#like it's queerbaiting (affectionate)

[naughtylilotter]

i wanna be so clear that i think taskhusbands is queerbaiting in the way that i think explicit gay couples are often more boring than implied ones. like sure theyve kissed but it's still queerbaiting bc it's for the Comedy and that's their Job and im sucking it up like a vaccuum and coughing up yaoiful interpretations bc that's how i have fun

[pinkbluehoney]

.

[teambyler]

My video "A LAWYER'S EVIDENCE that Mike and Will become a romantic pair in Stranger Things" is out!

Many of you have followed me ( @teambyler ) or read my essays analyzing Byler (I've linked some of the most-shared ones below). I am actually also a LAWYER who has a YouTube channel called RONALD OFF THE RECORD, and I just released my big video on Byler! (I also have another YouTube channel with 45K subscribers that I mention in the video)

I'm prepared to put my professional reputation as a lawyer on the line to comment on a piece of science fiction, because goddammit this is important to me! It is not "delusional" to think Will and Mike will become a couple, and there is nothing wrong with you if want it to happen! This is a video essay I've been planning for at least SIX MONTHS, and I put a lot of work into it. Please share, and please leave comments. Enjoy! =D

0:00 Why this video 1:38 Hate for Byler on the internet 10:16 Case for Mileven 15:21 Case for Byler: Starting premises 17:56 If Will were a girl… 25:30 The evidence! 29:05 EXHIBIT A: The Snow Ball 31:34 B: Mike's reactions to El and Will being upset 34:21 C: Season 3 ending montage 39:16 D: Airport reunion 47:51 E: Rink-O-Mania argument 51:28 F: Heteronormativity, audience expectations 58:25 G: Throwing away the letter 59:55 H: 2nd heart-to-heart scene 1:05:43 I: Mike can't say he loves El 1:13:27 J: Platonic reunion 1:15:12 K: Will's role convincing Mike to say "I love you" 1:20:08 L: Effect of the "love confession" on El 1:39:54 M: The Painting Lie 1:43:22 Honorable mentions 1:45:27 Non-diegetic evidence 2:01:23 Actor statements 2:07:01 Season 5 information 2:10:34 NOT how you write an unrequited love story 2:16:07 Why Byler SHOULD happen (queerbaiting, etc.) 2:28:21 A more powerful story 2:35:45 A personal note

I'm now making this my new pinned post, so I'll list a few of my posts here for people to check out.

ADDITIONS: -28:00 On "We should normalize same-sex friends being affectionate, they don't have to be gay," I should have been clearer. HOMOPHOBIA is the reason for that stigma. Straight friends feeling like they can be affectionate in our society HAS to include normalizing LGBT+ people. -1:16:55 I should've said this more clearly: Will reminded Mike that who HE is, HIS unique qualities, make him worthy of love and make El love him, not dumb luck. And Will of course could convey that because Will loves the actual nerd MIke and everything he is. -1:17:06 Mike making El "not feel like a mistake" doesn't fit El, because she says that Mike looks at her "like I'm a monster, too". Nor did she "push you away because she was afraid of losing you". That's Will, not El. Mike felt love because Will was describing himself. -1:52:36 I forgot to mention that, in the original Nina opera, Nina's lover is ALIVE and DOES return. The Duffers changed the story so that Nina's lover does NOT return, to further suggest Mike won't return! -2:35:22 I'm kicking myself for not being more specific about Mike and Will being heroes in more than one way: I think the theme of bullying from s1 will return, with Will (and also Mike) having to face bullying for being boyfriends in Hawkins.

