#i hate this fandom a lot of the time and often wish i never joined :) | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

olderthannetfic · 29 days

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https://www.tumblr.com/olderthannetfic/746553097204203521/the-fandom-hates-women-response-to-lack-of-ff

The "fandom hates women" part of it comes from the fact that fandom as an entity just doesn't watch the kind of media that draws femslash, even if it ticks all of the boxes of things those very same people say they like. There are so many times I've watched a show that I've seen mega-popular Tumblr posts wishing existed, and then the fandom is so, so small comparatively and often in general. There have been superheroes, vampire/supernatural shows, fantasy shows, movies, books, the list goes on, that feel like they were generated out of Tumblr's desires for ideal fandom media, and everyone knows they're never going to attract anywhere near the same attention for fandom and fanworks because the common denominator just tends to be that if there isn't a full ensemble of attractive men to ship either with each other or with the women, fandom's not interested.

So it's not about prioritizing women in that sense, it's about people witnessing hypocrisy over and over again the second a show doesn't have a mostly-male ensemble. The people who are in these fandoms are frustrated that good faith attempts to get people interested are met with every excuse in the book that all eventually boils down to "I don't like watching stuff with women in it as much as I like watching stuff with men in it." And if that's how people feel about it... sometimes the conclusions are going to turn into the more uncharitable take of "fandom hates women."

Maybe, but whenever I see a "fandom hates women" reblog of my stuff, one or two reblogs further down the chain I get an overt TERF. I just had to go block several people today, in fact.

The first person to reblog with a comment like that is usually subtle, but their friends and friends of friends are not. The rhetoric that very quickly starts is the fandom equivalent of that "All the butches are becoming trans men! We're losing lesbians!" stuff.

Here's the thing: I've been in ten billion fandoms that were so awesome and fit fandom's supposed tastes to a T and yet no amount of promoting them could get anyone to try the canon. This goes for canons that are all men or all white men or all majority ethnicity men or whatever else.

The default state of media is to not engender a big fic fandom.

I agree that the rare outliers mostly follow certain patterns, but we extrapolate too far when we say that a lack of those patterns is why a fandom is small.

A fandom is small because that's the near-universal default.

Yes, a small slice of fandom consists of guilt-ridden queer fujoshi who say they want more f/f but don't make much of a move to make that happen. I tend to run into that a lot because of my own tastes and having friends who share those tastes.

Far more of fandom is people talking generally about how representation matters without saying they would personally join these fandoms if they existed.

Neither group is large enough to be the real reason some woman-heavy canon fails to take off to HP levels.

The real reason is not hypocrisy but the fact that most things don't take off like that. Most things without massive, massive audiences especially don't take off like that. And the very few things that do are flukes and don't actually predict that another similar thing will take off in the future.

Go to AO3's tag search. Search for all canonical fandom tags. Sort by uses and descending order.

Right now, I get 64,390 tags.

The first page, 50 tags, goes from HP with 497,845 works to the Thor movies with 59,266 works. By page 6, we're below 10 thousand works.

By the end of page 10, we're down to Labyrinth with 3,906.

Somewhere in the top 500 AO3 fandom tags (many of which are just franchise metatags for each other), we go all the way from megafandoms to medium size and down to relatively modest ones.

That's not a lot of room for a big f/f-heavy fandom given the trends in mainstream media and that mainstream media is where most really big fandoms come from.

I also notice that you're conflating a lack of desire to watch something that's primarily about women with a lack of desire to watch something that includes women.

There are tons of fans who want something more like The Mummy with a leading man and leading woman they love.

Granted, that's not me and that's not a lot of my fujoshi/slasher audience, but it's extraordinarily common. I know plenty of people who don't like canons that are only dudes, but since they also don't like canons that are only ladies and they don't ship f/f, this gets spun into "fandom hates women".

Let me be clear:

Conflating "lesbians" and "women" is a radfem position.

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lovelybrooke · 1 year

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Platonic Yandere Soul Eater Gang x reader

A/N: So, I've been posting a lot of One Piece stuff, so I thought I would be good to break up with other fandoms I'm interested in. Soul Eater is an Anime I haven't watched in a while but really enjoy so I wanted to write something involving the main group. I also want to write for OHSHC and maybe even twisted wonderland and Genshin. Anyway, please like or reblog if you enjoy. Thank you!

The Soul Eater gang is filled with a bunch of odd ball characters. From an outsider's perspective, it is hard to tell that they are even friends. They are almost always arguing, and if they aren't there's an argument waiting to happen.

I like to think that you were a knew student at the DWMA, weapon or meister, it doesn't matter. What matters is that, to these kids, you were interesting. You most likely met Maka first, Soul never too far from her. After that, she introduced you to the others, and the rest was history.

Soul and Maka were like you shadow, never far from you once you became friends with them. Soul is obsessed with anything 'cool' and in his eyes, you are such. You'll never know it, but he constantly worrying about reaching your expectations. Most of the time when he's around you, he's laid back, and compared to the rest of the gang, isn't super possessive. When he's with Maka though, he's more inclined to get upset if someone interrupts your time with him.

Maka is a lot like her weapon, in the case that she isn't possessive over you and your time. She does like hanging out with you and will often spend time studying with you, sometimes even with Kid and Tsubaki. The only thing that gets Maka riled up with you getting hurt. It's something that effects all of them, but Maka always feels as though it is her fault when you get her. She is not afraid to put herself in danger if it means protecting you.

Speaking of Black Star, he is a lot. Just hanging out with him drains a lot of your energy. Out of all of them, Black Star is the one that takes most of your time, not being afraid to threaten someone who is trying to take you away from him. Tsubaki sometimes tries to calm him down, but deep down Tsubaki is just as protective as the rest of the group.

Tsubaki is super sweet. She loves hanging out with you and wishes so much of your time wasn't taken up with school. She hates seeing how stressed you are and will do whatever she can to fix it. She understands that Black Star is a lot to handle, so she's often the one who calms Black Star down when he gets too worked up. However, Black Star and Tsubaki have a hidden understanding, both of them being the one who protect you. If you even go on a mission with them, Black Star and Tsubaki will work his hardest to protect you, both expecting your praise after defeating any threat to you or your safety.

Kid is the strangest. While he loves being your friend, he sometimes feels as though he doesn't deserve your friendship. He wants to be perfect for you, he needs to be perfect for you, and will settle for nothing less. He also encourages you to be your best self, doting on you in every sense. He makes sure you are eating right and keeping up with your studies and training, along with making sure you don't stress yourself out with schoolwork. He wants you to be the best version of yourself, feeling a sense of pride when you accomplish something. Kid is also possessive and will use his status in the school to intimidate students into leaving you alone. He doesn't like when others criticize you, or even talk to you, so he will always drag you away when others try and take up your time, complaining about the so called "useless students."

Once Crona joins the school, they also take a liking to you. They are naturally shy and, like kid, don't believe they deserve you and your kindness. They feel the most content when they are with you and want to be around you constantly. They despise Ragnarök and how he constantly embarrasses them but feels somewhat better when you don't mind. Crona cares a lot about your opinion and will sometimes go as far as changing things about themself to better please you, only stopping when you say not to. Crona also doesn't feel the need to be possessive over you, feeling as though that's wrong, even if they hate it when you are not near them.

All together, they care about you deeply, and want you to be as happy as possible. While they might disagree on a lot of things, they do agree on one thing and that's you. I like to think that Maka manipulates you to move in with her and Soul so that they can keep better track of you and relay that back to the others when needed. You wouldn't really even notice their weird behaviors, since, other than Black Star, are really good at hiding the most negative aspects. If you do ever point out their behavior, they won't hesitate to quilt you into staying with them, referencing how much they've been though, and how they wouldn't make it if you left them.

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peppertaemint · 7 months

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This TaeKey situation is so messed up. Like, I don't blame people for being upset, or hurt, and wanting to let the guys know that the things they say can affect others negatively... but at the same time the way this is going down is wild. I never thought I'd see shawols react to them like this.

The number of people(some of them that I've been following for a while, who always seemed mature and level headed) who were positively gleeful talking about Taemin and Key "getting their lashings". Calling them disgusting, saying they deserve what's coming to them, they don't want to see anything from them unless it's an apology "with tears" and all the other generally insulting things that people have been saying about their appearances and them as people.

It's like people were just waiting for their moment to turn. Or they're so desperate to show that they're "good" and they're not one of "those" fans that puts idols on a pedestal that they've gone tol far in the opposite direction and just gotten nasty.

Like, maybe I'm stupid, maybe I am one of those fans that's putting them on a pedestal but I'd like to think that Taekey are generally good kind people who always do their best to be respectful. Of course they're gonna fuck up every so often. There isn't a person alive who doesn't have some kind of internal bias about something, whether they're aware of it or not. But when someone I care about screws up, I would think the best course of action would be to say "hey, I know you probably didn't mean it maliciously, but the connotations of what you said are kind of shitty. Especially to people with darker skin tones and I hope you can consider that going forward" my first thought wouldnt be to call them disgusting and essentially get a megaphone to announce their fuckup all over social media so as many people as possible can see it and join the hate train.

I just hate this so much. And now stupid sm is just editing the video and the members probably have no clue about it and the people who are angry are getting even angrier and even more nasty.

I wish Taekey could address this but unfortunately I really don't see it happening and then it's like,where do we go from here?

Where do we go from here? A good question.

I think that where we don't go, but it's too late because it's already happening, is commenting on Taemin's IG that he should collaborate with Morgan Wallen. How is that helpful? It's disingenuous.

As someone from Canada, TaeKey's words were gross and not cool. But I also understand that they aren't from my culture, and because I watch a lot of Korean content, I know what is seen as acceptable there. That doesn't mean it's acceptable to me personally.

They deserve fans telling them how they feel honestly. And I think in the majority of cases that has happened. But like you say, some people are taking this extremely far and turning it into an excuse to be nasty, when I don't think TaeKey meant anything other than childish/ignorant making fun. That doesn't mean what they said was okay or should be overlooked, but intention and someone's character does count for something, does it not?

People keep leaving all sorts of remarks on IG, WeVerse, Twitter etc so I would say at this point, they should be aware there's a large swathe of the fandom unhappy. I did put my thoughts on WeVerse and Bubble - but I did that once and let it be. I'm not harassing people.

SM editing the video makes it worse because clearly management or at least the YouTube team know about the issue. But from what I heard, they didn't edit it well, and I think that speaks to the lack of knowledge around this issue. The staff members likely don't understand fully what the issue is and how it makes fans from certain areas feel, so they guessed at how to make it better and mostly failed.

Cultural exchange is full of this kind of uncomfortable stuff. It's easier when it's on a personal level, because then we can have a conversation with the person/people directly. We can't exactly do that, but fans have social media to use, which they are.

#it's a complex issue #but shinee world doesn't shy away from that kind of stuff #shinee #shinee ask #shinee world #shawols

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teaveetamer · 8 months

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every time i see posts about how randolph/ladislava dying is So Horrible and Really Sad and that we should feel bad for them, i always have to stop and ask: "why would i be upset that an invading soldier died?" like yeah, fleche was really sad.. but im 99% sure the faerghian/leicester..ian(?) families of the people randolph and ladislava personally killed feel way worse, because they're being literally invaded! god, like, imagine saying that to someone in real life, when they're the defending party in a war, being invaded. that they should feel bad for the soldiers who died while trying to siege their country and destroy it.

