#solo discussion

[bangtannism]

this space is filled with jm solos and people who give too much thought to jm solo narratives

which is why i'm confused that jk biased jkkers (as that anon said even ones that are critical and weird towards jimin) were also upset with the way jk was acting. if it was just jm biased jkkers and solos, i could see it as people using jk for a ship and not liking/supporting him if he steps out of that "perfect boyfriend" and "jm's caretaker" narrative that isn't true or at least isn't ALL he is, but JK BIASED twisting his intentions and actions? that's just crazy....

idk if it's people now seeing jikook (and more so jk) outside of edits and fics or just taekook interacting, but it needs to stop before people become even worse jk (and tae/taekook) antis

i'd love to look at the jikook tag after a ays episode without being made to feel like i'm insane or "supporting bullying and abuse" 😭

there's a few things going on here.

like i mentioned, jm solo narratives permeate this part of fandom. it sucks, but it is what it is, and unfortunately these people tend to flock together, creating an echo chamber that can look to those outside of it as a popular opinion or consensus. the infantilizing of jm is not only maddening, but deeply disrespectful, and if these people really loved him, they wouldn't be doing it.

people are far too impressionable. this goes hand in hand with the first point, but people are swayed extremely easily and the more they see the same sort of opinion, the more they convince themself that the opinion is right. when ays episode 1 first dropped, the first few hours were peaceful and it was clear that the majority of people came away with a positive feeling. once a couple of negative opinions got posted, people started to latch onto that negativity, letting other people's feelings tarnish their experience, and soon it was all over the tag. jk was being weird, distant, uncaring, mean, etc.

the seedier people in this fandom feel vindicated whenever someone says some nasty opinion about a member/ship they dislike and it prompts them to get louder. think about how much more outspoken bigots get when they think they're around like minded people. every single time a shitty take gets posted, be that an original post or an anon message, more people feel that it's okay to also be shitty. this happened bad when tae was announced to be joining jkk in jeju. the tae antis were suddenly all over the damn tag like cockroaches. 🥾🪳

i do think there is a lot of people who are being forced to contend with the fact that jkk are not story book characters living a sacharrine sweet perfect fantasy life where all they do is cuddle and sing each other's praises. sorry to break it to these people (i'm not), but jm and jk are very real people who are a lot more complex than that. they are going to tease and joke and complain and argue and all the rest of the stuff that every other person does. they are also not going to be in the same mood 24/7 and that too is going to affect how they behave and interact. there is nothing concerning about how jkk (or vmk) have interacted on ays so far, let alone something that constitutes the label of abuse. that accusation actually pissed me off beyond belief, because abuse isn't a fucking term to throw around over someone being jokingly sprayed with water.

my best advice to anyone at this point is to use that block button freely and curate a good fandom space for yourself and others. and also just to remember that vmk love each other dearly and no amount of sad internet hate is going to change their reality.

[tossawary]

I don't have any solid ships for Luke Skywalker (I'm willing to be persuaded by any author bringing their best, though) and I think it's partially because Luke is such a vital part of the HanLeia ship to me.

My favorite part of HanLeia as a ship is honestly perhaps that Chewie and Luke (and C-3PO and R2-D2, of course) are Also There, just chilling, just hanging out. A chorus of tiebreakers to be ignored by Han and Leia as they please. "This is the love of my life, and that's my/her brother, Luke, and that's his/my partner, Chewie."

I like to think that Han and Leia cannot fully agree on who brought Luke with them into this relationship, though. Luke IS Leia's twin brother, yes, the other half of her soul. However, Han's argument is that Leia didn't actually KNOW that for years and HE'S the one who drove Luke into this Rebellion mess in the first place, Leia didn't send that initial message to Luke specifically. Han is being VERY stubborn about this just, like, because he can be. It's fun.

[phoenixkaptain]

I feel like the funniest interactions Din and Han could possibly have are Han being able to perfectly read what Din is thinking without him taking his armour off.

Like, Han is best friends with Chewbacca. Han has hung around aliens for the entirety of his adult life. Han has around bounty hunters for the entirety of his adult life. Han definitely knows what Din is thinking.

Anyway it’s really funny because I imagine it like:

Han: “Don’t look at me like that! It isn’t my fault!”

Din:

Han: “Don’t go trying to guilt trip me, it won’t work.”

