#i'm glad things have generally chilled out in the fandom

[vivifrage]

I think with Lightfall like. It's fun. I had a good time. A blast, even! Especially with the gameplay, even when I got frustrated because I was playing Legendary and I'm not a good gamer.

It's action movie fun. Which is what it intended to be, really, from all the tropes and the pacing of it. But it got bodied with sudden roadmap changes and Witch Queen as video game Oscar bait.

Yeah, I think it could have used a breather to bond more with Rohan especially, but there was in-game justification for going fast and I'm sure the format A Destiny Expansion(tm) limited the team. We saw it bad in Witch Queen's seasons, and Bungie acknowledged that yeah the seasons structure was limiting them. As someone who works in software dev, nobody likes having to make things worse. But it happens a lot. Sometimes in really bullshit ways that the software folks wouldn't expect to be that level of bullshit, let alone anyone who isn't working with the software day in and day out. And by bullshit I mean "massive overhaul of the entire system just to make one tiny change" kinds of bullshit. Again, nobody likes it. I promise you.

Back to Lightfall. It's a fun action movie. It's also the plot point we'd been hurtling towards since Witch Queen, and probably even well before that: The Darkest Hour. We're struggling to use this new power in time, the mysteries around us have unraveled but in the end it's too late for us to get the upper hand, and it nearly costs us everything. In the year beforehand, we'd been losing in one way or another at the end of the seasons: Crow kills the Psion, our rituals fail to stop Calus, Eramis gets away, Rasputin dies. The Witness accesses the Traveler.

What it also does is it sets up the rest of the year for our Triumphant Finale. We get a thread to follow - how to get into the Traveler - and chase it through the year, alongside other threads like what the Veil is and how we're gonna deal with Xivu Arath. As of the end(ish) of Wish, we've got our answer and are primed for The Final Shape as our finale.

But first we had to have The Darkest Hour. Which, in the short term, being what it is, is a bummer. No getting around it. It's also part of why comparisons to Witch Queen went awry, IMO.

Witch Queen is, as I said before, the Oscar bait, insofar as an MMO looter-shooter has Oscar bait. It puts the tangled web front and center instead of tracing one thread and then zooming out to show the whole thing. It's more philosophical in nature, sitting back and asking us whether we think we're special and what really separates us from one of the enemies we hadn't forged alliances with yet: the Hive. And, of course, if we'd noticed the puppetmaster behind it all. It ties up the question that's been going on since Forsaken: are we the bad guys? (No, not really, we're struggling to survive the way everyone else is. Which, nobody else we've been fighting is really "the bad guy" either.)

It's a really good storyline! I loved it, even if, honestly, I didn't like the gameplay as much as Lightfall. I think it's earned its good reviews and positive reception.

But it is the Oscar bait. And unlike Lightfall, its plot role didn't require the same downer ending. It could sprawl, and honestly? I don't think it would have worked as our Darkest Hour. Not without screwing up the story and making a jumbled mess. Seriously, I don't think Destiny's "everyone gets a second chance" philosophy would have carried well at all if The Darkest Hour was when the Hive got Ghosts. Instead it would have reinforced our misconception at the beginning of Lightfall - that we are the sole rightful Lightbearers and that the Hive getting the Light was a wrongdoing.

Destiny did need something between Witch Queen and The Final Shape. And they moved things - but announced it less than a year before Lightfall released. At their big press conference-y deal, but still. Limited time for folks to get the news.

And then it came out and it was an action movie, not Oscar bait. But it followed Oscar bait, so that's what the expectation was.

Personally, I'm fond of, say, Moonlight. Fantastic movie. Beautiful and heartfelt. I enjoyed it and I think it is worthy of its high praise. But if you ask me what my favorite movie is, I'll say it's a tossup between Pacific Rim and Mad Max: Fury Road. They fit different niches in the cultural ecosystem - Moonlight isn't a bad Pacific Rim and Pacific Rim isn't a bad Moonlight. Not unless you pit them against each other despite their vast differences.

Also I remember there was lots of complaining about how empty Neomuna was at first, but everything about the CloudArk and especially the lorebook is such early pandemic-era fiction.

Lightfall is a good action movie. Witch Queen is good Oscar bait. Both of them have their strong points and weak points. There are technical factors that limit things. There are other external factors that limit things (looking at you, upper management).

It's fair to critique a story but like, I dunno. Bungie's devs, writers, and artists aren't idiots or evil or out to get you specifically. Lightfall is fine but you can't - and shouldn't - expect it to be Witch Queen.

Please, for the love of everything holy, don't let us repeat the nasty bitchy maelstrom we got around Lightfall. Or I'll start shitting in ovens.

#destiny 2 #destiny spoilers #i'm glad things have generally chilled out in the fandom #but i fear what will happen come TFS #and also between Destiny and Sims and shit i'm tired of everyone acting like devs don't care about bad products #i think just about every human wants to be proud of their work! #especially when it's something that's taken months or years to make #and it really fucking sucks to be hamstrung by The Bullshit(tm)

[jonnywaistcoat]

Hi Jonny, if you don't mind I have a question about the TMA TTRPG! So I noticed that on the player's guide there's this guy, who my friends and I assumed is probably Jon. If it is him, is this a canon design, or more like some of the non-canon stuff that's in the merch?

So, I hope you don't mind if i use this ask to go a bit off on one. I'm not specifically dragging you (I'm actualy glad you asked, as I've thinking about posting on the topic), but all the discussion around the RPG art and how "official" or "canon" it might be is, to my mind, slightly silly.

First up, is it "official" art? I mean, yeah, its art for the officially licenced Magnus Archives RPG. This means Monte Cook Games have commissioned someone to do a beatiful illustration broadly based on some aspect, episode or character from the podcast and it goes in the book. But that's kinda all it means. "Official" is a legal distinction, not an artistic one. The fact that it's in an official product doesn't make it any less one artist's cool interpretation of a character that has only been vaguely described in audio.

Second, is it Jonathan Sims the Archivist? I mean, it's probably based on the idea of him, but it's certainly not set in stone. When we were first discussing art with MCG, we advised that character pictures be more vibes-based and not explicitly tied to specific people (ie. a portrait inspired by Tim wouldn't be captioned "This is Tim" and wouldn't be placed opposite a profile for Tim Stoker, archival assistant.) This was mainly because we wanted the artists to have plenty of freedom to interpret and not feel too tied down by the need to know everything about the podcast. But, to be frank, it was also because we know that there are a few fans out there that are kinda Not Chill about what they've personally decided these characters look like and can get a bit defensive over depictions that differ.

It strikes me as particularly strange to be having this discussion about art that's for a roleplying game book. Something that's explicitly and solely designed to give you the ability to play in your version of the Magnus universe. The idea that this is the thing where we'd for some reason try to immutably establish unchangable appearances for these characters would be pretty funny if some folks weren't taking it so seriously. Similarly ridiculous is the idea we could reasonably have said to MCG "We'd love for you to make a huge beautiful RPG book of our setting... Just make sure you don't depict any of the iconic characters or events from it!"

