#this is just something appalling i've witnessed happen

[wewatchyoujuno]

some of you guys have to realize that just because you're (white) queer people on tumblr that like to pretend to be intellectuals and use big words doesn't exempt you from having bad takes and being a general piece of shit and talking over queer poc btw

[an-ambivalent]

I thought of this scenario... 😳🙃 So um anyway... Back on my uchiha bullshit.

Warning: yandere content and themes of abuse. Read at your own discretion. I do not condone this behaviour in real life.

Imagine one of those medieval european settings from any villianess/isekai manhwa you've read. The royal family (the Uchihas) are tyrannical rulers, particularly the current monarch Fugaku Uchiha. There's no room for error, people are easily beheaded left and right for the tiniest mistake or "disrespect" against the Uchiha family.

Itachi understood his family dynamics. So, he adapted quickly and knew how to behave and navigate his family complex situations to not get on his father's bad side. Despite whatever he believed, he did whatever Fugaku expected him to do to not face his father's wrath. But, Sasuke on the other hand... He's always been a bit more oblivious from a young age.

He lived a sheltered life. His mother already lost her first son to Fugaku, she didn't want to repeat the same mistakes so she kept him more isolated and protected. It didn't matter because Fugaku ignored his youngest son anyway. He only cared for his heir, Itachi.

Raised in his own little bubble, there were only few people Sasuke interacted with: his mum, his nanny, and his nanny's daughter and his only playmate: you. There wasn't much else for a long time, just sweet innocent childhood memories. That's until he reaches a certain age and starts noticing the difference between his brother's status and his own, and his own father never even speaks to him. He wants to start seeking out his father and yearns for his approval.

There have been something different about Itachi lately. Fugaku knows he's losing his control on his son. There's not much he can do until he notices his second son lingering around. Its perfect because Sasuke is seeking his approval and Fugaku needs to restart his training for a new puppet.

The tyrannical monarch, when seeking out his second son for the first time, witnesses the most appaling his scene. His son, a royal prince is confessing to you, a mere servant's child, a commoner. That's not the worst part: how dare you, a filthy peasant, dare to reject his son?! Who did you think you were?!

That scene is enough to show how lacking Sasuke's education has been under his incompetent mother. The most pretegious family, Uchiha, they don't ask. They take what they want, when they want it.

And then before anything could happen, both you and Sasuke are captured by the imperial guards. You're terrified. You've heard countless of stories about how ruthless the Emperor is. You knew that with your status, death awaited you. For Sasuke, despite whatever his harsh punishment, his royal status would protect his life.

You cried out in pain as the knights pinned you to the ground. The concrete dug into your skin, causing painful abrasions, and you felt blood gushing out of your forehead.

Sasuke cried out in panic at seeing your situation. "Father please! Stop-"

"Insolent child! No child of mine will be ever at a peasant's mercy! Clearly, your education has been lacking. I've been too lenient with my dear wife. It's about time I take you under my wing.

"You're not going to be like Itachi, I'll make sure of it. I'm going to teach you how to take things for yourself and keep them for yourself."

Fugaku loomed over Sasuke; the young boy wept in fear, with tears at the corner of his eyes, and legs shaking.

"Do you want her?"

"W-what?"

Fugaku clicked his tongue and his glared hardened. "Don't make me repeat myself boy, I will make you regret it. You confessed to her. Do you want her?"

"Y-Yes."

"Then you will have her. No child of mine will be denied anything, especially not from a peasant. You're going to keep her and learn how to take what you want and keep everything under your control." He said, grinning widely.

You could do nothing but tremble in fear knowing that you were going to be nothing but become a possession for another future tyrannical monarch.

[themsource]

Toriel Is Flawed Too /Rant

Newsletter just made me dislike Toriel a little more.

"Seven was weak. Duty is no reason to harm another..."

What about the harm caused by not doing anything as queen? Harm by locking the humans in your house (to essentially live out their days down there as prisoners until they die because what other option do they have) and abandoning them once they want to leave (literally turns off her phone, seriously, they just want to get home i'm sure) when you don't get your way, like you did your people, instead of trying to help them along the way?

There is no accountability taken on her part whatsoever.

Just to be clear I'm not saying she should've thrown her morals out and caused harm, and went along with Asgore's plan, I'm saying she shouldn't have thrown a tantrum and reacted dramatically (like Asgore did) and ran off.

I've seen arguments of "HER PEOPLE PUSHED HER AWAY WHAT COULD SHE DO?!"

Uh... done her job as a monarch and put them in line.

Everyone likes Toriel because she's "mommy" well look at it like this, when you're queen, your people are your children, and it's YOUR JOB to guide them even if they give you a hard time, either until they physically rip the throne from you or you go down trying.

She can literally bring Asgore to heel with just a look for crying out loud! She stopped him from hurting Frisk in TP route after she got off her lazy haunches! Are you honestly going to tell me she couldn't have tamed Asgore, and in turn her people if she had put her mind to it back then? But no, instead she left because she was appalled, because her feelings got hurt, and that was more important than the lives of every single monster underground.

I get grief makes us blind but that's where maturity comes in, you have to know when the time to cry is and when's the time to take action and LEAD.

Toriel acted like a child and let her emotions rule her just like Asgore did when he declared that law against humans...

So to call him weak (indirectly but still) is a hypocrisy.

She was just as weak, but at least he tried to do something with his weakness (his anger and grief) rather than hiding as she did. Toriel should've stayed, she should've tried. And it's all the more bitter that she can have a solution such as Asgore using only one soul to cross and come back with six more only after all of the mess she helped cause.

Which is another question, how was he supposed to get those six souls, Toriel? He still would have to have harvested them, harm still would have occurred because I honestly doubt humans would willingly give up their loved ones souls (even if they believed souls exist in the first place without trying to kill Asgore right away like what happened with Chara/Asriel. I know I wouldn't like the idea of sacrificing my loved one's soul even if they were dying either).

And it's clear mages aren't a thing anymore given how Frisk can't even use magic (I'm not getting into the RESET = Magic debate, it's clearly something to do with the underground and determination and only one person can wield it, if you go off of how Flowery lost the ability once Frisk fell, so bringing multiple humans along just doesn't make sense to try and work. Flowey only broke the barrier cuz he was a monster that could use magic and so could use the souls properly).

Toriel's plan, while effective, was based on her not being able to witness what Asgore would've had to do... and that's it. The plan was again, to protect her feelings. There is no difference between what happened and would've happened except for being able to choose who the human sacrifice would be, and once again that would be blood on Asgore's hands.

So realistically... there was no way to avoid somebody getting harmed. Not with either of their solutions at face value at least. And she doesn't have the wisdom or maturity to recognize that, and if she does she is a hypocrite and a slanderer to place all the blame on Asgore for things that can't be realistically avoided.

Don't get me wrong, I like Toriel... to an extent.

