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blocksgame · 1 year ago

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Tips on character voices when writing fic

This is written in mind for people writing fic in MCYT/QSMP/DSMP/Life series/etc kind of fandoms. But if anyone finds it useful for anything else, well then, hell yeah.

Character voice is big in all, uh, fiction, and mimicking it in any fanwork is big. But I think it’s especially big in these fandoms where the voices are so distinct – it’s usually how a Real Person Somewhere (the streamer) talks, versus something very scripted that you’d see in a TV show or novel. And it can be a big difference in your character sounding generic versus really feeling true to the original.

Listen to a bunch of your subject talking. If you want to write a character well, watch vods from their point of view, or episodes where they show up a bunch. Take note of what they say and how.

2. If you don’t know how to start doing that: try literally writing down what they say. Transcribe an actual exchange in fic-format. You probably won’t want to publish a literal exchange from canon, but it will give you a sense of how to physically write what they say.

3. If you do this (or just pay attention to how they talk), you will get a lot of: Stumbling, pauses, repeating words, filler words, weird sentence constructions, fragments, etc. I love em! Here’s something that comes through in improv much more than in novels or movies: Most people, even very charismatic people, are not very eloquent when they speak. Writing out conversations or sentences will give you a sense of the unique and delightful way in which your subject is not eloquent. vvvvv way more under cut vvvvv

(People use a LOT of filler/etc when they speak. It’s reasonable to cut back on this if it’s interfering with a nice-looking or readable result. I believe this is the eternal struggle of people who write transcripts – you want the transcript to be accurate, but there are also a lot of things you can obviously simplify and not lose the meaning. So you’ll end up falling somewhere on this spectrum either way. But I do think a lot of mediocre/generic fic dialogue is very stylized – it doesn’t sound like your guy because your guy literally wouldn’t say that. They would say it worse and more confusingly.)

(I’m serious, if you’ve never sat down with a short non-completely-scripted clip or real conversation or whatever and just written out exactly what was said, do it. It will make you better at writing.)

4. Wonda-cat made a really incredible list [link] of characterizing speech patterns for the Dream SMP members. But you can also do your own reconnaissance and come up with your own patterns, common phrases, etc.

5. You do not have to get EVERYTHING right. You’re not going to, like, get so deep into the speaker’s brain that you can produce “exactly what they would have said if they were somehow in your fic.” That is impossible. You’re just trying to evoke a character, and if you get a few turns of phrase to ring true, you’re doing great.

6. A lot of these people are popular because they are hilarious. Include jokes. Yes, even if your thing is angsty or serious. A lot of the most serious lore I can think of from, e.g., the Dream SMP or 3rd Life or the QSMP - the really story-defining, life-and-death moments - were absolutely hysterical. If you’re writing characters who are usually funny, then add some humor. It can heighten angst via contrast and a sense of realism. Ask yourself what a funny streamer would make jokes about if they were possessing a character in this situation.

7. Some people have the mystical ability to “hear” character voices in their head, and read things in their voice. If you can, do this with all of your dialogue during the editing process. This won’t always get you there, but sometimes it can catch things that sound wrong by invoking "that's really hard to imagine them saying". If you don’t have this power, try recruiting a friend who does.

8. So there’s dialogue and then there’s narration that’s still from a character’s point of view. I’ve mostly given you tips about dialogue, but a lot of this is also true for narration. IMO, narration is less about phrasing things the way the subject would, and more about recreating the way they think. I don’t have concrete rules on how to do this, but here is my wisdom:

You can get eloquent again - narration is more of an abstract and artistic process than dialogue.

Spend time with your subject’s source material.

Pay attention to what they notice and care about. How do you think they think?

Don’t be afraid to get weird with it.

That last one also applies to all art ever.

9. MCYT tends to give you a great boon you don’t see in other media: what the speaker says to their chat/audience when nobody else is listening. This can be incredibly characterizing even if you’re writing a story where people don’t have chats. It’s your person talking about their thought processes and feelings! Mine that shit.

10. Some questions that might help guide both characterizing narration and dialogue (that you’d get from dialogue):

How open are they about their feelings?

How often do they lie? What do they lie about?

What kind of metaphors do they use, if any?

How quickly does their mood change?

How can you tell when they’re in different moods?

What kind of things do they pay attention to?

How formal is their speech?

11. Finally, this is a little odd, but I find it’s much, much easier to write a character that sounds good if I, the author, like them and am rooting for them at least a little bit. If a character needs to be there who you don’t love, try to love them. Or at least get a sense of what other people love about them. It just makes everything else easier. I swear to god.

Happy writing out there!

#mcyt fic #fanfiction #writing advice #writing tips #fanfiction tips #qsmp fic #dsmp fic #works for whatever too I'm just not gonna try to tag everything #fanfiction advice

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fluffernuttermushroom · 3 months ago

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KND Community Challenge

1: when did you start watching the show?

I think it was near the end of 2023? I was introduced to the fandom by one of the comics that @fallen-gabrielle posted. I was a fan of old fashioned cartoons already and loved the unique art style! A few comics and several episodes later, I was hooked!

2: favorite season?

I haven’t watched trough the entire series yet(Currently on season 3). But Iike season three for all the new characters introduced!

3: favorite episode?

T.U.R.N.I.P.

T.H.E.-F.L.Y.

Q.U.I.E.T.

G.R.O.W.-U.P.

D.O.G.F.I.G.H.T.

F.U.T.U.R.E.

U.T.O.P.I.A.

4: hated episode?

P.I.N.K.E.Y.E. (ick)

5: favorite character?

Favorite character(s)!

Rachel(I often feel her ‘I have been everyone’s councilor at this point and I am tired of people’ feeling. Is this an INFJ thing?),

Hoagie(He reminds me of my cousin + we have the shared love for bad puns & dad jokes!),

Abby(Cool!),

Sally Sanban(I am obsessed with her for some reason),

Nigel’s grandson(Same reason with Sally. Dunno why),

6: did you cry when you watch OP INTERVIEWS?

I didn't cry but It felt quite bitter sweet. I’m the sort of person who watches the end before finishing a series. So I kind of scrolled through the entire wiki and watched I.N.T.E.R.V.I.E.W.S. before actually watching the C:KND. It is an inevitable fate for all kids to grow up to grow old and gray at some point. But I have never seen characters grown up in a cartoon before. The whole episode made KND hit a bit too close to home to me.

Ironically the episode that made me upset the most ended up being one of the reasons that I like about the KND.

You will grow up

But you will never grow out of some things

7: funniest moment?

Wally saying “C’mon she already has every single rainbow monkey there is!”

And then watching in horror as the rainbow monkey aircraft coming into view before saying;

“Oh yeah, except that one.”

8: saddest moment?

Abby giving up in Operation M.A.U.R.I.C.E. after facing that every one she knows and loves in the KND will turn into teens & forget about her eventually.

9: favorite KND artist?

Again, can’t pick just one! This is going to be long so the list of artists and why I like them are listed below

10: favorite canon KND ship?

3x4 and 2x5

11: favorite headcanon KND ship?

Ummm... can’t choose! Straight, Gay, Lesbian, Pan, Poly, Platonic I love & have them all!

I have a lot of different head cannons for different scenarios.

But the ones in my fanfiction are currently 1x362, 60x86, 2xAce(the kid), 83x84, 23x35

12: what's one thing you love about the fandom?

The thousands of fan theories, fan fiction with their own interesting head cannons, multiple aus and crossovers, and of course the beautiful fanart with unique art styles!

13: what's one thing you hate about the fandom?

Those weird pedo & insest shippers that keep spawning out of nowhere

14: do you wish there were more die hard KND fans in the fandom?

YES. A thousand times YES.

15: when did you start drawing KND art?

Near the start of May 2024 and have been drawing almost daily ever since! But It’s mostly animation plans and sketches so I don’t post often nowadays

16: how old were you when you started drawing KND art?

Hm, will answer that on my birthday.

17: how old are you now and are you still drawing KND art?

Same with the answer above! I will answer on my birthday

18: what's one thing you wish would stop in the fandom?

The pedo & insest ships, art thefts, rude requests and just disrespecting other people.

19: quick pick your favorite 2×4?

M.A.R.B.L.E.(Mustardy Armament Releases Big Loud Explosion) and

G.A.R.G.O.C.Y.C.L.E.(Granite Augmented Rocket Glider Outstandingly Creates Your Cool Looking Escape)!

20: what's your Codename?

Numbuh 9.24!

(KND Community Challenge Template Credits To @arudan)

+Answer to question number 9

@fallen-gabrielle: The one who brought me into the fandom + has a lot of lovely AUs!

@midnight-the-goth-artist: Satisfies my inner goth, has helluva boss inspired art

@gen-toon: Beautiful angles & poses

@numbuh02: The scratchy art style!

@artsygirl0315: Her OCs remind me of ENA! And they interact with the fandom often

@elijaheldridge: FLOOF EVERY WHERE

@mixxxerlyishere: OC with a unique design!

@scarlett-v-the-fox: The head cannons for minor KND characters are really intricate

@bluccoli: Rare fellow Korean KND artist & takes a lot of requests!

@gettan49: Still reading ‘Operation: BEYOND’ it’s a really well made fanfiction

@parasite-doll: Always love the creepy art style

@mixx0: The sillies (OCs)

@kandykatz: Uses the tumblr aesthetics to it’s full extent + draws hair really well!

@bluepastels29: Insane attention to detail to her cloth designs

@numbuh900: G:KND OCs!

@numbuh-72: Great at KND edits! It looks like a part of the show if I don’t look closely

@ohlookanothercartoontofallinto: Lineless art. LINELESS ART.

@kndrules: Sector V as grown-up comics!

@sok-knd: Uses brushes really well & has a lot of different art styles

@kukiiisblog: 3x4 art in webtoon + old cartoon style

@numbuhinfinitys: Reyna and their cute shenanigans with the delightful children

@your-genious-artistic-girl: I dunno how she makes line arts that clear! Mine are always squiggley

@pennywhistle2021: Numbuh 30c art! Most of the fan art of 30c that I find on deviant art is theirs

@knd1234isme: Numbuh 4 in every form possible

@torra-and-the-toons: Has really specific Nigel head cannons + old cartoons!

@spicedwatermel0n: Not picky with ships & is understanding with others

@kidsnextdoor-doodles: Moonbabies :)

@pinkmeanschaos: KND genderbend everything! And a fellow 60 x 86 shipper

@bugtoonz: Pastel art! Their art is always easy on the eyes

@rubiisun: The art style always gives me a fluffy feeling

@kommandonuovidiavoli: Everyones favorite grandma :) Penny’s chaotic nature always tickles me

@rainbowbeam231: Uses colors really well with her OCs!

