#it's like steven universe in that way - half of y'all did not get the message at all and another fourth of you could be college professors.

[luesmainblog]

it will never cease to amaze me how a highly political show co-created by a jewish man routinely showed antisemetism, racism, and misogyny as annoying, shitty traits that only total pieces of shit nobody likes would agree with and rightfully gets your ass beat, that people who are Different from you should still be treated with kindness even when they, as individuals, are not great people and you don't totally agree with what they are, that activism should be Active and if you just talk a big game without actually doing anything you're part of the problem, that apathy is actively toxic to the world, and over time has shown over and over again that it is never too late to change your mind and progress with the rest of the world (and that there are legitimate consequences to not doing so).... and yet, SOMEHOW, the end result was a lot of viewers deciding it's Funny to be a piece of shit. that it's cool to not care; that you're actually stupid if you give too much of a shit. to the point where we have to warn teenagers to stay away from it because that's almost definitely what they'll take away from it. to the point that the show's reputation is essentially "That Antisemetic Show That Thinks Both Sides Suck". and no matter what the show does to try and tell its audience hey, you need to care about this, things are getting worse, YOU WILL NEVER ACHIEVE HAPPINESS IF YOU KEEP BEING A PIECE OF SHIT, that reputation never changes. somehow, the racist bastard is the most popular character amongst casual fans, and the most merchandisable one. somehow the gap between casual fans and Fandom is immense, and yet fandom is only ever acknowledged for the amount of gay fanart it produces.

and no matter how much you love it, you have to acknowledge that and act accordingly. it is fucking weird being a south park fan, man.

[love-takes-work]

Why I wish people would stop saying Steven Universe is ending

All right y'all, I know I'm not the only person saying this but maybe I can help put this into perspective for you.

No, there is no indication that Steven Universe is ending or has ended.

It's not difficult to see why some people are suggesting this. It's largely based on how quickly longstanding mysteries were wrapped up in "Change Your Mind" (bringing back Jasper, what is Steven's "real" identity, what happens if he loses his Gem, finding a workable treatment for corruption) and how many long-awaited elements were spotlighted in the episode (Lars and Sadie reuniting; the Off Colors making it to Earth; new outfits for everyone; the appearance of a Steven/Pearl Fusion, a Steven/Garnet Fusion, and a reveal for the modern version of the Temple Fusion). Combined with a reprise of the theme song and a special-length epic episode, it's hard to not read this as a finale.

It's certainly written as one. Not necessarily for the show, but for an arc they built and fed into for a long time.

So I understand. I do. But.

Please stop saying it's obvious the show is over because YOU can't personally imagine what they could do next.

I'm seeing a lot of this. "What else do they have to wrap up? They montaged through all the stuff we had left to see. There's nothing else to do. The dangling threads they did leave aren't enough to make another season about. I can't imagine they have anything left to tell us."

That's right. YOU can't imagine, naysayer. But they can, and they have.

Remember when some scenes from the "Heart of the Crystal Gems" arc and the episode "Legs From Here to Homeworld" leaked, causing popular fan theorists and even reputable news sources to start blasting CARTOON NETWORK SPOILS THE FINAL EPISODE OF STEVEN UNIVERSE?

Remember how people were saying "well obviously if the Diamonds are interacting peacefully with Steven, that's the end, that has to be the last episode, it's over"?

They COULD NOT IMAGINE that we had anywhere else to go from there. They COULD NOT IMAGINE that the show would take us beyond that to a place where conflict and resolution were still out there to explore even if it didn't involve these particular characters beating up on each other anymore. There were so many people who were so sure this couldn't be a thing unless the show was ending--that they said it with confidence, they said it uncritically, they said it in multiple reputable news stories.

They were wrong. Those scenes happened in episode 153 and then there were more than half a dozen more episodes since, proving that those scenes did not come from a final episode.

But now people are making the same mistake again.

I realize some of you are used to seeing this sort of thing when shows end (at least, on the shows that get to choose their ending instead of being cancelled and cut off). I realize that this FEELS very final because of some of the tropes and tells they chose. But I find it really baffling that so many fans are ignoring all these other reasons to know the show is continuing:

The movie was promoted right after "Change Your Mind," slated for fall 2019. If they have nowhere to go from here, what do you think they're making a movie about?

The voice actors, writers, and creators have repeatedly discussed continuing sessions and future plans in all the supplementary materials--podcasts and tweets give you audio and visual evidence that content is still being made. What do you think they're doing with that stuff if there's nothing else to this story?

There are many plot and character threads we can see addressed still--not only those set in place by the circumstances of "Change Your Mind's" ending, but those unaddressed, like what is going to happen to the Zoomans and the Famethysts and the bubbled Rose Quartz Gems, or what the heck is in Lion's treasure chest.

