#like damn if you feel to say there is valid criticism about her

[epickiya722]

"But Korra has valid criticism though!"

Okay, yeah, sure whatever.

But that's not what you add onto a post discussing the "criticism" which is really just hate she gets because she is a female brown skinned character.

All you are doing is undermining the misogynistic, colorist hate that is present in the fandom when it comes to her. You're diverting away from the original point.

Whenever someone brings up an issue such as this, you don't go "Well..."

Someone talks about misogyny in the fandom, you don't go "well, there aren't people who hate Korra because she's a woman". That post isn't talking about those "fans". The post is talking about the misogynistic ones.

It's like some of you so badly do want to hate on a female character, worse when she's darker than others, that you must mask it by bringing up "validation" about "criticism".

You don't have to be a fan of Korra to realize that some people in the fandom are hating her because of the obvious. Have "valid" criticism if you want.

But recognize that, as it happens, Korra does get more hate than necessary just because she is a female character and because she is brown skinned.

Don't come in and "Well, there is valid criticism". All you are doing is dismissing what is truly wrong with hating her.

EDIT: I also want to add this. If you're giving Korra "valid criticism", are you also giving the other characters the same treatment? Because I feel like any of the characters can have valid criticism, big or small.

However, if you choose to have "valid criticism" for a particular character such as Korra and no one else... are you sure you are criticizing her for the right reasons?

Truth be told, I do feel like even if someone has "valid criticism" for her, that sometimes that the only thing that some of you want to discuss. Like, is there anything positive you have to say about her? Anything at all?

Like, "criticizing" which turned into just talking about a character's flaws in a negative manner only seems to be the only thing most people want to do nowadays. For goodness sakes, that's not criticism. That's just hate.

The least you can do is bring up the positives of that character, too, to bring balance.

[rocketbirdie]

YOU. You are correct about Cloud Strife. Everything you say about him is CORRECT

Hi I'm going to use your ask as an opportunity to go on an unhinged tangent about him below the cut.

I believe that EVERYTHING about Cloud Strife as a character makes total sense once you realize: it's autism.

Here's a character whose entire arc revolves around the erosion of his identity and his desperate attempts to adhere to an ideal image, at the expense of his own wellbeing; and how self acceptance is the thing that brings him back from the edge of despair.

Youtube theorycrafters waste hours of their lives trying to piece together Cloud's psyche, when the answer is just... autism. It really is that simple. I will die on this goddamn hill.

In Trace of Two Pasts, we learn that even as a toddler, Cloud really was just... like that. Unemotive and awkward. And the entire lifestream sequence in the OG shows us a young Cloud who behaves in baffling ways. Tifa and her friends invited Cloud into their group, but he rejected their friendship while simultaneously harboring a seething jealousy. How the heck does that work, huh?

Viewing this through the Autism Lens™️, his approach make way more sense. Fearing his own inability to read and reciprocate their intentions, he pushes them away, and the resulting loneliness crushes him. He mistakes that loneliness for anger. He turns that anger outwards and gets into fights. Because the other kids don't understand him, Cloud sees them as stupid and immature. It's the perfect recipe for disastrous distrust. The tragic result is that, when Tifa gets into her accident, Cloud is immediately blamed by kids AND adults. He's seen as inherently dangerous and unpredictable, even though he did nothing wrong. It's like they were already looking for the perfect excuse to hate him.

The worst part is, because he struggles to articulate his own thoughts and feelings, he starts to just... accept what other people say about him. He's a pain in the ass. He's a selfish brat. He could try being a bit nicer. Any attempt that he makes to argue, backfires and proves their points even more. He's being childish. He needs to get his shit together. Nothing's ever good enough for him. He stops fighting it and lets people drag him around and violate his boundaries, because no matter how loud he yells or how intelligently he argues, nothing he says ever reaches their ears. He trims away more and more of himself to try and appease others and nurse the constant emotional pain. (And that's not even addressing the entire traumatic *waves hands* everything that he's gone through by the time he reaches Midgar! That would have to be its own tangent lol.)

It's hard to watch as a player; the secondhand embarrassment of Cloud's social blunders is immense. Some people don't like Cloud as a video game protagonist, which is perfectly valid. But a lot of times, they justify their opinion by perpetuating the same damaging language. He's an asshole, he's a weirdo, he hates people. The irony would be hilarious if it wasn't so frustrating. I know Cloud is just a fictional character, he doesn't need to be defended from harsh criticisms. But I can't help but wonder what these players think about the "weird people-hating assholes" that they meet in real life.

It also makes me wonder if they were even paying attention. I think the games make it pretty damn obvious what's going on. He's an asshole because other characters treat him like one before they even get to know him. He hates people because he doesn't understand them, and they don't even try to understand him. He's a weirdo because he has a strange way of showing how deeply he loves and cares, and he's afraid that his love will be misinterpreted like every other emotion he's ever dared to show.

The autism is everywhere. It permeates his entire being. It's in his silly responses when he takes things too literally. It's in his painfully practical way with words. It's in the stiff expressionless look and the flat tone of voice. It's in him constantly adjusting his gloves, shifting his weight, looking down at his feet. It's in his questionable idea of what you're supposed to do with your body at a yoga session. It's in the half a dozen flustered high fives, it's in the motion sickness. It's in the contagious eagerness with his special interests in SOLDIER and materia and chocobos.

It's in the moments where the facade crumbles and we get to see the real Cloud, the one that Aerith knew was in there— the one that Tifa finds in the lifestream— the one that Zack gave his life for— the Cloud that cherishes the whole world. He's got so much of everything inside of his heart, and he doesn't know how to get it out. You'd be a weird asshole about it, too.

[chiibinomonodamon]

WHO WANTS TO HEAR ME RAMBLE ABOUT GAY FURRY DEMON SEX? XD

(damn, there's a sentence I never thought I'd say....)

Okay...so I see some Stolitz confusion and bashing online and I need to type up a defense here because I won't be able to sleep otherwise lol

I consider myself to be a Ship Critic and someone who takes shipping rather seriously.

What I mean by this is, I like to analyze and break down romantic relationships between fictional characters because it's just interesting to write for me. I especially take delight in friendly debating with opinions that I strongly do *not* agree with.

Let me start off by saying I am NOT a "this ship is awesome because gay furry sex lol" type of girl.

FAR from it. I'm generally more passionate about hetero ships between human characters (because I can relate to them more) among other reasons. So if you wanna dismiss my defense as "shallow fangirlism", you can forget about that lame excuse.

I fell in love with Hazbin Hotel when it was finally released in February and suffered waiting for each new two-parts per week. During that time, I decided to watch Helluva Boss as well, after a friend showed me a particularly soul-crushing clip (Moxxie's childhood trauma about his mother).

Yes, I like funny sex jokes as much as the next goofy adult but scenes like this, scenes that carry a very heavy emotional weight are what really get me in the end, even moreso when VERY little dialogue is exchanged. I knew I had to watch the entire episode run after seeing that the creators had a talent for this.

I saw people asking:

"How did Stolas go from using Blitz as a sex toy to being painfully in love with him?"

Oh I can tell you. I can tell you the EXACT moment this is revealed. But it's not spoon-fed to you; it's quite subtle actually and this is why lots of people miss it.

See, one of the strongest talents Vivenne has shown me is that she REALLY knows how to get her characters to communicate their feelings to the viewers JUST from their expressions and body language. These can be 'blink-and-miss-it' teeny little scenes and it may require a couple rewatches.

But since people demand time stamps for all information others post here, I'll rewatch a few scenes from S1 E7 'Ozzie's' as I'm typing this.

'Ozzie's' remains to be not just my favorite episode of HB...but probably my favorite episode of any adult-targeted animated show outside of Japan (aside from S2 E7's Mid-Season Special)

It has this huge reveal for both Blitzo and Stolas.

We'll first address Blitzo's irrational, stalkerish behavior of Moxxie and Millie.

He's obsessed with them. He finds both of them very attractive, fantasizes about threesomes with them and is constantly inserting himself into their personal lives.

Why?

Because they have everything that he badly badly wants for himself.

They have the perfect marriage and he is trying to live THROUGH them.

This was hilarious to me at the beginnning of the show but it's slowly revealed that it's one of the most tragic and depressing things I've ever seen. And it's scarily realistic too.

But you know this already so let's move on...

Blitzo follows the couple to Ozzie's but he can't get in without a date. So he calls up Stolas and yes, this is very low but he doesn't realize how much this means to Stolas (hell, I'm not sure even Stolas realizes it himself!) but the owl man is giddy with joy, he rushes over and they enter Ozzie's.

