#because you cannot constantly be blaming it on bad writing when if it was the og male character with the same writing you would love it.

[grimbeak]

i don't hate this sequel media where the main character is a woman (compared to the og media where the main character is a man) actually. i think you guys are just kind of misogynist.

#look. literally no one is perfect literally everyone has biases no matter whether they're internal or not. #however. you need to accept that you have those biases and work to be better #because you cannot constantly be blaming it on bad writing when if it was the og male character with the same writing you would love it. #this is about #star wars #legend of korra #13th doctor #'the timeless child are was horrible' i can guarantee you that a majority of you would have Loved it if david tennant was the doctor at the #time. #also on literally every single fucking post i see about 13. EVERY SINGLE ONE. there is a comment ab how the writing did her dirty. #compared to other seasons and episodes where the writing was also iffy but the doctor was a man. where you see almost 0 of those comments. #you don't have to constantly say it's bad writing. #im not accusing you of being totally misogynist. but there is SO MUCH internal bias that i see that you refuse to acknowledge. #you need to fucking accept that and think 'if this character was a man would i like her better' because the answer to that is almost always #yes. #you would. and that's. not fine. but as long as you can accept that and WORK on those biases. #sorry just. jesus christ i'm so fucking tired. #discourse

[greatstormcat]

Head canons for the 141

SFW

Gaz:

* Has a bit of a temper but he keeps it in check when absolutely necessary, and appreciates the others keep him in line.

* Brave, almost to the point of foolishness at times. The man keeps getting back in those helicopters Price sends him on after all.

* Big family, has a good relationship with them, lots of sisters and he is the only boy his parents had.

* Sings to himself constantly and has a great voice.

* Has a Nintendo Switch he hides from the rest of the team, and plays Pokémon games when he struggles to sleep between missions.

* Has a skincare routine when not in the field, and doesn’t care what anyone says about it.

* Highly competitive, will turn anything into a sport. Misses gymnastics sometimes.

Price:

* Refuses to not get the job done, and will justify the hell out of doing what he sees as necessary.

* A sod for working on the principle that tomorrow’s problems belong to tomorrow, and he will worry about them then.

* Dreams of retiring to a little house in the countryside somewhere and going fishing whenever he wants. Is really frugal and is putting as much money away for this as possible.

* Also dreads retiring, as he loves his work and the Taskforce.

* Avid metal head, has been to more concerts than he cares to admit.

* Speaks to his dad regularly but they aren’t close, his mum passed away when he was younger. No other family.

* Gets on really well with Laswell’s wife and gets invited for Thanksgiving every year. Laswell tolerates this.

Soap:

* Has a big family and loves them all very much. Never misses a birthday even if he just sends a text, or asks his mum to pass a card on if he is going to be on deployment.

* Very determined and takes being told he cannot do something as a challenge.

* Loves mathematics, despises writing.

* Very good at reading people, and will use this to manipulate them if needed but doesn’t aim to hurt anyone. Has got himself into trouble with this more than once though.

* Horrendously handsy and flirty when drunk, and insists he can do karaoke, which he cannot.

* Cannot stand spicy food. Got pranked by Los Vaqueros in Mexico and spent the rest of the time there eating only freeze dried ration packs.

* Has a small stuffed bear one of his nieces gave him when on leave once that he keeps in his vest.

Ghost

* Highly observant, sees small details that other people easily miss.

* Cocky and self-confident, refuses to let his past define him.

* Has learned to sleep anywhere and everywhere, but gets bad nightmares from time to time.

* Knows his size and appearance has an affect on people and is only too happy to use that to his own advantage.

* Isn’t ashamed of his looks or scars, despite what people assume because of his mask. He likes the anonymity the mask provides so he can separate Ghost and Simon. He looks forward to one day putting the Ghost persona away for good but is happy to use it for now.

* Really likes cats.

* Plays pranks on people and lets Gaz or Soap take the blame for them as he knows no one believes he would do childish shit like that.

* Thinks Gregg’s is over rated and will argue this for hours.

* Donates to children’s charities regularly.

NSFW below the break, MNDI 18+

Gaz:

* Loves anal. He worked out how to get the most mind destroying orgasms out of you when you let him train your ass, and lets you return the favour if you ask nicely.

* Sets up threesomes with Soap on occasion and one day even suggests a poly relationship with him. Openly bisexual.

* Buys all your underwear for you, even the comfortable stuff, so he knows when he is away that only things he has chosen for you are against your most intimate parts.

* Has a free use policy with you, will do things to you in public discreetly just to see you squirming. Once pinned you up against the wall behind the pub when you went for drinks with the Taskforce and fucked your brains out. Soap was look out for him.

* Top, but will switch on the rare occasions.

Price:

* Totally Daddy Dom, will not let you call him anything other than that when you are alone. Will not answer you until you call him Daddy, and will bend you over his knee and spank you until you sort that attitude out.

* Loves to have you in his office when he can, either under his desk or bent over it. Never locks the door no matter how much you ask him to.

* Praises you so much when you do things well. Rarely degrades you unless you really push his buttons, and then gives extra special aftercare when your punishment is over.

* Very into somnophilia, loves seeing you asleep and being able to touch you when you are completely relaxed and compliant for him. Gets hard telling you what he did the next morning, might even demonstrate.

* Loves getting a slow blowjob from you in his armchair at home while he smokes a cigar and drinks a scotch. Calls it Daddy’s Special Time.

* Top only.

Soap:

* Rigger. Has a massive collection of high quality rope in every colour under the sun. Often comes back from deployments with a new tie he wants to try that he found online. Is never the Rope Bunny though as he is so particular about it and says your nots are untidy.

* Massive exhibitionist, really gets off on having Gaz or Ghost watch him doing things to you. Asks your permission to share photos and videos with friends, and loves when you post your photos online.

* Once ‘borrowed’ a set of NODs from the base so he could hunt your through the local woods in the dark for CNC. Still says that was the best night of his life, as do you.

* Has a case full of impact play toys he calls his ‘Weapons Of Ass Destruction’.

* Switch.

Ghost:

* Simon is the sweetest, most tender lover in the world and would never say a mean word or raise a finger against you. Never wears the mask at home as you deserve to see everything and he trusts you.

* Loves to watch you ride him and when you get tired will use his hands to move your hips to get that extra orgasm out of you, telling you how pretty you look all the time.

* But Simon knows that Ghost has an effect on you too. You saw him in full kit & mask once and your pupils blew wide with lust. when he made a point of leaning over you he was convinced you nearly orgasmed on the spot while cowering.

* When Ghost is brought to the bedroom he isn’t gentle, he will pin you to the nearest wall/surface and fuck you raw. Overstimulating you until tears run down your face and always telling you to give him just one more before he cums.

* Ghost will degrade you, spit in your mouth and dominate you.

* Ghost will edge you for hours and then break you to pieces, but Simon always puts them back together again afterwards with sweet kisses and praise.

#cod 141 #cod modern warfare #cod mwii #cod mw2 #cod #cod mw22 #gaz cod #gaz garrick #soap cod #cod soap #simon ghost riley #simon ghost riley smut #soap smut #captain john price #captain price #price call of duty #tf 141 #cod headcanons #price smut #john price x you #ghost call of duty #cod smut #ghost cod #ghost simon riley #kyle gaz garrick #kyle garrick cod #141 headcanons #task force 141 #141 shenanigans

[anastasiareyreed]

all russians are guilty and let me explain why.

make yourself comfortable, it's gonna be a long ride.

you might notice that every time, if russians appear in a movie, series or documentary, they have either done something criminal, are doing it or are planning to do it. because the entire history of russia's existence is built on crimes, wars, genocides and occupations — Ukraine, Syria, Georgia, Chechnia and many more.

russia unleashed the most frequent genocidal attacks against Ukraine. occupation of Ukrainian lands and enslavement of Ukrainians, constant persecution and murder of speakers of the Ukrainian language, Ukrainian poets, writers, teachers — the entire nation, any Ukrainian figures of culture or politics. And, of course, the awful Holodomor (if you more into visualization, watch the movie about the Holodomor — «Mr Jones».)

no matter who is in power, throughout its existence, russia has been trying to destroy Ukraine and everything related to Ukrainian culture and history.

first of all, I think the terms «guilty» and «bad» must be separated here. I'm not saying all russians are bad, because «bad» is quite subjective and vague term. just like term «good». a person can be good in relations with neighbors, good at their job or good meaning polite. but what happens to a «good» person who stands by when other people are killed, tortured and raped in front of this person's eyes and on this person's behalf? this person becomes guilty. and many can and DO have the right to call and consider this person bad.

what exactly you are doing when you write «not all russians support the war»? you tell Ukrainians that THIS TIME there are definitely good russians, good guys among the people who constantly repressed Ukrainian people. but let me tell you this. if ten people stand in front of me and tell me that only one of them probably is not a murderer, I WILL NOT trust that person. I won't risk my life, and I'm sure you won't either.

I, like many Ukrainians, had friends or relatives in russia. but all of us were betrayed by these people, because it is in their DNA to put themselves above Ukrainians. and it's quite unreasonable in the digital age to justify their position about war by the fact that they don't know anything and totally drowned in propaganda. do they not know how to search for information, use their phones, computers or brain?

when you say that right now not all russians are against Ukraine or Syria, you cannot be sure that a russian who writes «I don't support the war» is telling the truth. that this person is not trying to maintain their public image and avoid condemnation. how can we believe the word of the representatives of the nation that every decade wage a war? the presumption of innocence doesn't apply here, hundreds of thousands of victims of russia are proof of that.

my favorite topic that people like to manipulate is how can we blame russian children. sure, we are in our right mind, so we don't say that a russian child is as guilty as an adult russian man who raped Ukrainian children and tortured Ukrainian women and men. we say that the russian child must know and feel collective responsibility from an early age, so that in the future the child doesn't take the place of that adult russian man.

while other countries honor the memory of their heroes and victims of the WWII on the day of victory over the fascists, only the russians proudly and joyfully said every year that they could repeat and start another war. which they did. that's why russian children should see that the world associates russia only with death, crimes and wars. that the world doesn't tolerate russian products, art, culture or people. this is the only way children will be able to realize from an early age that this way of russia's lifestyle is condemned by the world and must be radically changed.

