#this sentiment could apply to so many other supporting characters with little screen time in this franchise

[thatonecrookedsmile]

The Ink Demonth 2024:

-Tea-

-----

I got distracted by watching a stream in the middle of painting this, so this thing is coming out a... little later than I wanted. Also no quote at the beginning because I'm out of ideas.

'Tea' is a pretty simple prompt so there wasn't much I could do other than something just… simple. I didn't really have a clue who to use for this prompt though, but I ended up going with Emma Lamont from Boris and the Dark Survival. Long time since I last drew her.

Looking at other people's entries, I realized that using Betty would have made more sense and I'm surprised I didn't consider her sooner, but at the end of the day I'm okay with the choice I went with because in the end I'm giving the spotlight to a character I haven't seen people talk about in a long time.

Remember Emma? I wouldn't be surprised if one didn't. Heck, I can't even lie, she's not a character I think about often. I went to look at her tag, and that tag in the last 3 years only had 3 "recent" posts between 2021 and 2023 (except, of course, mine). Plus,her small appearance in BATDS doesn't help much. The last time I touched on her design was 2 years ago, on a sketch of her that I never finished (funnily enough, a sketch I was using for the purpose of redesigning her). I took what I had done (head/face/hair), dusted it off, and just expanded the idea a bit. It's not much, and probably not very accurate for a "1940s English Dance Teacher", but I doubt I'll go back to this design any time soon,and I don't know what else I could add in her design. (maybe earrings, I don't know)

With all that in mind, I don't have a problem with Emma. Kind of indifferent to her at the end of the day, but she has her place in the franchise, one that at the end of the day,it doesn't hurt to pay attention to again. And I find her story kind of funny. Another one being a victim of not being given a proper workspace/office of her own, and forced to create new dance steps in a bathroom. I like to think that she and Jack "I Write Better Lyrics In The Sewers" Fain had some kind of friendship. I've had an animatic idea since 2020 that adapts Jack's audio from BATDS and she was included. I never made it,though.

I kind of doubt we'll hear more of her in the Lone Wolf update. Her existence in the game seems like it was just a way to justify why we're suddenly collecting dance steps inside toilets, and I kind of doubt they'll expand on her beyond that. A shame. But then again, LW hasn't released it yet, and it's promised to add lots of new stuff, so who knows what could happen,I guess.

Somewhat related to the topic(s), what's your opinion on tea? As far as I remember, I've never tried it. And to be honest, I don't think I've ever been curious to try it. Is it good? Is it worth trying? This prompt got me thinking about it. I doubt I'll try it eventually, but I guess it doesn't hurt to ask, right?

[petitepistol]

CHAIN OF SWEETNESS

5 THINGS YOU LOVE ABOUT YOUR CHARACTER.

this is hard because i have to separate elena from how she exists in canon from the elena i have built up for myself in my mind, so in the interest of brevity im choosing to focus on the canon aspects that deeply drew me to her to begin with and continue to feed my fascination and frustration with her to this day

ONE elena is a minor character. like, take her out of the story of the game and nobody would bat an eye. the writers dont really know what they are doing with her at any given moment, so she is this half formed mess of anachronistic traits. that can be really interesting and really challenging to try and flesh out, especially when you factor in how disconnected she is from even the characters closest to her and what those interpersonal dynamics must be like. even among the turks she is an outlier, new to the team and hellbent on diligently doing her job despite not having the same ghosts as the rest of them. before crisis tries to touch on that with her sister, but that just muddies the waters further providing conflicting motivations that they never really address. because, as stated initially, she is a minor character. and that means the exposition is something i have to do, not canon.

TWO despite being a minor character, from a mechanics standpoint she serves a purpose. her first appearance is there to give you an important lead on the big bad, her narrative purpose in the wutai subquest means you get both a party member and a forge fragile armistice with the turks. during the icicle portion if you get knocked out by her, she drops you off in gast’s house, which might mean the devs were using her to guide less skilled players into viewing missable but important lore. this extends to the compilation, where she is utilized off screen for the jenova head in a box debacle, and in before crisis to pad out the plot a little longer by getting kidnapped. from a game design perspective her existence is validated not by good writing but by being a deus ex machina and i have learned to love that as much as i hate it.

THREE she occupies a space where you can throw just about a billion tropes at her and it can work. people don’t usually realize this, but for such bit player you can do a lot with her. also if you wanna write snappy dialogue you can let this girl just say fucking anything. nothing is off limits coming out of her mouth, because there is so little to go off of and what data there is can be interpreted so broadly. that also means you can write her as downright sociopathic or as an unlikely altruist, leaning towards either of the extremes or staying dead center in the middle of the road. the only limitations are that of the perceptional biases of the writer.

FOUR that she is the highest level of the turks in game will never not make me ridiculously happy. i love that this so called clumsy rookie is the most difficult to take out in a fight with the rarest gear. if you wanna hear more about aspect that go here.

FIVE hnnnnng pretty girl who can kick my ass please step on me unga bunga

5 10 PEOPLE ON HERE YOU LOVE, AND WHY.

there are so many wonderful people i want to give accolades too that i often find it hard to do these kind of daisy chains, and even now im cheating by doubling the number. that still isnt enough, so to those who arent on this list i have to say i love you too but the powers that be and my own shyness turned off the mic before the speech ended

ONE forever amused by how both @makeupandmateria and @madamdirectcr are not only incredible to me as a player, but elena as a character. we are in love with this surprising supportive mean ladies coterie. swiftie plays an elegantly dubious scarlet to the hilt and manages to bring out the best in everyone. lottie brings an uncanny sensitivity to scarlet that makes you think while being so sweet and engaging outside of play.

TWO speaking of girls muses supporting other girl muses @heavenlyfighter and @cultivatxr are a dynamic duo and im lucky enough to be in talks with both of them. jessica plays a lovely tifa who has such a melancholy imbued to her strength while not only tolerating my flakiness but being so understanding, while phoe has had a perfect grasp on aerith for what feels like an epoch always letting that same vibrancy spill out into reality.

THREE so @animus-inspire and @urbdev-assistant are two peas of positivity in a pod and i adore them for it. one them plays an understated hero who has the capacity to do great good even when aligned with evil and the other has taken the adage about there being a great woman behind every great man and elevated an npc into a brilliant character. both are fantastic.

FOUR shout out to @missionheartcd and @rude-at-your-service for being not only the best coworkers elena could ever had but being consistently delightful out of character. not only do i want to play more with their characters, i also appreciate their support.

FIVE thank you to @warofthebeasts​ and @inanisvitae​ for putting up with my inexplicable affection for sephiroth. kevin is so patient with my persistent poking and prodding and you could not find a more passionate advocate for either character development or friendship than maria.

5  SONGS EITHER YOU OR YOUR MUSE REGARD AS A ‘GUILTY PLEASURE’ THAT ALWAYS MAKES YOU SMILE.

these are mostly mine but may or may not apply to elena from some twisted meta perspective also this was hard because i have no guilty pleasures my tastes is flawless (this definitely applies to elena as well unless we are talking about her taste in men which is terrible lmao sorry im just bullying tseng he is actually pretty cool)

ONE you cannot have this type of lists without ABBA represented and while this is almost a lesser known track of theirs, i have liked it since i heard it in childhood playing through the records my mom owned. the lyrical content is very shinra-core and while i dont think elena ever dated a middle aged fat cat for money as a teen im certain she considered it

TWO as a kid i didnt like the indomitable miss spears because i bought into regressive attitudes towards female sexuality while not recognizing she was being exploited by the industry, but i have grown. elena agrees with the sentiment of “you better work, bitch”

THREE im not ashamed of my love of god queen shiina ringo but at the time i first saw this video i was not prepared for the gratuitous badass lady nurse on sexy female patient malpractice action it featured and that was what made it a guilty pleasure

FOUR everybody loves george michael and that includes me. this piece from his wham! era is almost too peppy, but i am an absolutely a sucker for imagining brutal fight scenes with anachronistically cheerful songs playing over the carnage

FIVE rounding things off is an obligatory recent weeb jam. well half of this combo is american but you know what i mean. i love the combination of classic funk and whispery vocals echoing into an unrepentant cry of “fuck you motherfucker.” coupled with the blonde in the video intercut with the OL being joyfully liberated by her train ride? elena vibes

Tagged: @madamdirectcr @animus-inspire Tagging: you!

