#use romantic tropes and terms as old as the hills

[omegawizardposting]

It’s getting there. They’re already trying to force their trans Mao Mao canons onto people, and they went absolute bat shit over Parker Simmons confirming Mao Mao and Badgerclops isn’t gay. So, yeah.

also stay clear of mao maos creator. He did the straight guy thing and inserted romantic subtext between characters, only then to go like “lol what bro? Theyre just bros. Best bros. I felt as though there wasnt enough straight men being close to eachother in shows, so thats what I made. Theres no romantic subtext. Not even when one calls the other the light of his life.”

Oh and that was a direct quote. One character calling the other the light of his life. I know nothing about the fandom tho, since i havent checked out the fandom

Eh, friends can say that sort of thing to one another, I guess, but it’s not really. It’s not what I’d call common. I’ve only ever heard it used by parents referring to their children, or someone referring to their SO. “Light of my life” isn’t a name you tend to give your friends, no matter how much you care about them.

Guys definitely should be shown being platonically intimate more often, but that doesn’t seem like the right way to go about it. I don’t think there’s a straight guy in the universe who’d unironically call his friend the “light of his life.”

This just makes me think of that “two bros chillin’ in a hot tub” vine.

[bisexual-maelstrom12]

Ranking the Lovelink Matches (a completely subjective list by moi)

22. Clementine Hill / Grace Kim

I already wasn’t into her because she’s a privileged rich girl who uses literary quotes to seem smart (but really it’s just obnoxious). But then she tells us she’s thinking about dumping us for her creepy old professor?? Girl needs an actual job so she can stop relying on her parents and a therapist for her daddy issues. 

21. Dominic Wright / Adam Johnson

I’m still pretty early on in the storyline here but so far I’m just bored. A “love” photography theme? Big yawn.

20. Liam Park / Min-Jae Lee

How Is Dating A K-Pop Star This BORING

19. Jake Gonzales / Zayn Kassab

The sexting is fun but honestly his film project sounds terrible and he needs to cool his feelings down like 200%. 

18. Angel Reed / Emmalyn Roberts

Look she’s amazing and gorgeous and the animals are ADORABLE but honestly I find her pretty boring compared to the other matches SORRY DON’T HATE ME

17. Antoine Dawson / Noah Cruz

He comes on too strong a lot but I dig the puppies and the sexual tension. I would absolutely enter a FWB relationship with him but nothing more. 

16. Albert Bishop / Jonathan Hayes

This ranking is subject to change bc tbh I swiped left on these boys at first (#fuckamericanimperialism). But then other matches finished up and I needed more content and y’know what? Albert’s pretty okay. I like his backstory so far and he’s sweet and sexy. Should def get out of the military tho. 

15. Stefan Silver / Oliver Black

I appreciate that he’s a more consent-friendly version of Christian Gray and I like the “defrosting ice king” trope. But I would much rather be using the riding crop on him than vice versa. >:)

14. Jamie Grant / Seth Evans

Jamie is kind of a weird match in that I LOVE his storyline but also the flirting is pretty weak?? Like, I literally would have had to pay gems for the first “date”. I’m not feeling much of a sexual connection here, but I’m all aboard the hacker kidnapping storyline. 

13. Austin Russo / Damien Jones

He’s rough around the edges but the character growth is pretty spectacular. Gotta save my boo from death row. 

12. Sam Knight / Michael Evans

Never thought I’d be into a jock frat boy but here we are. I like how I snarked at him constantly for a week and he still fell for me. Ghosting us after we call him out on his daddy issues is pretty weak tho. 

11. Samantha Clark / Aesha Nora

Okay she isn’t the greatest person or partner but cute gamer gf?? Yes please. And she can cook and bench press me too! *swoon* Also Fiction needs to be real asap. 

10. Sage Foster / Vitoria Voznesenky

Sage was one of my first matches and was my favorite for a while. Who doesn’t want a hot goth gf? But then she PUNCTURED MY LIP (does that even heal??) and almost ate me and I’m just not about that. Hopefully she can go give Baba Yaga a talking to and get that curse removed.

9. Skylar Quinn / Jaden Bower

So making us commit a crime and then ditching us on the first date wasn’t cool, and I’m not much for a “rebel without a cause,” but then Skylar hit me with his tragic backstory and, well, I’m weak y’all. Also he’s so smart and snarky and sexy and I want him to achieve his dreams.

8. Eve Rockwood / Alice Martin

Look I’m still pissed at Eve for ditching us in Ibiza. But also I would absolutely drop everything to follow a hot girl to Japan. 

7. William Crome / Julien Alexandre

I was never really into the whole dating a vampire thing but William just does it for me. I think it’s the hair and the old timey fashion. And he told off his mom for me, which is more than I can say about SOME of these matches.

6. Hugo Hornsby / Marco Bottazzi

Hugo is lowkey a garbage human who absolutely emotionally cheated on his long-term fiance with us. So why do I love him so much?? Idk, could be my trash taste in men, could be my love of geeks, could be the delicious drama of his plotline. Hugo pls come back from ur convo with ur fiance and d*ck us down already. 

5. Kayla Summers / Jasmin Medina

Kayla/Jasmin is objectively the most badass match in Lovelink. She’s hot, ambitious, and didn’t ghost me for a dumb reason. She can kill it in heels AND kill actual killers! Get you a girl who can do both!

4. Raphael Becker / Wyatt Moore

The creepy cult plot is fascinating and Raph is the perfect combination of sweet/romantic and hott. That dream date was amazing. Pls Lovelink, when will my husband* come back from the war**?

* musician boyfriend

** creepy cult village

3. Ryan Byrne

Ryan is lowkey my perfect guy--sweet, nerdy, and SO SEXY OMG. I need his sex scene so bad pls. Also he might have caused the zombie apocalypse and that’s very interesting of him. I’m hooked on his story and I want his **** hooked in my *****. 

2. Milena Sarafian / Ana Samarine (also maybe the same route as Ruby Thomas and Julia Greene?? Idk I’m pretty confused by this whole situation)

Apparently my ideal type is an adorable yet sexy computer who discovers love and how to be human through interacting with me. I should probably go watch that Her movie.

1. Cpt. Muffin

CAT. SHY BOY. <3.

[mucky-puddler]

Once Upon A Time In Hollywood and reaping the rewards of research

First of all, spoilers for the film named above. Also, a disclaimer about words said - they are all mine own opinion, don’t come after me, just let me have this

So I saw my first Tarantino film recently, and I have a few thoughts. This is about to get really confusing so buckle up.

Let me give y’all an overview of the film. From the trailer, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood looked like a movie about a struggling movie star - set in 60′s, I got a lot of Texas/western vibes, regardless of the types of films we can see being produced throughout this film (told you).  Leonardo DiCaprio appears to be the lead with Brad Pitt as the brother-from-another-mother (whom I presumed would be given the romantic sub-plot, but more on that later). Oh and Margot Robbie is also there - she too plays an actor, but in a different film to DiCaprio...in the film trailer...yeah, that makes sense.

Being the terrible film studies student that I am, I decided that this will be my first Tarantino film. I’ve heard good things about him and have been recommended some of his earlier pieces of work like Kill Bill and Pulp Fiction, so I thought I would dip my toes in with the one that was in cinemas - Once Upon A Time In Hollywood.

So about 2/3 of the way through this film, with my M’n’Ms all gone and after leaving the theatre to buy some water, I had a thought come to me - nothing is happening. There is no plot. This film is made up of a series of moments that have been filmed nicely. I got bored - so bored, in fact, that my film brain kicked in and made me realise that there was no plot. Throughout the remainder of the film, I was searching - for meaning, for foreshadowing, for anything at all. I saw potential in a lot of these moments - where Brad Pitt’s (Cliff Booth) and Margaret Qualley’s (Pussycat) characters finally meet and visit an old filming location where Pussycat lives, or where Leonardo DiCaprio’s character (Rick Dalton) shares a moment with a child actor (will go into these scenes more later maybe), but there was very little connecting them together. Also, Rick and Margot Robbie’s character (Sharon Tate) never meet until the last few minutes!

Above is a diagram I have become extremely familiar with - I don’t know if it has a fancy name or anything but it essentially maps out the amount of tension as the story progresses; it can be applied to anything with a story in it, not just films, and it’s not a strict rule.

1 is exposition; now, we are often told (or I am, at least) that exposition is of the devil and should be removed as much as possible. But without exposition, how will the audience know where or when they are in the big wide universe. Authors (this is the term I will be using for the people that write stories) need exposition for setting the scene that is taking place - and that is okay. The entirety of Once In Hollywood appears to be exposition - there is so much setting up of character and relationships that nothing else seems to happen, which nicely leads on to the next point.

2 is called the inciting incident - it is an event within the story that sets off tension and invites excitement in the very souls of the audience. I did not feel that this vital point was evident in Once In Hollywood; I guess you could say that the meeting with Al Pacino’s character (Marvin Schwarz), where Rick realises that his career is over is the inciting incident, but I would argue that it doesn’t affect the rest of the narrative - Rick doesn’t change as an effect of the meeting, and therefore neither does the story.

3 is the rising action, and this is where most of the story should take place - smaller events are slowly increasing the tension up to the pinnacle (more on that later). Once In Hollywood, in my humble and potentially naive opinion, does not do this whatsoever. Everything following Rick and Marvin’s meeting remains at the same level of tension until the last twenty minutes or so. That’s not to say that I did not find some scenes interesting - the scenes I mentioned earlier were the most memorable and interesting for me (obvs everyone is different).To be completely candid, I’m surprised it took me 2/3 of a film for me to realise how uneventful that film was - perhaps I’m entertained by boring films.

4 is the climax, the part everyone looks forward to, and this can definitely be seen in Once In Hollywood - but it is a little unexpected. The murderers almost came out of nowhere, and I saw no connection between the man who ordered the kill (which I think was Damien Herrimon’s character, Charles Manson (some of you may be familiar with that name, I’ll get onto it later)) and those who actually (tried to) get their hands dirty. They did have a connection with Cliff Booth, purely on accident, mind you. The wind-up to the big climactic fight was somewhat drawn out with an unnecessary amount of shots of the murderers walking up this hill to get to Rick’s house. The actual fight was exactly what I expected from a Tarantino movie - bloody and violent and epic (although it was weird that Rick brought out the flame-thrower (from one of his earlier movies) and torched one of the murderers without knowing what was going on).

I’m going to lump 5 and 6 together because there are only a few minutes of the film left to cover and they generally happen close together anyway. So 5 is falling action, where the tension calms down a little and the adrenaline slowly leaves the audience and they can lean back in their seats once more, and 6 is the resolution where everything comes into perspective. In the context of Once In Hollywood, neither of these events are fully satisfied - the cooldown period before the credits was so short meaning it left the audience confused, and nothing was really resolved because there was nothing to resolve in the first place. I’m sure a statement can be made about the peculiarity and abruptness of life here, but I don’t want to make it because it sounds stupid.

And now about the research. I was more than happy to leave behind this film in memory and move on with my life (bad film student), but my wonderful boyfriend search for answers and found a clue to them all before the bus arrived home.

If you are familiar with the name Sharon Tate, then you already know where this is going, but I had never heard the name before - I know very little about my own history, let alone the history of another country. You may also notice that she is not mentioned a whole lot in my very very brief overview of this 2 hour and 40 minute film; that’s because she’s not really in it - she doesn’t interact with any of the other characters until the very end when she invites Rick into her home after the attack. And I have a theory about why.

If you type ‘Sharon Tate’  into google, you will be greeted with the face of an actress that was murdered in 1969 in her home in Hollywood by the Manson family, led by Charles Manson. Prior to this research, I was guessing that the character called Manson was in charge of the potential murders within the film because his name was only brought up once and there wasn’t really anyone else it could be. Then after a simple google search, it is confirmed (to me, at least) that he is the man behind it. So my next question was this; if you have such a big story in your film, why not focus the film on that instead of a fictional character? The words ‘based on a true story’  always hit home to the audience, making them realise that their lives are not as safe as they once thought, so why leave out such an impactful tool in the hopes of making it a fictional story?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cF76gm9PdOs

Now that right there is a scene breakdown with Leonardo DiCaprio and Tarantino (who is a lot younger than I thought he would be), and Tarantino discusses how the character of Rick Dalton fits into our past, fighting for jobs alongside Steve McQueen who is also seen as a character in this film (played by Damien Lewis). On top of that, Mike Moh plays Bruce Lee, which brings our real people count up to 4 - so it’s pretty clear that this film is based in our history. But it isn’t our history, because in our history Sharon Tate dies. Therefore...alternate universe!

If you know anything about me...which you don’t...you would know that I love talking about things like this - it is my jam. I think it is interesting that a director as famous as Tarantino would employ such a trope commonly associated with science fiction.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtbJMTPi2zQ

After watching the first minute of this film by New Rockstars, I have learned that this use of the alternate realities is actually quite common for Tarantino to use, which is interesting. I have never heard anyone talk about Tarantino and his use of popular history within his work. In this video, his films are described as a fairytale re-telling of events, often ending happier than history did. 

But does all of this, the idea of an alternate, interconnected universe, the happier endings, the familiar names, does it balance out the plot-less moment montage I saw that rainy afternoon? Honestly, I don’t know. I’m kind just happy discussing films, and people always have more to say about the films they hate rather than the films they enjoy, right? I could go on more, but this post has taken days, and I mean days to write, so imma summerise - this film is okay after thinking about it a bit and after knowing a little more about Tarantino, and research pays off.

[theexecutionerssong]

hi! I think you're a Destiel shipper and I was wondering if you could explain how a crack ship can have a fandom that big? I don't get it. It must be frustrating to watch? Why do so many people ship it when there are other explicit ships in other shows, with actual representation? I hope I don't sound rude, it's just something I've been trying to understand and I thought I'd ask you xx

I started rambling whoops, this turned into an essay on queer characters representation in TV shows from the early 2000s to today lmao so it’s under the cut. 

Well, for me, it was a matter of chemistry and that we had nothing else elsewhere, actually. I don’t know how old you are but I think most people nowadays either weren’t there or have forgotten that we didn’t have much if anything to latch onto in terms of LGBTQ representation. Most popular mlm and wlw ships back then weren’t canon and the characters weren’t even queer and the popularity of the ships was not because people really just wanted to see two boys or girls fucking like I’ve been seeing for years. It’s because the chemistry we saw could be interpreted as romantic and because we had close to nothing to compare to. 

Like, just a quick look at the canon mlm or wlw couples and shows with LGBTQ representation I’ve enjoyed over the years:

2000: Willow and Tara in Buffy The Vampire Slayer

2008: Ianto and Jack in Torchwood

2009: Arizona and Cali in Grey’s Anatomy

2010: Naomi and Emily in Skins

2011: Ian and Mickey in Shameless

2012: Nasir and Agron in Spartacus, Sara and Nyssa in Arrow

2013: Ethan and Danny in Teen Wolf, Captain Holt in Brooklyn Nine Nine, Orange Is The New Black, Cosima and Delphine in Orphan Black

2014: Oliver and Connor in HTGAWM, Kieren and Simon in In The Flesh, Black Sails

2015: Sense8

2016: Wayhaught in Wyonna Earp, Philip and Lukas in Eyewitness, Even and Isak in Skam, Alec and Magnus in Shadowhunters, Clarke and Lexa in The 100, Maggie and Alex in Supergirl

2018: Eliot and Quentin in The Magicians, Omar and Ander in Elite

2019: The Umbrella Academy, the Skam remakes, Grizz and Sam in The Society

As you can see, I personally had barely nothing canon to relate to between 2005 when I started questioning my sexuality and 2012. I didn’t like Glee. Cali and Arizona had so much heartache. Tara, Ianto and Naomi die. Ian and Mickey in the early seasons of Shameless weren’t the prime exemple of a healthy relationship. 

So when Cas came along in Supernatural in 2008 and there was this immediate intensity with Dean (even if you don’t ship it you can’t deny that), fans saw their relationship as possibly romantic because there is no way to deny that if Cas had been in a female body, all their scenes would have come off as romantic to everybody and they would have been together by the end of season 4. What else did we have? Nothing. Scraps. Hints. Two minutes of screentime for a guest star. Bury your gays tropes. Smallville, Veronica Mars, Lost, One Tree Hill, Prison Break, Desperate Housewives, Heroes, all these incredibly popular shows in the 2000s and none of them had  really positive LGBTQ representation if any (the crazy murderous lesbian in Smallville, the psychopath in Prison Break, and I’ll never fucking forget Andrew coming out in Desperate Housewives and Bree telling him “I would love you even if you were a murderer” azsdfghjk nice comparison). 

