#some contextual social interactions

[victorluvsalice]

Well, it’s Spring Sunday in the Chill Valicer Save as of this update -- a new year for our trio! And we’re kicking things off with an update that is only FOUR PARTS. Yeah, I’m shocked too. XD But to be honest, it was a pretty chill day around the Valicer farm. . .

. . .if only because, not only did I get both High School Years and Growing Together (well, in all technicality, my parents got them for me -- belated Christmas/birthday present!), I installed a BUNCH of new mods from one Lumpinou. Including the LGBTQIA+ Mod to properly set everyone’s gender, romantic, and sexual identities. So setting that up took a decent amount of time! And by the time I figured out that and some of the other mods I’d put in, like Open Love Life (hint: if you can’t find where to update everything, it’s under Actions in the pie menu when you click on a Sim), it was easier to just have everyone hang around the farm and get themselves sorted. They probably needed the time to just chill after all the traveling around to different cities and realms of the last three updates anyway! So here’s how their day went:

-->Smiler, after getting the robot salvage parts necessary, enhanced Party Time up to level 2 (it loses charge slower now), then started work on a quadcopter toy! Unfortunately, after so long avoiding it, they got shocked halfway through the process and had to take a break before completing it. :( I had them use the time effectively, though, buying a white hen and a brown rooster for the chicken coop -- they were down to just one black hen and a rooster chick in there after so many visits from Grim! So now they’ll have proper egg production again, yay -- and maybe they can actually get to know these chickens a little better. (Especially since I’ve finally turned livestock aging off to match with the actual Sims not aging either.)

-->Alice got a little bonding time in with Shadow, then sold both her most recent books to a publisher (gotta get those royalties) before doing a bit of recycling (gotta get those bits and pieces too). Simple stuff, but important!

-->Victor -- well, when he woke up, I was finally able to gather everyone to let each other know about their new gender, romantic, and sexual identities! For reference, Smiler is now officially non-binary, panromantic, and pansexual; Victor is cis male, biromantic, and bisexual; and Alice is cis female, demipanromantic, and demipansexual (yes, she’s actually gray-ace in my headcanons -- mostly asexual except under certain circumstances -- but I think currently “gray-ace” in the mod means that Sims accept or reject touching-related romance interactions randomly, so I decided demi fit her Simself better). Everyone was very positive and accepting of each other’s new identities. :) I also had everyone agree to be non-exclusive in their relationships (Smiler and Alice were actually already set to prefer non-exclusive relationships -- while Victor was set to prefer exclusive ones. Sir -- sir YOU’RE the one with a wife and a themfriend. I reset Victor and Alice to be indifferent as that’s closer to my headcanons, but left Smiler as preferring non-exclusive, because why not?), so that’s all sorted now! :) Oh, and for what it’s worth, I ALSO popped into CAS to set some of the new conversational topic and Sim archetype preferences -- mostly just making sure everybody liked the kind of Sims the others were (Victor and Alice liking spirited Sims, Smiler liking homebodies and nature enthusiasts, stuff like that). So now they all have amazing compatibility as per the new Growing Together system too!

-->With everyone up to speed and having reaffirmed their love and acceptance for each other, Victor was allowed to have some breakfast and then go potter about in his greenhouse, while Alice went out for a jog (her resolution is to get fit, after all!) and Smiler went back to their quadcopter. They finished that up with no further issues, and then went to ask Victor in the greenhouse for a drink. Victor said yes, of course. . .

[maplebellsmods]

Expanded Storytelling Relationship Bits Mod: 2

Ok..more storytelling and relationship options for your sims! 

(Really tried my best to push this out before the end of Jan) 😮‍💨

If you want more info about the mod check this page out: Expanded Storytelling Relationship Bits Mod 

This time around created more relationship bits. Here they are

I wanted to try something new this time, which is why it took me so much time. I'll get into it later.

But there are a few new things I have added and changed from the previous one. First off, there are more interactions available: social interactions, phone interactions, and rabbit hole interactions.

Each one of these interactions corresponds to a specific relationship bit.

Healing Touch: 'Plan Relaxing Activities Together,' 'Offer Comfort through Hugs and Physical Touch.'

Wisdom Seekers: 'Ask Questions about the Universe.'

Unbreakable Connection: 'Celebrate Anniversary of Enduring Connection,' 'Promise Everlasting Friendship' (Only available pre-promise).

I do need to note that, just like the other mod, many of these are cosmetic and don't have a full effect yet. (Emphasis on 'yet,' as I will slowly but surely make these more functional.)

If your Sims have the Wisdom Seeker, Tech-Savvy Partners, or Night Owl Companions relationship bits, some interactions will unlock on the phone:

Wisdom Seeker: Study Together at the Library 

Tech-Savvy Partners: Send Tech News 

Night Owl Companions: Night Time Activities Menu 

(Regarding nighttime activities, I haven't found a workaround for this issue yet. However, here's a temporary solution: When selecting an activity for the two Sims who have the rabbit, choose the Sim you want to go with first, and then select yourself again using the same option. I'm not sure why this happens, but it can be a bit inconvenient. I'll work on making the process more streamlined in the future, but for now, this is how you can get them to go to the same activity.)

The new feature I've been working on, which I'm quite excited about, involves social interactions. I've always felt that many social interactions lacked depth and context. So, what I'm currently working on is creating social interactions to fill that gap

One of these interactions is 'Provide Emotional Support,' which is available for Sims with the 'Healing Touch' relationship.

In this interaction, your Sim will be presented with several options when they are feeling sad. Your Sim can choose from these options to express why they are feeling sad. Once they make a selection, the other Sim will ask for more context, leading to the exchange of contextual advice and reassurance.

I've also developed another social interaction, 'Try to Confess Feelings,' which is available for Sims experiencing 'Unrequited Love.

Attempting to confess your feelings will lead to various outcomes depending on the option you choose. In this interaction, the Sim who hears the confession will have several response options available.

The choice made by the listening Sim will have an impact on their relationship, both romantically and platonically. Some response options may harm the relationship more than others.

The way the Sim responds through the animation doesn't affect the outcome. I've designed it this way to leave the choice entirely in the player's hands. However, unless both Sims are in a flirty mood and have a high friendship level, the Sim who hears the confession will always use the rejection animation. Nevertheless, this animation choice doesn't alter the outcome.

The social interaction 'Forbid Relationship With' can be used either before or after designating two Sims as star-crossed lovers. Some of the options will even add the 'star-crossed lovers' relationship bit to the two Sims (if they didn't have it), while others will remove it (if they did have it).

The interaction can be found under the Mean -- Arguments Pie Menu Category. Only a parent, grandparent, uncle, or caregiver can trigger the interaction. 

Depending on the chosen options, the relationship can either suffer a negative or experience a positive impact. While all of the options will influence the relationship, certain responses will have a significantly greater effect on it than others.