But... is it "canon"? Now, to my mind, this highlights a real weakness in a lot of fandom thinking around "canon", which is that it generally has no idea what to do with adaptations. All adaptation is interpretation, and relies on taking a work and letting new creatives (and sometimes the same ones) have a different take on it. Are the appearances of the Fellowship of the Ring in the LOTR movies "canon"? How much, if at all, does that matter? Neil Gaiman's book Neverwhere was originaly a 90s BBC series made with a budget of 50 pence; is anyone who makes fanart of Mr Croup that doesn't look like the actor Hywel Bennet breaking canon? What about the novel that describes the character differently? Or the officially licenced Neverwhere comic where he looks like neither of them? Which is his "canon appearance"?

Canon is an inherently messy concept, and while it is useful for a creative team trying to keep continuity and consistency within a creative work, for thinking about anything beyond that it tends to be more hinderance than help.

Anyway, all this is to say that the above picture and all the others in the RPG are exactly as canon as every other picture you've ever seen of the Archivist.

#sorry for the huge answer #been thinking about it a lot recently #and wanted to get my thoughts down

[ingravinoveritas]

I thought I was the only one who weirded out by the fact that a mother can define ON THE INTERNET her own daughter a “drunken accident”. Like??? Everyone find her so funny. Maybe I have no sense of humor, but I can’t tell from experience that knowing to be your parents’ accident hurts A LOT. It isn’t something you want to make public. And yes, she’s definitely bragging. We get it, Georgia, you’re the luckiest woman alive, now chill. There’s no need to remind us about your sex life, unless you have something to prove...

Hi there! I'm so sorry to hear of your negative experience, and that it affected you so deeply. It's a curious thing, too, because in the same post where Georgia wrote that caption, she has Birdie's face censored/covered up. So seeing her kids' faces is too private, but sharing that piece of information (about Birdie and about Georgia's sex life) is somehow okay? Because that seems like a pretty strange disconnect.

I also think what a lot of people are missing is that in many cases, using the word "accident" when referring to a pregnancy also tends to correlate with "unwanted." There is an entire media trope built around this that we see in both TV shows and movies (i.e., an older sibling saying to a younger sibling, "Mom told me you were an accident"). And while this can be and has been played for both comedy and drama, the underlying negative connotation is the same: That Sibling #1 is saying it as an insult/to be hurtful toward Sibling #2. And that feeling of being unwanted is not something lightly brushed aside.

But if the comments on this post are any indication, you are definitely not the only one who felt weirded out by Georgia's caption, and I would not at all say it has anything to do with a sense of humor. This is par for the course for Georgia, as she posted this about Ty on Valentine's Day last year (putting it side by side with today's post, so we have the comparison):

...As well as her repeated use of the hashtag #vaginabragsunday (or just #vaginabrag) when making posts about her kids. She even (inexplicably) used that tag on her post for David's 50th birthday a few years ago.

The common thread with all of these (the post about Birdie, the post about Ty, the post about David) is that these posts are meant to be about someone else, yet she manages to center herself in them instead. That's where I think much of the issue lies for many of us--that this post for Birdie's birthday was phrased as if directed toward her, yet Georgia is using it to brag about her sex life, and clearly aiming that/the post itself at the general public.

Which brings me to your assertion about her having something to prove. As we know by now, Georgia has pretty much built her brand around the concept of--to borrow a terrific turn of phrase from @clayisforgirls--"I shagged David Tennant and you didn’t." But what I feel like some people are missing is that "I had sex with David Tennant" is a world away from and not the same thing as "I had sex with my husband David, the man I love." And if she needs to brag and seek validation from complete strangers--on her own kid's birthday post, of all places--that seems to speak volumes about the state of her and David's relationship, and not in the way that most people commenting today seem to think it does.

Thank you again for sharing your thoughts with me. I think folks often feel like they can't speak honestly about these things in the fandom, so I'm glad you felt comfortable enough to do so. Thanks for writing in! x

#nabrrie #reply post #georgia tennant #david tennant #soft scottish hipster gigolo #choices #not all of them good #also can we think for a moment how different this would be if the genders were reversed #if G was a man saying he had no self control with wine or his wife #that would seem at least slightly concerning #yet because Georgia's a woman no one seems to care #and any inkling of how David feels about this caption is completely missing #curiouser and curiouser #thoughts #discourse

[pastafossa]

Hey Pasta! i was so glad to read that things have been starting to look up for you recently & i hope it only gets better ♡

have you heard about the fic binding legal scandals happening bc of etsy sellers binding & selling hard copies of fics? i saw some authors are reccomending putting disclaimers on their fics to hopefully avoid legal action being taken against them & was wondering if you were planning to do something like that? id hate to see your works being taken down/deleted bc of peoples ignorance

art like yours deserves a place in the world

Thank you so much anon! Things are definitely looking up a little, and I've got my fingers crossed that my mood will continue to follow it. 😅 Honestly if I could just have a six month period or so where things were chill I'd be SUPER relieved.

And I have seen it yeah, and I've been watching it fairly closely since this has the potential to alter the fanfic legal landscape that we writers post in regardless of whether or not one of our own fics were being sold. I'm well aware TRT isn't as big as some of the fics at the center of the current legal/ethical scuffle over it, but TRT is popular enough in the fandom that I've kept an eye out on etsy for bound copies just in case. I'm still supportive of people binding TRT for personal, non-commercial use only where no money changes hands, I have no issue with that. That being said, I am considering slapping a general, 'please don't do this commercially' on the fic. I honestly have no idea whether it would actually protect the fic or not, and whether or not that would protect me from legal blowback (my life for a lawyer matt boyfriend to explain this shit). But it wouldn't hurt to remind people that this sort of thing is how you get fics taken down. 99.999% of fic authors do not have the funds to fight someone like the Mouse even if they'd eventually win. So, as much as I joke about wanting Feige to notice TRT and hire me to write Jane into Daredevil, if allllll of us want TRT finished, we need to all play by the rules, especially as Born Again will likely give the fandom (and potentially TRT) a boost in popularity.

#the red thread #i've been considering it tbh #over the past few days #i lived through the tail end of the 'slap a Not Mine disclaimer on a fic so you aren't sued' era so i'm familiar with the principle #it feels weird that we've potentially come full circle

[bonearenaofmyskull]

Bonjour 💖 I spent my whole day reading your Hannibal metas – truly extraordinary work. I share the same views as you & I completely relate to the sentiment that nowadays, when it comes to meta writing people dilute the relationship too much. It's challenging to find a meta writer who genuinely understands the show and its subtle meanings. If there's anything you'd like to advise new meta writers, what would it be? Also I'd like to know if you have any complaints against the fandom now. Personally, I just want them to be less aggressive with their views because it seems like only one acceptable interpretation is accepted in the fandom.

