#its like the opposite of being parasocial

[quillthrillswriting]

as a fanfic writer who just started getting more into the community aspect, all of my favourite writers that write for my favourite pairings feel like legitimate celebrities to me, and so it is actually crazy to me to get comments or likes or follows or reposts by them

[mightdeletelater]

A speech made at the Academy Awards by Jonathan Glazer, along with the subsequent reactions, sheds light on how people tend to distort others' words to portray themselves as victims and, more concerning, their willingness to reside in a dystopian bubble as long as it doesn't affect them directly.

Rather than idolising Hollywood, I've previously posted about the complexities of my evolving parasocial relationships. But to disregard the influence wielded by these elites would be naive. It's frustrating to witness those in power facing backlash when they attempt to bring attention to pertinent issues.

While the Oscars' prominence in Western pop culture is waning, the ceremony and the fervour surrounding the nominees and winners, especially in the major acting categories, still hold significant sway in film culture and the broader world.

So when such a speech is delivered at the Oscars, it's bound to garner attention:

All our choices were made to reflect and confront us in the present — not to say, “Look what they did then,” rather, “Look what we do now.” Our film shows where dehumanization leads, at its worst. It shaped all of our past and present. Right now we stand here as men who refute their Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation, which has led to conflict for so many innocent people. Whether the victims of October the — [Applause.] Whether the victims of October the 7th in Israel or the ongoing attack on Gaza, all the victims of this dehumanization, how do we resist? [Applause.] Aleksandra Bystroń-Kołodziejczyk, the girl who glows in the film, as she did in life, chose to. I dedicate this to her memory and her resistance. Thank you.

Glazer highlighted in his speech that victims of the ongoing situation and the last 75 years, whether Palestinian and Israeli, all stem from the occupation and are casualties of entrenched ideologies like Zionism. But when he said this on stage and was immediately misquoted online on social media and by reputable news sources, alleging that he simply renounced his Jewish identity.

He also faced considerable backlash from those indicating a persistent conflation of anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism. It really parallels previous speeches of resistance at the Oscars. Boos rang loud and clear during Michael Moore's opposition to the Iraq war (which we know was a colossal failure by Geroge Bush and the US Government who perpetuated and pardoned multiple war crimes in the region after lying to their own people about evidence of weapons of mass destruction).

There was also Sacheen Littlefeather's advocacy for Native American representation and the direct of attention to the Wounded Knee Occupation, a speech that had bodyguards having to restrain people from getting on the stage and attacking her.

And, of course, Vanessa Redgrave's aim at “a small bunch of Zionist hoodlums whose behaviour is an insult to the stature of Jews all over the world and to their great and heroic record of struggle against fascism and oppression”, which still feels relevant today.

Turning to Glazer's film, I am baffled at those who vehemently objected to it: Did they actually watch it? Because if they had any negative feelings towards Glazer's speech, especially after watching his film, it suggests, to me, a deficiency in critical thinking.

Glazer's film portrays a chilling atmosphere where genocide becomes normalised, echoing real-world situations like the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The film serves as a stark reminder of humanity's ability to coexist with atrocities, often turning a blind eye for the sake of comfort.

The horrors adjacent to the characters' lives evoke contemporary parallels, particularly in regions like Gaza. With over five months of relentless violence, Israel's defiance of international court orders, and Western governments passively reprimanding while fueling the conflict with arms shipments, the spectre of genocide looms ominously. It risks becoming a mundane backdrop to daily existence. It is a stark portrayal of how affluent lifestyles can be linked to neighbouring atrocities, challenging the notion of denial and complicity.

The film doesn't centre around the Holocaust (Glazer's own words), with its specific historical context. Instead, it delves into a more universal theme: humanity's ability to coexist with atrocities and even derive some form of reconciliation or gain from them. The discomforting reflections are on purpose. It prompts us to acknowledge that the threat of annihilation of any people is always closer than we might imagine.

One of the most poignant moments in the film occurs when a package filled with clothing and lingerie pilfered from the prisoners of the camp arrives at the Höss household. The commandant's wife decides that everyone, including the servants, can select one item. She claims a coat for herself and trys on makeup discovered in one of its pockets.

How can the people who are so staunch against Glazer not draw parallels with Israeli soldiers who have recorded themselves rummaging through the lingerie of Palestinian women and slut shaming them? (Why are Israeli soldiers obsessed with Gaza women's underwear?) Or proudly displaying stolen shoes and jewellery for their partners back home (Israeli soldier loots Palestinian homes for his engagement party). Or celebrating International Women's Day with a photo of women soldiers posing for selfies against the backdrop of destruction (How an AP photographer made this image of Israeli soldiers taking a selfie at the Gaza border).

The film is rife with these parallels that it feels like a documentary. It is a grim reality: the potential emergence of the first live-streamed genocide, captured by its very architects.

Gaza doesn't mirror the systematic mass murder machinery of Auschwitz, nor does it approach the scale of Nazi atrocities. However, the entire purpose behind establishing the postwar framework of international humanitarian law was to equip us with the means to collectively recognise practices before history repeats itself on a large scale. And disturbingly, some of these practices – such as the construction of walls, creation of ghettos, mass killings, openly stated intentions of elimination, widespread starvation, plundering, gleeful dehumanisation, and deliberate humiliation – are recurring. And have been long before October 7th.

How do we disrupt the cycle of trivialisation and normalisation? What actions can we take? There are persistent protests and acts of civil disobedience to "uncommitted" votes, disrupting events, organising aid convoys, fundraising for refugees, and creating radical works of art.

And as genocide fades further into the background of our culture, some people grow too desperate for any of these efforts. I am certainly one of them.