Subtext was all we could latch onto for the longest time. So of course, Destiel became popular, and so did Johnlock, and Sterek, and Stucky at the same time. I was also still closeted and it felt safe to watch shows about seemingly straight dudes while nobody knew I was reading fanfics at night. It wasn’t (only) straight fangirls fetishizing straight white pretty men. It was because the subtext was more than we had in canon anywhere else. 

Ships, especially wlw and mlm ships, used to be for fandom only and never made it to being explicit on screen, but it didn’t make them any less real in fandom space (think of Kirk and Spock in Star Trek in the 70s for exemple, that ship has always existed). I remember the debate around 2013 about “will it go canon or is it just now queerbaiting”, and the massive push for ships to go canon and I was confused because as much as I would love it and was frustrated with the queerbaiting… being explicitly canon didn’t use to factor in whether fans shipped it or not. Fandom spaces and TPTB didn’t use to interact so much before social media, it got more common around 2012. So we could ship in peace, confined to myspace, livejournal and ff.net. Now that we have more representation, non canon ships feel cheap for many people, and that’s fine. But I personally won’t forget that some older ships were all I had 10 years ago and they gave me a safe place. So yeah, I still ship Dean and Cas. Not as in I need it or expect it to be explicitly canon in the show (though that’d be nice), but in the fandom space, hell yeah. It isn’t a crack ship. Crack ship used to mean shipping completely random chacarters that have never interacted or aren’t even from the same fandom. Nowadays, I feel like anything that isn’t canon is a crack ship. Nah. Not for me.

[uhhhhhhokay]

Shows With Good LGBT+ Rep

Now for starters, I’ll admit that I do not watch Riverdale. I tried it, didn’t like it, that’s basically it. The show does have LGBT rep (but not ace rep), I would never dismiss that, but they make sure to do the bare minimum. Based off the people I follow who are fans, scenes for the characters, more specifically Chonie (Cheryl x Toni), are either constantly deleted or they are nonexistent. 

They have romantic scenes together but not nearly as many as the rest of the leading cast. This matters because one of the girl in the relationship, Cheryl, is advertised as a main, but yet she’s treated as a side character, and Toni is given even less. From what I’ve heard of the show, they dedicate an immense amount of time to the pairings of the main characters, but this focus does not seem to apply to Cheryl and her relationship with Toni. This applies to them as individual characters and as a pairing, as I’ve heard that neither character get much screen time. 

I understand wanting representation and I understand wanting to support representation, but the point that I’m trying to make is that Riverdale is not the show to put your desire and need into because they will never give the proper treatment or storylines that these characters and relationships they deserve. You can still watch but just know that there are shows out there with much better rep. So I’m here today, writing this long essay that no one asked for, to inform you guys of LGBT+ rep that actually gets treated well by their writers and is given the screentime and love they deserve. 

Warning: Some of these shows have been cancelled. If they do not say they’ve been cancelled, then that either means the show is still going or that it ended on it’s own terms.

Also this list does not include shows with the bury your gays trope.

Feel free to add on! This list is mainly comprised of some of my favorites. I tried to very best on the descriptions but I am a tired student with little free time. 

#1: The Bold Type ~ Kat x Adena

Kat Edison, the head of the social media department of Scarlet magazine, meets Adena El-Amin, a proud Muslim lesbian photographer in episode one. The two bond and grow closer and closer, eventually causing the “out and proud hetero” Kat to question her sexuality and acknowledge her romantic feelings for Adena. Adena, as I said earlier, is a lesbian and Kat is bisexual. 

#2: Black Lightning ~ Anissa x Grace

Ah, the first black lesbian superhero! The second season is currently airing on Tuesday’s at 9pm on the CW. Being the daughter of the infamous vigilante Black Lighting has it’s unexpected perks, like having superpowers! The intelligent activist Anissa Pierce discovers her powers of super strength and decides to use them for good and defend her city under the name of Thunder.

Grace Choi was in a few episodes of season one, but her relationship status as girlfriends with Anissa in the comics assures us that she will be coming back and we will see her and Anissa’s relationship develop further.

#3: Doctor Who ~ Bill x Heather

Throughout all of time and space, these two manage to come back to each other. After being split up by an alien in ‘Pilot’, Heather comes back to Bill’s rescue in the season finale, kissing her and making her immortal, leaving the both of them to travel across the universe together. Their journey has sadly come to an end in the series, but it came to a spectacular and happy one!

#4: BBC Class ~ Charlie x Matteusz

Part of the Doctor Who universe comes Class, a teenage sci-fi drama that takes place in Shoreditch. Now, first I should say that this is one of my favorite shows and you don’t need to watch Doctor Who in order to watch it. It is its own separate show.

Charlie Smith, an alien prince from the planet Rhodia, comes to earth to escape the Shadowkin, the monsters that killed his race. Him and the only other survivor of his planet, Miss Quill, come to earth and are instructed by the Doctor to hide themselves as human. Charlie attends Coal Hill Academy while Quill teaches.

Once prom comes around, Charlie asks the Polish boy, Matteusz, to be his date. The prom is hijacked by the Shadowkin and it is revealed to Matteusz that Charlie is an alien, but he doesn’t mind because it does not change the way he feels about him. The two continue to date throughout the series whilst fighting off aliens with four of their friends and Miss Quill

This show has been cancelled, but audios have been made since then to fill in the gaps between episodes and there is a chance there might be more! Also there are three books!

#5: In The Flesh ~ Kieren x Simon

The dead have come back to life! Kieren and Simon are both PDS sufferers, meaning they have partially deceased syndrome, meaning that they died and were brought back to life. Series 1 is centered on Kieren Walker, a 18 year old boy who died back in 2009, who is adjusting to his new zombie life and dealing with the people who want him back in the ground.

In series 2, Simon is introduced as a part of an PDS activist who is fighting for equal treatment for PDS sufferers while trying to find the first risen to bring on the second rising. Connected by a mutual friend, Simon and Kieren are introduced to each other, and the two strike up a relationship which develops into something romantic.

#6: Faking It ~ Multiple Characters

In an attempt to gain popularity, Karma and Amy fake being lesbians, but after a kiss at the school’s prep rally, Amy realizes that she isn’t as straight as she thought she was. In fact, she is head over heels in love with her childhood best friend, Karma. She confides in the out and proud Shane about her feelings for Karma and asks for advice on how to get a girlfriend. This show, while not always perfect, is incredibly diverse. Amy is bisexual, Shane is gay, Lauren is intersex, and in season 3, Shane forms a crush on the new student, Noah, and after their first kiss Noah comes out as trans to Shane. 

The show was unfortunately cancelled after three seasons, leaving much of the story still left unsaid, but the show still has an enjoyable and satisfying ending, even if it wasn’t the ending the creator wanted. The creator’s ideal ending, had he been given the chance to write it, was that Karma would eventually realize that she herself is bisexual too. 

#7: Hit The Floor ~Multiple Characters

Jude x Zero

Junior sports agent Jude Kinkade brings basketball sports star Zero to LA on the promise to be a star. One night in a limo before Zero flies to an away game, Jude, to his surprise, kisses Zero. When Zero comes back, the two begin a friends with benefits relationship that develops into something deeper, and the two fall in love.

Lionel x Eve

Lionel’s sexuality has never been explicitly stated in the show. She had sex with many men and the majority of viewers assumed she was straight. That was until the cunning Eve came in. The two decide after a brief meeting to go and get drinks together which ends up with them having sex. Later, Lionel admits to Jude, that she has slept with many women before Eve. Their relationship is complicated and it’s much different from the other relationships on the show. 

Jude x Noah

Due to the show’s unexpected renewal and switch from VH1 to BET, not all actors returned. Adam Senn (Zero) did not want to return, but never fear, because the show’s creator wasn’t about to let the beautiful Jude Kinkade go to waste!

A year after his break up with Zero, Jude’s best friend Lionel takes him out for drinks in the hopes to find him a hunk and get him laid. Later that night, Jude and Noah meet, hook up, and move on with their lives. Until the next day when Jude sees Noah at the Devils arena and finds out that the two will be working together. 

Hit The Floor has not been renewed or cancelled.

#8: Wynonna Earp ~ Multiple Characters

Waverly x Nicole 

i’m sure many of you have heard of these two, but incase you haven’t, let me introduce you to Waverly and Nicole! Waverly, the younger sister to the Earp heir, and Nicole, a sheriff at the Purgatory police department, strike up a romantic relationship after Waverly ends things with her shitty boyfriend Champ. These two are so cute and are head over heels in love with each other. 

Jeremy x Robin

Jeremy is introduced in season 2 and Robin is introduced in season 3. After discovering a murder tree, Robin goes to the police station in search of help. Directed to Jeremy, Robin explains everything he saw, then the two go on a date to investigate the murder tree, and after that the two become boyfriends.

Warning: The show, while amazing with LGBT characters, does not treat their POC characters well. 

#11: Brooklyn Nine-Nine ~ Holt and Rosa

Raymond Holt is captain of the 99th precinct. He is married to his longtime partner Kevin, who often guest stars on the show, and the two of them are truly iconic. Holt has fought hard for gay rights in the police department since joined the force. As a out gay black man, Holt had to fight and work hard to get to his position as captain. 

Rosa Diaz is bisexual and she is played by a bisexual actress. Rosa is a secretive, hard, ruthless, and a soft bean of a character. She is one of the key characters to the Nine-Nine. She has yet to have a steady girlfriend but here’s to hoping that she will have one next season!

#10: BBC Cuffs ~ Multiple Characters

Jake x Simon

Don’t sleep with the enemy. New PC Officer, Jake Vickers, joins the police force and meets the well known and disliked solicitor, Simon Reddington. Despite the fact that they are on opposing sides that hate each other, the two begin dating. They try to keep their professional life out of their relationship to avoid conflict. But alas, that’s where the sweet angst comes in. 

Donna x Alison 

The time these two start dating it unclear, but when the show begins it is said that they’ve been together for a few years. They’ve been living happily together for quite some time. Donna is part of the main cast as a police officer and is given a lot of screen time in action. Alison is a side character who makes a few appearances throughout the show but her interactions with Donna are sweet, beautiful, and realistic. 

This show has been cancelled.

#11: Shadowhunters ~ Magnus x Alec

Ghaad, these two are the best. A gay shadowhunter and a bisexual warlock fall in love. Malec has good communication. Magnus and Alec have their own storyline and a storyline with each other, making them both equally important and have intimate/emotional scenes. The show also makes sure to tackle harmful bisexual stereotypes. (Thanks to @spicychipsdemon for helping me write this one.)

This show has been cancelled but it’s being given a special to wrap up the story.

#12: Superstore ~ Mateo x Jeff

An employee and district manager meet at the Cloud 9 store during a strike. Mateo is a out gay man and so is Jeff, the thing is that his cannot date the employees at the store so the two of them keep their relationship private from the other coworkers, because they would not be able to keep it a secret from Jeff’s boss. These two are actually really cute and they’re hilarious and underrated to be quite honest.

#15: Orphan Black ~ Multiple Characters

Besides the white girl dreads, these two are nice. They are the sci-fi couple that beat the shit out of the bury your gays trope. A clone and a woman who is assigned to look after that clone, uncoincidentally meet. What starts as an assignment is developed into something much deeper, leading Delphine to realize she’s bisexual. These two are happily living their life making crazy science with each other.

There are more LGBT characters in the show. There is a trans clone but unfortunately he is only in one episode. One of the main clones, Sarah is revealed to be bisexual in s4 and her foster brother Felix, a series regular, is gay. 

#16: Picnic at Hanging Rock ~ Multiple Characters 

Three schoolgirls and their governesses mysteriously disappear on Valentines Day in 1900 at the infamous Hanging Rock. This show, while slow in some areas, transformed the 1967 book written by Joan Lindsay. What was initially about the disappearance of three girls and the attempt to find them was changed into a six part series about the repression of sexuality and expression of young girls. Miranda, Irma, and Marion, are the three young women that go missing, and they are all lesbians. There are two more characters in the story: Mike and Albert. They had a close relationship in the book but the tv show made their relationship canonically romantic. 

The show does suffer in the sense that hetero couples that barely existed in the book get more screen time and make out sessions than they should. I included this show because character wise it’s so drastic from it’s original content and it ends up putting wayyyy more focus on the girls than the book did. It turned a simple plot into a meaningful story about gender roles and sexuality and three girls trying to break free of them and two boys falling in love and running away together. Not a perfect show, but damn if it didn’t do some things right. Still recommend.

This show is a miniseries. Unlike other series, it ends where the book ends.

#17: One Day At A Time ~ Elena x Syd

If you haven’t watched these two then I don’t know wtf you’re doing. This show is precious and they are precious and god just watch it already honestly. Elena is a lesbian and Syd is a non-binary lesbian. Once a criminal breaks loose and the two have to cancel their plans to go to comic con, the two are trapped in their home with the rest of their family. As the evening builds up, Elena finally gets the courage to kiss Syd.

#18: Crashing ~ Sam x Fred

This show and this relationship is f*cking wild and it’s amazing. The show surrounds a group of people who are guardians to an abandoned hospital and they live in it. Sam meets Fred on his birthday when the two are paired up for a scavenger hunt. They relationship is odd at first with Sam constantly flirting with Fred and blatantly ignoring his feelings for him. These feelings rise to the surface and force Sam to confront them when Fred gets a rich bf who wants them to move in together. 

This show has been cancelled. The show does not end with a cliffhanger. The show does end with Sam finally leaning in a kissing Fred. 

#19: Charmed (2018) ~ Mel x Niko

Now this show is only one episode in so who knows where this show and relationship will go but it’s off to a good start with having the Mel and Nico relationship as the only romantic relationship in the show so far. I did not pay attention to the advertising of this show but as far as I know the show kept this relationship under wraps as a happy surprise for it’s premiere. The pilot has it’s flaws but it is cute, and to me personally, it works for me better than the original. These two have been dating for a while. Nico is a detective while Mel is just finding out months after her mothers death that she is a witch. A lot is going on. The pilot was interesting enough to get me to continue. The sisters are amazing and I hope the writers keep this relationship up front. This show not only has a lesbian relationship as it’s main love story right now but the three sisters are all women of color. 

This show and the actresses have been facing a lot of racist backlash so any support to ensure a future seasons be amazing!

#20: The Halcyon ~ Toby x Adil

(Ayyyeeee I got to use my own gif go follow at @tlmedits please)

Honestly f*ck BBC for cancelling so many good shows with LGBT characters. The Halcyon is a tv show that takes place during the 1940′s. Now, unlike many other periodic shows, this one is diverse, including poc and gay characters in the cast and giving them good storylines. The Halycon hotel is own by the Hamilton family, and Toby is the youngest son. Adil is a bartender in the hotel lobby. One night, while Toby is hiding from a woman his mother had set him up with, he runs into Adil who then kisses him. The two the next day begin a relationship. 

As I mentioned before, this show was cancelled.

[thefatlannister]

“You’ll have to make it a kill shot:” That Bellarke Scene in 4x11

Okay so at this point I’m aware that I’m bordering on beating a dead horse, but “Clarke would never choose to sacrifice the entire human race for Bellamy” is apparently the Hill I’m Dying On.

I wanted to respond to this comment on my old meta “Start with Bellamy Blake: Unconditional Love + Narrative Meaning” with what’s basically my overdue reaction and analysis of what happened in 5x11 with Bellarke. **It is important to note before I begin that the gun scene in 4x11 is primarily about Clarke thematically, and her character arc. What did and didn’t happen in this ep is also tied into Clarke’s (semblance of a) character arc in season 4 which I’m hoping to write about separately.

But for now let’s dive into the 4x11 gun scene from a bellarke perspective:

I see everyone out here like “CLARKE WAS WILLING TO LET HER MOTHER DIE BUT CAN’T KILL BELLAMY TO SAVE THE HUMAN RACE!!” Which is basically a retread of the argument that was going around after 3x15 and the “start with Bellamy Blake scene.” My reaction to this interpretation of 4x11 is largely the same as my reaction to that interpretation of 3x15, namely that this is a very reductive interpretation of the scene and the circumstances surrounding Clarke’s decision and bellarke’s relationship. Also, just a warning up front that I’m really not trying to sound preachy, mostly because it’s totally understandable for people to interpret the scene the way they do— more than 3x15, the 4x11 scene is framed in /extremely/ personal and even romantic terms. It’s FRAMED like it’s a scene where Clarke DOES choose Bellamy over the rest of humanity.

However, I’d argue that both the very specific circumstances of the plot AND the nature of Bellarke’s relationship undermine that interpretation. I will also talk a little below about how I believe poor writing- from a macro and micro standpoint- contribute to the confusing framing of this scene.

