#just annoyed that they're using conflicting character types

[franki-lew-yo]

Mouthwashing and fandom discourse as a whole.

So I recently explored the tag for Mouthwashing after watching two no-commentary lets plays of the entire game. I'm seeing a lot of posts pointing out how annoying it is that this game has a fandom and that this fandom is doing fandom things and stanning/"uwu-ing" characters from this incredibly nuanced, raw and not-fandom friendly piece of art. To paraphrase someone I just saw "you don't want mouthwashing; you want Among Us ocs but darker". And

for a moment I wanna talk a bit about how I absolutely agree with this statement while also talk for a moment about how and why fandom and catharsis fan fics exist and shouldn't be shamed inherently. Or, I guess, not in theory.

The "come on! Stop trying to make everything shippable/cutsey/memey/have a happy AU and face unpleasant emotions someone's trying to tell you about!" is SUCH a vibe with me. I felt this way in the 9 fandom a lot as a kid and that was just 9. Mouthwashing is like 9 on bathsalts emotions and theme-wise. It's a game where you play as both the flawed but caring captain of a doomed ship who's life becomes a Johnny Got His Gun-nightmare, and also a deplorable, hateful piece of garbage who got himself and his friend in that nightmare situation to begin with. Both characters, moreso Jimmy but Curly too, are the causes of their own misery. They're complex dealing with one of the two committing SA and doing nothing really about it/dodging the responsibility and humanity needed to support the victim whom they've wronged.

I fully admit it's groan-inducing seeing people be shipped up Anya with anyone on the ship considering what happens to her. On a pure pr level I think it would be illegal even since romance between coworkers in a workplace is considered conflict of interest/harassment as it so often is. (NOT that what Jimmy did to Anya is 'romance'. I'm talking about the shipping of Anya with the other three guys. I know there's people out there who do ship Jimmy/Anya; you don't have to tell or show me I believe you and also I already hate it.) It's ALSO groan inducing to see people ship Curly and Jimmy considering all Curly does to him- and just the fact that this incredibly tragic, toxic one-way-gone array friendship is reduced to "toxic yaoi teehee". It's annoying AT BEST.

I get the hostility towards fandom-tastic stanning and fandom behavior in general...the issue is it's still hostility and I wish some of you guys got that. Like it or not (you don't have to like it) fandom culture is inevitable to some degree. You can and should complain about your hangups but that's all you can do besides avoiding tags and just not engaging with that side of the fandom at some point. Save your call-outs and rage for when you see active deplorable bs being committed that people are excusing for dumb fandom reasons, like lolicon, hatespeech or harassment. I'm sorry but you can not actively go after and try and take down the innocent people involved in your trigger that aren't directly hurting you by liking the thing that triggers you; ie. people who get all shipping and fandom-brained about Mouthwashing's characters which you find offensive to do at all.

This type of convo is the crux of most 'antifandom' v profandom discourse in general; for Antis I think there ought to be a difference between the people that set you off bcuz of fandom nonsense vs sociopathic 'got mine'-creepiness. There's a difference between someone who draws r34 v Shadbase. For profandom types you out to face the fact that yes- maybe NOT EVERYTHING is meant to be shippable/memed. Maybe try practicing that a bit. Yeah it's most harmless and makes you feel happy, but considering how people outside of your hyperfixation-of-a-hyperfixation is a thing. The thing about the "don't like, don't read" argument is it goes both ways. If you're truly a "good fan" like you say you are than you have to realize that people will not like your problematicisms. Learn to interact with characters and stories without the possibility of shipping sometimes- or at least understand that that's the crux of what makes a story like Mouthwashing engaging, even if you also partake in the fandumb and AUs on the side. You can call Curly your babygirl and ship him or make him happy all you want but PLEASE acoknowledge that the game doesn't woobify him or excuse what he did to Anya as well. You can make some kind of AU scenario where Jimmy gets out somehow and becomes/is a slightly better person for all I care...so long as you PLEASE remember that he is canonically a r@pist and awful. Also, even if I'm okay with your fan decisions, note that myself and others are still going to be critical and be upset that you wrote it at all because of what kind of character Jimmy is. 'Critical' =/= declaring something evil.

Fandom behaviors are not souly a destructive parasocial outcome of brainrot; they're also a natural reaction to what happens canonically and the emotions you have to experiencing a story. It's normal and rational to sympathize and love Curly and despise and hate Jimmy. You can love/like/enjoy a problematic-to-DEEPLY DISTURBED-character based on their complexity in canon. They are fiction. They are not real. The reason you are so invested with them is because of that complexity and yes because they are fiction they are your 'toy' and you can doll them up in any kind of speculative AU crap you make. That's fanfiction, baby. Make yourself a fixit fic if you really want

BUT-

remember: it stays as a fixit fic. DO NOT cross the streams, or insist that your active misreading of the text is the same as the text itself. EVER. You should care about your special interest's escapism as a means of self-care. What you shouldn't do is demand that EVERYONE ELSE LOVE your coping mechanism and that any complaints by people on their own terms on their own blogs is #badfaith or an inherent attack against you. It isn't. You'll know when it is an attack against you and that's when you, the profandom-type, need to be prepared and save your call-out posts and blocklist for.

To me that's the fragility to fandom debates and fandom as a whole. You can not/should not police or control an entire group of people and how they perceive or interact with media. That's not fair and it's definitely not sporting or decent of you in a community. You have to share your community -your fandom- with people who hate ur fav and people who love your least fav. Agreeing to disagree means not tagging your nOTP as their shipname or by tagging your shipname loud and clear. It means filtering out posts with those topics but enjoying and/or reblogging the fandom takes you do share with your fellow fandom-mite that obviously posts abt those topics.

When schmit REALLY goes down and some assface reviewer/fan/SOMETHING is being an assface or doing something amoral under the guise of fandom-ing, that's where you out to put your foot down. Callouts and complaints are for people who did an egregious thing and refuse to take responsibility(lol) for it. They're not for "soandso likes the thing that triggers me, kill them"/"so and so is hating on the thing I'm kinning because it triggers them, kill them". Be an adult.

Your DNI lists should consist of "lolicon defenders" not "proshippers", as those ARE NOT one in the same. Same goes the other way around. List off "bigots, purity culture bs", not "antis and critics". These positions ARE NOT interchangeable. If you make them interchangeable than you're making things a lot harder for yourself.

-sincerely, a message from autistic ADHD/OCD woman who likes horror and media analysis as much as she loves popcorn fanfic schlock.

We don't all have to be friends and buddybuds. I just hate us hurting each other over being different kind of fandom-folk rather than for when someone sincerely mucks up and does something bad. Can't we all stick to our guns and just boycott Harry Potter like god intended?

[goodoldfashionedengineer]

The more often I rewatch Season 1, the more it becomes obvious how Klaus is the Mascot of the family, the family member who diffuses tension with humor. But he also fits the criteria for the avoidant personality type.

Here's my analysis on this:

1.Sensitive to Rejection

People with an avoidant personality try to steer clear of rejection or criticism, because it leaves them emotionally vulnerable. We can see this very well with Klaus. To name a few examples: When Allison points out the rehab wrist band in the first episode of the show, he says “Oh, no, I’m done with all that.” He tries to deny it. We can see this exact same behavior later when he tries to talk himself out of conjuring Reginald. Allison is the one to interrupt, asking if he’s high. When everyone just looks annoyed at that, he springs up, defending himself “How are you not?”.

He knows his addiction is disapproved of by the family, that it will earn him a lecture. In the show we can see this when he tells Luther “Save the lecture” when he leaves Reginald’s office. And when he tries to conjure Reginald, he also says “big angry ghost lecture.” When he smokes in the living room, Luther says “You know dad didn't allow smoking in here.” All of this showcases how he is used to criticism and also his ways in avoiding it.

So, how does he handle actual rejection? Let’s have a look at his and Diego’s dynamic. We have seen multiple times how Diego is on his way to leave, when Klaus says “I’ll come with you.” And even though Diego says no, Klaus doesn't treat it seriously, knowing Diego won’t kick him out. They're siblings.

But later, when he is in the van with Luther and Five, he DOES get kicked out by them. And he MENTIONS this later when they vote on turning off Mom. The reason he is on Diego’s side, at least from what he is saying, is because he’s mad at Luther. “I’m with Diego, because screw you!” And “Get out of the van, Klaus. Well, welcome back to the van, Klaus!” While it is a funny scene, it is proof that rejection sticks with him.