Yet, these efforts seem insufficient, particularly when those in positions of power remain indifferent. It's insufficient when I watch a video of a little girl saying that the violence has made her feel less beautiful before she talks about her father being kidnapped by Israeli soldiers or of the orphans visiting their mother's burial spot in the street. It is insufficient when the death toll rises to exceed the daily death toll of any other major conflict of the 21st century.

Perhaps it's unfair of me to prioritise one tragedy over another, given the multitude of suffering in the world – the ones that are in the news cycle and the ones that are not. Yet, my connection to Palestine and its plight feels as personal as it can be without me actually being Palestinian, fostered from childhood teachings and further enriched through my own research. I have loved ones directly impacted by this conflict: friends in the diaspora grappling with survivor's guilt, friends in the West Bank enduring the daily hardships of occupation. And my friends in Gaza are all either dead, dying or being pushed straight into the arms of death.

The realisation that my efforts to help them are insufficient fills me with frustration. I'm angered by the indifference of those in power and by the hostility encountered by those attempting to bring the truth to the forefront.

[aihoshiino]

chapter 160 thoughts

Chapters Since The 143 Kiss Happened And Went Entirely Unacknowledged And Unaddressed Count: 17

Aqua Hoshigan Status: Incomprehensible

144 held out strong for nearly 20 whole chapters but 160 comes in like a beast to take its crown as Oshi no Ko Chapter That Has Baffled And Confounded Me The Most. The way it talks about the characters and arcs it's trying to convey to the reader is just mind boggling - some of this stuff just feels completely disconnected from the character arcs it's supposedly commentating on. It almost feels like an Oshi no Ko chapter from an alternate universe version of the manga.

I kind of suspect this is actually the case, in spirit at least. Akasaka has previously stated that he's had at least an ending for OnK planned at least since midway through Tokyo Blade based on when this interview was given. You would think the amount of time between then and now would have given Aka the time to organically work towards this but I think the opposite is true here - because the story has organically drifted and grown in the telling, as is natural for a serialized work of this length, the story that Akasaka ended up telling does not naturally lead into the ending he wanted to give it. And rather than compromise he's just… going ahead with it without making any adjustments, which leads to this bizarre sense of whiplash that's come from the last handful of chapters.

It's definitely possible that some of the stuff in here will read better when we're not getting this stuff bit by bit across however many break weeks but… man. I ain't getting my hopes too high.

To my relief, we start off on a note of confirming that Nino and Ryosuke were, in fact, both freaks about Ai way before Kamiki ever got involved with them. Even so, the story's framing of how he influenced them is just… weird. Based on the little flashback panels we see of their supposed friendship I'm inclined to think Kamiki is being truthful here just because whenever we see on-panel flashbacks in this way, they tend to be more-or-less factual accounts of events. Aqua tries to say he's lying, that he definitely intended to do harm but this is really hard for me to swallow, given that this 'intent to do harm' ball would've had to have started rolling back when Kamiki was fourteen at the oldest and long before he and Ai broke up.

Not only that but I have to stress, again; Nino and Ryosuke were already freaks about Ai at this point!!! They tracked down one of her loved ones under false pretenses and entered his life presumably for the purposes of crowbarring info about Ai from him!!! Wil from the OnK Brainrot server pointed out that this comes off much more strongly like Ryosuke and Nino taking advantage of Kamiki's naivety to prey on Ai, which I agree with and think lines up way more straightforwardly with the Kamiki we saw leading up to 154 and its conclusion.

It almost feels like there's two Kamikis; the victim of circumstance Kamiki who embraces monstrousness as an act of reclamation, who knows he can never again be good so he will surrender to being bad and the flatly evil Light Yagami ass Kamiki who's bad because uhhh he just is ok? It probably goes without saying which of the two I find more compelling and overall more consistent with what the story has been building up so far, but the way the story keeps abruptly switching between the two makes it almost impossible to get a coherent read on him.

At the end of the day, I simply find it very hard to swallow the manga's attempt to almost sweep Nino and Ryosuke's culpability under the rug or to transfer the weight of their actions to Kamiki and hold him accountable for them because of this supposed manipulation. A healthy, well-adjusted person with no tendencies towards violent or antisocial behaviour does not suddenly get mindbroken into a misogynistic murderer overnight because they saw that the subject of their parasocial obsession keeps a toothbrush at her boyfriend's house. I can believe that Kamiki certainly didn't help but the idea that he is solely responsible for turning Nino and Ryosuke into violent murderers is a stretch.

I feel like I'm kind of talking in circles on this point a lot because I'm struggling to articulate why it bothers me so much so I'll end this section by paraphrasing a section of Higurashi YouTuber Bess's deep dive post-mortem on the GouSotsu anime duology. that I think sums up where I'm at.

In it, Bess quotes the original author in describing the actions of the overarching antagonist as "giving a gun to someone who is being bullied and getting emotional" and says that she agrees but points out that if the victim chooses to fire that gun, they are the ones who hold responsibility for their actions and that being the victim of manipulation does not suddenly rob them of accountability for their violence, whereas the framing of GouSotsu is that the overarching villain is the sole person who bears responsibility.

I feel like this is the dynamic at play here with Kamiki and Ryosuke/Nino too - except Kamiki, in this metaphor, didn't even fucking give anyone a gun because both Ryosuke and Nino were already armed to begin with. BUT I'LL MOVE ON NOW I SWEAR…

Aside from ^ ALL THAT ^ I also feel like this chapter's attempt to define the white/black hoshigan dichotomy is also just kind of a flop. It's so overly specific that it doesn't actually match with how the black OR white hoshigans have been portrayed symbolically before (was Aqua using his super special dark and evil star powers to dominate and manipulate others when he was eating potato chips and pumping up a pool floatie? come on, man) but it's also just so on the nose and overly dramatic that it comes off as kind of goofy and hard to take seriously.

