#why is it always something in this fandom

[biff-adventurer]

i've seen this post a lot in the past year/s(???) and like. i just don't understand. if you want reach, you share your ao3 posted fic to places like twitter, bluesky, tumblr, etc. people used to write fics on facebook back when i first started rp.

but also, fanfiction is one hobby that can't make you legal money. people try very hard to be known as good writers, or else advertise commissions to others in fandom, but they forget--they're typically writing in a copyrighted world. that's why ao3 doesn't allow you to share on pages that might make you money for writing fanfic.

writing fanfiction can be a serious, thoughtful, artistic undertaking-- it's not below any genre in terms of literary worth. it captures the way the audience of a piece of media feels toward the media, it captures our cultural thinking in the moment, it expresses and, possibly, spreads the love for topics in the media it is referencing. fanfiction has so much inherent worth.

i myself indulge in fanfiction as a literary undertaking. i'm completely serious about it. but in the US, i can't make money off it. again and again, communities must be reminded that benefitting financially from the writing of fanfiction (directly) means playing fire with big corporations who will wage legal wars. i wasn't there during the anne rice saga, but those that were will tell you the horror stories. we don't want to be afraid of posting fanfiction and getting sued for it. ao3 is a godsend when it comes to protecting our rights.

i say this because "reach" echoes this idea that everything we post must be commodified and useful to us in some capital-gaining way, whether that be social or financial. do not post for reach. do not write to be famous. you'll writhe, wither and wail at the pain it causes you.

fanfiction has always been about the people reading and writing it. how do you feel about this work? how do you seethe world these characters are in? why are you telling the story you're telling?

(it doesn't HAVE to be meaningful to be important, it can be completely self-indulgent, it can be cursed, it can be wrong, it can be on any scale of quality just as all writing can be)

please write because you have something to say. because you want to share your daytime reveries and your silliest thoughts. because you want to leave something behind. because you love something and, gods be damned, you have to make more of it because no one else will.

there are as many writers in the world as there are stars in the sky. it's a luck of the draw to get recognition for a work, and it's been that way for a great, long time. so if you write, let it be because you must. because your love of the act compels you. because a dream rooted in vanity will inevitably break you.

writing isn't about status, branding, marketing, or anything like that. don't trap yourself in this notion, and don't let it make you feel superior to anyone. do it for you. do it for the love of you. you will blossom into the person you've always meant to be if you do.

nothing pisses me off more than when i see a fic on ao3 talking about reach. "this ship isn't here but i added them for reach" "this fandom tag isn't necessary but i'm adding it for reach" "reposting for reach" STOP IT!!!! this is not tiktok this is not twitter this is an ARCHIVE this is not how it works!!!

[buckley-diaztruther]

sorry friends it's another long one

ive always been of the opinion that when buck and eddie end up living together it has to be eddie suggestinf/asking. partially bc its obvious gonna be in his house but largely because we need proof that this is a step theyre both wanting, it's buck being asked ti stay, it's very clearly NOT a moment where buck uses big gestures to save a sinking ship

and now the show has so perfectly given is the exact sce priority where this HAS to happen

because when eddie comes back, there's no question of him and chris moving back into the house. the question will be 'does buck stay or go'

and there's a few non-romantic reasons why I don't think Eddie would want/tell buck to go. first reason is financial. buck gave up his loft, fucked his credit even more, and would have a hell of a time trying to find any apartment that he can afford AND that would take him. eddies not going to just kick his best friend out, and at the moment no one else on the team really has a long term place for him. sure, eddies is cramped as well but at least all of bucks stuff is there. this is the practical option that is going to save them both money tbh

second reason is the diaz boys love having Buck around. he cooks, he cleans, he co-parents, and he is literally their favorite person outside of each other. doesn't even have to be romantic, they just love buck. he's family and its really that simple.

and then of course we do look at the romance of it all which. I think a lot of the fandom agrees would the the funniest reason for why buck would feel like he CANT stay. because whether he's accepted his feelings or not at this point, if he and eddie arent together then buck is now going to be hyper aware of anything that could be read as romantic and he's going to try to avoid that once eddie is home. so he's either gonna try to make living with Eddie the most platonic bro thing ever OR he's gonna wanna avoid it all together. meanwhile eddie is just like 'dude. wtf is ur deal just get in bed and stfu ur fine I'm fine and I just wanna go to sleep'

but then eddie is going to have to go to buck, romantically or not, and very directly tell him: "I WANT you to stay. I am asking you to stay here. With us."

bc everyone leaves and sure sometimes they come back but has anyone really ever asked him to stay? has anyone ever actually told buck in clear, explicit words that he is wanted, needed, and that him being the one to leave is not that they want?

because the few times buck has left anywhere (PA, the frat house w Connor, Abbys place, the bouncing between Maddie and chimney before finally landing the loft) it's either been something he's been told to do, or it's something he's felt like he has to do. he's known that he's liked and loved and wanted to a casual degree but no one has ever said that they're sad to watch him leave. no one has asked him to stay. they either let him go or they go first.

(im of the belief that every place buck ever left during his years of traveling was only either because whatever ties he had there dissolved or because he was following someone else, all except for the seals - Bucks first time choosing for himself, by himself, to leave something behind (i don't count Hershey since Maddie was such a big part of him leaving. I don't think he'd have really left if she hadn't told him to go and 'left' him first))

the closest he's gotten to being asked to stay, and i think this moment was huge, was when he brought up leaving the 118 and everyone verbally flicked him in the head for it. and I do think this was so important, but also undercut by chimney and then eddie leaving. it kind of perpetuates this theme for buck of always being the one left behind waiting for someone to come back (happened again end of s7 when Bobby tried to return, and then again where Chris and then Eddie leaving and buck is just there holding the fort to make their leaving either except this time there isn't even the hope of them coming back (he tells eddie 'Don't come back'. not 'don't come back yet' or 'don't come back without chris'. he says 'don't come back' because he doesn't want one without the other and he refuses to hold hope for the potential of them BOTH returning when the entire point of the move was for them to be together in texas)

so yeah. eddie needs to come back with Chris and Eddie needs to be the one to ask buck to stay. because buck needs to be more than a ghost haunting the spaces left behind, more than a spector wandering from home to home with no where that's actually his to keep. eddie needs to choose joy and buck needs to be deliberately chosen rather than just. kind of stumbling into a relationship once more without really knowing how he got there. so ig in a sense it needs to be both of them choosing, but eddie HAS to be the one to choose first because otherwise buck won't believe that he's ever allowed to even want it, let alone ask for it

[luvvictoria]

The Almost Lovers, Forever Flirting™

+ pairings. Jason Todd x f!reader

+ tags. friends to lover ? bitches acting like they are married, kinda comedy but not really ? bro idk what I am doing, I am new to this fandom fml

+ a/n. I swear, you and Jason are the definition of "right person, wrong timing"—repeatedly." The way y’all flirt like a damn married couple but refuse to admit it? Criminal. Like, imagine being at a fancy gala, surrounded by Gotham’s elite, but instead of networking, you and Jason are outside, sharing a cigarette, wrapped in each other’s coats, and taking shots like actual degenerates. This is the kind of energy I live for! Also, before you start reading, just so you know, I just started the dc comics so it might not be lore accurate :((

+ summary. Jason Todd and Reader have been dancing around their feelings forever—flirting, teasing, always finding ways to touch, but never actually getting together. Whenever one of them starts dating someone else, things get tense, full of arguments and cold shoulders, but those relationships never last. At every gala or event, they always end up together—sitting close, sharing cigarettes, sneaking off to the bathroom at the same time, and dancing like they own the floor.

+ support me ✰ .ᐟ buy me a coffee I Instagram

The Never-Ending Flirting Game™

Since forever, you and Jason have been toeing the line between best friends and something way more dangerous. You flirt like it’s your native language, and everyone assumes you’re together.

You both deny it, of course—Jason with a smirk, you with a teasing roll of your eyes. But neither of you ever stop.

"You clean up nice, Todd."

"I always do, sweetheart. Just tryna impress my favorite girl."

"Bold of you to assume you're my favorite."

"Then why are you staring?"

The Unspoken Rule at Every Event

No matter where you go—Wayne galas, charity functions, even casual family dinners—you two always gravitate toward each other.

No assigned seating? Doesn’t matter. Somehow, you always end up sitting next to him.

And your legs? They need to touch. It’s not even a discussion.

Jason will manspread just enough so that his thigh is against yours.

Or, if you cross your legs, your knee will accidentally rest against his.

Neither of you ever move away.

Sharing a Cigarette Like a Pair of Degenerates

Sneaking off to smoke is practically a tradition at this point. Whether it’s outside the gala or on the Wayne Manor balcony, you always end up sharing a cigarette.

