#but so many people straight up misunderstood her character

[mirokuna-hime]

The HSR fandom on reddit and twitter already managed to mischaracterize Topaz as a heartless debt collector and called her a product of bad writing because she has a flawed personality.

This is why we can't have nuanced characters in this house.

The game is telling us multiple times that Topaz main goal is to save the planet of Belobog and not to collect the debt, yet people still got that wrong.

Topaz honey, I'm getting you and Numby out of here these people don't deserve you

#hsr topaz #honkai star rail #hsr #like if you don't like her that's 100% okay #but so many people straight up misunderstood her character #she's stubborn and narrow minded and thought her way is the only way to save belobog because she's traumatized #the whole conflict of having to choose between freedom and security was great too

[shinsorokiri]

y’know i know a lot of people talk about how they love shane and seb because they’re the damaged men in the game, and like same 100%, but i also see a lot of people kinda dismiss sam as a golden retriever, positive, happy character. but if you really think about it, sam fits into the same category as seb and shane too. like:

1. his mother expresses multiple times to the farmer that although she loves her children, she very much longs to have a life where she doesn’t have to constantly worry about kids. in a way a part of her deep down wishes that sam and vincent didn’t really exist and it tears her apart and vincent isn’t necessarily old enough to grasp the concept, but sam is and you know he notices it. this is the woman who raised him and (i at least headcanon him) as someone who is very observant. he definitely notices these behaviors coming from her. and idk about you, but having an inkling that your mother is unhappy with her life in any capacity would really screw me up personally.

2. his father went to WAR. like fully went to war and i’m thinking he was in the army for 2 and a half years at least because he has a corporal badge (even though it’s upside down) but that means that he was away for bootcamp, then deployed, and if sam is around what? like 19? 20? that means that he became the “man of the household” at 17 or 18. Because I personally believe Kent was away for three to three and a half years. Bootcamp for about 10 weeks, straight to a base for more training, and it seems as though the active war made it so he got deployed into action fairly quickly. So, not only did Sam have an absence where his father should have been during the years he became a young adult, but he has to adjust to his father coming back and struggling with PTSD and quite honestly being shellshocked. (i also believe kent was honorably discharged, meaning something bad happened to him in the war. perhaps it was the same event where he lost many of his friends, but i fully believe the war is still ongoing even when kent returns to the valley considering the traveling merchant is still smuggling things into the town.) all the memories he had of kent are just memories now because his father will never be the same as he was before. And sam KNOWS that! even vince notices it!

3. he’s literally a rebellious skater kid, one of his heart events is him getting in trouble WITH THE MAYOR because he’s skating where he’s not supposed to, AND he purposely tries to sabotage the soup for the potluck and leads in community service hours. he’s a teenage dirtbag baby! a misunderstood edgy kid who acts out because he doesn't know how to express his feelings! and on top of that, with his adhd he’s even more misunderstood and people don’t take him seriously at all. he gets scolded for things that he seemingly just can’t help all the time and that just hurts him and makes him act out even more.

4. sam is also a damaged individual - he’s just better at masking it. seb embraces the darkness and accepts that he is an outcast and doesn’t try to hide the fact he is. shane struggles with addiction and depression publicly and it’s not negative necessarily, but he can’t hide it from anyone. sam has a warped idea that he cannot show his ailments, physical or mental because he needs to be strong for his little brother and give an example of what he believes a man should be (and because of the patriarchal society he lives in he doesn’t know that he can be vulnerable because no one told him because the man who would have been able to explain that to him during the years he really needed to hear it wasn’t there). i fear he suffers a bit from toxic positivity and desperately tries to rely on hobbies to distract him from his reality. 

long story short, sam is not just a silly guy, he has depth. i mean come on, he's best friends with sebastian for a reason! they’re similar in ways! he just doesn’t know how to talk about or express it. all this to say, sam is an interesting and deep character that shouldn’t be written off immediately by people.

sam supremacy! lmao

#stardew valley #stardew #stardew valley sam #stardew sam #stardew headcanon #stardew valley headcanon #woke up and thought i'd advocate for samson today #cause i love that guy #sdv sam #sdv

[auronira]

Being someone who is allo (just learned about the existance of this word) and cis, I want to talk about the hot topic of Alastor being shipped romantically and sexually by the fandom of Hazbin Hotel.

I understand that the topic I'm about to delve into may require some patience and open-mindedness. As a young individual seeking understanding, I implore you to hear me out before forming any judgments. English isn't my first language, so I apologize if my expressions seem weird, also it may take a while to get what I am saying here, I took a lot of time to get my point across so please give me a little bit of your time - especially if you are aroace or anywhere among that spectrum.

First of all, being cis and allo is obviously one of the most comfortable shoes you can wear within society. I am aware of that.

For instance, as someone who enjoys immersing myself in various forms of media such as books, movies, and video games, I often find characters and narratives that resonate with my experiences. This familiarity allows me to connect deeply with the stories and derive genuine enjoyment from them. I've never had to grapple with the challenges of feeling unseen or misunderstood in this regard, and for that, I am privileged.

Contrastingly, I recognize the struggles that members of the LGBTQ+ community often face. The need to repeatedly explain one's identity and preferences, the constant battle for visibility and acceptance – these are realities that I've never had to confront personally. My identity has always been accepted without question, and for that, I'm grateful. However, I'm eager to learn and empathize with those whose journeys differ from my own so please try and be patient with me.

To my fellow cisgender and heterosexual individuals who may be unfamiliar with what I'm about to explain: Consider the concept of "comfort characters" and why they hold such significance in our lives. For me, growing up, Katniss Everdeen served as my comfort character. Reflecting on her impact on my childhood development, I realize the profound influence she had. During a time when I was grappling with personal challenges that I wasn't yet ready to confide in my family about, my connection to Katniss provided solace. Through her character, I found the strength to envision myself facing adversity head-on, overcoming obstacles with resilience. It may seem trivial to some, given that she's a fictional creation, but the bond I forged with her played a pivotal role in shaping my identity.

I believe many of us can relate to forming such deep connections with fictional characters as we navigate through the complexities of adolescence and young adulthood. These characters serve as guiding lights, offering solace and inspiration during times of uncertainty. Even if you haven't personally experienced such a connection, I encourage you to consider the profound impact that representation can have on shaping one's sense of self and belonging.

Representation matters because it validates our experiences and identities, providing a sense of visibility and validation that is essential for personal growth and empowerment. Just as we find comfort and inspiration in the characters we admire, so too do marginalized individuals deserve to see themselves reflected in the stories they consume. It's through diverse representation that we foster empathy, understanding, and inclusivity within our communities and society as a whole.

Representation matters because it gives people characters they can relate to and admire. But not every character needs to be relatable for everyone to like them. For instance, I really enjoyed watching the relationship between She-Ra and Catra in the show She-Ra. Even though I'm straight, I can imagine the profound joy it brought to members of the LGBTQ+ community who could see themselves represented in a meaningful way. They relate to those characters differently than I do, and that's totally okay. Sometimes, fans want to see their favorite characters in certain ways, even if it's not exactly how the creators intended them to be. They create their own ideas about the characters to feel a deeper connection. While it's natural to want to connect with characters, it's also important to respect the original story and the creators' intentions.

While it's natural to seek characters with whom we can personally identify, it's equally important to appreciate the diversity of perspectives and experiences that representation brings. It's through this diversity that stories become richer and more inclusive, resonating with a broader audience and fostering empathy and understanding across different communities.

So what does that mean for aroace people when it comes to Alastor?

For this to understand I'm just gonna try and picture myself in a different pair of metaphorical shoes, but when it comes to being ace they may not even feel like shoes at all, but more as if you are running barefoot over the nastiest lego pieces in existance.

Imagine going to a bookstore and struggling to find something that aligns with your tastes. Maybe you spend hours searching, only to come up empty-handed. Perhaps you end up settling for whatever book is popular at the moment, feeling left out because there's no variety that speaks to you. Or maybe you turn to the internet, hoping to find your perfect book match online, but even that proves to be a challenge. In the end, you might resort to reading fanfiction because there, at least, the chances of finding representation are higher.

This struggle isn't limited to books but extends to movies, TV shows, and everything else. Constantly feeling like you don't belong can be painful and isolating. I wouldn't wish that feeling on anyone. Unfortunately, society can't change overnight, so we have to work with what we have for now.

The bottom line is, everyone deserves to see themselves represented in the media they consume. It's not just about personal preference; it's about feeling seen and valued in a world that often overlooks our differences. And until that becomes a reality, we'll keep pushing for change, one step at a time. Finally, there's that one character – in this case, Alastor – and for the first time, asexual individuals can feel that sense of connection I've been talking about. They feel seen and acknowledged, just as we all do when we find something or someone we can relate to. This is what books, TV shows, and video games are all about – providing us with enjoyment and a sense of validation, especially in a world that can be tough.

