#something something representation is important?

[yuudarkspirit]

Thank you for your thread 🙏You have said that so well that I have so little to add. Thai GL stories literally made my life better. Western shows made me depressed, disappointed, hopeless almost every time I watched it. There are different stories and couples ofc but I hate the “Bury your gay” trope the most, cos it feels like it’s something that could be shown somewhere at the start of 20th century or earlier but not nowadays. And for me who’s living in the homophobic country where being a lgbtq+ member is against the law, representation is so important. Now, watching Thai GL shows I have more faith, confidence in myself or my future…It’s like I am finally cured without any meds or therapy. And it’s very pleasant feeling. Thai GL shows never disappointed me when it comes to story itself or leading actresses and it’s a fascinating fact…Meanwhile I cannot say the same about Western shows. I really think that Thai GL will be further and further from Western shows with every year. I just wish that more western people or creators of W|W shows watch Thai GL series to see the huge difference and better performance because it’s very significant for lgbtq+ community members around the world and not for patriarchy system!

Western lesbian representation is so bad. It’s either the series gets cancelled, a character dies, they don’t get screentime, or the storyline only focuses on the homophobia they face.

Meanwhile in Thai GL, there have been over 30 series announced for 2025 alone. And let me tell you, there’s something for everybody. Space lesbians, childhood best friends to lovers, period drama lesbians, boss x employee trope, multiple couples and love triangles, mafia action lesbians, idol x bodyguard trope, lesbian with powers to control time, prisoner lesbians, black cat x golden retriever trope, crime-solving lesbians, messy sapphic friend groups who are all in love with each other, high-school sweetheart fluff, weddings, happy endings and so much more. And this is just the beginning. There will be many more great series to come in the future.

The only thing that’s stopping more western people from watching is because of subtitles. Which is such a pity because these people say “there’s no good lesbian representation”, but there is. You just have to be better at looking for it. Don’t set yourself up for disappointment anymore, don’t watch something for the bare minimum representation.

As Bong Joon Ho once said:

[henry-fox-biggest-stan]

That fucking bike. It’s haunting him, isn’t it.

The bike is a symbol of his disappearance, he was riding it when he went missing.

What other times do we see him riding the bike? In s2 none, yet it’s still on the poster. In s3 after the rain fight, once, also in the poster, and in s4 none, yet it’s still in the poster. That means it’s important, that means it means something. Oh and also we see a bike in Lonnie’s house, child-sized, not suspicious at all.

The bike is, to him, a representation of the trauma the upside down left on him, and to others, the symbol of his absence, his disappearance.

When hopper finds his bike he realizes something wrong is going on, his disappearance is not longer Joyce worrying to much but something serious, “a bike like this is like a Cadillac to these kids. Doesn't make sense he'd leave it out here. He'd walk it home. He was in hurry.” At Lonnie’s house, there’s a bike, a bike in between Jonathan and Lonnie. Why is Jonathan there in the first place? Why is Jonathan talking to Lonnie, who is the (unknowing) creator of that situation? Will’s disappearance. That’s the whole reason Jonathan is there, and Jonathan feels Will’s absence so that’s why he goes looking.

In s2 he never rides it, not even when the rest of the party does, the show makes it clear. Unless the bike in the background is his, but even then, he’s not shown riding it.

In s3, the only moment I remember with Will riding his bike, is after the rain fight. So a scene where he’s sad. But also he lost so much of his childhood, he wants to continue it, make up for it, and his friends refuse, they insist on growing up and Will can’t keep up, he grabs his bike and destroys castle byers, destroys his childhood. Part of the reason he’s sad is definitely mike’s “it’s not my fault you don’t like girls” (although Mike didn’t mean it in a homophobic way), but I think it’s more the fact that Mike made it very clear, they’re not kids anymore, they have to grow up and get girlfriends and let dnd aside. Their friendship is no longer their priority, they’re not children. And yet will still feels like one, their friendship do is his priority and he does wanna spend time with them having fun. He lost his childhood, he wants to enjoy the rest of it while he can, but it’s over, apparently. Another thing the upside down took from him.

However here’s the interesting part, we’ve seen him riding it in s5. In a (as it seems to us rn, without context) happy moment. Will healing from his trauma?

[lvxiferianemblem]

Lvxi SMC character analysis (SMC isn't one dimensional)

As promised, I'm putting down all my thoughts regarding SMC, including general analysis and personal interpretation. This is just an amalgam of all my recent thoughts, but I'll do my best to make it as coherent as possible.

There's no such thing as 'evil for the sake of it.' Despite what most cartoon villains tell you, there will always be a reason for why someone does things, even if those reasons are as shallow as brief entertainment. In this case, however, I don't think SMC fits either of those bills.

