#the second category is just aesthetics. usually people fan posting about some person or character and calling them a Renaissance Man

[violentferalcat]

time for an ADHD and rabbit hole rant.

i am currently going down the rabbit hole of manosphere influencers on twitter, because i stumbled upon a person who has labelled himself "Renaissance Man". and i got a bit skeptical, because i am always skeptical of people who are like, "oooh, i want to bring back the good old days, you know?" because by that they mostly mean "i want privilege and be able to discriminate and oppress people without society's backlash for my behaviour" so i decided to do a bit of research. apparently, a Renaissance Man or Polymath if a person, usually a scholar, who is knowledgeable in many fields, you know, how in the past you could just be a Scientist™ who studied everything. so far so good, right? i too would want to be able to study whatever i want and pursue my little interests, without feeling the societal pressure of choosing One Thing for the rest of my life. so, after making sure that a Renaissance Man in its historical definition didn't mean anything actively harmful (just a person who studies everything and who is curious about everything, relatable) i went on twitter to see who exactly would label themself a Renaissance Man.

i present to you, the first result on twitter.

a typical manosphere influencer. wikipedia provides the definition of a Renaissance Man in modern times as someone who has proficiency in multiple fields or a person with many interests and talents. alright then, let's look at this @MaleRebirth person to see whether they possess a multitude of interests and talents.

looking through their account, they mostly post the same old bullshit manosphere influencers post about - how to "get girls". they sometimes post about self-improvement, i.e. going to the gym, taking care of yourself and how you dress, etc. which, in itself is not that harmful, but they do so not as an end itself, but to attract more women. so, in conclusion, this person has only ONE interest - getting laid

BUT i would argue that that's not even their interest and instead is to make money from gullible men. they are selling a course called, and I am sorry to y'all, "The Womanizer's Awakening" on gumroad which costs 80USD. so, instead, their pursuit is not that of a true "Renaissance Men", i.e. deepening your knowledge in many fields, but instead is to make money.

Renaissance Men (or Renaissance People, for gender neutrality) believed in Renaissance Humanism, the philosophy that Human is in the centre of the universe and that there is nothing that we can't do. very noble! agree! educate yourself, learn, study, live and be happy and pursue your goals!

but from this point, point A) humans should pursue knowledge, skills, and self-betterment, you can extract point B) you should make sure that everyone has access to that sort of life, since it will make the world better. I assume that most historical Renaissance figures had money or at least didn't have to do "commoners" work either by having a patron or through inheritance. Currently, however, due to capitalism and the deepening crises, most people, even scholars and academics, cannot afford that way of living. So, you can extract point C) That a true modern Renaissance Person will be against the current oppressive system of capitalism as it goes against the idea of universal equity and the ability for all humans to pursue their interest and goals.

From this we can build a theoretical modern Renaissance Person. It is a person who is an 1) anti-capitalist, 2) strives for social equity in all spheres of human nature, 3) believes in Universal Basic Income, 4) believes in the freedom of all people to pursue their goals and reach happiness

Also, I do think labelling yourself a "Renaissance Person" would be quite classist, you know, since it'd lead to thoughts like, "I am not like those plebs, those absolute shit heads, I am a person of honour and scholarship!!"

but I think a "true renaissance person" would easily see this pitfall and avoid it /j

Thank you for coming to my TED talk,

[utilitycaster]

freckledmccree

replied to your post

“Cumulus Rocks reminds me that once I made a list of the most goth...”

okay, but i'm gonna need to see that list

Oh believe me I wrote this with this list on hand just in case. I split it by class and to an extent alignment and I’ve updated the commentary (and in the case of the rogue, the subclass itself). I had forgotten about Yasha, Fig (kind of), Vax (kind of) and Liam (Wilhemina, not O’Brien). Liam W. is not quite as pastel but he is a very pink boy and Fig ended up changing to college of lore but she is more of a punk goth. I posit that as soft lovers of flowers who also happen to be very good at killing, while Vax and Yasha are more classic goth in their aesthetic they could be swayed into the romantic goth category, if not full pastel. Oh and also I believe Emily’s character on NADDPod’s recently finished campaign, which I will start listening to very soon as I’m almost caught up on RQG, is Circle of Spores but in a very not goth way, but don’t @ me or spoil me on that.