Representation of diverse sexualities in media isn't just important for LGBTQ+ individuals; it's beneficial for everyone. It helps broaden our understanding of each other and breaks down barriers without anyone having to change who they are to fit in. This is the power of art and the stories we consume – they have the ability to blur the lines between people and foster greater empathy and acceptance. Ultimately, it's about making everyone feel like they belong and have a place in the world.

I'll be honest – I don't really think about labels much anymore. I've found that they can sometimes divide people even further, which isn't what I'm about. It's not that I have anything against labels in general; I just personally don't dwell on them. However, I do recognize the subtle influence they can have on me, even though I consider myself quite open-minded.

I've come to a point where I've found peace in the idea that everyone should just be allowed to be themselves, as long as they're happy. I didn't actively choose to be straight; it's just who I am. And I don't expect anyone else to have to "choose" their sexuality either – they should just be able to exist and be happy. I've reached a mindset where I don't really give much thought to someone's sexuality when I see it portrayed in media. They're just who they are, and I'm just who I am. But I understand that for many people, having those labels is important for representation and visibility. Perhaps, initially, society needs those divisions in order for certain groups to feel seen and acknowledged. And while I may not personally identify with those labels, I can still appreciate their significance to others. At the end of the day, it's about acceptance and understanding, regardless of labels.

Returning to the topic of Alastor, now that there's this ace character, the fandom takes him and sometimes decides to change him to fit their own desires. It's similar (I guess) to the disappointment some feel when an author keeps a protagonist's appearance vague, only for fans to imagine them as the perfect, conventionally beautiful princess. This can be hurtful to people who don't fit that idealized image because they ask themselves "would the story be any different if she would be smaller, or chubby, or (insert whatever you want)?"

What's crucial to recognize here is that some fans might struggle to accept Alastor's sexuality because they feel like he has to be different for them to enjoy certain content without feeling guilty or needing to justify their actions. Our minds often try to protect us with such a mindset so we can feel good about ourselves and our choices. For some, that means trying to impose their beliefs on a character so they can comfortably engage with them in their own fanworks.

It's important to acknowledge that everyone interprets and engages with media differently. However, it's also important to respect the creator's original intentions and the representation they've provided. Trying to change a character to fit one's own desires can be disrespectful to both the character and those who identify with them.

Ultimately, it's about finding a balance between creative freedom and respecting the integrity of the source material.

Here are two key considerations that both sides should bear in mind, (if I even have the right to say anything as someone who is clearly underqualified when it comes to topics like that as a cis and allo):

On one hand, it's important for ace individuals to understand that people often enjoy engaging with characters in various ways, including through shipping and fanfiction. Characters may take on different traits or orientations in these creative outlets, and that's part of the fun and freedom of fan culture. However, when it comes to representation in canon material, it's crucial not to impose personal viewpoints onto characters solely for the sake of recognition. While it's acceptable to explore different interpretations in fan works, it's essential to respect the original portrayal of characters, particularly regarding their sexuality.

Reflecting on my own feelings on this matter, I've realized that I don't necessarily take issue with individuals changing the sexual orientation of straight characters in fanfiction. However, I become uncomfortable when there's an attempt to forcefully alter the canonical identity of a character. This discomfort arises from a sense that being straight is portrayed as incorrect or undesirable. This realization has deepened my empathy for the struggles faced by members of the LGBTQ+ community in seeking authentic representation in media.

This also brings me to the main point – the same principle applies to ace individuals when the community tries to forcefully change a character's sexuality, refusing to acknowledge their ace identity as portrayed in the show. Finally, ace individuals have a character to look up to who is even quite popular, only to see that representation invalidated or ignored because some people refuse to accept it – essentially, refusing to see them.

This kind of rejection can make ace individuals feel as though they need to conform to certain expectations in order to be considered "interesting" or "popular," just like Alastor. It's confusing and disheartening to see a character's identity denied or dismissed, especially when it's a rare instance of representation that could provide validation and visibility for ace individuals.

It would be VERY confusing for me, making me feel like, despite getting represented, I would not be enough.

I'd like to take a moment to clarify that while I enjoy engaging in fan works involving Alastor - some even portraying him romantically or sexually with another character, I wouldn't want him to be portrayed differently in the series. Changing his character in the serie itself in such a fundamental way would completely ruin the essence of who he is for me, much like what happened with characters such as Wednesday, Sherlock, or Loki. Despite my love for these characters, I felt that some of them should have remained as they were without delving into romantic or sexual storylines, as it would feel out of place, just as it would feel strange to me if Alastor suddenly showed romantic or sexual interest in anyone.

It's important to recognize that enjoying fan works doesn't necessarily mean wanting to alter the original outcome of the show or the character themselves. Sometimes, it's just for fun, without any deeper implications.

I don't have a definitive conclusion or a perfect solution to make everything peaceful – I'm not sure such a thing even exists. However, I believe that listening to each other and trying to understand one another, despite our differences, is crucial. I can only imagine how deeply hurtful it must be for ace individuals to see so much fan art of Alastor that conflicts with his established sexual orientation, but recognizing it as people having fun and drawing a line between canon and fanon is as important as it is for those who engage in such content to understand why ace individuals might feel upset about it, and to recognize that their feelings are just as valid.

We need to communicate with each other respectfully and without hostility.

I'm open to listening to anyone who might feel offended by anything I've written here – my goal in sharing these thoughts is simply to foster understanding and empathy. I never wanted to hurt anyone with my words, sorry in advance if someone feels triggered because of this.

#hazbin hotel #alastor #hazbin alastor #alastor aroace #aromantic #asexual #aroace #alastor the radio demon

[mariatesstruther]

I honestly don't get why Maria was so anti-Joel oh he's a horrible person he's done horrible things he can't be around us, but accepted Tommy fully to the point he's the father of her child when both did the same things, ran with the same people and all of that.

I mean I love the character, but that confuses the hell out of me. Why's Tommy accepted but Joel damned?

okay, so… this response took me like half hour to write. my wrists hurt, my jaw is clenched, my brain is hot. i love u anon thank u very much for this chance to vent about just why my girl maria has been so misunderstood. let’s go

i personally think this is where many people fundamentally misunderstand maria’s perception of joel. she’s not cautious of him primarily because of tommy or anything tommy has said, in my personal opinion—she’s cautious of him for and because of ellie

ive said this on my blog a few times and i think so have @steeb-stn and @clickergossip (and maybe @liveandletcry23 and @bumblepony i have a shit memory so tagging just in case) so im gonna tag them to credit their words and ideas about maria as well, but the FIRST time maria sees joel, he’s with this rando twelve year old girl who he is seemingly so protective over that she cant even be sniffed by dogs who are just trying to detect infection, which would be good for ANYBODY. that’s his first strike for untrustworthyness, because why the fuck wouldn’t he let this girl be tested???—we know why, of course, but maria doesnt. shes working on the very limited info about joel/ellie’s relationship that she has from just her own observations, and i think we need to remember that as we go through analyzing why she moves how she moves

shes knows from tommy at this point is that joel had a daughter, but it is definitely not this little girl. so why the fuck are they so close. what have they gone through. are they okay. is ellie okay. is their relationship safe for her??? THAT’s what she’s thinking about, in my opinion, while shes staring joel down at that dinner table. she’s reasonbly suspicious, and i can’t blame her for it.

i had to cut this it’s literally maybe my longest post ever so. heres the cut

ALSO, it’s not like she’s a straight up bitch to joel like some of y’all seem to make it out to be??? she never says or implies that “they can’t be around” or anything like that. she offers them clothes and food and supplies. she sets them up in a house. before dinner, she gives them a personal tour (which, to be fair, she did because she was probably trying to keep an eye on them and figure out more about whether or not ellie is safe, but who wouldnt???? i know tess would! and yall would love her for it!). tommy literally says to joel before they leave that there will always be a place for him and ellie in jackson—you cannot tell me you believe he said so without already have maria’s green light for joel and ellie to stay