2. Difficulty in creating meaningful relationships

There is a lot of evidence for this one. His prior relationships all seem to have been surface level. He can't remember how he lost his virginity. The longest relationship he had prior to Dave lasted three weeks and even that was only because he was tired of searching for a place to sleep. When he is grieving over Dave with Diego in the car he says that he lost the only person he loved more than himself (Which is not actually the case, there are a lot of points that could disprove that line, but Klaus feels this way and that's what’s important).

Dave was the first push towards his healing journey. He values him so highly, even after years. He places Dave’s well-being over his own with him trying to stop Dave from enlisting into the military in S2, even if it means they’ll never meet. And it is Dave who goes into the kiss.

3. Running away

The stereotypical avoidant character is gruff, pessimistic and oftentimes nihilistic. But Klaus uses humor as a mask. He seems like a flirt, extroverted, light and funny and while this isn’t necessarily false or all a lie, it is still an exaggeration. This is a good example of him being the Mascot of the family.

It is when they are stressed it really shines through. It’s when Dave dies, he decides to go back to 2019. He almost gave up on finding Luther if Ben hadn't said anything.

The drugs are a way to run away from the past, from the pain, from himself, to make everything go numb.

And while he’s not really nihilistic, he can be a bit, for the lack of a better word, pessimistic. He believes that the future can only be bad, evidenced by Five coming back and saying “[The future] is shit, by the way” to which he responds with “Called it!”.

He also dislikes the whole notion of “eternal peace”, saying it’s overrated when he tries to summon Reginald and in S3 saying so to his birth mother in the afterlife.

Also, the whole cult storyline.

4. Conflict Avoidant

While he does cheer on Diego and Luther during their fight at Reginald's funeral, this fight does not involve him. In all other cases, it is really clear once you notice it.

Him being the Mascot of the family already makes this obvious. The tone gets heated? An argument may arise? Throw in a quick joke, draw the attention towards himself. For example, when Luther says how they should bury Reginald by the oak tree because he spent time there sometimes and he says “None of you ever did that?”, the others gave him strange looks. Klaus immediately says something completely unrelated “Will there be any refreshments?”.

He is the only one to suggest “I vote for running!” when the portal through which Five falls through appears.

5. Not sharing problems

He rarely ever shares the trauma he goes through and if ever, he downplays it. This is seen when he comes back from Vietnam and Five points it out, he deflects and says “long night”. He does not say where to, when he answers Five’s questions it is followed with something funny like when he asks for how long “almost a year. [...] which means I’m 10 months older.” Or when he finds out he’s immortal, he says it in a way easily mistaken for a joke and then never brings it up again.

Even when he is vulnerable he shares minimal information. Like when he had a breakdown at the VFW, he tells Diego that he “lost someone” but does not expand. The most open he was was during The Day That Wasn't. Here he talks about Dave, what he was like, that Klaus followed him to the front lines. And Diego doesn't pester him with a lot of questions, which is important here. Klaus is in his thoughts and shares this willingly. It is such a good step towards healing, because talking about stuff actually can help.

6. Fear of failure/low self-worth

Here you have to look past the surface. Because sure, Klaus says Dave was the only person he loved more than himself, but other scenes say otherwise.

He does not believe it at first that Viktor is capable of destroying the earth, he argues that he’s their brother and they shouldn't just lock him away, they’re family. They can just ask him! When in S2 Viktor leaves for Sissy, he is the first to join him. He goes after Diego when Diego almost gets killed by Hazel and Cha-Cha, despite Diego having told him to stay in the car.

He is extremely sympathetic towards Luther when he finds out that Reginald didn't care, even though the rest figured that out so long ago. He tries to stop Luther from taking drugs, he goes after him even after Luther hurts him, doesn't even hesitate. He seems really affectionate with Allison, giving her hugs, letting her play with his hair, coming to her in S2 when he feels lost.

He tries to comfort Five in his own way when trying to find out who the owner of the glass eye is didn't work. He feels obvious guilt because he thinks he’s the reason why Ben can't move on.

So yeah, I’m calling bullshit on that “only person he loved more than himself.”

Then there's his “Yeah, me neither” line in response to God saying “I don't really like you all that much.”

Ben is the one who gives him support and says that he can do better, that he is better than what he thinks. (And that Dave knew it too). Because Klaus can't tell this to himself, another point in his low opinion of himself.

He calls his own powers “pretty much useless” and is very surprised to hear when Reginald told him he never reached his full potential. What potential? He can do more?

When he is appointed look-out for the Apocalypse Concert/The S1 Finale, he looks disappointed, like he isn't doing enough. He was always the look out when they were kids. And he clearly wants to do more, that's why he tried to make Ben corporeal at the bowling alley, to prove that he can.

He has struggles with becoming and staying clean. He is constantly judged for it, yet doesn't receive any support in return from his living siblings so his answer? More drugs.

After Vietnam, he almost relapses and the reason he gives is that sobriety didn't improve anything, everything’s still the same, still nobody takes him seriously. If everyone sees you as a failure? Why bother being anything else? And after a long enough time, it is hard not to internalize that.

His fear of failure is tightly knit to his fear of rejection.

Even when he finds out about making ghosts corporeal, he doesn't train his powers, doesn't try to do more, doesn't try to advance despite having the knowledge that his powers could allow more.

It’s the classic “Can't fail if you don't try”.

And it’s really stemming from being Reginald’s “greatest disappointment”. Because that is absolutely not the first time he told Klaus this.

With kids, if your expectations are too high and they can't meet them, often you need to lower the bar, instead of raising it.

Reginald kept throwing him into a mausoleum, expecting a certain result, then got angry when he got the exact opposite and just continued the punishment, because it IS a punishment by this point. It’s like “you’ll study three hours a day now and don't you dare fail that next test again”.

Origins: So, where does this avoidant personality come from? In Klaus’s case I’d assume it comes from emotional neglect. From being let down and not having his needs met. By a father leaving him alone in the dark with the ghosts instead of showing him love.

He wants to be loved, he wants to be trusted, but his early life experiences have given him the opposite.

[nervouswhizkid]

alright, u know what time it is. i've finished season 3 of voltron, so here's a whole dump of all my thoughts :o]

it was so weird starting out this season with no shiro. i felt so bad for keith, he was struggling so much without him and you could tell. it did throw me off that everyone was acting semi-normal even though shiro was missing?? like lance was so Lance (especially in the first episode) if that makes sense (which, like, if i think about it that's pretty on brand for him. i feel like he's the type to hide behind that flirty easygoing attitude when shit's going down.) i was freaking out when the lion swap happened ohmygod. i still have mixed feelings about it?? like i can kinda get used to keith in the black lion, but lance being in the red is so strange to me. they're just so red & blue coded, it's weird to put them in lions that don't match that. my heart was breaking when lance was begging black to let him be the new leader, you can tell he wants to prove himself so bad. and when blue wouldn't let lance in and he was having a mental crisis over it, i was genuinely in tears. he's got so much insecurity hidden behind that carefree mask and it makes me so sad i just wanna hug him😭 even though i'm not entirely on board with the lion swap, i did like the way it was executed. everyone gets in their lions to go fight, except oh wait! lance isn't following, where is he?? his lion is refusing him?? what! (i'll be completely honest though, i feel like i've read fics that have had something like this play out and they STILL did it better than the show did LMAO)

i also loved that it was LANCE out of all the paladins that became the new red pilot. he was worthy enough to be keith's right hand🥹 i feel like there was such a big emphasis on klance this season, there were so many important moments for their development.

key moment one:

the way EVERYONE was looking at lance to comfort keith??? and lance wasn't even thrown by it, didn't even seem to notice them staring at him. he was only focused on keith. he doubts himself in so many other areas, but when it comes to being there for keith there was no hesitation. he would have done it whether the others were there or not.

key moment two:

when keith came out of the black lion clearly upset and tried turning down the leadership position. again, everyone is chiming in and telling him that black has chosen him, he's their new leader, he has to do this. but he brushes them off, he's adamant in his decison. only when lance steps forward and tells him that he accepts his new authority, keith was willing to give it a shot. what if i scream

key moment THREE:

when lotor lured team voltron to planet thayserix and keith went a little cuckoo trying to catch him, he and lance end up having a moment where keith admits he's taken it too far, putting the team in jeopardy in his rush to capture lotor. and in perfect lance fashion, he agrees with keith. and then he supports him and says let's go fix it together.