Careful there anon, they'll accuse you of hating all real life soldiers and then bully you off the face of the fandom for that opinion (I wish this was a joke but they have actually done this).

Frankly I'm not even going to engage with that point because the people who use it are employing such a double standard. I'm sure they'd never argue that anyone should feel sorry for Rhea because "she started everything with that gosh darn crest system!"

Even if they are willing to acknowledge that the Empire are the ones who started this conflict, they'll just foist all responsibility for their actions off onto Rhea bEcAuSe CrEsTs and tell you that you should feel bad for the Empire anyway. Even though by that same logic you could foist all responsibility for Rhea's bad decisions off on TWSITD/Nemesis for putting her in the position of "genocide victim who needs to hide where crests come from in order to prevent people from stripping her for parts" in the first place.

I do pity Randolph and Ladislava to some extent, but in the way I pity any soldier that's been on the aggressor's side in any war ever. They aren't the ones who decided to go to war, often times didn't even want the war or only wanted it because they were lied to and deceived by those in power, and often times they aren't the ones who decided to join the military at all (though IIRC Randolph and Ladislava both served willingly). They pay for the shortsighted greed or myopic visions of people higher on the food chain than them. Cuz that's how it's always been. People in power sit on their thrones, confident that they'll never face the consequences of their actions (at least not without taking a lot of people down with them first), and send the expendable peons to die in their stead.

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tossawary · 1 year

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Hi! This is another Fandom Trumps Hate post for people who are thinking about joining up as a creator but aren't sure. I'm not making this one rebloggable because I'm going to talk a little about my personal experiences with fan events in general and FTH in particular over the years (feel free to link a friend to this post, though, if they're on the fence about participating).

About 10 years ago now, when I was very new to online fandom, I didn't know how to feel about fan charity events. Some of them seemed kind of shady (and some fan-run things are shady, let's be real, but FTH's donations go straight to the charities and the mods never touch it). But some of them seemed legitimate, and as I was spending a lot of my free time making fic and art anyway, I thought: didn't I kind of owe my creative skills to a good cause? When I did decide to refrain from joining these events because I knew that I was too busy, I still felt kind of guilty about it.

Now, a little older and a little wiser, I feel pretty confident saying that if you're really not sure or enthusiastic about participating: don't do it. I am personally handing you a "Get Out Of Jail FTH Guilt-Free" card and telling you it's cool if you're too busy. It's seriously fine.

Here's why:

Fan events, whether we're talking about charity auctions or big bangs just for fun, are often pretty significant commitments. Being "required" to write fic, especially being required to follow someone else's prompt can be a very different experience to writing whatever you want for fun. (Not not fun, just different.)

Some people write fanfiction instead of attempting to publish original fiction to become "real writers" because, as they'll talk about on their own blogs, they want to write as a for-fun hobby. Like painting for fun or baking for fun. Just because someone likes making a fancy cake every once and a while doesn't mean that they want to open a catering business, you know? Things can change when you've made a commitment and when there's money on the line, even if that money has gone to charity. There's an added layer of stress.

If you've never written prompt fic on request before, then it's hard to know how you'll find the experience, if you'll find the stress of it a light burden you barely feel or a heavy burden weighing you down every day. Sometimes, you'll end up writing something you're not 100% into. I've had artistic projects (talking mostly about school and work here, not any fan projects) where the idea was fun and I was proud of the end result, but the work itself was kind of grueling because it wasn't what I personally would have chosen to do.

My FTH bidders over the years have always been incredibly cool people who have proposed fun ideas, which I have really enjoyed writing, and they'll often work with you to find a prompt that you love. I have found my FTH projects rewarding experiences. But I'd be lying if I said that when working on a FTH fic, I've never once occasionally thought, "Man, I kind of wish I was working on something else."

You have to be able to resist the allure of your latest plot bunny and finish the current project. If you're really bad at finishing your WIPs or if you're really bad at finishing your WIPs within a time limit (FTH deadline is Dec 31st of the same year), then maybe creating for a fan event just isn't for you. And that's fine!

There's a reason that FTH recommends in their Signup Tips for First-Time FTH Creators post that new creators start with only one offer and to start small. Write a 5k fic, not a 50k one. Draw a single, cartoony drawing, not a 5-page comic in a realistic style. It's a very responsible thing to do to test the waters of an experience before jumping in the deep end.

Part of the stress of these experiences comes from the fact that if you don't fulfill your promise to create for your bidder, you can get banned from future FTH auctions. Big Bangs and Secret Santa events will also ban you (not because of FTH, FTH doesn't blacklist you to anyone or anything). And you don't want to disappoint your bidder! They seemed really cool and you can feel like you're letting them down just if you make them wait too long.

(I promise you that most bidders are pretty chill people. I personally am happy just donating to the charities and I really don't care when/if my creator gets back to me. Their wellbeing is more important to me than a fic or a piece of art.)

If you feel like you won't be able to fulfill an offer in time or if you don't really want to take a prompt from someone else instead of doing your own thing, then it's fine not to make an offer. (Likewise, if you ever have missed creating something for a fan event because real life stuff came up, then it's fine. You're not a bad person. Life gets in the way sometimes. You thought you could at the time. There are other things to participate in when you know you're ready.)

The thing is that creative skills are much, MUCH more valuable than people are putting them on auction for here. If I was charging a minimum wage of $15/hr for my writing skills for what I've done for FTH over the years, I would have made them THOUSANDS. (I doubt I've made them $1000 total.) I participate in FTH usually when I'm feeling at creative loose ends and want to work on prompt fic. I want the collaborative experience of writing something specific for someone else. It's a project that scratches a particular writing itch for me (the stress of a commitment is there, yes, but it's so easy to carry that I barely notice it), which isn't for everyone, and the fact that this event raises some money for charity is kind of just an added bonus.

If someone is donating $25 dollars to charity so that you'll write them a thank-you gift of a 5,000 word one shot that took you at least 10 hours to write, that is NOT a balanced exchange. If we take the $15/hr wage, that is $150 of labor for $25. This is NOT an efficient way to donate to charity. This is a fan event.

Now, some people require a higher minimum bid for their work than I generally do. (Which is good. They are right to do this. I should probably also do this more seriously.) Some people require $100 dollars for a 1k fic. Some people say they'll write 1k words per every $10. There are ways to bring things back into balance and make things more efficient.

So, if you think that a disparity between the amount donated and your donated labor will piss you off, then put serious minimum bid requirements. Your creative skills are valuable. It is okay to enforce boundaries on your donated time and energy so that you don't end up writing 50k of an idea you don't really like for $25, because that sounds like a recipe for resentment. (I keep mostly to myself, so I have never heard of a situation like this with FTH and am just exaggerating to make a point.)

And if people don't bid on your offer? It doesn't mean that your creative skills aren't valuable. It just means that your offer wasn't what someone was looking for at this particular time. (Honestly, as a side note, it's incredible how much the success of a pitch for a book or show or movie depends on just happening to be made to the right people at the right time. I'm serious. It's a very real thing in the entertainment and publishing industries. I have attended talks by people who say that they've had to pass on great pitches specifically because they're looking for a property to sell to 5yo boys that year and already have a property being sold to 10yo girls.)

If you need to pass on participating because you're busy: look after yourself first! Don't end up disappointing your bidder and yourself because you don't have the time or energy to spare. If you can do it, but it means really stressing yourself out and sacrificing other things to find the time: don't do it. Look after yourself. Don't hurt yourself and your creative muscles over a fan event. Breathe. Take a nap. Play some video games. Participate as a bidder if you have the spare money or just advertise the auction if you don't (if you want to). Or just cheer on creators in AO3 comments or with kudos. FTH allows you to make a donation and add it to their count, even if you don't bid or if you don't want to make a bid.

Would you be happy to know that someone was grinding themselves down trying to please you? Don't do that to your bidder. They're your fellow fans, often fellow creators, who just want to chill and donate to charity, and they'd be really upset to hear that you were making yourself miserable because of their donation.

I have never failed to fulfill a FTH offer. I have only participated in fan events when I know I can do it. I have always enjoyed myself. But I work in a creative industry and I have seen a lot of creative people hurt their own passion for something they love or burn out by trying to force themselves to work on things. (I know this sounds very dramatic. I'm not saying you will burn out. You may be totally fine or maybe only lightly stressed at the end. You'll probably be great, honestly. I bet you're a kickass creator. But it's fine to be wary of burn out until you're in a more confident place.) So, to any creative person, especially younger ones, I wanted to write all this out to tell you that it's fine not to do these things. It's not that serious.

Keep fandom a positive space by giving yourself room to breathe and coming back even stronger when you're ready, as a creator, bidder, or just a supporter. If you've already signed up but you want to pull out of FTH before bidding starts because something came up, email the mods. If this extended rambling about burn out has only strengthened your resolve to kick this fan event's ass, then that's awesome! Good for you! I think it's good to reassess your creative energies every now and again, and I think it's fine to say, "Okay, I think I need a break, I don't want to let anyone down," as much as it is to say, "Yeah, I'm pumped up! I'm good to go! Let's do it!"

EDIT: This whole post sounds kind of negative, so to add more positivity: if you really, really want to do it, then I think you should go ahead and join FTH! Just know your limits. It's okay to start small and to set firm boundaries. FTH can be a lot of fun! You can meet cool people! You can feel like you're making a difference! You may end up writing great and rewarding fics that you never would have written otherwise! Plenty of people have joined FTH for the first time feeling really uncertain and had a great time, no regrets.

Don't do FTH just because you feel weirdly obligated to participate because it's for a good cause. Do FTH because you want to do it.

There will be other events.

#ask tossawary #tossawary fth 2023

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whetstonefires · 2 months

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Hi! I hope it's if ask three questions together: 21, 5 and 8 for that delightful fandom ask 💕

in that order!

21. a fandom you're not active in anymore but that you still really like

Oh, tricky! What does it mean to really like a fandom. I have so much affection for most of the ones I've been active in, but at the same time it's often the fandom rather than the source material I used up my enthusiasm for and departed.

Yu Yu Hakusho, maybe? I posted a lot of like, character study bits on ffdotnet for it back in high school and I often think if the fandom was more active I might circle back to it with my more developed writing chops.

I have a lot of beef with some of the fandom's conventions around shipping though so I may not be able to fairly say I love it.

Maybe Trigun. I couldn't get through episode one of the new anime though because they took my Millie, so I failed to join the renaissance.

5. something you see in fics a lot and love

Also hard! Just for the broad scope of the kinds of things that are in fics. But haha, I'm not responsible for figuring out the the intended thrust of the vague question! There are no penalties if I guess wrong!

I really like the bit in a fic when the writer ties their story down to the canon mid-stream. It's such a distinctive feeling, there's a practically kinetic gestural motion to it, that you can often sense it in fics you've never read the canon for. It works basically the same in contexts where you're tying your narrative to an existing non-copyrighted mythos, or doing your diligence as the writer of a licensed sequel. It's the narrative equivalent of showing your sources and flaunting your tailfeathers. The most basic level is just making a point of including Emotionally Significant Plot Object without feeling the need to re-explain its significance in detail because we all know, but it can get so elaborate.