These are all the main points! I hope you all enjoy this new feature because I'm eager to create more! There will be additional interactions and other things I'll be adding to this mod. I'm constantly learning new things, and it's truly enjoyable to implement them!

Download Here

Public Feb 24

[dreamscarx]

New Updated version here: Version 2

Welcome to my first save file! This is version 1. I'm so excited to put this out, this is by no means finished it is just what I have done so far, I really hope you like it. 🤗 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Worlds included: Willow Creek Newcrest Magnolia Promenade San Myshuno ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Lot Types: Willow Creek: Clothing/Music store, Nightclub, Restaurant, Office Supply Store, Church, Children's play/therapy center, Pool, Wedding Venue, Gym, and Hotel Newcrest: Skating rink, Furniture store, gas station, sports store, and pet store Magnolia Promenade: Outlet mall, bank, and photography store/studio San Myshuno: nightclub, "adult" club😏 , theater, park, and restaurant !Note: I have all my sims living in San Myshuno, and I split all of the apartments to 2-3 apartments to house more sims, so if it says for example 2 of 2 apartments used it might not be! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ About this Save: All original Maxis townies have been deleted and replaced with my own sims and I used MCCC to place other creators townies in my save. Creators used: BrownieeTheGoat Plumzet Symplesimss Simquoya Kingzbomb Please check them out they have amazing sims! A lot of the lots are based on buildings in my town and surrounding cities. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I did use a lot of packs for this save however you don't need all the packs to play this save

Packs used: EPs: All packs except for Horse Ranch GPs: All packs except for Vampires, ROM, JTB, and Werewolves SPs: All Stuff Packs Kits: All kits except for Bust the Dust and Modern Menswear ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ No CC was used in this save, but I did use mods however you do now need these mods to play in this save. I do recommend some mods in order for some builds to function and some storylines to work BUT YOU DO NOT NEED THEM, they are just for realism MODS used: MCCC UI Cheats Tool Better Build Buy Recommended MODS: (They are Optional, you don't need them for this save file only if you want more realism) Simrealist: SNB, Real Estate Mod Turbo Driver: Wicked Whims Basemental Mod, Basemental Gangs BlacklifeSims: Default Car Replacements Khippie: Default Terrain Replacement Littlemisssam: SimDa Dating App, More Visitors, Zooroo ATM Lumpinou: Contextual Social Interactions, First Impressions, MoodPack, No Strings Attached, Open Love Life, Road To Romance, Relationship & Pregnancy Overhaul, Talents&Weakness Weerbesu:- Ui Cheats, More Columns Mod Adeepindigo: Dental Mod, Healthcare Redux Thepancake1 and MizoreYukii: Color Slider, Bed Cuddle MizoreYukki: Sim City Loans, Drama Mod RVSN: Retail Therapy Food Mods: Littlebowbulb | QMBIBI | Srsly | ATS4 | Somik & Severinka | TheFoodGroup: Custom Drinks, Custom Food | Icemunmun | Apricot Rush Food Retextures ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you decide to download this savefile and run into any problems please message me so I can fix them and update the save file.

Also if you decide to download this save file, please don’t claim any of the lots or townies as your own, Please tag me in any post I would like to see your sims in this save! With all that said I really do hope you enjoy this safe file if you decide to download it!

Happy Simming! Download (SimfileShare)

[crazy-pages]

Blue Eyed Samurai and Queer Gender

There's a reason so many trans people keep reading trans identity into Mizu.

Because even if she's cis, her gender is still queer.

Lemme back up for a second. Queer identity is deeply intertwined with experiencing sex and gender in ways which are fundamentally non-normative and non-conformative for the societies we live in. It is about being "other" to what society's default is. There are reasons that queer liberation movements have historically often allied with kink communities, with polyamorous circles, and with feminist movements. There's overlap there, in being outside a tightly constrained norm and demanding equality and recognition. And this also means that what queer is, is defined in part by the society it stands in opposition to.

Because for contrast there have been societies, historically, which have been fully accepting of trans people or even had specific social norms and customs around nonbinary gender. The colonizing Spaniards found and recorded interactions (typically violent, sadly) with trans people in what's now Mexico who lived, married, and were recognized in their societies without regard for their genitals. There are entire fields of study around various historical recognition of nonbinary identities. None of these people existed in opposition to the societies they lived in. Heck if we look at sexuality, the ancient Greeks would certainly not have seen men having sex with men as queer (though they would have judged and demeaned the bottom), but some of them certainly pathologized women who had sex with women. In such a society bisexual men would not be queer, while bisexual women would be.

Queer is contextual. Someone who lives in a fully accepting society as a trans person, who never has contact with a culture where that acceptance isn't the norm? I'm not sure I would call them queer. At the very least, there's a definition of queer as the embrace of one's sexual and/or gender non-normativity which such a person might very well not opt into. That person might not feel queer. We might not share that emotional experience.

And where this comes back to Blue Eyed Samurai is that it's possible to be cis and to be marked unavoidably and unalterably queer by one's society. A cis woman living in the US today who feels absolutely cis but cannot, for whatever reason, stand wearing dresses and must wear pants? Might experience some gender non-conforming experiences, but not necessarily be queer. That same woman in 1890s US? Her gender expression would be outright illegal as a form of crossdressing. She would be seen with the same lens as a trans man and their experiences of gender would both be queer, despite one being cis and one being trans. If such a woman, despite being cis and straight and allosexual and alloromantic and all the rest, told me she felt queer? It would not surprise me in the least.

So if you define queer as any kind of experience or internal feeling, as a state of othered existence rather than a specific set of prescriptive definitional boxes that fit our specific societal norms and practices? Mizu is queer. Mizu might or might not be queer if you transplanted her into the 2020s US where I live. But to define her by how she would fit in our society's boxes is fundamentally missing the point of both the queer experience and the story of Blue Eyed Samurai. (And she might not be cis here, he might be a trans man, or they might be nonbinary. It's hard to say ... and this is why queer history scholars step carefully around modern definitions, by the by.)

What we can say is that who Mizu is, in the context of Edo period Japan, is queer. Whether Mizu is genderfluid, or a trans man, or a cis woman who hates having to be undercover, or a cis woman who thrives being undercover, or a cis woman performing drag, or a trans man who thinks of himself as a woman in drag because he lacks context for being transgender? It's all queer gender. There is no framing in which Mizu wouldn't relate to the experience of queer gender.

Mizu doesn't get to experience gender in a normative way. That's both because of who she is at her core, and something that's defined by society without her consent. She is queer, innately born so and structurally made so at the same time, and that's not a contradiction.