this doesn't mean anything, he's just so prettyboy in this scene i had to add

moving on. lotor's character has me conflicted. his introduction had me thinking he was different from his father, and then it swaps to him talking shit with this inner group and sounding like he IS just like his father, he just presents a different front to the general public. but then a few episodes later, his plans are conflicting with what the witch (sorry i literally cannot ever remember her name) wants, and she's supposedly zarkon's right hand, so by that logic lotor is going against his father's plans?? and i think it's in episode 5 where he says "i am the leader! but i am not my father." so what is it really huh. i can't figure this guy out, i don't know whether to root for him or not

i'll tell you who i'm not rooting for though. lotor's group of misfits, that's who. i literally cannot stand them for some reason. that creepy blind person with the cat ANNOYS ME. they're so op it's actually crazy. i definitely dislike the lot of them because they're capable adversaries, which i know is the whole point, but also i just love these characters so much and i want them to be happy and win 😾 is that too much to ask???

i'm also a little bit of an allura hater...i'm still unaware of how that opinion is received in the fandom, so pls don't crucify me. i still have a bad taste in my mouth from her treatment of keith when the team found out he was galra, okay? i'm sure someday i'll get over it. or maybe i won't. we'll see. it was also frustrating to watch her try and pilot the blue lion. you're telling me this girl's dad is the creator of voltron, she was the one who instructed the paladins on how to connect with their lions, stressed the importance of teamwork, and she STILL thought she could boss blue around?? i'm sure it was purely to provide conflict for the story and deliver that payoff when she finally figures out how to work with her lion, but imo it was a little unrealistic for her character. yes, she's royalty and most people defer to her authority, but i just feel like she would have known better, especially considering most of the time she seems uncomfortable by people worshipping her. and episode 4?? her weak spot seems to be anything connecting back to her altean heritage, because she almost let the totalitarian alternate universe versions of her people into their universe simply because they were altean. yes, she quickly realized what was going on and switched sides, but i can't get over how easily she trusts anything altean, meanwhile she's skeptical of everything else. i know that's how bias works, but i can't standdddd hypocrisy it gets on my nerves like nothing else!!

episode 5 was wild. i don't know what they did to shiro, but it's got me so nervous for him and the team. the galra clearly let him escape, it was just too easy. him waking up alone, no guards or anyone to intercept him leaving his chambers? walking around, no sentries anywhere? he witnesses ANOTHER(?) shiro being experimented on before making his way to a pod and zipping away?? and most notably, the "notify command headquarters. operation kuron stage three is underway." to me, there's only one reason why a prisoner would be allowed to return to their group. sabotage. is he some kind of sleeper agent? but like, unknowingly?? and what about the memory that popped up while he was looking at the other shiro? and HOW is there another shiro? this is so fucking confusing. but, and this could also just be a change in artstyle, he looks different to me? why does his face look so weird🧍‍♀️

LOOK AT THIS MAN. THAT IS NOT SHIRO

not to mention, shiro's return causes some issues within the team. for one, there's not enough lions for everyone. i didn't think that was a huge deal, but obviously it's a little strange for someone like shiro to not be doing anything. and if he did get black back, what does that mean for keith? or lance? or allura? they've all been displaced. on top of that, there's now a conflicting power dynamic between shiro and keith since shiro is used to doling out orders, even though keith is the one leading them now.

special mention for another klance moment:

even with all the leadership confusion, i think it's important that lance chose keith to talk to about his concerns for the team. he views keith as their leader, which is insane(!) given that shiro is his personal hero/idol. also the fact that keith has been his rival up to this point, and here lance is offering to step down from the team (which he's obviously fought so hard to be a part of and holds a lot of pride for!!) and better yet, keith thinks this is CRAZY. "what are you talking about?" the inflection in his voice?? he literally can't believe lance would step down. voltron without lance? it's unthinkable. i think it's obvious that lance is still doubtful, so keith connects with him the only way he knows how: by getting on lance's level. "leave the math to pidge."

AND THEN THEY BOTH SMILE AT EACH OTHERBKANJKCLFJLWA

for cohesiveness sake, i'll be referring to honerva as haggar, considering that's what she goes by now.

the finale for this season really surprised me! i wasn't expecting to get a comprehensive history on alfor's era, but i'm not complaining. i can't believe that zarkon and haggar (the witch, that's her name!!) are MARRIED?? that's freaking crazy. and they didn't even remember???

what i found interesting is how their experimentation with quintessence affected them, both after they "died" and came back to life, and even before that. by the second half of the episode, the toll haggar's work had on her was obvious. she was clearly going crazy, suffering from malnutrition, and passed out after alfor argued with them and left. i could be looking into it too much, but i'm wondering if it had been affecting haggar for longer than that. when zarkon first met her, she seemed kind, almost sweet. definitely capable and incredibly smart, but she had a soft disposition. years later, when alfor has allura and zarkon and haggar are married, she's lost any sign of a smile and doesn't seem to care for pleasantries or idle chitchat. her responses are clipped and noncommittal, unless it's pertaining to her work. i think that was the first sign. the whole situation is just so horrific.

i'm also just realizing, does this mean lotor is the son of haggar and zarkon?? IS HE HALF ALTEAN???

another small detail i wanted to mention before i finish this off:

is this the same cat?? it's either the same species or it's the actual same cat from alfor's era. i just thought it was interesting that he was included and, if it is the same cat, he's really fucking old LMFAO

[petrichor-idyllic]

I would like to request headcanons for the maze runner boys for how would they react when they're jealous of you.

Luv you <3

Wooo, I love writing headcanons, they're a hell of a lot easier than full stories. I'm assuming you mean when they're jealous over you, so that's what I'm going with.

Gender neutral reader because the pronouns are unspecified.

Also I have seen your request for a part 2 to "warmth in cold places" and I will do that after I've finished your headcanon requests because it'll be simpler lol, hope that's okay.

ENVY IS A SIN

MASTERLIST | MULTI-CHARACTER MASTERLIST

SUMMERY: See above. Gender-neutral!Reader x All boys. Not established relationships, just long-term crushes from some jealous boys. You're close with the boys, and despite them not knowing how you feel- they just can't help but be jealous.

WARNINGS: Inappropriate language, some possessiveness, violence and suggestive themes. Alby is based more on the book to add some variety.

What happens when your favourite Glader boys get jealous over you?

Let's find out.

THOMAS

Thomas is definitely a... controversial character amongst the Glade.

Which means that the Gladers (especially Gally and the other's that don't hold his favour), would often flirt with you just to get a rise out of him.

It's not like you two are dating or anything, but he'd clearly have a thing for you.

And he's not exactly the most self-assured person around. Yanno- with the identity crisis, no memories of his life, people accusing him of everything under the sun- you get the picture.

The boy already has enough insecurities on his plate- nevermind watching the person he has feelings for get hit on.

He's not exactly one to start physical altercations, but it wouldn't be rare to feel his 500-yard death stare from across the Glade.

"Gally's talking to them again."

Newt would get to hear the worst of Thomas's internal conflicts.

He'd find it funny, but kind of annoying.

"They're just talkin', mate- it ain't a crime."

"He's doing it to get to me. I know he is."

"Seems to be workin'."

"Shut up."

Despite not wanting to get into a fight, Thomas would occasionally butt into conversations.

He can be sarcastic, something he's picked up off of Minho (but not nearly as good at), and he would be snappy and condescending when diving face first into trying to steal your attention.

Which would leave you concerned as you'd have to blankly watch Thomas bicker with someone in a way you can't quite understand.

Thomas isn't stupid.

He'd be fully aware he has no right to be so jealous or meddling, but until he actually gains the courage to say something about his feelings, you better get used to it.

NEWT

Newt is far more level-headed than Thomas.

He is respectful and busy, remaining calm in the majority of situations he has to face.

Though, like Thomas, he would absolutely be the type to stand with a tense jaw, staring while you interact with some poor, unknowing boy as Newt plots murder in his head.

Newt is confident in his skills, and doesn't have much time to focus on romantic endeavours. But there would be the creeping feeling of possessiveness as he'd watch you talk to the other boys.

He'd prefer to talk to the culprit in private, giving them a warning nod to keep their distance.

"I'm telling you to stay away from them."

"Why?"

"Because I said so."

It wouldn't go much further than that.