But sometimes it's frustrating when you see all the love she gets and the hate Asgore receives, more so when she's got a pitchfork against him too! And this newsletter just made me want to punt her right out a window.

[ruffboijuliaburnsides]

"Has anyone been paying attention to [atrocity or other legitimately horrible thing] going on in [country], or [veiled accusations of bigotry for not knowing]? [insert a post with news but absolutely zero calls to action or suggestions of how someone outside the country might help]"

love that this kind of post is still going around on tumblr. /s this post i'm making is a complaint of every one of that kind of guilt trip post I've ever seen, prompted by one that crossed my dash recently.

first of all, i can barely keep up with the news of what atrocities are happening in my own country, i have literally no idea what's happening in the rest of the world right now. it's not just you. i couldn't tell you what's happening in canada or mexico or half the time even the next state over. Get mad at international news for not covering it, but don't bring that guilt trip down on me.

second of all, if you ARE going to try to bring that guilt trip down on me, the least you could fucking do is tell me how i can fucking help. If you're talking about widespread awareness, the people you want to be pissed at are NEWS OUTLETS for not reporting on it. If you have actual concrete ways the average non-citizen of that country can help, then we're getting somewhere at least.

third of all yes it's a horrible thing. Like, holy shit I read that and was appalled. But all that's going to do is... make me appalled. and feeling worse about the world. Because I can't *help*, apparently, you just want me to be AWARE, okay fine but i'm busy being AWARE of how my own country is trying to kill me right now so you'll forgive me if i have limited resources to focus on a situation i can't change or do anything about other than bear witness to it, apparently. Or that's the sense you gave me by guilt tripping me and then providing zero resources.

But yeah. If something's going down in your country and you want to make a post saying "guys please I just need to make sure people know what's happening" without having any resources for whatever reason, that's fine. I'm supportive. I may even reblog it, though I prefer posts with any sort of indication for how I can help or change the situation.

But making that post, with no resources for how people can help, but also PREFACING it with a snide guilt-tripping accusation of our own bigotry being the reason none of us know about what's happening, rather than a lack of international news coverage and possibly our own preoccupations with stuff happening in our own country? fuck you. I hope the bad shit stops happening and I hope you stay safe, but I think you specifically are a fucking asshole.

[karenandhenwilson]

One last post from my side about this

I've been pondering how to do this post for the last couple of days, and also if I should write it at all. My thoughts went from being really vicious and unrepentantly calling out a couple of people to just not bother with wasting my energy on it to feeling very unsatisfied with some of the things that have been said or not been said despite also being relieved about the turn this situation took on Tuesday.

(The rest is under the break because this turned out long. Much longer than I expected.)

I honestly believe that any kind of call out post is always a form of cyberbullying. Because in the end, what you are doing with that in social media isn't informing people about a problem. What you are doing is trying to get people blindly to agree to your point of view by twisting the information you present. And sadly, all too often it works. 

It did work this time, too. I have seen several people state, publicly but also privately, that they saw one of the call-out posts from Monday and reblogged without looking at the publicly available conversation with the artist. When they then looked at it later, they were appalled with themselves to have blindly followed the accusations. I hope for those people and also at least a fracture of the people seeing their posts about it, this is a lesson: Always double check the information you are fed. (And honestly, that goes for news outlets as much as any social media post. But I don't want this post to be about media literacy.)

I'm aware that this is a kind of call out post all on it's own. The version of this post from Monday would have named all the names and at that time I wouldn’t have felt sorry about it. But that's the thing about reacting and posting something while the emotions are high, isn't it? A version from Tuesday doesn't exist, because I thought it not worth the energy and time the would be spend on it.

In the meantime, I have come to the conclusion that while I will be addressing a certain group of people, this post wouldn't have ever been about them, not even the first version from Monday. It's about fandom as a whole, preserving information for those who'll join the fandom in the future or who'll be attacked or witness an attack in the future or those who'll stumble over what happened this last week later on who are completely unaware of it right now. Because thankfully, for the fandom as a whole it didn't go very far.

I'm aware that in a way, I'm contradicting myself, that I might be participating in cyberbullying with this post. I'm rationalizing this for myself by the circumstances that it's a conclusion of a bullying campaign and that I won't feel responsible for those who started it being now attacked themselves. Some people will tell me I'm still wrong, some will shrug about it, others will agree with me. It is the reason, though, that I have decided not to name any names even though it will be stupidly easy to find the names I'm talking about. For that reason, I have cropped the screenshots I'll share about things I feel I need or want to address or blacked out the names on those screenshots.

To everyone who'll feel encouraged to seek out those names and spam their ask boxes or DMs with provocations or hate: Don't do it! It might feel satisfying in the beginning (the thought alone of the Monday-version of this post felt on Monday very satisfying for me, too), but it won't accomplish anything. They have proven they don't want to have a conversation, no matter how much they claim differently. Nothing will make them overthink and judge their own actions. (Also, I hope not providing the names here will make most of those who first like leaving anon hate to have lost interest once they have found the names because it will give them time to think better of it.)

And of course, the people who started this, have repeatedly stated they don't believe a call out post to be bullying. So they really won't be in a position to have a problem with this post. (They still will cry about it and claim the unfairness of it all, no doubt.)

An anon sent this to someone involved in this debate:

I've realised that I will never convince anyone by publicly shaming them. I might be able to silence them, but I won't convince them.

I fully agree with these words. I think everyone involved in this situation should take these words to heart. In other posts of the last view weeks, I already shared some thought about communication and teaching. I’ll elaborate on those thoughts in a later part of this post.

I realized this post is getting long. So I'm breaking it up in several parts and I'll add links to this post as soon as the other posts are up.

The actual call out part of this whole thing

Some thoughts about learning and communication

The usual aftermath

[tbhimnoteasyonmyself]

DFF & the Contemporary Issue of Trends

Last time I came onto this tag I was grasping at the last droplet of hope I had for the ending to be good.

I decided to tell you all about the great seen of Tee's confrontation with Non's dead body.

Before that I tried to guess who White might be in the story and what was happening with Phee and how and why Tan was New.

And along the way I made polls and memes and I joined this fandom in appreciating what seemed to be another great story by BOC.

We've all dedicated so much time and care and love and talent and skill to contribute to this community, to make something great around something we were growing to love...

But now we're all left neck deep in the mud, as another series with great potential bites the dust in a terrible manner.

And I'm here as the ominous oracle of the death and peril yet to come, in good Greek Tragedy fashion, to tell you this was not the 1st time we've witnessed this and it shall not be the last. And all bc contemporary media have taken 1 thing to their heart and 1 thing only: engagement.

So let's take a step back.

What fuels people? What sticks with them?

How many times a day do you remember you love your loved ones in a week? Perhaps not many. But how many times do you remember the guy the big car crash you witnessed on your way home the week it happened? A lot, probably.