When Ozzie and Fizz mock Moxxie for being so sappy towards his wife, this strikes a chord with Blitzo (because they're his IDEAL relationship) and he speaks up to defend them.

NOW PAY CLOSE ATTENTION; THIS IS THE IMPORTANT PART:

Fizz, still holding onto his past grudge turns on Blitzo to humilate him:

"Some nerve you got commenting on a relationship"

Time Stamp: 11:37

As Fizz says "-ship", Blitzo VERY QUICKLY makes eye contact with Stolas who has a look of panic on his face. Blitzo is seeking VALIDATION from Stolas in this sharp, subtle second of screentime, as if to ask

"Well, ARE we in one?"

And then what happens next...Stolas remains silent, Blitzo's ex joins in to announce how selfish Blitzo was in bed with her, tearing him down further. Stolas stands up like he's going to put a stop to it but then Ozzie notices him and interrogates him about sleeping with Blitzo.

Blitzo looks incredibly ashamed and guilty as Stolas blushes with similar feelings...and hides his face behind his menu; HIS BIGGEST MISTAKE IN THE SERIES SO FAR.

Time Stamp: 12:24

The look on Blitzo's face as he grits his teeth and darts his eyes away basically says

"Yeah, I should have known...boy am I an idiot for trusting him to stand up for me".

(look how SHOCKED he is...wow, this hurts fr ;_;)

This is a silent betrayal on Stolas's part. Afterall, his reputation is on the line, so if he were to defend Blitzo, it confirms they are in fact, dating. He chose his pride over Blitzo and Blitzo is crushed by this betrayal.

Moxxie finishes his song and kisses his wife tenderly. Stolas watches this and also wants to have an affectionate moment with Blitzo (who is rightfully glaring daggers at him) and tries to reach for his hand.

Blitzo rejects his touch and suggests they leave. As they do, Blitzo still looks furious and hurt. Stolas is now realizing how badly he screwed up with a "What have I done?" face (13:41)

He even looks disappointed with himself.

After Blitzo drops Stolas off, he thanks him and tries to smooth over the awkwardness with sweet talk but Blitzo just rolls his eyes in disgust and pulls on his face like "I don't want to hear this bullshit".

He responds coldly and curtly, "Yeah." Stolas makes more suggestions to spend time with him, which just makes him even angrier and he snaps

"I'm not fucking you tonight, okay!

I'm really just..." (14:28)

he pauses to wipe a tear because at this point he can barely hold it together (top notch voice acting and animation directing btw)

"...not in the mood, Stolas."

Stolas still tries to talk him into doing couple things unrelated to sex.

Blitzo's face switches back to anger and frustration because Stolas isn't getting the message so he goes for the blunt tactic;

"Stolas, don't act like what we have is anything but YOU wanting ME to fuck you, okay?"

(14:42)

"You make that really clear all the time."

(again his voice sounds like he's about to break down)

"But I-I just can't do it tonight, okay?"

(Finally meets his eye)

"...I'm sorry."

I believe this is code for "I'm sorry we're even in this situation and how your reputation got damaged. " Or, more painfully, "I'm sorry I'm such an embarrassment to you".

Stolas replies "Okay" and takes a deep breath to compose himself. They say goodnight and depart.

An important note here is that Stolas calls him "Blitzo" instead of "Blitzy" to show more respect.

As Blitzo zooms away coldly, Stolas looks up at the sky with tears in his eyes, surprised at how much it hurts.

He then sits down with his head in his hands in anguish...because he's getting that

"Oh...no. These feelings are real" epiphany.

And as if this wasn't enough angst, Blitzo collapses onto his couch at home, goes through the memories on his phone and starts sobbing.

I'm going to be real with you; this is the most heart-breaking shit I have ever seen in an adult show of this type. It's also the first time a show of this type got me to cry.

The last six minutes have revealed so much information without spoonfeeding it to the audience because the show RESPECTS its audience.

To recap:

*Blitzo takes Stolas on a first official date to use him

*Stolas is extremely happy about it

*Blitzo gets humilated and looks to Stolas for validation

*Stolas betrays him and breaks his heart

*Blitzo snaps that their relationship is nothing more than lust-driven sex

*Stolas realizes he's actually in love with Blitzo and it's a huge problem because (he believes) that it's unrequited.

*Blitzo breaks down because the ONE person whom he thought would protect him didn't do so.

So these two are convinced that neither one loves the other...while the irony is, it's quite the opposite.

Because if Blitzo REALLY didn't feel anything towards Stolas, he would not have gotten this emotional.

Yes, they are both lonely...but I really don't think that's all there is between them.

So..........we know WHEN they started falling...now the question is why;

I think the answer's quite simple; single-target affection.

It was mentioned in S2 that Stolas and Stella did sleep together ONE TIME...but Stolas didn't enjoy it at all. He is stuck with a wife who hates him so much that she put a HIT on him...and a daughter who thinks he's a loser. Blitzo is pretty much the one person in his life who is able to make him happy. That one small, bright spot. He enjoys the sex with him but he also simply enjoys his company, as shown in Ozzie's episode. He is thrilled to simply talk to him about his day...and do anything else that couples do. They're complete opposites. Stolas is an intellectual but naive and sheltered. Blitzo is poorly educated but cynical and street-smart. Opposites attract...though this is likely more from Stolas's POV than Blitzo's.

In other words, Stolas is into bad boys xD lmao

In Blitzo's case, Stolas is the only character who shows him physical affection which he desperately craves. He's pretty tsundere about it most of the time...but I think he actually does enjoy that attention...especially when he's always getting disrespected by Moxxie and Loona..and quite a lot of people around him. BUT he's too scared to get serious with anyone because of past trauma and he also believes that no one could possibly love him as a person. :(

Reasons I Think This Love is Real

Aside from what I pointed out in the Ozzie's episode...there's quite a lot of evidence, esp from Stolas's POV.

After he realizes he's in love, he goes to Asomodeous for an ALTERNATIVE method for Blitzo to use so they will no longer sleep together. He wants to set Blitzo free. Which means he DOES truly love him because love is about being generous to the other person. He COULD be totally selfish about it but he isn't.

Asomodeous mentions how against love potions he is and Stolas agrees. He thinks that's out of the question.

'Look My Way' music video. Lol I don't have to say anything more.

In S2 E6 OOPS

This exchange at 16:57

Fizz: Seems your taste has gotten more 'regal', lately?

Blitz: Yeah, well unlike you, I fuck who I want WHEN I want. I'm not gonna be tied down to some big blue-blood asshole.

Fizz: You coulda fooled me the way Prince was cozying up to you at Ozzie's.

Blitz (gets very defensive) HEY! Stolas only cares about have a rugged peasant raw-dog him into his mattress, okay!

It's nothing...(gets hesistant and looks away)...you know...

(Fizz gives him a 'bitch please' look xD)

"it's nothing else."

Fizz: Then why were you even there?

Blitz: OTHER very important reasons of course.

Fizz: Whatever. I don't actually care.

Blitz: Stolas is just a loud, thirsty BITCH!

(Fizz is rolling his eyes again)

Blitz: He loves feeling the thrill of getting dicked by the lower class.

It's a novelty to him.

Fizz: LITERALLY just said I don't care!

Blitz: And then he'll call me and try to see how my day was!

And he'll pretend to care about me and comment on my photos laugh at my jokes...

Fizz: (Smirking) OH! That's definitely your clue right there that it's all bullshit!

Blitz: I KNOW, RIGHT??

Fizz: (Making a 'What in idiot' expression, shaking his head)

Blitz: HE'S JUST A FAKE, PRIVELEDGED ASSHOLE...

Fizz: Sounds like you just hate him for being a prince!

No one (laughs) and I mean NO ONE pretends to care that much just for a cheap lay.

All right. IF ANYONE knows what real love is like, it's Fizzaroli...who is in a very HEALTHY relationship with Asomodeous. He recognizes the signs because he's IN that place. He sees it...and he's annoyed that Blitzo keeps denying it and brushing it off...yet clearly can NOT stop talking about Stolas (amusing irony)

To sum up (this freaking essay lol) 'Stolitz' ABSOLUTELY has the potential to be pure and true...these two just need to communicate...or Stolas has to PROVE to Blitzo that he's serious about his feelings in another way.