I'm glad you enjoyed my work and got something out of it!

I have a post here for aspiring meta writers. It's not specific to Hannibal meta per se, but there really isn't much I'd add to or change about it to make it so. Maybe a couple things, that kind of tie into your question about complaints about the fandom currently.

I think if a person's main interest in writing Hannibal meta only really exists because they want to talk about Hannigram, then they can do what they wish, but the fandom doesn't really need them as a meta writer. That market is saturated. And the quality of their meta will suffer as a consequence of that tunnel vision.

The same is true of the opposite: if their interest in writing meta is because they're genuinely sick of hearing about Hannigram, then they've just replaced the problem of tunnel vision with one of macular degeneration. I wouldn't trust either person to drive a meta discussion safely to any reasonable conclusion.

Wrt fandom complaints and the somewhat aggressive gatekeeping that I keep hearing about, it's funny you should ask because I did just get a question in my inbox right after yours (that I'm not sure I'll respond to) that begins, "While I understand you're not a fan of the Hannigram ship...." Smh. We are definitely in the age of the No True Scotsman Hannibal Fandom.

I feel like some guy sitting with a handful of others out in the sunshine being shouted at through a cave opening by a mass of people staring at shadow puppets, declaring that everyone else--and sometimes specifically me--just doesn't see things right.

It's no wonder there's a subgroup of people who have come to Tumblr desperate to find any version of the show that isn't that shadow puppet version. And unfortunate that the only acceptable alternate versions are just as myopic.

All that said, I'm glad to be on Tumblr where the feed is eminently curatable and the tone is generally chill, and there aren't people who have dominated the environment to the exclusion of all other opinions but their own. That may mean some argumentativeness from time to time, but I think that's an acceptable alternative to groupthink.

#hannibal fandom meta #hannibal #bear answers #meta #if you're the anon that said you know i'm not fond of hannigram #the reason i probably won't answer your ask is that i'm just not interested in revealing how i'd end the show

[foxpunk]

In one of your recent posts you mentioned mastodon. I've been thinking of trying it out but I'm a bit overwhelmed by the amount of different servers. Which one would you recommend? Preferably ones that are trans and autistic friendly?

oh wonderful! always glad to help someone try something new.

some general info, before we start. for you and anyone else who may be reading this:

mastodon servers aren't isolated from each other. it's like how t-mobile and verizon are different phone networks but can call and text each other. it's also harder for larger servers to moderate their user base well, since the vast majority aren't run by businesses/professionals, just individuals. this aspect is similar to forums and discord. and so, pick whichever server you want based mainly on the server's rules and moderation! to be clear, i DO NOT recommend mastodon.social for the above reasons.

with that out of the way, here's my server recs!

if you take my word for it, you can assume they're all well moderated, LGBTQ+ friendly, and staunchly anti-fascist lol. that being said, always be sure and read the about and rules pages on any server before joining! i recommend reading through the rules of multiple servers even if you decide on just one, so you can get a better feel for how things work.

first, the three servers i have accounts on:

tech.lgbt / on the larger side, but really nice. main user base is lgbt people in the tech field (shocker) and a significant amount of furries (the overlap in this venn diagram is Huge) but you do not have to be one of those things or post that content to sign up there whatsoever!

cutie.city / smaller and super chill lgbtq+ run server, lots of general posting, cute pics, artists, etc. very easy to talk to, and very friendly! highly recommend this server if you are just starting out and feeling things out.

urusai.social / cool and friendly fandom focused server, mainly focused on animanga, light/web novels, e. asian dramas, video games, etc. it has a sister server (sakurajima.moe) you can also check out.

here's a few servers i'm not personally on (yet) but that i have friends on, have read the rules for, and have seen are well moderated:

mastodon.art / on the larger side, and is the main mastodon server artists and creators of all kinds join! friendly, with lots of fun events run by the main mod.

strangeobject.space / super small instance, really chill.

fandom.ink / another fandom focused server, but much more general and not so heavily focused on e. asian media.

honorable mentions that i have mutuals from but dunno much about personally: floss.social / mstdn.games / socel.net / queer.party

if you want to follow people who aren't on your server, all you have to do is place their account url into the search bar of your server and follow from there. (there's other ways to do this, but that's for another post, this one's long enough already). for accounts to follow after signing up, i recommend:

FediTips / nice account with tips for new users

FediFollows / run by the same person, they post follow friday lists of cool accounts to follow.

Curator / the admin for mastodon.art. boosts cool art a lot and has events (run through hashtags) that lots of people join, so you can find new artists

Hashtags / this isn't a specific account. on mastodon you can follow entire hashtags, similar to the way you can here, but better. it's one of the easiest and best ways to find new content and new people to follow.

Also, after signing up, your server will have a /directory page where you can easily find more people to follow!

once you're signed up, be sure to set up your profile, make an introduction post (and tag it with #introduction, hashtags are the best way to find people, remember), and have fun!

if you'd like to learn more about mastodon (either casually, or in depth) AllThingsTech and Fedi.Tips are great sites to do so! and you're free to ask me whatever you'd like about it as well, even if it's a "small" question.

P.S. - sorry for the long response, i hope it wasn't too overwhelming! i wanted to give more info not just for you but for anyone else who may be interested or confused.

TL;DR: the instances i linked are great to join! just look at the links, lol

#ask #ky speaks #mastodon #fediverse #im viralvulpes on those three instances btw feel free to follow me as well!

[moreofthatdrowse]

JO Survey: What's the best thing about the fandom?

There were too many good answers in the questions with open answers in my Joker Out Survey, so below the cut are the answers to Question no. 12: What's the best thing about the fandom?

The fact that everyone has a common interest and each one of the members and each one of the songs gets so much love ❤️

how nice and respectful everyone is <3 and the memes of course, all the jokes have brought me so much joy

I love how everyone is so excited, how it's so positive (at least on Tumblr), and how everyone just wants the best for the guys. Also the really talented people who make gifs, as well as the incredible people behind JokerOutSubs. And many people having their fave member without bashing people who have a different favorite.

Unity and how I haven't seen toxicity yet

how energetic and helpful we are to each other

simply just the fans :,) such a lovely little community aaaa

All the unhunged expressions of cute aggression towards Bojan.

The wholesomeness

Markedly positive, feels like most people get along pretty well, at least in the Tumblr space

Everyone is super nice on the tumblr fandom and shares lots of content respectfully

We're all crazy and we're cool with that.