The other day I was reading this fairly high-concept fantasy novel that's quite well done but I can't decide if I like it or not, and it started becoming clear around the halfway mark that one of the major characters had been Merlin this whole damn time and I hooted in satisfaction and outrage every time a new piece of confirmation dropped. Same kind of deal.

Anyway fic creates so much space to do elaborate things with the relationship-to-source-material and I love seeing people have fun with it.

8. you hope more people will come to appreciate _ (a ship, a trope, an episode, etc)

Hm. How beautifully fucked up Jiang Cheng is? This man is suffering so much and he's reasonably self-aware about it and this does not help in the least.

I think the self-awareness makes it worse, actually, because it means he's constantly on the brink of confronting the things he can't let himself think about straight on or he will have a massive fucking breakdown that he cannot afford.

Not enough recognition for how 90 percent of the time when Jiang Cheng is being awful he very clearly knows he's being awful and he kind of hates that and hates himself and is aware that his mom and dad issues are major drivers of this behavior. And none of that means he's able to stop.

It's such a unique hell. Appreciate.

I don't know why that was the first thing I thought of and I'm pretty sure it wasn't the kind of wish that was intended, but here we are.

#ask #hoc est meum #Anonymous #i am not quite a hater but i do get more satisfaction out of complaining than positivity by default #so these positively slanted asks are good for me #mdzs #fanfic #ask game #fandom #ty nonny #why do people send asks like this on anon tho #there's nothing to hide???#why are you hiding the fact that you are being sociable with another blogger #i feel like it's probably not that you're ashamed to be seen speaking with me lol #probably just an abundance of caution on the Callouts Website

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keepthisholykiss · 10 months

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i guess this is a pinned post (until i unpin it someday)

lots of people are making the move to tumblr yet again which means i have been getting a lot of new followers and feel the need to make a pinned post given trends that i do notice in my new followers. if you are following me for the first time and reading this i humbly ask that you read further before following. this goes triple for anyone that found me through takarazuka. idc about DNI rules usually but this keeps happening at a rate that has almost made me delete my account before so!

some things to know about me before following:

i am trans in a t4t lesbian marriage and we’re both varying levels of asexual and agender/no gender/genderfuck so if any of that bothers you then please DNI!

i am both physically and mentally disabled and i will let you know about it, your opinion on that matter does not concern me

i often forget to tag reblogs so if there is a specific tag you want me to include please let me know and i will make sure i start tagging that item

i work in and produce research for academia, an institution built on systems and morals i do not hold and do not support. my research is always as accessible, queer friendly, and free as it can be. if you have opinions on my research leave me alone idc

i do not participate in fandom. i worked in community management for a variety of brands and media types for years and frankly fandom exhausts me. i will interact with your blorbo post and think its fun but i will not join your discord or fic exchange which brings me to my most important or relevant point:

if you are coming from any takarazuka post i have made (or that my wife has made? idk) please consider if you actually want to interact with this blog. i made a previous post shortly after leaving that fandom aka the only fandom i ever have joined. in that post i said some things in a much harsher way than i probably should have or would have today but i listed my many issues with that media and the people who bullied myself, my spouse, and our friends. there are some amazing people who i know and still care very much about in that fandom but if you are new to it or just forgot i existed please know i will never post a takarazuka post again. i know my blog still gets recommended alongside tkz blogs (including those who actively wish me physical harm :D) and yet i cannot change the algorithms of tumblr. so please consider that when you follow me or send me anon hate.

hopefully this is the last time i ever have to post something like this but theres been an uptick in both terf and tkz interactions on this blog so!

#michelle does txt #sorry to my regular followers this is a no trespassing sign for the weirdos

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scottxlogan · 1 year

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I read your entire post. Sometimes writing it out like that is breath of fresh air and allows you to vent and feel your feels. I feel similarly to you with the fandoms I follow. I think I'm brought down by the nastiness and fighting. I never engage in it but looking at posts others make about other people in their fandom kind of makes me not want to be a part of it. For normal posts I think the anonymous feature is cool but it aids people in being nasty to others. Hope you find some fandom peace

Thanks for reaching out anon. I'm going to put my response under the cut here :)

Thanks anon! I agree with you that sometimes that's all it takes to get it off your chest. I often try to keep a positive public face about all the uproar in fandom and steer clear of drama, but there are days when a compilation of things just gets you reflecting on the state of fandom affairs I guess. I do wish there was more of a community feel/sense to things, but I guess all we can do is appreciate those like yourself who reach out and make a connection. I understand being brought down by nastiness and fighting. I've always tried to take the high road in things when someone is causing unnecessary drama and sometimes in doing so it ends up taking its toll on you if you're someone who internalizes and spends a lot of time in self-reflection. I totally do that more than I should, so in those few moments when I sit back and see things I just start reflecting (hence the post). My theory on fandom is to ship and let ship and any time someone has reached out to me to tell me they have joined a ship that I'm in, I want more than anything to welcome them with open arms and allow them to have a positive experience. This whole newbies aren't allowed to be a part of the 'cool club' cult just doesn't fly with me. When I was first trolled by a fandom hater, I was new to certain fandoms and had a few people step up for me and be very kind, but I often feel like an outsider looking in that won't ever be accepted into the fold no matter how much positive I put out there in terms of fandom works. I try to support any fandom I'm in and encourage others, but a lot of the time I see the internet is not the same way. I hope eventually we are all able to find a happy middle ground where there isn't fighting and hateful stuff within a fandom itself and people can be free to ship and be happy sharing their love for fandoms. It's a beautiful fandom dream I guess. I do agree at times that the anonymous feature does breed a ground for trolling and many people suggested that I close myself off entirely, but the reason I don't is because of people like yourself who are kind and supportive and want to reach out without being forced to step outside of your comfort zone. In my first fandom on here a lot of people reach out to me on anon and are nothing but nice. Strangely enough I find that even though I stick to the Marvel fandoms on here mostly that the X-Men fandom for all it's up and downs and differences are less trolling to each other than the MCU fandoms appear to be. I adore both, but maybe it's because the X-Men are the 'outcasts' and are 'different' if you will that those fandoms though quiet are a bit more supportive of each other. Either way it's because of the X-Men fandom that I've kept the anon feature open here because those shy, private people who have reached out have been kind and considerate and I would never want to close my doors to them if they needed to reach out. I guess it's a situation where I do what I do to show the world that the trolls can't change who I am and even when I feel down on certain days I know closing oneself off isn't always the answer. I believe even if they are quiet and in the shadows there are still welcoming fandom folks out there :) Thank you for the kind words anon and I hope you find some fandom peace and enjoyment in your corner of the fandom universe. Thanks so much for reaching out!

#anon #ask me #fandom frustrations #fandom etiquette

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nickywhoisi · 2 years

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My Thomas and Friends humanized robot ideas omg yes it is

YOOOOO IT’S FINALLY HERE, NEW RELEASE, GET HYPE GROOP

It’s been a stupidly long time coming, I know, and I wish I could include some new art with it, but eh what’re ya gonna do. Since first coming on to tumblr, I’ve been loving the whole fandom’s many versions of the cast, and it did not take long for me to throw my hat into the ring and join the fun! I already loved making designs on their own just for the sake of experimenting. But if I was gonna make my own human!Engines, then it was only inevitable that I give them a proper universe to reside in and give context if I wanted to make some original skits or comics (and lemme tell ya I have really wanted to make some comics wiTH ANTICS). And I hated having so much putting off my creativity! I had to focus on everything except what I really needed to make something really good, but there were a few lucky glimmers where I was able to settle down with my laptop and get some pieces churned out. So without further ado, insert drumroll, as I have just checked that I apparently have 30 +1 followers so far...which, considering what I have been posting so far...oh my god, I love you all. For real? I am amazed. You’re all troopers sticking around with me, through the pleasantness and the badness. I am so happy you guys put so much faith in me. Time for that to pay off. This is all for you guys first and foremost, along with the choo choo groop, the TTTE fandom.

-This rendition of Sodor Island has similar trappings to the TV series timeline, but with humanoids as the main focus, and with a very different overall trajectory. The entire island's culture is set in an amber-state of the 1910's-40's, but slowly there are some pieces of other decades that have made their way to the small country. In the most recent period, fluorescent lights have made their way to Sudrian homes, but the bulbs are made custom to have a warm glow of an old fashioned gas light, so it doesn't look too modern. Sometimes fashion trends of recent decades appear on the island, but these are mostly worn by foreigners or visitors to the island, and rarely are seen on locals. A lot of things like this are repurposed, or reconfigured in this way, as that is what the Island of Sodor seems to prefer best. -The entire land pulses with a giant amount of otherworldly energy, which the Sudrians know as "magic dust". It is shown to take on the form of powder carried on the winds most often. But unlike the movie's depiction of "gold dust", this universe's magic dust has an even more ethereal colour. It's prismatic, a "light rainbow" colouration, and gold is just one of the colours that it can display. Some say it is like watching a fog of powdered diamonds pass by, on occasion. It's always a delight for the engines to see wafts of magic dust come in, as they get to enjoy a special boost of energy that comes from it. -The main cast originate as normal, faceless trains when they are first built. With the intended use of being average trains, pulling passengers and cargo and all that. But due to the magic dust, most of them develop a soul/consciousness, and without mouths or faces, they come alive and start talking. The very first to be granted life, of course, is Lady. Proteus and all the rest come after her soon enough, though there are rare cases where an engine is unaffected by the magic dust, and never comes to life at all. It is otherwise a mystery how this occurs, but old Sudrian researchers have discovered that the engines have the magic dust that grants them life condensed right in the core of their chassis - they just opened a slot to take a peek; it wasn't a full dissection. They would not dare harm one of their trains, especially now that they were alive and could react to whatever they did! - This core essentially looks like a giant glowing column inside, the dust becoming a solid cylinder-esque shape that fills in whatever gaps inside the engine were empty. A large cylinder with branching points, to be more precise. Even more of a mystery is how exactly the engine's voices are heard at all; the only working, plausible theory at present is it's a mass psychic mental link of some kind, allowing the trains to speak, be heard, and be understood by humans on Sodor. When a living train was brought out of Sodor, as a speculative experiment, the core seemed to stay intact, yet it was impossible for a human outside of Sodor to ever hear the train. More alarmingly, the engine's core magic was decreasing in potency the longer they were kept off of Sudrian land. No changes within a person who worked with them were ever found, so it was considered ultimately benign, though somewhat harmful to the poor trains. The local Sudrians who remained by the train's side were still able to keep their mental connection to the magic engine, and were equally perplexed as to how this was possible while being off-island. In the beginning, the average humans who worked alongside their steamies and diesels were getting quite used to their new active connections with eachother, and were having a lot of fun bonding over nearly everything. From discussing work schedules and how to improve them, to tooting whistles and enjoying music together, to getting huffy over having food cooked in their fuelboxes sometimes, and so on. The passengers would also get to share special connections with the engines who were always delighted to greet them. Then...out of nowhere, a truck suddenly formed a face and voice of its own, and began to cause trouble for everyone. And just a short moment after that, an engine transformed and became humanoid; likely Proteus. There was almost an incident in which the drivers were caught in his very first transformation, or "morph" as it would later be dubbed, but they got out by the skin of their teeth before then. Ever since, the people got decidedly more nervous about boarding the engines, and some passengers were beginning to worry about the carriages; if it would be safe to use the railways at all if the trains themselves were transmogrifying without any warning. The stations needed to make sure this wouldn't become an economic crisis, or even worse...be the cause of bizarre casualties. So, Fat Controller I drummed up with the stations a haphazard plan of building tons of new cars and trucks for passengers and businesses to use. But they did so annually; after a week of use, the cart would be decommissioned for a while and replaced with a new, freshly built one to ensure there would be no sudden morphing on the job. The previous cart would be waited on for a month to see if it would decide to come to life. If it didn't, it would be considered "safe" and brought back into use again, but still only for a week. There would be a great amount of shifting cars around and checking carefully to make sure there would be nothing springing to life at the wrong time. This caused a lot of very difficult work for everyone, and there was still no assurance to be made about the trains, but the safety of the people was ensured to the best of their ability. Suddenly, though, it happened. Not only did a passenger car come to life, though thankfully it was not a harmful incident at all, a few rare vehicles were beginning to come to life as well! Entirely unaccounted for! It seemed as if nothing was safe from the magic dust! This was the cause of humans being less enthused about the magic dust fogs rolling in than the engines...as for them it means life and health, but for the average human means an unstable chance event of a device coming alive before any preparation can be made. It leaves the people in a certain state of anxiety for a long time, though they still need to use their vehicles and trains. It's been a miracle that nobody has gotten killed, yet there have indeed been accidents and daredevil moments caused by a car springing to life and not understanding where it is yet, or a train screeching to a halt and making the passengers lurch forward as it's frozen in confusion. Fat Controller I and his workforce, after many years of doing damage control, finally decide they're tired of fighting against the uncertainty and try to encourage the island to "go with the flow" a bit more. Over time, with Fat Controller II taking position as head of the Stations, they all acknowledge that this is just what will happen from here on out. They accept the risks however begrudgingly, and everyone starts learning and practicing what to do to minimize the risk however they can...and things turn out pretty alright from here on out. It's nobody's fault except that durn magic dust.