Barbarian:

Inherent gothness of the class: unless you want to make easy jokes regarding the Germanic tribe, low, usually. You get angry and you fight things.

Path of Zealot. In addition to the necrotic damage option, you get the most goth ability of all, the ability to keep fighting while raging even when you are technically speaking, dead. You are also very hard to kill and easy to bring back from the dead.

Bard: 

Inherent gothness of the class: very low in the classic interpretation although between the spell list as is, magical secrets, and RP you can do a pretty good job. I’m of the opinion, however, that it’s best to lean into the glam influences here, since bards are pretty glam. Think Lovecats Cure, not A Forest Cure.

College of Whispers. You can capture the shadow of a fucking dead person and cause all kinds of fear effects.

Cleric:

Inherent gothness of the class: medium to high. D&D is rife with religious imagery and having a cleric in the party is an opportunity for the DM to put you up against all kinds of undead, have you explore catacombs, etc, etc. Plus, all clerics get plenty of necrotic and radiant damage access plus resurrection spells and similar.

Grave Domain, in which you respect death as a part of the life cycle and hate undeath. (note: Death Domain is only in the DMG so usually players can’t pick it and it’s also pretty explicitly Evil Only).

Druid: 

Inherent gothness of the class: as in the PHB pretty low - you turn into animals, and you can’t even turn into a bat until like, 8th level. Outside of the PHB it gets a little more Fey and a lot more goth.

Circle of Spores, which is into death and decay and okay with undeath to an extent, so a good way to be sort of neutral on vampires without going full evil. Circle of Twilight is a very close second.

Fighter: 

Inherent gothness of the class: I would have said super low back in the day before I saw the continuum of Goth v. Prep rather than Goth v. Jock. For truly, these are the jocks of D&D. As such I’ll still say low, but not unheard of.

Monster Hunter. It is literally in the Unearthed Arcana: Gothic Heroes, and it lets you slay monsters, plus engage in some light mysticism. It also provides the ability to improve your arcana skill. Do you want to play John Constantine in D&D? Yes you do.

Monk:

Inherent gothness of the class: low. You’re sort of too busy being both a nerd and a jock (martial artist) to get really deep into Cocteau Twins.

Way of the Long Death. You study death extensively (goth nerd with jock tendencies?) such that you can drain the life from others (but only after you already brought them to 0 HP, so it’s not vampiric), scare people, avoid death yourself (but not in an undead way), and do necrotic damage.

Paladin:

Inherent gothness of the class: medium. Despite the fighting nature, it’s one of the more aggressively medieval classes, plus we again get that religious imagery/catacombs option.

Oath of Vengeance. It’s also a bit more dramatic and definitely dark, and they get the Bane spell which is pretty goth. (note: the Treachery option is also pretty goth but again it’s more geared towards villainy and evil alignments only).

Ranger:

Inherent gothness of the class: medium. You live in the forest alone and have weird nature magic. Whereas Druids are a little too hippie to be goth, Rangers fit the bill.

Either gloom stalker or horizon walker. Gloom Stalker is a little more industrial and gritty; Horizon Walker is a little more ethereal. Both go into dangerous and arcane places and tend towards shadowy evasive maneuvers. I think Gloom Stalker wins, but only just.

Rogue:

Inherent gothness of the class: high. You skulk in the shadows in black leathers like, as a class.

The Revived. Not sure why this is explicitly a rogue class because presumably anyone could be revived...unless maybe the process of being brought back makes you want to be a rogue? But anyway you slowly realize that you are not on your first life and sort of channel your past life and also are sort of undead and can talk with corpses.

Sorcerer:

Inherent gothness of the class: high. The arcane casters, bar the Bards, are all pretty goth as a concept, and the innate ability of the sorcerer is a nice touch.

Shadow Sorcerer. You literally are said to exist between life and death. You can get a hound of ill omen. You can teleport between shadows. You have ties to the Shadowfell, aka the plane of gloom. It’s very extra.

