#none of them really have any chemistry and i don't even mean in a romantic way

[xbuster]

People were so desperate to create a ship in DeliPaPre that they tried to make something out of Yui and Kokone despite the two having almost no chemistry.

[vmpivory]

UNSCRiPTED ── yang jungwon

★ ——  ‎𝓲N WHICH `⠀◌  rivals l/n y/n and yang jungwon are cast as romantic leads in their school play. with no chemistry and lots of arguing, their teacher suggests fake dating. as they spend more time together, they start to wonder if their feelings are real or just for the play.

✶ - 𝓰𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗲 : rivals to lovers , fake dating , fluff , comfort (?) ✶ - 𝓹𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 : yang jungwon x fem reader ✶ - 𝓯𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 : minji and hyein ✶ - 𝔀𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝓬𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁 : 2.7k

꒰ ⠀ !  ꒱ . .⠀ 𝔀ARNINGS vulgar language (only used 2-3 times), skinship in some scenes, arguments, bad attempt at humor ( lmk if there are more! ) ..

❪ reblogs and feedback are always appreciated! <3 ❫

L/N Y/N STOOD frozen in front of the cast list, eyes narrowing as she scanned it for the third time.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” she muttered under her breath.

Beside her, a voice snickered. "What’s the matter, y/n? Can't handle the pressure?"

She didn’t need to look to know who it was. The familiar annoying tone belonged to none other than Yang Jungwon, her rival in almost everything. Of course, she would get to play romantic leads with him.

Y/N whipped her head around, glaring at him. "You have to be joking. There’s no way we’re playing the romantic leads. That has to be a mistake."

Jungwon shrugged casually, his lips curving into an annoying smile. "I don’t know. Looks pretty official to me."

"PARK Y/N, YANG Jungwon—my star-crossed lovers! How do you feel about your roles and the script?" Ms. Choi’s smile was wide, far too pleased with herself.

Y/N’s mouth opened, but no words came out. Jungwon, ever the smooth talker, crossed his arms over his chest and fake smiled. "Oh we love it!" Y/N rolled her eyes and elbowed him before answering, "Ma'am there must be a mistake because I really can't pretend I love him. Please, can you change the roles? I'm sure someone else would love to be the male lead." "Hey, if you don't like it why don't you give up your role! I'm staying as the male lead and your role is gonna get changed." Ms. Choi raised an eyebrow, glancing between the two of them. "Now, now, there's no mistake. You two are perfect for the roles." "Ms. Choi, with all due respect, we have zero chemistry. And this script... it's all about chemistry." Jungwon snorted. "Yeah, negative chemistry. Like me and math." "Well, if we were a science experiment, we’d definitely be a total failure." She rolled her eyes. Ms. Choi chuckled, clearly unbothered by their protests. "Ah, but that's the beauty of acting, my dears. Chemistry can be built, just like any good relationship."

Y/N shot Jungwon a death glare. "There's no way I can 'build chemistry' with him." "You guys, look. I had this same situation two years ago. The main leads couldn't even stay in the same room with each other but you know what they did? Fake dating. It helped a lot and the play was amazing. I suggest you two give it a try." Y/N’s eyes widened. "Fake dating? Are you serious?"

Ms. Choi nodded enthusiastically. "Absolutely. It’s a proven method. It’ll help you both get into character and build that on-stage chemistry." Jungwon raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued despite himself. "You think that’ll actually work?" Ms. Choi just nodded with a smile.

Y/N groaned, crossing her arms. "This is ridiculous. But fine, if it means we can avoid turning this play into a disaster, I’ll do it." Jungwon’s smirk turned into a genuine smile. "Great. Looks like you're now.. my fake girlfriend." Y/N glared at him, feeling the familiar spark of rivalry flare up. "Don't think this means I’m going easy on you. I’ll be the best fake girlfriend you’ve ever had. And probably you ever will." As Ms. Choi walked away before smiling, Jungwon turned to y/n with a grin. "Guess we better get used to it. You ready for our first 'date,' sweetheart?"

"Don't push your luck, Yang Jungwon."

Y/N FIDGETED WITH the edge of her jacket as she walked into the small café at the corner of their neighborhood. It wasn’t exactly a romantic spot, more of a hangout place for high schoolers trying to avoid homework. But here she was, on her first fake date with Yang Jungwon, of all people.

Jungwon was already seated at a booth near the window, scrolling through his phone as if he didn’t have a care in the world. He looked up when he noticed her standing awkwardly at the entrance, smirking as he waved her over.

"Right on time, girlfriend," he teased as she sat down, emphasizing the last word in a way that annoyed y/n. She plastered on a fake smile. "Let’s just get this over with. What’s the plan?"

Jungwon shrugged, leaning back in his seat with that same annoyingly calm attitude. "We’re supposed to build chemistry, right? Let’s just act natural. Pretend like we actually, you know, like each other."

Y/N scoffed. "Like that’s even possible."

"Hey, it’s called acting for a reason." "My acting skills are not good enough to pretend I like you." She rolled her eyes. Jungwon grinned, leaning forward on the table. "Come on, it can’t be that hard. I’m pretty likable when you try."

Y/N raised an eyebrow. "Really? I must’ve missed that version of you." He chuckled, completely unbothered by her sarcasm. "Alright, if pretending to like me is nearly impossible for you, let's start with something easier. Like having a normal conversation. Without insults." "Impossible." "I'm starting to think you are not that good at acting." "Okay fine," She sighed in frustration. "I'll try to be less insulting." Jungwon leaned back in his seat, folding his arms. "Now that’s progress. See? We’re already improving."

Y/N shot him a pointed glare. "Don't get too comfortable. This is for the play, not for you. Plus, this play is super important for me." He raised an eyebrow. "I wanted auditioned for an acting agency and they will be watching the play to decide if I'm good enough or not. So I'm gonna be blaming you if I don't pass." Jungwon’s smirk faltered slightly as he processed her words. "Wait, you’re serious? You’re auditioning for an agency?"

Y/N nodded, her expression firm. "Yeah. I’ve wanted this for a long time. This play is my chance to prove I can actually do this, and I can’t afford to mess it up. So, if you screw this up for me, I swear—" Jungwon raised his hands in mock surrender. "Hey, relax. I know we clash, but I genuinely want you to succeed too. This isn’t just about me." She blinked, surprised at his sincerity. "You better." Jungwon leaned forward, his expression getting serious. "Look, I know we don't really get along. But this play is important is important for both of us, especially you. I'm not trying to mess up your chances. In fact, I hope you get accepted." Y/N frowned, unsure of how to response to his unexpected support. "Why are you being suddenly so.. nice?" "Hey, I have a heart too."

"SO," JUNGWON STARTED, breaking the silence as they walked side by side to home, "We survived our first fake date. Not too bad, right?"

Y/N rolled her eyes playfully. "Speak for yourself."

He chuckled. "Ouch. Harsh but fair."

They continued walking in the silence, not having any eye contact.

As they approached a fork in the path where their ways would divide, Jungwon cleared his throat awkwardly. "So, I guess I’ll see you at rehearsal?"

Y/N nodded, feeling a pang of disappointment that the evening was coming to an end. "Yeah. Rehearsal, right."

With a nod, Jungwon turned around and started walking the other way, down the street. 

Maybe pretending to be Jungwon's girlfriend wasn't so bad.

She shook her head, trying to clear it. "What am I thinking?" she muttered to herself, quickening her pace home.

Y/N TRIED TO focus on her lines, but her mind kept wandering back to Jungwon. He was across the stage, laughing with some of the other cast members, looking so effortlessly charming.

"Earth to y/n!" Minji, her friend and fellow cast member, waved a hand in front of her face. "You good?"

Y/N blinked, snapping back to reality. "Yeah, totally. Just... lost in thought."

"About Jungwon?" Minji teased, nudging her playfully.

Y/N shot her a look. "I mean, we’re just... acting. It’s complicated. It feels like I should hate him, but deep down, it’s not that simple."

"CUT!" MS. CHOI called out. "Jungwon and y/n," She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose before continuing. "I still don't see the chemistry. This is our 7th try!"

Y/N shot Jungwon a look, half-exasperated and half-amused. “Sorry, Ms. Choi. We’re really working on it.”

