#its fanbase. because like when i do actually watch i get it and can see it and understand why people like it. but its fans. are so shit.

[pleasantspark]

True Critical Post

Why do we have to rely on Fan Theories as our main source of content? Why do we have to have talented people waste all their energy explaining away the plotholes that SHOULD be solved as we go?

Why do we as respective people have to lower our respect to a bunch of preteens and teens that will probably get criticized themselves if they do decide to pursue what VivziePop is doing?

Why do WE as part as the marginalized people who are portrayed in this show as completely wrong have to explain WHY it's wrong only to get ableism, racism and lgbtqphobic shit at us?

Why do WE have to explain what is criticism and what is not when it's clear as day we felt like this isn't what we stand for?

You want a real true critical post? Well you got it.

Hellaverse is trying to tell a story but it can't find out which identity it wants to be, one minute its Steven Universe, the next minute its South Park.

"But South Park is edgy and has ser-"

It's because it's handled in a respectful manner, South Park handled toxic relationships better than Hazbin, who refuses to let go of a toxic ship.

Cartman and Heidi's relationship was truly the toxicity of that day.

"It's not serious!"

Okay, so by that logic, that means Angel Dust and whatever shit we see is also not serious, good to know SA and depression isn't serious because it's for a show in Hell. You think we critics sit here all day and fluff shit out just because we hate Viv?

You know I don't hate her that's too strong of a word, I LOATHE HER and the fanbase for speaking over victims and actual members of the LGBTQ+ and POC!

Our problems are not taken seriously at all, it's some major spectacle for you all to fetishize and laugh at, wow, I thought SuperMarioLogan's fanbase was toxic, but damn. I was wrong.

If you can't see what the fucks wrong with your opinions, when the people who they are affecting speaks up. Then I pray that whenever you feel the pain we felt, you can change your mind.

It's always the picrew profiles that aren't even POC or victims that speak over us.

STOP

NORMALIZING

THIS.

I shouldn't have to tell you why Lucifer's character is harmful.

or why Angel Dust's is harmful.

You should at least have half a brain to understand.

BUT NO, THE FUCKING TEAM CONDONES CHILDREN TO WATCH THIS WITH THEIR PARENTS.

I can never find a adult space that I can share without children infiltrating it.

This post is far more aggressive because the handwaving and constant dismissive behavior, so MAYBE if we were more aggressive you'll get it. I am trying to be nice but I can't when all I am is a joke for the writers to exploit.

[devilsskettle]

i feel like i’ve been WAITING for the other shoe to drop wrt people’s opinions about watcher for this very reason. not that i think the reaction is completely not understandable but the greater the parasocial relationship, the greater the fallout as soon as public opinion shifts. you don’t have a relationship with these people they’re just content creators, chill

[thedevotionaltour]

i wish i could like garak more than i do when im not seeing him on my television screen because i do think he is actually an interesting and compelling character however i hate his fanbase actually no more than anything i hate gar.as.hir fanbase where then all he becomes is ship fodder and is just. the way they talk about him is so annoying and boring and stupid and shippy that i'm truly convinced i just hate garak until i see him on my screen and go fuuuuuuck he's really neat and i'm fascinated by who he is. but his fans especially those who are like mostly his fan only for shipping and refuse to separate him from julian (i also hate the julian fan side of this too and i think it definitely turned me away from loving julian as much as i did initially which is very sad because he was one of my favorites on the show and now i barely think about him ever when or feel little when i see him on screen) are just so. infuriating. anyways the reason i wrote this out was because i was going to say it is with a heavy heart i must say i think matt would be quite compelled by garak (due to his enjoyment of spy stories as has been mentioned before). and then i got sad about going why do i have to lead up to that with a heavy heart. because see im not doing it with the annoying fondness im doing it with a disappointed shame. which isnt fair bc garak is funny as fuck. anyways

[pinecipitation]

I am once again up at your ass and asking for smiling friends hcs,,,, can I get fucking uhhhh Charlie and Alan with a crush who can't help but infodump their interests?? Talking about sitting then down and forcing them to watch their favorite movie and just rambling. (This is totally not me projecting in the slightest, nuh uh) THANK YOU WIFE I HOPE THIS IS OKAY TO ASK MWAH

SMILING FRIENDS X GN!READER

HELLO WIFE YES THANK YOU FOR THE ASK!! LEAN IN I HAVE A KISS READY FOR YOU

word count: 800+

warnings: none!!

CHARLIE:

- my guy doesn’t know about shit honestly, I feel like just how in the president election episodes he’d be like “idk idc” but in the end he gets an opinion with the more info you talk about

- of course because it’s YOU, he’d listen though

- you’re more into movies and shows and games than he is, so if the moment is ever dull he’d immediately hit you with the “….soooo,, any new recommendations?”

- boy do you have them

- he honestly enjoys the way you light up talking about the media you’re into, even if he isn’t quite retaining the information

- he doesn’t mind asking about it again just to hear your piece

- he thinks it’s sort of sweet that you get so heavy into a piece of media that you’d defend it to the ground, especially if its media that isn’t too widely liked or known or have much of a fanbase. he thinks it’s cool that he’s that person for you, like he’s getting insider information from a reliable source

- he finds himself seeing the media in the wild and immediately thinking about your thoughts on it, if he sees a figure of a character you don’t like or a poster of an arc you loved he’d be sure to point it out to himself

- will find himself going “man, fuck this character” to himself because of you, immediately shaking his head and wondering what was wrong with him. He didn’t even know the character, but he subconsciously has an opinion on them because of you

- back to you though, he would have a hard time physically sitting down to watch or read what you’re into, or try out a hobby you like, but when the moment comes where you offer watching the series with him he will jump on it without a second thought

- you do talk and pause to rewind certain parts in it, which he usually wouldn’t like people doing, but it doesn’t matter to him. it’s not like he’s watching the show anyways, he’s too fixated on you and how close you two are on his couch

ALAN:

- now he would ACTUALLY know what you’re talking about and pay attention to the movies and series

- usually he would just state he’s seen it or doesn’t care for it, but he’s breaking habits if it’s something you’re visibly excited about

- of course he’s happy to rewatch it though

- “no, I don’t know about it, is it good?” he’s seen the movie four times

- alan the type of man to stare at you blankly and resist the urge to add his own opinions and facts, but stays quiet for the plot

- he does genuinely enjoy having you so vocal about a subject you’re so passionate about, you’re somehow one of the only people he doesn’t get too overstimulated around, plus this way he doesn’t have to talk as much