-Toby, Edward, Thomas and Gordon were the first four of the present period to be observed morphing from talking train forms to humanoid for the beginning of their individual “stories”. The human forms are not really considered by the humans as the same, for a number of reasons. A small, barely invasive surgery was once done on a past engine to dissect and understand the engine’s miraculous changes, and these findings applies to the whole cast; steamie, diesel, etc. The trains essentially have a complex system of innerworkings that are reminiscent of human anatomy, but the “organs” that they carry are closer to the systems of their original engine forms. Much of these are placed around to fit the humanoid casing in the best way, and much of it makes sense; the steam pipes are connected near exactly like a set of lungs, trachea and nasal passages for releasing pressure...but they are also connected to the ear holes and unique vent holes found passing down through their ankles, so not everything matches up as we might understand. The human forms seem to have a special compartment within the legs that store the most unique addition; retractable wheels that allow them to use their original tracks without any issue, though they can now step off the tracks and walk where they please. These wheels are connected by sturdy joints that bend in unobtrusive ways. Of course, there is also the colouration of their skin, which is a soft matted but still metallic grey. These are the most direct indicators that, though they look human, these “robots” have indisputably originated from the engines they were. The magic cylinder they have also appears to change shape with them, forming into a bust shape; the engine’s brains and “heart” appear to be located closely at the head and torso. It makes for very tough necks, certainly. But this would also mean that any blows to these areas too severe would be fatal to them, and if not treated in time, may lead to the poor engines death.

-Toby first morphed on his tracks, not in anyone’s way, with no passengers with him or anything. His driver was mentally ready each day for just this event. It was a very easygoing time, thank goodness.

Edward was next, and his morph was quite safe as well. Though he absentmindedly turned his new body before his cargo was uncoupled, which caused the load to get spilled. At least it was only one cart...

Thomas morphed at a pretty inopportune time, during a passenger ride on Tidmouth. He was so enamoured by his first beautiful sunny day that he drifted off to Toryreck, which was not on the proper path! He didn’t realize what had happened until everybody was practically yelling at him to get his attention, especially his drivers who had chased him down.

Gordon morphed at a fairly bad time too, but he handled it expertly for someone who only got used to having legs for a split second. He of course was on his expressline, going very fast down his track. And so when he morphed without expecting it, he had to think very quickly for the sake of his passengers and drivers’ safety, and get accustomed to having limbs even quicker. He did it, and everyone at the next station were pleasantly surprised, but he was frozen in discomfort. He probably needed some time to...register what happened, or fear what had almost happened. Immediately afterward, he studied the Sudrian Locomotive Owner’s Manuals which went over all known information about his new form. That way he would never be so thrown off again. Also, yes, he’s autistic headcannon’d. ;3

James’ first morph was expected by his drivers and himself, but sadly it did not go as James had planned it to. He considered it like a special “coming out at a debutante ball” sorta deal, and was always daydreaming about the ideal moment and how he would carry himself. When it actually happened, however, he was in the middle of dealing with the troublesome trucks. He has a brief moment to enjoy his new form, but the trucks decide to take advantage of the distraction and push James along towards the crash he suffers in canon. In this version, he’s all alone to suffer the crash, as the drivers had to leap off of James when morphing! And it seemed that James’ wheelframes and breaks were actually wooden instead of metal as well. Nobody was aware of what it would be like for a wooden-braked train to morph and be like that, but James’ brakes were already burned away in the incident. Luckily, just like in canon, Thomas is there to help James up and collect his separated wheelset. And this time, they can at least walk back without trouble. James is very depressed because his first morph was so cruelly disrupted, and he can barely remember the small moment he was happy about it...but he’s quickly cheered up by Thomas’ idea to cover James before everyone at Steamworks sees him yet...so he can still have his debutante entrance after all!

-Henry’s first morph was almost a really dangerous situation. Henry was in an awful condition in his engine form, and this made him and the rest of the station worried about how well he would function period. Henry was far too scared to ever look forward to morphing while like this, as he learned that once an engine morphs, they don’t go back. Ever. That would mean that whatever illness he had, he’d be keeping forever as a “human”. This left all of his actual human friends at the station frantically preparing a special reconstructive surgery for him, while they still had the chance. Retooling an entire train is hard enough engineering work on its own, but it’s even trickier to make sure the “patient” is put to sleep well enough to go through such a demanding process. Even worse still when the patient is essentially a ticking time bomb, with having no way to be sure if he would suddenly morph IN THE MIDDLE OF THE OPERATION. Then he would either be lost forever, or be in such a horrifying state that it would surely be better...to decomission him. Absolutely no one wanted that! And thank goodness nobody got that, as it took a few days to finish Henry’s new locomotive body but he was still finished in time, for when he did form within a few weeks. Henry was all better, and more than happy with how he was now.

And that’s what we’ve got so far! Had to edit Henry’s bit in post because my laptop almost ran out of battery. Oops XD But I hope you all enjoy the blurbs!

#not to toot my own horn too soon but...#I am very proud of myself for forming plausible transition points for the engine's transformations #and the ripple effects that come from it happening for the first time #I really got into thinking about how everybody would actually take to these happenings in a believable way #like how would sodor actually feel about this and this what would they do #this was super fun and I am gonna try to make more!#ttte #choo choo groop #my writings #this makes the happy

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locktobre · 2 years

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I’m gonna address these together bc they’re very similar but I have to point out, first of all, that “favorite” and “best” are overlapping but definitely distinct categories. Like, ppl have favorite movies that are objectively bad (as in, poorly made) all the time. It’s a whole thing. That being said...

I particularly hate how ppl talk about PatP most of the time. It’s so propped up by nostalgia, first of all, which is fine I guess, but just bc you nostalgically enjoy something doesn’t make it the “best,” ESPECIALLY if you refuse to engage with it beyond that nostalgia. And a lot of ppl do lmfao it is incredibly exhausting to witness.

It’s like if I thought Teen Witch was the best movie in the world just bc I first saw it when I was 4. That would be stupid bc 24 years have passed and I have obviously grown as a person in that time and can now point out stuff I didn’t notice or care about when I was 4, some of which means I definitely see the movie in a different light. I think this is good, I would be worried if I still had the same thoughts and feelings about something after 24 years. (This is a tangent, but I have actually compared Teen Witch and PatP before so it’s not actually out of complete nowhere.)

But anyway, ppl have a lot of nostalgia attached, and then they both won’t engage with the movie on a deeper level (as fandoms are often wont to do), but they also won’t engage with anything else, like, say Princess and the Popstar. Which it is constantly compared to. But they won’t even give Popstar a chance bc it’s “modern” and “shallow” and somehow it’s ruining their childhood by being made 8 years after Pauper (by which time, btw, the actual target audience of the movies would have aged out and they’d be aiming at a new audience... interesting). Ppl refuse to even acknowledge that beyond the “identical stranger switching places” thing, the movies have very little in common. The contexts for the switches are completely different, the characters are completely different, they have almost NOTHING to do with each other beyond “To Be a Princess/Popstar” (which is both a cute callback and very interesting study in the change in the function and role of royalty in 250 years), and Keira being a singer (with her name being an anagram of Erika). Like, you don’t have to like Popstar, but if you’re just gonna compare it to Pauper and never give it a chance to be its own thing, you’re gonna have a bad time! Bc it IS ITS OWN THING.

This is part of a larger problem of ppl just refusing to engage with any barbie movie beyond nostalgia, and thinking they’re somehow superior for not watching anything past (usually) around 2008, as if there weren’t 8 more years of good movies after that. PatP is just symbolic of those ppl and I’ve been watching it all for nearly 10 years now and I’m so fucking tired. They never change, they’re always like this, and it makes me wish that I’d never found the fandom in the first place (since it was via PatP, ironically). It’s a constant, Sisyphean hell to be in this fandom lmao.

So basically, yes, I think ppl should stop saying PatP is the best bc it is subjective, but also bc Those People don’t really engage with it beyond “pretty movie.” And even that is like, yes they did the best with what they could for the time, but it was 2004 low budget animation and is janky as hell in many spots. There are several plot holes. The best part (imo) is the songs, and even with those, they could have been used more effectively (there’s literally no reason that Erika needs to sing a song to her cat about how he’s fine the way he is). But mostly it just pisses me off bc ppl won’t shut up about it, honestly. I’m bitter and I think rightfully so tbh.

As for my favorite, probably Secret Door bc of my own nostalgia factor (first new movie I watched after joining the fandom). For best, I think Star Light Adventure is honestly the peak of barbie movies (altho I wouldn’t say it’s perfect, just their best work). And surprise surprise, they both came out after 2008.