Jungwon leaned closer, whispering just loud enough for y/n to hear. “Maybe we should try to actually like each other for a moment?” She rolled her eyes but felt a smile creeping in despite herself. “Yeah, because that’s so easy right?” “Okay, everyone, let’s take five,” Ms. Choi announced, her tone softer now. “Grab some water and reset your minds.” As the cast split up, y/n turned to Jungwon, crossing her arms. "Can you at least try a bit more? This is important for me, you know!" "I know, I know. I'm trying my best but you should too." Y/N snorted. "I'm already giving my best!" "You are clearly not!" Jungwon shot back. "Maybe if you tried to hide your face expressions, it would be better!" "Or maybe, you are not good at acting as you think you are!" She paused, the air thick with tension. “What did you just say?” Y/N demanded, her voice low. Jungwon took a step back, realizing he had crossed a line. "I meant—" "No, you don’t get to take it back now," Y/N interrupted, her heart pounding. "You think I’m not trying hard enough? I’ve been working my ass off for this role! You know this is important to me!" "Maybe if you weren’t so wrapped up in your own expectations, you’d see that it’s not all on me!" Jungwon shot back. "This isn’t just about you, y/n!" “Alright, let's start again!” Ms. Choi called, her voice cutting through the thick tension in the air. Their five minute break was wasted in a stupid argument, great. Y/N and Jungwon took their positions. “Why can’t you just trust me?” Jungwon said, following the script. “Trust? You’re the last person I’d trust!” Ms. Choi watched intently, a satisfied smile spreading across her face. “Yes! Keep that energy!” She mumbled to herself. For a moment, it felt like they were really connecting. Y/N could see the flicker of something genuine in Jungwon’s expression, and she felt herself relaxing into the performance. But then, as the scene reached its climax, the lines began to blur between acting and reality. “Maybe if you weren’t so self-absorbed, you’d see what’s really happening!” Jungwon snapped, his tone rising, the frustration from their earlier argument spilling over. Y/N's eyes widened slightly. What the hell was he thinking? That was not in the script. She didn't know why and how but she also got out of her character. "Self-absorbed? Says the one with a big fat ego!" Jungwon’s eyes flashed with annoyance, and he took a step closer, his voice lowering dangerously. "You think I have a big ego? You’re so focused on your own expectations that you’re missing the bigger picture—we both want this to succeed." Y/N's heart pounded as the tension between them mounted. This wasn’t acting anymore. Their real feelings—the frustration, the rivalry—were bleeding into the scene. Y/N’s hands clenched at her sides, and for a moment, she forgot they were on stage, with everyone’s eyes on them. "Oh, I’m the one acting like that? Maybe if you weren’t so busy pretending to be cool all the time, you’d realize you're not the center of the universe either!" Jungwon scoffed, taking another step forward, closing the gap between them. "Pretending? I’m not pretending anyt—" ��Enough!” Ms. Choi’s voice rang out, breaking the intensity of the moment. She stood up from her chair, clapping slowly, her expression a mixture of amusement and disbelief.

Y/N STARED AT her reflection in the mirror backstage, adjusting her costume for the big ballroom scene. She smoothed down the soft fabric of her dress, trying to calm her racing heart. Tonight was the first full rehearsal with the whole cast, and everything needed to be perfect. The play was tomorrow and this was her chance to prove herself.

But as usual, her mind drifted back to Jungwon.

After the little argument, they went on a few fake dates again. But their chemistry didn't seem to be there, let alone improve. 

"Why do you look so stressed?" Hyein asked, popping her head around the corner. "It’s just rehearsal."

"I know, I know but.. I don't think I'm gonna do well," Y/N sighed, rubbing her temples as the nerves crept in again. "I just feel like something's off. And if I mess this up, I’ll probably never get the chance to be a real actress again."

Hyein stepped into the dressing room, offering her a reassuring smile. "You’ve been doing great so far. Everyone's seen how much effort you've put into this role. You’ll be fine."

Y/N forced a smile but still felt the unease bubbling under the surface. "Thanks, but it’s not just the play. It’s Jungwon."

Hyein raised an eyebrow. "What about him?"

"Since the little argument... nothing’s been the same. We’ve gone on these fake dates, just like Ms. Choi suggested, but it’s not helping. If anything, it’s made everything more awkward. We can barely look at each other without the tension ruining the scene. And—"

"Hey," a familiar voice called out, making them both look away. "Can we talk?"

It was Jungwon.

Y/N’s heart skipped a beat as Jungwon stood at the doorway, his expression unreadable. Hyein glanced between them, giving y/n a knowing look before excusing herself.

Y/N shifted uncomfortably, trying to hide the whirlwind of emotions that surfaced whenever Jungwon was around. "What is it?" she asked, her voice a little sharper than she intended.

Jungwon stepped into the room, closing the door behind him. "I just... I wanted to talk before we go out there. This is the last rehearsal you know, it's important." Y/N crossed her arms, feeling the tension immediately creep back in. "About what? If you're gonna tell me I'm not good at acting again, no thank you."

He hesitated, rubbing the back of his neck—a gesture she’d come to recognize as his way of stalling. "Look, I know we don't really get along and you hate me, I hate you.."

She nodded slightly as he continued.

"..and I know we’re supposed to be faking this whole... 'dating' thing for the play, but I think that’s the problem. We are forcing it a little too much. Just... think of me as the guy you like or something, okay?"

Y/N blinked, her heart racing at Jungwon’s unexpected suggestion. "You mean, just act like we actually really really like each other? You think that's easy?"

"Hey, you're a good actress. You said it yourself." He smiled and chuckled faintly before leaving the dressing room.

Y/N AND JUNGWON stood under a starlit sky, the backdrop of a cozy rooftop terrace adorned with fairy lights and soft cushions. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves, creating a serene atmosphere for their characters.

“Isn’t it beautiful?” Y/N’s character, Liv, gazed out over the city, her voice a soft whisper. “Sometimes, I forget how lovely the world can be.”

Jungwon, playing the charming yet mysterious Johnny, stepped closer. “It is,” he replied, his tone warm. “But it’s even more beautiful when shared with someone special.” Y/N turned to him, her heart racing. "Someone special, huh? You mean like a star-crossed lover?"

"Exactly," Jungwon said, a playful glint in his eyes. "Someone who makes the ordinary feel extraordinary."

"Do you really believe in love like that?” Y/N asked, tilting her head as she searched his face for answers. "What if that star is too far away to reach?" Jungwon took her hands, his gaze intense. “Then I’ll climb every mountain, cross every ocean, and travel the whole universe just to be with that star. Which is you.” "Me?" Without breaking character, Jungwon closed the distance between them, pressing his lips against hers. He was still holding her hand, gently squeezing it. Despite her irritation, a flutter of excitement raced through her as their lips met, leaving her speechless. As they broke apart, the audience erupted in applause. The curtains closed, signaling the end of the play.

"WHAT THE HELL Jungwon?! That was not in the script!"

Jungwon chuckled softly, shaking his head. "I know, dumbass. I did it on purpose."

“On purpose? Are you trying to ruin everything?” Y/N crossed her arms, torn between annoyance and the thrill of what had just happened.

“Come on, Y/N! We’re supposed to sell the romance. That kiss? It was the spark the audience needed! Don't tell me you didn't enjoy it!” Jungwon leaned closer, grinning.

Y/N's expression softened, a soft smile lighting up in her face. "Yeah, I guess I did."

.vmpivory    ©    all rights reserved    ━    2024

AUTHOR's NOTE i've been thinking about this for a while now and i am so excited that finally wrote this !! this is my first work on here so i hope ygs enjoyed it ! so like.. this sucks. but i tried my best TT and yes, i named the girl liv ( WHICH IS ME ) bc i'm delulu like that eheh :D

PERM TAGLiST: @wonsprincess

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

We NEED FlowerByte: Addressing the lack of Black Girl Representation in ATSV -

[a MEDIUM length essay addressing how FlowerByte IS NOT a threat to GhostFlower, and how the ship is actually NECESSARY to the ATSV fandom]

and examining the criticism against Miles x Margo:

Remember there's nothing wrong or desperate about people shipping FlowerByte. It's natural, fine, and to be expected.

Because - if you have doubts about FlowerByte - have you ever considered how there's no black girls other than Margo in ATSV? That ISTV features no black girls as reoccurring characters?

That the only two POC female characters - Jess and Rio - are adults in nurturing positions, shown only ever taking care of others?

Up until this point, have you noticed how much black girls are missing from ATSV?

Or did you not realize? Most don't. But black girls do.

Because black girls are one of the only demographics not shown or supported in the ITSV series.

As we know it, we have no young black girl characters that have more than maybe 10 lines. So far we have Gwen's bandmates and Margo.

Black girls are probably the only demographic NOT seeing themselves swinging around.

The only two black women characters are grown women, specifically MOTHER FIGURES. Characters written to aids others through their arcs, saving and comforting in times of need.

That's why I wrote Diane's background as it is. She's a born and raised Black Panther Party member, raise in the meeting house of her local chapter.

She's a black radicalist, and that's the center of her world and character. From her mirroring black disco divas like Diana Ross, to being a Black Panther, I wanted Diane and her world to be unequivocally black.

There's never any scene of a black girl in a Spider-suit, swinging around or saving the day. Not once.

And it's never been mentioned. To most people, it's not a concern.

To most people, the sad reality is - black women aren't a concern. Just side characters.

And that shows. Not only on screen, but in fandom as well.

At no point in ITSV are young black girls given a character in which they can see themselves - not even as background characters, let alone as a romantic interest.

You make think that FlowerByte is silly, because 'they don't really have chemistry, right?'

But there is nothing wrong or silly about black girls wanting to see Miles calling them pretty, or admiring them, or dating them.

Margo truly is the only black girl we even see Miles have a conversation with for the entirety of ATSV - for the entirety of the SERIES thus far.

And chances are - most people reading this didn't notice this. But black girls DO.

Imagine seeing multiple characters of the same race, but different gender as you - but NONE of your gender (nb peeps know what I mean)

Never being called cool, or strong. No gifsets of cool black girls fighting. No black girls in the fanart. Left off posters. Never seen as pretty, never shown as desirable, never having male counterparts consider them.

The message - and damage - it sends to young black girls is clear - even in ATSV.

'You're not a person to be desired or admired. You are a plot device and nothing more.'