- the day you offered a movie marathon at his place was a turning point, him taking the day off before just so he can clean and make the place acceptable, going the lengths to get usual movie snacks and blankets and such. this, and him hiding his books and dvds so that you wouldn’t stumble on them and find out he’s been pretending this entire time

- for the sake of the plot we’re ignoring alan being a morning person, in this universe he’s a night owl hence the eye bags

- the marathon goes on for later in the night than you both anticipated, after the first several hours and rambles of explaining you find yourself more and more tired and you pause the movies less and less

- it doesn’t take Alan long to notice that you fell asleep just like that, the blanket around the two of you and the bowl of chips discarded beside you

- he doesn’t care about that though, what he does care about is your head centimeters away from his shoulder

- not feeling even a little tired, he pauses the movie and carefully grabs his phone, sure not to move himself or you and writes down the time and place he paused, sure that you’d want to continue in the morning or another day. he’s also sure to write a small summary of where you two left off, now that you both “watched it together” he can talk back in infodump conversations and not give away that he knows the parts you two didn’t watch

- he’s quick to move when you shift in your sleep, him carefully but rapidly moving his hand from between you two and scooping his shoulder right under your head. you didn’t seem to wake or notice, a small lazy smile of success on his face as the two of you spend the rest of the night on the couch, him on his phone and you resting peacefully on his shoulder.

[hannahlovesluca]

Hihihihihi K Anon here :DD

Feel free to do this last or put this one as the last in the row !!

Can i request Luxiem boys(+ Ver cause he's my pathetic boyfailure)'s reactions to finding out that their s/o has a naturally cold body temperature?Like you'd think they'd be warm from their personality but when you touch them it's just freezing cold and they just go (:

Anyways please take care of yourself,drink and eat enough and rest enough !! Your health is important pookie

-K Anon

Luxiem + Ver with S/O Who has a Cold Body Temperature

• before you guys had actually met up irl (met through NIJI) and you told him how cold your hands always were, he lowkey didnt believe you because you just have such a warm personality

• however, when you guys first get together irl, first thing he’s doing is holding your hand because he’s so smitten

• and then his eyes go wide and hes just like??

• even though you don’t actually feel cold, he’ll take both of your hands in his and try to warm them up

• he also lowkey likes it too because he definitely prefers to be cold when sleeping and when you guys are cuddling hes just 🥰🥰

• our boyfailure just loves u sm!!!

• i love ver but i’ll be honest idk too much about him so writing for him is xtra hard 😭😭

• lets say you guys knew each other before niji

• maybe you went to the same high school and started dating then?

• anyway he genuinely worries for you, he does his research and its a pretty big sign for low iron so he’ll probably always ask if theres anything thats bothering you and you have to reassure him that its okay

• im sorry but he DEFINITELY blows on your hands softly to warm them up :((

• hes such a horndog but he can be so so soft and sweet

• and he knows how soft he is with you and isnt afraid to admit that he is!!

• he will NOT hide the fact that he loves you!!

• even if you’re not actually cold your skin just is, he’ll still tuck you in with extra blankets and make sure to cuddle the coldest parts of your body!!

• im sorry but he cracks a few jokes about you being elsa or some shit

• he probably flinches the first time he feels how cold your hand is :((

• he prefers being cozy and warm so it’s a big adjustment for him but he’ll do ANYTHING for you!!!

• definitely teases you about it as long as he knows your comfortable with it, otherwise he wouldnt

• i watch mysta, but again, not one of my oshi’s so its somewhat hard to think of things to add but i swear im trying

• even after knowing about your body temperature, he still probably flinches sometimes :((

• poor baby loves you so much and he wants you to know that and he feels so fucking bad because he doesn’t think hes showing it enough

• apologizes to you repeatedly about it :(

• much like vox, he’ll definitely make sure you’re always covered up even if you’re not actually cold

• “mysta, im having a heat stroke..”

• “too bad.” *sticks tongue out at you*

• GOLDEN RETRIEVER GIVES YOU HIS GLOVES

• “y/n, baby, are you okay? 🥺”

• looks at you exactly like that emoji

• holds your hands in his and probably presses them up against his chest for extra warmth 💟💟

• is the type to make you hot chocolate not only because it tastes good and you like it but because it’ll warm up your body

• hes so thorough with everything he does and remembers everything about you :((

• much like vox, he looks it up and once he sees that it could be something like low iron hes just like :0

• he hadnt even thought about that!!! what kind of a boyfriend was he!!!!

• ^ the best one ever

• HE LOVES TAKING WARM SHOWERS/BATHS WITH YOU

• im brain rotting i want to shower with him

• pls he deserves so much love how has he never had a gf anyone would be so lucky shouldve been me shouldve been me oh my god

• no parasocial

• anyways probably tells the lucubs and your fanbase about how cold you are just naturally and how hes worried, and when the clip gets shown to you youre just like 🥹🥹🥹

• “yeah, chat! Y/N is so cold, it kinda worries me. Apparently it can mean a lot of things and im scared they might have low iron or something..” *with a pout*

• and that was when they realized something was going on between you two

• THE MAN OF SEX HIMSELF

• anyways, much like vox, he definitely blows softly on your hands with warm breath to warm them up im so :(

• he also, like luca, will probably get you gloves (he would lend you his but they wouldn’t fo much)

• he probably reads to you while holding your hand and will look at you now and then just to make sure you’re ACTUALLY not cold

• he worries so much about you and being an overthinker doesnt help his case

• i imagine he’ll probably breathe on your hands whilst singing to you softly and just cradling you in his arms

• the man wants nothing more than for you to be happy and healthy and and and and

• ugh he just wants you to have everything good in life because you deserve it and

• i could rant about this man for ages plz restrain me

• anyway if he catches you wearing the gloves he bought you his heart will explode because he got you those and its just so :))))))))

• yk that Harry Styles song “Falling” thats literally him with you thats him in a relationship i cant explain it i just

• he also has a naturally cold body temp

• so the first time he holds your hands hes just :D

• much like ver, he prefers sleeping somewhat cold so when he cuddles you hes practically in heaven 🥰🥰

• his head buried in your chest while cuddling i cant

• brain is not functioning

• shu is just such a chill guy he wouldnt really have that much of a reaction 😭😭

[dokidokitsuna]

Felt like showing off the "redesigns" of the Grand Festival outfits that I did for my most recent Today's Work video. I just wanted to see how they'd look with some colors on 'em...and they are nice. ^^ Of course, if/when I do actual redesigns, they'll be a lot more effortful than this...

