#my least favorite trope holy shit i hate it so much

[soul-of-the-sanada]

I’ve seen the posts about how one of the big issues with generic MC otome characters is that they’re always getting kidnapped. Snatched and used as bait or bargaining chips.

I see that and I raise you: invalidating their feelings. I’m so tired of the LI not being completely truthful about something or withholding intel, which causes a misunderstanding, which usually leads to MC being a frothing jealous mess. And then the misunderstanding is cleared up, and MC feels... sheepish? dejected? upset at themselves for letting their emotions get in the way while their LI is doing their best, vital mission, saving the world, blah blah blah. 

Like, my dude, if he can’t tell you straight up, bare minimum detail, that he’s working on something for his boss/sibling/friend/etc that includes being seen, possibly intimately, with other women, enemies, rivals, etc. then FUCK HIM. 

How are you supposed to know that you should be magically suppressing your mental and emotional needs if you don’t have the slightest foundation for WHY you should be suppressing yourself? 99% of non-mc-kidnapping issues could be avoided if the LI would just say something. 

it’s always 

mc: i don’t want to be a burden on them right now, i know they’re probably working on something top secret, even if they can’t tell me anything at all and i don’t expect them to because what could *i* do, i’ll deal with this later. shut up and put on a smile and it better fuckin look natural.

ITS SO UPSETTING TO SEE. LIKE, LET MY GIRL EMOTE FREELY ON HER OWN SCHEDULE

[fanaticsnail]

I binged read the Sapsorrow series

HOLY SHIT IS IT SO GOOD!!!

Soft pining Mihawk will always be my favorite. I'm super excited for the next two parts!

Thank you so much. There are only two more chapters to go before it's all done, which is making me feel so sad I'll be leaving this little 'au' world so soon. I am a sucker for an "I hate everyone but you" trope.

In saying that, I can't wait to carve out the final two before the spinoffs begin.

So far on the list:

Sir Crocodile x princess!reader: "Sands of Time"

Tropes: husband!croc X wife!reader, age-gap, enemies to lovers, kidnapping, forced promimity, he fell first, idiots in love, gift giving

Buggy D Clown x thief!reader: "Don't Touch What's Not Yours"

Tropes: one night stand, break your heart before you break mine, lovers to enemies to lovers, a chase

Red-Hair Shanks x upper-class-doctor!reader: "Where is my bride?"

Tropes: panic, peril, dread, desperation, crave for adventure, love at first sight

Trafalgar D Water-Law x crew!reader: "History Repeating"

Tropes: idiots in love, refusing to love, angst, heartbreak, unconditional love, wrath & vengeance, punishment.

Donquixote Rosinante x reader x Donquixote Doflamingo "Forged in Gold"

Tropes: angst, no happy ending, bittersweet, crying, begging, star-crossed lovers, steal your girl, mentions of death.

Eustass Kid x dutchess!reader "Take my hand"

Tropes: grumpy!kid x sunshine!reader, unworthy, self-esteem issues (kid), loss of limb, reader is extremely beautiful - kid is kid, crave for adventure, she fell first, he fell harder.

There's enough room for 9 spinoffs, each will be a minimum of at least 3 chapters each. Still open for the other 3 rings, but I was toying with the idea of the reader being the one cursed.

So far, the suggested readers are f!readers (plot specific for some), but it might be fun to play with a m!reader or gn!reader also.

These will all be in the same 'Sapsorrow Storyteller Au', which means we will likely be hearing from the Governess and Mihawk in the other spinoffs.

Thank you for reading and leaving your ask. I have thoroughly enjoying weaving this world and it will be a shame to see it end.

[bubblesandgutz]

Every Record I Own - Day 801: The Rolling Stones Exile on Main St.

I hesitate to say things like "favorite album of all time," but if I lost my whole record collection in a fire, the first album I would replace would be Exile on Main St.

What is a favorite album anyway? One where you love every song from start to finish? That's not what this is. Not every song is a hit. Hell, even the singles off the album weren't hits. Exile is a strange, murky, uneven double album recorded in Keith Richards' basement in the south of France while the band were tax exiles from their native England. Mick Jagger is buried low in the mix. The performances are loose even by the Stones' standards. Initial reviews from critics weren't exactly positive. And yet there's something about it that keeps luring you back.

I first bought a used CD of Exile in the early '00s at the insistence of a few folks in the Against Me! camp. Aside from a handful of songs, I really wasn't much of a Stones fan. But I was okay with the $5 I'd spent after one spin of "Rocks Off." It's the archetypal Stones song---it's got the classic open-G Richards riff to kick it off. But where similar intros like "Brown Sugar" or "Start Me Up" just unfolded into songs that, at the time, felt lukewarm and uninspired to me, "Rocks Off" actually ROCKED. The song just keeps climbing up and up, ascending to greater heights. And when the second chorus comes in with the horns? Holy fuck... yes. And what's this song even about? Sexual frustration? "I only get my rocks off when I'm sleeping." Wait... is this song about wet dreams? Why have I been barraged by "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" all my life when this is clearly the most kick-ass Stones tune by a WIDE margin?

But wait... then the band launches into "Rip This Joint" and now I have to reconsider that maybe THIS is the most kick-ass Stones song ever. It's like Little Richards if he took too much trucker speed. And that scream Jagger let's out during the last verse: "Little Rock fit to drop... AAHHHHH!! JUST LET IT ROCK."

Fuckin' A. Shoot that shit into my veins.

But then... "Hip Shake." An old blues cover that just kinda simmers but never reaches a full boil. They had all this momentum, and they just completely dropped the ball. For at least the first couple of years I listened to Exile I would play the first two songs and then hit stop on track 3. Truth be told, at least part of the reason for that was that my cheap used CD started skipping at track 4.

Fast forward to 2004 and my first iPod. Now I could listen to all of Exile without the glitches. But "Hip Shake" was still a buzzkill and "Casino Boogie" doesn't exactly reignite the party with its reserved shuffle. Side 1 closes with one of the two singles off of Exile: "Tumbling Dice." And to be fair, it's a pretty good song. It's got a little bit of that gospel flair that I've always sorta hated in rock bands, but as with so many rock tropes, classic-era Rolling Stones actually did it well, and all the imitators are what ruined it.

Over the next few years I listened to Exile on my iPod a fair amount, usually when I wanted something with positive energy playing in the background but didn't want to have to actually pay much attention to it. I didn't care much for any particular songs later in the album, but it was better than listening to classic rock radio at a low volume. So yeah, not exactly "favorite album" material.

My appreciation for the album really changed when I got a well-loved used 2xLP copy at Singles Going Steady in Seattle. Now Exile was broken up into four distinct chapters. Those first five songs were like their own little universe. Two rockers, a tension builder, a strutting shuffle, and a triumphant closer. Flip it over to Side 2 and you have a whole other trip.

And holy shit, how did I not appreciate Side 2 earlier? This is where the magic really blossoms. You've got the scandalous gospel-country tune "Sweet Virginia" with it's multiple drug references and the chorus of "got to scrape that shit right off your shoes." And then you have "Torn & Frayed," a Gram Parsons-inspired country rock tune. It might not rip like those first two songs on Exile, but as far as the melodic side of Stones goes, this is easily one of their best tunes ever. And that slide guitar solo? Fuckin' hell. How was this not a single? How is it not a classic rock staple?

From there we go into "Sweet Black Angel," a political country / world music mash-up in defense of the civil rights activist Angela Davis. And then we have "Loving Cup." Ya know, when you're a kid first hearing music from the '70s, you latch onto the John Bonhams and Bill Wards and Keith Moons---the drummers that just bash like madmen. Charlie Watts seems so boring in comparison. But listen closer and you realize that Charlie keeps the show going. He's not a show pony, but he holds the ramshackle band together with a simple, graceful groove. Wanna know why Charlie rules? Just listen to "Loving Cup." And hell, the drums aren't even the best part of the song.

If Exile ended there, I don't think it would've endured years / decades of derision. But there's still a whole other LP of music and it starts slipping into some strange territories. I could easily go track by track and explain what I love about each song, but I think the thing that's kept me coming back to Exile over and over again is the mystery, and maybe it's best to leave that mystery alone for the uninitiated. Like, why was the second single for the album one where Jagger doesn't even sing ("Happy")? What's even going on in "Just Wanna See His Face"? Why wouldn't they follow the ripping two opening tracks with the equally hair-raising "All Down The Line"? Why would they end the album on "Soul Survivor" after the apex of "Shine A Light"? Give it a listen and try to solve the puzzle yourself. It's worth the journey.

By now we all know that Exile was a record made at the peak of the Stones' debauchery and resulting consequences. And maybe on some level it sounds like a band barely holding it together. But it also sounds like a band where the creative peak overlapped with their most desperate times. It's a record that sounds like a party with its moments of elation, chaos, druggy haze, and inevitable comedown. It's a record with its faults, but the faults become part of its charm.

Nowadays, it's rare that I go more than a week at a time without listening to Exile. I have so many great memories listening to this record. It's picked me up when I'm down; it's made the mundane seem magical; it's made a sunny afternoon feel even sunnier. And somehow it still feels fresh and exciting and ecstatic and reflective every time I listen to it.

A perfect record? Absolutely not. But one of the best records ever made? Absolutely.

[deafeninggardenerpanda]

franflam (they are not sisters)

ahahahahaHAHA this is exactly what i was expecting people to send in when i said "controversial ships". no one is ready for one of my signature franflam tangents

under the cut:

you know the last time i did this ship bingo thing someone asked me about franflam too and i just flat out refused to respond because i didnt want to touch the discourse with a ten foot pole. either me putting my opinions here will get me cancelled or it will summon some people hopefully sane about this discourse. i love gambling

to preface, my honest opinions on the matter are that whatever the hell those two got going on in canon is queerbaiting. i say this as someone who bought star allies on a whim at gamestop as their very first kirb game like two years after it released, not even knowing kirby still made games at that time, and thus played the game with zero biases towards anything but yeah those two were written with a weird attachment to each other and it would be stupid to outright deny that. do i think franflam is canon though?: absolutely not and also i hate everyone who claims that with a passion. you could make a claim with a reasonable amount of evidence for either side of the argument and the fact that its even remotely possible both could be true at once, along with kumazaki himself either refusing to elaborate or confirm, or giving even More support to Either side is absolute bullshit and any sort of grey area here is totally his and the writers faults so hey can we all stop arguing about what the "correct" answer is when there literally isnt really one

anyways with that out of the way, heres all of the reasons i hate franflam without mentioning "potential incest" as a concern even once

their dynamic in canon is stereotypical angry black woman is overprotective of stereotypical dainty elegant white woman. hate that. gives me bad vibes. the whole "to show one character is in love with the other, they talk about their love interest nonstop every half second" trope is absolutely HANDS DOWN my absolute least favorite romance trope EVER. it drives me absolutely insane. thats the #1 way to get me to hate both of the characters and their relationship the fastest. holy shit shut up and focus on the story and whats happening around you instead of shoehorning mention of the other person into your words nonstop. hate that. i also hate the "person a is overprotective of their love interest" trope too, esp when it extends into jealously of the other person hanging out with others (sparkling pupupu world does this, for example). feels gross. can feel infantizing. if people see that as romantic good for you but i can not see it ever. its overly possessive. i think having a trio of mages and having two of them being separated and off fucking around on their own all the time as their "happy ending" is bad writing, especially when it comes to zans character being so heavily affected by her isolation from others and how hyness treated her AND YOU JUST GO AND SEPERATE THEM INTO FRAN+FLAM AND ZAN+HYNESS ALL THE TIME FOR SOME REASON HELLO. JUST MAKE ONE MAGE CHARACTER IN THAT CASE IF TWO OF THE TRIO HAVE NO DEVELOPMENT OR PURPOSE OTHER THAN TO FUCK OFF BY THEMSELVES. and then people who ship franflam also often end up shipping hynzan cause of that EWWWWWW GROSSSSSSS. also fran+flam being more close because the jambacult is a broken family that needs to heal Or them being more close because flam is an overprotective older sibling are INFINITELY more interesting to me as concepts than: "fran+flam are closer to each other and not zan because theyre dating and thus inherently dont care about zan as much because platonic relationships are always secondary to romantic". hate that. and the fandom. oh my God as people might be able to tell by all of the arrows on the bingo sheet i have fucking FEELINGS about this this needs a whole new paragraph

okay so. so 😍. i have this thing i call "red flag ships" where the ships are fine as a concept on paper but for some reason the shippers are just absolutely Rancid and that throws me off from liking the ship in its entirely and i get really sussed out by anyone who ships it. franflam is a red flag ship. i think the shippers have gotten so used to being yelled at by people who think theyre siblings that theyve pavlov'd themselves into being insanely hostile and aggressive to anyone who doesn't ship them. at least thats what i can tell from anyone whos Open and remotely loud about shipping them. istg i am not joking in the slightest when i say 95% of my interactions with people who Happen to be big or even decently into shipping franflam have been godawful. the convos dont even have to be around franflam i just think the ship inherently attracts awful people because its only aggressive toxic people who arent scared about shipping it openly. is that generalizing?: Yeah but thats just my personal experience. i have never met someone loud about liking franflam or who makes content for it that wasnt an awful asshole or yikes person in some way

that said, people who really like the ship but are quiet or lowkey about it usually end up being super chill and cool. its just the goddamn Fandom i have an issue with really. so anyone whos normal about it i am so sorry for you lmao

in a somewhat unrelated manner, i used to be somewhat close with someone who had franflam as their ultimate otp and God they fucking sucked. apart from redirecting every convo ever to be about franflam, they were also insanely nasty to anyone who even remotely saw them as siblings because they inherently saw it as an attack against franflam, so theyd always be making comments like "can you believe anyones stupid enough to see them as siblings" and "kinda misogynistic and lesbiophobic that metadede and marxolor are more popular than franflam when franflam is so blatantly canon" and yadayadayada they would say that shit completely unironically even right in front of me when they knew i hc'd them as siblings. i could complain up enough of a storm about that person and all of the insane things they said and did to fill up another 10 paragraphs but in general they were awful and really awful to me and multiple friends and you know what. i fucking hate the ship because of that too. sue me i cant stand seeing it around and i get grossed out by it.

on another note if i see anyone trying to push franflam as canon i will kick your ass. it might seem like im complaining about a problem that doesnt exist since tumblr is very anti-franflam, but on other sites its the opposite and if i had a nickel for every stupid "franflam is definitely canon and the only canon option and here's why" argument ive ever heard and could Easily debunk i could buy a fucking mansion. how to tell franflam shipppers its Okay if their ship isnt canon challenge: impossible (generalizing ofc, this whole rant is generalizing. take with a grain of salt. man i hate franflam)

[hrokkall]

luke carder ?