Plot Context

The task of describing and understanding the actual circumstances and stakes of the moral conundrum we’re presented with in 4x11 is very hard. This is largely because the episode does SUCH a poor job of establishing and explaining them itself. In many ways I’d say the episode actually makes false assumptions about the scenario it sets up, which is frustrating on multiple levels. So here’s what we know about the situation:

1. Clarke, Jaha and all of Skaikru are locked in the bunker. Skaikru thinks they’re safe to ride out the 5 years.

2. Octavia, Indra, Gaia, and Kane are the only ones outside the bunker who KNOW that Clarke stole it; this is true for THE DURATION OF THE EP.

3. Clarke, Jaha, Abby, Bellamy know from the beginning of the ep that Octavia won the conclave and that NO ONE OTHER THAN HER (and Indra,Kane, etc) KNOW THAT CLARKE STOLE THE BUNKER.

4. Clarke, Jaha, et al have the ability to communicate with Octavia et al if need be.

The problem with 4x11 is that it’s written as if Clarke and the others have no idea what’s going on outside that door. Clarke is written as if there’s a mob on the other side of the door waiting to slaughter skaikru. In fact, I think an earlier, perhaps even a filmed, version of this episode had exactly that, because even in the promo for the original ep that’s the situation that’s implied.

Clarke’s defense to Niylah in bed (don’t even get me started…) about Skaikru’s technological know-how would make a TON more sense if Skaikru were actually shown as in danger of being completely slaughtered. But as it is, we know Octavia is in control, and that word of the stolen bunker hasn’t gotten out yet. Which means that if they open the door, the likely outcome isn’t the slaughter of skaikru, and it CERTAINLY is not the end of the human race (a HUGE leap).

The stakes of opening the door are that hundreds more members of SKAIKRU will die. Not all of them, but more of them. And honestly, as the leaders of skaikru, it would be totally valid for Clarke and Jaha to be worried about that!! But that’s not the argument that’s presented in 4x11- that argument isn’t introduced until 4x12. Instead there’s this nonsensical assumption - by apparently both the writers and the viewers - that if Clarke opens the door then all of humanity will die.

Character Context

Now, to get to the central question at play when interpreting this scene from a bellarke perspective: Does Clarke believe when she lowers the gun that she is dooming the human race to death? We the audience know she’s not, but in Clarke’s mind, is her choosing to let Bellamy open the door fundamentally the same as if Clarke gave ALIE the passcode in 3x15, thus temporarily saving her mother but dooming the human race?

The obvious answer, to me, is OF COURSE NOT. Because only someone weak-willed or short-sighted would make that decision, and Clarke Griffin is neither. I cover this topic in considerable detail in my original meta, but if Clarke knows for a fact that sacrificing a loved one could save the world, and the alternative is losing the world AND that loved one, there is literally only one choice that makes sense. That’s why she let Abby hang in 3x15, and that’s why she would have been forced to let Bellamy hang too.

So what’s different in 4x11? Clarke seems convinced throughout the episode that opening the door could mean the end of the human race. She also, notably, spends the episode NOT TALKING TO BELLAMY, until this last scene.

What makes 4x11 different is that this ISN’T a clear cut “save the world or save this person” situation, and that it’s BELLAMY that’s able to instill enough doubt in Clarke that she’s not willing to kill him over it (read: an infinitesimal bit of doubt).

With ALIE, there WAS no uncertainty - like Bellamy says, "we knew what would happen then - now, we know nothing.” Fundamentally, Clarke's argument in the 4x11 scene is based on that fact that she KNOWS that if they DON’T open the door, the human race survives. But if they DO open the door, the survival of the human race is UNCERTAIN, not categorically doomed.

And, ultimately, Clarke is NOT willing to kill Bellamy over an uncertainty.

Of course, had it been anyone BUT Bellamy on those stairs, she likely would have been willing to kill them. But Bellamy is her partner, her co-leader, the person she loves most in the world. And, importantly, in the moments where Clarke doesn’t trust her own decision-making, she trusts Bellamy’s. That’s canon fact.

That’s why the subtext of what Bellamy says to her about keeping the door closed is so important: I know we’ve done stuff like this before, I know this feels necessary- like closing the dropship door, like pulling the lever in Mt Weather, but it’s not. And you know how you know it’s not? Because I won’t share the burden of it with you. In fact, you’ll have to kill me to do it.

And Clarke, who wants DESPERATELY not to hurt him, who has affirmed and reaffirmed how much she trusts him, ultimately is not willing to bet Bellamy’s life on him being wrong. Which, of COURSE she’s not, because she loves him.

Although my interpretation of this scene may not be as classically romantic as others, I find it no less compelling. In fact, I think it says really fucking beautiful things about Bellarke.

Their relationship is defined in part by their knowledge that, in a situation where the choice was LITERALLY between the survival of the human race and the other person's survival, Bellamy would beg Clarke to pull the trigger and vice versa. They would do it, to save their people, to save the human race.

Bellamy literally does this in 4x13- makes the choice to leave Clarke behind, because not doing so means both she and his people die. It kills him to do it, but it is in the strength of her love and the knowledge of her faith in him that he is ABLE to do it!! They have changed and molded and supported each other in order to make each other capable of making decisions that might ultimately mean putting the people they both love before each other. That’s what bonds them and, ultimately, that’s what breaks them.

4x11 is an example of that bond being used to help Clarke understand when NOT to make that kind of hard choice. The very fact that Bellamy isn’t on her side is what allows her to make the right decision and to hold onto her humanity. It’s their relationship with each other that keeps them CENTERED, that keeps them balanced enough to retain their humanity but also to be able to make the hard decisions.

Narrative Framing

To finish off, I want to circle back to my original observation that I totally understand /why/ people interpret this scene as the romantic trope “you over the world.” And that’s because it’s literally presented that way. As explored in this essay, anyone reading into the plot and character dynamics of the scene can see that it’s nowhere near as straightforward as that. And yet, Clarke’s tears, the lack of her verbal acknowledgement of his arguments, and even the script itself all combine to narrative frame this scene in a way that is undeniably… romantic.

In a way, the scene oversimplifies *itself.* The actual dialogue we receive (not the subtext) - "you'll have to make it a kill shot"- is specifically meant to frame Clarke's choice as either kill Bellamy or let him open the door. This is the frame even though a reasonable viewer could just be like “well obvi she can shoot him in the leg or something.”

It is CLEAR that the writers/directors.etc. intended to frame this moment as "Clarke can't pull the trigger because she loves him too much.” That is indisputably what the scene is telling us, and I think it is this message that is the catalyst for so many members of the audience to then conclude “Clarke chose Bellamy over the human race.”

So I guess my point here is that they clearly wanted to frame this scene as being about Clarke’s (nonplatonic, earth-shatteringly intense) feelings for Bellamy, for better or for worse. And I, for one, am curious as to WHY they would be so intent on doing that….😏😏

[sterek-bingo]

Happy New Year everyone!! To celebrate the great occasion of a new year, we've come to present you with this year's theme description post!! Under the cut you'll find the official descriptions for 2018's Bingo themes, in case you were stuck or just needed a little more clarity!

Tattoos- From triskeles to burning flesh to pack symbols, tattoos have always played a very big role in Teen Wolf, and there’s no reason not to continue that trend! There are so many ways to use tattoos, so many styles and themes, from the classics to the more unique, let your creativity really shine with the most personal form of art there is!

Werewolves Are Known- What used to be one of the most popular AU tropes can easily be applied to canon now, but you can feel free to use whatever universe setting you’d like for your peice! Canon, AU, A/B/O, crossover, the only rule is that werewolves are known to exist by ATLEAST a portion of the general public- it doesn’t have to be the entire world, it can be as small as one town, just so long as a portion of the general public know werewolves exist, the choices are your’s!

Zombies- From The Walking Dead to iZombie, from Afterlife With Archie to Warm Bodies, it’s safe to say that zombies have taken over modern pop culture, now it’s time to let the dead invade the world of Teen Wolf as well! You can easily make a zombie crossover with HUNDREDS of different media sources, or you can create your own universe and mythology- you could even set it in the Teen Wolf universe! Be it due to science or magic or something in between, the dead are rising, now will Stiles and Derek defeat them? Or… are Stiles and Derek PART of them…?

Witch & Familiar- The theme of a witch and a werewolf working together as two halves of an unstoppable pair has been popular with the Sterek fandom since the beginning, and though it’s usually Emissary!Stiles lending his assistance to Alpha!Derek, it might be fun to switch things around with Derek as a familiar lending his assistance to witch!Stiles- or the reverse! Perhaps you’d like to mix things up and make it witch!Derek and familiar!Stiles, whatever inspires you, feel free to let it run wild!

Bodyguard- Bodyguards have always had a certain appeal to them, be they for a celebrity, a politician, a member of royalty, or- most recently- even for a hitman, there’s just something inherently romantic about a person putting your life before their own, and now it’s time to apply that to Sterek! Be it one protecting the other, both as bodyguards working together, rival bodyguards, it doesn’t matter really, just as long as there’s some life saving (or .. life protecting?) going on, it’s all good here!

Hospital (Hurt/Wounded)- As it turns out, people really love wump! We had so many similar themes that we sort of boiled them down into this- if it involves Derek or Stiles (or both) being injured, ill, in a hospital, or even just emotionally wounded, if there’s some sort of pain involved you’ve got the right theme! Bonus points if you can incorporate multiple styles of using this theme!

Fantasy/Fairytale- From Little Red Riding Hood and Cinderella to Alice In Wonderland and The Wizard Of Oz, fantasy and fairytales have always been part of culture, and with the rise of live action remakes like Beauty And The Beast, retellings of old classics like Kubo And The Two Strings, and the creation of modern fairytales like Moana, they seem to be more popular than ever! Let yourself be inspired by the fantastic world around you and carve out a new- or old!- fairytale or fantasy world for Stiles and Derek to be part of!

Spies/Assassin- With Dylan O'Brien starring in American Assassin and Tyler Hoechlin as a leading role in Stratton, the Sterek fandom has certainly had assassins and spies on the brain lately, and Sterek Bingo is getting in on the trend! From legends that Derek is a killer by the name of La Lobo, to the fact that Mitch sounds suspiciously like a nickname for Miecyslaw, there’s certainly alot of in-universe references to work with, and plenty of Hobrien related projects to play with too, or- and ofcourse this is always encouraged- go with your own thing! Let these two cuties start putting the “Fun” back in funeral!

Roadtrip- Who doesn’t love a good roadtrip? Junk food, awesome tunes, stupid car games, the inevitable moment when someone stares at the trees too long and gets car sick.. roadtrips!! Time to let Derek and Stiles enjoy- er… “enjoy”?- all of the wonders of spending an obscene amount of time alone in a car together- or not alone, there’s always the possibility of a family trip or a pack trip too- where are they going? On vacation? Away from Beacon Hills? On a mission to stop a random villain? Or does the destination even matter at all if you have barbecue potato chips, coca cola, and The Eagles on a four-disc set?

Thunderstorm- To some, thunderstorms are soothing, to others, they’re terrifying, but one thing is universal about them- they make for GREAT fan tropes! Let your headcanons loose with this one, does Stiles find the pelting of the rain and soft rolling thunder to be soothing? Does Derek have to cover his sensitive werewolf ears each time he hears a storm approaching? Maybe after The Wild Hunt their perspectives have shifted, or maybe there’s no emotional or psychological attachment at all and they just get caught in the rain after their car breaks down, whatever it is, let the ideas pour down like rain!

The Bite- The Bite is a gift…. right? Well, it’s finally time to make that decision for yourself! Be it a gift, a curse, or something in-between, the point of this theme is all about the bite…. now, it doesn’t //have// to be a werewolf bite, it could be from a vampire, an incubus, or… er.. a human… not every bite has to be transformative, sometimes it’s just kinky, other times it’s about marking a mate or keeping a pack together or- .. really about anything you want it to be about! As long as there’s biting, it’s fine by us!

Monster Of The Week- Ahh the famous Monster Of The Week, popularized by shows like The X-Files and Buffy The Vampire Slayer, to those unfamiliar, the Monster Of The Week idea is about episodic storytelling rather than linear storytelling, one week Buffy fights a sea monster, the next she fights a goblin, and the creatures have no connection to eachother, in terms of fandom, it’s sort of the same idea, choose a monster- any monster!- and create a peice about Stiles and Derek… fighting it, helping it, creating it, heck maybe one of them even IS it, this would be a great chance to flex the Paranormal Investigator AU muscle, but it doesn’t matter what the monster is or how they relate to the story, as long as it’s got a random monster involved, it fits!

Vacation- I think it’s safe to say that Stiles and Derek deserve a vacation right about now, don’t you? They can go anywhere in the world! Hawaii, New York, Tokyo, Paris, even some random small town in Nebraska, all that matters is that they’re away from Beacon Hills and intend to have a break in life… now, if it happens to get interrupted or not, that’s entirely up to you, they can do anything and be anywhere as long as the intention is to have a break from the hell-town they were born in!

Magic Gone Wrong- Magic is an incredible and dangerous thing, for all of the advantages magic has, it certainly brings some disadvantages along with it as well, magic is not an exact science, and at times that’s great! At others… not so much, and for every instance of magic going RIGHT, there are surely atleast three others where it’s gone WRONG, your job is to create a peice about one of those very instances, the circumstances are completely up to you, as long as it involves magic that didn’t *QUITE* go the way it was intended to

Heartbeat- Hearbeats can oftentimes be the soothing reminder that someone is alive… or the cold shock that they aren’t, or, for werewolves, a very convenient tracking device, be it a tool for tracking, spying, or gaining some form of comfort, werewolf hearing has certainly made heartbeats an important tool in the Teen Wolf toolbag, and now it’s time for you to expand on that! Take any genre and any purpose you want to expand on this theme, the only point is that someone’s heartbeat is involved!

Mermaid- Ah mermaids, one of mythology’s most famous figures, they can be sweet and beautifull… or vicious and hideous, depending on your source, but every culture seems to have some variation on them, and the Sterek fandom has created an entire subculture involving mer!Sterek! Now it’s time to add to that! Be it with mermaids (or mermen!) who are, perhaps, involved in match-making Stiles and Derek (or fighting them) or be it Stiles or Derek (or both!) as a merman, one thing is for sure, something fishy is about to go on in the Sterek fandom (but bad puns aside are merfolk really fish? Discuss)

Yeti!Stiles- Ever since Stiles’ “Abominable Snowman” comment from season two, yeti!Stiles has… actually been shockingly small in fandom and I can’t imagine why! For such an easy trope-grab it seems to mostly swoop under the radar, now it’s time for you to change that! Create a peice involving Stiles as an abominable snowman (or “yeti”, as is probably more politically correct) it can be canon or AU or maybe a mix of the two, just as long as Stiles becomes Bigfoot’s colder-climate loving cousin, it’s all good here!

Dogs- Who doesn’t love dogs? From Yorkies to German Shepherds and everything in between, dogs are often thought of to be man’s best freind for a reason, but for Sterek? Mostly they’re just the source of unending werewolf puns! Be it that Stiles and Derek get a dog, or that Derek is, in his wolf form, MISTAKEN for a dog, the only important thing is that dogs- big or small- are in some way involved with Stiles, Derek, and the puppy love they have for eachother! (See, what did I say about the puns?)

Protective!Sterek- From episode 1 to episode 100, one thing has always been true of Sterek, it’s a relationship based not on arguing or banter or love/hate, it’s based on protecting eachother, keeping eachother safe, the first time they’re alone together Stiles tries to save Derek’s life, and ever since it’s been almost a game of who can protect the other next, who can save the other first, now it’s time to once again let that foundation shine in fandom! Create any peice featuring Stiles protecting Derek, Derek protecting Stiles, or even a combination of the two! These two are always trying to best eachother in the protection game after all, so why not feature both?

Dad!Sterek- I don’t know about you, but one of my all-time favorite things is Derek and Stiles as parents! Be they single parents, just meeting for the first time, have been married for twenty-five years and already seven kids, or fall somewhere in between, I just love these two as dads, and I hope you do too! The only requirement for this one is that one or both of the pair have atleast one child, let your imagination go all soft and fluffy for this adorable theme!