I've been enjoying the Grand Festival so far, I think. Walking around the grounds and listening to the concerts is surprisingly mesmerizing; they really nailed the ambiance. ^^ It was fun scrolling Twitter during my lunch break yesterday and watching everyone scream about the merch (that they can't have) and the idols (that they've already seen performing a million times before). ^^;;; If there's one defining feature of Splatoon's fanbase, I'd say it's unbridled joy and enthusiasm~.

I think it also goes to show that building an intricate, believable 3D environment can do a lot to make players feel immersed and included, even if they can't really interact with anything. The "Cheer" and "Bounce" etc. options are also great examples of 'a little goes a long way'; they're extremely cute. ^^ I wish we had them for earlier Splatfests...

There's just one little detail of this celebration that nags at me though, to be honest...Splatoon composers, blink twice if you need help. (⊙_⊙;;;)

When I realized that they did new arrangements for the concert performances, AND some of the in-game music, AND the victory and loss music...I began to feel something I call 'consumer's guilt'. :/

Like, of course we should get lots of special music for the Special final Splatfest, but it's been like this for the whole 2 years...special music for every holiday Splatfest, special music from the splatbands for the new seasons, random single drops from the idols throughout the year, dozens of tracks just for Side Order...considering the amount of time and effort that goes into composing and producing just one song it's hard for me to believe that they've had any time to rest, or even to just work at a reasonable pace.

It's only natural for this constant demand for content to take a toll on the quality of their work, and I feel that it has...interestingly, though, I feel the lowest-quality tracks are the earliest ones. '_' Like, splatoonwiki.org has a music page, where the music for each game is separated into sections...and the Multiplayer section for Splatoon 3 is the only one that I have no interest in opening. That is to say, the music we hear most often, while playing the main attraction of the game itself, is in my opinion 90% forgettable slop.

Back when the unofficial soundtrack first came out and I listened to the first 2 hours during a long commute, I remember being really disappointed that not even one C-Side song resonated with me...and the rest to follow weren't much better. To this day, every time some Splatoon battle music gets stuck in my head, it's always something from 1 or 2 (i.e. the games I never played ^^;) I can't even recall what 3's battle music sounds like on command...I hear it every day, and yet it all just slides right off my brain. Even the tracks from established splatbands...none of their 'new' stuff hits the same.

If I had to guess, the composers knew very far ahead of time all the stuff they would have to do, and decided to rush through the generic squid-rock to focus on the interesting stuff. If I had both Deep Cut's and C-Side's music on my schedule, I know which one I would want to devote the most time to. And if I had to develop a totally new sound for Free Association (the entity responsible for the music in Side Order, reflecting its surreal techno-industrial vibes) and H2Whoa (a random new splatband that only exists to ring in Drizzle Season 2023) I know which project would be more interesting to me, and inspire more creative choices.

...In a perfect world, though, ALL the music could be of similar quality and creativity, because they wouldn't have to make so much so often! >_< I mean, I know music is central to Splatoon's identity (it's what got me into the series in the first place) but I feel like things are getting out of hand...something about this constant deluge of new music doesn't feel sustainable. I've seen composer burnout before, and because music is so important to this franchise, I'd hate to see it happen here...

[dr-spectre]

So brainwashed Callie in official content is cringe. Do you feel the same about it in Fanfiction? Have there been any takes on Hypno Callie that you enjoyed?

Honestly? I don't feel the same way about it in fanfiction. There's a lot of information and different takes floating around about certain things in the franchise so I dont necessarily blame people for using the word "brainwashed" for Callie in their fanfiction. The English localisation of Splatoon has said she was brainwashed despite other languages and the original Japanese version not using the word. At least from my own knowledge. So I get why most fans would take that information and immediately believe it's true.

Plus there's more people talking about what actually happened to Callie on twitter and tumblr which is really incredible to see!!! Im so happy to see Callie being treated with more respect!!!!! It is a night and day difference compared to the treatment in 2017 to 2020.

Surprisingly enough I don't actually consume a lot of fanfiction. I can read my own writing easily but I can't read others that well and... I feel really bad about it... but I have read a bit of this one fanfiction that got Hypno Callie 99% right. I fucking forgot the name but i was recommended it by someone in the past, it had "dome" in the name? It was about DJ Octavio and the Octarian domes.

The way they explained the shades was actually really interesting and unique! It's basically shades that play catchy music and that's how Callie got hypnotised. It fits in line with DJ Octavio too as he's well... a DJ. Plus daydreaming and listening to music goes hand in hand so it has some basis in reality too. Everyone at some point has been put into a daydream state when vibing out to music.

Although I say 99% because there's this one line that Callie says, "Are these shades brainwashing me?" And it was so clunky I'm sorry LOL. And there's this implication that its also doing something further to Callie's brain but it's not that explained well, which i really dont like. Other than that, my Hypno Callie content is mainly fanart and 99% of that has been phenomenonal and powerful stuff.

However.... my biggest fucking gripe in "fan content" if you wanna call it that is... timeline videos and people going over plot details and stuff like that.

These people actually do RESEARCH and spend a lot of time analysing the story of Splatoon and trying to put the pieces together. Yet for Callie it feels like they just do a quick read through of Inkipedia and that's it because they dont give a flying fuck about her character. It drives me fucking psychotic and i cant be safe watching Splatoon videos anymore. How hard is it to say hypnotised? HOW HARD IS IT?!?!?! JUST USE THAT WORD!!! THATS ALL YOU HAVE TO DO!!! GOD DAMN!!!! DO YOU EVEN KNOW THE MEANING OF THE WORD BRAINWASHED AT ALL?!?!?!

It's really disappointing to me that this outdated timeline video is the ONLY VIDEO to say Callie was hypnotised and not "brainwashed." And that... makes me kinda pissed off.

YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE THE CHOSEN ONE!!!!

YOU TOO!!!!

I can't even watch these videos anymore man. I'm sad. I'm not even trying to send hate over to them, they put in a lot of work... except for a character I really care about....

Imagine you like a particular character and you feel really strongly about them. Now Imagine people saying wrong or yucky things about that character and treating it as fact despite you knowing "Hey something is not right here. I think there's more here than people realise." And all the most popular and well liked content is spreading that kind of information around about your favourite character. It would drive you crazy yeah? I'm sure everyone has that one character in every fanbase.