@tasmanianstripes

My favorite cringe ass YouTuber

Favorite thing about them: This is going to be explained very poorly but I like how Luke is so blatantly a joke character who still manages to become very sympathetic the moment you learn more about him. He was supposed to be just a snobby annoying guy who brings his camera everywhere for content but his actor accidentally ended up making him too likable (and I’m genuinely glad he did) which really made the ending hit. He’s just some guy but he’s some guy who was trying to live on in his sister’s memory and now he has no one to live on for him. And he’s also a dogshit YouTuber. These two trains of thought exist simultaneously.

Least favorite thing about them: I love Luke but holy shit his camera dies at the worst times. I love looting through your footage as much as the next guy but I was in the middle of something (granted his battery is probably being sapped by Inscryption proximity but still).

Favorite line: I quote “Wow. Great video.” on a near-daily basis so that one’s my actual favorite, but I also love the lines he has when you beat Leshy the first time without the film roll and continue playing act 1. (Only posting this one but he has others like “Ugh, I’m so sick of this boss.” and an excited “Woo!” when you beat Leshy a second time)

(Bonus points to all the times he—fairly—responds to something with “What the fuck.” It makes me laugh if for no other reason than no one else in the game properly swears except for him).

brOTP: Luke and the Scrybes just because “completely normal guy placed amid the Weirdest People Imaginable” is a hilarious trope.

OTP: I honestly don’t ship Luke with anyone. I’ve joked about him accidentally making Inscryption into a dating sim before but that’s entirely a shitpost and (as stated prior) would just end in them all being buddies.

nOTP: Again I really don’t think there’s any ships I would actively say “no” to with Luke. Even if they’re not my thing personally I don’t actively hate any ships I’ve seen (then again I haven’t seen many).

Random headcanon: The elk-book in the background of his desktop setup is a card binder.

On a completely different note, I’d like to think that anyone who comes in long contact with Inscryption experiences (small) physical changes (as well as the obvious psychological damage) to sort of cement its presence as a “cursed object”. Nothing really happens to Luke because he only had the game for a few days. Kaycee, however—

Unpopular opinion: Are there any unpopular opinions to be had about Luke?? I guess some people don’t like him and think he ruins immersion. I’m a Luke fan in that case, I’ll stay solid on that.

Song I associate with them: I was going to take the piss and put something by Weezer but my de-facto Luke song is BAD LUCK! by Jhariah. Bonus points though to Making Up Words by Bug Hunter which is also very Luke (albeit more surface-level).

Favorite picture of them: Luke has a lot of fantastic expressions, but I’ll tentatively say this one.

[risingsouls]

( Last one for now, hope you don't mind the spam ) 🦎 + LEAST favorite thing in RP. Trope / Trend / Whatever. I am handing you a license to be Toxic:tm:

🦎 For My Work Thots || Always Accepting!

[Ooooooooh I don't know. At least not that I've talked about and most of those like super unreadable purple prose and just OVER formatting posts doesn't seem to happen much anymore? For me personally it's just about kicking my ass back into gear and KEEPING it there, but I don't think that fits this question (I'm sorry to everyone waiting on replies to drafts or asks; I just haven't had muse or motivation to do much here ksbfbjwfbe).

I guess something recent I've been seeing that I'm just big rolling my eyes on is bashing people for literal AUs. I don't know if it's a trend or trope, but this definitely isn't the first time I've seen it. And it's silly because for starters, the people that have been on the receiving end of anons bashing their interpretation/shifting of a character, world, etc. aren't misleading them in any way. They always say, "Playing x chatacter in an AU setting of x/my design/whatever." So I don't know why they're mad anyway. I guess it's just loving a series so much that you hold it as the holy grail of writing, never to be messed with or touched or questioned even in a creative sense unless it aligns with canon perfectly enough for their tastes. Which is dumb for any series, but especially for DB which does have major issues that some people don't want to engage with on the surface.

And second, and probably most important that digs into a deeper well of what's wrong with people on the internet is like...just don't engage if you don't like what they're doing? Like it's one thing if it's problematic for very concerning reasons, but if it's just because someone has taken your favorite character or world who/that was, in your opinion, written perfectly the first time and you just don't like seeing them changed up, then that's a you problem, sweetie. Don't follow them. Block them. Hell, blacklist their url, tags, whatever. I've done that to blogs I just don't care for their content. It's easy. Maybe not a perfect system but it's THERE. There does come a time where we have to learn to self police what we see and don't see because there are always going to be people on the interwebz posting shit we don't like or, worse, that trigger us. I think plenty have gotten it together and tag things, warn people up front, etc., but there are still plenty of ignorant or willfully hateful and cruel people that post content meant to hurt people. So, unfortunately, we all have to do out own damage control where we can to keep our experience enjoyable. And if you don't like what someone is doing with an AU or a character or whatever, just don't interact. Don't waste your time trying to bully them into NOT writing what the hell they want to. They're nor hurting anyone, and if it's hurting you, again. Don't interact. Don't follow. Block and blacklist. It's that simple.]

[catgirl-catboy]

This game is about Tsurugi and his adventure of coming out-

Yuki is a pov character to me more than a protagonist..

And I love three of them so much too, Dra characters are joyful to analyse.

We need more tragicness in Danganronpa, yes.. But you made me realise one thing while I talk about you dra. Kinji is really a semi chaotic entity act like a sane one while Tsurugi was a full blown chaotic entity, I really need them to hate kissing eachother.

And yes.. in thh it was a rule to not attack monokuma but in dra they took it or not I di not quite remember.. If Satsuki didn't stopped Haru we would see that

And now we must get into sdra2 cause sdra2 is even more things which mischaractarised a lot so my first question, what do you think about Syobai? I'm curious about that cause he was a key character in sdra2 lol

Holy shit??? A DANGANRONPA fan that understands the difference between a POV character and a protagonist??? Impossible! You are now like my favorite person.

Despite Tsurugi being basically the protag, he can't be the POV character because he has to seem hinged at first.

Yuki is secretly a chaotic entity that was the straightman of the entire fucking game. (in trope name only ofc, he's a bi king.)

Sometimes, its worth breaking a rule. That being said, one plothole that really bugs me that relates to Syobai?

"During nighttime, you are only allowed to sleep in your own room in the Monocruise. Sleeping in another room or outside of the room is against the rules."

I interpret this as only the first sentence applies specifically during nighttime, and the rest applies 24/7. Even if not, it was implied Syobai was asleep during the time Hibiki was accused during chapter 3, which depending on the timeline (trial ends @ midnight) could be nighttime. It takes 2 minutes to fall asleep and it was longer than that.

It shouldn't bug me, but it really does. I guess you can explain it as Mikado manipulated the rules to punish his least favorite and ignores his favorite breaking one.

As a character, I found him super entertaining. I really liked that there's a character that tried to murder someone within literal minutes. I also find him really fucking funny.

His design... bugs me. What the FUCK are his shoes?

[khaleesiofalicante]

"My mother did not mean to hate me, she did not even know she hated me, and yet I was hated. And I carried that hate with me through life with more pride than it perhaps deserved. A bruise of honor." -I lost the author but this made me think of lbaf for some reason

My fave inmortal trio🥰🥰 love me some Ragnor being grumpy and Catrina being lovely and Magnus having an inmortality crisis around the corner kshdjdbd

I'm actually surprised that Ragnor seems to be the most calmed one here....

Max, a warlock who now knew warlock math, would finally have a purpose. how do I explain this to you, babe😔

I didn't expect to be attacked with inmortality, death and angst this early but ok :)

Alec once again being the true legend for creating the Downwolder -Shadowhunter Alliance 😎

Max is not there, is he?

It took them less than a minute to find him – with the magic of tracking and pure parental terror. Omg that scene was so stressful but the way Rafael could call Magnus and both Alec and him going immediately is making me cry 🥺

Couldn't they just...idk, kick around the seashell and get it into the portal?? It's just a suggestion!!!

Magnus knew that look.

The look of a parent who had just realized their child was gone.

Too many lbaf II flashbacks 😭😭

Me @ Hunter after he found everything was real: you must be feeling really stupid right now huh??

Honest talk, I hate the Devlins, but it must suck that he finally sees what his son saw and finally believes him, but now Marcus is dead... Shit.

Camilla better wake up from that coma or I will lose my shit ISTG-

Then Gigi had gone home hoping to talk to Camila tomorrow.

Then tomorrow had come, but Camila had not.

You can't take aways this friendship!! Please😭

That is life in this bitch of an earth 😔

GIGI AND RAFEL. I WOULD KILL FOR THIS DUO. THEY ARE JUST EVERYTHING💙💙💙

The mystery is killing me!!

I trust this precious babe with my life. You got this!!! No pressure tho...

“I still can’t believe he is dead. I feel like he is just gonna pop tomorrow and say ‘surprise, bitches’ or something.” don't tempt the fates!!!

Other Max haunts me in my sleep too. I need even the tiniest of hints🥺🥺🥺

“You’d look fucking hot with gray hair,” she said. OMFG I literally said this 10 seconds ago dkvdkdjdk

Idk why i love the nickname guapa so much. And I love that you can also use it with friends (at least I do lol) and it's so cute and fun and- ok, ok. Getting away from the point jdhdkdk

Max really took "I love a challenge" to the next level😂😂

THE DAUGHTER IS NAMED AFTER CAMILLA, RIGHT? RIGHT??? THERE IS LITERALLY NO OTHER EXPLANATION!!!

“She is a good one, isn’t she? Good friends are important, Rafael. Because good friends become family.” STOP I HAVE A SOFT SPOT FOR FRIENDS BECOMING FAMILY TROPE😭😭

Arjun and Camilla. It has to be. It makes sense. Also Arjun is amazing 🥺🥺

“It’s a privilege to be someone’s namesake,” bapak smiled. “It means someone loves you and respects you enough to want more of you in their world.” This whole thing made me emo. I can't even mention my favorite part!!! It's not fair of you to give me Lightwood-Bane fam feels in this moment 😭😭

Mallory is crazy!! I mean we all know that already but still... This family is full with psychopath holy shit!!

Hunter, this is on you for not believing your son... Idris has nothing to do with it!!

Wait, Claire knows something 🤨

Wow.

Look at them. Finally coming together. Working as a family.

Yeah... I don't thinks that's particularly healthy....

WHAT THE EVERLOVING FUCK? WHY?? HOW?? WHAT?? SERIOUSLY LEVIATHAN???

I am stress 🙂 I better get to watch someone beat the power out of her (David👀) or I am suing!!!!

To say that I'm obsessed with that quote would be an understatement. It's so fucking on point.

Here is a song rec for you. You might know it but the live performance must be viewed for hoe reasons.

[astorythatwritesitself]

🍎🥭🍋🍈🍐 for the ask game for fic writers😉

🍎 Is there anything you straight-up won’t write?

In theory, yes - as much as I like darkfic & joke about treating my characters poorly, I'm not super comfortable delving into heavy dark subject matter myself. But, I don't necessarily rule anything out for the future.

🥭 Rank from most enjoyable/fun to write to least: Fluff, Smut, Angst, Crack.

Angst > Fluff >>>> Smut >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Crack (nothing against it, but good crackfic is fucking hard and I feel more confident in my near-nonexistent smut capabilities than it xD)

🍋 What’s your favorite spicier trope to write? 

Tension with like, 12-hour crock pot meal energy.

🍈 Who’s your blorbo and what are some of your favorite headcanons/ideas about them that repeatedly show up in your fics? Free pass to rant about blorbo opinions.

Shepard aside bc that's just Mandatory Blorbo, uh yeah I am Very Normal about Thane xD Personal headcanon is that he's an incredibly fucking unreliable narrator and dealing with about 5 different types of trauma processing/repression going on; absolutely buy that he's a tea fiend (seen that in a few other fics & was all 'yeah I'll incorperate that into my belief system'), bi Thane is real in my canon and look I may or may not slowly have been developing an entire lineage now for blorbo reasons-

🍐 Is there anything in canon that you absolutely hate and love to fix in fics? A wrong choice made, a fuck-up in characterization, a misunderstanding never cleared up, a conversation never shown onscreen, etc…

-gestures to his absolute gutting of Mass Effect 3 because holy shit so much wasted potential because they just didn't know wtf to do with the lizard bf-

The one that makes me the most genuinely mad though is 'goddamn it, we have this suave looking motherfucker y'all intentionally designed to Be Goregeous and we never got to see him in the fancy party infiltration?' I can excuse Thane dying, but I draw the line at such absolute wasted potential😂

[rodr1cks]

Heather Hills | 2.5k

part two

neighbor trope where you’re in love with Rodrick but he can’t stop pining after Heather Hills, takes place during Dog Days

warnings: noncon touching (our ass gets grabbed), swearing, smut, heather is a huge bitch

Tonight was the night. You picked out a black silk dress that hugged your body perfectly. You looked... nice? Nicer than usual, at least.

Still, your mood was melancholy, you weren’t too excited to watch Rodrick drool over Heather all night. Despite this, you put on a smile and met Rodrick outside.

His band members, Rowley, and Greg were crowded together in the back. They always left the passenger seat to you, such gentlemen. As soon as you opened the door you were bombarded with wolf whistles and crude remarks from his cronies. “Rodrick if you don’t tap that I will!” The guitarist exclaimed while eyeing you up and down.

“Guys, guys stop, please,” Rodrick seemed a little unnerved by the banter. After that, the van was silent all the way to the party.

Upon arrival, you began to unpack the van, unloading equipment. “Hey, hey, hey, pretty girl like you doesn’t need to do the heavy lifting,” the guitarist said to you as he winked. He always went out of his way to make you uncomfortable. You laughed a bit to appease him, then walked away.

Gross.

The band was set up and Rodrick was clearly nervous.

“You don’t understand, y/n. This has to be perfect.”

You knew the importance of this going well but you couldn’t decide if you wanted it to. On one hand, he could get Heather Hills, the girl of his dreams. On the other hand, he’d be crushed. Poor Rodrick has already taken enough beatings from the girls at your school.

“I know, you’ll be great, though,” you were unsure of that statement.

“You always know what to say.”

He walked away, ready to start the set of a lifetime.

The guitarist approached you again. “Wish me luck sexy,” he whispered and smacked your ass playfully. You gasped, tears threatening to form in your eyes.