The boys heed Newt's warnings- despite his reputation, he isn't exactly someone people want to upset.

Alby and Minho would find it very funny that the only time Newt chooses to actually use the power he has is when it comes to scaring people away from you.

"You're literally the Second in Command, and the only time you actually tell people what to do is when you get all shuckin' possessive over a crush? Ha! That's the best thing I've ever heard."

"Shut up, Minho."

When you'd bring it up to him that less and less people are talking to you, he would just shrug it off.

Of course, Minho would absolutely tell you what's actually going on because he can't keep his mouth shut, but you can only knowingly smile until Newt is willing to finally tell you himself.

MINHO

Minho is a reckless and unsubtle man.

He lives with his life on the line permanently, and is pretty blunt about most things.

He would absolutely tell you to your face that he doesn't like someone, or how they're acting around you.

"I just don't like what Zart said earlier- he's gettin' too shuckin' friendly."

He'd also go out of his way to be physically intimidating and make himself look better than whoever his competitor is.

That includes but is not exclusive to:

- Knocking shoulders with people who are talking to you.

- Loud (and obnoxious) insults aimed at anyone who dares get too close.

- The more than once he'd almost get into a physical fight.

- Casually throwing an arm over your shoulder to assert dominance.

He'd also be a sulky bitch.

Minho doesn't seem like the type to be good with his feelings, so apart from the initial rage, confrontation, and warnings- he would strop.

He'd have no grounds to, and Newt would remind him of that since you guys aren't dating.

But that wouldn't stop him.

"Dude, if you keep pouting like a shank, they're never gonna like you back."

"I'm not pouting."

He'd get over it, eventually.

Minho isn't an insecure person. He'd know there were something more between you both. The problem would lie in whether he'd be the only person you had that something with.

That is why he would sulk.

Because deep down, you'd be almost like a weak spot for him.

Though, it would kind of become a sort of unspoken rule not to flirt with you- after all, no one wants an angry Minho after them.

GALLY

Gally is like Minho, only ten times worse and borderline homicidal.

There would be many Gladers who would show up with broken noses and a nervous disposition after they'd be seen talking to you.

(And Gally with broken knuckles.)

He's terrible at controlling his feelings and expressing them in a healthy way.

He would be especially harsh if he saw someone making you uncomfortable.

"I'm going to shucking kill that bastard!"

Frypan would make comical commentary.

"Y'all still aren't together then, huh?"

"Shut up, Fry."

"Ah- figures."

He would also be incredibly insecure.

Sure, he's not the most liked guy around, but he thought you guys were close. That he might have a chance with you.

So, instead of having a healthy conversation with you about maybe establishing a relationship, he would react in a rash way.

Which would definitely not be a good way to show he cares about you.

But the boy has issues.

Alby would absolutely get mad at him and tell him to stop.

He'd then start insulting people instead.

FRYPAN

Frypan would probably...

Do nothing.

Nope.

He doesn't like conflict and despite being a jokester, he doesn't actually want to cause any problems.

And he's not about to go around bashing people when he doesn't even know if the feeling is mutual (*cough* something the other boys can learn from *cough*).

He'd probably keep his mouth shut and try to judge things from spending time with you.

He might talk to Gally about it.

"You could just ask them?"

"Would you ask them if you were me?"

"Fair point."

He'd definitely just silently simmer in his own emotions whilst staring off into space.

Though, when he'd be with you- you'd have absolutely no idea he was jealous or possessive at all.

He would never do anything to upset you.

He'd definitely lie awake at night thinking about it and how you might like someone else and what would he even do with himself?

But he'd never tell you.

Or show you.

Your happiness always comes first.

ALBY

Alby would throw them in the Slammer.

Wouldn't even hesitate.

Looked at you for too long?

Slammer.

Made a flirty comment?

Slammer.

Bad and slightly inappropriate joke?

Slammer.

He is a very busy man. He doesn't have the time to keep an eye on you all the time, so, putting anyone who crosses a line in the Slammer would definitely make that easier.

"Why's Ben in the Slammer again, Alby?"

"Why do you think, Newt?"

"Ah, (Y/N)? Again?"

It's not like Alby is insecure or even possessive.

He has much more important things that he needs to worry about.

But, watching people try and flirt with you would make him uncomfortable, and Alby has no time to process this discomfort.

So it obviously means that they're doing something wrong, right?

So, Slammer.

It is the simplist answer.

You'd have to ask him to stop because he'd keep locking your friends up.

He would begrudgingly agree.

Though, people definitely would not dare hit on you once they started to understand that Alby liked you.

That'd be an easy way to a fast grave.

In reality, Alby wouldn't have any reason to be jealous- he is the Leader for a reason.

He probably could've just told people to back off with no context, and they would've, instead of the immediate jailing.

It would be a very odd phase for the Glade.

Yoo, back with more headcanons. I try not to take these too seriously because I feel like they're just a bit of fun instead of the usual one-shots.

I have some more headcanons coming up next.

I hope you enjoyed :))

[monarch-of-jack]

I might be the only one here. But the reason I feel conflicted when I see people shipping and sexualizing Aspec characters, is because I don't trust most of you to be respectful about it. Not to mention some of you straight up arent.

Yes, Aspecs are an incredibly diverse group of people. I KNOW. I've been in their circles for well over 10 years. But do you all really care about that?

If you don't, then you're really just using it as an excuse to ignore their identities.

Let me make it very clear that I support exploring ALL the nuanced ways that someone can be Aspec. We are so much more varied than just sex-repulsed Aces and romance-repulsed Aros. (Though those are still valid experiences, don't shit on them!)

There are Allosexual Aromantics. There are Alloromantic Asexuals. Aspecs in Queerplatonic Relationships. Grey-Aspecs, Demi-Aspecs, Oriented AroAces, Cupio-, Flux-, Lith-, Fray-, Recipro- Aego-, and a million other types of Aspecs. It's a huge spectrum.

And orientation doesn't equal action. There are sex/romance favorable Aspecs. There are kinky & kink favorable Aspecs. Aces that have and have had sex for whatever reason. Aros that are and have been in romantic relationships for whatever reason. Maybe they felt pressured. Maybe they were experimenting. Maybe they were still finding themselves. Maybe they were forced. Maybe they do it for their partner. Maybe they do it for money or their image. Maybe they just like it despite lacking attraction. Aspecs are people. They are all different and all equally valid in how they live their lives.

A character being Aspec literally just means they're lacking attraction in one way or another. So there's still endless possibilities in creating canon and fanon for them.

But are most of you really shipping characters like Alastor, Peridot, Jughead and co. as Aspecs, or are you looking for excuses to disregard their identity?

Have you actually educated yourself about their identities so you can portrait them accurately and respectfully? Are you infantilizing and patronizing them or make them act stupid? Do you make them pitiful, antisocial, or 'difficult to deal with'? Are you arguing with Aspec people when they point out something is problematic? Are you accepting input from Aspec people? Do you explain that you're shipping/sexualizing that Aspec character because of your specific headcanon or AU? Do you get angry if you have to clarify that after the fact? If you as an Allo, ship or sexualize Aspec characters, do you really do it with them still being Aspec?

The thing is, you can. But a lot of you don't. And that's why Aspec people react defensifely.

We have little to no representation in the media as it is. And yet you're annoyed when we ask you not to diminish or erase their identities.

I want to see Aspecs in all kinds of situations and with all sorts of preferences. But way too many of you are ready to shit on Aspec identities to get your fanon out.

I could go on for days about this. But the fact that some of you will get angy that I even made this post is exactly what I'm talking about.

[ladyloveandjustice]

i really wish people on that "does it like women" blog would only vote on polls for media they're actually familiar with instead of just basing their opinions on what others are saying in the notes... like if you haven't watched/played/read something isn't that what the see results button is for? personally i only ever vote on a poll i know nothing about if it's like "who's the best video cat: fluffy from jrpg #1 vs skrunkly from jrpg #2" and my mutual is strongly campaigning for skrunkly on my dash, because i figure that's just a silly fun thing. and even some of the does it like women polls for media i am familiar with i end up not voting in because i feel too conflicted about it. the soul eater poll is a good example actually, i want to say yes because imo maka is an awesome protagonist who's pretty unique for the genre she's in but like you said in your tags, there are also a lot of reasons to vote no! and this is coming from someone who loves soul eater and has both watched the anime and read the manga!

