#things in this fandom will get SO much better

[its-a-me-mango]

THANK YOU ALL FOR AN AMAZING YEAR! HERE'S TO MANY MORE!

Alllright, final thing to close off today, and what better than with a great big THANK YOU to everyone for sticking with me for a whole year! Regardless of if you’ve been around since I first joined or if you only just followed me today, thank you so much for your support of me and my work. Knowing there are so many fantastic and wonderful individuals who all enjoy what I make is just indescribable, I get to wake up and enjoy creating things I love for the series I love so dearly all while so many amazing people enjoy what I make too. I really can’t put into words how thankful I am for everyone who follows me but genuinely from the bottom of my heart, thank you, thank you all for an amazing year and here’s hoping for many more to come!

Now, I do have a few special dedications to a few certain individuals, if I didn’t get the chance to include you PLEASE don’t think that I don’t value you in any way! There were so many cool and talented people that I wanted to thank but I simply didn’t have time to do so! You are all so important to me and it does kill me a little that I can’t thank everyone, but I am just one guy at the end of the day so again please don’t take it personally, I am still so thankful for everyone and I want you to know this. <3

ANYWAY LONG ASS BLOCK OF TEXT UNDER THE READ MORE

So, in no order in particular

@lizaluvsthis @shygirl4991 @b-r-i-n-g-x - I’m putting you all together as one because I always see you guys working as a group so it feels wrong to split you guys up lol. You were all some of the first people I ever saw in the SMG4 fandom and your contributions inspired me so much to make my own stuff too! Everything you guys make always has so much heart and soul put into it, Brewing Romance, Split into 3’s, Gay Ogres, they’re all some of the first projects I remember seeing and for that I wanna thank you guys for motivating me to make and create my own things within this fandom! Even if you guys aren’t as active now or have moved on from those projects, I still hold them dear to me so keep making and creating because you guys are all so amazing at it! <3

@mothsbakery - Moth my beloved friend, I don’t know where to start, when I first got into SMG4, I was so worried about sharing it with my friends because I was worried it would somehow get turned against me in some way (blame that damn trauma lol), so having you take a passing interest in it was such a major relief to me. I’m so glad I’ve been able to sit down with you and watch the few episodes that we have because they’ve been so much fun! I’m so glad that we’re friends even after all these years. I know I’m not always the best at keeping in touch but I do genuinely appreciate your friendship and all that we’ve done together. Please keep making and creating and enjoying what you love, seeing you come to my DM’s with your newest musical piece is always such a joy to listen to and it’s been so wonderful to watch you improve over the years! Keep being amazing Moth, I’ll chat to you soon I promise! <3

@strange0-0storm - STOOOORM!!! (POINTING AT YOU POINTING AT YOU) FREAK!!!!/J I’m kidding lol, Storm I am so glad I’ve gotten the chance to talk with you, even if it's brief, you are so fun to talk to that I can’t wait to get the chance to chat with you again about OC’s or just anything really! Your work is always so yummy, whether it's SMG4, Gravity Falls, Popee The Performer, and more, your art is always just so full of character and it just makes me wanna keep doing what I’m doing and it helps me not worry about branching out at some point to something else. No matter what I will always come back to your work because it's so amazing and it’s even better knowing it’s made but such an equally amazing person, stay awesome Storm! (also RhythmDoctor 4 life they should kiss and make out more JHBBSGHBSGH) <3

@bluesbox - Blue! Dude you are so freaking cool I cannot put it into words, not only is your work fantastic and such a joy to interact with, but you’re also so dedicated to characters lore and interactions that I can’t help but wanna be just like that! I’ll never forget when you first dropped the TSB lore presentation that shit was SO WILD, knowing there's someone who's so invested in other peoples OC’s (including my own!) to such an extent is honestly so amazing, and it really pushes me to invest more time into my own work! Knowing there’s someone out there who genuinely takes so much interest in it is so uplifting, so thank you for always wanting to know more about what I make as well as everyone else, we need more amazing people like you Blue, keep being you! (also PS, the way you give Mango glasses is probably my favourite thing someone has given him, it makes me so happy to see every time, don’t tell anyone shhhhh) <3

@libbytwq - LIBBY, LIBBY OMG I don’t think I’ve ever met another SMG4 fan who just gets the same sense of humor as me so well, I love being terminally on Tumblr and having someone else who is also terminally on Tumblr, it’s so refreshing lmao! Lore not only are you an amazing person to talk to, you are also so insanely talented to match, all of your work has so much charm and passion put into it that I can just sense it with every piece, I always want to know more with your characters like I NEED the full SMGL:E lore or else I will explode and die, that’s how good you are at getting people invested in your work! You’re so great at creating interesting and engaging characters/stories that it motivates me so much with my own work. You have so much love for what you do it’s so wonderful to see, please keep creating forever and always because your work is such an absolute joy to see. I love getting the chance to chat with you so much and I can’t wait to chat with you again, thank you for being such an amazing friend Libby! <3

@hamlos - Hamlos, your work is truly incredible. I really can’t express it enough, it’s so dynamic and flexible in such a beautiful way, everything you make is just so amazing and that's just talking about your art itself, the characters you have are so interesting I always want to know more about them, especially Cardiac I seriously love him so much and having him paired with Mango is so wonderful, they really go together so well! I’ve never had anyone go so crazy (positive) over my characters before and It’s so amazing to see, every time you come to me with your amazing work it’s always such a nice thing to see! I know I am not always the best at responding but I do always see and read everything you send me and it always leaves me with a big smile on my face. Even if you’re not super into SMG4 right now, thank you for all that you’ve done and all that you’ve made for me, HeartBeet will always have a special place in my heart and I hope it does for you too, they are gay after all lol. <3

@neo91502 @hexsie @aquaproductions - Grouping you all together even though you all couldn’t be more unique and individual, every single one of you is so special and amazing to talk to, I legit get so excited any time one of you joins a VC with me because all of you are so fun to hang out with for so many reasons! Neo omg you are honestly such a nice person to chat to and be around, you’re always so fun to hang out with and you’ve convinced me to sit down one day and listen to Epic the Musical because every time you go crazy over the word Epic, I can’t help but find it so cute lol. Nova your obsession with Hex3 is so sweet and I’m genuinely glad you’re having so much fun with it, seeing you go on rambling about your OC’s will always be such a joy to see and you know what yes one day I will draw Hex3 just for you, gimme a second though (dies first /j). And Aqua, I had no idea how much of a sweetheart you were to talk to, you are honestly so cool and I’m so glad to have you in my DM’s sending me amazing fanart that you know I’ll like, thank you so much for being so awesome and I’m giving you platonic smooches right back at ya so watch out!!! All of you are again so amazing and I can’t wait to keep chatting with all of you! <3

MY BELOVED WHO SHAN’T BE NAMED BUT I KNOW YOU’RE READING THIS!!! - Hai babe, listen, I can’t believe the whole time you’ve been dating me I’ve been an SMG4 fan, that must be so embarrassing to you lol /j but thank you so much forever and always for sticking with me. You are truly the light of my life, I treasure every moment we spend together and I am waiting for the future to come so that I can spend it with you forever and always. Thank you for not only indulging in my interests with me, but for enjoying me for who I am, everytime you call me cute for getting giddy over SMG4 it honestly makes my heart flutter and it reminds me of why I love you so much, I wouldn’t be who I am without you and I hope you can say the same thing for me. I cannot wait to get the chance to see you again in person, I need to kiss you sloppy style soooooo bad it's making me bark and growl grrr grrr bARK BARK BARK anyway I love you so much and I always will. (I will forever kiss you for getting me Smug I can’t believe you got him, he’s like a fucked up and evil son to me) <3

@ominus-potato @theartistisme43 @coralalala64 - Grouping you all together even though I have different things to say about all of you, but regardless, all of you are such amazingly talented people that I’d love to get to chat with you all properly one day, even if I’ve talked with you guys a bit it’s not enough! I’d love to get to know you guys better at some point lol. Ominus your work is just so good I can’t help but feel happy anytime I see it. I promise one day we will meet at a convention, I’m so mad I missed you once I won’t let it happen again! Cantro, your work is incredible!!! Every time I see it I’m so amazed with what you’ve made that it just gets me excited to see what else you can create, I am manifesting with all my strength that if you do ever decide to apply as a SMG4 machinima artist, that you get it because god damn you deserve it! And Coral, THE CREATURE CREATOR!!! I love your lil creatures so much, and OMG you have to teach me how to do such amazing pencil work, your work always inspires me so much and I’m so glad I’ve gotten the chance to chat with you a lil, your gif collection is truly frightening but in the best way possible. Again all of you are so amazing so please keep doing what you’re best at! <3

@tiredsmashbros - Tomm, Mr Tiredsmashbros, holy shit where do I even start with you. First of all, I would probably not be thanking half the people in this piece if not for you, I know how scary setting up a server was for you but I will forever be so thankful that you did. Finally getting the chance to chat with not only you, but so many amazing people in the SMG4 fandom has been an absolute joy and I am forever thankful for you for creating such an open and accepting space, you and Radiant are seriously so awesome for all the work you’ve put into that place. It’s from your server that i’ve learnt how wonderful and generous you are as a person, I really cannot think of anyone kinder than you Tomm, the way you always have an essay planned for every piece of fanart you get, from just your overall positive attitude, I am so glad I’ve finally gotten the chance to meet you after just being a fan of your work for so long. Your work has been such an inspiration to me and you’ve always been someone I wanted to chat with and the fact that I am now is!!! Crazy!!! I can’t believe you were scared of me at one point lol. Anyway thank you Tomm for being such a fantastic friend overall, I need to know TSB’s lore right now, can you whisper it to me I promise I’ll keep it a secret, regardless stay awesome dude, you deserve nothing but joy and happiness forever and always. Qwah Tuh (also Burgerfruit beloved, they should get weirder /j) <3

@doodledev1l - Doodle!!!!! Okay I know this sounds weird but genuinely finding another British SMG4 fan has been so refreshing, not only that but you’re super fun to talk to and be around so it’s even better! Getting the chance to hang out and chat with you is always so fun, I love getting to hear what you’re working on for uni and I always hope that it goes well for you, I know how stressful it can be lol. Regardless, I know you’ll do amazing because I’ve seen how dedicated and talented you are when it comes to your work, again I hope the rest of uni goes well for you because you deserve it, we gotta end your bad luck streak somehow lol. Thank you for being such an amazing person to chat and hang out with, keep up the amazing work dude, I’ll get you a tescos meal deal one day I promise. <3

PHEW, THAT’S EVERYONE, again thank you all so much for sticking by my side for a year! Doesn’t matter what time you showed up, I will always be thankful to know all of you, keep being awesome I love you all. I die now

Mango <3

[girlishwhimsies]

i love looking at hot takes and realizing that some outsiders fans don’t realize that fandom is something fun. nothing is truly that serious at the end of the day.