[velveetacrackncheese]

Hey, Rad... Alex... Alexlememe? I know that's the name you used to go by and I know you've kinda disconnected yourself from Viv's fanbase after ZP ended, and I remember your memes and such but I kinda just wanted to get your take on the Hazbin drama since you reblogged the headcanon blog's post on the subject. More or less regarding the issue of her being uncharitable to fans and non-fans alike, plus that one callout post on twitter?

So this is weird. I wasn’t expecting to get asks on the subject since like you said, I’ve generally been disconnected from the fanbase aside from the few reblogs here and there retaining to Hazbin and its more recent developments. But yeah I guess I could give my take on this since I mean.. old fans still follow me. Idk why, but they do!So, really. In regards to that callout post (which is now deleted) I really, really don’t care that much. For one thing, Initially I did because I really hated to see someone be slandered so viciously with inaccurate and uncharitable attacks, but I kinda just stopped because even when I linked the addresses from both Viv, and the Ken dude regarding all the drama mentioned, it was either ignored and resulting in me being called a “pedo sympathizer” or “It wasn’t even an apologyyyyy weh” and like, whatever. I stopped giving a shit.

Terms of the traced animation thing... Lol, ok. I mean homages do exist, and her animation thingy was based on a meme so whatevs.

Anyways,I knew from the very start that the whole “tracing” and “stealing designs” stuff was nonsense since there was an entire like, tumblr drama arc on the issue, and albeit Viv’s post is gone, there’s evidence of legal contracts regarding Jiji and that whole nonsense that was years ago. In regards to her drawing pictures of Blaire White and Shoe… Eh. I mean, yeah, fuck em, but she’s made it clear that she doesn’t support those views anymore, and she wasn’t even really aware of the other things they’d done at that point, and I see no real reason not to believe her because what does lying about that gain her? Yeah her comment on the “blackface” thing if you wanna call it that was dumb as shit, but considering 2016 was a rough year for her in terms of trying to find where she fell in the political sphere, I can relate because I was in the same boat. A lot of sjw cringe comps, shaming feminists, and purposely misgendering transpeople… Not a good time for me either! Course I’ve changed. I went from being a reactionary alt-centrist to an anarchist so. Whether that’s an improvement is up to you.

As for the whole pedo/zoo shit, I really don’t see it. I mean like, look, obviously porn art portraying people fucking feral animals is disgusting right. Not saying it isn’t problematic or anything, but to be fair, she did draw this shit like 8 years ago. I’ve seen worse from even more well-established artists and I don’t see people trying to cancel them? Also, the art was suggestive for one thing and not necessarily 100% porn. I mean it’s still creepy and gross, and I’d understand scolding them if they continued to do so but a lot worse, but I haven’t seen anything like that from Viv past those 2 drawings. As for the pedo shit… The relationship between a 17 year old and a 19 year old is… hardly creepy and reminiscent of pedo shit. So yeah no fuck that. Now with the drawing of Mirage and Kestrel and the tag that said something jokingly like “Mirage and her pedo tendencies” or whatever… Yeah idk, I can’t defend that lmfao. Again, Viv said she disapproves of those drawings and doesn’t care to think about them, but that one piece of artwork definitely had some baggage to it that made me feel uncomfortable after reading the tags.Only issue I took in terms of her addressing that, is that she was very adamant about it being an inside joke… Which if that’s true, you must’ve had some fucked up friends like damn.

I would also like to state that cub art is legitimately disgusting and I am of the belief that it can cause harm depending on the context since I assume the consumption of cub art can reinforce the urge for pedophiles to act on their desires instead of finding healthy coping mechanisms for it through therapy. There have been stories from younger users on the internet that older people have tried to groom them and have the notion of pedos preying on them be normalized by sending them art depicting kids in sexual acts with adults. Of course in isolation cub art isn’t as harmful as the actual act of raping a child, and I would argue that people have their priorities kind of messed up since the illustration being acknowledged should be part of combating pedophiles preying on children. However, people, typically twitter wokescolds tend to focus on the art solely and I don’t know why. There’s a lot of MAPS trying to find their way into LGBT spaces and it’s fucking gross.

Now with Hazbin itself… It’s meh. Initially I watched it with rose-tinted glasses and loved it. After watching it for like… the 3rd, 4th, 5th time? It’s alright. I don’t hate it, but it’s far from perfect. Now ofc I know it’s a pilot but a very lengthy pilot I’ll say. My biggest gripe with the pilot is that the editing is really fucking weird. Like the editing where Angel tells Alastor “I can suck yah dick!” and the scene that followed was really off. It seemed like too many cuts were made in that instance and seemed very cluttered. It also feels that way during Charlie singing “Inside Every Demon is a Rainbow” and how many little animated bits were like almost wiped off the screen by how fast it came by, and ntm there was just so much happening all at once on screen as well. I had to pause at points just to process everything that was happening. The palette is also very, very, verrrry red. There’s so much red going on and like… I get it, it’s in hell. But lemme rest my eyes on something else besides red, please. The palette they use needs to be better diversified, and the same goes for the characters too. Every character seems to have red on them. Whenever Baxter shows up later he’s gonna look really out of place. Some of the jokes were ok, and others seemed non-clever. I didn’t think Angel’s joke about sucking Al’s dick was funny. I did like the joke with Pentious and Angel though. “SON??” Some of it could’ve been written better too.

Regarding the drama with the show itself… Personally I don’t get it. Like, I don’t feel as if Angel is homophobic as a character since his queerness isn’t at the face of the jokes he makes? He just happens to be sex worker which… sex workers are fine? Support sex workers y’all, seriously. There’s also nothing intrinsically wrong with being sexually active either? As long as it’s within reason and you’re being trustworthy.The issue lies in the fact that people viewed the things I just mentioned as negative, and associate it with gay people as said negatively portrayed thing to push the sentiment of “Gay man do sex a lot therefore the gays bad” or that sort of thing. Also there’s a bit where it shows there’s more emotional depth to him and I’m hoping they’ll expand on that later. Honestly though, the criticisms in regards to that have been pretty uncharitable. Same with the criticisms for Vaggie. Apparently Vaggie is racist because… she’s loud and angry? Again, this is a case where people assume those traits are negative, and because it’s assumed to be negative, the negatively portrayed thing pushes the sentiment of “Being a loud fiery woman made, and latina women are that, therefore latina women bad” or some shit.  There are stereotypes that are bad no matter what the context is like sambo-esque caricatures of black people. Then there are tropes that are applied to certain demographics that have the capability to be written well into characters without it being offensive or disrespectful. Vaggie is literally angry because she’s protective of her gf. Like. C’mon.

So, I think that settles what I think about that? It honestly seems like superficial shit to me tbh, and I’m saying this as an sjw-y beta cuck anarchist.

The only REAL gripe I have, is with what the mod from @zpheadcanons posted. Because I know this is probably true as much as it hurts me to say it. Faust def has a history of being pretty petty and bully-like to people she deems undesirable, and Viv harbors it by not criticizing it, and if anyone else within their friend group does it then you’re scolded vehemently and treated like garbage. Her attitude also stretches to harboring an audience full of white knights that I personally don’t approve of.

There’s also this

Faust has hurt distant people I personally know and… yeah. Maybe I’m biased but I can’t vibe with that. Sorry. If you don’t make an effort to criticize abusive behavior within your own friend circles then that makes you just as bad, because then you’re just a bystander to things you could have prevented.