#mel irl #barbie babbles #anonymous #thanks for asking #i don't even know if this all makes sense bc i'm super tired and got on a ramble but i literally hate patp stans so much #yes i realize the irony of this.#but also bc of After i have spent almost a literal decade analyzing patp from every single angle. what have YOU done with it

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streaming-yn · 3 years

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hi! i'd like to request a platonic MtF trans y/n with Wilbur, and i'd also like to say i LOVE your posts. :D

Of course! Thank you for the support anon!! I'm so glad you enjoy my content! :D (also, I'm not sure if this is important to say but; I'm transmasc [writing this was so,, whoa yk? Not in a bad way ofc] so I know what trans stuff I'm talking about! Just flipped the other way around lmao) also!! HAPPY PRIDE MONTH!!! Kinda neat I got done with this during pride month I think! enjoy!!

Platonic!cc!Wilbur x MtF!reader

Pronouns: she/they

Other information on the reader:

. Variety streamer

. Minor

. Faceless

. Friends with Wilbur (obviously)

Warnings: hate (gets shut down quickly!), Transphobia (they get put in place tho), cussing

Form: headcanons

Summary: you and Wilbur are best friends! Your MtF trans and that can be really tough but it's okay you can get through it and Wilbur is here to help when you need it :)

Genre: platonic, angst (not a lot, just hate and transphobia but it doesn't last long!), Comfort :), fluff (?)

Abbreviations: y/n -> your name, u/n -> username (on twitch, Twitter, and in games!) (No streamer name for this! You're called by your name!)

You: *starts streaming*

LGBTQ+ Community flocking to you: omg hello my new comfort streamer

Okay but can we talk about your chat during the "starting soon!" Screen? It's kinda funny

Your chat on the waiting screen while you finish setting up stuff:

Hello!!!!

Hey lol *louder than everyone else*

Ahaha y/n you're so cool *trips over my enormous piles of money*

Y/N Y/N I WANT YOU TO KNOW I KNOW HOW TO COOK JUST THOUGHT ID LET YOU KNOW :)

I CAN ALSO CLEAN HAHA NOT SAYING THIS FOR ANY PARTICULAR REASON JUST LETTING YOU KNOW <3

Basically they're all just simps, the whole lot of them

At one time your chat was filled with "🎶yes I do the cooking, yes I do the cleaning🎶" over and over

At one point Wilbur was like um hey?? Guys?? That a little weird?? Y/n's a minor and some of y'all r adults.

Chats quick to reassure that they didn't mean in a disrespectful / creepy way and if you ever were uncomfy with it they would stop (most of them anyway, there's always the little bit of really really weird and creepy chat members, but they'd get banned immediately!)

You said that as long as it was 100% a joke, no adults were saying it, and they didn't actually see you as a girlfriend / wife or whatever else that would be romantic then that's fine! :)

Wilbur banned some people from your chat on that stream because adults were getting mad like "if it's a joke who cares if non-minors say it??" "If everyone can't say it then no one should" "I swear minors just hate adults for no reason!" Etc etc, just insulting your boundaries :\ dumb fucks istg bro

It's okay tho bc they're gone now! Now what're they gonna do? Complain on Twitter?? They gonna get their asses handed to them + multiple reports bc that's creepy as hell

Wilbur hypes up your posts all the time!!!!

You post a pic of yourself and he's like yes!!! Guys look at my best friend!!!!!!

Everyone thinks it's really cute :)

At one time?? Some1 tried cancelling him for pedophilia??? Bc he complemented you?????

You, Wilbur, and other users had to explain that compliments don't equal romantic attraction

Like if you can platonically date someone you can sure as hell platonically compliment someone!!

Y'all's dynamic >>>

Because like, it's loving but you're also asses to each other

Like y'all will hype each other up and call each other best friends and stuff

but at the same time, you tease each other, playfully insult each other, etc

and yeah yeah that's normal friend type stuff but look me in the eyes n tell me the whole of the mcyt fandom / fandoms close to mcyt (ex: someone who's friend with one, someone on the dsmp, etc etc) isn't / aren't obsessed with any friend dynamic, you can't (/nm /lh /hj)

by association you're friends with Tommy, Phil, Quackity, and Charlie! :) you record modded Minecraft videos with them sometimes!!

it's a lot of fun!

also when you join vc tommy starts yelling about how you're a woman!! and women are pog!!!! chat look at my friend who is also a women and she's really pog and you should sub to her and donate and just go check her out

it was great to hear :)

also! during pride month, your subtwt is just like

hey guys <3 guess what <3 y/n is trans and really cool so you should sub and follow and donate <33 and if you don't you're transphobic /j

you make sure to address it and say that as long as they add tone indicators to show they're joking and people aren't actually transphobic for not subbing/etc then it's all good! w/o the tone indicators it can cause major anxiety in some and you don't want that to happen

also only trans people are allowed to make the "sub or you're transphobic" joke because a cis person saying that is a little weird yk

but! they can do it with their own thing! like for example, if a pansexual (using this as an example since I'm pan!) that was a fan of yours was super excited for a sub goal you set up or something

then they could post "gift y/n subs or you're anti-pan/panphobic/ you hate pan people/etc /j" because theyre pan so it's not weird ^^

when you get recognized in public it's usually really positive!! :)

also when you're able to, Wilbur is happy to pay for top/bottom surgery if you want it!!

I'm not sure if I said this but Wilbur's really protective of you! you're like his little sister!

if you have a bad day then call him and you can either talk about it just to vent, talk about it while he give suggestions on how to fix what happened, or just him distracting you from it!

the most often form of distracting that he does is talking with you about things you like to get you to talk about them! he'll steer the convo since you're too stressed to do so but he'll steer it in a direction that you like yk?

(actually though! if youre having an anxiety/panic attack or just a stressful day, get a friend to do this!! it's really helpful and a good way to talk about things you probably don't get to talk about much! it's really helpful and relaxing :)! )

never talks about these phone calls unless you talk about them first, also doesn't give any information away that you haven't already said! h knows it's hard to be vulnerable and wants you to feel safe opening up to him :)

and what I mean by "doesn't give any information away that you haven't already said" is that like let's say you had a call with him the night before you streamed and you mentioned it, he would basically repeat what you said but differently, no new information would be available from what he said

example:

you: me and Wilbur were actually on call last night and didn't get off til late! and we started the call after I got home from school!

Wilbur: yeah, it was really late when we got off call, I heard her hold back a yawn or two I swear

stuff like that yk!!

ALSO WHEN YOU, WILBUR, AND TOMMY INTERACT ITS SO :))

cue fans crying over the sibling dynamic, also a lot of people being like "I WISH I HAD A SISTER LIKE Y/N / BROTHER LIKE TOMMY / BROTHER LIKE WIBUR"

yk how Wilbur goes "don't say that I will cry" when tommy says they're like brothers?

add you into the mix and it's like

tommy: we're- we're like brothers, wilbur!

Wilbur: don't say that, I will cry

you: yeah!! we're like a family I think!! :D

Wilbur: y/n- y/n i WILL cry-

also if your parents know your trans and are cool with it he buys you a trans flag for your room or even to hang up out front of your house if you prefer! :)

taglist; @cvsmixplant

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blockgamepirate · 3 years

Text

Technoblade’s purpose in the political narrative of the Dream SMP

I can’t sleep so I decided to finally write the post I’ve been struggling with for literal months, except way more casual because I can’t be bothered anymore and also I’m sleep deprived.

So the thing is: to me the DSMP storyline has always been primarily political, probably because I was introduced to it through Wilbur who was definitely going for political, and also because I’m just generally interested in political narratives right now. Obviously I appreciate the character work and the personal relationship stuff, that’s what makes it more interesting than just dry allegory, but when it comes down to it, this story is about politics to me. So that’s the angle I’m going to approach it from.

Also not to spoil the conclusions here, but I’m an anarchist, that’s my lens.

(Obviously all of this is about rp from here on out unless otherwise specified)

Basically the situation as Techno joins the server is this: L'Manburg exists as an autonomous nation and is de facto independent although not officially recognised by the Dream SMP. The self-appointed president Wilbur Soot decides to hold an election and rig it in order to consolidate his power over the nation he founded and he gets his VP Tommyinnit to join in on the plan. Their scheme fails and they end up voted out instead. The new president, Schlatt, immediately establishes himself as an authoritarian figure and exiles Wilbur and Tommy.

A couple of points on what the election arc demonstrates:

1: the appearance of democracy can be used for distinctly undemocratic purposes.

2: even if the elections aren’t rigged, the electoral system could be massively flawed and end up favouring a party that in fact didn’t have the popular vote

3: even if the winning government (the coalition in this case) has the majority vote, that doesn’t guarantee that they’ll actually act according to the popular will.

4: the supporters of the losing parties basically just have to let the majority overrule their wishes, espcially since apparently L’Manburg doesn’t have an established role for an opposition, yikes. That’s actually a MAJOR oversight in the system but I’m not gonna go into that too much.

5: frankly as an anarchist I am just deeply cynical towards representative democracy, and just because you have a token appearance of choice and consent doesn’t mean that it isn’t a hierarchical and authoritarian system. And to be fair, from my point of view this applies even to so-called liberal democracies and progressive parties. Full disclosure: even if L'Manburg was the ideal example of a representative democracy (which it very much isn’t) I would still be opposed to it because I fundamentally do not believe in top down systems, even electoral ones.

6: despite all these flaws, all the characters seem to implicitly accept the electoral system as legitimate. There’s criticism against the actions of individual characters acting within the system, such as Quackity calling out Wilbur for trying to rig the election, but nobody is questioning the system itself.

So at this point I’m sitting there, watching all this go down, and thinking “man, this would be so much more bearable if there was an anarchist point of view being represented in the story.”

And hey, look who IMMEDIATELY SHOWS UP.

Okay, I’m not gonna lie, early installation Technoblade is not the best representation of anarchism. I was mostly rooting for him out of sheer contrarianism initially. I didn’t really even care if it would be another Killmonger/Magneto/Zaheer situation because I’m used to reading against the authorial intent when it comes to these things. Sometimes any representation is better than no representation, even with political ideologies. That’s not to say that him just straight up spouting this hobbesian notion of a “dog-eat-dog world” didn’t grate on me, obviously it did.

That kind of worldview of humanity needing authority in order to prevent chaos and conflict is literally antithetical to anarchism and is the favourite talking point of authoritarians, the least anarchist people there are. It’s literally what people use to argue AGAINST anarchism. I think it’s mostly because cc!Techno obviously wasn’t particularly educated on anarchist thought and was just basically having fun roleplaying with his friends at this point. Which is frustrating but fair enough I guess.

Cynical ideas about human nature are pretty deeply rooted in the mainstream, unfortunately, most people just consider it common sense. And like I said, it’s a huge talking point in the propaganda against anarchism.

(… even though in fact these arguments were originally used against proponents of representative democracy. Hobbes himself was very much a monarchist, the idea of letting normal people vote for their representatives would have been terrifying to him. Like surely the world would descent into a free-for-all war, all against all. Imagine letting commoners have OPINIONS, the horror.)

So yeah, that stuff was pretty ehhhhh. It was basically what I’d expected though: cc!Techno isn’t an anarchist and we just don’t get accurate representation from non-anarchists, ever. What I dared to hope was that Techno’s character would at least stay consistent about his opposition to ALL governments. I was pretty sure that he would, even though it seemed like the majority of the fandom at the time was convinced that he would switch over to Schlatt’s side or something. It would have been a really shitty twist, I would have ragequit immediately. I mean what would have been the entire point of his character then? He might as well have been a random mercenary. Why even have his character be an anarchist if you were just going to make him work for a government?