It sends the message 'You are not an actual person. You're there to save Gwen, and let Miles escape. After that, get off the screen. Your character will be judged based on how you serve the characters around you. We don't have enough time to flesh you out any further. And we know no one will ask about it.'

Black girls notice how they're one of the only ones who doesn't get a character to wear as a Halloween costume, or as a cosplay. They notice when they see merch and there's none of anyone that looks then them. They notice when their only options are 'genderbent' Miles and Hobie, because most don't see Margo as a main character.

They notice when none of their favorite characters give black girls a second glance, or have crushes on black girls. They notice when the only black women aren't actually stories about BLACK WOMEN. They're stories about white women - with the character being drawn or cast as black.

Example: You'll never see MCU MJ talk about racism or something. Because she's not written as a black girl first. She's written as a MARY-JANE first - and the basis of her story is that and nothing more. Anything about her black identity is seen as at best unnecessary or worse, contradictory to the character of MJ - so her race is left as only a visual element, only a feature of casting, and not a true aspect of her character.

There's literally nothing wrong with Flowerbyte and I admire those that are making works for them.

Black girls deserve every bit of love, and ffs they're CUTE together.

Hobie and Noir get shipped together all the time and they don't even know each other (yet). No one cares. People think it's cute.

But Miles and Margo get shipped together - and suddenly theres a discussion on how 'unlikely' or 'forced' that ship is.

The same with Hobie x Black!readers, or Miles-42 fics - it's often when black women seek to fill their own lack of representation that others even consider them apart of the conversation. And even then - it's to force them back into their place.

'Miles is meant to be with Gwen. That scene meant nothing. They don't have chemistry. You just hate Gwen. You just want them together because she's black'

YEAH, AND? Liking FlowerByte doesn't mean they have it out for Gwen. It means they're desperately looking for representation.

YOU should be calling for that representation. Now that you know, doesn't this lack of representation disturb you? If it doesn't, but FlowerByte does, then I can't help you.

But yeah. Just a friendly reminder, FlowerByte is good for the soul and the fandom.

We as fans of ATSV have to be candid in admitting that the series SEVERELY lacks representation of young black girls, which is A HUGE problem.

The one black female Spider-woman they have had to be CREATED as black, from a white rendition of the character.

So far, Margo is the one and only original black Spider-woman in ATSV.

That needs to change. But until then, let FlowerByte sail on. If you're a Gwiles shipper, you can always double ship. Nothing wrong with it. I suggest maybe you check out some FlowerByte stuff. Maybe you'll like their dynamic, or understand why writers write it a bit more, if not 🤷🏾 hey, you tried.

I think we can all agree though - Miles' got the rizz.

Remember to support black women today. BYE.

[my-mt-heart]

Idk how to say this but I am not as bothered about whatever is going to transpire between Daryl and Isabelle (bcoz for one thing - we know what is going to happen in the end- and for another - I honestly believe that the male execs are not at all confident abt their vision for these two as they would like to be and the whole thing would prolly boil down to ambiguity and ultimately- it will fall upon the viewers to dissect how Daryl feels - the Caryl fandom especially is really adept at reading into storylines - even stupid ones) None of this is good by any means. It cheapens the integrity of all the characters involved. It blatantly insults and reduces female characters - I believe that Isabelle deserves better. That a story should hold space for multiple female characters. Also - I am worried about putting the fate and the story of one the best female characters on TV (Carol) in the hands of someone who has proven that he can't be trusted to handle them with care. Reading S2 reviews - I am sort of reassured that Carol is treated well enough in the story - which I believe - has a LOT to do with Melissa McBride's input. Going forward - it is going to be more difficult bcoz once we have dealt with old traumas - we do need to evolve these characters and make sure they don't stay stagnant. I don't believe Zabel has the chops to do that.

sorry for that rant. I am just really frustrated.

What I worry about is the way all of this bts stuff amongst the male execs is going to impact the Caryl dynamic. Whatever the antis may think - and while McReedus has insane chemistry - I do believe that the romantic energy is generated between them by a lot of their acting choices (bcoz the underlying story is teasing a romance). What happens to all that when a romance is completely off the table? When AMC has been pushing this friendship narrative down our throats in a very evident bid to do damage control - the insecure/defensive promo that we have been getting last few weeks is proof enough that Caryl was always more than friends?

The problems were already glaringly obvious from the very beginning. the fact that Melissa isn't billed equally for a season where she is proclaimed to be the major focus? It is not even about Caryl going canon for me anymore. I love Melissa and Carol way too much for me to give up yet but I treasure the Caryl bond primarily bcoz they have always been each other's everything. it is truly a bond that evades definition. Both Carol and Daryl doesn't have what they have with each other with anyone. THAT IS A CANON FACT. I don't think I can watch that dynamic that I treasure so much being butchered - s11 was painful enough - I can't go through all of that and more again.

Going to watch s2 and then my further commitment will depend entirely upon how the characters are treated and their dynamic is portrayed?

It sucks that I am dreading watching Carol and Daryl back together on screen.

been here just for a few months but the way AMC has been fumbling with this promo - have you guys always experienced this whiplash or is it a new thing?

I’m going to include big spoilers in my response, so proceed with caution ⚠️

I respect your opinion, but I disagree with you on the point about Daryl’s and Isabelle’s arc. It seems like the male EPs (Zabel, Nicotero, Gimple) are overly confident that an explicit romance between their male hero and a younger blonde nun who accused Daryl of being like his abusive father just for trying to go home to his family will attract a larger male audience and they aren’t sparing any feelings with it because we aren’t their ideal audience anyway. To them, we’re just a bunch of “hysterical” shippers whose POV’s don’t matter and we can just take their crumbs. AMC is a bit more complicated, but I’ll get to them later.

Daryl and the nun kiss in 202, so there’s little to no room for us to dissect how Daryl is feeling. Isabelle’s death is the furthest thing from a relief because 1) it reduces her character down to man pain like you said and 2) from what I’m gathering, it completely overshadows Caryl’s reunion and then their entire arc. We get another hug that does absolutely nothing to elevate their relationship and then Carol has to face that Daryl didn’t need her to rescue him because he found a new family and become his emotionally supportive friend to help him through his grief of a lost love interest he’s known for a few months. It almost feels like it’s going to be a retread of Beth’s death, only worse. We know how Greg Nicotero views both of those relationships and to be blunt, the man needs to stop projecting his creepy fetishes onto Daryl and making it our problem 🤢

The way the story is framed, it’s not even about Caryl at all. They’re the relationship we’re the most invested in and yet all the emotional weight is given to a highly problematic relationship that developed over a dozen ish short episodes (compared to Caryl’s decade+ of emotional depth) and it’s all for nothing too. Zabel just resets Daryl like the hokey network procedural writer he is. And Caryl fans are rewarded for their years-long loyalty by getting more ambiguous subtext to analyze? Really?

I think you’re spot on about Melissa though. The reason she’s the bright spot of the season, the reason Carol’s individual arc feels true, and her spiritual connection to Daryl stays alive is because Melissa influenced all of that. She’s shown us time and time again that she understands her character so deeply and respects her fans. It really breaks my heart because I think she had a beautiful story in mind for Carol and she deserves all the support in the world, but as I’ve said many times, if damage is done to the character who has been written as her soulmate for over a decade, damage is also done to her. And I can’t watch that. I can’t watch the destruction of my favorite characters and my favorite relationship and put money in AMC’s pockets for gaslighting me. Retconning Caryl’s relationship into a platonic friendship is their way of protecting themselves from backlash. “Daryl isn’t emotionally cheating because he and Carol have always been besties?” “We didn’t mislead you. We told you they were friends, so you dumb shippers are doing this to yourselves. Please watch our slop anyways ✌️” They’re even trying to shift responsibility to Melissa by making her answer the shipping questions despite the fact that it’s Daryl’s arc throwing a wrench in everything and I expect that to continue at NYCC/Palyfest. It’s completely unethical and it’s backfiring.

Zabel cannot write for Daryl and Carol. He keeps showing us that he doesn’t understand their bond nor does he value it. A couple of the reviews mentioned it felt like Carol was shoehorned into certain aspects of the story, which tracks with what I already knew—that he and the other EPs think she’s hindering the story they want to tell about men doing manly things. That’s why they try so hard to challenge her significance to Daryl’s story and that is not going to change just because they’re moving to another location. Somebody like that should not have power to decide her trajectory. Fuck whatever he has planned for S3. I don’t want it. I still want Caryl and I still want to see them get the stories they deserve, but that’s only going to happen if we get a new showrunner who respects them and respects their fans. In case it needs to be said, Gimple is not that guy either (he can fake his enthusiasm on SM all he wants 🖕🖕🖕). A complete rebranding of the show to something that honors the characters and gives Melissa her dues (equal billing, title, etc) is the only way I’m tuning in now🤷🏻‍♀️ I don’t have the emotional capacity to sit through S2, but I will be here, speaking up, to make sure Melissa gets all the necessary praise and those assholes can’t blame her if the show tanks.

I’ve only been here a few years and there’s been a lot of turn over at AMC even just in that time (I kid you not, all of our problems can be traced back to Josh Sapan leaving. He loved Caryl and Melissa). That being said, I cannot for the life of me understand why any of the guys over there (even the misogynistic ones) would approve of the Daryl/Isabelle arc after the PR disaster that Leah caused not even that long ago and at least for that, the arc tied back to romantic Caryl and we weren’t subjected to any uncomfortable physical intimacy. Why the fuck would they make the same mistake? Why the fuck do they have to spend more time cleaning up messes than avoiding the mess altogether at every fucking opportunity they had (and they had a lot). I just don’t get it. And I’m so tired of taking the abuse.