Fears/Phobias- A theme that, coincidentally, played a large part in the very last episode of Teen Wolf, playing with a charector’s fears or phobias can be great for both charector and plot building, and can without a doubt create some of the best peices fandom has to offer, be it with canonical phobias presented in the series, things you’ve headcanoned for them yourself, or an AU where everything is up for grabs, the goal here is to create fear for Stiles, Derek, or both- and hopefully, somehow, comfort those fears, though that part isn’t entirely necessary to fit to the theme

Amusement Park- And now for a break from the fear, it’s time to go someplace that’s (usually) considerably less terrifying- an amusement park! Disneyland, Six Flags, Universal Studios, as long as it’s an amusement park and Stiles and Derek are there, it works! It doesn’t even have to be a real-world place, there’s obviously nothing wrong with creating your own and running with it, one of the best things about amusement parks, after all, is the imagination the creators put into it

Celebrity/Famous- I’m sure at one point or another most of us have imagined what it might be like to be famous, now it’s time to put those imaginations to use and imagine what it would be like if Stiles, Derek, or both of them were famous instead! Actors, musicians, social media stars, even royalty, if the papparazzi is interested in them and they have a fanbase, they count!

Leaving Beacon Hills- Let’s be honest here, nothing good ever happens in Beacon Hills, and as the last two episodes of Teen Wolf proved, getting away from that place seems to do good for people’s health, now it’s time to treat Derek and Stiles to something other than horrors and traumas and get them out of there! It can be for good, or just on vacation, just on a work trip even, the point of this theme is to get them away from the town that wants to instill nothing but horror in these boys, and I think fandom can come up with plenty of ways to do that!

Christmas Baby!Derek- Here’s a fun fact, my first ever Sterek fic was written because I love Christmas Baby Derek THAT much, there’s just something about this soft little peach being born on Christmas that makes everything in the world a little cuter- and Stiles probably feels the same way, now it’s your turn to show some appreciation for one of the cutest Derek factoids around! No matter if Derek loves it, hates it, or feels indifferent towards it, we certainly know how WE feel about it, and we’d love to see how you feel about creating a Christmas Baby!Derek peice!

Flower Crowns- Is there anything fluffier and prettier than a flower crown? Probably not, so let’s celebrate them! There’s just something peacefull about seeing a charector with flowers in their hair, and now it’s your turn to add to the (surprisingly large) flower crown portion of the fandom! Be it fluff or humor or something softly somber, these boys deserve ALL of the flower crowns and it’s our intention to give them to them!

Bookstore- Ahh bookstores, the foundation of a large number of meet-cutes, meet-uglies, and things that have nothing to do with meeting at all, it’s pretty obvious that Stiles and Derek both love to read, so let’s put that love to use and introduce a bookstore into the mix! Chain store? Used store? Weird eccentric “This has been out of print for fifty years but we still have a copy” store? It doesn’t matter as long as it sells books and involves Sterek!

Hello Again- After spending time apart, it’s nice to say “Hello” again… be it a canonical separation, or something that happened in an AU, post-canon or canon-divergent, the goal of this theme is Stiles and Derek reuniting again after spending time apart, the reunion can be happy or sad, by chance or planned, it doesn’t matter in the end, all that matters is the two of them reconnecting after having spent time apart, and finally saying “Hello” again

Accidental Baby Acquisition- One of the oldest (and one of my favorite) fandom tropes there is, Accidental Baby Acquisition is much how it sounds, it’s about accidentally coming into possession of a baby! The means can be through magic, through stumbling upon a child in the woods, the classic “baby on a doorstep”, or any other situation you can possibly think of, all that matters is that Derek and Stiles accidentally find themselves caring for a baby!

Wild Card- This is the obligatory bingo square in the very middle where you can do absolutely anything you want! That’s right. There’s no restriction, no guideline, no THEME! It’s your freebie to do anything you may have been wanting to do, but haven’t really had the time or inspiration to do until now- here’s your chance. Now go forth and create Sterek!

[wearetakingthehobbitstogallifrey]

Reputation: I have a lot of emotions

Alright so the Saturday after Reputation came out, I bought the album on itunes because I loved the singles and because @itspileofgoodthings and @thelonelybrilliance have long been winning me over to Taylor Swift.  I spent the next two or three hours listening to the album, and Emma was amazing and listened to me freaking out.  However, I can’t not share my initial reactions with Maria, so girl, this transcript of my reactions is dedicated to you and Emma and I hope you enjoy!

1.  “Ready for It”

I wasn’t expecting Ready for It to be the first song but the name fits and honestly it is a GREAT choice because it has the cool intense intro thing idk what is that called a bass thing?  It is a great mix of the intensity and also the sweet breathless flowing faery melody

I don’t know how to talk about music

I just love it

2.  “End Game”

End Game isn’t my fave but I liked it “I wanna be your a-team” :) and the friendship between ed and taylor is sweet

3.  “I Did Something Bad”:

HOLY HECK  I LOVE I DID SOMETHING BAD WHAT NOW THE SOUND My JAM

I LOVE IT I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT TO SAY IT’S DELIGHTFUL AND LIKE I KNOW IT’S OVER THE TOP KINDA BUT THAT MAKES IT AMAZING “I DON’T REGRET IT ONE BIT BECAUSE HE HAD IT COMING AND I’D DO IT OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN” I LOVE THAT PART AND HOW IT DESCENDS AND DEEPENS

MAYBE SHE IS A WITCH AND MAYBE SHE ISN’T BUT HECK SIGN HER UP FOR THE BURNING

And my fave is that this is the same singer who in a few songs sings “Call It What You Want”

4.  “Don’t Blame Me”

It’s like the classic lady killer in love trope but reversed.  And I swear there are fictional characters out there I can connect this to but I have to think

OMG IT’S SO CATCHY AND I AM EVEN OK WITH HER SAYING I’M YOUR BABY EVEN THOUGH I USUALLY CAN’T STAND THAT TERM USED ROMANTICALLY

5.  “Delicate”

Delicate is so aptly named it is so tentative and fragile and that frightened feeling of “I think this is love?? Would you hate me if I told you that?”

6.  “Look What You Made Me Do”

I. LOVE. LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME DO.  Despite the chorus, which is kind of bland and repetitive but the rest of the song is so freaking awesome like I don’t even care and I even sing along enthusiastically to it and maybe have started to appreciate it (the chorus).  

The song has the same delicious musical vibe as I did something bad.  It’s: don’t mess with me anymore, I am so done with y’all, I don’t even care anymore, I’m the nightmare now......except secretly underneath you know there IS caring for other people’s opinions and yearning to love and be loved and that makes it even better??

7.  “So It Goes”

I love the first verse best, the magician , the mesmerizing, the dark enchantment...and I say dark because I don’t know how I feel about the rest of the lyrics...but the SOUND is amazing and I am totally already making up a story in my head to reconcile my conflicted feelings because the music here and taylor’s voice and the whispered 1, 2, 3 have entranced me--like magic

8.  “Gorgeous”

Gorgeous....GORGEOUS!  WHISKEY ON ICE, SUNSET AND VINE, WHAT BEAUTIFUL EVOCATIVE IMAGERY!!!

I love Emma’s connection with her story Match, but also...don’t laugh too much...you know how I love Dick Grayson, and I feel this is literally how I would feel if I were in the same room with him.  Overwhelmed by his stupid pretty face and unable to function properly let alone say hello

Gorgeous is THE unexpected crush song, the oh my gosh I just met a masterpiece, the I don’t believe in love at first sight I mean I thought I didn’t, the I would literally die if you looked me in the eye because that would be a fairytale and if we actually fell in love I don’t know what I would do

THAT RING OF THE SPOON ON THE CHAMPAGNE GLASS (IN MY HEAD AT LEAST) IS A MAGICAL FAIRY BELL, OR MAYBE A FAIRY’S LAUGHTER, OR THE HERALD OF WEDDING RECEPTIONS AND CALLS FOR THE BRIDE AND GROOM TO KISS

IT’S THE IMAGINATION AND THE BIRTH OF CRAZY BEAUTIFUL HOPES

9.  “Getaway Car”

Did Taylor just riff off of A Tale of Two Cities??? And run with it?  I STRUCK A MATCH AND BLEW YOUR MIND

I CANNOT WITH THIS SONG UGH MY HEART this song is BEAUTIFUL and TRAGIC

It’s a love brilliant and glorious like a sun flare, its a desperate wish for something better than the stupid mistakes of the past and bitter fights and broken hearts

Like here she has met this wonderful nigh perfect man who is just as in love and ready as she is to jump in that car and leave the world and everything awful behind but which is more important the devastation they are fleeing from or the vision they dream of?

And whatever the answer to that is, it doesn’t matter because the future they hoped for in their hearts could be nothing more than an wish, a mirage, because as wonderful as both of them are, they are just not fated for each other, they just won’t love each other like they want to

And SHE LEFT HIM AND CALLS HERSELF A TRAITOR AND FEELS SHE DESERVES WHAT SHE GETS FOR THAT--THAT SHOT THROUGH THE HEART, THAT SHE FIRED

BUT IT ALSO HAD TO HAPPEN

AND IT IS THIS TANGLE OF VINES OF MISERY AND BEAUTY AND GRACE...YES GRACE BECAUSE AS MUCH AS THIS ALL MAKES ME WANT TO CRY THERE IS STILL A FEELING THAT DESPITE THE GRIEF AND HURT THIS ISN’T LIKE OTHER TIMES WHEN SHE HAS BROKEN UP WITH SOMEONE

BECAUSE THEY WERE NOT SO MUCH WRONG FOR EACH OTHER AS JUST NOT RIGHT FOR EACH OTHER

AND SO WHILE THE HURT IS SHARP IT IS NOT SO DEADLY TO LOVE IN GENERAL

Okay I have listened to it four times I need to move on

10.  “King of My Heart”

Ok maybe it’s just because I am coming down from Getaway Car but I am not as into King of My Heart at least music-wise.  The lyrics are sweet and precious though, just the sound doesn’t capture me like the rest of the rest of the songs

The term “King of My Heart” is a really beautiful term, styling the man as someone who not only has her love but also her respect...this is someone who does not need to impress her with fancy cars, he just needs to be him

My fave lyric: “Late in the night, the city’s asleep / Your love is a secret I’m hoping, dreaming, / dying to keep”

And you can just imagine sitting on a rooftop far far above the distant city lights, with the faint hum of traffic, and no one knows that your world has shifted and broken and been shaped into something new, and so you nestle the gift of his love in your heart and just wonder how in the world any of this is real

11.  “Dancing with Our Hands Tied”

DANCING WITH OUR HANDS TIED HURTS MY HEART.  IT HURTS BECAUSE IT SOUNDS TO ME LIKE A DOOMED LOVE AND SHE TRIED SO HARD TO IGNORE THE FORESIGHT SHE HAD

And she tried so hard to hold on

“My, my love had been frozen Deep blue, but you painted me golden Oh, and you held me close Oh, how was I to know what”

THIS.  THIS HURTS

Because it’s like he tried and it seemed like things could be good and beautiful, and there might be a chance for it all to work out, but it’s telling that he wasn’t able to change her, to unfreeze her love.  He only painted over it...gold yes, but paint nonetheless

Her certainty, “I knew” and then the telling truth “I had a bad feeling.”  Some things are too good to be true, too sweet to last when the bitter, callous, selfish world wants what it wants

“Can we dance / oh, through an avalanche” like what an impossible task, what a beautiful wish.  A love like that...would be everything.  Withstanding all the world together, no matter the wounds and hurt, picking each other up and moving on after every hit.  And it doesn’t seem to have worked out this time?  But maybe it will

12.  “Dress”

AAAAHHHHH DRESS IS REALLY PRETTY SOUNDING AND I LIKE CERTAIN OF THE LYRICS BUT UH I JUST CAN’T IT’S TOO MUCH

Slow down, girl :)  but also some of it is really cute.  I could maybe handle it better if she didn’t say she didn’t want him like a best friend because I need it to be both..ah well

On the other hand I love the lyrics to the verse about the flash back, and the lines “Even in my worst times, you could see the best of me” and they do expound upon friendship and love and make the Eros more palatable

13.  “This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things”

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA i LOVE THIS IS WHY WE CAN’T HAVE NICE THINGS IT’S SO FUNNY

It moves past bitterness and is just like LOL yeah I’m not dealing with you, peace out, bye

*full out cackle* I CAN’T EVEN SAY IT WITH A STRAIGHT FACE I’M DYING

And it’s almost like she is talking to a little kid at one point.  Look, son, you break stuff I gotta take it away, when will you learn

I NEED VIDEOS TO LIKE FIFTY TV SHOWS FOR THIS I CAN’T

14.  “Call It What You Want”

AND NOW WE MOVE ON TO MY FAVE.  CALL IT WHAT YOU WANT!  EVERYTHING IS HEALED!!!

After the ups and downs of the album, of life...everything still matters, still happened, previous loves and previous heart-wounds and previous sins but also none of it threatens her life anymore, her heart

“My castle crumbled overnight I brought a knife to a gunfight They took the crown but it’s alright All the liars are calling me one Nobody’s heard from me for months I’m doing better than I ever was”

THE MOST BRILLIANT JUXTAPOSITION

The songs begins with her home, her dreams destroyed, with her bad decisions open for the world to mock, with her crown kicked down a hill by detractors and fools and the wisest alike

But she says it is alright.  It’s okay.  And we wonder why?

People call her a liar, say she is fake, say whatever they think or want.  Maybe she is gone forever--who has seen Taylor at all, let alone knows who she really even is at this point...

And so we all think, maybe this is it.  Maybe Taylor is dead.

BUT ACTUALLY

SHE IS BETTER THAN SHE EVER WAS!!!!

the old Taylor is dead? I THINK NOT

She has merely walked (flown) down the path we all must take, and maybe she has stepped on more thorns or fallen to the dirt more often, maybe she has scraped knees and heart-blood seeping through her white sweaters, but that doesn’t mean she hasn’t found a life she happy to live, things worth fighting for, someone who will fight for her...someone who she doesn’t need to fight, only cherish

And so she can sing whatever the hell she wants, “I Did Something Bad” or “Getaway Car” or “Look What You Made Me Do” or “Gorgeous”

It’s ALL Taylor

..........................when the heck did I come to care so much

“My baby’s fit like a daydream” lol this is so cute and she seems so proud of that and it’s adorable

“Walking with his head down I’’m the one he’s walking to” I CANNOT!!! HE DOESN’T SEE HER WATCHING HIM BUT HE JUST WALKS TOWARD HER, SO FOCUSED, PROBABLY CAUGHT UP IN HOW MUCH HE LOVES HER, OR MAYBE THINKING OF NOTHING IMPORTANT BUT SHE JUST LOVES HIM SO MUCH AND IT’S LIKE WHEN YOU SEE SOMEONE DOING SOMETHING INSIGNIFICANT, LIKE YOUR MOM COOKING DINNER OR YOUR BROTHER BENT OVER HIS HOMEWORK AND YOU JUST GO “I FREAKING LOVE THIS PERSON”

My fave verse: “All my flowers grew back as thorns Windows boarded up after the storm He built a fire just to keep me warm”

HE JUST QUIETLY LOVES HER JUST SEES HER THORNS AND IS LIKE THAT’S NICE AND PRESSES HER PETALS AND POINTS ALIKE INTO HIS HEART AND HE KNOCKS ON HER SHUTTERS TILL SHE OPENS THEM

Also OMG remember how in Dancing with Our Hands Tied her love was frozen?  HE DOESN’T PAINT HER TO LOOK BRIGHTER AND WARMER NO HE FREAKING BUILDS A FIRE TO WARM HER

“All the drama queens taking swings All the jokers dressing up as kings” THERE IS ONLY ONE KING OF HER HEART

“They fade to nothing when I look at  him And I know I make the same mistakes every time Bridges burn, I never learn At least I did one thing right I did one thing right” ASDFGHJKL THE QUIET PEACE THAT COMES FROM THIS

“I’m laughing with my lover Making forts under the covers Trust him like a brother”

This is not a love so passionate that it shatters like stressed glass.  no, it is a love warm and intense and real and giving and receiving and thoughtful and playful

TRUST HIM LIKE A BROTHER GOSH THERE IS NO LINE I LOVE MORE.  IF YOU CANNOT TRUST YOUR MAN LIKE YOU DO YOUR BRO, TO CARE FOR YOU AND BACK YOU UP AND FIGHT FOR YOU AND TELL YOU WHEN YOU ARE BEING STUPID AND FORGIVE YOU AND ASK FOR FORGIVENESS AND ALL THAT

THEN WHAT ARE YOU

IF YOU CAN’T JOKE AS MUCH OR BE AS DEADLY SERIOUS AS YOU CAN WITH A BROTHER

THEN WE JUST CAN’T BE A THING

“I recall late November, holding my breath Slowly I said, ‘You don’t need to save me But would you run away with me?’ Yes (would you run away?)