Warlock:

Inherent gothness of the class: literally as high as possible without fucking Pretty much all of them. I’d argue in fact that Celestial and Archfey are the least goth, but you could get Archfey to work what with the planar magics and scaring people. As written, Hexblade has Shadowfell elements although everyone kind of ignores that piece of lore; also per mostly ignored lore the Raven Queen is the queen of the Shadowfell. Undying involves a pact with an immortal who gives you basically the top hits of the necromancy spell list, the Seeker sends you into the astral plane, the fiend is literally a being from hell, the Great Old One is all Lovecraftian and eldritch, and while I’m not a huge fan of the modern setting idea, the Ghost in the Machine sounds pretty fucking cybergoth too. I think Undying probably wins (especially since most disregard the Hexblade lore) but all can get there.

Wizard:

Inherent gothness of the class: medium. Robes and a wizard hat aren’t as fashionable as you’d think, and that nerdiness can end up being a little too cheery, but still as an arcane caster they’re naturally pretty goth.

Necromancer, obviously

[noplotnostory]

Test to see if I still can...

A NSFWednesday Monsters in Mythology

So, I’m working on my first ever skelesmut, and I wanted to make sure that the proper skeledick was used in this fic. I ended up going with the most common type of skeledick utilized in UnderTale skelesmut, but this was still a fun topic, so here’s a Monsters in Mythology about it.

Now the reason why this is a Monsters in Mythology instead of a normal NSFWednesday post is actually related to a prior Monsters in Mythology about my favored theory on the nature/origins of the skelebros. Specifically, that they are, in fact, spartae. Or spartoi. Again, the spelling varies from source to source...

But the point is that they are identified as both men and skeletons. Literary sources lean more towards the “man” thing, but visual depictions of spartae/oi are almost always skeletal.

Now this could be because Ancient Greek storytellers had a bit of a bias regarding the “default state of being” as Overly Sarcastic Productions points out in her Trope Talk video about Manly Men (the relevant information here being that much like “white straight male” has been considered the default character template for much of Western Literary History, the default character template in much of Ancient Greek literature was usually “Greek bisexual male”), so describing the spartae/oi as “men” might have been an assumption, especially after they demonstrated aptitude in combat, participated in the founding of a city and began to breed with humans.

Or it could mean they had visible genitalia.

I mean, both skelebros have features that make them clearly not-human-skeletons, so why not?

There’s even precedent for this in animal biology. I didn’t actually know about this until I stumbled upon an article on Cracked.com titled “5 Ways Evolution Designed Your Body To Be Awesome At Sex” and read the final item on the list. Apparently, most male mammals actually have a bone in their penis known as the baculum (have fun writing Sans pun with that), and since there’s a significant amount of monsters with animal features and quite a few have sort of mix-and-matched features, we can’t rule out the possibility of the skelebros having some skeletal features that resemble other species more than the human skeleton. Since this bone basically makes it impossible to not have a boner (unless magic skeleboners can move? Somehow? I’m no expert on this, I’m just trying to get people thinking about all the options) it does make how clothes fit a little questionable, but they were already skeletons so Sans clearly is wearing a belt or has a drawstring or elastic band in his shorts if he’s not actively using gravity magic to hold them up? Whatever. How skeletons wear clothes is a subject I just don’t feel ready to tackle in depth.

Moving away from the “All Bone” possibilities but not quite entering the “ectojunk” category yet...ok, I’ll level with you, the basic idea of this post and several links for reference (which have been supplied thus far, as I believe in providing sources) have been sitting in my drafts for a while. As a result, there are currently two reasons why this section isn’t happening the way I was hoping it would.

Reason One: The Tumblr Purge.

While text posts are still allowed (maybe?), fanart blogs have taken a hit and some have been removed entirely. This includes a blog that had gone by the URL “rexphilia”. I had only discovered this blog and it’s fanart shortly before I even heard about the then-upcoming purge and gotten sick almost immediately after. Between my preoccupation with my own posts, the ongoing conflict between myself and the dreaded season known as winter, and the fact that I had known about this blog and had gathered (now useless) links to include in this post for less than a day before setting this whole thing aside in my drafts to focus on other things, I have no clue where to find this artist, now and therefore am unable link anything to credit them or provide screenshots for reference. Best I can do is provide the name I know them by (rexphilia) and describe what I can remember about their fanart. Which is, coincidentally enough, the thing that I wanted to reference in this post to begin with: Their skeledick design.