Anyways, thanks for the ask! Sorry if it was long... I tend to ramble about Hypno Callie LOL! (Autism)

[shuttershocky]

Do you have a dislike for media universes that "rewards" people for watching/reading all of it in general?

Or do you think there is one that executes that idea well?

I'm answering this 5 months late, but I'm pretty sure I still remember this ask being prompted by a post making fun of the MCU.

Do I dislike story universes that reward people for reading all of it? Not at all. I mean, I'm a fan of both Middle Earth and Star Wars, I fucking love big, big universes with plenty of stories in them. When they intersect in some small way it's a delight to me, I love those little personal winks from the author for having read their other works or recognizing the most obscure names only a nerd would know.

However, there's a difference between a little reference in a story meant for people who can connect the dots, and making something almost required reading for your enjoyment. It's the difference between an acknowledgement from the creators that you liked the setting enough to come back for a new yet familiar ride, and a company realizing they've found their cash cow and can't wait to milk it for all its got until it's dead.

And dead the cash cow will be, eventually. It's been said before that the reason why the Big Two of western comics have ceded more and more ground to manga over the years is that Spider-Man has 10 different starting points while Naruto starts with Volume#1. That's not just a funny joke. Onboarding new readers has genuinely been Marvel and DC's problem for decades, which is why it was both incredibly predictable yet shocking all the same that this is what the MCU turned itself into.

Sure, early on you could ask the audience to watch a couple movies before the big Avengers crossover, but now they've got all these TV shows on top of the movies that you have to watch in order to "catch up", and it's not even about the cool characters anymore. More and more of their fanbase is going to stop caring once the barrier of entry gets too high, and it's ridiculous to me that Marvel went this road with their movies when they know this is what happened to their comics first.

I mean, are you serious, their next big bad is Kang? I am not watching several TV shows and an Ant-Man movie that's somehow worse than the second one all to see how the currently left Avengers meet goddamn Kang the Conqueror. He's in both the TV shows and the movies, which means they're somehow giving Kang more buildup screentime than Thanos. Why? Either I've been extremely out of touch with Marvel comics or the MCU picked a wild choice to headline their next billion dollar franchise when Doctor Doom is actually available to them now and barely needs an introduction.

Sorry, got lost for a bit. Back on topic, yeah I know I know, all art right now exists under capitalism which means every setting that becomes a wider story universe is an author trying to milk their existing fanbase. Whenever a creator makes a thing that I like, and then announces they have a new thing set in the same setting as their first thing but isn't a direct sequel so they can keep gaining a new audience while keeping their existing one, I know I'm being suckered in.

Just, don't make it so blatant. And don't make it so hard. I am the exact target audience for these shenanigans and even I'm starting to feel like it's homework because it's all fucking required now.

If I, a lifelong Star Wars fan, want to watch the newest Star Wars thing, I have to see a hundred hours of other Star Wars media first. If I want to watch The Mandalorian Season 3, I can't just have seen Season 1 and 2, oh no, I have to also see The Book of Boba Fett too, because halfway through that show became The Mandalorian Season 2.5. Well I did see Boba Fett, and the combination of my dislike for turning it into required homework AND the show itself just being kinda dogshit meant I never touched season 3 of the Mandalorian. That show used to be so great because it wasn't tied down to any existing story arcs or characters, so it stood on its own and made for an amazing watch no matter how much Star Wars you've actually seen. And then it succeeded and so had to become the new spine for the entirety of Disney Star Wars afterward. Fuck. Now if I want to watch their latest show Ahsoka, I have to have seen the Clone Wars animated series AND Rebels, because the Rebels cast are in it too! I mean I did see Clone Wars and Rebels, but that still sucks!

That makes me worried now! Andor was also really fucking good and it stood on its own so hard you didn't even need to see Rogue One, the movie that introduced Cassian Andor in the first place. But now that season 1 was a success and everyone sang its praises, it certainly means season 2 is suddenly going to get real cramped with Ahsoka and Luke Skywalker and whatever guys are currently alive in its timeframe. Shit, they're probably gonna add Cal Kestis in season 2 of Andor. The Respawn Star Wars games are still doing their own thing which means it's time to connect to something else.

I hate what all this has become. It was fun to read the Silmarillion and see what kind of fuckery one family of elves got up to that eventually turned Sauron from minion to big evil eye parked next to evil mountain, but you didn't need to read all that before The Lord of the Rings. LOTR didn't assume you knew anything at all (and oh boy did Tolkien never miss an opportunity to explain shit).

Let me repeat. I am the target audience. I live for the ridiculously nerdy habit of reading things set in the same universe as other things and connecting all the dots. If /I/ feel like it's become homework, I can't imagine what the average person thinks of all this. Make it stop. Stop running everything I once loved into the ground in the name of endless profit. Star Wars was already doing this to itself before the Disney acquisition and yet it didn't feel this bad.

[autism-alley]

augh found my old post abt pjo and disability from before the show came out but it was on ye olde blog so i’m literally just gonna copy and paste, 3, 2, 1—

ok now that i’ve got it on the brain, i want to talk about disability in pjo and specifically how calling percy jackson dumb or treating him as such is not only a mischaracterization, but ableism. as a quick note, i’m keeping this to just percy to avoid having this already long post be even longer, but there are other disabled characters in pjo worthy of discussion, though i hit many of the same points in this post. i bring up percy specifically because he is mostly the character i have seen people treat as stupid.

percy is a dyslexic teen with ADHD who comes from a low-income family, raised by a single mother, and deals with an abusive step-father. i cannot stress enough how much of his character is shaped by that experience, but as hard as it is to single out any one part, i am going to focus on his ADHD and dyslexia. this kid has nightmares of being forced to take tests in a straightjacket as teachers ask him if he’s stupid and withhold him from recess with his peers. he is constantly labelled as “troubled” and blamed for things he didn’t do or aren’t his fault. he is told, over and over again, even from trusted adults, that he is “not normal” (othering him). he bounces between schools. he struggles to make friends. he deals with bullying. he has difficulty studying and reading, even when invested. teachers struggle to connect with him and tend to just give up on him. these are real disabled experiences, and rick does a good job at presenting them in the pjo books. sometimes, it feels like everything is a struggle. you are living inside a system that not only is restricting, but actively works against and punishes you.