YESSSSSS LOVE LOVE LOVE IT DO IT TAY RUN AWAY WITH THIS GUY

15.  “New Year’s Day”

GENTLE AND ALL THE LOVE AND FLUTTERING FEELING OF A BELOVED HAND SQUEEZING YOURS THREE! TIMES IN A TAXI

“Candle wax and Polaroids on the hardwood floor” anyone who doubts Taylor’s poetic abilities can shut the heck up thanks

“Don’t read teh last page But I stay when you’re lost, and I’m  scared And you’re turning away” So hopeful and so nervous at the same time

“Please don’t ever become a  stranger Whose laugh I could recognize anywhere” AAAAHHHHH RIGHT IN THE FEELS I AM DEAD

[beowulfs-booty-call]

1 13 15 30

Had to listen to Studio Killers for this ask because I can just feel the maturity for this one.

1. describe your idea of a perfect date

Imagine, me and someone at a café somewhere. Maybe the city, maybe their hometown, maybe even my own spot.

The place is warm, the weather is slightly cold, but not too cold you can’t wear just a flannel and jeans (Wow, Beo, real easy subtle there.) but we just sit inside this real cozy cafe, its all old school, there’s jazz by George Benson playing like this

We’re locking eyes, me and them. The drinks are warm, but they’re not scalding, I’m writing in my little travel journal about the place, about the atmosphere, so on, maybe even doodles of the person. 

There’s light jokes strewn here and there, there’s nothing stiff about it, there’s fingers graze across mine on accent, and we both recline back out of fluster and second hand embarrassment. The person and I both apologize, but I tell ‘em I don't mind, it was warm. Slowly, we put our hands together and we can't get them off, we’re holding hands together, sipping our drinks and just talking about life, our hopes and dreams, the good stuff chai lattes were made for. 

The song’s picking up pitch, they know I’m tapping to the beat as the rain starts coming down. It’s light, it’s cool, and I’ve no umbrella with me, just me, my backpack, and my wallet/keys/phone. I gesture out to the rain, they nod.

We don’t know where we’re going, but we take our drinks and dash out in the rain like children. The song’s stuck in my head, like some big montage in a musical number, we hit up merchant shops, gemstone and oddities stores, my eyes bug out when I noticed a skull box or a cursed mirror for sale.

The entire me and that person don’t let go of each other’s hands, they’re stuck and we don’t give a damn. I roll up my sleeves to buckle down to nab us something to eat but its just comedic, I flip up, the person can’t help but laugh because I messed up an order (like I ordered chicken but the person brings a lobster dinner fit for two) and things are okay, I’ve nothing on my calendar or scheduled so it’s an adventure. 

And we end it at midnight, watching the stars and moon, my flannel’s all roughed up from some of the coffee they drank, and my shirt’s beginning to smell like them, because we’re cuddling on the grass on a hill overlooking the moon and clouds. My collars all wrinkled, I have a smudge of food still on my cheek that’s smudged off, and my ears are all red. 

We whisper sweet little nothings to each other, and its a big old debate whether or not to really get up. When we do, though, it’s still the fact that the night’s here and people have to sleep.

How we get home, no one knows, but we do, wether by truck or train. And we part, the person and I, maybe a hug, maybe a kiss on the cheek, but I feel something slipped into my pocket, or in my hands, or even when I leave I check for my keys and find something.

A little thing to remind myself of that date, maybe the receipt of the cafe where someone scrawled “You two look great together...!” or maybe a trinket from a shop.

All I know is, I’d never forget being someone’s adventure that day, or being someone’s travel partner.

13. what is a misconception you had about lgb people before you realized you were one?

I actually didn’t think there was the LGBT until about a good well number of years back. Yes, I knew about drag queens and other themes of the LGBT com. and such, but man, when I was younger I was fostered on the “You’re going to hell if you like the same gender or want to be the gender you felt you should have been born as” and Ironically when around the same time I became a witch, I realized the community was there.

You see, I knew about the community, but not as the official term, much less, the community was more than few people. It was terrible feeling that way, because I was in the closet for so very long. It was terrible being yelled at for crossing my legs or accidentally saying, “Well, I think you look good, so, I like you like that.” to some guy in high school and having people gawk at you, or being called a woman by my own father because of my voice and because I gestured with my hands.

My sexuality was questioned a lot, because, I was rather vague about myself, I had my interests, and while I had my life in front of me, many times I felt alone because of it. Was there people who felt the same way as me? Were there others who felt it was fine falling in love with a man or woman?

Are my feelings valid?

I made the mistake of believing there weren’t people out there who supported my life or my being, because it was so easy seeing how we were treated because of it. We had the episode of the Golden Girls where Blanche’s brother was gay and he was the butt of a few jokes, but also Blanche’s rage until Sophia stepped in, we were and are the butt of jokes at times, including on tv and cartoons in implications, but we were there. And it hurt. I felt it was awful how we were restricted for being who we were, and I felt worse for really thinking there wasn’t people who wasn’t like me because of the way I feel about people.

But, that mistake belied that in the end, we weren't represented as much as we are now, and still need to be. Kids need that support and representation I for one, didn't receive until nowadays because it causes them to worry, as well as mistake the heteronormative way we grow up as the be all - end all, and that scared the shiitake mushrooms out of me back then. Your parents could love you, but would they love after you finally had the guts to say, “Hey, mom and dad, remember how there’s always the notion that a man and woman need to get married? Yeah, well, I as a guy, love both genders / Men.” is the fear most gay kids would have, and vice versa for Lesbians as well. Even worse for my trans peeps who felt uncomfortable with the gender they were assigned with / wanted to become the person they wanted to be (If my language isn’t appropriate, please do tell me, and I’ll tailor it as needed by you!). Like, it’s so easy to feel alone when you were never really represented as anything but, “Oh, xyz? Oh you mean (Insert trope like Lesbians being written off / flamboyant gay men / crossdressing as a “joke” trope)” And you get put off by it so much you try thinking, “maybe I’m wrong” or “Maybe, I will go to hell, because this is bad.” And it’s not. At. All.

15. (if attracted to more than one gender) do you have different “types” for different genders?

I somehow knew this was coming so, *Cracks knuckles* let’s get to it, Sailor Style™ :

I’m a huge Sailor Venus fan, so, I pride myself on being able to love many people and “types” of people, of both guys and gals. 

Guys: BIG. THICC. MEN. 

LIKE

GIVE ME YOUR HAIRY, BIG, BELLIED AND SKINNY AND EVEN BUFF MEN WHO NEED SOME LOVING AND I AM HERE. 

I love thicc guys because, well, I love the idea of having someone bigger than me on some aspects. That said, I’m kinda a big guy myself at 178 pounds and at 6′2 (I believe is the last I scaled myself or an inch off) and I also don’t mind someone smaller so to speak. Really, I’m the sort who falls for all kinds of men, because, I seriously love boys. 

But I also love guys who know about themselves well enough too. I’m the guy who wants to share himself in a relationship. Not in the sense that I’m making it all about me, but in a relationship, imo, you’re sharing both of yourselves in it. Interests, love, commitment, it’s all there. I want to grow as a person and lover, and I want to share that growing person with someone. If you can’t handle that, you’d best find someone else, unfortunately. 

Also, Daddy types are my thing too, I’m leaning onto the archetype too, lol, but that’s a different story all together. My thing is, if a guy is big, bonus points, he got a belly? Extra points. He got abs and or pecs to die for? He’s got me all the way there. Hairy? Love it. No hair? Just as nice. 

Scared no one likes their body because they’re “too” (Skinny, big, etc etc) I’ll kiss them fears away. Confident in his life choices or isn’t as much and wants to better himself? Sign me tf up.

He can pay for my college ed because I can satisfy him? Fuck me up then.

Also like, jocks and bodybuilders are also kind of a thing for me with the way I train, but my guy, consider really nerdy guys who are like, big gentle giants and are really BIG and like dogs. Yes.

Pretty boys just don’t do it for me though.

They just don’t.

Girls: Really, I just love girls who are girls. Women are already kinda amazing on their own, so, like, the bar isn’t set up at all because in general I feel like if a girl is ready to share herself and sharing myself with her, we’re really fine.

If someone can match me in terms of books / literature, I give bonus points, but I just love girls who are confident in themselves. Like,

“I can make the fucking world burn, but you’d be damned if you cross me.”?

Yeah, I’m their biggest fan.

Really. Big women, small women, girls who read a lot, girls who exercise a lot, it doesn’t really “matter” per say because in the end, I know that I really do like them just being, well, themselves. It’s vague af compared to guys, and I apologize for that, but I lean more to guys, and girls wise, I’m more into the type of girl who can rock the world, and me, to the very core. So, when it comes to girls, I’m more submissive because I simply like girls who could really take me for a spin so to speak. (Plus I’m weak for women who could legit you know, suplex a guy.) 

Realistically, strong women, girls who have no problem with a little meat on their bones or rolls on their bodies (We all have em tbh), really romantic girls.

Like, Allura is a great example of the type of girl I’m into. She’s strong, she’s intellectual about the galaxy and in the world as a whole, but she’s got purpose. Make her chubby, and she’s still the same Altean princess who can kick ass. Make her buff, and she can literally squat using the Paladins. It doesn’t change that I’d admire her still.

Apologies if it’s not more defined...!

Non Binary: Really, I can’t say per say, but really, both genders apply too. Like, if you are big, small, tall or short, it doesn’t matter. I’d still love someone who’s confident in themselves. It’s hard really explaining my types, because, I have never really organized them, so much as think of them. But, I’ll still fall in love with your scars, your rolls, your arms, legs, everything some way or another. I really do pride myself over that fact, small as it may seem to some.

Being able to lift me over her shoulders and bench press me or squat is a huge af bonus point award for both / all genders tbh.

30. what is a piece of advice for people who may not be in a safe place to express their sexuality

Know you’re not alone!!!I CAN’T STRESS THIS ENOUGH!!!

Don’t be like me feeling icky because people told him being gay / bi was “Icky and sinful UwU”. Don’t be me who stayed up at night feeling like throwing up because I felt if I dreamed of falling in love with a man, I’d burn in hell. Don’t also ever feel guilty for looking at a guy or gal, and thinking, “Damn, I’d totally love to wake up in the morning next to them.”

(We can’t prove hell really exists, so, don’t also be indoctrinated to that idea either, kiddos.)

 And, don't ever feel that you are gross because you are different. Celebrate it instead and be you when you’re able to, even if it’s online only, or even alone only. Those small celebrations are what makes life worth it.

Also, do find others who are LGBT too, because it HELPS, even if they’re only allies, being able to talk about things are all you need to worry at times, you don’t have to be out, but to your friends who understand? That’s a big relief imo.

Also, because I’m in one myself rn, don't be afraid to subtly express yourself the way you want to. Fashion wise, it’s slightly easier, words, “eh”, but if that means you watching a good LGBT repping show at night with earbuds, don’t even think a second thought and you tell me how it was.

You watch those shows that make you happy, and you do the same, but make sure to always look over your shoulder, always have a tab on yourself, and never give into the pressures people place on you. Never give the pressures keeping you back any chance. Online may be a safe space for you, maybe, the only one there is, but know, later on in life, you will be free to finally be you, and when you do?

I’ll be so proud of you. So, if you can’t be yourself outside the computer, don’t fret over it. You’ve a right to vent out to someone, much less, a therapist or even on your blog, but do right to yourself. If that means cutting off some people, do it. If that means not supporting their beliefs, by all means.

+ Don’t ever, ever, ever try to deny yourself if you really know yourself. You are your best friend in that scenario, because if you’re like me, you don’t really have anyone else near you or in front of yourself. So take care of yourself. Mentally, physically, and spiritually. And do not ever think for one second that you don’t belong or you don’t deserve to exist or live because you feel you are comfortable with someone of the same gender, or because you feel you should be yourself but haven't had the opportunity to do so because of society / your parents / other toxic stuff. 

Instead, do your best, take it all in, cry if you can or want to when you’re alone, and push on and be the best fucking you there’ll ever be. Because honeys, if you can’t love yourself, who the hell is gonna love somebody else without some real self love? So be proud, be you on the inside, and keep on fighting till you’re away and ready to be you. You’re gonna be a wonderful person when you’re away from all this mess some day in the future. And I can’t wait to see the person you become / are, that day.

[lauraxxtennant]

city of tiny lights

I went to the BFI screening of City of Tiny Lights tonight, which featured a post-film Q&A with the director, Pete Travis, Riz Ahmed, and Billie Piper. Brief thoughts and minor spoilers below.

The film was great, I loved it! It was a good, modern, very London spin on the PI who drinks whiskey and has a tragic past trope lol. This noir-esque shindig isn’t usually my thing, but this was such a compelling story. Riz - and the actor who played his younger self in flashbacks, Reiss Kershi-Hussain - brought real warmth to a character that could, in lesser, more predictable films, be characterised as like, your typical angsty unlikeable anti-hero. Instead, Tommy Akhtar (Riz’s character) is genuinely lovely. Big-hearted, vulnerable, smart and yeah, haunted by something that happened in his past, but it hasn’t turned him into a dick. That’s rare in a dude protagonist, lol. 

Billie isn’t in the film a great deal, but as Pete said in the Q&A, her character is pivotal in terms of Tommy’s past and present. She doesn’t have much to do other than stare soulfully into Riz’s eyes and mumble about their shared past tragedy, but obviously she does these things super well because it’s Billie Piper and she mines a role for all the emotional depth she can, regardless of screen-time. The chemistry between her and Riz is a+, and adds a lovely romantic element to the film.  Hannah Rae (Daisy in Broadchurch) plays her character Shelley’s younger self (and also her daughter in the present!) and she’s brilliant too. Also, shout-out to Cush Jumbo! Love her. The whole cast was great tbh.

Billie was gorgeous, both in the film and in person tonight. At the Q&A she wore a long, fancy red dress, and kept fiddling with her earring. Both she and Riz charmed everyone, and Riz was so funny. The film itself is really funny in places, too, actually, and he’s got great delivery/comic timing.

Questions ranged from general industry-related things like preparing for roles, how their music backgrounds influence their acting, how Brexit will affect the arts, etc, to more specific things related to the film itself, such as whether they interacted much with the actors playing their younger selves (they didn’t really), how difficult was the film to finance (quite; it took 8 years), how important it was to tell this story of Londoners (extremely.) The director was pretty hilarious tbh, very matter of fact and funny with it, and he made a few funny digs at how most films set in London are ‘about posh people falling in love in Notting Hill’ or ‘old, posh, dead people.’

My highlight of the Q&A was Billie admitting that before shooting the film she asked why they couldn’t play their younger (teenage!!!!!) selves in it too lmao 😂😂 Riz was like ‘you asked that and put that into his (Pete’s) head???’ (apparently Pete initially thought they wouldn’t find anyone who could convincingly play their younger selves, so toyed with the idea of having Billie/Riz just do it: but they luckily found the perfect actual teenagers to do it.) She groaned and looked embarrassed and basically admitted that was ambitious of her, to think they could feasibly do that. I can’t remember the exact word she mumbled under her breath but it was something akin to outrageous or ludicrous hahaha. 

I won’t spoil anything further about the plot of the film itself, but it’s your standard private detective gets embroiled in something, is warned off it, and pursues the truth anyway lol. It’s a good story, but the relationships between Tommy and his friends/dad/Shelley/makeshift family are what make the film so great, imo, and the flashbacks are very well done. And I felt really moved by the end scene. 