Jason lights it, takes a drag, and hands it over with a smirk.

"Ladies first."

"Then why did you just take the first drag, jackass?"

"Because I'm a gentleman, obviously."

When you lean in to pass it back, your fingers brush. Every time. No one mentions it.

The Bathroom Shenanigans

It’s never planned, but somehow, somehow, you both end up slipping out to the bathroom at the same time.

And you always come back together.

Dick once saw you both re-enter a gala, Jason adjusting his tie, you fixing your lipstick.

"Y’know, you could at least pretend you weren’t doing something shady."

Jason, completely deadpan: "What do you think we were doing? Counting tiles?"

The Relationships That Never Last

Every time one of you starts dating someone else, things get weird.

Less flirting, more arguing. Jason gets meaner, and you get colder.

Your relationships always fizzle out, though. And the second they do? You and Jason go back to normal—like nothing happened.

No one talks about it, but everyone knows.

Dancing Like You Own the Damn Floor

The second a vals starts playing, Jason is right there, hand already outstretched.

"C'mon, sweetheart. You know the rules."

He leads with an ease that shouldn’t be legal. His hand is on your waist, your fingers are laced together, and his thumb never stops tracing little circles over your skin.

He doesn’t even have to ask for your other hand—it’s already resting on his shoulder, the fabric of his suit soft under your palm.

And the way he looks at you? Like you’re the only one in the room? Yeah. Dangerous.

The Smoking Crew™ Outside the Gala

The Wayne family always sneaks out during parties to escape the loud music.

You and Jason sit next to each other, obviously.

His blazer? Already on your shoulders.

Your coat? Draped over his shoulders like it belongs there.

You pour shots of Sheridan’s, handing Jason one with a grin.

"To making bad decisions."

"And to never learning from them."

Clink. Down the hatch. Then you switch—Jason pours, and you drink.

If Bruce sees you both like that? He just sighs and mutters, "These two."

They Know. Everyone Knows.

Dick? He’s taking bets on how long before you two finally do something about this.

Tim? He just watches the chaos unfold with popcorn.

Damian? He refuses to acknowledge whatever weird mating ritual this is.

Bruce? He’s resigned. Completely and utterly resigned.

And Alfred? He’s already planning the wedding menu.

But you and Jason? You’re still playing the game. Touching, flirting, teasing, pushing boundaries—always just a breath away, always almost.

For now. 💋

[fairy-writes]

ECHOES OF YOU, HEART OF MINE

Reblogs and Comments are greatly appreciated!!

__________________________________________________________________________

Fandom(s): Solo Leveling

Prompt: “You’re the most important thing to me.”

Pairing(s): Sung Jinwoo x Reader

Word Count: 1.3k

Genre(s)/Tag(s): Gender Neutral!Reader, Angst, Hurt no Comfort (kinda), Arguments (more one-sided tho), Major Character Death

Notes: I’ll just say this now… I have no idea what I’m doing. Like, legitimately, I’m an anime-only watcher and am on… like… chapter six of the manhwa.

This is a collab! Specifically, with my good friend @straykidsnerd255 :) Her oneshot is HERE

Basically, we both had the same character, the same prompt, and wrote something!

SPOILERS FOR SEASON 2 EP 11

__________________________________________________________________________

You weren’t happy about it, being dead and all. Then again, no one was, at least to your knowledge. It wasn’t as if you had been a ghost before. 

But that didn’t make it hurt any less. 

Jinwoo’s shoes crunched the drab, gray gravel of the cemetery grounds as he stepped through the wrought iron gates. Unconsciously, his hand tightened around the flowers in his grip. Gravestones and upright headstones dotted the ground, but he paid none of them any mind as he searched for one in particular. 

Yours. 

It had been two weeks since Jeju Island. 

Since every Korean hunter came home alive but two. 

Min Byung-Gu, the S-Rank healer. Someone you had told him about before. 

And you. His best friend. His confidant. The only other one who knew about the System because when he was smaller, and weaker, more of a failure, he had to tell someone for fear of going crazy. 

But you trusted in him. You believed him. 

The cemetery was quiet. He could practically hear the shadows within his own shadow chattering until they realized just where they were. Then… One by one… They all went silent. He could feel their unease. Their discomfort. Their distress. 

Most of them knew who you were. 

What you were to him. 

And therefore, they knew why he was here. 

At your funeral, he had commanded some of the foot soldiers to carry your casket because there was no one else. You had no family. You had no friends except for himself and maybe Jinah. And he didn’t want anyone touching your casket because of the guilt he felt. So, he had your casket carried and lowered into the ground by his soldiers. There had been barely enough of a body to be embalmed and buried. 

Tank hadn’t done much; just let out a single mournful cry when the funeral was over. 

Igris stood stoically at Jinwoo’s side, ever the quiet knight. But, he had bowed his head as you passed by in a closed casket in respect for what you had done for his master. What you had been for him. 

Iron seemed in distress, but that almost made sense. You had always joked that he was your favorite out of all of Jinwoo’s shadow army. The funeral was publicized because, of course, it was. You were an S-Rank hunter, for hell’s sake. You were a beloved figure of the community, always kind, always brave. 

He hadn’t batted an eye when summoning his soldiers.

Who cared about the world knowing about his shadows when you weren’t there?

Why?!

Why hadn’t he gotten there sooner?!

Why couldn’t he have gone with you in the first place?!

If he had, maybe you would’ve survived. 

Maybe you would still be here!

He was yanked from his pitiful wallowing by something that made his heart stop dead in his chest. 

It was you, sitting on the gravestone with your name, bloodied and bruised and still in your armor, for heaven’s sake. It was as if you had escaped Jeju Island. As if you were alive. But something was wrong… You were… transparent?

All of that didn’t matter as you looked up, and your eyes met his. 

You froze when you saw Sung Jinwoo appear around the corner of the cemetery, a bouquet of flowers in hand, looking just as shocked as you felt. 

Perhaps looking shocked wasn’t the word you were looking for. His face didn’t change. But you could tell in how he held himself that he was two seconds away from crying. From running forward. From turning back into the emotional E-Rank, he used to be.

“Why are you here.” The cold greeting has his shoulders tensing, and you almost feel bad. But then you remember. 

Blood. 

Carnage.

Byung-Gu dead. 

Cha Hae-In gravely injured. 

And then…

Darkness. 

You had died. And no one saved you. 

Not for lack of trying, Baek Yoon-Ho had tried to staunch the bleeding, but he was bleeding and injured himself. And your injuries were much more severe.

Jinwoo didn’t say anything. He just walked forward and put the flowers at the base of your headstone. 

Dahlias, you realized—your favorite. He had told you once that they symbolized eternal love and commitment. 

It just made a flash of anger flow through you, like the Ant King gutting you before you died. Your lips curled in a sneer, and you tried to kick the flowers away. Keyword being tried. Your foot just passed through the blooms, and you almost fell over. You would’ve laughed at your blunder had you not been so upset. 

The entire time, Jinwoo just watched, something unreadable in those eyes of his that you loved so much. 

But you can’t muster up the courage to tell him that. And now you would never be able to. Even if you did, there was nothing you could do about it. Because you were dead. 

All you remembered was the pain and Baek Yoon-Ho begging you to stay awake before nothingness. 

Finally…

“Get out of here.” You snarl, and he stiffens. 

“Why?” He says, and you grit your teeth. It doesn’t hurt, of course. Nothing would hurt like that ever again. 

“Do I need a reason? Go away!” You shout, but again, he doesn’t move. You feel hot, angry tears in your eyes, and now he looks pained. 

It's almost as if he feels bad, but that doesn’t matter anymore. 

“I won’t.” He says, and you clench your jaw tightly until you would’ve been dizzy from pain had you been alive. 

“And why not?” Your voice is low and full of fury.

“Because. You need me.” He tries, and you bark out a harsh laugh. 

“I needed you two weeks ago! I needed to live! I wanted to survive!” You cry, and unwillingly, you remember something he told you when you first met in a dungeon when he was a nobody. 

“Your fear keeps you strong. It keeps you alive. You do better and perform better if you’re scared. Trust me. I’m afraid all the time!”

Sticky tears run down your cheeks and drip into nothingness on the gravel. 

“You promised me. You said my fear would keep me strong, that it would keep me alive! But I died afraid and alone and so, so scared! You made me trust you, and when it mattered the most, I was let down! You said I was the most important thing to you, and you lied!”

Your fists pass through Jinwoo’s chest as you try to hit him. Touch him. Anything! 

But that is all meaningless because you are alone now. Forever alone and in pain and scared. 

You will forever be—

“I’m sorry.” He whispers, hands going around your shoulders as if to hold you, but they just pass right through your form. It’s as if you don’t exist. As if you don’t matter.