There is no doubt that this ship is 100% endgame and is a case of the 'Earn Your Happy Ending' Trope. I look forward to the rest of the journey. Ron is putting my feelings about Stolitz in a perfect phrase:

[theophiivs]

topaz day bc i love her sm dont u dare say a word about her shes my sister, girl, bestfriend, etc… aventurine likers who doesn’t appreciate her isnt a real aventurine liker bc if u truly liked him YOU SHOULD KNOW THAT SHE’S HIS FOIL. SHE FOILS HIS CHARACTER. AND SHE HERSELF IS ALSO A GOOD REP OF GROOMING VICTIM.

shes the best friend, shes the gal who supports i love her so much and yet she’s seen as nothing within the fandom… its either “omg i hate avenpaz” or talking down on her bc she devotes herself to the IPC like damn ofc she would SHES BEING MANIPULATED TO SHUT YO BUMASS UP. if youre gonna be a gooner or a hater at least hate critically. understand before you hate. hate with knowledge.

SHE’S THE FOIL TO AVENTURINE. JUST LIKE HOW RUAN MEI IS THE FOIL TO DR RATIO.

I feel like she and aventurine being the younger people + under jade’s care is intentional for them to highlight each other’s characters. (even their primary colors are reversed broo… cuz like, aventurine is green and inverted color of green is red and that’s topaz).

im going to go on an analysis ramble here, im not rereading anything ok PUTTING MY LIT STUDENT BRAIN TO WORK HERE

Topaz in a gem itself symbolizes strength, wisdom and calming influence and throughout the story we can see her as a character who was reliable and calculated considering her conservative approaches to the challenges she faced in the quest.

This is a juxtaposition well played by hoyoverse to highlight their decision-making processes - which is a foundation for their character. Aventurine is a gambler. His life philosophy is well known with his iconic quote of “high-stakes, high-rewards”. In contrast, Topaz represents a more calculated approach, even voice line during combat was “low-risk, high reward”.

Aventurine’s appearance and demeanor are misleading. Even his smiles serves as nothing more than a mask to fool others. And his Avgin eyes contributes more to this enigmatic nature - such colorful eyes, yet so dull and devoid of life. Much like hiding a complex hidden world under his “brazen bravado” attitude and flashy outfits. This creates an ironic contrast between how he appears and the “extraordinarily faint self beneath.”

Conversely, Topaz is straightforward and transparent. As seen with her attitude in her quest in Jarilo-IV. She wasn’t afraid to tell her tale of her planet, she was willing to talk it out and came to a calculated conclusion. Topaz’s character is also seen as affectionate and caring, as she was willing to take such a huge price for the people of Jarilo IV - of being demoted even and her care for her little pets in her splash art (+numby). Her strength lies in her compassion and clarity, providing a stark contrast to Aventurine’s deceptive nature - making her a trustworthy figure that emphasizes the irony of Aventurine’s masked intentions.

NOW ONTO THE PART I WANT TO TALK ABOUT

THEIR REACTION TO THEIR PAST.

Aventurine’s past as a slave and his resulting inferiority complex drove him to prove his worth through constant risk-taking. To be fate’s test dummy. To be thrown and tested around. To seek validation from risks. His need to control his fate, yet at the same time threaten it and challenge the blessing reveals a deep-seated desire to overcome his history - to let go yet he’s still stuck because his life is bound to his curse. Although one could argue that the IPC “saved his life”, he would still bite. His life is of no value anyways - he was just a pawn. Such as how Jade would still refer to him as “Aventurine” and not Kakavasha, even though knowing that it was his real name. He was nothing but a coin to the slots. A chance to see if they can reap the rewards.

Topaz, however, focused on building strength and validation from the efforts she puts out as seen with her and the IPC. Her project with Jarilo IV has caused her some distress, even during the Penacony quest as she was still bothered about it. But the moment Jade affirmed her, it soothed her almost immediately. She needed to prove herself to the people who “saved her planet”, to thank them as they gave her her life value. Jade, however, referred to Topaz with her real name, Jelena. Seemingly almost as if she valued her as Jelena, a person, and not a pawn on a board.

Topaz serves as a foil to Aventurine by embodying traits that contrast sharply with Aventurine’s risk-taking and enigmatic nature.

IF YOURE GONNA HATE, UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU HATE FIRST.

Fenrir and Topaz would get along. I wrote him to be Aventurine’s foil after all, they have a lot in common. Even their designs are similar with the color red and bows and the waist belt lol. They’re so best friend coded.

Fenrir would hang around for Numby and Numby is awfully fond of the man. Sometimes Topaz would think that Fenrir is a secret warp trotter because how tf did you write a whole study on language of warp trotter. And also, they both like shiny things. So hell yeah.

I have nothing to say they’re just so best friends.

[tra-archive]

One of my hottest takes (and one that’s gotten me insulted many times) is that this whole “PaReNt ShAmiNg” nonsense has to stop. You are not immune to criticism just because you’re a parent, especially if you post about the following situations publicly on the internet.

Are there situations in which people should mind their business when it comes to how a parent is raising their kids? Absolutely. But in my opinion as a new teacher who works with children ages 3 months to 12 years, a lot of times parents use the “stop parent shaming” argument to shield themselves from very valid criticism. There are some things that need to be called out and shamed.

Yes I’m going to call you out if you beat your young child for breaking a house rule or getting a bad grade. The purpose of discipline is to teach a lesson, not to instill fear. Yes, children need to have consequences (trust me I’m no fan of gentle parenting), but what does physically harming them accomplish besides you having a target for your own anger and frustration?

Yes I’m going to call you a sexist asshole if you lash out at your daughters for simple mistakes while at the same time making every excuse in the world for your sons. This is way, way too common and my situation growing up.

Yes I’m going to shame you if you admit that you won’t allow your son to play with dolls or play dress up, or if you won’t allow your daughter to play with trucks or wear a suit instead of a dress to an event. Again, still far too common. I have no problem telling anyone to take their gender roles and shove them up there.

Yes I’m going to make fun of you if you’re a father and won’t buy your daughter period products at the store or if you won’t talk about periods with her if she asks. You’re a grown ass man. Periods aren’t scary. My dad would’ve told you to grow the fuck up.

Yes I’m going to tell you you’re the scum of the earth if you kick your child out of the house or disown them for being LGBT. The audacity of you to bring a child into this world claiming to love them, and then throwing them away for something they have no control over.

Yes I’m going to make fun of you if you have a gender reveal party and you or your fuckass husband get all upset when you find out it’s a girl. Look up videos, it happens all the damn time. I did an experiment once and out of 100 reveal videos, around 25 fathers got excited when it was a girl (as opposed to around 80 when it was a boy). Sad af. And if you only want a child of the same sex so you can have a mini-me, I’m shaming you for that too. Your child is their own person, not a small copy of you. That’s setting them up for identity issues and feeling like they’ll never be good enough to compare to you.

Yes I’m going to tell you to shut up if you make fun of your child’s eating habits, shame them for being a picky eater, make rude comments about their weight, etc. There are ways to address eating concerns without the body shaming and negative language. I’ve been through this myself as have many of my older students (9-12 years), and it’s overwhelmingly resulted in body dysmorphia and eating disorders, especially in girls.

I think you get the idea by now, but the TL:DR is that parents don’t get a special exemption from criticism just because they’re parents. “Parent shaming” is often used as an excuse to not listen to the valid comments people have to say. Some things really shouldn’t fly in 2024 and need to be called out.

[hyenafu]

I know this might seem like a bit of a random question, but what are some criticisms of Slightly Damned you can't stand, and what are some you think are at least somewhat valid? I only ask because I do have a few problems with the comic (not really gonna go into here because I don't want to come off as too critical obviously) but I feel like some of the more noteworthy ones have been too long established to just change it altogether, and the best one can do is make something better from its foundation (which I must say, you've done a really good job at ^^)

The complaints that I think are the most unfair are by bigots who think my comic is only getting more inclusive because I'm pandering to wokeness or whatever. These people are also the most likely to misgender me and have no idea what they're talking about. They just can't stand the bare minimum of gay and are often hypocritical, using fallacies as the basis of their arguments. It's tempting to want to argue back, but when has that ever worked on the internet? I think the most valid complaint is that the pacing of the comic is too slow. Sure. Not much I can do about that one. My comic alone doesn't pay all my bills. If I focus exclusively on work, I get depressed, so I have to goof off sometimes. I'm just one person. I don't have a team. I'm doing the best I can already. Another valid complaint is that people don't like my blend of humor and drama. Sometimes readers find it inappropriate or jarring. It's valid because I recognize it as a difference of opinion and understand why they feel that way. But I don't care. I like my weird mix of goofy faces and drama. I sometimes make jokes during periods of great stress in real life. I love all the wacky faces and over-the-top cartoon action among dire circumstances in comics like One Piece and Usagi Yojimbo. Like, it's just my style, man I don't seek out unsolicited advice about my comic. Some people may think that's snobbish of me, but the truth is, very little of what you find that way is actually valuable.