(ftr this is kinda my biggest problem with the Hypixel Skyblock revolution event lol, honestly I think that was a worse depiction of anarchism than early DSMP Technoblade. I mean the speech was good, but… still became a government official, tho. booooooooo, cringe)

And yes, I was rooting against L'Manburg, obviously, and I would have even if it had meant having to deal with another badly written anarchist villain character. I never understood why people saw L'Manburg as the good guys, they were nationalist and exclusionary and their whole existence was based on trying to scam people for money.

I mean they were definitely funny, they were great entertainers. I have no problems with people rooting for them because they’re fun to watch; I did that for a bit too. But people were starting to get really into the story and talk about Wilbur and Tommy, the corrupt politicians, and the country that literally excluded people based on nationality as the heroes, unironically, which was wild to me. And when Wilbur started his “villain arc” well: people called it a villain arc, as if he hadn’t been pretty much a bad guy from the beginning, constantly just out for money and power and taking advantage of the people around him and then pretending to be the victim when challenged. I mean yes he got worse, but I wouldn’t call it a villain arc, more like just a mental breakdown arc.

More importantly, to me L'Manburg represented so many things I hate about the status quo in real life, and seeing the fandom mostly unquestioningly accept it as good just pissed me off. Still pisses me off tbh. I mean, to be diplomatic I could say that I understand the emotional attachment and the way L'Manburg was built up mirrors a lot of how real nations are built and how they create a sense of patriotism out of symbols and a sense of honour and loyalty, and it’s actually really fascinating how it even works in a Minecraft roleplay. Says something about the human mind I guess. Doesn’t mean I have to like it though.

Anyway, I just wanted to see literally any kind of opposition to power, even if it had to come from a character that was unquestionably a villain, which I fully assumed Techno would be. Because political narratives so often just leave us out, or at best barely mention us. And even from a narrative point of view, adding an anarchist perspective to a political story just objectively broadens its scope and actually challenges people who are used to only arguing along the lines of conservative or liberal, welfare state or privatization, nationalism or multiculturalism, etc. Even if the original work dealt with it poorly, at least it would give me the excuse to rant about it on Tumblr, which is kinda why I revived my old Minecraft sideblog for this. (That and pig!Techno fanart.)

Also how can you have a story so fundamentally about power without its counterpoint: the rejection of power?

(Yes, Dream SMP as a whole is definitely a narrative about power, it’s a huge theme for Wilbur, Quackity, Dream, Eret and the Badlanders at least, as well as obviously the anarchist characters from the opposite direction.)

So yeah, the build up to November 16th for me was mainly about the anticipation for what Techno would do, how would Techno’s character respond to the seemingly inevitable formation of a new government. THAT was the point of interest for me, that was what I was the most invested in. Would we get an actual anarchist opposition as a new side to the conflict or would they just awkwardly drop that whole angle? Or even have him team up with Schlatt like a complete sellout? There was so much potential but I worried they might just waste it.

And I was right to worry since apparently in the original script Techno wasn’t supposed to do anything, he was just there to help fight Schlatt and witness the explosion along with everyone else.

And WOW that would have been so incredibly boring

Not even just from the political perspective, just talking about the narrative in general terms here: imagine November 16th without Techno’s plot points. Not only would it have been boring for Techno’s character but it would have been equally boring for basically everybody but Wilbur and Philza. An anticlimactic fight followed by a big explosion that pretty much everybody had seen coming already. Yes, the button room scene is dramatic and heartbreaking… for Wilbur and Phil. But nobody else was there to see it. For everybody else, it was just a big explosion. It would have been such a huge disservice to anyone watching the other POVs.

Techno’s intervention gave everyone an ACTUAL climactic fight, it allowed characters other than Wil and Phil to witness some actual drama happening and to participate in it, rather than just waiting around for the explosion, while also foreshadowing the explosion. Even better, it provoked SO MUCH discussion in the fandom AND gave a perfect hook for future conflicts to arise. Wilbur��s end was tragic but it was, at the time, final. L'Manburg would have still suffered a catastrophe but it would have been left with just the same exact antagonist as before: Dream.

And at this point Dream’s core goals had barely changed, just his approach was now different. Yes, that makes a difference for the plot, but it doesn’t really change much in terms of ideological conflict. Especially since there really isn’t that big of an ideological difference between Dream and Tommy, because arguably neither of them are particularly big on ideology in the first place, they just have conflicting goals and use different tactics to achieve those goals (well, the tactics aren’t always even that different *cough Spirit cough*).

Techno’s conflict with Tubbo and especially Quackity (and honestly most of the other characters in general) brings in so much more depth to the story, just by introducing another angle, not to even mention how much it brings to focus questions about power and violence. These are themes that exist in other characters’s storylines too but nowhere in the same way or as central as with Techno.

I’m getting kind of ahead of myself here, though.

The real twist of November 16th was the fact that Techno WASN’T a straight up villain, actually. It was a twist to me anyway, because with all my cynicism I just didn’t see it coming, I didn’t expect him to actually start making reasonable criticisms. I didn’t expect him to drop the hobbesian arguments entirely and start making points that actually sounded like anarchism.

I have to assume that cc!Techno must have seen some of the criticisms of his character and been inspired to adjust because the difference is pretty notable.

(Sidenote: I’m just forever kinda sad that Techno’s “I may seem like the villain here” monologue was cut from the video and most people never heard it.)

And I felt SO validated by the way, because it works so well in the story! Everyone is mostly content with the restoration of a status quo of some sort, Schlatt is gone, this is supposed to be the good ending, and then Techno calls them all out and turns the narrative around completely: This was just a coup d'état. This was just the previous political leadership retaking power by force. Why is everyone celebrating the same exact system that lead to Schlatt’s authoritarian rule in the first place?

What he does there is force the audience to question the narrative they’ve been presented so far, that they’ve accepted without a thought. It might not convince them, but they can’t just ignore it either.

Whatever you wanna say about the discourse around Techno on that day, in the ideological narrative THIS IS THE IMPORTANT PART. Not who betrayed who or when is political violence justified, that’s about personal relationships and morality and it’s mostly all more relevant to the aftermath than the event itself. In my opinion, the REAL point in the moment is that the characters and the audience were comfortable with the ending only to be presented with a completely new perspective on the events.

It also recontextualises the finale, including Wilbur’s actions! It’s a much more ambiguous end to the Pogtopia vs Manburg arc and to Wilbur’s original run as the head writer. Wilbur’s “even with Tubbo in charge I don’t think [that ‘special place’] can exist again” is vague enough to be dismissed as just part of his paranoia and internal conflict, but with Techno, there’s a concrete question: what if Tubbo, given the same powers as Schlatt, will turn out to be just a new Schlatt? And suddenly you have to wonder what Wilbur meant by his words too. And was all this foreshadowing something about L’Manburg’s future?

Okay I’ve only made it to November 16th and there’s so much more DSMP to talk about but the post is getting too long and I’m starting to lose my energy. Will I ever make a part two? No idea. But I’ll try.

Standard disclaimer: I’m not the spokesperson of anarchism, other anarchists might disagree with my reading

#technoblade #bladeblr #dream smp #dreamsmp #dsmp #l'manburg critical #c!wilbur soot critical #for courtesy tags #anarchy pog

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seyaryminamoto · 3 years

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As someone, who's favourite character is Zuko, let me just say that your analysis about the Southern Raiders is spot on. Something about that episode (especially the way Zuko acted) always felt a little... off to me. And I could never figure out what it was exactly and considering the fact that discussion about this episode centered around the Kataang vs Zutara, I thought I was the only one who felt that way. So, I guess thanks for putting my thoughts into words.

Oh, I really feel ya, anon. If you actually don't look at the episode from a shipping point of view, which seems to be the focus of most the fandom, a lot of unpleasant things really start sticking out. I'm personally neutral to the Kataang vs. Zutara debate, I see good points and drawbacks to both ships, and no one's going to convince me that this episode proved the superiority of either pairing, especially when the shipping interpretations have never been important to me when analyzing this episode. People can say Aang is right in the end, they can say Zuko understands Katara's plight better (which, considering Aang has lost even more people he loved than Zuko has, he certainly should have understood Katara's suffering quite well too), but focusing on whether Zuko or Aang are the angel or the devil on Katara's shoulders practically blinds everyone to the very glaring and mindboggling flaws in this episode's writing, imo.

In general, the concept of Zuko's life-changing field trips with the three Gaang members he'd wronged the most is fine and fun for most people, but from the first time I watched the show it felt like the production team knew they were pressed for time and needed some veeeery quick and effective solution for Zuko to gain acceptance in the Gaang ASAP despite all the bad blood there. I can imagine a lot of people love these episodes, but admittedly I wouldn't rank any of them among my favorites because, as interesting as some of their concepts could be, if executed right, my immersion certainly wasn't as strong as with the rest of the show due to the nagging feeling that this was all for the sake of redeeming Zuko in the eyes of each Gaang member... and not necessarily in the eyes of the audience.

They get away with it, of course, because by this point in time, the audience is 100% conditioned to love the Gaang and Zuko, and if you see them getting along, you should be rejoicing in their team-up... but if you put some emotional distance between yourself as a viewer and the events of these episodes, their writing leaves a lot to be desired, especially in the concept of giving Zuko a quick whitewashing in the eyes of Aang, Sokka and Katara, one after the other, so they can genuinely accept him as a teammate and friend. If we'd seen similar trips frequently or occasionally in the rest of the show, with two specific members of the team taking off on an adventure by themselves, it might not be so glaringly obvious (and even... artificial? I guess?) that they're trying to quick-redeem him for each of them here, but on top of it happening thrice, it's literally happening one after the other, too. There's no episodes in-between, it's just literally a four-parter arc of "let's help Zuko become friends with these three".

The plotlines to be dealt with in these episodes are basically catered to each Gaang member, tailor-made life-changing field trips based on whatever they'll value the most, all of it conveniently possible and doable in the span of time they have between Zuko's joining of their group and the show's finale. Aang needs to learn firebending, Sokka needs to save his dad, Katara is permanently grieving for her mother's death. And so, Zuko to the rescue! If he helps them with their personal character quests, he gets 50+ approval points! :'D Honestly, I'm absolutely not against the notion of Zuko befriending them, obviously not, but the methods through which they chose to make it happen simply might not be the finest...?

Zuko loses his ability to bend because he "lost his rage", but he's still angry pretty often, the show even spoofs its own writing by showing him losing his patience at Sokka... while at the same time trying to sell that Zuko "isn't angry" anymore? Zuko helps break out random prisoners from the Boiling Rock without taking a single moment to actually learn who they are, why they were locked up, and without pondering if they deserve to be helped or if perhaps they're genuinely dangerous? Zuko gives Katara every possible tool and information she needs to take revenge on Yon Rha, because, loosely quoting his own words, he "cares what she thinks of him"...?

How about if we'd seen Zuko trying to connect with Fire Nation people, to help his fellow Fire Nation citizens, especially the ones who were living in dreadful conditions, like the ones in the Jang Hui river village? How about if we'd seen Zuko saving lives rather than threatening to take them? How about if we'd seen Zuko actually reasoning with his anger, and either working his way out of it, or repurposing it consciously, or making legitimate, personal efforts to find a new source of strength for his firebending through self-reflection, above all else?