But you know you mattered to Jinwoo. He was one of the only ones who cared anymore. 

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there. I’m sorry I couldn’t save you. I am so so sorry.” He said, his voice cracking in the first show of outward emotion you had seen from him since his mother woke up. He tried to hold you again, to kiss you, something that showed he cared.

But he couldn’t anymore. 

He couldn’t ever again. 

“You have my heart. Now and forever, and I am so eternally sorry for not being there. You are the most important thing to me.” He all but whimpered, and it tugs at your dead heart. You fall to your knees, sobbing, hands gripping your head as you try not to sink into despair. 

“Don’t leave me.” You wail, and he just watches you with a heartbroken look on his face. He can’t comfort you, can’t say anything to make it better. He just has to watch as you cry and cry and cry.

Now, and forever more. 

[dl-drama-cd]

Why fandom decided that Laito had sex with Cordelia?

My position: they never had sex. Bloodsucking only. Not without a certain reason. I would like to prove that claimimg they were sexual lovers is not correct at all.

Watching the anime only and without any accompanying sources you might not even guess any sex. However the fact that Laito was in love and desired his own mother is obvious. In s01e04 he sighs glaring at the moon remembering the smell, the voice of his beloved' swears eternal love to her; in s01e08 he having pushed his mother off the balcony said that now she belongs only to him forever; in s01e11 he expresses regret that he doesn't see her in hell, and in s01e12 while her dressburning he mumbles something about her (maybe Karl's also but due to contex it must be about Cordelia) and Richter's actions to them.

s01e04:

愛してます. いつまでも いつまでも いつまでも. あなたが望むと望まざるとにかかわらず. 一瞬たりとも あなたのこと忘れたことなんかない. あなたの声 あなたの匂い すべて覚えてる. Laito: I love you. Always, always, forever. Whether you want it or not. I've never forgotten you for a moment. Your voice, your smell, I remember everything.

s01e08:

これで永遠に僕だけのものになったね Laito: Now you belong to me only forever.

s01e11:

次に会う時は地獄だと思ってたよ Laito: I thought the next time we met would be in hell. 期待に添えなくて、残念だわ Yuidelia: It's a shame it didn't live up to expectations. いや 期待以上だよ Laito: No, it's beyond expectations.

s01e12:

一つだけ明らかな真実を教えてあげるよ Laito: I'll tell you the only obvious truth. 僕たちはもう二度と叔父上やあの人に振り回されない Laito: That person and you, Uncle, will never be able to wield us again.

Cordelia in s01e08 asked Laito to save her and, holding out her bloody hand, said that she truly loved him:

ライト 私を助けなさい Cordelia: Laito, save me.

ライト 愛して���わ Cordelia: Laito, I love you. 本当に Cordelia: Really.

And that's the whole story of their relationship in anime.

Unlike Ayato who was thrown into the lake in s01e02 and said to live at the its' bottom in s01e07 Laito seems having no reason to hate his mother but the fact that he desired her is an indisputable (his 'you're mine forever').

No official source desribed it as sexual relationship. Never.

This was only thought up by the fans themselves.

Analyzing DL keep in mind key aspects that important to understand the story:

1. the title is based on a bloodsucking fetish: bloodish is a much more intimate process than simply eating, it's erotic; 2. Laito and others are demonic creatures with a distorted nature, they don't feel like humans and have no human heart; 3. DL women are weak fisicallly and magically; 4. Cordelia's blood and even its' smell drove vampires crazy.

In the first game there are only two oddy episodes that fans automatically saw as sex.

1. DL Laito Dark Epilogue. Laito has a dream of Cordelia coming to him: she says that she is 'not enough' and that she 'loves' him, he promises to 'give her love'. 2. DL Laito Maniac Epilogue. After killing some man Cordelia asks Laito to give her 'warmth'.

The rest flashbacks do not hint at anything at all. Imprisonment in a dungeon (DL Laito Maniac Prologue) and a request to help killing Karlheinz (DL Laito Ecstasy Prologue), Cordelia's murder (DL Laito Ecstasy Epilogue).

But inside Yui Cordelia called her son a 奴隷. It seems to be a special term, we would return to it.

That made fans decide that the mother sex with her own son. If Laito and Cordelia would be human, not bloodsucking demons, I would agree with fans. But from the start I passed the games I noticed many details in Laito's logic that were not that simple.

We have a blood-drinking fetish. Cordelia had special blood. So this story may be more complicated.

More, Blood. There are only two flashbacks with Laito and Cordelia. Dark Prologue and Ecstasy Epilogue. In MB Dark Prologue Laito asks Cordelia in bedroom 'why doing such a thing'. Cordelia answers because she loves him and what a place in a world where any mother doesn't love her child. Laito answers that's 'here'.

Fans again decide that Laito is hinting at sexualized 'love' between him and his mother.

In MB Dark Epilogue and MB Ecstasy Prologue the butler of their castle invited Laito to Cordelia. Laito provocatively asked the reason. To the butler's unfinished answer Laito only grinned and called him a 'bad old man'.

In MB Ecstasy Prologue Ayato tried to hammer into his brother that Cordelia didn't love any of them.

MB Dark Prologue, MB Dark Epilogue, MB Maniac Epilogue are episodes which his relationship with the maid Hilde are shown as he decided to use words of love for his own purposes and to seduce her. His monologues also are hardly grasp their essence, it is often unclear who Laito is talking about - himself, someone or in general.

Dark Fate. Laito refused to acknowledge Cordelia as his mother but Richter scolded him for this. Yui wanted a solution to this problem.

DF Laito Maniac Epilogue. Laito himself suggested to his mother to forget about 'that person' because she already 'has him'. Cordelia snapped that Laito is not Karlheinz and is not a replacement of him. And her answer really affected him ('If not a replacement who am I?')

DF Laito Vampire End. Laito having already learned about his father's experiments makes a grave for Cordelia, calls her 'kaa-san' for the first time and says goodbye to her.

In SS for the Dark Fate game he again refers to her 'kaa-san': 'Ayato and Kanato have mom's blood, so they would be okay' (true-sweet-moments).

Lost Eden. Laito only remembers Cordelia once comparing her to Yui whom he suspects of cheating on Kino (LE Laito Ecstasy Prologue).

Lunatic Parade. Yui stutters about ｢裏切り｣ = Laito's 'betrayal' by Cordelia in his childhood (LP Laito Chapter 2).

Chaos Lineage. Some episodes with Yui's heartbeat and her avoiding Laito memorizing Cordelia again.

That's all. That made fans thinking Cordelia and Laito had sex.

The CD-drama Versus II Ayato vs Laito even pushed fans to decide that Cordelia raped her son when he was a child. But again Laito's words are not about it.

However I repeat our bloodsucking story with giving blood that means too much and Cordelia's special blood suggests a much more difficult story. So then we would learn all the fanbooks, descriptions, dramas and other characters' (especially Kanato and Ayato) conversations to understand what it was. Sex or bloodsucking only.

[frostedpuffs]

something ive noticed in many discord servers (not exclusive to any particular kind) is that people will pop in, send their art, and pop out. nothing wrong with that i suppose - but isn't the purpose of a discord server engagement? i don't know. if im about to go send my art in a discord server, i make sure i always at least reply to the person who sent art before me by leaving a compliment or something. it just feels so rude to ignore someone else's work in favor of posting my own.

i think it should be common courtesy to at least leave some sort of comment toward the person who shared their work before you - especially if nobody else has said anything yet.

the core purpose of a fandom in itself is engaging with other fans. and i think that's why fandom as a whole feels so much less alive than it did five, ten years ago... because people simply stop engaging with others in favor of just... sharing their own work.

i guess i understand why. everyone wants that gratification. i get it, and i've been guilty of the same before. but at the same time, it makes me a little sad to see someone share art in a server, and then within a few minutes, someone else shares theirs, and so on, with all the art just getting buried without a shred of encouragement

i think maybe as a whole people should try to do better about leaving nice comments on things. (this is not me saying you absolutely have to, especially if you cannot think of something to say.) but i think it'd make fandoms a slightly better place if engagement were more common again. reply to that person's artwork, leave a comment on that fic, give a little something. even a simple "this is pretty" could really make someone's day, yknow??

[olderthannetfic]

I’m another cis bi guy who got into fandom when I was pretty isolated in my teen years afraid to come out and the amount of people who just assume I’m trans nowadays is so annoying. These people really think there are NO cis gay men who could possibly be fans of horny fan art of their favorite video game crushes? Why? Also just not fair to trans guys. It’s always people who otherwise would read as like left leaning who act like this too. Something is seriously wrong with the online conversations in fandom for this to be the case.

This blog has been fun to read through btw, cheers.