"And as to those critics, she said that she’s managed to do something that might make us all better off- she doesn’t read the comment sections. In perhaps the most roundabout poignant part of the talk, she likened receiving feedback about her work as being like consuming food. She would take a pie from someone she knew and trusted but compared taking unsolicited barbs from strangers as “licking a handle on the subway.” She used to pay very close attention to that kind of critique because she felt that it somehow would make her a better creator but ultimately decided that it was only toxic." - I HAVE SEEN OLIVIA JAIMES, THE CARTOONIST BEHIND THE NEW NANCY, by Rocko Jerome (2018)

Besides the outright hateful sentiments, a lot of unsolicited criticism can be categorized as "I don't like this story because it didn't do what I wanted it to do." Which is fine. I do the same thing when I try to process stories and talk to my friends about them.

But I don't get in the author's face to tell them I think they did a bad job. At the end of the day, no matter how crap I think someone's story might be, I'm not psychic. I don't really know if they did exactly what they set out to do. For example, people have never stopped giving me crap about the death of certain characters. But their whining has only made my convictions stronger. I don't like when other stories don't take deaths seriously, with a real sense of permanence and grief that is not easily solved. To someone else, seeing that character be alive might have solved all sorts of problems they had-- but that's not my story. I've had someone tell me that the focus on Buwaro and Kieri's mushy romance is too distracting to the main story. I don't think that person knew that a large part of why I started making this comic in the first place was as a vehicle for my OTP. I also want to make said vehicle entertaining and worthwhile. If I didn't succeed for that person, that's fine. But don't tell me that half the reason I made the comic is distracting from it. What do they know about what I want? What do you really know about what the author wanted to achieve? That isn't to say that my comic is immune to scrutiny. Of course it has problems; every story has problems, depending on your perspective and the basis by which it's getting judged. I've solicited and received thoughtful criticism and helpful advice from teachers, my advisor, my friends, and from reading/watching tutorials. Some I agreed with, others I chose to ignore. Sometimes it just took a while for me to come around. I hope I never stop learning and improving. Like you said, I have to keep working with the foundation I already set. But I don't feel trapped by it; my creativity is being challenged in new ways. I have a lot of playing pieces and now I get to see what kinds of connections I can make between them with my older, more experienced (both good and bad) mind. Since Slightly Damned is a story serialized over a long period of time, a certain amount of it is made up as I go along. I do have plans and goals, of course, but I'm also discovering this world alongside my readers.

[dearweirdme]

https://www.tumblr.com/dearweirdme/764510712239407104/httpswwwtumblrcomdearweirdme7644300029095772?source=share

Okay, this is gonna be a long one because I got a HELL of a lot to say on this matter;

It's a shame because nobody who has actually interacted with him has a bad word to say about him. The negative portrayal of him being peddled by 'notajikookers' here is a shipper/anti invention and doesn't line up with what people who actually know him or have met him say.

I know he's not flawless and people close to him will see him at his worst because none of us are perfect but everyone from his close social circle to his peers to random fan reports and encounters not only speak well of him but are VISIBLY and obviously fond of him, proud of him and endeared by him. (The proof is in the pudding even in official content but I guess we're supposed to believe that every single person he surrounds himself with is an Oscar worthy actor giving Oscar worthy performance 24/7 🙄)

And this has been the takeaway from people who met the group before they were even famous. One notorious story is of him meeting a granny before BTS even released their first song and she found him so polite and endearing that she supported the group long afterwards and even tried to get her grandsons into their music.

And those who have met him talk about him the same way she did. The takeaway from most people is that Taehyung is polite, funny and charming but we're supposed to entertain the opinions of people with UNs like jic_oo_k666 because they conveniently have a bad feeling about him while watching a BTS Run episode and these morons expect us to ignore the fact that this also conveniently validates and soothes their own ship insecurity and anxiety? 🙄

This is a guy who, as a kid and while experiencing the overwhelming pressure of global fame, praise, criticism and the stresses of overworking---suffered through a rally of traumatic losses, grief and experiences and the resulting impact on his mental health and STILL turned into a man that is perceived so positively and warmly by those who know him. That speaks volumes about his character.

Because at one point, it felt like every time we clicked a button we were hearing about another loss in Tae's life. Like he was going THROUGH it and still getting up and doing his job only to have certain 'fans' reward him with death threats, insults and taunts about his departed grandmother

Between shitty life circumstances, a shitty company and shitty 'fans'---there's enough there that could have broke him and turned him bitter but it speaks volumes about his personality that when the shit hit the fan, the people closest to him WANTED to gather around him, wanted to support him, wanted to comfort him, wanted to put a smile on his face, wanted to reinforce how much he was loved and how proud of him they were, they wanted to see him come out the other side. Why would they be so damn concerned and so clearly invested in him feeling better and trying to lift him up and build up his confidence if he was such a negative presence in their lives? Answer is; they wouldn't, dumbasses. Like the group litter the ground with context clues and these fools are too dumb, lazy or envious to bend to pick ONE up.

There was one episode (I think it was a Run episode but I might be wrong) where Taehyung really enjoys a rich, flavored meal so much he cant stop eating it and Hobi is inexplicably happy about it and excitedly lets the others know how much Tae likes it and Jin jumps on a promise to recreate it for him whenever he wants and this is just a throwaway part of the episode but it's significant because it was coming off the end of Tae's period of depression (that he has revealed himself so that's the only reason Im talking about it) and if you've ever had or known someone going through that shit, you know that physical and sensory numbness is a symptom of depression that can fuck with your appetite and enjoyment of things and it's usually a good sign of healing when you start enjoying simple stuff like flavors, scents etc again.

(Looking back at that moment after Tae had spoken openly about depression, it made a lot more sense why Hobi and Jin would react that way over something so simple as Taehyung enjoying a meal)

Like I just have no patience with people who question the bond between any of the guys because you can find so many of these 'side' moments, where it's clearly not scripted or intended to be part of the content, that show that these 7 men genuinely care about each other. They were so damn happy and excited to see him enjoying the taste of his meal and people STILL want to question whether the group relationship dynamic is real or not.

Another example is when they're rating themselves and their achievements for the year and Tae rates himself super low and Namjoon makes a point of boosting his confidence and cuddling him (for all you morons who want to talk shit about Joon disliking Tae like Joon hasn't done more than enough over the years to preemptively shut your asses up on that point)

Like you insecure ship heads really think it's cameramen giving Joon a countdown to fucking cuddle in that moment? 🤡 And that he's not just doing it because Tae is someone that he loves and doesn't want to see beating up on himself and thinks he's worthy of feeling better about himself?

People don't respond like that if the person in question is all of the negative things 'fans' accuse Tae of being---or any other member of being.

These haters and antis need to use their damn brain matter for once in a while.

The people who meet Taehyung like him and love him for a reason. The people on the damn street who meet him root for him for a reason. People who are at the top of their own professions and have their own stardom like him and love him for a reason. His group members want to protect him, defend him, care for him, comfort him, heal him etc for a reason and it's not because he's the horrible person that shippers and antis make him out to be.

Taehyung isn't your problem. The fact that you're parasocially invested in a ship that you don't genuinely feel is validated enough for you to believe in wholeheartedly is why you haters need to create a false personality for Taehyung to excuse all the things in your ship that YOU can't make sense of. You need someone to blame because your asses can't ship right ---because if you really believed in your ship you wouldn't have a problem with any of the other members 'getting in the way' by just being there and doing shit the group has done since day one

Learn to ship correctly and leave Taehyung TF alone, losers.

Hi anon!

Now this is the kind of essay I love to find in my asks!

[weaselbeaselpants]

Hold it, hold it- HOLD ON.

So SaiScribbles is bringing to light the fact that, on top of everything else alleged about her, Lily's most popular video has a lot of pieces ripped from two articles written by Jaimie Kingston (WuhWack, need link) and Riley H (Medium) complaining about SU's racial problems.

Other than being a bit on that 2016-2019"your fav thing is bad and you should feel bad"-spectrum of criticism that would later fuel our dumb anti v proship discourse we have today, I think the arguments made by Jaimie and Riley against SU are solid. Sai and her commenters are kind of otherwise treating the criticisms themselves like they're the problem and that they ought to be 'debunked'.

As I've stated a few times now, I'm a fan of Steven Universe and even I don't think they handled all the discussions of race and conflicts well. I like the Diamonds as villains and liked them being 'redeemed' -yes, SU truthers, I too have read Rebecca's explanation and how Steven doesn't really forgive the Diamonds. I know that's the intent, mine and other people's counter is that wasn't very well communicated or done particularly well, and yeah no matter how you spin it or put it in the context of fiction; the Diamonds were interspace war and overlords and the series and Steven himself made peace with them- Also, I thought the Garnet anti-racism psa was kind of in bad taste and talking-down to it's audience.

