#so there are artists and writers out there who dont respect their audiences bc they dont believe its worth the effort

[mekatrio]

thank you jin 🥺

[toxicsamruby]

hello! i have to ask: what do you think about supernatural au's where monsters don't exist/monster hunting is not a thing? do you think the characters could even exist out of that realm? i honestly have conflicting views on this because on one hand i do enjoy the character dynamics but i also feel it would be wrong to just take away something that is fundamental to this show, idk though

i LOVE this question. thank you. im going to write a very long post now

obviously there are infinite ways to interpret a story, right? but sam and dean (and castiel too of course) as characters are completely inextricable from their backstories, and their backstories are inextricable from themes of transience, poverty, loneliness, violence, familial duty, masculinity, otherness, american protestantism, horror, humanity, and monstrosity. i dont think that it’s Wrong to take away the monster hunting as an element in the story, but i DO think it would be bad storytelling to do so bc the fact is that these characters w these personalities wouldnt EXIST without a few VERY crucial plot points/themes. and thats a GOOD thing!! say what u will abt the writers (and i do. i do) but the early seasons do an EXCELLENT job of building characters who are inseparable from their stories, characters whose every action is reflective of the Story itself in a bigger sense, characters who are interesting because of the way that they’re used to tell that bigger Story. there’s a sense of cohesiveness between character and theme and narrative, and removing one of these aspects would lessen the other two. that is the mark of good storytelling (that, in my opinion, distinguishes seasons 1 and MAYBE 2 from all the rest; although funnily enough i think castiel’s arc in s4 is the best example of what im talking about outside of s1-2. but anyways).

without these crucial themes and narratives, who ARE sam and dean? why do they even matter? what’s the value of them as characters? aus that strip away all those VERY important themes and plot points strip away the actual artistic value of the characters, and reduces them to objects of the audience’s emotional whims. the only reason u have any affection for these characters in aus is because you know and understand the source material, and you remember why those characters STARTED to matter to u in the first place. this is something that happens in a lot of fanfiction i think: the most essential themes of the original work are ignored for the sake of emotionally expedient scenarios where both writer and reader can clock out of having to do a bigger analysis of the story and just focus on, for example, a certain ship getting together and/or having sex, or a certain character getting a happy ending. and like i wont deny that theyre fun to read! they are essentially transplanting already-developed characters from their already-developed stories into a new fun scenario without the themes and narratives that actually made the characters compelling. and sure, sometimes a truly good author offers us a compelling new set of themes and narratives, ones that are interesting and make us think, but i’d argue that the characters in those rare good fics are 1. not...really the same characters from the show, since the story they’re in has been so completely transformed 2. basically shortcuts for the author to cut their teeth on writing original fiction. in any case, a vast majority of fics that remove the themes and narratives of the original story DONT offer a truly satisfying replacement, so the point is almost moot.

my answer, in short, is that aus without monster hunting destroy the character-theme-narrative cohesion that all good stories require, and by extension doesn’t require either author or reader to think critically about the story as a whole. you know that joke that goes around about supernatural just being a crate full of toys that we’re all sitting around and playing barbie dolls with? that is what the fics ur talking about basically are. it isn’t seriously engaging with a story as a piece of art, it’s grabbing a few barbies from a box and putting them in different clothes. and i think the fact that supernatural does fall apart both thematically and narratively so early in its incredibly long runtime is what allows people to treat it as a box of dolls, because most of the time it seems like the writers themselves treat the show as a box of dolls instead of a story that deserves respect and care and thought. so i actually do understand the urge to play with the barbies, so to speak, and to a certain extent i dont even think it’s a bad thing. but i DO think that sometimes, especially online, ESPECIALLY with a show like this where the lines between genuine engagement with the text and playing barbie dolls gets so blurred, people actually start to lose track of which is which, and THATS what irritates me. people start to view the ENTIRE STORY as just a way to see their personal favorite character do what they want that character to do. the character (and their emotional attachment to said character) becomes the whole reason for the story, instead of the story being the reason for the characters. playing barbie dolls is fine! but it DOES need to be balanced out with actual engagement, with literary analysis, with criticism if the story needs it (and my GOD does supernatural need criticism!), and there needs to be an understanding of the difference between genuine analysis and personal loyalty to a character. 

like, not to be a snob or anything, but it is important to engage truthfully and fairly with a text. things arent good just because you want them to be good, and stories can only offer you genuine satisfaction and critical/artistic growth if you truly engage with them. engaging with supernatural means thinking/writing about monsters and the Other, and to remove monstrosity as a theme and narrative hollows out the story completely.

[btsxlami]

Why Namjoon isnt accepted in the krap scene (and why thats a good thing)

  unpopular opinion and confession 

*****im not saying all krappers are like this btw chill ur dick

***also butthurt ppl dont come at me saying YEAH YOONGI TOO bc i shall make a post about him too i didnt forget about yall, always coming into namjoon rap posts and making it about yoongi

****My intention of this post is not to diss your faves or rappers in general. This isn’t a post that has the intention of throwing shade I am simply expressing my respect for an artist. 

I never really respected a lot of k-rappers. I do like some songs because they have a good beat but respect is something that an artist should earn. I respect rappers and groups like epik high, verbal jint, and tiger jk for influencing the krap scene for the good.