It's also really funny and kind of frustration to see this dichotomy established seemingly for the purposes of just propping Ruby up some more. Aqua insisting that Ruby is ~just different~ from him and Hikaru REALLY flops because like… IS SHE REALLY THO???

Understand that I don't say this to shit on Ruby but like. Ruby literally had a whole arc about going black hoshigan and using her talent to manipulate and use people for her own benefit! She effectively utilized girl power to put the jobs of an entire TV show's worth of people at risk so she could clout chase a little more efficiently!!! Literally everything Kamiki tries to assert about him and Aqua are also perfect descriptions of how Ruby behaved during that leg of the manga until it flipped off like a switch and she faced literally zero consequences and learned nothing from it.

This is another indication to me that this conversation is an artifact of Akasaka's originally planned ending because this whole bit gassing up how Ruby is just ~so different~ from Kamiki and Aqua simply does not cohere with a story where Ruby had an entire arc of her just being Aqua 2.0 that was never really resolved and she never really learned anything from. If the framing here was just a LITTLE different, I think it could work - maybe instead of Aqua acting like Ruby is just intrinsically, arbitrarily Pure of Heart or whatever, a point could be made that Ruby is actively choosing to be a good and loving person even after all the shit she's been through and especially after an accidental taste of the dark side. But as it stands the accidental implication of the story ends up being that Ruby's BH era was Good, Actually and the actions she took during it were also good lol.

I continue to have all the same issues with the B-Komachi concert as I did in my previous chapter review so I won't repeat myself on that. I will, however, point out that the song Ruby namedrops in this chapter is a reference to Spica (where we translated it as 'When You Wish Upon Your Star'), in which this is a song written and performed by Ai as a message of support for her fans. That is to say, we are once again seeing Ruby, from a narrative perspective, not being allowed to stand on her own as her own idol but relying on the imagery and legacy of Ai's idolhood.

Not only that but… again, I must ask: why is Ruby the center and narrative focus of Kana's graduation concert? Like, obviously, given that Aqua and Kamiki are talking about her the framing is going to focus on Ruby but why is this conversation happening during a moment that had been massively built up to be about Kana? Why is Aqua talking about Ruby as an idol like the rest of B-Komachi just doesn't exist? Why is the narrative unironically indulging in all the same favoritism and coddling of Ruby that, in-universe, tore apart the first generation of B-Komachi?

I guess at the end of the day my problem is that I'm just kind of fed up with Ruby as a character and the way the story has been bending over backwards to coddle her so it's hard to me to get invested when the story goes YEAAAAHHH WOOOOOO RUBY!!!! Especially when, like it has been for a while now, this coddling comes not just at the expense of other characters but also at the expense of Ruby herself and the coherency and consistency of her character arc. It sucks for Ruby as a character and it sucks for me, as a reader, who used to rank Ruby as one of their top three faves but now just feels kind of exhausted with her.

LOOK OUT KAMIKI HE'S GOT A KNIFE

God this whole bit with Aqua getting double white hoshigans while he pulls a knife on Kamiki is just kind of too goofy to take seriously lol. I have some thoughts about how this potentially recontextualizes some of Aqua's actions through the Movie Arc and during the previous confrontation with Kamiki but. I just keep coming back to Aqua being like "white hoshigans means love r something which i'm going to prove by killing you in cold blood" and just shaking my head. It really feels like a moment written just to be a cliffhanger so, like I have with the last three damn chapters, I'll hold back any commentary on it until we get a continuation of this thread next week.

honestly the part of this chapter I enjoyed most was that creepypasta ass full page panel of Kamiki's fucked up smile. that genuinely really alarmed me when i first saw it and even now I don't like looking at it for too long or i get the willies lol. Genuinely fire horror imagery from Mengo as usual. Can she PLEEEEEEEEASE do a horror manga next i'm BEGGING to get spooked by mengo-sensei

no wait i lied. the best part was that cute panel of ai and her babies. <3

justice for memcho and kana, tho, for real

And I'm sure as none of you will be shocked to hear……….. break next week.

[chaifootsteps]

It's like every time Viv or her fandom does something, Lackadaisy goes in the opposite direction. Their discord just instituted new rules - the first is making it stricter for how its mods interact with members, especially young ones. The second is a rule that people offering commissions set a price instead of devaluing their own work

It's like the more Viv's fanbase becomes a parasocial nightmare where ppl attack artists for even being annoyed they weren't credited properly, the further Lackadaisy pulls in the other direction and actually behaves like professionals. They recently came back from their research trips and posted images from it - I can't wait to see how they use them to inform the episode's backgrounds

[wildpeachfarm]

I'm seeing more and more people siding with Caiti and stepping back from Dteam, and it's okay in a way that people are less parasocial but, the way these now former fans talk about Dream and his friends is so upsetting, not gonna lie. Because… what do you mean that these guys let you down? What do you mean that just because one of them made a mistake without realizing you are now not going to support them anymore???

Do these people (these fans, fan-writers, fan-artists, etc.) realize that these CCs are humans first of all? Do they realize that humans screw up every time about everything? Did these people ever see these CCs (Dteam and other CCs) as people with their strengths and weaknesses?

These people say that WE fans just treat the Dteam as little stupid angels that can't do anything wrong, when the reality is that they are the ones that put these CCs on a fucking pedestal!!!

And now that the pedestal crumbled down they say that the Dteam let their fans down for not being the perfect little angels that they painted them to be??? And I'm like "Bitch, are you seriously that delusional?"

