#If they are a victim of whatever their post is about it's very frustrating for them and moreso that they feel they have to TEACH people | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

genshin-side-piece · 1 month

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I have a yandere Neuvillette concept that has been haunting me, especially in regard to how you write him cause I really loved your series on him :3c

So imagine a Neuvillette after he kidnapped darling. He understands why you're upset, and though he will not let you go he does feel a little guilty about keeping you with him. He justifies it by telling himself (and you) that it is for your own safety and protection.

BUUUUUUT imagine Neuvillette judging a trial where the defendant did the EXACT same thing. They kidnapped someone and help them against their will for several months. The defendant implores to him and the audience that they did it to protect the victim, they did it for love.

I think Neuvillette has overseen many trials where the defendant broke the law but still had a sympathetic reason to do so - like a person who killed in self defense or someone who stole to survive. Unfortunately, I don't think there is any canon material that explores this (as far as I know - hopefully I am wrong), but I think a non-yandere Neuvillette would not let his judgement be completely clouded by the defendant's motives. They still broke the law so off to Meropide they go, but he knows when to be lenient and understanding about it.

Back to yandere Neuvillette, this trial puts him between a rock and a hard place. This defendant did the exact same thing Neuvillette did to you, he understands their motives very well. If this is a post-Archon quest Fontaine then he has complete control over the defendant's fate. Should he judge this defendant fairly, as he had with millions of ever? If he sends the defendant to Meropide, then doesn't this mean Neuvillette is guilty in the eyes of the law as well? Deep down, does he secretly think he is above the law? That his darling's well being is more important than any legislation?

But if he declares the defendant not guilty then what will this mean for the future of Fontaine? Other criminals may see this and realize that doing things for "love" is a morally sound motive to the fair Iudex. Crime, especially kidnapping related ones, might increase! The people would question why the Chief Justice declared someone not guilty when they CLEARLY committed a heinous crime. Victims of similar crimes in Fontaine might not see Neuvillette has a pillar of justice, but of someone who undermines it (a harsh realization that you had to go through when he kidnapped you).

I imagine that whatever Neuvillette's decision is, he's a little shaken up after the trial. He goes home and seeks your (unwilling) comfort, pulling you into his arms for an embrace, even if you protest and try to slip away. He treats you a little differently afterwards; maybe he relaxes on the rules and regulations he enforced on you and gives you a bit more freedom, or maybe he doubles down on his decision to keep you and gets more frustrated when you fight back.

This made me so happy! TY for sending! 😊 I love to talk about this kind of stuff. I wish I got to do it more. I'm placing this under a cut, with warnings just to be safe.

Warnings: Yandere Content, Implied Kidnapping, Implied Captivity, my bad writing, anything else I missed, 18+, Minors DNI

Neuvillette's grey area. It's my favorite thing about him.

Here's what makes him fun. He knows how to work the law(s) to his advantage. We see that with the traveler in 4.1. Neuvillette "invents" charges for the traveler to be sent to Meropide. He does so by getting them to commit a petty crime in the form of eating Furina's discarded cake. The traveler is unaware of said crime until they're sent to the actual fortress. Only then do they realize that Neuvillette pulled a harmless fast one on them. Later, we see him do it again when he goes behind Furina's back for the sake of the nation. I'm sure he felt horrible about it and tried to apologize afterwards, but he still went through with it because there was a greater good that needed to be fulfilled.

Same kind of principle applies here. Your safety is everything to him. Up until he finds you, he believes you to be in mortal danger. I imagine the moment of you just walking out all fine was a bit anticlimactic for him, but he would definitely take that over the alternative.

Through the power of his office, Neuvillette tricks the reader into coming with him vs taking them by force. The confinement portion gets a little stickier in terms of the laws. Neuvillette's reasons for taking you are sound. Those same reasons carry through to him keeping you. He was worried. He was concerned. As one of the leaders of Fontaine, he's merely performing his duty in protecting you. He can't guarantee your safety from the perceived threat if you go home. No, it's better if you stay with him until the threat passes, which could be never btw. Just because the serial k*ller has been caught, doesn't mean there aren't others who would seek to do you harm. The mafia/cartels or even the fatui are still lurking. All it would take is one report that lists potential targets with a description that vaguely matches yours and he's set with his excuse.

Just as an aside, in my mind, Neuvillette carries some built in immunity. He has a sterling reputation. It’s not fully mentioned in the story, but even if he were accused of a crime, who would believe that person? He’s the Chief Justice of Fontaine. Someone who is purposefully written above reproach in the eyes of the population. He’s not infallible, but I feel like it would take a ton of convincing for anyone to believe Neuvillette had broken the law. Then there’s the matter of who judges him? Neuvillette is the judge. Who judges the judge in a nation with no archon?

In terms of the poor soul that has found their way before him, Neuvillette would 100% find that individual guilty regardless of his actions. Laws are laws and Neuvillette's main purpose in the story is uphold those laws. Where it gets iffy is how that person is sentenced. What is the appropriate level of justice for the crime? One could argue that the reader has already extracted a specific level of justice from Neuvillette based on how they treat him. How he feels about the trial afterwards is an interesting debate. Where Neuvillette and you start vs where you end in the series are two very different places. Since we’re talking specifically about the post-archon quest relationship between the two, I’m not sure how shaken he would be. The relationship is in a very different place from where the first story picks up. I can see him visiting his past feelings on the subject and briefly questioning specific things, but in the end it doesn’t matter to him based on how the series ends.

Still, for the purpose of this though, I can see him going home and bringing you close. How willing you want to be is up to you. 😊

#genshin impact #genshin #genshinimpact #yandere genshin impact #yandere genshin x reader #yandere neuvillette x reader #yandere neuvillette #neuvillette #chief justice neuvillette #neuvillette x reader #genshin fanfic #genshin impact fanfic #anonymous asks #anonymous

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actual-changeling · 4 months

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On unhealthy relationship dynamics

A little while ago, I stumbled across a post discussing Aziraphale's character on a meta level, and without knowing the content, I was completely unprepared when one single sentence pushed me from 'uncomfortable but doable' into 'triggered and panicking'. The post itself was triggering from start to finish, but that phrase stood out to me.

Why am I telling you this?

After calming down and thinking about it for a few hours, I realised what exactly my brain had reacted to—victim blaming rhetoric repackaged to fit Aziraphale and Crowley's situation. Victim blaming is, to provide a short summary, the act of putting blame for mistreatment on the victim instead of the perpetrator. It's a concept often used in r/pe discussions, but it can be applied to any abusive or non-abusive situation as long as a power imbalance is created, meaning you have at least one person harming another in whatever shape or form.

If you broaden the definition, you can apply it to more situations, including—and this is where we reach the actual topic—their relationship and the Final Fifteen (F15).

That is exactly what some people have been doing—putting all the blame on Crowley and absolving Aziraphale of any and all responsibility as if it were his fault that Aziraphale broke his heart

Before anyone runs to the comments, let me clarify what I assume will be the FAQ.

no, I do not think Aziraphale is abusive

I do not think that their relationship is abusive either

no, I do not hate Aziraphale

yes, I know what I am talking about

everything I will talk about is largely based on what we as the audience actually see and know, combined with interpretations of the intentional subtext Neil wrote into the show.

I have been actively in this fandom since the second season was released, and I have seen a lot of (hopefully accidental) ableist & generally insensitive takes. These are the ones I see the most and what I personally consider to be important topics of discussion, but the same logic I will be applying to these can be applied to many, many more situations.

Since my meta posts get very long very quickly, I will be posting them in parts and always linking back to the others, plus this one as the masterpost.

Part 1—Nice Is A Four Letter Word

The basic pattern is this:

Aziraphale refers to Crowley with a 'nice' term -> Crowley gets upset and tells him to stop -> Aziraphale hears him but continues anyway.

There are reasons behind Crowley's rejection, and I will go into detail, but I want to make one thing very clear: It does not matter why Crowley asked him to stop. He set a boundary, and Aziraphale repeatedly and intentionally overstepped it; this causes understandable anger and frustration.

Crowley does not owe Aziraphale an explanation, just like you would not owe someone an explanation when you don't want to be called x-term. Mutual respect requires the acceptance of personal boundaries like that, and by breaking them over and over again, Aziraphale tells Crowley that his own wants are more important than Crowley's needs.

In the 1827 Edinburgh flashback, we see the consequences of Crowley doing good/being called good (which are usually connected, meaning if they notice someone is calling Crowley good, he most likely did something to cause that) firsthand, and so does Aziraphale. He gets dragged down to hell and tortured for up to thirty years.

Even before that, Crowley expresses numerous times how hell punishes good deeds, and they are 'always listening' in on him. You would assume that Aziraphale would stop to keep him safe—and yet he doesn't because he cannot accept the reality of Crowley's situation and refuses to listen to him.

On top of that, Aziraphale only ever "praises" Crowley when he does something he personally sees as praiseworthy, aka something good/kind/nice/angelic/etc. but never when it is something that CROWLEY would like to be praised for, or at the very least acknowledged. We see it in season 2 over and over and over again: Aziraphale cares for no one's thoughts or plans except his own and has no interest in even hearing Crowley out.

Aziraphale calling him nice is not a sweet little gesture, it is an intentional overstepping of a boundary Crowley has been trying to enforce for centuries, and it reinforces the dichotomy of good angels/bad demons, with angelic existence being the ultimate goal. At the very least, it's disrespectful towards Crowley, and at worst, it is actively keeping Crowley in a trauma response, tugging on his leash whenever he tries to explain reality to Aziraphale.

To have a healthy relationship, Aziraphale needs to stop.

part 2 - part 3

#alex talks good omens #good omens meta #crowley meta #aziraphale meta #go meta #good omens #crowley #aziraphale #good omens season 2 #go2 #aziracrow #crowley x aziraphale #ineffable husbands #ineffable wives #ineffable spouses #ineffable divorce #the final fifteen

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chalkrevelations · 10 months

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There are things I say to my partner in the privacy of our living room when I’m blowing off steam that I would never in my life say to friends or other family members or bosses or work colleagues or fellow community members. I do this not because I’m two-faced but because I’m human. I get frustrated, but I’m also a grownup who realizes that my frustrations and fears in that moment are not the entirety of who I am. I have a right to express them, but I do not have the right to inflict them on the people who would be hurt by them. That’s why those conversations happen in private, in a safe space of trust, where my relationship allows me to show my partner parts of me that aren’t perfect and allows my partner to show me that I don’t have to be perfect in order to deserve to be cared about. I get support through my petty moments until I can be a better person.

This latest attack on Build is a horrifying violation of privacy and trust that leaves me feeling literally nauseated. I once again reiterate that I don’t trust third-hand amateur fan translation to be accurate and contextual, particularly given the provenance of the material, but Build himself is apparently distressed enough by at least some part of the material to make a public apology. So, that being out there, I will say: This was a private matter that should have stayed private, out of respect for everyone involved. Whatever was actually said is nobody’s business except Build’s and now, unfortunately, any named individuals who this was inflicted on and who may have been hurt by it. Which, rest assured, was the intention - to hurt not only Build with this, but also, particularly, Apo and Bible, both of whom Poi has shown her dislike of and ill-will toward in the past. I suspect some people also don’t know how abuse works, and it shows, given that what was purportedly said is a reflection of Poi’s own views back at her.

Whatever the context, I see that purity cancel culture still insists on freezing people in amber in their worst moments - without recognition of any capacity for change or growth - as long as it provides ammunition for a smug, gleeful Particicution. You’re stuck on some unkind things Build supposedly said more than a year ago? Let me tell you what I’ll remember for the rest of my life: The small, broken sound of Build’s voice just a few months ago as he tried to protect Bible and Bible’s career from a sociopath, in a telephone call that he felt he needed to secretly record as evidence of how he was being manipulated and abused.

Meanwhile, I see that swathes of KP fandom continue to be complicit in Poi’s campaign of public and dehumanizing abuse of him, which now includes not only borderline revenge porn, but separating him from his friends and isolating him. This is what abuse looks like. It’s happening in front of your eyes. Do you even care? Do you actually, legitimately care about abuse, or is it just a tool for you to use to win petty shipwars and make yourself feel righteous? Because here it is. Take a good look. This is a textbook play. And if you’re participating in reposting those screenshots of private conversations and mocking Build’s relationships and spreading vituperative language about him and acting like he deserves to have his life and career destroyed, you’re enabling an abuser. You are aiding and abetting her, as the very scenario she threatened him with - in order to maintain access to him, to keep him under control and compliant - continues to get spun out. YOU are a bully and a hypocrite and an abuser, helping to prove that the most dangerous time for an abuse victim is when they leave.