You're all unhinged but funny, love yoooou

The unity

The people. I met so many great people because of this band

Friends (:

The community feeling

Pure unrestrained glee to contribute to the community be it hornyposting, reporting important happenings/sightings, or providing fun facts/translations (i love jokeroutsubs team with all my heart❤️)

the memes

Kindness and open mind

Crafty little dorks (affectionate)

People are wild, talented and friendly

Everyone's so nice and respectful to each other (at least here on Tumblr). It also makes me very happy that I finally get to contribute in a fandom I'm a part of (member of joker.out.subs here :))) ). A mix of those two things: everyone is very encouraging of each other's fandom creations/content.

The tumblr fandom being so nice and considerate.💚

How understanding y'all were when Bojan deactivated insta. Like yeah. Glad we don't expect all this stuff from them

people who are chill on tumblr

Everything

The memes

How non judgemental and upbeat everyone seems to be

Passion and dedication <3

The gay, the art, the ✨pzazz ✨

The art :)

everyone is basically the same - we're all feral over their music and tHEM in general and no matter where you come from, who you are, who you're into, you can agree that they're all serving sooo much cunt and that they're all gorgeous

it's fun and friendly

How willing people are to open discussions and talk with each other

so many slej ppl

Everyone gets along

Im not sure

We seem to share the idea that this is an open and warm fandom. That makes me all fuzzy 🥰

QUESTIONS 1-11 I QUESTION 12 I QUESTION 13 I QUESTION 14

#joker out #bojan cvjetićanin #kris guštin #jure maček #nace jordan #jan peteh #martin jurkovič #matic kovačič

[justsomeoneintoomanyfandoms]

Hello there! I wanna request something if that’s cool! 나 자신에 대해 말해줄게!

Fandom: I’d like a romantic matchup for Jujustu Kaisen, Ninjago & MHA (For JJK I don’t want to be matched with any of the minors and for MHA I don’t want to be matched up with any of the girls)

My name is Joey but I also go by Himawari, Rin or Magtanggol too! I’m Transgender (ftm), Aromatic, Polyamory, Unlabled, & Bisexual, I’ve been diagnosed with Autism, ADHD, Schizophrenia, BPD & OCD and im wasian (west-southeast asian and white), polish, arab, flipino, scottish & russian.

personality traits (and notes): extroverted, at first awkward, shy and distant when meeting people, extremely independent, when comfortable I talk about a lot of stuff for hours, loud talker, emotions come off as sarcastic or silly (due to autism), confident, straightforward (I have a urge to correct someone of faulty information), uses “big” words, good sense of humor, playful, entertaining, optimistic, mischievous, curious(I’m nosy and I love gossip), i can be a rule breaker(sometimes I don’t mean to), dad/tharapist friend, when I go out I bring water bottles, first aid kit, chapstick(s) just in case, chill but some people would say I have some “repressed anger issues”, I get a realllyyy overractive Brain, I tend to get deep and philosophical when I’m left on my own for to long, I can be verbally aggressive when prevoked, I have a hard time taking everything seriously, when someone yells at me I’ll turn very cold and aggressive very fast

hobbies: anime/manga, gaming, anthropology, pathology, zoology, music (I’m a vocaloid producer, i can rap like MILLI, i make odecore/breakcore/scenecore music and I make music like ATARASHII GAKKO, YOASOBI & Ado too), dancing, filmmaking, art (drawing, painting, pottery, digital art, etc), learning different instruments/languages, cosplaying, skateboarding, tabletop RPG’s, taking pictures of things that I think are pretty, collecting figurines/stuffed animals and puppetry, science/history, soccer/volleyball/basketball and swim, cooking/baking, art is definitely my main hobby I dedicate a lot of time to it

likes: vocaloid/utau, k-pop/j-pop, watching documentaries/youtube, decorating my room, iced coffee, boba tea, bread, sharks, cats, cold weather, Christmas music/christmas in general, musicals, cleaning, rhythm games, being with my friends, shopping, partys, mint candles, sweet and spicy food, deserts.

I'm a ENTP, 4w3 and a Aquarius ♒️

misc: I live in a mixed language house hold where I speak mostly polish and Arabic, and some Korean and Japanese, it world be nice if the person who I get can react to that lol, i know 6 languages (Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Arabic, Polish & French), prone to be a bit directionless in life, tries to find comfort and humor in hard times, tries not to take life to seriously, everytime I have a party there’s always dabke dancing and I take control of it all the time and it’s super fun!

appearance /aesthetic: 5'6 / 167.64 cm, midsize, rectangular body shape, i have a masculine and feminine face (somehow), dimple on chin, hazel eyes, wears glasses, dyed black boy hair, lots of piercings, no tattoos(I need some), for style, i wear a lot suck as goth (trad goth, romantic goth, mall goth, cyber goth, and victorian goth), gyaru (hime gal, himekaji, agejo, rokku, manba, banba, kogal, tsuyome, and kigurumi), scenemo/emo, & vkei ouji and lolita, i wear streetwear clothes mostly at home/school/work, i wear fishnets and combat boats/converse, but I also wear Y2K and I also dress in alternative clothing a LOT.

thank you so much! miłego dnia/lub nocy.

Hi Joey! Thank you for your request! Sorry it took a while. I hope you like your matchups!

In Jujutsu Kaisen, I match you with...

Gojo matches your extroverted energy flawlessly. But at the same time, everyone around is glad you’re there with your “chill dad friend” energy to combat his “chaotic wine aunt” vibes.

While he initially comes off as shallow, Gojo loves it when you get deep and philosophical. It gives him a chance to talk about serious topics that he otherwise wouldn’t get the chance to.

He feels like he can be himself when he’s with you and that means a lot to him.

Please speak different languages around him! He thinks it’s so cool. He’s convinced you’re always flirting with him, even if he has no clue what you’re really saying.

Feel free to mess with him in this regard. Say the most random and unhinged things in a flirtatious enough tone and he’s flirting back.

You can also occasionally switch it up and say something actually romantic just to keep him on his toes. He loves it!

Look at me and tell me this man isn’t a fan of vocaloid/k-pop/j-pop. He’s got his favourite songs but is always open to recommendations. He enjoys being able to dance around with you to his heart’s content.

In Ninjago, I match you with...

Jay’s another one who is fascinated by your ability to speak several languages. I feel like he only speaks English, and a tiny bit of Spanish that he learnt in high school.

You may need to find someone else if you want to have a deep philosophical conversation that is more than one-sided. But Jay is happy to listen if you’re happy to ramble.

He does his best to keep up with the conversation and will occasionally say something so profound, you may need to take a minute.

Skating dates! Jay is absolutely a skateboarder and he’s so happy you are as well. He enjoys clearing his head by going skating with you, somewhere out of the way so fans don’t bother you.

He also enjoys watching YouTube with you. He doesn’t really mind what you watch; he gets invested in anything and everything.

Jay loves your figurine and stuffed animal collection. He thinks it’s really cool. I can see him as someone who has a figurine collection of his own so he likes comparing what you each have. He’ll pick up new figurines of you when he’s out and has the time.

In My Hero Academia, I match you with...