@totallynoteggos: Unique concept with making the (Y/N) self insert as and OC!

@some-loozzr: Good with lighting! + The spank-happy sector V members look so scrappy I love them

#knd #codename knd #cknd #kids next door #codename knd fandom #codename kids next door #knd community #community challenge

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pinkeoni · 7 months ago

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During his emotionally charged speech in the van, Will says one particularly potent line.

"When you're different... You feel like... a mistake."

This line is highlighted visually by the camera shifting positions to outside of the van, a shot that is only used one other time to punctuate the end of the scene. This line holds extra weight and the show wants you to know it.

I already made an analysis on the word mistake and what that means for Will, but I want to look at the word different, which feels emphasized in the delivery of the line as well.

"When you're [pause for effect] different..."

It's popular headcanon among st fandom that "everyone in Hawkins is gay!" which sometimes bleeds from into their belief of real canon. Sexuality headcanon lists suddenly are seen with an air of truth to them, and a number of fanon queer ships are accompanied with evidence of their supposed endgame status.

I realize that this is kind of a... weird post to make. I'm not really making this to tell people to stop doing something, this is more of just a rattling off of some opinions I've had for awhile.

I do wanna start off with the obligatory: Do whatever the hell you want. I'm not here to stop you from doing something or tell you that you are wrong for thinking that a character is gay or for shipping something. You are allowed to ship whoever you want, think whatever you want about any character, any ship I don't like I have filtered. But I'm also allowed to not like these ships, or disagree with how others view certain characters. Just as others are allowed to have and express their opinion, I'm also allowed to have and state my opinions on the opinion website.

I think the important thing regarding Will being different is the fact that he is different. As my good friend @karenchildress once put it, if everyone were queer, it would cheapen the message the show is trying to give. Sure, the show displays a variety of ways of being different, but being gay is, among other things Will has been through re: being taken into the Upside Down, is Will's way of being different in Hawkins.

And of course Robin is gay as well, and while there is some crossover, the lived experiences of a gay man is different from that of a lesbian woman, which the show does touch on. Will's story is part of an extended AIDS metaphor, and Robin struggles to gain the attention of women in a world that seems to revolve around the attention of men.

It might be nice to have a moment between Will and Robin, although that alone won't solve Will's problem, i.e. his belief that being different makes him a mistake. Cause that's the thing: the resolution is that being different is a good thing.

If everyone character were queer, this would cheapen the message. Suddenly the resolution isn't that being different is a good thing, but that he isn't different after all.

So then, are queer stories meant to have only token characters?

I think it depends on the type of story, and what it's trying to say. Heartstopper has an eclectic queer cast, but it's also a show that embraces finding community and other people like you. Sex Education has a variety of different sexual identities, but it's also a show that aims to explore a lot of different perspectives.

And there are also queer stories where the queer character's disposition, and their struggle because of that, is a big part of the story. I believe this is what this show is trying to do— highlight Will's difference and how that pertains to his personal struggle and the resolution of that.

One argument that I hear against Will with powers is the idea that making him more different would be bad for his character, because he hates being different. But the thing is, Will is going to learn that his differences are a good thing, which may include any possible powers.

Of course Will isn't the only one with powers, and he also isn't the only gay one. El, Henry, and Kali all have powers, and Robin, Vickie, and Mike (and maybe Henry? I haven't seen TFS myself so I'm not commenting on that) are all gay. So while he's not alone, these things are still a rarity. It's not a case of a headcanon list with mostly everyone gay and some token straights.

"Characters are not straight by default."

This sentiment isn't unique to the st fandom and also didn't originate within this fandom, but it is something that I hear often. And it's... not really true, although it kind of depends on the piece of media we are talking about. It might be easy to say this about a show made in the 2020's, although this same sentiment is hard to state about, well, most shows made before the 2020s. And even then, it depends on what the show is going for.

People being not straight by default is a true statement in real life. You shouldn't assume a sexuality for anyone, gay, straight or what have you. But characters are made by people, and people have different biases on how these characters should be written. Calling the Duffers "two straight men" would go against what I just said, although I don't think that the show was written with everyone being gay in mind. Aside from the 4 (maybe 5) I listed, the other characters are not written to be queer. They just aren't.

All of the queer characters have arcs that feature their queerness. Will's queerness has been mentioned since season one. Robin's romance becomes part of her plot in season 4, and Vickie is introduced as her love interest. Romance has always been an important facet of Mike's story since season one, and his failure in a straight romance is highlighted in seasons three and four. Chekhov's painting of season 4 seems to solidify a gay Mike.

Elmax and Ronance as endgame options not only have no lead up but are also mean spirited towards Lucas and Vickie. Elmax gets together, breaking up Lumax, which has been built up since season two, and Lucas is supposed to be okay with this because????? Ronance get's together, effectively writing off a queer character that the show had introduced, and she can't even fulfill the reason she exists in the first place? Rockie is not the most well developed relationship out there, but it's the one that the show has decided to go for. Maybe Ronance could work, in an alternate universe where the show actually wrote that in.

For those that argue that both Max and Nancy are queer I simply... disagree. And you can disagree with me too, we'll both just agree to disagree. I'm not against headcanons, which are usually harmless, but also usually driven by the desires of the headcanon-er and less so the canon of the show. Which again, is fine, but it's also these headcanons which are being used to drive an argument for actual show canon. Usually the argument for any character being queer that wasn't already listed in canon rests solely on vibes, not any concrete evidence that may suggest actual attraction to the same sex.

More substantial evidence usually comes when someone applies a queer lens to a certain character, but an interpretation can be different from authorial intent. And sometimes, the viewer may be so focused on the metaphorical, that they fail to see the literal.

I do think that you could easily apply a queer lens to El's story. Her story is about, in her words, "not belonging," in society, having to remain in hiding, and deviating from feminine norms. I can easily see how you can derive a queer message from this, but all of the traits listed above are a result of her having powers and being raised in a lab, not being attracted to the same sex. Metaphor alone cannot prove that she likes girls.

Going back to Nancy, Nancy's romantic options are between Jonathan and Steve, although the show seems to make it clear that it's going with Jonathan in the end, what with Jancy holding hands at the end of season 4. Steve get's brought up in conversation between the two, alluding two some unresolved tension that's likely to be brought up in season 5, and Robin is... at the high school with Vickie. That is the end of the season establishing the arcs and romances for the final season.

"Gay people didn't exist in the 80's."

That's an argument on the opposite end of things that just isn't true, although I've also heard the counter for this argument, that gay people did in fact exist in the 80's, as evidence that everyone is gay. I'm not really here to argue whether or not gay people existed in the 80's (they did) I'm just here to argue what I think the canon of the show is presenting.

That being said, the show taking place in the 80's is still significant. It may not be a hyperrealistic depiction of the 80's, but the show does seem to understand the idea that at that time, it was very difficult for gay people come out and to start relationships. It's the reason that Robin can't just go up to Vickie and ask her out, and it's the reason that Will can't just say that the painting is from him. It's the reason why Mike hasn't quite yet left his relationship with El and accepted himself. It's the reason why Rockie has to discreetly flirt through peanut butter sandwiches. A character who hasn't had queerness built into their plot, or a relationship that has no buildup, isn't suddenly going to become canon in the last season.

I was talking about this once with a friend who used the show Only Murders in the Building as an example. In the shows second season, Selena Gomez's character is revealed to be bisexual and dates a character that Cara Delevingne plays for most of the season. The show doesn't build up to her character being bisexual, she doesn't come out as such, the other characters don't make a big deal out of it, she just is. So why can this show do something like that but Stranger Things can't?

Well, Only Murders is a show that takes place in present day, and is a light-hearted comedy (albeit with murder). A character suddenly being bisexual with no set up makes sense for the tone that the show has established and when it takes place. Stranger Things takes place in the 80's and establishes within it's first season and maintains it throughout that gay people get killed and are seen as social pariahs.

It's not that I don't understand where the desire to have more characters be queer comes from, especially characters that people already like and relate to. I don't think it's harmful to think that these characters are queer, I'm making an argument purely with regard to authorial intent and the actual outcome of the show. Again, feel free to disagree with me and continue to do whatever you want, these are just some thoughts that I have had on my mind for a while and wanted to put out.

#well this has been sitting in the drafts for a while #sorry to focus on the female characters #i would write something about steve but i also just. dont even tough that side with a ten foot poll #anyways #dont feel obligated to read all of this this is a post for me than anyone else #stranger things #conclusion is a little flimsy didnt really know what else to add or how to wrap it up tbh

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firefeelsfine · 3 months ago

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HELLO pretty people!!!🌸 <3

The intro post is finally here...🫴🏻✨

Wanna know more about me, here you go:-

🌸 yepp, so my name is KEHKESHA which means Galaxy & The name originates from Persian language.

( I am truly in love with my name, so please try not to mess it up while interacting. )

🌸I am a die heart fan of SRK and RK.

( it's okay if you don't like them or the way they act...I respect your views nevertheless.)

🌸what do I mostly post?

Random shit, that's right. Relatable kinda shit , random funny looking pictures , memes and rants. In short everything that would show a sense of carelessness towards life and people. Because let's be honest , we all are struggling with stuff one way or another. So ig it's better to deal with that shit by making it somewhat random.

But but but, at times I may tap into my devdas zone, and post or reblog something kinda sad. ( Not negative or something devestating, just simply sad) Something that may or may not touch that hidden empty void in your heart.

🌸 there is nothing in this world that will ever come close to how much i love tulips 🌷🌷🌷

🌸I am not religious but very spritual.

🌸I respect every religion with all my heart. I am obsessed with Indian myths and history. I would really appreciate hearing anyone speaking of there culture, the traditions they follow, the facts and the myths, all of it together and everything in between as well. Feel free to reach out to me for the same.

🌸my favourite colour changes with my mood, today it's rose gold.

🌸I am seriously very chaotic. If my chaos makes sense to you, we're meant to vibe together.

🌸my favourite vibe:- midnight thoughts with Lo-fi Beats.

🌸 I have bunch of interest, here goes the list:-

• imtiyaz ali movies ( my go to )

• F.R.I.E.N.D.S ( nothing compares to that common! )

• music:- jagjit singh, Mukesh, kishore kumar songs are a bliss to me. Shreya Ghoshal, Mohit Chauhan, Arjit Singh top my playlist every now and then. The weekend, JVKE , arctic monkeys, Chris brown make my playlist near to perfect.

