#that's just wasted both in canon and fanon

[gamebunny-advance]

Since we're talking about polls...

I didn't really talk about the results of the Kliff poll after it was over, but I don't think there's anything about the results that needs to be said. I was surprised at the voter turnout, but the results speak for themselves.

However, I will say that this more or less confirms that my Kliff propaganda is not working, and that's just a crying shame.

[braghis]

Listen. I had fun the last time, so i'm gonna leave here another list of my Riordanverse unpopular opinions/hot takes. I hope no one is gonna cancel me:

- Throwing every single female character in the hunters is lazy writing and kinda OOC for Reyna;

- The Cupid scene is disgusting and the fact that it was made by a queer god makes it even worse;

- Jason and Nico's friendship >>> Percy and Jason's friendship. Nico and Jason were more foils than the latter and Percy will ever be;

- Leo and Nico should have been friends, and the fact that Leo was so scarred of him in HoO is wasted potential;

- Today Percy is basically the not-so-unconfirmed most powerful demigod BUT both Nico and Hazel have the potential to being more powerful than him. However, since Percy is based on Rick's own son he refuses to elaborate on it;

- Actually GROVER is Percy's best friend, not Jason, and in HoO Annabeth and Piper had a more "kinda homoerotic bromance" going on than their boyfriends ever had;

- Aside from that, Jason is clearly alive. Trow that ToA scene away;

- Nico killing Bryce Lawrence is both the most terrifying and the best scene in both PJo and HoO;

- It would have been better if Hazel and Frank were friends-crushingoneachother during HoO and started dating in ToA;

- Riordan's amatonormativity wasted the potential of many characters (like Nico and Leo) and the potential of many friendships;

- Caleo is acceptable in HoO but in ToA it fucking sucks;

- Actually it would have been interesting if Calypso discovered herself as a lesbian during ToA OR in a possible Leo's standalone novel;

- In terms of capabilities, storylines and roles in the plot Percy, Annabeth, Nico, Hazel and Reyna are Riordan's most badass characters. Others (mostly Thalia, Jason and Piper) have the potential but are underdeveloped;

- And that in my opinion is HoO biggest problem: the series has many new interesting characters (Hazel, Leo, Reyna, Jason) but they are underdeveloped in favor of 1) romance and 2) Percabeth being in the major spotlight;

- I have mixed feeling about Percy and Annabeth being part of the Seven;

- Fierrochase >>>>> Solangelo;

- Tsats is utter dogshit and it is REALLY hard to consider it canon;

- Canon Solangelo is ableist and the fact that a big part of the fandom has no problem with it is kinda disturbing. Also some fanon solangelo contents are ableist as well and it is partly RR's fault;

- The fandom basically wrote and characterized Will Solace's character. Neither Riordan or Mark Oshiro give a fuck about him, and problably that's NOT gonna improve in the Tsats sequel;

- Accusing people who don't like solangelo and/or Tsats of homophobia is like the dumbest take ever;

- RR's representation characters are a concentration of stereotypes;

- It would have been better if Piper had her self-discovering - queer storyline from the beginning of HoO. It would have made her more interesting and relatable;

- Even more, it would have been more interesting if Piper had her queer-reveal storyline in HoO THANKS to her not-so-straight chemistry with Annabeth;

- Making Nico a overly morally correct/morally "pure" character makes him less interesting;

- CJ >>> CHB;

- Nico should be a rough demigod;

- It is heavily implied that the majority of CHB STILL doesn't like Nico and they only "tolerate" him because they like Will;

- Bisexual Jason is better and makes more sense than bisexual Percy. Jason's arc is basically a metaphor of bisexuality;

- It makes me sad how RR basically throw away every other Nico's beautiful relationships (with Jason, Reyna, Hazel, even Percy..) in favor of solangelo. Nico WAS a complex and developed character, now he's kinda just "the gay one";

- With his latest works RR is ruining his own franchise;

- PJo>>>>>>MG>>>ToA>>HoO;

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

You're saying that zutara wasn't supported by the writers and shouldn't have been an endgame. That's a lie! and you can verify this, for example, by reading this post. Zutara has a huge support of writers and actors, she was supposed to become a canon! We were just robbed.

https://www.tumblr.com/crienselt/744143410729041920?source=share

I can show you lots of videos of Grey Delisle saying Azula and Zuko are totally fucking (including one she recorded for my birthday), and there's an infamous clip of Bryke proposing Azula and "The Blue Spirit" as a potential ship in a pannel. Somehow I don't think you'll take that as meaning my OTP is canon and was just robbed of it's endgame at the last second - but apparently tumblr posts are solid proof, therefore my argument is perfect and all you Zutara fans are now gonna have to accept that you ship Katara with a guy that canonically (by the standards YOU GUYS are trying to set at least) loves incest even more than Jaime and Cersei Lannister did. And oh, would you look at that! During one of the times Grey mentioned Zucest, Dante said "The Fire Nation are a bit like the Lannisters." See the links if you don't believe me. WHERE'S YOUR GOD NOW?

The creators/showrunners, writers, and lead writer have all said a billion times "Kataang was always the heart of the show and by the time the first episode aired we were set on it being endgame. Some people in the crew liked BOTH Kataang and Zutara, but Zutara was NEVER seriously considered as a real possibility for endgame or even temporary romance. The only love triangle ever considered was Aang, Katara and MALE Toph."

It doesn't matter how many interviews yall fake, how many clips you take out of context, how many deleted scenes you claim existed without a shred of proof to back it up, how many times you go "but this actor whose job is ACTING not WRITTING says he likes Zutara" or "This writer that wrote tons of Kataang episodes said the word Zutara once when writting a scene between Zuko and Katara" - your ship is still fanon. That's not a dig at you or saying it's bad, it's just a fucking fact.

Write some fanfic if you like it so much, but don't turn the production of the series itself into your fanfic just so you can lie to yourself about how there was ever any chance of you getting what you wanted in the actual canon.

And for real, you're gonna try to use the LIVE ACTION as proof? The thing the creators disowned? Netflix's over-glorified cosplay session that everyone keeps saying "It's mid at best" is THE argument you go for? Have some goddamn standards, I'm begging you.

[arrowheadedbitch]

Okay, we were talking about multilingual Shawn in the discord server and I just wanted to share it with all y'all

So, we decided Shawn should be fluent in (I know it's an unrealistic amount, let us live) 13 languages so he can say he knows a baker's dozen languages

Which leads to everyone else going "what the fuck does that mean"

There are some languages the we know he knows in canon and some that are more unclear, and then of course the rest of the languages are just complete fanon

We mostly chose languages we failed to learn lol

So, here's the list we chose.

English, Hebrew, Thai, Hindi, German, Argentinian Spanish, French, ASL, Welsh, Russian, Italian, Polish.

When he tries to speak two languages that are even semi similar, he ends up speaking a weird conglomeration of both by accident

"he tries to hold a conversation and ends up switching languages everytime he doesnt know a word" -J

But these are the languages he can speak, and just the fluent ones at that!

I think he has a completely separate list of languages he can read and it mostly does not coincide with the ones he can speak lmao

"Someone calls him stupid a little *too* rudely and he is not in a great mood today so he starts cussing them out in all the languages he can to prove a point" -me

He absolutely forgets words in English and can only remember it in pretty much any other language

But he uses it to further his "dumb" persona, no moment wasted

When he forgets the word in English, he'll just say whatever word he thinks is probably closest and let's someone else correct him

Then he goes "I've heard it both ways"

" It was the- um *fuck, I can only think of the word in French, but they don't know I know french!* uh, jigsaw!"

"You mean *hacksaw,* Shawn?"

"...I've heard it both ways."

"NO YOU HAVENT"

A foreigner comes up to Shawn asking what the word for something in English is but he *also* forgot the English word for it so he's just sitting there staring at it like *Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh*

He probably learned pineapple individually in every language he could get his hands on 💀

He probably learned curse words first lmao

He can say curse words in languages he doesn't even speak

Like "I can speak 13 languages, but I can say hello in 8 more and I can say fuck in 29"

His greatest accomplishment (in his eyes) is the acquiring of so many swears

"My goal is to be able to call my dad a bitch in every language known to man the day he dies"

#LetShawnSayFuck

Also we had to look it up and he wouldn't be on an FBI watch list for knowing 13 languages, but if the FBI ever found out he would NEVER know peace again (not that he leads that peaceful a life) because they would NEVER stop trying to recruit that man

He would be on a list labeled "PLEASE recrute this man, someone FOR THE LOVE OF GOD hire this guy, PLEASE" so not quite a watchlist but close enough

Now, to tag the people who were part of the convo! @j-snapdragon @thespiritssaidso and majesticrhyhorn but idk if they have a tumblr

[devirnis]

Okay, after having a few days to process, I am allowing myself one vent post to get it out of my system and then it’s back to ✨positive vibes✨ only

If I see one more goddamn smarmy post about how “the writing was on the wall the whole time” (with the undercurrent of “you were too stupid to see it, I have the only valid interpretation”) I’m going to lose it

Had we not had 8x05, the breakup still would have bummed me out, but I would have said, you know what, fair, we didn’t see a whole lot of their relationship, a lot of it was fanon and headcanons. We had a good run. But we did get 8x05, apparently some of it filmed out of order knowing a breakup was coming, and what was the point? To be cruel? It felt like a slap in the face to people who liked that relationship.