We didn't really need sudden one-on-one field trips to teach Aang, Katara and Sokka to trust Zuko: we needed Zuko to prove himself worthy of that trust, to show how much he has changed, to literally contrast his new behavior with the old, to actually see that the guy no longer jumps into violence-mode 24/7, that he's willing to listen to other people's opinions or wisdom, that he wants to learn better when he knows he's misguided or misunderstanding something or another. Would he have become BFFs with any of them in four episodes if this had happened? Well, it definitely would have happened with Aang, the other two would have been trickier, but they definitely would have been more willing to accept him if they actually got to SEE that the changes in Zuko weren't skin-deep. Katara can be as thick-headed and stubborn as she may want to be, but I have no doubts she wouldn't have been able to hate Zuko as much as she used to if she'd seen him helping people, much like she often wants their group to do. But instead, they don't get to see the actual changes and growth... they just get their biggest goals and wishes satisfied, and that's enough to decide Zuko's trustworthy, no matter whatever sketchy behavior he displays in later episodes.

I absolutely appreciate the worldbuilding context we gain for the raids on the Water Tribe through The Southern Raiders, but I don't think this was an organic way to tell the story of how Zuko became friends with the Gaang. If pressed, I'd even say that Zuko's overt desperation to be their friend is OOC, to a degree: if this guy actually knows how dangerous his father's plans are (and he's supposed to :'D), how isn't he focusing on that side of things, when he's always been such a go-getter? It's not like he grew out of this sort of ends-justify-the-means behavior, seeing as he's absolutely obsessed with stopping his father ASAP, by any means possible, in the finale, when there was no such urgency to be found ever since he joined the Gaang. How isn't he more worried about stopping Ozai than about becoming best friends with the Gaang? Immediately sharing everything he's learned about Ozai's intentions of destroying the whole world might not make them friends instantaneously, but it would certainly get someone like Sokka to take his information seriously and immediately begin strategizing how to counter Ozai's plans. Instead, Zuko spent all those weeks, over a month, even, teaching Aang firebending, going on field trips and hanging out with his new friends in Ember Island. Once you have all the cards on deck and you actually look at all of them at once, doesn't it feel like there were so many more ways to achieve what the show was going for, far more effective ways than through the "let's be friends with Zuko" arc?

Ultimately, there's very little display of growth, in my opinion, in this small arc, on Zuko's side, despite the most obvious and reasonable way to earn the trust of the Gaang would be by outright showing them how much he's grown. I won't deny I appreciate that the writers respected his personality and didn't just warp him into the perfect good softboi the way the fandom apparently interprets him, but even if Zuko was going to be cranky and speak one-liners like "I'm never happy", it wasn't impossible to write better situations for him to connect with the Gaang's members and gain their trust. Even if the writers were set on having these episodes happen exactly as they did, they absolutely could have been written in a much better way, to create an explicit and direct contrast between Zuko's early behavior and the new Zuko's behavior when it comes to things that matter (most the parallels I've seen the fandom drawing are things like "oh look he hated tea before but now he brews it for his friends! So much growth!"... would've been nice to see the growth when it came to a lot of other things, too, if the growth really was there? Am I rite...?).

I may just be influenced by other redemption arcs that focus mainly on characters having common goals and working together to achieve them, then becoming friends in the process... but I really don't see how Zuko's character benefited from these episodes. Yes, bridges were built... but they absolutely could have been built in a more organic way that didn't make people like myself (and a few others) question if Zuko had learned or grown at all, considering the way he behaves isn't all that distant from the Zuko we've seen and known throughout the rest of the show. And the fact that he really seems to have learned nothing in The Southern Raiders once you reach the show's finale... you're basically asked to take for granted Zuko did learn a lot of lessons because he says he did, to assume he's going to put them into practice sometime in the future despite he has chances to do it during the show itself but never does, simply because they drop the ball upon every opportunity to show how much he's changed.

I really don't blame his character at all, when it comes to these shortcomings... it's seriously, genuinely, a problem with the writing department. Take a look through the fandom and you'll see thousands of people who claim Zuko's character arc is the most touching, complex and beautiful writing they ever have seen... and why? Because we're in the face of tell-don't-show :'D most people's perception of Zuko's character are based not so much on HOW Zuko displays his growth, it's strongly based on him stating he made progress, even if there's too many instances where the growth simply seems to have fallen to the wayside or gone forgotten for the sake of a plotline or another. Zuko absolutely could have been written far better than this, he could absolutely have the redemption arc his fans are sure he does have, but for me... there's way too many gaps in logic, too many missed opportunities, to truly think his growth was as extraordinary as a lot of people are hung up on saying it was.

#anon #woops #I probably shouldn't have written this much here but what can I say #I've got beef with these storylines #and I unfortunately can't bbq it (?)#so instead I ramble and ramble and hope you guys forgive me for how long-winded I can be :'D

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thedreamermusing · 3 years

Text

Debunking the myth that Severus Snape is an incel

So, I've seen this go around a lot in the HP fandom, but unlike a lot of other exaggerated statements, this one...doesn't seem to be based on any real truth or fact.

Let's look at the definition of an incel from Wikipedia.

Incels, a portmanteau of "involuntary celibates", are members of an online subculture who define themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring one. Discussions in incel forums are often characterized by resentment, misogyny, misanthropy, self-pity and self-loathing, racism, a sense of entitlement to sex, and the endorsement of violence against sexually active people.

Alright, so which part of this definition does Snape fit? Does he define himself as being unable to find a romantic or sexual partner? Nope. He doesn't seem to want or even wish for companionship. Is he characterised by resentment? Yes, but not because he can't get laid. Is he a misogynist? Certainly not, he treats people of all genders equally badly. Misanthropy, self-loathing? Yes, but none of these issues is related to his inability to have sex. Racism? Given that he joined the Death Eaters, yes. But once again, his views on blood purity were independent of Lily, the seeds of it were there as a child. A sense of entitlement to sex, and the endorsement of violence against sexually active people? This is a confident and definitive no.

The parts of Snape that do correlate with the incel movement: resentment, self-loathing, misanthropy, are missing the core tenet of the incel movement: misogyny. Snape's resentment is not from the fact that he's unable to get laid. He does not blame women for not giving him sex. His resentment of James Potter was not solely due to Lily, either, although that was a factor. It was also based on the fact that James Potter had what Snape at that point lacked, which Harry pinpoints so accurately in 'The Prince's Tale: 'an air of being cared for and even adored'. James also had power and privilege, and regularly used it to abuse Snape, and of course, a young, poverty-stricken, ugly, half-blood child would feel resentful of that. So, his resentment was not based around any misogynistic idea that James could 'score' women while Snape could not.

Snape was self-loathing, but not because he could not get laid. It's actually the opposite. The first time he exhibits traits of self-loathing are after Lily dies when he says 'I wish I were dead.' He hates himself for being responsible for getting her killed. If he was an incel, he would actually celebrate her death, thinking it was the price she paid for not choosing him. But Snape's self-loathing comes from being unable to protect her.

Misanthropy: I mean....this is self-explanatory. He's a misanthrope because he doesn't like anybody, period. It's got nothing to do with sexual conquest.

Now that I've (hopefully) established why Snape does not share any notable traits related to the incel movement, let me try to debunk some often repeated 'truths' in the fandom that people repeat to play into the idea that he was an incel.

1) Snape couldn't handle Lily rejecting him, so he joined the Death Eaters.

People always say this as if Snape wore a fedora and asked Lily on a date, and when she rejected him, decided that all muggleborns were bad and joined the Death Eaters...when that's not what happened at all.

First of all, the timeline here is wrong. Snape's fascination for the Death Eaters was independent of Lily. We already know he was likely abused by his Muggle father. We know that he loved dark magic. We also know that Slytherin is a breeding ground for blood purist views. And so, Snape was groomed into this movement; he certainly did not join the Death Eaters in reaction to Lily 'rejecting' him.

This brings us to the other point. Lily did not 'reject' Snape because Snape never told her how he felt. We don't know if Lily even knew how he felt. Lily rejected his friendship because he was on the path to becoming a Death Eater.

2) Snape stalked Lily and harassed her all the time.

Once again, false. Snape left her alone after Lily rejected his apology. He never tried to speak to her again or bothered her again. I'm certain Sirius Black would have brought it up if that were the case. But the fact that neither Remus nor Sirius even remembers that Snape and Lily were even friends suggests that they went their separate paths.

3) Snape offered James and Harry to Voldemort hoping that he could get with Lily after her death.

There are several misconceptions here.

Snape did not offer James and Harry to Voldemort in exchange for Lily. He simply did not care if James or Harry's lives. That is of course terrible in its own way. But there is a definite difference between the two. Voldemort would have gone after the Potters either way. There was no deal made between Voldemort and Snape where Snape said 'I'll give you James and Harry if you let Lily live.' What happened was Voldemort was already set on killing the Potters, and Snape made a desperate request to protect Lily. His situation was a) Let the Potters all die and b) Let only James and Harry die and Lily survive. There were no other options. He wanted to save her life and let her live. It wasn't out of some hope that she would fall in love with him. She was the only person who had ever cared about him and he just did not want her to die because of his actions, nothing else.

I know Dumbledore says 'in exchange for the mother' in the hilltop scene but people are forgetting that scene is one of powerplay and negotiation between Dumbledore and Snape. Snape is a terrified Death Eater fully expecting Dumbledore to murder him. Dumbledore holds the upper hand in that interaction. It is in Snape's best interests not to defend himself and simply accept the judgement Dumbledore gives him. Dumbledore, meanwhile, is trying to make Snape as ashamed as possible to get him on his side and deliberately uses phrasing to guilt him.

4) Snape bullied Harry because he didn't get the girl.

Snape's feelings towards Harry are complicated and are wrapped up in all sorts of messy emotions including hatred, resentment, guilt, anguish, and trauma. But the foremost emotions in his hatred for Harry have to do with James. Harry is a carbon copy of James, who was his primary bully in school. We have seen how bad James was to him in SWM. It is irrational of course, but a lot of his hatred for Harry has to do with looking exactly like his bully. A lot of his feelings are also guilt because Harry is proof of Snape's own failings, of not being able to save Lily. Part of it is also resentment because protecting Harry is quite possibly the own reason Snape is still alive. He wasn't able to protect Lily and to atone, he has to protect her son. He is resentful of the fact that he has to protect his bully's son, resentful that his life has become stagnated because of this child, and of course resentful that Harry constantly gets into a lot of trouble at Hogwarts, which solidifies his image in Snape's head as 'James-lite' while also making his job of protecting him harder. So his feelings towards Harry are projection of his failings and trauma and not an inability to get the girl.

Tl;dr: Snape lacks the core tenets of incel ideology i.e misogyny and an obsession with not getting sex. The incel ideology is a violent hate movement built upon hatred towards women. Snape has never once shown any inclination to be misogynistic. He never blamed Lily for the end of their friendship; rather, he understands that it was his mistakes and choices that led their friendship to end. Just because Snape is an ugly man who loved someone one-sidedly does not mean he was automatically a violent misogynist who hated all women. 'Snape is a bully' is a fact because it is canonically supported by the text. 'Snape is an incel' is not a fact; it is a lie.