As far as complaints I'm not able to speak for because I'm white as fucc: if Sugalite's design, the human zoo plot, the way the crewniverse drew lips and people of color (AS people of color themselves) is uncomfortable or offensive to you- you're within your right to be offended about it and dislike Steven Universe on that basis. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Just because an LGBTQ or BIPOC person had a hand in making something does not mean it can't still be offensive: Velma, The Nutshack, Hazbin Hotel and Netflix's Good Times, though shows for adults, were written with/by/for bipoc folks-- that DOES NOT mean there aren't any problems with those series. I can personally think SU beats all those shows into the ground but that doesn't mean it can't be racist just cuz I don't want it to be.

I kinda feel like Sai is missing some of the point of the og articles, dunking on them for ever making these complaints and being upset, when the real focus should be on how Lily pulled an honest to god James Somerton.

What Lily did with Jaimie Kingston and Riley's is proof of her greatest flaw as a critic and activist: she uses (or 'steals') other people's criticisms to fuel her own hatred of something. Moreover, she phrases these criticisms made about the thing she hates as being an inherent moral failing on people who defend it and so her takes are the correct way to feel and think. That was not the point of either article, regardless of how I think they were written. These articles were written as a potential call-out at worst*, Lily's vid was a straight up attack on the Steven Universe fanbase as a whole.

Lily can try to say otherwise, but what she's really angry about is that Steven Universe wasn't written exactly like how she wanted and she's pissy because the fanbase was and is still really toxic. Both these reasons are valid enough to be all 'ick, I hate SU and I hate how god damn in love the fans are with every aspect of it'. You can fill up an entire video with just rants about the fanbase and the writing quality. If you don't know how/don't CARE TO articulate, add upon, link, or source another perspective that's not your own, DON'T TOUCH UPON THOSE TOPICS.

This is why I otherwise leave out the criticisms to be had against Star vs the Forces of Evil's diversity activism fails. I have 'thoughts' on it, as a white fan watching a show by a white creator about a white girl trying to be an ally, but my point in omitting them from this discussion is not to say these problems aren't there and worth talking about. I don't have faith in my own social awareness to talk about these issues I don't have a perspective on. I can talk of them, but not about them.

Even if Lily is native, which she could be (not what this post is about), she is not black. She sat here talking for black people using black people's words as if they were her own -> blocked these writers for stealing from her. And then she[Lily] went and made a couple dozen Nazi-references to the whole issue of genocide in the show -> when Jewish fans and listeners told Lily to maybe not do that (especially cuz Rebecca Sugar is Jewish), Lily dismissed, blasted or blocked them outright.

Lily only cares about social justice when she can use it to benefit herself and her own selfish ideas, feelings and wants.

Allies (of any kind, speaking for a group they aren't a part of) may be misinformed, apologetic, ignorant, rude or abrasive in how they go about their activism. There's no exact right way to do any of this. But, there is always a wrong way.

[joys-of-everyday]

The more I think about it, the cultivation world and academia are similar. High drop out rates? Reverence towards the people who 'make it to the end'? Meritocracy but not really? Age old 'talent' vs 'hard work' vs 'privilege'? Possibly just side effects of being learning institutions but yeah. Anyway, headcanons for peak lords as professors.

SQQ (SY) The chill professor everyone loves. Is often absent for months at a time doing field studies but comes back with loads of cool stories. Has a tendency to veer off course and everyone's grades may suffer because of how little time is actually spent on examinable material, but at least you'll enjoy yourself. He says he's only there for the fun and doesn't do much research, but you've spied a number of very big names going to him for advice. If you manage to make him drunk, his personality does a 180 and he complains extensively about everything, including his latest webnovel obsession.

og!SQQ (SJ) The salty professor everyone hates. Obsessed with rankings and citation counts, has a constant rivalry with LQG, and does the absolute minimum when it comes to undergrad teaching because he thinks it's a waste of time. He's convinced there's an agenda against him because he didn't get funding for the third time in a row and takes it out on the students. But damn does he know what he's talking about, and you've heard he's actually a genius, albeit one with complicated background. The few phd students he has are utterly enamored with him.

SQH Everyone forgets that he's not a student, including himself. When he teaches, it feels like he's giving a presentation and waiting for feedback. He answers questions with questions. Nobody knows what research he's doing, including the other members of department. Both Shens and LQG alike think he's a waste of space. But he seems to have some mysterious connections to a very fancy research facility up north.

LQG Absent professor. Literally cannot teach. Reads off last year's notes (written by other people) and calls it a lecture. But he's got many fancy awards under his belt for his research and the rest of the department talk about him with awe in their voice. If you take work to him, he will undoubtedly rip it to shreds, but not in a mean way. Half the students hate him. Half the students make him a meme. A few of them worship him like a god.

YQY The nice one. He teaches amazingly, heads a healthy research team, and has some banging papers under his name. The students know him as the best teacher, but behind the scenes he is literally keeping the department together. Wrangles with management and does a lot of outreach stuff on top of all of this. The students are convinced he literally lives on site because they keep seeing him at weird hours of the day. This is half true.

MQF The Professor. When you say 'professor', MQF is the person who comes to mind. The students think he is actually a robot, because they've never seen him do anything other than his job. His teaching is adequate but without personality, and he is extremely mild mannered. Unbeknownst to them, he is known as the 'mad scientist' of the department - he has a bizarre attitude to safety and often goes utterly crazy with experiments which are only just toeing regulations. A pioneer of his (somewhat niche) field.

QQQ Social justice warrior. The one who actually strikes when there's a strike on, and organises all of the diversity events. The student have mixed views on her. She struggled against a very sexist department back in her day and still gets a lot of hateful feedback, so she's learnt to take zero fucks. Which is cool but also means a lot of valid criticism gets taken as personal attacks. With all the drama, everyone seems to forget that she's actually a really big name in the field, receiving some fancy awards around the same time as LQG. Her phd group is surprisingly chill.

[call-me-liquid]

Could we maybe get an analysis on her “stop making villains like Magneto, they suck” video?

Also, I for one am sat patiently for that Flowers In The Attic analysis.

FItA Lorch Analysis coming next.

For right now: Part 3, Final round. FIGHT!

[Part 1] [Part 2]

Lily Commits Elder Gay Mutant Abuse, feat. "Eldritch Lily" (Part 3)

8:30: "And making these characters hop in the giant death robot so they can randomly do some heinous act of evil so you feel less guilty for wanting to bring them down is very telling about your priorities as a writer." [We're still talking about Korra, for context.]

I'm highlighting this quote more than anything as a means to really dig into the big stink with Lily's media analysis here. I've said something along the lines of, "I kind of agree with her, but not actually," several times while writing this, and this is exactly why.

I think a lot of people come at media criticism from a very flawed position because of the way the grading works in our school systems, of all things. They judge it like there is the possibility of getting an A+ on your show, movie, novel, video game, etc. For the purpose of reviews, as a quick way to indicate quality/how much you recommend a piece of media, I understand why critics would use scoring systems like that-- but when it comes to analysis, that's not really a useful approach. There are technical skills and proficiencies in execution that you can grade media on like that, but even they have their nuances. Conceptual ideas presented in media, however? No dice.

There are certain filmmakers in particular who I fully acknowledged are very skilled at their craft-- I still strongly dislike their films. I don't agree with the conceptual ideas they have to present, and I don't think they convincingly rationalize their position textually, subtextually, or otherwise. With that said: I think most media produced, regardless of quality, is a net positive for the intellectual landscape of humanity as a whole. With the exception of media that is actively harmful in a very direct way, disingenuous propaganda, or particularly egregious cases of cooperate slop, I support any creative's ability to add to the long-form conversation art and creation offers. Those highly proficient filmmakers I ideologically disagree with, their ability to articulate their worldview so genuinely, and clearly helped me as a creative articulate why I disagree.

With all that said, it's clear Lily doesn't think in that regard. Lily has taken media crit she has heard from other sources. She has just retrofitted it to whichever property she wants to rip into. If it superficially applies enough that she can misrepresent a piece of fiction with an argument, she will apply it across the broad. Approaching media crit like there is a definitive way to "score" fiction on its conceptual value, like it's a high schooler's end of term essay. Context be damned.

What she is articulating here is a valid criticism of certain fictions that try to present morally complex villains. This is a complaint I've made myself over properties like the first Black Panther film (which, thankfully, they at least did their best to rectify in the second). But not Kuvira. Not Magneto as a whole.