They could have laid some groundwork to show some cracks in the relationship, but no. Ignoring disingenuous interpretations from people who have been rooting for the ship to crash and burn since day one, 8x05 established Buck & Tommy as a solid couple. Tommy gets along with Eddie, the three of them had great chemistry together. Tommy takes care of Buck when he’s hurt. Tommy thinks the curse is a bunch of bs (as does Eddie) but still went with Buck to have a funeral for a mummy. It’s like I watched someone cook an elaborate, delicious dinner for me and then they immediately threw it in the trash, and other people around me made fun of me for being blindsided and upset because I should have seen that coming.

I won’t pretend the general audience is a monolith who all have the same opinions. I’m sure there are people who don’t care and just shrugged their shoulders that another relationship of Buck’s fizzled out. But I have 2 friends who watch the show and aren’t Fandom Fans, and they are always my barometer for how people who don’t have brain rot (affectionate) feel about the show. One really liked the relationship, the other was neutral to mildly negative on it, and both of them agreed that it felt like the breakup came out of nowhere and made no sense given the context of the previous episode. So please stop pretending that it’s only BT fandom fans who have their knickers in a twist about how it played out.

If this isn’t leading to buddie, then I don’t want to see another love interest for either Buck or Eddie for the rest of the show. Tommy had so much potential to break the cycle of Buck’s love interests (and interviews from last season seem to support that they were aware of this and planning on utilizing that) and throwing it away feels like such a waste.

So yeah, instead of being just bummed, I’m pissed. I do not know if there was BTS drama or if Tim got some other grand idea for Buck’s storyline this season — but given how plots are adopted and dropped at rapid fire pace this season (something I was willing to forgive last season because of the shortened production timeline and fewer episodes), I’m highly skeptical that there’s any sort of overarching plan here.

I’ve never thought buddie would actually happen on the show, but I also never thought either Buck or Eddie would ever be anything other than straight, so I’d be happy to be proven wrong. I’m just a little jaded by seeing people doing a victory lap convinced that buddie canon is imminent when I think that they are giving the writers a lot more credit than they deserve for supposedly crafting this epic love story for the last five or so years when a lot of that is also just generous fanon interpretation. I need explicit confirmation within the show by the end of this season that at least one of them has caught feelings or I’m over entertaining the possibility it will actually happen.

I know the joy will come back. But I really hope the same plot lines playing out ad nauseam for every character stops because I’m getting a little tired.

[bizarre-blues]

Curious about your shoumob thoughts 👀👀

Apologies for the essay I am about to write you. Genuinely it's a self indulgent ship for me- I don't particularly see it ever happening in canon, but the potential for their dynamic is so severely underexplored that it drives me insane- not even romantically, just in general. I honestly get why at a glance it doesn't seem like there'd be much between them, but this is fanon and I'm allowed to pour my heart and thoughts into my favorite characters. Lemme break it up into two sections. Platonic Shoumob (something I could see as more canon based):

Even being platonic, I do think this dynamic would only show up post canon. Like there's a long period of time where they're vaguely in each other's circles but don't directly interact. On Mob's end, I think this is purely because he's got his own life and own concerns. Sure, his younger brother's friend hangs around sometimes, but it's not his business to meddle around in Ritsu's business. This is really well stated in August's post. But to add on a bit:

Mob is a good big brother + trusts Ritsu

I don't see Mob holding a grudge against Shou for the house being burnt down. Did Shou aim to stir Mob's emotions a bit? Yeah, it wasn't right. It was ALSO to protect Mob's family since Shou knew Claw was sending folks after them. With the bodies of the remaining Kageyama family burnt, Claw would not longer be after the Kageyamas. I think after fully understanding this, even if there are bitter feelings Mob would let em fade over time

What about the seventh claw division? Saying he's disappointed in Mob? Beating up Ritsu to lure Mob in so they can both be captured? First off Shou's insult pretty easily rolls off of Mob's back. Secondly, I think it would be very interesting to explore the dynamic of Mob discovering Shou's part in the seventh division. Again, I don't think this would really come up for a long time, long enough that Mob wouldn't really be a bitter mess about it.

If Mob can find in his heart of hearts that Toichiro is someone worth saving, I really struggle to think he dislikes Shou in anyway.

On the other hand you have Shou. I already talked about how I think Shou would feel a bit in the tags of August's post above. Also, I really like to keep this post in mind too when thinking of Shou's view of Mob.

Shou entirely wrote Mob off in their initial interaction. He saw he had power and was unwilling to use it- therefore was taking the side of a bystander. He saw that as genuinely a crime to waste such protentional. Shou was raised by Toichiro, and even without agreeing with how Toichiro used his power, Shou does agree that power is power and must be used in some way. For him, he needs to use it for justice. That's why, in my mind, Shou was so quick to like Ritsu. Ritsu wasn't afraid to use his powers for what was needed to be done to protect people, even if it was an uphill battle he couldn't win.

Cut to their second interaction. Shou's fighting his dad, Shou's losing the fight- it's barely even a fight with how bad he's losing. In waltzes Mob who's entirely different from the last time they interacted. He's prepared to fight, to protect everyone else since he's the only one capable of doing so. Hell, he even told everyone else to stay away since they'll only hinder what he has to do. Suddenly Mob is aligning with the moral code Shou WANTED to see in him to begin with.

That entire interaction is so short, but it's genuinely so important to me. Mob stands up for Shou, he gets angry on his behalf. Who knows the last time someone did that for Shou, and it's someone Shou had entirely written off.

Last time they interact is the confession arc. Shou sees the power Mob is capable of, how his dad is no match for him when he's like this without it being fatal. It even convinces Shou to lay off using his powers (though idk how closely he sticks to that post canon)

Basically you have this development of complete dismissal > admiration for his moral code? > a warning sign to how dangerous psychic powers can be. Which is insane given that Shou's SEEN how dangerous they can be his entire childhood

I feel like it leaves us in post canon with a LOT of potential for how they might see each other or interact. Here's some of the thoughts that have been plaguing my mind.

I really feel like Shou would have this torn admiration / uncertainty about Mob. Mob is powerful, more powerful than his dad, and I don't feel like Shou fully knows Mob's strict moral code yet. I think that subconsciously he might be a lil cautious around him to begin with even if he doesn't outwardly acknowledge that in anyway

They get to know each other and now there's potential to actually chat about some of this stuff. One thing in particular I like to think about is the power level they both have. Idk the exact power scaling of all the Mob Psycho espers, but I'm under the impression that Shou is pretty up there and will likely only get more powerful with age. Shou and Mob, having this kinda power, have taken such opposite views to it growing up. Mob believing it can never be used while Shou thinking it MUST be used. This is what's inspired the comic I'm currently working on that I'm SO excited to finish up

Also??? this might be ooc but the potential jealousy Shou might have of how easily Mob and Ritsu appear to get along once it's all said and done. Meanwhile his family dynamic is... complex. Shou obviously cares about his dad, but Toichiro will probably not see life outside of prison and I'm certain there's just some oddness between them. Between Toichiro calling Shou a failure and using his powers to straight up fight him, I just feel like it would be complex for Shou. It could really lead to some interesting conflict, especially given Shou and Ritsu being besties

IDK !!! OTHER STUFF TOO!!! Between em I just see a lot that could be said between the two of em.

I feel like when I first joined the fandom I didn't really see much between Shou and Mob. Of the four main esper boys, obvious it's easy to see how much dynamic there is between Mob and Ritsu (the entire show hinders on the trauma they share) and between Teru and Mob. There's also plenty of interactions between Teru and Ritsu. Same to say with Shou and Ritsu since the majority of Shou's interactions are Ritsu centered. But honestly post canon I really do feel like Shou and Mob's dynamic ought to be explored a lot more, even if I must do it myself.

Romantic Shoumob (way more fanon based but hey what can ya do, we have fun out here):

As a disclaimer, I honestly prefer platonic shoumob. HOWEVER I absolutely think romantic shoumob is adorable so I will happily ramble about it. Take most of what I've said above and apply it down here.

In my mind I think it would be Shou who ends up with a crush on Mob. Mostly cause of the amount of emotions Shou has towards Mob post canon, I feel like it could easily develop into a real curiosity towards Mob. Thinks about him a lot and oops, now it's a crush

Also hilarious to me cause I don't think Shou would know how to handle a crush no matter who it was. The classic "writes you a letter that says 'get out of my school' in attempt to flirt" dynamic

Except I really don't think that would work on Mob?? Mob isn't dumb but I really just. Don't think he'd get the hint that Shou likes him. Just knows for Some Reason Shou acts a certain way around him. He'd probably assume he did something to offend or upset Shou somehow tbh

Cue Mob attempting to do things to make it up / even directly trying to ask Shou about it which would only lead to Shou getting flustered or trying, yet again, to keep playing it off

Whenever Mob DOES realize Shou likes him back I imagine he'd get equally as flustered in the beginning. Mostly cause we know Mob is such a lover who is super easily flustered in most scenarios. Very much just! Cute to me

Outside of just the puppy love phase I really do think there's potential for such sweet or dramatic interactions. Again there's all the complex parts of the platonic parts of their relationship, but something significant would be the way that both Mob and Toichiro have this insane amount of power and yet opposite approaches to it.