[dreamwreaver]

When Vox and Charlie finally interact on screen, I hope to God we won't have another "deemed as a father figure by annoying fans" situation on our hands because I will lose it. They did it with Alastor and Charlie, they did it with Vox and Velvette, they did it with Carmilla and Zestial and I'm sick of it. I'm tired of the majority of the fandom being prone to infantilize the women that have a platonic relationship with an older man. Especially when said older man has beef or relations with another older man. I swear, most of the fandom seems to be allergic to the mere possibility of their favorite male character being with a female character that it makes me suspect they're slightly misogynistic sometimes given the way they would callously treat the female characters at times.

Besides, I personally don't think Vox and Charlie would have a father-daughter relationship because, well, Vox is the villain and really doesn't give off paternal vibes (neither does Alastor but that didn't really stop the RA shippers). Unfortunately, half of the Hellaverse fandom consists of immature people with no media literacy skills whatsoever so I'm not gonna be surprised if they begin to label the pathetic man-child of a television as Dad#3 to an adult woman.

All joking aside nonny, welcome back.

Yeah, this has been a very annoying trend across media, not unique to the hellaverse but incredibly rampant all the same. First I want to say that the Vees not being an actual polyamorous Vee is a missed opportunity.

Second, I really cannot see Vox being a father figure as anything more than a bit. Like he can't get to Charlie through being a romantic interest (canonically because of vaggie and possibly al?) so he'd try to pose himself as a shrewd businessman that makes exceptions for family or something. But much like Al's comments to Lucifer in Hell's greatest dad it would all be an act. I do "ship" Vox/Luci solely because the crackship name of AppleTv is too hilarious not too so I am for it. But I was the same of a certain other ship before a very loud segment of it ruined it by treating it like endgame canon instead of the absolute crackship it is.

As for one of your other remarks, it's a problem of fandom in general these days. You saw it when certain lumity shippers got pissy that people shipped Lunter, we saw the absolute war that was the reboot of a certain mech property that I will not name to save my sanity. Like, it's not the old days where canon queer rep was slim to none and easier to get away with portraying deeply emotionally impactful relationships with men and giving a token female love interest to say they were "straight" but then again homoeroticism in media is both a super long lived trope dating back to the gayest locales in history and a rant for another day. Canon queer ships are everywhere, not overwhelming or even equal to the ostensibly "straight" canon couples in all of literature but definitely not something you'd get burned at the stake for if you said it.

That being said, in that vacuum has arisen a sort of derision towards straight passing ships. The bisexual woman is with an asexual man? Straight. The lesbian gay man who dresses in drag on the regular who nonetheless share a deep emotional chemistry (and history of brainwashing/abuse/abandonment)? Straight. If they are not actively gay they are straight and it mirrors a lot of the real life issues people in these groups face. Because let's be honest; humans are complicated. Feelings are messy. How many queer people do we see before realizing their sexuality got married and had a straight partner and even kids? Did that mean they loved their spouse any less? Ngl one of the depictions of this I've seen is why women kill's Simone and Karl

Tell me they do not love each other. You can love someone and not be attracted to them.

Welp, that was a tangent lmao. Back to your question. My favorite interpretation of Vox in relation to Charlie and Alastor is basically Radiobelle Silence. Where vox attempts to get Charlie to love him to get back at Alastor only to fall for her himself and oh no now he likes them both and is making it everyone's problem. Like Chaz from helluva boss except with money and power to back it up. The ultimate third wheel.

I think one of my discord friends did a doodle that perfectly encapsulates my view on that dynamic and if it's publicly posted I'll let you know nonny. Thanks for your ask!

[scrapyardboyfriends]

"it's just one coincidence too many"

You don't say Aaron. Haha.

Sigh...they're writing Plotdale for me again.

So I went back and watched all of the surrounding Aaron scenes from yesterday with Mack and Vic and then watched today's stuff.

I really quite like seeing Aaron have friends for the sake of this plot. So like...that's a positive. I've always thought Danny and Lawerence worked well together and had good friend chemistry. If they could actually stick with the friendship outside of plot specific needs, that would still be really good for both of their characters long term.

Because Mack teasing him about the whole John thing is exactly what the Ben nonsense needed back in 2020/2021. I mean it would not have saved that utterly abysmal attempt at a story but it would have made it slightly more palatable.

And I do like seeing Aaron and Vic having scenes together again.

I also very much liked seeing the garage be a functional set again. I feel like maybe it has been more lately from what I've seen in the spoilers but for so long it really wasn't and so that was also nice.

As for John...I mean...I do feel like he was sort of okay when interacting with everyone else. But he and Aaron just have no chemistry. And I don't really understand what they're trying to do with them. Like I guess...it's supposed to be an enemies to lovers thing maybe??? But there really was just zero reason for him to drive off with Aaron's keys and wallet yesterday. So their hostility towards each other over it just feels empty now.

I mean..what even was that whole little punch/shove thing they had at the end? And I feel like they had them linger close to each other in a threatening manner like it was supposed to be turning them on in the same way the Robron wall slam worked but like...it did not. It was not the same at all. It was just dumb.

And John just feels like another one of those characters that's got a tragic backstory that will come out in one, two months time and be a big deal for two episodes and then somehow that will solve all his problems and then he and Aaron will just magically get together after that and he'll move into the village and none of it will feel earned in any way. That's just the vibe I get. Probably because that's the only kind of story they tell these days and they're all bad.

Because right now he's just unnecessarily hostile to everyone but they can't have him open up and say why yet cause we have to wait for some kind of stupid pointless reveal.

Sigh.

The only time I felt anything in terms of romantic tension was when Aaron learned John was Robert's half brother and she mentioned that Aaron used to be married to Robert. I swear any time Danny gets to be Aaron talking about or thinking about Robert, all of a sudden his acting performance improves. Ryan doesn't even have to be there to elevate his performance. Actually, Danny probably doesn't even have to act. He's probably just like "Wow man I miss Ryan too".

So...yeah...love Aaron having friends. Love seeing the garage be functional. Aaron has way more chemistry with Mack than he does with John, even if it is more friend chemistry than romantic.

Day two...not much improvement on John/Aaron scenes together.

Oh also...just the fact that it took that many coincidences and contrivances to even get Vic to that funeral and place her in John's path...like dear god. Why is this their only way to tell a story???

[lemotmo]

People on Twitter are frustrating me by closing and I need to share my thoughts on the whole bt/eddie thing if that’s okay lol

I don’t think bt is endgame by any means, but I genuinely can’t tell if the lack of chemistry between Buck and Tommy is intentional. As much as Tommy was in the episode you could have replaced him with any other character and do all of the scenes shot-for-shot (minus the joke at the end about how Tommy hasn’t been kissing Buck) and there would be no difference. If they were meant to endgame then you’d think there would have been at least hand holding, an arm thrown around a shoulder, or even just leaning against each other. Every other couple has casual pda in nearly every episode they’re in, so it doesn’t make sense that there would be none for Tommy.

If Tommy wasn’t written/acted as a bad partner in season 7 I don’t think as many people would be closing. He’s completely different this season but also still so condescending and it’s hard to tell if that’s intentional since Tim apparently didn’t think the daddy issues line last season was weird. Tommy getting a new ice pack for Buck was sweet but everything he did after that felt like how a parent would treat a child. Also that scene could have been done with the two of them lying in bed together instead, which has to mean something.

It seems like the conflict between them is going to be Tommy feeling left out of the 118 family and maybe feeling jealous because of it. I’m a little worried with how that’s going to play out if they make Buck be at fault for not including his boyfriend more, but at the same time it’s insane that Tommy apparently doesn’t know who Sargent Grant is after months of dating. I’m so curious to see what big thing from Tommy’s past is going to come up that’s not his history of racism and sexism. Given the graveyard scene and how Buck was talking about the importance of showing up and being there for people, my current theory is that Tommy is Abby’s ex who left her once her mom got sick. 911 is insane enough to do that plus it would directly conflict with Buck’s closing monologue.

Idk if any of that made sense lol, I’m just tired of seeing people constantly talk about how buddie/gay eddie shouldn’t be rushed while at the same time being mad that they haven’t confessed their love for each other by episode 5 and only 2 episodes after the opening disaster. I’m not going to close unless we get zero movement in that direction by the mid season finale.

I feel and share your frustration Nonny. We have 13 more episodes to go. Let the show tell the story they want to tell and let's give this story some time to breathe and build.

I don't personally believe that Tommy will turn out to be Abby's ex. I'm really thinking the hurdles they'll be facing will be the glaringly obvious fact that they don't mesh well together. I'm pretty sure the lack of romantic intimacy we saw in episode 5 is intentional. Maybe Buck will finally realise sticking it out with someone if you aren't all in, is not the way to go. They aren't compatible and the 'spark' isn't there. That should be enough to break them up.

We'll just have to be patient and watch episode 6 to see what's going on.

[pan-withnoplan]

Nobody asked, but here's my very personal and probably soon to be unpopular musings on "canon ships" and "crackships". Before I start, please know that I'm well aware that everybody probably has different opinions on what this words mean and I'm not trying to make anybody change their minds.