Denki is absolutely a fan of vocaloid/k-pop/j-pop. He loves that type of music so much, especially the upbeat songs he can dance to.

Say anything in a different language and Denki is going to think you’re the smartest person on the planet. And then he’s running what you said through Google Translate so he knows what you said. The results are always interesting…

Much like Jay, I see Denki as someone who enjoys skateboarding. He likes being able to do cool tricks to impress you. Just make sure you take some Band-Aids.

When you go on skating dates, you’ll usually end up at a cafe somewhere. Denki’s also a fan of boba and he’s slowly working his way through the entire menu at his favourite boba place.

Loves playing games with you. Whether it’s tabletop RPGs, video games, or board games in general, he doesn’t mind.

He has a preference towards video games, but honestly, as long as he gets to spend time with you and have fun, he’s happy with anything.

#writing #fanfic #matchup #matchup request #request #jujutsu kaisen #gojo satoru #ninjago #jay walker #my hero academia #boku no hero academia #denki kaminari

[burntheedges]

first of all, when can i pick you up and treat you to a lovely meal and we celebrate these VERY WELL DESERVED AND LUCKY 600 FOLLOWERS??

❓question

okay so this is a two parter:

how do you come up with your ideas for these genuinely fun community engagements? the fandom bingo, the words behind the friend gift exchange (the passing notes series), the FIC TRACKER OMG i feel like a little hobbit sometimes with my face up against the door and peaking out through the mail slot as i shove my dirty smut fics through the hole. i wanna run in the sun with you! how can I be a better fandom friend?

You do so much for everyone here, but what do you like to do? Who is your favorite Pedro boy to write for and/or read about?

Kate i am so happy to know you and i am so SO excited for you about this milestone! 🤍🤍🤍

Taylor!! 🧡 thank you!! 😭 I am so happy to know you, too. 💕 and thank you for these fun questions 👀

1. how do you come up with your ideas for these genuinely fun community engagements?

ok first of all I think you are an amazing fandom friend. you're so encouraging to other writers! I felt really welcomed by you from the beginning. and your fics are amazing. 🧡

second, I'm really glad people think they're fun. that's like the best part, probably.

so you mentioned bingo and the notes and the fic tracker. lol so the last one was just me being a data nerd and wanting to know how many words of fanfic I read. like, people always post at the end of the year about how many books they read but I never knew how much fanfic I read (other than it was a lot). and then people liked it so I just made a blank version of the spreadsheet available. part of it is to reblog more fic but I got that idea from @katareyoudrilling's year of asks and how much fun it is when we engage with each other on here.

for bingo, I think that's me being a teacher. 😂 let me give the fandom ~an activity~ lol (it's like something I would do in class to make people talk to each other). and it seemed like a good way to get people to interact more? I also love making things in Canva, it satisfies my art/crafty itch.

for the notes, I am a sucker for a gift exchange. like, I can very easily over commit myself and I'm trying not to be that way about writing, so it stays fun and not like a chore. but as soon as I saw the challenge I could feel myself getting carried away -- I just tried to limit the length of what I wrote. part of it is that they gave us so much lead time so my brain could just be like "wait here's another idea" and then we ended up with 12. I'm making myself be more chill right now in exchange (which is why we're voting on one fic for this celebration instead of me writing more).

but if you meant inspiration for the notes, some of them came to me easily, but some I pondered more. generally they were based on conversations I'd had with each person.

I guess overall I'm just trying to be a more interactive fan? this is the first time in a loooong time that I'm like an active participant in a fandom and it's been really fun. so my hope would be that everyone can have fun.

2. what do you like to do? Who is your favorite Pedro boy to write for and/or read about?

I've noticed that as I write more I have less time to read (of course) which I'm still balancing. I've been reading fic for like... forever. decades. so I do try to keep reading, because obviously I enjoy it. there are a bunch on my tbr (aka open tabs on my phone) and I'm trying to catch up. I should have more time because work is slowing down soon.

current favorite to write about: Joel (lol is it obvious) with Din as a growing close second, but Frankie, too (I had a new Joel idea last night and I need it to chill out because I have some challenges to work on)

current favorite to read about: I'll always read a Joel or Din fic, but I've been enjoying Marcus Moreno? and Dieter

🧡

followers celebration

#bte600 #writing #fandom games #fanfic #followers celebration #joel miller

[timelessbibliophile]

I wish I could fully escape the alphabet show on Twitter but that’s hard when I have moots still talking about it. Currently on Twitter and this post says “say something BAD about this show (hsmtmts) and the fact that so many ppl are saying Gicky stans just give me a sense of joy. Like I’m glad I’m not the only one who sees how toxic they are as human beings. One person joined and then left a week later because of how terrible they are. I looked through all the quotes and of course I saw people hating Portwell but there wasn’t many people saying the stans SPECIFICALLY which is good cause that screams that Portwell’s weren’t too much of a problem. Some of the people saying Gicky stans weren’t even full fan accounts, they just stated their opinion on Gicky one time and all hell broke loose for them as they got attacked by all the toxic fan pages. Feels great not having to deal with them anymore although my timeline is about to be hell when it releases. Hopefully after a month or two it’ll die down and I’ll never have to see this show again

I won't say every single one of them is, because I know I wouldn't want it if they generalized about pws, and because i also know a couple rinas with whom i can have an actual conversation with (love you if you see this lol), but my experience with 90% of the rina fandom has been negative. They either call me racist or mysoginistic or stupid or any other name for not stanning Gina to the end.

I know the pw fandom (at least on tumblr) has died down for 2 reasons. 1, obviously pw is no longer together and many people were disappointed, but also 2, because the rinas bullied them out of here. It's not cool to bully people when you don't agree with them, or call them names for not liking your fav (which is valid w/o a reason, but it's also valid WITH a reason, which i know every pw who dislikes Gina and/or Ricky HAS a reason. And btw, most pw stans are also Gina stans, idk where y'all get the idea that we don't like Gina).

I always say this when I answer these types of asks but i'll say it again:

BULLYING ISN'T OKAY NEITHER FOR RINAS OR PORTWELLS.

I'm so sick and tired of this fandom being so divided that we even drive new people away with our stupid ship wars and online fights. It's honestly embarrassing for all of us who are still active in this fandom, and I include myself because I know sometimes I contribute to the ship wars that drive people away, although I really try not to.

I try to be a positive person, even when i'm critiquing the show for things they could've done better/things i think kinda sucked, i try to stay in my lane and not shame anyone who DOES like the things I dislike about it. I must admit, though, it's very, very hard to be positive when i'm constantly being sent anonymous hate. I know a couple more accounts who just stopped posting or closed their asks because it was getting ridiculous how much bs they had to deal with. Which again, I find embarrassing.

I wish we could all just enjoy this show without tearing each other apart. I wish we could be one of those fandoms that's known on the internet for just being super chill (The Lunar Chronicles fandom, The Dragon Prince fandom, the Renegades fandom, etc).