[jivvin]

lol

"where people have lately gotten the audacity" where do you get the entitlement to expect only positive things said to you about a work you put on public display?

"I've seen authors abandoned or delete their fics because of this" skill issue:

toughen up. don't let nobodies from the internet push you around in your own playground;

share your fic only with friends whose praise and support you can count on;

engage with the critique and defend the work you've supposedly put your heart into;

simply block them and move on;

if you can't do any of the above, than you're better off picking up a different hobby - like jogging, or collecting stamps - and your fandom probably hasn't lost much

"You're getting fanfics for FREE!" are you doing art, or are you doing charity? though, even in the latter case - go ask charity workers how much gratitude they receive on the regular basis from the people they help, and if gratitude is why they do what they do

"No one asked for your opinion." except you do. it's just that for some reason you think only the positive opinions are allowed to be expressed. but that box under the body of your fic is called "Comments", not "Praise", and if you can't accept that, you're no better than a little child, in terms of emotional maturity.

art is pain. doing art, among other things, means getting critiqued, both fairly and unfairly, critisized, misunderstood, rejected, ignored. every time, always, no matter your skill or popularity level, there will always be people out there who hate what you do. learning to deal with all that is an invaluable life skill, and i cannot for the life of me imagine why you so staunchly refuse to hone it, in such a comparatively tame and safe environment as fanfiction writing, choosing instead to pretend you can have control over how and in what form total strangers can interact with your work.

from the bottom of my heart, and from the place of deepest affection: grow up.

to the readers: offering polite, constructive critique in the comments of a fic is an absolutely normal thing to do. though, seeing how you're not the author's friend, there's a 99% chance your comment will be ignored, so idk why you'd bother. at the same time, typing up a bunch of unnecessarily mean, rude, and unconstructive bullshit instead is a 100% dick move. if you feel like being mean - go be mean to your mother, don't vent your frustrations on total strangers. grow up.

I wanna know where people have lately gotten the audacity to leave comments on fanfics talking about how much the fanfic sucked and negatively critiquing an author's fic like it's a published book review.

It pisses me off cause I've seen authors abandoned or delete their fics because of this.

You're getting fanfics for FREE! No one asked for your opinion.

I hope y'all know as authors we get email notifications when you comment so we see EVERY comment that's been left.

We also can see the negative reviews you leave when you bookmark our fics

[crossdressingdeath]

You know what the most frustrating thing about DAV criticism is at the moment? It's that I do in fact have criticisms. Quite a few, actually. It's a Bioware game, of course I have criticisms. No one I've spoken to or whose posts I've seen thinks it's perfect or above criticism. But the thing is, I—and I imagine a lot of other firmly positive blogs—know that if I share any of those criticisms, if I make posts discussing them and talk about the game's flaws, I will immediately be inundated by people using those complaints to insist that the whole game is garbage and the writing is bad and Bioware's a terrible studio who can't make good games and DAI (of all fucking games) was so much better and blah blah blah blah. I know that because it's happened every goddamn time I've made a less-than-positive post about DAV. And I don't have the energy to deal with that! The endless stream of bad faith criticism wears me down and having to constantly stop to defend a game I like when I'm trying to discuss its flaws because if I don't (and frankly half the time even if I do) people will use my posts to claim the whole game is garbage is exhausting, and fandom is supposed to be fun. So I can't discuss DAV's flaws on tumblr if I want to avoid that, and it is infuriating. I see people bitching about toxic positivity and people refusing to acknowledge the game's flaws, and I really want those people to take a second to consider: do the game's fans ignore its flaws and refuse to accept that anything about it is bad? Or have you created an environment that is so toxic that no one who likes the game wants to risk getting your attention by mentioning what's bad about it and they respond more aggressively than is warranted to even genuine critique in an attempt to ward you off? Because there will always be assholes who claim that genuine problems are Fine, Actually, Stop Being Such A Baby... but if people can't address the game's flaws in public without immediately getting dragged into five different arguments about how it is in fact ultimately a really solid game, they're not going to do it no matter how much they recognise those flaws.

[wings-of-fire-confessions]

Wings of Fire needs a renaissance, both the fandom and the book series in general.

The fandom has been dead (or at least has felt dead even if it's not) for years. Tumblr is fairly well off (even if it feels lacking anyway) but youtube has been bland at best, MAP community can be unforgiving at times, it's generally hard to connect with people on the Roblox game, all the Wings of Fire Discords I am in are dead, Twitter is Twitter, I don't want to use Instagram anymore in the first place if they go through with the AI users thing, Fandom Wiki is riddled with ads and should really be moved to a different site like Mirahaze + heard it is fairly bad anyway, and I have heard horror stories about the Reddit. I haven't had genuine fun with this fandom for years at this point and I generally just wish it was better. There are a lot of amazing artists out there in this fandom but I have my own issues with a lot of them I won't get into. I have met some amazing people in this community, sure, but recently the fandom just has felt like a ghost town.

And we all know how arc 3 went. While I personally enjoy arc 3 to some extent I know the large majority of this fandom hates it and I can see why. And if arc 4 introduces a new tribe, new continent, or both, I think that may be the straw that breaks the camel's back. Pantala and multiple tribes (most notably mudwings) still need to be fleshed out more before the mere idea of a new tribe or continent is considered. Plus, 10 tribes already feels like too much. Having so many tribes feels overwhelming and hard to keep track of, especially since Wings of Fire is a kids series (it would not be published by Schoolastic if it was not), I feel like many kids would be overwhelmed by 10+ tribes, if they weren't already overwhelmed by the 20+ books in the series.

Honestly, I think the best thing in the whole scope of this right now is the graphic novels. Mike's art style just improves with each book and I think the new Escaping Peril graphic novel was amazing. This is likely an unpopular opinion though seeing as a surprising amount of the fandom doesn't like the graphic novels.

I am fully aware this may just be me growing older and losing my interest in Wings of Fire, but genuinely, this whole series and fandom needs a miracle to keep it alive. That's all I am saying.

.

[cosmicjoke]

Man, people in this fandom give Kenny way too much credit. There's this trend in this fandom of acting like Kenny should be given credit for not letting Levi die, and excusing his shitty behavior because of the "time period", or because, supposedly, Kenny was just doing what was "expected" of him given the role of "men" in society and how little is supposedly expected of them. Like we're just supposed to accept that Kenny was shitty because society never taught him to be better. Says who? What about Grisha? He was a great father to Eren. What about Erwin's dad? He was a school teacher who clearly loved his son. What about Sasah's father, who was also a caring parent that treated his daughter well? What about Mikasa's father, who despite us only getting a few minutes of in the series, clearly did a good job of raising his daughter, given Mikasa's love for him and her mom? What about Connie's family? There's no indication at all that the way Kenny treated Levi was in any way, shape or form the "norm" for the time period, or what was expected of father's in general on Paradis.

This idea that we're supposed to excuse Kenny's abuse because he "didn't know any better" is bullshit, too. Kenny DID know better. His own grandfather makes mention of doting on him, to which Kenny offers no push back, so we know Kenny grew up with plenty of love in his life. That he came from a good background. His grandfather expresses clear disapproval for Kenny's violent behavior, too, so we know Kenny didn't learn his violence from him. Kenny was just naturally that way. And I'm sorry, but doing the bare minimum for a starving child doesn't make you a hero, not when it's no burden to you to do so, which it wasn't for Kenny. Kenny was flush and in a stable and respected position by the time he came into Levi's life. He was working for the royal family, for Christ's sake. He held a higher rank than most military officers, had more power and resources than most military officers. It would have been the simplest and easiest thing in the world for him to help Levi. It's what anyone would do who wasn't a complete and massive piece of shit. And Kenny only did it because Levi was Kuchel's kid. He wouldn't have done the same for any other, starving child (the way, for example, Levi did with Isabel). Kenny didn't care about children, despite the way he frames it, when he says "even I couldn't let some kid starve". That's just reflective of Kenny's narcissism and hypocrisy, trying to act like he's better than he was. He didn't have any such qualms about slitting Historia's throat. He saved Levi, not because he felt some genuine sympathy for a dying child, but because he felt some half-assed obligation to his dead sister, whom he also failed completely.

He as much admitted he was incapable of feeling empathy or compassion, or showing compassion to another, when he talked about his deluded belief that power is what makes someone capable of being a good person. He's admitting that he's never felt real empathy or compassion for anyone when he says that, because if he had, he would know you don't need power in order to feel those things or in order to be kind. What's more, Kenny did have power. He had the power to help Levi, to give him a good and happy life, and he still didn't, not in any genuine or meaningful way. To the contrary, he instead caused Levi irreparable harm, only caused him untold amounts of trauma and pain, flat out refusing to help Levi escape the despair of the Underground while he continued to live the life of Riley up above, which further demonstrates how his philosophy of power equaling compassion was always bullshit, and how gaining power wouldn't have in any way, shape or form compelled Kenny toward becoming compassionate. Having power didn't make Kenny a better person, it just further revealed his true and ugly nature. Again, he had power, he had strength, and yet he only ever used it for ill and selfish gain. He wasn't able to understand that selflessness is how compassion manifests, because Kenny himself was completely selfish. He couldn't understand doing anything for anyone but himself. He only ever did anything when it was to his own benefit. I would even say him taking Levi in and "raising" him was an extension of that selfishness, because, as I've said before, Levi was a project to Kenny. A guinea pig on which to test his philosophy of power. And we know he was always completely selfish because of Levi's shocked reaction when he, in his dying moments, finally commits an act of selflessness, by giving Levi the serum. That tells us that Levi had never seen Kenny do anything selfless before, and that it was totally out of character for him.