[centrally-unplanned]

I might be a bit of a weirdo in this regard so I am a bit biased, but I think a fundamental problem AI Companion Apps like lets say Friend.com are going to have in "replacing socializing" is that socialization is instrumental and that instrumentality lies in the real. The ad copy for this product and so many of its various clones is a normal-looking everyman just chatting with their companion, making comments about the weather or how their hiking is going, etc. Treating it like a friend and talking to it like a friend does.

The rub there is that not many people do those behaviors for the reasons presented. They are treated as somehow "inherently" enjoyable, that you just love talking to ~something~ about the weather and anything that can pantomime the right responses is going to do it for you. That isn't how it works for most people; the point is the other person. The words themselves, divorced from the speaker being a breathing human you have a relationship with, are not very interesting. Instead it is about building rapport, signalling care, a human-connected daily ritual. Sometimes it is positive, but it is negative sometimes too! You put up with Kyle's 18th story about his dog's health woes because, look, it's boring as shit, but Kyle needs to rant about it and if this is the price of admission to his amazing saturday brunch parties you are going to pay up.

Even interesting-in-their-own-right convos are normally not like wow, you taught me some amazing new fact; it is hearing your friend's interesting take or experiences. There is this whole structural undercurrent here, this person is admirable or kind or you have a lot of history with them or they are really hot and so their words are contextualized into an emotional experience of connection or curiosity or wanting to impress them and a million other things around that structure.

When you shed all of that, when it is an AI that you know is just programmed to listen, that you can turn off at will, that you can just override and ask it for directions or to switch over to spotify or to sext you catgirl pics, there isn't anything left. These conversations are useless - what is the point? Why would I tell my phone how tired I am? Those are empty words, I am immediately bored and will flip over to YouTube instead.

Obviously there are niche applications. Porn and its adjacencies of course, where the fiction is the point. Specifics like a daily journal that interacts with you a bit? Sure, that would work for some. One-offs and curiosities of course, "Siri+" because that is a functional tool. But none of these are the same thing.

Now there are already, and have been for years, successful apps like Replika or Character.AI. The people on those clearly seem to enjoy talking to a digital friend, right? And I agree with you, humans are diverse, for some people this stuff works. Now for many, even possibly the majority depending on how you count it, these things are just the above categories though; a porn bot, a curiosity, a "man look how far AI has come" exploration. But I agree there are users who truly treat these tools as their friend or partner

And I have looked at the conversations those people have with their friend or partner. And...look. These tools suck. They do not, in any way, believably mimic a human conversation. By design they do not, endlessly accommodating and affirming, with shallow personalities and infinite flexibility. They are not friends, they are boxes to stuff inputs into and get validations out of, no human conversation works this way. Some people want that, no worries. Some people need that, maybe, I get it. But most people don't. These conversations would, if treated as an actual companion to most people, be incredibly cringe. They are not a sign that AI friends for everyone are right around the corner, if only we boost the specs. They are a niche product for a certain kind of person that does not mass scale at all.

You can sell people the "illusion" of a friend, even a nearly perfect one, and it might sell - as the stage show it is. Like a video game, something you explore, experience, and discard. Because it's not a person; I can just drop it if I want and it won't feel anything. That is what makes it an illusion and not magic; it is a trick that I see through over time. And making whatever implementation of Claude your little bluetooth-on-a-necklace runs have 10% higher fidelity or "able to pass the Turing Test" isn't going to change that. Maybe it will work as a product - video games sell after all. But it won't be a social revolution.

Then again these Friend.com guys apparently spent 2/3rds of their seed money on buying the web domain for Friend so they might have other problems to worry about.

[ftmtftm]

Really frustrated because at the moment I can't quite fully articulate a thought that I'm having about the ways in which White Feminism/Radical Feminism work to actually reaffirm the Patriarchal standards they're attempting to critique because they treat Patriarchal standards as a universal social truth rather than as contextual social divisions of power related to various classes of identity.

It's something to do with the fact that despite slowly beginning to integrate a simplistic understanding of the ways in which womanhood interacts with other marginalized identity because womanhood is used as a tool of subjugation - they can't quite conceptualize the fact that marginalized identity also interacts with manhood in ways that create forms of Patriarchal subjugation as well.

The fact of the matter is though, that Patriarchy relies on gender as a whole as a tool of oppressive power - not just womanhood, because Patriarchy only truly values certain types of manhood on a sliding contextual scale because gender isn't a universal experience and it never has been.

Frankly, I think it's in part because some people really truly refuse to understand that the modern form of Patriarchal gendered control (particularly in the US) is a direct relative of White Supremacy, Colonialism, and racist, xenophobic cultural domination.

[inchidentally]

x. com/ln4norris/status/1785872795974652036 thoughts on this?

this is one of those instances where so many ppl have this wildly different take on smth and honestly myself and the moots I talk to didn't even… realize it could be taken any other way ??

I think part of this is also bc some ppl are pretty new to landoscar so I'll put more effort into replying to this than I normally would bc I genuinely didn't and still don't see this as being some dramatic thing that Lando said!

but for better reference, I've actually compiled the full clips from the person who posted them in their stories originally with two clips of Lando and Carlos separately saying how their F1 buddies are NOT the same as their actual private life friendships bc I think it helps contextualize what Lando is talking about here.

I think the funniest misinterpretation about this is ppl taking these Shared Activities as indicating deep and meaningful friendships and that therefore Lando doesn't have anything deep or meaningful with Oscar… just bc no padel or golf ?? lasjfgsjla

"we don't do as many things away from the circuit [as Lando does with other drivers like Carlos and Max]"

like. in what world is that him saying anything but … that ?? it's not deep ??

esp when it corroborates what Lando said in that clip about how his relationships with the drivers he’s friends with depend on shared activities and that they’re not his actual close friends the way Max F and all his buddies in London are (he even says in the video above that his friends are mostly in London not Monaco!) and Carlos corroborated the same thing!

so for one thing, the reason he's fine with saying this is because he doesn't see it as some huge thing that he doesn't happen to have with Oscar ?? bc it's not some deep meaningful thing that he hangs with other drivers sometimes outside of F1! they're buddies sure but they're not his private life friends. that's normal and healthy !!

but the other thing that's honestly funny is ppl deciding to misinterpret this as either Lando being a callous asshole to Oscar or again, taking rpf too seriously and thinking "yaayyy I can pretend Lando is secretly in love with/has a deep bond with/is fucking [insert driver here] and hates Oscar"

and like Carlos, Daniel and Lando literally have identical bromance formats with each other and other drivers which makes the whole rpf competition thing so hilariously dumb?? they all do the common hobbies thing, the playing gay for laughs thing, the posting every interaction to social media for fan engagement thing, the roughhousing physicality thing - all with at least 3-5 other drivers. and when you count up the like rpf ship points that these people use to say which one is "better" then m@xiel shits all the way on dand0 for bonding and being mutually invested and charl0s absolutely dunks on carland0 for gay physicality and mutual affection and norrib0n comes along and reminds ppl that Alex remains a hero to Lando and Lando still gets starry eyes over him in a way he never will for Carlos or Daniel etc etc etcccc

all of which still end up paling in comparison to the actual, deep relationships these guys have with their girlfriends and with their private life friends! the idea that Lando will ever love a male friend the way he does Max F is like going to a rakes lying down park and stamping around to get hit in the face repeatedly like why would you bother to be that stupid bffr