Anyway, in summary I enjoyed this evening a lot. 4 stars. It's docked a star for under-using Billie Piper :D

[shakespesre]

things i did not like about beauty and the beast (2017)

oh man am i in the minority in this situation (also this list is comically long) spoilers, obviously

honestly

most of it

during the opening sequence with the enchantress as she was narrating the prince’s actions didn’t match with what she was saying (like he didn’t dismiss her again or beg forgiveness even though the enchantress is saying he did) details like that irk me

also the whole “guys who wear makeup are somehow morally destitute” trope needs to die

the staging of belle made the town feel like its a half an acre big which made for some awful blocking

it just looked really repetitive in terms of staging like there was nowhere to go because the set wasn’t big enough

belle talking to the minister about the books was short and dispassionate

emma watson can’t sing to save her life

the little robot following her around fixing her voice the entire movie should be paid good money

ok i get that making belle the inventor is supposed to be “empowering” but it goes nowhere??

the hill she runs up during the belle reprise is cgi af and it doesn’t feel right??

honestly you couldn’t have found an actual hill

also the fact that maurice being captured was happening concurrently w the number and the sky being all dark made the wonder and longing of it all weaker

i know it’s in the original fairy tale but honestly why did they bring back the rose stealing as the inciting incident for the beast to punish maurice

it makes very little sense

especially given that maurice took A Rose from what he assumed was an abandoned castle

how did maurice get back to the village? like we see at the end that belle has the horse

BIG ONE RIGHT HERE

why did lumiere and cogsworth show belle to her room instead of the beast???

why would you cut the first interactions between your main characters that actually establishes a connection between them?!!?

the west wing loses some of its gravitas bc of this too

and like????? the beast never even considered that belle would be the one to break the spell?????? WHY NOT????? DUDE???????? YOU MORON even the original beast considered that!!! he’s actually lampshading you all the way back from 1991

but the “this way to the east wing. or as i like to call it the Only Wing!” line was funny i laughed at that

audra mcdonald deserved more to do and to sing

mrs potts looked creepy As Fuck

idk the “come down to dinner” scene was played kind of seriously this time and i get why but i think cutting to inside the room changes the dynamic a bit like in the original you never even see belle and she holds all the power but this is a nitpick

why did they cut to black after be our guest??? did the editor lose a bet or something??

gaston was a fun number but the cuts were absolutely nonsensical

like

you could barely get a feel for the space it took up

they don’t cut to any kind of demonstration of gaston using “antlers in all of his DECoratING” which kind of tells you all you need to know about how bad this movie was at visual storytelling

so many composers and lyricists write music to visuals and there aren’t sufficient visuals to bolster the gaston number

and it felt kind of overcrowded? maybe that one’s just me

the plot just seriously drags

the fact that we spent so much time with kevin kline and gaston out “searching” for belle kind of slowed the movie down a lot

as did the whole “attempted murder” thing

so gaston blows up and tells maurice he’s only helping look for belle bc he wants to marry her

and maurice is like “my daughter is never gonna marry someone like you you’re an asshole!!”

and then gaston punches him in the face and leaves him to die in the woods tied to a tree

and then this miserly old beggar lady comes and saves him and has him accuse gaston of attempted murder

the entire thing is completely unnecessary

back to the enchanted castle

was it just me or did belle not even get that close to the rose? like the animated belle took the case off and was literally about to touch the actual plant and in this one she like brushed the table with her hand

the wolf scene was fine

they lifted the dialogue from the patch up scene directly from the 1991 film except without any of the energy or emotion

also the prince’s backstory is like?? really thin???

the fact that it was literally just inserted into the plot so he and belle could have a “dead moms” connection is so flimsy

they take this random subplot and roll with it instead of actually taking more time to develop belle and the beast as romantic interests

ANOTHER PROBLEM

ok so like the beast was somehow really hurt by the wolf attack right?

so he kind of drifts in and out of sleep for a while and one time he wakes up and belle is reading to him

AND THEN OHHHH AND THEN

HE MANSPLAINS ROMEO AND JULIET TO HER

AND HE GIVES HER THE LIBRARY BECAUSE HE THINKS THAT ANYTHING IN THERE IS BETTER THAN WHAT SHE LIKES

COME ON

WHAT THE FUCK

THATS SO CONDESCENDING

WAY TO UNDERMINE A SWEET MOMENT THAT SHOWS EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT BETWEEN YOUR TWO ROMANTIC LEADS

the new song days in the sun is pretty but combining the servants desires with belle’s make for some conflicting messages

they actually sing something there?

like move their mouths sing

this is another nitpick but like i always thought something there was their internal monologue and it feels weird to see them actually sing them idk

THE BOOK

OOOOOHHHHH THE BOOK

belle and the beast are talking and he’s like “LETS RUN AWAY TOGETHER!!!”

what

ok movie i’ll bite where are we running away to

so the enchantress for some damn reason decides to give the beast a magic book that can take him anywhere he wishes to go

why??? who knows????? certainly not the movie!!!

and he’s like to belle “think of where ever you want to go and we’ll go there just 4 u!!!!!” despite the fact that he literally just said that the world wouldn’t accept him as a beast

so they go to this little house in a Goddamn windmill on the outskirts of bohemian paris

it’s cramped and dark and drenched in a blue filter so you can’t actually see anything

and it’s this useless detour about how belle’s mom died

and it connects to nothing it’s not a plot twist or some big reveal it’s just that she died of the plague

there wasn’t even any emotional backing to it because belle didn’t know anything about her mother because maurice never told her

like if belle had thought maurice just walked out on her mother and resented him for it this twist would have some emotional significance

but that’s not the case

the ballroom scene looks really awkward

like the beast looks especially computer generated here and that doesn’t help the fact that emma watson expresses almost nothing during the entire dance

the whole “you must go to him” scene goes way too fucking fast and there’s no time for the emotions of that scene to actually breathe and release

she rides off in the (ugly) yellow dress which is another nitpick but looks weird

WHY IS SHE IN SUCH A RUSH YOU COULD JUST USE THE BOOK

evermore grinds the momentum of the narrative to a fucking halt

and i swear to god if this wins an oscar for best song while how far i’ll go lost i will dissolve the entire academy of motion picture arts and sciences myself

just love yourself and listen to if i can’t love her it’s honestly a much better song

the part where gaston is hyping up the crowd to go kill the beast progresses in a similar way to the “you must go to him” scene

gaston decides that the beast is a threat to them before he realizes belle has feelings for him which again undercuts the original emotion of the scene

the gaston vs the beast fight feels a whole lot less personal

like

in such a way that gaston is a good 40 feet from belle and the beast when he shoots him

there is no intimacy no emotion in how gaston mortally wounds the beast because he’s literally a Chasm away from them

the beast yelling "I AM NOT A BEAST" to gaston was the hammiest thing in the movie

they just really hate subtext don't they

AND ANOTHER THING

HOOOOOHHH BOY

the enchantress is the old lady who helped maurice when he was left to die in the woods

and yes she’s still dicking around in the forest for???? some reason?????

the beast dies

straight up dies

and the servants have this tragic goodbye sequence where they all turn inanimate it’s the most emotional scene in the film

belle’s love didn’t save them

she doesn’t say “i love you” and the last petal of the rose falls and they all either die/become inanimate

THE ENCHANTRESS JUST COMES IN AND FIXES EVERYTHING?????

DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT DOES?

THAT MAKES THE ROSE TIMELINE COMPLETELY SUPERFLUOUS

THE ENCHANTRESS HAS BEEN IN!! THE!! VILLAGE!! THE ENTIRETY OF THE CURSE

SHE COULD CHANGE HIM BACK WHENEVER SHE WANTED

in the original there was this finality to it and this hopelessness of being cursed by magic that isn’t understandable but permanent and that there is only One Way To Break It

the fact that the enchantress is the one to break the spell and not The Power Of Love undercuts the entire intended parable of the original fairy tale, animated movie, and WHAT THE BEGINNING OF THE MOVIE WAS SAYING

also the fact that she’s there makes the entire transformation less intimate???

like there’s this third old woman creeping up in the background watching them when belle and the beast are supposed to be at the height of their emotional connection

also the transformation itself was kind of hard to follow visually like i don’t even think there was a clear shot of his face

the growl wasn’t hot

i didn’t even notice it when i saw it in the theatre

you all need to get laid

why didn’t they just let audra fucking mcdonald sing the final end version of beauty and the beast

also the actual timeline the movie took place over was strange?

someone can clarify this with me if they want i’m genuinely curious

the prince when he’s cursed is played by dan stevens so like it couldn’t have been more than? five years that he was a beast?

and then when the plot with belle starts, the opening number happens, maurice leaving, belle rejecting gaston, the belle reprise, maurice’s wolf chase scene, the prisoner switch, and the gaston number all seem to take place within a 48 hour timespan

^^^ this is all pretty much the same for the animated movie there’s no problem with that

be our guest and all new added numbers (along with the come down to dinner scene and belle’s wolf chase scene) all happen sometime around here too

but my issue is at the end of gaston where maurice asks if someone would help him look for belle

generously, the time spent searching for her is a day

then maurice is left to die in the woods and is rescued by agatha

he couldn’t have been out there more than two days without dying of dehydration

then, at most, five days from the opening belle sequence, maurice accuses gaston of murder and is about to be locked in an insane asylum when belle rides back to save him

if you’re following correctly, this gave belle and the beast a maximum of four and a half days to fall in love with one another

what?????

i know in the original there’s the whole issue of maurice out in the woods searching for belle but that was addressed by the directors and producers as an oversight and they meant to show that belle was in the castle for at least autumn through winter

so the remake’s timeline is completely unrealistic and goddamnit movie

like at VERY MOST the main plot takes place over six days

TL;DR

most of my issues were story problems, they changed fundamentally so little from the original animated movie and what they did change dragged the plot along or straight up undercut what the narrative was actually trying to impart

the rest of the bullets were either self-described nitpick and trying to work out the timeline

to be clear it’s not wrong for you to like the movie go see it again another three times

this list is for humor

and i didn’t comment at all on le fou for one thing because i was neutral on him but also because it’s not my place to say whether this is good rep or not

[skeletonwithabowtie]

REALLY  LONG CHARACTER SURVEY. RULES. repost, don’t reblog ! tag 10 ! good  luck ! TAGGED. @themisfitmouse​ TAGGING.  Uh... @pxmpkinprincess, @sallowscripts (any muse), @snake-eyes-11 (any muse), @thesundowncrew (any muse. Please. Don’t do all three), @outlandishboogiegirl (any muse), @supernatural-sister, uh... Clover already tagged a bunch of people I would have picked... And anyone who has a free hour and wants amazing character development!

(Sorry about the length. I’ve put it under a read-more after a point)

BASICS. FULL  NAME : Jack Skellington NICKNAME : Alright, here we go: Jacky Boy, Skellington, Bone Man, Bone Daddy, Taibhse (Tabby), Mister Unlucky, Pumpkin King, Skeleton Jack, ‘Get out of My House’ AGE : I have no idea. He doesn’t either. Over a thousand, at least. He acts like a 6 year old, a 10 year old and a 40 year old depending on the situation. :| BIRTHDAY : Funny you should ask this. We actually don’t know. I’ve been here for over three years and we’ve never decided on a birthday. At this rate we might just have to pick a day. ETHNIC  GROUP : Skeleton/Ghoul/Spirit NATIONALITY :  Hallowe’en Town LANGUAGE / S : English, Irish. Dabbles in a few other languages including French, German and Spanish. SEXUAL  ORIENTATION : Asexual.     ROMANTIC  ORIENTATION : Hetero demi-romantic RELATIONSHIP  STATUS : Married happily to @pumpkinqueensally​  CLASS : Technically, higher-class. HOME  TOWN / AREA : Hallowe’en Town CURRENT  HOME : Skellington Manor, Hallowe’en Town. PROFESSION : Pumpkin King, Master Scarer, Hallowe’en Organiser, Spirit Guardian

PHYSICAL. HAIR : .... Skull. But in the human form, it’s dark brown and mostly short. There are some longer strands that can fall over his eyes. For the most part, these are all combed back neatly. EYES : .... Eyesockets. Sometimes there’s an orange flame at the back of them. In the human form, they are a dark brown. They shine with curiosity. NOSE : .... Nose cavities. But in the human form, it is long with a little curve. FACE : .... Skull. But in the human form, his face is long with defined cheekbones and a rounded jaw. LIPS : Surprisingly, he has lips. They are marked with vertical ‘etches’. In the human form, they are narrow, a shade darker than his normal skin tone. COMPLEXION : .... A skeleton has a complexion? In the human form, he is pale. BLEMISHES : Nothing comes to mind? SCARS : An indent on one of his neck bones from having the rope around his neck in his scarecrow form. He also has a scar on the top of his right femur, which is where the bone healed after a crack. TATTOOS : None~ HEIGHT : 6′10″ WEIGHT : Uh.... According to Google, the average weight of a skeleton is roughly 30 pounds?? BUILD : S-K-E-L-E-T-O-N. Human disguise, on the other hand, is tall and lithe. He looks like an individual who is very active, but not intensely so. FEATURES : His height makes him stick out like a sore thumb in Hallowe’en Town. His mouth (and skull in general) is unusually animated for a skull, and can stretch nearly the width of his skull. ALLERGIES : Pink and cute. Nothing comes to mind off-hand. USUAL  HAIR  STYLE : The human form usually has the hair combed back in three parts. However, if he isn’t paying attention, some longer strands can fall forward onto his face. USUAL  FACE  LOOK : The skull, as mentioned before, is lively and animated. A lack of eyes makes it difficult to determine his mood. However, rest assured that he is observing with interest.  USUAL  CLOTHING : A well-fitted pinstripe suit. It is black with narrow white stripes. Compared to the traditional pinstripe suit, the stripes look slightly haphazard. In place of a tie, a bowtie sits at the bottom of his neck. It is in the shape of a bat, with the wings mirroring the stripes on the suit to create the illusion of veins.

PSYCHOLOGY. FEAR / S : Due to being the Master of Fright, Jack does not have fears. Even so, he is keenly aware of the passage of time. As a practically immortal being, he will have to watch those he cares about grow old and die. He knows it isn’t a comforting thing. ASPIRATION / S : Simply put, he wants to help Hallowe’en become better and better every year! But personally? He wants to do what’s best. He has always believed in redemption, using violence as a last resort. So in a way, he strives to help others see beyond ‘reputations’ and past experiences. POSITIVE  TRAITS : Honest, Loyal, Dedicated, Child-like, Love of learning, Energetic,  NEGATIVE  TRAITS : Impulsive, Obsessive, Stubborn, Prone to being self-centered, Chatterbox MBTI : PROTAGONIST (ENFJ-A) ZODIAC : See the ‘birthday’ question TEMPERAMENT : Jolly SOUL  TYPE / S : Leader/Spiritualist ANIMALS : Prairie Dog! VICE  HABIT / S : He talks with his hands sometimes, using them to make gestures (often dramatically). When by himself, more of these vices emerge. He cracks his bones, and he will drop everything to focus on a new thought FAITH : While Jack’s origins are based in Celtic times, Jack himself has no religious faith. However, he is fully supportive of everyone else’s beliefs (or lack of) and will try to learn more about them if the opportunity arises. GHOSTS ? : His dog is a ghost. Enough said? AFTERLIFE ? : Hallowe’en Town is considered an ‘afterlife’ to some species. REINCARNATION ? : Jack will neither confirm nor deny if he has met someone who has been reincarnated. ALIENS ? : VERY HOPEFUL. POLITICAL  ALIGNMENT : He himself is the Pumpkin King, but this is a title rather than his position. Politics aren’t really a thing, though. ECONOMIC  PREFERENCE : He would be considered ‘wealthy’, but it’s not something that’s isn’t required to survive. SOCIOPOLITICAL  POSITION : As the Pumpkin King, he’s held in high regard. His word is considered law. EDUCATION  LEVEL : He has a high level of education, and has furthered this through acquiring new books and self-learning.

FAMILY. (Personal note. Due to different relations with different characters, I easily confuse myself between the ‘main’ verse and side-steps of this. Consider the family information the basics, but bear in mind these will change depending on who he’s interacting with. @.@ ) FATHER : None, technically. MOTHER : None, technically. SIBLINGS : None, technically.  EXTENDED  FAMILY : His wife, Sally, and Doctor Finklestein (a father-in-law). NAME  MEANING / S : ‘Jack’ was chosen due to his turnip head being linked to the jack-o-lantern. ‘Skellington’ is a pun. HISTORICAL  CONNECTION ? : I... Don’t think this applies to Jack.

FAVOURITES. BOOK : Too many to list! At the moment, he’s fascinated with historical books. MOVIE : He hasn’t seen many movies, if any. 5  SONGS : Very flexible in music genres. But his only proper interaction with music is with the Hallowe’en Town band.  DEITY : He will always have a soft spot for Celtic deities. HOLIDAY : Hallowe’en! Followed closely by Christmas! MONTH : September! (surprise!) SEASON : Autumn! PLACE : Spiral Hill! WEATHER : Crisp autumn mornings. SOUND : Autumn leaves crunching on the ground, the wind blowing through the trees, the chatter of the local ghouls, Sally’s singing, fire crackling. SCENT / S : Wood fires, new books, cinnamon TASTE / S : Hot chocolate, jellybeans. (He’s a skeleton, he doesn’t need to eat, so his experiences in taste are rather limited) FEEL / S : Sally’s arms around his shoulders, snow, the warmth of a fire, the attack hug of someone close to him. ANIMAL / S : Dogs NUMBER : Thirteen COLOUR : Orange

EXTRA. TALENTS : Scaring, pumpkin carving, fire creation and manipulation, acrobatics, dancing, public speaking. BAD  AT : Using technology, Detecting sarcasm, understanding when he should stop and think about what he’s doing, maintaining a proper sleep pattern TURN  ONS : TURN  OFFS : HOBBIES : Reading, Exploring, pumpkin carving, violin playing TROPES : Here. :P AESTHETIC  TAGS : ........  I don’t have any. GPOY  QUOTES : ... A what now?