Rexphilia’s depiction of skeledick (both Papyrus’s and Sans’s) was black with white rib-like ridges that kind of remind me of the rib-like decor on the jacket of Ghost Lewis from Mystery Skulls Animated know that I’m actually reading that description and was that the inspiration for the design? Was Rexphilia a fan of MSA? Or am I remembering the placement/shape of the ridges wrong because I watched a video reviewing MSA earlier today? OH, CHEESE, I DO NOT WANT TO THINK ABOUT LEWIS’S GHOST DICK! NEXT PARAGRAPH! NEXT PARAGRAPH!

Reason Two: My memory capacity (or lack thereof).

Ok, so I could have sworn for the longest time that I had at one point read a fic where Sans had a black skeledick, sans the white stuff. I also could have sworn for the longest time that the fic in question was puppehgal’s oneshot “The After Show”. But rereading that fic’s description of skeledick leaves me...conflicted... Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a very interesting and unique depiction of skeledick (and skelebro anatomy in general) and the fic itself is still something I would readily recommend to fellow fans of Sans/Reader smut, despite not being tagged as such (it’s told through the perspective of an “Anonymous Human Female” who is referred to in the second person throughout), but this particular skeledick could be interpreted as a visually distinct variation of ectodick instead of a permadick, depending on how much control Sans has over that magical webbing. Since this is a oneshot of what is tagged as a One Night Stand, neither the human character experiencing all this nor the readers enjoying the written version have the context to know either way.

If everything had gone as planned, the Non-Bone Permadick section would have contained an accurate description of rexphilia’s depictions, links to fanart containing said depictions, and a linked mention of “The After Show” that isn’t wishy-washy on whether or not the skeledick presented in said fic is, in fact, a permanent feature of Sans’s anatomy. It would have been glorious.

Now for the fandom’s most prevalent version of skeledick: Ectogenitalia.

I’m not going to bother linking anything because there are so many fanfics and fanart with this particular type of skeledick, it would be kind of pointless. You probably know what I’m talking about, anyways, if you’re reading this post.

There’s a reason this option is the most popular: Depending on your personal interpretation, ectojunk can be a free pass to give the skelebros any type of genitalia their partner (or the content creator) desires. If ectojunk is naturally customizable and the skelebro attached to and/or summoning said ectojunk has sufficient control over his magic in intimate situations, he can have male parts, female parts, change the size and shape of said parts, move or alter said parts while maintaining a position or motion in which the movement or alteration of said parts would probably catch someone off-guard, and possibly, maybe, depending on who you ask, be detachable for long-distance use.

Unless you just want to experiment with other headcanons or aesthetics, color seems to be the only potential problem.

In most depictions, Papyrus’s ectowhatever is always orange and Sans’s is always blue, because these color schemes are the Commonly Accepted Fanon, but there are people who have other theories on what color the magic forming the skeledick ought to be.

This is totally fine. My dear friend @popatochisssp is one of those people and her smut is so delicious that I’ve praised it in three different NSFWednesdays and her reasoning for the magic color she uses totally fits with her headcanons concerning the skelebros and her portrayals of them in said fics.

But people that aren’t decided on their headcanons on what the color should be are left with uncertainty. Since I’m one of those people, I guess I’ll just avoid mentioning the color completely.

@ladyarkytiorofdunans

[kbrown78]

Book Talk: Fall Reading Recommendations

Now I promised @thebookspace that I would do this post and it's one I'm excited for because I have so many books that I want to talk about for autumn recommendations. Based on my favorite books and general preferences I can easily give recommendations for autumn or winter. I know people usually get busy with school, but the cold winds, long nights, and beautiful colors makes it a great time to curl up with a good long book. With Halloween it's also a great time to tackle some scary reads, if you can handle that. I looked through all of my books and picked books that I thought had the right “feel” for fall, as well as a few other categories that I specify. I hope that find some new favorite reads in this list, and if you would like me to make any more recommendation lists please let me know. Enjoy!