[sidenote that I am SO glad for Lando to say smth like this video if it drives those fans away from landoscar. no joke. we do NOT want them here and we do NOT want them treating Lily the way they treat Heidi and Rebecca and treated Luisa and Isa. please stay in carland0 and dand0 and whatever else with that l@rry stylins0n misogynistic, closeted gay men as a fetish shit]

the reality is that if Lando was just meh about Oscar and disinterested in spending any more time with him than he needed to then why would he even point this out ? why would he bother to point out - with even kind of an exasperated pout in his voice - that Oscar isn't interested in anything they can spend time together doing if he… doesn't want to spend time with Oscar anyway ??

exactly asfgsajgflagf

and for ppl who are new, literally the reason a lot of us are so Compelled is precisely bc Lando and Oscar don't follow the cookie cutter bromance format and their respect and interest in each other doesn't rely on common activities or playing into fan PR. they're literally the anti-PR partnership not bc they hate each other or have drama but bc every member of their team says how much they've bonded as drivers and that every time we get content of them together they're beaming at each other and seem to have all these cute little in-jokes and softness. but none of it is for show! none of it jumps off the screen or has them knowingly trying to bait fans!

their entire dynamic is for their own benefit alone and both of them have said how happy they are to have their future together settled for so many years. and the whole vibe of landoscar fandom is that we were all fine with the idea of them just being work friends! then Silverstone happened and the Austin filming happened etc etc. and now we're all watching it and writing fic and making gifs and edits bc landoscar is gentle and gradual and sweet and boyish and genuine.

it's been this gradual little dance between two guys who each have a unique preoccupation with each other but they don't do any of the usual blokey things to force a friendship. Lando's fixations on Oscar's name and his hair and how he's taller and bigger than him and the weirdly horny verbal burps that come out aren't something he does with any of his other driver friends. Oscar is so chilled about other drivers and doesn't even do the whole hero worship thing, yet his internet history about Lando is it's own extremely unique thing that has carried over as his teammate in a way he's never been about another driver.

they don't roughhouse or make fun of each other or push each other's buttons for fun and they don't even raise their voices around each other ?? everything is so gentle and not macho at all ! Lando strangely feels awkward and looks right at Oscar to explain why he diverted to visit Daniel with Martin as a spontaneous unplanned thing even though Oscar wasn't even in Australia anymore when that happened and Oscar didn't even feel like it needed to be explained! Oscar learns and adapts to what Lando feels sensitive about and needs some help with and sometimes even keeps an eye out for his physical well being.

and I think something that has kind of been missed entirely is that the context for the latest video was Lando saying how he's always been the youngest or least experienced in a driver friendship dynamic and - as he's said many times before! - he finds the idea of having to be the older experienced leader not at all comfortable!

which leads to smth a lot of us have always found the sweetest part of the 814 dynamic, the fact that Lando realized early on that he doesn't have to Try with Oscar and he can just exist in his feelings with Oscar and Oscar does not push and he does not get annoyed or weird or offended! and that means that Lando is yes, free to be the full range of bratty to sweetheart and everything in between bc Oscar will just smile at him and be patient. but !! it also means that unless Lando uses his words or takes charge, Oscar will remain in that quiet patient position in their dynamic and won't presume to take charge.

so Lando wishes Oscar would be the older one and take the initiative and now he's in a pickle where he's saying they only don't hang out bc Oscar won't share an interest with him and you can see for a second he knows what he's saying isn't true bc they all talked on a fan stage about a padel competition between Williams and McLaren and he remembers inviting Oscar out to golf at the last minute one time and that Oscar only declined bc he doesn't know how to play and didn't want to hold everyone up but ugh !!! like that is SUCH a Lando situation to get himself into and to somehow be mad at Oscar about <3<3

but ever since Oscar arrived with very little fanfare and decided not to draw too much attention to himself until literally recently, when the Alpine drama was finally firmly behind him, he's been so intent on showing his deference to Lando and even as lately as the place swap in Melbourne that he fully understands the driver dynamics within the team and respects it. and the thing is that Oscar genuinely is so happy to wait and see what Lando wants or needs that it would never remotely occur to him to push or insert himself into Lando's social life unless invited!

so yes, being a fan of landoscar is just like this! it'll never be the PR friendly bromance or the l@rry stylins0n conspiracy theory.

and yep weirdly enough for how so many ppl are taking it, this video for us is so sweet bc Lando's publicly muddling around about why won't Oscar do a mutual interest with him but also already having admitted that he's not good at taking the role that he needs to and pulling Oscar along into his social life the way Carlos, Daniel, Max etc have always done with him - all while Oscar is oblivious and doesn't think anything is even wrong ! and oh boy, Oscar being too literal and not being the type to be pushy ends up assuming he's doing the right thing by not trying to invite himself along to anything with Lando!

like, this is how it goes! if you want the whole bromance catering precisely to your ship needs OR you're hunting for huge drama and simmering resentments that turn into huge drama then this is NOT the place for you lasfgalfg

don't get me wrong I eat up the bromances and the doomed drama partnerships too but I just don't find them worth writing all these stupid posts about like I do w landoscar bc those partnerships are what you see is what you get. apparently what gets me going is The Yearning and The Miscommunication.

[leolingo]

im sorry it’s still getting to me that the qsmp is a story that relies so heavily on the characters having compassion and acknowledging each other’s humanity and then they turn around and limit q!quackity’s ability to access complex communication — arguably one of the only skills that set humans apart from other animals

they have stripped away most, if not all of his context-specific memories and made it so he can hardly connect with other people at the moment. human communication is contextual in nature and q!quackity can’t even comprehend some of the cues he’s being given right now. because they have been forcefully taken from him

on top of that, his (visual, at the very least) language processing is fucked. he doesn’t seem to RECOGNIZE written text to the point he’s unable to read at all. there’s also cognitive dissonance between his intention to write and his ability to assemble words properly. currently, q!quackity cant read or write and this makes a great part of his communication very vulnerable. he relies on others to read/write to him and be transparent because he literally cannot verify any of it

the federation have taken this human, social being and knowingly hindered his ability to interact with the world around him. a world he knew!!!!! — its an attempt of dehumanization to the likes we hadn’t yet seen applied within the story. it’s a big twist and its CRUEL. and its so interesting i cant even be mad about it

[commsroom]

hera has met maybe a dozen people in her entire life, most of them have intended to harm her in some way, and she's always lived in high stress, isolated environments, where she's had no choice but to live and work alongside them, in spite of that. i like to joke about her getting into internet fights, and she would! she's petty, vindictive, takes things very personally, digs her heels in, and really doesn't like to admit when she's wrong. but i think there's also a genuine concern that she doesn't know how to emotionally handle being surrounded by so many people with hurtful (or even just dissenting) opinions, all the time. she's not really used to interactions that are unpleasant but ultimately not a threat to her, and i think it's going to take her a while to adjust to a social environment where she isn't required to respond to anyone, and she can ignore them. or even just leave.