in contrast, CHB is a great example of how when environments meet the needs of disabled people, it hugely changes how disabled we are in that environment. demigod brains are hard-wired for ancient greek, not english, and they’re born impulsive, with high energy levels that help them survive battle—but aren’t very good for a classroom setting. but by having them read books in ancient greek, regularly do lots of training/physical activities, and have genuine opportunities to express themselves...they function pretty damn well. percy discovers that while he struggles academically, he is brilliant in combat and capable of saving the world numerous times—he is a hero. do you know how important that message is for disabled children? disabled adults, too? that we can be heroes?

it is here, in camp half-blood, that percy finds a place he belongs, that shows him his worth—finally, somewhere is built to not only include him, but to nurture and genuinely prepare him for the world outside its boarders. however, i think people forget that just because percy functions in the world of CHB and the gods, that does not mean he doesn’t face ableism in the mortal world—and that there is an entire group of people who see ourselves reflected in his character.

i could talk on for hours about how much being disabled shapes percy’s identity and how he interacts with the world—like how percy’s humor revolves around coping with his environment and actually displays a very low self esteem after being looked down upon his entire life. this kid doesn’t even have to say anything and he screams i had a neurodivergent childhood. but about 5-6 years ago, when i was more regularly tuned into the fandom, every time i saw someone call percy jackson dumb or an idiot, even jokingly, i raised an eyebrow, and now that the series is getting fresh coverage from disney+, i have wanted to make this post. so much of this kid’s life and personality comes from being treated like he’s dumb or incapable, so it’s troubling to watch part of the fanbase reflect the harmful parts of this character’s upbringing. i truly hope it does not become common again. it’s also one thing coming from a neurodivergent/disabled person with similar experiences (and even then i personally find it a little uncomfortable), it’s another to be said by a neurotypical/able bodied person.

percy jackson’s experiences make for very important representation, and for people to characterize him as just a goofy, unintelligent guy is not only an insult to his character as a kid who is intelligent, but previously lacked the environment to show it, but also ableist. so in the dawn of the new tv series era, i ask that we cut that shit out. rick riordan did not create rep for neurodivergent and disabled kids for them to be called stupid by the fanbase. even jokingly.

[genericpuff]

I think praising someone (Mongie) considering her incredibly racist comments and disrespectful behavior towards nonwhite fans, simply because she isn’t Rachel, is a bit gross

? I mean, yeah I agree with you, she's acted very immaturely and cruel towards her nonwhite fans. I'm assuming this has to do with my post talking about mongie's announcements at NYCC with her getting an anime? (if not please link me to the specific post for context). I don't really see any of that as 'praising her', more so just acknowledging the fact that she at least had the balls to step away from WT when she knew it wasn't working for her anymore, and the fact that she's managed to succeed separate from WT thus proving that it is, in fact, possible to succeed in this industry without relying on one single platform. The comparison to Rachel was more so just to prove a point that LO is in development hell lmao

I was more so just trying to praise the action in and of itself, not praising mongie for being a good person. I'm very aware of and have talked about her issues involving her racist opinions (the Vicky incident especially), I don't think her not being Rachel makes her a good person or good creator by default and that's not the point I was trying to get across. I'm not interested in continuing to read her work (like with LO I used to be a huge fan of Let's Play until it fell tf off in S3, then I found out about all the racism) but I can acknowledge the fact that she found a way to break out of the mould of Webtoons because I think that's something that should be talked about so that others can see it is possible to survive outside of Webtoons (not just for the aspiring creators, but also for the Originals creators who have spoken up about feeling 'stuck' with Webtoons because they don't feel like they can succeed without WT). It's just a shame it was, y'know, the person who has treated her fanbase like shit and acted out over very valid criticisms of her depictions of nonwhite characters. That's pretty much all I was trying to get across, it's not much more complicated than that lmao Weird analogy but it's like when you smell something cooking that smells really good and then you find out that it involves ingredients you can't stand LOL

But hey, you do raise a good point that highlighting the success of someone who's shitty towards their readers and how they write nonwhite characters is just giving them more press and recognition, so let's use this opportunity to highlight a not problematic creator who also found success in this industry while never once being an Originals creator - Alice Oseman! Heartstopper is wonderful and beautifully written especially in its characterizations and depictions of queer relationships and identities, the Netflix adaption is very warm and comforting to watch, and Alice herself seems like someone who I'd love to have coffee with if I ever had the chance. Go read/watch Heartstopper y'all , and remember to include non-Originals creators in your search for good comics to read <3 I'll probably make an actual post about Heartstopper sometime because I still need to watch the second season of the show and I'm sure I'll have plenty to gush about after I watch it just like I did with the first :' )

[pastelalleycat]

Like its predecessor, the Illumination movie Sing 2 features sideplots with its deurotagonists that revolve around and eventually assimilate into the central story (putting on the in-movie musical Out of This World). Now, I love Sing 2. Despite a shaky first act, it has an incredible finale that hits almost every chord right. But there's a part of the movie I haven't seen anyone complain about (besides me, in YouTube comment sections) and I really think it needs to be addressed. It hasn't left my head since the movie came out and it still really rubs me the wrong way.

...that part is Darius, okay? I hate Darius.

Please hear me out.

In Meena's sideplot she has to kiss someone on stage for her song, but not having had her first kiss yet, she feels incredibly nervous about it. Buster Moon tells her not to worry, because he thinks he's got the perfect guy to pair with her. In comes the new hire, an acclaimed Broadway-equivalent actor sure to sweep her off her feet.

Darius is a girl's stereotypical first date: charismatic, moody, a little ditzy, very romantic. He doesn't make the best impression with either Meena or Buster, but especially with Meena; he gloats about the success of his previous show, only after doing so addressing he's been told about Meena's nerves- forgetting her name in the process.

When Meena tries to correct Darius ("it's Meena, not Gina"), he asks her not to interrupt him in the future instead of accepting the criticism. Meena's ears are pulled close to her face, a behavior carried over from the first film that she does when feeling very shy and guarded.

Their initial rehearsal doesn't go well, with Darius initiating unwanted physical contact with Meena. The chemistry is very clearly not working, and everyone can see it, but they assume it's just a rocky start.

This is where the problems really begin.

A phrase that's frequently thrown around with Darius and Meena is "find the feeling". Miss Crawly says it (in essence, at least) over her megaphone to try to get the co-stars in line, but Darius is by far the one who uses it the most. It's not a comforting statement, it's not a "let's work this out", it's a demand- because if the chemistry isn't there when the curtains go up, Darius's reputation could be affected. (Meena's as well, but he's not concerned about that.)

Meena runs outside to get some fresh air and meets Alphonso- voiced rather impressively by Pharrell Williams, as a sidenote- and it's not only love at first sight, perhaps her first real crush even, but the antithesis of everything Darius is. Sweet, non-judgemental, genuinely appreciative.