Harry Potter series by J.K Rowling: Might as well get the most obvious one done first. This features a whole school dedicated to witches and wizards, with each year getting increasingly harder for Harry and his friends. The entire series also starts on Halloween, which is when I plan on starting the rereading the process of the entire series. If you haven't read this series yet, you need to get on it.  

Wayward Children series by Seanan McGuire: While I would categorize the third book, Beneath the Sugar Sky, as more of a summer book, the first two, and especially the second one, I would definitely say are autumn recommendations. The premise of this series is that there is a school for children that have come back from portal worlds to help them readjust to their world again. Each book follows a different character, over different time lines. The first book, Every Heart a Doorway, has that feeling of going back to school, with the main character Nancy and adjusting to the new environment and meeting new people. Despite the books short length I thought the book was very well written and got quite attached to these characters. The second book is more of a Halloween type book. It takes place before the events of the first book and follows a set of twins that were previously introduced. Half of this book takes place in a world called the Moors, and it has this very Gothic feel to it with a red moon and Dr. Frankenstein and vampires. While I did still enjoy this book, I didn't love it as much as the first one (which is kind of an unpopular opinion), but the series is still great and if you want something quick to read with Halloween right around the corner, I would recommend this series and particularly the second book, Down Among the Sticks and Bones.

October Daye series by Seanan McGuire: Another series by Seanan McGuire, I'm currently in the middle of reading the first book, Rosemary and Rue. I finally started this series because it's October, so it seemed appropriate. The series is an urban fantasy that revolves around the fae that live in California. The protagonist is a half human/ half fae woman that works as a private investigator. I'll admit this book has more of a crime noir novel feel to it then I was expecting, but I don't mind it and the fantasy elements of the story tie in well to the murder mystery. I'm enjoying it so far, I like how the fae are all different and I like the main character, October, because she's very human and has moments when she's not likeable. Since I haven't finished reading yet, I can't give my full opinion, but if you like the Wayward Children series then you'll probably enjoy this one, although this series gets a lot darker than that one does.    

Nightfall by Jake Halpern: This is a book that is geared more toward a younger YA audience, but I read it when I was 17 and still enjoyed it. It's about 3 teens on an island that will soon have 14 years of darkness, and these 3 teens get left behind, but they aren't alone. I will say there were some things about it at the end that I didn't like, and I'll discuss it more in my review to avoid spoilers. Most of the book was suspenseful and there were a few times I was genuinely terrified while reading this. The book seems to tap into everyone's primal fears: being isolated, darkness, the unknown, and really makes a terrifying story utilizing these fears. I think of it as a Stephen King novel for young readers, but even as an adult you can still be frightened of it. There's also a companion sequel, but I haven't read it so I can't comment on it.  

The Call by Peader O' Gullin: Okay, I've been gushing about this book on here since I finished rereading it. Needless to say it's amazing and would make a great spooky read. The entire atmosphere is haunting, an isolated Ireland, murderous fairies. It's an under appreciated horror novel (yes, I classify it as horror because of how much graphic violence there is), and while I have a few issues with the ending I think everyone should read this, if you don't mind violence (seriously there are some pretty horrific mutations). There is a sequel but I feel that this one wrapped everything up fine, and I haven't heard good things about the sequel.

Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchet: While I count American Gods as more of a winter read, this one of Neil Gaiman's books is definitely for fall. It's a humorous twist on Christian Mythology and the apocalypse, featuring several odd characters (some supernatural, some not) it's ultimately about trying to stop the oncoming apocalypse. Co-written with Terry Pratchet, there's something very human about the story, poking fun at our habits and tenancies. I promise it has it's funny moments, and I actually laughed out loud reading this, a  feat no other book has managed to accomplish. Any fan of Neil Gaiman or Terry Pratchet and anyone looking for humorous fantasy or stories with angels and demons in them will enjoy this novel.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness: This one can be read as either an autumn or winter read, really works for any cool day when you have time to curl up and read a good book. It's atmospheric and the illustrations that go along with it are award winning for a reason. It's a great story that is well told and emotional. It's about a young boy that is facing the harsh reality of his mother dying, when one night he is visited by a “monster.” I read this book in one sitting and was crying by the end, so that should speak to how good this is.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern: Similar to the previous one, this could work in both of the cold seasons. I put it on this list for the magic, the circus, and the atmosphere. It is a book that just pulls you in, in more than one way. The descriptions and aesthetics of this story evoke all the senses, but there also snippets that directly address the audience. It's a beautiful story that has something for everyone, and I strongly recommend going into this one blind, so I won't say anymore other than it's really good.  