--

:)

It's funny because, if you're a little less terminally online, cis dudes appreciating the rare blips of m/m genre fiction back in the day is a well known thing. Fanfic is that but more accessible and vastly more numerous (but with a similar prevalence of female authors). Like, sure, my reaction to The Last Herald Mage now is "Oh god, why is the rape scene Like That™", but I get why it was a formative series for an ex of mine.

[martialartslover7]

Happy Birthday, Sakura. You deserve better.

You know me and Sakura have a troubled history together, but I will say, just for today, I really want to make peace with all this. Because, the more time passed, the more I realized, I was a dumbass for hating her this much to begin with. Since I neglected to remind myself of this shot of her, right here:

It may not seem like much, but remember the full context behind Sakura's tears here. Naruto is down in the dumps, but for her, it's not a mere obsession with Sasuke that makes her react this way, that's oversimplifying it in the worst way possible. And I say this, because let us not forget:

She feels responsible for this entire mess to begin with.

This is why she is crying. Put yourself in her shoes for a second, leaving all your personal disdain for her character side, imagine:

The love of your life left, for reasons, far beyond your control, making you feel like, not even your feelings for him could make him stay

The entire retrieval mission that you have insinuated, because you want him to see reason, and it ending in failure

Even worse than that, all the shinobi sent to bring him back, return crippled, like, being in the worst state imagineable, and you feel responsible, because they nearly died for a guy, you always believed in

She trained her ass off for three whole years, she became this strong, hoping to no longer be a liability

But what happens? It worked against one Akatsuki, but against the boy she loves, she couldn't do anything, he was way too strong

And let us not forget, before even getting there, your friend nearly injured you, losing complete control over his own emotions, feeling like a failure for not being able to bring your love, who is also his bro, back home, and the promise puts so much pressure on him

And then, they fail AGAIN

All this circus, all this hard work, just HOPING to do something, only for it to end in failure.

Again.

And again.

And again.

AND AGAIN.

Now tell me, would you still be able to keep your tears from falling by that point? And questioning your sanity, and your abilities and self-worth? Because those had always been major weaknesses of Sakura. So, losing THIS badly again, must have broken her spirit in ways, that is tough to comprehend. As always, she feels useless, despite having become stronger and better as a person and shinobi, and yet, her best is just not good enough.

Also, I want you to put this in perspective, on all the reasons why you may hate her:

She loves Sasuke? Simp.

She never returns Naruto's feelings, despite him fighting so hard for her, despite her clearly not being interested? Thot.

She literally healed thousands of shinobi in her lifetime, especially during the war, saving Naruto's and countless other lives in the process? Still useless.

And every time someone tries to speak positively of her, all you do is consistently undermine her, even if she is right, or she does something cool and realistic, ALL. THE. TIME.

You consistently bring up "she treats Naruto badly", as if Naruto has ALWAYS been the innocent angel, considering how pushy he can be about his feelings towards her (she talked shit about Naruto as an orphan, ohhh, but let's conveniently forget that Naruto used the Transformation Jutsu to impersonate Sasuke, hoping to get a kiss from her, that's definitely not creepy at all!) and just, in general, being a complete asswipe at times, without even realizing it.

Please, give her another chance, and try to be lenient with her, even if not everything is put into pages or words about her character, considering how badly she has been fighting with feelings of inadequacy, never bringing the desired results, and yet still receiving hate from everyone in the fandom:

Think, before you start hating.

Happy Birthday, Sakura.

Someone like you is entirely wasted on the author and fandom you are stuck with.

PEACE.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

IDK if that “neutral” Malleus anon is still checking out your blog but even if they aren’t I wanna say it’s not cool of them to send that rant in. Them being so angry makes me think they are actually a Malleus fan because why would you be so mad if you really were neutral about him. Acting like that to one of the most moderate dragon dislikers I know of is why Malleus fans have a bad name.

[Referencing this post!]

Well, I admit that I also found it odd that someone claiming to be neutral about a character would also get so worked up about said character... but I don't know Anon, so I'd rather not make assumptions about them if I can help it. Regardless of how they personally feel about Malleus, the fact remains that they felt strongly enough about my opinions that they were motivated to send in what was swirling around in their mind. The ask started off polite, but then became hostile despite prefacing with "don't take the following as an attack on you" and "I tried to be as respectful as possible" 💦 You don't really think clearly or act like yourself when you're letting your emotions rule you, so I wonder if their emotions just got the better of them once they started typing and then their ask sort of... spiraled from there. ahlbbbayvaqwevuqwoyve Thank you for the title of Most Moderate Dragon Disliker/j 😭 I feel like fandoms throw around the word "hate" too easily these days, so if I have to say I don't like something, I'll opt for "dislike" instead. "Hate" always sounds so harsh and unrelenting (ie "this can NEVER be better"), and that's worlds apart from "critique" (ie "how can this be better?"), the latter being what I actually aim for. I won't blindly hate on a character, I'll stop and ask myself why is it that I don't like them and how could they improve. I don't understand how it is that hate and critique are so commonly conflated... Anyway, shoutout to the sane folks that don't get their panties in a twist when others express a different opinion than them OTL and I am so, so sorry that Malleus likers have a loud minority making y’all look bad…

As I said in my response to the other ask in this post, I don't want to make assumptions about Anon or their life. However 💦 I will confess that I was very surprised by those parts of the ask. At first, I thought Anon was mentioning they speak Japanese and Korean because non-native English speakers will usually preface with something like this to warn me of potentially strange wording or typos. But then this particular ask (despite its length) ended up being in perfect English??? So I wondered why they mentioned their languages to begin with. They did say "Here in Japan", which seems to imply they do live there + speak the language but... again, I find it sort of strange to bring those up without making it very relevant?? If it was intended to lend them more credibility, I thought they would share more about the JP fandom or discuss particular polls more in-depth. (That would have been really interesting, actually!)

My surprise wasn't at the lack of information though, it was at the tone taken and the words used. It may be a little difficult for English-only speakers to understand, but 💦 the way Anon wrote didn't read very "Japanese" to me. Certain phrases (like lo and behold), slang (like LMAO), and even the cadence feel more western than Japanese. These, I guess, could be attributed to code switching (switching languages)?? Sometimes there would be overlap between the two (in this case, English and Japanese)--but more importantly, the overall tone of the ask was extremely confrontational. That was honestly the biggest "huh" for me. Not a single Japanese person I know speaks so aggressively, even when they are caught up in their emotions.

Again, I want to be clear that I'm not accusing Anon of anything, I'm only expressing my shock at the lack of... I guess manners in the ask (even though they said they intended to be respectful)??? When maintaining decorum and staying in one's lane are stressed so much in JP fandoms, especially when interacting with other fans. Anon's ask was like the total opposite of what I'm used to seeing from JP fans ^^;;

I think people tend forget that how you express yourself is just as important as choosing to express yourself in the first place? If you come at someone sounding angry and defensive from the get-go, the person you're trying to engage with will be much less willing to hear you out 💦

I don't really care if they (or others) see Malleus a certain way! It only becomes a problem when they start confronting other people with it (which, unfortunately, happened). And no need to apologize for other people's actions!! You didn't do anything wrong here. I do appreciate the sentiment though!! 🫶

I don't get why some people get so upset at different opinions existing?? (I don't think I even express my opinion in a hateful manner, which is what I believe Anon was accusing me of.) 😔 It's different opinions that make discussions with other fans interesting (and, in Twst itself, it's different opinions that cause conflicts to arise and make up the story that we enjoy). A world without different opinions would surely be a dull one. That specific Anon for sure has to learn how to better contain their anger. I hope that they realize that acting as they did only 1) makes Malleus likers (or I guess "Malleus neutral" fans, as they claim they are) in general look terrible, because even if the majority of them don't act this way, it's the worst experiences that will stick out the most in people's minds and 2) Malleus Draconia is not real and will not personally thank them for crusading for him. This certainly does not help my opinion of him, because this isn't my first time being harassed by someone associated with Malleus. I just do not get what people think they get out of acting this way??? Does it make them feel... satisfied after they rant at an internet stranger??? Make them think they achieved something?? 😅 There are surely more productive methods of catharsis than this... Maybe talking it over with a friend, double checking their phrasing + tone before sending in that ask, waiting until their emotions aren't running as high, even blocking or scrolling on would have been better.

I don't really know anything about Bakugo (other than he's really angy and people like him a lot??) but I find it really funny that his + Crewel's birthday is 4/20 blaze it 😶

[howlsofbloodhounds]

so... you know how a lot of the fandom depicts killer hating fell? why do you think that is? (as in, why would killer hate fell in the first place)

From what I’ve seen, at least the reasons as to why some think Killer would hate Fell, actually has a lot less to do with Fell as an individual and a lot more to do with Underfell as a whole.