Kenny was a bad person. That's not a subjective statement. He was objectively bad. He was a murderer. He was a serial killer. He killed people for sport. That's the definition of a bad person. This isn't a matter of opinion.

I just get so sick of the excuse making I see from Kenny apologists. The way people act like Levi was lucky to have Kenny. Like Levi should be grateful to Kenny. Yeah, Levi would have died without Kenny. And? That doesn't absolve Kenny of his other actions or undo the lifelong damage he caused to Levi by immersing him into a life of horrific violence and then abandoning him. Also, the claim that Kenny was just teaching Levi to "survive", again, it's pure bullshit, because there was no REASON at that point for Levi to have to remain Underground. He didn't need to learn the skills to survive if Kenny had just given him a life on the surface, the way he was going to do for Kuchel. They say Kenny was teaching Levi to survive like he was doing him some sort of favor, when all he was doing was denying Levi a good life because he was too selfish and fucked in his own head to do right by a little boy who had no one else in the world.

Kenny doesn't get and doesn't deserve credit for failing Levi in every way conceivable other than not letting him starve to death. If that's the standard we're going to measure a parent's love by, then I guess we have to excuse every father ever who made sure their kid had enough to eat, but also beat the living shit out of them, or verbally abused them, or neglected them horrifically, or taught them violence. It's all okay, as long as they gave their kid food once in a while and put a roof over their head (something that's not even clear that Kenny did for Levi). Sure. Just... holy shit.

The way Kenny treated Levi wasn't normal or okay for ANY time period or for any reason. What father intentionally exposes a five year old boy to murder? Give me a fucking break. Kenny did LESS than the bare minimum. He abandoned Levi for long periods of time, he left him alone in a place he KNEW Levi was almost assured to be assaulted, and what's more, is you know Kenny WANTED him to be, so he could awaken his powers and Kenny could split for good. That's inexcusable. It's horrific abuse.

What nobody ever wants to admit is that the kind of life Kenny was living was the kind of life he specifically wanted for Levi. He literally tried to turn Levi into a mini version of himself. I just can't believe people make excuses for that shit. And we can see the damage Kenny specifically caused Levi by comparing him to Furlan and Isabel, who both also grew up in the Underground. Neither of them were as maladjusted as Levi was, socially speaking. That reflects a uniquely isolating and negative experience for Levi growing up, even amongst the harsh realities for children growing up in the Underground City. And again, that's specifically because Kenny intentionally brought brutal violence into his life and neglected him outright. This wasn't some typical case of Kenny just being a deadbeat dad or a little neglectful. He actively caused Levi severe harm, psychologically, emotionally and physically, by exposing him to brutal violence and leaving him on his own in a place filled with violent criminals. He wasn't taking care of Levi or helping him in any way beyond letting his reputation serve as some half-assed deterrent, which clearly wasn't really working, because we see how those men from "Bad Boy" didn't really give a shit about Levi being associated with Kenny. That fact did nothing to dissuade them from either kidnapping Levi or outright murdering him. The only reason Levi didn't die then and there is because his powers awakened, something that Kenny had no guarantee would happen. I'm sure Kenny understood too that his reputation alone wouldn't be enough to dissuade most of the criminals Underground from going after Levi. Kenny wasn't some idiot without worldly experience.

Given Kenny's worship of power and his obvious belief that only the strong deserve to survive, it's pretty clear from the way he neglected Levi that he applied that same attitude to Levi. That unless Levi was able to defend himself, he didn't deserve to live. Him leaving Levi on his own is indicative of that, him refusing to take Levi to the surface is indicative of that. We see that same attitude of Kenny's play out later, during the Uprising arc, when he does his level best to kill Levi. He obviously didn't give a shit if Levi ended up dying if he wasn't able to effectively defend himself against his and his squad's attack.

The apologist attitudes I see toward Kenny really need to freakin' stop, man.

[mysaldate]

Doesn't that sort of make sense though? Why would the characters make a big deal out of it if it's normal for them? It's kind of an issue I have with a lot of fantasy series, the characters are all from this world where magic exists but they have to act surprised and clueless about it for the audience's sake? That has always felt cheap and kinda lazy to me. Yes, act like it's normal because it is normal for you. Don't make a big deal out of it and let us figure it out. Yes, you run a risk of a lot of fandom glossing over it but imo, it's much better than breaking character just to coddle your audience.

On your age point... no, that doesn't really work. The game is originally a joseimuke, meaning for working-class women. Just because Aniplex and Disney US decided to dumb everything down for the English release doesn't mean teenagers are suddenly the intended audience. The characters are those ages because that's a popular trope and that's it, they might be 30 or 50 and they wouldn't change because the age label on fictional characters is arbitrary as they are not real. Yes, Disney JP still keeps certain things censored/safe but far less than whatever is going on in the EN release. In a similar vein, the whole "respect women juice" thing was added in the EN release while in JP, it was left at the fact that women are intimidating and more physically imposing which led to Leona and Ruggie trying to appease them even outside of their own culture (we wouldn't exactly call that respect, now would we? We don't say women irl respect men when they go out of their way to appease them because they are physically stronger).

This isn't about whether or not Jack has a knot lol. This is about how many features the characters do have that the fandom just explains away or even straight-up ignores. And it gets worse when it comes to cultures. The hyenas are mistreated in Sunset Savannah because they have a bad reputation (yes, it is a part of what happened with Scar but also for biological reasons) which then leads to them having to scavenge for food and use trickery which furthers the stereotypes even more. Leona's palace guards are all women because lionesses are usually the ones guarding a pride. Leona does roar or growl in the story on multiple occasions (and a roar is even one of his battle lines iirc).

Malleus was literally born from an egg, that's a pretty big thing imo, people even like this, they just don't like thinking about what that might mean for Meleanor. Also, dragon fae only being able to conceive with their true love? That's a pretty huge difference. The fae in general communicating by hisses and chittering noises? Yes, it's a language for them but at the same time, that's a pretty non-human thing to do. And despite Lilia adopting Silver, he never taught him the language so there's a question of whether full-blooded humans can even learn it.

I agree with you that this is a prevalent problem in media, I just don't think twst is as devoid of it as you seem to suggest. Yes, fandom is always there to explore things more and push them to their logical limits and conclusions but, again, I think twst gives us a ton to build off of. It makes sense to me that they don't make a big deal of it, much like they just off-handedly mention other parts of their world that are normal to them but alien to us, simply because it's no big deal or it is common knowledge for them ("By the Seven!" is an easy one. Nobody feels the need to explain it but we all know why that is, another example would include Mozus' off-hand mention of the discrimination against beastmen in the past, and obvsl there are more all over the place).

Anyway, this got long, sorry. I like discussing this sort of thing even if we don't come to an agreement. Personally, I like the way twst does it but I do get why people might want more obvious explanations and followups on things in way that are harder to disregard.

I need. Twisted Beastmen and the like. To be more animalistic. Not necessarily like, physically, I don't meant that in the furry sense. I mean that in the 'they're part animal and it'd not just for show' sense.

I want beastmen with claw like nails. Where the cat-like ones tend to walk on their toes when not wearing shoes because it feels right. Where their eyes and pupils reflect the animals that they're partly of. With fangs and teeth appropriate for their species.

Ruggie making laughing noises at the active prospect of food. Whooping when in a fight and needing backup. Lowing when excited for a fight.

Leona roaring to get the whole dorm's attention. Chuffing in greeting at people he considers part of his pride. (He'll sometimes grunt at Cheka like a mother would to her cubs but will deny it.)

Jack barking at danger to warn others and howling to try and figure out where his pack is (he forgets they can't howl back, but Ruggie will sometimes low at him and Yuu definitely tries to howl back.)

I want to see Azul with the tips of his limbs in human form retain some of his octopus natural ability to camouflage. I want to see his hands always moving, grabbing something, holding something. Azul who might not have bones in human form with how flexible he is??

The tweels who aren't very active naturally during the day but get really hyperactive at night. Who bare their teeth at people when excited.

Che'nya who lounges in the sun on lazy days. Who's great at stretching and popping everywhere in his body if he needs to, to a concerning degree.

GIMME FEY WHO DONT ACT HUMAN

Malleus who snorts smoke when he's angry. Malleus who wear gloves because he got claws. Malleus who has a tail and wings outside of his dragon form sometimes.

Lilia who gets just a bit too excited at the prospect of a fight and spilling blood. Who can recognize a person by the smell of their blood. Who makes inhuman noises when too excited and gives off a very eldritch horror kind of vibe if he lets loose.

Sebek who can be found eating rocks sometimes. Who finds quiet in thunder and lightning. Who can move so smoothly and silently you don't know he's there until he opens his maw. Who has a lot of really sharp teeth for someone with a human mouth.

Just- gimme some animal, like, REALISM. PLEASE.

[martsonmars]

Hi friends! I keep committing and recommitting to making a serious effort to come back to the fandom, and I think this time finally I got my Snowbaz feelings back for real. So I'm going to try. Thank you to everyone who kept tagging me; I'm a little lost re: new people existing on Tumblr, but I hope to catch up!

So much to do in this post. For now, some snippets.

Exhibit A: my writing goal for the month. It's okay if it doesn't work out, but I decided I need short-term writing goals and this is my first one.

Baz pushes his sunglasses up his nose, staring at the man behind the counter of the shop. He hopes that hiding in plain sight—without his costume, without his mask—is a more effective disguise than trying to wear a fake moustache.

The apron is there, gloriously stretching over a broad chest that does not turn Baz's insides into soup and make him wish he could go back three—five, ten—years and do everything differently.

Exhibit B: COBB idea. I'm so excited!!!!!!!!!!!!

Going right is never the right choice.

I've known this since the first time my father brought me along on his travels (read: I hid in his trunk) and I had to face a crocodile armed only with a blunt Swiss Army knife I'd stolen from said trunk. All because I'd turned right. And then right again.

When he found me, scraped knees and his precious knife lost in the belly of the beast, he didn't even yell. He just looked at me like he always did. Like the biggest disappointment in his life of failures.

Exhibit C: potential second COBB idea, that I'm going to submit only if I make enough progress by the end of the month.