Just brush it off, you’re okay. You need to enjoy the show.

You tried not to think about his pathetic little mustache and the giant pimple that sat squarely between his eyebrows.

Why did Rodrick hang out with such scum?

The first notes of the song rang through the tent. Rodrick was… singing? Heather Hills did not look amused. Panicking, Rodrick signaled to Greg, “FULL DIAPER!”

Dear god.

Banners unfurled and cannons sounded. It was a complete disaster. Somehow the chocolate fountain went haywire and coated half the crowd with liquid chocolate, including Heather. Shit. Rodrick was done for.

Everybody pitched in with loading the van and you were out of there in no time. You feared Heather would’ve killed the lot of you if you lingered any longer. Greg and Rowley were the only passengers this time. You and Rodrick were in the front seat, not speaking.

“Rodrick, can I tell you something?”

You knew Greg and Rowley were caught up in their own conversation but you didn’t want to risk them overhearing, so you whispered. Rodrick nodded.

“Your guitarist, h-he uhm, he kind of touched me before your set.” Rodrick’s eyes widened. “Where?” he asked you sternly. “He kind of grabbed my ass.” You looked down, embarrassed. “Great, now Heather hates me and I’m short a guitarist.”

On the way back to Rodrick’s, you passed a gas station and you asked him to pull over.

“Rodrick let me out at this gas station, pretty please!”

He groaned and pulled into the lot. You ran in and made a beeline for the fridges in the back.

Where is it, where is it, ah!

Mint chip and cookie dough, both your favorites. You checked out and ran back to the van. Rodrick looked over, delighted when he saw your purchases. “He ruffled your hair and muttered a thank you. You smiled, “And that’s not all,” you pulled out two candy bars for the chocolate coated fugitives in the back.

Rodrick parked on the street in front of The Heffley household.

“Alright, everybody out!”

Greg and Rowley filed out as did you. Rodrick stayed put. “Aren’t you coming?” He nodded at you, “I have something to take care of first. Put the ice cream in the freezer and take a shower. Get that chocolate off of you.” He gestured at your hair and face which were coated in chocolate.

What could he need to do right now? Probably off to find Heather Hills and beg for her highness’ forgiveness.

You did as he said and borrowed his shower for a bit. You felt instant relief as the warm water trickled down your shoulders, chocolate melting away along with your stress. After your shower, you grabbed one of Rodrick’s t-shirts.

Lending you a shirt was the least he could do, considering the hell he’d put you through.

What a fucking night it’s been.

You sat around for a bit, awaiting Rodrick’s return. You heard the door swing open downstairs. He walked up the stairs to his room, ice cream pints in hand. You smiled at him before your gaze lingered down to his knuckles.

“Holy shit, Rodrick. What the fuck did you do?”

He looked down, “Well you told me what my guitarist did to you and I- I couldn’t help it. He needed to know what he did was out of line.”

Your jaw dropped, “So you what? Broke his nose?” He rolled his eyes at your theatrics, “I’m sure it wasn’t that bad.” Had Rodrick really beat somebody up for you?

“So are we gonna eat this ice cream or what?”

You both sat on Rodricks couch, limbs entangled, eating your ice cream. He looked over at you, “Switch?” You shrugged, passing him your mint chip and grabbing his cookie dough. For the next half hour, you both sat in silence, processing the night’s events.

“Hey, I’m sorry about Heather.”

“Y’know, y/n, I realized something while I was performing. Heather Hills wasn’t by the stage cheering me on, Heather Hills doesn’t go out of her way to be kind to my family, Heather Hills wouldn’t look that good that tiny black bikini of yours,” Rodrick smirked, “and most importantly, Heather Hills didn’t buy me my favorite ice cream to make me feel better. Heather Hills doesn’t care for me like you do.”

You weren’t really processing everything. Was he hitting on you? Or flirting or… He cut your thoughts short by grabbing your waist and pulling you on top of him. “Woah what are you-“ He shushed you and grabbed your ice cream from your hand, setting it on the table.

Rodrick grabbed your hands, halting your mindless fiddling. “I’m sorry I didn’t realize how good you are to me earlier, y/n. I know that probably made you feel like dog shit.”

You let out a choked laugh. “Yeah, it did. But, you know now?” He placed one of his large hands on your cheek, using his thumb to stroke your face gently, “Yeah, pretty girl, I do.”

Pretty girl. Your stomach churned and your face turned bright red. Rodrick leaned in slowly and gently kissed you. His lips felt heavenly, they were soft and warm and better than you could’ve imagined. “God I’ve wanted to sink my teeth into you ever since I saw you in that little bathing suit.”

His voice was low and guttural, nothing like you’d heard before. This was a new Rodrick and you had no idea how to react, all you could do was sit there and stutter helplessly.

You could melt. Was this really happening? You had to check.

“Is this really happening?”

You felt him smile. He licked a stripe from your collarbone to your jaw, “You tell me.” You moaned quietly as his grasp on your waist tightened.

“How long have you wanted this, y/n? Wanted me?”

Your stomach clenched at his words, might as well tell the truth. “Since sophomore year. I-I went to one of your gigs and you didn’t see me” His hand moved to your breast and you sucked in a breath. “You looked so good on stage, I knew I wanted your hands all over me,” you managed to gasp out.

“I knew you were there,” he said matter-of-factly. You froze. “I told my mom, part of why she likes you so much, thinks you’re supportive of me or something.”

Is he serious, this is humiliating.

“I remember what you were wearing, too. A little red dress, you stood out. Never knew the neighbor girl cleaned up so nice until that night.”

He must’ve sensed your embarrassment, “Hey, it’s okay, no need to be shy.” You eased up a little bit, your hands finding his hair and gently pulling. “Atta girl.”

As things got more heated, he got more eager. At one point he looked up at you, silently asking for permission to remove your shirt. You nodded, laughing at him, “A gentleman, I see.” He made stern eye contact with you,

“I don’t have to be.”

He tore your (his) shirt over your head and stopped when he found you were wearing nothing underneath.

“Naughty, naughty girl.”

You wanted his shirt off too, along with everything else. You wanted to see him, feel him. You made quick work of removing his t-shirt and discarding it on the floor behind you.

You could feel his hard on through your panties and it was driving you insane. “Rodrick,” you panted, “I need you, please.”

The hand he was using to roll your nipple between his fingers moved to your clit and rubbed gentle circles over it. “Since you asked so nicely,” he grinned.

Your hand flew on top of his and he winced. “Oh shit, right, your hand! I’m so so-,” he flipped you onto your back and stood up from the couch. Your stomach dropped before you understood what he was doing. He fought with his belt for a moment before pulling it off and sliding his jeans and boxers off.

Christ he’s big.

He resumed his position on the couch and began stroking his cock while hovering above you. He leaned down to kiss your collar bone sweetly.

You muttered one last plea before he positioned himself in front of you.

“Are you ready for me, pretty girl?”

God there he goes again.

You arched your back up in response, letting out a small sigh of desperation. This was all so new, you had no idea Rodrick could be so… well spoken?

Rodrick took a deep breath as he bottomed out. The air was knocked out of your lungs. Fucking Christ. He split you in half with ease, groaning as he rolled his hips against you.

“R-Rodrick?” He muttered something indistinct in response. “Is this your first time?” He looked kind of embarrassed. “Yeah, uh, it is, yes.” Part of you was happy it was his first time. The other part of you felt bad for him. You knew that if girls would’ve just given him a chance, they’d see how incredible he was-

You were torn from your thoughts by Rodrick pulling out and slamming back into your willing body. You nearly screamed. He continued at an absolutely brutal pace.

“Jesus christ, Rodrick, never knew you could do this,” you gasped out, eyes rolling back.

He smirked down at you before pulling out, grabbing your hips, and flipping you over onto your hands and knees. Your head was pressed sideways against the arm of the couch but you didn’t care. Rodrick quickly got back to work, fucking you to the beginnings of your orgasm.

“Rodrick, I’m gonna-“ He grabbed your hair and yanked hard so your back was against his chest,

“Cum on my cock.”

That was all it took, you were gone, shaking and pulsing around him.

After a few more strokes, Rodrick was gone, too. He was grabbing your ass and grinding his hips against you as he finished.

Gently, he pulled out. He rubbed a hand over your ass and admired your raw, red skin.

You rolled back over, panting. “My god, y/n, how did I live without this for so long?” You smiled lazily at the ceiling. He kissed you, clearly spent. You both sat on his couch, heavy panting filling the room.

Rodrick looked over at you, “Ice cream?” He stuck the cup filled with melted sludge in your direction. You put your hand up in protest, “No thank you.” He shrugged, “More for me.” Roderick slurped the melted treat from his spoon. You couldn’t help but laugh at him.

God, Heather would despise this man.

“You know Heather slapped Rowley, right?”

“What? no way?” Rodrick laughed.

“She sure did. Don’t worry though, Rowley got to eat chocolate off of Madison.”

You both spent a moment laughing to yourselves.

You were absolutely satisfied, you could’ve fallen asleep right then and there, on Rodrick’s ratty couch.

“Let’s get you to bed y/n.”

“But I don’t wanna go home, Rodrick!” You whined.

“Who said anything about you going home?”

“Y/n, Mom’s at a writing seminar with Manny and Dad’s at some civil war retreat thing.”

Was he inviting you to stay the night? “Call your mom, tell her you’re with your friend… uh… Heather.”

Giggling, you did just that. “Wait a minute, your parents left you alone with Greg?” He swatted at you playfully, giving you a goofy glare.

Rodrick stood up and offered out his hand. You decided to be cocky and deny his help. In your attempt to stand up, you stumbled, nearly eating shit.

“Woah, woah, easy there tiger,” Rodrick said snarkily, grabbing your waist before you hit the ground. You hadn’t expected to be so unstable.

“Alright, do you want my shirt back, gorgeous?” You nodded sleepily.

He grabbed the previously discarded shirt from the ground and slipped it over your head. He then pushed your hair out of your face and placed a gentle kiss onto your forehead.

Rodrick led you over to his bed. It was a twin but you guys would make it work.

He disappeared for a moment and came back with a rag. “C’mere sweetheart. You turned to face him slowly as he sat down on the bed. He began tenderly wiping between your thighs.

“Look at you, so beautiful,” he mused. Out of instinct, you looked away from him. “I mean it, y/n.”

He climbed into bed with you, his lanky limbs making comfort difficult.

“There we go,” he sighed after you both finally found a comfortable position. You closed your eyes and Rodrick began tracing lines over your lightly clothed back. You could hear the summer rain pattering against his window and you sighed out, completely satisfied.

Nearly asleep, you noticed something in the corner of Rodrick’s room. His black and white one star’s with tire marks plastered over them. You rolled your eyes and laughed to yourself.

Heather fucking Hills.

+ literally don’t even speak to me about the grammar or the poorly written smut. act like you do not see it ty. and please send me rq’s!!

[carito-dorito]

TAB2 spoilers because I finished the second season in a day and I lost control of my life

this post has tons of tiger and bunny 2 spoilers but holy shit i need to talk about this and I wanna scream so you're warned

Nathan has one of the best nonbinary and black rep in an anime (specially as the whole show it's a mockery of superhero films and we know the antisjwdudebros hate that because it's "f0rCEd rEprEsenTation!!!1!" and (from what I've heard in the dub Nathan uses she/they pronouns) so SHE NEEDS SOMEONE WHO CAN LOVE THEM BC OF WHO THEY ARE AAAAA

I'm so bitter at the writers tho, they def need to make Keith+Nathan a thing or im gonna riot

Making Agnes gain weight was such a nice touch, even tho she got teased twice about her weight in the first episode she still FUCKING RULES and people still respect and treat her like a human being. fr i stfg i haven't seen nice fat rep in anime in YEARS

ryan and karina are the ultimate himbo+bimbo duo change my mind

i wish i liked ryan more, he's kind of fun but eh he's my least favorite character tbh

thomas is autistic, he openly stims and has comfort/safe foods meanwhile subaru is an adhdr, the ultimate adhd+autism duo!

tomboy paolin!!

tomboy+girly girlfriends trope is so good aaaAAAA

Kaede is adorable AAaAAaaa tho I wanna see more of her friend bc she struggled so much (i didnt get what was her ability tho, skin expansion? she is still no matter what one of my adopted children

WEEB MADS MIKKELSEN WEEB MADS MIKKELSEN WEEB MADS MIKKELSEN (i got his name confused sorry-)

mugan and fugan, my beloveds

for some reason i think these two listen to mitski

even tho we didn't get any lunatic scenes you feel so goddamn tense when you see yuri/lunatic be the new director

Ivan still visiting his friend and keeping in touch with him (also his name origin story, OW)

btw him and agnes are my fav and i have to say they are smexy and only i ship them bc THEY'RE HOT (literally too lol)

AT THIS POINT I WAS SOBBING WHY WHY WHY

PaoLin and Lara holding hands at the last episode: lET'S GO LESBIANS LET'S GOOOOOOO

THE TINY CAT NOTE OMFG I GIGGLED SO HARD AAAAAA OTP

unpopular opinion but antonio needed and still needs more screentime

also the drug thing has tons of good plot potential, i wonder if kotetsu would be forced to take it as he is losing his powers and barnaby is not going to be there all the time

Mattia is a fucking sweetheart but why does he look like the redhead guy from SquidGame .-.

[valkyrieandstrangeridingaragorn]

I was surprised to see a LOT (and I do mean a lot) of similarities between Rebecca Sugar's writing in Steven Universe and Michael's writing in Loki. The way they both romanticize abusive relationships and not realize how fucking dark it actually is is quite scary as well as the fact that both "writers" (using the term loosely given Rebecca is a mediocre artist and Michael didn't even pass a creative writing course or English Lit) had also said "Look how sad these Nazis are!" But both creators are blissfully unaware that they've done this nasty shit.

Lily Orchid did a very in depth analysis critiquing Sugar's work that I suggest giving a watch, and I am sure she'd more than pissed at the Loki series if she ever watches that cluster fuck of an offensive TV show (hope to God she doesn't cuz holy fuck is it bad)

The Time Variance Authority=The Diamond Authority

L*pidot=S*lki (Lapis and Sylvie are both the abusers being painted as the good guys and that their relationships are loving and healthy🙄, and Peridot and Loki [both fan favorites] being victims of their abusers [works out more in Peris favor than Loki as fans are quick to turn on him but gush over Sylvie)

Rose/Pink Diamond x Pearl (don't know what the ship name is, but it is toxic as all fuck)=L*kius (slave x master painted as best friends and/or unrequited love trope)

I haven't seen it but I'll trust your word for it.