But I guess some victims do have to be perfect, huh?

(ETA: 7/18/23, 1520 - This post is being linked on Twitter by @cherryluminary with my permission. I'm not over there, but I increasingly feel like it's important to name what's happened, and continues to happen, to Build online as what it is - abuse. Similar to to my last post that breached containment, I'm going to ask people to remember that the behavior of Build's fans reflects on him - however fair that may or may not be - and should remain above reproach. I understand being angry - I'm angry, and at more people than I've discussed publicly, at this point. But if I find out you've been descending anywhere near the level of the ugly little sociopath in my inbox who openly admitted they want Build to kill himself, I'll block you.)

#build jakapan #do NOT show your ass in my inbox or anonymous will be turned off

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beesmygod · 2 years

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i had the most unbelievably frustrating conversation the other day over the complete failure of modern criticism to recognize the most basic forms of misogyny, especially in mainstream media, and how the inability to recognize these things was leading to a death in entertainment for young women that wasn’t regressive or insulting to their capabilities. the attempt to rehabilitate “twilight”, a novel in which the protagonist (who i am told has no personality or interests, outside of getting attention to boys, on purpose in order to act as a proxy for the reader) must choose between her family, her future, her dreams, her wants, and her desires or what her boyfriend wants, is an example.

“lore olympus” has drifted significantly from its original central contrived plot revolving around persephone maintaining her virginity (?!) so she can keep her college scholarship, but the original concept appeared to offer the female readership a choice: either stay in school or become the 19 year old object of sexual obsession of a man nearly 3x your age, which is good, because he will take care of you. the protagonist is a waifish, weak, emotional, perpetual victim of the world around her who needs men to com rescue her from even the mildest of situations.

inexplicable cult classic “jupiter ascending” revolves entirely around who she should marry. she does absolutely nothing in the entire movie except get shuffled from set piece to set piece as she must choose whether to marry the heterosexual buff dog man or the effeminate villain. tbh all of these properties are very similar to me in my head; they fail basic sniff tests but are gobbled up by masses who, i had thought, were more capable of discerning these concepts.

the inability to escape properties with these elements contributed significantly to my downward spiral as i became a teen/adult. there was a dawning horror that the number of avenues for success on my own were being deliberately made unavailable to me in order to keep an entire half of the population indebted to the other. that the expectation was not that i would get a job out of school, take care of myself, maybe meet someone along the way, maybe have a kid if it works out. i was supposed to get a degree, as a joke i guess or just to waste my time since i wasn’t REALLY supposed to get a real job, and then immediately i would be used as childcare/a live in maid because my interests were secondary to those of the man i was expected to marry (im also bi so that added another fun twist to it lol). my 20s and 30s were supposed to be used on children and taking care of my husband. this realization made it feel like i was trapped in a box that shrunk and shrunk and threatened to crush me under the pressure from all sides to be something i couldnt even comprehend people wanted to be.

pointing out the existence and proliferation of what, to me, are extremely basic concepts to reject as a feminist, causes people to launch into a type of defense that feels like it comes from another planet. accusations of puritanism, censorship, being the actual misogynist, etc. i dont know how to explain to people that pointing these things out, LIKE I AM DOING IN THIS POST LIKE THIS LEVEL OF DISCUSSION, is not a call for it to be banned or removed or changed or whatever. the purpose of bad art is to discuss it and learn from it. we’re supposed to dissect it and why it came into existence, not stomp out anything that isn’t flawlessly progressive.

if i didnt have anything to complain about i’d get bored lol. how is a critic supposed to criticize without criticism, you know.

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purgemarchlockdown · 6 months

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On Narratives, Victim Dichotomies and Amane’s Voting

(Also Known as: I'm sick of not being opinionated on my blog about opinions, lets talk about narratives)

(CW: Child Abuse, Cults, Child Death)

(Disclaimer: As I can imagine there’s probably going to be a lot of people reacting defensively to this so what I'm stating Right Now is that I Do Not Believe that most people voting Amane Guilty is doing it because they believe her abuse was justified. This is not, at all, designed to be an accusatory post.)

So a few days ago I read the “MILGRAM” x “Clock over ORQUESTA” interview which you can read right here.

It’s a really interesting interview and I recommend reading the whole thing but the one that caught my attention was this part.

Yamanaka: That's a difficult question... I'm always conscious of emotional control in my work, but in “MILGRAM”, the content has more live feeling to it. So the story progresses realistically based on the presence of the audience. I think I used a different brain than I have been using to create works up until now, I see it as necessary to think very three-dimensionally. I'm currently trying to turn the audience into characters in my work.

This was really interesting to read and made me immediately think of Amane’s voting.

So Amane’s voting situation is currently trending downwards, even with the initial boost from Double she's been going down slowly recently. This is in stark contrast to the large amount of innocent votes she originally got when Purge March released the first time.

Now the reason I connected the two is that I've noted a narrative being formed between the audience and Amane, specifically, an abuse narrative.

The Text

Let's take a step back to the T1 voting landscape, one that I was admittedly was not apart but I do however know what happened. Amane was voted guilty to make her better and to help her realize that the cult was bad and hurting her. Jackalope acknowledges this intent in the T2 and is dismissive about that idea.

Jackalope: It doesn’t matter whether it’s a child or whatever, when you commit a crime… what? Jackalope: ...Why are you making that face? Jackalope: Are you thinking “I want her to realize her sins" Jackalope: No no, no way…

This verdict comes right after Es Restraining her in the T1 VD. Something Physically Violent that causes her an intense amount of Distress. You can hear her struggle during it, with her breathing heavily and her tone of voice becoming panicked and scared.

In this part she's even surprised that Es would be violent like this.

(Translation)

Amane: What is it? Are you resorting to violence?

Now most people in general would become panicked and scared when restrained. But considering Amane most likely has Experience in being restrained to be harmed, something that we have evidence for in Magic due to the punishment sequences. There is a good chance that Amane was Triggered during this moment.

Amane is in a noticeably worse mood after this, wanting to start a fight with Mikoto.

21/04/16

Amane: ………… Mikoto: Oh, welcome back Amane! ……what’s with the grim face? Ah, right, the guard summoned you! How was it? Did you cry? I bet you were so scared you cried, right!? Amane: ……alright then. If it’s a fight you want, it’s a fight you’ll get. Mikoto: Huh? Oooi! Hey, are you listening?? Ooooi!

Now this is a T1 Amane, and no matter how blunt or even "bratty" T1 Amane could get, she is never outright aggressive except for this moment. Even when she feels threatened and patronized by Shidou she doesn't react with aggression but frustration, first trying to explain to him why it feels bad when he does that and when he ignores that, saying she'll find someone else to teach her.

Plus, due to information from T2 we can assume aggression is not approved of in her cult. This is the only moment in T1 we see her be outright aggressive towards someone. Right after being physically restrained by Es, and Mikoto antagonizing her by invalidating her feelings.

When Amane got that guilty verdict she was confirmed something, that Es was Willing and Able to Physically Hurt Her. When the restraints from the T2 Guilty Verdict came it also meant that Es and the other prisoners who were innocent are in a position to harm her with her being unable to fight back.

Not only that but the ideal we were denying when that verdict came down was not her cult...it's her "sin" that sin being her Will To Live.

It's easy to believe that what we deny in T1 and T2 is her cult, that's the most obvious thing after all and that's what Amane brings up in her T1 VD.

Amane: Ah, I am looking forward to it! Seeing whether your judgement will align with that of these higher standards! If that is the case, maybe Milgram would be the right world for us to live in, rather than the outside world! Milgram relies on your judgement, isn’t that right? In that case, you could become the mediator for a far more righteous world!!

And to some extent we are denying her cult by giving her this verdict! However, that isn't the main thing Amane is asking us.

In the T1 VD the main thing Amane is concerned about is the concept of "free will" and how "seriously" her feelings are being taken.

A: I see. Then, are the things that I as a twelve-year-old think irrelevant? Are you going to cast aside the feelings that I know I have in this very moment, purely based on the fact that I have not yet lived for a very long time? Judging these things based on someone’s age will not take you very far. Do I, at age twelve, not have my own will? Does Muu-san, at age 16, have more of a free will than I do? Does Yuno-san, at age 18, have more of a free will? Does Fuuta-san, at age 20, have an entirely free will?

If we're breaking this down to the basic concept, this is the question Amane is asking us.

"Do my wants and feelings matter even if I'm a child?"

Magic gives us one response to this. No.

Magic treats Amane's pain as "comedic." With Amane being portrayed as childish for reacting so negatively to it. Her wants and feelings Don't Matter. It isn't a big deal. Why are you being so sensitive about it? We're just trying to help you.

This is important to consider when it comes to the questions Amane asks her god, and the Audience.

Dear wise one, Is this ok? Is it ok to be weak sometimes? I promise! A good girl that keeps a promise is like, mwah! I won’t say “I’ve had enough” Will you laugh with me and forgive me?I take an oath! I can only become a better girl!

Is it alright to be weak? Can you forgive me for being weak? Is it alright that I Did This?

Amane never stops singing this, and she never declares herself a "good girl" In Magic and not only that, she rejects the Idea She Could Be One in the Fist Place.

Only if, only if, only if I could be a good girl I hope, I hope everyone can be happy and smile Forever, forever together would be a dream

"Only if" a condition, the requirement being Amane be good. And yet she's treating it like a dream, something unachievable and unreachable.

Now where did I get "will to live" from? It's not something super noticeable in Magic but if we go to the interrogations...

T1 Q12: What is the meaning of life? A: I think it is something you learn for the first time when you look behind yourself when it ends. I do not want to have regrets then, so I live on with all my might.

There it is!

As we know, Amane was been waterboarded

beaten

sleep deprived

electrocuted.

And also has No Medicine or Vaccinations, and is possibly malnourished since her vegetarian diet might not be Planned Properly and thus can't provide her with the nutrients she needs (though that's speculation on my part.)

She most likely has a weak immune system due to the amount of Stress she's been under for most of her life, and lack of sleep can also weaken your immune system. Not to mention she isn't immunized against diseases...like the flu. Which Can Kill You, especially if you have a comprised immune system and No Vaccines.

Not only that, waterboarding, physical beatings and electrocution aren't exactly things your body is designed to survive, especially with no Medical Care. Waterboarding can kill since it's Simulating Drowning and if there's no oxygen in the lungs you Suffocate, Beating...beats you, electrocution sends electricity Through Your Body, and even if the voltage is Low it can and has Killed People.

These are all very dangerous things to go through, especially without any sort of medical care. So when Amane says that, she says that with the knowledge that she could have died, many, many ways, and many, many times.

These we're all done to "save her" to" purify her sinful soul" and Amane has gone on record to describe this as "Love"

T2 Q2: Do you believe you were loved? A: Very much deeply.

And has also gone on to define love as "mercy"

T2 Q9: What does love mean to you? A: To spread mercy with no limits.

To spread mercy with no limits...like being a child perhaps? Even if your a child, you can be granted "mercy" and "salvation?"

(Jackalope: It doesn’t matter whether it’s a child or whatever, when you commit a crime… what?)

These actions were done to "help her" and would have Killed her.

Now, we didn't know about Amane's mother in T1 and admittedly there was not much evidence of her being the victim before T2. However we Do have evidence it was life or death...because Amane was horrifically punished before committing the crime in ways that could have actually killed.

The implication here is clear. If Amane doesn't Do Something she is going to die. It's not a question of If, it's a question of When.

When she asks god if its okay to be weak, when she asks the Audience if its okay to be weak. She is asking if it was alright to Choose Herself over "What is Right." And we said No.

The Audience

Now, you might be feeling some dread now. I am at least and I'm writing this damn thing. The intention of the T1 Guilty Verdict was to "help her" and yet through that it has repeated a pattern of abuse. In our actions we have punished her so she can "learn" and pushed her closer towards a possible death (the death penalty.)