Some other @teambyler posts:

Mike was saying "I love you" to Will

Questions to ask if ever you have Byler doubt

How the Duffers have set Will up to have a happy ending in Season 5

The most heartbreaking way Byler can culminate (and how I predict it will) (I know this is less likely than an "escape from Camazotz" possession scenario, but I still want this to happen =D )

How the Duffers likely will make the general audience AWARE of Byler and CHEER for Byler

-teambyler

[gardenschedule]

Quote compilations

+ a reblog with more compilations here

Because I cope with my Beatles feelings by collecting and organizing quotes in a big ass spreadsheet and I may as well post them here divided up by topic:

The breakup

Quotes from each member divided by year, showing it was never so cut and dry that Paul always wanted to stay in the Beatles and John/George always wanted out

John Lennon’s sexuality

Internalized homophobia, intentionally spreading rumours about being gay + people thinking he was joking (John Lennon invented queerbaiting in 1963 did you know?), revealing comments from John and others about his sexuality, replacing Paul with Yoko, jealousy over Paul, flirting with Paul

Quotes about the Lennon-Mccartney rivalry & John's insecurity

The ramifications of Yesterday, a fear of abandonment, ego death, and having a relentlessly productive, competitive soulmate + further analysis

John not meaning what he says

"Yeah, I was lying" [laughs]

Paul hurting John

The extent to and ways in which John claimed Paul hurt him and Paul's struggle to understand wtf happened

Paul wrangling John

Paul understands the importance of public relations and affectionately straightening ties

Beatles defending each other

Only Beatles can talk shit about Beatles

Paul trying and sometimes failing to be chill about Yoko

WHO KNOWS, YOKO? + thoughts on Yoko's presence

Just insane mclennon things

Shit where you're like "I can't believe that actually happened??" Often not in a good way

[damnfandomproblems]

Fandom Problem #6325:

Honestly, as a queer person I am starting to hate this trend of where any character that is slightly, just barely, not playing into hetero stereotypes and gender roles they MUST be queer even if no sexuality or gender identity is made canon, or even if they are confirmed cishet. I use to love it, seeing all these queer fanworks, but it just feels so heteronormative now? And not only that, it feels like it just feeds into gay stereotypes too.

Like, oh this man wears a pink shirt and hugs his friends, he must be gay!! Or this tomboy likes to get her hands dirty and doesn't wear skirts or dresses, she must actually be a trans man or a lesbian!!! Like, no...? Sure, many queer men like pink and are affectionate, and many tomboys are lesbians, but many also aren't?

Like, affection gay men aren't gay because they're affectionate, or affection because they're gay, they're just gay because their gay and affection because they're affectionate. Tomboy lesbians aren't tomboys because they're lesbians, or lesbians because they're tomboys, they're lesbians because they're lesbians and tomboys because they're tomboys.

Headcanons are fine, but using stereotypes to base them on just feels so insulting. And don't get me wrong all you "you pissed on the poor!?" people of this site, this isn't me saying people can't headcanon affection men or tomboys as queers, I just want people to stop headcanoning them as queer because they're not performing classic gender roles and just head them as queer for the sake of being queer. Just headcanon a tomboy as a lesbian because they want her to be a lesbian, not because she dares to not act like what they think a cishet must act like.

Like, so many people preach about breaking gender roles and letting people be who they are until it's cishet characters and/or people breaking gender roles and being who they are. So many of my fellow queers act like straight people are this hivemind of bugs that are happy to be forced to act, express, and live under strict gender roles.

Like, let them break free, let them be happy, let women be tomboys and men be affectionate without whispering how they must be queer like us and how's it queerphobic for a creator if they, or they have, confirmed their gender role breaking characters to be cishet, or how it's queerbaiting for a cishet person to break their gender roles and stereotypes.

It's toxic, it's gross, it's feeding into the queerphobic belief that only queer people break their gender roles, and frankly, boring. It's okay to headcanon any character as queer, but it's also okay to just let them be cishet too.