Going back to the origin of SMC himself, we have to understand what exactly his story is trying to convey---or at least to the best of our ability.

It's common knowledge that before everything, the apostles of evil were embodiments of virtues, and SMC's virtue, in particular, was knowledge, before he spiraled into the power of 'deceit.' However, I think it's important that we look deeper into this and what his symbolism is trying to convey.

In the Beast Yeast storyline, we see that PV describes SMC as having lived an isolated path previous to becoming what he is now and that being the figure of truth is a damning one. His statue is regal and important, bearing the appearance of a monarch rather than anything like the jester we're familiar with, and it stands tall like an idol of worship.

This statue is old. And it's quite clear that within an amount of time, something drastic has occurred to SMC that caused him to make that shift, so the question is, what exactly was it? In CRK, we know that SMC essentially fell victim to corruption of sorts, and details around it are cloudy at best and vague at worst, but we have background information to assist with that.

As Dark Enchantress Cookie's story tells us, the heaviest burden that will drive one insane is the truth of everything and the knowledge of the purpose of their creation. SMC, being the apostle of knowledge and truth, would no doubt harbor this knowledge.

But how do you tell an entire society this truth? In a world where no one wants to hear you and nobody is willing to follow you in the first place, how do you convince them of something they don't want to hear? You beg and plead for them to listen, but they only call you a liar. They call you a deceiver and a traitor, and they turn their backs on you. So what else can you do but fulfill their wish?

After all, in the court, the jester is the only role that can mock the king without judgment, because no one takes him seriously.

SMC makes it very clear throughout his story that his values are not only his own and that they're more accurately a representation of other people as a whole. He says that people would 'much rather believe a sweet lie' and that the world operates on deceit. He does what he does not only because it's fun but also because that is the only way people will listen to him.

SMC is a liar and sweet talker, but he's also a performer and an entertainer. Everything he does is based on 'audience participation'. It's a social art.

Isolated by his own talents, SMC inevitably falls into corruption through a self-made spiral.

He sets the stage to sing truths hidden in sweetened lies, and his audience only watches to see him dance, but by god, they're finally looking at him, and everything feels less lonely.

As time goes on, SMC becomes a creature of habit and is no longer a last-resort performer. He no longer forces himself to don the mask of a fool to garner listeners, and instead, he cares only for shallow company to fill the void of isolation he is so desperate to always be free from. He loses himself to it and falls into corruption, becoming more and more willing to lie to others and himself just to keep a captive audience. It becomes about his emotional needs rather than his logical ones, and his power over others pushes him to go to further extremes to keep them close, becoming exceedingly cruel as a result.

Everything is easier if he lies. He doesn't have to think about the truth or the horrors of it, and everyone will love him if he does.

Throughout the story, everything SMC does screams LOOK AT ME, yet also insecurity and fear. He mocks people in deflection when he's panicked or confused, he gets extremely aggressive when people threaten his imprisonment again, and he demeans PV when talking about how he took his soul jam. Everything he does is an emotional reaction to what seems to be very deep-rooted fears.

Despite his confident persona, SMC is desperate for everything to go his way, and if they don't, he quickly unravels under it all. He needs to be seen, and he needs to be heard, or he might lose himself altogether.

In his story, he never even attempts to kill PV. Instead, he corrupts him to see the world as he does, desperate that the closest thing to him might understand what is now his own truth and that, in this twisted companionship, he will never truly be alone again.

Unlike the Ancients, the Beasts were not 'tested' for their power. They were created with expectations, not proof of function. They fail because of this.

You give a warrior a sword and they slay your enemies, give a child a sword and they slay everyone without caution or understanding.

Or maybe they're just cookies idk.

[nothingelsetodobutfight]

Well for a start, the American Revolution didn't actually involve head on fighting, much less "protests" like peaceful gatherings in the streets. Read about the great boston massacre if you want to hear about how that went down. The majority of the fighting was guerilla warfare and you can read about how important it was to the American Revolution at this archived site.

So what I'm trying to point out is the perplexity of complaining that not enough is happening when if anything were happening, how would you find out? The grapevine? The revolutionists aren't bragging about their numbers, they're not alerting their location or even gathering online. Nothing is sacred, nothing is safe, and the only time you'll hear the media discuss revolution is to disparage and condemn unsuccessful or poor representations of the movement. [looking @ thefrenchrevolution]

I would argue the best thing to do at this point in time is getting fit and armed. It seems silly, but using what little free time our oppressors have given us on our physical body and arms of resistance is literally better than educating, canvassing, calling, polling, etc etc, the activism that doesn't directly help those in need. If you want to help people, ? donate money to causes if you can. ? offer your labor to soup kitchens or disaster relief. ? make your home a safe harbor for couch surfers ? participate in ride sharing efforts or even taking in people. ? Get trained by CERt? something emergency response team to be notified of your local area disasters and relief efforts such as search and rescues or shelter assistance.