This package of episodes created a satisfactory ending to what episodes had been ordered at the time that they were written. Matt Burnett and Ben Levin left the show following this season (to write Craig of the Creek), and they've discussed how they have come to the end of the episodes that were ordered when they completed their work and departed. (And now they've joked that if they want to find out what's coming next, they just walk over there and peek. It's got to still be going on for them to do that.) It feels the way it does because they did write it with a stopping point. There have been a few of those ("Ocean Gem" was another one). 

TV is a difficult medium to write stories for because so much is unknown about the future of your show, so you have to be flexible. They wrote it so they could go on or not depending on how the dice fell. They fell to give us more.

I know we don't have an "official confirmation of Season 6," but seasons have consistently been meaningless on this show. (I remember seeing Ian Jones-Quartey express frustration with fan fixation on how to define what goes in what season, since it's pretty arbitrary.) Some people took information they THOUGHT they knew (that they did not know) to explain to others how many episodes we could expect and how the story would therefore unfold, but they were wrong. Unless they are insiders, they will continue to be wrong if they keep basing their understanding of how this show will be handled on how other shows usually handle their storytelling.

ON THE DAY THAT STEVEN UNIVERSE DOES COME TO AN END, I believe (but don't KNOW) that the process will be more like Adventure Time's was: Adventure Time was handled very similarly to Steven Universe in many ways, and when that show was determined to be ending, not only was there an announcement that SAID SO, but then we also got little milestones along the way featuring boarders and writers finishing their last episodes, and then more than a YEAR later the finale finally aired. Given that, I'm confused why people seem to think it's logical that Steven Universe would just end there with no explanation and no announcement. You haven't seen an announcement about it wrapping because IT ISN'T DOING THAT RIGHT NOW.

I know I don't speak for everyone, but considering how well this show handles its reveals, I think it's really arrogant for fans and critics to insist it has nothing else worthwhile to show us or will necessarily go downhill from here if it continues.

I feel it has a wonderful mixture of reveals that no one sees coming and reveals that we predicted (or could have). It consistently finds a way to do things we expected in ways we didn't, or to throw curveballs that we retroactively see were supported with subtext and subtle tells. If you're honestly telling me you've watched this show for five seasons and you don't trust it to surprise and delight you again, I'm confused about what show you think you're watching. I’m not demanding people love it, and I’m not saying you can’t criticize it or wish for more content or different content with your favorite characters or plot elements, but if you're still here watching this show and you're not just hate-watching it at this point, give it some breathing room. I wanted to write something comforting here to reassure people that there's no indication the show is ending, but I'm honestly just kinda angry at all the pessimism and naysaying.

I remember when "Escapism" premiered on the Steven Universe Podcast, context free, and everybody had a theory about who sang it. There was so much arrogance! OBVIOUSLY this is a Lapis song. Oh wait no, that doesn't make sense now that she ran away and came back. OBVIOUSLY this is a flashback Pink Diamond song. OBVIOUSLY this is a White Pearl song. OBVIOUSLY this is Steven song, a Blue Diamond song, etc. People thought they were reading black and white messages but they were not. They were developing headcanons and becoming so confident about them that they developed expectations about what this song owed to them. Guess what? The song was Stevonnie's voice as a soundtrack to a possessed watermelon. You didn't know. And you don't know now.

Please listen to what the actual Crewniverse people are telling you about the ongoing production of the show and stop spreading the misleading information that it is known to be ending. I believe we will be given time to handle that news, like we were with Adventure Time, and that like most things with Steven Universe, it will complete its story gently, gracefully, and with resolution to questions and arcs--both for those we've had for some time and for those we don't even know are coming yet.

Trust in the imagination and heart that inspired this show. All evidence suggests they have plenty more to share with us.

tl;dr: Just because someone can't imagine what might come next in Steven Universe doesn't mean the show is ending. There is overwhelming evidence that there is more, and some people in this fandom have a history of unfounded overconfidence in their expectations for its future. Wait and see.

[gaylotusthatexists]

Not A Party Person

Fandom: Sanders Sides

Pairing: Platonic Moxiety, Platonic Prinxiety, Platonic Analogical

Summary: Roman decides to throw a surprise birthday party for his roommate, Virgil, but not all goes to plan...

Word Count: 1886

Notes: it's virgil's birthday! yay! i wrote a thing to celebrate so here's a thing, hope y'all enjoy!

Taglist: @journalanxiety​ @applecantbebothered @quietwords-loudthoughts @xx-fandom-potato-xx @trash-can-so-do-i @bunny222 @phantomofthesanderssides @everythings-coming-up-aces  @unknownanonymousgirl @tinkslittlebelle @jani-bunny54 @noahlovescoffee   @unicorndragon1-2-3 @ab-artist @honeysucklingz

ao3

It was loud. Too loud. And the lights were so bright, and the warm was so warm, and Virgil felt suffocated. Why had his roommate thought this would be a good idea? Roman knew that Virgil wasn't a party person, and yet he had planned a surprise birthday party anyway. This should have been his day.