[five-wow]

when i think about steve's first date with brooke in 10x01 i always think about "that was danny, who i love, very much" and "it's kind of like we're married, me and him" and, of course, the basic premise of steve actively being on a date that was very clearly set up for him by danny only to be constantly interrupted by danny's texts and calls, which danny demands he answers, seemingly not with the intention to be a little affectionately annoying to a friend (that's not the vibe) but instead, well, for literally no justifiable reason whatsoever. however. there's also SO much to be said about when brooke goes "you know what they say about marriage, right? just a friendship recognized by the police", and particularly about the fact that it happens in this context, and that someone wrote this line in a script for this show, because, c'mon. obviously those words further validate the "joke" (in quotation marks. we're on the shipping side of tumblr, you get why) that what steve and danny have is (like) a marriage - they ARE police, they recognize their friendship, that's all the requirements met - but then there's also the layers of, like. steve is on a date with this woman, who he is meeting to see if there's a potential romantic future for them. the kind that leads to love and sex and even marriage, and then he goes oh i love danny so much, and then she goes well marriage is just like friendship! same thing essentially! which is lovely (you should be good friends with the people you choose to spend your life with, that's a healthy basis for any type of relationship) but i do think that maybe, crucially, there are a few generally expected elements to our social concept of marriage that don't pop up in most people's basic definition of friendship, like. romance. or sex. and so here we are, once again, equating steve and danny's friendship (which is the same thing as marriage) to a marriage (in steve's words), now with the added spice of the explicitly romantic context of a date between steve and a woman (heterosexual, so that's allowed to be romance) which danny keeps interrupting, like he's a part of that somehow (?? uh oh, what does it all mean?). and steve picks up the phone. he could have turned it off, but he picks up the phone, and then he goes back to the table, and he doesn't make up some excuse but he says "that was danny, who i love, very much. but sometimes he's a little intense" and then brooke nods and goes "sounds like my ex", which i hadn't even touched on yet because there's just so much going on that somehow "sounds like my ex (who i was married to, because we were in a romantic relationship, and we have kids together)" completely gets drowned out.

and then a few episodes later danny moves into steve's home, which does not have enough beds to accomodate three grown men (junior was there first) unless someone is sharing, and he never moves back out again. "he's a little intense". well yeah, that's one way of saying "sorry brooke, you showed up right in the middle of the last season of one of the wildest tv queerbaits of the current century".

[freakycass]

some of my favorite byler moments that erase my doubt + a random thing thats make me question byler endgame

i wanted to come on here and share some of my favorite byler moments that make really all my doubt go away about them being endgame. i also want to share something that somewhat makes me doubt byler endgame, just to hear yalls thoughts on it.

3 moments that take away my byler endgame doubt:

☆mikes inability to hug will at the airport☆

this scene screams “i’ve thought way too much about how i feel about my best friend and i don’t wanna make it even more weird.” we’ve seen mike be affectionate with will before (especially in s2), and even with dustin in s4. so why couldn’t he just give will a real hug? will literally has his arms out. he’s ready. and mike just… gives him that awkward one-armed back pat? some people say “maybe mike knows will likes him and doesn’t want to lead him on.” okay, but mike doesn’t know will is gay. he doesn’t. and if he was worried about leading him on, then why is he being so soft and flirty in both bedroom scenes later? it doesn’t add up. the hug hesitation makes way more sense if mike’s trying to suppress feelings he doesn’t fully understand or isn’t ready to admit.

☆“you never say it” vs. “you didn’t have to” ☆

yeah, obviously. this was what convinced me personally to start shipping byler. because what clearer of a parallel do you need? watching mike and el’s fight scene vs. mike and wills bedroom scene is just pure perfection. we clearly see that mike struggles with affirming el’s needs, because he isn’t verbally able to say what she needs him to say. they struggle with communication in that way. in mike and wills scene, we honestly see the complete opposite. even without will saying anything to mike about how he was acting, mike still understood and didn’t even need him to say anything. there’s a mutual understanding between the two of them that el and mike don’t have. you all know this, idk why im explaining this lmao.