Ukrainian and Syrian children, who are currently suffering from russia's actions, grew up too early and lost their childhood, they know what war is, know that it's evil and russia is a terrorist state. russian children should know this as well, so that the changes in the russian mentality — that the world has been waiting for several centuries in a row​ — have come.

you say russian children are not guilty, sure, but they are taught that war is branded, powerful, cool and solid. Ukrainian and Syrian children are not guilty, but they are taught how to act if their parents are killed by a russian missile. you say russian youth are not guilty and shouldn't risk their future to protest against the war. Ukrainian and Syrian youth are not guilty, but every day they give their lives for the freedom that the russians are trying to take away.

russian soldiers who went to kill Ukrainians and Syrians. russians who are relatives, friends or colleagues of these soldiers. russians who openly support wars in Ukraine & Syria or show their passivity. russians who volunteer to support the russian army. russians, who for centuries raised their children with imperialist views and contempt for other nations and races. and, as history shows, will continue to raise in the same way, no matter how the war ends. if russia loses they will raise children ready for another revenge. if russia wins they will raise children with mindset that Ukrainians are an inferior nation. russians have hundreds of years of experience in it. ask how the peoples that russia once occupied live today.

imagine what those hundreds of thousands of russian soldiers would achieve not on peaceful Ukrainian streets, killing people, but somewhere in a square in moscow, protesting against the war. soldiers, their relatives, friends and neighbors. eight years ago, Ukrainians protested against the dictator, dying for their principles and freedom.

Iranians went against a real dictator, dying for their principles and freedom. because this is the only way to achieve change.

the only «protest» action of russians is to post a picture somewhere online or to stand peacefully for half an hour in a small group of people, passively holding «no war» piece of paper and leaving before dark, because tomorrow they have to go to work or universities. russians support the war or simply don't care, because it's easier to live that way. if they chose collective indifference, they must face collective responsibility.

your «not all russians are guilty» is based on your assumptions about the good faith of russians, a naive idea of what this nation really is. my «all russians are guilty» is based on hundreds of years of history of relations between russia and Ukraine. on the number of wars russia has waged in the past and is waging now, the number of nations it has destroyed and the number of evil actions the world has forgiven the russians, hoping that THIS TIME everything will definitely be different.

#please share #stand with ukraine #russia is a terrorist state #free syria #long post #spread #spread the word #signal boost #russia invades ukraine #russian agression #russian terrorism #stop russia #fuck russia #help ukraine #support ukraine #save ukraine #ukraine #syria #syria news #syrian war #current events #russia #russian war in ukraine #russian war in syria

[dancingdonatello]

Can I request a Rottmnt (separate) x gn! villain reader (romantic) who has glitching powers? They can glitch through walls, hack machines, and can make attacks go through them instead of hitting them.

So, by villain, I mean that reader was manipulated into becoming a villain because of their past. And they are very emotional, so when the turtle and reader first meet, he tries to talk to them, reader gets angry and attacks the turtle.

rottmnt x gn villain reader

Raph hates fighting you. He knows you’re not really evil, that it’s just circumstance, but you won’t listen to him when he tries to talk you out of it.

He gets frustrated because of it and it only fuels your fight. He feels bad when you get emotional, because he can’t do anything to help you. You just won’t—or can’t—listen to him.

He hates your powers too. They’re too confusing for him and powerful to the point where sometimes he is forced to hurt you to be able to protect himself and his brothers.

Leo on the other hand loves to fight you. It’s confusing to fight you, kind of like Ghost Bear, but it’s fun to watch Donnie freak out when his tech malfunctions when you touch it.

He likes watching you get all mad when he doesn’t take the fight seriously. Sure, he’s heard your tragic backstory and yeah, he’s figured out that you’re being tricked and manipulated into doing all of this, but who can blame him for laughing when your face twists up at one of his jokes?

He feels bad, of course, but in his mind you are just another villain. His plan is to take you down first and then work out the details of you being tricked. He doesn’t hold back any punches.

Donnie has a love-hate relationship with you. It was frustrating to try and be nice to you only for you to attack him. It was infuriating to try and be nice to you only for you to absolutely ruin his tech behind repair.

After he gets over that part, he becomes obsessed in working together with you. His mind cannot handle the possibilities of you two combining forces. He doubles his efforts in trying to get you back to the ‘good’ side and get payback at whoever hurt you or tricked you into doing this.

He makes tech that he can afford to throw away to fight you just so he can get more opportunities to see you in action and talk to you.

Mikey really tries to befriend you. But with you constantly trying to punch him whenever he gets close makes it hard to do so.

He thinks about you all night after your first fight, trying to figure out how to convince you to join their side. Your first meeting is stuck playing in his mind on repeat.

He takes a lot of hits constantly to try and get close and he also never fights back. Every fight, he never once attacked you. His brothers have to work overtime to protect him.

this is such a cool idea anon! maybe one day you could or request someone else to write this out as a full oneshot or fic. there’s definitely potential.

#rottmnt x reader #rottmnt x gender neutral reader #rottmnt x gn reader #rottmnt fanfiction #rottmnt #donnie x reader #rise donatello x reader #michelangelo hamato x reader #leonardo hamato x reader #rise donnie x reader #raphael hamato x reader #donatello hamato x reader

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

Will we never see the day the Harkles get what they deserve rumour tracking anon? I'm losing faith and I'm really tired. They are saved from all those scandals that demand their answer just with this one incident. I cannot anymore

I know, anon. It's really frustrating to see them keep getting away with it, almost as if they're constantly rewarded for bad behavior.

Some things that have helped me (bolding for emphasis to break up the giant chunks of text):

Taking breaks. Just walk away from it. A day, a weekend, a week. There isn't a whole lot happening in the BRF to counteract the Sussex shenanigans so Harry and Meghan are dominating the news There are no tiara or glam events. No tours/foreign visits. No projects being announced. 3 out of 7 senior royals are on medical leave and the ones who are working don't generate the same kind of headlines, attention, or coverage. Take a break from all this - maybe do a deep dive into another royal family or read historical books about the BRF (especially ones that pre-date the modern House of Windsor) or non-text books (like Angela Kelly's books or Chris Jackson's photobooks).

Spend time pursuing a creative hobby. I find that doing something creative helps keep my mind from wandering to the Sussexes and the nothingness coming from the BRF too often. Some of my creative pursuits: baking and cooking new recipes, DIY and craft projects (I love going to Goodwill, thrift stores, and architectural salvage places for home decor and furniture. Also, I'm not saying you need to pledge allegiance to Catherine, The Princess of Wales in every aspect of your life, but I'm also not not saying that Kate's Ring is an excellent accent color for an end table), learning how to make craft cocktails (it was a pandemic thing), and organizing decades and decades of family photos.

What I also find a cathartic is fanfiction writing. I've had dreams of being a writer since I was Princess Charlotte's age but listen. I cannot stick to a plot for the life of me, because I always want to know "what happens next." But let me tell you. It is hugely cathartic to write a fanfiction novel where a Meghan-like evil witch gets everything she deserves and a Harry-like tortured prince is redeemed by the pure love of an ordinary American girl (okay, that one was pre-Oprah before we all learned how truly messed up Harry is) or where a revenge fantasy where a Harry-like spoiled brat loses everything when he treats his saintly Kate-like girlfriend abominably and when he tries to win her back, she's fallen in love with a Henry Cavill-like swashbuckling Real Man or where the Harry-and-Meghan-like entitled spoilt prince and his wife try to overthrow the saintly and universally loved heir but the Queen swiftly, immediately, justly, and properly handles them with eviction, termination, and worldwide embarrassment. You can do everything to your characters and you can make them suffer in a way the real Harry and Meghan may never.

Find trashier, more trainwreckier drama to get stuck in. Bravo, anyone? A new season of Vanderpump Rules has just started, Summer House is about to start, and two of the villains from OG Vanderpump Rules (Jax and Kristen) have a spinoff series that's about to launch.

Changing your perspective. There's a famous leadership quote about problem-solving: How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. In other words, you have to take big things (big problems) one at a time, piece by tiny piece. So yes, the big "elephant" is that the Sussexes look like they have everything - they still have titles, they still have massive million-dollar deals, they've got the Olive Garden, the BRF isn't stopping their PR. But also look at everything they don't have anymore:

They can't use their HRHs.

Their RPOs were taken away.

Their royal charities and patronages were taken away.

Charles isn't paying them as much money, if he's even paying for them.

Everyone is blaming them for hastening Philip's and The Queen's deaths.

They were evicted from Frogmore Cottage.

It took six months for the palace website to add Prince/Princess titles to Archie and Lili but it was instanteous to change George, Charlotte, and Louis to "of Wales."

Charles calls them "Harry and Meghan" or "my other son and his wife."

The family doesn't want to be seen with or around them. Even Eugenie seems to have abandoned ship these days.

William isn't taking Harry's calls.

Lili doesn't have a webpage on the royal website.

Harry's military titles and honors have been revoked. All he has left is the merit-based rank he "earned" as an enlisted soldier. (Which is being generous.)

Their Spotify deal was cancelled early. (Scobie admits this in Endgame.)

No more social media birthday greetings/shout-outs from official royal accounts.

Nothing has come out of Netflix except a whinefest docuseries that no one has taken seriously. Everything they've pitched gets shot down and Meghan isn't getting the talent she wants for her movie.

The only awards they're getting are the ones that they pay for - no Grammys for Spare's audiobook, no Emmys or Golden Globes for their documentaries or the Oprah interview, no Pulitzers or Literary Awards for their books. No Nobel Peace Prize for their recordbreaking humanitarian aid work.

They got the knockoff Kennedys (William got the real ones).

Meghan isn't "in" with A-List Hollywood. The celebrities she's been namedropping haven't had commercial box office hits in at least a decade. She isn't hosting or presenting at award shows.

Meghan isn't getting the lucrative influencer sponsorships and merching she wants, which is why she papwalks in parking lots.

Their foundation is a joke and their philanthropy/giving is increasingly under scrutiny for things that don't make sense.