He had somehow found himself in Roman's bedroom, curled up on the beanbag that Roman had by his window. It was soft, comforting, and with the door shut tight, Virgil could feel safe. Of course, going to his own bedroom would have made more sense, and he would have done if it hadn't been for the crowd of people standing outside his door.

How had he even got himself in this mess?

Virgil thought back to a couple days ago, when the two roommates had been sat on the sofa in their apartment, with Steven Universe on in the background - Roman had chosen it, and Virgil had pretended to be annoyed, but they both knew he secretly loved it.

"When's your birthday?" Roman asked, out of the blue.

Virgil frowned. "Why?"

He shrugged. "Just out of curiosity."

"It's, uh..." Virgil hesitated. He had only been living with Roman for a couple months, since the two had started university, but the two were close. So close. It felt as if they had known each other for far longer. It should have been a surprise that Roman didn't already know Virgil's birthday, but at the same time, Virgil had never been one for birthdays. "It's this weekend," he finally said.

"What?!" Roman screamed, causing Virgil to flinch back. "This weekend? How didn't I know that?"

Virgil merely shrugged. "I, uh, I guess it never came up in conversation?"

Roman stared at him a shock. "We need to get ready, then, if it's so soon."

"No, no, it's fine," Virgil quickly said, waving his hands around as if it signal him to stop. "Really, I don't mind. You don't need to do or get anything for me."

"It's your birthday, Verge, of course I do!" Roman retaliated.

Virgil sucked in a breath of air. "Okay, if you... if you insist." A smile grew across Roman's face. "But... nothing too extravagant, okay?"

He nodded enthusiastically. "Got it!"

He guessed that Roman didn't get it, at all. Virgil didn't even know half the people at this party. All he wanted to do was sleep, but the music blasting down the corridor was still too loud. Plus, anybody could have walked through that door. It wasn't even his room!

Virgil breathed in and out, and closed his eyes, willing for the throbbing in his head to go away. At some point Roman would notice that he had gone, and he'd come to find him, and Virgil would be forced back out there. Maybe he shouldn't have come back home tonight. What had he been doing before?

His friend, Logan, worked at the coffee shop down the road from their apartment. Sometimes Virgil would go in and just chill, grab a cup of hot chocolate maybe. Logan was always there to keep him safe.

"It's your birthday today, correct?" Logan asked, as he handed Virgil his usual cup of hot chocolate.

Virgil nodded. "Yeah, but, uh, I kinda wanted to keep in on the down-low, y'know?"

"I completely understand," Logan replied, and Virgil knew he was telling the truth. "I, too, find birthdays to be... stress-inducing."

Virgil let out a sigh of relief. "Thank God, I'm not the only one."

"Still, I insist that you take this drink on the house," Logan offered.

"Are... are you sure? I have the money ready..."

"Consider it a birthday present from me."

"Huh." Virgil smiled. "Thanks, dude."

"It's no problem," Logan said, as Virgil turned around and lifted himself up to sit on the counter. Nobody else was in the coffee shop, so he was able to sit wherever he liked. Logan never protested against it.

The two sat for a while in silence. At some point, Virgil got out his phone and began to scroll mindlessly through Tumblr, whilst Logan got out his book on astronomy or something and began to read. It was slowly starting to get dark outside, but Virgil didn't move at all. Earlier that morning, Roman had requested for him to not return to the apartment until after seven, anyway. Why, Virgil didn't know, or wanted to know, really.

"Are you planning on doing anything in celebrations?" Logan inquired.

"No- God, no," Virgil replied. "Literally just sitting here is perfect. I think Roman had something planned, though."

Logan frowned. "Roman?"

"My roommate," Virgil clarified. Strange - how had Virgil not told Logan about Roman before? Surely that would be something that he would have talked about. Maybe not. To be fair, a lot of the time the two did just sit in a comfortable silence.

"Well, let me know what happens," he requested. "And, of course, you can message me if you need to."

You can message me.

Virgil brought his phone out his pocket, and just managed to navigate to his messages with Logan, typing out a quick message with shaky hands.

8:56 Virgil: help

Immediately regretting his impulsive decision to text Logan that, he threw his phone to the floor a metre or so away. He swore he heard the sound of glass cracking. That thought was proven to be correct when his phone lit up, and he saw a crack running down the centre of his screen. Great.

Light flooded into the room. Virgil heard muffled voices outside, getting louder and louder, and footsteps echoing along the wooden floor, moving closer and closer. He grabbed his phone and shoved it in his pocket, before looking up to see what had happened. The door was wide open. A dark silhouette stood in the way of the light. Somebody had entered.