... though, i think she might develop the opposite problem for a while: when she does realize she can just leave, it'll be difficult to convince her to tolerate any discomfort at all. i think it's important that hera makes friends on earth, not least because she's going to have a lot of insecurity about her current friends having lives and histories on earth when she doesn't, and things going on that she's not a part of, but it's not going to come easily. she's got a lot of (understandable) trust issues, and when is she supposed to tell someone she's an AI? does she need to? is that something that will change how people interact with her? if she doesn't tell them, will she worry they would treat her differently if they knew? it's not a common thing in the world of wolf 359, and i'm sure people have their own biases; the question of "disclosure" is socially and emotionally complicated.

and then, of course, there's the issue that she only exists in that digital space. she can't really "log off." she can't meet people physically. i think a lot about the opening of memoria; knowing that hera canonically feels physically "somewhere else" contextualizes a lot of who she is - how she perceives herself, and how she wants to interact with the world. i want hera to be able to have a body post-canon, but even if she can, there will be a period of time where she is bound to one location and watching the others freely leave it. and that's not even getting into the fact she's used to being able to monitor everyone she knows at all times; post-canon hera is making eiffel stay on the phone with her while he goes one block away to the gas station because otherwise she perceives him as being out of range of her scans and starts catastrophizing that he's probably dead. there's no real conclusion to this; i'm just thinking about trauma and how difficult it is to adapt to a "safe" environment where the mechanisms you've been using to survive no longer serve you, and even in many ways leave you feeling like you're still trapped.

[neonscandal]

explain to me how bakugo is traumatized. the kid he grew up with was nice to him once and he immediately came to the conclusion that he should die. that's not trauma, that's being insane.

I'm going to start with the fact that, justifiably, there's never a reason to tell someone to kill themselves. Additionally, note that me saying Bakugo is traumatized does not mean that Midoriya is also not traumatized.

Regarding your question, the trauma that I mentioned on a recent ask, (I assume this one prompted your question) referenced the following:

Captured by the Slime Villain, effectively bound and suffocated in front of an audience (doesn't include the fall out after being someone who is publicly assaulted)

Muzzled, bound and robbed of autonomy in front of a national audience at the Sports Festival

Kidnapped and bound by the LOV (the forcible binding is recurrent through all the above)

Don't really have to go into the swath of issues he and Class 1A likely can and do develop from being child pawns in a war of adults but that can be applied as well re: survivor's guilt, PTSD, paranoia from the mole, etc. from the PLF arc and up until current manga events (I didn't feel like a spoiler warning).

Things that people don't tend to capture in the box of Bakugo's characterization:

He comes from a verbally and physically abusive household, demonstrably (you can jump down to the second paragraph of Bakugo's Strengths listed here for my thoughts on that impact)

Forced to defend himself against older kids from a young age and possibly on a recurring basis, as referenced in the above image. We could probably chalk the confrontation up to a consequence of his false overconfidence, sure. But does that justify 4th graders ganging up on what looks like a kindergartener/first grader?

As for Bakugo and Midoriya's relationship, we don't have much to go on. We know they were close and amicable as kids, things likely went to shit when Midoriya didn't develop a quirk, there's some beetle excursion in the woods that Bakugo refers back to a lot which is pending further context for readers/viewers, and then there's a fall in the river which really soured relations as Bakugo misinterpreted genuine kindness for condescension (see home life and such above). Again, none of this justifies the bullying we see at the start of the series or the way their interactions have shocking physical components. But what I do find interesting is that I've previously likened Bakugo's disposition to Endeavors but, in retrospect, I think he's a strong parallel for Dabi too.

Dabi's rage stems from being robbed of what he thinks is his inalienable birthright as the oldest son and heir to Endeavor's legacy. He disproportionately targets Shouto as the usurper of what is rightfully his. Dabi's claim, of course, makes more sense from a traditional and, probably, cultural standpoint. But the reason I mention it is that I don't think Bakugo was constantly telling Midoriya to take a swan dive off a roof. It doesn't forgive the bullying but it contextualizes why, that day, the bullying reached a new height when Midoriya was outed for still trying to get into UA. Bakugo saw this as an immediate threat to his position because, even though he didn't admit it at the time, if anyone could get into UA, quirkless or not, Bakugo knew Midoriya could.

Just as Midoriya has always seen Bakugo as being heroic and capable of being number 1, Midoriya proves time and time again that, even without a quirk, he's got the spirit of a hero and is successful in spaces where Bakugo is not. As the story progresses, we see evidence and the ultimate manifestation of Bakugo's remorse through his apology and other ways he's softened up. I'm not saying he wasn't a little shit but that's also not all he was (IDK if you've met kids but... without healthy socialization they can be little emotional terrorists). As things have unfolded, we see that, internally, Bakugo uses thoughts of Midoriya to galvanize his path forward and we've recently confirmed that when Bakugo spoke to Kirishima about strength... he was referring to Midoriya, you can scroll down to paragraphs around the last picture. I'm just gleeful about calling it. But, suffice it to say they've both been looking to one another this whole time.

There are still periphery pieces of their background missing because the story is largely from Midoriya's perspective. I don't think we'll get a comprehensive backstory but I think there will be some sort of meaningful explanation behind the beetle trip that may inform why Bakugo ultimately misinterpreted things so poorly at the river. I mean, maybe it's as simple as the fact that he couldn't fathom kindness because it's something not typically afforded to those who are perceived as strong. I don't know but I look forward to finding out.