This makes me wonder, how old are these people? What were their experiences in the real world? Are their family members and friends that perfect? Did they really get sheltered and protected in all their lives that they never made mistakes besides grades in school?

Am I the weird one????

(sorry for my possible bad Enghlish)

Honestly I haven't seen an increase in support for caiti lately, if anything I've seen the opposite as of the last few days. I think a lot of people are having the same issue as hannah: making a moral grandstanding against any mistakes people can reasonably make, and then when a /human makes a mistake/ suddenly they have to remove themselves from that person entirely- Ignoring the fact that anyone can make a mistake, and its what you do after to fix it that matters

I think the sooner people realize that no one is perfect, the sooner people can stop holding CCs to unhealthy standards because you're setting yourself up to be disappointed when someone inevitably messes up

[dearweirdme]

https://www.tumblr.com/dearweirdme/760787222147547136/httpswwwtumblrcomdearweirdme7606164166353879?source=share

Hi, Korean American anon here so I'm familiar with shipping culture in South Korea (though I don't think what I'm about to say is exclusive to South Korean culture)

I'm catching up but OP is very right about the strange contradiction and it's usually that some shippers feel safe shipping m/m relationships because at heart, they don't believe that their idols can be homosexual/bisexual. Their idols are perfect and, in their opinion, anything outside of heterosexuality is flawed and abnormal...so it's a low risk form of denial over the fact that they might have to one day deal with seeing their faves in a hetero relationship.

So shipping them with a male or group member is a safer way of exploring that fantasy romantic side of their idol, seeing how cute they can be, what they'd look like as their boyfriend etc without any of the risk of having to face their idol being in a real relationship (which according to them is a hetero one) because their homophobia (concious or subconcious) won't allow them to really consider the possibility that their fave might be gay or bi and they also know that companies and artists themselves might be less willing to expose same sex relationships.

So TLDR; it's a low risk deniability and form of mental escapism from facing the reality that they nightshade to watch their idol go through a relationship.

Now in Korea, its the same thing but with a little bit of an added element to it....because fans know that Korean entertainment companies and artists are far more indulgent than western counterparts when it comes to pleasong fans and delivering what they want and protecting them from having to acknowledge that their idols are human beings with their own lives. So with Korean idols and fans, there's also an element of control.

They know that if they ship group members or idols together, companies will often jump on it and use it to foster the parasocial element that is heightend and more greatly exploited in KPOP. That means idols and companies will go to far greater lengths to hide their real relationships and so fans won't have to be exposed to something they don't want to see or acknowledge.

They can make their faves dance to the beat of their drum by shipping them with each other because they genuinely don't believe anything will ever come of it

And the fact is that these fans would react the same way if their idol dated opposite or sex---because shipping them with the same sex is their way of essentially shipping them with nobody (if that makes sense)

Now obviously, I 'ship' Tàekook or I wouldn't be here but it's the fact that Hybe not only haven't exploited their biggest ship for fan engagement and fan interaction but seem to have gone to lengths to cover it that makes me more suspicious as to the reality of it.

But ultimately, homophobics shipping their m/m faves is really just them trying to exert whatever control they can while also holding a belief that they'll never have to face the reality of their ship coming to life.

Hi Korean-American anon!

So good to see you around! As always thanks for your input!

You're responding to this ask:

One of the reason's why I always found the explanation of less Taekook focus from BH being because Tae and Jk weren't close anymore such nonsense, is because it makes no sense from a business perspective. BH could literally make them do content together because people enjoyed it so much. Taekook is the biggest ship, has been for years.. and yet they make none to little use of it.

I've read people (the other side) say Tae and Jk are less interesting to watch... freaking bs.. which is basically proven by AYS where all Jm and Jk do is just eat and talk about how much they love to eat. Tae and Jk are also hilarious, cute, and comforting together. I grant everyone that an AYS from Jk and Tae would gather the same attention as AYS from Jk and Jm.

[thewertsearch]

EB: why are you taking such an interest in my fashion, anyway? AG: Trolls are an extremely fashion-minded race, John. You should make a note of this, since you pretend to 8e a scientist or something.

We've been told the opposite - but we've also seen that highblood trolls do care about their outfits, so Vriska is only half-lying.

EB: laaaaaaaame. AG: Look at that! You counted out 8 a's for me, John! That is so thoughtful of you. [...] EB: i didn't even count. it just… EB: turned out like that. [...] AG: <33333333

John, please run. Vriska paralyzed her last crush.

GA: Ive Just Been Meaning To Say GA: That I Read Your Instructional Guide

It took Kanaya eight more chatlogs to bring up the GameFAQs guide. I guess when you're getting to know your crush, you don't want to cop to a parasocial relationship until you're sure it won't scare her off.

TT: Sorry to hear you were subjected to that. GA: Why TT: It was a little melodramatic in retrospect. Heavy-handed.

You're above all that now, though.

Right?

TT: Have you ever written a message you regretted instantly upon sending? GA: Lately GA: Almost Perpetually TT: That line included? GA: Wow Yeah Kind Of

I think it's called 'being thirteen'.

GA: At The Time Of Reading It Lent Some Useful Insight GA: Into The Nature Of The Game I Hadnt Yet Considered GA: And GA: The Author I Guess [...] TT: When exactly did you read it? GA: Uh GA: By The Way GA: What Are You Doing Here

What's so uncomfortable about telling her when you read it? It's not like you have to admit you idolized her.

I guess she just wants to change the subject before they get anywhere close to that confession. Kanaya started this conversation, but it's clear she's not quite ready to finish it.

There's something here, buried deep underneath the temple. It's enormous, and it doesn't match LOLAR's sparkleglitter aesthetic at all.