So when T2 Amane rolls around she's aggressive, unwilling to listen, has doubled down on methods of self-punishment and her cult's world view, is physically restrained and presumably punished in other ways, hears voices telling her she's wrong, and is Self Isolating.

This is Really Bad. We've put her in a state that resembles how she acted in her abusive environment, and it is Our Fault. Let's not weasel our way out of this, this entire series is built on that idea that the actions of the audience have consequences.

As Barfsunny even pointed out, The T2 Amane Cover art resembles the scene in Magic where she "punishes her Mother."

And since she's facing the Audience, we are being put in the Role of Her Mother.

The same person who did this to her:

We are, to her, reminiscent of her abusers.

If we go back to how Amane reacts to Threats, she is notably only aggressive when she's being Threatened and Cornered.

We can see this with Es and how they restrain and have authority over her. We can see this when Mikoto antagonizes her and her feelings, we can see this in Shidou when he patronizes and invalidates her feelings.

22/10/24 (Shidou’s Birthday)

Amane: I warned you. I can no longer turn a blind eye to this wickedness taking place right in front of us. You’re bringing ruin unto yourself. Do you understand? Shidou: No, I don’t understand. It’s my job as an adult to teach you that throwing a temper tantrum isn’t going to make everything go your way. If it’s a test of endurance you want, I’m happy to oblige, Amane.

And we can see this in the Audience in how we voted her guilty and decided that she should Be Hurt.

Now that we've established our connection to her abusers...let's talk about that Dichotomy I mentioned in the title and how Purge March (and Milgram as a whole) purposefully plays into it.

Victim Dichotomies.

So what do I mean by this? Well it's very common in fiction and audience reactions to categorizes victims as either "good" or "bad." With good victims often being appealing, pitiful and a naturally "good person", while bad victims are aggressive, unappealing and tend to do "Bad Things."

Now these are subjective terms, since...morality is subjective. But it is a trend in both fiction and fan spaces to categorize victims using a sense of what's morally justifiable or not. I was in the Steven Universe Fandom, that was/is a Thing There.

Now, let be clear here, there are absolutely destructive, harmful, maladaptive, ways of coping with trauma. However Moral Catagorization of it is neither productive nor constructive, it just makes it easier to demonize people for not "handling" their trauma properly.

This is relevant to Amane because she is repeatedly portrayed as "scary" in her MV.

Look at the use of lighting and framing, the camera being positioned slightly lower to make the audience feel smaller, a constant shadow on the band members faces that makes them feel...well...cast in shadow. The bright light of the eyes feeling inhuman and unnatural, the dark lighting of the room feeling ominous. With a white figure standing in front of a dead body.

This is what you do when your trying to portray something as "scary" or even "evil."

Amane: Both pain and illness are trials. According to our teachings, those who run from them are the worst evil there is. That’s one of the four great principles. No matter who you are, that cannot be forgiven. Amane: Oh – speaking of which, there is one among the prisoners right now. An evil existence that’s trying to steal people’s trials away from them.

Running away from pain, Amane? Stealing away people's trails for them, Amane? Like choosing to save yourself from being punished again? Like choosing to help a cat?

Not only that but the lyrics of Purge March is this:

The “It can’t be helped”, from the scum who can’t be helped That makes them doubtlessly, clearly, absolutely, unequivocally, beyond any doubt, GUILTY I disavow you, eyes corrupted must be crushed So nary a sound can be uttered a second time, I’ll crush your throat too

This is undeniably a revenge song. This is Amane Momose's Revenge Song. Her fantasies about being able to be the one punishing this time and not having to be in pain again are at full front here. She Wants to hurt her mother.

You are supposed to be Scared of Amane Momose. This is the Expected Audience Reaction.

Shidou is brought up in her VD, both for foreshadowing purposes and to make you Anxious. Amane wants to hurt Shidou, Amane wants to hurt Shidou. A constant reminder of the possible consequences of Letting Her Go Unpunished. If you don't punish her Now she could hurt someone Later.

Once again, we are being put in the position of her abuser. Only this time there really is a few things at stake.

Though I will like to mention, most likely the only reason why Amane was able to kill her mother in the first place is because she had two weapons, the umbrella and the taser.

Something that was brought to my attention by deerlydreaming is that you can actually hear the Buzzing and crackling of the taser throughout Purge March. Most notably it becomes A Constant Part of the Instrumental at the end. That Taser is most likely what Amane used to prevent her mother from escaping her before continuing to murder her. This makes sense because Amane is probably physically weak and twelve years old.

And while Amane Can catch Shidou off-guard. Shidou not only wants to live because he needs to Help People, the rest of the prisoners are aware of her hostile intentions towards him. He is not Safe by any means, and Mahiru is still being threatened, but he is Not In As Much Danger as you might think at first.

And, Notably, characters like Yuno and Fuuta, who are involved in the medicine, are treated patiently by Amane. Even if she's a bit rude or unwilling to talk, Amane is willing to answer their questions and give them advice. This is not Just About the medicine.

I mentioned that Shidou makes Amane feel threatened already, but the anxiety from Mahiru is probably because she and Shidou parallel her parents. I talk about it a bit more over here but the jist is not only does Mahiru have notable lyrical parallels with Amane and similarities in world view (Love = Pain.) Mahiru has also asked Amane about her parents.

20/07/06

Amane: You want to know about my family……? My father is a truly wonderful person. He’s honest, values fairness and justice above all else, and will work himself to the bone for other people’s sake……. Why do you want to know? Mahiru: Oh, I was just wondering what sort of parents you must have for them to have raised such a good child like you. Fufu, I’ll keep it in mind for the future when I raise my own family. Amane: I see. If it will be of use to you, I’ll tell you more. It’s still a long way off for me, but for someone your age the prospect of finding a partner and having a family must be feeling a lot more real. Now that I think about it, I recall my mother was around your age when she gave birth to me……

Mahiru is both around the age her mother gave birth to Amane And thinks of her as a good child and wants to use them as examples for how to raise "good children."

This is why Amane wants her dead but also wants her to be apart of her family, she's less condescending and hurtful so Amane has some positive feelings towards her but she still reminds her of someone that Hurt Her, badly. Muddying it a bit.

My overall point though is, Amane plays into the good victim/bad victim dichotomy. She's a bad victim, a bad kid, not good enough. She's scary and bad and childish. She's not an "ideal" victim.

This connects back into her cat imagery. Where Amane is portrayed as the Cat.

(Purge March Cat having Different Injuries gets to me)

Let's all note that the bow and medal are two consistent parts of her costuming and they are her collar, and that she also has a collar in her prison uniform.

The cat is repeatedly conflated with sin and impurity, both here and in other instances of the cat. There's another cat in Magic and that cat is Collared, implying that cats Need to be collared or else they'll do something "bad" unlike all the other animals who can walk without them.

Cats need to be Restrained and Domesticated.

Or else they will do "sinful actions."

(Don't we all love the dehumanization of the vulnerable? Im personally fond of it, please let her become an actual monster in T3 Milgram Im begging you-)

This isn't the first time Milgram has done this! They did this with both Haruka and Muu!

Haruka is portrayed notably creepier in AKAA than Weakness. While Muu is portrayed so pitiful in After Pain and then In It's Not My Fault...well...

I told you I’m queen, and it’s always the same God gave me everything, everything is as I wish

(Using MV translation for the sake of clarity)

And again, not to say these behaviors aren't destructive, harmful and maladapative. I'd for one say Muu is Very self-destructive in her behavior and shoots good things for herself in the foot. But the point is that these characters Also play with the concept of being a "good victim" and a "bad victim."

And of course, if your not good enough, you will be punished.

Conclusion

I'd say something about voting here but I think its really obvious what I want people to vote Amane as. But more importantly I think its important to consider what narrative the story is trying to tell. What is trying to make you Feel and Why. There is a meta-commentary here about the way society treats vulnerable people. Especially ones who are considered "unappealing." It's...remarkably easier, to punish someone that's been hurt once it's been decided they aren't "good" enough. And I think that's important to consider when voting.

#milgram #amane momose #008 #milgram amane #milgram analysis #milgram meta #cw child abuse #cw cults #holy fucking shit is this long #everyone enjoy the post!

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pawberri · 4 months

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tysm for your posts regarding child safety it's very upsetting how much victims are blamed and how often dangerous behaviour isn't seen as genuine concern just because a bunch of adults decide they don't want to care and that children being on the internet is Bad and Annoying because theyre put in danger rather than focusing on the issues of the internet as it currently exists/how communities form around it and creating real support spaces for victims that arent Just fetishizing of the very trauma theyre struggling with

it gets hard to talk about and feel understood because the "stop caring im not responsible for kids" type of people are so often vocal and praised for that lack of real care your commitment to talking about such and showing Proving genuine focus on how to help those who have been abused is uplifting and very helpful people like you give me hope i will be listened to and cared for, that those who do care are plentiful and just not as loud

ty a hundred, and apologies if this is a lot - feel no pressure to 'answer' such an ask, just intending to express the appreciation

I've been seeing it repeated so much and it's so stressful and frustrating. People generally have given up giving general advice on how not to be raped or abused as an adult because most leftists understand that these problems are so complex there isn't an easy guide to avoiding it. We talk about victim blaming and how much of it is random chance, but somehow people can't apply that same logic to children. They give advice that is basically as useful as "don't wear revealing clothes" and act like it's at all useful. It amazes me how people in the replies of the one post I reblogged are acting like NOT BEING GROOMED somehow makes them experts on grooming. They have no understanding that luck and circumstance play a huge fucking role. If you have never experienced this, never researched it, never cared about it beyond generally disliking pedophiles as a concept, I beg you to fuck off and shut up about how to avoid grooming.

Like look at these comments and imagine someone with the same politics as these people saying it about rape or abusive relationships.

Saying "don't be a target" as if children are the masters of their own fate. Same with saying "my generation knew better!" or "lol just block people" or any other callous, self-assured bullshit. It's like telling someone who got lured into abuse by someone they trusted that they should have just carried pepper spray. It's worthless.

Let me say

1. If you were groomed it was not your fault, even if you put your age in your bio

2. If you were not groomed and did not have your age in your bio, you have not discovered the secret to not getting groomed

3. Many adults can tell when a 32 year old clearly knows absolutely nothing about the adult world, and children are just at an obvious intellectual and expirential disadvantage in keeping up this rouse

4. Pedophilia is not as clear-cut as people think, and many people who would willingly abuse trusting, vulnerable adults would happily move to abusing teenagers. People seeking power will manipulate you if they can, and children are easier to manipulate. Someone might start dating an extremely childlike adult and shrug off the realization they are underage because they don't give a fuck who they're getting their power fix from even if they didn't figure out they were speaking to a child.

5. Adults dating teenagers was and is extremely normalized in many parts of the world (and many subcultures) and no amount of internet privacy was ever going to save us from a broad societal message that pedophilia is just a may december romance or whatever

#long post #csa tw #grooming tw

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flowai · 1 year

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The 12th house and it's meanings

Welcome! To reinforce, I mainly study traditional astrology so you can disagree with some of the things I´m saying, but understand it´s just another way to read into this study. I tried to brief and I might do another post with the 12th placements (planets, astral points, etc.) Enjoy!

In traditional astrology, the 12th house is portrayed as the place of "the bad spirit" (in contrast to the 11th, known by traditional astrologers as the place of "the good spirit").

Traditionally, some keywords to this house are; hidden enemies, suffering, death, troubles, injuries, spiritual problems, and more. The main reason for these dramatics is because the 12th house is right above the 1st, the rising line, meaning the true self of an individual. The things above you cannot see, it becomes a matter of the unconscious. When you have a physical or internal injury you can feel something is wrong with your body - the 6th house represents your physical health, if your 6th is afflicted, it mostly means health issues - but when your mind is not well, you can't just do an x-ray or routine exam, is something hidden from you, the conscious mind cannot access by its own. It makes it difficult to seek help because you don't know immediately.

place of isolation can be one of the significations of the 12th. placements in there tend to feel alone, as someone can never truly understand them. Sometimes that's the case. These placements can have a unique way to look at things, they tend to have an outside look at matters since the 12th is right above the ascendent line, so unconsciously, they put themselves out of the situation to have a better understanding of what's going on, and that can sometimes go wrong since they can be in it as well.