Warm Bodies by Issac Marion: If you've seen the movie I recommend the book. I read the book before the movie came out and I really liked it. It takes place during a zombie apocalypse, and the twist to this generic narrative. It's all from the point of view of a zombie. Yes, apparently zombies have deep thoughts, they're just not good at expressing them (there are a few funny moments in this story. It's been a long time since I've read this book (need to a reread so I can get to the sequel) but I remember enjoying it and I think anyone looking for a good apocalypse series will like this.

Memoirs of Lady Trent by Marie Brennan: Based off of the title, you wouldn't think that it's a fall read, but it's a life story about a woman who's a dragon naturalist. Really cool! It's a completed 5 book fantasy of manners series, and it's great. The storytelling is great, the characters are great (particularly the titular Lady Trent), and there are plenty of dragons. I like that this story takes an analytic angle at dragons, instead of just depicting them as mythic treasure hoarders. I acknowledge that the series isn't everyone's cup of tea, but it's fun, it's funny, and there's depth put to all aspects of the story. For anyone looking for a fall fantasy read that isn't epic or scary, I highly recommend this series.

The Hobbit by J. R.R Tolkien: Like the previous entry, this one also has a dragon, but it's a very classic fantasy novel about a band of dwarves journeying to reclaim their home from the dragon that stole it from them. It's a good adventure story that works for the fall because of the setting. If you want to read Tolkien but are intimidated by the Lord of the Rings, then this makes for a good place to start since it's much shorter (also ties into how Bilbo got the ring in the first place). Also if you weren't a big fan of the movies that came out, read the book, it's a bit different (and better).  

Night Shift by Stephen King: This is a collection of short stories by Stephen King. There are actually a few anthologies that I would like to mention (Tales of the Peculiar and Robots vs Fairies) but I would like to talk this one because it's Stephen King. I admit I haven't read any of his novels, although most of them would be great for fall. I was honestly terrified by the majority of stories in this bind up. It plays on so many fears and has that psychological element to them. I admit there are some stories that are better than other, but I promise that there is a story in here for everyone that will cause you to sleep with the lights on.    

Books I've Read That Work But I Personally Didn't Like: Monsters of Verity series (as the name implies there are plenty of monsters in this series, but overall it was a crappy series that I think should have just been one book), Gemma Doyle series (the first one is good and I would recommend if you like historical fantasy but the other 2 are abysmal), Three Dark Crowns series (as of recently finishing rereading the first book, there's a really bad love triangle that creates about 70% of the drama in this book, but the world itself is dark and with 3 sisters being fated to kill each other definitely makes for a good October read), Uprooted (haunted woods with sorcery, while I didn't hate this novel I think at best it's mediocre, but I'm in the minority), The Abhorsen trilogy (the necromancy and world of Death are awesome, but the first book had a frustrating second half and I hated the most of the second book).

Books I Haven't Read but I Think Would Be Good: Dracula (the original vampire novel, my Dad keeps bugging me to read it and one day I will), Frankenstein (I've heard that it's dense but I'm a fan of Mary Shelley and this is a classic Halloween novel with deeper themes about man and creation), House of Leaves (this one is always recommended and I honestly have no idea what it's about but it's very big and I've heard it's a very involved read), Winter Tide (an adult fantasy series inspired by the Cthulhu mythos, which I know nothing about), The Raven Cycle series (this strikes me as both a summer and fall read because of it's eerie atmosphere and Southern setting, along with hints of magic), Sunshine (vampires with baking), Toil and Trouble (recently released anthology that contains 15 stories about witches, sounds fun), The Starlit Woods (an anthology containing fairy tale retellings, and not just the better known ones, I've been wanting to read this one for awhile), Unwind series (creepy concept where abortions are illegal but instead at 13 parents can 'unwind' their kids)