Why? Bc it's new, it's shocking and it probably fuels you with either fear or frustration.

The same can be said about contemporary trends. They're new, shocking and probably fuel a negative emotion in you. So they get talked about A LOT. All at once.

This is the reason why media is becoming what it is. It's realized all st once, tried to rush through plots and plots to be relevant all the while. Makes twists and twists and twists. And has something controversial to it. Bc this will make people talk. And talk will get more people to consume.

Until of course, the next more appalling thing happens and everyone moves on.

God, this is even true in the news. I mean... How many times do you hear about good projects? Or art? But hoe many times do you hear about murder?? No wonder we're growing desensitized to it. It's all we hear about all the time!!

DFF is just another case. Another series in a sea of them that tried to be shocking and play with expectations to keep people talking.

My question is, however: and now what? Now what?

Sure, we're all talking about it cause we're shocked and pissed. But adter the emotions settle and the curiosity to find out the fuck went wrong dies out, what happens?

Don't get me wrong, I love this fandom but the series itself? It'll mostly fade away. It's not something I want to create anything for anymore. I don't have care for it any longer bc why would I??? If no one bothered to mind writing something that even made sense, why should I care to love it??

And I feel like I'm not the only one!

This fandom will die. Like many other have. And what will the creators have achieved?

I never thought about The Untamed with too much fervor, for example. And most of us have not. But if I go into its tag here or on AO3, there's still stuff being made for it. And everyone once in a while, I'll think about it and I'll coke back to it and I'll cherish and nurture it for what it is. And the fandom's there. And sure rn I haven't interacted with that fandom in a bit. And I've been on DFF's tag nearly every day. But in a year, maybe even just a few months, I'll still be thinking and coming back to Xue Yang and Wei Ying and Jiang Cheng and Wen Qing... I won't be coming back to this mess, though. And in the end, it might not matter to anyone, but it matters to artists, doesn't it?

We make things because we are humans and we wish to connect with others. We wanna live forever in the things we live behind. But a story can't be told if there's no one to tell it to. You can't live forever in a void where no one awaits you.

So, in the end, we have consumed DFF, they have their money. But it will die and be buried together with all the people who have buzzed me while I was crossing the street or didn't held a door for me or were annoying to me on the bus. While other series, nourished with more love, will be there with me and many others, accumulating all the times we thought about them through the years, alive and well.

[mitochondriencocktail]

Give us an F, H, K and S!

Thank you for the ask! :3c

F: Share a snippet from one of your favorite dialogue scenes you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.

Oof, oh man, ok I think this one:

An explosion. “You’re fucking with my head again!” Bojan growled, wrenching himself away violently, but Jere held on. “No! No more running!” Bojan barked out a bitter laugh. “No more running? Coming from you?” He squirmed and fought against the embrace. Desperate to pull himself free. To avoid another repeated heartbreak.  “You never let me fucking apologize! How am I supposed to move on when you not let me even speak? About what happened?” “Because I don��t need to hear it!” Bojan yelled back, frustration pouring out of him now. “I get it. You didn’t want what I wanted, you fucked off back to Finland, and now you just want to pretend everything is fine between us, so, fine. It’s fine! We were stupid and young, it’s whatever!”

I tend to write more subdued dialogue, but wanted to try my hand at something loud and angry. I'm pretty happy with how it came out!

H: How would you describe your style?

Oh god... Uh... Hm. Verbose, at times. Borderline too-abstract sometimes if I'm not careful, I think. I like to infuse a sense of poetry into the metaphors. My biggest writing inspo is Jeff VanderMeer <3

K: What’s the angstiest idea you’ve ever come up with?

This isn't in the works, but @oneshotdepresso and I have kicked around a few things... right now there's a scifi space priest bojan au where he receives prophetic visions, but it's against his will and extremely painful. jere, an unwilling prince and political figure, witnesses this for the first time and is appalled that the council allows this to happen--claiming it's in the name of the gods.

also everything we plan to put demoni through but i don't wanna spoil anything HEHE

S: Any fandom tropes you can’t resist?

I am truly a sucker for a fake dating fic... I don't know how I've never written one for this fandom, but it's definitely on my to-do list! I also admittedly love the "I'm not into guys... I'm definitely not... I just really like being around him... and think about him... a lot... and I'm kinda jealous when he's flirting with someone else..." type of repression amped up to 200%...

[studiomentality]

TSITP S2E7 SPOILERS

OMFG, I PACED MY ROOM FOR SO LONG AFTER THIS EPISODE WAS DONE.

I'm so appalled, oh my.

And I can't handle the suspense to wait for another WEEK.

And for that episode to be the LAST ONE, the FINALE.

Wow...

I knew right when I heard the fast-paced music this was gonna happen, but damn.

I feel so sorry for Conrad.

I'm really curious at how much he witnessed or if he actually saw the whole thing unfold.

I can't imagine what it's like seeing your sibling kiss your ex.

The whole tongue situation, the touchy feely.

Bizarre.

And Belly wtf?!?! Literally, the previous night was going, "I still have feelings for you." Yes, Conrad had fallen asleep, but still. And then the next day that's out the window 'cause she thinks it's probably wiser to let him go and immediately jumps at the chance of kissing his brother? KNOWING AT SOME POINT CONRAD IS COMING BACK TO THEIR CAR. WEARING HIS SWEATER?!?!

And Conrad just stood there as if he'd known. As if he'd been afraid the entire time of Belly and Jeremiah going back to each other. And how this time he didn't just hear about it - like season 1 when Steven told Conrad about Sheila's rumor. This time around, Conrad actually saw it with his own eyes. Right. In front. Of him.

I am furious, man.

Kudos to Jenny for writing this, but damn.

Clearly, I haven't read the books and I won't because I don't want to spoil the series for me. Anyway...

I think Steven will be mad as fuck when Belly gets home and he hears about this. Just like he was (mentally) vomiting over seeing Belly and Jeremiah kissing.

I don't think Conrad's gonna drive her home, like Laurel wanted to, because why would he? Belly better take the bus.

And I've already read in other people's comments that he will transfer to Stanford and they've read the books, so. It figures.

I need to recompose myself before next Friday. Otherwise, I might throw something at the TV... 😩

[nkn0va]

(Long ask incoming. I'm so damn sorry,man) You did a hell of a job with my Aigis and Noel ask,man. The way you not only gave a solid synopsis to how they bond,but also implementing a bit of story action into it was just a nice touch on something really well done overall. Now,if you may I would like to get your take on a potential what-if scenario within the realm of Blazblue with that being the concept of Nu being redeemed after the fallout of Calamity Trigger. Similar to the scene in BBCF,Ragna,instead of trying to go in for the kill on Nu,actually tries to resolve things between himself and her peacefully by wanting to genuinely save her from this destructive situation at large. Sadly,Nine the Phantom ruined that potential by just literally disturbing it in CF,but what if in the 1 and God knows how many restarts this one scenario could play out? More so to the point: What if Nu was redeemed basically after Calamity Trigger?