"I thought I-" The person stopped. His voice was one that Virgil didn't recognise, high-pitched and clear, calming in a way. But he clearly wasn't there for Virgil. He must have heard the glass or something and came to investigate. But then he noticed Virgil, and everything had gone wrong.

The stranger approached Virgil, crouching down so that he was eye level. But the room was dark, and Virgil could barely see him. Virgil tried to shuffle further back, but he was already right up against the wall.

"Are you okay?" the stranger asked, his soft voice filled with concern.

Virgil wanted to scream. To shout. To cry. To tell him that, no, he clearly wasn't okay. He could feel his eyeliner running down his face, indicating that he must have been crying. Ugh, that would be an amazing first impression.

"I'm going to take that as a no," the man said. "Is there anybody at this party who can help?"

"It's my goddamn party," Virgil mumbled, so quietly that surely the man couldn't have heard him.

And yet, he somehow had. "Wait, are you Virgil?"

Virgil nodded, slowly.

"How come you aren't out there, havin' fun?"

Virgil just pointed out the door, before bringing his legs up and wrapping his arms around them.

"You're overwhelmed," the man guessed.

Virgil nodded.

"Would it be better if I left?" he offered, beginning to stand up.

Virgil grabbed his arm and pulled him back down.

"You want me to stay?"

He nodded.

"Okay." The man sat down cross-legged, showing that he was willing to stay. "I'm Patton, by the way."

Virgil had managed to get his heartbeat back to normal, and the throbbing in his head had stopped. Maybe it was how calming Patton sounded, or just the fact that another person was there. Virgil lifted up a hand to wipe his tears away.

"Not much of a party person, huh?"

"Yeah, that, uh, that sounds right." Virgil's voice was deep and gravely, not sounding like it usually did at all. To be honest, he was almost surprised that he could speak at all.

"How come this is happening, then?"

Did this man really have to ask so many questions? Couldn't he have just left Virgil alone? Even so, Virgil still found himself replying.

"My idiot roommate thought it'd be a good idea."

"Roman, you mean?"

"No, I mean Venessa."

Patton looked confused.

"That was sarcasm. I do mean Roman."

"Oh." He laughed. "Roman is so nice, though. We've been friends for years. I'm sure if you just spoke to him-"

"I tried," Virgil interrupted. "He wouldn't let me get away with not celebrating my birthday."

Patton hummed. "Wait here a moment." He began to stand up. At first, Virgil protested, but stopped after Patton assured him that he would return.

Virgil took his phone out whilst he waited, seeing that Logan had messaged him back.

8:57 Logan: Are you alright? Are you hurt? Do you want me to come round?

Virgil failed to hold back a smile. Logan really did care about him, huh. He quickly typed out a response.

9:14 Virgil: i'm fine now, don't worry. you don't need to come.

It took less than a second for Logan to respond.

9:14 Logan: Okay, that's good. Do message me if you change your mind, though.

Virgil locked his phone, just as Patton walked back into the room. The loud noises had stopped, and the lights had calmed down. Maybe it was just because Virgil was in a better place.

"Come on out," Patton said, reaching out a hand. "It's safe, I promise."

Hesitantly, Virgil touched the ends of Patton's fingertips, and allowed Patton to then wrap his fingers through Virgil's. He pulled Virgil up and helped him out the room, never taking an eye off him. Once they reached the hallway, Virgil realised that Patton was right - it was safe. Nobody, not a single person, was there. They all must have gone home.

They found Roman waiting for them on the sofa, with a Disney movie ready to play on the TV. His favourite Disney movie, as well - The Black Cauldron. Various snacks were laid out on the coffee table. Blankets covered the floor. Patton dragged Virgil over and allowed him to sit down, before pilling the blankets on top of him and sitting down next to him.

Roman wrapped his arm around Virgil's shoulder. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

Virgil gave him a weak smile. "It's fine. I, uh, I'm not angry at you."

"I just wish this could have gone to plan," Roman said. "I told everyone to leave, though. And set this up. Sorry it isn't much."

"Dude," Virgil said in disbelief. "This is literally all I wanted. Our movie nights are the best."

Roman let out a sigh of relief. "Thank God. I hope you don't mind Patton staying, though?"

"I don't mind. He's... sweet."

Patton smiled. "Really? That's what you think?"

"Yeah. What you did back there was... really great," Virgil said, burying himself deeper into the blankets. He could see Patton blushing out the corner of his eye. "But, uh, how 'bout we start the movie?"

Roman pressed play, and wrapped his arm tighter around Virgil, who proceeded to lean on his shoulder. Patton joined the huddle, stroking through Virgil's hair in a calming, swirling motion. And just like that, Virgil could finally relax. He was safe.

so there ya go! I hope y’all enjoy this :D feel free to like/reblog and all that jazz. and happy birthday to our boi virgil!