Authors That In General Are Great For Fall: Shirley Jackson (writes mysteries/ thrillers, appropriate with the recent release of the Haunting of Hill House show), Stephen King (the king of horror himself, admittedly I've only read the Night Shift but it was really good and I do plan on reading other works of his), Daphne Du Maurier (writes suspenseful novels with a Gothic feel to them), Seanan McGuire (already mentioned 2 of her series but she has plenty of other novels and series, both as Seanan McGuire or Mira Grant)  

[freespiritcreations]

Welp.. That’s Something to Think About

What’s good y'all? Yaya is back, and at this point, y’all should know not to expect me to post often. And if you don’t see the active pattern at this point, then that sounds like a personal problem. Anyways, like usually I’ve spent these last couple of weeks watching a ton of movies, like the fake-ass movie critic I am. This time, I’ve decided to watch movies that have more of a LGBTQI narrative. These movies are Mysterious Skin (2004), Boys Don’t Cry (1999), Moonlight (2016), Call Me By Your Name (2017), and of course Brokeback Mountain (2005). After watching these movies, I started to think of the visual style within these movies, and how they relate to one another.

BUT, before I go on, let me warn y’all again… EXTREME SPOIL ALERT!!! Like deadass! I’m finna go in with these movies, so proceed with caution.

Now, I’m sure we’ve all heard the term “queer eye,” which typically refers to a specific aesthetic that has a particular style. Usually, people use this term to describe the style within fashion, house decoratives, or anything that has something to do with art. Some people visualize that style to be incredibly creative or sheik, and others have more of an insultingly stereotypical view of it. As for the movies I’ve watch, I can’t say that the style of those films have a “queer” aesthetic within the editing style. Instead, I feel that the editing within these movies portray more of a variety of perspectives on the lives of the LGBTI community.

First of all, can we all agree that the styles within each of these movies are completely different from one another? For example, the mise-en-scene, language, and character style for Moonlight compared to Brokeback Mountain are total opposites.

The setting for Moonlight takes place around a city-type setting, and their choice of fashion and language is more urban. For example, the movie LITERALLY starts off with showing such characteristics within those factors. The second Juan enters the scene, we can already get a feel of that type of atmosphere just from watching the two minute sequence alone (0m:35s - 2m:30s).

In Brokeback Mountain, the setting had more of a western theme, and the setting usually took place around an isolated wilderness. As Ennis and Jack begin their first shift, we can admittedly notice the country-like atmosphere that focuses around the mise-en-scene, language and character style aspects of the film. (8m:26s - 10m:30s).

With that being said, the cinematographic styles for these films do share some similarities, but not in a “queer” aesthetic style. What I mean when I say they share similarities, is how the cinematography heightens the romantic tension between characters. In most of the movies listed, the close-up shot angels captured the intimate moments between the couples in each movie.

For instance, during the sex scene in Boys Don’t Cry, a series of close-up shots captures the lustful moments between both Brandon and Lana (54m:46s - 56m:22s).

This type of cinematographic style can be seen again in Call Me By Your Name. During the sex scene between Elio and Oliver, medium and close-up shots captures the intensely intimate moments of their foreplay (1h:23m:56s - 1h:25m:46s).

 But, doesn’t every film involving romance or sex edit their shots in that specific fashion? Exactly! So, I feel it those factors have little to do with a ‘queer’ aesthetic. Anyways, like I mentioned earlier, the style of the characters and film captures more of the perspective of the LGBTQI community. Their style in fashion and vocabulary is influenced by the setting and atmosphere surrounding the characters.

Now as I mentioned earlier, yes again, the characters personalities and styles resemble their surroundings. Nonetheless, there are certain factors within the characters that I can say can be read through their visual styles in the movies. I mean, when you think about it, certain factors such as race, gender and sexual identity sort of go hand-in-hand when creating a particular visual style.