In my previous observation post and wrote that is very difficult to have malefic planets (Mars and Saturn) in the 12th, but I mainly meant Mars since Saturn rejoices in there. But a Mars in the 12th is an unhappy Mars, and the planet of anger and war being unhappy is not a thing. It's very uncomfortable because Mars needs a place of releasement, to let go of whatever thing is holding them back. But the 12th blocks any type of releasement mars needs, it can't see things truly, they're walking in a fog field with someone poking them. A common way of this appearing in an individual is that they can have a very difficult time admitting fault. It creates a victim complex of someone blind by their own errors, blaming the person next to them and creating scenarios that people are coming for them and they did nothing wrong. In my language, we have a saying that translating means "persecution mania", which is someone that thinks people are constantly trying to make the worst of them, and with Mars being there it can be true sometimes, but most of the time is just the anger not knowing how to get out. And to be frank, it manifests worst in men.

I know two guys with this placement (who didn't know each other btw) and the amount of gaslighting and pretending to be a victim of the situation was insane. I also know a girl with this placement who had some communication problems about anger, but it wasn't anywhere near the two guys. I say it's worst in men but not because of an astrological factor, it is simply how women and men are raised and what society expects from them. And when these men were raised thinking things would be just the way they wanted, when in face of frustration, they become massive manipulators who don't know how to acknowledge their own problems.

coming back to the 12th, aside from the negative significations, it can be a good place for spirituality. Is not material and nobody can take it from you. Is a place to travel with your soul and mind, not your body. To connect with something beyond what you can see and to accept we don't know everything. Sometimes things are hidden from us but are not always a problem.

At last, one of the key ways to have a good relationship with your 12th house is both the conscious and the unconscious. You need your consciousness to not put yourself as the victim of the circumstance, to understand that you have control of things, and not let your vulnerability be a weapon for others to use. And also to not be afraid of what you cannot see, feel, or touch. Realize the thin line between what's in your control and what is not and be satisfied with the choice you make. Practice your spirituality and do things you like, train your own wellness and satisfaction. Karma will come, you have the power to decide what type of karma you'll receive.

and feel free to comment any questions, suggestions, or thoughts you want to share!

xo!

#astro observations #astrology #astro notes #traditional astrology #astrology placements #astrology notes #zodiac signs #astro posts #astro community #astro placements #astroblr #12th house #mars placements #spiritualism #6th house

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andrewwtca · 11 months

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the Aubrey problem (or how Omori's writing failed her)

Also available to read on Archive of our Own.

I really like video games. If the fanfiction, theory posts, and occasional essays weren’t enough, here’s me saying it—I really like video games! They’re a conversation between writing, art, music, and human interaction, between the player, the game, and the characters in them. Of course, not all games have all of that, some being only text-based, some being lifeless wastelands, but whatever they end up choosing to work with, they often do something amazing.

Sunny is one of my favorite protagonists in any realm of media—video game, movie, book—and he genuinely changed the way I view the world. Not just him, but the entire world built around him, Headspace and its charming inhabitants and the wondrous sights and music, the creative bosses that leave so much insight, the beautiful overworld that is Faraway and a nostalgic look into what we leave behind, and what we return to.

So that’s why I’m so disappointed I don’t like Aubrey.

This game blew my mind away when I first saw it—my first experience with the game wasn’t even my own playthrough, but sitting through a 20-hour longplay!—and I lost so many hours of sleep twisting and turning and trying to make peace with the grief it left me feeling. And after finishing, I realized that its flaws were plenty, but not enough to drag me out of my enjoyment. But Aubrey? Aubrey didn’t make me feel the way I knew she was supposed to.

That frustrated me, especially as I became a bigger and bigger fan of the game. I had no qualms about liking her archetype, the feminine bully with a tragic backstory, and yet I do with her.

As someone who craves literary analysis and in-depth looks into every media I consume, I just needed to know: what made me dislike Aubrey?

And after over two years of being a fan of the game, I’ve finally figured it out: it’s a good mixture of 1) lack of explanation, 2) rushed self-awareness, and 3) lackluster narrative choices. And I’ve found the words I needed to explain these concepts, so please join me on my messy journey to understanding what went wrong with Aubrey.

preface

If you’re an Aubrey apologist, this essay is not for you. I’ve heard plenty of arguments about why Aubrey was actually in the right, not limited to “Basil deserved it,” and, “Aubrey was hurting too,” so I’d like to begin by stating that Aubrey was a bully very clearly.

Rejecting the notion that she actively harmed others is rejecting a core component of understanding her character. Before we dive into her character and how the writing failed her character arc, I would like us all to be on the same page: she physically, verbally, and socially bullied Basil. It was not Basil’s fault, and it will never be a victim’s fault to get bullied. She is not the victim of her own crime, just like how Sunny is not the victim of Mari’s death, and Basil is not the victim of Mari’s hanging. We, as the player, are to recognize their responsibilities in their actions. The same must be extended to Aubrey.

Some people feel the need to deny this aspect of her character to justify her actions and/or justify liking her. Firstly, the purpose of this essay isn’t to villainize anyone for liking Aubrey. I’m simply analyzing what was attempted with her character and why it didn’t strike a chord with me and so many others. Secondly, as Kel wisely said, “Just because you did something bad, doesn't make you a bad person.” I’m not here to say that Aubrey is a bad person—no, nobody in Omori is ‘good’ or ‘bad’ and labeling characters as such is taking away the nuance they possess. And I’m certainly not saying liking a character who did something bad makes you bad, either!

Liking Aubrey is in no way a problem (which makes me a tad bit sad that I need to clarify), and I’ll even go as far as to say kudos to you, but if you bend and twist to stop her from holding any responsibility for her actions, that’s when problems arise. Basil is a fictional character and won’t care if you think it was his fault he was bullied, but for the people around you who may have been in similar positions to him?

And lastly, I want to say that if you cite sexism as the reason people don’t like Aubrey… actually, this is the perfect transition into the analysis.

gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss

Femme bullies are not a new phenomenon. Perhaps it’s the break from the stereotypical sweet feminine girl that makes them so fascinating, using their femininity to not sing to animals or wish for a man, but pull down others and advance their status.

I, for one, adore the femme bully trope. Especially if they’re one who used to be extremely kind and underwent some sort of ‘fall from grace’ that led to a bastardization. But, as for all bullies, if they are left without a proper backstory and motivation, I’m turned off from them. Most humans are not mean just because they can be but rather are products of how they were raised. When these causes are ignored, the trope falls flat, and instead of being a good reconstruction, it’s a flat stereotype.

The best way to analyze this is by comparing Aubrey’s character to good examples of femme bullies in the past. Specifically, I’m picking my favorites: Asuka from Neon Genesis Evangelion, Nanami from Revolutionary Girl Utena, and Sophie from The School for Good and Evil. I’m going to do a quick (and a bit sarcastic) overview of their characters in their respective media, but a quick warning for suicide in Asuka’s overview, and animal cruelty in Nanami’s.

Asuka is a pilot for one of the mechas, the Evangelion, and she always thought of herself as better than everyone. Well, of course, she would: she studied hard, worked harder than everyone around her, and she’s just naturally talented. And yet, she’s still always threatened by others and how they can ruin her status. Specifically, for the course of the show, she targets Shinji—he’s this nobody from nowhere who could suddenly pilot an Eva, while she had to fight her whole life to get here! How is that fair? And what has that asshole been through anyway? Did he have to see his mother’s corpse after she committed suicide as a small child? Did he fight for his mother’s love his entire life just for her to kill herself? Does he have to fight for male attention just so he isn’t thrown aside? No, of course not! So how is any of it fair?

Nanami is the sister to the wonderful student body president Touga, and she wants nothing more than his attention. And with her being the youngest of the cast, one cannot be mad at her for not understanding the severity of violence and finality of death, so her anger as a small child with a kitten whom Touga adored is also understandable. One simply cannot be mad at her for drowning it. So, of course, you cannot blame her for wanting to punish the ever-elusive Anthy and Utena, who Touga has become fixated on. What does Anthy or Utena have that Nanami doesn’t? They’re stupid girls, not Touga’s sister. No matter what, Nanami is going to win her brother’s affection (and in her pursuit, ignore how horribly he’s been manipulating her the entire time).

And Sophie is the Witch of Woods Beyond, capable of powerful spells beyond the imagination, from a place that few know of. And she wants nothing more than for her own fairy-tale ending—why do all the princesses around her get princes and castles and beautiful dresses, and she’s doomed to being hideous and alone for the rest of her life? Who decided that for her? She’s beautiful, after all, so she should be a princess! It doesn’t matter who stands in the way of her happily ever after; especially not if it’s Agatha, her lifelong best friend. No matter what, Sophie will not end up like her mother who died all alone, with her husband forgetting her and moving on. Sophie will be loved, no matter who she has to hurt.

What do they all have in common? Firstly, they’re all girls. As stated, femme bullies are different from masc bullies, especially as they reveal aspects of femininity and womanhood in general that many people—see, a male audience—will neglect to face, and overall uncover sexism that's still present in both media and society. Secondly, they’re all bullies, and they targeted someone in particular who they saw as detrimental to their happiness. And thirdly, they all had specific upbringings that conditioned them to have their ‘falls from grace’. What is this third, unidentified thing?

Mommy issues!

(Sorry, I know Nanami technically has a brother complex, but I just wanted to say mommy issues.)

A pattern has been developed with all of these girls. They all start fairly, what one can call, ‘feminine’ or at least, per standard stereotypes. They’re gentle and sweet and shine when needed. And they all have a ‘fall from grace’—a moment, or sequence of moments, that leads them to reject traditional femininity and embrace a more vengeful version of it. And a final moment, where they are faced with their opposite, who represents all that they do not have.

Asuka was sweet and kind and bubbly until her mother killed herself. After that, she dedicated herself to her studies and getting adult male attention through means of the over-sexualization of herself. And then, she began to bully Shinji.

Sophie was sweet and kind and bright until her mother died. After that, she idolized her mother’s false display of femininity and became obsessed with becoming a princess. And then, at the School for Evil, she began to bully Agatha.

Nanami was assumedly sweet—she deviates from this pattern slightly, being built off assumptions of a good past rather than showcases—until she was brought into this family and became obsessed with her brother and was manipulated by him. After that, she became desperate for his attention, fighting any other who could take it. And then, she began to bully Utena (and Anthy.)

While Nanami does deviate from this pattern, they all have clear origins. They were not bullies from the start. As aforementioned, in the face of an adversary, the majority of people do not turn to hurting one another. Something in their pasts, their ‘falls from grace’, was the foundation of their actions, what led them to believe what they were doing was okay. It’s not justification—it's a much-needed explanation. After all, if you do not understand, how can you empathize?

Still, you may fail to see my point. The game has lots of hints of Aubrey’s troubled upbringing. And that’s exactly what the problem is. These girls have clear origins while Aubrey’s is muddled.

Of course, I don’t expect Omori to have spoon-fed me details of her past. You can put the pieces together by walking through her home and seeing bottles laid on the ground. But, even in a game dependent on nuance and having the player put certain things together, it’s better to leave things out directly rather than to work a way around.

To build up a good femme bully, we need a good origin story. What happened to her that made her turn to violence? Why should we care? We know Aubrey probably had a troubled childhood. But the game doesn’t supply enough. It leaves too much to fill in the blanks. I know that Asuka saw her mother’s corpse, I know that Sophie was forced into a misogynistic viewpoint upon her mother’s death, and I know that Nanami was manipulated to hell and back. I know what these girls have been through so I know why they ended up walking their paths.

But the game simply doesn’t reveal enough about Aubrey. Fan speculation is not enough. Canon interpretation should not be confused with fan interpretation—according to the fans, Aubrey’s father is a deadbeat, and her mother is an abusive, neglectful alcoholic. According to the game? Aubrey’s dad is “strict”, and her house is an absolute disaster. The house is one of the biggest clues as to Aubrey’s childhood, and while some may praise this as ‘showing and not telling’, the game never tries to make workarounds for the other characters (which I will dig deeper into later). I can assume what happened in her house but it’s not my job to find ways to empathize with the character; that is the story’s job.