Yeah...it's weird to me. I don't see why that gives anyone more of a high to click yes or no rather than the see results button, like yeah it feels good to vote on this type of thing, but only when I have an informed opinion that comes from my own heart. And if you really want to vote, that seems like a good opportunity to uh, just check out whatever the media is. Even watching or reading for fifteen minutes will give some kind of impression that's better than just vibes or someone else saying something. It'll still probably be inaccurate in a lot of cases, but at least it'll be based off something.

I am fortunate in that I've watched and read a lot of stuff though, and I did instinctively click yes on like, Billy and Mandy based soley off the vague childhood memory that Mandy was straight up evil and I support women's wrongs, but there was actually probably a bunch of shit in that show I don't remember, so it's not like i can say I'm ALWAYS fully informed. And sometimes I use tags to refresh my memory. "I can't remember what this did bad...okay from the tags I now remember" I am by no means a purist, I just think the point of the poll is opinions from people who actually interacted with the media or at the very least know so much about it against your will through internet osmosis that you might as well have watched ten episodes (me and Supernatural) (I have seen plenty of clips along with fastidious episode summaries and story breakdowns and so many goddamn tumblr posts so that counts for me. I'll be damned if I don't have a right to an opinion after living through the indundation of 2013 tumblr. I didn't vote on Doctor Who though despite basically the same, that seemed like more of a tossup for whatever generation it was and I didn't feel even the massive amount of knowledge i've somehow accrued was enough to make a blanket assessment).

Anyway, even if it's not that serious, it's an earnest question that you're supposed to put actual thought into, and that's why I enjoy it so much.

I don't want to get too annoyed with it, just like I try not to with the results. At the end of the day it's the internet and just a difference in approach that I won't ever understand.

I like Soul Eater too, don't get me wrong! I have fond memories. The manga definitely fell off for me at the end (and I skipped over a lot of the early chapters because I'd seen the anime, knew it had cut out quite a few pantyshots, and I wasn't dealing with those), I actually prefer the anime original ending, despite how basic it was (especially in Crona's case god why did the manga never give them a break). Just nice to see my girl win the day by punching someone really hard.

But I enjoyed it and I still adore Maka. There's still no enough action shonen out there that have a female main character for it not to be kinda special. But god. imagine a world where it cared about its female supporting cast's development more than boobs. or storytelling more than boobs, in a lot of cases.

[bbgliker-teehee]

This might sound like an unpopular opinion of mine but... Is it just me or is Fizzarolli becoming an annoying character to me now. Like before season 2, I used to like him and I found the conflict between Blitzo and him really interesting and I wanted to learn more about it despite me not liking the show at the time (I mean I still do, but you know what I mean)

But when season 2 came along, I was left with a sour mouth when it comes to Fizz, and his conflict with Blitzo. Fizzarolli became from what season 1 gave us, he gained the most success and he felt proud of it, didn't care of the others feelings when insulting them, and was basically an asshole that rubs the success and Blitzos face and was the first one to genuinely get on Blitzos nerves (even have implications of Blitzo being jealous towards Fizz because he hoggled the spotlight more than him) but when season 2 came along, he just now resorted to being a huge scared puppy that shakes in his boots when someone insults him/threatens him. Like what happened to season 1 Fizz? What happened to the overly cocky and sassy asshole of a gremlin he was, can we bring that one and Season 1 Asmodeus back please?

And his conflict with blitzo and how it was executed, OH BOY. He gave him the most guilt-tripping ass apology, downplayed his disability just because HE REALLY MISSES MOM SO MUUCH, FEEL BAD FOR HIM HE'S JUST A MISUNDERSTOOD LIL BABY DEMON, like fuck off man. That episode didn't make me feel bad for the guy, it made me hate him even more.

And when in the end when they reconciled and shit, I was over here asking "Why bother building this rivalry up, when you're jist make them reconcile faster than the flash himself then?" Like, they should've just enemies imho, because that was more interesting than them being friends again.

I'm suprised that noone even brought this up too, but... This one piece of dialogue of Mammons shitty special I had to restrain myself from yelling at my screen. My god did I wanted to choke him to death when he says this:

OKAAAY, so not only did Blitzo give a guilt-tripping ass apology ever and they became friends again because of that shitty apology, instead of him comforting Fizz in this very moment, he resorts to saying THIS to Fizz when it's clearly shown that Fizz does not feel okay right now and looked he needed some comforting, and then Blitzo going back to square one and bullying someone when they're not feeling in the mood for it. Yeah good friend Blitzo, am i right? Fuck you Blitzo, genuinely like go die in a hole along with Loona & Stolas....

I'll probably be the only to say that BlitzFizz sucks, not a big fan of it because it felt like they just made Blitzo have a crush on Fizz to make him more sympathetic, yet they should've made them more like brotherly type of dynamic, to me that is idk about you.

Sorry for this essay like ask btw, just really wanted to get this out of my chest somehow. God watching these characters exist is hard man...

SAMMMEEEEE like- I think Fizz was a cool character, but since we can't have anything nice...Viv made him 'baby uwu'...

And Blitz whole ass apology was literally:

"Hey, I know you lost your legs and arms and you got all deformed and shit...BUT MY MOMMY DIED SO PWEASE FORGIVE ME!!!!!!!!!!!!"

And yeah...I want my super swag sigma Ozzie who gets bitches back...not this loser beta dripless Ozzie that gets 0 bitches....

[ticktockmyclockworkhart]

Wuh oh!! I've been based and trollpilled

I was one of the people who scoffed at trolls and thought it was dumb. I take the L. I admit I was wrong... at least about the other movies lol, I still think the first movie was kinda weak but damn did they go from kinda weak to kinda peak. They're nothing groundbreaking but they are fun and a lot less annoying than I anticipated them being.

SO bc I love redesigning things I redesigned some characters and will be redesigning more. Below the cut is my thoughts on the designs~

So for the pop trolls as a whole I think their aesthetic is cute, but kinda conflicts with the worldbuilding in the later movies because all the troll tribes EXCEPT for pop have a very cohesive aesthetic related to their music. I like the smurf-y, crafted aesthetic but it doesn't really scream "pop" yknow? But pop is a kinda unique genre in that it can literally be anything as long as it's very popular and mainstream and any genre can become pop so I decided to theme the pop trolls around different kinds of pop.

Also!! Literally so many people give the trolls tails. And I AGREE. Honestly, I'll take as many degrees of seperation from the good luck trolls as possible bc they're scary as hell. No amount of nostalgia is going to change the fact that good luck trolls unsettled me as a kid and unsettle me now. I'm all for embracing more critter-type looks to them since trolls are in a way like fae so let's get quirky w it!!

For Poppy I wanted to commit and go full ham, bubblegum jojo siwa girlypop girly. It fits her existing aesthetic but also generally when we think pop music that kinda upbeat, colorful "girly" music tends to come to mind. She's got full-time legwarmers because YES I agree with her wearing those in the third movie she should wear them literally always. I initially wanted to give her plaid stuff, that sort of 2000s black and pink plaid that was huge but decided against it because black doesn't really fit her vibe. Rock zombie Poppy however...

She's also got a sparkly vest and SO. MANY. BOWS. Her bowtie is actually more of a smaller choker than a tie but I realize I didn't convey that lol. Her crown is also a pearly kind of clear plastic, like the old Disney princess shoes, remember those?

(I love how the third movie really leaned into the toy inspiration aspect of it so fuck yeah I'll lean even harder!!)

And this time she's the one with frosted tips because as Branch said, IT WAS AN ERA!! And I really wanted to stick to the vaguely Y2K theme with her.

For Branch, he doesn't have as much of a committed aesthetic reflecting his complicated relationship with music, but I pushed him into a soft pop-punk aesthetic with what he does have, and maybe a tiny sprinkling, just a hint of grunge... which he kind of did on his own in the og design. And again, I'm all for leaping into as far of a departure from good luck trolls as possible so I ditched his troll hair and gave him long, droopy, probably greasy emo boy hair. Has the added benefit of any time he uses his hair as a tool or weapon it becomes the sickest headbang hair flip. I buy into the theory that due to his trauma and probably depression, Branch only shows his "true colors" when excessively happy and his normal state is kind of permanently muted, but I gave him a streak of the blue as well. Whether it's dyed or not is up to yall lol.