[Baz] holds my hand like it's the only thing keeping him grounded. Present. The minutes are trickling away from us like sand in a broken hourglass. The sun hasn't started rising yet, the night as dark as it gets, the cold seeping into our bones.

He holds my hand like he's afraid he'd float away if he didn't.

I know I'd be glad if it happened.

I have a lot of fandom resolutions for this year and I'm scared they'll end up like any New Year's resolutions... but I'll list them anyway. 6 resolutions Sunday:

Be more involved on Tumblr. I want to post more, but especially start reblogging and commenting on things again.

Write more. Last year I wrote so little and posted even less, and it made me sad when I realised it in the past days. So much was going on, so I don't blame myself, but I miss writing and I believe I can try to make it a regular thing again.

I want to read more fics. It's been years since I last read fics consistently. I missed everything!! Time to slowly catch up.

Relatedly, I want to try to comment more. I've never been a great commenter because it overwhelms me, but it's hypocritical since I need everyone and their brother to leave 10 paragraph long comments on everything I write... So I want to commit to doing better.

I want to try to publish a fic every month, at least. @palimpsessed suggested doing some sort of monthly countdown to Carry On's birthday in October and I'm all in.

I want to succeed at COBB. For one reason or the other, more often than not because I am cursed and I never finished writing my things, I've never managed to start and finish posting something for COBB. But I have two concepts I'm so excited about (not sure yet if I'll try both of them) and I want to commit to doing well. Wish me good luck.

My good old tagging list <3 I hope to add new people soon! But hi my dear old friends, how's it going?

@facewithoutheart @sillyunicorn @onepintobean @shrekgogurt @wellbelesbian @palimpsessed @you-remind-me-of-the-babe @forabeatofadrum @fatalfangirl @cutestkilla @ileadacharmedlife @bookish-bogwitch @artsyunderstudy @orange-peony @larkral @raenestee @stitchyqueer @hushed-chorus @technetiumai @brilla-brilla-estrellita @thewholelemon @theimpossibledemon @imagineacoolusername @blackberrysummerblog @theearlgreymage @rimeswithpurple @messofthejess @alexalexinii @whatevertheweather @jbrrring @prettygoododds @youarenevertooold @best--dress @theotherhufflepuff @monbons @run-for-chamo-miles @confused-bi-queer @aristocratic-otter @dragoneggos @gekkoinapeartree @ionlydrinkhotwater @erzbethluna @shemakesmeforget @basiltonbutliketheherb @otherpeoplesheartachept-2 @noblecorgi @j-nipper-95

[ravenlexis]

gonna say something controversial...

i'm going to put this under the cut bcs it got long. read at your own risk? check the tags?

i just backed out of a fic, which is smth that i do often when i don't like an aspect of it or when there's smth i'm uncomfortable with in the fic. there not actually anything like that with this recent one really, i'm not uncomfortable with anything or dislike anything about it.

just that not even third way through it, i realised that it's aventio. and while i'm a firm ratiorine enjoyer, the fic was rated T, i figured that i'll read it to see if i enjoy it, y'know?

i got through half of it before finally backing out.

this is where it might get controversial.

some months ago in the big year of 2024, there was a widespread discussion on many platforms (not just tumblr) on ship names. how it's all so boring nowadays, just the name of the characters smushed together and how dumb it is to differentiate one for when character A is the top and one for when character B is the top.

i do generally agree that some ship names could be better. there are some ship names that don't sound great no matter how their names are combined. but i do think it's actually important to differentiate the "top".

NOT just for PWP reasons, tho obviously that's one of the reasons why people have different ship names depending on which character tops. denying this particular reason is redundant.

mostly tho, from many (and i do mean, many) experience of reading fics, rated E, M, G, or T otherwise, people do write (and draw) differently depending on who tops.

this particular fic that i mentioned is one of them. aventio (and i'm using this bcs that's how the fic author intended it) were on a mission gone wrong (standard premise). ratio was escaping from the enemy, got cornered, got saved by avent, and off they went, improvising their escape route. during this whole thing, ratio was freaking out bcs avent was holding his hand (very cute author, plus ten points. we need more shy ratio in the fandom).

they got cornered into hiding and just when they were about to be able to escape unnoticed, ratio hit something in the dark and it crashed to the floor, loudly.

then they were both panicking, bcs clearly the enemy was investigating the noise. in a flash of brilliant problem solving, avent asked for ratio's agreement to fake make out with him (nothing fake about it tho, they both made the most of the situation and enjoyed themselves). the enemy was flustered (not recognising who they were), tried (and failed) to sternly warned them to evacuate (bcs after getting an eyeful of the smooching sesh, it's awkward for them lmao).

and i stopped reading there bcs i cracked up so hard i was late to work (and i'm not even joking).

bcs the author specifically typed smth along the lines of "Aventurine stayed where he was, covering Ratio with his body in the hopes to keep the guards from recognising him."

i was not prepared for that mental image, honestly.

i'm not making fun of the author in any way. it was refreshing to read up until that point. bcs in this fic, ratio is the one fumbling like a schoolgirl with a crush while avent was very assured in their partnership. but i just can't handle thinking that avent, who can stand behind ratio and hide without actually trying to, can actually hide ratio with his body.

and ngl, this fic writes ratio in an almost traditionally romance heroine way. he was blushy and giddy, even during the escape. freezing when the enemy cornered him and needed to be saved by avent.

i'm not saying ratiorine fics don't do this btw, there are fics that made avent a bit more traditionally feminine. (a damsel type of character, which just, no. he's very much capable, he had survived a lot canonically. i also backed out of those type of fics.)

what i am saying, and the whole point of this long post (which i thought was gonna be short), is that there's a necessity for the distinction of ship names. aventio and ratiorine both featured ratio and aventurine but they are depicted in vastly different ways. sometimes, the distinct ship name helps us find the art (be it fics or fanarts) that align with our characterisation of these characters.

every fan has different headcanons and characterisations for the characters they like, and while it may seem "confining" or "dumb" to care about who tops or bottoms, it actually impacts how someone writes (or draws) the characters.

i see so many artists that tagged their art as both ratiorine and aventio that clearly only needed to tag it as aventio and vice versa. there's a reason people use this system to begin with and it works for the longest time. those who don't care about who tops or just enjoy reading them switch dynamics usually use a third ship name.

honestly, if you reach this part, i appreciate you. be it bcs of curiosity or if you actually agree or reading just to disagree.

all that i ask is you actually pay attention and see if you can differentiate the distinction, how much the dynamics impact how the author or the artist portray them as individual characters. not just ratiorine in particular, but any ships you enjoy.

anyway, thanks for reading till the end. have a great time, be it early morning or late night or anything in between wherever you are. and if you do want to disagree, pls do so kindly.

[taxi-cab-to-slowtown]

friend 3: prefers the old men (JSA) and the lanterns but also likes Eobarry. Their sentiment is “if a Bat is not the main character I will read it”. Despite this I am trying to get them to see the way of Birdflash by making them read more Titans comics.

friend 4: knows a whole lot about comics fandoms and non-western comics (so cool) fairly new to DC. Is a Batman fan. They’re who I talk to about Batman the most often.

friend 5: obsessed with Bruce Wayne and Marian Manhunter, constantly spinning them around in their head. Loves writing Batfamily centric stories. Has some headcanons I don’t care for but I’m glad they make them happy. Doesn’t know much about flash outside of how Flash interacts in canon with Batman and J’onn.

honestly part of this is just that DC is a VAST property, and there are so many different kinds of fans with different backgrounds and different ways in which they interact with the source material. I WISH that this fandom learned to appreciate EVERYONE’s takes on things and be open to hear about more of the characters than just their faves and understand others POV, but that’s hard. It’s a big space, with a lot of people. Maybe i don’t think the DC fandom as a whole is a great fandom (I’ve definitely encountered some really sucky people here) but I do think those I have connected with and remained connected to have been wonderful.

it’s not the best fandom, and I hope it grows to be better, but it’s ours

best part about comic tumblr is that it is the only fandom i’ve been a part of where no one says “i just love the fandom so much we’ve created such a safe space here 🥺” like i have never seen even one post about how much someone loves the dc fandom. this is not a happy family this is a cold war and im just glad we all know that

[hbpseverus]

for all that us snape fans say how we love his character because he is flawed and complex, i find it disappointing how many of us can't extend that line of thinking towards lily, while pretending that young severus was entirely innocent. i've noticed this a lot recently and it's been bothering me quite a bit so i've felt the need to defend lily, or to be exact, analyse the downfall of their relationship without basically giving her all the blame and instead looking at both characters and especially lily more critically.

so. let's talk about the conversation between her and severus after the werewolf prank. some snape fans harshly criticise her in this scene because she insists that james saved severus and doesn't acknowledge how serious this prank was, while insisting that at least the marauders don't use dark magic.

and i agree that she should have been more on severus' side in this case. after all he could have died or gotten seriously injured, turned into a werewolf etc and she downplays the severity of the situation and generally doesn't acknowledge how the marauders bullied severus very much. so yes, she could have been a better friend here.

but at the same time, from her perspective, she was already noticing that severus was spending more time with his housemates, all of them aspiring death eaters, how he had always looked up to lucius and was slowly heading down that same path. how he didn't truly disapprove of his housemates disgusting actions towards muggleborns - her own kind. even though it's not entirely logical, since we see through the marauders that light magic can be used to do harm aswell, this also explains her dislike of dark arts, which these (aspiring) death eaters all were fond of and using to do awful things to her friends (and hogwarts also pretty much teaches that dark magic is pure evil). by this point she had most likely also experienced discrimination at hogwarts for being muggleborn. she knew the situation in the wizarding world wasn't favourable for her, and now her best friend was starting to agree with those people?

the next notable event was of course snapes worst memory (sigh, here i go talking about it for the millionth time). and i really don't like how some people on our side of the fandom talk about lily in this scene (of course, this is not all of us).

first of all we saw that she initially smiled upon seeing severus be bullied, and yes, this was honestly quite disgusting. we know that severus saw this and was rightfull hurt, and this very well could be the reason why he snapped at her. but that is her only 'crime' in this scene. because she then does quickly turn against james and this entire crowd and defends severus. only for james to insult and threaten her, and severus to call her a 'filthy little mudblood'.