A secret dungeon? Her Denizen's lair? An egg?

GA: Are These Tactics Really Necessary GA: [...] I Thought Our Methods Earlier Were Effective GA: In Illuminating The Underpinnings Of The Game GA: You Ask Some Questions GA: And I Answer GA: If I Can

Yeah, but I never got the sense that the trolls really studied the game. Karkat was pretty dismissive about Sgrub's deeper lore, and most of his team lack Rose's analytical mindset. Terezi might be helpful here - and she did tell Rose she'd be back later.

I guess Rose could go for broke, and ask the troll who actually has the answers - but you'd probably get more insight from a brick wall than you would from Aradia Megido. Still, she might let something slip.

GA: But These Means Presently On Display GA: Are Making Me A Little Nervous GA: I Think Its Kind Of A Reckless Use Of TT: Of what? GA: These Forces

Thank you, Kanaya. Is it finally time to talk about this?

Rose is fully aware that an early-game Player isn't meant to be this strong. How much power is she getting? What are its limits? Under what conditions is it given, and what are the consequences for breaking them?

[livingfictionsystem]

I love tumblr. only here can you find someone who pretends to have a trendy tiktok mental illness, defends the worst of the worst, AND thinks they're being digitally gangstalked. fatherless behavior

I know, right??? See, what I did to achieve this was to start showing recorded symptoms of D.I.D. eight years before TikTok was invented. I wanted to be, like, SUPER prepared so I was ahead of the trend. And then, to REALLY throw people off, not even come out about it for another four years. So like, to be expert level, you have to just sprinkle breadcrumbs from not only your POV, but multiple people who witnessed it, over twelve years before saying something.

It's the long game, you see. Real galaxy brain stuff, it was ahead of its time.

And then

And THEN

You have to join a cult. It's actually kinda easy, going to your average RenFaire is probably your best bet but we just built a parasocial kinda deal. If they say they knew you in a past life or if they're a king or god or werewolf, jackpot.

Especially if your group bonding activity is like, good old fashioned counter-cursing.

Then BLOW THAT WHISTLE, FUCKER~

Then the stalking just kind of flourishes on its own so you don't even NEED the extra effort of delusions.

As far as the D.I.D. stuff?

You gotta keep up the charade every day.

And sometimes this means turning an alcohol and nicotine addiction on and off for days or weeks at a time. As it turns out, all those decades of addiction research is actually just to help the Tyler Durden conspiracy. it's way easy to just, choose not to be addicted anymore.

It's a well-known fact that substance dependency was what was invented during the MySpace days

And it's not just for the internet, you gotta do it at work, at home, with partners, even when you just woke up.

I know it's like, a lot. But you gotta hang in there. There's also less clout and your life is like, way more complicated. I know it seems like the opposite of why people get on trends, but just hear me out.

The goal of all that?

These anonymous asks.

Because no matter how dysfunctional I might feel, these science-scorning Jerry Springer rejects in my inbox always make me feel great by comparison's sake. 😍 Where would we be without these future TrueCrime deep dives of our generation?

For more advice, see DontYouHaveAMeTooVictimToThreatenOrSomething.jfc

But that's if you're not too busy over in JetFuelDoesntMeltSteelBeams.meet

-Sparrow 🧷 (or idk what you people think is the real one, just fill in whoever you think is faking the other people ig.)

[oddlyhale]

You know the longer I see anti rwde and rwby stans lurking in the rwde tags and stirring drama make me laugh at how the rides have turn.

I remember back when volume 4-8 happened people made jokes about how major of the rwby "fans" were puritans complaining about every new changes to the show and hating the show for "stupid reasons". (Look who's laughing now).

Any time a rwby stans hears the word criticism they immediately assuming they are talking bad about the show. When its completely the opposite I criticism a lot of things when in the fandoms I'm in but you don't hear me complaining about why their takes are bad. Criticism is good because you want to thing you love too improve. Same can be said to rewrites and redesigns their not bad the fans just has a different view on how they see the show and characters from the main story.

Majority of times rwde fans are making criticism it always goes back to the stans and how they handle criticism. No matter how many criticism we can make there always a rwby stan who would make the most bigot explanation and would point fingers. There's a reason why majority of us don't talk with them anymore because of how childish they are. I mean look at any rwde blogs some have turned off their anon filters because rwby fans don't want their names to be revealed as that "rwby stan lurking in rwde blogs". And those who have are always called out or shut their ears and pretend they are the ones who are right and rwde fans are the "puritans" they are.

I'm in the same boat when I'm in my other favourite fandoms where sometimes the criticism can bug me, but I don't go out of my way to attack the poster for their opinion. Or better, I just try to understand what they're expressing, because I don't want to think my favourite character or event was flawless.

I think what makes RWBY fans angry is that RWBY isn't like other shows: shows that balance themselves between good and bad. There's something for everybody and something to criticize or love, the show thrives regardless. But with RWBY, nothing but poor content has come out of it for years. The writing is bad, the character keeps getting worse, the character and setting designs are terrible, and just about half of RWBY isn't good. The occasional blips of goodness can't outweigh the overall bad.

It's been said before but RWBY was in a unique spot where RT did interact with their fans directly, but that could've been a bad idea. The fans felt like they were controlling the narrative and wanted "this, this and that," or else they wouldn't like the season. Trying to appease these wants while dragging the plot along on broken legs kept weighing the story down.

Puritans don't want anything to taint their incredibly tailored and niche show that panders to them. RT should've pulled away that parasocial connection long ago, maybe the show would've been different if they had just focused on the actual script that was planned from the very beginning and not focused on what fans wanted.