I originally was going to change his clothes, but because the third movie establishes his vest was a gift from Floyd I decided against it. He does wear suspenders under it though, but they can't be seen. Probably has a chain wallet too, the hot topic goblin he is... I did change the color of his pants to black though, and to show how much of a bedraggled recluse he is, I made sure the patches matched colors with his vest to show he's been slowly taking the least visible parts of the vest apart to patch his pants. Poppy, get your man some skinny jeans.

Let me know what yall think!! This is such an EMBARRASSING interest to have lol I'm really putting myself out here with this one... not as bad as my danganronpa days though

[ca-suffit]

I've always had this weird impression that in this fandom it's seen as intellectually superior to be for polyam relationships.I know about the poly nature of Rice's vampires.

but the show made it clear from the start that they are jealous and possessive, Sam himself said that Lestat is monogamous at heart.

Why the poly discourse is so pushed because from what I was able to gather from other fans who have read the books even in the Chronicles it's not so much the polycule paradise as some try to make it believe?

Obviously everyone is free to their preferences but I have the impression that it is almost become shameful to prefer one particular pairing for each characters.

There's a lot of layers to this answer tbh. I'll try to go in order of what I've noticed are the most prominent reasons for this of what I've observed over the years.

a) It's another stand in for "it's gothic romance," "they're all monsters" type logic. It gives the illusion of being deep while rly just removing any real attempt at conversations ppl don't want to have (or don't have the range to have). This can also tie into fandom racism bcuz it smooths over discussions of *why* ppl might prefer certain pairings.

b) Shipping wars *are* annoying, so that is a legit reason. Usually the real reason is part a but this is still in there a tiny bit.

c) It *does* make ppl feel special. This and BDSM topics are some ppl's whole fandom personality bcuz fsr ppl think this is all unique in fandom spaces idk. This goes back again to how a lot of ppl read the VC books as children and still think it's brand new information when they're 45 years old in 2024.

The books do *not* get into polyam relationships well at all. The only thing that makes it vaguely polyam is that there's a sentence here and there of ppl kissing each other, living together, traveling together, whatever. She never explores any deep dynamics of anything. Nothing is ever laid out in full. They don't speak about these relationships with each other. The show did more to talk about it on any level than the books did. Even for any monogamous relationships, she doesn't explore much of anything as the books go on. That's a lot of what makes everything feel so unsatisfying. There's no substance to anything. She places characters around each other and uses words to force a depth of relationship that the readers don't feel otherwise bcuz she didn't write it lol. Whether it's conflict or romance, it all falls flat the more it goes.

[lightvsdark18]

Twst Actor Au (The cast members)

(They do have different names, but I don't want to rename them all ;-;)

Twisted Wonderland is a TV series. Each book is a season (Prologue & Book 1 was combined together) and the length of episodes for each season is always increasing like in game. Every season has a new Yuu like the manga.

The events are TV specials and the Yuu for that certain special depends on what season they are working on at the moment.

Riddle is a quiet and sweet teenager. He took the role to sharpen his skills by acting the opposite of his usual self and enjoys the compliments he gets from how well he's doing it. (Some people get confused when meeting him)

Trey isn't that from his character beside burning a bowl of cereal on accident one time. He doesn't know how he did that. He also made the "Trey's hobby is teeth" from an off-hand joke.

Cater is calm and laid back guy, very different from his character. When he's acting, it's like you flipped a switch from how well he can get energetic.

Ace is not that different from his character. He's blunt and clever that he sometimes ad-libs his lines.

Deuce normally plays bad boys, so taking a role of a bad boy trying to redeem himself, he got excited for this role. Although his common role is being bad, his true self is often seen in Deuce.

Leona is a pleasant guy to be around that you're conflicted if you want to punch him or compliment him after filming. Also, he's actually Cheka's uncle and loves the little brat so much he's often stalked by the cast and crew when the two are together.

Ruggie is a big brother to four siblings and understands his character on taking care of those younger. He's not diligent as Ruggie, but gives his character mad respect.

Jack is a new to the world of acting and put a lot of his energy in bettering his skills. He's often babied by the more skilled actors, but it's playful teasing.

Azul has done a few small roles, but this is his second big role and playing as a vacuum salesman like Azul. It takes some time for him to get into the role from how different it is from his previous roles.

Jade is in the same boat like Azul's actor, first time playing as a character like Jade. He often asks questions to the actors who have done gentlemen type characters before to better understand Jade.

Floyd is a jack of all traits, he has done a handful of different types of characters and Floyd isn't any different. However, he has stated in an interview he likes the more of unhinged characters since they're more fun.

Jamil is also new to the world of acting, only has done one role before Twst. And just like in the show, he's annoyed by Kalim's actor often in a sibling type way and can't help but laugh everytime.

Kalim isn't that different from his character, just he's less energetic. He often gets roles like Kalim's character from how free it feels and how thrilling it is when a scene gets serious.

Vil isn't that different from his character and gives good advice when you ask. He often moms the younger/newer actors without realizing it.

Rook understands his character's love for everything beautiful and how poetic he is, but he's even creeped out by the huntsman and is glad he's not real.

Epel is a gremlin like his character. He loves unhinged/rough characters and goes all out if he's allowed to. However, him taking the role has been a bad idea because he has been using his cutesy looks like his character.

Idia is friendly guy you could chill with on your days off. Meeting him in person is a sight to see from how bubbly he is vs his character. However, there's times you see Idia in the actor and think, "yup, that's idia."

Ortho is actually 17 years old and plays both Orthos. He has done small roles before and is excited to do a big role like this, especially with how mischievous Ortho is. Him and Epel have tag teamed the crew a lot with their adorable appearance.

Lilia is 15-16 years old and has his voice dubbed over. He enjoys the role very much and likes acting like a dotting father while being a rascal. He even continues to pretend to be the honorary dad behind the camera as a running joke. Doesn't like hanging upside down though.

The voice actor for Lilia is in his mid 30s and a father of two. He also enjoys his job and ad-libs dad jokes. There is a photo of the both Lilias posing together in Hawaii shirts.

Silver has t-posing energy, he's a goofball. If you watch him behind the scenes you will often go, "that's not Silver, how is he Silver?" from how funny and fun loving he is. But that's only after the scene is over. When he flips the switch, he will not break character until he hears cut.

Sebek got the role because of how loud his voice can get. He loves the role and how excited fans get to hear his Sebek voice. He's Ortho and Epel's get away driver aka picks them up and runs.

Malleus isn't different from his character with how calm and elegant he is. He's known for his theater performances and musicals. He likes how smug and adorable his character can get and often teases every Yuu that comes on.

Crewel is actually the actor from Obey Me, he played Lucifer (because you guys say they look the same).

Crowley is the world's okayest dad. He became a father during Book 1 and slowly started became the younger actors' dad on set. He often sees everyone watching him when his child shows up.

Trein is the honorary grandpa. He feels a connection with the professor and has the lecture the rascals a few times that they see Trein and not the actor.

Vargas is the uncle of the cast. If you fall sleep on set, he's the one covering you with a blanket, or giving you a piggyback to a more comfortable spot.

Sam is their local dealer... of snacks. He makes the best treats and feeds everyone between scenes. He's just like his character from how he can sudden pull out anything you need from his bag.

Grim is known for his voice on popular and beloved shows. And he really dedicated to his roles: if the character is sad, he's sad. If the character is angry, he's angry. He asked the director to gift him the Grim plushie when the show ends, just for a fan to gift him one during a panel. "My son," he whispered.

[dearest-and-nearest]

I so agree with the DAV companions being way too boring and digestible. I could enjoy a few of them in a well rounded party, but they're all way too NICE. The nice characters would have been so much more interesting if we could see how far an asshole companion pushed them, and if they could still be nice then

Like we're on a mission to save the world not a Disney trip in happy fun land. I'm not saying make it super gritty but the slip and slide is not good either.

It's the first DA game that I am just kind of obsessed with my own character (got just enough background detail to fix it and fill it out in my head) and not the companions.

It's even worse, because some of them i genuinely waited. I waited Taash since dreadwolf concepts when she was tall beautiful lady, perfect for my tastes, and I genuinely hoped for basically fem!Sten to romance. I still think Sten is one of the best companions and characters in series (among with Loghain) and I genuinely hoped for some of his type

And the worst thing? Some npcs would be better companions. Like Illario. He's so obviously a traitor, that it would be fun to have him in our party being annoying problem and acting like a dumbass. It would give us actual conflict, not just "uh, sorry, didn't want to upset you". Or Taash's mum? I really want her in party, she's much more interesting character than her daughter: woman who escaped the qun for her child and now this child treats her like shit, that would be a cool conflict! We could have interesting companion, not just Weeks' self-insert!