It was at this point, watching the movie for the first time, that I guessed how Meena's story would wrap up. She'd tell Buster she was uncomfortable, Darius would get kicked to the curb, and they'd hire Alfonso to star alongside her. Happy ending. (If only Alfonso could sing, but we never get any indication he has talent or experience, just that Meena imagines so.)

Well, Meena tells Buster no less than twice through the subplot that she's uncomfortable with Darius. Instead of letting her explain and listening to her concerns, he quickly tells her she has to stay with him for the act. The anxiety and stress and Darius's smartassery just keep building until the actual performance.

Darius asks her one last time, desperately, still calling her Gina, to "find the feeling".

She imagines Alphonso.

And she does it.

And that's, apparently, the victory the story was looking for. Darius goes with the rest of the cast on the big tour, Meena gets Alphonso's number so she can FaceTime him every now and then, and everyone's okay with how the stars aligned.

But me? God, I'm not. The fact that Darius recieved zero backlash (as far as I know), that his stuck-up behavior was treated as cute and quirky by the fanbase, infuriates me. I rarely get infuriated by cartoons, but this, as an AFAB person who was groomed online, is something I absolutely can't stand. Darius is treated as a comedic figure, and yes, it's "just" a kiss, but his behavior is far from funny, and a first kiss that goes anything like this is far from inconsequential.

Meena should never have been pushed to the point of needing to imagine someone in Darius's place in order to play her role. She should never have been forced to act with, much less kiss, him at all. It reminds me, tragically, of how people in situations of continued distress will imagine themselves in a better place to help them get through it. How a young girl, if she's attracted to boys or raised to assume such, may assume she must always be willing to please her boyfriend before taking her own needs into account.

Meena deserved so much better in Sing 2. She needed Buster to listen to her, Rosita to give her candy from her purse, Johnny to give her a hug, Günter to make her laugh. She needed a community. The kids watching her did, too. And the film didn't give them that dignity.

[uninformedartist]

I feel like Spindlehorse can't separate Helluva as a product from themselves as people. Same shit the fandom does.

Yeah that's actually what's happening. Now its understandable that a creator would be attached to their product/project in some ways because after all they made it can be seen as an artistic reflection of themselves and what they want the world to see. But there comes a point where you have to separate yourself from your property especially if it becomes mainstream for legal, professional and pr reasons. That is not seen with Viv and she includes too much of herself (good or bad) into her shows.

When looking at the core aspect of helluva boss the comedy, Viv tries to implement a lot of what she finds personally funny but... lets just say her humor is problematic in some ways or just down right unfunny. And this is very bold of her to do because she's putting what she finds personally funny which thinking in a greater scale is bad to do because everyones humor is subjective. Another thing to note is that her humor is in general very crass "edgy" and immature actually so dick jokes, SA "jokes", ableis "jokes" are all over her show and since this is what she finds personally funny, in our modern era that is a problem because many don't find this sort of humor funny in any way.

The main aspect of helluva boss fails. Viv and whoever she associates with put too much of themselves personally in helluva boss. Be it the humor they find funny or life experiences. And doing this causes issues because as seen by the audience at large (not talking about her bootlicking fanbase) they simply don't find that sort of humor funny or relate to whatever life experiences they insert in helluva boss. Then Viv and co get offended/or angry at the backlash their humor etc receives and proceeds to complain on twitter because this is their personal humor/experiences is being criticised.

Saw a few examples:

This was that horse joke in So2 ep1. It wasn't funny at all well to me at least, was informative but not funny and it was an actual thing that happened to Sam who is Viv's best friend/spindlehorse staff member. This "joke" had to be explained on twitter cos nobody got it, its an inside joke/life experience thrown in the episode that didn't land and now Sam had to explain it.

And this is a big one, the infamous dildos in the wall joke. Since the episode was written by Adam Neylan we thought it was his joke he made and a lot of people didn't find it funny because it was a stupid dick joke and where the joke happened was were Moxxie was physically abused by his father then the next scene had the dildos popping out the walls, complete tonal whiplash and was insensitive. Why I bring this up because it was actually Viv who added the dildo joke: this is highlights from the Helluva boss watch party.

And then she proceeded to go on twitter liking and retweeting any tweet of someone who found it funny when many didn't to I don't know comfort herself, maybe boost her ego. Yeah adding your personal taste in humor can backfire.

On the hivemind fandom, its like minded people in it and she cultivated this fandom over many years so Viv and her fandom are in the same boat together, nothing much to say there.

So yeah in short, spindlehorse and Viv add too much of themselves in helluva boss and it backfires because its not funny, relatable, problematic etc. Some separation between creator and product is key to avoid a lot of this as mentioned, getting too personal with your product especially if its released to a wider audience can save you a lot of hurt and backlash if what you're adding personally of yourself is problematic etc but you don't see it as such.

Sorry for such a long post ╭( ๐_๐)╮ I threw myself this morning into doing a lot of law past exam papers so my writing off the wall.

[sn0wp1anets]

just got back from dance so some marauders dance au brainrot

dancer james potter is my one and only the loml honestly. classically trained but now is super into hiphop and like commerical dancing. he teaches classes at those really intimidating studios and he is so loud and the biggest hype-man ever. goes to his friends classes (mostly sirius) for fun. always has to stand in the back filming the mirror because hes tall and has really steady hands/arms. hes nice sure but hes also like kinda an ass because he knows hes good .you can tell when he starts dancing because his eyes change so fast its like a light switch. can pick up choreo at insane speeds and is casually just like oh wait youre still on this part? has like a real fanbase and everything because he danced for some singer on a big world tour and everyone thought he was hot. dresses really messy in that stereotypical dancer way ifykwim. does alot of battles.

oops i lied dancer sirius black is also my fav ever and the loml. hes classically trained ofc and was a bit of a ballet prodigy. he and james have been training tgt since forever. smooth like so smooth that its kinda intimidating because youre like wtf how does he move like that does he even have bones. (kind of the way sean lew moves if anyone has watched his videos) absolutely ruthless choreographer- to the point where the studio will only let him teach advanced classes because it's literally impossible to keep up- and people get annoyed because hes like what do you mean you cant do this. perfect svetlana arches and so flexible that in ballet even the girls are like wtf. dances w his clothes alot? like he uses them as part of the dance. does loads of artsy projects.