☆mikes reaction to el kissing him in season 3 finale☆

this one hit me hard. so let’s break this down: the girl he’s supposedly been obsessed with all summer kisses him, tells him she loves him too, and his reaction is… to keep his eyes wide open during the kiss and say nothing back? even though he knows she’s about to move across the country? and then when she walks away, the look on his face is just… not what you’d expect from someone who's finally “gotten the girl.” it’s not happy. it’s confused. and it’s not just the kiss, the whole final montage feels off. mike’s standing in front of a closet when she kisses him. el is literally holding will’s bear while they kiss. symbolically, it’s like will is between them. it doesn’t feel triumphant or romantic — it feels heavy and unresolved.

and now here’s a minor thing that kind of makes me doubt sometimes:

☆the duffer brothers having to cater to the GA. ☆

i 100% believe byler should be canon- and honestly, it would be queerbaiting if it doesn’t happen. but i have to admit, a lot of the GA don’t pick up on the subtle queer coding around mike wheeler’s character. i’m saying this from a somewhat biased perspective, based on what my own family and peers (who are very much part of the GA) have said about how they interpreted season 4. most of them picked up on the fact that will is in love with mike, and that he lied about the painting- which, great! that part wasn’t exactly subtle. but when it comes to mike, most of them interpreted his love confession to el as totally sincere, and a big turning point in their relationship. a lot of them say stuff like, “it’s sweet that will loves mike, but mike’s never shown interest back, so it wouldn’t make sense for byler to happen in season 5.” now obviously, we don’t agree with that- we’ve seen the deeper queer coding in mike’s behavior, his hesitations, his repression, the emotional weight of his moments with will. but the GA tends to take things at face value, and i can unfortunately see the duffer brothers trying to cater to them by going for an ending that feels “safe” or “clear” to the widest audience possible. and that would honestly really suck. i don’t want to believe they’d do that, but at the same time, i wouldn’t be shocked if they did.

[dearmyloveleys]

Hi! Do you think Sieun and Soho will become an official couple if there's a Season 3? Or will the director end it as just a platonic or friendship-based relationship? I’ve seen people reacting strongly—someone even said they might tone down the connection between Sieun and Soho because of the negative feedback from some fans

hihi! I have to be real here, I don't think they will ever become an official couple in S3 (if there's S3). First off, WHC had such a huge commercial success even without Netflix's support, such that Netflix sought to buy over its rights. With that huge commercial success, comes the burden of being a cash cow series and as you said, lots of negative feedback (regardless if its homophobia or people who wish to keep the relationship platonic) if the directors decide to make shse a couple. There are also too many people out there who are against BLs for some reason. Netflix isn't going to turn away such a large portion of the fanbase just to cater to us folks who wish to see a romantic relationship. If they keep shse homoerotic, they win on both ends of the fanbase: Us who will scream over the slightest affectionate interaction, and those who can still argue that shse are close friends. It really sucks, but showbiz and queerbait still work hand in hand for buzz.

Though, given how much the directors as well as the actors themselves seem to be aware and have even breathed life into the shse dynamic themselves ("I asked them to think of the show as a melodrama, a kind of first love" - Director, "It's like a high school love" - Hyunwook etc), I don't believe they will tone down the connection between Sieun and Suho. Writing wise, it's just too jarring, because platonic or otherwise, Suho literally haunted Sieun all of S2. It's clear Suho means the world to Sieun. Toning down their relationship may just backfire, for fans who love their friendship and for fans who see them romantically involved. It's really obvious that they're doing damage control. Suho and Sieun will remain great friends, don't worry.

It's not beyond hope that they may add in scenes that go beyond typical friendship affection. Well, if they do kiss, then. Fuck me alright happy pride

[echotunes]

hey! What is Tatort Saarbrücken and is there English subtitles for it? (Also where can I watch it?)

hi anon! so. bear with me here,

First you must understand that Tatort ("Crime Scene") (Wikipedia) is the German cop show. A lot of German television is cop shows, but this is the one - it's been running every Sunday since 1970 (making it the longest-running German TV drama), in the prime time slot at 8:15pm on public-service broadcast organisation ARD's TV channel Das Erste, right after the evening news program Tagesschau. Murder-of-the-week style, every episode deals with a homicide case that the characters then investigate and eventually solve (and it's all very dramatic, as crime shows tend to be). So you understand Tatort is very mainstream. The mainstream. Your parents watch Tatort. Your grandparents watch Tatort. It's a Thing. (it's also obviously all copaganda we're aware of this)

