#stede is autistic

[iris-in-the-rain]

Stede, who works in a regular office job, nothing too exciting, but he still tries to make every day count. He brings baked goods to the office and offers them to his coworkers, some of which are nice to him and say 'Thanks!' as Stede starts to explain how he tried a new recipe, and he's so happy with how his muffins turned out, and he's gonna try this next one, but yeah, no, they're not really listening, so he just takes the empty box and tries to be happy that he at least got to give others something. And when he comes back from a few days' holidays and he's so happy, because the seaside was so lovely and he found some awesome shells and would anybody like to see the photo of the dog he's thinking of adopting and... and... But as people nod absentmindedly and their eyes glaze over and they stop paying him any attention, Stede's smile gets dimmer and he gets quieter, and sure, nobody is actually rude to him, but he's too much, he's always been, he just keeps talking because it's so nice to talk to somebody, but not when people don't say anything back, so he just walks back to his desk and gets to work, and if the lump in his throat is just a bit bigger (again) so what. And yeah, his eyes shine a little, but he's good at his job, he doesn't need friends, of course he'd like a friend, but maybe he's just not the kind of person that people want around them. So he keeps working, and his lip wobbles occasionally, but he's fine, of course he is, he just needs to stop bothering people with his stories and his presence and his muffins, because he's just annoying them and he's being stupid and...

...And a few desks away an IT technician working on a computer is building up the courage to say hello, because he's never met anybody so fascinating and colourful and full of life and joy. And Ed swears, today *will* be the day he will introduce himself to Stede Bonnet, because he can't keep watching him lose his spark day by day. And when he says, 'Hey mate, I love your cravat, is it silk?' and Stede's face brightens and he hears 'Oh! Thank you! Do you fancy a fine fabric?' the spark is there to stay.

[queerly-autistic]

What I actually need more of is meta about Ed and Stede being an AuDHD couple.

[thats-entirely-too-much-tuna]

these frames are 37 seconds apart. for eighteen months we’ve been reading and writing and theorizing about their eventual reconciliation, and stede bartholomew bonnet managed to speedrun it in THIRTY-SEVEN SECONDS.

[canonically-asexual]

Being an adult with hyperfixations is so embarrassing like why am I obsessing over gay pirates I have a mortgage and back pain

[nortsauce]

Man screw y’all i think stede is cool >:,(

I really love how inspiring he is. He’s a pure example of understanding your self worth while also knowing when its time to let someone teach you the skills you need to survive. BUT he also knows when someone is being a dick and he is able to stand up for everyone (but struggles to stand up for himself sometimes.)

man practice what you preach. TALK IT THRU DAMMIT.

also like:

look at him :(

💝

[theclaravoyant]

I find it funny that Archie says she expects Stede to be “more charismatic” as if his charisma isn’t the only thing keeping him alive to this point . Like . Charisma isn’t about attractiveness it’s about his ability to recruit and inspire his little band of misfits and charm his way into the hearts of so many people - Spanish Jackie for example, as of next episode he’s been back there THREE SEPARATE TIMES despite breaking her nose jar and then robbing her . Not to mention Zheng ! My man may not ooze swagger but he’s got charisma in buckets

[jomarchswritingjacket]

i remember making an autistic queens poll a loooooong time ago and well it’s time we get some autistic kings rep too

[cloverjester]

My favorite relationship dynamic is when person A is autistic and goes off infodumping about something without a care in the world and person B doesn’t understand a single thing they are saying but stares at them with heart eyes anyway

[amuseoffyre]

Tally of the times Stede walked/ran away from stressful and/or upsetting situations:

his childhood bullies

Mary - the big one

an attempted escape from Nigel & Co. with words

the party on the ship

the beach with Calico Jack

the wayward seamen (snerk) academy when he saw Ed’s face

the curious incident of the Badminton in the night time

Boy has a clear stress response and that stress response is “DO NOT BE HERE. LEAVE. LEAVE NOW.”

[ashleeofjupiter]

Just thinking about Crowley tearfully saying, ‘I lost my best friend’, and Aziraphale earnestly responding with,

‘I’m so sorry to hear it’

[arsenicflame]

stede is 'oh this place has something related to my interest i must go in immediately' autistic and izzy is 'if we deviate one inch from my plan for today i will murder someone' autistic

[sak-supernatural]

Our Flag Means Death is for the neurodivergent and/or LGBTQIA+++ people and you can't convince me otherwise. I mean if you are none of the above and like the show, then great! But I think it's beautiful that there is a show that so easily encapsulates these aspects of the human experience without the need to label the fuck out of the character being portrayed.

[deancaslover]

"I've been a failure my whole life. It's not so bad once you get used to it."

Stede, my beloved. We are the same.

[anerstellae]

Sometimes Ed needs a little help

Inktober day 15!!

[nortsauce]

Jealous, Stede?

[krsonmar]

A lot has been said about how Stede would be unlikeable if anyone other than Rhys Darby were playing him, but to add to it, so much of what makes the character sympathetic is that the character is so autistic-coded *in ways recognizable by people who actually have autism*. He isn't Sheldon Cooper, he's portrayed in ways that people who actually live that experience can see and say, "Yup...yyyyup...big old mood right there." That takes someone who knows those experiences themselves, or at the very least is closely adjacent to or loves people who do. It's a portrayal where the autism isn't a joke or a flaw or something that makes a character a "difficult/unsympathetic hero", and it isn't an "educational"/Very Special Episode portrayal either. Stede is very much Just Like That, and by seeing him portrayed as someone who can be loved, and deserves to be, and wants so badly to be, and is, it lets the audience see an autistic person in a very human light, instead of as the constantly regurgitated and tired stereotypes or who only exists subtextually as the character who's the robot/alien/nonhuman teammate. Whether the viewer is themselves autistic or not--or is maybe undiagnosed or sees something they recognize in someone they know--Stede is a character who is coded autistic in a highly authentic way, not one that's dictated by neurotypical perspectives, and who gets to have his need to be loved recognized, and honored, and freakin' fulfilled, and that means one of the main takeaways of the show can be boiled down to the idea that autistic people need and deserve love just as much as everyone else. Whether you see some of Stede in yourself or someone else, damn it all, that's such a powerful thing to have out in the world!