now, people say she should have done more to defend severus, that her attempt was quite half-hearted. i don't know. maybe she could have done more, but she did tell the marauders to stop, you can't say she didn't try. some say she should have hexed james herself or bring up her prefect role (although i'm not sure it's confirmed she was one at this time). but say she was a prefect, her job would be to stop fighting, which she tried to do, not to get involved in fights herself. and you can tell that james is entirely dismissive of her and clearly won't let her stop him no matter what, even threatening her in the process. lily also genuinely seems to still hate him at this point in time, she is described to have been disgusted with him to the point where even harry questions his parents marriage. so i don't believe it's fair to say she was just 'flirting' with james here.

furthermore, people believe she should have forgiven severus for being called a mudblood. i used to agree that it wasn't that serious, but i feel differently now. because it wasn't just a word, it wasn't a one time mistake or slip up or even the first time she noticed that he was slowly turning into a future death eater. that's why i brought up their conversation after the prank. lily knows that severus' descend into the death eaters arms had been going on for months, years even. being called - not even just mudblood, but hearing the words "i don't need help from a filthy little mudblood like her" out of the mouth of her former best friend was just the final nail in the coffin. it was her confirmation that severus was finally too far down that road, and she, as a muggleborn, could no longer justify surrounding herself with him. so she abandons him at the scene, and i can't blame her one bit.

of course this post is not meant to be severus bashing in any way, he is and always will be my favorite character, but i don't enjoy pretending he was completely innocent, even his younger self. this is also not to excuse the marauders, as their bullying never had anything to do with severus possibly being a death eater and was really just for fun and because they could, and because he was an easy victim. but i truly believe that lily deserves some grace and also to be analysed as a complex character like severus, rather than painting her as one dimensional, either fully good or fully bad.

severus becoming a death eater is the tragic result of his background and surroundings, and when we analyse him we factor all of this in. lily was wealthier, had a better family, was pretty, smart and popular and had a good support system in and out of hogwarts. she couldn't understand why severus made the choices he did. maybe as an adult she would have looked back and understood it all better. but as it was, she was just a teenage girl watching her best friend turn against people like her and not knowing what to do about that. and what's also important to me to point out is that it was not her job to try and stop this, to try and fix him or whatever. it was first and foremost the adults in severus' life who failed him over and over again, not lily.

finally a lot of us can't understand how lily ended up marrying her former friends abuser and use this as an argument against her, but i honestly don't want to go too deep into this topic. i personally strongly dislike this relationship, because james treated lily herself like shit too, aswell as other people. we have to believe that he truly did change, even if there is not much to prove this. even if he did, i personally wouldn't have been able to forgive him. but i don't believe that marrying james makes lily a bad person by extension or anything. ultimately, if she was able to find happiness, i'm happy for her.

[midnight1nk]

oh boy i'm gonna ramble, aren't i?

[losing my mind + photo closeups under cut]

...look, I know you're the thumbnail artist for the Team, but BEN YOU CAN'T SAY THESE THINGS. TO ME SPECIFICALLY.

People have pointed out that the left image is from FNAF 4. (so i guess spoiler warning idk)

The context is that it was a puzzle and intended to be open in the same game. However, to this day, no one was able to crack it, and it was never confirmed what was inside that box. Ofc Scott himself planned for there to be more games to return to this point. The thing is, this has been recently changed from "Perhaps some things are best left forgotten, for now" to "Perhaps some things are better left forgotten, forever". For FNAF, it makes sense because the story has changed over time and might not meet the fandom's expectations, but for SMG4?

Here's what we know about the door (literally every mention of it):

When the Castle is revealed, SMG4 goes on to list the rooms the doors lead to...

SMG4: "There's the kitchen, the guest room, my room, the game room, the storage room, the toilet, the exit, and... This... Well... I'm not sure what's behind this door."

Later in the episode, before the Crew went in the gaming room, Luigi points it out again...

Luigi: "Wait, what about that room?" SMG4: "...uh we don't talk about that room."

My interpretation is that Four, since these were his blueprints of the Castle, is aware that something is in there but (1) doesn't even know how to describe it AND/OR (2) doesn't want to reveal it to the Crew. I know for a fact Four suppresses stuff, so no surprise there. There's no reason to have it boarded up unless Four wanted to keep something in. And leave everyone out.

"...for now." yeah, we're gonna have to solve a puzzle aren't we?

As much as this post was simply Ben asking/teasing us, there's no doubt that they're gonna reveal what's inside that room this year. It literally could be anything at this point, from something serious to something embarrassing that Four doesn't want to share. (Then again why have that room in the first place?) Want to take a guess?

but anyway... BEN WHEN I GET YOU BEN— /silly

[tf2heritageposts]

So, there’s been a big buzz about Team Fortress 2 after the prodigal son of Comic 7 came to us, and ya wanna know what the buzz is about, hm? this post will be a guide to the basics of getting into tf2, and becoming more familiar with the fandom, from a dude who's been in it for bout fourish years

INTRO

Well, to start things off, TF2 is a game created by Valve in 2007, aka the creators of the video game marketplace Steam and the extremely popular video games Half-life and Portal. There are also some theories that they all exist in the same universe, but this only is canon to HL and Portal some people will say it also contains tf2 but ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

The video game is free on Steam, that is with a massive asterisk as it does contain in-game purchases with real money,for  which you have to purchase a pass at 2 dollars to be able to talk in game or use voice commands. Valve says this is to protect against bots but the bot problem has been over for months and it still hasn’t been solved so what are ya gonna do? For much cheaper, you can go into the mann co store in game and purchase a vitasaw for .22 cents and viola you can talk now!

Something to note is that you do not need to play the game to engage with the fandom. I’ve been running a semi-popular TF2 gimmick blog for almost three years now and I’ve noted that maybe 20-30% of the fandom has never touched the game or even has steam. All of the fancy lore is purely supplemental material found outside of the game through comics, and you could easily just watch videos containing all of the voice lines if you truly wanted to know what the men you were drawing and writing sounded like. 

THE ACTUAL GAME

Regardless, TF2 itself is a first-person shooter with game modes such as payload, king of the hill/control points, and capture the flag if you’re feeling spicy. If you’ve played overwatch, this is that but it won’t trigger epilepsy by playing it. There's also alterate gamemodes such as payload race where both teams are trying to get a payload to the other side, medieval mode where basically any guns are banned and you are slapping people with swords and fish, as well as pass time which nobody plays but has an extremely obscure and complicated achievement attached to it.

There are also community servers where there are extensively more options for playing, such as casual+ servers where the goal is creating a “better” version of the casual servers. This usually means no crits, changes to bullet spread, aka stuff most non comp players Within these community servers, there's many different gamemodes you can play, such as 10x servers where the damage weapons do gets increased 10x 100x 10000000000x etc etc. There are also “fun” servers where the server owner has put about 100 different plugins and you are just having fun non-serious times. It’s fun. 

There are way more community game modes out there for you to enjoy; such as vs Saxton Hale/freak fortress, dodgeball, prop hunt, and plenty more. Explore that community tab to your heart's desire :]

Also! TF2 has a game known as Mann vs Machine(usually called MVM) where you and six other people all kill thousands of robots who are trying to get a bomb to the other side of the map throughout multiple rounds. It’s good fucking fun man. If you want the chance for loot/an extremely rare form of a weapon if you play a map enough, it’s 72 cents per ticket…….but if you don’t care and just want mindless fun, go boot camp and play for free. Boot camp also has way more maps, and often has charity drives hosted by the community where you can earn a neat little badge.

The game also has an extensive player player-driven economy, but unless anyone asks for a post with the basics since I know more about the economy than I’d like, I’ll just say you don’t need to worry about it. lollichop stocks

THE VIDEOS

Now, for the part, most people know about TF2, aka the Meet the Team series of videos. These are a series of 1-3 minute videos on the Valve YouTube channel that introduce the mercs through a consistently inconsistent format. A few of the videos are formatted like an actual interview with the mercs, while others are formatted more like mini TV shows. They’re all wonderfully entertaining and the source of multiple extremely popular memes, meaning even if you don’t know it you’ve been exposed to the videos before. Most famously, it’s the source of the “professionals have standards” image as well as “he could be any one of us”.  It’ll take you around 15 minutes to binge all of the videos. Even if you aren’t interested in getting TF2, I’d heavily recommend watching the videos due to how funny they are, plus genuinely good-looking 3d animation. The link is right here

There’s also Expiration Date, aka the pilot of the canned TF2 adult swim show. It’s also up on the valve’s channel and is around 15 minutes. It is probably one of the best things Valve has made for TF2, as well as being probably one of the most quoted shit on this godforsaken internet. It’s where the “dear god, there’s more” meme is from. Watch it. Right now. it's only like 15 minutes, what else are you doing with your time?

THE COMICS

This is where all that juicy lore is. Over the last 17 years, the valve has released free comics to go along with the major updates of TF2, as well as a main series of comics called “mann co no More”. The last comic in this series, which only took about 7 years to come out, aka the length of time someone could have a child and then have that child be in elementary school, was released a few weeks ago as of writing out. 

Something to note is that while the update comics are all mostly goofy and do contain some *very important lore*, they’re not serialized and can be from anywhere within the TF2 timeline. Meanwhile, Mann Co No More is a serialized comic and is trying to be a consistent story. It’s an extremely goofy story with about 40% serious and genuinely interesting plot and 60% whatever the fuck soldier is doing at any given moment

It’s all very good fun. Fair warning though if you try to become a TF2 loremaster you will go insane. I sure as hell did. 