Their "good deeds" are actually ulterior motives designed for maximum PR and celebrity bandwagons, rather than actually helping underserved communities.

There is actual, open, frequent speculation that their children aren't even real and that has to hurt as a parent.

The British press doesn't take them seriously.

They're a comedy punchline, and not just for satire. The Golden Globes made fun of them. The whole world laughed at them after the "car chase."

Harry's lawsuits aren't going well. He's now trying to relitigate a court finding so he doesn't have to pay his fines.

Elton John isn't flying them anywhere anymore. Oprah and Gayle have cut ties. Ellen DeGeneres seems disinterested. Tyler Perry noped out.

Harry's balding is atrocious. (I mean, really. In the overhead camera angles of The Queen's funeral, his bald spot jumps out at you from a mile away. Not even William's bald head stands out that much.)

They/Archewell bleed staff faster than a flesh wound.

Andrew -- ANDREW! -- still has a royal residence, still has RPOs, still gets papped with members of the royal family, still gets friendly press coverage (on occasion), still gets to wear/use some of his honors (like the RVO at coronation).

Eugenie got to have her own personal social media while Harry and Meghan got a "business" account.

The Sussex wedding was overshadowed by so much drama that still persists to this day (thanks for the Markle v Markle lawsuit, Sam!).

Spare made everyone realize Harry is as bad as Meghan and it's not all on her.

Harry's "Hero Harry"/Queen's Soldier PR persona has been completely and thoroughly shattered. Everyone knows it was just a publicity facade now.

Harry isn't even getting the "William's brother" edit anymore - that's now Mike Tindall.

They were erased from most of the Platinum Jubilee - their only official event was the service of thanksgiving. They didn't even get Trooping - Meghan had to arrange for a pap to take her picture to show us they were at Trooping.

They were erased from the Coronation - Harry got lumped in with the extended family (vs the line of succession, order of precedence, or working royals) and didn't get into any of the official programs, memorabilia, or portraits.

They've been shunned by most of British aristocracy - no invite to the Grosvenor wedding later this year.

No royal christening for Lili, and it's exceedingly more and more likely that the BRF hasn't met her yet.

The British media/press actually shows up and will be the first to defend the BRF against Sussex allegations when it really matters.

There are accusations of stolen valor against Harry because he seems to be supporting American military more than British military.

Harry's African charities, of which he is the figurehead, are in crisis with the discovery of SA and other allegations.

Supposedly Harry's role with BetterUp has been downgraded/demoted.

Invictus Games is going through some serious money issues. There's talk of cutting Harry and Meghan loose because they aren't/can't fundraise, and you know they won't go down swinging.

I'm sure there are more, but my point is that even though it looks like the Sussexes are getting away with things, they really haven't. after all, it's death by a thousand cuts...or eating an elephant piece by tiny piece -- it builds up over time.

Also I just realized that the Kate's Ring paint chip linked up earlier shows it being more of a teal or an inkier blue. It isn't - it's more of a cobalt blue or a royal blue.

#ask #brf #sussexes

[socdarlings]

I was wonder if u take fics/hcs/imagines etv u wanna call them if so if u don’t mind me 😭 could ya do the gang as your boyfriends (separately 🤞) ty my loveee

i don’t really do requests normally but i’ll jump at any opportunity to study my boys

words: 1.9k

warning: slight self harm mention on dally’s part

what the gang would be like if they were in a relationship:

Ponyboy:

Honestly I feel like at first he’d be one of those quiet types, the ones that occasionally ask to go to the movies and just sit at one with you to cuddle.

But as the relationship goes on, I think he’ll be more and more devoted to his s/o’s needs

Also very touchy. Not in a bad way, but he shows his love more in a physical sense than just shouting how much he loves you.

Will also write his s/o poems.

Once, he tried to bake you something and the whole house almost burnt to the ground. Didn’t feel guilty about the fire per se, but man was he sad he never got to finish that treat for you.

Will also just be content with hanging out, reading and listening to music in the background with his s/o.

Johnny:

He’s never been successful with any of his crushes so imagine his shock when you actually reciprocate. This kid will lose his fucking mind.

Johnny’s love language I feel like is acts of service. He’ll do your laundry, cook you meals (he is not a great cook at all but he’ll try), wash the dishes after, doing groceries, all those stuff. He’ll fall on his knees for you, he’ll do anything.

Like Pony, he’s also very touchy. Not great at saying he loves them (he’s too shy) but he hopes his actions speak way louder than words.

Doesn’t really have much money but trust, once he gets the cash he’ll attempt to buy them something real nice.

Will be in denial that you actually like him for a long time. He’s convinced himself he’s unloveable and will still be constantly afraid you’ll leave him for somebody better.

Overall. He’s a precious boyfriend and you better treat him right.

Steve:

I think Steve is not in tune with his emotions or what they even mean. He’s not great at reading people either. That doesn’t mean he’s stupid, despite popular belief. He’s actually pretty smart, he just… can’t read the room.

His s/o will be the one confessing first. I feel like if Steve finally knows he’s in love, he’ll be too scared to even mention anything in fear it’ll ruin the friendship they got going on.

But once you two do get together, get ready for this dude to show you off to everybody. If his s/o’s a dude, he’ll hold back from doing that because obviously the time period, but boy will he be excited.

He’ll take you to bars, races, derby’s, drag you to his job, anywhere. He’s just happy you’re there, even if you hardly say anything. He’s living off of of your presence alone.

Sodapop:

I’ll admit I don’t really have a grasp on Soda as a person yet, but I’d imagine he’ll be ecstatic the person he likes actually reciprocates, like Johnny. He’s usually the one who falls in love first, and he’ll do it real fast.

He’ll be showering you with gifts and hugging you, telling you how much he loves you, will often surprise you at work, tells you how pretty/handsome you look everyday, all that stuff. He’s an expert at letting his s/o know what he really feels.

In fact I think him being overwhelming is what made him and Sandy break up. He’s just way too into you, dude. I think he tries to put all of his energy from ignoring all the things happening in his home life right into his relationships, which is why it usually never goes well.

Either way. If you need a pick me up when you’re feeling sad, he’ll be there.

Dallas:

Oh boy. Oh no.

This dude cannot fall in love normally. He is a mess, both in his life and his emotions. Like Steve, he won’t even know he’s in love but eventually when he does, he’ll be a fucking wreck.

When he gets together with you, all his rage is focused inwards so you don’t see his bad side. So he turns to self harm, drinking, blaming himself for every bad thing that happens in his life, even if it’s not his fault. He’s fucking screaming for help but pushes you away everytime you try to, because he doesn’t think he deserves it. That good ole catholic guilt.

I think abandonment is Dally’s worst fear, despite him constantly having a lone wolf attitude. The idea of him being utterly alone in this universe scares him to death. But he constantly pushes people away because he doesn’t wanna be hurt.

Anyway I could do a whole separate post all about Dally and his problems but that’s for another day.

He’d sweet talk you when y’all get together, but his love language is a combination of both Johnny and Pony. He’s clingy, very clingy, and he’ll do all of your chores (he’s surprisingly good at cleaning).

He’s always looking forward to cuddling with you in bed, even if he’s a stomach sleeper and the best he could do is use his arm to hold you close.

Also loves music so he’ll give you records of artists that remind him of you. Will also play them when you guys hang out. Also the type to make a mixtape for you.

If he’s in jail he’ll be on his best behavior to get out so he’d see you again.

Darry:

This Barbie wants to make sure you’re happy and healthy always.

With worrying about his brothers, to the gang, to the bills, he’s got a lot on his plate. Which is why it’s a huge relief if his s/o can handle themselves and doesn’t need to be looked after. Will also be a massive help if they can wrangle the gang together.

Doesn’t stop him from worrying about you though. Expect a phone call from him when he hasn’t heard from you or seen you all day.

His love language is definitely acts of service. He’s already doing the most anyway, why not tack on more things to that list?

Is the type to come up behind his s/o while they’re making coffee and hug them real tight. He’ll eventually let go once y’all have to eat.

He just dreams of a domestic life. Not having to worry about bills, his family, his friends, any of that. Like that one line from Everything Everywhere All at Once, he would be content just doing laundry and taxes. And nothing else.

Two Bit:

Despite contrary belief, I think Two-Bit is very serious about his relationships.

Sure, it’s nothing but flirting at first but once you two start to get committed, he’ll drop everything and rush to your every need. Need to get groceries but y’all don’t have money? He’ll get that food somehow. Whether he plans an elaborate heist, or if he just pickpockets somebody, he’ll get that stuff you need.

Need to drive to Eufala but your car broke down? He’ll drive you there. Don’t ask him where he got the car. But he’ll get you to where you need to go, no questions asked.

Sure you two fight sometimes, and he might just resort to humor instead of taking you seriously, but he’ll definitely apologize later. You guys will not go to bed until this thing is resolved.

Yeah he might not have a job so he can’t get all the stuff you want, and he’s too lazy for chores, but he’ll spend all his time with you. Doesn’t have anything better to do anyway. If that means he’ll take a road trip with you, he’ll do that. If it means running with you from Tulsa all the way to Texas, he’ll do it.

Also is a cuddly drunk. Be warned.

Tim:

Now this guy is. Ah. Complicated.

Like Darry, he’s got a lot of things already piled on his back. So he’d welcome an s/o that he doesn’t have to worry about all the time.

Not that great at articulating his words, especially his feelings. He’s a quiet guy who watches people constantly, and has a loooong death stare to pair with it. But he knows he’s in love, and like Steve, he’s scared to ruin what you guys already have.

Like Dally, Tim’s worst fear is being alone. Even if he’s standoffish and he looks like he can and will kill you. It’s a defense mechanism in his case, and once you get past and get to know him really well, you’ll see that just like a turtle or a porcupine; he’s soft. Incredibly so.

Surprisingly, like Soda, he’s the one to fall first. Good god, he loves you. So much.

But all of his words of affirmation’s all in his head. He can’t really get out that he loves you. So he hugs you, kisses the top of your head, bends over to rest his head on your shoulder. Holds hands. He’s absolutely nothing like how everyone else portrays him to be, when you two are alone.