This is the first of Omori’s three sins and we haven’t even scratched the surface.

actions speak more than words, or something like that

I recently saw a post that I thought would make a good intro for this section. It’s an apologist post for Aubrey, discussing how the game did treat her with just enough harshness—that because she’s been beating herself up, because she’s suffered a public breakdown, because it took kindness to help her heal, it’s proof of her regret. There’s some good Basil blaming in there too, with a strange turn saying that she refused to leave Basil’s house because of her willingness to turn over a new leaf. And it ends with a weird claim that she was a “good person all along,” (implying an argument otherwise), but I’m not here to rat on that post.

Despite how frustrated the post made me, I am inclined to agree. It’s black-and-white to state that Aubrey didn’t change at all. If you compare her first Faraway appearance to her final scenes, she’s a completely different person. Which would've been nice if the change didn’t take two scenes.

Much like how I compared Aubrey’s backstory to that of other femme bullies, I’m going to compare Aubrey’s redemption to that of my favorite redemption story in all of media: Riku from Kingdom Hearts (the fact that I’m so in touch with his story may also explain some of my disappointment with Aubrey’s).

Riku starts off his journey on Destiny Islands. He’s always wondered what lies beyond his small home and dreamed of taking a sailboat with his best friends, Sora and Kairi. However, jealousy is an awful thing—Sora and Kairi are close. And it seems that Riku has been hearing about how they’re thinking of leaving him behind. So, he does what any teenager dealing with larger-than-life feelings does: he gives in to the magical Darkness and effectively kills everyone on the islands, separating him, Sora, and Kairi (don’t worry—everyone comes back.)

By the end of the game, he’s come to his senses, but it takes a lot of time. He fights with Sora a lot because he just knows, deep down, that he’s right and Sora is wrong, and if Sora would just listen…but no. Sora keeps abandoning him. So he has to work through that and all the feelings that accompany those abandonment issues, he has to work through the question of “What is even making me want to kill my best friend, anyway?”, and he has to work through “Wait…can I kill my best friend?” So, it takes a lot of time for him to get to his senses.

And then, he goes through hell. Literally and metaphorically. He dedicates himself wholly to making up for what he did. How? Well, he first identifies what he did wrong—he separated from his friends, he gave in to his jealousy, and he submerged his home in Darkness. He apologizes for it directly—although he doesn’t have a chance to speak with Sora right away, he's constantly apologizing for the fact that he gave in to the Darkness, so much that it became a running gag to some fans. He put up distance—he didn’t feel like he was owed forgiveness right away (or at all, but that’s a different matter) and didn’t stick at Sora’s side to wait for his best friend to forgive him. He worked hard to show that he’s changed—it would be a much longer essay if I attempted to explain the lengths he went through, but it’s not limited to allowing himself to be possessed, going to literal Hell, forcing himself into isolation, and enduring multiple handicapping injuries.

Long story short? He really, really tries to make it up to Sora. And when he and Sora finally talk (it took three years in real life, took perhaps a year in the game), Sora doesn’t even hesitate to forgive his friend…though it may be in part to Sora just being Sora. Nevertheless, Riku had earned that forgiveness.

And then, after that, Riku continues to give himself hell! He never stops to sweep what he did under the rug. It’s a part of him, after all, an ugly past but his past nonetheless. It does not define him but it cannot be forgotten, otherwise, he hasn't learned anything at all.

Deep breath. We talked a lot about Kingdom Hearts in an Omori essay. But it’s important to understand the sheer depth put into his redemption: identification, distance, and work.

What’s most frustrating about Aubrey’s arc is that fragments of this good writing exist, but that’s what they are: fragments. I would like it to be stated for the record that everything I explained for Riku’s arc wasn’t me creating speculation based on what the games said. It’s what the games literally came out and said. Aubrey however…

Identification—she apologizes to Sunny, Kel, and Hero by saying “I’m sorry, guys… I’ve been acting like such a jerk.” While I may give her grief for the usage of the word ‘jerk’ when perhaps a stronger, more evocative term would’ve done a better job, it’s certainly better than what she said in front of Basil’s door: "I just wanted to say that… I’m sorry for the way I’ve been treating you.” Completely separating herself from the issue at hand.

Distance—none. She's immediately reintroduced to her old friend group, at a rate that ended up giving me whiplash the first time around. The question, “What about the Hooligans?” is never brought up, and things are back to how they always were, with no problems at all.

Work—Aubrey stayed the night at Basil’s house, wanting to make sure he was safe. To which, if you end up getting the neutral ending, you get the most insightful message of Aubrey’s arc (which is technically non-canon): “I'm so sorry, Basil. Please forgive me…” If getting the good or bad ending, her staying the night meant literally nothing, as Sunny’s fight took the reins.

These are fragments of a character arc. These are fragments of good characterization. While I praise Omori for how often it appears realistic, this kind of exponential growth simply isn’t. In what world, does someone who’s been bullying someone for four years, take less than two days to realize she’s been a bully and decide to change the entire course of her life?

While I could rat on Aubrey, this isn’t her problem. This is the game misreading what makes a good redemption. Redemption means work. It means effort. It is not a character simply changing their ways. Those characters feel cheap and empty—there’s a reason, after all, why the majority of fans always characterize Aubrey as the mean girl she’s shown to be when she first appeared in fan works. It’s because the ‘new’ Aubrey, the Aubrey buried under layers of hurt, hasn’t earned the right to exist.

The Riku I love in Kingdom Hearts III has earned the right to be angsty and gay and happy and his new self because he’s put in 17 years' worth of effort to become that person. It’s beautiful, it’s inspiring, it’s hopeful—you can make a mistake and go past it. It doesn’t define you. You can be forgiven. You can have hurt and have been hurt and still be worthy of love and loving.

The Aubrey at the end of Omori has not earned the right to be there, simply put. She’s the product of lazy, or ignorant writing, and it feels harsh to type out, but there’s no other way to describe it. Her self-awareness happened too quickly. She passes by Sunny’s house every day, sees Kel playing basketball every day, and could freely visit Mari’s grave whenever she wants—there were four years for her to change who she was. If Kel wasn’t able to give up his toxic positivity until the bitter end of the neutral ending, it’s quite hard to believe that a few hours of just talking made her change her ways. Especially considering that the Hooligans were characterized as her new, accepting friends, who love her and hear her out.

And again, the best fragment of an arc that could’ve been appears in the neutral ending! While it was not directly Aubrey’s actions that led Basil to take his life, it’s very impactful to see her begin to blame herself. It’s not right for her to blame herself—but that’s perhaps the only scene in the entire game where I really sympathized with her. It’s the only scene in the entire game where I truly saw that she wanted to change.

A quick note I wanted to pull out before finishing: the inclusion of the Hooligans. They were, again, fragments of an amazing arc. While they could’ve been a good way to show how kind Aubrey still is, they are thrown aside and mainly included in scenes where Aubrey is still being a bully. It’s in content outside of the game (see: Aubrey birthday comic) that they contrast Aubrey’s harsh exterior and show her sweet insides. But no, they’re underdeveloped and unutilized to make Aubrey’s arc feel doable.

There seems to be a very clear culprit to both this and the femme bully problem, and a solution that should’ve been considered more deeply.

rome wasn’t built in a day

There’s a loud rumor in the Omori fandom that Omori was originally supposed to take place over ten days rather than three days. While I’m not sure how much merit this rumor has, the fact that it exists leads me to my ultimate point:

Omori should’ve been longer.

Specifically, Omori should’ve taken place over a longer period.

EDIT: Before we continue, I just had an excellent conversation with a friend ( /ᐠ ._. ᐟ\ﾉ ). This solution only applies to if one is unwilling to change Aubrey's core character; essentially, the extent of her bullying. By making her someone who goes out of her way to torment Basil, significant screen time is going to be needed to properly unpack all that's been given. Making the base game ten days is only my opinion of the best choice, but there are other ways to solve this. However, the best course of action would be to change the extent of Aubrey's bullying on Basil—in other words, changing how Aubrey's anger presents itself.

For example, she would simply hold a grudge over what she believed was Basil destroying the photos, being extremely passive aggressive towards him. It would make a reconciliation between her and Basil, much, much more doable as well, perhaps him seeking her out in the first place in a peaceful manner to look for the photos. The lake scene could be an emotional explosion for her, perhaps finding out Basil just gave the photo album to Sunny, who is literally about to leave, and then pushes him into the lake. Then, the reflection she has next would fit what has tonally been established, seeming doable. She had, after all, been on good terms with Basil, even if for a little while.

By ‘lackluster narrative choices’, I am referring literally to the belief that Omori should not have been a game that took place in three days. I’m not here to argue about the game's mechanics—should Headspace have been that long? What is the point of a world created to serve as escapism, which should be fleeting moments of happiness, when it ends up being longer than the real world?—as much as I’m here to argue that this is a flaw of the game’s writing as opposed to a game design standpoint.

I’m not going to pretend I know how to make a video game. I’m enthusiastic about them, I follow their development and creation, and I strive to learn as much as I can about the ones that are dear to me, but I’m not going to pretend I know the first thing about making a video game. Omori’s development is one of the most infamous parts of its legacy, and the notion of extending the game would’ve only been another strain on the extended period between its announcement and its final release.

But, I know how to tell a story. Or, at the very least, I know what makes a good story. Now, the three days format of the game serves its other protagonists amazingly.

Sunny, whose arc mainly develops through the interfering ideas established in the real world and the ones previously established in Headspace, doesn’t need an extended time in the real world. His story takes place in his dreams, and the foundations of Headspace are already extremely insecure, based on the idea of covering up the truth. But when faced with a separate truth in reality, despite only a brief exposure, the lies created to protect Headspace fall apart. So Sunny’s arc does not depend on how long he spent in the real world.

Kel and Hero, on the other hand, have a very small arc. They are not flat and are very much dynamic when you compare how they started and how they ended up. However, the majority of their arc had taken place off-screen. The majority of their characterization does not occur through direct interaction with Sunny—we don’t learn about Hero’s depression because of him having a breakdown, but rather Kel discussing it. And in that same scene, we learn about Kel’s toxic positivity and the strain it’s taking on him, rather than through the game. This recontextualization is perfect for Kel and Hero. The change that occurred after Mari’s death is not easily seen by Sunny, and through it being slowly revealed instead, we learn the nature of their changes. Nonetheless, their changes occurred after Mari’s death and another change will occur most likely after the revelation of the truth—either way, their character arcs do not depend on the length of the three days. No amount of time would’ve changed them without Sunny revealing the truth (and as aforementioned, Sunny’s time was well spent in Headspace).

And finally, Basil. He's in the same boat as Kel and Hero, having an arc that occurs entirely off-screen. The difference is, however, the amount of emphasis the game puts on what happened to him as opposed to a few cutscenes with the brothers (though it is understandable, given his role as the game’s deuteragonist). His arc is a downward spiral, from an already unstable boy to an insecure mess who becomes obsessed with the sole idea of keeping his best friend safe. While it’s a progression of who he used to be, it’s development nonetheless, and it also happens off-screen. Given Basil’s fragile mindset, furthermore, the appearance of Sunny suddenly was enough to throw him off, given he was already planning on taking his own life. His rapid spiral into an even worse mess which leads to the fight between him and Sunny, therefore, is understandable. And, similarly to Kel and Hero, his real change will only occur after Sunny reveals the truth. Basil’s character development does not at all depend on how long the game would be.

The simple fact is that the other characters do not go through a drastic change on the days that Sunny comes out, and Sunny’s change was fueled by the existence of Headspace, not by the real world. The game taking place in three days does not affect the others. That is good storytelling. Using the game’s time frame to properly convey their arcs having occurred off-screen.

Aubrey, however, is not subject to that same praise. Her arc occurs on screen—while she descended to becoming a bully after Mari’s death, the arc we the viewer are supposed to acknowledge is her redemption. And three days just isn’t enough time.

The last two problems I covered, a lack of detailed backstory and a general lack of redeeming actions, lie in the same problem: the game went past those scenes far too quickly, as though Aubrey’s redemption is not essential to understanding her. It’s as though the game is trying to place importance on relationships and the joys of rekindling, rather than having to actually rekindle a relationship, having to put in the work. If the game had been slightly longer, Aubrey’s story could’ve been dealt with in a far more effective manner.