9:07: "Which would have been interesting, and led to some criticism of the main characters for trying to restore the same monarchy that has previously failed the people."

They weren't trying to restore the monarchy. They were protecting the prince from assassination. I feel like it'd be pretty tyrannical of the Avatar to say, "fuck you Earth Kingdom, you don't get your royal family anymore," without their say, Lily . . .

9:18: "Maybe talk about the United Republic being a literal concurred settler state."

YET AGAIN LILY'S CRITICISM BOILS DOWN TO, "I HAVE NEVER READ A COMIC."

9:30: [Lily takes like, the 12th bullshit pot shot at the creators of Avatar.]

I've ignored it up until this point. There's been too much else to talk about. But Lily has assumed an absurd amount about the authorial intent of everyone she's discussed in this video-- including Jack Kurby's intent when creating Magneto.

9:40: Lily fumbles through some final point here with two sentences that make no sense when put together about how this is all people doing tropes badly, but if you did it well then the trope wouldn't exist and aaaaaaaaaaaaa.

God please strike me down.

10:10: Lily calls this all propaganda.

Again. She's sort of right in the abstract, divorced from the content of her video. Wrong when taken in context of what she's talking about. SOMETIMES "sympathetic villains" are used as political propaganda. Sometimes, they're a legitimate expression of a creator's misunderstanding or mischaracterization of an ideology. Sometimes, they're an earnest dissection of the ideological concept.

Good argument of specific pieces of media, retrofitted, flattened of any nuance, used to discredit a thing Lily doesn't like across the board.

We're in a timeloop.

10:25:

God is dead and we have killed him.

11:01: "The problem is that this idea of all villainy being nuanced and complicated has just never really been true. Evil people in real life will often just invent justification for evil things they already want to do. And there's a point where someone crosses the line of evil so much that nothing they say earns them sympathy."

Lily thinks people commit acts of extreme violence and atrocity for . . . Fun, I guess. Disturbingly enough, this tracks real well with how she's justified her own abhorrent actions in the past. When other people do bad things, it's because they like it and are bad. When she does a bad thing, she has a reason, and therefore, it's justified. Another self-tell Lillian.

11:42: "The problem with my idea for these kinds of villains is that they inherently make white people of any gender uncomfortable."

GOD FINALLY FUCKING DONE THIS GOD FORSAKEN VIDEO AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.

Pray for me, the fucking psychic damage I just fucking took for you guys.

I suppose the only take away here is this:

The thing that's so exhausting about Lily's videos is the complexity of the degrees in which she is wrong. She's developed, for lack of a better word, a talent for laundering good arguments in a very disingenuous fashion. I wouldn't go so far as to call what she does plagiarism. Her work is more than just stealing other people's arguments and regurgitating them back-- but what she does is a spiritual cousin of sorts.

She bootlegs intellectualism to sharpen it into a shiv she can use to stab at anything that displeases her. The same way she weaponizes her marginalized identity, she weaponizes honest and thoughtful media analysis aswell.

This video was, frankly, barely even about Magneto. Barely even about sympathetic villains. She has no interest in the material that was the topic of this video-- not even enough to do a bare-bones Google search beyond looking up vague facts she could massage into supporting her claims.

A lot of those very early X-Men comics are fucking rough. They include shit like Charles expressing some very creepy thoughts about a (I believe then) teenage Gene Grey. Some very yikes dynamics with the then mostly/arguably entirely white mutants acting out very on-the-nose imagery associated at the time with the black liberation movement. And some very questionable framing and dynamics due to the fact that, real life marginalized groups typically don't have dangerous superpowers.

However, you can almost sense the moment when Kurby started to take the reigns and make the X-Men into something really special. Not to imply that Stan Lee is a bigot or a bad writer, he had very good intentions. By his own admission, he did his best work as a collaboration with his artists guiding the story along with him (sometimes, well, functionally being the actual writer, no offense, Lee left a bit of a complicated legacy, we can't get into it right now.) Anyone familiar with Kurby's work as a whole will know just how profoundly humanist he was with the stories he told.

Despite what Lily arrogantly implied here, he always intended Erik to be a very sympathetic character. Even as a "villain," a sympathetic character vaguely coded as an "extremist" black activist was kind of bold for the 1960s. I can't tell you for certain what ol' Jack's authorial intent was, the man very rudely died 3 years before I was born so I never really got the chance to ask him-- but dare I say this was his best attempt at laundering the idea that maybe "radical" activists actually maybe had a point? To an audience who would have been VERY against that idea if presented to them outright at the time? Even now?

Media does have the power to shift cultural perception-- even if that takes time. In the early 2000s, when I was taught about Malcome X for the first time as a child, even then, 40-some-odd-years later he was presented to me in a negative light. It was in the context of him being the inspiration for Magneto, however. The emotional connection I had to that character made me question whether that characterization of Malcome was entirely fair-- even though I was too young and didn't have the full context to grasp what I was being told at the time. I do believe to some extent that Magneto's popculture relevance has helped preserve the legacy of some of the more controversial activists in history. By being a figure people can personally connect with. Of course, it's all more complicated and messy than I'm making it sound, however. It's unfortunately very easy to flanderize figures of history, boil down their motives, and flatten their narratives. A character in a story, detached from any direct sociopolitical baggage, is something you can form a bond with. Something that can (if handled properly) promote empathy for their real-life equivalents.

There absolutely is a conversation to be had about certain ideologies or positions being more often than not, for practical or political purposes, cast in the antagonistic role in fiction. However, Lily's thesis here, boiled down to the bones, has been disproven ten times over by the abject failure of shit like The Comic's Code Authority and The Hays Code. People don't emotionally connect with squeaky clean moral paragons as much as they do messy, complicated, emotionally challenging complex characters-- even when you paint them as the abject villain of the story.

People fucking adore Magneto. He's a cultural icon. Even before the FoX-Men movies came out, he was probably one of the few comicbook characters your mom could name. Vaguely recognize, at the least. And yes, that doesn't always translate into people being charitable to "radical" civil rights activists in real life-- but doesn't necessarily harm it either. Anecdotally, it helps, if but just a smidgen.

Anyway, get fucked Lily. Magnet Daddy FTW.

P.S. X-Men '97 is really good. Also, it's 100% alluding to these two having fucked. Maybe outright confirmed it by now, I'm not totally caught up.

I mean, we all already knew they totally were lovers, but.

Come on Disney, give the people what they want. Make 'em kiss. These poor old men have been having sexual tension for like, 60 years.

[atopvisenyashill]

It is me your dear jonsa neutral acquaintance to say that I do not think it is damning that Jon doesn’t react to the marriage. I understand why so many people see jonsa in the stories and why they find it compelling. I think the ultimate rebuttal to that is just to be like. So what? They weren’t close as kids. Jon doesn’t have feelings for her at the time but that doesn’t mean they can not or will not develop feelings for each other. It just seems like such a nothing criticism unless it’s specifically meant to counter the idea of a pre canon crush but I don’t think that’s what you nor many other jonsas are suggesting. From what I’ve seen, book jonsa is based on potential, with the lack of a close and well-defined relationship creating an opening for an interesting romance dynamic, and on narrative parallels and hints, not on the way the two characters currently think about each other. Many in the anti camp cannot seem to grasp this even though they understand it as a basis for jxd

YES exactly that. There definitely are jonsas that believe in like ~the pre canon crush~ and I’ve definitely read fics for that, and I’m not here to yuck anyone’s yum but I would say when talking about Canon Jonsa there’s general consensus that the lack of familiarity as children is set up for a potential romantic plot - reuniting with the sibling you were least closest to, developing this bond based in shared trauma that deepens in a way neither of them are comfortable with, and the parentage reveal setting the stage for them to ~be allowed to be together. As you say it’s not dissimilar from jxd - again, a relative you were not close to being the one you wind up reconnecting with, developing a bone based in shared trauma that deepens, and the parentage reveal being some sort of ~romantic confirmation. It's always been so goofy to me that one of these ships is seen as not valid analysis of the themes and the other is when they are based on essentially the exact same thing which is really opaque hints and potential lol.