Now, on crackships:

The definition of crackship is "a ship so absurd that the shipper must have been on crack to come up with it". One of the ships I define cracky is Rhys x Weaver. Crazy, right? Yeah, that's the point. Elucien, Elriel, Gwynriel and Vassien are not crackships because none of them have that element of inherent absurdity. The first three because they have canon text on their side. Vassien is a bit different. While I don't think it can be called a crackship, my experience with Vassien is that its shippers are mostly, if not all, people who want to get Lucien out of the way of Elriel. Thus I am inclined to call it a fake ship, rather than crackship.

On canon ships:

This is where I'll probably get cancelled or some shit. Please remember what I said about different opinion about what those terms mean.

For the record I am fully confident that Elucien will have that development that we all long for and I still ship them and Gwynriel with all my heart. I just don't think so far any of those ship are canon as the definition goes.

For me, canon ships are ships where all parties are confirmed to have a romantic or sexual interest in each other AND act on those feelings uninterrupted AND eventually end up in a relationship or the closest that they feel is good for them. As such, for me none of the ships mentioned above is canon yet. Lucien and Elain haven't had the chance to know each other. Lucien is interested in Elain but they would have to spend more time together for them to develop feelings that go beyond the bond. This stand for Elriel as well, since Azriel's pov has nothing to make readers believe his feelings for Elain go further than the sexual sphere or that he wants something lasting with her. We know even less (next to nothing, really) about Elain. No, a soul bond is not love, and no, sexual attraction and chemistry, or even a sexual relationship doesn't mean that you're in love with somebody, and for me neither makes a ship canon.

[lurksunderthebed]

Hi, I saw that you had a discussion about the queerness of our beloved characters. I really hope you’re not tired of that topic, because I wanted to add another point.

First of all I don’t really care. I really like the dynamic between most of the characters, especially Ghost and Soap, but I don’t care if it’s interpreted as besties or lovers. I think both is fun.

I just wanted to add that maybe all of the MW story feels so fucking gay, because we lack cool women? We have Farah and Laswell, but let’s be real Farah is basically married to Alex (I thought they were a couple at first) and Laswell is married to a woman. Now people go great lengths to ship the male characters with female villains, who only appear in a small fraction of the story and have no real chemistry. I mean they can do whatever floats their boat, but I don’t really see the point here.

Which leaves us with a bunch of man ‘flirting’ with each other vor comedic value. I think given this and the points you already said on your account, I think it’s even a bit intended that most of our characters might not be the straightest.

Sure, a bunch of straight men can exist without women and still be straight and the military still might not be the most women friendly institution, but I think having more girlpower would have been an easy way to make everyone appear more straight and the devs didn’t go that route sooooo… (I still would love to have more cool women, but that’s another topic)

Anyways, I hope you have a good day and I wanted to add that I really enjoyed your character analysis posts <3

Ahh thanks for enjoying my analysis posts. 💞🥹 Honestly, I'm still surprised people are reading them lol. (And asking me about it haha)

But yes, I don't think I'll ever be tired of the ol' queerness discussion. It's a fun topic to debate especially with these characters in this particular game.

Controversial take, but I actually don't think adding any extra female characters would've been helpful in making the 'gay' go away.

(gonna be a long discussion here, settle in if you want to read it haha 😅)

What we have to put in mind, is that this game wasn't made for the female audience. The vast majority of the people buying and playing it are going to be male. That's the facts. It's going to cater to men.

A game made for men is going to have a majority of those characters be male. Adding new female characters in a REBOOT series is a delicate task when a good chunk of the population playing have played the OG and want to see legacy characters back (which are all male—the OG was all men).

That means that when we look at why certain things are framed and why there aren't many female characters, and especially why there isn't much of any confirmed (het) canon romantic ships between any characters, it's because the game itself isn't focused on it.

That same vast majority of men don't actually care about ships in general and with people trying to be more progressive, any female characters introduced are painstakingly written to omit any overt possibility of romance. In one sense, it's a welcome change from the action movie style plot line where man + woman = relationship with the women being just side characters/window dressing to the MC.

Women here are shown to be tough, that they don't need a man at all. They have their own agency. It's pretty nice actually that they did that. None of the female characters are infantilised nor is there a sense of them being there to "check boxes" in the minority bag. They make sense in the framing the game has placed them in.

But we do have this interesting dynamic whereby removing the romance factor, but having female characters in a setting that most are conditioned to read as man + woman = relationship, it de-emphasizes heteronormality and actually emphasises the relationships between the core characters.

And with a game full of men, that means the relationships between men are going to be the focal point.

Adding extra female characters, wouldn't have changed any of this, because the writers have gone out of their way to not make romance a plot of any sort. (There's a whole other discussion on the flaws of trying to give women agency/proving strength of character, but by doing so, taking away their sexualities by removing any sort of romance, but that's beside the point)

I think there's also an argument to be had that meaningful relationships with others don't have to necessarily imply romance between characters. It's totally fair to be sick of always having romance injected in to these sorts of relationships. That's an extremely valid take.

But there most definitely is a double standard that everyone is operating on. And we see that when we compare Alex/Farah's relationship with Ghost/Soap's.

Alex's most meaningful relationship is with Farah. He sacrifices himself for her cause and loses a leg for it. He comes back and stays by her side. Most people assume to take it as Alex is in love with Farah. We never see any type of flirting between the two. In fact it's mostly Farah testing Alex and looking at their dialogue you can tell there's respect between the two, but anything more is undefined/up for interpretation.

Yet it's just assumed by virtue of Alex and Farah being man + woman, that they must be together because of how much Alex had sacrificed. Completely ignoring the possibility of Alex doing so because he believes in Farah's cause and was sick of being jerked around with no choice by higher ups who largely didn't care about the suffering of Farah's people. Suffering that the man had personally witnessed. But no, he must be in love with her. (If Farah was a man, their whole relationship would be read as platonic with Alex's beliefs as a focus, not him being potentially in love)

Ghost's most meaningful relationship is with Soap. Soap has changed Ghost's whole MO as a lone wolf, and has challenged his very notion of trust. Ghost tests Soap and is proven wrong when Soap survives despite the odds. We even see them have plausible deniability flirting/snark. They are framed as a unit and on the off times (off of missions in cutscenes), they are always physically together. There's definitely respect between the two, but anything more is undefined/up for interpretation.

By itself, their relationship seems innocuous, but looking at the context we see a very different picture. Context matters heavily in seeing how this relationship has changed Ghost/the importance of it to him. It's assumed that Soap is the first person in god knows how long, that Ghost is emotionally attached to. What constitutes a normal, albeit flirty and snarky, friendly relationship for most, is amplified for Ghost in the glaring fact that he really doesn't do this for anyone else ever. As far as we can tell for a man that appears to live his job, Soap is Ghost's most important person.

We can even arguably say that Ghost and Soap had a flirtier, friendlier, more emotional relationship than Alex and Farah ever had, yet it's assumed (by the male audience) to be completely platonic by virtue of them both being men.

For all those people who argue to stop shipping characters, those same people turn around and are completely implicit in the notion of Alex and Farah being a thing.

It's a really annoying take, because you and I know that it's not the romance they're bothered by. It's the idea of having a character that exemplifies the silent male loner badass archetype as anything but the pinnacle of masculinity. IE, totally and utterly straight.

I feel I could go on about all the ways Ghost surprisingly subverts his archetype, but I'll leave it there. This is prob already too long 😅

But yes, having new cool female characters is always good, but it still wouldn't settle any sexuality debate since they would most likely be written without any hint of romance between the core 141 group and that potential new character. Just like how Farah and Laswell, as you said, have been both removed completely from the romance/sexuality debate, any new female character would also be put under similar framework.

I suppose it would just make them appear more straight (and get rid of all the speculation) if they had a new female character added into 141, but I don't see the point of adding a new character for that sole purpose. And tbh, it would come across as insulting to women if they did for that one reason.

Given how little character development we had in the latest game, I heavily doubt they would introduce new characters at all when they barely showed anything of the current ones we have already. We need more development of the characters we have, adding someone new would arguably take away from building proper relationships/dynamics between the characters we do have currently.

But yeah, heh. I'll stop for real now. If you got this far in my latest Ted Talk™, kudos to you good sir 🫡, you have all my love ☺️

Hope you have a great day too nonny, and I hope this helps with the discussion. Feels like I went off on too many side tangents. 🤔🤔🤔

[castlebyersafterdark]

one of the things that’s so encouraging is this off-season we haven’t received ANY reason to be worried that byler isn’t happening and every reason to believe it is. The only arguably pro-Mlvn content we got is the rooftop scene/3 waterfalls gate, but that scene can mean many different things and pales in comparison to the numerous byler images we’ve scene and the evidence that finn is filming heavily with noah and not with millie. there were also rumored “leaks” like the field makeout session, but pics or it didn’t happen lol.

The showrunners and shawn and the actors have simply not posted any pro-Mlvn content which is a crazy thing for what is allegedly the “main ship of the show.” We’ve gotten lumax and jopper but no mlvn! Which is honestly surprising to me cause I expected them to be playing up this triangle and giving us reason to “doubt,” but I see none!