And now that you have all of the official stuff out of the way, it’s time for

TF2 YOUTUBERS

For your beginner in the fandom, there are three main YouTubers I would personally recommend 

Lazypurple, my personal favorite TF2 YouTuber, is most famous for his series of videos “How it FEELS to play __” where he goes over what it's like to play any given class. Except medic. He’s still working on that one. Give him time. https://www.youtube.com/@LazyPurple

Another I’d recommend is Soundsmith, most well known for his guide series on playing the soldier subclass(aka alternate game style) of troldier. And also his cosmetic stereotypes series but he doesn’t like that one these days. He also has a series of videos called “A mann’s guide to the __” where he goes over a more obscure or not very used weapon in TF2. Don’t let the title fool you, it is in no way an actual guide. As a quick warning, Soundsmith sometimes uses the R slur in his older videos. He no longer uses it but just as a warning. https://www.youtube.com/@SoundSmithTF2/videos

Finally, there’s Uncle Dane, most famous for his guides on playing Engineer in the most optimal way possible. If you want to main Engie or even have a passing thought about playing him ever, watch him. https://www.youtube.com/@UncleDane

For some other picks on favorite tf2tubers of mine:

jontohil2: https://youtube.com/c/Jontohil2 most famous for his spy psychology series and guides on playing spy

solar light: https://youtube.com/@SolarLight?feature=sharea most famous for his guides on playing the subclass demoknight and also being the best demoknight player par noneelmaxo https://youtube.com/c/elmaxoTF2 most famous for trying to manipulate the steam marketplace that one time and for his playing 100 hours series. He’s retired nowadays but his videos are still good.

and now

TF2 FAN CONTENT

Sfms: 

Source Filmmaker, AKA SFM, is a free animation software developed by Valve originally developed for use in the Meet the Team series of videos that is available for public use. The main draw to the software is the ability to make (easier) 3D animation using premade models that are either built into the software or added in through the steam workshop. Due to TF2 and various other valve properties being built into the software, TF2 is often used as placeholder models for SFM videos. But a good chunk of the SFM community are TF2 fans using it to make fancontent(the most famous ones I will get into later)

Some personal favorite SFM makers mine are:

The winglet https://youtube.com/c/tf2thewinglet most famous for winning every saxxy ever

kostamoinen https://youtube.com/@Kostamoinen?feature=sharea most famous for nothing in particular but just generally being a very good sfm maker

https://www.youtube.com/@SilentManJoe/videos most famous for animating for lythero and not being someone you should watch if you’re under 18 generally

And for some underrated picks:

Misan - https://www.youtube.com/@Misantropico

Hotpockette- https://www.youtube.com/@hotpockette/videos 

Colonel fantzipanzen- https://www.youtube.com/@ColonelFanzipantzen/videos

GMOD:

Garry’s Mod,, AKA Gmod, is a sandbox game made as a mod of half life 2. It’s not meant to be an animation software, but dude to some extensions you can download off the workshop, it can be used as a stop motion software with the ragdolls in the game. This is how people animated before SFM was a thing by the way.

GMOD is most famous for being the source of the most batshit tf2 shit you’ll ever see that also doubles as humorus body horror. TF2’s early fandom humor was based off of gmod. And before you ask, skibidi toilet is an SFM series, not gmod despite the similar humor. 

The most famous GMOD maker is stblackst, who makes some of the highest quality shit you can make in GMOD. However, he often uses the r slur and some of his videos contain some extremely uncomfortable jokes, but unfortunately that’s how it is sometimes. 

Another famous and classic gmod creator is thatgraycartoonpony, most famous for his video “Pyro Paints” that showed everyone that you CAN make pyro funny and expressive. Some of the best. 

Finally in our most famous gmod creator trinity, there’s eltorro64rus, most famous for his absolutely insane gmod videos even for gmod. He’s a classic https://youtube.com/c/Eltorro64Rus

For my personal favorite picks:

Dasmashidx- https://www.youtube.com/@DamashiDX

Crazyscoutfin- https://www.youtube.com/@CrazyScoutFIN

Alxium- https://www.youtube.com/@Alxium

Gooserious- https://www.youtube.com/@GooSerious

FAN GAMES:

Something that’s not talked about a lot for some reason!

The two main fan games I’ll discuss here are both by germanpeter on gamejolt

Overtime- https://gamejolt.com/games/overtime/255028

This one of germanpeter’s two crossover tf2 games. Here it’s a crossover of TF2 and Undertale. A legitemtnly fun experience and a good undertale fangame. Fair warning, the sprites are vaguely terrifying.

Midnight Mercenaries- https://gamejolt.com/games/midnightmercenaries/375928

Another crossover game, this one being a crossover of TF2 and Hotline Miami. One of the most fun fan games ive ever played period. Fair warning, if you know what hotline miami is like tone wise, it’s carried over here. Ending may be a bit too angsty and depressing for some people.  

Capture the Intelligence- https://gamejolt.com/games/gmod-capture-the-intelligence/850383

This one is not made by germanpeter! It’s a short horror game with heavy early 2010s gmod inspiration and is pretty goofy. I haven’t personally played it due to time, but I’ve  heard it’s good.

and now

FANDOM ESSENTIALS

Emesis Blue (and Spy’s disguise)

Emesis blue is a horror film created by the studio Fortress films that came out in 2023. It is one of the most popular sfms in the TF2 fandom ever, and is a full length movie. Seriously, it’s two hours long. I don’t wanna spoil it but I promise it’s good.

However, it’s technically a sequel to another Fortress Film SFM called spy’s disguise. This one is only 20 minutes, and much more humorous than Emesis blue. It is full of body horror though whoops! I would recommend watching it beforehand though. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MiJWNkmWfs - spy’s disguise https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0ODG8bFme0&t=4s - Emesis blue

Pootis Engage 

A sfm two part series by the wonderful ceno0 that completely changed the SFM landscape. It is so fucking well animated I can’t stress this enough. It is also extremely horny so I’d only watch if you’re of age. 

Pootis engage - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl6lee2wyPQ&list=PLvgjnNWlcA0x_WMVzuZquKYwTFVbiBekn&index=1&t=144s&pp=iAQBPootis engage// extreme - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGJBUauU-CE&list=PLvgjnNWlcA0x_WMVzuZquKYwTFVbiBekn&index=2&t=134s&pp=iAQB

The Heavy is Dead

Aka that video we as a fandom are annoying about. A video by the wonderful gmod creator Delak, who doesn’t really do TF2 nowadays, you need to watch it. Not optional sorry

Freak Fortress:

Have you been wondering what the hell is up with those weird edgy looking versions of Tf2 characters? And why some of them consider communion to be literally eating Jesus’s flesh? 

Well, Freak Fortress is a  community of people who make videos using GMOD with community created characters called “Freaks”. You know how SPC is a community/fandom of people who make SPCS and then everyone uses SPCS in their own stories and whatnot? It’s like that. The freaks are usually mercs with specific cosmetics or alterations to their models that act as their own chracters rather than being the mercs.

The most famous ones being

Painis Cupcake - https://tf2freakshow.fandom.com/wiki/Painis_Cupcake

Christian Brutal Sniper- https://tf2freakshow.fandom.com/wiki/Christian_Brutal_Sniper

And Christian Pure Spy- https://tf2freakshow.fandom.com/wiki/Christian_Pure_Spy 

You may notice I linked wiki pages and not videos or playlists. This is due to a few reasons

CPS’s videos are all taken down and you have to watch them through archived channels now, which are pretty hard to find with youtube’s shitty search engine

So many people make different videos with just these three characters, it’s better just to look at the video section of the wiki pages and go through there

If you wanted to get into Freak Fortress, I’d reccomend finding a freak you like on the wiki and then binging all of the videos linked on their page. 

My two personal favorites: 

Soldine -  https://tf2freakshow.fandom.com/wiki/Soldine

Polish Soldier- https://tf2freakshow.fandom.com/wiki/Polish_Soldier

Lil Pootis:

A cute little kind of extremely dark at some points 2d animated series of tf2 videos by the wonderful Quazies. The series is going to be completed for good soon, but as of right now there are nine videos 

and that should be about it. if you have any questions, feel free to ask me. or if you want any gmod reccomendations. i fucking love gmod woo

[aplacefordreaming24]

WAAAAA HELLO HELLO HELLO

I have so many f/o's but I'll always happily take the chance to gush about my main. His name is Ted, and he's just- sigh. He's so perfect to me. I love him so much. He's the light of my life and I always feel better just thinking about him hehehe

My irl bf was the one who introduced me to him actually ;0 and it took *years* irl for me to really think about him the way I do now!!! Because originally I watched a playthrough of the game he comes from, and,,, ngl the light he's shown in that is kinda awful? Not the worst, but certainly not the best. But then, years later, I finally got around to reading the original story he comes from (It was a short story first called "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream," and then it got turned into a game). And just. God. Idk. Something about him, just- clicked!

And like, you wouldn't think it would, because ngl he's kinda, worse in the story? But it was more just- why he is the way he is that clicked. The reasons behind how he behaves that you don't learn in the game. And so much of himself, his core character, was changed in the game. (Same with everyone, besides like, the villain). And for the first time, I saw someone who was very similar to me. I felt seen and understood by his true character, and it made me grow really sympathetic for him.

After the initial shock wore down, it all just kinda came crashing into "Omg I love him so much I just wanna make him so happy" ykyk?? The way his story ends is so tragic but I wanna believe that it isn't the end. That he'll end up happy, eventually, no matter how long it takes. And I wanna be the one waiting for him with open arms to bring him that happiness and support and love that he deserves and never got.

It's silly. It's dumb. A lot of the fandom is split on his character; some really love him like me, and others kinda hate the hell out of him. And it always kinda gets me down but yk, he's still my love. My prince. My one and only. I just try to think about comforting him and block people who hate him cause like. I get it. I get why you would. But that doesn't mean I have to, feel the same? At least I think so.

He has a lot of paranoia about people hating him. I do too, but I'm always there to remind him it's not true. I'll never hate him. He has my heart, and even if he chose someone else, I'd still love him. His happiness means more to me than some silly conditional thing.

Maybe that's a little unhealthy to say. But yk, I feel this way for all my relationships, friendships, etc. I'd rather you be happy without me than miserable around me. No point in sticking around; it does neither of us any good.

Idk. I could go on and on about my s/i and his relationship (If you've ever heard of Orpheus and Eurydice, they're very much like that, including the doomed aspect). How they're two sides of the same coin and such. But like- man. If I sit here and talk all day about him I'm not gonna get anything I need to do today done.

Sorry if this is long fnjdfjk really if you don't wanna respond you don't have to!! But ty for giving me a place to gush about him ;0

AND PLEASE FEEL FREE TO GUSH ABOUT YOU AND VERGIL TO ME TOO I'D LOVE TO HEAR IT!!! I LOVE LISTENING TO PEOPLE TALK ABOUT THEIR LOVES!!!