But but but...LANA DEL RAY & ISABEL LAROSA make me tap into my siren self way too quick.

• I am diagnosed with moderate anxiety and an undiagnosed mild ADHD awaits me.

•THE SCARLET WITCH from the MCU is my comfort character. ( It's weird ik)

• I like every existing shade of maroon.

🌸 relationship status :- in love- hate relationship with my life.

🌸I am in love with the idea of being in love.💌

🌸I get lost in my books every now & then ( I won't be posting anything about what I read , in this blog, because I cannot tolerate listening to anyone having an opinion on why they don't like a character that I may be obsessed with at that very point of time. I will get defensive and that won't end good . I know me)

🌸 recommendation for kdramas, songs , movies and tv shows of any kind are appreciated.

( need an recommendation from my end ? Do try watching • It's Okay to Not Be Okay • 2020 ‧• Romance • kdrama )

• I really cherish this drama because I feel it is very me coded. Don't forget to tell me your views on it if you do watch it.

🌷🌷🌷 I am obsessed with my govind, my protector, my bestie and my supreme support 🌷🌷🌷

NAGAR NANDJI NA LAAL...💌💌💌

Also, my two alltime favourite songs ( hindi)

My alltime favourites ( english)

If you're a creep who just wants to disturb people's mental peace first of all get a life, And second of all try not to try your dirty tricks on me. I am not a girl who will ignore or block you. I very well know some people , who would not only trace you but will make sure to get your life as miserable as possible. MARK MY WORDS !!!

PS :- My brother's bachelor's degree in criminal justice works like magic at times.

🌸 other than this , I am a really friendly person, so feel free to reach out to me.

Tons of love to my stunning mutuals <3 🫴🏻✨I adore you guys so damn muchhhhhh 💌

#intro post #desiblr #desi tag #desi tumblr #firefeelsfine #a little about me #spotify #random rants #desi shit posting #just hehe stuff #desi blog #desi teen #desi #introduction #blog intro #pinned post #pinned intro

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musicalmoritz · 2 months ago

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I'm writing an AU that centers on Aoinene, but I'm worried about keeping Aoi and Nene in character 😿😿 Do you have any tips for writing them accurately even though the story's separate from canon ?? 🙁🙁🙁

Oooooh okay I love to yap abt writing. Here are some of the things I try to keep in mind while writing Aoi and Nene:

• Aoi is very emotional, but she doesn’t let it show outwardly until she’s pushed to a breaking point. Keep in mind, that breaking point for her is usually something very small and petty (like Nene asking her if she can go out with Akane). It takes a lot for her to fully break down though, because she keeps so much bottled up

• She also doesn’t get along with many people. She’s kind to them but if they linger too long, things get awkward. She’s very close with Nene and Akane but that’s about it (you could say Teru has grown on her recently tho)

• Arrogance is a major character flaw of Aoi’s, when she notices Akane and Nene have been acting weird it never crosses her mind to worry about them as people, but rather how their behavior impacts her. Despite this she is shown to care about them and look out for them, she can get pretty defensive over Nene. But when conflict arises she’s mostly thinking about herself

• Nene has a similar flaw, she’s very self-centered. But she’s self-centered in the way a lot of teenagers are, she’s consumed by her own problems and has a very romanticized view of the world. She puts her friends into boxes and gets confused when they act differently from how she expects. Despite this, she shows a strong desire to want to save them- and when she truly falls in love with someone, she makes an active effort to learn more about them (even if she’s sometimes misguided with it)

• Nene is also a very impulsive character, she makes decisions fast and wants solutions to her problems fast. She tends to jump into conflict without giving it much thought, which is why she usually relies on more level-headed characters for guidance. However, she can most certainly take care of herself when she’s left to her own devices

• Aoi avoids good things because she doesn’t feel that she deserves them, whereas Nene fights tooth and nail to get a happy ending. This could create a push and pull between them, Nene wants to give Aoi all her love but Aoi needs time

• Aoi is very affectionate and forward with Nene; holding her hands, complimenting her, confronting her when she wants to talk, etc. She can also be majorly passive-aggressive tho lol

(I know I’m focusing on their flaws a lot, I don’t want to to seem like I have a negative view on either of their characters, it’s just that these are the elements I see forgotten most often)

• Nene shows her love to her friends by bullying them. This doesn’t apply to her dynamic with Aoi, she’s actually Aoi’s biggest fan girl, but it’s worth keeping in mind if you’re going to have her interacting with Hanako or Kou

• Personality-wise, Aoi is more of an introvert while Nene is an extrovert

• They’re both hopeless romantics, Aoi is just less willing to admit it

• Contrary to popular belief, Nene does notice that Aoi doesn’t talk about herself much and presumably wants to know more about her. Aoi’s attention also makes her feel special (that one’s not rly related to characterization it’s just cute lol)

• Nene’s arc centers around her becoming more mature and less attached to her fantasy world, Aoi’s arc centers around her learning to be her true self and accept good things

I know this was a lot, I wanted to be helpful so I tried to cover everything I could think of😭 Don’t feel pressured to include EVERYTHING I listed here, it’s just good stuff to keep in mind. I hope this was useful!! Happy writing <3

#ask #ask me anything #writing tips #aoinene #flowerfish #yashikane #aoi akane #nene yashiro #tbhk #toilet bound hanako kun #jshk #jibaku shounen hanako kun

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massivechildtidalwave · 1 month ago

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skull using his cloud abilities for things other than death for comedic effect.

Everyone seems to focus on Skulls inability to die and the implications of it with the arcobaleno and I love that, I really do but I feel like that ends up being the only thing people focus in on.

His immortality is only really featured in hurt/comfort ways or straight angst where he is a complex character putting on a fake show and the arcobaleno,trained professionals in the art of survival and lying, are none the wiser. I like these fics and I’m not trying to bring anyone down who makes them but can’t we do better?

his immortality is often suggested to be a part of his cloud flames but no one really focused on his flames only the one part. Skull is a complex character but given what we have seen, I don’t think he would be mourning the lost of an ability to die.

Imagine for a second- Skulls territory is his circus freaks; runaway children who join the circus and flock to him as a playful older cousin figure when trying to find their place. One day he overhears that one of them want to go to school but oh no it’s expensive… a very quick way to gain money would be selling organs because not everyone can afford to go to the hospital and wait out their turn on the waiting list…. And Skull knows he can heal any damage taken to his body.

cue montage of him traumatizing the shit out of surgeons thinking he’s dead, mafia men who came to the circus trying to take away HIS territory and more… this could be pre curse and you just see him meet the other arcobaleno in hilarious(for us) ways. Skull doesn’t like pain but the cash is cash and when he finds a surgeon who knows what they are doing and not afraid of him waking up, he can get medicated enough to not feel it.

there is no angst, only crack and concern as he basically throws questionable money at his horde of adopted baby siblings like a stripper.

He decides letting people attack him isn’t a fast enough plan and steals medical scalpels from Verdes lab in clear view of the cameras. No machinery, none of Verdes studies or experiments or research, just the scalpels so he can do it himself. He doesn’t even know who Verde is. Verde is left confused as fuck because most people tried to steal his work and how did this random person he can find no where in the mafia circles get through his traps.

Skull goes to Triad Territory not even knowing what it is because one of his newest tag alongs used to live there and he wants to gather supplies for them. He has the cash why not. Cue montage of him intentionally pissing off the “weird fire assholes” and narrowly missing encountering Fon and when he does run into him, getting away quickly. Not because he is faster than Fon, that’s almost impossible but because he is willing to take landings most people couldn’t.

he knows he can survive throwing himself off a roof to escape a overpowered asshole, why not!

Fon is left in confusion about how the person whose pulse had stopped three times ( he started checking after the first revival from a cracked neck) is still moving.

Why has no one realized he’s a cloud? Healing is something internal, his system is healing him constantly due to his shenanigans and are less “visibly present” during all the meetings with Mafia kind because of this.

#skull khr #arcobaleno #Khr #KHR #Skull never dies #Verde khr #Fon khr #Reborn has probably shot him dead once on accident.#He steals a military gun for a less painful death process and meets Lal and Colnello shortly after their flames activate #Viper has been asked by multiple Mafioso about a purple teenager running around without fear of death and is quietly making a list of his #Moves in the background so they can get money.#Skull runs into Luce during a shopping trip #Post curse- Skull grabs Tsuna on his way back to where the circus is currently located.#He is Carcasas biggest supplier

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heyclickadee · 3 months ago

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The first of several Tech Lives posts. I was going to do in show quotes, possible foreshadowing, and moments that are just kinda suspicious in one post, but just the quotes got too long. So, with the caveat that I’m arguing that I don’t think a Tech return was cut and that it’s just going to happen later than we expected, here’s a list of lines either said by or connected to Tech that could point to him coming back at some point:

"Better late than dead." Phee, as her introductory line, right before she starts hitting on Tech, "Spoils of War."

"Hey, I'm a survivor. Remember?" Romar, to Tech, followed by like a six second camera hold on Tech before he goes back to get into the ship. "Ruins of War"

The entire exchange about culture and memory; Tech's actual character arc was about experiencing life outside the war and the narrow definitions the war gave him. That was not an arc that was completed, no one steps up to fill that space or continue that arc, and maybe it’s not an arc that could have been picked up in season three without focusing on Tech and writing Omega into the background of her own show. Maybe it needed its own space.

This exchange (which I bring up because it happens right after Tech fixes Romar's databank and restores that cultural memory, and we do get the implication in season three that Tech could be running around with amnesia. So.):

Romar: You--you actually did it! Tech: Of course I did.

THIS exchange:

Omega: You did it! Tech: You sound surprised. Wrecker: I thought you were a goner.

Like. Come on. He drifts into a cloud of dust so that the outcome of the race is hidden from view at first, Wrecker and Omega thought he was going to die because he made the decision (in defiance of their requests not to) to do something that would have killed almost anybody else in order to save them, he succeeds and he comes out alive.

"I guess I owe you one, Goggles." Cid, in "Faster." This isn't something they just forgot about, either. Tech indirectly brings it up as a reason she should help them at the end of "The Crossing," and it actually does get Cid to relent a little and say that she'll see what she can do before cutting off the call. But, since she doesn't come through on that, she still owes Tech that favor.

This exchange:

Phee: Don't go running off with any pirates or smugglers while you're gone. Tech: No. This mission should not require either.