This isn’t to say Viv herself hasn’t dealt with bad faith actors, or people who had the intention to hurt her, or very uncharitable criticism. Particularly from the badwebcomics forums which is honestly 4chan like in how they operate. It’s vicious as hell, and a lot of their criticisms boil down to insults and personal attacks, which serve to be nonconstructive. That’s not to say Viv has been kind to even the more charitable criticism though. I know because when I happened to send an ask to the zoophobia criticism blog (where did it go???) regarding something relatively minor and superficial, she blocked me from her blog. I’m still blocked lmfao. I’m not blocked on twitter though! (not yet anyways). Faust has me blocked there though, and I have no idea why. She’s had me blocked for years even though I haven’t spoken out against her till recently. So, there’s that.

As for her apology itself, I feel like it was fine. I think it could’ve been worded better? The take I disagree with in terms of that is like… If I made a mistake in the past, and I make it clear that I don’t care for what I did, I don’t feel as if me explaining why I felt compelled to do certain things negate me from still not caring for my past actions? That’s just me providing context. That’s a really weird take, but I guess that could be viewed as an excuse idk. Personally I think people are holding the bar super high to a state of irrationality.

*sigh* So yeah there’s that. I miss the old days where honestly I could be ignorant about this, but at the same time I look at my old obsessive posts and I kinda just… cringe. I was such an irrational stan I almost hate myself for it. Fuck XD

Edit: I’d also like to point out that I’m not saying Viv or Faust are totally awful or totally good people, and I know they’re capable of being better. It’s a matter of whether or not they wanna be better.

[theonceoverthinker]

It’s Nice To Meet You

Summary: An unorthodox use of Henry’s cellphone makes for an unexpected first meeting between Ella and Emma.

Featured Dynamics: Glass Believer, Ella and Emma, Captain Swan, Ella and OG Killian

Links:  AO3     Fanfiction.net

A/N: This was a fantastic request for my 300 follower spectacular by @latinacinderella. This lady gives me very chill requests. Like between this and “Talk Tales Over Cocktails” (Which I consider something of a counterpart to this), the fics that come from her requests are just nice and breezy. And I like that! Besides, Ella’s had a hard life! She deserves some chill moments, am I right?

Anyway, she requested to see Ella and/or Lucy encounter Storybrooke, Emma, and/or OG Hook in some way. I did something a liiiiiiiiiittle outside of the parameters of that request, but in a way that still holds to the spirit it so, I hope you enjoy it!

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

When Henry Mills started his journey across the realms, he didn’t pack a lot. In the small bit of storage space his motorcycle and his single satchel provided, he packed a dagger with his initials engraved on it, two changes of clothes, a few Apollo bars, and his single most prized possession: his cellphone.

But this cellphone, like much of Henry’s life, was far from ordinary.

As a last gift from his mother before he went to explore the worlds, the phone was magically enchanted with a battery that would never die and a digital album filled with gigabytes upon gigabytes of pictures and videos of his family so that no matter where he went, they’d be with him.

Once Henry and Ella’s friendship took off, Henry showed Ella both that phone and its digital library of his family’s history. No matter how much of the library she was shown, there was always a new story to tell about the adventures of his very extended family.

Ella loved the album. She liked its convenient feel in her hand, its impossibly smooth shape and surface, and the clarity of the pictures and videos the device held.

But mostly, she loved the family that it contained.

Henry Mills was indeed a gifted storyteller. When he spoke of his parents, grandparents, and all of the other going-ons of his family tree, his very words painted the idea of home for Ella. She could practically smell the lasagna at Granny’s, taste the cookies from Snow White’s oven, and see the hundreds of antiques at Gold’s shop as Henry made them real for her with the power of his words.

Fate really hit the nail on the hammer with his role as The Author.

A just as fate had led him to that title, it had led Henry and Ella to each other.

Every morning, Ella was reminded of that by the feeling of the locket against her heart and the feeling of her beloved next to her.

Today, though, only one of those things was where she expected it to be.

As Ella woke up -- before even her eyes greeted the day -- her hand reached for Henry, expecting to feel a soft blanket that leaned against his muscles.

But when her hand fell, the only thing on the other side of the blanket was the hard floor of their tent.

Ella finally opened her eyes and formally greeted the day, sad to see that she was indeed alone. That sadness was short lived however, as she noticed a piece of parchment atop her beloved’s pillow. Scrawled upon the parchment was a small note that Ella could recognize as hosting Henry’s handwriting. She picked it up and as she read it, she felt a blush flourish against her cheeks.

Dear Ella,

I’ve gone fishing with Hook and Jack and didn’t want to wake you. Besides, I know you like a little bit of alone time every now and then, so I figured you could take some time off from the resistance and enjoy a morning to yourself. We should be back by midday, but rest assured I’ll be thinking of you until then.

Love,

Henry

Romance wasn’t something that Ella ever expected to be in the cards for her. Thoughts of vengeance for her stepfather’s death and a hopelessness that came with spending years as a servant for her stepfamily had put the idea far out of her head. A future free from all of them was the best outcome she thought she could hope for.

But just as he had challenged the notion of revenge being her destiny, so had Henry changed her mind about that too. Now, the sweet words and gentle touches she had gone her so much of her life without were things she could hardly part with any easier than the air in her lungs.

In a way, she supposed that wasn’t surprising. After all, Ella knew plenty about the family he came from and for the most part, love was never too far from them.

And soon enough, that might apply to her too.

It made sense. Ella was already well acquainted with one of Henry’s mothers, and with a family that was just a magic bean away, it was reasonable to assume she’d encounter the rest of them before long. Additionally, if things stayed as good as they were now -- and Ella had a locket pressed up against her chest that gave her a strong impression that they would -- they might one day consider settling down in the same town as them.

What would that be like?

In truth, Ella hadn’t afforded the prospect much thought beforehand. The resistance and the newness of their relationship had prioritized living for the moment, and that’s exactly what Ella did. But the fact was that the revolution against the plights of their kingdom would one day end, leaving a future that needed to be accounted for -- one that could feasibly lead them to a cozy house nestled in the heart of Storybrooke.

But that begged the question, an inquiry that was just as interesting as it was somewhat daunting:  How would it feel to live in Storybrooke?

If Ella was honest with herself, perhaps a bit too overwhelming for her liking.

Ella had never been good dealing with large groups of people. Throughout her time with the resistance thus far, she forewent growing closer to the movement at large, preferring the smaller bits of company provided by Tiana, Regina, Jack, Henry, and Hook. The few occasions where she did need to interact with the other members was kept to a minimum. That was more than fine with her and the sentiment seemed to be reciprocated. It wasn’t unheard of for those in the camp to keep to themselves outside of their own personal circles and otherwise mind their own business.

But from how Henry described life in Storybrooke, Ella had a suspicion that that wouldn’t necessarily fly there. Storybrooke was a small town with not a small amount of people there who not only liked but deeply cared about being involved in each other’s lives. They never let an occasion to get together and throw a party pass them by and polite conversations tended to run longer than they ever did in this realm. Even though Ella knew they were likely all lovely people, the thought of just an afternoon of that, let alone a potential lifetime was a lot to take in and maybe more than Ella felt herself able to handle.

And it’s not like she didn’t want to be able to.

Just as Henry’s stories had somewhat freaked her out with the family’s closeness, they had also charmed her in the other side of that particular coin. In the same vein that said closeness was borderline suffocating, it was also a means of support. While Ella felt uncomfortable opening up to so many people, she didn’t want to dismiss the possibility of finding new friends and pseudo family members. After all, had she not done so for Henry, she would have denied herself the happiness she now reveled in.

There was a feeling of guilt in the matter -- something Ella knew Henry would never want her to feel and that only served to make her feel even more guilt. It was a frustrating cycle and one Ella genuinely wanted to move on from. She wanted to open herself up more and she wanted to want to take to Storybrooke as easily as Henry did, but she just wasn’t there yet.

And she wondered if she would ever be…

No. She wouldn’t allow herself to fail so easily. Just as she was doing with her stepsister’s threats, here had to be a way to combat this.

Perhaps, all it would take was to view Storybrooke’s many denizens in the same way that Henry did.