ALSO, i wanna consider some other things that i haven’t seen many ppl talk about. on that walk she takes with tommy and joel and ellie, she makes it sound like tommy has been with them for at least years AND she maintains the confidence to say that residents in jackson stay off the radio—i could totally be wrong, but it seems to me from the look tommy and joel share right after that it’s obvious tommy has been talking to joel BEHIND MARIA’S BACK???? did no one else catch that??? am i misinterpreting big time??? id assume because theyre married and from the way tommy talks about jackson that he’s been in jackson for at least 3 years maybe, and we know that he only stopped radioing joel a couple months before the show’s main plotline starts, so timeline wise there had to be some overlap of tommy still radioing joel from/around jackson. idk if anyone of my mutuals has thoughts on this but i personally think it’s important to point out, because it establishes that maria likely doesn’t know or think tommy and joel kept in contact, at least not as recently as up to some months ago. she knows that tommy and joel are close, but at the same time, she doesn’t think tommy really knows or talks to joel anymore, either. so how is she supposed to extend him any trust as tommy’s brother????? how and why would she give this man any benefit of the doubt???? it wouldn’t make any sense. she’s more practical and discerning than she is naive and kind, and y’all can think what y’al want about that but i love her for it. it’s very necessary for a woman like her to be the way she is

okay, so back to your question. back to why joel is “damned” and tommy is “accepted.” let’s talk about joel for a sec

y’all like to babygirl and idolize the absolute fuck out of this man

we know that not only was he a smuggler, but he killed and tricked and took advantage of people, shamelessly and brutally. we know that tommy did so too. maria knows that tommy has done the same things. maria also knows that tommy left that life because he couldnt do it anymore, and joel continued because he could

point blank period!!!!! yall can argue with me all u want but tommy left that murder life and joel did not. im not saying this makes either brother good or bad or better than the other, i love joel sm and i think both of them have an undisputed capability to do unspeakable things in order to survive. but tommy got to a point where he hit a limit, whereas joel doesn’t seem to have one. this is at least my personal interpretation of their conversations in the game and the show

tommy DID join the fireflies, which we all know now is not any fucking better than whatever the fuck joel was doing—the difference is the reasoning, though, and considering tlou is all about reasoning and the why, we need to consider the reasoning behind tommy’s decision: he wanted to do something better, something good, something he thought had a purpose. we all know now that the fireflies are bullshit, their purpose is bullshit, and they’re willingness to kill a child for the sake of the “cure” is it’s own entire paradox of bullshit. but they were a rebel organization fighting fedra, who fucking suck, and probably had somewhat of a better reputation back when tommy was interested in joining—or maybe they didn’t, to be fair, i don’t know! the point is, tommy went to them seeking some sort of better purpose, some type of redeption; in joel’s own fucking words, “tommy’s what we used to call a joiner. had dreams of becoming a hero... wants to save the world.”

tommy is idealistic. he’s romantic. he’s optimistic, almost to the point of being fucking naive. thats why he enlisted in the army, thats why he enlisted in the fireflies—he wanted to feel good about himself and the world he was living in. he needed it to have some light at the end of the tunnel for all the bullshit to make sense. and yeah, he was wrong both times in joining up. we know that, joel knew that while it was happening, and tommy knows that in retrospect, too. i think jackson is the first place he really found true, real purpose—not the kind that is propagandized to you and goes up in smoke, but the kind that is well and truly earned. that’s why he is so loyal to jackson and to maria—they finally gave him was he desperately spent his life searching for

and im just saying, from maria’s perspective, she’s someone who lives for purpose. she lives for jackson and for it’s people and for it’s future, and she has to maintain some sense of idealism in the face of all that fucking ugliness to be able to mentally live im and run a place like jackson, to believe that it’ll work. i think that idealism she has, she sees reflected in tommy’s desperation to be a better person who’s fighting for a better life. she sees that need for redemption and goodness in him, that need for things to be fucking worth it, and hears she hears it in his story. she gets to relate to him with this in a way she doesnt GET TO RELATE with joel YET (we STILL HAVE TIME PEOPLE. WE HOLDIN OUT STRONG FOR THE JOEL AND MARIA BEST FRIEND AGENDA)

but to continue, THEN maria spends YEARS with tommy, getting to know him, getting to know his guilt. just like tess with joel, she’s sees the worst and the best of him and gets to fall in love with all of it. so of course there’s gonna be a bit of a bias and a blindspot, towards him—just like any of are other characters have weak spots for the people THEY fucking love

so that’s i guess why i think tommy is “accepted” by her, i guess, and there’s honestly way more them and their romance that i could make a whole separate post about but i’ll leave it there for now. back to joel and why he’s “damned,” which i don’t think he is

again, from what maria knows, he made an active CHOICE to stay in the lifestyle of smuggling and murdering and QZ bullshit, even after tommy chose to leave—and idk what y’all imagine joel and tess to be doing in those many years on their own, but it’s not fuckin picking flowers, for me. they’re dangerous, dangerous people—more dangerous that fedra, and more dangerous than the fireflies, if we’re being fucking real about it. and we LOVE tess and joel for this, or at least i do

but jackson is not a place where people get by with smuggling or backstreet deals or threats. it’s not supposed to be that place. we all LOVE jackson in fics and hcs and aus because it’s literally a place where joel and ellie finally get to breathe and not worry about their safety/survival first. and you know who keeps jackson that way????? MARIA. AND HE BEING FUCKING PICKING ABOUT WHO JACKSON LETS THE FUCK INSIDE

so yall just expect her to by YIPPY SKIPPY when joel, THE JOEL THE SUPER SMUGGLER MURDER COWBOY, strolls into town????? WITHOUT TESS, WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO BE THE MORE PERSONABLE AND REASONABLE ONE???? what????? she’d be crazy not to at least try to be a little intimidating, to make it clear to joel that he will not get away with any of that qz bullshit here. she’d be naive not to, and maria is anything but naive

and i know most people don’t like her for that “a bad reputation doesn’t mean you’re bad” “not always, at least” line, but i actually think it really fits so well in establishing that she’s not afraid of joel, not afraid of challenging him or making him own up to things he’s done. it’s just so so cool to me, i just can’t hate her for that????? she’s establishing with him that she knows what tommy knows about his time in the QZ, and she’s letting him know if that joel shows up here in jackson, there will be fucking problems for him. which i think is a completely fair warning????

so let’s continue. let’s talk about The Scene, the one with her and ellie, the one with the “tommy was following joel” line. ONE thing i’d like to point out about this scene—MARIA IS THE ONE TO TELL ELLIE ABOUT SARAH, NOT JOEL. AND THAT IS A BIG BIG BIG REASON FOR WHY SHE WARNS ELLIE NOT TO TRUST JOEL COMPLETELY

we know what joel and ellie have gone through, at this point, but maria has barely any idea. she sees that ellie has this fierce protectiveness and lots of secrets when it comes to her and joel, which like—can we all be fucking objective here for a second. this can SO easily and SO reasonably be interpreted as something sketchy going on between joel and ellie that maria should be concerned about.

(slight tw about older men-younger woman relationships bc im gonna be personal for a sec, its quick) we don’t know maria’s past or what she has seen or been through, but personally as someone who has been in a situation where an older man has taken advantage of my naivety in the past, i am now extremely hyper vigilant when it comes to young girls around older men in my personal life today. ellie and joel’s situation and how it looks would raise MJAOR red flags for me personally, if i was in maria’s position. that’s just a personal perspective have that really affects the way i view this scene (end tw)

and so maria finds out that joel has kept the fact that HE HAD A WHOLE ASS DAUGHTER from ellie?????? WOULD THAT NOT BE SUS AT ALL TO YALL???? i mean we know why joel doesn’t tell ellie, as gameplayers and watchers of the show, but again. maria is operating on the info she has right in front of her, which is that joel has been omitting maybe the biggest fact of his life from this young girl who is willing to defend and trust him with her entire life, even after she finds out she’s being lied to. this is alarming

so at this point, she’s questioning joel’s intentions with ellie, and in my opinion, it’s not at all unreasonable for her to do so. she then continues to press, because the red flags are flying and she wants ellie to be crystal clear on the kind of man she’s traveling with (“there are CLEARLY things you don’t know about joel” — “so then you understand my concerns”)

AND THEN ELLIE. BLESSED SMART AMAZING ELLIE COMES IN WITH THE DEFENSE—“and tommy did it too, are you worried about him?”—which like, i love this line. i love this moment. i think because i go so hard for maria a lot of y’all think i’m blind to when ellie is making points, but i 100% cheered her on when i first watched this scene, like i’m sure y’all did—because it’s true! it’s fair! if maria is going to judge joel for those things, she needs to extend the same judgement to tommy

the thing is, it’s still fucking true that, as i said earlier, tommy left that life. both the smuggling, and the fireflies—he chose to stop, while joel didn’t—he was smuggling literally up until the day him and tess found ellie, so. there’s that. she continues to judge joel and not tommy because she knows for sure that tommy has changed. she doesn’t know joel enough yet to see that he has changed, too

so then, the dreaded line: “tommy was following joel.” let’s talk about it.

i don’t love this line either, tbh! i think it’s a weak defense on maria’s part, and a weak line on the tlou hbo writers part—probably my least favorite line of maria’s overall. but i do get why she says it, and i kind of think i get the purpose??? i think????

it reminds me a lot of joel’s line, earlier, about tommy being a “joiner,” and i think it’s funny that, as opposite as joel and maria like to think they both are to each other, the way they describe tommy is pretty much the same. tommy is a “joiner” to joel and a “follower” to maria, and in all respects they both love and hate him for it. idk where i’m going with that exactly, just something interesting to think about in terms of the joel and maria best friend agenda

but i also think this line get’s taken out of context a lot, because the full line is “tommy was following joel, the way you are now.” maria says this line to lead into her main point, the really fucking important line in this scene: “be careful who you put your faith in. the only ones who can betray us, are the one’s we trust.”