I am not Omocat, nor am I a part of the development team. I do not have the ideal solution for what could’ve been. I do, however, have a few ideas that I’d like you, my audience, to consider. How much do you think the game would’ve changed if it was ten days instead of three?

As already explained, Sunny, Kel, Hero, and Basil would not have had any significant difference if the game took place longer. Perhaps, there would’ve been a more natural awkwardness present that accompanies talking to someone for the first time in four years, but aside from that, the events of the game would’ve just taken longer.

Aubrey, however, would’ve had some actual thinking time. Her fight in the church would be her turning point, and her then isolation would feel like she had time to think things over. For a few days, Aubrey would have to be absent, and given the impression she left on the players, this absence would be heavily felt. It would be her return so much more effective, especially if she returns as someone who is unsteady due to their actions.

For the next few days, leading up to Aubrey deciding to stay the night at Basil’s house, we have the chance to know and forgive her better—perhaps, similar to Kel talking to Sunny about Hero’s depression, Aubrey can explain what it was like growing up in her household. Not as a defense, but as an explanation. She would do things with the rest of the group, and she would at a more natural rate, be integrated once again. And not just anything! She would actively help them with whatever the ten days would have to offer, and it would show that she is hurting over her actions.

And, finally, when she would decide to stay at Basil’s house, it wouldn’t feel like the game was just trying to have the cast together for one last moment, but it would feel like she’s trying to bridge the gap of all the hurt she created. When she would go to Basil’s door, it wouldn’t feel like the game was just trying to convince us to forget about her actions, but it would feel like she’s reflected and attempted a new leaf. And hopefully, the game would offer a more heartfelt apology, given more context and material to work with.

Four years of bullying can’t go away in ten days. But that’s not what the game was trying to argue in the first place—it wasn’t fully erasing Aubrey’s action, but trying to create the stepping stone for a way back. But the three days poorly argued her case, with a rushed and lacking version of redemption, and it made her ‘final character’ feel poor.

At the very least, ten days would have allowed the audience to empathize and begin to understand her. And, more importantly, it would’ve made sense that she understood the weight of her actions. And the Aubrey she became, whoever that girl would be?

She would’ve been so, so loved.

a little love in our lives

This has been on my mind for an awful lot of time. Sunny, as aforementioned, is one of my favorite characters of all time (if not my favorite), but the entire cast has a spot in my heart and is very dear to me. That includes Aubrey, but she benefits from association, which hurts me—I hate when girls in media are defined by their relationships with other guys. I wanted to get to the heart of why I couldn’t get her to stand on her own.

To summarize: Aubrey’s character was criminally mismanaged. Instead of it being a hopeful story of redemption, someone finally breaking the cycle of abuse and breaking free of her toxic household, seeking forgiveness by taking an active part in Basil’s healing, she is let off too quickly and makes all her further scenes feel twice as empty. The ideal solution would have been to have the game take place over a larger period, rather than a rushed three days, to allow the audience to empathize and relate to her.

Aubrey apologists truly astound me. I find so many flaws in her writing, and yet other people manage to see those flaws as perfections. I see people making very absurd, ableist arguments, and it makes me question the humanity of many fans, but I’ve always been intrigued by how many different perspectives there are surrounding her. I’ve seen some who relate to her because they were bullies or because they’ve been abandoned by others; so some valid reasons, and others very concerning. But it’s telling how our own experiences make us relate to different characters and help us understand why someone stands in the places they do.

…do you see what I did there? I started talking about relating backgrounds and how that benefits our understanding and— yeah, I suppose you understand, if you got this far (almost 6k words, you should be proud of yourself). If you’re still unfazed and believe that Aubrey’s writing was splendid, all the power to your fannish behaviors. But if I’ve opened your eyes a bit as to the flaws in her writing or if I’ve been able to explain your dislike of her, then I’m glad. It’s important to discuss things that didn’t stick the way they were meant to so that we can do better and we can learn.

Omori’s writing failed Aubrey. Some fans took that as a challenge. I’ve said before that canon interpretation should be separate from fanon interpretation, but I’d have to be heartless (Kingdom Hearts pun intended) to say that many fan’s interpretations didn’t get me to feel with her. I think Aubrey could’ve been brilliant, and while Omori didn’t fully capture that, a lot of fans did. So to everyone who makes art, whether it’s a drawing, a written work, a video, a song, an edit, or whatever, thank you for sharing it. Thank you for telling your stories.

I feel like writing these analysis pieces without connecting them to our own life experiences is pointless. So, to everyone else, please tell your stories. Tell your stories of redemption and love and forgiveness, because that’s what Aubrey’s story was meant to be about, and that’s what we all need in this world. Tell your stories, no matter what they are, because that is what ties us all together. We are made of stories and we return to them. We learn from them and we become better people. We become kinder—and we could all use a little more kindness in the world.

Thanks for reading!

#omori #omori meta #omori analysis #aubrey omori #media analysis #meta essay #literary analysis is my special interest #andrew's essays

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aemiron-main · 8 months

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heyy so. just wondering what happened with will80sbyers bcs i'm so confused??

Hey, anon! Great question, I’m going to use this ask to properly lay it out, seeing as many people (Dani included) seem determined to distort what actually happened. So, with that said:

What Happened Recently With Dani/ Will80sByers ?

I don’t really care anymore but I’m just going to just lay all of it out simply because I’m sick of being accused of saying/doing things that I didn’t do and also sick of watching Dani play the victim & continuing to double down on her gross comments as usual. Also I’m using screenshots simply because I’m sick of playing a game of telephone with this & I’d rather just put the screenshots right there instead of trying to paraphrase 50 million different posts.

So, it started here, when Dani made this post:

And look, I deeply disagree with that post (as I do with many of the posts of Dani’s that are going to be in that post), but that post wasn’t the issue (I’ll explain what the actual issue was in a second). And then, after Dani posted that, she got multiple anons (which, we'll also come back to Dani's responses to these anons in a second because that ties into my actual issue with Dani):

First anon:

Second anon:

Third anon:

Fourth anon:

And then Dani posted this:

And then Dani doubled down on this post in her replies:

I was sent screenshots of this post about rape forgiveness and of some of the previous anons since a.) it involved Edward etc and later b.) it involved Henry analysts being accused of being rapist apologists. I saw the anons before I saw the rape apologist post. And then Dani got this anon:

This anon claims to known “exactly” who is sending the anons and goes off about a bunch of stuff, and then Dani got this anon:

Accusing me of having sent this anon:

Which, is it just me or is it interesting that the original anon and the anon accusing me of having sent the original anon both have a very similar typing style, and that the person accusing me of sending it was super quick to point out things like the use of the word “rancid” which is supposedly an indication that I wrote the ask?

Like, is it not a bit odd that the second anon just immediately picked up on that? It’s almost like both anons were written by the same person, some person who clearly has some sort of issue with me and wants to make it seem like I was going onto Dani’s blog to start shit.

Whether people believe me or not, I know that I didn’t send that anon to Dani, so I’d love to know who did. It’s either somebody super passionate about Edward (which is a super tiny group of people), or, it’s somebody passionate about disliking me. If I wanted to criticize Dani’s analysis/takes on Henry/whatever, I would simply do so publicly, as I always have.

It’s funny to me that people will criticize me so often for being upfront about this stuff/”namedropping”/specifically for NOT doing things anonymously, but then as soon as anonymous stuff pops up, I’m the main suspect?? Make up your minds, please!

And anyway, that brief tangent aside, Dani also got this anon:

And for some reason, people were super upset that I “namedropped” Dani. Which I really don’t understand- she has a name/username that she displays publicly, and these are posts that she posted publicly. I don’t understand why it’s such a big issue to “namedrop” somebody regarding posts that they made publicly. I personally find the vaguing and dancing and around issues without ever saying names far more frustrating. If you’re willing to post something publicly under your public name/username that you choose to display on your blog, why is it such an issue for somebody to name you when discussing said post?? It’s not like I broke into her house and pulled the post out of a secret safe under her floorboards 😭😭

And it’s also funny as hell that Dani uses the word “spying” in this context because a.) people were dm’ing me the shit that she said, I wan’t “spying” on a damn thing and b.) even if i did go onto her blog, in what world is going onto somebody’s public blog with their public posts “spying”? It’s clear that Dani was just grasping at straws in an attempt to avoid addressing the actual issues at hand (her gross comments).

Dani claims that she was just “saying her opinion on a character,” and the anon says that I was shittalking Dani for her takes on Henry. Which, again, both of them are ignoring the actual issue here. Do I think that Dani’s takes on Henry are factually incorrect, deeply biased, and -gasp- even stupid? Yes. Would I have bothered making all of the posts that I did/would I have been as upset as I was if the issue was simply Dani having bad takes about Henry? NO!!!!!

Dani having bad takes and, specifically, having bad takes about Henry is nothing new. Sky is blue, grass is green, I think Dani’s takes on Henry and on the rest of the show are factually incorrect and heavily biased, as I always have. That wasn’t the key issue here.But as previously mentioned what I was actually upset about was:

a.) Dani comparing Henry analysis to rape sympathizers & saying that we would “probably forgive IRL rape” and also saying that would be “nazi sympathizers

b.) Dani making posts re: Henry where she made comments about people dealing with personality disorders in real-life and where she didn’t bother backing up any of her claims about “people who just want to kill people,” with any actual medical facts or actual disagnoses/actual facts about those diagnoses, and instead, relied on her surface-level opinions of Henry and his behaviour in the show to say that he had a personality disorder that just makes him want to kill people and then used THAT and Henry’s behaviour in the show to draw conclusions about real-life people with personality disorders.

It came across as weird and stigmatizing and ableist on Dani’s part, hence why I was upset by it. And hell, it wasn't even a Huge Issue at first. just ignorant and weird on Dani's behalf and, I just made a minor bitchpost about it, most of which was in the tags no less, and then the rapist/nazi comments were the big issue.

When it comes to the ableism, these three posts/responses of Dani’s were the ones I had an issue with:

1.)

2.)

3.)

The issues I have with these posts & why it comes across as ableist to me was that Dani never actually names this mysterious murderer personality disorder. She simply uses “personality disorder” as a stand-in to encompass all of Henry's traits (many of which are simply harmless autistic traits) and as far as I can tell, never actually named a specific personality disorder, and instead, just kept lumping all of Vecna's supposed crimes (rape, murder, etc) under some ambiguous serial murderer personality disorder. Dani also talked in one of those responses about Henry being born with a lack of empathy and that being tied to his personality disorder that makes him kill people which, not only is that a false claim about Henry (which isn't the point/issue here bc again I expect that from Dani), but it's also stigmatizing and weird/ableist to throw around a lack of empathy as being tied to the reason why he supposedly ends up as a murderer (dani also then tries to say he was born neutral and all his actions are just conscious choice which is weird considering that she Just connected his actions/murders to being the result of a lack of empathy without any actual evidence to support this and further stigmatizing anyone that's low-empathy. ) My main point is that it's definitely veering into ableism and hatred, specifically when Dani's talking in the context of real-life people, to never actually name a specific disorder, and instead just seemingly invent some sort of magical personality disorder that makes you a.) murder people and b.) unable to hold a conversation and also just seems to lump all personality disorders together. AGAIN, it wasn't even a huge issue at first, just annoyance with Dani's ignorance/her getting into ableism territory while acting morally superior, and the big issue was the rapist/nazi comments.

And Dani's response to criticism of ableism was as follows:

And regarding this, I know that Dani never outright said that all people with personality disorders enjoy killing people, but she IS claiming that people with personality disorders enjoy killing people & just using "personality disorders" as a lump term/she's coming very close to claiming that all people with personality disorders do. She literally just uses "personality disorder/personality disorders" as her reason for Henry/Vecna's crimes without ever actually providing an actual disorder or evidence. She IS lumping them together. It's right there in those anon responses from earlier. And I already talked in another post (way before any of this drama/not connected to Dani) re: why what we read in the scripts isn't some Inherent Truth, and that's neither here nor there because I'm not here to go through everything that's incorrect lore-wise/analysis wise in Dani's responses because i'd be here all day. I'm just trying to point out what the Actual Issue was re: ableism (which I just made one annoyed post about and the rest of my pissed off posting was regarding the rape apologist comment from dani so its not even like the ableism thing was a Massive Huge Issue at first), and the actual issue re: ableism and dani was the way that Dani just lumps all personality disorders together/uses "personality disorder" as this weird nebulous scapegoat for all sorts of crimes. And regarding, that one small annoyed initial post I made, this was it:

And it was specifically about Dani making things up about Henry and Edward re: some mythical magical personality disorder that they supposedly have that makes them want to kill people, and I was frustrated with the ableism involved in that.