I think Shou would find a lot of comfort in seeing how gentle Mob could be. I'm also a HUGE softy for the idea of like- we KNOW Shou isn't super soft. He wasn't raised that way, it's not his ideals, there's not many situations where I think he'd feel comfortable having his guard down, even post canon. But I like the idea that Shou lets himself be soft when it's just him and Mob.

No pressure to be anything he isn't, no need to be snarky or guarded, he KNOWS Mob ain't gonna judge him, hell Shou is probably the safest he ever could be by hanging out with Mob. It's all so SICKENINGLY sweet to me.

On Mob's end, I can see him enjoying having someone who understands him in some ways yet has such a different approach to life? Mob craves human connection throughout the entire series, and by the end he has plenty of it, but to have someone who he can have deeper convos about psychic powers in particular with I think would be a huge relief. Obviously there's other folks in his life, but Shou's just from a unique background.

Even more, Shou is blunt and upfront about everything. Communication would come so naturally to them. As someone with autism, nothing is a bigger relief to me than a person who just says what they're thinking straight up.

I can really see a fun balance between them as one person who's calm and kind vs someone who's energetic and chaotic. I feel like there'd be a constant push and pull between Mob's side of simple and sickeningly sweetness and Shou's side of outrageous acts and mayhem.

Hope this all makes sense. Sorry for any typos, I didn't proof read anything. Thank you sm for the ask!

[intermundia]

lately i've been thinking about how anakin was obi-wan's apprentice for a decade, and probably watched him resolve dozens of crises through negotiation over the years. he also witnessed watto negotiating deals almost constantly as a child. he's an intelligent, practical, and tactically minded man, probably pretty good at playing dejarik. so it's not that he's incapable of negotiating a nonviolent solution to a conflict as we often see both in canon and fanon, it's just that he lacks the patience for it and finds tact to be a waste of time and effort. he'd rather skip the pointless posturing parts of negotiation and make everyone get to the point asap. on missions he'd probably try to find ways to encourage all parties to make a deal quickly, discovering and revealing all relevant information and exposing deceptions that could derail talks. he's perfectly willing and ready to jump to violence, sure, but he's not a mad dog, even when he's vader, like sometimes vader just uses people's fear of him to pressure them to resolve disputes immediately. he can be a negotiator, you just have to not waste his time. when obi-wan is there, he'd absolutely be happy to delegate the stupid boring formal stuff to him and focus on things he could do to move things along, it's why they're a great team, but we shouldn't read that dynamic as categorically damning to his own skills. he can do it alone, he'd just rather not lol

[umbralsong]

I love experiencing a character on my own outside of fandom. Many times, I end up liking a character for reasons well-outside fanon. Astarion is among them.

Full disclosure: I am not without my critiques of the writing and am in agreement with the critiques of the ways the racism in his story is handled. Not excusing his shitty behavior or dismissing those who identified his actions as coercive. I think there is much Larian could have handled with more sensitivity. I am not Romani or Sinti, for the record, but I trust the specific concerns of those in their communities who have voiced their discomfort. As an outsider, it is inexcusable to use fictional tropes of genocide victims without informed, paid actors, consultants, and writers from that community on the team.

EA, Act II & III spoilers ahead:

Tav: What makes you so sure they're delusions? Gale: Because their promises are perfect, and in perfection lies their flaw. It's the tadpoles reading our every desire, but they don't read between the lines. They don't know some things are impossible. They don't know that… They don't know.

There are some cut EA dialogues (“CAMP_Daisy2_CRD_Astarion” for those looking for the file) where Astarion has nightmares about Cazador scarring him, but everyone knows because he has been consuming/using the tadpoles (everyone else dreams of the “Guardian”). The dream figure seems content to torment Astarion into submission, no seduction at all.

Some of these have been repurposed into nightmares in the character’s Origins. I miss certain aspects, including what became “the Dark Urge” stemming from consuming/using the tadpoles, everyone dreams when activating the illithid powers, etc. A bit of a waste.

The player may or may not know about Astarion’s relationship with Cazador, but I find it telling that trying to read the scars for him is treated as a romantic scene, likewise speaking with Wyll, Shadowheart, Gale, and Lae’zel. A few others were cut as well, giving us glimpses and more complete characterization than what we were given. Notably, Astarion is loathe to take off his shirt, refusing to “play the rake” and remember that night.

So, while valid and definitely understandable from a logical point of view, I respectfully disagree with those claiming the first night with Astarion was not (the beginning of) love.

I’m uncertain whether vampiric charm is even in his repertoire anymore, or if it’s just his pretty privilege. His situation has completely changed. He doesn’t know how to process that internally, and continues to operate as though under Cazador’s control unless encouraged by Tav over time. From personal experience, I surmise that Astarion was likely the most defiant “sibling.” Suddenly free of a toxic environment, he does not know who he is or what he wants.

Player: What do you want to do? Astarion: I... don't know. It's been so long since I've had to decide what I wanted.

Canonically. He’s rediscovering himself. I highly doubt the intention of Astarion’s first romance scene is coercive when his whole thing is consent. I acknowledge so much of this is very muddied, and I think it isn’t always handled gracefully. My point being, the man is a himbo who can’t understand his own feelings after not having any control over his body for centuries. I bet he doesn’t even realize how cheesy he is.

A few telling things:

Gale: You say all the right words, but I'm not so sure you mean the right things. Shadowheart: But what about Astarion? Losing you could nudge him to a dark path. Are you truly willing to sacrifice what you have with him, for me...? Shadowheart: (after the player asks to be with her and Astarion) I think you may be overestimating his willingness to share – he may seem like the carefree hedonist, but there’s something fragile beneath the facade. If you can give him the solace that I’m convinced he desperately needs, then it would just be cruel for me to try and elbow in – liable to end in tears, or blood, or both. Wyll: There's little between us we share. But you've fallen in love and stood by your lover. That is something this dreamer's heart can appreciate. Astarion: You gave me precious, impossible moments of comfort. I only really wanted a few more. From the start, I was rather counting the hours until it was going to end. Midnight chimes, eh?

As a demisexual, I wish Karlach didn’t have the exclusive asexual romance option, but alas. At high approval (or hell, the Act I party), I believe he wants to pursue the player. There are other motives, but Astarion is not known for his foresight or his personal insight, so frankly, he also probably doesn’t know he’s seducing someone in a real romance scene.

Spawn Astarion is not the suave, mysterious vampire lover of a fantasy story. He’s afraid, confused, uncertain. He falls first and harder. Completely cringe about it. He gets sillier as he is romanced, these performances transform into joy. They are joyous because they are genuinely silly. He’s playing the part for affection, for fun, not survival. You can also interpret it as him coming to terms with his vampirism.

Player: So you will kill them all, just because they remind you of yourself? Astarion: They do not. That weakness in me is dead. It's dead. I have a higher purpose. Player: Show them the kindness you never saw. No one deserves this fate. Astarion: Don't hate me. I just did what I had to. I swear, I did what I had to. Player: This isn't you, Astarion. Not really. Astarion: It should be. I don't want to be like them... They're pathetic, horrible…

He may initiate a relationship partly as he did in Baldur’s Gate, but hopefully the player has seen glimpses of his real self and appreciates him for it. Even if it’s mutually agreed to be purely sex, if playing for real romance, I imagine it’s an entirely new experience when someone in his situation only has to focus on being present. I imagine a real rendezvous would make him dissociate, and not for lack of attraction or pleasure, as he insists later.

Player: So the nights we spent together didn't mean anything? Astarion: Of course they did - that's the problem! Or part of it. Being close to someone - any kind intimacy - was something I performed to lure people back for him. Even though I know things between us are different, being with someone still feels... tainted. Still brings up those feelings of disgust and loathing. I don't know how else to be with someone. No matter how much I'd like to. Player: Were you even attracted to me? Or was it all a lie? Astarion: Of course I was attracted to you. Look at you, for goodness' sake! You're a vision. And you're so much more than that. I just... I don't know what to think. I don't know what I want.

He feels disgust and loathing because he had no room for love and pleasure. If it was all manipulation and lust, it wouldn’t wreck him when the player insists that had they met before, they wouldn’t have been together in the forest under the moonlight; they would have been victims of Cazador, just like everyone else he lead into undeath. It’s true romance for him.

Player: You can save them. Astarion: What's the point? They're as good as dead. I thought they were dead. If they are unleashed, they will cause incredible carnage. They will be ravenous. They must die. Better they serve a purpose. Player: In another life, you'd have led me to this crypt, and not that pretty clearing in the forest. Astarion: Gods, I can't say you're wrong. I can only say I'm so glad we didn't meet then. I don't even want to think what would have happened to you… Player: Don't avoid it. Face it. You would have killed me. Astarion: I would have killed you...

It was real.

[bruciemilf]

Could you tell me about BruHarvey? Like, I'm really intrigued and interested, but I have no knowledge or framework. What's the dynamic like? The general headcanons/fanon/etc? I'm like a kid sitting at your feet hoping to hear a story lol. I wanna see/hear a fifty slide powerpoint lol. Basically, could you gush about it and let me absorb through osmosis? Hahah

OH MANNNNNNN OKAY. okay. So canon, -- They're college friends; Childhood, if you wanna split hairs. In many reiterations Harvey's considered Bruce's best friend, dearest friend.