Like Darry, he daydreams of you two retreating somewhere far away, not having to worry about anything. Lord, does he wish he could leave Tulsa behind.

Curly:

I think the Shepard siblings are emotionally constipated. Curly is not, but he definitely has the Irritable Feeling Syndrome.

He typically uses violence to get what he wants and his entire being is full of turmoil, but like his brother; he’d rather die than be alone. This dude will start a fight with you and then start crying towards the end cause he thinks he’s done something irreversible and you’re gonna leave him.

He’s constantly afraid he’ll hurt his s/o, one way or another. Not physically, he’d rather die than touch you, but unintentionally being an asshole and saying something he doesn’t mean.

Gets into fights a lot and gets patched up by you a lot.

Won’t leave you for anyone else. Once he falls, he falls hard. I feel like it edges towards an obsession at one point, but that’s something he had to figure out on his own.

But once he actually has you in his grasp, good luck. It’s real hard to leave.

Angela:

She’s a hard one to read. She’s flirty, and sometimes it might come off as a joke, but when she means business she means business.

She’ll literally approach you when she gets off class and ask you on a date, stone face and all. If you have feelings for her, yay! She took the lead. If you don’t, oh well. But she’ll still follow you around (not creepy at all).

When you two get together, she’ll have people watch you when you’re not with each other, just under the guise of keeping you safe. If you tell her to stop, she won’t understand why and will be kind of hurt but she’ll do as you say.

She’s intense. She’ll be scared to fully unveil the extent of her devotion towards you, but if you welcome it she’ll be so, so happy. She’s never had somebody actually accept her as she is, besides her brothers.

Is the type to come up with nicknames, no matter how corny they are.

Will go all starry eyed if you initiate going on a date instead of her. She’ll feel like she’s gonna pass out if you kiss her first. She’ll fall over if you insist on staying over her place instead of yours.

She’ll go on and on about you to her brothers, and while they both’ll get worried for her obsession loyalty towards you, they can’t really stop her. She’s Angela. She’ll always get what she wants.

Overall you won’t have to worry about her seeing other people or cheating. You’re on her mind always.

#requests #the outsiders #ponyboy curtis #johnny cade #dallas winston #darry curtis #two bit mathews #sodapop curtis #steve randle #tim shepard #curly shepard #angela shepard #luci’s rambling

[bonefall]

I totally agree with the TurtleTail stuff. I would have literally taken TurtleTail trying to speak up in Bumble's defense but get shut down quickly. Because at least in that situation she would have TRIED to help aid Bumble. I wish that part was handled better, her "apology" to Bumble is so weird and is written in a way that still tries to blame Bumble for... whatever reason. It sucks, I genuinely like their friendship in the beginning and both TurtleTail and Bumble suffer from the shit ass writing in DoTC (Just as every other character does but specifically the female characters). When Bumble apologized to TurtleTail (while Bumble was dying by the way), TurtleTail should have told her she didn't need to apologize for anything. Then TurtleTail profusely apologizes to her. None of this "Yeeaaahh... I'm sorry I guess but you couldn't live with us because you're lazy" bullshit we got in the books. Imagine the sheer impact and emotion the Erins could have put into that scene, imagine if Bumble's exile haunted TurtleTail's mind, and when she finally got the chance to apologize, Bumble was already on her way to death's door. Imagine if TurtleTail was the only cat who wanted to or gave a proper burial to her dear friend. Sorry for the rambling, I'm super passionate about TurtleTail and Bumble's relationship it hurts

Turtle Tail and Bumble BROKE THEIR BACKS holding up the entire Sun Trail book, they're like the only enjoyable part of the goddamn thing and then the Erins DID THIS

And it hurts because Turtle's pivot is out of nowhere. They're friends in Sun Trail! She KNOWS that Tom is a horrible person! Bumble didn't want to tell the secret because HE told her not to! What reason does she have to be like this?!

Do you notice that 'apologies' in warriors are almost always written as two-way, instead of the person who did wrong solely apologizing? A la Bramble's "WE should never have let it get this bad?" Constantly, cats who did nothing wrong are written as saying something like, "I shouldn't have been mad at you" or something.

Like it's equally bad to be upset about being mistreated as it is to mistreat someone

I'm not sure if it's possible to save the Bumble death without dragging the likeability of a bunch of characters down with it. The sheer amount of cruelty behind turning away a domestic abuse survivor because she's too 'lazy and useless' cannot go unaddressed somehow, either as a commentary on the Moor Group, Clear Sky's infectious mindset, or an inquiry to the morality of every character involved.

It could be a good sort of angst idea for Turtle to be trying to keep her fed in her exile, between caring for her kits and still trying to hunt for her AND the Moor Cats, but honestly, I crave a more meaty, substantial fix

#one that involves Eating Tom #The best protein <3 #Warrior cats analysis #partner and I just thought of some COOL SHIT for one eye btw holy mackerel I'm trying to figure out a good medium for sharing this

[acorpsecalledcorva]

While I do definitely wholly agree that no perspective or technique is universally useful and helpful for everyone, I definitely think there is value in being open to the perspectives and techniques that we've dismissed in a limited and specific way when we struggle.

For instance, I use parts language and view the system, including myself as a part as all being part of a collective singular me. It's why I tend not to use we/us a lot. I, and the other mes take ownership of all actions taken by petty much everyone in the system because this creates a sense of cohesion and continuality that allow us to function. It reduces daily amnesia because we're not constantly trying to distance ourselves from each other and generally reduces friction around decisions trusting that they're made with the system in mind rather than personally for each part. HOWEVER, I've always hated myself. I have incredibly negative opinions about who I am and punish myself a lot for just being me or not being a better version of me. Any mistakes I make are treated with severe prejudice and I don't accept nice things because I feel like I don't deserve them.

I would never treat anyone else like that though, I wouldn't think these things about a friend. And so for these issues it IS useful to view my parts as completely separate people, to think of them as friends or colleagues or family, because I can show them the compassion I cannot show myself. If an alter fucks up or does something harmful I can remember that they come from a history of pain and isolation, I can understand their actions and forgive them, think about what they might need from me to heal and help them move on because I truly believe that everyone is deserving of rehabilitation.

Sometimes though, I have to reverse engineer this situation. Often an issue with persecutors is that they feel rejected, their actions and behaviours were once a helpful coping mechanism but when our lives changed and we moved on it became less and less appropriate to do those things. They get stuck doing the only thing they know how to do and become increasingly frustrated that it's no longer working or being appreciated by the system. They're hostile to everyone else because they've been treated with hostility and aren't open to reconciliation because by that time it's like "oh what? Now you want to talk? Fuck you". To write them off is to confirm what they think about themselves. That they're bad and evil and so what's the point in getting better because they don't deserve compassion or acceptance from the system. Sound familiar?

So what do I do? Well, from my distanced perspective I then have to approach it with curiosity. Why might I behave this way? What scenario might lead me to do these things? What environment might convince me that this is a necessary thing to do? Can I find empathy with this position or similarities? Could that be a point of connection through which to make a connection? To show that I truly understand what they're going through and genuinely want to help?

Or even, am I subconsciously a willing participant in this dynamic? I hate myself, right? Do I think I deserve these things to do be done to me? At one point in time is this behaviour what I thought showing love was? Is this what it meant to be cared for to me back then? Does this situation feel safer to me in a way because pain and suffering is the devil I know?

In Existential Kink, Carolyn Elliott believes that we create painful scenarios for ourselves because our brains desire a more complete human experience, the good with the bad, and the more we conciously reject and resent the bad the more we desire it and create badness for ourselves. It is only by accepting this desire and gratifying ourselves by enjoying it and being grateful for the terrible things that happen that we can move on and seek out the good. Which is...definitely one of the takes of all time. I definitely take issues with the implications of victim blaming that are prevalent throughout her book, but there is insight to be drawn for sure. And in fact, the number one recommended approach to a persecutor is gratitude. To thank them for doing what they do, to show them that they're appreciated for their role and what they're trying to do, because from that position it may very well be more possible to provide constructive criticism. You have to mean it though, because by living in your head they can usually tell your true feelings.

And I completely understand why that might feel impossible to do when you feel like what they do is unforgivable, but there's a very important lesson that everyone needs to learn if they want to grow. And that's that sometimes it is up to us to take responsibility for a situation, even when we really shouldn't have to, even when it so completely isn't our fault or fair in the slightest. If what a persecutor needs to feel to change their behaviour is gratitude and acceptance, to feel that they really are a vital part of the system just like everyone else, and by providing this for them we can make things better for ourselves and the rest of the system, to create a net positive effect on all regards, then... shouldn't we? Not because of some moral duty to do the right thing or be the better person, but simply because things would be better?

Like, if there's a $1000 dollars on a table that's free for you to take, if you don't take it then no one will get it, it's only there for you to take or not with no judgement or consequences either way even if you feel like there will be, would you really not take it? And if not, then why? Do you think it's a trick? Do you think that you don't deserve it? You see how these all loop around and connect to each other?

This post is long and confusing because these situations are complicated and don't have any simple answers. All I'm trying to highlight and urge everyone to do is to never stop being curious. Always ask yourself questions, always approach something from a different angle. Especially when you come across obstacles that feel impossible. If anything that I've said feels completely wrong to you, rather than dismissing it as not being applicable to you ask yourself why you feel like it doesn't? If your persecutor is actually irredeemable and evil but mine are not, what makes you different than me? Is it easier for you to think that because then you don't have to put in the work? Does it make you feel special to have a kind of persecutor someone else doesn't? If what I'm saying right now offends you, is there a possibility, however small you think it may be, that deep down it might be true?

No, I don't think you can say for certain that every persecutor is a misguided protector, but what if the one you've decided definitely isn't actually is? What if you're wrong about them? What if you can fix it and make things better? Shouldn't you try? Why not?