I feel Waldron's biggest mistakes is that he believes romance and self-love are the same thing and also that once a character is deemed a villain they deserve some form of punishment or abuse in order to grow and become better. He doesn't seem aware that humiliation or beatings are not lessons to be learned and nothing good comes out of it.

He romanticizes abusive relationships and hurtful behaviours but only when it's the women acting like that towards the men.

It's quite jarring to have the female character neg the male character: you're this and you're that and you make mistakes and you're wrong and I deserve better than you and go ahead and cry a little as I say hurtful things to you and leave with a smile on my face. I hate it. Stephen and Christine had come to an agreement in DS1, they both moved on and there was so much maturity in that... only to have it completely obliterated in DS2 where he's pining for her almost obsessively and she tells him she never loved him? The hell? 😳

It's even worse in the Loki series, Sylvie has a lot of issues she needs to address but the narrative treats her like a saint while they paint Loki as inferior and useless and bad even though he doesn't do anything villainous in the series, if anything he's the most heroic of all the characters.

And yeah that part about the nazis... they were following orders, right? It's absolutely wild but I also believe at least Mikey is not aware which to be honest with you I don't know if that makes it better or worse 🤔

[sleeping-lilies]

robin era jason, dick, and babs headcanons because there’s too much comedic potential to ignore

- dick and babs were the ultimate gossip buddies. whenever dick was with the titans for long periods of time, babs always filled him in on everything

babs: dick you’ll never believe what hal said to bruce last night, i even have videos. dick, the look on his face please—

dick, immediately locking doors so his teammates don’t hear the mad shit about to be dropped on main: tell me everything

- vice versa too, dick filled babs in on everything going on with the titans and all they can say is thank god those lines are bat secured with no villains being able to listen in, imagine deathstroke hearing through bat gossip that joey’s dating who?!?! 😳

- batkids have been and always will be the holder of superhero gossip. it’s a business, you see, but we’re getting off topic 😡

- lmfao anyways this is literally how dick finds out about jason

babs: anyways, jason—

dick: who the fuck is jason

babs: ....

dick: barbara?!?!

babs: ok promise you won’t freak out

- babs and dick’s first reaction upon meeting jason being “why is he so small i wasnt that small” “dick you were literally nine when you were robin—“ “he’s tiny” it’s like those two share the same braincell

- i’m making it so that dick gave jason his number earlier because i feel like it 😡😡😡 (not that it changes much other than the fact that i want more gossip dropped in dm’s)

- when dick gave jason his number, he went to babs like “give me jason’s number” “didn’t you literally just give him your’s?” “ya but i’m gonna make sure he texts me” “ya ok that’s fair”

- whenever jason didn’t want to be in the manor (fight with bruce, boredom, etc) he went to wherever the fuck babs lived and they would facetime dick and talk mad shit. it was a thing.

- despite them all being able to drive, babs was the only one during this time with an actual, legitimate, legal license (jason was too young to have a license and dick is too lazy/busy/whatever-excuse-he-wants-to-use to take the permit and driving test) so babs drove them around everywhere and it was a mess™ consisting of a bunch of backseat drivers

- “dick omg look at this video i found from the batcave” “omg he said robin gives him magic” “robin gives him magic” they both cry about it for years to come

- babs sometimes kidnapped jason after school after telling the head of wayne manor (alfred) and took him to get ice cream, then to the library while she worked. jason was the greatest kid in the library, he even had his own throne special chair just for him whenever he came provided by library staff who adored this absolute angel.

- jason 🤝 babs 🤝 dick -> i believe in annoying yet endearing nicknames supremacy

- nicknames include (some used by some more than others or just one, or by both equally because they’re annoying pick and choose my good people)

little wing (iconic, we all know this one fellas and who uses it)

red (used for babs, absolutely fantastic, but in the future it gets confusing because some people with their goddamn hero names 😡)

boy wonder (classic, babs calls them both that)

barbie (for babs, jason uses this one and he’s the only one able to get away with it)

dickie (jason just really gets away with everything huh)

dickhead (jason’s lucky he’s cute)

baba black sheep (jeez i’m on a roll with babs’ nicknames she’s so nickname-able and that’s very cool and sexy of her)

jay z

jay allen

jay jay jay (shut up, dickhead—)

big bird

and a bunch more i’m too tired to look for them in canon or make new ones up, but you get the idea

- dick can totally bake, and babs and jason keep bugging him when he’s baking and add more chocolate chips while pretending to not notice that he can see them 😡😡😡

- headcanon that jason had hero worship for babs and dick because they’re so cool in and out of costume and it never really went away when he got older listen his older brother and pseudo sister are so cool and that’s not his fault but he’ll never admit it

- barbie movie marathons because barbie is an iconic legend and they all recognize it. they have the fucking “she’s the queen of the WA-A-A-AVES” song memorized along with all other barbie movie songs, they sing it on patrol.

- dick and jason’s sibling dynamic was and is basically “ur a little shit and i hate you but i will literally kill for you”

- dick had tension with bruce while jason was just a little shit who would totally cause drama for the sake of it, and people never take advantage of this absolute power duo for destroying bruce

- dick sending cryptid texts to jason through a burner phone because he’s dramatic jason totally knew it was him about things that drive bruce mad, like leaving the shower turned to the coldest setting before bruce got there, leaving the lights in the batcave on, etc. jason, a wise little child, totally took advantage of this. bruce came to accept his fate

- the gc names, guys the group chat names

- jason crashing into titans tower whenever he wants and dick doesn’t bat (hAH) an eye, occasionally he very sweetly asks babs to come with him and she agrees but only sometimes because some people have jobs, jason—wait dick is being flirted with by who?!?! i’ll leave it up to your imagination ;) and they totally crashed titans missions too

- one time bruce was busy with the league while alfred was on vacation and bruce absolutely could not dip (i’m imagining bruce getting a call from the headmaster during an honest to god fight and bruce just picking up while punching the daylights out of some asshole) (“mr wayne, what is that noise in the background?” “sorry, headmaster, the cat is having a seizure”), so when jason got into a “fight” (read: some jackass picking on jason before he snapped and yelled at him and the bitchass kid tried to punch him and jason’s no quitter) bruce called dick who was an adult and legally family (yes dick is adopted sometime after jason was, stay mad) like “son... son please” and dick was like “oh no need to plead with me, this is too good” but of course this bitchass doesn’t have an actual lisence yet and he was hanging out with babs anyways so he and babs rolled up to gotham academy and the kids stared at them like “holy shit they’re so cool” ya dick and babs are those power couple, whether romantic or not, that turn heads, they’re just that powerful strolled into the office, bailed jason out while intimidating the headmaster because the altercation was the result of school staff negligence of actual bullying like those cliche tropes, said “ayyy you got that brat good” and get him chili dogs or whatever the fandom made robin jason’s favorite food. omg i just made an entire fanfic in rough draft form someone please steal it and write it in full form and send me the link

- jason is very very tiny, you see. babs and dick pick him up and move him for any reason, whether because they want to sit on that chair or to just throw him out of harm’s way and take the bullet for themselves.

- jason and dick both get adorable blushes on their faces it’s genetic yes that’s how genetics work shut up meanwhile babs’ ears turn red when she’s embarrassed and all three of them clown each other for it

- i yelled about this to my mutual (cough cough @littlespaceboii) who also added to this absolute dogshit headcanon and then in the discord full of mutuals, but the basement of wayne manor is haunted. dick found it when he was a little gremlin (i stand by that dick was the original demon child) (“you see damian, before there was you there was me” the real reason he was good with damian lmfao) and was like “omg this is so cool” @littlespaceboii came up with that it was just alfred fucking with bruce and so when jason first came and dick was comfy around him he was like “so have you been in the basement” and jason was like “im literally robin i’ve been in the batcave?!?!” and dick goes “no the basement, the haunted one” and jason’s like “hAUNTED?!?!” cuz jason has at least some self preservations and knows not to fuck with the spookies until he too became a spooky and bruce was like “there’s no ghost it’s not haunted” because he’s a skeptic and a party pooper and babs is like “no go on let him finish” even though she knows full well there are no ghosts or does she? and uhhhh basically they becomes ghostbusters 2.0 but cooler and funnier

- this trio is basically baby pan/bisexual jason and two resident expert pan/bisexuals solidarity but that’s literally canon. they go to pride every year that jason’s alive what who said that?

- they all tease each other for their crushes like all siblings/family friends do, i don’t need to say it but it’s important that’s emphasized for my well being

- yelled about this in the discord to the mutuals who added onto this absolute train wreck too, but jason used to play baseball during his robin days, and dick never showed up to those games with being busy as an excuse, but babs always showed up with bruce and alfred and took pictures for dick so dick could be like “mlb players are jobless now that little wing is on the scene” babs (and sometimes bruce) always shouted loudest for jason whether he was in the field or in the dugout and jason would get this extremely adorable blush on his face (jason finds out in the future why dick never showed up (cough cough ptsd from two face’s massive baseball bat which led to everything that came after including being fired and veangance academy and nearly killing two face and omg that’s a ride) and is like oh my god my childhood is even more ruined—)

- remember when i said dick got adopted after jason did in this new absolutely fabulous canon i just created? bruce did that because “ahhh fuck that’s my kid and i want him to know i love him through every means possible since i have the ability to do so” i believe in good dad bruce supremacy and made a whole thing where he invited dick to dinner for like a week to work up the courage and bonding to ask him and show him the adoption papers and then everyone cried :) bruce decided to finally adopt dick after jason referred to dick as his brother and bruce was like “...oh” and alfred was like 👀

- dick, as the first child hero and one of the first heroes period like at least a year or two before babs, holds the “back in my day” card over literally everyone in the hero community in general and pulls it out to annoy babs and jason even tho babs literally joined the scene only a year or two after dick

jason, shaking in his panties: it’s so fucking cold

dick, standing strong in his tits out outfit, who had to wear the panties on his own decision: oh, you’re cold? back in my day—

babs, throwing her boot at his face: god shut the fuck up—

and then dick doesn’t give back her boot and it becomes a whole thing with lots of tackling and play fighting and someone nearly gets thrown off they rooftop for funsies but anyways

also on a side note, babs would take off her cape and wrap it around jason whenever she noticed his discomfort with the weather, or use the weather as an excuse whenever she saw him uneasy for whatever reason and they never mention it to each other

- yelled about this in the discord to the mutuals at some point too holy shit i have friends, but those three are team rocket. they went out as team rocket for halloween one year after bullying bruce to let jason out only jason because he can’t tell dick and babs what to do and jason is under his care and when they do convince him, dick and babs bully jason into being meowth. manifesting jason in a meowth onesie ARTISTS PLEASE—

- dick finally took his license seriously and took his driver’s test after babs became paralyzed.

- those were a rough few months for those three. and then another rough few months for those two

- yikes, sorry to throw angst at you (sorry (unfeeling)) anyways, in the future alfred finds those old photos and shows the rest of the fam, so dick and babs bully jason, 6’2 jason that towers way above both of them, and once again bullies him into being meowth “for tradition, little wing!” “shut up, dickhead” the rest of the batkids lose their shit over this, naturally. bruce and alfred stand in the back teary eyed reminiscing the old days when things were a little more simple.

- discowing walked so terrifying handsome squidward red hood helmet could run (even tho the ugly helmet tripped and fell and missed the mark because discowing wasn’t ugly and will always remain superior, i feel i have committed a terrible crime comparing the two)

dick: jason what the fuck is that

jason: it’s fashion

dick: it’s terrifying

jason: i’m only following in my older brother’s footsteps 😔

dick: listen here, you little shit strangles him haha just kidding that illegal wait theyre vigilantes they don’t follow the law—

- these three and cass refer to the rest of the batkids as “the kids” (if she’s older than jason, sometimes she is and sometimes she isn’t and i’m really confused but whatever)

- babs and dick’s relationship with jason pre death literally shaped how jason treats his siblings post pit madness like he literally goes “what would red and big bird do?!??” when he needs to go into big brother mode over the “little ones” (“little” because tim and steph are adults and duke is nearly an adult himself oh my god he’ll graduate from high school soon and jason never got to do that himself he’s totally going to the ceremony legally dead or not) 🥺

- holy trinity continue hanging out with each other, whether lunch or games or whatever, and just enjoy each other’s company after long, rough years

[lesbianrobin]

What do you think are the good and bad aspects of each season of ST?

ok 1. thank u for this question omg and 2. this answer may or may not be a mess, but either way it’s long (almost 7k words lmao) bc i’m insane, which is why it’s under a cut. it’s still by no means an exhaustive list but these are the things that just kinda came to mind.

also i realize you asked “good and bad” and i wrote this whole post as “strengths and weaknesses” which um. is not Exactly what you asked. but close enough <3 i also ended up including a lot of au ideas ksjdckmn bc like i personally hate when people say a certain plot or whatever was bad without suggesting anything that could have improved it yknow so whenever possible i tried to provide Some idea for fixing the issues i had with the show!!

season 1

strengths (this is probably gonna be the longest section but that’s because a lot of these strengths also apply to s2/s3 by default)

nostalgia and authenticity

this one’s pretty simple, but i think that season one did a good job of blending classic eighties media homages (such as the many many e.t./el parallels) with explicit pop culture references (such as mike’s yoda impression, mentions of the x-men, etc) to create a show that’s essentially dripping in early eighties nostalgia without it feeling too forced. before st, i think the most popular depiction of the eighties in mainstream media was that overly exaggerated neon scrunchie aesthetic from the mid to late eighties, and it was usually done in a comedic sense first and foremost. st took a different approach, instead focusing on the early eighties, a time that’s often ignored in favor of going either Full Seventies or Full Eighties, and i think that this choice likely resonated with adults who lived through the eighties and hadn’t yet seen something that felt quite so accurate to their own adolescence. a lot of young people who watched st were totally unfamiliar with this period of time, unfamiliar with books/movies like “stand by me” that st borrows from heavily, and i think st lent more seriousness to the eighties than most young people had experienced so far, and this was refreshing and interesting!

the use of dnd in the show is also quite genius in a way i’m not sure i can articulate?? it isn’t something Everyone would have played at the time, but it’s something that existed within a different context back in the eighties than it does today, and it really lent a sort of authenticity to the naming of the show’s sci-fi elements. like, of course these kids would name parallel dimensions and monsters and superpowers after these similar things in their favorite game! it just feels so real and it grounds st in our reality moreso than you might expect from the typical sci-fi or horror universe.