I would define their canon dynamic as simply a love left to rot. A spiral of uncertainty and vicious, sharp mourning for the versions of themselves and eachother They're convinced the other can't love. And I love that as fanon as well.

Harvey is CRIMINALLY underrated and underused as both antagonist and familial character for Bruce.

I'd go as far as to say he plays a greater and more crucial role in DC than Joker, because he's actually meant to represent both sides of justice, and how incredibly well that compliments Bruce

NOW. ON MY TROPES FOR THEM? OH BOY.

Childhood friends to lovers (optional) to enemies to lovers. High school sweethearts if you will

Sometimes divorced, but not heterosexual divorced. Gay divorced. Fun divorced

That married couple who's absolutely, clinically obsessed with eachother

I wish this was explored more, but Harvey had an abusive father and I'm so convinced the waynes took him in.

I'm also convinced Martha, Thomas, and Alfred shipped them hard af and had bets on their wedding (Alfred won, but they'll never know)

It doesn't matter if Bruce burns water. Harvey's gonna finish anything he puts in front of him because he's a simp like that

LOOK. Self indulgent and shameless about it, -- Harvey's the most protective husband to walk on earth. If " scary dog/ boyfriend privileges" was a person. He doesn't care that Bruce can snap someone's neck without killing them.

Gomez Addams if he was on Peaky Blinders

Bruce is so down bad for this man. Like so incredibly disgustingly down bad. He'd crawl on Harvey's lap like a cat and rub his head under his chin.

SO MUCH PHYSICAL AFFECTION .THEYRE SO GROSS (I love them so much they're like my parents I will die in their name)

THE PET NAMES. OH THE PETNAMES. Bruce calling Harvey " honey" is enough to send that beast of a man on his KNEES. Harvey heavily calls Bruce " baby" and " princess" and " sweet thing" cause he's hot like that

Bruce calls Harvey " Mr. Dent" when he's mad

AS TWO FACE AND BATMAN. the GCPD learned the hard way that bringing the Bat to interrogate Two Face is a waste of time. They're in that room for 4 hours and all you can hear is soft grunting and gentle moans and raspy " Oh, baby-" " harv-" and Batman giggling

Same goes for Arkham visits!!

Harvey has a Temper on him and Bruce isn't phased at all because 90% it's justified and the other times? Really entertaining. No " this isn't you" bs here. He finds it hot actually

Harvey legally adopted all of the batkids and just never told Bruce abt it

EMBARRASSING SAPPY PARENTS THAT MAKE THEIR KIDS ASHAMED OF LIVING IN THE SAME CITY WITH THEM

[saintsenara]

For the unpopular opinions ask game, 🏳️‍🌈 and 💔?

thank you very much for the ask, anons plus @princessofshazabah, which i have combined into one!

which character who is commonly headcanoned as queer doesn't seem queer to you?

having an answer to this is a skill issue! the very point of shipping is that any expression of human sexuality [very rarely as fixed and unchanging as many people like to believe] is possible if an author has enough nerve.

which means that any way of writing a character's sexuality is inherently plausible, and trying to argue otherwise ["omg noooo he only likes women!", "omg nooooo he's a gold-star gay who'd be sick if he saw a cunt"] is unimaginative.

if you had to remove one major character from the series, who would you choose?

grawp. he's pointless.

what is a popular [serious] theory you disagree with?

that lord voldemort cannot feel love because of the circumstances of his conception.

the two things i particularly hate about this fanon are the fact that, firstly, it suggests that anybody who was conceived because of rape - which is going to be a far greater number of people than perhaps we like admitting - is irreparably damaged.

and that, secondly, it continues one of the main issues with how the harry potter series portrays voldemort’s childhood by completely overlooking the failure of the state in how he ends up as he does.

the institutionalisation of children is a profoundly traumatising practice, and the vast majority of orphanages - both historically and in the parts of the world where they persist - do not have the resources to provide the children in their care with the support they need [no matter how well-intentioned the staff]. 

the young voldemort learns as a baby not to waste his time on crying, because he’s not getting the attention he needs from it, and there are other signs in canon that he’s not had a great time in the orphanage [especially, as i’m always going on about, the sinister implication which can be read into his extreme fear of doctors…], but dumbledore pays no attention to the role the state and its institutions have had in shaping his [undoubtedly] concerning persona.

the harry potter series does this a lot - ignoring the role of the state in favour of locating good and evil within the individual - but that doesn’t mean we have to. there doesn’t need to be a supernatural reason for voldemort’s voldemortishness… it just fucks up kids to be raised in what is, essentially, a pen.

[i also hate this fanon because it forces me to defend jkr - which i loathe doing - and point out that she explicitly refuted it.]

which character is not as hot as everyone else seems to think?

there is no suggestion anywhere in canon that either lucius or draco malfoy are attractive.

[stanlunter]

i have an honest question for you. this is not meant to be a gotcha or accuse you of homophobia, just based on observing your post history of wlw vs wlm ships out of curiosity.

are there any wlw ships in cartoons that you actually do like the portrayal of?

Thanks for a question!

And yes, obviously. Actually, I posted a lot about them, so It's strange if you haven't seen it, but yeah. I understand where your answer is coming from since I do critic some wlw media and made a post about a wlw dynamic I don't like. Tbh, It's a problem for me too, bc I don't get enought of my "wlw ships type" in media and that's basically why Im complaining about it, bc every It's either bad-written or is so cliche that's it even boring. Also the problem is that I do love wlm ships as well and a lot of people say that "wlw is always better than wlm" even tho there are many good and bad examples of both of them and I think It's wrong to say smth is better just bc It's queer, even tho I am wlw myself. The "critic" wasn't towards wlw, but towards the most popular dynamic (sun x moon) that I don't like and the way people ignore others dynamics just for this one is sad to me, since bc of it I don't have enought representation of wlw ships I love, bc all of them either don't become a couple, or break up, or one of them dies (or all of these at the same time) and almost all ships that became canon have that dynamic I dislike. And at the same time it was also a joke bc It's actually true that like 80% of all wlw ships are basically the same, so It's funny to hear from their fans that all wlm ships are the same

"Are there any wlw ships in cartoons that you actually like the portray of?"

Do you mean canon or fanon?

As someone who generally in like 90% of the cases prefers fan ships over canon ones, regardless of if it's wlw, wlm or mlm, I obviously have much more fanon or half-canon favourite wlw ships, including those, where one of the characters is dead, there are some I like:

My favourite wlw ship and spop otp of all time is Scorptra. I absolutely adore everything about it and I really think they should have been stayed in Crimson waste. Some years ago I had a huge fixation on it and tbh, if I've discovered Tumbler to myself at that time, my acc would definitely be full of them and I would call myself "stanscorptra", lol. And the fact that they didn't become canon for the sake of the ship I hate - catradora, makes it even worse to me. (Scorpia x Catra from She-ra and the princess of power)

Yumihisu. That's my favourite ship from aot, Im actually glad It's popular in the fandom. I really love everything about them and the way they ended up is actually heart-breaking. In the finale of s2 I actually wanted to start killing people just bc Ymir decided to help Rainer and Berth instead od staying with Historia. And every time I rewatch it, I feel the same, bc they did have a chance to be happy together at least for some years.

It's basically canon and it was confirmed that they both love each other, but since Ymir died, I'm not sure if it is considered as actually canon since they werent actual dating (Ymir x Historia from Attack on titan)

Nanichiru, or whatever name they have, bc the fandom still hasnt decided it.

That was one of my first anime ships, I even thought It's canon and basically when I saw them together, I thought Nana is canon lesbian, which was so clear to me when I compare her with men and her with Michiru. Idk if they supposed to be "just friends", or wlw-coded, but I do consider them as a half canon anyways, bc, let's be real, if one of them was a guy, everyone would know It's canon. I absolutely love their dynamic and the way their relationship affected Nana and made her doubt her goal and actually understand that some of the people with talents are good people. Michiru changed everything for Nana and was her light in the dark, but ofc, how it always is, they didn't develop relationship and one of them died. (Nana x Michiru form Talentless Nana)

Mitsunoa. I am not obsessed with its depth, bc, ngl, they don't have such deep relationship as others, but I do love their dynamic and all of their interactions. Their homoerotic friendship and all the hints make me giggle and if we consider Mikayuu as "basically canon", than I will consider Mitsunoa as basically canon too (especially after the bath scene), bc these girls deserve the best things and they are the best things for each other. (Mitsuba and Shinoa from Seraph of the end)

Togachako. I still haven't finished the manga, so I'm not sure about what heppend with them in the end, I've only seen some spoilers. But I do love their enemies to lovers dynamic, which, unlike some other ships of this trope, isn't a romantization of abuse, but actual enemies to lovers. I doubt it has chances to actually become canon. But I still love the way their relationship was written. Uraraka is the only one who thinks Toga is cute and a pretty girl, not just a crazy monster. I absolutely love the line when she says Toga that she's the cutest girl in the whole world. I love that Toga says her feelings for Uraraka are real and that she made her happy. Toga sees her as basically a comfort person (??), someone who's love and appreciation she wants to get, someone who can save her from the hateness to herself and the world. I just want Toga to be happy with someone who can see her. Also, have you seen how mangaka draws them together?? He's either their biggest shipper, or a queerbaiter, Idk (Toga x Uraraka from My hero academy)