If I recall, the first time I saw this idea put forward was by the author of the fanfic For the Forgotten Ones, although there might’ve been earlier ideas I’ve yet to see. I’m not well versed on Underfell canon at this moment, so this will just be based on what I’ve heard about the AU.

It seems to boil down to the concept that Killer finds them all weak and pathetic more often than not. He thinks they don’t actually hold up their “kill or be killed” ideals.

And that if it came down to it, most of them are too “weak” to do what he believes is necessary to achieve goals and desires. Or simply just to survive.

Killer is depicted as viewing a lot of the residents of Underfell as something like frauds. All bark and no bite, words and no actions. They say things and don’t actually do things, don’t actually believe it.

They’re just small scared dogs trying so hard to make themselves appear angry, and to make that anger look like something strong enough to warrant being afraid of.

Especially if any of the residents of Underfell attempt to both judge and moralize the things that Killer says and does via working “with” Nightmare. Even more so if they attempt to make themselves out to be above Killer.

I don’t think Killer would hate Fell, or Underfell. Or at least he wouldn’t say it in words.

Briefly ignoring that one ship art rahafwabas drew of killer and fell where killer seemed to take a more dominating position in the drawing, killer (at least when in Stage 2), seems to avoid using strong or emotionally charged words like “hate” or “love.” It’s always, “I kinda like..” and “I kinda miss..” and “I will make you suffer.”

The only times he’s been absolute about similar things is when he said “I dislike everything” and “I don’t eat.”

So even if Killer does hate Fell and/or Underfell, I doubt he’d use a strong word or such an emotionally self aware word such as “hate.”

At his worse, he’d probably want Fell to suffer and feel weak. For Fell to realize this truth too, and to understand what he deserves for being weak.

Perhaps, if he finds Fell curious and fascinating, he’d be interested if seeing if Fell could learn to be “stronger.” Perhaps he wants to test Fell, to see if he can understand what “kill or be killed” means in Killer’s world.

Or perhaps he’d look down on him even more for trying to compare himself to Killer, similar to the way Killer threatened to kill Swap for the comparing.

A thing about Killer in Stage 2 is that he does seem to view himself as superior in a way, above others.

And he often doesn’t feel or show remorse or guilt much of what he does or says to others outside of Papyrus—and is shown to be willing to say whatever he thinks he has to avoid drudging up those emotions, to become more aware.

(Not to say he finds pleasure or joy from it (not if he doesn’t believe someone has somehow done something to deserve it), but in that he is indifferent at least, fascinated/curious/confused at most.)

To avoid Stage 1–because that is a version of himself he views as both weak and dangerous. Possibly even the remains of a thing that should be dead already.

Someone confronts him that he can never change, can never be a good person after all the monsters he’s killed, and yet his only response is “It’s not my fault they are weak.”

And sure enough, very first time he killed Papyrus, he calls him weak.

And yet even in the present, all this time has passed and he has killed Papyrus in a multitude of ways multiple times, he still feels sick when he remembers what he did and said to Papyrus.

He says he’s fine, he can kill Papyrus with a smile, and yet he’s still said to be his hardest enemy. (Even Killer himself seems deeply confused and disturbed by these contradicting beliefs, emotions. It causes him significant distress and dissociation.)

So in a scenario where Killer hates—or “dislikes”—Fell or the residents of Underfell, perhaps it’s moreso because the kinder versions of them are just reminders that he hasn’t yet shed himself of what he perceives as his own weaknesses.

(And perhaps his awareness of the possibility that, in doing so, he’d be risking losing himself (losing control) completely into Stage 4. There’d be no coming back for him. No more hope.)

Fell and Underfell’s residents can at least be interpreted as having grown up like that, they don’t know any other way of life, but Killer wasn’t raised like that.

He wasn’t born and raised into this life—he was coerced and remade into it, kicking and screaming. And he started to believe that he wanted it, because the one who held his very self in their hands kept insisting he did.

That they knew what he wanted, what he needed, better then he did—all while they used that knife on him and kept one finger on that shiny Reset button, always.

So perhaps they’re reminders of a version of himself he does not wish to associate with or be reminded of, one he doesn’t want to risk allowing to the surface. Because he views it as dangerous, and impossible.

And weak.

[thanatika]

there's a lot of interesting discussion on this post, but the topic of cherrypicking daniil's worst dialogue options always bewilders me at a way more basic point, which is that the pathologic fandom is the only video game fandom in which i've seen people debate whether you need to treat the Obvious Asshole Dialogue Options as the ones with the most canon veracity (selectively to only one character, but still).

fallout, mass effect, baldur's gate 3, dragon age, disco elysium... some of the most popular games on this website are games where the player can choose to go around saying and doing the most out of pocket shit imaginable, and no one does this. to the point where the fact that no one actually picks these options has become a meme that is commented on by game devs:

it might seem like a pointless choice if no one picks the "bad" choice, but arguably it's the existence of a choice that makes choosing to do good feel meaningful (you know, free will):

don't get me wrong, i do think it's more interesting to investigate what the "evil" dialogue options would imply for a character, especially a prewritten character (like the pathologic healers, or harry dubois, or one of the origin backgrounds for BG3). are the bachelor's shittiest dialogue choices what he actually believes, and the player is the only one with the ability to drag him into decency? do they represent intrusive thoughts, impulses that the character is trying to be better than? do they represent the biases of the author, or the author's attempt to shock the audience into laughter with how brutal some choices are? or do they simply represent choices the player has at their disposal — the fact that the bachelor has become your puppet and mouthpiece, and an acknowledgement that some players might react with a lot of hostility to the circumstances of the game?

any of these and more would be valid interpretations. the only invalid one, to me, is to insist that there's a single canonical interpretation — and that this canon is the most negative possible read on his character, rather than something more true to how the bachelor acts as an NPC in other routes. if all of the worst things he can say are the most canonical read of his character, what's the point of writing out all of those other dialogue choices? if he doesn't give a damn about the town and the people in it, what was the point of making an entire short-form DLC that was nothing but a walking simulator exploring his guilt over not being able to do more to help people?

and again, no one treats other games like this, even when it would arguably make more sense. the best comparison is probably harry dubois from disco elysium, who has dialogue options ranging from feminist communist to reprehensible fascist. i think most of that fandom would think i was bizarre if i tried to insist that people were erasing harry's "true character" by not characterizing him as a racist, misogynist fascist (despite the fact that there are more justifications in this case than there are in daniil's — harry is a cop with a history of being weird to women. and i think at one point it's even mentioned that he used to like listening to a right wing radio host). of course it would also be strange if i tried to insist that the only correct option was to view him as a devoted communist, but i would probably get less pushback because, well... that's how most of the tumblr fanbase seems to view him.

i got way off topic, but yeah. basically the idea that certain dialogue choices are canon, or that "awful text options" are things that a character would need to be "absolved" for is strange to me, as someone who loves CRPGs and has gotten used to seeing evil dialog options (also, why is it always racism or other bigotry that gets used as a stand-in for an evil option in games? i guess because it's easy, and most games are fantasy or sci-fi so you're being racist against elves or alien mutants, but still. that's a whole OTHER thing.)

“Daniil does have genuinely awful text options. Stop pretending he doesn’t. THAT’S what people criticize him for. And y’all are just trying to absolve your favourite guy”

Okay. I don’t know what others do. But I don’t dismiss any of his bad lines (even if he usually has a contradicting line somewhere meaning he is in several minds on the issue, not a raging fanatic). Because:

Pathologic is not about who’s perfect. And it’s not about who’s your favourite war criminal either.

It’s about flawed people in the horrible world DOING GOOD ANYWAY.

You know, like us. Like me, like you. You don’t have to be perfect to go and fight the plague. In fact, you will never be perfect. If that’s what you’re waiting for you will never start fighting.

The only character who believes herself to be a literal saint turns out to be the literal plague. And even she goes and does good anyway. That’s the story we are dealing with here.

Why I am personally a staunch Daniil defender instead of tearing through his worst lines and choices (though I do that sometimes too) is because how the fandom treats him is unfair, it’s disproportionate to his crimes. And he is the main magnet for all the criticism that can be aimed at the characters in this game, meanwhile Artemy ‘these herb-gathering Worms have little in common with men’ Burakh is just as bad (at least) in the games. Seriously, if we start going through every problematic Artemy moment and treat them with as little leniency as people treat Daniil's faux pas we’ll be here all day. It would be so easy to portray Artemy as an absolute monster only using his canon text in either game, it’s not even funny. Not to mention other characters.

So, we either start scrutinizing and making fun of everybody the way we do with Daniil or we treat Daniil with leniency and respect as well as everybody. Those are two fair options. You don’t have to pick but then please be honest with what you’re doing.