utilization of existing tropes

almost every single character in st clearly originates from some popular trope. the plot itself is riddled with classic eighties movie tropes. almost every single element of stranger things can be clearly traced back to some iconic eighties film or just to, like, overused horror/sci-fi/mystery/coming-of-age movie tropes in general. this might sound like a bad thing, but it really works in st’s favor! starting off with familiar tropes gives st the ability to easily create a lot of complexity and make a big impact by selectively deviating from those familiar, comfortable tropes!! while el’s whole plot, hopper’s character, etc, are all examples of this in action, i think the steve/nancy/jonathan plot is the greatest example. even from the start, the fact that good girl barb dies while nancy is off having sex with her asshole boyfriend is an incredibly thorough inversion of the most well-known horror movie trope in the book. how often do girls in horror movies have sex for the first time, walk home alone in the dark of night, and live to tell the tale? nancy and jonathan’s dynamic at first glance is a sort of classic “good girl meets boy from the wrong side of the tracks, discovers he’s actually got a heart of gold” thing, but instead of following this well-trodden path, st diverged. nancy is brash, impulsive, and at times downright insensitive. jonathan is angry, bitter, and actually a bit of a creep at first. while they have the capacity to emotionally connect and support one another, they can also bring out each other’s darker side, which is not what we’ve come to expect from that initial tropey dynamic.

in addition, steve, the popular rich asshole boyfriend, is actually... a human being! unlike the cartoonishly evil jocks that we’ve come to expect (especially from eighties movies), steve has complexity. despite his initial immaturity and selfishness, he’s also kind to barb, he backs off when nancy says no, he’s gentle and sweet when they sleep together, his first big Dick Move of the season is in defense of nancy, he realizes the error of his ways after the fight and does what he can to fix it, he’s worried about nancy when he sees that she’s hurt at jonathan’s house, and to top it all off, he ends up saving both nancy and jonathan’s lives when he could have just walked away, and the three of them all work together to fight the demogorgon. like... steve began as the most stereotypical character of all time, and by the end of the season, he had one of the most compelling and unique arcs among the whole cast!

finally, at the very end of the season, instead of dumping steve for jonathan as expected, nancy ends up getting back together with steve, and they’re both on friendly terms with jonathan. i realize that i just kinda. summarized s1. but my POINT is that i don’t think the dynamics between the monster hunting trio would be nearly as fun and interesting had the characters of nancy, steve, and jonathan not been set up to follow certain paths that we already had charted in our own heads. like, within the first couple episodes of s1, it’s pretty obvious that nancy and steve are gonna break up, nancy will get with jonathan, and steve will either die or go full evil or just never be seen again. like, duh! you’ve seen this story a million times! you know that’s how it’s gonna go! so, when the story DOESN’T go that way, the impact of each character’s arc and the relationship dynamics become stronger due to their unexpected complexity and authenticity. 

distinct plotlines separated by age group

this one’s rather obvious, but the way that the adults in s1 were essentially in a conspiracy thriller while the teens were in a horror flick and the kids were in a sci fi power-of-friendship story and all three converged at the end... wow. brilliant showstopping etc. not only was it just really well done and unique, it also gave stranger things near-universal appeal. like, there’s genuinely something for pretty much everyone in season one!

casting

obviously this applies to every season sorta by default, but when i think about what made season one So successful, i always think about the cast, and not just winona ryder. yes, she’s absolutely amazing in the show and it’s very doubtful that st would be as big as it is today without her name being attached to it from the start!! however, i think the greatest determining factor in st’s success is the casting of the kids, particularly millie bobby brown. like... el is just absolutely incredible. she’s amazing. this has all been said many times before so i won’t harp on it, but millie and the other kids are all So talented and charismatic and i think their casting has been instrumental to the show’s success.

strong visuals

the way that multicolored christmas lights which have been around for decades are now kinda like. a Stranger Things thing. jesus christ. those lights are probably the biggest stroke of stylistic genius on the show.

atmosphere and setting

this is probably like. the least important one here for me sdjncdsc because i think s2 and s3 both had like Even Better atmospheres and shit but s1 was good too and it laid the groundwork!! i know a lot of people would have preferred st be set somewhere more Spooky with lots of fog or giant forests or whatnot, and while i do enjoy thinking about alternate st settings and how they might alter the vibe, i think hawkins indiana was a good choice. as the duffers have said, placing stranger things in a fictional town allows them more flexibility than if they’d gone with their original plan of using montauk, new york. besides that, i think the plainness and like... flatness... of small-town indiana just Works. like, the fact that hawkins is never really scary on the surface is a big part of the horror in the lab’s actions and their impact. hawkins isn’t somewhere that people just disappear all the time. it isn’t somewhere known for strange occurrences (prior to s1, that is). it isn’t somewhere shrouded in mist and secrecy. hawkins on its surface seems like the sort of place with no secrets and nothing to fear, and that’s the point! the lab is out in the open! it’s right there! everything is so close to the surface, yet so far out of the public eye, and i think that really works.

the byers family’s whole deal (specifically the joyce/jonathan dynamic)

this is going here bc i miss it so bad in s2 and s3. i’m not one of those people who believe The Byers Are The Whole Point of the show, because st is and always has been an ensemble, and el, hopper, and the wheelers are just as instrumental to the plot as the byers, but ANYWAY, i do think the byers were one of the most interesting aspects of s1. joyce’s difficulties with supporting her sons as a poor and (implied mentally ill) single mother, jonathan’s stress as a result of having to earn money, care for his brother, and keep the house in order when his mother is unable to do so, and the resulting tension between them when will’s disappearance and supposed “death” brings the situation to a tipping point? holy shit! it’s so good! that argument after they see will’s “body” is just incredible and gut-wrenching. their relationship feels so real and messy and i think it’s just... good. also winona ryder REALLY acted her heart out and she carried a lot of s1 which i think people often forget to mention so i’m saying it here.

weaknesses

pacing/timing

ok so pacing is probably going to go in each season’s weaknesses, to be honest, because i think they all had a blend of some good and some bad pacing. good pacing is invisible pacing, though, so i probably won’t be putting it in any of the strengths sections and will only be focusing on it in the weaknesses. i’m also probably not going to talk about weird day/night cycle things, just because i don’t want to get nitpicky on timelines because that would require going back and rewatching things to double check timing which i don’t wanna do at the moment lmao. anyway, when i think of bad pacing in season one, i primarily think of two things: nancy’s little trip into the upside down and subsequent sleepover with jonathan, and the sort of staggered nature of the climax in the final episode. the latter is simple so i’ll explain it first: while i understand that each group’s respective climax is like part of a chain reaction and that’s why each big moment happens separately and at different times, i think that st is strongest when the whole group is together, and i think that makes the stakes feel higher too, so i’m not In Love with the way s1 separated everyone and gave each group their own climax. 

okay, now on to the nancy/upside down thing! idk if i’ve ever talked about it before, but i think the worst decision made in s1 by far is the inclusion of nancy’s brief trip into the upside down, wherein she dives headfirst into another dimension with absolutely no backup, watches the demogorgon chow down, freaks out and runs around for a minute, and then leaves. like... what the fuck? even putting aside what an idiotic decision this was (because i do think nancy’s tendency to rush into things headfirst is an intentional and consistent character trait), it just kind of destroys any remaining suspense surrounding the demogorgon and the upside down, and it accomplishes basically nothing besides scaring nancy enough to have jonathan sleep over, which is lame. i will break it down.

like, first of all, nancy just getting to waltz in and out of the upside down and get a good, long look at the demogorgon makes the entire thing far less mysterious, and by extension far less scary. like... before this scene, we the audience haven’t got a good look at the demogorgon. we’ve seen its silhouette briefly and we’ve seen a blurry picture of it, but nothing more, and i think that is far more effective at building fear than this jaunt nancy goes on which gives us a full view of the thing and makes it into less of a horrifying nightmare and into more of a humanoid animal. like, maybe this is just me, but i found the demogorgon far less intimidating after that scene than before. it also lets nancy and jonathan know For Sure that they’re right without providing any crucial information that they need to fight the demogorgon (aka it’s unnecessary to the plot), which removes a very compelling story element (the faith nancy and jonathan need to have in order to keep going against a vague and poorly understood enemy, the doubt they might have about each other and their own sanity, the possibility that they might be wrong, the trust they need to have in each other) a bit earlier in the plot than i believe is ideal. at the end of episode 5, nancy goes into the upside down and jonathan doesn’t know where she is and it’s intense!!! you’re thinking like, oh fuck, not only is nancy missing and fighting for her life now too, jonathan might be implicated in her disappearance!! some people already think he’s the one who killed will and people know that he took creepy pictures of barb and nancy before they both disappeared, maybe this is gonna cause some serious problems for him!! maybe nancy will find will in the upside down and she’ll help him survive!! fuck, maybe she’ll actually die!! this is huge!! and then episode 6 starts and they’re immediately like oh nevermind jonathan found the tree and got nancy out and she’s fine. my point with all of this is that nancy entering the upside down could have done A Lot in the grand scheme of the plot, but all it did was just... get jonathan to sleep over so he and nancy could have some awkward romance moments and steve could see them together and pick a fight. which could have honestly happened at Any point while nancy and jonathan were working together to hunt down the demogorgon, without ruining the demogorgon’s and the upside down’s mystique. so yeah <3

weird behavior and dumbass decisions that make no sense (aka the whole camera thing)

gonna go off about the teen plot again sorry but: why was nancy so unbothered and quick to forgive jonathan for taking those pictures? girl what the fuck are you doing? why wasn’t that a bigger deal? why was jonathan’s motivation for doing it so weak and why did they just kind of forget about the whole thing? why did nancy TRACK HIM DOWN AT THE FUNERAL HOME while he was PICKING OUT HIS BABY BROTHER’S CASKET to be like hey can you tell me what’s in this creepshot you took? it’s insane. it’s so insane. i mean i think the funeral home thing is hilarious and i don’t mind it being in the show necessarily but like my point here is that i think a lot of character decisions in s1 just kind of.. happened because they Needed to happen for the plot. like, they wrote this plot that required jonathan to be secretly taking pictures of the party and required him and nancy to work together after seeing something odd in the pictures, but they didn’t like... really consider what that event would mean for their characterization and relationship. the whole thing was sort of just dropped with minimal discussion and i think it did both nancy and jonathan’s characters a disservice and was really mishandled.

lighting and saturation/color grading

i am literally begging horror/sci-fi shows to let me see shit. i GET IT okay i understand that when you’re doing cgi effects it helps to keep the lights down and i’m not mad at any of the lighting in the demogorgon/upside down scenes!! i’m really not i think the demogorgon scenes in s1 all look sick!! but like... dude. the colors. where are they. why does everyone look like a vampire. i know blah blah this was probably an intentional stylistic choice intended to mimic film at the time blah blah but dude a lot of old movies are very colorful!! please just let people have color in their faces so everyone doesn’t look like a sheet of paper!!! also i’m white and not a professional lighting designer so yknow grain of salt but i think lucas was kinda poorly served by the lighting sometimes in s1. not Hugely so, not to the degree that i’ve seen poc be poorly served by lighting in other shows, but there were some times where it felt kinda like the lighting setup was just not designed with darker skin in mind. 

horror

i just personally don’t find s1 very scary like... ever. i don’t think they were really Trying to be extremely scary yknow so i’m not counting this as a big deal, but i do think that each season has improved on the horror aspects. i think s1′s horror lies more in the mystery and the unknown than in what’s seen onscreen, and as i’ve said already, i think s1 kind of fumbled that suspense ball.

season 2

strengths

the possession plot

i’ll warn u rn this whole s2 strengths section is probably gonna be really short bc idk like. how much there is to really say i feel like it’s all so self-explanatory skjncmn. anyway yeah the possession plot!! eerie as fuck, and noah OWNED. so did winona tbh and finn and sean etc but like. noah. wow! i think the possession plot helped the show maintain a good amount of tension and suspense throughout the season, and a lot of scenes with possessed!will are flatout disturbing to watch. in a good way. i think the mindflayer and will’s possession were far more genuinely frightening than s1′s demogorgon, and it provided a new layer of depth and intrigue to the antagonist besides just “bad monster want eat people.”

tone and aesthetics

halloween season... literally halloween season. halloween season. that is all.

actually i will elaborate a bit and just say that i think s2 did a good job of having the sort of foreboding vibe that s1 was often going for, but without the annoying darkness and desaturation. so points for that.

also st2 is like one of the best Autumn pieces of media ever like it just. like steve and dustin on those train tracks with the fallen leaves all around them.... god. god the vibes are unparalleled. all of the halloween stuff also really contributes to the nostalgia st runs on yknow it makes you think about childhood and trick-or-treating and you kind of get transported like damn... i remember going to the rich neighborhoods to score the good candy..... idk i just think the whole thing is incredibly effective. 