(Again,I'm so sorry for how long this ask is. You can kill me AFTER this request...or not take it at all. Your call,man.)

Ouch, this the longest I've procrastinated on an ask 'til now. I think I'm gonna try to enforce a limit on myself of trying to get to asks within a week.

-When Noel saved Ragna from falling into the cauldron, he couldn't help but look down at the girl on the other end of the sword mutually stabbing them both. She looked so in pain, yet so happy to be with him, despite all the shit she's done.

-Ragna wasn't exactly thinking straight for various, obvious reasons, so his first instinct was to grab the sword to pull Nu up with him, only exhausting the poor Lieutenant saving him even more. Once they were both up to safety he crawled away from her a bit so that the sword would leave both their bodies.

Nu, Noel, and Rachel are all shocked and appalled, showing it in different ways. A teary eyed Noel calls him an idiot over and over again, beating on his chest with her fists, Rachel showing some real, genuine curiosity under her normal haughty, sarcastic demeanor, and Nu only stares at him in sheer confusion.

-Once everyone has had some time to rest and recover, Nu confronts the Grim Reaper on why he did what he did. Frankly he still doesn't quite know why himself, but he just felt like he couldn't leave her.

-Whatever happened, he wanted to protect her. This was completely against the mission he'd be given by Jubei, but if what Rachel had been telling everyone was right, then maybe this was the first step to breaking that loop.

-From then on, Ragna sorta has to be Nu's caretaker, so to say. He has to keep her out of trouble, especially towards girls even for no real reason, and starts to teach her about the real world.

-All goes at least as well as it can until Hazama decides to do a moderate amount of trolling. Ragna decides to make the choice to face him alone as usual and forces Nu to stay behind. This turns out to be a very bad idea as he's not nearly powerful enough to defeat the shady NOL Captain.

-Nu eventually decides she's had enough of waiting and heads up to the Cathedral herself, worried for Ragna. Upon witnessing Hazama grinding his heel against Ragna's face, she sees red.

-Completely unexpected by Hazama, he has to dodge a barrage of swords at the last possible moment. The interference is unexpected but it's more than enough time for Kokonoe to get preparations ready for the Idea Engine.

-She uses her teleportation device to affix it to the Azure Grimoire, allowing Ragna to defeat Hazama and overwhelm him with Nu's cooperation and stop Noel/Mu from destroying the world.

-The jealous tendencies of Nu reach a head in the events of CP for one reason: Celica.

The more and more time goes on and she learns about her history together with Ragna, namely during the Dark War, the more and more jealous she gets. She would've gladly killed her if Ragna, Kagura, Kokonoe weren't there to stop her, albeit for their own different reasons.

-During the climax of the game her job is to help with stalling Relius Litchi, and Carl while the others got the Lynchpin up and running/destroying Take Mikazuchi for good. Her overwhelming power is more than enough to get the job done in conjuction with everyone else, thankfully.

I would go into CF events but I haven't finished the game yet and I'm already exhausted from writing this as is. I tried limiting everything I'm writing about to only the most important events that Nu would realistically have a hand in so sorry if it seems rushed.

[king-of-bottoms]

As a millennial who has been walking with my friends and by myself to do who the fuck knows what and probably that too since I was in elementary school... finding out it is now basically a crime to let your kids walk to school or walk back from school, even if you walk with them... it's appalling. The video even mentions moms being in legal trouble over letting their kids play outside in their own backyard, while she was watching through the window.

Loads of parents are super paranoid that something horrid is going to happen to their kids, even when there is loads of evidence to the contrary and they just sound like complete nutters talking about child abduction. Your biggest concern is them getting hit by a vehicle! That's your second biggest concern as an adult after heart problems!! CARS IS THE PROBLEM! For pretty much everyone! Specifically, SUVs- the worst personal vehicle ever invented IMHO.

<tangent> I really really HATE SUVs. And they are the most likely to be in a collision of any kind, most likely to kill someone when a collision occurs, and the worst when it comes to gas consumption. </tangent>

We know helicopter parenting is bad for kids. I've known adult Gen Z people who are treated like children by their parents and are heavily monitored. I had no idea it had gotten so bad that NOT being a helicopter parent meant you could get jail time.

I don't know what to say other than I didn't realize it was a problem until I watched this video, despite being like aware of it from having babysat and witnessed various parents (mainly Gen X parents but some millennials) hover over their kids and monitor their every behavior.

No wonder everyone is so socially awkward and mentally ill in the younger generations. Abusive control freak parent behavior is the fucking norm, and being a normal parent with healthier parenting styles can cause you to lose custody of your child. WTF, America.

[notesfromdruchan]

Captain

"Captain" was never in the army, nor into any sporting activity, and nor was he a stocky, spitting-image of "Captain" Vijayakanth (a Tamil movie veteran of the 80s and 90s). Instead, he was short at about five-and-a-half feet, skeletally-thin, and quite dark-skinned to account for the unforgiving humid heat of Madras. I knew him at a time when Sunny, the two-wheeler, was in vogue and not quite coincidentally, he rode one of those. If you've seen Sunny, and if you'd seen Captain, you'd say it was a perfect match.

Captain was, as was common in those days, the de facto electrician-plus-plumber for our apartment (and a few more in the locality). He had this dingy-little shop right across the road from our colony but you couldn't find him in his shop almost ever. On the rare afternoon that he did exist in that small, dark 5x10 half-filled with the kind of dismantled clutter you'd find in an electrician's shop, you might find him leafing through a thin novella or a serious magazine. Yeah, he was one of those rare kinds – somewhat well-read, could dole out a good dose of English when required, could speak at length on realpolitik, wax lyrical about out-of-fashion Tamil-cinema legends and down a lot more than a few gulps of TASMAC whiskey.

Andaman Maami of the fourth floor once told me she was the one who christened him Captain. I can't remember if I ever did ask her why but if I did, I've forgotten her answer. Captain was fixing something in her house at the time, wearing a camo cap that he'd occasionally wear to keep his bald head safe from the scorching heat. The physique and the name had no business being together but he was Captain for all the time I had known him, even though eventually I would know his actual name.

Captain's notoriety was of two kinds. He was a hard man to catch hold of when you had a dysfunctional ceiling fan or a tube-light that suddenly wanted to be a disco one. He wasn't busy, per se. He was just uninterested being an electrician to the boring old families that resided in these apartments. I am sure if left with a sizable inheritance, he would have reduced it to ashes in a couple of years spending them on books and booze. The second thing he was notorious of was the ignominy of being a wife-beater. "He comes home drunk and starts scolding me, harassing me," was a perennial complaint. Counseling by the women-folk of the apartment – my mom included – did not really change him. By the time his son had come of age, the wife and son left him. That shattered him and while he seemed to have deserved it, it was unsettling to watch a frail man implode unto himself.