[pansy-picnics]

Something i find very interesting abt the tts fandom (mostly in the older fandom, i dont see this As much anymore, but its definitely still There) is that in pretty much every fanwork ever made eugene is always portrayed as this intelligent, mature older brother/father figure who’s just a little silly sometimes while lance is just the “dumb friend”. Hes the one whos always getting into varian’s shit and causing problems and just being That Guy in the friend group.

Meanwhile if you watch the actual show, eugene does just as much (if not Even More, considering the vast difference in screen time between the two) stupid shit as lance does. They Both get into varians shit and Cause Problems. Eugene puts his friends in danger by making stupid decisions on SO MANY OCCASIONS, and, just like with lance, its played off for laughs— and yet you never see this part of Eugene being utilized for fics or art- Eugene is always taken Completely seriously. its always Lance who has to be “that guy”.

Hmmm…..Lets all put our thinking caps on guys……Why do we think that might be…………🤨🤨🤨

[jikooklove9795]

On Twitter recently there’s been JK & Jins special bond threads going round, JK & RM, JK & V, JM & JHope, JM & Suga - everyone is retweeting them and hyping them up. And yet every. single. one. of JK & JM recently has been reported and copyrighted and taken down. It really says a lot about the state of the fandom right now. Sad to see :(

Hi there 😊

What Anon mentioned is a significant concern that shouldn't be overlooked.

For the past two years, I have been wondering if there any true OT7s (other than jkkrs) who genuinely appreciate Jimin and Jungkook's bond. I'm not even talking about acknowledging their relationship in a romantic light but just as close friends who have shared years of memories, experiences and an undeniable connection. But it feels like the majority of the fandom will go to greater lengths to dismiss or downplay their dynamic, latching onto anything that shifts attention away from them.

Its frustrating because regardless of how one interprets their relationship, there's no denying that Jimin and Jungkook have always had a special bond. Yet so called OT7s seem to erase or ignore that closeness WHILE readily celebrating other friendships within the group. It makes me wonder, are they truly OT7 if they selectively appreciate certain dynamics OR rather all other dynamics while disregarding Jikook?

Its interesting how the fandom will go out of their way to celebrate every other ship in BTS while acting as if Jimin and Jungkook's bond doesn't exist or worse like you said trying to diminish it by reporting and taking down Jikook videos. Its one thing to have preferences but its another to actively ignore or downplay a connection that has been evident for years.

What could be the main reason for this behavior?

A significant portion of the fandom struggles with the idea of any of the members being in a same sex relationship and this is especially evident when it comes to Jungkook.

Many fans have a deeply ingrained perception of him as the epitome of masculinity which in their minds aligns strictly with heterosexuality. They readily accept the idea of him being with women but resist any suggestion that he could be romantically involved with a man.

This is precisely why most of the fandom, even Jungkook's solo fans, are tkk shippers. Because to these fans, Taehyung does not pose a threat to their fantasies of Jungkook being with a woman or more specifically their own Y/N dreams. The same goes for his ship with Seokjin.

However, when it comes to Jimin their reaction is starkly different. Jimin is the one person who directly challenges this rigid, preconceived notion of Jungkook's sexuality.

Jungkook has always shown a special kind of thoughtfulness when it comes to Jimin. Back in 2016, out of all the members, Jimin was the only one he personally got a birthday gift for. And in 2017 he took it to a whole new level, going all out to celebrate Jimin's birthday.

Remember the hickey? Jungkook didn't just wear Jimin's mark for the world to see, he refused to hide it and wouldn't let anyone else touch it, as if it was something sacred. Its with Jimin, Jungkook shares countless inside jokes, little moments only they seem to understand while the rest of the members are left puzzled. Isn't that telling? Its proof of the sheer amount of time they spend together, just the two of them. That kind of connection doesn't just happen. Its built through endless hours of shared moments, laughter and conversations no one else is privy to.

Unlike his interactions with others, Jungkook's actions toward Jimin often carry an undeniable exclusivity. There's an added depth, a level of attention and care he doesn't extend in quite the same way to anyone else. Its this dynamic that unsettles those who want to believe Jungkook fits neatly into their "traditional" ideals.

The same holds true for Jimin. While he is naturally affectionate with all the members, there is an undeniable difference in how he interacts with Jungkook. This distinction has been evident as early as 2013.

There's no one in Jimin's life quite like Jungkook. It was for Jungkook that Jimin took a 13 hour flight to Seoul. Its waking up to Jungkook that brightens Jimin's mornings, the first sight of him setting the tone for his day. Its Jungkook, Jimin chose to be part of his deeply personal solo album, something so intimate that he couldn't imagine anyone else sharing in it. Its Jungkook's birth time that Jimin quietly set his watch to during his September live, a small yet telling gesture. And the list goes on, moment after moment, choice after choice, all pointing to one undeniable truth: for Jimin, Jungkook isn't just someone special. He's the one.

The fandom sees this. No matter how much they try to downplay it, there's no one else for whom Jimin has said and done things he has for Jungkook. Till this day.

This realization unsettles them because it can't be dismissed as simply team camaraderie. It goes beyond brotherhood, beyond friendship, beyond anything they can easily explain away. And that's what unnerves them the most. No other Jimin or Jungkook pairing even comes close to the depth and exclusivity of Jikook. Time and time again the way they stand apart from the rest only reinforces one thing, Jikook aren't just special. THEY ARE DIFFERENT.

We all know that a very large part of the fandom are tkkrs. Is it because they genuinely support taekook?

The answer is a big NO.

There's only a small, very small, portion of the fandom who believes taekook are involved romantically. And I don't know what they're on to be so gone and delusional enough to believe in a ship that sank way back in 2014 and has been actively debunked by Jungkook and Taehyung.

But I'm talking about the others who ship taekook despite knowing (yes they know it) that there's nothing romantic between Jungkook and Taehyung. The same can be said about Jinkook whose dynamics are purely sibling coded.

The truth is not because they believe in the ship but because of the deeply rooted homophobia within the fandom. For them Taekook or Jinkook or Yoonmin are a "safe" ship because it doesn't challenge their perception of BTS.

Jikook erasure isn't just about shipping, its about preserving a heteronormative narrative and refusing to accept a reality that contradicts fandom fantasies.

Anyone thinking rationally can see that Taekook or Jinkook or Yoonmin isn't real. But acknowledging that means Jikook might be, and that's what the fandom is desperately trying to avoid.

They can joke about Taekook, Yoonmin or Jinkook because they see them as harmless fantasies. But when it comes to Jikook, the fandom notices how Jimin and Jungkook's dynamic feels too genuine, too intimate and too plausible. This forces the fans to confront the reality of LGBTQ relationships in a way that they're not ready for. So, they dismiss, deny or downplay Jikook while embracing other obviously unreal ships.

Even in progressive spaces people are conditioned to see same sex relationships as unlikely or just friendship while automatically assuming straightness unless explicitly stated otherwise.

The fear of Jikook being real isn't just about them, its about what it means for the fan's own worldview, comfort zone and sometimes even their parasocial attachment to the members.

This is the only explanation that makes sense to me for why the fandom refuses to acknowledge Jikook's connection. Its not that they can't see it, its that they don't want to. Accepting it would mean confronting something they're uncomfortable with. So, instead they choose to ignore, downplay or much worse mock it.

[nerdy-hyperfixations]

I have a hard time understanding why certain people ship certain characters. Like for me it's the *dynamic* of the two. Harry and Kim together is so incredibly interesting. You really have to delve deep into why and how it could work

Harry is a broken man who doesn't see worth in his life and half-glorifies Kim. Would he want to rush in to a relationship with Kim, chasing the feeling of warmth but potentially at the cost of an actually sustainable relationship; or would his self worth put a block on his efforts as he deems himself unworthy of love?

Harry is pretty obvious in his affections, if Kim *knows* Harry is into him, what could be preventing him from beginning a relationship? (Yes I'm still not over my "HAVE A FIC WHERE ONE CHARACTER KNOWS THE OTHER LIKES THEM PLEASEEEEE" thing. I'm begging basically)

Also, Kim is pretty repressed, its interesting to see how that effects the 'slow burn of them getting together' but also, what does that mean for him during the relationship? How does his filtered version of love affect the two? Also also, dive into what choices in life would *lead* him to be repressed and uncomfortable with love.

Like, they are very interesting characters with the unique dynamic! So... it's confusing to me when i read fics and they seem like every other cookie cutter relationship out there where the issue is always "omg! I think I like him! But... what if he doesn't like me back? Oh no!" And then after 12 chapters of miscommunication they get together and it's perfect and fluffy and they lay in bed and one says something stupid so the smart one says "you're incorrigible" (the invalid hatred I have for the word incorrigible now) and then it ends. Like why do you like these characters together specifically???