#severus snape #pro snape #harry potter #lbr i don't think it's a valid headcanon either because headcanons also have to have some basis in canon #I can't believe I need to make such a longass post about something so obvious

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ascalonianpicnic · 3 years

Text

Hey! Y’all want a salty essay about the bullshit treatment Caithe gets from the fandom at large that compares Rytlock and Caithe’s characters? Cause I wrote one!

Warning: this essay is incredibly bitter and salty, and that bitterness and salt is directed at people who hate Caithe. I swear in it. I’m mean to Rytlock in it. I heavily imply people who hate Caithe are sexist in it. This was written in the middle of the champions releases, but doesn’t focus on s5 or past pof in general.

A morally grey assassin, jaded from a traumatic past who thinks they have to do everything themself to ensure it's done right. They had to kill someone close to them for the greater good, were deeply hurt by a former partner, no longer work with their old crew due to a tragedy they could not prevent and blame themself for. The two people they care about are their brother whom they love and understand despite his quirks and oddities, and their new young mentee who they have mixed feelings about and who they don't want to admit they care for for fear of losing them. They have a blood soaked past and make mistakes, but they're learning and growing thanks to their young mentee and the hard work they're putting in at reflecting on their past actions and accepting they don't have to bear the weight of the world alone.

Y'all would like Caithe if she was a man. She's built on several tropes so commonly seen in male protagonists and mentor figures. Mistakes she's made that people claim are unforgivable are made by other, less apologetic, male characters who are forgiven and still held in high regard. And I know these archetypes are popular among the guild wars 2 fandom, considering the high crossover with dragon age fans, and how many dragon age fans love Zevran the assassin who regularly hides his true feelings and bears so much guilt, and Duncan the former thief who sees little crime in what he views as rightful murders and views death as an acceptable cost to protect some secrets for the safety of the world. The guild wars 2 fandom in general would love Caithe so much more if she wasn't a woman.

But because she's a woman, killing Wynne, killing a few courtiers during personal story, keeping the secret of the sylvari to protect her people from a massacre at the hands of the other races, and taking the egg to ensure it wouldn't fall into the wrong hands are all seen as unforgivable sins. She's learning and growing every step of the way. She's taken the time to look back on what she's done. She's apologized for not trusting and betraying the commander (who she has a complicated relationship with regardless of race, that person stole her wyld hunt because she was somehow not good enough to kill a dragon alone), she's learned she can rely on others to have her back and doesn't have to do everything alone, she's realized bloodshed isn't always the answer. She's come a long way, learned to let herself trust again, and is working so hard to grow. Yet loads of y'all still hate her for her past mistakes, and some of y'all think it's okay to wish death on her fucking openly with no warning.

And yet, so many people who hate Caithe and wish death on her, citing her actions during Living World Season 2 and Heart of Thorns as the reason why, will in the same breath mention that Rytlock is one of their favorite characters in the game. As I said, y'all would like Caithe if she was a man.

Rytlock has made the exact same mistakes as Caithe during the story. Alright maybe not exactly the same, but his mistakes parallel hers very cleanly. He isn't an assassin, but he is a born and raised soldier who has killed countless people in his rise to the rank of Tribune. He didn't steal an egg, but he did jump into the mists and free a clearly powerful and dangerous figure for the sake of getting his sword back. He didn't keep the secret of the sylvari, but he did, in fact, keep the secret of Balthazar. And he had his own mentee who he had a fraught relationship with. Let's take this one by one.

If you play through the blood legion story on a charr, you probably remember overthrowing the legionnaire of your warband and taking over. In this segment, Rytlock not only encourages you to challenge your Legionnaire, he forces Urvan Steelbane to fight you. Then, at the end of the fight, he gives you the option to kill your superior. Rising through the ranks in charr society is a mixture of proving yourself a reliable soldier and proving yourself superior to your superiors through combat so you can take their place. As a tribune, Rytlock has risen high through the legion, spilling lots of blood and putting those around him at risk. It is noted that prior to his promotion to tribune, Rytlock got in serious trouble more than once for risking missions and endangering his own warband for the sake of his own fame and glory. While not an assassin, much like Caithe he has a very bloody history and a habit of trying to do everything himself

One of the biggest events held against Caithe is when she steals Aurene's egg from the dying Master of Peace as he tries to give it to the commander. While especially true for the sylvari commander, Caithe has a lot of her own reasons for not trusting this incredibly important egg in the hands of the commander. At the same time, her calling as one of Aurene's guardians, her wyld hunt to protect this egg, and the poundings at her mind of mordremoth are all overwhelming her and leaving her confused. Feeling she has to do everything herself, as she often struggles with, Caithe takes the egg to protect it from falling in the wrong hands. She later admits this was the wrong move that put people around her in grave danger and risked the world and apologizes for it. The way Caithe acts about Aurene's egg is pretty similar to how Rytlock acts towards the sword Sohothin. The first time he sees it, he jeopardizes the mission he and Crecia are on to steal it, putting her in extreme danger and blaming her when she has to act to protect herself. Later on, when he loses the sword through a mists portal during a ritual to try and cleanse the foefire ghosts from Ascalon, he abandons the ritual, ensuring it fails, so he can pursue his sword, leaving the commander and the iron legion imperator to face the danger of Barridin's ghost army alone, much like how Caithe left the commander to face the Shadow of the Dragon while she fled with Aurene's egg. While in the mists, seeking his lost sword, Rytlock frees a very clearly powerful and dangerous figure (who we'll come back to) in order to reclaim Sohothin. Like how Caithe put the world at risk by trying to protect the egg alone, Rytlock puts the world at risk trying to reclaim his sword.

Let's take a brief moment to talk about Caithe and Rytlock's mentees, before we get on to the biggest similarity the two share. Caithe's mentee, if she has one as it depends on the player, is the sylvari commander. The sylvari commander is a decently young sylvari, who only a few years earlier emerged with a parallel wyld hunt to Caithe herself. Caithe is a loner in general following the pains of Wynne's death, Faolain's abuse, and the breaking of Destiny's Edge. Now she's handed a youth who was created to help her with her Hunt that she was always told she had to do alone, basically saying she is no longer trusted to perform her hunt alone and now she has to train her replacement. She does seem to care for the commander, but the relationship there is always going to start off complicated, and it leads to her betraying the commander, leaving them to fight the Shadow of the Dragon, and taking the egg she doesn't trust them to handle. Later on, once she realizes her mistakes, she reaches out to the commander to apologize, and repeatedly puts her trust very clearly in them, acknowledging that she does need them and she did in the past. How that relationship ends is of course up to the player, but she makes an attempt at reconciliation after the fallout. Rytlock's mentee of note here is Rox. He takes her own as a promising young woman who he thinks would fit well in his warband and takes a hand in helping her train and find her place again in the legions. In order to join the Stone warband, Rox is given the incredibly difficult and definitely not soloable task of killing Scarlet Briar. Rox, when it comes down to it, chooses to put Braham's life and safety over dealing the killing blow to Scarlet herself, trusting the commander, whoever they are, and Kasmeer to get the job done while she stays back with Braham and Marjory. Following the victory over Scarlet, Rox is too afraid to face Rytlock. She didn't kill Scarlet herself, meaning she failed, and she's afraid Rytlock will kill her for it. This is itself a sign of a deeply unhealthy relationship between Rytlock and Rox. On top of that, Rytlock has as of yet never tried to reach out to Rox, to check up on her or apologize or do anything to repair the relationship between the two of them. (A note from replaying s2, Rox does join for the barradin keep mission with Rytlock there, but Rytlock doesn't really check up on her, and he sure as hell doesn't offer her the more than earned position on his warband despite everything.)

The last point is the one I believe I've seen held against Caithe the most. During Living World Season 2, Caithe keeps secret from the commander and from her own brother Trahearne that the Sylvari are purified minions of Mordremoth, leading to Trahearne's attack against the dragon ending in a massacre. Caithe, when she was incredibly young and impressionable, learned the truth from Wynne before having to kill her to keep Faolain from learning the truth as well. She has, for years now, been the only one to know this secret, and she believes that if it were to get out, the world would turn against the still young and fairly defenseless sylvari and slaughter them. As she sees it, she has to bear the burden of this secret alone, as she has to do everything alone. While dealing with her duties tied to Aurene's egg and struggling with the growing voice of Mordremoth as well, she may not even know of Trahearne's plans to fly an army into the jungle. She has every reason to keep this secret still, it's for the good of her own people. Yes it is a mistake, but she didn't know this at the time. She believes, as she keeps this secret, that it is the only way to prevent the sylvari from dying off as they're just coming into the world. She regrets the loss of life, but she can't go back and change it now.

Now Rytlock also keeps a very important secret, from the commander and everyone else. He refuses to share details of what he saw and did in the mists during his hunt for Sohothin. While in the mists, Rytlock meets an old man in chains. The man, recognizing Sohothin in Rytlock's hands, unlit, says he can reignite the sword if Rytlock frees him. Rytlock accepts the deal and frees the man, returning Sohothin to its original glory and gaining access to a portal out of the mists that the old man makes. Now, Rytlock grew up while the war between humanity and the charr was still growing strong. He spent a lot of his early years in Ascalon, exploring the ruins, likely fighting humans trying to reclaim their land, and definitely fighting the ghosts of humans. That alone should have been enough for him to recognize the human god his enemies worshipped while waging war against him and his people. Beyond that, after Rytlock came into possession of Sohothin, he researched the sword's history. The sword, originally crafted and wielded by Balthazar, is one Rytlock is familiar with. It stands to reason Balthazar himself is at the very least a familiar figure to Rytlock. So when Rytlock encounters a large, powerful figure in the mists who recognizes Sohothin in a state very few have ever seen it in, and has the power to relight the flames that the god Balthazar had originally created, Rytlock has to know who he is talking to. He knows who he freed in exchange for Sohothin's flames. He may say otherwise, but there is no way he doesn't know who he freed in the mists. Even if we give him the benefit of the doubt and say he didn't know who exactly he freed, he still should have told the commander about the man with very powerful fire magic and the ability to make portals who he followed out of the mists. Rytlock caused the tragedy that is Path of Fire and almost caused the end of the world, because he decided to keep the fact that he freed Balthazar a secret from everyone until it was far too late and Elona was already burning. Caithe's secret may have resulted in the failure of the Maguuma campaign and the loss of lives of many soldiers, but Rytlock's secret resulted in the near destruction of an entire civilization and the deaths of countless innocents.

Yet Caithe is still hated deeply for keeping a secret that she thought was for the good of the world, while Rytlock is quickly forgiven for keeping a secret to protect his pride. Rytlock has made all the same mistakes Caithe has and has arguably handled all of them worse, yet he is still a fandom favorite while she is hated by the community. It's pretty clear that Caithe isn't hated for her actions and mistakes. That's just an excuse.

You would like her if she was a man.

#gw2 #my essays #caithe #not tagging cat man #building my mean lesbian niche of essay content 😊🔪#last one was for the eir lovers this ones for the caithe fans #also sorry for referencing da origins 😔

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