#they just interest me less for batcest.

[necrotic-nephilim]

What's so fun about BruJay as a ship is Jason's sheer obsessive devotion to Bruce. Jason is possessive over Bruce, to the point he doesn't care about the deaths of others so long as he has Bruce's attention. A part of the UTRH arc this isn't talked about enough is that Bludhaven fucking explodes mid-way and Jason won't let Bruce see if Dick is alive.

batman (1940) #650

A lot of discussion about UTRH paints Jason as this anger-driven cold, calculating machine up against Bruce when it's so clear that his love for Bruce is what drives him at his root, even if he won't acknowledge it. He says it himself, he would've done anything if it was Bruce who'd died instead of him and his anger is rooted in that possessive devotion not being reciprocated.

batman (194) #650

BruJay as a ship always to be, to some level, unrequited. Even if Bruce loves Jason back in that way, he'll never be that obsessed with Jason. Jason will always view Bruce's love for Dick or Tim to be a distraction, proof that Bruce isn't dedicated enough to him. Jason has the need to always have Bruce's attention, even when it could come at the cost of Bruce's other loved ones. Something something cannibalism as a metaphor for love in how Jason wants to consume Bruce's whole existence. He can't let Bruce leave him again, can't let Bruce love or grieve anyone else. Forcing Bruce to choose between Jason and the Joker isn't just about confronting Jason's killer, it's about confronting the other person who exists as this duality with Bruce and consumes so much of Bruce's life. That's the role Jason wants to fill, calling himself Red Hood and forcing Bruce to look at what he's become. But still loving Bruce and wanting more than anything for Bruce to reciprocate that love in the way that Jason understands. I just think it's good soup and rife with Dynamics that are underexplored with them.

[zeroducks-2]

I’m coming back to the DC fandom after a break for a few years and it’s genuinely a baffling experience of like when the fuck did we start calling things batcest??? I don’t remember that ever being a term?? When did my popular basic staple ships that were everywhere (BruDick, JayDick, JayTim, etc) become like controversial?? When did this become a nuclear family??

I feel like I’m going a little crazy watching this wackass uptick in purity culture that feels especially palatable to me in the Batman/DC fandom. Like I was gone off to dabble in other fandoms and I came back and Tim Drake was canonically bi but everything else was on fire with a guy stabbed in the leg. Like people are banning me from my own house kind of situation.

You and many others anon, me included.

Not only they turned the bats and birds into a nuclear family and started harassing everyone who ships them, but they're also actively trying to do revisionism of fandom history by saying that the ships you mentioned have always been "controversial", and that it was a fringe community that used to ship them rather than the majority of people. Which couldn't be more false of course, but these people do not care about what's actually true or not and will keep coming up with more or less prettily worded bullshit to further their moral purity agenda.

We ARE talking about very basic ships which indeed were the foundation of the fandom (especially Brudick and Jaytim), and now shipping them earns you the "freak" badge, and the moment one of your ship posts goes above the 100 notes you're at risk of receiving mild to heavy harassment in the form of insults to suicide baiting to threats of doxxing. If it happens on Discord you might as well delete your account and start anew. This isn't in any way discouraged by tumblr itself - more and more anti harassment, "free shipping" blogs get termed while the censorship lovers thrive nearly as much as on twitter.

"Zero what are you saying twitter is way worse" Twitter is undeniably worse because its very format encourages misunderstanding and vitriol, but we can still post whatever we want on twitter. Whereas on tumblr showing one nipple is considered VM18, and if you even just mention your own history of childhood abuse you can get termed without previous warning, because a website in which CSA is even just brushed on is not safe enough for advertisers. I'm saying this because this culture of extreme censorship encourages anti-ship mentality and also encourages young queer people to police themselves, convinced that being perfectly pristine and sanitized is somehow the morally correct thing to do.

Oh and DC is at fault too. I talk about it at length here if you're interested in more of my yapping.