Because of course this isn't literally what Phee means, she even clarifies in the next sentence that this isn't literally what she means, but can we at least all agree that this is a weird ass way to say, "Don't run off with any hotties while you're out, I'm still interested and I'm right here?" There's no reason for her to say it this way…unless Tech is going to end up running into some pirates and smugglers. Which hasn't happened yet.

"See you around, Brown Eyes." Phee, the current last thing she says to Tech, in "The Summit."

This exchange:

Crosshair: Where's the jedi? Hunter: Stunned him when he jumped. He didn't make it.

you know, the one where Hunter and Crosshair are talking about Caleb, the jedi who very much did not fall to his death (which plants the idea that falling deaths are suspect right in the first fifteen minutes of the series, btw), is worded almost identically to THIS exchange:

Omega: Where's Tech? Hunter: Omega…Tech didn't make it.

And it's the only two places in the entire show that "Where's X?" is followed up with, "X didn't make it,” btw.

THIS LINE:

"We have to go back! What if he's hurt? He--he needs us! Tell him, Wrecker. We can't just leave him! No! Tech's not gone! He can't be!" Omega, to Hunter and Wrecker about Tech, in "Plan 99."

Two things. One, Omega is actually…usually right about this kind of thing. We never do get explicit confirmation that she has any force sensitivity, but we do get a somewhat implicit one that she does at least have a little bit of natural ability. And even if she doesn’t, when she has a feeling about something that feeling usually turns out to be justified. No reason this should be any different. Two, I got through the rest of this episode about a dozen times and the entirety of season three without ever knowing for sure if Omega even thinks that Tech is dead. The closest she ever gets is saying that she "lost" him, and then goes on to use that exact word in the exact same sentence to describe Hunter, Wrecker, and Echo being captured, and actually said that they'd lost Echo way back in "The Crossing" when Echo was very much not dead and she knew it.

And then when we get to season three, she never actually talks about That Time Her Brother Threw Himself Off A Gondola To Save Her On The Worst Day Of Her Life, and she only brings Tech up once, and only when prompted by Crosshair. I have NO IDEA if she's accepted that Tech is gone or if she even believes he's never coming back, we're given no real indication either way. You know what she WAS real explicit about, though? Demanding that they go back because Tech isn't gone and needs their help.

Honorable Mentions:

"This story changes every time she tells it." Tech, about Phee, in Entombed. This isn't an obvious comeback line, and it's a bit of a stretch, but the thing is. The thing. Is. That Tech being alive, especially depending on how he comes back if he is, when, who knew what, who was hoping what, etc. has the potential to completely recontextualize the entire third season, if not the entire show. A lot of things would be different without actually having to change anything at all.

"I thought it was obvious." Also not foreshadowing, but makes for one hell of a zinger if it turns out he's alive and the clues were there all along.

"Yes, I am playing against myself. It is the only time this game is a challenge," would be one hell of a line if it turns out Tech was forced to be someone else for a while and ends up really struggling with that once he's recovered. Not like. There's any hinting. That this is a thing that could have happened.

“The last time we crossed paths, you had just lost a member of your squad. And it appears history may repeat itself. CT-9904 resisted my conditioning in the past, but I've made alterations to my methods. If you all survive, you will make fine operatives. And if not, well, there's no shortage of clones to test on next.” Dr. Hemlock, “The Cavalry Has Arrived.” I blazed right over this line originally, but @eriexplosion brought up that it’s just *real weird* for Hemlock to be bringing up Tech and that history is going to repeat itself in the context of being right about to start CX-ing the others and being so confident it’s going to work. So here’s what I’m thinking might be happening here: either he CX’d Tech and Tech’s standing right over there in the room with them, or he did something else to Tech and Tech was the change he made to his CXing method. This is actually one of several reasons I don’t think the CX-Tech plot was dropped or cut, and that we aren’t actually done with this—we get little bits of hinting it’s him even in the final episode.

“This isn’t over.” Wolffe to CX-2, “Extraction” Like a few others in this “honorable mentions” section, this relies on Tech being CX-2 either physically or mentally. But I uh. Do think it points to Wolffe potentially having a run in with CX-2 again.

Controversial, but I’m putting it on this list anyway:

“Clone Force 99 died with Tech! We’re not that squad anymore!” Crosshair to Wrecker and Hunter, “The Cavalry Has Arrived”

I know.

But here’s why.

First, one of the long running narrative questions of The Bad Batch was whether or not Clone Force 99 could ever be whole—whether they could ever fix what the Empire broke in “Aftermath.” Because we never get a full reunion by the end of the series, the answer we get isn’t a “yes,” but it wasn’t really a “no” either. Because the entire Tech situation is so unconfirmed, and because the show did nothing to allow either the audience or the other characters to let him go, the possibility of a full batch reunion and reconciliation remains on the table. There’s still a remote chance that they can fix what the Empire broke after all. Maybe they won’t all live in the same place when all is said and done, but maybe, maybe they can still be a whole and complete family. Because the story never fully closed that off as an option.

And the thing is, the show could have had the family fully heal without Tech. They could have resolved the family stuff without him by dealing with him as dead and allowing everyone to treat their wounds and move on. But because we get this line in the last episode, because no one ever pushes back on it in a meaningful way, because Crosshair never takes it back, that’s not what the story does at all. So the answer we end up with here is, “Maybe, maybe not—but not without Tech, apparently. They’re still broken without Tech.”

Second, Crosshair has always been a little cynical, but this season went out of its way to establish him as Pessimism Georg, an outlier who shouldn’t be counted. The last time he said someone was probably dead, way back in “A Different Approach,” we knew it almost definitely wasn’t true and Omega immediately shut him down. He wasn’t there on Eriadu, he doesn’t know any more about Tech falling (he might know other things but we don’t know that) than the others and probably less, and I think there’s a possible future spoiler reason why they had Crosshair say this when Omega wasn’t around to hear it instead of any time that she would have been.

Third, like. Okay. Crosshair might believe Tech is dead. Crosshair might know something about what happened to Tech that no one else does, and might need to believe Tech is dead because of it. He might have suspicions about where Tech is. He might know nothing. Whatever Crosshair actually thinks or believes, though, one thing I do think we have to keep in mind here is that words very rarely leave Crosshair’s mouth without being sieved through fifteen layers of Crosshair being Crosshair, and so Crosshair frequently exaggerates, omits, talks from a certain point of view, lies, and so on.

He’s a genuinely perceptive guy who can read people and situations like no one’s business BUT his brain cells turn off and that big wounded heart of his takes over whenever he has to make a decision, so his internal logic makes sense but goes through such a tortured filter on the way he comes to some wild conclusions. (For example: The batch escaped without him and from his perspective, they didn’t do enough to give him a chance. Reasonable given what he knows about the situation. Justified. His solution to that is to capture them and invite them to the apocalypse to hear the galaxy’s worst business pitch.) He’s just. His observations are often good and, in contrast to his foil, Omega, who’s usually right about this kind of stuff, Crosshair has a tendency to come to the wrong conclusion.

And on top of that, let’s remember that this is a guy who will say the most cutting, ruthless, out-of-pocket thing in order to get a reaction or even to get people to leave him alone. And he’s good at it. It’s a skill. I’m not sure he even has a sense of what going too far looks like (I don’t think he left Tech out of his fight with Hunter because he thought it was a step too far, I think he left Tech out of that fight because he blames himself for Tech too much to blame Hunter for it). This is a man who told a child he would leave her to die if he had the chance. A child he would both kill and die for. So of course if wasn’t true, Omega immediately calls him out on it, but he still said it because he thought it would get her to leave him and save herself. It’s worth noting that the entire reason Crosshair launches into the entire “Clone Force 99 died with Tech” speech is because he’s trying to get Wrecker and Hunter to protect themselves and let him go into Tantiss alone.

Lastly, even if Tech was definitely dead, this line is custom made to get Tech spinning in his grave so fast that he’d spontaneously resurrect for the sole purpose of decking Crosshair across the jaw because what does Crosshair think he fell for then? You…can’t really have the final note on a man who (supposedly) died to save his family be that his family is irrevocably broken because he “died.” Which is another thing—they’re not just a squad. They’re a family, and Tech thought of them as a family. Like. Just. This entire line is just so perfectly crafted as something that feels like it needs to be pushed back against and refuted I’m just. I’m *biting biting biting*

All this to say that Crosshair should not be regarded as a source of objective fact.

Aaaand that’s. All the ones I can remember.

#the bad batch #tech lives #I’m. sorry the formatting is weird I wasn’t sure how to lay it out

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theragamuffininitiative · 3 months ago

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Episode Ratings Guide: The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

(by yours truly)

Interested in watching a show about suave and silly secret agent spies foiling the plots of evil villainy at great hazard to themselves and looking great and wisecracking all the while? Not sure which of the 100+ episodes are the most worth watching? Got you covered!

This post contains the complete list of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. episodes, each of which are accompanied by a "summary/review" of one-or-two brief sentences and a rating number of 1-5 stars, 5 of course being the best rating and 1 the worst. These are not intended to be a full overview of any episode, but merely a personal opinion on those I think represent the characters and show the best, and display more pros than cons of being created in the 60s. These opinions are entirely my own. 👌

Note: I am posting this in more-or-less its original rough notes form, and some of the ratings come from episodes I only watched once which might be better rated with a second viewing. If I make any updates to these ratings, I will reblog so you can check the notes for that.

Also included here for science: notations indicating whether or not Napoleon (^) or Illya (*) were captured in the episode. (!) indicates both evaded capture that episode. There is some nuance to this, which I mostly left to my own determination: but mainly this is used for direct capture and imprisonment by Thrush, not being otherwise incapacitated. Note: I have not yet finished adding these notations and will be editing for that.

Currently, the entire show is available HERE on the Internet Archives for your watching pleasure. 😊

Episodes and their ratings are below the cut, listed by show order, not rating category.

Enjoy!

S1 Uncle episodes:

(S1 was arguably the best season overall, with a few exceptions, and the only one filmed in black and white.)