Also Ruby x Penny from Rwby, Webby x Lena from Duck Tales, Perfuma x Huntara from she-ra, Anne and Sasha from Amphibia, Sunset x Sci-Twi from Equestria girls, Sae-Byeok x Ji-Yeong form Squid game and others

As for canon ships, there are fewer ones, but yeah, I do have favourite wlw ships that are canon:

Menokari. Their relationship is really beautiful, It's actually similar to Nanichiru, but is gayer. I found it thanks to Talentless Nana as well, and Im glad I did. It may be seems too cliche for some people, but I think It's adorable, dramatic and well-writen. Definitely my favourite wlw anime (Menou x Akari from The Executor and her way of living)

Ellieriley. Unfortunately there are not enought scenes with them, but those we have is enought for me to love them. Riley was Ellie's first love and probably her lesbian awaking. I love their dynamic so much and I want to see more of them and I wanted them to live a happy life. I do like Ellie x Dina too, but I love her relationship with Riley much more. Riley's death has broken my heart. But at least I'm glad that they did have a kiss scene before it, that's why I do consider it as canon, unlike Yumihisu, since a lot of people for some reason are still arguing over it (Ellie x Riley from The last of us)

Spinetossa. Even tho this ship is far not the main one, I love it much more than the main canon ones. Netossa cares about her wife so much. They know each other for so long and still love each other so much. They're so cute and so sweet, that I was worrying for their relationship during s5 the most. And It's funny how Chaggie fans use "they're together for a long time" to justify the fact that Vivziepop has written them so poorly and that they look more like just friends, just bc of that, since these two exist and they actually do look like a married couple, not like just friends (Spinerella x Netossa from She-ra)

Harlivy

I ship these two in every universe. Even tho the Harley Quinn show has flaws, I still love their dynamic, yeah, even despite it being "one of those I have brought up in that post", I still ship them and think they're cute. I love that Harley has fully recovered from her relationship with Joker and that Ivy has found her true love, someone she can spend the rest of her life with (Harley x Ivy from Harley Quinn show and DC comics/cartoons)

Korrasami

I never was one of those people who say Korrasami was rushed. Yeah, the creators couldnt fully show them in the show, but they did in the comics and I haven't seen anyone who has read them and said they're bad-written. The comics show them so well, It's amazing, healthy and one of the best wlw representations I've seen! (Korra x Asami from The legend of Korra)

Obviously, that's not all of them, but those I love the most. Some of other canon wlw couples I love are: Bubblegum x Marcelin from Adventure time, Apple x Darling from Every after high, Haruka x Michiru from Sailor moon, Utena x Anthy from Revolutionary girl Utena, Kirari x Sayaka from Kakegurui, Ruby x Sapphire form Steven Universe, Vi x Caitlyn from Arcane, Sara x Nyssa from Arrow and Jennifer x Needy form Jennifer's body (I know the last two are not animated, but I still wanna include them)

So, yeah, there are a lot of wlw canon and popular ships I dislike or critic, which isn't because I hate wlw, but bc I love it and want it to be written better and be more various, than just "sun x moon", since there are a lot of so different wlm and mlm dynamics, while for wlw It's almost always either the same, or is just problematic, like Catradora. Tbh, as far as I remember, the only wlw ships I wrote bad things about were Lumity and Catradora, besides that post, so I don't know why exactly you thought it means I dislike all or most of the wlw ships, but I don't anyways

[exo-raskreia]

you'll probably won't see this message but i'll send it anyway lol.. i love you speak your mind about how the ichihime ship isn't that great and has all the facts to bring it show that you're right. i always felt scared to say i don't ship ichihime cuz they're are alot of shippers that can get so intense about it. i always say that ichihime is a cute ship and they have their moments(i don't feel that way at all lol) cuz i don't want to be attacked for not liking how their story played out. twitter is a scary place oml💀 and they made me sorta believe that ichiruki doesn't have any chemistry and they're just siblings when i knew in my heart like yes they do have chemistry and are the superior ship. like ichigo cares more for chad and uryuu then orihime. but since their canon, i guess their love for each other is supposed to be legit. apparently ichigo sees his mother in orihime so i don't understand why that's not a turn-off for the shippers😭so yeah thanks for making me go back in my bleach fangirl era and making my 10-year old self to not feel guilty and stupid shipping ichiruki

Wow, thanks so much, anon! And ur welcome! I will forever be on IchiRuki's side no matter what anyone says 😤.

You don't have to be scared to support what was, and still is, the most popular ship in Bleach (and rightfully so). There was no real ship war during its run (despite what the antis try to claim now), as IR was shipped by most of the fanbase. IR had everything you could hope a M/F ship to have in a battle shounen, the most solid basis for becoming canon with just one more step...and yet... (Kubo fumbled 🙄). The theories on that are interesting...

While more than half the IR fandom is no longer active after that disastrous ending, it doesn't mean they're not still out there. I've seen even non-shippers still praise IR & see it as wasted potential & whatnot (triggering antis in the process 🤭). Not being canon doesn't take away from the fact that it is still the superior ship. Anyone with reading comprehension who reads the manga will see it & wonder why they didn't end up together.

IH was never popular in Japan. It was always far below IchiRuki & UlquiHime (Ori's most popular ship 👀. Kubo achieved in ONE arc what he couldn't achieve for IH the entire manga, like-). To this day, those 2 ships get more content than the canon ships 😌.

The antis are just triggered that despite becoming canon, their ship is still. not. popular. IH doesn't have nearly as much content (both canon AND fanon) as IR & UH despite being canon for almost 10 years. Yes, Kubo himself doesn't care enough to give them even one family sketch 🫢.

Compare that to the Naruto endgame ships (mainly NaruHina & SasuSaku), which have way more official AND fan content. Those were always popular, & still are, 10 years later since becoming canon. Pro-Bleach ED fans love to compare their ships with Naruto's yet are nowhere near as popular.

The IH's really thought they would get the NaruHina royal treatment after the ending (you know, like a movie, official drawings from the creator, interviews saying they were meant to be, merch, etc.), but instead only got a novel that wasn't even focused on them (Ren/Ruki is more popular than IH but mainly because of Rukia 🤣), which vaguely went over their so-called "development" & had chicken scratches a rough draft of a sketch for their ship 🫢. Kubo also said in an interview that IH tried dating in college once but then broke up, later getting back together at some point. Super vague. And mind you, all this happened AFTER Rukia's wedding 🫢👀. So, we can only guess what was going through Ichigo's mind- Doesn't sound like Ichigo was all that interested, huh? Yet the IH's claim he was madly in love with her & "came back to life for her" & whatnot. Almost 10 years later & Kubo still can't be clear on when Ichigo supposedly started to "fall" for Ori despite being his "intended" endgame 💀.

The WDKALY novel has such OOC content on there, like it can't be taken seriously. Apparently, Kubo barely had any involvement with it anyway? Those sketches he drew sure are telling, esp if he calls his drawings here as a "rough draft" 💀

"Chicken scratches" for the canon ships, fr 😭.

RR is another dumpster fire but also more meh for me so I don't have to delve into that one, however, here's a post I once made where I go over why I don't truly believe Renji had feelings for Rukia. Meanwhile, Rukia's sad expression on the novel cover & the sketch of heading to the altar with a scared expression (not even when she was headed to her own execution did she look like THAT) say it all anyway 🫢.

Oh, man, there's just so much to make fun of for the canon ships. Even when we lose, we still win. IH's have no content, so maybe that's why they're so bitter & IR & its shippers still live in their minds rent-free despite them calling it a "dead ship". You would think they'd happily enjoy their canon ship & yet... They get triggered whenever IR fanart garners thousands of likes on Twitter 😩...

So, anon, I suggest not to engage with antis, esp on platforms like Twitter & Reddit. They're cesspools full of dudebros & loud IH's. Ignore, block, &/or mute them. No need to try arguing with them & please do NOT cater to them. Do NOT give them the validation they don't even get from Kubo himself, nor his affiliates (LMFAO). Use that energy to look for other fellow IR's & enjoy IR content (and maybe anti-IH content in the right places; you can explore that tag on my blog if u wish 🤪).

As an old saying in this fandom went, "Keep Calm & Ship IchiRuki."

[poisonedspider]

So, a lot of these I have already said, but since @poisonedxbeauty posted one and then we both talked about it, I'm doing a headcanon post as well. Some of this are big duh and basically accepted as fanon, so I wasn't going to originally post about them, butttttt.

Angel Dust (and we both agree on this so I promise I'm not copying them, but it's also canon per Voxtagram soooo) does not only wear super femme clothes, or super revealing clothes. He's definitely a crop top and shorts guy, or a low cut cozy shirt guy, but he isn't always dressed intentionally provocative. When he's alone in his room, or he is getting ready for a show, this is the most comfortable and cozy fucker ever. He likes to relax sometimes after wearing all those corsets and tight dresses.

Angel hates his feet. This is canon, and very apparent with my Angel (the foot fetish thing had him reeling the other day). To the point that even during sex, he either keeps his shoes on (which is LITERALLY seen in Poison), or he will wear thigh high stockings. Tbh, they aren't even ugly - he's got cute little jumping spider feet. But he does NOT like them and will NOT let people touch them. If you get to, that means he has a very deep connection with you.