Much before those things happened though, I asked him with my schoolboy naivete if it was true that when people get drunk they have no idea what they're doing and end up harassing their wives and other people. Chuckled, and said, if someone gets that drunk, they'd vomit and pass out. All the other drunk-and-did-this is a pretense: if I weren't drunk, I'd get beaten black and blue. Being drunk is just an excuse. Appalling as it sounds now, he delivered it with such characteristic Goundamani-esque wit that I've remembered it all my life as a funny narration.

Captain was a very staunch supporter of the DMK party. There was a communist/trade-unionist living in the apartment and my mom was a talkative, politically-conscious, happy-to-debate person so our living room would occasionally be the staging ground of lively, humorous, but also very-pointed debates about politics. And it was in one of those moments that Captain declared no party was good and the one he chose to support was the least-bad. This logic is as old as the Greeks and even older perhaps, yes, but for a school-going teenager just being exposed to the vagaries of layman politics, the perspective seemed fresh and intelligent.

He was an inherently witty man, ready with an arsenal of situational comedy. The problem was that he'd manage to tickle himself with his wit in the most inappropriate of times. This one time he was supposed to fix the fan – heavy as it is, compounded by the fact that our man would've weighed no more than 50 kilos – and he cracked a joke that had me drop the tools (I was supposed to hand him when asked) on the table because I started laughing my lungs out. Contagious laughter happened and he started laughing with the fan precariously half-stuck on the hook from the ceiling, not yet fully screwed-in.

There was also this once when Captain and I discovered the wrath of a pigeon that was guarding its eggs that she had unfortunately laid in an empty house on the top-floor that Captain and I were set to clear-up. We didn't know that the pigeon had laid eggs in the house so we tried to shoo the bird away nonchalantly only to be met with a fierce attack that culminated in the bird deploying its weapons system – bird-shit ejecta. We came back with an umbrella but our attempts were completely thwarted. We had a good laugh about it the next day, but I'm sure the birds had a better laugh about it on the same day.

In restrospect, I think he might have found it disrespectful that a teenager no taller than himself was calling him by his moniker as the adults did, but if he did, he did not show it ever. Or maybe he did and I was just not smart enough to catch the cue. I'd occasionally split between Captain and his real name (or the way I'd use it – Gopal Uncle because in India, any man older was "uncle"). Interestingly, you could also place the people of the apartment on a timeline by the way they called him. The newer folks knew him as Captain but the OG residents (like my dad) would only address him as Gopal. On the rare occasions that they'd use "Captain", it was to add flavor to the funny anecdote they were sharing about him and his antics on any given day.

All our lives are peppered with interesting characters like Captain and it takes years to realize how deep an impression they've left in our psyche. The last I spoke to him – over a decade ago – he was managing a hostel on Nelson Manickam Road and was asking me about listing it online for greater visibility. I don't know if Gopal Uncle is alive for he seemed quite old even then but you can bet that if he is, he's just as witty and careless as he was when he was the quintessential "Captain" in the apartments and colonies of Choolaimedu.

[emeraldart]

Okay, these are fun to make (now ft. Gregory and Cassie + some Vanessa but I added her later)

Gregory: I'm not that stupid! Charlie: Gregory, you literally ate the wax from a babybel. Gregory: ELIZABETH TOLD ME IT WAS EDIBLE!

————

Cassidy: sighs I have no friends… Gregory: Gregory: coughs Bitch, what am I? A roach?!

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Elizabeth: Hey, you want a tarot reading? Charlie: Those are Pokemon cards. Elizabeth: You got a magikarp. Charlie: … Elizabeth: It means 'fuck you'.

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Michael: You're violent. Gregory: Yeah but I'm also short and that's adorable.

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Charlie: Guys it’s a shooting star, let’s make a wish! Cassidy: I wish for good grades. Michael: Nerd. Cassidy: Nevermind, I wish upon the shooting star to fall down at a 30° velocity aiming for Michael. :) Charlie: Cassidy…

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Elizabeth: The greatest trick the devil ever played was getting me banned from an all you can eat pizza buffet. Cassie: Why’d you get banned? Elizabeth: Touched the rat. Cassie: … What rat? Elizabeth: Chunky Cheese.

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Cassidy, singing to the tune of I Kissed a Girl: I killed a guy, and I liked it- Gregory, whispering: Should we call the exorcist? Elizabeth, also singing: The taste of his cherry chapstick. Cassie, appalled: Call the exorcist.

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Charlie: Is there anyone here who’s actually straight? Michael: raises hand Cassidy: puts their hand down

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Gregory: .. .----. -- / … --- .-. .-. -.-- (translation: I'M SORRY) Cassie: What's that? Gregory: Remorse code. Cassie: I'm even angrier now.

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Charlie: You can answer almost anything with “Not since the accident.” Michael: Actually, you can’t. Gregory: Not since the accident.

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Michael: The only thing keeping me from running away and hiding from society for the rest of my life is spite. I could disappear forever, but there are some bitches whose downfalls I have yet to witness, and I wanna be around when that happens.

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Vanessa, being robbed: Please! Have mercy! I have a family! A wife and kids… a dog… Gregory: Literally none of that is true, Vanessa. Vanessa: Okay, but I’m sexy! That’s gotta count for something, right?

————

the Squad at Disneyland, in the teacups Cassie, Cassidy, and Charlie: spinning a little and talking Gregory, Vanessa, and Michael: flying past them, spinning as fast as they can, screaming

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Elizabeth: on the phone Just snap his kneecaps and he’ll talk, I’m at a parent teacher conference. Elizabeth: Anyways, you said Gregory is enjoying finger painting! That's great.

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Vanessa: Please confirm to your knowledge that you are not a fully robotic being, were born an organic creature, and do in fact possess what many cultures would call a soul. Gregory: What? “To my knowledge”? Do a lot of people not know if they’re robots? Vanessa: Thank you for your confirmation.

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Vanessa: This bloodline ends with me. Cassie: That's the fanciest way I've ever heard someone say "I'm gay".

————

The Squad is gathered in the living room for a meeting Charlie: walks in and sits on Michael’s lap The Squad: … Elizabeth: Why are you sitting there? Charlie: There’s no free seats! Elizabeth: But we made sure there was enough room for- Michael: hugs Charlie tightly There are no free seats.

————

while waiting outside the principal’s office Michael: What are you in for? Cassidy: Oh, they just want to know if it’s cool if I miss my classes tomorrow to run sound and lights for a presentation in the auditorium. What about you? Michael: I stabbed a kid with a screwdriver. Cassidy: Cassidy: Cassidy: We live very different lives. Michael: Yes we do.

