#I keep saying I’m not a Bryke anti but I really have a bone to pick with the way they treat women in romantic relationships except Suki

[ecoterrorist-katara]

How is Mai.ko canon when Zuko forgets Mai in prison in the same finale where he takes a lightning bolt to the heart for another girl…I know Mai is a secondary character so we’re not meant to see things from her pov, but if you step into her shoes for like two seconds…WHY would she want this boy…and HOW is her gripe with him “how dare you break up with me” instead of “remember how I got your ass out of prison and you, notably, did not get MY ass out of prison”…who wrote this and do they ever think about things from the girl’s pov

#Anti maiko #anti Bryke #am I…a Bryke anti #I keep saying I’m not a Bryke anti but I really have a bone to pick with the way they treat women in romantic relationships except Suki #Zutara #But like Zutara only because Zuko’s lightning scar is third wheeling that entire interaction #Since she literally has to help him get dressed bc he sacrificed his life for another girl

[phoukanamedpookie]

A simple request

I make no bones about being an unapologetic Azula fan. I get a big kick out of her. I sympathize with her. I love to delve into her psyche. I enjoy imagining meaningful and interesting directions her story can go in. I like her. I think she’s fun and interesting in ways that the greater ATLA fandom doesn’t appreciate. She is without question my favorite Avatarverse character.

But as a fan of Azula, I would appreciate it if people who aren’t fans of hers did two small things:

Not post negativity toward her in her character tag (try ”anti azula,” “azula critical,” or “azula negative”)

Separate fanon and head canons from canon

The first one is self-explanatory. However, in case it isn’t...

People who like a character and follow their tag shouldn’t get slapped in the face with negativity toward that character when they’re trying to have fun.

The second thing is a bit more personal.

I hate being accused of doing shit I didn’t do. I really, really hate it. I’ve had people accuse me of deliberately doing harmful or malicious things based on a lie or misinformation and then mistreat me because of it. So I’m very particular about not doing that to others. No, not even fictional characters. As a result, keeping the facts straight is vital to me.

That doesn’t mean I don’t have strong opinions, but it does mean that when I say, “Character did the thing,” I can point to where the character did the thing. I might have a certain interpretation of what the thing means, but I won’t deny what’s there or add what isn’t.

For example...

I might argue that, as mean as it was, Azula forcing Ty Lee to join her mission was within her rights as a military commander and princess of the Fire Nation. But I won’t say that Ty Lee dreamed or hallucinated Azula coming to her show and having the safety net set on fire and all the circus animals released.

Because Azula really did that shit.

I might argue that Ursa was a deeply flawed parent for Azula, but I never claim that she called Azula a monster. I could argue that something went very wrong in the mother-daughter relationship if Azula genuinely believes Ursa thinks she’s a monster. But that’s not the same as Ursa calling Azula a monster to her face or within her hearing.

Because she never did.

So, you can imagine that it kind of bothers me see so many fans claim that Azula’s a war criminal or murderer, or that she did so many horrible things that went above and beyond basic wartime aggression or way beyond the pale for a child or adolescent. You won’t believe how many times I’ve seen someone insist that she tortured and killed small animals. Then, when I tell them she didn’t, those same people say, “It’s been years since I’ve watched the show” or, “I haven’t seen the show since I was a kid.”

(No shit. I understand that perfect recall of details on a 60ish-episode show is not a reasonable thing to expect, but don’t argue with people who’ve got receipts on tap.)

On top of making things up about her, many fans retroactively project evil or madness onto her behavior because it fits the Evil/Crazy box they put her in. It’s that puritanical streak in fandom all over again. It would be less irksome if the show itself didn’t directly and repeatedly say that no one is born good or evil, and everyone, no matter who they are, deserves (at least!) a second chance. But that’s another conversation.

I get it. Bryke’s been awful about this too. But this is about fandom.

#azula #azula meta #about eshu