[hellyeahscarleteen]

"I have a long history of difficulty with interpersonal interactions, and I’ve always struggled to find a place for myself amongst everyone else. My adolescence was spent feeling out of the loop. A lot of neurodivergent people will doubtlessly relate to these experiences, and a lot of queer people can as well. If you happen to belong to both of those demographics, join the club! You’re in good company. I am an autistic, genderfluid lesbian, and experience these three identifiers as tightly intertwined. It’s not just me. Studies in publications like Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice and Autism Research: Official Journal of the International Society for Autism Research, indicate a proven correlation between autism and non-cisheteronormative expressions of gender and sexual orientation and identity. More anecdotally, just about every autistic person within the reach of my social circle is some flavor of queer, so perhaps both groups have a tendency to flock together. When I realized I liked women, I thought that that was the answer to my issues with relating to others. Boys flirting with me was always uncomfortable, but those days were over! Yet, I still couldn’t crack whatever code everyone else knew. Even when women made passes at me, I still felt out of my depth. Everyone had expectations, and partners looked at me like I had two heads when I didn’t understand them. People relied too heavily on innuendo, or body language. I wished for some kind of field guide, imagining myself exploring some faraway jungle, full of girls wanting to compare hand sizes. It wasn’t until discovering that I am autistic that I could contextualize the way my brain worked. I wasn’t unfeeling, I just perceived things differently." Read the rest of Axis Of Autism: Being Autistic, Lesbian and Genderfluid, new today from Clove Kelly Hernandez

[lestappenforever]

Hello my lovely, your social-psychological anon haunting your inbox once more- can you tell I have such awful lestappen and f1 brain rot? 🤭

I have some thoughts on rbr lestappen but I first want to comment on the wonderful ask from anon who referenced the Max reacting to Charles’ comment on him video. That’s exactly right- every small comment from Charles is most likely obsessively internalised and dissected to the extreme- and what Mona speaks about in response of how max and Charles have been tied together from childhood with even Jos verstappen saying they will fight forever - it makes me wonder, and this is pure speculation- but there is a method to my madness - if there was an element of Jos setting Charles on a pedestal (you know im that annoying way that parents go “look at this [insert achieved acquaintance] they are such a good example you ought to learn from them” which breeds resentment but once again I speak from experience in an athletically competitive environment, it also breeds admiration because here is this other person who is amazing at this sport). We know that Jos has a specific way of disciplining max in racing (saying he will never achieve anything , that he will be a truck or taxi driver) which makes me wonder if Jos used Charles as a marker of success (“Charles is so good/ you won’t be like Charles he will go onto f1 and you won’t”) to encourage and cultivate Max’s competitive spirit. And that’s why max hated charles but also admired him and because charles had Jos’ approval, by extension charles is automatically in a position to give that approval to max. I’ve never really thought of it this way but it really would make sense why max is so eager to please Charles and cares so much about what he thinks of him because throughout maxs childhood Charles was the benchmark, he was the golden boy (still is), he was what max sought to reach.

This theory would support and give greater contextual depth to what I said previously about max ignoring interviews because he is just so happy to have Charles’ attention and is afraid of losing it; he just values it so highly. Also pay attention to when Charles is talking, max almost always demonstrates active listening by nodding but he does so much more to show he is involved with adding hand signs and affirmatives of “yeah me too, I had the same thing, on turn 1 right?” To really show how engaged he is and also to keep Charles’ attention too by engaging him in literally every way possible during a conversation.

So thank you so much for such interesting thoughts I value them so highly and am so happy that people actually like these takes and understand/ see what I see not just from a shipping perspective because I find their interactions and relationship just so fascinating and full of nuance.

Anyway, back on track; some brain thoughts on rbr Charles and Lestappen teammates. There are a series of concerns and complaints I will go over like the whole 1-2 driver strategy and how they’re both WC contenders and it would be unfair for Charles to be a second driver/ how Charles polished personality does not fit the red bull vibe/ and how he would be entering a team that literally orbits max plus the infamous second red bull seat curse.

Well my two cents on this is that all of these concerns are wrong because:

- red bull have stated, very dramatically, during the initial rumours of talks held with Lando and Charles that they are abandoning the traditional 1-2 driver format and they want two championship contenders. This has been said I am sure but I have to reiterate the point that F1 is not just a sport in the way that Olympic events are about the sport. F1 is a show, you’re there for the races but also for the drama for the content for the interactions and the entertainment. And red bull pride themselves in being “shit stirrers” and just an out of pocket team (which I think is beautiful 😂🫡) and if any team would take risks like that in abandoning the traditional format it will be red bull and they will absolutely throw themselves into providing this. It is also likely that they decided on this very early in the season (before they started talks w either Charles or Lando) because that is also when Max changed the tune of his horn by saying he would like to have Charles as a teammate whereas last year he was like absolutely not because Charles doesn’t deserve to be second driver. So technically max revealed their departure from 1-2 strategy before red bull made it clear (around mid season). I feel like someone literally switched a mental gear in max’s head where he was like “Charles is my rival he could never be a second driver” and someone went “what about we let you be teammates and rivals at the same time” and max’s brain just short circuited

- As for Charles coming into this equation - into a team so heavily focused on max- I don’t think that’s an issue. We have seen -especially in recent weeks- that Charles seems to really get on with the rb team and has a good relationship with them so he isn’t like a complete outsider coming into a team that is resistant to having him on board. I think the most incriminating thing from lestappen gate so far (there is so much omg) is the interactions with the red bull team. Not the drivers but the rb representative in Mexico and Brad this weekend. We have been speculating on the rb Charles rumours since the start of the season and not once have we seen this happen that other teams mechanics are congratulating and interacting with another teams drivers (it’s even more incriminating because it’s red bull, like the most aggressively competitive team on the grid). Plus it just doesn’t happen, I really don’t remember ever seeing this except when an ex driver was congratulated by their previous team (checo w racing point after move to rbr and Seb w red bull after move to Ferrari). Huge bonus is that very fascinating interaction w Christian and Christian’s general tendency toward defending Charles and praising him. He really does act at times as if Charles is an rbr golden boy, I have noticed this year more than ever Christian and even GP saying “Charles” rather than “Leclerc” on the radio and it just conveys a degree of familiarity that we haven’t really seen before. It is extremely obvious to me that they want him there and have de facto adopted him.

- the rbr second seat curse literally stems from the fact that rbr, up to now, have had a 1-2 strategy where the second driver simply cannot keep up the max. They are nowhere near maxs level nor do their driving styles compliment maxs. Though checo’s defending is a really good compliment to maxs “attacking” though he just cannot keep up and with the capabilities of the rb19 and Maxs ability to absolutely send it, there is no real use in defending, also check just can’t keep up like he can’t even defend himself in midfield let alone max. He will pull one or two absolute bangers out of the bag but he cannot keep up with the pace, the intensity and the pressure especially when it comes with actually extracting everything that absolute rocket ship has to offer. I think rbr recognised this and this is another reason for them wanting two contenders 1) for showmanship and entertainment and living up to their brand as unorthodox risk takers and 2) 1-2 strategy has thus far led to a string of inadequate second drivers. Obviously Charles is a great option for a second contender driver but more so than just being able to keep up with max, he has almost the same exact driving style and car preference. Every time they talk about racing each other they always say they especially enjoy their fights because it’s always on the limit they’re always pushing each other always attacking and we know that max is aggressive in his driving style but I don’t think people really pay attention to how aggressive Charles is, he is just a bit more calculated about it (like overtaking Lewis then braking into him so tsunoda can catch up to Lewis and pick at him before speeding off whereas max would have just done a clean overtake and sped away) when there is a chance of overtake he always goes for it and does so aggressively (he just has a tendency to get bogged down when he qualifies in the mid field because he does not have the right car that is suited to his preferences enough for extraordinary overtakes). The way he drives the car also is so fascinating because it’s the same as max (look at Baku qualifying lap and look at their racing lines), they both literally throw their cars and push them to the absolute limit which is why Charles is such a quali beast because he knows how to wrench every ounce of pace out of an uncooperative tractor. Both he and max have a preference for borderline un-drivable cars that heavily lean into oversteer with a light back making the car extremely sensitive. If they were both teammates I actually believe that they would be grid terrorists- if their car would look anything like the rb19 they would take off with a 10sec gap to p3 and be battling each other for p1. If they find themselves more tightly squeezed by others (or somehow end up in midfield) they would almost intuitively work together because they know how the other drives and they most likely can predict the others moves