For instance, in Moonlight, the setting wrapped around an urban area. The social expectation for Chiron was to act similar to the other characters within his neighborhood. Chiron grew up in poverty, and lived in an area affiliated with gangs and drug abuse. Because he was bullied for not fitting in with the other characters, it proned him to grow up into becoming a drug lord in order to be accepted by society. We can instantly notice his dramatic personality transition when he reunites with Kevin as an adult (1h:22m:12s - 1h:36m:02s). Furthermore, he also does this in order to prove his masculinity to the people around him.

As a black woman, I can definitely vouch and say that there is a particular acceptance level within the black community. For some dumb ass reason, in order to be considered ‘black enough,’ you would have to act and look a certain way. Such as, being ghetto, speaking ignorantly, dressing ‘hood,’ and having a ‘hood-like’ mindset. Because I don’t necessarily fit into that category, most black people would say that I’m ‘acting white,’ solely based on my appearance and intelligence level. To be honest, that’s one of the most ignorant and pressuring things to have to deal with as a black woman. Thus, is why he would often get in trouble and engage in illegal activity.

 Also, the visual style in gender roles greatly has a connection between one another. For instance, Brandon in Boys Don’t Cry, made it apparent that he sexually identified as a male. In the beginning of that film, Brandon was adjusting his appearance, in order to emphasize his masculine features (1m:42s - 2m:27s). The way he dressed and carried himself made it completely obvious. Furthermore, throughout the movie, Brandon would engage in extremely risky stunts and activities, in order to prove his masculinity. Even when Brandon wasn’t 100% comfortable with the activities, he still proceeded in order to fit in with the masculine crowd. Overall, these factors do go hand-in-hand with one another to create a visual style within the movies.

Now, with all of that in mind, I started to think about how queer films shape and influences the perceptions and emotions of the audience by the power of the queer aesthetic. I’m telling you, the power behind these movies will definitely have you feeling some type of way. And, that feeling usually comes from a sentimental place. To be honest, I can name you at least one scene from two different movies that will definitely have you feel some type of way, just from the queer aesthetic alone.

Note, that the way the queer aesthic is used is to capture more of the intense moments of the films and characters, not necessarily the appearance or look of it. Also remember, when it comes to this aesthetic, I’m focusing on the emotional aspects not the editing styles. So, don’t try to tell me I’m contradicting myself with those two different factors.

Anyways, firstly, the character arcs in both Neil and Brain from Mysterious Skin will have you sympathize with them as the story unfolds. Once you see how much the molestation from their former little league coach has shaped them, you tend to feel bad about how much that had affected their entire lifestyles. Brain suppresses his memory of being molested, and thinks that he was actually a part of an alien abduction instead. Neil begins to prostitute his body because he didn’t view sex very highly or of utter importance. Once Neil and Brian finally meet, Neil explains to Brain what actually happened that night he thought he was abducted (1h:28m:44s - 1h:41m:43s). That intense conversation had definitely made me feel incredibly sympathetic towards Brain. Some may even question Neil’s true intentions towards that situation. But honestly, I feel just as sympathetic towards him as I feel towards Brian. I mean think about it. Neil didn’t know what the fuck he was getting himself into as a child. He was tricked and deceived by his former little league coach. Honestly, I feel like his misinterpretation towards sex was just his own way to suppress his feelings towards those past incidents.

You also can get an emotional connection with Brandon from Boys Don’t Cry too. I mean how can you not feel some type of way after watching him get sexually harassed and raped by John and Tom (1h:25m:33s - 1h:31m:33s). And, don’t get me started on when they killed him (1h:47m:51s - 1h:50m:33s). Not only did I feel extremely appalled towards the situation, I also felt anger and hatred towards John and Tom, after seeing what they had done to Brandon. And, once you learn that the movie was based on a true story, well that’s just more fuel to the fire right there.

Anyways, I know I really dragged this blog out, but those movies literally made me go through some whole type of movie-related epiphany. I honestly really enjoyed watching them, and it made me more interested in watching more movies similar to those ones. I’m not sure if I mentioned it before, but I’m more of a horror movie fan. It wasn’t until recently when I started watching more movies of other genres. Well, it’s also because there hasn’t been any good horror films being made lately. Ehh.. maybe someday. Anyways, thank you for taking the time out of your day to read what the fuck I had to say. I know y’all love it when I put my two cents in. Welp, until next time guys. Bye, bye!