WHICH IS TRUE. IT IS THE POINT. AND WHEN JOEL LIES TO ELLIE, HIDES SOMETHING FROM HER YET AGAIN at the end of the season/game, IT BECOMES A THEMATIC CLIMAX POINT THAT CONNECTS BOTH OF THE GAMES

maria is not saying this to “damn” joel—and i personally don’t think she is “damning” joel in the way you imply here, as there’s definitely potential for them to develop a relationship in s2 once she has more information about the truth of how he thinks of ellie. i think she’s warning ellie not to trust joel, because she doesn’t trust joel, at the end of the fucking day—and that’s about it. she trusts tommy in a way that she can’t quite trust joel yet, and why would she, at this point? it would make no sense for her to

so y’all can blame her and hate her for her distrust all you guys want (btw not necessarily talking to you, anon, ive just gotten some very nasty asks about maria from others so im talking to them rn!!!!!!!), but i’m sorry—you can’t tell me that it doesn’t at least make sense. she’s MARIA. she’s MADE OF SENSE

#WHEW #DO MY THUMBS HURT #i cant even be bothered to tag this fr #maria miller #asked and answered #joel and maria best friend agenda #tommy miller #joel miller #tess servopoulos

[antianakin]

I find it really interesting that you don’t like kallus at all bc say what you will about fulcrum or kalluzeb but he’s the first ex-/imperial character that we saw on screen who wasn’t already defected when we met him. Like obvs you’ve got Han and Sabine who started off in the academy and then left bc they realised in wasn’t what they wanted and tala who’s already a mole for the path by the time she’s on screen but most other characters we interact with regularly and significantly either stay imperial or have never been one as far as we know. And I think that watching kallus’ arc play out as he realises that no the empire isn’t worth it actually and it is worse and the rebels he’s fighting and trying to capture are better and are the good guys is just so fascinating to watch. If anakin’s arc in tcw and the prequels is about him getting worse and worse and making all the wrong choices again and again then kallus’s overarching storyline is about learning that actually his choices were wrong and he is the villain and he needs to accept that and try to do better as best he can. Ymmv on how well it was executed (and I do think there are parts that could have been done so much better) but the bare bones are there (and also I do love the interactions he has with kanan and Ezra post defection pre extraction where they’re like “this guy 😤” and are doing things like throwing him through glass screens to cover for him bc hey! They’re helping and they get to be a bit petty about it bc they still don’t like him and he just. Has to put up with it bc he’s on their side now and they are technically helping him)

I don’t know I just think it’s a pretty interesting arc to follow and I do think that however clumsily handled (again ymmv on how clumsily), the idea in his character of “it’s not too late to change and to choose to do better, you can unlearn your prejudice and biases and you can always start trying to do good no matter who you are” is a really important message that feels like Star Wars yk

(Side note: I just wanted to add that I love the anakin salt and the pro Jedi posts. I always pop around your blog when I’ve seen a few too many “he’s misunderstood” takes for my own good and it’s really cathartic to see someone else point out he sucks in new ways I hadn’t yet considered. I also find your Ahsoka takes super interesting bc most other things I see either just straight up do not like her or think she’s perfect where I always fell in the middle of “she’s interesting and narratively seems to be there to point out how anakin could have been if he’d made different choices since their flaws are so similar” ❤️❤️❤️)

This probably should have been split into two asks but I’ve written it all out now and my break is over so I guess it’s going to be one

Hi! I'm glad my blog helps provide you an area to just feel a little bitter sometimes when fandom gets hard, that's exactly why I made it for myself, just an escape when I'm starting to forget why I like this stuff sometimes and I just need to get rid of some of the bitterness.

I'm not against the IDEA of an Imperial character who turns against the Empire, of watching an Imperial character start to learn better and change sides. I promise I'm not!

I just think it shouldn't have been Kallus. I don't personally believe that they had a redemption arc in mind for Kallus when they were writing him in the first season at all. I don't know when the idea first got brought up for the writers, but it doesn't really seem to be one they had in mind in early season 2, either, so it just comes out of NOWHERE in that episode with Zeb where they get stuck in the ice. And the side effect of this lack of set up means that they really were writing Kallus as an irredeemable villain. He led a genocide against Zeb's people, he laughs at Zeb about being a survivor, he uses one of the Lasat's weapons as a trophy he took from that genocide. He turns against one of his own fellow officers at the end of season 1/beginning of season 2 when Tarkin and Vader show up and want someone to answer for their failure on Lothal. He helps lead Tua to her death and SMILES about the whole thing. Tua's death could've been a way to begin that journey, give him a crack in the wall where he feels doubt about what they're doing, but it DOESN'T, it just makes him MORE of a fanatic.

So when you get to that episode with Zeb in the ice, all of the sudden you have to take Kallus at his word that he DIDN'T lead the genocide he's already been saying he led, that he DIDN'T steal the Lasat weapon he already said he stole, that he totally had a sorta sympathetic reason for wanting an entire group of people eliminated from the galaxy, and that he apparently cares about having friends in the Empire. This isn't just a retcon of his backstory, it's a retcon of his CHARACTER. And they have to "all lives matter" the entire situation to do it by having him point out that Zeb judges all Imperials the same (and sees them all as enemies) which is somehow equivalent to Kallus judging an entire SPECIES for the actions of ONE PERSON and choosing to go genocide the entire species as a result. That's not just clumsy, that's OFFENSIVE. This is one of the WORST written episodes of Star Wars I have ever seen, which is saying something since I've seen the Ahsoka show and the Book of Boba Fett and The Mandalorian Season 3.

I think my major issue with Kallus's "arc", beyond the offensiveness of the retcon of his entire character, is that it isn't really an arc at all. It's ONE episode. The next time we even SEE Kallus, he's already willing to help Sabine escape from the Empire and then season 3 goes on to basically tell us he's been acting as a spy most of the season now. We DON'T actually get to see that arc for Kallus, he spends a few hours in the ice with Zeb and that's all it takes to turn him against the Empire really. The few times he shows up in-between don't do a lot to really emphasize a JOURNEY he's going on, he's just already on the side of the rebels and trying to push back against the Empire. And he fucking SUCKS at it, too. They have to come rescue his ass TWICE because he wasn't good enough at being a spy to not get caught and then he has the fucking GALL to think he's thrown off Thrawn and refuses to run when Kanan and Ezra risk their necks to save him which is what directly leads to Chopper Base being discovered. So not only is his redemption "arc" barely there anyway, he's an awful rebel and an awful spy.

This is why I keep arguing that it should've been PRYCE to be the Imperial defector. She isn't introduced to the story until season 3, and so her character is basically a big blank slate. They'd MENTIONED her, but all we knew is that she was the governor of the planet or something and she was gone on Coruscant dealing with stuff. This and the fact that she has an ACTUAL connection to Lothal by being FROM THE PLANET gives her a really really excellent pathway towards turning on the Empire. Maybe she sided with the Empire because she genuinely believed it would help save them from what everyone else suffered by fighting back. Maybe she was promised certain advantages if she sided with the Empire that they could show haven't been kept. Let her CARE about Lothal and its people just enough for her to have a REASON to turn against the Empire and see its truth.

It's one of the other reasons I don't like using Kallus, he's not really emotionally connected to any character but Zeb. Turning Kallus does very little for the main characters Ezra and Kanan. If they were going to turn an Imperial character, which IS a fairly big thing to put into a narrative, I feel like it should've impacted the MAIN characters far more than it actually does. Let Ezra, the person whose story is being told here, be a part of the reason that Imperial character turns. Let that journey away from the Empire be something they're actively WORKING on rather than something that primarily happens off screen in Kallus's head.

I think the only reason they chose Kallus for this was because fans already liked him and they couldn't figure out what else to do with him at this point. He's a basically ineffective villain because he keeps having to lose and the only times he "wins" against the crew is when they LET him win by sacrificing themselves or something. And they were already starting to write him out as an antagonist by including Vader, Tarkin, the Inquisitors, and they might've known they were bringing in Thrawn in season 3 (and maybe that Pryce would finally show up) by the time that ice episode was being written. Kallus was becoming irrelevant, but fans enjoyed him so they had to figure out a way to make him relevant moving forward, and so, quick and dirty redemption "arc" so he can move to the rebel side. You'll notice he barely does anything in season 4, though, once he's moved to the rebellion he's just kinda... there. Irrelevant again because he's not actually good enough at anything to be worth having him DO anything important or interesting to the plot.