Most of us go online because we want to be a part of a community that loves and enjoys the same things we do, so why can't we just be that? Love and respect each other despite having very different thoughts and ships and fav characters.

#hsmtmts #this ask was talking about rina stans because they're loudest one atm #but ALL of us got work to do man #everyone is tired of everyone and we gotta change that #maybe after s4 is out we'll all just bond out of nostalgia and we'll finally be a positive fandom lol

[ghostofashina]

Fanfiction about me tag meme!

Tagged by @princeparakeet <3 thanks

How many works do you have on AO3?

26. Sometimes it feels I do nothing else than write fanfictions, but I do. I swear. I play the games I write about. :D

2. What is your AO3 wordcount?

214,891K. An absurd amount of smut and angst. Sorry not sorry.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Mostly Sekiro (11 works), but I write about fromsoftware games in general, except Dark Souls (I failed at playing it). Also, Baldur's Gate 3 but it's more a self-indulgence writing about my original characters. And, surprisingly, I also write about Rings of Power.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Hana no Michi — Sekiro/Emma, 171. [my very first english fanfiction and the first about my otp]

An Edge of Despair — Adar/Arondir, 76.

Once Upon a Dream Now a Memory — Cal Kestis/Dagan Gera, 75. [the only star wars fanfiction i sworn to write in my entire life]

Sharp Memories of a Gentle Blade — Sekiro/Emma, Genichiro/Emma, 69.

The Scars Upon his Skin — Adar/Arondir, 43.

5. Do you respond to comments?

Always. Even if I take a long time to do, and sometimes I really take a long time, mostly because I'm doing something else. Sorry, by the way. Adult life just sucks, things are always constantly happening.

6. What is the fic you wrote with angstiest ending?

Ah. Could be Genichiro/Emma fic. They are very angst, I love it. But actually I think it is a Lady Maria/Eileen (Bloodborne). Every time I write about them it goes to Maria's tragic ending, so it always leaves a sour taste in the mouth. But also, I'm always writing angts stuff.

7. What is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

My newest Sekiro/Emma fic, it's all fluff and tender. But I like to think that Fever Dreams (Genichiro/Emma) also has a veeeery happy ending hehe. If you know, you know.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Not on fics. Sekiro's fandom is really chill and I love it to death, it's really peaceful, we're just glad people are making content in the end. But, I've got some about my other pairings, especially Adar/Arondir, but never on my fics.

9. Do you write smut? If so, which kind?

I do, a lot. Of any kind. I see sexual dynamics as a sort of expressions of those characters, so I'll be exploring every trait that fits them in that dynamic. So it can be very sweet or it can be very violent. It really depends on the pairing and the context. For example, I really love to write somnophilia between Emma and Genichiro because it's about control and he is all about control.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest crossover you've ever written?

Not yet, but I plan to write a Kuro and Miquella crossover fanfic when the Elden Ring DLC comes out so I can figure it out what is Miquella's deal. I think they are very similar and would have a nice dynamic to explore.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't believe so. My ships are mostly very unpopular. But if anyone would use a prompt of mine, I wouldn't mind. Even if its something very specific like Memory of Shura.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes, I translate my own fics. After all, I'm brazilian and sometimes I write in portuguese and translate to english or write in english and translate it to portuguese.

13. Have you everco-written a fic before?

No, I'm a control freak. I could never.

14. What's you all-time favorite ship?

It got to be Sekiro/Emma. I just loved their dynamic the second I put my eyes on them. It's very subtle and simple, it's implied they have far more story than its shown. They never actually interact romantically, but there's room enough for imagination to run free. I could talkabout them all day long, so I'll just shut up. But, I do also really came to love Genichiro/Emma because of those same reasons.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

Gosh, so many! Hm, I have one called "Rebel, Royal Blue" it's Genichiro/Emma inspired by Pride and Prejudice, but it's a long fic, and I've had enough of writing longfics, even so I love that WIP so much, I really want to finish it. At the moment, the main goal is to finish Memory of Shura, I'm taking too damn long.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Hm, angst. And a free mind, which means I write about weird stuff and explore every inch of it without putting effort to make a moral compass and tell "this is wrong don't try this at home". I like to believe I'm good at dialogues, but never had any sort of confirmation, so well.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

At the moment, the language barrier. I feel my writing loses power when I'm not writing in my native language and sometimes it can be very tricky or messy.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

It's my current 24/7 job. The hardest part is context, like making a joke you thought in your native language work in your second.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Naruto. Kakashi and Yamato. Been there, done that.

20. Favorite fic you've written?

It's A moment of pain, a memory suspended in time. Again, Sekiro/Emma. I loved writing and suffering every inch of its angst and violence. But gosh, who would I be if I didn't say I'm really proud of Memory of Shura? It's the union of my favorite things in the world: Sekiro and Guillermo del Toro. It's very ambitious and very hard, I've putting a lot of effort in it and I'm in love with it.

Tagging: @blackcatofsky <3

#gosh i can't shut up #tagging game #fanfiction #ao3 fanfic #thanks for tagging <3

[alarrytale]

Little confession because I don´t know to who I can write my heart out.

So recently I became Niall´s big fan after attending his 2 shows, his music and some mix from 1D is the only music I´m listening right now and I have to say it´s such a relief to be his fan for so many reasons. I´ll probably compare something that´s uncomparable but still... His shows are in such a great mood because there are no gaslighted/in-denial fans like solo het/gf harries, everyone´s here for his music, his charm and genuine personality. So many larries and otp5/4 around wearing 1D or Louis merch and it´s such a safe space.

There´s absolutely no drama around him, he´s doesn´t need to be the blank canvas for his fans and be that mysterious person just like H has to be. And so he´s able to be very active on sm and it´s just very nice fans service. He got great photographer and so his tour content is great and really shows the atmosphere of his shows including backstage videos.

And I know he´s probably not closeted and so he doesn´t have to stunt to gaslight his fans, no tabloid drama, no queerbaiting accussations ´cause he´s straight and gay in the same time, no stunt pap walks, no anxiety when some sighting of him and his gf (whenever she´s real or a beard ´cause honestly idc about his relationship at all) will drop and include pda and face licking.

Writing this makes me really wonder if I actually want to be H´s fan. Like I will be larrie because I believe in them and their love and their cute ongoing pattern but I´m just tired of his super overhyped image, I´m tired of HS TM who´s the new legend/icon/changing the history/whatever bs they write about him when he´s just a regular singer who may be talented but wouldn´t be what he is without that huge hype from his label because they choose him to be their golden goose.

And so I´m not even excited about HS4 because it will be another super hyped promo, his stunt going through our throats as a muse for the album, more grammys and breaking records and more the new Bowie/Prince/Mercury of this generation while the rest of boys should deserve the same attention but they will never get to his level because the weren´t the choosen one.