And you're definitely right that the rebuttal to his non reaction is essentially “who gives a shit” lmao. As I’ve said, we also don't see his reaction to Robb's murder (and like god would I have loved to see Jon's initial reaction to Robb and Catelyn dying together), and he's in the middle of a very tricky conversation with Stannis he's not about to start antagonizing him by snapping about how her name is Sansa Stark not Sansa Lannister. And also like, beyond that, again, as I've reread I've noticed a lot re: marriage and hostage-bride situations and one thing I find fascinating (and disturbing) is that these marriages are taken as valid - you can't get them annuled or anything like that, they're not considered less valid simply for being done at the sharp end of a sword. And while Jon is like, wildly progressive for a man in Terros, I do think it's very likely that his ~progressivism~ would manifest not as "Sansa is a child bride and that marriage isn't valid nor is her identity subsumed into a husband's" but more as "Whomever she is married to, Sansa comes before me in the line of succession and I will not usurp her simply for being married to someone who sucks - and if she decides to murder him for hostage-marrying her, well, he deserved it" because "it's fine for a wife to murder her hostage-husband" is something we see said multiple times and especially in the North and amongst the wildlings (but also - Robb says this! I believe Rodrik says this as well in a discussion of Donella Hornwood's marriage to Ramsay! the rule is that the forced marriage is fine but so is a wife murdering that man for forced marrying her! deranged!!). And also like, he's just got so many fucking things on his mind re: his own status as a bastard, the situation at he Wall, and the overreaching war, like, why are we hung up on this lmao, he's stressed and he's about to be murdered omg.

[raptorladylover6969]

VERY passionate rant under the cut

“The Handler has dino DNA‼️” “The Handler is a robot‼️” “The Handler is a Brooklynn clone‼️” GET OUTTTTTTT GET TF OUTTTTTT I AM SO SICK OF THE SAME. GOD DAMN. DOG SHIT THEORIES. IM TIREDDDD OF IT. ITS THE SAME THING EVERY TIMEEEEEEEE AND I HATEEEEE IT. I WANT NEW THEORIES. ONES THAT ACTUALLY MAKE SENSE. ONES THAT ARENT THE SAME FUCKING THEME ALL OVER AGAIN UGHHHHH.

One thing I hate about Jurassic World youtube channels is when it comes to theorizing abt characters, THEY DONT KNOW HOW TO ACTUALLY AND PROPERLY ANALYZE. It’s like they never payed attention in english class 😭 esp when it comes to The Handler, because yes offence, just saying, their “character analysis” videos are absolute shit. I was yapping abt this early with @koi-fish-boy

What I mean is, instead of coming up with new theories, these “theorists” just take already existing theories, slap it into a video, add some other info that is not even considered a character analysis but just info thats RIGHT IN FRONT OF OUR FACES. The other worst part is, they never show any evidence to support their theories, they don’t make connections. They just go like “Oh The Handler blah blah creepy lady blah blah whats her deal? Blah oh shes probably part raptor or a clone blah blah blah k like and subscribe” GET OUT- 🗣️🗣️💥💥‼️‼️

I could debunk some of these theories right now even I am feeling THAT petty. “Brooklynn clone?” They don’t have the same facial structure, The Handler is 10x more paler, Brooklynn has a button nose while The Handler’s is straight, and have you taken into consideration that other blue eyed white ppl with freckles exist????? Brooklynn isnt the only white chick that exists 💀 “Dino x human hybrid?” this idea for a plot has been scrapped long ago. And even if she was a dino hybrid, she HAS to retain dino like features, like scales, vertical pupils, dino vocals, sharp teeth. NO, her having big eyes and pale skin DOES NOT = DINOSAUR FEATURES. Theres millions of people with big eyes and who are also sickly pale. “But she doesnt blink!” Yes tf she does I have the timestamps to prove it, she actually blinks A LOT considering the little screentime she has. “Robot??” We see her display humane emotions such as empathy in the final episode (I mean this theory itself has already been scrapped by countless ppl so 😼)

The problem here is that ppl dont reeeeealllllyyyy ANALYZE a character, they just observe the surface, find a couple of things here and there, and call it a day. They don’t use all of their senses when looking into a character, they only document what the naked eye can see. That is NOT what analyzation is about. Character analyzation is about digging DEEPER into the character, putting yourself in their POV, in their shoes, reading their facial expressions, their body language, spending hours playing back the same clips over and over again just to find new info, taking note of the dramatic lighting changes, the ambience, making connections, USING CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS TO UNBOX THE MYSTERYS OF SAID CHARACTER. Cmon guys did we learn nothing from Brooklynn??🤨🤨 like no joke me and @koi-fish-boy spent hours rewatching scenes with The Handler and found a BUNCH OF COOL NEW SHIT THAT NO ONE HASNT EVEN TALKED ABT YET.

People dont also seem to have enough balls to connect neuroscience to their theories, which is strange because incorporating psychology and the human brain, or any kind of science to a character analysis can rlly help with coming up with new theories. Why do you think MatPat’s theories were so good and interesting? It’s because he makes CONNECTIONS. He incorporates math, history, folklore, religion, and science into ALL OF HIS THEORIES. HE PUTS WORK INTO THEM. HE THINKS CRITICALLY.

All theories are valid, even the far-fetched ones, thats the whole point of a theory, its supposed to be crazy, but actually putting in the work to find evidence to support your theory WILL STRENGTHEN IT, and make it 100x more interesting. You can’t just introduce a theory without evidence to back it up, there needs to be at least 1 reason to even consider your theory plausible. Like the clone theory, I’m not entirely against it cuz cloning IS a thing in the JW universe, like that theory makes the most sense cuz its happened before, so why not again? I still think its absolutely crap, but I’ll admit, it makes sense. Why? Cause theres evidence to back it up.

Thank you for coming to my ted talk 🤗

[royalskarsgard]

i think (and this is just personal opinion) a lot of the times wags are hated just because of who they're dating. most of the fans don't care about their problematic behaviour. they just use it to further their agenda. these fans are the same ones who make excuses for their favs (re: Lando fans defending his comments about Trump or max fans when it's brought up that max willingly supported Nelson Piquet and called lance stroll (or esteban) a mongol as an insult). but when it comes to these two driver's partners people will bend over backwards to drag them at any given point but don't reserve the same energy for the drivers (I'm not saying that the wags should not be criticised but a lot times the criticism is rooted in misogyny (like calling Kelly, "an old hag" or saying she looks ugly) there's so much they could've chosen from, but most of the time (from what I've seen; totally not saying that there is not valid criticism present about them not being a good person, supporting questionable leaders etc.)

also, this idolation of the exes. like that relationship is over, why are you still hung up on it? 😭 both the parties have moved on to different relationships, it's been a fucking year, give it up guys. especially with charles and charlotte and carlos and isa. the carlos fans (and a lot of gossip pages, other fans) call rebecca a prostitute or an escort and say how much better isa was to rebecca and how rebecca is not good for carlos yadda yadda as if sainz is not a 29 year old grown up who knows what's best for him. they behave as if rebecca has physically restrained him and is preventing him from doing whatever he wants. same with lando, as if he's not an adult who probably knows about his partner's actions and chooses to stay with them.

and don't get me started on the performative activism of F1. every breath that these people take is hypocritical. when will stans understand that they don't care about you or anyone other than themselves. most of them grew up rich and privileged, in a protected bubble. i don't expect them to have a good take on the world issues.

I'm sorry for this rant but I've been following this sport since last year and i have lurked on gossip pages because I just enjoy low stakes funny gossip or driver transfer gossip (which i do have thoughts about if you're interested in listening to them) but what I was bombarded with was a very misogynistic discourse and micro analysing of every move in a wife or girlfriend's life. like goddamnit just enjoy the damn sport and the silly little memes 😭 😭. i just want to be able to enjoy a healthy discourse on wags fashion, leo the cutie and drivers and low stakes, funny haha bullshit

I feel like a lot of the crazy stans use the wags as an outlet to take out the criticisms of the driver. Cuz if their fave does something fucking stupid they can’t look dumb by supporting it so they take it out on the girl. This is wrong!

And it’s all patterns with the guys, but they don’t admit that and will just use the girl as the excuse. Lando choosing magui depending on how you view her own choices, can be a pattern. But they’re never gonna admit he may be the actual problem they’re just gonna hate her. People have flaws but nobody in the spotlight can make a mistake and if they do, they can never change for the better they will always be defines by that one mistake!!

But yes you’re right like none of these people have ever had to worry what goes on outside their own bubbles why would they start now.

This driver drama is giving me anxiety I’ve always hated musical chairs and now add millions of dollars??? Pass the tums. Estie Bestie being out was on my bingo card but it still hurts???

[ultimatebottom69]

I've seen hsr fans defending sasha at the front line like sasha wouldn't know you, why would you shield her for valid criticism? They don't need to coddle her. She's old enough to defend herself. Sasha stans make jester and remy fans more sensible in comparison.

You see i approve your point. Until the Remy part. Like being fan of someone who fucking doxxed a random woman is one hell of a level up but yeah in terms of writers

Remy fans and Jester fans be fighting a losing war.