- About tensions on the team between two competitors, I think that is an inevitability but I really don’t think it would ever reach the type of explosiveness we have seen previously because of everything else that these analysis type of asks have said- the respect is there, tiptoeing around each other is there- wanting to please the other is there- if anything, there would be a greater inclination toward cooperation and fighting together against the others because of that special relationship between max and Charles, the performative aspect of the relationship- to prove that max and Charles are the same and that they (as a duo) are different than the rest of the grid and that it is them against the others except it would be much intensified if they were teammates by proximity and having so many opportunities to interact. It would strengthen their bond but as I have previously said, it will not remove that special aspect of their relationship.

- Also just a side note: you cannot convince me that Christian Horner, red bull and max wouldn’t be bending over backwards to ensure Charles wins in Monaco. Max wouldn’t give it to him because that wouldn’t be a win but he absolutely would punt anyone trying to challenge Charles into the bay and I just know that Christian Horner would treat his golden boys right, it would genuinely be a dream come true for him and helmut and just amazing for red bull and their image of “literally unstoppable team that snagged Ferraris star driver and have bagged the inevitable and the predestined, F1’s literal future, in one team and gave them an intercontinental ballistic missile to drive, one that would cause any other driver to bottle it into the wall because it is an otherwise un-drivable oversteery piece of work.”

In conclusion, I think teammate lestappen would be absolutely extraordinary. They would fight each other and push each other up to the edge and when one of them is about to fall the other pulls him back. Absolutely unstoppable duo and I hope that Charles has come to his sense even slightly about Ferrari that, like most dreams, it does not live up to expectations. There are clearly very ugly team politics involved and a healthy does of nepotism, complacency and riding the historical prestige wave and the unfailing loyalty of their fans.

Fingers crossed for lestappen podium today 🫶✨

Social-psychological anon coming into my inbox claiming they are haunting my inbox, and then proceeding to provide yet another excellent take on Lestappen, including the potential Lestappen RBR teammates.

Babe, love, darling, if this is you haunting my inbox, then I would like to be haunted for the rest of my life, please and thank you.

Social-psychological anon, I adore you more than words can say. Crossing everything I have for a Lestappen podium today. 🤞🫶

[horizon-verizon]

The only reason Nettles was cut was to give Rhaena some role, because she is useless throughout the entire dance and she appears for one minute at the very end. That's why they created a "conflict" between her and Daemon over a dragon.

You should block me anon, bc I disagree with this notion on mainly 3 accounts:

LINK (Rhaena's characterization and her role vs Nettles' during and after the war) -- no matter what, Nettles & Rhaena's stories are NOT interchangeable without destroying a lot of the lore and the connection to Dany they each have uniquely on their own…which is the point of F&B, to contextualize Dany's importance and character

the Dance is not just about the war but what lead up to it...GRRM himself has said he'd rather they began the show with Aemon & Baelon...that's a story right there even thought these 2 characters are not at all a part of the actual war. You have been fooled into believing the war is the only or primary event that created the characters instead of the characters making/creating the circumstances for the war...or you are one of those people who don't like to go over themes, can't stand non-war/violent/frenzied drama character action & development, and/or exploring-discovering depth & nuance in characters as they directly interact with their world and people (as Rhaena: schmoozing lords, getting to know how to rule or observe social situations from Jeyne, observe human behaviors and relationships through Jeyen-Jessamyne and develop a relationship with Corwyn Corbray so that when the war ends we can feel THAT much more broken over the end of her family and "what could have been"--OR her trying to find a way to hatch her dragon egg by looking for scrolls and such--- would/could have become--ALL of which is Rhaena is another link for Jeyne to Rhaenyra and Targ interests what present another layer of "women need to stick together" that Jeyne was canonically all about...there is an added layer of FAMILY & unity over and over again that the show simply refused or ignorantly didn't take advantage of).....in which case--as Condal might have missed hearing-- Go be with God. Nothing much else to say. You either are open to story, or you're just here "for a good time" and spectacle. In which case, don't claim spectacle = story and just be honest about it. To yourself and others.

With F&B, there are already storylines that anyone could have just "filled in" with plausible and lore/plot/character-faithful "elements" or "what could have happened" to connect the written plot events to each other in different ways and become diff trajectories of the same story; there are many ways that one could write the Dance while keeping the FACTUAL (as in they def happenid in Planetos and back then i the Dance era) events, their sequence, and the lore intact. Therefore, you could create a very round and interesting and full-of-heart story for Rhaena at the Vale, esp if you maybe included her also studying up on Valyrian stuff in her own attempts to hatch what would become Morning.

[gothhabiba]

Metaphors are pervasive in the language of science. Scientists regularly engage in analogical reasoning to develop hypotheses and interpret results, and they rely heavily on metaphors to communicate observations and findings (1). In turn, nonexperts make sense of, and contextualize, abstract ideas and new knowledge through the use of metaphors. While indispensable heuristic tools for doing, communicating, and understanding science, metaphors can also impede scientific inquiry, reinforce public misunderstandings, and perpetuate unintended social and political messages (2). For these reasons, it is especially important for scientists, science communicators, and science educators to acknowledge the conceptual, social, and political dimensions of metaphors in science and adopt critical perspectives on their use and effects.

[...]

Embodied cognition perspectives shed light on the imperative of metaphor in scientific thought and communication. Conceptual frameworks and theoretical models in science are rooted in the same embodied understandings of the world as those unconsciously employed in other day-to-day physical and social interactions (6). Scientific reasoning, then, is situated in what Gerhard Vollmer (21) refers to as the mesocosm, or the “section of the real world we cope with in perceiving and acting, sensually and motorically” (p. 89). Building on Vollmer’s work (as well as Lakoff and Johnson’s conceptual metaphor theory), Niebert and Gropengießer (17) argue that, because the human perceptual system is not well suited to interpreting macrocosmic (e.g., the biosphere, solar systems, galaxies) and microcosmic (e.g., cells, molecules, atoms) phenomena, scientists regularly turn to metaphors, grounded in mesocosmic experiences, to make sense of observations and communicate ideas. They explain:

Though the use of metaphorical language in science has been historically criticized by some philosophers of science and scientists on the grounds that metaphors are figurative, ambiguous, and imprecise, their generative potential cannot be ignored. It is, in fact, metaphor that makes theory possible, and a great number of scientific revolutions have been initiated through novel comparisons between natural phenomena and everyday experiences (3).