But don't worry so much if you can't do all that. Take care of yourself, listen to music and appreciate the renaissance of resistance art we are creating in this time. Love yourself for seeing the truth and see every day of survival as a win.

Wat you can do with ease: Be an agitator. Be kind and yet firm to protection of the peace and rights of others. Throw salt in the gears of the machine.

We are not helpless even as we remain "neutral" and play their game.

You Americans are aware that they can’t arrest ALL of you…right?

There’s no better time to protest, this is end-stage capitalism and it’s only going to end in one way

The revolution needs to be NOW or Trump is going to recreate WW2

It’s time to flip over the monopoly board

The power lies in the masses, and as much as I hate the lack of gun control in the States you guys have a right to bear arms, use it

[wormsin]

I was talking with friends about all of the wild shit going on in 2007 and remembered that when JKR announced that Dumbledor was gay, I was so fucking pissed at her. I was furious and so were my queer/trans friends. because she announced this after all of the books were out. she didn't *write* him gay, she didn't say "this wonderful important powerful character" is gay in her books, her extremely popular books that are so popular they are read across the entire world, which would have actually fucking done something, it probably would have been the one time queer representation could have noticeably helped the queer liberation movement. she could have actually done allyship but she didn't.

instead she just made an announcement, and she did it for PR. she did it for brownie points. for marketing. and I already had outgrown her children's books but I was so fucking mad that I vowed to never support her again.

and I was so fucking right.

[bloop-bl00p]

This is probably going to be an horrible take.

So, I’m doing this quickly without much thought, maybe I’m wrong but, why is the abuse in these shows so basic?

This came out wrong, I know, but hear me out. Who are the abusive characters in both Hazbin and Helluva whose actions are acknowledged as abusive?

There’s Blitzø within his past unknown relationships. Then again, I’m talking about the characters that didn't face repercussions (yet) and are evil. So, all the characters that are left are Stella, Valentino, Cash, Paimon, Mammon, and Crimson.

How do these characters abuse their victims?

Do they use physical violence?

Yes. Mammon was the only one who didn't hit Fizz on screen. Then again, he was willing to kill him at the end of the circus episode.

Do they threaten/manipulate their victims?

Yes they do, Stella is the only one too dumb to do that. Paimon doesn’t need to manipulate Stolas.

How do they generally act with their victims?

Stella’s a bitch who belittle Stolas every second and relishes in his suffering?

Cash is also a bitch, for lack of a masculine equivalent, who doesn’t care about his son. But he’ll also manipulate him if money’s on the line.

Mammon made Fizz believe he cared about him and pushed him through the edge to gain money.

Paimon’s neglectful.

For Valentino… do I need to explain? He threatens Angel, beats him up, rape him, and everything else I didn't mention.

How are they when not directly interacting with their victims?

Stella is an erratic dumb bitch. The only time we see her without Stolas she’s gossiping about him. She ignores Octavia.

Crimson is a crime lord, who screams at his employees when they don’t do a bad job. And he’s e€EeEvil.

Valentino’s an erratic bitch when things don’t go his way. He’s also a creep, and pretty much sexually assaults anyone. He licked Charlie’s arm and initiated physical contact when she was clearly uncomfortable. I guess he does that with anyone he wants to recruit.

Mammon’s a disgusting, greedy asshole, and he’s sexist too.

Cash a greedy asshole.

Paimon’s an asshole.

Is there any explanation for their abuse? (Not something that makes them sympathetic, just explain the why.)

They’re evil.

Do anyone see the issues here?

The abuse representation is painfully redundant, you don’t need to explain why these characters are abusive, but for these shows that are advertised as deep and mature, I’m surprised by the lack of depth. I’m not asking for a backstory, I’m asking for interesting characters, AND, I’m also asking for a wide variation of representation in terms of ‘abusing technique’ or ways to abuse someone.

What do I mean by that?

Assuming you’re not racist, homophobic, anti-woke, or whatever they call it these days. You’re aware that representing people of all religions, nationalities, genders, or sexualities is important. It’s the same thing for the representation of abuse victims but also abusers.

We live in a society where many are unaware of how abusive relationships can look like, if you want multiple people to be abusers in your story, I believe it is wise to make sure you put different types of abuse to show the viewer: “This is what abuse looks like. But this is how it could also look like.” The same ways goes for the victims’ response to the abuse because we’re all different.

In the Hellaverse abuse is physical/verbal violence, manipulation, Ee€Evilnes$. And the abuser can also be stupid.