Suddenly, an idea struck Ella for exactly how she’d spend her morning off. She leaned over to Henry’s things and felt around until she felt what was always to her an unbelievably thin surface, especially given all that it held. Once the device was in her grasp, Ella pulled it out and placed it on the blanket in front of her.

Henry once told her that his phone was only one of many pieces of technology from his world. Ella personally found that hard to believe. In addition to the odd-looking and somewhat violent games he had on there, his phone had collections of pictures far more numerous than Ella could possibly count. In her time playing around with the device, she had never once reached the bottom of the assembly of family memories.

Maybe today, that could change.

Delicately, Ella picked up the phone. On what Henry called, his ‘lock screen,’ there was a picture of he and Ella on his motorcycle that Regina had taken not long after they started dating. Upon seeing the picture, she softened, all thoughts of distant anxieties abandoned. It hadn’t been there the last time she checked, and the spot that formerly held a picture of characters from this movie Henry told her about, “Star Wars,” was now held by them.

How could her Henry make her fall in love with him so much, even when he wasn’t around?

Ella looked forward to finding that little secret of his out throughout the rest of their lives.

After staring too long at the picture of them, the screen went dark. It sometimes did that when Henry went on long tangents about that movie or when...they occupied themselves in other way -- namely, with each other’s lips -- so Ella wasn’t too surprised to see it happen now. Ella made a move to press the button that would bring the picture back when suddenly, the screen turned entirely light blue.

Speechless, Ella tried to make sense of what happened. Had she broken something? All she had done was brought up the lock screen. She hadn’t even tried to put in the combination, one she knew quite well, even once.

Nervous, Ella picked up the screen, looking closer. The power blue that covered the front surface of the phone was still there, but Ella, no longer as plagued by her immediate shock, noticed that the color was...swirling. The contents of the screen slowly spun, like a vortex of the sky on a perfect day.

Ella watched it. The thought had just occurred to her to get Regina’s help when suddenly, the blue screen had begun to be overtaken. Slowly from the center, the image of a woman began to push out the blue, soon overtaking it entirely.

Before Ella could move a muscle or take in the woman on the screen, a sound came from the phone -- though not its speakers like it usually did when Henry showed her a video. No, the noise was just there, as if another person was in the tent with her.

Or rather, as if the woman was in the tent with her.

But that wasn’t the strangest part.

No, the strangest part was what she said.

“Henry?” she called. The voice wasn’t panicked as it searched for Henry, but called casually, as if calling someone in for dinner.

And then the woman noticed Ella. For a second, she paused, taking her in. The woman’s eyes bulged, as if she had just had a big realization about Ella.

“Hey,” she said. This time, she was more in a state of surprise.

Ella blinked, and in that fraction of a second, her mind caught up to her and like pieces of a puzzle, clues came together to fill her in about exactly who she was talking to.

For but a single second, Ella studied the woman in front of her -- the long blonde hair that reached well below her shoulders, the green eyes that held an inquisitive stare, the light bump in her belly, and the leather jacket that was the color of a juicy pomegranate.

Who else could it be?

“You’re Emma Swan,” Ella said. There was an essence of disbelief in her voice as she said it, mirroring the one Emma had when she seemed to realize who she was.

Emma, now apparently over her shock, nodded and smiled, her finger offhandedly aimed at Ella in a pondering fashion. “And you’re Cinderella, right?”

“I actually go by Ella now,” Ella pointed out, not the least bit upset about Emma’s mistake.

That didn’t stop an apologetic look from overtaking Emma’s features.

“I’m sorry,” she said, a meekness in her voice that was a far cry from the confidence Henry’s tales had painted her with.

“It’s okay,” Ella eased. “But yeah. I just started going by Ella again recently.”

“Ella,” Emma repeated, smiling once more as the word comfortably settled in the space between them. “Well, Ella. It’s nice to meet you.”

Ella returned the grin. “It’s nice to meet you too. Henry’s told me so many stories about the Savior of Storybrooke.”

“Hopefully good ones?” Emma teased.

“Well, he wasn’t too happy when you confiscated his X-Box -- whatever that is -- a few years ago,” Ella retorted, smirking. “But apart from that, he’s got nothing but good things to say about you.”

Emma snorted. “Did he tell you that he failed his math test before I confiscated it?”

“No he did not!” Ella said, gasping in mock scandalization. “Looks like he has some explaining to do!”

Suddenly, Ella realized something.

This impromptu meeting with her beloved’s mother was just that: impromptu.

She hadn’t called for her, but for Henry.

“Oh! I’m sorry! I forgot to tell you: Henry went fishing and won’t be back until later today.”

Emma frowned and snapped her fingers. “Damnit,” she muttered. “I always seem to miss him by just a bit. And I’ve got to go to work soon, so I won’t be able to call until basically midnight, and I’m pretty sure midnight for us is also midnight for you guys.”

Ella was about to say that she’d have Henry call her back tomorrow, but a thought struck her.

“Emma, how exactly did you reach us here?”

Just like that, Emma’s frown disappeared, replaced with a proud grin. “Magic,” she replied, with a casual wave of her hand. “Regina taught me a long time ago how to communicate with mirrors. And a few weeks ago, I had a thought. I figured that since a phone screen can reflect your face like a mirror, maybe I could use Henry’s phone screen to talk to him. I’ve been trying it out lately, but Henry either doesn’t have his phone on him or he does, but can’t hear me talking over his motorcycle.”

“That thing is so noisy,” Ella cosigned.

“Tell me about it. And I thought it was bad when Henry was revving it up all night in the garage back in high school. But, at least now I know that this actually works, and as a bonus, I get to meet you!”

“I guess we could call it a happy accident.”

“I like that. So, considering that you have Henry’s phone, I take it that you two are...close?” Ella giggled at Emma’s expression. There was a hopeful smirk where a simple grin had been but a moment ago. She could tell how Emma was trying so hard not to be too nosy, but was also looked too excited to expect Ella not to think that that’s exactly how she felt.

“Yes,” Ella confirmed, her grin now wide enough to show teeth. “We’re together.”

Emma looked at Ella, positively beaming with happiness.

“That’s great!” Emma nearly shouted. “I’m so happy for you two!” As soon as she was done speaking, she blushed, clearly embarrassed at her over excitement at the news.

But in truth, Ella loved it.

“Thanks!” Ella said, finding herself beaming as well. “I guess I don’t have to worry about a disapproving mother?” she teased.

Emma tapped her chin, smirking. She released a wicked hum before speaking. “Nah,” she dismissed with a wink. “You’re a good kid, and you’re good for my kid.”

“You think so?”

“Definitely,” Emma answered, not skipping a beat. “Henry’s got a good heart. You must be pretty amazing if it lead him to you. And honestly, you seem amazing. I mean, sword fighting a prince’s army, riding a motorcycle after a minute-long lesson, and joining a resistance movement, and all in the same day? That’s impressive.”

Ella felt her cheeks redden at the thought of all that Henry had told her. “I guess Henry’s had his own stories to share about me?”

“You have no idea, Ella. Henry’s always been an passionate kid, but when he told me how you two met -- that look in his eyes -- it was like magic. And trust me, I’ve become quite the expert on the subject these days. So yeah, like I was saying -- I think you two are gonna be great together.”

Ella felt her heart warm at that comment. Regina had taken to her presence in Henry’s life rather quickly and now, Emma had too. On some level, she knew that winning over anyone from Storybrooke wouldn’t be an obstacle -- they seemed too kind to ever make themselves come across that way -- but the validation was still very much appreciated and it felt nice to be welcomed into Henry’s family with such ease.

Or at least part of what was a very big and extended family.

Now that that thought had made its way back to the forefront of her mind, Ella mused on Emma for a moment. Emma had a story of her own, one that Ella felt a kinship too, especially in her current situation.