Angel's gold tooth and mismatched eyes are because of his contract with Valentino. Which also means that Travis is contracted with Val. Which is interesting. Was he just like...this fucker isn't hot enough so he can just be the script writer?

By the way, Angel thinks Travis is a horrible script writer. His talent as an actor is wasted on that bullshit.

Which goes into, yeah, he 'stands up for it' when Husk is a 'porn critic.' It isn't because of the fact that he thinks the writing is good, or even that the porn itself is good. It's because Angel is proud of his acting abilities, and that damn porno won him a Sex-x-xi Award. It showed that he was CAPABLE at something, to the point that he won over the other biggest porn star in Hell. That showed that he CAN act and that he's damn GOOD at it and he's proud of that. And so having that shot down hurts like a bitch.

He loves polaroids. Clearly, since they're covering his door. He definitely has one at all times and likes to document his life and the fact that now he has one. For once. That he's proud of.

Angel Dust is better at guns than Valentino (it probably helps that Val is canonically pretty fucking blind). He definitely taught Valentino a lot of what he knows about his way around a gun, which he obviously regrets now with Val's attitude. But Angel is a great shot. He doesn't miss.

Angel likes to tap into his mobster roots a lot (I mean look how that fucker is dressed in the finale.) He also has photos on Voxtagram of him in his mobster outfit, and it's in the prequel comic so. He likes to be a mobster, as long as he is free to make his own choices - which he wasn't under his father.

Speaking of his father, his entire family was incredibly homophobic so he couldn't really express himself. This was what really pushed Anthony into the drug lifestyle. He needed to get out and numb himself from it all, as well as try to live his own life (it's why he mentions in Loser Baby that drugs/clubbing is his escape.) The drug overdose was absolutely accidental, but I imagine he got into it with either his brother or father a bit too hard that day and just pushed himself too far.

In reference to all of that, Angel loves his lifestyle. I know he doesn't like his job and he talks about how much he hates everything, but pre-Valentino, he loved it. That was what led Val to find him in the first place and be able to corrupt him. He loves doing drugs. He loves partying. He loves sex. Even if his contract with Val is broken, that isn't going to change (well, maybe the drugs since y'know he's trying to get redeemed but....he ain't giving up sex).

Speaking of contract, I didn't know this was canon apparently but it breaks my heart to think about so I'm making it a HC - Angel hasn't been redeemed yet because his soul isn't his to be redeemed. It's owned by someone else, so until his soul is released back to him, all of this is futile. Unless there is some divine intervention.

I've mentioned this before but just adding it to my long list, Angel Dust tastes like cotton candy (yes sexually you cowards). He's also intersex, but definitely 100% identifies as a cisgender man. He just has 'both' genitalia, which y'know, makes him really great in the porn industry.

Angel is Hell's hottest porn star in hundreds of years. I know Val obviously did porn (look at his damn posters haaaa) but even Valentino didn't get to that level of success. I think that's part of why Valentino knows he can't lose Angel, because so much rides (ha, punny, ha) on him.

I am just bouncing all of these off based on the previous comment. I could write an essay about Angel's love for Valentino, but yes, he does love Val. Like I was speaking with poisonedxbeauty earlier, it's all about the domestic violence cycle. Angel makes it CLEAR that Val only has control of him in the studio, so if Valentino called him while at the hotel, HE COULD SAY NO. HE COULD. But he doesn't, because there's still love for him there that keeps bringing him back and trapped in the cycle. I do think, however, that when Angel stands up to Val in that club, it has a lot to do with Husk. Husk shows him what love is supposed to look like, like he is worthy of love, and deserves to be seen for who he is. That weakens the chain of the contract, because it gives Angel the courage to say no and not go back just because he thinks Val is the only one that will love him.

Angel likes jazz music. Alastor is shook. But as a mobster highly associated within the 1920s realm, he loved a good flashy gatsby party. He also loves Broadway, especially Cabaret and Chicago. He’d love to perform in a Broadway show one day, especially because he actually does have a very talented voice.

Speaking of, I hc that Angel was 33 when he died (which is so funny bc Hazbinned and I both do and we thought it was canon but nope it just is our little brains working).

His association with The Vees fascinates me and will continue to do so. He obviously lived in the penthouse for a long time, and still has his own room (I don't care what y'all say, that is absolutely Angel's room in Poison, not Val. I don't see Val as one to really do drag and there are too many damn wigs in that room). It's obvious that Vox hates his guts (jealous little prick), but I think Angel did his best to be helpful when he was around (as will be made in the next comment). He can actually tolerate Velvette, and would sometimes spend nights getting drunk and just talking fashion with her and trashing horrible fashion tastes.

Angel is a phenomenal cook, especially when it comes to Italian food. He probably cooked far too many meals for the Vees, the ungrateful bastards. But since he was living there, and wanted to prove that he was worth something, he would pay back in terms of acts of service like that (especially since he's used to only paying back in sex and Val was the only one interested in that).

His favorite drink is a White Chocolate Macchiato with strawberry drizzle and whipped cream. Fight me. When it comes to alcohol, yes he likes fruity drinks, but his favorite liquor is actually gin or absinthe (he’s a hard mobster from the twenties, he likes the hard shit).

After Cherri, I would say his ride or die is Vaggie. I hate how little kind interactions they have with each other, but even in It Starts with Sorry or the pilot alone, you can see their bond. I imagine they bond over being queer, and I just think that's kind of cute. Charlie would absolutely be next ofc. And Niffty is like a little sister to him that he just wants to defend to the death.

Speaking of friends, Angel is so clearly willing to sacrifice himself to protect his friends, which shows he isn't this selfish stuck-up persona that he puts on. He'd even risk his life for Alastor if needed, because this is his found family, the people that he loves more than anything, and he thinks their lives are worth more than his.

Molly and Angel had an incredibly close relationship due to being twins, but he would keep himself away from her more often than not because he didn't want to 'taint' her and pull her into all the mob boss stuff. There's a reason she's in Heaven, y'all, that little sweet bean. He misses her, but he doesn't talk about her much because it hurts too badly.

Angel was the first to die in his family. I said what I said.

More fact than head canon, but in case y’all didn’t know, Fat Nuggets is absolutely a drug reference. I am guessing he was named by Valentino, because I also imagine that Angel received his name from Valentino, tied into his drug addiction. Or maybe not fully received it from him, but was highly persuaded by him.

Angel is a bottom. No shock. But want to clarify that. He ain’t ever topping. Good luck. His favorite position is riding, he loves sucking dick, and he has almost every kink under the sun but especially impact play and breeding.  

Angel’s moans in the pornos are definitely fake and overexaggerated (duh). If he actually has sex with someone he loves, his pitch is much softer and wispier and even a little deeper. Anyone who’s slept with him and watches his porn will know that. And I think that’s a big reason why any of his partners (especially Husk) would be fine with his sex work. He knows it’s just a job, and Angel isn’t fully enjoying it, and only he gets to see the true side of Angel in passion. And it’s fucking beautiful. It’s also why Val keeps him.

Angel doesn’t have a car. Random fact. But that’s why he had to take a freaking taxi from Travis in the pilot. I imagine that’s one luxury Valentino never let him have, because it would make it so Angel could get away more often and much easier. And then he just…never got one.

Charlie paid for him to stay at the hotel at first, but he would have made the decision to go regardless of the money. He didn’t believe in the cause at first, but it was an excuse to move out of the penthouse and have some freedom from Val’s contract. It just so happens she caught him at a vulnerable time when Valentino had punished him to work the streets overnight and he was fucking fed up.

A lot of people think Angel is a germaphobe because of the gloves, but I say no way could he be with how many random sinners he’s slept with and the grungy places he hangs out. I think it’s because he thinks that anything that he touches will break. Notice the only place he doesn’t wear his gloves? In the studio. Because that’s already a broken environment and it can’t get worse. He doesn’t want to touch any of his friends and have things fall to ruins. Almost Rogue-ish from Xmen. He doesn’t actually have those powers, duh, but it’s the fear of cursing them with just his touch. If he takes off his gloves around you, he’s being incredibly vulnerable.

Speaking of powers, yes, I do believe that Angel can produce webs. He rarely does it of course because he thinks it’s kind of gross, but he definitely can. I was trying to think of how he would do this, and in my brain he just went that he can produce it from his spit and I was like….okay fam, guess we’re going with that canon then. Definitely giving Naruto vibes.

His favorite color is actually purple, not pink. Look at his room in the hotel. HE designed that room for himself. There’s purple all over that shit.

All his pink dots are representative of the hundreds of freckles he had when he was alive.

Despite his raunchy background, he is absolutely a hopeless romantic. He’s used to being thrust into the wild side of things, but he doesn’t even use porn to get off (why would he, when it’s what he does as a living). He’s much more aroused by the slow sensuality of things. Dances under the lights of Pentagram City. Candlelit dinners. Intimate massages. Making love. He likes a good fuck, hard and fast, but gentle love-making? It’s everything he's dreamed of.

Just talked about with my lovely Husk, because they were surprised that Angel’s robe isn’t some level of see through. My thought behind this is that he is already incredibly emotionally vulnerable in those positions, knowing he could set Val off at any minute (noticing he only wore it in Episode 4 as well, INCLUDING at the end of Poison), so he doesn’t want to be physically vulnerable as well. For once, he doesn’t want to be seen. He wants to just disappear so that he can’t get hurt anymore.