And that's with every single npc connected with our companion. Hell, I would rather have Lucanis' grandma, instead of him, at least I can believe she's a true assassin, not just some vigilant. Viper? Cool, new version of Dorian, at least his actor is able to play. First Warden? I already made a post, but YES I want HIM, not any of our companions

Like, I cared more about companions even in Jade Empire or dlcs to first Neverwinter Nights and those games were 20 years ago, but at least they were fun. Even if companions weren't so deep and complex like da ones, games knew that and compensated it with something else. Hell, even Baldur's Gate 2, with The Worst Male LI Ever, had more interesting companions, I still genuinely love Edwin and Viconia, they were two funny jerks and I enjoyed their dialogues.

I'm just comparing every single companion bioware created to veilguard squad and... Meh. Even Jacob is more interesting and complex and that's saying a lot

[neu-apostolisch]

As for Gale Discourse Cont., I think it’s also necessary to point out that he’s written as a Comedic Relief character. He unironically says stuff like “pish posh” and is voiced by a well-known (in England) comedian. Unfortunately, because this is a DnD based game, every character you interact with the most needs to be complex and have a tragic backstory and I have a theory his romance arch is heavily derived from Mr. Darcy from the 2005 Pride and Prejudice movie. I mention all of this because I am absolutely a Galemancer, and I had a bit of a turmoil about the interview myself until some other tumblr user (I can’t remember who) made a post about this. Seeing Gale through the lens of “oh he’s a silly little guy made to be the butt of all jokes but surprise! he has so much depth anyway” helped me take a breather and have fun with it again. Sorry this got rambley.

ok if you're rambling then i must be reading the dictionary. i think this is a good point to make, especially as an addition to the concept of how the writers view gale. and crucially, i don't think it really undermines people who found more depth in his character. because on some level this is true for every character in this game-- they're all an awkward trope and they grow as the game continues forward and you learn more about them. i'm glad that this perspective helped you re-enjoy the game!

a view of him as The Comic Relief Guy (and Arrogant Wizard) aligns with how the writers are talking about him, and a lot of characters can be viewed chiefly as narrative tropes. so, if galemancers and gale fans can bear with me here, i'll poke at that idea for a bit and why i think it's a good point to make within this long winded thesis i've been developing for two days.

wyll is probably the most obvious to start with in this trope analysis. he is objectively in the party, the voice of reason and a Good Guy. he will unambiguously support whatever the most like, goodhearted, positive, hero-type outcome. so we can classify him that way. i mean, his background is folk hero. then, you travel more with him and his story winds off in its own direction.

astarion is that foil to lawful goodness, and is presented as such. however, astarion also serves an important role in that he introduces one of the first instances of a potential party conflict to you. managing and understanding his vampirism is important to his character and to your party cohesion, at least in a roleplay sense. astarion is also meant to be a character that can frustrate you. think about the people who take bloodless, which is a literal stat negative, for him to be happy. that's an interesting trade that the writers are having you make, and in order to cure bloodless you have to use a spell slot. mechanically, this is the role he serves in the party narrative, and it's up to you the player to decide what you want to do with that. and then his story goes off in its own direction.

i could go on and position other characters in this stripped down way, but it's probably unnecessary.

with these two examples in mind, looking at Gale through this lens, i think he has a bunch of really important functions in the narrative and in the party dynamics. and similar to wyll and astarion above, you can come to view him beyond his initial trope. the biggest hurdle to his development is that his story is fundamentally integrated with the plot of the game. so, on some level, the narrative is unable to develop further on him because he still has that role to play. he has to still be able to kill himself even when the player has convinced him that his life matters because he is stuck in that narrative structure forever. he IS supposed to be the annoying guy who takes your stuff and eats it. you're supposed to have those moments of "oh no, what are supposed to do about this" just like lae'zel in the creche or with kithrak voss, breaking wyll's pact with mizora, and astarion's deal with raphael to kill yurgir. sometimes your companions make you do things that are really annoying.

but-- and this is the key-- gale's story doesn't have as much freedom to move beyond that, which is a fair complaint, even if there's not actually that much to be done about it in the grand scheme of things. (and i think this applies to lae'zel too, i just don't want to get too off-topic. and unfortunately i am not as familiar with her story, which is orin's fault.)

hopefully this comes across as me using your ideas as a springboard for my own, and not me twisting your words or hijacking something you said. i think that's an interesting perspective and thanks for sharing your thoughts!

[bardinthezone]

Watching Making myself sit through Moffat's Who, trying to give it a decent chance and I can't stand it already. Y'know why?

The stupid fucking love triangle.

Because not only is it just generally annoying as a trope, but it is so poorly written here. It takes over the show in a really obnoxious way and completely flanderizes characters who, in the first episode, were decent people.

Rory is portrayed as a fool for being... concerned that his fiance is cheating on him with the not-actually-imaginary friend she's been obsessed with since childhood, who she ran off with and kissed (A normal thing to be concerned about!!). And just generally, he's portrayed as a bumbling idiot. As the one who just gets confused and makes one-liners about being insecure. And both Amy and the Doctor just brush him off, leave him behind! Mocked by the woman who's supposed to be there for him and abandoned by the Doctor who's meant to keep him safe. He's being reduced to basically just comic relief here, and it sucks.

The Doctor is so.. aloof. More so than 10 and DEFINTELY moreso than 9. He's a silly, childish man who often fails to recognize the emotional consequences of his actions. He has his emotional moments, yes, but a lot of his writing falls victim to what I call "Sherlock Syndrome." When Moffat just writes an aloof super genius and expects the audience to fawn over him because he has good outfits and witty one-liners. Matt Smith is a fantastic actor and he carries a lot of his run, but putting glitter on a turd doesn't stop it being a turd.

Amy is yet another victim of the "every woman falls madly in love with the Doctor" pitfall. Worked with Rose, got old with Martha and after that almost every one-off woman who flirted with him just made me roll my eyes. Her obsession and anger with the Doctor didn't have to be romantic, but Moffat just couldn't resist writing a "strong female protagonist" who's sexy and she knows it, who loves having all the boys fawn over her and flirts without a care in the world. Who's a brash girlboss in charge of her boys, but who also turns into a sobbing damsel in distress at the slightest sign of danger.

All three of these characters are so blatantly characatures of themselves right now that it takes me out of it. They're all just quippy one-liners of their smartness or their brashness or their insecure foolishness. Can these types of people exist in real life? Yeah. But the way they're written about here is just obnoxious. I'm willing to accept that later Moffat seasons might be better than this (at least on the interpersonal conflict side of things), but it's season 1 and he's already dropping the ball so hard.

We could've gotten something truly marvelous, with a PLATONIC conflict based on the Raggedy Man from her childhood finally coming back and offering her freedom from a boring adult life. She's enamored with him, but doesn't entirely trust him because hey, he massively fucked up once already. Maybe Rory is concerned about his place in Amy's life, and Amy tries to be comforting. Maybe she messes up, maybe she says the wrong thing. Maybe she says the wrong thing right before losing Rory to the crack in space and time. But she has to try, because why should I care about a relationship where one person doesn't care about the other's happiness, at least a little? And right now it just feels like she doesn't.

I'm not saying shows shouldn't have interpersonal conflicts and flawed protagonists. They should! But to pull that off well, you have to make us want to see these characters grow. You have to give us a reason to enjoy watching these characters interact, even at their low points. And revisting Moffat's run as an adult, I don't feel enjoyment. I just feel annoyed.

[mitsubinyuri]

Theatre Kid JJBA Part 5 AU Headcanons!

So, I don't know if anyone cares, but I have a thread about this on my twitter so I'm gonna share my headcanons I have about the GW cast in my funny theatre kid AU! I've got a few headcanons for every character. Some of these may conflict with canon, but whatever.

Giorno:

Baritone, can reach a bit on the higher side.

He's a mediocre singer and dancer but he's a very good actor! He prefers acting in stageplays to acting in musicals, BUT

he's a big fan of obscure musicals! Like, really obscure. Sometimes he invites people over to his house to watch shitty bootlegs with him.

He started theatre around his junior year of HS, pretty late.

Narancia

Tenor

Like Giorno, he's a mediocre singer, but he's a good dancer annd actor!

