to people who refuse to engage respectfully.

Fandom spaces should be a refuge, a place where we share excitement, ideas, and headcanons, not a place of stress and hostility. If you see someone being targeted, offer support. If you notice someone being worn down by negativity, remind them that their voice and presence are valued. Small acts of kindness—reblogging someone’s work, leaving a nice comment, sending a supportive message—go a long way in making fandom a better place for everyone.

At the end of the day, The Rings of Power is a show. Middle-earth, as much as it means to us, is a fictional realm. We engage with it because it brings us joy, because it inspires us, because it connects us to something greater.

But no story, no ship, no character, and no headcanon should ever come before basic human decency.

Your space in this fandom is valid, and I hope you find the support and peace you deserve.

Stay safe, take care of yourselves, and let’s do better.

[fangs-claws-paws]

Reminder I am a certified space marine lover. Don't ever come at me with "space marine so dumb fash toxic masculinity, hee hee!" or "space marine dumb and stupid and cowardly compared to X" I will bite you. I write my porn fic not to parody or belittle them, but because I love them so much I gotta put em in the meat grinder

[sickofthistoxicshit]

Oh God yes, I am so for Tommy being gone just to have people stop being stupid about Eddie. Which is a pitty because at first I was intrigued by Tommy. Now i just want it to end.

And lol at your tags. I have blocked so many people lately, too. Not even stupid takes during TK era made me block so much. Some of them really take the cake now. All this hate towards Eddie is staggering. And to have the audacity to call eddieblr toxic (and yes, I have seen that and not only buddies are being called toxic these days).

HI there,

I have to say that I was intrigued and even excited for Tommy at first too, but there were a lot of things that just ruined it along the way, amongst them the last minute joiners and Eddie haters fans who just set out to make this place unbearable.

I wouldn't have minded Tommy so much if not for all the toxicity that brought with it and the poor writing and the money for specs from Lou.

Like wth dude, didn't anyone teach you to be correct, you can't justify Tommy's behavior in S2 and pass it as teasing. It's like punching someone in the face in rage or nearly break someone's ankle for attention and call it roughhousing. (not joking, I literally had an ask with someone justifying the white man railroading the POC for attention as roughhousing. - When Buck himself said he wasn't sure it wasn't done on purpose. like wtf?)

lol I live for those tags, everyone say their real thoughts and be funny in tags, it's so much fun.

I literally bonded with that block button, I haven't blocked so many ppl since early S4 and the porn bots attack lol

Ppl need to chill, everyone is entitled to their opinions but are not entitled to force it upon others.

Ship who you want but tag properly and don't be toxic about.

A lot of ppl read X's posts and come to rant about it here, Tumblr is not X, most of the ppl here are ppl who hate X's toxicity. I have deleted my account so many years ago.

We are here to have fun, so I say ship who you want, TAG PROPERLY, and leave us the hell alone.

Eddie/Ryan haters are all blocked so thankfully I don't see those, but if after everything they still hate on Eddie for something Ryan apologized several times for, learned from it and has bettered himself to the point that Aisha posted a thankful for Ryan story once and they have so many pictures together where she hugs him like he's one of the most precious ppl to ever live, than I have to call pure racism.

And that would explain the sudden admiration to the new white man on screen to be paired with the other white man who is by chance also the fan favorite.

Don't get it twisted, I love Oliver and Oliver loves Ryan and Eddie, but one has to wonder about the audience's choice of favorite even as they call against racism and for equality and with the same breath hate on a regular poc character.

I'm hoping this bizarre season ends on a good note, because otherwise S8 may be the last season.

Keeping my fingers crossed.

[macchiatosdumptruck]

.

[saucerfulofsins]

anyway have some of you considered that actually, maybe, some people in the fandom are upset with being told eddie cannot possibly suffer from internalized homophobia whatsoever because we're in our 30s ourselves and we were there as teens in the 2000s and shit fucking sucked and we carry the negative stereotypes we were fed with us every single day YAY!

[grinchwrapsupreme]

being super normal about White calling Billy "a dreamer"after the events of Maybe No Go

[moonagedaydreamsofrhiannon]

if a random person on the internet saying they hc a fictional character as trans or enjoy a ship that you don’t personally like enrages you to the point that you feel the need to comment rude, unnecessary hate, completely unprovoked, multiple times, under multiple different posts, instead of just scrolling, blocking, and moving on, then you need to take some mood stabilizers, touch some grass, and get a grip on reality

and btw, if all you can think of to respond to a detailed character analysis with mountains of specific textual evidence is “not reading allat + you have ass takes” then maybe it’s time to put down the phone and pick up a book (perhaps a self-help book) you pathetic, ignorant, illiterate, fucking philistine.

and to anyone reading this, if you’re going to go out of your way to be a transphobic asshole (or even just an asshole period) in my comments, you can go fuck yourself. keep that shit off my page or you’re getting blocked immediately you weird fucking freaks. take your anti-depressants and get a life please. happy, well-adjusted people don’t do that shit

[valyrfia]

guys if i reblog a post to add an opinion/discussion and say 'don't go into this person's askbox we're just all having a friendly discussion' that's not in fact code to go into that person's askbox telling them how they're wrong

[tiredandoptimistic]

Truly wild to me that people will just show up on other people's posts to say they hate whatever it's about. I'm too conflict averse to even make original hate posts, I cannot imagine having the confidence to walk into someone else's house and say you hate the decor.

[adamnablelittledevil]

Fandom culture is so much better when you don't have someone disagreeing with you on every single post and turning every innocent and harmless comment into a long-ass discussion

[hadesknockedupintheunderworld]

"If you ship these characters together at all you've fundamentally misunderstood the plot of the story"

Bro I get this if like. It's a case where people genuinely are misunderstanding the story

But like bro you know shipping is inherently neutral and doesn't necessarily tell you anything about how someone interprets a piece of media, right?

You know that people who ship something don't always want the thing to be canon, right?

You know that people shipping something doesn't change canon

Right?

[i-c-u-p]

going to start using this platform like twitter again and by that i mean posting relentlessly and going on rants in the tags

[nemo-is-real]

i don't trust ppl who use the suffix "-tard" especially to refer to a group they don't like.

[unforth]

I would give so much to never have to see Jiang Cheng discourse again.