“babysitter” steve

by sending nancy and jonathan off together, the show created a problem: what to do with steve? this problem pushed them to create the unconventional and unexpected duo of steve and dustin, and the world is so much brighter for it. seriously though we all know steve and dustin are great i don’t need to argue that point. all i’ll add is that i think allowing steve to grow in this way, serving as a mentor figure and becoming genuine friends with someone so unexpected, really took the originality of his character to the next level. no longer content just to defy his archetype, in s2 steve begins branching out in ways that never would have been considered in s1, creating an incredibly complex and interesting person from the sort of character that most shows would have simply written out or killed off for convenience’s sake. and it works and steve and dustin are such a joy to watch and i love them. <3

the lucas/max plot

so first of all max mayfield is the most perfect baby girl on god’s green earth and idk what i would do without her but anyway. i think lumax is the best romantic relationship in the show and not just because they’re the only ones with like an age-appropriate approach to the whole thing. it’s also because their relationship accomplishes more than just putting the two of them in a relationship!! lucas and max spending time together motivates billy to do his evil shit, providing more conflict in the narrative, and it also helps establish max as part of the group in a relatively natural way while giving both her and lucas a great subplot. lucas (and dustin) has a crush on the new girl, they start spending some time together, and lucas ends up needing to decide whether he’ll keep the secret of the upside down and lose her, or risk both of their lives by telling her the truth. that’s a pretty big, character-defining decision that he gets to make!! max has to choose whether to trust this boy she barely knows and endanger herself, or to walk away and stay safe, yet another great character-defining choice that also contributes to the sense we get as an audience of max as somebody who’s incredibly lonely and desperate for love and connection. this post is way too long already and i have a ton more to say so i’ll stop now but yeah i think lumax really Works in the show without ever distracting or detracting from the overall plot and narrative in the way that some other ships (coughjancycough) often do.

balance between the normal and abnormal

s2 i think did a pretty solid job of melding daily life with more fantastical sci-fi horror elements. i enjoyed seeing so much of the kids at school in the first few episodes!! you really get a strong sense of where they’re at in life, what their daily lives are like, and you get a sort of gradual shift into madness that makes everything feel more grounded than i think it would if they had just leapt straight into the horror shit, yknow? 

the el and hopper dynamic

go back and rewatch s2 and tell me that’s not one of the most moving portrayals of parenthood and trauma and growing up that you’ve ever seen. you can’t. or well you can but i won’t listen. i really can’t imagine stranger things without el and hopper’s relationship, and it’s my absolute favorite part of s2. their whole dynamic is so beautiful and complex, and gives them each amazing personal arcs in addition! the black hole scene is literally one of the show’s greatest moments of all time. any given scene between the two of them in s2 is just guaranteed to be heartwarming as well as heartbreaking, and i think that makes for an incredible show.

weaknesses

flashbacks

okay this applies to Every season they All have too many flashbacks but in s2 specifically... please stop showing me shit from season one. i watched it. i know what happened. you don’t need to spoon feed everything to me!! flashbacks can be a really helpful way of delivering information to an audience, but st has a bad habit of not only being kinda demeaning in how often they flash back to shit that the audience already knows, but they also have a bad habit of using flashbacks almost as a crutch to avoid having to deliver information subtly and naturally. 

you know i gotta say it... the lost sister

this is so sad. the lost sister really is like a great concept for an st episode, and i’m not mad about the idea of st taking a break from the normal action to focus on one story for a full episode, but the execution of it was just dreadful. kali and her crew feel very over-the-top and stereotypical, and its placement in the season totally kills the tension and excitement that was built in “the spy.” 

i think the lost sister honestly could have gone over far better, even with the stereotypical fake-feeling gang kali has, if they had just swapped it with “the spy” like... ok, the end of episode five has el setting off to find kali and will collapsing on the ground seizing. right? imagine if, instead of immediately following will to the lab, we’d followed el. we don’t know what’s happening with will, but it’s a very simple cliffhanger that leaves us on edge without making us feel cheated by the show cutting away. we follow el on her little journey, everything happens much the same as canon, and then at the end, el sees hopper in scrubs. she sees mike, screaming, sees that they’re both in danger. holy shit!!! what the fuck!!! what’s happened since we left will seizing on the ground??? we feel el’s fear and confusion. she decides to go home. and then... boom. “the lost sister” is over. now, we rewind, right back to will seizing on the ground, and “the spy” commences. we learn how they got into the danger that el saw in the end of “the lost sister,” and we sit on the edge of our seats all through “the spy” and “the mind flayer,” KNOWING that el is on her way back to save them but not knowing when she’ll arrive!! idk i don’t think that would have necessarily saved lost sister but i think it may have alleviated some of the issues that i and many others have with it, timing-wise.

the nancy/jonathan sidequest

once again, the idea of nancy going off on her own little mission to find justice for barb after s1 is like. amazing. genuinely i love that plot for her and i can’t imagine anything better for her to have focused on in s2. unfortunately though i think her and jonathan’s little trip to see murray was just kind of... lame. the whole thing just felt like an excuse to get the two of them alone together, yknow? which is fine i guess people contrive all sorts of situations to get characters alone together for romance reasons but in this case i think it just really doesn’t work for me because of what it’s juxtaposed with. like, will is POSSESSED, and jonathan is just off on a mini road trip and sleeping with his bestie, and jonathan never seems to communicate to joyce/will that he left town, and joyce never like... thinks to tell him that will is like sick and fucked up and they’re looking at him in the lab??? like it’s so weird i know joyce always forgets about jonathan when shit’s happening with will but jfc you’d think at some point in that like... 72-ish-hour period where jonathan was out of town she would have thought about him. like at least once. maybe i’m forgetting something and she mentioned him sometime and i missed it but even still, i hate the juxtaposition of nancy and jonathan just like cheers-ing at murray’s place and sleeping together and whatnot while everyone else is dealing with possession or trying to hunt down dart yknow? it feels really boring in comparison and i think it could have been done far better. like it was SO insanely easy for them to get into the lab and get an admission of guilt and escape with it!! i think it might have been a lot more engaging if maybe someone from the lab tailed them to murray’s place and they had to like lose the tail and race to get the recording out to as many news outlets as possible before they got caught, or something like that. the tension in their plotline is completely resolved in episode four!! episodes five and six are just them screwing around and addressing envelopes. while there were a lot of strong ideas in this plotline (i really enjoy nancy going out of her way to get justice, and the fact that they have to water down the story to make it believable), i just think the focus on nancy and jonathan getting together hindered it a lot without adding a ton to the plot or their individual characters.

season 3

strengths

starcourt mall as a setting

while i don’t think the mall was utilized quite to its full potential (something i could make a separate post about if anyone’s interested), i do think that starcourt was a genius addition to the series. i’ve said this before, but building a new mall is a literal Perfect in-universe justification for a significant leap forward in fashion and aesthetics, and it provides a great location for characters to just... be characters. idk how else to articulate this i just think that the mall is a great setting to let people interact with each other and to bring people together who may not have been otherwise (i.e. scoops troop). not to mention how sick it was to see the mall get wrecked toward the end kdjncdkm like they were able to do so much more with the mall in terms of like The Finale than they could with just the byers house or the cabin or the school or even the lab. i love all the back tunnels they run through it’s such a fun like acknowledgement of how this glitzy eighties mall is just a real place where employees get shipments and take out the trash and shit idk it’s all about the perfect facade and what’s hidden what’s underneath what’s hiding in plain sight etc etc i’m just saying words now. anyway. 

willingness to experiment and go against expectations

gay robin. neon aesthetics. giant fucking meat monster. i know some people hate both the neon and the meat monster but i personally think they were kind of amazing and like. yknow regardless of personal tastes i think it’s impossible to deny that s3 had a lot of incredible visuals, and they’re all visuals that just wouldn’t have been possible if the show were too afraid to stray from its s1 aesthetic. robin being canonically gay (and her resulting friendship with steve) and the season’s striking visuals are two things that most everyone (besides like homophobes skjncdknm) can agree were great, right? and they were both departures from where the show began and what we all expected!! so yeah i think while some of the experimentation in s3 wasn’t ideal it was also that experimentation that allowed for some of the season’s strongest elements to come about.

the hospital sequence (and the season’s action/horror scenes in general)

this one is fairly self-explanatory. while they may have underutilized the “body snatching” element of the season, the hospital sequence with nancy and jonathan fighting off their possessed bosses did an amazing job of building tension and creating a genuine sense of really intense and personal danger.

in general i think that s3 melded action and horror rather well, particularly in the sauna test, the hospital, and when the mindflayer busts through the roof of hop’s cabin. horror can come from many things, and in this case, st elicited horror largely from the feeling of helplessness, and it was really effective for me personally. i think it worked better for me than s1′s brand of horror because it doesn’t rely so much on a lack of knowledge or a sense of suspense that inevitable disappears upon a second viewing.

the body horror we got in s3 was also really fun! that’s it i just think all the blood and guts and slime were fun and i would like more of them. once again, the impacts of body horror are less dependent upon the viewer being in the dark or unsure as to what’s happening, and as such i think it tends to be a little more effective at eliciting reaction in the long term.

timing and mechanics of the battle of starcourt/finale

i think the battle of starcourt is just fucking awesome, and beyond that personal opinion, i think it’s the most high-stakes and intense finale of all three seasons, and this is for two main reasons! 1. el is out of commission, and 2. (almost) everyone is in the same cental location. this means that (almost) everyone is in danger all at once, and they are all working together at the same time to fight the same threat. s1/s2 have their groups more fragmented for the finales, and while i understand why in each case and i wouldn’t call either season’s finale necessarily weak, i do think the centralized nature of the s3 finale just Works on another level. in s1 and s2, large segments of the cast are already perfectly safe by the time el dispatches the primary threat. in s3, however, everybody save for dustin and erica is still in danger up until the last moment, and el is seemingly (you can def debate how much power she still had in her when she peeked into billy’s mind and whether the memory broke the mindflayer’s hold on him or if she was actually controlling him to some degree) completely vulnerable. this increases the tension and raises the stakes, making the finale a real crescendo to fortissimo as opposed to a series of little mezzo forte moments. i hope everyone reading this knows music idk how else to phrase that my brain is stupid.

emphasis on friendship and adolescence (but in a different way than s1/2)

this is definitely a controversial one but i think that s3 really did like... show a side of friendship that had been more or less unexplored thus far in the show. el and max were amazing, and i think it’s really nice that we got an opportunity to see the kids have some growing pains as well as see them support each other through Normal Adolescent Stuff like boyfriends and breakups instead of just like. death and trauma. this is maybe just a personal preference, but i think it can be really enlightening and provide a lot of depth when you get to see how characters respond to normal everyday conflict and not just how they respond to giant world-ending conflict!! letting el use her powers for goofy teenage shit like spying on boys and messing with mean girls at the mall is not only fun for her and the audience, but it also really emphasizes just how much those powers are a part of el, making it that much more devastating when she loses them at the end of the season. 

weaknesses

tonal dissonance

so this is like. obvious. but it must still be said! i won’t go on and on about it since we all know this so i’ll try to like talk about it from an angle people don’t usually? anyway. it seems to me like they were maybe a little worried about s3 being too dark. while the choice to really lean into humor was definitely driven by the sorts of eighties teen films from which s3 drew inspiration (like fast times at ridgemont high), i think it was also done in an attempt to alleviate the more troubling implications of some events in the season, particularly the russian bunker plot. like, yeah, st can be incredibly dark, but if they’d played the whole “children being stuck inside of a foreign military base, tied up, tortured, and drugged” thing completely straight without the humorous elements that exist in canon, it had the potential to be like... disturbing on a new level. steve and robin don’t have powers like el yknow their kidnapping/torture doesn’t have any sci-fi elements to sorta soften the blow. they’re just innocent teenagers being brutalized and traumatized by grown men. so anyway yeah i think maybe the writers were concerned about this storyline coming off as too dark and they wanted it to be a little more whimsical but they ended up pushing way too hard in that direction and creating extreme dissonance at times. this goes for joyce/hopper/murray/alexei too, but to a lesser extent. i think the ridiculousness in that group felt a lot more like... realistic. but still. 

newspaper plot

once again i feel like i don’t even need to say this skjdncmn we all know it was insane how the show basically ended up delivering the message “while misogyny is a serious problem poverty and classism are not” and i’ve said it on this blog a million times so i don’t need to repeat myself. i’ll focus on another weak point of this plot: the fact that it completely separates nancy and jonathan from everyone else. once again, the show’s preoccupation with j/ancy held them back! like... can you imagine a version of s3 where nancy and jonathan both worked in the mall? i have a lot of ideas about this possible au and like how the plot could play out differently if they worked in the mall but first of all it’s just more realistic, second of all it further utilizes the mall as a central setting, and third of all, it would bring everyone together. as it is in canon, nancy and jonathan were unnecessarily isolated from the rest of the group, and this isolation was detrimental to both of their characters. like, they only ever get to interact with each other! if they’d gotten summer jobs in the mall, they could have had more interactions with the kids/steve/robin, and they absolutely still could have had a similar argument! maybe in this case, nancy notices the rat thing (or something else odd) herself when taking out the trash behind the mall, and she wants jonathan to ditch work with her to check it out bc she thinks it may be related to the lab. jonathan doesn’t want to ditch work because he needs his job, nancy argues that they’re working shitty mall jobs anyway and who cares if they get fired, and we get more or less the same thing as s3 without the cartoonishly over-the-top misogyny. i mean honestly i think the rat shit could have been cut entirely it didn’t rly... accomplish much of anything. in my opinion. like imagine s3 without the rat plot you literally would not be missing anything except it would be more surprising when the dudes melted into goo at the hospital. so yeah i think it would have been better if nancy and jonathan had jobs at the mall, weren’t isolated from everybody else, and were maybe absorbed into the party’s plot or the scoops troop’s plot from very early on, allowing them to interact with more characters and have a less... dumb.... plot. like god splitting up nancy and jonathan between the party/scoops troop would have been So Much better i just. sdkjcnksdmn anyway yeah.

briefness of group reunion/separation of groups

remember in s2 at the beginning of “the gate,” where mike and hopper had a confrontation and max and el met for the first time and el hugged everyone and steve and nancy had their sad little moment together outside... where’s that energy? obviously the s2 reunion wasn’t that long either, but it made space for some significant emotional moments to take place. s3′s reunion had some hopper/el/mike resolution, but besides that... there was nothing, really. i just think that the whole group getting together in s3 was SO exciting and powerful the way they did it (with both the scoops troop and the adults having their own Big Moment reconnecting with team griswold family), but the emotional potential was more or less squandered. 

i also think in s3 at times they were really stretching to keep everybody separated even though it made no sense. and like... in s1 the separation worked bc nobody else knew that (x group) was experiencing weird shit too, and beyond that, each group (as i mentioned in the s1 section) was sort of operating within their own genre and bringing something unique to the season. they’ve stopped doing that though! now, the groups aren’t separate bc each plot is tonally/structurally different, the groups are just separate bc... they need to be, because it’s a big ensemble cast and you can’t just have them all be together for a whole season or it would be way too difficult to coordinate things and keep the show dynamic. all this is to say that i’m excited for s4 because the location differences make it so there’s a Reason for each plot to be separate at the beginning, and i think that’ll work better.

general ridiculousness

i dont mean like i think it’s bad that they made jokes this is just me lumping in all the dumb shit like hopper not worrying about el and not wanting to check on the kids, him and joyce bickering long after they both know they and their children are in danger, max seemingly forgetting that billy is a racist abuser, etc etc. i think many of these are just a symptom of the show 1. trying desperately to keep the groups split up a certain way even though it may not make any sense, and 2. trying to fit into a certain genre/trope mold when their actual characters are more complex than the tropes they’re imitating. this is so fucking long already i am not gonna elaborate further rn but i trust u all know what i mean.

soooo... yeah, that’s about all! i mean it’s not all there are definitely many more things i could talk about and i know i focused sorta disproportionately on the teens which is my bad :/ but i’m done for now. thank you for asking, and apologies for the delay in responding!! i’m sure some people reading (if anyone read this far) will disagree with some of what i’ve said and that’s alright like i’m not The Authority on st or anything i’m just trying to talk about like my own thoughts yknow? so yeah luv u all i hope someone enjoyed reading this!!