GUSH ABOUT YOUR F/O IN THE REBLOGS TO ME AND I WILL ACTUALLY LISTEN AND RESPOND TO THEM ACCORDINGLY BECAUSE YOU 🫵 DEAR READER DESERVE TO HAVE YOUR INTERESTS TREATED WITH RESPECT AND NOT JUST GET A "wow that's neat"

doubles and proshippers dni! Doubles you also deserve respect I'm just not very good at sharing I'm so sorry!

[bellaxgiornata]

How Much Did You Miss Me?

Pairing: Jax Teller x fem!Reader Word Count: 3k [Jax Fic Masterlist]

Warnings/tags: 18+; smut, f!masturbation, cocky Jax and his filthy mouth, somewhat rough sex (kinda, not really), porn with minimal plot, unprotected sex

Summary: While Jax is on a protection run, you're desperate to ease some tension so you can fall asleep. But when he unexpectedly returns early, he's determined to prove he's better than your toy.

a/n: This is pure filth. All of it. I was writing some soft!Jax smut and was struck with the need for something with a cocky Jax, so this interrupted that and fell out of me really quick. Newer to this fandom, but if you'd like me to tag something not listed above, let me know. Feedback and reblogs are always appreciated!

You hated nights like tonight. Nights when Jax was out late doing a protection run with the club and you were left alone in your apartment.

You especially hated nights like tonight when you couldn't seem to ignore that damn incessant ache between your thighs no matter how hard you tried. You knew you’d never get to sleep tonight if you didn’t get rid of it, but all you wanted was Jax–his mouth, his fingers, his cock. Right now you craved any part of him, but he was probably hours away on his bike and you were here with nothing but your damn vibrator.

Head nestled amidst the pillows of your bed, your eyes squeezed tightly shut as the repetitive buzzing noise drowned out the sound of anything else in your apartment. You were focused on the pleasure steadily building in your body as your mind desperately tried to conjure up images from the last time you'd been with Jax two mornings ago. Holding tight to the memory of him lazily fucking into you while half awake from that other morning, you desperately attempted to chase your release just so that you could relax enough to finally go to sleep tonight.

Teeth biting down on your lip, you could feel that intoxicating sensation gradually growing stronger within you. You were getting closer, inching nearer and nearer as that wave of pleasure crept its way up your spine. Keeping your focus on the memory of Jax with your legs tossed over his shoulders, his large hands holding your ankles firmly in place as he slowly rolled his hips into you, your back arched along the bed as the pleasure continued to build. You were so damn close now.

But the sound of a familiar deep, rumbling chuckle broke through the moment. 

Just as you'd startled and opened your eyes, Jax was reaching down and pulling the toy out of your hand without the slightest hesitation. With a smug smirk on his lips, he easily turned the vibrator off without even glancing away from where you were sprawled naked on the bed before him.

“Really, baby?” he asked, his tone a mixture of amused and annoyed as he gestured his head at the vibrator in his hand. “This what you do when I'm gone?”

Lips parting in surprise for the briefest moment, you gaped at his audacity. Seconds later you recovered, shooting him a pointed look that only had his smirk growing a little more.

“What the hell, Jax?” you shot back in frustration. 

He held the toy up higher in his hand, his brows raising back at you. “You think I'm gonna let my girl use this fucking thing when I've got something much better?”

If it wasn't for the fact that you were feeling sufficiently sexually frustrated at the moment, you'd have found the sight of him holding your purple vibrator up with that look on his face somewhat funny. But right now you didn't feel anything close to entertained.

“You were supposed to be out, Jax,” you reminded him. “What the hell else am I supposed to do when you're gone? Suffer?”

“Now there's a thought,” he mused.

With an annoyed huff, you watched as he turned around to set the vibrator on your dresser. Pushing yourself upright on the bed, you frowned at him when he turned back to face you.

“Come on now, darlin’,” he drawled, a glint in his eyes as they roamed over the way you sat naked on the bed. “Don't give me that look. I'm not going to leave you so...tense.” 

Your eyes narrowed at the way he was still grinning at you. Unaffected by your look, his hands reached up and slowly slipped the leather kutte off of his shoulders, letting it drop to your bedroom floor with a soft thump.

“What's the catch, Jax?” you asked him, cutting straight to the point.

He chuckled at your question, his hands casually undoing the buttons of his flannel one at a time next. “No catch, baby. I wouldn't do that to you. Not when it seems like I interrupted you before your satisfying conclusion.”

You shook your head immediately, not entirely believing what he was telling you–not with that look on his face. Thighs pressing together as you watched him undress, your body was craving release at this point. It didn't help that Jax had caught the subtle squirming and shifting of your hips, his eyes dropping down towards your legs. His tongue darted out, running slowly along his bottom lip as he slid the flannel down his arms and to the floor. Your eyes immediately drank in the sight of his bare chest, raking over every toned muscle, little scar, and tattoo now made visible.

“Okay, maybe one little catch,” he amended.

Gritting your teeth together, you watched as his hands lowered, beginning to slowly undo the button and the zipper of his jeans. He was going so slow on purpose just to tease you.

“What?” you grudgingly asked.

“I want to hear you,” he continued, pushing his jeans and black boxer briefs down his thighs in one fluid movement that had you almost salivating at the sight of him finally bare. “No keeping quiet tonight. I don't give a shit if we piss off your neighbors again.” He kicked out of his clothes, taking two steps before he was right at the foot of the bed. “I want to know how much more you enjoy my cock. I want to hear it. You got that?” 

His eyes held yours as he leaned forward and planted both hands on the edge of the bed. There was a challenge in his expression, daring you to tell him no. But you knew better than to do that because then he probably really would leave you frustrated and unsatisfied tonight. And honestly, you had a feeling you'd be so sensitive at this point that you wouldn't be keeping very quiet.

“It's not like I wanted that thing over you in the first place, Jax,” you answered flatly. 

Clearly your response had been one he wanted to hear because Jax climbed up onto your bed the second you'd finished speaking. He jutted his chin out at you before he spoke again, that smug smirk he often wore returning.

“Roll over, baby. On your stomach,” he ordered.

You hesitated for only a moment, just long enough to take in the sight of him naked on his knees on your bed, one hand stroking his hardening length. He looked so good that you just couldn’t help yourself, but the moment one of his brows arched at you, you shifted and turned, laying down on your stomach.

“There you go, baby,” he praised in a deep rumble.

His voice went straight to your cunt, a surge of pleasure running through you. His rough hands grabbed onto your hips, shifting them a little higher up off the bed before one of them slid over to grab a firm handful of your ass. A quiet, soft little noise slipped out of you in response, the anticipation of what was coming causing your cunt to pathetically clench around nothing. 

As Jax pushed your legs apart wider with his knees, making room for himself between them, a pleased, throaty noise vibrated in his chest. The sound alone had your hands fisting the bed sheets before you glanced over your shoulder at him behind you.

“Already impatient, darlin’?” Jax teased.

“Of course I'm impatient, you interrupted what I was–”

Your words were cut off the second he ran the tip of himself through your damp folds, a gasp falling out of you instead. You were so damn sensitive already from what you'd just been doing that you didn't think you’d be lasting much longer. Especially when another throaty, satisfied noise left Jax behind you.

“What was that, baby?” he asked, amused. “Would you have preferred the toy instead?”

He teased the tip of himself against your entrance, barely pressing himself against you. Your eyelids immediately fluttered, your breath hitching. You just wanted to feel him already.

“No, Jax,” you nearly whined in response.

Trying to compose yourself as you watched him once more over your shoulder, you saw the slow, satisfied grin spread over his lips. A second later you were rewarded with the feel of him partially sinking into you, the sensation causing your mouth to fall open and a soft groan to slip out.

“That fucking toy get you this goddamn wet?” he growled, a hint of irritation in his tone. “That why you feel so goddamn good already?”

Jax moved behind you, leaning forward on the bed until his body was flush over the back of yours, resting his forearms along the mattress on either side of your hands to withhold some of his weight from off of you. His hips pushed himself further inside of you a little more roughly than usual as if to emphasize his displeasure at your use of the vibrator. The gesture met with a sharper gasp from you this time.

“Was–was thinking about you,” you managed to breathe out.

His face hovered just over your shoulder now, his mouth beside your ear when another pleased rumble sounded in his throat. He pulled his hips slowly backwards, his cock nearly slipping out of you before he roughly buried himself fully back into you in one quick movement. A high-pitched curse flew out of your mouth, your eyes snapping shut.

“So you were thinking about me?” he murmured, his tone far softer than the current thrust of his hips against you. His head shifted, his lips brushing the shell of your ear as he spoke. “You miss me that much when I'm out with the club, baby?”

“Mhmm,” you hummed out, the noise sounding more like a needy whine.

Jax’s pace increased at your response, his cock repeatedly burying itself so deep inside of you that he kept hitting the spot that made the edges of your vision nearly burn white. You were so damn close again already, each of his panting breaths and rough grunts in your ear drawing you right back to the moment he had interrupted a little bit ago.

You loved this position and Jax knew it. The angle he could thrust into you was always perfect, allowing him to fill you completely with every sharp snap of his hips. And you loved the feel of his solid, warm body pressed flush over the entirety of you, his weight pressing you deep into the mattress as he practically overwhelmed all of your senses. You could feel the pull of his muscles against your back, hear the grunts and heavy breaths slipping out of his mouth beside your ear, feel his hot breath along your neck, smell the familiar scent of cigarettes and leather.

Your cunt was tightening around him already at the influx of stimulation, squeezing him as you kept drawing closer to the release you craved. A flurry of soft moans had been increasingly tumbling out of your mouth as he continued to roughly fuck into you, his hips repeatedly ramming into your ass over and over. But you could tell he wanted more when the hand beside yours moved, sliding its way along the bed before moving between your body and the mattress, brushing down past your breasts and your stomach. His hand continued its descent further until it stopped between your thighs, his fingertips landing right on your already sensitive clit. A hiss of pleasure came from between your teeth and Jax huffed in amusement beside your ear.