#syscourse #system community #sysblr #actually did #did system #actually traumatised #persecutor

[misrepresentedmorallygrey]

Once Again, God Forbid women do anything

PROPAGANDA

Dahlia Propaganda

"The fandom hates her so bad. She's the antagonist of the trilogy, so I understand some dislike of course but they hate her SO MUCH. she's a 14 year old girl with a twin sister, she gets dragged into crime by her cop step sister and her pedophilic teacher, dahlia betrays them both, steals the money for herself and abandons them. she slowly goes on a downward spiral in an attempt to protect herself. at college age, she kills her step sister and the teacher in an attempt to not be found and charged for the past crimes. the defense attorney for the case questions her testimony and she poisons him. the rest is just her continuing on that path and killing, attacking or blaming anyone who threatens her safety. this is a BASIC reading of her character. The fandom cannot understand this. they think dahlia seduced the teacher and that she's a crazy bitch. the games themself hate her. there's a male character who's so similar to her but WORSE (no backstory) and the fandom fucking loves him. But, dahlia? she's hated so much for no real good reason. I'm not talking dislike of her choices, but calling her a crazy bitch and refusing to look into WHY she acts like that and what lead to her demise. it's so ridiculous."

"she is based"

"Hell, she was fucked over by the writing itself, too. She's written to be this cold, unfeeling, master manipulator and was portrayed as the one at fault in a relationship she had with a 20-year-old when she was FOURTEEN. She's basically treated as this evil temptress who makes boys fall in love with her and then hurts them. It's. It's pretty bad."

Helene Propaganda

"while already being a character whose narrative purpose was basically to show how much leo tolstoy hates women, the fandom makes it so, so much worse, playing up her supposed "villainy" over that of even what tolstoy writes. constantly i've seen people say that she deserved being threatened and almost killed by her husband because she's? a bitch, i guess? like her husband literally throws a marble slab at her and yells "i'll kill you!" at her and tolstoy implies that if hélène hadn't run away he literally would have and i've seen people say that they wish he had solely because their marriage made him unhappy, when the marriage wasn't her choice either. later on in the book, she aids her brother, anatole, in an attempt to elope with the female protag and i've seen people say that hélène was Worse than anatole, the one trying to elope w/ an engaged girl solely because he wanted to sleep with her, because hélène should have "known better" while anatole was just a stupid guy... do they not see how fucked it is to excuse a man's direct actions and blame it on a woman for not stopping him? any defense of her character is constantly met with people saying that she's one-dimensional and not worth defending because she's meant to be an antagonist — without looking at the fact that she's written that way because she represents what Tolstoy, a misogynistic old man, hates in women. with literally the slightest shred of context it's obvious that she is not the villain tolstoy makes her out to be. how a fandom in 2023 shares the same beliefs abt women that a man in the 1860s does is completely baffling"

#round 2 #round 2b #females fucked over tournament #ace attorney #war and peace #dahlia hawthorne #helene kuragina #it has come to my attention that canonmisoginyvictims also did this matchup to which I say lol

[saviourofzaun]

One thing I like about the way you write Silco:

How you make him feel real and rather human through his interactions with those he's close to on some level, or another and the fact that they are always imperfect or a bit odd. Him being okay with Jinx killing, but not her using (as he put it) pot. The fact that he does care about her, but than the miscommunications we've talked about before. His affection for (a particular) Jayce, but a refusal to truly admit it to the man. How people wouldn't expect him to exactly be playful, but then we had that idea of him and Jinx gaslighting someone together. In short that he's a complex person, and if you pay attention for as odd or imperfect as it might seem, it still makes sense for him and how he thinks and is consistent and very human in that way.

Keep going, keep writing, I can't wait to see what you come up with in the future.

SHIMMER INQUIRY | MELISANDRE

I really appreciate you sending this in, hun. And, I'm glad you can see through his schemes and his deceits. The way how I write him, is someone who is a hypocrite who contradicts himself constantly. And, I definitely plan onto continuing writing him the way I do. Silco is a big fish in the ocean, has power, money, and a monstrous side. However, in the end of the day, Silco is still 'just a man'. Sure, he can tell himself, 'that day he let a weak man die', but in the end of the day, only a part of him died. The moment Vander's name is mentioned, he is triggered. He sat with his statue, having a drink with his deceased 'brother', just like old times. Silco was ready to give up onto Zaun, and even start a war, just for the sake of keeping his daughter. Where he blamed Vander first, he now understood exactly why he did what he did. Silco is a monster, his own personal monster, but whether he likes it or not, he still has those shards of humanity within him that shimmer through (nice choice of words, heh) when he is interacting with those he trusts. He is a manipulator, he is a slave to his dream, and he is willing to burn the world down for Jinx. But, at the end of the day, he actively keeps preaching his hard-won lessons, because he keeps himself to a certain standard (subconsciously) that he has to be a monster, for Zaun, for Jinx. I saw this post from @piltover-sharpshooter about Silco, and I wholeheartedly agree. Silco is very humane; he can still get caught off guard, will show intense emotions (kicking a man to death because Vi practically crumbled a damn building onto him), and will improvise where needed. The thing is, just because he shows control, calmness, and power, does not mean that he cannot have these other aspects to him, where he feels anxiety, where he feels like he is losing control. And, in a way, it makes sense. He is so used to having the upper hand for a long period of time, and when that changes, anxiety will creep up, which is only natural. How I see him, is that he is definitely a control freak. The scene where he frantically turns in his chair, because he heard Vi is back “… From the dead?”, you can see he is distraught. Silco being fine with Jinx killing people, is because he is fine with it, and it is mostly for him. When Jinx uses pot, he has no control over the situation, and thus will freak out. He will not know how Jinx will respond to pot, because it can go very badly. He is only showing playfulness towards those he knows who respect him. Because, if he were to show that to the outside world, it might bring him into a different light, where perhaps people don't view him as big of a monster. He does not admit he has feelings for someone, because that would give them the upper hand in a way, and thus change the power dynamic. What I'm trying to get at is that even though he is a puppeteer with a lot of power and control, one aspect does not exclude the other aspect. A bad person can still show love, a good person can still hurt others and be selfish. In the end of the day, nothing is black and white, and everything is a shade of grey. Silco is not excluded from that. His interactions feel off, because there is no sincerity with him most of the time. If he approaches, he wants something from someone. He is a manipulative, narcissistic, hypocritical control-freak, who is both a man and a monster. The two lines I have written for Silco reflect that:

“I am both man and monster, there is no difference in that.” 'Love? No, Silco was not made for love— He was made for power.'

This is what he truly believes, and what he keeps telling himself. 'A lion does not concern himself with the opinion of sheep', and yet, he wants people to follow him and his dream. The duality of man is what shines through. He is soft-spoken, but his actions can be as violent as ever. Furthermore, he uses violence, but that incidental in a way, because it stands in the way of what he tries to achieve. Silco will not shy away from violence, but he will always try to talk his way out if he can. Silco is not some bloodthirsty maniac who go slashing people's throat left and right, and drug people just for the fun of it. Sure, he is sadistic, and he does kill people and drug them, but that's when they cross him. Shimmer was meant as a medicine, then it became a weapon, but it grew into a recreational drug. Sure, it fills his (and probably Singed's) pockets, but that is incidental. This is the very reason why I fell in love with Silco. He is a very deep, complex character, with a lot of aspects to him that both empower and contradict him.

#》 𝙄’𝙑𝙀 𝙁𝙍𝙀𝙀𝘿 𝙃𝙀𝙍… 𝘾𝘼𝙉𝘿𝙄𝘿𝙇𝙔 ⎯ (𝙤𝙤𝙘). #》 𝙋𝙊𝙒𝙀𝙍 𝙎𝙏𝘼𝙔𝙎 𝙄𝙉 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙎𝙃𝘼𝘿𝙊𝙒𝙎 ⎯ (𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙘𝙤). #( I went onto a whole rant I'm so sorry). #(I'm glad you like him and my portrayal of him). #silco #silco arcane #silco league of legends #zaunrising

[1-800-c0sm1c]

꒰crossteaming pt.2 !꒱

genshin characters as your streamer bf/gf !

character x gn!reader

includes kazuha, venti, itto, thoma, and shenhe!

warnings : none.

a/n : thank you for all the notes on the 1st part , much appreciated <3

KAZUHA - THE GEOGUESSER PRO

of course the wanted criminal knows all about geography. (and poetry of course too, but well get to that later)

doesnt matter where in the world he is plopped down in, kazuha knows exactly where he is, and hes quick about it too.

competes in geoguessr tournaments too and often wins with ease.

hes the type to do google maps speedruns as well, and none of his friends are nearly as good as he is.

if youre ever lost somewhere, just send kazuha a pick of your surroundings on twitter, and hes sure to find your cross streets soon enough!

“you said how i got your address…? dont even worry about that bro.”

youre literally just there to distract kazuha, if im being entirely honest.

oh, hes 1 guess away from a 50 state streak ? not if you can do anything about it. especially if he had a penalty set up for getting answers wrong.

he has called you a pest multiple times, but its out of love <3 i dont genuinely think he could ever get mad at you for real, hes very calm all the time.

he also likes to share poetry! on the days you (lovingly) annoy him he likes to write funky lil haikus about how annoying you are <3 isnt that sweet?

what can i say, hes a funny little jokester, at least on camera. when its just the two of you alone hes a lot more romantic, i promise.

“shall i compare thee to a summers day? no, a summers day is not a bitch.”