The Vulcan Affair: pilot and a good deal of fun, with a decent storyline and the first "innocent" female character that becomes a staple in each episode is actually very charming here as she has a lot of fun being a spy instead of a housewife. Precious little Illya though. Still 5 stars ^

The Iowa Scuba Affair: Fun plot and Napoleon being a good spy. Zero Illya. Good climax at the end though. 3 or 4 stars. ^

The Quadripartite Affair: intriguing plot with the fear gas, some good lines, and Napoleon's first time rescuing Illya. 4 stars. *

The Shark Affair: this one had a very interesting plot, not the best execution of it imho. Some good interaction between the boys though. The "innocent" is more comic relief than femme fatale which I actually enjoy. 3 Stars. ^* (but the capture was kind of intentional)

The Deadly Games Affair: Fun plot where Napoleon has a flirtatious on again off again relationship with a known Thrush agent - the will they/won't they in this case more often being will she try to kill him again. Hitler zombie makes an appearance. “Another tunnel. You've got a lot of gopher in you.” 4 Stars. ^

The Green Opal Affair: mind control island with cheetahs. weird all around, not enough Illya. 2 Stars. ^

The Giuoco Piano Affair: Sequel to Quadripartite, which is fun because Marian is back. Napoleon is wonderfully suave. Fun plot! Some good ole cultural insensitivities. 4 stars. ^

The Double Affair: pretty fun, not enough Illya, and "somewhere in the Austrian alps" over the Griffith Observatory made me laugh so hard. 3 Stars. ^

The Project Strigas Affair: I honestly don't remember much of the plot but it is a fun caper, but the shining points are the guest stars and it's worth it for that alone. Good amount of Illya too. 4 Stars. !

The Finny-Foot Affair: intriguing if swiss-cheesey plot, but the real draw is the interactions between Napoleon and little Chris. 4 Stars. ^

The Neptune Affair: they made Illya leave in the beginning but it was still enjoyable. We stan Harvey Muller. John Banner (Schultz) appearance! 3 Stars. ^

The Dove Affair: ridiculous episode, you have to not at all take it seriously and then you can have a great time. No illya, sad. 3 Stars. !

The King of Knaves Affair: one hilarious bit where I fights off an intruder for N. Otherwise 2 stars. ^

The Terbuf Affair: kind of a mess of an episode but the sincerity of the plot with Napoleon is nice. Illya is fun, even if the whole gypsy thing is a little eesh. Otherwise meh episode. 3 stars.^

The Deadly Decoy Affair: utterly charming and a romp. Our boys protecting an asset…or are they. Neat and silly. 4 or even 5 Stars. ^

The Fiddlesticks Affair: I don’t care for the Innocent girl in this one but the caper plot is solid and there are some very good bits with Illya and Napoleon. 5 stars. !

The Yellow Scarf Affair: not a good episode, ridiculous plot and culturally insensitive. Also no Illya. 1 Star. ^

The Mad, Mad Tea Party Affair: annoying episode, especially with the girl’s acting/character choices. Some fun with a character who infiltrates Uncle HQ who makes up for it a bit. 3 stars. !

The Secret Sceptre Affair: a little cringe in some moments but great story mixed in between Napoleon and his old mentor, plus his loyalty to Illya. 4 Stars. *

The Bow-Wow Affair: a weird one, but lots of Illya content, plus a fox named Napoleon. Easily 3 Stars. !

The Four Steps Affair: Weird and cringe in many ways and otherwise not amazing. The kid annoyed me. 2 Stars maybe. *

The See Paris and Die Affair: Napoleon highkey kidnaps a woman. Has the comedy of I and N fighting each other in character and Napoleon calling himself Javert. They hurt my boy *again*. 3 stars, would be 4 if the plot were better. ^

The Brain Killer Affair: the boys have to save Waverly. Not a bad episode, not a brilliant one. 3 Stars. ! (but Illya was briefly incapacitated)

The Hong Kong Shilling Affair: idk what even to do with this one,, it was wild and nope. 1 Star.

The Never Never Affair: a fun premise and solid execution. Also everyone wants to kill Illya whoops. Make the “Cesar Romero was tall” jokes here. 4 Stars.^

The Love Affair: Token religious cult episode. They hurt my boy and I wish they had played it up a little more with Napoleon but he had a job to do so. 3 Stars maybe. ^

The Gazebo in the Maze Affair: Love this one, it has everything to recommend it. 5 Stars. ^*

The Girls of Nazarone Affair: there's no real reason to watch this one but it is a Trip, it is Insane, and I did laugh incredulously. 2 Stars. ^*

The Odd Man Affair: a good plot with a guest spy, the innocent woman is very likeable, some angst with Napoleon and Illya being concerned about him. 4 Stars. ! (But Napoleon is down for the count)

S2 Uncle episodes:

(Things get a little or a lot sillier and the show takes a minute to fully realize it is now in color, but overall quite enjoyable.)

The Alexander the Greater Affair 1+2: not a bad romp, though not stellar for a season opener despite its two acts. (However, Tracy/Dorothy Provine is great as always.) Possibly the most complex torture/execution setup of the series, and the “possibly” says a lot about the show at large, but also they get caught Multiple Times (feat. mummy illya). 3 Stars.^*x??

The Ultimate Computer Affair: Brilliant and fun, Illya really shines in this one (even as a grubby cowboy). 4 to 5 Stars. *^ (but Illya's capture is intentional)

The Foxes and Hounds Affair: A caper, a farce, a delight. Innocent of the week and plot around her leaves something to be desired. Silliness abounds. 5 stars. *^

The Discotheque Affair: not my favorite plot, but Illya looks sharp in his red jacket and there are exploding vinyl records. 3 stars.*^

The Re-Collector's Affair: Lovely clever plot with a good bit of silliness regarding stolen art and nazis. N is his s1 suave spy self and I gets a rare chance with the girl and is fabulous as usual. 5 stars. ^

The Arabian Affair: once you look past several unfortunate casting and makeup choices and the whole white savior bit, this episode is a lot of fun actually lol. 3 stars. *

The Tigers are Coming Affair: nothing special to me about this plot, some good quips as usual. 2 stars. *

The Deadly Toy Affair: Angela Lansbury guests and is charmingly ridiculous. Fun plot, lots of antics, some great lines. 4 stars.

The Cherry Blossom Affair: not amazing, but the female character has a different nuance and the banter is great. But anyone not white is shown as an idiot le sigh. 3 stars. ^ (though Illya was arrested by good guys and then gave himself up so I don't think it really counts)

The Virtue Affair: everything to love in plot, characters, quips, and really stupid villains with really complicated schemes. 5 stars. *^

The Children's Day Affair: mixed reviews, it's a fun plot, but the villains (and writers?) are gross and weird, but also there's some really solid Illya and Napoleon moments. I'll probably give it 4 stars for those. ^*

The Adriatic Express Affair: second train episode. Amusing representation of one of Illya/David's fangirls and some fun banter in the cell. The female villain is fascinating but otherwise really poor showing. 2 stars. *^

The Yukon Affair: cultural/racial insensitivity aside, a very fun episode, and we love Murphy. 4 stars.*

The Very Important Zombie Affair: not very important, a few good scenes, some heavy cringe territory, 2 stars.

The Dippy Blonde Affair: ridiculous plot but that's the show. Some unique Thrush exposition and characters. 3 stars. *

The Deadly Goddess Affair: Napoleon gets knocked out and tied up twice in this one. Villains are cringe. Great moments of Illya happily seeing Napoleon into a forced marriage. 2 stars.

The Birds and the Bees Affair: 1 star episode. High points are Illya being a soft gentleman and the director made some great camera angle choices. The rest is dumb.

The Waverly Ring Affair: features Napoleon shouting gibberish happily, and a fun plot, and an Illya to save the day plus Napoleon being genuinely clever. 4-5 stars. ^

The Bridge of Lions Affair 1&2: So much to love. The capers! The silliness! Illya chasing cats! Waverly besting the baddies! "Really? Really. Really??" 5 stars.

The Foreign Legion Affair: SKIP. 1 star episode. Bad episode. So cringe. Find the scene at the end where Napoleon rides in on the halftrack and do not watch anything else.

The Moonglow Affair: if the plot were a book and not a 60s TV show it would be so clever but as it is it was fun. IK and NS spend most of the episode out of their minds and April Dancer comes to their rescue. Love her. 4 stars.

The Nowhere Affair: A decent enough idea of a plot but I disliked the resolution. Some fun moments thrown in, and I did like how N snapped back to himself. 2 stars. ^

The King of Diamonds Affair: A Delight! Please enjoy the insanity of the bad guys pretending to be British…or Italian…no one is sure. (And then please forgive the other British representation, especially the opening scene.) 5 stars.

The Project Deephole Affair: a hapless criminal gets caught in the middle of a major sting, ft another of N's gibberish moments and a delightfully antagonistic exchange between I and the baddie. Cringey fight between Napoleon and female villain. 3 stars. *

The Round Table Affair: Fun episode where a villain turns into a protagonist sort of. Not amazing but enjoyable. Silly knight stuff abounds. 3 stars.

The Bat Cave Affair: a ridiculous riot. Not a bad time. 3-4 stars, mostly bc lots of Illya. *

The Minus-X Affair: "Corridors suck!" We know, Illya. Featuring the super drug and anti-super drug trope, and jokes at N's suits' expense. Nuanced side characters. Random plot holes abound. 3 stars.^*

The Indian Affairs Affair: -1 stars, pulls all the Native American stereotypes in absolutely absurd ways, the villain is gross, really not enjoyable.

S3 Uncle episodes:

(The most ridiculous season and not my favorite. It's....a lot. But a few episodes make the exception to be highly enjoyable.)

The Her Master's Voice Affair: the girls controlled by the lullaby episode. Adult character makes as though to spank a teen girl character at one point, like what were the writers on. 2 stars tops.

The Sort of Do-It-Yourself Dreadful Affair: girl androids. 2 stars. Except for the sparkling banter while Illya is locked up.

The Galatea Affair: My fair lady meets parent trap. Illya is great as always. Would improve without the naked bar horse thing which I hate hate hate. Napoleon replaced by Mark. 4 stars, tbh would be 5 if not for that scene.

The Super-Colossal Affair: movie/mob episode, quite fun, ending was a little disappointing but not bad. 4 stars. ^*

The Monks of St Thomas Affair: "very inferior mustard" I and N both very good at their jobs to begin, monk bald caps, cringe with n and girl and inferior plot overall. 2 stars *^

The Pop Art Affair: golf opening. Illya is great as a groovy artist lol. Otherwise 2 or 3 stars at best.

The Thor Affair: DC/Tao/Syn shows up! Culturally insensitive stuff but not the worst? Maybe? Heh. The girl is fun, radio in her tooth lol. 2-3 stars overall.