Limitations of metaphors in science communication

Metaphors in biology and ecology are so ubiquitous that we have to some extent become blind to their existence. We are inundated with metaphorical language, such as genetic “blueprints,” ecological “footprints,” “invasive” species, “agents” of infectious disease, “superbugs,” “food chains,” “missing links,” and so on. While we may not be able to conceptualize, or communicate, abstract scientific phenomena without employing such metaphors, we must also recognize their limitations, as well as their potential to constrain interpretations of natural processes. In many ways, the metaphors we rely upon may uphold and reinforce outdated scientific paradigms, contributing to public misunderstandings about complex scientific issues.

–"On the Problem and Promise of Metaphor Use in Science and Science Communication." Cynthia Taylor* and Bryan M. Dewsbury. J Microbiol Biol Educ. 2018; 19(1): 19.1.46. Published online 2018 Mar 30. doi: 10.1128/jmbe.v19i1.1538.

[bakuhatsufallinlove]

"Motto mo naka ga ii": The Language of Bonds in Japanese

So, we are all familiar with the fact that in Chapter 359, AFO/Shigaraki tells Katsuki, "君は緑谷出久と最も仲が良い。" (You are closer to Midoriya Izuku than anyone else.) There has been some discussion about the fan translations that interpret this as "Midoriya Izuku's best friend," which I disagree with. In the context of Izuku and Katsuki being osananajimi (childhood friends) but not tomodachi (friends), I want to talk about how personal relationships are thought of and talked about in Japanese.

Broad disclaimer: Japanese is a context-heavy language. This means that people use contextual clues and social norms to understand not just the literal meaning of what is being said, but the underlying intentions behind and the social implications of what is being said. All languages do this, but compared to English, this quality is much more pronounced in Japanese. There are millions of Japanese speakers who will all interpret scenes in media differently, just as English speakers have varied interpretations of English-language media. This is intended as a general discussion of social norms and language use, I am not suggesting everyone thinks or speaks this way.

So, naka ga ii means gets along with, on good terms, friendly with, close with. Literally, it means "relation is good." People use it in a lot of nuanced ways, because this phrase is referring to your emotional relationship with a person, not their role in your life.

Broadly speaking, people tend to describe relationships first by role. This is how you know them and who they are to you, senpai (your senior), sensei (your teacher), etc.. You are expected to treat them a certain way based on this role, and someone's first role in your life tends to define your bond for years. This is why many people continue to refer to their high school teachers as sensei even as adults, or retain a certain honorific for a senior colleague even after their employment has ended. But naming their role alone does not necessarily express your personal feelings about that person or how close you are, especially with a hierarchical role like senior or teacher. You might introduce someone as your senpai, but other people will pick up on the fact that you personally like your senpai and get along well with them by observing your interactions.

Izuku and Katsuki are referred to as 幼なじみ (osananajimi, childhood friends) by everyone who knows this about them. This carries a lot of social weight--you are expected to get along with your osananajimi. You know each other incredibly well, you are intimately familiar with one another's habits and behaviors. Generally, you would want this to be a relationship that uplifts you--someone who encourages and supports you, who helps you find your path in life--this is why it is so striking to people that Izuku and Katsuki do not get along. But that weight of familiarity is not erased by currently poor relations.

I want to use an example of a different set of childhood friends to illustrate a linguistic detail here. I am not particularly into Durarara!!, but I remembered a few interesting, relevant exchanges in the first anime. In the show, Masaomi and Mikado are childhood friends who were separated after elementary school, but kept in contact through the internet over the years. They have a very friendly relationship. In episode one, at time-stamp 3:50, Mikado calls Masaomi his 大の親友 (dai no shinyuu); this is literally "great best friend," shinyuu is used for your best friend or closest friends, dai no makes it clear he is a GREAT! best friend. Later, at time-stamp 7:02, Masaomi and Mikado run into some people Masaomi knows, and one of them asks who Mikado is, saying "友達？" (Tomodachi? A friend?)

Masaomi immediately responds that Mikado is his osananajimi. Even though they are currently good friends, he uses their life-long bond to properly explain who Mikado is. Later in episode three, at time-stamp 15:52, they run into Izaya, someone dangerous and unpredictable that Masaomi is visibly wary of. When Izaya is curious about Mikado, Masaomi downplays Mikado's role in his life. He says, "こいつは俺のただ友達です。" (Koitsu wa ore no tada tomodachi desu.) He is saying, "oh, this guy is just a friend of mine (don't mind him! pay no attention to him!)" This is clearly an attempt to conceal Mikado's importance and, by extension, Masaomi's emotional attachment to him, out of concern for his safety.

We even get clarification later that Masaomi does see Mikado as his best friend. In episode five, at time-stamp 5:18, Masaomi's inner monologue calls Mikado his 親友 (shinyuu, best friend). They engage in extremely playful antics and Anri, a classmate of theirs, kind of awkwardly asks them, "仲いいんですね" (naka iin desu ne, you are really close, aren't you?) Masaomi agrees, repeating the term, while Mikado jokingly calls their relationship 腐れ縁 (kusare'en, an undesirable but inescapable bond).

Now, if someone wanted to tease you about a guy you have a crush on but haven't started dating yet, they might say the same thing Anri says--"Ooh, aren't you two close! You sure get along like a house on fire!" There is also the idiom 喧嘩するほど仲がいい (kenka suru hodo naka ga ii, close enough to quarrel) meaning two people who are intimate enough with each other that they argue. This can be used for all kind of relationships, but it is often said about romantic partnerships. In Japan, people are generally socialized to avoid confrontation and direct disagreement, so along with the connotation of getting on each other's nerves or knowing each other "too well," this kind of closeness means that you will speak freely with the other person, even if it results in an argument.

Naka ga ii has a lot of uses like this, it does not explicitly mark someone as tomodachi.

If AFO/Shigaraki really wanted to say "best friend," he likely would have used shinyuu. And as far as I am aware, AFO/Shigaraki does not know that Izuku and Katsuki are osananajimi--but frankly, I don't think he cares what role Katsuki has in Izuku's life, because he can clearly observe Izuku's emotional bond with Katsuki. He can tell that they have the closest, most important bond because of Izuku's reactions to Katsuki specifically being harmed. Regardless of how they know each other, Izuku cares about Katsuki the most, and that's what matters here.

[simmerswig]

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