dancer lily evans who took ballet classes at her local community centre and then got a scholarship at some posh academy that sirius and james were at. having the most gorgeous lines ever and is really known in the dance world for insane artistry. tried taking jazz funk and hiphop and heels classes but nothing stuck so she just does ballet. most perfect hair bun that everyone else asks her to do theirs. in a really intense ballet company and shes such a perfectionist: if you see a light on in the studios at 2am chances are its her. gets really annoyed when people take her barre spot. got super famous when she danced juliet- the audience cried in the final act, and she even got calls to be casted as juliet in movies

mary is one of the only ones to have never done ballet but shes just so good at everything else that it kind of gets overlooked. heels queen. teaches alot like actually alot and its mainly heels classes. like james she has so much energy in classes so she always hypes people up. has the best style even when shes just practicing or teaching- people always ask her where she gets her clothes from. insane crazy facial expressions when she gets into it and when she performs you literally cant look anywhere else. she choreographs for tv shows and movies and things but once she choreographed a pop star's music video and then posted a tutorial of the dance and everyone lost their shit collectively. random but when she does hiphop classes etc she does that thing where she tucks her shirt into her bra.

dancer remus went to the same academy as L+J+S and was also a scholarship student so the teachers paired remus and lily up for pas de deux/partner work all the time and it annoyed lily so much but remus didnt really care. he doesnt look very strong but he has insane core and leg strength so all the girls in the company want to be paired with him for lifts etc. kinda thirdwheeled sirius and james' friendship/relationship when they were at the academy got kinda frustrated because he wasnt as flexible as sirius was. goes to all the non-compulsory classes in the company and listens to the barre gossip so he knows everything. goes to his friends' non ballet classes too like this man does not rest. known for dancing the prince in sleeping beauty and once he got stopped on the street and asked if he was 'the guy from that one ballet'

marlene danced competitively in a really intense team when she was little so she has insane stamina and also is really good at staying out of dance world drama. does mostly contemp work but also gets involved in alot of other dancers' choreo projects because shes flexible and easy to work with (mostly except for when people are slacking - she will just rip into them: she got banned from teaching at a studio after getting mad and going if youre not here to dance then why are you even here get out- which is kinda valid but wtvr) dances really sharp and really clean. will just wear mary/james/remus/sirius' clothes when she practices instead of her own.

peter started dancing because of james (they were childhood friends) but then got really bored of ballet so he quit. the end. jk no he took alot of modern dance classes and then kind of hopped between different dance styles. realized he has really bad stage fright so he doesnt really perform but he still dances and he choreographs like alot. he also gets invited to judge events and battles alot? in like bug battling events hes one of the three people sitting there with sunglasses on. he also gets brought in as a guest choreographer for teams and companies and schools.

dancer dorcas is like untouchable. she went to ballet school in russia and not the uk, but moved back to join a company. becomes the company's principal at 20. there was a rumor that she sold her soul to the devil for ballet technique and she found it so funny that she texted her family group chat about it. danced the lead in swan lake and also the sugar plum fairy in the nutcracker production. has really nice warm up clothes. used to be rivals with lily in the company when they were both soloists but now theyre friends and its a thing for them to get dinner together after evening rehearsals. her jumps are really powerful and pretty so they end up getting put on programmes and the website and on advertisements and sirius thinks its funny to send her photos of them. sometimes goes ice skating just to show off (its iconic)

[that-left-turn]

Saw your post about advertising revenue going down. Subscriptions to AMC for Q1 went up while TOWL was airing. What are your hopes for TBOC drawing in new audiences for AMC? Do you think Caryl is a big enough draw and if not in its current state what needs to change?

Subscriptions going up while TOWL aired was good (for AMC). The question is if it's fans of that particular show dipping in and then dropping off? AMC can't appeal to the larger TWD fanbase for all the spinoffs. They've slimmed down, so they need to find ways to grow those individual audiences and they need to retain them for the longhaul.

The appeal of TBOC is in the lead characters and sadly, not the story. Zabel hasn't done his homework (which an incoming showrunner should do): he has either only watched the montage and final scene of the flagship show, or he's relying on what other EPs have told him about the characters and their arcs. That's why he thought Ezekiel was Daryl's friend, since he was there to see Daryl off in the series finale.

Contrary to what you'd believe from looking at the fandom and the loudest screaming individuals, Carol resonates with the general audience, so seeing her again will probably draw curious viewers, but will they stick around? It depends largely on how her character arc is handled and also, her relationship with Daryl. They have natural chemistry, which the show should capitalize on as it comes with a built-in audience.

Will it, though?

From what I know about TBOC, Carol and Daryl's individual arcs merge at the end of block 2/beginning of block 3, so 204-205-ish. That means half the season has them separated. That's not ideal for a show where the main appeal lies in the relationship between the leads (whether romantic or platonic). Their emotional drives appear uneven, from my limited view of the beats, which might also be a viewer deterrent.

I think AMC needs to go all-in on canon once the storylines intersect—especially as it looks like we're in for some heavy nunbaiting—to at least get some good word of mouth and maybe draw back parts of the audience who've given up on the show. There were people who stopped watching TWD in S7-8 who came back after the original Caryl spinoff was announced. Having a loyal core audience is vital, so the studio needs to insure that those viewers are invested and engaged.

The show also needs a story engine. The escort mission in S1 had little urgency, beyond Daryl looking for a radio, and the actual meat and potatoes of the external plot was nondescript. Laurent was said (prophesied, really, by a Buddhist monk) to be the new Messiah who will "save humanity." It's very fuzzy on the details and not in a way that implies mystery. It screams of hand waving. The show has to draw in horror fans with a season arc that services the genre.

Caryl fans would watch for a good emotional arc and the GA should be treated to a well-conceived external plot. If you can cater to both of those demographics, you can grow the audience (because people tell others when they like a show) but it hinges on tight storytelling. You have to have an actual detailed plan and not a vague idea of where you're going—pantsing might work for a novelist, but never for a screenwriter. There's an A story, a B story and you may have a couple of runners, for the season as well as individual episodes, so a TV show requires organization. (And I'm getting off-topic here, so I'll leave the logistics at that.)