The Candidate's Wife Affair: uh meh overall. But car scene with "don't you ever turn it off?" "Well it's not my fault, when you've got it you've got it." - truly iconic. 2 stars bc the politics are boring lol.

The Come with Me to the Casbah Affair: inferior episode. Best part is when Illya hides in the hotel and is a perfect gentleman to the girl of the episode. 1-2 stars.

The Off Broadway Affair: 1-2 stars. Funny, otherwise unremarkable, and a bit cringe. Illya on Broadway lol.

The Concrete Overcoat Affair 1 and 2: Clever storyline but with So Much going on. Napoleon's storyline is more insane and comic than usual. Thrush woman hurts Illya and I loathe her so deeply, more angst than usual. 4-5 stars for cleverness with some serious plot. *^

The Abominable Snowman Affair: best features: Illya in flannel and Napoleon's failure to get either girl at the end. No one ever explained the abominable snowman part. 2 stars. ^*

The My Friend the Gorilla Affair: almost unwatchable episode. Illya has great lines. 1 star. *^

The Jingle Bells Affair: for a Christmas episode, kinda meh. Some heart and some laughs but nothing outstanding? 3 stars.

The Take Me to Your Leader Affair: Illya gets the girl this time (though somewhat against his wishes). N gets death by wind tunnel?? Fun fake aliens and Illya sings. 4 stars ^*

The Suburbia Affair: The plot is mostly meh but the set up and gags are golden. 4 stars. *

The Deadly Smorgasbord Affair: no illya. Worse! Fake stand in non-Illya. Decent plot except for the death by sun tan part. 2-3 stars ^

The Yo Ho Ho and a Bottle of Rum Affair. Amazing Illya content. Mutiny on ship controlled by Thrush and a drunk captain. 5 stars. *

The Napoleon's Tomb Affair: Napoleon jokes are perfect, otherwise very meh. 2+ stars.

The It's All Greek to Me Affair: Absolute farce, slapstick. Waverly to the rescue is the best part. 2+ stars.

The Hula Doll Affair: Absolutely charming episode! N is forced to pretend he's a Thrush operative, as their captive, and protects their new secretary. I spies on the mother Thrush and is adorable. 5 stars. ^*

The Pieces of Fate Affair: less slapstick, solid plot. The author with amnesia and Thrush Diaries one. Less than stellar execution. 3-4 stars.

The Matterhorn Affair: I don't even know where to begin. I don't have words. What even. They brought the slapstick back. But Hal Smith appears so? And the story is actually pretty heartwarming? Cute ending. 3 stars.

The Hot Number Affair: a worthless plot but an amazing time. Stupid and silly and great. The operator conversation. The kazoos! Sonny and Cher. Illya's glaring at Napoleon. 5 stars.

The When in Roma Affair: had a lot of potential. Cute scene with Illya and precocious little boy. Stolen bus. The ending downgraded this episode from solid to disappointing. 3 stars.

The Apple a Day Affair: Quite terrible honestly. I's part of the plot is ok but N's is a train wreck of the slapstick disaster. 2 stars.*

The Five Daughters Affair (1and2): 2 stars probably. Lots of little stories in one. Some really nice moment but far too few.

The Cap and Gown Affair: worthless episode, but really cute scruffy hippie Illya flirting. 2 stars.

S4 Uncle episodes:

(Here the show returns to a much more serious bent, but loses a certain amount of charm it had in the beginning.)

The Summit Five Affair: really stupid villain, ok plot, questionable directing, but the best part is Napoleon being suspected of double agenting and Illya not believing it for a second. 3 stars. ^*

The Test Tube Killer Affair: solid plot with mediocre execution. Not much in the way of Illya content even though he and N share screen time the whole episode. 3 stars.

The J for Justice Affair: again an intriguing plot but not much real content for Illya and Napoleon. 3 stars.

The Prince of Darkness Affair 1and2: thermal prism episodes. 3 stars.

The Master's Touch Affair: Nice plot. Napoleon rescuing Illya from being tortured and used as a pawn. N is great. 4-5 stars. *

The Thrush Roulette Affair: Interesting episode. Plot not super well executed, prolly due to bad pacing. Illya hypnotized into attacking Napoleon. Bad guy gross. 3 stars. *

The Deadly Quest Affair: Great melodramatic episode, terrible directing choices. Illya is held in a gas chamber and Napoleon must rescue him while being hunted. Suspend your belief a little when N and the Girl are dodging bullets and hiding behind literally nothing and this is a 5 star episode. *

The Fiery Angel Affair: a more culturally sensitive episode than usual but not by much lol. Wonderful Illya content, solid plot tbh, and no girl for Napoleon to woo. 4 stars.

The Survival School Affair: sadly no Napoleon. An okay enough and engaging plot. Illya had an entire episode to himself and they barely let him snark anyone. 3 stars.

The Gurnius Affair: Evil Illya! (Faking it.) Genuinely enjoyable and almost silly again. The photographer girl is fairly likeable actually. 3 stars ^

The Man from THRUSH Affair: zero illya equals sad. But an interesting plot and side characters. 3 stars.

The Maze Affair: charming! A return to some silliness but maintaining the drama. Illya is amazing. Thrush displays the worst target practice ever (say they were honing the gun, that works better). Random girl found halfway through who had no real purpose but hey. 5 stars. ^*

The Deep Six Affair: enjoyable, I and N get taken in by British fellow Uncle agent and his fiance, and also get dragged by Waverly multiple times. 3 stars.

The Seven Wonders of the World Affair (1and2): sad for a series end tbh, and the director did not know what they were doing it all. Docility drugs? Secret cult in a secret desert in the Himalayas?? The Shark Affair did this much better. 2 stars. ^*

Bonus! TMFU Movie: The Fifteen Years Later Affair: probably 3-4 stars, it's mostly fun for the affectionate nods to the original series and seeing our two best silly spies together. Nothing super special about the plot.

#some of these feature zero info on what to actually expect from the episode but i may fix that lol #ragamusings #episode guide #the man from u.n.c.l.e.#tmfu #episode ratings #illya kuryakin #napoleon solo #60s tv shows

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sometimes-love-is-enough · 7 months ago

Text

Syzygy: Some Closing Thoughts

I'm writing this at 8pm on my backyard porch, under the wavering light of a distant full moon. Hello, moon! Please don't kidnap me. I just wanted to hang out with you for a while as I collect my final thoughts. It's a pretty cloudy night tonight, so it's not properly visible, which I suppose is the cloud cover shielding me from a terrible lunar fate. It gives a deliciously hazy atmosphere for the absolute essay I'm about to write.

Apparently, the Farmer's Almanac says that tonight's full moon is a 'Pink Moon', which sounds like it'd be a very pleasant viewing experience. I imagine pastel frangipanis spontaneously sprouting all over the moon's surface, covering every inch of its rocks and crags until the soft pink glow is visible from all the way down here on Earth. Unfortunately it's not named 'Pink Moon' because of that; there's some American environmental factors, etc.

I think it's kind of charming that there's a list of names for every possible full moon, as if the moon's putting on different masks or incarnations every time it tilts just enough that we can see its full face. I'm looking at a list of them now instead of writing these final notes like I probably should. The names are so delightful. Strawberry Moon. Sturgeon Moon. Apparently last month's full moon was Worm Moon. WORM MOON. I could go on. I won't. Let's talk about Syzygy instead.

Syzygy is... Man, where do I even start with this? Let's try the beginning. I started writing Syzygy in February of 2021, after ruminating on it for probably a few months before that, as I often do. That's three years ago, so my memories of the reasons why are a bit fuzzy, but I think I did it for two reasons: one, a desire to have a long-form meaty slowburn fic for a beloved rarepair in the tag so other people could enjoy it, and two, a fascination with the idea of fractured identity, what it means to be a Side without a Centre. The whole thing with the alternate-history steampunk swapped-around Earth came about naturally from that.

Except that's actually kind of a lie, because that's not the beginning, this began in 2020, when I wrote a pitch for a local station that was accepting radio play submissions (rejected, of course) featuring a hardboiled noir detective in a starlit city whose latest client was a tiny shiny girl asking him to solve her father's murder. And that's also a lie, because I think it really began when I tried to write an original novel in high school where the protagonist's name was Avery Allen, because I liked the way the name tripped off my lips.

My stories are always built on each other, especially stories I never get to write. They all recycle into each other in a weird blend of concepts and characters. 2021 was when I sat down and told myself I was going to write the Thomceit time loop fic, and I dove into it with aplomb. I can't recall the exact timeline of events, but at some point I underwent some truly gnarly health problems that left me unable to use my hands for extended periods of time, and so the fic that was meant to be for a Big Bang ended up... Just sitting in a folder for a while. But me and my beta managed to pull it the fuck together, and after adding some extra bits and pieces (the cutaways were a LAST MINUTE ADDITION even though I think they're some of my favorite bits in the whole thing) I started putting it all up.

Okay, there we go, that's enough of an abridged history of this thing. Let's just say: I never expected as many people to like it as it turned out, I thought that it would be a niche little fic for a rarepair, and I was honestly pretty content with that. So it was delightful to see so many people getting so into it, I have enjoyed the FUCK out of all of your comments and theories and predictions. It's been delightful when people predicted a plot point correctly, and honestly even more delightful when they predicted incorrectly. I've had such a blast.

As for the writing... Suffice to say I have many notebooks full of notes and thoughts, more than one spreadsheet to keep track of time loops and lore, and a semi-complete list of all of Virgil's tarot cards, which one day I'll probably polish and share properly, because I think the concept is neat. But that's kind of how it always goes with my writing.

Naming every inspiration for this would take forever and I'd still miss a few, but I'll just throw out a key few ones, because I gotta:

17776: What Will Football Look Like In The Future, because when I first read it I got the wrong idea and thought that Juice (Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer) was short for Betelgeuse (the star), and that sparked a whole thing about living stars in my brain. Also, just the general way that the worldbuilding and absurdity is handled in that world, it scratches my brain just right.

Welcome To Night Vale. I don't think I need to explain this one.

Madeleine L'Engle's writing, particularly A Wind In The Door, particularly-particularly the bit of it where Proginoskes explains why, precisely, he has to remember and Name every star in the universe. Fucking beautiful book.

A particular Untamed/Mo Dao Zu Shi fic I read years ago and haven't been able to track down again, which also features two people stuck in a time loop who are initially unaware that they're in it together AND dying at the same time. I believe they also meet on a bus? The details are fuzzy. The worldbuilding and descriptions of that fic were so stunning to me, it had me unable to read anything for a solid few weeks, it is definitely a superior work to mine in every respect. If anyone finds it, let me know, I don't think I finished reading it and want to know how it ends.