Henry’s tales always illustrated Emma’s story in particular as something more complex than just some badass woman with a leather jacket and a gun. No, there was also the story of a woman who found her family, fell in love, and became a leader after a lifetime of wondering if she’d leave any impact whatsoever on this world at all, or if she’d even want to. It was a a journey of taking comfort in one’s connections and learning how they can be empowered through them, rather than things to be feared or avoided. And now, just judging by the gentleness that surrounded her through her posture, smile, and eyes, Ella could tell that Emma was happy beyond all belief with her life in Storybrooke.

Maybe with Emma lied the key to getting the same thing for herself.

Perhaps there was more Emma Swan could offer than just a sweet first encounter.

“Emma,” Ella started, admittedly more than a touch nervously. “Can I ask you something?”

Emma seemed to be able to tell that Ella’s question was more subdued than previously and settled herself accordingly from her former state of sheer giddiness. “Of course,” she answered. “What’s up?”

“How did you settle into Storybrooke life?” Emma raised a brow, clearly confused by the inquiry.

“What do you mean?”

Ella bit her cheek as she sought words of clarity. “What I mean is, Storybrooke’s a really social place and I know you weren’t when you first arrived…” Before Ella even attempted to further her sentence, she groaned. “I’m sorry. I’m bad at this. And that’s what I mean.” Emma raised a hand, as if asking her to settle down.

A look of realization and understanding overtook Emma’s features. “I guess Henry’s told you about the rest of his family.”

“Yes,” Ella responded. She was so tempted to place her hand over her face, but held back as not to further embarrass herself.

But Emma looked calm and better yet, understanding. With her eyes, she encouraged Ella to keep on going.

“It’s just a lot,” Ella continued. “And don’t get me wrong: you all seem great and kind. I guess I’m a bit more reserved. I want to fit in, but I know myself and I know that I tend to not do great with large crowds, especially if they’re as involved as Henry’s stories make them out to be.”

Emma shrugged. “Unfortunately, he’s not wrong.”  Another groan was working its way up Ella’s throat, but she stifled it.

“I guess what I’m asking is if we end up in Storybrooke, how am I going to manage there? I don’t want to come off as rude, but I can’t see myself being as open as everyone else there is. And I figured since you weren’t always like that, according to Henry, you could give me some pointers.”

Looking through the screen, Ella saw Emma biting her lip, seemingly contemplating what she said and nodding as a likely chugging train of thought rode through a lifetime’s worth of experiences. “I get it,” Emma consoled. “In this realm, we call it being introverted. I’m like that too.”

“Then how did you get...unintroverted?” The snort that Emma seemed to only barely able to stifle told Ella that her word choice was incorrect. Ella playfully rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean.”

Emma gave her a soft smile. “I do. Can I tell you a little secret?”

“Sure.”

“I’m still freaked out by it -- the whole social thing. I look at Henry and my parents and even Killian and they’re so much better at this than me. They’re the ones who initiate all of the conversations. They’re the ones who extend invitations to hang out. They’re the ones who remember everything about everyone. I don’t remember what the spices were in the deviled eggs at the last Doctoberfest! How do they? Who pays attention to that stuff?” At those last statements, Ella instinctively felt her face scrunched, confused. Emma looked to catch onto that. “Sorry, that’s another story for another day.”

“Why would anyone eat eggs from the devil?”

“They’re not actually from the devil. It’s just a weird name thing,” Emma dismissed. However, Ella wasn’t just about ready to drop the matter just yet.

“Who name things after the devil?”

Emma smirked. “Do you want my advice or not?” she teasingly chided.

Ella returned the gesture. “Fair enough.”

“What I mean is it’s a struggle for me. I get the feeling it always will be. I’m like you -- an introvert. It doesn’t go away, at least for most people.”

Another groan escaped Ella. “So am I doomed?”

“I never said that,” Emma assured. “It’s just different for people like us. But here’s the thing: People in Storybrooke get that. The town’s a lot of things, but more than anything, it’s understanding. If you talk about your limits and you’re nice about it, the people here will get it if you need to take a step back every now and then.” Emma snapped her finger, as if recalling something. “And trust me -- neither of us are alone. Regina’s more introverted too and so is Henry’s other grandfather.”

“Rumplestiltskin?” Ella clarified. Emma nodded. “Yeah, he seems the type.”

That seemed to surprise Emma. “You’ve met him?”

“Yeah. I haven’t talked to him yet, but apparently, he came to this world recently.”

Emma nodded. “Noted. But,” she continued, “I promise you, Ella, you’ll be just fine if you and Henry end up here. And if it helps, even if I’m still struggling with the social stuff, I have learned a lot too just by being here and getting close to the people I love. It all builds, so just let yourself take it one day at a time. Start things off with a simple ‘it’s nice to meet you,’ and follow your gut for the rest. Sound good?”

Ella took a moment to absorb her advice. It certainly made Storybrooke seem a lot less scary. It was still a bit nerve wracking, but Ella now felt a surge of determination that hadn’t been there before. Besides, if a fellow introvert like her could find happiness there, Ella had a feeling that she could too, especially given the start that her family in this realm had given her. And by the time that she and Henry might move to Storybrooke, Ella knew she’d be even stronger and more capable.

“It really does,” Ella said, her smile wide with the very confidence she knew Emma had in herself as well.Thank you, Emma.”

“Happy to he-”

“Emma! Were you able to get in touch with Henry this time?” It was a man’s voice that called and subsequently interrupted Emma. A series of increasingly loud footsteps followed, leading to what was clearly the sound of an opening door.

“Killian,” Emma said, a surprised bliss clear in her tone. Ella felt her heart warm at it, thinking of how Henry’s presence so often gave her that exact feeling. “No, I wasn’t able to get him today. He’s out fishing.”

“My apologies, love. It’s my fault that he’s so drawn to the sea’s call.” Killian’s shadow was now visible on the screen and Emma must have been able to tell. She looked at Ella in a way that seemed to be asking her if she was comfortable meeting Killian like this.

And Ella -- ready -- nodded.

“But I did meet someone else.” Ella saw the screen twist in Emma’s wrist so she was now facing Killian. “Killian, this is Ella, Henry’s friend!”

Killian beamed upon seeing her and hearing her name. “Ella! How nice it is to meet you!”

“And it’s nice to meet you too, Killian!”

“So you’re the woman my boy’s had his eye on! How are you two getting by?”

“Very well,” Ella answered. “But, we have got to talk about your sword fighting lessons. I thought you were a pirate, Captain Jones, but Henry doesn’t exactly fight dirty.”

Killian laughed heartily. “Don’t blame me! Blame his goody two shoes grandfather!”

“I don’t know about that, Mr. Good Form,” Ella shot back, earning herself a similarly hearty laugh from both herself and Emma.

For the next half hour, the three of them exchanged stories and updates about life in their respective realms. Emma asked if the resistance needed their aid, and while Ella told them they’d be alright, she stressed that she wanted to see them when things finally quieted down.

At the chime of a clock in the distance of Emma’s side of the phone, Emma frowned.

“We’ve got to take off,” she said. “We’re already late as it is and while I don’t have to worry about anyone signing my paychecks, I’d rather not get an earful from who or what ever might be at the station when we arrive.”

“Two doubloons says it’s about Granny going on another drunk crossbowing spree.”

“It’s okay,” Ella assured, laughing all the while at the image Killian so kindly painted her. “I’m going to take a bit more time for myself before Henry gets back.”

“You definitely deserve it. And tell Henry that we love him!”

“Of course!”

“It was nice to meet you!” Emma and Killian chorused.

“It was nice to meet you, too! And Emma, thank you for everything.”

KIllian placed an arm around Emma’s shoulders and Emma gave her a final appreciative grin at Ella from the other side of the phone.

After that, the swirling light blue appeared once more briefly before dissipating back to the blackened screen. Ella checked the phone to make sure that everything was back to normal and when the image of a happy couple holding each other upon a motorcycle appeared, she knew that it was.