Angel Dust was baptized and raised Catholic (as is common in Italian families). He turned his back on God fairly quickly after witnessing all the death and torture that existed in the world. But then after going to Hell he was like…..oh shit, religion was actually correct in a lot of ways.

Angel speaks Italian as his native language. He specifically uses it in high emotional situations, such as when he is overly excited or incredibly angry or especially when he is incredibly horny. It basically happens when emotions are so high that he can’t think, therefore he doesn’t even realize he has fallen into his native tongue.

I’m sure I could come up with a thousand more, and I’m sure I’ve referenced more in my threads, but this is everything that came up in my brain for now that I wanted to vomit onto a page. So enjoy this random load of bullshit on my very random Angel take. Sorry for the weird numbering. Apparently there's no text limit as long as it isn't one long paragraph and the split just....numbered them like this. ;;

[sepublic]

I’ve noticed that when it comes to shows and movies and whatnot, you can’t just ask the writers about the lore so easily, even with social media; Every once in a blue moon they’ll respond to a tweet, but otherwise they’re mum. Your only real shot is some dedicated event or livestream where they accept questions, but with so many coming in during a set amount of time, they can only get a few.

Sometimes the answers are for things that the writers genuinely planned and wanted to fit into the story, but couldn’t. Sometimes writers don’t even want to clarify, and would prefer there be room for fanon and interpretation, mystery, etc. Voice actors can answer relatively simple and inconsequential details, often presented as headcanons. Otherwise, fandom just has to make do with itself, make their own answers, or simply never know.

I presume this has to do with like, legality and whatnot. But then I’ve noticed with another fandom I’m in, Ninjago, that people have been casually asking the head writer(s) random questions since the dawn of time, and will often get them answered. Sometimes it’s really minor stuff too like “What’s the name of this incredibly brief character” and they’ll just have it ready like they created it on the spot for this response.

And I realize the same thing happened with Bionicle, for whom Ninjago is its spiritual successor; So many people asking Greg Farshtey questions on the lore that he had to create a dedicated forum. It got to a point where on TTV’s messageboards, there was a feature where fans could answer questions that Greg had already done, so he didn’t waste time trying to remember if he’d gone through this question before or not. People would ask the most specific questions too…

Bionicle and Ninjago are both Lego; This is ironic because for a toy company that wants to encourage creativity and even had a phase about letting kids decide their own stories and endings, now we have fans demanding the creator answer and decide everything for them instead of yknow. Having a headcanon or making their own details in fanfic, or even just waiting for the story to elaborate on basic stuff it’ll obviously get around to. There’s no real room for interpretation at this rate.

My frustrations aside (Maybe I’m just jealous), I wonder what’s the legal difference; Is it the fact that Lego is a toy company? Whereas Disney and Cartoon Network and whatnot, these are companies based on media and stories. So the rules about creators discussing canon might be different there, because the story is the primary product and focus, and would likely have the most laws surrounding it.

But with Lego, the story is just another way to advertise the toys, the focus is on the physical toys. So that might be why Lego can allow its writers to just ramble as they please, whereas with other showrunners, there are requirements to be less liberal. Maybe it’s just a creative difference where showrunners want to encourage creativity and interpretations. Maybe they’re more busy.

Maybe Greg was just a strange exception that set a precedent for Tommy Andreasen and then Doc Wyatt; Greg wrote books and comics but Bionicle never had a show, so that could be why he could get away with it, and then Ninjago’s writers are just following suit at that rate. Maybe laws were different back then.

[blueberry-bubbles130]

The disappointment of the characterisation of the Bourgeois family in Miraculous Ladybug.

This essay/post will be talking about my feelings regarding the characterisation of Bourgeois family, as I'm doing a rewrite fanfiction of Miraculous and the Bourgeois family plays an extremely important part in my rewrite.

Trigger Warnings include:

TW: Child abuse

Child neglect

Verbal abuse

Emotional abuse

Domestic Violence

If I have forgotten to add any trigger warnings in the post please comment and I'll add them as soon as I can.

Getting this out of the way with now because I don't want to focus on her in this post, and because she won't be in my rewrite at all, I don't like Zoe. In the canon of the show all she serves as is a replacement for Chloe and a wielder of the Bee Miraculous. Unfortunately in the canon show, she is tied to the miraculous and Chloe in such a way that she cannot be talked about with bringing Chloe salt/bashing into the discussion, and has no true character of her own out of just being nice. There are others in the show who already could've filled the role much better. Zoe is far better written in fanon and fanfiction. But I don't want to be beating a long dead horse so there are other posts you can read to see Zoe's poor implementation in the show, and absolutely great fanfictions you can read that gives her a developed character if you like her. With that being said lets get onto the main essay.

Who are the Bourgeois family?

In the show the Bourgeois family are an upper class family that are said to hold a lot of influence. The family consists of Andre Bourgeois; the patriarch of the family who owns a hotel, and is also the mayor of Paris. Audrey Bourgeois; the matriarch of the family and a famous fashion critic. And Chloe Bourgeois; the child of the family and the temporary bee miraculous holder. The Bourgeois family can be considered a large secondary example of Miraculous's wasted potential, and it's inability to truly give a satisfying conclusion to any concept they've tried to execute during it's run. And some will say this is just the end of an arc and season 6 will continue and deliver. But it won't, especially considering Miraculous' record with delivering on expected plotlines it isn't promising in the slightest and I do not hold hope for season 6. Despite this, I'm rather interested in the Bourgeois family, and they are my favourite part of Miraculous making it even more disappointing to see the outcome of the plotline involving them.

Audrey Bourgeois-

I'm doing Audrey Bourgeois first because despite having a lot to say about all the family members, I have the least to say about Audrey.

Audrey is characterised as a harsh fashion critic who has nothing kind to say about anyone around her. Her kind words are only reserved for someone who can truly impress her, examples being Marinette and Gabriel. Marinette being shown to the audience and Gabriel being told to the audience. She is responsible for launching Gabriel into fame as a fashion designer. Audrey isn't even remotely nice to her own family. She abandons them mostly and seems to return only when work arises in Paris. And even then she belittles both her husband and Chloe constantly.

Something I find interesting in fanfiction for Miraculous Ladybug is that before we got any glimpse of who Audrey is. Everyone assumed she'd died and they either called her Simone or Julia, Julie or Juliette. And this gave depth to both Chloe, and Andre. This will be discussed again later.

Audrey's character has at least stayed consistent throughout Miraculous' ever-increasing run, which is a miracle considering Miraculous issues with characterisation, among other issues. However at the same time it's quite odd considering unlike Andre who got more developed regarding his past and what he wants, Audrey remains quite flat character-wise with only glimpses of there possibly something else to her. I think that Audrey despite staying consistent and explaining a lot about Chloe and Andre, she's still wasted potential. In one of the episodes characters such as Gabriel, Natalie and and I think maybe Tomoe are shown watching important story information on a tv. This would seemingly hint that Audrey had something to do with Gabriel. Which is believable considering Audrey's personality and previous appearances with Gabriel. However as of season 5 this has not been expanded upon in anyway whatsoever and like I keep saying I doubt it will be in season 6 or future seasons if they get anymore. This makes me believe that Audrey should've been expanded upon as a villain, she could've stolen a miraculous and possibly became a main villain. She's close to Gabriel, she's got the perfect personality for it; the only thing she needed to be a good villain was a decent motivation and I easily could've believed her becoming a villain if she'd been given decent motivation. She's already controlling and demanding, so Zoe could've never been introduced and you could've had it so she wants ultimate control over Andre and Chloe while placing herself as some sort of evil Queen. And that's all I really have to say about Audrey. Hell! I've already seen a few posts where people state that Audrey should've taken over as mayor after Andre, which makes a hell of a lot more sense then Chloe doing it. It's not exactly the same because she's the stepmother, but something I think Audrey should've been a bit like but far more toned down for the child audience is like Julia Cotton from Hellraiser. She's just so perfect as a example of someone willing to go to extremes in order to achieve their desires. Hell it's already there in her akuma, Style Queen! Just make her an evil queen, it wouldn't have been that hard and then we wouldn't have to deal with that mess we got with them attempting to make Gabriel sympathetic but then being shown him horribly abusing his son with glee at every opportunity he gets. You could keep Gabriel and Natalie sympathetic and make Audrey even more despicable than she is.

Also Audrey is clearly abusive, and in 2023 we should not need to have debates over whether she is because some people say she's just cruel. No she's abusive, it's clearly abuse.

Chloe Bourgeois-

Chloe is definitely my favourite character out of the Bourgeois family and Miraculous as a whole, and while her characterisation post season 3 does sadden and disappoint me, it doesn't anger me like what the writers did with Andre.