I'm not confident in TBOC based on what I know of Zabel's writing in general, his management of S1, his statements to the media and what I know about TBOC. I think the show needs a redirect into a different subgenre and some fresh ideas that showcase McReedus playing off each other and Caryl being thrust into the unfamiliar (both to the characters and the audience)—we need to see something new while the characters stay in-character to tether them to the character development already done on the flagship show. (And now I've written 'character' so many times that the word has lost all meaning 🙈)

Zabel played loose and fast with Daryl's backstory in S1. Fans are invested in those details and if it's made it to screen, the showrunner can't ignore them to shoehorn the already well-established protagonist into a plot involving new characters. He shouldn't love his own original creations more than the actual main character. All of these things give me pause as to Zabel's suitability as a showrunner for a show that already has a preexisting ecosystem.

That said, it looks like the show is getting delayed to a fall premiere, promo seems to be on a hold and the season finale may still be in post, which could be signs of AMC fixing problems and/or changing direction.

Sorry the answer was neither short nor succinct, but I hope it gave some clarity regarding my thought process. Obviously, like everybody else, I have ideas of what I'd do to increase ratings, but I'm not the person in the hot seat 🙃 I'm waiting for the panel at Tribeca to see what I can decipher from the inevitable sell speak.

It may be a long summer for us.

[imminent-danger-came]

tbh you are so real for talking about the misogyny targeted to mei & other women in the lmk fandom. in general its like people only value mei as: a: the wingman to some basic mlm ship or b: macaque 2.0. its honestly crazy how so many male side characters overshadow her in the fanbase despite not even having a FRACTION of her screen time. idk chat i feel like the reason people dont care about mei but care about some random male side/background character is less because they're inherently more likeable but because some of you view women as inherently less likable. and everyone is always like "mei is so girlboss pussy cunt slay shes the only reason theyre still alive because she keeps them safe from their silly boy shennanigans shes their ultimate wingman shes so badass shes their lesbian best friend i totally paid attention to her when i watched this show LOL" and even ignoring the obvious misogyny here (ie. how people reduce her to being the male characters babysitter) its like... okay... i know mei is cool & badass already... could you name literally ANY other character trait she has. like people just value her as being "the braincell" who can get red son and mk together or something stupid and its like are we having fun still is this still fun. literally every day i go into the mei tag its like "look at mei shes red sons wifey and shes vaguely in the background of this drawing of red son and mk staring into each others eyes #trafficlighttrio am i right oh look shes macaques niece now this post is about ao lie why is it in the mei tag"

and thats literally JUST talking about mei and it doesnt even begin to cover the other female characters. chang'e constantly gets reduced to being red sons aunt/mom/big sister despite them like. not having any actual interactions in the show. lady bone demon constantly gets overshadowed by her minion who has like 2 seconds of screen time, or she gets made into a cartoonishly abusive madwoman who people call lady bitch demon. just in general people act like shes a horrible person for like. being a villain. liks yeah the trying to destroy everything was bad but also she was an antagonist and thats what antagonists do LOL. spider queen gets completely ignored. princess iron fan gets made into a cartoonishly abusive mother so that way red son can have a poor angsty backstory and some male character (usually nezha, macaque, swk) can take care of him.

(also theres just a great deal of ethnocentrism in the lmk fanbase? like im white so take what İ say here with a grain of salt but so many people will misconstrue aspects of chinese culture for their own personal hcs. people will say male characters are transfem or nonbinary while completely ignoring the time period/culture their from where thats the norm. like yippee youve implied that an east asian man is feminine/emasculine because he has long hair. how do you not see the negative connotations with this. people also turn pif (& lbd to an extent) into a dragon lady which obviously has negative racial connotations lol.)

anyway this is where my unhinged rambling ends have a good day have a good night İ had more to say here but İ reached the text limit. İ dont see a lot of people talk about the misogyny thats prevalent in the lmk fanbase so İm glad youre pointing it out lol.

Yeah, I totally hear you. The lmk fandom has plenty of issues with misogyny and, like you said, ethnocentrism. It's definitely something worth having a discussion about, along with these issues in fandom as a whole.

[thenhlteaissuperhot]

what do you think of the tkachuk vs mcdavid "face of the nhl" debate?

since people magazine called tkachuk the "face of the nhl" butthurt hockey men are saying that will never be true because mcdavid is the face of the nhl. the way i see it, mcdavid might be the best player but he has the personality of beige wallpaper and tkachuk might be a rat but seems to have a fun personality

also, who do you think the nhl should market more to be the "face"? boring but the best players in the world (mcdavid, crosby, mckinnon etc) or talented fun personality guys (tkachuk, pasta, zegres etc)

I see it the same as you do.

No one can deny that McDavid is currently and will continue to be the best NHL forward - it is something every single person who gets into the world of ice hockey and consequently even the world of the NHL grasps and accepts as a fact.

However, just as you have said Connor has a personality of beige wallpaper (I love that term so much by the way). You see it every single time he is asked to do any sort of promotional content during the All-Star Week, before the season shooting, or during it. The outcome of that is always something you can hardly sell to his fans, who are die-hard supporters of the cult of "McJesus" - even those people oftentimes consider it as unwatchable - so now imagine what would people, who have no idea what NHL is, say if McDavid really was the face and his content would be the one, with which would the league be trying to expand its fanbase.

It's not that I blame him for being socially awkward, everyone has a different sort of personality and not everyone is born as a social butterfly with an undeniable charm, but the NHL and those fans who passionately defend his "face of the league" title need to realize that being the best player and the most marketable player thus the face of the league are two completely different roles and McDavid can play only the first one. Just like Crosby.

Simultaneously, you have to take into consideration that they are looking for primarily an American face of the league - that's market where they are competing with other big and more known leagues like NFL, NBA, and so on, you don't need that much promotion in Canada where it is a national sport or in Europe where you could definitely find many more fans but where you have the huge disadvantage of the time difference so you will never have thousands of Europeans watching the games at 2 AM when they have to go to work the next day. If you use a Canadian or European player as the face of the league, it won't register as big of a success as you would love to. This is the USA we are talking about, the most ridiculously patriotic country I know, they want an American face or else they won't support it.

That's why the league is pushing guys like Matthew Tkachuk or Auston Matthews (or at times even Zegras) because they are both players with actual talent but also a big marketability aspect and mainly with American passports.

Naturally, there are players who would be even bigger internet sensations if they were American - look at David Pastrnak, that man has been born a showman and a great player on top of that, he would absolutely kill the face of the league game if he wasn't from the Czech Republic and so would Mitch Marner if he wasn't Canadian, hell even Brad Marchand has an elite personality or Jaromir Jagr if he once again wasn't Czech. To this day Jagr is the most beloved player from the big guys (Gretzky, Lemieux, Ovechkin...) because he was and still is a f*cking comedian on top of being an ice hockey legend.