Hi, anon!

I'm so glad you had fun at Niall's show! Niall is pretty drama free (or people don't care that much about Niall's drama is probably the better way of putting it). He's pretty chill and what you see is what you get. If that is what you like and enjoy, then keep doing it!

Harry is full of drama, so i get how it can all feel pretty tiring and frustrating. I can't tell you what you should feel and what you should do, and there is no right or wrong way to be a fan. I know what i enjoy and what i don't enjoy so i pay attention to the thing i enjoy and try to ignore the rest. Some things can't be ignored though, and you need to see how you feel about it when it when the time comes and he wants your attention and money. It's the time between last tour and new album that's always the hardest on fandom, and that's where we are now. You might change your mind when we get more positive promo from him like interviews, performances and fan service. Just see how you feel, things might change. If not, you've always got drama free Niall to be a fan of!

#fandom #solo niall #solo harry #harry image

[thepalmofyourfreezinghand]

hello. Idk why I'm sending you this message and I just found out about your blog yesterday when I finally decided to check how things were over here. I guess you seem like a level headed person that would appreciate a bit of a different perspective. I know what I'm going to say might sound rough, but just know I don't think all of you are like this.

For a bit of context, I have listened to Taylor's music since Fearless. I'm pretty much an OG swiftie (except I'm not. More on that in a bit). But I never was involved in the fandom in any way. I enjoyed her music alone, know quite a few more personal things and interviews and that was it. Overall a pretty healthy chill experience. I think I consider myself something between a casual listener and a fan.

Shortly before 1989 was released, I kinda moved away from her new music. Pop music was never a favorite of mine and I did not enjoy what I heard from the first singles. So just decided to change interests for a while, but kept listening to her old music. So I missed a lot of drama in between thank goodness cause I hate it tbh.

I actually only came back around 2021 with the re-recordings because of Twitter. I learned a whole bunch about it, stuff that had happened in between and decided to listen to the albuns I missed in the process. In the meanwhile ofc I learned she seemed to finally be in a stable relationship and people seemed to like them. I was never that into her relationships so not much of a different to me. If anything I was glad she was in a healthier place, cause I remember seeing people commenting about the whole CH breakup and suddenly jumping to another TH and thinking girllll you are all about trying to be fine but you are not fine at all mental health wise. I guess you spot these things easier when you study psychology.

So...moving on to the actual reason I'm writing and to the present, I want to say that while I do like Taylor I like her music more. That and the fact that for a few reasons I don't consider myself a swiftie nor I interact with the fandom still today, I think gives me a more unbiased view. I also don't have much to say about Joe cause I know very little about me. This said, I was on Twitter and have been reading all the reactions since the news came out and...it has absolutely been a highly toxic environment to be in.

One of the reasons why I don't interact with the fandom is because I think in general is very toxic. When other fandoms say that, they are right. It's toxic and the way a lot of people see Taylor is unhealthy. The scariest part for me is that some people are aware of this, but feel proud of it.

I think one of the biggest problems for me is how you choose to have selective empathy, selective respect, selective principles. In your head Taylor does no wrong (and if she does, we'll figure a way out to defend right), and you preach for respect for her either because of body-shaming, offensive jokes or whatever it is. Yet that goes all out of the window when it's not about Taylor but someone else, other singer, one of her exes...whatever.

Selective empathy at its finest: Taylor's feelings matter but none else's.

And sometimes even her own fans disrespect her and are misogynists. The same thing they don't admit coming for someone else.

It completely baffles me the way this fandom harasses other people and is proud of it.

If there's one thing I pride myself of is being empathetic towards others, I think sometimes I am even too sensitive. Like I said I did not know much about their relationship, was not attached at all and yet I'm human. I shed quite a few tears, simply because of seeing other people sad and the feelings she out in her songs. Because I know all too well how our mental health takes a toll on us, how hard it is not to constantly overthink things when you've been hurt before, how easy it is to just assume always the worst and how absolutely devastating it is to see your fears coming true.

Yet I'm also a human who understands there's a lot of sides to the same story so I choose not to attack, but to understand. And when that's not possible or my understanding leaves a sour taste in my mouth, I try my best to let go because the reality is I don't know these people, I can't help them and I can really only imagine what they are feeling.

Maybe we should all sometimes have more self awareness to figure out when it's not healthy anymore and we're fighting other people's battles instead of our own.

Thank you so much for your perspective anon, and for typing this all out. I especially agree with the second to last paragraph.

I recently discovered quite a few people in my life are Taylor’s fans, and I simply never knew because they don’t talk about her, they don’t use their socials to defend her from sunrise to sunset, they don’t post frantically about whatever she’s up to, they don’t fight with others over her, they don’t engage in immature content, and they don’t obsess over her. And thus, they don’t create a toxic environment.

On my part, I’ve always followed her: from 2008 to 2012 I followed her from a distance or posted on very old websites for teens hahah, then I had a twitter account where I mostly talked about her in 2012-2016, then during rep era I kept the same level of love for her and her music, but I consumed content passively instead of engaging with it and with other fans actively. I was on Reddit for Lover/folkmore/the re-recordings, and now I’m here writing on Tumblr (I’ve read stuff on here since 2014 but I never engaged with anyone).

And let me tell you, my happiest moments as a Taylor fans are the ones where she’s not in the top 10 of my interests. I still listen to her music, I still read her interviews and watch the videos and save the pictures and think about her and care for her, but being in the trenches as a Taylor fan means being tired, angry and frustrated 24/7, and taking part in a toxic environment. So I think you’re doing the right thing!

[astrxlfinale]

Jace, can I just say that the very first post that you make every day always lifts my mood and puts a smile on my face? It's so evident that you have so much fun on that dear boy, and it's so very contagious. I end up reading almost everything you write, no matter if it's ooc posts, gameplay things, threads, meta, the whole shebang. I just had to leave this here as a little note, in hope it also brightens your day. But thank you. You remain an absolute delight!

The way I frickin screamed due to your ask timing. Considering how much you've made this heartfelt post.

And the peach agenda just happened to be what I posted just mere moments before. FSDAFNDUSINGFs

But okay! Lemme go and get form fitting and appreciative boots on!

Let ME be the one to give some good honest thanks in kind for your loving words here Sae. I'm glad that acclimating into the Star Rail side of things have been more solid than I first imagined. It's not too often I join fandoms at the 'starting' mark so to speak, so I expected it to be an uphill battle!

Yet here Caelus was hitting my personal favorite character archetype of golden hearted (and passion strong) delinquents. It was just a framework I personally felt very excited to get into again. As much as I've experimented with characters, character types and giving a wide branch a genuine shot, in many ways it feels like leaning into this vein of character just feels like home irregardless of the RPC I'm in.