[vivi-scera]

ohhhh i have so many questions to ask now that i apologize beforehand for throwing you questions instead of actually giving a response-reply to your ask 😭

1) “i like thinking about jason-robin's relationship with bruce the most but i like tim as robin best” plss if u could pls elaborate on this? this is so interesting bcs for a second i thought it would be jason robin or even dick robin since hes the first one!

2) ”i think i was mostly thinking bruce/jason since i was talking about johndean” this is interesting too bcs i was hyperfocused on comparing dean’s devotion to dick’s, hence my ask & why i bring dick robin specifically, and now im curious abt your comparison :D

3) “i'm going to be actively problematic and say that bruce sees dick as something less than his partner and something more than his son” is it like what i think it is is it more in line with smth smth owning smth smth *eyes emoji*

4) your tags!! thats interesting too that you prefer jaytim as batcest, instead of like timdick whos more like brothers or jaydick with jason’s “envy” (to simplify it) at dick’s golden boy ness (also to simplify it) which could be a source of conflict between jason & bruce

haha no worries, i did totally set you up.

1.yeah so tim is my favorite robin <3 relatively unpopular opinion to have in my immediate circle apparently. though probably not as unpopular as saying damian is your favorite. but like, tim's the underdog! the odd one out!! he understands the meta-narrative role that robin plays in batman's life and tries to fulfill it. he's such a deeply interesting character not only in how he views himself as the weakest robin/the robin batman didn't choose, but also in how the other robins, canonically, view tim as the best out of them (because he's the most like daddy). i don't mind as much when fanon obfuscates his characterization because he really can be such a blank slate, more or less. as in, meta-narratively, tim decides to be whatever/whoever is best for batman, erasing the part of himself that is tim drake in favor of coalescing with "robin". he's the only robin who really is robin. which is really very tragic if you think about it. but also makes for fantastic bruce/tim fodder :) i would expand more on my love for tim but this ask would get WAY too long. read Liminal Space by Calamityjim on ao3 if you've watched young justice and have read the red robin 2009 run (an EXCELLENT read btw) if you want the gist of the angst.

as for the others, i think jason has had the best character evolution —not just in the batman storyline but as a comic character in general. i really think his death, and to a much lesser extent his rebirth, is the best/most impactful development in all of superhero comic history. superheroes as we know them today would largely not exist without his character. dick is fine, i like him third best. just because he was the first doesn't make him special to me lmao. the fact that others came after him is what makes him interesting to me, in addition to his relationship with batman— which is currently the most interesting batman-robin romantic relationship to me rn. i've seen some insane meta about him around but mostly based on somewhat outdated runs, which really doesn't mean anything when it comes to comics i guess. i don't think he's been in anything interesting/good in over a decade. i also wish i could mail tom taylor anthrax <3 damian is... my least favorite (skipping steph, sorryy i do love her but there's not enough canon for me to have an actual opinion). i think damian's interesting but only as a source of conflict (and ofc his dynamic with dick-batman). he doesn't really stand on his own and he's annoying.

2. i don't necessarily think that bruce/jason is closer to johndean than bruce/dick is (i actually think bruce/tim is closer relatively, but there's not a comparable pairing imo. i also just don't think dick is necessarily "devoted" to batman as much as tim is. his goals, like mentioned, align more with being able to call himself bruce's equal, which could be conflated with desire i.e. in bruce/dick). but there are a lot of functional aspects of the jason-robin & batman dynamic that is parallel to the relationship between dean and john as hunters imo— mostly having to do with consensual practices. is dean/jason-robin in control of his narrative purpose as a hunter/sidekick or are they doing what is necessary to survive? what does it mean for either of them when duty and pleasure are conflated? etc. i really love the headcanon that jason was a child-prostitute, which would be a functional role that carried over in being robin for another older man, so that was mostly where i was coming from. child soldiers... can't get enough of em.