Content, Ella laid back in her bed and as she had initially planned, went through Henry’s phone. The light bit of tension that had been in her belly whenever she looked at the collection of memories was still present, but lessened. It was especially so when she encountered pictures of Emma. Within her gazes as she decorated trees and carved up pumpkins in a room filled with people -- through Ella had no idea why she would be doing either of those things -- Ella saw not only hope for herself, but a friend who would help her realize that hope’s full potential.

An hour later, Ella heard shifting sounds outside of her tent, though she knew immediately just who it was on the other side of it.

True Love was funny in that way.

As she expected, the folds of the tent soon split to reveal a joyful Henry from the other side.

“Hey!” he called. Ella felt her heart swell as she looked at her lover. The bottoms of his pants as well as his shoes were dirty and he had an odor that she could definitely say was reflective of his morning’s activity.

“Hey! How was fishing?”

“Pretty good, but don’t ask Jack or Hook. They’re a bit...jealous.” Giggling, Ella gestured for him to come lay by her side once more. Henry didn’t hesitate before joining her and colliding their lips in a satisfying and hungry kiss. When they finally broke free after a few minutes, they held their stare as their heavy breaths rhytmically pulled their chests up and down.“And how was your morning alone?”

“Well, it wasn’t exactly a morning completely alone.”

Henry’s face fell. “I’m sorry,” he cooed, his head tilting sadly. “Resistance stuff?”

“No, and it was fine,” Ella assuaged. “I actually had a really nice chat with your mother.”

“Really? I thought she went to go visit my grandpa today.”

Ella smirked at Henry’s bewildered expression. “Wrong mother.”

If Henry’s face looked taken off guard before, he now looked like a child lost in the middle of the woods without so much as a compass to guide him. “Wh-what? You talked to Emma?”

“Yes, I did! And tomorrow, Regina’s going to help us call her because she loves and misses you.” Ella then smiled as she finished talking.

Henry softened, clearly still bewildered, but just as clearly happy about the implications behind that very smile. Just as Killian had done to Emma before they ended their conversation, he looped his arm around Ella’s shoulder.

“I knew you guys would get along. You two are a lot alike.”

“More than you could imagine.” Ella pulled Henry closer, contently cradling her head in his neck as she beamed. “And Henry?” she whispered.

“Yeah?”

“I know about the math test.”

[aion-rsa]

Overwatch 2: Why Some Players Already Hate the New 5v5 Multiplayer

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

In case you didn’t hear, Blizzard recently livestreamed an extensive look at Overwatch 2 and it’s revamped PvP mode. While there’s a lot to talk about, the change that’s drawing the most attention and controversy at the moment is the news that Overwatch 2 will alter the previous games 6v6 PvP format and embrace a standard 5v5 format.

According to Blizzard, these changes will help reduce the amount of on-screen chaos (thus making it easier to follow the action) and streamline the style of the average match. They also hope the change will result in players better utilizing the unique strategies presented by each map rather than relying on the same basic playstyle. Furthermore, many characters will be altered in response to this new format, and classes will now include unique benefits that apply to every hero in that class. Some players also suspect that this move could help reduce Overwatch‘s queue times, which is certainly a benefit for players who currently have to endure longer waits.

Yet, Overwatch fans on Twitter, Reddit, the Blizzard forums, and comment sections everywhere are already…less than optimistic about the potential impact of this format change. While every player has their own hopes and concerns, these are some of the most notable ways that players fear Overwatch 2’s new format could be bad for the game.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

Overwatch 2’s 5v5 Multiplayer Will Almost Certainly Impact Character Diversity

While it’s tempting to say that Overwatch 2 will obviously negatively impact character diversity due to the fact that you’re forced to play with fewer characters in each match, there are various other factors (balancing, meta, multiple strategic possibilities) that could help ensure that you still see a diverse array of characters in the average Overwatch 2 match.

That being said, there’s obviously some truth to the idea that having less players in a match means seeing fewer heroes in a match. At the very least, that impacts Overwatch 2 from a flavor perspective, but as many are quick to point out, the bigger concern here is balance. Many higher level Overatch matches (and even an unfortunate amount of lower level matches) see players demand that their teammates play certain heroes they believe to be “optimal” based on the game’s meta. One less player and character per team could mean less of a chance to play your favorite character without having to endure harassments.

Of course, for some players, they may simply no longer have the chance to play their favorite character at all due to the potential larger impact of these changes. That brings us to the biggest talking point of the new 5v5 standard: the role of tanks.

Overwatch 2 Could Put a Lot of Pressure on Tank Players (and May Lead to More Toxicity)

It’s worth spending a little more time talking about tanks as that’s the class most directly impacted by what we currently know about Overwatch 2.

To be blunt, playing a tank in Overwatch can really suck. Not only is the enemy team typically swarming you (which is obviously the nature of the role), but it’s fairly common for tank players to endure quite a bit of verbal abuse from their teammates over what they consider to be bad play. An Overwatch team typically relies on their tanks to not screw up, but tanks rarely get to enjoy as many moments of “glory.” It’s kind of like being an offensive lineman in the NFL.

That toxicity, and the fact that many recent Overwatch metas already favor DPS and Support characters, means that it’s sometimes hard to find a tank that’s willing to put up with it all. When you do, they’re often encouraged to play certain characters designed to best protect the rest of the team.

Now, Blizzard has said that they’re rethinking how tanks will work in Overwatch 2 by making them more aggressive brawlers who take “reduced knockback” and provide “less ultimate charge to opponents who damage them,” but at the end of the day, a tank will still not be a DPS or Support character; they’ll be a tank that is expected to serve a particular role. That role is already a big ask for the average Overwatch players, and it could be less appealing than ever now that the “off-tank” position (and the support and playstyle they offered) is no longer an option.

Is it possible that Blizzard could balance characters in a way that encourages tank diversity and puts less pressure on them by promoting a variety of team strategies? It certainly is, but that brings us to our next point…

Overwatch 2’s 5v5 Will Force Blizzard to Rebalance Many Characters and Comps

It’s not exactly uncommon for people who play competitive games to complain about balance. In fact, I don’t think there’s ever been a competitive mutliplayer game (especially in the live service era) that has achieved “perfect balance” in the minds of most of its players.

Still, balancing Overwatch has been a particularly tough task for Blizzard. There are so many moving pieces in the game that it sometimes feels like the best Blizzard can do is wait for the new meta to settle and then target the strongest and weakest characters to help mix things up. In a way, reducing Overwatch‘s team size could also reduce the possible ways that players can “break” the game and therefore make it easier to balance the overall experience.

However, the biggest problem with that lovely sentiment is that changing Overwatch‘s PvP format means that the majority of existing characters will likely need to be reworked and rebalanced. That’s an incredibly tall task for any company, much less one that has historically scrambled to make minor adjustments in response to ongoing balance issues.

Think about it. In the current format, characters like Roadhog, Winston, Wrecking Ball, and even Zarya are in no way capable of effectively serving as a team’s one and only tank. Removing that second tank spot also impacts DPS and Support players who would sometimes base their character selections and strategies on the tanks. While the new format may not mean every Overwatch character needs to be reworked and rebalanced, a substantial number of them will likely have to be changed in some way.

That doesn’t mean that Blizzard can’t make this whole thing work but rather that some players are already wondering why they wouldn’t help balance the existing format instead of upending it and seemingly creating more potential balance problems for themselves.

Overwatch 2 Could be Seen as an Example of “Forced Composition” Design

In the early days of Overwatch, there were no character limits and players could build teams pretty much however they wanted. That was almost universally agreed to be a terrible idea and was quickly replaced with a system where each team could only include one of each hero.

However, after some comps (particularly tank heavy comps) revealed the inherent balance issues with this idea, Blizzard eventually decided to implement a role queue that forced teams to adopt a 2-2-2 composition. When that led to issues (and “stale” metas), Blizzard implemented a hero pool that limited the number of characters you could choose from at different times. Of course, all of these changes have now led to Overwatch 2’s 5v5 matches.

Through it all, Blizzard strategy for dealing with team composition balance issues has often boiled down to reducing team composition options. While there were times when that approach was obviously the right strategy, there were other times when players wondered if these moves were just a way to make it easier to balance the game by eliminating strategic possibilities.