Critics are criticizing what we're being given from the show itself, but because it's such a specially tailored show, it would feel like a direct attack on a RWBY fan who has a parasocial relationship with CRWBY and the show itself. Never have I ever seen another fandom behave this way for several years, and there are pretty bad fandoms out there.

[my-mt-heart]

I apologize in advance for the rant that's coming your way. If you're seeing this and you're having a good day - you're welcome to skip it.

I'm tired of the whiplash.

Melissa comes back, and then there is a string of articles basically teasing there will be heavy-handed shipbaiting in S2. Then we get a BTS interview, and now there's more to be sad about.

What is the point if the good news is overshadowed every time?

I did not get into this show to "obsess" over superficial characters. I got into this show because of its heartfelt storylines and strong character arcs. Carol and Daryl helped me sift through some dark things in my life, which I am grateful for. It felt nice to root for something precious and one-of-a-kind and funnel hope into two characters who deserved to find their happy ending together. Most people I know are still here because they think these characters deserve better. Ya know what? Because sometimes the world is shite and some days it's hard to find hope. These characters bring hope. And the fans deserve respect (not talking about the ones who were sending hate to actors and/or their families).

The current showrunner, with his contradicting statements, has done nothing but make me feel anxious - even though some of what was said was positive. He has done nothing to win my trust. The contradictions make me think he either doesn't know what story he wants to tell or, worse, he doesn't understand the characters he's working with. If storylines keep getting overlooked, and characters are treated like shipbaiting devices - what's the point of S3?

I'm happy to have Melissa and Caryl back; she's why I have a bead of hope. Her input is the only one I trust at this point. But I have no excitement left to give, and now I have one foot out the door. Until I see something that helps me trust this show again, that won't change.

Bring me a showrunner who understands these characters deeply. Bring me a director who makes room for meaningful stories. Bring me writers who write complex storylines that dive into the psyches of these characters and show us why we fell for them in the first place.

And for the love of all that's good and holy -Bring me strong and powerful female and POC voices. Bonus points for both.

I'm tired of watching POC characters get turned into walker fodder or shipping devices. I refuse to invest in a show where the characters I fell in love with get treated with callousness and shoved into storylines that don't honor them.

I'll simply find something else worth my time. Because you see, I know that my value isn't intrinsically attached to this show and the direction it takes. Sorry about the rant. It's one of those days. Peace be with you.

You don’t have to apologize for how you’re feeling. Everything you said is completely valid and to be honest, it’s where I’m at as well. Having Melissa back is amazing, and I know she has input, but it feels like she and her fans are still being punished. The lead actor reduces us to “obsessed” parasocial shippers, the current showrunner doesn’t acknowledge we exist let alone understand what Carol’s/Daryl’s/Caryl’s story means to us, “The Book of Carol” is being left out of promos, that and Melissa’s name aren’t in the casting calls. How can I trust the show to honor a narrative about a woman beating the odds time and time again when business practices show the opposite? How can I subscribe to AMC+ for a show called "Daryl Dixon" knowing it represents white male privilege 🤷🏻‍♀️ We need leadership to not only give us the heartfelt storylines and deep character arcs that we want, but also to uphold our core values, to nurture, not insult, our intelligence, and to give the lead actress the respect she deserves. That's why I think Melissa should get to choose the new showrunner.

[applejuiceyjuice-art]

PARASOCIALITE MANIFESTO

⚠️massive infodump ahead⚠️

i wrote all that forever ago when i was trying to figure out the dynamic (and after rewatching a stream of the beginner’s guide, feeling incredibly inspired to create a drawing of twitch as a parasocial figure and thought i needed someone on the “other end” so to speak). after writing vol 3, it just sorta fell into place. i was trying not to post too many drawings before it came out 🤭

my original idea was basically the clashing of “someone who doesn’t care about anything” and “someone who cares too much about everything,” which is still true but i really love the added parasocial aspect of it 😁😁😁 and i like opposites attract type of shit i guess

kik wouldn’t even think of twitch as anything more than a basic influencer type until after watching for a good while. at the start, he was only curious, and still held disdain for twitch’s streaming personality. but he likes it when twitch gets mad, so somehow he found himself continuing to watch old streams and new ones.

there’s also a sense of relatability all streamers have, and so for someone like kik, who doesn’t find most people relatable (or tries), it felt even more intense. the fact that twitch is genderfluid, has overlap in their sense of humor, and those random moments where you and the streamer are just… thinking the same thing in the moment, feels like a red strings of fate to kik. donating to get twitch to read her message gives her a major shot of dopamine lol.

things that kik originally disliked in twitch are now reasons why she’s soooooo amazing: workaholic -> talented, trying too hard -> cute. she agonizes over being so attached to someone she once pinned as a normie and over the possibility that she’s being creepy.

deep down kik is a social person, and used to talk to people all the time, only thru the window while rarely meeting anyone “irl.” since amino is the only other person kik cares abt now and they go periods of time isolating itself, welllllll ig kik gets a bit lonely.

from twitch’s perspective, she has been working hard and trying to fit in with the bigger sites as her platform basically became a major trend in recent years. she adores the sleekness and style of celebrity type sites (which is why she thinks yt and insta are attractive) and wants the attention too. just in her own, gamer way.

twitch gets easily swept up in the streamer/audience feedback loop, and hasn’t quite figured out how to create clear boundaries. she could tell right away that kik was a fan by the time they met again. it makes her uncomfortable and annoyed when people idolize her, but at the same time she kinda likes being showered with praise and attention and stuff like that. though she really hates it when kik makes assumptions about her based on their limited perspective, and whenever they say anything self deprecating, so she also uses this as an opportunity to be mean to someone/boss someone around without repercussion.