Now is there time for things to change? sure! we’re still a ways away from season 5. perhaps there will be some mlvn crumbs in the teaser or the trailer. but like… as of right now, the writing is on the wall and I’m sure even the redditors and the hardcore twitter mlvns have to be feeling it

All they can do is hold onto the hope that there’s a lot of top-secret mlvn content being filmed, or mike and el are separated YET AGAIN but will find their way back to each other in the finale, which. okay. heteronormativity aside (and byler obviously being endgame aside), surely the duffers are more creative writers than that lol

It would be one thing if this was a situation where in between filming, all we heard was crickets from production and what inevitably leaked from paparazzi was all we got - but official sources do share things here and there and... yeah. Yeah. It's very suspicious that there hasn't been much that seems to indicate that Mike and El should even be thought of as a pair.

We got one picture with the two of them together, walking in a field, which I'm pretty sure was them walking to the radio station to film the rooftop scene. I side with the people who think production planted or paid paps to leak that video themselves, or at least let it happened, didn't buy back the footage as often happens with paparazzi content. Why was it so clear? Why did they allow it out there? And I think it's because there's nothing to be interpreted from the video as romantic. It looks like a break-up or reconciliation as two people working on repairing a friendship. Body language. Facial expressions. I don't believe most lip readers, but some things seems spot on. Get those who are savvy to online fandom and media hype to get used to the idea of those two parting ways. Yes - we see what we want to see. Mlvns see that clip as cementing them as a couple. Byler fans will insist it's a break-up. Yes, I'm a Byler fan... but come on? If we're all so wrong and it's a romantic scene, well. I'll feel trapped in a twilight zone nightmare world where nothing makes sense because it does not look romantic at all. They're such a boring bland couple if so. That wasn't romantic energy or chemistry.

We've seen soooo many photos or Will and Mike or WillandMike and not much of El at all, let alone with her love interest. What would be the harm in showing some Mlvn stuff if they were continuing onward? They're splitting. Mike is being shown with the real love interest.

I think. After season 4. Noah was excited about the possibility of Byler and was very in tune with the fandom. He encouraged it. I think he maybe had an inkling of where it was going, but it wasn't cemented as fact. He interacted with a lot, right? Still did sporadically even recently. But I don't think he of all people would be so cruel as to placate fans and encourage/indulge stuff if it wasn't gonna happen, because he had to have known once filming was underway where things were going. It really would be so cruel, wouldn't it? They could have snipped it already. And oh, we'd hope they're better storytellers than that, right? Mike and Will are spending most of the season together. Who knows were El is? But in the last season? It should be about Mike and El FINALLY past all the relationship "what is going on with them" at this point to end up fighting this thing together - and nothing indicates that's what's going on. If they, yet again, have them separated and reunite right at the end - boooooring and terrrrrible. I don't think that's what's going on. I trust them. Maybe too much. But it's where I've landed and my feet have sunk into the cement of it all.

[biarritzzz]

women under 30-ish just really either don't have friends, because any tension is easier resolved by ghosting, helping each other is a yuck, and everyone is a cloistered hermit post-covid, so it's not even a concept. That, or they have many superficial friendships they won't care for because everyone is a rentoid that has to move a lot for jobs, and that's intensional design.

Thus even honest to god lesbians of main internet age group only really care about finding the one and being isolated together, preferably in a cabin in the woods.

Women's friendships are a bygone.

As someone who is closer to 40 than 30, when you're in college it's far easier to make friends or at least to meet people as you are all in the same place, attending the same courses, knowing all the same people. You don't need an excuse to socialize. You also have plenty of time to just hang out. But are these friendships long-lasting? Not necessarily because many are just situational bonds that dissolve as soon as you graduate and move away for work.

I don't think it's solely a matter of age though as in my experience most women just don't have the desire to invest in and nurture friendships. Many are content with surface level stuff, as you point out. I've always cared more. I remember calling all my friends from primary school at the end of summer because I assumed they would want to keep in touch even if we were all attending a different middle school. And none of them (about 5 or 6) were interested in continuing our friendship. It crushed me.

As you get older, people simply have less time or rather they have other priorities. They get married, start a family and then you don't see them for a good 5 years. After which they reemerge but it's likely you no longer have anything in common. You know a friendship has run its course when every time you get together all you end up talking is your past as friends because you no longer have anything else to talk about other than a few generalities that are common to everyone.

You try to meet new people but the thing is, unlike in school or in university, you often only have one thing in common, usually a hobby. Which is fine. But it doesn't really lend itself to deep meaningful friendships. On top of that, getting older means you're more set in your ways and less flexible but also your BS detector is better so you tend to avoid people who are obvious messes vs when you're younger, you're up for anything, you have more energy and therefore you're more likely to make connections, even if these end up in flames.

As for lesbians, most of us want to meet 'the one' which is a normal and human desire, especially when the outside world is so hostile to us and so unrelatable. So I do think lesbians tend to maybe put all their eggs into that one basket but lesbians run into the same problems as heterosexuals: family and kids (many lesbians want children) take priority and friendships take a backseat.

I don't know about the 'cabin in the woods' aspect (which is very US by the way) but there is indeed this romantic idea that your spouse should fulfill all your needs in terms of human connection and obviously that's not realistic nor healthy. As a lesbian meeting someone you actually connect and have chemistry with is so rare that I think these (lucky) lesbians assume they shouldn't push their luck: they found a romantic partner and that's the best they're going to get. Hence the fantasy of "she will be my spouse AND my best friend". That's my theory anyway.

Something you mention is internet and social media and I agree that while it may seem easier on paper to connect with other people thanks to the reach of the internet, it's also easier to ghost and block plus it creates this fake online intimacy that often doesn't translate in real life. So many young people seem content living online rather than connecting face to face.

And to end: it's time to stop blaming covid for lack of human contact. Covid was four years ago. Time to move on.

[dramatisperscnae]

SHIPPING INFO:// Answer the following for your muse(s) so people know how shipping works on your blog

REPOST. DON'T REBLOG

What’s your OTP for your Muse(s)?

Oh hell. Let me see if I can remember all of them Stucky, Wnterhawk, Frosthawk [which I have accepted will never happen but I can dream dammit], Loki/Sigyn [HE LOVES HIS WIFE], Jaydick[any flavor; platonic or romantic], Dick/Babs, Dick/Roy, Remy/Rogue, Hyuroi, Hughes/Gracia[this man loves his wife okay], and the others either don't have an OTP because I haven't found one I like or they're OCs whose partner is another OC and therefore kinda pointless to list here XD

What are you willing to RP when it comes to shipping?

I'll try anything once. I'm a sucker for soulmate AUs, I'm great with deep platonic bonds -points at both Jaydick and Stucky-, gimme the romance, gimme FWB, just...-grabby hands- ship ALL THE THINGS Haven't ever really dabbled in toxic or hateships, but I would not be opposed to this with the right pairing and partner, either.

How large does the age gap have to be to make it uncomfortable?

This depends entirely on the relative ages involved, since I have two muses on here that are both over 2000 years old and at that point worrying about age gaps is really kinda pointless. That being said, I will not ship anything beyond purely romantic with muses below the age of 18 as a general rule, and that only because I have two muses with minor-aged verses [Dick and Conrad].

Are you selective when shipping?

To an extent; I ship chemistry above all, so there's no guarantee that - as an example - my Bucky is gonna be solidly romantically attracted to any given portrayal of Steve, or that I the writer am gonna click with the writer of any given Steve out there. Chemistry does not just mean chemistry of the characters; if our styles clash or we don't really mesh well then shipping's probably not gonna happen.

How far do steamy moments have to go before they’re considered NSFW? 

I tend to be very lenient here, but in general once the bits below the belt start getting named and/or there is full nudity I start tagging. Unless my partner starts tagging and/or readmore-ing first, in which case I follow my partner's lead and do the same.

Who are other muses you ship your muse with?

Oh lord. Okay. Arthur: Bruce ( @cxpedcrusxder ) Dick: Marcus ( @hacker-codeq ), Roy ( @thecreativeforge ), Clint ( @normaltothemax ), Jason ( @lazaruspitreborn , @messeduphood , potentially one or two others to be determined later) Kyle: None yet Loki: None yet Remy: Matt Murdock ( @defectivexfragmented ) Bucky: Clint ( @normaltothemax ) Corwin: None yet Clive: None yet Greyson: None yet Conrad: As my shameless self-insert I have a list I'd love to ship him with, but none have happened yet XD TJ: I used to ship him with Steve back in the day; currently none. Caspian: Michelle ( @misstisalir ); otherwise, none yet Hughes: None yet Judas: Gabriel ( @misstisalir ); otherwise, none yet Lucifer: also Gabriel XD [it's complicated] otherwise, none yet

Does one have to ask to ship with you?

Yes. Like I said earlier, even the 'obvious' ships [like Stucky] might not actually work out between us. Consent is always key. Also, it's more fun to let things develop naturally, that's how the best ships happen!

How often do you like to ship?

So long as there's chemistry, all the damn time

Are you multiship?

100% I have only ever considered limiting ships once and that was because the character involved had just been so built around his ship partner that playing him off anyone else was just weird. That is the exception to the rule here.

Are you ship obsessed or ship more-or-less?

-shrug?- Depends on what mood I'm in at the time and who happens to be loud and demanding XD

What is your favorite ship in your current fandom?