(This makes the fact that it trends on Tumblr every year very funny to everyone involved. Because it's, y'know. Tatort. Half the reason people (including me) get into it is because they go "why is Tatort of all things trending on Tumblr what is all this about")

There's different versions of Tatort, set in different cities and all produced by the public-service broadcast services of that region - each focusing on different characters (but all of whom are cops because that's what the show is about). Each location only gets one to three episodes a year, so it switches through every week. There's Cologne, Münster, Berlin, whatever; and then there's Saarbrücken. Saarbrücken is the capital of Saarland, the smallest German state after Bremen, Hamburg and Berlin (all of which are city-states). It's... unremarkable. You never usually hear anything about Saarbrücken. Or Saarland in general really (sorry Saarland). So you wouldn't expect its Tatort to be remarkable either.

Except! This particular set-in-Saarbrücken Tatort has been running since 2020, and people on Tumblr got interested in it because the two main guys have a Dynamic(tm) going on. After episode 3 they also officially added the two women to the main team because they forgot about them the first time around or something (thank you mainstream tv). but anyway our four characters are Leo Hölzer (the buff guy in the holster, kind of the glue of the team), Adam Schürk (dishevelled blond man who is really bad at his job and Angsty(tm)), Pia Heinrich (workaholic in the sports jacket), and Esther Baumann (big football fan, seemingly the only person on this team who actually takes her job seriously).

Tatort Saarbrücken is also affectionately known as "Spatort" (Spaten (spade) + Tatort), because a lot of Leo and Adam's Dynamic is about the fact that they knew each other as kids when Adam was being physically abused by his dad, and Leo eventually hit the dad over the head with a shovel, putting him in a coma (which, spoilers, he wakes up from at the end of the first episode). And then Adam went missing (left the city) for like 15 years but now he's returned to Saarbrücken for mysterious reasons (it was Leo. Leo was the reason). and now he and Leo are work colleagues and they have queer-flavoured tension going on and this backstory is still very much relevant in between the usual crime-solving. they are honestly not very good at their jobs but well that's part of the appeal. and people enjoy gay shipping them because of course they do. (is this queerbaiting? maybe! but again the fact that this is all in Tatort is very ???-inducing to many)

Pia and Esther were only officially added to the "main team" in episode 3 because I guess the writers forgot about women for the first two. which is unfortunately not surprising but well they're here too now! until last episode they felt like they might have had some sort of queer thing going on too but then in the 2025 episode Pia had a suspiciously-het-romance-teasing scene with Adam (they do not have romantic chemistry this was a weird choice we all agree on this) and Esther was flirting with a previously-unseen French colleague (who was a woman though so win for queer Esther enjoyers) so who knows. but we like them too! even though there's less dramatic backstory for them both, there's still things hinted at (like Pia's sister having gone missing years ago. knowing this show this will be relevant at some point)

Also as you may have already gathered there is only one episode of Tatort Saarbrücken released every year. So basically every January we all come together and tune in to watch our annual 90 minutes of cop show episode, liveblog together, make gifsets about it, trend on Tumblr, and then go back into hibernation until the next year. It's a beautiful event for the German tumblr community

As for watching it: It's public television, so it's available for free online in the ARD Mediathek. The six episodes there have been so far are, in order:

Das fleißige Lieschen (named after the codename for the V-3 cannon (Wikipedia) - 2020)

Der Herr des Waldes (The lord of the forest - 2021)

Das Herz der Schlange (The heart of the snake - 2022)

Die Kälte der Erde (The cold of the earth - 2023)

Der Fluch des Geldes (The money curse - 2024)

Das Ende der Nacht (The end of the night - 2025)

As for English subtitles - there's no official ones, but you can check out this post for info on fanmade ones!