3. haha i don't really know what the "something" is that i was referring to, just some vague middle ground that's gonna go undefined because where's the fun in defining the relationship that a man shares with the preteen ward in his possession who he may or may not want to be his son but who he treats like a spouse because mentally & emotionally he hasn't moved on from the day he was 9 years old and his parents died. maybe dick grows up but bruce never will :'). well, maybe he grows up a little when each robin leaves him

4. and yaaaa jaytim, favorite pairing of all time. they can be enemies to lovers. the ghost and the haunted. rebecca and the narrator. brother-rivals trying to become their father but who are held back by the lack of a quality that the other possesses (see nearmello death note). i'm gonna go the fanon route and say jason was tim's robin (even though, timeline wise, it could totally have been dick). so there is that adoration-envy (that tim would have for jason) that jason would have for dick in jaydick (which is a pairing i also like, don't get me wrong! i just maybe like it as a one-sided thing. or we could have the worst love triangle in the world with damian->tim->jason->dick->bruce all unrequited lmao). but in jaytim there's the addition of the danger element— jason at one point or another did want to kill tim. and not only was jason tim's robin, he was also his ghost story! an example of what would happen to tim if something went wrong. so adoration-envy-fear which transmutes to sexual interest. very sadomasochistic route we could take there. and for jason, tim is the kid who replaced him! who's evidently better at being daddy's favorite! he can die psychosexually mad about it. neither timdick or jaydick have that enemies/lovers edge that i really like (see kurokura hunter x hunter). they also just have some interesting canon history that writers never get into— like batman-jason trying to conscript tim as his robin during battle for the cowl. i am TRYING to write a jaytim fic but i keep getting distracted by other pairings. i thought i was gonna get to it after finishing the one i'm working on but i might just do brudick next so we'll see. send more questions/responses if you have them <3

[batarangsoundsdumb]

what is your opinion on maribat

you do you, honey!

but i don't really see the appeal of it tho

[scorchedhearth]

😍😈👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨💡🏆🤢😎

Thank you!! It's gotten long so I put it undercut

Reader asks

😍 What is your favourite fic trope?

hurt/comfort, which isn’t really one but it’s the one i seems read more often. Also established relationship, i like really old coupe doing stuff together. and slices of life, just jumping in for a routine day and see what they’re up to it’s fun (if the routine is killing people or fighting aliens it’s just more fun for me, domestic can get boring).

👿 What trope do you hate / avoid at all costs?

Fake dating, but especially the kind to make someone else jealous, i can sometimes enjoy a good “friends pretend to be together and then end up together for real” but the first one I really do not enjoy. Generally tropes around miscommunication/misunderstanding, it’s really annoying to me when i read two characters who cannot communicate with each other clearly, i hate that irl too

💏 Who is your OTP?

Already answered, but in dc I'm starting to really like bruce and talia, but more in the very complex kind of relationship if that makes sense? Being very important for each other but not always there and having a complicated past etc. caring for each other even if not technically together still, it’s fun

💡 Tell me a headcanon (and who you wish would write it)?

I don't know who could write that one, but Todd keeping scars from before the pit (in canon i think all scars before the pit are gone, which add some angst to the whole resurrection and coming back wrong deal) and especially burns and shrapnel from the explosion, adding a level of imperative to not show his face/body and keep the helmet on

or in tog, i could never write it but some heart wrenching "quynh kills andy when she comes back" it would destroy me if i read that, i know it and i would love it

🏆 What do you wish more authors in your fandom would write about?

i wish we could get more fics about violence and their work for the old guard as well as addressing the fucked up nature of their life. For batfam/todd related, less cute batfam stuff and more realistic takes on what the bat family would be like. I get the nature of fanfic but i think writers are trying too hard to lean into the happy family side when by nature they are not and it’s more interesting to look into the gritty part and how it’s dysfunctional. I mean, dick is afraid of becoming batman and still ready to do that, that’s more fucked up than a simple father-son dynamic. That and more genuinely weird comics ideas and situations (instead of the eternal robery, why not add alien nanotech that makes you dance or something spicy like that?), not caring about realism and leaning hard into the weird nature of comics

🤢 Who is your NoTP?

Answered already, but aside from underage/incest shit (batcest shipper i am going to maim you with a rusty swissknife), most ships that are superhero x civilian, they can be cute but mostly its boring since one of them doesn't do much apart from being eye candy for a couple of pages. Give me both equally competent and fucked up having weird double life its entertaining

😎 Who is your BroTP?