VENTI - THE GENSHIN STREAMER

pretend for a second that hes not a character in the game, or even better yet, he voice acts one of the characters. venti never shuts up about how good his team comp is and how he always manages to get the characters he wants. (secretly hes just spending a LOT of money.)

character build reviews but hes actually pretty nice about it! sometimes there will be a build that he cannot physically say anything good about and its entertaining, so chat started sending in builds that were purposely bad just to get reactions out of him LMAO.

adventure rank 60, no doubt about it.

the most annoying co-op player. oh you wanted to be that character? too bad, now hes going to play them and hes got a better build too, guess you should switch <3

SOOO many unfinished quests yet he complains he has nothing to do. (guilty)

“go touch grass? im a genshin player… what is that supposed to mean?”

venti loves telling the story of how you two met in genshin co-op. you on the other hand.. well you wish he would stop talking about it every stream you appear in.

lots of streams together! he wont wish for a character without you, he claims youre his good luck charm. (he loses most of the 50/50s.)

will help you do any quest! as long as he wants to, and its one that he knows how to do. so maybe not ANY quest, but hes trying his best.

he may be annoying with strangers in co-op domains, but any character you want to play you can. no questions asked, hell switch immediately.

he does more damage than you but hell still say that you did all the hard work and hes proud of you <3

ITTO - THE FORTNITE STREAMER

“wow you did so much damage just now, you absolutely carried me! thank you, i love you. :)”

the best part about itto being a fortnite streamer is hes not even good at the game.

he tries his best, really he does. but somehow those cracked 12 year olds have got him beat.

has spent an embarrassing amount of money on the game, but you can tell how much he appreciates every item hes acquired.

plugs his creator code CONSTANTLY. hes gotta make that money hes spent back somehow!

whenever he has a really bad loss he just blames it on stream sniping because he can. yeah i basically turned him into ninja, whoops!

“oh my god bro again? you know what, reported for stream sniping!”

you and itto are truly a dynamic duo. youre actually decent at the game and hes entertaining to watch.

chat loves when you play duos games together, and you both do too! (even though hell take all the credit if you win.)

his favorite item is the chug cannon, mostly because he wants to make sure youre full health and shield at all times <3

has made many sacrifices of his characters life in you honor, even if you still dont end up winning, you appreciate it.

lots of moments from his streams have been clipped and put into funny moments montages and they all go straight to his neverending ego.

“we are the clowns and you all have front row seats to the circus.”

THOMA - THE VARIETY STREAMER

i couldnt see thoma sticking to one main category, i feel like every stream hes doing something new, and hes somehow pretty good at anything he tries out.

his commentary is really what gets people to stick around for his content, he can make anything sound interesting.

think of him as a steamer like rtgame! hes got really fun sims and hitman series, games you dont think could be made funny, but then he does and its overall a really great time.

hes got so many inside jokes from all the games hes played, youve got to be there for every stream otherwise you miss out heavily.

nobody even knew what he looked like for awhile because he didnt have a facecam, but once he started using one his viewers went up by 100k, no joke.

“where is that from? oh, its an inside joke, you probably wouldnt get it.”

thomas viewers are literally so jealous of you. youve pulled the ultimate man right there.

honestly i dont see you appearing on his steams much other than for the occasional mario party game.

i feel like since you never really appear most of his viewers didnt even know you two were dating until those random streams happen. everytime it does twitter goes wild with “THOMA HAS A S/O?” and half the replies are also freaking out while the other half is like “you didnt know?” its a mess every time.

most likely youre in thomas chat instead of in the room, and you tend to instigate chat into spamming emotes a lot and getting it turned to sub only mode. its honestly pretty funny.

one time you walked into his room to ask if he wanted mcdonalds and he was watching paint dry. this had been going on for 4 hours. you didnt ask questions.

“the hoes gonna love this.”

SHENHE - THE CALL OF DUTY PLAYER

i think call of duty lobbies are the only place on earth that can handle shenhe if shes genuinely angry.

shes a toxic gamer for sure, dont get on her bad side.

shes gotten pretty good at the game too, shes one of those people who buys the new game everytime one comes out instead of just playing the same version.

chongyun will make appearances at times, they played mario party together once and it was hilarious. (for the viewers at least, maybe not chongyun though LMAO)

chongyun won and she 1v1ed him in nuketown right afterwards. (hes never won against shenhe again)

“everybody gangsta til chongyun is in the lead.”

chat doesnt understand how you can handle shenhe half the times, but truthfully she just has her own way of expressing her emotions.

for example, she broke one of your controllers playing once, and she drove her ass to best buy at almost midnight to go get you a new one, along with a note saying nothing but “sorry :(“ in the prettiest handwriting youve ever seen.

sometimes you even make her angry on purpose just because its funny, and you know no matter how much it may look like it, she could never get mad at you.

i know i said shenhe was a cod streamer, but imagine also playing apex with her alright? definitely a loba main, and shes literally just as toxic on here as she is on call of duty. 

probably has had 3 xbox accounts banned already.

“no chat i am not saying slurs in general chat, this time at least.”

#✧;;↬ my work.❞┊🍓 #genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin x reader #genshin impact x you #genshin x you #kazuha x reader #venti x reader #itto x reader #shenhe x reader #thoma x reader

[ladyhindsight]

I want to say it really ticks me off when this fandom (and Cassandra Clare to some extent) acts like TMI isn't for children. I've seen posts comparing Cassandra Clare's work to Colleen Hoover. As far as I know Colleen Hoover is an adult novelist who basically makes abuse fetish smut so like great comparison to a YA author guys in the fandom!

Clare's choosing to include things like normalizing abuse (Maia and Jordan) and incest are really terrible. Clare always hides behind the fact that the reason the incest existed in her story was "symbolic" for like how love can make us do evil things. But children can't understand something that complex and Clare does NOT do a good job at making this theme clear in the story and SHE DOES romanticize their incestuous relationship as so bad it's good (Clare fans go reread the scene in book 2 where clary has to kiss Jace in front of everyone and then go reread book 3 where they're constantly kissing and cuddling and sleeping in the same bed in a romantic way) and it's just really upsets me because I've witnessed first hand (I've been in this Fandom since 2013) child fans normalizing and becoming attracted to incest fetish because of these books. I've seen so many children normalizing incest because of Clare's continual refusal to JUST APOLOGIZE! She literally writes these LGBT books with incest fetish and rape fetish tied into it and eventually a conservative is gonna find these books and it's gonna be all over for Miss Clare and the LGBT community will probably be blamed for her bullshit because we're always blamed for gross books like these.

I also wanted to say (and you don't have to post this ask if it's divulging too much I don't want to offend anyone) but I'm an incest survivor. I read these books when I was thirteen years old (they were in my schools library listed for my age and up) and they really really hurt my recovery because at the time I thought what had happened to me was normal and when I read these books I thought it was totally okay and normal what happened to me. I won't go into any more detail than that but these books made it so hard to seperate the "love" from the "abuse". I've talked to others in this fandom and many other girls have said that these books normalized abuse to them because Jace is so controlling and abusive to Clary and she does nothing to stop him. The abuse is also normalized by the Fandom too I see posts all the time joking about how "Jace isn't a hero who helps people he's a hero who helps his girlfriend!!!" And "haha Jace doesn't let clary have her own tooth brush or space or any friends! Sooo kawaaaaiiii!!!!!" Or "if clary died Jace would be worse than sebastian lol so smexyyy!" Like as if that isn't disturbing and disgusting to normalize to MINORS!

I just wanted to take a moment to talk about the people who suffer the most from Cassandra Clare's continuous deflection of any wrong doing. You wrote these books about incest Clare, and children read these books and cannot understand your "complex" symbolism for how incest is bad but it's oh so good. It makes me want to burst into tears sometimes but instead I'll just send this ask and forget about it.

Oh,

P.S.

Fuck you Cassandra Clare for writing a Trump supporter female character who is against incest to try and say all the people who hate incest are Trump supporters or conservatives. I am a victim of a serious fucking trauma and I am not a fucking conservative because I want you to be held accountable for your fucked up books. You have spit in the face of rape victims time and time again and I genuinely hope some day you get torn to shreds by the public for everything you've perpetuated to CHILDREN.

Every once in a while I think about this interview Clare once gave that I saw on YouTube. She said that her readers often told her (at the time of the interview) that they are older than they consider the target audience of her books to be, and Clare commented something along the lines of, if you read her books, no matter the age, you are the target audience. Which is a nice thought, but the tonality is still very juvenile—even in her later works that are supposedly new adult genre. They differ in no way in style or tone from those works that are categorized in young adult fiction.

Colleen Hoover? Yuck. Perhaps it tells something about the mentality of those readers who liken Clare to Hoover.

Clare’s writing, tone, and capacity to handle serious and complex matters have always sucked. Each topic is handled with surface-level attention or used as a vehicle to ruminate and moan over the main couple and their obstacles in love. The writing has never went into any great length to realistically include themes such as incest (societal or personal level approach and attitudes) or abuse because the characters’ need to be liked and loved and be above the characters that are only used as a fodder for ridicule and betterment of the main characters in comparison. All while Clare tries to create a guise of them being “complex” because of the fact. It’s one of the reasons I have found comparing G.R.R. Martin’s style of implementation of different themes to Clare’s meaningful (as there have been convos about this some time back on the blog) because they are not nearly the same even though it is an easy comparison her readers like to make.

When it comes to idealizing abusive behavior, similar attitude within the readership can be seen in Isabelle’s character when she thinks Valentine is hot for being a villain. Young adult literature is littered with characters exactly like Jace who do not face responsibility for their abusive behavior because that is what the author chooses to prioritize and coddle, simultaneously failing to realize the impact that kind of behavior realistically has on others around them. Jace’s behavior isn’t acknowledged because others are meant to serve him and conform around his needs. Even Clary, who is the protagonist and heroine of the story. It’s never really about her—even her pain—it’s about Jace.

When I read TMI for the first time, I was incredibly conflicted with feeling the way I did (hateful and uncomfortable with many decisions and characters) because authors know better, right? This is how it is supposed to be, right? This isn’t supposed to be about anyone else than Clary and Jace, right? So why anything would be done different or better or given more attention to?

Fuck that. And also fuck Zara Dearborn because we know what Clare’s doing. And it’s embarrassing.

I am incredibly sorry that you had to live through such a horrible thing. I can’t even imagine the pain and confusion you’ve had to endure and work through. There isn’t much I can say but I hope you are faring better today and had good and trustworthy people around you to support you during the recovery (and still do). How could you offend anyone with your thoughts when you’ve survived it and know the destruction it causes? Never apologize for that. I wish you happiness and all the best in life.

#Reply #Anti Cassandra Clare #Anti CC

[theladyofbloodshed]



hi!! I already know how you pretty much feel about Rhys, but I want to know what you feel about Tamlin? I find it pretty amusing how the fandom treats the two characters.