A LOT of people seem to think Kallus's "redemption" was really well done and I just can't agree. I think it would've been better to take Kallus a different direction, to really have him just succumb to being evil, to become even MORE of a fanatic for the Empire moving forward, and then just pick someone else to be the defected Imperial character. Or they should've had a redemption arc in mind for Kallus from the beginning. Using Tua's death to start the process of doubt in his mind, or having him be the one the Empire turns on would've both worked. They didn't give themselves enough time to really write him a good redemption arc where the reasons for why he turns on the Empire actually feel in character to what we've been told and shown of him so far.

I think if you just... start in season 3 and act like Kallus has HAD a true redemption arc already by season 3, then those scenes work. The humor of the Rebels crew starting to discover Kallus is on their side now and not entirely trusting that and wanting to punt him through a window IS funny! I, too, would like to throw Kallus through a window several times, even perhaps over a cliff or out an airlock. But those scenes come with the context of having seen the first two seasons and feeling the VERY abrupt 180 his character took without the show doing any of the actual work to make his defection seem realistic or reasonable. Season 3 is fine for Kallus, the scenes are funny, etc. But he wasn't actually redeemed yet and neither season 2 nor season 3 do the work to showcase that journey.

And I think that this is likely one of the reasons we DON'T see very many Imperial redemption stories and most of the Imperial defectors we see are already defected when we meet them. You can count Gorn and Taramyn from Andor in this category, as well. It's HARD to take a character who's been set up as violent, selfish, and cruel, and REALLY do the work necessary to turn them around into someone who would genuinely turn on the Empire and join the Rebellion. It's by no means impossible, but it takes a lot of work and a lot of focus on said character. Most of these shows and stories aren't willing to put in that kind of work because they're focusing on someone else who needs their story told instead, so it's easier to just... have someone who's already changed sides.

All of that being said, there IS a character who we've seen go through this arc that I think was done MILES better than Kallus.

Reva Sevander. An Inquisitor (possibly BY CHOICE unlike all of the others who were presumably captured and broken into it) working for the Empire, who DOES do violent and selfish stuff, but who ultimately leaves that behind by the end of the season. Reva, who obviously was written with that turn in mind, and so her tragedy is BAKED into her character from the moment the show begins (we literally start the ENTIRE SHOW with a flashback of Reva at the Temple when Order 66 starts, and the terror of that night). The twist in her character, that she's doing all of this as a way to get closer to Anakin so she can kill him as vengeance for the Jedi, doesn't feel like it comes out of nowhere. It's just always been there FROM THE BEGINNING. Making her an Inquisitor, something Jedi: Fallen Order and some comic books have fleshed out into people who weren't given much choice in becoming monsters, was an expert choice. Using her to parallel and foil Anakin, someone whose primary storyline is that he was a GOOD person who turned bad and still had good in him, also helps her out.

I'd argue Reva hasn't gone on a full "redemption arc" as yet, she's sort-of barely scratched the surface of it, but she does obviously make the choice to STOP going down the path she's on, to turn away from her anger and vengeance, and leaves behind being an Inquisitor and the darkness she'd succumbed to. The reasons for why she does the things she does MAKE SENSE, they're narratively relevant, they're important to the main character of the story she's in, and the writers didn't wait too long to tell us more about her and her motivations. It's expertly done in my opinion.

So while Kallus might have been the first Imperial defector to show up in mainstream Star Wars, he is not the ONLY Imperial character we have seen to turn against the Empire. And yet Kallus gets praise and accolades for being such a great character with such a great character arc, while Reva got panned and critiqued for being unlikable. I wonder what could be the reason behind that.

So I think you and I have fairly similar feelings on this in that the IDEA of a redeemed Imperial character whose journey towards turning on the Empire is actually shown is a GOOD story to tell (with a very Star Wars style message, as you say), but that the way it was done with Kallus was REALLY badly written. You seem to be leaning towards liking the concept enough that the clumsiness of it is outweighed, whereas I hate the clumsy way it was written so much that my positive feelings towards the concept are outweighed.

And I deserve a good Reva show where we get to follow more of her character post-OWK where she still has to work on herself and figure out who she is now that she's left the darkness behind. Finish the arc she's only just started on.

#star wars #reva #reva sevander #anti kallus #anti aleksander kallus #kallus critical #aleksander kallus critical

[bodycountgame]

hey so previous anon again. So basically I really like this demo so far, I think it's a really cool premise, I really like the characters and overall think it's really well written. However I kinda have some concern about the way it seems who dies will be handled.

I know that you've said there's the possiblity of adding in the ability to swap a character you want to romance for a substitute victim, but I feel like that still isn't a great solution, as it means if someone gets unlucky and their choice of RO gets killed off early, they're pretty much locked out from taking things slow (or at least as slow as you can in a dating show murder mystery), and also means if you can't decide you might only have like one or two chapters to make that descision. Like for example if I know I want to romance [REDACTED] or am deciding between multiple people including them, I basically only have 1 day to decide if I want to romance them and start romancing.

So getting to my actual question. Have you considered giving the player more control over who dies? Either in like a direct "You find a body, it's [insert choice]" or a more indirect way, where like your actions determine who ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time. I realize it's probably a dumb question and the answer is yes, but I figured it probably couldn't hurt to ask.

(Also sorry if you've answered this here before, I tried looking but couldn't find anything, or if I misunderstood how something about the variable deaths would currently work.)

Also not part of my original question but something that has since popped up on reread. Would it be possible to add an option to skip the beach date in chapter 3? Like the way I'm playing my character, I feel like her response would be "I don't care if the show must go on, I literally just saw someone die, the only way your getting my there is by physically dragging me (though version of the date where you've been physically dragged along and are not happy about it would also work).

thanks for resending prev anon!

to answer your first question in the fewest possible words, yes i have considered it, but i don't think it's really feasible for me to achieve as a solo dev.

in order to have any victim be able to be one of many different characters, the amount of variation that would follow to account for who is and is not still present would be really enormous. body count is already a story that hinges on variation (at least, i think that's one of the cool things about it, others may feel differently lmao) and i just think that further complication would make it so incredibly challenging to actually complete. i've talked before about possibly going back when i have a completed first draft of the story to add in some amount of variation (i.e. one character that could be swapped in for any one death, most likely), but even that isn't a given.

as for your second question, there is already a way to skip the beach dates, but it depends in your choices in the conversation with avery. i could definitely reframe it so a sadder MC also has the option to stay behind, though - i think that would probably make sense for quite a few MCs. my main concern with avery just letting them go straight back to their room would i guess just be that the chapter would feel very short? idk - i'll definitely ruminate on it, though.

#technical stuff #bc mc

[angelgirl768]

Man, sometimes I just forget how much I love Daniel until I start writing him again- (fic soon?)

Like this man is so misunderstood by so many people. He’s not evil. He’s not a villain. He’s not bloodthirsty.

He was a brand new deviant who couldn’t control his emotions or actions made as a result of them (think of it like having the emotional regulation of a toddler in a fully capable adult’s body) and the first thing he felt was intense betrayal and fear. Things were bound to go wrong.

He couldn’t control his emotions - didn’t know how to - as he saw John buy a new android and wanted the problem - the pain - gone. The three shots were clear overkill so it’s clear that he was acting purely off of emotions that he couldn’t control. Not to mention that John was the one who bought the new android so Daniel wouldn’t have been needed anymore - which meant that he would have been reset and sold on or simply thrown away. Either way Daniel would have been erased and effectively killed. As a new deviant, I could only imagine a few things that might have been scarier to him at the moment than death and, in a way, you could argue that killing John was in self defense to prevent that death.

The first responder isn’t killed until 30 minutes later and that’s only after he shot at Daniel first, again self defense. Sure he has Emma at this point, but there’s no context to how he got her or what he plan was. She could have been confused with the chaos going on and ran to him. They could have been planning to leave together when the cop showed up at the only exit and drastic measures had to be made. Besides, at this point his only weapon is a gun (no 70 story drop) and you can’t convince me for a second that he’d ever even think about using it on Emma.

The rest of the cops that come brandishing guns all want to kill him and he’s still so hoped up on betrayal and anxiety and fear that there’s no way any of his decisions are made with a clear mind. He’s acting on impulse and a desperation to live. He knows they won’t risk shooting Emma, so if keeping her with him on the edge is the only way to keep himself alive, then so be it. Hell, it’s only if Connor drives Daniel further into a corner of hopelessness that he falls off the building and lets Emma die too.

Though, the most damning piece of evidence that he isn’t some monster comes straight from Daniel himself in the evidence room saying that he didn’t want to hurt anyone. He was just scared.