Chloe starts the series as nothing more than an obnoxious bully who torments her classmates. When we get to season 2 we get to see Chloe receive more depth as a character and see how her parents helped her in becoming the person she is today. Then season 3 happened and we see Miracle Queen. Now I don't think Miracle Queen is completely horrid, It makes sense that Chloe may begin to regress or backslide into her unhealthy habits. And I've even seen people still redeem her with miracle queen being in their stories. What pisses me off about Miracle Queen, especially when people online talk about it, is that they just seem to forget about Gabriel akumatising Audrey and Andre to use as blackmail against Chloe. Like yes at the end of the day, Chloe still makes the decision to become Miracle Queen and do what she did. But you cannot deny that a fully grown man who should know better, put the two people she presumably cared about the most at this point in danger in order to blackmail her. He cornered her on the balcony and essentially railroaded her into making that decision. Like what was she going to do if she said no, she can't fight Hawkmoth without a miraculous and even if she'd tried he might've legitimately hurt her or her parents to win. Here again we see fanfics just knock the show out of the water, with many people deciding to make Chloe trick Hawkmoth into giving her the miraculous and then she just runs away to get help. Also Marinette shouldn't have gotten involved in Chloe's family drama, like why did she think it was a good idea to do what she did in Queen wasp. Just why?

Something else regarding Chloe's character arc that just genuinely confuses me is that during season 2 it's obvious in episodes like Zombizou, Style Queen, Queen Wasp and Malediktator is that they're written by other writers who have differing opinions on Chloe to Thomas Astruc. And now I think Thomas was busy on a different project while this was was being written, which is fine. But what confuses me is that surely Thomas could've looked over the episode script and maybe said to change it. Instead of just letting a character he clearly does not like get development he also didn't like and then arguing with Chloe fans and Miraculous fans who may not like Chloe but understand her character arc was butchered as well as others, on twitter over it.

As well as this is season 5, I think it's revealed season 1-5 of Miraculous takes place over 1 school year. In France the average school year is about 10 months long lasting from September to late June early July. This means each season could technically take place over about 2 months. This gives Chloe 2-4 months at most to redeem herself. Which is just too much to expect of her to try and completely redeem herself and undo a lifetime of unhealthy behaviours in that short of a timespan. No wonder Miracle Queen happened, she hasn't had the proper support to try and unlearn those behaviours or redeem herself. And it makes Andre giving her over to her mother even more saddening/rage enducing, because Zoe has been around for the same time Chloe was given to try and unlearn her healthy behaviours. So Andre has abandoned his daughter who's he risen for her entire 13-14 year life for some child he's known for about 3 months at best.

Then season 4 and 5 begin the endless parade of Chloe Salt/Bashing in order to prop up Zoe. As well as the butchering of other characters, to continue hammering in that point, such as Andre, but we'll get to him later. Now I'm not saying I'm completely against the idea of evil Chloe, there are some brilliant fanfics out there with Chloe just either hamming it up as an evil villain or treated as a tragic villain, who's fall from grace is a pure tradegy. And I love it both because it treats Chloe with the seriousness she deserves, the majority of fanfics treat the abuse she's suffered with seriousness and not as some joke like the serious does. You want a absolutely brilliant Chloe Bourgeois fanfic read "Float like a Butterfly, Sting like a Bee" on ao3 it's just so good and I can't recommend it enough.

Also on the topic of redemptions Sabrina, Felix, Natalie and especially Gabriel shouldn't gotten redemptions. Gabriel, Sabrina and Felix don't show any remorse for their actions, in fact they all show glee in their actions apart from Natalie. But even then none of them truly face any punishments for their actions and sure Gabriel doesn't get to enjoy Emilie being back alive, but he still gets away with his numerous crimes.

As a final note on Chloe's development, it's been said by some people before it's quite harmful that Chloe doesn't get treated with the seriousness that she deserves and is one of the only villains not given a redemption as well as not being what is considered a "perfect" or "idealised" victim of abuse like Adrien is. And as someone who has lashed out at others due to issues with authoritive figures in the past (not to the extent Chloe has thought, especially with the bullying and wealth, I'm also not French) I do relate to Chloe in a small way. And this makes it harder for me personally, and it really is just harmful because it might give kids who have lashed out like her due to similar or the same issues the same idea that they don't deserve love or a guardian who can actually care for them in the way they need, as children.

I'm not saying give Chloe a redemption, she just should've been treat with the seriousness she needed.

Gettting back on track lets talk about the final member of the Bourgeois family.

Andre Bourgeois-

Oh Andre, where do I begin with him, in canon.

For seasons 1 to 3 he's mainly Chloe's nervous father and enabler. Then we get a bit of depth in season 4 and 5 about him wanting to be a director but not getting to due to Audrey and politics. Then in season 5 he lets Audrey take Chloe.

A deleted part of the script was revealed in which originally he gave Chloe to Audrey which in itself is horrific because he knows how Audrey is. Not only has she subjected Chloe to verbal abuse but him as well. This would be changed in the series to him just letting Audrey take Chloe, which is just as worse. These are just as bad because either way he's trying to absolve himself of any responsibility of what happened with Chloe which he is equally responsible for as he is Chloe's main enabler. And you know I actually had some hope for him in canon that he'd realise it was time to as someone else brilliantly put it "ditch the bitch" and forge a better relationship with Chloe, but that never happened. I guess that's what I get for having hope for Miraculous's canon.

It legitimately pisses me off so fucking much than in canon he gets to wash his hands clean of the whole problem with Chloe.

Now fanon Andre is so much better than his Canon counterpart and thinking about it now, Fanon Andre has always been better than his canon counterpart.

Bringing back up the whole thing about fanfics that pre-date Audrey is that it gives not only Chloe but Andre more depth. These fanfics typically paint the picture that Andre is a man that closed off not only by politics but the death of his wife and because he's not in tune with his own emotions, he can't help Chloe so instead of ignoring her grief like her father, Chloe is lashing out instead.

Even fanon versions of Andre that are more far more closed off, corrupt, and evil are much more enjoyable to read about than canon Andre, and have more depth. Something about Canon Andre just makes him even more loathsome and detestable then his many often better fanon versions. And when he does get redeemed in fanon it's just so good, because the people writing him, understand what makes his character have actual depth to him and make him realise his faults in a satisfying way that gives him a good redemption.

Maybe it was just me projecting the fanon versions of Andre onto the Canon version that made my disappointment and anger so much worse. But either way his overall canon characterisation is disappointing.

Again if you want to a fanfic that has Andre be a good antagonist, read "Chloe and the Bee" by @anxresi it isn't complete but what is there is just brilliant. And If you'd prefer to read a fanfiction where Andre is trying his best to be a good parent to Chloe read "Float like a Butterfly....Sting like a Bee" by Bookmonkey on ao3. They're both such amazing fanfics.

Conclusion-

Overall the characterisation of the Bourgeois family within the canon of the actual show is just a neatly packaged example of Miraculous' many issues such as bad writing, poor pacing, inconsistent characterisation and either attempting to poorly redeem abusers who should know better or just letting them get away without any consequences whatsoever.

I'd like to say thank you for listening to my long feral rambles about the Bourgeois family.

[davekat-sucks]

Okay, I might, wait, no I actually don't understand your reasoning for any of this.

All you really talk about is the fanon and their character development arcs being bad, or just disappearing completely. And you also don't really like either of them. But guess what? JUST BECAUSE YOU DON'T LIKE THE CHARACTERS DOESN'T MEAN THEY DON'T HAVE A GOOD DYNAMIC. If they were written how they should've been, I don't think this would be an argument at all.

Also, the fanon doesn't fucking matter. Ignore the fanon. Boom. Problem solved. I know that out of the fifteen thousand different fanon dynamics davekat are given, way more than half of them suck, and yeah. That's just people mischaracterizing them. Get over it. If you don't like a ship can you at least accept and understand the reasons that some people do like it?

Here's an extra little summary. The only reasons you don't like davekat are that, one, you don't like the characters (much at least) or the fanon dynamic(s) which I understand. But both doesn't mean they wouldn't be good together at all.

Thanks for reading this entire teeny tiny rant if you did

Wait, also, how the fuck is Karkat x KANKRI better than davekat??? Do you really hate it THAT much?

How can I ignore fanon if the people behind Homestuck like WhatPumpkin and Homestuck Independent Union (HICU) will always pander to them? Because they know it gets the most attention and will likely have them throw money at the team. Plus, much of fanon is because of the bad writing from canon because it had to pander to fanon too. Tell me, what reason is there for Rose to act like a dismissive bitch to let John fight alone against Lord English in Epilogues? Aren't they closest of friends? Why is she okay with letting him go alone without worry or fear that he could be killed? And if you say to ignore sequels like Epilogues or HS2/Beyond Canon, it will be hard for that since the very latter is technically ongoing and active by James Roach and HICU. They would rather prioritize completing a shitty sequel that was made as a money laundering scheme than to focus on finishing a Kickstarter game that is now in 11 years development or advertising the base webcomic itself to bring in new fans. I and many others love the characters of Homestuck. It just sucks that some either get flanderized or worst, wasted and thrown away because Andrew Hussie is a fucking hack writer who let his ego take over thinking he is the hottest shit ever. Plus, you forget that troll incestuous slurry is a thing. So technically, Kankri x Karkat is fine in that regard. Any troll ships, regardless from whichever session, is incest no matter what. Blame the alien trolls for accepting incest in their lives. Blame Doc Scratch for allowing inbreeding to be seen as natural. Blame Hussie for even implementing it in the story. HateMarriage is also a funny ship name for Kankri x Karkat. Karkat can finally hate marry himself and neither of them would be virgins.