The 5v5 announcement has certainly put that argument back into the spotlight. One argument against the 5v5 format (so far as this idea goes) is that if you’re going to have to regularly balance the game anyway (which the OW2 team probably will), why seemingly sacrifice composition choices in the name of eliminating balancing headaches?

Now, it is possible that Blizzard new approach will change the inherent value of certain roles and characters and result in a wider array of strategies due to the fact that players won’t be “forced” into a particular team playstyle as often. That could be a big ask based on some of the issues we noted above, but there is certainly a world where smaller teams do result in more diverse comps.

Overwatch 2 Could Be Bad News for OWL Pro Players

This obviously won’t impact the majority of Overwatch players, but it’s interesting to think about how this new format will impact the Overwatch League.

Not only does this change naturally mean that there will be one less OWL player in each match (which could lead to reduced roster sizes), but there are some OWL players who were specifically recruited to play off-tank characters and roles that may no longer exist in the upcoming game.

Even regular players may feel some of that pain. If you’re someone who played with larger groups of friends under the old comp format or even regularly queued into matches as characters or roles that may no longer exist in the way you knew them, you’re probably suddenly wondering what comes next.

While there are reasons to hope that the answers to your questions will make you feel bad for every worrying, this could be seen as another example of how Overwatch needed to be improved by its sequel more than it needed to be fundamentally redesigned in a way that makes some existing fans worry the most.

The post Overwatch 2: Why Some Players Already Hate the New 5v5 Multiplayer appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/345r3Sc

[mastcomm]

‘There Are Too Many Minefields’: Readers on Swiping and Dating in the Trump Era

At a time when politics have become so intensely personal and divisive, how are people navigating the topic in the already fraught world of online dating?

With President Trump’s impeachment trial underway, and the race for the Democratic presidential nomination picking up, we asked readers who use online dating what they look for politically in a potential match and how they signal their own views.

More than 200 people responded, many echoing the sentiments of one woman who had been open to dating people with different political views but who changed her mind in the current climate. “Now, your political beliefs are a referendum on your entire life, with all your values aligned neatly under a single label,” Kristine Kinsey of Knoxville, Tenn., wrote.

While some said they didn’t think politics was important in the dating calculus, far more thought the subject was crucial in evaluating possible partners, often sleuthing for subtle profile clues that might indicate their values.

Here is a selection of the responses, which have been lightly edited.

Taking an upfront approach

Image

Credit…David Tulanian

I don’t really make a conscious effort to either screen people out or in based on their political beliefs. What I have found, sadly, is people boldly announcing, “No Trump-Republicans need apply.”

I like to keep an open mind, so I don’t want to avoid a whole group of people who may not share all my politics.

Before, I would never dream of informing everyone about my politics. But as time goes on, I’m starting to declare that I support Trump! — David Tulanian, 59, Las Vegas

•

All of my bios specifically state something like “No Republicans,” “No Trump supporters” or even, “If you don’t care about politics, I don’t care about you.”

I’ve also been known to send the first message to all of my matches asking if they’re Republican.

This has produced some memorable conversations with offended conservatives and also gotten me some dates with like-minded swipers. — Alyssa Parssinen, 33, Manchester, N.H.

•

I just come right out and say I’m progressive politically and that I’m an atheist. These things are too important to leave out.

At least one conservative and one middle-of-the-road guy have argued with me that I’m not being open-minded, and aren’t liberals supposed to be open-minded? — Susan K. Perry, 73, Los Angeles

Deciding what not to say on your profile

I think I might prefer to date someone with different political ideologies.

I intentionally leave off my conservative affiliation because I live in New York. I’m having a hard time getting matches online as it is.

There are people of good and bad character across the political spectrum. If we start segregating ourselves romantically based on politics, well, that’s not going to help society get to a better place, is it? — Curtis Chou, 27, New York

•

I’m an evangelical Christian. I leave that off the profile because there are too many minefields that can get triggered if that stuff is in a profile.

Disagreements on all individual issues are fine with me. I’ve been close to people who don’t trust government to do away with gun violence. I’ve dated women who believe abortion is murder. I’ve been close to girls who think immigration is too high.

But say the “T” word and I’m out, without explanation, without exception, without the slightest deliberation. — Winston Steward, 48, Los Angeles

Branching out

We were getting cozy on the couch, and I can’t remember why now, but I said, “Wait a second, you didn’t vote for Trump, did you?”

And he said, “Um, I was in the military and I grew up in the South.”

And I was like, whoa. WHAT THE [expletive]?!?! It totally turned the night on its head.

But we got past it and had a pretty decent open conversation about it a couple of days later when he took me to a diner where every TV (and there were a lot of them) was tuned to Fox News. — Christina Galante, 47, Long Island

•

I went out on a limb with a guy who said he was “Christian,” which I would never normally swipe “yes” on. He described his beliefs as “I don’t necessarily believe in a God. I don’t believe in heaven.” With my strong understanding of Christian beliefs, I knew he wasn’t really a Christian. So we went out.

And now we’re official and have fun theological conversations that I never expected! — Laurel Westendorf, 32, Bend, Ore.

•

The few times I tried to talk to someone conservative it ended in an argument.

One guy basically told me he didn’t care if people’s rights were being taken away because his 401(k) was amazing. Also another guy argued that global warming was not real and created so scientists could make money.

While I was very hesitant online to match with someone who voted for Trump, I did end up meeting my current boyfriend through friends and he did vote for Trump but will not do so again. We don’t agree on many things politically, which can be challenging, but we are able to have good discussions and challenge each other. — Heather MacLachlan, 31, Lakewood, Ohio

When Trump enters the equation

In the past, I was more open to dating a conservative Republican. In the age of Trump, though, I’ve learned it’s best not to go there. We simply aggravate each other, and that’s no way to start a relationship.

I’ve had several conservative men tell me that they like dating a liberal woman, that they think it’s “spicy” and “exciting.”

I am no man’s hot sauce, that’s for sure! — Felicia Lowery, 58, Tucson

•

I am a conservative Trump supporter, BUT I value hearing other opinions. If a poster (on Tinder) says “Trump supporters swipe left,” I swipe left because that is a close-minded person.

I value dialogue and learning from others and having others learn from my views. My views are firm, but subject to change by learning! — Kamal Hamid, 58, Denver

•

At 20, I dated the man who would become my husband (and later, my ex-husband), knowing he was a Republican.

In the early ’90s, the world was less polarized and politics still seemed at least a little noble, so you could respect a different perspective and even sleep with it.

Now, your political beliefs are a referendum on your entire life with all your values aligned neatly under a single label.

My ex was a liberal by the time I married him, but 20 years later, I made sure my next partners were already my flavor, politically. — Kristine Kinsey, 49, Knoxville, Tenn.

•

I’d date someone indifferent, but I couldn’t date someone who supports impeachment.

Politics is not actually that important, but it’s a fun topic. — Peter Gormley, 24, New York City

•

Image

Credit…Megan Reilley

I try to be open-minded, but the fact is, a vote for Trump means a vote against my family.

I have a trans kid and I won’t spend time talking to or meeting someone who either doesn’t believe in human rights for everyone or doesn’t think about the far-reaching implications of their vote.

I need to keep my kid safe, which means I screen potential dates. I signal my values by stating simply that I am not conservative in any way.

Surprisingly, many men interpret this as a reference to my sexual predilection. — Megan Reilley, 47, Hagerstown, Md.

Leaving politics out

I don’t screen dates on their political beliefs. I don’t knowingly signal my beliefs.

A person’s politics when dating is a three out of 10 on importance, where a 10 out of 10 is very important. — Thomas Liquet, 28, the Bronx

•

I find politics interesting, but it’s just not something I find fun.

While I probably would consider myself fairly liberal, I don’t give any indication of that on my profile because, frankly, I’m not interested in dating someone who would form their opinion of me based on that (for better or for worse). — Jonathan Pascale, 25, Houston

Lara Takenaga contributed reporting.