An unpublished fic that I had the privilege to read while it was being written, that changed my brain chemistry re: the Sides unknowingly existing without Thomas. The Flowerwall Cafe originally hails from this one, too, graciously borrowed and greatly beloved.

Both Ghibli films in general AND Dianna Wynne Jones books in general, and obviously the intersection between the two, Howl's Moving Castle, which is fascinating in how both mediums handle the setting.

The Doctor Who audio drama Scherzo, which is a wild ride, and there's a major plot point revolving around the two main characters holding hands and fusing gruesomely into each other - and another involving an in-story fairy tale.

There was no huge inspiration for the clockwork city and weird steampunk carriages, apart from (perhaps) Fallen London. Certainly, the idea of a background organization that wants to kill the sun, who also happens to be a sentient being, is cribbed from the Liberation of Night.

Syzygy also happens to be packed full of many obscure references to... like... personal projects of mine, some published and some unpublished, as well as a lot of my friends and co-writers, and some really REALLY niche stuff that only I will ever properly understand. I buried a lot of myself into this story, is what I'm saying. Juice hails from a completely different project (a TTRPG with my friends, of which she is a beloved and cherished NPC), the in-universe author for Avery Allen (and Mallory Wynn too) are named for a fictional TV author I created when the writing discord was making a nonexistent fandom, Logan's dumpling recipe is my favorite recipe of all time.

I have an apartment ghost, too. I talk to it regularly.

Final thank-yous, because I want to post this very very soon, I've been typing for too long and the mosquitoes are starting to get to me. Thank you to:

Everyone on the TSS writing server who listened to me complain while I was writing it the first time round, and has subsequently listened to me complain while editing it these past two years. So many people in there are responsible for little bits and pieces - phrasings, words, nicknames, jokes - and I couldn't begin to name everyone who helped.

Saphira and the rest of the people who are currently working on making a full-cast audio drama out of this fic (???) (???!!!!??) (!!!!). It is SO baffling to me that it's happening, I'm in complete disbelief whenever we talk about it or I see the script or I get asked logistics questions, I'm terrified and thrilled to see how it turns out, what the fuck! The very existence of that project has ended up influencing a few things about this fic's endgame, too.

Everyone who's commented extensively, commented entire academic analyses, commented numbered lists, commented laconically, left a single emoji in the comments, left kudos, bookmarked it, sent me asks on Tumblr, given me thumbs-ups on Discord, or even just silently read the fic without interacting at all. Your witness brings my words to existence. Love you love you love you.

And Len, who lives in my brain and my body and my heart and my throat, and who is honestly singlehandedly responsible for dragging this fic out of the depths of Google Docs and into the arms of AO3. They've already said I don't need to thank them, but come on, I totally do. Len is the best beta, and puts up with all sorts of deranged nonsense from me, because I have an unhinged writing process where I don't think about anything before I put it down on the page, and I use way too many connecting-dashes and not enough semicolons. Kisses kisses kisses. Thanks for doing this with me, and I can't wait to do it again.

Myself. I managed to write this and I managed to finish it. That makes me a pretty cool person, all things considered. I'm glad I did this.

What next? I've got to rest. Well, I need to get some things done... and then rest. I've been juggling a hellish amount of projects for a while now, and now Syzygy's finally cleared from my plate, I'm going to try to let the others get cleared too so I can take some time and be less stressed. The Locked Tomb AU will be ongoing, as I get through final edits of chapters, so keep an eye out for that - if you're interested in a fic that's rather less starry and shiny, but very much Thomceit and death themes, check it out - and then....... Well, whatever comes next, whenever I have the energy to do it. I adore writing in this fandom. I'll be back with something weird soon enough.

Ad astra, baby! It's been a blast.

- Min (2024)

#Syzygy #author's note

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funishment-time · 7 months ago

Note

More asks, you say? Dare I... I must... I call upon the mighty powers of SEVENTEEN!!!!!!!!!!

your wish is My Command!!!

17. List five headcanons for your favorite characters!

another reason why Junko went off the Deep End is because, as the Ultimate Analyst, she sees every possibility. in a sense, she views the multiverse all at once. there is nothing interesting to her besides death because it's all happened, is happening, will happen. (Kamukura probably has something similar going on, but he reacted Differently)

surprisingly, or perhaps unsurprisingly, Mikan is the ex-Remnant who needed the most medical attention after coming out of the NWP. not because of anything that happened in the NWP, but because of her acts before that. she had really Frankensteined herself, to put it mildly

there are lots of characters i headcanon with a body type different than how they're portrayed, or a body type they're only sort-of suggested to have but the sprites don't really Follow Through. for example: i see Kaede as quite thick, a bigger girl, very hourglass shaped

inexplicably, Taka is in charge of moderating a lot of HPA's review sites. he is not proud of arguing with Kokichi people on Yelp about the state of the boys' bathrooms, but someone has to do it, and the SHSL Social Media Director died in a fire last year, so...

Kokichi once tricked Yasuhiro into a pump-and-dump crypto scheme

BONUS: a general headcanon for Hope's Peak Academy i don't think i've talked about much yet. it's a locus for obsessives, hyperfixators, neurodivergent folks, and...Robots. so: they may not be the most PC bunch, coming from Different Backgrounds and all, but it's kind of a tacit thing that most of them are playing around with gender and sexuality. SHSLs who can't cope with that generally leave, so it self-regulates. pride parades and labels may be foreign to some of them, some of them may still refer to themselves as Slurs you only ever heard your parents use, but YOU are considered the weird one if you're a genuine shithead to others for it. why make fun of someone for being gay when you can make fun of someone for being in the Reserve Course anyway

#danganronpa #izuru kamukura #junko enoshima #mikan tsumuki #kaede akamatsu #kokichi ouma #yasuhiro hagakure #kiyotaka ishimaru #hope's peak academy in a non-despair AU still has a ton of issues with Classism #and a lot of other bigotry still stands #but no one really cares too much if you're trans or gay or anything #that's not to say it's kumbaya: plenty of characters take a while to get used to it #and others will still innocently use terms you absolutely should not use for Anyone #and fights break out indeed #but it's one of the Safer schools for being el jibbity #just not a Safe school in general HA

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thefinalcinderella · 9 months ago

Text

Tsurune Book 3 Afterword

Full list of translations here

Time for my unsolicited book review!

Tsurune Book 3 is one of the books of all time.

I'm not trying to be funny, that is my true opinion about this book.

I've said before that it feels like the author was forced to write this book in a hurry, and after finishing it, I can only say that those feelings have only grown stronger. I think the author was going for an abstract and spiritual feeling but it didn't really work out. It only made the story hard to follow, and the tendency for the novel to jump from topic to topic seemingly at random didn't help. It's probably super obvious in the author's head, but that doesn't matter if the reader can't follow their thinking. I really do question what the editors are doing because I'm not sure if they're giving the author proper feedback.

The novel also suffers from trying to do a lot but not doing any of it satisfactorily. It introduced a lot of new characters and plot points but never really did anything with them?? The new first-years faded out of the story after the beginning and idek what's going on with Kuon. As for the new school Haneina...the author just gave them one """quirky""" trait each and called it a day. It kinda happened with Tsujimine too but it was more subtle with them, and I think the central relationship of Nikaidou and Fuwa was compelling and well-written. Asahina and Eddie, on the other hand, are just really weird?? I honestly don't understand what their narrative role is supposed to be??

This might be a controversial opinion but I feel like the anime tells a more coherent, polished version of the story. I was rewatching it the other day and I was kind of blown away by how the visual quality improved between the seasons. S1 was definitely not bad looking but S2 is just *chef's kiss*. Idk if there's going be an S3 but it will be interesting to see how (or if) they adapt book 3

Anyways i don't want to say that book 3 is kinda pointless since it did give us some reveals (perhaps unnecessarily) but on the other hand...i feel like book 2 had a nice ending for the series as a whole as well? idk. if there is going to be a book 4, i hope it will be all about Kazemai hunting down Masa-san's bio dad

Thanks for following along with me! I know I've been really slow with this so im glad people are still interested haha

Previous |

This happened when I was reading a certain foreign novel’s translated version. As I was reading through the point of view of a character whose first-person pronoun was “私” (watashi), I came across a surprising description. To my surprise, the character I thought was a woman suddenly started to shave their beard. Later, I learned that there was an unspoken rule that men used “watashi” written in kanji, and women used “watashi” written in katakana.

Minato’s personal pronoun is “ore” in hiragana. It encompasses the meaning of “undifferentiated,” someone of unknown gender who is neither male or female, although his physical body is that of a boy. Nanao’s pronoun is “ore” written in katakana, a person of unknown nationality who can’t be classified as either Japanese or foreign, a person who wavers between the two, a hybrid existence that crosses that line. Takigawa Masaki is also someone who hovers between “human” and “not human,” so his name is written as “Masa-san” (マサさん) in the text. Shuu is also a character who is in between.

I’m attracted to such “fluctuating” and “swaying” things. Things that can’t fixed or distinguished in form or state, as changeable as “water.” Kaleidoscopic freedom and loneliness are two sides of the same coin. People who fluctuate cannot stay in one place, and instability follows. Because they can’t be classified, they do not belong anywhere, nor can they be emphasized with. I wanted to somehow hold back those who can’t stop walking. I wrote this story because I wanted them by my side.

Changing the topic, I was on my way home from a domestic trip. After spending a relaxing time listening to the chirping of birds on an isolated island, I heard a large explosion sound when I got off at a certain station in Tokyo. The warning signal of a train entering the station continued to sound, and announcements reverberated from all over. I forgot to bring my earphones, so I was unable to plug my ears and ran all the way to the edge of the platform. Glowing neon lights reflected diffusely, and the words on billboards and other signs crowded in my field of vision like a herd of horses. I almost thought that I had time travelled back to wartime. We had become so accustomed to the flood of sound, light, and text that we don’t realize we’re on the verge of drowning.

Tsurune is the story of masters and disciples and bow friends with the theme of rebirth, and it began as the story of seven archers. The theme of Volume 3 is “Meigen, that is the sound of the dawn,” and I wrote about shari kenshou (seeing true nature through the shot).

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to everyone involved in the making of this book: Koyama Kyugu-sama, who I’ve interviewed, T-sama of the KA Esuma Bunko Editorial Department, Kyoto Animation-sama who was in charge of illustrations, the proofreaders, the novel’s official website, the printing company, and the distributors. The letters I’ve received are my treasures, and I have displayed them in my tokonoma alcove. I would like to thank my beloved kyudo teachers and bow friends, my precious friends, and my supportive family.