[sehnsuchts-trunken]

okay I was debating on whether or not to send you a request because I was kinda nervous to put any extra work on you, but if you're not too busy, can I request a matchup for the Hobbit and/or Harry Potter? (If not that's totally okay, just pretend you didn't see this <33 and honestly I don't mind waiting, you can put this request on the bottom of the list if you need to!!)

My pronouns are she/her, with a preference for men hehe. I'm 5'6, an ENFJ 2w3, and a Virgo. My physical appearance is long blonde hair with almost fluffy bangs, blue eyes, but they're not the sparkly icy blue ones that I wish I had, they're more like deep ocean blue so they almost look black unless I'm in the sun :( I smile a lot, probably too much honestly. I'm a lil buff, (not that much, I may just say that because I lift like 10 pound weights every day😭) but I think that's all for the physical appearance.

Personality wise? Well, I'd say that I'm pretty nice. I have a lot of friends but sometimes I have to convince myself that they truly do like me, because I think I'm pretty annoying. I'm very cheerful, but sometimes it's like my body needs to balance the cheerfulness out with an overboard amount of sadness. I used to be as tough as nails, never cries, never is vulnerable, but now I am the most sensitive (as in like empathetic) person I know, I cry about almost every remotely sad movie I watch, and I overshare hehe. Also I kind of hate watching movies with my guys friends because literally like two weeks ago we watched the first LoTR and I cried when Boromir died (I've watched it like twice but it hurts every time) and they were making fun of me >:(

I would dare to say I'm probably the mom friend in the group, even though in almost all my friend groups I'm the youngest. I've been told I'm thoughtful and loving. I'd say my biggest flaw is that I am pretty anxious all the time, and I don't really think before I speak (which normally ends up being a crude joke that I regret saying immediately). What's funny is that I'm very sweet to most people, but I realized that I just match people's energy. Like I'm not usually sarcastic, but when my dad makes a joke about me, I always have a retort or something funny to say in return. I love hugs which sucks because all of my family are not big huggers.

Hobbies? I love to write basically anything, but I'm pretty good at writing poems! I wrote my friends poems for their birthday's a year ago, and it was really fun. I adore singing, but I'm not really sure if I'm good because I don't sing in front of people unless I'm forced to. I play soccer, and I used to play basketball. I don't play any instruments, but I hope to learn one someday. I know Latin, (which is pretty useless because no one speaks it, but at least I know some fun Law terms) and I've taken it for the past 8 years.

Miscellaneous: I have several pets and I love them very much, I'm pretty ok at riding horses, I keep letters that people write me on my wall, I have a decent taste in fashion (probably like light academia), I love earrings and necklaces, my favorite drink is probably lemonade, I actually skipped a grade so I'll graduate several months before I turn 18, I'm not gonna mention my type but I will say I've always liked the villians in stories or shows (probably because my favorite trope is enemies to lovers and I always see myself as a hero😭) I used to take archery courses, I adore ice cream, and I have always been an avid reader since I was 4 years old.

I think that's it! Let me know if I missed something important. Thank you so much <333

hiiiiiii maddy omg its literally an honour to work on a request for you!! dont worry about the work, at the moment my asks are not too full and luckily i’ve just finished my last exam today~ which means i finally dont have to stress as much!

hope you enjoy this <33 i did my very best! (also goddamn, 8 years of latin???? i mean i’ve been at it for pretty long myself but holy shit, thats almost a decade, i have so much respect for you)

I ship you with...

before we start down that road let me just say i gave this a hell lot of thought because there were many, many fucking options that perhaps would’ve fit just as well, but i take great pleasure in explaining my thought process to you later on <33 anyway, lets go!

Cedric Diggory!!

- Cedric works perfectly with you. Usually you’re the one people go to for advice, to get their feelings off their chest, and it can be stressing as much as you love it. But with Cedric, you don’t have to be that person. You don’t have to be the voice of reason and you don’t have to take care of others when you need to be cared for yourself. It’s not that you wouldn’t be, you do gladly look after him as well, but he’s well aware of the role you have in your friend groups, the way it’s sometimes just too much. And he doesn’t need someone to be that person for him; what he need to speaks about he will like boyfriend to girlfriend, not mistake you for a therapist. Though he could very well be yours the way he acts. When you ask him about it, he reassures you that it’s good that way, that he wants and chose it to be like that because it’s simply the refreshing dynamic the two of you have. 

- Whenever you’re down, Cedric makes sure that you’re just as quickly well again. Not fine, but well, actually good. No matter if it’s just a sadness that somehow finds its way into your heart, or if it’s stress, or if it’s exhaustion from always being there for everybody. He forces you not only to heal mentally, but physically, barely letting you out of bed those days regardless of how much you huff and complain about it. The same goes for days you’re sick, especially during the holidays. At school, of course, he takes you to the hospital wing, and if you need to stay there, he does too. If he’s got classes, he’s back a minute after they finish, often with dishevelled hair, a little flower picked up on the rushed way and a crooked smile on his lips. 

- He’s never really seen touch as that big of a thing, specifically just an arm draped around a shoulder or kisses to the cheek, the little things - but once he realises that it is very important to you indeed, that you melt into his every embrace and relax the second his fingers graze your skin, he becomes very aware of the stability and security it creates. He uses it not only as a way to be close to you, but as a shield, to take the burdens off your shoulders if only for one moment. He grabs your hand if he sees you tense, puts his arm around your waist whenever he’s next to you, brushes your hair behind your ear to make you smile.

- He’s just as much of a cuddler, though. The little, almost accidental, what one might see as usual touches, they’re for the both of you to recognise each others presence, but the hugs, the embraces, the resting-in-his-lap’s, they exist just the same. When you’re sitting down, he pulls you close, and when you’re standing up, he puts his arms around you from behind, and sometimes, when you’ve not seen him for too long or when you’re in that one good mood, you run up to him and jump and he catches you, stumbling the first few times it happens but soon used to the sudden loss of balance. 

- Cedric plays Quidditch, and he’s good, real good. But the sports that you do, the things you train and explain to him, he is just as interested in. When you play football, kicking at him a ball with your feet, one that was just a ball without any trace of magic, he’s confused first, but soon finds fun in the muggle game. As well as in other muggle things you show him. Ice cream being one of his favourites. He learns to make it himself, though with magic, and whenever you feel down he’ll have it ready to devour because he knows how much you love it. He tries lemonade, but stays rather with butterbeer and pumpkin juice. There must be limits somewhere. 

andddd I ship you with... 

again. this. theres so many other options. i- it was so hard to pick i swear its like a lot of goddamn people would work?? so i had to look into it in detail and decide who’d be BEST (which i did happily once again) spoiler alert: not that easy for you??? 

Thranduil!!

(DO YOU SEE THAT GIF OMG?!?!?!?!? THAT IS LITERALLY SO CUTE I USUALLY NEVER PICK GIFS WITH SUBTITLES THATS LIKE AN UNSPOKEN RULE TO ME BUT- THIS. IS. TOO. FUCKING. ADORABLE!!! LOOK AT MY SWEET KING <333)

dont be surprised hun! and let me tell you that i had both bard and thorin in my last round of picking so. just saying. they’re all kings. wonder what that means~

- Thranduil may share few of your traits at first sight, few of your likes and few of your hobbies, but the differences between the two of you are not just what makes the relationship exciting, but very fulfilling too. Not only does one bloom where the other lacks strength, there’s a beauty that comes with learning about differences, accepting and loving them, and making the best of what they bring. Different does not equal clashing, it can mean harmony as much as war, battle as much as peace. It could have gone both ways with the two of you. The one it did - that worked out. More than just fine. 

- You’re young, younger by a lot, and sometimes it shows. Thranduil has lost and lived and seen, grieved and loved and fought. He has much, much more experience than you, and while he is able to share it with you, tell and teach, he can learn from you just as well. The sense of adventure that he’s lost, the playfulness, perhaps the one that comes with love. You’re as sweet as you’re stubborn, as bold as you can be shy, as daring as you... no, you’re not that cautious, really. And it’s all those things that make him smile - all those differences between the two of you, all those years he’s lived that feel lost and colourless with you now in his life. 

- Thranduil though, because of that exact experience, is not in need of someone to play his therapist. He’s seen how you do it for others, and he is glad that he does not have to be another burden on your shoulders, not in that way. Though you barely complain about it, he notices quickly that it strains you, that it drowns you and does not allow you to be all parts of yourself. So he makes sure that you never feel you have to act the same around him. He gladly accepts every aspect of you, does not mind when you need someone to be there for you, but pays close attention not to place his weight onto your shoulders in return. He does not hide any part of himself because of it - he has rarely needed a person to take care of him like that, but in the way he does, you are there, and you are perfect. 

- Even though you have told him that you have not touched a bow in a long time, he takes his time to help you find your way back to archery, trains with you how to ride a horse better, improves your lifting and in general finds pleasure sharing more straining activities with you. He reads your every wish in your eyes, and fulfils it in a heartbeat, no matter what. He brings you instruments to study, books to read, parchment to write on, and although he certainly teases you about it now and then, with a slight smirk on his face and a swagger in his step, only to pick you up after bridal style and kiss you, he never once disrespects your likes and dislikes. He never demands to know about them either. When you want to tell him, want to read your writing out to him, want to play the flute for him or talk about the book you’ve finished, he smiles and sits back and listens, does not interrupt you once, only asking questions when you’re done, perhaps to keep you talking for longer, to listen to your voice and watch your eyes widen so passionately. 

- He marvels at your eye for fashion. As a king, he’s well able to provide you with the most beautiful dresses, and he spoils you endlessly, the exact clothing you’ve told him about or shown to him or said you liked, at the foot of your bed the next day like a miracle. He presents you again and again with jewellery, with necklaces made so delicately and earrings forged so beautifully, no matter how often you argue that you cannot accept his gifts. 

- Thranduil is big on physical touch for two basic reasons. One, because he simply loves it, because he wants to be close to you, because he senses and sees the way you calm down and enjoy his touch, because he watches you relax every time he as much as puts his hand on your arm. And two, because he wants to make sure that everyone knows very well who you’ve chosen to be with. Who you call yours and who he calls his. It all varies from the simple brush of fingertips, from an innocent hand placed on your thigh, to pulling you into his lap as he sits atop his throne, to randomly picking you up and throwing you onto the bed and leaning down to kiss you. There’s not one embrace the same as the other with Thranduil, not one kiss even close to the one before or after. 

- When he hears you sing once, he freezes, and if anyone was seeing him, they would not have believed their eyes - their king stopped in the midst of his movement barely breathing, eyes wide and chest rising and falling irregularly. He peeks into your chambers to find you sprawled on the bed still in sleepwear, sun shining on your face and your eyes closed. He doesn’t ever get that image out of his head again, and he has to smile every time he remembers. You don’t hear him coming in, don’t notice him listening, only realise that he’s there as he sits himself onto your bed and you stop at once. But he’s entranced, enchanted almost, looking at you as though he’s never seen anyone like it before. And when he asks you to sing again, it’s the only reason you part your lips and don’t disobey. Though he notes your hesitance every time, he asks again and again, in moments when it’s just the two of you, and from time to time, your silent disagreement shrinks. He has patience, much of it, so much because he knows that he has forever left, so he does not mind. 

- Forever as long as nothing happens to you. And he makes sure of that. Because there’s been a woman in his life once, and she has met her end far before it should even have been a possibility. He doesn’t keep you caged in the slightest, especially when you ask to be alone, but he always keeps you company when he can, and when he cannot, he sends guards after you. He assures you’re alright with it, but he reminds you even when you argue you could take a bow with you that it’s only to keep you safe. And against his company you rarely have objections - it’s love that’s in the air, who would disagree?

~someeeee things at the end that i find worth noting:

i picked both cedric and thranduil heavily because of the whole mom friend - thing and the empathy that you described often turns into emotional breakdowns. that’s why in the end, for hp i picked cedric and not remus, cedric and not sirius, cedric and not neville. as you could probably tell from the way i dived into it, i found it really important to match you up with someone who did not need that kind of energy from you, who instead was that person to you or completely made it unimportant. 

i also went overboard with the thranduil one simply because he’s one of my favourite characters and uh. my head was full of ideas that i had to write down there was no other way

by the way, “in general finds pleasure sharing more straining activities with you” is a sentence in there somewhere and i just wanted to say that “straining” was supposed to be “physical”, but sounded SO wrong that i had to find another word 

ALSO IF YOU WANT TO REQUEST AGAIN HUN DO SO I WILL LITERALLY SCREAM BECAUSE I STILL HAVE BARD AND THORIN HEADCANONS AND THEY NEED TO BE SEEN BY THE WORLD 

AND I JUST FOUND OUT THRANDUIL AND I SHARE A PERSONALITY TYPE, SO I STAN THAT (intj anyone???)

[thejudgingtrash]

Annabeth is a good person,but not a nice or pleasant one,IMO.

YES.

That’s it. That’s the post. Pack it up everybody, we just cracked the case and cleared up one of the most compelling fights in the PJO fandom since forever. Good job everybody, clap it out and there’s the door! Don’t forget ordering the drinks at Starbucks, Mitch! They’re on me!

Okay, but on a more serious note: YES. YES EXACTLY.

And before some of you roll your eyes or grab your pitchforks – put your biases aside and hear me out for once. I like Annabeth. She’s my in my top three characters only second to Percy himself. I love Percabeth. It’s my favorite ship in the entire series and to be frank, the only ship that I care about PJO wise. Hell, I spend my time creating my own headcanons or writing my own fanfics with Percabeth being the star in them.

But that is not to say that I’m unable to see how certain things have developed over the years or where they stand now in regard to Annabeth. I’m not here to ignore things that have been said and/or done due to or in the name of Annabeth and I’m not here to vilify anyone that doesn’t like her. And I’m here to admit that I’m guilty of some of the things that may be addressed in this meta essay that you will read in just a second. However, I try my best to assure you, that I’m for once able to recognize my own bias.

Warning: a monster essay lies right upon you.

This should count as a paper of its own.

Back to the statement on top: I would go out even further to reframe your claim, anon:

Annabeth Chase is a good character but not a nice or pleasant person.