“Baby, I know you can be louder,” he panted out. “I told you I wanna hear you.”

His fingers began rubbing circles against that sensitive bundle of nerves and your eyes nearly rolled back into your head. You felt like you were drowning in bliss now as his hips continued rolling roughly into you, the sound of skin on skin obscenely mixing with Jax’s grunts and your growing moans.

“Louder,” he ordered, continuing to speak into your ear between gritted teeth and forceful thrusts. “Let me–hear you. Wanna know–how much–you missed me.”

“Fuck–Jax–”

With an animalistic grunt, his teeth latched onto your earlobe, giving a couple of sharp tugs against the delicate skin as his fingers continued rubbing against you. Your cunt fluttered around him, gripping him like a vice. He groaned in response, releasing your earlobe before his forehead dropped onto your shoulder as his hips began to stutter, slowly losing their rhythm as he neared his own release. That had your own hips beginning to push back against him, desperately trying to match his pace and take him somehow deeper.

“That’s it baby,” he whispered into your skin. His body pressed more of its weight on top of you as he kept ramming his hips into yours, chasing his own release. “That’s my girl.”

“Jax–I’m–”

You couldn’t get the words out, you were already teetering on the edge of an orgasm, one that felt far stronger than normal because of its delay. At the feel of Jax pressing a soft kiss to your shoulder, your eyes snapped tightly shut.

“I know, baby,” he murmured, his voice strained. “Let go for me. Need you to–” he paused, breaking off on a groan that had your toes curling along the sheets as he hit you with a particularly deep thrust. “Need you to–cum for me.”

When the pads of his fingers added just a bit more pressure to your clit, you finally lost it underneath him. A moan tore its way up through you, ringing out through your bedroom as your fingers fisted the bed sheets even tighter. Jax continued to thrust into you, though the movements had grown sloppy as his breaths grew ragged and loud beside your ear. He was grunting and groaning as your body trembled its way through your orgasm until he gave another particularly deep, sharp thrust that had you crying his name.

That’s when Jax finally lost it. A resonant, beautiful moan tumbled out from between his lips as his hand finally left its place between your thighs to grip the pillow beside your head. He gave a few more rough pumps into you before you felt the warmth of his release fill you. You hummed softly, your cunt continuing to twitch around him.

Jax expelled a deep breath before he practically collapsed half on top of you, the weight of him only causing your already blissfully boneless body to relax further into the bed. As you both sat there panting, your loud breaths filling the room as your sweat-dampened bodies remained tangled together, you could feel his cock gradually beginning to soften inside of you. 

“So that–that’s what you get up to when I’m out, huh?” Jax finally asked, still sounding out of breath. “You and that goddamn vibrator get nice and close when I’m busy?”

Turning your head along the pillow, your eyes met Jax’s as his head rested on the pillow beside yours. There was a lazy half-smile on his lips as he gazed back at you, but there was something soft and tender shining in his eyes as he watched you in return. He looked so damn good all flushed and satisfied that you were half tempted to rile him up for another round once you recovered.

“Not every time,” you answered, a small smile slipping onto your lips as your breath came in heavy. “Just…some nights. When I’m missing you.”

A soft, amused breath left him as his hand reached up, lightly brushing aside a strand of hair that had stuck to the perspiration along your forehead with his fingertips. “Yeah?” he murmured, his hand coming to gently stroke your cheek. “Miss me that much tonight, did you?”

You hummed an affirmative response, your small smile growing. “Yeah. Wasn’t expecting you to come over tonight,” you told him, your heart still pounding heavily in your chest. “You made it sound like you’d be gone all night.”

“I was supposed to be,” he replied. “Had that protection run. Wasn’t gonna be back until four in the morning. But then some bullshit was going down at the clubhouse so Clay sent Opie and I back. Think he meant it like a punishment or somethin’.”

Jax laughed softly, shifting on the bed to ease some of his weight off of you. The movement had you once more growing aware of the fact that he was still inside of you. 

“Jokes on him,” he continued, that usual cocky smirk slipping onto his face. “Wasn’t that big of a problem to handle. And right now, this don’t feel remotely like a punishment.”

Quirking a brow back at him, a small grin tugged at your lips. “You want me to make it feel like one?” you teased.

Jax’s hand reached down, lightly swatting your ass as he grinned deviously at you. The gesture had you laughing, the sound causing the corners of his eyes to crease.

“Baby, this is your punishment for using that goddamn toy,” he reminded you. 

“Not feeling very much like a punishment for me, either,” you joked back.

That devious expression on his face only grew, a hint of mischief glinting in his eyes suddenly. He leaned forward off the pillow, his teeth lightly mouthing at your bare shoulder as his eyes continued to hold your gaze.

“You want me to make it feel like one?” he asked, throwing your words back at you.

A shudder ran up your spine at the sultry tone of his voice before a sinful smirk pulled the corners of his lips upwards. You were definitely in for it tonight.

[cads-the-cat]

Sleep Token is being turned into a brand rather than a band and being commercialised to a point where it will harm them more than help them

An opinion on there being too much ST merch

Befofe starting this, i want to clear up a few things

I am aware that Vessel and ii probably have very little responsibility/say in this and it's the management/rca who is doing this

Yes, i am a fan and i support them. However, it is unhealthy and not good to blindly support every decision and action of your favourite artist, person etc without questioning them and holding them accountable

I know that earning money with music in times of streaming is hard/impossible but that does not justify those moves of tryihg to get as much money as possible out of them

This also applies to other bands, but the extent to which this aapplies to ST is extreme compared to others

We are one week into this year and there has already been a new merch drop. After 6 days. You know when the last one was? Less than a month ago. Same merch shop (US). The items? Some of them questionable (flannels??). The leather jacket? Insane (not in a good way). It looks okay but you could make one yourself and make it look way cooler and get it for less money as one of my tumblr moots said.

I remember last year up until July/August it kind of was a running joke in the fandom about the emails with obtain and how we're too broke to obtain, but now? This is not a joke anymore. Ever since last year we have gotten emails ALMOST EVERY MONTH, sometimes even several times a month about new merch releases.

Yes, there are different stores worldwide, but we live in a time of international shipping. And even for one store it's lots of releases. Plus then there's all the licensed products shops like Hot Topic, Impericon, EMP and whatever their local equivalents are, who also constantly release more merch.

What's even worse: a lot of those things are either a shitty quality (if i remember right, one of the hoodies or tshirts from the EU tour 2024 had the print peeling off after one wash) and/or really bland. Where is the cool art, the thing that makes these items special? I got a tshirt from the German Rituals 2023 with this sick artwork on it that i cherish more than anything. But compared to that most tour merch of the more recent tours has been nothing special.

Most of them just have the logo on it and it reminds me of any ither fashion brand. There's only so many jumpers and t-hsirts and sweatshirts with the logo that a person needs and the constant release of new but actually the same stuff is creating this insane overconsumption which harms fans' bank accounts and the environment and is straight up boring. There's nothing about them that makes them special and unique and cool. It feels like at this point it is a contest of how many ST logos can they plaster on an item before it looks ridiculous (on the leather jacket i counted at least four, three of them massive).

Which brings me to the next point. People just slap on a ST logo because the band is so hyped and to make money off it or get more clicks, even if it is only remotely related to them. I understand that in today's world you need to use buzzwords to make people pay attention, but with ST it has reached the most ridiculous level. The air of anticipation some magazines or brands build around some upcoming stuff with words like Worship and whatever, which everyone connects to ST, just to reveal a mid product or result is just horrible and will eventually make it less effective which can harm the band in the long run if they can't build up excitement for new releases as much as they could because everyone is 'burnt out' because it's been overused.

Overall, this insane amount of merch and using ST to sell anything or get clicks is not okay. The fan base is so dedicated and loyal and we deserve better than to be - for the lack of a better word - exploited like this just because we like and support an artist. Prices for everything have been rising for years and it's hard for a lot of us financially. We spend so much money on concerts already and then the ton of merch and everything on top is just too much. ST as a brand is used to exploit fans which is not how you should treat your fans (again want to emphasise that this is mostly on management and label, not Vessel)

You might think 'But you don't have to go to concerts or buy their merch'. That's right, you don't. But concerts are kind of the thing when you're a fan of a band, and you want to support your fave band abd wear merch and show that you like them. However, the merch and everything is limited and posed in a way that creates FOMO and everyone is always drilled to Consume and Obtain (yes that's how capitalism works and that is not good in this situation because it harms us fans so much.) I can't deny I've given in to this as well twice during the EU shows and i am now left with an underwhelming sweatshirt and a hat that i never really needed and probably wouldn't have bought if i hadn't been in this mindset so much.

'Oh but i want to support Vessel and the band.' Yes, merch does help out artists, especially in times of streaming. But how much do you think they make? Merch is using little to no lyrics or song related things that the band could earn money off due to copyright. And i don't know who owns the right to the logo (i did some research and found someone in management with three trademarks on something ST related but it never specified if that applies to just the name or the logo or the music or whatever - it was not Vessel though). Who knows how much is going to management and the label and how much the band actually earns. Right now it feels like the management and label want to make as much money possible from them for their own gain. As an alternative to support them, start buying their albums and vinyls so they earn more money off their songs.

So, what do i want? Obviously i don't want fans to stop buying merch because it does help artists to some degree. However, I want less merch releases, one or maximum two a year per merch store (so AUS, US and UK/EU). We can have a few simple designs with the logo on it, but i also want some cool pieces with art or something else that makes them special. I know artists are expensive and stuff, but that's why you make less items but higher quality. Make them available in larger quantities so that more people can buy them and they will still get their money. Plus you always have extra tour merch, which is another extra release. Make the merch special again and make it mean something to people instead of just being another logo like a fashion brand.

If they continue like this fans will eventually be unable to afford stuff, people will turn away from merch because they realise it's all the same, and the effect of using ST as a brand/connection simply to sell stuff will harm their reputation (it already is). Whoever is responsible for this merch insanity needs to put a stop to it. Please!

This is just my opinion. Disagree if you want to. Some things, especially the effects of the situation, are portrayed slightly exaggerated, but this is how it makes me feel and I truly believe this is not a great situation we're in right now with the merch.

(Not taking any responsibility for typos)