And you know, Sasha is somehow getting on the same level Remy was with KCD (because i was there when the story was not completed yet) like.

F/F who is sidelined ? Check. Casual Rascism ? Check. A route who will end up getting fucked up ? Check. Not being subtle at all ? Fucking check. Clearly having two fav li's ? Check. Oh and the MC has...Psychological issues ? Check with the blood over there. Only thing Lane doesn't scream. Big diff.

And I played KCD before the whole trash Remy did resurfaced. It was an ok story until season 2, episode 8 where i could tell the woman had no idea wtf she was doing. That and Lima's treatment. But at least with Lima we got kisses and a sex scene. Not lot of CG's if i remember we got like 3. I don't include the CG of the ending so 4.

I don't touch to Jester stories because the pacing is slow as fuck that's a me problem specifically. I am still episode 3 of The willow because it's so fucking slow. Oh and Moonborn it's on fucking season 4 i get my female LI ? Nah fuck you.

Now...Anna's route compared to lima....Do i even say it ? Do i even start ? Ok. She acts like a friend. Nice. But overall her whole personality is being the author's punching bag for the plot. Like there is no need to do all that jazz shit ? Plus we not even kissing *war flashbacks of the screenshots* we are not kissing the correct fucking way. You cannot build tension, active tension may i add and go "Ohohoh by the way she is homiphobic and find it disgusting lololol" like fuck off ? We at season 2 episode 7 bitch !

And don' pull the "she starts to accept your feelings~" Girl it's episode 9 ??? SEASON 2 ??? YOU GOT THREE SEASONS AND NOTHING MORE WHAT DO YOU MEAN WE HAVE ONLY ONE FUCKING KISS IN THE ROSTER ??? AND THE KISS IS HOMOPHOBIC ??

Like Absolutely go fuck yourself Sasha. And from what i am seeing from the fucking walkthrough because yes i opened it. Greg is battling too to get scenes ?? But i saw Boris and Yan pull up like 3 times in there.

Nah she not besting any allegations. I don't want to explain to people that just because you didn't say "Faggot" or "Negro" or any other slur, mean you did not insult me at all. She is a bad writer because why is there homophobia and rascism (against the only black guy present may i add) in my post apocalyptic rapture ass world ?? Like we going to ignore the Arab man side character who was part of the squad she fucking killed off too in season 1....Like...Sasha...I'm....Just wow.

I did not believe she could beat Remy in the homophobia department but god damn she is like Mohamed Ali (the boxer) when he started his career , we all were like "Naaaah" and then she went "Bet."

And frankly i could also lump her with Remy on one more point that one of the commenters in my HS requiem critic said "She is a girl hating girl" and frankly...with how the female characters are handled...Yeah. I mean just kira. Like i did not like her at all. But like her death was so ??? Like we got 4 women in total now. Donovan,Lane, Anhea and Anna. And we don't fucking see Donovan. And Anhea is like the breeze or John Cena, you can't see her.

Imma ponder hard on the critic i'll pull on DR cause. Ther eis a lot to unpack and i kinda just rambled at 1 am with no plans about the problems i saw so far.

[chaifootsteps]

As someone debating on getting Veilguard (never got into Dragon Age, so comparing it to those games won't do much for me personally), what are some valid criticisms you may have of the game, or what are some actual complaints you've seen/heard from others?

It's really damn difficult finding GENUINE criticism that isn't just "this is woke garbage" or whatever. I've seen some of the dialogue (and Taash), and I definitely cringed, but if there's other enjoyable moments, I'm intrigued.

I got the character creator since it's free (and not 100 GB worth of space like the main game lol), and honestly, the customization is pretty cool to me, even if the visuals aren't my favorite style.

Either way, I'll likely wait until it's on sale again before considering once more, but I'd love your thoughts on it!

If I had to boil down Veilguard's main weaknesses, I'd say the lack of input as the protagonist, a lack of respect for the lore (which is why the dialogue and Taash stuff is such a problem), and John Epler.

In every Dragon Age game until now, even one with a protag as predetermined as Hawke, you've been able to decide how you reacted to things, and your actions had consequences. You could get angry at your companions, argue with them, even drive them away forever. In Veilguard, everyone worships the ground you walk on and by and large, everything has the same result. You have exactly three dialogue options: nice, silly nice, and nice but firm. Once in a great while, you'll be allowed the luxury of raising your voice a little. Ultimately none of it matters, because no matter what you do, your companions will always love you and get along with each other. It's so sanitized and childish.

The Dragon Age Keep was also discarded for this game and it really shows. For example, Isabela's in this game, and if you romanced her, tough luck -- she implies she's had sex with other people. If you're with Morrigan and had a child with her, that also never comes up, tough luck. If you drank from the well in Inquisition or backed a divine who disbanded the Circles...you guessed it! Be prepared to apply duct tape headcanons like no tomorrow.

Romance is also a problem. Do you plan on romancing Emmrich? Hope so, because none of the others feel complete. My Rook romanced Davrin and it was barely even acknowledged outside of a few select moments. Also, unromanced companions will hook up whether you take them out together or not, and sometimes they'll flirt even if you're dating them.

Lastly, John Epler has a vicious hateboner for Solas that he doesn't even try to hide. From the sounds of it, he had to be reeled in because he didn't like that Solas made him feel stupid. It pissed a lot of people off, and rightly so.

There's a lot more I could go on about but jn short, I'd either bootleg it or wait until it's on sale. It has its moments, but for the most part Veilguard's been cut to ribbons by execs until it's barely recognizable as a Dragon Age game.

[xxxsharpcheddar]

Thank you for responding.

I normally wouldn’t say anything as to interject myself into other people’s lives, or do anonymous but I don’t want to potentially expose my husband to criticism for his past. He’s not on tumblr but that’s not the point. Like I said we are in the community. We aren’t the most well known anymore but we are known.

You have got to trust that he wants to be with you. That person that gave you love and affection and planned a future with you is who he is. That is the version of himself he wants to give to you. That’s who my husband was. He had a laundry list of terrible men to learn from. (I’m Not making excuses) abusive and toxic relationship molded him and it’s so hard to unlearn childhood traumas especially for men. If you want your partner to nurture your inner child then you need to nurture his too. The Little boys in them need just as much love as the little girls in us. Patriarchal power negatively affects men too. It was a source of relief for him to feed his childhood wounds. He felt isolated and alone in his struggles from his past. He didn’t talk to me about his struggles because he thought it would make him weak and how could I ever love someone struggling and my heart hurt for this man. He projected the man he wanted to be while fighting the man he was at that time. He is not perfect, but I’m proud he’s mine and I could never imagine my life without him and I’m glad I don’t have to. You would be surprised how powerful forgiveness can be for you.

You’ll do as you want, and that’s entirely valid. I just wanted to let you know that sometimes the right path isn’t the easy one and it damn sure wasn’t the popular one, but we found happiness and a bond between us that will never be broken. And you’re right, sometimes love isn’t enough, but sometimes it is.

Make the choice that make you feel fulfilled not the one that makes you feel safe. We all run from demon when we should stand and fight.

Good luck xxxSharpCheddar

Totally understand. Everyone’s got a past, myself included.

He was so calculated. He used the right buzz words. He did “inner child work” and he went to therapy (idk about you, but I know a lot of men who think that will emasculate them somehow, so that was already a gold star.) At the risk of sounding apathetic, I don’t want another person in my life that I have to heal from. I almost forgave him for the first person because I really did think the move was harder than he let on and he went for something familiar. I can understand that, though I’d never do it myself. We had an argument about her when we were first talking and he assured me it was just a misunderstanding. This was his second chance.

But how can I look at myself and explain away the others? Besides the original one, there was the one from January, the one from April, the feeder from about a month ago. There were others who were wronged outside of our timeline too. I don’t know what your situation was with your partner. You have given him grace and he sounds to have learned from his mistakes and you were able to create something really beautiful and meaningful. You have no idea how desperately I wanted to beg him to stay. I dream of it.

He was so seemingly open and raw with me about not only the struggles of his past but how he overcame them. He gave me hope that I could be as healed as him if I continued doing my work.

Regardless of everything, I am still very clearly in the trenches of it all. (Wishing my therapist would stop canceling!! Lol) You have such a big heart and I’m glad your man learned not to take advantage of that. I genuinely don’t know what my future looks like but my focus is on healing and putting my energy into my support system right now. Again, I really appreciate you sharing this with me. I’m sure it wasn’t easy to relive the not so fun parts, but it lead to something so beautiful.

Thank you❤️‍🩹