#td rant

[midnight-blue-goth]

Do you think Gwen was the better girlfriend for Duncan than Courtney?

Oops, sorry for late answer. But here it is! Remember, this is my opinion.

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This is a tough question because it really depends on how we define "better." Both Gwen and Courtney have their own unique ways of expressing love, and it’s important to acknowledge that all three—Duncan, Gwen, and Courtney—have been hurt in different ways, whether physically or emotionally, during their relationships. I wouldn’t say one is definitively better than the other, but they express love in vastly different ways.

Courtney’s Love for Duncan: Courtney's love seemed rooted in wanting to “improve” Duncan. Her idea of love appears to be: “I can help you become a better version of yourself.” This mindset is evident in her behavior—especially in All-Stars, where she acknowledges she has a “type,” which are people she believes need “fixing.” I don’t think Courtney saw her behavior as controlling or out of line; it likely stems from how she was raised, though we don’t have much background on her family life to know for sure.

Rejecting her attempts to “fix” someone would hurt her deeply because, for Courtney, that rejection likely translates to a lack of trust or love. This could explain why, despite everything that happened between them (like the TDA contract fiasco), she repeated her pattern of making lists to change Duncan. To her, this may be a valid expression of love. I sometimes wonder if, subconsciously, she seeks out people who need the most "fixing" because it boosts her pride when she can claim she’s “saved” or improved them. It’s like she views fixing someone as a trophy, a badge of honor she can show off.

One big challenge for Courtney is that she tends to put her pride and reputation above everything else, including relationships. While that might work for her personally, it does have consequences—like a lack of close friendships or support when things go wrong. Did she end up with any friendship at the end of the show? Whether she’s aware of how her actions come across is up for debate, as we mostly see her in competitive situations, not everyday life.

I wish we could see her outside of any romantic relationship because she doesn’t need one right now. Especially not with someone like Duncan, who, no matter the situation, seems to pull her down.

 I truly believe she’s better off alone, focusing on building meaningful friendships and growing as an individual. But unfortunately, it feels like we’ve missed that chance.

Gwen’s Love for Duncan: Gwen’s relationship with Duncan feels a little less complicated, but not without its challenges. I don’t think Gwen was necessarily a “better” girlfriend than Courtney—she just loved differently. 

After being cast on the Villainous team, she became hyper-aware of how she was being perceived. That shift likely triggered her need to be seen as “good,” which might explain why she distanced herself from Duncan. By that point, their relationship represented the very thing she wanted to avoid—being perceived as bad.

While I don’t fault Gwen for stepping back, I do think it would’ve been better if she and Duncan had some kind of closure or a more meaningful conversation about their relationship. It felt like a loose end, considering how much she fought for that relationship in the previous season. 

I guess that's something left for fanfiction, lol.

But more importantly:

Duncan’s Role: Ultimately, being Duncan’s girlfriend is highly circumstantial. His mood, his level of emotional investment, and the loyalty of the other person all play a huge role. We know he values loyalty (even though there’s some irony there, given his actions in TDWT). He also craves freedom and doesn’t want to feel restrained. A partner who can meet him with the same level of affection and loyalty without trying to “control” him seems to be key for him. If he feels any of these needs are neglected, he would dip out of the relationship—no questions asked.

But that’s not all:

I’ve got a pretty dark theory about why Duncan seems drawn to difficult, even physically violent, romantic relationships. It’s not just about Courtney, either. Remember when he was literally wrestling an alligator and said, “I’ve had tougher girlfriends than him, and uglier.” That line hints at him being used to dating people with aggressive or combative behavior.

My theory is that Duncan is unconsciously seeking out girlfriends who remind him of his father—especially the controlling aspects of their relationship. His dad being a cop probably meant Duncan grew up with a strict, authoritative figure constantly trying to control or “fix” him. In this sense, Duncan’s relationships could be a way for him to relive or rebel against that dynamic. It’s almost as if he’s continuing the fight he had with his father but through his romantic partners, engaging in a kind of resistance that mirrors his rebellion.

Gwen as an Exception:

Gwen doesn’t fit into the violent, combative dynamic that Duncan seems to be drawn to, and this is where my theory takes a different turn. With Gwen, Duncan may have found something new—someone who wasn’t trying to control him but also wasn’t afraid to accept him as he was. Their relationship feels more introspective than confrontational, very different from the clashes he had with Courtney. Instead, it’s centered on emotional vulnerability.