Rhys can do pretty much all bad things due to trauma and his love for Feyre, but Tamlin cannot do bad things due to trauma and his love for Feyre. (not trying to excuse him but trying to make a point lol)

Here are some double standards that I can think of right now

~ Locking Feyre up: If Velaris wasn't shielded I doubt Rhys would allow her to walk freely and not to mention once she met with the IC she always had "sentries" with her (cough IC cough) AND the fact Rhys is constantly in her head.

~ Working with Amarantha. Rhys did that to protect Velaris and IC just like Tamlin allied with Hybern to protect (& get Feyre back).

Rhys did more damage to Pythian allying with Amarantha than Tamlin did with Hybern.

~ Rhys would kill Nesta and Elain in a heartbeat to protect Feyre. But Tamlin "selling them out" is evil

Im sure there are more, but these are the ones I can think of right now :)

Stans will bend over backwards to excuse his actions and it's just weird tbh.

Rhys is constantly invading her privacy. Feyre tells him to leave when she wants to speak to Nesta in the tavern, but he is still in her head. He puts a shield around her when pregnant because he's "protective", but like she's in a very safe city around your closest friends? Then has no problem showing her off in the Hewn City when she was heavily pregnant and half naked.

I liked Tamlin in the first book (granted, I preferred Lucien and wondered why Feyre wasn't on her knees begging him for a taste). I went into it knowing it was a BatB retelling so he was supposed to be a beast. Even though there was a curse that meant he needed to fall in love with her, I found his attempts at befriending her to be genuine. Playing the fiddle whilst she danced, writing her poetry to help her learn new words, offering to help her read etc.

There were times when he was as protective as Rhys, but it was when a) she was mortal b) didn't listen to warnings and actively put herself into danger. Rhys puts her into danger to make her collect a ring and try to use her powers, but then is overprotective when it's not called for.

I blame Rhys/SJM/Feyre for the assassination of his character. Rhys and Amarantha contributed to his paranoia and fear for Feyre's life. Of course, he would not believe that Feyre had really written him a note that she was staying with the NC because a) rhys is his enemy b) he watched feyre drugged and SA by him every night c) she can't read d) they had never actually had a conversation about her not being happy in the relationship.

Rhys is heralded as progressive and wonderful for making Feyre his high lady. Tamlin is vilified because he didn't. Feyre seems to forget that she once told him that she wouldn't want to be high lady when he tells her it doesn't exist. Feyre says she wouldn't want to be the wife of a high lord producing little heirs and then proceeded to do exactly that within 2 years of meeting Rhys (when he was SA her). Feyre changes her mind and is angry with Tamlin. As if it's his fault that there had never been a high lady before and Feyre didn't want to be it anyway.

He gets blamed for Nesta and Elain being turned. When you try to blame feysand, it's not their fault, it's all Ianthe's fault. So why is it Tamlin's fault that Feyre told Ianthe all of the information about her sisters and brought the Illyrians to their home? Rhys is the one who promised E&N that there would be round the clock guards to keep them safe. But it's not their fault!!!! It's Tamlin's fault!!

I feel sorry for him tbh. He could have not helped them in Hybern's camp, he could have not given his drop of power to bring rhys back to life. But he did those things because he cared for feyre and wanted her to be happy. Rhys didn't bother letting tamlin know that Ianthe was nefarious when she wheedled her way into an unstable Spring Court where there was a traumatised high lord and his potential mate, but he likes to go there and kick Tamlin when he's down because he's just an ass.

#anon asks

[aelin-sgalathynius]

You support Tamlin?

I don't support Tamlin in all the attitudes he's had throughout the series. But I also don't think he deserves all this "hate culture" that most readers throw at him. The Tamlin we see ourselves in the events of ACOTAR is kind, caring (a little overprotective, but I believe it was because of the moment when Feyre, who is a human, was in her turf, and creatures like bogge and attor were after her). But, of course, Tamlin ends up making mistakes in the first book of the series, and ends up making big mistakes in the second book, since, in ACOMAF, we see a Tamlin that gets, in a way, aggressive and controlling, and this ended up causing me a doubt about this character that, at first, gave me such a certain and true image, but later, it seemed to show the real and sudden proposal of the author who wanted to do everything to make Feyre and Rhysand stay together, the that was his plan from the start.

I confess that the Tamlin I saw in ACOMAF took me by surprise. I would constantly talk to some people and see them using Tamlin's overprotectiveness in ACOTAR as a harbinger.  I've seen people say that his charm and affectionate manner was just a ploy to get Feyre to trust him, whether for the sole purpose of breaking the curse or with the intention of making her his, and his alone, until the end ( in a somewhat impulsive and abusive way). These points were pretty valid for considering how Tamlin "regressed" into the figure he turned out to be (this is all just my opinion, guys!), but I've also seen that Sarah J. Maas doesn't give us an insight into the months after Under The Mountain. Basically, she gives us the vision of ACOTAR's Tamlin, who loves Feyre enough to send her back home instead of facing Amarantha, and then she gives ACOMAF's Tamlin, who won't let the feyre out of the house of Spring Court.

However, I also saw that the characters that appeared in ACOMAF also failed in several ways (as did Rhysand, since his appearance in ACOTAR), and they revealed a few points that made me question whether Tamlin, in fact, deserved all the blame.

Although Tamlin made mistakes, the other characters did too, like Rhysand who goes from villain to savior with a somewhat convenient story to explain all his flaws and his behavior in ACOTAR and Under The Mountain (as if Feyre didn't even dance, while drugged, between his legs and he didn't even apologize about it afterwards).

I'm not saying I don't like feysand, on the contrary, I love seeing them as a couple. But come to think of it, as the book is from Feyre's point of view, it's easy to get carried away by her feelings about the whole situation she's been through. But, let's try to do what Feyre didn't, and let's review what Tamlin went through during the events of ACOTAR and ACOMAF. From the start, obviously, Tamlin had put up with Amarantha for fifty years, and while it wasn't as bad as Rhysand or Kallias or Tarquin, he still had to put up with her. Furthermore, he was even forced to watch Amarantha break Feyre piece by piece Under The Mountain, and cannot interfere as Rhysand repeatedly drugs her and parades her like a cheap whore. And finally, he has to see Feyre die. His getting her back after all this, while trying to deal with her own trauma, suddenly makes it seem somewhat understandable why he won't let Feyre out of the Spring Court's house, or let her fight. He's already lost her once, he's afraid of losing her again.

I don't know, it seemed to me that Sarah J. Maas decided to do a "story progress swap" somewhere in the writing process. Tamlin, Lucien, and even Ianthe - the entirety of the Spring Court, so far - are... ridiculed. The people Feyre cared for in ACOTAR, and being cared for in return, suddenly didn't want to know. They close their eyes, ignore painful truths, and why?  So Rhysand can go to Feyre and save her. To me, these facts only reinforced that Sarah J. Maas seemed to decide to send feysand out to the public as a beautiful couple (not that they aren't) more than feylin, and left Tamlin in the background for all of this to happen.

#sarah j maas #azriel #rowan x aelin #throne of glass #aelin #books and libraries #elide #gavriel #lorcan #rowan whitethorn #feyre #rhysand #cassian #morrigan #amren #tarquin #kalias #beron #eris #eris vanserra #lucien #lucien vanserra #ianthe #suriel #spring court #prythian #nesta #nesta archeron #elain #elain archeron

[qcomicsy]

You know what? Fuck Batman and DC writers trying to gaslight me that what Jason does is wrong and dishonest and yara yara yara.

It's so fucking boring at this point.

And just blatantly wrong.

First of all, you cannot just say "oh but thats just bad you're a bad person >:c" at THIS POINT in comics. Because after pushing gray area morals and realism that y'all (writers) braggg SOO MUCH about it. Just going "murder bad >:c you bad >>>:ccc IT'S FUCKING STUPID."

For example. By the comics, (depending in what you believe) Tim Drake is a cheater. Is that what a good person does? In a black and white view. No, it is not therefore Tim is bad. Bruce is a fucking hypocrite who protect and revive a literal mass murder and doesn't hold up the same energy for his own children (HE RAISED) . Nightwing committed murder. Gordon constantly makes exceptions violating the law and his duties as a cop for random non affiliated vigilantes. Harley is irredeemable, because not only she kills and has killed before but also does it for fun. Talia, Damian, hell, even Cass are all murders in certain degrees. Even CATWOMAN wouldn't be saved . That being said. Does the comics considers them a horrible bad villainous people? >:((.

No, because they're fucking human beings and human beings fuck things up. Specially considering multiple circumstances they've been through: social, mental, developing, physical, environmental. It's realistic.

Yeah, so why when it comes for Jason. It's all fucking black and white.

But this is not a Jason apologist post, so if you hoping this take will be "Jason did nothing wrong" you going to be disappointed. Hold up a little because I'm gonna get to the point.

Listen here. I'm all for reparatory justice, honestly most of the time no matter how much it despises me, I do agree with Batman. But unlike him, I and maany people of the fandom, we just have- you know, common sense???

The problem with Batman, Nightwing (well hell why not) and Jason is that those three idiots lack of common sense. Their sense of justice seems like it comes from 14 year old boys. They're all are so trapped in their own traumas and struggles that they NEVER. EVER. Try to look outside their asses and view the villain-gotham-situation from a far away point of view.

Again I blame the writers. Because when they have good writing the generally do have braincells to analyze that.

You >>CANNOT<<. Hold the same energy you have with a mugger and with the fucking Joker. It doesn't make sense. It's just damn right stupid. It's cannon (and even true outside of comics) that the majority of people who turn to crime, are people who had nothing to begin with. Most of them are working class. Most of them are already born in the goddammit CRIME ALLEY. Most of them start before even turning into adults.

It's stated multiple times. That Gotham is a hard city to survive, it is filled with crime. Jason's first contact with crime and drugs and dealers was when he was younger than 10 years old. It's not just stupid, but also dishonest to pretend he was the only one, and all those muggers and henchmen are just terrible people that are there by choice because they're evil and need to be punished and killed. >:C

Some might be, but how the fuck would you know??