I wont touch on american rap but the krap scene is so generalized. Like hey have fake gold chains and a bunch of girls while I rap about shit that doesnt make people feel better about themselves with lyrics that i didnt even write. Many generalize culture, rap about degrading others, and you know all that shit. But let me tell you: RAP stands for RHYTHM AND POETRY.

POETRY

Listen anyone can have their different perspective on poetry and maybe to someone “squad shit it g ma” is the most well thought out poetic verse that they have heard. 

But rapping all started when people were in pain, when people were in dark time period in life and spilling out their feelings through rhyme made them feel better and got them out of trouble. I`m not saying you need a depressing life story to be a rapper (you dont need a chicken to recognize an egg) but rapping is way more than some beats and a snapback, its a coping mechanism, maybe not always for the artist but definitely the audience.

I sound so old when I`m saying this but rapping isnt just talking fast, its a lengthy process of finding strong and meaningful word play, to beats and rhythms which compliment eachother which is then it put together in one song almost like a prayer.

and don`t come at me with the WELL I LIKE HOW IT SOUNDS, because these days i swear to god ANYONE CAN BE A RAPPER, and thats how it shouldnt be. 

They get others to write songs for them, songs usually have no smart wordplay or meaning and just talk in slightly faster pace. (i definitely find rap flow and speed a plus point in rapping). 

Rappers who arents even all that shit get praised and recieve so much attention and go on judging others just bc their not AS famous.

(random thought i really dislike smtm) Rapping isnt a childsplay. Common korean rap communities like smtm etc are extremely trashy to me.

 In 2015 during bangtan`s vacation Namjoon released his first mixtape (legendary) which proved his ability to write lyrics in both english and korean, write lyrics about depression happiness life hope etc, he made a damn song DISSING rappers who only have flow and lyrics that don`t make sense AND SPAT BARS SO FAST IM LIKE BOI BREATH, he teamed up with a western artist and recieVED EXTREME APPRECIATION IN THE AMERICAN RAP SCENE. 

If you don`t know he started rapping at 13 because he was going through a really low point in his life. He then started writing HIS OWN lyrics about his feelings and educated himself in hip hop and rap culture (he listened to a lot of nas and tupac what a man). He then joined an underground rap team which he gained skills like free-styling and flow (BOY CAN RAP SO FAST BRUH). But definitely his raps are extremely smart. He uses so much worldplay their almost like a riddle you need to figure out. Not only that he can rhyme and compose and has the qualities of a true rapper who IS PASSIONATE ABOUT MUSIC HE LET DOWN  HIS FAMILY TO BE A RAPPER DESPITE HAVING SO MUCH GRADES

AND EVEN AFTER ALL THAT HE GETS DISSED IN THE KRAP COM-

Like when someone would think of k-rapper they would think Zico, Gd maybe, Jay Park, Dok2 (and if you are fans of common krappers thats okay) but I honestly feel as if rappers like them are so common. To me they don`t show anything exceptional. Its like comparing Eminem with Lil yatchy (you can like either and thats okay) but Eminem did his own thing with no influence from the stereotypical culture. In shows like SMTM or unpretty rapstar you definitely see the rap community come together and Im like boi why isnt joon there he can own yall asses.

Namjoon however is on a whole different level. He does in own thing without the influence of popular culture (which refers to his message in his song DO YOU). He raps about things that are special TO HIMSELF and doesnt care about others opinions. He never thinks about what others might think of his song or what he should do to catch the attention of the audience. He does what he likes to do and goes with HIS gut.

Namjoon is a special snowflake and I dont want him to be thrown in the *oh look another korean rapper lets put him in smtm and not let them grow as an artist* pile bc I feel as if thatll take away his authenticity.

I`m kinda happy that Namjoon doesnt associate himself with common rappers because he is way better than that. He strives to collab with artists of his choice, his taste, and doesnt go for popular or common people. 

Like you know what I`m trying to say. Imagine an exceptional student who isnt really popular among the folks. and all the students who get like c`s or b`s are extremely praised and popular.

Don`t get me wrong despite getting SO MANY opportunities like 4 features in official songs from other groups (one being korean hip hop legends MFBTY), being in the 4 things show , performing at multiple festivals individually,etc. I really don`t feel as if he reached the legendary rap title yet. He definitely was close to being “part” of the community as in 2014-2015 his rap career was highly active but is on the low now as a individual. 

  I appreciate Bangtan as a group and all the contributions of all 7 members  but since BTS is a group who produces their own music, one member can`t just go off making MVs while their writers do the job for their (cough cough, bts dont got writers they got mean namjoon) I know he is busy writing for bangtan, producing beats, and a whole lot of shit for the group and he is happy with doing that but that also takes away time from doing his solo rap career AND I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THAT.

He doesnt care of not being able to produce music all the time to the likings of krappers. He cares about Bangtan. He knows his potential and doesnt need to highly promote in order to prove his worthiness. He can promote small mixtapes or covers for his armys and he is content with that. His intention isnt to get famous, as he always says: i do this for the  music not the fame.

He does his own thing and doesnt worry about the drama. He is too good for them. Someone who is beyond expectations doesn’t mingle with people who are popular. They dont worry about irrelevants. They just keep on focusing on themselves and how to grow.

I can`t wait to see him become so well known as a rapper (he already is so high up in his journey) that everyone who looked down on him now want to be him.

Namjoon is a person who expressed that their isnt a right wrong with hip hop just passion