And I also mention specifically in the tags of said post that this was regarding the the ableism (as I hadnt’ seen the rapist post yet), and how this wasn’t just a matter of me disagreeing with Dani/her having bad takes/how that wasn't the core issue but specifically a matter of the ableism and Dani acting morally superior while also continuing to use personality disorders as this nebulous scapegoat term.

And later on, as I mentioned earlier, Dani made this post:

Which, is pretty self explanatory, so then not only was I annoyed/bitchposting about Henry analysts being lumped in with rape apologists, but also about the comparison to nazi sympathizers. LIke. Come on. Dani sat there and complained about people "sending her mean anons over a tv show" while also calling people rapist and nazi apologists over a tv show. Personally, I'd take the mean anons any day.

So, long story short, anon- it was a shitshow. My actual issue was never Dani’s poorly done analysis/bad takes on Henry- my key issue was with Henry analysts being accused of forgiving IRL rapists & being compared to Nazi sympathizers simply for analyzing a character in a TV show.

And yet, Dani and all her asskissing anons continue to dodge the point (as usual) act like all of my frustration was simply because she doesn’t like Henry/because she disagrees with Henry analysis.

It’s annoying as all hell to watch Dani play the victim while missing the actual issue & acting like she’s being “harassed for sharing her opinion on a character,” when the actual issue at hand was her gross comment about rape apologism, her gross comment about nazi sympathizing, and her weird/very much bordering on ableist by being so broad & lacking actual evidence comments about personality disorders.

It’s especially annoying since if anyone harasses other people for sharing their opinions on characters it’s Dani accusing people of being biphobic when they disagree with her bi mike analysis, and Dani’s whole group of asskissing anons.

A few months back, I had to shut down my anon box entirely because I was just getting constant anons specifically regarding Dani and her posts & calling me biphobic for making gay Mike analysis/for criticizing literally any aspect of any bi Mike analyses and claiming that I was just being “misogynistic and biphobic” despite hilariously never actually being able to point to which of my claims were supposedly misogynistic or biphobic. And I also had some anons making comments about me being trans and how that must tie into internalized misogyny and biphobia and how I must not actually understand gay mens’ experiences and therefore it’s wrong for me to bring up gay mens’ experiences since I’m apparently just actually a bi girl who has internalized misogyny and biphobia, and not a gay trans dude. (I just ended up deleting/blocking those anons because the last thing I needed was ANOTHER round of terfs getting wind of it and hounding my blog, esp since this was in my earlier days on tumblr where I wasn't as comfortable with confrontation as I am now/didn't have a backup of my blog incase something happened, but now I wish I had them because it was rlly Smthn to say over to someone over st discourse)

And while it would be unfair to pin those anons on Dani specifically, as they’re anonymous and I don’t know who sent them, and while I’m not saying she sent them as I don’t actually think she did, they were definitely defending her/her analysis, and so it’s ironic to see the same sort of Dani stan anons who sent ME hateful stuff over my opinions on a character coddling Dani because somebody criticized her ableist remarks and her rape and nazi apologism remarks.

And those same sort of anons also kept telling me to shut up and not post anymore/hollered about how bad my gay Mike posts are which I don't give a shit I'll make whatever posts I want but again, just. Ironic. Considering how many of her anons were upset that Dani was being "silenced and harrassed".

And I’m far from the same person who’s dealt with bitchy anons tied directly to Dani’s fans/stans/little group, whatever you want to call it. Dani is well-known ATP for throwing biphobia accusations at anyone who disagrees with her analysis, so it seems like many of her comments about people (such as me) being unable to handle differing opinions are nothing more than projection on her part.

Anyway! There’s a long rant, anon! I’m over it at this point, but figured it’d be a good idea to summarize it all here, seeing as Dani seems fixated on making herself the victim & twisting things around as usual, and I don’t appreciate being made into some sort of bad guy for something that isn’t true/because Dani and others insist on ignoring the reality of what my issue was/why I was upset and accusing me of “sending my hounds” to Dani’s inbox.

Which like. What hounds?? What legions of people at my disposal do people think I have?? If my hounds are listening, can you guys do my laundry or smthn?? Can we meet?? Kiss on the mouth maybe??

Even the ableist/weird remarks about personality disorders weren't That Big Of A Deal, just ignorant and dumb on Dani's part, and I just made ONE minor bitchpost on the topic initially, but then I started getting accused of sending anons that I didn't send, and THEN dani came out with the rapist and nazi posts and THAT'S what sparked my main bitchposting/criticism of her.

Anyway, I never sent anyone to Dani, I never sent a damn thing to Dani my own self, *Bill Clinton voice* I DID NOT HAVE ANONYMOUS RELATIONS WITH THAT BLOG!!

Hope that finally clears things up for you and everyone else, anon.

(and also just as i was finishing this up, found out that dani as of this morning has apparently doubled down on the rape and nazi comments AGAIN. my god.)

#stranger things #em rants

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genericpuff · 18 days

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Idk if my addition will matter.

I've been following Hanza since back when they were making my deepest secret, so I've seen the development of the guy upstairs first hand and how hanza writes it. Even back in the concept stages, it was so blatantly clear that it was supposed to be a thriller/cat mouse vibe where Adam (killer) was horrible and not to be rooted for. They've compared him to irl serial killers and how those guys will often use women as shields to hide their true selves from the public and how that's messed up and bad to do.

They've shown Adam as a horrible irredeemable person and honestly there's little to no nuance with how they handle it, but that makes sense because how else can you handle an audience like what they've gotten without beating them over the head with the facts. How many ways can you outright show your main character despising and wanting to yank their best friend out of the jaws of a murderer before the audience realizes its not foreplay.

I think them going from an actual romance to a fully thriller non romantic story meant that the residual audience expected some kind of messy toxic romance, but Rozy to me has always explicitly read as Queer so idk why people aren't getting the hint.

I get their frustration and it seems like they might be shifting into a potiential issekai romance about a grandad and a middle aged woman who got reincarnated as his grandson's fiance (hard to explain but its hilarious if you want to check it out) without any thriller elements from their recent non comic posts. Whatever they do I hope they can find something to be passionate about again.

your addition VERY MUCH MATTERS actually because I don't read TGU and have very little context to the situation as a whole aside from what I've seen people talking about, which makes me reluctant to speak on it because I don't wanna go spreading misinformation in any regard. So I appreciate you taking the time to lay it all out for me, thank you!!! <3

And yeah, I've seen posts shared in the /r/webtoons sub from other blogs claiming that Hanza was being an awful person for "taking people's money" and "baiting them" into reading a dark romance story when that's very obviously not what it is? Even one excerpt that was literally like-

And I just... since when is any romance plotline that ISN'T abusive and problematic at its core (such as between a serial killer and a victim) considered "super conservative" and "pure"? It's really baffling to me how people have gone so far in the opposite direction of "purity culture" that they've started arguing on behalf of legitimately harmful and toxic relationships. It's extremely concerning especially when you know the majority of people saying this shit are between the ages of 16-21. IDK what the fuck we're doing anymore when it comes to the romance genre (and TGU isn't even a romance ffs).

Aaaand yeah in relation to where the Hanza topic came up, that's really why I'm moving away from WT as an audience and why I don't consider it a "loss" to not use WT anymore. Once upon a time I wished for Time Gate to be a contracted series, for it to have thousands of readers and be my job. But seeing what's going on with Hanza's work just informs me that I'd be dealing with a lot of the same shit - people expecting Uzuki and Mitsuhiro to be the endgame of the romance when they're literally NOT good for each other, which is the POINT. Like sure, unlike the main duo in TGU, they actually are a couple with a 'relationship' but it's not meant to be healthy and the last thing I need are 15 year olds thinking they're "couple goals". If you ship them in fanfic or w/e the fuck that's fine but please don't get mad at me when they don't wind up being the endgame couple, they're both terrible people and make each other worse when they're around each other (・_・;)

Either way yeah, I don't blame Hanza in the slightest for getting so frustrated with it all that they'd rather just be done with it. It sucks for the more loyal and sane part of their audience that the series is gonna be ripped out from under them like that, but at the end of the day if the creator is being harassed and decide they're done as a result of it... why should they have to keep putting up with bullshit just for a comic? I don't even blame Rachel if she was ending LO by choice due to the noise of the fandom, and unlike Rachel, I don't have anything in the slightest against Hanza or their work LOL But I also don't have the full picture on it all so maybe my opinion will change if I find out more about it. I just don't think any of this shit is worth directly harassing a human being over.

That said, can't get any better than someone who's read their work since before TGU, so again, thank you !

#ask me anything #ama #anon ama #anon ask me anything #webtoon critical

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ravenwitch45 · 11 months

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What would happen if Striker joined IMP if he was a good guy? It's an au.

Oh okay, the coolest part of this idea to me is that it nearly happened in canon. Blitz fully offered him a job and that only fell through because of Striker being contracted to Stella and trying to fulfill that, so let's get rid of that pesky hen's involvement and explore a little on what I feel could happen with this AU

Striker joining I.M.P as a good guy AU

Now let me get one thing clear off the bat, Striker is still kind of an ass, He and Moxxie still get off poorly, he's still very boastful and cocky. The only difference is he was never contracted, so no actual murder attempts this time, he accepts the job and everything is hunky dory.

Also I'm conflicted on if Blitz would want him to join in on the company car pool to work, and all the scenarions that could work with, or have Striker ride Bombproof there everyday so there's a horse around. Choose which you like.

I have a feeling if he kept bullying Moxxie, Millie would eventually come to his defense, no parents around to scold her this time. So he learns to back off and be nicer to his co workers, no reason to make people who have your back in tough situation mad at you after all.

He and Blitz get along the best, after all he's the guy he really synergized with during the festival, becoming a bit of a common duo on missions. Also he has a horse which we know makes Blitz like anyone a bit more.

Not sure how his and Loona's relationship would be, she seemed cool with him so maybe she's less standoffish to him, maybe calling him over to show him something funny on her phone, idk seems like it'd be a cute little friendship.

Now if he apoligized to Moxxie, and chilled out with the teasing, I think they could be decent friends, talking bout gun stuff and music, since they both seem to like those things, Maybe something more if you want a Strixxie situation that's pretty wholesome, either way I think they'd grow to like eachother.

With Millie her only problem with him here is him antagonizing Moxxie so if he settles that she's okay with him, I can imagine they sometimes talk about her family, mainly venting since they both knew them, and while Striker seemed cool with them, I feel he'd still get her frustrations a little, plus there both Wrath grown Imps it seems so theres also something shared to talk about.

Now with Stolas... Well I feel good or not Striker wouldn't be the biggest fan of royals, as it seems to be big part of his character so he sees Stolas as a necessary thing for the book, and prefers him not to be around. He's standoffish if they interact and Stolas hasn't a clue why, and just awkwardly walks off, though eventually I think he'd see Stolas is just as much a victim of the system as he is, and he chills out, after all I also feel for the sake of another thing I feel happening here they probably should.

Speaking of that, One thing I feel very strongly about in this AU is I think Blitz is going to ask Striker out eventually, since he clearly liked him and was attracted to him, and without the falling out I feel he'd ask him out. Cause if theres any kind of universe Stritz would work healthily, it's this one.

Now interpret how this goes anyway you want, Striker could just politely decline and they remain friends, they try it out but find they don't work, or they get together long term, I feel any could work here. This doesn't disqualify any other ships tho so have a big happy polycule with the cowboy involved someway. XP

Now I could go into how Striker would work in the other episodes he just wasn't in, in canon, but this post is long enough so I might make a part 2 for that if you want it, in the mean time let me list off some random scenarios I thought up.

Striker misplacing his hat and getting the whole team to help him look, Moxxie tries to give him one of his in the meantime but it just isn't the same to him so he's still grumpy untill they find his actual one.