Often times whenever you see me hop around here, the first thing I prioritize is having some good fun, in expected or outright unexpected ways. It makes me pretty excited to just interact in general, to make personal character stories through my shared threads alongside of the game's content itself. Being one of the personifications of the Trailblaze, which often means being a guiding force for adventure just-- it hits so many things for me too? I love the as a general premise for rps.

Much as I love my character connections and depths, a world and it's lore, how it mirrors and bounces off the core concept and characters is just part of the formula for me. As it stands, the varied range that Star Rail introduces to me has gradually reignited my vigor to just go and mold some of my own works out here, and hope everyone who come and chills wit hem can have a genuinely good time themselves.

I'm also glad that at some point of the day, it just gives you a fun read. Whether for a laugh or just to ponder something about the series in question, and urge you to also maneuver you own craft of character study into the mix as well!

Genuinely? That's what the hobby is all about for me at the end of the day. I just want to come on and goof off with people, and to curate this particular space so people get the idea they're just hanging out at a table where they can screw around in kind.

Fite me for putting a smile on my face.

@orchideae out here getting a guy in the feels!

#orchideae #| Shuttle Mail #>:( HMPH

[kimkhimhant]

Genuine question: is twitter (/discord/other fandom circles I don't know about) worse for the "no switching allowed" thing and getting into fights about it than Tumblr? Like how are you running into so many people being awful to you over like a pretty reasonable/tame interpretation of canon/non-existent ship dynamics?? Not meaning to deny your experiences but I personally I haven't seen a huge amount of that on Tumblr or had any real pushback on my own sub/bottom leaning kim fic - I feel a little bit like I've either accidentally been super picky about following chill people and effortlessly dodged all the fandom bullets or you're hanging out with fandom circles that just kinda suck. Sorry the fandom isn't being kind to you of late. I like your stuff and I hope you know you have people in your corner that are excited for whatever you put out there ❤️

hi! so honestly the issue is really just a few people in the fandom – ~3 who have been the most vocal, 2 of them who have had personal issues with me and my characterization & meta posts, and 1 of those 2 who has legitimately bullied me over it, and they've all been people who were active here on tumblr as well as twitter and discord servers, but most of my personal negative experience with that 1 person happened on twitter and discord. and also yeah, in general, twitter is a more hostile environment lol, and people on twitter tend to be loud and proud of everything they hate or disagree with.

it's not so much comments on my fics or whatever, and moreso things that happened in discord discussions or in very targeted posts on twitter and tumblr talking shit about certain portrayals of kim. (including some particularly targeted hate tweets made on days i posted fics, references specific aspects of those fics and talking shit about them lol).

while it may be a pretty small group of people who have been awful, they've been really loud about it and have taken on a superiority complex about their characterization and putting down people who disagree with them, treating them like they're stupid or like they're committing a moral wrong for the way they write kimchay. I have a few friends who have dealt with this and who are seriously considering leaving the fandom entirely because of it.

I haven't publicly talked about the specifics of what happened or with who because i don't think callout culture helps fandom in any way, and also mostly because i'm legitimately scared of what they might do in response. I've had enough of feeling belittled and bullied by them and i don't want to instigate more. (we were originally friends and in small discord servers together, so we interacted a lot, but i do have them blocked here and on twitter now)

I'm really glad that you haven't seen much hostility and that the fandom spaces you occupy have been safe, and i appreciate your support.

i'm sorry i've spent so much time talking about this lately. I was really hurt and seeing other people also hurt over this, and i had been holding these feelings in for months until a recent event made me snap.

anyway, thank you again for your concern and support <3

#benji talks #asks

[formulatrash]

While we are loosely on the topic of IndyCar, I've been getting into other racing series and am planning to actively follow some more this year and the culture shock as a fan is real. I can actually ask questions about IndyCar and FE without getting some smart ass "DTS fan" response, coincidentally with them still being unable to answer my question themselves though. Generally people just stay in their lanes and focus on the teams/drivers they support instead of wasting so much time and energy on the teams/drivers they passionately hate. Death threats and harassment aren't normalized. Maybe the haters aren't the only ones who want to see my favs get "demoted" to IndyCar or FE because they're genuinely so much more chill to follow as a fan. With F1, you can do all the blocking and unfollowing not just on Tumblr, but on websites with a lot of grown 50+ year olds and still come across some of the most file shit you've ever encountered. I've met some great friends through F1 and as a STEM student, love the engineering aspect, but the 24/7, 365 fighting and drama amongst fans doesn't make it fun to follow, it gets old and annoying pretty quick.

in all honesty, it's that lack of exposure thing. people are excited to see other people getting into the smaller series we like cus there aren't very many of us, innit. gotta have people to blorbopost with. love to get the moots in on my nonsense.

(this was, in short version, how I ended up writing about Formula E for years)

the sheer scale of F1 fandom has always been one of its issues, like football fandom. there's no sort of curated community areas where everyone's decent to each other cus there's so many people involved. and there's lots of ways in which the media is responsible for that

I'm glad you mentioned the 50+ year olds cus honestly, it's always been this way. and particularly if you're from any of the demographics not assumed to be somehow naturally an authority on F1. I say 'any of the demographics' - you know exactly the one that gets the pass and then the rest of us can waste our lives proving we know anything and drive ourselves insane or just accept you have to love it in spite of it all.

ultimately, it's on F1 to actually call off the dogs in the sense you can absolutely start effective comms campaigns that address harassment and exclusion. you can breed healthy dialogue, you can put a less combative and rage-fuelled version of the sport out there. but what's happening right now is doing numbers for a series that - and remember this was as recently as 2018 - was absolutely on its knees.

shrinking, ageing viewership was impacting sponsorship while costs escalated, manufacturers all threatening to pull out, brands questioning the point of being involved, media coverage that was shrivelling up and dying, no social and digital presence to speak of, very little visibility outside specialist channels.

F1 has, by a combination of luck and a sort of 'try pressing every button at once and see if something works' managed to reverse those fortunes and now the influencers it didn't understand 5 years ago are clamouring to get in the paddock. that's a good thing! F1 desperately needs attention or else, like a Tumblr user, it will literally die because sponsors are only interested in paying for exposure and F1 needs such vast amounts of money.

so: I'd love F1 to have more fans. my friends who've suddenly got into or back into it the last few years rock. but with great capacity for sponsorship deals comes a huge hot mess of governance, calendar bloat and subterranean discourse.

although Extremely Online F1 Fandom is only a small slice of it all, regardless, which I kinda try to remember.

main thing is: enjoy things how you want to! engage with and boost content you like! block everyone annoying, life is too short.

(I genuinely wish more people would just block me when they find me annoying on Twitter or whatever rather than turn it into a strange obsession. think I'm an idiot? cool, block me. massively more peaceful for us all)

#man i really really want [redacted thing i am manifesting so hard about] to happen #so i can like write more about and speaking to this #but anyway #motorsport asks