This might be why some people found their relationship “boring”—it wasn’t meant to be an explosive drama. Instead, it quietly opened up the softer, more vulnerable sides of both of them, and I can’t emphasize this enough: We are not meant to see them. Us watching them feels like an invasion of privacy (which is, again, ironic given how their romance started)

This sense of privacy also explains their disdain for Sierra, despite her being supportive of their relationship. For Gwen and Duncan, their relationship was personal, their own business, and they hated the idea of someone else prying into it.

If given more time, their relationship could have revealed a different side of Duncan. It would’ve been fascinating to see him lower his defenses even more, showing how a relationship built on mutual understanding could shape his character. We had a little bit in TDAS, Episode 3. Saving her from the leech, without any reservation. 

We’d already seen the endless downward spiral of his conflict-based romances over two seasons. This one had the potential to break that cycle, offering something deeper and more meaningful for both of them.

–

Uhm.. conclusion? I’d say: Miscommunication and trauma response, all around. See you in AO3 🤙

[phantomoftheorpheum]

listen, I think audiobooks are great. I think they "count". I'm not bothered by people calling listening to audiobooks reading. however, I think a large part of the reason people are annoyed by this recently is that there are many, many people online saying, "I've read 300 books this year" and then posting a lot of stuff implying they are superior to (or like to read more than) people who haven't.

But then, all it takes is to scroll back on their profile a little ways to find out that they "read" 300 books because they listened to audiobooks on 3x speed while they were doing other things and flat out didn't listen or absorb any of it and couldn't tell you what 90% of those books were about even if their life depended on it. And THAT is not reading. If you're actually taking in the story, sure, then you've read the book. If you're speed running the process without paying attention, then no, that's not reading. I would say the exact same thing about skimming/flipping through the book.

[jesterjaxx]

comic from a 2 month old conversation about Duntrent's first kiss being a shotgun to share a hit

Bonus Duncan when he gets home:

[mssoapart]

Day 7

Free-day (Out of order and late) Alenoah as Sherlock/Moriarty.

I like it when two characters play mind games and scheming against or with each other.

I didn`t plan to create an AU, but – my rant and bits of literature/character analysis (The Vision). Also, draw concept sketch.

Noah (Detective Sherlock Holmes). I mean, they're both geniuses, introverts who don't care about social opinion and some versions depicted him as being good with dogs. In Victorian England, I totally see Noah opening a detective agency, because you either go working on a plant or you might use your geniuses’ intelligence to solve crimes, like game puzzles, and make monies to pay bills and buy new books because in 1800 many books were expensive and produced in small quantities.

Plus! I might look at this too far, but I think the Sherlock and Watson analogy was implemented in London episode when they strip team Chris just to Noah and Owen for investigation.

Owen (Dr. Watson). Basically in the original books, Watson plays the role of the guy, your typical visual novel MC, well narrator, who has character, but his whole purpose is just to be a witness to detectives doing, asking questions for the audience. This leads to usually representing Watson as either annoyed with Sherlock's antics or (usually in kids' media) naïve but with good intentions because of this simplification, to show his kindhearted nature in cartoons and caricatures he is portrayed as chubby, which is what we need! But all of them did service in the Anglo-Afghan War, even Disney version mentioned it. (Also if you want to do Nowen version of Jhonlock I don`t mind, sure go for it)

Alejandro (professor Moriarty). Do I really need to explain? Both archvillains in their stories. Professor, respected in society for his talent and achievements, wealthy, but behind all of that façade he`s "Napoleon of crime". He doesn’t usually do crimes himself but rather, schemes, orchestrates the events, or provides the plans that will lead to a successful crime, like paying money to a court so that someone can be released from prison.

Heather (Irene Adler). OK, in the original books (all books written not by Arthur Conan Doyle are basically fanfics) her character and Sherlock don`t date (But if you like, it`s fine). She was more like “I know what you are” towards him.  I want to base it more on Warner Bros Sherlock where Irene works with Moriarty, but they also try to get rid of each other. She is also famous for blackmailing royals, If it isn`t most Heather thing I don`t know what is.

Eva (Mrs. Hudson). The landlady. I think it would be funny, she yelling at them to pay their bills in time.

See you next week

[somegurl8]

It feels so weird seeing my Tumblr and Twitter tls going crazy over the Riptide hiatus update and PD being on break still meanwhile I’m here like “the last thing Apotheosis related we’ve gotten has been the Thanny Nation shirt. While back they said they would do an Apotheosis bad ending What If but it has yet to exist. Omg Total Monster Kill soundtrack I still need to listen to that.”