A note to readers who are not subscribers: This article from the Reader Center does not count toward your monthly free article limit.

Follow the @ReaderCenter on Twitter for more coverage highlighting your perspectives and experiences and for insight into how we work.

from WordPress https://mastcomm.com/life-style/there-are-too-many-minefields-readers-on-swiping-and-dating-in-the-trump-era/

[royaldragonscribe]

Ethics in Ethnic Reps: The Media

An essay I wrote concerning the issue of ethnic representation in the media.

In today's society, the prevalence of social media has become an unlikely weapon. Everyone, from celebrities to businesses, makes good use of the internet. Whether it's to present their product, protect their image, or to publish assignments for class, social media is quickly becoming incredibly pervasive. This of course gives voice to those who hadn't had one before, as well as a megaphone to those who have had one all along. Thus, sentiments like “SJWs are ruining everything good and fun for everyone!” or “They're always getting hurt over little things, like how the upcoming movies Ghost in the Shell and The Great Wall feature a white actor/actress as lead; don't they know that it's just a movie?!” are everywhere. Discourse is effectively killed off as a result, because both sides react instantaneously to slights such as these, instead of thinking of rational arguments that inform rather than insult. As a Filipino American, things like this have always confused me. Perhaps it's because of the life I've been raised in, one where religion was a huge component, that I didn't realize that there was an issue at all. Yet as I've gone through high school and college, I've come to the conclusion that this issue – ethnic representation – is a much bigger deal than a lot of people probably realize. In fact, ethnic representation is painfully apparent in movies and television shows, and present an ethical issue of representation and its importance in today's society. 

Going back to one of the statements above, one prominent area where this issue reigns is movies. A quick Google search says that on average, Hollywood releases around 600 movies a year. Logically, this number should allow for many opportunities for directors to make movies that star ethnic minorities. Yet according to a study that NPR did in 2015, only 17% of films featured a nonwhite lead in 2013. In a nation where 40% of the population are people of color, this number is abysmally low. The article even goes on to state that diversity sells, and it does so consistently. However, it acknowledges that the high risk nature of the industry presents a barrier. With variables such as high budgets (some even in the hundreds of millions) as well as a very white executive demographic contributes to the “whitewashing” of these movies. This is an alarming trend in the movie industry, one that dates back to the early days of Hollywood. White actors often resorted to offensive portrayals of minorities, such as blackface, and were even praised for these representations. One such instance that the article references was Warner Oland's portrayal of Chinese comic book detective Charlie Chan in 1931. A quote that the article presents is that Oland would have “few drinks to make his speech more halting and to put a grin on his face — like the perpetually congenial Chinese sleuth.” Back then, performances like these were appreciated for the representation alone, as shown by Oland's warm welcome in Shanghai. Thankfully for minorities everywhere, these “artistic decisions” began to meet more and more criticism in the 60s, when roles like Mickey Rooney's depiction of I.Y.Yunioshi received more outrage. One reason why this attitude finally began to perpetuate then, and even now, is because there are more ethnic stars that are perfect for some of these roles. Another reason is that Hollywood began covering stories that star a minority, but will cast a white actor or actress in the colored person's role. What's worse, some movies (such as The Lone Ranger starring Johnny Depp) will change an actor or actress's appearance to better fit the role, resulting in a type of caricature. Finally, a large reason that the article cites, is that Hollywood wrongfully assumes that white actors will have the widest appeal. This reason is why the new movie The Great Wall that was mentioned earlier, which stars Matt Damon in ancient China (side note, this could not earn more derision from me even if it tried). The director, Zhang Yimou, has stated before that this was a deliberate move on his part, to allow more people to gain an interest in his movie. After all, the rest of the cast is entirely Asian, and Damon's role is even explained in the movie itself. However, it's this assumption that an Asian lead wouldn't gain as much acclaim that's problematic; it sends a message to Asians everywhere that we're not interesting enough to be the lead, but good enough to be side characters in a movie about Asians. The same goes for movies like Stonewall and The Help, where the minorities are relegated to side roles, or misrepresented. Thankfully, the article from NPR lists a solution: the power of the audience. If enough people talk, things change. That's why whitewashing has now become a hot topic on social media, and why movies are even considering the implications that the castings they make will have. If people continue to protest movies like The Great Wall or Aloha, Hollywood will continue to improve their representation of minorities. People should also take to social media, where their opinions have the most viewership. Only if people make their voices heard will change come.

That's exactly what television has done in recent years, to the delight of viewers everywhere. According to the NPR report, the inclusion of minorities has proven to be a gold mine. Shows like Scandal and Jane the Virgin have enjoyed smashing success, and this has provided a model for other shows to follow suit. Now shows like Fresh off the Boat and Blackish have gained momentum, and other shows even saturate their casts with more minorities. According to Ana-Christine Ramon of the NPR article, viewers have an incredible power on social media, especially on Twitter. However, despite how progressive television has been in representation, another seemingly opposite problem has appeared: an over saturation of minorities. So far, this essay has covered the lack thereof; would this not then be a good thing? Actually, no. This can lead to a perpetuation of stereotypes, and is best represented in sports. For example, basketball is normally seen as a “black person” sport. Media often supports this supposition, what with nearly every famous player being black. However, according to an article by the Center for American Progress, in 2013, there were only 1200 professional black athletes. The NFL too contributes to the stereotype. Cornerback (defensive) and wide receiver (catcher) were the roles that African Americans dominated in 2014, while Quarterback (playmaker) and Center (essentially a bodyguard for the QB) were mostly Caucasian. It's thanks to these statistics that the stereotype that assumes that black people can run have become so widespread. Another study from the LA84 Foundation takes a look on other racial representations as well, and notes that Asian representations are often exaggerated. One quote from the article described a weightlifting competition as the following: “The serenity, the calm, that is the East. The mystique of the Orient with its mysterious inner strength. That strength today transformed into the brutal power of Olympic weightlifting, where Asian strong men dominate the bantamweight division”. This kind of description is almost never used for African American athletes. Additionally, both Asians and Hispanic athletes undergo more physical scrutiny. In the study, half of Asian athletes, and 55% of Hispanic athletes were described in physical terms; a mere 25% of black athletes and 29% of white athletes had the same treatment. This sort of behavior is enormously discouraging. According to the article, Asians were described with negative words, such as “slight”, “bowed”, and “overdeveloped”. These sort of observations have an obvious effect, with the article even suggesting that the machine-like representation of Asian athletes might even be adversarial. As an Asian athlete myself, these sorts of misconceptions can discourage anyone, leading to mental health issues concerning image. It can also present itself as a barrier for any aspiring Asian athletes, especially if they are not “normal” by social standards. However, the “fix” for such behaviors is not a “same” portrayal for all races; the article itself says that “non-prejudicial representation in sport media does not mean hiding cultural differences behind contrived sameness”. It acknowledges that the racial representation enriches the industry; the solution then is that more commentators be different races, and that producers of the show stop presenting sports as a mostly black and white affair. As with movies, audiences can change the face of television by participating in discussions about ethnic representation online.

Screens everywhere have a large role in ethnic representation, whether it be the big screens and movies, or television with shows and sports. The ethics of this issue apply to both a lack of minorities, as well as a high saturation of them, but the common denominator between the two is that they both are largely affected by social media. This has proven itself time and time again, from people rallying together to protest watching whitewashed movies to viewers voting to see more representation in television shows. Social media is again, a powerful weapon for everyone, but it must be used to have any effect. Change starts with us as viewers; we have to start the conversation with as many people as possible, explain to them why this so problematic for minorities everywhere. As with any controversy, expect a lot of backlash, name-calling, and differing opinions. Yet with every one of these, it's one more person forced to see the issue, who will talk about it to more people. It's through discussion on the wide web that these producers will hear the voices of the underrepresented, as well as those who were misrepresented. Time has proven this, and will continue to do so, as long as there are people willing to champion the change.