————

Michael: Three of the four elements are represented as types of hockey. Air hockey, ice hockey, and field hockey. Fire hockey needs to be a thing. Charlie: Fire hockey absolutely does NOT need to be a thing. Elizabeth: Do you care NOTHING for the balance of the four elements?!

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Michael, writing in their diary with a glitter gel pen: I'm losing my sense of humanity. Nothing matters. God is dead. There's blood on my hands.

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Michael: I have a new hoodie. Charlie: Wrong. Charlie: We have a new hoodie.

I got bored so woe, incorrect quotes be upon ye (some Michael x Charlie, CC is named Cassidy)

long post ahead

Michael: I think it's time to start fucking some shit up. Charlie: Oh no. Michael: More like "oh yes!"

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Michael: Okay, who's turn is it to give the pep talk? Elizabeth: It's Charlie's turn. Charlie: Don't die. Elizabeth, wiping a tear away: Truly inspirational.

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Michael: Kill me nowwwww. Charlie: Sorry, no can do. I need your help with my homework.

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Elizabeth: Ah, Hello again. We really need to stop meeting like this. Charlie: Maybe we would, if you would sTOP BREAKING INTO MY FUCKING HOUSE!!!

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Cassidy: You know, people treat me like a god. Michael: How? Cassidy: They ignore my existence unless they need something.

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Charlie: Fight me! Michael: gets on one knee and pulls out a ring Michael: Fight me for the rest of our lives.

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Michael: Well, remember when Charlie made a romantic dinner for me? Cassidy: Michael, they microwaved you a pizza.

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Cassidy: You gave me up, you let me down, you turned around, and deserted me. Elizabeth: But did I make you cry? Cassidy: cries on the spot Elizabeth: …Shit.

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Elizabeth: Hey, wanna help me commit arson? Michael: What the hell!? Elizabeth: Oh, sorry, my bad. Elizabeth, whispering: Wanna help me commit arson? Michael, whispering: Of course. What do you need?

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Charlie: Michael, we need that! Michael, holding Elizabeth over a trash can: Nope. Charlie: Gimme it— Michael: It’s garbage.

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Cassidy: we could make a boys club! Charlie: Im non-binary. Cassidy: Cassidy: Anti-girls club.

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Elizabeth: Who would you kill out of the four of us, Michael? Michael: Cassidy, easily. Cassidy, laughing: What the fuck, man. Michael: Well, Charlie would be too easy. They’d probably be into it. Charlie, now standing in the doorway: What the fuck, man!?

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Michael: banging a pen on the table out of frustration Charlie: Stop that. How would YOU feel if I banged you on the table? Michael: I— Michael: I don’t know the correct answer to that question.

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Michael: According to the footage here, you shook the vending machine and when the shake alarm went off, you punched the glass and broke it. Elizabeth: …I was hungry.

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Elizabeth: Did you win? Or just not die? Elizabeth: Either way, hooray. Michael: …Is "no" a valid answer? Elizabeth: The hooray is redacted and you frighten me.

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Elizabeth: Cassidy! I thought you were dead! Cassidy: No, just in deep cover. Elizabeth: …But it was an open casket. Cassidy: It was very deep.

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Elizabeth: Go ahead, Michael. Let it out, cry. If you don't, your tear ducts will get blocked up, and then when you get old, you won't be able to cry. Cassidy: Just when we thought it was safe to let you back into the conversation.

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Charlie: Are you an ‘arr’ pirate or a ‘yo ho ho’ pirate? Michael: I’m a ‘I’m not paying $600 for photoshop’ pirate.

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At a speed dating event Michael: Oh wow, people are really shallow. Charlie: Consider it a background check. For example: Do you have a death certificate? Michael: Checks their pulse Sorry, not yet. Charlie: Good, I'm not fucking a ghost again.

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Cassidy: ARE YOU- Michael: Fucking. Cassidy: KIDDING ME?! YOU- Michael: Fucking. Cassidy: IDIOT! Elizabeth: …What was that? Michael: Charlie banned Cassidy from swearing, so I’m helping them out.

[alligatorjesie]

you're really dedicated to making reylos look horrible. like maybe 60% of reylos are actually awful people right but you really just want to make it look like 100% of them are

Man, first off how fucking deep are you yanking these fucking numbers of your asshole because this is shit antis say. 60%? That's over fucking half. I've seen some pretty toxic fandoms, which reylo is most fucking certainty not fucking one of them, that have better numbers than that. Fuck the Star Wars fandom itself, you know the fandom that made the kid who played Anakin have to get therapy, the fandom that caused the man who played Jar Jar to consider killing himself, the fandom who made the actor who played adult Anakin quit fucking acting for a really long time, the fandom who made Gorge Lucas not want to make fucking star wars anymore, the fandom that made the actress who played Rey leave Instagram, and the fandom who made the actress who played Rose just leave the fucking internet entirely has a better statistic than that and there are actually nazis in that fandom, on top of all the shit I just listed which is hardly fucking everything this trash fandom has done. The worse I seen the Reylos do is get upset with John Boyega because he made comments about fucking his coworker and I'm pretty fucking sure Daisy Ridley, a married woman, wouldn't fucking appreciate that. Generally sexual comments are regarded as sexual harassment even if they're in tweet form. The reylos were more appalled that a man who is close to her and calls her a friend would say something like that. I don't make mean spirited sexual comments about my friends to goad people on twitter of all fucking places, that's fucking weird. Either way, what happened was fucking minor. John Boyega is still on twitter and fairly unaffected by the event. Daisy on the other hand was harassed off twitter and instagram by fanboys upset that a girl was the main character by sending her fucking death threats. These things are not the fucking same. If you fucking think they are you need to reevaluate your moral compass. What the ever-loving fuck is fucking wrong with you? But your shit morals aside: Mmm. But those reylos. Just thinking about how much they want to see the son of Leia Organa and Han Solo be redeemed and live a happy life for once is just enough to put any unsympathetic asshole's panties in a bunch. I'm being fucking sarcastic by the way. There is not a single fucking thing wrong with that mindset. What is a bad mindset is dedicating a large chunk of your life to hating what is essentially Space Beauty and the Beast because you can't emotionally comprehend a simple fucking redemption arc. No, I'm dedicated to telling anti assfucks to go fuck off and out of a tag they ain't got any fuckin business being in to fucking start with. I don't like Anime and wouldn't you fucking guess it? You'll catch me dead before you see me in the fucking anime tag being a useless twat to people in that fandom. Because I'm not a fucking twat. Well... I mean I am, but not to people who don't deserve it. Antis deserve it. Antis who come into my fandom space and actively harass me and my friends for enjoying a canon ship really fucking deserve it.

I don't fucking care what a anti thinks about me. I want antis to hate me, fuck they already do so what the fuck is a little more? I ain't winning you fucknuts over with honey any fucking day soon so baby it's time to get the Raid. I want every single anti who meets and fights with me to remember the fucking prick who told them to fuck off in such excruciating detail it would overfill a Jehovah's Witness pamphlet.