[croissingtheguidelines]

yk smth that kinda bugs me for what feels like not a valid reason idk but when ppl shit on rayne like its the second coming of satan like i dont even fw rayne like that but i dont anything particularly wrong with it or im just being highly optimistic. like its a reasonable ship, maybe some ppl js dig the whole close bond they got. but im saying this as a rajbow shipper, SOME rajbow fans needa chill tf out bc if someone doesnt like rajbow its srsly not the end of the world. ship raj with wayne ship bowie with like fucking caleb or smth idk. honestly, as long as you ship raj and bowie with men (well bc theyre CANONICALLY gay characters. were not. erasing char representation are we…?) then like, thats fine. but if you ship them with women we finna have a problem in this bitch fr. ik i was kinda focusing on defending rayne but this logic can go for any ship including a male char x raj or bowie like omg WHO CARES if they arent shipped with each other just dont erase rep and youre fine nothing has ever been that srs😭😭 im not saying you cant have opinions im just saying can you respect others? actually this could go for mkulia fans its a WORST situation for them their shit not even canon fr☠️☠️ take might get me cancelled bc everyone and their mother hates rayne but oh well teehee as long as ik im right it doesnt matter first post in a like two months and im finna get crashed but wtv

[total-drama-brainrot]

lord and reverend father ophelia can you please bless the congregation with your thoughts on chubby alejandro and supportive simp boyfriend duncan

My thoughts are as follows:

yeag

[al-luviec]

I've decided to render everything on one layer (I am freed)

[starstriix]

can we talk about just how effective jock would’ve been in pushing a jo character arc. It’s not just the fact that Brick acts as a good moral compass, but it’s also how he encompasses EVERYTHING jo tries to avoid (he’s open with his femininity, emotional, sensitive, clumsy etc) and jo…still likes and respects him??

Like, she views him as an equal to the point of overestimating him (you and I both know that mf was trying his hardest in the thumb wrestling scene and jo was all “oh he hardly tried!! what a gentleman!!☺️” GIRL YOU NEARLY BROKE HIS THUMB). You can tell she genuinely enjoys competing with Brick, and she’s never bored whenever they interact. She’s often the one to go up and talk to him, despite beating him time and time again. Jo views him as a worthy competitor even after witnessing him being the most embarrassing man alive (who the fuck tries to dislocate their hip to impress a girl) and pissing himself.

The point is, Jo clearly holds Brick in somewhat of a higher regard despite him showing weakness so often. And that’s important because Jo’s main driving force is not wanting to appear weak.

You can see little moments of her showing care or concern before immediately switching back to her cutthroat attitude. Caring is a “”weakness”” that prevents you from winning (demonstrated by Brick in episode 7). When Jo volunteers to have makeup put on her, she immediately covers it up with a facade of toughness and says she’s “only [doing it] for the good of the team” (Compare this to Brick’s “Yeah, you heard me.” after announcing his dream of going to fashion school). She’s definitely struggling with internalised misogyny and associating femininity with weakness, but that’s an essay for another day.

Brick shows so much “weakness” and yet she still somewhat respects and even cares for him more than the other contestants. And I find that SO interesting.

Especially because he's her rival??? Their relationship is the embodiment of competition. Overcompetitiveness (or toxic competitiveness) is one of Jo's most glaring flaws, so to have her actually care about the one she should be against the MOST? It's a really good way of showing her overcoming her own toxic competitiveness.

Also, the parallels between Jo basically kick-starting Brick's character arc about prioritising the wellbeing of others...and then having Brick be a focal point in a Jo arc about prioritising the wellbeing of others...chef's kiss

I'd also like to add a little detail in relation to Jo's contestant biography. Specifically on her weird dream about letting a guy win because she thought he was "attractive." Yes this was hinting at Brick idc it was way too specific and odd compared to the other dreams, and Brick is the only guy we know who constantly competed against her (and lost). And I'm definitely reading into this too much, but it's actually quite interesting how her subconscious attraction to the guy overpowered her very, VERY intense need to win. Guess that's why it was a weird dream, but it still makes me think about the potential of Jo sacrificing her win for someone she grew to care for. Also I want representation of masc women in relationships that aren’t just played off as a joke

I can go on about this all night (I wish I could) but yeah. I really wish they'd give Jo a proper character arc because she really deserved one. She deserves to be able to grow and develop because she's a great fucking character, and Brick was literally the key to all of that. Peace out

[melodicaprils]

can we stop drawing mal like covered in blood abt to kill some1

like

the worst he did was push cameron down a hill n break ppls stuff, what did bro do to deserve that fanon vers of himself

scarlett actually tried to kill everyone on pi n she doesnt get the killer treatment??

draw him being the silly guy he is

draw him hugging it out w/ mike after they confront eachother

draw him watching the stars from the top of a large tower

draw angst abt his past man

similarly, i keep seeing these mal x (mostly reader) that depict him as not physically affectionate n super possesive, n i dont agree with that tbh

what if he was tired of being so cold hearted all the time that he needed a place where he could be himself, which just so happened to be ur arms? what if he learns to accept that not everything can b his n his alone, n he becomes happy simply sharing ur epicness w/ the others? what if he, get this, wasnt an abusive boyfriend??