i specified that this happened during their burnout era because it would be when they make the most irrational decisions and more prone to being mean. before then, they probably didn’t even remember kik’s existence or rejected him. it would take a while for twitch to actually see anything in kik, partially cuz he never talks about himself or his interests, and also cuz he’s just not their type (or so it seems??)

i think that twitch might like kik if she approached her normally, like being bold but not overly obsessive. but then it wouldn’t be very parasocial-ite would it? that would only happen at the very beginning since kik wouldn’t care as much, or the very end after they get past the parasocial aspect of it n are just talking normally.

after the dust is settled, their true dynamic is kik still being mushy/touchy-feely and twitch being awkward about it bc normally she’s kinda adverse to that stuff and would rather it be a joke. especially around other people. kik would bother the fuck out of him in public and likes embarrassing him. this also compounds with kik being the antithesis to the image twitch likes/wants to achieve.

of course at the end of the day they’re just dolls im playing with and i dont necessarily have to stick to any strict timeline or anything lol

dont get me started with the eddsworld polycule thing. theyd all kill each other

[theoddest1]

i fear viv is like j*k*r -

there is evidence, proof, so so much of it. and even then, just her behavior alone, without the really bad stuff, is questionable to say the least. i dont know how to put it, but she and her fans act like 12 year olds on wattpad (i used to be one of those kids to some extent ik what im talking about here lmfao). it is a FACT she's horrible and disgusting (i could list a thousand other things here but the critical community already knows all this) and still people defend and dickride her. it is no lie that her fanbase is like a cult. i wonder if these people are actually completely oblivious or are just as horrid because the fact she's a horrible person is as clear as day. the fetish shit, her weird ass transphobia, her blatant disgregard to actual victims that aren't her fans, her drawing... that , her racism, her- should i go on? and i fear there is no consequences for BOTH these people- they will go on until they die without ever facing their actions and stuff. its disturbing.

its like j*k*r all over again. i sense a pattern here. not sure what kind, but its so fucking baffling how both are horrid and insufferable AS CLEAR AS DAY as people and HARM OTHERS and still get so much support. both need to be studied because what the fuck have they going on that protects them meanwhile some people on social media get cancelled for one sentence they said 17 years ago (not that that's not "valid" it's just baffling how some people get cancelled over the smallest shit meanwhile....) and these people get to enjoy their life without consequences while there's MOUNTAINS of proven evidence.

i feel like i discovered a goddamn alien baby the way im so fucking flabbergasted at all this.

anyways, sorry for the rant.

i hope you have a nice day/evening/morning/night!

Hey, no worries! Rant away! It's a very strange enigma for sure, and the fandon does indeed act like a cult! My guess for how Viv keeps getting away with all this stuff is that she has a parasocial relationship with her fanbase. The idea of landing a job or getting close with a creator with such a large following overrides any sense of reason or care for her actions, so people keep gassing her up because it could likely lead her to like or comment on their stuff. There's also the pseudo kind act she puts on, so people think she's the sweetest person ever when she has showcased the opposite. There's also a loooot of fandom bullying. Lots of the big dogs in the fandom bully people into silence or make em think they're in the wrong.

There's a WHOLE lot of control going on here, and thanks to her ass kissers logic is thrown out the window. Finally, there were the overblown posts highlighting things that, while weird or gross, aren't "cancelable" enough or downright exaggerations of the truth or lies. These threads on Twitter, especially back in 2019, did more harm than good and led many into believing there was a mob that simply wanted to cancel her for being popular. The threads consisted of her old cringe art (some are very questionable don't get me wrong) rather than the ones where she encouraged fandom bullying and made fun of a 15 year old fan for simply being critical of her work and called them nasty for it. No one did any research on her behavior or how she was an absolute bully to people like Starvader. Callouts need to consist of hard evidence so stuff like this doesn't happen, where your callout does more harm than good.

These factors led to many straight up turning off their brains and blatantly ignoring hard evidence. It's very, very stupid.

Also, who is the other person you mentioned? The only one that comes to mind is the guy who plays League of Legends and is famous for winning many championships.

[neopuppy]

do you think jeno's desire to do kinky stuff on stage partly stems from the fact that they were forced to wear chewing gum like clothes since debut? 😭 and when they're finally legal, he was like "time to shineeeee" 💥 akin to how rebellious souls graduated from strict/religious households gjdksk

you know, I don’t think that deep about it😭 I kinda have a weird parasocial relationship with ideals like my boundaries about assuming anything about their personalities/emotions etc is very restricted? I feel invasive if I allow myself to start wondering about why they do what they do? I guess. I was discussing this with my friend today, how it’s funny to see anyone say “he’s the greenest flag ever.’ when….kpop is about selling a fantasy to your fans, being their dream…..we all have different dreams and idol’s personalities are really just what we want them to be, not what you *think* they are bc you *know* them, you know?😅

BUT speaking from history: disney child stars etc its always the same: sexual repression and being forced to carry on a child-like innocence well into your teens and adulthood makes you go full force into the opposite. has happened with many many many singers/actors etc. its easy to forget sometimes that Dream have been trainees since childhood/debuted as minors, they were child stars which now in 2023 is something the western side of the kpop fandom finds abominable and illegal….its child labor at the end of the day and really Jeno’s been in the lime light since extremely young as a toddler in commercials and catalogue(which….if you think about it, was absolutely not his choice so who is to say if being a kpop idol is his choice either since he was like a middle schooler when SM signed him). also like… I always hated the Chewing Gum/MFAL music videos because something about them…. especially MFAL. while it can be seen as cute and innocent, having a crush on your teacher its an odd concept for a bunch of underage boys :/ idk, great song tho cjsjsjsjd

I can only speak from my own experience growing up how I always thought sex/being sexy/sexuality etc was so taboo because religion etc and my time of self-discovery with age definitely propelled me a lot faster into all of it out of curiosity and feeling of missing out on it when I was younger? I think thats just….human nature.