Din:

Han: “Gah! Fine! It’s my fault. Happy now?”

Din:

Han: “I swear, you’ve got a kicked loth cat face that rivals the kid’s…”

Literally everyone else: “What just happened?”

[morganbritton132]

Eddie: This person asked what’s the worst thing about you, babe

Steve: Oh, let me guess. You said my clothes? My taste in music?

Eddie: Nope. I said that you’re perfect and I love every ounce of you

Steve: …That’s actually really sw-

Eddie: Except your ass

Steve:

Steve: *offended*

Eddie: It’s very distracting. And I have ADHD. Think of all the songs that I could have written if not for your ass.

Eddie, laughing when Steve gets up and huffs out the room: Hate to see you go, love to watch you walk away, baby!

Steve, from a distance: I’m getting a cup of water to throw at you!!

Jeff reposts the Tiktok to his Twitter account with a picture from tour of Steve doing squats on the bus, shirtless and in his underwear because their AC was faulty and it was summer. In the background, Eddie and Gareth are clearly watching him. He captioned it: The ass that derailed dozens of band practices.

[jaeyxns]

“It always makes me feel so blessed that I’m in a position to be able to spread a positive message and help people. I know I’ve got to be the best version of myself and be a good example but I don’t think that pressure is a bad thing. It helps me grow and become a better artist. And, I think, that’s a really good thing.” - ★

[statementlou]

https://www.tumblr.com/louisupdates/754934426217152513/goodbye-faith-in-the-future-world-tour-272024?source=share

did he or did he not lose fans then?

I will answer this because this anon actually brings a concrete question to the table rather than just "hurhur but you're a larrie??" (tell me you can't actually refute any of our points…). Anyway this post shows the decrease in Louis instagram followers between the screenshots taken directly after the release of Faith in the Future in Nov '22, when he changed his bio to promote that album and the tour tickets, and now, when he changed it again to mention the current release. But I'm putting that response under a cut because I'm tired of the actual POINT of all this nonsense getting lost in a sea of made up things people insist are important:

There is no rational argument you can make to say that Louis has less fans now than he did 2, 4, or 6 years ago. You don't need a spreadsheet of details you need to USE YOUR EYES! He has gone from filling theaters to filling arenas and stadiums. His second album made a higher chart position than his first album. His festival has doubled in size EVERY year of its existence. And for that matter: his insta post engagement numbers remain about the same (despite the fact that older posts should have way MORE likes due to having been there longer, even aside from follower counts.) SO WHO FUCKING CARES ABOUT HIS INSTA FOLLOWER NUMBER???? Serious question: what does the word "fans" mean if these things aren't what matters? ALL of this quibbling about what he should do to make things better and people can't even see that THINGS AREN'T BAD.

Anyway to address the specific question- (con't......)

NO- HE DID NOT LOSE FANS. HE LOST SOME INSTA FOLLOWERS. THESE ARE NOT THE SAME THING. As I said above, literally what does it mean to lose fans if that number change coincides with him having higher sales, more audience members, and higher engagement than ever before? Whatever he lost ISN'T FANS. I wouldn't be surprised if a significant factor was something like a bot purge, but also yes: I'm sure a lot of casuals followed him around the time of his big album release and later unfollowed him. That's extremely normal because that's how casual engagement works, and why the definition of fan really matters. Louis and his team understand this and have referenced it repeatedly, talking about how lucky he is to have *us* specifically, to have the kind of dedicated fanbase he has, to have the KIND of fans he does who will allow him to do what HE wants. @dogsliampaynedoesntinstagram named the issue of depth vs breadth with regard to fans a long time ago, and pointed out why having DEPTH is so much more important. It's like this- artists who are on top 40 radio have more numbers on things like insta follows, and for a time on sales and tickets. But those aren't FANS- they're people with a casual interest. And as soon as that person isn't being forced in their ears 10x a day, those people lose interest and stop supporting them, stop buying stuff and unfollow, and those artists end up doing the 'opener on the jingle ball' circuit rather than their own tours. One Direction as a whole, and Louis maybe most of all or near to at this point, have something MUCH MORE VALUABLE than that- DEPTH FANS. Louis has fans who will support him even if he takes years to release music, or stops parading around with a pretend girlfriend to stay in the headlines at least once a month, or completely changes his image and genre, and that is UNHEARD OF. It's ASTONISHING and worth SO MUCH MORE. And they get that! THAT is why he always bragging about us, why industry people he works with are always so agog about us, why he will do anything for US- not for randos. He is also growing his breadth- and it's OBVIOUSLY WORKING whatever his follower counts are, but that is always going to be secondary to doing things for THE FANDOM because that is his sustainable business model. That is what keeps him onstage and reaching number one. And not coincidentally, the things they do are also working to grow that- much more valuable- commodity. So the fact that that's exactly what these chuckleheads complain about- that he does things that are just fandom facing or serving rather than everything being aimed at recruiting casual fans- does nothing but betray how completely they, unlike Louis and his team, misunderstand the actual drivers of his (actual, existing, happening) success. Luckily for Louis, he and his team rely on their own data harvesting (they do a LOT of it) and growth metrics (they're off the charts) rather than the smug assumptions of random (mostly quite new to this) fans and the few bitter people leading the complaining about everything Louis does.