Annabeth is a wonderful character but she isn’t a nice one. Or at least not nice to everyone. She is (construction wise if I dare say) the best character out of the series. She has her positive traits (she’s caring, she’s emotional, she’s encouraged and volunteers, she fights for what she believes in, she forgives (even if doing so begrudgingly)) but she also has her negative traits (she’s stubborn, she’s brash, changing her mind takes forever, she is prejudiced, she baits others). That balances things out. She is branded as the intelligent kid but does irrational things (like I’ve just said a) she’s a kid and b) she’s not a robot). She should probably know better, but we all make mistakes and hopefully grow and learn from them. The clouds in the sky do blur and cover our visions sometimes.

Annabeth had clashes with other characters or was about to have fights due to her stubbornness or jealousy (Rachel, Reyna, etc.) and has of course her problems with the mortal world and her family but she also found new friends, some things cleared up throughout the narration and she was/is quite popular in Camp Half-Blood.

The thing is: she doesn’t have to be nice or pleasant (as a character). Or at least not all the time. Her character is humanized. That is what or who she is. Human. She does stand out as a character, not just because she’s the (future) love interest. She feels like someone you could meet in real life and either adore from the top to the bottom or declare as your biggest enemy. And that’s totally okay if you lean either way – liking or disliking her. Or even feeling indifferent about her. Also great!

To say that she has been the best character that Riordan has crafted is easy to say, because she has been sculpted after Riordan’s wife. He had a model he could rub some of real-life events or traits on. That’s not the problem. The problem truly doesn’t lie on Riordan’s side for the most part for once.

The problem is inherently on the fandom’s side. What the fandom does, how it acts and how it treats Annabeth as a character is the problem. The problems vary but it’s mostly the mischaracterization of Annabeth, starting fights and fan/ship wars, internalized misogyny (in some cases) and how some of the Annabeth stans lash out (ha, got firsthand experience in that field among many of my friends and mutuals!). There is a reason why many people are wary of people that have Annabeth or Percabeth related URLs.

The fact that we see Annabeth mostly through Percy’s lens and (until the Heroes of Olympus saga hits) we never really see her in chill everyday situations is essentially Riordan leaving the back door of the house open, ready for all of you asshats to rob his mansion in Boston. Because a frame on a character means that we don’t get to see the character in its entirety (unlike we do with Percy in PJO for the most part). That means a bunch of stuff is left open for interpretation which is the reason why Annabeth gets so many polarized headcanon and opinions tossed around. I think that is one of the true appeals of Annabeth. You can add on stuff and it necessarily doesn’t have to contradict itself.

We have people calling her abusive due to a (n admittedly stupid and unnecessary) judo flip and we have people that act like she’s never done anything wrong. People sorta use this excuse to form and shape Annabeth however they want and distort her characterization.

People in the fandom act like Annabeth is some weird prized possession. We perceive Annabeth mostly through the eyes of others (Percy, Apollo, etc.) and when we had some sort of insight in her ways (MOA, HOH) it felt… weird? Somewhat? Like Riordan left two bullet points of her characterization and told the ghostwriter: aight, fuck it up, gringo, see you on Tuesday and greet Fred the next time you see him for me. 

There have been many posts lately (by Tharini, Simi, Sawasawako, Jewishpercy and Annie I believe?) that HOO Percabeth felt weird. That they felt weirdly constructed, that there was no conflict, no growth. It felt stagnating, like we’re turning back. We had five books prior where we had Annabeth and Percy slowly shifting from disliking to liking and crushing each other. True development. And when we finally got the cake it felt… dissatisfying. Like the cheap box stuff and not the delicious exquisite taste that we were promised.

I said it previously in my Percabeth ship roast, but let me repeat myself: many Percabeth related things are straight up fanon. Some of it is very old fanon so that’s been unable to distinguish unless you’ve read the books recently and subtract nearly 99,9% of things you see on Tumblr (and occasionally the other shitty parts of the fandom like Reddit, IG, Twitter. Although they mostly steal and recycle tumblr stuff oh well. But back to the topic).

The way people treat Annabeth is so strange. She’s either an innocent fluffy smush baby that’s never harmed a fly and all that she wants for Christmas is being Percy’s lapdog or she’s the devil incarnate, broke into your house, killed your parents Batman style, kicked your puppy and didn’t flush the toilet on the way out. I think this is what mostly makes people hate her or the ship Percabeth. And both extremes are wrong and right at the same time? She is multifaceted so both stereotypes are true and untrue and sorta cancel each other out in the same way.

The true reason why people dislike Annabeth is because the stans are doing the most. (The haters as well, don’t get me wrong, but oh boy. Piss of a stan and you’ll know what I mean). That isn’t inherently new. Are you guys old enough to remember the ship wars that have happened cross platform? Perachel vs. Percabeth? Oh boy, oh boy. I saw some kids on tumblr a few months ago trying to infiltrate both tags and start shit (and also fail). The fact that Rachel still gets used as the bitchy (ex) girlfriend in fanfics? It’s 2020 guys. I know this apocalyptic year is far from perfect and over but I think we can let this trope die, right? Right? I thought we’ve established that Rachel is a pretty chill charcter by now… right?

If you posted your stuff on FFN back in 2010-2013 and it wasn’t the typical cutesy Percabeth story (Goode High, the gods read TLT, punk/prep Percabeth, college AU, etc.) people would’ve come for your fucking throat. Not because the story or the narration was shit. But because the pairing wasn’t Annabeth and Percy (in the sense that Annabeth had to be paired with Percy. I mean Percy gets shipped with everyone and their mother but for Annabeth it was strictly Percy. As annoying as this whole Connabeth thing is – the people behind it actually had a point. She never had a different love interest unless it’s a Percy centered story and he goes off dating Athena, Artemis and Zoe at the same time for some odd reason. Yeah, FFN Percy ships are something). Or it wasn’t the action filled canon compliant story or it wasn’t an AU that was popular.

People were really stubborn, snobbish and wanted their stuff in the four five boxes that were the most popular ones and that’s it. People have been bullied off the site in many fandoms, so it’s not a PJO-only thing but it’s still sad that it happened. (Off-note: most of these FFN tropes are still alive and well and thriving on AO3. Don’t be so snobbish and pretend that every piece you’d find there is a holy grail. There’s a lot of trash you have to waddle through. Same with Wattpad, Tumblr or anywhere else where fanfics get posted. Also had this discussion with Annabeth stans. Sigh).

And Tumblr back then? Forget it, wasn’t much better.

That view has sorta changed (at least for people that have been in the fandom for several years or have managed to find a way to navigate through it) but some of the negative sentiment from back in the day has survived. Be it by new fans coming in or from old fans that never let their stance die. The aggression feels differently and somewhat not. (I don’t know if the anon function had been abused that much back in the day. I was an observer not a participant in the fandom).

Crack a joke at Annabeth’s expense (Kal’s famous “Annabeth is a Republican” post or Dee Dee’s and many others “Annabeth has the education of a second grader, chill with the college plans, girlie” stance) and you have people insulting you, making callout posts, unfollowing and blocking you (based on only that? Okay, honey), making aggressive counter-posts, etc. in a minute. If you respond with “It’s a joke, it’s not real” you have a 50/50 chance of either getting blown off or embarrassing them so that they apologize for once.

This isn’t just about jokes. You can make a headcanon that’s not the cozy cute convenient mainstream saga and people would react the same way. Or art piece (no, not including the whole Tannabeth Blackchase shtick done by Viria and others) or fanfics.

People project so much onto the unfinished canvas that is Annabeth Chase that any form of negative sentiment as little as someone not liking her to straight up criticism, regardless of how tiny it may be, seems like an affront. Like an invitation to a fight. Like an insult to them, their character, everything they believe in. Let me state something:

You are NOT Annabeth Chase. Annabeth Chase IS NOT you. Annabeth Chase is NOT real. Her feeling cannot be hurt. Someone criticizing, disliking, joking about her or even insulting her will not bother her. Someone making a statement about her is not an insult to YOU.

Let me repeat that:

Annabeth Chase isn’t real. Annabeth Chase isn’t you.

So think a little before you act? I get it when you’re a kid and new to fandoms or haven’t been up with fan cultures in the past and are back in the scene. But if you’re in your late teens or even older as an adult and you’re unable to understand that you aren’t what you like – you aren’t the extension of a fictional character – I feel incredibly sorry for you. Because that’s just incredibly sad. Someone disliking something you like isn’t an attack of your character. It shows you that you are you and the other person is a human just like you. That they just have different taste. Disliking something you like isn’t a crime, you know? But me feeling sorry for the way some of y’all act won’t mean that that’s even remotely okay. Especially if you’re no longer in the intended audience for PJO age wise and should know better.

This isn’t a “white stans” only thing. I’ve seen and witnessed firsthand how people of color, mainly women of color, act the same or not even worse when it comes to her character. People have projected their problems and real-life occurring events into her character (I’m sure that she isn’t the only character nor that this is the only fandom where this is happening) and in some cases like I’ve said cannot separate their own personality from the fictional world. Fights with woc happened because of Annabeth fucking Chase. So many things have happened in the fandom the past few months, mostly due to people being forced staying at home because of the quarantine but I’d say it’s 10% on quarantine and 90% on people for acting up like this.

So here’s a little story: There was the act of Riordan blowing the fandom up because of his own stupidity and being unable to apologize for his mischaracterization and lack of research (the whole Piper fiasco) back in June (?) and admits the upset fandom, people on Twitter, Tumblr and Discord legit thought that none of that mattered and that the outcry was destroying Annabeth Chase’s birthday. That’s right. People thought that Annabeth Chase’s non-existing birthday because she’s a fictional character had a higher priority than the rupture and prevalent racism in the fandom. Okay. This isn’t a great look, Annabeth stans. And this of course pissed a lot of people off. I made a post about it and someone not only berated three other people on said post but no, we had a mighty argument which had disrupted many friendships in our circle which haven’t recovered until this very day. We both had our parts in it and no one is innocent. But the cause of this still remains Annabeth Chase or how people prioritize her non-existing well-being. Anyway. I’m getting agitated just thinking about it.

Let’s go back to the characterization thing with Annabeth. Let me remind you:

Annabeth Chase is an asshole. There I’ve said it in a post ages ago (too lazy to look it up, sorry) and I’ll say it again. And that’s not me insulting her. That’s me actually loving that about her. Annabeth is one of the very few unapologetic female characters that really showed all young readers across the world that you can be a girl, a badass, smart, strong, standing up for yourself and what you believe in. You don’t have to be nice. You don’t have to hide your feelings. You don’t need a man in all cases but it’s also okay to accept help and defeat.

A large reason why I think she’s an incredibly important character in children’s literature/YA because many other novels (mostly (sadly)) have the “Oh, I’m a white skinny dark-haired girl that likes unconventional things like READING. I’m not like the other girls, that take care of themselves and pamper themselves by enjoying shopping and wearing make-up. No, I’d rather be one of the boys but a sweet cute little boy and not the jock fuck that drank vodka shots out of a filthy shoe once. Despite me calling myself hideous every man in a 10-kilometer radius falls in love with me and tells me I’m oh so sexy and by the way I’m only 16 years old” shit going on for no goddamn reason.

Yes, I do blame Twilight for this mostly in recent years, but this trope isn’t by any means knew. Pretty sure that you could even use classics as Pride and Prejudice and dissect them in the same manner (Bold statement: Lizzy Bennet is the OG Bella Swan. There. Go fight somewhere in the corner, people). The new wave of YA focuses on girls belittling themselves and only starting to believe in themselves because someone else (mostly the male love interest) tells them they’re worth it. And these books hit the mainstream because they’re incredibly bland and picture perfect white.

With Annabeth it’s different. She shows up for the job and is done with it. (Brie Larson would probably be the perfect in real life version of her. You either like or dislike her. Or you really don’t care). That is what is so refreshing about her. Her unapologetic nature. Can it be off-putting? Yes. Is it annoying? Yes! Hell, every time I read The Lightning Thief, I want to rip her goddamn head off. And it’s just so well written. Her shift from mistrusting Percy but secretly still believing in him to her opening up. Wow, Riordan did something right there.

Annabeth Chase isn’t a young character. She has existed along with PJO for 15 years. She’s on her way to the second decade. I’m pretty sure that with the success of Percy Jackson (and Harry Potter) many lives have been warped and shaped.

But when I say the problem lies mostly in the fandom, it doesn’t mean that Riordan’s completely innocent. The only problem that I have with Annabeth lies not truly with her but the fact that Riordan is only able to produce three variations of female characters:

The sweetheart (Hazel, Silena, Calypso, Hestia)

The strong feminist (Annabeth, Piper, Thalia, Reyna, Artemis)

The bitch (Drew, nearly every female goddess in the goddamn Riordanverse next to every female monster)

And these female characters only know three endings:

End up married with a mortgage, three kids, two dogs and a cat somewhere in Connecticut by the age of twelve

Get dumped into the hunt

Chill on Mount Olympus and only come down to be a nuisance and/or give a cryptic message before going back and doing a godly rave party or something

We know Annabeth as the badass strong female first (or the bitchy character we’re supposed to actually like. Choose your approach), the blueprint so to speak, so some of the other characters feel almost pale in comparison and almost not needed? Doesn’t mean that other characters can’t behave similarly, but it feels kind of redundant especially if their character arcs end in a rather anticlimactic way (Thalia, Reyna). The new additions are the much needed woc as the main story with PJO was inherently white (anyway stan black!Percy and Grover, folks). So it’s not to bash on the new characters, it’s more Riordan’s fault more than anything.

Since Riordan only knows three female character arcs it feels like he tried to copy the formula several ways with different nuances. Some more or less successful. This is where fandom actually comes in handy and helps create more distinguished and fleshed out characters in form of headcanons or fanfiction.

But even in these cases people still make it about Annabeth when it’s time for characters of colors to shine. Remember that whole spiel and discussion that broke out when people (Kal, diver-up, Caitlyn, Bee, reynaisalesbian, etc.) joked about or criticized that Annabeth thinks that she’s having it harder because she’s a blonde? In front of Hazel and Piper? If she would’ve been a real person that’s an invitation for getting decked. And then all hell broke loose because Annabeth stans couldn’t accept the fact that in the real world and/or in fictional worlds the woc/coc have it harder? That the white woman wasn’t the victim that needed the coddling? Yeah, that was mad pathetic.

I hope you people get my point?

Well fuck. I wrote so many things and have the feeling I’ve said nothing. Anyway, I hope I made sense. This is way too long.

TLDR: Chill about Annabeth please. She’s an important character but that doesn’t mean that everyone has to like her, regardless of being a character in the books or a reader/fan of PJO in real life. She isn’t nice or a sweetheart all the time. She also isn’t the monstrous asshole that some try to make out of her.

Peace out.