[walkergirlsposts]

Imagine being a destiel or cockles shipper, peeing yourself in excitement because Misha queerbaited and pandered to you for the billionth time, like his words suddenly have any bearing on the actual show or any potential revival? They are so sad.

Meanwhile, Jensen gives Misha a halfhearted one-armed hug, and sits three feet away from him in their duo panel, while spouting the same bs platitudes about Misha's "good acting" in the "confession scene."

And they say they’re are "back" and "winning." It’s so emarassing.

Meanwhile, J2 fans get J2 magnets on stage, Jared crashing Jensen's panel where they take shots together, Jensen telling a fond, recent, story about Jared, and Jensen literally jumping on Jared's back for a piggyback.

Hellers are the ones always trying to make everything a completion, yet J2/brothers fans win. Every. Damn. Time.

Jensen was especially affectionate with Jared at this con, not much of his usual JIB Grumpy with Jared persona, at least from what I’ve seen.

It’s almost like J2 are still friends, despite Jared antis cheering about Jivorce every other day.

Hellers even have to make it seem as if Jensen was disgusted answering a brother's question. As if. I'm not really sure how they think they're "winning." 😂😂

[blakbonnet]

AUTHOR OF THE WEEK: @soupbtch

Ever read a fic and go "they're so 😭" - that's every single Danny fic to me, aka today's second aotw feature, and god, what an amazingly talented author they are.

I'm so glad you decided to write and grace us with your lovely and bonkers fics, because I cannot imagine the OFMD fic world without your incredible Every Part of You series. I cannot imagine logging into this website without another incredible post from you. Every single thing you write (and do) leaves me in stitches and then, more often than not, you straight up chair your friends with your ultra soft way of writing how much they love each other - in between the much needed elbow fucking. You are such an amazingly kind person - hilarious, supportive, and the best cheerleader 💕 Thank you for answering my questions:

What's your writing process like? Do you start with the beginning or the end? Do you write in order or as the scenes come to you?

I start with a pretty detailed outline because if I don’t go in with a plan, I’ll drop threads and/or write myself in circles. Then I have my outline open on half of my screen while I have a separate doc open on the other half where I’m actually writing. I write in order from beginning to end.

Favourite trope or headcanon you like to explore while writing? (Things like Ed's sweet tooth, Stede's ability to bury his feelings etc)

I have a lot of fun writing angst, so I think any facet of that I can explore is a good time. Weigh them down with insecurities and see how far I can bend them with external factors like plot points, each other, or other characters before they snap. So things like Stede believing he ruins everything he touches, Ed believing he doesn’t deserve fine things, and how they both stand in the way of their own happiness because of these feelings. I also love exploring like, the horrible communication skills Ed and Stede have with each other when it comes to their emotions, and setting up story beats where that intercommunication can break down. Because they’re idiots (affectionate).

Whose voice is easier to write - Ed or Stede? Why?

Ed for sure. I find him very easy to connect with, emotionally. All my favorite characters think they’re unlovable monsters and no, this says NOTHING about me personally, etc etc etc.

Your personal favourite thing you've written that you'd like more people to read

Red Skies at Night! It's modern au, but they're still on a boat! If you like slow burn, bitchy Stede, Ed with a tongue piercing, fun costumes, and a big dash of pining, I def recommend checking it out!! ❤️

What is the one word that you think you use a lot?

The one that comes to mind is ‘blink.’ Kind of a funny one, but to me, it’s such a juicy way to imply so much while saying so little, so I know I use it frequently. Stede asks, “Do you trust me?” and Ed blinks back at him as he tries to work out why that question hits him like a truck (because the answer is a very easy yes). Ed says, “You make me happy,” and Stede blinks back at him in awe (because Stede? Making someone happy? That can’t be true). You get it.

Do you have a beta reader? Have they made you a better writer?

Yes, Beedle (@sleepystede) and Connie (@spirker) have both beta read for me! They’ve helped me tremendously with flow and rewording awkward sentences, and I’ve improved a lot from their feedback. Connie has also been invaluable to bounce ideas off of for new fics and just generally pushing me to be more creative through her never-ending support and big beautiful brain.