I think this is why I fell REALLY hard into toxic dynamics in the Gravity Falls fandom last year. I was like "Billford is so unique, no one could ever turn it into a miscommunication fluff fic!" And then people did, and I screamed in agony. Not to mention everyone falling head over heals over Fiddlestan and then suddenly it wasn't fucked up and chaotic anymore but instead they were 💙perfect boyfriends❤️ LIKE-

Why would one pick characters that would have an incredibly interesting dynamic and then shove them into the same mold? (I mean... i know the real answer. It's because it's easy. It's incredibly hard to write a fic where you have to disect a fictional characters feelings. Why *would* someone not date someone who they know is into them and they are also into? Its just easier to have them not know. This is why I *haven't* written an extremely in depth character analysis slow burn casefic with plot so deep it's the ocean for Harry and Kim yet. That and because I'm a coward)

Anyway, this is not directed at anyone, I'm just sorta rambling into the void, but like... this bothers me. Woe is me. Boohoo. My choices are to write my own shit or deal with it, so... yeah.

[hrizantemy]

I just realised something... When Reese's cup was trying to find ways to save Feyre, he first went to Hellion and asked him to search his libraries. At first thought makes sense, until you remember that Thesan is the best healer in Prythian. Did they ever ask the dawn court to help? If so, why not? Why go to librarians over doctors? Some of the best doctors no less. I want to say that he's being stupid, but I think that calling either him or feyre stupid/naive takes away from their characters.

Excusing Rhysand's horrible behaviour because 'he suffered for his friends and family and city' doesn't make him a good ruler. It makes him a good friend (even though the IC's interpersonal relationships are hella toxic, but you can still love someone or be toxic, despite that) but, he still rules over the Hewn city and Illyria too. Managing a part of your territory but not all isn't how an effective ruler works. In fact, history shows that sometimes the worst people can be the best rulers, and vice versa. The argument also doesn't really hold up when looking at his words and actions. Good people don't decide that an entire community of people are bad, and thus deserve to be treated well. He can't be morally grey because then he isn't a good a person.

Using Feyre's age as an excuse for the things she does doesn't support any argument in her defence. 'Feyre is young and doesn't know the intricacies of governing, so obviously she can't take an active role improving the Hewn City and Illyria'. Well, then she isn't as perfect for the position as her stans make her out to be. Using the same excuse for why her destroying the spring court and facing no punishment is okay meets the same issues. It doesn't make her this strong, capable woman getting her lick back. She isn't cunning or powerful. She's a liability. If she's so young and naive that she'll pull stunts like that with no care for the repercussions, then she isn't someone who can be trusted with information of any kind, because if she takes it badly or doesn't like it, she'll throw a fit, because she doesn't know better.

I'm not sure if you've read marvel comics or seen the animated series, but it feels like Rhys is trying to be somewhat like Dr Doom. He's the genius ruler of a country called Latveria, and his whole shtick is that he somehow saw the future. But in that future, humanity always ended up destroying themselves or being destroyed by someone else if he wasn't ruling it, thus began his constant campaign to rule the world. He's a terrible person, without question, and absolutely a dictator. Free speech, and right to protest aren't a thing there (but they also don't exist in the night court, so meh). However, while it does depend largely on the writer of any given story, his people don't starve. For the most part, they have a decent quality of life. What makes doom interesting where Rhysand is more annoying is that nobody pretends he's a good person, or a benevolent ruler. His people don't starve, which is more than can be said for other countries in the MCU or even other courts in Prythian. But he's still an awful person, and the stories lean into that. They don't argue that 'oh, his people don't starve, and he loves them, so cut him some slack' the way people make similar arguments for Rhys. That's part of what makes Rhys less interesting and more insufferable.

Rhysand: The Propaganda Prince Who Thinks He’s a God

Rhysand is marketed—both in-universe and by the fandom—as the ideal ruler, the dream man, the morally grey prince who sacrificed everything for his people. But the cracks in this narrative are more than superficial—they’re structural. And what becomes increasingly frustrating isn’t just Rhysand’s behavior itself, but the way the story bends to make him always right, always justified, always the victim or savior, never the villain.

Let’s talk more about the Hellion vs. Thesan issue, because this is the perfect microcosm of the problem. Feyre is pregnant and dying. Rhysand’s first reaction is to go to Hellion—yes, a High Lord of great magical knowledge, but not a healer. Not a physician. He chose dusty books over living experts. He chose a man whose court is about power and indulgence over the one dedicated to healing and medicine.

And that’s where it gets real: Rhysand doesn’t want help. He wants control. Thesan might offer real solutions, but they would come with accountability, with oversight, with humility. Rhys wants the solution, but only if it’s his solution. He only asks for help when it reinforces his superiority.

Compare that to characters like Lucien, who gets villainized for surviving abuse, not groveling for forgiveness fast enough, and existing with a moral compass that doesn’t align with the IC. Lucien doesn’t rule anyone, doesn’t hold immense power, and yet gets more criticism from fans and characters alike than Rhys ever does.

Even Tamlin, who is undeniably flawed, was allowed to be challenged by the narrative. His arc showed consequences. He fell. He was wrong. Rhysand? Rhys can lie to Feyre’s face, hide life-threatening information from her, isolate her from her sisters, make military decisions that result in cultural genocide (yes, I’m talking about Illyria), and still be treated like the golden boy.

The bar is so low it’s underground, but only for him.

Let’s also talk about Nesta, who arguably has the most realistic and meaningful arc in the series. She’s messy, she’s angry, she lashes out—but she grows. She’s punished, yes, but she’s allowed to be a person. Rhysand, in contrast, is never punished. He punishes others. He decides Nesta should be “rehabilitated” but nobody ever questions how he governs. How he’s ruled Illyria for five hundred years and allowed the abuse of females to flourish. How he’s let Keir terrorize Hewn City and now wants Feyre to smile through political dinners with him like that’s justice.

If we go outside ACOTAR, your comparison to Dr. Doom is still spot-on. But let’s take it a step further.

• Magneto from X-Men is a character who commits atrocities, but we understand his motivations. The story doesn’t pretend he’s a saint. His pain is valid, but his actions have consequences.

• Zuko from Avatar: The Last Airbender struggles with loyalty, honor, and the pull of power. He is not protected by the narrative—he has to earn his redemption.

• Daenerys Targaryen (until the final season, which we don’t claim) was portrayed as a liberator with terrifying potential. The tension lay in whether her power would corrupt her. She had followers who loved her, but not unconditionally—and when she crossed lines, people reacted.

Rhysand, in contrast, is surrounded by yes-men (and women), and the narrative refuses to let him fail. There’s no tension. No fear. No possibility that he might not be right. And that makes him boring.

Let’s also talk about how the fandom treats Rhys compared to characters of color or female characters. Emerie gets masculinized. Lucien gets demonized. Nesta gets dragged through the mud. But Rhysand can literally erase memories, manipulate information, and allow oppression to continue for centuries, and it’s okay because he’s hot and “suffered.”

Rhysand is not a morally grey character. He is a tyrant coated in glitter. The problem isn’t that he’s manipulative, or controlling, or negligent. It’s that the story won’t call it what it is.

Final Thought: The most damning thing about Rhysand isn’t his actions—it’s the lack of narrative accountability. If the series owned him as a flawed, self-serving ruler who hides behind the mask of benevolence? He’d be fascinating. If characters questioned him, if Feyre ever called him out, if the IC had fractures that weren’t hand-waved away? That would be compelling. But instead, we get endless adoration. Unquestioning loyalty. And any challenge—like Nesta’s rage—is framed as a threat, not a justified reaction.

So no—he’s not like Doom. Doom at least admits he’s ruling with an iron fist. Rhysand thinks he’s wearing a crown of flowers, but it’s forged from the bones of everyone he left behind.

Feyre Archeron: The Girlboss That Never Grew

Feyre’s entire arc is built on this idea that she’s “just a girl who learned to fight.” That she was poor and powerless and clawed her way to the top, and that makes her worth rooting for. And in A Court of Thorns and Roses, sure—she was scrappy, resourceful, and deeply flawed in a way that felt honest. She made bad choices. She was traumatized. She had no good options.

But as the series progressed, she didn’t grow from those flaws—she was rewarded for them.

Take her decision to destroy the Spring Court in ACOWAR—a political sabotage campaign that ultimately weakened a key ally right before a war. The story frames it as cunning. Payback. Her “strong woman moment.” But there are no repercussions. No fallout. She’s not criticized. She doesn’t even second-guess it.