[citrusacidic]

breaking my silence if anyone of u hate on bowie because he is the “flamboyant gay stereotype” ill electrocute u with my wizard powers, yall piss me awf so bad dude. EFFEMINATE GAY MEN EXIST, they exist irl, gay men being flamboyant and fem and proud of being gay isnt bad rep you guys sound like that “gay people i dont respect” post holyyyy shit

[quartzitess]

Tpot 8 spoilers!

Yup, I'm back at it fellas with more REDRAWS!!!! how we feeling about this? Me personally I like it aton :b

And here's the original! ^__^

[imnotcommitedtothis]

stupid pointless reddit rant

but basically there was this one post about which td character is the most "spoiled" and Heather was there (which she's literally NOT, bratty? entitled? yes sure, but not spoiled)

and someone said something along the lines of "Heather now has Al to keep her in check"

first of all, that's an icky and borderline misogynistic thing to say about a female character? that she needs a man to "keep her in check"..? like I can't even explain how much that wording personally icks me....? but I hope you guys understand my point

besides. of all the characters you pick. YOU PICK ALEJANDRO??? that's her number #1 defender,supporter and enabler!

like you think he would try and keep her contained? change her? hell no,she could yell at someone over some stupid stuff and he'd be like with heart eyes thinking about how he's gonna marry her

I get it, all stars sucks and we don't want to watch but he's literally freaked out but she tries to act nice and unlike herself, he would let her rule the world if he could?? he'd be the one spoiling her pls be serious??

[mrsalejandro]

Rant (u can ignore, this is pretty stupid. I get mad over stupid shit)

I hopeee people dont take this the wrong way or assume im chronically online (im a multishipper lol) but for some reason i hate platonic aleheather so much like i dont know why. I physically cannot see them in a platonic relationship at all. It’s so weird seeing them in fanfics as like.. “mlm/wlw hostility” or sum. And a lot of the time they’ll make Heather seem like some terrible ex to Alejandro or something so then he could ditch her for Tyler or Noah or sum idk. Heathers unfortunately a victim of the hated canon fem love interest of a male who’s shipped with a lot of other people.

[bhnsby]

what are your thoughts on the potential dynamics between the roti cast members and owen, if he had been on all stars?

GOD I WISH.

Owen deserved it and should’ve been there instead of Sam or sierra. I don’t care he should’ve

I love Owen and he has great chemistry with like every character ever.

I think Jo and Owen could’ve been peak. Owen gets along with everyone. And half of Jos dynamics are her taking advantage of someone stupid or naive. Owen is both. He definitely would’ve become a little pawn for her. He’d be a mix of Cameron (his pushover-ness) and lightning (his idiocy) to her, so I can definitely see her wanting to use this to her benefit. And Owen just sees the best in everyone. It’d be like intentions al had with Owen mixed with heather and Duncan’s way they acted around Owen. I also think it would be funny if like, she genuinely starts to like him a bit since he just lets her be bossy and competitive and such. Like I can imagine her thinking he’s not too bad and definitely going easy on him. Also it could give her some development after roti, where she realises to appreciate people that give her respect, and that she doesn’t need to force it out of people and sometimes people will just give it to you or something idk I’m going too roti action Jo development fan fiction now.

I can also see him being friends with the friendship trio just because they’re all nice. I’d like to imagine Zoey being rather,,, confused by him. Since he was a season one finalist but just clearly does not fit the idea of what a finalist should be. She’d probably be really interested in him and same with Cameron. They both want to analyse him like a bug in a jar.

Uh Sam was just Owen in all stars so like. I don’t think anything interesting would come out of them.

Same with Scott and lightning I just can’t see anything fun or intriguing here.

I mainly just think Jo would have a good dynamic with him, which is very telling of the all stars writing because roti would be a very different story. But the writing for all stars sucks and they don’t do anything interesting with the characters or dynamics other than what they do with Jo.

Anyway Owen great not a bad season for him peak tdi stop being Owen haters

[vitiligoduncan]

i hate when people say that gwen isn't "goth enough" or something like that. Goth is literally music based, you can look like taylor swift and still be goth if u listen to goth music. Also these people think that trad goth is the only gothic style ever like no there's other gothic styles, gwen just happens to not be trad goth