Answered already, but i’ll add whatever hal and barry have going on in the few movies i’ve seen them in, they’re next on my to-read list because i find them deeply entertaining and endearing at the same time

[bardicious]

A Teensy Weensy Blog Update

I was quite diligently scrolling around my archive feed - privating some posts cause I just didn't like some and others had discourse I didnt care to see in my own blog (however I've kept any more recent ones cause meh - I guess the recent spite is still fresh) but what I've learned is...

a. I make way too many promises I don't follow through with, I mean well, really - but mental and physical health gets in the way and I just usually don't have as much time or interest to delve into all my artworks or post ideas.

b. those projects I promised to make are still rolling around in my brain trying to gain purchase, I cant promise that they'll ever get made or be made soon cause honestly Im having a social media melt down and need to focus on my career, so its all up in the air - still pondering the future of this blog and my time on social media

c. I have gotten angrier recently and major shocks its because I interacted with Marvel media again. That was my first mistake, really. But considering I will forever love the characters too much to abandon them - and I quite enjoy mutuals and some fans from there, I'll be making efforts to divorce myself from whatever the hell Marvel is putting out now and actually - truly - work on my interpretations of the characters. (Which will veer dramatically away from canon because not so shockingly I actually hate most of canon - I truly do - and oh please don't get me started on the writers, actors, directors that make all this garbage) (Marvel fanfic writers, I love you and only you)

d. I truly need to get back into more mellow fandoms like Garashir and Kurtbastian - cause those places be the bomb. And the bits of DC fandom that I don't want to beat with a bat. They're cool too. :) (I'm up to here with the bs discourse about batcest though - seriously dont @ me whether you hate it - I really just dont care for anti behavior)

e. I'm going to work extra hard to make this a positive space for people to follow me. Ill try to tone down negative posts (not cause I disagree with any of them - but cause I know focusing on the negatives really doesn't do anyone any good - that said don't be a dick to people who need to express their anger at something - that isn't people - basically chill the fuck out y'all and mind your business, there is a blocking function for a reason)

f. Really sad I had to turn off my anon asks cause I really did get some sweet people in there. Y'all are wonderful. I just cant cope with anonymous dick heads. <3

j. Might reblog less???? Not sure. But the amount of posts on my blog is becoming unmanageable (thats a lie, it already is - sobs-)

And yeah, that's it for now. Im still basically on hiatus until at least the new year (and gosh I actually go on hiatus quite a few times I noticed), currently living off romantic comedies and shows like the hardy boys and stargate. lmao.

Anyways, thanks yall for following, reblogging, and liking my stuff. <3 Truly whenever I see your tags and whatnot, you make my day. :)

[necrotic-nephilim]

Is you think each of the batclan is a dom or a sub in bed (also add if they're a top or bottom if you want)

oooh good question. typically my answer depends entirely on the fic i'm writing and just. what makes the most sense for the scenario, so i don't see any of them as hard and fast subs or doms bc that's the joy of fanfic. *but* if i'm ignoring ships and just headcanoning based solely on the characters themselves, these are my thoughts-

Bruce Wayne: dom/top. it's the boring answer, but it's the true one. that man demands complete control of every situation and i think that extends to his wants and needs during sex. sex can be a lot like fighting in the way you take control.

Dick Grayson: switch, but i think he prefers bottoming whether he's the dom or the sub. he'll top if his partner prefers that, bc his nature is to be a giver. but he prefers bottoming and really enjoys getting to ride his partner.

Jason Todd: sub/bottom. listen. in fic 90% of the time, i *will* write him as the dom bc i *love* him as a mean dom. but Judd Winick did not tell us that Jason Todd cries during sex just for us all to make him an emotionless dom. he insists he's a dom and will dom, but deep down, he's a sub. i think he both wants soft praising sex and fucked up CNC shit, just for different reasons.

Tim Drake: dom/bottom. power bottom Tim. that's the whole headcanon. much like Bruce, i think Tim needs control in sex. i'm obsessed with him being fucked but still having *complete* control of the other person. controlling when they get to come, how they fuck him, etc. it just. suits him.