[dynamitekansai]

wwe: Where would you place Sami Zayn on the Ucey-meter? 🔥

[katsmtmsdoodles]

Reblog for bigger sample size! Based on this post by @rigorwhoring

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

[polling-sonic-fans]

Polling Sonic Fans for their opinions on all manner of things. Share good questions to indicate what you want asked. Submissions open.

[magnificent-winged-beast]

Despair The truth ∞ SPN 15X18

Spanish Version.

[bangtannism]

here she goes again lol

https://www.tumblr.com/mimikoolover/753921934602993665/that-video-is-definitely-fake-i-can-see-a-couple?

"i never see jkkers defend jk from pjms" mind you most of the accounts that are being accused HAVE DEFENDED JK 💀

it's still fuck them (potential jk anti jkkers) if the chat is real and for any of them that were GENUINELY hating on tae btw!!

i mean if mmkl personally doesn't see jkkrs defend jk from pjms then that's their own experience i can't say much about. someone told me yesterday (day before maybe?) that they have never seen jk get any hate which is wild to me but ig we all can only speak to our lived experiences.

for me personally, i haven't seen many jkkrs talking about the hate jk gets either. that doesn't mean it doesn't happen ofc, but i can only base my thoughts on what i see. what i seen last year in particular was an outpouring of hate for jk that was barely being addressed and when i did address it, i got called a jk solo. so i get their frustration with it.

[bisexualkyloren]

The whole "manly man top Kylo" and "girly girl bottom Rey" in most reylo content pushes me away from the ship so so much, plus it's too out of character (and boring) imho

Let's be real guys,, Rey is a badass raw woman, TFA made it pretty clear for us, she's far from a delicate flower or a Disney princess, she lived most of her life so far in a desert planet collecting junk dammit she never had anyone to tell her "sit like a lady" bro she's raw

In fact, if anyone's a princess in the whole thing is Ben (literally lol)

I love the concept of soft mildly classy Ben (or gothy angsty Kylo XD) x tough badass "what? why do I need to shave?" Rey so so much, I wish there were more ship content creators that weren't so stuck to traditional gender roles...

[heytheredeann]

HEAD, HEART, HANDS.

[theweeklydiscourse]

I’m generally wary of any YouTube videos that discuss published reylo fanfiction (and the ship in general) because of how often people use mockery of it to get clicks and attention on any platform. Deriding the reylo shipping base is a pretty straightforward way to get clicks, which makes it very pleasant to see videos that thoughtfully engage with the fandom and don’t reach for low hanging fruit.

However, it’s always double edged sword because even if the creator is respectful and willing to engage, you can be assured that the commenters will do the opposite of that. They’ll use the typical talking points from 2016, misremember what happened in the films, spread misinformation etc. But I can at least be satisfied that there are some YouTubers out there who can examine the fandom without defaulting to cheap jokes.

[iris-nonsense]

This is more confirmation that yuuji's powers can affect souls and their relation to the body which is very similar to mahito's.

And this is even more evidence that yuuji is the only one who maks viable plans, but it raises the question why didn't they go with this plan from the start? Like compared to the higuruma plan this is a safer bet and it incapacitates sukuna more effectively than the whole bet that was the inner workings of higuruma's domain... why not doing it from the start?

[wayfaringminstrel]

In this house we respect Cleanrot Knight Finlay.