Because tale as old as time, if the system is as fucked as a gas leaking, shooting your way out of there isn't going to solve shit. You shoot this mugger today and next day it's going to be another one. There's a fucking reason why countries with high education and opportunities have less crime. There's a reason why gotham is corrupted and cursed. You cannot save everyone. Some people doesn't even want to be saved.

But shooting them is definitely doing more harm them good. Because they were just a mugger but their children might become a killer in ten years because you wanted to play god.

And at the same time. We cannot pretend that a man who went to prison million times. Who has been treated with 181838 who knows how many psychologists, therapists, psychiatrist. Who shows no remorse is as redeemable as someone who is taking cellphones and purses on street for money. Specially a man who tells you over and over again that they will kill, abuse, torture anyone (even people as close to you as possible) and everyone no matter how many times you arrest him and send him away. We cannot act like everybody is made of steal and it's not going to fucking snap at a person like that.

Let's not pretend a single man with flesh and bone have the right to decide what a serial killer fate should be just because he and the killer have a connection 🥺 And he can save him 🥺. And he have a code 😩. And what if he cannot hold himself anymore after 😳😳. Batman should have no authority on how people (people who were directly affected FOR LIFE by Joker) should react/respond to him, but YET DC keep trying to convince us he does.

Its pathetic.

Not killing is a thing. Constantly saving a murder is another.

And I go back to the central point because how Batman, Nightwing and Redhood react to different criminals it's honestly fully dependent on the writer and no one else. And oh boy, how many different interpretations we had over the years huh.

The point is. Both. BOTH. Of their point of view is flawed. You cannot hold your WHOLE belief system in a moral code with less than 10 words. I mean you can, but it won't last. Every situation is a situation. Every person is a person. There isn't no all right and all wrong all done recipe to deal with every fucking criminal existent. And the whole fact that two stubborn man hold into that belief systems with their damn life anyway is the most realistic thing of this setting.

"Jason is a murder and murder is wrong". Therefore "Jason is always wrong and Batman have the right to punish him >:c" Is one of the stupidest takes I've seen a comic book make in a while and I still don't know how they keep getting away with it.

Specially in how his punishments and mistreating coming from his own family are portrayed in the comics.

I don't give a fuck about what Batman think, and I'm goddam tired of Jason's whole arc is reapeating this whole dynamic over and over again.

You want to criticize Redhoods methods??? Then stop being a pussy and do it right addressing the real fucking problems about it.

Address how the people he killed before had a family and how they had to cope with their loss. How the fuck they survived and what they had to do to sustain themselves. Address how a single man cannot logistically always be certain of his informations and background checks, because not even an entire fucking justice system MADE FOR THAT can, and one day sooner or later Jason is going to be wrong. Address how when he plays double agent it doesn't undo the jobs he done for literally mob bosses. And how it doesn't matter he despites and hates himself and how self aware he is he still playing a part in this system as well as Batman does. As Bruce milionaire Wayne does.

And how at some point of his life he will have to confront the fact that. Yeah it was fucked. Yeah it was horrible he didn't deserve that. Fuck yeah Batman sucks. Nightwing sucks. They're all hypocrites. Fuck Joker. He didn't chose to be here. All of that.

But still, in real life, in this present moment. It is Jason fucking Todd who is chosing to do exactly what he's does.

Not Batman. Not Nightwing. Not Joker. Not pretender. Not his mom. Not his biologic father. Not his trauma. Him.

And no "Holly shit you become everything you hate because of the circumstances" and poetic irony regarding his biological dad is going to erase that.

Any day by now, eventually, it should be the consequences of his actions that would bite him in the ass. Not Batman.

Until then it doesn't matter what edgy angst violent discourse and or comic run regarding moral code and what the fuck Batman or the Batfam thinks of Jason's way of living and how does that affect him. I will not give a single fuck about it.

As I said before you have million reasons to criticize Jason life style but don't try to make me care bringing constantly the most stupid and lazy-writing one.

#my city #If at least it went somewhere it could but EVERYBODY even in the comic universe knows it doesn't #so why bother?? #I like Jason but I'll not sit here and pretend he is the most sane and right family member of the batfam just because he has the common #sense to want to end the joker #mf has issues #and at somepoint we SHOULD separate them from batman #because batman can act like he own thst goddamn city but he should NOT be the ultimate authority to everysingle thing and I stand by that #says the man who hasn't walk around there without a limo or a armour in almost thirty years #they're flawed that's the whole beauty of their situation #and dynamic #there's no absolutely right or absolutely wrong in their situation just people trying to cope #jason todd #redhood #bruce wayne #batman #q rants

[sokkastyles]

Something I've been thinking about lately is people talking about abuse in atla and pointing to Zuko's scar as the most obvious example, but as someone who is required to know quite a bit about child psychology and abuse, Ozai burning his son was never what made me recognize the relationship as abusive.

I've seen (and engaged in) a lot of discussions about how atla shows different kinds of abuse, and how some of it is more subtle than others. And as much as I do enjoy analyzing the show from that perspective, I think we forget sometimes that this is a show meant for kids, and although I have seen some criticism in that regard that some of the abuses are portrayed too subtly, (e.g., the endless discussions of Azula's abuse vs Zuko's) we forget that children aren't necessarily watching the show and seeing it through that lens. Even the most obvious example of Ozai scarring his son, though called out as wrong, is not called abuse in the narrative. I'm not saying it isn't meant to be interpreted that way, but I don't think it's necessarily meant to be interpreted that way by the kids in the audience. Ozai scars his son, but he's also the bad guy. A child watching the show is likely not going to interpret this event the same way as an adult.

I think the writers did intend for the adults and older kids watching to recognize it as abuse, but for me, what makes it abuse isn't necessarily the violence, which, though extreme, is typical for the fantasy setting, even normalized in-story within the bounds of Fire Nation culture.

What makes me recognize it as abuse was always what was behind the actions. The power dynamics at play, the way Ozai talks to and about his son, the way he manipulates him and puts him into a position where he cannot fight back but also blames himself for being hurt. The way he makes him believe in his own worthlessness and internalize the abuse. I also recognize these things in the way Ozai treats Azula, who is a victim of her father's abuse as well. And that's also why I say Azula abuses Zuko, not because they fight each other in a fantasy setting, but because of the way she talks to and about him vs the way he talks to and about her, the way he interacts with her, and the way she makes him feel. The way she constantly puts him down in a way that renders him helpless to fight back in the same way, and uses that to manipulate him, especially when we have those echoes of how their father treated them both.

Kids aren't necessarily going to pick up on that because they aren't meant to, but atla was also written with adults in mind and that's one of the things that gives it such universal appeal. Just because you maybe didn't pick up on things the first go around doesn't mean that the show is engaging in abuse apologism. It's a sign of multilayered writing.

Writing for both kids and adults is tricky, it's a market that a lot of writers aim for these days, because companies recognize that while marketing to kids gets money in the bank, it's keeping their parents hooked that is where the real profit is. But so many writers fail to understand how to maintain this balance. As an adult, I feel even more condescended to watching kids' media that is clearly trying to pander to me at the expense of their child audience than I do watching something made for kids that didn't have me in mind at all. Atla did something special though, and that's why we're talking about it fifteen years later, by entwining its darker themes with its kid friendly narrative.

Even with Azula, though her abuse narrative is subtle, even a more simplistic reading of her character doesn't render her unsympathetic. It's pretty clear that the narrative is building from her first introduction in "The Avatar State," where she is criticized by Lo and Li for having one hair out of place, and then declares that almost perfect isn't good enough, towards a realization that being on the side of the baddies is going to bring her unhappiness in the end. It's a pretty standard moral for a kid's show, but it makes her something of a sympathetic villain because we can easily pick up on that she's trying really hard to fulfill a role she thinks she has to fill, which also parallels her brother's narrative.

Kids don't necessarily have all the knowledge to understand abuse the way adults do but they do understand these things. And I think we do them discredit to assume that everything in the narrative has to hit as hard and unsubtle as a hammer, especially when it comes to adult topics that kids not old enough to pick up on the more subtle themes aren't going to appreciate anyway. That's not what they're watching for.

As an example, I've seen some pushback lately against Zuko confronting Ozai in Day of Black Sun, because as an abuse narrative, it's really a bad move to have Zuko try and force his abuser into a confession while he is not safe from him. I've even seen some suggestion that kids watching might get the idea that they, too, should confront violent abusers, when of course the best thing to do is to get as far away as safely as possible.

The problem with this is that it assumes that kids that young are watching the show thinking about it that way, when they're mostly thinking about the heroics of Zuko confronting the bad guy with swords in his hands before finally becoming the hero we want him to be.

Adults and older teens watching might think more about the abuse narrative, about a son confronting his father and possibly hoping for some recognition from the man he loved that he was hurt by him, will see Zuko's fear at confronting his father, his rage and sadness and tears, and recognize also that Zuko is not safe and that ultimately, Zuko does put himself in danger and doesn't get the true closure that he wanted, as his father only gloats and justifies and tries to play on Zuko's emotions before finally trying to kill him.

It's also worth noting that Zuko does take precautions to make himself safe. There's a reason he waits until the eclipse to have that conversation with his father, when his father is powerless, and counts on Aang and the others arriving as backup, and still goes armed and ready for a fight. For all that the abuse narrative is present, it still takes place in a fantasy setting, and the confrontation can only happen in larger than life circumstances.

I keep thinking about that post about how morals in kids shows tend to follow logic of what a kid could concievably do. Zim has to wear his seatbelt while he fires the death ray. Zuko confronting his father is an action that takes place and could only happen within the fantasy setting. Zuko doesn't kill his father because the moral is supposed to be that you should be the bigger person. The moral is not supposed to be that you should always confront abusers or that confrontation is necessary to get closure, and I think that's reading too much into the narrative from a perspective not intended by the show.

Similarly, the moral of Azula's downfall is not supposed to be that if your abuser makes you feel like you are a monster (as abusers often do), you can never get help. It's that behaving badly has consequences, that striving to be perfect often alienates you from others, and that no one is inherently better than anyone else and that everyone deserves compassion, and that manipution and control are not good ways to treat people around you and will ultimately leave you unhappy and unfulfilled.

#zuko #azula #abuse cw #atla meta #ozai