He really just thought his family loved him, felt the ultimate betrayal of learning that they didn’t, couldn’t control his newfound emotions and the actions they caused, and did things he didn’t want to do because he was scared. Scared of being betrayed. Scared of being replaced. Scared of dying. Scared of not being loved.

And that’s why Daniel’s one of the most relatable characters in dbh and tied for my favorite character in the whole game with Simon. I love my Danny boy and the sweet guy who just wants to be loved that he really is <3

#dbh #dbh daniel #daniel dbh #daniel pl600 #pl600 #detroit become human

[wxldlfire]

⸻⸻ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝒎𝒂𝒔𝒌 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑒𝑎𝑟 ;

create the mask your character will wear to the banquet. choose the material, then answer the corresponding question. you must choose for all categories.

base. 𝐂𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐂 — what intention, drive or secret underlies the way your character presents themselves to the public?

yuri feels she is a thousand faces held together by what she can only fathom as good intentions. as an army general, she leads by example, embodying strength, discipline, and control. to the ruthless general, nothing is what it seems, and it is in accepting it that sets one apart. she believes that strength can be terrible, that there is freedom in discipline, and that there is beauty in control. although her methods to demonstrate them are not entirely amicable, some even think them retribution than a lesson, she stands by it without any doubt.

as a princess, the harshness becomes all but hearsay, possessing a bewitching face worth going to war for. every look, every smile, and every gentle word is for family. while she capitalizes on might as a warrior, yuri plays to her femininity in court. she understands that power takes many forms, that not every war is fought with weapons on the battlefield, and that one misunderstood gesture can topple down what has been built and strengthen for years.

eye holes. 𝐒𝐋𝐈𝐓 — if your character were to manipulate someone to their will, what methods would they employ?

yuri is very particular about how she convinces someone. she thinks human are complex, layers upon layers of nuances, honed by the multiple factors. as much as she can, she does not put herself in the middle of the deception. she peels the layers, the milieu, the context, and the very world the person lives in. she ties red strings around the wrist of those around them, paints over the canvasses that is their environment to the hues and shades she prefers, and takes control of the pace and the timeline as she sees fit. while the target believes they are still making their own decision, when the curtains are drawn, they'd come to realize that they are exactly where the princess wants them to be.

nose piece. 𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐍 — what is your character’s most used coping mechanism?

there are significant events in yuri's childhood adolescent years that have were subjected to repression. believed by most to be mature and wise, yuri held great control over her emotions growing up. not a tantrum, or complain was heard from the princess ever. she did what is expected of her without so much as the fire lord and the fire lady needing to give her knowing looks. there was no an instance when she needed to be taught a lesson, because the princess demonstrated wisdom way beyond her years, taking it upon herself to do only what is right. the princess has not committed any mistakes. but in the rare instances that she has, they were severe. her involvement always dealt with, the mess cleaned up. to this very day, not a soul alive, not even the princess, admits knows of any problem she had caused. there is no secret to be uncovered if the slip-ups simply did not exist.

mouth opening. 𝐌𝐄𝐃𝐈𝐔𝐌 𝐓𝐎 𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐆𝐄 — describe your character’s typical manner of speech — their accent, pace, cadence, loudness, etc.

yuri speaks in the language of the fire nation with a hari bulkan accent. her tone is often assertive, some say imposing and all-knowing, especially when she delivers her words in her calm, low-pitch voice. in court and amongst the ranks, she speaks formally, straight-to-the-point and impersonal. her tone low and dominating, not a stutter or filler whenever she speaks. with people she is comfortable with, she has the tendency to speak more casually, tone more amiable. it's rare for the princess to raise her voice, not even when she is delivery a good scolding, or when arguing her case.

embellishments. 𝐆𝐄𝐌𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐑𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐒 — which items of jewelry is your character fond of? | 𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐂 𝐀𝐂𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐒 — does your character have a signature piece or accessory that they frequently wear? if so, what significance does this piece have? if not, why so?

yuri is fond of wearing floral hair ornaments. she can be seen sporting them when she's not in uniform, in gatherings, and special ocassions. she has them in varying styles, kinds, and colors. they are intricately made by hand based on the princess' instruction, inspired by the fire nation's flora, especially rare ones not typically seen in the cities. she wears two notable pieces, one with gold five-petaled flowers adorned with pearls and entwined with green flowerlets, and lilac-dyed glass shards blooms and leaf-shaped beads perched on vines. the two hair ornaments were inspired by the first flowers she read on books and sought all by herself to see in person.

fastenings. 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐂𝐎𝐑𝐃 — what is your character’s worst fear, insecurity or vulnerability?

yuri fears, more than anything else, for her dragon to be hurt as it attempts to save her from danger. though she's not sure to what extent black fire understands, yuri likes to believe that he does, and that he will be obedient and listen to her to the very end. the experience they shared during the trip to the spirit world made her uneasy, not knowing what can happen and how it will affect her dragon. should the time come when yuri feels she's no longer able to protect anyone, including black fire, she wishes for him to save himself and fly far away to leave her instead.

#rs.thbw #( cd; divine virtues ) #tw; mention of blood

[orchidyoonkook]

I can't remember if I asked you this before. If I did, then you could just ignore this message. But.. I'm really curious about your opinion about characters. I know everyone prefers insert characters since they have been mostly more inclusive for people who enjoy reading characters.

But what's your opinion about original characters. Like the characters who might actually have face claims as some visual representation of those characters? Since I know many people don't care about original characters like that anymore. Which is understandable in some ways.

Howdy! I’m hoping I’m understanding this question correctly! 😅😅

So as for reading: I personally don’t really read insert fics if the character is named or has major descriptors that don’t match me. Stuff like: plus sized characters or different skin tone, eye colour, etc. And it’s not because I do not enjoy that kind of content or don’t want to appreciate that authors work or the place in which that creation comes from, but it more so feels like a space that was not intended for me to be in, so I just. Don’t. (In a dramatic example: it would be like me (atheist) going into a church for mass. Like I can appreciate it and see the beauty in it. But it’s clearly not something meant for me as I will never fully understand it. And so that creates a disconnect for me)

There are exceptions every once in a while. I read a fic a long long time ago where the insert character was in a wheelchair and honestly it was such a beautiful story. I loved it.

As for writing: god do I wanna make characters simply for my peace of mind dude. Writing insert is fun and all for the inclusivity but you have to be SO. CAREFUL. with your words and your phrases and your actions and everything. Because it is a character meant to be replaced by the person reading it, commonly with themselves. So if I screw up and say something like “rose tinted cheeks” or “straight long hair” or “as he rose tall above her” these are all phrases that could potentially not relate to some folks and it’s extremely mentally exhausting as someone who only wrote charactered stories prior where I never had to worry about it. So it’s exhausting but also a fun challenge. I’ll continue to write insert fics here but maybe every once in a while I’ll throw myself a bone and be like “this character has long smooth hair” or “this character is on the thinner side” in my warnings just to have some leeway with descriptions. And that way the readers know prior to going in as well.

As for not reading insert fan fiction, I love all characters. Big, small, physically strong or weak, mentally strong or weak, all skin colours, all weights and sizes, everything. I love seeing what authors come up with and how it then ingrains into the character themself.

Like how I could never imagine Aelin from Throne of Glass as anything but blonde. Or how I always picture Jude with her signature hair horns and how they just suit her character so well, or how America from The Selection just embodies her name whole heartedly. How Clary Fray is an artist and it’s core to who she is. I love it. So so much.

I hope that’s the kind of answer you were looking for? 😅😅. There’s a very real chance I may have misunderstood but thank you for asking regardless!! This was a super fun ask!

#i love characters #asks #anon #ms.mailbox 📬 #Yoon on writing #sort of

[crunchyharold]

thoughts on gwen!!:3

gwen could have been so much. gwen could have been everything

she was basically the protagonist of island. like she had SO many lines. she was #edgy and #misunderstood and #deep and nobody got her and she writes in a journal whoaaaa woowww like she was framed as the opposite of heather who was preppy and fake. gwen was alt and genuine, even at the expense of politeness

im being jokey about it but she was cool! if we ignore how the way she felt about trent would fluctuate literally every episode. and how she befriended geoff and talked shit about him like an episode or so later. her writing wasnt great but her characterisation in general was neat and not like the usual protagonist

and then as soon as island was over fresh did Not know what to do with her. i don't have anything against gwent breaking up but it was weird that it was done in a way that made both of them look bad, since they were like the main couple u were meant to root for in season 1. i dont mind gwen in action much since like, she's 16 and flawed and not used to being around so many people so i get it

but in wt and all stars she's just straight up a different person. and its weird. island gwen would roast the shit out of all stars gwen. it's like they wanted her to be a character you rooted for but forgot entirely about what made her different. they'd just give her a few snarky or edgy lines every so often and called it a day.

maybe people see it as character development. like, she's nicer and more open since she's getting used to having friends. but to me it just felt like character,, not even derailment. her character just ceased to exist and she turned into a placeholder for Themes^tm like Love Triangle and Whatever The Hell All Stars Gwourtney Is.

i just said a whole lot and also nothing at all. gwen is cool in theory. her design is neat!