FC INFO. MAIN  FC / S : Himself. ALT  FC / S : M.att Smith OLDER  FC / S : None, but I was jokingly considering C.hris Sarandon or B.ill Nye YOUNGER  FC / S : Hm... None. VOICE  CLAIM / S : His own voice, so.. D.anny Elfman/ C.hris Sarandon. GENDERBENT  FC / S : Nah.

MUN QUESTIONS. Q1 : if  you  could  write  your  character  your  way  in  their  own  movie ,   what  would  it  be  called ,  what  style  would  it  be  filmed  in ,  and  what  would  it  be  about ?           A1 : I hate to inform you, but that’s already a thing. My portrayal of Jack is based on the movie, so his personality and whatnot are more or less the same. Q2 : what  would  their  soundtrack / score  sound  like ?           A2 : See A1. Q3 : why  did  you  start  writing  this  character ?           A3 : Okay, so basically, Jack arrived at my house January 2013 and was like ‘HEY DID YOU HAVE A GOOD CHRISTMAS??’ and hasn’t left since. Q4 : what  first  attracted  you  to  this  character ?           A4 : It actually started when I was 12. I actually completely missed the online fandom since the extent of my internet knowledge was y.outube. I knew of Jack, and three songs. But I didn’t see the movie for about... I wanna say 6 months after I discovered the songs. I dunno though. I’m not entirely sure why I liked him though. Probably because he could sing. Who knows?

Q5 : describe  the  biggest  thing  you  dislike  about  your  muse.           A5 : Regarding him himself? I think the fact that despite his love of research and learning, he’s impulsive and can make decisions too fast without considering the implications.

In general? I think everyone knows how I hate him being a mascot of the ‘g.oth and e.mo culture when he’s so bubbly. Q6 : what  do  you  have  in  common  with  your  muse ?           A6 : ....... The mun/muse line blurs dangerously sometimes. It might be dangerous for me to keep writing him in the long-term. Q7 : how  does  your  muse  feel  about  you ?           A7 : Honestly I’m too nervous to ask him because I hate asking people things like this aaaa

Ash is a charming human. Honestly, I fell she is a little too lazy for her own good sometimes, but what she is interested in she will pursue it with such vigour! Honestly, have you heard her talking about those electronic games? Mind-boggling.

I must admit, I am proud of what she has achieved. For someone who claims to not work well on long-term projects, she has managed to perform excellently.

~Jack (who hijacked this questionnaire because Ash didn’t want to ‘cause a fuss) Q8 : what  characters  does  your  muse  have  interesting  interactions  with ?         A8 : .... Why do you ask such hard questions? I can’t possibly start singling out individuals but... Jack has had some amazing interactions over the years. Befriending villains, being a father to his children, adopting others as his own, meeting strangers because he was hopelessly lost... It’s honestly been amazing. Q9 : what  gives  you  inspiration  to  write  your  muse ?         A9 : It comes really easy to me, actually. I’m at the stage where I can see something and go ‘yep. Jack would do that’. In fact, as I was skimming the questions earlier I was mentally answering them. Those personality quizzes were completed faster than I could probably do them for myself! Q10 : how  long  did  this  take  you  to  complete ?         A10 : I started at 10.20pm. It’s now... 11.50pm. :D

[crimsonblackrose]

Do you ever go to a bookstore and find yourself drawn to a specific book? It’s not the book you went there for and you don’t recognize it but you keep coming back to it? That’s how it was when I found Gilded at an Aladdin in Seoul. Aladdin is a used bookstore chain and where I get the majority of my books (read my previous post). Because it’s a used bookstore most of the books are a little rough around the edges and well loved. So it’s uncommon to see a book in pristine condition. Let alone to find one signed. I decided to flip it over and take a look at the back, saw that it was set in Seoul and added it to my pile.

It wasn’t until later, on my way somewhere where I pulled the book out of my bag and took another look at it. It stuck out amongst all the other books and I couldn’t figure out why. I looked for a publisher, a habit from college, and then when I found the publisher frowned because I didn’t recognize it and a lot of the book’s cover art and such had a little quote for “from Shutterstock” so I wondered briefly if I’d somehow found a self published book. But after a bit of research it seems the publishing company is an in-house publisher for Amazon.

I know you’re not suppose to judge a book by it’s cover but writing and books are what I studied in college, so if I don’t recognize a publisher I tend to be surprised. Especially if it somehow made it’s way to Korea.

The very very basic plot for Gilded is that a 16 year old Korean-American finds herself begrudgingly moving to Seoul due to her fathers’ work. While in Seoul she learns that her family has been cursed and that the eldest girl per generation is to doomed to be spirited away by a Korean demigod. She must fight against the clock to save herself and try to rescue her ancestors.

To me this sounded pretty cool. It reminded me a bit of Fushigi Yūgi, a manga I use to check out from my local library. I was very excited to read about Seoul and Korea from someone else’s perspective and learn some folklore while at it.

But sadly I found the book a little jarring. As if it needed one more go around of editing. Some of it was plot, others were plot holes, and sometimes it was word choice. All of which made me wonder if it was actually self published. Because I know that that is an option with Amazon. I also feel like odd things were picked to highlight in Korean culture while other things were completely dropped or shied away from in a way that made no sense to me.

Jae Hwa Lee, the main character is  sporty girl with a black belt in taekwondo and archery, and seems to be having difficulty adjusting to life in Korea and at her rigorous international school. She’s struggling to get to know the country from where her parents came from, and also is adjusting to the death of her mother, a common trope that I’m tired of seeing. (Possibly made worse by the fact I am now a person struggling with the death of their own mother.)

It opens with her practicing archery and her father freaking out because she was…exactly where she was suppose to be???? It’s his event, he’s put a ton of effort into some fancy event for his job and he asked his daughter to perform and she’s backstage practicing like she should be, yet for some reason he’s acting as if she’s run away from home. That seems to be all he does. Not know where his daughter is and be upset about it. To be fair, later in the book she does actually run off, which is cause for concern. The only other thing he seems to do is fight with his father and ban Jae Hwa Lee from seeing various members of her Korean family, which is his family.

The other main character we meet in the opening is Marc, the white savior trope. Marc is, Jae Hwa Lee‘s love interest. And all Jae Hwa Lee can do around him is blush like kimchi, “My face feels as if it’s turning as red as kimchi.“, and go into a mush of teenage hormones to a ridiculous degree. Which for a black belt in taekwondo and archery, two things that require intensive training on focus and command over one’s emotions, it seems a bit…over the top. Marc goes to school with Jae Hwa Lee at an international school. It feels like part of Jae Hwa Lee’s struggle to adjust to Korea is that she’s trying to avoid the Korean groups. Almost none of the friends she makes at her international school are Korean. Seeing her struggling to adjust from America and living in America to living in her ancestral lands and dealing with the culture shock and find her place in Korea would’ve been really interesting to see, but instead it’s not explained. Instead the only other Koreans her age is a girl who she views as the kind of Korean girl her family would prefer over herself, and an older college guy who is rude to her and that she beats up in Taekwondo class.

But Marc is better at everything then her. He speaks Korean, Jae Hwa Lee doesn’t at least not very (which does happen), he also speaks Chinese but we only learn of this when she needs help. His father is also the foremost scholar with knowledge of Korean folklore. Something that…doesn’t make sense. I understand that yes, he could be interested in Korean folklore and know about it but for a random white guy to be the leading scholar on it IN KOREA is a bit iffy. And when she has questions about her curse or needs helps she tends to rely on Marc (or Marc forces his way to stay at her side) or his father. Not her grandfather, whose been living through the nightmare of the family curse and collecting artifacts and documentation on the stories and history for a long time. Nope, her crushes father.

There’s also moments where one minute she’s one place brooding and then suddenly she’s somewhere completely different and that tripped me up more times then I enjoyed. Jae Hwa Lee changes her mind about things a lot, and quickly, and tends to choose the stupider option.

I just got so frustrated because she would constantly do what she’s expressly told not to do. like for Chuseok her father drives her to an island near Incheon where they’re to celebrate and she’ll get a chance to meet the rest of her family. But her grandfather takes her for a walk and talks to her about the curse and points out to a cave and tells her no matter what do not go there. And what does she do? As soon as he leaves her alone she goes there. Do terrible things happen? Yes. Does she find artifacts and all of the things her grandfather has collected to try and make sense of the curse? Does her father cause wind to come in, yelling at the grandfather (his father) and then destroying his father’s life work and not batting an eye about the destruction he caused and immediately drive Jae Hwa Lee back to Seoul skipping out on any and all Chuseok festivities. Yes.

There are rules that she’s given very early on when she learns about the curse.

Don’t let Haemosu touch you

stay inside

stay in crowds of people or just with people

don’t go on your own

don’t be out in the sunlight where Haemosu  is strongest.

Jae Hwa Lee breaks every single rule without thinking. It’d be one thing if Haemosu, who is a demigod, was using his powers against her, but no, she’s just a teenage cliché of stupid choices cranked to an 11. You would hope she’d learn as the story progresses but she doesn’t. As a reader you catch on to things pretty quickly. Like any time she’s outside and alone some sort of mythical creature corners her and sometimes it’s a bad one and sometimes it’s a good one and sometimes it’s a Dokkaebi (a goblin out for it’s own interests so you don’t know whether he’s good or bad). Because of that you’d think she’d stay with her friends when she’s out rather then set off on her own.

But no, those gosh darn teenage hormones send her off on her own Every. Single. Time. Like instead of keeping a low profile and staying at home, she sneaks out to go to a…wait, is that right? a Coffee Bean???? To listen to a band???? I’m sorry but no one I know of has ever heard of a Coffee Bean hosting live music. Not my friends who’ve been here over 10 years or my Korean friends who grew up here. There’s no space. Especially not in Seoul during Chuseok. And apparently this is a common enough thing that she’s already a regular to see her favorite band, even though she’s only been in the country for…a couple of weeks???? Like I get that it’s fiction and it’s probably hard to come up with a place in Seoul that would host live music where a couple of teens could actually get in. And there’s some romantic ideas to being a teen and going to a coffee shop and listening to music, but if there’s not a real in life one, isn’t it arguably better to make one up? And what does she do while waiting for the band to start? Get all flustered because her friend invited Marc and then get all brooding and then go off on her own. Only to decide wait, her friends invited her to go shopping but then rather than wait for her they go off on their own without her and she chases after them only to get lost. She doesn’t bother trying to call them, doesn’t bother giving up and staying to enjoy the band with Marc or the other friends who stayed behind.

She even goes on a ski trip with her classmates that everyone who knows about her curse warns her against. And once again rather than stay with the group she sees Marc with the girl she hates who she’s nicknamed “long legs”. (why is this a term of hatred for women who have another woman as their enemy because the Shopaholic series uses this as well) Jae Hwa Lee gets flustered and tries to quickly escape. Rather than joining her friends she ends up going from the safe bunny trail to the super difficult and possibly dangerous expert hill. And so she decides she’ll slide down it on her butt, but then of course she sees them again so she can’t look like a fool so she stands up and tries to ski quickly away from them rather than being like oops I messed up, someone want to help me? and ends up crashing into trees, breaking her wrist and ankle and running into Haemosu and flat out breaking all of the rules. She’s in sunshine, she’s alone and she touches him.

But I kept reading, because that initial plot was interesting to me even if everyone was choosing the absolute worst way to react and interact with one another, or that Jae Hwa Lee would do something, regret it and feel awful, and then do it again.

The book is actually part of a series and while a part of me is curious as to what happens next I also am kind of good with this being the only book in the series I read. There’s just so much more I wanted from it. I want more about life in Korea from a Korean-American teenager’s perspective. I wanted more folklore and creatures beyond Haechi and the Dokkaebi. Though as someone who frequents Seoul often so sees Haechi statues fairly frequently it’s still cool. I wanted her to do a lot of the work herself and have more to her personality then I’m a black belt in Taekwondo and very strong and a good shot at traditional archery and whenever Marc is around I turn into goo. Maybe in the rest of the series she’s grown more and the reader can explore more of Korea and it’s stories through Jae Hwa Lee’s eyes. A reader can only hope.

Do you have any books where you loved the idea of it and then were let down? Did you finish the book or did you set it aside?

          Book Review: “Gilded” by Christina Farley Do you ever go to a bookstore and find yourself drawn to a specific book? It's not the book you went there for and you don't recognize it but you keep coming back to it?

[buzzdixonwriter]

Writing Report June 11, 2017

Yet another example of how the writer’s mind -- at least this writer’s mind -- works, in which I create a story I will probably never write…

…but more on that below. I shall annotate as needed.

Thursday morning, after finally getting a good night’s sleep after being sick most of the week, I awoke with a story title in my head:  ”Drive Down The Devil’s Highway”

I actually saw the title already printed up in my dream, in the style of old time men’s adventure magazines.

[Annotation #1:  Men’s adventure magazine -- affectionately known as “sweaties” -- were a popular format / genre from the 1950s to the mid-1970s.  While their predecessors existed in the earlier pulp era, the “sweaties” were different in several key aspects.  For one, while sci-fi / fantasy / mystery pulps transmogrified into square bound digest-size publications, the “sweaties” melded with the saddle stitched racy pin-up magazines.  For another, their stories, while remaining mostly fictional, attempted to pass themselves off as factual true events.  While the stories remained somewhat plausible at the beginning of the “sweaties” era, by the mid-1960s they were thinly disguised male wish fulfillment fantasies of increasingly improbably proportions.  Nonetheless, they were a hoot to read, and even now the genre has fans such as those found at Bob Deis’ Men's Adventure Magazines & Books on Facebook.]

Back to my dream:  I awoke with the title in my head, and from the style of the title I knew the story had to be in classic men’s adventure magazine mode.

But what kind of story?

Well, obviously, something to do with highways (…duh).  I had just started re-reading Jack Kerouac’s On The Road in the original scroll draft (which, technically, is a memoir or a travelogue, and not an autobiographical novel as the first edition was), so the story would be constantly moving, traveling, going somewhere, but…why?

Because of Kerouac, my brain instantly flashed the story would need to be set in Quebec.  Somebody had to get somewhere -- why?

My brain flashed again:  Roman Holiday, a delightful classic romantic comedy starring Audrey Hepburn as a young princess who just wants to have fun, and Gregory Peck as a world weary journalist who treats her to a night on the town when she sneaks away from her embassy.

Great story…

…but “sweaties” demand gut-slammin’ jaw-poundin’ tire-screechin’ gun-blastin’ !A!C!T!T!I!O!N!, not some wimpy romance.

So…keep the basic idea, only…only the princess has just been orphaned:  The time is immediately at the end of WWII.  The royal family of some small but strategically important Eastern European nation sat out exile in a remote ethnic community of their countrymen in Quebec during the war.  They planned to return as soon as the war ended, but not everyone in the ethnic community wants the old royal family back; some are communist agents who kill her parents.

The princess escapes and is hidden.  However, spies and assassins are everywhere, and even though they’ve tried to disguise the teen as a typical bobby-soxer, her regal manner makes her stick out like a sore thumb.

[Annotation #2:  Where the hell is the RCMP in all this?  Gonna need some handwavium to keep ‘em at arm’s length, but I can come up with that later.]

So my protagonist -- a melding of Peck and Kerouac -- knocks the regal out of the princess by forcing her to clean a public toilet by herself.

The effort leaves her tired / grossed out / pissed off…

…and not at all regal looking.

Now our hero can get her on the aforementioned highway and go barreling down to Montreal where her embassy awaits to protect her.

Well, that evokes memories of Thunder Road which is great:  Plenty of car-chasing / car-crashing action to go around, plus some occasional bomb-throwing / gun-shooting / fist-fighting for variety.

Now we’ve got our title, our premise, our conflict, our main characters, our setting, and enough hi-octane high concept to keep the inventive juices flowing…

…if I choose to write it.

See, everything you just read, including the various asides, formed in my head in the space of less than two and a half minutes elapsed time from the moment I woke up.  (Oh, and I was carrying on a conversation with Soon-ok simultaneously.)

150 seconds to whip up 650 words worth of story concept -- and I wasn’t even thinking about it!

This happens all the time.  I’m minding my own business, not bothering a soul, not really thinking about anything, and BOOM! suddenly an idea has exploded in my head and is screaming “WritemewritemeWRITEME!!!  Write me write NOW!”

Ain’t gonna happen, compadre.

Least not anytime soon.

As fast as I can come up with ideas, I’m nowhere near as fast writing them down.

“Writing them down” is a misnomer.  It really means I’m researching the idea, probing for weak spots, fleshing out the characters, coming up with plot and incident and dialog to drive the story along…and that doesn’t include all the work that comes ///after/// it’s written down, either.

If I decided to write this store, I would want to keep it short (under 6,000 words).  That means if I committed to it, I could probably finish a rough draft in a week’s time.