Feyre acts like a spy in a court she once called home, tears it down, and never once reflects on how that might affect innocent fae, Tamlin’s people, or the broader war effort. Instead, the narrative coddles her. She’s “doing what she has to do.” She’s “young and learning.” But that excuse is paper-thin when she’s simultaneously praised for being “the most powerful High Lady in history.” If she’s powerful enough to go to war and command armies, she’s old enough to face consequences.

You nailed it earlier when you said that using her age as an excuse only highlights that she shouldn’t be in power. If she’s so inexperienced that she can’t govern, can’t lead, can’t understand the stakes of her actions—then she is a liability, not a leader.

And then there’s her treatment of Illyria and Hewn City. Feyre claims to care about justice. Freedom. Autonomy. She came from nothing and supposedly understands pain and oppression. And yet she does nothing when it comes to the Night Court’s darkest corners. Illyrian females are still mutilated. Hewn City still thrives on cruelty. But Feyre just… attends a party, wears a sheer dress, and calls it diplomacy.

The reality? Feyre only wants to be a ruler when it’s convenient, glamorous, or affirming. She wants to paint. She wants to build a family. She wants to be loved. And that’s valid—those are human desires. But the story insists she’s also this revolutionary political force. That she’s brave, clever, unstoppable.

She’s not.

She’s reactive. Impulsive. Emotionally volatile. She lashes out when she feels powerless and sulks when things go wrong. She refuses to listen to people she disagrees with. She has no political foresight and no cultural awareness. And that would all be fine—if the story treated it like a flaw. But it doesn’t. It excuses her, worships her, lets her off the hook again.

Compare her to characters with real narrative tension.

• Zoya Nazyalensky from Grishaverse becomes powerful because she learns. She’s arrogant, yes, but her flaws are explored and challenged. She has to reframe her thinking, unlearn prejudice, adapt.

• Katniss Everdeen is deeply flawed, traumatized, often confused and angry—but she’s aware of it. And we are aware of it. The narrative doesn’t coddle her. She doesn’t want power and is broken by being forced into it.

And let’s talk about class and privilege, because Feyre fans love to bring up her poverty in book one like it gives her moral high ground forever. Feyre hasn’t been poor since chapter ten of book one (not even). She lives in a mansion, gets the finest clothes, can paint all day, and be worshipped as a goddess. She doesn’t interact with the common people. She doesn’t serve her court. She doesn’t lift a finger to fix the systemic issues her rule presides over. She’s effectively a queen in a castle, pretending she’s still the underdog.

It’s not that Feyre is a bad person—it’s that the story won’t allow her to be anything but a good person. There’s no room for self-doubt. No space for humility. No accountability. The things she does that hurt others are either brushed off or reframed as noble sacrifices. And that flattens her. She could’ve been raw and real, someone who learns in public, who wrestles with power and trauma. Instead, she’s locked in a narrative where she always has to be right.

Final Thought:

Feyre is a character who could have been a woman learning to lead. But she’s written as a woman who is already perfect at it—and that’s where her story dies. Growth is impossible when the world already revolves around you. The more the narrative tells us she’s powerful, wise, and beloved, the more we feel the hollow echo of what she could’ve been if she’d been allowed to fail.

She’s not a ruler. She’s a character in a fantasy built to flatter her, not challenge her. And that’s why so many of us feel tired—not because she’s flawed, but because we were never allowed to see her flaws matter.

[echolynn13]

SFTH Chaotic Highlights (The Meringue Haberdashery)

Part 2 of the longforms, here we go:

So first things first, when I heard this title I had to google the definition of haberdashery because both myself and my mom thought it was one of those words that basically meant nonsense. Apparently it doesn't even mean that in America so idk where we got that idea

"I teach you nothing, I only show you the way" Someone needs to tell Don Juan the definition of 'teach'

"I sewed the funeral suit, she looked better than when she was alive" Not the best time to be prideful of your work but go off I guess

"It was a difficult time, and I found myself, uhhhhhhhh-" Absolutely no one knew what was going on at any point in this entire play and I'll never get tired of the chaos that vibe created

God, there's so much to say about the fucked up flashback sequence- The confusion over whether the dead girl was Don's wife or child, AJ assuming Sam was playing Don's child self as opposed to the kid who died, Don Juan being continuously 'in the flow' while no one seemed to know wtf he was on about, the girl's name changing to Nikita, AJ stage slapping the shit out of Sam, and ofc the fucked up death of a needle going through the child's eye shown via Sam's brilliant stagecraft

Also I think "You can sew a waistcoat perfectly, but you cannot sew a narrative together" deserves its own bulletpoint, I love that line so much

"I've had a difficult life, Don Juan, and if you want to live it... Then go for it" Words of wisdom from Don Juan #1 there

Even in a brief moment, we really get to see the gears turning in Sam's head when hearing the word 'sopa', searching the 'Spanish vocabulary' section of his mind before confirming Luke is in fact talking about soup

"You ever wonder why you and him have the same name?" Luke bringing up the elephant in the room that will soon become a surprising plot point

"He has no ambition!" "He's had a rough year!" He's like damn, give my name twin a break, his daughter died in a really traumatic way, of course he's not alright

"For many years his daughter was alive and healthy! Yet the shop stayed the same size! W H Y ?" Luke's delivery on 'Why' is perfectly over-the-top, as always

The back and forth of the soup bit "Give me a spoon" "I gave you a spoon" "Oh. Well this spoon is shit, get me a better one-"

*insert Adam Driver 'good soup' meme*

This is just a question, but could anyone tell me what Luke says after Sam says "He could maybe find some closure, some religion, something else-" because I can't for the life of me understand, and the autogenerated captions completely gave up on it

"I am a very sexy man" - Tom, in every goddamn improvised play (unless of course, he's a very sexy woman instead)

Luke deciding to become a ghost/hallucination of Don Juan #1's dead daughter- I know she ends up being a ghost, but the first scene really has vibes of 'oh this man has PTSD' so idk what the original intentions were

Idk if it was Nikita's voice or the fact a customer had just stolen the store's bell for some reason, but Don Juan has lost his ability to form words! That shit wasn't even stuttering anymore, it was full-on, natural-sounding gibberish, like he was playing the translator game with a language that doesn't actually exist

"Don Juan.." "Yes, Don Juan?" Ah yes, the culmination of the joke I've been waiting for

Sam suggesting AJ already tried giving himself a lobotomy after AJ speaks fluent alien-speak again is top-tier comedy

Unexpected Don Juan lore drop: Not only was he born and abandoned inside the haberdashery, he also constructed the entire building himself, as an infant. The more you know!

"Just like the namesake of this haberdashery, you are cracking! Like a meringue that's been left out too long... I can't watch your mind fracture like a meringue under a hammer" Guys I think Don Juan #2 might be trying to remind us of the play's title and that it's totally relevant to the plot

Hey so has the fandom decided on what the dead daughter's name is? Or is it like a Billy/Timothy/Benjamin type thing? Because I need answers

"Has your dead daughter been saying things to me fro beyond the grave? No! ... My wife on the other hand-" I don't have anything to add here, I just like that bit

Sam caught that needle in his hand like he caught the cocktail in The Hare Who Wore A Sweater

"You know anti-psychotics could cause mental cracking in healthy minds, so we're just wondering, what's going on here?" The tone of this whole conversation is as if the doctor is trying not to cause drama, as they actively (and accurately) accuse the 'sick' wife of drugging the town. I can't tell if that's just the characters general vibe or if they're worried about their own safety if they piss this lady off

Luke: "What are you doing?" Sam: *silently trying to figure out who the hell this character's supposed to be* "Nikita-?" Luke: *closing one eye to make it more obvious* "What are you doing??"

Sam goes through the same confused thought process after the 'What are you doing to yourself?' line

"Who is making you do this?" "He is" "Who is making you do this?" "He is making me do this-" "WHO is making you DO THIS? Come on!" "I- I'm making me do this-" ".. It's your wife, your fucking wife" Nikita/Luke is so tired of Don Juan/Sam's shit

"Do you ever wonder why you and my father have the same name?" Luke started this plot line, and now he's the one to end it

Luke being the translator for the audience is so funny. He said 'es verdad' and was like 'fuck you aren't gonna know what that means, here I'll spell it out for you'

"I was never sick.. I just don't like working!" Understandable villain motivation

"He said I was a bad influence and he kept me away" I mean you did drug the whole town, I can imagine you weren't the best influence back then either

Also wow, they made the daughter's death even more fucked up than before-

Tom being summoned to stand and represent 1000 Don Juans, as his singular self

"We really have to finish the show" "So it finishes with the villain winning!" A villain played by Luke winning is the only kind of unhappy ending I want to see, really it couldn't have gone better

Final thoughts: Everyone that thinks The Lighthouse is the most chaotic SFTH play needs to rewatch The Meringue Haberdashery right now