I want every single fucking anti asshole who comes into contact with me to remember the mean alligator reylo who told them they can kindly just pop their heads back into their shitty assholes where I can only assume their shitty opinion originate from and sonic roll out into low tide. I don't give a flying fuck and honestly at this fucking point I don't fucking care anymore. It's been 8 fucking years and if your opinion on reylo was this shit that long ago having one more telling you to kindly dick off isn't going to change your fucking mind. Oh no, one asshole thinks a reylo is an cunt, the same asshole who just told me statistically they already think over 60% of reylos are just fucking cunts so why the actual fucking Christmas Christ do you think I give a single solitary shit about you thinking I'm a cunt? Go ahead mate. I don't fucking care what you think. But you can close the door on your fucking way out and I hope it smacks you in the fuckin ass so hard it sends you flying out space never to be fucking seen again. Fucking Bye Felicia.

[mettywiththenotes]

I know this is something of a "controversial" topic in MHA fandom, but I do like the female characters in MHA. I know they don't get as much time as the male characters, but we do have to remember that this is a Shounan Genre and it's a Manga written by a man. Even in Shounans written by women (Fullmetal Alchemist), men still get the spotlight and I feel like Horikoshi has done his best to break typical gender stereotypes for his female characters.

Yes, Momo is sexy and her costume is appalling. But she's intelligent and humble and she has a really cool arc where a male character has be subordinate to her. How often in Shounans do we see one of the main male protagonists taking orders from a lady?

Yes, Ochako is sometimes reduced to just her feelings for Izuku. But she's a bruiser, a fighter and her relationship with Himiko Toga is treated as being just as important as Shouto and Dabi's relationship and Izuku and Tomura's relationship.

Yes, Mei is kinda used for boob jokes sometimes. But she's an intelligent, dirty, resourceful mechanic who's allowed to be all those things and initially she was gonna be a man, so Horikoshi is trying to include more ladies in his work. Tsuyu and Toru also started as males.

MHA's female characters aren't perfect, but they're definitely better than most of the rest of the shit we see in the Shounan Genre like in shows such as Yu-Gi-Oh! and Dragon Ball. We have feral fighters like Miruko, cranky old ladies like Recovery Girl, heroic damsels like Eri. I for one think that we got lucky to have the ladies we do.

I agree with you!

I know a lot of people harp on about the female characters, sometimes I can see why, but personally I think the women are great! I'm sure there are better ways to treat them, but I don't think they're treated very badly

I've heard before that Shonen Jump has a thing about "being a manga for teenage boys so it has to feature stuff the 'typical teenage boy' would want to see". You know, like fanservice, or boys their age, love interest stuff where the guy gets the girl and so on and so forth

(I've also heard that Shonen Jump doesn't have a single female writer on their team precisely because of the "for teenage boys" thing, which is stupid imo)

But for what's there? For what we actually have?

For women who are shown to have their own minds, their own goals, their own successes and failures and learning experiences? I would say we have quite a bit going for us there

This fandom really likes to focus on the most negative things, for example, Ochako's crush on Izuku being seen as "love interest" stuff and that's the only purpose she serves

When, canonically, we have *looks at notes* Ochako wanting to see people happy, fighting for that happiness, she even has her own narrative ("Who protects the Heroes when they need protecting?"), she wants to save people NOT just because of Izuku's influence but also because she witnessed a man dying in her arms, felt the weight of that life and wanted to prevent that from ever happening again. You also have the whole thing about her being independent to a fault, financial trauma, wanting to give her parents a better life, and then the stuff with Toga, the Villain to her Hero, and she wants to understand her

Like. I'm not denying that she's a very likely love interest, but there's more to her than that stuff, you know? And it's shown very well that she is more than just a love interest, believe it or not

About the Momo thing, I'm sure there are like. quite a lot of instances of Shounen boys listening to girls, even if just once, (tho admittedly I am drawing a blank on naming anime/manga with those instances in), but I do think people forget about that arc quite a lot! It was a big battle in terms of character development for Momo and it's like people just forget about it. Actually, I feel like people forget about her confidence issues in general when they say stuff like "she's just a face and tits for the manga"

I agree about Mei too! She's allowed to be quirky and get dirty and be all over the place, and she's so intelligent too. And reckless! And that moment with her telling Izuku that Support students can be Heroes too was such a great moment for her, I'm really glad that role was given to her first out of anyone else. I'm pretty sure that's the FIRST instance of someone saying Support student/anybody else outside of the actual Heroes can be heroes too! And the fact that it started with her? *chefs kiss* love it

About the whole switching genders thing! Yeah! I like that Hori balanced it out more so it wasn't one-sided. People go on about the story feeling one-sided with girls vs boys and I guess I can see why in terms of class 1a, but it could have been much worse

And, may I mention, you even have complicated female characters, mothers, by the way, who are not all painted as innocent or nurturing or without fault, who are just as complex as the boys can be

Honestly I could go on and on about the female characters. I'm considering doing a bnha ask game of people sending me female characters to analyse just because I feel like people think there's nothing to them at all when... there is something there to talk about, actually 👀 which would just be something for fun btw. I would like to do it and see how much I can dig up!

Are there things that could be improved? Sure.

Do we wish there were female characters who had more focus than they get? Yes.

But is there nothing but fanservice, crushes and female character background decoration, like people seem to imply? No.

Just wanted to mention before I'm done: You also have a case of breaking gender stereotypes for the boys too. Satou, anyone? You know, the boy who bakes for fun? Who's a muscly strong guy and uses desserts to get strong, but also bakes because he can, for his classmates and for FUN?

Anyway yeah. Long answer short, I agree with you haha

[nikethestatue]

Back in 2015, I think if I'm not mistaken, fans are asking for poly (Celaena, Dorian, Chaol) and she literally ignored it. Mind that she's active on social media that time. I was actually afraid since I've seen numbers, not totally large but yea, who's asking for it but she didn't. And that was the moment she had my trust as a reader.

Authors needs to be consistent and stick with their writing, so far from what I'd witnessed Sjm tried to improve (in the case of Mor) even tho it's not her strong spot in writing, but she tried and trying which is a big glow up for her. But never saw her cares and goes to fanservice.

She knows what she's doing. She knows what she's planting. And she doesn't care how loud people are. She just sticks to whatever she wants.

I'm actually thankful, since some authors are interacting too much with their fans that their books are filled with "tropes" and unnecessary "twist", that they forgot they're writing not for the readers but for what the characters are telling them ---I know this is insane, but as a local writer, this happens to me alot while writing. But yep, new books nowadays are lacking with actual plot but more on tropes since they're following what the readers wanted to see. The power of social media. Sjm and the others I know are still sticking to what their characters wants.

That's it. That's why I trust sjm on acotar 5. I'm really highly confident on Elriel because it was so obvious. I know, she will not disappoint.