He did theatre since the beginning of middle school.

He specializes in comedic scenes, and his usual scene partner (when he gets to choose) for those is Mista.

He has a lot of trouble memorizing his lines. Sometimes Fugo makes him flash cards to help.

His favorite production was Newsies Junior, which he did in 8th grade.

Pretty alright knowledge of theatre, knows most contemporary stuff and a fair bit of classics, but doesn't like the classics that much.

"Lin-Manuel Miranda is a little bitch but Hamilton is honestly peak"

Trish

Mezzo-soprano

She's a triple threat, probably the most talented and skilled of the group.

Been doing theatre pretty much all her life.

Usually casted as a sweet female lead, but she wants more "mean" roles.

She doesn't go to the Denny's cast parties because they're too loud and her castmates are stupid.

Very knowledgeable in musicals, less so in plays, and prefers contemporary.

Definitely a Heathers girlie.

Fugo

Baritone

Very, very good singer. Serviceable actor and dancer, but he used to be a pretty bad dancer. It frustrated him a lot but he put a lot of work into it and now he's better!

Started doing theatre in his freshman year, but was trained in music since he was six, along with his academic pursuits.

He taught Narancia how to read music!

He can also play the piano.

Borderline encyclopedic knowledge of musicals (and plays too), prefers classics, mostly.

Favorite musical is Les Mis and he's very pretentious about it.

Mista

Baritone, but he has a pretty good (if not untrained) falsetto.

Really good at dancing and acting, just sorta okay at singing.

Bad at staying on beat though. Kind of a broken metronome.

Can't read music. He has Fugo record parts on his piano and send them to him.

Also specializes in comedy like Narancia

Always orders the Denny's steak at cast parties, always throws up.

Only knows popular contemporary musicals and a few famous classics.

His favorite musical is Be More Chill and people judge him for it (Fugo tells Narancia he can 'do better' than someone who thinks peak theatre is 'a musical where the first line is I'm waiting for my porno to load')

His dream role is Michael in BMC.

Bruno

Did theatre in HS, was very good at it. Star pupil type of deal.

He was a low baritone/maybe bass with a good falsetto (actually trained in using it)

He's since decided he'd rather direct and write because he likes being able to actually see the show he put so much work into live.

Sometimes he can be bossy and has very specific ideas of how he wants a scene to play out, which can annoy the actors.

Very good with music theory

Likes musicals with a lot of dance.

Abbacchio

Did theatre in HS with Bruno, was never super good at it. But sometimes he'd run tech when he wasn't casted.

Now, because he actually knows how to run tech and can teach other people, he's the stage manager for Bruno's productions.

He takes very good notes.

A bit bossy with the crew and kinda mean to the actors (but we love him it's fine)

Sits in a booth with Bruno away from the main table at cast parties. They just chat. And stare deeply into each others eyes like they're gay or something.

[the-bad-batch-baroness]

Tadadada happy OC Sunday~ You knoow who I'm here for 🥰😂, but I'm here to show Rift some love too, so I'm asking for both him and Gloss: 💐, 💌, 💢, 🍸 and 🌹!

MIRE MY LOVE, I'm so glad you're back 🥺 Yes, of course, I will answer these for you!!!

💐 - Their favorite plant/flower

Gloss: Snapdragons. They're very pretty and colorful, and he enjoys sketching them. They also attract hummingbirds, which are rare to find and even rarer to get to draw.

Rift: Tulips. He doesn't care much for the colors, but he loves the fact that they come back ever year. He only needs to put it in the ground once and they just magically come back. He finds it fascinating.

💌 - How would they react to a love letter?

Gloss: He's not very reactionary as a person, so his actions speak louder than words. He will read the letter, smile to himself, then pin it up with his art somewhere to display it.

Rift: Please, if someone sends him a love-letter, don't actually write any words in it. Words frustrate him to no end. Draw him a picture instead. I promise he will cherish it forever.

💢 - How do they handle being annoyed?

Gloss: Because of his laid-back nature, he doesn't get annoyed very often. If he does get annoyed, you won't know it because he'll act exactly the same.

Rift: He has no problem voicing his annoyance, but he will walk away if it gets to a point where he becomes angry. He's not conflict avoidant, he just doesn't have the best filter.

🍸- Favourite drink?

Gloss: Loves a hot latte. (he would totally be a Starbucks person, just sitting at a table with his sketchbook and sipping his latte)

Rift: Fruit juice is the only thing he drinks. (he's the type of person that orders off of the kids menu and asks for apple juice)

🌹 - Do they have a signature scent? Perfume, shampoo or alike?

Gloss: He's not one to pile on scent, so something mild and earthy is his go to. He uses a color-protectant shampoo for his hair and a moisturizing body wash that he shares with Drip.

Rift: He doesn't like strong scents, so he smells like whatever deodorant he used that day. Also, no hair, so no shampoo, but he uses a plain bar of soap in the shower.

Describe your OC or a character ask game

[touchingmadness]

Help me choose a Nano project?

I am by no means promising to heed the results to this, but I could use some opinions. I have a few ideas for what to work on for Nano but can't make a final decision which is... a problem, since these all need some more planning before I actually start writing them.

Descriptions and pros/cons below the cut.

Reblogs allowed and appreciated.

That Which Remains (post-apoc sci-fantasy)

In a post-apocalyptic world where the passage to the afterlife has been mysteriously cut off, the streets are oversaturated with the spirits of the dead. Trained Quellers take to the streets with their spirit-sensitive subordinates to channel and extinguish these spirits. Aereas is an unsanctioned Queller who is secretly spirit-sensitive. When they're called in to investigate the apparent suicide of a Queller-in-training, they get pulled into the mystery of why the spirits of the dead are lingering and what the Quellers are - or aren't - doing about it.

Pros:

Most developed plot

Main and secondary character decently developed

I know DEFINITIVELY how this ends, down to the scene

Cons:

Might be derivative -- formulated as a dream while I was binging stories about body-hopping and talking to the dead

Most of the other characters don't even have names

Unsure if this is a single book

Wither and Woe (high fantasy, political drama)

Five nations are on the cusp of deadly conflict. Tensions are rising, and plans are being pushed into motion under the veneer of civility. A young princess married off as a glorified hostage barters with the demon Wither for a child that will earn her nation's protection. She bears her husband an heir that is not his own amidst the political machinations of the inner court and begins to suspect that she is not the only one who Wither has helped.

Pros:

WITHER!!! I love Wither so much!!!

Most of these characters are well-planned

Wrote a bit for this a few months back

Cons:

Still unsure is this should be one POV or like six

Worldbuilding needs some work

Heavy subject material with little room for levity -- usually prefer to write these types at the same time as a lighter project

Casey Draper's Big (Gay) Alien Road Trip (contemp sci-fi)

Casey Draper is stuck in a rut since graduation, faced with the harsh realities that her dreams may never come true and her friends might not want to see her again. Life isn't like the books, and that sucks. So who can blame her when she lets herself be kidnapped away from her dead-end job by an angry alien who seems to think she's a missing alien prince? Casey's in for the adventure she always craved as they flee secret government agencies, stumble upon strange towns, and eventually have to stop the actual runaway prince from getting himself killed with his party boy attitude.

Pros:

Main cast is completely planned

Incredibly dissimilar to anything I've watched/read lately, so less likely to accidentally draw from things half-remembered

Almost episodic, can afford to be rambly and unfocused

Cons:

It's the type of contemp where the worldbuilding is basically just our world, which is difficult and often boring for me

Literally no existing outline AT ALL

Annoyed with my own job in a way I wasn't when this was first planned -- risks getting too pessimistic or just frustrating

Project Evergreen (post-apoc sci-fi)

Arden thinks his life is over when he leaves behind his family's stronghold to take his sister's place at the Eternal One's estate. But instead of being imprisoned for Fern's habitual impulsiveness, he is given a new name and instructed to work on a mysterious device alongside others in similar situations. And he would truly prefer it if the Eternal One would simply lurk. Instead, the mystical woman infamous for somehow surviving long past the Before Times visits him and speaks as though he is someone else.

Pros:

Relatively developed cast drawing from discarded projects

Basically a fucked up and nonromantic sci-fi Beauty and the Beast story, so most of the big story beats are planned for me

Strong thematic center - easier to make story decisions

Cons:

No clue what happens between the big story beats ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Worldbuilding is slapdash at best

I have no clue how this ends