Why OFMD 🥹

I loved season 1 when I first watched it, but as soon as I saw the season 2 trailer, something clicked in my brain. Where season 1 was slow burn, will-they-won’t-they, is this real or are they queerbaiting, season 2 was posing itself as very, very clearly queer. Stede is going to get his man. That’s it, that’s the show. Undisguised, unabashed, unapologetic gay yearning and gay romance. There are a million other things I can say, but I think it really all comes down to that. What a gift. No one does it like our show. 💖

Please head over to @ofmdlovelyletters (who also made the header) and send your love to all your favourite authors (and authors of the week 😈 watch that blog for some special letters coming your way)

[dykephan]

everyone saying real people can't queerbait.... i hear you, i agree with the core sentiment that we shouldn't expect queer people to come out before they're ready/ever and that doesn't mean they shouldn't be allowed to explore their identity publicly in a way that feels affirming to them etc etc. but.. real people absolutely can queerbait. does no one remember what youtube was actually like in 2013. does no one remember all the gay youtubers who said it was scary to come out because they couldn't tell who actually supported them vs. who was being disingenuous for attention. does no one remember this genre of video. or the fake coming out videos (most of which have been taken down now, but i hold a grudge)

there's a reason why dan and phil were never able to play up their relationship on camera or lean into the shipping in a grossly exaggerated way like straight youtubers could. because it was real for them. sure, they used clickbait titles like the chopstick challenge (iconic), or spin the bottle with the fantastic foursome. but you would never see dan and phil fake kissing or initiating purposeful affectionate contact on camera, even if, for example, pj and chris were doing it as a joke in the same video.

they did try it once, with that gay chicken dare, which i've talked about more [here] and [here]. these moments stand out because of how uncomfortable they felt. it was clearly stemming from internalized homophobia, not an attempt to play into youtuber shipping culture for financial gain. but like. many many youtubers were, in fact, queerbaiting on purpose (before any of us even knew what queerbaiting was)

[crowdrinkingcoffee]

i feel like im queerbaiting for wanting two boys who act like they’re madly in love and are so affectionate and caring towards each other and are actually not in love but they’re not straight they’re both aroace as the main characters of every story i make

[veryintricaterituals]

I understand people love Baby Colin Robinson and why it's so important to them. But with the conversation about queerbaiting going on I can't help feeling a bit baited about Laszlo and Colin. I remember binging seasons 1-3. In especially season 3 I could tell there was some kind of thing developing between them. It felt so jarring to see Colin getting turned into a baby like that after all that set up. I think there could have been a million different ways they could deal with Collins regeneration without doing that. And now I see some people feel uncomfortable at the idea of Colin and Laszlo because of that. It feels so unfair that laszlin already existed and seemed so possible just for that to get thrown out. Like I'm happy with how Colin is written in season 5 and 6 but that season 4 crap just keeps coming back to ruin things. I don't understand why they couldn't have a side romance in the background. It feels like this show it just allergic against letting a same gender couple be romantically affectionate on screen. It's such a tiny thing and I hate complaining about it, but I hate that Colin and Laszlo didn't kiss in the elevator. It felt uncomfortable that the idea of them kissing was being used as a joke

Season three really got us all, didn't it? I don't really go here, as in, I've never even considered Laszlo/Colin, but I'm very much a person who says ship and let ship. And now that you've mentioned it, they did have their moments in season three and onwards. I guess it just turned into parental bonding in my eyes, but again, I can see it, I can see the vision.

I don't think it was baited in the same way that nandermo was, and by that I only mean: the marketing, the interviews, the articles that focused on the ship and that were clearly designed to bring LGBT audiences and viewers to the show. And that is one of my main problems with the ending and with this season as a whole. That doesn't mean that I think nandermo is better than any other ship, it is mine, so I like it, but please don't take it the wrong way.