First of all, by making it such a black-and-white perspective you’re ultimately raising the question: “How didn't the victims see it coming?” Now, some people are just visibly assholes, they exist and people mentally vulnerable enough will fall for it. You can represent that if you want, but at the cost of explaining why the victims fell for it. Then again, even if your abuser is unapologetically evil, you wouldn’t make them cartoonishly evil because, at the end of the day, your goal is to make something serious, right… right?

My second point is that it oversimplicates abuse, there’s no depth to these characters. They are just there to make you feel bad for the victims, the only one susceptible to having debt later is Valentino. Viv did say she wanted to make another show centered on the Vees.

The same thing can be applied to the abuser’s victims because their reactions are almost the same. They all fully hate their abuser and only listen to them because they are powerful, except for Fizz who liked Mammon, and Stolas who stayed with Stella for his daughter. You can hate your abuser, I very much hate all of the people who hurt me deeply enough to scare me mentally. But then again, all they need is more nuisance regarding how the victims feel.

Considering these abusers are obliviously evil they should have a mental grip over their victims so strong they simply choose to not leave. Then you can show them slowly loosing that grip, don’t say “Well, Angel Dust…” he hates Valentino. He only stays because he’s owned through contract. “But his song..!” What will Angel do the second he’s free? Will he go back to his abuser, and feel guilty about leaving Valentino alone because the moth manipulated him, or some shit? No, Angel will leave and try to forget him.

I know, it’ll probably sound wrong to a lot of people but I just find it distasteful that they don’t try and show a variety of ways to abuse someone, especially how it’s not always oblivious that someone’s an abuser.

[halfadoginatank]

Enchanted with the idea of Farah sending Alex a photo of generation 3 Frankie Stein. He looks the character up, makes a joke about how she even has a leg missing like him. Farah sends him an article on being non-binary. The texts sound like this.

'I didn't know there was a word for that, cool.'

'isn't humanity wonderful?'

'Yeah commander... yeah it is.'

There's a sticker of the character underneath his hard phone case, he sees it and thinks of his Commander, who thought of him even in a silly doll. Alex thinks about things that remind him of her, warm MRE's, a scarf so well loved it frays, the sun making swealtering waves across his vision.

They both know its to the ends of the earth with each other, they say it between the simple act of breathing, in their trigger discipline 'this bullet is for our cause, this bullet is for you, this bullet kept you safe'. They say it with the knowledge human beings can easily be killed, that in all the horror they see. There is still beauty.

It lies within them, within the things that remind them of each other. Even within a doll, made for children, missing a leg like him.

Sometimes, just sometimes. They even say it out loud.

[onemillionwordsofcrap]

I mean here's the thing ok

I'm currently???? cis? (I guess???) but I HAVE heard people say that this line alone from Flea made them realize that gender was bullshit, and they suddenly felt like they could experiment. Much like how people had their gay awakening thanks to Disney villains.

From what I can tell, almost all media rep starts out coming from villains, bc when you're still a decade or two before the public starts debating the issue seriously, that's all the execs will allow to make it to the production stage. It's just important to recognize that something that looks like "bad representation" to you in 2025 might have been a lifeline for queer kids in 1995, and might have been all the writers were allowed to get away with.

Chrono Trigger Super Nintendo Entertainment System 1995

[fiona-fififi]

Call me homophobic, but I don't actually think it's great representation to stick a complex, dynamic, newly-realized bisexual character permanently with a flat, boring, underdeveloped love interest just because that was the first guy who showed interest.

[ed-recoverry]

Shoutout to people with trauma that is uncommon.

Shoutout to people with trauma that little people have experienced.

Shoutout to people who have had trauma from multiple sources, making their experience unique.

Shoutout to people with trauma who struggle to find anyone who went through what they went through.

[kagoutiss]

rly rough sketchies…..ft impa

[nightvale359]

I feel like there needs to be more popular Aro rep

[bayetea]

seeing non-black people critique rick's portrayal of black characters is interesting sometimes. only like 30% of the critiques I see make any sense to me to be honest

[twopercentboy]

y'know as much as I love silly gay ghosts, I do think it'd be really cool and really good rep if Edwin and Charles stayed platonic (after)life partners

like idk about y'all but I rarely see any best friend duo in media, let alone boy best friend duos, have this level of devotion, love, and trust for eachother, especially teenage duos and I think it'd be great to see that canonically on screen. and maybe I'm a little biased bc every time I see my best friend and myself in a duo it's a romantic couple and I just want to see a friendship like ours on screen, but like idk I think Edwin and Charles have great potential to be (queer) platonic partners and it'd be really sweet

[rangersoup]

Ranger Soup and Mrs. Soup love being parents 😌 and love having all of their little souplings running around 😌 and they have absolutely zero regrets whatsoever 😌 and this is very important to me.

[andsorrowsend]

I think wwdits fans are some of the whiniest little bitches on the planet lmao you guys suck(not in either of the fun ways)