Last but not least, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to all the readers who have read this far.

I hope for the day when the beautiful tsurune of the archers will resound.

Ayano Kotoko

Spring 2022

Previous |

#tsurune #tsurune translation

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imptwins · 9 months ago

Text

Why making any concessions to puritan rhetoric is a bad idea

(note for the uninitiated: 'anti' is short for 'anti-shipper', 'anti-ship', or 'anti-fan'; in this context it refers to people who get very vocally militant about opposing dark kinks/problematic ships in media, especially creative fandom spaces. Proship is simply the opposite, people who vocally believe people should be free to make/indulge in whatever as long as a line is drawn between fiction and reality.)

(note 2: this was written for cohost, i cbf rewording it lol)

I very often see people - both websites and individuals - making a concession to the people who come up to them yelling about problematic kinks and guilt by association and 'why didn't you block this person' blah blah blah. It's happened with a few BNFs (big-name fans) in the UTDR scene lately, I've seen it from artists I respect, from friends, hell I used to be in this camp myself. And, of course, it happened to this website about a year back, and the conversation has come up again recently due yet another tumblr exodus.

It makes sense. The most common stuff that antis go after is stuff very few people are into: lolisho/cub, ferals, heavy gore, heavy noncon. It's niche, the real-world applications are unquestionably vile, it's very easy to just say 'I also find this icky regardless of whether I really believe that all people into it are secret criminals, so, I'll just block the people who they say are bad and move on.' I can't tell you the amount of times I've seen someone respond to proship/antiship discourse with "I'm an adult with a job." Going to bat for this content is high risk, low reward. You're not going to make friends, you're going to lose them. YOU WILL LOSE SUBSCRIBER, etc. As a result of all this it's very easy to assume that anyone defending it must be into it.

But I'm not. I'm a writer who often deals with darker subjects, but most of the first-on-the-list anti stuff, I'm not into at all. I'm not into ferals or gore period, noncon I like purely as character exploration, lolisho I can enjoy from the perspective of what I call 'trauma repair.' There's probably a proper term for it. But the tl;dr is I've never been actively aroused by any of these things, not in fantasy and especially not otherwise. Whenever I write them, it's just fascination or character analysis. Whenever I have a 'this character can be any age you want' fic, in my head, they're 18+. Writing noncon is a weird challenge for me because I'm constantly battling with the alternate ending in my head where the victim breaks free, beats the shit out of their captor, etc. This isn't me trying to claim virtue through this, just stating my position.

So… Why do I go to bat for these things? Why do I get annoyed when websites block lolisho, when artists have 'proship DNI' in their bio, etc? It's lost me a couple friends, it's certainly cost me followers and general reach, it's gotten me blocked by countless people I respected the work of. It's earned me a few callout posts, multiple with 1k+ followers, and one particular obsessed stalker who tells anyone who will listen that I actually groomed a child (despite all evidence otherwise). It's caused me a really significant amount of trouble. Why die on this hill?

The answer's kind of simple, when you boil it down: fictional fantasies either affect reality, or they don't. This is why I go to bat for things I'm not into, but it's also why whenever you see someone making concessions to antis, it's never enough. Cohost banned lolisho last year (I believe it's still banned?? Unclear), but the antis still make constant callout posts about this site and its owners. Some of the team have even gone out of their way to state very firmly that they're against these things, they've gone above and beyond just 'ban the bad thing' and broadcast their views about the morality of it. You'll frequently see artists write some huge apology or clarification when a callout post hits, usually involving some variation of 'I do not condone x y z and think it's disgusting.'

It's never enough.

But it makes sense, when you think about it. By drawing a line, you have essentially agreed with the core angle of the people screaming at you: that a fictional fantasy affects reality. That it's dangerous. You will, by necessity, now have people start to work down the list. Incest, ferals, gore, noncon, sure. Any relationship with any kind of skewed power dynamic. Sibling-coded, minor-coded, postminor nonsense. All of these things are less easily agreed to than lolisho, I've seen countless porn artists concede with the core idea that lolisho is immoral, then they act like it's unreasonable that people just keep going until they're being told that a knot on a furry is bestiality, or a 23 year old dating an autistic 21 year old is pedophilia. These are genuine examples of things I've seen people dogpiled for. Seriously look up "postminor" if you want to see how bad this can get, on top of being absurd it's one-for-one the kind of gross ableist shit that Autism Speaks gets into.

But YOU AGREED TO THEM. You agreed with the core concept, that the fantasy must reflect reality. Of course they're going to keep demanding more; by the logic you used to agree with them, you are doing immoral things. If fictional lolisho is immoral, so are the rest of them. It's way easier to look at your average pic on baraag or inkbunny and go 'oh, eugh, vile,' but at the end of the day the cutesy played-for-laughs sleeping kiss, the dubcon bondage that you don't call dubcon, or the meet-cute where they're a bit too drunk, they're all immoral fantasies.

That's not even to get into non-sexual stuff. If the lolisho fantasy is wrong, so is running down civilians in GTA. Suddenly your notifs are full of 16 year-old Jack Thompsons with rainbow flags in their bios.

This really is an all-or-nothing debate. If fictional fantasies affect reality, then even the immoral fantasies that you're personally comfortable with, the cutesy coy playful ones, must be immoral. If fictional fantasies don't affect reality, then even the ones that make you uncomfortable, the ones that have you scrambling to close your browser in case the feds are looking, must be fine.

It should have become very obvious over the last decade that you cannot fence-sit on this. There's a huge internal disagreement going on among progressive/queer/compassion-minded people, on whether these kind of things affect reality, or whether they don't. You can learn to apathetically dismiss stuff that squicks you, or you can learn to sanitize everything you ever make so there's not a trace of contentious theming left. Immoral fantasies are immoral, or only immoral actions are immoral.

You're going to have to pick one.

#proship #antiship #discourse #puritanism #purity culture #rant

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zalrb · 1 year ago

Note

Hey! so what did you think about Claire on the bear? I've seen some people call her a mary sue, a mpdg, a pick me which feels a bit much to me lol. I generally agree w people who say that she wasn't fleshed out and felt out of place bc of how carmy viewed her. My only thing is she never felt like an ER Doctor. Her career was supposed to be equally demanding so it should've affected their relationship in some small way at least but she kinda just seemed available for him at any given moment.

One of them I can see an argument for, the other two no. So before I get into the one I can see an argument for, I really need people to understand that these terms actually mean something. They're not blanket descriptors for female characters who annoy you and while we're at it, just for initiumseries, I'm going to add for the record that there aren't male versions of pick mes and manic pixie dream girls because these stock characters (or in the case of a pick me, viewpoints,) are rooted in misogyny

A Pick Me is specific

A Mary Sue is specific

Mary Sue stories—the adventures of the youngest and smartest ever person to graduate from the academy and ever get a commission at such a tender age. Usually characterized by unprecedented skill in everything from art to zoology, including karate and arm-wrestling [...] She saves the day by her wit and ability, and, if we are lucky, has the good grace to die at the end [...]

Like even Nathan Rabin who coined the term MPDG apologized for doing so because it keeps being misused:

I feel deeply weird, if not downright ashamed, at having created a cliché that has been trotted out again and again in an infinite Internet feedback loop. I understand how someone could read the A.V. Club list of Manic Pixie Dream Girls and be offended by the assertion that a character they deeply love and have an enduring affection for, whether it’s Diane Keaton’s Annie Hall or Katharine Hepburn in “Bringing Up Baby,” is nothing more than a representation of a sexist trope or some sad dude’s regressive fantasy.

It doesn't make sense that a character as nuanced and unforgettable as Annie Hall could exist solely to cheer up Alvy Singer. As Kazan has noted, Allen based a lot of Annie Hall on Diane Keaton, who, as far as I know, is a real person and not a ridiculous male fantasy.

From what I can recall, nothing about Claire is "Pick-Meish" or "Mary Sueish", she explains that when they were kids and a girl broke her arm, everyone was freaked out except for her because she wanted to understand the injury, that is not Pick Me-ish.

This is Claire

not this

The fact that she has six months left on her residency doesn't make her a Mary Sue.

Now with regards to being an MPDG, these are the characteristics of one:

That day in 2007, I remember watching "Elizabethtown" and being distracted by the preposterousness of its heroine, Claire. Dunst's psychotically bubbly stewardess seemed to belong in some magical, otherworldly realm -- hence the "pixie" -- offering up her phone number to strangers and drawing whimsical maps to help her man find his way. And as Dunst cavorted across the screen, I thought also of Natalie Portman in "Garden State," a similarly carefree nymphet who is the accessory to Zach Braff's character development. It's an archetype, I realized, that taps into a particular male fantasy: of being saved from depression and ennui by a fantasy woman who sweeps in like a glittery breeze to save you from yourself, then disappears once her work is done.

She isn't quite the "pixie" part of the trope, I don't think she's whimsical enough for that, instead I would say she's the "insufferable female lead in an indie" trope (love this!)

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because she does kind of just appear or sweep in to Carmy's life and has this history with him

and instead of giving Carmy her number, she asks for his, therefore the narrative places the onus of initial pursuit on her

she's been carrying this torch for him since they were kids

and her role is to be someone in his life that makes him feel good, that takes his feelings into consideration,

that gives him peace

that urges him out of his shell

that shows him another way he can be and feel outside of the restaurant

while we basically know nothing about her outside of that role.

What makes this iteration more complex than others is not Claire, it's not that she's a fully fleshed out character and we see more than a glimpse of her life and it's not that we get to know about her personally because we don't really, what we get is this

which just goes back round to Carmy and his complicated relationship with food and cooking anyway

the subversion lies with Carmy and how he needs to heal and still has a lot of unprocessed trauma that doesn't go away because Claire entered his life, the show shits all over the typical outcome of the MPDG coming into the male protagonist's life and making it all better.

I'm not saying that they did that purposefully as in they're trying to say something about MPDG, like I don't think the show purposefully framed her as one or views her as one, I think they just wanted to show how deep-rooted generational trauma is and how it presents itself and how it affects your current relationships and it ended up being subverting an MPDG-esque trope for the male protagonist.

I don't know if any of this makes sense, I haven't slept and it's like 5 AM lmao.

#the bear #carmy berzatto #jeremy allen white #the bear season 2 #the bear claire

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