So why don’t I?

Well, ignoring the huge backlog of other stories in various stages of completion in my mind / on my desk / in my computer, the reason is going to cause a lot of you to look at me as a snob, and if you do, so be it; you’re not the one occupying my skin, I am.

There are, in my estimation, three classes of fiction:  True Fiction, Genre Fiction, Stock Fiction.

There’s nothing wrong with any of them; as noted above even Stock Fiction can be tons o’fun to write and read

But each possesses certain strengths, counter-balanced by equal weaknesses.

We’ll start at the bottom of the barrel and work our way up:  Stock Fiction is nothing but formulaic stock characters involved in formulaic stock situations, saying and doing formulaic stock things.

And hey, there’s nothing wrong with that (lord knows I can’t get enough old B-movie westerns to satisfy me).

Sometimes all you want to do as an audience is turn off your brain and go through the pleasant (e)motions of a story. 

Even when done professionally, as likely as not it’s just a better grade of fan-fic.

You could literally get a computer to write this kind of stuff; it ain’t rocket science.

Stock Fiction takes what already exists and rearranges it slightly and peddles the product as new.

But there’s nothing there.  It’s all just empty calories like a cheap snack food:  One bite and it’s gone (but oh, how delicious while chomping).

The second form is Genre Fiction, and this is essentially Stock Fiction written well.

The same caveats and criticism apply, but there’s a little more legroom, a little more breathing space, a little more originality here (not much, not nearly enough, but some).

Genre Fiction basically takes stock characters and stock stories then amps them up with a dollop of originality.

If the pleasure of Stock Fiction is the beauty of the form, the pleasure of Genre Fiction is the deviation from the norm.

Take a Stock Fiction story, give it just enough insight and wit and originality to boost the characters from one dimension to two, and you’ve got a palatable hit on your hands.

The geniuses of this field -- and true geniuses they are, no snark here -- are many, but let’s focus on four in the tiny, tiny sub-group of really well done detective fiction:  Hammett, Chandler, and MacDonald’s Ross and John D.

Through their philosophizin’ PIs, their complex and compromised characters, their willingness to tell the truth about the world around them via their genre of choice, they create something new and fresh and wonderful…

…but not completely whole.

When they work well -- as Chandler did, as John D. did when Travis McGee was fresh and new in the world and found only in paperback originals -- they create genuine art, something any reader can consume without shame, something adding to this weary world, not merely draining more from it.

But there is a limit, stylistically if nothing else, that holds these writers and their works back.

They can ride their literary steeds as high up the hill as possible, and in the fading evening light they can catch a glimpse of the city they can never visit, the city they can imagine, the city they can yearn for, the city they can never visit.

True Fiction -- good fiction, pure fiction -- starts so much further out and beyond from Genre Fiction.

It starts with an idea that is fresh! and original! (though sometimes the idea ends up coming to it).

There are no genres in True Fiction, real fiction.  Life is not defined by terms and conditions we conjure up, it is what it is.  We may later find a conveniently labeled box to drop it in, but that’s not what it is, that’s never what it is.

A work of True Fiction comes out of nowhere, entraps us, and takes us all…Somewhere!  Anywhere! we never visited before, indeed, may never even realized existed before exquisitely brought to our attention.

It is a work of art first, a bundle of tropes second -- if at all!

Truth be told, True Fiction may not do well in initial release, but what gives it staying power is that it takes readers someplace brand new even though they’ve already seen it a million times.

”Drive Down The Devil’s Highway” is straight stock fiction, one from column A, one from column B formulaic storytelling.  I might, if really pressed, come up with enough originality to ooonch it up a notch or two in the form of a scene here, a supporting character there.

That’s not what I’m trying to do.

My goals and ambitions lay higher, and while I certainly have some genre and stock influences in me, I’d like to think I’m aiming higher, unwilling to fall back.

Because that’s what Genre and Stock Fiction would represent to me, a falling back to safer pastures.

I probably won’t write ”Drive Down The Devil’s Highway” because I can see nothing in it that promises to rise above Stock Fiction.

If I applied myself and worked hard at it, I might be able to boost it up to the level of low grade Genre Fiction.

But that’s as high as she’ll get.

I have a limited number of years allotted me on earth, and while I night fail in the attempt, I’m gonna spend ‘em trying to write True Fiction.

[Annotation #3:  Some of my more pragmatic friends will ask why I don’t write ”Drive Down The Devil’s Highway” anyway and sell it and use the money to help buy time to write True Fiction.  Because there’s no market for that kind of fiction anymore, that’s why.  Once upon a time a writer could sell two hours worth of TV scripts a year and earn enough to coast thru the next nine months writing True Fiction.  Not anymore:  The freelance market in everything has long since evaporated and the amount of time and effort taken to place a short story simply ain’t worth it other than in publicity and egoboo.  Yeah, ”Drive Down The Devil’s Highway” could probably make a good low budget indie film, but it takes forever and a day to get those kinds of films made; I lack the time and patience.  So this is as close as we’re ever probably gonna get to seeing ”Drive Down The Devil’s Highway” written down.]

[Annotation #4:  Least any of my sibling scribes think I’m trash talkin’ them for what they choose to write…no.  This is about me, my POV, my values, my motives, my soul.  If you’re writing a continuing character who makes you money and your readers happy, you go for it.  Nothing shameful about that at all.  If I’ll watch crappy 1950s sci-fi movies, I’ve got no business telling you what you can or can’t write, should or shouldn’t feel good about.  Fly your freak flag high.]

[sterek-bingo]

            STEREK BINGO 2017 THEMES!

Here they are! Sterek Bingo 2017 themes! You can also see the list of themes here. ENJOY CREATING!!!!!!

Harry Potter: No matter Slytherin or Hufflepuff, Gryffindor or Ravenclaw, all houses are welcome in a Harry Potter AU! You don't even have to use houses, or Hogwarts at all! Perhaps branch out and use Beauxbatons or Ilvermorny, or maybe not even a school. Pro Quidditch player x Magical Creature instructor anyone?

Friends To Lovers: There's nothing more amazing in a relationship than being able to be best friends with your lover...except for when your best friend BECOMES your lover. From Monica and Chandler, to Scully and Mulder, the friends to lovers trope has been around for ages. And now it's time to give Sterek that treatment, no matter if it's canon or AU. Time to turn platonic snuggles into romantic snuggles!

Magic/Were!Stiles: Let's be honest here, this boy is something! Now it's time for you to decide what! Witch, werewolf, druid, werefox, raven, White Stag...the possibilities are so endless, and here's your outlet for choosing any one you want! The only thing Stiles can't be for this theme is human.

Top/Bottom: Top!Stiles/bottom!Derek, top!Derek/bottom!Stiles, or my personal favorite: Switches! No matter what you like, I think it's safe to say that the theme is pretty self-explanatory. Of course this theme doesn't have to relate to sex if you don't want it to- it could just as easily relate to bunk beds!

Kids: What's better than kids? From babies to teenagers, kids are what makes the world go round, and there's nothing cuter than Stiles and Derek with them. (Except maybe Stiles and Derek as kids themselves, but that's your choice to make!) No matter if it's baby!Sterek or Sterek with babies, if it includes kids, it's welcome for this theme!

Coffee Shop: Somehow, someway, Coffee Shop AUs are the single staple of the AU world. A fandom's not a fandom without a coffee shop AU! But there are always ways to make them unique...a coffee shop for the supernatural perhaps? Maybe Derek is allergic to coffee? A coffee shop that ran out of coffee? Put your creativity to the test by making a Coffee Shop AU as unique- or cliche'!- as you want!

Horror: From things that go bump in the night, to the morbid and macabre, horror is one of the great staple genres of media, and now it's time to add a dash of spooky to Sterek! It could be anything from a light Goosebumps-esque idea, or you could try to out horror American Horror Story. Bring your scares and something to cover your eyes, it's about to be Halloween in May!

Royalty: Kings and princes and knights, oh my! This is the thing that royalty AUs are made of! It could be set in the distant past, or you can modernize it. King!Stiles, prince!Derek, forbidden love or arranged marriages - there are a variety of different ways to do a royalty AU, all it has to include is, well, royalty!

Dark!Stiles: We all have a little darkness within us. And even before season 3B, so much of the fandom adored dark!Stiles. Now we're bringing him back from...the grave? Well now that depends on you, any reason for his darkness and in any way that he is, we want to see it! Villainous, evil, possessed, or morally gray, it doesn't matter. Bring ALL of the darkness to our cutest psychopath!

Derek Returns: What Sterek fan- hell, what DEREK fan- DIDN'T wish Derek had come back for season five? Or season six? Well there are probably some, but we aren't some of them! Derek coming back to Beacon Hills is the theme here, and it can be in season five, season six, or even post-canon. We just want to get him back by any means necessary, and you get to decide what those means are!

Comfort: I think it's safe to say that Derek and Stiles have both had rough lives, surrounded with death and misery and pain...now it's time for you to make that right! No matter if it's hurt/comfort or all comfort, if it's a heavy, emotional piece, or if it's just Derek wrapped in a blanket and making a blanket fort for Stiles, the idea is to be warm, happy, and most of all- comfortable!

Soulmates: Ahh, soulmate Aus...one of the best things that fandom has to offer that you don't really see in mass media. Worlds where you're born with a soul mark on your skin, or a clock counting down to the moment you'll meet your soulmate, or see only black and white until you meet them...soulmate AUs have the potential to be incredibly fluffy, comical, angsty, or tragic as you'd like. There are essentially no rules here! We always knew these two were destined for each other...

Alive Hales: There's so much to mourn with the Hale family. Laura, Talia, and all of the Hales we didn't know...so it's time to bring them back to life! Be it canon-divergent or AU, entire family or just Laura, it doesn't matter. It's time to put your spin on Derek's family! Let us meet your version of the Hales- after they meet Stiles, of course!

Meet-Cute: "Meet-cute" is, of course, a relative term. From the cliche rom-com meetings, to the sort of Munster-esque anarchy that only Stiles could consider cute, the goal is to create a meeting for these two lovable losers that's- well, CUTE! AU? Probably, but boy would it be interesting to see how you could interpret it for canon! Let us see your ideal cuteness level, sprinkled, of course, over Sterek!

Enemies To Lovers: Like friends to lovers, enemies to lovers is one of the staples of fandom. There's just something so incredible about watching two people who want to kill each other transform into two people who love each other unconditionally, and that's exactly what this theme is about! They can be merely at odds, or full out on opposite sides of a war, all that matters is that getting along comes later on for these two frenemies (loverenemies?)

BAMF!Stiles: Stiles Stilinski is a badass. We all know that. Now it's time to highlight it! BAMF!Stiles can be any shade of morality and have any kind of power (or even lack there of) that you want, The only guideline is that he does something that makes everyone else stand back, wide-eyed and open-mouthed, wondering how they got lucky enough to witness such a display of BAMF!

Werewolf Culture: Courting rituals and Alpha symposiums abound, it's time for a lesson in Werewolf Culture! It could be werewolves are known, A/B/O, Teen Wolf canon, or really any universe wherein werewolves exist and have their own communities and social constructs. What matters is that there's something about werewolves that's very different from humans- and it doesn't all come down to the full moon and turning into a wolf.

Little Red Riding Hood: Ahh, the fandom wide favorite fairytale, telling of a red-hood and a wolf... and those are the only requirements! Little Red could be innocent or evil, the wolf could be bad or good, and you don't even have to stick to canon! Little Red Riding Hood Derek x Wolf Stiles? Yes please! As long as those elements are included, it can be as close to or as far from the fairytale as you desire.

Switched Roles: Werewolf!Stiles/human!Derek? Age differences? Alpha!Stiles? Possessed!Derek? Why... this must be a role reversal!! No matter if it's a full on canon rewrite, a reversal of one season, or even just one specific trait (Alpha!Stiles/human!Derek for example) it doesn't matter. As long as something noticeably Derek is now Stiles, and something noticeably Stiles is now Derek. (It might have just been easier for them to switch clothes...)

Mythology: Ahh, mythology. One of the world's greatest- and most diverse- treasures. Every culture has such a vast and rich mythology that it's impossible not to find any to your liking, as it doesn't have to just stick to the average Greek and Roman mythos. Mythology has some of the greatest tales and some of the easiest to adapt. Old world or modern, closely following the story or deeply diverting from it, as long as it has a root in mythology or somewhere, it's welcome here!

Shifted Derek: Who doesn't LOVE a full-shifted wolf!Derek? We certainly love it here! Both in canon and AU, werewolf!Derek just seems to work, and what works possibly best is when he shifts into a real wolf! No matter if it's the freedom he gets from running through the woods, or just the peace of sleeping in the middle of a sunbeam, let Derek's spirit be in it's truest form by letting him be a wolf!

Crossover: There's nothing like a good old fashioned crossover. Be it another TV show, a movie, an anime, a book, or even a musical, all that matters is that it's another source of media that bleeds together with Teen Wolf! Maybe Derek and Stiles meet Dean and Cas, maybe there's an AU where anxious figure-skater!Stiles drunkenly asks superstar figure-skater!Derek to coach him. It doesn't matter as long as there's a second source material involved in your work!

Everybody Lives-Nobody Dies: I bet everyone has at least one person they wish HADN'T died in Teen Wolf. Even if it's pre-canon, now is your chance to bring them back from the grave! Anyone you want, as many people as you want. Let the events of canon slide right off and have an AU or canon-divergence where everyone is alive and happy!

A/B/O: Knotting, heats, scenting, bonding - all of the most well known cliche's of A/B/O (AKA: Omegaverse), One of the most unique concepts fanfiction has ever offered, almost certainly AU (almost), A/B/O is that great theme where you can really build a universe. Create an entirely new world with different laws and social structures and biology. Or you could just have the incredibly fun Alpha/Omega dynamics and call it a day - it's totally up to you! And what's even better, you can take the terms as loosely or as fittingly as you want! Keep them to a very general sense of pack structure, or create an entirely new world order with vastly different biologies and social requirements- it's all up to you!

Superhero: Ever since Tyler Hoechlin literally became Superman, superhero AUs have exploded in the Sterek community! From canon superheros like Superman and Batman, to totally new OC superheros like Black Wolf and Red Bat (or, you know, names that make sense), the superhero genre is one that can be easily explored and is certainly one of the most fun to do. It can be as lighthearted as Supergirl, as dark as Gotham, or something pleasantly in between- it's all up to you to decide!

Pack Mom Stiles: Pack Mom Stiles is one of the earliest staples of the Teen Wolf fandom, and one of my personal favorites. Because you know Stiles is "the mom friend". He doesn't bake cookies and help the kids with his homework, but he does defend his pack at all costs and is liable to take a bat to the head of anyone who breaks one of his friend's hearts! No matter if it's domestic or at war, Pack Mom Stiles is one of the cutest tropes around, and this is the time and place to dedicate a little time to the glue keeping the pack together!

Feral: Ah, feral AUs...no matter if it's Derek or Stiles, one of them is bound to spend just a little bit too much time in the wild, until the wild won't leave them. Perhaps the scariest thing about feral AUs is that they don't actually have to be AU at all. In fact, they can fit in very easily with canon. Maybe Derek comes back from his trip with Braeden, unable to shift out of his wolf form. Maybe Stiles, in trying to escape from the hunt, ended up getting stuck in the woods for a few years. Not to mention the full bounty of possibilities if you make it AU! Bring on the heartache! This is bound to hurt.

Canon Divergent: With only one half season left of Teen Wolf and Derek having been gone for a season and a half already, the chances of Sterek becoming canon- although still possible- are pretty slim. If canon is the one universe where they don't end up together, then it's our job as fans to create millions of universes where they DO! Find the perfect place in canon where you can save the relationship and ensure that whenever this mystical time in the universe is that these two don't end up together, it's NOT today! Not today Satan, not today.

Alpha!Derek/Stiles: There once was a time when Alpha!Derek was canon...and you could re-establish that time now! Miss the Hale pack? Want to create a new one? Just want those pretty red eyes back? Here's your chance to give Derek his power back! Oooor...your chance to allow Derek a time to rest and give that power to Stiles! Because who doesn't love Alpha!Stiles with beta!Derek? Of course, since this is Alpha Derek/Stiles, it could just as easily be both of them. Would they join their packs together? Be at odds with each other? It's your time to decide! Take those red eyes and stick them in whoever you want! As long as it's Derek or Stiles, that is

Wild Card: This is the obligatory bingo square in the very middle where you can do absolutely anything you want! That's right. There's no restriction, no guideline, no THEME! It's your freebie to do anything you may have been wanting to do, but haven't really had the time or inspiration to do until now- here's your chance. Now go forth and create Sterek!