/srry for ranting😬

[jiangwanyinscatmom]

It will constantly remain surreal how people can say "talk about this character with more nuance" and you do that with what is provided by text. But what they really mean is "I want to force another to see this character as I do despite what is contrarian to the narrative ".

And this is only an issue that arises despite being able to curate what you don't want to see if that offends whatever sensibility you have parasocially developed regarding an antagonistic character. Who on page is not spoken of well, is not shown themselves as to be of better intention or exhibit kindness. While the text continues to provide negative and violent scenes for a genre audience to understand you are not supposed to sympathize much with this character any longer. And this makes YOU need to come up with completely supplementary reasons outside of the author and text, as to why an antagonistic character is sympathetic, likable, misunderstood.

When ironically the main character of the plot was faced with this slandering instead, including slandered by the one you are trying to call nuance for. You not liking how that nuance comes in the form of negativity produced intentionally by the plot for him, doesn't mean others are somehow being maliciously obtuse for not wanting to engage or accept a completely fabricated excuse you made up, not the work.

I do not give a shit what sad backstory you yourself try to add to the table, because I am not talking about you. I am talking about words on a page. As soon as you even try to use whatever apparent worldly knowledge you have that I don't, that has nothing to do with the discussion of text and story plot, I have no reason to engage patiently. Especially when said personal knowledge is being used to try to downplay the active criticism of abuse the novel thematically uses in portraying its inner character relationships. Not you, so any time you try to say you have some deep cultural insight or personal insight as to why I am wrong with how I choose to analyze said work, I do not care when it is to the opposite effect the work has built up for.

And the moment you downplay how abuse is portrayed as by making fun of it or making excuses as to that's just how xyz culture familial units are, why should I have respect for you if this is how you speak of it when it is in the context of fictional characters? This is not a failing upon the author when they were very upfront with this theme and it's criticism, but a failing on you to disengage and further derailing for your own validations and attention between a group you have bubbled yourself in with no actual nuance.

[dreamhot]

the mask being dream’s “brand” now its kind of funny though because its the complete opposite of dream. we became fans of dream because he was so vulnerable and open about his feelings and was an open book. the mask is closed off, cold and uninviting. its not dream. and i know he’s loving this whole “anyone can be dream” thing, but…. its not true. HE is dream. no one else. and he’s covering up the parts that make him, him. and its sad a little

iiiii just don't get it because . we didn't even HAVE his face (or the rest of him really) for YEARS and now people are talking like his face is the entirety of his presence. the mask has Been part of his branding, even in the casual fanart sense or whatever, for ages now. this doesn't strike me as that different?

and truthfully . while i know that he was obviously revered for his oversharing and vulnerability with the fandom ... that's also bitten him lots of times. and now that his irl reach is a lot more significant than it was before, it doesn't surprise me that he'd dial back on the reverse parasocialism. especially after ... yknow, everything

[chanstopher]

(for some reason I can ask via my fan account(

But I just want to say I feel you with the stay and KPop fandom comments. I see so many taking it too far and can't seem to recognise that they are creating parasocial relationships in their heads and narrative around situations they had a 2% outsider view of what's happened - and yet they act like they are coming from facts and reading the minds of others. I find it baffling.

I'm a LOT older, but it's always been nice connecting to those from different age groups via fandoms before. However, KPop ones really push me away from engaging. I try and recall back to my younger days with being in fandoms of pop groups and whilst there may have been issues between people from time to time, I don't recall anything to the level I see in Kpop where people get lynched and fans seemed to have had a firm grasp of reality and their place in terms of being a fan and crossing a celebrities boundaries. I don't think KPop stan's behaviour to be new, but in the age of social media and information being so easily accessible, it seems to have amplified certain types of behaviours and attitudes or, probably more likely, groomed and encouraged certain fan attitudes. I dunno.

someday tumblr will work fully. idk if its a sideblog or just tumblr being insane lol

I do feel like in the 2010"s it was a lot easier to find a corner of any fandom you could just be happy in, but with how many (negative) opinions ppl project constantly now its a lot harder, and then we all get sad about lack of engagement without thinking that maybe its the vobes we give off. like if ur rude or closed off or wont take someone elses opinion ppl are going to be afraid to engage and its sad. when i have a 1d blog i had maybe 4k followers at its peak and i would have dozens of asks a day because ppl were so engaged with everything all the time. now if someone dislikes a song they get death threats lmao. i think its why i make sure to answer asks and talk to anyone who tries to talk to me, i dont want ppl to have such a sad fandom experience. I remember being so excited when big accounts talked to me and were kind and helpful that i always felt like it was part of the experience. like the bigger my blog is the more i feel responsible for being accessible and welcoming because i want that so much for other ppl. i just dont get the amount of hostility and bitchiness that comes alnog with social media now. not that i dont get pissed off or dislike things or even ppl, i just try not to focus on it beyond the necessity (like ppl stealing content or stories)

i will say i find it to be such a weird thing that when i was a teen liking 1d i was so excited they had adult fans (as long as it wasnt weird ppl iykyk) but now a 15 year old will be like you who are the same age as that idol how weird for you to like them?! and im like...... what? i hated ppl thinking the things i liked were a teen or childhood phase when i was young and now ppl get so aggressive about it in the opposite way i get so confused lol in the end im just happy to have my happy little corner where i can ignore all of the weird ass behavior the rest of the internet seems so happy to engage in lol