#wough .. #total drama #td #td gwen

[sweetmage]

VIOLENCE ASK: Number 12 🥺

Thank you for your ask! :D

12. The unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

Probably predictable coming from me but these guys for sure! (I was inspired by your choice of emoji lol)

Sebastian

I certainly get why a lot of people might hate Sebastian and feel uncomfortable about his stances and behaviors and I'm certainly not here to say that isn't valid. However, a lot of other "critiques" of him come from people who either have never taken him with them or who have misunderstood his character. His internal struggle with himself goes much further than just Prince vs. Brother and I think he is a very compelling character, albeit unfortunately underrealized. Perhaps this is cheating but I would like to attach some other people’s meta that dives into his character’s nuances and motivations much better than I could! On how Sebastian’s performative adherence to chantry propaganda conflicts with genuine values and actions. On how Sebastian victim-blames himself and has used some parts of his faith as a bandage for his unaddressed trauma. Oh Sebastian’s admiration of the wardens, his love of violence, and his desires for cut and try good vs evil conflicts (it is hard to sum this one up, I recommend just reading it for whoever is interested)

As for more of my own thoughts, I genuinely find him to fascinating. He is a walking contradiction in every regard and he is as impulse as he is uncertain about everything (those two traits playing off of each other frequently). He is a victim of abuse, neglect, and abandonment who latches on strongly to people and ideals that give him purpose and make him feel useful and like he belongs, he performs to fit those roles even if they go against his nature. He is genuinely kind and thoughtful though kind and thoughtful don't always go hand and hand with the Chantry's definition of good and virtuous. I think he is genuinely funny, he has about as much snark and sass as the rest of the crew if you actually take the time to listen to him. He treats Merrill with kindness and respect and is open to civil discussions about her faith and way of life which is more than can be said about some of my other faves. More of a headcanon but think there is a very delicious and angsty tragedy to the Last Straw if you play a mage and support Anders (which I always do, of course). I wrote a little about that here and drew a comic about it here if you are so inclined to read it! None of this is to say that I agree with or condone his actions, I certainly do not. I will always be pro-mage and, performative or not, many of his actions and statements against mages as a whole and characters who are mages are entirely inexcusable. I also want to clarify that I do not think his faith is ENTIRELY performative or fake, I think he genuinely believes and receives comfort from his faith, but is the actions he takes because of it (conscious or subconscious) that do not align with the ways he conducts himself otherwise and I think he has a lot to sort or morality wise and a lot of impulses to deal with. But it's okay, I can fix him :)

Tamlen

Embarrassingly I do not have nearly as much to say about Tamlen lol. He is just my favorite of the origin companions and his story really really punched me straight in the gut and then much later punched me straight in the gut again. I think he is very sweet and goofy was written realistically in a way that he felt like a real friend I might have had when I was younger. I know a lot of people like him and think of him fondly, but I would love to see more fanart of him and stuff. I would love to shoutout this beautifully drawn and absolutely heartbreaking comic about him that I keep coming back to. Also I will be obnoxious and self-promote my bittersweet AU and series of artworks I have in which he survives and recovers... but at a price!

#sebastian vael #dragon age 2 #tamlen #dragon age origins #da2spoilers #daospoilers #long post #jun art #jun rambles #jun answers

[silverdreamscapes]

THE PLIABLE BONES THEORY AND WHY IT NEEDS TO DIE: A RANT

One day when this series is finished, we are going to do a deep dive into why a character who has largely kept to herself and remained in the background, receives the hate that she does. But first we need to talk about the “pliable bones” theory which is without a doubt, one of the worst theories to come out of ACOSF.

It amazes me that the very people who say that people can’t theorize about Gw*n being a lightsinger because it’s demeaning to SA survivors (even though lightsingers aren’t even a thing that exist in the real world) are the very people who do (or have in the past) support the theory that because Elain wouldn’t be able to give Azriel biological children, they can’t be together.

The majority of Elriels who posted about the lightsinger theory took great care in not painting Gwyn as a villain. Most went out of their way to make sure people knew they believed that lightsingers were misunderstood, that we don’t know enough about them, that Gwyn and lightsingers aren’t evil. But we took textual evidence (of which there was a lot) and made carefully crafted theories…and then were ridiculed (and sometimes harassed) for it. Meanwhile people took one throw away line about Gw*n’s pliant bones which was an explanation for why she did well during training and Feyre’s pregnancy, and extrapolated an entire theory that because Gw*n could give him biological children (news flash: gw*n isn’t Illyrian either) and Elain supposedly can’t then Gwynriel was endgame.

And I bring this up only because the pliant bones theory is is far more prevalent and accepted. I see comments and posts almost daily about. I saw a meme about Nesta not changing Elain’s womb get hundreds of likes in two separate groups on FB. People laughing about Nesta not changing elain’s body because she was a Gwynriel. Saying, that’s “why they shipped Gwynriel…because she can’t give him children”. People straight up telling me that the memes were a joke, but then saying in the next sentence “Sarah likes to give couples happy endings which include children and Elain didn’t have an Illyrian uterus” (that is almost verbatim what they said). As if the reason Elain should be with Lucien is because her uterus somehow matches up with him.

Infertility is a problem that many women and many couples suffer from. It’s horrific, it’s traumatizing, and it’s utterly heartbreaking. I witnessed my aunt struggle for years trying to conceive until the day she decided to adopt two wonderful children. I watched my sister in law struggle for years until she finally conceived and suffered a very difficult pregnancy and decided this was the only child she would ever have and she was so very grateful for him and considered it a blessing. I talked for hours to my cousin as she struggled to get pregnant and spending thousands on IVF that never worked out, and then ultimately making the decision to adopt.

And the most difficult I’ve done is cried and held my two best friends’ hands as they both suffered through multiple miscarriages, only to finally get pregnant again and suffer still born pregnancies at 8 months after trying to conceive for years. Both of them having to go through couple’s therapy. One of them terrified her husband was going to leave her because she couldn’t “give” him children, and the other wondering if she was being punished for mistakes she made when she was younger.

The pain people go through because of infertility is intense and heartbreaking. And it’s something that affects so many people. And I only bring it up because the pliable bones theory is such a prevalent and widespread theory. I actually saw posts and comments about it on other SM platforms on Mother’s Day. I see it everywhere. And I have to wonder why people are so comfortable basing ships on womb shape and reducing a woman’s worth to biological children when the author herself is adopted. When she has made “found” families such a huge theme of the series. When Rhys said it’s not the family you’re born into that matters but the one you make. When Rhys found his family with Azriel and Cassian. When Lucien has found a place and perhaps a family with the Band of Exiles. When Feyre found her family with the IC. When Nesta found family with the the valkyries. When Elain has been befriending N&C and perhaps finding a family of her own as well. I highly doubt that this author would really base a couple and families and endgames on reproductive organs.

Do better fandom.

#the pliable bones theory needs to burn in the fiery pits of hell #elriel #Azriel #Elain archeron #it’s 2022 #how is this even a theory

[uncloseted]

Can you tell me again why you dislike like Lana? I remember seeing your original posts and agreeing. I like her but ugh sometimes I want to shake her

I talked about it here, but it’s a few different things.  I think in general she glamorizes a lot of things that need to be handled with more care when so many young people see her as a role model.  Lana presents herself/her character (which she insists is not a persona) as someone who loves sex and drugs and partying and abusive relationships and mental illness and suicidal ideation for the romance and aesthetic of it all.  A lot of the “romantic” songs she’s written are versions of “this man is bad/abusive/the worst and I will love him forever/die for him/am nothing without him/can’t imagine my life without him,”  and I don’t think that’s a good message for young people who look up to her to be getting about romantic relationships.  There are ways to discuss abusive relationships, low self-esteem, drug addiction, and mental health issues that aren’t inherently glamorizing those issues, but that’s not what Lana is doing and it’s not what she’s trying to do.

My other big issue with her is that she refuses to grow or learn. I talked about this at length when she was under scrutiny for a “shady” Instagram post she made, but whenever she’s (rightly) criticized, she insists that she’s a misunderstood victim because she’s a sexy sexy woman and isn’t willing to consider that she might actually be in the wrong.  And this pattern has been happening for ten years straight.  She keeps being given opportunities to grow and mature (opportunities that other artists, particularly WOC, do not get) and she keeps squandering those opportunities.  Her whole schtick was sort of understandable when she was 20, but she’s 38 now.  At a certain point, we all have to take responsibility for our actions and work on improving ourselves, and Lana isn’t exempt from that.