Yep, it's like with the whole Poppycas situation and the joining--i havent read the recent book, but i know it happened and like there is SUCH uproar. Yet, the author has been talkign about it for 3 books now. Why the surprise. She clearly had it planned, and just cuz YOU as the reader dont like it, it's not up to the author to accommodate everyone's preferences, wants and needs. However the readers feel about it is valid, because as the reader you have your ideas and dreams, but the author will do what the author will do. And i feel like JLA was much more involved with her fan community.

SJM isn't involved and I feel like she is even more prone to do what she feels like doing.

And yes, there will be THRONGS of 'shocked and appalled' Gwynriels who'd be all like OMG, what do you mean it's not Gwynriel?

But SJM has been building something for 4 books, without resolution (yet). Do they really think that because some angry TikTok teens want Gwynriel she will scrap everything and be like, ok Sally! You are getting what you want.

This fandom is just bizarre.

[usaghinanami99]

Urgh, yeah, that may seem like a small difference at first glance, but those two sentences really do convey different meanings, and one of them outright goes against the very basis of Takeuchi's worldbuilding... The misogyny shown by the anime's translation choice (having to translate the exact same original Japanese line as the manga's translator, so with even less excuses) is appalling, but it wouldn't be the first time the Viz version pulls off something super in line with liberal-leaning political correctness: I've read comments from English fans stating that the new redub of the old anime series has censored some homophobic comments made by the characters - which is hilariously the opposite of what the first dub did, and goes more towards a line I personally agree with, but I still deem it wrong to rewrite the past like this. But the worst has to be how the Viz English dub of the Sailor Stars season has characters outright use "they" pronouns for the Three Lights/Starlights (even when there's only one of them I mean, lol), which is an outright case of rewriting history since the anime was written and is set in a period when non-binariness hadn't been invented yet and certainly was not on anyone's radar in Japan, not to mention how it's very clear that the three of them undergo an actual, physical sex change when they transform (which we obviously know goes against Takeuchi's lore and worldbuilding but alas), not that they've got some sense of inner gender identity. Please keep in mind that I'm just reporting second-hand accounts though, since I've never watched the anime in English, either original or redub (though I have listened to the Dic soundtrack, which I appreciate far more than Arisawa's annoying BGM, lol), and I'm not even a fan of the old anime regardless of language, so please take these statements with a grain of salt. 😅 But I guess that "artistic liberties" like this are what happens when you give too much freedom to localisation agencies, and in the specific case of the English language it's been almost a constant, going through the Dic dub of seasons 1-2, the Cloverway dub of seasons 3-4, the Viz redub of seasons 1-5 and the Viz dub of Crystal 1-3... a constant that's been broken with the Netflix dub of Crystal 4, where the Japanese supervision upon *all* foreign language versions was so tight that it brought us this atrocious result: https://twitter.com/NJ_/status/1400346635935305728 What can I say, I'd much rather go for heavy creative liberty to foreign localisation - even if they come up with crazy and frankly pathetic results like the English ones mentioned above or the Italian dub of Sailor Stars - than having to witness this disgrace. Here's hoping that Crystal 5 will be granted decent, professional adaptations instead of following the trend set by its predecessor. 😓

-Insert rant here about how SM fans obsessed with political purity pretend that Takeuchi is a gendie like them ignoring all proofs to the contrary and treat disagreeing with this ideology like a mortal sin... But then they turn around and ignore all the little signs that Takeuchi is borderline a pa*do apologist if not outright fan.- I keep on giving them the benefit of the doubt because these signs are all in the form of little details that only someone who's researched Naoko Takeuchi's life and times very deeply and extensively could ever be aware of, so it's realistic to think that a portion of fans might be genuinely unaware of them... But if they were more coherent in their ways, the more knowledgeable fans would spread this information everywhere to cancel Takeuchi and claim that Sailor Moon is now theirs to own, instead of pretending this stuff doesn't exist and keeping the rest of the fandom in the dark. But I guess being a borderline supporter of paedop*rnography is not so heavy a sin as being a feminist in their mind. 🤢

I miss the days when the peak of PC-related discussion in SM spaces was which skin colour Setsuna is meant to have, sigh. But like in almost every other online fandom, The Great Cultural Shift of 2013/14 has made the English-speaking webspaces almost unbearable. I'm glad I can also frequent fora and webpages exclusively geared towards the French and Italian fandoms (where I pretty much only lurk, I stopped being an active member around a decade ago) and see how the worldview that dominates in English fora and social networks is only held by a minority that will never ban you for disagreeing. 😅

UsaMamo is THE OTP for me (as in not only in Sailor Moon, but my favourite fictional couple ever), but so many other characters are head over heels for Usaghi that I could never blame fans for wanting to explore the various possibilities in their head and/or fanworks. Helped by the fact that Usaghi is canonically a bisexual icon, the alternative non-canon ships almost write themselves. But then... who could not love Usaghi, unless they're already in love with someone else? If I were to meet someone so amazing, friendly, positive, inspiring, loving, strong, brave, unapologetic, outspoken, relatable, heroic, helpful and outright life-saving like her in real life, I'd fall for her too. 😍

I know, right?!? Every day it seems like the SM fandom is filled with more and more gendies who claim stuff like how Haruka isn't actually a woman or worse... And what's more, this is far from being the most deranged take I've seen recently, especially now that June has started. But then they'll turn around and claim that SM is actually the pinnacle of feminism in manga, when it's so clearly liberal-leaning and pro-beauty standards that it's anything but. What can I say, the sane people have to stick together! While to be honest I have to say that I don't share your shipping opinions in the slightest, I'd always admire a "rival" like you more than a shipmate who's also a hardcore TQ+ cultist. Sorry if my English isn't exactly the best, I hope I can convey what I want to all the same. ^^

I was absolutely devastated that in Crystal they seriously added the line 'Haruka isn't a man or a woman.' Like... sorry, no. If that was the case then why the hell did Michiru and Haruka get that awful "they're cousins" treatment for the western localization in the OG anime 🙄

I swear ....claiming that SM is a "feminist" work has to do with the fact that people don't want to admit that they enjoy things that aren't politically "pure". Because in their minds it would reflect on who they are as a person, and if something they enjoy isn't perfect, then they aren't either. Tbh I think there's a lot of unchecked narcissistic behavior in fandom communities as a whole 🤦🏻‍♀️

Oh GOSH. My shipping is a mess !! LMAOOO. I should be ashamed of it but I'm so shameless🤣 Tbh i recently started shipping Usagi with practically everyone 😭🤦🏻‍♀️ I'm ©onflicted, that's for sure

but hell yeah, shipping wars be damned, female solidarity til death >:] 😂😂

and omg no, don't even worry! I had no idea English wasn't your first language from your ask!! your message got across Crystal (🤭) clear ♥️