Whatever situation he had to house Bombproof falls through so they try to find another way, and get into shenanigans along the way.

The whole company get's treated to a fancy dinner (Probably by Stolas) And Blitz insists they go as a team bonding thing, but it has a strict dress code and Striker refuses to wear anything fancy and without his ragged hat (Blitz and Millie end up having to wrangle him into a suit)

Also in general he's just a grump when they get him to try new clothes XP

Striker discovering Blitz in his apartment constantly, and dealing with the same stuff M&M do. To the point he puts rope traps around, and it blossoms into a full goofy war between him and Blitz on who can outsmart the other. Ending with both tangled up in the traps, and they have to call M&M for help

I hope this was a good list of ideas for this kind of AU. Personally I really like the idea of a Good/Redeemed Striker, as I like him a good bit, so this was fun, also even if I don't personally ship them, the ships with Striker with one or some of the I.M.P members I've seen some cute stuff in passing, and this AU seems perfect for those.

#ask reply #helluva boss #helluva striker #helluva boss au #blitzo #helluva moxxie #helluva millie #helluva loona #stolas goetia #my writing

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roseapprentice · 11 months

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Please stop talking as if fact is a single, immutable category!

I find this so frustrating. People on both sides of an argument will say, "You'd agree with me if you cared about the facts!" and not see that they're being vague to the point of meaningless.

Fact means so many different things! Depending on context.

A fact mostly means a claim that someone checked in a special way to make sure it's true.

For example: A historical fact might have multiple independent written accounts from the relevant time that agree with each other.

For human-centered events from most of recorded history, that's an especially concrete form of evidence. But it's flimsy enough that even among rigorous historians, some widely accepted historical facts are probably false.

A scientific fact usually demands enough testing that we can rely on it to be generally true. But we judge a hypothysis as factual based on how directly and consistently it predicts the universe's behavior. Those predictions can always get more precise, so there's always room to expand or refine scientific fact.

(Sometimes scientists do a bad job of sizing up how well tested something is. Especially with messy stuff like psychology and the narrowest margins in medicine, where the subject of study acts super inconsistent.)

A fun fact is typically a false or oversimplified claim based loosely on a piece of scientific or historical research. (E.g. goldfish memory.)

A legal fact sometimes means a claim that has undergone a special legal process, like a ruling or a verdict. This is a notoriously unreliable way of determining truth, but it can still be pivotal to know whether or not a statement is legally factual.

Other times in the legal jargon, fact means, "Whatever the heck actually happened." (E.g. "After the fact," to mean "After the victim became dead by disputed means.")

I don't think we ever know what's true with airtight certainty. But some claims have passed tests of truth that are so thorough, and so effective, that we have a duty to act like they're true unless we learn different. (E.g., germ theory or the mechanisms of climate change.)

Some facts we have a responsibility to take seriously. Some, we have a responsibility to doubt.

If you don't understand the gravity of the difference then I don't think you understand facts very well, and I don't trust you to use facts to make the world better.

(BTW if this post gets traction, a bunch of experts will probably jump in to point out how it's wrong or oversimplified, and that is a beautiful thing.)

#rose posted this #facts #epistemology

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buckybarnesss · 5 months

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("of course he was hesitant to break up with her again because the last time he saw her before she got amnesia she stormed into his work place, kicked his desk into a wall, yelled that he betrayed her not allowing him to explain and they had fought multiple times before that. the relationship was toxic and he was very clearly scared of her reaction and that she would lash out at him")

good to know that you think that korra is an abuser who has power over mako in the relationship and mako is the victim who is afraid of her.

ah. i knew i was going to get an anon like this when i made that post. this fandom is so fucking predicable.

i never called korra an abuser in did i? no. you came into my inbox accusing me of using words i didn't say but since you wanna get into this discussion.

season 2 korra is the worst version of her. she is down right insufferable at times. she's hot headed, impatient and tempestuous with seemingly little emotional regulation. her behavior towards nearly everyone is immature.

this is a direct result of korra's insular upbringing which is she is not at fault for and is part of the reason she's so incredibly angry in season 2. she is totally justified in her anger over it, actually. it left her not just ignorant of the world to a large degree but underprepared for the more social aspects of being the avatar. truly the white lotus fucked up.

while korra's anger and frustrations are understandable and even relatable it does not make it okay for her to take them out on mako.

it's so odd because people will hate korra for these very things but offer her grace in how she treats mako. yet mako is rarely afforded any grace at all by the same people. in fandom i often see all the blame placed entirely on mako's shoulders. either you think korra is an equal partner in the relationship or you don't.

they're both maladjusted teenagers and it's their first real serious romantic relationship. they're both stubborn and their tempers flare. korra repeatedly seeks advice from mako and dismisses whatever he says. he tries to be protective when that's definitely a misstep as it comes across as paternalistic to korra when for mako it's a way he shows his care and love for someone.

that said, understanding why korra behaves the way she does it still doesn't make it okay how she treats her boyfriend.

it is unacceptable that she stormed into his place of work, yelled at him in front of his coworkers and kicks his desk into a wall. she is in the wrong for this.

i promise it's okay to call korra out on her bad behavior.

does it make her abusive? in the moment? yes.

look, this is a cartoon. a more mature one for sure and still imparts valuable lessons but like i don't think korra has a pattern of long term abusive behavior and she does learn and grow from this. both her and mako move beyond this, forgive each other for their bullshit and become good friends. it's fandom that continues to hold a grudge against mako.

korra's mistreatment of mako is also side by side in this particular season with the blatantly abusive relationship bolin is trapped in with eska and the comment lin made that implies she fucked up air temple island after she and tenzin broke up.

the eska/bolin relationship and lin's comment are played for laughs and mako in later seasons is made fun of for his ineptitude in his relationships with asami and korra.

all of these decisions were made by the writers and they are fucked for that in my opinion.

the incident at the police station makes mako uncomfortable in their next encounter when he discovers she doesn't even remember they broke up. mind you when he does meet korra again there's a very deliberate moment of her firebending at a dummy whose straw head lands at his feet.

mako's reaction is understandable. he doesn't want to embarrass korra in front of everyone and he's concerned about her reaction to the news they broke up considering her behavior towards him previously. he is somewhat scared of korra here. i think we can acknowledge that.

he knew he fucked up though and he does apologize for it.

now to address the other thing.

korra has more social power than mako. she is the avatar and the daughter of a southern water tribe chieftain. she has all the advantage and privilege over him.

in fact, the entirety of season 2 is mako essentially having less social capital and privilege than those around him and it lands his ass in jail after being framed for the cultural center bombing because he stepped on the wrong toes

make no mistake korra, varrick, asami and lin have more social capital and power over mako than he does over them.

i guess we're not supposed to acknowledge that though.

#my blog #lok #legend of korra #mako

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alittlefrenchtree · 4 months

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@ "I know well Internet is shit" Anon : I’m late to answer not because I was ignoring you but I couldn’t do it sooner. Sorry about that 🙏

I’m not posting your ask not because there is something wrong with it but because I will always do what I can to prevent putting any sort of spotlight on things that shouldn’t be highlighted. For the sake of the understanding of this all conversation, Anon is pointing out the many ways Taylor has been a target of Internet people (mostly for stupid reasons) and why he seems to be more of a target than others. They’ve mentioned racism being the only reason they can think of, that and people being blatantly mean on the Internet.

[My answer turned out to be some kind of thoughts dump that are more or less articulated and sometimes barely even legitimate points. So read them as what they are: just thoughts]

I globally agree with you. Many people on the Internet are not much different than uneducated bullies in school. They’re going to pick up someone to bully over a stupid reason and that’s it. And I mean it could be anything. Being a poc is one of them but we’ve seen people being targeted for being too old to interact with their fave (as many young people seems to see as some sort of crime if there is more than a 18 months age gap between two people saying hello to each other), too tall, too short, too rich, too poor or because they’ve once been seen in the same room as someone they don’t like. It’s all so very stupid. The reason why bullies are bullying never comes from the victim. They bully to feel better about themselves, because they’re frustrated and sad.

That being said, of course there is racism in this that shouldn’t be dismissed in any case. The constant talk about the shade of his skin, whatever it comes from director, casting people or people of the Internet is revolting in itself. People targeting because he’s not white enough or not brown enough or whatever other non sense you can read and here is disgusting.

Is it the main reason why he’s a target? I don’t know. Probably. Is it the only reason? I’m not sure but I have theories.

Like said, being a public person automatically makes you a target.

In the case of Taylor, I have several ideas. And to be clear, none of the reasons I’ll list is me saying this is his fault or that he should act differently. Again, being the target of bullying is always the bullies’ fault and they should be changing their behaviors.

-Him being very present on social media is making him an easier target. Even if some of his posts could be very much handled by someone else, I believe many things are coming from him directly and it shows. There is a reason why public people stop using their accounts all together or give their accounts to be handled by someone else as a job. It’s almost impossible to do it yourself without threatening your mental health. It’s not natural for a human being (and brain) to be on the receiving end of that much attention, scrutiny and hundreds of thousands of people in general. It’s like mentally living in a zoo, without much breaks to breath. And look at what living in a zoo does to animals.

So Taylor still being here (and him still trying speaks volume about the person he is) doesn’t help. People tend to think they’re close-ish to him or can be close or can get to him or be seen or whatever and they thing they have some kind of rights over him. That they can held him accountable for everything and anything they want.

The thing is, when a public person completely disappear from social media, there can be another effect: "since they’re not going to read it, I can say the most atrocious things on their @ or DM, it doesn’t matter since no one is reading them". Which is kind of bullshit because when you said things on a public platform, even deep in the dark sides of the Internet, you never know who is reading and who you’re hurting. But it can work for the public person concerned, because all you have to do is never look at your public accounts and all of that disappear since these very brave (no) people only exist on the Internet.

-Him being kind and giving and generous could be a reason. It’s all theoretical obviously but someone who is nothing but nice can make people a bit itchy? Since people love to criticize they would try to find a reason to do it, even if there is none?

-Him having an active fandom ready to defend him each time probably doesn’t help. People usually express themselves on social media to get attention, and it’s known that, very often, the meaner you are, the more terrible the things you say are, the more attention you get?

-Even if beauty privilege is a thing on certain situations, him being so goddamn beautiful and coming from a fashion background probably doesn’t help him at the start of his acting career. It’s hard to be taken seriously as an actor in general, but when your background could somehow (rightfully or not) imply that you got to the acting industry thanks to something else than you acting talent (by being too pretty for you own good, for example), people can be quick to react a certain way.

-…which is related to (hopefully) my last point. I’m not sure how to say that without sounding disrespectful because this is very much not my intention but… For now, his career is too light (and, like a previous ask was saying "romcom oriented" for now) for some people to take him seriously as an actor? Again, this isn’t my saying or saying anything about him or his amount talent but saying everything about people who are making him a target because of that.

You’ve rightfully mentioned many other things. The comparaison with Nick was inevitable, sadly. It happens all the time when a duo is making something big, people are going to take a side and compare because people love that unhealthy habit of comparaison.

You’ve also mentioned that stupid twitter people who woke up the other day and decided to wrongly use the queerbaiting debate ONCE AGAIN and throwing Nick’s name in the mix. It’s a all other subject that would deserve a whole post but that kind of fake and performative activism makes me so angry because it actually makes so much wrong (for everyone and for queer actors and actresses). Hiring openly queer people is a legitimate and important fight that should be fought but god some people are doing it all wrong.

So yeah. All of this rambling to say: Yes, it’s probably racism sometimes. And yes, it’s probably other stupid reasons as well some other times.

Again for those who will be quick to misread my words and jump on the wrong conclusion.

The reason why bullies are bullying never comes from the victim. They bully to feel better about themselves, because they’re frustrated and sad. None of the reasons I’ve listed is me saying this is his fault or that he should act differently.

I’d say sorry for the rant but you’ve started so I’m just going to shake your hand I guess? 🤝 You said it makes you sad and I’m so sorry for this. Whenever you feel like it’s taking you down a bit, go write something nice to Taylor on instagram or threads or whatever. Don’t mention the bad, don’t say sorry for something you’re not responsible for, just tell him how much his previous work mean to you. How excited you are for his next projects. Show support and love, it’s all that matter in the end 💜

#alft asks #taylor zakhar perez #tzp

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