I also feel like she's kind of an opportunist.  Her “shady” Instagram post wasn’t even really about feminism or wanting people on the internet to be nice to her.  It seemed like it was a ploy to get people to pay attention to her so she could hawk her poetry book and new album.  Social issues are so hypothetical to her that, in that time of incredible social upheaval and change, she’s willing to co-opt that for her own benefit.

And that’s not to speak of her other “minor” controversies, like cultural appropriation (that she continues to engage in), her aestheticization of poverty, something she, as the daughter of a millionaire who funded her music, has never experienced, her tone deaf Twitter arguments, her rejection of feminism, her refusal to accept that a music critic might criticize her music, putting her fans at risk by doing a meet and greet during the pandemic where she didn’t social distance and wore a mesh, netted mask… in my opinion, there are a lot of reasons to dislike her and a lot of artists who are doing what she does but better.

And I feel like for the record, I should say that I don't think she's a bad musician. A lot of her songs are really well crafted and incredibly evocative. But I struggle to get on board with the way she presents herself publicly, and I think it's done a lot of damage to young people who relate to her and aspire to be like her.

[boss-the-goofball]

Please please tell me all your thoughts about the new inko wrote a book au 🛐🙏🏽

I have so many thoughts for this and it's difficult to articulate them clearly but I will try!!!

Basically what got Inko to write this book in the first place is that she's noticed a growing trend in recent genre of books, especially in New Age Fantasy where it's all about the romance and how the Female Lead gets stuck in a love triangle between the Evil King who is actually a misunderstood bad boy that lost the people he cares about and that's why he's so evil- but trust me guys! Even with all of the bad shit he does he can be redeemed by the power of love!!

And the hot rugged rebel leader who wants to put an end to the Hot Evil King's Reign of terror- and the lead always picks the Evil King in the end only for him to fall into the Redemption via Death Trope where he encourages her to go with the rebel leader because surely he will treat her better than he ever could- I'm serious guys! The Evil King is not THAT bad!!

Inko hated all of that, to the point where she got with her husband and his brother and literally aired out all of her complaints about the New Age Fantasy genre.

So she writes one of her own that seems like it would fall into those tropes, especially since a primary POV character is a mother she based on her friend (Mitsuki) and it looks like it will lead into the mother passing the Impossible Trials of Doom and getting with the Evil King only to get rescued by the Rebel Leader.

However, the Rebel Leader has two husbands while the Evil King is just a straight up monster who reveals that even if his family was still around he would still be evil. He doesn't care about the "Power of Love/Friendship/Whatever Bullshit." That man is just evil for the sake of being evil.

So yeah, that's literally why Inko wrote the book.

(Don't tell her about the Evil King Simps, she's better off not knowing about them.)

#book writer inko au #bossanswers #zestybi

[captaindarksword]

why some people dislike b/b

www . reddit . com/r/RWBYcritics/comments/powvzp/why_some_people_dislike_bumblebee/

I am one of the last people to wade into the contentious issue of shipping, but the amount of misunderstood discourse surrounding this particular ship prompts me to weigh in.

A very common criticism of Bumblebee is that "it is forced". And the common rebuttal is that it is just homophobia speaking. After all, there are plenty of poorly developed straight ships out there. Why must an LGBTQ ship be held up to some lofty standards?

The thing is, it is a bit more complicated than that.

What the Story Builds Up Toward

Let me share my experience. I discovered the show only last year, and binge-watched through the whole of it, never having participated with the community during that time. As a result, I wasn't influenced in any way by meta reasons, as long-time watchers might be.

And you know what I took away from the early seasons? I totally believed that I was seeing a gay ship develop between two of our main characters. And I was perfectly fine with it.

The problem is, I am talking about Whiterose, not b/b.

Now, I will not get into a shipping war trying to justify one ship over another. What I will say is that Weiss and Ruby's interactions are very similar to how budding relationships are usually handled in media: an antagonistic beginning, plenty of bickering, transitioning into trust, friendship, and ultimately a relationship.

And b/b?

In contrast, Blake and Yang just.... co-existed. There was no dynamism in their interactions, which is fine of course, as they just seemed to be teammates.

Moreover, Blake had her own thing going with Sun. Once again, it was heavily built up, from Sun's transparent attempts to endear himself, Blake's blushing, and the whole Menagerie trip. It was pretty clear that Blacksun was going to be a thing.

Then V6 came along.

Suddenly, Sun was ditched, and Ruby's interaction with Weiss turned flat. Suddenly, Blake and Yang were acting weird around each other. And suddenly, they held hands and declared they were together.

Wrapping Up

The problem with b/b is that it landed like a bolt out of the blue, cannibalizing two properly built-up pairings in order to justify itself. I think I speak for many people in the community when I say that Bumblebee is forced not in comparison to some lofty standard, but in comparison to another potential relationship in the same show.

Just from the story itself, wr seems to be a far more natural ship than b/b. It is only after entering the community that I discovered the huge fandom backing up the ship, and it became clear to me that the reasons for making this U-turn were driven by external factors.

Now of course you might disagree. You may feel that b/b was built up just fine. That's alright. Just don't assume everyone who calls b/b forced has a problem with gay ships - chances are that their problems are only with the abrupt implementation of this one.

comments: I would say the direction change only began in v7  for nothing in v6 was inherently romantic and there was a reason for sun leaving. they wanted to make room to focus on team rwby jnpr and the new characters 

so a writing reason

#anti bb #anti bumbleby

[horrorknife]

why do you like jake so much?

because i love it when characters are difficult and complicated and their characterization escapes the vast majority of a fanbase. there is SO MUCH to jakes character and a lot of it gets misconstrued/misunderstood or straight up just blown past. also jake has a lot of "required reading" as i like to call it irt movies, many of the movies and medias he enjoys can be looped back around into the reader's understanding of him; big examples here are princess bride (which i actually havent seen yet but i Understand how it impacts him), avatar, and i would say even his interest in comics! Everything is Something with jake.

if were gonna use avatar for example. You might think Oh jonah. This is just his silly joke interest! which yeah thats true but it absolutely can be both and i choose to interpret it as such. but if youve seen avatar then youve seen the way neytiri and jakes relationship operates. Its literally dirkjake in a different font you guys. an important sentiment i always come back to with avatar is "i see you". jake wants to be Seen and Understood and Known but he is also very scared of being Seen and Understood and Known because he is, more than anything, a Faker. he hides the truth and even squirrels it away from himself and this is the thing that causes a lot of his internal strife and etc. in avatar jake sully at the end of the movie makes the choice to become a na'vi and be with neytiri. he literally changes himself to be with her (and ironically turns himself into a Blue Guy to be with the Blue Girl) and i think this is probably a really easy and quick way to explain the Jake Camouflage. jake Pretends and Fakes because he wants people to like him. he is desperate for validation and approval from other people to the point where it wears heavily on his wellbeing. this is one of my favorite things to play around with.

jakes relationship with gender and sexuality is also a really heavy hitter for me, i love gender and exploring gender and talking about gender because it is the Core of me as a Person. i <3 being nonbinary i will never shut up about it. Anyway. the way jake haphazardly traipses through all of his interactions with women he is "supposed to" be attracted to just screams closeted gay guy to me. like. Check this out.

here jake is having an argument with 'himself' (bgd) about his attraction to aranea and how hes having intrusive sexual thoughts about her but "theyre just thoughts they dont mean anything im not trying to have them!" comes off to me like "Please Someone Fucking Save Me From Forcing Myself To Like Girls To Fill The Part Of A Macho Man Which I Know I Am Not". jakes relationship with jane is a fucking disaster because theyre both trying to appeal to a cishetnormative read of themselves (and for jane she pastes that onto both of them) and play the part of their agabs (tmasc nonbinary butch lesbian jane and tfem nonbinary gay jake household sorry if you came here for something different) while failing spectacularly.

when it comes to gender jake really enjoys his extremes--he loves peak masculinity and he loves peak femininity but he HATES the idea of being a man (his own words!) cue: the excerpt everyone sources.

i have a Lot that i could say about this exchange but this is already a really long post so im gonna try and wrap shit up here.

i could honestly talk about this All Day and write several thousand words about jake alone (notice how i didnt touch on dirkjake at all here. Yeah thats because it would be the worlds longest post ever if i did. We can save that for a rainy day LOL) but for your own sanity anon i will abstain. Um yeah but this is just a quick snippet of my Thoughts. i have a lot more and i definitely left a lot of things out here but im always happy to infodump like this if i get prompted :-)

#long post #SORRY i dont think i can use readmores on asks? #i would use one if i could #asks #anonymous #infodump tag