Uh. -looks at current DC obsession- do I have to just pick one? Probably Jaydick, but in all its permutations. It scratches that delightful Stucky itch of 'can be just very deeply platonic but also so goddamn romantic under the right circumstances' and I kinda love it. But also I've a softspot for Batcat when they're written right.

Finally, how does one ship with you?

Hop in my inbox and ask; it's a more reliable way to get in touch with me than messenger at first XD Chances are I already ship it to some degree, or will start shipping it if I haven't already thought of it and can see the potential -sideeyes his Aquabat ship with Fox as evidence >w>-

tagged by @defectivexfragmented tagging: You. With the face.

[theluxuriansecret]

Dear 12092023

7:00 pm

Dear diary.

I'm having a genuinely hard time with school boy's rejection. I mean, I know he's just a young college kid ,but seriously our chemistry was too good to deny. Honestly it all comes back down to Avenel. That's what I'm renaming J*** because writing his name out like that is kind of annoying. I know that not all situations need closure, and that silence is closure. If someone wanted to talk to you, or wanted you in their life they just would be., but in this case, he didn't want to be and I just had to accept that. None of them wanted to be. I was just a convenient fuck at the end of the day.

I also started to consider the science behind the people you want not wanting you back, and the people you didn't want being absolutley obsessed. It's so incredibly frustrating to me. The only men I wanted, I was nice to, but the men I didn't want I was nonchalant with. Those are the only ones who responded "positively" to me. but I don't want to be a cruel, nonchalant bitch to be with a man who will actually like me and take genuine interest in me.

This is me coming back at 9:44 pm finally ready to finish my journal post because I get so caught up and distracted. I've had so much sugar that my head is starting to hurt, and I would really like to start my final that's due tomorrow, I just really don't want to do any of that shit. Anywayyyy.

I just need to pour back into myself again. Get my work out routine back into place, start playing vide games i like that I can play alone (fortnite is too intense for me). I was honestly so productive today. its crazy what I can accomplish when I put my phone down. Like.. I gotta put this shit down more often.

Honestly, I'm going to keep being a hopeless romantic. I'm going to keep believing that the right person for me is out there. I know the love I desire exists because it lives within me, but until then. I will continue to love myself the way I deserve..

Honestly, yes the sappy ending would've been nice, but that's not what I came to write about. I wanted to write about how I have an intimacy issue and it's spilling over making me a hypersexual. I struggle with limerence, and I think about sex a lot. I don't even know whether I'm horny or the fact that the only way for me to feel wanted or loved, or cared for or cheished or valued, is through sex. I cracked the code. I gotta stop. TBH after school boy gave me BV, I told myself I was 100% going on a man cleanse, for my coochie and for my spirit. It's almost been two months with out sec and I'm not going to lie, it's been difficult. I do still heavily value male attention. And I hater that for me. Once school is over and I'm super finished and I never have to see school boy again, I can finally start the process of moving on, planning my future, and figuring myself out. It's just so hard to do when I have to see him and I still want him to choose me. I don't know how people can have these types of relationships when you constantly have to see the person you're not fucking with anymore. I don't live on campus and I'm struggling. IDK how they do it. (finishing at 10:17 pm btw)

[robotslenderman]

Pls do Wendy, cock robin and calebros pls

Wendy:

favorite thing about them Will Jack Sparrow her way through shit. Has poor impulse control. Ballsy. No survival instinct whatsoever. Makes her a blast to write.

least favorite thing about them This doesn't really spotlight until the RS sequel fic (although it does show up in RS), but she puts her own needs above her principles. Even though she did eventually speak up about the Kennels in RS, it took her ten years to get there, and she never once tried to strike out on her own. She's afraid of being lonely, of being on her own, of dramatic change, and in her next fic that's going to show up and test her big time. And she is going to fail that test. She angsts a lot about being a good person but, deep down, she does not want to be. In the City that Never Sleeps she joins the bad guys who murdered someone she knew. Pre-RS she never left the Warren despite the Kennels deeply distressing her, until she had something else lined up. And in the upcoming fic she's close friends with a guy who's done some pretty bad shit and... does nothing, bc she misses him when he's not there.

favorite line I honestly can't be bothered to check. XD

brOTP I love her dynamic with Thomas Arturo. Whenever I start writing them in a scene together they just bounce off each other and have the best banter. I have to cut so much of it out bc it's mostly just blatant self indulgence lmao. Gerard Rafin is a VERY close second. She'd do well as platonic life partners with either of them tbh.

OTP Despite the chemistry she has with quite a few characters there's never been a romantic connection that's really jumped out at me. I mean, I ship her and Thomas romantically too, but only because their platonic chemistry is so great. The romantic aspect takes a backseat and doesn't hold a candle to it.

nOTP I love her and Gerard and I know people ship it like hell but for some reason whenever I consider the possibility of it when writing Wendy just gets super squicked out. I don't even know why.

random headcanon In a daemon AU, she has a ferret as a daemon: absolutely batshit insane, no attention span except when she's hyperfocusing on something that will probably kill her, constantly gets into shit she shouldn't.

unpopular opinion It's not unpopular YET but she's not nearly as ethical as RS paints her to be, and ohhh boy I'm hoping I don't get too much backlash for that in the sequel fic :X

song i associate with them Clubbed to Death -- The Matrix OST

favorite picture of them Alas, there is none.

I was getting deja vu then realised it was because you'd already send CR and Calebros in before and I never finished the draft for that, so here we go:

Cock Robin

favorite thing about them

Disabled Justicar. Badass. VTM isn't exactly known for its equity.

least favorite thing about them

Obsessed with Anarchs. We all need our hobbies I guess.

favorite line

Out of the ones I wrote for him?

"[Calebros] never learned to be a real Nosferatu because he’d never learned to be human."

brOTP

I love him and his baby sister okay

OTP

@orodrethsgeek ships him with her OC Jay, the vampiric equivalent of that black bird that dances for its mate, and I love them

nOTP

Can't think of any.

random headcanon

He's either very flappable or very *un*flappable. No in between.

unpopular opinion

I barely know of any opinions on the guy

song i associate with them

There's a scene I wrote with him and Wendy in the last chapter of the fic and when I was playing it I was listening to this on repeat:

The End -- Hans Zimmer, The Dark Knight Rises OST

favorite picture of them'

Absolutely ADORE this one:

He just happens to be a normal dude whose face is Like That. I love it, I love the cigarette, I love how he looks so thoughtful with a face that can't even make facial expressions, it's so humanising.

Calebros

favorite thing about them

Not a complete dick. It's a low bar but most Kindred have shovels.

least favorite thing about them

Gerard Rafin's right, this guy does think too much and do too little.

favorite line

One I wrote, where Gerard said something in French and Calebros went, "did he tell me to shut up?"

(Yes. He did.)

brOTP

Don't have one.

OTP

Don't have one. Tho I'd be interested to plonk him in a scene with Aisling, I think they'd get along well.

nOTP

Don't have one.

random headcanon

Canon acts as if he turned out fine but the Kennels screwed him up far more than he or anyone around him realises, and is a big part of the reason he's so passive.

unpopular opinion

I find him a bit dull, but I don't think that's a bad thing for him to be as a character. I wouldn't change that about him.

song i associate with them

None in particular.

favorite picture of them

I genuinely find this one funny:

[djemsostylist]

OUAT: What Went Wrong, Part 1

Truthfully to write about what went wrong with OUAT would best be encapsulated by saying "everything" and simultaneously writing a novel. The fact is that OUAT was doomed from the start, I think, in part because the original concept relied on a pre-existing IP and had to undergo changes from there, all of which I think were the worst. For the sake of both brevity and bc it isn't totally fair, I won't compare OUAT to Fables, the other famous "fairy tales in the real world" story. I do think that both could have existed regardless of the other, and OUAT could have done something different and still been interesting. Still I do have to wonder if trying NOT to be Fables made it hard for the writers initially, and that just sort of carried over into, well, everything. That and I just don't think, at the end of the day, the original writers/creators/showrunners were very good.

The thing is, I wanted OUAT to be good. I really did. I have always been in love with fairy tales, ever since my early days as a Disney girl, and while I'm not even close to what you could call a Disney adult, I have continued to love fairy tales. The magic, the wonder, the simplicity, but also the darkness which is inherent in everyone. I actually really like the initial re-concept for OUAT, which was to focus more on goodness and kindness and good always winning out--I am, after all, perennially on the side of the "good guys" in media, and the concept is one I think is appealing.

But OUAT was doomed from the start. To be honest, I don't think I needed to watch 6 seasons to make this list, but it is gratifying to know that the problems inherent in season 1 continue to plague the show through it's far too long run. Now it's worth noting that my issues with this show are the same as they are with many a show, particularly those of network tv back in the day. These issues certainly aren't unique to OUAT, but unlike many shows which started strong and devolved into something terrible, OUAT has virtually nothing to recommend it. And so, if I may, the list.