You're absolutely right when you point out that this show is allergic to showing affection or love to anything except for the straight appearing relationships. It's a huge problem. For a show that calls itself queer and welcoming I sure haven't seen any same sex couples besides some jokes and allusions. Say if we had Baron/Sire explicitly confirmed (a comment about them even, a hug, anything) I wouldn't talk. If Guillermo had been able to have a boyfriend for more than one episode, if Nandor's search for love had involved men in more than a comedic way, if... If.. if.. if... Then I wouldn't be angry at all, but the thing is that none of that happened, and our "queer rep" ended up being just jokes (mostly at our expense: as in the only reason this joke is funny is because "haha gay". The only reason Nandor and Laszlo hook up is because it's clearly a joke to the writers, it never goes beyond that, it never explores that dynamic between them, same with Laszlo and the Baron).

I think you get to feel whatever you're feeling and it's absolutely valid. I'm mad and disappointed at the whole season, at the time and potential wasted. I'm waiting for next week's episode so that I can put canon firmly behind me and turn to what I have always turned to when canon fails me: fic and art.

I'm probably going to get really mad for a while beforehand though and I feel that as a lesbian, a queer person, who looked for a queer tv show and ended up being queerbaited I get to do that, I get to feel betrayed and upset. And so do you.

[thisqueerlove]

Truly nothing in BL spaces will piss me off more than people saying that the majority of BL actors are straight.

BL actors will tell you who they are and you won’t believe them, YOU ARE HOMOPHOBIC! Queer shows made by a queer industry has queer people in it! On and off camera.

Like you’d really rather call actors queerbaiters and say they’re gay for pay instead of just believing that any of them could be queer..

Ohmkrit reposted a video on TikTok saying it’s okay if you’re not ready to come out yet. Like god forbid maybe the BL industry is a way for queer actors to be in queer spaces when they’re not ready to actually be out.

These actors are real human beings that owe us nothing outside of their job description. And on that note take the term fanservice away from BL fans because y’all have no idea wtf it actually is. Actors doing fanservice at fanmeetings, fine, dandy, it’s okay to call that fanservice because what’s what it is, that’s what they’re doing. Actors getting drunk and dancing on each other at Songkran, a festival to celebrate their country’s new year, NOT fanservice, god forbid not everything BL actors do is for YOU! I’ve said this before, let friends be affectionate with each other, and let people be gay.

Now I’m not in GL spaces but do y’all also deal with this shit? People calling everything the actors do fanservice? Not believing them when they say they’re queer? Or are BL fans just another breed of dumbass?

[quietwingsinthesky]

🔥🔥🔥

Any unpopular Doctor Who opinions?

while the frustration is understandable, i really don’t think it’s honest to call thasmin “queerbaiting”. Or more accurately, I get that it would have been nice to have the Doctor does unavoidably romantic lesbian shit on screen, I also hope the Doctor does that in some future incarnation, but Thirteen was never going to be that Doctor. And I swear to god, this isn’t just my aro!thirteen goggles I have on, I mean genuinely there is no version of Thirteen that settles into a (semi-)healthy romantic relationship of any kind, let alone one where she’s like openly physically affectionate with kisses and such for her partner.

I think a lot of people wish that that could have been the ship to do that, but they’re missing that Thirteen just. wouldn’t. with anyone, really, I think. But definitely not with Yaz, not as she is. You can complain about whatever you want about the other bits of how Thirteen is written, but that remained pretty consistent for her whole run: she’s not emotionally open for that kind of connection. or most kinds of connections. really. she has a lot of issues. one of her closest honest and open emotional connections was with a frog that was also a universe, and like it did not get better from that point for her.

(and, you know, okay, now i am putting the aro!thirteen goggles on, but holy shit she would hate it so much, she would hate hate hate being romantically entangled with anyone. and i do mean with anyone. i love shipping thirteen, i’ll do it unabashedly, but like my understanding of who she is in canon is as someone who would start clawing at the walls of a romantic relationship Immediately to get out.)