Damian Wayne: i can really see Damian go either way. but given i'm a fan of Damian having a mommy kink, i think my answer is sub and vers. he talks big game but he folds like a house of cards the minute you get your hands on him.

Stephanie Brown: sub/bottom. i think Steph just wants to be taken care of during sex, yk. she would enjoy bratting and sparring a bit as foreplay, but in the end she does want to be forced to submit and just give in to the person she's with.

Cass Cain: dom/vers. soft dom Cass supremacy. that's the whole take. i think it's fun for people to expect her to be a sub bc of her inexperience, but when Cass wants something, she'll take it. and she likes having control of her own body, it makes her more comfortable.

Helena Bertinelli: dom/top. idc who she's with but she's wearing a strap. she will fuck anyone. i think she'd be willing to bottom for the right partner, but she'd have *no* interest in being submissive in bed for anyone she's dated.

Jean-Paul Valley: he's tricky for me, bc if we count the Azrael personality, then dom/top. but if we're talking Jean-Paul, sub/bottom. he likes being told what to do and how to do it. also just. worshipping his partner bc brrr religious kink.

Alfred Pennyworth: dom/top. i think Alfred should be included in the batcest scene more. i wanna see him dom ppl. something about the control a dom has not needing to be physical but instead mental fits Alfred very nicely in my opinion.

Barbara Gordon: dom/bottom. similar to Tim, i think Babs prefers being in control from the bottom the most. giving clear instructions and telling her partner how to please her. for her it's less about the control and more about having someone submit under her that's fun.

Kate Kane: sub/vers. i feel like this is my most controversial take. but i think Kate is a sub. Kate gives energy of someone who talks *big* game about being butch but ends up a pillow princess in bed. i cannot explain it. it's just a vibes thing.

Bette Kane: switch/vers. either she's a very bratty sub or she's a very mean dom, there's no in-between. i think she genuinely enjoys both and likes to mix it up for fun. like Bette just gives me vibes she'd get bored of sex being the same every time.

Duke Thomas: switch/top. i think Duke prefers to top, but he's fine with going with the flow of what his partner wants. he gives me vibes that he slightly enjoys domming more, but still enjoys getting to sub for the right person, it just requires a lot more trust.

Harper Row: she's harder to pin down for me, but i would say switch/vers. Harper gives me "I'll try anything at least once" energy, even if she thinks she won't like it, she's willing to experiment a lot. bc of that she has a lot of weird experiences and enjoys whatever her partner does.

Luke Fox: he depends entirely on who he's with, i think. but i do think he leans toward being a dom/top just because of the energy he has in relationships. he easily takes control in the bedroom unless it's challenged by his partner, he'll default to assuming he's the one in charge.

Onyx Adams: dom/top. listen that's the only answer that makes sense for her. she takes what she wants when she wants it and i respect her for that. i think she just enjoys having someone underneath her, at her whim.

Julia Pennyworth: sub/bottom. definition of a woman who's convinced she's a dom until someone actually fights her for it and she folds like a pancake. she's not even a brat, she 100% is a service sub but does not realize it.

Claire Clover: also sub/bottom, similar to the above. except she is a brat and will make you earn topping her. she seems like the type to like violent sex that's a fight as much as it is fucking. like she's subbing but she is going to be kicking the whole time. very CNC vibes.

Minhkhoa Khan: dom/top. pretty sure this one is just canon. no notes this man is just like that. he fucks for meditation. does he look like a bottom.

Carrie Kelley: sub/vers. i could see Carrie being a switch, depending on who she's with. but mostly she just likes to give and serve her partner, giving them control. she wouldn't mind spicing it up in the bedroom every now and then tho.

Helena Wayne: this can depend heavily on the version of Helena Wayne, but i'm going to go broad and say dom/vers. most versions of Helena very much have dom energy, *especially* New-52 and JSA (2022). she 100% enjoys a "fight for dominance" type sparring match to decide who gets to dom, except she literally always wins bc she will play dirty.