5 Things OUAT Did Wrong

The Casting: The casting was...bad. The problem with pretty much the entire cast is that no one, at any point, had any chemistry with each other. And I'm not talking just romantic chemistry, I mean friends, parents, children--at no point in the entire show did I ever feel a connection between any of the characters. It wasn't that they weren't trying--you could tell they were, but the lack of any sort of connecting chemistry made everything, everything, fall flat. In fact I think it's telling that the arrival of Hook made them do a rewrite because for the first time two people on the show had the merest touch of chemistry and it made the writers want to grab what little there was. The problem is that none of the characters felt believable in their roles, with perhaps the exception of Lana Parrilla as Regina. Jennifer Morrison was absolutely the wrong choice for Emma Swan. She's not a bad actress (she's not good by any means but she isn't unwatchable), but her energy and vibes are not fairy tale. She has what may politely be described as "resting storm cloud face", meaning she always looks downtrodden and vaguely haggard, which perhaps would have worked for early Emma with her walls, but doesn't work when she starts to believe and then becomes lighter and softer with the love of her family. Additionally, Emma is supposed to be 28--a pleasant age, honestly, and I approve, but Morrison was 32 at the time. Now, four years isn't that big of a difference, but her vibes push her older, and Emma ends up feeling more like a depressed 35 year old and less like a 28 year old who has been hurt by the world. She doesn't shine in her softer moment, and when she's put into dresses and girly things, the result is comical at best, and becomes outright ridiculous when they slap glasses on her and have her pretend to be 18. This is true of most of the cast. Charming and Snow White are at their best in the penultimate episode when they are forced to sing--the rest of the time, their vibes are that of lost theater kids who accidentally wandered onto a tv set--not a king and queen. Even the kid (and I hesitate to judge child actors because life is hard enough) just doesn't have it. He plays Henry extremely one note--a good kid who just believes in magic, and his earnestness only works for so long. At some point he's unable to transition to even the bare minimum moments of teenage surliness the script asks of him, and ultimately Henry leaves you tired. Lana Parrilla is the best at her role, because she manages to embody both sides of the character--the strength, cruelty, and anger of the Evil Queen, and the softness and understanding of Regina Mills. Colin O'Donoghue does alright as Hook, although at some point you feel like perhaps he's just phoning it in (though I'd hardly blame him). Emilie de Ravin as Belle suffers from the same issues as Jennifer Morrison--she's older than the character by a little and feels it by a lot, and her acting is barely tolerable most of the time. Robert Carlyle is a fine actor for network tv I suppose, but his role as Rumple is...strange. Again--I'd argue that he's too old for the role. Rumpelstiltskin should feel timeless, ageless--he's an immortal being after all--and instead you just sort of increasingly feel his age as time goes on. I know people will probably be angry for this, and to be clear I usually laugh at the idea that every has to be young in a show, but for this, you needed characters who could do both--feel young and vulnerable, seem ageless and strong, seem young but feel old. Instead, everyone feels solidly middle aged, and tired not in a "well of course they are always fighting evil" way, but in a "they've stayed to late a the office writing spreadsheets" kind of way.

The Story--the story makes no sense. None, whatsoever. The story was quite clearly conceived from the basic plot of Fables--what happens if fairy tale characters lived in the real world--but when they couldn't use Fables, they made a few changes and thought through--well nothing. The very basic premise itself makes no sense, and each season only makes it more of a headscratcher. The basic plot is this: The Evil Queen from Snow White casts a Dark Curse on a land of fairy tale characters to transport them to a land without magic, where in 28 years they will be saved by the Savior, who is a special magical person bc she was conceived by True Love, the most powerful magic of all. But I have a lot of questions, NONE of which are answered by the show. We know Storybrooke is frozen essentially--time doesn't move for 28 years, which is why no one ages, etc. But the question is this--why does no one notice? Did Regina, in addition to giving them false memories, also do something to make them never question things? Are they trapped in a sort of vague deja vu, groundhog day situation where things never change but are also not quite the same and they don't really remember the previous day but don't quite forget it, but aren't aware of the passage of time? Do they know it's years passing but the spell makes them not care/not feel it? How would you explain Henry coming to Storybrooke and growing and changing, when no one else does? I'll assume the kids Snow is teaching aren't growing--is that just a thing the spell makes no one wonder? Was Henry the only infant in town? Did he notice he was the only one growing up? And further--if they came to Storybrooke in 1980 something, and Emma arrived in 2011--why did they never actually seem to be living in the 80s? Emma arrived in a Storybrooke that has been, at least in flashbacks, perennially in 2011. How? Why? Did Regina pick a time period and time lock the town, and Emma's arrival just happened to coincide? Was the time picked by the Curse? How did Regina get Henry in, but no one else, in all that time, ever came in or out? Did the entirety of the Enchanted Forest get transported there? So there are old people and young people and babies and kids and everyone is just stuck and no one notices? How did time start advancing when Emma got there, but then no one else noticed that either? Did they wake up and suddenly Mary Margaret realizes that she has a closet full of 28 years of bird houses? Further, what was she teaching in school? No one ever left Storybrooke--were they even aware of the larger world? Was she teaching Earth world history? Math? Was everything just sort of a vague weirdness? They say Henry felt weird and that's why she gave him the story book, but they never say WHAT'S weird. The story is just like "yeah, they lived in a town frozen for 28 years in 2011" and then do like...nothing with it.

The Costumes--I assume the conversation surrounding budget and costuming went like this: "Choose a mall. Not a good one, one of those small, outlet strip ones that's almost going out of business. All the princess dresses must come from that one store that sells prom dresses for under $100, the rest of your costumes come from whatever stores have a 'going out of business' sign. Makeup from Claires, shoes from Payless. Nothing over $50. All weapons from Party City. They never closed Spirit Halloween so go wild." Because my god. The first time a fairy appeared on screen I gasped. Literally out loud because in all my wildest dreams I could never possibly have imagined a more embarrassingly hideous outfit. At one point in the show, about four episodes in, I assumed the costume designers were intentionally doing it poorly, because what earthly reason could they have for making it that bad??? Regardless of the fact that it was ABC and I know they had at least some Disney money backing them, the costumes were embarrassing at every level. Sticking grown women in dresses suitable for a teenager going to a party with sparkly eyeshadow does not a fairy tale make. It also makes it hard to take seriously.

Part 2...

[illumoonated]

Thoughts about Wednesday (the show)

I wished i liked the Wednesday show more. Truly. But...

...the writing felt half-assed. The characters felt lazy. The addams family felt not quite weird enough. It seemed to be a very safe (somewhat boring) reboot that ppl are groveling over simply bc they want winclair to be canon (which, fine do your thing -- but you're setting yourselves up for heartbreak bc these writers/showrunners give zero effs about making wednesday canonically queer). The love triangle was actually painful to watch.

There was throw-away "representation" with her being asked if she was into someone a "guy...or you know, a girl?" to get woke points. Someone else pointed it out too, but the black male mayor being told he doesn't "know what it's like to be not heard" was so incredibly tone deaf it threw me off. As well as the only real POCs having a personality being the actual Addams crew.

(The siren queen bee was cool but she like immediately became Wednesday's bestie after 2 minutes of a heart to heart at a dance? Idk she felt wasted/characterized too quickly to feel impactful when she helped in the last episode. There was no emotional "oomph" to her being on Wednesday's team.) ((Also there was the aapi vampire who smiled once and had a single line of dialogue or smth...? wish we got more from her bc that's a cool-ass concept of being stuck in a place like nevermore where ppl know you're an immortal--like I was waiting for a big reveal to be pulled from this vamp being like "hey I knew your parents when they went here, oh, that fancy book you need? I have read all the nevermore books so many times I can just rewrite it for you by memory, where's your typewriter?")) Basically none of the students "banded together" for Wednesday in a believable way. They just...did....?

And if the intent was to simply get a flavor of the month moody white boi as Wednesday's love interest -- fine, but you didn't even make them likeable (not the actors' faults, bc they were clearly given no direction other than "go and be in love w wednesday for no reason bc she's MC"). And Wednesday as a character would avoid the moody bois and possessive "nice guys" like the plague (pun not intended) and would find interest in a strange/true social outcast more. (If she's gotta be with a boy make sure it's like whatshisface in Addams Family Values who is nerdy and nervous and a true social outcast that Wednesday had a real banter/challenge with instead of gross obsession/ownership like fuccboi #1 and #2. Again, not the actors' faults.)

I am so torn as an ace person bc I want her to be aroace so badly (and I believe it would be an appropriate identity for her). I also don't want to be the ace person being like "no winclair shouldn't be canon" bc I want sapphic stories to be represented but I hate how any close platonic relationships are automatically romanticized/ran away with despite how the characters feel about the other person. Again, if this is a friends(roomates) to lovers story fine. But there's zero chance that'll happen with the writing where it's currently at (I mean, they can change this but rn I don't see it happening).

TL;DR 1. wednesday shows how thirsty we all are for true queer rep/romantic or otherwise

2. the love triangle trope (esp the cishet ones) have to be damn good in this day and age to be worthwhile (the triangles in 1899 come to mind as good, current examples involving fleshed out characters with chemistry)

3. the show is trying to earn woke points without committing,

4. the addams family is mischaracterized from the source material,

5. this reboot entry is safe, lazy, and predictable from a plot, character, and worldbuilding standpoint (I was expecting far out weird/spooky shit like the Sabrina netflix series tbh and was really disappointed in how safe this reboot played it)

6. I wish I wanted winclair to be canon but i don't and I wish I did so ppl don't think i'm being "too ace" or "anti-" bc anytime platonic relationships occur between two pretty ppl the internet loses its mind and disregards what the characters actually feel about each other (reinforcing that friendship < romance)